St. Paul’s United Church Sunday, May 28, 2006
We Are One – Rev. David Mundy
Acts 1: 15-17, 21-26 John 17:6-21
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You couldn’t help but notice the
bulletin cover this morning which features the crest of the United Church of
Canada. This crest was developed for our denomination when it came into being
in June of 1925, eighty one years ago. At that time three denominations, the
Methodists and the Congregationalists and the Presbyterians (at least most of
them) agreed to unite as one new church for the sake of a more effective
ministry and mission in this country. It was a bold and Spirit-led initiative
given that churches seem to be much more skilled at dividing rather than
uniting.
The description on the back of the
bulletin does a very good job of describing the symbols on the United Church
crest, the shape of the crest itself, and what the Latin words mean.
As you may have read, the crest is
actually in the shape of a fish, which was a secretive way for one Christian to
be identified to another in the early days when believers were subject to
persecution. What appears to be a large X at the centre is a symbol of Christ,
coming from the Greek word for Christ.
Obviously those first United Church
members were quite learned because along with the Greek there are Latin words
which are translated “that they may all be one.” These words are from
the seventeenth chapter of the gospel of John, the passage which we heard this
morning.
The crest looks so tidy and
contained and the phrase which became our motto is so encouraging. What isn’t
always told in this story is that the prospect of the union of these
denominations generated a great deal of heat, as well as light. People were not
all “one” as the new
motto encouraged. In some towns and villages long-time friends
stopped speaking with one another. In many communities members walked out of
their churches, never to return. Families were divided over the issue, often bitterly.
There are tales of husbands and wives choosing to attend different
congregations after union, which must have made for interesting pillow talk –
if they actually continued to share the same bed!
Just the same, on June 10, 1925,
thousands of Christians assembled in a hockey arena in Toronto – how
appropriate -- and worshipped their way into the United Church of Canada. Of
course the United Church has
continued to exist with all its ups and downs along the way and
it is still the largest Protestant denomination in Canada. We still try to
figure out how we can be “one,” in the spirit of Christ, even though we don’t
always agree.
Before Christianity was even called
Christianity, Jesus
and a group of his followers gathered for a final meal together. The four
gospels of the New Testament all tell us about this meal, although in very
different ways. In John, the gospel we heard from this morning, Jesus has a
great deal to say as he is about to depart from this life. There are several chapters
of what scholars have come to call the Farewell Discourse. To be honest, some
of it sounds like a lecture in a theological college rather than the talk
around a dinner table. At the same time, some of the most deeply meaningful
sayings of Jesus are found in this discourse including these words:
I ask not only on behalf of these, but also on behalf of those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one. As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. John 17:20-21
While Jesus’ disciples are
encouraged to be united in their mission and in their devotion to Jesus we know
that they weren’t. Even though they had been listening to the same parables and
teaching, and witness to the same healings and other life-changing events they
came to different conclusions. It has been speculated that Judas turned Jesus
over to the religious authorities because he became impatient with Jesus’
message of peace and wanted Jesus to act like a decisive leader.
Even after the strange and wonderful
experience of Pentecost revitalized and refocused those first believers they
struggled to get along. Peter and Paul, arguably the two pivotal figures of the
early Christian movement, were at odds for a time, unable to agree on what it
meant to be Christ’s people. We can be grateful that their desire to be
faithful to Christ and to share the message of grace and love and new life
prevailed, but it obviously wasn’t easy.
We are one. Is it one of those
mottos that can mean everything and nothing, don’t you think? We used to call
them “motherhood statements” before our politically correct times. I’m not sure
what we call them now, but you understand. Our challenge is that we are called
to be “one” as the people of Christ not in vague terms, but in real ways on
Sunday, May 28th , 2006.
Choosing to become one in Christ
today and every day requires effort, and brings with it certain risks which we
don’t always want to take.
We know that some congregations
develop a culture of division. We hear stories of how folk in some churches are
perpetually squabbling. Efforts at mediation don’t seem to work and they get
the reputation as cranky congregations. When I began my ministry in outport Newfoundland I served five congregations. Shortly
after I arrived folk began to tell me that one of the five churches – the
biggest – was fighting all the time. The people who told me this seemed to
think it was humorous. I can tell you that it wasn’t funny. Who wants to be
that way?
Other congregations choose to avoid
controversy in the hope that nothing bad can happen if we just don’t address
the tough stuff. Does that actually work?
We can choose to sweep our difficult stuff under the carpet, but after a
while we start tripping over the lumps and the bumps.
Not long ago we had an overnight
visit by a dear friend from our teen years who has been married almost as long
as we have. Over time she has shared with us that she and her husband have
never had an argument or exchanged harsh words. Never! That probably sounds
like a colossal lie or an idyllic marriage, but it was neither. It was
avoidance. They didn’t talk about money or finances or vacations or
child-rearing – at least not in a way that was open and honest. So after 25-plus years of marriage they
parted company.
As we chatted our friend admitted
that they had experienced more open conversations as they planned their
separation than they ever did while they raised a family and were supposed life
partners. Unfortunately this hasn’t been enough to rekindle the love which had
brought them together in the first place. Why didn’t they talk together over
the important things of life? Perhaps it was fear of confrontation.
Unity in Christ is not a passive, “I
hope it will all work out” enterprise. It requires the very best of our
thinking, our speaking, our praying, our acting. And
it requires our willingness to be in conversation with one another, even when
we really don’t feel like talking or are worried about the outcome.
William Isaacs has written a book called, Dialogue and the Art of Thinking Together, which is actually about effective collaboration in the business world. He has this to say about how people can speak and work creatively:
Dialogue... is a conversation with a center, not sides. It is a way of taking the energy of our differences and channeling it toward something that has never been created before. It lifts us out of polarization and into a greater common sense, and is thereby a means for accessing the intelligence and coordinated power of groups of people.
This is helpful, but we need to take
it a step farther as Christians, and I will humbly offer this paraphrase of
Isaacs’ observation:
Dialogue... is a conversation with a center, not sides. It is a way of taking the energy of our differences and channeling it toward something that has never been created before. The Holy Spirit lifts us out of polarization and into a greater common sense, and is thereby a means for accessing the intelligence and coordinated power of the Christian community and the living, present Christ .
All of this brings us to Sunday May
28th, 2006 as the St. Paul’s Bowmanville
congregation. When worship ends we will discuss our marriage policy, which is
fairly straightforward, and whether that policy will be extended to same-gender
couples which is not so straightforward.
When I saw that the gospel passage
for this day is this passage from John I figured that God a great sense of
timing, or a wonderful sense of humour, or both! It would be wonderful if we
could come to a decision where we are of one heart and mind today. It would be
wonderful if our vote could be as contained and clear as our United Church
crest.
It’s unlikely that this will happen.
Already a number of our members have spoken to me. Virtually everyone has been
thoughtful and civil, although I have heard everything from unequivocally “no”
to emphatically “yes” and most of the possibilities in between.
One young mother sent me an email in which she wrestles with it all and then muses, “I think this is probably one of the first times in my life, I've had to actually do some soul searching, lots of Bible reading and discussing with friends/family, to come up with my own opinion on a religious issue. I feel empowered, yet nervous...I feel like God almost left us with not knowing on purpose.”
Christ
is with us today. Christ is our centre. Christ encourages to
be “one” in him, even
with our differences. We can pray that this is so. Prayer is always a good
choice for Christ’s people, so I will close with this prayer from Miriam
Therese Winter, the Roman Catholic nun who is probably better known a
song-writer.
Living God,
Loving God,
You are the source
of all that is,
and all that is
is holy
when it seeks itself in You.
You are the bond
that unites us all
and erases all division.
May we be one
as You are one in us
and we in You.
Amen.