Our Core Values 2: An Inclusive Community
- Rev. Dan Gates
- Jul 24, 2024
- 5 min read
Mark 2:15-22
We are an inclusive community. That is the second of our core values, the things we want to place at the centre of our lives together at this church. It is one of that values that I highly emphasise in my own personal faith, a belief that the fundamental energy of God is one of inclusion rather than exclusion, one of embrace rather than pushing away. God’s desire is to be with us, and the ‘us’ isn’t a limited list. And yet so often we have bought into the idea that there are lists, reasons why God would send people away. The problem is, that list will vary depending on who is making it. For some, if you’re not a Christian you’re off of God’s radar. For others, if you’re not the right kind of Christian you are in bad shape. If you’re the wrong gender you might be in trouble. If your skin is the wrong colour, God might not like you quite as much as he does us. And if you’re gay, lesbian, transgender or otherwise queer, there isn’t a place for you unless you deny who you are. So many lists have been drawn up of who is invited in and who needs to stay outside. But when you look at the life of Jesus, more often than not he found himself in the company of those who were not on the invitation list. He placed himself, deliberately, alongside the outcasts, the marginalised, the poor, the vulnerable, those who people cross the road to avoid. And he seems quite happy there.
We see that in our story from Mark’s Gospel. Jesus has just invited Levi, a tax collector, to follow him as a disciple. Levi accepts and so they’re having dinner at Levi’s house. And all kinds of other colourful characters were also invited. But then the religious police found out, the Scribes and the Pharisees who were quite keen on writing lists. They saw what was happening and they criticised Jesus for eating with tax collectors and sinners. That word ‘sinner’ did a lot of work. A sinner was someone ‘unacceptable’. Tax collector was high on the list, but it would include anyone who doesn’t fit the strict religious expectations of the Pharisees. So those who were too poor to pay the offerings at the temple, those who had to steal food to survive, those who were ritually unclean, people who found themselves pushed to the edges of society, often for no reason they had control over: these are the sinners. But when Jesus hears this word applied to these beloved children of God, he refuses to accept it. Instead, he changes the language. No longer are they sinners but people who need healing. When he looks into their eyes, he doesn’t see a wicked person but someone who is longing to be set free, wanting to be healed of their shame, hungry for acceptance and belonging. So he replies to these critical religious folks: ‘Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick; I have come to call not the righteous but sinners.’ He is deconstructing their language, undoing their neat system of who is in and who is out. And by eating and drinking with the ‘out’ crowd he is making it quite clear where he is to be found, where the acceptance and blessing of God is to reside.
That’s not to say Jesus has nothing critical to say to people. He often challenges attitudes, provoking people to change. But never are they kept out, never are they sent away without being given the chance of meeting him eye-to-eye. So here’s where the rubber hits the road: as a people seeking to walk the way of Jesus, what does it mean for us to say today we are an inclusive community?
First, it means that no one is sent away without being given the chance to meet Jesus for themselves. LUFC is part of the Inclusive Church network, a collective of churches that works against the discrimination of those who might find they are left out. The main categories are these: disability, economic power, ethnicity, gender, learning disability, mental health, neurodiversity, and sexuality. It is a sad reality that in some churches, people who are placed in those boxes have often been discriminated against. Their welcome has been revoked, their belonging is put into question, they can’t be leaders or do children’s work, they are not invited to the communion table. But an inclusive church actively works to remove those barriers. It holds out an open invitation for all who want to meet Jesus to find Jesus in this community. If you want him, you will meet him here among us. And while you’re here, you will be welcome and included in our church life. We recognise that we too are guests of Jesus, invited to eat with him at his table. We understand that we too need the same healing as others. I think that requires all of us playing our part, doesn’t it? As soon as someone new walks through the door, how do we welcome them? What answers to we give to their questions? Are we confident that they truly are invited to become one of us? And when we learn more about each other, will our differences cause us to walk away or draw closer together?
Second, for me an inclusive community means everyone is welcome at Jesus’ table. Over the centuries, there has been lots of discussion as to who should be allowed to receive communion. Some say only those who have been baptised and confirmed are allowed to join in. Others allow any Christian so long as they go to church regularly. Some only adults to take part. Lots of rules, but often people are kept away from the table. While the Bible does speak about taking communion seriously, I don’t think we are given permission to send people away empty. I look at Jesus; after all, he is the host of every communion service. What kind of guest list did Jesus write? You’re probably there already: all the people normally not invited are there at the table. No one had to be baptised to eat with Jesus. He sat with the rich and the poor, men and women, young and old. He didn’t have many rules about who was welcome at his table. So I wonder where our rules come from? How do we think about communion in this church? An inclusive community seeks to place inclusion in every part of its life, including the communion service. Is our table open? Can anyone come and meet Jesus here at communion? Or do we still have some limits, some access requirements?
Thirdly, an often ignored part of inclusion is that we also must seek to include those who don’t agree with us. Can an inclusive church make room for someone who doesn’t want their minister to be a woman? Can an inclusive church have people in it who don’t agree with same-sex marriage? Can an inclusive church have people who think communion is only for members? These are difficult questions! I can answer for myself: yes! Yes, an inclusive church must make room for these diverse opinions. There must be room for people to disagree, room for people to follow their conscience. That doesn’t mean we must never make decisions or must give up our desire to be inclusive. Rather it means we have difficult conversations, we wrestle together with the scriptures, we stick together like family until we find a place of consensus and agreement. We don’t throw people out at the first sign of disagreement. Rather, an inclusive community makes space for those who disagree. Because at its best, an inclusive community is built on the foundation of love. And love can hold us together when our ideas and beliefs might cause us to be driven apart.
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