Month: August 2020

Deconsecration

“‘The glory of this present house will be greater than the glory of the former house,’ says the Lord Almighty.’ And in this place I will grant peace,’ declares the Lord Almighty.” Haggai 2:9

For the second week in a row, I find myself turning to scripture as the foundation for a blog post. This reliance on scripture was never my intention when I started my blog back in 2016. I never envisioned this blog to be a “religious” blog per se.

Trusting tradition

In my religious denomination, by tradition, when a new church is built, before worship services can be held in that new building, the building and various other items used in worship and for offering the sacraments must be consecrated, blessed, and prayed over. Then the house built by mere mortals is prepared to be filled with the spirit and presence of God. It is transformed from the ordinary to the sacred.

I have experienced churches being consecrated but until yesterday, I had never been part of a deconsecration service. There is one statement – the DECLARATION OF DECONSECRATION – that reads, “This building, having been consecrated and named the _____United Methodist Church, together with the land on which it stands and all objects remaining in it, we now deconsecrate and release for any honorable use. We declare that it is no longer the place of meeting of a United Methodist congregation.”

God has left the building

And with that simple statement, the church building ceases to be a place of worship. The church’s congregation will have to find a new place to worship. Gone is all that was familiar, all that was sacred. God has left the building.

Being a person who stands on a foundation built upon hope, I resonant with the scripture above. What was, is no longer. No matter how glorious the former house/church was, what comes next will be even greater. I am, however, not certain the folks gathered yesterday to live through their church being deconsecrated completely shared my point of view and my sense of hope.

To those folks, that place of worship was so much more than a weekly gathering spot for friends and visitors. It held memories from years gone by, good years and bad, all witnessed by a faithful and resilient community of believers. In that building baptisms, weddings, funerals, confirmations, worship, and fellowship took place. It was the center of a community of believers – folks who were busy spreading the Good News of Jesus Christ.

How does one say goodbye

I once read somewhere that a goodbye is necessary before a new adventure can begin. How does one say goodbye? The scripture says that the Lord let the folks know the new place would be greater than the place they were leaving. They would be going to a place of peace. The leap of faith here is a belief that what was known and loved for so many years could be replaced by a new gathering spot – a place of peace. For displaced folks who are leaving their familiar worship spot, a place of peace seems like a promise that can’t be guaranteed. No one wanted to say goodbye.

The peace and comfort of the old building were built on things familiar. It was peace offered to strangers and visitors as well as to current members. It took years for that peace to be deemed trustworthy. Who knows what peace the next spot might offer?

There is a hymn sung in the church – “We Are The Church”. The first verse offers these words sung in unison – “The church is not a building, the church is not a steeple, the church is not a resting place, the church is a people.”

So why all this fuss then about consecrating and deconsecrating a building? Shouldn’t we instead be consecrating people to be holy instruments made to glorify God? Shouldn’t we be praying over individuals to empower them to carry the hope of peaceful places with them wherever they go?

My religious denomination affirms the sacred worth of all individuals. What I know about the people in the church that was closed for business yesterday is they are people of sacred worth who treat others based on that same understanding. They are a place of peace, individually and collectively. God’s promise of peace lives in them. They are the church.

A place of peace

Whether they stand on holy ground in a holy place or not, I am comforted and inspired by these folks who are moving to God’s “greater” place. They will be a place of peace. They will live into their new lives of service and ministry to the least, the last, and the lost.

Post Script

My blog’s theme is the “Power and Promise of Hope.” Hope is the power and the promise offered to you and me. Hope can be a place of peace and familiarity among folks who are seeking to build a greater place in their hearts and in their lives. I hope you can find such a place, such a people.

For the people of the Wesley United Methodist Church

Who Can Imagine This?

No one can look at a scene such as the one above and not feel overwhelmed. The magnitude of destruction and uncertainty defies adequate description. There is nothing one can say or do to minimize the devastating effect of the events that befell this town during one particular tornadic event.

It is amazing to me how quickly people begin to pick up the pieces, gather their thoughts, and get to the hard tasks of recovery, rebuilding, and renewal. People, still reeling with disbelief get on with the cleanup and rebuilding. All the while, they are waging their own secret inner storms.

There is a inner strength that humankind possesses that emerges at times like this. In a time of tragedy one has to consider how to answer the question – am I a victim or a survivor?” The question may not surface with those exact words, but similar thoughts begin the process of recovery.

And not all strong personalities become survivors. And not all weak personalities become victims. There is some inner force that comes to those who will survive.

This is not a blog post outlining the fundamentals of survival. It is, however, a blog post about hope and an individual’s sense of future.

In my faith tradition, I read in Romans 8:38-39 – “For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us, from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

It is in the assistance that shows up to help folks who have been through a cataclysmic event that points to divine love. Red Cross, volunteers, private and governmental assistance funds, and various agencies all show up to be part of the spirit of renewal. They stay until that spirit of renewal heals the hearts and minds of survivors.

Some believe that humankind is at its core, self-seeking and self-centered. But in times of tragedy, humankind proves itself to be much kinder and much more willing to be of assistance than we sometimes believe.

It is in moments of tragedy and utter hopelessness, that the inner hope and strength of others is unleashed. There are so many examples of folks setting aside their needs and wants and providing healing gestures to those in crisis.

This simple act of responding to people in need, people who have had unimaginable losses, this simple act of bringing hope to folks who struggle, this is a kindness we all possess. You and I have the ability to bring hope when it is needed. No sermons, no lectures, no instructions are needed.

We are all survivors and we are all victims. Those who have helped us see a way forward are the quiet people of presence who offer strangers love, care, and compassion. In these times when the world seems so divided and so confused, we can quietly step up and bring a healing presence of hope through random acts of kindness.

This is my faith at work. This is the faith that reminds me, I am not alone, I am not forgotten, I can and I will weather every storm. This is the power and promise of hope. This is the power and promise of finding a way to healing.

Can you imagine this?

Waiting for a Solution

“We started from scratch, every American an immigrant who came because he wanted change. Why are we now afraid to change?” Eleanor Roosevelt.

“We can’t be afraid of change. You may feel very secure in the pond that you are in, but if you never venture out of it, you will never know that there is such a thing as an ocean, a sea. Holding onto something that is good for you now, may be the very reason why you don’t have something better.” C.JoyBell C.

We all start somewhere in life, and at some point, we all have an end. For most folks, we go through various stages: childhood, teen years, our 20’s, 30’s and so forth and then we die. Why we move from stage to stage is a bit of a mystery to me.

For me, I moved from place to place, time to time, experience to experience because of nagging questions such as – how high are the Rocky Mountains, what’s it like to travel through Europe by train, do I want to marry this or that person, can I handle a promotion, would I be a better teacher than a 9-5 banker. I had to discover the answers to these questions.

I changed because the world around me offered me questions to which I sought answers.

To some of my friends and acquaintances, I am sure it appeared I was never really serious and committed to any one thing. Today, I admit my friends were right. As I was going through my life stages I never committed to anything. Yes, I have been and I am still curious about all sorts of things. I try them out till I am fully certain that given time, I could master the challenges of a particular new opportunity or job or skill. Then I move on to something else – all because I am not committed to the challenges. I am satisfied knowing that I could master the opportunities before me. I went from almost failing out of college to the Dean’s List, from working on Wall Street to teaching in a private school, to running a private school, to becoming a United Methodist Clergy person. Just moved from opportunity to opportunity, from degree to degree, from recommendation to recommendation.

Change happened by chance – a whim. I was curious about what was ahead of me, disinterested by what was alongside me, bored with what I had accomplished in the past. Change, for me, was for the sake of change – to keep from becoming bored with myself and uninteresting to others. It was my call.

TODAY’S CALL TO CHANGE

Change marched to my tempo, my time, my initiation. Now, however, change is being forced on me – the pandemic and its many constraints, the economy, irrational violence, distrust, factionalism, hunger, poverty, political gridlock, on and on the list goes. Life is invading my space, forcing me to change even though I am not all that eager to change at this point in my life. I deserve a rest. To be honest, I am afraid of the change that is being forced on me.

But the hope in all of this resides in the two quotes above. To paraphrase, our ancestors all came here because they wanted to change. They were not afraid of change. Perhaps I should stop being afraid of change. Letting go of what I have may make room for something I didn’t know I needed to explore. There are oceans I have never seen, mountains I have never climbed, people I have never met. They hold the future, my future. I have to change. I have to embrace change. There will be plenty of time for that rest I think I deserve.

I have faith that the troubles of this world are not really worth considering. My time ought to be spent on discovering new challenges. I can still face change unafraid and trust with my whole heart that harmony and ONENESS have not left the building. It’s time for me to stop being afraid. It’s time to trust in the power and promise of hope.

“Holding onto something that is good for you now, may be the very reason why you don’t have something better.”

The Real Power of Why

“The key to wisdom is this- constant and frequent questioning, for by doubting we are led to questions, by questioning we arrive at the truth.” Peter Abelard

The power of WHY lies in where the WHY question leads. It may lead to truth as Abelard suggests, but there may be an even greater use for the question WHY.

Image by Sambeet D from Pixabay

Many of us remember in our youth pestering our parents for the answers to our endless questions. Questions ranged from the esoteric “why is the sky blue?” to the practical, “why do I have to go to bed now?” Most of the time, my parents assented to my questions and attempted to give me satisfactory, if not complete, answers to the question – WHY?

But the real power of WHY lies in what occurs when the final answer we receive starts with “because I said so.” I can remember coming home one day and asking my mom if I could try out for the Pop Warner footbal team in our town. My mom’s immediate answer was “NO!” Then it began. “I asked why not?” My mom answered, “I think you might do better in another sport.” I shot back, “But why?” To make a long story short (and because I am certain you have had similar question and answer exchanges with your parents or another figure of influence), the inevitable response from my mom was spoken – “because I said so.” That was the end of the conversation. I dared not venture into questioning my mom any further. She had spoken.

I could not exist as a middle school-aged kid without more satisfaction from the questions I put to my mother and others. So the next time my mom and I got to the “because I said so” statement, I pushed it just a bit farther. In response to “because I said so,” I added another question, “what about my opinion?” My mom stared at me in disbelief. I had gone beyond the protocols, the boundaries she had set for our conversations. At first, my mom said, “because I said so and I am your mother.” I added the now familiar but ineffective “but all of my friends are doing… you don’t trust me, you don’t love me, you don’t care what my friends say about me.” I tried all of those lines of questioning seeking a stable rhetorical foothold so I could go beyond “because I am your mother and I said so.”

That’s when my mother stopped me in my tracks as she said, “because I love you and I don’t want to see you hurt.” Her answer to not letting me play Pop Earner Footfall was that she loved me and did not want me to get hurt. The hurt my mom was trying to keep me from was not only physical hurt but “psychic hurt” as the older kids would inevitably bully me because of my slight size and weight. She knew this, I didn’t yet.

What I eventually discovered in questioning adults, parents, teachers, coaches, ministers, and others who possessed some form of authority and power over me was their specific reason behind the “because I said so” response. My mother loved me, my teachers only wanted the best for and from me, my coaches wanted to challenge me, ministers wanted me to understand compassion, authority figures wanted to be certain I did not limit myself by breaking laws or local customs.

I learned the real power of WHY was in the conversations I had with folks who took the time and effort to help me understand growing up. When their concern was built upon love, or educating me, our helping me perform at a more skillful level, or making certain my choices in the future weren’t limited by serious past deeds, I realized these folks wished me no harm or to needlessly restrict or reign me in. Folks who go beyond “BECAUSE I SAID SO” and helped me see their honest concerns were the folks I would end up trusting and believing.

I came to understand that every decision my mother made concerning me was because of love. I did not always agree with her and it usually took some time before I saw the truth and the love behind her decisions and advice. Additionally, I ended up experiencing many of my teachers who attempted to challenge me to learn, to question, to think critically in whatever interests came along. Even on the rare occasion that I did something bone-headed and had the police bring me home to my parents, the police just wanted me to see the effects of my choices, within the confines, protections, and guarantees of the law.

The real power of why is that simple word WHY helps one discern who can be trusted and believed. It helps one discern the true motives and agendas of those whose jobs are to help us grow in mind, body, and spirit. To this day, when I meet someone who is willing to explain (and show) their concern for me, the genuineness of their concern becomes the foundation for new friendships and new insight.

The real power of WHY is teaching one how to trust so that in the end we can discern the truth just as Peter Abelard suggeted in the openiong quote.

Let someone know the truth behind your “because I said so” answers. Let them find in you a new and faithful friend who can be trusted and who can be believed.

POST SCRIPT – this post seems so naive and out of place in today’s world. Nowadays, when someone doesn’t like an aswer to their question, rather than seeking greater understanding between two points of view seeking to reconcile themselves, they go off without having experienced trust or new perspective, without perhaps finding a new trustworthy friend who seeks only the common good of all the folks involved. It seems easier these days to battle one another than to do the hard work of developing trust and understanding. I wish this were not so.

Becoming the Healer

Image by skeeze from Pixabay

“I never ask a wounded person how he feels; I myself become the wounded person.” Walt Whitman in Paper Lanterns.

When I was in eighth grade, my middle school principal asked me a very specific question – a question I have never forgotten.. He had a habit of dropping into classrooms unannounced and chatting with students. It was intimidating to be singled out for his questions. It was just the two of you – the principal and you before the whole class. When he called your name, you stood in his presence and waited for his question of the day.

On that day in particular I was at the chalkboard, at the request of my teacher, to explain how to solve what I then considered a very difficult math problem. So I was struggling with the math when Mr. Klein (name changed on purpose) very quietly entered the classroom and silently watched me as I nervously tried to explain the method and reasoning behind my solution. I was fairly confident I had arrived at the correct answer but my explanation apparently did not satisfy Mr. Klein’s understanding of my methodology.

His first question was direct and to the point – “Mr. Hutchison, are you certain that you have solved the problem correctly?” So I went for the gold., “Yes sir I am sure of my answer.” Mr. Klein shot back, “Are you certain enough of your answer that you would bet your life on your work and your solution? Would you bet your life on your thinking and your conclusion?”

Mr. Klein expected an answer. He wasn’t leaving until he heard my answer. “Yes sir, this is the right answer.” He turned to the classroom teacher who was taking great pleasure in seeing me on the hot seat (the reasons for that will be the subject of another blog post someday) and asked her, “Is Mr. Hutchison’s answer and his explanation correct? She too, was intimidated by the principal so she spoke in a low, subservient way – “Yes Mr. Klein, the answer and his explanation are correct.”

I thought I was off the hook – question asked and answered. I had firmly stood my ground before the principal. He was no match for me. I was just about to sit down at my desk when the principal came to my side and looked me straight in the eye. “Mr. Hutchison, you quickly agreed to bet your life that you had the correct answer. What if you had been wrong, with the wrong answer and the wrong explanation? Would you have kept your word and given up your life?”

Mr. Klein continued, “Here is a question I want you to seriously consider today, and as you grow older. What do you value enough that you would willingly sacrifice your life for it?” This was a rhetorical question as he continued without expecting me to answer this question. “Life is so very precious and you ought to be clear about the things for which you would sacrifice your one life,” Mr. Klein said. “So listen again to my question – what do you value so much that you would willingly sacrifice your life for it?’ He paused and then went on to explain – “greater love has no man than to lay down his life for a friend.” He asked me to repeat what he had just said – “greater love has no man than to lay down his life for a friend.”

I never forgot Mr. Klein’s question concerning what I valued enough to willingly, intentionally, sacrifice my life. And I never forgot what he said next, what I found out later was a scriptural reference – “greater love has no man than to lay down his life for a friend.” Later on in my life, I have studied that scripture and its context.

You and I meet people every day who are wounded in one way or the other – wounded in mind, body, or spirit. It is part of my being, insofar as I can, to help soothe the wounds and to offer what healing I can, to those who are wounded. Healing begins when we offer our presence to those who are suffering in any way. Healing begins when the wounded, suffering one knows that he or she is valued by another person – a person who is willing to be a companion on the road to healing, to the end of suffering.

It is a far cry from laying down my life for another to show one who is wounded some kindness and compassion. Every life should have a noble purpose. Mr. Klein, so many years ago, helped me define the noble purpose I have chosen. What do you value so much that you would willingly sacrifice your life? As you ponder that question – do all the good you can for as long as you can. Be a healer. Take on the wounds of another so that you and the other person can both be healed.