Horizons magazine is published by Presbyterian Women (PW) the national women’s organization of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).
Issue link: http://horizons.epubxp.com/i/521232
W hen Pentecost Day arrived, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound from heaven like the howling of a fierce wind filled the entire house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be indi- vidual flames of fire alight- ing on each one of them. They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other lan- guages as the Spirit enabled them to speak" (Acts 2:1–4, C EB). This reading speaks to us every sin- gle time we find ourselves in our church buildings, not simply one Sunday a year on Pentecost. Think about it: There are the faithful gathered together with one another. (How those early followers loved to close themselves off when Jesus was nowhere to be found!) They had been told that something big was going to happen, so they are waiting. It's as if the waiting had become central to the message they had learned from Christ, central to being Jesus' followers. They close themselves off with those who have common beliefs instead of spreading the word through the crowds outside of those walls. And just outside their walls people are gath- ered from all parts of the countryside, celebrating Pentecost, the Jewish har- vest festival. What a missed opportu- nity to share the good news! The Holy Spirit breaks in as unex- pectedly as they could have imagined. Confusing their languages, they can no longer stay among themselves in the room. The early community of believers is forced out into the street to speak with others, sharing the good news in the countless languages spoken around them. Hearing the Scripture Today The United States is becoming increas- ingly diverse. Based on figures from the 2010 U.S. Census, demographers say that "by the end of this decade . . . no single racial ethnic group will constitute a majority of children under 18" and ". . . in about three decades, no single group will constitute a majority of the country as a whole."* These statistics reveal an important reality for our con- gregations and denomination as a whole. We must continue to welcome commu- nities of color into our midst in ways that both honor their unique part of Christ's body and provide equal power and voice in our governing bodies. These growing demographics are a reminder that the way things have always been done will not work in the future. We privilege the English lan- guage in much of our liturgy, education material and mailings. It tends to be a second thought to consider translating materials, typically just into Spanish and Korean. Sometimes these decisions are based on financial cost instead of benefit to our communities. Though the Holy Spirit will find her way to push us outside of our walls, let's be inspired by the words of Pentecost and consider the ways we communicate with those around us. Larissa Kwong Abazia is the director of church relations at Princeton Theological Seminary and vice moderator of the 221st General Assembly. Notes *Michael Cooper, "Census Officials, Citing Increasing Diversity, Say U.S. Will be a 'Plurality Nation,'" New York Times, 2012; www.nytimes.com/2012/12/13/us/us-will-have- no-ethnic-majority-census-finds.html?_r=0. Pentecost, Wells Cathedral, Somerset, UK s t r e n g t h e n i n g t h e P C ( U S A ) To Understand and to be Understood t t t B Y LARISSA KWONG ABAZIA Larissa Kwong Abazia is the suggestions for leaders author for the 2015 –2016 PW/Horizons Bible study, Come to the Waters, and teaches the study on the companion DVD, item HZN15103; $20.00, plus shipping. See page 40 for more details.