“There is nothing more vulnerable than caring for someone; it means not only giving your energy to that which is not you but also caring for that which is beyond or outside your control…To care is not about letting an object go but holding on to an object by letting oneself go, giving oneself over to something that is not one's own.” -Sara Ahmed
Current events has thrust us into multiple areas of caring. At the onset of COVID isolation we were immediately concerned for those who live alone, especially the elderly. Soon our attention turned to children and teachers, churches and pastors, medical workers and first responders, as systems were dismantled, recreated, and overwhelmed. We came to understand the longer-term economic challenges of the shutdown. And then the violence of racism asserted itself in the midst of these myriad challenges.
Again and again we face new levels of adversity, yet again and again we see people respond with compassion, with courage, with commitment. When were told to isolate, people reached out to maintain connection. When our educational, spiritual, and medical systems were challenged, people sacrificed and adapted. When economic crisis loomed, donations of money and food were shared. And, when the violence of racism arose in the midst of all of this, people joined together to say, “no more.” Having lost control, people are letting go.
As we move forward into relaunching in-person worship, we are being forced to reimagine and recreate the experience of corporate worship and gathered community. That has already been happening as teams meet via Zoom, people gather for study, and we expand the definition of gathering across hundreds, and even thousands, of miles. When we gather it will be different because of our caring for others, our letting go of control, our giving of energy to things beyond ourselves. In our relaunch we will reclaim Christ’s sacrificial love.
Peace for the journey,
Pastor Steve
Current events has thrust us into multiple areas of caring. At the onset of COVID isolation we were immediately concerned for those who live alone, especially the elderly. Soon our attention turned to children and teachers, churches and pastors, medical workers and first responders, as systems were dismantled, recreated, and overwhelmed. We came to understand the longer-term economic challenges of the shutdown. And then the violence of racism asserted itself in the midst of these myriad challenges.
Again and again we face new levels of adversity, yet again and again we see people respond with compassion, with courage, with commitment. When were told to isolate, people reached out to maintain connection. When our educational, spiritual, and medical systems were challenged, people sacrificed and adapted. When economic crisis loomed, donations of money and food were shared. And, when the violence of racism arose in the midst of all of this, people joined together to say, “no more.” Having lost control, people are letting go.
As we move forward into relaunching in-person worship, we are being forced to reimagine and recreate the experience of corporate worship and gathered community. That has already been happening as teams meet via Zoom, people gather for study, and we expand the definition of gathering across hundreds, and even thousands, of miles. When we gather it will be different because of our caring for others, our letting go of control, our giving of energy to things beyond ourselves. In our relaunch we will reclaim Christ’s sacrificial love.
Peace for the journey,
Pastor Steve
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