Christian unity declares "I accept you" or "We accept you."

Wherever we go or whatever we do, acceptance fulfills a deep need within us. It is especially true for those who claim Jesus the Christ as Savior and Lord.

This passage from Ruth shows us dynamics involved in gaining and responding to acceptance. Her story is probably as old as human relations and provides us with wisdom which comes out of our Judeo/Christian background. It is one filled to the brim and overflowing with richness.

The call to be One builds upon Hebrew Scripture and delights us as we more and more appreciate the magnificence of our Lord’s background. The book of Ruth is easily among the briefest of all Holy Scripture ... but inviting and inspirational in terms of a Jew, Jesus by name, coming to us in the cause of wholeness of his church.

Our Lord knew the full impact of rejection. Many of his followers have known it, also. Much more, however, they knew the glories of acceptance!

There is a trio of values that sparkle before our eyes. If we are committed to Christ’s cause to be One, we need to become childlike or, in a more adult sense, teachable.

Work!

Ruth worked hard and this provided an example for all to see.

It is hard work to toil among others in hope of gaining their acceptance. Too long, Christians have thought a subtle hint here and there would bring about unity. There are plenty of observers. Of course, there are some who appear to believe it is possible to work one’s way into the Kingdom. Saint James offers a solution: "But some one will say, ‘you have faith and I have works.’ Show me your faith apart from your works, and I by my works will show you my faith." (2:18)

We work hard as Christians, supported by the grace of God and knowing the fullness of discipleship springs from the interlocking of faith and works. Our efforts never run amiss, as long as we are sensitive to all that is happening and willing to learn. I can well remember a denominational executive telling a young associate pastor he could learn what not to do by being amenable to the senior pastor. The irony of life is we probably learn more from our mistakes and failures than our successes. Of course, at the deeper levels, to be related perfectly to Jesus the Christ is total success. The world did not and does not understand this. Christians misunderstand this at their own peril. There is a need to be reminded from the high priestly prayer: "I have given them thy word; and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world." (John 17:14)

The cult of success in America and among those professing his name has many worshipers. It is almost as if success, in secular terms, is the only way to gain acceptance. This demonic insistence and powerful ideology deserves drowning in the oceans of God’s grace. Our ministries are blighted daily by budgetary figures, compared for no other reason than to see who or what is the biggest. Our ministries lose the healing rays of the Holy Spirit as we compare membership figures for no other reason than, again, to see who or what is the biggest. Satan tempts us, like the sons of Zebedee and their mother in Matthew 20:20-24 and Mark 10:35-41, we succumb, and perpetuate an unholy syndrome which continually saps our spiritual strength.

Work is done, ideally, because it is worth doing. To work for Christian unity is worth doing! I sometimes think of this task in the context of a marriage ritual. Ecumenists, professional or otherwise, have entered into a covenant and the heavens shout "and if steadfastly you endeavor to do the will of your heavenly Father, God will bless your marriage, will grant you fulfillment in it, and will establish your home in peace." Indeed, when God joined us together in the cause of Christian unity, let all the saints proclaim: "Those whom God hath joined together let not man put asunder!" In When Love Unites the Church, Richard M. Lawless, a Roman Catholic who married an Episcopalian, says, "From couples like ourselves is coming an important force for Christian unity. The Lord’s work of bringing together a divided Body of Christ may be a low priority for some Christians; but for us it is an imperative."

"Work for the night is coming" is not a bit of pietistic jargon to be sung, with gusto, compartmentalized from the labor essential to the cause. Its relevance is most obvious as we perceive that time and opportunity are always factors. Israel’s history painfully brings to mind both can be disastrously wasted. These are not scare tactics. I do believe, with all my heart, what the Rev. Dr. William Lazareth, Pastor of Holy Trinity Lutheran Church in New York City, focused on at the closing session of the National Workshop on Christian Unity in May of 1984 in Minneapolis. He said great opportunity has come our way by the grace of God - perhaps the most monumental since the Reformation - for the church to become One.

There is more to be said from Ruth.

Let Others Decide Your Merits

Naomi’s daughter-in-law was under scrutiny. What would be said about her work? Was she doing a good job?

To be accepted means others have decided in your favor. How glorious it is to lay one’s claims before Christians learning others labels and be greeted, "We accept you in the name of Jesus the Christ!" Tale of Two Cities: A Study of U.S. ARC Covenants tells us of three areas where Roman Catholic and Episcopal congregations lived together in covenants. Despite the problems and, in some cases, because of the problems, we are attracted by their positive experiences. Vulnerability and the attitude "let other Christians take a close look at us" added up to forward steps in the cause of Christian unity. Many would agree there is far more similarity here than can usually be expected between and among congregations because of polity and theology. However, that cannot be the only reason for the meaningful dialogue which occurred. We need only to cite the awkwardness of two congregations of the same denomination trying to cooperate in depth, to be reminded that only openness to the Holy Spirit brings about acceptance.

Without doubt, one of the most exhilarating expressions of acceptance which was years in coming is the Consultation on Church Union. It is simply called "Mutual Recognition of Members." Here is the statement: "Since all believers who are baptized into Jesus Christ are members of his body and share in his ministry, it is therefore appropriate that the convenanting churches have mutually recognized one another’s members as sharing a common membership and ministry in the whole People of God." Scriptural references cited are Acts 15:4, 1 Corinthians 1:2, Romans 15:25-27, and Romans 16:1-23.

None of us feels comfortable allowing others to take a good look at us, unless the Holy Spirit intercedes. The Orthodox churches make a major - if not indispensable - contribution here. In Icon and Pulpit, Carnegie Samuel Calian writes: "Orthodox spirituality for the individual believer is rooted and grounded in Orthodox ecclesiology. The Spirit and the church are organically linked together and only within this binding relationship can the Christian grow and mature in his spiritual development." We are indebted to the prominent Orthodox scholar and theologian, John Meyendorff, for a further word. In his book, The Orthodox Church, we read, "Unknown in his essence, God has however revealed himself as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit: The son became man and the Spirit descended on the Church. The Christian God therefore, is not the ‘unknown God’ venerated by philosophers, but a living God who reveals himself and acts." It is through and with this third person of the Trinity we are enabled to allow other disciples see us, "warts and all."

What comes as a surprise, and even amazement, is the contribution each of the numerous parts of the Body could make. We have lived too many years - generations and centuries - internalizing our faith between perimeters embarrassingly narrow. Denominationalism, while facilitating the fellowship and worship of the likeminded, has outlived its usefulness. Other Christians have much to offer! We are blessed by living in a time that spreads an infinite smorgasbord of spiritual goodies before us. Dare we be starving or impoverished before such delicacies? Perhaps we have indigestion from partaking and our stomachs not having the capacity or inclination to make our own, what others have discovered to be so satisfying. Have patience and do not grieve the Spirit.

Now, you have a special invitation to share in completing the trio.

Grateful Response

Gratitude is the hallmark of the closing portion of the passage. We read about it from both Boaz and Ruth. Acceptance is a two-way street. He is not superimposing his will upon her and she is not feigning for the sake of conformity.

We can hardly speak of gratitude separate from the Eucharist. Christian unity, in its limitless forms and shapes, is overjoyed today by the old/new emphasis on this sacrament being the central feature of our worship together as his disciples. The acrimonious debates of transubstantiation versus consubstantiation, as well as those with other opposing views, seem to have been laid to rest. The Baptism, Eucharist, Ministry document is helpful and represents a convergence of the universal church. Under "Eucharist" our eyes focus on this statement: "It is the great thanksgiving to the Father for everything accomplished in creation, redemption and sanctification, for everything accomplished by God now in the Church and in the world in spite of the sins of human beings, for everything that God will accomplish in bringing the Kingdom to fulfillment."

The message is loud and clear for anyone listening. A grateful response among Christians that leads to acceptance or is a fruit of it is clearly present among God’s people today. Walls, barriers, and barricades come tumbling down in the presence of God’s gift of gratitude. Saint Paul, even in the face of the sins of the Corinthians, was able to say to them, "I give thanks to God always for you because of the grace of God which was given you in Christ Jesus ..." (1 Corinthians 1:4)

ACCEPTANCE IS THE KEYNOTE to Christian unity. Saint Paul’s words, in Galatians, loom large and loving: "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ." (3:28) He was steeped in Judaism and must have known the passage from Ruth well.

As we move together in the call to be One, we are blessed by our text, as it elevates acceptance and what is involved in it. We are to work, let others decide our merits, and share grateful responses. Let optimism abound! Our pilgrimage is never dull, except as it provides a prelude to a wider and more optimistic view of Christ and his church.

We are brought to one closing thought. An Anglican, Edwin Hatch, gives to us its shape. In 1878 he wrote:

Breathe on me, breath of God;
Fill me with life anew,
That I may love what thou dost love
And do what Thou wouldst do.

Through the Holy Spirit, God can do for us what we cannot do. We can accept the universal church and be accepted by it.