June 8, 2018
Yesterday was Trinity Sunday, a day we celebrate the intimate mystery of the Loving Oneness that is our Almighty God, also known to us as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Our Loving God — Creator, Redeemer, Sustainer — is love, and we can rejoice in the miracle of God’s ever-present invitation for us to join God and one another in Holy Relationship, for all are God’s beloved creation.
Yet within this celebration, there is shadow, for we, as humankind, are so very flawed. In all our brokenness, we are not able to avoid our natural self-centeredness. We can’t will ourselves to live according to God’s command to love our neighbors as ourselves, for our sinfulness permeates both our personal and corporate lives.
Perhaps that’s part of why the agonizing images of protest and violence we’ve seen these past weeks are so disturbing. Or why the words Black Lives Matter can upset us so much. Sinfulness and broken relationships. Our nation does not yet align with our stated values of justice and equity for all people, nor our Christian values of recognizing the image of God in all our neighbors. Racism still exists and is a severe soul problem for us all.
I do not condone violence, but I do support protests. History tells us that our nation was founded by those who protested and spoke out against tyranny. For those of us in the majority, protests will always be uncomfortable, for there simply is no right way to protest. And frankly, that is the point of protest — to make the majority uncomfortable enough to bring focused attention to the suffering of others.
Some will remember back to the Civil Rights era of the 60s and, if we’re honest, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. — although a staunch advocate of peaceful protests — was deeply hated and seen as a disruptor. Dr. King was told again and again to be patient, to wait, for eventually things would be made right. Dr. King was asked — even by clergy — to stop protesting.
But that message “to stop” was wrong, for here we are, sixty years later, and inequity continues for people of color. There’s so much more that does need to be done, if only we, white America, are willing to see the truth. There are disproportional numbers of COVID-19 deaths within communities of color. There are continuing stark disparities in virtually every area we use to measure success: availability and quality of education, average wages, levels of homeownership, unemployment rates, access to healthcare. The evil of racism does still exist.
What can we do, as Christ’s own? What can we do as those who are called to fulfilling the mission of the church: to restore all people to unity with God and one another in Christ?
We can pray. We can pray for justice, freedom, and peace, each and every day. Our Daughters of the King continues in their daily prayer vigil. Each day at noon they individually take the time to pray the Lord’s Prayer and are committed to doing that until this time of hardship is past us. There’s a group text that goes around each day, that shares the word AMEN, signifying all who have participated in the virtual vigil. I invite you all to do the same thing. Set an appointment on your calendar, an alarm on your phone or your watch . . . whatever will remind you every day to take the time to pray for an end to the pandemics, both viral and spiritual, of our lives.
We can listen. As God’s people, we need to be able to humbly listen with open ears, and hearts and minds. Listen, not to respond or react, but simply to hear. I’ve heard stories from friends of color about being followed and closely watched as they simply browse through stores — as if somehow their skin color makes them more likely to be a thief. Or the anger and despair of parents having to have “the talk,” especially with their sons. Talks that include extra precautions their children DO need to know about how to handle a traffic stop, what to wear, and how to act in other “risky” social situations because of their skin color. All things I never needed to discuss with my own sons or daughters, because we do have the privilege of being born white. We all need to listen to voices with experiences that are not our own.
And we can act. As Presiding Bishop Michael Curry tells us, love goes. Love stands in solidarity with the most vulnerable and oppressed, sacrificing our own ease in order to seek the other’s well-being. Here are a few local opportunities for our community:
• Some may choose to walk in solidarity with others in our local community asking for racial justice. There’s a march planned this Saturday, June 13th at 5:00 from El Bronco to City Hall, supported by the Houston County NAACP in coordination with our Warner Robins law enforcement. Deacon Janet and I do plan to attend, should any choose to join us.
• For others, there’s another opportunity to feed the hungry through a Mobile Pantry on Friday, June 12th at First United Christian Church, 3218 Hwy 341, Hawkinsville (the church is just across the boundary into Haynesville). Volunteers are needed from 9:30 to 2:30 and should be able to lift 25 lbs. Bring masks and a sack lunch. If you can help, please contact me by this Wednesday, 6/10. (And please know how grateful I am for so many of you who continue to support our own Food Pantry and the Rector’s Discretionary fund during this difficult season of increased need within our community. You are making a difference.)
• And we can learn to be advocates. For those of us who are white, we can become aware of our privilege and use our voices to stand up for others. Resources to help us learn are readily available. Read Bryan Stevenson’s Just Mercy, an autobiography about Stevenson’s work in a legal practice dedicated to defending the most desperate: the poor, the wrongly condemned, women and children trapped in the depths of a broken criminal justice system that most of us will never know. The book reads like a movie — and now is a movie of the same title, Just Mercy, that everyone can watch for free on Amazon Prime through June. Or read Michelle Alexander’s The New Jim Crow that shows us how our laws, systems, and structures have evolved over time to actually maintain a racial caste system in new ways, leading to the devastation of mass incarceration. A summer book study on Just Mercy will be scheduled in July. Please contact me by Monday, June 22 if you are interested in joining this group discussion. Here’s a link that can introduce you to Stevenson’s work: https://www.ted.com/talks/bryan_stevenson_we_need_to_talk_about_an_injustice.
By praying, listening, and acting, we can acknowledge our past, seeking both God’s forgiveness and the forgiveness of one another. This is the way forward — a way to heal — from our nation’s original sin of racism. As Christ-followers, we are called to love, not to be silent nor neutral. We are called to dismantle unjust systems and take actions to make changes that, with God’s help, will help usher in God’s Kingdom here on earth.
As Deacon Janet shared in her Sunday sermon, we are all called to “Go and Do” — to be the church by feeding the hungry, clothing the needy, caring for the sick, lifting up the oppressed. And we are strengthened and empowered for this holy work by the Spirit, for God is with us, especially when we seek to serve in Jesus’ way of love.
Blessings,
Mother Bonnie+
P.S. I mentioned “the talk,” a conversation most of us, as white Americans, have never had to deliver. Here’s a link to a video, an Emmy-nominated short film, that can provide some insight into the conversations most African American parents are compelled have to have with their children: https://www.saltproject.org/progressive-christian-blog/2015/1/14/get-home-safely-10-rules-of-survival
Lord, What would you have me do?
Seeking to serve Christ in all persons, loving God and our neighbors as ourselves.
Seeking to serve others is never easy and it can be especially challenging in this time of social distancing. How do we respond to Jesus’ call to serve?
Here are a few suggestions that each one of us can do:
• Pray: remember that we are beginning a time of Holy Reading and Prayer, each Thursday at 11:00 a.m. We’ll read together a passage of scripture and reflect on how God’s word touches our lives and what the Spirit may be calling us to do. Watch for the Zoom link in this Wednesday’s email from All Saints and join us.
• Listen: I listened to a remarkable musical composition by Joel Thompson of Atlanta called The Seven Last Words of the Unarmed. Thompson combines the liturgical structure of the seven movements of Joseph Haydn’s Seven Last Words of Christ with inspiration from Shirin Barghi’s #lastwords project, to create a truly moving composition for our times. The words used are the final words from the killings of seven black men . . . and I’ll candidly admit this creation moved me to tears. These the final words you’ll hear:
• “Why do you have your guns out?” – Kenneth Chamberlain, age 66
• “What are you following me for?” – Trayvon Martin, age 16
• “Mom, I’m going to college.” – Amadou Diallo, age 23
• “I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.” – Michael Brown, age 18
• “You shot me! You shot me!” – Oscar Grant, age 22
• “It’s not real.” – John Crawford, age 22
• “I can’t breathe.” – Eric Garner, age 43
Here’s one link available to the performance of this moving piece, performed in February 2017 by the SSO and featuring guest University of Michigan Men’s Glee Club, led by conductor Eugene Rogers: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zdNXoqNuLRQ
• Act: reach out this week to someone you haven’t spoken to in awhile to simply check on how they are doing. And then just listen. These past week’s have been a strain on everyone, particularly those who are alone, and your voice and presence can be a blessed comfort to our brothers and sisters.