A letter from President Phipps

On Aug. 17, employees gathered for corporate worship, prayer, fellowship and the annual State of the University address. It was a sweet time of (masked!) togetherness. Below is a portion of my address, focused on our missional commitment to biblical reconciliation and the launch of our university-wide Year of Reconciliation. You can read the complete speech and see the accompanying presentation slides at messiah.edu/communityday.

During this time of increasing division and vitriolic polarization within our nation and the Church, we must remember and affirm Messiah University’s calling to be a Christ-centered educational community that equips students to serve, lead and reconcile.

Reconciliation is a journey of listening, truth telling, lamenting and allowing our hearts and minds to connect with people’s stories of pain, marginalization and injustice as we pursue transformation that repairs and restores broken relationships and systems. When we are reconciled to God, we are prepared to do as Jesus instructed and to truly “love our neighbors,” regardless of what seemingly separates us.

As Christians, we look to Jesus as our ultimate example. Jesus did not isolate himself among people who looked, sounded and believed like he did. He intentionally touched the sick, befriended the marginalized, spoke against injustice and with his words and actions he reconciled individuals to God and to each other. Jesus’ ministry of reconciliation disrupted expectations and destroyed social and religious taboos, requiring sincere conviction and bold courage he exhibited throughout his earthly ministry.

The preeminence of Christ in our lives should inspire and empower us to participate in the sacred ministry of reconciliation. Now is the time to follow the commandment of Matthew 22 to love God and love others by taking these personal steps toward reconciliation:

• We must be attentive to the pain and injustice experienced by others. We cannot merely be bystanders who support the work of reconciliation but don’t engage it ourselves. We must acknowledge that people have legitimate, painful histories that deserve our attention and compassion.
• We must listen. We must invite people to tell their stories and then genuinely listen when they do. By listening, we are not compromising any dearly held truths. (Pope Francis and Austen Ivereigh 57).
• We must lament—personally and communally as Christ followers. The more we engage the pain of this world, the more we should grieve the world’s brokenness. Lament is not despair, but rather a cry to God.
• We must be truth seekers and truth tellers who acknowledge the legitimate pain and bias experienced by marginalized people, especially if those experiences are vastly different from ours.
• Ultimately, forgiveness must be extended and accepted for complete restoration of broken relationships, which contribute to the restoration of broken systems. The end goal is not merely a truce but a vibrant, genuine friendship (Emmanuel Katongole and Chris Rice 98).

Imagine the story Messiah University will communicate to our constituents when they witness us intentionally and wholeheartedly leaning into reconciliation. Messiah: an educational community marked by stories of how all of our students and employees experience human flourishing. Messiah: a place of hopeful possibility where people recount their stories of transformation and the distinct kind of “heart, spirit and life that inspires and sustains” the difficult ministry of reconciliation (Emmanuel Katongole and Chris Rice 125). Most importantly, the Messiah story will point to and glorify our good and gracious God, who allowed Jesus to bear our sin so that we might experience true reconciliation with our Creator and each other.