Last week, I noticed this rather immense collection of cars in the parking lots around the Methodist church just down the road from our home. It wasn’t on a weekend though. So, something was obviously amiss. All I saw was this little sign at one of the entrances: “Celebrating Methodist Missions in Ohio, Korea, and Beyond.” That seemed like an…interesting connection to be made with a country nearly 7,000 miles away. So, of course, that led to some internet researching:
Celebrating the 140th Anniversary of Ohio Missionaries Introducing Methodism to Korea
Join us in celebrating Mary and William Scranton – the first missionaries to Korea – and the lives they have impacted because of the churches, hospitals, and schools they helped start.
The Korean Methodist Church was founded 140 years ago by American Methodist Episcopal missionaries that included Dr. William B. Scranton and his mother, Mary Scranton, the first female missionary of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Both William and Mary were residents of Cleveland, Ohio, for two years prior to leaving for the Korean Mission. It is with joy we celebrate this Korea/Ohio connection.
That is supposed to be one of our biblical callings and all: “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:19-20 NRSVUE). I will be the first to admit that I cannot even begin to imagine what Mary and William Scranton went through long ago, let alone all the missionaries since.
Granted, in this day in age, there might be some…complications. After all, we recognize the church, when sending its missionaries to whatever place and people, did not always have the loving-your-neighbor-as-yourself best of intentions. We insisted people give up treasured parts of their history and heritage and identity, because we were convinced our way of doing Methodist this or Lutheran that was…well, pure and holy.
We may not be quite as high and mighty about such things now (still have our moments, though), but then we must wonder if we’ve gone to the opposite extreme: that religion and politics amongst other “personal” matters cannot be discussed around the dinner table or on the street corner or in any foreign nation or the public sphere as a whole. Of course, in doing so, we haven’t just thrown out the opportunities to dive into the seemingly judgment-filled and guilt-ridden sections of Scripture and our church history, but we’ve thrown out the chances for the honest conversations to whole-hearted recognition of past and present mistakes, leading into the ultimate encapsulation of the Gospel for love and compassion and grace for the die-hard Christians and those who’ve never set foot in a church building any day of the week.
In the end, I suppose we are all called to be missionaries: it’s just the expectation isn’t to move thousands of miles away and convert the masses to the strictest interpretation of Methodist this or Lutheran that. We are called to be missionaries to people next door, to those we’re stuck with waiting in line, to those who randomly come into our life. Maybe we won’t sit them down and dive deep into everything from Genesis to Revelation along with some Martin Luther history thrown in for good measure, but we can still proclaim whatever form of love and compassion and grace fitting for that particular moment. We may not convert them to Methodist this or Lutheran that, but if we can get them to fall in love with the hope meant for this whole world to enjoy; to remember the one who is with us always, to the end of the age: then, that might be the holy starting point needed for their very heart to be fuller than those parking lots last week. Amen (so let it be)!
In Christ,
Pastor Brad