I was very proud of a good friend who took the responsibility
to offer a eulogy at his mom’s funeral. He said that unlike his mom the rest of
the family was “not very religious.” Here was the mom who came to church to
light her candles and pray for her children and grandchildren. She was the one
who did all the cooking at the annual family camping trips. She was the grandma
who beamed with joy when she held her great grandson.
Despite the fact this family did not practice
their faith, they felt it was their mother who held them together by her faith
that God has to be important in our lives. In her kind and humble way, she
believed in God, she prayed to God and she was with God and her children
believed that in their hearts.
People easily get uncomfortable with religions. Some
religions come off strong and say there is only their way to God. Some are
rather bias with who and who can serve in ministry. Others have become
mega-churches with hundreds of families flocking to their services because its
like a Broadway production.
I prefer the following reason for coming to
church as shared by a dear friend when she wrote this card to me with these
words:
”Congratulations on being a “shepherd” for 35
years. I want to thank you for bringing me a message every Sunday. I feel for
the first time in my adult life that I want to be a better person and I want to
thank you for that. You make it real and simple. Our family has been blessed in
many ways but now I have added you to our blessings.”
I have the unique privilege of helping a former
closed parish resurrect themselves into a community that reaches out with the
spirit of Christ’s love. My vocation has taken many turns from inner city
parishes at OLPH to St. Boniface, to country communities in Caledonia and North
Java, serving as chaplain for the Sisters of Mercy, patients and staff at
Strong Memorial Hospital and the wonderful students and professors at Brockport
College. I miss you all.
Simply put, religion may be about rules and
norms, laws and regulations that bind us up in knots and make us afraid and
fell rejected. The true spirit of love is found in the people who make Christ’s
love visible in the everydayness of their lives.
If I have helped you to become a better person. I
give God thanks for this unique vocation that continues this morning as I have
been called out of town to help hundreds of people who are losing their jobs.
Immanuel prays for us as we reflect: “Turn to me
and have mercy on me, show your strength in behalf of your servant, save me,
because I serve you just as my mother did.” (Psalm 86:16
Lord, I pray for all my Sunshine Friends in the
over 60 parishes communities that I have served to help your people become a
better community. Each of you is close to my heart and I will continue to pray that
God brings you comfort and peace. “Shepherd”
