Belonging

FROM THE YOUTH MINISTER

I was in college when I first decided to become an Episcopalian. After meticulously considering whether or not the tradition of the Anglican Communion was for me, and some prompting by a friend, I reached out to my priest to schedule a meeting to talk about the possibility of confirmation. We had a great conversation, but it was our farewell that meant the most to me. As we got up and were leaving, the priest shook my hand and said, “Let me know if you ever need anything from me; I’m your priest!” I was a taken aback by the way that a small comment like, “I’m your priest!” could have such an impact on me. I realized that even though I was still just considering The Episcopal Church, I was in a relationship with it. I had a priest. Suddenly, a place I liked and appreciated became a place I belonged to. 

Lately, I’ve been thinking about the shape of my life’s path, and especially looking at why I am an Episcopalian; what are some of the big and little moments and pushed me in this direction? Over and over, “I’m your priest!” keeps coming to my mind. The more I think about it, the more I realize that the sense of belonging that I got in that moment was so much more important than almost any of the other things we talked about that day. At the time, I already knew that I belonged to God, but I didn’t realize what it means to belong to the Church. That sense of belonging overshadowed my desire for a kind of systematic theology that would give answers to all my questions. Instead, I realized that belonging to The Episcopal Church gave me a chance to tease out my questions about God from within a community that loves and supports me, unconditionally. This was a place that gave me the freedom to examine and work through my developing faith in ways which were authentic and illuminating.

There were people in the Church who were open to hearing my questions and wouldn’t just try to “fix my faith,” but rather, would engage with me where I was. Through my relationships in the Church, I was encouraged to seriously engage with my faith with others by being a part of the community. This is one way in which belonging gave shape to my belief. We experience this in our liturgy, here at St. Paul’s, when before the offertory the presider says, “Whoever you are and wherever you are on your pilgrimage of faith, you are welcome in this place, and you are welcome at God’s table.”

In the Church, our belonging is generative of belief; this is especially clear when we baptize infants! And no wonder, because it’s the same with God: “But God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8 NRSV). Youth Ministry, I’ve learned, is no different. Here at St. Paul’s, we believe that belonging to the Church and to God not only gives us the confidence to be who God has made us to be, but we are also strengthened in our identity together, which helps us to live out more fully our role as citizens of the Kingdom of God. This means that for our youth, if the only thing I can show them is that they belong together, belong to the Church, belong to God, then that alone will take them wherever God is drawing them. And I have witnessed this. God has blessed our Church with youth who know that this is a place in which they belong, and they make that realization of belonging contagious to anyone who comes around them. From laughing and having fun bowling together, to considering the meaning of this week’s Gospel reading for our daily lives, to serving a meal to those who don’t know when they’ll eat again, our youth constantly are embodying what the kingdom of God looks like because they really belong to it. And of their number comes some of the deepest faith I know.

When we consider our own sense of belonging to the Church, we often wonder what we can do to help the youth belong there with us. But we would gain so much more if we just might recognize that we belong there with them. When we belong together with them, God might teach us to laugh together again, how to consider good things with kindness and without holding back, and how to share what we have with those in need. I am so grateful that I belong to this Church, because here I get to belong to the youth of this Church, and they help me to belong to God in ways that make me to see God’s Kingdom everywhere I look. Thanks be to God.

Yours Faithfully,

Curtis Moneymaker
Youth Minister