Carol Phillips Whitt - February 1, 2009
People talk about God in all kinds of ways-- everyone has their preferred names and images. Some say He, some say She, some say Loving Parent; and some insist that God can not be personified. Some say the Almighty, Lord of All, and some say Love. Some refer to their higher power, some understand God as Source. Some don’t understand God at all and don’t mind saying so. My favorite name for God is Creator, for when I grasp at the breadth of God’s expression I can glimpse at how great God’s Love is. The pure joy that I feel from my own creativity is how I can feel connected to God, the most awesome artist.
Can you imagine going to a church where there was only one way to think about God, and one way to do church? We’d all be out of here in a New York minute! But our diversity of opinion is what actually makes us who we are.
We don’t have to have the same way of speaking about God to all be on the same page as a congregation, heading with courage and inspiration in the same direction. Where we want to go hasn’t changed: we want to live in peace, with justice and mercy for all, for that is what God’s Unconditional Love looks like to us.
But the way we are going to get there hasn’t been done before. We have three new programs that can take us where we want to go. They seem like three different things but they actually relate quite a bit. PeaceJam, Whatever Works Art Space, and Sandwiches on the Square are all about learning to live in peace with justice and mercy.
PeaceJam is not just for our kids, the Art Space is not just for artsy folks, and the sandwiches program is not just about filling stomachs. Let’s give it every fiber of energy we can muster. Let’s enter into 2009 loving our diverse beliefs and opinions, but pointing all in the same direction when it comes to our mission. We will inspire everyone around us to dig in and join us in what we are doing. Together, building a larger community of hope, we will find the courage to work for peace, justice and mercy everywhere. And we will see God.
