June 28, 2026 - The Very Reverend Canon Erika von Haaren, Dean

The lessons appointed for the day of this sermon are available here: https://www.lectionarypage.net/YearA_RCL/Pentecost/Aprop8_RCL.html

Transcript

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Set. We are to honor them fully because a sincere welcome is being offered. That's what matters most. People living the way of love, no matter what they call it, because the way of love to show mercy, to welcome the stranger, is Jesus' way. So whether someone welcomes the disciples as connected to the Messiah or as a prophet or a righteous person or just a fellow human being, and they extend kindness and welcome, they've done the thing. They've lived the way that Jesus teaches. For many years now, I've noted kind of to myself that some of the best Christians that I've ever known would never claim that title in a million years. They don't go to church, they don't read scripture, they just live as good, caring people in the world. They know about Jesus, but they don't follow him in any intentional way because it's not the belief system that they have. But man, if they don't welcome people kindly and gently, and man, if they're not open and generous with others. And I guarantee every single one of them would give any of us a cup of cold water in a heartbeat. They stake no claim to Jesus, yet they live as he lived. So often the church has declared that right belief is paramount to everything else. You must believe a certain way to be included or to be on the inside of the community. It seems it doesn't matter nearly as much if you are actually living out the gospel or not. Churches have wanted us to say the right things over and above doing the right things for centuries. Declare this: I accept Jesus as my personal Lord and Savior. I believe all the words of the Creed, etc., and so forth. The church has, in our flawed attempt at faithfulness, built a host of litmus tests over the centuries. But frustratingly rare is whether we're actually interested in if people are living faithfully, whether they have all our words for it or not. But Jesus is teaching them and us about his priorities again today. Discipleship, the following of the way, can look a lot of different ways. And frankly, the church needs to get out of our own way and stop gatekeeping Jesus' favor. Because today we hear that his favor extends so much farther than many of us would believe. More people than we realize are living out the faith taught by Jesus Christ, whether they'd call it that or not. And it's not important what words they're saying, it's what they're doing. So whether we would call it welcoming the Messiah or the prophet or the righteous person or just a fellow human, if they welcome us in any form, they welcome Jesus. They welcome God. And they are to be valued and honored for their welcome. I've reflected on this passage a bit differently this week because it is the end of Pride Month. And so many queer folks haven't received the welcome they should from the church, and from those who call themselves Jesus followers when they have knocked on the door. For many, not even that cold glass of water has been extended to them because the church has said their beliefs aren't correct. And on the other side of our proverbial door, when we have been knocking on their door, the church has deemed their welcome insufficient or unworthy because of who they are. I count myself lucky that I somehow managed to avoid the religious trauma of that, having been raised in an affirming household and having been part of affirming episcopal congregations my whole life long. So when I came out, there was no faff about it. We all just went about our usual lives. But many have not had that experience. Many are in our pews today because they had to leave faith communities who forgot to lay down the litmus tests and just welcome people as they are. There's been pain and grief and losses for so many who were in congregations that told them that God was no longer for them if they lived their fullest selves allowed. If this is your experience, I want to say unequivocally, and on behalf of the Church Universal, I'm so sorry. It should not have been that way. We hold you and your grief with deep reverence. You are a beloved child of God, and you are welcome here in your fullness. You don't have to believe exactly as we do. You don't have to be exactly the same as others. In Christ, we are liberated from the demands of this world and invited to be exactly who we are. And God loves our diverse and rich world. There is plenty of room for a variety of beliefs and understandings and ways of being. The guideline we follow from Jesus is love and mercy, truth and welcome. So if the church asks people to hide who they are or disavow a particular way of being or pretend one way of being is better than others, then we have failed spectacularly to welcome one as we would welcome God. We have lost our role as prophets and as righteous people. And even the cups of water we offer won't be enough because they've been tainted by our exclusion of others. And while we are grateful that the Episcopal Church, and particularly our Diocese of Arizona, is deeply open and affirming, we know that there are many who still suffer this exclusion out there. And so our welcome means more than ever in these times. Particularly for those who are transgender, who need not just our welcome, but our advocacy and our allyship, and also our protection from those who believe that God is not big enough to have created such a rich diversity of genders and identities for humanity. If this diversity can be found throughout the rest of the natural world, why would our species be excluded from such grandeur? So we must be vocal and active in our support because God doesn't set litmus tests for who gets the good news of love and mercy and welcome. And so we won't either. Yesterday, our chapter had our annual planning retreat. And I'll have much more to say about it in the coming weeks and months, but I want to share that first, wow, what an incredible body of people make up our board of directors. They are faithful and incredible. And second, I want to share one piece that came out of our discernment that especially resonates with today's gospel. We discerned that we believe that Trinity wants to become a place of radical belonging. We may have heard the term radical welcome or radical hospitality, but we want to take it even deeper. We want to help Trinity grow into a place to experience a sense of deep belonging, where all are included fully with all that we bring, with all that we need, with our fullest humanities. And in a hurting world, this is work that we can do because we are disciples of Jesus Christ who want to live as he lived and love as he loved, and welcome as he welcomed. So let us welcome one and all, beloveds, as he did, one and all. Amen.