Hello Church,
I want to thank you for the warm welcome I have received here at Union Christian Church (DOC). Being together this Sunday for worship was a truly wonderful. Although it is not ideal, and although it requires a bit of extra work, there is a unique joy in gathering for worship together outside. I am grateful for the space, the energy, and the inspiration to do so. This last week we remembered All Saints' Day together. Thank you for sharing the names of some of those who have shaped your life and faith. If you haven't been able to do so yet, it is not too late. I would love to hear about those who have shaped you, including a sentence or two about how. Being out in the field together for worship reminds me of some of the saints of my youth, family friends, and neighbors.
For many years while I was growing up, my family grew alfalfa. We grew and cut the hay. Our Mennonite neighbors, the Yoders, baled the hay. And we all hauled it to the barn together. Although we had radically different social and church practices, and sometimes contradictory theological views, we were extremely close. One of the things I learned from the Yoders was the meaning of hospitality. There was never a word spoken about it, it just soaked in. I got to witness in our work together, and in our exchanging invitations to share community events together, the kind of radical, wide open hospitality God calls us to. "Welcome neighbor, come on in. We'll treat you like part of the family, no requirements, no expectations. We'll take care of you, and enjoy having you with us."
I believe I see that same kind of hospitality here in the Union community. I see more than a desire to share your story. I see a desire to hear, listen to, and perhaps even experience and embrace the sometimes dramatically different stories of our Union neighbors. May we continue to strive to open our space and our hearts to our neighbors. May we continue to summon the courage to walk our neighbor's paths with them, even when they seem unrecognizable to us. That, I believe, is God's radical hospitality.
Grace and Peace,
Pastor Alan