Woodpeckers

Yesterday I preached about downy and hairy woodpeckers. Well, not exactly: I preached about God's delighting in diversity, and these two woodpeckers were simply examples of that wonderful diversity. If God delights in diversity - and I'm convinced that God does - should not we - created in God's image and called by Jesus to be his brothers and sisters - delight in diversity as well? We often seem to treat difference as threat, whether ethnic difference or religious difference. There is an Anglican Chapel in ToyTown with a membership that includes a number of our former parishioners. There are real differences between our congregations: they use the 1928 BCP and we don't; we have a women priest associate and they don't; we welcom partnered LGBT members and I'm pretty sure they don't. These differences are important, but I continue to be thankful that our former members and others have found a new home. I continue to act on my own convictions in those areas of difference and to seek areas of agreement with these sisters and brothers. And I continue to pray for the grace to refuse to see these differences as threats.