Photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash
Karen Hollis | May 18, 2025 Affirm Sunday
Psalm 100
Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth.
Serve the Lord with gladness;
come into his presence with singing.
Know that the Lord is God.
It is he who made us, and we are his
we are his people and the sheep of his pasture.
Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise.
Give thanks to him; bless his name.
For the Lord is good;
his steadfast love endures forever
and his faithfulness to all generations.
The Thunder: Perfect Mind, excerpts
I was sent out from power
I came to those pondering me
And I was found among those seeking me
Look at me, all you who contemplate me
Audience, hear me; Those expecting me, receive me
Don’t chase me from your sight
Don’t let your voice or your hearing hate me
Don’t ignore me any place, any time
Be careful. Do not ignore me
I am the first and the last
I am she who is honored and she who is mocked
I am the voice with countless sounds
And the thousand guises of the word
I am the speaking of my name
Pay attention to me, to my impoverishment and to my extravagance
I, I am without God; And I am she whose God is magnificent
I am the mind and the rest; I am the learning from my search
And the discovery of those seeking me
The command of those who ask about me
And the power of powers
In my understanding of the angels; Who were sent on my word
And the Gods in God, according to my design
And spirits of all men who exist with me; And the women who live in me
I am she who is revered and adored
And she who is reviled with contempt
I am the coming together and the falling apart; I am the enduring and the disintegration
(Another) Introduction to Process Theology:
I don’t talk explicitly about process theology very often, but I think it’s always there in the background of what we talk about. To summarize it, process theology is the idea that God is relational. God is in relationship with us. This is the core of process theology. One might respond, yes, of course God is relational, we count on it!
Here’s the part that is a bit challenging to wrap one’s mind around. If God is in relationship with us and we are constantly in process, constantly growing, changing, becoming, then God must also be in process to meet us where we are.
This is a point to consider, because many Christians of yesterday and today rely on God’s unchanging nature to provide security for their ever-changing lives. In this perspective, one praises God for being steadfast and reassuring. This idea is even present in our UC worship materials, like this hymn:
Eternal, unchanging, we sing to your praise:
your mercies are endless and righteous your ways; your servants proclaim the renown of your name
who rules over all and is ever the same.
So, even if it isn’t our primary theology, it’s still woven into our shared history, culture, and theology.
Does God have to be unchanging for us to receive the reassurance of God’s presence? Consider this: I shared last week that a friend of mine just had a baby. Before she gave birth, I related to her around our dogs and other common interests. Since she became a mother, I go over and hold her baby and much of the way I relate to her is around motherhood. In order to meet her where she is in life, I have to shift. If we extrapolate this idea to God’s relationship with us, God is constantly present and dynamic and shifting with us as we walk along this road of life. It’s like a mother who snuggles that infant and as the child grows in size and strength, is also there to catch the 16 month old when he tries to lunge from her arms. She quickly responds to the sudden movement, finds balance again and says, I’ve got you little one.
This isn’t to say I or the mother or God changes entirely . . . There is a both/and here. We are different in the ways necessary to remain in relationship. I may need to access previously unknown depths, I may show up in new ways. Even if I’m continually emerging, I’m still me. God is constant and changing. Process theology invites us to reframe God as relational, and in doing so, open ourselves to more of God’s complexity.
As far back as our written texts go, our ancestors have been discerning divinity in process. Our own scriptures tell the story. From the beginning of Genesis, we follow along a story of God creating all there is, initiating relationship with individuals, communicating with the Israelites from the mountaintop, and then coming down into the tabernacle and literally being carried with them. That doesn’t sound like an unchanging God. It sounds like a God who develops relationship with us as we were ready for each step along the way.
May the words of my mouth and the meditations of all our hearts be reflections of your word to us today, in Christ’s name we pray. Amen
Reflection:
Where does the Holy dwell? According to these two ancient and very different texts, where does the Holy dwell? Are there limits to where God finds a home? We reach to the Psalm for the comfort of familiar language. Through these words, we praise our Creator, receive assurance of God’s enduring love, give thanks for God’s unfailing faithfulness to us, and know that we belong. Within our tradition, this psalm is a comfort and a foundation on which we can build, add detail, add specifics. I’ve paired it with The Thunder for just that reason. I want to hear more about God’s creation and particularly our belonging. When the world is upside down, when world leaders give implicit and explicit permission for the queer community, for instance, to be discriminated against, harassed, or worse, we need to say things explicitly.
First, let us listen for the Holy, let us listen for our relational God. As you’re referencing the text in your print bulletin, you’ll see in The Thunder several I AM statements. Remember, I AM is the divine name – God said to Moses at the burning bush: I AM who I AM. Wherever we see those words, there we find the Holy. I AM the first and the last, I AM she who is honored and she who is mocked, I AM the voice with countless sounds, I AM she who is revered and adored, And she who is reviled with contempt, I AM the coming together and the falling apart; I AM the enduring and the disintegration. Whoever we are, wherever we are on life’s journey, the Holy makes a home in us. Within our raw edges, our messiness, in the hardness we maintain to feel safe, in the questions about where we belong, here within our hearts that are bleeding with grief at the state of the world and what it means for our lives, the Holy makes a home in us. In trans bodies, the Holy makes and remakes a home. In all who have felt left out of the divine life, the Holy makes a home . . . you belong! In all who are isolated for being perceived as different, the Holy claims you as their own.
Thunder identifies with the one who has been overlooked, the one who calls out to be seen and heard, acknowledged and affirmed. This text was created within early Christian community, where people were finding belonging, finding new life, finding healing and wholeness in contexts where they could only imagine despair. Here in Christian community, we proclaim that where the Holy is manifest, wherever Christ is incarnate, God heals and redeems and transforms. The Thunder proclaims that there are no expressions of life untouched by God’s transforming presence. No matter your orientation, your gender identity, no matter how awkward you feel in your body, no matter your outward expression of self, the Holy is in you, so you are included in God’s transforming presence and our relational God is with you for your journey.
What else needs to be said explicitly. Not only does Thunder proclaim Holy union with creation, Thunder demands to be witnessed. I find this part so moving. Here God’s voice speaks: I came to those pondering me, And I was found among those seeking me. Look at me, all you who contemplate me; Audience, hear me; Those expecting me, receive me; Don’t chase me from your sight; Don’t let your voice or your hearing hate me; Don’t ignore me any place, any time; Be careful. Do not ignore me.
The Holy demands to be witnessed, demands to be heard. What is important for us to hear? We have a well-developed skill of taming the God of our imaginations into one we can comprehend. Perhaps we even tend to assume we know what God will say. We may indeed miss some important things. When I hear the text, it evokes for me an image of a multiplicity of individuals, myself included, seeking God in private prayer. In quiet, tucked away spaces. And God is there . . . “I came to those pondering me
And I was found among those seeking me. Look at me, all you who contemplate me.” Really look at me . . . implying there is more to see than what we perceive. The Thunder offers an invitation, or demand, rather, to have the courage to listen and hear the fullness of God speak. Hear also the voice of God on the margins; hear also the voice of God discriminated and harassed; hear also God in all their voices and see all their colours. I hear this echo of Jesus saying, when you did these to the least of these, you did them to me. It’s as if Thunder is telling us to look for the fullness of God in the fullness of humanity. When we leave people out, we leave out God’s own self. As if there is a connection between the scale of our God and who we see and hear. Perhaps Thunder asks, as God dwells within the fullness of humanity, how big is your God? We all have a growing edge, all of us. I wonder what is beyond it. Surely an image of God that is ever more magnificent, as we are. Thanks be to God.