Piloting Faith: When planes fall from the sky...

A Word for the Day...
It’s disconcerting when airplanes fall from the sky. In the last six months, we have witnessed two major airplane crashed with the Boeing 737 MAX 8. Early assumptions are that the anti-stall system on the planes is malfunctioning when on autopilot. The plane thinks that it is about to stall, so it points the nose to the ground to gain airspeed. That is a bad idea when you are only 6,000 feet off the ground in a passenger jet going 320mph.
In both crashes, the pilots fought the airplane to try to recover from the extreme pitch attitudes. But with the autopilot working against them and so little altitude for error, they were not able to recover. Five other pilots have reported similar issues, but they knew how to override the anti-stall system.
On the whole, air travel is extremely safe. Pilots are relentlessly trained to deal with every conceivable emergency on their plane. We are tested regularly. But when our larger systems fail – when manufacturers fail to notify customers of issues, when maintenance is neglected, when responsibility is passed around unclaimed – we put people in danger.
As a pilot and pastor, I am concerned that we are experiencing a theological system failure. While most people are starving for an experience of the Sacred, many of our churches are serving up services of half-baked theological mush or extremist propaganda that doesn’t reflect anything of God. Ideally, congregations are “schools of love” where we connect with others to learn more about God and more about living a loving, meaningful life. Some congregations understand this. Most have forgotten. Few are claiming responsibility to fix it.
Even with that reality, I believe we are seeing a new theological awakening peeking out of our broken denominational systems. It’s a grassroots movement of mystics who know there is a better way. Keep your eyes open for these souls – and maybe you are one of them. It’s their vision that will carry us forward, protect our planet, create healthy neighborhoods, build sustainable cities and keep us safe in the skies.

Prayer for the Week
Gracious God,
I turn from all that's old and past today,
I turn from selfish sin,
and turn with all my heart to you.
Free me from my old ideas, my lesser self,
my prideful determination
to make my own way in the world.
That was the way of death, not life.
I let it all go.
Raise me up from these waters
to a new life like that of Jesus.
By your grace, make me new
that I might faithfully walk the Way of Love.
Amen
(adapted from The Prayer Wheel by Patton Dodd, Jana Riess, and David Van Biema)
