The month of May is full of commemorative holidays. There is Mother’s Day, on which we give thanks for the “mothering” figures in our lives. There is Memorial Day, the last Monday in May, on which we remember with gratitude the women and men who died for our nation while serving in the military. And this year on May 9, we celebrate the 75th anniversary of our current church building’s dedication.
There is much that can be said about each of these anniversary celebrations. I could wax poetic about the love and nurture we have received from the mothers, grandmothers, and caregivers in our lives. I could toss out statistics about the number of people who have given the ultimate sacrifice for our freedoms, going back to the earliest Memorial Days after the Civil War. I also could share anecdotes about the 1,700 people who squeezed in our sanctuary (and the hundreds more who gathered elsewhere in the building) on that Mother’s Day in 1935 when the cathedral worship space for ELPC was officially dedicated.
To do all that would mean I am writing more as a historian than as a pastor. Imagine if the starting point for this conversation is not the calendar, but rather a profession of faith. Imagine if we start by saying, “God is the Alpha and the Omega, the Lord of all times and seasons.” This would give us quite a different perspective on the May holidays.
One example: God has known us from the first time we lay in our mothers’ arms and throughout all our days of nurture. Through God, we have been blessed with loving adults who provided for us long before we could provide for ourselves. In a challenging world, where at times parenting is difficult and resources are scarce, God remains God–bringing many mothers into our lives, comforting us in times of trial and rejoicing with us in times of celebration, beside us like a loving parent all the days of our lives.
Another example: God is the Lord of all nations, who has come to us as Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace. Christ showed us the full expression of sacrificial love by His death on the cross for us and all humankind. We honor those whose sacrificial deaths in times of war served causes of freedom, democracy and justice greater than any individual’s own story. Yet we work for a day when all war ceases and no one’s life story includes memories of violence and sacrificial suffering.
A last example: Through God’s Holy Spirit, the church becomes the body of Christ in the world. Since bodies are physically located, we erect physical structures where we can worship, teach, feed, and nurture bodies and souls. But every edifice, even the most magnificent, finds its sole glory in the gospel of Christ. Remembering the commitment of past generations inspires us to continue the ministry they began, even as we continually ask what Christ would have us do today and tomorrow.
Consider the calendars and celebrations of your own life in this same way–not as dates to be commemorated but times to reflect on the God who is active in all places, nations, and relationships. As you awaken each day in May, begin by affirming “This is the day the Lord has made; I will rejoice and be glad in it.” Let each day be a Christmas day (Immanuel: God-with-us), an Easter day (He who was dead is now alive), and a Pentecost day (The Spirit sends us out in a hurting world). Mostly, let each day be celebrated as a gift from God, who is the Alpha and Omega, the first and the last, our hope and our salvation.