Sunday, October 27th: "Step Up Step Forward: Catastrophe and Opportunity"

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First United Presbyterian Church

“Step Up Step Forward: Catastrophe and Opportunity”

Rev. Amy Morgan

October 27, 2024

Acts 11:19-30

19 Now those who were scattered because of the persecution that took place over Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch, and they spoke the word to no one except Jews. 20 But among them were some men of Cyprus and Cyrene who, on coming to Antioch, spoke to the Hellenists also, proclaiming the Lord Jesus. 21 The hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number became believers and turned to the Lord. 22 News of this came to the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. 23 When he came and saw the grace of God, he rejoiced, and he exhorted them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast devotion, 24 for he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And a great many people were brought to the Lord. 25 Then Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, 26 and when he had found him he brought him to Antioch. So it was that for an entire year they met with the church and taught a great many people, and it was in Antioch that the disciples were first called “Christians.”

27 At that time prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. 28 One of them named Agabus stood up and predicted by the Spirit that there would be a severe famine over all the world, and this took place during the reign of Claudius. 29 The disciples determined that, according to their ability, each would send relief to the brothers and sisters living in Judea; 30 this they did, sending it to the elders by Barnabas and Saul.

I spent several hours this week reading through old minutes of this church’s Session meetings. Yes, this is what I do for fun. But I wanted to better understand a crisis that occurred here exactly 40 years ago. 

In October of 1984, the Session and pastor of this church determined that they could no longer be a part of the United Presbyterian Church because the Presbytery was requiring them to ordain women as church elders. As a result of this schism, church membership went from 214 members down to 86 by the end of the year, with many members following the pastor and church leaders to found a new church in another denomination. Families were divided with some staying and some leaving. The church’s finances were decimated, especially since they had just completed the purchase of a building nearby that they couldn’t rent. It was a catastrophe. 

The church of the first century faced a much more serious catastrophe. The schism was within Judaism, which in the first century was already profoundly divisive before a group of Jews started talking about a man named Jesus and getting people riled up. 

Stephen, a follower of Jesus and newly-appointed deacon, was accosted by a group belonging to something called the synagogue of the Freedmen. There is a lot of scholarly debate about who these people were, but there is consensus that they were Greek-speaking Jews, possibly Gentiles who came to practice Judaism. They couldn’t win an argument with Stephen, so they stirred up false accusations and had him arrested and brought before the Jerusalem council. Stephen made a long and eloquent speech that essentially said, “God’s been trying to get through to you knuckleheads, but you are still missing the point,” and this enraged the crowd to the point where a mob dragged him outside the city and stoned him to death. This instigated a severe persecution of the Jesus-followers in Jerusalem, and the believers scattered to Samaria, Caesarea, and, as we heard in our reading today, as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch. 

But that’s not where the story ends. Division and death do not triumph. Catastrophe does not get the final word. 

Some of the disciples fled to a city called Antioch, which was predominantly Greek in language and culture. And it just so happens that at least some of those disciples were Greek converts from the very same region as some of those who orchestrated the death of Stephen. So while they started out speaking only to the Jews of that city, since the Jesus movement was essentially a Jewish movement, they eventually came to see how eagerly the Greeks of that city embraced their message of hope. Their response was so overwhelming that the Jerusalem church heard about it and dispatched Barnabus, that “son of encouragement” mentioned in our reading last week, to see what’s going on. Barnabus brings Paul on board, and there is so much enthusiasm for the gospel that this is the first place where Jesus-followers are given a distinct identity, where they are named “Christians.”

When the fledgling church learned that a famine was coming, they responded generously, giving what they were able, so the church could continue to ensure that there was not a needy person among them, even in times of hardship. 

What started out as a catastrophe turned into opportunity – opportunity to expand the church’s ministry to folks it had previously excluded and to generously provide for folks in greatest need.  

And as I kept reading through the story of our church, that’s exactly what happened here. In March 1985, the minutes of the regular session meeting state that, “for the first time in the history of this church the nominating committee brings to the floor of the congregation 3 women nominees for the office of elder.” The congregation voted to elect Peggy Larson, Bernita Deins, and Eulalia Grether as elders. 

Despite their financial challenges, the church started a vibrant young adult ministry, initiated a Women’s Organization, and began participating in ecumenical groups. As a result of newly established interfaith relationships, the church began hosting Sali’s kitchen, a precursor to the Community Kitchen, which continues to nourish people in body and soul here in Loveland. And 10 years after this controversy around ordaining women as elders, this church called its first female minister of Word and Sacrament. I am now the fourth woman to pastor this church, and I’m grateful for this opportunity.

What started out as a catastrophe turned into opportunity – opportunity to expand the church’s ministry to folks it had previously excluded and to generously provide for folks in greatest need.  

While we are, fortunately, not embroiled in church schisms today, our church still faces challenges and hardships of various sorts, minor catastrophes that arise from time to time. This year, church leadership discerned physical, technical, and relational needs of the church. We need a new boiler, structural reinforcement, and improvements to accessibility. We need more folks with technical expertise to assist our A/V staff, upgrade and integrate our equipment so we can easily stream classes and meetings, and improve our online presence and reach. We need more opportunities to connect meaningfully with those who gather with us onsite, those who participate with us online, and people in our community who are longing for love and connection.

In the wider church in America, Christians aren’t being martyred or persecuted, and we might remember to be grateful for that because there are places around the world where that is not the case. But that doesn’t mean identifying as a person of faith is easy or comfortable in our society. The schisms within Christianity have driven many people, especially younger generations, away from the church, and they treat Christians with skepticism or outright hostility. Because the church has excluded, and many churches continue to exclude, various groups of people, many people view Christians as hypocritical, judgmental, and inauthentic. We even see hostility between those bearing the name Christian, to the point where I’ve started to wonder if we need to find something different to call ourselves. Perhaps we need another Antioch moment that redefines who we are as followers of Jesus. 

These catastrophes are minor compared to what the early church, and this church, have faced in the past. Which gives us all the more reason to recognize in these challenges the opportunities that might be available through them. What opportunities do we have to expand our ministry to folks who we might still be excluding? What opportunities do we have to be generous toward those in greatest need? How can catastrophe transform into opportunity for us today?

Perhaps attending to the needs of our building will enable us to share this amazing resource with more folks in our community, people who would never set foot inside the door of a church on a Sunday morning but who might gather here for music and arts, support groups or enrichment activities. Perhaps addressing our technical needs will equip more folks to connect with us online or learn skills that will enhance their lives in other ways. Perhaps our need for more connectional opportunities will lead us to discern ways to address the epidemic of loneliness that plagues our society. 

As these challenges push us into new spaces, perhaps we will even begin to examine what it means to be a Christian, and to be called Christian, in this time and place. If we hope the gospel will resonate with younger generations, folks who have been hurt by the church, and folks who have become institutionally skeptical, we might need to listen to their stories and affirm their experiences. If we feel like some parts of the Christian body are attacking others or that churches are being decimated by societal shifts beyond our control, maybe this will scatter us into communities that are more receptive than we might expect, if we are just willing and able to be translators of the gospel. 

We all experience the catastrophes that are part of the human experience. Some of them are communal catastrophes – like those in the church. And some of them are very personal and individual. What gives me hope in the story of the early church and the history of this church is that catastrophe can lead not just to opportunity, but also to generosity. The church in Antioch was certainly not well-off and stable after only a year. But when it came to their attention that there was going to be great need in the world, each gave according to their ability. They weren’t asked to give till it hurt or trust God and give more than they thought they were able. They were invited to be generous, even in the midst of catastrophe, to whatever degree they were able. 

The ability to be generous does not depend on financial wealth. There are plenty of wealthy people who are not able to be generous. Our ability to give is a gift of God, as we grow in following Jesus, empowered by the Holy Spirit. Some folks of limited means have a great capacity for generosity, and some folks of great wealth have limited capacity for generosity. 

But friends, we are part of a community that has experienced, again and again, the opportunities God can bring out of catastrophe. And we know there is tremendous need in the world – not just physical needs, but need for unconditional love, authentic relationships, a sense of purpose, and the invitation to wonder. Our church tends to all of these sorts of needs. 

And so we are invited to give according to our ability. For some of us, life’s catastrophes have created such hardship that our ability is limited right now, and that’s okay. For others, life’s opportunities have created such abundance that our ability is exceptional. Either way, our collective generosity enables this church to continue bringing opportunity out of catastrophe, not just in this church, but for people in our community, for people around the world. 

To God be all glory forever and ever. Amen.