The Bible is About Trauma...(Lenten Bible Reflection 2021--Ash Wednesday)

 I have been doing Margaret Feinberg's Awestruck Lenten Bible Challenge, for now, five or six years. She has laid out a reading plan that is intense, challenging in order to read the Bible from cover to cover over the season of Lent. The plan averages about 20-30 chapters a day for six days a week. The point of this plan is to develop deep awe and to see Scripture as deep metanarratives that are intertwined. Every year I have added a different challenge by reading a translation that I do not read regularly (in the past I have used: NLT, ESV, CEB, NASB, MEV). I also have found different concepts to focus on and think about. Last year it was justice...in the past it was worship...this year, the concept is TRAUMA. Why trauma? 

I am glad you asked.

The Bible is about trauma and trauma responses. I do justice work and I write about justice and striving against injustice. I spend a lot of time thinking about injustice and historic violence. What I have realized, an old memory, an old lesson: The violence and trauma (both individualized and vicarious) that is a necessary part of justice work can produce a tautological cycle of despair and hopelessness. This is what I am entering this exercise with. I am wrestling with trauma and the work that lies ahead. I am working to ensure life is better, more equitable for everyone especially for Black, Indigenous, and other People of Color.

In order to do this...I must draw from the deep wells of my faith. For, Avadeem hayeenu, "We were once slaves." We are no longer slaves, but we are not yet free. I will close this reflection with words I wrote a year ago on FB: 

I believe every generation must answer the question, "What does it mean to be free?" (Borrowing from the great blues prophet, Nina Simone.)

In the past, the answer to that question drove our fight out of the terrible chains of slavery. It allowed us to stand in front of fire hoses. It encouraged our ancestors to thrive in the midst of deep lack and despair. We are the product of those beloved and unknown fighters. In this moment, in 2020 (2021), we are still not free. But, I feel that my expectations of what freedom is have changed, I believe freedom is nothing less than a clear trajectory to thriving. It includes access to [full] rights and privileges, but it is more than that. It is locating what Howard Thurman calls, "the final privacy of an individual" and developing that into an interconnected tapestry. Freedom is the acquisition and development of power for the benefit of dismantling systemically and systematically unjust systems and building up frameworks and systems that are equitable.

"From my childhood, I have been on the scent of the tie that binds life at a level so deep that the final privacy of the individual would be reinforced rather than threatened. I have always wanted to be me without making it difficult to be you."
Howard Thurman

Remember that you are but dust...but you matter...your tears matter...your traumas matter.

Random Insights from Facebook

These are insights that I have previously shared on Facebook, particularly centered around the Bible and justice.

March 26, 2017: The more I read the Bible in context the less I find a complementarian view of church leadership as the actual intent of God. Women are equal and capable to lead. A woman's voice saved many an idiot. The church will never be at its fullness until we recognize that God calls regardless.

March 10, 2017: In reading the Bible from cover to cover for Lent, I have reached a challenging conclusion about Christian Trump supporters.

They are like Jephthah, a very righteous and courageous judge of Israel. He was the son of a prostitute and he was elevated to be a warrior and a judge. He contended with the Ammonites for years and prayed to God about success. Instead of waiting for God, he vowed that in exchange for definitive success he would sacrifice as a blood offering the first thing that exited the door of his home. His only, virgin daughter was the first thing out of his door. His daughter heard his vow and begged him to let her grieve her virginity (but really her future). After two months, he sacrificed his daughter (the Bible is surprisingly nuanced, yet specific here). His reign was short and turbulent thereafter.

So, what does this mean? We cannot exchange long-term success for short-term gratification. This is what happened in November and we are living in the consequences of a dangerous vow. Often we frame our decisions merely by the bulk of their apparent sinfulness, when in reality, the sin lies in the clear refusal to see God in the consequences, to the point of using God to deny reality and thereby justify our choices.

(Judges 11-12)

February 9, 2016: 

Three sermons that I am in process of writing because God won't let me ignore them:

The Foundation of the Gospel Demands a Response: John 3 and 4

Justice and the Gospel (Why Justice Matters): Amos 5; Micah 6:8; Isaiah 58:5-14

The Gospel and Justice (Why the Gospel and Reconciliation Matters): 1st Peter 2:1-10; Revelation 7:9-17.

I have no idea when or if I will ever get to share them, but I am going to write them anyway.

Also, for Lent, I am taking up a challenge to read through the Bible in 40 days. If you wanna join up give me a holla. Blessings.

September 17, 2017: 

There are many myths about Christian Persecution in America. But, the one that gets my goat the most is: (Drumroll please) They took prayer out of schools.

I studied hundreds of First Amendment cases in my time in law school. None of them said you could not pray in school. What it does say is that the State should not be in the business of forcing students to recite a prewritten prayer led by their teacher. (Engel v. Vitale). This never stopped individual students from praying (Teachers are more complicated, I know, because of the dual nature of being an individual and a voice of the State).

I wrote the following nearly 5 years ago following the horrific responses of Christian leaders regarding Sandy Hook. It seems relevant now:

"I have had enough!! To these ignorant evangelical megalomaniacs: As a young Christian and an evangelical, theological mutt I am tired of the fake victimization from Western church leaders in power. It is absurd in the light of true persecution around the world. What do we give up in this country for our faith!? I have not had to give up that much and that I have had to, honestly, really was not worth my time. So, we are persecuted in America because we are called out when we are ignorant and unyielding.

I stand for righteousness, but I stand for and in love. My righteousness in Christ means nothing without love. Check the Gospel backwards and forwards. The Pharisees ticked Jesus off with their inability to operate in love. Empty religiosity and arrogant pomposity that ignored fleecing the poor in the very temple courts!! So Pat Robertson, Mike Huckabee, et al all of you that have lost touch with the heartbeat of the gospel, I plead with you, "Wake up and Study to be quiet!!" Prayer before speaking and wisdom and awareness are vital. We can't get away with continually speaking out of turn. Wear the mantle of a prophet, speak as a prophet but live and work like Christ. Kids did not die because we forgot God in schools, kids died for we forgot God in our homes we gloss over the least of these. So my message to you my brothers and sisters, let's be more Christ-like. Be blessed FB!!"

September 04, 2016: 

The Western (ultra-conservative) Church gets a lot wrong when comes to public life. Consequences that come from your behavior are generally not persecution. Persecution is strife that comes because of your faith or some other characteristic.

With that being said as a passionate Christian, that loves the Bible and loves even the hard sayings. I am disgusted by Kim Davis's behavior (and others). Her argument that issuing a marriage license (a core responsibility as the elected county clerk) to a homosexual couple violates her faith. When did the Bible ever say that the behavior of others dictated your salvation? The Bible does say to work out your own salvation. The Bible does say to render unto Caesar that which is Caesar's. Her behavior smacks of religious insecurity. You took an oath to stamp the seal of the county of Rowan, Kentucky. If you had the true courage of your convictions you resign and you pray for the next step. Religious freedom does not mean one religion gets to dictate over others. To the contrary, to be Christ-like we serve those not like us and speak the truth in love.

My final soapbox point, wouldn't it be wonderful if the church divested from bad politics and invested in service? Demonstrated that pro-life extends far beyond gestation. That we stop majoring in the minor things and minoring in the major things. We care about souls. We care about the gift of salvation that is freely given to all that receives. God is less concerned about the state you come to him, but that you come.

October 21, 2012: 

Putting on a prophetic cap: If Christians cease to be the voice of the voiceless and the active hand of God in the world. What good are we? We are reduced to being the "crazies" that people think we are. We become the Pharisees, yeast-laden with religion but no true relationship. I read (and subsequently posted) a CNN blog about to some Christians President Obama is the "wrong" type of Christian. Begs the question what is the wrong type of Christian. I don't have an answer but I believe Christ and the Bible lays out a good model for the life of a Christian: Love God with all you are and Love your neighbor as yourself. "Truly he has shown you oh man what is Good: that you do justly, love mercy and walk humbly with your God". If we lose sight of that we are nothing more than a social club. Be blessed FB!

MLK Day in the Midst of the Age of Trump

King is more than a dream.

I sit here to write this forgetting that in my flurry of inspiration a couple of years ago, I had already written this piece about #ReclaimMLK (http://letterstoyoungworshippers.blogspot.com/2016/01/reflection-on-dr-king-in-era-of-post.html).

Dr. King, Jr. received his holiday fourteen years after his death and now thirty-two years ago. (We share a birth year in a way). I was furious back in 2016 (our last year with the first black president, even though I did not want to accept that fact). I was furious for so many valid reasons (Flint, Michigan still doesn’t have water and more officers have been acquitted or escaped charges.) I am still pissed about all those things. But, I am writing this the evening after our so-called president, 45, decided to call Haiti, African and African-Caribbean countries, “sh*tholes”. There is no more infuriating irony of this president, that he reveals his racism and racist political perspectives before key moments of black remembrance (see his comments about Frederick Douglass), the damn inescapable fact that 45 is going to stand and lay claim to the dream of King. He's going to lay his grubby, "sh*thole" hands on King's legacy. But, not only him, senators, representatives, governors, mayors, DA's are going to join in this bastard's chorus about the dream of King as they work to undermine black people's progress (But see, https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/steve-alford-kansas-marijuana-black-people_us_5a53e133e4b01e1a4b18a12b?section=us_black-voices).

I want our King back!! You can't claim Martin or Fannie Lou or Rosa or Ella or Billie or none of them until you see us as fully human and fully American!!

The third Monday of January, we set about remembering Dr. King, the drum major of a movement. But, let me tell you this, King was not the only one in the band for justice. He stood on the shoulders of a long legacy of men and women who bled, cried, died, were kidnapped, bombed, broken, beaten, sprayed with water hoses, lynched and so much more. King’s shadow is long and broad. His blood still cries out from the Lorraine Hotel in Memphis and still shakes the mantle of time nearly fifty years.

So, what do I have to say now? I am glad you asked. First, if you support the theology of Trump (looking at you all you charlatans of the gospel), you do not get to hold the legacy of MLK. If you support a theology that doesn't demand your own death to self for the cause of justice you CANNOT touch the legacy of MLK and our ancestors. This bodes the question, “What am I willing to do in this era to move the dream forward?” My answer is this, I am committed to radical compassion. Compassion places a target on your back because you are willing to take the hit for someone else. It is deeper than empathy...it is letting your heart break for someone else and then stepping up to do something.

King said it this way, “I choose to identify (yes, King had a choice—he was middle-class as a child) with the underprivileged, I choose to identify with the poor, I choose to give my life of the hungry, I choose to give my life for those who have been left out of the sunlight of opportunity. […] This is the way I’m going. If it means suffering a little bit, I’m going that way. If it means sacrificing, I’m going that way. If it means dying for them, I’m going that way, because I heard a voice saying, “Do something for others.”

Second, I am committed the work. I am committed to digging into the chaos to fight of justice. I am committed to consolidating political power of black people and other people of color. I am committed to coalition building. Practically, from using the explosive event of the Black Panther premiere to register people to vote to elevate fresh and new candidates. This is the best birthday gift I can give to King on his 89^th birthday. I am on the quest for justice and righteousness and “I Don’t Feel No Ways Tired.”

I am going to close with the words of Paul (2^nd Corinthians 4:7-18):

⁷ Now we have this treasure in clay jars, so that this extraordinary power^g may be from God and not from us. ⁸ We are afflicted in every way but not crushed; we are perplexed but not in despair; ⁹ we are persecuted but not abandoned; we are struck down but not destroyed. ¹⁰ We always carry the death of Jesus^h in our body, so that the life of Jesus may also be displayed in our body. ¹¹ For we who live are always being given over to deathⁱ for Jesus’s sake, so that Jesus’s life may also be displayed in our mortal flesh. ¹² So then, death is at work in us, but life in you. ¹³ And since we have the same spirit of faith in keeping with what is written, I believed, therefore I spoke,^B,j we also believe, and therefore speak. ¹⁴ For we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus will also raise us with Jesus^k and present us with you. ¹⁵ Indeed, everything is for your benefit so that, as grace extends through more and more people, it may cause thanksgiving^l to increase to the glory of God.

¹⁶ Therefore we do not give up.^m Even though our outer person is being destroyed, our inner personⁿ is being renewed day by day. ¹⁷ For our momentary light affliction^o is producing for us an absolutely incomparable eternal weight of glory.^p 18 So we do not focus on what is seen,^q but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

Don’t give up, Don’t give in, Don’t stop dreaming the dream, your dream.

Ernest

Remaining in Awe of God (edited 10/29/2015)

Central Text: Acts 19:1-20; cf. John 4:23-25

Dear Young Worshipers:

The title is slightly misleading, this blog is less about awe and more about authenticity.  I submit to that genuine authentic worship is rooted in an authentic relationship with the Godhead (Father, Son and Holy Spirit).  Don't miss that, there are a lot of people that love the mysterious "God" or are inspired by Jesus (a good loving man that could have been a prophet) or really want to be "spiritual" without any of the discipline and growth required by the other persons of the Godhead.  Awe is necessary to have a relationship with God.  One of the major problems that I have run into as a maturing Christian is believing my own hype: losing touch with the divine and overwhelming holiness of God.  Do we remain truly humble and available when God uses us?  Do we respond looking for the instantaneous reward at the end of doing His will?  Are we truthful and connected to the Spirit as much as possible in our daily lives?

I raise these questions in the light of Acts 19:1-20.  This scripture has been on my heart to teach/preach on for a long time.  I have heard maybe 2 quality sermons on this text and I have wondered about why not more about a real lesson in authenticity and the power of an awe-filled relationship with the Godhead.  Part of it is the issue of the scriptural controversy of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit (that is a different discussion for a different day) that is at the beginning of the chapter.  For our purposes, the practical lesson from the first 6 verses is that we should always be aware of the needs of brothers and sisters and unafraid to ask the hard questions to serve our brothers and sisters.  So, Paul has separated from Apollos in Corinth and travels into Ephesus and begins an incredible ministry of discipleship (1-7), public preaching in the synagogue, then lecture hall (8-10), and extraordinary miracles (point-of-contact miracles) (11-12).

While this is going on we have some itinerant Jewish exorcists that have decided to use the name of Jesus without authentic relationship.  I want to stick a pin here to highlight a brief phrase in verse 9, "But when some (Jews in the synagogue that heard Paul preach) became hardened and would not believe slandering the Way (earliest name of Christian Movement) in front of the crowd..." (Acts 19:9a, context added).  This is the climate in which we have the Jewish exorcists that see a monetary means to capitalize on the power of the name of Jesus.  Paul had signs of the power of Christ and these men see dollar signs.  Read between the lines, these men experience some success using this method.  Why do you say this? I am glad you asked, taking in the context, how the method is introduced.  There must have been some success for this story to be included.  Hearkens to the celeb-obsessed culture of today. These guys were the Miss Cleo's of their day. They saw an opportunity to capitalize on the success of anointed men of God. (Let me stick a pin here and say that this obsessed chase of fame and capitalization is still plaguing the modern Church. The need to be like the successful megachurches at all costs. I am going to stop my editorializing and move on.)

The sons of Sceva were religionists as well as capitalists. This means that they grew up around the language of religion because their father was a Jewish priest, but there is little evidence that they were devout. They had prestige and religion without relationship. This is shown by their response in verse 13. They do not take ownership of Jesus and the power available in the Holy Spirit because they are not redeemed. They possessed enough jargon to be dangerous saying, "I command you in the name of Jesus, whom Paul preaches, to come out!" (Acts 19:13b, NLT). This was successful until they encountered a demonic spirit that saw through their lack of authenticity, "Jesus I know, Paul I recognize (Jesus's Authority and personage I know, Paul's authenticity I know and recognize), but who are you?" (Acts 19:15). Their lack of a confident answer gave the go-ahead for the demon-possessed man to beat them up and cast them out of the house. These men were ran out naked in the street. Nakedness indicating great shame and failure. Their failures led people to fear God and become greatly open to the message of the Gospel. Paul and the missionaries in Ephesus were given a greater platform not because of anything they did, but because of the failure of inauthentic people.

I will close with the dialogue between Jesus and the Samaritan woman at the well. The dialogue could be a series of blog posts and not be anywhere near be exhausted. But there is an interesting shift in the timbre, from lifestyle to worship. Seemingly stark but really actually directed and flowingly poetic. Jesus addresses worship in way that is both very clear, yet very profound. Worship up to the earthly ministry of Christ was very much location-centric (see the woman's response in verse 22). Jesus says something spectacular, "But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship Him. God is a spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit in truth." (John 4:23-24). Jesus flips the script, providing access to God that is not limited to a location. God the Father is looking for men and women, then and now, who will be authentic and drenched in the Holy Spirit to worship Him. Inauthenticity breeds death...when we are inauthentic in our worship, in our lives we deny the power of Godhead. We must be intentional to check our authenticity, our availability and our humility. Don't drink your own Kool-Aid!!!

Be blessed family! It's been too long,

Ernest

Speak Up My Brothers, I Can't Hear You Over The Deafening Silence

Hello again,


It's been a long time since I posted to my LiveJournal and its not because of having a lack of things to say; more because I have focused on not always spilling and pouring out my heart and soul so quickly.  Mind you it was incredibly helpful in the early days in college to just write out my frustrations and I appreciate this as a clearer platform to speak directly to people than even Facebook or Twitter.  It begs the question what brings me back to an old friend?  Well, a senseless murder and an unnecessary cover up.  The murder of 17-year old Trayvon Martin has rightfully become a national and international new story, although it took nearly a month to do so in this world of Twitter and Facebook.


So, let me do a quick recap of this young man's tragic end: Trayvon was visiting some family in a wealthy suburbanite neighborhood in Florida and left the gated community to go to the convenience store across the street in a basic outfit: Air Force Ones, a pair of pants and oh my God a Hoodie.  George Zimmerman, the community watch captain, had been watching him and called the police numerous times because a suspicious young man was walking around his neighborhood.  During the last phone call he is instructed by the dispatcher to wait and to not confront him.  But, Zimmerman decides to follow Trayvon and confronts him with a loaded gun and the next thing that we know is that Trayvon is dying from a gunshot in his chest from Zimmerman's gun with nothing more on his person but a cellphone, some skittles and a can of iced tea.  The police arrive and begin to interview witnesses and begin to shape their understanding of the case but instead of bringing valid charges against Zimmerman they decide to attempt to cover this up.  


So I will stop there on the recap, because that is a miscarriage of justice I want to call out the many leaders in the American Church that remain silent on this issue when this is an issue that could bridge the gap between "The Black Church" and "The White Church".


The Trayvon Martin case reminds me that a "post-racial" America is a pipe dream.  This pipe dream is perpetually played out in segregated churches all over the country.  The deafening silence of predominantly white conservative evangelicals comes in a climate where they yell loudly and protest proudly on the sexy issues that earn them theological brownie points with their constituents (parishioners).  The issues that hit a cord like abortion and gay marriage are easy to take the pot shots and make statements because those are "defining" issues of our time.


It feels like the race issue in America gets treated like the hurdle that has been scaled.  Selectively forgetting and taking for granted that the "hurdle" is forever in front of us.  Race was responded to by legislating inclusiveness by affirming by law rights that were afforded to but stolen from African-Americans, Latinos, Asians, minorities from the start.  But, let us not forget the struggle and that many men and women were abused, close to a million African Americans were lynched from the end of the Civil War til 1960's not counting the abuses of slavery.  This is the hurdle that has to be overcome and it DOES NOT GO AWAY!!!  But, because most of Americans feel that we have already overcome that problem because, personally they have a diverse group of friends (if that's a marker that you take pride in, there might be a problem by the way), race and racial problems are the problem of the minorities.


This is where the silence of many conservative Christian leaders on this issue, but their resounding protest against abortion does not jive.  How is that the life of an unborn child matters more to you (seemingly) than the life or fighting for justice for a young man that was murdered and the system has turned a blind eye?  Do you all really really really believe what Glenn Beck's, assistant editor of his website The Blaze insinuates that the young man who may have been suspended for ten days, must have done something to deserve to be shot? (HuffPost Story on the article).  I get it, it does not affect you directly; but if the tables were turned there would be outrage from the pulpits of America.  What frustrates me, is the same thing that frustrated Dr. King while he wrote The Letter from a Birmingham Jail, the apathy of his brothers to abhorrent injustice was and still is the greater crime.


But, stay in your ivory tower, miss every real opportunity to unite the church of God.  Pick and choose your issues based on sexiness or connection to your congregations and watch the world laugh at us.  But, I choose to get my hands dirty and take the hits that come for the issues that matter.  Stand with us for Trayvon Martin...no its not sexy, there is not a cool stylish bracelet like Joseph Kony 2012.  Stand with us because this is what God requires (Micah 6:8): "He has shown you, O man, what [is] good; And what does the LORD require of you But to do justly, To love mercy, And to walk humbly with your God? (NKJV)"  This injustice threatens all of us and your silence is deafening.  Speak up, challenge your congregations and join the fight.  Finally, please don't take this as you need to defend yourself, all I am asking is that you take a stand, apathy is consent.  The world does not need your defenses, they need you to be willing to live on the edge of sacrifice.  If you aren't willing to do that, fine then say nothing about anything.  Jesus challenges us that salvation is not just for our personal good but for the good of others.  "Saved unto good works (Eph. 2:8-9)":


Mat 25:32-46  Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.  (33)  And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left.  (34)  Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.  (35)  For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me,  (36)  I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.'  (37)  Then the righteous will answer him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink?  (38)  And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you?  (39)  And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?'  (40)  And the King will answer them, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.'  (41)  "Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.  (42)  For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink,  (43)  I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.'  (44)  Then they also will answer, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?'  (45)  Then he will answer them, saying, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.'  (46)  And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life."
So now brothers and sisters let us go and do likewise...

Much Love...
ErnDawg