Pastor's Message - February 2026

I try not to be too much of a curmudgeon, keeping my cynicism mostly to myself. I despise April Fool's Day, being gullible and easily duped. And Groundhog Day... seriously? A German Bear becomes a German Badger then imported by German immigrants to Pennsylvania as a Groundhog? It didn't even make sense in the original cultural context, much less after being morphed into a once-a-year spectacle.

(The actual date is tied to the ancient Christian feast of Candlemas, the 40" day after Christmas when the infant Jesus was presented at the Temple in Jerusalem, which contradicts Matthew's account of the family crossing the border as they flee the violence of Herod's police state.)

I have fewer objections to the movie "Groundhog Day." It is cute enough, meant to teach a moral lesson, and copied in countless lesser films. Without giving away too much of the plot for the few that have not seen it, one question it poses is "What would you do with total freedom?" Another way to ask that is "What does society look like with zero accountability?"

In this year when we are meant to celebrate the 250° anniversary of our nation, we will hear the word freedom thrown about constantly, while the real lesson we are learning is about zero accountability, the result of a politicized Supreme Court granting the president absolute immunity. The ethnic cleansing of opposition party enclaves and the murder of citizens witnessing these crimes is a clear indication of what happens when there are no checks of power.

These are questions and concerns also central to our identity as Congregationalists. Our movement was formed in the same period when citizen democracy was taking shape in the late Enlightenment. Our founders, religious and national, had learned the lessons of absolute authority under kings and popes.

Our congregational meeting is an example of our mix of direct and representative democracy. All congregation members have a say in passing the budget and electing members of the Church Council, as well as major decisions like calling (and dismissing) a minister and purchasing real estate. The Church Council manages the day to day affairs.

While I have a particular call and a professional role, I have no "absolute" authority. Pastors in our tradition have freedom of the pulpit, allowing for prophetic preaching, and the right of personal conscience when it comes to sacrament, but if they get too out of sync with their congregations, they may find themselves unemployed, and particularly terrifying in this age, without health insurance.

We don't just hold authorized ministers accountable. We operate as a covenant community, which requires having appropriate boundaries for members and friends as well. We try to balance that accountability with the grace as per the gospel, of course, but there are limits. Churches that tolerate bullies and toxic behavior die. Fortunately, church growth becomes a virtuous cycle, resulting from and feeding healthy covenant. And we are growing.

In a time when there is so much hate and hostillity, it is a blessing to have a safe space to gather, to hope, to restore, before we go out into the world, living each day a little better, one more "Groundhog Day" until we break the cycle and make the world a slightly better place.

+Gary