EDITOR'S NOTE: In October 2021 I began a new venture writing a newspaper column titled "Finding Faith" for the Forum Communications Co. network of newspapers and websites. I was asked to contribute to the company's ongoing conversation about faith, lending a Lutheran and fairly ecumenical approach to the discussion. The column was published in several of the company's papers and websites, including The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead. This column originally appeared as a "Finding Faith" column on March 25, 2022.
By The Rev. Devlyn Brooks
According to Martin Luther, not only does Jesus’ command us to love our neighbor as yourself, God in fact created for this very purpose. Each of us was created to receive God’s love, trust it and then embody it in the world by loving others as God loves us.
That was the message that Cynthia Moe-Lobeda gave to dozens of clergy and lay faith leaders who gathered on a Saturday in early March for a Northwest Minnesota ELCA Synod retreat in Detroit Lakes, Minn. Moe-Lobeda, who is a doctor of theological ethics and speaks and consults around the world, was invited to give the keynote address.
Many of us are aware of Jesus’ commandment to love others, of course. We learn about it from our earliest days in Sunday school. But Moe-Lobdea said we often don’t understand what “neighbor love” truly is. … Or how revolutionary it is!
For example, we now live in a globalized society, meaning the low-paid factory workers who produce the cheap goods we buy from countries worldwide are connected to us like never before. And so we should define who is our “neighbor” as anyone our life touches or impacts. … Even factory workers across the globe.
Luther recognized this more than 500 years ago, Moe-Lobeda said, compelling the faithful to live out their Christianity in their daily lives, including their economic decisions. For Luther, there was no compartmentalizing your faith to just Sunday mornings.
Admittedly, we find this is challenging trying to live faithful lives today. After all, we appreciate being able to buy cheap goods at our "Big Box" stores and from online distributors who’ll zip them to our doors, sometimes even the same day. But are these economic practices good for the people producing them? And are they good for the environment?
Moe-Lobeda shared that Luther stressed that, yes, God loved each and everyone of us without question. But if we actually graciously receive it, God’s love should transform us to embody it in our dealings with our neighbors and the rest of creation. We are, in fact, called to be the living Christ, going forth and living according to love … for all.
So, in a world with so many monumental critical issues and so much divisiveness, where does one even begin without becoming overwhelmed? Moe-Lobeda suggests starting with reminding ourselves that every single person is loved by God.
“All are beloved and precious children of God worthy of profound respect,” she told the audience of faith leaders.
So why, oh why, is it so hard for us to remember that in our dealings with our neighbors!
Well, because we are human after all, and rather than being perfect, we are “God’s rusty tools,” as Luther calls us.
Devlyn Brooks, who works for Modulist, a Forum Communications Co.-owned company, is an ordained pastor in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. He serves as pastor of Faith Lutheran Church in Wolverton, Minn. He can be reached at devlyn.brooks@forumcomm.com for comments and story ideas.
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