Rev. Molly F. James, PhD
Chapel of Our Lord, Episcopal Church Center
Thomas a Kempis, July 24, 2019
May God's word be spoken, May God's Word be heard, and May that point us to the living Word who is Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Picture a school lunchroom. You are the new kid. You have just filled your tray, and you are looking for somewhere to sit. You see a table with an empty seat and start walking toward it but, as you do, one of the kids moves their backpack into the empty seat. You start towards another table. Those kids are talking animatedly among themselves and one of them gives you a dirty look when you walk toward them. Just as you are beginning to think that maybe you'll just go eat in the hall, someone taps you on the shoulder. You turn around and see a group of friendly faces, smiling at you. “Come sit with us.” “We'd be glad to have you.” They say. All of a sudden, all the tension that was building inside you disappears and you relax.
Clearly that group of people had been reading our passage from Philippians. Feelings of stress and the fear of not belonging or not being welcomed are universal. And the human experience also knows the great joy that comes when we find a community that welcomes us in – just as we are.
St. Paul was quite clear that hospitality and fellowship were to be some of the hallmarks of Christian communities. The churches which St. Paul established were to be communities that were not only welcoming but also communities that reached out in love and care to one another, especially in times of crisis. As Paul wrote in our passage from Philippians “Let your gentleness be known to everyone…whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.”
Paul was writing to encourage the Church at Philippi in the midst of a difficult time, and he did so by pointing them towards a universal truth of the human experience. People know what it is like to be welcomed. People know what it is like to have someone treat them gently. People know that joy is contagious ~ and that by sharing happiness we are sharing a gift that keeps on giving.
Focusing on that which is good and joyous – focusing on our own gentleness as we seek the good in others – all of these are a part of how we build up the kingdom of God.
We can do so in the small interactions of every day life. Holding the door for someone. Sharing some of what you have. Directing a visitor to the restroom or helping a tourist find their way. Saying hello. Introducing ourselves when we meet someone new. Smiling and making eye contact when we interact with people, particularly someone checking us out at a store or the waitstaff in a restaurant. Taking time to ask someone how they are doing and really waiting and listening to their answer. These all seem like small or even insignificant gestures but they are not insignificant by any stretch of the imagination. In reaching out, in letting our gentleness be known, we are building up God's kingdom. That is the lofty (heavenly) truth. The earthly truth is that we are making a difference in someone's day and in someone's life. We are showing them that we see them, and we recognize them as a beloved child of God.
Hospitality is a part of who we are as Christians. Making our gentleness known at all times and in all places is a part of what we do as Christians. And it gives us another opportunity to thank God for all the communities of which we are a part that practice fellowship and hospitality - this community gathered here in this building, our families, our friends, our own home churches and communities. Reflecting on the blessing of hospitality and fellowship gives us an opportunity to take joy in our abundance, the intangible abundance of community. Of communities that would make St. Paul proud. Communities filled with the sounds of cheerful conversations, the greetings of friends, the joy of children in our midst. The blessing of working together for a common cause. The sounds of communities caring for each other and praying together.
Given all news of late, it is tempting to be a little less aware of our abundance, less focused on the ways in which gentleness is manifest in the world. If that is so, it is good that we are here today. Because it is here, in the midst of an anxious world, we gather to be fed by God’s Word and Sacrament, and we see the face of Christ in each other, and we are reminded of just how many blessings we have in our lives.
I hope that today and everyday we are filled with gratitude for the abundance of our communities and the abundance we find throughout our own lives. Filled with gratitude for all the people who contribute to our abundance and also the blessing of knowing that we can contribute to the abundance of others as well May the peace of Christ dwell with us richly – and may we go forth this day making our gentleness known to everyone we meet.
AMEN.
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