Matthew 25:41-45
Then he will say to those at his left hand, ‘depart from me...for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ Then they also will answer, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not take care of you?’ Then he will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’
This is not, properly speaking, a "sermon." It's the lead-in for a prolonged congregational discussion. The subject was "welcoming" - are we as welcoming as we like to think we are? Do our unspoken messages match those spoken aloud?
To set the conversation going I copied out the "Home" page for this site, as well as parts of the "Who Are We?" page and read them aloud (not all my congregation are computer literate, nor care to be). And followed them up with a few standard statements from the Disciples.
Then we settled in to talk about what "welcoming" actually means and how well we think we're doing in that area. So - here's what I opened with:
Home Page
The Church of the Open Door is an open and affirming, progressive gathering of people who come together to share our lives, to learn and grow, and to serve, as best we can, our community and the wider world around us. We try our best to follow the teaching of Jesus that we are here to feed the hungry and clothe the naked -- in short, to care for each other. We believe, in the words of Thomas Merton, that "Our job is to love others without stopping to inquire whether they are worthy." All are welcomed here, If you are seeking something more in this life, come and join us on the journey.
We meet in a church that doesn't look much like a church from the outside. We believe it is what happens inside that matters. We gather each Sunday morning at 11:00 for worship. Our time of worship consists of a gathering time of singing and greeting one another and hearing about each other's lives. We then move into a time of sharing our Joys and our Worries – for our church, our loved ones, our local region, and the world -- and especially what we call Moments of Grace - those times we particularly stop and notice the goodness of the world around us, both in human action and in the beauty of the natural world . Having lifted these all in love and prayer, we move into telling the story of God’s Love - as found in scripture and other writings. With the Pastor’s teaching and a following discussion we break open these stories to see what they mean for us today. Finally, we gather each week at the table to share the Bread and the Cup in remembrance of Jesus and as a sign of our desire to sit at table with the whole world. Then, having been fed ourselves, we are sent out into the world to share what we have been given and to serve God however we are called.
Who We Are
As of November 2014 we are the Church of the Open Door: First Christian Church of Ukiah.
With a move into our new location (415-C Talmage Road, Ukiah), and a distinctly non-churchy-looking building, we felt a need to come up with a new name that encapsulates our vision and mission. We decided to expand our old name to hold both past and future. The Church of the Open Door: First Christian Church of Ukiah is a mouthful, but it says two very important things about us.
First, it says our door is open to anyone who is seeking for something they haven't found in the past. If you have been turned-off or out-right rejected by some example of the institutionalized church and think you want nothing to do with formalized church -- our door is open. Our table is open -- to everyone. If you are looking for a welcoming, learning, growing, family community -- our door is open.
The second thing our new name says about us is that we value our past and the saints who have gone before us, creating a space from which we could learn and grow and emerge into the vision of church we hold today. We hold to and value the open and welcoming ethos of the two denominations that are the historical roots of our present church.
While we consider ourselves a joint-church, we operate from a Disciples polity, and so we must consider the following pieces which we also form our welcoming identity:
Our Identity:
We are Disciples of Christ,
a movement for wholeness in a fragmented world.
As part of the one body of Christ, we welcome all
to the Lord's Table, as God has welcomed us
· from Disciples of Christ Statement of Identity
Our Vision:
To be a faithful, growing church, demonstrating true community,
deep Christian spirituality and a passion for justice.
Our Mission:
To be and to share the Good News of Jesus Christ,
witnessing, loving and serving from our doorsteps
"to the ends of the earth."
What We Believe
With most Christians, we affirm:
1. All people are God’s children.
2. Open Communion. The Lord’s Supper is celebrated weekly, and is open to all.
3. The Ministry of all Believers: Both ordained ministers and lay persons are responsible for leading worship and nurturing spiritual growth.
4. Diversity of Opinion: Each person is free to determine their own belief guided by the Holy Spirit, the Bible, study and prayer.
5. Faith in Service: We believe God’s gifts are never given just for us, but for service in raising up the reign of God among all peoples
This is who we claim to be - who we aspire to be. There will be an on-going discussion as to how we do this better.
To set the conversation going I copied out the "Home" page for this site, as well as parts of the "Who Are We?" page and read them aloud (not all my congregation are computer literate, nor care to be). And followed them up with a few standard statements from the Disciples.
Then we settled in to talk about what "welcoming" actually means and how well we think we're doing in that area. So - here's what I opened with:
Home Page
The Church of the Open Door is an open and affirming, progressive gathering of people who come together to share our lives, to learn and grow, and to serve, as best we can, our community and the wider world around us. We try our best to follow the teaching of Jesus that we are here to feed the hungry and clothe the naked -- in short, to care for each other. We believe, in the words of Thomas Merton, that "Our job is to love others without stopping to inquire whether they are worthy." All are welcomed here, If you are seeking something more in this life, come and join us on the journey.
We meet in a church that doesn't look much like a church from the outside. We believe it is what happens inside that matters. We gather each Sunday morning at 11:00 for worship. Our time of worship consists of a gathering time of singing and greeting one another and hearing about each other's lives. We then move into a time of sharing our Joys and our Worries – for our church, our loved ones, our local region, and the world -- and especially what we call Moments of Grace - those times we particularly stop and notice the goodness of the world around us, both in human action and in the beauty of the natural world . Having lifted these all in love and prayer, we move into telling the story of God’s Love - as found in scripture and other writings. With the Pastor’s teaching and a following discussion we break open these stories to see what they mean for us today. Finally, we gather each week at the table to share the Bread and the Cup in remembrance of Jesus and as a sign of our desire to sit at table with the whole world. Then, having been fed ourselves, we are sent out into the world to share what we have been given and to serve God however we are called.
Who We Are
As of November 2014 we are the Church of the Open Door: First Christian Church of Ukiah.
With a move into our new location (415-C Talmage Road, Ukiah), and a distinctly non-churchy-looking building, we felt a need to come up with a new name that encapsulates our vision and mission. We decided to expand our old name to hold both past and future. The Church of the Open Door: First Christian Church of Ukiah is a mouthful, but it says two very important things about us.
First, it says our door is open to anyone who is seeking for something they haven't found in the past. If you have been turned-off or out-right rejected by some example of the institutionalized church and think you want nothing to do with formalized church -- our door is open. Our table is open -- to everyone. If you are looking for a welcoming, learning, growing, family community -- our door is open.
The second thing our new name says about us is that we value our past and the saints who have gone before us, creating a space from which we could learn and grow and emerge into the vision of church we hold today. We hold to and value the open and welcoming ethos of the two denominations that are the historical roots of our present church.
While we consider ourselves a joint-church, we operate from a Disciples polity, and so we must consider the following pieces which we also form our welcoming identity:
Our Identity:
We are Disciples of Christ,
a movement for wholeness in a fragmented world.
As part of the one body of Christ, we welcome all
to the Lord's Table, as God has welcomed us
· from Disciples of Christ Statement of Identity
Our Vision:
To be a faithful, growing church, demonstrating true community,
deep Christian spirituality and a passion for justice.
Our Mission:
To be and to share the Good News of Jesus Christ,
witnessing, loving and serving from our doorsteps
"to the ends of the earth."
What We Believe
With most Christians, we affirm:
1. All people are God’s children.
2. Open Communion. The Lord’s Supper is celebrated weekly, and is open to all.
3. The Ministry of all Believers: Both ordained ministers and lay persons are responsible for leading worship and nurturing spiritual growth.
4. Diversity of Opinion: Each person is free to determine their own belief guided by the Holy Spirit, the Bible, study and prayer.
5. Faith in Service: We believe God’s gifts are never given just for us, but for service in raising up the reign of God among all peoples
This is who we claim to be - who we aspire to be. There will be an on-going discussion as to how we do this better.
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