This morning over a plate of bacon, eggs, and pancakes, I looked up a my husband and asked, "What if I am called to deal with trauma through and in liturgy?"
[In case you were wondering, we rarely have normal breakfast table conversations.]
I asked this question for several reasons that I won't get into now. But the fact remains, I have a good deal of life experiences and personality traits that give me a disposition to be a strong and compassionate presence in trauma, be it a long term ordeal or sudden situations.
Then, I read a blog this morning by a United Methodist pastor that I respect who made some tough statements about the slow implosion of the United Methodist Church as he sees it. This is my denomination, this my "home place," these are the people I want to work for and with to spread the Gospel of Christ. I don't want it to self-destruct. I want to be a part of bringing it to life. And, with a husband already an ordained deacon in the UMC and me about to start the candidacy process, being part of a waning denomination is not a very good career move for us, either.
So, here we are, embarking on life in intentional community; finding God, ourselves, and the bridge between worship and relational minstry in micro-community worship; wondering at the state of our denomination and church and where it will be in 20 years; seeking Christ in the face of a multitude of upheavals on a large and small scale; searching for what it means to be incarnational to a world in pain and a church in distress.
And I wonder if I'm called to a special work of addressing trauma through liturgy.
Maybe the better question is, aren't we all?
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