An All Saints Day Letter from our Presiding Bishop

November 1, 2007
Dear sisters and brothers in Christ:
On this All Saints Day we remember the saints who have gone before us and give thanks for their lives of faith and commitment. I particularly ask you to join me in giving thanks for all whose faith has led them to take a stand on civil rights,including Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King, Jr., and the thousands of others, including many clergy and lay leaders in this church,who risked and sacrificed because of their belief that all people are made in God's image.
As presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America(ELCA), I am deeply troubled by the number of incidents in thelast three years that involve symbols and acts of racial hatred. I write to you today with grave concern about the "spiritual crisis concerning race relations" that we continue to experiencein this country. This spiritual crisis affects both church and society and calls us to respond with the urgency and strength as those who have gone before us. As the ELCA social statement,"Freed in Christ: Race, Ethnicity, and Culture," says, "We aretorn between becoming the people God calls us to be and remaining the people we are, barricaded behind old walls of hostility."
Today, public displays of nooses as well as acts of kidnapping, torture, and sexual assault are replacing burning crosses assymbols of racial hatred. Nooses are intentional symbols ofracial hatred tied to slavery and lynching during the "Jim Crow"(i.e., racial segregation) era of this country's history. Use ofthese racial symbols has increased in recent months, intended tocreate fear and intimidation in communities of African Descent.In addition, racial profiling by law enforcement continues. Aparticular concern is "DWB" (driving while Black or Brown) and"DWM" (driving while Muslim), shorthand phrases for police stopsof people of color.
Through that social statement, this church calls upon its leaders to "name the sin of racism and lead us in our repentance of it"and to "persevere in their challenge to [this church] to be in mission and ministry in a multicultural society." It also calls this church to a time of public deliberation, asking all of us to:
+ Model an honest engagement with issues of race, ethnicity, and culture, by being a community of mutual conversation, mutual correction, and mutual consolation;
+ Encourage and participate in the education of young people,[so] they might be better equipped to live in a multicultural society; and
+ Bring together parties in conflict, creating space for deliberation. This social statement also calls this church to public witness and says, "Participation in public life is essential to doing justice and undoing injustice. Only when people affected by racial and ethnic division speak publicly of painful realities, does there emerge the possibility of justice for everyone."
On this All Saints Day, I call on members of this church of all races to remember and give thanks for those who have gone before us, especially those who have suffered from racism and injustice,and to stand in opposition to this evil spreading across our country.
Let us together:
+ Pray for racial reconciliation and peace;
+ Encourage all ELCA congregations to be in conversation with each other about issues of racial justice and reconciliation;
+ Engage, listen to, learn from, and build relationships with people of color--those most affected--in our communities;
+ Speak out against hate crimes and other racial injustices in our communities and work to strengthen legislation that supports and protects civil rights; and
+ Amplify our voices by signing up for ELCA E-Advocacy to receive information about opportunities to speak.
On this All Saints Day, "Therefore, we confess our sinfulness.Because we are sinners as well as saints, we rebuild walls broken down by Christ. We fall back into enslaving patterns of injustice. We betray the truth that sets us free. Because we are saints as well as sinners, we reach for the freedom that is ours in Christ."
Mark S. Hanson
Presiding Bishop

HAPPY REFORMATION DAY!

It was on this day in 1517 that Martin Luther posted a copy of the 95 theses on the door of the castle church in Wittenberg, Germany. (It makes sense he would have done that, the church doors were the community bulletin boards of the day, and there would have been a crowd coming for All Saints Day on November 1st). So, today is celebrated as Reformation Day.

Celebrations of the Protestant Reformation don't exactly shine, compared to all of today's Halloween festivities, but the message of the Reformation is still important. One of the slogans of the Reformation still rings very true today: Semper Reformanda - always reforming. The church is always in need of reform, always in need of dying again in Christ and being rasied from the dead, so we might be truly free. After all, the church is US - the people, individuals called into community, to love and serve God and neighbor.

So before you go to bed tonight, give God thanks for the ongoing work of the Holy Spirit through faithful reformers, teachers and all of us regular, ordinary Christians.

(For extra fun, read "On the Freedom of a Christian," which Luther wrote in 1520.)

Churching Around

Here's the latest edition of "Cafe: Stirring the Spirit Within." Café is a web-based monthly magazine that explores contemporary issues of interest to young women. It is a resource for women who want to build and deepen their sense of Community, Advocacy, Faith, and Enlightenment. For women who identify as Christian, it incorporates a Lutheran faith perspective. It's always thought provoking, and of course men may find it interesting, too...

Still stuck on Lazarus and the Rich Man

I missed our weekly text study this week. My husband and I got a precious 45 hours in Seattle to visit our new nephew and see my family; the decision to skip text study wasn't a difficult one to make.

However, since I'm not preaching this weekend, I haven't read the Lectionary texts assigned for the 19th Sunday after Pentecost yet, and am still thinking about last Sunday's Gospel reading. The parable about the rich man and Lazarus.

Here's a thought provoking article about the parable. I commend it to you. (I subscribe to Christian Century -a great magazine).

Amos on a Monday Morning

I subscribe to "God Pause," a daily devotion from Luther Seminary. This week's devotions are being written by one of my seminary roommates, who now serves a congregation in Maryland. Paige is on the money with this one.


Monday, 9/24/2007
Amos 6:1a, 4-7 (NRSV)
1 Alas for those who are at ease in Zion, and for those who feel secure on Mount Samaria; 4 Alas for those who lie on beds of ivory and lounge on their couches and eat lambs from the flock and calves from the stall; 5 who sing idle songs to the sound of the harp, and like David improvise on instruments of music;6 who drink wine from bowls and anoint themselves with the finest oils but are not grieved over the ruin of Joseph! 7 Therefore they shall now be the first to go into exile and the revelry of the loungers shall pass away.

Amos offers a bracing prophecy for a Monday. As we begin the work week and get caught up in earning a living, Amos forces us to examine how we use the riches God has placed in our hands.
Alas for those who lie comfortably on custom-made beds, lounge in front of HDTVs and eat takeout several times a week.
Alas for those who drink the priciest wine and anoint themselves with the best the mall has to offer.
Like the Israelites in Amos's time, we anesthetize ourselves with pleasures so we don't have to be grieved over the world's troubles or moved to help the poor. The prophet reminds us that our material comforts will not last. Our revelry will pass away.
As we jump into another week, Amos calls us to orient our hearts to God, who provides all that we need and frees us to share it.

Gracious God, subdue my desire for those things that do not last. In the death and resurrection of Jesus, you have given me the only gift that will not pass away. Open my eyes and free my heart to use whatever you will place in my hands this week to serve others in Jesus' name. Amen.

Paige G. Evers
Lord of Life Lutheran Church, Edgewood, Md.
Master of Divinity , 2001

Automatic Pronouns

Yesterday was the fifth anniversary of my ordination to Word and Sacrament ministry. In other words, I've been a pastor for five years now. In those five years, some things I hoped would change have changed, and some haven't.

It was about 10 years ago that I told my parents I was serious about going to seminary to pursue ordained ministry. Of course they wanted the best for me, and for me to be the best I can be. So, in typical fashion, my dad had some "words of wisdom" for me, always delivered at times I was least able or willing to hear them. The usual line was, "Lindean, if you're going to be a pastor, you're going to have to ______" and then he would fill in the blank with whatever he saw as suitable correction to my current situation. It most often sounded something like this: "Lindean, if you're gonna be a pastor, you're gonna hafta be nicer to your sister." "Lindean, if you're gonna be a pastor, you're gonna hafta get organized and stay organized." "... you're gonna hafta... " "...you're gonna hafta..."

To be honest, I finally got sick of it, and replied with equal venom, "Dad, I AM gonna be a pastor, and you're gonna hafta get used to it."

And the amazing thing is, he has. I'm the first pastor in my family, and they're used to it now. After all, I'm not THEIR pastor: I'm their daughter, or sister, or sister-in-law, or niece, or whatever. And they've learned that capable pastors can indeed be "she."

Unfortunately, I continue to wait for that last bit of learning to be true of the rest of the church - even (especially) the ELCA.

This last week I was visiting another congregation about 30 miles from here. I'd never been there before, but was a bit early for my meeting, so I greeted the receptionist and had a seat. An older gentleman, a member of that congregation, was having a conversation with the receptionist about clergy and congregation size. He expressed admiration for a congregation of 420 members who have two full time pastors, and asked me about my congregation. I said I'm from SOV, and that for about 1500 members we have two full-time pastors and a diaconal minister. He replied, "Oh, two pastors and a woman." And he turned back around to address the receptionist.

I corrected him, and said, "Actually, I'm one of the pastors." He looked a little surprised, but didn't apologize for his error.

I understand that women have "only" been ordained in the ELCA for 37 years now, but I still get frustrated every time the generic reference to pastor is "he." Pronouns seem to be automatic for so many vocations, and that implicit communication gets under my skin every time. Doctor? He. Scientist? He. Nurse? She. Aargh!

I wonder what it will take for all of us to let go of our assumptions about who God calls to do what.

I pray the Holy Spirit will help us use our language to communicate well and faithfully. And that she won't delay in doing so.

PS - If hearing any member of the Trinity referred to as "she" disturbs you, please note that the word for "spirit" in both Hebrew and Greek is a feminine noun.

Another SOV Blog

Audrey Keller, our new Director of Youth and Family Ministry, has begun a blog of her own. I am proud to link to it here, and will add it to our regular "link" list over on the left -->.
Her blog offers updated info on our youth & family ministries and programs, as well as her thoughts on life and the world. I commend it to you...