For May 2, 2010: Fifth Sunday in Easter (RCL)
The First Lesson: Acts 11:1-18
The Response: Psalm 148
The Epistle: Revelation 21:1-6
The Gospel: John 13:31-35
In today's Gospel reading from John 13, we find the core of our faith expressed by Jesus Christ in just three words: LOVE ONE ANOTHER. Thank you for the love you have shared with the clients of ECS during the past year through your donations, volunteer commitments and prayers.
"I give you a new commandment," Jesus says. "That you love one another ... By this everyone will know that you are my disciples."
The root of the word translated "to love" in this passage is agape (ah-ga-pay), a non-romantic love acted out through service to others.
Jesus himself defines this type of love earlier in this same chapter when he washes the feet of his disciples, saying "If I, the master and teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash one another's feet. I have given you an example to follow."
Love one another. Seldom is any line of scripture so straightforward, so lacking in ambiguity.
So how can we honor it? How can we follow Christ's example?
Episcopal Community Services provides an opportunity for Episcopalians to live out their baptismal covenant to serve others. ECS is faith in action and leads the way in responding to changing human needs. Together, we can support ECS in its mission to empower vulnerable individuals and families by providing high-quality social and educational services that affirm human dignity and promote social justice.
At ECS, love means never giving up on someone, despite her mistakes. Michelle, a 42-year-old single mother, entered ECS St. Barnabas Mission for homeless women and children after leaving prison. It was the best chance she had to make a fresh start and provide a safe home for her eight-year-old daughter, Kianna.
Kianna, already a great student, stayed on track at school thanks to the Mission's after-school program. Michelle's case manager connected her with a job-training program in the food industry. She hopes to own her own restaurant someday.
Like Michelle and Kianna, many Philadelphians are living in poverty because they have been born into that reality. It's called generational poverty, where not only the absence of adequate income, but also the lack of skills, access to proper education, and opportunities for success create a pattern of poverty that is duplicated with each generation.
The need for education is at the root of generational poverty and many other difficulties we face. Over a third of Philadelphia students who enter ninth grade don't make it to graduation. As a result, the city ranks 92nd in terms of workforce participation, meaning many of our low-skilled workers have no jobs at all. Even those who do often cannot earn enough to support their families. What's more, many employers in Philadelphia cite applicants' lack of basic education,not specialized skills, as a major barrier to filling jobs in both the manufacturing and service sectors.
To address these needs, ECS offers opportunities across all programs to enhance education. Adults from nearly every Zip code in Philadelphia come to ECS Urban Bridges to learn English, brush up on reading, writing and arithmetic, and even earn a high school diploma.
Just ask Karen. She had attended several programs that were supposed to help her earn her Certificate of General Educational Development, or GED. In group classes with high student turnover, she found herself wasting time learning the same things every session and never getting closer to completion. ECS Urban Bridges was different. There, she received individual attention from a volunteer tutor from a local university. At the end of the semester, she was able to pass several sections of the GED test.
Education is a gateway out of poverty, but the truth is you can do everything right and still end up in need. Disability and illness in old age can present unexpected financial challenges. One in six older Philadelphians lives below the poverty threshold. A third of older Philadelphians live alone, and half have a disability.
Richard, 78, has lived alone since his wife passed away in 2003. Years mowing lawns and climbing ladders for his own landscaping and handyman business did a number on his knees and he has a variety of medical conditions that require the twice-daily visits from ECS home health aides. Without ECS, Richard could not continue living safely in his own home and he says that if he had to live in an institution, he probably wouldn't last long.
I give you a new commandment," Jesus says. "That you love one another."
Love that compels us to serve-to see needs and meet needs. How can we honor it?
We can look to ECS as a way to put our faith into action. If we are discouraged, pessimistic that anything can be done, we need only think of Michelle, Karen and Richard, as well as their families, to realize the impact we can make.
Poverty is a painful thing. But by being willing to enter into such painful places we follow this command to love one another...and we show our love for God-who is there ahead of us. Together we can do more to bring in the Kingdom than we can alone.