From The Pastor’s Desk: Highways, Stairways, and the Work of Justice

Dear Beloved Community,

A few days ago, a church member sent me an email filled with memes—some lighthearted, others surprisingly honest. One especially stuck with me:

“The fact that there’s a highway to hell and only a stairway to heaven says a lot about anticipated traffic numbers.”

Another read:

“Jesus is coming. Look busy.”

At first, I laughed. But then I thought more deeply. These two go hand in hand in today’s world. We are, indeed, busy—but not always in ways that reflect what Jesus actually calls us to do.

We live in a time when injustice is everywhere: a genocide continues against the Palestinian people; xenophobia and racism are resurging; and people still use Christianity as a weapon to exclude, ostracize, or control. And too often, we remain on the sidelines. We tell ourselves, “It’s complicated,” or “I don’t want to make it worse by getting involved.” But here’s the thing: Jesus did get involved. And we know how that ended. He got involved anyway—out of love for the whole world.

The world teaches us to care only when something affects us. But faith calls us to care for others—especially the most vulnerable—whether it benefits us or not. We cannot wait until injustice reaches our doorstep. We must step off the wide highway of fear and indifference, and take the narrow stairway of love, sacrifice, and solidarity.

And let’s be honest: today, it’s not just that the stairway to heaven is narrow. It’s that no one wants to take the stairs anymore. We all want the elevator. We want comfort without commitment. Salvation without service. If the rapture happened today, that meme might prove painfully accurate. The highway would be jammed. The stairway would be nearly empty.

But it doesn’t have to be that way. We are people of resurrection. People of courage. People of hope. So let’s not just lookbusy. Let’s be busy—with compassion, justice, mercy, and truth.

In faith and action,

Rev. Gilbert