Recently I had the pleasure of spending a couple of days in Lamont County. Have you driven the roads there? In November you see russet fields and grey hardwoods. Off the road there are churches: Lamont County has 47 – more churches per capita than anywhere else in North America.
There are Ukrainian Catholic, Roman Catholic, United, Ukrainian Orthodox, Orthodox Church of America, and Russo-Greek Orthodox, as well as a Lutheran building, a Moravian, an Alliance and a Full Gospel.
We drove along for about an hour, and enjoyed the profile of each church against the clear sky and the grey trees. When we reached our destination, the sun began to set and we watched the dusk progress out of the trees and up across the sky. Have you noticed how the dark seems to seep out of the earth in the evening?
In the quiet of the morning, as the darkness was absorbed back into the earth, I saw a dusting of snow on the fields. The words of Psalm 19 came to mind:
The heavens are telling the glory of God;
and the firmament proclaims God’s handiwork.
There is no speech, nor are there words; their voice is not heard;
yet their voice goes out through all the earth,
and their words to the end of the world.
I know that people in every one of those 47 churches see the wonders of God’s world all around them. And we all share awe. Despite the troubles of the world, natural beauty still moves us – and unites us.
Deep peace to you,
The Rev. Dr. Catherine Faith MacLean
No comments:
Post a Comment