The place God calls you is the place where your deep passion and the world’s hunger meet -- Frederick Buechner
There may be a problem with that famous Buechner quote. Some of us were schooled to believe that if we were passionate about anything and did something about it, then we would no doubt have to confess it as a sin! Our passions can lead us to sin, to be sure.
As a bishop, I am mindful of what Gregory the Great wrote: “All who are superiors should consider in themselves not the authority of their rank but the equality of their condition, and to rejoice not to be over persons but to do them good.” I share the same condition with those in my charge: we are all sinners. There is no debate about that for any of us. It is simply the God’s-honest-truth, as my Granddaddy used to say.
But we are more than our sin. As we wear grace and as St Thomas Aquinas would call it, put on the habitus of grace, we are better able to live into God’s dream for our lives and for the life of the world. God can use our passions, longings, and interests to further the work of the Kingdom. Rather than always seeing our passions as avenues for sin, we can also see them as opportunities to serve God more deeply.
Here is just one example of what I am getting at: a friend of mine in North Carolina was an avid deer hunter. He also knew there were hungry people in Durham. So he organized it so his fellow hunters would donate their venison to our local soup kitchen. A passion for hunting brought forth the feeding of hungry people.
Archbishop of Canterbury, Michael Ramsey, said of the priesthood that it was “to be with God, with the people on your heart.” As leaders of our congregations, we should know our people’s passions, those that can lead them astray, to be sure, but also those that if focused could accomplish great things for the Kingdom. I urge you to find some way (appropriate to your context) to discover the passions of your people. In so doing, you may discover new avenues for living the Gospel in your organization.
Scott Benhase is bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Georgia.
