by Kayla Craig, reposted from Red Letter Christians

Forgive us
As we have feared others,
And in doing so
Have contaminated our hearts.

Forgive us
As we have hoarded our resources,
And in doing so
Have abandoned our witness.

Forgive us
As we have desired control,
And in doing so
Have not loved our neighbor.

Comfort the afflicted among us.
In their loneliness, provide care.
In their sickness, provide health.
In their weariness, provide rest.

We grieve the contagious fear that we consume and spread.
Soothe our anxious minds as we read viral headlines.
And protect those who have been victims of racism and fear-mongering
Because of our dread of the unknown.

Protect us from the evil one
Who aims to use each update, not to inform or guide,
But to stoke the flames of chaos and confusion.

We thank you for health care workers
Who care for the sick and tend to bodies and souls
With great compassion and commitment.
Give them stamina.
Give them wisdom.
Give them grace.

We pray for those who lack access to health care,
Or safe places to rest their heads.
We pray for the vulnerable:
The sick,
The disabled,
The elderly,
The uninsured.
For the Kingdom is theirs.

We pray for the mother working paycheck to paycheck,
Who worries about her children and the job she can’t afford
To take time off from.
For she reflects Your image.

We pray for the chronically ill fighting invisible battles,
Hour by hour, day by day.
Nourish their bodies;
Protect their souls.
For they are never out of your sight.

We lament our roles in an empire
That values profit over human life
And takes advantage of our anxious spirits.
We acknowledge that we are not immune to the human condition,
And we repent from ways we have benefited
From dehumanizing systems and structures.

We ask for your Holy guidance
As we journey into the unknown.
Ignite in us a spirit of generosity;
Of hope and mercy;
Of grace and truth;
Of gentleness and self-control.

​Cleanse our spirits,
Comfort our minds,
Care for our bodies,
And make us new.

We give thanks that you lavish your grace onto us,
Not pushing us into shame, but providing a steadfast comfort.
When all else falls away, we turn to You and You alone.

We pray this in the name of Jesus
Who healed the sick
And sat with the poor.
Amen.

As someone who is intentionally doing life with my neighbors, this global pandemic has shifted life in the neighborhood rather dramatically. Every week, we host two gatherings in our home: a midweek neighborhood dinner with about 20 of our neighbors and a dinner church gathering on Sunday evenings where we gather with followers of Jesus around a sacred meal, liturgy, prayers and communion. Now with gatherings banned to slow the spread of the novel virus, loving my neighbor has meant keeping distance. This has felt disruptive and counter-intuitive. And as I’ve been sequestered in my home battling my own cold symptoms, I’ve been forced to take a step back even further.

But in keeping with last week’s reading, like St. Ignatius, I have to believe that God is in all things and in these particular circumstances of my life. And so I’m asking the Spirit — how are you at work in my neighborhood? I’m listening. I’m discerning, and I’m paying attention. These are all postures that I practice in my neighborhood; and yet, now in the stillness of activity, they’re amplified in new ways. And here’s what I am noticing:

I’m noticing my neighbors who are stepping up, caring for others, and checking in with each other. Some have created a group on Facebook to care for one another – offering to bring groceries to those on quarantine, pitching in to pay looming bills for single moms, and just encouraging one another. It’s beautiful to see.

I’m noticing others leading in this time. In response to the closure of schools and our after-school tutoring program, the director of our nonprofit is pivoting to support families adversely affected in this time, many who are out of work and hard pressed to feed their families. I’m grateful for the fabric of love that has been woven here.

I’m noticing my neighbors who are missing. I’m grateful for the neighbors I do happen to know and for their contacts in my phone that make it easy to check in on them. But I find myself wondering about all the contacts I don’t have. I wonder how these neighbors are faring, how they’re affected, and if they need anything? And I’m praying that this crisis offers the opportunity for deeper and wider connections. How can those on the margins get pulled in?

I’m also grateful for sweet and unexpected moments of presence. Yesterday, my 23-year-old son and I spent a rare day together. We ate breakfast together. We took the dog for a hike together. We ate dinner together and even watched Little Women together! (Yeah, I know!) And as he prepares to move across the country for graduate school this fall, I’m grateful for this sacred gift that I will treasure. Sometimes the “other” that we are called to love and to attend to is right here under our noses.

So how is the Spirit at work in your neighborhood? Who is stepping up and offering their gifts? Who is leading? Who is needing? Who is missing? And what are the sacred gifts right under our noses? Like the good Samaritan, are we paying attention to the invitations of the Spirit? Will we allow ourselves to be disrupted from our daily routines, to take time to pause, and to be moved with compassion?

Father-in-Heaven,
Bless those to my left and right, those in front and behind.
Bend my mind and heart toward them in ways that please you.
Bring them to mind and nudge me to pray for them.
Help me notice your invitations to love, Holy Spirit.
Give me grace and courage to respond as you lead.
May my neighbors thrive in all the ways that matter to you, Lord. Amen.
​
See full liturgy here, posted on Sustainable Faith.

by Jessica Ketola

LIVING IN A TIME OF PANDEMIC
This is uncharted territory. None of us have had to figure out what life looks like in the midst of a worldwide pandemic. Anxiety is widespread - as we worry about the well being of our families and loved ones, our finances, our security, our sanity, and our world! So let us be gentle with ourselves and with each other. These are unprecedented times. Stressful times. There is much we have lost already and we don't know the full measure of the losses to come.

Students from wee-high to college-age are missing out on the power of in-person learning. Neighbors from all backgrounds, cultures and economics are missing out on the richness of community and the structures of support in their lives. Workers across so many industries are missing out on the crucial income they need to survive. Families are mourning the deaths of their loved ones. And those on the front lines— grocery clerks, social workers, health care workers and first responders, are missing the safety they once felt as they enter a war zone every day. There is much to grieve.

ALL THINGS HAVE THE ABILITY TO DRAW US INTO THE LOVE OF GOD
And yet as crazy as it sounds, all of this is the soil to grow in faith, hope and love.

Therefore, since we have been declared righteous by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. We have also obtained access through him by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. And not only that, but we also rejoice in our afflictions, because we know that affliction produces endurance, endurance produces proven character, and proven character produces hope. This hope will not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us. [Romans 5:1-5]

God's love remains true. Suffering, affliction and persecution are not new to the world or to Christians historically — and yet nothing, nothing can separate us from the love of God.

Who can separate us from the love of Christ? Can affliction or distress or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? ...No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. [Romans 8:35-39]

Perfect love casts out fear. And so even in times of global pandemic, we can be conquerors of anxiety, greed, fear and loneliness. St. Ignatius' first principle states that “all the things in this world are . . . presented to us so that we can know God more easily and make a return of love more readily.” And so over the course of the next few weeks, we will be exploring what it means to find God in all things - here and now, in the midst of our own fears, worries and constraints. How can we move through what feels like a loss of freedom to find the expansiveness of interior freedom that comes as we grow in love and childlike trust with our Creator who knows us intimately, Christ who understands our suffering, and Spirit who is closer than our very breath.

JOINING IN GOD'S WORK OF LOVE IN OUR NEIGHBORHOOD
God loves and invites us to love God in return. Secondly, God loves and invites us to love our neighbors. We are invited to join with God in this work of love that is transforming and healing the world. And in a time of widespread anxiety and economic uncertainty, the call to love our neighbor is crucial, especially for the most vulnerable. As the COVID-19 pandemic affects the ways in which we gather as a church, it doesn't change the fact that we are the church. And we are perfectly poised to be the church in our neighborhood.

"The questions each member of a local church needs to ask are "How can our participation in a particular gathering grow our capacity to be a living expression of the church together in everyday life? How can it really help us to become a tangible witness of Christ's love, and to participate together in what God is doing in the place we live?" -The New Parish

I believe we have been faithfully asking this question and that we are called for such a time as this. I urge you to reach out to your neighbors in this time, especially those who may be sick, elderly, or disabled. I have seen so many great examples of how neighbors are offering to check in on one another and offering to run errands or get groceries for those who are quarantined: See Neighborhood Pods, Neighborhood Flyers, and Curing Our Moral Virus of Loneliness.

Today I conspired with Lynn Newcombe, the Director of Turning Point, our nonprofit that provides free tutoring to students who qualify for free and reduced lunches in the Shoreline School District. With the need for spatial distancing, our tutoring program has closed with the closure of school. However, our community and love for one another has not stopped. In fact, we are putting together a plan to continue to support our families who will be hard hit by this pandemic. Chromebooks, good fiction, and board games are being shared and given. Tutors are being recruited to offer remote assistance. And grocery gift cards will be given out to families now who are struggling to survive! And because of our relational equity over the years, we are able to uniquely bring our neighbors together! And each one of you can join in this work of love in the neighborhood! You can give here toward grocery cards for neighbors in need. (Just select -Lenten Generosity for Neighbors in Need-)

“In love, one always wants to give to the other what one has.” - St. Ignatius.

So what is our invitation to love? What does love compel us to do or to be? How do we show our love for God, for ourselves, for others, and for our neighborhoods?

SPATIAL DISTANCING, NOT SOCIAL DISTANCING
I'm not a fan of the trending phrase, social distancing - as if we are not already isolated, fragmented and lonely! Instead, I am using the term spatial distancing for we absolutely cannot afford to go it alone. And while love may dictate that we keep some spatial distance during this time, I encourage you to make sure you connect, check in, and care for one another!

Last week, we ended up making the decision to move our weekly in-person gathering online and we will continue to meet virtually through the end of March or as needed. It was really heart-warming to see everyone's faces and it was good to connect with one another in these challenging times. So I encourage you to join us this Sunday at 5pm for a Zoom Call. And we will explore these questions. How do we lean into the interior freedom of love and trust in these times? And what is the invitation to love our neighbor in really practical ways? How do we find Love in all things?


​by Jessica Ketola

As part of the Lenten season, every year as a community we consider the invitation to live a life of generosity. Historically, charity to our neighbor and the poor is a Lenten practice. And especially now in a time of pandemic with widespread anxiety and economic uncertainty , the call to love our neighbor is paramount. This is why as followers of Jesus, we are called to resist our selfish inclination to stockpile and instead choose to give generously! This is admittedly a challenge in light of rampant fear, empty shelves and long lines at our local Costco store.

This week, as the serious ramifications of the Coronavirus escalate in our city, I reached out to some of our friends at the City of Shoreline asking how we can help. We know that with the school closures, the burden on working families, especially at or below poverty, will be great. The big needs are food for families, childcare for working families, workers without sick leave, and supporting income loss for small businesses.

While many in our community are hoarding and stockpiling, we want to move in the opposite spirit of generosity. Heck, maybe we'll even give away toilet paper! And we are not alone! I have been overjoyed to see how many people in our community are stepping up to support small businesses, offer their skills and take care of neighbors in this time.

PRACTICE GENEROSITY
So through this Lenten season, we are asking you to be generous to your neighbors in need. Turning Point programs are also now closed and we will be collecting funds to continue to offer support to our families who will be adversely affected, many who find themselves out of work. We will be giving grocery cards to these families along with warm smiles, board games, and snacks. You can give a physical donation of a gift card or you can choose to give through our Tithe.ly app and select <Lenten Generosity to Neighbors in Need> and your funds will go towards our neighbors in need.

Now is also a wonderful opportunity to make a commitment to regularly give to The Practicing Church and to be a part of what God is doing in the neighborhood! You can invest in faithful presence here in our community and partner with what the Spirit is up to in us and around us. You can let us know you are participating by filling out our online form or a generosity card at our gathering.

We urge you to resist fear and greed and instead to commit to the radical generosity and sacrifice of love!

We know love by this, that he laid down his life for us—and we ought to lay down our lives for one another. How does God’s love abide in anyone who has the world’s goods [i.e. toilet paper] and sees a brother or sister in need and yet refuses help? Little children, let us love, not in word or speech, but in truth and action. [I John 3:16-18]

by Jessica Ketola

​

​USE THE TITHE.LY APP!
Giving just got easier. We know you don't carry cash and checks are becoming obsolete — so now you can give anytime, anywhere! You can make a donation on your phone or online! Live a life of generosity and invest in God's dream in the neighborhood!

​By now, I’m sure most of you have realized that the world and certainly our city is, in many ways, coming to a halt in response to the Coronavirus. Clearly, this is a moment of reflection and consideration of how we as people who love one another and as people who are called to love our neighbor might respond. In essence, we are asking the question, "What does Love look like?"

FIRST: SOME VERY PRACTICAL STEPS

As you know, Governor Jay Inslee made an announcement this week banning all gatherings over 250 in King, Pierce and Snohomish Counties. In addition, King County Public Health officer, Dr. Jeff Duchin, gave the local order prohibiting events less than 250 people, unless measures are taken by event organizers to minimize risk. These measures are very stringent. Along with sanitization and hygiene measures, they require a minimum of 6 feet distance between people. As schools close and social distancing measures are put in place to slow the spread of the virus, we find ourselves in a situation none of us have been in before. And things continue to change day by day. It is disruptive and disorienting to say the least.

As you can imagine, I’ve spent the last 48 hours reading, studying, thinking, & praying about our responsibility & response to the current pandemic in consultation with our leadership team. Wisdom seems to indicate that our best collective action against the Coronavirus is to slow the spread of the virus in hopes that our health care systems will not be overloaded. Though we are a small community, we are very close to the epicenter of this outbreak and we want to be good citizens and do our part. We are committed to "being" the body of Christ in this time. Many local churches are canceling their services and going online. Others are continuing to meet in ways that mitigate the risks.

AS A DISCERNMENT TEAM, WE’VE MADE THE DECISION TO MOVE OUR IN-PERSON GATHERING TO AN ONLINE GATHERING OVER THE COMING WEEKS.

Remember that we are the church. Church is not a gathering or a building, but a community. And so we will continue to be the church. We will love God, one another and our neighbors! 

We will gather this Sunday at 5pm on a Zoom Call.
We will will move our in-person gathering online to a community Zoom call where we will check in with one another, share our fears and our hopes, pray together and talk about how we can stay connected in this time. I hope that you all will join us!

​Here is the Zoom Call information below.
If Zoom is new to you, no problem! We've got you covered! If you need help, please let us know! We want to stay connected!

What is Zoom?
An online conference call platform that lets you video call a group of people.

Do I need a laptop?
A laptop is preferable so you can see everyone and we can see you! But you can also use your phone to call in.

I've never done this before. What do I do?
Watch this video to walk you through the steps.

You are invited to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Topic: Gathering (Virtually)
Time: Mar 29, 2020 05:00 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)
        Every week on Sun, until Apr 26, 2020, 5 occurrence(s)
        Mar 29, 2020 05:00 PM
        Apr 5, 2020 05:00 PM
        Apr 12, 2020 05:00 PM
        Apr 19, 2020 05:00 PM
        Apr 26, 2020 05:00 PM

Join Zoom Meeting
https://zoom.us/j/955852382

Meeting ID: 955 852 382

One tap mobile
+13462487799,,955852382# US (Houston)
+16699009128,,955852382# US (San Jose)

Dial by your location    
        +1 253 215 8782 US
        +1 301 715 8592 US
Meeting ID: 955 852 382
Find your local number: https://zoom.us/u/aEIcBJb38



​SECOND: A PASTORAL NOTE
​
Perfect Love Drives Out Fear [I John 4:18]

In the midst of so much anxiety, I encourage you to resist fear and to move towards love. In your own personal prayer practices, I encourage you to ground yourself in the love and care of God. Allow the peace of Christ to rule in your heart— this takes prayer, quiet, solitude. Take some necessary breaks from technology and social media, and stay connected to one another. Check-in on one another. Don't isolate but care for one another, whether in-person or virtually - FaceTime is a beautiful thing!

At the same time, this is a beautiful invitation to love your neighbor as yourself. Engage in conversations with those around you. Check in on those who might be vulnerable, need groceries or require medical assistance. Be good news to those who are feeling anxious. Ask good questions. Listen. Ask more questions. Offer to pray for others as God leads you. Christians have historically shined in moments such as these. We often forget, in the midst of a chronically anxious society, that we have complete access to God who has stitched God’s own self to each one of us. Ask God to stir something up within you and then ask how God might give you the courage to share what it with someone who needs a word of encouragement.

Even though we must take precautions, we must not "distance" ourselves from one another in any way other than physically. For it is more important than ever to come together to make sure that everyone in the community can thrive. As school closures and the economic hits of social distancing puts strain on working families and our neighbors living at or below poverty, we are compelled to give generously. Please see this post on Why You Should Give Not Hoard Your Toilet Paper to find out how you can begin to help our neighbors in need. I believe that our community is strategically poised for such a time as this!

THE ENTIRE WORLD IS LONGING FOR PEACE IN THIS MOMENT, AND WE, AS GOD’S AMBASSADORS, BREATHING GOD’S OWN BREATH, CARRY PEACE.

With much love and affection,

​Jessica

Last night I traveled back from sunny San Diego on an eerily empty flight. I guess no one was pumped about flying to Seattle when we are at the epicenter of the country's Coronavirus pandemic!

There is a move to contain the spread of the virus here in our area with schools closing, events being cancelled and companies urging employees to work from home. I've heard from those who aren't concerned about it in the least chalking it up with overblown scares in the past, and others who are anxiety-ridden, at-risk or find themselves quarantined with life very much disrupted! As with anything, our perspectives are largely dependent upon our level of privilege and proximity to the threat.

And so I have been asked the question, as followers of Jesus, what is our response to be? And in keeping with the teachings of Jesus and oddly enough paralleling the Lenten journey, I believe we are called to both constraint and generosity that resists fear and moves us toward love.

CONSTRAINT
I believe we must use wisdom and discretion certainly, if not for our own sake, for the sake of those who are vulnerable among us. Many of us are young(ish) and healthy and would survive the virus just fine. But unfortunately, there are others who are more susceptible to its life-threatening effects. And so I urge you to follow the recommendations of King County Public Health. Wash your hands (religiously in this case!) and stay at home if you are are feeling ill. For those of you considered to be high risk, it is recommended that you stick close to home and stay away from large gatherings. Following precautions and using constraint acknowledges the simple truth that we are all connected and that our individual actions have impact on the collective whole.

GENEROSITY
At the same time, as people of faith, we are called not to fear but to courageous love that compels us to love our neighbor as ourself. And so let us resist the urge to panic, to lock our doors and hoard our resources. Historically, Christians have been known for their self-sacrificing compassion and care for the sick during times of plague or sweeping illness. [Check out the response of Christians in Wuhan!] And so let us look beyond our own concerns and look out for the welfare of our neighbors, especially those who are most vulnerable. Here is a wonderful article that talks a little about our own invitation toward transformation: Corona: Disorder as Transformation.

If you are a younger and healthier individual who is fully capable of heading to the store without taking your life in your hands, remember those like my 83-year-old neighbor who should not be in public spaces. If you know of those who are ill, make sure they get the medical care they need. If you have friends or co-workers who are quarantined and isolated, reach out to offer some support, even if it is through your iphone or computer screen. If you are shopping or going out to a restaurant, support your local businesses (perhaps especially Asian business) that might be hard hit in this time. Let us be known for our love, our kindness and our generosity.

By practicing both constraint and generosity, we attest to the reality that we are not rugged individualists independent or silo'd away from "the other". We are more connected than we often recognize. We are meant to be a body, connected and diverse, each part contributing and affecting the flourishing of the whole.

And in a time of widespread fear and all the worst that kicks up in people in the midst of anxiety, we can offer comfort, peace, kindness, mercy and hope. For we will journey this Lenten season toward the Love of God that holds us, surrounds us and pursues us tenaciously. And we are invited to turn away from fear and scarcity and turn towards a generous and courageous love.

by Jessica Ketola

Photo by Benjamin Sow on Unsplash

Last night we gathered for our neighborhood dinner where every week we gather with around twenty of our neighbors to share a meal and our lives. One of our newest attendees is a vivacious 6-year-old girl who loves it so much that she convinced her aunt who was watching her for the evening to bring her! Of course, the big draw are the little friends her age who live in our downstairs apartment. However, I have to believe that this is only a piece of the puzzle — for we are all hard-wired for community.

​You see, there is also Fred, the doting grandpa, who doesn't yet have grandchildren of his own, but who brings treats for the kids every week (and the dogs for that matter) and kindly engages them in play while their parents eat. And we can't go without mentioning Patmon, the sweet golden retriever who serves as a therapy dog by day and the consummate playful companion by night. You add in delicious and plentiful food, raucous conversations, and the warmth and energy of fitting twenty people around the table — and it's no wonder this is becoming a beloved event even for our smallest members.

One thing I know is that when the community comes together, anything is possible. You can feel it palpable in the air. Already, the gifts of the community are being activated. We have gardeners and want-to-be gardeners. We have cooks and those who aspire to. We have tired parents and doting aunts and uncles. We have students who struggle with homework and teachers who offer guidance. We have those with construction skills and those who panic at the sight of a hammer. We have neighborhood activists, marathon runners, cyclists, and beer connoisseurs. We have engineers, therapists, doulas, and business owners. Ours is a diverse community — and one can begin to sense that when we come together, there is nothing we can't solve.

And this is where the dreaming happens. When we begin to grasp that we are not consumers, but citizens, with the power to create a community where everyone can thrive. And I am beginning to hear this around the table these days. For the conversation is subtly changing from what can I do? to what can WE do? And the slightest of shifts brings about an entirely new set of possibilities. For when we move from powerlessness and the overwhelming feeling that there is little we can do — we are filled with a fierce and burgeoning hope that when we offer our gifts in concert with the gifts of the entire community, dreams really do come true.

And so I encourage you this week to let new imaginations stir within you. What are you dreaming about? What good in the world would you like to see that seems currently out of reach? What injustices around you tug at your heart? Like Jesus, what moves you with compassion? What hopes keep stubbornly rising?

And before you censor yourself and give yourself every good reason why this won't work, and quit before you begin — get in a room with your community, some friends, some pilgrims, some neighbors. Share your dreams and see if there might be a collective dream that arises.

Because like my 6-year-old neighbor and her aunt, who taking it all in, told me she was inspired to think about how she could do this in her own neighborhood, you too might begin to appreciate the abundance of riches found in community and realize that anything is possible.

by Jessica Ketola

Photo by Ant Rozetsky on Unsplash

We've been talking about the revelation of God in human form, Jesus in flesh and blood, who walked the roads of Galilee and now the streets of our neighborhoods -- within us and through us and perhaps in spite of us.

It is preposterous that God chooses to reveal God's nature through us - the body of Christ meant to embody love and light. Not as islands but together as a community. This is the mystery of the incarnation and an affront to everything we know to be true about ourselves. Cause let's face it — we are all too well acquainted with the often sordid smallness of our souls and the ways we fail in love. Or at least we recognize it in our neighbor!

This week, the gospel lectionary reading is pointed. 

​Jesus said, “You are the salt of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything, but is thrown out and trampled under foot.“You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven. [Matthew 5:13-16]

But what does this mean? Some have taken this out of context as license for grandiosity, self-righteousness, imperialism, or judgment. But remember these words are found in one of the most important pieces of scripture, the Sermon on the Mount. And here Jesus describes the nature of God's kin-dom and what we are to embody as followers of Jesus.

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for the kingdom of heaven is theirs.
Blessed are those who mourn for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the humble, for they will inherit the earth.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for justice, for they will be filled.
Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.
Blessed are those who are persecuted because of justice, for the kingdom of heaven is theirs.

This is how we are to be salt and light to the world.

Somehow I don't think Jesus was talking about praying a prayer, attending church 1.7 times a month, going to church activities or being a "good person". This was a complete reversal of the world's systems. This was about becoming people of humility, presence, mercy and grace.

This was a revolution of love and Jesus offered an entirely different way to live.

If we truly are to be salt and light, we must live differently. We will have to go beyond attending meetings and assenting to a set of beliefs and actually begin to live a way of love in our neighborhoods. We are going to have to figure out what it means to fit together as a "body" working together, every part valuable, every gift needed, to embody love.

And to the best of my knowledge, embodiment happens in bodies — in real life and real places, around dinner tables and bus stops, community forums and coffee shops, soccer games and study groups. And it happens best in proximity, when we are literally bumping up next to one another in our everyday lives.

This was so evident this week as I walked with my neighbors Kathy and Becky, as I ran into my favorite grocery clerk, Matt; as I conspired with another neighbor over coffee; as I met with my friend Senait about a community project we're working on; as my neighbor Courtney spontaneously popped over to help prepare a meal; as we gathered on Wednesday for a neighborhood dinner and gobbled up made-with-love cookies from Juanita; as we brought soup to our neighbor Diane who's been sick; and as we schemed about a new gathering place in the neighborhood.

We are experiencing firsthand that there is another way to live.

We don't have to live under the tyranny of fragmentation, anxiety and materialism. Jesus offers us the good life. A life of love and connection, simplicity and sacrifice, forgiveness and peace-making.

And maybe, just maybe, we are beginning to taste of God's dream for us and our neighborhood. Where everything and everyone is pulled into the centrifugal force of Love that is making all things beautiful in their time. 

by Jessica Ketola

We continue our journey through the epiphany season. And I love this word – epiphany – meaning an illuminating discovery or revelation. The light of God illuminating our darkness.

Last Sunday, the gospel reading in the lectionary was Matthew 4:12-23. And here Jesus quotes the words of the prophet Isaiah who spoke of one who would walk the ground of Galilee — this Messiah who would bring liberation to all people.

"the people who sat in darkness
have seen a great light,
and for those who sat in the region and shadow of death
light has dawned.”
From that time Jesus began to proclaim, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”

And so we consider this light — the light of epiphanies. The light of revelation. The light of repentance. The light that opens blind eyes and causes us to see. The light that breaks the heavy yoke of oppression and brings liberation. And as followers of Jesus, we ask ourselves, How do we receive and reflect this light of love in the world?

Last week we celebrated Martin Luther King Day and his dream that I believe was God’s dream — that one day the light of love would shine, that (in his own words), "in some not too distant tomorrow, the radiant stars of love and brotherhood will shine over our great nation with all their scintillating beauty."

And yet, as you know, while there has been some progress since MLK’s death, the seeds of hatred still persist. Racism, injustice and oppression are still rampant. And so we remember King’s words.

Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.

And so as a community, we want to embody LOVE here in our places and in our neighborhood. And part of what that means is loving across the divides of class, culture, gender, abilities and race. We are called to love our neighbor, and yes, even our enemy. And so part of my vision for this community is that we would begin to dismantle white supremacy —that we would own our own stories, that we would have hard and difficult conversations about power and privilege, and that we would work to turn and to repent from the ways in which we are complicit with the its evil structures.

Dr. King said, “The ultimate tragedy is not the oppression and cruelty by the bad people but the silence over that by the good people. He who passively accepts evil is as much involved in it as he who helps to perpetrate it. He who accepts evil without protesting against it is really cooperating with it.”

And so as a community, we want to find ways here in our neighborhoods to not be silent but to fight for justice and to co-create a new community. My dream is that we would be a multi-cultural community, welcoming everyone with all different abilities, the rich and poor, old and young, brown and white, straight and queer, married and single, reflecting the beautiful diversity of our neighborhood and community. Reflecting the picture we see in Revelations where every tribe and every nation are worshipping together as the beloved community.

Jesus is our Great Light who overcomes the darkness of hatred with love. Jesus has called us to do the same, saying, “You are the light of the world. A city situated on a hill cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and puts it under a basket, but rather on a lampstand, and it gives light for all who are in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven. [Matthew 5:14]

I pray you remember these words as you go to work and care for your families, neighbors and friends...

You are the light of the world.

by Jessica Ketola