ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGS
December 1, 2022
Today is World AIDS Day, a day to remember all those who have died over the last four decades, to remember those who are living with the disease, and to also promote the ongoing education of society. Though Today is World AIDS Day, a day to remember all those who have died over the last four decades, to remember those who are living with the disease, and to also promote the ongoing education of society. Though there has been a greater understanding with each passing year and less hate-filled judgment, there is still a great deal of work to be done. World AIDS Day started on December 1, 1988. There was, at the time, so much misinformation rooted in bigotry and societal insecurity. Two years later, on December 2 of that year (I believe), I preached a sermon in support of World AIDS Day. I’ve had sermons go over like a lead balloon on many occasions, but that one was a lead balloon filled with concrete. I was basically a novice preacher at the time, with not a lot of sermons under my belt (only one preaching class), but I chose to tackle the topic. Ryan White was from Kokomo, Indiana, and I had to drive through Kokomo to get to the church I was serving at the time. Ryan had died seven months before I preached that sermon. I still remember some angry people, good Christian people, saying some pretty outrageous and detestable things. It was the first time in my ministry when I thought to myself, “It is ok to disagree, but it would be nice if people could offer an opposing argument that might resemble something Jesus said.”
A little over 1,000 miles away, in Houston, Texas, a congregation by the name of Cypress Creek Christian Church would begin hard conversations around how to minister to those living with HIV/AIDS, those dying, and their families. Rev. Glenn Wilkerson preached what some say was his finest sermon (I was not around in those days), a call for compassion expressed in tangible care. Some people did not like the sermon, and a handful of people left the church. Yet a wonderful ministry came alive.
I find it so interesting how some people in the church can experience such discomfort when it comes to difficult conversations. A sermon is meant to be a proclamation of Good News, yet many people believe it MUST ALWAYS be Good News for their ears. However, what was Good News for the enslaved Israelites was not necessarily Good News for Pharaoh; what would become Good News for the Apostle Paul was initially not so good for a guy named Saul; and what was Good News for those with HIV/AIDS and their families was initially not so good for a lot of people… but it should have been. When a message speaks grace to those who are afraid, communicates compassion for those who have been marginalized, and conveys a state of belovedness for those who have been told they are outside of God’s love, then it becomes rather difficult to argue about whether it is the Good News of Jesus Christ.
We celebrate a child’s birth, yet a birth comprised of an extraordinary message. O God, your enfleshing of love was comforting for the afflicted while also affecting the comfortable. When I feel uneasy about your Gospel, Lord God, provide me with a discerning spirit so as to know whether it is holy discomfort in search of some needed transformation. Amen.
