There is a twice-weekly paper in Uvalde.  Its entire front page was black today, except for a date–May 24, 2022– in bold white print just above the fold.  It is the physical embodiment of stunned silence.

That’s what each community feels when one of these shootings happens to them.  Not shocked– we are all too aware that these shootings happen, and with frequency, to pretend to be shocked– communities are stunned because no one ever thinks it will happen in their town/neighborhood/school.

I have chosen silence over the last few days because I ran out of good platitudes a long time ago.  Of course, our prayers are with the families of Uvalde.  We pray for God’s comfort in their grief and healing for their trauma.  But if those are the only prayers, if they are contained neatly in moments of silence and understanding nods; if they end when the shock wears off, then they are just empty wind.

God does not desire prayers alone, but contrite hearts and change lives.  Again and again, the prophets remind us that a heart devoted to God leads to care for the poor and vulnerable; especially widows and children, and immigrants.  The prophets also warn us what happens to peoples who claim the name of God but turn away from the commands for compassion and justice.

So, I am sorry, I have given up wasting words offering wafer-thin sympathy.  We as individuals may be moved by these moments, our single hearts may go out to these grieving families.  But it is clear that we as a people do not care.  It has been 10 years since Sandyhook; more than 20 since Columbine.  Nothing has changed because we do not care enough to change it.

The only substantial changes to gun legislation in the last two decades have been to make weapons more widely available.  No, gun legislation alone will not solve the problem.  Is this a mental health issue, yes; we have not improved care or access to psychiatric services in two decades.  Is this a problem with parents, yes; be we have not invested in systems and resources to strengthen families and protect children in two decades.  Is the problem of, not just mass shootings, but gun violence in general, complicated, yes.  But to even begin finding a solution we must, at our core, care more about the life and safety of other people than we do about our own comfort and sense of security. 

Our culture does not encourage such empathy and selflessness.  To believe that we can call ourselves a Christian nation without it is a delusion.  This is why I no longer comment on these tragedies.  I am not interested in enabling fantasy.  I do not have a pastor’s soothing aphorisms.  I have only the prophet’s anger…and weariness.

I wish no other mother or father ever had to weep over a child lost to gun violence. I pray that God will redeem us and show us the path to life and happiness. Yet I know that such a path will come with repentance. With changed hearts leading to changed actions and changed systems. God can do it, but it will be done through us and so long as we are too stiffnecked to look for another way nothing is going to change. There will be another Buffalo and another Uvalde until our hard hearts are so broken we are willing to let God do something new with them.

I know that does not sound like a word of hope. That’s why I don’t comment anymore. But my anger is not hopeless. I know that God has changed hearts before. God has led stiffnecked people to new life before. I believe that we as people and as a people are nowhere near powerful enough to stand in the way of God’s mercy and justice forever. My silence is only partly resignation. It is also the silence of patiently longing for God’s will to finally be done.

Greetings friends,

I hope you are warm, well, and dry after last week. It was certainly an interesting way to come back from leave. Now that things are settling a little bit, I wanted to take a moment to say thank you to SPRC for their support of me taking this crucial time and to all the staff and volunteers who made the rest possible. Lauren did an excellent job of managing, but she could not have done it with out the contributions of the whole congregation.

The rest was good for my soul. It offered me time to tend to my family, to rest, and to spend concentrated time in prayer and devotional work. I am confident the fruits of that will play out at DPUMC for some time. One of the books I read while I was away was Margaret Wheatley’s book Who Do We Choose to Be? It is an insightful work and an excellent read for anyone seeking to understand our present cultural moment and how we might be community and whole humans within it.

I look forward to sharing other resources and learning from my leave with you over the next few months. For now, I simply wanted to say thank you for the space and your patience.

Who Do We Choose to Be? by Margaret Wheatley

Life is intended to have a rhythm. Scripture call us to keep a holy rhythm or work and rest. In order to be our best, pastors are encouraged to keep a rhythm of work and rest. In addition to sabbath days off and continuing education, every four years we are offered time away for spiritual renewal. I will be taking that time over the next four weeks.

The work of being your pastor is both rewarding and challenging. Together we have weathered several crises over the last four years.  We have endured a hurricane, an industrial accident, and both public and private staff struggles.  The timing is not as strange as it might seem. The church is in good hands. We have an incredibly talented Associate Pastor who will be leaving in July for seminary.  The rest is deeply needed and now, is the best moment to take it, before diving into the challenges of post-Covid ministry.

Over this time I will focus on seven crucial types of rest: physical, mental, sensory, creative, emotional, social, and spiritual.  During the first week, I will take care of some family business, begin a reading plan, and establish routines for the leave.  During the second week, I will take part in an online retreat focused on sustainable ministry.  In the third week, I will continue reading and cementing routines.  The fourth week will be dedicated to translating learnings to future action.

I am deeply grateful for the support of our staff and SPRC. I also hope you appreciate the four guest preachers who will grace our worship beginning on the 24th. I covet your prayers while away and look forward to returning to practice Lent with you.

Grace and peace,

Pastor Kate

Thank you, Church, for all the ways you are showing up during this crisis. Thank you for the donations you are making to keep the church functioning. Thank you for the gifts you have offered to care for one another and to serve our neighbors. Thank you for the supplies you have brought for the food pantry and blessing box. Thank you for your patience when tech is squirrely or things are different than we’re used to. Thank You.

You are proving that the church is the people, whether they have a building in which to gather or not. I know that we are eager to again see one another face to face. In the meantime God is still moving, and sustaining, and doing great things in and through us.

Thanks to your generosity we are doing better financially. This week we received over $8,000 dollars and our expenses for this week an next are roughly $13,000 so we are in a more normal pattern. Our operating cash remains above $50,000. Thank you for your support.

The blessing box is being used regularly. We had a huge glut of food the first week. It’s now settled into a good rhythm of input and output. It warms my heart to see those who need supplies getting care.

If you or someone you know is in need of care, physically, mentally, or spiritually, please reach out to the office or send a message to (832)-304-1403.

Tomorrow begins the Tridium– Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Easter Vigil. These three experiences are really one service that tells the story of Christ’s passion. I hope you’ll join us Thursday and Friday evening at 6:30pm and at 7:00 am on Sunday morning for the Sunrise Service.

In Acts 11, Peter is called to step out of his comfort zone to meet a need. The Holy Spirit pushes him to move beyond previous restrictions to expand the Kingdom of God.

Trace the movement of the Spirit through the New Testament. Are there  other people who were held outside the Jewish community and later welcomed into the Church?

Can you recall a time when God used something you’d planned in an unexpected way?

Who might be the Gentiles, those who need the gospel but are outside our comfort zone, in our community?

What might our church need to do to welcome them?

Small steps:

• Start a conversation with a stranger
• Invite someone to worship or Sunday School
• Ask someone of a different age, race, income level what they need from God

Long Strides:

• Begin learning a new language
• Volunteer to teach or serve people of a different age or with different needs
• Suggest to leaders ways we might reach people in our community 

I hope you’ve seen the growing donation total in the Gathering Area. We continue to progress toward our 3 year goal and projects are underway.

The Food Pantry has a new permenant wall and door thanks to Rick Sullivan, Junior and Penny McBride, Tim Camp and other willing volunteers. It looks terrific and provides the Pantry with more storage space and a clean, welcoming look.

We are also starting work on the roof over the Choir Hall. The Sanctuary is progressing. HOwever we hit a snag with Church Interiors. The Trustees are now pursuing additional bids. They want to do such a large project well, but we hope to have the funds raised by the time a bid is finalized.

DPUMC continues to grow in being a welcoming place and your gifts are making possible for our buiding to reflect our Spirit. If you have not yet set up a regular gift ot the renovation fund, you can contact Susan Greer in the office to do so.

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all yourstrength, and with all your mind; and your neighboras yourself.”

Luke 10:27

This week we didn’t have a traditional sermon at DPUMC.  We tied up our series on difficult questions of faith by answering questions from the congregation.  So it wasn’t possible to write my usual Tuesday follow up blog.  Instead, I thought I’d offer some information to help parents and grandparents answer some difficult questions they may be asked this week.

The testimonies of Dr. Blasey Ford and Hon. Kavanuagh continue to dominate the news.  The ongoing nomination process has sparked a national conversation about consent, assault, men and women’s experiences and rights.  These subjects are as important as they are sensitive. Children and teens need to have their questions honored and feel safe talking to the adults around them.   If the young people in your life have questions, it is because they are seeking your wisdom about the person they should become.

Many parents will want to shield young children from the explicit details.  But children are capable of grasping consent and how they should treat others in an age-appropriate way.  They can be reminded Jesus loves them and everyone.  Because we love Jesus, we also love other people and treat them nicely.  We only hug or touch others if they say its okay.  And people should only hug or touch them if they say its okay.

With older children, you might emphasize that God has created each person and that all are equal in Christ.  You can read together Psalm 139 or 1 Corinthians 12:12-14 and along with the Great Commandment (Matthew 22:36-40, Mark 12:30-31, Luke 10:27).  Discuss what it means to love others as ourselves.

With pre-teens that might also include a conversation about substances, like alcohol and drugs, that inhibit our ability to make good decisions and can even put us in dangerous situations.  You might find the UMC’s Social Principles a helpful guide.  From the section on Women and Men:

We affirm with Scripture the common humanity of male and female, both having equal worth in the eyes of God. We reject the erroneous notion that one gender is superior to another, that one gender must strive against another, and that members of one gender may receive love, power, and esteem only at the expense of another. We especially reject the idea that God made individuals as incomplete fragments, made whole only in union with another. We call upon women and men alike to share power and control, to learn to give freely and to receive freely, to be complete and to respect the wholeness of others. We seek for every individual opportunities and freedom to love and be loved, to seek and receive justice, and to practice ethical self-determination. We understand our gender diversity to be a gift from God, intended to add to the rich variety of human experience and perspective; and we guard against attitudes and traditions that would use this good gift to leave members of one sex more vulnerable in relationships than members of another.

UMC Social Prinicples ¶161

Teens, especially, may be wrestling right now because Ford and Kavanaugh were themselves teenagers on the night under discussion.  Your teen may know a friend who abuses alcohol or drugs, or who has been the victim of sexual assault.  Try asking for and listening to their opinion first.  If they have questions, remind them that sex is a good gift from good, but meant to be a gift between married people. Help your teen understand that loving others, means respecting their boundaries; loving yourself means being careful about the people you spend time with and the situations you put yourself.

Be an adult they can come too.  Even if they or their friends find themselves at a party, on a date, or in a situation they’re uncomfortable with, let them know you are someone they can call with no questions asked until the morning.

For a deeper family study, you might read 2 Samuel 13-15 or Judges 19-20.  Be aware that both these stories contain difficult content including sexual violence.  In both, the assault and subsequent injustice have devastating effects for the Israelites.

Whatever questions your kids have, remind them that they are loved and that you are a safe place to bring their fears and anxieties.

Prayers for you this week parents.