A Pastoral Letter During Turbulent Times

June newsletter article by The Rev. Jack Alvey, Rector of The Episcopal Church of the Ascension in Vestavia Hills, AL

            When I was a teenager, I told my dad that I was worried about getting a job after college. “What if I’m not good enough?” I wondered. He said something like, “You don’t need to worry about that. You’ll be fine.” I replied, “How can you be so sure?” My dad told me, “First of all, you are smart and people like you. Plus, you are a white male.” (Note: My dad said it in a very matter a fact way. Right or wrong – that’s just how the world is).

            I can’t remember exactly what he said next, but I do remember feeling strangely satisfied with the answer. While I couldn’t articulate it then, what I was coming to understand was one of the perks of white (male) privilege. Because I was a white male, I would already have a leg up on people who weren’t white and who weren’t male. For better and for worse, the thought empowered me.

            In the years to come, I struggled (and continue to struggle) with what to do with this white (male) privilege. I’ve often thought, I didn’t ask for this. It’s not my fault that I am a white male. I am a good Christian and according to the Bible there is no distinction between male and female, Jew and Greek, slave and free. However, as I’ve learned over the years, color blindness is not the answer. The issue is much deeper than racism or sexism or any -ism. These are symptoms of a deeper problem (more in another conversation).

            Some years ago, I had a conversation with two female clergy in the diocese about privilege. Frustrated with the conversation, I blurted out, “What in the world can I do about it? Don’t ask me to be sorry about it (I was already feeling guilty).” They kindly responded, “You can use your position of privilege to give voice to those without a voice.” At the time, I thought that was a pretty simple idea.

            Fast forward a few years to when I was in my first year as Rector at St. Paul’s in Selma. My first year in Selma marked the 50^th anniversary of Bloody Sunday. I was gently told by Bishop Sloan that I needed to make sure I acknowledged the event. I thought this was a wonderful opportunity to use my privilege to give voice to those who did not have had a voice at St. Paul’s 50 years ago. One of the voices that I chose for the Lenten series was a woman named Ruby Sales. 

Ms. Sales was from the Blackbelt of Alabama and participated in the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s South. In 1965, Sales befriended Episcopal Seminarian Jonathan Daniels who came to Selma to be a part of the movement. While in Hayneville, Alabama, after being released from jail, Sales attempted to enter a white only store. When she defied an order not to enter, a Sherriff’s Deputy pointed his shotgun at Ms. Sales. Mr. Daniels, however, stepped in front of the blast and was killed immediately.  

            Now, 50 years later, Ms. Sales would have a voice at St. Paul’s Selma – the very congregation who once shut her and many others out (St. Paul’s would open its doors to all a few weeks later). I was so proud of myself for getting Ms. Sales to speak. It was a true testament to racial reconciliation! Within seconds, the captive audience of about 70 people shut down. I shut down, too. The first words out of Ms. Sales’ mouth went something like, “The first thing you all need to admit is that you are racists.” So much for racial reconciliation.

            It was easy for me to be angry at Ms. Sales for her speech that night. I had to do a lot of damage control in the weeks to come. The harder thing for me to do was to pay attention to the anger that she was carrying – an anger that I can never understand as a white male. Then it dawned on me. God did not want her to speak about racial reconciliation or racial healing.

As painful and as uncomfortable as it was, I believe God needed us to hear the anger in the Black community – an anger that has been largely suppressed in this country for 400 years. For me, it was a Jesus flipping the tables in the Temple moment. I was reminded that Jesus said, “Do not think I have come to bring peace on earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.” Read my recent article entitled “Politics in the Pulpit” for more context.

Before there can be healing or reconciliation (reconciliation is a word I’m not wild about using in this context, but more on that in a different forum), there must be truth telling. The same is true in our own households with our own family members. Before there can be peace and healing, the truth must come out and be dealt with.

As the country reels in the aftermath of the appalling killings of Ahmad Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and George Floyd, peaceful protests have turned violent in cities all across the country including our own city of Birmingham. While I didn’t want to watch the footage of downtown riots, I made myself watch for five minutes. Again, I was reminded that it would easy for me to condemn the actions of the violent protesters and wash my hands clean.

The harder thing for me to do was to pay attention to the anger that still exists in our country around issues related to prejudice and hate. I needed to be reminded that conversations about racism, sexism, and the other the -isms is long from over. In many places, I’m not even sure the conversation has even begun.

In my estimation, the longer we convince ourselves that color blindness is the answer, the longer we convince ourselves that we (white people) aren’t a part of the problem (or solution), the longer we avoid conversations about racism and sexism and the other -isms, the longer it will take for the truth to come out in constructive ways. 

This is bigger than I have black friends, or I’m nice to black people. All of that is a step in the right direction but that only scratches the surface of what we need to be focusing on. This is about telling the truth that the legacy of slavery is alive and well in our country today. By not talking about it, by suppressing or minimizing or demonizing the anger in the Black community, we (white people) are simply heating a pot that is already boiling.

Over the next few weeks, I invite you to be a part of this conversation. In place of our usual Ascension Wellness Center Series, I will co-host a two-part conversation alongside my friend and colleague The Rev. Dr. Tommie Watkins, Rector of St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Birmingham. The conversations will happen on Facebook Live and Zoom at 9 a.m. on Thursday, June 4^th and Thursday, June 11^th. Stay tuned with more information on how you can participate.

Tommie and I have had a number of conversations over the years related to racism, sexism, and the other – isms. Sometimes these conversations have been uncomfortable, but I am better for them. As Tommie will tell you, the problem is much deeper than race. In addition to helping us come to terms with our white privilege, I hope the conversation will move us beyond shame and guilt so that we can talk about it in constructive and life-giving ways. 

Friends, it is starting to look a lot like Pentecost – a rush of a violent wind is sweeping the country off her feet. If the idea of this conversation makes you feel uncomfortable, if phrases like white privilege and systemic racism scare you, then I’d say that is a good sign that the Holy Spirit is moving you toward the conversation for the sake of the gospel. Now, more than ever, the Spirit is calling us to proclaim the message that envisions people of all races and nations worshiping our Father in heaven, a Father who says, “You are important. You are of value. You are no more or less loved than the person standing next to you.”

Finally, I invite your prayers during this time. Below are prayers from the Book of Common Prayer (BCP) that I feel are appropriate for this time of great unrest:

For the Human Family
O God, you made us in your own image and redeemed us through Jesus your Son: Look with compassion on the whole human family; take away the arrogance and hatred which infect our hearts; break down the walls that separate us; unite us in bonds of love; and work through our struggle and confusion to accomplish your purposes on earth; that, in your good time, all nations and races may serve you in harmony around your heavenly throne; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

For Peace
Eternal God, in whose perfect kingdom no sword is drawn but the sword of righteousness, no strength known but the strength of love: So mightily spread abroad your Spirit, that all peoples may be gathered under the banner of the Prince of Peace, as children of one Father; to whom be dominion and glory, now and for ever. Amen.

For Social Justice

Grant, O God, that your holy and lifegiving Spirit may so move every human heart [and especially the hearts of the people of this land], that barriers which divide us may crumble, suspicions disappear, and hatreds cease; that our divisions being healed, we may live in justice and peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

In Times of Conflict

O God, you have bound us together in a common life. Help us, in the midst of our struggles for justice and truth, to confront one another without hatred or bitterness, and to work together with mutual forbearance and respect; through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

For the Oppressed
Look with pity, O heavenly Father, upon the people in this land who live with injustice, terror, disease, and death astheir constant companions. Have mercy upon us. Help us to eliminate our cruelty to these our neighbors. Strengthen thosewho spend their lives establishing equal protection of the law and equal opportunities for all. And grant that every one ofus may enjoy a fair portion of the riches of this land; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

For Cities

Heavenly Father, in your Word you have given us a vision of that holy City to which the nations of the world bring their glory: Behold and visit, we pray, the cities of the earth. Renew the ties of mutual regard which form our civic life. Send us honest and able leaders.  Enable us to eliminate poverty, prejudice, and oppression, that peace may prevail with righteousness, and justice with order, and that men and women from different cultures and with differing talents may find with one another the fulfillment of their humanity; through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

A Prayer attributed to St. Francis
Lord, make us instruments of your peace. Where there is hatred, let us sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is discord, union; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where there is sadness, joy. Grant that we may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love. For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen.

            

Politics in the Pulpit

          One of the cardinal sins of a preacher is to bring politics into the pulpit. By its very nature, especially in our country, politics divides. The Church, at her best, is where divisions cease to exist. As St. Paul said, “there is no longer Jew or Greek, slave or free, male or female.”

As a preacher, I have tried to remain apolitical in an effort to create space where people of faith, from both sides of the aisle, can worship God. I love the idea that the Church can be a place where people are defined, not by their political affiliation, but by a God who sees us all as beloved children through Jesus Christ our Lord. The Church, at her best, provides a place of healing for a people who are divided on so many issues.

            However, there are times in history when the middle ground erodes away. There are times in history when we must make a stand for the sake of what is right; even more, there are times when we must take a stand for the sake of the gospel of Jesus Christ. There are times when we can no longer sacrifice truth for the sake of unity and peace. At some point, the status quo will no longer be good enough for the kingdom of God. 

In particular, there are times when peace, veiled in the cruelty of keeping the status quo, must be disrupted so that the kingdom of God can draw near. In America’s history, peace was disrupted with a civil war that put an end to slavery. Peace was disrupted so that women might have the right to vote. Peace was disrupted when we went to war with Nazi Germany to put an end to the systematic murder of Jews. 

Peace was disrupted and continues to be disrupted so that African Americans and people of color in this country may no longer be seen as less than, not only in light of the law, but also in our hearts and minds. Peace is being disrupted so that members of the LGBTQ community can feel safe and fully valued in their own communities and churches. And there have been times in our country’s history when peace was not sufficiently disrupted for the sake of the kingdom of God.

Jesus himself said, “Do not think that I have come to bring peace on earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.” Jesus goes on to say members of one’s own household will be divided. Jesus is saying that before the kingdom of God can take root on earth, this world must be turned upside down (which it will at the foot of the cross). And if we are serious about following Jesus, then we must be serious about turning this world upside down with a kind of love that rights all wrongs.

If we are serious about following Jesus, then we must risk making people mad. If we are serious about following Jesus, then we must be serious about rejecting agendas or policies that are antithetical to the kingdom of God. If we are serious about following Jesus, then we must be willing to disrupt the peace, the status quo for the sake of the kingdom of God – a place where the first are last and the last are first.

Sometimes following Jesus might make one look like a Republican. Sometimes following Jesus might make one look like a Democrat. So, if one follows Jesus and that makes them look like a Republican or Democrat, does that mean they are being political? I would think not. 

At the end of the day, Christians cannot be beholden to a political party if they are serious about following Jesus. At some point, following Jesus will make one step out of line with their political party. At some point, following Jesus will make one step of out of line with their social identity.

As you’ve heard me say before, Jesus did not come to start a new religion. Rather, as Robert Capon said, Jesus came to put an end to religion. What Capon means is that Jesus did not come to make up a bunch of new rules on how to find our way to God just so we mortals could fight about it some more. 

Instead, Jesus puts before us a cross that says no amount of striving will get us to God. In his great hymn, A Mighty Fortress is our God, Martin Luther says, “our striving would be losing.” The cross is the place where God meets us in our losing and brings us to himself. The cross is not about us finding our way to God through good deeds. Rather, the cross is about God finding us in our pointless striving and saying the way of the cross is the way of life and peace.

Jesus tells his followers, “If you want to be my follower, then you must deny yourself and take up your cross.” Taking up the cross is about finding God in the weak and vulnerable for that is where the crucified Lord dwells and takes us to new life. More than following a moral code or certain ideologies, following Jesus is about sacrificing oneself for the sake of the other particularly the weak and vulnerable.

These past few months have put this call to take up our cross to the test. Everything that we’ve been talking about in recent months – wearing masks, staying home, proper hygiene – isn’t simply about protecting ourselves but about protecting others. These past few months have been about sacrificing our livelihood for the sake of others especially the weak and vulnerable. 

And if wearing a mask is what it means to follow Jesus today, then I pray we may gladly accept the discipline regardless of our political persuasion. If being physically distanced for a little longer is what it means to follow Jesus today, then I pray we do so with the conviction that this is what we do as citizens of God’s heavenly city by virtue of our baptisms. And if following Jesus makes you look political, then so be it – you are a beloved child of God – the only name that will never be taken away from you.