Loading...Sometimes, being an Episcopal priest is hard. Not the ministry part. Not the worship part, but that does play into what I’m about to say, but trying to explain who and what we Episcopalians are.
Like many industries and organizations, we have our own lingo. We have hard-to-define words that come from centuries-old practice. In short, we have our own “insider language.”
When I talk with people unfamiliar with us and try to talk about who we are and what we do and how we believe, I often must look for words that may be more common, to help people visualize or recognize what I’m talking about.
I mean, who really knows what a “verger” or a “crucifer” or an “acolyte” is or does? Why is an altar guild important? Why are all these important parts of our worship?
Our hierarchy of Presiding Bishop, Bishop, Priest, Deacon, and Laity can even be hard to understand. Where does the Archbishop of Canterbury fit in? What is the Anglican Communion?
And those liturgical seasons and high holy days, like today? Well, even the most well-acquainted Episcopalian may not have remembered to wear red on Pentecost!
With the General Convention coming to Louisville in just over a month to do the legal work of the Church, and to elect a new Presiding Bishop, there are polity and policy words and processes that I don’t even know or understand.
For so many, walking into an Episcopal Church for the first, second, or even 20th time can be rather uncomfortable, confusing, perplexing. Especially when we don’t take time to explain some of our religious culture and practices. We all can feel cozy in what we know and can forget that not everyone in the room understands what has become commonplace for us.
And here we are, on this day we identify as the Birthday of the Church. Where the promised Paraclete (there’s a word!) or Advocate or Holy Spirit, comes down upon a gathering of people from many places, languages, and cultures with a rush of a violent wind, divided tongues, as of fire, and fills everyone in this diverse room with their Presence.
The people, who, as you know, come from a variety of places, cultures, and speaking in dialects and languages that others may not know or understand, they begin to speak in other languages…and to understand others as they spoke to them in their native languages.
In this moment, God has provided the opening for a new thing to begin. The birthday of the Church.
The beauty of this moment is that the Word of God, the stories of Jesus and his ministry, can be shared broadly and openly, creating a more diverse community of people together to go forth, living as Jesus did: bringing healing, liberation, and joy to the complicated and hurting world.
It is the breath of God, filling us with what we need to be welcoming and inviting, to provide for the unhoused and hungry, to serve the hurting and the sick. In all languages, cultures, and circumstances.
God provides what is needed when the need arises.
Matthew Myer Boulton, who is a theologian and author of the SALT blog, put it this way: “God graciously descends to earth; and instead of humanity linguistically fragmenting, the Spirit brings us together, bridging divides so we can understand each other.”[1]
Jeff and I were in both the Louisville and Minneapolis airports this past week. I love to hear the many languages being spoken, trying to identify the accents from around our country, seeing the different styles of dress worn by people from around the world.
We love to try foods from other cultures and countries. We may be a little nervous when we travel but are often awe-struck at how humans are generally good people who want what is best for those they encounter.
The common language we speak may not use words, but rather expressions, like smiles and gestures, like offering something to another, or hugging or kisses on the cheek. It is in the kindnesses we share with others that brings the beloved community together.
I read an article in the Christian Century written by Mennonite pastor, named Isaac S. Villegas called, Speaking in two tongues. He is an immigrant from Costa Rica. He was raised in the United States with parents who believed they needed to speak English in their home daily, but who also believed their children needed to learn Spanish and the Costa Rican culture from his grandparents every day.
Considering how any non-English speaking immigrant learns English as their second—or third language, and knowing how difficult our language is, I am often impressed when I think how hard it must be for them to bounce between many languages in their daily living, in their heads, to say what they want to express in the correct language. Isaac speaks about this difficulty in his article.
Until I go to a predominantly Spanish-speaking place, I don’t need to access my six years of Spanish classes to try to communicate. If I spend time in that culture, I am constantly trying to translate to understand.
Imagine having to do that daily. Even minute by minute.
What I found compelling in his article on today’s lesson from Acts was this paragraph: “God does not speak in a universal language. God does not impose or coerce unity. Instead, the Spirit of God communicates in every tongue. Every dialect is holy, every accent revelatory—the incarnation of God’s living Word expressed in a plurality of mouths and tongues. God indwells differences without converting the multitudes into sameness. People do not give up their languages, their cultures. Instead, God affirms the holiness of human differentiation: ‘I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh’ ([Acts] 2:17). All flesh receives the baptism of the Spirit, not to force people into a cultural nationalism but to consecrate every ethnic difference.”[2]
One of my best friends comes from Poland. She and her American husband lived with Jeff and I for a short time after she moved to Minnesota. We’ve been friends for over 31 years. Throughout our friendship, Kasia has become proficient in English, but has also raised their four kids to know and speak Polish. Over these many years I have picked up a few words, so when she slips into her native language, I can understand a bit of what she is saying. Her culture has taught me new things, helped me eat new foods, blessed me with awareness of what it means to be a foreigner in this place, striving to fit in, but knowing the importance of retaining her own culture.
We are best when we engage with people who are different than us and see the beloved-ness of all we encounter.
It is through our differences, our unique cultural experiences, that we become agents of healing, liberation, and joy.
The Pentecost is our reminder of who we are as God’s children. We are unique, just like every person we meet. We are capable of kindness towards those we do not know and may not understand. We are expected to build up one another as we learn about how our diverse lives can live together in community. We are invited to build a bigger table, to try all the different kinds of foods placed upon it, to sit next to a stranger who just may become our friend, to pray and learn and grow with one another.
Today is the day we are once again filled with life-giving breath from the Holy Spirit, to be reminded that our diversity, our differences, are made better when we find holy, life-giving ways to understand one another, to communicate with honesty and integrity, and to love one another as Christ has loved every diverse, unique one of us.
Happy Birthday to the Church! And to all of us who have heard God’s call to us to be a people who welcome all.
Let us pray. Breathe on us, breath of God. Fill us with life anew. Teach us to learn from and love others, especially when we are uncertain or afraid, because with your help, we can see that they, like us, are your beloved children. All for your love’s sake. Amen.
[1] https://www.saltproject.org/progressive-christian-blog/2018/5/15/salts-lectionary-commentary-on-pentecost
[2] https://www.christiancentury.org/voices/speaking-two-tongues Isaac S. Villegas in May 2024 issue; p. 34.
