Thoughts About What the Reaction to Yordano Ventura's Death Says About the Needs of Kansas City

FYI: I've neglected my blog in recent months, so I'm posting some stuff I've sent out to my church during that time.  This explains why some of the links and topics are somewhat dated.  Here they are for the purposes of posterity.  This one was written on January 27, 2017.

Last Sunday, those of us who pay attention to the Royals--and let's face it that's pretty much everybody after they won the World Series--were shocked to learn of pitcher Yordano Ventura's death in a car accident.  Maybe it's a slow sports week, but I've been shocked at the outpouring of grief by Kansas Citians over Ventura's death.  I agree it's sad and worthy of mourning, but the cynical part of me has to wonder if the AM sports radio hosts who are bursting into tears would do so if the Chiefs were headed to the Super Bowl.  Also, how much is there to say about KU basketball's triumphs and Mizzou basketball's meltdown?  What else were they going to talk about this week?  Yet even the slow sports news cycle doesn't really explain the reaction I've seen all week in KC.

Ventura's death in a car accident really is tragic and it's just sad--he was only 25.  Yet, it wasn't as if he was the most beloved of the Royals players.  In fact, even his 100 MPH fastball wasn't enough to stop many fans from railing against his frequent fights, both verbal and physical, with opposing batters.  These weren't feisty stick-up-for-the-home-team fights but rather young, immature and pointless fights which sometimes cost the Royals wins.

But he was a part of the team that won the 2015 World Series and therefore he is something more than the sum of his parts.  After decades of waiting, the Royals were indeed champions once more.  I took my kids downtown for the parade along with hundreds of thousands of other folks from the KC area.  The parade was peaceful and positive.  It was a great moment for our city where everyone was dressed in Royals blue.  We were all together as a city.

I don't know about you, but I feel like I could use a feel good moment right about now.  I think Kansas City could too, and so could our country and maybe our world.  

I don't know anyone, no matter their political and/or religious stripe, who isn't struggling to maintain a relationship with someone with whom they vociferously disagree.  The weight of our culture's current fear and hostility is palpable.  The spew of political separation, nativism, isolationism, racism, xenophobia, homophobia, transphobia and every other kind of -ism and  phobia politicians can cause is pretty much non-stop over the last few weeks.  Throw that on top of whatever it is a person has to deal with--economic, health, employment, relational struggles--and it's enough to make you want to go pull the covers up over your head and sleep for a month.

I think Yordano Ventura's death is worth grieving, but I think the communal grief in our city is about more than one man's death.  In the same way people mourned Princess Diana's death or the deaths of Prince or David Bowie, we are mourning a loss of another time and place that seems, at least in retrospect, more peaceful and joyous.

Sports, celebrities, rock stars, etc. really don't matter that much, except they do.  We place meaning upon them, and our grief when they die says at least as much about us as it does them.

So what does a church called by God to live out God's healing love do in response to a hurting community, city, nation and world?

Last Saturday morning about 30 of us gathered together to talk about just that question.  Sure, we called it the un-inspiring name "strategic planning," but really we were asking the question: "What does our church do in response to a hurting world?"

When asked our shared values as a congregation, almost unanimously everyone said we are welcoming and accepting of others.  Yet, not too many other shared values were expressed.  I couldn't help but wonder, "So, we welcome and accept people--that's no small thing, but then what?  What comes next?  What more is there that we do--that we are?"

If the reaction to the death of a baseball player tells us anything, it tells us that there's a lot of hurt out there in Kansas City right now.  How is God calling us to respond?

Grace and Peace,

Chase

Recommended Reading 1-6-17

FYI: I've neglected my blog in recent months, so I'm posting some stuff I've sent out to my church during that time.  This explains why some of the links and topics are somewhat dated.  Here they are for the purposes of posterity.

Regularly, if somewhat spasmodically, I share a list of things I'm reading, watching and listening to with my congregation.  If I remember to do so, I also post it here on my blog:

2016

• Really good words from the December 31 UCC daily devotional (have you subscribed to it yet?  If not, you should do so) to end the year on to help balance out all the negative feelings about news in 2016.
• 2016 Was the Year White Liberals Realized How Unjust, Racist, and Sexist America Is--The final paragraph is the kicker.

2017

• "Rev. Barber:  A "Moral Center" not a "Religious Left" Will Save Us in 2017"--How nice would it be if, as Rev. Barber says, battling poverty, combatting racism and working for social justice were no considered "liberal" religious ideas but rather a "moral center" to any faith which has integrity. 2016 demonstrates what happens when Christians make denying women the right to control what happens in their own bodies and denying rights to LGBTQ people the sum total of their understanding of what it means to be a moral Christian.

Christmas

• "Believing Despite Grievous Suffering" by Molly Marshal, President of Central Baptist Theological Seminary

The Incoming Trump Administration

• This is a good explanation by an evangelical author of why the "Prosperity Gospel"--of which Trump is a fan and whose proponents will feature in the inauguration--is outside the bounds of pretty much any responsible reading of the New Testament. I hate to sound cynical, but given the immense popularity of people like T.D. Jakes, Creflo Dollar, Benny Hinn, and Paula White--most evangelical Christians don't seem to have read the Sermon on the Mount and aren't at all concerned what Jesus' teachings about sacrificial love actually mean. Is it any wonder that a president like Trump would surround himself with religious people who declare that if you are sick or poor then it is all your fault?
• "Houses of Worship Poised to Serve as Trump-Era Immigrant Sanctuaries"--The Religious Right likes to claim their kind of Christian is persecuted, but this is what it means to risk persecution in Christ's name while serving those whom our government considers to be the "least of these." 

LGBTQ

• "The New Battlegrounds for LGBT Rights Under Trump"-- It's going to be an ugly year when it comes to the rights of LGBTQ people. In the statehouses and on Capital Hill things look bad, and if those of us who love LGBTQ people and believe they deserve equal rights under the law don't want to see all the gains of the last few years lost, then we will have to march and protest. Kansas and Missouri look especially grim.
• "MO Baptist lawmaker seeks to remove the state from marriage debate"--It's fascinating that those who wanted to use the government to enforce their religious understanding of marriage--at least when it comes to same gender marriage--on this side of the Obergefell Supreme Court decision now want government out of the marriage business. It sounds great to me. I've always thought that the government is really only concerned with child custody, property and taxes, so having a government "contract of domestic union" as these conservative Missouri Baptists propose works just fine for me. Let religious groups call whatever relationships they want "marriage" according to their own understanding of the term, but let government worry about government stuff. As long as the government applies it equally to heterosexual and homosexual relationships then I'm good with it. Every time I sign a marriage license I'm aware I'm doing a task for the government, and I would be just fine keeping it out of my religious obligations as a minister.

Syrian Refugee Crisis

• "Churches connect Christmas story to refugee crisis"--Great story about churches of different types who nonetheless put the Gospel above scaremongering about refugees..

Other Stuff I Think is Cool

• Good words in yesterday's UCC daily devotional (you should subscribe if you haven't done so already): the dangers of liberal Christians looking like the "Pharisee" in the Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector--self-righteous and smug in our own superiority rather than humble recipients of God's grace. 
• Nice thoughts about what Carrie Fisher meant to so many people and how her public vulnerability was liberating to hurting people.
• Remembering Huston Smith, Noted 'World's Religions' Scholar--excerpt from an interview on NPR's Fresh Air
• My wife passed along this video of Norah Jones singing her song "Peace" to our 13yo as he went back to school this week. It turns out I needed to hear it too. I share it here for anyone else who needs to worry less today.
• William Christopher, Father Mulcahy on ‘M*A*S*H,’ Dies at 84--Father Francis Mulcahy is the best Christian character ever in tv or film. I was pleased to read about all his advocacy for people with autism--quite admirable.
• "Theologian says God not in control"--Frank Tupper's theology of providence, theodicy and suffering remains the best I've ever read.
• "Seminaries Part Of Metro's Secret Sauce" by Bill Tammeus
   

You can find more stuff that I think is worth reading, watching and listening to by following me on Facebook and Twitter.

Recommended reading 12-23-16 edition

FYI: I've neglected my blog in recent months, so I'm posting some stuff I've sent out to my church during that time.  This explains why some of the links and topics are somewhat dated.  Here they are for the purposes of posterity.

Regularly, if somewhat spasmodically, I share a list of things I'm reading, watching and listening to with my congregation.  If I remember to do so, I also post it here on my blog:

Christmas

• "Bringing Christmas Back Down to Earth"--Great thoughts from one of my favorite writers, Parker Palmer, about how to celebrate the joy of Christmas with so much frightening political news
• "What Grieving People Wish You Knew at Christmas"--Good words and good advice on how to respond to people grieving during the holidays.

The Incoming Trump Administration

• "Trump on the future of proposed Muslim ban, registry: 'You know my plans'"--If this "Muslim registry" does come to pass not only will I protest it but I will also register on it. I hope every Christian who practices love of neighbor as oneself would do the same--along with all people who believe similarly.
• "How to Talk to a Trump Evangelical at Christmas Time"

LGBTQ

• "Threats, bullying hit family of KC transgender girl on cover of National Geographic"--The girl in question is named Avery Jackson.  She and her mother have been to our church.
• "Trans girl from KC makes history with her National Geographic cover"--the original story about Avery
• "How to Help the Transgender Community Amid Spike in Suicide Hotline Calls"

Syrian Refugees

"3 Ways to Help Aleppo for Real"

You can find more stuff that I think is worth reading, watching and listening to by following me on Facebook and Twitter.

Christmas Therapy

FYI: I've neglected my blog in recent months, so I'm posting some stuff I've sent out to my church during that time.  This explains why some of the links and topics are somewhat dated.  Here they are for the purposes of posterity.

It's not always appropriate for the minister to share her or his struggles with their congregation.  Despite the intimacy between clergy and congregation, there's just stuff a minister needs to share with a select audience and to find support from sources that respect the boundaries that make good ministry happen.  So, I'll just share this much--it's been a challenging year for my family and I've struggled with finding joy this Christmas.

Four weeks ago before the first Sunday of Advent, I realized I hadn't ordered new candles for the Advent wreath and last year's candles were down to puny little stumps.  Thank God J. Donnelly Catholic book store is only a short drive away--and thank you Catholics for being able to sustain a brick and mortar store in this virtual economy!!!  While I waited for the clerk to bring the candles up from the back, I scanned their inventory.  Amidst the bazillion Mary statues, the myriad saint medals and confirmation tchotchkes (and yes, the tacky figurines of Santa kneeling at the manger--I already have two of them in my tacky Jesus collection, so I resisted the urge to buy another), I spotted a small book laying on the counter.  

The book is one of those kind that are put out by the press of a various monastery or abbey--I always imagine some poor monk or nun cranking up an ancient printing press (but they probably outsource it to Malaysia now).  It's titled Christmas Therapy by Karen Katafiasz.  I have an aversion to anything resembling Christian self-help, but for some reason I picked it up and looked at it.  It contains thirty thoughts for the day about Christmas paired with an almost schmarmy but somehow still charming illustration of elves struggling to enjoy Christmas.  Granted all the elves seem to be Caucasian and heterosexual, but it's an American Catholic bookstore, what can you expect?  At the back there is a listing of an entire series of "Elf Help" books.  The name "Elf Help" made me laugh out loud for some reason.  I can't speak for any of the others, but this one touched a spot deep down in my Grinch-y heart.  

So, I bought it--for my wife, Jennifer--not for me, no sir!  I thought she might enjoy it, since she's much more disciplined about reading daily meditations, yoga, prayer, and pretty much everything else than I am.  She suggested that we could read it together each morning and simply sit with the thought for a moment and if anything comes to mind worth sharing we would do so.  It sounded like a lot of effort to me, but I agreed--trapped by my own generosity which happened to mask my own needful-ness.   

It turns out a little "Christmas Therapy" has been pretty darn helpful.  I don't mean to project that what has been helpful to me will be helpful to you this Christmas, but I pass it along, just in case you, like me, wish joy would come a bit easier this Christmas.  Here are a few of the daily thoughts that were meaningful to me:

#1--"Christmas is more than a deadline or a day on the calendar.  It is a journey of the spirit--from darkness to light, from chaos to peace, from separateness to the union of love."

#4--You don't have to fulfill others' expectations about what Christmas should be.  Consider whether your plans and preparations will enhance your celebration or whether they're only a response to family or cultural pressures.  Free yourself to create a more meaningful observance.

#6--Simplify your celebration.  Big is not always best.  Expensive is not always valuable.  Time-consuming is not always lasting.  

#10--Relinquish superhuman efforts to produce Christmas-card-perfect holiday celebrations.  Christmas is about God becoming human--not humans becoming gods.  

#11--Relinquish expectations for holidays that are without conflict or problems or challenges.  Christmas is about God embracing human life--with all its shortcomings, mistakes, and struggles.

#17--Take care of yourself during holiday family gatherings.  Sometimes family togetherness doesn't feel good because of negative patterns that started long ago.  Stay centered and detach yourself from old unhealthy behavior.

#22--If this Christmas season is not all it was in former years, remember that in God's time all the joy and wonder of the past are present in this moment too.  Happiness once experienced is yours forever.  

#23--When death or distance or circumstance separates you from loved ones, keep them close in thought.  You may want to celebrate a ritual in their honor or change your familiar routine to ease the pain.  

#27--Christmas is God's affirmation of the goodness of being human.  Honor the sacredness of your own humanity by experiencing life deeply and passionately.

I hope to see you on Christmas Eve, but I know many of you are travelling or are spending important time with family, so be good to yourself, be good to others, remember Emmanuel means "God with us" and God is with you no matter what your Christmas does or does not look like.

Grace and Peace,

Chase

Before You Give To Charity This Christmas Ask Yourself Why?

FYI: I've neglected my blog in recent months, so I'm posting some stuff I've sent out to my church during that time.  This explains why some of the links and topics are somewhat dated.  Here they are for the purposes of posterity.

It's that time of year--Christmastime--when we are approached on all sides by charities requesting money.  The Salvation Army bell ringers greet us as we enter stores.  Our jobs ask us to contribute to the "Adopt-a-Family" fund.  Car dealerships offer to give $100 to the charity of your choice when you buy a new car.  Radio stations hold toy drives.  You know the drill.

Do you ever ask yourself why all this charity is necessary?

Recently the director of a non-profit Christian ministry shared with me an experience from early in her career.  She worked for a charity where they offered a "Christmas Store" for low-income families who couldn't afford presents at Christmastime.  The "store" idea was that families could "shop" the donated items and pay a small amount for them so that it preserved some element of pride in the process.  There's nothing necessarily wrong with the idea, but the well-meaning Christian volunteers who "checked out" each family when they finished would say with all sincerity, "Merry Christmas!  See you next year."  See you next year?  There's an assumption behind that statement which says these families' conditions will not change for the better in the coming year and one year from today they will need help once again.  

My friend's story stuck with me, because in my seminary days I ran a "Christmas Store" for a group of churches near Richmond, VA.  For four years I ran the store, and it never occurred to me to consider why the same people came every year.  I was too busy working to set up the store, line up the volunteers to run it, collect the donations from churches and shop with the cash donations given to the cause.  I was so busy running this charitable event, it never occurred to me to wonder why it was necessary in the first place or why nothing ever seemed to change for these families.  I'm ashamed to admit it, but if anything, I was grateful many of the same families needed help year after year.  It made my work easier.  I could just copy and paste names from one year to the next.  I gave no thought to justice and why these families' life conditions remained stuck where they were.  Truth be told, I wasn't thinking about those folks being worthy of the same life I enjoyed.  I wasn't really seeing them through God's eyes.  I'm sure they were grateful for what they received, but I wonder what, if anything, could have happened if I and the many well-meaning Christians running that Christmas Store would have put some thought into why our work was necessary in the first place.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not urging you to refuse to give to charities at Christmastime, far from it.  The need is great all year round but the need is often most cruel during the holidays.  Most non-profits I know plan their annual budgets based on what people give between Thanksgiving and Christmas, because that's when people are most likely going to give.  There's nothing wrong with giving to charity, provided it's a good one.

Giving to charity, however, rarely solves the problems of poverty, racism and injustice.  The need charities exist to meet should cause us--especially those of us who claim to follow Jesus Christ--to consider why that need exists in the first place.  

• Why are their so many homeless people and why don't enough homes exist for them?
• Why are impoverished families often situated in the same areas of a town or city?  What is in the history of that town or city which pushed all these poor folks into a specific area?
• Why are there so many African American families living in poverty?  If we are in a supposed "post-racial" culture, why is it that so many black people remain segregated in economic ways from white people?  Are we really past the multi-generational effects of Jim Crow and racial segregation in housing?
• Why are there so many families with family members in prison?  Why is it that we don't feel any safer, but our prisons are overflowing?  Why is it that people who aren't white typically receive longer jail sentences than people who are white?
• Why is it that the so-called "War on Drugs" puts more people in prison but drugs remain the same problem as always?  
• Why are there so many families with children who either go hungry on any given day or are not food stable--meaning their food supply could be cut at any time?
• Why are their so many people living in poverty who nonetheless work full-time jobs and work at those jobs really, really hard?
• Why are transgender people more likely to be homeless, the victims of violence and denied healthcare?
• Why is it that so many people are forced below the poverty line due to the cost of necessary healthcare?
• If Christians really love our neighbors as ourselves and see others as created in the image of God, why are we content only to give to charity rather than working to change the conditions that make giving to charity necessary?

The questions go on and on, but we rarely ask them much less seek answers to them.

So, give to charity.  Give generously this Christmas.  As you do, say a prayer for God to open your eyes, to bring you new understanding to awaken your spirit to the questions of Christian social justicej.  When you remember the Christmas story, remember that Jesus was born to a family at the mercy of political and economic conditions beyond their control.  The story demonstrates that God is at work amidst the power of injustice and oppression, so God's people should be awake to the activity of the Divine.

Recommended Reading 11-16-16 edition

FYI: I've neglected my blog in recent months, so I'm posting some stuff I've sent out to my church during that time.  This explains why some of the links and topics are somewhat dated.  Here they are for the purposes of posterity.

Regularly, if somewhat spasmodically, I share a list of things I'm reading, watching and listening to with my congregation.  If I remember to do so, I also post it here on my blog:

Stuff I Referenced in My Sermon Last Sunday on Positive Ways to Respond to the Election

• "An Experiment in Love: Martin Luther King, Jr. on the Six Pillars of Nonviolent Resistance and the Ancient Greek Notion of ‘Agape’"--If you, like me, are struggling with how to respond to the election of Trump/Pence, MLK offers wisdom of what to do and more importantly what not to do.
• "Pro Unity and Pro Voice: Catholics in the Age of Trump"--by the "chaplain" of the Colbert Report, James Martin, S.J.

Responses to the 2016 Election

• A great sermon given on the Sunday after the election by Edith Guffey, Kansas-Oklahoma UCC conference minister
• "In the wake of Trump's election, a meeting in the Ladies' Room"--A great conversation between two female ministers--one black and one white--about what the election says about the struggles of women today.
• "The End of the Post-Racial Myth"

Analysis of the Election Turnout

• "A Closer Look at Trump Country" (On Point with Tom Ashbrook)--Interesting program on white blue collar Trump voters. Of course, race is an issue (it always is), but there are a lot of other factors going on like decline of community institutions (e.g. churches), breakdown of families, impact of globalization and rise of China, stagnant wages, the opiode epidemic, etc. Interesting thoughts about why some of the same voters who went for Obama in 2008 went for Trump in 2016.
• "The Politics of Rural Resentment"--(WNYC's The Brian Lehrer Show)--another good program on white working class voters, this time in Wisconsin--a social science professor shares research on why the same voters who voted for Obama in 2008 voted for Trump in 2016

Fake News and the Election

• "Snopes' Field Guide to Fake News Sites and Hoax Purveyors: Snopes.com's updated guide to the internet's clickbaiting, news-faking, social media exploiting dark side."--Snopes.com is always the best place to check if that thing your crazy uncle just posted on-line is actually real or not 
• This election season I've accused conservative friends of sharing news stories from fake news sites, and of course they pointed to examples where I've shared stories from fake news sites that lean liberal. I hate it when that happens! This is a good list of fake news and clickbait sites--I see not only conservative ones but also liberal ones that I see being shared by FB freinds all the time. Take a look and beware what stories you share. (This was made by a media studies prof--read an interview with her where she explains the different kinds of sites on the list--and CCCUCC member and poli-sci prof Michael Smith swears he fact checked it).
• "My ˜fake news list' went viral. But made-up stories are only part of the problem."  Melissa Zimdar, the media studies prof who compiles the list of fake news and clickbait sites (see previous bullet points) has a good column in the Washington Post regarding the problems with so much of what is shared on social media that passes for news.

Sports and Social Justice

• "Amid anti-immigrant tide, lamp of liberty shines on KC refugee kids in soccer program"--Vahe Gregorian of the KC Star continues to write some of the most thoughtful stories about the difficult issues of our times, and he's using sports as a lens to make that happen. This article on refugee kids in KC playing soccer is a great example of his recent work. 
• "Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith makes important statement with tiny safety pin"--another thoughtful column from Gregorian
• "Bucs receiver who sat during anthem over Trump speaks for many in sports"--it's a trifecta for Gregorian, here's another good story mixing sports and social justice

Other Stuff I Think is Cool

• "7 Tips for Reporting Live Via Your Phone From Anywhere"--tips from the ACLU on how to use your cell phone to protect your civil rights and those of others 

You can find more stuff that I think is worth reading, watching and listening to by following me on Facebook and Twitter.

A Letter to My Church the Day After the 2016 Election

Dear CCCUCC folks,

I don't know about you, but I spent a sleepless night stunned, angry and fearful after watching the election results come in.  Church members whom I have seen today have expressed variations on feelings of sadness and anger regarding the election.  Yet, I suppose that even in our church, not all share the same feelings regarding the election.

I'm very aware that there are plenty of people out there for whom the election results were good news.  I try not to make generalizations about the political leanings of our congregation.  We may be a congregation made up of folks who largely lean leftward politically and religiously, but we do cherish diversity of thought and belief.  Just as there are always political liberals who sit quietly in more conservative churches, so also, I assume there are political conservatives who remain quiet in ours.  So, I want to be mindful of those who do not share my feelings regarding the election.  If that's you, please know of my love for you as your minister.  I recognize that people cast votes for all kinds of different reasons.  The love we share from our God is greater than our differences.

If you, however, share my feelings of sadness, anger and confusion regarding the outcomes of yesterday's election, then I have some thoughts for you.

1.  God is not dead.  That may seem like an obvious thing to say, but sometimes we can lose perspective.  God is bigger than any particular election outcome.  The words of the Psalmist seem ever more true to me today:

God is my light and my salvation;
    whom shall I fear?
God is the stronghold of my life;
    of whom shall I be afraid?

Even politicians we may vote for will nonetheless disappoint us, but God remains faithful and true.  (For instance, I voted for President Obama twice and respect and admire him and agree with many decisions he has made, but not all.  His administration's policies toward undocumented immigrants have been seriously unjust in my opinion and the huge numbers of deportations that have broken up families--far more than the previous Bush administration--are a stain upon our national conscience.)  All political administrations are imperfect and broken, because the people who make them up are likewise imperfect and broken.  Yet, the purposes of God for justice and equality, peace and wholeness are not vanquished by one party or another.  God is still at work in our society and world.  Whatever our feelings at the moment, we should seek out where God is at work and there we will find hope and peace.  If you and I are open to the work God is doing all around us, then we can claim the words of the prophet Isaiah as our own:

Surely God is my salvation;
    I will trust, and will not be afraid,
for God is my strength and my might;
    God has become my salvation.

With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation. And you will say in that day:

Give thanks to God,
    call on God's name;
make known God's deeds among the nations

2.  There are lessons to be learned from this election.  The level of racism, sexism, nativism, homophobia, transphobia and scapegoating has been alarming during this campaign season and the audacity in which candidates have reveled in blatant demonization of others is more than horrifying.  I believe our new president-elect trafficked especially in this language of oppression.   The leaders of our denomination, The United Church of Christ, said it well in today's pastoral letter:

Mr. Trump was able to win this election in spite of clear evidence from him of racism, homophobia, xenophobia, misogyny, and Islamaphobia. This was so blatant that many of his own party's leaders could not endorse him. Many who voted for him knew this, and yet their fears about what is happening in their lives overrode their distaste for his bombast.  In their search for a leader not connected to the power base of a government that has been perceived as corrupt, inefficient, and out of touch - his populist rhetoric appealed to them. He must now lead a country where people of color, women, Muslims, immigrants, the disabled, and an LGBT community all feel the sting and impact of his public speech.

Any who believe we have somehow moved past the evils of yesteryear when it comes to racism and sexism have no excuse any more for keeping their blinders on.  We are a culture awash in white supremacy, patriarchy and heterosexism.  

One church member shared with me today that in his job he talks to people all over the country and for weeks he knew the polls were wrong, because what he was hearing amounted to a victory for our new president-elect.  What I believe he was hearing was a deep cry of pain from many people who feel trapped by economic and political forces which have devastated their lives.  The divide between rich and poor which also amounts to the divide between urban and rural is the unspoken topic of this election season.  (If you don't know what I mean by this, I highly recommend the audio series by the public radio program On the Media "Busted: America's Poverty Myths.")  

When there is deep pain, humans too often look for salvation in the wrong place.  Human history is full of leaders who prey upon the pain of their people.  This pain is real, and unfortunately people in pain choose to scapegoat others--usually those in the minority--as the source of their pain.  This pain must be responded to with love rather than by choices to likewise scapegoat and demonize others.  If those of us who feel hurt by this election respond in kind to those we feel have demonized and attacked us, then we are no better than those we disagree with.  The words of the writer of 1 John are especially true the day after election day:

We love because God first loved us. Those who say, “I love God,” and hate their brothers or sisters, are liars; for those who do not love a brother or sister whom they have seen, cannot love God whom they have not seen. The commandment we have from Jesus is this: those who love God must love their brothers and sisters also.

3.  Now is especially time to care for the wounded and marginalized, the outsiders and the excluded.  Those who feel distraught because of this election have a choice whether or not to wallow in their feelings of despair or to respond with love.  There are people all around who have felt particularly targeted by the Trump campaign. Many are fearful for their safety and their family's safety today.  I'm thinking particularly of Muslims, immigrants, LGBTQ people and African Americans.  Whether they will be carried out or not, specific threats have been made towards these communities and they deserve support.  Seek out your friends, neighbors and coworkers who live in fear this day.  Share with them of your care for them and your support of them.  Reassure them they are loved.  Turn your fears into acts of love for others who are afraid.  I often am asked to read these words from Ecclesiastes at weddings, but they should be meditated upon whenever we are called to be friends to one another:

Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up the other; but woe to one who is alone and falls and does not have another to help.

4.  Our church is needed now more than ever.  One of the things that has encouraged me this day has been our community of faith at CCCUCC.  

This morning my inbox contained e-mails from church members encouraging one another with poetry and songs and telling of their decisions to do something today that is positive and that gives light and life to others.  

This morning I visited a church member in the hospital recovering from surgery and although she was thankful for my visit, I was the one inspired by her strength and determination.  She expressed her gratitude for her church and the many who have been praying for her.  She has drawn comfort from your support.  

I am remembering the words of Rev. Cynthia Meyer who preached on Sunday.  Even though she has been denied the right to serve as a minister in her denomination because of her sexual orientation, she could preach at our church, because of the freedom and inclusion we practice.  She encouraged us to be "beacons of light" to a world shrouded in shadows of despair and pain.  Her words reminded me of the founders of our congregation who chose to put a star on top of our building, because they wanted our church to be a light to the world.  

When the Religious Right loses in political elections, they do not give up.  They work harder to organize and build their movement to promote a narrow view of God and to see that understanding of God promoted by the state.  I think trying to be a "Religious Left" is a losing game (we are called to a much bigger work of God's peace and justice than merely being a response to those on the religious and political far-right), but I do believe that people who believe in a God of love and welcome and grace must likewise organize and spread an alternative understanding of Christianity.  Similarly, I believe people who believe in a pluralistic society that not only tolerates difference but promotes mutual learning and understanding across religious and cultural boundaries must work harder than ever to create such a society.  People of all faiths and no faith who believe there is room for all in our society must find one another and work together.  I believe our church is uniquely suited to such work and the God we experience together calls us to do it.  The writer of Colossians speaks of God "reconciling all things to God's self" through Christ's example of sacrificial love.  Our world desperately needs a vision of Christianity that believes God is about reconciling all things together rather than one which professes God is out to destroy those whom they say are evil.

4.  Think hard about how you are using your energy and what you are putting into your consciousness and what you are filling your soul with.  If the discomfort you feel does not prompt you to greater acts of love, then God is not in it.  If you find yourself pulling away from others and having no space in your heart to hear the perspective of someone that differs from your own, then you are pulling away from God.  Let your discomfort, anger and sadness motivate you to care for others, demonstrate the love of God to others and create spaces where others find peace and opportunities for wholeness.  With God's help, you can be the one who is generous to others with whom you disagree even if they choose not to be generous to you.  You will find the emptiness you feel inside filled with the joy of being useful for God's work of reconciliation.  

It takes strength of will to resist the siren call of angry rhetoric and self-righteous declarations.  Today I had to make a decision to not get onto social media and not watch or listen to or read the news, because I was in a state where I was in desperate need of input that would give me hope and faith rather than anger and arrogance.  Be attentive to the state of your soul and allow things in which lead you to greater love.  This is what Paul wrote about when he said:

Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. 

I awoke this morning thinking of one of my favorite poems, "The Peace of Wild Things" by Wendell Berry.  The beginning lines seemed to match my feelings: 

When despair for the world grows in me
and I wake in the night at the least sound
in fear of what my life and my children's lives may be

It's as if he wrote the poem for how I felt after the election.  Yet, he goes on to describe what he does in such moments:

I go and lie down where the wood drake
rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.
I come into the peace of wild things
who do not tax their lives with forethought
of grief. I come into the presence of still water.
And I feel above me the day-blind stars
waiting with their light. For a time
I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.

I think Berry is on to something that Jesus taught when he urged his followers to "consider the birds of the air. . . and the lilies of the field" in order to live in a state of faith and peace because of God's care for us.  

To sum up, if today you feel attacked, alone or afraid, please know if you are receiving this e-mail you have a church that cares for you and you are loved.  

No matter how you feel about the election, I hope you will take to heart the words of Sharon Watkins, General Minister and President of our sister denomination the Disciples of Christ: 

"To those who are rejoicing, we recall '... but (if I) have not love, I gain nothing.' (I Cor. 13:3.) To those who are fearful this day: 'Perfect love drives out fear.' (I John 4:18)  

May you be moved to greater acts of love and peace trusting in our Creator and Sustainer who is our ultimate source of hope.

Grace and Peace,

Chase