Dear RSNY Church Family and Friends,
Growing up in the Elmendorf Reformed Church during the 1950s, Lent was experienced as a season of darkness and wilderness expressions. Expressions of reflection, repentance, recalling, retelling and preparation as we remembered God’s Words on Transfiguration Sunday, “Listen to Him,” and just before the light is revealed on Resurrection Sunday. It was a time as a Church family to seek Jesus in prayer as well as reflect on the scriptures. I recall members in the church joining fellow sister churches for a time of fasting and almsgiving. The services were similar to my attendances at World Council of Churches in Brazil and the movement as a member of the National Council of Churches fellowshipping with the Latin American Council of Churches in Cuba. God was doing a new thing as we gathered to pray and learn what it meant to carry our crosses and serve humbly as servants of God in our broken world and churches.
As a Christian and African American Minister, serving the DeWitt Reformed Church as Pastor, each year I notice that the season of Lent overlaps with Black History Month. At DeWitt we use this as an opportunity to use traditional resources to walk in the Lenten Season as we recall the injustices of slavery, and racism.
As a biracial child, I was baptized in the Baptist & AME Churches with my mom’s Native American – “Negro” American side of the family, as I also spent time with my dad’s Caribbean side of the family, where I was dedicated to the Lord, who worshiped in the Reformed Church in America, both at Elmendorf Reformed Church and St. Thomas Reformed Church. This created a unique experience for my development in a Christian home, where I learned my understanding of the liturgical calendar as well as exposure to Ecumenism and its Reformed traditions.
As your RSNY Executive Minister, during this season of Lent, I encourage you to allow this to be a time of prayer, especially as we experience changes in the life of our nation and denomination. As an RSNY, we are called to reflect deeply on our faith, consider Scripture, and honor our Christian traditions. This seems like an especially significant opportunity as we consider the overlap between Lent, Black History Month, and Women’s History Month. As children of God, we are called to engage in Lenten practices shaped by our faith traditions, informed by our relationship with our Lord and Savior as we face the challenges of our day.
Prayerfully,
Rev. Dr. Micheal Edwards, Executive Minister