Faith Stories that have brought us where we are

When I asked our first guest interviewee, Doral Main, to send me a brief biography, one of the things she said about herself, which I then asked her about on Sunday, was that she was a fourth-generation Disciple. She could trace her faith lineage back to her great-grandparents in our denomination.

This has always intrigued me because I am something of a denominational mongrel in my ancestry as well as having been a bit nomadic in my own faith journey. As many of you know, I was baptized in a Methodist church, became Presbyterian in my teens, attended a joint UCC/American Baptist seminary, and was ordained and find myself at home in the Disciples of Christ now. But it doesn't stop there: In my family, we are represented still among both the Methodists and the Presbyterians. My Mother was brought up Presbyterian and my Father was Methodist and Congregationalist. My grandparents came from German Reformed (one of the predecessor denominations of the present day UCC), Congregationalist (another denomination in the UCC mix), Methodist, and Lutheran backgrounds.

I know in Chalice we have folks who were brought up in American Baptist, Roman Catholic, Methodist, Congregational, and Southern Baptist churches and some have little or no church involvement in their childhood and youth. And, yes, we have those dyed in the wool Disciples who, like Doral, trace their faith ancestry back to folks who may have known Alexander Campbell or Barton Stone. (I know I'm likely leaving out someone's background so I apologize if yours isn't in the list.)

But here we are, a wonderful mix of God's people, called together in one body. Naming and claiming our background in faith does not make us more or less Christian or even more or less Disciples. But our background, history, and heritage are important parts of our make-up as people of faith, seeking to hear God's call and to let the Light of Christ burn within us and from us.

Take a moment to remember those whose faith stories are intertwined with your own. Some, like my own Methodist/Congregationalist minister grandfather who died many years before I was born, we may have never met; some have been as close to us physically as our own breath; some are related by blood; some we claim as members of our family of faith. Remember those whose lives are inextricably woven into the fabric of your faith story. Remember and give thanks and know that the Light within you has been sparked by them.

Pace e Bene,
Gerry