Can I Get a Witness?

Dear St. John’s,

During our last Sunday forum, one of the subjects we discussed was the different ways we encounter God. One of the participants shared, “If not for Evangelicals I would have never heard about God, I didn’t grow up in a religious household, and no Episcopalians ever told me.”

I knew what she meant. I grew up Catholic and – much like in the Anglican Communion--sharing our faith was not a common practice. Everything changed when my family converted to Evangelicalism, a tradition where 'witnessing,' or telling people about Jesus, is a core expectation.

Unfortunately, I was also a bit judgmental and self-righteous back then. In an ironic turn of events, years later when I became Episcopalian, I then became judgmental towards the very people who I viewed as judgmental.

This upcoming Pentecost Sunday, we will celebrate by wearing red and reading scripture in multiple languages. The red is symbolic of when the Holy Spirit descended as “tongues of fire” on the disciples and enabled them to speak different languages (Acts 2:3-4). The miracle gave them the ability to spread the Gospel across the known world.

I no longer believe in “witnessing” as practiced by our Evangelical siblings, but I do think sharing our faith is important in growing the church (as a whole, not just St. John’s). And at this particular juncture in life, I do that through kindness.

One of the reasons the early disciples were able to spread the Gospel is because they lived a counter-cultural lifestyle to their pagan neighbors. For us, being counter-cultural in a self-absorbed, guarded society can be as simple as smiling at strangers, giving to the homeless, being forgiving when somebody slights us, or having a nuanced outlook in a polarized environment. There is no shortage of the ways we can be kind to others; there is simply a shortage of kindness.

When we extend this kindness to strangers, as well as those we interact with on a daily basis (family, co-workers, neighbors), I believe we are letting our light shine in a world filled with bad news and dread. Whether we invite those folks to church or not is somewhat beside the point, because at least in that moment we have brought the church to them.

In Christ,

Anthony+