Author: rev

#Brexit1776
Well-meaning, patriotic, happy American friends share this meme a lot these days. There are indeed a couple of things that the American Declaration of Independence and the British vote to leave the European Union have in common:

1. People want to rid themselves of perceived oppression.
In 1776 the thirteen colonies made their case against King George: “He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us. He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people. He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.”
In 2016 the British electorate did not really know why they did not want to be part of the European Union anymore. As a matter of fact it wasn’t until after the vote that Brits started googling “What Is The EU?”.

2. People are concerned about the status of migrants
In 1776 the biggest concern for America was and ought to be: How can we get the most people here and make them citizens as quickly and as smoothly as possible? The king of England is hurting us by putting up a fence around our borders: “He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.”
In 2016 the overall British sentiment was: “We don’t want no refugees!”

If you have to parallel the Brexit of 2016 to an event in American history, I propose 1620. The pilgrims were one group of migrants who formed what later became the United Church of Christ. They declared their #Brexit1620 by leaving Britain and finding a new home in America.
In 2017 the United Church of Christ declared itself an Immigrant Welcoming Church. At #UCCGS the pilgrims’ sons and daughters remember what it means to be a refugee.
July 4th is not a Brexit but opening your welcoming arms to those oppressed by ruthless empires: “Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28)

This summer the Rev. Daniel Haas will be asking a series of provocative questions every Sunday. In this sermon series he will elaborate on a resounding NO as an answer in all cases!

July 2nd 2017 Should parents hit their children?

July 9th 2017 Should men dominate women?

July 16th 2017 Should brothers take advantage of each other?

July 23rd 2017 Should Christians go to church?

July 30th 2017 Should marriage only be between one man and one woman?

August 6th 2017 Should believers always be unwavering in their faith?

June is LGBT pride month. It stems from protests against the injustice and violence that patrons of the Stonewall Inn had to endure in 1969. We have achieved a lot of progress since. But even in 2017 it still makes sense to wave the rainbow flag boldly. Throughout history its message has been violated. Nazi Germany marked gender-nonconforming people with a pink triangle and gassed them to death alongside the Jews with the star of David on their chest.

The Bible knows the rainbow to be a symbol that God will sustain all of creation no matter what:
“When the bow is in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.” (Genesis 9:16)
It just so happens that among God’s creatures are also human beings. It also just so happens that 3.8% of the US population identify as LGBT. Now mind you, these are only the people who have had their “coming out”. God’s covenant extends to 100% of living creatures.

For the sake of stability and orientation we make our lives easier by grouping people into certain categories: Nazis labeled Jews, Communists and Perverts. Now we know that gender identity is not as easily labelled as we once thought. What does it mean to be a woman or a man? One is strong, the other is weak? One goes to work, the other stays home? One is emotional, the other is rational? One cooks, the other watches TV? One cleans house, the other mows the yard? One manages the kids’ activities, the other has a hard time remembering what grade they’re in? Wow, my wife is a great man, and I am great woman, or vice versa! Life is much more complex than black or white, male of female, liberal or conservative. Life is a rainbow. There are all kinds of creatures in God’s world. All were made beautiful and “very good.” We may give them labels like Straight or Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual or Transgender. Or they may not fit any category and be truly Queer.

That’s what the rainbow is all about. We are not all the same. We are all different. We all have a unique color. We all belong in a particular stripe of the rainbow. But then these stripes overlap. Pure red overlaps with yellow and forms orange between them. Yellow overlaps with blue on the other side to form green. Purple combines red and blue. Where do you fall on the rainbow? What does it mean to be a man or a woman for you?

A church needs Purpose, Vision, and Mission. As a local congregation it is imperative to find out why God put this particular group of people in this particular place at this particular point in time. On the national level our wider church, the United Church of Christ, needed a fresh start as well. Last fall the Board of Directors affirmed a new Purpose, Vision, and Mission statement for the denomination. If you haven’t seen them yet, here they are:

Purpose:
To love our God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength; and our neighbor as ourselves.

Vision:
United in Christ’s love, a just world for all.

Mission:
United in Spirit, inspired by God’s grace we welcome all, love all, and seek justice for all.

Beginning with General Synod 2017 in Baltimore this summer, the United Church of Christ will begin the transition to a new logo for the denomination. The logo, last re-designed in 2004, has been updated to reflect both tradition and innovation within the church as it faces the challenges and opportunities of Christian witness in the coming decades. The new logo’s design and colors are intended to complement the graphic representation of “A Just World for All,” developed to illustrate our new vision.

“I have been traveling around witnessing the work of our churches,” said the Rev. John C. Dorhauer, UCC General Minister and president, “and what we are doing will not change. What will change is our ability to tell the story more fully, and to narrate the impact of a mission we are all collectively engaged in. We are hoping to deepen the sense that we are all in this together; and that together we make a profound difference in our world.”

The new logo’s colors were chosen to work with both ‘A Just World for All’ and the ‘3 Great Loves campaign — Love of Children, Love of Neighbor, Love of Creation,’ which will be rolled out during General Synod in Baltimore (June 30 – July 4). Blue has replaced red, with black retained as the second color, in the new design, to visually and symbolically represent Creation elements of water and earth.

At St. John’s the phase-in of the new logo has already begun with a redesigned website, a new newsletter format, and updated worship PowerPoint slides.

The new logo retains an updated version of the traditional element of the UCC comma — a much-loved and widely used emblem of the United Church of Christ introduced as part of the “God is still speaking,” identity campaign. That campaign quoted a line from Gracie Allen that her husband George Burns found among her papers after death. In a letter addressed to him were the words, “George, never place a period where God places a comma.” A variation on that line, along with the graphic comma, has been used since 2004 as a symbol and shorthand way to refer to “continuing testimony,” or the ever-unfolding nature of God’s word for new times.

The new primary UCC logo consists of an updated comma emblem and the words “United Church of Christ.” “God is still speaking,” remains as the UCC’s tagline, and the new logo may be used with or without the tagline.

In addition to the comma, the UCC retains its original emblem for use by congregations and other entities of the denomination: the traditional “cross, crown, and orb” graphic, including the words “That they may all be one” (John17:21), which dates from the founding of the United Church of Christ in 1957—a statement of the UCC’s intent to be a “united and uniting” church.

Somewhere between 1973 and 1975 a young 2 year old boy, very quiet, reserved, that could hardly speak and so weak that he could barely stand and could not walk was brought to St. John’s Day School to Director Rae Harborth by his foster parents to see if she could help him. This little boy’s name was Joey.

Due to weakness in his overall body, he could barely stand and had to be carried everywhere he went. He was so malnourished that he had to be fed small portions of food throughout the day in order for him to keep food down. He was so dirty that she gave him a bath in the restroom sink and he screamed and screamed from not knowing what was being done to him. He screamed so much that when walking out of the restroom with him wrapped in a towel, Rev. Don Kolkmeier had come out of his office to check and see what was happening to one of the children.

But over time, for maybe up to a year, with constant care and love Joey slowly began to eat better and slowly began to stand on his own and then take steps and walk without assistance down the hallway and finally could even run the halls of the St. John’s Education wing.

As time has gone by Rae wonders what ever became of little Joey. He came here but a tiny dependent boy in need of love and care but left here running and smiling. As she says, “We can make a difference” as she feels the recent CROP Walk for Hunger makes a difference in the lives of so many in need.

If you know how we can find Joey please contact us!

The church is in the business of speaking God’s love into the world. The church does not have as a primary mission to talk about its own programming and structure. But then again talking shop is necessary to run any organization. Every two years, General Synod brings together thousands of faithful members of the United Church of Christ for formal church witness, inspirational worship, and fellowship with friends (new and old). As a Protestant church the UCC is built from the bottom up. That means that “higher-ups” cannot speak on behalf of the local congregations. But we are not independent! Instead we are in a covenant relationship. That means all levels of church organization will talk and listen to one another. General Synod speaks to the church, not for the church. So let us listen to some of the resolutions proposed this year at General Synod 31 in Baltimore, MD, which meets June 30-July 4, 2017:

There is an interesting conversation over money. From the beginning of the United Church of Christ we have followed the pattern of giving: The local churches collect their offerings, pay their local operating costs, and then forward funds to the conference level. The conferences receive funds from the local churches, pay their operating costs, and then forward funds to the national setting. So basically the farther removed a ministry is from the people, the harder it will be for them to get funded. The United Church Board of Directors proposes “a new approach to generosity in the United Church of Christ consistent with the best practices of a donor-centered approach to philanthropy.” Basically every setting in the church needs to be empowered to do its own fundraising. That way “congregations and individual donors would be able to donate directly to the mission priorities that are most compelling to them.”

Another highlight is a resolution that calls for parents and guardians to reject corporal punishment and use other methods to train children. It also calls for state and local governments to prohibit corporal punishment in schools and child-caring facilities. Corporal punishment models aggressive behavior as a solution to conflict and sends a message that hitting smaller and weaker people is acceptable. Violence is clearly unacceptable for people that follow Jesus.

The wider church has been working for years on the question of how to change the way persons prepare for ministry. At this point you can either get your Master of Divinity and get ordained for the entire church or you can request licensure for one specific ministry without the requirement of a Master’s Degree. There is a proposal that suggests to basically drop the educational requirements for ordination and grant ordained standing to those who would have previously been licensed. A resolution at General Synod “calls for a time of exploration and transition using the re-visioned Manual on Ministry in our Committees on Ministry prior to the consideration of consequent changes to the UCC Constitution and Bylaws at General Synod in 2019.” A test-drive if you will.

June 4th is Pentecost Sunday. Every year that is the occasion for us to collect a special offering to Strengthen the Church. It is not for our congregation but new and renewing churches in the United Church of Christ. Our Acting Conference Minister, Rev. Dr. Don Longbottom explains why the church needs you to strengthen it:

All across the spectrum of western Christianity, the churches are losing membership. Public polling shows that when asked about religious preference, people are marking with increasing frequency, “None.” While this could be deeply depressing to those of us who believe in congregational life…I don’t see it that way.

There is another area that is increasing in its frequency, “Spiritual but not religious.” For me, this is a sign of great hope. People still have a great spiritual yearning. If this is true, and it is, then the church simply needs to figure out how to meet that need. While that’s not as easy as it sounds; it is doable. So what’s stopping us?

Do you remember back when “What was good for General Motors was good for America?” Somewhere back around the 60’s, Japanese imports began showing up on the streets of America. Americans, as it turned out, were clamoring for smaller, more efficient, and cheaper automobiles. GMC was convinced these Americans were wrong. How did that one work itself out? Rule one through one hundred, “Listen to your customer.”

Now, before you rock my world, I know that church is not a commodity to be sold like automobiles. But, I also know that the genius of the congregational movement is that the people are God’s method for discerning the will of God. I believe people are yearning for the “Holy” as never before. They are being distracted, as much as possible, by a culture of consumption but deep down they hunger for deeper things. Our task, as people of God, is to meet that at least half way, if not more.

The problem is in part that it is really hard for congregations to change or refuse to do so. Some can change, but most are unable to make significant changes. It is understandable, as like myself we are who we are. This is why is it much easier and more successful to plant new congregations with their new ways of being than it is to change existing congregations. Now, to be sure, some congregations are in situations where they don’t need to change a thing, but those numbers are pretty limited. If you have a lot of extra pew space on Sundays, and it is getting worse then change is in order.

I am reminded of how trees re-seed themselves. Each year the old Maple tree develops these quarter sized winged-seeds. At the proper time, the wind comes along and seeds go airborne. Flung far and wide these seeds give birth to the future. Is your congregation planting seeds for the future of your beloved UCC church and the sharing of the gospel? I pray it is so.

If you can’t make it it church on Sunday, you can donate online!

Some weeks in the life of the church look so unassuming. What could possibly be special about this week? Well, as pastor I am obliged to give you three perspectives on the next few days that you may otherwise have missed:

The window named “Ascension” at St. John’s United Church of Christ

Thursday, May 25, is Ascension Day. It is a major holiday in the Christian tradition. Everybody remembers how Jesus was born on Christmas and was resurrected on Easter. But the final step of the Jesus story is just as important: his ascension into heaven. Luckily for you we will focus on that story next Sunday at St. John’s United Church of Christ so you won’t miss a thing. Yes, a pastor is a teacher and I am obliged to remind you of the things you need to know about the Christian faith.

Friday, May 26, is the beginning of Ramadan. It is a major holiday in the Muslim tradition. Now you may say that as church that’s none of our business, but it is. Because let’s be honest here: How seriously have you been taking the Lenten fast really? I shared my struggles with breaking my caffeine habit. But can you even imagine what it would be like to not eat between sunrise and sunset for an entire month? Our Muslim brothers and sisters live powerful examples of a spiritual practice that we need to get better at again. Yes, a pastor is a spiritual leader and I am obliged to connect you with practices you need to consider.

Monday May 29, is Memorial Day. It is a major holiday in the United States. Now you may say that as church that’s none of our business. And to a certain extent that is true. Most Christians in the world have never been to the United States and don’t know what this country celebrates on that day. But for people who live here it plays on an important theme that the Christian tradition has also: Reconciliation! After the Civil War both North and South had regional observances for their own war heroes. By the end of the 19th century a nationwide day had reconciled the memorial into one day for all. That is also what our church’s message is in a nutshell: “That they may all be one” (John 17:21) Yes, a pastor is preacher and I am obliged to find the Good News in all places.

This week I challenge you to look for Christ in the heavens above, try a new spiritual practice for yourself, and work towards reconciliation in our country and around the world.

The strawberries are growing just fine. So are the tomatoes. And the carrots. And the peppers. And the flowers. You get the picture. Our garden is almost ripe for the harvest. For that to happen it takes the usual ingredients of sunshine and water. But then our garden plants bring their very own special skill to their growth process: They put down their roots.

To a vagabond like me, that is a pretty impressive feat. I honestly do not know what it feels like to live in one place for most of your life. Our strawberries, vegetables and flowers do, but I don’t. In my childhood garden I used to grow all kinds berries and carrots. As a grownup the longest I have ever lived in one place was two years. Our current home holds the record of almost three years. I am turning into a plant that knows how to put down roots again.

The Psalmist knows that putting roots down is an important skill, saying about God’s blessed, “They are like trees planted by streams of water, which yield their fruit in its season, and their leaves do not whither. In all they do, they prosper.” (Psalm 1:3) The German in me has always imagined this tree to be an Oaktree of at least one hundred years. The Psalmist was most likely thinking of Middle Eastern olive trees. Some of those trees from biblical times are still around today.

There is something to be said for staying put:

• You mature more.
• You wrestle more with yourself and your surroundings.
• You learn to adjust.
• You learn to not just move on when the going gets rough.
• Once you put your roots down far enough the wind can no longer blow you down that easily.

Maybe that is what my garden plants can teach me: Our neighborhood may be as young as 10 or so years but still it is a place worth growing into. There is fertile ground here. Stay and grow.

What is your experience of putting down roots?

Our congregation is part of the Houston Association of the United Church of Christ. The life of the wider church is an integral part of who we are and what we do as a church.

What we do is expressed through our mission:
– Grow in grace as the Houston Association of the United Church of Christ do a group volunteer with Houston Food Bank. A few times a year your time can be a gift to hungry kids, seniors and others who may not have enough to eat. Volunteers produce the equivalent of a meal a minute while helping the Houston Food Bank sort, process, and pack food. And it’s fun!
– Members of the Houston Association are invited to week camps in Biloxi, Mississippi. Back Bay Mission has constructed homes for homeless veterans, supported neighborhood stability, and is now working on bridges out of poverty permanently for residents wanting to partner with mentors for three years. Back Bay Mission needs help with construction and home maintenance. Some of the campers work in the “Clients Choice” food pantry, and others assist at The Micah Center, helping with daily showers, and life skills. Our next work camp is December 3 to December 9, 2017, and we are asking for commitments.
– The Houston Association owns 200 low-income apartments in Settegast Heights. We extend the love of God to people in need. There are plenty of volunteer opportunities available and for the holidays we ask for financial support to provide our residents with a Thanksgiving Feast and Christmas presents.

Who we are is expressed through our connection:
– The Houston Association is comprised of 16 churches in Greater Houston. We run various programs together that allow our members to get to know each other.
– A few times a year we host youth events for teenagers to have a fun day together full of food and games.
– We help one another: When a church is struck by disaster we pitch in to help out. When Christ United Church of Cypress was hit by a flood, crews from Rosenberg and all over the place rushed to help.
– We equip and exchange pastors. Our local ministers get a chance to gather every month to discuss important items that affect all of us. Every year we try to schedule a pulpit rotation so ministers and congregations have a chance to get to know ministers and congregations from the other side of town.
– Last but not least the Houston Association coordinates our ecumenical and interfaith programs in Greater Houston. We model unity in the body of Christ. It’s what the United Church of Christ does. We have always been faithful to our motto, “that they may all be one” (John 17:21).