In Christ, We Gain Vision

Transfiguration of Jesus

Today, I want to begin with words from Joy McElroy, Director of Cherish All Children. These are words she shared in her weekly Wednesday prayer.

 

The Transfiguration is one of those surreal stories of the Bible. The disciples were terrified, they didn’t know what to say, they hear God’s voice telling them to listen to Jesus, and then they’re sent back down the mountain. Peter jumps into problem solving mode offering to set up their dwellings and stay. But God intervenes – listento my Son, the Beloved.
 
These past few weeks have included experiences of fear, pain, grief, and anger for some of my beloveds, and I have thought at times “This is getting to be too much” so I jump in and try to solve it all. And then I remember God’s voice telling me to listen. Listen to the one who is called the Beloved and who calls each one of us beloved.  
 
I’ve been reading Osheta Moore’s book “Dear White Peacemakers” and I love the way she so graciously calls us into our belovedness as a way to enter into anti-racism work. This [perspective] informs [Cherish All Children’s] work to prevent sexual exploitation and trafficking, dismantling systems and structures that have marginalized some communities, making them more vulnerable to exploitation. She expresses,

“I often wonder why Jesus began his ministry standing in line with the poor, the outcasts, the forgotten, the ones riddled with internalized hatred. The Spirit of God, the Spirit that calls us the Beloved, is the Spirit that makes us whole. There is no clearer way to discern the presence of God’s Spirit than to identify the movements of unification, healing, restoration, and reconciliation.”

 
Our work to share resources and support one another in faith communities may not be considered “mountaintop” experiences like that of the Transfiguration, and yet these daily actions may be just what is required of us. Coming down the mountain, being with each other, holding each other up.

Joy, thank you so much for that beautiful reflection, highlighting the call to listen to Jesus (rather than jump right into “solve it” mode). Thank you for the invitation to daily actions that resemble Jesus’ and the disciples’ path—listening, coming down from the mountain, being with each other, holding each other up.

This week, Ann [Jalonen] and Joy [McElroy] and I, along with neighbors from close by and from greater Minnesota, with watershed and ecology experts, with those from government and an energizing consulting team, gathered to be part of the Capitol Mall Design Framework charrette. This was a word that was new to me-- A Charrette is a collaborative planning process that harnesses the talents and energies of all interested parties to create and support a master plan that represents transformative community change. Today a “Charrette” combines creative, intense working sessions with public workshops and open houses. 

So we gathered in working teams to listen to each others’ ideas and dream big together about what could be present in the Capitol Mall and Capitol Area to bring vitality and vibrancy—and just to say that while of course there were voices present to remind the group what has been tried and has failed, there was also such a spirit of excitement and energy around what could be. What if we dared to dream bigger than our fears and past disappointments? What if the Capitol Area could have bathrooms and benches, prairie and indigenous healing herbs, community gardens and picnic spots and water features and playgrounds? What if it could be a place where thousands of people gathered not just to protest but for fun and community? What if people felt interested in coming to these spaces with groups of friends or family to picnic, rest and play? What if it could honor all the people—both the original people who have been here for 12,000 years—and all the rest who have arrived these last 200 years?

In a week when we have heavy machinery in every direction, opening up our church to be visible in all directions for the first time, it was amazing to keep imagining what could be. Some of these plans will start to be implemented right away, even as soon as 2024. Going home from the full day of work together on Tuesday evening, I drove from the History Center up Rice Street and for the first time, I caught a glimpse of our church building, lighted and visible… and it took my breath away. We are transfigured for a moment. This place now is the only standing building in our block—how might we continue to show ourselves as a beacon of hope and light, even as the spaces around us are put back together in new ways. 

In this season of accompaniment, listening to our neighbors even more deeply, how can we continue this work that comes from God—to be with each other and hold each other up, especially when we’re wondering what’s ahead and what in the world God might be calling us to next?

All this season, we’ve repeated these words in the Affirmation of Faith—and again today, we’ll say them—“I could fail every test, miss every goal, drop every ball, and I would still be God’s beloved. Therefore, I cling to this promise like a rock in the storm. I anchor myself with this good news, allowing the anxiety of the day to roll over me as best I can, because I know where I belong. I am a child of God. I am beloved. I strive to live this way.” Today, let’s breathe that truth in again… and speak it together and take it with us.

Let us pray  [the prayer from Joy’s Wednesday Prayer] - 
God of mountaintops and valleys, we come to you with our pains, fears, and loving concern for others. We are each other’s beloved. Help us to hear the cries of those in need and come together to hold one another in your loving care.  Amen.