The communities of faith that we hear
about in the Acts of the Apostles are challenged over and over by Jesus’
commandment to love. They value God’s love, they value Jesus’ love thus how
they live, grow and change as a community of faith demands that they extend
this love to others. The laws, the rules, the regulations change because the
community tries to be inclusive and loving. The community tries to look beyond
its small world to a larger world. It is not easy. It takes openness, dialog,
discussion and sometimes change.
I was told by a friend that someone in
church leadership recently wrote an article about the challenges of being a
community of faith these days. (I must say I have not read the article.) This
leader used an example from his childhood about having to wash his dirty hands
before eating. It was a rule in his family and even if there were guests they
had to wash their dirty hands before eating. A simple story and one that many can
relate to I certainly can as hand washing before meals was a rule in my house
too.
However, to use the washing of dirty
hands to address the complex struggles inclusion in the church today seems a
bit simplistic and invalid. Imaging people dealing with weighty issues like
sexuality, sexual orientation, birth control, marriage, divorce, just to name a
few, as simply people with dirty hands seems a bit simplistic. Equating the washing
dirty hands with some profound struggles in life seems disrespectful to people
created in the image and likeness of God.
Yes, we have many challenges to the
community of faith today. Yes, there are no easy answers which makes the job of
leadership and faith difficult but to say all people have to do is wash their
hands make no sense to me!
God’s love, Jesus’ love is a gift and
yes there is a condition, the condition is our love for God, for others and for
ourselves. The condition is not easy within the human condition and it is
certainly not as simple as washing our hands. The early church knew this and I
think so do we!
Daily Prayer: O God of great
love, open our hearts to the gift of your love this day and always. Help us to
see your image and likeness in ourselves and in everyone we meet. Grace us with
the wisdom to learn, to listen, to discuss, to discern and to grow. Enable us
to move beyond what stifles growth so that your joy will always be within us
and that our joy will always be complete through the hope of a world made new. Amen!
Runner’s Thought: When we run
today let us remember that our breath comes from God. At the moment of creation
God breathed life into us. That breath started our heart. So as we take the
first steps of our run today and everyday let us once again breath in the breath
of God. Let us make God part of our run, let us make God part of our life!
Thursday blessings to all! I hope this
finds you well and having a good day. I ran across a little saying the other
day, “Prayer may not change things for you, but it for sure changes you for
things.” I will say a little prayer for you today! Peace in Christ’s Passion
and Hope in the Risen Lord…Fr. Paul
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