Why the Church Cares

Am I strange or have you also left a website open in your browser just because you couldn’t bear to close it?  For five months after the event ended, I kept the EventBrite page open and I smiled every time I saw it.  This open tab reminded me of the amazing time of preparation for and the celebration of the Broken Walls concert held on Sept. 30 (The National Day for Truth and Reconciliation) in Belleville, On.

While Jesus was in one of the towns, a man came along who was covered with leprosy. When he saw Jesus, he fell with his face to the ground and begged him, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.” Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said.

"Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him and he will bring justice to the nations. He will not shout or cry out, or raise his voice in the streets. A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out. In faithfulness he will bring forth justice; he will not falter or be discouraged till he establishes justice on earth.” (Isaiah 42: 1-4a)

I was at the United Nations conference on climate change (called “COP” for Conference of Parties) in Dubai of the United Arab Emirates in December. I watched a David versus Goliath battle. The fossil fuel industry (processors of oil, gas and coal) was the Goliath and had 2,400 lobbyists at the meeting.

Recently I settled  my youngest son into a semester of study in New Mexico – near the Navajo Nation. It has been good to see him begin to be immersed once again into our culture, our foods, our language, and our beautiful red soil & rocks.

By now you’ve probably seen the meme about Jesus’ greatest miracle—that he had 12 best friends in his 30s– apparently first told by John Mulaney on SNL. The memes that make their rounds do so because their relatableness and candor make them both funny AND true. As a person in their 30s with friends in their 30s, we have all laughed at this meme and attested to this great miracle. But why is it so difficult to have close friends as you age?

During our annual staff retreat in June 2023, we reckoned with the fact that we are each other’s neighbours. Jesus causes us to recognise the needs of others and the call to be a neighbour irrespective of the differences in ethnicity, location, and other social factors. 

On Monday, July 24, 2023, a retired Christian Reformed pastor was charged in a murder case. Rev. David G. Zandstra (now 83) was the pastor at Trinity Chapel CRC in Broomall, Pa., in 1975 when 8-year-old Gretchen Harrington was kidnapped and murdered on her way to Vacation Bible School. While Zandstra denied involvement at the time, he has now confessed to the murder.

The Southern Baptist Convention just booted several prominent churches from their denomination because of their allowance of women pastors and preachers. “Shiny Happy People”, the documentary giving an inside look into the Duggar Family and the harmful practices of the Institute in Basic Life Principles, is streaming on Amazon Prime and it currently has a 100% on Rotten Tomatoes. More churches and worship leaders are rethinking singing music from Hillsong and Bethel because of scandals and controversy surrounding their ministries.