Racial Reconciliation

Pastoral Letter, Post Charlottesville - 15 August 2017

in ,

Dear Sisters and Brothers,

Grace and peace be with you in Jesus, the Light for all people in the midst of the world’s darkness!

Like many of you, the events in Charlottesville this past Saturday have been shocking and disturbing for me.  It is troubling to imagine in 2017, that voices calling for the supremacy of the White race would be acknowledged much less supported.  In the Hebrew Scriptures, in the Book of Genesis, we affirm that every human person is made in the image and likeness of God.  In the Christian Scriptures, in the Gospel of John, we affirm that because God took on our flesh in Jesus, every human person is a beloved child of God.  As followers of Jesus, we are called to respect the dignity of every human being while at the same time striving for justice and peace among all people.  This striving calls us, in fact compels us, to name these actions of White Supremacy as sinful and to take action by standing in the midst of violence and hatred as witnesses for peace and reconciliation.

I have invited us, as Episcopalians in Northern Indiana, to adopt the Five Marks of Mission.  While each mark is important, I would invite you to reflect on the Fourth Mark of Mission at this time:  to seek to transform unjust structures of society, to challenge violence of every kind and to pursue peace and reconciliation.  We are called as Disciples of the Risen Christ to engage in the difficult and risky work of advocating for transformation.  We are called to work for racial reconciliation and justice.  We are called to pursue peace.

Sisters and brothers, I invite you to pray for each other, especially for those who feel fearful, threatened or hopeless. As a visible sign, I also invite you to pray this prayer from the Book of Common Prayer 1979 for Social Justice with me: 

Almighty God, who created us in your image: Grant us grace fearlessly to contend against evil and to make no peace with oppression; and, that we may reverently use our freedom, help us to employ it in the maintenance of justice in our communities and among the nations, to the glory of your holy Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. 

I also invite you to act.  I invite you to look for opportunities within your families and households, in your neighborhoods and communities to engage in respectful conversations about race and racial reconciliation.

Let us strive to be ambassadors of God’s abiding love made known in Jesus and sustained and ever present in our world by the power of the Holy Spirit!

Every blessing,

Bishop Doug

I Was a Stranger and You Didn't Welcome Me ...

in ,

“I was hungry and you didn’t give me food to eat. I was thirsty and you didn’t give me anything to drink. I was a stranger and you didn’t welcome me. I was naked and you didn’t give me clothes to wear. I was sick and in prison, and you didn’t visit me. Then they will reply, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison and didn’t do anything to help you?’ Then he will answer, ‘I assure you that when you haven’t done it for one of the least of these, you haven’t done it for me.”  Matthew 25:42-45

 Dear Sisters and Brothers,

 Grace and peace be with you in Jesus, the unwelcomed stranger!

 I am writing to remind us of our moral responsibility, as Disciples of Jesus, to welcome the stranger. In light of the recent Executive Action taken by President Trump, it is especially important to remember that our sisters and brothers seeking asylum from violence and persecution, not of their making, look to us for protection and safety. The crisis in Syria and the surrounding region is horrific and complicated.

 However, in the midst of this legal and global complexity, our responsibility to care for the innocent, especially the most vulnerable children, abides! 

 This is an invitation to take some kind of intentional action on behalf of these refugees and the scores of others who are affected by our country’s action. Gather with others in your town or city during a time of public witness. Reach out to a neighbor you don’t know and engage in a respectful conversation. Visit a mosque or Islamic Center near you. Write or call your representative or senator. Talk with the children and be a good witness. They are watching.

 In concluding, I ask you to intercede with unceasing prayer.

 - Pray for any unwelcomed stranger.

-  Pray for those in authority in our nation: the President, the U.S. Congress and Supreme Court, as well as all state and local leaders whom we put our trust in to make fair and equitable decisions for the good of our nation and the world.

-  Pray for those individuals in nations deemed a threat to us.

- Pray for every citizen in our nation during these troubled times.

When you pray, remember the last two questions in the Baptismal Covenant. Will you seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving your neighbor as yourself? Will you strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being?

Be assured of my prayer for each of you,

Doug

Serving as 8th Bishop of Northern Indiana

Moving Forward Together - Pastoral Letter 9 Nov 2016

in ,

Dear Sisters and Brothers,

"Is not this the fast that I choose:  to loose the bonds of injustice, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover them, and not to hide yourself from your own kin? Then your light shall break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up quickly; your vindicator shall go before you, the glory of the Lord shall be your rearguard. Your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt; you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; you shall be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of streets to live in." Isaiah 58:6-8, 12 (NRSV)

Grace and peace be with you in Jesus, the Risen Christ!

Today, I had the privilege of gathering with hundreds of others at FASHIONING OUR LIVES, an annual event of St. Margaret's House, a Day Center for Women in its 26th year, whose mission statement is Creating Community, Changing Lives.  We listened to the stories of four women whose lives have been transformed by the relationships they have formed at St. Margaret's House, not in an instant but for some over a decade or more.  These sacred stories were a reminder to me of the work that lies ahead of us on the day after Election Day!

In the Joint Statement written by the Episcopal and Lutheran Bishops of Indiana, we wrote,

"Will you strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being? This challenging question is at the heart of what it means to live as citizens of this nation!"

There are citizens who awoke rejoicing today and there are citizens who awoke deeply saddened today.  Yet we remain citizens of the United States of America, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice assured for all.  As engaged citizens, let us demonstrate our commitment to striving for justice and peace and to respecting the dignity of every being by our behavior, in our conversations and through our actions.

This striving remains our noble work on the day after Election Day and into the future. I ask you to pray for all who have been elected in our townships, cities, state and nation.

As the Episcopal Branch of the Jesus Movement in Northern Indiana, we remain committed to the Five Marks of Mission...tell, teach, tend, transform, treasure...to the work of evangelism; racial reconciliation and justice; and environmental stewardship. Let us commit ourselves to being "Repairers of the breach and Restorers of Livable Streets!"

Every blessing,

Doug

 

Pastoral Letter 9 July 2016

in ,

9 July 2016

Dear Sisters and Brothers,

Grace and peace be with you in God our Creator, Redeemer, and Giver of Life!

The horrific and tragic events of this past week have rocked us to our core. In Louisiana, Minnesota and then in Dallas, Texas, the killings at the hands of others have been shocking, heartbreaking and beyond comprehension. Many of us are numb and yet filled with raw emotions, wondering what we can do, how to navigate this tangled web of violence tied to so many issues and where to begin with healing the pain.

Immediately, Presiding Bishop Michael Curry called us to a time of prayer for those who were killed, those who grieve over these deaths, those who place their lives at risk to protect us and for the sake of others...indeed, he has invited us to pray for our nation that we may recognize each other as beloved Children of God, made in God's image and likeness...every one of us!

Personally, I am so often led in prayer to The Baptismal Covenant ... to those five questions acting on our affirmation of faith. Please reflect on these in your prayer:

Will you continue in the apostles' teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in the prayers? In order for us to work for peace through justice, we must be sustained in intentional and communal reflection on God's word. We must remain in community, nourished by the sacrificial gift of Christ's Body and Blood as we are sent out to do the work God has given us to do.

Will you persevere in resisting evil, and, whenever you fall into sin, repent and return to the Lord? In order for us to work for peace through justice, many of us must recognize our privilege and repent of our complicity in the sin of racism.

Will you proclaim by word and example the Good News of God in Christ? In order for us to work for peace through justice, we must stand with others who call for action on behalf of the most vulnerable among us. We must take a risk to be associated with those who have no voice or power in the face of violence.

Will you seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving your neighbor as yourself? In order for us to work for peace through justice, we must seek out and serve Christ in all persons, loving our Muslim neighbors, our indigenous neighbors, our LGBTQ neighbors...all our neighbors as we love ourselves.

Will you strive for justice and peace among all people, respecting the dignity of every human being? In order for us to work for peace through justice, our striving needs to include intentional conversations with our neighbors about gun violence, abuse of power, fear of those who differ from us, white privilege and racism.

On the Walkabout in January, I shared with you my desire to move us into a time of Deep Listening. This is what we need to do for each other now and I pray our faith communities in the Episcopal Diocese of Northern Indiana can have respectful conversations.

Several years ago, I participated in an ecumenical training developed by the Minnesota Council of Churches focused on engaging in RESPECTFUL CONVERSATIONS. This is what Presiding Bishop Curry is encouraging our nation to do, as we address these painful manifestations of violence.

I would like to invite all of us in the Episcopal Church in Northern Indiana, along with our neighbors, to engage in RESPECTFUL CONVERSATIONS around gun violence, hatred, fear of those who differ from us, suspicion, misjudgment of law enforcement, white privilege, abuse of power and racism.

To that end, I will ask the deans of our three regions to work with me and our lay leaders to provide a process and several venues for these conversations.

Finally, I leave you with the prayer Bishop Curry referred to, The Prayer for the Human Family, found in the Book of Common Prayer, page 815.

O God, you made us in your own image and redeemed us through Jesus your Son; Look with compassion on the whole human family; take away the arrogance and hatred which infect our hearts; break down the walls that separate us; unite us in bonds of love; and work through our struggle and confusion to accomplish your purposes on earth; that in your good time, all nations and races may serve you in harmony around your heavenly throne; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Let us continue to work for peace through justice!
Every blessing,

Doug

Serving as Bishop of Northern Indiana

A Pastoral Letter on the Charleston Tragedy

in ,

Dear brothers and sisters,

Shortly after the devastating news of the mass murders at Emmanuel AME Church began to spread, a deacon of our diocese wrote to me.  “Why?” he asked.  “How could such a thing happen in a sacred place?  What can I say to people who are looking for an explanation?”  I have pondered those questions for a day and still am unable to answer.  The “Why?” and the “How?” are unfathomable in the face of overwhelming evil.  Nine people are dead, brothers and sisters in Christ.  They were cut down solely because of their race.  How could one human being inflict such a thing on another?  How can we hear God’s voice in the midst of the storm of emotions – from fear to anger to bewilderment – that sweep over us?

In the end, we are reduced to silence and prayer.  I find myself seeking to be still in the presence of the Lord.  I find myself gazing at the cross, and into the face of the One who suffered immeasurably on our behalf.  I find myself allowing the questions simply to be, now and perhaps forever unanswered.  Meanwhile, we can seek comfort in the familiar and oft-prayed words of the Bible and the Book of Common Prayer – words that themselves were written by people who asked the same questions and struggled with their own version of the same pain.

Here are some texts that have seared themselves into my heart.  Perhaps they will touch yours as well.  In the first, the Psalmist – like us – pleads for understanding, and then slowly, tentatively, recognizes the Lord presence, without “explaining away” the evil.

O God, why have you utterly cast us off?

            Why is your wrath so hot against the sheep of your pasture?

Remember your congregation that purchased long ago,

            and the tribe you redeemed to be your inheritance,

            and Mount Zion where you dwell.

Turn your steps toward the endless ruins;

            the enemy has laid waste everything in your sanctuary.

Your adversaries roared in your holy place;

            they set up banners as tokens of victory.

Yet God is my King from ancient times,

            victorious in the midst of the earth.

                        (Psalm 74:1-4,11)

In the second, the author of Hebrews reminds us that Jesus himself suffered our sufferings and prayed our prayers (indeed, his Prayer Book was the Book of Psalms).  He walked the way of the Cross not only to rescue us from sin, but also to drink to the dregs the pain of human life.

During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with fervent cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission.  Son though he was, he learned obedience from what he suffered.              (Hebrews 5:7-8)                   

And finally, two prayers from the Book of Common Prayer.

Lord Jesus Christ, we commend to you our brothers and sisters Cynthia, Sharonda, Ethel, Tywanza, Clementa, Myra, DePayne, Daniel, and Susie, who were reborn by water and the Spirit in Holy Baptism. Grant that their death may recall to us your victory over death, and be an occasion for us to renew our trust in your Father’s love.  Give us, we pray, the faith to follow where you have led the way, and where you live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, to the ages of ages.  Amen.

                        (BCP, p. 498)

O God, you made us in your own image and redeemed us through Jesus your Son:  Look with compassion on the whole human family; take away the arrogance and hatred which infect our hearts; break down the walls that separate us; unite us in bonds of love; and work through our struggle and confusion to accomplish your purposes on earth; that, in your good time, all nations and races may serve you in harmony around your heavenly throne; through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

                        (BCP, p. 815)

I ask that this Sunday, in all the parishes of the Diocese of Northern Indiana, prayer be offered for the victims, for their families, for the city of Charleston and all touched by this tragedy, and for our nation.  With all blessings I am

Yours in Christ,

+Ed