From the
Desk of Rev. Tom Momberg
We do
not think ourselves into a new way of living.
We live
ourselves into new ways of thinking.
Without
action and lifestyle decisions,
without
concrete practices,
words are
dangerous and largely illusory.”
~ Richard Rohr, Preparing for Christmas:
Daily Meditations for Advent
The rector of our church took me, one
of his Vestry members, to lunch to break the news to me. John, the curate, a
young priest fresh out of seminary who had become my new best friend, was
leaving to serve another church in a state far away. I was heartbroken.
“I’ve just asked a new assisting
priest to join me,” he said at the end of our meal, “and her name is
Carol.” WHAT??!! I could barely swallow the dessert,
let alone this news. It was just more
bad news, I thought.
We’re going to have a woman priest? I had never laid eyes on one, let alone
experience a woman as a priest. Then, I
met Carol.
One day she asked me, “Have you ever
thought about serving at the altar?” She
knew I had been an acolyte as a boy. The
rector knew, too, but had never asked me to serve in that way. I said yes, I had. And I’d like that.
God’s infinite sense of humor, of
course, was that I would later marry a woman who is a priest. But first, before any new way of living -
before that marriage, before serving as a priest myself, before serving at the
altar at Carol’s invitation - first, I had to live myself into a new way of
thinking.
This year at Holy Trinity, I think
that’s what Advent is about. Advent is
about preparing ourselves for Christmas with a new way of thinking. Advent is about action and lifestyle
decisions, about concrete practices.
Holy Trinity has been an Episcopal
congregation in the Diocese of West Tennessee for more than a century. Changes in the life of this church have taken
place since its founding. Chances are,
there are more changes to come. The
question is: Will we live ourselves into new ways of thinking? If so, how might God be inviting us to do
that? Here are some possibilities:
~ St. Matthew’s United Methodist
Church, at the corner of Prescott and Kimball, has been offering ministry to
the homeless through a program called Room in the Inn. They have invited us to join them. Regardless of what we may think about why
some people have no home, how might God be inviting us, during this season of
Advent, to join our Methodist sisters and brothers in this ministry of
hospitality?
~ The Lynching Sites Project of
Memphis, on whose board I serve as President, is launching a series called
“courageous conversations.” Part of our
mission is “to uncover the whole truth of racial terror and violence in Shelby
County.” We are looking for safe places,
especially churches, where these conversations can be hosted. Regardless of how uncomfortable these
conversations may seem or become, how might God be inviting us, during this
season of Advent, to be a courageous host congregation?
~ The Swahili congregation worshipping
at Holy Trinity on Sunday afternoons under the leadership of the Rev. Peter
Kuria has changed the time of their service to Noon. This means that, in between services, their
congregation and ours will be able to share some fellowship at the
Columns. Regardless of how different
their worship may be from ours, how might God be inviting us, during this
season of Advent, to explore new ways to live hospitably together?
As we move into this Advent season,
preparing the way of the Lord to come among us once more, may God give us
grace, wisdom, and courage to live
ourselves into new ways of thinking. In
the new year, let us imagine Holy Trinity in this way: new birth, new life, new
ways to think and to live!
In
Christ,
Tom+