Patriotism and Discipleship--choices we have

Further reflection on the Jeremiah Wright flap, from a left-leaning democrat, but not about partisan politics. This is about how we parse our values of patriotism and Christian discipleship as church leaders and how our folks respond to our choices.

Hillary is quoted in the NYTimes this morning as saying: "Given all we have heard and seen, he (Wright) would not have been my pastor." She is further quoted as critiquing Obama: "While we don't have a choice when it comes to our relatives, we do have a choice when it comes to our pastors or our church."

The assumption in that last quote is a common one. Christianity is a voluntary activity. We make choices to join churches or leave churches or not go to church at all based on our private values and prejudices. One of our favorite prejudices leveraged against our churches and our pastors is patriotism. I've been reminded frequently as a pastor, and I'll be you have too, that we are not free to criticize our country or our president because that's mixing church and state.

I've always felt that I owe a higher allegiance to the God of Jesus Christ than I do to my country, and I'm a kind of American heretic because of it, I know. I am frankly shocked that Americans are criticizing Jeremiah Wright for mining the scriptures for God's priorities and using those scriptural insights to criticize the priorities of the government.

Hillary's comment also reminded me that prominent church members and community leaders are not above using their celebrity and their clout (and their contributions to the church) as a threat to domesticate the clergy. "If you say something I don't agree with, I'll leave this church and tell everyone why."

I personally believe Christians are called to a higher standard of behavior. Of course we are free to disagree with our pastors, but we're not free to reject the demands of the gospel to put God first!

Context in Preaching--Jeremiah Wright's critics

The seminary had a forum last week, organized by students, to talk about the flap caused by those who cherry-picked Rev. Jeremiah Wright's sermons for so called sensational clips and then tried to tie the Democratic candidate Obama to them. Our homiletics professor, Dr. Debra Mumford, pointed out that they not only took these clips out of context from the whole sermons and from their scriptural basis (Wright is a completely biblical preacher, by the way), but they also took him out of the context of preaching in a black church, out of the context of the black prophetic preaching tradition, and out of the context of black liberation theology. She also suggested that she could find nothing untrue in what was quoted by Wright--an important distinction!

I thought that the mostly white students in the crowd needed to think, as well, about how they approach public issues in their preaching in the context of mainline, European-American, middle-class congregations. Here is what I wrote in response.

In my 35 years of preaching to mostly middle and upper-middle class European American Presbyterians, I engaged in a very different kind of prophetic proclamation. I think Wright and I may use similar hermeneutic principles, but it did not look or sound anything like what he does. With my congregations, I listened carefully with ear and heart and mind to the culture and existential concerns of my congregation (as Wright did at Trinity UCC) and the historical situation in which we lived. Then I shaped the prophetic messages to work into their particular hearts and minds. I did not usually overtly challenge or criticize their compliance and collaboration with the dominant culture that oppressed others. The reason for that is that I had learned that they could not hear hope and gospel for themselves or for others if they closed their ears to the prophetic message. That’s similar to the mental processes we observe in commentators and news anchors and others who wont’ or can’t really hear Jeremiah Wright’s messages.

The other thing that I did in my congregations that is parallel to Wright—I let them know in as many ways as possible that I loved them, and helped them learn to trust me. After a while, they also became more open to my prophetic proclamation because it came in the context of trust and love. Each of us has to measure how long to let that trust build in a particular congregation before turning up the pressure in prophetic preaching.

With reading the context and building trust, over the years I learned to frame the gospel and the prophetic message in ways that would open their hearts and minds to the possibility of inner transformation for themselves and compassion and commitment to others, particularly to those on the margins. This was not always fruitful, but I kept at it. Frequently they thought I was “making them think” which is white folks’ way of struggling with these issues, and that was OK with them. They also knew, because I repeated it often, that they were not required to agree with me. As good Presbyterians they were required, instead, to come to grips with the scripture passages, listen to my proclamation, examine their own conscience, and arrive at their own conclusions. Thus I could do prophetic preaching that fit the time and place, in my own particular way.

It's all about the context!

Watching Clinton and Obama turning on each other in a kind of pit-bull fight to the end reminded me of Dr. Ken Goodpaster, Professor of Business Ethics at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul MN, with whom I worked doing ethics training for high school students, and who coined the term "teleopathy." The theologically trained might catch the roots of the words--it means "goal sickness." It is described in his new book Conscience and Corporate Culture, just out from Blackwell. (See a review at:

http://http://www.isfp.co.uk/businesspathways/issue32.html)

A leader afflicted with teleopathy gets so fixated on a goal, such as winning a presidential nomination, that ethics and values are lost in the battle. He says this fixation or addiction is accompanied by distancing from one's humanity, and a rationalization that loses touch with reality. What makes this pathology so insidious is that one can easily slip over the cliff from a healthy and effective striving for excellence, with its virtues of courage, determination and perseverance. When the goal becomes more important than the people and the systems with which we are working, we're in danger.

Church leaders need to be inoculated against the disease of teleopathy because we drink the water of divine vocation and work in stained-glass environments. When you're doing God's work, it's easy to get so zealous that being right and achieving our goals are more important than the Holy One whom we are supposed to be serving. The inoculations take different forms, but my favorite is a veil of humility that holds my own limitations in front of me, and a good dose of relativity to cast doubt that I've got the final and best take on the situation.

Holy Spirit, give me courage, determination and perseverance, without pathological fixation.

New Source for Presbyterian and Ecumenical Studies at Louisville Seminary

President Dean K. Thompson announced yesterday the appointment of The Rev. Dr. Clifton Kirkpatrick as Visiting Professor of Ecumenical Studies and Global Ministries at Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary.

Kirkpatrick, who is currently stated clerk of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), is also the president of the World Alliance of Reformed Churches. He serves on the governing boards of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the U.S.A., the World Council of Churches, and the Council of Presidents, United States Chapter of the World Conference on Religion and Peace.

The announcement was made during the “Voices of the Church Dinner,” which was held March 4 in conjunction with Louisville Seminary’s annual Festival of Theology and Alum Reunion. Kirkpatrick was the guest speaker.

In September 2007, Kirkpatrick announced that he would not seek a fourth three-year term as stated clerk in the 2.3-million-member denomination. In a published statement addressed to friends and colleagues, he cited a desire for “more quality time with my family, to be able to devote myself more fully to the responsibility I have undertaken since 2004 to serve as president of the World Alliance of Reformed Churches, and to share in the life of the church, both locally and globally, in new and creative ways.”

Kirkpatrick’s term as stated clerk will conclude at the end of the 218th General Assembly (2008) in San Jose, Calif., in June. He was first elected to the office in 1996 and is only the second General Assembly stated clerk elected since Presbyterian reunion in 1983.

At Louisville Seminary, Kirkpatrick will teach up to two courses per year in areas of his expertise, including the ecumenical church, Presbyterian studies, the global church, Presbyterian polity and governance, congregational leadership and ministry, and practical theology.

“We at Louisville Seminary are deeply grateful for Cliff Kirkpatrick's wise, humble, and unselfish service in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and among ecumenical and Reformed communities throughout the world. We look forward to his new and promising relationship with our dedicated faculty and students,” stated President Thompson.

Kirkpatrick’s appointment will run three years and will also allow him to offer his services in Doctor of Ministry degree seminars and in Lifelong Learning events, which address the ecumenical and global church, middle governing body leadership, and church leadership.
Kirkpatrick said he will welcome the opportunity for interaction and conversation with faculty and students and of becoming an active member of the Louisville Seminary community.

Kirkpatrick will be a great resource for pastors, denominational officers and other church leaders for continuing education, for independent studies, and for general counsel drawing on his extensive experience in mission, governance, and interfaith and ecumenical relations.

I'm looking forward to having him around as a colleague! Welcome, Cliff!

March 5-8 Festival of Theology

2008 Festival of Theology and Alum Reunion
Young Voices in Homiletics
Worship - Lectures - Master Classes

FEATURING: Anna Carter Florence - Otis Moss III - Cláudio Carvalhaes - Debra Mumford
March 2-5, 2008
ALSO: Clifton Kirkpatrick, Stated Clerk (chief ecclesiastical officer) of the Presbyterian Church (USA), will speak at the "Voices of the Church" dinner, March 4, 6 p.m. Reservations are required by Feb. 20.
_______________________________________________________________________________
Register Online* Schedule About the Speakers Reunion Events Download Brochure
At the 2008 Festival of Theology you will hear four outstanding young homileticians explain their approaches to preaching in daily lectures, witness them putting their theories in to practice in community worship services, and explore ways to incorporate what you learn through small group conversations in master classes and panel discussions.
*All lectures, worship services and master classes are offered free of charge. Reservations and tickets are required for some Festival and Reunion events.
SPEAKERS
Debra Mumford - March 2, 7 p.m. and March 3, 11;15 a.m.Frank H. Caldwell Assistant Professor of Homiletics, Louisville Seminary She is said to teach and preach with authority, creativity, and prophetic imagination as she guides future pastors in moving from text to sermon and from context to sermon in faithful proclamation of the Gospel.
Otis Moss III - March 3, 2:30 and 7:30 p.m.Pastor of Trinity United Church of Christ, Chicago He is the author of Redemption in a Red Light District (Four-G, 1999), and his essays, articles, and poetry have appeared in Sojourners Magazine, Urban Spectrum, and African American Pulpit, which recently named him one of the “20 to watch” ministers who will shape the future of the African American church. Newsweek has cited Moss as one of “God’s Foot Soldiers committed to transforming the lives of youth.”Anna Carter Florence - March 4, 10 and 11:15 a.m.Professor of Preaching and Worship at Columbia Theological Seminary, Decatur, Ga.As a scholar and writer, her research interests are testimony, feminist theology, the role of experience in preaching, and the history of preaching women. She is the author of Preaching as Testimony (Westminster John Knox, 2007) and the editor of Inscribing the Text: Sermons and Prayers by Walter Brueggemann (Fortress, 2004).
Cláudio Carvalhaes - March 4, 2:30 p.m. and March 5, 10 a.m.Assistant Professor of Worship and Preaching, Louisville Seminary As a theologian and artist his focus on reviving worship for the 21st century is deeply informed by an understanding of worship around the world. Carvalhaes began teaching at Louisville Seminary in the Fall of 2007, and as a much sought after speaker, writer, and consultant, he has served with the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) in its peacemaking and immigrant groups ministries.
CONTACTS
For Festival of Theology Lectures: Carol Webb or David Sawyer
For Alum Reunion: Lisa Kolb or Leah Bradley
800.264.1839 502.895.3411
Register Online.


Michelle E. Melton
Director of Communications
Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary
1044 Alta Vista Road
Louisville, KY 40205-1798
800.264.1839
502.992.9358, direct
502.609.5697, cell
mmelton@lpts.edu
www.lpts.edu

2009 Festival of Theology Lecturers Named

save the date
2009 Festival of Theology & Reunion
March 15–18

New Ways of Being Church
Conversations on renewal and
transformation in mainline congregations

Yes, there are signs of hope for the church in this so-called post-modern and post-Christian era! In 2009, Louisville Seminary welcomes a celebrated trio of church leaders and writers who are spreading the news that the church of the 21st Century can and does re-think, re-tradition, and re-invent itself. By the time of the 2009 Lectures, all three of them will have published new books about Jesus.

Featuring

• Diana Butler Bass, historian and author of the popular book Christianity for the Rest of Us, brings with her inspirational presentation solid research showing that mainline congregations are thriving as communities that practice the Christian traditions.
• Marcus Borg, a New Testament scholar, speaks for many who seek a fresh and credible progressive understanding of Jesus Christ for this age. His newest book will be simply titled Jesus.
• Brian McLaren is the pastor and author (A Generous Orthodoxy and more recently Everything Must Change) who best represents the “Emerging Church” from an evangelical perspective, but his books and his presentations elude simple labels.
  

Emotional Intelligence Laboratory This Summer!

Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary
UPCOMING LIFELONG LEARNING EVENT

Emotional Intelligence and Human Relations Laboratory
July 21 to 25, 2008

Course Description: This is an intensive and highly experiential one-week course, with the major amount of time being spent in a small groups of 10 to 14 people with two experienced trainers in each group. As group life unfolds, participants are offered feedback on the impact they have on others in the group. Participants will learn both inter-personal and Intra-group communication skills. The content of the course will focus on the four areas of emotional intelligence as keys to improving leadership effectiveness for church leaders.

Faculty: Roy M. Oswald, Center for Emotional Intelligence and Human Relations Skills,
Retired Senior Consultant with Alban Institute
David R. Sawyer, Professor of Ministry and Director of Lifelong Learning, Louisville
Seminary.
Adjunct Trainers to be named

Cost: For Lifelong Learning:
Tuition: $620.00
Food and Lodging: $490.00
The tuition fee include a survey on Emotional Intelligence: $160
This survey involves a 360 degree EQ evaluation of each participant
provided by up to 20 people related to this individual.
For Academic Credit (3 hours)
Tuition: $930
Food and Lodging, $490.00

For more information contact:
Dr. David Sawyer: Director of Lifelong Learning, Louisville Seminary
dsawyer@lpts.edu
800-264-1839 ext 372
Dr. Carol Webb, Lifelong Learning Assistant, Louisville Seminary
cwebb@lpts.edu
800-264-1839 ext 429
Roy M. Oswald, Executive Director Center for EQ-HR
roymoswald@aol.com
301 432 2616