Day 25

 Now, fellowship is, of course, a by-product of the things we share together.  We do not achieve it directly, but indirectly.  Whatever weakness is in our fellowship comes from not sharing;  and our fellowship will grow deep and strong only as we begin to truly to share those things about which we have been speaking together.  Do we really share worship together so that we glory in the same Lord and know our common need of forgiveness?  Do our minds share the same rich beliefs?  Do we share prayer, giving, and work for the extension of the Church?  If we do, forgetting about fellowship, we will discover mysteriously it has come to us.

I want to make this clear, because it is very important for the life of the Church.  People are converted and won to a fellowship.  That is what they need and want.  When they find this warmth and joy they will return.  “See”. Said the ancient world with amazement, “how these Christians love one another.”  This traditional coldness and formality of the Episcopal Church about which many jokes are told (and which is, of course, exaggerated) is not something to be taken lightly.  Individualism and coldness are real barriers and blocks to our work.  If you want to see the warmth and attractiveness of fellowship, look as some the sects and their appeal.  If the stranger is not welcomed at the door, if he senses little warmth of feeling and community life, why should he return?  And the tragic fact against which we must wage our battle is that sometimes the Church, which should have the best fellowship on earth, has the worst.

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