Ash Wednesday Reflection

Rev. Katelyn B. Macrae

February 10, 2016

My Lenten journey started this morning when I couldn’t find the ladder.

I looked all around the building, even in the shed outside, and behind the furnaces in the furnace room.

No ladder.

So I called one of our deacons who was coming to help set the Sanctuary up for Ash Wednesday and she brought a ladder.

We switched out the cloth hanging behind the altar, and the curtains up front.

But, as one project often leads to another, soon we were back in the Deacon’s closet, pulling out boxes and things from time gone by, some still useful, some which had outlived their usefulness.

The church mice have found a home in the Deacon’s closet, and we found evidence of their habitation in the chewed candles from old Advent wreaths.

Apparently mice like wax.

There were some blankets that they had chewed, presumably to make nesting.

Together we disposed of these items and vacuumed the closet out.

In the midst of the detritus, we found some new curtains in a box, waiting, it seemed, to be hung in the Parlor.

And in the way that one project sometimes leads to another.

And in the way that two of us happened to have irons with us, and a ladder, we decided that maybe we should change out the curtains too, just to freshen things up a bit.

And as we were doing this, preparing our church for the change of liturgical seasons, I was reminded of Mary Oliver’s poem, Making the House Ready for the Lord.

Oliver says, “I have swept and washed, but still nothing is as shiny as it should be for you.”

As I begin Lent, I feel that way.

Tonight in the Prayer of Confession, we admitted that nothing is as shiny as it could be for you O God.

I know that there are ways I could live my life differently, treat people with more kindness and respect, practice patience, listen first before talking. Spend more time in prayer.

On Ash Wednesday, we are reminded of our finitude. We come from dust and we return to dust.

On Ash Wednesday, we are also reminded of what God can do with dust.

For in the beginning it was God who breathed life into the dust.

And creation has been spinning on every since. But every once in awhile it is good to pause and remember where we came from, who created us, and why we are here.

I cherish these forty days and 6 Sundays of Lent. I value this season of preparation, penitence, reflection, and prayer.

My spirit needs renewal.

Tonight we pray, create in me a clean heart O Lord, and renew a right spirit within me.

At its core, Lent isn’t about giving up chocolate or trying to be holier or more pious than the person next to us in the pew.  

Lent is about taking time to make our hearts ready for the Lord again.

The Lord who fashioned us from the dust, and to who we will return to at the end of our days.

Friends, It is time to clean out the cobwebs, and sort through the mental and physical detritus that has accumulated since last year. It’s time to get rid of those behaviors and thoughts that keep us away from God, and see what surprises might be found in the process of making our hearts and homes ready for the Lord.

POEM

Making the House Ready for the Lord by Mary Oliver

Dear Lord, I have swept and I have washed but
still nothing is as shining as it should be
for you. Under the sink, for example, is an
uproar of miceit is the season of their
many children. What shall I do? And under the eaves
and through the walls the squirrels
have gnawed their ragged entrances but it is the season
when they need shelter, so what shall I do? And
the raccoon limps into the kitchen and opens the cupboard
while the dog snores, the cat hugs the pillow;
what shall I do? Beautiful is the new snow falling
in the yard and the fox who is staring boldly
up the path, to the door. And still I believe you will
come, Lord: you will, when I speak to the fox,
the sparrow, the lost dog, the shivering sea-goose, know
that really I am speaking to you whenever I say,
as I do all morning and afternoon: Come in, Come in.

As we make ourselves ready for the Lord in this season of Lent, may we be bold and humble enough to ask God to “come in”

To renew us, refresh us, and restore us.

For this is the gift and the grace of Lent. Amen. 

Spirits Under Construction - July 19, 2015

Spirits Under Construction

July 19, 2015

Rev. Katelyn B. Macrae, Richmond Congregational Church, UCC

2 Samuel 7:1-14a

Ephesians 2:11-22

Prayer: Dear God, may the words of my mouth and the meditations of all of our hearts be acceptable in your sight. O God our Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer. Amen.

Introduction

I was once on a planning committee for a church retreat held at the local church camp in Maine. Our theme was “Spirits Under Construction.” I went up early to help get ready for the weekend. We had all kinds of construction themed stuff to decorate with – hammers and buckets of nails, hard hats, and also caution tape. The yellow and black kind that they use at construction sites. I was really excited about the caution tape and took it upon myself to decorate and put it up on some of the trees lining the dirt road going into camp.

Well, the camp director drove into camp that afternoon and saw all of this caution tape and wondered if, unbeknownst to him, there was some kind of crime scene at camp…

Not exactly the intended reaction to my caution tape extravaganza -

Thinking about this moment now from a management perspective I can see why the camp director may have reacted this way!

I also see how beyond just setting the scene for a theme, this idea of Spirits under Construction is one that should be approached with caution, that it might be even dangerous and cause us to don a hard hat!

For the reality is that our lives, especially our spiritual lives, are like a permanent construction zone!

Sometimes we are in a building mode as we draw closer to God and soar to new spiritual heights, and sometimes our Spirits need some renovation.

We need to tear down walls, replace some rotten sills of belief, or get rid of the carpenter ants of sin that have made their way into the places in our Spirits that we cannot see until we begin peeling back layers. 

Our two biblical texts today give us two different examples of how our Spirits are constantly under construction. The first story is in Second Samuel and picks up from where we left off last week with King David bringing the Ark of the Covenant into Jerusalem.

Part 1: 2 Samuel 7:1-14a

King David was in a building mood!  As he was establishing himself as the ruler of Israel, he wanted to build a fitting Temple to house the Ark of the Covenant. For those of you who were here last week, we reenacted bringing the Ark of the Covenant into the city of Jerusalem with dancing and tambourines. The Ark of the Covenant was believed to be where the Holy One dwelled. It had on it two cherubim guarding the mercy seat, the place where the Holy One was thought to have sat. Whoever was in the possession of the Ark of the Covenant had an awesome responsibility.

Once in Jerusalem David made a temporary tent for the ark up on a hill, a seemingly appropriate place for God to dwell.

And then David set about making plans for his construction project. David wants to build a house for God, but God, speaking through the prophet Nathan says, David do not build me a house, instead, I will build a house for you.

Since the Ark had been constructed, this is the first time we see God moving from particularity to expansiveness. Instead of being the God of a particular tribe, God says, “I don’t want to be confined just to this place, my work is about more than that. I have a different construction project in mind.” Instead of David building a literal house of worship, God sets about building a household. This marks the start of the Davidic dynasty – a legacy which will stretch to Jesus.

Part 2: Ephesians 2:11-22

As we move from the Old Testament to the New Testament, God’s building project continues. In today’s scripture we enter Ephesus. Ephesus was an important coastal city in what is today Turkey.

In Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, Paul writes to an early church community that is divided. The Jews and the Gentiles (or as you heard the circumcised and the uncircumcised) do not see themselves as a part of the same family. Their divisions, their walls, are seemingly stronger than what unites them.

But as Paul writes he explains that Christ has broken all of these divisions down. Through Jesus, God is building a new house – for Jews and Gentiles – for all who seek God’s love. That movement that began when God said, through the prophet Nathan to King David, I will build you a house continues to expand.

Now we are all part of the same household –citizens of the same place – and this place is the community of Christ, to which all are welcome.

Hear Paul’s words again -

Ephesians 2:11-22 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God, 20 built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone. 21 In him the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; 22 in whom you also are built together spiritually into a dwelling place for God.

With Jesus Christ as the cornerstone of our foundation, the ground in which we root our whole lives, the love of God flourishes within us. We live in God and with the saints who have gone before us. And God lives in us too!

Another way to imagine it is there are no walls, no separations, no separate compartments where what you do is separate from who you are and who made you. Everything you are and everything you do operates from this foundational relationship with the Divine.

Other religious traditions might call this nirvana, or achieving oneness.

Well that’s great and all Katelyn, but what am I supposed to do with this? How do I actually live this out?

Why it is that in our world the walls still appear to be there? Why I don’t feel this great sense of nirvana and peace and oneness and divine union?

Well friends, I wonder the same thing!

There’s a phrase I’ve learned to use called already/not yet.

Our Christian tradition teaches that God chose to dwell with us through the person of Jesus Christ. God took on human form. And through Christ the world has been reconciled. There is no disconnection; sin and evil have been defeated for all time on the cross.

And yet our experience in the world tells us we’re not living in the Promised Land.

We’re people of the already/not yet.

Our Spirits are still under construction, God’s kingdom here on earth is still under construction. We get glimpses, moments every now and again where we feel God’s presence, maybe in nature or a conversation with a stranger, or in the way that events in life seem to add up in just the right way.

Our task as followers in the way of Jesus is to embrace the incompleteness and still work for this broader vision of a world without divisions.

We know that this task will most likely not be accomplished on a societal or global in our lifetime. But we can still do some work at clearing away these artificial walls that not only separate us from each other but those smaller more personal walls that separate us from God.

And the first step is doing a spiritual home inspection – taking a closer look at what lies beneath!

Nathan and I did that last week. Our home inspector climbed up on the roof, looked in all of the houses’ nooks and crannies, the attic and basement.

Most of the house was in pretty good condition but there was some rot and places of concern that need to be attended to and that we might not have found, like the rotten sill underneath the deck, without the home inspection.

Maybe in our own homes we’ve swept under the rug some grudges that we’re still holding. Until we forgive or apologize, the lump under the rug isn’t going anywhere.

Maybe we’ve locked away a family secret in the attic or closet, and the door can’t be shut anymore.

Maybe we’ve been so mad at God for that time when God just didn’t seem to be there, and we can’t possibly seem to forgive God or want to talk to God.

We need look in all of the nooks and crannies of our own personal homes and lives, and the world we live in to see what is worth keeping and what might need some demolition and Holy Reconstruction!

Sometimes when you do a home inspection you find lead paint or asbestos. In their time they were considered perfectly fine building materials. But now we know that asbestos causes Mesothelioma, and ingesting lead can impact brain development in children.

Similarly, we may have been raised with certain foundational beliefs that some people, some members of the household of God, are more valuable than others because of their skin tone, or their educational attainment, or the zip code they live in. Over time, these beliefs have created cracks and fissures in the foundation of our communities.

But through the process of Holy Reconstruction, God, the chief architect, can help us tear down some of the walls of division between us, and put bridges in their place.

Add some more windows to let the light in. Windows which allow us to look out and see that we’re part of a broader world, and let people look in and see what we’re about.

Improve the building materials we use to meet today’s current specs.

God began this construction project a long time ago when God said, “David I’m going to build you a house.”

God’s work continues today in building up this diverse, wonderful, and challenging household that calls God’s people to live together and work together even though they may be very different.

We are spirits under construction, living in a world in need of some Holy Reconstruction.

So let’s put up the caution tape and don the hard hats and get to work! God knows the world needs it!

Pastor's Report from General Synod 30

Report from General Synod 30

Cleveland, OH June 26-30, 2015

Dear Friends in Christ,

I have just returned from a wonderful week in Cleveland, OH attending the United Church of Christ's General Synod 30 from June 26-30, 2015. The theme was "Unexpected Places." Together with more than 3,000 people, we reflected on where we have encountered God in unexpected places, as well as the unexpected places God is calling us, people of faith, to go.

General Synod is a national gathering of the church held every two years in a different city around the country. This year it was held in Cleveland, home to the national headquarters of the denomination. In addition to doing the business of the church by passing resolutions, there is also wonderful worship, workshops, and events. This was the sixth General Synod I have attended. In the past I have been a delegate or visitor. This time I went as a visitor and volunteer, ushering at worship on Friday, Sunday and Monday. Though I could not speak or vote on resolutions like delegates, I was able to attend all of the meetings and events and watch business unfold on the plenary floor. The full text of all resolutions passed at General Synod is available here:

http://synod.uccpages.org/resolutions/index.html I am also thankful for Madeline Cook's blog about Synod https://uccsynod2015vt.wordpress.com The results of all of the resolution votes listed are her recounting as a General Synod delegate for the Champlain Association, Vermont Conference UCC. 

THURSDAY, JUNE 25

Before Synod officially started, I attended a daylong event on Thursday, June 25 with UCC clergy in their twenties and thirties. Bishop Yvette Flunder of City of Refuge UCC in San Francisco led us in worship. It was great way to start off Synod experience by reuniting with friends who are serving churches around the country. I purchased a new hot pink T-shirt from the group that says, “This is what Clergy look like.” I wore it proudly the next day.

UCC 20/30 Clergy Network

On Thursday night, I attended “Is it Well?” a worship service in the Amistad Chapel at the UCC Church House with Rev. Tracey Blackmon of Christ the King UCC in Ferguson, MO preaching. 

The chapel overflowed with people as Rev. Blackmon shared her story of ministering in Ferguson. She challenged us to look around and acknowledge that all is not well for our black sisters and brothers. She lamented the black lives lost, both in her community and in Charleston, SC at Mother Emanuel AME church. Though all is not well, Blackmon said that “it is well” because we are together as the body of Christ, and that even though all is not well in our world, God is with us and God is calling us to work for a world where it is well for all. Following her sermon, we anointed each other with oil. The UCC National Staff led us in sharing communion. The UCC’s GLBTQ Coalition Choir offered music including a great rendition of “Spirit of the Living God.”

FRIDAY, JUNE 26

Cleveland City Hall Marriage Equality Rally

Synod officially began on Friday. On Friday at noon I joined several UCCers at a rally on the steps of Cleveland City Hall celebrating the Supreme Court’s ruling on marriage equality. Later that afternoon, UCC clergy set up a tent and offered their services as marriage officiants at the park across the street from the Convention Center. That evening, Rev. Molly Baskette, author of “Real Good Church” preached during worship. Baskette pastors the UCC church in Somerfield, MA. She told the story of her church going through a building renovation. The stage in the fellowship hall blocked the windows and created a dim space for coffee hour. It no longer fit the needs of the current congregation, except for a space for kids to run around during coffee hour. When they began construction they discovered a stage, under a smaller stage, under an even smaller stage.

Baskette’s congregation found the layers built on layers of a building that no longer served their needs as a congregation. But when they opened this space up, the new windows allowed people to look out onto the street, and look in. They let more of God’s light in and created a worship and fellowship space that would meet the needs of their current congregation. Looking around our parlor and the opaque glass, I wonder if there might be a lesson here for us at RCC about letting in more of God’s light! Baskette ended her sermon with a challenge to “be brave” and to not be tied to the way we have always been, or the way we always done church. Baskette shared her congregations love to dance, and we ended worship by dancing to Sara Bareilles’ song “Brave.”

SATURDAY, JUNE 27

Saturday morning, Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Connie Schultz addressed the Synod and joined with the UCC in celebrating Marriage Equality. Schulz’s husband, Sen. Sharon Brown, was in the audience and she cited his important work on consistently advocating for GLBTQ brothers and sisters.

Saturday afternoon I planned to attend Cleveland Pride Parade with other UCCers. Unfortunately the parade was cancelled due to torrential rain. In lieu of the parade, I took a much needed afternoon nap.

SUNDAY, JUNE 28

Neal & Carolyn Sadler, Nathan's parents

On Sunday morning Synod delegates attended committee meetings for the resolutions. Each delegate is randomly assigned to a committee, and the committees deliberate on the resolution or group of resolutions, make any changes or amendments and report back their recommendations to General Synod. As I did not have any responsibilities, I attended worship at First Congregational Church UCC in Medina, OH where Nathan’s dad, Neal Sadler is the Senior Minister. In the afternoon, Nathan’s parents joined me for the Synod’s community wide worship service. 

Preaching about passing the mantle of leadership from Elijah to Elisha, Bishop Dwayne Royster, a pastor and community organizer in Philadelphia, titled his sermon “Change the Damn World.”  To pick up Elijah’s mantle and go forward as a relevant church, Royster exhorted the crowd to do four things:

1.       Consecration: “We need to strip away all those things that keep dragging us back into the world so we can hear the voice of the still-speaking God.”

2.      Worship: “We need to worship where we are allowed to have a holy imagination of a better world, a changed world.”

3.       Miracles: “We need to go to a place where we believe God still does miracles. That takes prayer and passion like Bree Ann Newsome, who climbed up the Statehouse in South Carolina and took down the Confederate flag. She said, ‘I’m taking down this flag in the name of God.’ And she did.”

4.      Resurrection: “Only when we are willing to risk death can we find life. Do you believe that God is really God? We can’t do the will of God until we are willing to risk it all to transform the world.” (To quote from the UCC news story -http://www.ucc.org/news_general_synod_its_within_our_power_to_change_the_damn_world_06282015)

Royster said that the General Minister and President-elect of the UCC, Rev. John C. Dorhouer, will, like Elisha, need a double-portion of God’s spirit to do the work that needs to be done. Following Royster’s sermon, Rev. Geoffrey Black( retiring General Minister and President),

Rev. Geoffrey Black

Rev. Linda Jaramillo (retiring Executive Minister for Justice and Witness Ministries), Rev. James Moos (Executive Minister for Global Church Ministries), and Rev. J. Bennett Guess (Executive Minister for Local Church Ministries) led us in communion. I was one of 60 volunteers who helped serve communion to the worshippers.

On Sunday night a hearing on proposed changes to the UCC by-laws and governance structure was so crowded that they had to relocate to a larger room. While I did not attend, my colleagues reported that the debate was heated as people expressed their frustration with a proposed governance structure which would eliminate the UCC’s shared leadership model of the Collegium and strengthen the office of the General Minister and President. With Geoffrey Black and Linda Jaramillo’s retirement, many people also felt that they would no longer have their perspective represented as a racial minority or as a female in the UCC’s national leadership.

Exhibit Hall at General Synod

MONDAY, JUNE 29

On Monday morning, I joined the Vermont Conference’s delegates for breakfast at 6:30 AM, where delegates reported about the resolutions and committees they had been assigned to. During the morning plenary, Walter Rauschenbush of the Huffington Post addressed Synod with the topic, “The struggle for the soul of the church.” In addition to improving our presence on college campuses, where the voice of progressive Christianity often goes unheard, he urged the church to develop our online presence and invited everyone to join twitter. His basic point was that we need to use 21^st century methods to communicate. Rauschenbusch said that there are places and people in the world who desperately need to hear God’s loving word from progressive Christians. Citing his own experience as a recovering addict and a gay man, Rauschenbush found welcome at Judson Memorial Church, a UCC/ABC church in New York city. http://www.ucc.org/news_general_synod_a_struggle_for_the_soul_of_the_church_06292015

Following Rauschenbush’s speech the Synod took up several resolutions during Monday’s morning and afternoon plenary session including:

·         Resolution on Full Communion Relationship Between the United Church of Christ and the United Church of Canada: Unanimous YES.

·         Commemorating 100 Years Since the Armenian Genocide: Unanimous YES.

·         Resolution Urging Socially Responsible Investment Practices: YES. 

·         Resolution to Change to Racially Demeaning Name, Mascot, and Imagery of the Washington National Football League: YES.

·         Resolution Marking the Thirtieth Anniversary of the Just Peace Pronouncement by Recommitting Ourselves to be a Just Peace Church: Unanimous YES. 

·         Developing Welcoming, Inclusive, Supportive, and Engaged Congregations for Mental Health: YES (almost unanimous). 

·         Re-election of Rev. James Moos (Executive Minister of OCWM): YES.

·         Urging Socially Responsible Investment Practices: YES.

• http://www.ucc.org/news_general_synod_passes_resolution_calling_for_socially_responsible_investment_practices_06292015

·         Peace and Reconciliation in the Korean Peninsula: YES.           http://www.ucc.org/news_general_synod_votes_to_support_korean_unification_06302015

·         Resolution to Lament shooting in Charleston, SC:  YES.

o   The resolution reads: "Our hearts are broken and our resolve is strong." We will stand in witness to the faith, courage of all affected, and pray as the psalmist does that ‘Violence shall no more be heard in your land, devastation or destruction within your borders; you shall call your walls Salvation and your gates Praise’ (Psalm 60:18). We will stand, we will rise and we will act."

§  http://www.ucc.org/news_general_synod_resolution_chalreston_0629215

·         Dismantling Systems of Mass Incarceration: Unanimous YES.

·         Dismantling the New Jim Crow: Almost unanimous YES.

·         The Election of the New General Minister and President Rev. John C. Dorhauer: YES (Yes: 621 No:77 Abstain:33)

·         A Call for the United Church of Christ to Take Actions Toward a Just-Peace in the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: YES.

Seminary colleague Rev. Marilyn Kendrix, Associate Pastor at Church of Redeemer, New Haven, CT

During lunch on Monday, I attended a meal with other alumni from Yale Divinity School. While it was good to hear about updates around the seminary, the best part was reconnecting with one of my seminary colleagues who now speaks about Mass Incarceration and leads book discussions on Michelle Alexander’s book “The New Jim Crow.” 

This conversation planted a seed. I hope that we can read this book as a congregation and perhaps invite Marilyn up to speak with us in Vermont.

After a long and tiring day, Monday night closed with a beautiful Vespers service accompanied by violin and piano. Rev. Mitri Raheb of the Evangelical Lutheran Christmas Church in Bethlehem preached about living in Bethlehem, which is now surrounded by 25 foot concrete walls. Raheb spoke of the challenges of Palestinians who must wait in line at check points to go in and out of the city on their way to work, to get medical attention, etc. Raheb urged us to work for peace in the Holy Land. http://www.ucc.org/news_general_synod_mitri_raheb_06302015

TUESDAY, JUNE 30

On Tuesday morning, the delegates took up debate on the approved by-law and constitutional changes of the United Church of Christ, which would move from a four person collegium model to one General Minister and President. http://www.ucc.org/news_general_synod_votes_to_retain_current_leadership_structure_07012015 The debate was heated, and many speakers took umbridge with the process and how there was not enough time to discuss the proposed changes on a local and conference wide level before making such a big decision. Supporters of the changes argued that for efficiency and budgetary reasons, the church needed to streamline. Ultimately the by-law changes were not approved by the delegates. This leaves the current collegial structure in place until the next General Synod in 2017. With Linda Jaramillo’s retirement, and no proposed candidate to fill her position as Executive Minister for Justice and Witness Ministries, the UCC Board will have to fill this spot.

On Tuesday, the delegates also took up the following resolutions:

·         Recommitting Ourselves to Full Equality for LGBT Persons: YES. 

·         Resolution to Support Legislation Regarding Labeling of Genetically Engineered Foods on Food Packaging: NO.

·         Calling on the United Church of Christ to Recognize the Actions Against the Palestinians as Apartheid: NO. 

·         Responsible Stewardship of the Outer Space Environment: YES.

·         Transition from Fossil Fuels to Renewable Energy: YES. 

VT UCC Clergy Rev. Jared Hamilton, myself and Rev. Ryan Gackenheimer.

General Synod closed on Tuesday night with Rev. Sharon Watkins, leader of the Christian Church, Disciples of Christ preaching. The UCC and Disciples of Christ share our Global Ministries together and have been in partnership for the past 25 years. At the end of the service, outgoing UCC General Minister and President Geoffrey Black gave incoming General Minister and President John Dorhauer a new stole, a sign of passing on the mantle of leadership. It was a fitting end to such a full and challenging General Synod.

General Synod 31 will be held June 2017 in Baltimore, MD.

COMING HOME

Sunset over Lake Champlain near the Crown Point Bridge

It was good to be away, but it was also good to come home. I drove back from Cleveland in one day, even though I took two days to drive out. After such a full week, I was ready to get back to my own bed. Reflecting on what has transpired in the past week, I can’t help but wonder about what work God is calling us to do in the most unexpected places. It is part of our polity, the way our church is governed, that decisions made at each level of the church speak to, but not for, the church. So it is up to us to discuss and decide if and how the resolutions passed by General Synod 30 will impact our life as a congregation and guide us in new ways of being the church.

The most relevant question that emerges for me after Synod is wondering how, as a person of faith, and as a white person, do I not only talk about racism, but also work for a more just society. This is no small task.

I also wonder -

·         How do we respond to the shooting in Charleston and the black churches that are burning in the South?

·         Will we look at our endowment funds and divest from corporations that profit from occupied Palestinian territories?

·         Will we renew our commitment to being Open and Affirming?

·         Will we seek to build a ministry for people struggling with mental illness?

Friends, what and how is God calling us to respond in this unexpected time and in this unexpected place?

May God be with us as we discern together.

With Peace,

Rev. Katelyn Macrae

Back in the office at Richmond Congregational Church