“For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world,
but in order that the world might be saved through him.” John 3:17
Dear Friends,
On Monday, I was on the same roller coaster as you waiting to see if the tariffs would be imposed by the U.S. and what the implications and ramifications would be. As I was watching the local news in the morning, one of the “byline’s” at the bottom said, “The U.S. is losing its goodwill in the world over tariffs.” Some of the synonyms for goodwill are friendliness, compassionate and virtuous. I find that I tend to agree with the statement. It seems like the current posture of the U.S. is not about improving relationships with other countries (making friends, being compassionate or driven by virtue) but is all focused on what will make the U.S. wealthier, more powerful, more secure.
Last Friday, I was in a very different kind of conversation. Laura and I were having tea with some of our Hizmet friends. Once again, the topic of conversation was, How do we engender understanding and relationships between people of different cultures and faiths? We were having this conversation with people who--because of their faith--have scattered all over the world to provide secular education for children in impoverished areas for the sake of being in service to the world in order to create islands of peace. They ARE about making friends, being compassionate and are driven by virtue.
Last Sunday, the gospel text was about the healing that Jesus did in the synagogue in Capernaum, in Simon’s Peter house, and on the front doorstep when everyone brought their ill. I also talked about the healing that Jesus does for us in baptism and in communion… making us whole in body, mind & spirit and making us whole as the body of Christ. This is the work and essence of saving and salvation. Its truest meaning is to make whole… to restore integrity and health. In light of this, it gives a very different flavor to our belief that Jesus came to save us and the world. Jesus came to make us whole and to make the world whole… through love, forgiveness, compassion, service, and humility.
I mourn that the U.S. seems to be choosing a path NOT of goodwill and I pray and hope that that may change. In all circumstances however, we can choose to live the way Jesus lived—the ultimate example of goodwill—and be ambassadors of that goodwill to those around us and even beyond.
By the way, one of the things that we were talking about with our Hizmet friends is restarting a dialogue we called Bridgebuilders. This was where we (Christians) got together with our friends (Muslims) and read the Bible and the Qu’ran together to notice where they align and the places where they differ. These were fascinating conversations simply based on the desire to better understand each other and our faiths. If you have an interest in being a part of a group that does this, there is an organizational meeting next Thursday, Feb. 13th at 6pm at the Anatolia Turkish Islamic Centre (2937 19 St. NE). (There is a full flyer below in this email.)
In goodwill,
Pastor Phil
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