Keep Dreaming

People of hope and faith today are encouraged to keep dreaming. In a poem entitled "I Dream a World," Langston Hughes offered his dream for the world:

I dream a world where no man

No other man will scorn,

Where love will bless the earth

And peace its paths adorn

I dream a world where all

Will know sweet freedom's way,

Where greed no longer saps the soul

Nor avarice blights our day.

A world I dream where black or white,

Whatever race you be,

Will share the bounties of the earth

And every man is free,

Where wretchedness will hang its head

And joy, like a pearl,

Attends the needs of all mankind-

Of such I dream, my world!

Keep Dreaming

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. once dreamed that (each of us) would someday be judged not by the color of our skin, but by the content of our character. These are days when we are beckoned to keep dreaming of such a world. Langston Hughes shared with us in a poem why it is important for us to keep dreaming:

Hold fast to dreams,

For when dreams die,

Life is a broken-winged bird

That cannot fly.

When Violence Abounds - The Church's Call to Action Against Violence

(This article was first published in June 1999 in the United Methodist Connection, and then in the book, And Yet the Melody Lingers: Essays, Sermons and Prayers on Religion and Race, 2006 by Dr. C. Anthony Hunt)

The recent acts of violence that have littered our national and local news should heighten our collective conscious and raise our level of concern. The trial and acquittal of four police officers charged in the death of Amadou Diallo is but the latest episode that serves to remind us of the pervasiveness of violence and hatred in our midst. While the issues surrounding Diallo’s death – a West African immigrant who was shot 41 times while unarmed in New York – notably points to the problems underlying some zero-tolerance enforcement policies, and rogue police officers involved in acts of brutality, other instances also serve to point to the permeation of violence in our midst.

Whether it is a 6-year-old boy who brings a gun into a Michigan school and kills his first-grade classmate, or two promising high school seniors in Washington, DC who are gunned down after a basketball game, or a Pennsylvania man who fatally shoots three persons because of his alleged anti-white and anti-Jewish views, we find a plethora of evidence pointing to an increasingly violent society.

Violence abounds. Whether it’s the death of Taisha Miller, the young African American woman murdered by police while sitting in her car in California, or James Byrd, an African American man who was dragged behind a truck to his death by white supremacists in Texas, or Matthew Shepherd - the young college student who - because of his sexual identity - was beaten, hung on a pole and left to die in Wyoming - violence is all around us.

The problem of violence is complex and multi-dimensioned to say the least. The death of Amadou Diallo – and the lack of justice (heretofore) for those who murdered him - points to the prevalence of racism in America. Racism has resulted in a double-standard in many policing practices. These practices are the by-products of policies that tout decreasing inner-city crime rates – but often at the expense of the selective interrogation and arrest of innocent persons of color who fit certain profiles – particularly African American males.

Several other factors seem to be complicit in the recent wave of violence in America. Widening economic disparities between the rich and the poor contribute to the escalating violence. We observe that a disproportionate number of those who are victims, as well as many of the alleged perpetrators of violent acts are a part of America’s under-class.

Additionally, the continued right-wing political influence of the gun lobby – spearheaded by the National Rifle Association - seems intent on keeping guns in the hands of any person – of any age – who for any reason wants to possess a handgun. Furthermore – violence in the media and in cyber-space serve as breeding grounds for a preponderance of the intolerance and violent acts that are carried out among us.

What is the church’s response when violence abounds? First it is incumbent upon the United Methodist Church as a community of the faithful to affirm that the problem of violence in American society is the church’s problem. The apostle James shared that “faith without works is not faith at all.” John Wesley’s notion of social holiness – that we are to “reform the nation and spread Scriptural holiness” - helps us to see that the United Methodist Church is to be prophetically and actively engaged in speaking and acting to eradicate the societal ills that plague us.

Secondly, we must affirm that the problem of violence is shared by all of us. As one of the most diverse communities of faith in the United States, we who are United Methodists are challenged to realize that whether in the city or the suburbs, violence - and its underlying forms of hatred - whether racism, homophobia, sexism or any other forms of xenophobia - must be viewed as our collective dilemma. Violence touches all of our lives, our families and our churches.

Therefore, solving the problem of violence in America is our shared responsibility. Each of our churches - and each member of the United Methodist Church - should prayerfully consider ways that we can constructively address the problem of violence among us. Our collective prayers and thoughts should then spawn us into prophetic social action.

When Violence Abounds - The Church's Unfinished Agenda

(In 2000, a group of United Methodist church leaders in the Baltimore-Washington area began to organize to work on the ongoing problem of violence in our communities and to develop appropriate ways for churches to act. Below is the foundational document which guided the Nonviolence Coalition's work.)

Premise:
· The proliferation of violence in our society affects all of God’s people, and warrants a prayerful, prophetic and proactive response from the church

· The United Methodist Bishops’ Initiative on Drugs and Violence (1988) is heretofore an unfinished agenda, and warrants further action and commitment of resources from the whole faith community

Purpose:
· Gather persons around the common concern for the violence that is a reality in all of our communities,

· Provide analysis of the problem of violence,

· Begin to discern and look at what should be the United Methodist Church’s (and faith community’s) response to violence in our society,

· Begin to consider best practices and develop action steps and church, and

· Develop and strengthen coalitions of persons in churches and community organizations to effectively deal with violence in the society.

Hope in Hard Times - How to Talk About Race

Several recent events have served to heighten awareness as to the ongoing problem with race and racism in America. Among these are Supreme Court confirmation hearings of Justice Sonia Sotomayor; the arrest of Harvard University Professor Henry Louis Gates at his home in Cambridge, MA; and the recent debates surrounding President Barack Obama's efforts toward reforming our nation's healthcare system. During a recent visit to the Southern Poverty Law Center in Montgomery, AL (http://www.splcenter.org/), I and others on the visit were informed that there were over 800 hate related groups identified in 2008, and that this number is on the rise.

In these days it is important that we develop the capacity to talk about race and racism in ways that will lead toward healing among us. In a seminar titled Unlearning Racism, facilitator Lee Mun Wah provides participants with guidelines for initiating and engaging in healthy conversations around race. At the core of the seminar, Wah shares the belief that talking aboout race can lead to healthy listening skills, and that all parties need to be willing to listen to each other, not only with their ears, but their eyes – watching how information is received, and being willing to ask questions that come from genuine curiosity. Conversation becomes more than the cursory greeting, and while requiring more time, can move us past our stereotypes of each other, to understanding.

The following are Lee Mun Wah’s nine healthy ways to build healthy conversations around race:
1. Reflect back what is being said. Use their words, not yours.
2. Begin where they are, not where you want them to be.
3. Be curious and open to what the are trying to say.
4. Notice what they are saying and what they are not.
5. Emotionally relate to how they are feeling. Nurture the relationship.
6. Notice how you are feeling. Be honest and authentic.
7. Take responsibility for your part in the conflict or misunderstanding.
8. Try to understand how their past affects who they are and how those experiences affect their relationship with you.
9. Stay with the process and the relationship, not just the solution.

Lee Mun Wah is the founder of StirFry Seminars. For more information go to www.stirfryseminars.com.

(A part of this article is an adaptation of an article by Jeanene Jones in CORR Directions, a publication of the General Commission on Religion and Race of the UMC , June 2009, http://www.gcorr.org/.)

Signs of Hope - A Legacy of Lessons

The Rev. Dr. Ira Zepp, who passed away on August 1, 2009, was a teacher like no other. He was a mentor to many of us, and a passionate seeker of justice. In his recent book, Pedagogy of the Heart: A Teacher's Credo, Zepp wrote:

"A teacher is someone who is willing and humble enough to drink from the instructional wells of those who have preceded us and continue to be nourished by them: the Hindu sages, the prophets' call for justice, the discipline of the shamans, the wisdom teachers of all traditions, the gifts and graces of the saints, plus every teacher we've ever had. A teacher is someone who is devoted to students and is willing to endure the vertigo of vulnerability which inevitably accompanies the intimacy of human relationships and unanswered questions. This is the pedagogy of the heart."

Hope in Hard Times - God's Answer to the Health-care Crisis

Recently, while I was working with a group of graduate theological students, the question was raised within the context of a discussion on social justice and civil rights, as to whether anyone in the group had recently heard a sermon dealing with the current health-care crisis facing our nation. In the room there was silence – none could point to having heard- or having preached - such a sermon. This is particularly interesting in light of the constant news coverage focusing on the struggles facing President Barack Obama and his administration in moving forward with a comprehensive plan to reform our nation’s health-care system and provide access to coverage for the more than 45 million Americans who do not now have adequate coverage – most of whom are women and children – and the majority of whom are brown and black persons living in urban areas.

The response of this group of students led me to wonder what God has to say about the current health-care crisis facing us. In the 7th century B.C.E., the Prophet Jeremiah posed a series of questions to the Israelites: “Is there no balm in Gilead; is there no physician there? Why then has the health of my poor people not been restored?” (Jeremiah 8:22)

Jeremiah's questions were raised in light of the experience of exile and pain among the people of Israel. The region of Gilead was known for producing a healing balm. This balm was known for its medicinal powers. When people were hurting, they would seek out the balm from Gilead, for it was like no other in its ability to facilitate healing. The balm from Gilead was considered to be a miracle cure, and if it couldn’t heal one’s wounds, there was perhaps nothing that would.

Jeremiah spoke to the Israelites who found themselves dealing with brokenness and alienation from God, brokenness and alienation from their land, brokenness and alienation from their possessions, and brokenness and alienation from one another. And the questions that the prophet poses in light of this serve as a reminder of God’s will of mercy and justice among God’s people.

Later in the book of Jeremiah, the prophet again offers a reminder of God’s will. Jeremiah says “seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare…” “For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope.” Jeremiah 29:7, 11(NRSV)

Jeremiah’s reminder of God’s will for the welfare of those in the city (and the suburbs and rural areas) has significance for the church and society today. For “welfare” in the context in which Jeremiah speaks on behalf of God, has broader connotations. It speaks to wholeness, wellness, peace (shalom), health and healing (and by extension health-care). Indeed, it is clear that God wills for the health(care) of God’s people.

Today, a number of coalitions of faith-based groups have begun to organize their efforts in attempts to speak to concerns around the health-care crisis among those in the religious community. The Washington Post reports (July 25, 2009) that one coalition has been organized by Sojourners and has provided a guide for leaders and members of congregations, which uses biblical teachings to make the point that the nation’s health-care system is un urgent need of repair. “A Guide to the Health Care Reform Debate” shares that “The Bible does not outline specific policies around the provision of health-care, but it does make clear that protecting the health of each human being is a profoundly important personal and communal responsibility for people of faith… Physical healing was a part of the salvation Jesus brought … Healings represent a sign of the breaking of God’s reign into the present reality. "

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. reminded us that “true peace is not merely the absence of tension; it is the presence of justice. May God inspire us to speak and act with justice in light of those who are broken, hurt and in need of healing among us.