by Rev. Sean Amato

Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him until daybreak. When the man saw that he did not prevail against Jacob, he struck him on the hip socket, and Jacob’s hip was put out of joint as he wrestled with him. Then he said, “Let me go, for the day is breaking.” But Jacob said, “I will not let you go, unless you bless me.” So he said to him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Jacob.” Then the man said, “You shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with God and with humans and have prevailed.” Then Jacob asked him, “Please tell me your name.” But he said, “Why is it that you ask my name?” And there he blessed him. So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, “For I have seen God face to face, yet my life is preserved.” The sun rose upon him as he passed Peniel, limping because of his hip. 
(Genesis 32:24-31, NRSVue)

Friends –

Wrestling with religion can be a real strain; Jacob showed us this at Peniel, when one of God’s servants (or perhaps God Himself – the theological jury is still out on this) popped Jacob’s hip out of joint as he literally grappled with his faith. To memorialize the experience, Jacob would receive a special blessing alongside his newly-acquired limp: evidence that he had struggled against and with forces well outside of his understanding, all to obtain an affirmative blessing from His Creator. And my, he wrestled for quite a while to obtain that blessing, didn’t he?

If my calendar is telling the truth, this upcoming week marks two years of my life spent as the settled pastor of Slatersville Congregational Church. To say that it has been an honor would be an understatement and a simplification; to say that I’m surprised that I made it this far as a pastor would, too, be an understatement and a simplification.

The last two years have represented two of the busiest and most challenging years of my life: two years of hard and holy work alongside you, all while I struggle to make sense of what it is to be a pastor in our  troubled and partisan age. And not just what it is to be any pastor, but your pastor – what it is to be the spiritual leader of a nuanced, multigenerational local church that regularly navigates difficult crossroads and decisions. All that wrestling can cause bruises and strains; all that wrestling, too, can produce abundant blessings. We are, indeed, blessed: we’ve found special new partners, and we’ve developed one-of-a-kind ministries; we’ve reinvested, too, in our reputation as “the church the prays” with both our words and our actions. In my time wrestling alongside you, we’ve leaned into what it means to be a loving and welcoming church in this special community. I’ve remarked before that we represent the best of the Blackstone Valley… and these days, I have more than enough receipts to prove it.

I thank you, friends, for limping with me along this winding, convoluted path we call Christian life. Thank you for your patience and your grace; thank you for your willingness to grow with me, and for all we’ve shared between us.

I look forward to what we will share next, too. Thank you for your steadfast hearts, your ready prayers, and the hands with which you build up the Kingdom of God.

God bless you, my friends. Let’s keep on walking, limps and all. Amen!

Pastor Sean