Dear Friends,

Padre Toni and I were away at “Clergy Conference” earlier this week. It’s an annual retreat at the Oregon Gardens Resort with our Bishop and clergy colleagues in Western Oregon.

It’s always a bit of a hassle to get to there, in my experience—leaving behind a hundred things “I need to do” and venturing into a yet-to-be revealed program of facilitated conversation and mandatory fun. But usually these gatherings end up exceeding expectations in the best of ways. This week was a precious time of refreshing rest, heartwarming conviviality and encouraging solidarity with others who are called to serve the people of God in Christ’s church in our diocese. I am back refreshed, feeling connected, and even filled a little more with courage.

Much of our table conversations this week were framed by the challenges and particularities of being faithful and being church in a time like this, when forces of authoritarianism seek to isolate and divide us from one another to enable their own increase of power. We were invited to remember the heart of what it means to be followers of Jesus in a community gathered by his call, and to consider how to keep moving toward one another to counter such nefarious designs.

Guided by readings from “For Such a Time as This: an Emergency Devotional” by Hannah Reichel, we considered many questions for discussion. In a poignant chapter entitled “Shatter Loneliness,” we read about the call to being neighbor. Here’s an excerpt from that chapter:

“What makes a neighbor? Attention and listening. Practical assistance in everyday tasks. And sharing in the other’s burden.

You don’t have to look for neighbors. You have to be one to find them.

You don’t have to like your neighbors. You have to be there for them.

Do you know your neighbors? The person living next door, your coworker down the hall, the crossing guard on your street, the secretary at your school—do you know their name? Would you know if something changed in their life? Would you notice if they withdrew or disappeared? If they were frightened or if they became radicalized? How would you spot the signs?”

With these words, I offer a few of the questions we considered. I wonder how you’ll respond…

What stories do you have about being a neighbor? What stories does our congregation have about being a neighbor without looking to be one? When have you been challenged to be a neighbor because of your discomfort? How or what made being a neighbor possible despite your discomfort? How can the church address the loneliness crisis in our communities?

I really am curious about your own reflections and would love to hear! Or share your thoughts with one another and start a conversation. As we move toward one another, we move out of isolation and deprive evil powers of usurping our humanness.

(Side note: we are working on a summer reading group to consider Reichel’s book together. More details to come.)

I am so grateful to be with you in this parish community, where we already share so much positive movement toward one another. St. Michael’s is a community of care, of mutual support, of encouragement, of mobilization. And we are continuously called, now as much as ever, to encourage and nourish connection.

With you,

Scott+
The Rev. R. Scott Painter
Rector

“Christ is risen! Now what?”

Almighty Father, who gave your only Son to die for our sins and to rise for our justification: Give us grace so to put away the leaven of malice and wickedness, that we may always serve you in pureness of living and truth; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Dear Friends, We began this week with the principal celebration of the Christian year, proclaiming together: “Christ is risen, indeed!” Life is the final word, good and lasting life! What a bold, courageous, and revolutionary truth to make known in a world and a time wherein the language du jour is given to violence, domination and death. We saw that contrast come into view on Monday morning, with powers and principalities, hungry for control, grasping with threats of war and annihilation. The President’s threats to destroy Iran’s bridges and energy infrastructure were followed on Tuesday with a doomsday prediction that “a civilization will die tonight.” I am thankful that those threats were not carried out on Tuesday. And I am also mindful that a ceasefire, however thin and tenuous, is no basis for lasting peace. Nevertheless: Christ is risen, indeed. And we are members of the risen body of Christ in this world. We are called to announce and enact the witness to resurrection life in a world that is so afraid of death. This means announcing the values and the vision at the heart of who we are: loving and honoring the dignity of every human being, and giving ourselves to the joy and flourishing of every sibling. We do this by electing and demanding of representatives to enact legislation that honors and protects those deemed least and last. We do this in our public witness and solidarity with neighbors, in protest of unjust and harmful government abuses. We do it with our voices, with our bodies, with our commitments. We do it by lifting up those cast down, amplifying the voices of those drowned out, shining light on those growing invisible, and celebrating the preciousness of every human being. During this Easter season, I am praying that we will proclaim with faith and joy the power of resurrection in this world infatuated with death. That we will do this with everything we’ve got—taking every opportunity that comes to us, and refusing to cede the realm of God to those bent on taking God’s name in vain. With you in witness, Scott + The Rev. R. Scott Painter Rector