Racial Justice Sermon
17th Sunday after Pentecost The Rev. Kisten H. Thompson Dear Friends in Christ, grace to you and peace from God our Creator and our Lord and Savior Jesus the Christ. Amen. Thank you to Pastor Sonja for inviting me to preach this morning as Christ the King begins a month-long Wednesday evening engagement with racial justice issues, specifically our denomination’s 2019 apology to people of African Descent for slavery. To set the stage for the study, lets take a look at our first reading for this morning, and what the call of Moses could be saying to you as individuals but more importantly to us as a congregation, as Christ the King Lutheran Church. Our first reading picks up partway through Moses’ life…to really understand chapter 3, we need to go back over 400 years to where Jacob and his descendants settle in Egypt to escape a famine…they grow and multiply…they gain land, people and wealth and Pharaoh begins to fear their numbers. He enslaves them, oppresses them, makes their lives bitter and even tries to kill the male babies…there is generation upon generation upon generation of suffering. Until Moses is born to Hebrew parents, hidden and then set adrift in a basket to be found, rescued and adopted by Pharaoh’s daughter. He is raised to adulthood in privilege, power and favor, only to run for his life after he kills an Egyptian who was abusing an enslaved Hebrew and Pharaoh tries to kill him. Moses runs to Midian and settles there. And so our reading begins with Moses now in this comfortable, safe, settled, calm life…married…with a son…tending sheep for his father-in-law, Jethro…life is good for Moses. But it has NOT been and is NOT now good for the Israelites who are groaning and crying out in their enslavement and suffering. And God hears their cries…God remembers God’s covenant with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and God begins the action…the action to save and deliver God’s people. What does God do? First God gets Moses’ attention…through a burning bush and by calling his name…not once, but twice. It’s sort of like hearing your full given name called out…Kisten Lee Henriksen…when I was younger and I heard that…I knew my mother meant business…and I’d better pay attention. And a burning bush? Well, if that doesn’t get your attention, I don’t know what would. Then God names the mission…God tells Moses that God knows the suffering of the Israelites…God has heard their groaning, their crying out and God has compassion for them. And God is going to deliver them from slavery and bring them to a land flowing with milk and honey…the Promised Land…and God has chosen Moses to undertake and lead this great mission. And finally, God seals the deal with both reassurance and revelation. The more that Moses stammers and stutters that he is not the one God wants for the mission, the more God says it’s really not about what you want…and God says “I will be with you”. This whole endeavor doesn’t rest on Moses shoulder’s alone…God is the one who will make it happen…God is the One who is faithful…it is God’s action that will deliver the people. That’s the reassurance. But there is also a revelation…the revealing of a name and not just any old name. It is the name of God Almighty, God the Lord, God the Most High…I AM WHO I AM…the name that is to be revered and honored…the name of the One who causes all things to pass. This is the name that seals the deal for the relationship between Moses and God, between Moses and the Israelites, between the Israelites and God, for the generations to come…the name that acknowledges the suffering of the oppressed, the name of the one who delivers, the name of the One who is always and forever present. I’ve been doing quite a bit of wondering about this story of Moses and his encounter with God in the burning bush and how it sent his life in a completely new and different direction. I sometimes think that I, too, had been like Moses….he had settled into a safe life, a sheltered life, free from the fear and danger that had been in Egypt. And I moved back to MN to begin seminary, leaving behind a still segregated South and lifestyle, hoping for a calmer, more equitable life…a life where I didn’t have to see the injustices I saw day in and day out in Memphis…back to MN where I could revel in my Scandinavian heritage, my Ole and Lena jokes, and finding Lutherans and like-minded people on every corner. I wanted safety, comfort, familiarity. But I soon found that MN was not the safe haven that I thought it was, nor was it as welcoming as I had hoped. Oh, I was welcomed but it was not that way for many others. I learned that my education, my heritage, my skin color, my economic earning power gave me a head start over so many others, even though my gender wasn’t always a positive. It was while I was pastoring in urban St. Paul that God began to get my attention…Michael Brown, Philando Castille, Freddie Gray-those men, their names, their deaths began to stir my heart and the hearts of so many…Black Lives Matter…what did that mean? Didn’t all lives matter? Why the distinction? The murder of the Mother Emmanuel Nine…Redlining, housing covenants, the history of the splitting of the Rondo neighborhood…I began to see, listen and learn. But that little congregation closed and I settled into retirement, snug and secure here in New Brighton…And still God continued to grab my attention…the rise of white supremacy groups here in the U.S., the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia where Nazi and anti-Semitic slogans were shouted…the changing demographics here in New Brighton. And then, in the midst of a world-wide pandemic, George Floyd was murdered here in Minneapolis and the fires of reform, protest and calls for real, lasting change, for justice, equality spread not only across our state, our country but around the world. I felt called to the work of racial justice and reconciliation. And life has not been the same. Perhaps you have experienced something similar…an awakening, a wondering what you might do to make life more just for those who have been sidelined, marginalized and oppressed for generations. Perhaps you have been wondering what systemic racism or white privilege even means? Perhaps you feel a stirring in your heart, that perhaps God is calling you into a new venture to learn how the institution of slavery built this country, now the enslavement of people of African descent was codified into law even as early as the 1600’s in the first years of settlement of this country. Perhaps you are even wondering how the Christian church either participated in the perpetuation of slavery, the Jim Crow laws, the terror of lynchings or stood by passively as others took the lead. And maybe, just maybe, you’re secretly wondering, what’s all the fuss? Can’t we just move ahead and forget all this? And really, I just don’t see color, I see the person. I think that God is grabbing our attention through the events of the day and calling us to leave the safety of our little comfort zones and venture into areas and ideas we may not understand but we need to. Pastor Sonja said in her sermon last week that God is calling us to be a Lukan church and when I think of that, I am reminded of the passage from Isaiah that Jesus read in the synagogue, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” Just as God named the mission that Moses was to undertake, God is sending us on a mission as well, Christ the King. As we continue in this time of transition, in discovering and naming once again who we are as a faith community, we are given this opportunity to really and truly explore how we can become a courageous church, willing to have hard conversations about race, inequity, oppressive systems, to talk about confession, lament, racial reconciliation. Perhaps in our own self-examination, study and conversation, we ourselves will be set free from our own participation and complicity in the privileged white systems that exist even when we didn’t know what they were or that we were helping to perpetuate them. Moses was still uncertain, timid and resistant even after God got his attention, even after God revealed what God wanted him to do. God had to reassure Moses and give him God’s name…I will be with you…I AM GOES WITH YOU. That’s the reassurance and revelation that God shares with you this morning in this time of transition, in this time of beginning study and conversation. The name of our study is Now Is the Time and truly, it is a time to trust in God’s presence, in God’s compassion, in God’s liberating deliverance and care…and that, dear friends, gives us the courage to face an uncomfortable past and walk boldly into a new future of racial justice and reconciliation and of structural change. May we hear God’s voice saying, “I will be with you” as we gather together in courage and in hope to be about the work of proclaiming release to the captives and letting the oppressed go free. Amen
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by Pr. Sonja Hagander
Dear Church: Your Transition Task Force Co-Chairs met this week. We began with recalling the “Code of Conduct” we all agreed to way back during our orientation in May. We have covenanted to “Be the Kind of Person Others Can Trust” with: Collaboration & Compromise Open Mindedness Civility: Respectful Listening Asking Clarifying Questions Graciousness Persuasive Listening Sensitivity to Creation Honesty Ownership of Ideas “I” Language Assuming Good Intent Kindness Everyone shared a story or instance from the last 3 months of intentional transition work where they experienced these healthy ways to “live among God’s faithful people,” (Baptismal rite, ELW). This Task Force has done remarkable ministry already in 3 or so months and much more discernment and tasks are before us. This Sunday, September 25, as a church, we pause to celebrate and to wonder: Where is God leading us? I invite you to:
Mission & Vision Team Kathleen Johnson Phil Larsen Jennifer Miller Ron Nolby Julie Dolan Johnson Prayer Team Alice Kalkwarf Les Kuivanen, Margo Kuivanen Randy Bradshaw Diane Shallue Self Study Team Roland Martinson Karen Hillerman Priscilla Berg Bob Benke Mark Chace Elaine Foell Staffing Team Kay Christenson Gordie Olson John Hanson Gail Gallagher Ron Olsen Joanna Zenz John Rockwell CtK/ Cristo Rey Relationship Team Maria Tenorio Dick Mork Cheryl Lowe Teresa Bettmann Vern Rice Karen Erickson Lucia Alvarez Pastor Ana Becera We are blessed to welcome Linda Jacobson as she returns to Christ the King, this time as our 2022 Global Mission Sunday speaker. She has a rich lifetime of global mission experiences. After growing up in Tennessee, where she studied biology and medical technology, she accepted her first job - teaching in a mission school in the interior of Brazil. She followed that with work at refugee camps in Thailand and Somalia. She then attended public health school, where she met Minnesota native Dr. Mark Jacobson. They decided to be partners in life and work. She later studied theology as well.
The couple went to Kenya in 1982 and to Tanzania in 1985, working in public health and community health. While Dr. Mark moved to development of hospitals, treatment programs, and training of medical personnel, she specialized in work with women of the communities where they lived. She created Bible study groups, home industries, and a widows’ support group. The Jacobsons’ three daughters were raised in Arusha, Tanzania. Christ the King is one of a network of congregations that has provided financial support for the Jacobsons’ ministry, and they have represented us to the people of Tanzania through their mission work. Linda Jacobson is an American who has lived outside the USA for 40 years of her life, currently dividing her time between Tanzania and the United States. She finds that she is always wanting to learn from her neighbors around the world. On Sunday, September 18, she will share some of those insights with us at Christ the King. by Kisten Thompson on behalf of the Racial Justice Working Group
Did you know that on June 27, 2019, the Church Council of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) adopted a Declaration of the ELCA to the People of African Descent? The first paragraph includes this statement, "The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) apologizes to people of African descent for its historical complicity in slavery and its enduring legacy of racism in the United States and globally. We lament the white church’s failure to work for the abolition of slavery and the perpetuation of racism in this church. We confess, repent and repudiate the times when this church has been silent in the face of racial injustice. The Racial Justice Working Group here at Christ the KIng will be leading a 4 week study called "Now Is the Time" during the month of October on Wednesday evenings (October 5, 12, 19 and 26) that will read, discuss, and wrestle with this declaration in a safe and brave space. We hope that by addressing this declaration, we can have a better understanding of the history of slavery in this country, the role of racism in the foundations of our country and our denomination and how we might address the future of where do we go from here in becoming a more welcoming, inclusive community in an increasingly diverse world. Registration for this series begins 9/18 with signups at worship or online. The schedule will look something like this: Meal from 5:30-6:30 p.m. Discussion: 6:15-7:15 p.m. Children's activities and confirmation will also be exploring the themes being discussed as appropriate for age and understanding. We hope you can join us for these meaningful conversations. The Racial Justice Working Group by Jennifer Willprecht Walczak
As some of you may know, Community Partners with Youth (CPY) is celebrating 25 YEARS of Service in the New Brighton community. Since 1997, Christ the King has graciously opened their doors to CPY and allowed 500 youth per year to enter and grow. What you may not know is that I am one of those youth. I come to the CPY celebration from many different angles, all of them grateful for what CPY and CtK do in the community. My family has been at Christ the King since it opened, with my grandparents being some of the first members, my dad being one of the first confirmation classes, and all of his siblings being baptized and confirmed here. Once I came along, my parents knew that Christ the King was the right place for my baptism and faith education. As a middle schooler and only child, my parents weren’t comfortable with me being home alone every day after school, but we also couldn’t really afford any of the fancy (read: expensive) after school programs the school was offering. We were a solidly blue collar family, making enough for our lot rent at the mobile home park and some dance lessons at the local studio, but not enough to do much else. CPY was a huge blessing to our family, allowing me a space to safely be a kid before going home to make dinner (my mom will admit she isn’t the best cook), do homework, and help around the house. When I had my first born in college and I was approved for work study funds, I knew I needed something off campus, as I was technically a single mother (we got married when our son was almost 2 years old) and being on campus twice a week was all I could afford with parking, time off of my full time job, and daycare costs. Luckily for me, CPY was a work study site, and even luckier, 3 blocks away from my parents’ house where my little family of 3 was living. I was thrilled when I got the job. I have since graduated from the University of Minnesota, bought the house next door to my parents, and added 2 more kids to my family, all 3 of whom roam the halls of Christ the King 6 days a week between my work as a Program Director at CPY, and worship on Sundays. My story is just one of many that list not only Community Partners with Youth, but also Christ the King as a huge blessing in their life. I am not only proud to be a CtK congregant, but also a CPY alumni and staff. On behalf of all the CPY youth, staff, and alumni, I would personally like to invite everyone to the Community Partners with Youth 25th Birthday Bash next Saturday, September 10, 2022 to hear more stories like mine, enjoy some delicious food from great food trucks, learn more about the ways CPY has impacted the community, and just celebrate what YOU have made possible over the last 25 years. by Megan Crosby
Make a joyful noise to the Lord, Serve the Lord with gladness. Come into his presence with singing. Psalm 100: 1-2 I love hearing my daughter sing. She has watched many a church service on the TV at home and she can sing the hymn of praise “Glory to God” quite well. Also, the upbeat Sanctus, when we sing “Hosanna, Hosanna, Hosanna in the highest.” It’s hard to beat the enthusiasm of children! We are all invited to sing, to make a joyful noise, regardless of our talent or musical training. When we sing together, we are one. All those individual voices: young or old, trained or amateur, smooth or cracking, we create one blended voice and it is beautiful. While you hear yourself sing (and the voices next to you), up front I hear that one voice and it is magnificent, even powerful. You may feel that your voice isn’t good enough. I’m here to tell you that it is. My mom was not a fantastic singer. She matched pitch sometimes and at other times the notes in the hymn would go too high and she would try to sing down the octave, creating some other harmony notes. Still, she sang at church and she didn’t care what anybody else thought about her voice. Singing at worship is not just for those that are the best. Singing is for all of us. At worship, we can set aside our self-judgements and sing together to our creator, who lovingly made us and comes to us as we are. This Sunday we are having a hymn sing. Some songs are already in the bulletin, chosen from suggestions provided by the congregation. Some songs will be chosen “out of a hat” that morning, so fill out a slip of paper with your favorite song when you arrive! by Pr. Ana Becerra
...on the night he was betrayed, took bread, 24 and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.” 25 In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 1 Corinthians 11:23-25 Over 30 years ago my little brother and I received our First Communion. At that time it was very usual to learn the catechism in about a year—as a Roman Catholic you were required to memorize the confession, Lord's Prayer, 10 commandments, Hail Mary, and Creeds among many other prayers. I remember being so ready and having it all memorized because I couldn't wait to get my First Communion. On the other hand my brother who spent 99% of his time playing soccer did not have the same “urgency” to get his First Communion (despite my frustration my brother took not one or two, but THREE YEARS to get ready). I remember receiving the blood and body of Christ in my neighborhood church just on the top of the hill in a “brand new” church with wood benches, no air conditioning, no windows or open doors. As we walked, I remember seeing my very pretty dress getting dirty and dusty; my Godmother braided my hair and started to get affected by sweat, yet this overjoyed little girl was so happy to finally be at God’s table. This Sunday I will be ordained and in the last few weeks I have experienced joy similar to when I received my First Communion. This time my brother has nothing to do with the long process, yet since 2016, when I started to serve as a Mission Developer, I have felt the urgency to get ordained. This Sunday as it was when I was 10, I have so many of you walking with me through the journey that I can literally feel the exhaustion and excitement that I did when I first received the body of Christ. May the Lord’s blood and body strengthen us to continue walking as the body of Christ. Amen by Pr. Sarah Anderson
“Be strong and courageous; do not be frightened or dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9 Courage looks, feels, and sounds differently for everyone. Author Glennon Doyle might say courage is ‘doing the hard things’. In fact her popular podcast is named, “We Can Do Hard Things.” I envision the quoted scripture from the book of Joshua as the Israelites doing hard things. They followed Moses while wandering in the desert, awaiting their arrival into the land where they wouldn’t have to do so many hard things. I imagine they intended to follow Moses’ leadership in the new land, but Moses never set foot on it. It had to be hard for the people to lose Moses. Often when there is loss, we find strength and perseverance when we didn’t know we had it. Joshua immediately became Moses’ successor, leading the people into the Promised Land, but first he received a pep talk from God. I encourage you to read the opening verses of the book of Joshua and God’s message to him. Notice the number of times God tells him to be courageous. Hear God’s words as words spoken directly to you, and then wonder: where can you continue to be courageous? Where can you be more courageous? What gifts are you withholding that can be shared with your neighbors and with CtK? Last month we heard from CtK member Priscilla Berg how we can be courageous in our walking. In worship this Sunday, we will hear from another CtK member who is courageous in healing. Kristi Chace will share the courage she had to have while undergoing treatment for cancer and the subsequent healing. Like each of your stories, hers is powerful and courageous. Come to worship, be inspired, hear God’s words spoken to you, “Be strong and courageous; do not be frightened or dismayed, because God is with you wherever you go.” by Nate Crary
“[Noah] sent out the dove from the ark; 11and the dove came back to him in the evening, and there in its beak was a freshly plucked olive leaf; so Noah knew that the waters had subsided from the earth.” Genesis 8:10-11 Tomorrow, our family will celebrate Noah’s 2-year baptism anniversary. It doesn’t seem possible that two years have passed since my family gathered in the lawn outside the columbarium at CtK to celebrate Noah’s new life in Christ. It’s hard to believe that was already two years ago because of all that’s happened (and is still happening) in our lives and in the world. I wonder what it was like for Noah (from the Old Testament) to wait for the dove to return to the ark after the rain had stopped. Did time stand still? Did time fly by? Was Noah confident in God’s new covenant? Did he fear the rain would start up again? What if the dove got distracted or forget the way back? When the dove returned that night, brining an olive leaf to the ark, Noah new something would be different from that point on. God made good on God’s promise to restore the earth and everything in it to fullness and life. A fresh start. Tomorrow, Michael and Olive will be baptized during the outdoor worship service at Christ the King. They will be washed clean and forever claimed as God’s beloved. And when the waters subside, the baptism is not over. They need each of you to support them and pray for them in their new life in Christ. Their lives will be changed forever as will the life of our church as we remind each other of God making good on God’s promise to love us through death and into new life. A fresh start. May it be so. Thanks be to God by Pastor Nuru Makweta
Our blog this week is a message from Christ the King’s companion congregation, the Nduli Parish, in the Iringa area of Tanzania. The Global Mission Team early this spring approved a toilet project for this parish for the amount of $5500, which translates to approximately Tsh 12,675,000. The funding comes from our Alternative Christmas sale and is sent through the SPAS Bega Kwa Bega Office in St. Paul to the Bega Kwa Bega Office in the Iringa Diocese. They help get the funding to our Parish as approved for various projects. Completing a public toilet is the current project. We have helped build the pastor’s house, plant trees and other agricultural products that support the church, provide scholarships for secondary youth (an annual payment), etc. We hope you are doing well, and the work of God, and we are doing well. First of all we [are grateful] for praying, greetings, and saving project[. W]e Received an amount of Tsh 12,675,000 [approximately $5500] for toilet project [. W]e are very happy[;] thank you very much for your sacrifice[. W]e are very blessed and God blessing your construction continues as you can see in the picture. "The members are very happy for your sacrifices and they continue to pray for you and they have been responsive to continue doing God's work." It is now the harvest season[;] many believer's are reaping, but this year the harvest has not been good[;] we ask you to pray for us[. O]n Sunday we will have an election of church leaders[.] We wish you good service, Mungu awabariki sana, karibuni sana usharikani kwetu tumewakumbuka. |
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Christ the King Lutheran Church
1900 7th Street NW New Brighton, MN 55112 Phone: 651-633-4674 Email: [email protected] Office Hours: 9 am - 2 pm Mon - Thurs or by appointment Sunday Schedule Morning Worship at 9:30 am |