Happy Holi!

Holi is the Hindu Festival of Color.

On Saturday, March 23rd, I experienced a really unique intersection of faith. Early in the morning, in a quiet meeting room in First Presbyterian Church of Burbank, ten or so Clerks of Session gathered to review the records of our last year.

Minutes don’t really hold a lot of excitement- it’s okay to say it! They’re detail oriented and they’re certainly not a Jack Reacher novel or a Star Wars movie (Pastor Rich, I used that example for you), and but they do hold a rich history to them. From spirited debates, to tender moments of fellowship, to another flood we had to deal with, the pages held the decisions made in the last year, revealing a shared (if polity driven) history. Still, in those pages discussing the day to day of the church, I could catch a glimpse of the soul of our congregation—a tapestry of resilience, compassion, and tenacity. Say what you will about us, we do not throw in the towel.

I also love the annual review of the records for the sense of community it brings, too. I met new clerks and returning clerks, and we jumped in to answer questions and help where we could. I sat next to Deb, the new clerk of Session at Kirk of the Valley, and we talked about sharing a pastor and joked that any time his name was mentioned, we both perked up.

As the clerks from different churches in the San Fernando Presbytery began to leave and our record reviews completed, I had only enough time to run home and change into an all white outfit, purchased entirely the day before and after a last minute invite to ARTHAFEST– a celebration of Holi right in Burbank.

Holi, the festival of colors, began with a new friend right in the parking lot, and quickly turned into a dazzling spectacle of light, laughter, and color. Holi celebrates many things: the end of winter, the promise of renewal, rebirth, and the eternal cycle of life, the triumph of good over evil. (Sounds just a little like parts of what we celebrate in Easter, doesn’t it? Not to say that they are the same, but to say that these things are worth celebrating).

The festival was a non-stop celebration of these things, and the sense of community was delightful. I was welcomed like an old friend while making new friends. I was covered in orange and pink and blue, and I was dancing in the middle of the stage (I am not a dancing person normally)!

I left the day with moments that spoke of the beauty of faith and the power of community. Whether it’s the formal process of reviewing the past year, or dancing under a cloud of color, those moments and the sense of community add depth and richness to the whole.

I highly encourage you to read up on a Holi a bit, if only to understand the celebration of our Hindu brothers and sisters. Maybe you’ll see what I did, too: unity in diversity, harmony amidst chaos, and the boundless expanse of the human spirit. Happy Holi, and Happy Easter.