Back in the late 1980’s I was trained by the United Methodist Church to go around to congregations in our conference and lead them through a workshop that would help them reach the generation that was missing from our churches – the Baby Boomers. No – I kid you not. The same handwringing we are doing now about younger generations – and it is mostly justified – was going on 40 years ago. I guess it is hard to understand that spirituality, for most people, becomes more accessible as we age. Anyone who has started out a career or raised children knows that extracurriculars can be hard on the schedule when we are young. The struggle is real, and many of us just give up. Of course, the problem with giving up is that we and our families lose out on a really important part of our development, and few parents do much of anything at home to teach their children – or themselves – about faith.
One of the reasons the UMC was doing this program was to help church folks open up to people who weren’t present; the people who were invisible to the larger church and often were ignored. We know this is true as a nation, which is why we have so many days and months dedicated to different groups of people. This past Sunday was Transgender Visibility Day, for example. February is Black History Month. As a white man, I don’t need this kind of recognition, because every day is White Guy Visibility Day in America. That’s the pure definition of privilege, like it or not. The good side of these kinds of recognitions is that they enable us to be educated about diversity. The bad side is that once it is done, we too easily go back to ignoring it. Visibility for a day isn’t true visibility.
The UCC has lots of Sundays that are designated for particular groups, but I, to be honest, have never been a fan. Last Sunday, for example, was Easter, which is kind of important to us Christians. I probably could have mentioned that it was Transgender Visibility Day, but I didn’t. Why? Because people who are Transgender are always visible at our church. And women. And African Americans. And to be honest, any person who walks through our doors. In the church, nobody should ever be invisible, because nobody was ever invisible to Jesus. To Him, it didn’t matter if you were single or had been married five times and were living without being married with another man. It didn’t matter if you were rich or poor – Greek or Jewish – male or female. The Apostle Paul picked this up a number of times as he worked constantly to convince the people in the churches that they should welcome every person. Nobody should be invisible in the community of faith.
I know it is human nature to be tribal; to not trust those who are different from us. That’s why Jesus taught us to go against our nature and training in so many ways. Love our enemy. Carry a soldier’s bag an extra mile. Give our coat to someone when we have two and they have none. Share our food with those who are hungry. The drive to survive is innate; the willingness to share doesn’t always come naturally. God made us as good creations, but not as perfect people. This is why we need to be connected to a faith community that teaches us to do that which does not come naturally. We all need to be seen and known and included. Being invisible takes away our personhood – being visible restores it. I see you. So does God.
Prayer – Thank You, God, for seeing us and loving us and giving us the ability to do the same for others. We all need to be seen. Amen.
Today’s art is called “Diversity and Inclusion” by Yulong Lli.