Pastor's Corner
November 2005

Encore presentation. This column was originally published in April 2004.

“No matter how cynical you are these days, it’s hard to keep up” Lily Tomlin observed in her recent Columbia appearance. It’s a witticism that is unfortunately all too accurate an assessment of the world we live in. How, then, do followers of Jesus proclaim “good news” (remembering St. Francis of Assisi’s advice that we “preach the gospel always; if necessary, use words”) in times of such rampant “bad news”: war, terrorism, corporate scandals, economic hard times, etc? Henri Nouwen in his wonderful book The Return of the Prodigal suggests that we practice “disciplines” of trust, gratitude and joy to counteract fear, resentment and cynicism. He acknowledges that choosing such disciplines requires real effort, especially because it doesn’t mean denying the existence of their negative counterparts: “People who have come to know the joy of God do not deny the darkness, but they choose not to live in it” (p. 117). Nouwen doesn’t underestimate the power and difficulty of the “darkness” (he’s no Pollyanna) but exhorts us to make conscious choices that are life-enhancing rather than death-dealing. In a sense, his advice is a variation on the old slogans “attitude is everything” and “its heaven all the way to heaven and hell all the way to hell” yet the manner in which he fleshes it out in the book is down-to-earth, detailed and convincing. For our congregation (being a “peace church” in a society that glamorizes war, an “open & affirming” congregation in an increasingly intolerant culture, a radically inclusive community in a world that exalts homogeneity, an advocate of “living simply so that others may simply live” in the midst of conspicuous consumerism), we may be naturally subject to discouragement, even despair as we swim against the current. So we need to encourage one another with inspired insights like Nouwen’s which have roots that we can trace all the way back to the Torah, “choose life” (Deuteronomy 30:19), and help each other keep making those choices.

Shalom,

Maureen

Maureen Dickmann, M. Div

Yale Divinity School, 1984

Pastor of Rockbrige Christian Church since 1987

Maureen has served on boards of directors and as president for local Habitat for Humanity, Food Bank, and Missouri School of Religion.

She has also served on the board of Comprehensive Human Services (Women's Shelter and Youth Homes) and the Anti-Racism Pro-Reconciliation Team of Mid-America.

Maureen won the Norenberg Prize for excellence in Preaching and Worship Leadership. She has also been published in "Preaching: Word and Witness."