As we enter October, ghosts are on our minds. That’s our monthly worship theme—and Day of the Dead, Samhain, and Halloween all fall at the end of this month—and if you haven’t seen the recent Ghostbusters movie, we recommend it! But even if none of that resonates with you, it’s worth keeping those ghosts in mind, anyway.
A historic congregation has a lot of ghosts, though perhaps not of the spooky, floating apparition type. Ghosts here might mean those habits, thoughts, and ideas that have come down to us from those who were here before. Many of these are friendly ghosts—think “Casper”—that are still providing helpful information, grounding, and guidance for us as we move into the future. Others might have been great ideas of their time that it is now time to let go of as we move forward.
In our own lives, we carry similar ghosts at times. Opportunities missed, people who are no longer with us, or choices that didn’t work out (or even the ones that did but meant another possibility was lost!). For many, this is a time of year to ponder these and consider how we might move forward, with or without them.
And as we barrel on towards Election Day in November, let’s remember that our country has a lot of ghosts, too, those specters of the past that continue to haunt us: racism, sexism, poverty, economic inequality. As the great writer William Faulkner once put it, “The past is never dead. It’s not even past.” We live with both the gifts and challenges of the past, and it’s up to each of us to reckon with these. Recently, San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick has made headlines for not standing during the national anthem at his team’s games. Many have criticized him and called him unpatriotic. Others have praised him for highlighting the U.S.A.’s deeply troubled relationship with people of color, and a national anthem written by a slaveholder that recalls capturing slaves who have sought freedom. Whatever one might think of Kaepernick’s decision, I’m grateful to him for pushing us to consider deeply and critically something many of us take for granted.
As we move through October, I hope you will take time to consider our ghosts, that we might learn, love, and come together in community.
In faith,
Rev. Christian
