The reflection Don Samuels shared during the conversation following the service on August 7 was powerful and spiritually profound. In it Don shared a story about being asked to speak at a congregation in Southwest Minneapolis about what was going on in North Minneapolis. Attendees were disturbed and moved by what they heard, and they started to invite others into this important conversation.

 

This same group began to meet to pray about North Minneapolis and the neighbors who were living in such difficult circumstances. They were concerned about racial inequities, the quality of the schools, and an entire population of people continually left behind. The group continued to pray, and to get involved in North Minneapolis in small ways. Involvement with neighbors in North Minneapolis made the issues residents face real. Christians from other parts of Minneapolis learned more about their neighbors' gifts, dreams, and opportunities, as well as the challenges and chaos they face daily. Friendships with North Minneapolis residents brought grief and other emotions to the surface. One church leader began to cry as he biked through North Minneapolis, seeing the stark contrast between where he lived and the run down streets and storefronts surrounding him.

 

After a period of praying, befriending, listening, and wondering what God might have them do, one of the participants said, "I can't take it anymore!" Let's contact our legislators and call them together for a meeting at my church. Other churches got wind of this gathering, and a standing room only crowd met with local representatives, demanding that Northside residents receive the same services and opportunities as they had. This led to a meeting with the Governor, made possible by the representatives, and eventually to the establishment of the Peace Foundation, the precursor to the Northside Achievement Zone. Don called what happened here the spiritual practice of "staying in the pain, chaos, and uncertainty, praying and waiting until the bridegroom appears."

 

Who wants to stay in the midst of pain? Most of us do everything to avoid it.  It doesn't feel good, it hurts, and it is deeply uncomfortable. And yet pain is part of life, and it is a big part of the life of people who can't buffer it with meals out, massages, or any of the other little or big pleasures in life.

 

In the book Living Without Enemies: Being Present in the Midst of Violence, authors Samuel Wells and Marcia Owen talk about a spiritual practice called "the silence of solidarity." They practiced it in Durham, North Carolina, during vigils held to remember the victims of gun violence. In a nutshell, concerned Christians reached out to family members and friends of the victims of gun violence and asked if they could join them in a time of prayer and remembering the deceased, at the places where their loved ones were shot.

 

Living Without Enemies describes the silence of solidarity as follows: "in this silence there are no answers, only companionship. There are no explanations, only humility. There is no blame, only common humanity. But that silence of solidarity takes discipline, self-knowledge and many years of practice, because it runs counter to a great many instincts and social conventions. Often we want to speak because we don't want to feel. And sometimes we speak to try to stop people from feeling" (p. 78).  Further, "When everyone stops and stands in that silence together, their souls knit together. It (the vigil) is about offering our loves and our souls, and letting our lives come later. That is a beautiful time, because it creates the moments for God. There are really no words, because there's nothing to say. The people surrender to their sorrow; they surrender to their inability to change what is. And they surrender to their inability to love. It's the silence that speaks God's truth. It lets God speak" (p. 79).

 

Silence, prayer, staying in the pain long enough to hear the truth about others' lives and our own is an important spiritual practice. Not shielding or hiding ourselves from others is an important spiritual practice. Entering the unknown, the vulnerable, the chaotic, and trusting that God will show up and reveal Godself and a way forward, is a spiritual practice. Our God is a God who speaks the truth, who lives the truth, and who dwells everywhere, including the forgotten, sad, and struggling places in our world and lives. Let us wait there, in prayer and hope, for the Bridegroom to appear.