Community Church
By Johan Dodge
Pastor
The Welsh have a word for the unattainable yearning you feel for a place that no longer exists, or to which you can never return. “Hiraeth” is a homesickness you feel when home is years ago and far away, if it ever existed at all. For many of us, COVID-19 has been going on for so long we feel homesick for the way things were. In the Hebrew Scriptures, God’s people turn to Moses while they are journeying in the Exodus and complain that their lives suffering as slaves in Egypt were better than their current reality. For us, our previous reality, the “home” that we remember from March —it too seems like a lifetime ago–was better than our current reality; except that it also wasn’t.
The way we were living our lives—the consumption of fossil fuels and the production of greenhouse gasses has helped to propel the earth to a place where it is now 104 degrees in the Arctic. ‘The Great Pause” has shown us that we can live differently and make different choices. We can drive less, work from home, and we can even think about where we live differently if we’re not physically commuting to an office.
Now, I know many of us in Leisure World have retired, but that isn’t everyone; and I know that of those who are still working or trying to work, not everyone can work from home. All I am suggesting is that there is good that is coming from our current reality as well as a great deal of bad. There are 137 cases of COVID-19 at Seal Beach Health and Rehabilitation as of June 24. We may know someone inside, and some of us live just on the other side of the wall from the center. I know, because I deliver meals on Wheels around the North Gate. Clearly this is the bad side of our current reality. Wearing a mask outside of Leisure World has become a political statement — as if pretending the virus isn’t knocking at our gates will make it magically goaway. Here’sahint,itwon’tandyoushouldbewearingamask and doing everything you can to not expose yourself to other people, especially those who refuse to wear a mask. . The good is that with less driving we have been producing less greenhouse gasses. Fewer flights mean less fuel being burned in the atmosphere as well. All of these measures have given the earth a chance to catch its breath and to breathe anew. We are still living in the “Great Pause.” We are still in the first wave of the virus — and we continue to need to live our lives differently even as we experience Hiraeth.
As the Pastor of Community Church it is my responsibility to share the good news of God’s love and to boldly claim that while we cannot safely gather in person, we can continue to be the love of God in the world. In fact, we can use this time to become even more creative in how we share love and create community with those around us.
As always, if you are in need without another way to address that need, call the church office to leave me a message (562) 431-2503.
Tune into worship Sunday morning at 9:50 on the Facebook live page, @communitychurchleisureworld. Those who don’t have a computer or Facebook can still call in to our phone system at (562) 431-2503 and listen to the weekly message beginning Sunday evening.
