-Rev. Don Prange, St. James United Church of Christ
Delivered at the Annual I Have A Dream celebration at the Douglass Community Center, Leesburg, January 16, 2012

Some introductory thoughts: In recognizing our faith, worship & life journey this year as one of pausing to take time for some spiritual discernment… we moved last Sunday from celebrating Jesus as the Christ-child to celebrating ourselves within a spirituality of being children of God. And as we recall today that Jesus grew in wisdom as he matured into adulthood… we want to take note of the story of The Magi and the degree to which he might have been influenced by eastern wisdom. So we will reflect today on a spirituality of creation with its emphasis on the metaphors of darkness & light in pursuing a transcending immersion in a spirituality in which we see God in everything and in each other.

So we began with a hymn lifting up the spirituality of THE MAGI… one that helps us understand what worship is all about… and following their sighting of the star the lines go on…

As with joy steps they sped to that lowly manger bed,
There to bend the knee before one whom heaven and earth adore;
So may we with willing feet ever seek your mercy seat.

As they offered gifts most rare at that manger plain and bare,
So may we with holy joy, pure and free from sin’s alloy,
All our costliest treasures bring, Christ, to you from whom they spring.

… suggesting a spirit of joy in offering all that we are and have… putting self at the disposal of others… not a spirit of individualism but of community…

And there are some important lessons here. If we come thinking about me – How am “I” going to get “my” bucket filled? (a metaphor some have used) or – How do “I” get something that takes “me” through the week? So If we only come with our expectations… they may, or may not, be met… and then we may feel unfulfilled. But, if we are coming in the spirituality of the Magi… with total and joyful giving… the door is opened to the possibilities of receiving… and it’s just possible we might indeed get something fulfilling… we may find something to take us through the week… not always what we wanted but maybe what we needed. (One of these days we can devote some time to a spirituality of worship itself; but for now we might just reflect on the notion that it’s what we BRING to worship that determines what we might RECEIVE, not only for ourselves, but something that we can than SHARE as we go… as we say when candles are extinguished: Taking our LIGHT into the world….

Prompted by the star that led The Magi, we moved on to recite some excerpts from the mystical story of creation in the Book of Beginnings…

In the beginning when heaven and earth were evolving and everything was just a formless void and in deep darkness… God’s creative spirit began sweeping over the waters… and God said:
Let there be light, and there was light.
And God saw that the light was good and separated it from the darkness. God called light “Day” and darkness “Night”… and God said:
Let there be a canopy that separates the waters, and so it was.
And God called the canopy “the sky”… and there were two great lights in the sky… a greater one to govern the day and a smaller one with all the stars to govern the night… And God said:
Let the waters under ‘the sky’ be gathered into one area and let dry land appear. And so it was!
God called the dry land “earth” and the mass of waters “seas”… and the earth produced vegetation and all kinds of living things… and the seas produced fish… and the skies were filled with birds…
And God saw that it was good.
But God’s creative spirit was still at work as human beings began to evolve and God said:
Let them be care-takers of the earth and all living things…
And God looked at everything that was evolving… and God said:
IT IS VERY GOOD!

What the creation mythology of Genesis illustrates is a dialogue between faith stories and cultures… (shaped in those days when some of Jesus’ Judean ancestors were in exile in Babylon)… and it reflects a re-working of eastern mythologies regarding the beginnings and origins of life… re-shaping a dualistic conflict between LIGHT and DARKNESS into a monotheistic unity in which LIGHT (DAY) and DARKNESS (NIGHT) are both celebrated as GOOD…

A Reflective Hymn, O How Glorious, Full of Wonder, followed and one of its themes reflects a marveling at God’s mystic ways, acknowledging the God who became known in the mysticism of a prophetic imagination of those filled with The Spirit of God. And what comes through in the hymn is that even though humanity has too often failed in its calling to be care-takers of the earth and all living things… God never gives up on us and is always forgiving us and urging us on to a spirit of compassion and love… always urging and nudging us on in becoming and being the very image of God that we are meant to be – a spirituality expressed in the hymn lifting up this important principle – that Yours (is) the will our hearts are seeking – a spirituality in which The Spirit can then be speaking and living in us.

And that is what we see in the NEW and CREATIVE BEGINNINGS in the story of Jesus of Nazareth…. Mark 1:1-11…

The story of Jesus, called Christ and Son of God, based on the commentary of a follower of Jesus named Mark, begins with using the words of some prophetic mystics to describe the preaching of John the Baptizer . . .

A voice cries in the wilderness:
Prepare a way for Yahweh… a way for the coming of God . . .

and so it was that John appeared in the wilderness preaching an immersion in new ways of thinking and acting for the forgiveness of sin. People from all over the Judean countryside and from Jerusalem were coming to him for this baptism and were confessing their sin. John wore a garment of camel-hair with a leather belt around his waist, and he lived on locusts and wild honey. And in his preaching he said, “There is someone coming after me, someone more powerful than I am; indeed, I’m not worthy of kneeling down to undo the straps of his sandals. I’ve been baptizing with water, but he will baptize with the Holy Spirit.”

And that’s when Jesus arrived from Nazareth in Galilee to be baptized in the Jordan by John. Then, all at once, as he came up out of the water, he saw the heavens split open, and the Spirit coming down on him like a dove. And a voice from heaven was saying: “You are my Son, the Beloved, in whom I take great delight!”

When you hear that story, does it surprise you that Jesus was himself in need of… in search of… a new way of thinking and acting? That he was conscious of the sin of traditional religion… that he was conscious of the sin of the nation… and that he was conscious of the fact that as long as he remained silent and uninvolved, he was participating in that sin?

He might have privately harbored the spirituality of all of the mystical prophetic imagination that was always so evident in the scriptures of his ancestral faith story; and he might have privately understood the meaning of a covenant with God to pursue justice as a way of life; but until he became public about it, that spirituality meant nothing at all. Only when he began acting and preaching in those terms did it begin to make a difference in the lives of the oppressed and the poor… the marginalized and the outcasts… and it’s in anticipation of all that that he hears God’s stamp of approval: You are my Son, the Beloved, in whom I take great delight!

We went on to sing a reflective hymn, Touch the Earth Lightly . . .

Touch the earth lightly, use the earth gently, nourish the life of the world in our care:
Gift of great wonder, ours to surrender, trust for the children tomorrow will bear.

God of all living, God of all loving, God of the seedling, the snow, and the sun,
Teach us, deflect us, Christ reconnect us, using us gently, and making us one.

We noted the hymn reflected a spirituality in which we see God in everything and each other… and that in Christ we are reconnected with that ultimate concern of being united as a human family… and reconnecting us with a recognition of an interdependence of all living things… indeed, uniting us with The Spirit of God. It’s a spirituality expressed in a contemporary mystical prophetic imagination term called panentheism. It’s not a word you’ll find in most dictionaries; but you can google it and find 8500 pages with that word.

We celebrated those reconnections that invite us to remember we are created in the likeness and image of God… and went on to sing about that in the hymn, God, Who Stretched the Spangled Heavens… recalling that we share creative powers with God that can really make a difference in the world… and opening ourselves up to a spirituality in which we receive a guidance that makes our goals and the goals of God ONE AND THE SAME!

Then… in the spirit of the Magi… we brought our offerings and meditated through some offertory music….

And then, in acknowledging there are continuing realities of darkness & light in our lives… we lifted up the following Litany of Darkness and Light to introduce our prayers of joys and concerns… recognizing and taking note that God is present in both the darkness & light of life…..

We wait in the darkness, expectantly, longingly, anxiously, thoughtfully.
The darkness is our friend. In the darkness of the womb, we have all been nurtured and protected. In the darkness of the womb, the Christ-child was made ready for the journey into the light.
You are with us, O God, in darkness and in light.
It is only in the darkness that we can see the splendor of the universe – blankets of stars, the solitary glowing of distant planets. It was the darkness that allowed the Magi to find the star that guided them to where the Christ-child lay.
You are with us, O God, in darkness and in light.
In the darkness of night, desert peoples find relief from the cruel, relentless heat of the sun. In the blessed desert darkness, Mary and Joseph were able to flee with the infant Jesus to safety in Egypt.
You are with us, O God, in darkness and in light.
In the darkness of sleep, we are soothed and restored, healed and renewed.
In the darkness of sleep, dreams rise up. God spoke to Jacob and Joseph through dreams. God is speaking still.
You are with us, O God, in darkness and in light.
In the solitude of darkness, we sometimes remember those who need God’s presence in a special way – the sick, the unemployed, the bereaved, the persecuted, the homeless, those who are demoralized and discouraged, those whose fear has turned to cynicism, those whose vulnerability has become bitterness.
Sometimes in the darkness, we remember those who are near to our hearts – colleagues, partners, parents, children, neighbors, friends. We thank God for their presence and ask God to bless and protect them in all that they do – at home, at school, as they travel, as they work, as they play.
You are with us, O God, in darkness and in light.
Sometimes, in the solitude of darkness, our fears and concerns, our hopes and our visions rise to the surface. We come face to face with ourselves and with the road that lies ahead of us. And in that same darkness, we find companionship for the journey. In that same darkness, we sometimes allow ourselves to wonder and worry whether the human race is going to survive.
We know you are with us, O God, yet we still await your coming. In the darkness that contains both our hopelessness and our expectancy, we watch for a sign of God’s hope. [A litany prepared by Department of Parish Development and Mission, New Zealand]

We went on to pray The Prayer of The Children of God… Our Father…

And then, before leaving, sang a hymn as a final reminder that we do not own the creation… we are part of it… part of all that is…

We cannot own the sunlit sky, the moon, the wilds flowers growing,
For we are part of all that is within life’s river flowing.
With open hands receive and share the gifts of God’s creation,
That all may have abundant life in every earth and nation.

God calls humanity to join as partners in creating
A future free from want or fear, life’s goodness celebrating.
That new world beckons from afar, invites our shared endeavor,
That all may have abundant life and peace endure forever.

[Garnered from the worship experience at St. James United Church of Christ in Lovettsville, Va… January 8, 2012… the First Sunday after Epiphany]

The unsolicited lecture “love note” was distributed to residents of a Michigan neighborhood:

For thousands of years, Sun-worshippers have celebrated the Sungod’s rebirth after Solstice. Pagans honored the birth of the “invincible sun” with a “festival of lights.” They used big bonfires, pigs fat tallow candle lights, and today, billions of colored christmass lights. Rome’s seven-day December Saturnalia was religious revelry with decadent drunkenness outrageous adultery and giving Saturn’s nativity birth gifts to the children. The Norseman’s yuletide solstice carousal used sexual soliciting mistletoe, Yule-log bonfires, and decorated evergreen wreaths and tree worship. None of this honors Yeshua the Christ… [the published image cuts off the note at this point. -Ed.]

During the two-plus years of the ongoing Loudoun Festival of Holiday Free Speech and Vandalism, I don’t recall anyone from any community attempting to dictate the content of other people’s displays on private property. We can be thankful for that, at least.

It doesn’t extend to respect for the personal appearance of our neighbors, though. A Muslim friend reports this experience: A fellow customer at a local business made a point of returning (after bravely starting her car), to sneer “Merry Christmas!” at my friend in a tone that was not jolly, or loving, or inspired by good will toward all people. And this was not an isolated incident. What has happened to us?

I bet this Christmanukah Treenora wouldn’t pass inspection by any of these folks, either. I’m sure this must violate some religious authority’s notion of appropriateness. And that’s unfortunate, because the only people in the Bible who Jesus really expressed anger toward were those who – in the name of God – put their own dogma of cultural conformity above being loving toward other human beings (a thank you to John Shore for pointing this out so compellingly). In other words, people who for some reason think they have the authority to make exceptions to what Jesus clearly says is the most important thing of all: Love your neighbor as yourself.

Pluralistic and multi-cultural realities in a post-modern era have brought dramatic change, and for some still clinging to a mythology that we are a ‘Christian nation’, that is often a hard pill to swallow. But such a metaphor might help us to realize that all the challenges to a spirit of ‘Christian domination’ might very well be a healthy antidote to some ills that plague our nation. Indeed, challenges from other religious and cultural traditions are not only liberating for the whole society, they may even liberate many Christians still captive to misunderstandings, even distortions, of what the birth of Jesus of Nazareth and his life and teachings are all about.

In Loudoun County – especially with displays on the courthouse lawn – the difficulties of wrestling with a ‘transcending reason for the season’ come into sharp focus. But if it generates critical dialogue about the ultimate significance of the birth, life, and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth – and takes us beyond the verbal hand-wringing in some letters to the editor – it can be very healthy.

Perhaps the most controversial of the courthouse lawn displays – one depicting a skeletal Santa Claus on a cross – is also perhaps the most truthful, especially in helping Christians – even non Christians – to arrive at a ‘transcending’ meaning of the life and teachings of Jesus. The materialistic mugging of a religious tradition that has created a ‘Christmas market’ and “crucified” a transcending spirit of Christmas ought to take us back in time when another materialistic takeover of a religious tradition created a ‘market’ around the ritual sacrifices of The Temple in Jerusalem. And had it not been for the fact that Jesus and his followers were protesting and challenging the leaders of a religious system who had betrayed the ‘prophetic imagination’ of an ancestral faith story that had said what God wants is mercy, not sacrifice, (cf Hosea 6:6 and Matthew 9:13 & 12:9), what God wants is justice, compassion and humility, not ‘religion,’ (cf Micah 6:6), a challenge that was also directed at a collaboration of religious leaders and a priestly aristocracy with the Empire of Rome that was creating oppressive poverty and a captivity to impossible debt – he would never have been crucified and we would not even be remembering his birth.

It is significant that “The Protester” is Time Magazine’s 2011 “Person of the Year,” and that alongside those who have ‘protested’ and voiced dissent against authoritarian leaders, first in Tunisia and then in Egypt, Libya, Syria, Yemen and Bahrain, along with angry voices of protest in Russia and the Democratic Republic of Congo, as well as ‘protesters’ in the Occupy Wall Street movement. Christmas, 2011, can also be a day to remember and celebrate Jesus the ‘protester’ – along with all those who have ‘protested’ on the Leesburg courthouse lawn.

- The Rev. Don Prange, Director of Ministries in Economic Justice & minister at St. James United Church of Christ in Lovettsville.

Episode 1: “The New Adam” (November 20)

The New World challenged and changed the religious faiths the first European settlers brought to it. In New Mexico, the spiritual rituals of the Pueblo Indians collided with the Catholic faith of the Spanish Franciscan friars who came to convert them, ultimately exploding in violent rebellion. In New England, Puritan leader John Winthrop faced off against religious dissenters from within his own ranks, and a new message of spiritual rebirth from evangelical preachers like George Whitefield swept through the American colonies, upending traditional religious authority and kindling a rebellious spirit that fused with the political upheaval of the American Revolution.

Study guide

Episode 2: “A New Eden” (December 18)

America’s experiment in religious liberty involved an unlikely political alliance between evangelical Baptists and Enlightenment figures such as Thomas Jefferson as they forged a new concept of religious freedom, first in Virginia and ultimately in the new nation, as written in the Bill of Rights. These new freedoms had a significant impact on the country as it pushed westward, creating a vibrant religious marketplace where new religions started to take root and new Protestant denominations began to overtake the old. But the definition of freedom was contested, and its meaning ignited political conflicts between Irish Catholic immigrants and the Protestant establishment in New York over the reading of the Bible in public schools.

Study guide

Episode 3: “A Nation Reborn” (January 15)

How did religious beliefs shape the origins of the Civil War and President Abraham Lincoln’s actions during the conflict? As Northern abolitionists and Southern slaveholders clashed over the question of slavery, each side turned to the Bible to argue its cause. Frederick Douglass, a former slave and abolitionist newspaper editor, despaired that people who called themselves Christians could defend the evils of slavery. Protestant denominations fractured, with each side declaring God was on its side. Meanwhile, Lincoln, who had put his faith in reason over revelation, confronted the mounting casualties of the war and the death of his young son. In his anguish, he began a spiritual journey that transformed his inner life and changed his ideas about God and the ultimate meaning of the Civil War.

Study guide

Episode 4: “A New Light” (February 19)

During the 19th century, the forces of modernity challenged traditional faith and drove a wedge between liberal and conservative believers. Bohemian immigrant Isaac Mayer Wise embraced change and established Reform Judaism in America while his opponents adhered to Old World traditions. In New York, Presbyterian biblical scholar Charles Briggs sought to wed his evangelical faith with modern biblical scholarship, leading to his trial for heresy. In the 1925 Scopes evolution trial, Christian fundamentalist William Jennings Bryan faced off against freethinker Clarence Darrow in a battle between scientific and religious truth.

Study guide

Episode 5: “Soul of a Nation” (March 18)

In the post-World War II era, rising evangelist Billy Graham tried to inspire a religious revival that fused faith with patriotism in a Cold War battle with “godless communism.” As Americans flocked in record numbers to houses of worship, nonbelievers and religious minorities appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court to test the constitutionality of religious expression in public schools, and civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. emerged as a modern-day prophet, calling upon the nation to honor both biblical teachings and the founders’ democratic ideals of equal justice.

Study guide

Episode 6: “Of God and Caesar” (April 15)

The religious and political aspirations of evangelical conservatives found expression in a moral crusade over divisive social issues. They worried that the nation was adrift on a secular sea, unmoored from its Christian foundations, and they wanted to change the culture. Their ambitions were large, and they succeeded in transforming the religious and political landscape of the country. Their embrace of presidential politics, though, would ultimately end in disappointment and questions about the mixing of religion and politics. Across America, the religious marketplace expanded as new waves of immigrants from Asia, the Middle East and Latin America made the United States the most religiously diverse nation on earth. In the 2008 presidential election, the re-emergence of a religious voice in the Democratic Party brought the country to a new plateau in its struggle to reconcile faith with politics. God in America closes with reflections on the role of faith in the public life of the country, from the ongoing quest for religious liberty to the enduring idea of America as the “city on a hill” envisioned by the Puritans nearly 400 years ago.

Study guide

The next session, a recap of the whole series, will be held on May 20, 2012 at 10:00 am.

As we watch the charming annual tradition of fellow citizens trading insults over their respective displays on the Leesburg courthouse lawn, and how we choose to greet others during this joyous season, here is some timely advice from a pastor:

You think Christmas should be about Christ? Then take up your cross and follow Jesus – not into department stores, but into the prisons, the hospitals, among the poor and the outcast. You get angry when someone doesn’t say “Christmas?” Try getting angry over Christ’s children dying of malnutrition or AIDS. Try getting angry over the fact that the Christmas chocolate you love so much was kept cheap on the back of the working poor. Try getting angry over the fact that Christians are keeping people out of churches with their closed minds and closed doors.

You want to keep Christ in Christmas? Try putting Christ in your life first. Then we’ll talk about how to greet each other. And if you want a truly Christian greeting, one that makes no mistake whether or not you follow the Christ child, try, “the peace of Christ be with you.”

You brood of vipers. You hypocrites. Try getting upset over something that matters. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays.

I guess we could complain that he’s engaging in hate speech and defamation of a group of Christians. We could – but he’s kind of directly quoting the person we refer to as the Christ. So that might look silly.

Our 14-year-old dog Abbey died last month. The day after she passed away my 4-year-old daughter Meredith was crying and talking about how much she missed Abbey. She asked if we could write a letter to God so that when Abbey got to heaven, God would recognize her. I told her that I thought we could, and she dictated these words:

Dear God,

Will you please take care of my dog? She died yesterday and is with you in heaven. I miss her very much. I am happy that you let me have her as my dog even though she got sick.

I hope you will play with her. She likes to swim and play with balls. I am sending a picture of her so when you see her you will know that she is my dog. I really miss her.

Love, Meredith

We put the letter in an envelope with a picture of Abbey and Meredith and addressed it to God/Heaven. We put our return address on it. Then Meredith pasted several stamps on the front of the envelope because she said it would take lots of stamps to get the letter all the way to heaven. That afternoon she dropped it into the letter box at the post office. A few days later, she asked if God had gotten the letter yet. I told her that I thought He had.

Yesterday, there was a package wrapped in gold paper on our front porch addressed, ‘To Meredith’ in an unfamiliar hand. Meredith opened it. Inside was a book by Mr. Rogers called, ‘When a Pet Dies.’ Taped to the inside front cover was the letter we had written to God in its opened envelope. On the opposite page was the picture of Abbey & Meredith and this note:

Dear Meredith,

Abbey arrived safely in heaven. Having the picture was a big help and I recognized her right away.

Abbey isn’t sick anymore. Her spirit is here with me just like it stays in your heart. Abbey loved being your dog. Since we don’t need our bodies in heaven, I don’t have any pockets to keep your picture in so I am sending it back to you in this little book for you to keep and have something to remember Abbey by.

Thank you for the beautiful letter and thank your mother for helping you write it and sending it to me. What a wonderful mother you have. I picked her especially for you. I send my blessings every day and remember that I love you very much. By the way, I’m easy to find. I am wherever there is love.

Love, God

Unfortunately, neighboring Calhoun County, along with 38 other counties from Tuscaloosa to Fort Payne were devasted. Having friends in the affected areas, I began seeing photos, videos, stories, cries for help, and offers of help emerging on Facebook. An Auburn University-based disaster relief organization called Toomer’s For Tuscaloosa was the first relief effort I began to see emerge, and within 24 hours the Facebook site had thousands of fans and today has more than 86,000 fans nationwide. Smaller, more localized groups then began emerging, relying on Toomer’s for immediate needs and updates. Because I had lived in Alabama for a few years and have loved ones there still, I wanted to do something to help. The Reverend Don Prange of St. James United Church of Christ in Lovettsville, of which my husband Bart, my daughters Abigail (9), Rachel (7), and my son Joseph (2) and I are members, inquired about my family. Upon telling him that they were safe and sound and expressing my desire to do something to help, Don immediately sent out the word that a major donation drive for needs and supplies was going to take place. VA for AL was born.

It really should be called Loudoun County for AL, but the name stuck, a logo was made, a facebook page was created and the word spread like wildfire. A 24 ft moving truck donated by SueEllen Lawton of Ashburn is being filled to capacity with donations of clothing, food, toys, toiletries and hygiene, diapers, bug spray and sunscreen, gatorade and water, and even major apliances such as a washer and dryer, refrigerator, stove, and dishwasher. As the word from St. James spread, local Loudoun businesses began to jump on board. For Goodness Sakes Natural Foods in Leesburg held a 2 week donation drive, Ashburn Pediatric Dental Center donated 1000 tubes of toothpaste, toothbrushes and floss, promoting the effort are Leesburg’s Cajun Man, Leesburg Midas, and in Purcellville: Darrell’s Barber Shop, Shamrock Music, Gruto’s Ice Cream, Re-Love It, White Palace, and It’s Bazaar on 21st Street, which is serving as a drop location. Special thanks as well to Round Hill’s own Brownie Girl Scout Troop 4693 for their amazing donation collection. We have also brought in approximately $400 in gas fund money from members of St. James and proceeds from my kids lemonade sale!

We are leaving on Wednesday June 22 for Alabama. You can see photos, stories, and updates of our journey by “Liking” us on Facebook at VA for AL. The Birmingham based Alabama’s Lost Toys will be receiving all of our toys for distribution. The small community of Webster’s Chapel in Calhoun County, a severely devestated and under-served community, will be receiving relief supplies as well as furnishings including major kitchen appliances for a family there who lost everything they owned. They finally have a trailor and are starting from scratch. The Martin Family (Kristie, her husband and her 10 year old daughter) in the community of Holt in Tuscaloosa County will receive care packages, a washing machine and other items. Holt is considered ground zero of Tuscaloosa County. I was able to speak to Kristie on the phone and the emotion and gratefulness in her voice was incredibly touching. We cried together and ended the conversation as if we’d known one another for 20 years. I am looking forward to meeting her in person! As for other areas, we have boxes and cases of cleaning supplies, gatorade, and specifically requested items for the Holt Relief Center to distribute throughout the community.

All of this has been happening as more storms hit areas in the south and midwest. Joplin, MO was devasted by a violent tornado shortly after our efforts began. Groups out of Alabama and all over the country began sending supplies. The largest distribution centers in Birmingham and Tuscaloosa, Al, that were already becoming inundated with certain things, began re-routing trucks to Joplin. In the days following, word out of Joplin was that only medically experienced civilians were being allowed in. We felt that continuing our relief efforts for the communities and families we are supporting in Alabama was the right thing to do. We continue to pray for the people of Joplin, Alabama, Okalahoma, Hamburg Iowa, and all the others who are suffering. What I have learned is that when disasters hit so close to the home and the heart, strangers suddenly become friends, neighbors get to know each other better, old friends become reconnected and the love just grows! I have met people whom I now consider friends and the support and unity so much of our country has shown through all of this gives me hope for the country my children will inherit.

-Patty McGovern

Well, come to think of it, according to this New York Times article it “has created an uproar among evangelical leaders” – my emphasis – which may be something altogether different. Rob Bell is pastor to a 10,000 member church in Michigan, and is described as having a particular appeal to youth. To religious traditionalists, the idea that Gandhi might not actually be burning in hell must be provocative indeed, and they are deploying the usual fiery darts: Heresy. False doctrine. Unbiblical. The dreaded “universalism.”

On the other hand, there are the people in the pews. The NYT also spoke with theology professor Scot McKnight:

According to surveys and his experience with students, Mr. McKnight said, a large majority of evangelical Christians “more or less believe that people of other faiths will go to heaven,” whatever their churches and theologians may argue.

“Rob Bell is tapping into a younger generation that really wants to open up these questions,” he said.

The potential for interfaith coalitions like Loudoun Interfaith BRIDGES to play a significant role in healing some deliberately inflicted wounds to our common humanity seems stronger every day. As does the peril of those wounds themselves. The dialectic of danger and opportunity does not come from the Christian tradition, but it certainly could – a fitting reflection for the Lenten season.

Near the end of a church year Christians inevitably hear Bible readings about a day of judgment and what some call “the end times” – and that means different things to different people.

Luke 21:6 portrays the disciples of Jesus marveling at the magnificence of the temple in Jerusalem with its lovely stonework and ornamental images. He said to them: “You can gaze on all this today, but the time is coming when not a single stone will be left upon another; it will all be destroyed.”

Now if we take seriously biblical references that God never wanted a permanent temple to be built, such an observation ought to help us realize that as important and in some cases, as magnificent as our places of worship might be, they are secondary to the ultimate concerns of what worship, faith, and life are all about.

When God spoke through Hebrew prophets the word was very clear: “What I want is love, not sacrifice” (Hosea 6:6). “This is what the Lord asks of you: only this, to act justly, to love tenderly and to walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8).

God is not looking for religious rituals or liturgies, but acts of love, mercy and justice. That is the essence of what authentic and transcendent faith and life are all about – regardless of our religious tradition, or how we name God or our place of worship, or even if we have no place of worship or no God at all.

Religions, in and of themselves – and especially the “temples’ they may erect – have no permanent significance and all their symbolism will pass away. But faith – in the practice of love, mercy and justice – will last forever.

The Rev. Don Prange is the minister at St. James United Church of Christ in Lovettsville.