God is in solidarity

'Will you strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being?'

In this last week of the Easter season, we come to the end of our series on the promises made in baptism. Coincidentally we will begin the season of Pentecost with the baptism of Ethan Willcox, during which we will all be asked to renew our baptismal promises once again. For those of you who have been keeping track, this will be the third time we have renewed these promises over the course of this season (fourth if you attended the confirmation service at the Cathedral). Each time I have heard these promises, it is this last one that sticks out for me.

Often in life we are confronted with the desolation of violence, conflict and injustice. We experience suffering and see that of others, but we feel powerless to alleviate or prevent it. Where do we find our hope and consolation in the face of all this?

I find my hope and consolation standing in a Church full of people all promising to strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being. When we as a community make this promise, we are bearing witness to a belief that justice, peace and human dignity are things worth working for. We commit to seeking out the places in the world where they are absent and building them with God's help.

This process is not without its frustrations and misunderstandings as we try to discern what justice and peace look like and how best to achieve them, but the underlying principle is one of respect for our common human nature. Human nature causes us to perceive difference as better and worse, as in the story of Adam and Eve in the garden, creating injustice and conflict, but human nature reflects the image of the Trinitarian God, in whom difference is the source of love.

This many people making this statement demonstrates a significant amount of good will. For me, it is evidence of humanity's innate goodness - that goodness that God recognized at creation when we were called "very good." We testify together in the face of all that causes suffering in the world, that this is not the way the world is meant to be and that we are called to try and change it, to be co-creators of a new reign of peace and wholeness wherein the purpose of God and humanity will be fulfilled.

What more evidence do we need that God is with us in times of desolation than community like the Church that is founded on a promise to stand in solidarity with all who suffer in order that their suffering might be brought to and end? This good will on the part of so many faithful people is a reminder that God is at work in and through the Church. Ultimately this is the underlying promise of baptism: that God is with us and we are with God. We recognize a relationship with God and the relationship with everything else around us that flows from this foundation in God. It is this promise that brings us together as the Church in the sacrament of baptism.

As we make these promises once again this Sunday at Pentecost, I hope that you are reminded of God's promises to us that we mark at baptism. While we celebrate the coming of the Holy Spirit and the birthday of the Church, it is fitting that we mark this occasion through a renewal of our baptismal promises and by celebrating Ethan's relationship with God and the Church in baptism.