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One of the most impactful experiences of my life came just last year when I was privileged to be invited on a Civil Rights Preaching Pilgrimage, with the Institute of Preaching, to Birmingham, Montgomery, and Selma, Alabama, as well as Atlanta, Georgia. The participants on this journey formed a very diverse group. Half were white and half were black. Our ages ranged from early 30s to late 60s and there were slightly more women than men. However, we were all clergy people. 

Right off the bat, I realized that I had never been taught the full and accurate stories of the violence, hatred and oppression that has been perpetrated against our black siblings in the 400+ years of slavery and racism in the US Colonies and the United States. And let me tell you, my friends, this history and these true stories are appalling and horrifying. We visited site after site where people stood up against the unjust and hateful laws and practices that belittled and oppressed people of color. And we saw evidence and heard firsthand stories of bombings, beatings, brutal arrests and hateful words that these freedom fighters encountered - most of which were committed to non-violent resistance and civil disobedience. But yet, they persisted. They stood in defiance against governments and leaders who were hell-bent on beating down and terrorizing people who were different from them. 

Each night we held a debrief and one night I broke down in tears and begged my black clergy siblings to forgive me for my complicity of silence and for the transgressions of my ancestors (as well as many white people today) who perpetrated these atrocities against humanity. I was (and am) ashamed, embarrassed and horrified by the history. They embraced me and thanked me for my testimony. It was a beautiful moment, but I feel like I (we) have so much more work to do.

I wonder if history will "whitewash" the stories of our current times in the years ahead just like we have done with the struggles of our Black and Native American siblings over the centuries. They say that history repeats itself and that is certainly the case in our society today. Immigrants and those who look different from us are being treated unjustly, and even beaten, killed and taken away from their families. People are being told they don't matter and are not welcome because of the country they are from or the religion. Women are being told what they can and cannot do with their own bodies and many of us are called very nasty names and are seeing our constitutional rights eroded and taken away every day. If history truly does repeat itself then we too are called to non-violent resistance on behalf of ourselves and our neighbors whom we are called by Jesus to love. Jesus was and is the ultimate example of this love filled resistance. He ate with sinners, healed the outcasts that no one else cared for and defended those whom society oppressed. 

The first place we visited on our civil rights pilgrimage was 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama - the site of a horrific bombing by the KKK on September 15, 1963. The pastor, Rev. Arthur Price, preached a sermon called Faith at Midnight based on Acts 16:25-31. He said, "When hate speech is normalized and there is political unrest, it is Midnight". This is when we find ourselves in the darkness. However, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., whom we celebrate and remember this weekend, said, "I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear." He also said, "If a man doesn't have something he will die for, he isn't fit to live."

We must take a non-violent stand for what is right, no matter the cost to us. As Margaret Mead said, "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has."

 

"But the midwives feared God and did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them, but let the male children live." - Exodus 1:17 (The civil disobedience of the Old Testament)

 

Grace and Peace

-Pastor Madeline