Proclaiming Hope & Unity in a time of Uncertainty
I want to share some incredibly hopeful news. On Sunday, 51 people will stand before Bishop Kee Sloan and make an adult affirmation of faith. Of those, 35 are teenagers and 16 are adults. Some of the confirmands have been in the Episcopal Church their entire lives and others found our church community online beginning in March. One adult’s first time in our building was when he was baptized last week. At least one other joined the Inquirer’s Class because they saw an advertisement on Facebook and wanted to learn more about our Episcopal way of life. This is huge!
One of my favorite things to do at Saint Stephen’s is to teach the Inquirer’s Class and I am pledging to do so at least twice a year moving forward. How we deepen our faith and grow into our Christian identity is the single most important aspect of our Christian life. I have also been asking our teenagers if they want to be confirmed, and the answer has been unequivocally yes. This is important because they are affirming their baptism, a choice they did not make on their own when they were baptized, but now are 100 percent owning that decision for themselves.
It is helpful for a moment to be reminded of what our baptized identity truly claims. When a person is baptized, the Baptismal Covenant begins with asking if we affirm our belief in God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Through that process, we recite the Apostles’ Creed. We are then asked five questions:
Will you continue in the apostles' teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of the bread, and in the prayers?
Will you persevere in resisting evil, and, whenever you fall into sin, repent and return to the Lord?
Will you proclaim by word and example the Good News of God in Christ?
Will you seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving your neighbor as yourself?
Will you strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being?
Here is this kicker. Each time I read the Baptismal Covenant, I am blown away by the significant challenges we accept. We agree to strive for justice, to respect the dignity of every human being, to resist evil, to repent, to love everyone, and to proclaim the Good News of God in Christ. These are not easy tasks! And I am willing to wager that, in the room of people being confirmed, there is an expression of diversity in how to vote for the president and elected leaders, and yet unity in a commitment to follow Jesus. People who vote differently are unified in a commitment to follow Jesus with a bold responsibility. This might be the most important reality we can claim in such a polarizing time.
I suspect that most of us disagree in small and large ways in how we see the kingdom of God being made manifest through our political actions and voices. But we have all agreed to something much larger, more powerful, and more beautiful, and that is to follow Jesus. And in the Episcopal Way, this comes with responsibility. As long as we are committed to this path, our world is incredibly hopeful. Let us not only be comforted by the Hope of God in Christ, but also find ways of sharing and proclaiming this hope that we have experienced.
I encourage you to join us on Sunday with our 51 sisters and brothers in Christ who are making an adult affirmation of faith and taking on this extraordinarily powerful responsibility. You can watch live at 10:15 am by clicking here. It’s going to be a beautiful day for the Church and the world.
God is good and hope is always before us.
Faithfully,
John+