Letters Archive—2020 – First Presbyterian Church of Santa Fe, New Mexico

To the Saints in Santa Fe

These letters from Pastor Harry and church leaders explore the challenges we face as people of faith in a complicated and fearful world, not unlike the world that Paul faced, and not unlike the world that Dr. King faced down.

These letters are distributed to the congregation via our email newsletter. To sign up for our eNews, contact our Office Manager.

December 2, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, in whom “the Church’s life and mission are a joyful participation in Christ’s ongoing life and work.”*

When my Grandma was a little girl she fell down a well and it has had profound consequences for her family ever since.

For one, her resulting fear of water somehow got into our DNA. Few of her descendants swim or spend time around water. We like to say we sink more than swim but no matter how we spin it we seem to avoid anything to do with water. To our detriment. I wish it was different.

The other result? I wonder what it was like in that deep dank well in the early 1900s in Wheeling, West Virginia; what terror Grandma felt, what pleas for help she screamed, what negotiations she held with God? It will never be verified (Grandma died in 1998 at the age of 97) but could Grandma’s deep well experience be the beginning of her deep faith? She became the matriarch of the family and the one who passed on the faith to her sons and ultimately to me.

It is a good Advent spiritual practice to remember our heritage; all those who passed the faith on to us.

My list includes grandma, Mom and Dad; my high school youth group adult advisor Hortie; family and friends who helped me through cancer; members of three churches I have served across 37 years; Jim, Sheila and David, pastors who paved the way for me here in Santa Fe; and my wife Jenny whose spiritual depth and wisdom continues to astound and sustain me.

In the opening words of the Gospel of Mark it is clear Jesus didn’t simply show up one day; he was the recipient of the life and faith of prophets like Isaiah, Malachi, Elijah, and John who prepared the way for him.

Who has prepared the way for you? Who has made a difference in your life and faith? And who might write your name on their list?

Grace and peace,
Harry
*Book of Order F-1.0201

December 1, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, whose “Gospel announces the nearness of God’s kingdom.” *

March 31, 1943. The opening night of the musical “Oklahoma!” at the St. James Theater on Broadway. Most of us know the 1955 movie version, and many of its songs by heart, but I wonder what it was like to sit there that night in a dark theater in the depths of World War II with despair and fear sitting next to you, joy nowhere to be seen, and hoping something could help us forget these days for a few hours.

Then the curtain rises, the darkness lifts, and the audience is transported to a cornfield-yellow morning with Curly on horseback riding through the fields underneath blue skies and clouds, and a song bursts forth: “There’s a bright golden haze on the meadow. . .”

I bet you’ve already started to sing the rest !

I think of this scene as I read the beginning verses of Mark’s Gospel, our lectionary passage for the second Sunday of Advent. It, too, was a terrible and dark time. People were suffering, great and deep. Rome’s brutish ways had taken their toll. Nero’s persecution in 63 AD and the Jewish Revolt in 67-70 AD left Jerusalem devastated, the Temple destroyed, and the hopes of the people shattered.

Then Mark steps in: “The beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, Son of God.” These few words were the first of its kind, a new genre of writing, the Gospel, and shine light on the love of God that is still present and real even in the darkest of times.

How these words ushered in a much-needed hope and set the stage for new beginnings!

That’s what Advent does for us. These next twenty-four days are a time to prepare for hope’s return. To anticipate light to pierce our darkness. To sit and wait for a curtain to rise and see Emmanuel, “God-with-us,” a baby child, waiting patiently and quietly for our eyes to adjust to a new day.

I love the hymns of Advent preparation, in the minor key like “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel,” but these days I will probably catch myself humming quietly, “Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin’.”

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order F-1.01

November 30, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, whose “Gospel announces the nearness of God’s kingdom.” *

I bet you’ve already started to sing the rest !

How these words ushered in a much-needed hope and set the stage for new beginnings!

I love the hymns of Advent preparation, in the minor key like “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel,” but these days I will probably catch myself humming quietly, “Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin’.”

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order F-1.01

November 25, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, through whom “the Christian year keeps us centered in Christ as we seek to proclaim the story of our faith, grow as Jesus’ disciples, and serve Christ’s mission.” *

We have holy days before us.

Advent begins this Sunday, November 29, and will accompany us day by day to Christmas Eve.

Unlike the Christmas season, these days are not flashy. They won’t lure us into buying anything, save perhaps an Advent calendar. It’s hymns are in the minor key. It’s days get shorter and darker. There are no Advent gifts (at least I never received any!), no traditional Advent meals, no Advent outfits, and no Advent video or board games.

But it does have a wreathe and some candles. The Advent Wreathe began with German Lutherans in the 16^th century and became popular in the 19^th century after a German pastor who, working with poor children in Hamburg, made a large wooden ring out of an old cartwheel and placed 24 candles on it, twenty red and four white. Each day a candle was lit while asking if Christmas had come yet. The Advent wreathe came to the United States in the 1930s. Today in our tradition, we have five candles representing Faith, Hope, Joy, Love and Christ.

We will still light them this year despite the pandemic, and because of it. How we need to remember faith in a time of uncertainty, see hope in the middle of despair, experience joy when sadness can easily take over, share love because we all need it, and welcome a little child to remind us of God’s Spirit finding room in our lives once again.

I do believe these holy days have come just in time.

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order W-1.0202

November 24, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, through whom “Holiness is God’s gift to the Church.” *

I miss the holidays, their rituals and celebrations.

We still have them, of course, but they seem different this year. Before the pandemic they happened more effortlessly, with the familiar fanfare, and we could experience them without worry: Easter with its focus on spring and new life, chocolate and family; July 4^th with its summer picnics and barbecues, pancakes on the plaza and fireworks; Labor Day as our annual reminder that summer is over, fall is here and so is school.

Now, Thanksgiving. I had plans of being with family back in Michigan but cancelled them to be safe and to keep others safe with the pandemic raging. As one who tried to be so very careful and still tested positive I know how easy it is to get it. I can only hope, though with little backing, that the estimated 40% of Americans who plan to travel to be with family this week will return safely and free of the virus.

Holidays by definition, are holy days, deeply important to our culture and to our psyches. Holy days. What a grand concept when these days seem anything but! How important it is to be reminded of God’s presence in our days, of God’s breath, of God’s deep love infused into the world.

I look forward to the day when we can observe holidays without first checking the number of Covid cases or worrying about whether our actions might jeopardize our health and that of others.

When that day comes I hope we have learned that holidays are truly holy days which serve to deepen our connections with others and heighten our reverence for all that is holy and sacred and a recipient of our thanks.

Happy thanksgiving to you this year. May it be safe and may it be holy.

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order F-1.0302b

November 19, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, whose “Gospel announces the nearness of God’s kingdom, bringing good news to all who are impoverished, sight to all who are blind, freedom to all who are oppressed, and proclaiming the Lord’s favor upon all creation.” *

He got down on the floor and played with us. That’s what I remember most.

This well-known man, one of the greatest preachers of his or any generation, stayed at our home one night when I was very young. His name was George Buttrick. You may know the name. He was pastor of Madison Ave. Presbyterian Church in New York City and then became professor and preacher to Harvard University. For me, though, he was always the man that played with my brothers and me.

In preparing for the sermon this Sunday on Matthew 25:31-46, the famous passage separating the sheep from the goats and “What you do for these brothers and sisters of mine, you do for me,” I came across his words.

“We are asked not about our creed or our worship or our standing in the community, but what have you done for that welfare family on the other side of town? The hungry, the thirsty, the physically afflicted and the prisoner are here made the test.”

It’s not about judging others, you see, or seeking to verify their stories of need. Jesus didn’t ask us to do that. He only asks that when we look into the face of any human being we see his face as well.

I can hardly imagine a world that operates this way. But if it did, we might have a chance for “a radical new social structure,” as Elaine Pagels says, “based on the God-given dignity and value of every human being.”

A world modeled on Jesus, where we look each other in the eye, where we care for each other, where we learn from Jesus how to live and to love.

And I might add, where we get down on the floor and play with children. Thank you, Dr. Buttrick, for doing this for me. A simple gesture but what a difference it makes.

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order F-1.01

November 17, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, whose “Church participates in God’s mission for the transformation of creation and humanity by proclaiming to all people the good news of God’s love.” *

In this week leading up to Pledge Sunday all sorts of memories come flooding back about giving. Yesterday I wrote about giving my brother cardboard tubes one Christmas when I was small, my first act of giving. Now I recall a cardboard box in the shape of a church for One Great Hour of Sharing. Remember those?

I was in the second grade, we had just moved to Pasadena from Wooster, and I was in a church school classroom with lots of children. The teacher was talking about how we could help people with our coins. Photographs filled the wall of people and places that would receive our quarters, dimes, and nickels.

What I remember most is the face of a little blonde girl who had cancer. I didn’t really know what cancer was then (I since found out in more ways than I ever imagined) but I was determined to help her by dropping all the coins I could find through the little slit in the church’s roof. I still hear the coins rattle and jostle and feel the weight of the church in my hands as I give it to the teacher.

I guess I still feel the weight of the church. I still look to the church to help others. I still hope my coins can help little girls with cancer and other people in need.

So I plan to do that again this year, not by giving my coins in a cardboard box that looks like a church but online (or by mail to the church) as we join together in dedicating our gifts this Pledge Sunday, November 22.

I hope that little girl survived cancer. And I hope our pledges see the faces of people, one by one, as we “participate in God’s mission for the transformation of creation and humanity.”

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order F-1.01

November 16, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, who “calls the Church into being, giving it all that is necessary for its mission in the world, for its sanctification, and for its service to God.” *

I still remember the look of disappointment on my brother’s face.

It was Christmas Eve in Wooster, Ohio, and, keeping with the custom of German families, we were opening our gifts. I must have been only three or four and, for the first time, I decided I would not only receive gifts but give them. It was a big step.

I was so excited wrapping Ray’s gifts (I gave him more than one!) and couldn’t wait to see the look on his face. His excitement soon turned to disappointment. He didn’t say much, he never really did, but his look told me all I needed to know. A gift of cardboard rolls from paper towels and toilet paper was not what he hoped for or imagined.

I didn’t have any money then, and I had never given a gift before. I apparently played with cardboard rolls and wanted to share them with my brother.

Since those first Christmas Eve cardboard rolls, I hope I have given gifts that mean something, that do something for others, that lift people up and take them somewhere, to places of joy and gratitude, to filling a need and showing a bit of compassion.

We all have a chance this Sunday to give our own gifts. It is the day when we dedicate our pledges for 2021 to support the life, ministry, and mission of our church. It is an important year to do this. We can’t be together, do the things we normally do, reach out and grab someone’s hand, someone’s life, and say we’re glad you’re here, how might we help, good to see you, to make a difference in their lives and our world.

So please prayerfully consider what your gift this year might mean to others, to the church, to God, to you.

I gave a gift of cardboard once. It wasn’t my best gift. It wasn’t much at all. But it was a start.

How fortunate I am, then, to be part of a church, which keeps showing me and reminding me what it means to give.

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order F-1.0202

November 12, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, who, as “members of the body of Christ” we are “ sent out to pursue the mission of God and to participate in God’s new creation.” *

This whole idea of fellowship and community got into me at an early age.

Ever since I was six years old I was always organizing a club with my friends. One year for Christmas my oldest brother and my Dad even built me a little clubhouse behind our garage. My friends and I would spend our days there, doing art projects, playing games and sports, dreaming up big schemes of who-knows-what, and having the greatest time together.

Funny how I was always president. But it was my clubhouse and my idea!

It is no wonder, then, that I have been a pastor of a church my entire career. A church is not a club, let’s be clear, but it is a place where community is created and enjoyed. Our new mission statement says we are “to create authentic Christian community” and I thank you for doing that, and being that.

Jenny and I are reminded once again of the power of community as we have been in quarantine with Covid. Your outpouring of love, support, and offers of food and assistance has been touching and gratefully received. Thank you, thank you!

We are on the mend, no doubt with the love we have received from you. We are indeed humbled by your caring and know, with great hope, the love you have shown us is also duplicated across the community. How important the church is in times like these!

Community is something I have tried to create all my life. Now I know, once again, it’s also something you receive.

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order F-1.0302d

November 10, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, who “announces the nearness of God’s kingdom, bringing good news to all who are impoverished.” *

Meet Dorothy Day.

She’s another one of the “Dangerous Dozen” I write about from time to time. She was born in Brooklyn in 1897, grew up in a tenement in Chicago’s south side, arrested and imprisoned in 1917 for advocating for women’s suffrage in front of the White House, and spoke out against World War I. She embraced Christianity during the Great Depression after an adventurous and controversial life, drawn to the Church little by little with the beauty of its liturgy as well as its spiritual discipline.

Once that decision was made, spurred on by the birth of her daughter, she became a fierce advocate for the Gospel. Along with Peter Maurin, a former member of the religious order called the Christian Brothers, she began The Catholic Worker, an eight-page tabloid that combined her faith and her convictions, reminding people through her actions that “God is as close as the closest human being.”

Dorothy Day served the poor, creating three dozen houses of hospitality across the country where the poor could live in community and be treated with dignity.

She seemed always in the midst of controversy for whenever she saw injustice or inequality, she saw Jesus being crucified anew. Throughout her life she attracted Christians who were inspired to do more than sit in pews or serve on church councils. Her work was becoming so popular that the Church hierarchy began to object.

Radical, hands-on, living with the poor, a pacifist, a threat to secular and religious authorities alike, Dorothy Day embodied Christ in a broken world.

We can easily give in to the charge that Christianity is no longer relevant and has lost is ability to change and heal the world. Then I think of Dorothy Day.

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order F-1.01

November 6, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, whose “Church’s life and mission are a joyful participation in Christ’s ongoing life and work.” *

Are you ready to be the church?

If the pandemic and the elections have taught us anything, the church at its best is needed more than anytime in recent memory.

Jesus tells us what the church “at its best” looks like in Matthew 25:14-30 in the Parable of the Talents. A talent was a unit of money approximating fifteen years of earnings by a day laborer and the master of the household, departing on a journey, gave one servant five talents, another two, and the other one. The first two doubled their talents while the third buried his in a hole and gave back the same amount when the master returned.

The master was livid with the cautious third servant! He called him worthless and had him thrown into the outer darkness where there would be “weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

What gives? What’s wrong with being cautious? Why be upset with the one who made sure it was safe?

The Rev. John Buchanan, retired Senior Pastor of Fourth Presbyterian Church in Chicago and father of our own Diane Buchanan, explains: “The greatest risk of all, it turns out, is not to risk anything, not to care deeply and profoundly enough about anything to invest deeply, to give your heart away, and in the process risk everything. The greatest risk of all is to play it safe, to live cautiously and prudently.”

How long have we been taught that religion is a pretty timid, non-risky venture? Probably too long.

Church was never supposed to be this way. From its inception the church followed a bold, brave, wall-breaking, norm-busting, justice-seeking visionary leader who calls us to reach high and care deeply.

The church at its best.

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order F-1.0201

PS: Join Andrew Black and me this Sunday, 9-9:50 am for an Acts II discussion on how the church can be vital and faithful in these challenging times.

November 5, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, whose “Church participates in God’s mission for the transformation of creation and humanity by proclaiming to all people the good news of God’s love.” *

As I write we still don’t know yet who will be president.

As I read, some of the headlines of newspaper columnists suggest no matter who wins, America has lost. I can’t bear to read anymore. I can’t bear to add more bad news to a nation where bad is already overworked.

As I listen I hear people talk of being fearful. About what lies ahead. The state of our nation. The rumblings within us. The awareness we are a divided people. We always have been but the division seems more acute, somehow more entrenched today.

As I sit here I remember the word loving. It’s the third and final word of our stewardship theme. We’ve talked about faithful and hopeful thus far and now it’s loving’s turn.

Can we hold loving in our arms a bit? Can loving lay the groundwork to repair and rebuild? Can loving be part of the transformation of creation and humanity?

As I wait I l see loving looking back at me, wondering what we’re going to do with it.

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order F-1.01

November 3, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, in whom “God has put all things under the Lordship of Jesus Christ and has made Christ Head of the Church, which is his body.” *

The sanctuary was packed.

It was Berlin in the 1930s when Hitler was taking over every institution in Germany, including the Church. Not all churches gave in, however, and those who resisted were known as the Confessing Church with leaders such as Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Karl Barth, and Martin Niemöller.

I heard this story from a woman who was a member of my Dad’s church in Akron, Ohio. She was a little girl in the Sanctuary that morning when SS guards planned to arrest the pastor as he preached from the pulpit. Word had gone around of the arrest beforehand so a plan was made and people showed up at church that Sunday.

The sanctuary was packed. Not even room to move around. People filled the pews and the aisles so the SS could not get reach the pastor.

The congregation prayed. When they recited The Lord’s Prayer in unison the words filled the space.
The congregation sang. When they sang “A Mighty Fortress is our God,” the very walls seemed to reverberate and sway.

It was a service like no other, one that eventually protected the pastor and kept alive their resistance.
It was a day this little girl way back when would never forget.

Now I know we can’t sing together. I know we can’t sit close to each other. I know we should not be in crowds. Someday, but not these days.

Yet on this Election Day, when the outcome will determine the direction of our nation for years to come, I hope we might remember a faith that crowds out evil, a crowd that lifts up a vision of hope and compassion, and a song that is sung so loudly that even the strongest walls of division might reverberate and sway, and one day come tumbling down.

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order F-1.0201

November 2, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, whose gospel “announces the nearness of God’s kingdom, bringing good news to all who are impoverished, sight to all who are blind, freedom to all who are oppressed, and proclaiming the Lord’s favor upon all creation.” *

Anxiety: a feeling of worry, nervousness, or unease, typically about an imminent event or something with an uncertain outcome. (Online Dictionary)

Pretty much sums it up for me. And I know I am not alone.

In scouring the news the day before the elections I have come across an abundance of articles on stress and anxiety, like these first lines of a New York Times article: “In a year of unprecedented stress, the nation collectively appears to be heading toward peak anxiety this week.”

Oops, too late. Already here.

So you may want to take the advice of anxiety experts who suggest practicing meditation, tackling a home project, or getting out in nature. Might I also suggest we sing a song in our hymnal to a tune by John Bell (the composer of so many of the Celtic songs we sing) with words by Archbishop Tutu during the height of apartheid:

Goodness is stronger than evil;
Love is stronger than hate;
Light is stronger than darkness;
Life is stronger than death.

Victory is ours;
Victory is ours through God who loves us.

I think I feel a little bit better now. No, wait, I better keep singing. There are some long days in front of us.

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order F-1.01

October 30, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, whose Church “affirms the Gospel of Jesus Christ as received from the prophets and apostles, and stands in continuity with God’s mission through the ages.” *

For all the Saints.

I can’t write these words without humming the great hymn we sing to honor them. We’ll sing it again this Sunday on All Saints Day, but this time from our own home. How I will miss hearing you sing beside me as we share the names and memories of those who have died in the past year.

All Saints Day. It’s been on November 1^st since the 8^th century. It was the solution of the early church who wanted to recognize all the saints with their own day of remembrance but there were not enough days of the year.

Since the early days of Christianity we are all recognized as saints, all you who read this letter, who follow Christ, from the “garden-variety” Christian to giants in the faith.

So we gather all the saints together to lift up their names accompanied by photos and candles and bells . . . along with memories, tears, and thanks. It will be a central theme of our video service that you can access through this eNews.

I will remember my Dad who died in July, and thank him for being my Dad, how influential he has been in my life, how I miss him.

Thank you, friends I miss and those I never knew. Thank you for sharing your journey with us.

For all the Saints.

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order F-1.0302d

October 29, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, through whom we are “free to live in the lively, joyous reality of the grace of God.” *

Jesus must be exhausted.

If you are following our Sunday services on video you know we continue to watch Jesus tussle with the authorities in the Temple early in Holy Week. Pharisees, Sadducees, chief priests, elders, and Herodians all show up in Matthew 21-23 to question Jesus and his ways, verse after verse, chapter after chapter.

If Jesus isn’t exhausted by now, I am.

Day after day, month after month, we find ourselves in great conflict over the fractious issues of our own day. Like in Jesus’ day, it isn’t a petty sight, with all sides going at each other with increased acrimony and invective. Even Jesus, in 23:1-12, was getting fed up as Matthew immediately follows this story with Jesus pronouncing a litany of “woe to you’s . . .”

I must admit, my heart can’t take many more “woe to you’s.” Any more accusations and insults. Any more of people acting badly, saying hurtful things, inciting violence.

So I hope you might join me in a chorus of “blessings to you” instead. Blessings for those who work to eradicate racism and white privilege (thank you, Friday class, for confronting these issues!), who bring civility to heated conversations, who rise above injustice and go the distance in serving those who are hurting. Blessings to you!

And to those caught in cycles of fear, hate, hopelessness, distress, and apt to lash out at others and the world. Blessings to you as well!

Now I know that blessings can seem inadequate and sometimes out of place, but I will try, if only to bring some sense of blessing to the air I breathe, along with a great hope that in doing so these blessings might bring some small peace to a fractured world.

Grace and peace, and many blessings.
Harry
* Book of Order F-1.0204

October 27, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, through whom the “Church receives its truth and appeal, its holiness ̧ and its unity.” *

Her name was Isabella and she was a slave. She was a leading advocate for equal rights for African Americans and women. She’s couldn’t read but she was admired by the luminaries of her day. Frederick Douglass described her as “a strange compound of wit and wisdom, of wild enthusiasm and flint-like common sense.” Harriett Beecher Stowe, author of Uncle Tom’s Cabin, called her a prophet.

We know her as Sojourner Truth.

I knew her name but learned so much more about this amazing woman in A Dangerous Dozen, 12 Christians who Threatened the Status Quo but Taught Us to Live Like Jesus.

When she changed her name she understood her mission to be one of “testifying to the hope that was in her.”

Her faith made her an unstoppable force, at times a threat to the establishment. She had no trouble standing up to the powerful.

Illiterate, she had others read the Bible to her and believed that God was right here, right now, calling us to make a difference in the world and not simply wait for a new world to come.

Remember her name. Especially when we are told to question facts and science and medicine. Especially when hope is hard to find and faith is frail. Especially when God seems far away. Especially when an election looms before us.

Sojourner Truth. Thank you for living up to your name. Thank you for teaching us to live like Jesus.

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order F-1.0205

October 26, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, whose “Church is to be a community of hope, rejoicing in the sure and certain knowledge that, in Christ, God is making a new creation.” *

Without it faithful and loving seem incomplete. Without it a crucial ingredient is missing, leaving a void that makes the future less inviting and more scary.

I am talking about being hopeful. It is the center of our stewardship campaign that has already begun and lasts through Sunday, November 22.

Being hopeful is also a spiritual practice.

Living through these pandemic days brings to mind other words like frustration, fear, depression, and loss. Being hopeful is an antidote that can stare down these and most any word and compels us to look to a future where compassion replaces rage (I’m hearing this sentiment more in recent days). Where welcoming arms stretch beyond barriers. Where reconciliation overcomes divisions.

As I look to the future of our church I keep hopeful close by, like a trusted advisor talking in my ear. God is making a new creation, hopeful tells us, out of the old. God is opening new ways, hopeful says, to be our ways. God is tapping into the prophets again, hopeful reminds us, lifting up ideals of peace and justice and reconciliation.

I hope you will continue to support our mission and ministry in the coming year. There is much to do, more people to lift up than ever before, and more ways to be a community of hope.

Oh yes, and hopeful will not let us down or let us go. God won’t either.

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order F-1.0301

October 24, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, where our “congregation is the church engaged in the mission of God in its particular context.” *

A box of water and a granola bar. With thanks.

This is our outreach and message starting Monday morning on our patio, facing the Convention Center across the street from the church, to thank people who are voting at this site.

Jesus talked about offering people a cup of cold water. Instead of a cup or a plastic bottle, we’ll be offering water in an environmentally-friendly cardboard box.

Jesus offered people food on a hillside, at a beach, around a table. We’ll be offering a granola bar on a patio.

This is the idea and the gift of member Janice Mayer, new Executive Director of the Cancer Foundation of New Mexico, who knows how important it is to engage with our neighborhood, despite the pandemic and, indeed, in response to it.

We are looking for volunteers to be on the patio and greet people as they come by, leading up to Election Day, as long as supplies last.

If you are interested in helping with this ministry of hospitality and gratitude, done in a safe and socially-distanced way, please contact Delicia at frontdesk@fpcsantafe.org.

How good it is to be engaged in ministry, in our context, and in our neighborhood!

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order G-1.01

October 23, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, whose “Church is to be a community of faith, entrusting itself to God alone, even at the risk of losing its life.” *

Faithful. Hopeful. Loving.

These three words are central to our Christian faith and journey. They are also the theme for our Stewardship campaign this fall, which is starting now and concludes on Sunday, November 22.

Each day this week in our eNews, and in the weeks to come, will be scripture, a brief devotion, and a prayer centered on one of these three words.

Rev. Dr. Diane Moffett, Executive Director of the Presbyterian Mission Agency, ties these words to our denomination’s Matthew 25 initiative, of which we are a part, in a recent video. In lifting up this vision of building congregational vitality, dismantling structural racism, and eradicating systemic poverty she says we must have “feet for faith, hands for hope, and legs to love.”

I hope we will. I hope we will be part of this great effort to heal our world using our feet, hands, and legs, and our money and resources. It will take all of these.

Please remember our Service Sunday, November 1, and the following weekend when you will receive a stewardship packet and a loaf of bread on Saturday, and share communion together on November 8^th at our Sunday gathering at 10 am. Information is in this and other eNews.

In this broken and fearful world, and in these days of anxiety and hardship, I am so thankful to be part of this community that is so faithful, hopeful, and loving.

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order F-1.0301

October 22, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, whose “Church is to be a community of faith, entrusting itself to God alone, even at the risk of losing its life.” *

Faithful. Hopeful. Loving.

These three words are central to our Christian faith and journey. They are also the theme for our Stewardship campaign this fall, which is starting now and concludes on Sunday, November 22.

Each day this week in our eNews, and in the weeks to come, will be scripture, a brief devotion, and a prayer centered on one of these three words.

I hope we will. I hope we will be part of this great effort to heal our world using our feet, hands, and legs, and our money and resources. It will take all of these.

In this broken and fearful world, and in these days of anxiety and hardship, I am so thankful to be part of this community that is so faithful, hopeful, and loving.

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order F-1.0301

October 21, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, in whom “the good news of the Gospel is that the triune God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit— creates, redeems, sustains, rules and transforms all things and all people.” *

I wouldn’t mess with Jesus. Others tried, as we see in the Gospel of Matthew following Palm Sunday, and Jesus left them speechless, fearful of the crowds whose palm branches waved him in, frustrated, put in their place, amazed, and astounded.

By Tuesday of Holy Week the Jewish and secular authorities tried one last question posed by a lawyer: “Which is the greatest commandment?” While my mind is flipping through all ten of them, Jesus promptly answers with “love God and love your neighbor.” Done.

In the second it took Jesus to answer he managed to sum up the goal and purpose of our lives.

Yet Matthew records no response from anyone. Not a peep nor a sigh. I understand. The challenge is so huge, the possibilities of this love so vast, that it leaves me speechless as well. Where do I start? How do we do it?

Before we can take another breath Jesus asks a question that seems far from the brilliance of his just-uttered response but actually answers our question and perhaps our yearning: “What do you think of the Messiah? Whose son is he?”

“The Son of David,” they replied. Good, solid answer for that day and time but they missed it, totally, by reducing the Messiah to an offspring of David, a King who rose to great heights but also sunk to magnificent lows.

In short, their idea is too small, too limited, too pedestrian, too much tied to the confines of their culture.

Instead, the Messiah, the son of the Messiah, Jesus the Christ, God’s spirit, the reign of God, should bring us to the tips of our toes, with eyes lifted up, and our breathing a bit faster, so we might see hope, taste mystery, imagine peace, and hear the transformation of all things and all people.

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order F-1.01

October 20, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, whose “Church is to be a community of love, where sin is forgiven, reconciliation is accomplished, and the dividing walls of hostility are torn down.” *

They woke up people, knocking on doors, screaming and pleading for peace. Hours earlier a mother and her children were run over by a car driven by an 18 year-old IRA supporter fleeing the British army. He was shot, his car careened off the road in Belfast, and struck the family as they walked along the sidewalk. The mother survived, but the children were killed instantly. She later took her own life.

Mairead Corrigan Maguire, the woman’s sister, led the knocking, door after door, during this night of the Troubles in Northern Ireland. Other women joined her. One was Betty Williams.

Both Mairead and Betty soon organized a march down a busy Belfast street that long divided the Protestants and the Catholics. People came from both sides of the street and marched together. It was the beginning of the Peace People movement that led to Mairead and Betty receiving the 1976 Nobel Peace Prize for their many efforts to help bring about peace in Northern Ireland.

I heard this story from Mairead at a PeaceJam conference in Michigan. Peacejam is an amazing organization that brings Nobel Peace Laureates together with young people. Each year I would bring our youth group from Ohio to Kalamazoo to be with other youth from across the Midwest; black, brown, white, rich, poor, some from churches, some formerly in gangs, many from neither, to be inspired by Nobel Peace Prize winners who shared their stories and took the time to be with them.

What we learned that year, and every other? Peace does not come from violence. Peace does not happen by shooting people.

I write all of this in response to the horrendous news of the aborted plot to kidnap and kill Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer, and the utter silence of many of our political leaders. I do not expect them to knock on doors and scream for peace (wouldn’t it be amazing if they did?!) but, at the very least, simply to hear their disgust over such plans and words of thanksgiving that Gov. Whitmer is safe.

I wonder if our youth expect to hear words of compassion or thanksgiving anymore? I wonder what they think about all the troubles in our country? I wonder if we are really teaching them that there is a better way to be a nation?

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order F-1.0301

October 19, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, in whose name the “Church is sent out to bear witness to the good news of reconciliation with God, with others, and with all creation.” *

The signs on the barrier fence, properly social-distanced every six feet or so, sternly warns “Do No Enter.” So we dutifully stayed outside the area, some twenty yards from the wooden crate-like structure that once was the obelisk in the middle of the historic Plaza in Santa Fe.

A week ago the plaza was boiling over. Now today, early on a still and quiet morning with the October sun peeking through the buildings and the trees, four of us were armed only with prayers in our hands and hearts, all clergy leaders of the Interfaith Leadership Alliance—a Rabbi, a Methodist pastor, a Unitarian Universalist minister, and me. A person with a camera captured the scene for Facebook Live. A few people strolled by, no doubt wondering why we were there. No one stopped to listen.

We were there this morning because the Mayor asked us. He came at the end of our final blessing to thank us for holding this space with prayer, offering a song instead of shouts, providing hope for conversation and reconciliation, lifting up a vision of peace. We will be there next Monday as well, and the one after that, hoping that these prayers and our presence, and the presence of others, will open and hold a space for a hopeful future.

Even before the mayor’s invitation, we were already talking about doing something to respond to the obelisk coming down. Our nation is so fractured, as is our world; what can we do for our own community? So we came and we prayed.

There’s a long road before us, as there was leading up to this moment. There’s a painful history that has forced people to take sides. But I hope there is a future that will bring us together, no matter who we are or where we come from, and begin to mend the fractures.

May it also be a road strewn with welcome signs, bearing witness to our nation that here in Santa Fe we know the power of peace and love and reconciliation.

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order F-1.0205

October 16, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, who “by the power of the Spirit, this one living God is incarnate in Jesus Christ, who came to live in the world, die for the world, and be raised again to new life.” *

Back in the old days, when we actually worshiped together live and in-person, I would sometimes find myself choked up leading worship. It would happen without warning during a hymn, lifting up people in prayer, while giving a sermon, or simply being together with you all.

The only day I knew I would have to take a deep breath, wipe away a tear, or pause because I couldn’t speak was All Saints Day.

It is on this day in between the verses of our closing hymn, “For all the Saints,” that we say the names of all those who have died in the past year. I have said the names of people I love, church members, friends, relatives, my brother, my Mom. This year I will say my Dad’s name.

Please join me this year in celebrating the saints, a name we can all claim as followers of Christ. Please send the names and photographs of someone dear to you who has passed away since last All Saints Day to office@fpcsantafe.org by Tuesday, October 27 and we will include them in our virtual Sunday worship service on November 1.

“For all the saints, who from their labors rest . . . Alleluia, alleluia!

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order F-1.01

October 14, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, whose “Church’s life and mission are a joyful participation in Christ’s ongoing life and work.” *

When Jesus asked for a coin from the Pharisees and Herodians, who were pressing him on the hot topic of taxes (Matthew 22:15-22), he was tapping into deep emotions and symbols of his day. On the coin was the inscription “Tiberius Caesar, august and divine son of Augustus, high priest.” Within Jesus’s community this coin, used specifically for a poll tax, represented oppression and blasphemy.

We could just as well hand him one of our own coins with “In God we Trust” that has been the official motto of the United States since 1956, put forth to declare our difference with the Soviet Union and communism.

We could hand him our coins that, since 1909, have all included images of dead white Presidents. Before that our coins bore images of women and native Americans.

What about our nation’s monuments, like the obelisk on the plaza that was pulled down yesterday? What have they represented in the past and what does it mean to see many of them taken down the past several months?

We have a lot of work in front of us as a nation as we come to terms with our past and begin to re-from our understanding of who we are today.

Here’s a start: Treat people and their needs as holy. In Jesus’ day people lived under a crushing debt system, the resulting injustices leading to widespread poverty and hardship. The practice continues today.

But what would our nation look like, along with its symbols, if we actually treated people and their needs as holy?

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order F-1.0201

October 13, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, through whom “the good news of the Gospel is that the triune God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit— creates, redeems, sustains, rules, and transforms all things and all people.” *

Two weeks apparently is not enough. We need to keep praying. Pray anytime, of course, but we are setting Wednesdays as a reminder day.

We will continue to meet each Wednesday, 5:15-5:30 pm. We didn’t really have a name for this prayer time but now we do. We are calling it Dear God: A Time of Prayer for Our Community, State, Nation, and World.

And that’s what we will do. Tomorrow the Rev. Andrew Black will lead this prayer time. I hope you will join us. You may need it but I’m pretty sure the world needs it even more.

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order F-1.01

October 12, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, whose church exhibits “a new openness in its own membership, becoming in fact as well as in faith a community of women and men of all ages, races, ethnicities, and worldly conditions, made one in Christ by the power of the Spirit, as a visible sign of the new humanity.” *

This “new humanity” was present in the life of Hildegard of Bingen, one of the dangerous dozen I wrote about in my last letter. With men dominating the history of Christianity, at least the history that comes down to us in official church channels, it feels so good and right to talk about a woman, and such an amazing and influential woman at that.

Hildegard was born in Germany in 1098, the tenth child of a noble family, and grew up in the turbulent 12^th century with its crusades, political tumult, and conflicts between popes and emperors. She was a visionary in both uses of the term—as one who received divine visions and one who had a gift for visioning and strategic thinking.

The author of A Dangerous Dozen, C.K. Robertson, writes: “She was a counselor to emperors and popes, an inspiration to the famous and the common, and a threat to those with small minds and petty jealousies. Revered in her own lifetime as a living saint, she failed — to this day—to make it through the official process of canonization.”

Any one who is a “threat to those with small minds and petty jealousies” would get my vote as a saint.

She was a woman of courage, displayed a “non-anxious presence” in a time of great anxiety and unrest, and maneuvered her way through the politics of a patriarchal age.

And she gave us music. “I am, of course, the lyre and harp of God’s kindness,” she wrote. While I don’t know the songs she sang I would sure love to sing along, and sing loudly enough for our world to hear.

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order F-1.0404

October 9, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, whose “Church seeks reform and fresh direction, (as) it looks to Jesus Christ who goes ahead of us and calls us to follow him.” *

In looking for something else on my bookshelves my eyes rested on a book I always planned to read: A Dangerous Dozen: 12 Christians who threatened the status quo but taught us to live like Jesus.

Anytime I see dangerous and Christians in the same sentence my mind takes me to current headlines and issues supported by those who share our faith but not always our values and scriptural interpretation.

But these twelve. Christian. Dangerous. Threatens the status quo. Teaches us to live like Jesus.

These look like my kind of people. Paul of Tarsus, the Catalyst. Mary Magdalene, the Witness. Origin of Alexandria, the Innovator. Francis of Assisi, the Radical. Hildegard of Bingen, the Visionary. Thomas Cranmer, the Reformer. Sojourner Truth, the Liberator. Dorothy Day, the Activist. Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the Resister. Janani Luwum, the Revivalist. Oscar Romero, the Advocate. K. H. Ting, the Reconstructionist.

“Change is never easy,” the inside cover reads, “and it is often most threatening to those in institutional power, whether in society or the Church. Yet there are times when transformation is sorely needed, and it usually takes “troublemakers” to help bring it about . . . . These twelve women and men showed the world a different way of living. Like Jesus himself, they were not afraid to get their hands dirty as they challenged structures that would divide and repress.”

I have forgotten what book I was originally looking for; this is the one I can’t wait to read and this is the time to read it, to learn about troublemakers, to get our hands dirty, and to envision a world of their molding.

I wish they were with us now. We need them. But, then again, since Jesus goes ahead of us we might just be called to follow in similar ways. After all, no one said the list has to stop at a dozen.

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order F-1.0401

October 2, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, for whom the Church, affirming with the earliest Christians that he is Lord, “confesses that he is its hope.” *

Everything changed in 313 AD. Before that year Christianity was on the margins, an underground movement far from the halls of power, connected not to the establishment but with the poor, the outcast, the persecuted, and the oppressed.

What a shock it must have been when Emperor Constantine declared Christianity as the official religion of Rome! This is the same Rome that ruled Palestine with casual cruelty and executed Jesus. I can’t begin to fathom the effect this had upon these early followers of Christ.

As Richard Rohr wrote in a recent daily post: “It might be the single most unfortunate thing that happened to Christianity.”

Our scripture this week (Matthew 21:33-46) continues Jesus’ confrontation with the Temple authorities, the day after Palm Sunday, who were colluding with the exploitative economic and social policies of the Roman Empire. Jesus told an earlier parable which is quickly followed by a second one that leaves these authorities miffed and silent.

As post-313 Christians, we tend to soften Jesus’ conflicts with power. We might even want to interrupt Jesus before he goes too far with this second parable.

Walk away, Jesus! You made your point with the first one. The crowd is with you. Remember yesterday with all the palms waving? The authorities can’t touch you now. Your popularity is soaring.

But Jesus keeps going and does what we need to do today; keep in conversation with those with whom we disagree. Keep lifting up issues of justice. Support those who are being exploited. Don’t give in.

Christianity is not about winning popularity contests. It is about following the Christ who remains our hope in the midst of these unsettling days.

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order F-1.0204

September 30, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, where “the catholicity of the Church summons the Church to a deeper faith, a larger hope, and a more complete love as it bears witness to God’s grace.” *

I watched the debate last night. We need to pray for our country.

Pray without ceasing. Pray when you can. Pray when you breathe. Pray today. Pray each Wednesday with me at 5:15 pm for fifteen minutes on Zoom. (The link can be found in the eNews.)

Pray for a deeper faith to center and guide our thoughts and actions as we gaze upon Jesus, his life and ministry.

Pray for a larger hope as we lift up our nation, in all its frailties and yearnings, that it might one day more closely resemble a city set on a hill and a beacon of light for all people.

Pray for a more complete love that breaks down walls and lifts up the discouraged, the given-up, the distressed and the broken.

Please pray today. The world needs it. We need it.

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order F-1.0302c

September 28, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, whose Church is sent to be Christ’s faithful evangelist . . .sharing with others a deep life of worship, prayer, fellowship, and service. *

Does prayer really work? I mean, does it really make a difference in such a violent, unsettling, and confusing world like ours?

I remember reading about a study in Washington DC a decade ago. Violence was on the rise so a group of people committed to pray for these neighborhoods for several months. At the end of the study violence had decreased by 40%.

Was this the result of prayer or were there other factors? Was it just a coincidence?

I’m not a researcher but a pastor. I’m not a community organizer but a follower of Christ. I’m not a skeptic but one that believes in the mystery and the power of God’s spirit.

So let us pray for our nation. Let us pray in these days leading up to the election, days so fraught with fear and anxiety.

I hope you will pray any day, any time, but let’s pray together as a congregation each Wednesday for at least fifteen minutes, more if you have time. I will be hosting a Zoom meeting starting this Wednesday 5:15-5:30 pm (MDT) so we might share this time together. Please join me if and when you can. If not, pray when you can, on the go, around a meal, in a busy time or place of quiet.

Wherever you are, whenever you pray, also light a candle as a reminder of Christ’s presence.

It’s only fifteen minutes, but who knows, it may make a world of difference, or at least for our nation.

Grace and peace,

Harry
* Book of Order F-1.0302d

September 25, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, whose “Church seeks to include all people and is never content to enjoy the benefits of Christian community for itself alone.” *

I think we should expand the words from the Book of Order above to say “to include all animals.”

In a world that has been so recklessly divided, animals bring us together. Can you think of anything else that does this these days?

So, in the spirit of Francis of Assisi, let us bless our animals. St. Francis Day is Sunday, October 4^th. Please send a photo of your pet, or a short video, now (immediately) to the church office at office@fpcsantafe.org. The sooner the better!

Here is a blessing for the animals in our new Book of Common Worship that I will use:

Almighty and everlasting God,
Creator of all things and giver of all life,
let your blessing be upon all these animals.
May our relationship with them mirror your love,
and our care for them be an example of your bountiful mercy.
Grant the animals health and peace.
Strengthen us to love and care for them
as we strive to imitate the love of Jesus Christ
our Lord and your servant Francis. Amen.

Grace and peace, and thanks to our animals who bless us.

Harry
* Book of Order F-1.0302a

September 23, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, who offers us the good news of the Gospel which through the triune God “creates, redeems, sustains, rules, and transforms all things and all people.” *

To be honest, I am at a loss for words. The death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg and what this means for the Supreme Court and our nation, the constant drumming of polls, and the political maneuvering leading up to the election leaves me exhausted and dizzy with worry.

Richard Rohr wrote yesterday in his daily blog that we should limit our exposure to the news to one hour a day. For our well-being. Sounds like sound advice. I’m game. Even Jesus did that, right? Got away to a mountain retreat? Checked out for a bit?

Then I remembered Jesus cleansed the Temple.

The scholars who put together the lectionary (a three-year cycle of scriptures to be read in worship) leaves out this story in 2020 and goes directly to the following morning when Jesus is back in the Temple talking with the religious authorities who were obviously miffed at his antics. Jesus was messing with power and money and authority. They all knew it.

But we don’t. Without the context we would never know that it was courageous for Jesus even to show his face again in the Temple, let alone the next morning. I don’t know about you but my thoughts would have taken my feet as far away as they could until things cooled down.

Jesus came back. He didn’t flee. He came back. He didn’t hide. He came back. He didn’t only watch the news for one hour a day. He came back. He stood up. He faced the authorities. He didn’t back down. He came back.

I hope I come back. I hope I don’t give into fear. I hope I don’t despair too much. If I do I might miss the good news still at work in this world, of a God who “creates, redeems, sustains, rules, and transforms all things and all people.”

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order F-1.01

September 21, 2021

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, whose church participates “in God’s mission to care for the needs of the poor, and lonely; to free people from sin, suffering, and oppression; and to establish Christ’s just, loving, and peaceable rule in the world.” *

Charles Campbell, preaching professor at Duke Divinity School, tells of the time he was channel-surfing and came upon an interview with television psychologist Dr. Phil. At one point the interviewer asked Dr. Phil, “If you could interview anyone in the world, past or present, who would it be?” Without hesitation, Dr. Phil replied, “Jesus Christ. I would like to have a conversation with him about the meaning of life.”

If this interview with Jesus were to take place sometime in the last few days I wonder if Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s name would come up?

And Jesus, what would you do with our fractured society, with its parts and pieces all strewn about?

I think Dr. Phil would soon come to regret his choice of an interviewee. There would be some tough questions thrown back at him, and us. Why are we not paying more attention to the status of women, the poor, the marginalized and oppressed? Why are we letting politics, and those with power, overshadow the life and legacy of Ruth Bader Ginsburg? Why aren’t we more concerned? Well?

As we might imagine, well-behaved interviewees, and saviors, seldom make history.

Jesus would turn all our assumptions upside down and every which way, and might even get us thinking that a tiny old Jewish woman wracked with cancer is more powerful than all the King’s men, because she did the heavy lifting of caring for people without power.

“Fight for the things you care about,” Justice Ginsburg said once, “but do it in a way that will lead others to join you.”

She did. I want to. I hope we will continue to do so despite the odds. There’s much more work to be done, like caring for the needs of the sick, poor, and lonely; freeing people from oppression; and establishing a just, loving, and peaceable world.

Grace and peace, and a world of thanks for the life of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
Harry
* Book of Order F-1.0303

September 18, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ who, as his followers, are to “become priests for one another, praying for the world and for one another.” *

A few years ago a foot race was making the rounds on YouTube. Runners are lined up at the starting line but before it begins the official instructs those who grew up with both parents to please move forward two steps. Never went hungry? Move forward. Finished high school? Completed college? Keep moving forward. Never suffered from discrimination? Keep moving. Now, ready, set, go!

Guess who won the race?

We are becoming more and more aware of racism and white privilege. Don’t let up. Don’t think we’ve figured it out. Let’s keep examining our own life experience. Attend, if you can, the Zoom class each Friday 12:30-1:30 pm that is examining these issues and providing amazing resources.

And look at Scripture. In Matthew 20:1-16 a landowner goes to the marketplace early in the morning to find workers for his vineyard. They determine a fair wage and off they go. But the landowner comes back at 9 am for more workers, then noon, then 3 pm, and finally 5 pm. At the end of the day each is paid the same. The ensuing complaints by the early workers obscures what I think is most important for our own day.

The landowner came back.

All of these workers are the poorest of the poor and live hard and short lives. The landowner could have left the later workers in the marketplace since they weren’t there on time. We don’t know why they weren’t, scripture doesn’t say, just as we don’t know the hardship of being poor. Perhaps a child was sick and there was no medicine. Or they were homeless and couldn’t find a safe place to sleep. Or maybe there was not adequate transportation or they couldn’t afford it.

Whatever the reason the story suggests the system is not working. Then and now. The starting line is not the same for everyone, some have access to daily bread more than others, and it is too easy to blame the poor, or anyone who is different in any way.

Jesus offers an alternative to empire ways. An alternative society where we make sure there is enough for everyone, where we go back to make sure no one is left behind, where we “become priests for one another, praying for the world and for one another.”

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order F-1.0302a

September 16, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, and in God who “reconciles brokenness, makes all things new, and is still at work in the world.” *

What if?

What if in August of 1969 my family and I did not take a trip back to Ohio and the East coast to visit family and friends after moving to Pasadena two years earlier? Hold that thought for a moment.

The book Helter-Skelter describes the chaotic days of Charles Manson and his “family” and in one chapter tells of a night in August of 1969 when Manson and his followers went to a church in Pasadena to kill the minister. They tried the doors but they were locked so they moved on. A few days later they killed Sharon Tate and the LaBianca family. The rest is for history to sort out.

That was our church. That was the church where Dad was the minister.

What if we decided to stay home that August? What if Dad forgot an illustration for his sermon for Sunday and walked the block from our house to the church to retrieve it? What if he had a meeting that night? Too many “what ifs” can drive a person crazy.

How arbitrary life is, where a well-timed vacation and an infamous killer could have had disastrous consequences for me and my family. As we marked what would have been Dad’s 94^th birthday yesterday, having died two months shy of it, we could have been remembering when Dad was taken from us one terrible night fifty-one years earlier.

Sadly, far too many families are remembering real times like this. The deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor have raised our consciousness but their names are only two of too many. Why were they there when they were? Why in the world did they lose their life? And do we still remember them? Or have the ever-relentless news cycles buried them in favor of today’s breaking news?

Though our minds easily wander to some other place, to some other story, I trust God remembers. Though we hope that those who suffer loss and tragedy get over it, so we can move on, I trust God stays with them, and us, in our hurt and bewilderment.

In a Helter Skelter world like ours, with great hope I trust that God “reconciles brokenness, makes all things new, and is still at work in the world.”

Grace and peace,
Harry

* Book of Order F-1.0302d

September 14, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

The early Christian Church suffered persecution from Rome and its pagan culture, so it used symbols—a ship, anchor, lamb, vine, cluster of grapes, dove, the cross, to name a some of them—to secretly identify themselves and promote their faith.

Today we are not persecuted by the authorities (apparently we are no longer a threat) and, try as we might, it’s hard to be seen.

But we will keep trying because the world needs to know we stand for compassion, inclusion, reconciliation, justice, peace, tearing down walls, and lifting up the beautiful idea that we are all loved by God. The world needs to see these words come alive.

You can be part of this effort through our denomination’s Matthew 25 initiative. We signed on earlier this summer as a congregation to build congregational vitality, dismantle structural racism, and eradicate systemic poverty. It’s a huge task, but I say bring it on!

Let’s put our society on notice that Presbyterians are on this. Instead of keeping who we are and what we do a secret we propose to do just the opposite: we are asking you to consider buying a Matthew 25 T-Shirt for $25. It’s a pretty blue with our logo on the front and a version of Matthew 25:40 on the back: “What you do for these brothers and sisters of mine, you do for me.” (Look for purchase details in this eNews.)

All proceeds will help support the Interfaith Community Shelter at Pete’s Place and St. Elizabeth’s shelter, organizations we helped start here in Santa Fe.

When you wear your new T-shirt I hope people will take notice. Presbyterians are in the game. We’re not going away. We support our sisters and brothers. The nearness of God’s kingdom has come.

Grace and peace,
Harry

* Book of Order F-1.01

September 11, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, whose “Church’s life and mission are a joyful participation in Christ’s ongoing life and work.” *

Our church building has been closed for six months now but our ministry is alive and well and serving our community.

One reason is member Bonnie Tsosie. She is a painter in oils and an artist of New Mexico landscapes. Bonnie calls me one day shortly after we shut down to tell me she has recently been painting non-stop, spurred by an intense desire to help those who are struggling in these pandemic times. Can we sell these paintings? All the money can go to help people. Any ideas?

So we did and came up with a plan, thanks to Judi Haines. Many of you bought Bonnie’s paintings (there are still several left) and we raised $3,450!

After much consideration, we decided to send all the money to the Synod of the Southwest to support Native Americans on the Navajo Nation and many other Native American Communities in New Mexico and Arizona.

Specifically, this gift joins a larger pool of money from the Synod and Presbyterian Disaster Assistance to support pastors and commissioned pastors as they serve native communities, provide needed basic infrastructure of these churches and chapels as centers of community life, and purchase food and supplies for distribution to Native American communities throughout the Synod.

So our ministry continues, not in a building, but in Native American communities, helping our sisters and brothers in great need, all because one of our members shared her talent and generosity. Thank you, Bonnie, and those who bought her paintings.

Now, what’s next as we joyfully participate in Christ’s ongoing life and work?

Grace and peace,
Harry

* Book of Order F-1.0201

September 9, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, who as members of his Church “are forgiven by Christ and called again and yet again to strive for the purity, righteousness, and truth revealed to us in Jesus Christ and promised to all people in God’s new creation. ”

Peter asks Jesus in Matthew 18 how many times we should forgive others. While once or twice, at most three times, seemed legitimate, Peter’s suggestion of seven times was way beyond the usual answer.

What’s your number? What would it be for your enemies? The other political party? Racists and white supremacists? Police officers who have killed black men and women? Protesters and rioters, and those who have brought violence to our cities?

To be clear, Peter confined his question to a member of the church but our society is lost when it comes to forgiveness. It needs this conversation. So, how many, if at all?

Jesus’s answer is as unexpected as much as it is startling. Forget such small change. Jesus says we must forgive seventy-seven times. Other translations of this passage read “seventy times seven,”or 490 times. Are you serious?

We have to believe Jesus is serious, very much so.

Biblical scholar Stanley Saunders gives some light to Jesus’s answer. “Jesus’ number is not drawn from the air. It mirrors the boast of Cain’s descendant, Lamech, in Genesis 4:23-24, who brags that the mortal vengeance he has extracted against a young man who hurt him far exceeds God’s promise of seven-fold punishment against anyone who might kill Cain. Jesus is calling his community of disciples to participate in undoing the curse of Cain and Lamech that has kept their offspring trapped in spasms of envy, hatred, violence, and retribution across the generations to this day.”

Envy, hatred, violence, and retribution. Pretty much sums up what we witness in our world today.

But what if we listened to Jesus, undo Lambech’s assertion, and move toward wholeness through forgiveness and not retribution?

I may be getting carried away again. But what if we did?

Grace and peace,
Harry

* Book of Order F-1.0302b

September 7, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, whose ordained officers in the Presbyterian Church answer the question: “Do you accept the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments to be, by the Holy Spirit, the unique and authoritative witness to Jesus Christ in the Church universal, and God’s Word to you?” *

Do you? Do you know some of the stories? Do you think other people know it better than you? Do you ever read the Bible?

According to a recent survey, about half of Americans (53 percent) have read relatively little of the Bible. One in 10 has read none of it, while 13 percent have read a few sentences. Thirty percent say they have read several passages or stories. While Americans are fond of the Bible, they don’t actually read it.

I am not surprised by these numbers nor am I admonishing anyone who doesn’t read the Bible. In my experience most people I meet in church don’t know Scripture as much as they wish they did, or think they should. We live in a diverse society with many faith traditions. We live in a time when religion has struggled. We live in a time of competing voices and philosophies trying to make sense of our society.

But if we belong to a church, or seek to follow the way of Christ then Scripture is essential. The less we know, the more we wander away from it. The more we know, the more resources are available to us as we navigate these strange and challenging times.

So, for only a few minutes a day (I think I sound too much like one of those commercials on TV!) you, too, can begin to experience its major themes, captivating personalities, historical movements, and struggles against Empire; and, in the process, read about people like you and me trying to respond to the presence of God in their lives.

Simply click here and you will be transported to Gateway to God’s Word, an overview written by my father. Day by day for twenty-six weeks we will be part of an exciting journey to help us discover what we need to know, to know the Bible.

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order W-4.0404b

September 4, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, whose Church “proclaims and hears the Word of God, responding to the promise of God’s new creation in Christ, and inviting all people to participate in that new creation.” *

In our swirling, fractured, Covid, Jacob Blake shooting, Professional sports-boycotting world, it would be good to know the Bible.

It is even more important since, with a few good exceptions, those who speak for Christianity in the media sound very different than the faith I have known and seek to follow.

Starting next week I will offer you, through a link in our eNews, a manuscript written by my father called Gateway to God’s Word. Dad, who died in July at the age of 93, was a pastor, scholar, and teacher who served Presbyterian churches across the country from 1951-1991, then filled his 29 years of retirement traveling, teaching, and writing. Gateway to God’s Word was written in 1984 and was made into a video series but was never published.

It’s too valuable to leave in manuscript form, and who watches videos anymore? So I will be presenting it in readable segments (much like Sherlock Holmes stories in the old Strand magazine) day by day, week by week, all the way to Lent. I have updated it where appropriate but the scholarship is Dad’s.

It will take us 26 weeks to go through it but only a few minutes each day to read it. I promise you it won’t be drudgery. Instead you will be shown a gateway into understanding Scripture—what you should know to know the Bible—and will meet intriguing personalities, social movements, Biblical history, and various theologies along the way.

How we need to know Scripture today, a time when we are called to respond to the turmoil of our culture with “the promise of God’s new creation in Christ.”

Grace and peace,
Harry
* Book of Order F-1.0303

September 2, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, whose “Church is to be a community of witness, pointing beyond
itself through word and work to the good news of God’s transforming grace in Christ Jesus its Lord.”*

It was a vague feeling that something important was happening but, as a four year-old, I couldn’t grasp
its significance. Dad came home from church one night and talked in hushed tones with Mom. They
seemed subdued but determined, excited but cautious, and worried. Dad was always at night meetings
but this was different. It was only years later I was told what happened.

At the session meeting of the First Presbyterian Church of Wooster, Ohio, it was decided, after a long
and intense discussion, that the Associate Pastor would be sent to the South to be part of the Civil Rights
struggle. One woman elder swayed a close vote. “Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote that God in Christ is
present wherever people suffer. People are suffering in Mississippi. I think we should support him.”

This was huge. An all-white church in the north in 1963 officially siding with people of color. Christians
in a small town in Ohio willing to get involved in their struggle for equal rights, civil rights, human rights.

In truth, this is our struggle. The moment we think we are not part of the issues of our day, that’s it’s
somebody else’s problem, is the moment we are not following Christ. Jesus was intimately involved in
the issues of his day. He didn’t stand off in the distance. He didn’t stay safe behind fences. He wasn’t
content to separate spirituality from life’s realities and indignities and injustices.

I never heard the stories from the Associate Pastor when he came back. What did he see and
experience? Did it look similar to what we are experiencing this summer? Did the south look a lot like
Kenosha does today?

Something very important is happening. People are suffering across the nation. How will we support
them?

Grace and peace,
Harry
*Book of Order F-1.0301

August 28, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, whose “Church participates in God’s mission for the transformation of creation and humanity by proclaiming to all people the good news of God’s love.” *

When I heard Doc Rivers, Head Coach of the Los Angeles Clippers, speak on Tuesday about the Kenosha shooting, my mind took me back to February of 1974 to a Saturday morning in the gym at Proviso East High School. That day I was captain of the Freshman basketball team at Evanston High School and we were playing this legendary basketball powerhouse in Maywood, an all-back near-west suburb of Chicago, whose teams had produced many NBA players.

One was Doc Rivers. He was two years younger than me but was already being talked about as a 7^th grader. Known as Glenn back then, he came from a well-known sports family. His uncle was former NBA player Jim Brewer, a cousin was NBA guard Bryon Irvin and another was baseball outfielder Ken Singleton. Yet another cousin was the star of the team we were playing that day.

I had my best day. Every shot was going in. We were winning. Then in the second half a teammate stole the ball and threw it to me as I ran for a layup. I caught the pass while jumping and turning at the same time and came down on the side of my ankle, missing the layup as I fell to the floor. Fans were screaming at me for trying to fake a foul. I got up and couldn’t. I was helped off the floor with people still screaming. I had torn ligaments in my ankle and it was the last competitive basketball game I ever played.

I don’t remember who won the game. I had already gone to the hospital. But later I realized I was the only winner that day because I was the only white player on the floor for either team. Because I am white I have enjoyed great privileges in my life. Doors opened for me. I never had to worry about getting pulled over by police with guns pointed at me. I never had to talk to my children about racial profiling and discrimination that would be directed at them.

And I have never had to say, as Doc Rivers did on Tuesday, “We’re the ones getting killed, we’re the ones getting shot, we’re the ones who are denied to live in certain communities. We’ve been hung, we’ve been shot. It’s amazing to me why we keep loving this country and this country does not love us back.”

Jesus commands us to love one another. Why have we tried so hard to ignore it?

Grace and peace,
Harry

* Book of Order F-1.01

August 27, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, who is “present with the Church in both Spirit and Word.” *

Yesterday I wrote to you about the nearness of God’s Reign, as we ended up on the high mountain of the Transfiguration with Jesus telling Peter, James and John, “Get up and do not be afraid.” Even God, in a cloud a few minutes earlier, said listen to Jesus.

I assume when both Jesus and God tell us something we should probably listen.

Then I participated in a Zoom call with my Presbytery colleagues for a check-in. “Where are you and your congregation exercising creativity?” was the lead question. I cheerily chimed in on how our congregation has been creative in all the ways we are, the list long and good and faithful.

The next pastor responded. I’m tired. Don’t feel creative. Not sure what to do. One admitted the pressure of validating her work and how “doing” can be overwhelming. One denomination, we were told, is offering free PTSD counseling for pastors. Another admitted to being exhausted. By this time I was wishing I never said anything.

Do we consider this time merely as an inconvenience, biding time until we can get back to normal? Or do we take this opportunity to embrace the stillness, the slowness, noticing exhaustion, experiencing days of un-creativity, while keeping an eye open to where the Spirit is leading us?

I know we are action people and revel in stories of the Action Jesus but when we read closely we see Jesus often retreating to lonely places, to mountains, to be alone to replenish his soul. He couldn’t do one without the other.

The Church knows Action. Maybe, for today at least (also tomorrow?), we can practice Stillness, and not feel guilty about it.

Grace and peace,
Harry

* Book of Order F-1.0202

August 26, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, whose Gospel “announces the nearness of God’s kingdom.” *

I’m straining to hear the announcement and yearning to see its nearness today.

What I hear is another black man was shot by police. What I hear is racism is not going away.
What I hear are the cries and pleas of mothers and fathers who have lost children.

What I see, I fear, is a nation of Kenoshas.

In Matthew 16 Jesus is having a frank conversation with his disciples. If we follow Jesus we will have to take up our cross, not the little crosses of irritation in our everyday lives, but the cross that leaves us trembling. A cross reserved for the revolutionaries and the vulnerable, three thousand of them lined up on a busy thoroughfare for all the world to see, the consequence of standing up to the Roman Empire. The disciples knew the scene.

I want to skip to the next chapter hoping that Jesus reconsiders. Quite frankly, I never remember signing up for this when I joined the church when I was 14.

Well, I looked at the next chapter. It is the story of the Transfiguration with Jesus on a high mountain with Peter, James, and John. God is there in a cloud. So are Moses and Elijah. Light shines on Jesus, God’s beloved, and God says we are to listen to him.

What did Jesus tell them? “Get up and do not be afraid.”

It’s worth a try. Besides, we might just see the nearness of God’s Kingdom when we do.

Grace and peace,
Harry

* Book of Order F-1.01, Matthew 4:17

August 25, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, whose Church is summoned “to a deeper faith, a larger hope, and a more complete love as it bears witness to God’s grace.” *

While the Trinity of faith, hope, and love abide, my eyes keeps straying back to larger.

Go larger. When was the Church seen as larger, let alone a larger hope? Make a list if you can. It’s a good exercise. When did the church express a larger hope for you, for our community, for the world?

From what I have read about the early church, with stories that pop up all over the Gospels, the fledgling Church was that larger hope. It made people’s lives larger, transforming a life of drudgery, fear, want, and despair into one as large as the life of Jesus.

Larger gave them something to grow into. Jesus was beside himself, seen in Matthew 16, rebuking Peter for living small, “for you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.”

It’s way past time for the church to get over living small. It takes us nowhere. It keeps us looking inward to our own problems, small hopes, and survival.

We are called to be larger than that. Be seen. Get out there. Live so people see the hope that goes with you wherever you are. In facing even the direst of circumstances, Christianity still has hope at the end of every sentence.

In a world that is starved for hope, that’s a pretty large calling.

Grace and peace,
Harry

* Book of Order F-1.0302c

August 21, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, as we are reminded again in these pandemic times “the Church’s life and mission are a joyful participation in Christ’s ongoing life and work.”*

I hope participating in the church’s life and mission is joyful for you. Even when we can’t be together as we once were in worship, fellowship, education, and service.

To be part of Christ’s ongoing life and work is always a challenge. Talk to any of his disciples and you will hear, as we read in the Gospels, that their lives did not become more comfortable but were filled with hardship, confrontations, doubts, and controversies.

The struggles continue to this day. An article recently sent to me shares the story of a young pastor on a zoom call with ten clergy. Four admitted suicidal thoughts. One shared a heartbreaking story of reopening too soon and a beloved congregant died from Covid-19. Another gets daily emails from members threatening to leave the church if they don’t reopen immediately. One was fired because she had to work from home to take care of her two young children since her husband had recently died. One pastor preached on race one week and an angry congregant kicked his office door off it’s hinges and tried to incite the pastor to a fist fight.

I am so very sad to read this. This has not been my experience.

I thank God for you and for this congregation. For your patience, understanding, flexibility, and faithfulness as we navigate this pandemic, our hyper-partisan culture with an upcoming election, and a society coming to terms with race and white privilege.

It’s not easy these days, no doubt. It’s not church the way we’ve known it. But it’s a life of faith as it’s always been, filled with valleys and mountaintops, struggles and triumphs, dying and living, tears and smiles, and the joy of participating in Christ’s ongoing life and work.

Grace and peace,
Harry

*Book of Order F-1.0201

August 24,2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, whose “Church is to be a community of faith, entrusting itself to God alone, even at the risk of losing its life.”*

What would it mean if we entrusted the life of our church, and our own life, to God alone?

Jesus talks about this. Later in Matthew 16 Jesus tells his disciples “For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it.” Jesus says this right after rebuking Peter for keeping his mind on only human things. I suppose we can’t help it, but yes, we are prone as well to set our minds on human things, and not on God things.

But what are God things? What if we were to try, at least, to steer our lives in God’s direction? Here’s a start, and it’s only a start.

Music. Get lost in it. Sing. Play. Listen. Silence. Stop talking. Start hearing. Be still. We don’t need to cross off everything on our to-do lists. Art. Be creative just because. Nature. Yes! How else do we witness God’s masterpieces? Consider clouds and sunsets to start. Love. This many-splendored thing. This need for another. This gift from another. This applause that brings up the curtain. This joy that mystifies. This open-our-arms-wide to include God’s world and all that is in it. This smile on a child’s face looking up at you and realizing you can’t be whole or right or at peace until all God’s children have a reason to smile.

Ah, I lost myself there for a bit. The words just poured out. Maybe that’s what Jesus was talking about.

When we entrust God with our lives we can be who we are, fully alive, and not worry that somebody saw us dancing or hear us trying to reach the high notes.

Grace and peace,
Harry

*Book of Order F-1.0301

August 20, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, who “calls the Church into being, giving it all that is necessary for its mission in the world, for its sanctification, and for its service to God.”*

I am greatly comforted by these words. We don’t lack anything. We have everything we need. I can take a deep breath and so can you. I say let’s get on with it, despite Covid, despite living virtually, despite the turmoil around us.

Look at what Jesus does in Matthew 16: Jesus gives Peter the keys of the kingdom. What else does one need? What’s more, Jesus tells him the church will be built on this rock, presumably Peter. Now Jesus has my attention and my imagination.

What if we’ve been handed the keys? What if our church is built upon such a rock?

On this rock we build a community that grieves over every child that is hurting and mistreated, and then stands up to change policies that allow this to happen. On this rock we demonstrate hospitality and compassion whose arms are big enough for all people. On this rock we shall not let down, or give up, because the world needs to hear from us the words of Jesus, and see in us his actions.

There is still room to add to the list. Lots of room. On this rock . . . . In this church . . . .

Correct me if I’m wrong, correct Christ if you want, but it appears we have everything we need to make a huge difference in the world.

Now, where did I put those keys?

Grace and peace,
Harry

*Book of Order F-1.0202

August 18, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, whose Gospel “announces the nearness of God’s kingdom, bringing good news to all who are impoverished, sight to all who are blind, freedom to all who are oppressed, and proclaiming the Lord’s favor upon all creation.”*

The propaganda of the Roman Empire in Jesus’ day promoted Pax Romana, the Peace of Rome, even though the people suffered under Rome’s brutality and casual cruelty. Caesar, regarded as divine, was the bringer of “Good News” even though over 90% of the population was impoverished.

Rome proclaimed one thing while the people experienced something totally different.

Times haven’t changed much. With elections approaching and political conventions upon us we are asked to decipher what is really true and good and what isn’t, all while deeply entrenched on opposite sides. A cascade of words which denigrate, insult, mislead, and misinform certainly don’t help, and only add to the confusion.

It is no wonder, then, that Jesus asks the question to his disciples in Matthew 16: “Who do people say that I am?” Are they getting it? Do they understand why I am here? Is my message breaking through all the noice and suffering? Do they see that I am countering the Empire through my healing and teachings, and in all that I do? Do they see in me true peace and good news?

Do you see it? Yes? No? Either way I suggest we go straight to Jesus’ second question: “Who do you say that I am?” This is what Jesus really wants to know.

Do you believe Jesus is caught up in, and drowned out by, all of the rhetoric and partisan tussles? Has he checked out? Or is he continuing to be the bringer of good news to a world that so desperately needs to hear and see it?

The question is designed to go deep, beyond the opinions of others who are more than glad to give us theirs.

Our answer, though, will say a lot about who we are, what we believe, and how we might get through these next few months.

Grace and peace,
Harry

*Book of Order F-1.01

August 14, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings, as we continue on the road to a “new openness in (our) own membership, becoming in fact as well as in faith a community of women and men of all ages, races, ethnicities, and worldly conditions, made one in Christ by the power of the Spirit, as a visible sign of the new humanity.”*

“Send her away.” These words were not uttered by racists or white supremacists but by Jesus’ disciples. I can’t get this out of my head as I read and reread the story of the Canaanite woman in Matthew 15 pleading with Jesus to heal her daughter. Wait, disciples said that? We are the good guys, right?

Our history hasn’t shown it. The Church has often been on the wrong side. Often. It has said “send her away” in words and deeds and stances through the centuries.

The class on Racism and White Privilege met today as it does every Friday, 12:30-1:30 on Zoom (please join us!) and is wrestling with the enormous issues of our day, and our past, while trying to carve out a future where, in the words above taken directly from the Foundations of Presbyterian Polity in our Book of Order, we become “a visible sign of the new humanity.”

How? The class members had some ideas. Vote. Support the Census efforts. Reach out into the community. Listen. Walk beside. Take a stand. Become politically active and not worry about the criticisms that will inevitably come. Take risks. Write letters to the editor.

Let’s add to the list and include the ministries in which we are already engaged.

The challenge is huge. It’s before us. Do you see the opening? We can do it. The old humanity has left us with too many “send her away” messages. I yearn for the new humanity that says instead, “Welcome! I am so glad you are here. Imagine the world we can build together!”

Grace and peace,
Harry

*Book of Order F-1.0404

August 13, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, and the Church which “strives everywhere to testify to Christ’s embrace of men, women, and children of all times, places, races, nations, ages, conditions, and stations in life.”*

The continued call for a reckoning with race in our country reminds me of the Canaanite woman in Matthew 15. While Jesus was in the region of Tyre and Sidon, Gentile country, this woman pleads for him to heal her daughter tormented by a demon. Jesus says his mission is only for the House of Israel. The disciples yell for her to go away. She kneels and again asks for help. Jesus again states the focus of his mission. It is a stand-off.

I am not sure I have ever said this before but I am disappointed in Jesus. The only excuse that makes sense is Jesus has fallen prey to old prejudices. Historically there was animosity between Jews and Canaanites but it is interesting to note that there were no Canaanites in the First Century when this was written. Do old prejudices, against people and situations not even around anymore, still cause us to act badly?

The woman wouldn’t let Jesus get away with it. She persisted in advocating for her daughter no matter the cost.

How often have we persisted? Sure, for our family and friends, perhaps, but what about for all children? For those on the margins of our society? To work to change power structures so that all people have the same rights and the same voice? To not give up when the answer is no?

The woman’s persistence pays off. Her daughter is instantly healed. Jesus commends her for her great faith. God breaks through barriers and enters new territory (something God does all the time). Jesus changes his thinking and shakes off the rusty shackles of prejudice.

And he no longer calls her a Canaanite woman, but simply addresses her as “woman,” a mother who pleads for her daughter, like millions of mothers across the world doing the same thing.

I hope we hear their cries. I hope we don’t say no. I hope we don’t give up.

Grace and peace,
Harry

*Book of Order (F-1.03c)

August 12, 2020

To the Saints in Santa Fe and other far-off places:

Greetings to you, sisters and brothers, who are part of a Church which “seeks a new openness to God’s mission in the world, raises up a new humanity, and promises a new future for all creation.”

The phrase in quotes above are from the Book of Order of the Presbyterian Church (USA)—something I will do in the first paragraph of my letters to you—which calls us to be open to the winds of God’s Spirit in these challenging times and find a new way to be church.

In our Monday eNews we put a link to an open letter to all Presbyterians by Rick Ufford-Chase, long-time activist, lay leader, presently co-director of Stoney Point Conference Center, and former moderator of the General Assembly. I hope you have read it. If not, here is a paragraph to motivate you to read about an amazing opportunity we have before us:

“Let’s not go back to “business as usual” in our worship if and when the pandemic begins to loosen its hold on our congregations. Let’s talk with one another in deeper ways and push one another to greater faithfulness. Let’s agree that our prime directive is to be Good News in the face of climate disaster and racism and enforced poverty in our communities and around the world. Let’s embrace far more culturally diverse worship styles that sustain our faith communities and actually make our churches the center of our lives. Let’s abandon the Christian exceptionalism that is so ingrained in us that we ourselves are blind to it, and instead reach out to be family both with those of other religious traditions and with those whose spirituality long ago left behind the confines of narrowly constructed denominational identity.”

Yes. Yes. And one more time. Yes. Thank you, Rick.

Grace and peace,
Harry

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