For the Next Generation

There is a tale found in the Talmud, the compendium of Jewish civil and ceremonial law and legend, about Honi the Wise One. When he saw something that puzzled him he would ask questions so he could unravel the mystery.

“One day, Honi the Wise One was walking on the road and saw a man planting a carob tree. Honi asked the man, ‘How long will it take for this tree to bear fruit?’ The man replied, ‘Seventy years.’ Honi then asked the man, ‘And do you think you will live another seventy years and eat the fruit of this tree?’ The man answered, ‘Perhaps not. However, when I was born into this world, I found many carob trees planted by my father and grandfather. Just as they planted trees for me, I am planting trees for my children and grandchildren so they will be able to eat the fruit of these trees.’”

We reap the fruit of trees planted before we were even born. Our ancestors planted and tended trees for us. Likewise, when we plant trees, we do it for those who follow us. When we plant an acorn, we know it takes many years to grow a great oak tree. 

This is the idea behind our new capital campaign logo, Generation to Generation. We plant a tree not for this generation, but for the next generation. That is, what we do here and now at Salem is for the next generation. We stand on the shoulders of those who went before us. Others will follow us and stand on our shoulders.

In worship, our Letters to Timothy series fits very well with this focus. The Apostle Paul tells young Timothy, “I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that lived first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, lives in you.” (2 Timothy 1:5)

Many of us are Christians because of our grandparents or parents or a spiritual parent. Many people have gone before us. Again, we stand on their shoulders. And others will follow us and stand on our shoulders. Our faith is passed on from generation to generation.

So we’re asking everyone to make a pledge to our Annual Giving Fund as well as to our Building Fund. This is one of the ways we can plant a tree for the next generation. More than a century ago, the people of Salem did that for us today when they built and paid for the downtown building that was destroyed in the 2008 flood. Even though that building was lost, what we received from it has allowed us to be where we are today in a $2.5 million facility.

Of course, we know the church is not the building; it’s the people. The facility, however, is an important tool we use as disciples of Jesus Christ for God’s kingdom in the world. It is a mission outpost, an embassy, an island of one culture in the midst of another culture. It already is and will be a big, strong, beautiful, fruitful, shady tree.

I remember, in February of 2015, we walked from the worship space in the original “ark” building into our new facility. We wrote prayers and blessings on the floor of the new sanctuary and narthex before the new carpeting was laid down. We walk on those prayers and blessings every week. They are weaved into the fabric of our life together and for the world.

The people who come after us will walk on the foundation of those prayers and blessings too. They will stand for as long as this building stands.

Now it’s our turn to do all we can to leave a legacy for another generation.