What’s Going on at the Church
“Weighing Truth and Life”
We are living in a time of social and civil instability. For some of us, the way things are unfolding is unrecognizable. While there has always been poor judgment and self-serving administrations, it’s become a matter of degree. Marcus Borg offers some biblical perspectives on these realities.
“At the center of the biblical vision of our life with God is social and political transformation. To use a central metaphor from the gospels, the Christian life is about the kingdom of God. It is about being “born again” and the kingdom of God.
The Bible is political as well as personal. It combines sharp political criticism and passionate advocacy regarding systems of domination and an alternative social vision. Protesting the nightmare of injustice, its central voices proclaim God’s dream of justice, a dream for the earth. Criticism and advocacy are grounded in their understanding of the character and passion of God: a God of love and justice whose passion for our life together is the kingdom of God.
[Before we proceed further] there is a common misunderstanding of God’s justice. Theologically, we have often seen its’ opposite as God’s mercy. God’s justice is understood as punishment for our sins, and mercy is God’s loving forgiveness despite our guilt. This is a distortion. Most often in the Bible, the opposite of God’s justice is not God’s mercy, but human injustice.
Seeing the political passion of the Bible calls us to a politically engaged spirituality. This phrase combines the two transformations, personal and political, at the center of the Christian vision of life as we see it in the Bible and in Jesus.
If we emphasize only one, we miss half of the biblical message, half of the gospel. The strength of much of conservative Christianity is that it has emphasized the first, personal transformation. Its weakness is that it has often neglected the kingdom of God. The strength of much of liberal Christianity is that it has often emphasized the second. Its weakness is that it has often neglected being born again. [Which is the process of dying to an old identity and being born into a new identity, dying to an old way of life and living into a new way of being; a process that continues throughout a lifetime.] So a politically engaged spirituality affirms both spiritual transformation and political transformation. The message of Jesus and the Bible as a whole is about both. What we see in Jesus and the Bible answers our deepest personal longing to be born again, and the world’s greatest need, the kingdom of God.”
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.