The writers draw upon the profound Biblical image of
gathering around the table, and Jesus invites all of his followers to
draw together around his table. It is a table for sharing a meal, but
also for talking together. It must be a table where all are welcome, as
they were at Jesus' table. It must be a table where all are heard with
respect and tenderness.
We gather around this table in prayer. Prayer is an
attitude of caring for others without grasping, and so we must gather
seeking unity not as a thing to be grasped, but as a matter of openness
to the new and the unexpected.
Around this table, we may yet discover that the Gospel
that claims us is one Word: the word of God's gracious love that
embraces all of God's creation. We will learn that dialogue does not
deny Christ's presence, but opens us further to it.
It is for the recovery of that Gospel, the whole
Gospel, that the Witherspoon Society has committed itself to a project
of study, action and reflection for the next few years. We will seek
congregations which are effectively proclaiming and acting out the
fullness of the Good News of God's love, and will share what they are
doing as models for our whole church.
Proclaiming and living out the whole Gospel is not a
matter of being on the right or on the left. It is a matter of loving in
imitation of God's love: loving the sick into health, the silenced ones
into speaking for themselves, the excluded into full membership in the
family of God. It is a matter of speaking and of acting; of caring for
people one by one, and seeking changes in society that make life better
for all people.
Our deep hope is that this project may in some small
way help all of us toward following the third way -- the way of peace,
of justice, of the Gospel.
The Executive Committee of The Witherspoon Society
February 12, 2001
Please send
us your comments!
