“Where’s The Church, Who Took The Steeple?”

“Where’s The Church, Who Took The Steeple?”

(With Apologies and Thanks to Jimmy Buffett) 

“Where’s the Church, who took the steeple, religion’s in the hands of some crazy ass people, television preachers with bad hair and dimples, the God’s honest truth is it’s not that simple.”  

These thought provoking words from singer/songwriter, and “theologian” Jimmy Buffett, along with the story of the healing of the Centurion’s servant in Luke 7:1-10 have led me into some serious reflection on my faith, Jesus and “who is in and who is out.”   

The Centurion, who is not a Jew, sends emissaries, Jewish Elders, to Jesus to ask a favor of him.  The elders point out to Jesus the faith of the centurion and his love for them, which includes the building of their synagogue.  Jesus has mentioned elsewhere in scripture that he has been sent to “the lost sheep of the house of Israel,” but he appears to have no problem in responding positively to the Centurion’s request.  Jesus’ actions seem to indicate that his purpose in coming to earth was more than just “helping us get to heaven.”  This passage of Scripture even opens up the question of the universality of Jesus’ ministry and therefore of the Christian Church today.  We are confronted with the question of Christian relationships with the 80% of the world’s population who are not Christian. 

The United States is certainly rife with religious pluralism.  Many Christians believe this is a good thing, and many Christians believe this is a very bad thing.  To quote Pontius Pilate, “what is truth?”  What do we believe, why do we believe what we believe and how do we live with those who believe differently?   

How, then, do we remain open to God’s movement among all people while remaining faithful to our relationship to God through Jesus Christ? 

I propose three steps.  You probably have others and I welcome those in response to this post.

·         First: What did Jesus Do?

o   He healed the Centurion’s Servant

o   He commented on the Centurion’s profound faith

o   He did not ask the Centurion to become a Jew 

·         Second: What do we see in the world?

o   The Alabama-West Florida District of Civitan International has asked me to be the Chaplain for the next Civitan year.  The incoming Governor reminded me that Civitan wants to make sure that in our prayers we remember that all Civitans are not Christians.  The Governor-Elect’s wife assured him that as an Episcopalian, I would probably be alright with that.

o   Some Radio and TV preachers proclaim loudly that those who do not believe in Jesus as their Lord and Savior are going to eternal punishment.  And unbelieving relatives of believers will spend eternity separated from their loved ones as well as from God. 

o   In short, the world gives us mixed messages. 

·         Third: What does Scripture say?

(Scripture can, of course, say almost anything and I have my preferences as much as anyone)

o   Isaiah 56:6-8: The foreigners who join themselves to the Lord, to minister to him, to love the name of the Lord, and to be his servants, all who keep the Sabbath and do not profane it, and hold fast to my covenant—these I will draw to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer. . . .for my house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples. 

o   John 3:16-18: For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not parish but may have eternal life.  Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.  Those who believe in him are not condemned; but those who do not believe are condemned already, because they have not believed in the name of the only Son of God. 

o   Luke 4:18-19: The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor.  He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind to let the oppressed go free, and to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor. 

The three scriptures I included give us several points to consider.  The reading from Isaiah suggests that God cares for all people. That God wants them to follow him, to serve him, and that all who do are welcome in “God’s House,” “A House of Prayer for all people.” 

John 3:16-18 gives me assurance of God’s love for me and for all of God’s people and that the possibility of eternal life is open to all of us.  It does get sticky and confusing when it suggests that the world might be saved through him and then hastens to add that if we do not believe in him we are, in fact, condemned already.  I am willing to believe that God can save the world for all, even those who are not followers of Jesus.  This is certainly a point where Christians of Good will can and will disagree. 

And finally, Luke 4:18-19, where Jesus quotes Isaiah, explaining God’s mission for him as Jesus understands it: bringing good news to the poor and freedom to the oppressed and proclaiming the year of the Lord’s favor, what one might just call the Kingdom of God.  It appears to me that Jesus’ mission as well as our own will include action on Earth as well as a desire to “go to heaven.” 

I close with a reminder that the word, believe, comes from the Latin word, “credo,” which does not mean to accept specific facts as true. Rather, “credo” means to “give one’s heart to.”  It seems to me that rather than having “right theology or right facts,” that “giving one’s heart to God is a much better starting place for our faith, including our relationship to God’s other Children.

The Communion of Saints, Part Two

The Communion of Saints

Part Two

I now reflect on and pray for Saints who I have personally known and whose lives have had a direct impact on my own. 

The two saints at the top of my list are Max and Fern Tidwell, youth leaders at Albertville, Alabama First Methodist Church in the 1960’s.  Max and Fern taught us to love God and God’s people.   They were never able to have children of their own and they loved those of us in the youth group with all of the love that they had to give.  That love has passed from them through all of us and on to people in our lives.  Another Saint in my life is Winston Walker III.  Winston was in this same youth group. He was born almost exactly a year before I was and I have literally known him since my birth.  Winston was one of the kindest and most caring people I have ever known.  He was thoughtful and even when he and I disagreed which we often did, especially about politics, he never ever acted superior or put down another person’s ideas or beliefs.  I thought of Winston this week because the Albertville High School Class of 1967 celebrated their 45^th Class Reunion and two members of that class, Cheree Collins Carlton and Dee Walker, Winston’s brother, placed beautiful flowers on our friend’s grave. 

The final saint I want to talk about, is Bennett Alford, Sr., my father, who died on October 8, 1985 of suicide.  For years I could not sing the song with which I began this post.  It was absolutely impossible because of the tears that flowed of their own accord from my eyes. 

Daddy was another one of God’s beautiful and so very human saints.  He did so much for so many people in our small town and all over the world, even though at times he was a troubled soul.  Daddy was the Scoutmaster of Troop 71 of the Boy Scouts of America and in that role influenced hundreds of young men who became teachers and preachers and doctors and lawyers and salesmen and pilots and engineers and filled so many other professions in our country and the world.  More important than the professions, however is the kind of people we all became.  People who loved their families as well as the stranger; people who made a difference in the lives of others in our world; I would go as far as to say, people who have helped bring about the kingdom of God, on Earth as well as in Heaven. 

Daddy’s death was traumatic for all of us, bringing up many more questions than answers and shrouding our world with sadness. I want to share a part of my journey through this “Valley of the Shadow of Death (Psalm 23). 

First, I do not believe that suicide is a sin.  I believe that stress and anxiety and mental illness cause death in many ways.  Sometimes it is a heart attack, or stroke or cancer.  Other times it can be an accident or suicide.  In Daddy’s case it turned out to be suicide.  I believe that in his In his depressed state, that the thought of living as long as his mother (85 years) or his grandfather (96 years) was just more than he could imagine.  I also came to know that he did not kill himself to hurt anyone or to get even with anyone, but that the joy that had filled his life and evaporated and that he could never imagine that it would return. 

Secondly, I got into therapy for the first (but not the last) time.  In fact, 27 years later, I still see a therapist once a mounth, and more often if needed.  I am also open to anti-depressants when necessary. 

Neither My journey nor my family’s journey are over nor will they ever be, but I want to close these reflections with a story of how Daddy and I found resolution over his suicide.  This story brings us back to “the Communion of Saints.” 

During the Summer of 1986, less than a year after Daddy’s death I worked as a Chaplain at Philmont Scout Ranch in Cimarron, New Mexico.  Philmont is a High Adventure Base serving Scouts and Explorers from All of the USA and the world.  The program is centered around backpacking, Western History, archeology and activities.  On a day off I was backpacking  alone (yes, I know this is dangerous).  I was at least on a well used trail where I would be found if I did get hurt.  But, back to the story:  hiking in this beautiful country to which I first came with my father, he and I started a conversation.  Believing in the Communion of Saints, I believe this can be done.  We ‘screamed and hollered” at each other.  I told him how angry I was at him and how sad we all were that he was no longer with us here.  He told me that he was fine and that he and I were fine and that he loved me. 

I cannot explain this, but what I do know is that this was one of the most real experiences of my life and has changed me forever. 

Today and every day, I give thanks for my father and for all the saints, living and dead, with whom I am surrounded, and I give thanks to God for “being knit together in the Communion of Saints,” and for the gift that “for God’s people, that at our death, life is changed, not ended.”

The Communion of Saints, Part One

The Communion of Saints

Part One 

“Almighty God you have knit together your elect in the communion and fellowship of the mystical body of Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Book of Common Prayer, p. 245)  This prayer for All Saints Day sets the stage for reflection on those who have gone before us and are now in the “nearer presence of our Lord.”  This past week I have reflected on those people in my life, those know, as well as unknown to the larger world, who are saints to me.  As I read the scriptures for All Saints Sunday and sang and hummed some of the hymns I spent some time with these “Saints of God.” 

In Psalm 24 we hear the following proclamation.  “The Earth is the Lords and all that is in it, the world and all who dwell therein.  The souls of the righteous are in the hand of God and no torment can ever touch them.”   

I find comfort and assurance in these words that God cares about this life, this world, just as much as God cares about life in the “world to come,” that this life is vitally important to God and therefore vitally important to us as well.  Therefore, what we do in this life matters, not just as a means of getting into heaven, but as the fulfillment of our mission of bringing about the kingdom of God, “on Earth as it is in Heaven.” 

To put this Communion of Saints into perspective I share with you Verse four of the hymn, “For All the Saints,” (p. 287, Episcopal Church Hymnal): 

            O blest communion, Fellowship Divine, we feebly struggle, they in Glory Shine,

            Yet all are one in thee for all are thine, Alleluia, Alleluia. 

Again, this Earth is important to God, what happens here is important to God, and those of us who still live on this Earth are connected to those “whose lives have changed but not ended.” (Book of Common Prayer, p. 382). 

And one last scripture from the book of Revelation:            

            For the home of God is among mortals. God will dwell with them and they will

            be His people.  Death will be no more and mourning and crying and pain will

            be no more. . . .See, I am making all things new. (Rev. 21:1-6) 

Seeing the connection between “the saints above and the saints below,” I want to reflect on some of those Saints, both famous and not, who have changed my life.  There is King David who God chose to build the kingdom of Israel, even though he was a murderer and an adulterer.  And Rehab the prostitute who saved the lives of Joshua and the other spies as they were preparing to move into “the Promise Land.”  In the Gospel of John we see the woman at the well who recognized Jesus as the one whom God had sent, even though she had had six husbands and the one with whom she was living was not her husband.”  How interesting that many of God’s Saints seem to have a shady side to them. 

Moving closer to our own day we see Dietrich Bonheoffer, a German Pastor who gave up a comfortable university position in the United States to go back to Germany and plot to assassinate Adolph Hitler, even though he “knew” he would go to hell for the act.  As most know, Bonheoffer was executed in a German prison just before the end of the Second World War.  Mother Teresa cared for the least of God’s people in India, even though there were many times she completely lost her faith in the God she never ceased to serve.

As important as these examples are to all of us, I now move in part two to those Saints much closer to home.

Eternal Life: How Do I Get It?

Eternal Life: How Do I Get It? 

As Jesus was setting out on a journey, a man ran up and knelt before him, and asked him, "Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" Jesus said to him. . . .You know the commandments: 'You shall not murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; You shall not defraud; Honor your father and mother.'" He said to him, "Teacher, I have kept all these since my youth." Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said, "You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me." When he heard this, he was shocked and went away grieving, for he had many possessions. (Mark 10:17-31)

I have often wondered if the man felt that he had, in fact, kept all the commandments from his youth and he was simply looking for confirmation from Jesus, “the teacher,” or if he really sensed that something was missing in his life that just completely alluded him. 

Whatever the case, Jesus cuts through the legalities and goes right to the heart of the matter.  Something, in fact, was missing.  Something was missing from the man’s life, or better said, something was in his life that blocked him from receiving the free gift of eternal life, the gift of the Kingdom of God.  The most telling part of the story, the part that shows us who Jesus really is, is captured in the words, “Jesus looked at him and loved him. . . .” 

Most of us remember the words which follow these words: . . . ."you lack one thing; go, sell what you own and give the money to the poor and you will have treasures in heaven; then, come and follow me.”  We have heard this story enough times that we know the ending by heart. That “he went away grieving, for he had many possessions. 

At first blush it appears that the man’s road block to the Kingdom of God is money, possessions, but the longer I live the more I realize that the roadblock is “whatever separates us from God. 

Many people in our time, the famous as well as the unknown, have given up many different things which blocked them from following Jesus.  Mother Teresa gave up everything; Dorothy Day, founder of the Catholic Workers Movement, gave up the father of her child and prestige; Dietrich Bonheoffer gave up status and position and finally his life; Martin Luther King Jr. gave up the opportunity for big churches, time, energy and his life. 

All of us can think of people in our own lives who have given up much to follow Jesus, who have given up much to find eternal life, to find the Kingdom of God, and to help bring about the Kingdom of God, on Earth as it is in heaven. 

The question for me, and likely for some of you is, “what one thing do I lack that God would have me give up?”  For some of us it may be “all of the above.”  For others, it may be wealth or respect or power or money or position, or even our lives.  What we are asked to give up will be different for each of us, but we can be sure that it will be whatever keeps us from serving God and our fellow human beings. 

Finally, I believe it comes down the words of the Prophet Micah asks the people of Israel:  

What does the Lord require of you but to do Justice, and to

love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God.” (Micah 6:8)

Jesus, Divorce the Church and the World

Jesus, Divorce and the Church and the World

Mark 10:2-12: Some Pharisees came, and to test Jesus they asked, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?" He answered them, "What did Moses command you?" They said, "Moses allowed a man to write a certificate of dismissal and to divorce her." But Jesus said to them, "Because of your hardness of heart he wrote this commandment for you. But from the beginning of creation, 'God made them male and female.' 'For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.' So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate."

Then in the house the disciples asked him again about this matter. He said to them, "Whoever divorces his wife and marries another, commits adultery against her; and if she divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery."

Every couple of years the above Gospel or a similar one from Matthew shows up as the reading for worship on Sunday.  It is my firm belief that in a society and in a congregation where over one third of the people present have been touched by divorce that a preacher must preach on this reading and not take the easy way out and preach on the Epistle or the Old Testament.

At 4:00 a.m. on Sunday morning, while drinking coffee and meditating on the day’s sermon, two thoughts from my past showed up in my mind.  I share them with you because I believe that are relevant to Jesus’ teaching on divorce in today’s church and today’s world.

The first unbidden story that entered my mind took place in 1974 when I was doing construction work, building a Monsanto Plant in North Alabama.  I recalled a discussion with several crew members in which one man asked: do we really want a governor who is an adulterer?  My response was that Governor Wallace’s wife had died and he was free to marry.  The response was based on the Gospel from Mark.  “Yes, but Cornelia is divorced, and by marrying her, Governor Wallace is committing adultery.”

The second story to enter my mind was about a family of the church in which I grew up, in which the children and parents had different last names.  It took several years for it to dawn on me that one or both of the parents had been divorced.  That just did not happen in 1960 in Alabama.  What I did understand was that the parents were two of the finest Christian people I knew and that their family was a place of love and care and safety

My reflections on Jesus, divorce and the people of God grow out of this unbidden memories from my past.

I believe Jesus taught against divorce for several reasons, including a desire for people to have strong, safe and caring relationships.  But I also believe that Jesus understand the reality of his day and time.  “What will happen to women if their husbands divorce them?”  (Women, of course, could not divorce their husbands).  The reality in Jesus’ day was that the women, if fortunate, could go home to their father’s family.  If not the two most likely possibilities were that they would become either beggars, or prostitutes in an effort to take care of themselves and their children.  I believe that Jesus had practical as well as spiritual reasons for his teaching.

Marriage was about many things in Jesus’ day, including responsibility.  Biblical marriage was also about property, even the admonition in the Ten Commandments had at least as much to do with the wife as property as it did with faithfulness.  Biblical marriage also allowed for multiple wives and concubines and for the stoning of women who were caught in adultery. (You may remember Jesus’ forgiveness of the woman brought to him for stoning.

Having briefly looked at our history, how does Jesus’ teaching apply to those of us who follow him today?  First, I believe marriage is a sacred commitment based on love and respect as we see in the Letter to the Ephesians 5: “husbands love your wives as Christ loved the church and gave himself for her. . . .wives respect your husbands.”  In today’s world that love and respect goes both ways.

Even though things are better economically today, there are studies that show that women very often end up worse off economically after divorce than men do.  So there are still practical considerations when divorce is an option in a couples lives.  I do believe that the respect must continue, even as couples look at going in two different directions.

As late as 1972 and 1973 the Episcopal church, of which I am a part used to excommunicate divorced people, baring people from communion and the fellowship of the church at the very time in their lives when it is needed most.  We have since realized that compassion is more important than judgment in the church.

The reality today is that some marriages need to end in divorce.  I say this believing that no one likes divorce, even people who have been or will be divorced.  There are simply times when two people need to acknowledge that a death of some kind as happened and that the healthy action for all concerned, even children involved in a family is to respectfully move on.  This is not to say do not work on your marriage through counseling and spiritual direction but that when a couple realize that they are doing more harm than good to each other, themselves and any children involved, that the loving act may be to end the marriage in as healthy a way as possible.

I close with my dream for couples who divorce.  I would love for them to come back to the altar where they were married and where they asked God to bless their marriage and where the people present promised to “uphold these two persons in their marriage.”  I would like to have those some people present, plus children and other loved ones promise to “uphold these two persons as they move in new and different directions in their lives.”  Then we would send them out with God’s blessing and God’s assurance to be with them all the days of their lives.”

 

 

 

 

Civitans: Helping People and Having Fun

Civitans: Helping People and Having Fun 

Four years ago I was invited to join a group of people to do some things to make our community better.  The group was the Greater Wetumpka Civitan Club.  I joined for several reasons:  I had been a Civitan 35 years earlier; I was a Junior Civitan in High School, My grandfather, father and two uncles were Civitans; my Boy Scout Troop was sponsored by the local Civitan club; and last but not least, of the 30 Charter members I knew only two. 

I spent this past weekend with almost 100 Civitans at the Alabama-West Florida District Convention at WindCreek Casino and Hotel in Atmore, Alabama.  WindCreek is owned and operated by the Porch Band of Creek Indians, a tribe native to Alabama.  As Civitans, we truly fulfilled our commitment to “have fun while doing good!” 

Before I sharing insights from the weekend, I want to share with you a little of what Civitan is and what Civitans do.                                                                                                                                         

Civitan International was founded by a group of businessmen in Birmingham, Alabama in 1912. Civitan has a focus on helping people with developmental disabilities, and funding research into illnesses of the human brain at the Civitan International Research Center, which is located at the University of Alabama in Birmingham.  However, local clubs do so much more.

Each Civitan club is different, but they all have one thing in common: Civitans help people, and have fun doing it.   The Civitan Creed which follows will give you a good idea who we are: 

Civitan Creed
I AM CIVITAN: as old as life, as young as the rainbow, as endless as time.

MY HANDS do the work of the world and reach out in service to others.

MY EARS hear the cry of children and the call throughout the world for peace, guidance, progress, and unity.

MY EYES search for others to join in the fellowship and service of Civitan.

MY MOUTH utters the call to daily duty and speaks prayers in every tongue.

MY MIND teaches me respect for law and the flag of my country.

MY HEART beats for every friend, bleeds for every injury to humanity, and throbs with joy at every triumph of truth.

MY SOUL knows no fear but its own unworthiness.

MY HOPE is for a better world through Civitan.

MY MOTTO: Builders of Good Citizenship

MY BELIEF: do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

MY PLEDGE: to practice the Golden Rule and to build upon it a better and noble citizenship. 

The Alabama-West Florida Civitan District encompasses the area roughly from Montgomery south to the Gulf Cost and includes the Florida Panhandle to just East of Panama City.  There are 21 active local clubs in the district with a membership of over 620 Civitans.  

This past weekend we met for fun, food, fellowship, and a sharing of awards and ideas and enthusiasm.  A few brave souls even put their reputations on the line by singing Karaoke, including District Governor, John Mike McCall and Past District Governor, James Jones. 

We met for business, for hearing of the good works done by the various clubs, including over 300 wheel chair ramps built by the Pensacola Club.  We heard reports on the Civitan Neurological Research Center at the University of Alabama in Birmingham.  Civitan International has already given over $13,000,000 to this cutting edge organization. 

Did I mention that we ate (several times) including a formal installation and awards banquet for our incoming officers?  We also had free time for a little video poker in the Casino, swimming in the pool and some of us even found time for a really good nap. 

We were privileged to have three Past Presidents of Civitan International at our Convention, Including Immediate Past President Gay Aaron who installed our club Presidents and new District Officers. 

I am just scratching the Civitan surface, but maybe, just maybe this will give you an idea what we are about, or pique your curiosity.  Find a club near you and join in with their work to make this world a better place. 

Oh, by the way, rumor has it that next year’s District Convention will also be at WindCreek.   Did I mention that I won enough money in the Casino to pay for one night’s lodging? 

Civitans, Helping people and having fun!

Looking Back, Moving Forward

Looking Back, Moving Forward

Reflections on Honduras Good Works, 2012 

After month at home I look back on Honduras Good Works, 2012 with fondness and joy and hope for the future.  Hope for the future of the Mission, hope for the future of the people of Honduras and hope for the continued giving and receiving of God’s blessings and the giving and receiving of God’s good works through the lives of the people of God.  The photographs attached to this post give just a small look at the people of Zarzal and their commitment to each other and to the Kingdom of God.  Incredible things happened, friendships were formed, and we all, I mean all, came away with a better understand of the covenant of baptism.  That is, that we are all joined together, not only with God through Jesus, but that we are all joined together with each other as well. 

The five of us on our team brought enthusiasm and took away skills and friendships.  The people of Zarzal brought skills, enthusiasm, a commitment to working together and a love for their church and their people.  They also took away friendships.  Friendships with the five of us and stronger friendships with one another, forged by working together for a common goal. 

I have some goals for the coming year.  I want to return with my team, hopefully a larger team that will include more people from St. Stephens and Beaumont, Texas, including several children who will give and receive and be ambassadors for the kingdom of God.  I also hope that my wife, Lynn, a Nurse Practitioner specializing in Women’s Health will be able to join the medical part of this very important mission. 

In an earlier post I mentioned the 140 Scholarships given to support secondary education in a country where this is normally limited to the larger cities.  I intend to become a financial supporter of this very important program as well.  Can you imagine the change that can take place in villages where all the young people have the opportunity to go past the sixth grade in School? 

My primary reflection on Honduras Good Works is that it is like a stone thrown into a lake.  The ripples just keep growing and going further out and further out until the entire lake is covered.  The longevity of this mission and the founders’ willingness to share the leadership and even to pass it on to others insure that this wonderful work in God’s name will continue for many, many years to come.

As I continue to reflect on this year and look with anticipation toward next year I leave you with some words of St. Paul, from the third Chapter of Colossians, which have shaped my attitude toward this important mission. 

12 As God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience.¹³Bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other; just as the Lord^* has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.¹⁴Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.¹⁵And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in the one body. And be thankful.¹⁶Let the word of Christ^* dwell in you richly; teach and admonish one another in all wisdom; and with gratitude in your hearts sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God.^*17And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. 

All I can add is Amen!