Thursday, September 15, 2016

Created and Creating...

Image result for Iceland geothermal vents

We are not alone,
    we live in God’s world.

 We believe in God:
    
who has created and is creating,
    who has come in Jesus,
       the Word made flesh,
       to reconcile and make new,
    who works in us and others
       by the Spirit.

We trust in God...

New Creed of the United Church 1968

Yesterday morning we were walking the streets of lovely downtown Reykjavik, Iceland, then drove to the airport through lava fields which look like a lunar landscape. This morning I am at Bridge St. UC preparing for worship and musing about our spectacular vacation.

We loved Iceland with its geothermal hotspots and stories of volcanic eruptions in the not-too-distant past. We visited the geyser pictured above. We were grateful that news reports about the imminent eruption of Katla, one of  those volcanos were exaggerated, especially since two of our guesthouses gave us views of the mountain! Everywhere there is evidence that this island nation is young, at least from a geological outlook, and constantly changing.


At one point I commented to Ruth that it is sad that some conservative Christians hold to the notion of a six-day, finite Creation as a central tenet of faith. All around us was the evidence that creation is still unfolding, and it is wondrous. I had the same sense of awe and connection to the Creator when I was in Yellowstone park in the US several summers ago.

Image result for Iceland lava fieldsWe are in Creation Time in the liturgical calendar and I felt that we were immersed in the marvellous work of the God "who has created and is creating." Why would any of us want to limit the divine imagination and creativity to a matter of days?

Comments?

1 comment:

Unknown said...

I love this way of thinking...that is one of the reasons I am in the UCC.