“Faith Matters” is a column that features pieces written by local religious figures. Are we prepared to meet God?  It’s usually a question we consider as earthly life ends.   But it’s also a question for right here, right now.  Because we often say “God is always with us.” We m eet God and are met by God in public worship.  To do so is to experience sanctuary.  To be in the sanctuary is one thing.  To experience sanctuary is something else. The ancients revered the Temple.  There was only one. In Jerusalem.  That was where God lived.  The temple did not have a sign saying “Join us for worship.”  Some people were barred from entering and there were also circumstances (Deuteronomy 23:1-8) that prohibited admission.  I don’t advocate reviving these restrictions but understanding them reveals the reverence with which the ancients viewed worship. Who was worthy?  Psalm 15 with gives ten qualities.  Whoever: Lives blamelessly Acts uprightly Speaks truth from the heart Controls the tongue Does not wrong a friend Does not discredit a neighbor Honors those who fear God Stands by an oath at any cost Asks no interest on loans Takes no bribe. Uh-oh!  Few of us will pass this test! To worship is to ask,  “Have I prepared myself to enter into this sanctuary?”  “Am I opening my heart and mind to God and others?  “Am I willing to be in this community with its difficulties and misunderstandings?”  “Did I just ‘show up’ and expect God to do all the heavy lifting?”  “Do I expect to meet God here, today?” To have the experience of sanctuary is to realize we are in the presence of God and in the presence of the holy. Do our behaviors reflect this?  Or are we engaged in behaviors that suggest that God is not here?  Being attentive to our inner spiritual life, and the attitude we bring to God, is a lifelong journey. We don’t always get it right.  The prophetic tradition is often critical of public worship.  Micah (6:1-8) tells us that God is not persuaded by worship that offers only outward sacrifices.  He asks clearly:  “God has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” This concept of sanctuary is now under daily assault.  Physical sanctuaries used to be off-limits to law enforcement.  No more, according to guidance given to our Trustees.  It is considered “public”, not “private” space.   This assault, led by a federal Administration that interprets immigration enforcement as the killing of American citizens by masked agents of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, is why I will attend the Public Witness for Immigrant Justice on February 25th in Washington, D.C. The words of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. still ring true: “It is always the right time to do the right thing.” Jesus imparted the experience of sanctuary.   On a hill overlooking the Sea of Galilee he spoke the Beatitudes (Matthew 5:1-12).   “Beatitudes” – “extreme blessedness” – remind us to internalize sanctuary by experiencing God’s presence in our lives and living as God desires.     We need reminding.  One afternoon as a young pastor in Queens, New York, a knock came on my office door.   I opened the door and a man, a bit rough around the edges, said, “I’ve been by your church many times and I’d like to see it and pray for a while.”   Oh.  To my shame I wondered what his real motives were.  Still, neighbors were near and I could outrun him.  So I let him in. He marveled at the sanctuary’s beauty and then wordlessly knelt at the Communion rail.  I asked him to let me know when he was ready to leave.  About a half-hour later, he did.  If my life depended on it I couldn’t tell you what his parting words were.  But I remember his tears; and the lightness of his gratitude; and I knew that he had encountered a Presence in that sanctuary that I had come to take for granted. God is here.  May the words of the hymn be ours:  “Lord, prepare me to be a sanctuary, pure and holy, tried and true With thanksgiving, I’ll be a living sanctuary for you.” The Rev. Dr. Brian R. Bodt of Woodbridge is pastor of the Woodbury United Methodist Church. Previous ​“Faith Matters” columns:  • Faith Matters: Will You Cross The Road?• Faith Matters: Jesus Remembered Immigrants• Faith Matters: 17 Steps To Self-Care• Extreme Compassion• Faith Matters: Faith Over Fear• Faith Matters: Scar Glory• Faith (Still) Matters• Missions Ride on Faith• Faith Matters: Not Moonwalking• My Prayer For Peace Unity• Faith Matters: Belief In Action• Faith Matters: Gaza  Ramadan• Faith Matters: On Passover  Redemption• Faith Matters: Freedom Struggles  Holy Week• Faith Matters: Welcome The Stranger• Faith Matters: Beyond Neutrality• Faith Matters: The Lightened Yoke Is Love• Faith Matters: Combat Negativity With Compassion• Faith Matters: In The Middle• Faith Matters: Three Scandals• Faith Matters: The Three Hounds Of Hell• Faith Matters: In Praise Of Empathy• Faith Matters: Focus On God• Faith Matters: How To Say Goodbye• Missing Catherine• Faith Matters: Divine Light In Times Of Darkness• Jesus Islam• Faith  Famine• A Stick Of Faith• Faith Matters: For All The Saints The post True Sanctuary appeared first on New Haven Independent. ...read more read less