Curious… Very Curious.
The next worship series is on deck!
From time to time, I get sucked into a good murder mystery. The less expressly realistic, the better. I’m not here for the gory details or the moments of depravity; I’m here for the curiosity.
In a good mystery, you wonder and discover your way through the lives of everyone involved: the suspects, the witnesses, the deceased, even the detectives themselves.
Classically, the dead-ends and plot twists teach a good detective (or mystery reading/watching onlooker) that assumptions and premature judgment are the fastest way to get yourself stuck - or stuck with the wrong answer. Instead, we follow the detectives as they ask questions born of curiosity, knowing that there’s a long journey from a hunch to a closed case.
The mystery of life in community is that the case is never closed.
Murder mystery curiosity is not quite the same kind as what we work with in our life of faith. Ours is not a curiosity searching for exact answers, nor is it a curiosity in search of gossip. It is a curiosity that breeds… more curiosity. Questions that are not dead ends but raise more curious questions.
As people who are called to be neighbors to one another, curiosity creates connection. Judgment, on the other hand, causes separation. We know all about that. It sometimes feels as if life in 2025 is mostly judgment and separation. But when we are curious about one another, it forces us to withhold that judgment; I can’t be curious about someone if I already think I know all the answers about them or about their actions.
This July we need curiosity, because now more than ever, our world needs connection. When we are connected, our whole world stands a better chance of a better tomorrow. When we are connected, our local communities can bind together in support, compassion, and action.
Curiosity not only creates connection, it’s also enjoyable (sort of like a good mystery is enjoyable).
Aren’t you curious about the people who sit two pews in front of you? What brought them to the church? What are their lives like? What makes them smile? What’s the worst joke they’ve heard?
Aren’t you curious about the folks who parked next to you? How are they faring this year? Do they have family who are celebrating or struggling? What’s their favorite thing about summer in the northwest? And why did they only leave two inches between the cars?
This summer, we’re getting curious.
We’ll start with next month’s worship series, I’ve Been Meaning to Ask…
We’ll focus on curiosity, courage, and connection through four questions:
Where are you from? Where does it hurt? What do you need? Where do we go from here?
We will learn (or re-learn) how to ask curious questions and practice the vulnerability and courage to not only ask these questions but also to answer them. Our practice with one another will be taken out into our daily lives, multiplying the impact of connection that our community makes.
During coffee hour, we’ll have a Conversation Corner available to anyone who wants to sit down and be curious. Whether you end up listening or sharing or a mix of both, this will be a chance for us to get to know each other past the friendly smile during the Passing of the Peace.
If you worship with us online, we can set you up with a pen pal with whom to ask some curious questions.
I can’t wait for this series because getting to connect with and learn about you is one of the best parts of pastoring. Even better is getting to watch you all connect meaningfully with each other and with our community. I know we all scatter to the winds during our beautiful summer, but I hope you’ll make every effort to join in on our curiosity. We want to connect with you.
By the time you read this, many of us will be at the Oregon-Idaho Annual Conference (this year hosted in Salem by our friend Rev. Ethan). Amidst the business of the annual conference with its legislation, voting, commemorations, and celebration of ministry, we will also make time to be curious. Our session starts on Juneteenth, so we’ll be curious about how we can continue to work toward liberation and emancipation for all of God’s beloved. We’ll also be curious about how we can understand the story taught to us by the very land we stand on. In these circumstances, the goal is for these wonderings to lead us to some sort of truth (different from an answer) and for that truth to lead us to action.
This Sunday, June 22, Rev. Lowell will finish our series on Things Jesus Didn’t Say with a word on what Jesus did say and how that guides our lives. Next Sunday, June 29, we are excited to share the 3 new initiatives that have come from our visioning and strategic planning work.
Take a break from flying, hiking, and berry picking, and join the excitement and curiosity. We’ll see you there!
In gratitude,
Pastor Karyn