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| PAINTING BY JACK GARNIER |
Theological Reflections: The Evangelist's Blessing
I believe in the sacraments. Maybe I believe because of the
sacraments. We have been uniquely blessed in this faith movement with eight
sacred, holy rites. Each has the potential to usher us into the presence of
God. Each can lead to an encounter with the Divine and with our own truest
self, our own highest potential.
The evangelist’s blessing is possibly the most personal of all the
sacraments. These symbolic acts are primarily events in which we covenant
with God in the presence of and along with others in the community. This
sacrament, however, is one that often involves only the person seeking the
blessing, the evangelist asked to share the prayer of blessing, and the
biding and pervasive presence of the Holy Spirit.
This sacrament draws us into a time of being “alone with the Alone.” It is
not a sacrament in private. No act of worship in the body of Christ should
separate us from others in the community. But the evangelist’s blessing is
very personal. As a recipient of a blessing, the focus is on my life,
my relationship with God, my needs, my potential, my
calling as a disciple of the Lord Jesus.
On January 10, 1972, I went to the library in our church in Boise, Idaho, to
receive my blessing from Evangelist Cecil Gilmore. Cecil knew me as a
teenager growing up in the congregation. He was involved with our Zion’s
League youth group. He pastored many of us year after year in our annual
youth camps at the base of the Cascade Mountains. He was attentive enough to
know my place and role in my family, my passion for sports, and some of my
idiosyncrasies.
He knew me. He spent personal time with me in preparation for the blessing.
But in the moment of the sacrament of blessing, the knowing was broadened
and deepened by the unifying, reviving, and sending breath of God’s Spirit.
When I have returned to the experience and the words of the prayer, blessing
has come. The truths and insights about me, the counsel given, and the
guidance regarding expression of my gifts in discipleship are testament of
perception and insight beyond that of anyone who knows me, myself included.
As a newly ordained evangelist I am particularly conscious of the
responsibilities that I now assume by accepting this call. Though each
evangelist is differently gifted, there are qualities that seem to be held
in common by many in the Order. I believe we are called to be empathetic and
approachable without being intrusive. We are called to joy, to speaking
affirmatively and bring refreshing ministry of hope, assurance, and
encouragement. We are called to be persons of discretion and
confidentiality, responsive to individual needs, and more willing to listen
than to speak. We are called to establish a climate of community and
reconciliation. We are invited to be translators of the Spirit of God, who
brings light, warmth, and understanding. We are asked to put into words the
urgings of the Spirit planted in the soul of a disciple.
Former Presiding Evangelist Reed M. Holmes said that evangelists are free to
be with, to care for, and to accept responsibility for others. Full of zest
for life and facing the future with confidence, they shoulder a thousand
hurts so that others may be free. They affirm people in their faith and
strengthen them in their sense of community. They help people see beyond the
pressures of the day and endeavor to put life events into perspective. They
help others relate to the One whose they are (see The Patriarchs,
Herald House, 1978, p. 54).
Disciples of Christ long for evangelists who live with them. This may be the
finest aspect of an evangelist’s ministry. Frank Rixon, of Adelaide, South
Australia, said that relating to others in terms of their personal needs
keeps the evangelist in touch for times of “turning-point ministry.”
Evangelists have earned our trust and confidence through years of ministry
among us. They have proclaimed the good news to us from the pulpit and in
the foyer, in our homes and at local restaurants. They have the privilege
and opportunity to listen deeply to our lives as they listen deeply to the
Spirit of God in preparation for laying hands on our head to pray God’s
blessing. It is from such ministries that the evangelist’s blessing takes on
real significance as an outgrowth of continuing care.
As I now make preparation to offer my first blessing as an evangelist, I
find the following counsel given by Roy Cheville to students at Graceland in
1952 to be wise and relevant fifty-five years later:
Healthy religion does not take choice-making from its members. The
evangelist’s blessing is no escape from decisionmaking. It is no
fortune-telling device to unveil the future. In this light I ask you to
look well to your expectations as you come to an evangelist for a
benediction. If you expect to shift the responsibility to God for
decision-making, you will probably be disappointed. If you come wanting
some specific promise of personal achievement, you will likely turn away
unsatisfied. If you come to escape from realities of life, you will not
find the heaven you are looking for. God is not going to do your problem
solving. The evangelist’s blessing is not to give us easy answers. It is
not intended to predict the itinerary of our lives. Young people of
quality do not want this kind of thing. Nor does God. He wants disciples
of understanding and ability who choose to go along with him. The
prophetic gift in the blessing does well to give counsel that we may
understand ourselves and understand God. The blessing will set forth
guidelines for life planning. The actual choosing must by ours.
—Quoted by Danny Belrose in The Purpose of the Evangelist’s Blessing
(2006), p. 1
The sacrament of the evangelist’s blessing, says Everett Graffeo, another
former presiding evangelist, is understood to unfold over a person’s
lifetime. This sacred and sacramental experience can assist persons to
recognize the touch of God and the divine nature that resides within them:
“By responding to the divine presence, we are assured of our own unique
identity and nurtured in becoming fully who we have been created to be. In
God, we have ultimate and eternal worth (The Ministry of the Evangelist,
1997, p. 13).
After reading several hundred transcripts of the tens of thousands of
blessings that are on file in the Evangelist Office at International
Headquarters, Reed Holmes wrote, “What has impressed me is the biographical
window that is provided in blessings, the uniqueness of persons revealed….
What has also impressed me is the treasure trove of wisdom packed in the
brief poetic words of men who never conceived of themselves as particularly
wise or poetic” (The Patriarchs, p. 54).
God invites each of us to receive a blessing—to receive joy, fulfillment,
and happiness. One way to receive such a blessing is through this sacrament.
As God invited former generations, I believe God also invites ours: “Hey
there! All who are thirsty, come to the water! … Come, buy your drinks, buy
wine and milk. Buy without money—everything’s free! Why do you spend your
money on junk food, your hard-earned cash on cotton candy?” (Isaiah 55:1–2,
The Message).
Prophets and Gospel writers together have spoken the divine word: “How often
I would have gathered you as a hen gathers her chicks, but you would not.
How often I have wanted to open the windows of heaven to rain down a
blessing upon you but you were wandering in some dry desert of bleaching
bones and wilted weeds. How I’ve wanted to give you blessings, shaken down,
pressed together and running abundantly over; cups and basins and barrels
filled and unable to contain the overflow.”
You may have questions about the evangelist’s blessing: What is it? When
should I think about receiving an evangelist’s blessing? Where do I receive
the blessing? What is involved in preparing for the blessing? What should I
expect following the blessing? If you want more information, please contact
an evangelist in your congregation or mission center, or call the Evangelist
Office at 1-800-825-2806, ext. 3036, or you may send e-mail to
lrounds@CofChrist.org.
—David R. Brock
Presiding Evangelist
