Neil's weekly Blog Post April 20th 2020

They were gathered together in the house with the door locked because they were afraid.

The evening of that first Easter did not start out with shouts of joy. Rather the disciples of Jesus, his closest friends, huddled together behind locked doors because they were discouraged, dispirited and afraid. Shattered by the death of Jesus, they could not make sense of the stories the women told of an empty tomb.  Despite everything Jesus had told them, that it had to be this way, they were unable to put the pieces of the puzzle together and grasp what was going on. Until Jesus stood there. Very much alive, very much himself, physically, utterly alive. Then everything changed. And yet nothing changed.

Nothing changed because this little gang of people was still just that: a tiny little micro community in a vast Roman Empire that had no clue they existed and at didn’t care. They had nothing except themselves. But they had Jesus: Crucified, Risen, very much alive and with them. That truth galvanized them and opened the doors of their hearts to the mission of God.

This year, we too are gathered quite literally behind the closed doors of our houses. We cannot go out for fear of the illness that stalks our land. Our church doors are locked and we do not know when we will be able to open. But we have not locked down the doors of our hearts to the mission of God. Indeed we have all been experimenting – with varying degrees of success – with reaching out in new ways and learning much along the way.

If you weren’t already, you are by now very aware of Zoom as a video-conferencing tool. It has been truly a life-line for many of us to be able to be together, somehow in the same space. Our West Island Revive course has carried on via Zoom. Whist not the same as being in each other’s presence, we have found that we can still share, learn and pray together in deeply meaningful ways through Zoom. Check out our Supper Club Holy Week video. We enacted all the main events of the Upper Room and the Garden of Gethsemane on Zoom and it was powerful. There is a surprising creative potential with Zoom if you think about it. What I love about Zoom is that it is a way we can be together, see each other and share.

Others have been using Facebook Live as a way to put on services. I have appreciated the efforts many have made to put on a service that feels like being in church. Facebook live is less interactive than Zoom, but you can make your presence felt by adding supportive comments as you go. We even said a virtual “peace” that way! It feels very Anglican to go to a Facebook Live service.  You can slip in and just be present during the service and slip out if you feel like. These services have also been a lifeline for many of us.

Thank you all for all the ways you have keep the doors your church open even during this pandemic. Bless you for seeking to maintain Christian community and meet the spiritual needs of God’s people. For although everything has changed, nothing has changed. Jesus is still alive. The Holy Spirit has been given. And Jesus has sent us on the mission. Our doors remain open.