2 Timothy 1:3–11
“I am grateful to God—whom I worship with a clear conscience, as my ancestors did—when I remember you constantly in my prayers night and day. Recalling your tears, I long to see you so that I may be filled with joy. I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that lived first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, lives in you. For this reason I remind you to rekindle the gift of God that is within you through the laying on of my hands, for God did not give us a spirit of cowardice but rather a spirit of power and of love and of self-discipline. Do not be ashamed, then, of the testimony about our Lord or of me his prisoner, but join with me in suffering for the gospel, relying on the power of God, who saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works but according to his own purpose and grace. This grace was given to us in Christ Jesus before the ages began, but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.”
The Rev. Dr. Fahed Abu-Akel was elected Moderator of the General Assembly of the PC(USA) in 2002, becoming the first Arab American to lead a major U.S. denomination. While Moderator, his top priorities for the denomination were spiritual renewal, a focus on local and global missions, and a commitment to cultivate unity in diversity. Abu-Akel led with faith that was influenced by his experience of becoming a refugee as a young child during the 1948 war in Palestine. In the midst of danger, fear and uncertainty, Abu-Akel discovered hope in a broken world through Jesus Christ. This hope, he says, is something he discovered and is still discovering.
Any time I meet someone or hear about someone who is the first person of their background in a certain position, I celebrate how far we’ve come and simultaneously grieve about how long it took to get to this point. As an ordained clergyperson in the PC(USA), I have been privileged to have met both the first white female and the first African American female ordained as clergy in the PC(USA). It is remarkable to have met them but sobering to realize we have lived within the same lifetime.
On this World Communion Sunday, let us give thanks for our ancestors and predecessors in the faith who come from every corner of God’s diverse world. Let us find hope in the faith they lived and in the doors they opened for others to live and lead in faith as well. But let us not stop there. Let us consider the tears and the joy these leaders in the faith experienced and the courage, self-discipline, and love it took to cling to their faith in Jesus Christ and trust in the power of God to help us overcome prejudice, racism, sexism (and the many other -isms) in order to live fully into who God was calling them and Christ’s church to be.
Today, congregations throughout the PC(USA) will receive the Peace & Global Witness Offering. While some congregations receive this offering on a Sunday throughout A Season of Peace, most congregations participate on World Communion Sunday. This day is an ecumenical celebration of our oneness in the Spirit and the Gospel of Jesus Christ, bringing churches together in Christian unity. The Offering supports peace education and reconciliation on the local, presbytery and global levels.
As we give thanks for their lives of faith, may our vision today be expanded to notice the gifts of God in others while we also allow the Spirit to rekindle the gifts of God in ourselves. We need all the gifts from all God’s people to be valued, and we need to work together as we journey in faith toward the fullness of God’s justice, peace, unity and love.
2025 A Season of Peach, Path of Peace Reflections
Prayer: God, thank you for all those who have come before us who have helped further the ways your church has lived out your all-inclusive welcome, not just in word but in action and leadership. Keep expanding our visions of what faith and church should look like. Give us courage to be companions with others of diverse backgrounds, to listen and learn from one another, and to discern how together we can further God’s peace, unity, welcome and love in every corner of the world. As we journey together, may we remember that we do not do so by our own power, but by your power in Jesus Christ. Amen.
The Rev. Dr. Allysen Schaaf serves as a pastor in Charlotte, North Carolina, at Sardis Presbyterian Church. She enjoys being a part of community building and God’s mission wherever she goes. Her doctoral research focused on postcolonial mission and congregational practices of mission has inspired her to continue learning from others and to critique and adapt the ways in which we engage in God’s mission with our neighbors near and far.
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