Opening to the Spirit

Today’s word: Reformation

1

) When I was young growing up here in Quebec, the world as I knew it was divided into two groups, Protestant and Roman Catholic. There were two school boards and sometimes two solitudes. In rural areas back then there was certainly no knowledge of other religions. I gradually learned that this situation came about because of something called the Reformation. Martin Luther was a protestor who began a movement that would change the religious world. Truth be told I liked being protestant because I identified with anti-war protestors.

This week was the 500th anniversary of the beginning of the Reformation. What does that word mean today? I like to think that reformation is not one event that happened once, years ago. In my life I have changed my mind and beliefs many many times since I was a teenager and thought; I know all the answers, I'm right, and the rest of the world is wrong most of the time. Reformation is an attitude that embraces new ideas and new ways of living together in community.

Perhaps that's why I like the word protestant. I hope we continue to protest the abuses and mistakes all churches, indeed all religions make at one time or another. I hope I have the courage of Martin Luther, who left the comfort of the monastery and nailed his Theses on the door of a church in Wittenburg.

Reformation is not an event but an attitude and a movement.

2

) Growing up Catholic in the rural Midwest of the 50s and 60s, we were a minority surrounded by neighbours of Scandinavian descent, all Lutherans. We learned early not to talk religion, so I was hardly aware of similarities or differences between our religious beliefs and practices. When one of my classmates died in a drowning accident, our family and RC friends were forbidden to attend her funeral in the Lutheran church. That we actually allowed ourselves to be forbidden I found even as a teenager quite appalling!

Fast-forward a few decades. A Protestant myself now, I enter seminary as a midlife female to fulfill my dream since age five of being one who leads worship. And first I study with the Lutherans, to learn the Reformation from those who know it best. Ah, the beauty of a life that's long enough for such mental tables to be turned!

In Early Church History class one day my turn comes to demonstrate religious symbolism. A Unitarian surrounded by Lutherans, I was known as "the Heretic!" Hands shaking I drew from my backpack a gleaming silver chalice, placed it on the table before me with a candle. As I lit the chalice, everyone gasped. I could almost feel the flames licking my feet! "This is the symbol of my faith," I said. "I kindle this flame for all those burned as heretics, who died courageously through the ages for their beliefs." Then followed the story of Jan Hus, burned at the stake in the 1300s for outrageously claiming that all could receive Communion as both bread and wine - a common practice today.

I claim religious roots in the Reformation. Luther began by asking difficult questions; my ancestors in faith asked even more. What are the "burning questions" of today? Are we brave enough to reform long held beliefs and widen our understanding, open to a wider view, enlarge our sense of what is true, and finally heal the divisions among us? It starts in each one of us with a call to the spirit. Vive la reformation!

3

) The idea behind reformation, and indeed, the definition of the word, is about improvement. What is reformed is usually a practice or an institution, which we want to make better by our changes. This was the intention behind Martin Luther’s 95 theses. He sought to improve the church he loved. It was never his intention to cause division. It was never his intention to create the Protestant churches we have today.

I have sometimes heard the Anglican Church referred to as “a reformed Catholic Church,” and there is probably some truth to this. As Anglicans, we sit in that middle space between Catholic and Protestant, being both and neither, at the same time.

The sad and beautiful reality is that we are all reforming all the time. The Anglican church, in some provinces of the Communion at least, has reformed its doctrine of sexuality and marriage to include the marriage of same- sex couples. The Roman Catholic church is examining the possibility of ordaining women as vocational deacons. Following the Protestant Reformation, Roman Catholicism underwent major reform as well. Today, we debate constantly the meaning of sin, the existence of hell, the role of grace, and other important theological ideas.

Personally, I have very mixed feelings about the Reformation. Mostly, I grieve about the divisions of the Church. Mostly, I am saddened by the competing claims of superiority. At the same time, I am glad for the spirit of seeking truth and the love of God that is at the heart of the desire to reform.

One word, just three of the four voices today. Now it's your turn to reflect: What in today's world could benefit by reformation, upper or lower case R?

Rev. Mead Baldwin pastors the Waterville & North Hatley pastoral charge; Rev. Lynn Dillabough is now Rector of St. Paul's in Brockville ON. She continues to write for this column as a dedicated colleague with the Eastern Townships clergy writing team; Rev. Lee Ann Hogle ministers to the Ayer’s Cliff, Magog & Georgeville United Churches; Rev. Carole Martignacco is Consulting Minister to UU Estrie-unitarian Universalists in North Hatley.