What reunion is the greatest? — Reflecting on my visit to McGowan’s Lake

By Leandro Palacios, Director of Communications

“You are leading campfire tonight,” the camp director said to me. I think she sensed the anxiety I was trying to hide behind a big smile when I said, “Sure, let’s do it!”

When I visit reunions, I usually skip campfire because the songs are unfamiliar to me. I didn’t grow up in this church, and I didn’t grow up going to camps at all! But when camp director Wanda White invited me to the McGowan’s Lake Reunion specifically to lead the closing campfire, I thought, “Risk something new!”

I wasn’t feeling very confident—this was uncharted territory for me—but I was able to rearrange my schedule to arrive a day earlier than planned. I thought this would give me a chance to learn which songs people usually sing at this camp. Instead, when I arrived, I learned that I had about an hour to decide what to do.

This was my first visit to McGowan’s Lake Campground, located an hour southwest of Ottawa. I had seen a few old pictures, but I did not anticipate what it would feel like to be there. So green. So quiet. So peaceful. I noticed something very spiritual that was making me feel at home. What was that?

But there was no time for philosophical reflection. It was campfire time already. Honouring the theme “Risk Something New,” we tried some new songs interspersed with old favourites. Then something happened. I guess this is what Vonda DenBoer, Director of Camping & Campground Sustainability, calls a “God moment.”

The youngest person at the reunion stood beside me and confidently began leading the group in singing, “The wheels on the bus go round and round…” Everyone joined in, singing and doing the hand motions. I didn’t know the song, but unlike at previous campfires, I joined in and had an awesome time. Something changed at that moment. I was no longer an outsider or just a guest. I belonged.

The following night, the campfire led by guest minister and fellow seminarian Mary Cusak was a great success. I sang and played as if campfire had been my favourite thing my whole life! 

“For the least among all of you is the greatest” came to mind at that “God moment.” In Luke 9:48, Jesus points to a little child to end a dispute among the apostles who were fighting over who was the most important. But I was not thinking about the little child standing beside me. I was thinking about the church. This reunion was smaller than any other reunion I had visited. Does that make it the least? What about congregations with just a handful of members? Are they also the least?

When I studied this passage during seminary, I learned that a better translation may be, “For the least among all of you is great.” The gospel here may be telling us that the smallest and weakest can be as great as the largest and most powerful. “Greatest” suggests a hierarchy. “Great” suggests equality.

So often in Community of Christ, I have heard the expression “although we are small in number” used as a kind of disclaimer, as though something were wrong with our congregation, our camp, or the whole church. But what if our greatness had nothing to do with our size?​

I heard some lamentation about small numbers during this visit, but the small size of this group allowed me to connect with everyone, including those I was meeting for the first time and those who were different from me. I had a chance to discover their diverse gifts and how each of them contributed to making this reunion truly great.

Of course, we want more people attending our events, and we must continue to invite them. But I think our sadness about being small sometimes causes us to stop inviting people—the very thing we need to do if we hope to grow. Risk something new: What makes your group great? Talk about it. Invite others to experience it. They might see how great your group is, just as I saw how great McGowan’s Lake Reunion is.

I hope to return in future years whenever my schedule allows, and I encourage everyone to try a reunion or retreat they have never attended before.

Who is the greatest disciple? The least among us is great, just as the others are great. What is the greatest reunion? Large reunions are great, just as the smallest one is great.

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