Meditation for Evensong
Listen
to these words of St. Paul to the Corinthians: “I appeal to you, brothers
and sisters, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you be in
agreement and that there be no division among you, but that you be united in
the same mind and the same purpose. For it has been reported to me by
Chloe’s people that there are quarrels among you……”
From
the very beginnings of the Church we Christians have been arguing among
ourselves about one thing or another. Writings of the New Testament itself
recognize this reality. When Paul wrote these words to the Corinthians, he was
speaking specifically against aligning one’s loyalty to him or anyone
other than to Jesus. Christians should be united in the same mind and same
purpose with respect to their faithfulness to Christ.
Regrettably,
today there is no single Christianity; there are Christianities.
Although at ecumenical gatherings it is diplomatic to affirm our common
confession that “Jesus is the Risen Lord and Christ” and that we are
united by our common baptism, the very meanings of that confession and of
baptism differ considerably. Quarreling about doctrine and morality has become
the norm as factions assert their own respective visions of the Gospel as the
one true Christianity. The divisions have become so deep that we do not worship
together, and in some cases, Christians are forbidden to pray with those with
whom they differ. Even within many congregations there are factions squabbling
over a myriad of problems and issues. The manifestations of the Gospel to the
world are blurred by battles among ourselves, and we lose credibility and
appeal.
We have
forgotten a very basic lesson from Genesis folklore. When God prohibited
Adam and Eve from eating from the Tree of Knowledge, the Creator was, in part,
warning them not to attempt to be godlike when it comes to knowledge. We are
reminded that we do not have clear access to the Truths in God’s mind.
Instead, first and foremost, you and I are to live with loving trust in fellow
humans known to us. Whatever you and I think that we know about
religious beliefs, morality, physics or psychology is subject to human
limitations and endless fine tuning and revisions. How silly it is that we
Christians clash over many things, with the idolatrous notion that we possess
godlike certainties. We forget that God alone knows with certainty.
The
Anglican heritage, of which the Episcopal Church is a part, deliberately
includes a significant degree of latitude as we interpret God’s Word.
Knowing that we too are not to eat from the forbidden Tree of Knowledge, we are
supposed to welcome responsible “schools of thought” based on sound
scholarship. Further, we are supposed to agree to differ. You and I
express our unity, not in agreement with each other, but in praying together,
as we do here tonight. My impression is that at this time there is no
quarreling at St. Andrew’s Church, though differing schools of thought
rightly exist. This is worth showing to the community at large! May this spirit
continue as we agree to differ and as we unite in worship In the Name of the
Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.