Keeping the faith

Pastor Derek Hansen stood behind the pulpit at Adirondack Community Church on Dec. 16, his face illuminated by light streamed in through stained glass windows.

“We’re looking for this new beginning in the new year, after we’ve lived through 10 months of this pandemic,” he said. “It’s been anxious, uncertain. A lot of people are lonely and isolated. We’re looking for a new beginning. In the Christian faith, that’s what the birth of Jesus represents. Through forgiveness of sin, there’s the comfort of God’s presence. Whatever we go through, God is with us.”

This year has brought months of heartache, grief, sickness and pain to many as the coronavirus continues to spread, triggering economic shutdowns at times. The number of people who have died from COVID-19 in the U.S. surpassed 320,000 this month.

Next year, a coronavirus vaccine is expected to be made available to the general public — a sign of hope for many.

Father John Yonkovig, of St. Agnes Catholic Church, said the pandemic has allowed people to get “back to the essentials.”

“We’re looking a little more closely at the roots of Christmas and what it really means,” he said. “This year is going to be a Bethlehem Christmas and not a Jerusalem Christmas. The first Christmas was very simple, with a very humble birth. That’s where we are at in our country right now.

“The core message that I’m trying to convey is that this celebration of Christmas should open up our eyes to an understanding of what God wants of us as his children. Right now, I think many people are very discouraged. There’s an isolation that many people are feeling depressed about, there’s a financial struggle among many people. These are very hard times. It’s easy to wonder where God is in the middle of our dilemma, in the middle of our suffering. He knows there’s suffering, he knows the loneliness of life. … God is there with us, in the midst of that. Giving us the strength, the grace, the patience to deal with this. We are not abandoned.”

In the weeks leading up to Christmas, Lake Placid Baptist Church Pastor Jim Koenig said his congregation has also been discussing the birth of Christ.

Jesus was born in a stable, during an unplanned pregnancy, with a crisis delivery and into a hard life, he said, “So you see that Christ’s life, first of all, was a life of disruption. It was a life that caused division.

“Ultimately, it meant deliverance. COVID has caused disruption and division. There is a deliverance that we’re looking for, and ultimately I think that deliverance is the same that Christ has always offered. Deliverance for our souls so we can be free during chaos.

“That’s the paradox. The scripture is full of joy in the midst of sorrow, peace in the midst of pain. Faith can help us live in the middle of those chaoses.”

At St. Eustace Episcopal Church in Lake Placid, which is currently without a minister, the congregation has found strength in one another, too.

“Our blessings are each other,” said Jim Rogers, a member of the congregation. “We’ve stayed together. We’re local people who are very much a part of the community.”