Liturgy: “Roots Away from the Mountains”
The words of the prophet Jeremiah to the Jewish exiles in Babylon resonate with the younger version of me that is still inside somewhere—that Midwestern kid who planned to stay just one year and thought he was living a temporary life. Live in this place as if it is your home, God says. Take care of the land and property you find yourself in, forge lasting friendships and loves with the people around you, and carry those even into the next generation. Most important, “seek the peace and prosperity of the city.”
What is the King’s Liturgy? King’s Liturgy defines our experience together as a Christian community. It outlines the rhythms we celebrate with the Church at large: Scripture readings, Sabbath habits, and celebration of Holy Days and historical events.
This Week’s Lectionary Readings
Jeremiah 29:1, 4-7
Psalm 66:1-11
Luke 17:11-19
2 Timothy 2:8-15
This week’s liturgy is contributed by Ethan Campbell, Associate Professor of English and Literature:
When I moved to Brooklyn after college, I planned to stay for a year and get some experience in ministry at a drug rehab center. Once I got the desired amount of experience, I thought I would move away, preferably to a place that had mountains. On every wall of my shoebox-sized bedroom, I taped posters of the peaks in Rocky Mountain National Park that I had climbed in summers past. After hard days, I would stare at them and think: soon.
As you can guess from the fact that I still live in New York City, I didn’t follow that plan. A year later, the posters had come down and a year after that, I could hardly imagine living anywhere else. I’ve lived in Brooklyn nearly half my life and I have put down deep roots. I’ve lived in the same neighborhood (Park Slope), attended the same church (Resurrection Brooklyn), and worked for the same institution (King’s) for going on thirteen years. I met my wife Alice here, and we are raising two kids who will always be New Yorkers, no matter where they move. If they ever live in the Rockies, I expect them to gaze longingly at posters of skyscrapers.
The words of the prophet Jeremiah to the Jewish exiles in Babylon resonate with the younger version of me that is still inside somewhere—that Midwestern kid who planned to stay just one year and thought he was living a temporary life. Live in this place as if it is your home, God says. Take care of the land and property you find yourself in, forge lasting friendships and loves with the people around you, and carry those even into the next generation. Most important, “seek the peace and prosperity of the city.”
None of us are exactly in exile the way the Israelites were—we’ve all chosen to be here—but what we have in common is that God has called us to live in New York City for at least a season. While we are here, how can we seek its peace and prosperity?
One clear way, which you’ve no doubt heard the Student Life staff at King’s emphasize many times, is to get involved with a local church. Another way is simply to be unafraid to put down roots. Get to know your neighbors; join a club; volunteer; make lasting bonds with the people in your life right now. God may ask you to pull up those roots at a later time, but for now, don’t live a temporary life.