6 th SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST The Very Rev. Steven J. Belonick 2015

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1 6 th SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST 2015 The Very Rev. Steven J. Belonick 2015 I. Next Sunday after Liturgy, Marion Gulash and I will be flying to Atlanta, GA to represent our parish at the 18 th All-American Council. The Council will bring together clergy and lay people from all parishes, seminaries, and monasteries in the Orthodox Church in America to discuss the state of the church and its future. II. The theme for this year s council is How to Expand the Mission. It s a theme that was chosen for two reasons: first, because it was the theme of the first All-American Council in 1907 in Mayfield, PA; and second, because it is necessary to revisit the topic of church growth again given that in 1907, there were 300,000 members of the church as compared to 45,000 members today. Certainly, immigration played a large part in the growth in But that is no excuse. The entire church, along with 1

2 parishes like ours, is struggling with HOW to grow and to expand. III. Growing the church is not just about making good business decisions. Rather, it has to do with following the command given by Jesus Himself, Who said: Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit and teaching them to obey all that I have commanded you. The theme of Expanding the Mission has to do with spreading the faith that God has given to us. The question is: How do we do that? Let me share with you some ideas. IV. First, we need to preach Jesus Christ. Now, that may seem obvious to you, but is it? Often, we preach ourselves or we preach Orthodoxy. When we preach ourselves, we promote our programs, our activities, and certainly, what nice people we are. We ve all said it: Come, join us. We are a really nice community. And even though that is true and important, it is not 2

3 the main point. When we preach Orthodoxy, we point to our history, our bells, our icons, and the beauty of our church. Simply, we are saying join us because we are an historic church and we are so wonderful. But that isn t the core message either, is it? St Paul faced similar challenges in his time but it brought him to the same conclusion in his letter to the Corinthians: We preach NOT ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord. In other words, it is Jesus Who people need. He is the message. He is the One who saves; He is the One who redeems and forgives; He is the One Who loves more than we can imagine. In other words, our message must appeal to the deepest yearnings of each person s soul. V. This means, of course, that ALL OF US are convinced of Him ourselves, doesn t it. We can t convince anyone else of Christ s importance, unless we are first convinced of His importance in our lives. Only if people see our commitment to 3

4 Him, will they become attracted to Him. In essence, telling another person about Jesus Christ is like one beggar telling another beggar where to find bread. HE MUST BE OUR DAILY BREAD. That means that we must be committed to daily prayer. We must read God s Word every day. We must desire a deeper understanding of the faith so we have something to offer to others. If we are to grow each of us has a part to play. VI. Further, we must remember that our church is CATHOLIC. If you don t believe it, just recite for yourself the Creed: I believe in One, Holy, CATHOLIC, and Apostolic Church. The word Catholic, in one sense, means whole and having the fullness of the truth. But it equally means that the church is universal, in other words, for all peoples, regardless of their ancestry, color, and social or financial status; whether they come to church on Sunday in their finest apparel or whether they can t afford to wear nice 4

5 clothes. The Church is not an ethnic tribe. Because Christ died for all, we must welcome all. If we are to grow, we must be open and receptive to all people. VII. To expand the mission means that we must not be passive, but active. We can t wait until fish jump into the boat. We must go fishing for them. We must preach at our workplace, our school, our neighbors, our family members, and to those unchurched. And by preaching I mean that only some times would we use words. We preach Christ every time we show kindness, refrain from being judgmental, express warmth, hospitality, graciousness, caring, acceptance, and the willingness to welcome others. To expand the mission means then to share the faith by simply living it, and if someone nibbles, to invite them by saying: Come and see! VIII. To expand the mission also means that we must remain faithful to the teachings that Jesus has given to us. There is 5

6 always a temptation to waterdown the Faith to make it easier for people to accept. I remember seeing a satirical cartoon that showed a church sign that read: We are a church of the Ten Commandments. But you can choose any five you wish. There is a study that indicates that faithgroups who are growing are those, which demand the most from their adherents. I was struck once by something an English author once said. She said: It is not the business of the Church to adapt Christ to men, but to adapt men to Christ. IX. And finally, our church community must become an island of welcoming love and mutual support. So, WE ARE entrusted by God to have a loving community. We must be a community where repentance, forgiveness, reconciliation, and the work of love are at the heart of what we do. Christianity doesn t mean being nice. Rather, it means learning how to love each other. And that is work. As the Liturgy itself says: Let us 6

7 love another that with one mind we may confess Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This is the mandate that our Lord places upon us. In fact, LOVE IS THE distinguishing characteristic of the Church, before CUPOLAS or BELLS. In the early 3 rd century, BEFORE ANY OF THOSE THINGS EXISTED, a Church writer by the name of Tertullian defended Christians from an anti- Christian society. His defense was simple: See how these Christians love one another. There is a wonderful story in the life of St Nicholas of Japan. A Japanese Samurai wielding a sword threatened to kill him for his Christian beliefs. St Nicholas persuaded the warrior to sit down with a cup of tea and to have a calm discussion. The samurai eventually became one the first Japanese Orthodox priests. X. So, I ask you to pray for those attending the All-American Council. But even more so, I ask you to pray that God infuse OUR parish community with a burning fire to expand the mission and to 7

8 help us fulfill His commandment to Go and Make disciples. Amen. 8