By Peter L. DeGroote
I will pour out of My Spirit upon all flesh:
And your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
your young shall see visions,
your old shall dream dreams…Acts 2…
Those refreshing, even consoling words ran through the mind of this 71 year old as I departed Sing a New Song. After 35 years of glbt activism, 31 being primarily related to the UMC, I had become accustomed to disappointment with the church. A friend for most of that period had begun wondering if he had the energy to continue the struggle.
We were able to set the weariness aside because we had heard our sons and daughters speak the truth. (In the New Testament prophesy is truth telling.) Not biological sons and daughters but those who have taken up the reconciling banner and given it new energy, direction, words, and song. Hearing and feeling their guiding visions, we were left to the luxury of once again dreaming the dreams we had come to doubt.
No, we are not prepared to abandon the reconciling movement; it has been a place of safety, even a home for too many years. But I am aware that I don’t always understand what young folks are doing, or the reasons behind their strategies, but I usually like the results. That’s a good reason to get out of their way, cheer them on, and support them when they ask. Their new energy, many changes in the church, and our changing social geography offers them unique opportunities to accomplish what has been so elusive in the past.
And I am once more able to celebrate the past. Years ago, a small group of clergy and seminary students reacted to the 1972 General Conference claim that “homosexuality” is incompatible with Christian teachings by either leaving the ordained ministry or abandoning their call to ordination. They did not abandon the church, the church had abandoned them. In a demonstration of their integrity, faithfulness, and commitment to the church, they recruited others and formed Affirmation, United Methodists for Lesbian and Gay Concerns. I discovered them in 1979; the memory of their witness has been a continuing inspiration for me.
Some of those witnesses have left us but many are still around, many have gone on to significant accomplishment in other arenas. Affirmation was the early foundation on which the reconciling movement was built. We do not need to know the history to observe that it is now a complex network that includes a great diversity of lgbt folks, as well as our parents and friends.
Poke around in the UMC a bit and you will see the movement’s impact. In addition to the many reconciling congregations and fellowships, you will discover the meaning of reconciliation being explored in congregations, Sunday school classes, choirs, student groups, conference groups, and even some of our national church agencies. Again and again we are rediscovering that the reconciliation we claim in Christ was not given to us to selectively dispense but a gift we are obligated to share with all, including lgbt folks.
You will also discover retired bishops who have now found their prophetic voice urging the General Conference to change the Discipline. Our sitting bishops, having offered a call to action meant to renew the church, remain silent when it comes to lgbt folks; or, better said, ignoring the elephant in the room. (Even so, a confidential source reports that the bishops are seeking to halt church trials over lgbt issues because they have proven both embarrassing and too expensive.)
Explore a little further and you will discover that, despite occasional charges and trials in the past, some clergy and congregations have been long celebrating holy unions between same gender couples and, now that a number of civil jurisdictions allow marriage or civil unions without regard to gender, those are also being celebrated. Further, some conferences have been routinely approving candidates for ordination without regard to their sexual orientation, the incompatibility language being ignored.
If you are lucky you will find the joy of being a witness to the baptism of an adopted child of a same gender couple. It is increasingly common for a simple reason: How can you deny baptism to a child? As their same gender parents bring their child forward, grandparents, witnesses, and godparents join them, bearing witness to the meaning of family in a way that cannot be denied.
So, what’s the bottom line? Even though I confess to a bit of weariness, Sing a New Song gave me a chance to be thankful for what has been wrought. More important, I know I can be thankful for what is to come. I am excited by the new and young voices. I am moved by their boldness, willingness to claim loves and loyalties, and fearlessness in standing their ground. They have brought us a new song. It is worth singing.
Peter is a second career pastor who has served in several churches in the Baltimore-Washington Conference. Prior to his ordination, he was a secondary-school teacher, a university lecturer in Government, an Associate in a government related professional association, CEO of a national financial institution. Peter was involved in Mid-Atlantic Affirmation, served on the National Council of Affirmation, and sat on the Board of the Reconciling Congregations Program, the predecessor name for RMN and has worked with BWARM (Baltimore-Washington Reconciling United Methodists).
Reconciling Ministries Network mobilizes United Methodists of all sexual orientations and gender identities to transform our Church and world into the full expression of Christ’s inclusive love.
Beyond the Hatred: First Love, First Loyalty
by Peter L. DeGroote
If any come to me and do not hate their own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—they cannot be my disciples.Luke:14;26 (SV).
1. About 50 pastors in a continuing education class were asked if they had ever preached on the above verse. Few hands went up. Nevertheless, Jesus appears to have said something very close to those words so we are obliged to look further.* Two guidelines for biblical interpretation can help:
A. The first guideline: Variations in Jesus’ words from gospel to gospel often reflect the conditions in the communities out of which the various gospels came.
• Many early Christian communities were racked with emotional turmoil over lost family relationships. Ancient peoples had no identity without family. Orphans often became beggars or bandits; some sold themselves into slavery in order to be part of a household, household often being a synonym for family.**
• Many early Christian converts were disowned by their families and persecuted by their communities. Some LGBT people have experienced similar rejection by family, friends, and congregation and we have struggled with the power or our emotional responses.
• A harsh, even hateful reaction toward those who reject or persecute us is not uncommon, particularly when we have to go through the trauma of having to find new relationships and form new families. That is true for many LGBT folks, for many groups through history, and certainly for the early church.
B. The second guideline: Jesus' teachings are logically consistent, even if they challenge our understanding (or wishes). For this reason, use of the word "hate" raises a red flag.
• Recall Jesus’ prime directive, the rule of love .
• Primary to the rule of love is the forgiveness of others. (Forgive us…as we forgive them…). Hatred forfeits forgiveness and contradicts the rule of love.
2, Any who have experienced rejection and persecution from families, friends, and congregations understand the emotional turmoil that can lead to the feelings of “hate” expressed in this verse. It is reasonable to conclude that this use of the word “hate” arises out of the emotional turmoil of broken relationships and subsequent persecution of those early community members.
3. But something remains; a spiritual message at the heart of the verse. Where Old Testament prophets spoke of idolatry in the form of pagan religious images, Jesus spoke of idolatry in the form of human values and loyalties interfering with his Way of living in harmony with God and God’s creation.
4. Today we are challenged by loyalties demanded by our employment, social class, neighborhood, political party, nation, and even our religious denomination or community. More often than not, these create divisions between people, even hatreds. (The daily news is sufficient evidence.)
6. We are called to choose a Way of life that is often costly for our relationships, careers, and personal security. We can easily doubt that calling because living in harmony with God and God’s creation can seem unrealistic when many about us are doing otherwise. But we are called to learn to live in harmony even with those who would criticize, demean, and persecute us. That’s called reconciliation. It’s easier to write about than to do.
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* The saying appears in Luke and twice in Thomas (55 & 101. That suggests its source is in a lost collection of sayings that the authors of Mark, Matthew, and John were unaware of or chose not to use. However, there is a significant variation in Matthew (55:1): Those who love father and mother more than me are not worthy of me… Perhaps Matthew’s authors knew the saying source but were also uncomfortable with the word “hate.” However, Matthew’s context is much different from Luke’s.
There are, of course, other passages which call us to first loyalties but I find this one worth noting because so many LGBT folks can identify with the emotions involved.
**The ancient family could:
• Demand absolute loyalty and obedience in a patriarchal structure.
• Often aggressively competed with others as many businesses do today.
• Were often the source of hatred and violence directed toward other families in what we call clan warfare.
Posted in Author: Peter DeGroote, Biblical Commentary, Inner Experience, Reconciling Process, Relationships, Spirituality | Permalink | Comments (0)
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