A people without a vision will perish, mostly because they'll get stuck in the muck of mediocrity. And for many years I am told, that was the fear of what might happen to University Circle as well as greater Cleveland. There was a cancer eating away at the edges of this community, in spite of its grand symphony halls and centers of art, learning, and healing. There still are issues of housing and deficits in public education.

But all of that is supposedly changing. We will be suffering the inconvenience of urban renewal through the next year with the renovation of Euclid Avenue. Drive past Trinity Cathedral, First Methodist, and Cleveland State and you will know what we have in store. "But no pain, no gain" and according to the New York Times we are on the move. "This is the hottest square mile in Ohio.” (1) And now comes the mayor's new plan to make Cleveland a "place of choice." So the questions are, “What about this church? What about this cathedral in the heart of this circle of hope? Do we have a responsibility, along with the giant power brokers that surround us? Will we be ready for the future? Will we be a "church of choice? Those questions raise issues for me around "a theology in concrete, “Theology, God thinking in and from and for the concrete walls of our corner of the city.”

The life of every human being is driven by two factors, the means by which we live and the ends for which we will live. And nothing more deeply determines the kind of person or society than how we pursue our ends and our means. Moreover, this church is surrounded by an institution that is laser focused on enabling young minds in the development of the necessary skills needed to acquire the means to make our world and their lives better. But when we turn from the means by which we live to the ends for which we live, there seems to be an ever-growing uncertainty.

Every person, every community is also divided into four equal quadrants. There is a physical side and in the case of our community that focuses on our buildings and roads, access and convenience, attractiveness. Yet, buildings alone are empty shells no matter how grand. The physical is preserved by great health centers, but even they can become cold and calculating.

A second quadrant is a person's or community's intellectual side; we have Case Western Reserve and a host of other colleges and universities. In the real estate trade they say, "Location, location, location." This church is in perhaps the most enviable location of any church I know when it comes to interfacing with the future knowledge of our world. But knowledge by itself is never enough. When you educate Dr. Jekyll, you also educate Mr. Hyde. Knowledge alone will not create a "good society."

The third quadrant is emotional. Healthy emotion is enhanced by the arts, the appreciation of life through parks and botanical gardens. There is a vibrancy that all the education in the world cannot contribute to. It's what is wrong with our national efforts to improve our schools when done so by "leaving behind" music, theater, and art classes.

All four quadrants are equal in importance and the balance is critical. Too much intellect and there is no feeling. Too much structure and regardless of inhabitants, there is a sterility, an emptiness to life. So there is a fourth quadrant, one that makes up a person's and a community's spiritual side. Not necessarily religious, but that which is part of the mystery of life. And that quadrant cannot exist if there is no one to raise its need. Which speaks to where we sit in the heart of this gem, this jewel called University Circle. A city church, with the opportunity to say along with Ezekiel, "The Lord is here."

It is interesting that the Bible has over 1400 references to the city. Some aren't very encouraging. Isaiah says, "Desolation is left to the city.” Naham cries, "Woe to the bloody city.” Jesus wept over Jerusalem. Like the French author Elluh who wrote, "Man's greatest attempt to play God is the city; and therefore, it is man's greatest evil.” (2)

Yet, Jerusalem was also a symbol of blessing. Revelation speaks of it being created new. The city is where all the hopes and fears of all the years meet and God can bring redemption. Christianity was born and bred in the city, it flourished in cities. Presbyterian's trace their ancestry to the city where John Calvin insisted the church play a vital role in the reformation of government and community life. "We must be about the reformation of (all) human society toward justice and mercy that will never end.” Thoughts echoed by contemporary theologians like Ostrum and Shriver who add, "To maintain its own spirit of ethical vitality, the church in the city must facilitate the involvement of its congregation in the political process. It can not only spend time talking about issues.” (3) Or to be even more pointed, there are the words of a Presbyterian elder, former shopping mall developer, creator of Harbor Place in Baltimore and Quincy Market in Boston, Jim Rouse, who admonished, "Man is God's instrument of carrying out an ongoing creation. That means everything we do in the environment, what we build or fail to build, places a tremendous responsibility on us and gives us a tremendous opportunity.” And it is with those thoughts in mind that I have to ask, what are our responsibilities and opportunities?

Perhaps Nehemiah offers us a clue. Living in exile, in the distant suburbs when he got word his beloved city was in trouble, he invested himself even at risk to his livelihood. Passing out wine to the king wasn't a bad job and he was apparently comfortable. But he returned to his city, which lay in ruins. He seemed to know that if his city was allowed to die it would be more than an inconvenience, it would be the death of his culture. If, on the other hand, that place to which God had called him was restored, along with its beauty, hope would blossom, and the city would mirror the values, the priorities, the concerns, the justice, the ends for which all the people lived.

Like any good city planner, the first thing Nehemiah did was survey the situation. We have had more than enough development plans. Maybe more than we need. Heidegger raised the cautionary flag, "One seeks security in management because it's human nature to retreat from the mysterious to the manageable." But now that there are plans in place for our circle and this church has outlined visions for the future, the time has come to venture, perhaps along with the writer of Revelation, into that mysterious world of dreams seeking to make them reality.

Over the past year I have had the opportunity to think about the walls and gates of this church and here is my take on it. This facility, this building opens its doors more than any church that I know. Most weeks there is something going on 75 to 80 hours. That is of great credit to you, your history, and our theological commitments. We are truly a community center in the center of this community. It is how some of our mission dollars are spent, but rarely counted because they are credited to gas and electric and personnel costs in our budget. It is what we are called to do because of where God has called us to reside.

We have committed ourselves to the students of the area through our Interfaith Center and United Protestant Campus Ministry in ways that perhaps no other worshiping congregation in the world is doing. Those are words of former Roman Catholic Bishop Pilla and the former Moderator of The Presbyterian Church USA, Rick Ufford-Chase. (4) But we must do significantly more to open our doors and our hearts. How might we be in dialogue with students over the ends which they seek while they are acquiring the tools that enhance their means? Why not a scholarship for a young student in our tutoring program who excels? What about a work study trip with college students and our high school seniors to life changing places?

We must do significantly more to communicate who we are and why people ought to have an interest in this congregation as they drive past other churches to get here. We need to expose the larger community to our music and study opportunities. We need to continue to attract young families as we grow in our future. Not for the sake of our survival, but because we offer a unique opportunity for those young families to invest themselves in a diverse and exciting world.

Like Nehemiah as part of my reconnaissance last week, Carol and I wandered past some other gates as we visited Trinity Cathedral. One thing we experienced was an inviting atmosphere that came with the opportunity to get there an hour early. I was working on Covenant time.

We visited The Village shops and the Coffee House they have within their building. I'm not suggesting we need to bring Starbucks over here, but I can tell you there was a sense of community gathered that wasn't just centered around getting to church and then getting to an adult forum and then getting home. It was more like people out for a leisurely Saturday morning, yet with a very spiritual purpose. It was about living in alternative ways.

As I enjoyed my coffee before a service of worship and a powerful sermon on the immorality of the war we are waging, I was moved to think of our east gate. That area next to the Ford Garage where the pedestrian way is crumbling, where a Roman Catholic building sits empty and the Hebrew Campus Ministry Center stands hidden from view of the campus. I thought about the incredible potential in using that stretch as a center for all student faith and life-developing ways to help the heart of this community think spiritually about our world and its future.

And finally, as I wandered around Trinity, I thought about this cathedral, which is what we are. In ancient times cathedrals were the center of a community. They dominated the landscape with shadows casting across the countryside. That's no longer the case. But I remember writing about the shadow that needed to be cast by any modern cathedral. It can only be done through the influence of its members. A modern cathedral must open itself to the world around it regardless of affiliation or loyalty, for it exists to point toward God, not dictate belief. We do a lot of that! A modern cathedral is a place of welcome for the least among the least, and we try our best to do that. But a modern cathedral also uses its influence, through its members, to shape and reshape the future of the community to which God has called it and we do some of that, but not nearly enough. It is time we start doing more!

I am not trying to be presumptuous. I am well aware that there are other churches of influence in this circle. But none are as strategically placed as we. And few, if any, can boast the influence of their members as we can. Which means, "To whom much is given, much is required.” Yeats said it, "Things fall apart because the center can not hold." This congregation, this cathedral needs to stand at the center of this circle helping to hold competing interests together. Standing as a people affirming loud and clear that, "The Lord is here!"

Every person, every community has four equal quadrants. If one over shadows the rest, the whole is diminished. Without arrogance but rather with great humility, the time has come for this congregation to step forward once again securing the base for the spiritual future of this circle of hope. It is the concrete theology to which we are being called to witness.

1) New York Times, A Resurgence in Cleveland, November 8, 2006,
2) Jacques Elluh, The Meaning of The City
3) Ostrum and Shriver, Is There Hope for The City

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