Seeking Social Justice

On Pride Sunday, June 27, Sojourners Open & Affirming group facilitated the worship service and several members of the congregation offered the following remarks.

Too often, religious groups misuse a few passages from the Bible to justify the oppression of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people. Too often, we do not know how to respond to these texts or know what they really mean. As a result, dialog with these religious groups–be it in person or in society—has the potential to make LGBTQ people feel badly about themselves.  

We would like to speak about each of these so-called “clobber passages” in the Bible, in detail, removing the fear they can sometimes instill.  There will be a different reader for each passage, and this presentation will take the place of the sermon.  There is much information to be shared, and many of you may be hearing this for the first time.  After each reader speaks, we will pause for a minute or two to give you time to reflect. 

Genesis 19:5 “Where are the men who came in to thee this night?  Bring them out unto us, that we may know them.”

Sodom and Gomorrah is a story in the Bible of two cities, whose inhabitants are said to be wicked, and God has decided to destroy them.  Two angels visit Abraham’s brother Lot, who lives there, and give him the news and a means of escape.  The men of S&G hear that Lot has visitors and they all march to his dwelling, aiming to do bodily harm to the angels.  Lot tries to satisfy the men with offering them his daughters(!), but their anger was not appeased, and as they tried to break Lot’s door down, the angels blinded all the men outside the door. 

I was taught that the grave sin of S&G was homosexuality, but if you look at this scripture objectively, it is a difficult case to make.  God’s Rule of Living for Genesis is hospitality. If you weren’t friendly to your enemies, you could lose your life.  The cities of Sodom and Gomorrah showed zero tolerance for anyone different than themselves, and instead, are gang-raping folks to subdue and humiliate them.  It’s not just a few bad apples—every man in the city—young and old the Bible says–comes out to defy Lot and demand his visitors be turned out.  Do you suppose that every man in the city is gay?  Hmmmm . . . not even in San Francisco.  And if they were all gay, then why did Lot offer them his daughters . . .

For those of you that know me, know I love seeing the irony in life.  So, here’s some irony:  Suppose we are right about Sodom & Gomorrah’s sin being that of inhospitality—or intolerance—to word it a bit differently.  These religious groups today would be guilty of that very same grievous sin . . .

Leviticus 18:22 & 20:13 “You shall not lie with a male as with a woman.”

The book of Leviticus is a code of ethics, and includes 769 rules or codes that were only meant for the Jewish men who were from the tribe of Levi who were going to be priests during the Old Testament.  Some of these rules include:

Don’t eat shellfish.

Only wear clothes made of one type of fiber.

Burn the witches.

Only grow one crop at a time. 

Please also remember that this was the time when God was growing the Jewish nation. It was not acceptable to ‘waste the seed’.  Two men could not procreate, so sex between folks of the same sex was frowned upon during this time, as was masturbation.  These Jewish laws for the priests of Levi do not apply to us.

Romans 1:26&27 “Their women exchanged natural intercourse for unnatural, and in the same way also the men, giving up natural intercourse with women, were consumed with passion for one another.”

What was natural?  Paul wrote the books of Romans and Corinthians, for Christians at a time when the Greeks were exploring the humanities, which certainly fostered a more open view of sex.  Unfortunately, they were going overboard, and STDs were pretty common.  Heterosexual folks were finding sexual partners of all persuasions.  In other words, Paul was saying if you are heterosexual, then having homosexual sex is not natural for you.  It is highly likely that Paul is speaking out against promiscuity and advocating for moderation—which happens to be the theme of Romans, Corinthians, and I Timothy!

Corinthians 6:9, 10 “Be not deceived:  neither fornicators, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind . . .shall inherit the kingdom of God.”

And I Timothy 1:9, 10. “Knowing this, that the law is not made for a righteous man but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and for sinners, . . . for them that defile themselves with mankind, and if there be any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine . . .”

“The Greek word used in both these passages are the same and literally mean ‘the male who has many beds’.  Thus, the entire phrase means a male with multiple bed-partners; a promiscuous man. Everywhere that the word koitais is used in the plural in the Bible denotes promiscuity.  The English word ‘homosexual’ was not coined or created until 1868.  If you see the word ‘homosexual’ in the Bible, it has been inserted. 

Perhaps you are wondering if Jesus had anything to say about homosexuality? He did not. Thank you for taking the time to listen with an open mind and receive the Word of God.

Dr. Rosa Atkins, Superintendent of the Charlottesville Public Schools and Dr. Pamela Moran, Superintendent of Albemarle County School Division spoke to an enthusiastic group after the morning worship service on Sunday, May 16^th, sponsored by the Racial Justice Social Action Group. This was a return engagement for both superintendents, a practice that has been in existence for a number of years.  At least once each year, they have come to update Sojourners on what is happening in each school system.

They each talked about the impact of the budget cuts on their systems.  It seems that Albemarle will be “hit harder” than the city of Charlottesville resulting in lost of some teachers and some programs.  Classroom sizes will increase by one child in grades above 4^th in the county.

Both Drs. Atkins and Moran spoke about the impact of technology on the world of education today.  We must be able to expose students to the rapidly changing pace of technology and prepare them to explore and advance in “out of the box” thinking.  Advances have been made in narrowing the much talked about achievement gap between black and white students. The importance of early childhood education, starting with classes for three years olds was felt to be the most important step that can be taken to change achievement gap statistics.

To the question about what can we, as citizens and Sojourners, do to support the school systems, the need for a strong consistent and constant education advocacy group was promulgated.  The importance of public education needs to be frequently at the forefront of discussions in the community and regular support at times other than budget hearings or teacher cut-backs.  The Education Action Group resulting from the Dialogue on Race was mentioned as a possible beginning of an advocacy group.

We thank Drs Atkins and Moran for their willingness to come to us on a Sunday morning and look forward to hearing from them again next year or before.

On the morning of Sunday, May 2, the Eco-Justice Outreach Group led a joyful Sojourners worship service, beginning with the Invocation of the Four Directions through prayer and traditional Cherokee dance.  Songs, scripture, the Time with Children, spoken meditation (and communion prayer all wove together to celebrate relationships within the Earth community and to invite reflection on our human place as members of God’s Creation.

In the afternoon, Sojourners Eco-Justice Group and the Interfaith Cooperation Circle of Central Virginia (ICCCV) hosted approximately forty-five people, from throughout the Charlottesville area, at Sojourners for a public showing of Renewal, an inspiring documentary about how people of varied faith communities are contributing to an environmentally sustainable future.  Following the video – and after a pause for delicious refreshments – facilitated listening circles provided an opportunity for folks to share their thoughts and feelings on the issues raised.  Participation was enthusiastic, with many expressing a renewed sense of energy and hope.  You can read the spoken meditation at: http://www.sojourners-ucc.org/programs/sermons/05-02-10.html; learn more about ICCCV at: http://interfaithcooperation.org/ and check out Renewal at: http://www.renewalproject.net.

The next regularly scheduled meeting of Sojourners Social Justice Groups is June 6 after worship. These groups are open to anyone who would like to participate.  If you’re new to the church or just haven’t picked a group yet, feel free to drop in on one or more of the meetings to find out what’s happening. You can check out details on this blog or on the Sojourners News bulletin board at church.  Beginning June 6, on Social Justice Sundays, we’re inviting directors of various local agencies or organizations which we fund through our Service & Missions grants to join us for worship and to briefly address the congregation. We look forward to welcoming our first speaker, Cindy Stratton, a member of the Steering committee for the City’s Dialogue on Race, June 6.  All speakers will be asked to stay for fellowship and the meetings after worship so that we can share more information about our respective social justice work.

The Ojola Group met briefly on 1/10/2010 to review the 2009 annual report and to discuss finances, requests, and the projected budget for 2010.  In addition to the 3 secondary and 3 primary school children we are already sponsoring, the group was asked to consider sponsoring three additional boys  (2 secondary / 1 primary), one of whom is truly destitute.  Other requests included hiring a cook so that the children don’t have to cook for themselves during the school day; and paying fees so that Christine, Syprose’s adult daughter and manager of the Project, could enroll in Part II of a CPA course.  A fourth request (carried over from this past summer) was for support for Victor Ochieng to take a computer course.  (Victor was a beneficiary of Ojola Project funds and did very well on his end-of-high school exams).  This request is still pending, as the Ojola Group has not been given an estimate on course costs.

The group decided that it could meet the first three requests by adding them to the projected budget through grants and existing funding.  Also, the Ojola Group is awaiting a response from the Odero stakeholders on the feasibility of opening up a tailor shop now that funds are available.

At its meeting on September 17, the Sojourners Church Council voted to send the following letter to John O. Wynne, University Rector and chair of the search committee for the new president of the University of Virginia.

This letter grew out of the work of a group then called the University Community Racial Reconciliation Project, now renamed the University Community Action for Racial Equity.  This group had written a letter to Mr. Wynne asking for issues of racial justice to be part of the discussion in the search for a new president.  They welcomed signers from the community at large.  Sojourners, however, decided to write its own letter, which was approved by and sent on behalf of our church council.

Dear Mr. Wynne,

We are aware that the University of Virginia is beginning a search process for the person who will succeed John Casteen as president of the university.  We write not as members of the university community but of the larger community of which the university is a part.  We believe the university and the community live in a relationship of mutuality.  The health of each depends on the other.

We write particularly as the church council of Sojourners United Church of Christ, a faith community that is concerned about matters of racial equity in the Charlottesville region and committed to working for racial justice.  We want to affirm the enormous benefits the University of Virginia brings to the surrounding community.  We further affirm the positive steps the university has taken In acknowledging its role in past injustices as well as the resources it brings to helping improve the lives of Charlottesville residents. 

However, we are also acutely aware of how much remains to be done.  For all its positive contributions to the community, the university has also been deeply involved in a history of discrimination and racism.  Acknowledgment and apology will need to be accompanied by consistent and dedicated efforts to repair the past and build a different future.  This time of transition offers the university an excellent opportunity to demonstrate that it is serious about working toward racial justice both in its own institutional life and in the surrounding community.

We know that the university will be looking for financial and academic leadership.  We urge that it also consider moral leadership in relationship to racial justice to be of utmost importance.  We are aware of the questions put forward by the University Community Racial Reconciliation Project and have taken the liberty of attaching them for easy reference.  We believe they are good questions for discussion with candidates for the presidency of the University.  Indeed the issues raised are important points of discussion for all of us as we move forward.

Yours truly, 

Krissy Lasagna             Rebecca Garrity               Jim Bundy
Co-moderator              Co-moderator                Pastor Read the rest of this entry »

On Sunday, September 20th, the Prison Ministry Social Justice group will be leading the congregation in worship at 9:30 a.m. through prayers written by incarcerated individuals, along with songs and special music centered on the themes of freedom and peace.  Jennifer McBride will be our guest preacher.  She is the Director of the Atlanta Theological Association’s Certificate in Theological Studies at Metro State Women’s Prison and is a lecturer at Emory University’s Candler School of Theology in Atlanta, GA. 

Following our service of worship, we hope that many will make plans to enjoy the art exhibit in the fellowship hall, From Inside Out.   The goal of the project is to take the creative process to an underserved community and to create a new vehicle of expression that builds a sense of self worth. The program also creates a bridge between the prison population and mainstream culture.

We also invite you to attend the adult forum after worship (approximate start time between 11 and 11:30 a.m) when we will host a panel of individuals from the community who will engage with us in a 45-minute panel discussion centered on the question, ”How may churches and individuals assist and support formerly incarcerated people as they re-enter society at large?”  The panelists will include Phyllis Back, Programs Coordinator at Albemarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail; Lisa Nelson, Reentry Specialist at Offender Aid and Restoration – Jefferson Area Community Corrections (OAR); and Tracy Tryall, Educator Re-entry Population, Aids Services Group (ASG).

The Ojola Social Justice Group met on Sunday August 30, 2009 and discussed a Strategic Plan that had been submitted by the founder of the Ojola Project, Syprose, and her adult children.  Things have changed in Kenya since the program began.  In this new plan the family stressed their desire to shift the focus of the project from supporting small children to addressing the needs of orphaned youth.  Now that ARVs are available, fewer children are being orphaned.  Yet those young people who lost their parents in the HIV/AIDs epidemic of the 1990s and early 2000s, are now teenagers growing up without authority figures or role models.  Without guidance, some run away, drop out of school, get into drugs, and turn to crime.

In order to be more effective, they propose the following steps:

• Reconstituting the Board of Governors so that it includes local leaders (women as well as men) who can be counted on to invest time and energy, thereby fostering greater community “ownership” of the project;
• Establishing a Grassroots Committee that will oversee the daily management of the project—Christine, another grown daughter, will serve as the administrator.  She has taken accounting courses and has moved back to Kisumu;
• Starting businesses such as a tailoring shop and a small cyber café in two of the rooms of the residential block.  Such income-generating efforts  would help move the project toward self-sufficiency, and enable single mothers, school drop-outs, and widows to earn a living;
• Finding ways to further subsidize the post-secondary education of project beneficiaries (like Victor) who successfully completed Form IV, but  would like to take a computer programming course to improve his chances of getting a job; and
• Organizing activities for youths such as a football (soccer) team that would “motivate idle boys and occupy their time, with an aim of bringing them together for capacity building.” 

The group discussed the proposal and focused on several points.  There was concern about the security of the compound, especially if they are to purchase valuable equipment for running a business.  They will need to consider whether a fence or security guard will be effective in protecting their assets.  We also discussed fundraising ideas.  We agreed that once we have a concrete, well-thought-out proposal from the family, it will be easier to solicit funds.  We wondered about the possibility of helping them find a micro-loan program, especially for the businesses they wish to develop.  That route might include some on-site support about running a business and how to succeed. 

We agreed that we would continue to support the educational needs of the 4 boys currently in school.  A local soccer organization here is eager to send used equipment, shoes and uniforms to help the Ojola program.  We agreed that having Syprose’s adult children involved and increased involvement of the local elders and villagers is a positive step.

Cindy will communicate to them our concern that the new organizational structure gets firmly established before we move forward.  Also, we would like to see a more detailed business plan and some steps toward securing the compound.

The Prison Ministry Social Justice group will meet August 2 after worship and Ojola Children’s Project will meet August 30 after worship.

All Sojourners Social Justice Groups are invited to meet after worship July 12.  If you’re new to the church and would like to learn more, or just haven’t had a chance to attend any meetings yet, please see the Sojourners News board for group descriptions and the facilitators’ contact information or contact the church office. Everyone is welcome.