Easter 7 C Dare to Love One Another

 Easter 7 C Dare to Love One Another
May 12, 2013
By Rev. Ernest F. Campbell


Margaret and I enjoy watching the Bill Moyer Show on National Public Television. Last Monday night he had as his guests the parents of one of the children killed at Sandyhook Elementary School. They were both highly articulate, soft spoken, compassionate human beings. They shared a determined grief – let’s come together and do what we can, change what we can, to keep our children protected.


I wonder if anyone saw that program? I believe you would have been as impressed as we were with their concern for all of God’s children, even while speaking through their tears. As it turned out, they are church-going Episcopalians. 


I believe that what we saw in that interview relates to our Lord’s priestly prayer for all of us in today’s gospel. “May the love with which you have loved me be in them.” It is a powerful comfort to know that this has been, is now, and will be Christ’s prayer for us forever. For all of our differences, we have Christ’s love in common. For all of our differences, we can love one another.


We all know how God’s love in us is tested every day. When we are honest, we have to admit that we do, think and say things that hurt and destroy. But when the world sees God’s love at work in and through our differences, the world will notice.


Bill Moyer played a clip of a talk show host that went something like this, “The parents of the kids that were killed at Sandyhook Elementary School should get over it, or go to hell.”


Then Bill Moyer asked this question: “If that talk show host were here, facing you at this table – what would you say to him?”  (We had all seen these parents’ pain and tears. Whatever point this other talk show host was trying to make – whatever he was trying to say – what he said at that moment was unconscionable).


Both parents took a few deep breaths in silence. Then the father spoke: “I know we could find something in common, something that we both want for our children, and we could start from there.” And the world, all that were witnesses of that response, NOTICED!


Would you have been able to say, “I believe we can find something that we both want for our children?” Do you believe that in God’s heart no one is left out? Do you believe that in God’s heart there are no throwaways?


We don’t have to read much of the New Testament to realize that the twelve men that Jesus chose to proclaim the good news of God’s love for all people were different from one another. They had different expectations, different occupations, different political points of view, but what the world NOTICED was their love for one another. 


I am sorry to say that there are many people today that will simply not believe that the spirit of God’s love works. They read the headlines: “Church splits over the issue of; the ordination of women, of the prayer book revision, over homosexuality, over…. “Whatever!” and the world takes notice. What else can the world say… but what it sees? See how they take sides and fly apart.


Here’s the question: Where are our roots? Our roots are in God’s love in Christ and God’s love in each of us with all our differences. Jesus prayed for the unity of personal relationships. Personal relationships are not magic. They can be hard work, they can take time, but when we are able to say, I believe we can find something in common to build on…. The World will NOTICE!


Here’s the big question; Do we dare love one another?


One of the behaviors of church members that I have observed over the years is the temptation to separate yourselves from the body when there are differences and disagreements. They sometimes run to a different denomination or start a church of their own. Over the years I have watched it happen. I think of them as the “Mad” church. Where can you go if you’re “Mad!” You can go to the “Mad” church. The trouble is that good people that end up in the “Mad” church discover that good people can have differences. And the cycle starts all over again. They say that if you ever find the perfect church, don’t join, because you’ll spoil it. Our choices of denominational and special-order Christian Churches put Baskin and Robins mere 33 flavors to shame. 


I believe the world is waiting, standing on tiptoe, to see what happens when we dare to love one another despite our differences. 


How does it start?


Listen again to the answer of the Sandyhook parents: “I know that we could find something in common, something we all want for our children, and we could start from there.”


The world, I believe, is eagerly waiting to see that miracle happen. I say miracle because it will require the heart of God. When it does happen, as it has and as it will, the world will NOTICE!

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