Why the Common Roots of Faith Matter

Lutherans, along with everyone else, have gotten excited about the Pope.  The last time a Lutheran got this excited about the Pope, he wrote 95 theses that got him kicked out of the Catholic church.  I think this excitement tells us something; there is a hunger, a longing in our hearts for unity, for harmony, for peace.  We long to be reconciled.  We desire healing.  We wish for a world free from violence and war and poverty.  And we believe it is possible through embodied love.  We love that he skipped a breakfast with lawmakers to dine with the homeless.  This is kingdom power.  Power with, beneath, and under.  It is love power.  And we want it, too.  It’s not that we all long to return to Roman Catholicism.  It’s that we long for this Jesus—the one who embodies perfect love on the cross for everyone. 

Today I want to clarify some things about the church, Christianity, and the ministry of the gospel.  Religion is at the center of so much of our lives these days.  Whether one is religious or not.  And the Pope’s visit seems to highlight this, because Catholics and non-Catholics seem to appreciate his message.  There is a desire for greater peace, for shared prosperity, for increased global health, and for a more secure future.  That future, in part, lies in our shared past. 

I’ll use the analogy of a tree.  Roman Catholics are Christians. So are Lutherans, Episcopalians, Methodists, Presbyterians, Baptists, Mennonites, Amish, Brethren, United Church of Christ, African Methodist Episcopal, Greek Orthodox, Pentecostals, Disciples of Christ, Moravians, and a few others I didn’t mention.  I’m saying this aloud because I have people ask me about compatibility.  And we may not realize how much we have in common with people who practice their Christian religious faith under these other names.  The Christian family tree is big, many branches, some thicker than others, some longer than others, some more tender shoots. Some of the branches have smaller branches.  Some have broader, greener leaves.  Some leaves have an autumn hue. And some as brittle as winter.  Some of the branches don’t touch the other branches.  Nevertheless all one tree; many branches.  Same roots.  Jesus of Nazareth, the God of creation, the God of Israel, the God of liberation and justice, the Spirit that gives life and breathes new life into dry bones.  The God of prophets and priests and kings.  The people of the book.  The Jews and Muslims are also on this tree.  Not three trees.  One God, three faiths, many denominations and practices.  We are not so much divided as growing in different directions.  But our roots are the same.We have far more in common than we tend to acknowledge.  Hubris and damaged egos look at our own brothers and sisters with suspicion and disdain.  Our shared roots matter more than out many colored leaves. 

We may think about the human body too, with its many parts.  Paul uses this analogy to describe the church in first Corinthians.  Not all parts have the same function.  But they are an organic and integral piece of the whole.  I wonder what life would be like if we all viewed each other as different parts of the same body.  Does it matter if you are a leg or an eye?  Sure, but not in terms of one being greater than the other. 

In all three readings a single theme emerges.  Cooperation.  Shared leadership, shared ministry.  Looking outside of one’s group to see the work of God.  Eldad and Medad were not with the group of elders called out for spiritual anointing into leadership.  And yet they prophesied.  Moses was in dire need of assistance.  He didn’t need more followers.  He needed leaders, speakers, those who would do the work of God beside him.  It didn’t matter to him who they were or where they came from, just that they shared the rights and responsibilities of bearing he covenant.  Jesus says, whoever is not against us is for us.  He says this in response to John’s concern about non-disciples casting out demons.  Anyone who is confronting the wickedness threatening God’s good creation is on our side, okay?  We don’t have to only play with members of this congregation or denomination to participate in God’s mission.  I thought about the Central PA food bank conference I attended on Thursday with Pastor Rodney Martin from Lititz Mennonite church, our Peter’s Porch mission partners.  We met up with the leadership of OMPH’s food bank. They want to work more collaboratively with Peter’s Porch as we serve our neighbors.  Jesus said whatever is preventing the body from working together as a whole, get rid of it.  The mission is too hard to undertake divided.  I can’t believe how hard it is to get Lutherans to join together.  For worship, fellowship, or ministry.  Maybe the letter of James gives us a way forward.  Prayer.  Corporate prayer.  Prayer that includes anyone.  The prayer of the just is powerful and effective. We believe that those with faith have been made right with God.   You and I are called, all of us to pray for one another in the body of Christ, the church.  Prayer begins with an expectation that God will change the circumstances about which we are praying.  Prayer presumes a desire to change. To pray for every branch of the tree, to pray for healing.  The tree does need healing in so much as we compete with one another, avoid and neglect each other, reject and demonize other believers,  and fail to demonstrate holy love for the body.   And we are called to seek first the kingdom of God, perhaps by seeking the ways in which that kingdom breaks into human lives untouched by the church’s work and witness.  God is indeed actively engaged in the world to heal, restore, and save it.  As I’ve said before, the church does not have a mission, the mission of God has a church.