Last Sunday we began to see the impact of Bill Rolland’s death, rippling out beyond our church family.  People who aren’t members of our church came to be with us – friends with Scottish ties, friends from community groups, Stevenson staff and alums, friends for whom Bill did their weddings and baptisms and funerals.

It was a beautiful network of spiritual friends, all coalescing around Bill.  And, because of Bill, our church is part of a vibrant network for spiritual good.

What is the Church?  In this week’s lesson from Jeremiah, Jeremiah condemns his “church” – the Jerusalem Temple.  The temple is part of Jerusalem’s network of political, business and personal life. But Jeremiah sees that it has lost its distinctive, godly role.  The temple condones or ignores corruption, injustice and even worse.

This Sunday, as we continue to grieve, remember and praise God for Bill, we will think about the Church – and our church.   We must be part of our community’s network.  Can we be both a part of and apart from the network?