This past week I have shared in the life of the Goodwood
Methodist Church. I was invited to teach at their Holy Week services, and found
myself deeply enriched.
This is a working class community of people of various
generations, life experiences, and cultures. These people are the ‘salt of the
earth’: generous, hospitable and spontaneously spiritual. I count myself
privileged to have been allowed to share in this life of this community. I made
new friends, renewed old friendships, and was refreshed by the wonder of God at
work in the lives of people.
What
makes this congregation especially interesting is that the Cape Town Korean
Church joined us for the week. This raised the unique
challenge of being inter-culturally sensitive in a way that allowed for unity
while not imposing uniformity. The Holy Week Services included the Korean
Church choir leading us in an anthem, Pastor Lee leading prayers in Korean, and
the reading of the Bible in Korean while English words were displayed on the
screen. This morning’s service was enriched by the Korean choir leading an Easter
Cantata which, while sung in Korean, was a moving testimony to our shared faith
in Jesus Christ. What I found particularly poignant was the way the Goodwood Methodist
people rose to their feet in enthusiastic applause when the choir offered their
concluding bow of greeting.
Easter is a moment when
our common faith in Jesus enables us to simply be human together. And I am
grateful.
