What does the Lord require of us?

In 2013 I had a wonderful experience of spending time at Fairview United Methodist Church in Mooresville North Carolina. It was part of an exchange program by the World Methodist Council. My colleague and now friend Rev Dr David Calhoun came to Swindon. I leave that there!

I was truly blessed. I learned so much and made some wonderful friends. If you look back through my blog, you’ll find lots more about my time in Mooresville.

During my time in North Carolina I visited the Civil Rights Museum in Greensboro. My son had read about it and thought we’d find it interesting. We certainly did.

The museum occupies a former Woolworth’s store. And the front of the museum is the frontage of that former shop. Why? I didn’t realise until we went to the museum.

In February 1960, four African American men entered the store and went into the cafeteria. They sat at the counter. So what? Well, at that time the cafeteria was segregated, and African Americans could only sit in designated seats. Over the period of many months the four men, in due course joined by many others, staged peaceful sit - ins at this store and others started the same protest at other stores in other cities. The protests continued for months until eventually in July 1960 the policy changed – after Woolworths had seen losses of $200,000 ($1.9m today). The full story can be found on the internet under "Greensboro sit ins".

It is fitting then that the International Civil Rights Museum is housed where it is.

On the day we visited we joined a guided tour of the many exhibits in the museum led by a young African American student. (We were the only white people in a group of around 20.) And the tour opened my eyes. Yes, I’d been aware of segregation. I’d seen footage of protests. I was aware of Rosa Parkes and Martin Luther King. But I’d hadn’t appreciated how it worked.

I have several abiding memories. One is of a reconstruction of a waiting room at a bus station. Or I should say two waiting rooms divided by a wall. Built into the wall on each side was a Coca - Cola dispensing machine. In the Whites' room it was 5 cents; in the African American side it was 10 cents.

Then further on was a display marking the bombing of 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham Alabama in 1963 by white supremacists during which 4 children were killed. From memory the Museum has some fragments of a stained-glass window from the church. (A year or so ago, I learned of the wonderful story of how a Welsh newspaper - the Western Mail - launched a fundraising campaign to replace the window as an act of solidarity. The Wales window.)

Then a montage of people who had been arrested for joining in the civil rights protests including several Methodist ministers.

A few weeks later we were in Washington DC and at one of the museums there, there was a powerful exhibition marking the 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King’s “I have a dream" speech given on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.

With the protests in the USA at present, following the death of George Floyd, my memories have come back. And I suppose I must ask. What’s changed?

It is a genuine question. I don’t know the answer. I don’t know if African Americans feel things are better now than 50 years ago.

Part of me thinks that as a non-American maybe I shouldn’t express an opinion. But then another part of me, the Christian minister, remembers that at my ordination I was told that among the various duties of a Methodist minister, is that in God’s name I am “to preach by word and deed the Gospel of God’s grace” and “to minister Christ’s love and compassion”. Methodist Worship Book P302 © 1999 TMCP

I don’t know how I can do that from 3,000 miles away and don’t know what I could do anyway even if I was living in the USA.

One thing I did this morning was pray. Along with 3 other ministers one of whom is American as it happens. In my prayer I prayed for peace and I prayed a verse of scripture that is always on my mind:

Micah 6:8 New International Version - UK (NIVUK)

8 And what does the LORD require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly[a] with your God.

Archbishop Desmond Tutu knows a few things about standing up for justice and standing out against segregation – although in South Africa it was called “apartheid”. Tutu once said

"If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you are on the side of the oppressor."

A couple of years ago an old school friend paid me a huge compliment after reading something I’d written (in a blog or a sermon) She said “Well said Dai. You were always the one at school that stood up against something that was unfair. Glad you’ve not changed”

40 years on from school I’ve mellowed in some respects. But I do have an innate sense of right and wrong, justice and mercy. God given perhaps.

Photographs my own.

Open the doors and here's all the people

As I write this, (1st June 2020), we are still waiting to hear news from the Government about when churches can reopen. With lockdown easing, as the Covid19 infection rate is apparently reducing, we see signs of things getting back to normal. Well, the new normal. But as yet, no news about churches.

Over the weekend there were reports in some of the papers that Church of England clergy were “up in arms” that churches can’t reopen whilst car showrooms for example can. (There’s a whole other blog on Mammon there. But it will keep for now.)

At some point churches will be allowed to reopen. (I suspect in terms of Methodist churches, we won’t just need government say so, our own church leadership and insurers will need to give the ok too.) And with this in mind, over the last couple of weeks I’ve asked members of my congregations to take some soundings about starting back.

The feedback I’ve had is that yes people are keen to get back, And undoubtedly some would start back in July say. Though more were more cautious and said about September.

And many recognised the need to protect their own health (many are elderly) and were concerned for my health too. There was also a widespread recognition that it’s not just a case of opening the doors. There are many practical things to consider. Social distancing of course. But in one church many rely on being collected by friends to come to church. Can that happen? And inside that particular church many need to use a lift to access the church (the worship area if you like) itself.

In one of the articles I read – on The Guardian website An anonymous member of the clergy was quoted as saying of the Church of England bishops:

“They should have fought for us to be designated as essential workers, that we must be allowed to minister to people in this crisis,” said one vicar. “But rather than letting us get on with our pastoral role, the bishops have been constantly dishing out instructions.”



What this person was saying was that they needed their church building to minister to people.

I’m sorry. But that is nonsense! A church building should be part of ministry not the whole of ministry.

Yesterday (31st May) was Pentecost. Pentecost is sometimes referred to as the birthday of the Church. And in that sense we mean the whole Church, the body of Christ. Pentecost is the day upon which the Holy Spirit came to the disciples and empowered them to go out, initially into the streets of Jerusalem (see Acts 2). But then much further afield, to bring the good news to all people “Jew and Gentile, slave and free” as Paul puts it in 1 Corinthians 12:13

I’ve been thinking a lot about those first disciples recently. The Easter stories - of them being in locked rooms following Jesus’ death and, at that stage not knowing of his Resurrection. People afraid to leave the safety of a locked room seems to strike a chord.

But those disciples, the very foundation of the Church, were soon released from their self-imposed lockdown out into the world by the Holy Spirit.

For them, being Church wasn’t about buildings, it was about Christ and bringing Christ’s Good News to people where they were. And I can’t help but wonder what those disciples (and indeed Jesus himself) would make of how in our age, the Church, in most parts of the world seems to be represented by buildings rather than people.

Here in Chippenham, during the lockdown I’m pleased to say that the Churches Together have been working tirelessly to support the work of the town’s foodbank (run from the Salvation Army citadel.) Christians from several denominations have been volunteering to collect and deliver food to those in need. (as well as non Christians too it must be said.) And there are many in need. Other churches have contributed financially or operated mini foodbanks in their part of town.

That is the Church. Yes, using a church building, but being the Church.

In the final chapter of Matthew’s Gospel, we are told that the disciples gather on a mountain with Jesus and he then gives them “the Great Commission”

18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Matthew 28: 18 – 20

Once we’re back inside our churches, it will be good to remember that we need to get out more!

Photo by www.gphillipsphotography.com