Mark’s Testimony

  • March 2, 2015

MarkThis testimony is supposed to be about my faith journey as a whole, so I thought that naturally I should take this time the tell the congregation how grateful I am to this church, and what WCUC has meant to me. This church has been by far the most important part of my faith journey, and undoubtedly had a major impact in how I see the world and my faith. I’d like to talk about why that was.

My favorite book of the Bible has always been Mark. Ever since I learned about the gospels in sunday school, I thought that it was so cool that I shared my name with one. It felt like I had a personal connection, to however small an extent, with the early Christians and the whole Christian tradition.

That’s what I appreciate so much about WCUC. I’ve felt like I had a personal connection with my faith here in so many ways. For example, last summer, when Pastor Hannah had a series of sermons about leaders of the early Christian faith, it meant a lot to me to learn more about the very roots of the church, the basis behind all the modern day scripture and hierarchy.  I’ve especially felt that the many, many service projects I’ve gotten to do with youth group have been a large part of this. The golden rule itself comes from the gospel of Mark, with “Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself” being in my opinion one of the most integral lines in Christianity. With the rebuilding in western Massachusetts, trips to different faith communities, and service work in soup kitchens and furniture banks here at home,  loving and helping thy neighbor is something I’ve been able to do in a big way with this church.

So what do I want to keep from WCUC as I go off to college next year and leave this congregation? I want to keep the knowledge, service, and above all the compassion that I’ve gotten from this congregation; the feeling that I’m in a faith community that cares about people and their rights, and the idea of getting closer to the personal, helpful, roots of Christianity. I want to maintain a faith that always grounds me; that shows me what I can do in the world and who I can help. And I appreciate that everyone here in the congregation was able to teach me that.

So thank you.