October 20, 2025

Beloved of God,

This week we heard two stories about wrestling and persistence, Jacob wrestling with God in the night (Genesis 32:22–31) and the widow who keeps showing up before the judge (Luke 18:1–8). Both are stubborn, both are faithful, and both remind us that faith is not always about calm confidence – sometimes it is about holding on when everything feels uncertain.

When Jacob wrestles all night with God, he walks away changed, marked with a limp and given a new name: Israel, “one who struggles with God.” His new identity isn’t neat or easy; it is born out of vulnerability, honesty, and encounter. That is what happens when our identity comes from God – it is no longer built on power, success, or belonging to the right tribe. It is grounded in relationship, compassion, and truth.

When we know who we are in God, we’re less likely to be swept up by the false promises of worldly kingdoms – the ones that mistake dominance for righteousness or confuse nationalism with faith. Ideologies disguised as Christianity often seek to make God serve our borders and our politics, but the Gospel calls us to serve God’s kingdom, where the poor, the sick, and the marginalized are centered, not sidelined.

Our purpose, as people who have wrestled with God and been named by love, is not to preserve power but to bear witness and to bring the Good News to those who have been silenced or forgotten. That’s an identity with a compassionate voice. One that challenges systems that divide and calls us again and again to mercy and justice.

Like Jacob, we may limp after the encounter. But that limp is a reminder that we belong to a different kind of kingdom – one not of conquest, but of compassion.

And as we live into that compassionate identity, there are some wonderful ways to do so together in the coming days. On Tuesday, October 28 at 9:00 AM, St. Mary’s will host Habitat for Humanity Cape Cod’s “Building on Faith” Breakfast in Walden Hall. It is a chance to learn more about upcoming Habitat builds in Falmouth, Brewster, and Pocasset, and how we can help make homes possible for our neighbors.

And then on Wednesday, October 30, we’ll bring a little light and laughter to our parking lot for our second annual Trunk or Treat! We’re looking for volunteers to decorate cars and hand out treats (candy provided!). It is always a joyful way to connect with our community and share some seasonal fun.

These moments of building, of simply showing up and actually engaging in relationships with and serving others are all part of what it means to live into that God-given identity. We are people named by love, called to love.

Faithfully,