The Imaginary Limitations of Time and Space

Good afternoon fellow human,

Each Tuesday I begin to read through quotes that may align with the theme of our sermon series being discussed in worship. My hope is that another’s words will expand our imaginations in some way that allows the words of scripture or the meditations of my heart to resonate with you and your walk of life on Sunday and the days that follow.

This week I tried to find a quote that resonated with the idea of extended family, and the joyful and emphatic ideology of cousins rose to the surface. Many of us have these rich and complex relationships with siblings, and when you add the playfulness of cousins, the opportunities for trouble and commiseration seem to multiply exponentially.

This week’s scripture has a pregnant Mary going to spend time with her pregnant cousin, Elizabeth. Despite the distance between them, Mary and Elizabeth desired to be together during this momentous time in their lives. And, despite the fact that John and Jesus were far from birth or their ministries, both women considered how their choices in the present would impact their sons and their sons’ ministries in the very near future.

As thousands around the world gathered in major metropolitan hubs around the world today to raise awareness for climate change and the necessity of humans to change their patterns of behavior to write a new future for our species and world, my mind wanders to the imagery and relationships of cousins and the general experience of extended family. One does not have to be in the same home, the same country, the same continent, or even the same decade to be connected to humanity with a conviction, love, and protection of another like that experienced between extended family members.

We may not be able to engage creation care or the ways our relationship with God calls us to be good stewards of our planet on Sunday, but today as so many sacrifice time at work, in schools, or with their immediate families, may be meditate on the impact we have on our extended family with each of our choices regarding fossil fuels, consumption, and single-use anything. May we treat the other - low-income neighborhoods in cities, citizens of coastal areas, and varied species around the world - as if they are the cousins we enthusiastically miss, celebrate, and hope the best for each and every day.

Peace to you and all you call family this day,

Rev Elizabeth