Let me be clear, this is an Elmwood Village event, not a Lafayette Church event. EVA does not endorse any religion, and this event is about fashion and the Elmwood Village; it happens in a church building, but it obviously isn't "church."
I've been asked a lot of questions about the show. Should a church involve itself at all with an event like this? Aren't we compromising by setting up a catwalk? Allowing drinks to be served? Partnering with an organization that has no religious identity?
We wrestled with these questions together. Though some disagree, I think we made the right choice in working with the EVA. Though I want to ordinarily make this space about theological reflection (and next week we will get ready for Halloween by tackling theodicy), but this week I would like to share the sermon I wrote when I imagined what I might say at a fashion show. Thanks for indulging one week of preaching (it's hard for a preacher not to preach all the time!)
Should we really bring all of "this"--into a church's building? Should the "sacred" and the "secular" mix?
When Jesus was on earth, his accusers said, "This man welcomes sinners and eats with them."
And Jesus told them with three short stories.
The first story was about a shepherd who had 100 sheep, but when one was lost, he leaves the others, searches for it, and when it is found, gathers his friends to celebrate.
In the second story, a woman had 10 coins but lost one. Then she swept the whole house, searching every space until she found it. Upon finding it, she gathers her friends to celebrate.
Finally, in the last story, a man had a son who demanded that he receive his inheritance early. The son left him, squandered the money and ruined his family name. Completely defeated, he decided to come back home and ask his father to receive him- not as a son, which he knew he didn't deserve, but as servant.
His father had been watching for him, so he saw the son approaching in the distance and immediately began running toward him. His run did not end in an attack, but an embrace. The son began to apologize, but the father wouldn't hear it. Instead, he threw a party for his son, who was lost, but had been found.
The God that is worshiped in this room is not a God who is afraid to associate with anybody. Not even those who would never darken the doors of church. No, Our God is a God who celebrates the lost being found.
And so, we believe it is worth risking everything to find what has been lost. Even if it means hosting a fashion show.
We're not worried about mixing the "sacred" with the "secular." We're more concerned with that which has been separated being re-connected.
I don't know there are any people like the son in that story here today, but I suspect there might be. If you identify with him, our message is simple: come home. It's not judgment that awaits, but a party.
For discussion:
Do you worry about the sacred and the secular missing?
Do you worry about that which has been torn apart, bring back together?
Do you believe in "sacred space?" Why/why not?
Should other Buffalo sacred spaces be opened to such events?
How can religious communities move from judging those who separate, to celebrating those who unite?
Amazing event last year, especially if you sat in the front couple of rows. Well worth the price.