Stewardship and Terrain (Land)

Stewardship and Terrain (Land)

Psalm 24 is an entrance liturgy. Imagine yourself entering church this week in a call and response hymn; one group singing, “the earth belongs to a glorious God and everything in it.” Then another group answers with the question, who is this God of glory.” A move like this would shift our hearts and mind to a greater sense of worship. I believe this is the aim of Psalm 24.

In poetic form, it describes the contrasting natures of the God who enters into human space. The opening verses assert that the earth belongs to God because God created it. The rhetorical point scored is that the earthly sphere–into which God moves in this psalm–is already God’s because God created it.  Next, the poem zooms in from the universal focus to the Temple in Jerusalem–the intersection between heaven and earth. Then ask, who may traverse from the profane space of the world into the holy space of God's Temple? The surprise is that the requirements for this are not ritual but moral.

In reading Psalm 24, one gets a sense of wondering if entering into God’s holy space requires one to leave something at the altar, so to speak, then one also leaves the altar with something sacred: a blessing from the Lord.

This week’s theme is Stewardship and Terrain (Land), which asks the question, how do we live with respect in creation as stewards of the land we have in our safekeeping?

The Reflection this week will be delivered by Squamish Minister, Cultural Keeper - Eugene Harry.

For those unable to attend in-person, you may access our on-line stream via YouTube.