Over the years, I have attended a lot of Episcopal events, and they often give out some form of “swag”—some sort of little souvenir to remind us that we were at the conference. My favorites are the shopping bags because they last forever (and they mean that I participate a little less in plastic pollution from the bags I get from the store). In their long lives, they quietly carry a message.
God Loves You, No Exceptions
This is a great one. God’s love isn’t conditional on your race, economic level, political affiliation, sexual orientation, or anything else. We humans default to the idea that our little group is the only chosen island, but we can’t defend that one from the Bible. After all, Jesus and all of his early disciples were distinctly Middle-Eastern Jews who probably had dark skin and spoke a language that almost nobody in the USA could understand today.
All are welcome, because all belong
We don’t like to shut the door in the face of anyone. A problem with shutting that door is that traditionally the door is painted red, a color we inherited from the Middle Ages, which meant that the church was a safe place of refuge where people fleeing violence could find protection. It would be pretty foolish to shut that door in the face of someone who is not quite like me. I think the idea is that we Episcopalians are a little corner of God’s kingdom, and we do not want to shut out any other members of the kingdom. After all, how many times in the New Testament did Jesus talk to someone who did not quite fit the “holy person” stereotype and say to the person, “You are not far from the Kingdom of God”?
The Episcopal Church Welcomes You
You have seen this one hundreds of times on little signs outside parish churches. It is really true. Drive through small towns and major cities, and you see it repeatedly. A good slogan for a shopping bag, too.
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