Our church doesn’t believe that. Jesus’ followers were an infant church of rejects and less-thans, as well as people who did their best to find the realm of God in their time. We are not punished for failing to live into God’s hopes for us. We are judged compassionately. God continues to have hope for us, encourage us, empower us, believe in us, and surround us with a herd of our fellow creatures, both sheep and goats. Being part of a community – a human, faithful, fallible community – is vital when we recognize that we are in a present culture of scapegoating and blaming. In our communities we are strong and united. God does seek out all the lost, without exclusion, the sheep and the goats, and gives them a family. That is why we have each other, church, and that is the way we can all deal with being goats. So you’re a goat. So what?
Blessings — Pastor Carol