“The Watershed of the New City is Here Too” A Sermon on Anchorage PrideFest

“The Watershed of the New City is Here Too” Revelation 21:22—22:5

Providence Alaska Medical Center (Anchorage, Alaska)

Sam Melton, MDiv ‘19

I invite you on short field trip this morning as we time travel a bit and take ourselves back to this past weekend at Anchorage PrideFestー

As I wore a collar and wandered throughout the religious organization’s booths at Delaney Park, I came across a sign that made me stop in my tracks. It read:

“We are deeply sorry if you or anyone you love has been hurt in any way by the church or in the name of God. This is not right, nor is it right for people of faith to ignore these very real injustices. God is the source of life; therefore all creation is worthy of God’s love and grace. Love that builds up, respects, and cherishes a gift from God to all people through grace. We ask God to guide us as we journey toward a deeper understanding of God’s inclusive love.”

There is something powerful that is to be found in that rainbow sign, as it was taped to the side of a tent where Christians that look a lot like my parents sat at a table underneath. I am sure that there is a creative metaphor to utilize as I watch the cold mist slowly overtake the ink, but I can’t seem to think of it in this moment. There is something powerful to be found as you look up from reading that sign to find Drag Queens dancing with children, gay sons hugging the Moms sitting under the “Moms Against Violence” tent as they as whisper, “we can be your family if they can not,” and as a woman approaches me and bears her story of disownment from the church, I know, there is something holy here.

Even as the overcast spreads throughout the sky and the mist slowly turns to rain, it seems that the femmes and dykes and queers and bears dancing to Katy Perry only gets louder and stronger along with the rain. And just as the grass beneath our feet turns to a muddy mess, there is joyful laughter from children using the grass as a slip n’ slide, as their rainbow knee highs and suspenders slowly begin to tatter, looking more and more worn.

In this moment, I slowly start to wonder, is this what the rainbows at Stonewall looked like at the end of that night? And the contrast of these two expressions remind me of the transformation this community has endured over the years. It reminds me of the many landmark moments that shape not only queer community, but so many other communities as well. Even today, on Juneteenth, the of day the announcement of emancipation of the enslaved was made, we see yet again another expression of transformation, another example of pure resilience found within a community.

Though I hesitate to draw a deep comparison between the movements, we can focus on the commonality of the pure resilience of both of these movements. Both, dramatically different, yet so, so, resilient.

And so for whatever reason, when I found myself reading throughout our text from Revelation today, the imagery of Anchorage PrideFest simply wouldn’t leave my mind. Perhaps it was the flowing river of our passage today combined with the rain of Saturday, but I couldn’t help but wonder, is this a glimpse of the kingdom of heaven?

Today, we find ourselves in a text that we rarely read aloud on Sunday mornings and many of us, at least I wasn't, all that familiar with the text itself. So for those of us that need a reminder, this passage in Revelation chapters 21 and 22 comes after the two main battles in which the author already has us thinking that this is, indeed, an apocalyptic text.

But, then we get here, where we read this final vision of the kingdom of God and not because it is the last book or even the last scene of Revelation, but because this is finally what the New Jerusalem looks like. Through this incredible imagery, we are allowed this small peak into final vision of God.

There is this finality here that lets us see that the old world, the old cities, and the old kings, and even the old oppression and injustice, has died. It is here in this final vision, that we get to see that there is a such thing as good death. As the water flows through the streets of the city, forming a watershed moment, within God’s city, the old has died.

Perhaps it feels too obvious, but this imagery should remind us of our baptism, it is a reminder of the grace and love encountered in that water. This is the watershed, a place where love flows, but also in the more literal sense of the word, a time that marks a turning point.

The New Jerusalem presented in these chapters is the watershed of this book, it lets us see that words encountered on a soaked sign at PrideFest this weekend, is part of that flowing, gushing, river of life. It is this vision where “God is the source of life; ...all creation is worthy of God’s love and grace. [where] Love that builds up, respects, and cherished is a gift from God to all people through grace.”

And the beauty of this revelation is that you are in this city. Let me say that again, the revelation of this imagery, is that you are indeed a part of this city. You are a part of the watershed, you find yourself walking into places that others would never willingly go, and this in of itself, the simple act of showing up, makes you a part of that turning point that demonstrates God’s love to others.

This is of course, no easy task. A simple scroll through your Facebook feed or unlocking of your phone will tell us that this Kingdom is not here yet, but just as we have the opportunity to read about this glimpse of a New Jerusalem in Revelation, we have the opportunity to see glimpses of this new city everyday.

For me, it looks like Drag Queens reading stories to kindergartners, it looks like trans* youth finally finding a mom who loves and accepts them, and sometimes looks like muddy makeshift slip n’ slides in the park. But, what does your glimpse of that new city look like? Where do you get to see a glimpse of that river of life leaking into this world?

Perhaps for you it looks like the smiles and laughter of your kids echoing from the other room, or sounds like the wind blowing through the trees as you embark on a hike, or a taste of your mom’s home cooking you haven’t had in years. Though it may not always feel like it, the gates of this city are starting to open--even when it’s hard to see, there is life flowing here too.

As you continue throughout your week, I hope that you are not only reminded of those small glimpses of that new city in your own life, but are reminded that we are part of the watershed for so many others as well. As you scrub into to surgery or the NICU, as you cleanse your hands with that foamy hand sanitizer countless times, as you deliver a cup of water to concerned family in the ER, or as you watch as an IV drips salvation through a tube, may you be reminded of the call of God to bring that light, that blessing and grace, found in water and on the leaves of trees to others.

Revelation’s life-giving watershed in the center of our cities renews our hope for our future. We need the New Jerusalem. We need the trees of life, the healing of the nations-- we need you. These glimpses of the new city that we find our own lives demonstrate just this. Through each of our cities, by whatever name -- Anchorage, Boston, St. Louis, Tanzania, Kenya, the New Jerusalem -- there is a river flowing from the heart of God, there is a watershed starting to form to bring new life and I pray that you remember that you are a part of that.