Tag Archives: Ending Hate

Called to Love

Advent

December 14, 2021

Scripture Reading: Psalm 80:1-7

Restore us, O God;
   let your face shine, that we may be saved.

O Lord God of hosts,
   how long will you be angry with your people’s prayers?
You have fed them with the bread of tears,
   and given them tears to drink in full measure.
You make us the scorn of our neighbors;
   our enemies laugh among themselves.

Restore us, O God of hosts;
   let your face shine, that we may be saved.

I did not live through the depression or World War II, and I was too young to remember much about the Korean War. I do remember sitting under my desk at school as practice in case a nuclear bomb struck us and watching the aftermath of the assassination of President Kennedy. I lived just a few blocks from the predominately black part of town in college. I remember well the sounds of guns, Molotov cocktails, and fire truck sirens all night after Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated. I learned later those participants were shooting in the air and destroying trash cans and other containers in their neighborhood in frustration, anger, fear, and hopelessness. Here we are still. Does it ever end? We are a nation divided. I easily can imagine God being angry that we still do not recognize that love is always better than hate, and the love displaced on greed and power is the same as hate. What are we teaching our children? This cycle must stop with us.

Prayer: Restore us, O God of hosts; let your face shine, that we may be saved. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Preparing to Do Justice

Christmas
December 28, 2018

Scripture Reading: Colossians 3:12-17

As God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. Bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other; just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. –Colossians 3:12-14

For several months I have been receiving the most vitriolic emails from various political sources of my persuasion usually ending in something threatening great doom at the level of “if you do not send money now the world will come to an end.” I would never send money to any such request. I thought they would end after the election, but I am still getting them. Today I took the time to unsubscribe to ones I received and as my time permits, I will continue to do that. We do not need to hate each other to disagree on ways to address issues we are facing. Compromise is not a four-letter word. Finding common ground for the Common Good is always the best way to deal with problems. I have little expertise on how to address climate change, but I am willing to learn from those with knowledge to support sound decision and I do know that some action is needed. On the other hand, I know more than I wish I did about poverty and our health care system and would love to sit and share my experience and understanding with others. I have found that placing a stubborn problem before fresh eyes can result in unique but effective methods to address the issues.

I am going to adopt the above scripture from Colossians as a daily mantra throughout January as I prepare for justice work in 2019. I welcome any of you who are interested to join me.

Prayer: Help us, O Lord, clothe ourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience as we strive to do justice in our world today. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.