Wednesday Wonder September 13, 2023

Do you remember where you were when you heard… war had been declared, victory was declared, Kennedy was shot, the Towers had been hit or Queen Elizabeth II had died? We tend to catalogue big events into our memories. They also become part of the collective memory of society. So often, it is only the negative events that continue to be relived. We are less likely to remember the good events like… I am having trouble coming up with one that even comes near to the few I began with today. 

Whether seen as positive or negative, big or small, perspective can make all the difference when we encounter and remember events. Last year, I arrived in Scotland a couple of days after Queen Elizabeth had died. The conversations and feelings were different there that they had been here at home when I left. The perspective was different. Who she was, how she was seen in the UK simply, by virtue of living there, was not the same as for those of us with a bit more distance. Even between the four parts of the UK you could see this. Having been in Scotland at the time of her passing brought different feelings than had she been in London. It was fascinating to be among a nation in grief. Watching coverage from both my Canadian news feeds and what was on the local tv clearly illustrated perspective.

The stories of our ancestors in faith are similar. What Abraham first experienced when he heard the call of Yahweh, the living of the descendants of Jacob/Israel in Egypt, another call of God and an exodus of an entire people are all stories heard and felt in a new way. Our world today influences what parts of the stories now stand out for us. How these ancient stories resonate in our present context influences our understanding and connection. The world of Jesus is not our world. What can we still learn from the life and teachings of a man from 2000 years ago? What is the significance of the event we know as the resurrection that we would still celebrate it today? For me, one of the greatest illustrations of perspective is the fact that we celebrate ‘Good’ Friday. I am sure that those who walked to Golgotha with Jesus did not call it that. Perspective makes it so.

As I look around our world, I often wonder, how do I continue to make our stories of faith, the story of faith, relevant today? Science debunks miracles, the context of then and now do not seem to have much in common. How can I, how can we, make it that people will talk about and remember the way they do other things? Then I remember, it is all about faith and faithfulness. The stories are good ones. They have lessons on how to have a relationship with God and others. It is in the living out of those lessons that they become, and continue to be, relevant. All the stories teach us about love and compassion as the way to be connected to God and to one another.

I wonder… what if we didn’t just talk about the stories, but all lived those lessons each day? Would they be relevant then? Would we all see faith from a new perspective?