One of the blessings of being church is that we get to walk with each other throughout the course of our whole lives–from birth to death. There is strength to be found in knowing and being known, especially in times of joy and sorrow. Each of us is tied together in Spirit, place and prayer. We learn how to embrace the complexity and simplicity of human being.
Paul summarizes this way of life when he instructs the church in Rome:
“Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep” (Romans 12:15). We develop compassion and love as we practice solidarity in relationships with one another, both within the church and beyond it.
This week one of our beloved communicants, Darcy Cassavant, died. Another, Carol Szulc, has been moved to hospice care. We weep with their families, responding to their needs at their pace and with their leading. One of the prayers we offer at burials is:” We thank you (God) for giving her to us, her, family and friends, to know and to love as a companion on our earthly pilgrimage.”
At our best, the church is a community of companions on earthly pilgrimage journeying together into the fullness of God.
-The Reverend Lisa Hunt, Rector