2 posts tagged “religion”

So I'm fresh off the Bill Moyers interview with Jeremiah Wright. Quite illuminating. But it only confirmed what I'd finally come to conclude. The racial divide in this country is alive and well.

Honestly I had my issues with sound the bites initially. "God Damn America"? a bit over the top and cringe inducing. "Black Liberation Theology"? I rolled my eyes.

I watched Hannity ambush the man a bit later. Okay, but what did I expect? It's Fox. And it's Sean Hannity. But back it up a bit and realize it's television "journalism", a dying medium desperate for ratings. But And then a writer for The Times likened the good reverend to something akin to a "crackpot." The Times? The Great Bastion of "Liberal Media?"

Passing strange.

Over time, I've come to realize that the sentiments Reverend Wright expressed are pretty much in line with what I've heard from the pulpit, or around the kitchen table, all my life. Much of it helped shape my world view. And admittedly I'm a bit of a subversive, but I'm a long way from way from a fire breathing black nationalist radical. I don't renounce everything I learned from either venue, nor have I accepted it all as gospel (or Gospel) either.

I find it funny, and ironic, that so many white commentators are shocked by what they've learned about the black church since this "controversy" began. If they only knew. My grandfather used to say that white people in his community should be thankful that so many black people did go to church. Otherwise there'd be hell to pay. In the same context, I think for Wright to acknowledge and bring context to the anger and frustration that so many of his congregation have experienced is good for all of America. He provided context for their frustration and hope based on the historical example of scripture.

Wright likened much of what had been attempted at Chicago's Trinity United before his arrival as "missionary work." An attempt to "civilize" and pacify the congregation. Present them with high teas and cultural enrichment, while blatantly ignoring the challenges of their daily lives. He said that he was challenged by one of his white mentors to meet them where they were, to address their day to day lives through the lens of scripture. To tell them that the message of Christ, that the meaning of Christianity, has relevance in their daily lives, and is more than some vague promise of the hereafter.

Ironically I had that same lesson affirmed in Lutheran schools, in a largely white setting. It took me years to realize that my background is largely anomalous to much of the faith and society in general. The thrust of what has historically been taken as religious life in this country has more to do with confirming manifest destiny (the rightness of conquest), being "nice" as opposed to ethical, and lately, getting paid (or "abundant living").

I heard someone say on NPR last week that part of the thrust of Black Liberation Theology follows the prophetic tradition of scripture, in affect "to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comforted." In this, Reverend Wright has few peers. However, he's hardly traversing uncharted territory, at least from my point of view.

I'll be waiting to hear what he says in Detroit this Sunday with great interest.

Background: In the pastor's absence, I was asked to prepare a short meditation for church services tomorrow. I shared it with RPM, and she suggested posting here. I'm not "ordained" nor do I profess a personal calling, no more than I believe we're all "called" to do better. However I am a licensed "exhorter" which is basically just someone designated as a lay participant in a formal sense.

How Good Is Your Word?

Scripture:     Genesis 1:3-27
                   John 1:1-5

When you think about it, words are the most powerful tools we have. Words are the outward expression of concepts, given meaning by tradition, teaching, and context. Robert Capon says in “Hunting The Divine Fox” that the power to name things and to make fine distinctions is what’s really at root in mankind’s “dominion” over the earth. It’s what makes us unique. An orangutan can distinguish the difference between “good and bad”, “hot and cold”, but he can’t tell you why he likes Coke over Pepsi or why October sunsets are his favorites.

As far as we can tell, that distinction belongs solely to human beings.

Words are fundamental. They are so intrinsic to our reality that we rarely pay attention to them. They’re like breathing. We “think” in words. They’re the first thing we teach to our children; “Mommy”, Daddy, “you”, “me.”

Adults take words for granted. It’s when we have children that we realize how far we’ve come and how important our understanding of words is to us.

The other day my daughter asked me what “liberty” meant.  Believe me, I took some time with that one. We spent some time talking about the differences between liberty and freedom. It’s important to my wife and me that our daughter learns the full meaning of words, that she has a depth, as well as a breadth of knowledge. After all her understanding of what she hears and says will play a pivotal role in her enjoyment of life, in her ability to learn, and, we believe, in determining her success in life.

Our words define how we are, represent us, give life to our inner workings.

How good is your word? I don’t mean to ask about your integrity, but what do your words do for you? What do they create? What do they reveal about you? What do they do for others?

So many of us spend time with the wrong type of words and language. Language that ridicules, criticizes, tears down, and disheartens. We’re quick to remind others of their shortcomings, of their limitations, of what won’t work.

What of the word of God?

Consider our old testament text starting with verse 3; “And God said, Let there be Light, and there was light… and it was good”. And verse 6; “And God said, Let there be a firmament: and it was so. Verse 9; “And God said, Let the waters be under the heaven be gathered together… and let dry land appear: and it was so….and God saw that it was good.”

You keep reading the “And God Saids” down through verse 25, you’ll find that God can’t say anything without something springing forth. Furthermore you see that it’s all good.

Would that it were so with our words. That everything that came out of our mouths was really good. That we used our words to create rather than destroy. To build up rather than tear down. Consider that for a moment. It may sound farfetched – even corny – but our words can create whole realities for people. What we tell our children, the words we use, are very important.

I’m sure you’ve heard the story before, but I’m going to bore you again with the example of Dr. Ben Carson. The story is so common it’s a cliché. Born of a young, poor, single mother. Violent temper. Poor grades in school. Classmates called him “dummy.” But his mother took a hand. In his biography I find it significant that she sharply limited the time he and his brother could watch television.  She wouldn’t let them outside until they finished their homework. She required them to read. And though the text I read doesn’t explicitly say so, I’m sure she coaxed, cajoled, and encouraged them with her words.

Well you know the story, Carson realized that despite what others were saying, he wasn’t “stupid.” He developed a love of learning – of words I might add – and has distinguished himself as one of America’s pre-eminent surgeons and philanthropists.  It all comes down to the words we use my beloved. The words we use can create worlds for people as the word of God created ours.

What do our words reveal about ourselves?

The words we use give evidence of the thoughts we think, of the lives we lead, of our education, and of our aspirations. You can quite often tell the type of people you’re dealing with by the type of words they use. Do they use the proper context? Do they have a grasp of what they’re trying to convey? Have they really thought about what they’re trying to say? What is important to them? Our words reveal our thoughts, our moods, our likes and dislikes, our selves.

What do God’s words reveal about Him? Or better, what does The Word of God reveal about Him? We believe Jesus Christ to be the Word of God Incarnate. Sounds really impressive doesn’t it? Impressive and a bit frightening. That “incarnate” part used to frighten me as a child. Incarnate: “to present in bodily form”, “to make real and concrete”. Jesus is God’s word made flesh. So what does he reveal? What does God think? What are His aspirations? What’s important to God?

Well, let’s see. Even though he was in the place of highest honor, he humbled himself for our sakes. Christ was merciful, he spent most of his time with the lowly, the downtrodden, the weakest among us. He was most concerned with the needs of the poor, of children, of the sick and troubled. He cast out demons. He served others.

So what does this say of God? You’ve heard it before. He loves us. Loves us enough to put up with our foolishness and folly. Loves us enough to give us His best. Loves us enough to allow His own son to pay our debt. That’s what the Word of God reveals about God.

So what is the significance of all this? What are our words ultimately about, what do they do?  Consider in the 26th chapter of our Old Testament scripture: And God said, Let us make man in our own image, after our likeness…. Capon takes pains to emphasize the “us” in this passage. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit getting together, rolling up their sleeves, rubbing their hands together in glee, as if to say, “This is the good part.” Or as Capon puts it, “God, God’s Word, God’s Word in Action” getting together to make us.

Now understand, I’m not trying to make a definitive statement about the mystery of the Trinity here. They’re words beloved. Images. Not the reality of the thing not “what it is” but its essence all the same. That’s why words are so important. Because we were made in God’s image. We have the power of words. We can create, we can reveal, we can make things happen.

It is through the Spirit of God, The Holy Ghost, if you will (I like the old ways of describing things sometimes) that we reach others, that we reach ourselves, that we reach out to God.

What words do we use? What do we create? What do we reveal to others about our inner lives, about what’s important to us.

And what are our words doing for others?

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the life of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.”

How good is your word?