“Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.”
--Matthew 10:34 NRSV “There are churches who want to avoid conversation about race, money, politics, gender roles AND want more young people to join them. People under age 40 will write them off as irrelevant and afraid right quick. Just sayin.” I read the above tweet from Mark Tidsworth, a Baptist minister and church consultant, and I stopped dead in my scrolling on my iPhone. He expressed something I knew in my gut but had not articulated—church growth is intertwined with social justice. A big part of the reason churches cannot attract younger people is because churches have shied away from addressing the tough issues facing our culture. If churches do so at all, it comes from the Religious Right which preaches a Gospel of exclusion and justifies an unjust status quo. Most churches are conspicuously quiet about the issues many young people care the most about. Younger generations who have grown up having the injustices of racism, sexism, homophobia, economic inequality and more thrust in their faces via their smart phones look at churches and see them at best as irrelevant and at worst part of the problem. There are good reasons why churches have avoided talking about tough issues facing our society. The Religious Right’s hyper partisanship demonstrates the danger of confusing Christianity with worship of Caesar. Also, discussions of social justice often devolve into deadlocked arguments where people retreat to their preexisting partisan positions. (MSNBC viewers on this side and Fox viewers on the other side.) Certainly, we need spaces where we can set aside the polarization of our culture and share our common humanity and need for God. Yet, there are bad reasons for avoiding tough topics in churches. Churches often ignore the difficult issues facing society out of a misguided attempt to avoid conflict. Yet, even a cursory reading of the New Testament reveals that everywhere believers went conflict followed them. The “peace that passes understanding” does not mean the absence of conflict. Churches also avoid dealing with issues of social justice out of a desire to be “nice” lest anyone feel uncomfortable, yet the Jesus of the Gospels doesn’t seem to care at all about people’s comfort and he certainly isn’t concerned with being considered “nice.” He knew he was asking his followers to accept lives of discomfort, being misunderstood and condemned. That’s why he spoke about them facing persecution from authorities, neighbors and even their own families. When Jesus says the difficult words, “I have not to bring peace but a sword” and “I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother” he was talking about believers having to risk even their most important relationships on behalf of a radical love for every person. Many American churches seem more concerned about what the neighbors think of them than what God thinks of them. A refusal to touch on political topics flies in the face of the Gospel. Jesus’ life, death, resurrection, teachings and miracles are all political. To proclaim the Kingdom of God in a land occupied by Rome was to denounce the divinity and rule of Caesar. To speak of God incarnate in “the least of these” is to speak not of private charity but a world-changing ethic. To ignore the political dimensions of the Gospel is to remake the Gospel into a sentimentalized individual religion that costs the believer nothing. Sometimes Christians care more about their political party than they care about the Gospel’s demands for justice. One can be political for the sake of the Gospel without falling into the trap of being partisan. All political parties would gladly claim your soul, but Christians are called to wade into the difficult waters of politics with their allegiance firmly given to Christ and his love for all people which must always be put above the demands of party, family or interest group. A good way to judge whether you’re following the Gospel or your own political preference is to ask how does a particular platform, policy or law affect people with the least political power? If you are wondering “what would Jesus do?”, a good rule of thumb is to side with people whom society considers “the least of these.” According to Jesus, that is where you will find him. United Church of Christ minister Tony Robinson shares a story originally told by the South African anti-apartheid activist Rev. Dr. Allan Boesak: Two men appeared at heaven's gate and were ushered into St. Peter's presence. One of the men looked just terrific. Tan, fit, a nice head of hair, clean nails, great suit and shoes. Except for the fact that he was dead he could have been in GQ. He smiled confidently at Peter. The other man limped into St. Peter's presence. He had a welt on the back of his head. His clothes looked worn (and not because he had purchased the "distressed" model). His teeth were imperfect and there was dirt beneath his nails. The look on his face suggested he thought he was in the wrong place. St. Peter assayed the two people before him. He then turned to the first and asked, "Where are your wounds? Was there nothing down there worth fighting for?" So many churches have died, are dying and will die without having any wounds to show for their existence. Along with St. Peter, younger generations are asking, “Is there nothing you found worth fighting for?” Thanks to technology and social media which put the video, images and accounts of people facing injustice everywhere in our world right in the palm of our hand, we can no longer hide from the pain of our fellow humans. The days of retreating to a nice suburb where one could avoid the social struggles of our culture are over. We can no longer claim we didn’t know people faced oppression and abuse because of their skin color, gender, sexual orientation or economic class. Their stories find us in the places we created to escape from them. One of the last places remaining where one can stick one’s head in the sand is in American churches, but that won’t last much longer. Younger generations see the church as either irrelevant to their efforts to improve the world or as part of the problem that needs to be changed. If a church wishes to survive or better yet thrive as it lives out the Gospel of Jesus Christ it must do the difficult work of finding ways to discuss and address the injustices of our day without succumbing to the false idols of partisan politics. Our partisanship must be with Jesus who sided with the poor, the outcast, the condemned and the broken hearted. Grace and Peace, Chase
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“Let anyone with ears listen!”
--Matthew 11:15 NRSV The great 20th century theologian Paul Tillich wrote, “The first duty of love is to listen.” I don’t know about you, but listening is pretty difficult for me. “Chase, are you listening to me?” is a common refrain in my house that usually is said by my wife when my nose is buried in my phone. When I talk with others, especially people I disagree with, often I’m not listening to their words at all but merely thinking of what I will say next. Listening, really listening is valued less and less in a culture that allows all of us to post our thoughts at all times. The last few weeks of protest following the killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer has heightened the awareness among white people of the suffering of black people. The effects of hundreds of years of systemic oppression are very much a part of our present however much we wish to believe they are in our collective rearview mirror. Yet, this week the media is beginning to turn away and while protests persist their furor has died down. I would offer, however, that white folks, myself included, who really wish for our culture to improve must remain in listening mode. Now that we white people don’t have the pain of systemic racism thrust in our faces in the same way as we did during the last two weeks, we can’t simply go back to our safe white spaces where we don’t have to think about it anymore. We must keep listening. If we stop listening to what the African American community is saying, we will just be in this same place again. Who else must die and what else must burn to get our attention once more? The spiritual writer Douglas Steere wrote, “Someone once suggested to me that in every conversation between two people there are always at least six persons present. What each person said are two; what each person meant to say are two more; and what each person understood the other to say are two more.” He illustrates the essential barriers to communication between any two people. This is especially true when it comes to black people and white people talking about racism. Plenty of times I have reacted to the pain voiced by a black person with my own disbelief or defensiveness. I heard only an attack, when what was really being expressed was pain, fear, and anger. Those emotions might have been directed at me, but they weren’t about me. I have had to learn (and I still struggle to accept) that like most things, when I talk with a black person about race, I need to switch my focus from me to them. I have to actually listen. Morton Kelsey, who has written a lot on prayer, says, “Real listening is a kind of prayer, for as we listen, we penetrate through the human ego and hear the Spirit of God, which dwells in the heart of everyone. Real listening is a religious experience. Often, when I have listened deeply to another, I have the same sense of awe as when I have entered into a holy place and communed with the heart of being itself.” When I have been able, with God’s help, to remove my ego from center stage and to actually listen to the pain our culture’s racism inflicts on black people, I have discovered the voice of God speaking. Defensiveness, denial, disbelief each drown out the voice of God when white folks say they are listening to African American people. How do I know? Because I am guilty of telling black people I have listened to them when I have merely been protecting my own misguided attempts of respectability. We can do better. We must do better. We have to keep listening. What is God saying to you through black people in our culture these last few weeks? Have you been able to stop and listen? Don’t turn away. Don’t change the channel. Keep listening. God has more to say to you. Grace and Peace, Rev. Chase Peeples Don’t be conformed to the patterns of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds so that you can figure out what God’s will is—what is good and pleasing and mature.
--Romans 12:2 CEB We recently upgraded our internet service at home. Like many folks, I suspect, when all four members of our family were forced by COVID-19 to stay home all day and all four of us were using the internet at the same time, we discovered to our dismay our phones, computers, video games and video streaming slowed to a crawl. In a fit of frustration one day, I contacted my internet provider to see what could be done. A nice customer service representative informed me I was eligible to upgrade to their fastest internet speed and get a brand new modem for free. The best part was it would cost me $20 less a month than what I had been paying for slower internet speed! I wish I had made that call sooner, because now we are all zooming down the information superhighway. I am not an IT expert, but I am told the speed of your internet comes down to bandwidth. One definition of bandwidth is “the transmission capacity for a computer network.” Your equipment connecting you to the internet, the number of devices trying to use the internet through that equipment and the kinds of things you are doing on the internet, such as downloading video games, streaming movies, etc. all determine how much bandwidth or capacity you have to work with. Bandwidth sounds like an apt spiritual metaphor to me. Another definition of bandwidth is “the energy or mental capacity required to deal with a situation.” I don’t know about you, but recent news events have left me feeling low in this kind of bandwidth. COVID-19 and all the complexities that come from it, the killing of George Floyd and other African Americans by police officers and white vigilantes, the protests and counter-protests after those killings, on top of all the usual stuff that comes with trying to cope with life has left me feeling exhausted at times.. I’m in the business of trying to help people recharge their spiritual bandwidth. I am well aware that people are less able to care for others when they have failed to take care of themselves in a spiritual way. I also know that if there is any hope of people changing the many messes humanity has made in our world it lies with people whose spiritual bandwidth is at high capacity and who are connected to the Divine. I know all this, but I still resist doing the things necessary for spiritual self-care. You’d think by 48 years old I would have learned that doing more and more activity, no matter how well-intentioned it may be, depletes spiritual energy inside me, and unless I remain connected with God to keep that bandwidth going, I will run out. The consequences for us running low on spiritual bandwidth are not limited to our own frame of mind, mood or energy. When our capacity for facing situations from a healthy spiritual place runs out, we often treat those we love the most worse, have nothing to offer the world in terms of making it better and engage in behaviors that hurt ourselves. I’m pretty sure most of us get that concept, just as I’m pretty sure most of us have trouble putting it into practice. In the apostle Paul’s letter to the Christians in Rome, he offers some advice. He tells them not to be conformed to the “patterns of this world” but be transformed “by the renewing of your mind.” Growing up in conservative Christian circles, I usually heard this verse expressed in dualistic terms: world = sin, evil, bad vs. Christian life = righteousness, good. At this point in my journey, however, I’m understanding the “patterns of the world” not as something inherently bad. I believe most people are trying to do good things out of as pure motives as they can muster, but doing the stuff we aspire to do becomes more difficult, more confusing and less effective without spiritual bandwidth. Paul goes on to say that when we are renewed and are focused on what God wants, we can accomplish stuff like this: Love should be shown without pretending. Hate evil, and hold on to what is good. Love each other like the members of your family. Be the best at showing honor to each other. Don’t hesitate to be enthusiastic—be on fire in the Spirit as you serve the Lord! Be happy in your hope, stand your ground when you’re in trouble, and devote yourselves to prayer. Contribute to the needs of God’s people, and welcome strangers into your home. Bless people who harass you—bless and don’t curse them. Be happy with those who are happy, and cry with those who are crying. Consider everyone as equal, and don’t think that you’re better than anyone else. Instead, associate with people who have no status. Don’t think that you’re so smart. Don’t pay back anyone for their evil actions with evil actions, but show respect for what everyone else believes is good. If possible, to the best of your ability, live at peace with all people. On my best days, doing this kind of good stuff doesn’t come easily; on days when my bandwidth is low, this kind of living barely happens at all. I don’t know what you do to renew yourself and connect with God, but you need to do it not just for yourself but for our broken world. Our world needs people who have the bandwidth to show love to strangers, associate with the lowly, act humbly, demonstrate perseverance and live in hope. Maybe the best thing you can do for the world today is do the stuff that renews your mind and spirit: prayer, meditation, scripture reading, journaling, yoga, exercise, gardening, being outdoors, whatever! Get some more bandwidth. You need it and so do I. Grace and Peace, Chase Somewhere in this darkness
I feel the essence of life Ready to be molded To be kneaded and folded In on itself tonight I look at a connect-a-dot sky Or reflections off a ceiling of clouds Retrace my steps in the lies Think that I must surely die I pull back the layers of shrouds My head and heart like hands Caress the shapeless forms Address the peaks and crevices Choosing what my preference is Tossing out unneeded norms Down in the shivering fear Pushing away the warnings I see love can still be ours It’s the key to all the powers It reminds what being reborn is Don Queen Father, we praise Your Holy Name.
Creator of all that is, we thank You for our eyes, our ears, our minds, and our hearts. Gracious God, You are our Lord and King, our Savior and Counselor. We praise You! Lord, open our eyes to see, ears to hear and give us the compassion to speak when we come across injustice. Spirit remind us that through Jesus Christ our debt has been paid. Remind us that Your justice was to send Your Son to restore us and forgive our sins. Lord, give us eyes to see, ears to hear, and the compassion to share when we come across others in need. Spirit pour words from our mouths to speak the Good News of Christ’s love. Let our actions bear witness to the loving forgiveness that we have been granted. Let the over-abundance of Your Grace flow out from our hearts in tangible ways. Lord, give us eyes to see, ears to hear, and the compassion to love all we come into contact with. Spirit wipe away the obstacles that hold our love in check. Take away the jealousies, arrogance, and pride that hold our hearts captive. Remove from us the inherit seeds of racism, agism, gender bias and so many other stones that keep us from loving fully. Overflow our hearts with the same sacrificial love that You give us. Nudge us, Lord, when we doze so we do not allow Your opportunities for love to pass by. Let us be mindful of those who have lost their homes through war, disaster, or other struggles. Bring to our thoughts those struggling with hunger, thirst and loss of hope. Remind us of those fighting the battle for the health of their bodies and minds. Father, we claim Your healing on this broken world. Awaken our hearts and souls to be signals to this world of Your grace, forgiveness, and all-encompassing Love! Lord, we give ourselves to You, servants to follow Your will. Amen. Kathy Hendrix |
AuthorWe're Park Hill Christian Church in KC MO. We seek to follow Jesus by praising God, loving those we meet and serving the vulnerable. Archives
June 2021
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