Let’s Stay Together
There will be a live audio Reflection & Prayer Service with community text chat in connection with this Multimedia Service this Sunday evening at 9 pm ET. Catch the audio and chat at the bottom of this page or on our Worship page. Video is posted there later.
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OPENING SONGS
Let's Stay Together
Al Green
Let it Shine
The Lower Lights
READINGS
My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by[a] the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified.
My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one—
Psalm 133, New International Version
How good and pleasant it is
when God’s people live together in unity!
It is like precious oil poured on the head,
running down on the beard,
running down on Aaron’s beard,
down on the collar of his robe.
It is as if the dew of Hermon
were falling on Mount Zion.
For there the Lord bestows his blessing,
even life forevermore.
Let's stay together
By REV. cory bradford-watts
Jesus Christ shares his prayer and intention to help bring all of us together in our scripture reading today, saying, “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one." It sounds like we should second this hope and intention in our own diverse community, but what does being one mean? Does being one mean that we have to be identical? Should we emulate a more diverse body like a symphony or perhaps a boyband like One Direction, singing, making music, and dancing in unison or harmony? Would that make us one and keep us together?
Well, perhaps the metaphor of a boy or girl band isn't that far off.
I envision that being in a band, something that I'd love to do, is very much like being in a church or working in community. You have singers, who may switch off from time to time, who probably should take queues, feedback and messages from the entire group. For a healthy band, I imagine that any leaders should seek to uplift the voices of all, the vision of the whole, while helping to heal, hone, and clarify that vision even more and put it into action.
Bands also have a diversity of actors connected in various ways in order to allow the group to stay together and perform: sound people, stage design, producers, public relations folk, the audience, and on and on - all coming together to uplift harmony. All working in a type of harmony with their diversity of roles. Working in one general direction to uplift people, to embolden and bless others with their vision and the healing, connecting power of music and community.
Another thing I love about the band metaphor is that music tends to transcend dogma or rigid truths. Listening to a poem or song, I'm more likely to take its meaning to be metaphorical than if the person were monologuing - preaching to me on a soapbox, perhaps.
Nothing against soapboxes, I sure have a lot of them, but there's a reason a soapbox preacher conjures the image of a pariah often, whereas the vision of a fabulous quartet on the corner has a dreamlike, welcoming quality to it.
This community seems like that quartet to me, a girl and boy band, in many ways. As a relatively newcomer, my impression of this congregation is a beautiful, wondrous body in motion, seeking to continually heal, share, support, and connect with each other.
But it doesn't stop there, our priority of coming together as one also has its roots in our striving to uplift our wider localities no matter their people's various beliefs. Indeed, one of the beautiful, transcendent things about the interfaith, Swedenborgian-Christianity at large, is that we generally believe that there are many gates to the holy city as described in Revelation, many diverse ways to connect with God or Goddess, even if we don’t call her that.
Also contributing to the shared vision and affection that I believe connects us all together is our efforts to respect and honor our ancestors, the first nations of our lands, and the land itself. These tendencies and passions draw us closer in strength, keep us all together, and empower our steps on this beautiful earth.
Of course, we each have a different role in this world, but I think we collectively feel a call to further humanity and Jesus', Sophia's, Divine Goodness' presence in all lives.
This makes you a beacon of light, one with hopes to magnify that light further and allow warmth to abound for all. This is what draws me to you as well. Like a moth to a flame, as they say.
Now speaking of letting your light shine (I love that song), our sermon today is named after another song, similar in a way, called Let's Stay Together by Al Green.
It starts as what I envision as a love song to God: "I, I'm so in love with you. Whatever you want to do, is alright with me. You make me feel so brand new. I want to spend my life with you. Let me say that since we've been together, Loving you forever is what I need."
I think that that song puts our hope of togetherness and connection beautifully.
We are one body in God, even with those outside of this domain, and that body is made stronger by its diversity. One church, striving to uplift eternal love into eternity. We hope that God the Christ works her will into our living and into our communal future wherever he takes us.
The scientist turned mystical theologian and the unintentional namesake of this interfaith-Christian tradition, Emanuel Swedenborg, believed that the term "church" in scripture transcended any one literal church, or even all the Christian churches combined in its meaning. He believed that "church" collectively refers to all peoples oriented towards goodness, wisdom, and life, no matter their name for God or lack thereof.
It was his belief that if we were to drop our dogmatic boundaries and acknowledge that there are multifaceted ways to connect to Christ, then we'd start supporting others in their own various walks and healthy melodies. We wouldn't be shy about our diversity of beliefs, but embrace it and try to magnify divinity in its communal multiplicity, instead of trying to pigeon-hole people with our own personal dogma and priorities. We’d acknowledge that yes, we think there are healthier ways to do things than some other ways, there's always room for growth, but we support each person to strive to find those convictions in their own living, in their own way. For example, Swedenborg believed that being egotistical and selfish is hellish compared to loving God’s qualities and the neighbor, which is the good in other people as well as the truth in our own lives. But to the extent that his belief inspires us, we have to decide personally how to put that into practice with the help of our friends. Just as we as a community will be deciding how staying together, becoming one, can be put into practice as a whole.
So to stay together I think we must have gratitude for what draws us together and continue to try to walk a Godly walk, acknowledging that it is Divinity that empowers us. We must walk a walk of kin-ship instead of an earthly kingship, one of democracy instead of domination, while still deeply acknowledging the humble King within and above who reigns. This will continue to lengthen our strides and embolden our harmonies and connections, as we continue to gain love and wisdom, fortitude and experience, from the servant-master on high whom we worship.
What do you all think brings us together, in broad terms? Let us know in the comments.
Christ says, "I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one." May we receive God's glorified goodness in our living, intending, and acting. May we see past false boundaries, and recognize our wider church, our wider community, as we strive to strengthen and continually heal this community and its walk in the world.
Amen
CLOSING SONGS
Together FOrever
Rick Astley
WhaT Makes You Beautiful
One DIrection
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