St. John’s Episcopal Church

A Post-Election Letter from the Rector

November 9, 2016

Dear Friends,

Yesterday, our nation elected Donald Trump as the next president of the United States. As the election approached, we prayed for an end to the rancor and division that has characterized the campaign. Now that the results are in, we have before us an opportunity.

One of you sent me an email this morning, expressing your faith in the Constitution and in our country. Those words reminded me that we have the opportunity, and indeed the responsibility, to be faithful citizens, always working for the common good. If you supported Donald Trump, doing that work may seem easier today. If you supported Hillary Clinton or another candidate, the way forward may seem much more challenging. And yet we commit ourselves to working for the common good.

We commit ourselves, not only as citizens of the United States, but as citizens of another realm, the realm of God – the gracious reign of God which Jesus proclaimed, and in which we, as brothers and sisters in Christ, have promised to be faithful servants. What does it mean to be faithful in that realm? Among other things, it means being faithful to our baptismal vow – to always strive for justice and peace, and to respect the dignity of every human being, with God’s help.

Bishop Alan Gates, who so graciously led us this past Sunday in the celebration of our church’s anniversary, sent a letter to the clergy and lay leadership of the diocese this morning, and I believe his words speak very much to this moment in our nation’s life:

“Now is not a time to live out habitual behaviors of winners or losers. Now is a time to rededicate ourselves to the Christian ideal of breaking down the dividing walls of hostility which divide us (Ephesians 2:14). Now is a time to rededicate ourselves to the American ideal of liberty and justice for all.

Forbearance is a virtue tested not when we are in harmony, but when we are divided. Sacrifice is a discipline called for not in the face of prosperity but in the face of adversity. Hope is a manifestation of faith rendered meaningful not by certainty but by anxiety. Christ calls us, in this moment, individually and communally, to forbearance, sacrifice and hope.”

Forbearance, sacrifice, and hope – all part of a faithful response. All part of what it means to be a Christian, at all times and in all places.

I look forward to seeing you all on Sunday, as we gather to praise God, to share our joys and sorrows, our gratitude or our lament, to be nourished by Christ’s presence, and then to go forth as faithful citizens of our country, and of God’s realm.

Faithfully,

Tom

The full text of Bishop Gates’ letter can be found here.