Loving One Another Includes the Immigrant and LGBT

I had a bit of a hard time picking out a Scripture for today's blog post. My choices were not very good. I really did not want to write about adultery, plucking eyes out or divorce as today's Divine Office Gospel was Matthew 5: 27-37.

This upcoming weekends Gospel of John 13: 31-35 is just what the doctor ordered after the last two weeks. Particularly where Jesus said: "I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." (34 and 35).

In case it has not been said yet, last I heard every person in this country is an immigrant. In fact, not only are we all immigrants who's ancestry is part of another nation, but for many in the Native American Community, we are all land thieves. There is no single person here in the United States who has any more business being here than anyone else. Yet, because of the graciousness of God who has chosen to bless us as a people despite our history of prejudice and barbarianism we have been allowed to prosper and advance in technology, politics, religion and infrastructure. But if all of us are honest, we have all had to find our place in society to make a life for ourselves. No one has had it easy, everyone has had to work hard. Some people have barely had the opportunity to begin. Others have been fortunate to have the way made for them from day one.

The news of Arizona's new immigration law has been heart breaking. It should strike us all as being not only bad, but down right outrageous. We do not gain the respect of other people and nations, by trampling upon the rights of others to pursue happiness and safety. We do not exhibit Gospel like behaviors when we place immigrants and people within our own country at risk for racial profiling. The concern of the progressive news media has been correct, and I thank them for highlighting the danger of this kind of practice.

The Rt. Rev. Kirk S. Smith, Episcopal Bishop of Arizona has written of his deep concerns about the new immigration law.

My Dear Spanish-Speaking Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Today is a sad day in the struggle to see all God's people treated in a humane and compassionate manner. I had hoped that our Governor and law-makers would listen to their consciences and not be swayed by the voices of bigotry and racism. With the Governor's signing of SB 1070, it seems that for now the advocates of fear and hatred have won over those of charity and love. Arizona claims to be a Golden Rule State. We have not lived up to that claim.

I know that the passage of this law is deeply troubling to many of you, especially those of undocumented status. I know that many of you fear for your jobs, your families, and your future in this state and in this country.

You are not the only ones affected. According to this law, anyone giving food or even water to an undocumented person in need could be subject to arrest. What would Jesus say?

I am writing to encourage you not to lose heart.

First, there is no need for panic. This law does not take effect for 90 days. During that time there will be many court challenges, including those coming from the federal government. The law might be tied up for months or years in litigation, and I believe that there is a good possibility it will never go into effect.

In the meantime, know that the majority of us in the Episcopal Church, and in many other churches and faith communities, stand with you in support and solidarity. We will continue to work as hard as we can to defeat this law and to work toward just and fair laws that protect the rights of all human beings. We all know that our immigration system is broken, but it cannot be fixed by scape-goating the most vulnerable of those among us.

Finally, know that God is with you in this struggle. Jesus always stands with the oppressed. You therefore have our concern, our prayers, and our support. Faithfully, + Kirk

There was another very interesting article written in the Minnesota Progressive Project about the whole immigration debate.

Conservatives hate illegal immigrants, but they love illegal immigration. Based on their approach to the issue, there is no other logical conclusion. Just look at who is the target of the conservatives anger. Conservatives have the power to end illegal immigration in a month, if they really wanted to. Don't believe me? Read on!

The very fact to me that many conservative Christians think that Arizona's Immigration law is a good idea, and that oppression of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered people is also a charitable idea tells me that the commandment of Jesus Christ for Christians to love one another has yet to be understood let alone realized. When will Christians learn that with in the face of each other is the face of Jesus, the crucified and risen Christ? God has created and redeemed us all, and continues to sanctify us all through the Holy Spirit. When the children of God from immigrants to LGBT people experience such discrimination from people who claim to follow Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit is grieved in ways we cannot imagine. Her gentle, life-giving message of mercy and compassion, inclusion and unity is violated when Christians fail to welcome the stranger, the immigrant, the homosexual, bisexual and transgendered individual. The Holy Spirit came to the Church on that first Pentecost to tell us all to love one another as Christ loves us, so that the world may know that we are the disciples of Christ. The Holy Spirit did not bless the early Church with a message of hate, bigotry and classification. So the Holy Spirit does not bless such messages in our own time.

When will the Church wake up and realize that meanness and non-inclusion is not the way of God? When will the Church understand that when we do not speak up on behalf of the immigrant or LGBT person who is not welcomed, we are not fulfilling Christ's command to love one another as Christ loved us?

The incident of Arizona's immigration law and the continuing struggle for LGBT equality is a wake up call to ministry and mission for the Church. As we continue through this Easter Season and prepare for the Season of Pentecost we would do well to contemplate within ourselves how we can welcome the risen Christ and the Holy Spirit in the immigrant and one another. All of us have those people and places that challenge our interior comfort zones. They are also opportunities in which the Holy Spirit can come to us with her gentle graces and help us experience conversion so that we can be more inclusive and help the Church be more inclusive.

O God, whose Son Jesus is the good shepherd of your people; Grant that when we hear his voice we may know him who calls us each by name, and follow where he leads; who, with you and the Holy Spirit, lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. (Collect for the Fourth Sunday of Easter, Book of Common Prayer, Page 225).

God, you have made of one blood all the peoples of the earth, and sent your blessed Son to preach peace to those who are far off and to those who are near: Grant that people everywhere may seek after you and find you; bring the nations into your fold; pour out your Spirit upon all flesh, and hasten the coming of your kingdom; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (Book of Common Prayer, Page 100).

O God, you made us in your own image and redeemed us through Jesus your Son: Look with compassion on the whole human family; take away the arrogance and hatred which infect our hearts; break down the walls that separate us; unite us in bonds of love; and work through our struggle and confusion to accomplish your purposes on earth; that, in your good time, all nations and races may serve you in harmony around your heavenly throne; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (Prayer for the Human Family, Book of Common Prayer, Page 815).

God, Shepherd Us More

Matthew 5: 21-24 (NRSV)

"You have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, 'You shall not murder'; and 'whoever murders shall be liable to judgment.'  But I say to you that if you are angry with a brother or sister, you will be liable to judgment; and if you insult a brother or sister, you will be liable to the council; and if you say, 'You fool,' you will be liable to the hell of fire. So when you are offering your gift at the altar, if you remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother or sister, and then come and offer your gift."

I must admit, I have a lot of trouble with this one.  I have a lot of difficulty not wishing something horrible upon the Governor of Alaska who signed into law a bill that will undoubtedly lead to racial profiling.  I do not exactly feel like being kind to Archbishop Nienstedt who has just written an opt ed article in the Minneapolis Star Tribune telling everyone that Minnesota needs a State Constitutional Amendment that would outlaw marriage equality.  Sometimes those who are against the equal rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered people are not the kind of people I want to be especially kind to.  It is often difficult for me to confront my emotions when I am at the celebration of the Eucharist, because I am in the Presence of the God of unconditional and all inclusive love.  Yet, those that claim to be about the business of the Gospel of Jesus Christ seem to have discrimination as their number one goal.  They may claim that they do not hate homosexuals, but their behavior is anything but loving.


Sometimes the best thing we can do in our prayer and personal relationship with God is be bluntly honest.  God knows what is in our hearts and minds.  No one but God knows what is ultimately there.  Only when we are honest with God and ourselves can God enter that place and lead us to a place of healing and reconciliation.  God is our Shepherd, who wishes to lead us to those green pastures as Psalm 23 reads.  That place where God desires to take us is a place where there is a table before us in the presence of our enemies.  God never promised any of us that our journey would be without our crosses or hardships.  God has promised to be with us and to heal us when we are hurt, and to help us when the path is so difficult.  The way to equality and justice for LGBT people is very difficult.  Waiting for our United States Congress to vote and pass the repeal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell, DOMA and pass the inclusive ENDA is very difficult.   There may very well be an immigration reform bill without the United Families Act which will include LGBT Families.  The journey to justice, equality and reconciliation is a way with thorns and crosses and lots of enemies.  I get frustrated as I am sure many of my readers do.


What I can do is realize that while I am called by Jesus to respect my sisters and brothers who are against equality and justice for LGBT people, and seek their common good, I am not called to agree with them nor stop doing what I can do to help educate and inform people about what the Bible really says about being LGBT.  We can all be active in continuing to push for LGBT equality and part of our activism is having those one on one conversations with people about what being LGBT is like.  We can talk about what coming out was like or is like.  We can talk about why organizations like Focus on the Family and the Family Research Council are so wrong in assaulting LGBT individuals, families and couples.  We can encourage people to read books like Bishop Gene Robinson's "In the Eye of the Storm" or Daniel A. Helminiak's book: "What the Bible Really Says About Homosexuality" or Rev. Jeff Miner and John T. Connoley's book: "The Children Are Free."   We can suggest people watch the movie: "For the Bible Tells Me So."  We can engage in conversations to help people understand some basic information and help change hearts and minds about homosexuality, bisexuality and transgendered people.  

As difficult as it is I too have to learn to seek the common good of every person including those who continue to use their pastoral or political power to speak against our equal rights.  We do not have to agree, but we do have to ask God to help us respect and love them as sisters and brothers.  Coming to terms with our own attitudes and bringing them before the cross or Jesus Christ helps us to place them in the hands of the risen Christ who desires to Shepherd all of us to better days.  

O God, whose Son Jesus is the good shepherd of your people; Grant that when we hear his voice we may know him who calls us each by name, and follow where he leads; who, with you and the Holy Spirit, lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. (Collect for the Fourth Sunday of Easter, Book of Common Prayer, Page 225).  

O God, you made us in your own image and redeemed us through Jesus your Son: Look with compassion on the whole human family; take away the arrogance and hatred which infect our hearts; break down the walls that separate us; unite us in bonds of love; and work through our struggle and confusion to accomplish your purposes on earth; that, in your good time, all nations and races may serve you in harmony around your heavenly throne; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (Prayer for the Human Family, Book of Common Prayer, Page 815).

4th Sunday of Easter: Who Is the Shepherd?

Okay, this particular blog post is being written on a Monday instead of a Sunday.  But, after a wonderful DFL Convention over this past weekend.  I feel like I need to reflect some on what this past Sunday was about. 

Yesterday, Jason and I enjoyed a wonderful Sunday Eucharist at St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Duluth, Minnesota.  It was our last activity before we left Duluth to return home after having spent the last two days at the DFL Convention.  My mind was all wound up with the endorsement process.  I was thinking a lot about how disappointed many of us were that our candidates did not get very far.  I was also thinking about how the candidate that did get the endorsement really embraces all of the issues many of us brought to the convention.  If Margaret Anderson-Keliher does become the next Governor of Minnesota she will be the first woman to hold that office.  She has promised to sign the Minnesota Health Plan which includes single-payer into law in two years.  She has also made a commitment to marriage equality.  I was thinking about all of these issues and as we were preparing for the Liturgy, listening to the choir rehearse I was reminded that it was the 4th Sunday of Easter when we meditate on Jesus as the Good Shepherd.

In the Gospel for Sunday's Eucharist Jesus answered someone who wanted to know if he was Messiah that they were expecting.  Jesus answered saying: "I have told you and you do not believe.  The works that I do in my Father's name testify to me; but you do not believe, because you do not belong to my sheep.  My sheep hear my voice.  I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish.  No one will snatch them out of my hand.  What my father has given me is greater than all else, and no one can snatch it out of my Father's hand.  The Father and I are one."  (John 10:25-30).

Sometimes as we toil through life with all of it's disappointments and challenges it is easy to forget who is really the Shepherd.  As Christians one of our most important understandings is that we are never alone in our lives.  In Jesus, God is ever close to us to guide and direct our lives. Jesus cares intimately about each of us and wants to be involved in every aspect of our lives.  All of us are among God's flock.  The flock that Jesus tends is full of diversity.  Each member of Christ's flock has something uniquely wonderful about them that makes them special to Jesus the Good Shepherd.  Jesus is the Shepherd that has placed himself between the sheep and the wolves.  Jesus has faced his death on the cross in order to safeguard his sheep.  And every one of us was important to Jesus when he experienced his passion and death.  And for every one of us, Jesus the Good Shepherd has risen from the dead.  The life of God's people is now safeguarded by Jesus the Good Shepherd. 

This is why the anti-gay rhetoric of the religious right is so troubling and damaging.  It turns those who are suppose to be ministering on behalf of Christ the Good Shepherd into wolves who are looking to devour those sheep who do not live up to their expectations.  Even the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered members of Christ's flock are precious to Jesus.  The LGBT members of the flock of Christ are protected and cherished by the Good Shepherd.  They are not to be picked out and ravaged on by ex-gay ministries and those who wish to exploit them for political gain.  Just because LGBT people love differently is no reason to place them in harms way and determine that they have no place in God's flock unless they change their sexual orientation or gender identity/expression. 

I was particularly troubled this past Friday night when I watched Larry King Live.  I was disturbed because Larry interviewed Christian artist Jennifer Knapp who recently came out and acknowledged herself to be a lesbian.  The interview conversation included anti-gay Christian Pastor Bob Botsford and Ted Haggard. Basically the girl was out numbered.  While I did appreciate Ted Haggard's willingness to refute Bob Botsford by reminding him that Jesus is really the judge of Jennifer Knapp's soul, the fact is she was put in a position that was unfair.  In light of this weekends Scriptures this is a prime example of how a Pastor who is suppose to represent Christ the Good Shepherd operates instead like a ravenous wolf who just wants to devour the sheep for the sake of his own personal purposes.

I was also disturbed when I heard the news that the Governor of  Arizona signed the bill into law that allows for racial profiling of anyone who's skin color the police question.  Such laws are based on racial bias and will lead to bullying by Arizona police.   Things like this do not reflect Christ as the Good Shepherd.  Instead they release the sheep onto wolves who will prey upon many of the good sheep.

As Christians it is our business to respond to the outrageous attacks of wolves upon the sheep of Christ's flock.  It is the business of Christians everywhere to speak up peacefully and respectfully when the poor and marginalized sheep of God's flock are assaulted by discrimination and oppression.  Christians have the permission and blessing of Christ the Good Shepherd to remind those who assume for themselves the role of shepherd yet act like ravenous wolves, to return to their place of humble service and care for those whom they wish to devour through abusive behaviors.  Every sheep of God is a beloved child of God, with whom God is well-pleased.  All of God's sheep are precious and are to be loved. 

How do LGBT Christians live out their calling as sheep of Christ's holy flock?  How do LGBT Christians express our gratitude to Christ the Good Shepherd?   What role are we playing in reminding servants of God that they are servants and not the Shepherd?  How are we serving Christ's flock in our unique ways?

O God, whose Son Jesus is the good shepherd of your people: Grant that when we heard his voice we may kow him who calls us each by name, and follow where he leads; who, with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.  (Collect for the Fourth Sunday of Easter, Book of Common Prayer, Page 225).

Look with pity, O heavenly Father, upon the people in this land who live with injustice, terror, disease, and death as their constant companions.  Have mercy upon us. Help us to eliminate our cruelty to these our neighbors. Strengthen those who spend their lives establishing equal protection of the law and equal opportunities for all. And grant that every one of us may enjoy a fair portion of the riches of this land; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.  (Prayer for the Oppressed, Book of Common Prayer, Page, 826).

Next Blog will be Monday, April 26th

Dear Friends, due to my involvement with the State DFL (Democratic-Farmer Labor Party) Convention in Duluth, Minnesota I will not be able to blog until Monday, April 26th. 

Thank you to all who continue to read and leave comments.  Let us continue to work and pray for equality for all people.

A Different Blog Topic: What About Religion?

I am choosing a bit of a different course for my blog today.  Instead of picking out a Scriputre reading from the Daily Office, I want to spend some time on a couple of remarks I often hear or read. 

One remark I have read quite often: "Religion is to blame for most of the violence and destruction over the last 1,000 years or so."  Another is: "Organized religion is to blame for all the wars."  They are both similar and yet different.

It goes without saying that there has been a lot of violence done in the name of religion.  The violence and killing with some kind of religious bent to it all is not really new only because of the Christian religion. A careful reading of the Old Testament and we read quite a bit of violence. A careful reading of the Psalms and we will hear of wars, requests for vindication in some kind violent terms for the terrors that people of the time often lived through. 

In the early Christian Church we have heard of the martyrs who were skinned alive, burned, eaten by lions or used as candles for the Emperor's court yard.  During the middle ages we know of the Spanish and Roman inquisitions by which many people were condemned as heretics.  Many were burned at the stake or given over to horrible torture in the name of defending doctrines or in some cases the politics of the Church of that time.  There was a fair amount of burning and beheading that happened as the Church of England struggled to gain it's own authority apart from the Roman Catholic church.  And then came the Methodists and the Calvinists, the Puritans and so on and so forth.  Yes, there has been much violence in the name of religion.  The Crusades are a great example of intense violence in the name of religion.

In our present day there continues to be much violence done in the name of one kind of religion or another.  In the past I have written extensively about how the religious right constantly uses Spiritual abuse towards lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered people.  I firmly believe that is what is going on from organizations and individuals such as Focus on the Family, Pat Robertson, the Family Research Council, the National Organization for Marriage, the Catholic church, the Family and many others. 

Why then should we continue to believe in the Christian faith that is so full of historical violence?  Why should anyone believe in the Christian faith that continues to use Spiritual violence some against LGBT people, others against women, and still others towards African Americans and other nationalities and cultures.  We cannot exactly talk about the Christian faith and the violence they have spread without talking about the evil that has often been done to Native Americans.  Why continue to believe? Why continue to be involved?

To give my own not so humble opinion I am going to draw from a couple of examples.  Water is something that can be good or bad.  If we do not have enough water, we can dehydrate.  If we get too much water, we can drown.  Swimming in cool water on a hot summer day can refresh us.  Ice cold water in the middle of winter can cause us to die from hypothermia.  Looking at the ocean on a beautiful peaceful day can help us refocus.  A title wave that takes away our property will make us angry.  Yet, we do not decide that we are not going to use water.  We continue to find good uses for water.  We continue to use water to wash in, wash our clothes, make food or drink. We take the good and the bad when we talk about water.

Another example I would have to turn to is sex.  Sex is something that can be beautiful and wonderful.  Sex can also be destructive and ugly.  Sex when exercised in loving relationships can build up.  Sex when done for the sake of using someone for our own selfish pleasures can wound and destroy.  Sex whether it's goal is procreation or the mutual affection of the people expressing their feelings for someone else is a good and holy thing.  When sex is used in violent ways such as the pedophilia by Catholic Priests or rape is evil.  Yet, despite the possibility of violence we do not say that we should do away with all sex. 

I would suggest that religion can be very much like water and/or sex.  Religion is something that exists.  It can be for our good or it can be used destructively.  Because I am a Christian, I can only speak about the Christian faith.  I can be respectful to people of the Jewish religion, Islam, Buddhist and Hindu and many others, and say that they too have merit and good about them.  I may not agree with the philosophies of New Age, or Pagans or others I am not naming, but I can still be respectful to those who do and not become their public enemy.  But they all have their merit and they all help people find their way in this world.  Nevertheless, Religion does not have to be used in violent ways, nor does it have to be destructive. 

In the case of the Christian faith, I have to read the Gospels and conclude that violence in the Name of Jesus Christ is neither prudent nor wise.  I firmly believe that when Jesus wished peace upon his disciples after the resurrection, he truly wished and continues to wish for peace among all of us.  The discrimination hurled at LGBT individuals by religious right organizations is misplaced religious conviction at the cost of Christian Charity in the worst way.  It's end result is destruction of the worst kind.  And it does not have to be that way.  That kind of thing is not the fault of religion itself, it is the error of those who use religion in a bad way. 

That is why today I am going to conclude my blog with the Prayer for the Church.  We must all and always pray that the Church may continue to grow and move beyond the here and now and become one with Christ who gave his life for the Church.  The Church is one of human beings all who make mistakes and misuse their authority.  While we recognize that, we still implore the Holy Spirit to continue to call the Church to holiness of life and ministry through inclusion and diversity.

Gracious Father, we pray for your holy Catholic Church. Fill it with all truth, in all trueth with all peace.  Where it is corrupt, purify it; where it is in error, direct it; where in any thing it is amiss, reform it. Where it is right, strengthen it; where it is in want, provide for it; where it is divided, reunite it; for the sake of Jesus Christ your Son our Savior. Amen. (Prayer for the Church, Book of Common Prayer, Page 816).

The Easter Message Calls Us to Compassion and Action

Psalm 25: 15-21 (NRSV)

15	Turn to me and have pity on me, * for I am left alone and in misery.
16	The sorrows of my heart have increased; * bring me out of my troubles.
17	Look upon my adversity and misery * and forgive me all my sin.
18	Look upon my enemies, for they are many, * and they bear a violent hatred against me.
19	Protect my life and deliver me; * let me not be put to shame, for I have trusted in you.
20	Let integrity and uprightness preserve me, * for my hope has been in you.
21	Deliver Israel, O God, * out of all his troubles.

Among the many things I love about the Psalms is that through them we are able to tell God what is on our minds.  In the Psalms there is no playing around about what we are telling God in our prayers.  On many occasions when I have prayed the Divine Office I have found myself praying one of the assigned Psalms and it manages to say what I am feeling at that point in time.

As I write this blog many of us in the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered community are hearing about Clay and Harold.  The senior gay couple in Sonoma County, California that ignored their life long commitment to each other.  This story began with the most heart wrenching news, but it only gets worse the more we learn.

More about Clay and Harold's story is told on Queeried.   

You and your partner have been together for two decades. You’re totally dedicated to each other and want to make sure that each other is looked after should happen, so you make sure everything from wills to powers of attorney and medical directives in place

Having done that you can now both live your lives together reassured that whatever happens you will be able to be there for each other right?

Well apparently not. At least not in the case of Harold and Clay. At 88 years old Harold was starting to become more frail, but still living at home with his beloved 77 year old partner Clay.

That was until the evening he fell up his front steps.

Needing medical treatment Harold was taken to hospital. Now having drawn up legal medical directives this should have meant Clay was consulted through the whole process. Not only did this not occur but both county and health care works refused to let Clay see Harold.

And it gets worse.

The country then went further and isolated the couple placing them in separate nursing homes.

Totally ignoring the relationship that existed between the two, the county then acted to treat Harold as a man who had no family, despite Clay and his 20 year relationship. When Clay contested this in court, in order to be able to make financial decisions for Harold, he was denied the right with the county gaining limited access to Harold’s account to pay for care instead after they described Clay as just a “roommate”.

Surely though it can’t get worse. Well actually yes it can.

Clay and Harold had spent 20 years accumulating memories and possessions that would always remind them of the times they had together. These were things to cherish forever.
Except the county didn’t see it that way. They instead took everything the men had owned and auctioned it off. They also removed Clay from his home, placed him in a nursing home against his will, then terminated Clay and Harold’s lease surrendering the property back to the landlord.

And it just gets sadder. Three months after being hospitalized Harold died. And he didn’t die with the man he loved. He died in a nursing home he never wanted to be in. And Clay is now not only left without the man he loved, but also with nothing to remember his partner by other than a photo album that Harold had painstakingly created for Clay in his last few months.

Clearly as long as lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered couples continue to be treated by our governments and churches as no one important, deserving of equal rights protections stories about people like Clay and Harold will not only continue, they will get worse.  I am sure that they feel like the Psalmist who wrote: "Turn to me and have pity on me, for I am left alone in misery.  The sorrows of my heart have increased; bring me out of my troubles.  Look upon my enemies, for they are many, and they bear a violent hatred against me." (Psalm 25: 15, 16 and 18).

As Christians who believe and are witnesses to the crucified and risen Lord it is our business to peacefully and respectfully respond to situations such as this.  There is no law and no religious conviction that should be used to justify this kind of discrimination.  We must call upon our President and Congress to not only pass the inclusive employment non-discrimination act but also repeal the Defense of Marriage Act.  We would do well to call upon the American Civil Liberties Union, the Human Rights Campaign, the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force and all other organizations to express righteous outrage concerning this case.  And we as progressive Christians should make our voices known that this kind of thing cannot be acceptable by any Christian Church or group of people who seek the good will of all. 

O God, whose blessed Son made himself known to his disciples in the breaking of bread: Open the eyes of our faith, that we may behold him in all his redeeming work; who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. (Collect for the Third Sunday of Easter, Book of Common Prayer, Page 224).

 O God, the creator and preserver of all, we humbly beseech you for all sorts and conditions of people; that you would be pleased to make your ways known unto them, your saving health unto all nations. More especially we pray for your holy Church universal; that it may be so guided and governed by your good Spirit, that all who profess and call themselves Christians may be led into the way of truth, and hold the faith in unity of spirit, in the bond of peace, and in righteousness of life. Finally, we commend to your fatherly goodness all those who are in any ways afflicted or distressed, in mind, body, or estate; that it may please you to comfort and relieve them according to their several necessities, giving them patience under their sufferings, and a happy issue out of all their afflictions. And this we beg for Jesus Christ's sake. Amen. (Prayer for All Sorts and Conditions, Book of Common Prayer, Page 814).

Almighty and most merciful God, we remember before you all poor and neglected persons whom it would be easy for us to forget: the homeless and the destitute, the old and the sick, and all who have none to care for them. Help us to heal those who are broken in body or spirit, and to turn their sorrow into joy. Grant this, Father, for the love of your Son, who for our sake became poor, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (Prayer for the Poor and Neglected, Book of Common Prayer, Page 826)  

Third Sunday of Easter: Are We Moving Forward as Easter People

Based on John 21: 2-19 (NRSV)

Only two weeks ago we were celebrating the joyous event of the resurrection.  Here we are with Peter and the other disciples in today's Gospel reading going back to the way things used to be.  In the beginning of Jesus ministry he called Peter to fish for people, but that was before the crucifixion and resurrection.  Now after all the events, Peter and the others go back to fishing.  They are still full of sorrow.  It is as if the resurrection still has not come home for them.  Yet it is when Jesus comes back into the picture for them that they are able to catch more than enough fish return to shore and spend time with the risen Christ.  Peter is asked three times by Jesus: "Do you love me?"  Three times Peter answers "You know that I love you."  Jesus calls Peter to feed the sheep.

How about us?  Have our own lives gone back to normal since Easter Day?  Are we all still wandering about as if nothing happened on Good Friday or Easter Day?  May be our remembrance of the resurrection has been interfered with because we lost a job, a loved one or had a car accident.  May be we have suffered from the bad economy or experienced some kind of gay bashing.  Life can throw us some amazing curve balls that can cause us to question what God is doing. Many may find themselves not believing, because the events of our life are just too painful to totally trust God.  And so, we try to go things alone.  We no longer invite God into our hearts in prayer.  We want God to come to us on our own terms.

In today's Gospel for Gays we read an interesting reflection on this story.

There is a dream-like quality to this post-resurrection story, the epilogue to John’s gospel.  It begins in a very matter-of-fact way:  “I am going fishing!”  “We will go with you.”  But at the end of a fruitless night, in the first light of dawn, a figure appears on the shore.  As in a dream – the figure is simply there:  no one sees it approach.  And the figure knows that the men in the boat have caught nothing:

“Children, you have no fish, have you?”

When they arrive on the beach, there is already a fire burning, and on it there are fish, cooking.  But the mysterious person (whom they recognize but are afraid to question) nonetheless asks them to bring their miraculous catch ashore, and there is a count (although, again as in a dream, we do not know when or if any of the disciples actually sat down and counted the fish):  153, a strangely precise number that turns out to have symbolic significance connoting totality.

“I am going fishing!”

“Children, you have no fish, have you?”

Hardy is right to point out that, in a temporal and spatial sense, this mysterious story does not belong with the other Johannine resurrection accounts.  Without warning, Peter and the others are back in Galilee, and we don’t know how much time has passed since the catastrophic event of Jesus’ death, his resurrection – and possibly the events that closely followed:  the ascension and Pentecost.  We don’t know where – or how – the story fits into the overall narrative.

But do we need this information?

“I am going fishing!”

“Children, you have no fish, have you?”

The story hangs on these two lines.  In the first, Peter, back home in Galilee, takes up his normal life as a fisher.  He has followed Jesus for several years, but now the story is over.  He has gone home, he has returned to his old life, with his ordinary work and expectations.  The others join him (two are his old business partners).  They go out on the lake.

But their lives have been completely changed.  They try to take up their previous way of life – their pre-Jesus life – and there are no fish.

“Children, you have no fish, have you?”  They answered him, “No.”

Such a simple question, and so honest a response.  We encounter Jesus, and then we try to go on with life as if nothing had happened:  our jobs, our interests, our iPhones, our Beemers, our friends, our lovers.  We want everything to be the same.

But it isn’t the same.  We fish and the net is empty; we seek, and we do not find, we knock and the door does not open.

Has he abandoned us?  Are the sceptics right after all:  there is no God, there is no meaning to life, apart from a few brief years of material pleasure and, perhaps, human love that either disappoints or dies?  Along with the illusion of progress?

Then, without any agency on their part – our part – a figure whom they (and we) recognize as Jesus appears, intervenes, and our nets are full of fish – fish we don’t need for our own material hunger, fish that point symbolically to a new vocation and a new harvest – that includes everyone, absolutely everyone:  totality.

And a new life adventure, still undiscovered, begins.

Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered people continue to offer the Church the opportunity to see beyond Good Friday into Easter Day.  The Easter event changed the way many people understood things around them.  No longer does death have the last word.  When Jesus Christ rose from the dead all humankind was given a new beginning to know and love one another.  No longer was there any scape goat.  Jesus Christ had paid the price for our sin.  Jesus Christ rose from the dead and said: "Peace be with you."  Even Jesus did not hold the disciples accountable for abandoning him during his passion.  Instead, he prays for them to have peace. 

As we journey into the Acts of the Apostles we see that the early Church is challenged by new ways of thinking as they introduce the Christian faith to generations of people who in the past have been not been open to new things.  The early Church suffered greatly for trying to help others see that the message of the Gospel was about service to the poor and those who were left on the margins by the religious authorities.  LGBT individuals challenge the Church here in the 21st Century to continue to become a more welcoming community for all people.  Yet, we see many in the Church who are not so agreeable to this need for change. 

We Anglicans might like to think that the notion of gays being blamed for child sex abuse is only thought of by Catholic leaders.  However after reading a very disturbing post in the Episcopal Lead, I can assure you that is not entirely true.

Ordained while gay -- it's the new driving while black.

In a revealing campaign, Anglican Mainstream seeks to persuade you that sex with children reveals whether you are gay. And it's using the Catholic sex abuse story to make its claims. (And also is an apologist for that church's handling of sexual abuse.) Anglican Mainstream claims the problem is not with the church, but with homosexuals in the priesthood. According to its website, the "Primatial Adviser" of Anglican Mainstream is The Most Rev Drexel Gomez, former Archbishop of the West Indies who chaired the committee that drafted the Anglican Covenant.

We Episcopalians like to get into the idea of thinking that because we ordained Bishop Gene Robinson back in 2003 and we are about to ordain Bishop-Elect Mary Glasspool and the work of our last General Convention that the worst of our work towards a more inclusive Church is some how finished.  The reality is these things are still a beginning.  They are a terrific beginning, but they are only the beginning.  We still have much work to do to help Deans, Rectors, Bishops and others understand that the Easter message is not complete for the Episcopal Church when the Church is not inclusive on all levels.   As long as we stick to old understandings and prejudices that keep LGBT people away from the Episcopal Church or the Anglican Communion, we are still trying to "fish" for a church institution built by human understanding, rather than be fishers of people who embrace all with the good news of God's unconditional love.  Just as in the days of the Gospel there were people who did not understand the Gospel in an inclusive way, so we do in 2010.  And we should be challenging the Church to be a more inclusive Church in every way.

O God, whose blessed Son made himself known to his disciples in the breaking of bread:  Open the eyes of our faith that we may behold him in all his redeeming work; who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  Amen.  (Third Sunday of Easter, Book of Common Prayer, Page 224).

Gracious Father, we pray for your holy Catholic Church.  Fill it with all truth, in all truth with all peace.  Where it is corrupt, purify it; where it is in error, direct it; where in any thing it is amiss, reform it.  Where it is right, strengthen it; where it is in want, provide for it; where it is divided, reunite it; for the sake of Jesus Christ your Son our Savior.  Amen. (Prayer for the Church, Book of Common Prayer, Page 816).

The Dangers of Biblical Literalism.

John 16: 1- 15 (NRSV)

"I have said these things to you to keep you from stumbling. They will put you out of the synagogues. Indeed, an hour is coming when those who kill you will think that by doing so they are offering worship to God.  And they will do this because they have not known the Father or me. But I have said these things to you so that when their hour comes you may remember that I told you about them. "I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with you. But now I am going to him who sent me; yet none of you asks me, 'Where are you going?'  But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your hearts. Nevertheless I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. And when he comes, he will prove the world wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment: about sin, because they do not believe in me; about righteousness, because I am going to the Father and you will see me no longer; about judgment, because the ruler of this world has been condemned. 

"I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own, but will speak whatever he hears, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, because he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine. For this reason I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you. 

1 Peter 3: 15-16 (NRSV)

Always be ready to make your defense to anyone who demands from you an accounting for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and reverence. Keep your conscience clear, so that, when you are maligned, those who abuse you for your good conduct in Christ may be put to shame.

In First Run Features best selling documentary For the Bible Tells Me So, Rev. Laurence C. Keene a minister in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) said: "I have a real soft spot for Biblical literalists, because I used to be one."  When I heard him say that I was reminded of my own history of Biblical literalism.  How many times as a student at Eastern Nazarene College I would use the Bible to manipulate someone into understanding something the way I did, and how I would be so concerned if they didn't quite see it my way.  Shortly after I came out in the year 2000 I realized that the person who had been most affected by all of that, was me.  It is easy to point a finger one way and forget about the other three pointing back at ourselves.


It is all too easy to refer to what the Bible says and again as Rev. Keene so wisely said fail to understand what the Bible "reads".  We get so used to using the Bible to defend our own positions, that we forget the Person who is at the center of it all.  The Protestant Reformer Martin Luther referred to the Bible as a cradle with Jesus Christ in the middle.  


As I was praying the Divine Office this morning and read the Gospel I was struck by the words:  "Indeed, an hour is coming when those who kill you will think that by doing so they are offering worship to God."  In the past few weeks and years we have heard of people who consider themselves "pro-life" thinking they are doing an "act of God" by murdering doctors who perform abortions.  It has been "in the name of God" that so many people have spoken up against health care reform based on the abortion issue.  Many politicians and activists have called health care reform an "abortion bill."  Yet, no where in the health care reform bill is there any mention of public funds used for abortion.  What IS in the bill is caring for children with pre-existing conditions.  In other words, so called "pro-life" individuals are all concerned about children in the womb, without any concern for the mother or the child once she/he is born.  Let's just prevent a mother from killing her child while she/he is in the womb, but let's not give a damn about it should she/he be born with an illness that is next to impossible for the mother to get that child health care.   All "in the name of God."  The so-called "pro-life" position still contains a message of kill, kill, kill. It seems like such a contradiction.

So many Christians wish to use the Bible and the Name of God to smear or even kill lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered people.  Many already have.  Many use the "Name of God" as a reason to justify hate crimes or for defeating marriage equality.   Tomorrow here in St. Paul, Minnesota many will gather in peaceful protest.  

Archbishop John Nienstedt and the Office of Marriage, Family, and Life invited Maggie Gallagher and Bishop Salvatore Cordileone to speak at an Archdiocesan event at the university. Both are leading activists in the efforts to take marriage away from loving couples in California and Maine. Gallagher heads the anti-equality group, National Organization for Marriage (NOM), while Bishop Cordileone of Oakland has been called the "Father of Proposition 8." NOM also worked hard to block marriage equality in Washington D.C. but failed.

Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered Christians give witness to the love of God.  Our lives, love and relationships are based on the reality that God loves all of us in very concrete and holy ways.  God gives to each person the ability to love in the unique ways.  People who interpret the Bible or even the teachings of the Catholic church through the limited eyes of literalism and fundamentalism, eventually wind up using them to defend positions and behaviors that are not based on the Gospel.  When they resort to spiritual, sexual or even physical violence "in the Name of God" they are doing so in a way that does not honor God, Jesus or the Holy Spirit.  Yet, such people encourage those of us who are LGBT and Christian to: "Always be ready to make your defense to anyone who demands from you an accounting for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and reverence. Keep your conscience clear, so that, when you are maligned, those who abuse you for your good conduct in Christ may be put to shame."  

Today is as good of a day as any to speak up in the Name of God in peaceful, respectful and reverent ways that God's love is unconditional and all inclusive.  God's love means that all discrimination and violence  "in the Name of God" is never God's will.  Can God make use of the circumstances of violence and bias to bring about good things?  Yes.  But God is not a psycho path. The worship of God is no excuse for promoting prejudice and violence.  The extravagant love of God is not a scape goat for spreading fear, racism, sexism, hetero-sexism and intolerance for the diversity of cultures, religions and challenges.  The Easter mystery and message is love and hope for all of God's people.

Almighty and everlasting God, who in the Paschal mystery established the new covenant of reconciliation: Grant that all who have been reborn into the fellowship of Christ's Body may show forth in their lives what they profess by their faith; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.  (Collect for the Second Sunday of Easter, Book of Common Prayer, Page 224).


Grant, O God, that your holy and life-giving Spirit may so move every human heart, that barriers which divide us may crumble, suspicions disappear, and hatreds cease; that our divisions being healed, we may live in justice and peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (Prayer for Social Justice, Book of Common Prayer, Page 823).

O God, you made us in your own image and redeemed us through Jesus your Son: Look with compassion on the whole human family; take away the arrogance and hatred which infect our hearts; break down the walls that separate us; unite us in bonds of love; and work through our struggle and confusion to accomplish your purposes on earth; that, in your good time, all nations and races may serve you in harmony around your heavenly throne; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (Prayer for the Human Family, Book of Common Prayer, Page 815). 
 

How are We Loving One Another?

John 15: 12-17 (NRSV)

"This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.  No one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. I do not call you servants any longer, because the servant does not know what the master is doing; but I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from my Father. You did not choose me but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask him in my name. I am giving you these commands so that you may love one another."

There are many things that Jesus told us in the Gospels that could be misunderstood.  However, I do not think that Christ's commandment to his followers to love one another is one of those.  In fact, this is one commandment that Jesus makes very specific and makes no bones about.  Yet as Christians if there is one request of Jesus that we have the most trouble observing, this is probably it.

Christians have been making excuses through out Church history for not loving one another.  From the days of the Council of Nicea, through the inquisition, the Protestant Reformation, and the start of the Church of England to the present day, Christians find more reasons to not love one another than we do to be obedient to Christ's command.  If Christians do not find issues of doctrine, the Sacraments vs predestination, holiness or the second coming, they are instead to be divided over the issues of woman's ordination, race or sexual orientation and/or gender identity/expression.  

Just today the American Family Association  made an outrageous statement that "Gays are biased, sexually deviant felons and can never serve on the Supreme Court."  Such statements are made by those who claim to revere the Name and love of Jesus Christ.  Over these past weeks we have heard day in and out of the terrible situation with the Catholic church and their issue of sexual violence among their clergy.  Many in the Episcopal Church and Anglican Communion continue to discuss the idea of dividing the Communion over LGBT individuals being allowed to be ordained as bishops.   There are so many ways in which Christians appear to be ready to declare division and Spiritual violence on each other based on the "institution" of the Church, but at the expense of the commandment of Jesus Christ for Christians to love one another.

These situations and others like them make it very difficult for those of us who are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgendered.  Many of us want to get close to Jesus Christ through the Church to understand God's extravagant love for all of us who desire to serve love in the Name of love.  Many women even today are still lower on the status pole in many church communities that allow them to be ordained.  Equality and listening to the commandment of Christians to love one another do go hand in hand.  The threat of gun violence towards our government by the Tea Party and other militia movements claim to be doing it in the Name of Christ.  Yet many cannot stop shining their loaded guns long enough to even consider that the violence they are spreading through their anger and hate is something that is not endorsed by Christ and the Gospel. 

The Easter message of new life offers to all Christians the opportunity to examine our hearts.  Christ rose from the dead to call Christians to a new way of living where violence and hate are not partners with the message of God's unconditional love.  All of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus are among God's Easter people.  Paul in his letter to the Romans tells us that through our Baptism we share in Christ's death and resurrection.  (See Romans 6).  Our Baptism and sharing in the death and resurrection is also an invitation to embrace the new life that God offers all followers of Christ which is also a call to loving one another.  There is no bias, violence or lack of charity that should be found acceptable if we take the message of Christ's Gospel and the celebration of Easter seriously.  Because we are Christians though, we must also believe that there is no attitude of bias or violence that the grace of God working by the power of the Holy Spirit, inspired by the Easter message that cannot be overcome, forgiven and converted.  The Easter message is one of hope, possibility and inevitable victory over sin and death.  The Easter message tells us that in Jesus, God loved us and wants to help us to love one another as Christ commanded us to do.

Almighty and everlasting God, who in the Paschal mystery established the new covenant of reconciliation: Grant that all who have been reborn into the fellowship of Christ's Body may show forth in their lives what they profess by their faith; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. (Collect for the Second Sunday of Easter, Book of Common Prayer, Page 224).

Almighty God our heavenly Father, guide the nations of the world into the way of justice and truth, and establish among them that peace which is the fruit of righteousness, that they may become the kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. (Prayer for Peace Among the Nations, Book of Common Prayer, Page 816)

Abide in God's Love

John 15: 1- 11 (NRSV)

"I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinegrower.  He removes every branch in me that bears no fruit. Every branch that bears fruit he prunes to make it bear more fruit. You have already been cleansed by the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me as I abide in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me.  I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing. Whoever does not abide in me is thrown away like a branch and withers; such branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask for whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit and become my disciples. As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love.  If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love. I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete." 

That's it.  No, we cannot do it without God.  Jesus has told us as much in this Gospel.  "I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing." (John 15: 5).  If we are going to accomplish anything that is worthwhile, we can only do it with God's help. 


As lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered people trying to work for justice and equality in a world where the society and many members of the Church continue to speak out against homosexuality, we cannot accomplish the work of changing minds and hearts if we do not anchor ourselves in God.  God is on our side, even when things do not work out the way we want them to.  Jesus invites us to think of ourselves as attached to him so that we might face all of our obstacles with God's grace.  


As we continue to hear stories of violent militias gaining power through violence, we might tend to become discouraged and understandably afraid.  It is discouraging when many presume to be doing so on religious based convictions.  The notion that some how God might condone acting in violent and reckless ways because the Federal Government has passed health care reform and wants to reform America's financial institutions.  Because America wants to allow LGBT people our fundamental rights and immigrants the opportunity to build a life here, many think that God supports the idea that guns and violence are a way to solve such conflicts.  How do such attitudes of violence and discrimination "abide in the love of God?"   


Jesus told us to "abide in my love."  Yet, the Catholic church confronts the sexual violence among their clergy, instead of abiding in God's love and acknowledging the need for change, they use LGBT individuals as their excuse.  Many in the Episcopal Church and Anglican Communion use the issue of sexual orientation to not come to the table and be open to discussions about why the Church needs to continue to be open to change.  

Abiding in the love of God through Jesus means being willing to look at our attitudes and those areas where we find diversity difficult.  Abiding in the love of God means that as we journey to those places within ourselves with God, we can find the strength to face our prejudices and allow God to heal us and help reconcile differences with others.  Jesus has already told us in this Gospel that we do not face these things alone.  Without God, we can do nothing.  So, why are so many of us trying to go it alone?

Almighty and everlasting God, who in the Paschal mystery established the new covenant of reconciliation: Grant that all who have been reborn into the fellowship of Christ's Body may show forth in their lives what they profess by their faith; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. (Collect for the Second Sunday of Easter, Book of Common Prayer, Page 224).

God, the author of peace and lover of concord, to know you is eternal life and to serve you is perfect freedom: Defend us, your humble servants, in all assaults of our enemies; that we, surely trusting in your defense, may not fear the power of any adversaries; through the might of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (A Collect for Peace, Book of Common Prayer, Page 99).

 

Risen Lord, Deliver Us

John 14:18- 31 (NRSV) 

"I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you. In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me; because I live, you also will live. On that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. They who have my commandments and keep them are those who love me; and those who love me will be loved by my Father, and I will love them and reveal myself to them." Judas (not Iscariot) said to him, "Lord, how is it that you will reveal yourself to us, and not to the world?" Jesus answered him, "Those who love me will keep my word, and my Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. Whoever does not love me does not keep my words; and the word that you hear is not mine, but is from the Father who sent me.  

"I have said these things to you while I am still with you. But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything, and remind you of all that I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid. You heard me say to you, 'I am going away, and I am coming to you.' If you loved me, you would rejoice that I am going to the Father, because the Father is greater than I. And now I have told you this before it occurs, so that when it does occur, you may believe. I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming. He has no power over me; but I do as the Father has commanded me, so that the world may know that I love the Father. Rise, let us be on our way. 

Already we are hearing Jesus talk about the coming of the Holy Spirit.  On May 13th we will celebrate the Ascension of Christ and Pentecost on Sunday, May 23rd.  So between now and then we will hear a lot about Jesus promising the Holy Spirit.  But, let's slow down just a little bit here.  We are still celebrating the resurrection, not just because it is in the calendar, but because in this world of violence and prejudice we need the news about new life.  
 
This morning I was horrified when I read a story that was found in the Boston Herald.  The article's title is: Even After Death, Abuse Against Gays Continues.

THIES, Senegal — Even death cannot stop the violence against gays in this corner of the world any more.

Madieye Diallo’s body had been in the ground for only a few hours when the mob descended on the weedy cemetery with shovels. They yanked out the corpse, spit on its torso, dragged it away and dumped it in front of the home of his elderly parents.

The scene of May 2, 2009 was filmed on a cell phone and the video sold at the market. It passed from phone to phone, sowing panic among gay men who say they now feel like hunted animals.

The story itself is horrible enough.  The Lead in the Episcopal Cafe wrote about this article, beneath the paragraphs that I used above. This is what they wrote:

There are people who will tell you with a straight face a) that it is culturally imperialistic to attempt to change the kinds of attitudes that inform this violence and b) that no member church in the Anglican Communion has any business ordaining LGBT priests and bishops until such attitudes change. 

In other words commit more violence thinking that's how violence will end that kind of thing.  The problem with all of this is the idea that somehow there are Christians who justify such behaviors as if they are doing a wise and noble thing. When in fact, nothing could be further from the truth. 

Contrast that kind of thinking with the mission statement of Soul Force, and the difference is amazing. 

Soulforce, guided by the spirit of truth and empowered by the principles of relentless nonviolent resistance, works to end the religious and political oppression of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning people.

What is truly disturbing is that Jesus made the promise in today's Gospel:  "Those who love me will keep my word, and my Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them." (John 14; 23).  God wants to make a home with us?  God wants us to keep the word of Jesus so that God and Jesus will make a home with us.  In other words, God and Jesus want to bring us the Holy Spirit.  How in the world can God make a home with us, in the Church, in institutions that promote violence and prejudice as a way of dealing with conflict?  How can we see God making a home in places where LGBT people are continually violated by religious and political oppression?  The most recent example of such oppression came yesterday when the Pope's right hand Cardinal once again stated that the pedophilia crisis in the Catholic church is to be blamed on gay men.  In the face of sexual violence that was not addressed appropriately, they in appropriately use spiritual violence to use gay men as their scape goat.   


The reality is that such acts of sexual, spiritual and war like violence are not of the mind of God or Jesus.  Such attitudes are not the result of the Paschal mystery.  They are sins in the worst way.  When even the "mightiest" of church men cannot even admit that they did wrong and uses a group of people already oppressed by political and religious folks as their excuse, sin is at work and real conversion is needed some where.  When people use the name of Jesus to suggest gun violence to over throw a government attempting to bring peace and justice to a world ridden with a bad economy and people who are sick because they cannot afford health care, sin is at work.  It has to be called by it's name and we must pray and pray as often as possible for a peaceful ending.  


God came to us in Jesus Christ to offer us all a different way.  God came to us to tell us that it is okay to be different.  In Jesus, God looked at all of our sins and promised to help us, and he did it through the death and resurrection of Jesus.  God sent the Holy Spirit upon the Church to guide us into all truth.  Truth does not drop from the sky all wrapped up and understood.  The Scriptures by themselves without Tradition and Reason risk being used as excuses for hate and are we not seeing that now?   Through Reason we understand that women are no longer just property to be bargained away.  Women are wonderful, nurturing and giving people who are also called by God to lead the world and the Church.  Through Reason we also know that people of different colors, races, religions, nationalities and cultures have terrific gifts to offer humankind.  Likewise through Reason we also understand that people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered can love in healthy and holy ways just like heterosexuals can.  It is time for the violence and oppression against women, people of different races, sexual orientations and/or gender identities/expressions to end.  There is no Christian attitude that justifies such violence and bigotry.

Almighty and everlasting God, who in the Paschal mystery established the new covenant of reconciliation: Grant that all who have been reborn into the fellowship of Christ's Body may show forth in their lives what they profess by their faith; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. (Collect for the Second Sunday of Easter, Book of Common Prayer, Page 224).

O God, you made us in your own image and redeemed us through Jesus your Son: Look with compassion on the whole human family; take away the arrogance and hatred which infect our hearts; break down the walls that separate us; unite us in bonds of love; and work through our struggle and confusion to accomplish your purposes on earth; that, in your good time, all nations and races may serve you in harmony around your heavenly throne; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (Prayer for the Human Family, Book of Common Prayer, Page 815)

Gracious Father, we pray for your holy Catholic Church. Fill it with all truth, in all truth with all peace. Where it is corrupt, purify it; where it is in error, direct it; where in any thing it is amiss, reform it. Where it is right, strengthen it; where it is in want, provide for it; where it is divided, reunite it; for the sake of Jesus Christ your Son our Savior. Amen. (Prayer for the Church, Book of Common Prayer, Page 816).

Second Monday in Easter: Who Is the Way After All?

John 14: 1-7 (NRSV)

"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house there are many dwelling places. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and twill take you to myself, so that where I am, there you may be also. And you know the way to the place where I am going." Thomas said to him, "Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?"  Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.  If you know me, you will know my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him."

This particular Gospel reading was my friend Fr. Tetrualt's favorite.  In fact, he had it read and preached about at his funeral back in 2007.  It is hard to explain to many people who Fr. Tetrault was to me, because he was the first Catholic Priest I worked for after I graduated from college in 1994.  He was funny and serious.  He was as practical as he was intellectual.  Fr. Tetrault had a heart of gold and arms outstretched to many people who were often unloved by their own family.  I was very fortunate to be one of those people he held his arms and heart out to.   When I came out and told him I was gay, he a Catholic Priest told me that I had to love people the way God created me to love them, and that I could love no other way.  He affirmed for me that God had created me as I am, and that my being gay was how God created me to love other people.  It is a lesson that I have held on to since the day he told me that.  Oddly enough in 2007 when I made the mistake of becoming involved with the Courage ministry that was started by Cardinal Cook, it was among the first things that the local chaplain had told me to work on erasing from my mind.

Fr. Tetrault was more to me than just a best friend, mentor and a great Priest.  He was also a Priest who taught me the meaning of fortitude. Fr. Tetrault was wounded by the Priest pedophilia scandals.  Fr. Tetrault never laid a hand on a child.  Fr. Tetrault never used his Priestly authority over a child to abuse or manipulate them.  Yet, when the scandal of Fr. Jim Porter became public news, because Fr. Tetrault was the Pastor of one of the Parishes in the early 1990's, where Fr. Porter had molested dozens of altar boys in the 1960's, Fr. Tetrault's name wound up smeared along with Fr. Porter.  In as much as the church that Fr. Tetrault served for 40 years of his life had disappointed him, he never stopped ministering to God's people in loving and holy ways.  The day after new Bishop was installed in the Diocese, he met and asked Fr. Tetrault what he wanted the Bishop to do for him.  Fr. Tetrault asked the Bishop to come to his Parish and listen first to the people who were so injured by a church that did not look out for their interests.  Fr. Tetrault's first concern was the wounded people, not his own priestly stature, or even the press that was hounding him day in and day out.  The Bishop listened to Fr. Tetrault.  And though the scandal that broke out into the news media has become worse and Fr. Tetrault is now gone due to heart failure (gee I wonder why?) his name is still a good name, because of how much he loved people.

I think the reason Fr. Tetrault was able to do what he did, even though he faced tremendous obstacles is because he knew who was the "way, truth and life".  And Fr. Tetrault knew that his ministry was first for the people he served, and he often paid a hefty price for the way he loved other people. 

As the pedophile scandals become more urgent through the news media and now questions about the motives of the church and the Pope himself, I think it is important to ask the question who exactly is the way, truth and life.  Is it Jesus Christ or the church?   Rev. Canon Susan Russell helped me to ask myself this question as I read her blog post last night. 

Dowd goes on to make some important points about how "negating women is at the heart of the church’s hideous — and criminal — indifference to the welfare of boys and girls in its priests’ care" and I couldn't agree more. In fact, I was reading along thinking how grateful I am for all the hard work that has been done in my own church -- The Episcopal Church -- through clergy misconduct training and creating dramatic changes in the climate of transparency and accountablity to protect the most vulnerable.

And then I got to this part:

As the longtime Vatican enforcer, the archconservative Ratzinger — now Pope Benedict XVI — moved avidly to persecute dissenters. But with molesters, he was plodding and even merciful ... As in so many other cases, the primary concern seemed to be shielding the church. Chillingly, outrageously, the future pope told [an] Oakland bishop to consider the “good of the universal church” before granting the priest’s own request to give up the collar.

Outrageous, I thought. Shocking. IMAGINE choosing the institutional church over an incarnational member of the Body of Christ.

Like Maureen Dowd, I wondered, "How could anyone put up with that from their church?"

And then, like Maureen Dowd it hit me: There are those who would have my church -- The Episcopal Church -- do the same thing.

Exhibit A: This letter from the Diocese of Virginia -- explaining why they declined to the consent to the election of Mary Glasspool as a bishop for Los Angeles:

The Standing Committee of the Diocese of Virginia has declined to consent to the election of the Rev. Canon Mary Douglas Glasspool as bishop suffragan of the Diocese of Los Angeles because, in the view of a majority of the Committee, her election is inconsistent with the moratorium agreed to by the General Convention of the Episcopal Church. That majority believes that, at this time, failure by individual dioceses to respect the Church's agreement to the moratorium would be detrimental to the good order of our Church and bring into question its reliability as an institution. The committee found no other reason to withhold its consent to the election of Canon Glasspool.

The "order of the church" trumped the qualifications of the candidate. And the beat goes on.

Is there a difference between failing to consent to the election of a bishop suffragan and failing to protect children from pedophile priests? Of course there is.

But whenever we elevate the institutional church and its order, power and privilege over the Gospel call to embrace all God's beloved we compromise the high calling we've been given as the Body of Christ on earth. Ignoring pedophilia is a shocking abdication of our vocation as Christians. So is ignoring homophobia. And misogyny. And racism.

Anytime we choose the instititution (the structure of the church) over the incarnation (the members of our human family created in the image of God) we fall short of who God is calling us to be.

And that, my brothers and sisters, isn't just a shame. It's a sin.

Jesus Christ is the way, truth and life because he leads all people to God. Jesus does not weigh our value because we live by certain doctrines, in certain denominations or because we are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgendered people.  We are led to God by Jesus, because we are recognized as individuals created in the image and likeness of God.  God sees our hardships, our issues and how many of us are viewed as second class citizens.  In Jesus, God does not see any of us that way. God sees us all through Jesus as God's beloved children with whom God is well pleased.  God views us through God's unconditional and all inclusive love.  When we are hurting because of the Church, God's heart is truly broken, even when the Church does not seem all that concerned.  Jesus is the way, truth and life because in Jesus God challenges all people, and the Body of Christ which is the Church to continue to be redeemed and sanctified so that we may lead others to know of God's extravagant love for every person.

Almighty and everlasting God, who in the Paschal mystery established the new covenant of reconciliation: Grant that all who have been reborn into the fellowship of Christ's Body may show forth in their lives what they profess by their faith; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. (Collect for the Second Sunday of Easter, Book of Common Prayer, Page 224).  

O God, the creator and preserver of all, we humbly beseech you for all sorts and conditions of people; that you would be pleased to make your ways known unto them, your saving health unto all nations. More especially we pray for your holy Church universal; that it may be so guided and governed by your good Spirit, that all who profess and call themselves Christians may be led into the way of truth, and hold the faith in unity of spirit, in the bond of peace, and in righteousness of life. Finally, we commend to your fatherly goodness all those who are in any ways afflicted or distressed, in mind, body, or estate; that it may please you to comfort and relieve them according to their several necessities, giving them patience under their sufferings, and a happy issue out of all their afflictions. And this we beg for Jesus Christ's sake. Amen.  (Prayer for All Sorts and Conditions, Book of Common Prayer, Page 815).

Gracious Father, we pray for your holy Catholic Church. Fill it with all truth, in all truth with all peace. Where it is corrupt, purify it; where it is in error, direct it; where in any thing it is amiss, reform it. Where it is right, strengthen it; where it is in want, provide for it; where it is divided, reunite it; for the sake of Jesus Christ your Son our Savior. Amen. (Prayer for the Church, Book of Common Prayer, Page 816). 

Second Sunday of Easter: Living and Believing Beyond What We See

The familiar story of the experience of Thomas with the risen Christ which we hear every year, is an opportunity to reset our faith after a long week of reflecting on the events of Easter.  The events that have been going on around us this past week might cause us to have some doubts of our own.  Fear might be plaguing us as we hear stories of people not getting their unemployment benefits or the miners being killed.  Fear was in the minds of the disciples which is why they were in a room with the door locked.  Yet, Jesus appears to them and wishes them peace.  And so Jesus comes to us today in the midst of all the violence, war, discrimination and worry and offers us God's peace.

The peace that God offers us is one that may not come by way of satisfying all our temporary needs.  Many individuals still cannot afford health insurance. The families of those miners that lost their lives are grieving and angry, as are all of us when business executives think more about their profits than taking steps to insure that their workers are safe from disastrous conditions. People are grieving and afraid of what is coming next.  The peace that Jesus offers us won't stop us all from dying.  It may not stop every war, act of corporate greed or prejudice that exists in the world.  But the peace that Jesus offers us is to know that God has not stopped believing in us or loving us, even if there may be questions in our own hearts and minds about who God is and/or what God is doing.  Times are difficult, but they are opportunities that help us wait to see what God is going to do. The best is yet to come.

Out in Scripture by the Human Rights Campaign as always has some thoughtful insights into this weekends readings.

The traumatic experiences of Jesus' arrest and crucifixion have left his followers paralyzed by fear. They lock themselves in, and are literally afraid to be "out." Yet we find in John 20:19-31 a loving and patient Jesus who does not only reveal himself to his followers once, but also returns a second time. During this second time, the risen Jesus engages Thomas who has had to give up "faith" to learn to see with his own eyes. The good news of Easter is that Jesus is always coming to us, returning for us. This he will do not once, but again and again. This is not only a promise for the future, but also a reality of the present. Jesus comes repeatedly to give us peace and the Holy Spirit, so that, as the psalmist says in Psalm 118:17, we shall live and recount the deeds of God.

The risen Christ comes to us, but comes — according to John 20:20, 25-27 — also with scars in his hands and in his side. Jesus' scars can be read as a testimony to his solidarity with lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people who have also borne scars, both metaphorical and physical, of rejection and oppression. As Psalm 118:14-21 reminds us, God alone opens (and closes) the gates of righteousness. And Revelation 1:5-6 tells us, there is one "who loves us and freed us from our sins by his blood." No matter what caused or how we come to understand our identities as LGBT or straight people, God through Jesus Christ has made us a kin-dom of priests for service and ministry. Psalm 118:22-23 proclaims the liberating acts of God that are in fact "marvelous in our eyes." These verses proclaim that God will actually do more than open the gates for LGBT people, but God will vindicate the pain of our rejection. We who have been labeled dead, destructive, useless or worthless are revealed and restored by God's intervention as worthy, important, constructive, even indispensable.

From a Christian perspective, what God has done for Jesus, God has also done for us in Jesus. We continue to live when we were supposed to die, and we continue to gather when we were supposed to be dispersed and sent away. Despite people's rejection — even making us the very definition of sin in God's name — God has accepted us, and will vindicate us. In the meantime, however, we are also called to a task and a responsibility. 

John 20:19-23 is clear that Jesus returns to his followers not only to bring them peace, but also to send them out in the company of the Holy Spirit. In Acts 5:27-32, Christ's call to proclaim meets with prohibitions from human religious authorities. LGBT people called to proclamation and ministry are too familiar with this kind of "strict orders" to not teach in Jesus' name (Acts 5:28). We know, however, that many, like the early followers of Jesus in Acts, have not stopped doing so. Many have stood before councils and challenged those who try to silence their faith and call. Others have found alternative pulpits in alternative congregations.  

I also like some things that the Gospel for Gays has to say for the Gospel reading.

Because of the healthy skepticism of Thomas (and his subsequent profession of faith), this reading offers a special beatitude directed at all those who come after, those who never knew the historical Jesus:  “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.”

I think that beatitude includes those of us who believe despite the behavior of the apostles’ successors, despite the many failures of the institution and its members, despite abuse of authority – including their failure to face uncomfortable realities respecting human sexuality.
We gay people are included here, since we believe, not only without having seen the physical manifestation of Jesus, so strongly emphasized here.  But also we believe even though the institution that claims to represent the  risen Christ in this world rejects us.

Where does that leave us?

What is the gay person’s relationship with this sinful structure that nevertheless, despite its sin, carries Christ to us and the world?

The lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered community lives and believes beyond what we see when we continue to believe in ourselves and the God who is so much bigger than the institution of government and many church communities.  The very fact that many LGBT people choose to be part of vibrant faith communities where we are welcomed, affirmed and celebrated while still challenging many communities that do not, is more incredible that we often give ourselves credit for.  We do not have to accept the destructive voices and behaviors of church communities that continue to tell LGBT people that we are sinners who are corrupting society and many churches through the so called "gay agenda." 

In recent weeks the awful hate rhetoric that has come from many conservative voices in the Catholic church towards gay people due to the news of increasing accusations of cover ups of pedophile Priests by Pope Benedict have been disturbing, heart breaking and angering to put it mildly.  When an institution cannot even address it's own issues of sexual violence without using LGBT people as their scape goat, you know something is really evil has been going on within the institution itself.  There is obviously denial, finger pointing and a lack of accountability going on.  It is the business of not only LGBT individuals but all people, Christian or not, to rightfully speak up and remind the leaders of the Catholic church that religious authority is no excuse for not taking care of their own business.  These are issues that have been in the church for decades and it is the result of unhealthy attitudes within the institution.  It has nothing to do with homosexuality, the "gay agenda", pornography or any other reason they are using as their excuse.  And their blame game serves neither their abuse victims, the church or the world.

Today, we have a great day to rejoice.  Because God has answered our prayers and presents God's Self to us again and again in the risen Christ.  God comes to confirm our faith, strengthen us in our difficulties and call us to continue our efforts towards full inclusion.  God calls on us to continue to believe in God through our willingness to be out and a live and willing to love and be loved as we walk through all that life has to offer.  The risen Christ is always with us and helping us.  We are never alone and in the risen Christ we are loved, cherished and saved. 

Almighty and everlasting God, who in the Paschal mystery established a new covenant of reconciliation:  Grant that all who have been reborn into the fellowship of Christ's Body may show forth in their lives what they profess by their faith; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. (Collect for the Second Sunday of Easter, Book of Common Prayer, Page 224).