Reverend Ref +

SERMON
3 EASTER
YEAR B

It’s all about community. In the gospel the disciples are meeting together discussing the resurrection when Jesus appears in their midst. In the epistle, John writes that they declare what was seen in order to have fellowship.

I have spent the last week discussing various aspects of community. At clergy conference, I was able to reconnect with my peers. We shared stories of our ministry, our parishes, and our health. Clergy are in a unique profession; although we are surrounded by people, we are often alone. It’s good every once in awhile to reconnect and be reminded that we really aren’t alone.

The bishop preached about being an incarnational people in a graveyard world. Paul writes that it was through Adam that sin and death entered the world, and that it was through Jesus that redemption and life are offered. Jesus is reaching out to us so that we might join the fellowship of believers and have life.

And then I went to St. Patrick’s in Bigfork with Joelene as representatives of the Commission on Mission Planning. Over two days we listened to their stories, asked questions about the area, learned about the church, brain stormed ideas, and, hopefully, focused their energy on a pearl of great price that will give them a unified vision.

That vision was the result of the community’s desire to grow and have fellowship internally and externally. Just as Jesus showed his living self to the disciples, St. Pat’s wants to show others in the community that they are alive.

All of this happens in community. The only resurrection story we have that involves just one person comes from John. All of the other resurrection stories involve multiple people: the women, the disciples, the two on the way to Emmaus. Jesus not only is alive to me, but Jesus is alive to us.

Going back for a second, the crucifixion happened in Jerusalem. After that, the disciples hid out there, and that is where Jesus appeared to them. At the end of today’s gospel, Jesus tells the disciples that they are to proclaim the good news beginning from Jerusalem. In other words, they are to proclaim the gospel from where they are – in and from their community.

We are in the same position as the disciples. We are in fellowship with each other. We are part of a community of believers whose job it is to both live out and proclaim the good news. When we proclaim it, we live it; and when we live it, we experience it.

Our mission statement is all about community and fellowship: invite people into our midst; include people in the life of the parish; inform people about our past and future; proclaim the good news to others; rejoice in a new life.

We just came through Holy Week, the most important and holy period in the church year. If there is any other time where community is vital, I don’t know what it is. There is the community meal of Maundy Thursday and the stripping of the altar when we lose Jesus and all we have is each other. There is Good Friday when we watch Jesus die and our grief is shared. On Holy Saturday we come together and try to make sense of it all. And, finally, the Easter Vigil when we are together in the dark and then, suddenly, Jesus is risen and says we are not alone. This thing called Christianity can’t be done in isolation. It’s all about community.

So why is it that this event, this communal experience, was virtually ignored by the members of this parish? At a time when we could have stood in unified fellowship to proclaim the saving power and new life of Jesus Christ, this parish made no discernable effort towards that end. There was no fellowship. There was no community. The message proclaimed was, “Christ’s Passion and resurrection really aren’t that big of a deal.”

It’s pointless to invite people to events that members of this parish aren’t planning on attending.
It’s rather difficult to include people in the life of the parish when there doesn’t seem to be any life.
It’s rather difficult to inform people about the importance of the Easter experience when they don’t show up.
It’s hard to know what to proclaim when we don’t participate.
There should have been more rejoicing at the Easter Vigil, except that this parish chose not to participate.

I’m really not much of an “either-or” sort of guy, but sometimes that really is the only choice. Either we believe that this parish can be fellowship of believers, or we don’t; either we believe that this parish has something to offer the valley, or we don’t; either we believe that Christ offers us new life, or we don’t; either we believe that we can be a vital Christian community, or we believe that church is reserved only for Sundays when we get up in time.

It’s all about a living community. And we need to decide if Christ Church is going to be a community following Jesus into life, or if we are going to be a graveyard.