Sundays at Harvard-Epworth

Communion Service at 9:00 AM In-Person &
Worship AT 11:00 AM IN-PERSON AND on Youtube  

A Message from Rev. Mitch Hay

Unless a grain of wheat
falls into the earth and dies,
it remains just a single grain;
but if it dies, it bears much fruit.

                  —John 12.24             

On Sunday, we’ll read and wonder about this difficult saying from the rabbi Jesus.  And y’all will rightly expect Barb and me to have something reasonably cogent to say about the mystery of how a small, hard-as-rock seed, when buried in the ground, can die to its brittle, cold self and somehow soften and swell and grow, filled with green and life and possibility.

But Jesus, of course, was not giving a biology lesson; he was speaking of the human condition, and the possibility of stony hearts being transformed.  Hearts of stone, or hearts encased in protective armor, seem to be the rule of the day. And much of what we read or see in the news, especially news from Gaza, seems precisely calculated to create hearts that are hard and desiccated as old seeds.   The stories of suffering people have become empty numbers that do indeed numb: the 1200 Israeli lives lost in the brutal Hamas attack on October 6, and, in the six months following, the killing of 30,000 Palestinian civilians (mostly women and children) by Israeli bombs, missiles, gunfire, and a blockade of food aid to starving people.

This egregiously disproportionate response by the Israeli government and military has been met with stunning silence by Christian faith communities in the US.  But over the last month, mainline churches have begun to find a voice, calling for peace, calling for change. In February, the House of Bishops of the Anglican Church called for an immediate cease fire, saying that the “manner in which this war is being prosecuted cannot be morally justified.”  Last week, the Conference of Bishops of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America urgently called for a permanent bi-lateral cease-fire in Gaza.  And yesterday, the Bishops of the United Methodist Church added their voices to the call for an immediate cease fire.  They wrote, The lack of a true cease-fire after more than five months of this deadly conflict compels us to raise our voices now. We call for an immediate and permanent cease-fire in the Gaza Strip and a commitment from all involved parties, including Israel, Palestinians, surrounding Middle East countries, the U.S., and others to pursue a lasting peace. We pledge our prayers and commitment to work for a durable peace, an end to the violence and the release of the hostages.

(full document at www.unitedmethodistbishops.org/newsdetail/united-methodist-bishops-call-for-ceasefire-in-gaza-18303396)

Jesus’ words are a reminder of the difficult truth that only by letting hard, armored hearts die to their brittle fear can they open and grow to the possibilities that God places before us– the tender green possibilities of mercy, forgiveness, love, and peace.  I give thanks that the Bishops’ letters add to the Jewish, Muslim, and Christian voices crying for peace in this tortured land.

In Peace,

Pastor Mitch


A Poem from Steve Garnaas-Holmes on Jesus’ words:

I let my self
go in the soil of you

I entrust myself
to the spring of you

I let the you of me
break the husk of the me of me

and life comes forth

I let my self spill out

This dying is birthing

seed of me buried
bearing fruit
of you