What You Learn at Summer Camp can Help Grow the Church and Change the World
7/19/19
I didn’t grow up going to summer camp, so I wasn’t sure what to expect when I walked
into Shrine Mont’s Tuesday All Camp Worship. I knew enough to know that there wouldn’t be
eight verses of some archaic hymn sung or organ music playing, but beyond the expectation of
catchy music, a homily and Eucharist, I was watching intently for the rest.
As a newcomer, I felt a little quiet, a little uncomfortable and maybe a little out of place.
The unease of approaching something as a newcomer, made me think about what it must be
like for people coming into our churches for the first time.
Maybe they’ve heard a lot about the Episcopal Church or have a friend that attends a particular
parish. Maybe, they’ve heard about the Church from their kids’ friends who attend summer camp.
But, in the end, being new in a place where everyone else seems to know one another can make
you feel like the odd woman out.
What I witnessed on the mountain that night was lovely. Gathered at the Cathedral were not just
a group of very joyful young people, it was a group of young people who were excited to be there
and to be there together. More than 200 youths of varying ages, backgrounds, cultures, and identities
sang arm and in arm and finger snapped their approval and support for several participant leaders.
There were different fashion styles and hair colors, piercings and no piercings, and different levels of
abilities and skills. Still, together they stood and worshipped the one God who loves them all.
On this particular night, there were was a brave young woman who struggled slightly through her
reading of scripture and a young man playing his “Guitar Hero” guitar as part of the worship team.
Both loved, both welcomed, both standing in vulnerability in front of a group that instead of judgment,
gave them Shrine Mont Camp snaps in approval of a job well done. My heart felt warm at such
welcoming and accepting love and wished that every place I encountered in my life and in my work
could be like this and like this to everyone.
So how do we welcome “outsiders” to feel at home in our communities of faith? Does it require
time and intensity like forming friendships at shrine mont? Or is it something instant?
While I don’t want to deny that sometimes people and places just click, the reality is that having
meaningful, lasting relationships with people and places takes work.
In her book, Radical Welcome, the Rev. Canon Stephanie Spellers talks about welcome that is
radical because it is not like anything else we do in our human relationships, it is very intentional.
Radical welcome requires a true opening of our hearts, loving people where they are and embracing
and accepting everyone into a community just as they are.
We humans aren’t wired that way. We think of differences as scary or abnormal and not worth
our time. That is why radical acceptance of people takes time.
How you, parish member, clergy or Shrine Mont parent act when you encounter someone new at a
place that is so familiar to you, can become a defining moment for your church and for that person.
And, once you’ve made someone feel welcome, you learn from that experience and do it all over
again with someone else because being radically welcoming is ongoing work.
As for me here at Shrine Mont, I’m an introvert so it takes a little extra work, but I quickly encountered
people wanting to help me, teach me a song, make a silly joke or take me out for ice cream.
These campers are doing something right and it is thanks to a dedicated staff that intentionally
does the work necessary to ensure that all who come here can be exactly who they are.
The readings don’t have to be perfect. Our hair can be blonde, or gray or purple, and our guitars
can certainly be toy guitars. There is room in God’s kingdom here for all of our vulnerabilities and
differences, mine included.
Can we provide a similar environment for people inside and outside our churches? Can we view
everyone in our communities in this loving way and treat them as such?
We are all part of the Body of Christ and to our unconditionally loving God there are no outcasts.
Elements of what we need to change the Church and the world are on this mountain.
Let’s bring it down from the mountain top!
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