Christmas Can (Still) Change the World

If you are looking for a way to help make this a spiritual Christmas season, check this site out. In the church year, Advent is the time leading up to Christmas day. It is what we are in now, the secular 'Holiday Season'. This site is about how Advent can once again be a life changing event.

The Advent Conspiracy

What Next?

For those who do not know, our national church recently passed a resolution allowing churches to choose to call pastors who are gay or lesbian and in a relationship. Before, you could be gay or lesbian, just not in a relationship. Now you can do both. They also passed a resolution allowing churches that wish to do unions. Oddly, there doesn't seem to be much of a fuss about that. All the fuss is about gay and lesbian pastors.

What's disturbing to me is the reaction of those who have "lost" the debate. This debate has been going on for years, thirty or more, though it only became a major issue in the past ten. But for thirty years, a group of folks in my denomiation thought the old policy excluding actively gay pastors was against scripture. What did they do about it? They did what Christ would have done. They were kind. They spoke the truth of their convictions, but did so in a loving and gracious manner. Most importantly, though, they stayed. Despite feeling marginalized, disliked and sometimes despised, they suffered the slings and arrows and stayed. They turned the other cheek, continued speaking the truth as they saw it in love, and they stayed.

Some who have recently "lost" the debate- who oppose the new policy and like the old one- are forming their own group. They are considering leaving our denomination. Not all, but some. They think the denomination has turned it's back on the bible and on them, and some have already left. Others will undoubtedly be following.

It's stunning.

On one side is a group that conducted themselves in a Christ-like manner for thirty years, and now the folks on the other side can't even do it for thirty days. The irony is inescapable- those who object to the new policy because of scripture fail to understand one of the most basic parts of Jesus message. Which is that Jesus calls us to die for him, not pack up our toys and go find people who agree with us. If they truly loved their neighbor as themselves, they would stay. Graciously, humbly, kindly, they would stay, and they would struggle to help a church that they think has lost it's way find it again. But they keep leaving.

It saddens me to see them go, but it's nothing new. It's the same thing that keeps many people away from church: we talk about love, but we really only love those who agree with us. That's easy. Loving those who disagree with you, that's hard. But it's what Jesus calls us to do.

I like the current policy. I disagree with those who are leaving. According to them, that makes me a heretic. I can live with that. I can even live with them while knowing they think that. I just wish they could live with me too.

Trolled by the AJC

I got an interesting call from the AJC today. The reporter called to ask if we were planning to leave the ELCA over the recent vote to allow churches that wished to call gay pastors. Here's the conversation:

Reporter: "Hi, my name is (I don't remember her name), and I'm an AJC religion reporter doing a story on Lutheran churches, and I was wondering if your church was planning on leaving the ELCA because of the recent policy changes regarding homosexuality."

Me: "No, we really don't.'

Reporter: "Oh. Well, do you know any churches that are?"

Me: "You mean in Atlanta?"

Reporter: "Or anywhere in Georgia."

Me: "No, I really don't. Most that I know of are in the west."

Reporter: "OK, thanks. Bye."

End of conversation.

Obviously, this reporter was fishing for churches that are leaving. I'm not sure why. Maybe there aren't many, so they're harder to find. Maybe she's digging for controversy, and since I don't have a problem with it and my church doesn't either there's nothing to talk about. I dunno. But it can be interesting dealing with the media when they're after something specific because they don't care what you say if it's not what they're looking for. Which is a bummer, because I would have loved to tell her that we'll gladly welcome anyone. But she wasn't interested. Oh well.

Overcoming the Odds

This is my friend's son. I remember when he was adopted, and he was supposedly never going to talk or walk. Now look at him. With God, all things are possible!

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An Open Letter to God

Dear God,

I know we were in a drought. I know that lots of us prayed for rain. Funny how it seems that you've answere all those prayers for rain all at once! It's pouring again and dark outside at 1:20 in the afternoon. It's been this way for days, and it's just getting silly. I need galoshes to walk through my yard and a boat to get to my mailbox.

God, thank you for answering our prayers.
Could you stop now?

Love,
Scott

Me 100 Years Ago

A friend just forwarded me the wikipedia entry for a guy named Walter Rauschenbusch. I'd never heard of him before. He lived 1861-1918, and he and I share very similar views. It was eerie, actually. We disagree on a few things, but we agree on the main thing, which is that the Kingdom of God on earth was the primary aim of Jesus, but has been dropped by Christianity in favor of getting into heaven. This guy reminds me a lot of me, though I do hope I live longer.

Deer In Headlights

I've only been a pastor for eight years, but there are very few things that surprise me anymore. Last night was the first time in awhile, and what happened really blew my doors off. Here's what happened:

I was visiting the homeless with 7 Bridges to Recovery ministry, sharing meals and prayer and love with the "last, least and lost." A woman came over and asked for a pastor. I went over and she said "See that man over there? In the hat?" She pointed at a guy sitting with some others on milk crates. "He took a hot bottle and put it on my leg and burned me, and he did it on purpose. So you know what I told him? I told that tonight, when he sleeps right over there.." -she pointed to an abandoned old parking lot- "...I'm gonna pour gasoline on him and set him on fire. What do you think of that?"

That's not a question I get asked a lot in Alpharetta, and I just looked at her trying to figure out if I'd really just heard what I thought I'd just heard. I was speechless (if you know me, you know how rare that is). All of a sudden, one of the men from 7 Bridges to Recovery is there and he said "Exodus 14:14, sister. The Lord will fight for you, you just be still. You have to let it go. Forgive him, find a way to love him, you gotta let it go. Exodus 14:14. The Lord will fight for you, you just be still." She broke down crying, there were hugs all around, prayer, and I could see the anger and hurt fade from her as we shared the love of God with her. She came broken and angry, and she left feeling hope and love. It was amazing.

I'm not going to forget Exodus 14:14 for awhile, I'll tell you that. I'm not going to forget that woman or that conversation either. When Jesus walked the earth during his ministry in Israel, he spent time in places like that, with people like her. It's been awhile since I felt as close to God as I did when we were talking to her. If you're looking for God, you might want to look there too- in the face of the poor, the homeless, the addicted and lost. I found Jesus last night in a hurting, broken woman, and it was amazing. I bet you can find him there too.