Martina McBride sings song which begins: "In this time in which we live....". I ask: What can the Church offer to life? How can the Church be "God's praxis"? What good is the Church? Recently, a TV piece focused on thriving construction projects: building churches! In some instances, building churches was keeping construction companies afloat. Not houses but churches! This must mean something.
In the words of a Ray Makeever song: "What Have We to Offer?", I build upon the FIVE PROMISES within the Affirmation of Baptism of the ELCA. The Church makes FIVE PROMISES to the world, thereby calling all the faithful to fulfill these promises.
COMMUNITY. The Church provides a people, a place, and opportunities for people to come together for fellowship and learning. Bring on the pot lucks, the Bible studies, the small groups, the opportunities to connect. No money required, no racial or gender or economic qualifications required. Just come. Come off the streets, from apartments, condos, single family homes, from all nations, just come on in. All are welcome! We are all part of the same family of God. "How sweet it is for people to dwell together in unity." (Psalm 133:1) Community is the Church's praxis.
WORSHIP: Come and worship God in Christ. Discover your purpose by yielding to Christ. Let Jesus be the central focus of life. Worship says life is not simply about "me", but instead about life discovered and re-energized through adoration of the Christ. As Bonhoeffer says: "Christ is the center" around which and through which life is lived. Call Christ the Sun in the swirling galaxy of life. Without the Sun there is no gravity holding us together. Living in Christ frees us to live for each other. Living in Christ revives the heart. Worship opens us to hear of God's grace, grace that loves us where and as we are, without qualification. Grace speaks forgiveness, reconciliation, and transformation. "Behold, I make all things new!" Worship, coupled with Word and Sacrament, ensures this renewal. Worship is the Church's praxis.
TELLING: We are graced to tell others about Jesus. Telling is sharing the Good News of God in Christ. Telling feeds the soul. Telling gives purpose to life. Verbalizing our faith gives spirit to ourselves and to others. Words matter. Words ignited the Holocaust. Words hurt each other. Words express our affections. Words enable friendship. Words in the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and the Declaration of Independence reflect who we are as a nation. The creeds of the Church reflect our identity as disciples of Christ. Words spark action. God's grace gives us words of God to inspire, to comfort, to give hope. Telling makes God's grace real. These words are God's promises to us. Telling is the Church's praxis.
SERVE: The Church calls and teaches us to care for each other and for the earth. We are created to serve, to be co-creators for life. We are called to give Christ to the world through giving ourselves away for the sake of others. I recall Sydney Carton in A TALE OF TWO CITIES, as he stands before the guillotine, preparing to give his life for another, saying: "It is a far, far better thing to do that I have ever done. It is a far, far better place I go than I have ever been". The faithful life is about serving others and the earth. In this time in which we live, it is easy to turn in upon ourselves in despair and hopelessness. Tolstoy writes: "The sole meaning of life is to serve humanity". The Church teaches us that in Christ we are graced to serve: to show compassion, to listen, to connect, to support, to welcome, to weep with each other, to be the hands of Jesus for each other. People all over are giving desks purchased for the children of Malawi. (See MSNBC.com Look for K.I.N.D.) Serving is the Church's praxis.
WORK FOR JUSTICE AND PEACE: Another song: "Who Will Answer?" I recall the words of Rev. Allan Boesak of South Africa: "We will go before God to be judged, and God will ask us, 'Where are your wounds?' And we will say, 'We have no wounds.' And God will ask, 'Was nothing worth fighting for?'" Someone once said: "If you give a person a fish they can eat for a day. If you teach them to fish they can eat forever. But you must also ask the question 'Who owns the lake?'" And a quote from Jean Donovan, lay missioner murdered in El Salvador: "The Peace Corps left today and my heart sank low. The danger is extreme and they are right to leave.... Now I must assess my own position, because I am not up for suicide. Several times I have decided to leave. I almost could except for the children, the poor abused victims of adult lunacy. Who would care for them? Whose heart would be so hard as to favor the reasonable thing in a sea of their tears and helplessness? Not mine, dear friend, not mine." Working for justice and peace is the Church's praxis.
In this time in which we live, when a sense of purpose is often dimmed or snuffed out, it is good to know the Christ and the Church give us the grace of purpose, the grace of knowing that God has not abandoned us, because God lives for us and we are graced to live for each other.
Peace!
Ron
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