Wednesday, February 13, 2008
for the Bible tells me so
I saw this movie last week as part of the "It takes a Rainbow" conference on campus. The movie is SO good and features some of my favorite people like Bishop Gene Robinson and Archbishop Desmond Tutu. The film features several families and how they came to terms with their gay children, especially in light of all that the Bible reportedly says about homosexuality.
In reality, the Bible doesn't say anything, ever about homosexuality. The concept, much less the language, of sexual orientation didn't exist when the biblical writers were writing. Leviticus says it is an abomination for a man to have sex with another man, but so is eating shrimp. I can't take that command very seriously in the age or refrigeration and food thermometers which ensure I'm not going get food poisoning. Paul talks about men having sex with other men, but not as part of a loving, egalitarian, committed relationships. He's talking about what happens in Greek temples and perhaps, imperial orgies. I'm against it in that context, too. Or when it's a one night hook-up or an abusive use of force over another person (which Paul also would have been familiar with.) Watch the movie to hear more about these kinds of understandings of the Bible.
For me the movie is a great celebration of the power and liberation which comes when friends and parents and spouses and people themselves are free to be honest about who they are. Each story is about someone moving from a life of shadows, condemnation, and brokenness into a life of joy, wholeness, and love. I think that's what the Gospel is all about. It's what I see Jesus inviting his followers into when he heals them, or when he invites a woman to sit with him like any other disciple, or when he "proclaims release to the captive." Even in Rebecca's story in the movie, there is hope and redemption. It all comes from being honest and embracing God's full acceptance of all of us. We are all beloved of God and there is great power and freedom in knowing that. That's what the Bible tells me.
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
Vision
This past weekend I spent Saturday and Sunday with 21 other people working on our skills for multicultural dialogue and community. The training was led by Terry and Jim from Visions, Inc., an organization I became familiar with through my studies at Episcopal Divinity School. We talked a lot about race and gender and the many differences which too often divide us. You can imagine that some of us were apprehensive before the weekend began, and there were times when the conversations were difficult and challenging. AND we laughed a lot and got to know one another better. We were all tired at the end of Sunday afternoon (as we headed home to watch the Superbowl, or not!) We were also glad to have been a part of the training.
Multiculturalism is more than diversity. It's not merely tolerating others, or making sure everyone gets represented in the headcount. Rather, it's about appreciating the differences between us, valuing them and being enriched by them. Multiculturalism is about real relationship that challenges us to become more than who we are alone. And real relationship always involves conflict. It's inevitable that we're going to hurt and offend one another. Being committed to multiculturalism means becoming more aware of the ways in which I hurt others - knowingly and unknowingly - and of the ways in which I make assumptions about others based on stereotypes and preconceived notions. It also means learning to talk to one another about those conflicts.
It's not easy and it's not quick. It's an ongoing process that never ends. On Sunday evening I wasn't sure that I was up for an ongoing process! Do I really want to examine every interaction I have with someone else?! Not really. But I do want deeper relationships with the people around me who have so much to offer. I don't want to hurt others because I'm insensitive and unaware of the ways in which being white, straight, educated and employed gives me power and privilege in this society. I want to practice the self-giving love of Christ and step into the reign of God that is standing open before us. So, I'm committed to genuine multiculturalism that challenges me and makes it possible for me to better understand and appreciate those around me.
Multiculturalism is more than diversity. It's not merely tolerating others, or making sure everyone gets represented in the headcount. Rather, it's about appreciating the differences between us, valuing them and being enriched by them. Multiculturalism is about real relationship that challenges us to become more than who we are alone. And real relationship always involves conflict. It's inevitable that we're going to hurt and offend one another. Being committed to multiculturalism means becoming more aware of the ways in which I hurt others - knowingly and unknowingly - and of the ways in which I make assumptions about others based on stereotypes and preconceived notions. It also means learning to talk to one another about those conflicts.
It's not easy and it's not quick. It's an ongoing process that never ends. On Sunday evening I wasn't sure that I was up for an ongoing process! Do I really want to examine every interaction I have with someone else?! Not really. But I do want deeper relationships with the people around me who have so much to offer. I don't want to hurt others because I'm insensitive and unaware of the ways in which being white, straight, educated and employed gives me power and privilege in this society. I want to practice the self-giving love of Christ and step into the reign of God that is standing open before us. So, I'm committed to genuine multiculturalism that challenges me and makes it possible for me to better understand and appreciate those around me.
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Patriarchy
I've just returned home from a wonderful celebration in Hanford, Ca with the people of th Episcopal Diocese of San Joaquin. This was a momentous occasion because the bishop of the diocese recently encouraged and coerced the diocese to vote to join the Anglican province of the Southern Cone, because he believes the Episcopal church has gone astray in ordaining women and gays and lesbians. It's been an ugly situation but light is being shone on it and a new, healthier church is being built in San Joaquin. I am so privileged to be a part of it.
Since I'm new here, I haven't had to struggle under the bishop's leadership as so many have. He did tell me, when I met with him and requested a license to serve here as the canons require, that he would not allow me to serve as a priest in this diocese because I am a woman. But today I got to! It's odd that this is an exciting thing, that in 2008 my gender would still matter so much that it's significant that I was allowed to serve publicly as a priest today.
But patriarchy is alive and well. This is just my story about it. There are so many more people - women AND men, straight and gay, black and white, of every economic class - that are not allowed to be who they feel called to be because they are a threat to those with power OVER others. That's what patriarchy is about. Throughout history its often been men exerting power over others, but certainly women participate in patriarchy, too. It's not about the gender of the person holding power, but about how a person uses authority and power. Is it a weapon used to manipulate others? Is it used to make someone feel better than others, or to make up for a feeling of inadequacy? Is it internalized so that someone loses sense of even one's own value?
Patriarchy exists in all of our societies and in all of our religions. Many are working to undermine it, and today's celebration was a move in that direction. But let us not think that somehow we've overcome patriarchy. We have all learned its lessons too well. May we struggle to embrace the commands to love one another, to practice compassion for all living things, to spread shalom and salaam. May we all be willing to relinquish power over others so that we can all enjoy the true freedom of equality and dignity.
Since I'm new here, I haven't had to struggle under the bishop's leadership as so many have. He did tell me, when I met with him and requested a license to serve here as the canons require, that he would not allow me to serve as a priest in this diocese because I am a woman. But today I got to! It's odd that this is an exciting thing, that in 2008 my gender would still matter so much that it's significant that I was allowed to serve publicly as a priest today.
But patriarchy is alive and well. This is just my story about it. There are so many more people - women AND men, straight and gay, black and white, of every economic class - that are not allowed to be who they feel called to be because they are a threat to those with power OVER others. That's what patriarchy is about. Throughout history its often been men exerting power over others, but certainly women participate in patriarchy, too. It's not about the gender of the person holding power, but about how a person uses authority and power. Is it a weapon used to manipulate others? Is it used to make someone feel better than others, or to make up for a feeling of inadequacy? Is it internalized so that someone loses sense of even one's own value?
Patriarchy exists in all of our societies and in all of our religions. Many are working to undermine it, and today's celebration was a move in that direction. But let us not think that somehow we've overcome patriarchy. We have all learned its lessons too well. May we struggle to embrace the commands to love one another, to practice compassion for all living things, to spread shalom and salaam. May we all be willing to relinquish power over others so that we can all enjoy the true freedom of equality and dignity.
Wednesday, January 2, 2008
Unchanging Faith?
Unity in diversity is a wonderful thing, and we can often find it in suprising places, as I did while traveling before Christmas, in the interfaith chapel at D/FW airport. I had time to kill before my connecting flight and happened upon the chapel during my wanderings. It was about evening prayer time, so I stepped in, and found two men kneeling and praying facing Mecca. I sat in a back row seat and prayed, and then wished them a happy Eid as they left. They wished me a happy Christmas. It was really lovely.
Unfortunately, unity in diversity is often more difficult. I'm an Episcopalian, a priest in the American Christian denomination that finds its roots in the Church of England and is a part of the world wide Anglican Communion. (See links at right for more information.) This communion is in disarray right now. We've having trouble maintaining our unity in diversity, as you may have heard. Here in the Diocese of San Joaquin, the bishop has left this church to become a part of the Anglican Church that is located in the Southern Cone of Latin America. The bishop isn't actually moving to the Southern Cone, he just wants to head an outpost of that body here in California. He's trying to force the priests in his former diocese to do the same. And he's not alone. There are others, like him, who are upset that the Episcopal Church ordains women, like me, to the priesthood (and has been since 1977) and that we now are honestly acknowledging the holy and priestly ministry of gay and lesbian people in our body who serve as bishops, priests, deacons, and lay people. Notice that I didn't say we've "begun to ordain" gay and lesbian people. We've been ordaining them all along. We're just finally being honest about that and allowing them to be honest about who they are. Sounds like a move toward authenticity to me.
But not to everyone. And that's okay. We don't all have to agree on this issue. I think the church has to be honest and that we are called to be radically and wildly inclusive of all people. But not everyone is ready for that, yet. Not everyone was when Jesus said it about Samaritans, either, or women or tax collectors. That didn't stop him from saying it, and it didn't stop him from sharing meals with those who disagreed with him. That's unity in diversity.
But then, as now, those who disagree often separate themselves from the community. Few Pharisees chose to follow Jesus. And now those who are angry with the Episcopal Church are separating themselves. They're even planning a conference in Jerusalem to show their opposition to those who will be gathering in London for the Archbishop of Canterbury's Lambeth conference, held every ten years for all bishops in the Anglican Communion. Episcopal Life Online has a good story about it here.
In this article Presiding Bishop Gregory Venables, of the Southern Cone, is quoted as saying, "Our pastoral responsibility to the people that we lead is now to provide the opportunity to come together around the central and unchanging tenets of the central and unchanging historic Anglican faith."
This is odd to me, because our faith is anything but 'unchanging.' GOD is unchanging! Our faith hardly is. And I don't just mean the wanderings of faith and doubt that most of us experience; I mean what the church has taught throughout time, and more specifically, what the Anglican Church has taught. At one time, battles were fought over whether or not candles should be used in worship! There were battles over more significant things, too, like the Divine Right of Kings, and the faithfulness of the Roman Catholic Church. John and Charles Wesley began an evangelical movement in the Church of England which became the Methodist Church after their deaths. We disagree about the role and responsibility of bishops, the nature of ordination, the understanding of our central sacrament of Eucharist, or Holy Communion.
Faith isn't static. Our understanding of God is incomplete and so we're always growing, always re-assessing, always discovering new life in Christ. To suggest that our faith is "unchanging" is Pharisaical. It's holding on to some past definition of who we are and who God is and it shutters ourselves against any new movement of the Holy Spirit. I'm a part of a dynamic, ever-changing church which, at its best, is continually seeking greater understanding of Scripture, God, ourselves, God's mission in the world, and our role in that mission. May we be always more - not less - open to the change of God's transforming reign!
Unfortunately, unity in diversity is often more difficult. I'm an Episcopalian, a priest in the American Christian denomination that finds its roots in the Church of England and is a part of the world wide Anglican Communion. (See links at right for more information.) This communion is in disarray right now. We've having trouble maintaining our unity in diversity, as you may have heard. Here in the Diocese of San Joaquin, the bishop has left this church to become a part of the Anglican Church that is located in the Southern Cone of Latin America. The bishop isn't actually moving to the Southern Cone, he just wants to head an outpost of that body here in California. He's trying to force the priests in his former diocese to do the same. And he's not alone. There are others, like him, who are upset that the Episcopal Church ordains women, like me, to the priesthood (and has been since 1977) and that we now are honestly acknowledging the holy and priestly ministry of gay and lesbian people in our body who serve as bishops, priests, deacons, and lay people. Notice that I didn't say we've "begun to ordain" gay and lesbian people. We've been ordaining them all along. We're just finally being honest about that and allowing them to be honest about who they are. Sounds like a move toward authenticity to me.
But not to everyone. And that's okay. We don't all have to agree on this issue. I think the church has to be honest and that we are called to be radically and wildly inclusive of all people. But not everyone is ready for that, yet. Not everyone was when Jesus said it about Samaritans, either, or women or tax collectors. That didn't stop him from saying it, and it didn't stop him from sharing meals with those who disagreed with him. That's unity in diversity.
But then, as now, those who disagree often separate themselves from the community. Few Pharisees chose to follow Jesus. And now those who are angry with the Episcopal Church are separating themselves. They're even planning a conference in Jerusalem to show their opposition to those who will be gathering in London for the Archbishop of Canterbury's Lambeth conference, held every ten years for all bishops in the Anglican Communion. Episcopal Life Online has a good story about it here.
In this article Presiding Bishop Gregory Venables, of the Southern Cone, is quoted as saying, "Our pastoral responsibility to the people that we lead is now to provide the opportunity to come together around the central and unchanging tenets of the central and unchanging historic Anglican faith."
This is odd to me, because our faith is anything but 'unchanging.' GOD is unchanging! Our faith hardly is. And I don't just mean the wanderings of faith and doubt that most of us experience; I mean what the church has taught throughout time, and more specifically, what the Anglican Church has taught. At one time, battles were fought over whether or not candles should be used in worship! There were battles over more significant things, too, like the Divine Right of Kings, and the faithfulness of the Roman Catholic Church. John and Charles Wesley began an evangelical movement in the Church of England which became the Methodist Church after their deaths. We disagree about the role and responsibility of bishops, the nature of ordination, the understanding of our central sacrament of Eucharist, or Holy Communion.
Faith isn't static. Our understanding of God is incomplete and so we're always growing, always re-assessing, always discovering new life in Christ. To suggest that our faith is "unchanging" is Pharisaical. It's holding on to some past definition of who we are and who God is and it shutters ourselves against any new movement of the Holy Spirit. I'm a part of a dynamic, ever-changing church which, at its best, is continually seeking greater understanding of Scripture, God, ourselves, God's mission in the world, and our role in that mission. May we be always more - not less - open to the change of God's transforming reign!
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
Eid-al-adha
Tonight begins the celebration of Eid-al-adha, or the Festival of Sacrifice, the Muslim holiday that marks the end of the hajj, the holy pilgrimage to Mecca. There are lots of good places to learn about Eid-al-adha on-line and off. During this holiday the story is told of Abraham's willingness to obey Allah and sacrifice his son Ishmael. Rather than require Abraham to take his son's life, Allah provides a ram for the sacrifice. The hajj itself is a sacrifice of worship, so it makes sense that Abraham's story is recalled at this time.
Jews and Christians tell a similar story, but instead of Ishmael, Isaac is the son bound to the altar. This festival, then, and this story, illustrates both our unity and our divisions as "people of the book." Ishmael is the forebear of Muslims while Isaac is the forebear of Jews and eventually Christians. The grief of the division within Abraham's family between Isaac and Ishmael is visited upon their children centuries later who are still divided.
Perhaps a way out of this division (while respecting our differences) is through the story of the sacrifice itself. The point of both versions is that Abraham is obedient to God even to the point of killing his own son. While not a model of healthy family relationships, it is a lesson in humility, love, and trust. Whatever Abraham's own convictions toward his child, he stands under the authority of God, obedient but also trusting God in whatever may come. And then God shows Abraham that he does not require human sacrifice - a common practice among other religions of the time. He is not a bloodthirsty God, but a merciful one. Loving the people of God above all else.
If any of us are to truly follow God we too must be willing to sacrifice whatever God asks, but because of this story of Abraham, we can trust that God does not require blood, but love. We're asked to pour ourselves out, whether in pilgrimage to Mecca, or in generous love during Christmas or in trust of God's faithfulness during Hanukkah and throughout the year. These values unite us across our real differences.
Blessings to all who celebrate Eid this week and all who look forward to time with loved ones this season.
Jews and Christians tell a similar story, but instead of Ishmael, Isaac is the son bound to the altar. This festival, then, and this story, illustrates both our unity and our divisions as "people of the book." Ishmael is the forebear of Muslims while Isaac is the forebear of Jews and eventually Christians. The grief of the division within Abraham's family between Isaac and Ishmael is visited upon their children centuries later who are still divided.
Perhaps a way out of this division (while respecting our differences) is through the story of the sacrifice itself. The point of both versions is that Abraham is obedient to God even to the point of killing his own son. While not a model of healthy family relationships, it is a lesson in humility, love, and trust. Whatever Abraham's own convictions toward his child, he stands under the authority of God, obedient but also trusting God in whatever may come. And then God shows Abraham that he does not require human sacrifice - a common practice among other religions of the time. He is not a bloodthirsty God, but a merciful one. Loving the people of God above all else.
If any of us are to truly follow God we too must be willing to sacrifice whatever God asks, but because of this story of Abraham, we can trust that God does not require blood, but love. We're asked to pour ourselves out, whether in pilgrimage to Mecca, or in generous love during Christmas or in trust of God's faithfulness during Hanukkah and throughout the year. These values unite us across our real differences.
Blessings to all who celebrate Eid this week and all who look forward to time with loved ones this season.
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
Standing up for ourselves
In just a few rash, stupid, uncontrolled moments, he threw away his life and that of another person. He thought he was “getting even” or “standing up for himself” or “claiming his rights,” but he was really giving them all away, giving away his whole life. He’ll now spend the majority of his life following the orders of prison wardens. He’ll wear what they tell him to wear; he’ll eat what they give him to eat, when they give it to him. He’ll sleep, bathe, exercise, and work when, where, and how the prison tells him to. All because he felt the need to stand up for himself…with a gun… by shooting two other people. One of whom died.
Loyer Braden got in a fight and was spat on.* He was mad; who wouldn’t be? And so he found the guy later and had another fight. Clearly he didn’t feel he was making adequate headway in winning this argument. So he went and got a gun, and decided to fire “into the air to scare” the people or person he was mad at. Except, one guy was shot in the ankle and one young woman was shot in the stomach, twice. She died yesterday. And now Braden won’t just be charged with attempted murder, but with actual murder, or manslaughter, or whatever the lawyers come up with. It’ll be something that sends him to prison for a long time, where all his freedom is gone, and all he’s left with is the thought of this one irrational act.
I’ll pray for Shalita tonight, the young woman who died. And for Loyer who shot her. And for Nathaniel, the young man shot in the ankle. And for us – that we will learn from Loyer’s terrible mistake. That we won’t be so rash. That we’ll stop and think before resorting to violence to “stand up for ourselves.” That we will somehow learn to have a long view of the arguments that so disrupt our days; that we’ll learn to let go of them, so that they don’t become the controlling factor in our lives, as this argument has now become in these three people’s lives, and the lives of their families.
*The News-Journal article describing the incident.
Loyer Braden got in a fight and was spat on.* He was mad; who wouldn’t be? And so he found the guy later and had another fight. Clearly he didn’t feel he was making adequate headway in winning this argument. So he went and got a gun, and decided to fire “into the air to scare” the people or person he was mad at. Except, one guy was shot in the ankle and one young woman was shot in the stomach, twice. She died yesterday. And now Braden won’t just be charged with attempted murder, but with actual murder, or manslaughter, or whatever the lawyers come up with. It’ll be something that sends him to prison for a long time, where all his freedom is gone, and all he’s left with is the thought of this one irrational act.
I’ll pray for Shalita tonight, the young woman who died. And for Loyer who shot her. And for Nathaniel, the young man shot in the ankle. And for us – that we will learn from Loyer’s terrible mistake. That we won’t be so rash. That we’ll stop and think before resorting to violence to “stand up for ourselves.” That we will somehow learn to have a long view of the arguments that so disrupt our days; that we’ll learn to let go of them, so that they don’t become the controlling factor in our lives, as this argument has now become in these three people’s lives, and the lives of their families.
*The News-Journal article describing the incident.
Monday, October 1, 2007
Lamenting Violence
For the second Monday evening in a row, those of us gathered in the chapel for Evening Prayer today will pray for a student that has been shot and the campus community shaken by this violence. I can only begin to imagine the grief of Taylor Bradford's family in Memphis tonight.
These aren't just news stories to me, and not only because I work on a college campus. I know both these campuses. I lived in Delaware and Memphis and I've been on both campuses. I have very dear friends who work at Memphis State and I know how hurt they are that their campus has experienced such violence. I know it without even talking to them because we are part of a religious community of prayer. I know that they are also praying for Bradford's family and for peace in their community.
I want to shake my head and ask how such violence could happen. But the truth is I'm not that surprised anymore. As a campus chaplain I feel some obligation to help our students learn tools other than violence. But it seems such a futile effort when everywhere around us we are surrounded by violence. Why should college campuses be any different?
A colleague reported physical abuse of her child to authorities over the weekend. The death toll in Iraq continues to rise each day. Even as Archbishop Desmond Tutu and former President Jimmy Carter meet in the Sudan to try to find a way to peace. Tonight I will pray that they will find a way, and that all the rest of us will learn from their example.
May Taylor rest in peace and rise in glory.
These aren't just news stories to me, and not only because I work on a college campus. I know both these campuses. I lived in Delaware and Memphis and I've been on both campuses. I have very dear friends who work at Memphis State and I know how hurt they are that their campus has experienced such violence. I know it without even talking to them because we are part of a religious community of prayer. I know that they are also praying for Bradford's family and for peace in their community.
I want to shake my head and ask how such violence could happen. But the truth is I'm not that surprised anymore. As a campus chaplain I feel some obligation to help our students learn tools other than violence. But it seems such a futile effort when everywhere around us we are surrounded by violence. Why should college campuses be any different?
A colleague reported physical abuse of her child to authorities over the weekend. The death toll in Iraq continues to rise each day. Even as Archbishop Desmond Tutu and former President Jimmy Carter meet in the Sudan to try to find a way to peace. Tonight I will pray that they will find a way, and that all the rest of us will learn from their example.
May Taylor rest in peace and rise in glory.
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