Greetings from Pastor Chris....    

           As we enter this new year, I can’t remember another time I’ve sensed so much anxiety about the future.  Not only is our society bitterly divided, there are so many people worried about what may happen to them this year because they don’t fit into some artificially-constructed category of “normal.”  In fact, I had a recent conversation when I was referring to a group of people who may become increasingly vulnerable beginning on January 20, and my conversation partner wasn’t clear on which group I meant…because the different at-risk categories are numerous.

      Now, you may be thinking to yourself, “This isn’t a very joyful way to ring in the New Year,” and you’d be right.  I realize there are some folks who think church should be an escape from the troubles of the real world, those who think worship should be a shot of positive energy for the week, those who insist that feeling good is central for bothering to come to church at all.  Unfortunately, that’s not real Christianity, and it reflects a poor understanding of discipleship.

       We don’t follow Jesus in order to feel good.  We don’t worship God for our own benefit.  Our Christian vocation is always–and always has been–about loving others.

And so, what should we do as the 2025 calendar stretches before us?  It may sound trite, but we continue being the church, we keep serving as the Body of Christ in Watertown and in the world today.  When so many people are hurting or worried or isolated, God calls us even more loudly to respond.  In a time of suffering and anxiety, now is the time for us to shine as the church–as a people committed to caring for all and to God’s liberation of the oppressed, a people dedicated to the salvation of all flesh, just as scripture attests again and again.

Arise, our light has come.  May we follow in the way that seeks the welfare of all.

--Chris