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February/March 2022 Newsletter

Qoheleth writes in the book of Ecclesiastes that to “everything there is a season, a time and purpose under heaven.” The Byrds sang a song based upon that verse, entitled “Turn! Turn! Turn!” The point of the passage, which the Byrds express well, is that change is a part of God’s creation and a part of our lives. Seasons change; tides change; the moon changes. We become accustomed to one way of being, then we turn around to find something different.

Throughout history, we can see changes in the church. Sometimes these changes reflect new theological understandings or knowledge gained through recent archaeological discoveries. Other times, they are the church’s way of ministering to people in changing times. Sometimes they are changes to make our worship relevant to people in a new culture. The Gospel never changes, but the church does change in how it lives out the Gospel in changing times. For example, the discovery of what became known as the Dead Sea Scrolls in 1947 has changed how Christian scholars view the relationship between rabbinic Judaism and Christianity and how we understand John the Baptizer. Space exploration has changed how we view God’s creation and given us the origins of Eucharistic Prayer C in the 1979 Prayer Book, as another example.

I believe society now is undergoing tremendous change and that the church must change as well. Again, our message of God’s love is always the same. But the way we deliver that message is due for a change. The increasing mobility of society and the world view of the Millennials already have been urging a change. COVID is now accelerating those changes. Today’s society differs from society 50 years ago. The Gospel message is more urgent than ever, and it needs to be presented in a way that people in this culture today can hear it.

Tradition is essential too. I can hear the voice of Tevye crying out the merits of tradition even as I hear the call of God in the fiddler plucking the strings of change. And therein lies the challenge for St. Andrew’s next year and for the next few years. How do we present the Gospel so that new generations will hear it while retaining the most essential parts of our Anglican tradition? Finding the right combination will take the creativity, gifts, and perspectives of all of us. It will call some of us to be more flexible, while it will call others to proceed more cautiously. Christianity is never easy, but I believe that this community will find the right path forward.

Randi+

February/March 2022 Newsletter

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