Resolutions
By the Rev. Charlie Dupree
New Year’s Resolutions. I can’t help but notice that a building block of the word “resolution” is the word “solve.” If something, dissolves, it loses its shape or its form. It becomes loose and formless. To “resolve,” then, is to bring back into shape . . . to keep from becoming boundary-less. Hence, resolutions. They keep us on track.
Don’t get me wrong. There is a time and a place for being relaxed. There is much gain that can come from exploration – of doing nothing. Somehow, though, when the new year comes around, we’re called to ask ourselves, “What is important? What is serving us? What is not serving us?”
While I appreciate the value of the custom of making resolutions once a year, you and I are a part of a custom that allows for resolutions every week. It’s called church. Every week, we learn how to reorient ourselves in life. We reacquaint ourselves with our boundaries. As disciples, we sit at the feet of Jesus and remember what it means to follow in the footsteps of our Lord who taught about compassion and justice and care for those who are on the margins of society. Each week, we come to church. We confess. We pray. We are fed. We remember that we are blessed. We remember that we have gifts to offer. We remember that we are anything BUT shapeless, for our Lord has shaped us and continues to give shape to who we are and who we are called to be.
Each week, we make several resolutions. We resolve to live in peace. We resolve to love God. We resolve to love our neighbor. We resolve to live gently. These are the resolutions that shape our spirits and our lives and, we pray, the resolutions that will shape a better world for us and for all of God’s children.
See you in Church!
Charlie+
Rector, St. Paul’s Episcopal Church
Richmond, Virginia
Preferred pronouns: he, him, his