My mind is swirling with ideas and excitement. I'm fresh from Easter celebrations, sitting at a conference focused on "emerging worship", listening to "The Shack" (don't even think about telling me how it ends), getting ready to lead people deeper practices of spiritual disciplines, and I'm beginning to read and discuss with you a book that has sat on my shelf for far too long--"God's Politics". Some of you I know and know well, and others of you I am getting ready to know more closely--and I already know that we have the possibility of having a deep and wide conversation arounnd God, politics, and God's politics.
Let me get us started by posting three questions:
1. Irregardless what you think of Jim Wallis or his ideas, I appreciate that he allows a glimpse into personal life--he grew up in a church, wrestled with his faith and how it plays out in the world, and then came to unite the two, etc, etc, etc. I appreciate his life story because whether or not I agree with his statements, I can begin to put myself in his shoes. So the first thing I invite us to do, share a bit about yourself--your faith story and how it shapes your view and engagement of the world.
2. Jim Wallis makes the comment that faith is personal but never private. What do you make of his statement? Is this natural for you or a new thing for you?
3. This section is called "Changing the Wind". Could somebody with a book in hand give us a quote by what Wallis means by "changing the wind"? And then let's talk about that quote. Cool?
Thank you in advance for participation, your honesty, and for your grace toward me and each other.
Peace,
rc
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Let me give a shot at the first question--my faith story and how it shapes me today.
ReplyDeleteI grew up in a church in Northwest Iowa. Let me say more... There is never a time when I don't remember participating in worship or talking about God--with my family or family friends. My family participating in everything they could at church--worship, leadership, and groups.
The church where we worshiped was Hartley United Methodist Church, and a few things must be said about that. My family chose that church not because they were already United Methodists but because people welcomed them when they arrived to town. Also, if you're familiar with Northwest Iowa, the people are politically conservative and the religious landscape is defined by the Reformed Church and its theology. So...even though the congregation of my upbringing bears the label of "United Methodist", I was shaped by conservative, reformed people and teaching. On my 18th birthday when I registered with the selective service and for my right to vote, I had no doubt that I wanted to carry the Republican Party card.
Midway through college, I spent the summer working in Scott County, Tennessee--working among poor people, bringing in youth and church groups to help build and repair houses. 12 weeks of service and learning. That summer shook my world and nearly every foundation of my life. I could write for years trying to describe and understand what happened that summer, but I had a glimpse of the world through the eyes of dispossessed, poor people who were regularly victimized by the people in power. The poor people I met had no voice in shaping the world around them. Though many of the people I met held tight to conservative theology and politics, I saw those same beliefs and systems oppress and suppress in a way that seemed the opposite of the way of Jesus.
I left the summer angry at God, suspicious of the church, and wholeheartedly cynical of the political and religious establishment.
And then I went to seminary to be a pastor... :) I spent most of my time there wrestling with Scripture--falling in love again with the Bible and with God. Some of my friends helped me learn to have hope in the Church and see that Christians can engage the world with a deep, prophetic voice without conforming to the lines of political persuasion.
So where am I today? In the last three years I’ve moved on from despair and cynicism. I’ve gotten tired of being the passive victim of a world steeped with duplicity and complexity. Instead, I’ve seen God come alive in my life—energize my life—and I’ve come to believe that Scripture and Spirit are alive and well. When people as if I’m a Democrat or a Republican, I’ll say that I’m Christian. And I will continually ask myself and the people around me how God is calling us to reach out to the least, the last, and the lost around us. And I look forward to learning and growing with you…
Peace,
rc
Public but never private...
ReplyDeleteIt's a scary thing opening the deepest part of my self to others around me. I can think of nothing more intimate and personal in my life--nothing more hope-filled yet wanting--as my relationship with God. And I would naturally spend most of my time in quiet solitude--prayer, reading, meditation (sleep, pizza, mtn dew).
But the more I connect with God, the more that I feel compelled to move beyond my self-centered solitude and connect to other people and witness to God in the world. I think it's that Love God, Love Neighbor kinda thing. In relationships--in the "public"--I've experienced joy, sorrow, community, and conflict. I've experienced people at their best--humbly seeking to work together to embody Christ in the world. I've experienced people at their worst--letting pride and fear fracture our God-given humanity. But still, it seems like in the darkest of places, I see God at work the most bringing light and life. And so I get to share and celebrate my personal faith and other's personal faith in a public way.
...time to drive home...so off goes my computer...
Peace,
rc