Author: Pat Liberty

This year Americans are expected to spend between $942 and $960 billion on Christmas. The average American will spend just under $1,000.00, a slight decrease from last year. That noted, holiday sales have grown year over year for over a decade. Twenty-five percent of Americans still have holiday debt from last year. Approximately one third of Americans take on debt for Christmas spending.  Seventy percent of Americans say they will overspend their budget to buy Christmas gifts.

This is all to welcome the birth of Jesus, who owned nothing and was homeless. It is as tragic as it is ironic. We spend money we don’t have to buy things for those who already have too much. And the hungry will still be hungry when the Christmas basket is gone. The homeless will still be homeless, People will still have to choose between paying a utility bill and buying the medication they need to treat chronic health problems.

I am not a Scrooge and I do not feel bah humbug about Christmas. I am, however, deeply troubled by the farce that Christmas has become. It troubles me that I go into the grocery store to buy food for the food pantry and hear “O Holy Night” play on the Muzak right after “Santa Clause is coming to Town.” Sacred Christmas carols and secular holiday music have blended together and the sacred carols are the losers.

Every year I hear complaints about not singing Christmas carols during Advent. I am a bit like the Advent Police. The four weeks that precede Christmas are a time of introspection and preparation. The haunting lyrics of Advent carols call us to slow down and remember what this season is supposed to be about. The world may run the mall and the shopping industry, but it doesn’t run the church. So we will sing, “Come Thou Long Expected Jesus” and “O Come, O Come, Emanuel” and tell our rushing spirits to slow down and consider the true gifts of this season: Peace, Hope, Joy and Love. From where I sit the world is in much more in need of these than another plastic thingamajig that will be forgotten by New Year’s.

People say that Christmas is for children and use that as an excuse for overindulging children with more than they need. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we taught that Christmas is for children, and that means giving to children who don’t have enough? Wouldn’t it be wonderful if children learned the joy of giving and not just receiving? 

I am proud of the teachers and children at Ledyard Congregational Church where I serve as interim pastor. Our children are learning about giving and sharing with others. They have conducted a food drive for the St. Vincent de Paul soup kitchen and a pet food drive for the hungry animals that live in shelters waiting to be adopted. Making God’s love concrete in deeds of generosity and care is the message of Christmas that I want all children to have.

Instead of buying holiday gifts this year, why not take all the money you would spend on gifts and give it to the food pantry or the fuel fund? Why not pick names out of a hat and buy one gift for that person with a limit of $25.00? Why not make handmade gifts this year?

There are so many ways to celebrate Christmas without going into debt and over-indulging children. To welcome the Christ child into the world and into our hearts is to welcome those he came to make whole; the last, the least and the lost. Try stepping out of the rat race and the mad house of it all. Enjoy Advent. Prepare your hearts. Slow down. Listen to an Advent song or two. 

Advent Blessings.  

The warm fuzzy holiday we celebrated on Thursday with huge meals and family gatherings has a far more unseemly history than appears. Thanksgiving, as we know it, was declared by Abraham Lincoln in 1863 as a way of easing tensions between the north and the south during the Civil War. The year before Lincoln’s declaration there was a massacre of Dakota-Sioux tribal members.

The first Thanksgiving is claimed by various people in various places, but was not (as we have been taught) celebrated the first year the settlers arrived in what they called the New World, which is Plymouth Massachusetts.

There are some shreds of truth in narrative we have constructed to make ourselves feel better. There was a three day feast in Plymouth at some point. It did celebrate the harvest. There is no evidence the Wampanoag Native Americans were invited. A few tribal members showed up when they heard gunfire. It was part of the celebration, and after deliberation, they decided to stay.

In the pilgrim’s first encounter with the Wampanoags they stole from the tribe’s winter provisions. It wasn’t until later that tribal leader Ousamequin form an alliance between the pilgrims and the Wampanoags. It was not, however, about harmony and making nice. In fact, by the time the alliance was made the Wampanoags had been decimated by diseases brought by the pilgrims from Europe. The alliance was to assure the survival of the remaining Wampanoags.

After the first harvest celebration there was a bloody war between the colonizers and the Native peoples (beyond the Wampanoag tribe). In general, the colonizers showed their appreciation to the Natives by stealing their land, imprisoning their leaders and selling tribal members into slavery in the West Indies. Not long after that bloody war came the Pequot massacre of 1636 and the beheading of Wampanoag leader Metacom.

Rather than the wholesome family, faith and friends narrative that attends this holiday, it is a story of genocide, tribal decimation and erasure of Native American culture from American history.

Native Americans mark Thanksgiving as National Day of Mourning. It has been marked in Plymouth Massachusetts since 1970. Participants in National Day of Mourning have, in this remembrance, celebrated their ancestors and honored their struggle to survive. Part of their mission is to educate Americans about the history of Thanksgiving. It is organized by United American Indians of New England.

If you are looking for a more honest way to celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday, visit firstnations.org. They offer a comprehensive reading list for all ages.  Look for films like, Our Spirits don’t Speak English, Dreamkeeper, Imprint or The Cherokee Word for Water.

Correcting the false narrative of history is step one in a more just, honest and faithful understanding of Native American culture, pain and eradication from the American narrative. It is time we teach history honestly.

As wars and mayhem rage around the world, the state of Illinois passed a new law that gives a small glimmer of hope in an otherwise all too dismal world. On September 18^th Illinois became the first state to abolish cash bail in its legal system. In a landmark court ruling, “The Illinois supreme court upheld the Illinois Pretrial Fairness Act, which abolishes cash bail and specifies procedures judges must use to impose pretrial detention.” (American Civil Liberties Union website).

The use of cash bail has resulted in tens of thousands (by some accounts up to 400,000) being incarcerated as they await trial, simply because they cannot afford to pay bail. Sometimes the amounts are relatively small, but when you are dealing with the poor, these small amounts are insurmountable. This, in effect, penalizes poor people. Given the other structural injustices that are part of the criminal justice system, people can remain in prison for years awaiting trial as the system dawdles and gives attention to higher profile cases.

This legislation levels the playing field. The ruling states that everyone is entitled to pre-trial release. It does not mean that everyone will get pre-trial release, but it makes it possible. As one might imagine this ruling was hotly protested by victim’s advocate groups and law enforcement officers, despite widespread support for the measure. Multiple lawsuits ensued and the case made it to the Illinois Supreme Court. Ultimately they rejected all the arguments.

According to the ACLU, the Court ruled:

• “Bail” doesn’t require money. There are plenty of ways for courts to ensure that people return to court, and keep everyone safe, without ordering a person to pay for their freedom.
• Abolishing cash bail does not harm victims. Under the new law, judges must consider safety risks posed by release and give victims notice of relevant bail proceedings.
• Abolishing cash bail is squarely within the legislature’s power. Separation of powers means that it’s up to judges to apply the law in individual cases. But changing the legal framework—here, eliminating cash bail—is perfectly appropriate for the legislature to do.

The Coalition to End Money Bond, whose members include Christian organizations like A Just Harvest, Nehemiah Trinity Rising and the Chicago Metropolitan Association of the Illinois Conference of the United Church of Christ, pushed for the passing of the Pretrial Fairness Act, the legislation responsible for eliminating cash bail.

In a very real sense, this legislation is an embodiment of the words Jesus used when he entered the temple to begin his public ministry. Quoting Isaiah in Luke 4 we read, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind.”

Of course, if you read on in chapter 4, the hearers at the temple in his hometown were ready to pitch Jesus off a cliff after he rolled up the scroll and sat down. Anyone who champions the underdog and threatens the systems of domination and empire are in a vulnerable position in relation to cliffs. It is never a popular position. It is, however, a biblical position.

In our highly divisive and partisan times, legislation like this is a cause to rejoice because it is a concrete example of doing the right thing. And having a state Supreme Court that doesn’t have its head in the sand is a cause to rejoice as well.

There is bound to be some hiccups in the roll out of this legislation, which will give credence to the naysayers who opposed it. This legislation is still the most significant progress made in criminal justice reform in many years. Bravo, Illinois!

As the battle between Israel and Gaza rages on with no end in sight, there are some important things concerned citizens of the world can do, instead of just wringing our hands in despair.

First, this is a complicated situation. We must resist one-sided easy answers based on political proclamations that favor one side or the other. We must be willing to question our own government’s unconditional support of Israel which is committing war crimes as frequently as Palestine. This is not an either-or situation. Both sides are violating international humanitarian law and no one is playing referee. By unconditionally supporting the U.S. in its unconditional support of Israel, we minimize the war crimes and laws that are being broken. Token humanitarian aid to Gaza doesn’t balance the scales. It is an irreconcilable disconnect that the U.S. is supplying Israel with weapons AND sending humanitarian aid to Palestine, which is the target of the weapons.

Second, understanding International Humanitarian Law (IHL) and the pronouncements it can (and must) make on both sides is critical.  IHL, according to the Comite International Geneve states, “International humanitarian law is a set of rules which seek, for humanitarian reasons, to limit the effects of armed conflict. It protects persons who are not or are no longer participating in the hostilities and restricts the means and methods of warfare. The Geneva Convention of 1949 contains a major part of IHL. Additional protocols from 1977 relate to the protection of victims of armed conflict.

Other agreements forbid the use of certain weapons and tactics and protect certain categories of people and goods. Under the guise of destroying Hamas tunnels under Gaza city and other places, a bombardment of munitions has decimated the city, killing tens of thousands of Palestinians who are not participants in the war. In similar fashion the Palestinian attack on a music venue that sparked this entire conflict must also be called to account. 

Third, IHL requires, among other things, the rapid and unimpeded passage for humanitarian aid during armed conflicts, the freedom of movement for humanitarian workers in conflict areas, the protection of civilians (including medical and humanitarian workers) the protection of refugees, prisons, and the wounded and sick. 

Fourth, despite most independent States agreeing to abide by IHL, the victims of modern warfare are increasingly civilians. The evolution of war, which has always been inhuman, sees even more destruction and increasingly complex and targeted weapons. To violate the Geneva Conventions and Additional Protocols is regarded as a war crime. Make no mistake; war crimes are being committed by both sides. There must be accountability for both sides and an agreement to a cease fire while negotiations get underway. Both sides must be willing to enter into dialogue to find a compromise that can, at the very least, bring about a temporary peace.

Finally, it is up to us to make our opinions informed, to make our voices heard and to speak in balanced and informed ways to our elected officials. Further, it is up to us to check our language and attitudes for hints of anti-Semitism and Islamophobia. The only way toward peace is for the Zionist state of Israel and the people of Palestine to come together in common respect and vision for a peace filled region.

There are some signs of hope. On November 4^th in Washington, DC, the largest pro-Palestinian rally ever took place. The participants were Jewish and Muslim and they protested together for a cease fire and a free Palestinian state. Additional marches took place in San Francisco, London, Berlin and elsewhere. If Jews and Muslims can agree on a need for peace and a free Palestinian state, why can’t the rest of the world, especially the United States, get out of the way and let it happen?

It saddens me to know that the November 4^th Free Palestine March had very few Christian protestors. There is a dearth of prophetic voices and protests from the Christian mainstream, and as usual, it means the loudest voices win. The loudest voices are political and religious zealots in a potpourri mash-up of skewed eschatological theology, blind allegiance to a one sided political agenda and general disinformation that makes for uninformed opinions that contribute to the problem. The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is in desperate need of voices of reason that balance Jewish, Muslim and Christian perspectives. The Jewish and Muslim contingent seems in place. It’s time for a balanced Christian perspective to join the conversation.

Sources

Religious News Service

Comite International Geneve

International Committee of the Red Cross 

All Saints Day (November 1) is a day to remember we are borne on the shoulders of those who have gone before us. There are countless women, men, and children of every age who embodied the faith and left breadcrumbs along the path to nourish us on our way. Most of them are not known to us, but the faith and love they released into the universe abides in our time.

All Saints Day reaches back to the early years of the church when many Christians were martyred for their faith. Veneration of the martyrs was a strong emphasis in the life of the early Christian church. Their graves became sites of pilgrimage and the anniversary of a martyr’s death became a day of remembering their lives and the sacrifices made for the faith.

Over time came the realization that not all saints were martyrs and the breadth of All Saints Day was increased. Pope Gregory III (731-741) is credited with establishing All Saints Day on November 1^st. It was a way of unifying the varied celebrations of saints into one day. According to Christianity.com “The date was chosen to coincide with the dedication of a chapel in St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome to “All the Saints.”

Today, All Saints Day is a day to honor all the saints, living and dead, well known or unknown who further the revealing of God’s realm in our midst. It is also a day to personally remember the people who have guided and encouraged our faith. Take a moment and remember the friends and relatives who have encouraged your journey of faith. Whisper their name like a prayer.

It is important to remember that sainthood is conferred by God and not by institutions. Sainthood embraces anyone who lives the faith and embodies trust in Christ. Paul wrote, “To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours” (I Corinthians 1:2). In this and several other places in the New Testament it is clear that sainthood is used to describe anyone who is an example of faith and trust in Jesus Christ. It means you or I can be saints. It means that those who are raised up before you as giants in the faith are saints.

Here is an All Saints Blessing from Jan Richardson

Blessing: For Those Who Walked With Us

For those who walked with us,

this is a prayer.

For those who have gone ahead,

this is a blessing.

For those who touched and tended us,

who lingered with us while they lived,

this is a thanksgiving.

For those who journey still with us

in the shadows of awareness,

in the crevices of memory

in the landscape of our dreams,

this is a benediction.

Blessing to you as you remember and celebrate the saints in your life.

Sources

Christianity.com

The Painted Prayerbook  

The Middle East in general and Palestine in particular have a strange history. To understand the current political situation requires a general familiarity with the history and the major players.

Before that, however, it is of utmost importance to note that several players in the international community, most notably Russia, are engaging in intentional misinformation and disinformation campaigns. Social Media and less than reputable “news” outlets spread this propaganda for their own purposes and muddy the waters of current understanding.

Historically, Palestine has referred to a geographic region in the Fertile Crescent, a very desirable piece of real estate. This is a most important fact to understand if we are to properly contextualize history. Palestine comes from the Greek word Philistia and dates back to the 12^th century BCE. Calling the region “Palestine” came into common usage after the fall of the Ottoman Empire in 1918. It includes Gaza and the West Bank, but there is no international consensus to the boundaries of the region. Much of this land is occupied by Israel.

The people who have ruled this region and inhabited it through the centuries include Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Arabs, Fatimids, Seljuk Turks, Crusaders, Egyptians and Mamelukes. The notion that this is and always has been Israelite land is blatantly false. There were inhabitants when the Israelites arrived and there are still inhabitants today. Israel was but one political entity vying for control of the region. As Israel was conquered by the Babylonians and other political entities, the Gaza strip and the West Bank were included.

At the end of World War 1, the League of Nations issued a British mandate that gave Britain administrative control over Palestine. It included a Jewish homeland in Palestine which was begun in 1923.

In 1947 the United Nations proposed a two state solution including both Jewish and Palestinian states in the Gaza strip and the West Bank.  Surprisingly, Jewish leaders accepted the plan, but Arab Palestinians vehemently opposed it primarily because of boundary disputes with assigned territories. In 1948 Britain withdrew from the partition plan and Israel declared itself an independent state. There was at least an implied consent to a Palestinian state. Within months war erupted and quickly became an Israeli vs. Arab conflict.

At this point the history becomes far more complex with other Middle Eastern countries vying for control of parts of the Fertile Crescent. There have been very few years where violence has not erupted between Israel and Palestine as well as other countries.

The October attack by Hamas on Israel was horrific. The retaliatory violence of Israel is equally horrific. The war being fought in the Middle East violates every rule of war in modern times. The United States has declared its unwavering support for Israel and given minimal lip service to the need for humanitarian aid in Gaza and the West Bank. There is notable bias in American reporting that reflects the US’s unconditional support for Israel. This is troubling given that more than 135 United Nations member countries recognize Palestine as an independent state.

 This geopolitical conflict is as old as history. As long as both sides are hell bent on destruction of one another, there is little hope for a resolution to the conflict. There is, however, an unseen player in this war that further complicates the current conflict. The religious right feeds the unconditional support the US has for Israel. The existence of Israel and its victory in restoring all of the “Promised Land” are pillars of a little known and less understood theological history.  It is known as Christian Zionism (This is different from Christian Nationalism which I will tackle in the near future).

Christian Zionism has a long history of pushing unconditional support for Israel. It is part of their belief that Scripture requires Israel to exist, a holy war to be fought, a new temple be constructed, and either the conversion or destruction of the Jews. Then the rapture will come, Christ the King will return, followed by a thousand year rule, the culmination of human history and the establishment of God’s eternal Kingdom. This perspective has been written about ad nauseum since the establishment of the state of Israel.

It seems to me that the support of the religious right and a relationship with Israel is a little disingenuous. Israel and Christian Zionists are strange bedfellows. After all, if the options are convert or die the agenda of support for Israel is a bit hollow. The Christian Zionists are appropriating this war for their own theological ends and making it the prelude to the rapture. Their voices, however, foment the religious right and their unconditional support of Israel, which translates to legislators who listen to their constituency, which influences American public policy.  

Christian Zionists are making this a Holy War. And there is nothing about this war that is holy. The indiscriminate murder of civilians on both sides, the denial of humanitarian aid to the Palestinians and the very real threat of Palestinian genocide embody the very nature of geopolitical evil.

It’s not just the right wing religious preachers who are spewing this garbage. Last week Lindsay Graham declared, “We’re in a religious war here and I am with Israel. Do whatever the hell you have to do to defend yourself. Level the place.” Marco Rubio called the Palestinians “savages” and said “they have to be eradicated.” The Gospel Coalition’s Peter Leithard likens Hamas to the biblical Amalekites and compares the Palestinian people to their hostages. In the end section of his Tweet he writes, “Yahweh vows to fight until the memory of Amalek is blotted out from under heaven.”

This is frightening genocidal, apocalyptic and ridiculous rhetoric. The willingness of the religious right to use this horrific geopolitical war to further their apocalyptic visions of the end of the world is egregious at best. In my view, what is more egregious is the silence of other Christian voices challenging this nonsense and speaking a word of theological reason and faith in the midst of a devastating reality.

_SOURCES

_{www.religiondispatches.org}

_{www.historychannel.org}

_{www.Britannica.com}

_{www.religiousnewsservice.org}

The Rev. Dr. John Thomas

Former General Minister and President, UCCMember of UCC Palestine Israel Network

The situation is complex. But complexity is no excuse for silence. The situation is frequently framed as ancient, intractable religious rivalries and hatreds. But the conflict of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries is primarily a political one based on political decisions made by political actors for political purposes. More often than not, religion has been the rationale used to justify political acts. And the situation invites despair. Yet our long-standing Palestinian partners, Christian and Muslim, as well as man Jewish Israelis and American Jews with whom we as a church are in relationship, consistently call us to hope as the durable foundation for courage in the struggle for justice and peace. So, what shall we say?

First, we must reject the current violence and refuse to grant it any legitimacy. The assault on civilian lives in Israel by Hamas, and now the indiscriminate violence launched by Israel and applauded by many in the international community including the United States against the residents of Gaza, along with the denial of access to water, electricity and critical medical supplies, cannot be condoned. Understood, yes. Justified, no. Our lament and prayers for the bereaved, the besieged, and the captive are a meaningful expression of our Christian faith that calls us to compassion for and solidarity with the vulnerable. But they must be coupled with clear calls for a cessation of violence and the safe return of hostages even if those calls seem drowned out by cries for revenge or the adoption of violent strategies aimed at future political advantage whether embraced by Hamas, Israel, or foreign powers including the United States.

Second, our prayers must name both Israeli and Palestinian victims equally. And we must resist the temptation to assign gradations of suffering based on which “side” has endured higher numbers of deaths or injured. Grief is not experienced in the aggregate, but by individual loved ones–partners, children, grandchildren, parents. A common humanity invites equal and shared compassion and respect regardless of the flag under which someone lives. Collective demonization dishonors the God who is creator of all. Further, while we understandably grieve, pray for the dead, injured, and vulnerable civilians, soldiers also require our prayers. They, too, have loved ones. They, too, have hopes and dreams and fears. The lives of all combatants will be changed, and in many cases shadowed by the events of this and coming weeks.

Third, we must seek to understand. The current violence is horrible. But it was entirely predictable. We must understand that the creation of the state of Israel was never negotiated with the Arab population that had lived in Palestine for centuries. Rather it was imposed on them by a series of decisions going back to the end of World War 1 made primarily by European colonial powers and ultimate supported by the United States and the United Nations. A brief war of resistance ended in victory for the Israeli army, the destruction of over five hundred Palestinian villages, and the creation of a Palestinian refugee population of 750,000 that today lives in Lebanon, Jordan, Syria, the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza and numbers 5.6 million people. Palestinians refer to these events as “the Nakba,” the Catastrophe.

We must understand that twenty years later, following the Six Day War in 1967, Israel occupied the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and took control of Gaza, all territory that had been promised to Palestinians as the basis for a sovereign state. Over the ensuing fifty plus years of occupation Israel has imposed on Palestinians humiliating and disruptive restrictions on travel, employment, home building, and religious observance. During this period a Separation Barrier was erected dividing Palestinians from Israelis, appropriating more Palestinian land, and separating many Palestinians from their families, their work, and the agricultural fields. Over 125 Israeli settlements—illegal under international law—have been established in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, and over 100 unauthorized settlements have been established as well. Large portions of the West Bank are off limits to Palestinians, and a separate road system for settlement residents further divides Palestinians from one another. Security checkpoints throughout the West Bank, and a pass system, disrupt travel for many and make it impossible for others. In 2005 Israel imposed a land and sea blockage that severely restricts access to jobs and the traditional fishing industry. Unemployment in Gaza approaches 50%. The economy is largely dependent on foreign aid administered by the UN. Today Gazans live in deplorable and demoralizing conditions often described as a “large, outdoor prison.”

Finally, we must understand the impact of contemporary events on the Palestinian community. They have watched settlements grow throughout the West Bank and in Jerusalem with no accountability demanded by the international community. They have watched as their children are arrested, detained, and tried in Israeli military courts. They have watched the United States continue to contribute billions of dollars to Israel without exacting any pledges that might lead toward ending the Occupation or the establishment of a Palestinian state. They have watched military incursions into their cities that have led to the deaths of countless Palestinians. They have watched Democratic and Republican administrations endorse Israeli policies, move the US embassy to Jerusalem, and midwife the so-called Abrahamic Accords with Arab nations without exacting any binding commitment to the Palestinians. And they have now watched a far-right Israeli cabinet installed that includes members calling for annexation of the entire West Bank and changes to the judicial system that threaten to undermine the last moderating influences on settlement expansion.

Palestinians are admonished to be non-violent in the struggle for justice. Yet non-violent resistance by Palestinians and their international supporters in the form of protests, truth forums, human rights reports, or economic pressure through the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement have been suppressed, named anti-Semitic, or declared illegal in Israel and even in the United States. Peaceful civil societal groups in Israel calling for more just treatment of Palestinians are sanctioned. Even non-violent pro-Palestinian gatherings in response to the current violence are vilified and declared illegitimate. Armed resistance throughout the years has been met with overwhelming Israeli military force and devastating human and economic consequences for Gaza. Patience is encouraged, but results merely in acquiescence to an unacceptable status quo. Negotiations have been premised on impossible  prerequisite demands. In the face of dispossession and expulsion, the failure to achieve a sovereign state with the prospect of an enduring second class citizenship with an Israeli controlled establishment, the sense of permanence in the refugee status of so many of their fellow Palestinians, the daily humiliations of the Occupation, the lack of personal economic opportunity, and the inability to worship at holy sites, we must understand why some Palestinians see violence as the only viable option even if it means inevitable and overwhelming retaliation, destruction and death.

To identify the conditions that allow us to predict a violent future is not to condone or justify that violence. It is to warn us that failure to change those conditions sentences both Israelis and Palestinians to a grim future. Historical context and contemporary challenges provide us with critical understanding surrounding the decision by some Palestinians to resort to the violence we have seen this month. But that understanding also serves as a warning. Absent meaningful movement toward an end of the Occupation and negotiations that lead to a just peace marked by adherence to acceptable standards of human rights and the rules of international law, violence affecting the lives of both Palestinians and Israelis will be a predictable mark of the future. Kairos Palestine, a Christian ecumenical movement for nonviolent action and a United Church of Christ global partner, offers this prophetic interpretation of the violence we are watching today. Speaking to their Israeli neighbors, the writers remind us,

“This war came to say that weapons do not protect, and the strong who underestimate the weak will not protect themselves nor will they find security. Safe hearts are safe strongholds. Palestinian hearts, if their full freedom, dignity and state are returned to them, are your only protection.”

I am indebted to Wilhelm Kuhner and his slim volume, The Christian Flag, its muddy history and ongoing relevance to us all for much of the material in this blog.

This week Torrington, CT, became the latest city to allow a Christian flag to be flown on a municipal flagpole. City officials defended the decision saying it would bring unity among Christian traditions. Last year the city of New Britain, CT, made the same decision. Around the country cities and towns are re-evaluating their flag flying policies.

This is happening due to a rare unanimous Supreme Court decision (in Shurtleff v Boston) that found the city of Boston had discriminated against a Christian group by not allowing it to fly a Christian flag at city hall. The city allows other groups to hoist flags when they have ceremonies on the steps of city hall. Therefore, not allowing a Christian group to do the same was cited as a violation of the First Amendment right to free speech. The ACLU agreed.

The city of Boston reasoned that flying a Christian flag amounted to a violation of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment which states “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibit the free exercise thereof.…” The city held the position that flying a Christian flag on a city flagpole was a tacit endorsement of Christianity. They lost as SCOTUS ruled in favor of Shurtleff.

This is a very slippery slope. Would the same decision be made if the issue was flying a Star of David flag at an anti-Semitism protest? Would the same decision be made if the issue was flying a crescent moon with a star, the flag of Islam? Methinks not.

In addition, the Christian flag is not universally supported as a symbol of Christianity or Christian unity. Its roots stretch back to the late 1800’s when a Sunday school superintendent on Coney Island gave an impromptu speech about the need for a central Christian symbol. The idea seems innocent enough, but the lived out history is far more problematic.

The Christian flag has always had a political agenda and has been bandied about by conservatives and progressives since its beginning. In 1942 the Federal Council of Churches, a predecessor body to the National Council of Churches, “Issued recommendations on the use of flags in church buildings in response to requests by church groups” as American(s) entered the Second World War. Unity and tolerance movements spread to combat rising ethnic and religious intolerance and bigotry. Christian flags were given to churches, schools and municipalities to promote unity. While well intended, these practices did showcase Christianity at the expense of other religions.

In our contemporary society the Christian flag is far more likely to be associated with conservative rather than progressive theology. As Christian nationalism is on the rise and xenophobia is rampant, the Christian flag has been claimed by religious conservatives to serve their social and political agenda. However well-intentioned the Christian flag was at its inception, it currently does not represent the many and varied expressions of Christian faith in the United States.

This undercurrent of muddy waters makes its appearance on municipal flag poles even more problematic. I agree with the city of Boston that it does suggest a tacit agreement with what the flag currently represents. SCOTUS and the ACLU are doggedly holding to free speech as the issue.   

SCOTUS has been inconsistent with its rulings on the separation of church and state. In 1948 it ruled that religious education in public schools was unconstitutional. Almost seventy-five years later, the Court does an about face with its 2022 decision in Shurtleff v. Boston. The conservative face of the today’s Court and its leanings toward Christian nationalism make their decision understandable, but no less troubling.

Unless a Jewish and Muslim flag have equal access to municipal flag poles for their celebrations, this remains an establishment issue and not a free speech issue. Or perhaps it is a free speech issue…for some.

We all can recall with stunning clarity where we were on September 11^th. It will be forever seared into our memory, mind and heart. I was standing in line at my favorite coffee shop on my way to the office. I watched the TV in the corner in disbelief as my phone rang. My then-spouse was home recovering from surgery. She said, “If the world is coming to an end, I want you home.” Indeed no one really knew what was going on. After watching the replay on TV for the umpteenth time, I turned the TV off and listened to NPR. I didn’t need to see it one more time. 

At the time I was writing a weekly column for our local newspaper. My first article after September 11^th mused on how we might make a non-violent response to this disaster, among other things. The letters to the editor were scathing. I received hate mail, threats to burn down my house, threats to my person and was called every name in the book. The police made regular trips past my house and office for several weeks until things settled down. I would write the same article today, maybe even more forcefully.

The lessons from twenty-two years ago reinforce the truth that an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth leaves the whole world hungry and blind. We have learned to be fearful of those who are different from us. We have fallen prey to paranoia and see enemies everywhere. We have all become profilers when it comes to looking at Middle Eastern people. We have learned, once again, that might makes right and the divisions among nations have grown deeper and more vitriolic. We learned to take off our shoes at the airport and not carry more than three ounces of any one liquid. I had to throw away a full tube of toothpaste and a $25.00 lipstick for failing to follow the rules. To be truthful I was a little cranky about it. My niece worked for TSA and the verbal abuse she took from people was disgusting.

There are other lessons, though, that are heartening and restore faith in human nature. First responders were extraordinary in their response and their commitment to save people. Medical personnel worked round the clock to provide services to the injured. Nearby churches opened their doors for weary first responders to sleep. Restaurants gave away food; there were heartfelt kindnesses shared with strangers. As we witnessed the worst of what humans can do to each other, we also witnessed the best. We learned that people can be decent and kind and good, even when their hearts and spirits are broken.

None of us will ever forget September 11^th, and that is good. Let us, however, choose to remember the deeds of kindness and acts of heroism. Let us sing the songs of the unsung heroes and remember all the ways the best of human nature was on full display. Let that challenge the fearmongering and suspiciousness that invades us like a virus. Let us remember that we could have followed a path of love through the horrible days in the aftermath of September 11^th. It’s not too late to follow that path now. Remember the words of Romans 12:21: “Do not overcome evil with evil, but overcome evil with Good.”