Slideshow image

Liminal space is a transitional space where you are leaving behind one state and yet have not fully crossed over into the next.

We have all sorts of liminal experiences and spaces in our lives.  Dusk - ending the day, but not quite night.  Dawn - leaving the night, but not fully day.  Adolescence - not quite a child, but not yet an adult.  Pregnancy - not childless, but not parenting just yet.  Separating from a partner - not in a relationship, but not yet single.

In all these different ways that we transition from one thing to the next, there is this in-between place that we have to travel through to get where we are going.  And the in-between place can often be uncomfortable.  It is filled with uncertainty and unknown.

And yet, liminal space is also sacred space.  A space where we can encounter and be transformed by God.  In scripture, liminal space is often represented by the wilderness.  The Israelites wandering in the wilderness had a 40 year transition from slavery in Egypt to freedom in the promised land - time where God was active and at work transforming them into God’s people.  After his baptism, Jesus spent liminal time in the wilderness facing challenges and preparing to begin his ministry.  

Christians are, by definition, a people who live in liminal space - a time in-between.  We are “now and not yet” people who embrace the reality of God’s Kingdom right here and right now - in our midst - and who also realize that God’s vision for the world is not yet fully realized.  There is much work left to be done.    And it is right here in the middle - where we live - that God is, indeed, at work.

Holy Cross has entered into a liminal time - a time of transition .  We are no longer led by Pastor Jim, but we do not yet know who the next pastor will be.  We are in a liminal space - a space of uncertainty and change.  This can feel scary.  I, for one, like to know what to expect!  But it is right here in this in-between space that God is at work in our community.  This is sacred time - time to encounter God in new and unexpected ways; time to be shaped and changed in ways that we have not yet imagined.

The LORD goes before you and will be with you; God will never leave you nor forsake you. Deuteronomy 31:8

Peace,

Pastor Heather