Joy: Faith & Funds @ Wachovia

So check it: I'm from St. Louis and therefore am a faithful client of the First National Bank of St. Louis. In my past home of New York, Chase Bank is on every block. Here in Philly, it's Wachovia that's famous. So yesterday one of the items on my "To Do" list was a bullet point with "Open Wachovia account."

I walked into the bank, thinking I'd be there for 10 minutes... little did I know the Lord had something else in mind. I was introduced to one of the personal bankers, a middle-aged man who had a picture of his wife and two daughters on his desk. After the pleasantries of "good afternoon" and "how are you?" were exchanged, and I brought out my Missouri driver's license, he asked what brought me to Philadelphia. I told him about Villanova's Theology and Ministry program, and then he slowly said, "So... you are a ....God person."

Not really sure how to respond, I think I laughed and said something like, "You could say that, I suppose." He then asked, "So, how do you explain suffering in the world? How could a loving God allow such things to happen?" Hm. Not exactly the kind of discussion I had in mind for an escapade in the world of checking accounts and online banking.  But, disponibilita, right? :) Go with it.

For the next hour and a half, our conversation ranged from his experience being raised in the Jewish faith (that he has now abandoned), the nature of free will, faith-based dietary restrictions, creationism and evolutionism (as not necessarily mutually exclusive) & both accounts of the Creation Story in Genesis, the Spirit of the Law (with comments from Paul & the Dali Lama!), liturgical rituals, the importance of relationship, and all things in between. I also remembered the two truths common in all religions and this would make my Religion 101 teacher proud: 1) Religions develop historically and 2) There is diversity in all religions. These helped immensely. Somehow, simply listing the topics doesn't adequately convey the amount of agression in his questions, nor the quality of those questions. All his questions (as probing or as accusatory as they were) were really good ones that I think any spiritually mature individual would face in his/her journey. He also commented on how young I was to think I know what life's all about (which I didn't appreciate-- age-ism, right there), but I did take that point to heart: I do have much to learn and wisdom does come from experience.  So he helped me, too. In the end (God knows how!), we got around to opening a checking and savings account. Welcome to Philadelphia-- I'm official.  

Here's what I'd like to say, though-- God gives you what you need when you need it, that is for certain-- and at that meeting at one of the many Wachovia's on Lancaster Ave, God delivered. What was amazing to me was that in previous conversations I had about matters like this with complete strangers, I would often feel targeted and attacked. However, this time, even though some questions were purposely meant to be agressive, as I sensed anger from his tone, I had a sense of peace, composure, and light-heartedness in my responses and musings. About 45 minutes into it, I realized, "Hey! As serious as these questions are, I'm having a good time!"  God provided the openness and calmness in this experience. But perhaps most of all, God provided the opportunity for me to slow down from my busy list of "To Do's" and get in touch with what really matters: working through the tough questions IN COMMUNITY with others-- even complete strangers named Hal.