Today’s author is Naomi Sveholm. Naomi is a missionary with Central Europe Teachers teaching English at a bilingual Lutheran high school in Bratislava, Slovakia with her spouse and two children.
“Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott,” the battle hymn of the Reformation, or perhaps the Lutheran fight song, can be heard in many languages and many churches at this time of year. At gatherings in Europe, I’ve heard the hymn sung in English, German, Slovak, and Hungarian, even simultaneously. It’s comforting to think of God as a protective wall around us, a mighty fortress, especially when battered by enemies. Safety is comfortable.
But who is outside those fortress walls? In 1 Kings we see King Solomon’s rise to power and his ultimate turning away from God. By the time we reach our text in chapter 12, we see Solomon’s son, King Rehoboam, pushing his people away to create a divided kingdom, Judah and Israel. The second portion of this week’s text sees Jeroboam turning Shechem into a fortress to stand against Rehoboam. Instead of a unified Israel, Rehoboam and Jeroboam opted for division and walls to protect their homes.
Over 500 years ago, Martin Luther called out corrupt practices in the church and begged for reform. Luther sought to promote inclusion and make God more accessible to all social classes, but the short-term impact was to create even more division. One of the places Luther did succeed in his lifetime, however, was breaking down the elite and incomprehensible fortress of Latin into the language of the people, making it possible for people to read God’s word and worship in German and ultimately other languages, too.
Slovakia has more castles and chateaus per capita than any other country in the world. I can see Bratislava Castle outside my back windows (and my school and most of the city, actually) and live a 5-minute walk from the walled city. Bratislava is my home. Metaphorically, though, the country and culture are walled off by my still low understanding of the Slovak language. I welcome the presence of English-language worship at Bratislava International Church as much as I recognize that I’m delaying my own language abilities by not pushing myself and risking my comfort, to do more, live more, and connect more in Slovak.
Safety is comfortable, comforting. But walls of safety divide. When we misuse our fortresses to exclude, we miss out on the community that embraces people in God’s love.
What walls are we putting up to feel safe? When do those walls bless us with protection and when do they separate us from meaningful connections? How can we break down the fortresses that divide and instead become God’s ideal church that brings people together into the love of God?
Dear God, We long to feel safe and comfortable and we know that you protect us. Help us to recognize situations where it is better for us to risk our own comfort to break down barriers and bring people together into community.
In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen