About an hour and a half ago, at 8:44am (EST) today (September 22, 2024), summer gave way to autumn. We are now officially in the Fall season. Today, I am reminded of the cycle of seasons again. Round and round we go. Our lives, indeed, go through cycles.

But we will often couch these repetitive cycles in negative terms. For example, we talk of cycles of violence, cycles of poverty, cycles of addiction, and so on. When do we talk about history repeating itself when it has to do with something positive and good? And depending on your mood today, and which seasons are your favourite in the year, even the autumnal equinox can represent a negative turn.

In observing this season of creation, the church focuses our attention on the basic building blocks of life on this planet – wind, water, light, earth. And the creation stories in the first book of the bible describe how it all began. And begins again.

I add the present form of the verb because two key words from the Hebrew language in the first chapter of Genesis not only provide guideposts in our understanding of cycles of time repeating themselves, but overwhelmingly support a positive viewpoint. The biblical creation stories, while also introducing the concept of sin, offer a resoundingly hopeful message.

The bible begins with those auspicious words: “In the beginning, God created …” (Genesis 1:1). A recent Lutherans Connect (LC) devotion points out that in Hebrew, there is no “the” (LC, 2024). It is, technically, ‘in a beginning’.

While the Genesis story says everything was created in six days in an unspecified moment in time, the grammatical nuance of ‘a beginning’ suggests that God continues to create something new in every time and place. In a beginning.

In fact, some scholars understand that there is no definitive beginning because creation has been happening already for a very long time (LC, 2024). The cycle of creation has gone on longer than we thought.

Based on evidence in the rock formations, for example, on the East Coast of Scotland at Siccar Point, scientists have concluded the earth is approximately 4.5 billion years old (LC, 2024).

This claim is not at odds with the bible if we pay attention to the grammar. Creation happens, happened, and continues to happen. Creation happens at every new beginning. In a beginning.

And what is more, every creative act of God is a cycle that repeats for good, literally. When God creates, the first chapter of Genesis reveals a litany of goods (Genesis 1: 4,10,12,18,21,25,31): “It was good … It was good …. It was good.” In short, God calls all that God has made, “good”.

But in the Hebrew word ‘tov’, ‘good’ is not just a static affirmation. Rather, ‘tov’ means a deeper sense of becoming well, closer to the meaning of ‘shalom’ in Hebrew – peace and well-being. God saw that all creation, including the human, was becoming well and evolving over time (LC, 2024). ‘Good’ from the Hebrew ‘tov’ evokes this sense of movement, of growth and transformation for the better.

Whenever there is a new beginning in life, God is creating for the good. The continuing acts of God’s creation happen at points of starting over. And this is a good thing, part of an evolving creation.

Our faith, we say, begins at baptism. And Ariel’s baptism today at Faith Lutheran Church in Ottawa is a sign for us all that God seeks to start afresh with us. At these beginning points in time, what we really affirm is an ongoing, unending relationship God has with us. Baptism conveys in water and word God’s grace starting over and re-newing our lives.

As we celebrate birthdays – Ariel did yesterday and her mother will on Saturday; as we celebrate anniversaries – Pastor Diane celebrates her 30^th year of ordination this month; as we welcome new members at this new stage on their faith journeys; as we pray for Pastor Bavani and Jasmine who begin a new chapter of their lives later this week travelling back home to India; as we baptize Ariel today …. We affirm that life and relationships of love continue refreshed in new ways by God’s grace.

None of the above are a one-time, one-and-done deal. Each of these events are gateways through which we pass and commit to a life-long journey of endings which always signify new beginnings of goodness. I came across a bit of wisdom in my social media recently about grieving the losses of our lives. It is sage advice to those who walk alongside those who grieve:

“When supporting someone who is grieving, understand that you’re not trying to help them get back on track. You’re coming alongside them as they chart a new course.”

Ariel’s immediate family is together today, surrounding her with love at her baptism. We acknowledge the profound and challenging journey over the past few years that eventually brought them to this place at this point in time. We acknowledge all they endured and lost, migrating to Canada and away from difficult circumstances.

We also acknowledge and celebrate that God continues to open doors. God continues to create in this land new beginnings for you. We affirm the waters of baptism that give Ariel and us all the grace and promise of life renewed, and hope sprung again.

Thanks be to God, for a new beginning.

Reference:

Lutherans Connect. (2024, September 5 & 11). On the threshold. Centre for Spirituality and Media at Martin Luther University College. https://lconthethreshold.blogspot.com