Report by Lynn Hendricks
We are a community of the altar guild; we are also a community of the Episcopal Church; and we are a community of the Christian faith. More importantly we are part of the Beloved Community. What is the Beloved Community? We were fortunate to have the Rt. Rev. Dr. Marc Handley Andrus, Bishop of the Diocese of California, spend time with us exploring this topic.
Bishop Marc began by telling us of a very unusual friendship, that between Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., an American Christian pastor, and Thich Nhat Hanh, a Vietnamese Buddhist priest, two gentlemen whose faiths were different and whose countries were at war with one another. Rather than looking at what could divide them they looked at what could unite them. They reached out to each other with the hope of reconciliation, and in God’s love found peace.
The Beloved Community is the Kingdom of God. It crosses all religions, nationalities, ethnicities. It begins with a change of heart and mind (repentance-a turning away from and turning to). It grows as we forge a friendship — reaching out to other, the one “different” from ourselves reconciling our differences and in the process forming a friendship of Godly love.
To further illustrate what the Beloved Community is, Bishop Marc had us consider three of Jesus’s parables: the Prodigal Son, the Good Samaritan, and the Mustard Seed. After each he had us write one word describing the parable. They were put in word collages for us to see. What did we write? Forgiveness, reconciliation, welcoming, hope, love, compassion, generosity, grace, faith, growth, strength, possibility, unstoppable, wisdom, all words that personify the Beloved Community.
Looking at the Parable of the Prodigal Son, what is a word that describes Beloved Community that you learn from this parable?
Looking at the Parable of the Good Samaritan, what is a word that describes Beloved Community that you learn from this parable?
Looking at the Parable of the Mustard Seed, what is a word that describes Beloved Community that you learn from this parable?
With this exercise Bishop Marc reminded us that above all the Beloved Community is a gift of God. It is as durable as is love and can never be destroyed.
Leaving us with that final thought Bishop Marc closed our Triennial meeting with a prayer of benediction and blessings.