A Splendid Torch

A Splendid Torch

Word from Wiese

27 June 2024

A few weeks ago, an ELCA pastoral colleague retired.  Pastor Peter Marty (son of esteemed church historian Martin Marty) has been a wonderful gift to the church, not only pastoring congregations, but serving as editor of a key national theological journal, The Christian Century.  Actually, our own COS Larry Peterson served with Peter decades ago at a church in Iowa.

In his final sermon, Pastor Marty shared a poem called A Splendid Torch by George Bernard Shaw.  Here it is:

The poem certainly captured Peter’s spirit!   The poem’s assertions also stired some questions for me.

Join me in reflecting:

1. Poem-writer Shaw seems to confess he’s not happy with himself on days when his soul’s expectation is the world should make him happy.Should we expect the world to make us happy?   What’s behind that expectation?  Do we allow ourselves to have a bad day if things aren’t falling into place for us?
2. Shaw ties joy with each of us committing to a purpose that we define for ourselves as significant.For you, reader, what is your purpose?  Do you claim it for yourself, as opposed to it having been defined by other voices or influences?    Does your purpose make your heart sing regardless if it’s acknowledged by few or hundreds?
3. “My life belongs to the whole community and as long as I live, it is my privilege to do for it what I can.”Most people feel this way about their immediate family. But to what extent are we able to go to sleep feeling a deep sense of satisfaction based on how we helped the “whole community” that day as opposed to money earned or experiences consumed?
4. The Olympics are coming up! The flame will be passed from one runner to the next.  Hundreds of runners accomplish what just one runner cannot, transporting a blazing torch from Greece to Paris.  So, I smiled with this line:  “(My life) is a sort of splendid torch which I have got hold of for the moment and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it on to future generations.”  What precious light am I transporting at the moment so future friends might enjoy it too?  How am I raising up future flame-runners, trusting that they might choose to run with the light just a bit differently than I do?

Ready to burn brightly with you,

Pastor Fritz

Let us pray: 

Lord, we know we’re not supposed to hide our light under a bushel. NO!  We want to let it shine. Send your Holy Spirit upon us so your light continues to burn brightly in us.  We don’t want to work so hard that we burn out.  But we certainly don’t want to finish our lives so they look like candles that have rarely been lit.    Inspire us to be bearers of splendid torches for you and the “whole community” that you love so deeply.  In the name of our Light, Jesus Christ, Amen.