Should I Stay or Should I Go?
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For May 24, 2020:
Should I Stay or Should I Go?
by Chris Keating
Acts 1:6-14
As America opens its doors for business and its beaches for tourists this Memorial Day, polls indicate its citizens are not ready to leave home. While there’s a widening partisan gap, studies from the Pew Research Center indicate that 68% of Americans are afraid their states are opening too soon. It’s a delicate question of balancing a wilted economy and soaring unemployment with the continuing impact of Covid-19.
A separate poll last month showed that a similar number trust the Centers for Disease Control for reliable information about the coronavirus — or about three times more than those who trust President Donald Trump’s advice.
In other words, we are faced with the question asked by the punk rock band The Clash: “Should I stay or should I go?”
But where do we go? Health officials remind us that normal has changed.
“Reopening is not back to normal. It is trying to find ways to allow people to get back out to do things they want to do, and business to do business,” said Dr. Marcus Plescia, chief medical officer at the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials. “We can’t pretend the virus has gone away. The vast majority of the population is still susceptible.”
Like the apostles who watched Jesus’ ascension, the temptation may be to stand gape-mouthed and bewildered, unsure of what to do next. In their case, angels brought the reminder of Jesus’ promise. Suddenly it became clear that they were called to do more than simply stand there.
“We’ve got a job to do,” they tell each other. Instead of singing praises or starting programs, however, the apostles head back to Jerusalem. They gather to pray and wait. Nothing is clear, except the promise of Christ that our mission always moves forward. It is like ripples on a pond, moving from the center of what is known into the fringes of the new and unknown.
But always with the assurance of Jesus: “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you.”
In the News
States are easing back coronavirus stay-at-home regulations that affected more than 315 million Americans. Unrelenting pain, growing sense of isolation and diminished economy caused by Covid-19 are driving these decisions, though leaders admit reopening is a huge gamble.
“This is really the most crucial time, and the most dangerous time,” Gov. Mike DeWine of Ohio, a Republican, said on the CNN program “State of the Union” on Sunday. “All of this is a work in progress. We thought it was a huge risk not to open. But we also know it’s a huge risk in opening.”
Public health officials have been warning that there is a significant risk that reopening will result in a surge of new infections. Texas, for example, has been leading the charge for going back to work. On Saturday, the state reported its largest single day increase of infections since the beginning of the pandemic — which officials connected to increased testing.
A fresh wave of the virus would add to the 1.53 million cases in the United States. So far, more than 90,000 Americans have died.
But the statistics seem to have little impact on protestors angered by restrictions. Angered by social distancing guidelines and face-mask requirements, armed protestors in Michigan stormed the state capitol. In Flint, Michigan, a retail store security guard was killed after asking customers to leave the store because they refused to wear a mask.
The protestors are doing more than defying regulations. Their actions defy science by promulgating conspiracy theories, but also defy regard for the common good. Among those encouraging a quick return to normal are fundamentalist Christian leaders such as Franklin Graham who has said “we’ve got to move on.” Yet Graham seems to be playing both sides. Even as he pushed to reopen, he was one of several prominent Christians who urged Congress to grant churches immunity from lawsuits from liability surrounding Covid-19 deaths.
Churches, meanwhile, are facing complex choices about how and when to return to in-person ministry. Many Catholic churches are resuming Mass, as are some Protestant congregations. But some estimate as many as 90 percent of churches are still waiting. Having made the transition to online worship and virtual meetings, these churches are moving slowly, perhaps sensing the opportunities for increasing ministry to those in need while insuring safe conditions.
Southern Baptist pastor Alan Cross suggested that congregational leaders are drawing upon “deeper spiritual and relational” resources in order to “grow in patience, learn to wait, and find new ways to minister to those in need.” In an Op-Ed piece for The New York Times, Cross explained the sense of caution he observes.
While every place has a different timeline for when and how churches will reopen, the pastors that I have talked to recognize that meeting in person again will require changes. There will be restrictions on the size of crowds, social distancing, the wearing of face masks and continued provision of online worship for vulnerable members. Churches in hard-hit states like Louisiana are preparing to open their sanctuaries soon, but with multiple services to ensure smaller numbers and constant sanitizing. Even in states like Texas and Georgia, where churches have been allowed to meet in person by their governors, there is still a sense of caution being expressed by many pastors.
That’s a far cry from what Jonathan Merritt has described as a “self-righteous insensitivity” expressed by some Christians. “If the coronavirus is a test of our collective character, some American Christians are flat-out failing,” Merritt wrote in The Atlantic. The irony, says Merritt, is that hard-nosed judgmental attitudes have “propped open” the backdoors of many churches.
“The earmark of Christianity is kindness, compassion, and supernatural love,” Merritt concludes. “It’s not fighting back, attacking enemies, settling scores, or leveraging other people’s pain for your own advancement. Some of the most visible Christians in America, it seems, need to go back to Sunday school and discover the loving roots at the core of this great religion’s message.”
Merritt’s point deserves consideration. Instead of straining our heads to the sky, wondering what happened to Jesus, perhaps the church’s challenge today is to return to a small room where it may wait in faithful anticipation of where God will lead it next.
In the Scripture
Acts is a reminder that there is no such thing as returning to normal. Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection have announced the reign of God. At the ending of the Gospel, Luke presents Jesus commissioning the apostles to be witnesses (24:48). He leaves them in charge of the mission, sealing the commission with strict words about staying-at-home “until you have been clothed with power from on high.”
Jesus seems to be saying to his followers, “Don’t think about taking the tarp off the fishing boat quite yet.” Whatever God has in mind for this scraggly bunch, it is anything but a return to “normal.”
That becomes clear in the beginning in Acts 1:6, though the disciples do not seem to get it (yet). Bless their hearts: as Jesus gathers them together, they wonder if this will finally be the time when he’ll restore the kingdom. Talk about a stimulus plan! Nothing could compare to a resurrected Messiah triumphantly gliding into the citadels of power, quashing foes, and demonstrating God’s glorious victory.
Pay attention to Luke’s deliberate pace in accomplishing his theological intent. Jesus reminds them that it is God, and not the emperor, who is in charge. The ascension marks the transfer of responsibilities, and Luke makes it clear that the reign of God will unfold right on the ground where they are standing. As he ascends, Jesus points the apostles back to Jerusalem, appointing them to be witnesses into the world.
God’s mission will expand in a series of concentric circles: Jerusalem, then Judea, then Samaria, then “to the ends of the earth.” Having commissioned them, Jesus ascends. Instead of Jesus blessing the apostles (as he does in Luke’s gospel), he ascends into the clouds while two messengers appear. It is a very Lucan detail, a reminder of the importance of the message Jesus has entrusted to them.
Should they stay? Should they go? By now, the apostles are beginning to understand, and so are we. Luke connects the ascension in Acts with the resurrection in the Gospel (see Bradley E. Schmeling, Connections, Seventh Sunday of Easter, p. 302.), in order to emphasize that God is in control of this story. Jesus has come, and Jesus will come again. Meanwhile, the task is to wait for the Spirit’s power. On this penultimate Sunday of Easter, the command we receive is to stay inside, wait, and pray.
In the Sermon
It’s a tense time for many congregations. In some cases, congregations are itching to get back to church — masks or no masks. Pastors are faced with the dilemma of managing expectations and leading in a moment of uncertainty. The guidance is unclear, and the pressure is great.
Case in point: my congregation is wondering if it might be possible to soon move to outdoor worship. We have ample room and a beautiful outdoor pavilion that we built last year. It seems like holding some sort of outdoor gathering before the oppressive St. Louis humidity sets in would be perfect.
But there’s a wrinkle. Our county health officials have issued guidance limiting outdoor gatherings to groups of no more than 10. Meanwhile, the same officials have allowed us to hold indoor worship at no more than 25% of our maximum capacity — which of course is much higher than 10 persons. The dilemma is that many more people feel safer outside than they do confined in a building.
After weeks of acting as video producers, many pastors are ready for things to get “back to normal.” Yet Acts reminds us that this won’t happen. The newly minted apostles are being sent not back to Jerusalem, but forward into the future by way of Jerusalem. Jesus’ resurrection is proof that things will no longer be normal.
To some that may not sound like good news. But it is insensitive to tell the grieving it’s time to get back to normal. It is unjust to ask minorities whose communities have suffered so much already to place themselves in harm’s way by returning quickly to service jobs so others can sip cappuccinos or clink glasses of chardonnay. There are true economic concerns, but they cannot be solved by heaping additional burdens on those who are already suffering.
It is not too much for us to listen to God, who directs us to go stay in place a bit and to wait and pray. This week, God’s word reminds us that the way forward will be a Spirit-led journey into new places. It is the good news we need to hear. It cuts across the grain of our privilege and or demands to be in charge. It reminds us of where the ministry needs to go post-Covid (whenever that may be).
Should we stay or should we go? Tired of stretching their necks toward heaven, the apostles set their feet back toward the future, ready to wait.
SECOND THOUGHTS
Humility, and How I Achieved It
by Tom Willadsen
1 Peter 4:12-14; 5:6-11
In the Scriptures
I’m focusing solely on the reading from1 Peter today. Humility is endorsed and encouraged as a Christian virtue. Suffering, Peter writes, should come as no surprise to Christians. Christians are instructed to rejoice in suffering to the extent that our suffering unites us with Christ’s suffering. “If you are reviled for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory, which is the Spirit of God, is resting on you.” (1 Peter 4:14, NRSV) This can get a little tricky, however. Some believers seek suffering, thus seeking glory. The line between suffering for righteousness and seeking suffering to be perceived by others as righteous is a fine one. One Christian’s stubborn virtue is another’s masochism.
Shortly after moving to a new a Presbytery I reached out to a colleague to get acquainted over lunch. He had taken a strong, unpopular position at the prior week’s meeting on whatever overture we were using to argue over the place of homosexuals in the church that year. I did not agree with him on that particular overture, but perceived that under the surface he was suffering. We had more in common than I expected. That is, we both thought tarragon was getting altogether too popular in fern bar chicken salad wraps. Aside from that and our serving as pastors in the same denomination, our churches were less than two miles from each other, we shared nothing. I guided the conversation to the meeting at which I’d met him the week before. He ascended the soap box and gave the same speech, nearly verbatim, I had heard that day. The conclusion was new in this edition: “I fear God more than I fear Baltimore Presbytery!”
“Good choice, Slugger,” I replied.
Part way through his aggrieved, righteous tirade it hit me, “He seeks this. He wants to be an outcast.” His principled stand was about him, not his principles. At some point he crossed that line, or I should say he crossed the line I had drawn, making the issue about his conspicuous, conscientious protection of the church more than its peace, unity and purity. (“Peace, unity and purity” come the questions officers are asked when ordained and installed in the Presbyterian Church (USA).)
It was his lack of humility more than any other quality that made our lunch unpleasant and memorable more than two decades later.
1 Peter uses the Greek term “koinoneo” (κοινωνειτι) for the term “sharing” Christ’s sufferings, as though we are not just experiencing them but participating in them fully. That full participation would, I believe, bring with it a loss of the self, or at least a loss of the ego, which would lead to an acceptance of suffering, not for its own sake, and certainly not to aggrandize the sufferer, but because that’s the cost of following Christ. That would be true humility.
In the News
We’re two months into the “Age of Covid-19” and there’s no end in sight. There is a wide array, a cacophony, of local edicts, directives and guidance from public health officials. The lack of consistency and coordination has been frustrating to many on the “front lines.” The guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control have not been released in a timely way. It appears even guidance on public health and the common good is subject to politicization.
In Wisconsin on May 13, the Supreme Court negated the governor’s order to shut down nonessential businesses, reasoning that the legislature should have a say in such a decision. The court ruled that the governor’s order had no effect. The governor remarked that Wisconsin had become “the Wild West” where each level of government would set its own policy. Many counties sprang into action and issued “shut down orders” but only after many bars opened their doors, some of which exceeded their legal capacity, never mind allowing for social distancing. Many county shut down orders were withdrawn or revoked out of fear of litigation that could be brought by bar and restaurant owners if they were forced to out of business because of the economic losses they faced.
The former director of the Oshkosh Convention and Visitors’ Bureau boasted that her community had made the national news as cameras covered the bars that were suddenly filled. While many, many citizens are staying out of public spaces lest they spread or catch the virus, it was the boisterous, refilled taverns that commanded the airwaves.
The lack of consistent, even existent, policy threw faith communities into chaos as well.
Just hours after the Wisconsin Supreme Court overturned Gov. Tony Evers’ safer-at-home order, Bishop Jerry Mansholt heard from a pastor in his Evangelical Lutheran Church synod who was wondering what to do for a parishioner who wanted a large funeral for a recently deceased family member.
The county sheriff had signed off. And now, with no statewide directive to limit gatherings, there was no legal issue standing in their way.
“That really runs against the recommendations from public health officials,” Mansholt said Thursday. “It’s a recipe for disaster.” (Oshkosh Northwestern, May 17, 2020, p. A1.)
How can a pastor refuse a family’s request for a large funeral when there is no guidance from public health officials? The distinction between “It is not prohibited, but it is not wise,” is a fine one. Just as fine as the distinction between my courageous stand rooted in my integrity and your self-serving grandstanding gesture on the same topic.
Many faith leaders are trying to find a middle way. “Archbishop of Milwaukee Jerome Listecki offered his “Catholic Comeback” plan by email to parishes and schools in the area Thursday, which largely echoes Evers’ phased approach.” (Oshkosh Northwestern, May 17, 2020, p. A3.)
“The archdiocese will remain under the stay-at-home order until May 26. At that time, Sunday mass attendance will be limited to 25% of a church’s occupancy, with face masks strongly recommended. Weddings and funerals will be allowed, but only with fewer than 10 people in attendance.” (Ibid
At a practical level, someone will have to enforce the 25% of capacity rule. Will there be bouncers keeping an eye on attendance, barring the doors when 25% of capacity is reached?
In the Sermon
There was a wonderful, and revealing, exchange between Kentucky Senator Rand Paul and Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, on Tuesday, May 12, as Fauci testified before the Senate.
The Senator said, "I think we ought to have a little bit of humility in our belief that we know what's best for the economy, and as much as I respect you, Dr. Fauci, I don't think you're the end-all." To which Dr. Fauci replied, "I'm a scientist, a physician and a public health official. I give advice, according to the best scientific evidence."
It was an interesting ploy that the Senator advocated humility from the expert he was questioning. Humility, as suggested above, is an elusive concept, though an easy one to recommend to those with whom one disagrees.
Fauci was careful in his discussion of how Covid-19 has been found to manifest itself in a small, but alarming number of cases involving children, "we don't know everything about this virus ... we've really got to be very careful, particularly when it comes to children." He noted that some children presenting with Covid-19 have "a very strange inflammatory syndrome" similar to Kawasaki Disease. (Ibid)
"I think we better be careful, if we are not cavalier, in thinking that children are completely immune to the deleterious effects," Fauci added. "You're right in the numbers that children in general do much, much better than adults and the elderly and particularly those with underlying conditions. But I am very careful, and hopefully humble in knowing that I don't know everything about this disease. And that's why I'm very reserved in making broad predictions." (Ibid)
An expert, the nation’s top expert, admitting that he does not know everything about Covid-19 is a shocking position to take. In an administration that has touted chloroquine, a malaria drug, as a cure for Covid-19, without evidence, to admit that one simply does not know everything makes one appear weak. Standing behind the best science, which is always provisional, instead of crowing about the impact of bleach and sunlight which can make the virus disappear as if by magic, is not the way to grab headlines or attention. Who notices that kind of humility? Who is going to rally behind social distancing, wearing masks and observing shelter-in-place orders with that kind of leadership? (Actually, the idea of rallying for social distancing is a kind of contradiction, isn’t it?)
The science of Covid-19 is not settled. The virus itself was only discovered a few months ago. It is simply too soon to tell whether one achieves immunity after surviving a bout with it, and how long that immunity may last. We simply do not know, and without knowing, we cannot act with certainty. The best we have is our best guesses. The best way to use those best guesses is with humility.
And yet, there’s a troubling new dimension to the current pandemic: a reflexive distrust of experts of any kind. (This was covered in TIW’s main article for May 3, 2020.) It’s hard to persuade someone who cannot trust a source of information that differs with his own firmly held idea. If that firmly held idea is rooted in a presumption that all government is corrupt and all authorities have ulterior motives it can be impossible to move into a mode where society acts in a unified way for the common good. This is the congregation you’ll be preaching to May 24.
I spotted a post on Facebook the week of May 16 that said:
So because the CDC said it, you’re just going to blindly listen to them without doing your own research?
Yes. 100% .Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.
I have cleaned up the language and shortened it, but it captures the humility, or perhaps the willingness to conceive that someone has your best interests at heart, even if that someone is on the government’s payroll that 1 Peter encourages.
What research am I going to do that is going to, in any way, be more valid or valuable than research from a government agency that spends $6.5 billion a year studying diseases?
Do you honestly think your Google skills are worth six and a half billion dollars a year of scientific research by scientists specializing in that field?
You listen to the CDC when they say how to handle a pandemic. Period.
Sadly, acting for the common good has become politicized. I share this post from a colleague: “I have a sweet friend in Kentucky who was called ‘liberal scum’ for wearing a mask at the post office today.”
And this, from another colleague, in another state:
Today as I write this, I experienced the opposite of love. As I stood in line at a local gas station, I realized that I was the only person wearing a mask. Just then, this guy walked in, looked at me with disgust and took God’s name in vain. It was obvious he was judging me so quickly that he was misunderstanding me and my actions.
Stunned by this harassment, I wanted to snap back that the mask was for him and not for me. I wanted to explain and teach that I’ve listened to the medical experts. So, I take issues of safety very seriously. I have my parents to thank for that. So Mister, this is how I am choosing to love my neighbors in the midst of a pandemic! But instead, I took a deep breath and remembered my Lord’s command — just love them. So out of love I’m going to try to live it out — even in the face of anger and a bit of persecution. So instead of responding, I silently said my own prayer — “Father forgive him for he does not know what he is doing, not really.” (“Pastor Responds with Prayer for Culprit,” The Oshkosh Northwestern, May 17, 2020, p. A5.)
We are preaching to congregations who are highly anxious now. Anxiety and fear do not often lead to strong, faithful outcomes. The best way forward is to be boldly humble, preacher. Recognize the fear, confusion, anxiety and pain. It’s real, don’t minimize it. Admit your own fear, confusion, anxiety and pain. Then be brave enough to admit that in this moment it’s hard to accept that there is no magic cure or incantation that can make everything the way it was on March 1. Own that. Then model the humble trust you have in the conviction that suffering for doing what is right, for the common good is the most faithful step to take, even if it requires humility. This approach is summed up nicely by Bishop Jerry Mansholt.
As places of worship begin to reopen, Mansholt of the ELCA said he urges people to look beyond “partisan politics” to deal with the threat of the virus.
“These are weighty issues, life and death matters,” Mansholt said. “I urge all of our (leaders) to take to heart, what do we need here for the common good?” (Oshkosh Northwestern, May 24, 2020, p. A3)
ILLUSTRATIONS
From team member Ron Love:
Acts 1:10 (Discipleship)
“gazing up toward heaven”
Billy Graham, in a revival that was held in Boston in 1950, was very specific in his description of heaven. In his sermon Graham said, heaven is a place “as real as Los Angeles, London, Algiers or Boston.” He went on to give its dimensions, saying heaven was “1,600 miles long, 1,600 miles wide and 1,600 miles high.” Once there, Graham told his audience, “we are going to sit around a fireplace and have parties, and the angels will wait on us, and we’ll drive down the golden streets in a yellow Cadillac convertible.” In a few years, because of constant criticism, Graham had to drop the “yellow Cadillac convertible” from his description of heaven.
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John 17:10 (Discipleship)
“All I have is yours, and all you have is mine. And glory has come to me through them.”
In 1996 Samuel Stewart retired as the building manager for the Department of Defense. He purchased a camper and planed on traveling across the country with his wife Mildred. Instead, the became foster parents. In 2009 the couple was recognized by the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute as “Angels of Adoption.” This was in recognition of the 40 foster children they had brought into their home over the years. In becoming foster parents, with their first adoption in 1996, Stewart said, “The real key is being able to give a child opportunities that you didn’t have yourself.” Regarding the award he said, “I am not a person who lives for recognition, but it feels good to be appreciated.” Stewart went on to say that many people think foster parents do it for the money, but the money received is never sufficient. The real reason Stewart said, “It is really about giving back.”
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Acts 1:10 (Discipleship)
“gazing up toward heaven”
Roseanne was a television sitcom with the star role being played by Roseanne Barr. The show revolved around the fictional Conner family. The Conners were a working-class American family, who lived at 714 Delaware Street in the drab fictional mid-state exurb of Lanford, Illinois. The show was on ABC from 1988 to 1997 and had a brief revival in 2018. At its height it had 27 million viewers.
ABC canceled Roseanne on May 29, 2018 after Barr tweeted a profane and racist comment about the former Obama administration official Valerie Jarrett. On June 21, 2018, ABC announced plans to re-tool the show as a spin-off involving the Conner family without Roseanne Barr. The new show would be called The Conners.
John Goodman plays Dan on both shows. Goodman was in his kitchen when his wife told him about Barr’s tweet. Goodman said, “It just didn’t seem true. Then it got true.” He went on to say, “I was just constantly trying to accept it.”
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From team member Mary Austin:
John 17:1-11
Prayer
As part of his goodbye message to his followers, Jesus prays to God with them and for them. His words stay with them, after he’s gone, as he says, “All mine are yours, and yours are mine; and I have been glorified in them.”
Store owner Sheri Furman has a store with a “prayer tree,” and she says the tree came about when she first opened her business. “I had a whole bunch of wooden hearts that was hanging from twine, and then there was this voice in my heart that clearly said "Put them in a bowl, put some pins next to them, and put them out near the garden, and put the tiniest, tiniest tag that says 'Prayers?, Wishes?' and just leave it out there and lets just see what happens." So I was gone for a couple days, came back on a Sunday evening, and I pulled up in front of the store, and immediately I was completely overwhelmed. I looked up into this garden and on this vine to see hundreds of hearts dripping from the vine. They all had words scripted across the heart, and it took me a minute to realize that people had left their actual heart in this place and on this tree.”
The prayers on the tree have allowed her to see answered prayer after answered prayer. “Because we have seen so many miracles. We have seen prodigals find their way home. We have seen people cured of cancer. We have seen people receive living organs that they thought there was not hope for, at the last minute. The prayers went from being a couple hundred hearts to now over 30,000.”
Sheri Furman says, “Prayers are timeless. Prayers before God will always be timeless. And the comfort of knowing that he hears them and that he's working on our behalf when it doesn't seem like anything is changing, when we are actually still standing in the ruins, that's where faith comes in, and that's where hope is found.”
* * *
1 Peter 4:12-14; 5:6-11
Humble Principal Raises Test Scores…By accident
“Humble yourselves,” 1 Peter advises, and principal Amy Johnston did exactly that with her staff. At the start of her career, the teachers doubted her capabilities. “Lacking vision and experience and facing a divided staff — half of which had wanted to hire the other candidate and the other half still doubting she was ready — Amy was terrified. “I went to the staff and said, ‘I absolutely cannot do this without you. I need you,’ ” describes Amy. But it was in that moment of utter need that set the tone for the rest of her career as the humble leader who would create a school that was dedicated, above all else, to the growth and well-being of both students and staff.” After a few years, she “went to her staff and told them that she no longer cared about test scores or standards and that instead, their focus was going to be on building relationships with the students. “I told them that we have to love the kids and not be ashamed of it,” explains Amy, “and that relationships are one of the most important things we do as human beings, but we’re never intentionally taught how to function and be in a relationship.” As expected, Amy’s plan met with some reluctance. Rather than force her ideas, she validated teachers’ concerns, including their worries about taking time away from the curriculum, and gently suggested that the staff put the students first. “I asked them, ‘What if we built a school where we ask students what they think and we actually listen to their responses, knowing that we can’t have all the answers as adults?’” says Amy.”
They started to concentrate on character education instead of teaching kids information to pass tests. “The staff spent their energy on helping students believe they could be successful and then giving them the skills to do so, making them redo work if they didn’t learn it the first time. They wanted the children to love school so that when they transitioned to high school, they knew they would succeed rather than crash and burn out. The result? Test scores went through the roof, beating every other school in the district, and discipline problems declined dramatically.” All of that was a fortunate outgrowth of the emphasis on character.
“In the end, Amy attributes much of her success to her willingness to be vulnerable with her staff — a hallmark of humble leadership.”
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1 Peter 4:12-14; 5:6-11
A Square Mile of Humble Leadership
We look to elected leaders and scientists for wisdom in this uncertain time, but in one Seattle neighborhood, a neighbor with a vision led the area into these weeks of sheltering in place. “When Seattle Public Schools announced it was suspending classes in response to the coronavirus outbreak, Lashanna Williams naturally thought about the children in her South Park neighborhood. About 90% qualify for free or reduced-price meals at school. And while the district would provide students with sack lunches during the school closures, that still meant some would be missing that important first meal of the day. So Williams came up with a plan to offer community breakfasts — scrambled eggs and pancakes, mostly. (She learned soon enough that nobody wanted oatmeal.) In her driveway she set up a tent, tables, hot plates, a griddle. When owners of the popular neighborhood coffee shop, Resistencia Coffee, learned what she was doing, they offered her their space, insisting when she demurred. Uncle Eddie’s sandwich shop, before it closed, gave Williams the meat from its freezer and more people than she could reasonably accommodate signed up to help set up, distribute food, and clean up afterward.”
When the Governor ordered residents to stay home, two weeks later, “Williams had already pivoted, organizing a network of food stands and sharing tables in neighbors’ driveways — some of them operating 24 hours a day — so people could get supplies anytime they needed them. Fresh produce. Non-perishables. Toys. Books. Toilet paper. Donations, she says, came in “Bernie Sanders-style” — small contributions of as little as $2 — from across the country, but many from right there in the neighborhood. In this gritty, square-mile pocket south of Seattle, residents created a GoFundMe account to help pay rent for neighbors who had lost their jobs when businesses closed following the coronavirus outbreak. They began communal grocery shopping in the neighborhood, where there are few fresh food markets, and a barter system has emerged for people to exchange what extras they have.”
Ms. Williams and her neighbors know that things will get worse before they get better, and she is already looking ahead to see where she can assist her neighbors next.
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Acts 1:6-14
Being a Witness to Life
“You will be my witnesses,” Jesus promises his followers, by the power of the Holy Spirit. They are to carry his presence out into the world, after he is gone from their physical presence. Therapist Lori Gottlieb tells about a client of hers who was dying of cancer, and made her promise that she would be with her to the end of her life, and then come to the funeral. She needed Lori Gottlieb to be a witness to her pain and joy, to see the full range of her experiences and to know who she was.
Lori Gottlieb recalls, “Julie, whose real name I am not using to protect patient privacy, discovered her cancer on her honeymoon. A spot on her breast felt tender, and she thought she might be pregnant. She and her husband, both in their 30s, wanted to start a family as soon as they got married. When they returned home, she learned that the tender spot was cancer. That’s when Julie landed in my office. Her physician referred me, which was unusual, given that I didn’t specialize in work with cancer patients and I was only about two years into my practice. But that was exactly why Julie wanted to see me. She had told her physician that she didn’t want a therapist from “the cancer team.” She wanted to feel normal, to be part of the living.”
At first, the future looked bright. “And since her doctors were confident she would be fine, she wanted to focus on getting through the treatment while being newly married. (What should she say in her wedding thank-you notes? Thanks so much for the lovely bowl … I keep it by my bed to vomit in?)” When the prognosis changed, therapy continued.
Lori Gottlieb remembers, “Near the end, our sessions consisted of more and more silence, not because we were avoiding saying something anymore, but because this is how we faced each other most honestly as her energy waned. Our silences were rich, our emotions swirling in the air. “Will you think about me?” Julie used to ask me before she went in for her various surgeries, and I always told her I would. Later, though, when it became clear that Julie would die, that question took on another meaning: Will a part of me remain alive in you?”
She adds, “At the most random of times, I still hear Julie’s question: Will you think about me? The thing is, I do. I remember her most in the silences.”
Perhaps that was true for Jesus’ followers, too, as they were his witnesses to all the world.
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WORSHIP
by George Reed
Call to Worship:
Leader: Sing to God, sing praises to God’s name.
People: Lift up a song to the one who rides upon the clouds.
Leader: God gives the desolate a home in which to live.
People: God leads out the prisoners to prosperity.
Leader: Sing to God, O kingdoms of the earth.
People: Sing praises to the Lord, O rider in the heavens.
OR
Leader: God calls us to worship so that we may be filled.
People: We are hungry for something that satisfies our souls.
Leader: God knows that giving satisfies more than receiving.
People: What do we have that we can give to God?
Leader: Ourselves in service to others so they can know God’s love.
People: We will offer ourselves in loving service to others.
Hymns and Songs:
God of Grace and God of Glory
UMH: 577
H82: 594/595
PH: 420
NCH: 436
CH: 464
LBW: 415
ELW: 705
W&P: 569
AMEC: 62
STLT: 115
Renew: 301
Here I Am, Lord
UMH: 593
PH: 525
AAHH: 567
CH: 452
ELW: 574
W&P: 559
Renew: 149
Lord, You Give the Great Commission
UMH: 584
H82: 528
PH: 429
CH: 459
ELW: 579
W&P: 592
Renew: 105
Christ for the World We Sing
UMH: 568
H82: 537
W&P: 561
AMEC: 565
Renew: 299
Hope of the World
UMH: 178
H82: 472
PH: 360
NCH: 46
CH: 538
LBW: 493
W&P: 404
God Whose Love Is Reigning O’er Us
UMH: 100
Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah
UMH: 127
H82: 690
PH: 281
AAHH: 138/139/140
NNBH: 232
NCH: 18/19
CH: 622
LBW: 343
ELW: 618
W&P: 501
AMEC: 52/53/65
I Sing the Almighty Power of God
UMH: 152
H82: 398
PH: 288
NCH: 12
W&P: 31
Renew: 54
Make Me a Captive, Lord
UMH: 421
PH: 378
I Am Thine, O Lord
UMH: 419
AAHH: 387
NNBH: 202
NCH: 455
CH: 601
W&P: 408
AMEC: 283
Humble Yourself in the Sight of the Lord
CCB: 72
Renew: 188
We Are His Hands
CCB: 85
Music Resources Key:
UMH: United Methodist Hymnal
H82: The Hymnal 1982
PH: Presbyterian Hymnal
AAHH: African American Heritage Hymnal
NNBH: The New National Baptist Hymnal
NCH: The New Century Hymnal
CH: Chalice Hymnal
LBW: Lutheran Book of Worship
ELW: Evangelical Lutheran Worship
W&P: Worship & Praise
AMEC: African Methodist Episcopal Church Hymnal
STLT: Singing the Living Tradition
CCB: Cokesbury Chorus Book
Renew: Renew! Songs & Hymns for Blended Worship
Prayer for the Day/Collect
O God who comes to redeem your people:
Grant us the humility to accept our role in your work
as we are called to love our neighbors;
through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.
OR
We praise you, O God, because you come to redeem your people. You invite us to join in your work. Help us to humbly take on the task you have given us of loving our neighbors. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
Leader: Let us confess to God and before one another our sins and especially our pride and unwillingness to humbly serve others in God’s name.
People: We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We are not content with you calling us your very own children but we seek ways to think of ourselves as better than others. Whether it is education, money or physical attributes, we look to things for a sense of superiority. We are called to the great task of sharing the good news with others by loving and serving them but our pride gets in the road of our doing this. Forgive us and bring us back to our right minds that we may serve God by serving others. Amen.
Leader: God does claim us as God’s own children. Rejoice in that and share that good news with others.
Prayers of the People
Praise and glory to you, O God, redeemer of all creation. You seek out your children and call us home.
(The following paragraph may be used if a separate prayer of confession has not been used.)
We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We are not content with you calling us your very own children but we seek ways to think of ourselves as better than others. Whether it is education, money or physical attributes, we look to things for a sense of superiority. We are called to the great task of sharing the good news with others by loving and serving them but our pride gets in the road of our doing this. Forgive us and bring us back to our right minds that we may serve God by serving others.
We give you thanks for your faithful presence in the midst of our lives. We thank you for those who have answered your call to serve and to share your love with others. We thank you for your invitation to us to be part of your redeeming work.
(Other thanksgivings may be offered.)
We pray for all your children and all of your creation. We pray for those whose circumstances of life make it hard for them to think of themselves as your beloved children. We pray for those who are waiting for us to share that good news with them.
(Other intercessions may be offered.)
All these things we ask in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ who taught us to pray together saying:
Our Father....Amen.
(Or if the Our Father is not used at this point in the service.)
All this we ask in the name of the Blessed and Holy Trinity. Amen.
Children’s Sermon Starter
Do you have chores or tasks that you are expected to do at home? Make your bed? Pick up your toys? Help around the house? Most of us have things we are asked to do. Actually, all of us do because Jesus has asked us to do something for him. Do you know what it is? It is to be a witness for him, to share the good news of God’s love with others. Sometimes we do that by telling people and sometimes we do that by the way in which we do kind deeds of love.
* * * * * *
CHILDREN'S SERMON
How to Start
by Dean Feldmeyer
Acts 1: 6-14
For video presentation. Can be easily adapted for in-person presentation as well.
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. (Acts 1:8)
You will need: A piece of 8 ½ x 11 paper or cardstock. Draw on the paper a target using four or five concentric circles.
Alternatively, to add color, you can cut circles of different colored paper or construction paper, each one a little smaller than the other. Glue them to a piece of cardboard or poster board, one on top of the other with the largest first (bottom) and then progressively smaller.
Draw a stick figure on the center or simply print “YOU.”
Say:
(Showing the target to the children.)
In today’s Bible lesson, we hear Jesus giving some of his final instructions to his disciples before he goes to heaven. He tells them that God’s Holy Spirit will soon come to them and fill them with power and inspiration, and they will be able to witness, that is, tell others, about Jesus.
Then he tells them where they will be going to tell others about Jesus.
(Pointing at the center dot of the target.)
First, he tells them to witness where they are. In this case, that’s the city of Jerusalem.
(Pointing at the first ring out from the center and then moving outward with each step, below.)
Then, he tells them they will be witnessing a little further away from their homes and their comfort zone, but in a place that’s still kind of close, the area known as Judea.
Then he tells them to go a little further away from their comfort zone, to the area called Samaria.
And, finally, he tells them they will need to go pretty far from their home and their comfort zone, and that’s the whole world!
Now, you and I don’t live in Jerusalem, do we? So, where would this first area, the one closest to us and the center, be?
(Repeat pointing at each area on the target as you go.)
(Close with a prayer asking God for the courage and wisdom to move beyond our comfort zones to tell others about Jesus.)
Amen.
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
The Immediate Word, May 24, 2020 issue.
Copyright 2020 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to The Immediate Word service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons and in worship and classroom settings only. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., 5450 N. Dixie Highway, Lima, Ohio 45807.
- Should I Stay or Should I Go? by Chris Keating — America is opening its doors, but many are not sure it’s time to move forward. We are bit like the apostles as they watch Jesus ascend, wondering, “Should I stay or should I go?”
- Second Thoughts: Humility, and How I Achieved It by Tom Willadsen — We are preaching to congregations who are highly anxious now. Anxiety and fear do not often lead to strong, faithful outcomes. The best way forward is to be boldly humble, preacher.
- Sermon illustrations by Ron Love and Mary Austin.
- Worship resources by George Reed that focus on call to mission and ministry; humility and vulnerability.
- Children’s sermon: How to Start by Dean Feldmeyer — Jesus calls on us to be his witnesses — but he also tells us to start where it’s easy, in our own comfort zone.
Should I Stay or Should I Go?by Chris Keating
Acts 1:6-14
As America opens its doors for business and its beaches for tourists this Memorial Day, polls indicate its citizens are not ready to leave home. While there’s a widening partisan gap, studies from the Pew Research Center indicate that 68% of Americans are afraid their states are opening too soon. It’s a delicate question of balancing a wilted economy and soaring unemployment with the continuing impact of Covid-19.
A separate poll last month showed that a similar number trust the Centers for Disease Control for reliable information about the coronavirus — or about three times more than those who trust President Donald Trump’s advice.
In other words, we are faced with the question asked by the punk rock band The Clash: “Should I stay or should I go?”
But where do we go? Health officials remind us that normal has changed.
“Reopening is not back to normal. It is trying to find ways to allow people to get back out to do things they want to do, and business to do business,” said Dr. Marcus Plescia, chief medical officer at the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials. “We can’t pretend the virus has gone away. The vast majority of the population is still susceptible.”
Like the apostles who watched Jesus’ ascension, the temptation may be to stand gape-mouthed and bewildered, unsure of what to do next. In their case, angels brought the reminder of Jesus’ promise. Suddenly it became clear that they were called to do more than simply stand there.
“We’ve got a job to do,” they tell each other. Instead of singing praises or starting programs, however, the apostles head back to Jerusalem. They gather to pray and wait. Nothing is clear, except the promise of Christ that our mission always moves forward. It is like ripples on a pond, moving from the center of what is known into the fringes of the new and unknown.
But always with the assurance of Jesus: “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you.”
In the News
States are easing back coronavirus stay-at-home regulations that affected more than 315 million Americans. Unrelenting pain, growing sense of isolation and diminished economy caused by Covid-19 are driving these decisions, though leaders admit reopening is a huge gamble.
“This is really the most crucial time, and the most dangerous time,” Gov. Mike DeWine of Ohio, a Republican, said on the CNN program “State of the Union” on Sunday. “All of this is a work in progress. We thought it was a huge risk not to open. But we also know it’s a huge risk in opening.”
Public health officials have been warning that there is a significant risk that reopening will result in a surge of new infections. Texas, for example, has been leading the charge for going back to work. On Saturday, the state reported its largest single day increase of infections since the beginning of the pandemic — which officials connected to increased testing.
A fresh wave of the virus would add to the 1.53 million cases in the United States. So far, more than 90,000 Americans have died.
But the statistics seem to have little impact on protestors angered by restrictions. Angered by social distancing guidelines and face-mask requirements, armed protestors in Michigan stormed the state capitol. In Flint, Michigan, a retail store security guard was killed after asking customers to leave the store because they refused to wear a mask.
The protestors are doing more than defying regulations. Their actions defy science by promulgating conspiracy theories, but also defy regard for the common good. Among those encouraging a quick return to normal are fundamentalist Christian leaders such as Franklin Graham who has said “we’ve got to move on.” Yet Graham seems to be playing both sides. Even as he pushed to reopen, he was one of several prominent Christians who urged Congress to grant churches immunity from lawsuits from liability surrounding Covid-19 deaths.
Churches, meanwhile, are facing complex choices about how and when to return to in-person ministry. Many Catholic churches are resuming Mass, as are some Protestant congregations. But some estimate as many as 90 percent of churches are still waiting. Having made the transition to online worship and virtual meetings, these churches are moving slowly, perhaps sensing the opportunities for increasing ministry to those in need while insuring safe conditions.
Southern Baptist pastor Alan Cross suggested that congregational leaders are drawing upon “deeper spiritual and relational” resources in order to “grow in patience, learn to wait, and find new ways to minister to those in need.” In an Op-Ed piece for The New York Times, Cross explained the sense of caution he observes.
While every place has a different timeline for when and how churches will reopen, the pastors that I have talked to recognize that meeting in person again will require changes. There will be restrictions on the size of crowds, social distancing, the wearing of face masks and continued provision of online worship for vulnerable members. Churches in hard-hit states like Louisiana are preparing to open their sanctuaries soon, but with multiple services to ensure smaller numbers and constant sanitizing. Even in states like Texas and Georgia, where churches have been allowed to meet in person by their governors, there is still a sense of caution being expressed by many pastors.
That’s a far cry from what Jonathan Merritt has described as a “self-righteous insensitivity” expressed by some Christians. “If the coronavirus is a test of our collective character, some American Christians are flat-out failing,” Merritt wrote in The Atlantic. The irony, says Merritt, is that hard-nosed judgmental attitudes have “propped open” the backdoors of many churches.
“The earmark of Christianity is kindness, compassion, and supernatural love,” Merritt concludes. “It’s not fighting back, attacking enemies, settling scores, or leveraging other people’s pain for your own advancement. Some of the most visible Christians in America, it seems, need to go back to Sunday school and discover the loving roots at the core of this great religion’s message.”
Merritt’s point deserves consideration. Instead of straining our heads to the sky, wondering what happened to Jesus, perhaps the church’s challenge today is to return to a small room where it may wait in faithful anticipation of where God will lead it next.
In the Scripture
Acts is a reminder that there is no such thing as returning to normal. Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection have announced the reign of God. At the ending of the Gospel, Luke presents Jesus commissioning the apostles to be witnesses (24:48). He leaves them in charge of the mission, sealing the commission with strict words about staying-at-home “until you have been clothed with power from on high.”
Jesus seems to be saying to his followers, “Don’t think about taking the tarp off the fishing boat quite yet.” Whatever God has in mind for this scraggly bunch, it is anything but a return to “normal.”
That becomes clear in the beginning in Acts 1:6, though the disciples do not seem to get it (yet). Bless their hearts: as Jesus gathers them together, they wonder if this will finally be the time when he’ll restore the kingdom. Talk about a stimulus plan! Nothing could compare to a resurrected Messiah triumphantly gliding into the citadels of power, quashing foes, and demonstrating God’s glorious victory.
Pay attention to Luke’s deliberate pace in accomplishing his theological intent. Jesus reminds them that it is God, and not the emperor, who is in charge. The ascension marks the transfer of responsibilities, and Luke makes it clear that the reign of God will unfold right on the ground where they are standing. As he ascends, Jesus points the apostles back to Jerusalem, appointing them to be witnesses into the world.
God’s mission will expand in a series of concentric circles: Jerusalem, then Judea, then Samaria, then “to the ends of the earth.” Having commissioned them, Jesus ascends. Instead of Jesus blessing the apostles (as he does in Luke’s gospel), he ascends into the clouds while two messengers appear. It is a very Lucan detail, a reminder of the importance of the message Jesus has entrusted to them.
Should they stay? Should they go? By now, the apostles are beginning to understand, and so are we. Luke connects the ascension in Acts with the resurrection in the Gospel (see Bradley E. Schmeling, Connections, Seventh Sunday of Easter, p. 302.), in order to emphasize that God is in control of this story. Jesus has come, and Jesus will come again. Meanwhile, the task is to wait for the Spirit’s power. On this penultimate Sunday of Easter, the command we receive is to stay inside, wait, and pray.
In the Sermon
It’s a tense time for many congregations. In some cases, congregations are itching to get back to church — masks or no masks. Pastors are faced with the dilemma of managing expectations and leading in a moment of uncertainty. The guidance is unclear, and the pressure is great.
Case in point: my congregation is wondering if it might be possible to soon move to outdoor worship. We have ample room and a beautiful outdoor pavilion that we built last year. It seems like holding some sort of outdoor gathering before the oppressive St. Louis humidity sets in would be perfect.
But there’s a wrinkle. Our county health officials have issued guidance limiting outdoor gatherings to groups of no more than 10. Meanwhile, the same officials have allowed us to hold indoor worship at no more than 25% of our maximum capacity — which of course is much higher than 10 persons. The dilemma is that many more people feel safer outside than they do confined in a building.
After weeks of acting as video producers, many pastors are ready for things to get “back to normal.” Yet Acts reminds us that this won’t happen. The newly minted apostles are being sent not back to Jerusalem, but forward into the future by way of Jerusalem. Jesus’ resurrection is proof that things will no longer be normal.
To some that may not sound like good news. But it is insensitive to tell the grieving it’s time to get back to normal. It is unjust to ask minorities whose communities have suffered so much already to place themselves in harm’s way by returning quickly to service jobs so others can sip cappuccinos or clink glasses of chardonnay. There are true economic concerns, but they cannot be solved by heaping additional burdens on those who are already suffering.
It is not too much for us to listen to God, who directs us to go stay in place a bit and to wait and pray. This week, God’s word reminds us that the way forward will be a Spirit-led journey into new places. It is the good news we need to hear. It cuts across the grain of our privilege and or demands to be in charge. It reminds us of where the ministry needs to go post-Covid (whenever that may be).
Should we stay or should we go? Tired of stretching their necks toward heaven, the apostles set their feet back toward the future, ready to wait.
SECOND THOUGHTSHumility, and How I Achieved It
by Tom Willadsen
1 Peter 4:12-14; 5:6-11
In the Scriptures
I’m focusing solely on the reading from1 Peter today. Humility is endorsed and encouraged as a Christian virtue. Suffering, Peter writes, should come as no surprise to Christians. Christians are instructed to rejoice in suffering to the extent that our suffering unites us with Christ’s suffering. “If you are reviled for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory, which is the Spirit of God, is resting on you.” (1 Peter 4:14, NRSV) This can get a little tricky, however. Some believers seek suffering, thus seeking glory. The line between suffering for righteousness and seeking suffering to be perceived by others as righteous is a fine one. One Christian’s stubborn virtue is another’s masochism.
Shortly after moving to a new a Presbytery I reached out to a colleague to get acquainted over lunch. He had taken a strong, unpopular position at the prior week’s meeting on whatever overture we were using to argue over the place of homosexuals in the church that year. I did not agree with him on that particular overture, but perceived that under the surface he was suffering. We had more in common than I expected. That is, we both thought tarragon was getting altogether too popular in fern bar chicken salad wraps. Aside from that and our serving as pastors in the same denomination, our churches were less than two miles from each other, we shared nothing. I guided the conversation to the meeting at which I’d met him the week before. He ascended the soap box and gave the same speech, nearly verbatim, I had heard that day. The conclusion was new in this edition: “I fear God more than I fear Baltimore Presbytery!”
“Good choice, Slugger,” I replied.
Part way through his aggrieved, righteous tirade it hit me, “He seeks this. He wants to be an outcast.” His principled stand was about him, not his principles. At some point he crossed that line, or I should say he crossed the line I had drawn, making the issue about his conspicuous, conscientious protection of the church more than its peace, unity and purity. (“Peace, unity and purity” come the questions officers are asked when ordained and installed in the Presbyterian Church (USA).)
It was his lack of humility more than any other quality that made our lunch unpleasant and memorable more than two decades later.
1 Peter uses the Greek term “koinoneo” (κοινωνειτι) for the term “sharing” Christ’s sufferings, as though we are not just experiencing them but participating in them fully. That full participation would, I believe, bring with it a loss of the self, or at least a loss of the ego, which would lead to an acceptance of suffering, not for its own sake, and certainly not to aggrandize the sufferer, but because that’s the cost of following Christ. That would be true humility.
In the News
We’re two months into the “Age of Covid-19” and there’s no end in sight. There is a wide array, a cacophony, of local edicts, directives and guidance from public health officials. The lack of consistency and coordination has been frustrating to many on the “front lines.” The guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control have not been released in a timely way. It appears even guidance on public health and the common good is subject to politicization.
In Wisconsin on May 13, the Supreme Court negated the governor’s order to shut down nonessential businesses, reasoning that the legislature should have a say in such a decision. The court ruled that the governor’s order had no effect. The governor remarked that Wisconsin had become “the Wild West” where each level of government would set its own policy. Many counties sprang into action and issued “shut down orders” but only after many bars opened their doors, some of which exceeded their legal capacity, never mind allowing for social distancing. Many county shut down orders were withdrawn or revoked out of fear of litigation that could be brought by bar and restaurant owners if they were forced to out of business because of the economic losses they faced.
The former director of the Oshkosh Convention and Visitors’ Bureau boasted that her community had made the national news as cameras covered the bars that were suddenly filled. While many, many citizens are staying out of public spaces lest they spread or catch the virus, it was the boisterous, refilled taverns that commanded the airwaves.
The lack of consistent, even existent, policy threw faith communities into chaos as well.
Just hours after the Wisconsin Supreme Court overturned Gov. Tony Evers’ safer-at-home order, Bishop Jerry Mansholt heard from a pastor in his Evangelical Lutheran Church synod who was wondering what to do for a parishioner who wanted a large funeral for a recently deceased family member.
The county sheriff had signed off. And now, with no statewide directive to limit gatherings, there was no legal issue standing in their way.
“That really runs against the recommendations from public health officials,” Mansholt said Thursday. “It’s a recipe for disaster.” (Oshkosh Northwestern, May 17, 2020, p. A1.)
How can a pastor refuse a family’s request for a large funeral when there is no guidance from public health officials? The distinction between “It is not prohibited, but it is not wise,” is a fine one. Just as fine as the distinction between my courageous stand rooted in my integrity and your self-serving grandstanding gesture on the same topic.
Many faith leaders are trying to find a middle way. “Archbishop of Milwaukee Jerome Listecki offered his “Catholic Comeback” plan by email to parishes and schools in the area Thursday, which largely echoes Evers’ phased approach.” (Oshkosh Northwestern, May 17, 2020, p. A3.)
“The archdiocese will remain under the stay-at-home order until May 26. At that time, Sunday mass attendance will be limited to 25% of a church’s occupancy, with face masks strongly recommended. Weddings and funerals will be allowed, but only with fewer than 10 people in attendance.” (Ibid
At a practical level, someone will have to enforce the 25% of capacity rule. Will there be bouncers keeping an eye on attendance, barring the doors when 25% of capacity is reached?
In the Sermon
There was a wonderful, and revealing, exchange between Kentucky Senator Rand Paul and Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, on Tuesday, May 12, as Fauci testified before the Senate.
The Senator said, "I think we ought to have a little bit of humility in our belief that we know what's best for the economy, and as much as I respect you, Dr. Fauci, I don't think you're the end-all." To which Dr. Fauci replied, "I'm a scientist, a physician and a public health official. I give advice, according to the best scientific evidence."
It was an interesting ploy that the Senator advocated humility from the expert he was questioning. Humility, as suggested above, is an elusive concept, though an easy one to recommend to those with whom one disagrees.
Fauci was careful in his discussion of how Covid-19 has been found to manifest itself in a small, but alarming number of cases involving children, "we don't know everything about this virus ... we've really got to be very careful, particularly when it comes to children." He noted that some children presenting with Covid-19 have "a very strange inflammatory syndrome" similar to Kawasaki Disease. (Ibid)
"I think we better be careful, if we are not cavalier, in thinking that children are completely immune to the deleterious effects," Fauci added. "You're right in the numbers that children in general do much, much better than adults and the elderly and particularly those with underlying conditions. But I am very careful, and hopefully humble in knowing that I don't know everything about this disease. And that's why I'm very reserved in making broad predictions." (Ibid)
An expert, the nation’s top expert, admitting that he does not know everything about Covid-19 is a shocking position to take. In an administration that has touted chloroquine, a malaria drug, as a cure for Covid-19, without evidence, to admit that one simply does not know everything makes one appear weak. Standing behind the best science, which is always provisional, instead of crowing about the impact of bleach and sunlight which can make the virus disappear as if by magic, is not the way to grab headlines or attention. Who notices that kind of humility? Who is going to rally behind social distancing, wearing masks and observing shelter-in-place orders with that kind of leadership? (Actually, the idea of rallying for social distancing is a kind of contradiction, isn’t it?)
The science of Covid-19 is not settled. The virus itself was only discovered a few months ago. It is simply too soon to tell whether one achieves immunity after surviving a bout with it, and how long that immunity may last. We simply do not know, and without knowing, we cannot act with certainty. The best we have is our best guesses. The best way to use those best guesses is with humility.
And yet, there’s a troubling new dimension to the current pandemic: a reflexive distrust of experts of any kind. (This was covered in TIW’s main article for May 3, 2020.) It’s hard to persuade someone who cannot trust a source of information that differs with his own firmly held idea. If that firmly held idea is rooted in a presumption that all government is corrupt and all authorities have ulterior motives it can be impossible to move into a mode where society acts in a unified way for the common good. This is the congregation you’ll be preaching to May 24.
I spotted a post on Facebook the week of May 16 that said:
So because the CDC said it, you’re just going to blindly listen to them without doing your own research?
Yes. 100% .Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.
I have cleaned up the language and shortened it, but it captures the humility, or perhaps the willingness to conceive that someone has your best interests at heart, even if that someone is on the government’s payroll that 1 Peter encourages.
What research am I going to do that is going to, in any way, be more valid or valuable than research from a government agency that spends $6.5 billion a year studying diseases?
Do you honestly think your Google skills are worth six and a half billion dollars a year of scientific research by scientists specializing in that field?
You listen to the CDC when they say how to handle a pandemic. Period.
Sadly, acting for the common good has become politicized. I share this post from a colleague: “I have a sweet friend in Kentucky who was called ‘liberal scum’ for wearing a mask at the post office today.”
And this, from another colleague, in another state:
Today as I write this, I experienced the opposite of love. As I stood in line at a local gas station, I realized that I was the only person wearing a mask. Just then, this guy walked in, looked at me with disgust and took God’s name in vain. It was obvious he was judging me so quickly that he was misunderstanding me and my actions.
Stunned by this harassment, I wanted to snap back that the mask was for him and not for me. I wanted to explain and teach that I’ve listened to the medical experts. So, I take issues of safety very seriously. I have my parents to thank for that. So Mister, this is how I am choosing to love my neighbors in the midst of a pandemic! But instead, I took a deep breath and remembered my Lord’s command — just love them. So out of love I’m going to try to live it out — even in the face of anger and a bit of persecution. So instead of responding, I silently said my own prayer — “Father forgive him for he does not know what he is doing, not really.” (“Pastor Responds with Prayer for Culprit,” The Oshkosh Northwestern, May 17, 2020, p. A5.)
We are preaching to congregations who are highly anxious now. Anxiety and fear do not often lead to strong, faithful outcomes. The best way forward is to be boldly humble, preacher. Recognize the fear, confusion, anxiety and pain. It’s real, don’t minimize it. Admit your own fear, confusion, anxiety and pain. Then be brave enough to admit that in this moment it’s hard to accept that there is no magic cure or incantation that can make everything the way it was on March 1. Own that. Then model the humble trust you have in the conviction that suffering for doing what is right, for the common good is the most faithful step to take, even if it requires humility. This approach is summed up nicely by Bishop Jerry Mansholt.
As places of worship begin to reopen, Mansholt of the ELCA said he urges people to look beyond “partisan politics” to deal with the threat of the virus.
“These are weighty issues, life and death matters,” Mansholt said. “I urge all of our (leaders) to take to heart, what do we need here for the common good?” (Oshkosh Northwestern, May 24, 2020, p. A3)
ILLUSTRATIONS
From team member Ron Love:Acts 1:10 (Discipleship)
“gazing up toward heaven”
Billy Graham, in a revival that was held in Boston in 1950, was very specific in his description of heaven. In his sermon Graham said, heaven is a place “as real as Los Angeles, London, Algiers or Boston.” He went on to give its dimensions, saying heaven was “1,600 miles long, 1,600 miles wide and 1,600 miles high.” Once there, Graham told his audience, “we are going to sit around a fireplace and have parties, and the angels will wait on us, and we’ll drive down the golden streets in a yellow Cadillac convertible.” In a few years, because of constant criticism, Graham had to drop the “yellow Cadillac convertible” from his description of heaven.
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John 17:10 (Discipleship)
“All I have is yours, and all you have is mine. And glory has come to me through them.”
In 1996 Samuel Stewart retired as the building manager for the Department of Defense. He purchased a camper and planed on traveling across the country with his wife Mildred. Instead, the became foster parents. In 2009 the couple was recognized by the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute as “Angels of Adoption.” This was in recognition of the 40 foster children they had brought into their home over the years. In becoming foster parents, with their first adoption in 1996, Stewart said, “The real key is being able to give a child opportunities that you didn’t have yourself.” Regarding the award he said, “I am not a person who lives for recognition, but it feels good to be appreciated.” Stewart went on to say that many people think foster parents do it for the money, but the money received is never sufficient. The real reason Stewart said, “It is really about giving back.”
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Acts 1:10 (Discipleship)
“gazing up toward heaven”
Roseanne was a television sitcom with the star role being played by Roseanne Barr. The show revolved around the fictional Conner family. The Conners were a working-class American family, who lived at 714 Delaware Street in the drab fictional mid-state exurb of Lanford, Illinois. The show was on ABC from 1988 to 1997 and had a brief revival in 2018. At its height it had 27 million viewers.
ABC canceled Roseanne on May 29, 2018 after Barr tweeted a profane and racist comment about the former Obama administration official Valerie Jarrett. On June 21, 2018, ABC announced plans to re-tool the show as a spin-off involving the Conner family without Roseanne Barr. The new show would be called The Conners.
John Goodman plays Dan on both shows. Goodman was in his kitchen when his wife told him about Barr’s tweet. Goodman said, “It just didn’t seem true. Then it got true.” He went on to say, “I was just constantly trying to accept it.”
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From team member Mary Austin:John 17:1-11
Prayer
As part of his goodbye message to his followers, Jesus prays to God with them and for them. His words stay with them, after he’s gone, as he says, “All mine are yours, and yours are mine; and I have been glorified in them.”
Store owner Sheri Furman has a store with a “prayer tree,” and she says the tree came about when she first opened her business. “I had a whole bunch of wooden hearts that was hanging from twine, and then there was this voice in my heart that clearly said "Put them in a bowl, put some pins next to them, and put them out near the garden, and put the tiniest, tiniest tag that says 'Prayers?, Wishes?' and just leave it out there and lets just see what happens." So I was gone for a couple days, came back on a Sunday evening, and I pulled up in front of the store, and immediately I was completely overwhelmed. I looked up into this garden and on this vine to see hundreds of hearts dripping from the vine. They all had words scripted across the heart, and it took me a minute to realize that people had left their actual heart in this place and on this tree.”
The prayers on the tree have allowed her to see answered prayer after answered prayer. “Because we have seen so many miracles. We have seen prodigals find their way home. We have seen people cured of cancer. We have seen people receive living organs that they thought there was not hope for, at the last minute. The prayers went from being a couple hundred hearts to now over 30,000.”
Sheri Furman says, “Prayers are timeless. Prayers before God will always be timeless. And the comfort of knowing that he hears them and that he's working on our behalf when it doesn't seem like anything is changing, when we are actually still standing in the ruins, that's where faith comes in, and that's where hope is found.”
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1 Peter 4:12-14; 5:6-11
Humble Principal Raises Test Scores…By accident
“Humble yourselves,” 1 Peter advises, and principal Amy Johnston did exactly that with her staff. At the start of her career, the teachers doubted her capabilities. “Lacking vision and experience and facing a divided staff — half of which had wanted to hire the other candidate and the other half still doubting she was ready — Amy was terrified. “I went to the staff and said, ‘I absolutely cannot do this without you. I need you,’ ” describes Amy. But it was in that moment of utter need that set the tone for the rest of her career as the humble leader who would create a school that was dedicated, above all else, to the growth and well-being of both students and staff.” After a few years, she “went to her staff and told them that she no longer cared about test scores or standards and that instead, their focus was going to be on building relationships with the students. “I told them that we have to love the kids and not be ashamed of it,” explains Amy, “and that relationships are one of the most important things we do as human beings, but we’re never intentionally taught how to function and be in a relationship.” As expected, Amy’s plan met with some reluctance. Rather than force her ideas, she validated teachers’ concerns, including their worries about taking time away from the curriculum, and gently suggested that the staff put the students first. “I asked them, ‘What if we built a school where we ask students what they think and we actually listen to their responses, knowing that we can’t have all the answers as adults?’” says Amy.”
They started to concentrate on character education instead of teaching kids information to pass tests. “The staff spent their energy on helping students believe they could be successful and then giving them the skills to do so, making them redo work if they didn’t learn it the first time. They wanted the children to love school so that when they transitioned to high school, they knew they would succeed rather than crash and burn out. The result? Test scores went through the roof, beating every other school in the district, and discipline problems declined dramatically.” All of that was a fortunate outgrowth of the emphasis on character.
“In the end, Amy attributes much of her success to her willingness to be vulnerable with her staff — a hallmark of humble leadership.”
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1 Peter 4:12-14; 5:6-11
A Square Mile of Humble Leadership
We look to elected leaders and scientists for wisdom in this uncertain time, but in one Seattle neighborhood, a neighbor with a vision led the area into these weeks of sheltering in place. “When Seattle Public Schools announced it was suspending classes in response to the coronavirus outbreak, Lashanna Williams naturally thought about the children in her South Park neighborhood. About 90% qualify for free or reduced-price meals at school. And while the district would provide students with sack lunches during the school closures, that still meant some would be missing that important first meal of the day. So Williams came up with a plan to offer community breakfasts — scrambled eggs and pancakes, mostly. (She learned soon enough that nobody wanted oatmeal.) In her driveway she set up a tent, tables, hot plates, a griddle. When owners of the popular neighborhood coffee shop, Resistencia Coffee, learned what she was doing, they offered her their space, insisting when she demurred. Uncle Eddie’s sandwich shop, before it closed, gave Williams the meat from its freezer and more people than she could reasonably accommodate signed up to help set up, distribute food, and clean up afterward.”
When the Governor ordered residents to stay home, two weeks later, “Williams had already pivoted, organizing a network of food stands and sharing tables in neighbors’ driveways — some of them operating 24 hours a day — so people could get supplies anytime they needed them. Fresh produce. Non-perishables. Toys. Books. Toilet paper. Donations, she says, came in “Bernie Sanders-style” — small contributions of as little as $2 — from across the country, but many from right there in the neighborhood. In this gritty, square-mile pocket south of Seattle, residents created a GoFundMe account to help pay rent for neighbors who had lost their jobs when businesses closed following the coronavirus outbreak. They began communal grocery shopping in the neighborhood, where there are few fresh food markets, and a barter system has emerged for people to exchange what extras they have.”
Ms. Williams and her neighbors know that things will get worse before they get better, and she is already looking ahead to see where she can assist her neighbors next.
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Acts 1:6-14
Being a Witness to Life
“You will be my witnesses,” Jesus promises his followers, by the power of the Holy Spirit. They are to carry his presence out into the world, after he is gone from their physical presence. Therapist Lori Gottlieb tells about a client of hers who was dying of cancer, and made her promise that she would be with her to the end of her life, and then come to the funeral. She needed Lori Gottlieb to be a witness to her pain and joy, to see the full range of her experiences and to know who she was.
Lori Gottlieb recalls, “Julie, whose real name I am not using to protect patient privacy, discovered her cancer on her honeymoon. A spot on her breast felt tender, and she thought she might be pregnant. She and her husband, both in their 30s, wanted to start a family as soon as they got married. When they returned home, she learned that the tender spot was cancer. That’s when Julie landed in my office. Her physician referred me, which was unusual, given that I didn’t specialize in work with cancer patients and I was only about two years into my practice. But that was exactly why Julie wanted to see me. She had told her physician that she didn’t want a therapist from “the cancer team.” She wanted to feel normal, to be part of the living.”
At first, the future looked bright. “And since her doctors were confident she would be fine, she wanted to focus on getting through the treatment while being newly married. (What should she say in her wedding thank-you notes? Thanks so much for the lovely bowl … I keep it by my bed to vomit in?)” When the prognosis changed, therapy continued.
Lori Gottlieb remembers, “Near the end, our sessions consisted of more and more silence, not because we were avoiding saying something anymore, but because this is how we faced each other most honestly as her energy waned. Our silences were rich, our emotions swirling in the air. “Will you think about me?” Julie used to ask me before she went in for her various surgeries, and I always told her I would. Later, though, when it became clear that Julie would die, that question took on another meaning: Will a part of me remain alive in you?”
She adds, “At the most random of times, I still hear Julie’s question: Will you think about me? The thing is, I do. I remember her most in the silences.”
Perhaps that was true for Jesus’ followers, too, as they were his witnesses to all the world.
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WORSHIPby George Reed
Call to Worship:
Leader: Sing to God, sing praises to God’s name.
People: Lift up a song to the one who rides upon the clouds.
Leader: God gives the desolate a home in which to live.
People: God leads out the prisoners to prosperity.
Leader: Sing to God, O kingdoms of the earth.
People: Sing praises to the Lord, O rider in the heavens.
OR
Leader: God calls us to worship so that we may be filled.
People: We are hungry for something that satisfies our souls.
Leader: God knows that giving satisfies more than receiving.
People: What do we have that we can give to God?
Leader: Ourselves in service to others so they can know God’s love.
People: We will offer ourselves in loving service to others.
Hymns and Songs:
God of Grace and God of Glory
UMH: 577
H82: 594/595
PH: 420
NCH: 436
CH: 464
LBW: 415
ELW: 705
W&P: 569
AMEC: 62
STLT: 115
Renew: 301
Here I Am, Lord
UMH: 593
PH: 525
AAHH: 567
CH: 452
ELW: 574
W&P: 559
Renew: 149
Lord, You Give the Great Commission
UMH: 584
H82: 528
PH: 429
CH: 459
ELW: 579
W&P: 592
Renew: 105
Christ for the World We Sing
UMH: 568
H82: 537
W&P: 561
AMEC: 565
Renew: 299
Hope of the World
UMH: 178
H82: 472
PH: 360
NCH: 46
CH: 538
LBW: 493
W&P: 404
God Whose Love Is Reigning O’er Us
UMH: 100
Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah
UMH: 127
H82: 690
PH: 281
AAHH: 138/139/140
NNBH: 232
NCH: 18/19
CH: 622
LBW: 343
ELW: 618
W&P: 501
AMEC: 52/53/65
I Sing the Almighty Power of God
UMH: 152
H82: 398
PH: 288
NCH: 12
W&P: 31
Renew: 54
Make Me a Captive, Lord
UMH: 421
PH: 378
I Am Thine, O Lord
UMH: 419
AAHH: 387
NNBH: 202
NCH: 455
CH: 601
W&P: 408
AMEC: 283
Humble Yourself in the Sight of the Lord
CCB: 72
Renew: 188
We Are His Hands
CCB: 85
Music Resources Key:
UMH: United Methodist Hymnal
H82: The Hymnal 1982
PH: Presbyterian Hymnal
AAHH: African American Heritage Hymnal
NNBH: The New National Baptist Hymnal
NCH: The New Century Hymnal
CH: Chalice Hymnal
LBW: Lutheran Book of Worship
ELW: Evangelical Lutheran Worship
W&P: Worship & Praise
AMEC: African Methodist Episcopal Church Hymnal
STLT: Singing the Living Tradition
CCB: Cokesbury Chorus Book
Renew: Renew! Songs & Hymns for Blended Worship
Prayer for the Day/Collect
O God who comes to redeem your people:
Grant us the humility to accept our role in your work
as we are called to love our neighbors;
through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.
OR
We praise you, O God, because you come to redeem your people. You invite us to join in your work. Help us to humbly take on the task you have given us of loving our neighbors. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
Leader: Let us confess to God and before one another our sins and especially our pride and unwillingness to humbly serve others in God’s name.
People: We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We are not content with you calling us your very own children but we seek ways to think of ourselves as better than others. Whether it is education, money or physical attributes, we look to things for a sense of superiority. We are called to the great task of sharing the good news with others by loving and serving them but our pride gets in the road of our doing this. Forgive us and bring us back to our right minds that we may serve God by serving others. Amen.
Leader: God does claim us as God’s own children. Rejoice in that and share that good news with others.
Prayers of the People
Praise and glory to you, O God, redeemer of all creation. You seek out your children and call us home.
(The following paragraph may be used if a separate prayer of confession has not been used.)
We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We are not content with you calling us your very own children but we seek ways to think of ourselves as better than others. Whether it is education, money or physical attributes, we look to things for a sense of superiority. We are called to the great task of sharing the good news with others by loving and serving them but our pride gets in the road of our doing this. Forgive us and bring us back to our right minds that we may serve God by serving others.
We give you thanks for your faithful presence in the midst of our lives. We thank you for those who have answered your call to serve and to share your love with others. We thank you for your invitation to us to be part of your redeeming work.
(Other thanksgivings may be offered.)
We pray for all your children and all of your creation. We pray for those whose circumstances of life make it hard for them to think of themselves as your beloved children. We pray for those who are waiting for us to share that good news with them.
(Other intercessions may be offered.)
All these things we ask in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ who taught us to pray together saying:
Our Father....Amen.
(Or if the Our Father is not used at this point in the service.)
All this we ask in the name of the Blessed and Holy Trinity. Amen.
Children’s Sermon Starter
Do you have chores or tasks that you are expected to do at home? Make your bed? Pick up your toys? Help around the house? Most of us have things we are asked to do. Actually, all of us do because Jesus has asked us to do something for him. Do you know what it is? It is to be a witness for him, to share the good news of God’s love with others. Sometimes we do that by telling people and sometimes we do that by the way in which we do kind deeds of love.
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CHILDREN'S SERMONHow to Start
by Dean Feldmeyer
Acts 1: 6-14
For video presentation. Can be easily adapted for in-person presentation as well.
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. (Acts 1:8)
You will need: A piece of 8 ½ x 11 paper or cardstock. Draw on the paper a target using four or five concentric circles.
Alternatively, to add color, you can cut circles of different colored paper or construction paper, each one a little smaller than the other. Glue them to a piece of cardboard or poster board, one on top of the other with the largest first (bottom) and then progressively smaller.
Draw a stick figure on the center or simply print “YOU.”
Say:
(Showing the target to the children.)
In today’s Bible lesson, we hear Jesus giving some of his final instructions to his disciples before he goes to heaven. He tells them that God’s Holy Spirit will soon come to them and fill them with power and inspiration, and they will be able to witness, that is, tell others, about Jesus.
Then he tells them where they will be going to tell others about Jesus.
(Pointing at the center dot of the target.)
First, he tells them to witness where they are. In this case, that’s the city of Jerusalem.
(Pointing at the first ring out from the center and then moving outward with each step, below.)
Then, he tells them they will be witnessing a little further away from their homes and their comfort zone, but in a place that’s still kind of close, the area known as Judea.
Then he tells them to go a little further away from their comfort zone, to the area called Samaria.
And, finally, he tells them they will need to go pretty far from their home and their comfort zone, and that’s the whole world!
Now, you and I don’t live in Jerusalem, do we? So, where would this first area, the one closest to us and the center, be?
(Repeat pointing at each area on the target as you go.)
- I guess for most of us, it would be our families. We tell our families about Jesus.
- Then, for me, the first step out of my comfort zone would be my friends. So, I’d tell my friends about Jesus.
- Then, moving a little further out of my comfort zone, would be my neighbors.
- And, finally, the furthest from my comfort zone would be the people I work with or go to school with.
(Close with a prayer asking God for the courage and wisdom to move beyond our comfort zones to tell others about Jesus.)
Amen.
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The Immediate Word, May 24, 2020 issue.
Copyright 2020 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to The Immediate Word service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons and in worship and classroom settings only. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., 5450 N. Dixie Highway, Lima, Ohio 45807.
