What’s Going on at the Church
“Weighing Truth and Life”
In the season of Lent, especially in liturgical traditions, there is a strong emphasis on declaring what we believe. In the liturgies during Lent, creedal statements about the cross and resurrection are rehearsed. Most of us Presbyterians learned the Apostles Creed by heart. “I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontious Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried…” Theologian Richard Rohr points out some penetrating insights for us to reflect upon.
“Have you ever noticed the huge leap the creed makes between, “born of the Virgin Mary and suffered under Pontius Pilate?” A single comma connects the two statements, and falling into that yawning gap, as if it were a mere detail, is everything Jesus said and did! Did all the things Jesus said and did in those years not count for much? Does the gap explain Christianity’s often dismal record of imitating Jesus’ actual life and teaching?
There are other glaring oversights in the creeds. The Apostles Creed does not once mention love, service, hope, or even forgiveness – anything actually that is remotely actionable. With its emphasis on theory and theology, but no emphasis on praxis, the creed set us on a course we are still following today.
Did you know that the first seven Councils of the Church agreed upon by both East and West were all convened or formally presided over by emperors? This is no small point. Emperors and governments do not tend to be interested in an ethic of love or service or nonviolence, and surely not forgiveness unless it somehow helps them stay in power.
In Franciscan theology, truth is always for the sake of love and not an absolute end in itself, which too often becomes the worship of an ideology. In other words any idea that does not engage the body, the heart, the physical world and the people around us will tend to be more theological problem solving and theory than any real healing of people and institutions – which ironically is about all that Jesus does.” After all is said and done, doing is more important than saying. Jesus was clearly more concerned with what Buddhists call “right action” than with right saying or even with right thinking. Humanity now needs a Jesus who is relevant for real life, physical and concrete, like we are. A Jesus whose life can save us even more than his death; a Jesus we can practically imitate and who sets a bar for what it means to be fully human; and a Christ who is big enough to hold all creation together in one harmonious unity.“
Blessing and Peace, Ed
Looking to donate to our thrift sales?
If you have any furniture to donate, please take a photo of what you have and send the photos to office@1stpresrahway.org. At this time, we’re not accepting clothes or shoes.
Members usually work on Wednesday’s for our sales from 10:30 am -1:30 pm. If that’s not a convenient time for you to drop off donations, other arrangements can be made. Please email the church office and your request will be forwarded to the “sales crew” so they can respond to your inquiry.
As always, thank you to all who donate. Our sales have been a great success this year because of you!
Important Message from the USRC Board of Directors:
Please read these guidelines about Squier Hall and the formation of the USRC Board of Directors, who will be overseeing the groups meeting in Squier.
As part of the guidelines, please use this form if you have any concerns so that they can be addressed.
Interested in Getting Involved?
We have a lot of different ways for you to get involved – short-term projects, one-time opportunities, working with our livestream technology on Sundays, plus much more. Click on the button below to see what we have on our ‘volunteer wish list’. As more opportunities become available, we will be sure to update our listings.