Episcopal Church in Almaden

What we sway about our neighbors...

Let's join Bishop Charleston in this deep moment of allowing the Spirit to dispel our fear.

Live from Mevo at The Episcopal Church in Almaden at The Episcopal Church in Almaden at The Episcopal Church in Almaden at The Episcopal Church in Almaden

A number of folks have shared with me their deepening awareness of anger in our midst. Anger that is persistent, even relentless, and definitely free-floating. ...Anger that attaches itself to the most inane targets, and anger that breeds deadly violence and destruction. It may be understandable. Some of the anger is righteous. Some is an appropriate and natural consequence of our shared past meeting new insight in a time of disequilibrium. That’s how significant change happens, isn’t it? Past meets insight in a time when habit is disrupted: change begins, hopefully constructive and life-giving (but that’s a different reflection). We are already off-kilter and now collectively we see truths that have been obscured. Some of us get depressed or melancholy. Others get annoyed or frightened. Some are shocked and others get busy. Some of us just get mad and take it out wherever and whenever possible. Every encounter becomes a battle. Every person becomes a target. If the anger just stayed with that one person, it would be bad-enough. But anger, meanness, and aggression all seem to spread like wildfire, don’t they? Quickly. Explosively. A contagion to put covid-19 to shame. In comparison, Love seems so slow, subtle, and sometimes even ineffective. Woe is me. What shall we do? How shall we live? Our sacred story has a LOT to say about this: the slowness of Love. The explosiveness of Anger. We are called to love, not hate. To create, not destroy. To embrace, not reject. (No one ever said it would be easy.) None of this - love, creativity, hospitality - means we simply accept whatever meanness or hate comes our way. It does mean that we do not lose hope. It does mean we refuse to escalate the anger by responding with anger. It does mean we get engaged and active and do our part to build another reality. It does mean that we turn on the porch light, in the sure and certain knowledge that it alone cannot light up the city - and in the confidence that one porch light will be enough. It’s what we can do. It’s all we can do. It’s who we are. Photo by Jarrod Reed/Unsplash