New Direction
What is it that we are called to do and be?
I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world. I am not asking you to take them out of the world, but I ask you to protect them from the evil one. They do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world. Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. As you have sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. And for their sakes I sanctify myself, so that they also may be sanctified in truth. - John 17:14-19
Last night in our EfM (Education for Ministry) class, the topic was Vocation.
While the word has come to mean any work that we pursue with passion, our focus was on what we feel we are called to do.
Each of us shared our thoughts about our own individual calls, and then we delved deeper, talking about our Baptismal covenant to spread the Gospel.
The reading we had been assigned for the week made a point of saying our mission as Christians is to to do as Christ taught, to spread God's love, not to feel compelled to teach the world about Christ as son and redeemer.
We were confused by that.
Do we believe Jesus came to save us from our sins or not? And aren't we supposed to share that Good News with the world?
The author's point was that the mission of the church has changed from evangelizing the message of salvation through Christ, to getting along with the other religious beliefs, focusing on the love we share in common.
When we hear of acts of violence against religious groups, how can we not feel a need to come together as one community, seeking common ground rather than highlighting differences?
But should we be watering down our faith, eliminating the core message of the Gospel?
It is good news that we are saved from our sins by the death and resurrection of God's own, who through love came to be one of us.
If we have trouble saying that, it may be because we don't know how to answer the questions we know or believe we will get.
But should we abandon our faith to get along with those who don't believe as we do?
What if we just address those who have no faith at all? Wouldn't it be easier to talk to them and show them there is a better life now, with eternal life to follow?
I think it is time we take stock of our faith and do the hard work of understanding what we truly believe before we set out to spread it to others.
Maybe we need help.
Let us try to work on this together, with God's help.
More to come...