Love: God’s love for us tells us much about Him and less about us. That is because it is object-generated, not subject-elicited. In a similar way, who we love says more about us than it does about them. Note: We are to be characterized by this love and extend it even to our enemies.
Questions: A journalist once asked the Jewish writer Elie Wiesel, “I have noticed that you Jews often answer questions by asking another question. Why do you do that?” Wiesel responded, “Why not?”
March 11 and May 25: While not exactly 12.07.41 or 9.11.01, two dates recently joined their ranks: 3.11.20 is the day COVID became real (it’s on this day we learned that Tom Hanks and his wife, Rita Wilson, were infected and that the NBA was suspending its season). And 5.25.20 is the day George Floyd was killed in Minneapolis.
The Sins of the Preacher: It is said that you can tell what a pastor is struggling with by what they rail against. Perhaps. I try to be transparent—but not too transparent! However, it is not lost on me that during the last few weeks I have been writing, speaking, and thinking about resilience. Here it is again. Many of you will recognize this rift as soon as it starts, but it’s helpful to review all the same. “There was a man who faced a number of setbacks. In 1831, he tried his hand at business but the business went south; so in 1832 he tried politics but lost the election for a legislative seat; in 1833, he went back into business… and again, he failed, so 1834 he went back to politics and this time he was elected. But in 1835, his girlfriend died and in 1836 he had a nervous breakdown. In 1838, he picked up the pieces and tried to get elected legislative speaker… and failed. In 1840, he tried to get elected legislative elector but failed. In 1843, he ran for Congress. Failed. In 1846, he was elected to Congress, but in 1848 he lost his bid for re-election. In 1855, he was defeated for the Senate. In 1856, he was defeated for Vice President. And in 1858 he was again defeated for the Senate. If this were you, would you keep trying? He did, and in 1860 he was successful in his bid for the office of the President of the United States of America. Today, his picture is on every five dollar bill and his image is on every penny coined in the last 100 years.
Statistics: I got some blowback from last week’s list of stats. For those of you who sent me Twain’s quote – i.e., lies, damned lies, and statistics – I say, “yes.” Context and backstory change much. But my goal was (is) to introduce ideas that do not fit your narrative, whatever that happens to be. BTW after last week’s stats, one reader noted that one friend told her that she balances CNN with MSNBC. While another independently reported she balances FOX with Rush Limbaugh and Catholic Radio. I’d like to be invited to the dinner party where they get seated next to each other.
Resources: In an email to the church I listed a number of resources I found helpful on topics of race. The list is not comprehensive, nor did I claim to agree with every idea advanced. But I found these helpful and passed them along. I pass this same list on to you:
• Book: Divided by Faith: Evangelical Religion and the Problem of Race in America. When this book came out 20 years ago, it profoundly reshaped my understanding of my world. I have recommended it often.
• Short Video: Robin DiAngelo is the author of White Fragility. In this 7 minute video, she summarizes her book’s thesis.
• Longer Video: This past week I asked Dr. Peter Cha, a professor at Trinity, to lead our staff in a discussion about race. We video-taped his presentation, which I found very helpful. (My apologies for my introduction of Peter. This is what someone looks like when they have no idea they are being recorded!)
• Movie: Ten years ago I heard Bryan Stevenson speak, and I immediately set to work trying to line him up to speak at Christ Church. I failed, but only because he was so busy. I was thrilled when his story was turned into a major motion picture Just Mercy. It is streaming free on Amazon Prime Video during the month of June.
• Lecture / Discussion: This discussion between Tim Keller (best-selling author and pastor in NYC) and Bryan Stevenson is a wonderful way to process the movie.
Quotes Worth Requoting: “I object to violence because when it appears to do good, the good is only temporary; while the evil is permanent.” Mahatma Gandhi
Closing Prayer: “Lord, we pray this day mindful of the sorry confusion of our world. Look with mercy upon this generation of your children so steeped in misery of their own contriving, so far strayed from your ways and so blinded by passions. We pray for the victims of tyranny, that they may resist oppression with courage. We pray for wicked and cruel men, whose arrogance reveals to us what the sin of our own hearts is like when it has conceived and brought forth its final fruit. We pray for ourselves who live in peace and quietness, that we may not regard our good fortune as proof of our virtue, or rest content to have our ease at the price of other men’s sorrow and tribulation. We pray for all who have some vision of your will, despite the confusions and betrayals of human sin, that they may humbly and resolutely plan for and fashion the foundations of a just peace between men, even while they seek to preserve what is fair and just among us against the threat of malignant powers. Amen.” Reinhold Niebuhr (1892 – 1971)