Where There’s Smoke, There’s Fire!

 

How are your lungs doing this week?  Our air quality has been so bad last Tuesday and Wednesday that I wore a mask to cut down on the amount of smoke I was breathing.

It was unnerving to hear of evacuations in Athabasca while I was in Camrose last weekend. Ironically, my Facebook popped up a picture of Rev. Donalee and myself in this very church seven years ago.  It also felt ironic that we who have lots of experience in hosting evacuees might end up being evacuated ourselves. It was a relief to hear that it was contained, and people were allowed back home after three days.  Some folks in Drayton Valley are still not back home from their trip to Camrose.  And of course, people from Fort McMurray and Slave Lake who were at our meeting remembered how hard this is on the townsfolk who are still waiting for the ‘all clear.’

Where there’s smoke, there’s fire.  And we are seeing not just literal fire in our province, but hints of fiery tempers and anger around us.  Take Back Alberta had a meeting in Athabasca this week.  Another police officer was gunned down in Canada, and two others injured.  Protestors of all kinds of political stripes are protesting angrily at other people’s rallies.  Conspiracy theories abound even about the fires. We need more than the Federal Government sending in troupes of soldiers to deal with these kinds of fires. 

The fires of intolerance, the fires of anger, the fires of judgment, the fires of isolation, the fires of fear.  Especially the fires of fear.  Fear of change, fear of government secret agendas, fear of societal collapse, fear of financial destabilization, fear of loss, fear of grief, fear of death, fear of bullying.

Fear. It’s almost as thick as the smoke on Tuesday.  Neighbors afraid to put up political signs on their lawns because they worry about repercussions.  Kids afraid to speak up about the bullying they are facing in school or at home.  Community members afraid of what a homeless shelter might mean to the town, shop owners afraid of the homeless people and the vandalism they might do, and politicians afraid of public debate.

Not that much different from the Early church community.  “Do not be afraid” is in our scriptures 169 times!  John and Peter were both preaching to communities of faith who were struggling to find ways to be courageous.  The new Christians had been shunned by their families and friends in the synagogues, and also in the Greek and Roman temples.  They were used to praying to Zeus and Jupiter, Athena and Aphrodite and now were praying to Yahweh together.  And as their congregations learned how to be a community, the outside world became less and less tolerant of them.  The Roman government declared that they were atheists because they didn’t worship the Roman Caesar as a God.  Romans had passed laws where all people were forced to declare “Caesar is Lord” and this upstart little movement was declaring “Jesus is Lord”.  Saying that was treasonous! The persecutions this new group faced were real and their lives were at stake.  When they declared “Peace be With You”, they were entrusting their lives to each other for they didn’t who the informants and spies were.  And people were killed for their faith.  The word “martyr” originally meant “Witness”, but the persecutions were so bad that it became twisted into “person willing to die for their faith” and many did.  Peter certainly did.

Hear his words again: “Who is going to harm you if your goal is to do what is right? But even if you do suffer for what is right, count it a blessing. Don't fear what they fear. Don't be afraid, and don't worry. In your hearts, set Jesus apart as holy and sovereign.”

And John’s testimony: “Don't let your hearts be troubled. You have faith in God; have faith in me as well. In God's house there are many dwelling places; otherwise, how could I have told you that I was going to prepare a place for you? I am indeed going to prepare a place for you… I won't leave you orphaned; I will come back to you.”

It is not easy to be bold in such fearful times.  And yet it is what we are called to be.  I was so proud of our Northern Spirit Region last week.  We spent three days considering what Deep Spirituality, Bold Discipleship and Daring Justice would look like and voted overwhelmingly to become an official Affirming Region.  It means that we will consider the needs of people for things like non-gendered bathrooms, safe spaces and inclusive language at every regional gathering and make space for diverse voices on all committees and executive.  It was exciting to see Rachel, a new regional rep, get involved, and I happily stepped down from the Affirming Task Group that had worked so hard for this goal.  It is in good hands as people boldly stepped forward to take it to the next level.

On this Mother’s Day, we also are called to be as bold as regional reps, or even as firefighters, remembering that the waters of our baptisms quench the fires of fear.   We are called to remember the many martyrs that spoke against bullying cultures and changed the world through their witness.  Anna Jarvis stood up in a Methodist Church in 1905, asking for Mother’s Day to be a day of peace where mothers would stop sending their husbands and sons off to be killed in wars. She witnessed against systemic violence and oppression.  Whether it is in the home or in the community or in the public sphere, let us join in public witness that while there may be fires of fear, we will remember to be bold disciples that witness to our faith that in life, in death, in life beyond death, God is with us, we are not alone! Thanks be to God.