we are not alone

Arthur Van Seters, Principal Emeritus, Knox College, Toronto, in his inspiring essay "Evangelical Faith and the Radical Compassion of Love for the World" from the PCC Social Action Handbook, writes:

"Such stories [Jesus' parables] are sometimes introduced with the phrase “the Kingdom of heaven (or God) is like…” which signals a new order where God’s reign is everywhere evident. The parables, in other words, picture another way of being where the rejected and the unworthy are included, where evil systems are undermined and where generosity reaches beyond merit to grace.

How might the agenda for the church reflect this new order? Back in 1997 the World Alliance of Reformed Churches met in General Council in Debrecen, Hungary. It published a far-reaching Declaration which begins with a theological affirmation:

“We belong – body and soul, in life and death –not to ourselves but to our faithful Saviour Jesus Christ.”

This is followed by a confession of moral failure and complicity in adding to the world’s burdens and allows for a movement to claim new life that relies on the promises of God to break the chains of injustice.

Finally the statement moves to a litany that links the phrase “we are not alone” with a set of affirmations.

We are not alone - we will be stewards of creation.
We are not alone - no human ideology or agenda holds the secret of history.
We are not alone - we are in solidarity with the poor.
We are not alone - human beings are not commodities.
We are not alone - we are called to build a new community with a simple lifestyle.
We are not alone - we do not despair for God reigns.
We are not alone - with all God’s people we welcome and proclaim God’s glory."