Westminster Presbyterian Church
  • Home
    • Current News >
      • Calendar
  • About
    • Who We Are - Our Present
    • Who We've Been - Our Past >
      • Timeline of Presbyterian History in Auburn NY
    • Staff and Leadership
    • Ministry Teams
    • Tour
    • Weddings, Funerals, & Other Building Use
    • Links
  • Worship
    • 2023 Sermons
    • 2022 Sermons
    • 2021 Sermons
    • 2020 Sermons
    • Sermon Archive
    • Music
    • Children's Worship
  • Education
    • Adults
    • Journey through the Bible
    • Children and Youth
  • Mission
  • Blog
  • Give
    • Ode to Joy Skinner Organ Restoration Campaign
  • New Page

jesus says "black lives matter"

6/16/2020

0 Comments

 
by Patrick Heery
Eight minutes and 46 seconds. That’s how long George Floyd cried, “I can’t breathe,” and begged for his mother, as a police officer knelt on his neck and crushed the life out of him, while others kept guard.


Five thousand steps; 2.2 miles. That’s how far Ahmaud Arbery jogged for the last time, before white men hunted, shot, and killed him, for the color of his skin.

Six hours. That’s how long a brown-skinned agitator named Jesus of Nazareth hung on a cross.

A lifetime. That’s how long black and brown parents have feared for their children, carrying the weight of 400 years of violence to body, mind, and soul. Not only George and Ahmaud but Breonna Taylor, Trayvon Martin, Tamir Rice, and every person whose skin has been disenfranchised, discriminated, redlined, impoverished, silenced, dehumanized, frisked, lynched, coded as dangerous, as criminal, as unwanted in this neighborhood.

Two thousand years. That’s how long Jesus Christ has said, “The Lord has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free” (Luke 4:18), and “Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me” (Matt. 25:40).

Since the beginning. That’s how long God has asked, “What have you done? Listen. Your brother’s blood is crying out to me from the ground!” (Gen. 4:10).

It is time to say with Jesus: BLACK LIVES MATTER. We must say it with more than our words. We must say it with our actions, our bodies, our presence. We must say it right here in Auburn, where people of color are threatened and called the n-word, where positions of leadership are conspicuously white, where churches are generally silent, where children do not adequately learn the complex stories, literature, art, achievements, and power of non-white peoples.

I have seen that holy power for weeks now. I have been witness to black men and women—bone tired, hopeless, angry, hurt, dying from grief—stand up and speak, cry, tell their truth, shout “I can’t breathe!” For three weeks, panels of black and white men through Auburn Public Theater and the Harriet Tubman Troupe did just that, in conversations that will awaken the Spirit in you. For weeks, hundreds of Auburnians have come together in peaceful demonstration, as our own police officers knelt in solidarity. Local advocacy organizations have united in action, in ways unprecedented in recent years.

The first thing to remember is that there have been people working in this struggle for years, decades, centuries, long before our arrival. The best thing we can do is learn about their work and explore how we fit into it. It’s especially important, for those of us who are white, to take our lead from people of color; they live this fight every day. For those of us who are white, it’s our job to do the work of dismantling the system that was created by white people, is perpetuated by us (even if unconsciously), and still to this day benefits and privileges us. It’s our job to organize white people and work within our own spheres of influence. It’s our job to use our positional privilege to create change. But it’s not our job to take up space that pushes out black and brown voices; nor is it our privilege to determine the agenda of the movement. Often, the best thing we can do is listen—and believe.

Another first step is to join or support one of the many organizations working for local change. (Go to westminsterauburn.org/blog, and you’ll see a June 5th post listing and linking many of these organizations. You’ll also find links to action steps you can take.)

It’s time we become partners, co-conspirators, collaborators in the divine power that is coursing through us even now, working for the liberation of God’s children. The same power that resided in Moses, in Peter and Paul, in Harriet, Rosa, and Martin, even in Jesus, resides in you. It pulses beneath the surface of your skin, no less than blood. It beats as steadily as the heart. Give it voice, give it one chance to speak and act, to live in you, to be seen by the world and proclaim that Black Lives Matter, and God will walk the earth.

Eternity. That’s how long God has been preparing for this moment.
0 Comments

what can i do? actions for racial justice

6/5/2020

0 Comments

 
by Patrick Heery
What can I do? I'm hearing this question a lot right now from people who are devastated by the deaths of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and so many others, and who wish to take action to confront white supremacy and build a world in which black lives matter, are safe, and are equal. I believe this is the work of the Spirit stirring in us, and I love that you are answering the call of God's people, and the call of God herself, to do more than think and talk about these matters, but to take action.

The first thing to remember is that there have been people working in this struggle for years, decades, centuries, long before our arrival. The best thing we can do is learn about their work and explore how we fit into it. It's especially important, for those of us who are white, to take our lead from people of color; they live this fight every day. For those of us who are white, it's our job to do the work of dismantling the system that was created by our ancestors, is perpetuated by us (even if unconsciously), and still to this day benefits/privileges us. It's our job to organize white people and work within our own spheres of influence. It's our job to use our positional privilege to create change. But it's not our job to take up space that pushes out black and brown voices; nor is it our privilege to determine the agenda of the movement. Sometimes, the best thing we can do is listen---and believe.

A series of three conversations in response to the murder of Ahmaud Arbery continued the public discourse in Auburn. You can view them here. On Sunday evening, leaders of local advocacy organizations and other individuals gathered on Zoom to discuss concrete action steps, as a newly formed Social Justice Task Force. We are in the process of organizing a demonstration and a public statement. Meetings have been had with local leadership, from the Police Chief and Sheriff to the Mayor and City Hall. Long-term work is beginning, in order to create proactive strategies (to ensure what happened to George Floyd will not happen in Auburn) and to address areas of local change, such as public education, civic representation, hiring practices, policing, etc. Thankfully, we have seen great shows of solidarity from leadership, including the Police Chief himself this past Sunday at a local demonstration.

Racism is very real in Auburn and Cayuga County. It's time we did something about it!

Here's what you can do:
  1. Come to the demonstration (with safe distancing) - more information to come shortly.
  2. Join/support a local organization working for justice and inclusion: the Auburn/Cayuga County NAACP, the Harriet Tubman Center for Justice and Peace, the Human Rights Commission, the Harriet Tubman Boosters, Celebrate! Diverse Auburn, the Harriet Tubman Troupe, Auburn Public Theater, the Minority Professional Association, Booker T. Washington Community Center. I can provide contacts. This is a great way to plug into information, financially support ongoing work, and get involved. Westminster is already a lifetime member of the NAACP and hosts its meetings, hosts the office of the Human Rights Commission, and is a financial contributor to many of these organizations.
  3. Let me know if you'd like to be involved at a leadership level with the newly organized Social Justice Task Force.
  4. Support local black-owned businesses and national ones too. 
    ​https://www.websiteplanet.com/blog/support-black-owned-businesses/
  5. For concrete actions you can take, read this article "75 Things White People Can Do for Racial Justice."
  6. Check out this practical guide for white allies and accomplices.
  7. Read this article "For Our White Friends Desiring To Be Allies".
  8. Check out this really helpful Google document, compiling anti-racism resources, including books, movies, organizations, articles, videos, podcasts, and resources for children.
Place on your heart, in prayer, the following questions we asked ourselves during worship on May 24: Have we acted upon the discussions of white privilege, diversity, and racial justice hosted at Westminster? Have we made a point of seeking out non-white spaces and building real relationships with people of color? Have we altered where we live or shop? Have we worshiped at historic African American churches? Have we gone to the annual Martin Luther King Jr. celebration, or Juneteenth, or the Harriet Tubman remembrances, or the many artistic events led by people of color? Have we protested and declared that Black Lives Matter? Have we talked with our friends about privilege and supremacy, calling them out when necessary? Have we tried to change how we exist in the world? Have we called for justice for Ahmaud Arbery and George Floyd and Breonna Taylor and many others? Has our church examined and transformed its leadership, worship, and identity, such that it actually is a space where people of color are safe, welcome, and empowered?

Let our hearts break open, and these questions seep in.
0 Comments

    Author

    Write something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview.

    Archives

    April 2022
    November 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    November 2020
    October 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    February 2019
    January 2019
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    May 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    November 2017
    October 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed

Proudly powered by Weebly