Division. I've been hearing this word a lot lately. It is often contrasted with unity.
And it struck me that we are spending time on both sides; hearing about both sides; leaning into both sides of this on-going dialogue. For example, there has been unity around the Titan search situation. International expertise and help was brought to bear. We have had and continue to have unity and international cooperation around the issue of the multiple forest fires burning across our country. On the other hand, there are places and times of great division. In Russia, the military effort is now seeing mercenaries rise against the armed government forces. We see divisions over how appointments to positions in our Alberta Health Services are done, and undone. And in the midst of all this, when the trolls on social media seemed to be getting louder, I noticed how united we Christians were at this moment, place and time.
The congregation of Our Savior Lutheran is experiencing great changes right now. We are short of money. We can't find a pastor to call. We are struggling to see where we are going and what partnerships might be possible; both in the shorter and longer term. Welcome to congregational life right now.
All of us on the Protestant side of the faith are experiencing the same things. That's very comforting. Further, we are finding things that work. Having on-line services and other accessible tools such as this blog help in our exploring the faith. I would refer you to the recent Pew Research study of churches, and their information on how important digital technology continues to be. And the greatest comfort is also that this division and unity was common to the people of the bible.
I offer just two examples here. Contrast what you read about the early Christian churches in Acts 3 and 4 with what Paul tells the church in Corinth in 1 Corinthians 11. Or contrast 1 Chronicles 9 with Jeremiah 20-22. Division and unity are very old. Right now, we need to remember that our Triune God is still in charge, still answers prayers and has not left us forsaken, because Jesus and the Holy Spirit are with us too. We as Christians are all united in this. And it is still our job to offer hospitality and welcome as we were offered when we came to the faith. So, where are you going to do that this day and this week? Pr. Scott
