Meditation on Mennonite Church USA Convention 2015

After attending the MC USA 2015 convention, I was scheduled to be the worship leader at church. The service this past Sunday was a lament, of sorts, over the painful decisions that were made at the convention this year. Our congregation found the resolution on membership guidelines particularly upsetting, but we should also not forget the pain that our Palestinian and Israeli brothers and sisters feel over the Palestine and Israel resolution (click here to read the reactions of some Palestinians and Israelis to the decision to table the resolution), as well as that of others who have been hurt by the church, while at the same time not discounting the positive resolutions that were passed.

I am posting my opening meditation from this past Sunday's service below, along with the hymn I used to craft a call to worship.

Religion and Obergefell et al. v. Hodges

Today's historic Supreme Court decision has thus far received an understandably mixed reception. I have been troubled by those, including dissenting justices, suggesting that religious institutions are now under threat by the decision. All of this in spite of the fact that the decision itself and Justice Roberts' majority opinion carefully protects religion under the first amendment. So let's talk about the rights of religious institutions and what this decision could mean for us as a society.

So, regarding marriage, what rights do religious institutions have? After the civil rights struggle of the mid-twentieth century, churches have to marry people of other races and interracial couples, do they not? And if they can't discriminate based on race, they surely can't discriminate based on religion! So, up to this point, all religious officials have had to marry all opposite-sex couples that have come seeking to be married, correct? WRONG!

I tawt I taw some inequality!

Recently, as I was staying with my parents for a bit, the internet began having problems. Unable to do anything requiring an internet connection, and with nothing of interest to me on the television, I turned to their DVD of Loony Tunes classics for entertainment. The first disc contains a number of Sylvester and Tweety episodes, which, for several years, have reminded me of my sister's opinion of that type of cartoon. You know, the one where a predator is chasing his prey, only to be outsmarted and usually injured by said prey. Tom and Jerry and the Road Runner and Coyote are two other classic cartoons of this genre.

Prayer

Last summer, I gave a tour to a nun, Sister Joseph. We had a great time on tour and talked a little bit afterwards. Somehow, prayer came up in our conversation, and Sister Joseph said she would pray for me, because she would think about me, and every time you think about someone, you pray for them. That profound statement has stayed with me ever since.

My understanding of prayer growing up was that prayer was a conscious action. We folded our hands, bowed our heads and prayed. And when we said Amen, the prayer was over; we were no longer praying. Prayer had a distinct beginning and ending, it functioned to give thanks or express concerns, and it had definable limits. But Sister Joseph was hinting at something far deeper, and more powerful.

Lent

Today, the first Sunday of Lent, I would like to spend some time reflecting. The pastor at my church this morning, Mark, considered the way our ancestors observed (or more accurately, didn't observe) the Lenten season. Could this have been linked to the idea that Lent is a time to remember the pain of Christ? Perhaps these early Anabaptists had no need of such a season, as they were reminded of this pain every day. There was a constant fear of discovery, a constant fear of imprisonment and death. They lived through pain and suffering the entire year as their friends and relatives were taken away, and as they were taken away. They would be burned at the stake,  beheaded, or drowned. The church in this country is relatively removed from this sort of suffering. Perhaps a reminder of this sort of persecution would do us good. Perhaps we should use this Lenten season to remember the intolerance against which our ancestors struggled, rather than perpetrating intolerance against others (particularly the LGBTQ community. See my last post). I plan to spend this season reading through more of the Martyr's Mirror for just this reason.

Division and Exclusion

Introduction:

The issue of human sexuality has become a major issue of division in the church, more than any I can remember since I became active in the church.  Recently, the Mountain States Mennonite Conference (MSMC) affirmed the ministry of Theda Good (http://www.themennonite.org/issues/16-12/articles/Mountain_States_first_conference_to_license_samesex_pastor). In response, several other conferences wrote letters to the Executive Board (EB), and both directly and indirectly requested that MSMC be removed from Mennonite Church USA (MC USA) (http://www.themennonite.org/issues/17-3/articles/Letters_from_conference_leaders_and_pastors_express_concern_about_Mountain_States_decision).

My first thought on reading this article and the letter from my home conference, signed by people I know and by many leaders from my home area, was to renounce my membership at my home congregation. However, I would not cease attending this congregation when I return, nor would I change the venue of my upcoming wedding. I am a part of this community, and though we disagree on these matters, I want it to be clear that I do not wish to withdraw from the community. This differs from the views expressed in the Ohio Conference letter (http://www.themennonite.org/uploads/File/Ohio%20letter.pdf), which calls for the removal of an entire conference based on such a disagreement.

Creation and Understanding

I don't find believing in a literal six-day creation story to be necessary to the Christian faith.  I think it runs counter to our understanding of the world and significantly limits the power of God.  What I find to be much more fascinating is the idea that God exists outside of the universe and was able to orchestrate its creation and is able to work very subtly and effectively through existing natural means.

Dear Congressman (a response to Obama's stance on Syria)

I just listened to President Obama's speech from the Rose Garden, where he very forcefully advocated for the use of force against the Syrian government.  The one good thing he did was allow room for the voice of the American people.  Below is a letter I sent to my congressmen, urging them to oppose the use of force at every turn, and instead advocate for a more productive response which might actually help the people of Syria.  I know that it is unlikely to affect any actual conversation in Congress, but at least we can say that our opinions were heard.  Feel free to use the following letter for yourself, as well.

US vs. Them: The danger of "isms"

I know that we are now far removed from the 4th of July Holiday, where the people of the United States celebrate the war that removed British rule from its shores (I think any celebration of the loss of human life is detestable) But the problem of nationalism is not limited to one particular time of year.  The problem pervades Western culture so strongly that it has become second nature for many. So I ask you to consider the following statement:

God Bless ____.

What did you fill in the blank with?  Whites? Blacks? Old people? Young people? Men? Women?  Those statements are grossly inappropriate and wrong.  Yet throw in the word America, and it suddenly seems appropriate.  God Bless America.

That one person

So, in my work, I've interacted with thousands of people and recounted the basic story of Anabaptism, starting with the reformation.

Martin Luther criticized the Catholic church and the pope in 1517, and rather than be executed for heresy, was protected by the nobility of the Holy Roman/German Empire thanks in part to his stance concerning the nobility: that they had the authority to check the power of the church should it become corrupt.  However, not all groups received such treatment.  Starting in 1525, a group of people rebaptized one another in Switzerland, and the movement grew to reject infant baptism, teach pacifism, and denounce the intermingling of the government of man and the church, which was of God.  These beliefs, and several others held by the group, were heresy, and thus punishable by death.  The Anabaptists would be pursued for the next few centuries.  However, this persecution only strengthened the movement and accelerated its growth.  In 1536, Menno Simons left the priesthood in the Netherlands to join the Anabaptists, and became so influential that people began to refer to many Anabaptists as Mennonites.

Moments of Transcendence

There are times in life when we feel that there is more going on that what we see around us.  Times when we feel part of something larger than the current moment, when the past, present, and future all seem to be one, and we are able to commune with others outside that moment.  These moments transcend time and space and scream "WE ARE ALL CONNECTED!"

Modern science can probably map our brain and see all sorts of weird stuff going on during these moments, and I that is part of the wonder and the mystery.  Science has so many surprises, and there are still many things that make researchers scratch their heads because they don't quite understand why something happens the way it does, and that is so exciting for everyone involved.

Introduction: Hello!

Hello everyone! I thought I'd start this out with a little introduction to let you know who I am and what this blog is all about.

So, first me.  I am a baptized and self identified Mennonite belonging to MCUSA.  I was drawn into the church in high school by its emphasis on care, love, peace, and social justice.  I am kept there by my strong appreciation for the long tradition of peace in the church and by the connection I feel to Anabaptists who came before me.  I was not born into the Mennonite church.  Growing up, the only thing I would consider Anabaptist about the churches I attended was the practice of adult baptism.  These churches were solidly evangelical (and sadly, in my opinion, many Mennonite congregations have drifted into the trap of evangelicalism).  I feel an aversion towards evangelical churches generally because of the evangelical emphasis on exclusionary doctrines which make it difficult to bear a grace-oriented or humanistic point of view.  While Mennonites are far from perfect, it is where I have chosen to stay because I believe that the people of that tradition are capable of acknowledging their differences and focusing on shared values of peace and justice.

A little bit about my personal understanding of Christian faith:

I think of people as central to Christianity, as all of creation reflects the divine.  Jesus' life and ministry was focused on meeting the everyday needs of the people and standing with these people in opposition to unjust systems.  His teachings and example had very real and tangible effects; he did a lot of healing and comforting and listening and undersranding, and those who wish to follow him should do the same.

And so what am I doing here?  Well, this is my personal blog.  Essentially, I'm looking to talk about theology, books, movies, culture, current events, music, etc…  I don't really have a whole lot of theological training (my degrees are in music) but if thinking about God is theology, then that makes everyone a theologian. Thanks for joining me.