Hands to the plow

6/30

Good Shepherd Faith ready for worship

On the Sunday on which the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising was celebrated in our city, I came to Good Shepherd Faith to lead the service. Here were my refections:

There’s been a lot on my mind this week. I’m just back from two weeks in Central America, Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador. And when Jesus says “Foxes have holes, and birds of he air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” I could do a whole sermon just on that. But I chose this passage because last Saturday I was in a music festival  on Governors island and after my own set, I sat in with an Appalachian band and their last number was “Gospel Plow”....

Ready to preach...rainbow stole....


Mary wore three links of chain

Every link was Jesus' name

Keep your hand on that plow, hold on

Oh Lord, oh Lord, keep your hand on that plow, hold on

Mary, Mark, Luke and John

All these prophets are dead and gone

Keep your hand on that plow, hold on

Oh Lord, oh Lord, keep your hand on that plow, hold on

Well, I've never been to Heaven

But I've been told streets up there

Are lined with gold

Keep your hand on that plow, hold on

Oh Lord, oh Lord, keep your hand on that plow, hold on

Oh Lord, oh Lord, keep your hand on that plow, hold on

Oh Lord, oh Lord, keep your hand on that plow, hold on

So I had to preach on this...

It’s about Jesus saying once you start out, there just ain’t no turning back...can’t be going back to take care of business, can’t be making farewells, just hand to the plow, hold on.....

I was in the Village twice this week for music. And every time I went, the energy was building for today’s global celebration of 50 years of Stonewall, a rebellion that reverberated across the globe.

In the religious world, the Stonewall story is a Presbyterian story. It started in 1978 when the General Assembly in San Diego voted to prohibit ordination of “avowed and practicing homosexuals”....no one then knew it would take until 2011 to finally open the doors to acknowledge ministries that god had already called into being. That’s 33 years... the whole life of Jesus ....that’s a lot of years with hands on the plow...

And I’m proud that the church Stonewall moment took place at my old church West Park in September 1978 when the Session at West Park approved the historic More Light statement. It’s valuable to hear it again...

In harmony with the General Assembly of the United Presbyterian Church, West-Park Church affirms the civil rights of all person. Further, in keeping with our General Assembly’s guidelines, this community of faith welcomes as members homosexual persons who both seek and have found Christ’s love.

This local congregation will not select one particular element from a person’s total humanity as a basis for denying full participation and service in the body of Christ. Nor will this community of faith condemn or judge our brothers and sisters who declare their faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and promise discipleship to Him. We affirm that in meeting each other in Christian love. God’s spirit frees us all to live and grow, liberated from the oppression invoked upon us by ourselves and others.

Within this context, West-Park Presbyterian Church reaches out to Christian and non-Christian homosexual persons with a ministry of support, caring and openness—a ministry in which the creative, liberating power of the Holy Spirit rules and guides." [5]

The name More Light came from the farewell words of Pastor John Robinson to the pilgrims as they set sail on the Mayflower on 1646:

...if God should reveal anything to us by any other instrument of his, to be as ready to receive it, as ever we were to receive any truth by his Ministry. For he was very confident the Lord had more truth and light yet to break forth out of his holy Word.

In the 1850s George Rawson would write a hymn with these words:

...We limit not the truth of God to our poor reach of mind --

By notions of our day and sect -- crude, partial, and confined

That universe, how much unknown! that ocean unexplored

For God hath yet more light and truth to break forth from the Word.

Eternal God, Incarnate Word, Spirit of flame and dove,

enlarge, expand all living souls to comprehend your love;

and help us all to seek your will with wiser powers conferred

O God, grant yet more light and truth to break forth from the Word.

..... so what began with the session of West Park birthed the More Light movement that jumped across denominational lines and inspired movements in all mainline denominations.

33 years. And still, villages turn him away....even this summer our Methodist brothers and sisters failed again to step into freedom and even took a step back. Countries in Africa, inspired by North American missionaries, pass draconian laws against lgbtq people. In Central America among those seeking their way  north are lgbtq people who suffer the worst of repressive measures putting their very lives in danger as we raise walls higher both literally and figuratively to keep them out.

And today, our country seems to be moving backward even as acceptance become more and more normative, banning trans people from the military, not allowing our embassies to fly rainbow flags this week and on and on...

Hands to the plow my brothers and sisters..

and of course it wasn’t just west park, it was pastors and members in small churches just like this one all across the country who kept tower hands to the plow and held on even through the darkest hours.

Things do and can change. Today in the Village the Evelyn Davidson memorial water table will again be in operation..who remembers its origins? In the gospel of Matthew (10:42) Jesus says “and whoever gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones in the name of a disciple — truly I tell you, none of these will lose their reward. That was the verse that inspired an act of witness by Evelyn Davidson, wife of my preceding pastor, Bob Davidson. Around 1982, she felt that the gay community had been so rejected and hurt by the church that there had to be a counter witness.  So she came up with setting up a water table and distributing cool cups of water --in Jesus name—every Pride march day. It would be in  front of First Presbyterian at 5th and 12th along the parade route. At first, First Pres was resistant. Then Presbytery Executive George Todd had an office there and rigged up a hose on the top floor in his bathroom and dragged it all the way down and through the church the outside to fill up the cups. By the next year, the church became an active participant. And today the table is a fully owned project of First Presbyterian.

People are marching. There is much to celebrate. As of 2014 the PCUSA recognizes same gender marriages. But still so far to go. Keep your hand on the plow....hold on!

In our conversation, people were interested in the parts of the Gospel we hadn't spoken of. Like the not burying the father, letting the dead bury the dead. Which could take years.  Despite its hyperbolic language, the sense is clear, we can't be stuck on what is dead. We need to move forward.  And don't look back.

Outside the sun was shining. A good day to celebrate....

Luke 9: 51-62

51 When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem. 52 And he sent messengers ahead of him. On their way they entered a village of the Samaritans to make ready for him; 53 but they did not receive him, because his face was set toward Jerusalem. 54 When his disciples James and John saw it, they said, “Lord, do you want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them?”[a] 55 But he turned and rebuked them. 56 Then[b] they went on to another village.Would-Be Followers of Jesus

57 As they were going along the road, someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.” 58 And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” 59 To another he said, “Follow me.” But he said, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.” 60 But Jesus[c] said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” 61 Another said, “I will follow you, Lord; but let me first say farewell to those at my home.” 62 Jesus said to him, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”

Can we still dance? (after Orlando)

6/19/16

Pat and Leila gave us beauty again...

We began our service singing Desmond Tutus's Goodness is stronger than evil...

Goodness is stronger than evil;                                                                                                              love is stronger than hate;light is stronger than darkness;life is stronger than death.Victory is ours, victory is ours through him who loved us. Victory is ours, victory is ours through him who loved us.

In our first lesson, Elijah listens for the voice of God. It’s not in storm or thunder or…it’s finally in what the King James Version called a “still, small, voice”..or more accurately “silence in silence” or..”the Sound of Silence” So I just have to share what’s been all over the Internet, this remix of Paul Simon’s song, by heavy metal band Disturbed.  Let’s listen:

Why this song? Why now? What’s changed in 50 years?

(Russ points out the difference between the original plea for an apathetic world, not listening, to what becomes an impassioned plea, HEY, YOU MOTHER_____STILL DON”T GET IT…)

Last week. When I came to church , I wasn’t fully aware of what had happened in Orlando. If I had been, I would have spent the morning on Orlando alone.

As I came into church, Pastor Yvonne M. Harrison of the lbgtq Pentecostal Restoration Temple church was talking about her leaving the Pentecostal church. How she was “Disfellowshipped” People instructed not to talk with her. Not to even pray for her. There was one pastor who did….and he was her guest. I reflected on that pain…

In my neighborhood clergy Bible study on Wednesday morning, the young Vicar from Trinity Lutheran was nearly in tears. About our failure, refusal  to speak the truth. To be honest. Orlando was not about “terrorism”…It was an act of a disturbed, more than likely closeted gay man, with religion inspired hatred of himself, rejected by his own father…taking that out on others..with an easily acquired automatic weapon. He was going got accompany his sermon with 'Lord of the Dance." (words I have rewritten..) And an in answer to my question, Can we still dance, he says we must...as resistance..

And so we sang tho morning, more slolwy, reflectively:

I danced in the morning when the world was young 
I danced in the moon and the stars and the sun 
I came down from heaven and I danced on the earth 
At Bethlehem I had my birth 

Dance, dance, wherever you may be 
I am the lord of the dance, said he 
And I lead you all, wherever you may be 
And I lead you all in the dance, said he 

I danced on a Sunday  when the sun went away

It's hard to dance when you cqnnot see the day

They thought that hatred could silence our song

But we are the dance and we still go on..

We danced for those who love and we danced for those who hate

We dance for the angels who wait at heaven’s gate

We dance for the weak and we dance with the strong

The dance is love and it still goes on…

I was talking to our friend, Stephanie now Ryan, Johnstone about her upcoming concert with her choir of young lgbtq (queer) folks. And how we no what a completely new way of understanding that Galatians passage about Completeley neither “male nor female” in Christ Jesus. Those distinctions, categories, have no meaning..

The Luke passage, about the Gerasene demoniac is on of my favorites. I thought of the man on the steps, half naked, dirty shouting and cursing. And the two sisters who come daily with all their belongings. And how our  Dion has such an easy loving touch with those on our steps.

Our old member Philip once told me how every Sunday, his pastor would thank God for waking up ”clothed and in his right mind.” I guess if you start there, the rest of the day is easy.

I remembered how Dostoevsky used this passage as an aPentecostal ascription to his book “The Possessed,”…how he saw his Russia as a society driven mad, possessed and going over the edge…

How Jesus deliberately referenced the Roman Empire by naming the demon Legion…the Empire does drive us mad..and to come to one’s senses is to become dangerous,a perceived threat…to be driven out…he ants to follow Jesus, but Jesus sends him back, to be a witness to sanity restored, to a new way of life.

A way of life where

²⁸There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus. 

Let us come to our senses…help each other to break free…and claim the life we were promised..

Amen

 Second Reading Galatians 3:23-29

²³Now before faith came, we were imprisoned and guarded under the law until faith would be revealed. ²⁴Therefore the law was our disciplinarian until Christ came, so that we might be justified by faith. ²⁵But now that faith has come, we are no longer subject to a disciplinarian, ²⁶for in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith. ²⁷As many of you as were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. ²⁸There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus. ²⁹And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to the promise.

Gospel Luke 8:26-39

²⁶Then they arrived at the country of the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee. ²⁷As he stepped out on land, a man of the city who had demons met him. For a long time he had worn no clothes, and he did not live in a house but in the tombs. ²⁸When he saw Jesus, he fell down before him and shouted at the top of his voice, "What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, do not torment me"-²⁹for Jesus had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. (For many times it had seized him; he was kept under guard and bound with chains and shackles, but he would break the bonds and be driven by the demon into the wilds.) ³⁰Jesus then asked him, "What is your name?" He said, "Legion"; for many demons had entered him. ³¹They begged him not to order them to go back into the abyss.

³²Now there on the hillside a large herd of swine was feeding; and the demons begged Jesus to let them enter these. So he gave them permission.³³Then the demons came out of the man and entered the swine, and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and was drowned.

³⁴When the swineherds saw what had happened, they ran off and told it in the city and in the country. ³⁵Then people came out to see what had happened, and when they came to Jesus, they found the man from whom the demons had gone sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind. And they were afraid. ³⁶Those who had seen it told them how the one who had been possessed by demons had been healed. ³⁷Then all the people of the surrounding country of the Gerasenes asked Jesus to leave them; for they were seized with great fear. So he got into the boat and returned. ³⁸The man from whom the demons had gone begged that he might be with him; but Jesus sent him away, saying, ³⁹"Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you." So he went away, proclaiming throughout the city how much Jesus had done for him.

Another step for justice

1/27

Yesterday at the meeting of the Presbytery of New York City, another step for justice was taken. West-Park working with our cross town partner Jan Hus was able to bring to Presbytery an overtire to General Assembly towards reconciliation with our LGBTQ/Q brothers and sisters beginning with an acknowledgement of and apology for the harm done over nearly three and a half decades. While it is good that the long struggle for ordination and now marriage equality has been won, that is just the beginning. There are people who were called to ministry by God who were denied recognition, excluded, marginalized and even prosecuted by the church they had committed their lives to. While many remain within our circle, others have left for other denominations, left the church altogether while many others died before seeing this day. This Overture, now under the name of the Presbytery of New York City, will now go to the PCI(USA) General Assembly in Portland, Oregon this summer. It's approval there would be a first step towards the long road to reconciliation and healing. It is an expression of the living legacy of those who preceded us at West-Park, where the "More Light" statement was drafted in 1978, and long time colleague in the struggle for compassion and justice, Jan Hus, teamed together to begin this process. Many thanks to Jan Hus Commissioner and longtime friend Jim Nedelka for carrying the ball forward politywise and Stated Clerk Andy James for his timely advice. Now on to Portland!

OVERTURE TEXT

Overture text from Presbytery of New York City

A Healing Overture for the Admission of, and Apology for Harms Done to the LGBTQ/Q Members of the Presbyterian Church(USA), Family and Friends

The Session of Jan Hus Presbyterian Church and Neighborhood House calls for the Presbytery of New York City to overture the 222nd General Assembly (2016) to affirm and witness these truths:
a. we come to understand forgiveness, healing, mercy and reconciliation by God’s actions through Jesus Christ’s teachings and the Risen Christ in our midst;
b. we are reconciled to God and one another by the forgiveness of our acts of sinfulness, through the Christ who is our peace and who breaks down the walls of hostility and division;
c. further, we understand that ours is a faith and ministry of forgiveness, healing, mercy and reconciliation that requires admission of the harms we have done to one another; and
d. that the fullness of our new life in Christ calls for a unity of Spirit, a sharing of gifts, and a valuing of all parts of the Body of Christ in the spirit of true forgiveness.

And we confess that our actions have fallen short of these truths in the marginalization of our sisters and brothers who identify as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer and Questioning (LGBTQ/Q), admitting:
e. that harms have been done to this community by the denomination’s participation in the creation of barriers to God’s call to our sisters and brothers, based on sexual identity, sexual orientation and gender identity;
f. that charges have been instigated with the intention of preventing qualified individuals called by God to serve based on sexual identity and orientation;
g. that the Constitution of the PC(USA) has been erroneously used to support these charges, resulting in the use of the denomination’s court system, in effect, being co-opted to discipline others for who they are; and
h. that the denomination has participated in or been silent about challenging the destruction of the careers of faithful servants who identified as LGBTQ/Q.

Therefore, we direct that the Presbyterian Church (USA) Affirm, Confess and Apologize:
i. admitting that it has been wrong in the way it has treated the LGBTQ/Q Community in the PC(USA);
j. apologizing for the teachings and actions that have created marginalization of our sisters and brothers, adding to the erroneous belief that people who identify as LGBTQ/Q should be considered unworthy to serve fully or be honored as family within and without the church;
k. acknowledging that during this struggle we have often treated one another in ways that did not reflect the presence of the Risen Christ in our midst; including those in opposition to one another, as well as those within their own communities;
l. stating publicly that the PC(USA), as a denomination, makes this pronouncement as an act of forgiveness, healing, mercy and reconciliation; and
m. that this admission and apology lifts up the constitutional changes that have been duly implemented to dismantle the lines that have divided us from one another and the ways in which we have been called to serve, including but not limited to Amendment 10-A; the Authoritative Interpretation on Marriage, and Amendment 14F.
Rationale:
1. The admissions of harms done to one another, the petition of each other for forgiveness, and the public witness of the humility by the church as an institution is required to open our doors - as fully as our hearts and intentions have always called us to do.

The last forty years of opening those doors to our sisters and brothers who identify as LGBTQ/Q has not been our only struggle, nor has it been the only place where lives have been harmed in our efforts to change. It is, however, a place where we can bring our experience, strength and hope in an even greater response that we hope this will initiate, and in which way we encourage others to respond.

We acknowledge that there are many communities and groups who have felt the sting and harms of the church as an institution; an institution in some ways holding on to practices and teachings that separated us, rather than brought us together.

We acknowledge, too, the power and privilege that has not always been exerted in the best interests of those with no power or privilege, and we hope that this “Healing Overture” will begin broad movement to become a reconciling church in ways that “clean our slate” of harms and injustices for all the world to see.

Further, we believe that such a church is the fullest faithful representation of the Church of Jesus Christ that practices the teachings of Jesus Christ in word and deed.

We also wish to make it clear that we do not see the struggle of the LGBTQ/Q community in our church as exceptional to the struggle of others who have sought justice and welcoming in the denomination. It is where we begin, hoping that this will create an invitation and a process for others to follow, bringing forward their overtures. We hope others will summon the church to acknowledge harms that need to be spoken in their communities, so that we can be the inclusive and welcoming Kin[g]dom on God on earth, beyond anything we have yet to see. We support the efforts of others to follow this process in bringing such actions forward to their presbyteries and the General Assembly.

(NOTE: See Attachment 1 from the Presbytery of Yukon and its statement of repentance to the community of Gambell, Alaska as a precedent, upon which parts of this overture have been based.)

We believe there will be no chance for healing and reconciliation until the PC(USA) admits its mistakes and makes a statement of apology. There are many faithful sisters and brothers who have been estranged by the church because of its teachings, practices, and disciplinary actions towards minsters and others who identify as LGBTQ/Q. A statement such as the one suggested would have the affect of validating our legislative actions with our commitment to changing what has been exclusionary and wrong.

2. As one of the most constitutionally inclusive mainline denominations in the world, our witness has an impact beyond any borders we might imagine. Our voice of hope, love, joy, peace, justice and welcoming—the Good News—leads the way for global change and a beginning to the end to the violence of marginalization and discrimination around the world.

Calling the church to admit harms done and apologize to those it has wronged has an impact beyond the LGBTQ/Q community. All Gospel and Justice/Love ministry is about our relationship with each other in this world. An honest statement of apology and determination to herald the changes we have been called to make lifts up the entire denomination in a way that reaffirms who and whose we are.

3. The theme of the 222nd General Assembly is The Hope in Our Calling - Ephesians 1:18. May it be so!

Revised: January 9, 2016

open space and conversation

8/29

Four days into dealing with the pain of three broken ribs….

Back at the church to prepare for tomorrow’s worship. And meet again with Jason and another friend, this time Babatunde from Nigeria. Knew each other back in the day in Boston. Reconnect through Facebook. Concerned about some of the same issues. Baba coming from a place of passion for design and fashion.

While I work on the service, Jason takes his friend on a tour of the building. They are sitting in the Papp theatre talking when I catch up with them. I make sure that they have a tour of the whole pigeon tower, which in the vision is the light tower both metaphor and concrete reality of the conversation and space Jason wants to create.

Jason’s been down a/this road before with success in his Massachusetts Crush project. Seen a burgeoning movement brought down by unchecked self-interest. There are questions of political satire and free speech versus shared values (why I never ever will say pig in relation to police..if you make your opponent non-human you can’t hold them humanly accountable…) versus a maoist letting a thousand flowers bloom…No immediate clear answers.

But there is clarity that the next wave of lgbtq+++ (ie, queer ) issues are waiting to be raised along with class and race issues. The same issues being explored by Stephanie and Love Songs for the rest of us And the peace poets. . And that this intersects with arts and creativity. And that light tower, waiting to be lighted..

Space and conversation. Open space and conversation.

There must continue to be space here for what could be...

One step at a time. One conversation at a time.,