Letter from the Pastor – April 2024
Dear Church,
A few weeks ago, myself and some other members of Central Woodward attended the November 13th Troy City Council meeting. We were there to support our neighbors at Northminster Presbyterian Church. They were there to bring attention to a recent streak of harassment and vandalism they had been experiencing in regard to the Pride flag they display outside their building. Not unlike the pride and BLM flags hanging in front of CWCC. As has happened at this church in the past, a vandal was taking down their flag, but every time the flag was stolen, a new one would go up. I’m told that from time-to-time CWCC has faced the same issue, and that the response was always to, faithfully, put up a new flag.
Thankfully, during the few months I have been here we haven’t had any such incidents. Recently the church did receive a letter from a concerned citizen urging us to reconsider our open and affirming policy. It was a long letter, and took some time to read, but I will take that over vandalism any day. Together these events have led me to reflect on what it means to be an open and affirming congregation. For instance, in the letter, the author asked that our “church” (his quotations, not mine) stop promoting BLM and LGBT issues. My response is that to be an open and affirming church does not mean that we are promoters of a lifestyle, an agenda, or even, a good and righteous cause. To be open and affirming means to be a place of welcome, safety, and love for people who too often find themselves marginalized and feeling unwelcome in society.
As for those times when the pride flag is stolen or desecrated, and we are required to put a new one up, I believe this serves as a reminder of the faithfulness required to be an open and affirming church. We cannot just put the flag up once and say, “This is who we are.” It is a commitment that we must make, again and again. Each time the flag needs replaced, or we read an angry letter, or hear an opinion that opposes the idea of the church as a place of unconditional welcome, we are reminded of the need to recommit to this ministry. We are reminded of our commitment to a vison of the church, and the world, as a place where there is “quite enough love [and]…quite enough joy for all of us.”
So, this Advent let us recommit to being a light of Christ’s welcome in a world that can be cold and dark. Let us pray that this light will find all those who need to see it and feel it. And, as difficult as it is, let us thank the Lord for those people who remind us of the importance of our Open and Affirming commitments.
Peace on the journey,
Pastor Zach
(Originally published in December 2023 AveNews)