GRACE
I sometimes joke that if I ever win Megabucks I am going to start a foundation called “The Undeserved Grace Foundation.” This always leads my sister Laura to remind me that Grace, the love of God, freely given to his children is always undeserved.
We grew up in the Lutheran church, where Grace is a concept central to Martin Luther’s teaching. When Luther nailed his 95 theses on the door of a church in Wittenberg, Germany, he was protesting against the idea that you can buy your way into heaven faster, or perhaps get a seat closer to Jesus at the big table.
I don’t think that’s what Jesus taught either. When I try to understand the parables, I believe the meaning Jesus is trying to convey is that God loves the Samaritan, the sick, the people of different social status, and sent his son to freely do so—as well as heal the sick. At its most basic level I believe it means that I, in my comfortable home, am no better than someone who is a homeless drug addict. The old phrase “There but for the Grace of God go I” is not just a platitude, it has meaning and a message of importance.
Nor do I know, even if I want to believe that my ideas about the state of affairs in York, in Maine, in the United States, the Middle East or the rest of the world are what God wants. I don’t think my neighbor does either. I can do my best to interpret what Grace means when I lack for nothing. I look for guidance from those more schooled in Christian theology to help me understand what I don’t.
So, if God’s grace is given freely to all his children and Jesus told us that again and again, then it stands to reason we must love and respect others. In the current climate of unrest that’s difficult. Remember that the gift of Grace, showered upon my enemies as well as my loved ones, is worth remembering, especially this time of the year.
Barbara Kautz, October 2025