God’s spirit will let a white man look into the eyes of a black man and see his soul; it will let a black man look into the eyes of a white man and see his soul. And they will both know that it is the soul of a man.
— from a sermon by the Rev. Clarence Jordan, founder of Koinonia Farm
Dear Caldwell,
At the gym where I work out, there is this guy that seems to be there all the time. Like a lot of people in America these days, he wears a permanent scowl – on his face and, I imagine, in his soul. When you look into his eyes, all you get in return is a blank stare, a cold, lifeless return. Do you know anyone like that?
For me, he represents the hostile discord that we see far too much of in our national and local life. When I preached last week at the Good Time Fellowship Hour (at the Thirsty Beaver), someone lifted up the need for civility in our prayer concerns. He received a hearty, “AMEN” from the crowd.
Altogether now . . . “Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.”
As we move from Sunday to Sunday this week, I am so keenly aware of many mile-markers in the life of this congregation. Today marks the end of school for our teachers and students/families in public school – the passage of another grade. Closer to home, this Sunday we will: say farewell and thank you to four leaders who have made, each in their own way, singular and lasting contributions to the life of Caldwell; celebrate the three youth who have completed the Confirmation class and are prepared to publicly state their faith; give thanks for another year of Buddy/Mentor; recognize four new members of the church; and, elect an Association Pastor Nominating Committee.
These mile-markers remind us that our life together as a community of faith is ongoing; it has a long arc. The Revelation to John in the Bible, better known as Revelations, paints a portrait of the kind of community God wishes for us. Even more, it provides a glimpse of the kind of “communion” we thought about last Sunday in worship, a bond among people that is graced by the Holy Spirit, one unites to fight major injustices together while transcending petty differences and bickering, one that invites mutual respect and the peace of Christ to define all interaction, the kind of community that lasts and endures through all things. (Revelation 21:1-6)
That’s the kind of community Baptist preacher/scholar/farmer Clarence Jordan established at Koinonia Farm, where we have sent mission teams, in south Georgia in the 1940s – a place where black and white, poor and not-so-poor lived together in harmony and shared all things in common, all to bear witness to the kingdom of God on earth.
Please mark your calendars for three important gatherings:
Friday: The Third Place and 24-7 Prayer will hold a joint open house tomorrow from 8:30-11:00 a.m. If you haven’t experienced either of these public spaces, come and bring a friend.
Saturday: Union Presbyterian Seminary holds its commencement ceremony for the class of 2016, including “our own” Abong Fankam, Phanta Lansden, Gwen Pearson and Henry Trexler, all former interns. Sharon Presbyterian Church, 10 a.m.
Sunday: Before worship at 10 a.m. in Belk Hall, we will hold a farewell celebration of Tom and Kitty Bohr and Janet Blanchard and Charlie Brown.
Watch for plenty of other details in Caldwell This Week soon, including introductions of our new members and the slate of names the session has proposed to make up the Associate Pastor Nominating Committee, in advance of the election meeting at the close of worship Sunday.
In Christ,
John