My Upside Down Church
Monday, May 23, 2005
I went to "church" today at Church of the Sojourners. I went to the flat upstairs where, in the expanded living room I found my neighbors and fellow church members sitting around on couches and folder chairs singing praises, passing the bread and wine to each other, and sharing a family meal together as a church. This is not a religious ceremony sybolizing unity in the body and blood of Jesus Christ, this is simply a weekly reflection and celebration of what they are ALREADY LIVING every day with each other.
Unity. Christ prayed that we woud be one in unity as He and the Father were one, so that the world would know that we are His disciples. Sojourners church members take Christ at His word and seek to rearrange their lives in whatever way necessary to fulfill this task of loving each other for Jesus sake to witness to the world. For these 40, it means making career and ministry goals SECONDARY to being faithful to loving each other. I agree, this seems inefficient and limiting; they are tied to location and church; most of us consider our personal and ministry goals first, and move around to new cities and church bodies as needed; Sojourners reverses that. We were not called to be successful first, above all, we are called to love each other, and if we can't do that right with the people we are closest to, we have no right to move ahead in other ministries.
Posted by Benjamin Washam 12:11 AM
Labels: Ecclesiology, San Francisco
