Newsletter article from November 2022
By Julie Wright
Pastor, Connect
November is jam packed with reasons to pause, reflect, celebrate, and give thanks. To name a few, November is National Adoption Month, National Native American Heritage Month, Thanksgiving, and November 1 is All Saints Day.
Among the many reasons to give thanks this month is family. Some people are the sort of family members who raised you. Then there are others who have become family by choice. “Chosen family” consists of unrelated friends or neighbors who have decided somewhere along the way to make it official and claim one another as family. Chosen family members are those you can call for help in the middle of the night, who will pick you up at the airport, help you move, who will listen patiently, or simply be present during times of joy or sorrow. You may have found chosen family in your neighborhood, work life, or even at Shepherd of the Valley.
My family of origin is spread out from Cottage Grove (Minnesota) to Denver (Colorado); with in-laws from Maple Grove (Minnesota) and South Dakota. My “chosen family” includes three friends with whom I have been inseparable since kindergarten, a friend whose love of spicy food and good humor has solidified our friendship, and an ever-growing list of friends and colleagues. I am blessed to have both kinds of family in my life, but sadly this is not true for everyone.
The holidays can be a difficult time for many people. Especially for…
- people who don’t have strong familial connections
- those for whom traveling “home” is not possible
- individuals and families who have been displaced or unhoused
Because many lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ+) youth have been rejected by their families of origin, LGBTQ+ youth are over-represented among the homeless population. (Source: 2018 Homelessness Study, mnhomeless.org.) Thus, many LGBTQ+ people have a broad definition of family.
In our Christian Lutheran heritage, we have been given the gift of adoption by the Holy Spirit through baptism. In the waters of baptism, we are named children of God. We become part of the church worldwide and are linked with the great communion of saints. Of course, we need not be saintly to be considered part of this family of faith. We are a fabulous tapestry of people, simultaneously sinners and saints, siblings in faith, and co-workers in the mission we share through Christ Jesus.
I am grateful for the warm welcome you have provided to me and my family, and for the ways you continue to open wide your arms and hearts to friends and strangers alike in the name of Christ.
