Vision Theological Breakdown Week 1:
Now that we have a new vision statement, a very rich one, and I wanted to offer some of my own theological reflections around that statement in the hopes of getting all of us to think more deeply about what it means. I will spend the next few weeks breaking down the vision/mission statement and offering some of my own thoughts. Let me know what you think, what am I missing, how did it change the way you are thinking about things? We start with the first half of the first sentence:
“In a constantly changing world, we remain rooted in God...”
Our vision statement starts with a few acknowledgements and affirmations as a way of building a foundation, a common starting place. First, we acknowledge and affirm that we are fully in the world, not apart from it. (John 17:15) Even though we may not belong to the world (John 17:16), there is no question that we are called to be in the world, just as Christ was in the world and served the world. Because we are in the world, we are meant to engage with it.
In the same breath we also acknowledge and affirm that the world is a dynamic and ever-changing place. To acknowledge that the world is ever changing is to acknowledge the need to always be listening and learning about the world around us and how it is changing and in what ways. As a result, we must always be finding new ways to communicate and to connect to that changing world. Old ways of connection may not work while the new ways may look and feel different. As a church, we must be open to engaging in new forms and be willing to let go of old ones. This is not a kind of relativism though, for an ever-changing world is not a place to set deep roots. For that we look to the Divine and fully affirm that we seek to remain rooted in God.
If we break the word religion down to its Latin roots, we find “re” and “ligio”, the latter meaning “to connect”. So, religion at its root means to re-connect and we strive to re-connect with God, to root ourselves in God, not the ever-changing world that swirls around us. It means that although the way we connect may change, seeking to connect is always part of the equation and that God is always available as deepest of soils.
God clearly transcends any labels humanity can bestow, but the Gospels in particular make it clear that an absolutely fundamental aspect of God is Love, Love as made manifest in the life and actions of Jesus. As Christians, that Love remains central to our spiritual practice and we remain rooted in that Love--God’s love for all creation, God’s love that is undying, eternal, always present. As the world swirls around us, shifting and changing, we steadfastly remain rooted to God, to boundless love, a deepness that knows no bounds, all through our acts of worship, prayer, study, fellowship and service. Rev. Michael McNamara