Clergy from left, The Rev. Mary Ann Hill, Rector, Trinity on the Hill, Pastor Nicolé Ferry, Deacon Cynthia Biddlecomb, retired; Associate Priest Lynn Finnegan and Pastor Deb Church. Photo by Nate Limback/ladailypost.com
By Pastor Nicolé Raddu Ferry
Bethlehem Evangelical Lutheran Church
“I dedicate this book to my mother and father, Mathlida and George, who taught me never to ridicule anyone who is searching for God with a lighted lantern.”
This dedication is the introduction to the book The Shattered Lantern by Ronald Rolheiser. This book draws from a variety of sources to offer a spiritual alternative to our everyday agnosticism. Rolheiser suggests that, “The way back to a lively faith is not a question of finding the right answers, but living in a certain way.” The existence of God, like the air we breathe, need not be proven. It is a question of developing good lungs to meet it correctly. Rolheiser names three persistent blocks to God: narcissism, pragmatism, and restlessness. In the last section of the book, Rolheiser presents seven contemporary spiritual exercises that can deepen Christian faith including receptivity and gratitude, self-abandonment and obedience unto death, and centering prayer.
Rolheiser’s quote of “The God of ordinary life will be found in the ordinary,” allowed me to wonder about how many times do we miss seeing God at work in the world and how many things do we take for granted. It also inspired me to think about the gift of being in community.
For the past four weeks, multiple church communities in Los Alamos have gathered together on Thursday nights, hosted lovingly by The United Church. This time is what we call in the church year the season of Lent as we prepare for Holy Week and Easter. We have focused on the theme of reconciliation, we wrote a Lenten devotional together, we have enjoyed delicious soups and breads, learned new things together in our classes (including conversations about AI and UFOs as well as how our emotions impact our living), and we have entered the sanctuary of the church to pray, confess, listen, and deepen our relationships with God. It has been a blessing. For those of you who have always lived in Los Alamos, or have lived here for a long time, you may take this type of gathering for granted. This is not a usual communal act. Most larger cities have churches that stick together in their denominations — their tribes — and do not imagine gathering as we have. This hospitality together, seeing your work friends, your neighbors with a lens of faith, has been powerful.
I have heard from many folks that they have been hurt by church, people in the church, and judgement placed on them because they do not live exactly as those in the church expect them to. As a leader in the church, I am sorry for this pain. As one who is trying to search “for God with a lighted lantern” I invite you into a community of faith. After a long time of isolation, we can benefit from the gift of community. I invite you to visit our communities, especially as we have so many offerings during Holy Week, to have a new start in a new way having patience that we do not have all of the answers and honoring that we all are searching. Together.
“Discover creative ways to encourage others and to motivate them toward acts of compassion, doing beautiful works as expressions of love. This is not the time to pull away and neglect meeting together, as some have formed the habit of doing. In fact, we should come together even more frequently, eager to encourage and urge each other onward as we anticipate that day dawning.” –Hebrews 10:23-25 The Passion Translation
Amen and amen.
