Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ
I got this photo from one of the
Seminary of the Southwest's (SSW) webpages. SSW is an Episcopal Seminary in Austin, TX. They rightly view the Church's
mission to live as a "community of friends" They go on to say:
we honor above all this call to friendship - friendship with God the Father through Jesus Christ and in the power of the Holy Spirit. In and through our primary friendship with God, we pursue friendship with each other as well."
Here's something that I've heard from more than one student who was a seminarian at SSW. It isn't always a friendly place. Some people there were more friendly and more reflective of Jesus, the Anointed One's uncompromising love than others. I'm not surprised me that the seminarians I spoke with about SSW experienced difficult encounters and unfriendly relationships there. It isn't easy to live with other Christians in a communal, academic setting. Disciples who live in such close proximity while sharing responsibilities for a community's well-being in stressful settings often disagree over all sorts of issues. Throw in some theological controversies along with different interpretations of scripture and contrarian understandings of lay/ordained ministries and you have all of the necessary ingredients to unsettle and divide almost any close community of friends. Friendships come to an unhappy end unless the friends possess true devotion, respect, and honesty with and for one another. Such friendships require the most difficult sacrifices of all, laying down one's own desires for the deeper and holier needs of a community, friend, or loved one. The Church, our church, is the gathering place for learning how to become loving and friendly followers of Jesus, through the Holy Spirit's and our own patience and perseverance.
Author and historian
Diane Butler Bass recently facilitated a meeting where she was working with a large group of mainline churchgoers who were striving to answer this question: Who are you Christians anyway? I bet that inquiry made for a broad set of responses -- might have even splintered some friendships for at least a moment or two. Who knows what was said? Diane finally offered the participants this
answer:
"Christians are people who do something: They walk the Jesus way by practicing the love God and love of neighbor. Christians participate in a way of life that reflects God's dream of justice, beauty, and love for all creation. We aren't
trying to convince anyone to believe in what we believe; we are trying to live authentically
as Jesus would have us live in today's world.
"
The nature of our hospitality and friendships for God and for one another truly does shape the legitimacy and "truth" of our Christian faith. If we indeed love God and claim to be Jesus' followers then our mission at St. James is to become better friends with God and one another so that we will offer God's Grace and compassion beyond our beloved, friendly community. Such is the nature of Christian Grace at a time and in this place when and where people in the world are becoming increasingly contentious and distant from one another and from a loving God who freely offers to us everything we possess.
Blessings Along The Way, Jim+
