Seeing Double

Today is the second Sunday in the month of October, the month that we designated as Mission Month.

Our Lectionary reading today from the Epistles is a letter from St. Paul to one of his younger followers—Timothy. In this particular text, Paul somewhat reminds Timothy of the basic things that they have held on to from the very beginning of their mission. Perhaps Timothy, as a young person, has encountered so many difficulties in bringing himself before the people, especially to those who are older than him. I can very well understand Timothy, for in my own different experiences as well, being the youngest pastor in the pastoral team, I myself have encountered difficulties in effectively putting God’s message across and in challenging people to respond to God’s call.

Timothy, from time to time, must have encountered the teachers of the faith and some of those who are way ahead, not only in terms of age, but also in terms of experience and scriptural studies. This must have caused great feelings of inadequacies and insecurity in Timothy specially when older people probably must have rebuffed him by saying something like – ‘daghan pa kang kaonong bugas,’ or ‘padulong pa ka, ako pabalik na,’ etc. This is especially unnerving when in a seemingly heated discussion the an older person would say this in the event of his inability to defend his or her stand on a particular issue.

Timothy must have been a very good student of Paul that he, like Paul, must have also earned the ire of some of the teachers of the law. As a young person this could have somewhat discouraged Timothy from continuing on with the task given him. And so Paul, through this second letter reminds Timothy of what our faith stands for and what this faith in our Lord Jesus Christ means to all of us who very much need the message of salvation.
Like Timothy, today we are reminded as well of who we are and what we are called to do. In celebrating Mission Month this month of October, we are given more than enough time to reflect upon the very reason of our existence as Silliman Church.

What is our mission? Why do we exist as SU Church?

When I joined the pastoral team ministry of SU Church almost five years ago, the question of identity, of who we are and what we are really called to do and become, where and for whom –became a very important question as the church struggled to clarify its identity. After a series of consultations, workshops, brainstorming and of course prayers, the church finally was able to come up with a mission statement that would guide itself in living out its life and ministry. “To proclaim Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior in Silliman University and the larger community, to invite all into a life of discipleship and dynamic witness.”

With this Mission Statement we are very much reminded that our primary mission field is Silliman University—the faculty, staff, alumni and students of this university and of course its immediate environs.

If we look back to the history of Silliman University, who and what she is now is a product of a conscious recognition of our forerunners in our Lord Jesus Christ. This is very much evident in the rich historical heritage of Silliman. This is also evident in how the community thinks highly of Silliman when it comes to its moral and spiritual stance in virtually all of life’s issues. And we owe these all to the faith of those who have gone ahead of us.

We can recall that Silliman University is a product of mission; what reasons could have driven Horace Silliman to donate the initial $10,000? Silliman University is known for the work of the foreign missionaries who came here to help start up this institution. What reason/s could have driven them to come here and work with and for the people in putting up this school? What reasons could have made them strong in facing difficult challenges along the way? We all know the answer, and we very well know that it is our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, this faith, even with the size of a Mustard seed as we have shared in last week’s message, a faith that is alive and working, a faith in a Savior that moves us to do acts of kindness without counting the cost, a faith that moves us to share God’s wholistic salvation to all. This is our faith and this is what Paul reminds us of as our very message to the people.

And this is what we are celebrating today, this second Sunday of the Mission Month. That is why our leadership today is from the University as we all remind ourselves of who we are and what we are called to do.
From this mission field then, it is but natural for us to grow and expand in terms of reach as students go out from this place and bring with them the faith that has been planted in their hearts. With the presence of students coming not only from the different nooks and crannies of Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao, the Word of God can even reach to the so called ‘ends of the earth’ as we also share our faith to those students who come from other countries who have become quite numerous lately as shared with us last week.

Indeed, our mission field is great and at times daunting, but this is who we are and what we are called to do. Like Timothy, let us continue to “remind them of these things”—our faith, our savior, our message of peace, hope and love—and let us “Do [our] best to present [ourselves] to God as [a people] approved, [workers] who [have] no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.” Amen!