THIS SUNDAY: The Community of Pilgrims Presbyterian Fellowship, July 18, 2021, Eighth Sunday after Pentecost, Gather and Devotion on Zoom. If you have any questions, or are interested in a conversation, contact Pastor Brett Webb-Mitchell (919) 444-9111; brettwebbmitchell@gmail.com and visit www.communityofpilgrims.com.
_____
Dear Pilgrims of Christly Peace,
Greetings from Seattle. After a hectic beginning of the week, I’m glad to have things winding down on a Friday, in which the weather is far more typical of our Pacific NW forecast, with cool mornings and sunnier summer afternoons in the 80s. This is also time for coveted vacations, trips to the coast or mountains or to other parts of the country, preparations for weddings, and other celebrations of life well-lived. Hooray for times of celebration!
The focus passage of Scripture this week is the Letter to the Ephesians 2:11-22. Biblical commentator Sally Brown opens her commentary on this passage with these words: “Today’s reading lies at the heart of the theology of Ephesians, and it is not tame.” Yikes! To read and study untamed theology! How daring! How bold! What’s going on? The risen Christ has upset the apple cart of life, tearing down walls that divided people—which for the church in Ephesus was between Gentiles and Jews—and creating a new people: “For he is our peace; in his flesh he has made both groups into one and has broken down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us” (v. 14). Having broken down the dividing wall, “we are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone” (vv. 19, 20). Why is this so untamed? The only “peace” that was known in the then-Roman Empire was a peace buttressed by force, by an army, by threat of life if anyone stepped out of line. It was a forced, and a perverted sense of peace. But what God in Christ was offering, as exemplified in this letter, was a peace on new terms, the peace forged not by the "lords” of Empires old or new, in their manifold forms, but in the blood and bone of the crucified and risen Christ. The cross undermined the wall dividing Jew and non-Jew, but that is only the beginning. We can well imagine that Roman occupiers would not be excited about this kind of “peace,” in which their “peace” is undone by the death and resurrection of the Servant God, the Holy One. Only recently in our own country did we allow someone to perpetuate the folly of a forced peace with a weak wall, wasting millions of taxpayers' money. All walls in all countries either come down eventually, or become tourist attractions. Join us this Sunday as we discuss walls and fences, all kinds of peace, and being members of the household of God, with Christ as the cornerstone, in our modern age.
_____
Events!
July 18, 4 pm, Gather and Devotion on Zoom!
July 25, 4 pm, Gather and Devotion on Zoom!
Aug. 1, 4 pm, Gather and Devotion on Zoom!
Aug. 8, 4 pm, Gather and Devotion on Zoom!
____
Prayers of Celebration and Concern
· We pray for those who are fighting the forest fires in the western part of the US, as well as for rain to end this drought;
· We pray for the people of Germany and surrounding countries who are facing serious flooding;
· We pray for voting rights and infrastructure bills in the US, and for people who have not taken the COVID 19 vaccine in this country to simply take it, along with the rest of the world;
· We pray for those family and friends who are facing serious health and mental health challenges, for the professionals in the health services, and family and friends who are caretakers;
· We pray for those who have passed this week, that they will truly rest in peace, and we pray for their family and friends;
· We are celebrating all the people who have birthdays and wedding anniversaries in July!
· We pray for travel mercies for those on the road. And for those who are on vacation, have fun!
· We are thankful when those pets we love, who once were lost, are found.
· We continue to pray for the people who are struggling to simply live in Afghanistan, Yemen, Syria, and the Tigray region of Ethiopia.
“God, in your love, attend our prayers…”
_____
Poem
The Wire Fence, by Michel Quoist
The wires are holding hands around the holes;
To avoid breaking the ring, they hold tight the neighboring wrist,
And it’s thus that with holes they make a fence.
Lord, there are lots of holes in my life.
There are some in the lives of my neighbors.
But if you wish, we shall hold hands,
We shall hold very tight,
And together we shall make a fine roll of fence to adorn Paradise.
**
It is my prayer that this vision for mutual ministry may stimulate new visions for ministry and mission in the place where you live and serve.
____
Buen Camino! Pastors Brett & Karen Cornwell Fortlander.