I read quite a bit of Toni Morrison last week, as I imagine many of you may have as well, and the quote that I chose for the top of this morning’s bulletin is one of hers; “I dream a dream that dreams back at me.”  I felt drawn to it as I was thinking this week about ministries of compassion and care, because it’s the kind of quote that inspires hope in me.  It says, dreams aren’t all foolish, aren’t all impossible.  There are dreams worth pursuing, dreams that aren’t pie in the sky, but communion food to be celebrated at the table with friends.  There are callings worth living into.  Some dreams will dream back at you… but it takes bravery to act on a dream and foster a new creation.

Two of the most powerful Jewish leaders in our history, Sarah Zadok, a Jewish educator and midwife writes – “two of the most powerful Jewish leaders were both extremely faithful and righteous women. They are our first recorded midwives, Shifra and Puah, [named in this morning’s reading from Exodus].  A midwife’s role, among other things, is to encourage a birthing mother to “let go” and allow herself to become a conduit for this great force to flow through. Trusting in the natural process of labor—and in a woman’s body—is the hallmark of midwifery care. Every culture and religion has their own words and metaphors to describe their reverence and awe of this process. But for Jewish midwives, this reverence stems from an understanding that birth is G‑dly in nature. Their faith in birth is inexorably bound with their faith in G‑d.”

Shifra and Puah were midwives during a time in the story of the Jewish people where their very existence was hanging by a delicate thread. Pharaoh’s astrologers had predicted that a Jewish male would rise amongst the Hebrews and overtake his throne. In a paranoid attempt to curtail the Jewish birth rate, he ordered all Jewish men into slave labor. But when the Jewish people continued to multiply, Pharaoh, driven by fear, commanded Shifra and Puah to kill all newborn Jewish boys, but  Pharaoh didn’t count on the midwives’ defiance or their faith. Despite the danger of defying Pharaoh’s command, Shifra and Puah decided to continue their holy calling. From then on, not only did Shifra and Puah help birth Jewish children, but they helped to nurture and sustain the newborn babies and their families. The Jewish Midrash teaching states that Shifra and Puah actually became G‑d’s partners in creation.

These brave women lived in a time of fear, violence, and systemic racism.  They chose to not let that stop them from following their call, to become partners in creation.

Nechama Rubinstein, a Jewish scholar who writes about spirituality and the feminine had this beautiful insight into these powerful women:  “According to Kabbalistic teachings, there are ten attributes of the soul. The first three are: chochmah, binah, and da’at, and are associated with the intellectual process. These “give birth” to the other seven characteristics (called middot) as their offspring, and they are thus known as “the mothers.”

Chochmah is the initial flash of insight when an idea first reaches the mind—the conception or impregnation, as it were. Binah is when one begins to synthesize and understand this flash of inspiration—this can be likened to a time of pregnancy. Da’at is the understanding and knowledge that comes when one has synthesized and internalized the information—this is the birth process. Thus, da’at provides the substance and vitality of all of the other characteristics.”   This is what leads to action. We live in a world where our actions are of the greatest importance. Our thoughts, our knowledge, our ideas, can only take us so far. We must “bring it down” and then “bring it out.”  The midwives in Egypt were the conduits for the Exodus. It is Shifrah and Puah alone who are named in those first verses of the book of Exodus which link the patriarchs to Moses. They stood up to Pharaoh, defied his decree, and safely delivered the Jewish children – one of whom was Moses. They were the chochmah, the binah, and the da’at.  They were inspiration, wisdom, and action that brought forth freedom and creation.  Their ministry of care and compassion was not simply medical, it was holistically human.

For many, health is narrowly defined and specifically targeted to one dimension—the physical – and churches, just like those Jewish midwives, can make a profound difference in the physical health of their congregation. The church today still represents a natural point of reference for many communities. Congregations can mobilize, educate, and coordinate resources.

Churches can develop health programs whose purpose is to have an impact upon the most significant health risks and health conditions in their congregations.  These resources are becoming increasingly important one as health care funding and services shrink.  But, a congregation cannot be healthy by only focusing on physical health.  Shifra and Puah saw a bigger picture, and so must we.  We, too, have to be holistic in our approach, to follow our callings and nurture and sustain families.  To see the growth of a community happening not just in the numbers of members, but in the care of the individuals.

Health consists of five dimensions: physical, social, emotional, mental, and spiritual. An individual is considered healthy only when all of these dimensions are working together in harmony. Because healing does not necessarily mean curing (as we tend to think), but instead, at least Biblically, being healed is a person’s ability to be fully realized, present, and included in a community.  Health Ministry in a congregation must involve social, emotional, mental, and spiritual healing, all of which can occur during illness even when curing of the disease is not present, or even possible. The local church can bring a holistic perspective to an understanding of health that brings harmony with self, others, the environment, and the sacred. Health is a continuum of physical, social, psychological, and spiritual well-being.

The Health Ministries page of the United Church of Christ states that: “social service and social action are seen as integral and complementary forms of ministry. Church-related social action and policy formation cover a wide range of contemporary issues which include: urban life, poverty, housing, health care, family life, women’s issues, child care, aging, hospice, racial and ethnic concerns, needs of handicapped persons, peace, and refugees and immigration. As both social services and social action ministries remain faithful to God’s vision of shalom, they will respond to the changing needs and new possibilities among people and within society, working always toward liberation from life’s bondage and reconciliation of the alienated. The development of health ministries within the congregation helps focus the members’ awareness on the essential Christian ministry of health and healing.”

When health ministries are an essential part of congregational life, members find opportunities to volunteer their help to those who are ill, home bound, or living in residential care. They have the opportunity to learn about wellness and disease prevention, including health screenings that make early detection and treatment possible. Healthy choices are promoted through seminars and small groups, giving information in such areas as exercise, nutrition, handling stress and anxiety, comprehensive sexuality education, and providing mental health first aid. Members can explore what it means to be a safe, trauma-informed space, create resources for affordable housing and environmental justice,

and they can provide appropriate resources and advocacy to individuals and community.  A health ministry can promote healing and health as a matter of wholeness, as a mission of a faith community to its members and the community it serves.

And, you know what, UCG?  We are well on our way to being that kind of a holistic space, one that sees health and wholeness from a multitude of dimensions, we are already doing so much… I am sure as I was listing the generalities, you were adding the specifics of UCGs influence on your health.  Today, I want to thank a brave woman whose leadership and immeasurable gifts brought inspiration, wisdom, and action to this ministry.

I feel like I need to say this today, because Shelly (because of who she is) hasn’t given us time to gush over her in the service next week – so I’m going to do it now.  I feel a bit like the little tomato, like the lyrics say – “And so I hold on to this advice, When change is hard and not so nice” … because, Shelly, It has been one of the greatest privileges and joys to work and serve with you.  You are empathetic, supportive, and inspirational.  And I have the privilege today to remind everyone of some of the ministries of compassion and care that you have helped us birth, nurture, and grow. And, I have some friends to help me…

Lois, Catherine, Sally, Bill/Jackie, will you join me?

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We are a healthy congregation, United Church of Gainesville, we are a congregation that has chochmah, binah, and da’at.  Shelly, we will continue to nurture what you have birthed, and your inspiration and wisdom will continue to inspire action that brings life into the world.  Your ministry of care and compassion is holistic, and so will be ours.  Thank you for being a brave woman who helped us be conduits of goodness and grace, UCG will continue to thrive in so many ways because of your diligent care.  Thank you for dreaming a dream of health ministry that we can dream back to you.