Friendship not Eccumenism

Relationships take many forms. Some relationships exist for the mutually profitability of the parties and some do not, some serve the need for mutual aid, and some are an expression of mutual love. St. Michael Parish’s relationship with St. Paul Lutheran Church, it seems to me, is a relationship of mutual love. As both are Christian churches their mutual love for one another must take on the form of love that is purely Christian. Such love is not rude and it does not insist on its own way.

When we are children we are warned about “hanging out with the wrong crowd” lest we be harmfully influenced. Eventually we leave our parents for a life of our own. We can no longer rely on our parents to inform us of potentially harmful influences. We must develop an ability to recognize them for ourselves; so too for the mature Christian. If one is confused one should seek out the truth. It is the duty of a Christian to form oneself in the mind of Christ and as Catholics we look to our Church as one of the formative influences in our faith life. To avoid relationships because they might taint our beliefs is to live in fear, not love. To avoid others because they do not believe as we do is arrogant, not loving.

Each of us is a seeker in this life. We look at the Cross and we see something universal, yet, at the same time each of us sees something that is unique to us. We see how that Cross has shaped our faith and wrapped itself around our own personal experience. How it has provided meaning to our lives. Thus for each of us the view of it is just a little different. To respect this fact is also part of a loving relationship.
The role of females in the Church, the Biblical foundations of our beliefs, the forms that the expression of our faith takes, the causes to which we donate our time and energy and resources are all issues for debate. We certainly can have good discussions and mutual explorations around these issues. I do not think, however, that this is the purpose of our relationship with St. Paul Lutheran Church. The relationship is one of gratitude, mutual respect and thankfulness to God.