Beloved friends-
38 days from now our nation will once again hold a national election; to describe this imminent event as a tipping point in our country may be a significant understatement.
Last week, during the fall meeting of the Episcopal House of Bishops, our Presiding Bishop Michael Curry, offered a sermon urging Episcopalians to vote and to “encourage others to vote as their conscience leads them.” It was a wonderful sermon, and I encourage you to take the time to listen/watch the full version. It was helpful to me offering a reminder of something I think we tend to forget as people of faith; as followers of Jesus. He affirmed that The Episcopal Church’s positions on political issues, though nonpartisan, should not ever be confused with “moral neutrality.”
In other words, the role of the church in the time of an election, is to remember our call to maintain partisan neutrality- we cannot and should not ever tell people how or for whom they should vote- and at the same time, it is imperative we live out our faith by increasing our moral voices in order to share what we believe and why- loving our neighbors and respecting the dignity of every human being. There is a necessary separation of the church and partisan politics, but not the morals of public policy. Our faith calls us to speak out in the public square grounding our convictions in “What Love Requires of Us.”
This Sunday will be the last of our 4-part sermon series by that name; we have read the gospel texts in the lectionary each of these weeks and held them up to this question, this idea hoping to hear and see and feel God’s call in our lives. We have heard about compassion, forgiveness, mercy, and this Sunday, will explore the concepts of authority and moral imagination.
Come home Sunday to our On-line service at 10:00 either through the website or our FB page and then stay and join us for an interesting Coffee Hour on Zoom. We will be welcoming the new Deputy Director of Lucas County Child Services, Sophia Llyod and asking her to talk about the current Levy-Issue 18 to be included on the ballot in November addressing the financial support needed for the providing services for many of the children in our community needing support.
May you never forget that you are loved,
Lisa