You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might.
Who doesn’t love a good baptism? Vows are made, parents smile, water falls and we love God because God first loves us. Grace abounds! Selwyn Avenue Presbyterian Church in Charlotte, North Carolina, has always claimed the formation and well-being of children – all children – as vital to their worship, fellowship and mission. They walk their talk by sharing plenty of time, talent and treasure. Baptized infants often nest within Selwyn’s five-star child development center. Families scrape tuition together for no-frills quality care. Selwyn also has a longstanding relationship with Montclaire Elementary School, just minutes away. Supplies, uniforms, tutors and an intense summer literacy program keep members of all ages engaged with the Montclaire community. Yet, not one child of the church attends this neighborhood school. Thanks to good old fashion gerrymandering, church kids attend the other (well-resourced) school, a stone’s throw in the other direction.
Keep these words that I am commanding you today in your heart.
The church I serve stands at the corner of tall privilege and humble discipleship. Recently, Selwyn began challenging our assumptions and motivations for acting in the world. How might our giving to and doing for authentically lead to being with? We stepped back, learned and deepened our relationships within Montclaire. Selwyn leaders listened until dreams echoed within the school’s hallways. Far surpassing our imagination, Montclaire launched a year-round after-school program and food pantry with Selwyn’s dedicated partnership. Still, 71% of third graders in our school read at grade level, compared to 7% of theirs. While a majority of students at Montclaire learn English as a second language, other reasons for this marker of injustice include the traumatic effects of family separation for some and childhood poverty for others. Grace abounds?
Recite them to your children and talk about them when you are at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you rise …
What does it mean for Christians like us to promote social righteousness and exhibit God’s reign? If loving God is achievable, the immensity and mystery of God’s grace will be less petrifying and more manageable. Then with kindness, tenacity, mixed motives and a strategic plan, we can dole out grace, build God’s Kingdom and save humankind! Turn on the news. Clearly, this is not working. The salvation of humankind is impossible if not for God’s grace in Christ alone. Grace characterizes the way God is and what God does. The impossibility of God’s grace calls us to remember, repent, die to sin and then rise to freely participate in God’s salvific activity far beyond the bounds of our comprehension and ZIP codes.
… and you shall love your neighbor as yourself.
Selwyn stands between two elementary schools. Our children will attend middle school together. What if we advocated for one bilingual elementary school and hosted one daycare center for both Selwyn and Montclaire children? What if Selwyn relinquished, listened, risked and followed more? What if we loved our neighbors as ourselves?
The impossibilities are endless.
Lori Archer Raible is co-pastor of Selwyn Avenue Presbyterian Church in Charlotte, North Carolina.
