Pastor's Midweek Message

July 1, 2026

Beloved,

This past weekend, America celebrated its 250th birthday. I wanted to take a moment today to recognize, honor, and bring a word into that special day.

The Fourth has always been special to me. My grandfather was one of a set of neighbors who, in 1955, decided to throw a block party for the neighborhood. They arranged for the city to close off their block, and the neighborhood would hold games for the kids, a parade, and cookouts all up and down Fairview Avenue. By the time I could start going in the 1970s, I remember every July being spent there through high school. The spirit of the day was genuine community, and pride at being American—from those who had been on the block forever, to the newly-naturalized citizens who moved in a few houses away. Flags, bunting, and decorating our bikes for the Fourth were the order of the day. My grandfather passed away in 1997, and we still went for a few years after that, as my uncle still lived there: we helped mark the 50th anniversary of the block party with the next generation now riding its bikes in the parade.

It felt real, and I remember those days fondly. I have a deep sense of patriotism, then, which doubtless helped fuel both my studying political science in college, then working for the Federal government for 32 years.

For us as a nation to have made it to 250 is wonderful. We have been tested throughout our history: from invasion, to civil war, to societal upheaval, to economic depression, to surprise attack and global conflict, to more societal upheaval...we have seen it all.

I love moments when we come together authentically. After 9/11, we were unified as a people in the face of terrorism. In Covid, we lifted one another up via Zoom, or by supporting healthcare workers, or in myriad other ways.

And I lament moments when we prize division over unity. Whenever one group of people denies the image of God within another—whether in antebellum plantations, or along the Trail of Tears, or in denying people the right to vote—I believe God weeps too. Winston Churchill is quoted as saying that democracy is the worst form of government, but we’ve tried all the others and they’re even worse. Our democracy may not be perfect—but we are called to perfection, both by our Lord, and by our founding charter, which urges us “to form a more perfect union.” We are called always to become better versions of ourselves—and when we do, we cannot help but become a better version of our country. We are called by the Declaration we honored this weekend to respect that “all” are created equal. As Christians, this is a foundational truth that partisanship cannot, must not, overtake.

For America to endure 250 years is wonderful. For America to make it to 300, I pray we re-discover the meaning of the kinds of simple pride and community that I found on Fairview Avenue; that we re-discover the reality that we are all equal in God’s eyes, equally beloved, equally prized, regardless of any of the labels our media might want to put on us. And, in doing so, that we re-discover our common purpose—to form a more perfect union—and recommit ourselves to that noble goal.

So let’s go.

Grace and peace,

Pastor Eric