Piloting Faith: Who Will It Be?

A Word for the Day...

We are facing a significant theological question.

As states begin to open again, restaurants welcome patrons, offices reopen and churches begin holding in-person activities, the question we face is: Who will we leave behind?

COVID-19 is with us until we have a vaccine or cure. We know that some of us are more vulnerable to being killed by this virus if we contract it. We are caught between the tension of restarting our economy and doing so while the vulnerable among us remain isolated by "stay-at-home" orders. Does your office reopen, knowing that many on your team risk their lives by coming in? Who will we leave behind?

It's a particularly challenging question for faith communities. Most members of protestant churches are older and most at risk. Do we open the church and carry on knowing that our oldest members, already struggling to engage new technology, will be left out of important moments of being a community together? Who will we leave behind?

I don't have an easy answer for us. I do have a word of caution: While we must move forward, we mustn't sacrifice our elders to do so. We live in a world already biased toward youth. We have even been invited by national and state leaders to see this moment as a war, suggesting that some among us will have to die as a sacrifice for the rest. Let's let the old people die; they've lived a long life. Here is my informed theological response to that line of thinking: that is a load of crap.

Never once did Jesus say, "If you lose a sheep, take heart because you still have 99 more." He never said, "If you lose a coin, don't worry. You can always get more." No, Jesus always had a concern for the whole, the unique gift of each child, woman and man he encountered. We should too.

As we begin reopening, let us do so with deep compassion and measured patience. We have a great deal to figure out about how to be together right now. Let's make sure we discern the way forward together.

Faithfully,

Rev. Cameron Trimble
Author of 60 Days of Faith: A Devotional

Prayer for the Week

God of Life,
you have promised to be with us every day,
also in difficult days, like in times like these.
Give us
clarity in our minds,
strength in our work and discernment,
rest as we sleep,
peace in our minds.
Be with those
who need help
more than we do ourselves
help us to see what we can offer
from your love.

Amen.

- General Secretary of the World Council of Churches

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