Together We Are the Resurrection and the Life
In my household we have begun to prepare The Morgan Express for our next adventure. Yesterday we made sure it started up after sitting since May and took it for a drive. We’re having a trailer hitch put on next week so we can install a “back deck” for carrying scooters or other things.
It’s exciting to get ready for a new trip. We have plotted our route and made plans to stay with family and friends along the way. The highlight will be camping in Provincetown after having reconnected with folx in New York and Massachusetts. I can almost smell the ocean air.
While this summer’s journey will be a lot shorter than last summer’s, it’s still exciting and we are looking forward to it. We will reconnect with family and friends and spend time at the ocean. I look forward to the renewal that comes from being with loved ones and feeling sand between my toes.
Preparing for this trip has me thinking about summers past, especially last summer. And it has me wondering if you all remember when I invited you to think about faith as an adventure. Do you? How is that going?
The dictionary defines adventure as “an unusual and exciting, typically hazardous, experience or activity.” While I hope you have all avoided any hazardous experiences, I do hope that there has been some unusual and exciting experiences as you have explored your faith.
This summer at Living Table, we’ve been talking about what it means to be Christian through the I Am Statements in John’s gospel. It’s not easy these days. I’m not sure it’s ever been easy to be Christian, I mean to truly follow Jesus’ teachings. It’s always been risky if we take it seriously.
The banning of books. The banning of Critical Race Theory. The anti-Trans laws. The anti-Queer laws. The anti-reproductive rights laws. The attempts at erasing Black history. The unwillingness to recognize the needs of people who live at the margins of society. The reluctance to acknowledge the damage we have done to the planet. And more…
When we consider these social ills and others, where does faith lead us? Are you moved to do something differently? Are you moved to respond in some way. What has faith changed in you?
Jesus was a revolutionary. He challenged Empire at every turn. He did it in big ways and small ways. Bringing loving-kindness into the world everyday challenges Empire. Loving our neighbors, ourselves, and the whole of Creation challenges Empire also.
We aren’t all world-changers. Yet, we, too are the resurrection and the life which means we can be lifesavers, changing the world one small act of kindness at a time. This is the adventure of faith. We move out of what is comfortable for us to ensure that everyone’s humanity and divinity is recognized.
May the adventures continue, preferably without hazardous conditions. May faith lead you to the unusual and the exciting, the challenging and the joy-filled. And if you are in a place of exhaustion, just be and let the rest of this loving community bear you up. It truly takes all of us to embody Christ.
Together, we are the resurrection and the life that is desperately needed in the world today. Adventure on…
About Rachael Keefe
Rev. Dr. Rachael Keefe is the pastor of Living Table United Church of Christ. She was called to Living Table in 2015 after serving in many varied ministry settings since her ordination in 1992. She holds graduate degrees from Princeton Theological Seminary and Andover Newton Seminary at Yale (formerly Andover Newton Theological School). Her ministry and leadership often center around advocacy and accessibility. Her writing has been published by Chalice Press, The Christian Century, Red Letter Christians, Working Preacher, RevGalBlogPals, and others. She is grateful to be in ministry with Living Table today.
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A friend of mine used to say, “If you don’t get lost, it’s not an adventure.” She was talking about road trips, but I think it can be applied to your spiritual journey. In other words, if we really try, we will surely stumble; but if we don’t even try, we may get the false impression that everything’s fine.
Holly, I love that. Let’s not give or get the false impression that everything’s fine!