Convocation 2022
Friends
On Treaty 6 territory, I was greeted this morning by a double rainbow at 5:30. This Covenant reminder brought into focus this evening’s Convocation. As the Saskatoon Theological Union celebrates with you, the Union has been guided into a closer relationship by our own 2020 Covenant, a flawed and living document that will grow with us as we embrace the gift of our denominational diversity. In such diversity, we experience Creator’s ever-present, justice-making through love unconditional.
I am grateful for the members of St. Andrew’s Board of Regents, staff and faculty, and the friends of the college who are in attendance, following the end of our May meetings.
So, here’s what last Friday looked like as I prepared these remarks …
All I had written was:
It’s a hard world out there …
The cursor blinking, I wondered: so what?
I got up from my desk and went to hear the robins sing, Magpies babble, and crows caw …
It’s a hard world out there …
The cursor was still blinking. Again: so what?
I got up again and visited the lilac budding and garlic chives bravely standing tall out of soil not long ago frozen …
It’s a hard world out there …
The cursor continued to wink cynically: so what?
Well, stuck, I shut off my computer and walked into a spring day that, though late to arrive, gloriously welcomed me …
Jump to Sunday. Weeklong meetings are about to begin, and all I have is …
It’s a hard world out there …
There is no denying this. It is as old as our millennia long Christian journey.
As we long to be released from the pandemic’s grip, families are splintered politically, people continue to die of opioid addiction, and our mental health has suffered. Whether in families or congregations [this modifies what comes next – which should be we], we have struggled to gather as caring communities. It has not been an easy time.
It’s a hard world out there …
One need not look very hard to see leadership that has failed so absolutely it is almost comical. People suffer the rise of totalitarian absolutism, antisemitism is growing, nuclear threats are recklessly bandied, and the least endure missiles that slam into day cares and hospitals.
It’s a hard world out there …
As shadows gather, our denomination is confronted by contraction. COVID has exacerbated unstable fault lines, and our college is not immune. During crisis, questions of mission and stability grow into difficult, stark, and challenging conversations.
However…
We celebrate convocation today because of a radical Rabbi’s choices, choices that led to the inevitable conclusion of Empire’s logic. His body was broken by the executioners’ horrors, and the Emperor’s oppressive systems seemed to win. But the story doesn’t end there. In fact, that’s where our story begins …
Our story begins with resurrection: Love wins. We are transformed. At times we do not recognise ourselves, but always the Easter story is played out.
Love: This is our Story
Congregations now gather virtually and in-person, as community unbounded by geography, to grieve and to celebrate. This expanded community recalls and honours the wisdom of those who have died, and celebrates the hope born through baptism and marriage’s Covenants.
Love: This is our Story
For each graduate and Honorary Doctorate recipient this evening, you embody how we address political and unjust systems. Whether you find yourselves advocating for justice or offering pastoral care, these are radical ways to mend the world.
Love: This is our Story
Saskatoon Theological Union Community
Finally, as institutions struggle to find their way in a sea of change, from denominational contraction to the effects of climate crisis, I will leave you with what transformation looks like for St. Andrew’s.
I am excited to share that, as of April 30th, The United Church of Canada has approved the appointment of three new faculty positions, which will support the Saskatoon Theological Union’s closer academic relationship.
Dr Lynn Caldwell will assume the tenured position as the new Professor of Theological Ethics. She says:
One of the things that St. Andrew’s College and the Saskatoon Theological Union do, is to hold space and to keep creating new spaces, for deep study and practical experience. This is creative, critical, active, faithful, and theological work that requires involvement in the world; that is a very good thing, this is a very good place, and now is a very good time to get to it.
Dr Becca Whitla will assume the tenure track position as the new Professor of Practical Ministry, and she reflects:
I always throw my whole self, especially my heart, into everything I do. At St. Andrew’s, I have been deeply moved by the legacy and witness of justice on the prairies. I look forward being part of the future of the Saskatoon Theological Union as it ministers to, speaks to, and speaks from the church at the margins while reflecting God’s beloved community and the liberating love at the heart of the Gospel.
Dr Bernon Lee will assume the tenure track position as Professor of Hebrew Scriptures and our first Educational Coordinator of the College’s Lifelong Learning Pathway, and he shares:
The warm welcome and care showered upon me by the St. Andrew’s community through my time of transition to life here at the college have gladdened my heart and confirmed to me Spirit’s abiding presence in this place. As I walk into my new role, I aspire to live into the magnanimity of that hospitality in our shared path.
Finally, with our renewed faculty complement, transformation for St. Andrew’s College also includes a deepening Covenant with our Saskatoon Theological Union partners, new collaboration with St Thomas More College, and a commitment to the ongoing renewal of our academic and lifelong learning pathways.
It’s a hard world out there, but Love IS our story, Love crucified and risen and ever present. Thanks be to God. Amen.
Yup it’s a hard world out there. But no harder than before. We just need to stay focused and put one foot in front of the other.
Thanks, Rob. Resilience and persistence seem like faithful reservoirs form which to draw sometimes!