Where’s Michael? June (Summer and Ordinary Time)

Once there was a man who filmed his vacation.
He went flying down the river in his boat
with his video camera to his eye, making
a moving picture of the moving river
upon which his sleek boat moved swiftly
toward the end of his vacation. He showed
his vacation to his camera, which pictured it,
preserving it forever: the river, the trees,
the sky, the light, the bow of his rushing boat
behind which he stood with his camera
preserving his vacation even as he was having it
so that after he had had it he would still
have it. It would be there. With a flick
of a switch there it would be. But he
would not be in it. He would never be in it.

The Vacation
Wendell Berry, New Collected Poems. Counterpoint, 2012.

One of my favorite film philosophers, Ferris Bueller, observed, “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.”¹   Do you remember a time when the summer felt less scheduled, slower?  Maybe even casual.  The pace of life in our culture has compressed the experience of summer. Congregational life has adapted and sometimes stood against this change.  We, disciples, continue to work the problem of being in the world, but not of the world.  It’s hard to maintain that balance right now.  Maybe it has always been hard.

From Advent to Pentecost, Christians interact with the official story about the life and times of Jesus of Nazareth.  We get equipped, we retool, are energized, formed, and educated for liturgical “ordinary time” when the story about the good news of God continues through Jesus’ followers, believers in Christ, seekers of the Holy, and the religious institutions that represent us.  The Pentecost story reminds us that the Spirit of God descends on humanity and that the good news of God is multilingual and multisensory.

Our congregations are busy during the summer.

• VBS
• Mission Trips
• Church Camp
• Movie Nights
• Day Trips for Sr. Adults, Children, or Youth
• Fellowship Trips
• Summer Study Series
• Backpack Snacks for Kids or Adults

And so much more.

These additional summer experiences build on the journey and lessons from Advent to Pentecost.  They help us remember and reorient our priorities so we don’t miss life and what a life of faith, following Jesus, can mean in a world currently organized by the antagonist industries’ profit margins.  We can be an example of an alternative way of being, what we give our attention, and how we interact with one another and our neighbors.  For me, my alternative way this summer includes:

Listen more.
Talk less.
Mute the political ads on TV and social media.
Continue to limit my social media consumption.
Get away from device screens for 2 hrs each day.
Spend time outdoors.
Handwrite letters to friends and family.
Finish reading two books I began in the spring.

The Substack, Tell Me 3 Good Things, sends an email each evening reflecting on the day.  The reflection and 3 good things always end with, “Now you?”

Oklahoma Disciples, you are a blessing.

P.S.

This summer, our expression of faith will gather for our first digital (online) General Assembly (July 10-11).  It is easier than ever before to register and connect with our siblings in faith in the United States and Canada.  If you can stream your favorite show on your TV, computer, phone, or tablet, you can attend General Assembly.  If you want to see and experience the diversity of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), plan to attend.  Technology is amazing.  It can also be isolating, and the temptation will be to join from home or the car, alone.  A radio show² I listen to talks about how little we mingle with people unlike us.  Church was one of the places where people from different social classes, educational levels, political perspectives, and priorities met to experience the mystery of God together.  I still believe that is the strength of our movement for wholeness in our fragmented world.  Bring your congregation together either in your building or have watch parties in homes.  Get together with another congregation for General Assembly.  Right now, five congregations are hosting Oklahoma Disciples in their buildings for GA.  We are recruiting more.  Get in touch with one of these congregations, go experience General Assembly together, and be strengthened for the work of being good news in ordinary time.

First Christian Church, El Reno
Central Christian Church, Enid
First Christian Church, Edmond
First Christian Church, Norman
First Christian Church, Ponca City

Notes

1. John Hughes, “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.” Paramount Pictures, 1986.

2. Michael Smerconish is on the POTUS channel on SiriusXM and on CNN at 8 am Saturday morning. His, The Mingle Project, is an example of what I think congregational life provides.