Sunday, September 11 will be Rally Sunday in the Goodridge Parish. It is a day to celebrate the ways we keep the promises we make when we share in the sacrament of Holy Baptism. After a child is Baptized you have heard me say: You are now entrusted with these responsibilities: you should faithfully bring your children to the services of God’s house, and teach them the Lord’s prayer, the Creed, and the Ten Commandments. As they grow in years, you should place in their hands the Holy Scriptures and provide for their instruction in the Christian faith, that living in the covenant in their Baptism and in communion with the Church, they may lead a godly life unto the day of Jesus Christ. Do you promise to fulfill these obligations?
You have always answered, “We will!” On Rally Sunday we fulfill three portions of the promise. First, children will be brought to services of God’s house. We will worship. Second, the Holy Scriptures will be placed in the hands of children. children in grade 3 will receive their first Bible. Youth in grades 8&9 will receive a pocket Bible. Finally, we will provide of instruction in the Christian faith. Sunday school will begin anew. During our worship we will pause to acknowledge the keeping of our promises and ask God to bless our work and witness.
Part of my work the last few weeks has been to encourage your Sunday school programs’ plans for the 2022-2023 education year. We have discussed a Halloween Trunk or Treat and Carnival, made decisions about when Christmas Programs will be held and figured out what materials need to be ordered. It has been challenging. This is in large part due to the uncertainty of how many to reasonably plan for. You know our attendance across the board has changed over the last two years. Those of you who have gathered for worship know how many seats are available on Sunday mornings.
When we resumed a regular worship scheduled in the summer of 2021, the hope was for people to return and our normal patterns to come back. I have heard many of you express deep disappointment this has not happened. But the church isn’t the only institution struggling to find a new normal. In a recent New York Times Article, Mark C. Hanson, the president and chief executive of the Baltimore Symphony said, “It would be a mistake to simply focus on trying to restore what perhaps existed before the pandemic, because our world has changed in fundamental ways.”*
Mr. Hanson’s words resonate with me. Our whole world has changed and everything in it. We can’t go back and capture the past, no matter how much we want to. I believe we are being called into a time of continued change. I believe we are being called to experiment and ask tough questions. Does the work we are doing still make sense? What are ways we can provide great hospitality to all would gather for worship? Are there areas in our communities that need more support, ways we can fill unmet needs?
More than anything, when families gather on a day like Rally Sunday, can we honor them for being present? They are showing up. They are keeping their promises too. Can it be enough in that moment to say “Well done,”? Can we offer a treat and a cup of coffee freely without reservation not because we expect something from our neighbors but because we can? Can we welcome without shame or blame?
Our work as the church is to serve as Christ Jesus served. When Jesus showed his disciples how much he loved them, he knelt before them and washed their feet. We don’t always have more than the moments we enter into at any given time. Let us rally around one another in the blessing of each day and thank God we can serve and keep our promises. Let us welcome and rejoice in the gift of one another. I absolutely believe that is always worth rallying around! -Pastor Kristin-
*”Live Performance Is Back. But Audiences Have Been Slow to Return” by Michael Paulson and Javier C. Hernández. August 21, 2022. The New York Times. A version of this article appears in print on Aug. 22, 2022, Section A, Page 1 of the New York edition with the headline: Stars Return to Fill the Stage, But Gaze at Many Empty Seats.
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