Greetings
Good morning friends!
It is good to gather in worship with
all of you this Sunday. I am feeling pretty energized today-it's
been an exciting week! I spent the last two days listening to
inspiring preaching and powerful teaching about the structures of
racial discrimination and institutionalized violence in our society.
It was a stretching experience- challenging both to my way of life
that comfortably enjoys the privileges of my whiteness, and also to
listen to people who sometimes said things that I really really
disagreed with, with some conspiracy theories and pseudo-scientific
nonsense, but I come away inspired to continue the work of social
transformation in a country that has not yet overcome it's sinful and
shameful history.
Equally, I had a wonderful time at
retreat last weekend, and I hope that those of you who made it out
were also blessed by the cool weather, the good company, and Roland
Kuhl's reflections on the church as a mosaic and a parable that God
is speaking into the world.
We have some work ahead of us,
collecting and collating the conversations we have had over the last
couple of months and turning them into a direct kind of proposal for
the congregation, and that is work we are going to do. But I decided
a week or two off from visioning will be good for me, and probably
for all of you as well.
Forgiveness is important.
So lets talk about
forgiveness. We have before us powerful stories-
Joseph, reunited
with his brothers after they betrayed him and sold him into slavery.
Paul, encouraging
people at each other's throats fighting over essential theological
differences to get along.
And Jesus,
encouraging us to forgive seventy-times seven times. (or 490, for
those of us who do not have quite as much poetry in their souls).
And the Bible is
full of these kinds of powerful stories of forgiveness. Jacob,
reunited with Esau, The Prodigal Son are all stories of people
reuniting with one another. And even more are the stories of God's
forgiveness- The Old Testament can be summed up as a story of the
people abandoning God, experiencing the consequences, repenting and
asking for forgiveness, and being restored to the beloved community.
Jesus again and again told the people that he healed “your sins are
forgiven”, often without them ever vocalizing the request. And on
the cross he asked God, “Father forgive them, for they know not
what they do”.
So this is
something that we have to talk about.
