Human Relations Sunday

“You are my Son, the Beloved, with you I am well pleased.” Mark 1:11b 

“But the end is reconciliation; the end is redemption; the end is the creation of the beloved community. It is this type of spirit and this type of love that can transform opposers into friends. It is this type of understanding goodwill that will transform the deep gloom of the old age into the exuberant gladness of the new age. It is this love which will bring about miracles in the hearts of men.” Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., from “Facing the Challenge of a New Age,” 1956 

Remembering our baptism, we remember we are personally God’s beloved. Baptism is a personal experience that is enacted within a communal setting with the community of believers promising to nurture, guide and instruct those who are baptized. Belovedness then becomes communal. God calls us to find ourselves within beloved community that will lead us to deep gladness and an ending of oppression and evil that destroys all. Are we listening? Do we remember how to hear the voice of the Divine calling us to purpose and to community that is redemptive? Come, let us practice the art of listening.  

Pastor Julie will refer to a video essay in her sermon entitled, “The Life Span of Loneliness,” by Adam Westbrook and Emily Holzknecht. If you would like to watch this please stay and shortly after worship, we will play it. It is five minutes long. Alternately, for those of you worshiping remotley you can find it by clicking HERE.