Performative Piety & the Way of Love
A mash up of texts and themes from Isaiah and the gospels inspired by a talk by the Atlantic Rep for MCC one Sunday morning.
Andrea and I have been visiting the province of New Brunswick on Canada’s East Coast. We found ourselves in a lovely church community in St. Stephens. A rep from MCC (Mennonite Central Committee) was sharing his experiences of a recent trip to Guatemala. They framed their talk around Isaiah 58 and led us to reflect on the nature of a true fast (or loving well).
This message has been bouncing around our hearts this week and found itself bubbling up in conversation and in prayer. As such I have mashed some of this text with other snippets of big ideas in other parts of Isaiah and the gospels with a dash of Open & Relational theology. If nothing more, it is just a means for me to continue to reflect and tease out any invitations of the Spirit… and maybe how best to respond.
The Way of Love
Is your piety a bowed head,
a reed bent low in ritual wind
tithes counted, Sundays filled,
a hollow fast, a sacred show?
Look at me!
Is this the fast I desire?
Not smoke, nor stage, nor circus praise
Spare me the flash, the brand-name faith.
Instead—
Unbind the chains,
shatter the boots that crush and steal
undo the deal of greed and gain
that devours people and planet alike.
Be water for the withered,
relief for the pressed-down poor
flip the tables of a rigged world.
Break your bread for the hungry,
open your doors to the drifting soul.
Clothe the bare, not just in fabric -
but in dignity.
Do not avert your eyes -
For they are your own, your flesh and blood.
Let your giving be a quiet river,
hands not watching each other,
prayers rising behind closed doors,
faces washed, egos drowned.
For those who boast -
they have their reward.
But you,
Draw deeper still.
Dig through dust to find the source,
into the aquifer of the soul,
where torrents of living water flow,
from the fountainhead of Love.
And oh! How sudden we’ll stumble
into Salvation.
The desert shall break into bloom
lupins, wild roses, buttercups blaze,
even rocks will sing,
and trees will dance.
They shall see the glory of Love,
the radiant essence of God.
Stand with the brokenhearted,
help them rise,
help them speak.
Say to the fearful
Take heart, do not be afraid!
Love is here.
The God who is Love
calls us
to co-create justice,
to cultivate joy,
to labour for flourishing.
Then the blind will see it,
the deaf will hear the song,
the lame will dance,
and the voiceless will sing out loud.
In wilderness and wasteland alike
shall spring up pools and rivers -
the dead places will bloom again,
a fertile refuge,
with plenty for plenty.
So friends,
walk this Way with me
The Way of Love.
So simple,
a road for young and old,
for weary feet and trembling hearts.
Can your hear it?
Songs of Love will lead us.
Melodies of peace, joy, gladness
and at last,
the dirge of sorrow
will yield to the song
of new hope.
__________
Sola Caritas,
𝞃Michael
More Stuff:
So What? Big Ideas and why they Matter Podcast
The fellas discuss their recent conversation with Stacy Madden and think out loud about our relationship with out bodies. - Check out this new podcast. Available on Youtube or wherever you get your favourite Podcasts.
🇨🇦 Canadians 🇨🇦 - Looking for an affirming, supportive and collaborative community? The Mosaic is a collective of faithful, forgiving friends exploring and practicing affirming, spacious orthodoxy while experimenting with alternative, entrepreneurial and relational expressions of God’s Kin-dom. Check it out
ORTcon 2025. In Wyoming's breathtaking Grand Teton mountains, ORTCON25 gathers scholars, leaders, pastors, and activists to explore a variety of topics from an Open and Relational Theological perspective. The conference provides workshops, lectures, and social activities to deepen relationships and present new ways of imagining God and the universe.