We Belong To One Another
Though we bring different gifts, it is the same Spirit who makes them alive in us...
Beloved Community,
On Sunday, during our workshop, "Following God in a Fearful World," and on Monday morning at our staff retreat, we read a powerful remix of 1 Corinthians 12:4-26 by M. Jade Kaiser. Here is her creative interpretation:
Though we bring different gifts, it is the same Spirit who makes them alive in us. There are so many ways to serve the call of Love. None of us are without something to bring to the work of the common good.
To one, the Spirit gives discerning wisdom
and to another, the strength to weep for all that is being lost,
to another, an unshakable belief in the potential of transformation,
to another, a soft presence that holds space for healing,
to another, a fire that inspires and compels,
to another, the courage to name and unveil,
to another, humor that upholds us,
to another, a curiosity that bridges,
to another still, the gift for telling stories – ancient, fresh, intimate, and collective.
For just as the body is one and has many members,
and just as all the members of the body, though many, are one body,
so it is with Christ.
For in the one Spirit we were all baptized into one body – we are different in culture, social location, backgrounds, bodies, and beliefs – but we were all made to drink of one Spirit who calls us to collapse power-over among us.
Our baptism does not condone hierarchies. It calls upon us to bring about the dreams of God on earth – where all is held in rightful balance, none oppressed or confined, and all with access to what is needed to flourish.
Indeed, the body does not consist of one part but of many. If the artist would say, “because I am not a bridge-builder, I do not belong to the work of the common good,” that would not make them any less needed. And if the one who bears witness and holds stories would say, “because I am not a dynamic speaker, I do not belong to the work of the common good,” that would not make them any less needed.
If the whole body were listeners, where would the ones who tell the truth be? If the only ones who are valued in the work of Love are those with money to give, who will be the ones to practice civil disobedience for us when evil will not budge? Who will teach our children in the ways of justice and compassion? Who will nourish our bodies – feed us, offer us touch, tend to our wounds? Who will provide us with music, that our labor may be accompanied with dancing? Will we find laughter anywhere, to sustain our spirits?
Each of us are needed and each of us have offerings to bring. If we were all the same, what could we achieve? How would we survive? What a dull endeavor this would be.
The business person cannot say to the activist, I have no need of you.
Nor can the doctor say to the poet, I need you not.
On the contrary, the members of the body that society deems least significant are those most needed. We respect the disrespected. We recognize the value of the quiet ones, the strange ones, the misunderstood, misrepresented, and under-resourced ones. We lift them up and honor them, that the whole body might thrive.
If any of us suffer, we all suffer.
If any of us have cause to rejoice, we all celebrate.
In these days of uncertainty, fear, and unrest, the vision of Christ’s body reminds us of this truth. We belong to one another. Our lives are bound together by the Spirit who breathes life into every gift, every act of care, every quiet offering of presence. Love holds us even when the world feels fragmented. When one part of the body aches, the ache touches all of us all. When one part of the body dares to hope, the hope flows through our collective veins. To remember our belonging is holy, yet hard work. It keeps us grounded when fear closes in and lures us to isolate or believe the illusion that we are separate.
On Saturday morning, I attended a class with Kazu Haga who was one of the guest panelists. He has written two exceptional books, Healing Resistance: A Radically Different Response to Harm, and Fierce Vulnerability: Meeting Trauma in a Time of Collapse. In class, he offered this wisdom: healing from collective trauma begins when we recognize our deep interconnection, because transformation happens through relationship, shared practice, and the steady work of learning to belong to one another, even amid harm and rupture. If you would like to learn more about Kazu Haga, you can visit his website at https://www.kazuhaga.com/. I have decided to join his Fierce Vulnerability Kinship Lab (3-month journey to inspire collective action rooted in healing, emergence, and deep care) in mid-March. Feel free to join me.
As a congregation, we continue to ask questions. What does deeper belonging look like? How can we build enriching relationships with the schools, social service organizations, churches, and our neighbors? How can we lead with a deep sense that we, as a faith community, are intricately tethered to all of our neighbors?
We are continuing to take steps to live out this belonging and invite you to join us in the holy work. You are warmly invited to the Community Meal on Wednesdays from 5:30 to 6:30 PM. Come to help prepare the meal, lend a hand with clean up, or simply arrive ready to share a table and receive nourishment. These moments remind us that we are entangled, intertwined, and interdependent, sustained by one another’s presence. You are also invited to join the Renton Community Prayer Vigil this Sunday at 1 PM outside Renton City Hall. At this multi-faith gathering, prayers and words will be shared for healing, peace, and the protection of all our neighbors. This is a chance to re-member that the body of Christ extends far beyond our walls and our expectations. As we open ourselves to the love of Christ, we also open ourselves to the needs, grief, and hopes of the world God loves.
May we remember,
On the contrary, the members of the body that society deems least significant are those most needed. We respect the disrespected. We recognize the value of the quiet ones, the strange ones, the misunderstood, misrepresented, and under-resourced ones. We lift them up and honor them, that the whole body might thrive.
If any of us suffer, we all suffer.
If any of us have cause to rejoice, we all celebrate.
In God’s love and hope,
Pastor Kacey
