Dear Sisters and Brothers,
“Absence makes the heart grow fonder.”– Sextus Propertius, Roman Poet (50-15 BC)
If absence make the heart grow fonder, in light of our long pandemic absence from our church family,
I’m sure that your hearts are by now quite fond for one another.
I recently read about a study* that gives scientific backing to the musings of the ancient poet. The study
(by Kunal Bhattacharya at Aalto University in Finland) confirms that we invest more time and energy
into maintaining and strengthening relationships with friends and loved ones if we believe that those
relationships are weakened or in danger because of significant lapses in contact with one another.
It made me think of the Apostle Paul and how often his letters speak of his great desire to see his former
congregants and friends in the far-flung faith communities he planted. Paul was concerned not only
about the bonds that existed between them and him, but also for the bonds that existed between them.
If we realize how stressful it can be to worry about maintaining a relationship in our age of phone-calls,
emails, texts, Facetime, and Zoom – we can only imagine Paul waiting agonizing months and possibly
years as he waited to hear if his letters had been received and answered. He had made such a
considerable investment in each fledgling church, and he desperately wanted that investment to pay
dividends in the love those communities provided for one another and for the wider world.
May I suggest, as we are about to take our first tentative step towards “getting back together again” that
we redouble our efforts to make sure that others know how much we have missed them. If you will be
joining us physically on the 6th , pay special attention to who you don’t see there and let them know
that they were with you in spirit, and that you can’t wait to be re-joined with them. If you choose to
continue to worship with us virtually for a while longer, reach out to others in the church and let them
know that your heart is with them each Sunday and all of the rest of the week.
Pastors and other church leaders are being warned to not take for granted that everyone will come
flooding back into our churches once we re-open the doors. Inertia and the comfort of our couches are
powerful forces to overcome! Please do all that you can to help your church leadership and staff do
everything in our power to make sure that each and every one of the Central Christian community know
how fond our hearts have become of them during this long absence.
Peace,
Pastor Layne