Author: mhelbert

Bebop & Brazil: Walker and Friends Fire up the Joy Machine

Published by mhelbert on December 19, 2024

Last night my wife and I went to see and hear something called, “Bebop & Brazil.” The young man who serves as the organist for us on Sundays produced it. He is a student at Oberlin College where he is studying organ. For this event, he sat at the piano and was joined by several of his Oberlin classmates to fire up the Jazz Machine. They played mostly Latin Jazz. Their rendition of Jobim’s “Girl from Ipanema” was spot on. The young woman who sang brought the life of Astrud Gilberto to the lyric. I was duly impressed by the skill of these musicians who are studying at Oberlin’s Conservatory. Some are studying Jazz. While others, like our own Walker Whitehouse, studies the more classical genres. The guitar player was like Dire Strait’s “Guitar George.” He knew all the chords. I was impressed with his chord phrasing and the big smile on his face. The drummer had chops. Some of the Brazilian rhythms he played were complex. Yet, he nailed them with a confidence that belied his age and experience. He and the bass player held the band together as any good rhythm section must do. While their lack of experience was evident, their commitment to their art and to the music itself was inspiring.

All I can say about the event was that it was the most fun that I’ve had in a very, very long time. The energy that these young musicians had was contagious. Their joy at being able to make music together filled the room. I was a foot tappin’, wide grinnin’ old guy.

I remember when I was their age. I had the same joy and energy that these folks had. There is something about new discoveries that accompany playing live for an audience that touches the soul. These young artists are discovering that. I could see it on their faces. I could hear it in the back and forth between the drums and the bass. The dynamics of live performance lift the spirit and brings a moment when there is nothing but you, the music, and the audience. I do truly miss that. But, I’m so grateful to these musicians for their offering. And, I am truly happy that they will continue to grow and experience the joy of art and performance.

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Just a Thought for Advent this Year

Published by mhelbert on December 16, 2024

We’re smack dab in the middle of Advent, 2024. It’s a season of anticipation. Anticipating the arrival of the Messiah, Jesus.
This year, however, I think that many anticipate the future with anxiety. Rather that awaiting the Prince of Peace many anticipate the Prince of Doom. Many others see the future with hope.
Such is Advent in 2024.
I, too, look forward with unease. Not because of what I know, but rather, what I don’t know.
I don’t know if the many doomsayers will be right. That 2025 may inaugurate the end of the world as we know it. That our lives may be at best, interrupted by chaos. Nor, do I know that the change will do us good. Who knows? I certainly don’t.
What I do know, however, is that neither our hopes nor fears will change what will actually be. That’s way above my pay-grade.
What I do know is that politics and the economy and border security will not save us.
Not from the outside.
Nor, from the inside.
Nor, from ourselves.
Hell, I’m not even sure what “save” means!
This season. This year. The anticipation of things that we think will help or harm is the wrong place for Advent.
This season. This year. Anticipation of the coming of Messiah Jesus is truly needed.
We’re all in this world together.
Perhaps, our focus, at least for a short time, could be directed to that Advent.
Just a thought.

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The Nativity – Revisited

Published by mhelbert on December 16, 2024

Here’s the annual repost of my take on Jesus’ birth at Bethlehem. If you have read my blog you know that I do not hold to the whole “Away In A Manger” story. That story really has nothing at all to do with 1st Century Palestinian life. I believe that this story is a better representation of that. Read with an open heart and mind. Perhaps, we may find a greater understanding of who Jesus was and our part in His family.

The caravan moved slowly up toward Jerusalem. It had been a long journey from Galilee through Samaria. We could not travel very fast because of the young, pregnant woman. Most of the caravan stopped in Jerusalem. We, however, had a few more miles to go to get to our ancestral home of Bethlehem.

We entered the town and located the home of Joseph’s cousin. Entering, we greeted those already gathered. “Shalom! Baruch hashem Adonai!” “Peace! Bless the name of the Lord!” Unpacking our donkeys, we noticed that there were a lot of people already present. It seems that the whole clan had answered Caesar’s demand that we return for this census. Joseph helped Mary up to the living quarters while I got fodder for the donkeys. As I turned to climb the stairs I saw Joseph gesturing angrily.

“No guest room?! My wife is going to give birth at any moment! You must make room for her and the child!”

“No, we cannot. There are too many people. We cannot have one room given to her alone.”

“Wait,” one of Joseph’s aunts said. “We can fix a place for her down below. There is plenty of fresh straw. And, we can put blankets down to help make her more comfortable.”

Mary, being young and new to the family looked at Joseph and nodded. She was already suspect, being pregnant already. She did not want to give the family any more reason to look down on her.

Evening came. Mary was having contractions every few minutes. One of the aunts acted as midwife. They made Mary as comfortable as possible.

Joseph was upstairs with the rest of the family. He was pacing the floor. One cousin scolded him, “Sit down and relax! Everything will be fine. This is not the first child ever born!”

But, everyone knew that many first pregnancies did not end well. Especially, when the mother was as young as Mary. In addition, both Joseph and Mary were anxious about the child. That strange man that had appeared nine months ago had said some very strange things about this child. As the birth drew near, the young parents wondered what kind of creature was about to enter their world.

It seemed as though Mary had been laboring for hours. With a final push the child arrived. With a cry, the child took his first breath. The midwife lifted the child and tied off the umbilicus.

“It’s a boy!”

Joseph gave a sigh of relief. The others began to pour bowls of wine and a party celebrating the birth of a first-born son began. They sang and danced and drank. When Mary was cleaned up and the child wrapped in clean cloths, Joseph was summoned to come down. He looked compassionately at Mary. She was so strong and brave…no longer a child. Joseph reached into the feeding trough in which his newborn son had been laid. He picked him up.

“My son, Yeshua!”

A little later I looked up and saw a small group of people entering the house. By the staves that they were carrying I could tell that they were shepherds.

“Who let this rabble in?” I thought. Shepherds were not usually welcome among respectable people. They walked over to where the child lay sleeping.

“We were out in the field tending the sheep. Suddenly, there was a great light in the sky! We feared that something was going to take our sheep and harm us! Then, we heard a voice saying that a child had been born…here…in Bethlehem. The voice said that this child is the Messiah who we have been waiting for!”

Another shepherd spoke up saying, “Then there was a great host praising God! They gave God glory and said that peace was to reign between God and those whom God favors!”

We poured bowls of wine for the shepherds and continued to celebrate throughout the night.

However, Mary had a puzzled look on her face. She said nothing!

May God Bless you all and Merry Christmas

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Just a little vent for my friends

Published by mhelbert on July 3, 2024

With all that’s going on in our world today it’s easy to find something to bitch about, er, I mean vent about. Whether it’s the political climate that seems to be warming the world as much as the meteorological climate, or it’s the economy, stupid, there’s no drought when it comes to things for which we humans vent.
To vent is to basically let off some steam, to release pent up pressure before some catastrophic event. Like an explosion. No one likes that. Too much collateral damage. Too many pieces to clean up after. Especially if you have a stew cooking in a pot. That creates quite the mess. So it is if we don’t take time to let what’s stewing within us to release pressure. That, too, creates quite the mess.
I suppose that I could carry on all day about what it means to vent or pent. Keeping pressure pent up within ultimately leads to dreadful circumstances. Internally or externally, pressure must find a way out.
So, I guess that I should get on with it.
Tribalism is taking its toll on me. The whole ‘us’ and ‘them’ view is strangling the life out of me. It’s easy to be ‘us.’ We are the folks who know the difference between right and wrong. We are the true caretakers of (insert the topic du jour). They are misguided. They can’t see the obvious truth that’s staring them in the eye. I hear things like “those libtards are ruining the country.” Or, “ there’s darkness on the Right.”
Both sides. ALL sides! If there are sides there will be conflict.
And, I’m just sick of it.
Yeah, it’s easy to dismiss those with whom we disagree. They simply don’t know any better. Or, so we think. It’s more difficult when the disparagement flows so easily from the mouths and attitudes of members of our own tribe. As I listen to folk whom I love and respect glibly dismiss those “others” I find myself doubly hurt. This is especially true of the family of faith to which I belong. We consider ourselves to be a welcoming community. Those who are outcast in society, whether LGBTQ+ or African American or immigrants or the poor or the unhoused are welcomed with open arms. We rightfully provide a safe space for any and all who meet our definition of outcast. However, as I listen to my spiritual siblings speak of those they deem “unwelcoming,” I see the head of Medusa peering out from the shadows seeking who to glare at. I know that none of us is ever truly aware that we’re acting exactly as those whom we castigate. But, we are.
I don’t say this to simply call out the apparent hypocrisy that is exposed in those moments of careless speech. Even though it is. I say this because it bugs me. Like that miserable mosquito that keeps buzzing around my ear, I want nothing more than to squash it.
But, then, I stop to examine myself. Have I not been as guilty as anyone? Whether I can’t let go of some past hurt or present ignorance, mea culpa.
For me as a follower of Jesus that constitutes something called sin. A missing of the mark; a falling short of the glory of God. Whatever you want to call it, it’s simply playing into the base nature of humanity.
There is a better way, I’m told. The Way of the Servant. The Simple Way. The Way of the Cross. These are ways to describe our own place in the Real World. The Real World that tells us that we are better than those ‘others.’ The Real World that requires us to draw lines and live within tribal boundaries. The Real World where people live and work and play. Sorry, not sorry, but that Real World is not Real. It’s made up of our cultural ideas and identity. It’s exists in our thoughts and prayers. It keeps people on edge, or with a knife’s edge at each others’ throats. In a word, it’s false.
I’m not at all sure where to go after I finish venting. I surely have no answers for the questions that persist in our human consciousness. Mostly to our own hurt. But, I promise myself to search for that better way to a world in which we can disagree with respect. Where we don’t backbite and devour on another. For, I know that it exists; somewhere.

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Joyfully Dancing to the Heavenly Music

Published by mhelbert on April 8, 2024

Today is April 8, 2024. Where I live the sun is shining and there’s warmth in the air. Looking out my window I can see the daffodils bursting with glorious new color as the blooms stretch their necks to let the warm face of the sun shine on the bright, yellow faces of the flowers. As Fred Rogers would say, “It’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood.”
Today is also the day when Luna will pass before the face of Old Sol. I’m fortunate in that I live directly in the center of the Path of Totality. So, I will be on my patio with my special ISO approved glasses watching as this event crosses directly over my head.
As I reflect on this a few things pop into my head like sparks rising from a fire and drifting into my consciousness to illuminate whatever it is that may be hiding in the nooks and crannies of my mind.
This particular eclipse has a fairly lengthy lineage. About 13.8 billion years ago the Universe which we call home exploded into life. As the gasses and various atomic “stuff” that makes up everything that we can see sped at nearly the speed of life in all directions, clumps of it began to gather and coalesce.
Approximately 4.6 billion years ago a hot mess spun into shape. Over the next bunch of billions of years that hot mess began to form and differentiate into balls of hot gasses and matter. These slowly cooled and formed the Solar System that we love and know. During this process the earth and the moon began their dance of joy around one another. Sometimes, as we’re spinning our beloved partner she takes her place between Old Sol and our Terra. We are truly “Leapin’ and Hoppin’” in a Moonshadow.
Such things are blessings made.
There are many, perhaps too many, who think that such an event is a ‘sign’ or ‘portent’
of something much more sinister and supernatural. To them I say, “Let’s talk tomorrow when everything is still the same.”
For me, I am quite happy to share in this Super event that is truly Natural. Too old souls simply enjoying the music of the heavens and dancing with joy.

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Who Is The True Enemy Of Our Humanity? Hmmm…?

Published by mhelbert on March 28, 2024

The Apostle Paul wrote to the church at Ephesus, “Put on the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For our struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” So many of us are caught up in the chaos and fear that holds the world in thrall. It’s absolutely true that we live in uncertainty. We wonder where our place in society actually is. Weren’t the things that we learned as a child absolute? For those of us who grew up in the White Middle Class these fears seem especially alive. We were taught that if we just worked hard we could have anything that we desired. The world was “our oyster.” We had “the world on a string.” We could “move that rubber tree plant” if we just have “high hopes.” Now, however, we feel as if all of that has been taken away from us. What thieving, conniving, son of a bitch had the kahonas to do that? Why I oughta….! I know that we’ve all felt this. That some injustice has overtaken us. And, it was “THEM” that did it! Damn them! We then rail and rant against those other people who cause us so much anxiety and anger. In the U.S. right now those others range from illegal migrants who threaten to take our jobs. Or, it might be the Main Stream Media that are trying to teach our kids how to be some kind of ‘woke Libtard.’ Of course, the whole of Washington, D.C. is a swamp that desires to suck the life out of us. They want to take our guns and force some kind of “Homosexshul” agenda down our throats. Of course there are many who feel that conservatives are trying to drag us back into the Victorian Era. They want to control our lives by telling us what we can or can’t read or who we are able to love. We mustn’t forget the rich elites on both sides who are bankrolling the destruction of our country. For some it’s all about “God, Guns, and Country.” For others it’s about inclusivity and equality. Our anger is directed at all who seem to be stepping on our rights. OUR Rights! We turn the saying of Jesus around and say, “Anyone who is not for us is against us.” Rather than, “Whoever is not against us is for us.” We’ve divided ourselves into warring factions where there’s no room for common ground. And, it’s exhausting. There is another way. Paul alluded to it in the text from his letter to the Church at Ephesus I quoted above. Our true enemy is not that person who just cut us off on the freeway. It’s certainly not the Trans person who we saw at the grocery. In fact, no one is our true enemy. That position is reserved for what Paul described as “rulers,” Authorities,” and “Cosmic Powers.” In today’s vernacular those are referred to as Systems of Oppression. That includes Systems that instigate racism that are baked into our culture as well as our founding document. They include Systems that objectify people based on gender or gender identity. Capitalism is a System that only exists on the backs of others. And, politics is a System that guarantees that the status quo is maintained for all of the other Systems. Let me give you a real-life example. Donald Trump. For some he is the return of Christ, a savior in flawed clothing. Others see him as the incarnation of the Anti-Christ. It’s not possible for both to be true. But, it possible that neither is true. The Systems that control society and culture allow for the rise of people like Trump. But, he is as much of a victim of those Systems as any other person. Let me state it again, Donald Trump is as much of a victim of those Systems as any other person. Please, don’t throw stuff! Let me explain. If anyone thinks that a person who is down and out, say, an unhoused person is a victim, why couldn’t the person at the top of the food chain also be a victim of some other influence or power? I think that they can. Now, don’t get me wrong. I do not like Trump. Not even a little. I find him wholly out of touch with reality. His narcissism knows no bounds. He lies pathologically. He’s an abuser and a bully. There seems to be nothing in him that’s redeemable. But, redemption is not my call. That’s way above my pay grade. My task is simply to love. My brothers and sisters. My friends. My family. My…enemies? Yes, my enemies. Those who I could just as easily “Other” as they could “Other” me. When I stop to remember who my true enemies are, those powers, principalities, and systems, I find that I am able to lay aside my own presumptions and prejudices. I am free to live without the burdens of judgment and anger. More importantly, I am free to lift these others up to God and ask that God free them from the bonds that hold them as slaves to those Cosmic Forces. So, as I pray each morning I take a moment to remember folks like Donald Trump. I ask God to release him and his family from the chains that bind them. May it be so, Amen.

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Being With the Living God Where The Sky Begins

Published by mhelbert on March 14, 2024

Back in the late 80’s we took the family on a camping road trip. We started at a Yogi Bear Jellystone camp at Niagara Falls in Canada. That was fun for a couple days. We saw the sights and rode the Maid of the Mist and got wet. Far out. After those couple of days it was time to move on. We had no idea where to go. Hey, it was a road trip! Don’t judge me! We wound up at a Good Sam’s park near Lake Placid, NY. We thought it might be a good idea to see the Adirondack’s. Plus, in the 80’s the Miracle on Ice from the Lake Placid Olympics was still fresh in everyone’s mind. It was almost a national shrine. So, we drove through town. We saw the ski jump training hills. As we drove through the hills and valleys there were numerous cross-country skiers training on their skis with wheels. I still can’t imagine the strength and stamina that those athletes have. I feel good when I can complete a 3 mile stroll through the suburbs!
Anyway, we got to the campground and set up the tent and everything. The first day we just scouted things out on the grounds. The rivers and streams that flow through there are amazing! Rivers that get squeezed down to flow through small fissures of rock create torrents that shoot out into the air before falling a small lake below. We went on a short boat ride through an area that was less than 20 ft. wide, yet maybe a hundred ft. deep. It was a truly amazing thing for a northern Ohio boy to see.
On one day we looked at the map of the region that we picked up at the park office. It showed several sites worth taking the time to visit. One of those was Bear Den Mountain. The trail head was less than a mile from the camp, so we decided that it would be an adventure. We started up the trail. It was a mild incline, so my wife, myself, and our kids, age maybe 7 & 8 didn’t think that it was too bad. Soon, the trail turned into the woods and the incline became noticeably steeper. Not too steep for us. But, still, it was a workout. We saw the large birch trees with claw marks scratched in them by the mountain’s namesake bears. The flies and gnats became a real pain in the ass, too. We picked fern fronds to wave in front of our faces to keep them at bay. By now, the kids were beginning to lose interest in this adventure. But, we could see the top. Or, so we thought. So, we kept trudging onward and upward. After we hiked past the first false top, we did finally get to the real summit. Now, you gotta understand that we had no idea what this little hike was going to be like. So, we had running shoes and shorts and short-sleeved shirts on. We were totally not dressed to climb a mountain. At the top the temperature was probably 20 degrees cooler than at the bottom. The wind was blowing and, well, it wasn’t all that pleasant. But, the view! Looking out at the mountains across a valley with their sheer granite cliffs and trees was unbelievable. I can’t begin to explain what I felt as I took in that panorama.
We soon left and headed down by another path. This time I had to carry my daughter on my shoulders because she was wasted. Eventually, we came out onto a ski slope with grass and wild strawberries growing. The slope was easier and we soon came back to the trail head.
That night we were awakened by son as he was losing his supper all over the inside of the tent. Apparently, our adventure was a bit much for him. As I sat in the restroom with him, my wife cleaned up the puke and set the soiled rags outside of the tent. When my son and I finally returned, my wife informed me that the rags she had put outside had been stolen by raccoons that ran off into the woods with them. Well, at least we didn’t need to wash them.
I shared all of this because this morning as I sat at my desk in prayer, I asked God where He would like to meet today. As soon as I asked we were at the top of Bear Den Mountain. We sat and looked out at that wonderful view. Jesus asked me what I thought. Of course, I was again rendered speechless by that view. He then told me that these mountains had been here for millions of years. Yeah, Jesus accepts science. He’s not one of those confused Young Earthers. Anyway, we wound up just sitting there. We didn’t talk about anything. We just sat together on the top of the world enjoying the view.
God isn’t concerned about our small beliefs that put God into little boxes made of ticky-tacky. Or, whatever. What God IS concerned about is being with us. God enjoys just sitting with us. Wasting time as we share the view. Over the last many years I’ve come to covet these moments with God.
And, there’s no puke to clean up after!

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Our Country Tis Of Thee, Sweet Land Of People To Love

Published by mhelbert on March 11, 2024

Lent is a season when folks are encouraged to look within. Introspection and reflection are as much a part of this season as candles and greenery are part of the Advent season. Many people and groups use some kind of Lenten devotional or 40 day plan to help with reflection during this time. Our church is no exception. We are using a book by Brad & Eden Jersak entitled, “Rivers from Eden: 40 Days of Intimate Conversation with God.” While it’s not strictly an Lenten book, it serves well as a source that helps with prayer and reflection.
This past week there were two days in which we were encouraged to ask God about things in our country that grieve God and bring God joy. These questions seemed appropriate considering the current divisive culture that holds the country in its grasp. Surely, God would find plenty that causes grief. And, not a lot to bring joy.
However, God is not us. Thankfully. In the book Eden Jersak wrote about her own experience of listening to the Bat Qol, the Daughter of a voice, with which God so often speaks to us. In her reflection God stated that one thing brings tears to the Divine Eyes. Selfishness. Very simple. So many people are willing to trample the rights and lives of others in order to ensure that their own rights and demands are met. I have to say that God is pretty darned observant. Eden’s reflection goes on to say that such self-centeredness is not a necessary nor inevitable action. If folks would simply take time to look outward to others. She wrote, “If this nation became less interested in what it needed and more interested in what others needed, it would become a very powerful nation indeed.” But that simple action is so very difficult for folks.
On the other side, joy comes to God as He looks at the whole of the country. Not everyone is caught up in the rip tide of selfishness. There are points of light all over. Lights of people who have turned to God and Others in order to build up and not take away. Our country is not a monolith where every single person is defined by the same buildings or people or whatever we set up in the middle as My Country. We are diverse. We are many colored and multi-vocal. These are people whose citizenship is first with the Kingdom of God. Geographic nationality does not define them.
Thomas Merton was a Cistercian Monk who lived in a monastery in Kentucky. In 1958 he was in Louisville running some errands when he had a special moment of revelation. He wrote, “In Louisville, at the corner of Fourth and Walnut, in the center of the shopping district, I was suddenly overwhelmed with the realization that I loved all these people, that they were mine and I theirs, that we could not be alien to one another even though we were total strangers. It was like waking from a dream of separateness, of spurious self-isolation in a special world. . . .

This sense of liberation from an illusory difference was such a relief and such a joy to me that I almost laughed out loud. . . . I have the immense joy of being man, a member of a race in which God Himself became incarnate. As if the sorrows and stupidities of the human condition could overwhelm me, now that I realize what we all are. And if only everybody could realize this! But it cannot be explained. There is no way of telling people that they are all walking around shining like the sun.

Then it was as if I suddenly saw the secret beauty of their hearts, the depths of their hearts where neither sin nor desire nor self-knowledge can reach, the core of their reality, the person that each one is in God’s eyes. If only they could all see themselves as they really are. If only we could see each other that way all the time. There would be no more war, no more hatred, no more cruelty, no more greed. . . . But this cannot be seen, only believed and ‘understood’ by a peculiar gift.”
― Thomas Merton, Conjectures of a Guilty Bystander

This is what it looks like when we see others through the eyes of the Holy Spirit. There are no longer divisions in which we define “Us” over against “Them.” It’s for this reason that I can pray for Donald Trump. Not that God would squash him. Nor that God would pour out wrathful judgment. But, that God would be present with him. That God’s Holy Spirit would touch his heart and mind and reveal Godself to him.
It’s why I can be dispassionate about the issues that tear families and friends apart. We are, all of us, in need of grace and mercy. All. Of. The. Time.
I’m writing this today primarily to the community of faith that professes Jesus as Messiah and Lord. This is our calling and vocation. We are the light of the world. The Temple of the Holy Spirit. The Body of Christ. Ours is the obligation to live and work to establish God’s Kingdom.
For those who do not profess Jesus, there is still the responsibility to treat others as we would desire them to treat us. We are a Community of Humanity. In this community we ARE our brothers’ keepers. If we can all turn our gaze outward for just a moment, perhaps we can bring joy. Not only to God, but to the World.

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What to do on Friday. Time For Joyous Celebration!

Published by mhelbert on March 8, 2024

Well, it’s Friday morning. I finished the dishes and took Josie for a walk. She loves watching the squirrels and chipmunks. Actually, she’d like to play with them. But, that’s not a great idea. We know that spring has arrived. The ducks are back. Yeah, Josie wants to go swimming with them. They don’t seem too keen on that. It’s really wet back in the woods, so I have to wrestle with this 60 lb. dog to keep her out of the mud. She loves the water and the wet. If I let her she’d splash through the muck with a great big doggie smile. But, for my sanity and the condition of my house, we need to keep her to the trails.

Andrew Zimmern’s on the tube with his Delicious Destinations show. I like Andrew. I’d never eat half of what he considers edible. His other show, Bizarre Foods has some nasty looking concoctions. My wife won’t even watch it because of the stuff that Andrew calls ‘food.’ It’s not. It’s offal and it’s insects and some things that I have no clue what it is.

After I get done here I need to continue my search for some kind of part time employment. Nothing much, but something to help out with bills and such. You’d be surprised at what a Master’s degree costs!

It’s a Friday in Lent. We usually do fish on these days. Last week we decided that a veggie pizza works. So, maybe that’ll become our new Lenten go to meal. Gotta love jalapenos! Do any of you follow any kind of Lenten tradition? When I was a kid I never even heard the term ‘Lent.’ If I had I would have probably thought that it was stuff that was on your clothes when they came out of the dryer. We had Lent Rollers to take care of that.

I know that this post is a tad strange. After all that I have written lately, I needed to take a break and write about nothing at all. Clear the mental palate. Next week it’s back to the words that I need to write. It’s not really a matter of what I want to do. To share God and God’s Love is more like a vocation, a calling, that I have to follow. But, til then, enjoy the weekend. Take a walk. Breathe.

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What Is Church? A Country Club? A Social Organization?

Published by mhelbert on March 7, 2024

Some medical providers say that it’s not healthy to stuff emotions. Holding feelings deep within us causes all sorts of issues, both mental and physical. So, I’m gonna blame my venting in recent posts on maintaining my own mental health. There.
Now that that’s done, I can move on to a similar topic from a different angle. I have spent a lot of time writing and talking about the shortcomings of the Church. It’s really easy to point out the negatives. And, the Church has quite a list of outstanding needs. I mentioned only a few in these posts. Today, however, I’d like to take a few minutes to talk about what I think the Church can look like. In the mind of Mike, what would the ideal Church be? So, let’s have a look, shall we?
First and foremost, the Church must be wholly devoted to God. Without that devotion, frankly, there is no such thing AS Church. Without it the Church is nothing more than a social justice organization. Or, worse, a clique of angry people who have no clue what it is that they are doing.
Messiah Jesus made it possible for the world to experience the fruit of the defeat of sin and death. He, alone, has made the Way for the world to know God. Jesus did provide an example of how humans can, (should?), live together, that was not His primary goal. His primary goal was to reveal to us the Reign of God in the world. In Biblical terms that’s called the Kingdom of God, or the Kingdom of Heaven. Jesus ushered in a new age where humanity may be restored to the true Image Bearers of God in the world. To be stewards of the world. To work in partnership with God to be a blessing to what God said in the beginning, was the Tov Me’od creation. That is, the Very Good creation. What that may look like deserves a series of blog posts of its own. Let’s just say, God thinks the world is very good. The Church has an obligation to care for it.
Second, the Church is a community like no other. The Apostle Paul used the image of a human body to describe it. We are all different, re. Diverse, yet members of One body. He wrote that a toe can’t say that it’s not part of the body. I think we’ve all experienced that. Stub a toe and the whole body is acutely aware of it. The Church as body is one organism that is made of many parts that are completely dependent on one another. Only Messiah Jesus is the head. I am certainly not. What would this look like in real life? Well, competition among various members would need to go away. Trying to cut off or remove another member would result, at best, despoil Messiah’s Body. At worst? Well, just take a look around at all of the divisions and fighting that goes on among those who consider themselves “Us” as they flip the bird at “Them.” This can only change if we are all devoted to God alone.
Third, the Church is by definition a Welcoming Community. Now, I don’t mean that we’re nice to people. Nor, when someone new steps into our church we nod our heads and smile at them. It’s not even going up to them and shaking their hand. It is those things, to be sure. But, it is far more than that. Being a Welcoming Community means that we are proactive and take our Welcome to where it is most needed. The Bible gives us a very basic outline of who that is. They are the widows, the orphans, and the foreigner who dwells among us. The outcast; the leper; the Other…whoever is NOT welcomed by those outside of the Welcoming Community. In the early centuries of the Church when plague ravaged the countryside, it was the Church who entered into harms way to offer comfort and care to those who were sick and dying. St. Francis is known for his entering into the leper colonies to cleanse the sores and to comfort those who were the most forgotten. Jesus went to those who were considered less than human by the powers that be in order to heal and to share the Good News that God loved them and cared for them and WELCOMED them. That’s what Welcoming Community looks like.
I could go on and on about how the Church is a sacrificing body. That it is the Temple where the Holy Spirit lives. How it has an obligation to speak prophetically to the world by speaking truth to power. These are only a few of the attributes that I think would go a long way toward defining the Church.
What are some of your thoughts?
Can you add to this list?
Are you a part of this?

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