Author: lakewooducc

Today is St. Patrick’s Day. A day known for parades, celebrations at Irish pubs, the wearing of green, and the eating of corned beef and cabbage. St. Patrick is the patron saint of Ireland. Interestingly, however, he was not Irish by birth. He is thought to have been born in Great Britain about 387 C.E. and was a Roman citizen.

Patrick got to Ireland because he was captured by pirates and sold into slavery. He was forced to work as a shepherd. After 6 years in slavery, he escaped. After returning home to Great Britain, he converted to Christianity. While his parents were Christians, he had not been brought up with much religious indoctrination. After becoming Christian, Patrick studied and trained to become a priest.

After having escaped from slavery in Ireland, you would think that the last place he would ever want to go would be back to Ireland. But after he became a priest, he felt led to go back to Ireland to bring the people the gospel of Jesus Christ. And that is what he did. He went back to the land of his servitude. He offered to the people who had held him in slavery the life-giving faith of Jesus Christ. He went to Ireland, to his way of thinking, to rescue the Irish from paganism and save them through faith in Jesus Christ.

While Patrick attracted many people to the Christian faith in Ireland, he was attacked by the authorities. He was threatened. His life was at risk.

In the life of Patrick as we know it, we can see that he truly did try to love his enemy. He went back to Ireland out of love to share the Good News of Christianity. He worked for the good of the very people who had held him as a slave. In this, he truly embodies the gospel.

In Patrick, we also see how he took to heart the gospel teaching of Jesus that to save your life you must lose it. Patrick risked his life to help the people of Ireland. He endured hardship and vilification. He gave his life for the good of others.

For his time and in his way, we can see that Patrick was a person of great faith. He truly sought to embody the way of Jesus. He was committed to shining the light of Christ. He let Christ live in him. On this his saint day, perhaps a more fitting tribute than wearing green and eating corned beef would be to recommit ourselves to truly following the way of Jesus as Patrick did. May we, too, seek to love our enemies and give our lives to the wellbeing of the world.

A prayer attributed to St. Patrick:

Christ beside me, Christ before me, Christ behind me, Christ within me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me.

“Umntu, Ngamntu, Ngabantu.” This is an African phrase which means, “A person is not a person without other people.” This concept is at the heart of our faith tradition. In our creation stories, it was not sufficient to have one person created, there had to be two, and more. We are meant to be in relationship. We are intended to be in community. Our species is not designed to live in isolation cut off from others. We are not solitary beings. Humans are complete and fulfilled in relationship with others. We find our highest good in solidarity. In sharing life’s journey, the joys and triumphs as well as the struggles and pain, we find meaning, purpose, and fulfillment. In caring for each other and being together, we find our highest good.

On Saturday, 8 people from Lakewood Church participated in the culminating rally of the “Now Is the Time Tour” of the Coalition of Immokalee Workers in Lakeland, FL. We marched with signs adding our voices to chants for justice bringing the plight of the modern day farmworker to light. The afternoon ended with participants gathered around a stage in a park hearing speeches, testimonies, and skits about farmworker conditions and issues.

Again and again and again there was mention of the commitment to dignity for ALL people. There was repeated reference to the humanity of ALL people. There were expressions of the need for respect for ALL people. We were there to give our support to the farmworkers and the need for justice in the workplace for all workers. And we did that. But the afternoon was not just about giving. There was a beautiful sense of being in solidarity. A sense of “Umntu, Ngamntu, Ngabantu.” It is not just that the farmworkers need allies to accomplish their goals. It is more than that. It is that we need each other to create a world where all are treated fairly and with dignity and respect. There is the embodiment of the spirit of mutuality.

In being part of the march and rally, in listening to all the expressions of celebration and support, I felt that if I am ever in trouble, I can count on these people to stand with me. If I ever feel that I am in a situation where I am being abused and my humanity degraded and demeaned, I can count on the Coalition to be my allies, to stand in solidarity with me, to fight for dignity and justice for me. The movement is not just about what we can do for the farmworkers, but what we can do for and with each other to create a more just society. There is the recognition that “a person is not a person without other people.” We need each other. I give thanks for the Coalition of Immokalee Workers advocating for the full humanity of all people.

Prayer: We pray for the farmworkers, for all workers, and for all people, including ourselves. Everyone deserves to live with dignity. Everyone deserves respect. Everyone deserves to be treated as a human being, sacred and beloved. When we do less than this, we demean not only those who are victims, but we demean all of humanity. We undermine the well-being of all. May we see the world with the eyes of God. May we know that when one person or one group is diminished, the whole human family is diminished. May we see that we are only complete and whole when we see all people as our sisters and brothers and seek the highest good of all. This is the way Jesus looked at the world. We pray to have his eyes. Amen.