This Week in Church: Ancestors, Tradition, and Changing the World

Welcome to the series wherein I share my take-aways from church. The things that, I think, are beneficial to all of us to know or think about, whether or not we believe in any church-related things.

This week in church we talked about ancestors and tradition.

"Tradition means giving votes to the most obscure of all classes, our ancestors." (GK Chesterton)

This was a take on tradition that I hadn't considered before: caring about our ancestors enough to give them a vote, so to speak. The thought experiment makes tradition a little more alive to me--it's not just doing what people used to do without thought, but considering our ancestors as active and present voices who are grounded in the past while seeing what is happening right now.

This was discussed with full recognition that the people groups who do this the best are the Indigenous populations whose land we are complicit in stealing.

This week in church we talked about changing the world.

"All of this should matter to you, but pick one thing you can focus on. Learn slowly & well. Share what you learn. Make space for others to join you."

This was the final slide in a series that shared various injustices committed against local Indigenous populations - it was taken from a thread that has been shared around on social media, so it might be familiar to you. It's a brilliant reminder that of a vital balance in our attempt to make the world a better place: care about everything and then focus your efforts on one thing.

---

The Receptionist Delivers!
Sign up for my email newsletter for a bi-weekly digest and bonus content!