tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-54343277690936687472024-03-06T15:02:29.665-05:00Bishop's BlogThoughts on faith and life from Bishop Peggy A. JohnsonBishop's Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01798640292459548501noreply@blogger.comBlogger367125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5434327769093668747.post-39868773725335218332021-08-11T14:48:00.004-04:002021-08-11T14:48:53.791-04:00A Time to Keep and a Time to Cast Away<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-K0jazXbgISQ/YRQa99I3JZI/AAAAAAAAxoo/kn_7CcPHYkUmHtsnGV0rr367-8PsxF82ACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/BPJ%252C%2526HerBoxes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1742" data-original-width="2048" height="272" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-K0jazXbgISQ/YRQa99I3JZI/AAAAAAAAxoo/kn_7CcPHYkUmHtsnGV0rr367-8PsxF82ACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/BPJ%252C%2526HerBoxes.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>The often quoted verses about time, in chapter three of the Book of Ecclesiastes, come to mind as I prepare to retire and leave this beloved Philadelphia Area. Throughout the past 13 years I have experienced many of the times that are listed in this litany of life’s passages, among them: planting and plucking up, killing and healing, breaking down and building up, weeping and laughing, mourning and dancing, speaking and remaining silent. <p></p><span id="docs-internal-guid-e29e0b93-7fff-0841-b891-9708529e5fe4"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">At this moment, as my living room runneth over with cardboard cartons full of books and personal belongings, the words “a time to keep and a time to cast away” seem timely. There have been many trips to the dumpster and Goodwill, as I sort and discard things I no longer need. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I carefully pack tangible things I want to keep and bring to our new home in Virginia. However, there are non-tangibles—some to keep and some to cast away—that are more important now. I share them with you now.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Things I need to cast away include my disappointments and lack of wisdom at times, moments when people have been hurt because of my decisions. The need to protect the system was not always in sync with my heart. Nor was the interpersonal “grist” of disagreements, misunderstandings and compromises for the sake of peace. To those who have been wounded, I offer my sincere apologies. </span></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; font-family: Arial;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HqLPd2MhRoQ/YRQbD_Kj9QI/AAAAAAAAxos/wLZcD-ITabUFcun6SUXlkTfceyRiGOrzQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/JohnsonFamily-Gabe%252CPeggy%252CPete%252CMike.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1784" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HqLPd2MhRoQ/YRQbD_Kj9QI/AAAAAAAAxos/wLZcD-ITabUFcun6SUXlkTfceyRiGOrzQCLcBGAsYHQ/w349-h400/JohnsonFamily-Gabe%252CPeggy%252CPete%252CMike.jpg" width="349" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /><i>The Johnson Family, from left: Gabriel, Peggy, Peter, Michael</i></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I give these things to God, who “works all things together for good” in the midst of human frailty. As the hymn “This is a Day of New Beginnings” (UMH, #383) reminds me, </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Then let us, with the Spirit's daring,</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">step from the past, and leave behind</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">our disappointment, guilt and grieving,</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">seeking new paths, and sure to find. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Casting away is a life-giving part of moving on. The things that I will keep are vastly more in number, and they will remain with me for the rest of my life:</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The memories of vital ministries, large and small.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The faithful, sacrificial clergy and lay people, men and women, young and mature, gifted and diverse.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The many, hard-won victories in the struggle for justice and inclusivity.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The rich legacy of history and that “cloud of witnesses” who have been </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">cheering us on from above.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Christmas Eve candlelight services at Barratt’s Chapel every year.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The outstanding music in our churches: choirs, pipe organs, pianos, praise </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">bands, soloists, brass ensembles, drums, strings, harps, flutes, hand-bells.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The amazing geographical diversity of this area: big cities, farmlands, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">orchards, mountains, suburbs, ocean resorts, and even an island in the middle of the Chesapeake Bay.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The rich cultural diversity of African American, European American, Latino/Latinx, Korean, Asian-Indian, Native American, Haitian, Pennsylvania Dutch, coal </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">miners, watermen, and the Deaf (who are a culture unto themselves).</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The many who received their “call to ministry” at our ordination services, and the young people who found Christ for the first time at our camps, youth rallies and other events.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The wonderful camping ministries that have modeled Christian community </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">for people who may never come to our churches</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The life-changing mission trips to: South Africa with Mission of Peace; the Democratic Republic of the Congo; India; Haiti; Spirit Lake, North Dakota; and Red </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Bird Mission in Kentucky.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The ever-faithful appointive and extended cabinet members, conference staff and administrative assistants who have worked and laughed and cried with me.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The gift of deep conversations with ecumenical and interfaith partners in </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">leadership. </span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The multi-talented extension ministry pastors serving here and in places all over the globe. </span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The dynamic colleges, universities and seminaries with their rich cultural and theological diversity.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The church anniversaries, homecomings, building dedications, charterings and potluck dinners, especially with that strawberry Jello, cream cheese, pretzel salad!</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The generous and overwhelming expressions of love and farewells sent my </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">way in recent months.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">My wonderful spouse, Michael, who served a total of 18 churches (part-time) in both conferences (appointed and interim) wherever there was a need. He wrote numerous liturgies and prayers for every occasion, taught many workshops and Mission U courses and helped others as a certified spiritual director. </span></li></ul><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-x7KKK3r7ZNY/YRQbhiN5vBI/AAAAAAAAxo4/wJZp8Ar8k6syzm-WfPg7BbldsCvoaw6PgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1102/Zechariah%2B7%252C9-10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1102" data-original-width="735" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-x7KKK3r7ZNY/YRQbhiN5vBI/AAAAAAAAxo4/wJZp8Ar8k6syzm-WfPg7BbldsCvoaw6PgCLcBGAsYHQ/w266-h400/Zechariah%2B7%252C9-10.jpg" width="266" /></a></div><br />These are some of the many things I will keep. And as I remember them, I will give thanks to God for the profound blessings you have shared with me. </span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As I was packing boxes in the attic the other day I found a box labeled “Election.” In it were various memoirs of the day I became a bishop, July 17, 2008. Among the various letters of congratulation, pictures and programs was a little scrap of yellowed notebook paper with a scripture passage on it. I remember writing these words on my first day in the Philadelphia Episcopal Area on September 1, 2008. These words from Zechariah 7:9-10 were like a mandate from God for what I needed to do here:</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“This is what the Lord Almighty says: administer true justice, show mercy and compassion to one another, do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the alien or the poor. In your hearts do not think evil of each other.”</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I will keep these words in my heart and in my future life; and I leave them with you to follow as well. Never cast these words away, but keep them close always. And if you do these things, you will truly be the church that God intends and desires. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span></p><div><br /></div>Bishop's Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01798640292459548501noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5434327769093668747.post-43174389990385800272021-06-22T14:55:00.005-04:002021-06-22T14:55:44.837-04:00 Celebrating a Silver Anniversary<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 16pt; font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Order of Deacons (1996-2021) </span></p><span id="docs-internal-guid-0c0e907f-7fff-1a84-ab8f-7e01e4b2523d"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">At the 1996 General Conference of The United Methodist Church, the Order of Deacons was voted into existence. The church has long had a consecrated class of servant leaders known as Diaconal Ministers, Deaconesses, and Home Missioners. But they are not an ordained class of clergy ministers. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">With the creation of the Order of Deacon, the doors were flung wide for more outreach and mission, especially with people living in the margins of society. Ordained Deacons can be in ministry anywhere and everywhere. Their mandate is to “connect the church to the world.” Thus, they are called to ministries of “Word, Service, Compassion and Justice.” (</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Book of Discipline,</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> para. 329)</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As ordained leaders, Deacons serve in conferences under the supervision of Bishops and cabinets, who officially set their appointments. They undergo the same rigorous examination process as Elders. And they must be elected to this office by the conference Board of Ordained Ministry and the Clergy Session of the annual conference. They also have higher education requirements to complete as part of their preparation.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-v8I7P9vg91k/YNIx270l_bI/AAAAAAAAxnE/PNS0fF92Pmc0I_El4Nh5tb-nwZnwR79ewCLcBGAsYHQ/s1334/Deacon%2BLogo%2B-%2B25th%2BAnniversary.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1212" data-original-width="1334" height="364" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-v8I7P9vg91k/YNIx270l_bI/AAAAAAAAxnE/PNS0fF92Pmc0I_El4Nh5tb-nwZnwR79ewCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h364/Deacon%2BLogo%2B-%2B25th%2BAnniversary.png" width="400" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 14pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">2021 marks the 25</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 14pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: 0.6em; vertical-align: super;">th</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 14pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> anniversary</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This year marks the 25</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: 0.6em; vertical-align: super;">th</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> anniversary of the Order of Deacons. In the 12</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: 0.6em; vertical-align: super;">th</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> year of their existence (2008), I was elected to the episcopacy. I have had the privilege of walking alongside the amazing Deacons of the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference and the Peninsula Delaware Conference. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I stand in awe at the breadth of their ministries. They are: </span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">chaplains in hospitals, hospice, mental health and senior centers; </span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">teachers, professors and seminary directors; </span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">local church pastors, church musicians, Christian educators and missionaries; </span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">doctors, surgeons, hospital and disability services executives; </span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">directors of camps, retreat centers, food banks and volunteer mission trips; </span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">therapists and counselors; </span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">leaders in HIV/AIDS agencies, disaster recovery, immigration advocacy;</span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">church development consultants; and</span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">many more fields of leadership and service.</span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Deacons in ministries outside the local church also have secondary appointments in local United Methodist congregations. There they interpret the needs of the world to the congregation, as they call disciples to serve God’s people from the pews to the pavement, from the sanctuary to the streets. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Deacons also assist the bishop as needed. Many have accompanied me as I travel to churches on Sundays for preaching engagements. They read Scripture, tell the story of the Order of Deacons, and give the “sending forth” at the end of the service. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 14pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Wherever service is needed</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5xMpm-WLMYs/YNIyE-tI5bI/AAAAAAAAxnI/r4ocEqCX5C4WniVcyUMV5MPr42qLF3T1wCLcBGAsYHQ/s1360/DeaconBook.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1360" data-original-width="880" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5xMpm-WLMYs/YNIyE-tI5bI/AAAAAAAAxnI/r4ocEqCX5C4WniVcyUMV5MPr42qLF3T1wCLcBGAsYHQ/w259-h400/DeaconBook.jpg" width="259" /></a></div>They have assisted me and other elders during Holy Communion, Baptisms, and Ordination and Commissioning services. Their ordination gives them the privilege of conducting marriage ceremonies and officiating at funerals and celebrations of life. Wherever service is needed they offer the “basin and towel” of humble, self-giving ministry, out of love for Christ.</span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Even after 25 years of service, the Order of Deacon is still not understood in the minds of many. Generations of folks remember young preachers who were first ordained as Deacons, and after a probationary period became “full-member Elders.” </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Order of Deacons created in 1996 is no longer a transitional step to becoming an Elder. It confers full-membership clergy status, equal and distinct from the Elder track. Deacons have a claim on ministerial compensation, annual conference voting rights and ministry supervision, the same as Elders. The Order of Deacon is a gift to the church and its potential has yet to be fully utilized for the ministry of Christ.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I say to the Deacons of the Philadelphia Area: Happy Silver Anniversary!! The Deacons that have gone before you paved the way for you to take ministry out into the remote places of the world where Christ’s love and compassion is desperately needed the most.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Silver is a precious metal that reflects radiance, strength and beauty. Deacons embody all of these attributes; and I celebrate the light and blessings that they bring to The United Methodist Church always but especially during this milestone year. </span></p>Bishop's Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01798640292459548501noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5434327769093668747.post-84066896023575918542021-06-10T08:17:00.008-04:002021-06-10T08:30:31.174-04:00Lessons we can learn<h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The painful history of Native American boarding schools</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></span></h3><span id="docs-internal-guid-083c412e-7fff-da70-054d-e3ba00fdfa40"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">
The dark atrocities of the Native American boarding schools are coming to light in recent years. Last week in the news, we learned of a mass grave with over 200 First Nations children. It was discovered at the site </span><a href="https://www.unilad.co.uk/news/remains-of-215-indigenous-children-discovered-at-former-residential-school-in-canada/" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="color: #0563c1; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">one such school in Canada</span></a><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. There have been similar revelations of abuse in boarding schools in this country for many years as well. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What were these boarding schools? They were part of a widespread scheme to intentionally assimilate tribal peoples into European culture. Indigenous parents were forced to give up their children to these educational institutions by white people whose goal was, in the words of one administrator, to “kill the Indian, save the man.” </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-30OIIxUyhck/YMIBC72tWWI/AAAAAAAAxl0/vRnq5PRES3UP2xtq0Y7O29v5apKD2TZqgCLcBGAsYHQ/s960/DuuBx1lXQAIWyh1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center; white-space: normal;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="300" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-30OIIxUyhck/YMIBC72tWWI/AAAAAAAAxl0/vRnq5PRES3UP2xtq0Y7O29v5apKD2TZqgCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h300/DuuBx1lXQAIWyh1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Their hair was cut. The use of their native languages was forbidden. Their names were changed. Euro-American-style clothing was required. And they were trained mostly to become skilled in domestic and laborer-type work. They were to become useful to the dominant culture, which had conquered their homelands and subjugated their peoples. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This was cultural genocide, plain and simple, and yet these schools flourished with an air of respectability for over a century in our country and in Canada. There are still people living today who were forced into these schools and who remember the horrors of the assimilation they endured and the often cruel tactics of the teachers. </span></p><h3 style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Many children did not endure</span></h3><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">But many did not endure in this long, sad history, dating back to the mid-1800s. Many of the children died from abuse, disease, despair and inhumane conditions in these schools </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7TptDCW5Vrs/YMIBn87mo2I/AAAAAAAAxmA/8aUF6yRJeeozBPgG2dCJ4kMko96vZwANwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/carlislecemetery.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7TptDCW5Vrs/YMIBn87mo2I/AAAAAAAAxmA/8aUF6yRJeeozBPgG2dCJ4kMko96vZwANwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/carlislecemetery.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Bigotry and ignorance were at the heart of it all. As a white person growing up in the 1950’s and 60’s I was taught the old ditty, “Columbus sailed the ocean blue in 1492.” We were taught how he discovered America, and how lucky for the inhabitants of this continent who learned Christianity from us and were able to joyfully assimilate into a superior Euro-American culture. </span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The TV western movies I watched back then depicted Native peoples as uneducated, primitive and in need of subduing, so that the “kindly” white settlers, discovering America in their covered wagons, would be safe. These boarding schools seemed necessary, almost humanitarian, so that Native Americans could be “like us”—that is, good, right, Christian and “normal.” </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The truth was so not any of that! Ethnocentrism and bigotry were at the heart of the assimilation schools and exemplified some of the most sinful behaviors of humanity. Worse yet was the misguided use of religion in all of this. </span></p><h3 style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Many schools founded by Christian institutions</span></h3><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ATD2vfqK1OE/YMIBb6ehbHI/AAAAAAAAxl8/n2WR6GD3wnUQwoXfKFQwUOAbyEst3D32QCLcBGAsYHQ/s1524/Carlisle-Indian-School-web-4_e9fba998-5056-a36a-0b4723055087856c.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1524" data-original-width="1524" height="259" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ATD2vfqK1OE/YMIBb6ehbHI/AAAAAAAAxl8/n2WR6GD3wnUQwoXfKFQwUOAbyEst3D32QCLcBGAsYHQ/w259-h259/Carlisle-Indian-School-web-4_e9fba998-5056-a36a-0b4723055087856c.jpg" width="259" /></a></div></span></span><p style="text-align: left;"><span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Many of these schools were founded by Christian institutions, including the Methodist church. True religion should be at its heart a vehicle for God’s Spirit to infuse people with an attitude of respect, love and kindness toward to all people. But many times religion is used instead to oppress, rob and destroy those who are different or refuse to conform to our notion of “rightness.” This is not God’s idea. It is a devious construct of human sin.</span></span></p><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">In the New Testament’s Book of Acts, we read that some Jewish Christians were insisting that the new Gentile converts had to become Jewish and follow the Law of Moses in order to be Christian. Huge controversies arose over whether or not the Greeks needed to be circumcised and made to follow other Jewish laws in order to be deemed truly Christian. Assimilation was the goal. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzSHY2IxzhDsvmPGUyUGrk9A_QVhRTFoWKQhTlXJVA6j_vr5M9qMhtJWNwI925ZzPDQLV0afmx59wpserMcx_f3jZco5w699vhRUbzAeGvRnivQmIQO_IQYwuJqYt-kH-I4nGvbg7Q2A/s629/Council+of+Jerusalem%252C+described+in+Acts+15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="372" data-original-width="629" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzSHY2IxzhDsvmPGUyUGrk9A_QVhRTFoWKQhTlXJVA6j_vr5M9qMhtJWNwI925ZzPDQLV0afmx59wpserMcx_f3jZco5w699vhRUbzAeGvRnivQmIQO_IQYwuJqYt-kH-I4nGvbg7Q2A/s320/Council+of+Jerusalem%252C+described+in+Acts+15.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></span></div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The Council of Jerusalem, described in Acts 15, provided a landmark moment when that controversy was laid to rest, at least for a time. However, that spirit of “You have to be like me to be truly saved, accepted, and part of the ‘in’ crowd,” has plagued humanity and the church in particular for millenniums. </span></span><p></p><h3 style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></h3><h3 style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></h3><h3 style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space: pre-wrap;">Lessons from the Boarding School</span></h3><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">What are some lessons from our boarding school experience?</span></span></p><ol style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Cultural genocide is sin and not of God</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. It never has been and it never will be. What happened in our country and elsewhere to Native Americans was sinful and wrong. The hurt, the trauma is real. It lives on in the hearts and even in the DNA of our sisters and brothers of Native American descent. It also festers in the hearts of the perpetrators. </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">One cannot abuse another member of the human family without paying a price in one’s own soul on some level. Denial, making excuses and the falsehood of biblical proof-texting do not heal an abuser’s pain.</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /><br /></span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VFzwcTn3uGk/YMICJRVKl6I/AAAAAAAAxmU/NVyax7QsmyUm93qJJ-J4_pnGqyKHlS2twCLcBGAsYHQ/s800/Carlisle_pupils.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" data-original-height="462" data-original-width="800" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VFzwcTn3uGk/YMICJRVKl6I/AAAAAAAAxmU/NVyax7QsmyUm93qJJ-J4_pnGqyKHlS2twCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Carlisle_pupils.jpg" width="320" /></span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This stain on our history must be acknowledged, repented of, and mourned</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. A Native American woman shared with me that as she was explaining about the recently discovered graves, someone told her to “get over it.” This is often our dismissive answer to remembrances of past atrocities. Hiding it, forgetting it, acting like it never happened are not pathways for healing and restoration. They never have been.
</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Healing comes when people speak truth and show proper respect, and when </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">all </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">engage in the mourning of lives lost and evil exposed. When one is injured, we all are injured, and we share a common grief within our common humanity.
</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The use of religion to justify oppression of people or individuals must stop.</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Each one of us must take responsibility for our own racism, classism, sexism, homophobia and ableism as it arises in our hearts. Ask yourself if your attitudes and behaviors reflect the inclusive love of Christ for all, or do you judge another culture or people as “less than” because they differ from you? Using biblical proof-texting and religious traditions to justify evil is a cleverly disguised sin that is likely one of the greatest sins that anyone can commit. </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /><br /></span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Engage in reparations. </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">They come in many forms. Those who have been injured by discrimination and oppression are due tangible, restorative responses from their abusers. If one is truly repentant, there must be the “fruit of repentance” that makes right the wrongs, that repairs the breach, and that creates justice. This can be: giving monetary support for Native American ministries and communities; attending classes and reading books about Native American history and culture (and then using that knowledge for good works); advocating for equity in the “Indian Country” across this nation; and speaking out when discriminatory attitudes and actions arise. </span></span></p></li></ol><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bC9vg0w9uuE/YMIBuxXYFyI/AAAAAAAAxmI/RmKxELl9LQoa08GdRz9hS_dmoME87RwZgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1024/slide_1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" data-original-height="576" data-original-width="1024" height="225" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bC9vg0w9uuE/YMIBuxXYFyI/AAAAAAAAxmI/RmKxELl9LQoa08GdRz9hS_dmoME87RwZgCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h225/slide_1.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div></div><div><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">It has been said, “A long journey begins with the first step.” Every one of us can take a step in the direction of justice and love for all people, every day of our lives. When we do we are honoring those who have suffered from oppression and abuse, including the many who have suffered at the hands of our nation’s boarding schools.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Sources:</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">www.nativepartnership.org, “Native American History and culture: Boarding Schools”</span></span></li><li><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">https://www.the nationalnews.com, “Canada Struggles with ‘cultural genocide’ pastor after hundreds of children’s bodies found, June 2, 2021 Willy Lowry</span></span></li><li><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://www.pbs.org" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="color: #0563c1; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">https://www.pbs.org</span></a><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> “Can Trauma be Passed on to Next Generation through DNA?” August 31, 2015</span></span></li></ul><p></p>Bishop's Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01798640292459548501noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5434327769093668747.post-83928432602394157552021-05-26T14:57:00.008-04:002021-05-27T08:43:46.509-04:00Freedom Isn’t Free<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-w5McIw2XZcg/YK-SaOH8-GI/AAAAAAAAxlY/1b9YiBwNE6Y2MZ5MSp5qT9iWijzc0iqHACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Freedom%2Bisn%25E2%2580%2599t%2Bfree-Dreamstime.com%2B%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="266" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-w5McIw2XZcg/YK-SaOH8-GI/AAAAAAAAxlY/1b9YiBwNE6Y2MZ5MSp5qT9iWijzc0iqHACLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h266/Freedom%2Bisn%25E2%2580%2599t%2Bfree-Dreamstime.com%2B%25281%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; text-align: start;">Photo 69266331 © Paul Brady | Dreamstime.com</div></td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div><br />The CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) recently issued some long-awaited, almost unbelievable news: those who have been fully vaccinated can resume life normally without masks. <br /><br />Of course, those who have not been vaccinated should continue to wear them. I have been asked to give updated recommendations for safety protocols for worship services and other gatherings in the wake of this new news. But this announcement from the CDC has made things easier and harder at the same time. This new freedom is spurring mixed reactions and new things to consider.<p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br />It reminds me of a song I heard years ago. Many of my friends in high school joined a singing group known as “<a href="https://upwithpeople.org/">Up with People</a>.” They toured the country performing a number of positive songs about the future and the importance of world peace. One of their signature songs was, “Freedom Isn’t Free.” (Written by Paul and Ralph Colwell). I still remember the chorus:<br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><i><br />“Freedom isn’t free. Freedom isn’t free. You’ve got to pay the price, you’ve got to sacrifice, for your liberty.”<br /></i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br />This was the era of the Viet Nam War, after our many of fathers, brothers and other relatives had fought in World War II and the Korean War. The yearning for peace was on our hearts back then, just as it is now.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GyNTZvIN7LE/YK6dSP-MTtI/AAAAAAAAxlA/1I4uOtrwLpgcdTYNWBLQ89z5CLNMgLq5gCLcBGAsYHQ/s615/d34eff9d4968d268f9df0a2cc204d8ff.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="309" data-original-width="615" height="201" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GyNTZvIN7LE/YK6dSP-MTtI/AAAAAAAAxlA/1I4uOtrwLpgcdTYNWBLQ89z5CLNMgLq5gCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h201/d34eff9d4968d268f9df0a2cc204d8ff.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /><br /><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 14pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>Remember those who sacrificed for freedom</b></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br />Indeed, as we approach <b>Memorial Day, May 31</b>, we know that freedom for any nation is maintained at the cost of countless lives given by service men and women in armed conflict. There is a price and a sacrifice that we honor with grateful hearts. <span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Other kinds of freedom also have a cost. The Apostle Paul wrote to the Galatians, “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.” (Galatians 5:1) Freedom from sin, gained through Christ Jesus, requires a commitment to stand firm in the face of temptation. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br />In his first letter to the church in Corinth, Paul admonishes them, “But take care that this freedom of yours does not somehow become a stumbling block to the weak.” (1 Corinthians 8:9). In this case he refers to Christians who are eating meat sacrificed to idols, which is perfectly alright in Paul’s eyes. But he is quick to remind the early church that some Christians are offended by this.<br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br />The caution is that we should not create problems for those who are more sensitive to this practice by freely and carelessly eating in front of them. The greater goal is not to hurt anyone. <br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq6P4rqoihQ0fdbOb5z_bU0T6F46IEE2LtHIqN2oZ1Su76WTcreGzKrFD0Qm0sOMwW6sNcRdpw-wlc6VkesFqVyNpGOVrHT4js2E5HSFcBO5tOkUlo-jTXdt7Ty55YgN9Ekp4MSQ2j-A/s960/1_corinthians_8_9_a_stumbling_block_to_the_weak_powerpoint_church_sermon_Slide03.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq6P4rqoihQ0fdbOb5z_bU0T6F46IEE2LtHIqN2oZ1Su76WTcreGzKrFD0Qm0sOMwW6sNcRdpw-wlc6VkesFqVyNpGOVrHT4js2E5HSFcBO5tOkUlo-jTXdt7Ty55YgN9Ekp4MSQ2j-A/w400-h300/1_corinthians_8_9_a_stumbling_block_to_the_weak_powerpoint_church_sermon_Slide03.jpg" width="400" /></a></div></div><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p>Prioritize love, respect to preserve unity </span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br />The price is to curb one’s expression of freedom out of respect for others. We do this out of love for Christ, in order to preserve the unity of the body.<br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br />While the COVID-19 pandemic is waning, it is not yet over. When it comes to wearing protective masks, there are people who prefer to wear them in church to feel safer—vaccinated or not. If that is the case, would it not be best to observe more caution, so that they feel more comfortable? Each church needs to work out its own plans, but love and respect for everyone should always be your ultimate aim.<br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br />One more thing: even with these new guidelines from the CDC for those who have been vaccinated, the world is not free from this deadly disease. It is still ravaging many countries on this globe even as I write these words. Is it not true that until all are free, none of us is truly free?<br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br />We are one family of humanity, and what affects one affects us all. That is certainly true when it comes to the reach of international travel. And if we believe we are all God’s family, then it is most especially true.<br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br />In that spirit, let us freely sacrifice for others in order to hasten the day of full freedom from COVID. Let us give generously of our means to support the efforts of the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries and the UM Committee on Relief (UMCOR). Still engaged in an ongoing, global response to COVID-19, they have sent $110,000 to our mission partners in India to provide relief for those who have lost income due to the pandemic. They have also provided funds for the purchase of medical equipment, ventilators, hospital beds and hygiene. <br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1uCK8AsfR_s/YK6dk4wDVXI/AAAAAAAAxlM/aS1ny7-j-Dk-a_MHf5DAT7q_UOlSIF4MgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/181730814_4197699990295506_4707879399021228536_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="2048" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1uCK8AsfR_s/YK6dk4wDVXI/AAAAAAAAxlM/aS1ny7-j-Dk-a_MHf5DAT7q_UOlSIF4MgCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h400/181730814_4197699990295506_4707879399021228536_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></div></div><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">UMCOR’s COVID -19 response includes ongoing support of essential health services throughout the UMC health providers network and support of communities affected by the grave burdens of this disease.<br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br />You can help provide freedom by donating to the <b>UMCOR COVID-19 Response Fund (Advance #3022612)</b>. Send your donations to our Conference office or mail them to Global Ministries/UMCOR, 458 Ponce De Leon Avenue, NEJ, Atlanta, GA 30308. Or give online at <a href="https://umcmission.org/advance-project/3022612/">https://umcmission.org/advance-project/3022612/</a>.<br /><br />Freedom isn’t free. Protect it and help all to find freedom by sharing with them your respect and loving sacrifice. The greatest freedom of all is in Christ Jesus, our paramount model of loving, caring sacrifice. “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” (John 8:36).<br /><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Calibri,sans-serif" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;">Resources: </span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><a href="http://www.upwithpeople.org/lyric/freedom-isnt-free/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span face="Calibri,sans-serif" style="-webkit-text-decoration-skip: none; background-color: transparent; color: #0563c1; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;">www.upwithpeople.org/lyric/freedom-isnt-free/</span></a><span face="Calibri,sans-serif" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"> </span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><a href="https://umcmission.org/umcor/global-ministries-and-umcors-ongoing-response-to-covid-19/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span face="Calibri,sans-serif" style="-webkit-text-decoration-skip: none; background-color: transparent; color: #0563c1; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;">“Global Ministries and UMCOR’s ongoing response to COVID-19”</span></a></p></li></ul>Bishop's Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01798640292459548501noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5434327769093668747.post-30889154568862218732021-05-18T09:09:00.002-04:002021-05-18T09:09:52.585-04:00Pentecost: Come, Holy Spirit!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5F2IbXf7oWw/YKO7Oy5-ATI/AAAAAAAAxkA/_zO5IbogqV8CzqQX2QMqM4luWEYddEEKwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1400/Come%2Bholy-spirit-2.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1006" data-original-width="1400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5F2IbXf7oWw/YKO7Oy5-ATI/AAAAAAAAxkA/_zO5IbogqV8CzqQX2QMqM4luWEYddEEKwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Come%2Bholy-spirit-2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />When I arrived on the campus of Asbury Theological Seminary in Wilmore, Kentucky, in the fall of 1977 to begin my Master of Divinity degree, one of the first things I was asked was, “Have you heard about the revival of 1970?” I had not. <br /><br />The word “revival” was not something I had been familiar with growing up in a middle-class Methodist Church (not yet “United” Methodist), in a suburb of Baltimore, Maryland. I had a vague idea that it was some weeklong event in which a church invited a preacher to come and “revive” a complacent congregation. But I had never attended one. <br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-x9Nydpyrx-o/YKO7VsG2UKI/AAAAAAAAxkE/4ir9t1mp1lk-aoYv8gcvTOxTZ1PPndVEACLcBGAsYHQ/s2012/Asbury-Revival1970.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1424" data-original-width="2012" height="283" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-x9Nydpyrx-o/YKO7VsG2UKI/AAAAAAAAxkE/4ir9t1mp1lk-aoYv8gcvTOxTZ1PPndVEACLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h283/Asbury-Revival1970.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />It wasn’t long before I was duly instructed about the famous “Asbury Revival.” On February 3, 1970, in the Hughes Auditorium at Asbury College (the undergraduate school across the street from the seminary), a powerful movement of the Holy Spirit broke out during a regular morning chapel service. Non-stop prayer and an outpouring of spiritual gifts took control for 185 hours. <br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-O9jFoIixgK0/YKO7cZjJ2wI/AAAAAAAAxkI/U8x1RgV6wIc_1kv0O5NgRvLC1gU17OUjgCLcBGAsYHQ/s488/AsburyRevivalNewspaper12-638.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="397" data-original-width="488" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-O9jFoIixgK0/YKO7cZjJ2wI/AAAAAAAAxkI/U8x1RgV6wIc_1kv0O5NgRvLC1gU17OUjgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/AsburyRevivalNewspaper12-638.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Classes were canceled and students and faculty devoted themselves to prayer and fasting. From that fervent prayer revival came amazing testimonies of commitments to Christ, confessions of sin, miracles of healing, broken marriages restored, and calls into ministry and the mission field. <br /><br />Newspapers and TV stations across the country flocked to the tiny town of Wilmore to cover this phenomenon. Prayer requests poured in by telegram and telephone. Local church attendees, seminary students and curious neighbors packed the Hughes Auditorium to experience this supernatural presence of the Holy Spirit. It was described by one observer as “a weight of glory covering the campus.” <br /><br /><b>The will to seek God with all our hearts <br /></b><br />Surely, we long for that today, and from time to time we experience these kinds of extraordinary signs of God’s Spirit on the move. There could be more of it if we just had the will to seek God with all of our hearts. <br /><br />When we pray “Come, Holy Spirit,” as we do every year during our annual observance of Pentecost, do we know what we are asking? As the saying goes, “Be careful what you pray for.” <br /><br />Praying for the movement of the Spirit involves commitment on our part and a willingness to radically shake up our “business as usual” forms of worship and practices of holiness. It isn’t about God coming down and fixing things for us. It is about humbly submitting to being changed and turned around. And yes, it is about sacrificing some of our comfortable ways of keeping God in a safe little box on the shelf of our hearts.<div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-My_pynvmJrQ/YKO7tMQivuI/AAAAAAAAxkY/tXyOZkgUyqkJHuQKD9_fatJnddcAi4JNgCLcBGAsYHQ/s960/Acts%252B2_1-2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="300" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-My_pynvmJrQ/YKO7tMQivuI/AAAAAAAAxkY/tXyOZkgUyqkJHuQKD9_fatJnddcAi4JNgCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h300/Acts%252B2_1-2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><br />First and foremost, it requires an enormous amount of committed prayer and attention to the disciplines of our faith. <br /><br /><b>What happens when God shows up <br /></b><br />When God shows up, as was seen at Asbury College and on the Day of Pentecost as recorded in the Book of Acts, chapter 2, this is what we will experience:<div><br /></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><div>1) <b>Confession </b>– When confronted with the presence of God in the temple the prophet Isaiah declared, “I am lost, I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell among a people of unclean lips.” (Isaiah 6:5) On the Day of Pentecost, after Peter preached to thousands, the listeners were “cut to the heart and cried out, ‘What shall we do?’” (Acts 2:37) </div><div><br /></div><div>A sudden, keen awareness of God’s presence always unleashes an acknowledgement of sin and a desire to repent (which means to turn around 180 degrees and go the right way). Are we willing to come clean with God and confess the sin in our life? Sin is a sure-fire way to prevent the flow of God’s power. Confession and repentance heal the soul and open the floodgates of revival. </div></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><div> </div></blockquote><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UFZ-PelVmok/YKO8ACso0mI/AAAAAAAAxkg/3hr-y0eOtAYNdcqekd_U0kPp-qvB7sgtACLcBGAsYHQ/s400/Acts%252B2-37%252BBretheren%252BWhat%252BAre%252BWe%252BTo%252BDo%252Bred.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="400" height="300" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UFZ-PelVmok/YKO8ACso0mI/AAAAAAAAxkg/3hr-y0eOtAYNdcqekd_U0kPp-qvB7sgtACLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h300/Acts%252B2-37%252BBretheren%252BWhat%252BAre%252BWe%252BTo%252BDo%252Bred.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><div> </div><div><br /></div><div>2) <b>Financial reckoning</b> – The manager of the Asbury Seminary bookstore testified to how many debts were paid off and stolen books were returned during the revival of 1970. Another sure sign of God’s Spirit working in our life is how we manage our temporal affairs. </div><div><br /></div><div>Members of the early church were moved by the Spirit to share all of their earthly possessions in common; so no one had any need. (Acts 2:45) Can we take an honest look at our checkbooks or bank account statements and share our means in ways that can help others to simply live? The Spirit provides in abundance as the grip of greed and consumerism is released from those of us who have the world’s possessions. </div><div><br /></div><div>3) <b>Justice </b>- Micah 6:8 declares that we are to “do justice, love kindness and walk humbly with God.” Justice is first because it is God’s priority that all are regarded as equal, beloved and uniquely gifted for the good of the whole. God doesn’t prefer some groups of people over others. The outpouring of the Holy Spirit always gives us the power to overcome and dismantle barriers of race, gender, class, ability, age and sexual orientation. </div><div><br /></div><div>On the Day of Pentecost diverse languages were spoken, sons and daughters prophesied, young and old had visions and dreams and God’s Spirit was poured out on all the people. (Acts 2:17) </div><div><br /></div><div>How is that manifestation of the Spirit working in your church, in your life? How can we break down barriers of division that we have created to keep ourselves safe and comfortable with those who look and think like us? The Spirit calls us to be the “salt and light” the world needs—the flavor and flame within to create equity, inclusion and justice for all people. </div><div><br /></div><div>4) <b>Faith sharing</b> – After the Asbury revival there were over 2,000 witnessing teams sent out across the country and around the world. They comprised students at the college who had experienced the revival. They gave testimony to God’s power, and that testimony caused even more revival in many other places. More than 130 Christian colleges and seminaries saw a dramatic increase in enrollments during that revival era of the 1970, a time of turbulent social change in our society. </div><div><br /></div><div>One does not have to go to seminary or engage in professional ministry to share one’s faith. Tell your story of what the Lord has done for you. The Holy Spirit will give you the words to say. God uses our hands and feet and our words to spread the Good News of salvation and everlasting life. If not you, who will do it? </div></blockquote><div><br />As we pray, “Come, Holy Spirit” this year on Pentecost Sunday, remember what that means for you personally. You are asking God to:<br /><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>convict you of sin and repair the wrongs in your life; </li><li>to truly give God control over your money;</li><li>to work for justice in this world, (starting with any exclusivities in your church and personal life); and</li><li>to go out and tell—in your words and deeds—the “old, old story of Jesus and his love.”</li></ul><div><br /></div><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/jIbbtYK0_So" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe><div><br /></div><b>Resources:<br /></b><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>“God in Our Midst” by Howard A. Hanke, www.revivalfocus.org, March 10, 2020</li><li>“Beautiful Feet” <a href="http://www.romans1015.com/">www.romans1015.com</a>, June 22, 2018</li><li>One Divine Moment: The Account of the Asbury Revival of 1970, edited by Robert E. Coleman and David J. Gyertson </li><li>Read another, <a href="https://www.jesusisthesubject.org/church-celebrates-revivals-50th-anniversary-school-among-lasting-impact/">50th anniversary account</a> of the Asbury Revival and its lasting impact, published in 2020 by Church of God Ministries.</li></ul></div></div>Bishop's Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01798640292459548501noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5434327769093668747.post-59214786013990506362021-05-06T09:14:00.003-04:002021-05-06T09:14:33.495-04:00Freeing ourselves from the prisons in our hearts<p><span style="font-size: 12pt;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9Oy3_UWLkMI/YJPrZbipSgI/AAAAAAAAxiE/fSUHNSKwRbENkpLdDnp9IVsM2AQPxe6EQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1430/blog-photo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1427" data-original-width="1430" height="399" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9Oy3_UWLkMI/YJPrZbipSgI/AAAAAAAAxiE/fSUHNSKwRbENkpLdDnp9IVsM2AQPxe6EQCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h399/blog-photo.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>The most
curious thing that belonged to my father was a cotton handkerchief that he
mounted on a frame and hung on the wall in his little antique shop. On the
handkerchief was a hand-painted picture of a beautiful Japanese woman,
surrounded by a pink cherry blossom tree and some Japanese writing.<span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">At the bottom
was the signature of the artist and the letters, “POW” for Prisoner of
War.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My dad served in the Air Force in
World War II and was stationed in Guam. He was part of the bomber crew that
conducted raids against the Japanese Imperial Army.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">This
handkerchief was original art from the hand of a “POW” who was incarcerated at
the Air Force base in Guam at the time. This entrepreneur would make deals with
American soldiers in order to secure cigarettes and other creature comforts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Anyone who
would give him a clean handkerchief and a pack of cigarettes or a candy bar, would
receive his handkerchief back with a lovely Japanese picture.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My father was one of the customers, and this
curious treasure came back home with him after the war.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">I used to
stare at this picture in awe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Japanese
people were so foreign to me. I had never encountered anyone of Asian descent
in my whole life growing up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I heard
about World War II and was glad that the Americans had defeated the Japanese;
but I had no idea what had happened just after the bombing of Pearl Harbor on
December 7, 1941.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Japanese incarceration in WW II
concentration camps<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">President Franklin
D. Roosevelt announced Executive Order 9066 that created a forced relocation
and incarceration in concentration camps of more than 120,000 people of
Japanese ancestry, 62 percent of whom were American citizens.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These camps were located mostly in remote
areas of Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, Arizona, Oregon, Idaho, Utah,
Arkansas, Wyoming, Colorado and California. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ObrDiy3y3FI/YJPqmI7a0tI/AAAAAAAAxhw/vg9ArUzQXxsaRKggbDmJjtmZXktdBKy7wCLcBGAsYHQ/s480/WhenFearWasStrongerThanJustice.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="290" data-original-width="480" height="386" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ObrDiy3y3FI/YJPqmI7a0tI/AAAAAAAAxhw/vg9ArUzQXxsaRKggbDmJjtmZXktdBKy7wCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h386/WhenFearWasStrongerThanJustice.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Personal property
was seized, assets were frozen or stolen, and there was no recourse or defense
for these Japanese Americans.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">They were deemed
guilty by the fact that they were at least 1/16</span><sup>th</sup><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> Japanese.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">They were prisoners of war in their own
country.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">At the camps,
they were subjected to harsh conditions, forced labor and denial of basic human
rights. Their crime was being who they were; and racism, fear and executive Presidential
privilege painted the canvas.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">After World War
II these camps were all closed. The Supreme Court ruled that the practice of
incarcerating citizens was unconstitutional, President Gerald Ford, officially
repealed the President Roosevelt’s executive order in 1976. The United States Congress
issued a formal apology in 1988 and passed the “Civil Liberties Act,” which
awarded $20,000 to over 80,0000 Japanese Americans as reparations for these
atrocities. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Fast-forward
to now. There is a new kind of prison emerging in the rising tide of hate
crimes and discrimination against Asian Americans, which has increased since
the onset of the coronavirus. Claims by high profile voices that this pandemic
was caused by the Chinese people has ignited much violence and suffering for
people of not only Chinese but Asian heritage in general.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Hate crimes against Asian Americans increase<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The
incidences of abuse and hate crimes has risen by 150 percent this year alone;
acts of prejudice that aren’t crimes have also soared with 2,800 cases being
reported since March. Asian women are 2.5 times more likely to be targeted than
men, adding sexism to the racism.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi8nmIzVgADK1qbIBfVoiicgAUa2In5grKt3jZG6sFLnGf3IKss4ctCHmLoB-zlovj6OVzCpVHXo7_z_JsXW-8BnMQxCHfRXye1pNOXgamRHC9oihyphenhyphendFDowDSKzbL5T2zpO9ymPnWldQ/s1024/underattack-1024x683.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi8nmIzVgADK1qbIBfVoiicgAUa2In5grKt3jZG6sFLnGf3IKss4ctCHmLoB-zlovj6OVzCpVHXo7_z_JsXW-8BnMQxCHfRXye1pNOXgamRHC9oihyphenhyphendFDowDSKzbL5T2zpO9ymPnWldQ/w640-h426/underattack-1024x683.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">This
environment creates a culture of fear and a “prison” of anxiety and worry for
our Asian-heritage brothers and sisters.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">I know of one Asian American woman whose family has encouraged her to
purchase pepper spray as protection.</span></p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">We as God’s
people should be speaking out about this, naming it when we see it, and living
in respectful, peaceful ways among people of all races, cultures and diverse
conditions. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The truth is, when we harbor
racist attitudes and practice discrimination, we too are in a prison of
isolation, fear and anger that is just as constrictive and deadly to our souls.
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Jesus
engaged personally with Samaritan, Syrophoenician, Greek and persons of other
outcast groups who many despised. He—like his apostles Peter and Paul—calls us today
to close down our prisons of fear and open wide our hearts through love,
acceptance and a vision of God’s marvelous, diverse creation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iQ-PfNHGFrc/YJPrKsbhrPI/AAAAAAAAxh8/9SGlG1jV-Rs6LOWX9YUngbSRQJj-J-DYwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/National%2BAsian%2BAmerican%2Band%2BPacific%2BIslander%2BHeritage%2BMonth1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1710" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iQ-PfNHGFrc/YJPrKsbhrPI/AAAAAAAAxh8/9SGlG1jV-Rs6LOWX9YUngbSRQJj-J-DYwCLcBGAsYHQ/w334-h400/National%2BAsian%2BAmerican%2Band%2BPacific%2BIslander%2BHeritage%2BMonth1.jpg" width="334" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Through the
power of the Holy Spirit in Christ Jesus, we can do this. Paul reminds us in
Ephesians 2:14a “For he himself is our peace, who has made us one and has
broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">I encourage
you to engage and seek conversations with people of Asian descent and hear
their stories, learn about their families and cultures, and find new freedom of
heart, as we tear down the prison walls of separation. Also, become an
outspoken advocate against the national tide of hate and rejection of
Asian-heritage people.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">May is National
Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What a great time to do all this and more!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br />
Resources:<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">“Japanese
Internment Camps,” History.com editors, October 29, 2009,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><a href="http://www.history.com/"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">www.history.com</span></a><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></li><li><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">“Reports of
Asian American Hate Crimes,” Pauline S. Molinski, March 13, 2021, </span><a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">www.cbsnews.com</span></a><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">.<o:p></o:p></span></span></li><li><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Also, read <span style="background: white; color: #222222;">“</span></span></b><a href="https://www.umc.org/en/content/ask-the-umc-how-may-united-methodists-observe-heritage-months"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">How may United Methodists observe Heritage Months</span></b></a><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">.”</span></b></li></ul><p></p>
Bishop's Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01798640292459548501noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5434327769093668747.post-14168340912818042542021-04-19T13:36:00.002-04:002021-04-19T13:36:48.971-04:00Mass murder every day<p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yf-vhlnB_4I/YH2_TtyTJHI/AAAAAAAAxg0/nYvxuOQ9Tl4VAGx7LyPPFGeVkuKGqJHrwCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/PoliceCrimeSceneTapej-crop.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="640" height="225" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yf-vhlnB_4I/YH2_TtyTJHI/AAAAAAAAxg0/nYvxuOQ9Tl4VAGx7LyPPFGeVkuKGqJHrwCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h225/PoliceCrimeSceneTapej-crop.png" width="400" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;"><p><span style="font-size: 12pt;">I am certain that all of us are grieved by the uptick of
mass shootings that are happening all over the country at the moment.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">This is of course not a new thing.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">We have seen this pattern of clusters of mass
shootings in the past in this country.</span></p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">According to the </span><a href="https://www.gunviolencearchive.org/"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Gun Violence Archive</span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> there
have been 2,218 mass shootings since 2013 (in which at least four people are
being shot at the same time and location), (</span><a href="https://www.gunviolencearchive.org/http:/www.gunviolence/"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">www.gunviolencearchive.org</span></a><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">). <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Almost every day in the cities of Philadelphia and
Wilmington there have been homicides and injuries in large numbers. I ponder
why that does not get more national news coverage.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We should never take a single violent act for
granted; and as Christians we have some responsibility to address this
pandemic.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Automatic weapons make it so easy to gun down multiple
people in seconds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Contrast that with
the murder of Julius Caesar in 44 BC. During a meeting of the Senate in
Rome.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It took the senators, led by Marcus
Brutus, quite a long time to kill him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They stabbed him 23 times. If they had an automatic weapon, this would
have been quick work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ok8DngDlvTA/YH2_bXCbK0I/AAAAAAAAxg4/FM5H6hnIdtgIhoGTA39euFxjrJx5NaLqwCLcBGAsYHQ/s720/matthew-5-21-22-nlt-n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="540" data-original-width="720" height="300" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ok8DngDlvTA/YH2_bXCbK0I/AAAAAAAAxg4/FM5H6hnIdtgIhoGTA39euFxjrJx5NaLqwCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h300/matthew-5-21-22-nlt-n.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;">Humans have found many efficient ways of killing each other
throughout history, and I am sure God just shakes God’s head at us with dismay
and grief.</span><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;">I ponder the need for the
proliferation of such weapons in our country.</span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Jesus addressed murder in the “Sermon on the Mount.” In
just a few short words, he gets down to the heart of the matter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Violence and murder are products of human
anger. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">“You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You
shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I say to you that everyone who is angry
with his brother will be liable to judgment. Whoever insults his brother will
be liable to the council, and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the
hell of fire.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(Matthew 5:21-22)<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">If this is the case, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">all
of us</b> are guilty of murder when we harbor anger and speak evil against a
brother or sister.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mass murders of the
heart are happening every day, and it includes us good church people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nOwkzvFyjNw/YH2_jRVWzPI/AAAAAAAAxhA/e0LECEfpVFolghWPYVtMZMR897Z__XB9gCLcBGAsYHQ/s736/Ephesians4%252C36-27.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="545" data-original-width="736" height="296" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nOwkzvFyjNw/YH2_jRVWzPI/AAAAAAAAxhA/e0LECEfpVFolghWPYVtMZMR897Z__XB9gCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h296/Ephesians4%252C36-27.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">What do we do with this?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Surely, we are not as guilty as the gunmen that stormed the Fed-Ex
office, the massage parlor or the grocery store. Or are we?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Jesus also calls us to “be perfect as your Heavenly Father
is perfect.” (Matthew 5:48)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It seems we
can be “going on to perfection” a lot more when it comes to handling our anger.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Christians, let us study Jesus’ methods of anger management,
take them to heart and practice them in the world. It is quite alright to get
angry about things.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus cleansed the
temple (John 2: 13-16) when it was being desecrated. But no one was killed, the
wrong was made right, and truth was embodied.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Here are some other lessons from Jesus:</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><ol style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Jesus engaged people in an anger-provoking situation. </b>When he was slapped on the face during his mock trial, he turned to the perpetrator and said, “If I said something wrong, testify as to what is wrong. But if I spoke the truth, why did you strike me?” Talking through a situation can often defuse escalating violence and call people to accountability in a peaceful way. Proverbs 15:1 reminds us, “A gentle answer turns away wrath; but a harsh word stirs up anger.” When you are in a difficult conversation keep calm and speak the truth.</span></span></li><li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Jesus points out a wrong but does not take it personally. </b>When asked if he believed in paying taxes to Caesar, Jesus named the question’s intent: “Why put me to the test?” (Mark 12:15). He was clear about the hypocrisy and the mean-spirited attempt to trap him; but he answered their question with integrity. He did not let this get “under his skin.” I think that is what Paul means when he writes, “Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry.” (Ephesians 4:26). If we are wise, we need to have “Teflon” (stick-resistant) hearts and let the anger-provoking thing slide off of our hearts and psyche.</span></span></li><li><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Jesus forgave the unworthy, the not-sorry, and gave them the benefit of the doubt.</b> When being nailed to a cross, Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing.” (Luke 23:34). Forgiveness offered to those who anger us, hurt us, insult us and are not in any way sorry about it, is divine. Not only that, it is the key to peace in your heart that stems that internal rage. When you forgive, it doesn’t mean the person that hurt you is right. It just means that you are leaving it to God to handle. Paul reminded the Romans, “’Vengeance is mine, I will repay,’ says the Lord.” (Romans 12:19) When you forgive, you can be free of the internal rage.</span></li></ol><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Let us vow to stop committing “mass murder” in our hearts. Live in peace with all people (the easy to love and the not-so-easy to love). Teach non-violence and practice civility.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">As we prepare for sessions of Annual Conference, may we engage each other with gentleness and respect. Using Bible verses in the “chat” as weapons to vent anger does not accomplish the work of God.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Justice causes are an important part of our holiness as Methodists, but rage and hurtful rhetoric are not. The cause of justice, so well exemplified in the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., is always accomplished best through non-violence, love and grace. God’s Spirit can give us the strength to handle our anger and avert much violence and murder.</span></span></p>Bishop's Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01798640292459548501noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5434327769093668747.post-16486846007983024182021-04-16T11:13:00.000-04:002021-04-16T11:13:04.108-04:00Creation-care: Working toward net-zero carbon emissions<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcT2jgnU5ZoPM3h6hAGHgnXu4v3g20My5EbCkKJhMI7Cm5PgTEJPYN1wZM6wLYM41LLyhjG2yxAY5NFoYXhuFW6Z0XzcVSqixUiA-gOdkxTjUq0CH4CPFQic-CMvIxpTaz4G9DHjlVWQ/s630/net-zero-press-release_0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="420" data-original-width="630" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcT2jgnU5ZoPM3h6hAGHgnXu4v3g20My5EbCkKJhMI7Cm5PgTEJPYN1wZM6wLYM41LLyhjG2yxAY5NFoYXhuFW6Z0XzcVSqixUiA-gOdkxTjUq0CH4CPFQic-CMvIxpTaz4G9DHjlVWQ/w400-h266/net-zero-press-release_0.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;"><p><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;">Five General
Agencies of the UMC are joining together this year to commit to </span><a href="https://www.myclimate.org/information/faq/faq-detail/what-does-net-zero-emissions-mean/"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Net-Zero Carbon Emissions</span></a><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;">* in their operations and as a
resource for the whole denomination. We
look forward to their initiative and the harvest of responsible stewardship of
the earth’s resources that it will produce in years to come. For more
information, take a look at this YouTube resource from our denominational
agencies: </span><a href="https://youtu.be/2sZZI8V-Zpc"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">https://youtu.be/2sZZI8V-Zpc</span></a></p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">What a
timely agenda as we approach <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Earth Day
2021,</b> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Tuesday</b>, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">April 20</b>. Though not a program of the UMC,
“Earth Day” is an annual reminder that this planet urgently needs protection,
care and respect. Founded in 1970, it now engages 190-plus countries around the
world in that quest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is a clarion call
for public consciousness and political action. (</span><a href="http://www.earthday.org/"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">www.earthday.org</span></a><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">) <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WD4ItGO9k28/YHmmCgwYyvI/AAAAAAAAxgE/lX6jUdFQLC8UbIX7Z2yh27k2FUhF4MmagCLcBGAsYHQ/s800/Earth-800x445.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="445" data-original-width="800" height="223" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WD4ItGO9k28/YHmmCgwYyvI/AAAAAAAAxgE/lX6jUdFQLC8UbIX7Z2yh27k2FUhF4MmagCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h223/Earth-800x445.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">From the
creation of the world recorded in the Book of Genesis, God’s people are called to
“work the garden and also to keep it.” (Genesis 2:15) “Keeping” it requires
care and wise stewardship of the planet’s resources for all to enjoy. Our Earth
is not to be exploited for monetary gain.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span></p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Carbon
emissions, greenhouse gases, climate change are a byproduct of industrialization
and commercial enterprises of the wealthiest nations. We are reaping a baleful
harvest of increasingly dire climate disasters as a result. The poor, disenfranchised
and marginalized peoples of the world become the most harmed victims of these
disasters, as they often live in the most undesirable and vulnerable places. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8zw_sYsFSYA/YHmmG65jelI/AAAAAAAAxgI/81fxxo71-foVNzyPLF1nu1-6KHp9IWFCgCLcBGAsYHQ/s720/raw_36of_net-zero-carbon-720x480-01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="720" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8zw_sYsFSYA/YHmmG65jelI/AAAAAAAAxgI/81fxxo71-foVNzyPLF1nu1-6KHp9IWFCgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/raw_36of_net-zero-carbon-720x480-01.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">The Social
Principles of The United Methodist Church call us to “recognize the
responsibility of the Church and its members to place a high priority on
changes in economic, political, social and technological lifestyles to support
a more ecologically equitable and sustainable world, leading to a higher quality
of life for all of God’s creation.” (</span><i style="font-size: 14pt;">2016
UM Book of Discipline</i><span style="font-size: 14pt;">, paragraph 160)</span></p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">And from the
2016 <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Book of Resolutions</i> (#1044 “Caring
for Creation: Our Call to Stewardship and Justice”) we read “As United
Methodists we therefore are called to participate in God’s healing of creation
through acts of personal, social and civic righteousness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Proclaiming and modeling a new lifestyle
rooted in stewardship and justice, we work toward the day when all God’s
children respect and share in the goodness of creation.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">So what does
this mean for us personally and in our local churches? We can’t solve all the
problems of the environment, but we can all do something to help make it better.
Sometimes the enormity of the planet’s climate crisis causes us to overlook the
power of the small but vitally important things we can do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">According to
the General Board of Church and Society’s “Faith and Facts: Environmental
Justice,” we can all personally take action in the following ways:</span></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Reduce:</b> buy less stuff.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Reuse:</b> pack a “no-waste” lunch using reusable containers instead of disposables; find innovative ways to repurpose old products.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Recycle: </b>Paper, glass, aluminum and plastic.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Refuse:</b> Do not use or accept plastic bags when you make purchases. Bring reusable bags with you.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Rethink:</b> How much is enough? Once you decide you need an item make sure it was produced in a way that is both earth-friendly and worker-friendly.</span></li></ul><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MVmk0cEoOHI/YHmo6UuwS_I/AAAAAAAAxgY/NWw8d-1dTwkr373JPbquPU6lCNT_DR2iwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2000/Net-Zero-Carbon-Emissions-2050.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1167" data-original-width="2000" height="374" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MVmk0cEoOHI/YHmo6UuwS_I/AAAAAAAAxgY/NWw8d-1dTwkr373JPbquPU6lCNT_DR2iwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h374/Net-Zero-Carbon-Emissions-2050.png" width="640" /></a></div><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">We can all
do these simple things.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our churches are
also places where numerous environmental protective practices can be employed
and taught. In her book, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Seven Simple
Steps to Green Your Church</i>, author Rebekah Simon-Peter invites churches to
form a “Green Team” that analyzes the systems in the church building that can ultimately
be adapted to lower its carbon footprint.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Along with
recycling practices, churches can install energy efficient forms of heating,
cooling and lighting. They can create community gardens and encourage “green”
practices in the kitchen and office—for example, the use of non-toxic cleaning
products. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Most
importantly, we can be teaching these principles and practices to our church
members and our young people. That way, we can begin to create a culture of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Creation-Care</i> that can encourage
Biblical principles of stewardship—stewardship of God’s Creation—far into the
future. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">I encourage
you to do something new in your personal life and at your church that can
demonstrate your commitment to “keeping the earth” and respecting God’s amazing
gifts bestowed upon us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #202124; font-family: Roboto; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">*Net zero</span></i></b><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #202124; font-family: Roboto; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"> means achieving a balance between the greenhouse gases
put into the atmosphere and those taken out. ... This state is also referred to
as <b>carbon neutral</b>; although <b>zero emissions</b> and <b>zero
carbon</b> are slightly different, as they usually mean that no <b>emissions</b> were
produced in the first place.</span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><strong><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 15.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Also see:</span></i></strong></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: black; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;"><b>Help to celebrate Earth Day</b></span><span style="background-color: white;"><b><br /></b></span></span></span>Churches looking to plan a service around Earth
Day, April 22, can download free resources from the United Methodist Board of Global
Ministries. Many churches pick a Sunday in April to mark the occasion and
create awareness around environmental sustainability. The resources include an
Earth Day sermon, litany and Scripture reading via video or text. <a href="http://e.umc.org/MDc4LUpYUS02NDMAAAF8Vraxt4NJ2O6sMFBY-QYP0_jEXuCUJVH45Nw0N1zYgbtHoSuayGhshMXqjjxqscMDaqgEg_w=" target="_blank"><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 107%;">Download Earth Day materials</span></a></li><li><strong><span style="background: white; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 107%;">Monday, April
19-Saturday, May 1<br /></span></strong><a href="http://e.umc.org/MDc4LUpYUS02NDMAAAF8Vraxt8HpGelLdqQIM-qu5AdVd3CJn2PclmvstXUvwVu6Ji1MN5YQvuunHdVz6s0HJz1mtB8=" target="_blank"><b><span style="background: white; color: #1155cc; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">Online course: Hope and Justice for Creation</span></b></a></li><li><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><a href="https://www.umc.org/en/content/book-of-resolutions-energy-policy-statement">UMC Book of Resolutions Energy Policy Statement (2016)</a></span></b></li></ul><p></p>
Bishop's Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01798640292459548501noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5434327769093668747.post-19959071922939844212021-04-09T15:39:00.003-04:002021-04-09T15:39:22.559-04:00Celebrate and support Native American Ministries April 18<p><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fKdPf09wCbA/YHCtGPicIGI/AAAAAAAAxe0/UXkhZ9eWRXM8RSj7Q5O5wdbcsaCify5ywCLcBGAsYHQ/s1199/nams-banner.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="525" data-original-width="1199" height="175" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fKdPf09wCbA/YHCtGPicIGI/AAAAAAAAxe0/UXkhZ9eWRXM8RSj7Q5O5wdbcsaCify5ywCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h175/nams-banner.jpg" width="400" /></a></p><p><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Every year on the third Sunday of Easter, The United
Methodist Church observes </span><b style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Native
American Ministries Sunday</b><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">. It includes the opportunity to take a special
offering for our many local and denominational ministries.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Half of our total offering stays in our annual conference
each year to carry on the work of our Committee on Native American Ministries
(CONAM). The rest is used connectionally to support seminary scholarships and
mission efforts among Native Americans beyond our conference.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This year the needs are greater due to the ongoing plight
of the COVID-19 pandemic that has been especially harsh in Native American
communities. Our special offering serves as a lifeline for numerous ministries
such as training events, youth empowerment weekends, new church construction
and participation in the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues on
behalf of the UMC.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Locally, the Northeastern Jurisdiction, which includes the
Eastern PA and Peninsula-Delaware Annual Conferences, supports a very important
social justice issue, “Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women: Invisible,
Unreported, Uncounted.” <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Statistics show that 84% of Native women and girls
experience violence in their families. In 86% of the cases of sexual assaults
against Native women and girls, the perpetrators are non-Native men. Native
women are murdered at a rate of 10 times the national average
(hhpts://wwwnejnamc.org.) The advocacy work on behalf of Native American women
and girls is another important mission that this offering supports. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cZYHvO0MC80/YHCtOqAuwsI/AAAAAAAAxe4/43-oYtsgqDUUl28D37GTYawYaBwjTXfuACLcBGAsYHQ/s600/haaland-public-domain-license-photo-121082.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="472" data-original-width="600" height="158" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cZYHvO0MC80/YHCtOqAuwsI/AAAAAAAAxe4/43-oYtsgqDUUl28D37GTYawYaBwjTXfuACLcBGAsYHQ/w200-h158/haaland-public-domain-license-photo-121082.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">(Indeed, it was recently cited as a grave personal concern
to new U.S. Secretary of the Interior </span><a href="https://www.doi.gov/secretary-deb-haaland"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Deborah Haaland</span></a><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">, who
just made history by becaming the first Native American to serve as a U.S. cabinet
secretary. She is a member of the Pueblo of Laguna and a 35th generation New
Mexican.)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Pastors, please take a special offering on Native American
Ministries Sunday, April 18, or on a more convenient occasion. There are
wonderful resources and video clips available on the United Methodist website
to share with your congregations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hO8pCw6DsUU/YHCtWcabXKI/AAAAAAAAxfA/_m22MDN_TngGQ02V38WQ5ccsCI_I6sOlwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/NAMS_Being_a_Methodist_as_a_Native_American_320x320.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="320" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hO8pCw6DsUU/YHCtWcabXKI/AAAAAAAAxfA/_m22MDN_TngGQ02V38WQ5ccsCI_I6sOlwCLcBGAsYHQ/w200-h200/NAMS_Being_a_Methodist_as_a_Native_American_320x320.png" width="200" /></a></div>Learn about <a href="https://www.umc.org/en/content/being-a-methodist-as-a-native-american-nams"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Marilyn
Anderson</span></a><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">, a Seneca and a devoted member of the Committee on Native
American Ministries (CONAM) in the Upper New York Conference. “I live a stone’s
throw from the Four Corners Methodist Church and have gone there my entire … 75
years,” said Anderson. Read “</span><a href="https://www.umc.org/en/content/being-a-methodist-as-a-native-american-nams"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Being
a Methodist as a Native American</span></a><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">.”<o:p></o:p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">As we pool together our resources, so much more good work
can be accomplished!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is the gift of
our connectional system and it is our commitment to inclusivity and our embrace
of all as part of “the beloved community.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Look for more promotional information prepared by our own
hard-working <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">CONAM</b> in our media next
week. And please plan to attend their annual spring worship and educational
event on <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Sunday, May 2, at 4 PM</b>, via
Zoom. More information is coming. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Meanwhile, learn more at “</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://www.umc.org/en/content/native-american-ministries-sunday-did-you-know-landing-page">Native
American Ministries Sunday Did You Know?”</a></span></p>Bishop's Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01798640292459548501noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5434327769093668747.post-88771687567150046292021-03-30T15:33:00.009-04:002021-03-30T15:34:36.258-04:00Spreading the aroma of Christ<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3kNXzRhtHow/YGN8-8EYLNI/AAAAAAAAxdo/DRQzeb85AjQyIUXVI6skfoZ8FEOlMjjyQCLcBGAsYHQ/s266/II%2BCorinthians%2B2-14.jpeg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="190" data-original-width="266" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3kNXzRhtHow/YGN8-8EYLNI/AAAAAAAAxdo/DRQzeb85AjQyIUXVI6skfoZ8FEOlMjjyQCLcBGAsYHQ/s0/II%2BCorinthians%2B2-14.jpeg" /></a></div><br />An aroma is a curious thing. It can bring back a precious memory. It can remind us of a person or an event. It can be familiar or unmistakable, and it can even create a mood or enhance our energy level.<br /><br />Tiny, dispersed molecules can produce powerful aromas with a big effect. In fact, aroma therapy is a multi-million dollar enterprise, so powerful are its scents to people.<br /><br />One of the most devastating effects of the coronavirus has been the loss of the sense of smell for many who have contracted COVID-19. There are even support groups for those who have lost their sense of smell, because it is so debilitating.<br /><br />The Old Testament speaks of the aroma of burnt sacrifices on altars giving an aroma “pleasing to the Lord” (Leviticus 9:1). Through the centuries faith communities have used the burning of fragrant incense to symbolize the prayers of the people filling the air. The smell of it wafting through the sanctuary can add to an experience of the “holy.”<br /><br />One of the joys of the season of Easter are the fragrant lilies and other spring flowers blooming in great abundance and reminding us of the rebirth of nature after a long winter season.<div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nin9c7QjGmI/YGN9C8rwwXI/AAAAAAAAxds/pI0m0RGkRegLVqvfZ5xE4fFmkkXIU2z3gCLcBGAsYHQ/s400/anointed%2BJesus%25E2%2580%2599%2Bfeet%2Bwith%2Bexpensive%2Bointment.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="323" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nin9c7QjGmI/YGN9C8rwwXI/AAAAAAAAxds/pI0m0RGkRegLVqvfZ5xE4fFmkkXIU2z3gCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/anointed%2BJesus%25E2%2580%2599%2Bfeet%2Bwith%2Bexpensive%2Bointment.jpg" /></a></div>The Apostle Paul connected an experience of God’s presence with the sense of smell when he said to the church in Corinth that God “uses us to spread the aroma of the knowledge of him everywhere.” (II Corinthians 2:14).<br /><br />How do we do this? It is not the kind of thing one accomplishes with air freshener or even with a church filled with holy incense. Spreading the knowledge of Christ is also not solely about book learning or teaching information about our faith.<br /><br />It is more about a way of being that demonstrates Christ by our acts of love, generosity, humility and reconciliation. Like an aroma from dispersed molecules, small signs of Christ’s love can have a large, pervasive effect in the world. “Not all of us can do great things,” said Mother Teresa. “But we can do small things with great love.”<br /><br />As “Easter people,” we share the good news of the resurrection; but we also live it in subtle, grace-filled ways. Like a fragrance that lingers, an act of selfless compassion or kindness lives on like nothing else.<br /><br />Mary of Bethany humbly anointed Jesus’ feet with expensive ointment, and “the house was filled with the fragrance of her perfume” (John 12:3). It was her sacrificial, extravagant gift that was the real fragrance in the room. And just as Jesus foretold, the memory of her tiny gift has spread like a fragrance across the earth wherever the gospel is preached. (Matthew 26:13).<br /><br />There has long been a sweet smell in Dauphin County, Pennsylvania. It is chocolate. Milton Hershey, an early 20th century businessman, made a fortune on his chocolate business, especially with the iconic foil-covered “Hershey Kisses.”<div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KNhO0OFAtC8/YGN9HIgl2SI/AAAAAAAAxdw/uwC8xHQkc4gpJXcyeAwTcF1TdSQrmQhyQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/Milton%2BHershey%252BQuote.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KNhO0OFAtC8/YGN9HIgl2SI/AAAAAAAAxdw/uwC8xHQkc4gpJXcyeAwTcF1TdSQrmQhyQCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h300/Milton%2BHershey%252BQuote.png" width="400" /></a></div><br />His generosity to the community was as pervasive as the scent of chocolate. Hershey built homes, parks, schools, public transportation and an orphanage, to name a few of his philanthropic gifts (www.hersheystory.org). The goodness lingers on even to this day.<br /><br />Pope Francis’ recent visit to Iraq has left a pervasive effect on the peace process between rival faith communities in the Middle East. Peacemaking through simple acts of conversation and respect can spread a scent of hope and reconciliation like nothing else.<br /><br />Be the aroma of the knowledge of Christ where you live and have influence. Be the one to give generously, the one who crosses lines of division to extend welcome and kindness. Be the one who is willing to humbly engage in small tasks out of great love for Christ.<br /><br />When you emulate Christ, even in small, sacrificial ways, God notices and people will notice. The aroma will be unmistakable, and people will gain a knowledge of God like nothing else. Never underestimate the power of the aroma of Christ-like actions.
<!--/wp:paragraph--></div></div>Bishop's Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01798640292459548501noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5434327769093668747.post-79870422925257075572021-03-22T13:04:00.002-04:002021-03-22T13:04:08.846-04:00Ruth Fernandez: ‘El alma de Puerto Rico’ (‘The Soul of Puerto Rico’)<h2 style="text-align: left;"><b><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qJ96iUi6RVk/YFjNb01O1nI/AAAAAAAAxco/-c3f8cYTr8ksay8YXfEh7RzmvfuaEmh5QCLcBGAsYHQ/s1240/2021_whm_myccp_web_banner_3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="460" data-original-width="1240" height="238" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qJ96iUi6RVk/YFjNb01O1nI/AAAAAAAAxco/-c3f8cYTr8ksay8YXfEh7RzmvfuaEmh5QCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h238/2021_whm_myccp_web_banner_3.jpg" width="640" /></a></div></b></h2><h1 style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">A Women’s History Month Tribute</span></b></h1>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">One of the
greatest gifts that I have received during my time serving as the bishop of the
Philadelphia Area has been my exposure to the profound giftedness of our diversity.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">My personal background never exposed me to African
American, Latinx, Native American, Korean, Indian and African cultures.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">It will be my life’s journey to continue to
explore the cultures, languages and perspectives of my many sisters and
brothers with humble appreciation.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7u5H9SNvlcY/YFjNsGfY_5I/AAAAAAAAxcw/xdL5DMpuXHg8w9c4ibU6oujTfcn_sCtMgCLcBGAsYHQ/s713/71Yu6NW6KTL._SL1000_-e1595004073944.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="713" data-original-width="700" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7u5H9SNvlcY/YFjNsGfY_5I/AAAAAAAAxcw/xdL5DMpuXHg8w9c4ibU6oujTfcn_sCtMgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/71Yu6NW6KTL._SL1000_-e1595004073944.jpg" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">While
attending the “Dismantling Racism II” training on February 27, 2021, I learned
a great deal about the world of peoples of the Latinx communities, both in this
country and in other parts of Central and South America.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The name Ruth Fernandez was mentioned, and
her fame as a singer and a politician caught my attention.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">It is my
honor to lift up her life and legacy during “Women’s History Month.” I give
thanks for “Gracias Mundo,” the world that she loved and beautified. I give
thanks to God for her witness and her heart.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Her signature song was titled “Gracias Mundo,” and there is much to
celebrate.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Ruth Noemi
Fernandez Cortada was born in 1919 in the Belgica community of barrio Cuarto in
Ponce, Puerto Rico. She and her four siblings were raised by her grandmother,
after her mother died when Ruth was only 6 years old.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As a child, she had a strong interest in
music, and at the age of 14 she was singing for local radio stations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">It wasn’t
long before popular bands were hiring her to perform in nightclubs, at dances
and casinos.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>From there she had a series
of successes as a popular singer with a recording contract. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She was known as “El alma de Puerto Rico hecha
cancion” which means, “The soul of Puerto Rico turned song.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Her voice interpreted the longings and hearts
of her people.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lzNbC3X4elQ/YFjNxc0eMDI/AAAAAAAAxc0/_1iqDsaSCkIxvZO1SoBjHRcMj_ht2s48wCLcBGAsYHQ/s800/bb7a978118965b3a96ae92ce37e66fd2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="601" data-original-width="800" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lzNbC3X4elQ/YFjNxc0eMDI/AAAAAAAAxc0/_1iqDsaSCkIxvZO1SoBjHRcMj_ht2s48wCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/bb7a978118965b3a96ae92ce37e66fd2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Ruth Fernandez
was also known to be the “Rosa Parks” of Puerto Rico.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When preparing to enter the Vanderbilt Hotel
in San Juan she was informed that Afro-Puerto Ricans needed to enter by the
kitchen door.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Instead, she entered the
front door, “dressed to the nines,” and after that event, the discriminatory
practice was stopped. She was proud of her racial heritage and her home city.
She called herself “La Negra de Ponce” (“The Black Woman from Ponce”).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How encouraging and life-giving was her
witness and example.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The musical
career of Ruth Fernandez continued for decades, and she performed all over the
world. She was the first Latina to perform at the Metropolitan Opera House in
New York City.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She sang for soldiers during
World War II and the Korean War, especially to encourage troops of Hispanic
descent. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">She
continued to break barriers and was the “first” to do many things as a woman
and as a woman of color. Throughout her life, Ruth Fernandez received numerous
awards and declarations, all befitting of her trailblazing persona.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuMqlDCbmH3zRLfAoY_oAywW58tPgAA3mjBjSPXalXhDi-vpedW_tuMc4ct3U9W1oaolDrdjXTu4uRC1qmXMDtOfMTy9oxIjTyH49I0ZrqSpHnQ95NLm-LE3JgVbmOW5GSG6tFzwn7Fw/s300/1388446_300x300_1.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuMqlDCbmH3zRLfAoY_oAywW58tPgAA3mjBjSPXalXhDi-vpedW_tuMc4ct3U9W1oaolDrdjXTu4uRC1qmXMDtOfMTy9oxIjTyH49I0ZrqSpHnQ95NLm-LE3JgVbmOW5GSG6tFzwn7Fw/s0/1388446_300x300_1.jpeg" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">It is
important to note that she was not only known for her famous contralto voice.
Ruth Fernandez also had a heart for justice. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>From 1973 until 1980, she served in the Senate
of Puerto Rico, representing the district of Ponce as a member of the Partido
Popular Democratico de Puerto Rico.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>During
her tenure she worked for reforms for the poor, including those living in the
United States. She advocated for better working conditions for the artist
community and supported the development of young musicians and artists.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">One of her mottos
for life was “Arriba, Corazones” (“Lift up your hearts”).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is clear that her life was a beacon of
light that gave inspiration, hope and justice to millions. Her trailblazing
shoulders have been the encouraging elevation for many who have come after her.
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The worth of
one’s life surely depends on how one’s legacy continues through lives that are touched
and that prosper as a result.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thus is
the life and legacy of Ruth Fernandez: singer, justice trailblazer, confident
woman, and soul of Puerto Rico.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Resources:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">“Ruth
Fernandez” </span><a href="https://enwikipedia.org/wiki/Ruth_Fermandez"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">https://enwikipedia.org/wiki/Ruth_Fermandez</span></a></li><li><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">“Boricua
Pionera: Racial Trailblazer Ruth Fernandez” by Tomas Pena, July 24, 2020 </span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><a href="https://jazzdelapena.com/">https://jazzdelapena.com</a></span></li></ul><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DlsNa65gzHQ/YFjN6UPh6LI/AAAAAAAAxc8/3Ffo1tMLY2kS8x9CCHwyDm3VqJKfKMmCwCLcBGAsYHQ/s466/ruth-fernandez.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="314" data-original-width="466" height="270" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DlsNa65gzHQ/YFjN6UPh6LI/AAAAAAAAxc8/3Ffo1tMLY2kS8x9CCHwyDm3VqJKfKMmCwCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h270/ruth-fernandez.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><p></p>
Bishop's Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01798640292459548501noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5434327769093668747.post-46795504006998290362021-03-19T10:56:00.006-04:002021-03-19T10:56:58.945-04:00Anti-Asian Violence: A call to teaching, preaching, speaking out<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-blKPK0xup60/YFS7i_8D6UI/AAAAAAAAxcg/tI6iiQeb1ygTIL48NVrdHlCX3jhYcTKqACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/StopAAPIHateWebsiteFOto.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1071" data-original-width="2048" height="209" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-blKPK0xup60/YFS7i_8D6UI/AAAAAAAAxcg/tI6iiQeb1ygTIL48NVrdHlCX3jhYcTKqACLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h209/StopAAPIHateWebsiteFOto.png" width="400" /></a></div><p>NBC News 10 reported on March 18 that Pennsylvania and New
Jersey are among the states with the highest number of Anti-Asian violent
crimes. According to “Stop Asian Americans Pacific Islander Hate” (AAPI), 68%
of anti-Asian attacks were directed against women. </p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Over the past year, despite hate crimes being down for the
most part, anti-Asian attacks have become much more prevalent.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic
physical assaults, verbal harassment, civil rights violations and online
harassment against Asian Americans had increased by 200%. Terms like “The China
virus” or Kung-flu” to describe COVID have had much to do with the current hate
violence. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">What a terrible thing! What a tragic world! We mourn with
the people of Atlanta who have experienced thd senseless, evil mass shooting of
eight people, six of them Korean women, March 16.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As United Methodists, “we deplore acts of
hate or violence against groups or person based on race, color, national
origin, ethnicity, age, gender, disability, status, economic condition, sexual
orientation, gender identity or religious affiliation.” (<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Social Principles</i>, Paragraph 162)<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">As a nation, we need to teach and speak to one another about
tolerance and cultural respect, so that more people see our diversity as a
source of giftedness and not division or threat. In our churches, we need to
preach and model respect and inclusion at every level of congregational life. That
includes creating diversity and inclusiveness in funding and leadership
opportunities.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">A practical thing that we can do every day is to speak up
when we hear racist remarks that denigrate any ethnic group or that characterize
people in negative and stereotypical ways.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Words can hurt, but words of truth can heal and create justice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let us be creators of “justice and joy”* and
make a better world and a better church. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">*From “For Everyone
Born, a Place at the Table” Worship and Song #3149)<o:p></o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><a href="https://www.epaumc.org/news/conference-members-join-outcry-against-anti-asian-american-racism/">Read “Conference
members join outcry against anti-Asian American racism.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" /></a>
<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" />
<!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>Bishop's Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01798640292459548501noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5434327769093668747.post-14307380274101062792021-03-03T15:53:00.004-05:002021-03-03T15:53:34.965-05:00Fasting unto the Lord<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_6f5MwbKcw8/YD_23ZAM5II/AAAAAAAAxa8/J-JsH4OjTiASlJ6kgzQS8xTuEHXzBrRtQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1200/2931.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="675" data-original-width="1200" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_6f5MwbKcw8/YD_23ZAM5II/AAAAAAAAxa8/J-JsH4OjTiASlJ6kgzQS8xTuEHXzBrRtQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/2931.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><span style="font-size: 12pt;">During the
Season of Lent, the church is called to a time of holy introspection, fasting
and prayer.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">We are to contemplate the
life and example of Jesus, hold our life up against his, and make some honest
assessments.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Through that
process, a time of repentance and change for the better is the hope, but none
of this sounds particularly enjoyable. In our society self-abasement, guilt and
personal accountability are increasingly counter-cultural.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Have it your way!” “Just Do it!” “Ain’t
nothing gonna break my stride!” are slogans of the world and of America’s sense
of privilege.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kXiQd4_mLSs/YD_3BWoZD0I/AAAAAAAAxbE/VBx7QF8pbEkW9DGWNzHXRmFISG_wglmsgCLcBGAsYHQ/s760/john-wesley-meme.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="556" data-original-width="760" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kXiQd4_mLSs/YD_3BWoZD0I/AAAAAAAAxbE/VBx7QF8pbEkW9DGWNzHXRmFISG_wglmsgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/john-wesley-meme.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Fasting has
a long history of spiritual benefit, and the season of Lent is a good time to encourage
it in your churches.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the ordination
vows of all Methodist pastors since our founding, John Wesley asks, “Will you
practice fasting and abstinence, both by precept and example?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The ordinands standing before me always say
“yes.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">During this
season of Lent, let us all, clergy and laity, take this seriously, because it
has great spiritual and temporal value. I can’t think of anything more important
than our spiritual journey with the Lord, especially during these transitional
times in the life of the church and of the world.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">In his book <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Freedom of Simplicity</i> Christian author Richard
J. Foster writes: <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Fasting helps to give us
balance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It makes us more keenly
sensitive to the whole of life, so that we do not become obsessed with our
consumer mentality.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is something of
an inner alarm to help us hold our priorities straight, to give us a sense of
spiritual sensitivity. Fasting reveals the things that control us.<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Fasting
usually involves abstaining from food or drink for a period of time in order to
focus on prayer and meditation. Fasting can also include abstaining from other
things, such as the social media, shopping or any form of personal addiction. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Whatever the
nature of the fast, it should always include a time of intentionally listening
to God’s Spirit deeply speaking to you about the things you need to change, to give
up, or to do. Sometimes God’s voice takes a long time to discern, and this
involves patience, self-control and surrendering to God’s timing.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWl99PqBBIEDuzacHMLIiFujRxK1V4XzL7nghuB5XXdRlgbp23223BCZWkfLQ10JZmWHv3DIpISh10XI8jkUGF5gBNJ2rnlq67ny5pyi8OSqOGacNmvEH1QFF_Ye1FR7_5pAoBzb5-XA/s400/fasting_channge_your_life.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="297" data-original-width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWl99PqBBIEDuzacHMLIiFujRxK1V4XzL7nghuB5XXdRlgbp23223BCZWkfLQ10JZmWHv3DIpISh10XI8jkUGF5gBNJ2rnlq67ny5pyi8OSqOGacNmvEH1QFF_Ye1FR7_5pAoBzb5-XA/s320/fasting_channge_your_life.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">In addition,
true fasting has “roller blades” on its sneakers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Old Testament prophets derided the temple
religious rituals that had no temporal signs of behavioral improvement. It was often
an empty show of piety in order to look holy and not grounded in true worship.
Zechariah 7:5 prophesied, “Say to all the people of the land and the priests,
‘When you fasted and mourned in the fifth month and in the seventh, for these
seventy years, was it for me that you fasted?’” Likewise Isaiah 58:3 said, “On
the day of your fasting, you do as you please and exploit all your workers.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Fasting and
abstinence is not a piety show. True fasting is a call to social justice. Again
from the prophet Zechariah, “Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘Render true
judgments, show kindness and mercy to one another; do not oppress the widow,
the fatherless, the sojourner or the poor; and let none of you devise evil
against another in your heart.’” (7:9-10) <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">The prophet Isaiah
emphasizes loosening the chains of injustice, untying the cords of the yoke, setting
the oppressed free, sharing food with the hungry, providing shelter for the
poor wanderer, clothes for the naked, and taking care of one’s own family.
(58:6-7).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--AwKM35kHEg/YD_3LQLKAbI/AAAAAAAAxbY/I0VaFORZEgs_YEHbamDHFDby3ZdCoFr0wCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/2008graphic-lenwebt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="282" data-original-width="500" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--AwKM35kHEg/YD_3LQLKAbI/AAAAAAAAxbY/I0VaFORZEgs_YEHbamDHFDby3ZdCoFr0wCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/2008graphic-lenwebt.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Now you
might be thinking, “I don’t oppress people, and I help out at the food bank at
church, and I am not responsible for the refugee children at the border being
separated from their mothers.” <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">True fasting
involves mercy as well as justice. Injustice has complicated layers of political
maneuvering. It is just plain difficult! That why most people would rather feed
the hungry than tackle the root causes of poverty and suffering.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is our Christian duty to take this on, and
scripture backs it up. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Archbishop Desmond
Tutu once said, “If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen
the side of the oppressor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If an
elephant has its foot on the tail of a mouse and you say that you are neutral,
the mouse will not appreciate your neutrality.” (<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Oxford Essential Quotations</i>, 5<sup>th</sup> edition)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Fasting and
praying can give you some “next steps.” And God will be with you on the
journey.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I pray you are having a blessed
Lenten Season, full of serious contemplation, as well as a response to injustice.
The two are inseparable.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>Bishop's Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01798640292459548501noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5434327769093668747.post-24228726540101013132021-02-25T12:20:00.001-05:002021-02-25T12:35:36.883-05:00500,000+ COVID-19 deaths in the United States<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><i><br /></i></b></div><b><i><div><b><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gckaMF4_2oQ/YDff39y-91I/AAAAAAAAxaU/feKy6tZO-C0o6zsCfZSPlnnA0_7xuNzKACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/PeopleUSAMap.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1152" data-original-width="2048" height="225" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gckaMF4_2oQ/YDff39y-91I/AAAAAAAAxaU/feKy6tZO-C0o6zsCfZSPlnnA0_7xuNzKACLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h225/PeopleUSAMap.png" width="400" /></a></div><br /><i><br /></i></b></div><div><br /></div>‘Strive to infuse life
into this season of death</i></b><i><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;">.’</span></i><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">By Bishop
Peggy A. Johnson<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">I remember
sitting in a nursing home in Catonsville, Maryland, with my aged Aunt Inez
years ago.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Born in 1894 she had seen a
great deal in her many years of life, and I was just in my twenties at the
time. She shared with me her many memories of years gone by, especially about
the “Spanish Flu” of 1918.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LBEUZU1VrvQ/YDfbqFQdBtI/AAAAAAAAxZs/pW7IH9cQ5a4Ze4GSOEDlS8badu_tZhWLACLcBGAsYHQ/s600/Souderton-PA-Independent-headline-10-11-1918-e1585172452216.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; font-size: 18.6667px; font-style: italic; font-weight: 700; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="294" data-original-width="600" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LBEUZU1VrvQ/YDfbqFQdBtI/AAAAAAAAxZs/pW7IH9cQ5a4Ze4GSOEDlS8badu_tZhWLACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Souderton-PA-Independent-headline-10-11-1918-e1585172452216.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">She was about
my age at the time and there were no vaccines, no cure, just a call for people
to stay in isolation and in prayer. She said that that virus affected in some
way every family in the little town of Lansdowne, Maryland, where she taught
school. In the spring of the following year they counted their losses and
grieved a deep and long grief. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">At the time,
I thought this was an unbelievable tale of how things were in the “old days.” I
never once imagined that one day I could be living during a devastating
pandemic. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">It has been
a long year since we first got the news of this worldwide crisis and began to
close down churches for in-person worship. Last March we could hardly have
imagined that a year later we would be grieving 500,000 American lives lost to
this deadly coronavirus. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Like my Aunt
Inez, few if any of us have been spared the knowledge of someone in our lives—family
member, friend, colleague, role model, church member—someone who lost a battle
to this awful virus. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We share a common
grief, and too many of us carry burdens of sorrow and helplessness.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;">Deep appreciation for ministry,
compassion</span></b><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">At this
milestone in our tragic tally of lives lost, I want to express my <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">deep appreciation </b>for pastors, laity
and churches who have ministered and offered compassion and relief to countless
numbers of people in their communities. The Apostle Paul describes well the
strength God has given you for the task: <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GHpRnhyP77k/YDfcDGajvnI/AAAAAAAAxZ8/hnqtP_PLseITkaiJqkQa0gxKuYnGzhwcgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1200/ED7_TynWsAAltxa.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1006" data-original-width="1200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GHpRnhyP77k/YDfcDGajvnI/AAAAAAAAxZ8/hnqtP_PLseITkaiJqkQa0gxKuYnGzhwcgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/ED7_TynWsAAltxa.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">“Blessed be the God and Father of our
Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and God of all comfort, who comforts
us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in
any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.”</span></i><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> (II Corinthians 1:3-4)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">I also call
us to </span><b style="font-size: 12pt;">care for ourselves</b><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> in these
stressful times, regularly observing the Sabbath and engaging in spiritual, physical
and emotional self-care. Rest in the promise that “God will go with you and
will never leave you or forsake you.” (Deuteronomy 31:6) And also, “Those who
wait on the Lord will renew their strength” (Isaiah 40:31).</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Strive to infuse life into this
season of death</span></b><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">. The
church is founded on the resurrection of Christ and the sure and certain promise
of life abundant and life everlasting. We rely on resilient life that springs from
the jaws of death, on joy that comes the morning after, and on hope that burns
brightly, even in the midnight hour. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BymVUbQsYvo/YDfcKWCz1NI/AAAAAAAAxaA/NJppLEDgIM0vsXfPEWVQVZILrdW9SAXIACLcBGAsYHQ/s700/Hope-Hands-e1561675051639.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="419" data-original-width="700" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BymVUbQsYvo/YDfcKWCz1NI/AAAAAAAAxaA/NJppLEDgIM0vsXfPEWVQVZILrdW9SAXIACLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h240/Hope-Hands-e1561675051639.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;"><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;">Be hope-givers through the gospel</span></b></p></span></b><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">We are
uniquely positioned to be hope-givers in this world through the gospel that we
proclaim in Word and deed at this crucial time. Be a “resurrection hope-giver”
for someone who is bound by deep grief. Never forget the power of simple words of
kindness and acts of compassion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In
addition, do not pass up any chance to give a witness to the hope that is in
you and that can inspire others to faith in Christ.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">My Aunt Inez
also told me of the revival of religious fervor that happened in her community
after the long siege of the pandemic of 1918.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Instead of being buried in inconsolable grief, the community embraced
faith that spurred on a wave of community development and prosperity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Likewise,
our sobering milestone of death can be a springboard to new life as only God
can give it. Be a part of the new life that rises from this unique and terrible
time in the history of our nation and the world. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">I close with
a hymn by our contemporary “sweet psalmist,” Rev. Carolyn Gillette<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;"></span></i></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-q8QIa6BEflU/YDfbarj-C6I/AAAAAAAAxZo/6-nidYaRksgxSfcflZ77uYgJlw9e7AsUwCLcBGAsYHQ/s240/Carolyn-Winfrey-Gillette-hymn-writer-240x240.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="240" data-original-width="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-q8QIa6BEflU/YDfbarj-C6I/AAAAAAAAxZo/6-nidYaRksgxSfcflZ77uYgJlw9e7AsUwCLcBGAsYHQ/s0/Carolyn-Winfrey-Gillette-hymn-writer-240x240.jpg" /></a></i></b></div><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><br />We Grieve 500,000 <o:p></o:p></i></b><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">By Rev.
Carolyn Gillette<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Sung to the tune of “O Sacred Head, Now
Wounded.” Permission is given for use in our churches.)</i><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><o:p></o:p></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">We grieve five hundred
thousand, yet we can’t understand<br /></span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">We cannot grasp how many
have died throughout this land<br /></span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">We cannot see their faces
or hear the stories told<br /></span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Of all the ways they
blessed us, the young ones and the old.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">O God, we grieve the
struggle of those who died alone<br /></span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">So far from friends and
neighbors, from all they’d ever known.<br /></span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">We grieve for precious
people who could not say good-bye<br /></span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">We weep for those, now mourning,
who sit along and cry</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">O God, we grieve for
millions who now are unemployed<br /></span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Who cannot feed their
families, whose hope has been destroyed<br /></span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">We grieve that needed
workers must worry for their health<br /></span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">While some with lives of
privilege stay home and build their wealth</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">God of love and mercy, we
cry to you, “How long?”<br /></span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">In troubled times remind
us: You love is ever strong<br /></span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Now as we grieve the
suffering, Lord, show us how to be<br /></span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">A healing, loving presence
in each community.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-r7FcZX1qDBk/YDffqbfD1TI/AAAAAAAAxaM/M0mf35QSB8McLy8EXsAUpTi_kV28XVW8ACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/PeopleUSAMap.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1152" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-r7FcZX1qDBk/YDffqbfD1TI/AAAAAAAAxaM/M0mf35QSB8McLy8EXsAUpTi_kV28XVW8ACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/PeopleUSAMap.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlAhPr3r5yLddfgIvQ24K5GH1-1q48QfCKAJGBemiK5SHnMdyHp12Ba3cFn6b1Sq9eJD3GdjJw_QvCo8GUDtbg0S2RB9HyCVRLzTtlEsNZgOvN4evEKeM4-1sBqbtHTWpaCeZm2iTBxw/s2048/PeopleUSAMap.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1152" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlAhPr3r5yLddfgIvQ24K5GH1-1q48QfCKAJGBemiK5SHnMdyHp12Ba3cFn6b1Sq9eJD3GdjJw_QvCo8GUDtbg0S2RB9HyCVRLzTtlEsNZgOvN4evEKeM4-1sBqbtHTWpaCeZm2iTBxw/s320/PeopleUSAMap.png" width="320" /></a></div><br />Bishop's Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01798640292459548501noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5434327769093668747.post-85755416273593706532021-02-03T15:26:00.002-05:002021-02-03T15:26:30.064-05:00Black History MonthElijah Pierce: Telling the Story in Wood<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BreVbxhHdDA/YBsGIC081KI/AAAAAAAAxXs/9EYLBjyttoAR3n-cI7WPg6uNtXPCRNRnACLcBGAsYHQ/s1024/EP-200128583.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="736" data-original-width="1024" height="424" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BreVbxhHdDA/YBsGIC081KI/AAAAAAAAxXs/9EYLBjyttoAR3n-cI7WPg6uNtXPCRNRnACLcBGAsYHQ/w589-h424/EP-200128583.jpg" width="589" /></a></div><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><p><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Recently the
Barnes Foundation of Philadelphia showcased the works of artist Elijah
Pierce.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Born in 1892 in Mississippi,
this son of freed slaves became a wood carver, barber and preacher.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">He migrated
north to Columbus, Ohio, as a youth, where he set up a barber shop and had a
woodworking room in the back of the store. There he designed hundreds of masterpieces
using wood, cardboard, crepe paper, house paint, aluminum foil, glitter and
rhinestones. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-13R_bC17l3Y/YBsGSV68YQI/AAAAAAAAxXw/7LnVUw9bNmkLx7Gco_5XE29JNnZ276E3wCLcBGAsYHQ/s600/Teds-02-9-25-issue-The-Barnes-to-Display-Artwork-of-Elijah-Pierce.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="600" height="195" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-13R_bC17l3Y/YBsGSV68YQI/AAAAAAAAxXw/7LnVUw9bNmkLx7Gco_5XE29JNnZ276E3wCLcBGAsYHQ/w259-h195/Teds-02-9-25-issue-The-Barnes-to-Display-Artwork-of-Elijah-Pierce.jpg" width="259" /></a></div>The topics
of his many creations included Bible stories, nature, popular culture, politics
and animals of all kinds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Threaded
through his work was his passion for justice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">One of his
wood pictures included the words “Your life is a book, and every day is a
page.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On the pages of his life, he
created scenes of slavery in cotton fields, the horrors of slave auction blocks,
and depictions of Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Kennedy brothers who had been
assassinated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Pierce created
a work titled “Elijah Escapes the Mob.” It traces his personal experience of
being accused of a crime he did not commit and being held in custody.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He gave a visual history of a country filled
with injustice and inequality but also one of hope in God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Book of Wood depicts Jesus’ life<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">His most
prized work in his extensive collection is the “Book of Wood” a huge wooden “book”
with each 2 x 2 square-foot page depicting the life of Jesus (33 painted
carvings in all). <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p4ATnyKKiro/YBsGeom9R9I/AAAAAAAAxX4/QMkAYTy-c0woOjqMvTF0HqgNvi5QEp3sgCLcBGAsYHQ/s380/Elijah-Pierce-Catalogue.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="380" data-original-width="326" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p4ATnyKKiro/YBsGeom9R9I/AAAAAAAAxX4/QMkAYTy-c0woOjqMvTF0HqgNvi5QEp3sgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Elijah-Pierce-Catalogue.jpg" /></a></div>Filmmaker Carolyn
Allport produced a documentary about Pierce in 1974, 10 years before his death.
“He was so genuine about everything he said about faith in God,” she wrote. “But
social justice was the core of his message as an artist.” Indeed, the two
should always be inseparable.<o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">I honor the
life of Elijah Pierce during Black History Month 2021. He used wood, paint and
a carving knife to tell important stories.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>How about you? Your faith in God should always be a message that is seen
by the way you live, by the things you value and support, and by your creative
outlets.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Being a
disciple of Jesus Christ and an advocate for social justice should go hand in
hand.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do people see that in you?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>May “your life be a book and every day a
page” that displays the goodness of God shared among all people. And may you
commit to sharing that goodness in your corner of the world.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Sources: <o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Philadelphia Tribune, September 27,
2020 “Barnes Continues Inclusivity Mission with ‘Elijah Pierce’s America’
Exhibition” by J. Perry<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">www.enwikipedia.org “Elijah Pierce” <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><a href="http://www.npr.org/"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">www.npr.org</span></a><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"> “Aimed to do God’s Work in Wood” <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span></span><!--[endif]--><a href="http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2020/Sep/28/Elijah-pierce-woodcarver-amerian-art-racism"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2020/Sep/28/Elijah-pierce-woodcarver-amerian-art-racism</span></a></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">www.folkstreamsnet/film-detail.php?id=275
“Elijah Pierce: Woodcarver” (1974) Carolyn Allport producer<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Also watch: “</span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tn2CV2TDFSw"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Get a Look at ‘Elijah Pierce's America' at Philadelphia's
Barnes Foundation</span></a><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>NBC10 Philadelphia</span></p></blockquote>
Bishop's Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01798640292459548501noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5434327769093668747.post-56754792440694141392021-01-15T10:14:00.005-05:002021-01-15T10:17:04.510-05:00Confluence on Inauguration Day<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2lAic_SAh83IipxFVnq5gLznij7BIOGzhp8l9qRdhQzQS0b86eMkkVBpaI_IosU2tUuX_jQDtFGdbhk4ysp9olRmpYF_Jr_buY2mEZs39tYzP4VSf_md5E1ci0hQj2sMzRHRc5-e8iA/s2048/iStock-1293073521.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2lAic_SAh83IipxFVnq5gLznij7BIOGzhp8l9qRdhQzQS0b86eMkkVBpaI_IosU2tUuX_jQDtFGdbhk4ysp9olRmpYF_Jr_buY2mEZs39tYzP4VSf_md5E1ci0hQj2sMzRHRc5-e8iA/w400-h240/iStock-1293073521.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><p></p><p><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt;">The word “inauguration” (</span><i style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">New Oxford Dictionary</i><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt;">) means, “The beginning or introduction of a
system, policy or period; the formal admission of someone to office; a ceremony
to mark the beginning of something.”</span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Next week our country will hold its Presidential Inauguration.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It will be in the foreground briefly against
a current backdrop of political turmoil, last week’s violent assault on the U.S.
Capitol, and a worldwide health crisis. And more turmoil, more attacks are
threatened. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">It is my prayer that on that day we can begin to heal and
find ways to mend our chasms of deep division. We all bring converging ways of
thinking, believing and being.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">There is a tiny city (population 780) in Western
Pennsylvania, in a borough of Somerset County, known as “Confluence.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is named as such because it is a place where
three rivers come together: the Casselman, Laurel Hill Creek and Youghiogheny
rivers. When these rivers meet, there is turbulence but also the benefit of
becoming a bigger river, which makes this area a great place to do fishing and
boating.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;"></span></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-E3TbFo6dFRI/YAGxVQO7ohI/AAAAAAAAxWs/rsnN6ExKKbcd82AderGB0IUvt2ms_TblwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/iStock-471130719.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-E3TbFo6dFRI/YAGxVQO7ohI/AAAAAAAAxWs/rsnN6ExKKbcd82AderGB0IUvt2ms_TblwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/iStock-471130719.jpg" width="320" /></a></b></div><h4 style="text-align: left;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;">Great
things can happen if we flow in the same direction</span></b></h4><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt;">Divergent political thoughts (be they Republican, Democrat
or Independent) often create turbulence. If we can somehow manage to flow in
the same direction, like these rivers, some big—indeed, great—things can happen
in the future.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Everyone thrives when we work together as a nation for the
good of all. At the end of the day, rivers are all made of the same water; and
we are all God’s children made in the same image and likeness of God. We are
all different by the design of our Creator, so that we can accomplish all that
is needed through our different gifts and passions.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">On January 20, 2021, may we inaugurate not just a new President
or his new policies, but a new period of respect and cooperation that will yield
peace and prosperity for all. May that be especially true for those who are
poor and oppressed, who live in the dim margins of our nation’s bright political
and economic fortunes. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">This can only be accomplished as we seek to do the will of
God, acknowledging and using the resources of the Holy Spirit. Psalm 85:10
expresses my prayer for the future of our country: that “steadfast love and
faithfulness meet and righteousness and peace kiss each other.” May it be so! <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" />
<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" />
<!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></span></p>Bishop's Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01798640292459548501noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5434327769093668747.post-15003881501283885392021-01-04T11:27:00.009-05:002021-01-04T11:27:54.182-05:00Thoughts on the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.<p><b><i><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Celebrate MLK’s
birthday weekend, Jan. 15-18</span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">By
Bishop Peggy A. Johnson<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You may have always wondered about his name.
Was he or his father named for a famed, rebellious monk and professor who left
the Roman Catholic Church and started the Protestant Reformation in the 1500’s?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-A7Azwowpopk/X_NB32ML_tI/AAAAAAAAxVY/ff8ekZCkmIUwRmIkQ-0QpUrtPulJPpAQwCLcBGAsYHQ/s700/MLKJr.%2526MartinLuther.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="394" data-original-width="700" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-A7Azwowpopk/X_NB32ML_tI/AAAAAAAAxVY/ff8ekZCkmIUwRmIkQ-0QpUrtPulJPpAQwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/MLKJr.%2526MartinLuther.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">MLK, Jr., much like his German namesake of long ago, also began
a reformation—not of religion but of race, as he led a pivotal civil rights
movement for racial equality in this country. It was truly a movement because
it continues to ripple out in ever-expanding circles of justice-seeking social
change. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-046Fh_59ZkM/X_NBxLpDmPI/AAAAAAAAxVQ/omzuEKH_rBkMnkVQb7zeSfWp-4j1Bqc9gCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/MLKJr%252CSr%252C3rd.-B%2526WPicjpg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="466" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-046Fh_59ZkM/X_NBxLpDmPI/AAAAAAAAxVQ/omzuEKH_rBkMnkVQb7zeSfWp-4j1Bqc9gCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/MLKJr%252CSr%252C3rd.-B%2526WPicjpg.jpg" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The story behind his name comes from Dr. King’s father, the
Rev. Martin Luther King, Sr. (1897-1984). He was named Michael King by his
parents, and he named his son Michael King when the future civil rights leader
was born in 1929. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">From
‘Michael’ to ‘Martin’<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">In 1934, the elder King, who was at the time the senior pastor
of the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, Ga., traveled to Berlin, Germany, for
the World Baptist Alliance. During that trip abroad, he also visited France and
the Holy Land.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Afterwards he changed his
name to Martin Luther King. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">When asked about it, he said he had an uncle named “Martin”
and another uncle named “Luther.” But one can only surmise that his visit to
the home of the Reformation and its leader also spurred his interest in the
name he adopted. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Throughout his ministry in Atlanta, Martin Luther King, Sr.
was a brave and tireless reformer working for racial equality. His passion for
justice burned even brighter after his visit to Europe.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">“Daddy King,” as he would come to be known affectionately, was
active in the NAACP. He led a huge voter registration drive in Atlanta, braved
numerous personal threats, and worked for the equalization of salaries for
African American teachers, to name just a few of his achievements. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">‘I am
a man.’<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The elder King was once pulled over by a police officer for
a minor traffic violation, and the officer called him “Boy.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Martin Jr., who was in the car, observed as his
father pointed to him and said boldly, “This is a boy. I am a man.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The chastened officer quickly wrote the
ticket and moved on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Ironically, those same self-affirming words, “I am a man,”
were emblazoned on signs worn by Black sanitation workers in Memphis, Tenn., when
they marched for fair treatment and racial equality in 1968. MLK Jr. went there
to march with them and help lead their fight when he was tragically
assassinated April 4.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RzFSk9gjR7A/X_NBlrL-NyI/AAAAAAAAxVM/znPe626ublEq7VNlrXuvlrIMHKbCF6A9ACLcBGAsYHQ/s1200/I%2BAm%2Ba%2BManPhoto.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="628" data-original-width="1200" height="209" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RzFSk9gjR7A/X_NBlrL-NyI/AAAAAAAAxVM/znPe626ublEq7VNlrXuvlrIMHKbCF6A9ACLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h209/I%2BAm%2Ba%2BManPhoto.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">One cannot over-emphasize the legacy of justice and reform that
was instilled in both the heart and the name of Martin Luther King, Jr. From his
father he learned and experienced first-hand the meaning of the Christian “social
gospel” of liberation for the oppressed. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">From his father he learned how to work through the system
to bring about change. His father taught him to take risks for the greater good
and to bravely speak “truth to power.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Our
decisions, actions proclaim who we are <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Today our decisions and actions—or our indecision and
inaction—whether to seek justice for all or to accept the status quo of inequality—make
our lives visible billboards that proclaim who we are and what we believe. Whether
we intend it or not, we are role models for younger generations and even for
one another.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">If we claim the name of Christ in our faith, then we should
live up to that name, as MLK Jr. lived up to his. We should strive to be living
examples of the one whom we claim to follow. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GUM_-w2ppmw/X_NB-6RB9YI/AAAAAAAAxVc/Sdr87cdo5pYxpmYkWwkPs6rGpk6ntkdBwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1024/IAmAMan-MuseumFIgures.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GUM_-w2ppmw/X_NB-6RB9YI/AAAAAAAAxVc/Sdr87cdo5pYxpmYkWwkPs6rGpk6ntkdBwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IAmAMan-MuseumFIgures.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">What do young people learn from you?</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">How does your life demonstrate a profound
commitment to the teachings of Jesus Christ, who came to set captives free and
bring recovery of sight to the blind—the literally and spiritually blind of this
world? </span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">I ponder these questions as I celebrate the life and legacy
of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. He set a fire of justice on a thousand hills
that continues to blaze brightly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He
lived up to his name and to the principles of his faith. Let us all try harder
to do the same. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Resources: <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst"></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>kinginstitute.<a href="http://www.stanford.edu.encyclopedia/king-martin-luther-sr">stanford.edu/encyclopedia/king-martin-luther-sr</a> </li><li>The Washington Post – 1/15/19</li><li><a href="https://www.civilrightsmuseum.org/i-am-a-man">https://www.civilrightsmuseum.org/i-am-a-man</a></li></ul>Also, read <a href="https://www.dw.com/en/how-martin-luther-influenced-martin-luther-king-jr/a-41082670">How Martin Luther influenced Martin Luther King Jr.</a><br /><br /> <p></p>Bishop's Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01798640292459548501noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5434327769093668747.post-42446622129826995282020-12-15T09:36:00.007-05:002020-12-15T09:42:50.627-05:00Believe<p></p><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-k3HyLD8qXDI/X9jKDXQf6LI/AAAAAAAAxTw/bE7VGIFz3e0OwLC4sq-Mo8Loi46BStm-gCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/3WiseMenImage-slider-01.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="640" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-k3HyLD8qXDI/X9jKDXQf6LI/AAAAAAAAxTw/bE7VGIFz3e0OwLC4sq-Mo8Loi46BStm-gCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h320/3WiseMenImage-slider-01.png" width="640" /></a><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div>This time of year, the word “Believe” shows up in curious places. It’s printed on glossy department store shopping bags and sewn on wooly Christmas sweaters. </div><p><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5RfksMGmH2c/X9jJjHbTZ5I/AAAAAAAAxTQ/a_vdwJiojm4D9mQYOEwUp2WSlz7UVwYNACLcBGAsYHQ/s580/Picture2.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="580" data-original-width="580" height="266" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5RfksMGmH2c/X9jJjHbTZ5I/AAAAAAAAxTQ/a_vdwJiojm4D9mQYOEwUp2WSlz7UVwYNACLcBGAsYHQ/w246-h266/Picture2.jpg" width="246" /></a><span style="background-color: transparent;">It is a comfy word, kind of holy but not too holy, because, after all, the Christmas season has become more of a festival of commercialism, family gatherings, and feasting—but less about Jesus or his mission. </span></p><p></p><p>Madison Avenue would still like to maintain an air of magic in its advertising by using the word “Believe.” It is something you can’t buy, something miraculous, even if that only means telling a little girl, “Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus” to believe in. Deep down inside we all want to believe in something beyond ourselves, something reassuring and eternal. Such things cannot be purchased at the mall and placed under the Christmas tree.</p><p><strong>Bedrock of the Christian faith</strong></p><p>Believing is the bedrock of the Christian faith. It is the affirmation of what we know and profess about God’s mission to save the world. Believing in Jesus means we are trusting in him for the forgiveness of our sins and eternal life. But it doesn’t stop there. </p><p>Christians are called to live in alignment with the essence of the teachings of Jesus, who is present with us in the Spirit once we believe. We become his agents, so that when people see what we do in is name, they too may come to believe and follow Jesus. Believing is a lifetime of service, not just a one-time decision of the heart.</p><p>What does your witness look like? When people encounter you in the world, do they experience the love, acceptance, generosity and grace of Jesus in you? Can people with heavy loads to bear believe that God really cares about them because of the generosity that you extend? Do people from a different ethnic background experience the hospitality and kindness that you would give to Jesus himself? </p><p><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pT4kCN2YIcE/X9jJtXaOq3I/AAAAAAAAxTY/d43ZkMlXnNQSh1qzF8NCAwA8mkE72NQAgCLcBGAsYHQ/s363/Picture3.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="363" data-original-width="318" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pT4kCN2YIcE/X9jJtXaOq3I/AAAAAAAAxTY/d43ZkMlXnNQSh1qzF8NCAwA8mkE72NQAgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Picture3.jpg" /></a>Leo Tolstoy’s classic Christmas story “Martin the Cobbler” features a poor cobbler who was told in a dream that Jesus would visit him on Christmas Day. Instead of Jesus at the door, there were three needy visitors, and he helped each one. By the end of the day, Martin was sad that he did not receive a visit from Jesus as promised.</p><p><strong>‘To one of the least of these…’</strong></p><p>In a vision, the Lord explained that the three needy visitors Martin helped were indeed his visit in disguise. “Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.” (Matthew 25:40).</p><p>Still today, Jesus visits us in the anxious faces and outstretched hands of persons in need—the stranger, the alien and even those we don’t particularly like. As we serve them with grace and generosity, we are proclaiming to the world what we believe and whom we serve. This is a profound way to inspire belief in our divided world. It is our very best tool of evangelism.</p><p>Believing is not just a wistful word, the lyric of a song or a shiny decoration on a Christmas tree. It is a two-fold process of faith and works. The two are inseparable, as we navigate through our Christian journey in the world and especially at Christmas. That is when the world is looking and listening a little more closely for signs of hope, for good news and for something to truly believe in.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QgPmozOue4E/X9jJzs5lzuI/AAAAAAAAxTk/arOqK36jfVccxgBVHxp8yNcAgnIrxN9xQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1024/matthew-25.40-image.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="442" data-original-width="1024" height="173" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QgPmozOue4E/X9jJzs5lzuI/AAAAAAAAxTk/arOqK36jfVccxgBVHxp8yNcAgnIrxN9xQCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h173/matthew-25.40-image.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p></p>Bishop's Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01798640292459548501noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5434327769093668747.post-12034041358069075272020-11-20T12:46:00.002-05:002021-01-14T14:20:55.975-05:00 “Rejoice!”<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VoYBuHuv-K0/X7gArfqDVKI/AAAAAAAAxRg/c_GIZNuJkNQJC7dAP59VVvy9hs9fhVOjQCLcBGAsYHQ/s880/advent-love-1.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="587" data-original-width="880" height="266" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VoYBuHuv-K0/X7gArfqDVKI/AAAAAAAAxRg/c_GIZNuJkNQJC7dAP59VVvy9hs9fhVOjQCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h266/advent-love-1.png" width="400" /></a></div><p><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ectPXc0wm9o/YACZUl7cTfI/AAAAAAAAxWI/lH5K8tYORy8ocX9zJ88FXIwefJngxbH3gCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_0198.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ectPXc0wm9o/YACZUl7cTfI/AAAAAAAAxWI/lH5K8tYORy8ocX9zJ88FXIwefJngxbH3gCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_0198.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; text-align: start;">Deacon Jerome Kiel and his wife Marie</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Deacon Jerome Kiel was the only Deaf Deacon in the Roman
Catholic Church’s Archdiocese of Baltimore years ago when I was serving as the
pastor of an all-Deaf United Methodist congregation.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">It was significant that he achieved the office of Deacon
because holy orders were rare for culturally Deaf people who used sign language
exclusively.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was true not only in
the Roman Catholic Church, but also among United Methodist and other mainline
denominations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Deacon Jerome was a faithful pastoral presence at the “Little
Flower” Deaf congregation for many years. He was at the end of his ministry
when I was beginning mine, and I appreciated so much his ministerial wisdom and
gentle patience with my rookie mistakes. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Back then, the Roman Catholic, United Methodist and Lutheran
Deaf congregations in Baltimore offered many shared. ecumenical events,
especially during the seasons of Advent and Lent.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our Wednesday night dinners and worship
services gave us a chance to learn about each other’s beliefs and traditions. We
had so much in common.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">During Advent one year, I learned from Deacon Jerome the
meaning of the pink candle on the Advent Wreath.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was mistakenly taught that it was the last
candle to be lit during the four Sundays of Advent and it signified God’s love
at Christmas. That was not the true story at all!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Advent began in the 4<sup>th</sup> century when the church
was getting more converts than it could handle because Emperor Constantine had declared
that Christianity would be the religion of the Roman Empire.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Prior to that time people preparing for
baptism would do so exclusively during the season of Lent. Then they would be
baptized and brought into church membership on Easter Sunday. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ACP0FPf1b_E/X7gAzGwo29I/AAAAAAAAxRk/XiZCheqMHPMllBf69BfOl1oKm_psLNAagCLcBGAsYHQ/s1176/Picture1.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1176" data-original-width="882" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ACP0FPf1b_E/X7gAzGwo29I/AAAAAAAAxRk/XiZCheqMHPMllBf69BfOl1oKm_psLNAagCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Picture1.jpg" /></a></div><br />With so many new candidates for baptism, the church needed
to offer a second option. That became the season of Advent (prior to Christmas);
and baptism would happen on Epiphany Day, January 6.<sup>. </sup><o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Because of that, the Advent season was marked as a time of preparatory
penance for sin, personal examination and prayer. The liturgical color for
sorrow and repentance is purple, as it is during the season of Lent. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Pink (or rose), the color of “joy,” became a part of the Catholic
Mass every year on the third Sunday of Advent. The opening missal (a book
containing the texts used in the Catholic Mass throughout the year) included
the Latin word “Gaudete,” which literally is a command to “rejoice.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(There was also a designated “pink” Sunday on
the fourth Sunday of Lent, known as “Laetare,” which calls for Jerusalem to “rejoice”.)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">The church taught that in the midst of this season of
penitence and sorrow, there needed to be a reminder about the joy of the
Lord.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was a call to rejoice in the
truth that Jesus has come, is with us, and will come again. Nothing can
separate us from that relentless love of God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">I thought this was a wonderful thing since pink has always
been my favorite color. During the years of my pastoral ministry, I took full
advantage of “Gaudete Sunday” with pink bulletins, pink flowers, pink offering
envelopes, pink altar cloths, etc. The worship service on the third Sunday of
Advent was always a time of rejoicing, second only to Christmas Eve.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Deacon Jerome died one morning after a long illness during the
season of Advent.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A box arrived at my
church a few months later. In it was an amazing and deeply meaningful gift: Deacon
Jerome’s pink Deacon stole. I have kept it as a cherished reminder of this
saint who knew the meaning of the joy that comes from serving God with
generosity, compassion and love.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">This year’s Advent season comes at a time when our church struggles
to keep preparations for the coming of Christ at the forefront of our minds. As
usual, we seek spiritual introspection while the world is screaming for holiday
festivities and non-stop commercialism. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hSN1NogvuPc/X7wPCTcig0I/AAAAAAAAxSg/vKWg3WeEdIsW6wZIMuLFqZ-7nxFjRzmaACLcBGAsYHQ/s947/GaudetteSunday-Rejoice.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="850" data-original-width="947" height="359" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hSN1NogvuPc/X7wPCTcig0I/AAAAAAAAxSg/vKWg3WeEdIsW6wZIMuLFqZ-7nxFjRzmaACLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h359/GaudetteSunday-Rejoice.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></div><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><br />But this Advent season is most unusual, burdened by the
threat of more COVID infections, political unrest in our country and
theological division in our church. It might be hard to “rejoice” on that third
Sunday of Advent when you cannot hold regular Christmas services in the same
way due to social distancing concerns. Our cherished gatherings of family and
friends are also clouded with concerns and fears of becoming viral “super
spreader” events. <o:p></o:p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">“Gaudete” calls us, commands us, begs us to “Rejoice”
nonetheless, because when we rejoice even in the midst sorrow, difficulty and
uncertainty, it is an affirmation of faith that God is still God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Emmanuel” means God is with us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">God will work all things together for good, even when we
can’t see our way forward.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When we
rejoice something deep within us feels the joy of the Lord that is not
dependent on circumstances but rather on that “peace that passes
understanding.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">We need Gaudete Sunday more this year than ever.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Light a pink candle in your heart and on your
altar. Celebrate the joy of the Lord.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Also, remember to do something to bring joy to someone else whose
journey is especially lonely and difficult this year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Spread the “pink!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Rejoice!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><br />
References:<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><a href="http://www.umc.org/"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt;">www.umc.org</span></a><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt;"> “History of Advents
for United Methodists”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt;">The Catholic Herald, December 8, 2016<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><a href="http://www.catholic.org/"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt;">www.catholic.org</span></a><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>December 8, 2004</span></p>Bishop's Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01798640292459548501noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5434327769093668747.post-13934733221196512642020-10-29T08:00:00.001-04:002020-10-29T08:00:02.669-04:00‘Do No Harm’<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-E2jQMWlWuWc/X5Lj1fzHrVI/AAAAAAAAxPA/t2qKgzipoCoqpQO6Z6Dn_HVzT9r5HNoTwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1110/0e10405625_1589485406_blog-post-1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="624" data-original-width="1110" height="225" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-E2jQMWlWuWc/X5Lj1fzHrVI/AAAAAAAAxPA/t2qKgzipoCoqpQO6Z6Dn_HVzT9r5HNoTwCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h225/0e10405625_1589485406_blog-post-1.png" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Arial, serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
“Three Simple Rules” offered to us by our Methodist founder John
Wesley are:</span></p>
<ol>
<li><p style="line-height: 108%; margin-bottom: 0.11in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Do
no harm. </span></span>
</p>
</li><li><p style="line-height: 108%; margin-bottom: 0.11in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Do
good. </span></span>
</p>
</li><li><p style="line-height: 108%; margin-bottom: 0.11in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Attend
to the ordinances of God (that is, spiritual disciplines that keep
you close to God). </span></span>
</p>
</li></ol>
<p style="line-height: 108%; margin-bottom: 0.11in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">It
is no small matter that the first of the three is “Do no harm.”
Everything we do has a potential for harm. </span></span>
</p>
<p style="line-height: 108%; margin-bottom: 0.11in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Striving
to “do no harm” compels us to think before we act, with a focus
on how our actions might affect other people. Something that may
seem harmless to us may be seriously harmful to others, depending on
their life situations, culture or other circumstances. </span></span>
</p>
<p style="line-height: 108%; margin-bottom: 0.11in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">We
can’t do enough to be culturally competent Christians, always
learning and exploring the values, histories and life experiences of
people whose cultures are different from our own. Sadly, racism and
white supremacy have blinded many European-Americans from seeing the
harm they often cause. Such is the case with sports team names and
mascots that misappropriate Native American images and cultures, and
that too often depict them in derogatory, harmful, stereotypical
ways. </span></span>
</p>
<p style="line-height: 108%; margin-bottom: 0.11in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CdZRoFAPrx8/X5LkHdv0gOI/AAAAAAAAxPI/2SizZvJKyeAiirXJsDFee0WZREF3DUWGgCLcBGAsYHQ/s300/no-stereotypes.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="286" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CdZRoFAPrx8/X5LkHdv0gOI/AAAAAAAAxPI/2SizZvJKyeAiirXJsDFee0WZREF3DUWGgCLcBGAsYHQ/s0/no-stereotypes.jpeg" /></a></span></span></div><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />According
to the National Congress of American Indians the name “Redsk*ns is
a racial slur that is rooted in a governmental bounty announcement
calling for the bloody scalps of Native Americans in the 1800’s.”
</span></span>
<p></p>
<p style="line-height: 108%; margin-bottom: 0.11in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Many
sports teams use mascots that depict Native people as savage, violent
people. And while some may think their depictions are somehow
positive or even noble, they are nonetheless a
misappropriation—indeed, a theft—of Native identities that don’t
belong to them. As some Native advocates say, “We are not </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><i>your</i></span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">
Indians.” </span></span>
</p>
<p style="line-height: 108%; margin-bottom: 0.11in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Such
misuse of cultural imagery contributes to the disregard of Native
peoples’ personhood as an important community in the family of God.
There is a high rate of hate crimes committed against Native
Americans as a result of this negative influence, and it creates
serious psychological, social and cultural harm.
(</span></span><span style="color: #0563c1;"><u><a href="http://www.ncai.org/proudtobe"><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">www.ncai.org/proudtobe</span></span></a></u></span><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">)</span></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 108%; margin-bottom: 0.11in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>UMC
stands against Native American mascots</b></span></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 108%; margin-bottom: 0.11in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">The
United Methodist Church has long advocated for the removal of such
sports team names and mascots. Our 2016 </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><i>Book
of Resolutions</i></span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">
states that, “It is demeaning to depict Native Americans as violent
and aggressive by naming a sports team such as the ‘Braves’ or
the ‘Warriors.’ The use of such names is not conducive to
development of a society committed to the common good of all its
citizenry, not to the self-esteem of Native children…Furthermore we
urge all United Methodist-related universities, colleges, and schools
to replace any mascots that demean and offend our Native American
sisters and brothers. We also support efforts throughout our society
to replace such mascots and symbols.” </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><i>(pages
334, 335).</i></span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">
</span></span>
</p>
<p style="line-height: 108%; margin-bottom: 0.11in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7EWOzk4TK98/X5Ll-oRI_VI/AAAAAAAAxPU/bAHMRt_XPqgKjh-0LNL1On_3SLclpxrEgCLcBGAsYHQ/s499/3350eb941e00bc4e1916690ec7fa2852.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="493" data-original-width="499" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7EWOzk4TK98/X5Ll-oRI_VI/AAAAAAAAxPU/bAHMRt_XPqgKjh-0LNL1On_3SLclpxrEgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/3350eb941e00bc4e1916690ec7fa2852.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></span></div><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />Teaching
about this is a way of “doing no harm” and “doing good” at
the same time. Society is slowly, finally waking up to this offense,
and I thank God for the progress we are seeing. </span></span>
<p></p>
<p style="line-height: 108%; margin-bottom: 0.11in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">The
NFL team formerly known as the Washington Redsk*ns is now the
“Washington Football Team,” effective July 23, 2020, until they
decide on a new name. This action comes after decades of much
grassroots advocacy to change the name. Suddenly, in the midst of the
surging Black Lives Matter movement, pressure from now-conscientious
corporate sponsors finally won the day. </span></span>
</p>
<p style="line-height: 108%; margin-bottom: 0.11in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Each
one of us can speak out about things like this in our various spheres
of influence. You don’t have to be a corporate sponsor to politely
engage, educate and encourage others to do good and to refrain from
doing or abetting harm. </span></span>
</p>
<p style="line-height: 108%; margin-bottom: 0.11in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">The
stereotypical, inaccurate depiction of Native American people and
practices in old western movies is harmful. So is the inappropriate
misuse of Native American traditional dress as costumes. It is
important for all of us to be informed, insightful and respectful. </span></span>
</p>
<p style="line-height: 108%; margin-bottom: 0.11in;"><a name="_GoBack"></a>
<span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Doing
good to reverse harm</b></span></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 108%; margin-bottom: 0.11in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p-Mdpkd-ImU/X5LmEmJMKyI/AAAAAAAAxPY/PC0YD0-jx487aLbkTWC1SbrGUIGyj0WvACLcBGAsYHQ/s776/Race-Based-Mascots-e1601643582775.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="776" data-original-width="600" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p-Mdpkd-ImU/X5LmEmJMKyI/AAAAAAAAxPY/PC0YD0-jx487aLbkTWC1SbrGUIGyj0WvACLcBGAsYHQ/w309-h400/Race-Based-Mascots-e1601643582775.png" width="309" /></a></span></span></div><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />I
am happy to have heard a newscast recently about an Irish lacrosse
team that bowed out of the 2022 World Games in Alabama so that the
Iroquois Nationals can take their spot. (</span></span><span style="color: #0563c1;"><u><a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/10/01/917033527/ireland-lacrosse-bows-out-of-2022-world-games-so-iroquois-nationals-can-play#:~:text=Live%20Sessions-,Ireland%20Lacrosse%20Bows%20Out%20Of%202022%20World%20Games%20So%20Iroquois,not%20represent%20a%20sovereign%20nation."><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">NPR
October 1, 2020</span></span></a></u></span><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">).
This Native American team from the Haudenosaunee Confederacy was
excluded from participating because they were not from a “sovereign
nation.” It was sadly ironic because the Haudenosaunee were the
originators of the game of lacrosse, which they initially called the
“medicine game.” </span></span>
<p></p>
<p style="line-height: 108%; margin-bottom: 0.11in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">People
rallied in support of this team, and 50,000 people signed a petition
calling for the organizers to reconsider. The organizers recognized
this was a mistake; but the roster of eight teams was full. </span></span>
</p>
<p style="line-height: 108%; margin-bottom: 0.11in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">That
is when the team from Ireland, one of eight that made the roster,
decided to reverse this harm and instead to “do good.” They gave
up their place in the competition, saying that no one would be going
to these world games in the first place if the Iroquois (part of the
Haudenosaunee confederacy) had not invented the game of lacrosse.</span></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 108%; margin-bottom: 0.11in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">As
many of us now say, “Do no harm, do good, and stay in love with
God!” There are so many ways we can live this out, as we strive
faithfully to navigate our lives with gentleness and respect for all
people, in obedience to God. Find your voice, use it to speak out
for others, and make a real difference. Our world needs it now more
than ever.</span></span></p>Bishop's Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01798640292459548501noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5434327769093668747.post-63831705230150276142020-10-20T10:21:00.004-04:002020-10-20T10:21:51.031-04:00Don’t forget to V.O.T.E<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sGU3Dya0EnA/X47ybwTqeTI/AAAAAAAAxOc/lLyCXK67g0YZjc5VgrIbIKfJL2G4830VQCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/dont-forget-to-vote.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="640" height="225" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sGU3Dya0EnA/X47ybwTqeTI/AAAAAAAAxOc/lLyCXK67g0YZjc5VgrIbIKfJL2G4830VQCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h225/dont-forget-to-vote.png" width="400" /></a></div><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "Open Sans", Georgia, Times, serif; font-size: 14.4px; letter-spacing: 0.02em;">By Bishop Peggy A. Johnson</span></p><p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Open Sans", Georgia, Times, serif; font-size: 14.4px; line-height: 1.7em; margin: 0px; padding: 8px 0px 12px;">I am happy to announce that I completed my mail-in ballot and have officially voted in the fall 2020 election. Whatever your political affiliation, I urge you to be sure to vote.</p><p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Open Sans", Georgia, Times, serif; font-size: 14.4px; line-height: 1.7em; margin: 0px; padding: 8px 0px 12px;"><em>“</em>The strength of a political system depends upon the full and willing participation of its citizens,” according to the United Methodist <em>Social Principles</em> (para. 164 in the 2016 <em>Book of Discipline</em>).I encourage you to participate in the following important ways:</p><p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Open Sans", Georgia, Times, serif; font-size: 14.4px; line-height: 1.7em; margin: 0px; padding: 8px 0px 12px;">V – stands for “volunteer.” Volunteer to help a neighbor, friend or family member cast their vote by driving or accompanying them to the polling place or helping them to cast their ballot by mail.</p><p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Open Sans", Georgia, Times, serif; font-size: 14.4px; line-height: 1.7em; margin: 0px; padding: 8px 0px 12px;">O – stands for “open mind.” Study the candidates’ positions and platforms to determine your choices. Have open and civil conversations with people regarding some of the important issues that are a part of this election season.</p><p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Open Sans", Georgia, Times, serif; font-size: 14.4px; line-height: 1.7em; margin: 0px; padding: 8px 0px 12px;">T – stands for “teach.” Teach people about the “strong ethical influence” (<em>Social Principles</em>) the church needs to exercise in order to insure a fair election process. Identify and challenge policies and practices used to limit or suppress voter participation—such as, closing and limiting the number of polling places, stoking confusion about voting by mail, locating unauthorized ballot drop-off boxes in communities, etc. In our country’s long history, there have been overt attempts to exclude people from voting, especially among people of color, women, college students and the poor. The “people called Methodists” believe that all are of sacred worth and have a right to a legitimate place in the election process in a free democracy.</p><p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Open Sans", Georgia, Times, serif; font-size: 14.4px; line-height: 1.7em; margin: 0px; padding: 8px 0px 12px;"><a href="https://www.epaumc.org/wp-content/uploads/Bishop-Letter-about-Voting.pdf" style="clear: right; color: #a52a04; float: right; font-size: 14.4px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-decoration-line: none;"><img alt="" class="wp-image-59872" height="360" loading="lazy" sizes="(max-width: 278px) 100vw, 278px" src="https://bod6s0e3xl-flywheel.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/Bishop-Letter-about-Voting_Page_1-791x1024.png" srcset="https://bod6s0e3xl-flywheel.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/Bishop-Letter-about-Voting_Page_1-791x1024.png 791w, https://bod6s0e3xl-flywheel.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/Bishop-Letter-about-Voting_Page_1-232x300.png 232w, https://bod6s0e3xl-flywheel.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/Bishop-Letter-about-Voting_Page_1-1187x1536.png 1187w, https://bod6s0e3xl-flywheel.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/Bishop-Letter-about-Voting_Page_1.png 1275w, https://bod6s0e3xl-flywheel.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/Bishop-Letter-about-Voting_Page_1-232x300@2x.png 464w" style="border: none; height: auto; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 100%;" width="278" /></a>E – stands for “engage in prayer.” No matter the outcome of this election, there is much we as citizens of this country can do together to promote the welfare of all. Pray for God’s Spirit to move among us as a nation during this time to inspire with peace, transparency and civility. There should be no place for mud-slinging and mean-spirited rhetoric and actions. <br /></p><div class="wp-block-image" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Open Sans", Georgia, Times, serif; font-size: 14.4px; margin-bottom: 1em;"></div><p style="background-color: white; font-family: "Open Sans", Georgia, Times, serif; font-size: 14.4px; line-height: 1.7em; margin: 0px; padding: 8px 0px 12px;">Many United Methodist bishops, including myself, signed onto a letter, titled <a href="https://www.epaumc.org/wp-content/uploads/Bishop-Letter-about-Voting.pdf" style="color: #a52a04; text-decoration-line: none;">“<strong>A Crisis of Faith and Democracy</strong>,”</a> which further describes our civic duties as followers of Jesus Christ. May God be with us as we journey toward Election Day 2020 and beyond.</p>Bishop's Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01798640292459548501noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5434327769093668747.post-57430102980099442692020-09-29T15:51:00.012-04:002020-10-02T13:53:05.180-04:00 Say the Name<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oTLr51nIYyw/X3OQGrJdxnI/AAAAAAAAxNM/fwYtc9R4vZUipKW73fn8paNV3UFoF4L5ACLcBGAsYHQ/s770/BreonaTaylorProtestSign1.webp" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="513" data-original-width="770" height="266" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oTLr51nIYyw/X3OQGrJdxnI/AAAAAAAAxNM/fwYtc9R4vZUipKW73fn8paNV3UFoF4L5ACLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h266/BreonaTaylorProtestSign1.webp" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p><p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;">By Bishop Peggy A. Johnson</span></p><span id="docs-internal-guid-dc34cd8e-7fff-8257-36a8-15cb02fcf7ca"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">While marching in a peaceful protest this spring there were many people carrying signs bearing the names of African Americans who had died in fatal encounters with law enforcement officers. These names were chanted over and over again as we walked along the streets. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The name that stuck out for me was Breonna Taylor, the only woman on the list. Her case, seeking justice for her killing in a botched police raid on her home in Louisville, Kentucky, reached a disappointing conclusion last week. It has taken a long time for many anxious people. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Many people in Louisville are seeking more information from the Grand Jury. That body, in secret deliberations, ruled that no one would be charged in the death of this much-beloved emergency medical technician with a bright future ahead of her. Taylor’s tragic death happened back in March when police, using a “no knock” warrant for a drug investigation, shot and killed this innocent, unarmed, 26-year-old woman in her home. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Since that time, “no knock” warrants have been outlawed by the state. And the city announced it would pay a $12 million settlement—but not admit official wrongdoing—in a wrongful death lawsuit filed by Breonna Taylor’s grieving family. The city promised to make other policing changes also. But there are still calls for more justice; and there are still protests in the streets.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What do we, as people of God, do about this? It is tempting to be silent and move on with our lives, and see this as “one more sad thing.” There are shootings in our streets every night locally as well. We are all weary of the pandemic, the catastrophic weather incidences, the out-of-control fires out west, and the unending political polarization in our country.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">However, we must not be weary in well-doing. There is always something we can do, even when we are tired. My suggestion? Continue to “say the name.” </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Slj1hTsTy84/X3OQGuRodfI/AAAAAAAAxNI/WPnbeQYHgfAIQptD47RrFNf93PAg_aGsQCLcBGAsYHQ/s759/BreonaTaylor.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center; white-space: normal;"><img border="0" data-original-height="426" data-original-width="759" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Slj1hTsTy84/X3OQGuRodfI/AAAAAAAAxNI/WPnbeQYHgfAIQptD47RrFNf93PAg_aGsQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/BreonaTaylor.jpg" width="320" /></a><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“Say the name” </span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">of Breonna Taylor and others who are victims of injustice in this world. As Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. said “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” This controversy in Louisville affects all of us. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">So, we should have conversations about how we as a nation can do a better job at restorative justice—that is, justice that not only brings an end to conflict but also tries to help individuals and communities find healing. Retributive justice is the easier, faster but more polarizing path. Restorative justice changes systems, and it can heal hurts and wounds. It brings everyone into the beloved community. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Christianity is founded on a system of justice inaugurated by our Savior, Jesus Christ, whose suffering and death binds us together as one family of God which seeks to restore people on all sides of a debate. There is still hurt in Louisville because there is not yet full restoration. “Say the name” so that conversations about justice continue to happen in your sphere of influence.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“</span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Say the name” </span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">of Breonna Taylor because the names of women who have died at the hands of law enforcement are not as prominent as the names of men. We might surmise that fewer women are involved in these cases in; but I believe there is a gender bias. Women of color have been largely marginalized in this society, and their tragic deaths often are less reported. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Learn the stories and remember the names of Sandra Bland, Rekia Boyd, Kindra Chapman, Joyce Curnell, Shantel Davis, Korryn Gaines, Atatiana Jefferson, Ralkina Jones, Charleena Lyles, Alexis McGovern, Yvette Smith, Ayaina Staley-Jones, Raynetta Turner, Janisha Fonville, Natasha McKenna, Eleanor Bumpurs, Tyisha Miller, LaTanya Haggerty, Margaret Mitchell, India Kager, Mariam Carey, Kendra James, Sharmel Edwards, Adaisha Miller, Michelle Cusseaux, Tanisha Anderson, Alexia Christian, Mya Hall, Kayla Moore and Tarika Wilson. All of these women have died in recent years in violent law enforcement encounters. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Courtney Bryan is an African American musician and composer who composed a work entitled</span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dsSENWpYqFw" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="color: #0563c1; font-size: 14pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“Yet Unheard</span></a><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">” for symphony and chorus. This masterpiece raises the name of Sandra Bland and continues the conversation about women who have experienced violence but their cases have not been resolved. Say the names of women you know of in your context as well.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeCAO8E7NOJzHIQoAJxk_LkqUb-HXyTxNlZ7chL_X8u1yjUnSNfxhH-eFQiiRDh_htjnS7Q2HcfMImY32cjTfxs-BUHstRxAapWPzKzWslIODIEPcXAxhwihlhMPICQDITvAwly0HBaw/s1100/BreonaTaylorProtestSign2.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center; white-space: normal;"><img border="0" data-original-height="825" data-original-width="1100" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeCAO8E7NOJzHIQoAJxk_LkqUb-HXyTxNlZ7chL_X8u1yjUnSNfxhH-eFQiiRDh_htjnS7Q2HcfMImY32cjTfxs-BUHstRxAapWPzKzWslIODIEPcXAxhwihlhMPICQDITvAwly0HBaw/s320/BreonaTaylorProtestSign2.jpg" width="320" /></a><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“Say the name”</span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> of Breonna Taylor (and all those in our country working for justice) in your prayers. Prayer is still the most powerful force on earth and the one largely ignored, even by God’s people. Pray for individuals, families, police officers, state officials, courts of law and our churches. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We usually pray asking God to act; but our prayers should also spur us into action, especially as we listen for God’s response. So, pray that we will work for peace, at God’s direction, and that we will listen to each other, especially those with whom we disagree. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Listen, hear and heed the voice of God when it gives us direction as to what steps we should take to help to bind the wounds of this nation. Pray all of this in the name of Jesus, who bids each of us to take up our cross of sacrificial commitment to true justice, peace and righteousness. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Say Christ’s name</span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, for there is real power in the name of Jesus. And as we do, let us echo the names of those forgotten victims—both living and dead—whom Christ calls us to remember. </span></p><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: 20px; font-weight: bold;">Conference to hold prayer walk in Louisville</span></div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #222222;">LOUISVILLE, Ky. — As pain and tensions continue about prosecutorial decisions in the killing of Breonna Taylor, the Kentucky Conference will hold a prayer walk for healing, concluding in a worship service in Louisville’s Jefferson Square Park. "Seeing Through Another's Eyes: A Prayer Walk & Worship Service for Healing" is set for Sunday, Oct. 4, at 2 p.m. U.S. Eastern time. The event will be livestreamed on the conference Facebook page. </span><a href="http://e.umc.org/Xkr0BqX0s100Qb4BG001Jy0" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: #1155cc; font-weight: bold; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Read announcement</a><span style="font-weight: bold;">. </span><a href="http://e.umc.org/jGrX010rJ004B1BsQkz0b00" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: #1155cc; font-weight: bold; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Prayer in the midst of sorrow</a><span style="font-weight: bold;">. </span><a href="http://e.umc.org/HJ0001G0sBsBbQ40r1X00Ak" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: #1155cc; font-weight: bold; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Commentary: Moving forward from here</a></div><br /></span>Bishop's Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01798640292459548501noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5434327769093668747.post-68950489015823543722020-09-22T14:22:00.005-04:002020-09-22T14:22:47.277-04:00Ground-Breaker: In Memory of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IUpggR9GxI4/X2pA1OfGopI/AAAAAAAAxMI/Fw0Sxr0N5QYJ1wh_BcBuLH7U4LtNC1RogCLcBGAsYHQ/s1200/Justice%2BRuth%2BBader%2BGinsberg1%2B-%2BCopy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="630" data-original-width="1200" height="284" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IUpggR9GxI4/X2pA1OfGopI/AAAAAAAAxMI/Fw0Sxr0N5QYJ1wh_BcBuLH7U4LtNC1RogCLcBGAsYHQ/w541-h284/Justice%2BRuth%2BBader%2BGinsberg1%2B-%2BCopy.jpg" width="541" /></a></div><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><p><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></p>By Bishop
Peggy A. Johnson</span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">I remember
well my first Volunteers in Mission international trip. In 1993 a group of Deaf
Senior Citizens and I went to Montego Bay, Jamaica, to help a fledgling
Christian Deaf School.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was in quite
over my head, being the only hearing person on the team and doing all the
interpreting. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The accommodations
were somewhat rustic. The plumbing broke down the first day, and the dining
hall served mostly rice and more rice. The most difficult part of the trip was the
task we were assigned at this small, struggling school.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The principal asked us to take hand shovels
and break ground for a vegetable garden. We were breaking hard, hard ground in
the hot, hot sun; and if we had not had the chance to also teach Bible school
to the Deaf children as well, I think the team would have packed up and left
after two days.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QXcCpct8Aqg/X2pA1Kw6h8I/AAAAAAAAxMM/cZjv6OOcfww6lf_Z8WM_MeSe2H9lyWLEgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/breaking-ground%2B-%2BCopy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QXcCpct8Aqg/X2pA1Kw6h8I/AAAAAAAAxMM/cZjv6OOcfww6lf_Z8WM_MeSe2H9lyWLEgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/breaking-ground%2B-%2BCopy.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Breaking
ground is necessary for any kind of vegetation to grow.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Nothing can grow in hard, packed, dry ground
without such hard labor. But the benefits of it can yield the gift of crops and
nourishment and life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Teams that
followed us in subsequent weeks were able to plant the garden. And later the
children were able to harvest some food to add to their rice menu.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">It is
reminiscent of the Apostle Paul’s words to the Corinthians about the work of
ministry: “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he
who plants, nor he who waters is anything; but only God who gives the
growth.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(I Corinthians 3:6-7)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">I would
agree with Paul’s analogy to a point, but I would give praise to social justice
“ground breakers.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These are people who till
the hard soil of stubborn hearts, but who have the vision and creative
imaginations to begin a work among us that can be liberating, life-changing and
righteous.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">These words
describe the life and witness of the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader
Ginsberg.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She was described as a “ground
breaker” because of her pioneering, tireless work for gender equality and equal
rights for all people. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">This is
bone-hard work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ground breakers get a
lot of resistance; but they keep tilling the soil. Although she graduated first
in her class at Columbia University Law School, no law firm would hire her; so
she worked as a judge’s clerk and then taught law.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Throughout her distinguished career as a
lawyer and judge she never gave up on a just cause. And she consistently
advocated for equality and equity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Ginsburg left
us last week, on September 18, after a long bout with cancer and after many
victories. She died on the first night (Shabbat) of the Jewish holy observance
of Rosh Hashanah. According to Jewish tradition a person who dies on the Sabbath
“tsaddik” is a person of great righteousness. If someone dies on the Shabbat of
Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish New Year) they are “the ones God has held back until
the last moment because they are needed the most and were the most righteous.”
(USA Today 9/19/20, Joel Shannon, quoting Nina Totenberg of NPR.)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Ground
breakers are indeed righteous, intent on doing the right thing, bearing the
heat of the day, the hardness of the soil for the sake of others.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We honor the memory of the victorious RBG!<o:p></o:p></span></p>Bishop's Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01798640292459548501noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5434327769093668747.post-7083490663853469132020-09-14T11:01:00.008-04:002020-09-14T11:18:43.673-04:00The Four ‘W’s’<p><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HyN1nczAHWg/X1-FfuWKPbI/AAAAAAAAxLA/jTUrkKSl7YEp0HaBUkS5yBVS9fy07jpgACLcBGAsYHQ/s405/4-Ws.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="170" data-original-width="405" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HyN1nczAHWg/X1-FfuWKPbI/AAAAAAAAxLA/jTUrkKSl7YEp0HaBUkS5yBVS9fy07jpgACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/4-Ws.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />By Bishop Peggy A. Johnson<br /><br />Every day I watch a local newscast that gives COVID-19 updates and health reminders. Yesterday they talked about the “Four “W’s.” They are as follows:<br /><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%; text-indent: -0.25in;">“W” – <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Wear</b> your mask</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">“W” – </span><b style="font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: normal; text-indent: -0.25in;">Watch</b><span style="font-size: 14pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"> your distance (at least 6 feet)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 14pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">“W” – </span><b style="font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: normal; text-indent: -0.25in;">Wash</b><span style="font-size: 14pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"> your hands</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span></b><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%; text-indent: -0.25in;">“W” – Open the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Windows </b>to keep
fresh air circulating</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br />These “Four W’s” caught my eye and my heart, not only because it is a catchy way to remember these important virus protection practices, but because it could also be a parable about personal holiness in the life of the Christian believer.<br /><br /><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-e0NmdYYjSb4/X1-FqAXyU0I/AAAAAAAAxLE/JWtRn7CvTl0tAdEiBQzH15OPNDFPq_f4gCLcBGAsYHQ/s2400/3WsVsCOVID-19.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1172" data-original-width="2400" height="244" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-e0NmdYYjSb4/X1-FqAXyU0I/AAAAAAAAxLE/JWtRn7CvTl0tAdEiBQzH15OPNDFPq_f4gCLcBGAsYHQ/w500-h244/3WsVsCOVID-19.jpg" width="500" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;">The most dangerous pandemic that we face as human beings is that of sin, and the temptation to sin. It is why Jesus came to earth in the first place, to die for our sins (I Corinthians 15:3) and give us life abundant. We do not become perfect on the day we ask Jesus into our hearts. God forgives us; but our daily walk with Christ, which includes constantly striving to live in holiness, is our lifelong journey of faith.</span><br /><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">We often don’t talk about sin as much as we should. John Wesley, in his early days with the Holy Club at Oxford, emphasized confession and self-examination as a central practice during his daily prayer time. His “<a href="https://www.blogger.com/u/3/#">22 Questions</a>” inventory (found on umcdiscipleship.org) is a discipline that every believer needs to practice to root out pride, greed and evil. <br /><br /><br /><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NQYpXMGIR-E/X1-Fx_URAXI/AAAAAAAAxLM/-ZkHyuvZCX4Bqj_0c0NfnMOzYXeebbOKQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1920/John-Wesley22QuestionsGraphi.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="225" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NQYpXMGIR-E/X1-Fx_URAXI/AAAAAAAAxLM/-ZkHyuvZCX4Bqj_0c0NfnMOzYXeebbOKQCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h225/John-Wesley22QuestionsGraphi.png" width="400" /></a></div><br /><br />What are the “Four W’s” for a Christian who is striving to “go on to perfection?”<div><br /><br />1. <b>“W”</b> – Watch your <b>Words</b>. Jesus said, “The things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a person unclean. For out of the heart comes evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, and slander.” (Matthew 15:18-19) <br /><br />We get into more trouble by the words we say than by just about any other means of evil. The Book of James reminds us, “The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire and is itself set on fire by hell.” (3:6) <br /> <br /> Put a “mask” over your lips when you are tempted to say hurtful, judgmental or hurtful words. Speak truth, and as the Apostle Paul reminds us, “Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each person.” (Colossians 4:6)</div><div><br /><br />2. <b>“W”</b> – Be <b>Wary </b>of temptation. Jesus said to his disciples, “There will always be temptations to sin, but what sorrow awaits the person who does the tempting!” (Luke 17:1). <br /><br />Temptation is always close at hand, both in the things that tempt us and in the ways we cause others to be tempted by our sin. Likely you know the “pet” sins of your life that “so easily entangle” you. (Hebrews 12:1). <br /> <br /> When you keep your distance from temptation by your constant communion with God, you are more able to resist it. As the Book of James reminds us, “Submit yourselves then to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.” (4:7). <br /><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2;"><br /><span style="line-height: 107%; text-indent: -0.25in;"> 3. <b>“W” </b>– <b>“Wash”</b> to cleanse yourself of sin by confession and restoration. One of my favorite verses in the Bible is I John 1:9: “If we confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Just as hand-washing cleans off bacteria and germs, confession opens the door for God to forgive us and set us free from guilt and judgment. True repentance also requires restoration for those we have harmed and a 180-degree directional shift away from that sin. Otherwise, it is not true repentance at all. </span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2;"><span style="line-height: 107%; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2;"><span style="text-indent: -24px;">4. <b>“W”</b> – Follow the <b>“Wind” </b>of the Spirit. The word “Spirit” in scripture literally means “breath” or “wind,” and as saved, repentant and forgiven people of God we need to “walk in the Spirit” (Galatians 5:16). That means following the guidance that God gives, heeding the warnings about temptation, using the Spiritual gifts bestowed on us, and moving freely, like the wind, into new and often unexpected avenues of service. As difficult as these times are, we have many windows of opportunity for outreach, witness and justice ministry. Let us catch the wind of the Spirit during this unique time, and take the church to a new height of service to our neighbors and devotion to God. </span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2;"><br />The “Four W’s” of pandemic precautionary practices are helpful and necessary for our health. The “Four W’s” of the Christian faith can lead to abundant life and life everlasting. Let us follow them both. <br /><br /> </p></div>Bishop's Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01798640292459548501noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5434327769093668747.post-51492444521036105632020-08-27T13:01:00.009-04:002020-08-27T14:03:31.725-04:00Jesus, the ‘Universal Suffragist’<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DUG_fSg9ajw/X0fmfpduC3I/AAAAAAAAxIQ/9Ko8Cm_4MVMJ4oq51QKA84lm6W7Gdq20QCLcBGAsYHQ/s871/19thammendmentcenteniallogo_871x471.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="471" data-original-width="871" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DUG_fSg9ajw/X0fmfpduC3I/AAAAAAAAxIQ/9Ko8Cm_4MVMJ4oq51QKA84lm6W7Gdq20QCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/19thammendmentcenteniallogo_871x471.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span face=""><br /></span><p></p><p><span face="">This summer women in the United States celebrate with
pride the 100</span><sup style="font-family: "times new roman", serif;">th</sup><span face=""> anniversary of the 19</span><sup style="font-family: "times new roman", serif;">th</sup><span face=""> Amendment to the
Constitution, which gave women the right to vote when fully ratified on August
26, 1920. This was a hard-fought battle that had its earliest beginnings at the
“Women’s Rights” Convention in Seneca Falls, NY, in 1848.</span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JRtqIl2c5lU/X0fmpm8vwZI/AAAAAAAAxIU/4GwuF5UXYKsn05GXtu7wnWEDvIdIYgRRQCLcBGAsYHQ/s750/19th-Amendment-e1580137725986.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="422" data-original-width="750" height="230" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JRtqIl2c5lU/X0fmpm8vwZI/AAAAAAAAxIU/4GwuF5UXYKsn05GXtu7wnWEDvIdIYgRRQCLcBGAsYHQ/w410-h230/19th-Amendment-e1580137725986.jpg" width="410" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face="" style="line-height: 107%;">There were failures along the way. The Supreme Court
in 1872 declared in a ruling about the 14<sup>th</sup> amendment that “all
people” did not include women. One of the saddest realities of this movement
was the fact that the White women often sidelined Black women for fear that
Southern voters would not support their suffrage campaign.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face="" style="line-height: 107%;">The “National American Women’s Suffrage Association”
in 1890 refused to include Black women in their ranks. Later, in a 1913
suffrage rally in Washington, DC, the White women insisted that the Black women
march at the end of the parade.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Racism
was a consistent struggle alongside the intersectionality of sexism, even
though the early movements for slavery’s abolition and women’s suffrage
struggled hand and hand on many levels. It was a complicated time, much like
today.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face="" style="line-height: 107%;">Even after the passage of the 19<sup>th</sup>
Amendment, many Black women found it difficult to cast a ballot due to literacy
requirements and poll taxes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It wasn’t
until the Voting Rights Act of 1965 that Black women had the best opportunity
to vote in this country.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is important
to know our true history and to actively oppose current voter suppression
attacks in this generation. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face="" style="line-height: 107%;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pGQDckkaDcA/X0fm357F-NI/AAAAAAAAxIg/o1mrIk4YijEHmGAucZjHqOvS0ABvVkz4wCLcBGAsYHQ/s670/savannahtribune19th-amendment-.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="377" data-original-width="670" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pGQDckkaDcA/X0fm357F-NI/AAAAAAAAxIg/o1mrIk4YijEHmGAucZjHqOvS0ABvVkz4wCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/savannahtribune19th-amendment-.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>What does Jesus have to do with all of this?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The word “suffrage” comes from a Latin word:
“suffragium” which literally means <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">“to
support.”</b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The word came from a root
word for “tablet” that was used to record a vote.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Through the years, voting rights tended to go
to majority-culture men, wealthy men, landowners and citizens.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>During the Enlightenment era in Europe (1715-1789)
there was growing thought that there should be equal rights for all people.
Along with this came a call for “universal suffrage.”<o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span face="" style="line-height: 107%;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span face="" style="line-height: 107%;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wJnR9HLGc0o/X0f1a537MPI/AAAAAAAAxJI/_uq01R_8c7Au1auVbI5STd53dAu-VytcwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1280/Jesus%2526Woman1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1280" height="230" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wJnR9HLGc0o/X0f1a537MPI/AAAAAAAAxJI/_uq01R_8c7Au1auVbI5STd53dAu-VytcwCLcBGAsYHQ/w410-h230/Jesus%2526Woman1.jpg" width="410" /></a></span></div><span face="" style="line-height: 107%;"><br />Jesus was the ultimate “universal suffragist,” long
before Europe’s Enlightenment era. In the truest sense of the word “suffrage,”
Jesus supported and uplifted women of all stripes: Samaritan women,
Syrophoenician women, women of questionable character, homemakers, his own
mother, little girls, and ceremonial unclean women. He even gifted them with
the highest honor of all: to be the first to tell the Good News of his
resurrection. <o:p></o:p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face="" style="line-height: 107%;">Jesus saw all people as equals, including women, and
he gave them a voice in public, engaged them in theological conversation, and
allowed them to sit with the men as he taught. He healed women, forgave them,
loved them and saw them as worthy of respect. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face="" style="line-height: 107%;">The world, and sadly the church, continues to deny
support for women. “Don’t send us a woman pastor!” is something I still sadly
hear each year when making appointments. The majority of our largest churches
are served by men. Overall, women earn less salary than men in our
denomination. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rz7uZSoUytQ/X0fmxtg6gtI/AAAAAAAAxIc/SfSfrQd4V_MXyyhMZpbC2eA1XauVoobZACLcBGAsYHQ/s258/images.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="258" data-original-width="195" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rz7uZSoUytQ/X0fmxtg6gtI/AAAAAAAAxIc/SfSfrQd4V_MXyyhMZpbC2eA1XauVoobZACLcBGAsYHQ/s0/images.jpeg" /></a><span face="" style="line-height: 107%;">However, there are improvements coming little by
little as time passes. I can see in my 40 years of ministry how attitudes,
acceptance and support continue to improve.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I would say that is the movement of the Holy Spirit. The influence of
Jesus’ teachings in his words and deeds continues to liberate women in our
church, our country and our world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We
still have a long way to go as disciples seeking “the transformation of the
world.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face="" style="line-height: 107%;">As Christians we can be a part of the support system
that raises up women to equality, self-determination and leadership. The same
quest awaits us in regard to other groups and communities that face
discrimination—such as people of color, people with disabilities, people living
in poverty, and the LGBTQUIA community. Equality and equity for everyone is the
only way that any of us can have true freedom and wholeness. Where can you show
support and be a “universal suffragist”?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face="" style="line-height: 107%;">The other meaning of the Latin word “suffragium” is
“to pray.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We receive support for the
work of justice and equality through the power of prayer. As we celebrate the
milestone of women’s suffrage, let us pray for a day when all will have the
freedom to vote and to be recipients of equality and support.<o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sEZh6SZM-_M/X0fm8aTxiYI/AAAAAAAAxIo/RFp-RmeXNBgmUgXNrww4GkwHlxq8D9gBQCLcBGAsYHQ/s510/19th%2Bat%2B100%2Bcollage.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="340" data-original-width="510" height="272" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sEZh6SZM-_M/X0fm8aTxiYI/AAAAAAAAxIo/RFp-RmeXNBgmUgXNrww4GkwHlxq8D9gBQCLcBGAsYHQ/w408-h272/19th%2Bat%2B100%2Bcollage.jpg" width="408" /></a></div><br /><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span face="" style="line-height: 107%;">Also see: </span><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.umnews.org/en/news/6-methodist-women-who-fought-for-the-vote&source=gmail&ust=1598616448425000&usg=AFQjCNGVIfrBdTfZP71Ts-YE5v4aUw7RsQ" href="https://www.umnews.org/en/news/6-methodist-women-who-fought-for-the-vote" style="background-color: white; color: #1155cc; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;" target="_blank">6 Methodist women who fought for the vote</a></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u><span face="">References: <o:p></o:p></span></u></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span face="">Washington Post, August 5, 2020<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span face="">ThoughtCo.com – October 2, 2019<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span face="">AARP – February 28, 2020<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span face="">“Black Women and the Suffrage Movement”
Wesleyan.edu<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span face="">“One of Divided Sisters: Bridging the
Gap Between Black and White Women” by<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Midge Wilson and Kathy Russell, Anchor Press, 1996<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>Bishop's Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01798640292459548501noreply@blogger.com0