ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGS
September 20, 2026
Today, we will be wrestling with the notion of forgiveness in worship. I have appreciated the dozen or so authors I have been reading in preparation for this sermon, but among them is Brené Brown, who said, “People can look at you, expecting forgiveness like they are standing in front of a vending machine.” Not only did I laugh out loud, but it felt so true. And if I were being 100% transparent, I’d probably need to name a few times when I did just that. As a kid, there was a fire station not too far from the house; the firefighters were great. In the back of the main garage, behind the fire truck, was a soda machine—an old one with the glass bottles. The cost was just a dime, but one of the firefighters showed us how to get two bottles out for just one dime. It wasn’t a very ethical thing to do, and I do continue to glance over my shoulder 50 years later as I am certain the Pepsi Police are going to come for me. Of course, even then, a dime was a pretty good price for a soda, yet we were trying to squeeze a little more out of it. Like yesterday, I know the comparison is not fantastic, but people have a tendency to not only expect forgiveness quickly and efficiently, but if they can find a way of doing a little less than the culturally acceptable apology, they’ll try. Just a few weeks ago, someone bumped their grocery cart into the backside of the woman standing behind me in the checkout line. He said, “I guess I’m supposed to say sorry.” You guess? Really? A true heartfelt sorry is sometimes inadequate for the injury, but what he said was a master course in blame-shifting… or just being a jerk. When we have been the source of hurt, especially when trust was broken, it is sort of naive to pretend as if vending machine-like forgiveness is going to be given. In fact, we should be respectful of the other person’s need to do whatever is necessary, even if it means that some very strict boundaries need to be imposed. Part of remorse is acknowledging how the relationship may never be the same moving forward.
Holy Mother, Father, Friend – there are images used to speak of you, yet sometimes even these images can be triggering and painful. We hold within us injuries and trauma that do not easily heal, and too often we do not acknowledge how these experiences continue to stifle our existence and hinder your desire for us to know joy and peace. Help us to move beyond a vending machine approach to forgiveness, always believing that you find us worthy of what is found on the other side of the hard and good work necessary for healing. Amen.
