"We're All Born Terminal"
Sunday, June 29th is the day we receive an offering for combating the pandemic of AIDS. I have been asked to preach a sermon that relates to that dread disease.
I will send some of the grim statistics concerning AIDS in a subsequent "Build a Sermon" but I wanted to initiate for you my approach to the sermon and to get some feedback from you on the larger issue.
What we all want to be able to face is the fact of our finitude. We are all terminal. When we are born we know that some day we will die. How do we face death with that perspective and how do we live in that knowledge?
The awareness of our finitude can bring a vitality to life we would never realize. It is not a morbid thought. It need not be frightening or limiting or diminishing to realize we will die some day and our death will come as a surprise to us or as a result of a terminal phasing out. If we could know the day of our death would we want to? Is it best to die suddenly or to glide into death following a long and protracted illness. Woody Allen once said, "I'm not afraid to die. I just don't want to be there when it happens."
That fact is, we will be there when we die.
Do you think about your death? Does thinking about it bring fear or calm? Does it make life hard or enriched to realize death is inevitable?
What is the Christian message on this subject? How do we, as Christian believers, face our finitude? Do we have perspective that is different from other people?
If you have thoughts on this write me at charlesschuster@fcfumc.net. If you are willing to have others read you thoughts click on the box below. I look forward to hearing from you.
Charles
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So we were at Bible School all last week and it was Lucas' first year to be old enough to attend (since he is 3 3/4!) Two things he said today that made me laugh at his child-like understanding of the world and faith. Early in the day, he asked me if God really had the whole world in the palm of his hand. He, of course, was trying to imagine this in a literal sense and was having trouble comprehending how that might work.
Then later in the day when Megan had lost a brand new toy in the car (and was throwing quite a fit for me to pull over and find it,) he piped up and told her, "Megan, God said do not worry."
As for a direct comment on your sermon this week, when I was reading "The Faith Club" earlier this year I was amazed to learn about Jewish view of the afterlife. I like their sort of scientifical take on the "matter is neither created nor destroyed"- type of philosophy but I don't think that for me is very comforting. I want to believe that there is more to life than just this life on earth for myself and my loved ones.
Tracey Bean
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