[printprofilepic]Many of you may be aware that Rev. John is introducing “themed ministry” this year. He probably wrote about it in his column, and if you read his first (and I wouldn’t blame you – as a matter of fact, I’m pleased as punch that you are reading mine at all!) then you probably know all about it. In short, a theme has been identified for each month, and activities in worship, RE, and other church programs will tend to explore the monthly theme.
September’s theme is covenant. That’s a nice word. It evokes, for me, a feeling of seriousness and responsibility. Unfortunately, as I start to write tonight, I’m not sure I have much idea what it really means. I need to look it up, and I will in a minute.
If I were pressed to define covenant prior to connecting to the Internet, I’d guess it’s a kind of a “religious-y contract.” I remember learning about the Old (pre-Jesus) and New (post-Jesus) Covenants of Jewish / Christian religion. If I recall, it had to do with what God promised people and what He expected of them. I’m guessing that’s not exactly what John has in mind for us…
In our youth groups, we usually develop what we call a group covenant at the start of the year. Our covenants are lists of guidelines that we all agree to follow to maintain a free, responsible, safe, and fulfilling search for truth and meaning. Typical items are “Use supportive, not hurtful, language,” “Let other people finish before talking,” “Don’t hit.” Stuff like that. I doubt we adults will be doing that kind of covenant! Though, come to think about it…
We have “Covenant Groups” in the church. These are small groups of congregants who get together regularly and discuss things using the Small Group Ministry Model. Unfortunately I haven’t participated, and I’m not sure that making some sort of contract is central to what these groups do. Maybe I’m not completely on track with my notion of what covenant means.
OK… I’ll look it up. Believe it or not, I really haven’t looked it up until right… now.
Hmm… Websters.com does refer to “the agreement between God and the ancient Israelites,” so I was on target there. There is also “an agreement, usually formal, between two or more persons to do or not do something.”
That fits for the youth covenants. But I’m guessing that for our discussions in September the most relevant definition is “a solemn agreement between the members of a church to act together in harmony with the precepts of the gospel.”
Nice… I like the general sound of that. Seems like it would be cool to be part of a group that achieved that sort of covenant.
But there are a few problems, no? We’re not normally a real “solemn” bunch, and we frequently don’t “agree.” We have debated whether we should call ourselves a “church.” And, e-gad! What is our “gospel?”
Well, we are Unitarians, right? We’ve made this bed for ourselves and don’t shy away from lying in it! What does covenant really mean to us? I guess we’ll search for that meaning together in September.
Larry Schultz
2011-2012 Church President
