When new people come to UCCB, they often comment on how "welcoming" this congregation is. It's always good to hear. Because I know that being welcoming isn't something that just happens - it's an intentional practice. It's having trained greeters at the doors and ushers ready to help people out, but it's also neighbors in the "pews" who will move over from their usual seat when a stranger wants to sit beside them. It's talking to someone you don't know in coffee hour before you catch up with friends. It's wearing your name tag, every week. And all those kinds of things take energy and attention; it's easier to just hang with the people we know, the people with whom we are comfortable. So I'm really grateful when I get feedback that indicates we are still practicing this welcome.
But true welcome doesn't stop there. It gets harder, once it's not just about greeting a guest. Being welcoming also means creating space for people who see things differently, people who irritate you, people you disagree with. And not just creating space for them "over there" on the other side of the sanctuary, but actually engaging with them, connecting with them as a child of God.
This Sunday, our worship service will end a few minutes early so the Deacons can give us a quick refresher on the basics of being a welcoming congregation. We'll do it right in the sanctuary, and then get you off to coffee. This presentation will give us simple and specific ways of welcoming the stranger, and why it matters.
Just don't forget to turn your clock AHEAD an hour on Saturday night. But if you forget, we will WELCOME you whenever you arrive!
Peace,
Rev. Cindy
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