A Word from the Fold
November 2020 edition of the Shepherd’s Staff
Dear Good Shepherd friends,
I am so delighted to be with you! My first weeks have been a lovely and busy whirlwind of the Spirit as I am blown about from one virtual gathering to another. I have been so heartened to discover a community very much alive and active in spite of the pandemic. Despite not being able to gather regularly in-person, you have found a way to carry on many cherished activities virtually. It has been a joy to join so many of you in these virtual experiences—Wednesday Morning Prayer, Virtual Lunch, Thursday Compline, Bible Study, and Book Group.
Sunday morning worship continues to be a highlight of the week for me—and I hope for you, too. While not the way we would normally gather, I am impressed by your faithful and creative efforts to provide worship that is prayerful, interactive, and inclusive of all who join us, regardless of whether in person or online. Thank you for your dedication and patience as we work to plan worship for the coming winter months, including the beautiful and festive seasons of Advent and Christmas. Stay tuned!
I write this on Tuesday, November 3, Election Day. Obviously, there are no results to reflect upon; no reaction yet to how our divided nation will respond. Yet, I am very aware that this election feels very different from those I have experienced before. The stakes feel higher; the divisions more extreme. Friends have complained of insomnia leading up to the election. The anxiety is palpable. Surely, you feel it, too.
I found great comfort in the National Service for Healing and Wholeness this past Sunday afternoon that the Episcopal Church broadcast. It is still available online for those that might have missed it. Bishop Michael Curry’s sermon was particularly wonderful and a balm to my wearied soul. I commend it to you. He spoke of the importance of values—Christian values, American values, values that are at the core of our Scriptures, at the core of Jesus’s teachings, at the core of our faithful community here at Good Shepherd. Here is an excerpt:
Our ideals, values, principles and dreams of beloved community matter. They matter because they drive us beyond service of self alone, to commitment to the greater good of us all. They matter because they give us an actual picture of God’s reign of love, and a reason to struggle and make it real. They matter to our lives as people of faith. They matter to our life in civil society. They matter to our life as a nation and as a world. Our values matter! …
We don’t think of it this way very often but love for each other is a value on which our democracy depends. On the Great Seal of the United States, above the bald eagle are banners on which the Latin words, e pluribus unum are written. Those words, e pluribus unum, literally mean, “one out of many.” One nation from many diverse people.
But do you know where those words come from? They come from the writings of Cicero who lived during the time of the Roman Republic. Cicero said, “When each person loves the other as much as himself, it makes one out of many.” Cicero who gave us those words said that love for each other is the way to make e pluribus unum real. Jesus of Nazareth taught us that. Moses taught us that. America, listen to Cicero, Jesus, Moses. Love is the way to make e pluribus unum real. Love is the way to be America for real.
Amen, Bishop. Amen. We don’t seem to talk much about values these days. Of the importance of them to our lives, our families, our society. Perhaps one of the unfortunate consequences of falling church attendance and an over-emphasis upon those great American ideals of personal independence, freedom and liberty is that we have lost sight of the collective values that bind us together. Values like love for neighbor, the importance of community, the grace of forgiveness, the strength in diversity, and responsibility for the least of those among us.
I pray that as we walk together through these days of pandemic and election, and on into Advent and Christmas, we may find comfort and joy and strength in the things that bind us together, rather than those things which would drive us apart. I look forward to getting to know you all in the days and weeks to come.
Grace and Peace,
Ellie+