Saved?

Pat Liberty

In one of his cockamamie speeches, number 47 said he felt he was” saved by God to make America great.” Of all the vomit-worthy things he says on a regular basis, this one caught my attention.

There are many ways to understand what it means to be “saved.” There are many theologies of salvation. Some believe that salvation comes once and for all in a specific moment. You might hear someone say, “I was saved on July 10th” or whatever date. It is cited as an experience of being born again. Others see it as a lifetime process of continuing to grow in the grace and image of God. They cite no specific moment but believe in the presence of the Holy helping shape and divine their lives. These are just two of the theologies of salvation. Gallons of ink have been spilled defining what it means to be “saved.”

What most of the definitions have in common, however, is this: one is saved for the purposes of God. The life of the faithful disciple is to embody the presence of the holy in one’s daily life. One labors for the things that are central to the message of Scripture. These are care and concern for the poor, marginalized and disenfranchised, working to undo unjust systems that persecute those with less power, creating the realm of God on earth, a realm where justice, peace and enough for all is the norm.

Salvation is never understood for self-aggrandizement. It is not to shore up any political or social system. In fact, God’s realm undoes political and social systems in favor of an equal distribution of goods and services to all people. In God’s realm there is no underclass, there are no second-class citizens and there is no mega-wealth. In ancient times it was believed (and I think they were onto something) that there was limited wealth. If someone was wealthy, it was because someone else was poor. The wealthy literally took the resources from someone else.

We know now that CEO’s make 290 times as much as a typical worker. In 1965, they were paid 21 times as much as a typical worker. And while everyone has been griping about inflation, the truth is that corporations including grocery store chains, department stores like Wal-Mart and petroleum companies have posted record profits for shareholders. Meanwhile their workers qualify for SNAP benefits and their children qualify for reduced price lunches. The minimum wage has not been raised since July of 2009 when it was raised from $6.55 to $7.25. In the intervening years the cost of living has increased by roughly 47%. Do the math. These financial statistics do not embody the values of the gospel and the proposed policies of #47 do not bode well for the poor.

When one is “saved” they embody the fruits of salvation; justice, mercy, compassion, love for others, economic justice, respect for God’s creation and radical welcome. None of that is on #47’s radar. Salvation is an invitation to walk with the Holy One in humility and faithfulness. It is a discipleship journey that lasts a lifetime.

Tax cuts for the wealthy, mass deportation of immigrants, persecution of the LGBTQI community, systematic voter suppression, lack of redress from the legal system, discrimination in employment, housing and lending and the normalization of prejudice, violence and hatred are not gospel values. They do not embody salvation, no matter how you define it or what your theology is.

It is heresy for #47 to claim God as part of his plan to destroy America. God is nowhere to be found in his rhetoric or his actions. Those of us who strive to live into gospel values, whether we are church goers are not, have a responsibility to speak out and speak up to anyone and everyone who will listen.  Part of the reason #47 has been able to spread his MAGA right wing political and religious bullshit is because the theological moderates and liberals have been too long silent about his actions. Take to social media, talk about your faith, your theology and what you are doing to live the gospel. Repost this blog to educate people about the nature and purpose of salvation. Write letters of protest to #47 and tell him you are outraged by his hubris and heretical speech. Organize a demonstration. Put signs on your lawn. Make your revulsion known.

More than 50% of the people may have voted for this ego-maniacal narcissistic excuse of a human being, but we are a strong minority and not a small one at that. His tropes worked to unite the right, now our tropes need to unite the left. Find your voice and speak up.

Just Wondering

Pat Liberty

So, I’m just wondering why the CEO of United Health being shot on a Manhattan Street is an act of terrorism and (another) school shooting is not considered terrorism. Anybody being shot for any reason is a tragedy and there is no way that gun violence can be excused in any setting. Yet we have been dealing with school shootings (83 so far this year) since the 1700’s when four Lenape Native Americans entered present-day Green Castle Pennsylvania, shot and killed schoolmaster Enoch brown, and killed nine or ten children (reports vary). Only two children survived. I’m just wondering if the violence of these Natives was related to yet another example of having their land stolen, their people being senselessly killed and their way of life threatened.

I’m wondering how politicians, in good conscience, can continue to be owned by the NRA, which effectively circumvents any meaningful gun control in the United States.

I’m wondering why the Trans community is the target of such vitriol when they make up less than one percent of the entire population of the country. Twenty-four states have pending legislation to limit access to health care for the trans community. According to the National Institutes of Health, eighty two percent of trans teens have attempted or seriously considered suicide. These numbers are only going to increase as the incoming administration targets the trans community.

I’m wondering how we, as a nation can continue to give carte blanche to Israel to conduct a systematic genocide against the people of Gaza. I wonder where the outcry for the people of Gaza is. I wonder why it is impossible to say anything against Israel without being called antisemitic. The truth is that Israel is guilty of war crimes and needs to be called to accountability in the international community for systematic murder of Gazans in the name of defeating Hamas. Thanks to American technology, Israel has access to weapons that can blow the top off a can of soup, but instead they choose widespread bombing campaigns with high civilian losses.

I’m wondering about the implementation of Project 2025 and what it will mean to poor and marginalized communities. Equal marriage, decades of progress in civil rights, social justice and equity particularly for African Americans are on the chopping block. Social safety net programs like SNAP and Medicaid face drastic cutbacks. I’m wondering how the American people can be so blind to the truth that Project 2025 is going to cause widespread suffering to the poor, those with food insecurity and those at risk for homelessness. I’m wondering if we are so self-centered as to think that as long as we are okay, it really doesn’t have anything to do with us. I’m wondering where the “love your neighbor as yourself” part of the gospel has gone in our corporate American religious life.

I’m wondering what will happen to our planet as hard-won regulatory restrictions against fossil fuels are rolled back. I’m wondering how close we are to the point of no return. Sometimes I wonder if my war on single-use plastics at home is making any difference, if burning wood instead of fossil fuels contributes to the health of the planet, among other things I do to try and live lightly on the earth. I’m wondering if we have forgotten that two and two and fifty make a million, and if we all did what is ours to do we could make a difference.

I’m wondering why everyone blames inflation for high grocery prices when the truth is that grocery chains are posting record profits. I’m wondering if the American people know they were played when political candidates promised to lower grocery prices for hard working middle class families. In reality, unless there are government checks on price gouging, nothing will happen to reduce grocery prices.

I’m wondering why the health care industry is completely owned by insurance companies. Before 1993, insurance companies were not-for-profit. The focus was on providing medical care. Now the focus is on making profits for shareholders. Premiums continue to rise and benefits continue to decrease. Increasingly artificial intelligence algorithms make decisions about the kind and amount of health care one can receive. I’m wondering when the whole system is going to implode, or as seems more likely, health care will be a privilege of the increasingly rich, while the poor will continue to have less access to care and poorer health outcomes.

I’m wondering where our capacity for outrage has gone. As the old saying goes, “If you’re not outraged you’re not paying attention.” I think it is true. We are not paying attention because the changes that are gradually happening have not caused us a sufficient amount of pain. I’m wondering how we became so selfish, so self-involved, so unconcerned for others while still claiming to be followers of Jesus. Incidentally (not really), Jesus was all about the poor and marginalized. I’m wondering how the church of Peter and Paul’s time went from being on the cutting edge of announcing an upside down realm to being the chief holder of the status quo.

Maybe it’s me, but I’m just wondering.

These Uncertain times

Pat Liberty

This sermon was preached at Ledyard Congregational Church in Ledyard, CT on November 10, 2024

My Lord God,
I have no idea where I am going.
I do not see the road ahead of me.
I cannot know for certain where it will end.
nor do I really know myself,
and the fact that I think I am following your will
does not mean that I am actually doing so.
But I believe that the desire to please you
does in fact please you.
And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing.
I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire.

And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road,

though I may know nothing about it.
Therefore will I trust you always though
I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death.

I will not fear, for you are ever with me,
and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.

“The Merton Prayer” from Thoughts in Solitude Copyright © 1956, 1958 by The Abbey of Our Lady of Gethsemani. Used by permission of Farrar Straus Giroux.

Thomas Merton O.C.S.O. (January 31, 1915 – December 10, 1968) is arguably the most influential American Catholic author of the twentieth century. He wrote over 60 books and hundreds of poems and articles on topics ranging from monastic spirituality to civil rights, nonviolence, and the nuclear arms race. He kept private journals and maintained a voluminous personal correspondence; he also recorded his classroom lectures.

After a rambunctious youth and adolescence, Merton converted to Roman Catholicism while attending Columbia University. On December 10th, 1941, he entered the Abbey of Gethsemani, a community of monks belonging to the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance (Trappists), the most ascetic Roman Catholic monastic order.

The 27 years he spent at Gethsemani brought about profound changes in his self-understanding. This ongoing conversion impelled him into the political arena, where he became, according to Fr. Daniel Berrigan, the conscience of the peace movement of the 1960s. Referring to race and peace as the two most urgent issues of our time, Merton was a strong supporter of the nonviolent civil rights movement, which he called “certainly the greatest example of Christian faith in action in the social history of the United States.”

This prayer was written during a time of deep uncertainty in his life as his ongoing conversion was leading him through new and uncharted territory in his life. I find his words quite comforting as we move into these uncertain times.

Uncertainty is one of those things we’re not very good at. We like things mapped out…A leads to B leads to C. We see the end, if not from the beginning, at least from the middle. And while that may be our preferred way of experiencing the world, in my experience that’s not the way it usually works out.

We live with uncertainty about our jobs…will they still be there in six months? There is uncertainty about our health, what it means to live with chronic disease or waiting for a new diagnosis. Our family relationships are, at times tenuous, as we navigate the changes that are inevitable among people who continue to evolve throughout their lives. There is no end to the avenues of uncertainty that haunt our lives. And we don’t like it one bit.

We knew that no matter who won the election we would be moving into uncertain times. Ours is a nation deeply divided and the way forward is anything but certain.

There is a feeling of being unmoored, like a boat that is bobbing around not attached to the ground tackle that holds it in place. After Super Storm Sandy, which Jean and I rode out on our boat, much to our families’ chagrin, we got phone calls from all over the country yelling at us. When we emerged from the companionway, the first thing I saw was a beautiful 38 foot sailboat lying on its side on the rocks two docks behind our boat. It’s hard to describe the sick feeling that came over me as I thought about the owner. A salvage crew was already approaching to lift the boat off the rocks, but it would be weeks before the damages were fully assessed.

I’ve had that same sick feeling in the last few weeks, the uncertainty of what lies ahead and what it will take to bring our nation back together as a safe place for all people.

Uncertainty looks like me, a gay married woman whose marriage may well be made illegal in the next few years.

Uncertainty looks like sky high grocery prices and most of our produce rotting in the fields when we deport half the migrant workers on whom our economy depends.

Uncertainty looks like the roll back of rights for the trans community and the end of gender affirming care. Now you may not understand what it means to be transgender, but that doesn’t mean that you know better than the person who lives in their skin what is right for them.

As an open and affirming church, are we ready to welcome a scared population of LGBTQIA people who are wondering what is ahead for them. Or, as I suspect, are we hiding our light under a bushel because the truth is we are welcoming of that community as long as we look and act straight.

Uncertainty looks like Project 2025, and if you don’t know what that is, you need to. It is impossible to be a responsible American citizen in this day and age without a working knowledge of Project 2025. It is available for free online. It is the blueprint for unprecedented uncertainty for every vulnerable population in this country. Don’t be upset with me for what I am saying unless you have done your due diligence and become familiar with Project 2025.

Uncertainty looks like extreme weather patterns that will continue to increase if we do not pay attention to the degradation of our planet. Sure, it’s amazing to have temperatures in the 70’s during November, but not when you realize why this is true.

Uncertainty lives at the razor’s edge of two things, despair and possibility. When we get to the very edge of all we have ever known and entered unchartered waters we have a choice. We can wring our hands and get immobilized in fear and despair, or we can do as the Psalm 46 suggests…be still and know that God is still God.

This is not a get out of jail free card. This knowledge will save us from nothing. Rather, it will ground us in a certainty that roots our action on the side of what is good and holy and just. God is faithful and calls us to be the same.

 Our tasks are the same now as they have ever been, to clothe the naked, feed the hungry, welcome the stranger, visit the imprisoned, care for the planet and care for one another.

Our identity as God’s people, people on whom God has laid a claim in our baptism surpasses our identity as citizens, political affiliates, liberals, conservatives, tree huggers or granola groupies.  

What we share is that we are citizens of this country, and this world and God calls us to covenant relationship that puts all other identities second to the one we share in Christ. If we fail in this, we fail in all else.

Whatever the uncertainty in your life, whatever despair creeps around the edges of your peace, whatever fear invades the certainty that, while partly an illusion, you have lived with…be still and know that God is God. Keep digging, deep, down deep, until you get to that bedrock that is the root of all things.

When we stand secure in that place…what is unclear will become clearer, what is uncertain will become more certain, what is fearful will diminish because we will discover that love is stronger than hate, faith is stronger than fear, the call of life surpasses the threat of death. God is still God. We are still God’s beloved. These times will require all the faith, all the love, all the grace and all the courage we can muster. It’s time we put the protest back in protestant.

Values You Can Take to the Polls

Pat Liberty

This sermon was preached at Ledyard Congregational Church in Ledyard, CT on November 3, 2024.

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: you shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” Matthew 22:37-40

“On this hang all the law and the prophets.” You’d think this love business was one of the most important things in the bible. Oh, wait, it is. This command has its roots in Deuteronomy…it is called the Shema.

The words used for love in Hebrew and Greek have nothing to do with our contemporary understanding of love, which focuses on feelings and warm fuzzies. Romantic love dominates the language of love.

The biblical traditions are far richer. In Hebrew the word is hesed. It can mean steadfast love, mercy, lovingkindness and goodness. It also means a covenantal love. It is characterized by great tenderness and consideration towards others. It is fundamentally a love that God has for creatures and one that is embodied in God’s followers

The Greek word is agape. It is considered the highest form of love. It is self-giving, patient, kind and never fails. Agape is the word used in 1 Corinthians 13, the famous chapter on love.

So from both the Judeo and Christian traditions love is held forth as the defining characteristic of God and how God works through humans. Throughout both testaments the central message is God’s enduring love affair with creation and all that is in it. And as God’s followers we strive to embody that love in all we say and do.

This is the cornerstone value that we are to bring to the world. It is a stance that defines everything else. When we come from a place of hesed and agape we are manifesting God’s greatest love.

So, with love as the central value, we are going to look at several scriptures that underscore values that are central to our tradition. Values we can take to the polls.

We begin in Leviticus. Nobody reads Leviticus, it’s like reading the Manhattan Yellow Pages. There are multiple layers of tradition that get sandwiched together and it makes for a tough read. But there are some themes that run through the book and this is one of them from Leviticus 19:33-34. “When an alien resides with you in your land, you shall not oppress the alien. The alien who resides with you shall be to you as the citizen among you; you shall love the alien as yourself, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.”

This stance is fundamentally one of compassion and care, justice and wellbeing. It means that however we approach the issue of immigration we need to come from a place of compassion for the stranger. We are far more apt to “other” the alien than we are to welcome them.

Now we go to Jeremiah 29:7. This is after the Israelites were exiled to Babylon and Yahweh says through the prophet Jeremiah, “But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.” God’s word to the Israelites in exile was to not pout and get on with their lives. When we look at those words in relation to the immigrant community in the United States, they take on a rich meaning.

The immigrants who come to the US are by and large some of the hardest working people you will meet. They clean our hospitals and hotels, pick our vegetables and work in slaughterhouses. Not one of my friends has said, “Gee I lost my job at the slaughterhouse ripping the guts out of chickens because some immigrant came and took my job.” It is the stance of love for the alien that needs to inform our politics. Stance becomes action, so where we start matters.

Next we go to Genesis 2: Not a prophet but a prophetic witness about the creation in which we live. In Genesis 1 the narrative is to have dominion over the earth. This has been interpreted as pillage the earth’s resources, use it as a garbage dump, care nothing for the planet. And we see where that is getting us as we teeter on the edge of climate disaster.

Genesis 2 offers a different image that is not nearly as popular. Till the earth and keep it. We are stewards of this great planet. It is ours to use but not abuse. Our stance toward the earth needs to be one of care and conservation, and that needs to inform our politics. How we live day to day matters. The truth is there is enough for everyone’s need but not everyone’s greed. We are stewards of limited resources…John McCutheon sings, this earth was made a common treasury for everyone to share, all things in common, all people one…

Next we go to the prophet Isaiah. The book of Isaiah as we have it today came together over a period of about eight hundred years. All of those years were marked by war, four major conflicts that drastically altered the landscape of Israel and Judah. And we know that region remains a tinderbox today.

In the second chapter verses 4 and 5 we read, “He shall judge between the nations and shall arbitrate for many peoples; they shall beat their swords into plowshare and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation shall not lift up sword against nation neither shall they learn war anymore.”

The stance, the value we are to hold in the world is one of peace. Like war, peace must be waged. Being steeped in a stance of peace informs our political commitments. There is something fundamentally wrong when the best economic times are in post war periods. It says something about how our nation’s resources are prioritized. This is a narrative that needs to change for the sake of the earth and for its people.   

Next we go back to Jeremiah, Chapter 29 vss. 12-13. “Your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt; you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; you shall be called repairers of the breach, the restorer of streets to live in.” Repairers of the breach…the breach between the rich and the poor…those for whom the system doesn’t work. 135-140 million people live in poverty. It is the fourth leading cause of death in the United States. We are repairers of the breach. Our voice and our vote help to repair the breach when we use it with hesed and agape.

We are to use our vote for those who have no vote; we are the voice for those who have no voice. And the reason they have no vote and no voice is because there have been over 1000 bills introduced across the nation that suppress voting rights, mostly of the poor and people of color.

The love that God has for us is the love we are to have for those whom we will never meet…the poor the disenfranchised, those with no health care, those who live on a minimum wage that hasn’t been raised since 2009, when it went from $6.75 to $7.25. In 1965 CEOs were paid 21 times as much as the typical worker. In 2023 CEOs were paid 290 times the typical worker. What might it look like to the poor when we use our voice and our vote on behalf of those who have no voice and whose votes have been suppressed.

We are repairers of the breach when we address what William Barber calls the five interlocking injustices: systemic racism, poverty, environmental degradation, a war economy, denial of health care and the false distorted narrative of religious nationalism.

Jeremiah says we will make the streets fit to live in again when the streets are safe for all people. And that means elimination of unfair labor practices, being generous in feeding the hungry and giving ourselves to the down and out. The streets will be fit to live in again when hesed and agape love for the stranger and outcast are our way of being in the world. We vote our values as God’s people when we vote hesed and agape. Jurgen Moltmann said, “Those who hope in God can no longer put up with the way things are. Hope is a response to suffering that calls people to action in the present to witness to God’s promises in the future.”

Bishop William Barber used these words to close the Inaugural Prayer breakfast…the words of the great American preacher Harry Emerson Fosdick who penned them during the great depression. I invite you to pray them with me.

God of grace and God of glory, on your people pour your power

Crown your ancient church’s story, bring its bud to glorious flower.

Grant us wisdom, grant us courage, for the facing of this hour

Heal your children’s warring madness, bend our pride to your control.

Shame our wanton, selfish gladness, rich in things and poor in soul.

Grant us wisdom, grant us courage lest we miss your kingdom’s goal.

Save us from weak resignation to the evils we deplore.

Let the search for your salvation be our glory evermore

Grant us wisdom, grant us courage, serving you whom we adore, serving you whom we adore. Amen.

The Big Picture

Pat Liberty

An excerpt from my sermon October 27, 2024. Preached at Ledyard Congregational Church, Ledyard CT

“A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, wich are worth a penny. Then he called his disciples and said to them, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the treasury. For all of them have contributed out of their abundance; but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.” Mark 12:42-44

Most of the time a sermon on this text goes something like this.  The temple is the equivalent of the church. Jesus notices the widow gives everything; we should be like the widow and be more generous, trusting that God will bless us and provide for us if we are more generous.    

Except, that is not what the text is really about. As Elisabeth Schussler Fiorenza suggests, we need to approach the text with a hermeneutic of suspicion, meaning a willingness to question the assumptions we bring to the text.  Like assuming we know what it says and what it means based on previous hearing and teaching.

This text is so frequently used at church budget time that the interpretation that identifies the widow as a model of faithfulness for us is hard to get past, but let’s take a closer look.

First of all, it’s important to remember that the widow is New Testament code language for the poorest of the poor, those most marginalized by a patriarchal society. Second, there is NOTHING in the text, not one word that suggests that Jesus thinks it’s a good thing that this woman put her last two coins into the temple coffers and goes away destitute. Jesus describes her behavior and comments that she gave all she had, but he doesn’t praise her for her behavior.

If we go back to the beginning of the passage, in most Bibles it is subtitled warnings about the Scribes, which suggests the focus is on the temple leaders and not on the widow.  Verse 38 begins with Jesus warning his followers to be aware of those who put on long robes, receive seats of honor, put on a good show of prayers and devour widows’ houses.” 

The role of scribe was important and honorable in the life of the temple. They were learned men whose job was to copy sacred texts, but they also served as lawyers. They had authority to negotiate contracts. They were also a part of the governing council called the Sanhedrin. They had tremendous power in the temple system. And, the religious rulers were in cahoots with Rome in an unholy alliance. Scribes were appointed to settle the estates of widows, who had no legal right to property, and were regularly exploited by these powerful men. Unscrupulous religious leaders and political officials exploited the vulnerability of widows and there was no place for them to go to seek justice, as they had no voice in religious or social structures. Hold that thought.

Jesus is instructing his followers. This is a field trip of sorts to the Temple, showing things not to do…Jesus would later send his followers out to preach to the people. He cautioned them against accumulating wealth, lest they be distracted from their primary role.  They were to trust in God’s Providence as they did God’s will. Any money they were given was to go to the poor. He also constantly warned his own disciples against seeking honor rather than serving others.  Pointing out the ostentatious clothing of the scribes was a way of illustrating that these religious leaders had ceased to care for God’s people.

The greater condemnation that comes to such leaders is calculated on a simple formula: greater knowledge means greater responsibility.  From the one to whom more is given more is expected.

That the scribes failed to be scandalized by the demands Temple worship made on one who had so little is what raised Jesus’ ire.  He neither praises nor condemns the widow; his judgment is on the injustice of the temple system and the lack of compassion for those in need.

Essentially Jesus takes the entire social, religious, economic and political system and goes “BOOM.” He  blows it right out of the water. In order to evaluate a social system we have to ask who benefits from it. In Jesus’ time it was the Scribes, the lawyers. Who is it in our time? The American oligarchs who don’t pay their fair share of taxes? Or is it the legislators we send to congress, who, for the most part, in the time of their tenure become millionaires? How does that happen? What kind of back-room deals do they need to make with the rich and powerful to line their pockets.

Who is victimized by the system? Single moms who work two jobs and have no health insurance. Single dads who fall behind on their child support payments because they don’t make enough to live on. Older Americans who live on Social Security alone and have to choose between paying their utility bill and buying groceries.

Again and again in the gospels we see that what makes a time, a place and a people holy is caring for the poor, the widow the orphan, and the stranger; those whom the world defines as the last the least and the lost.  And Jesus’ harshest words are reserved for the Scribes, whom he calls whited sepulchers. They look okay on the outside, but inside they are filled with death and destruction.

In the realm Jesus brings, everyone has a place at the table. Everyone is part of the community. All people stand on equal ground, because place is defined by God’s welcome and not having things the world deems important.  Jesus’ vision for the religious community and for the social order included understanding equality as something rooted in God and not in the trappings of the world. And for all of his faithfulness to God’s dream for the creation, Jesus was executed as an enemy of the state because he exposed the wickedness and collusion of religious and political leaders.

Jesus bore witness to a time and place where people would seek God and acknowledge God as the author of all that is. Out of that inner faith, that inner conviction, followers would live in faithful, joyful obedience.  It was not an act of volition, of willpower, of thinking the right way.  The in-breaking of God’s realm was rooted in passion for God’s way of being in the world, in faith that was life changing, a vision of success that was dramatically different from the world’s, nothing short of wholesale embrace of the upside-down values of God’s realm.

Jesus’ judgment on the social, religious, political and economic system of his time exposed the system for what it was: rigged by the rich for the sake of the rich. It was a morally and spiritually bankrupt system that failed those for whom God’s realm was most concerned.

Jesus calls attention to the empty prayers offered for the sake of appearance and balances this against the devouring of widows’ houses.  And this is the razor’s edge…Jesus sees their actions as indicative of their faith. Their failures of mission are an expression of their inner emptiness.

The big picture from this story is Jesus’ creating a social order that is committed to justice for the poor. In truth, Jesus talks more about the poor than he does about any other group.

The stewardship that is at issue here is how the system, the establishment, stewards its resources for the benefit of those it is called to serve. 

Gustavo Gutierrez, the founder of Liberation Theology wrote, “the poverty of the poor is not a call to generous relief action but a demand that we go and build a different social order.”

Our ability to be instruments of God bringing faith, hope, light, pardon and joy is about God in our lives and how we live that out in the world, not just through our charity, but through our social activism and political commitments. Faithful actions and deeds are not the source of our salvation but the fruit of it.   We often get the mphasis on the wrong syllABLE, thinking that our good works are the most important thing.  Don’t get me wrong they are important; they become holy when they are expressions of our faith in God and are followed with action in the social arena that works for justice on behalf of those who have no voice.

Beth Moore writes, “When our story is told a century from now-and it will be- how much of the American church ran after idols and delusions, false christs and conspiracies. History will not only fault the pastors for not confronting us with the truth but the congregations who forbade them to.”

This is a moment when our faith commitments need to inform our social, economic, political and religious actions.

Christ is either at the center of those actions, or not. Amen.

Resources:

Myers, Ched. Binding the Strong Man, a Political Reading of Mark’s Gospel

The New Interpreter’s Bible

An Open Letter to JD Vance

Pat Liberty

Dr. Mr. Vance,

Your recent appearance at the Christian nationalist revival tour of Lance Wallnau was comical at best. In your attempt to make a “theological” defense of the GOP’s controversial immigration policies, you demonstrated your complete lack of knowledge regarding sacred scripture.

I offer these comments for your remedial education. In the event that you would like to be educated in a way that has scholarly integrity, I offer to tutor you in both Old and New Testament history, tradition and theology.

First, you posit that, from a Christian perspective one owes the strongest duty to one’s family. I refer you to Matthew 12:46-50. In this pericope Jesus is speaking to the crowds and is interrupted by someone telling him that his mother and his brothers want to speak with him. “Jesus replied, ‘Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?’ And pointing to his disciples, he said, ‘Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.’”

From this scripture it is clear that Jesus’ understanding of family is not primarily about biology but about discipleship. He claims as family those who are united in striving for peace, justice and hastening the realm of God on earth. In that realm, all will have enough, there will be no war, no greed, no hunger, no suffering.

Your immigration policies are rooted in promulgating human suffering. Deporting individuals who have lived in the US for years to countries where they will face certain death and privation is not a policy, it is a debacle. Yes, our immigration system is broken, but what you propose will visit untold pain on millions of people. It is inhuman and deplorable. How you can claim this is consistent with the Judeo-Christian tradition shows the depth of your ignorance and lack of compassion.

Second, in Jeremiah 29 the prophet writes to the Israelites who are exiled in Babylon after the fall of Jerusalem.

“These are the words of the letter that the prophet Jeremiah sent  from Jerusalem to the remaining elders among the exiles, and to the priests, the prophets, and all the people, whom Nebuchadnezzar had taken into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon. This was after King Jeroniah, and the queen mother, the court officials, the leaders of  Judah and Jerusalem, the artisans, and the smiths had departed  from Jerusalem. The letter was sent by the hand of Elasah son of  Shaphan and Geramiah son of Hilkiah, whom King Zedekiah of  Judah sent to Babylon to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. It said,  ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles  whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon. Build houses  and live in them; plant gardens and eat what they produce. Take  wives and have sons and daughters, take wives for your sons,  and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and  daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease. But seek the welfare  of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on  its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.’”

Let me break this down into the simplest of terms so you can understand. The Israelites were exiled to Babylon. Rather than live as an isolated enclave they were encouraged to settle there and work for the welfare of the city to which they were exiled. Surely the immigrants in our midst have worked for the welfare of the American people. They pick our produce, clean our schools and hospitals and hotels. They work in the slaughterhouses that produce our meat and poultry. They often work at the most menial jobs for minimum wage so that we can enjoy our bounteous lifestyle.

I doubt there are many Americans that lament that they were vegetable pickers before the immigrants came.

Immigrants work for the well being of this country in countless ways. They have taken seriously the prophetic words of Jeremiah to seek the welfare of the place where they live. They know that in seeking the welfare of the United States they are also seeking their own welfare.

To see mass deportation as an “immigration policy” is ludicrous. It would be disastrous for our economy, for our food infrastructure and for our communities. We are a nation of immigrants. Unless one is a Native American, they are an immigrant. There are no other options. What you are proposing is making America white again. There is nothing Christian about that.

I suggest that you spend some time learning American history as well as biblical history and theology. It will go a long way toward helping you sound less like the hillbilly you are, though I fear this statement will be seen as an insult to anyone who considers themselves to be a hillbilly.

How to Talk About Political Differences

Pat Liberty

Hello Faithful Readers, it’s nice to be back.

After a few weeks’ hiatus, it is nice to be back in your inbox, and as always, I thank you for reading. My absence was due to a construction issue that ended up flooding a good part of our house and destroying my professional library. Mopping up and digging out has been a herculean task. Now that we are seeing some progress, I can focus my energy back to this forum.

The topic for today is how to deal with people who are politically different from you and maintain a relationship. Admittedly it is a difficult thing to do. If, however, we desire to stay in relationship with people who are politically different from us, we need to learn some skills. Here is a list of best practices as set forth by the Center for Media Engagement. I am indebted to them for their work.  https://mediaengagement.org/research/divided-communities/

Our findings revealed five main strategies for talking across political differences:

  1. Focus on the people, not the politics
    1. Build a relationship before talking politics. Don’t take comments personally. Share your own relevant experiences
    1. Give a relatable hypothetical situation
  2. Find common ground
    1. Bond over less polarized issues. Be open to listening and understanding. Ask questions to understand a different viewpoint
    1. Focus on shared beliefs
  3. Stick to the facts and avoid confrontation
    1. Stick to information that can be verified. Back up your opinions with evidence. Limit emotion in discussion
    1. Avoid confrontational language
  4. Be an advocate rather than an opponent
    1. Adapt conversational style to audience
    1. Avoid words that might upset people
  5. Pick your battles
    1. Talk about local politics instead of national politics. Focus on policy instead of party
    1. Avoid hot-button issues

For more information visit the above website for illustrations and strategies.

One More Circle ‘Round the Sun

Pat Liberty

Today is my sixty-eighth birthday. Most days I live as though I had all the time in the world, but the truth of the matter is, I have lived far more days than I have left to live. I don’t think about it a lot, but when I do it is rather humbling.

There are days I spend enormous amounts of time doing nothing, bingeing on Netflix, thinking something to death and thinking about it some more. I used to say I was wasting time, but in truth there is always something that is working on me unconsciously. There is value to this time, although from an observational standpoint it seems pointless. I have learned not to apologize.

I am a journal keeper and I spend hours journaling my innermost thoughts. I work out a lot of my own stuff on the pages of my journal. Most early morning hours will find me hunched over my journal writing madly away about whatever is uppermost in my mind that day. It is often a stream of consciousness writing that finds me in a place I never imagined I would go. I fill at least one journal a month, and after fifty years of the practice I have boxes and boxes and boxes of notebooks. They tell the story of my life in all its beauty and brokenness.

Spending time with family is a priority. I take care of my ninety-one-year-old dad a couple days a week. In the past eighteen months I have spent more time with him than I have in my entire life. He was a trucker and spent a lot of time away from home. He was always there for the important stuff, to be sure, but day to day found him miles away. I treasure this time with him in his fading years, there is nowhere else I would rather be. I also have a sister, and we squeeze in what time we can. We are on opposite schedules in taking care of dad.

I treasure the time I spend with my wife. I spent years waiting for this wonderful woman to come into my life. Now that she is here, I will not waste a single minute. I savor our time together whether we are doing something special or just hanging out at home. Even cleaning house together is cause for celebration.

Time with friends is also a priority, though at times it gets squished in by the demands of full-time ministry and tasks of keeping home and hearth together. Still, even when we can’t be together as often as we like, the love we have for one another reaches across the void and keeps us connected.

I guess I am one of the lucky ones. I get to put my life together pretty much as I want and I know a great level of contentment in how my days unfold. Sometimes it’s just good to sit back and consider this amazing gift called life.

Sure, the world is a mess, our country teeters on the brink of too many disasters to name, and our planet is crying for help and deliverance from our selfishness and exploitation. That just serves to make me committed to living each day with purpose. Remembering that I can’t fix it keeps me from despair. Yet, I also know doing nothing is not an option. So, I decrease the amount of household plastics we use, buy earth friendly products, recycle and eat lower on the food chain. As the old Native American proverb goes, “If everyone swept in front of their own teepee, the world would be a cleaner place.”

I also use my voice and my platform to speak truth to power and try desperately to wake people up to what is happening. I have the privilege of preaching the gospel each Sunday and pray for the wisdom and humility to feed the flock entrusted to me for this moment in time with faithfulness and integrity.

I learned a while ago that tomorrow is promised to no one. Years of working for hospice and seeing that death is no respecter of persons or of age drove that lesson home loud and clear. Time is not something to take for granted. So even though I may not use every minute in the most productive way, I am not bound by our culture’s definition of productivity. I cherish the rhythm of my days and as I close my eyes to sleep each night I remember to count my blessings, acknowledge my failures and celebrate the gift of making one more circle ‘round the sun.

Check out Peter Mayer’s song on my music page.  

Ageism, Statesmanship and the Common Good

Pat Liberty

The first thing to be said about President Biden’s decision to not seek a second term is that ageism is alive and well in the Democratic party. At eighty-one President Biden is still a vital, viable elder statesman who has more on the ball than half the people half his age. At eighty-one he is only three years older than the former Occupant. The media joined the trope of the former Occupant’s rhetoric that Biden is a doddering old fool. The media is as much to blame as is the former Occupant.

Let’s not forget that.

His poor performance at the debate does not minimize a lifetime of accomplishments as a public servant. Biden is an elder statesman who has devoted his life to public service. In his brief three and a half years as President, he and Vice President Harris have:

  • Passed a 1.2 trillion dollar bi-partisan infrastructure package.
  • Provided cogent leadership to address the disaster the former Occupant made of the pandemic.
  • Created enhanced background checks for gun purchases and provided funds for youth mental health.
  • Made a $369 billion dollar investment in climate change.
  • Pulled troops out of Afghanistan, ending the longest war in American history.
  • Gave $10,000 to $20,000 in college debt relief to Americans with loans who make less than $125,000 a year.
  • Capped prescriptions costs at $2000.00 per year.
  • Achieved historically low unemployment rates.
  • Imposed a 15% minimum corporate tax on America’s largest corporations.
  • Rejoined the Paris Agreement.
  • Strengthened the NATO alliance in support of Ukraine.
  • Gave Medicare the power to negotiate drug prices.
  • Imposed economic sanctions against Russia for its invasion of Ukraine.
  • Increased the budget of the Internal Revenue Service to reduce tax evasion and increase revenue.
  • Created 6.6 million jobs, more than any other president in history.
  • Decreased healthcare premiums by $800.00.
  • Signed the PACT Act to address service members’ exposure to burn pits and other toxins.
  • Signed the CHIPS act to strengthen American manufacturing.
  • Reauthorized the Violence Against Women Act
  • Reinstated the ban on the death penalty.

The media should spend as much time talking about his accomplishments as they do about his stutter and poor debate performance. It is a flaming example of ageism.

There is far more to the story than what the lopsided media reports. It is interesting to note, as an aside, that every major news outlet including national networks is owned by supporters of the former Occupant. There is a stench in the air of neutrality. The media doesn’t report the news, it makes the news. And the one who pays the piper calls the tunes. But I digress.

What Biden knows in his bones is that government is meant to serve the greatest number of people in the best possible way. This requires a wide-angle lens on the big picture and a crystal-clear sense of how the parts move together and influence each other. While this can be described as political savvy, it is also deeply theological. As a man of faith, Biden has a foundation in understanding the public good.

There are instances a-plenty in scripture that illustrate the preferential option for the poor. In the first testament Israel is constantly measured against the plumbline of God’s justice and righteousness.  The witness of the prophets like Jeremiah, Isaiah and Amos is that God’s desire for humanity is to treat one another with compassion and equality and be good stewards of the resource of creation. These premises saturate scripture on just about every page.

The purpose of government is to serve the needs of people. The mark of any civilized society is how well it treats its most vulnerable members–the poor, the ill and the disenfranchised. These are complex social problems that defy simple solutions. The concrete actions of administrations that alleviate suffering, create jobs, sustain social safety net programs and look at the long term well being of creation are in line with biblical values.

The old saying that we don’t mix religion with politics is nonsense. We need the witness of scripture to inform our political opinions. We are called to look beyond individual self interest to the needs of those most in need of protection. We would do well to immerse ourselves in scripture as we approach this election season. If we are to claim our identity as people of faith we need to be grounded in biblical values and let those values inform our actions when we speak with others, cast our vote and assess the options before us in this political season.

Totalitarianism, Authoritarianism, Fascism and Faith

Pat Liberty

The words totalitarian, authoritarian and fascist are used interchangeably, but each of them is a political system in its own right. While there are similarities and overlap, there are important differences that can help us critique the direction in which American politics is heading.

Donald Trump has said that if (or in his mind when) he is elected, he will be a dictator from day one. What the three political systems have in common is that each requires a singular political leader who demands ultimate allegiance. The difference is in the system that surrounds them to carry out their “vision.” A dictator is one who exercises complete authority and has absolute power. They are subject to no checks or balances to prevent the abuse of power.

Twentieth century dictators included Joseph Stalin, General Secretary of the Communist part of the Soviet Union; Adolph Hitler, Fuhrer of Germany; Augusto Pinochet, President of Chile; Mao Zedone, Chairman of the Chinese Communist Party; Benito Mussolini of Italy; and Kim Jong-un of North Korea.

“Totalitarianism, fascism and authoritarianism are all forms of government characterized by a strong central rule that attempts to control and direct all aspects of individual life through coercion and repression.” 

In totalitarianism, there is unlimited power in the state. It controls virtually all aspects of public and private life, morals and beliefs of the people and political and financial matters. “One distinct feature of a totalitarian government is the existence of an explicit or implied national ideology–a set of beliefs intended to give meaning and direction to the entire society. Totalitarianism is typically distinguished from dictatorship…by its goals of replacing all existing political institutions with new ones and elimination of all legal, social and political traditions.”

An authoritarian state has a strong central government and allows people a limited degree of political freedom. However, it is all controlled by the government without any constitutional accountability. Its leaders cannot be replaced through freely conducted elections. The ability to form opposing political parties is limited or prohibited entirely.

Fascism is the most extreme expression of totalitarianism and authoritarianism. It is characterized by the “…imposition of dictatorial power, government control of industry and commerce, and the forcible suppression of opposition. Historically, fascism has kept nations in a constant state of preparedness for war. There is also a quest for ‘racial purity’ that defines anyone other than white Europeans as inferior.” Fascists see democracy and free/fair elections as obsolete. They also emphasize one party rule to accomplish their perpetual readiness for war.

What these repressive forms of government have in common is that concern for the common good is eliminated. To accomplish their goals, these regimes will divert resources from social safety net programs like Women Infants and Children (WIC), Medicaid and Medicare, Social Security, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), early childhood intervention programs and more. All resources are directed toward whatever goals the regime has stated as primary. It creates widespread suffering among the poorest of the poor. Further, it makes those on the bottom of the middle class downwardly mobile into the working poor.

These governmental regimes also tend to create wealthy oligarchs who control the nature and the means of production. Unions are dismantled and worker protections are eliminated in the name of increased productivity for the regime’s stated goals. Wealth is concentrated in the hands of a few at the expense of the many.

Further, such regimes often adopt a singular “religious” emphasis that corresponds to their goals and suppresses all other forms of religious expression as dangerous. There can also be propaganda that lulls religious institutions into a state of complacency. This was clearly on display in Nazi Germany when the German church was hypnotized into a coma that was blind to the atrocities committed by the Nazis.

What this means to us as people of faith is that we must remain alert to the implications of proposed and hinted at changes to our democracy. Government is intended to be “of the people, by the people and for the people.” This means that governmental system, structure and process should benefit the greatest number of people, beginning with the poorest of the poor. Jesus’ primary concern was for the poor, the outcast and the needy. He regularly criticized the powers for treading on that vulnerable population. He advocated for a radical redistribution of goods and services to benefit the neediest among them.

We are tempted to check our faith at the door in favor of some distorted view of the separation of church and state.  In fact, the establishment clause of the Bill of Rights was intended to assure that there would not be a state sponsored church (as there was in England). Further, the first amendment guarantees the right of free exercise of religion. We cannot allow the demands of our faith to be eclipsed by our sense of hopelessness, powerlessness and despair. We must listen carefully to the hyperbole and doublespeak that seeks to lull us into either a false sense of security or an utter mental check out of the process because we are so disillusioned. This is the goal of disinformation and gaslighting political rhetoric.

In this time, we must be “wise as serpents and innocent as doves.” (Matthew 10:16)

Resources

Longley, Robert. “Totalitarianism, Authoritarianism, and Fascism.” ThoughtCo. December 5, 2022.