1. Predominantly white denominations might begin new conversations on race by re-visiting the history: successes and failures of the Black Caucuses, within each of the denominations. The history of why/how these Caucuses developed, what was accomplished, and their current status, would provide helpful background for today’s conversations.
2. Conversations among United Methodists, Episcopalians, AME’s, AMEZ’s and other denominations might be enriched if the speech on race delivered by President-elect Obama in Philadelphia, served as a common resource for the discussions.
3. The election of President-elect Barack Obama as our nation’s first African American President could serve to expand and deepen and, where necessary, re-direct conversation about race in the 21st century. This would counter assumptions by any of us that his election represents the beginning of a post racial/racist moment in our national history. His election represents so much that is positive about our American journey, that we now may be able to re-visit more objectively, the less-than-positives in our racial past and present.
4. Predominantly white denominations must avoid assuming that they have successfully managed matters of race within their denominations and thus can place major emphasis on conversations with predominantly Black denominations. Conversations should not be either/or, but both/and.
5. The presidential primaries and the general election revealed that some persons, politicians as well as political pundits, conservatives as well as liberals, have limited awareness and historical knowledge of the Black Church. At times there seemed to be no appreciation of the role that the Black Church played in the Civil Rights Movement that helped create a better nation for all of us. Some of the critiques that were made of the prophetic preaching tradition of some Black Churches appeared to forget that the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was nurtured and nourished by the Black Church. There were some similarities between the criticism of the preaching/speaking of the Rev. Jeremiah Wright and the criticisms made of Dr. King. This “new” moment in our national history as we prepare for the presidency of Barack Obama is tarnished if we allow ignorance of our racial history or amnesia in response to it, to become front-and-center.
It is my hope that ALL United Methodists might embrace “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” No 519 in our United Methodist Hymnal. Regardless of whether our ancestry is indigenous, immigrant or imported (African slaves) or a mixture of any of these, we could sing with a sense of commonality and community these words in the second stanza: “We have come over a way that with tears has been watered, we have come, treading our path through the blood of the slaughtered…” Our racial and cultural history of tears and blood makes this moment more meaningful and prods us to pray and work more faithfully and seriously, today and in the future.
Gilbert H. Caldwell
Asbury Park, NJ
Editor’s note: Dr. Caldwell is one of the founders and former national chairpersons of Black Methodists for Church Renewal and former associate general secretary of the General Commission on Religion and Race.
]]>“[Sr. Joan Chittister, in her] book, Merton: The Enlightened Heart, writes: ‘Merton sowed seeds of contemplation that led to action–an often forgotten but always bedrock spiritual concept. …Contemplation, Merton teaches us, is learning to see the world as God sees the world. The contemplative sees the world through the eyes of God and the real contemplative is driven to respond according to the mind of God for it. Clinging to God, in other words, generates the passion it takes to repair the world.’ ”
– Quoted by Linnea Nilsen Capshaw of Deep Shift. Dec. 10, 2008 marked the 40th anniversary of Merton’s death.
“It’s in these times that we look at all the expensive baubles or the things we bought on credit or the plans we had to sell off a home at a tremendously higher price than we bought it. When a lot of these things wither away, we’re left wondering, where’s the meaning, where’s the purpose? So although we face a tremendous amount of challenges, it’s also an opportunity for the church to offer something to a world that is looking for answers.”
– Scott Brewer, director of research for the United Methodist General Council on Finance and Administration. Quoted by United Methodist News Service.
Africa University requests assistance
As world leaders pondered what course to take in Zimbabwe, The United Methodist Committee on Relief has launched a targeted course of action in response to the dire humanitarian situation in the southern African nation.
A severe food shortage and cholera epidemic combined with the world’s highest inflation of more than 2 million percent has created one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world today in Zimbabwe where The United Methodist Church founded Africa University 20 years ago.
Neil MacFarquhar of the New York Times reported that The United Nations Security Council held a high-level meeting on Dec. 15 that included Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Foreign Minister David Miliband of Britain. The UN meeting failed to break an impasse that has lasted since July.
“Although there was a consensus that the humanitarian situation was appalling, Russia and South Africa opposed any outside intervention, saying the crisis should be solved by regional negotiations,” McFraquhar wrote Dec. 16. “Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said that there had been more than 18,400 cases of cholera reported so far, that school attendance was down to 20 percent and that 80 percent of the country lacked safe drinking water. The World Health Organization in Geneva released new figures saying that 978 people had died of cholera.”
Food, water and medicine
In a press release written by UMCOR communicator Michelle Scott, the agency said it would provide immediate food distribution and additional support for United Methodist hospitals to begin to alleviate the suffering of many thousands in the days ahead.
“We are so pleased to work with Bishop Eben Nhiwatiwa to bring substantial assistance to our sisters and brothers in Zimbabwe,” the Rev. Sam Dixon, UMCOR’s top executive, was quoted in the press release.
UMCOR is purchasing and delivering 100 metric tons of grain through ZOE Ministry, a program of the North Carolina Annual Conference. The delivery of the food will begin next week and will go to all 12 United Methodist districts in Zimbabwe, reaching more than 1,200 households and 11,000 primary school students. The grain will provide each person with an additional meal for 65 days.
UMCOR is working with the Zimbabwe Conference to secure documentation that will allow UMCOR to directly purchase, import and distribute food supplies. UMCOR has 400 metric tons of maize ready to be delivered to Zimbabwe as soon as these documents are secured.
While the country’s largest hospitals are closing in the midst of a growing cholera epidemic, United Methodist institutions are keeping their doors open to treat those in need regardless of their ability to pay.
Bishop Nhiwatiwa met with Zimbabwe’s minister of health Dec. 9 to express the church’s desire to provide assistance in response to the epidemic. “We were so pleased to learn that through this meeting the Minister of Health has not only recognized the epidemic, but also given full support for UMCOR Health’s efforts,” reported Rev. Dixon.
UMCOR is shoring up the United Methodist hospitals to enable them to better cope with the worsening health situation in Zimbabwe and the cholera crisis in particular. Special cholera kits are en route to Nyadire and Mutambara that will allow the hospitals to effectively treat 2,600 people sick with the treatable but deadly illness. Additional funds will provide food, supplies, and fuel for hospital generators. UMCOR is also making up for portions of staff salaries that have been lost due to the country’s economic collapse.
A shipment of 14,000 school kits and 35 Medicine Boxes are en route and are expected to arrive in Zimbabwe in February to further support the work of the hospitals.
UMCOR is also working with the Western Pennsylvania Annual Conference to rebuild and rehabilitate water services and equipment for Nyadire Hospital and surrounding areas. Poor water quality and sanitation facilities are the main causes of cholera. This project will greatly improve the health and quality of life for those living in the Nyadire area, approximately 500,000 people.
Gifts can be made to Zimbabwe Emergency, UMCOR Advance #199456 to support the general response or to Hospital Revitalization, UMCOR Advance #982168.
Africa University needs help
Meanwhile, Africa University pleaded for additional financial support from the denomination, according to a United Methodist Communications release written by Diane Denton.
Bishop Nkulu Ntanda Ntambo, chancellor of the 1,300-student university in Old Mutare, Zimbabwe, released an open letter to United Methodists, asking churches and regional conferences to meet their financial obligations as soon as possible.
“The fact that Africa University is even open is a miracle from God,” wrote Ntambo, bishop of the North Katanga Area in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. “The commitment of United Methodists from around the globe to Africa University allows us to remain open and thriving in Zimbabwe, a country enduring an unimaginable economic crisis.
“Africa desperately needs Africa University. Our graduates are vital to help meet the needs of Africans for health care, agriculture and economic development, political stability and spiritual growth,” Ntambo wrote. “It is not an overstatement to say Africa University is one of the keys of hope for Africa.”
For most of this fall, Africa University has been the only institution of higher education open in the entire country. “With the Zimbabwean currency out of control, much of the population is struggling to survive from day-to-day,” wrote Ntambo.
A major part of the university’s yearly budget is supported by a $2.4 million denominational fund that is apportioned among regional conferences. While apportionment payments are not due in full until the end of the year, as of Oct. 31, 11 conferences have paid at least 75 percent of their apportionments for the year. Overall, October’s financial report shows the university has received more than 60 percent of the $2.4 million apportioned across the denomination. The report was compiled by the university’s Nashville-based Office of Institutional Development.
Individuals can also donate with a credit card directly to Africa University online. http://www.support-africauniversity.org/
]]>Our United Methodist Social Principles state, “When churches speak to government, they also bear the responsibility to speak to their own memberships.” One of the four focus areas within The United Methodist Church is principle-centered leadership. During this past week, the people of Illinois have seen a collapse of the public trust.
On Dec. 9, Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich was taken into federal custody on charges of political corruption. It was alleged that he had engaged in a brazen attempt to auction off the U.S. Senate seat vacated by President-elect Barack Obama.
As the duly elected governor, Blagojevich has the power to appoint anyone, including himself, to the vacated seat—a power given to him by the voters of Illinois. As part of that public trust, the people of Illinois put their faith in the governor to exercise due diligence and act in the public’s best interest. If the allegations are true, that trust has been violated.
As United Methodists, we affirm, “Churches have the right and the duty to speak and act corporately on those matters of public policy that involve basic moral or ethical issues and questions.” It is this right and duty that strike at the core of religious liberty in our country and our state.
As we are well aware in recent years, the reputation of Illinois politics has been soiled by ethical lapses by officeholders, and by those who serve a season and then are charged and convicted once they leave office. In response, lawmakers have taken a piecemeal approach to ethics reform that has been less than effective because of the loopholes built into the law–loopholes that invite its disregard.
This week very well could be a low point in Illinois politics, but it is also an opportunity to demand real and meaningful reform of our elected officials. I have initiated conversation with my ecumenical colleagues to see what steps we can take as the religious community to speak with one voice for real change in the way officials do the people’s business. It is time for all of us to be robust participants in civic life and do all we can to restore the public trust.
With God’s help, even the most difficult times can be times of renewal.
Bishop Palmer leads the Illinois Great Rivers Annual Conference and serves as president of the United Methodist Council of Bishops.
“We are together on the same boat. This boat is having some problems and we are trying to fix the problems now. There are still a few lifeboats left on this boat for you to use. Perhaps the problems we are facing cannot be solved and this boat will not be able to navigate any further. Perhaps we will be forced to abandon this boat. Perhaps the problems will be solved in the future and we can continue this journey afterward. Asking you to leave early is not what we want to do, but it’s a necessary step we must take. We will take into account your seniority in the company when discussing your severance pay. Rest assured that the company will give you adequate compensation.”
With those words, all managers bowed respectfully before their employees. There were neither complaints nor protests from employees as they took in what they had just heard. This was a speech given by the accounting department manager of a large electronics company in southern Taiwan. The manager was a Christian and he was representing the company’s managers when he addressed the 150 employees who would soon be laid off.
One week before giving his address, this manager told his pastor that he would soon face the difficult task of downsizing his company by laying off employees. The company had suffered great economic losses since October when returns dropped from $1 billion NTD (New Taiwan Dollars, equivalent to $30 million US Dollars) to $50 million NTD (equivalent to $1.03 million US Dollars). In the past, the company would make $50 million NTD in profit every month, but in recent months, it had suffered $50 million NTD in losses every month. Top-level management had already begun to take pay cuts. This manager also mentioned that another big manufacturing company in southern Taiwan had already closed three of its five factories and would likely have to slash 10,000 jobs soon. Many employees would have to say farewell to co-workers they had known and worked with for many years, but the alternative would be further losses leading to bankruptcy for the entire company. This manager needed pastoral advice on how to deal with harsh realities in a godly manner.
The pastor replied that though the problem is international, Christians must deal with it in a loving manner by showing sincerity. For example, top management should not trim expenses by laying off employees while continuing to receive top pay themselves. In other words, they must lead by example. Furthermore, management must strive to communicate with employees to avoid misunderstandings. Employees should not get the impression that the company does not care about their circumstances because this often leads to bitterness and protests. Finally, companies should do the best to take care of their employees. This can take the form of adequate severance pay or other means of compensation such as vocational training and counseling so that employees can find jobs in other fields of work. This would be the loving and Christian thing to do under such circumstances.
This accounting department manager feels that the current financial crisis came swiftly and suddenly. Though the crisis was caused by international trading companies, it resulted in a sharp decline in consumption levels which in turn led to a crisis in manufacturing sectors. Hence, the nature of the problem is systemic and not just confined to trading companies. Measures should be taken so that instabilities in financial industries do not spill over to manufacturing industries. Otherwise, the typical worker will always end up being the victim when the economy crashes.
With this in mind, we urge all Christian managers to deal with lay-offs in a loving manner. We also urge government agencies to care for the unemployed. As mentioned by several economists in the book, For the Common Good, the government can do three things when faced with rising unemployment rates: First, provide vocational training during long periods of increasing unemployment. Second, provide financial aid to families. Third, provide immediate, low-paying basic government jobs so that at least people’s livelihoods will not be severely compromised.
The Bible portrays a God who takes care of orphans, widows, and the marginalized. When Jesus came to earth, one of His main missions was to preach good news to the poor. As we observe Advent, it is only fitting that churches model His example and carry on His ministry by urging government agencies to take appropriate action during this season of financial crisis.
Taiwan Church News is published weekly in Taiwan’s local languages. English version.
]]>“I relied on Twitter heavily [for reports on terrorists' attacks in Mumbai]. … We are not afraid of using the world to further our goal and tasks. It’s really amazing, sitting in a basement in Brooklyn, we are all sharing a common goal, looking for good news, staying in touch.”
– Mordechai Lightstone, 24, a freelance journalist and Lubavitcher Jew, who kept tabs, via Twitter, on the Chabad Lubavitcher center attack in Mumbai where a Brooklyn, NY, rabbi and his wife were killed.
A decades-old story of money, temperance and power is winding its way through a District of Columbia court and the ending may impact the future work of The United Methodist Church’s social action agency.
A superior court judge is weighing testimony and reading reams of historic documents to determine if donations given for the construction of The Methodist Building on Capitol Hill in the early 1900s were intended for work in temperance and alcohol only. A decision is not expected until the first part of 2009.
The United Methodist Board of Church and Society’s trustees filed a request in early 2007 for a declaratory decision on the appropriate use of the building endowment funds. The Board of Church and Society is the successor to the Board of Temperance, Prohibition and Public Morals and two other agencies of the former Methodist Episcopal Church. The temperance board led efforts to construct The Methodist Building in Washington, completed in 1923.
Over the past four decades, the legality of the use of income from assets of the board have been challenged by individuals or groups of individuals within The United Methodist Church, said Jim Winkler, top executive of the Board of Church and Society. The challenges questioned the use of board assets in areas other than the problems created by the use of alcohol and focus established in a 1965 Declaration of Trust.
The Board of Church and Society is seeking a reformation of the 1965 trust document, which will make it clear that future use of income of the Endowment Fund will not be confined to problems related to alcohol abuse.
The case went to trial Oct. 6 and Judge Rhonda Reid Winston heard final arguments on Oct. 22. Attorneys are working on final summary statements, which are due to the judge Jan. 8. After the judge reviews those statements, she will issue a decision.
The judge ruled that the creators of the 1965 Declaration of Trust probably meant to confine the funds to alcohol and temperance concerns, but she was uncertain whether the language in the document accurately reflected their original intentions.
“The court is convinced that there is genuine issue about whether the (1965) Declaration, as drafted, inaccurately and mistakenly reflects the intentions of the settlors,” Winston said.
At stake is how the Board of Church and Society will use $2.6 million, which includes both the building and principal in the trust fund.
During the Oct. 22-26 meeting of the agency’s board of directors, Winkler reported that $1.4 million of the board’s reserves have been spent on attorney fees so far. Winkler said the board originally budgeted $100,000 for legal fees but the cost started escalating when five interveners entered the case.
The five interveners, C. Pat Curtin, Carolyn Elias, Leslie O. Fowler, John Patton Meadows and John Stumbo are all United Methodists who have been delegates at one time or another to the United Methodist General Conference, the denomination’s top lawmaking body. One of the interveners, Curtin, has died since the case began.
The attorney general’s office of the District of Columbia is involved in the case because the office represents the public interest in all cases involving charitable trusts within its jurisdiction.
Witnesses who have testified in the case include Winkler, Wesley E. Paulson, chief financial officer for the board, Roger Burgess, former executive with the Division of Alcohol Problems and General Welfare of the Board of Christian Social Concerns of the Methodist Church from 1953-1965, and Stumbo, a member of the Coalition for United Methodist Accountability. The coalition includes Good News, the Institute on Religion and Democracy and the Confessing Movement, groups frequently at odds with the Board of Church and Society over its advocacy work on social justice issues.
Included in the documents submitted as evidence in the case are minutes from board meetings dating back to the early 1900s, issues of The Voice, a periodical largely devoted to temperance issues published from 1914 to 1956, memos, letters and wills. The evidence also includes depositions from former staff members and retired Bishop C. Dale White, a staff executive of the General Board of Christian Social Concerns from 1961-1968.
Sentinel for social reform
The 1916 Methodist General Conference created the Board of Temperance, Prohibition and Public Morals of the Methodist Episcopal Church. The mission of the “Old Board” as it became known, was “to promote the cause of temperance by every legitimate means; to prevent the improper use of drugs and narcotics; to render aid to such causes as in the judgment of the board of trustees tend to advance the public welfare.”
A corner lot on Washington’s Capitol Hill was purchased in 1917 and construction of The Methodist building started in 1922. A five-story building was completed in 1923 at a cost of $650,000. Money for the project was raised through individual and church gifts, some as small as 15 cents.
At the dedication in 1924, the building’s purpose was described as a “sentinel and a supporter for social reform in the Capital; a voice for the religious community, a visible witness.”
The Methodist Building located next to the Supreme Court and across the street from the U.S. Capitol is the only non-government building on Capitol Hill and was the first national Protestant agency to locate in Washington.
According to a history of the building on the Board of Church and Society’s web site, the building is significant for the role it has played at turning points in the nation’s history. These include the 1963 March on Washington led by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.; the 1968 Poor People’s March, the farmworkers’ boycott; years of protest against the Vietnam War; ERA marches, the 1978 Longest Walk of Native Americans; and the 1989 Housing NOW! March.
Its adjacent apartment complex, constructed in 1931, has been home to congressional representatives, Methodist bishops and Supreme Court Justices.
New Board of Temperance
In 1944, the Board of Temperance of The Methodist Church, known as the “New Board,” was formed as a result of a merger of the Methodist Episcopal Church, the Methodist Episcopal Church South and the Methodist Protestant Church.
In the certificate of incorporation of the Board of Temperance of The Methodist Church, the new board’s mission is defined as “to actively seek the suppression of salacious and corrupting literature, degrading amusements, lotteries, and other forms of gambling and to in every wise and lawful way promote the public morals.”
The new board received most of the Old Board’s assets, including title to the Methodist Building. In 1956, General Conference approved a plan to merge the New Board and the Board of World Peace and the Board of Social and Economic Relations into a single agency.
The three boards became part of the Board of Christian Social Concerns but retained their separate corporate identities and were renamed: Division of Temperance and General Welfare; Division of Peace and World Order; and Division of Human Relations and Economic Affairs. Burgess, associate general secretary of the Division of General Welfare during that time, testified that tensions over funds developed during this time because the Peace Division and the Economic Affairs Division were not as well funded as the Division of General Welfare.
Burgess testified that he believed individuals intended their donations to be used solely for temperance and alcohol-related work which lead to the drafting of the March 23, 1965 Declaration of Trust.
In a letter he wrote on Jan. 22, 1965, Burgess said, “a reading of the minutes and a study of the old Boards of Temperance and of Temperance, Prohibition and Public Morals indicates very clearly that the money given in previous years was given in trust for work in the field of alcohol problems. To expand the use of the trust now would be to break faith with those who gave the money.”
Closing arguments
In closing arguments, Brian Caldwell, assistant attorney general, and Timothy Obitts, attorney for the five interveners, said when the “settlors” wrote the 1965 declaration it was their intention that funds would be used for temperance and alcohol problems.
Obitts said the interveners are “concerned United Methodists that believe in the Methodist process and are concerned that funds held in trust are used for purposes stated in the trust,” he said.
“At the dedication in 1924, the building’s purpose was described as a sentinel and a supporter for social reform in the Capital; a voice for the religious community, a visible witness. ”
“The interveners are lifelong United Methodists who knew about the Board of Temperance. It is mind boggling they could challenge history and it is disingenuous to say temperance meant something other than as it is defined in the Book of Discipline.”
Caldwell said, “There is no mistake as to what they (settlors) intended.”
Jeffrey A. Liesemer, attorney for the Board of Church and Society, said there is no evidence of restrictions imposed by donors.
“There is no evidence of any gift restrictions on pledge cards, in minutes of meetings, on bonds—nothing reveals any gift restrictions,” he said. The 1965 Declaration of Trust is not the whole story, he said. Liesemer said the compromise reached in October 1965 made it clear that, “the money could be used for all programs and couldn’t be squirreled away for temperance and alcohol problems.”
Liesemer argued that the 1965 Declaration of Trust was based on the mistaken belief that individuals who had given money to the board during the 1920s and 30s had wanted their donations to be confined to temperance and alcohol-related work.
“There was a dispute over the merger of the boards into the Division in 1960,” he said. “The dispute was over how money could be used when three boards converged. World Peace and Human Relations were not as well endowed, not as cash rich, and there was an effort to spread the wealth,” he said.
He added that the compromise “supplants” the original declaration and “under the law this allows for reformation.”
Related UMNS Articles:
Final legal arguments presented over Church and Society funds
Hearing begins in legal case over Church and Society funds
Board of Church and Society calls for withdrawal from Iraq
Resources:
Drug and Alcohol Concerns
The leadership of The Church Within A Church Movement thanks the Council of Bishops for their time spent considering the Extraordinary Ordination of Oct. 19th and how it relates to The United Methodist Church. In the spirit of holy conferencing, there are places of ecclesial agreement that need to be highlighted and some places that need clarification.
In the United Methodist New Service article (see UM NeXus, November 2008), we observe the following quotations:
The Council of Bishops and the Church Within A Church Movement are of the same mind regarding these statements. Only The United Methodist Church has the authority to ordain people into its denomination and the appointment system. We are also of the same mind that there is no intent to do harm to The United Methodist Church, where many within the Movement and particularly our newly ordained women, still call home.
The Church Within A Church Movement claims validity as a Christian ordaining body. Rev. Annie Britton and Rev. Jenna Zirbel have been examined, affirmed and authorized in a celebration that recognized their call to the ministry of the ordained. They have been ordained by a Christian community that seeks to actively live out the Gospel message that says we all have a place at God’s table, a table that is not owned by any tradition or group. They will continue in relationship and under the supervision of that Christian community as they work in settings that recognize their credentials and skills, as well as their gifts and graces.
We embrace the words “renegade action” that Bishop Palmer used regarding Church Within A Church Movement’s “Extraordinary Ordination in a Methodist Tradition Minus the Closet.” We hope to continue in justice-making, to participate actively in meeting a need, especially while The United Methodist Church’s policy is to reject candidates who are “self-avowed practicing homosexuals” or candidates proclaiming an inclusive theology. What better company than to stand with Jesus whose words and actions often stood in stark contrast to the hypocrisies and traditions in his day as well?
My yearning is for the day when we each experience our own transformation that moves us to the place of offering love and community to those who are cast out, silenced, or unwelcome in the first place.
The Church Within A Church Movement intends to continue to name the brokenness of the Church, and the wrongs of racism, heterosexism and sexism and to affirm our faith in a loving God, a Christ of compassion and a Holy Spirit of infinite imagination, and let that faith become the transforming source of action, fullness, wholeness and overflowing justice.
Cathy Knight is the executive director of the Church Within a Church Movement.
]]>Yet, most significantly, his election represents an historic achievement of the civil rights movement. It is a long-suffering struggle for freedom from the Emancipation Proclamation to Kunta Kinte in Roots; from Jim Crow segregation to Brown vs. Board of Education; from Rosa Parks to the sit-ins and Freedom Riders; from the hosing of children and attacks of dogs in Birmingham to the Civil Rights Act; from the murders of Medger Evers, James Cheney, Mickey Schwerner, Andrew Goodwin and the bloodied witness of Fannie Lou Hamer to the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party; from the beatings of John Lewis and others at Pettis Bridge in Selma to the Voting Rights Act; from King’s “I Have a Dream” to the Nobel Peace Prize and to a Memphis motel; from Operation Breadbasket and Jesse Jackson in Chicago to Rainbow PUSH and Jesse’s respectable runs for President in 1984 and 1988.
Barack stands on the shoulders of others, a line of splendor, sacrifice and blood, a consistent clamor for human rights and racial fairness. What a cloud of witnesses have brought us to this moment. May “we, as a people” not forget this “arc of history” as Barack paraphrased Dr. King in Grant Park on election night: May all the people of this land, may freedom loving people across the world, feel the accomplishment of this day.
Oh, happy day!
Rev. Martin Deppe
Chicago, Ilinois
“[Sen. John McCain's] reminder—that what we share as Americans is so much greater than what divides us—is even more true for us as Christians. Because we share Jesus as Lord, we share common ground much broader and more important than any of the kingdoms of this world. We share the faith that our future ultimately is not dependent on any president, and that we must work together as a voice for the last, the least and the lost.”
–The Rev. Karen Vannoy Vannoy, pastor of First United Methodist Church in Phoenix, AZ, in a UMNS report on United Methodists’ reactions to Barack Obama’s election as the 44th president of the United States.
“Barack Obama does not need to move to the center. He needs to MOVE the center. The times demand it. THAT is where his chance to be a transformational figure lies.”
– Artie Gold, commenting in the New York Times.
“So to everyone overseas I say: thanks for your applause for our new president. I’m glad you all feel that America ‘is back.’ If you want Obama to succeed, though, don’t just show us the love, show us the money. Show us the troops. Show us the diplomatic effort. Show us the economic partnership. Show us something more than a fresh smile. Because freedom is not free and your excuse for doing less than you could is leaving town in January.”
– Thomas L. Friedman in his Nov. 9 New York Times column.