Sermon: Boldness and Belonging

by Joanna Lawrence Shenk, this sermon is the fifth Sunday of our Lent series, “Covenant: The Tie That Binds.”

Mark 6:7-13

“I live my life in widening circles,” says the poet Rilke. “I live my life in widening circles that reach out across the world. I may not complete this last one but I give myself to it.” It seems like our children’s story today could have been a meditation on that poem. It’s been a favorite poem of mine for many years and even showed up in the title of the first book I edited called, “Widening the Circle: Experiments in Christian Discipleship.” 

That title, I think, could also be applied to the scripture passage we heard today. The disciples were sent out for the first time to expand the circle of Rabbi Yeshua’s movement. They had been observing Yeshua’s healing ministry in a variety of contexts and now it was their turn to take it to the streets. 

They went together and they went humbly. They did not take extra clothes or provisions – no money or food. They were showing up dependent on the hospitality of others. They were commissioned to heal and restore to community those who had been excluded. They were sharing the good news that they had experienced by joining Yeshua’s movement. But if people didn’t want to receive it, they simply moved on. 

How different would the last 2,000 years have looked if followers of Rabbi Yeshua had stuck to those instructions? 

Being a part of this movement was about changing the world, from the bottom up. This was ultimately a threat to the powerful, because the movement was attracting way too many people. Its circle kept getting wider and wider. 

This is also our call today AND we have so much dismantling to do, just as we draw the circle wider. The last 2,000 years, being a far cry from the disciples instructions, have led to a reality of Christianity that has served the powerful, rather than subverted them. 

Although I could talk about dismantling Christian dominance in terms of systems and structures… I want to actually bring it home to our relationships with each other. Turns out this dismantling has everything to do with being a covenanted community. 

Throughout the series so far we’ve talked about what covenant has looked like in this community over the years, how and why we’re committed to each other, and what covenanted relationships provide in a chaotic world. 

Covenant is counter-cultural. Covenant teaches us how to care for each other. Covenant teaches us how to listen to each other. Covenant invites us to be part of something greater than ourselves. Covenant in this community means we’re committed to an ongoing journey of transformation. It means we’re seeking to create a world where everyone can fully participate regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity. It means we’re taking seriously a commitment to anti-racism and are willing to be accountable when we mess up. Throwing in with this community means becoming trauma-informed and recognizing where able-ism is showing up among us. 

Our commitment to each other at its best creates a community where everyone experiences belonging. We’re a part of the web that Jim talked about last week. The web holds us – with its strength and flexibility. 

Seeking to embody this with each other is one of the most radical things we could be doing. Especially for people who have grown up in an individualistic status quo, covenant – at its best – recalls us to our membership in the sustaining web of life. We are not separate. We are creatures among creatures, giving and receiving, interdependent. This is what we are made for.

Living in this way is an act of dismantling systems of domination and oppression. We practice this with each other so we can enact it in the world. It is truly good news, so why wouldn’t we want to share it? Being in covenanted relationship empowers and emboldens us to work for transformation. 

Is it possible for boldness and humility to go together? I think so. I have seen us building relationships of solidarity and accountability with people and groups beyond our congregation. I have seen us listening and learning – offering what we have while being open to the wisdom and guidance of others. 

I have been so proud of our public witness in recent years, whether advocating for dignified housing in San Francisco alongside Faith in Action, or the protection of sacred land at Oak Flat following the lead of Apache Stronghold, or for immigration justice, or for Black lives, or for divestment from oil pipelines, or for a ceasefire in Gaza, or for the protection of democracy, or for the safety of our Jewish siblings at CSZ following the Tree of Life massacre in Pittsburgh. 

We have articulated that our faith compels us to be in the streets together. At times we have mobilized in a matter of days. There’s no one else I’d rather plan an action with since I feel such a depth of trust with you all. And that doesn’t mean we see eye to eye on everything, but even then, I have grown through hard conversations. I do not take that for granted. 

Our depth of commitment to each other is what allows us to show up boldly in the world together. Our practice of care for each other, allows us to extend our circle of care. For example: we are pretty darn good at providing food for each other – on Sunday mornings, when babies are born, and when people are sick. 

So it wasn’t a stretch at all to say, hey, let’s extend this care to families who have recently arrived in the city and need food. The call went out and since then, we’ve made and delivered hot meals. We had an abundant food drive. Our youth did a meal-making service project. And we’ve basically set the standard for other congregations in the Faith in Action network providing this hospitality.

A similar thing happened when Apache Stronghold came to town – we had an outpouring of healthy and delicious food to provide for the prayer vigils they lead on two different occasions. One might think – that’s not a big deal – it’s just food. But seriously individuals can’t do that – random people who care can’t do that. We can do that because we’ve been practicing together.   

Our covenanted relationships embody our belonging to each other. Our covenanted relationships encourage humility, as we listen and learn together. Our covenanted relationships are what allow us to expand the circle of care in the world. 

May we always remember that we are connected and held in the web of life. May we show up in the world boldly sharing the good news of healing and liberation. And may we feel the strength and power we have together to keep expanding the circle. Amen and may it be so.