Throughout this Lenten season, Christians around the world are focusing on the gift of Salvation. Remembering the agony experienced by Jesus in His death on the Cross, crucified by Roman soldiers is so profound, isn’t it? In the final hours of His earthly time, as Jesus hung on the Cross, He made seven statements – each teaching us more about Jesus and His character. This year for Holy Week I would like to reimagine the 7 Last saying from the Cross. What if we understand Jesus as speaking directly to Poor and Impacted People? What if Jesus spoke these 7 sayings not in the voice of our historic interpretation, but in the voice of one of the Black Live martyrs that have caused the many social and political protest around the world. What if we could hear Jesus speaking through these better angels to the church and community today in a contemporary invitation to the kingdom of God. So, this year 2021, let hear 7 Saying To The Poor From The Lynching Tree.
Saturday, April 10, 2021
7 Saying 2 the Poor from the Cross and Lynching Tree 2021 Full Service
Saturday, January 23, 2021
Wednesday, April 15, 2020
#Don’tbeDistracted : Staying Focused on Jesus Sermon Notes
April 12, 2020. Easter Day
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Jeremiah 31:1-6
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Psalm 118:1-2, 14-24 Colossians 3:1-4
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Or Acts 10:34-43
Sermon text: John 20:1-18
#Don’tbeDistracted : Staying Focused on Jesus
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Prayer of Confession
O Giver of Abundant Life, we call to you now because we have allowed thieves to come and steal, kill, and destroy human dignity and human life.
We have permitted poverty and pandemics.
We have permitted racism and sexism.
We have permitted homophobia, transphobia, and xenophobia.
We have failed to love ourselves.
We have failed to love our neighbors.
We have failed to fully love you.
Yet, your love towards us remains.
Thank You for loving us, Holy One. Renew our hearts and our minds so that we might return to the power of love that you created in us.
Help us to use that power to call out and change systems that create poverty.
To care for the sick.
To prevent deadly outbreaks.
Help us to use that power to treat children and adults fairly and equally.
Help us to judge human beings by the content of their character, not by the color of their skin. Not by who they love.
Not by their gender identity.
Not by their country of origin.
Help us, O God, to truly and unconditionally love you, ourselves, and our neighbors, and to express that love by acts of justice and acts of mercy. Amen.
"Don't be distracted by: people, power, persuasion, process, or broken pieces.
Keep your focus on Jesus!"
#DONTBEDISTRACTED
Text John 20:1-18 MSG
“Early in the morning on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone was moved away from the entrance. She ran at once to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, breathlessly panting, “They took the Master from the tomb. We don’t know where they’ve put him.”
Peter and the other disciple left immediately for the tomb. They ran, neck and neck. The other disciple got to the tomb first, outrunning Peter. Stooping to look in, he saw the pieces of linen cloth lying there, but he didn’t go in. Simon Peter arrived after him, entered the tomb, observed the linen cloths lying there, and the kerchief used to cover his head not lying with the linen cloths but separate, neatly folded by itself. Then the other disciple, the one who had gotten there first, went into the tomb, took one look at the evidence, and believed. No one yet knew from the Scripture that he had to rise from the dead. The disciples then went back home.
But Mary stood outside the tomb weeping. As she wept, she knelt to look into the tomb and saw two angels sitting there, dressed in white, one at the head, the other at the foot of where Jesus’ body had been laid. They said to her, “Woman, why do you weep?”
But Mary stood outside the tomb weeping. As she wept, she knelt to look into the tomb and saw two angels sitting there, dressed in white, one at the head, the other at the foot of where Jesus’ body had been laid. They said to her, “Woman, why do you weep?” “They took my Master,” she said, “and I don’t know where they put him.” After she said this, she turned away and saw Jesus standing there. But she didn’t recognize him.
Jesus spoke to her, “Woman, why do you weep? Who are you looking for?” She, thinking that he was the gardener, said, “Mister, if you took him, tell me where you put him so I can care for him.” Jesus said, “Mary.” Turning to face him, she said in Hebrew, “ Rabboni! ” meaning “Teacher!” Jesus said, “Don’t cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go to my brothers and tell them, ‘I ascend to my Father and your Father, my God and your God.’” Mary Magdalene went, telling the news to the disciples: “I saw the Master!” And she told them everything he said to her.”
John 20:1-18 MSG
Very Simple Message this Easter DONTBEDISTRACTED THERE ARE MANY THINGS THIS Easter that could get your mind off the ministry of the kingdom there is a great deal going on we are still very much under a Stay at Home Order by the Governor of South Carolina our Bishop had closed churches until May and many of us are more concerned now with Personal health and nutrition them we ever have been.
On that great day of the church when felt like it was empty and the curtain had been distorted and destroyed when the Savior of humanity had been laced in a borrowed tomb. And all seemed to be lost Mary Magdalene came to the grave of Jesus but I have a word for you all this morning that think you are facing the impossible the insurmountable the Pandemic DontbeDistricted in other words don’t let things that you do understand confused things that you claim your Joy.
This was the first of the week the Sabbath was over and it was hot and there should have been Jesus Joy in the air instead there seemed to be a drain on Hope.
The Faith of the disciples was washed away and they where hidden in in discus from being out played by the religious scribes and Haters of the day. The Government had washed there hands and the leadership had allowed and innocence and righteous man be put to death in a inhuman and cruel fashion.
But in the Air should have also been a pronouncement just a little over the clouds Mary “its All Good” Mary DONTBEDISTRACTED.
Let’s walk through this thang this morning
#1 Don’t let the Borrowed Thumb fool you! Don’t allow people’s opinion of your situation financial or social or spiritual block your blessings. Sometimes when you see People struggling you might be tempted to say oh they don’t have it going on like we do!
But be-careful thanking that what a person has right now is all God is going to give them.
None of us have the right to look at flesh and then determine the statues of a person.
You Don’t have a clue what God is about to do! Folks could have looked at Jesus and said oh he saved others let him save himself, they could have been like he talked of his father having cattle on a thousand hill and he can’t buy a grave but come on church you have to know Jesus got it going on and you have to realize that
Jesus had a rich daddy and you can’t hate on me but that because you don’t know who my father is if you only had a clue how much my daddy got you ask me for water and I would give you living water.
# 2 Learn how to Work through your tears and heart Break! Mary was standing at the grave of Jesus and some folk would say she had been punked out because she was crying.
There is Power in Brokenness there is Power in Being Broken-hearted there is Power in the ability to release .during injustice and Oppression.
Were some folks see weakness understand that weeping and grief and even sadness does not undo the power to rule.
Yet other folk who had following along with this sermon would say she was missing the Angels because she was crying.
Yet others like my self might say even though she seemed week she was strong, even though she seemed broke she was righteous. Even though her face was wet with tears and her demeanor seemed off. If you know anything about women and worshipers you will understand that every tear ain’t a surrender and sometimes when I cry I’m building up on the inside for what God is gonna used me for in a little while as Ian a Vansant said some years ago God uses your mean times to get you ready for your next miracles.
As I herd Bishop Swanson Say yesterday if we get through the mean time God has something for us. Oh and I don’t want y’all to miss this don’t get distracted because of my angels and start thinking my Angels are my GOD YEA=ANGELS are shinny yes angels sometime seem bigger then life but at the end of the Day church Angels are just angels and sometimes your problem is so big so complicated that you need God the three and One to Show up.
Sometime even in the presence of the angels you still need to hear form God. Sometimes the Student and the messages will do but sometime when the storms of life are ragging and the Rona is in your House you need the Teacher to say Mary Why you Weeping?
#3 Sometimes You Got to Let Go and Let Gods Work Loose! When she understood that it was Jesus and that he was risen like manny of us she wanted to hold on to the knowledge, she wanted to grad ahold of the lord and just stay there in the moment letting her inner peace be-filled, She wanted to celebrate and you all know, I like a celebration like the best of them. However sometimes you got to stop the party and stop the Protest March and get out your pulpit and off your soapbox and get back to work.
Jesus Said Don’t Hold on to me, You go tell the Good News. Church this Easter Sunday I don’t know how you gonna do it but its time to let loose and Go tell the Good News of Jesus Christ. Find a way too leave this Place and go tell the Good news of the savior of the kingdom of Heaven, get out of here are let the disciples and everyone else’s know he lives. Yes He Lives and Because Hee Lives I can Face tomorrow Because he lives all fear is goon.
Prayer:
Creator in your infinite mercy and grace give us the strength and courage to be doers and not just hearers of your word.
Let us be swift to stand against the empire and the injustices we see.
Let us not continue in our complacency of playing it safe while the breath that you gave to your people is being deflated each day by the systems of poverty, racism, militarism, ecological devastation, our nation’s distorted moral narrative and christian nationalism.
Help us, Great Liberator to set our face towards injustice like Jesus set his towards Jerusalem.
Lead us as we go down like Moses to places of injustices and declare boldly, “To let our people go.”
Grant us the spirit of Esther that said, “I will go unto the King and if I perish, I perish.”
Make us steadfast like Stephen who continued to confess your word even in the face of death.
Strengthen our backs like Fannie Lou Hamer who declared “Sometimes it seems like to tell the truth today is to run the risk of being killed. But if I fall, I’ll fall five feet four inches forward in the fight for freedom. I’m not backing off.”
Solidify in us which side we will be on like Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. who declared — “I choose to identify with the underprivileged. I choose to identify with the poor. I choose to give my life for the hungry. I choose to give my life for those who have been left out. This is the way I’m going. If it means suffering a little bit, I’m going that way. If it means dying for them, I’m going that way.”
Ignite in us a holy fire like Harriet Tubman who encouraged those escaping enslavement, “If you hear the dogs, keep going. If you see the torches in the woods, keep going. If there’s shouting after you, keep going. Don’t ever stop. Keep going. If you want a taste of freedom, keep going.”
Mold in us the mindset like Mother Jones who professed, “I am not afraid of the pen, or the scaffold, or the sword. I will tell the truth wherever I please.”
Organize us so that we can declare like Ella Josephine Baker, “we who believe in freedom cannot rest until it comes.”
Help us Holy One, to keep our eyes on the prize until we see justice roll down like a mighty stream.
Amen, Amen, Amen.
Sunday, April 12, 2020
Monday, March 16, 2015
RRDT Racial Reconciliation Design Team Suggested Videos for Discussions on Race and Racism
1. RACE - The Power of an Illusion. | PBS
This series goes back to first principles and ask, what is this thing called "race?" - a question so basic it is rarely raised. What we discovered is that most of our common assumptions about race - for instance that the world's people can be divided biologically along racial lines - are wrong. Yet the consequences of racism are very real. How do we make sense of these two seeming contradictions? Our hope is that this series can help us all navigate through our myths and misconceptions, and scrutinize some of the assumptions we take for granted. In that sense, the real subject of the film is not so much race but the viewer, or more precisely, the notions about race we all hold. Videocassette are available from California Newsreel. To order, call 1-877-811-7495 or fax 1-802-846-1850. You can also visit the California Newsreel Web site for more information: www.newsreel.org
2. Becoming the Beloved Community: People of Faith Working Together To Eradicate Racism
A DVD produced by Presbyterian Women, and it is accompanied with a study guide that is designed to encourage meaningful dialogue about racism and to equip people of faith to work together to eradicate racism and bring about the beloved community that God intends. The DVD has four 15-minute segments. The accompanying study guide includes questions for reflection and dialogue. ($20 plus shipping)
3. Becoming the Beloved Community Antiracism Packet (with DVD)
PW's antiracism resource packet is designed to help individuals and groups engage the issue of racism, both individually and collectively. It includes tools for understanding and dismantling racism, including a glossary, worship resources, PW's award-winning Becoming the Beloved Community DVD, articles from The Thoughtful Christian's study pack, and other resources. ($24.95 plus shipping)
4. Africans in America
A four-part documentary, originally produced for PBS, that chronicles the history of racial slavery in the United States – from the start of the Atlantic slave trade in the 16th century to the end of the American Civil War in 1865. The series explores the central paradox at the heart of the American story: a democracy that declared “all men equal” but enslaved and oppressed one people to provide independence and prosperity to another. The series can be purchased at http://www.pbs.org.
The Spring of 1968 in Memphis marked the dramatic climax of the Civil Rights movement. At the River I Stand skillfully reconstructs the two eventful months that transformed a local labor dispute into a national conflagration, and disentangles the complex historical forces that came together with the death of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
66 minutes. DVD and video. To order, call 1-877-811-7495 or fax 1-802-846-1850. You can also visit the California Newsreel Web site for more information: www.newsreel.org
6. Banished: Banished vividly recovers the too-quickly forgotten history of racial cleansing in America when thousands of African Americans were driven from their homes and communities by violent, racist mobs. The film places these events in the context of present day race relations by following three concrete cases where black and white citizens warily explore if there is common ground for reconciliation over these expulsions. 84 minutes. DVD only. 877-811-1850.
Spike Lee’s documentary chronicles the experiences of people from diverse backgrounds and socio-economic conditions who endured the harrowing ordeal of living in New Orleans during and after the levees were breached. Through eyewitness accounts and expert commentary, the four-part documentary tells the saga of one of the greatest natural disasters experienced by any region of the country and the failure at all levels of government to respond adequately to the tragedy. Three-disc set is available through HBO. 253 minutes. Color. A multi-disciplinary curriculum guide, “Teaching The Levees,” published and distributed by Teachers College Press, can be downloaded at www.teachingthelevees.com.
A thoughtful critique of the appropriation of Native American culture and spirituality by white new age people who make a living and lifestyle from using and selling indigenous spiritual ritual and symbols. Throughout the video, Native Americans speak about their feelings and thoughts about the role of spiritual practice and the historical appropriation of indigenous land, resources, and now spirituality, by white people. White practitioners of Native American spirituality also share their feelings, thoughts and intentions.
A groundbreaking film about the state of race relations in America as seen through the eyes of eight North American men of Asian, European, Latino and African descent. In a series of intelligent, emotional, and dramatic confrontations the men reveal the pain and scars that racism has caused them. What emerges is a deeper sense of understanding and trust. This is the dialogue most of us fear, but hope will happen sometime in our lifetime.
Four days after the 9/11 attacks, Balbir Singh Sodhi was gunned down at his Phoenix area gas station by a man named Frank Roque. To Roque, Balbir Sodhi’s beard and turban – articles of his Sikh faith – symbolized the face of America’s new enemy. A Dream in Doubt follows Rana Singh Sodhi, Balbir’s brother, as he attempts to fight the hate threatening his family and community.
An award-winning 14-hour television series produced by Blackside and narrated by Julian Bond. Through contemporary interviews and historical footage, the series covers all of the major events of the civil rights movement from 1954-1985. Series topics range from the Montgomery bus boycott in 1954 to the Voting Rights Act in 1965; from community power in schools to "Black Power" in the streets; from early acts of individual courage through to the flowering of a mass movement.
By Jay Rosenstein, takes a critical look at the long-running practice of using American Indian names and images as mascots in sports. It follows the story of a Native American graduate student, Charlene Teters, and her transformation into the leader of a movement as she struggles to protect her cultural symbols and identity. 46 minutes. May be rented or purchased through New Day Films, 22-D Hollywood Ave., Ho-ho-kus, NJ. 201-652-6590.
American women of Indigenous, African, Arab, European, Jewish, Asian, Latina and Mixed Race descent, use authentic dialogue to crack open a critical door of consciousness.
http://www.world-trust.org/videos/light.html. 510-632-5156.
Features the experiences of white women and men who have worked to gain insight into what it means to challenge notions of racism and white supremacy in the United States.
One hundred years after the massacre at Wounded Knee, Milo Yellow Hair recounts the story of his people – from the lost battles for their land against the invading whites – to the bitter internal divisions and radicalization of the 1970's – to the present-day revival of Sioux cultural pride, which has become a unifying force as the Sioux try to define themselves and their future. 60 minutes. Available through Amazon.com.
This film is about six Asian American men who struggle against racism and their anguish and pain at the trauma of assimilation towards themselves and their families. A must-see film for those striving to better understand the "model minority" and the pressures of blending into the American culture. 40 minutes. VHS. 510-204-8840
17. Traces of the Trade.
In this documentary, film maker Katrina Browne discovers that her New England ancestors were the largest slave-trading family in U.S. history. She and nine cousins retrace the Triangle Trade and gain a powerful new perspective on the black/white divide. Traces of the Trade had its national broadcast television premiere on the PBS documentary series P.O.V. in June 2008.
18. True Colors.
ABC News documentary about two friends – John, who is White, and Glen, who is Black – who take part in a series of hidden camera experiments exploring people's reactions to each in a variety of situations. Prime Time Live, undercover, follows John and Glen separately as they each try to rent an apartment, respond to job listings, purchase a car, and conduct everyday activities such as shopping. In every instance, John is welcomed into the community while Glen is discouraged by high prices, long waits, and unfriendly salespeople.
19 minutes. Color. DVD or VHS. Available for loan from Justice & Witness Ministries: clementf@ucc.org.
19. White Like Me
Race, Racism & White Privilege in America
White Like Me, based on the work of acclaimed anti-racist educator and author Tim Wise, explores race and racism in the US through the lens of whiteness and white privilege. In a stunning reassessment of the American ideal of meritocracy and claims that we've entered a post-racial society,
Race, Racism & White Privilege in America
White Like Me, based on the work of acclaimed anti-racist educator and author Tim Wise, explores race and racism in the US through the lens of whiteness and white privilege. In a stunning reassessment of the American ideal of meritocracy and claims that we've entered a post-racial society,
Online at www.mediaed.org: Visit the Video Store section of our site, go to the page for the video you are interested in, and then simply add it to your cart.
You may purchase online with a credit. - See more at: http://www.mediaed.org/wp/faqs#order
20. Bell Hooks
Cultural Criticism & Transformation
bell hooks is one of America's most accessible public intellectuals. In this two-part video, extensively illustrated with many of the images under analysis, she makes a compelling argument for the transformative power of cultural criticism. bell hooks is the author of numerous critically acclaimed and influential books on the politics of race, gender, class, and culture. There are several ways to order: Online at www.mediaed.org: Visit the Video Store section of our site, go to the page for the video you are interested in, and then simply add it to your cart. You may purchase online with a credit card or choose to pre-pay with a check. - See more at: http://www.mediaed.org/wp/faqs#order By phone: (Credit card orders only) Phone the sales department at (413) 584-8500 to place your order. Have your credit card ready. - See more at: http://www.mediaed.org/wp/faqs#order
Cultural Criticism & Transformation
bell hooks is one of America's most accessible public intellectuals. In this two-part video, extensively illustrated with many of the images under analysis, she makes a compelling argument for the transformative power of cultural criticism. bell hooks is the author of numerous critically acclaimed and influential books on the politics of race, gender, class, and culture. There are several ways to order: Online at www.mediaed.org: Visit the Video Store section of our site, go to the page for the video you are interested in, and then simply add it to your cart. You may purchase online with a credit card or choose to pre-pay with a check. - See more at: http://www.mediaed.org/wp/faqs#order By phone: (Credit card orders only) Phone the sales department at (413) 584-8500 to place your order. Have your credit card ready. - See more at: http://www.mediaed.org/wp/faqs#order
21. God in America God in America, is a presentation of AMERICAN EXPERIENCE and FRONTLINE, and explores the historical role of religion in the public life of the United States. The six-hour series interweaves documentary footage, historical dramatization, and interviews with religious historians. God in America examines the potent and complex interaction between religion and democracy, the origins of the American concept of religious liberty, and the controversial evolution of that ideal in the nation's courts and political arena. The series considers the role religious ideas and institutions have played in social reform movements from abolition to civil rights, examining the impact of religious faith on conflicts from the American Revolution to the Cold War, and how guarantees of religious freedom created a competitive American religious marketplace. God in America: How Religious Liberty Shaped America DVD
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