This Friday, I’ll be driving up to Mendocino so that on Saturday morning I can attend a memorial service for a woman named Nancy who was the mother of one of my childhood friends. Most of us understand that it takes a village to raise a child, and the woman whose life we’ll be honoring on Saturday was, like many of the adults with whom I interacted as a child, a member of Mendocino Presbyterian Church, which, during my formative years, was the village that guided my upbringing.
There was nothing formal about my relationship with Nancy. As far as I know she never was one of my Sunday School teachers, and while she and her husband were great supporters of the youth program, she didn’t participate directly in the leadership of the youth group.
But Nancy interacted with me directly at church. She talked to me and, on occasion, dispensed wisdom that usually was unsolicited and always was much-needed. When we talked Nancy respected me and expected to be respected in return, and it wasn’t just me. She knew all of her children’s friends by name and was a “village elder” to each of us.
Nancy was a living example of what it means to take one’s baptismal vows seriously. When we baptize children we promise to be a village of support for them and for their families. We promise to provide strong Christian Education and youth programs for them but more than that, we promise to befriend those who are baptized and to respect them enough to give them the gifts of our attention and our wisdom, just like Nancy did.
After celebration last Sunday, Mariah Carray and Jay Gregory spoke to us about work they have done in Bolivia and in Peru. It was inspiring to see young adults, who’ve been raised in our congregation, out making a difference in the world, and it was heartening to see the love and support they get from the village that raised them. Clearly, for Mariah and for Jay, there have been many folks like Nancy, people who have honored the baptismal vows and have been wise guides in the difficult journey of becoming adults.
Thanks for all you do, and may God bless us all!
Ben