"It no longer made sense that God was only available to the western (white) Christian practitioner, that the only holy places were modern buildings on busy street corners, and the most sacred meals were allocated for true believers" - I feel this and am on a similar journey. Thank you for writing!
You had me with: "But as Wendell Berry says, all places are sacred that haven’t been violently disrespected. “There are no unsacred places,” he writes. “There are only sacred places and desecrated places.”
This reminds me of so much of what Willie James Jennings writes about in The Christian Imagination, how Western Christians began to center themselves precisely when they lost sight of that fact that all Gentile Christians choose to join themselves to the Jewish flesh of an incarnate Savior. What if our posture has been to invite others into that joining, rather than foisting on them what we had “discovered” and thought we had tamed?
Thank you for this I am part of 'Wild Church' here in the UK Although officially part of the Church of England, we worship exclusively outside in nature. Our worship consists of prayer, considering and discussing the bible, walking,wandering/wondering, silence, play, art, craft All are welcome and all voices, including those of children are equally valued. I couldn't go back to any kind of regular Church-based indoor formulaic religion now. As you say, Jesus came to create The Way, not a new religion.
This is the kind of post that I'm only comfortable writing and rarely comfortable reading. It walks a beautiful line exploring wild theology and worship.
So much study here Sarah. I wonder if the younger me had studied if I would have come into my older years with understanding instead of anger. This is a wonder of an essay.
"It no longer made sense that God was only available to the western (white) Christian practitioner, that the only holy places were modern buildings on busy street corners, and the most sacred meals were allocated for true believers" - I feel this and am on a similar journey. Thank you for writing!
You had me with: "But as Wendell Berry says, all places are sacred that haven’t been violently disrespected. “There are no unsacred places,” he writes. “There are only sacred places and desecrated places.”
THIS IS SO GREAT.
It’s such a great quote—one I think about often that’s greatly altered the way I perceive and engage with the world 🤍
Wendell makes life better and harder. lol
This reminds me of so much of what Willie James Jennings writes about in The Christian Imagination, how Western Christians began to center themselves precisely when they lost sight of that fact that all Gentile Christians choose to join themselves to the Jewish flesh of an incarnate Savior. What if our posture has been to invite others into that joining, rather than foisting on them what we had “discovered” and thought we had tamed?
Thank you for this I am part of 'Wild Church' here in the UK Although officially part of the Church of England, we worship exclusively outside in nature. Our worship consists of prayer, considering and discussing the bible, walking,wandering/wondering, silence, play, art, craft All are welcome and all voices, including those of children are equally valued. I couldn't go back to any kind of regular Church-based indoor formulaic religion now. As you say, Jesus came to create The Way, not a new religion.
This is the kind of post that I'm only comfortable writing and rarely comfortable reading. It walks a beautiful line exploring wild theology and worship.
So much study here Sarah. I wonder if the younger me had studied if I would have come into my older years with understanding instead of anger. This is a wonder of an essay.