Kurt's Excellent Adventure
For the six or seven months I have been running around northern Virginia trying to establish a soup kitchen I have had, truly, an excellent adventure. Not only have I met some unbelievably wonderful people, but I have worshipped, preached, listened to and been part of worship services in every conceivable tradition except Zoroastrianism... that may be next.
This morning, as I sat waiting for the iced in Pastor of the Methodist Church here in Leesburg, I thought about this adventure and smiled. Here I was sitting in a traditional Protestant parlor next to a beautiful sanctuary. It was appointed in 'early American Church' with mismatched chairs the somewhat cheesy bust of Jesus across the room from the beautiful print called A Day in Sleepy Hollow (a place I know well) and the comforting rack of Bibles next to a small library of Christian classics.
I felt so at home here at Leesburg United Methodist Church though I had never worshipped here, never worshipped at any Methodist Church I didn't think. There was a good feeling of 'folks just tryin' to do what Jesus told 'em to do' that I find much easier to feel than describe.
The excellent adventure called Community Table has had me in varied places some of which gave me this feeling and some of which didn't. The didn'ts not to be named here.
I certainly felt it at Sha' are Shalom synagogue Friday night where I attended Shabbat. It was a musical Shabbat with Pete Seeger's music featured. The community there was mixed in race and gender and age, and they were so informal and welcoming I really don't think they noticed the goy in the corner trying to make out the Hebrew words based on his six week class taken just a month ago... and after as they enjoyed Challah and wine they welcomed me and wondered about this Community Table the Rabbi had mentioned during the service.
I felt the love at Sha' are Shalom.
A few weeks ago I lead a program on lectio divina for a Methodist Church in Hamilton (lectio at a Methodist Church-think the world is changing?). Wonderful people really interested in this traditional Catholic form of prayer listening to how it is done and trying it sitting in their sanctuary. And asking me all kinds of questions about the Trappist Abbey not 10 minutes away where I am privileged to have a room and sit in choir and refectory with the monks. "What goes on up there?". "Do they ever talk?". Once I told them they talk, and laugh and frankly belch, they became even more interested and by the end of the evening talked about taking retreat there. Times they are a changin'...
Last Sunday I preached at a United Church of Christ parish. UCC couldn't be further from Catholicism, I don't think. The iconoclastic wonderful Pastor of that church started the service, giving his usual sermon before the sermon on justice and service to the poor in the teaching of Jesus. Then it was my turn and I told them about followHim (blog post to come), a small Christian community that meets at my house and ponders the teachings of Jesus, and how it lead to Community Table. When I was done (after the applause had died down--just kidding) I went to sit down and the Pastor said 'hold on a minute, someone may have a question.'. This being a first for me, a Q+A after the sermon, I enjoyed another fifteen minutes of meaningful conversation with the congregation about Jesus' call to us as disciples to serve the poor directly.
And then there was the meeting with Gurusangat Singh Khalsa, the leader of the Sikh community here in Loudoun County, (pronounced more like sick than seek, I learned). Obviously not Indian he converted to the Sikh faith back in the 70's. With long white beard and turban I thought while sitting there in their store front Temple, 'really, would you ever have imagined?' Barefoot (no shoes in the Temple) sitting on a folding chair listening to him tell me about their food ministry and their service programs, were it not for the turban and his long white robe, I would have felt I was in the parlor at Leesburg United Methodist Church.
The 'topper' though, the meeting that beat all meetings, was at the IHOP last week with leaders of the synagogue in the eastern part of the county, the Muslim Center in the same area, and the Evangelical Church around the corner from both. Picture this now, we're sitting in a real American icon, IHOP, and having meaningful conversation about serving the poor and the people having this conversation come from traditions that have a history of fear, even hate of each other over the centuries. And what we're talking about is how they are going to provide their evening of service together... No conversation of differences taking place at this table. All they wanted to talk about was who had responsibility for providing the silverware, food, drink etc. and how important it was that folks not just be fed but interacted with, talked to, shown love and respect when they came to Community Table.
What I have learned from my 'excellent adventure' is that I think everyone is trying to "follow Him," only the Him isn't always the same and sometimes the him ain't even a him, or a her, or an anything you can look at.
The 'him' is love, an idea about taking care of each other and especially the poor. The 'him' in these faith communities is about doing what's right in this short time we have on this crazy earth.
And deep inside all of these faiths is one constant, one thing they all say is part of their religion and culture: compassion. This one unifying concept stands out as the one that can unify all people, I think, an idea I would have told you six months ago was a pipe dream.
Now, after my excellent adventure, I'm not so sure it's a pipe dream.
This morning, as I sat waiting for the iced in Pastor of the Methodist Church here in Leesburg, I thought about this adventure and smiled. Here I was sitting in a traditional Protestant parlor next to a beautiful sanctuary. It was appointed in 'early American Church' with mismatched chairs the somewhat cheesy bust of Jesus across the room from the beautiful print called A Day in Sleepy Hollow (a place I know well) and the comforting rack of Bibles next to a small library of Christian classics.
I felt so at home here at Leesburg United Methodist Church though I had never worshipped here, never worshipped at any Methodist Church I didn't think. There was a good feeling of 'folks just tryin' to do what Jesus told 'em to do' that I find much easier to feel than describe.
The excellent adventure called Community Table has had me in varied places some of which gave me this feeling and some of which didn't. The didn'ts not to be named here.
I certainly felt it at Sha' are Shalom synagogue Friday night where I attended Shabbat. It was a musical Shabbat with Pete Seeger's music featured. The community there was mixed in race and gender and age, and they were so informal and welcoming I really don't think they noticed the goy in the corner trying to make out the Hebrew words based on his six week class taken just a month ago... and after as they enjoyed Challah and wine they welcomed me and wondered about this Community Table the Rabbi had mentioned during the service.
I felt the love at Sha' are Shalom.
A few weeks ago I lead a program on lectio divina for a Methodist Church in Hamilton (lectio at a Methodist Church-think the world is changing?). Wonderful people really interested in this traditional Catholic form of prayer listening to how it is done and trying it sitting in their sanctuary. And asking me all kinds of questions about the Trappist Abbey not 10 minutes away where I am privileged to have a room and sit in choir and refectory with the monks. "What goes on up there?". "Do they ever talk?". Once I told them they talk, and laugh and frankly belch, they became even more interested and by the end of the evening talked about taking retreat there. Times they are a changin'...
Last Sunday I preached at a United Church of Christ parish. UCC couldn't be further from Catholicism, I don't think. The iconoclastic wonderful Pastor of that church started the service, giving his usual sermon before the sermon on justice and service to the poor in the teaching of Jesus. Then it was my turn and I told them about followHim (blog post to come), a small Christian community that meets at my house and ponders the teachings of Jesus, and how it lead to Community Table. When I was done (after the applause had died down--just kidding) I went to sit down and the Pastor said 'hold on a minute, someone may have a question.'. This being a first for me, a Q+A after the sermon, I enjoyed another fifteen minutes of meaningful conversation with the congregation about Jesus' call to us as disciples to serve the poor directly.
And then there was the meeting with Gurusangat Singh Khalsa, the leader of the Sikh community here in Loudoun County, (pronounced more like sick than seek, I learned). Obviously not Indian he converted to the Sikh faith back in the 70's. With long white beard and turban I thought while sitting there in their store front Temple, 'really, would you ever have imagined?' Barefoot (no shoes in the Temple) sitting on a folding chair listening to him tell me about their food ministry and their service programs, were it not for the turban and his long white robe, I would have felt I was in the parlor at Leesburg United Methodist Church.
The 'topper' though, the meeting that beat all meetings, was at the IHOP last week with leaders of the synagogue in the eastern part of the county, the Muslim Center in the same area, and the Evangelical Church around the corner from both. Picture this now, we're sitting in a real American icon, IHOP, and having meaningful conversation about serving the poor and the people having this conversation come from traditions that have a history of fear, even hate of each other over the centuries. And what we're talking about is how they are going to provide their evening of service together... No conversation of differences taking place at this table. All they wanted to talk about was who had responsibility for providing the silverware, food, drink etc. and how important it was that folks not just be fed but interacted with, talked to, shown love and respect when they came to Community Table.
What I have learned from my 'excellent adventure' is that I think everyone is trying to "follow Him," only the Him isn't always the same and sometimes the him ain't even a him, or a her, or an anything you can look at.
The 'him' is love, an idea about taking care of each other and especially the poor. The 'him' in these faith communities is about doing what's right in this short time we have on this crazy earth.
And deep inside all of these faiths is one constant, one thing they all say is part of their religion and culture: compassion. This one unifying concept stands out as the one that can unify all people, I think, an idea I would have told you six months ago was a pipe dream.
Now, after my excellent adventure, I'm not so sure it's a pipe dream.
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