As Jesus came out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him, “Look, Teacher, what large stones and what large buildings!” Then Jesus asked him, “Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down. [Mark’s Gospel 13.1-2]

It is in our current parlance to speak of Builders, Boomers, Gens X & Y & Z. The generations which have shaped our community and culture, and the generations which now attempt to locate themselves within both of those.

I belonged to a youth group in the cusp of the 70s and 80s, as we tried to unshackle the strictures of our parents’ and grandparents’ generations and to shape our own sense of place and faith. We were both successful and not; however, one consequence for me is the sense that whatever we have built is ephemeral. It cannot last, and it should not.

I try to grasp the hope of those who midwifed the life of the Uniting Church, who imagined a church grafted together from three plants, and hoping for more in the generations ahead. When I read the Basis of Union, our founding statement, I don’t discern a desire for establishment of property and permanence, but a conversation enthusiastic about pilgrimage, a movement that “does not have a continuing city but seeks one to come”.

Notwithstanding the prophetic hope of our parents and grandparents as they led these faith traditions into Union, and the confronting gospel words of Jesus, so much of our time and effort has been centred on the establishment and maintenance of a city which we want to last, but which simply can not.

As the structures shift and change, and sometimes crumble, how are we able to face the community in which we live – and for which Christ died?

At the moment, I particularly treasure the fourth paragraph of the Basis,

The Uniting Church acknowledges that the Church is able to live and endure through the changes of history only because its Lord comes, addresses, and deals with people in and through the news of his completed work. Christ who is present when he is preached among people is the Word of God who acquits the guilty, who gives life to the dead and who brings into being what otherwise could not exist.

The story of God in Jesus is sufficient for the days in which we live. We speak in the mercy of God to the place in which we find ourselves, not hankering for the days which have passed.

The buildings will fall, as they must, but the city which is founded in Jesus will not only last, but has hospitality for all. How does our witness, our worship and our service reflect Jesus’ vast and wonderful invitation, and that profound hope?

May God bless us for this pilgrimage!