Violence Challenges Our Prophetic Voice

The prophet Habakkuk wrote long ago: “O Lord, how long shall I cry for help, and you will not listen? Or cry to you ‘Violence!’ and you will not save?  Why do you make me see wrongdoing and look at trouble?  Destruction and violence are before me; strife and contention arise.” (Habakkuk 1:2-3)

These words could have been written yesterday.  As we look around there is so much violence:

•  sexual violence against women as seen in our media and in the lives of professional sports figures;
• violence on the streets of Wilmington, Del., to the point where people are calling the city “Kill-mington”;
• violence between Ukrainians and Russian-backed separatists
• brutal beheadings of Coptic Christians and many other innocent captives at the hands of ISIS;
• the murder of three young Muslims in North Carolina;
• violence against people of color and violence against the LGBT community.  

Violence seems to be the operating system in our world for solving our social problems and also obtaining wealth and power. We know violence does not produce the works of God and violence cannot be eliminated  by heaping more bombs on the heads of the perpetrators.

On the contrary, retaliatory violence creates an endless cycle of more and more destruction. Having more guns, more sophisticated weapons, more “stuff” to fight back with does not make us safer. 

Thou Art the Potter, I am the Clay

Many of us have sung the old hymn “Have Thine Own Way, Lord.”  It reminds us of the text from Jeremiah 18:1-4 that proclaims God as the grand potter of life and we are merely the clay in God’s hands.  The words to this famous hymn were written by Adelaide Pollard, a native of Bloomfield, Iowa.  According to “Women of Chrstianity.com” Ms. Pollard wrote this song as a response to a disappointment in her life.  She was trying to raise money for a mission trip to Africa and she was unable to find the needed funds.  During a prayer meeting one evening at her home church she overheard an elderly church member pray “It really doesn’t matter what you do with us, Lord, just have your own way with our lives.”  Touched by the faith of this saint Adelaide went home and wrote the entire hymn that night.

Ms. Pollard had an extensive ministry as a teacher at the Missionary Training School at Nyack-on-the Hudson and as an itinerant Bible teacher.  She worked with a number of evangelists who held revivals and healing services.  Interestingly enough, she finally had the opportunity to visit Africa later in her life fulfilling her greatest dream. 

All of us can identify with the experience of disappointment and unfulfilled wishes.  It helps to remember that God’s molding of us is always for our own good in order to “make known the riches of his glory for vessels of mercy (Romans 9:22).  God’s timing is never our timing and God’s ways are higher than our ways.  Ms. Pollard finally visited Africa but only after God used her for other purposes and in the end she was more prepared for her trip when the time came.

During this season of Lent pray aloud the words of Ms. Pollard’s hymn and renew your resolve to accept God’s will for your life, whatever that might look like.  Fear and disappointment can turn to trust and praise as we experience the good that God has planned for us.

                  “Have Thine Own way, Lord, have Thine own way!

                  Thou art the Potter, I am the clay.

                  Mold me and make me after Thy will,

                  While I am waiting, yielded and still.

                  Have Thine own way Lord! Have Thine own way

                  Hold o’er my being absolute sway!

                  Fill with Thy Spirit ‘till all shall see

                  Christ only, always, living in me                  

First

The first African American Methodist churches in the early 1800s were controlled by white senior pastors and trustees.  Chafing under oppression, the churches sought but were denied the dignity of self-determination by four consecutive General Conferences.  But in 1864, as the end of America's Civil War and slavery was imminent, their petition was approved, and the Delaware Annual Conference became the first African American annual conference to be formed in Methodism. 

Delaware Annual Conference Cabinet, 1918

A century later the 1964 General Conference mandated that all racially segregated conferences in the United States be disbanded.  Four years later, the segregated Central Jurisdiction, to which they all belonged, was abolished as well.

The sprawling Delaware Conference was the first to take on the challenging task of merging with predominantly white conferences in the six geographical areas where their respective churches resided.  Those conferences included: the Philadelphia (now Eastern Pennsylvania) Conference, the Peninsula (now Peninsula-Delaware) Conference, the Virginia Conference, the New York Conference and the North and South New Jersey conferences. 

The last formal conference session of the Old Delaware Conference was held on April 27-28, 1965, with Bishop John Wesley Lord presiding.  The bishop said, according to the Rev. Edwin L. Ellis, a District Superintendent who wrote about this event later, “We are restoring that which is broken.  This is a return to the way the Methodist Church began.  It was our sin which brought division… Surely now, we have much to share with all of Christ’s Church and this great dream will be now pouring out into the life of the new conferences that are being organized.”  (Commemorative Booklet: Delaware Annual Conference, page 101)

Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh: Bearing Gifts with Loving Hearts

During the season of Epiphany, of revelation, we ponder the story of the Magi who came from the East to visit the Christ child. There are so many levels in which this account recorded in the Gospel of Matthew captures our attention and reveals much practical truth for us:

• “Wise men still seek Him.”
• Christ came for all people, in all cultures and communities.
• God guides us to Jesus.
• Evil cannot overcome God’s plans, etc.

These are some of the sermons I have preached over the years from this text, found in Matthew’s second chapter. Also, we never tire of considering the gifts of the Wise Men: gold, frankincense and myrrh.  What Christmas pageant is complete without three children dressed in ornate bathrobes and tin foil crowns bearing three boxes of precious gifts? Surely once again, during this season of Epiphany, we are called to honor Christ with our gifts.

I witnessed virtual gifts of the Magi during my recent trip to India with youth on the Northeastern Jurisdiction (NEJ) Mission of Peace and with fellow bishops participating in a continuing education event led by Bishop Suda Devadhar of the New England Conference.  We began our journey just after Christmas, and it continued into the New Year and the season of Epiphany. 

India was well-decorated for the Christmas season, even though only about 2.5 percent of the population is professed Christian.  Everywhere our group of 35 participants traveled we saw crèches with figurines of Mary, Joseph, baby Jesus, the shepherds and the Wise Men bearing symbolic precious gifts. I also saw real gifts of real value being offered to Christ by faithful—and yes, wise—men and women throughout India.

'Glorify God in your body'

Long ago the Apostle Paul asked the Corinthians: “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God?” (I Corinthians 6:19) This is still a valid question for us today.

Do we see our bodies as the very temple of God’s Spirit?  If we do, then it behooves us to take a close look at how we care for our bodies.  If the temple is in disrepair the Spirit will not be able to function as well. 

With the dawn of 2015 there are lots of New Year’s resolutions that have something to do with dieting and exercise. But sadly, many of these intentions fall by the wayside before the first month ends.  Taking care of one’s temple needs to be a daily and lifetime commitment, as part of our stewardship of the precious gift of life that has been bestowed upon us.

Let’s all make a commitment to nurture our physical selves in ways that are life-affirming and life-sustaining.  Both the Eastern PA and Pen-Del conferences have “Virgin Pulse” exercise programs that encourage increased exercise and health monitoring. 

I am happy to say that in the most recent “Virgin Pulse” challenge both conferences ranked among the top 10 conferences participating in the program.  That means many of our pastors and spouses are taking exercise seriously. 

It is still possible and timely to sign up for this program and even to buy into it if you are not a part of the conference insurance program.

Taking care of our bodily temple also involves a proper diet, rest and regular health screenings.  We wouldn’t dream of driving a car and never changing the oil or getting gas or an occasional tune-up.  

The temple of the Living God deserves far more diligent care.  It is simply essential for we who are to be faithful stewards of God's gifts.  I hope that you will make a promise, a serious commitment to yourself to improve in at least one area of health maintenance in this New Year and also find ways of sharing your good news with someone else. 

As we keep each other accountable we can do a better job of staying the course.  As Paul says “Glorify God in your body.”  (I Corinthians 6:20b)

Home for Christmas

The Christmas of 1977 was one of those years that Christmas Day happened to fall on a Sunday.

I was in my first year at Asbury Theological Seminary in Wilmore, Kentucky.  In order to earn additional money for tuition I accepted the position as church organist in September at a large church in Lexington, KY, and when I was hired, it was agreed that I would play throughout the Christmas season. That meant I would not be home for Christmas in Baltimore that year. 

I had begun dating a young man from Texas named Michael Johnson, but when the fall semester final exams were over he went home and I stayed in Kentucky to fulfill my obligations to the church. When the dorms closed I ended up staying at an apartment that a fellow seminarian had rented.  He went home for Christmas but was thrilled to let me use his apartment so that I could take care of his Siamese cat named Butch.  Butch was a strange cat. He insisted on sleeping with his head on the pillow with me every night, and he even snored in my ear, which made the whole lonely Christmas scene yet a little more bizarre.

I was determined to be brave about being alone for Christmas in a strange town, with a strange cat, being employed by church people that I barely knew. As each student finished exams and left for home, my bravery began to slip away into full-blown home-sickness. After all, aren’t we all supposed to be home for Christmas? Wasn’t there some song about it that Bing Crosby sang during World War II? 

World AIDS Day: Educate, Donate to Help Us Find a Cure

As I reflect back on the beginning of the AIDS epidemic in the late 1980’s it was a time of intense fear in the church I was serving in Baltimore.  A number of the church members had contracted the disease and as the word spread people were afraid to even stand near the infected ones. 

I remember a board meeting where folks were calling for the end of “passing the peace” during the service, and for intinction during Holy Communion to be replaced with individual cups of grape juice.  There was a lot of unfounded fear and ignorance; and sadly there were also many deaths because medications and treatment had not been developed. 

Fast forward to 2014, and it is a different story.  Dr. Christoph Benn, Director of External Relations for The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, addressed the Council of Bishops at the November meeting in Oklahoma City.  He was very hopeful and he commended The United Methodist Church for partnering with The Global Fund in combating these killer diseases.  

In terms of HIV/AIDS, he reported that there are 33 percent fewer people in the world with the disease since 2005.  In terms of deaths, there are 1.5 million people dying from AIDS complications now, as opposed to 3 million in 2005. There were 400,000 babies born with HIV back then, and now that number has been cut in half.  While AIDS is still a major heath concern on this planet, we are making progress in eliminating it due to medical advances in fighting this disease and the large amount of money that has been raised.

Dr. Benn stressed that medication as well as education is the winning combination. The more people learn about the disease the better they can take preventative measures.  Education also helps eliminate the stigma that comes with this disease. 

While I was touring the East Congo Conference this summer our team visited an AIDS clinic. The social worker there was explaining to parents with a baby born with HIV that they should not reject their child.  Some parents were actually hiding their babies under the bed because of the stigma of AIDS. 

The UMC has more than 200 HIV/AIDS clinics like this one in over 35 countries working hard to both treat the disease and teach people about prevention.

The UMC is challenging the world to eliminate this disease by the year 2020.  December 1^st is World AIDS Day and it would be a great opportunity to teach your church about HIV/AIDS and to collect funds for the United Methodist Global AIDS Fund (UMGAF). 

The monies collected helps efforts in developing countries, but 25 percent of all donations through the UMC remain in the donor annual conferences for AIDS ministries.  For more information and promotional materials check out the UMCOR website at: www.umcor.org/umcor/programs/globalhealth/HIV/AIDS.