From the Conference Minister: You are not alone
Psalm 130
Out of the depths I cry to you, O LORD.
Lord, hear my voice! Let your ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications!
If you, O LORD, should mark iniquities, Lord, who could stand?
But there is forgiveness with you, so that you may be revered.
I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in his word I hope; my soul waits for the Lord more than those who watch for the morning, more than those who watch for the morning.
Israel, put your hope in the LORD!
For with the LORD there is steadfast love, and with him is great power to redeem.
It is he who will redeem Israel from all its iniquities.
The psalmist’s lament speaks right to where my heart is (I have long appreciated the capacity of the lectionary texts to do that). Our list of supplications is long and grows by the hour. Our hope, as was Israel's, is in the Lord. “For with the Lord there is steadfast love, and with him is great power to redeem.” Even us. Even these difficult days. About these difficult days let me say three things:
First, I have said in several previous messages that decisions about church gatherings (including worship) are made at the local level; that pastors and their key leaders should make their first priority the safety and well-being of their community. I do not have the authority, as your Conference Minister, to tell you not to meet. But I tell you now, that if I had that Authority, none of our 160 congregations would be gathering. The guidance from government agencies, medical professionals and local authorities is clear. For at least the next four weeks no congregation should be gathered to worship. That means the Holy Week will be very different this year than in years past. But I'm not the first to observe that one of the first experiences of the resurrected Christ happened behind locked doors. The resurrected Spirit of Jesus Christ will find you. Wherever you are.
Second, we have declared often that the church is not the building and need to connect with community and new and creative ways. Most of our churches have found ways to do that and I am beyond inspired by their capacity to do so; from the use of the internet to handwritten notes. We have been connecting in Conference Wide Zoom calls and will again this coming
Monday, March 30 at 11:00am
. At the conclusion of that meeting, Rev. Susan Minasian and I will lead all in attendance in a service of virtual communion. You will need to provide your own cup and bread. We’ll provide the liturgy.
I will also lead a
zoom call this Thursday at 3 p.m.
for anyone who would like to be a part of a conversation about James Martin’s New York Times article “Where Is God in a Pandemic?” Even if you cannot join the conversation, I recommend reading the essay that you can find
here
.
Finally our Conference staff is trying to connect with as many of you as possible. We trust that if you have a need for assistance you will reach out to us. Be in touch to let us know what is working for you, what is not, and how we can offer the resources of the conference available to us to assist you.
“[W]ith the LORD there is steadfast love, and with him is great power to redeem.” God cannot do this redeeming by leaving us alone. So let me reassure you that you are not.
In social distancing, You Are Not Alone.
In establishing new life patterns, You Are Not Alone.
In feelings of being overworked and under connected, You Are Not Alone.
In discovering new ways of being Church that often feels clunky and uncertain, You Are Not Alone.
With children under your feet amid a relentless barrage a bad news, You Are Not Alone.
Even in the aloneness of being single or separated, You Are Not Alone.
Israel found redemption in its hope with the Lord. And so will we.
Trust in that and keep the faith,
Pastor Bill
Rev. William Worley
Conference Minister
