Cleaver: Social, economic problems hurt poor most

By Kathy L. Gilbert*

U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver addresses delegates and guests at the Board of Church and Society luncheon held in conjunction with the 2008 United Methodist General Conference. Cleaver is also a United Methodist minister. UMNS photos by Maile Bradfield

FORT WORTH, Texas (UMNS)—“We are walloping the poor” and blaming them for their problems, said U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver II during a luncheon sponsored by the social action agency of The United Methodist Church.

“Poor people are being blamed for being poor people,” said Cleaver, a United Methodist pastor, who was the keynote speaker at the United Methodist Board of Church and Society event. The April 28 luncheon was held at the start of the second week of the 2008 General Conference, the denomination’s top lawmaking assembly.

Citing an estimated 700,000 people impacted by Hurricane Katrina, Cleaver said New Orleans’s Ninth Ward is still in ruins three years later.

“If you think Beverly Hills would still be in ruins, you must be on crack,” he said. Mississippi and Louisiana have the highest poverty rates in the United States, but the rich would not be treated that way, he said.

Cleaver, a Missouri Democrat elected to Congress in 2004, said soaring gasoline prices, the home mortgage debacle and the staggering cost of the Iraq war are hurting the nation’s poorest the most.

“Christians can’t separate themselves from their faith,” he said. “When something is wrong, people of faith must set it straight.”

Introducing the speaker as a “pastor in Congress,” Jim Winkler, the board’s top executive, said Cleaver has dedicated his public service career to economic development and social concerns.

Cleaver was born in Waxahacie, Texas, and lived in a slave shack for eight years before his family moved into public housing. His father worked three jobs to earn enough for the family to get out of the projects and buy a home.

“Having your own home used to mean you were a real citizen,” he said. Today, 20,000 people are losing their homes every week in the troubled mortgage market—and are being blamed for making “stupid decisions,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Iraq war is costing $341 million a day and has killed more than 4,000 U.S. soldiers and many more thousands of Iraqi people.

“Take a guess at how many of those killed have families belonging to country clubs or Congress,” Cleaver said.

“The United States claims to be a Christian nation,” he said. “But God is not showing through.”

*Gilbert is a news writer for United Methodist News Service based in Nashville, Tenn.

Former abortion clinic owner shares her story with delegates

By Ciona D. Rouse*

Carol Everett speaks at a luncheon sponsored by Lifewatch during the 2008 United Methodist General Conference. A UMNS photo by Paul Jeffrey.

FORT WORTH, Texas (UMNS) — “I sold abortions,” Carol Everett confessed to a group of United Methodists attending a free luncheon sponsored by Lifewatch in the Hilton Fort Worth Hotel.

Everett, a former abortion clinic owner in the Dallas area, gave a perspective from inside the abortion industry, which she served for more than six years.

“When we opened, we did 45 abortions the first month. The last month (we were open), we did 545 abortions,” said Everett, who was paid $25 per abortion.

Everett left the industry and founded the Heidi Group in 1995, a group of pregnancy centers in inner-city Dallas, where she serves women in impoverished communities with high rates of unplanned pregnancies.

Everett aborted her third child in 1973, hoping to save her marriage. As a part of her healing process, she named the child Heidi. The nonprofit organization honors Everett’s unborn child.

The Heidi Group partners with the Salvation Army to provide bilingual parenting classes, Bible studies, counseling and prenatal medical care for the uninsured mother-to-be. Everett wants to bring hope and healing to women in the situation she faced so many years ago.

“We are an injured nation, for many of us are unwilling to admit or deal with our pain.”

Everett recognizes the emotional complexity of the abortion issue and advised luncheon attendees to talk less and listen more. “I have never changed a mind by debate,” she said.

The first of its kind, the Lifewatch luncheon intended to give people some information about the topic of abortions and the abortion industry, according to Lifewatch administrator Cindy Evans.

“It’s a difficult subject but it’s a lot more complex than we make it. It’s more complex than a sound bite or bumper-sticker saying,” Evans said.

Lifewatch, also known as the Taskforce of United Methodists on Abortion and Sexuality, advocates on behalf of abortion opponents.

*Rouse is a freelance writer in Nashville, Tenn.

Church task force to examine global warming

By Kathy L. Gilbert*

FORT WORTH, Texas (UMNS)—The top lawmaking body of The United Methodist Church has directed United Methodist agencies and organizations to look for ways to care for the earth and reduce global warming.

A task force will report to the 2012 General Conference on a plan for evaluating how the denomination’s churches, institutions and staff contribute to global warming.

Specific recommendations are sought to guide the church “in reducing our carbon impact and ecological footprint upon creation and finding alternative renewable energy resources to use in carrying out our call to care for the earth as part of Christian discipleship.”

The 2008 General Conference, in legislation passed 521-89 on April 27, directed the denomination’s Board of Church and Society, Board of Global Ministries, Board of Discipleship, General Council on Finance and Administration, Connectional Table and General Conference organizing body to work with annual (regional) conferences and camps and retreat centers to develop recommendations.

The task force also is asked to develop an ecumenical effort to support changes designed to reduce global warming.

*Gilbert is a news writer for United Methodist News Service based in Nashville, Tenn.

Texas church builds on eco-friendly foundation

People worship at The Rock United Methodist Church in Cedar Park, Texas, where the building was constructed in 2007 on eco-friendly principles. UMNS photos by Guy Hernandez.

By Stephanie Kovac*

CEDAR PARK, Texas (UMNS)--At The Rock United Methodist Church, people are not only interested in saving souls, but nurturing God's green earth.

"This congregation sees our neighbors not just as the people who live across the street from us, but also the deer that live on this property," says the Rev. Kristina Carter, the church's pastor.

With a degree in engineering chemistry and a Ph.D. in applied chemistry, Carter is not your typical pastor. She worked 10 years in environmental remediation and even wrote parts of a 1997 mercury report to the U.S. Congress.

"I'm always amazed that people think that scientists have a hard time being people of faith," Carter says. "The scientists that I know who are ordained are thinking people who are in awe of what we learn. And the more we learn about the way God has designed things, the more in awe we are."

Carter's background has put environmentalism in the foreground at her church, and her 100-member congregation has embraced those views.

"The people in the church wanted to grasp the whole idea of being green and recognizing that we shouldn't waste what God has given us, and that became part of the design of the building," says member Will Davies.

Environmental ethics
The Rock was constructed in May 2007 in Cedar Park, a major suburb of Austin. In keeping with the church's environmental ethics, many of the materials were recovered from surpluses at commercial work sites.

"They had raw lumber that was unused at the end of their job that they were going to send to the dump because it was cheaper to pay the tipping fee at the dump than it was to pay the restocking fee," Carter says.

Outside, the sanctuary is surrounded by trees and native grasses instead of a sprawling parking lot. Inside, the church boasts carpet-free floors, less toxic paint, fluorescent light bulbs, low-flow toilets, hand towels instead of paper ones, and ceramic coffee mugs instead of Styrofoam cups.

The church also has rain collection pillars and hopes to add storage tanks this year, along with a composting site and a community garden.

Still Carter acknowledges that the congregation is not 100 percent environmentally friendly. She still sees an occasional Styrofoam cup of coffee at church, for instance. "When I ask those folks, 'Hmmm, Styrofoam, that's so interesting,' some of them will say, 'Yeah, but it's the third time I've used the same Styrofoam cup!'"

New life
Perhaps more amazing is the altar made from discarded wooden pallets, a church logo that incorporates the recycling symbol, and a cross made from discarded cypress. The idea came from church members who found the wood while on a beach vacation in Corpus Christi.

"Tina came over and looked at it, and said, 'That's a slam dunk. That's what we're going to do with it," says Davies who brought the wood home. "It washed up on the beach, it was meant for something, and now it's hanging in the church as the cross."

Carter says the cross serves as a reminder that God can redeem anything. And, church members seem to be hearing her message.

"We all wash up somewhere," Davies says, "and I think it's just another example of God taking what we think may not be worth anything and putting it to use. And, he does that with every one of us."

Carter believes it would be a sin to ignore global environmental problems and expect God to fix it all.

"We might not be able to do everything, but we can do something, and I think that's the biggest lesson we've learned," she says. "It's not like green is our gospel. Our gospel is Jesus Christ, and Him crucified, and we're living out that call as best we can."

*Kovak is a freelance producer in McKinney, Texas.

Oregon pact models Methodist, Lutheran communion

A labyrinth open to the community is one ministry of McMinnville (Ore.) Cooperative Ministries, a United Methodist-Lutheran joint venture. A UMNS Web-only photo courtesy of McMinnville Cooperative Ministries.

A UMNS Report

By Linda Bloom*

When a United Methodist congregation and a Lutheran congregation in McMinnville, Ore., formed a cooperative ministry two years ago, the decision emerged out of a desire to share a common mission, not out of desperation.

Neither the McMinnville United Methodist Church nor Trinity Lutheran Church, part of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, was in danger of closing, according to the Rev. Stephan Ross, the United Methodist pastor.

"Both of our churches could survive quite well on their own," he explained. But the congregations liked the idea of being "a model of and a testimony to the unity of the church, which transcends denominational distinctions."

In the Oregon community, the United Methodists and the Lutherans share nearly everything--meeting space, music and education programs and mission outreach. And by a simultaneous vote on April 6, they became co-owners of the United Methodist property, with the Lutherans investing about $850,000 from their building fund. Each congregation now is half-owner of McMinnville Cooperative Ministries Inc., which owns the property on their behalf.

McMinnville Cooperative Ministries embodies the spirit of the agreement of full communion which The United Methodist Church and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) will vote on when their respective legislative bodies meet this year and next year.

The United Methodist vote comes during the 2008 General Conference, which meets April 23-May 2 in Fort Worth, Texas. To mark the occasion, ELCA presiding Bishop Mark Hanson will preach during morning worship on April 29.

Full communion would mean recognition of each other's faith--including the authenticity of each other's baptism and eucharist, the validity of each other's ministries and the interchangeability and reciprocity of all ordained ministers.

Blazing new trails
The two Oregon congregations "are blazing new trails in ecumenical partnerships," according to the Rev. W. Douglas Mills, staff executive, United Methodist Commission on Christian Unity and Interreligious Concerns.

"They represent some of the best of the full communion covenant, which is the people of God making visible their unity around mission and ministry," he said. "In this new property venture, the two congregations become not just allies in ministry but joint partners."

The path to the cooperative ministry in McMinnville, southwest of Portland, began in 2001 with Trinity's search for adequate space for its congregation. The Rev. Mark Pederson, Trinity's pastor, said eight sites were considered, with initial plans made for six of those sites. However, Oregon's strict land use laws were a hindrance.

"None of them worked out," he told United Methodist News Service. "We kept trying different approaches, and God kept slamming the door in our face."

After completing a new addition at its downtown location in 2002, McMinnville United Methodist had plenty of space but was struggling with the increased mortgage, which made it difficult to afford additional staff. Worship attendance seemed flat at about 180 people weekly.

During a community mission trip to Mexico over spring break in 2004, participants from both congregations began to discuss whether they could provide other ministries more effectively together rather than separately. Later that year, a task force was formed, and in 2005, each church council approved plans to worship in the United Methodist facilities.

'Led to this solution'
Citing the environmental impact of their original plan, Pederson was happy with the outcome. "I believe we were led to this solution," he said.

Not everyone in the Lutheran congregation approved of the cooperative agreement, however. "The Methodists were stronger than we were," he explained. "They had more income and more members."

The internal conflict, Pederson acknowledged, grew so intense that he went on medical leave for 30 days. But with the help of the "some spectacular leaders," the congregation voted in 2006--along with the United Methodists--in favor of the cooperative arrangement.

"It's worked wonderfully," he said. "We have been able to finally live out our mission." Together, the two congregations "run about as efficiently and effectively as a group of our size possibly could."

The United Methodist congregation was very supportive of the cooperative ministry, but some members were apprehensive about joint ownership of a property they had owned for 140 years, according to Ross. "This (ownership vote) was a pretty big step for the Methodists to take," he said, but added "we're claiming a future."

On Sundays, McMinnville Cooperative Ministries has a traditional United Methodist service at 8:45 a.m. and a traditional Lutheran service at 11 a.m. In between, at 9:30 a.m. in the "great room," is an informal "celebration" worship service with communion, open to anyone.

Staff arrangements
"Part of the cooperative ministry plan here is the intention and conviction that we should always have a full-time Lutheran clergyperson and a full-time United Methodist clergyperson," Ross said.

At the same time, the staff members, about half from each denomination, focus on different ministries. "We're intentionally evolving the ministry toward a team concept of ministry," he explained.

One full-time program staff member first became a United Methodist as college student, then attended a Lutheran seminary. A lay person, he now is in charge of small group ministry.

By sharing space, programs and mission work, the two congregations have been able to raise an additional $50,000 in direct mission giving. The annual joint trip to Mexico has continued, and a team was sent to Guatemala on a Habitat for Humanity trip this year. The cooperative also has a relationship with a local elementary school.

"We've just really had a multiplication of mission programs arise out of the energy created by the cooperative," Ross said.

Attendance is growing at all three worship serves, he added, and some people not affiliated with either denomination have been intrigued by the joint ministry and attracted by the focus on mission.

Trinity Lutheran, now at about 200 baptized members, initially lost 30 percent of its membership after the vote to form the cooperative ministry. "The new members coming in have almost exactly matched those withdrawals," Pederson said. "I really think our growth at this point could be explosive."

The Rev. Michael Trice, the ELCA's director of ecumenical formation and interreligious relations, said the relationship is an example of how the two denominations "have been working together in the North American context for generations."

He added that there are "creative and faithful ways for United Methodists and ELCA Lutherans to be in community together" and encouraged planning, programming, conversation and fellowship.

*Bloom is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in New York.

A UMNS Commentary by Steven E. Webster*: Avoiding sexuality issue is not true peace

Steven E. Webster

Many voices from across The United Methodist Church are suggesting there is no way forward in the 36-year-long dialogue about the role and status of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people in the church. Declaring an impasse, these voices call for an end to this dialogue in the name of peace and unity.

Forty-five years ago, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. wrote a now-famous letter from a jail cell in Birmingham, Ala., to a group of white clergy (including two Methodist bishops) who--in the name of "unity" and "peace"--had publicly called on King and his allies to cease their disturbing nonviolent protests against racial segregation.

King wrote that the "great stumbling block" in the African-American struggle for equality was not blatant bigotry, "but the white moderate, who is more devoted to 'order' than to justice, who prefers a negative peace which is the absence of tension to a positive peace which is the presence of justice."

I embrace our Wesleyan Christian vision of "making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world" and applaud the General Conference for seeking to build unity around four focus areas:
1) developing principled Christian leaders for the church and the world;

2) reaching new people in new places by starting new congregations and renewing existing ones; 3) engaging in ministry with the poor; and

4) stamping out killer diseases by improving health globally.

Yet we undercut these same goals when we continue to: 1) reject the gifts and graces of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons and their allies; 2) turn off a younger generation that views the Christian faith as "anti-homosexual;" 3) push LGBT youth into poverty and homelessness as families reject them because church and society stigmatizes LGBT persons; and 4) fail to address the role that ignorance and stigmatization of homosexuality (and other sexualities) play in the global AIDS epidemic.

Biblical peace
The United Methodist Church cannot enjoy true peace and unity while it engages in injustice and spiritual violence against some of its members. Biblical peace does not refer to the apparent absence of conflict, and still less to the suppression of dialogue. In the Bible, "peace" ("shalom" in Hebrew) is a holistic concept that includes justice and total well-being.

To fail to address the issue of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in the church now would leave in place the status quo in church law that includes Judicial Council Decision 1032, which normalizes the exclusion of LGBT persons from membership in the church. Decision 1032 has never yet been the subject of discussion at a General Conference and runs counter to a (non-binding) plea in our Social Principles that "we implore families and churches not to reject or condemn lesbian and gay members and friends."

Even if lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people are allowed to attend or join the membership of The United Methodist Church, Decision 1032 further legitimates the widespread practice of "shunning" such persons as unworthy to serve in any of the ministries of the local church. This is spiritual violence, the misuse of religious authority to demean and diminish LGBT Christians.

I know LGBT persons who have been denied the opportunity to serve in the church as leaders of adult education classes, choir members, committee members, or readers of Scripture in worship. It is not unheard of for committed same-gender couples to be denied baptism for their babies and gay youth to be shunned from youth groups in The United Methodist Church.

These acts, justified by labeling LGBT people as "unrepentant sinners" inferior to all the "repentant sinners" in the church, are acts of spiritual violence, harming the souls of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons. It is tragic that being from a devout Christian family has been identified as a risk factor for suicide among LGBT youths.

A thorn in the flesh
Some have described the church's long dialogue over these issues as "a thorn in the flesh." Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 12:1-10 that he endured a painful "thorn in the flesh" that would not leave him even though he pleaded with God to remove it. God's answer to Paul applies to us: "My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness."

We feel weary and weakened by this long dialogue over homosexuality, a dialogue in which I have actively participated in many ways these past 36 years. The faith that sustains me is that God intends to perfect us through these trials, and we, the people of The United Methodist Church, look forward to a real peace which is, in King's words, the presence of justice and not merely the absence of tension.

*Webster is chair of the church council of University United Methodist Church in Madison, Wis., and has attended the 2000 and 2004 General Conferences as a volunteer with Soulforce, an organization that describes itself as working for freedom for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people from religious and political oppression. He legally married Jim Dietrich, his partner of 27 years, in a civil ceremony in Toronto in 2006.

United Methodist video examines 'white privilege'

The Rev. Marion Miller leads participants in Indianapolis in an exercise to help white people understand a truth that may be invisible to them. A UMNS photo by John Coleman.

A UMNS Report
By Kathy L. Gilbert*

In a church fellowship hall, a long line of people are beginning to realize that many of them live with "an invisible, unearned advantage" based on the color of their skin.

They listen and respond as the Rev. Marion Miller, pastor at St. Luke's United Methodist Church in Indianapolis, reads a list of commands in an exercise on "white privilege" in the United States.

"If you should need to move," she asks, "can you be pretty sure of renting or purchasing housing in an area you can afford and in which you would want to live? If this is true, take one step forward."

"If you can go shopping alone most of the time pretty well assured you will not be followed or harassed, take another step forward."

"If you can go into a music shop and count on finding the music of your race represented, into a supermarket and find the staple foods which fit with your cultural traditions, into a hairdresser's shop and find someone who can cut your hair, take three steps forward."

By the end of the exercise, all of the white participants are steps ahead of the people of color in the line.

"Sensitizing white people to an invisible system of advantage is a healthy beginning in the journey," said Blenda Smith, conference lay leader of the Wyoming Annual (regional) Conference and a white board member of the United Methodist Commission on Christian Unity and Interreligious Concerns.

A different viewpoint
To help people in the journey, a DVD called "Truth and Wholeness: Replacing White Privilege With God's Promise" has been developed by the United Methodist Commission on Religion and Race and the denomination's Commission on Christian Unity and Interreligious Concerns.

"We pray that the DVD will bring understanding and insights to white people who live with an advantage that is truly invisible to them," Smith said. "People have no reason to change systemic, invisible circumstances until they actually come to see and accept their reality."

Barbara Isaacs, a white staff member of the Commission on Religion and Race, said most whites do not feel privileged.

"It is the truth of our everyday white lives that we fail to see," she said. "We do not understand the daily reality of friends and colleagues who are not white--how they are constantly treated differently by sites of economic, political and social power."

The DVD will be given to every United Methodist annual conference delegation attending the 2008 General Conference meeting in Fort Worth, Texas, April 23-May 2. It also will be used during the April 29 morning worship service at the churchwide legislative assembly. Isaacs said conferences can burn a copy of the DVD for every church.

In addition, Isaacs and Smith are developing an accompanying study guide to be made available on both commissions' Web sites later this year.

"The two agencies partnering on this is another example of the church's commitment to confront racism that is still being experienced today," said Erin Hawkins, top executive of the Commission on Religion and Race.

"I think this will be an important tool to help white leadership see the impact that privilege has on all people."

Fruit inspectors
"Truth and Wholeness" follows up on the Service of Repentance for the History of Racism in The United Methodist Church, held at the 2000 General Conference, and The Service of Appreciation For Those Who Stayed, held at the 2004 assembly.

Bishop Clarence Carr, African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church, accepted the corporate act of repentance from The United Methodist Church at the 2000 General Conference. "I am not going to be a judge, but I want you to know that we will be fruit inspectors," Carr said, suggesting that the church will be monitored on its efforts to change.

"The next logical step for the 2008 General Conference is for white people to begin understanding what 'white privilege' is and how it affects people of color and themselves," Smith said.

The 16-minute video features diverse interviews ranging from a teenager in Indianapolis to a professor of Christian ethics at Wesley Theological Seminary, Washington.

When white people become truthful and share their feelings, "the healing process with the racial-ethnic persons and their communities will begin," said the Rev. Taka Ishii, New York Annual Conference.

Ishii, a board member of the Commission on Religion and Race, previewed the DVD during its board of directors meeting in March. The video was produced by United Methodist Communications in Nashville, Tenn.

"We've seen recently how different perspectives rooted in our personal experiences can affect the way we see the world, and how we live out our lives," said the Rev. Larry Hollon, top staff executive of United Methodist Communications. "Race plays a key role.

"We hope this video will provide a way to reflect upon perceptions of privilege and lead beyond reflection to dialogue that builds new awareness about our everyday experiences in a multi-ethnic society," he said.

Sharing stories
"A powerful story in the DVD is when Dr. Sondra Wheeler shares her story about the African-American mother who has to school her newly licensed 16-year-old son about how polite he had better be to a policeman because she believes with good reason that just being an African-American boy behind the wheel of the car is enough to put him at risk," said the Rev. DeeDee Azhikakath, Desert Southwest Annual Conference.

A typical response by some white people was defensiveness, according to Smith.

"The sense of 'I have earned everything I have' is a common reaction by some white people who have worked hard to attain better lifestyles," Smith said. "However, that perception indicates a lack of understanding the effects of hundreds of years of history--be it African-American slavery or global colonialism by white people.

"When a society has a long history of invisible, unearned advantage, it is hard for people to suddenly accept a new reality."

More information is available at info@gcorr.org

*Gilbert is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in Nashville, Tenn.

Chaplain: 'Find ways to be a redemptive voice'

The Rev. Clark D. Carr led hundreds of religious activities during his nine months of serving as a chaplain in Iraq. A UMNS photo courtesy of the Rev. Clark D. Carr.

By United Methodist News Service

EDITOR'S NOTE: The Rev. Clark D. Carr, who served as a chaplain for his Maryland Army National Guard Unit, returned from Baghdad on March 31 after deploying in June 2007. He is scheduled to return to his appointment as pastor at Grace United Methodist Church, Hagerstown, Md., on April 20. United Methodist News Service sent three questions and asked him to reflect on the five years since the start of the Iraq war. He answered the questions en route home with his soldier congregation.

Q. What was your initial reaction to the U.S. going to war with Iraq, and has it changed over the past five years?

Regarding going to war with Iraq, I was in Hohenfehls, Germany, on a two-week Overseas Training Deployment mission from the Maryland Army National Guard to the Combined Maneuver Training Unit Ministry Team. The first week there was one week before the beginning of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

The prevailing attitude among believers, as well as the rank and file, was no one wanted to go to war. The day following the war's start, the chaplain teams gathered for religious support training. The chaplain leading in prayer said: "Today is a sad, sad day; for last night hundreds and hundreds perished into eternity without the knowledge of the Savior Jesus Christ."

Throughout my time there, we were getting reports from chaplains in OEF (Afghanistan) and in the staging areas in Kuwait of scores and scores of soldiers receiving Christ as their Savior, being immersed in baptismal waters, and recommitting their lives as Christians. From a chaplain's perspective, no matter what position we had regarding the onset of the war, our overriding concern was for souls-souls of our warriors, the souls of the innocent and opposition forces who perished. And, today, that concern still stands for the chaplain in the theater of operation.

Personally, I knew that we were not going to war due to weapons of mass destruction, for oil, or to settle an outstanding grudge. I knew that in the war against global terrorism, the old ways of dealing with national security were off the table and patience with the international community (including the United Nations) was short. For 15 years, the U.N. was unable to enforce its resolutions on Iraq, and Sadaam Hussein's evil continued to devastate the Iraqi people.

Although I might not agree that Iraq was a present threat, I could understand President George W. Bush's dilemma with the U.N. and the defiant dictator and how it presented an uncertain security risk for our nation.

Did this necessitate going to war? I personally didn't believe so, but at the same time I did not have the weight of a nation's security on my shoulders and I had to trust whatever the decision, whether I agreed with it or not. Either way, my mission wouldn't change-the care, maintenance and salvation of the soul of the warrior.

Q. What role (if any) do you think The United Methodist Church should take on issues of war?

I believe the leadership and voices of United Methodism should disassociate and disengage from populace bias, whether social progressive or traditional. As believers and as a church, our prophetic voices are muddied if we get sucked up into the agendas the radical left or the reactionary right polar stances. Thus, our perspective becomes distorted by socio-political causes, the prevailing winds of discontent or the waves of patriotic fervor. Mixed messages become prevalent, divided loyalties become the norm, and disdain for those who hold a different view become commonplace.

The scriptural adage to "reason together" is lost in the storm of shouting voices all claiming the moral high ground-and where does that leave us? I contend that such posturing only weakens our voice as a church because we become typified rather than heard.

Should United Methodists advocate for peace at all costs? Yes. Should United Methodists take stands on atrocities and violations against the Laws of War and Geneva Conventions? Yes.

Should United Methodists be able to express opinions on the conduct and execution of war? Yes.
I often discussed how the aftermath of the war was a series of miscalculations and mis-estimations that led to an escalation of sect insurgency. If a people and a nation are given liberty, yet have no concept of freedom, how else are they to behave?

Cultural stances based on political worldviews are something the church should be able to influence redemptively to the glory of God and exaltation of Jesus Christ, rather than allow cultural attitudes to define and dictate to the church.

An example of this is when I would hear the oft-said statement, "We support the troops, not the war." Where did that come from? Guilt from how veterans were treated as they returned from Vietnam? An appearance of seeming unpatriotic if we don't support our warriors? Or, a convenient excuse to remain ignorantly straddled on a fence of non-commitment?

Soldiers saw through such ambiguous statements and certainly didn't "feel the love." What the non-warrior fails to understand is there is a direct correlation between the home-front and the meaningfulness of their mission.

The soldier is a straight shooter and transparent to the core. He or she has no hesitation telling it like it is-often interspersed with coarse vulgarity. This profane honesty knows no pretense, and I can't help but see Jesus being drawn to them for their unabashed wit and frank sincerity. And, the soldier knows doublespeak when he or she hears it. So as a church, we need to send a balanced, consistent message understanding their plight and their dilemma, and encourage them to maintain purpose in war where there may not always be clear answers.

There are three ways the church, whether locally or as a denomination, can be a redemptive force amidst war.

Clarify the message: This is the first step. We should demonstrate that war is evil and undesirable in all situations; however, history proves the inevitability of war, as well as other social evils.

As a chaplain, I don't advocate war or killing. However, every day I encounter those who are engaged in war and/or killing. My ministering to their plight doesn't mean I'm for or against war. However, I am there for the soldier. I am able to differentiate between how I might feel from what the soul of the soldier requires.

Tell the story: Every week in the 10 chapels across the Victory Base Complex (VBC) over which I had purview, hundreds of religious activities occurred. Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Assyrian Catholic, Protestant of all varieties, Jewish, Seventh Day Adventist, Islamic, Latter Day Saint, and yes, even Wiccan were able to celebrate their constitutional right of religious free expression. Scores of Bible studies, catechisms and seminars were ongoing within the chapels and the units themselves. We had Brits, Australians, Tongans, Ugandans, Canadians, Koreans, Iraqis, Pakistanis, Filipino and more all joining in praise in our houses of worship.

I myself sponsored a Jewish lay leader and congregation, sponsored the Seventh Day Adventist lay leader and congregation, participated/led/preached at protestant services across the VBC, conducted two weekly Bible studies and led two praise and worship experiences with the Ugandan security force at their place of work at the Entry Control Point (ECP). Between Friday and Sunday, I was engaged in a minimum of four and upward to eight worship experiences.

Tell the story. Tell the story of lives turned over to Jesus. The greatest blessing of my last Sunday in Iraq was witnessing three baptisms (a male soldier, a female soldier and a female Iraqi interpreter)-this is the story not being told to the churches.

Tell the story of chaplains interfacing with local sheiks and Imams. Tell the story of shoes, clothes, coats (yes, I witnessed snow in Baghdad), school supplies and health and hygiene items collected by churches and sent to chaplains to distribute through Iraqi assistance groups.

Tell the story of how the generosity of United Methodists across the United States put 200 minute phone cards in the hands of troops needing to keep connected to home. The United Methodist Endorsing Agency sent me 1,000-plus cards. Every week, either I or my assistant was asked if we had cards available, and I am proud to say I always had a card to give them. Yes, even in war there is a Good News story to be told.

Reach out: We must find ways to reach out to soldiers on the bases and the communities in which they live. The United States is going to feel the effects of the global war on terrorism for generations to come. Post-traumatic stress disorder/mild brain traumatic injury, the physically disabled, and the families broken due to lengthy and repeated separations will be the new mission fields of the church. What are we doing now to open our hearts, our minds and our doors to the veteran, and what will we be doing in the future?

A clear balanced message free of doublespeak and biased agenda, a telling of the story not told, and a reaching out to the veteran are redemptive means the church can engage on the issues of war. Put aside pompous and vain oratory, and do what we do best: proclaim and live out the Good News of Jesus Christ-yes, even in the context of war.

Q. Have you been happy or disappointed with some of the views issued by church leadership that have been critical of President Bush and the war?

Personally, I feel largely dissatisfied with the stances the church leadership has taken on the war-even to the point of embarrassment.

The "anti-war" rhetoric appears more of a regurgitated cause to rally around for those who want to recapture the sentiment of the '60s and '70s. The unwillingness to evaluate critically all dimensions of our nation's plight against the real and/or perceived threat of global terrorism is woeful. For as such, they become guilty of the same entropic narrow-minded perspective they accuse of the executive office.

Rather than finding ways to build redemptive bridges that would not only make a difference in the politic and actually affect our cultural understanding of how a believer struggles with evils of war and terror and reconciles them with their faith, they instead wage attacks and identify themselves with the "hate Bush" and "anyone but Bush" pundits. So then, are they any better than the Limbaughs, Roves and Hannitys whom they criticize?

I would therefore suggest that before church officials take dogmatic stances, they first differentiate between their cultural socio-political bias and preconceived presuppositions; second, seek the experience and wisdom from others on all sides and not just the counsel of those who agree with them; and, third, through Scripture, prayer and conferencing together, find ways on how the church can be a redemptive voice in the wake of war.

Ruth's Place provides sanctuary for homeless women

Erica Winterling has found refuge at Ruth's Place, a shelter for homeless women at First United Methodist Church in Wilkes-Barre, Pa. UMNS photos by Reed Galin

By Reed Galin*

WILKES-BARRE, Pa. (UMNS)--People generally don't make eye contact with strangers along a city sidewalk, but it's more obvious when they walk past Erica Winterling. Folks find reasons to glance the other way.

It's not that Winterling is obviously homeless. Her clothes are not frayed; her long gray hair is not matted. She's just not dressed like more purposeful workers and shoppers in downtown Wilkes-Barre. And there's something subtly different about her countenance that conveys a sense of deep resignation.

"I'm 56 years old, and I shouldn't be here," she says with more dismay than anger. She found herself on the street when a landlord sold the house she was living in and she had no money to get another place.

Winterling's initial reticence to talk about being homeless quickly melts away. It's too long since anyone asked how she feels about anything, and it needs to spill out--now!

"People look at you like you don't count because you're homeless," she says. "It's an ill feeling. It's awkward. I feel hurt, frustrated."

A place to be
It's the end of the workday for people rushing around her, but there isn't anywhere Winterling needs to be. In this twilight hour, she would have been contemplating another night under a bridge or in an abandoned building until, a few months ago, she found Ruth's Place.

The only shelter for women in northeast Pennsylvania, Ruth's Place operates out of First United Methodist Church and is supported entirely by private donations. The ministry provides a meal and sleeping accommodations for a few dozen women and is staffed by volunteers.

Winterling keeps her few possessions at Ruth's Place. This provides her with a temporary sense of order-a place where she can keep her hopes and seek refuge from the cold feeling she gets on the streets.

"The majority of these women have been living in chaos," says shelter director Julie Benjamin.

"We try to bring some direction in their lives that are not so chaotic."

Contributors to Ruth's Place range from small congregations and individuals to businesses like the Ramada Inn that donates bedding and local markets and bakeries that provide food.

Tonight, there is a tall stack of rolls and bread in the church kitchen, and Benjamin is passing out donated clothes. Women reach for them gently, as if not wanting to take anything that someone else might need more.

Benjamin and her husband, Keith, the pastor here, began the shelter when they came to the church five years ago. It has gone from being a temporary, seasonal shelter to a year-round operation.

Ruth's Place resident Tammy Gibson prepares a meal

As she heats up a simple pot of noodles with half a dozen other women in the kitchen, Winterling talks about what the shelter means to her. Others quietly nod in agreement when she says you can feel at home here if you try get along with everyone. "But it's hard," she adds.

Some of the women are addicts. Some have been prostituting themselves for a place to live. There are mental health issues. Some are recently out of jail, others just plain broke. One resident tonight has two master's degrees, but no job. They've ranged in age from 18 to 74.

At the bottom of it all, Benjamin says, is a fundamental struggle: "Most have an underlying problem with depression, and their self-worth is in the dumps."

Unlike most emergency shelters, there is no limit on the amount of time a woman can stay here. "We just don't turn anyone away," Benjamin says. "We're hoping that somehow in the time they're here, something will click to make them be able to find what they need to be successful outside the shelter."

Finding hope
It worked for Regina Drasher, 27. With her soft complexion and granny glasses, Drasher doesn't look like a former drug addict who was imprisoned for assault. "Now I'm clean for almost a year, I'm in a house, I've gotten my GED."

What made the difference, she says, is simple. Someone cared. "Most people in our society, you screw up once or twice they don't want to be bothered with you. I always thought I was a failure, but I have people now who encourage me to do good, like Julie and Pastor Keith. They still guide me today."

Drasher is a guide now herself, volunteering at Ruth's Place. "They can't pull any crap because I've been there. If you have to be here by 9 p.m., or get locked out, ya read the rules, ya signed the agreement. Because it's a little bit of stability in their lives that they need to learn."

Counselors from social service agencies visit every week to help women understand how financial aid and health care may be available to them. But Julie Benjamin, who devotes untold hours here while working weekends as a nurse, is the first to acknowledge that many of the women still fail.

"We are missionaries in America. I care about them, I cry with them, I laugh with them. It's a decision I've made that this is part of my calling."

For tonight, that calling means that Erica Winterling will have a warm bed in the church basement, surrounded by 22 other women and all their worldly possessions. Though there are many uncertainties in her life, she is grateful that she can count on Ruth's Place.

"It's a bridge where you can build your self-esteem back up--make yourself worthy of that, and what you want to do with your life," she says. "I'm not really sure."

*Galin is a freelance producer based in Nashville, Tenn.

United Methodists reflect on the costs of Iraq war

U.S. Army soldiers patrol the Iraq province of Al Anbar in September 2006. A UMNS file photo by Cpl. Trenton Elijah Harris, U.S. Marine Corps.

A UMNS Report

By Kathy L. Gilbert*

As the Iraq war enters its sixth year, the costs extend far beyond the more than 4,000 U.S. soldiers and 600,000 Iraqis who have died in the violence.

Thousands have been left wounded in their bodies, minds and souls--and face a lifetime of struggles related to the experience, says a United Methodist chaplain who has seen those wounds up close.

"I am deeply concerned about the returning troops and the mental and physical wounds they have sustained," said the Rev. Laura Bender, a Navy chaplain who served in a field hospital in Iraq. "This all-volunteer force has borne the full weight of this war through multiple, back-to-back deployments and has done so at great cost."

The Associated Press reported that 29,320 soldiers had been wounded and 31,325 others treated for non-combat injuries and illness as of March 1, 2008.

According to research by the U.S. Veterans Administration, 144 veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan committed suicide from 2001 to the end of 2005, and thousands face potential mental health problems and post-traumatic stress disorder.

"I saw what those wounds looked like," Bender said, noting that many are life-altering and will require extensive aftercare.

Many others wounds, however, are not as visible as missing limbs.

"We do not have the resources in place to provide what is needed, and I am afraid that many will fall through the cracks. If The United Methodist Church wants to take a stand on the war, I'd like to see us champion the cause of these returning veterans," she said.

'Wrong answer'
Bender was among United Methodists who reflected on the effects of the war on the five-year anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Iraq.

A United Methodist pastor and chaplain who asked not to be identified said he isn't sure what the answer is but "to continue as we have been is the wrong answer."

"My initial reaction to the war when it started in Afghanistan was that it was a necessary evil," he said. "When it started in Iraq, I was somewhat more skeptical of the justification being offered. I am still skeptical about the initial justification. I have mixed feelings about our continuing presence there. I deal with the human cost every day.

"On the one hand I would like to see the bloodshed stop; on the other hand I don't want to think that the lives of so many young men and women have been spent to no good end."

The death toll of U.S. soldiers now surpasses the total killed in the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the United States.

U.S. President George W. Bush, a member of The United Methodist Church, has consistently defended his war policy.

In a March 11 address to National Religious Broadcasters, the president spoke of fighting against the "enemy," including Taliban extremists in Afghanistan and "terrorists" in Iraq, according to a report by Religion News Service.

"I wish I didn't have to talk about war," Bush told the broadcasters gathered in Nashville, Tenn. "No president wants to be a war president. But when confronted with the realities of the world, I have made the decision that now is the time to confront, now is the time to deal with this enemy, and now is the time to spread freedom as the great alternative to the ideology they adhere to."

'Unholy mess'
Jim Winkler, top executive of the United Methodist Board of Church and Society, is among denominational leaders who have spoken out against the war since its beginning in 2003. The church's social advocacy agency has released numerous statements calling for peace and withdrawal from Iraq.

Now, he said, the "unholy mess" will pass to Bush's successor.

"The leading Republican candidate for the nomination, Sen. McCain, has no intention of ending the war if he is elected president," Winkler said in a recent column on the board's Web site. "And, it remains uncertain what Sens. Clinton or Obama would do if either is elected, although they have both stated they plan to end the war."

Winkler cites estimates from The Lancet, a leading British medical journal, that more than 600,000 Iraqis have died from war-related violence from March 2003 to July 2006. The journal cites gunshot wounds, air strikes, mortar fire, car bombings, preventable disease and lack of access to health care. Another have 12,000 died from unknown violent causes and 12,000 from accidents attributable to violence, the journal reports.

U.S. Army Chaplain John Read and retired United Methodist Bishop Woodie White pray with a wounded soldier in February 2007 in Landstuhl, Germany. A UMNS file photo by Hilly Hicks.

"As best I can tell, few of our clergy or lay leaders say anything against the war," said Winkler. "Maybe this is because of fear or misguided patriotism or a desire to avoid ruffling feathers. And it may well be they will not be held accountable for their silence as long as they walk on the earth. I'm not so sure, however, they will avoid judgment in the life to come."

The Rev. Michael Kinnamon, top executive of the National Council of Churches, has said the war has been a "disastrous mistake" that, instead of making America safe from terrorism, has made it less secure.

"Anyone can observe that U.S. aggression is spawning new generations of terrorists, but the Christian critique runs deeper," Kinnamon said. "Because human life is interdependent, because we are all children of one Creator, security can never be won through unilateral defense."

Because Bush is a United Methodist, the church should have found a way to talk to him, said the Rev. Beauty Maenzknise, dean of the Faculty of Theology at United Methodist-related Africa University in Zimbabwe.

"If they can manage to talk to other members of the church when they are doing immoral things that are affecting other people, why not him?" she asked.

The church needs to encourage politicians to dialogue so the powerless won't be harmed, she said. "Politicians are not the ones who are going to be harmed. Women and children and the powerless have suffered and are still suffering and dying."

Taking a stand
The Women's Division of the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries has publicly prayed for peace since 2002. United Methodist women wrote thousands of prayer cards and spent a week reading the prayers aloud outside the White House, said Harriett Olson, top executive of the division.

"In each of these settings, we have remembered our service personnel who are in harm's way as a result of this war," she said. "We grieve for loss of life of civilians and all service personnel who are caught up in this conflict, and for the lives forever changed as persons are injured and more lives are lost every day."

Last November, the United Methodist Council of Bishops called on leaders of all nations to begin an immediate withdrawal of troops from Iraq, declaring that war is "incompatible with the teachings and example of Christ."

The United Methodist Committee on Relief established a fund, Advance Special (#623225), for humanitarian work in Iraq when the country stabilizes enough for relief work to begin.

The United Methodist Church has struggled with the issue of war since the church's founding. The Book of Discipline, the denomination's law book, states: "We believe war is incompatible with the teachings and example of Christ. We therefore reject war as an instrument of national foreign policy, to be employed only as a last resort in the prevention of such evils as genocide, brutal suppression of human rights, and unprovoked international aggression…."

At the 2004 General Conference, the denomination passed resolutions calling for prayers for peace and military personnel. The church's lawmaking body condemned terrorism and called for a full investigation of the alleged abuse of prisoners of war and for better relationships between Christians and Muslims.

The 2008 General Conference will hear similar resolutions when it meets in Fort Worth, Texas, April 23-May 2.

*Gilbert is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in Nashville, Tenn.

Prejean accepts World Methodist Peace Award

Sister Helen Prejean, recipient of the 2008 World Methodist Peace Award, is congratulated April 2 by the Rev. John Barrett (from left), Bishop William Hutchinson and the Rev. George Freeman. UMNS photos by Betty Backstrom.

By Betty Backstrom*

NEW ORLEANS (UMNS)-United Methodists "stood by my side at the very beginning," said Sister Helen Prejean as she received the 2008 World Methodist Peace Award.

Prejean, 68, the Catholic nun who has become an international spokesperson against the death penalty, was presented the award April 2 by the Rev. John Barrett, president of the World Methodist Council and an ordained member of the British Methodist Church.

She is the author of Dead Man Walking: an Eyewitness Account of the Death Penalty in the United States, which detailed her relationship with Patrick Sonnier, a convicted killer of two teenagers who was executed in 1984.

Serving as Sonnier's spiritual advisor, Prejean was present at his execution in Louisiana. "I had never witnessed another person being killed," she recalled. "I came out of the room vomiting. It was then that a mission was born. I realized that most people were never going to see something like this, so the book was written to bear eyewitness."

Prejean spoke of early days when she and others publicly opposed the death penalty. There were marches from New Orleans to Baton Rouge, La., and from Baton Rouge to Angola Prison in Louisiana. "A young Methodist pastor named Tim Lawson was very involved with us during the early '80s," Prejean said.

Serving at the time as chairperson of the Louisiana Conference Board of Church and Society, Lawson was concerned about the death penalty even before he met Prejean. "In 1983, Robert Wayne Williams was the first person executed in Louisiana after the Supreme Court lifted a ban on capital punishment. Although I never met Williams, I just tried to agitate on his behalf for a stay of execution," Lawson said.

Lawson was delighted at Prejean's selection to receive the award. "I can't think of a better choice," he said.

Before presenting the award, Barrett read from the Gospel of Luke, Chapter 6, reminding the audience of Christ's command that His followers should love their enemies. "Peace is so much more than the absence of war," he said. "It is about truly living in love. Sister Prejean is doing that by working to bring reconciliation between individuals and the society from which they have become alienated."

International best-seller
Dead Man Walking, nominated for a Pulitzer Prize in 1993, was on the The New York Times Best Seller list for 31 weeks. The book also became an international best seller and has been translated into 10 languages. In 1995, the book was made into a movie starring Susan Sarandon and Sean Penn. Sarandon won an Academy Award for her portrayal of Prejean.

The Rev. George Freeman, the council's chief executive, cited Prejean's "commitment to abolishing the death penalty in the United States, her ministry to inmates and their families, as well as her ministry to the families of victims" as the key factors in presenting her with 2008 award.

Prejean joined the Sisters of St. Joseph of Medaille in 1957 and served as a teacher and religious education director in New Orleans. In 1981, after dedicating her life to the poor and beginning a prison ministry, she began corresponding with Sonnier.

Her second book, The Death of Innocents: An Eyewitness Account of Wrongful Executions, was published in 2004.

Prejean speaks about her efforts to end capital punishment.


Prejean continues to educate the public about capital punishment. She founded Survive, a victims advocacy group in New Orleans, and continues to counsel inmates on death row, as well as the families of murder victims.

The World Methodist Peace Award is presented annually to individuals or groups who have contributed significantly to peace, justice and reconciliation. Among the criteria for the award are courage, creativity and consistency.

The World Methodist Council is a communion of 74 member churches in more than 132 countries reaching nearly 75 million people worldwide.

*Backstrom is the communications director of the United Methodist Louisiana Conference.

A UMNS Commentary by the Rev. Larry Pickens: A look inside the black church

"I must admit that I have gone through those moments when I was greatly disappointed with the church and what it has done in this period of social change. We must face the fact that in America, the church is still the most segregated major institution…. At 11:00 on Sunday morning when we stand and sing and Christ has no east or west, we stand at the most segregated hour in this nation." -The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. in remarks made at West Michigan University, 1963

The Rev. Larry Pickens*

The YouTube explosion of the Rev. Jeremiah Wright's sermon clips and the continuous loop being played to millions on CNN, Fox News and other media outlets reminds Christians that, in our worship and living experiences, we still face the daunting challenges of racial division. We've realized anew that there is much we do not know about each other across racial and class lines.

Wright and Trinity United Church of Christ, of course, have gained particular notoriety recently because presidential candidate Barack Obama is a member of the Chicago congregation. For myself, Wright has been a colleague and friend for more than 20 years. His significant and miraculous ministry crosses the span of the African-American community and provides a progressive witness for Jesus Christ.

However, the debate over the inflammatory nature of some of Wright's sermon statements raises questions about black liberation theology, the prophetic role of Christianity in challenging U.S. policies and the role of class in the African-American community. And even though Trinity is not a United Methodist congregation, the debate offers an opportunity for United Methodists to grapple with the significance of our own racial and class divisions.

The Trinity congregation proclaims to be "unashamedly black and unapologetically Christian." This motto is the foundation to the Afro-centric nature of the church and the theology that undergirds its ministry.

Black liberation theology is a concept espoused in a growing number of African-American churches today and seeks to make the Gospel relevant to the black experience. It emerged during the 1960s as a group of black pastors demanded a more aggressive approach in the struggle against racism and white oppression. Theologian James Cone is considered its founder and explored the ideas in his works Black Theology and Black Power and A Black Theology of Liberation. It is a theology that asks the question: "What does the Christian Gospel have to say to African-American people?"

Hurling rocks
As an African-American Christian, the recent debate over Wright's sermons takes me back 40 years, following the assassination of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Our family moved into a racially changing Chicago community, where the vestiges of racism literally stood in our way. Racism manifested itself in insurance redlining, predatory lending practices and religious authorities working to maintain a line of segregation.

At the Rubicon of Ashland Avenue, where the local activist Catholic priest declared no "niggers" were allowed across Ashland Avenue, black boys lined the east side of the street and engaged in rock-throwing fights with the white boys who lived on the street's west side. When I think back on why we stood on that street throwing rocks at each other, I think it was because of the unknown, the divisions of our experiences that left us bereft of community. We were merely separated by a street, but our experience of each other never allowed us to cross the chasm to realize that the "other" was human. We simply did not have the tools to build community. Therefore, all we knew how to do was attack each other by hurling rocks and racial insults.

It is out of this experience of brokenness and spiritual hope that black liberation theology emerged. The irrationality of racism and injustice provided the roots of an African-American theology focused on life in the present world. Therefore the political, social and economic realities of African-American people get merged into the religious experience and are articulated through a message that is spiritual and social-speaking to the whole person.

Conscience of the state
Many people listening recently to Wright's sound bites were shocked by his angry-sounding criticisms of the United States, Israel and previous U.S. administrations. However, Protestantism in the United States includes a prophetic tradition of taking on government, challenging the status quo and calling for justice. Theologian Reinhold Niebuhr challenged the notion that the United States has been anointed by God to be an "agent of liberty." He recognized the problematic nature of our American national identity, particularly as it relates to the notion that the United States is acting on God's behalf.

The church is called to serve as the conscience of the state, speaking to the issues of social justice that impact the lives of God's people. Martin Luther King Jr. was right: "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere." This is a theology that is lived out in many of our congregations as a sign of Christian discipleship as we help people love God, be merciful and do justice. For the African-American community, spirituality is most relevant when it is merged with social action. Faith without social consciousness is moribund and irrelevant.

Another area that black liberation theology addresses is class. As more African Americans move to the status of the rich and the upper class, the temptation is to allow class interests to supersede racial solidarity. In this dynamic, such African Americans not only leave underprivileged African-American people behind, they actually participate in systems of domination and exploitation that continue to victimize the poor.

Black theology challenges progressive African Americans with class privilege to intervene and challenge black communities to enter into transformative relationships with the poor rather than supporting the structures that oppress them. Black theology calls African-American people to create a structure where those who have achieved economic and social affluence commit to eradicating class distinctions within our community and work to eradicate the injustices that are experienced by the black poor.

Challenging the status quo
As we prepare for our General Conference, there are implications for United Methodists. Our own Council of Bishops and denominational agencies are encouraging our church to commit to eradicating poverty throughout the world. Black liberation theology can serve as a framework for how we overcome the class distinctions within The United Methodist Church, effectively address immigration and develop strategies for building The Beloved Community.

It is exceptional that the Council of Bishops has initiated an effort to engage in a series of dialogues over the next two years to address issues of institutional racism, beginning with its own body and eventually extending throughout the church and society. The amending of one of the Seven Vision Pathways related to racial/ethnic ministries calls upon the church to "end racism and authentically expand racial/ethnic ministries." This is a step that hopefully will become a structural and spiritual reality for The United Methodist Church.

What is also clear is that for African Americans, change does not ride up on the wings of inevitability. Political deliberation and debate are significant tools for change, but too often are primarily tools of the powerful and the privileged. Substantive change for those outside of power often comes because of the actions of those considered to be cranks, zealots, prophets or agitators. Sometimes a new order is only found in the midst of struggle. This is why I believe that Jeremiah Wright cannot be dismissed simply because he challenges our complacency and willingness to make friends with the status quo.

Rodney King, who in 1992 became a reluctant symbol of police brutality in Los Angeles, asked the question: "Can't we all just get along?" What hinders our ability to get along is the chasm that exists between our communities and how much we do not know about each other. Jeremiah Wright has reminded us of how blind we are to the experience of the other. My hope is that this episode moves us to significant dialogue and community-building that will focus our ministries in dismantling structures of racism, class oppression and dehumanization.

The task before us is to open the channels of dialogue that move us into intentional community-building, where the gifts of all people form the promise that the church, the United States and the world can be all that they can be. This, my friends, is the audacity of hope.

*Pickens is a clergy member of the Northern Illinois Annual Conference and former head of the United Methodist Commission on Christian Unity and Interreligious Concerns.

A UMNS Commentary by Bishop Sally Dyck: Race speech models holy conferencing

Bishop Sally Dyck

U.S. Sen. Barack Obama's recent speech on race in America was a powerful and electrifying moment in recent oratorical history. Whatever it does for his 2008 presidential campaign, it stimulated conversation about race in hallways, at dinner tables, and even on late-night television shows, superseding topics like gubernatorial resignations and affairs. I hope that we can keep these conversations going in the future, whether or not we agree with his perspective.

But I also wonder if the example of talking about a sensitive and often divisive topic might have something to teach us as we gather for the United Methodist General Conference. Over the last year, I have worked to promote the practice of "holy conferencing" at General Conference. I think that it's been difficult for some of us to imagine just what holy conferencing would really look like in the give-and-take legislative and plenary sessions at General Conference.

One thing that holy conferencing is not is the avoidance or suppression of conversation about sensitive and divisive issues. Obama addressed a hot-button issue that most of America can't talk about in the most cordial of environments, much less in a context with high stakes for his campaign.

As I have discussed holy conferencing with others over the last year, I have sensed that some have interpreted holy conferencing to mean "making nice" and therefore not talking about sensitive and potentially divisive issues. Nothing could be further from the way in which I imagine holy conferencing to work. If we're going to avoid difficult topics, we're really not holy conferencing. Avoiding crucial conversation is just as destructive as conversation laden with inflammatory language. We must speak about our own convictions honestly.

This commentary is not intended to recommend a candidate for office, but rather to suggest a way of talking about difficult issues. Obama carefully weighed his words before speaking them. While denouncing the "inflammatory" rhetoric of his pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, he never resorted to inflammatory language about anyone-Wright, whites, blacks, his own family members or his political opposition. He was gracious because all of the above-mentioned are in some way a part of who he is by water or blood, faith or family.

He doesn't have the luxury of cutting any of them off, because to do so is to cut off something of himself and his heritage. He is one with them and they are one with him; for better or for worse. Isn't that what the body of Christ is like?

Another way
It's an interesting coincidence that Wright's first name is Jeremiah. His style of confronting injustice undeniably lives up to some of the Hebrew prophet's style of confronting the principalities and powers of his day. We can argue that when there is injustice or immorality, such styles are in order. Jesus turned over the tables in the temple when he found injustice being perpetrated.

The point the senator was making is that it is time for the United States to try to resolve difficult matters another way. I would say the same for The United Methodist Church.

Obama didn't just promote his own self-interest (winning the Democratic nomination) but raised a long-overdue conversation to a higher plane. That's why it was compared the next day in The New York Times by writer Janny Scott as one of the most significant speeches on race in America given by a politician since the Civil War. One thing his comments had in common with President Abraham Lincoln's second inaugural speech was the acknowledgement of pain and loss by all parties. Lincoln didn't gloat over the impending end of the war, elevating the side that was going to win-which would have made losers of the other.

At General Conference, there will be some whose preferred way prevails and others whose way doesn't prevail. Some people will feel like winners and others like losers. Yet how we talk about each other and to each other makes a big difference in how we live with each other. For us in the church, how we talk to and about each other affects our witness to the power of Christ in our world.

Lifting the conversation
ftiRepeatedly I have heard young people in our country as well as in our church say that they desire another way of solving problems and talking about deeply held beliefs.

It was the Young People's Assembly in Johannesburg, South Africa, that resurrected the guidelines of holy conferencing from previous conversations on sexuality in The United Methodist Church. These became the basis for the guidelines presented to us at this year's General Conference. Will we continue to use the previous styles of avoidance or inflammatory confrontation in working out our differences? Or will we consider some other ways to lift the conversation and draw people toward each other rather than drive them apart?

As we approach General Conference, we should make Bishop Rueben Job's book Three Simple Rules our guide as we figure out what holy conferencing looks like for us. He says:

I must seek what is best for those whose position and condition may be far different than my vision for them. It will mean that I will seek to heal the wounds of my sisters and brothers, no matter if their social position, economic condition, educational achievement, or lifestyle is radically different from mine. It will mean that the words and acts that wound and divide will be changed to words and acts that heal and bring together. It will mean that movements that seek to divide and conquer will become movements that seek to unite and empower all. It will mean that the common good will be my first thought and what is good for me will become a secondary thought.

Will we as The United Methodist Church demonstrate holy conferencing as well as or better than a politician on the campaign trail?

*Dyck is episcopal leader of The United Methodist Church's Minnesota Area.