I'm too tired and it's too late for a witty title tonight.
This past weekend, we had the good fortune of hosting my home congregation, St. Mark Evangelical Lutheran of Circle Pines, MN, as they were on their way back from a mission trip in VA. You can read all about their adventures in their blog, which I think is a really cool way to document the trip and communicate with the folks back home (Robert or Kyle, if you're reading this, can we figure out how to do something similar on our church website?).
In any case, we had a great time together -as you can read on the blog, we were "one of the best days" on the trip! On a personal note, it was fun for me (and I think fun for them, too) to have some friends from home see where I'm at and see me lead worship as an honest to goodness pastor. And I think it was nice for my congregation here to see me a little more "in context," so to speak.
What I mean by that is, cultural context is important. In my time here, I've gotten to know the central PA cultural context, but most of my parishioners don't know or understand the context from which I come. I also mean that social history is important, especially in rural culture- most of my folks have known each other their whole lives, and knew parents and grandparents before that. I have that kind of history in MN, with St. Mark, but not here in PA. So, by hosting a mess of Minnesotans from my home church, my current parish had a chance to encounter my cultural context and social history in a way they hadn't up to now, which maybe helps them understand a little more of where I'm coming from sometimes (like why I'm always pushing them to try what to them are "new" hymns, because I come from a very musical congregation that sings from an extensive canon of hymnody).
Alright, I could keep reflecting, but I've got another funeral tomorrow, so I'd best hit the hay.
Thanks for stopping by,
C.
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