Weekly Recap Tuesday, July 7, 2015 from ProgressiveChristianity in Gigs Harbor, Washington, United StatesIs it possible to protect free speech and at the same time use censorship to be polite about religion? Read last week's article: "Polite Self-Censorship No Environment for Free Speech."
Last Week At ProgressiveChristianity.org...
We delved into the topics of Censorship, Studying the Gospels, Kindness and Forgiveness.
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Polite Self-Censorship No Environment for Free Speech--T M (Terri) Murray
Following the 7 January, 2015 murders of nine Charlie Hebdo editorial staff, satire of religion and/or its sacred cows is the type of speech that is currently in the dock. Anyone who cannot see the irony in this is blind.Tuesday saw Charlie Hebdo’s editorial staff rebuffed yet again by over two hundred prominent guests at a Manhattan literary gala hosted by the PEN American Center. Following the 7 January, 2015 murders of nine Charlie Hebdo editorial staff, satire of religion and/or its sacred cows is the type of speech that is currently in the dock. Anyone who cannot see the irony in this is blind. After precursory remarks about the validity of protecting free speech, many commentators including established journalists went on to explain why the fault lay with the provocative nature of the Charlie Hebdo editorial staff’s cartoons, insinuating that the rude critique of religion and or its figureheads is “gratuitous” and serves no vital social ends. The implication was that we must all endeavor to be polite about religion.
Multiculturalism’s proponents have garnered popular support for the illiberal notion that all citizens in liberal democracies must demonstrate respect for religion or religious believers. Yet this respect is not to be earned by valid arguments or by exemplary behavior; it is to be coerced by violence, or else by means of the law. Those who would limit speech on the grounds of ‘religious offense’ are content to allow the public marketplace of ideas to be governed by the taboos of a religious segment of society. There are several reasons to reject this form of cultural imperialism.
1. Religious minority groups are by no means homogeneous in religious belief, practice or sentiment. There is no generic interpretation of what constitutes insulting or “offending” a religious person or belief. The same remark or image that one member of the religious community experiences as deeply offensive another may experience as cathartic, liberating or profoundly healing. To think otherwise is to generalize about all members of a religious culture. To assume that all Muslims will be equally or similarly ‘offended’ by a particular cartoon, joke, or instance of speech is based on the naïve theory that there could be no secularists, feminists, apostates, freethinkers, or atheists amongst those labeled “Muslim”. Arguably, this assumption – that all Muslims will have identical emotional responses to a particular ‘blasphemous’ cartoon or verbal remark – is more insulting to “Muslims” than any blasphemous cartoon could ever be. Few Muslims’ identities are only defined by their religion, just as few atheists’ identities are defined solely by lack of belief in god.
2. Westerners need to ask which Muslims they intend to protect by means of new censorship laws or informal policies of self-censorship. Presumably many Muslim moderates have been misrepresented and maligned as “terrorists”, so apparently a blanket law is needed to protect all Muslims from offense in order to protect this moderate majority. Yet moderate, tolerant Muslims are already robustly protected within secular states where free speech is de rigueur. By definition, only intolerant Muslims could wish to use violence or legal coercion to suppress public criticism of their own ‘private’ beliefs. This gets to the crux of the issue: religion has seldom been about private belief and personal conviction. More often it is about others and how they ought to live. Religious moderates by definition do not “take offense” to disagreement and criticism, because they understand that faith is not based on certainties. Religious moderates do not demand that others agree with them or live according to their chosen way of life, which is precisely what distinguishes them from extremists. It is because religion has seldom been limited to an individual’s personal beliefs and life choices that it is especially important that it remain open to public scrutiny and ridicule. Religious ideologies have, and (where permitted) still do, exert a powerful socialfunction, governing the sexual behavior of men and women, as well as many other aspects of peoples’ lives that non-religious and moderate religious people consider to be private. Religions dictate social taboos and define as “immoral” harmless self-regarding behaviors within many societies and cultures around the globe.
Censoring religious insult will not so much protect a minority culture from the outside host culture as it will prevent free choice within the minority sub-culture and suppress the diversity of opinion within it. Muslim moderates are the only group of Muslims that could bemisrepresented as “terrorists” by free expression, and yet they are the only ones that by definition would not agree with, nor benefit from, paternalistic blasphemy laws. In a free state, where all speech is legally protected, Muslim moderates have the necessary means and remedies that allow them to distinguish themselves from Muslim extremists by exercising their right to criticize authoritarians and extremists who would otherwise make allMuslims conform to fundamentalist Islam’s laws and respect its taboos. Free speech already benefits all types of Muslims, whereas censorship would only benefit extremists.
3. Political liberalism, secularism, atheism and feminism are as much a part of many peoples’ identities as religion is a part of the identity of the committed Muslim. When a liberal’s deeply rooted political beliefs are insulted, she feels the ‘offense’ as acutely as any believer who has heard his god or prophet mocked. Yet political liberalism is based on the belief that no human being is infallible, thus none is in a position to censor the free expression of any idea, no matter how offensive or unpopular it may be. This sets up a single standard for all, so that no one ideology can monopolize the marketplace of ideas and all ideas can be ‘tested’ against the merits of other views. This gives citizens of a free society confidence, but not certainty, that the beliefs they hold most sacred at any given time have withstood the tussle with other views in an open, inclusive and ongoing debate. This allows for progress and learning. By contrast, censoring dissent forecloses all debate and all opportunities to learn from new evidence, and allows only cultural stagnation. Moreover, the ‘respect’ it garners for the status quo is more akin to fear than esteem. The prevailing beliefs are not held because they have won the competition with alternatives, but because alternatives have been silenced.
4. Imagine a context in which the same right not to be offended or defamed could be claimed by other political ideologies, other social groups and other communities. Public debate would quickly be replaced by courteous silence. This apparent peace would be bought at the price of genuine adult respect for differences, and would engender an atmosphere of lies and pretence, where no one said what they thought, except amongst their most loyal allies. This would not bind society together; it would lead to segregation and ultimately to social disintegration. Occasionally being made to endure unpleasant feelings of “offense” is a small price to pay for liberty, and the injuries sustained are not harmful to anyone’s permanent interests as a progressive being. Criticism is not always pleasant, but adults can grow from it as much, if not a great deal more, than from being insulated from the opinions of their fellow citizens.
What is being asked of citizens in liberal democracies is that they ‘respect’ the taboos of religious believers, and consent to adopting an (as yet) unwritten blasphemy law that, if formally adopted, will very probably remain in place for generations to come, abolishing one of the core principles of political liberalism.
About the Author:
T M Murray is an American essayist, author and educator. Murray is a regular contributor toPhilosophy Now magazine, The New Humanist and has blogged for The Rationalist Association, The Center for Progressive Christianity and The Yurica Report. In 2010 she was awarded first prize in the Center for Inquiry’s Feedom of Expression Essay competition. She is co-author of Moral Panic: Exposing the Religious Right’s Agenda on Sexuality.
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Shedding Light on the Gospels Study Guide (based on Bishop Spong’s “Rescuing the Bible from Fundamentalism”David Ridge
The Study Guide is organized by Discussion Sessions and includes extensive quotations extracted from Bishop Spong’s book. In addition to Bishop Spong’s book, we will be reading the three gospels: Mark, Matthew and Luke (in that order).This Study Guide, Shedding Light on the Gospels is based on Bishop Spong’s Rescuing the Bible from Fundamentalism.
Please download this study guide by clicking on the Buy Now button.
You will receive an email with your transaction receipt. The link to download the PDF file will be in that email.
Please limit your production of this resource to 5 copies per download. Thank you.
Suggestions for Using This Study Guide
1. Organization: The Study Guide is organized by Discussion Sessions. Generally the first two sessions cover thirty to forty pages of reading from Bishop Spong’s book plus the first “refresher” reading of the assigned gospels. While it is not expected that the first two chapters be completed prior to the Discussion Session, that reading will establish the context of the rest of the material and is recommended to be completed prior to the second session even though it will not be discussed.
2. Material from Rescuing the Bible From Fundamentalism: The Study Guide includes extensive quotations extracted from Bishop Spong’s book. The material will sometimes omit words and sentences, linking general ideas together with ellipses (“…”) for the purpose of stimulating our discussion.
3. Biblical Reading: In addition to Bishop Spong’s book, we will be reading the three gospels: Mark, Matthew and Luke (in that order). Any version Bible is acceptable for these readings; Rev. David will be using the NRSV version in the Biblical quotes used. The assignments will include a perusing of each of the first three gospels and a re-reading of them during the study of the specific gospel in Bishop Spong’s book. Our focus will be on the first three gospels only. A later discussion group will address the fourth gospel.
4. Questions for Reflection: Some quoted material is followed by a line with three symbols and a short line to add your comments: ! ” # ______________________________________
This is intended to be used to capture your initial reaction (! “don’t agree”, ” “ah-ha! I’ve discovered something!” or # “I agree”) plus a short phrase to capture any additional words to stimulate your thoughts during our discussion. The quotations will often have an additional question or two that might come up in our discussion. These questions are provided for reflection. In most cases, the questions are intended to help you find personal meaning in the material – how the topic applies to your life in tangible, experiential ways. Writing out your answers to the questions will help deepen your engagement with the material. Thus, consider the questions as “study aids”. The questions identified may or may not come up during the discussion. Their inclusion is intended to give you a foundation of inquiry and exploration that may continue during the discussion – or not.
5. Supplemental Information: Additional information may be provided to augment the material found in Rescuing the Bible from Fundamentalism. Such material may not agree totally with Bishop Spong’s perspective but is intended to provide additional food for thought.
Buy now ⋅ $5.00
5. Supplemental Information: Additional information may be provided to augment the material found in Rescuing the Bible from Fundamentalism. Such material may not agree totally with Bishop Spong’s perspective but is intended to provide additional food for thought.
Buy now ⋅ $5.00
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Oops, I Was Too Kind--Rabbi Brian
I challenge you ... What would happen if you could be the kindest person anyone had ever met? Wouldn’t that be wonderful? Wouldn’t that be great if people said about you, “He/she is the kindest person I know.”I teach high school and have a lot of students whom I look after. As it happens, some kids don’t fit the college-prep modality. Some are smart. Some are brilliant. But not all of them are academic scholars.
One of my favorite kids (we’ll call him “Al”) just wasn’t built for high school.
I’m sure he’ll do fine in life, but high school’s not for him. He was a scrapper with a “fight the system” attitude.
The teaching staff and I coerced Al to take the SAT.(Because that’s what we do.) We got him a fee waiver, because we would like to see him to go to college. I helped Al register for the test, because he missed the registration dates. I assisted him with filling out all the forms.
The Monday after the SAT, I saw Al in the school hallway and said, “Hey Al, how’d the SAT go?”
He said, “Oh, you heard, did you?”
Not quite sure what he was referring to, I joked, “You slept through the test? No big deal.”
“Yeah, I did. And you’re the only one who hasn’t yelled at me about it,” he replied.
Huh?
My question to him had been in jest. I was kidding. I had no idea he’d actually slept through the SAT. But wow, what an accidental kindness – to find out that I was the only adult who hadn’t yelled at him for it.
Al never wanted to take the SAT in the first place. And that’s fine.
But it really dawned on me – what if I were the kind of person who didn’t make sarcastic remarks to let people know I disapproved of what they said, did, or didn’t do?
What if I were that “one” person who was actually kind?
That’s a goal of mine, to be a kind person.
I challenge you to set the same goal for yourself. What would happen if you could be the kindest person anyone had ever met? Wouldn’t that be wonderful? Wouldn’t that be great if people said about you, “He/she is the kindest person I know.”
That would be an incredible goal for all of us.
This week’s spiritual-religious advice: Be kind to others, even when they screw up big-time.
Rabbi Brian
Religion Outside the Box – www.rotb.org
Email: rabbi_brian@rotb.orgREAD ON ...
Weekly Liturgy
Oops, I Was Too Kind--Rabbi Brian
I challenge you ... What would happen if you could be the kindest person anyone had ever met? Wouldn’t that be wonderful? Wouldn’t that be great if people said about you, “He/she is the kindest person I know.”I teach high school and have a lot of students whom I look after. As it happens, some kids don’t fit the college-prep modality. Some are smart. Some are brilliant. But not all of them are academic scholars.
One of my favorite kids (we’ll call him “Al”) just wasn’t built for high school.
I’m sure he’ll do fine in life, but high school’s not for him. He was a scrapper with a “fight the system” attitude.
The teaching staff and I coerced Al to take the SAT.(Because that’s what we do.) We got him a fee waiver, because we would like to see him to go to college. I helped Al register for the test, because he missed the registration dates. I assisted him with filling out all the forms.
The Monday after the SAT, I saw Al in the school hallway and said, “Hey Al, how’d the SAT go?”
He said, “Oh, you heard, did you?”
Not quite sure what he was referring to, I joked, “You slept through the test? No big deal.”
“Yeah, I did. And you’re the only one who hasn’t yelled at me about it,” he replied.
Huh?
My question to him had been in jest. I was kidding. I had no idea he’d actually slept through the SAT. But wow, what an accidental kindness – to find out that I was the only adult who hadn’t yelled at him for it.
Al never wanted to take the SAT in the first place. And that’s fine.
But it really dawned on me – what if I were the kind of person who didn’t make sarcastic remarks to let people know I disapproved of what they said, did, or didn’t do?
What if I were that “one” person who was actually kind?
That’s a goal of mine, to be a kind person.
I challenge you to set the same goal for yourself. What would happen if you could be the kindest person anyone had ever met? Wouldn’t that be wonderful? Wouldn’t that be great if people said about you, “He/she is the kindest person I know.”
That would be an incredible goal for all of us.
This week’s spiritual-religious advice: Be kind to others, even when they screw up big-time.
Rabbi Brian
Religion Outside the Box – www.rotb.org
Email: rabbi_brian@rotb.orgREAD ON ...
Weekly Liturgy
Week of: June 28th - July 4, 2015
Forgiveness
“Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.” Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was right. Only love can do that.
Forgiveness
“Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.” Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was right. Only love can do that.
The country was rocked two weeks ago by the Charleston murders, a racist hate crime carried out in a church, of all places. Even as we mourn the loss of those nine innocent lives, the lasting legacy of that day for many will remain the powerful image of forgiveness. “Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.” Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was right. Only love can do that.
READ ON ...
Forgiveness by Rick Cypert and Jean Henderson by Polly Moore
Bound within by my own mind,
And a day not left behind.
Circling round the memory stays,
Echoing through all my days.
I would leave it but for this
In it something is amiss.
A world not right, not right at all,
And in that stance is where I fall.
Forgiveness is the grace I seek
Self-righteousness has made me weak
To move beyond I’ll find a way:
Release the then; reframe today.
© Rick Cypert
Click here to see the score: Forgiveness
The African American Church by Alice Smith
The worshipers welcomed the stranger.
Then hatred wearing a racist robe
tore through the house of God.
Blood was spilled,
and lives were lost,
but no one can kill
the African-American church.
Its power is kingly
and oh so much stronger
than the small minded, lowly thoughts
bred in a bigot’s brain.
The African-American spirit makes little sense
in the eyes of the everyday world
for this spiritual power is born of oppression
and sees in an overturned way
silently sitting in the front of the bus
and peacefully marching for rights.
The weak will be strong.
The last will be first,
and victory found in defeat.
Let us bow down and knock on the door
of the African-American church
humbly asking for counsel and guidance
on how to build a beloved world.
Worship Materials: Guilt, Shame and Forgiveness
From the Celebrating Mystery collection by William Wallace
THEME The path to destruction and the path to new life.
THOUGHTS FOR REFLECTION
Guilt can become the major obstacle to the transformation of behavior.
To break the cycle of guilt, we must begin by forgiving ourselves and other people.
Finding someone to blame does not enable us to leave the past behind.
We all need to take responsibility for our own actions, give ourselves permission to forgive ourselves and to let go of our guilt.
St Paul said ‘there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus’ (Romans 8/1). Perhaps this could be paraphrased:
‘there is no guilt in those who are truly in touch with divinity.’
As perfect love casts out fear, so forgiveness casts out guilt.
Therefore accept God’s forgiveness, forgive yourself and forgive others.
To accept forgiveness is also to accept the necessity of a change of heart and of actions of restitution and reconciliation.
If we say we could not possibly forgive another person, we are really saying that we are getting too much mileage out of feeling the innocent victim to give up that role. Yet from the perspective of the point of stillness we can observe the terrible effect our anger has on our psyche and how our unforgiving spirit is destroying our life-force.
Mutual forgiveness between human beings always involves an acknowledgement that no human beings and no relationships are perfect.
Punishing criminals without also offering a program of rehabilitation often results in confirming them in a life of crime.
Revenge does nothing to create a better world; indeed if we seek revenge we release destructive forces within ourselves and may well start a cycle of violence.
When we refuse to forgive another person it is ourselves that we are wounding,
The best way to deal with our guilty past is to clothe past frailty with love and learning.
The first step to freedom is to be able to identify who or what put us under restraint.
The past is only a problem when we haven’t learnt to forgive ourselves and others.
Liberation from guilt is a springboard for action.
The commitment to change is the transforming element of repentance.
Anger suppressed destroys.
True forgiveness between human beings always involves an acknowledgement that it takes two people to create a dysfunctional relationship.
No-one ever grew beyond guilt by heaping guilt upon themselves or by blaming other people or a devil.
The test of the depth of our faith lies in our willingness to forgive those who persecute us
Forgiveness can be the gateway to a whole new world.
When we forgive we begin to heal unjust hurts which have been inflicted upon us.
PRAYER:
O God of forgiveness, help us to develop a forgiving attitude towards others, lest we harden our hearts and in so doing find it impossible to accept the forgiveness which you so freely offer to us.
HYMNS
We are always part of the other. (BL)
At each journey’s ending point. (BL)
Sowing limits what we harvest. (BL)
Recalling all our ancient hurts. (BL)
When we feel all weighed down with guilt. (BL)
Repaying Force. (BL)
If passion urges us. (BL)
No outcasts were condemned by Christ.
www.methodist.org.nz/resources/hymns/boundlesslife
I will talk to my heart.
www.methodist.org.nz/resources/hymns/boundlesslife
I wash my hands.
https://www.methodist.org.nz/resources/hymns/the_mystery_telling
God of forgiveness.
https://www.methodist.org.nz/resources/hymns/the_mystery_telling
As we give we shall receive. (STS1)
For wrongs of the past. (STS1)
Many people die in anguish. (STS1)
Your cross provides a window. (STS1)
How many times must I forgive? (STS2)
Christ Jesus praying from the cross. (STS2)
Singing the Sacred Vol 1 2011, Vol 2 2014 World Library Publications
REFRAINS (LITURGICAL RESOURCES)
Forgiveness is our most precious gift. (BL)
In the letting go. (BL)
God has mercy on us all. (STS1)
POEMS/REFLECTIONS
GIVING AND RECEIVING FORGIVENESS
Like the father in the parable of the prodigal son,* God’s forgiveness does not have to be earned, only accepted. Yet our unwillingness to forgive others can be an obstacle to our being open to receiving forgiveness. As Jesus prayed “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us” In other words the unforgiving heart is not open to receiving forgiveness. *Luke 15:11-32
FORGIVENESS LITANY
All of us have experienced mental or physical suffering at the hands of other people. But each of us has also brought suffering to others.
However, when we are unwilling to forgive, we deny the essence of God’s loving-kindness, and deprive ourselves of the healing for which our life-force longs.
Silence
Forgiveness is a complex process of letting go which takes time and effort. It involves letting go of our desire to suppress our painful memories, our anger and our shame and being willing to meet them face to face with love.
Silence
Forgiveness is our most precious gift:
the most Christ-like blessing we can share.
Forgiveness comes through ceasing to view oneself as an unlovable person, a person whose insecurity leads them to condemn others.
Silence
Forgiveness is our most precious gift:
the most Christ-like blessing we can share.
Forgiveness comes through letting go of the illusion that we are superior to other people in our beliefs, attitudes or actions.
Silence
Forgiveness is our most precious gift:
the most Christ-like blessing we can share.
Forgiveness comes through listening to the story of our oppressors and experiencing something of their hurt.
Forgiveness grows as we begin to discover something good, something of God in every human being.
Forgiveness develops as we share our own
vulnerability with them.
Silence
Forgiveness is our most precious gift:
the most Christ-like blessing we can share.
Forgiveness comes through seeing every experience as an opportunity to learn more about ourselves and others rather than remain a prisoner of our own history.
Silence
Forgiveness is our most precious gift:
the most Christ-like blessing we can share.
Forgiveness comes through letting go of the idea that it is solely a matter of feeling sorry for what we have done.
So as well as apologizing we seek to change our attitudes and behavior, exploring possibilities of righting past wrongs.
Silence
Forgiveness is our most precious gift:
the most Christ-like blessing we can share.
CLOSURE
“Closure,
We need closure”
Came the strident anguish cry
Demanding punishment.
The right punishment for the crime,
The right explanation of why the loved-one died
Would appear to provide closure.
But ‘no’ that is not the case
Closure is an internal process
A letting go of anger,
A letting go of the desire to punish,
A letting go of the need to know.
What better example
Than the words of Jesus from the cross
“Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do”
and “into your hands, I commend my spirit”.
For there is no closure without forgiveness,
No closure without the dead being allowed
To rest in peace.
IF ONLY
If only!
If only!
If only!
Again and again these mind chains shackle us
To a poisoned past,
An emaciated present
And a hopeless future.
But as Jean-Paul Sartre said “Freedom is what you do with
What has been done to you”.
The ‘if onlys’ are a dangerous fantasy world
Within which lies
The bog of self pity ‑
The mindset of the crippled victim.
Jesus said “no one takes my life away from me,
I give it up of my own free will.” *
In other words I am in control of what my
History does to my mind.
I am not the one who haplessly
Lets history destroy their peace
And their hope.
Then and only then
Will my I AM replace
My ‘if onlys’. * John 10:18
WHEN I HANG UPON MY CROSS
When I hang upon my cross
What has happened to my divinity,
My sacredness?
Must I deny my inner worth and instead
Nurture my anger,
Or can it be a time of awakening
To the wounds of others?
Can I say with Christ
“Forgive them for they know not what they do”
To me or anyone else?
This cannot be my cry until
I have walked the way of transforming mystery,
Walked through the darkness of my soul’s night
Have come to the point of understanding my wounds
And binding them with love.
Then and only then can I come to the place
Of transforming oneness,
The place of compassion informed by empathy,
A place where my small cross becomes
Part of God’s Cross,
Where my cry becomes part of Christ’s cry
And my forgiveness becomes part of
The humanizing and all inclusive energy of the Cosmos.
FOCUS FOR ACTION
1.If God’s forgiveness is always available and all that stands between us and forgiveness is our reluctance to accept it, then how appropriate are our continual requests to God to forgive us and to have mercy on us?
2.Would it not be better if we rejoiced in accepting God’s forgiveness and prayed that God would help us to forgive ourselves, to forgive others and to change our style of living?
3.Do you agree that it is immoral to make people feel guilty, so that we might grant them forgiveness? What are the implications of all this for our worship?
LOGO NOTE: At the heart of the mystery all the separate boxes disappear and all is one, all is love.
Text and graphic © William Livingstone Wallace but available for free use.
Events and Updates
Beloved Open-Air Sacred Art & Music Festival
August 7th - 10th, 2015
Tidewater Falls, Oregon
Beloved is also a 4-day Camping, Art, and Music Festival on the Oregon Coast. We intend to present sacred music to help eradicate the illusion of separation from each other, from the earth and from The Beloved.Beloved Open-Air Sacred Art & Music Festival
Through the ages, we have called upon the One for Whom we yearn in countless ways, through myriad names.The term “Beloved”embraces all of these names and forms of the Divine, affirming their Unity.
Beloved is also a 4-day Camping, Art, and Music Festival on the Oregon Coast. We intend to present sacred music to help eradicate the illusion of separation from each other, from the earth and from The Beloved.
Click on Video for more information
All the little details express our vision with authenticity, integrity and polish. The Festival hosts the following main areas, all of which help to enunciate our vision:
READ ON ...
Forgiveness by Rick Cypert and Jean Henderson by Polly Moore
Bound within by my own mind,
And a day not left behind.
Circling round the memory stays,
Echoing through all my days.
I would leave it but for this
In it something is amiss.
A world not right, not right at all,
And in that stance is where I fall.
Forgiveness is the grace I seek
Self-righteousness has made me weak
To move beyond I’ll find a way:
Release the then; reframe today.
© Rick Cypert
Click here to see the score: Forgiveness
The African American Church by Alice Smith
The worshipers welcomed the stranger.
Then hatred wearing a racist robe
tore through the house of God.
Blood was spilled,
and lives were lost,
but no one can kill
the African-American church.
Its power is kingly
and oh so much stronger
than the small minded, lowly thoughts
bred in a bigot’s brain.
The African-American spirit makes little sense
in the eyes of the everyday world
for this spiritual power is born of oppression
and sees in an overturned way
silently sitting in the front of the bus
and peacefully marching for rights.
The weak will be strong.
The last will be first,
and victory found in defeat.
Let us bow down and knock on the door
of the African-American church
humbly asking for counsel and guidance
on how to build a beloved world.
Worship Materials: Guilt, Shame and Forgiveness
From the Celebrating Mystery collection by William Wallace
THEME The path to destruction and the path to new life.
THOUGHTS FOR REFLECTION
Guilt can become the major obstacle to the transformation of behavior.
To break the cycle of guilt, we must begin by forgiving ourselves and other people.
Finding someone to blame does not enable us to leave the past behind.
We all need to take responsibility for our own actions, give ourselves permission to forgive ourselves and to let go of our guilt.
St Paul said ‘there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus’ (Romans 8/1). Perhaps this could be paraphrased:
‘there is no guilt in those who are truly in touch with divinity.’
As perfect love casts out fear, so forgiveness casts out guilt.
Therefore accept God’s forgiveness, forgive yourself and forgive others.
To accept forgiveness is also to accept the necessity of a change of heart and of actions of restitution and reconciliation.
If we say we could not possibly forgive another person, we are really saying that we are getting too much mileage out of feeling the innocent victim to give up that role. Yet from the perspective of the point of stillness we can observe the terrible effect our anger has on our psyche and how our unforgiving spirit is destroying our life-force.
Mutual forgiveness between human beings always involves an acknowledgement that no human beings and no relationships are perfect.
Punishing criminals without also offering a program of rehabilitation often results in confirming them in a life of crime.
Revenge does nothing to create a better world; indeed if we seek revenge we release destructive forces within ourselves and may well start a cycle of violence.
When we refuse to forgive another person it is ourselves that we are wounding,
The best way to deal with our guilty past is to clothe past frailty with love and learning.
The first step to freedom is to be able to identify who or what put us under restraint.
The past is only a problem when we haven’t learnt to forgive ourselves and others.
Liberation from guilt is a springboard for action.
The commitment to change is the transforming element of repentance.
Anger suppressed destroys.
True forgiveness between human beings always involves an acknowledgement that it takes two people to create a dysfunctional relationship.
No-one ever grew beyond guilt by heaping guilt upon themselves or by blaming other people or a devil.
The test of the depth of our faith lies in our willingness to forgive those who persecute us
Forgiveness can be the gateway to a whole new world.
When we forgive we begin to heal unjust hurts which have been inflicted upon us.
PRAYER:
O God of forgiveness, help us to develop a forgiving attitude towards others, lest we harden our hearts and in so doing find it impossible to accept the forgiveness which you so freely offer to us.
HYMNS
We are always part of the other. (BL)
At each journey’s ending point. (BL)
Sowing limits what we harvest. (BL)
Recalling all our ancient hurts. (BL)
When we feel all weighed down with guilt. (BL)
Repaying Force. (BL)
If passion urges us. (BL)
No outcasts were condemned by Christ.
www.methodist.org.nz/resources/hymns/boundlesslife
I will talk to my heart.
www.methodist.org.nz/resources/hymns/boundlesslife
I wash my hands.
https://www.methodist.org.nz/resources/hymns/the_mystery_telling
God of forgiveness.
https://www.methodist.org.nz/resources/hymns/the_mystery_telling
As we give we shall receive. (STS1)
For wrongs of the past. (STS1)
Many people die in anguish. (STS1)
Your cross provides a window. (STS1)
How many times must I forgive? (STS2)
Christ Jesus praying from the cross. (STS2)
Singing the Sacred Vol 1 2011, Vol 2 2014 World Library Publications
REFRAINS (LITURGICAL RESOURCES)
Forgiveness is our most precious gift. (BL)
In the letting go. (BL)
God has mercy on us all. (STS1)
POEMS/REFLECTIONS
GIVING AND RECEIVING FORGIVENESS
Like the father in the parable of the prodigal son,* God’s forgiveness does not have to be earned, only accepted. Yet our unwillingness to forgive others can be an obstacle to our being open to receiving forgiveness. As Jesus prayed “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us” In other words the unforgiving heart is not open to receiving forgiveness. *Luke 15:11-32
FORGIVENESS LITANY
All of us have experienced mental or physical suffering at the hands of other people. But each of us has also brought suffering to others.
However, when we are unwilling to forgive, we deny the essence of God’s loving-kindness, and deprive ourselves of the healing for which our life-force longs.
Silence
Forgiveness is a complex process of letting go which takes time and effort. It involves letting go of our desire to suppress our painful memories, our anger and our shame and being willing to meet them face to face with love.
Silence
Forgiveness is our most precious gift:
the most Christ-like blessing we can share.
Forgiveness comes through ceasing to view oneself as an unlovable person, a person whose insecurity leads them to condemn others.
Silence
Forgiveness is our most precious gift:
the most Christ-like blessing we can share.
Forgiveness comes through letting go of the illusion that we are superior to other people in our beliefs, attitudes or actions.
Silence
Forgiveness is our most precious gift:
the most Christ-like blessing we can share.
Forgiveness comes through listening to the story of our oppressors and experiencing something of their hurt.
Forgiveness grows as we begin to discover something good, something of God in every human being.
Forgiveness develops as we share our own
vulnerability with them.
Silence
Forgiveness is our most precious gift:
the most Christ-like blessing we can share.
Forgiveness comes through seeing every experience as an opportunity to learn more about ourselves and others rather than remain a prisoner of our own history.
Silence
Forgiveness is our most precious gift:
the most Christ-like blessing we can share.
Forgiveness comes through letting go of the idea that it is solely a matter of feeling sorry for what we have done.
So as well as apologizing we seek to change our attitudes and behavior, exploring possibilities of righting past wrongs.
Silence
Forgiveness is our most precious gift:
the most Christ-like blessing we can share.
CLOSURE
“Closure,
We need closure”
Came the strident anguish cry
Demanding punishment.
The right punishment for the crime,
The right explanation of why the loved-one died
Would appear to provide closure.
But ‘no’ that is not the case
Closure is an internal process
A letting go of anger,
A letting go of the desire to punish,
A letting go of the need to know.
What better example
Than the words of Jesus from the cross
“Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do”
and “into your hands, I commend my spirit”.
For there is no closure without forgiveness,
No closure without the dead being allowed
To rest in peace.
IF ONLY
If only!
If only!
If only!
Again and again these mind chains shackle us
To a poisoned past,
An emaciated present
And a hopeless future.
But as Jean-Paul Sartre said “Freedom is what you do with
What has been done to you”.
The ‘if onlys’ are a dangerous fantasy world
Within which lies
The bog of self pity ‑
The mindset of the crippled victim.
Jesus said “no one takes my life away from me,
I give it up of my own free will.” *
In other words I am in control of what my
History does to my mind.
I am not the one who haplessly
Lets history destroy their peace
And their hope.
Then and only then
Will my I AM replace
My ‘if onlys’. * John 10:18
WHEN I HANG UPON MY CROSS
When I hang upon my cross
What has happened to my divinity,
My sacredness?
Must I deny my inner worth and instead
Nurture my anger,
Or can it be a time of awakening
To the wounds of others?
Can I say with Christ
“Forgive them for they know not what they do”
To me or anyone else?
This cannot be my cry until
I have walked the way of transforming mystery,
Walked through the darkness of my soul’s night
Have come to the point of understanding my wounds
And binding them with love.
Then and only then can I come to the place
Of transforming oneness,
The place of compassion informed by empathy,
A place where my small cross becomes
Part of God’s Cross,
Where my cry becomes part of Christ’s cry
And my forgiveness becomes part of
The humanizing and all inclusive energy of the Cosmos.
FOCUS FOR ACTION
1.If God’s forgiveness is always available and all that stands between us and forgiveness is our reluctance to accept it, then how appropriate are our continual requests to God to forgive us and to have mercy on us?
2.Would it not be better if we rejoiced in accepting God’s forgiveness and prayed that God would help us to forgive ourselves, to forgive others and to change our style of living?
3.Do you agree that it is immoral to make people feel guilty, so that we might grant them forgiveness? What are the implications of all this for our worship?
LOGO NOTE: At the heart of the mystery all the separate boxes disappear and all is one, all is love.
Text and graphic © William Livingstone Wallace but available for free use.
Events and Updates
Beloved Open-Air Sacred Art & Music Festival
August 7th - 10th, 2015
Tidewater Falls, Oregon
Beloved is also a 4-day Camping, Art, and Music Festival on the Oregon Coast. We intend to present sacred music to help eradicate the illusion of separation from each other, from the earth and from The Beloved.Beloved Open-Air Sacred Art & Music Festival
Through the ages, we have called upon the One for Whom we yearn in countless ways, through myriad names.The term “Beloved”embraces all of these names and forms of the Divine, affirming their Unity.
Beloved is also a 4-day Camping, Art, and Music Festival on the Oregon Coast. We intend to present sacred music to help eradicate the illusion of separation from each other, from the earth and from The Beloved.
Click on Video for more information
All the little details express our vision with authenticity, integrity and polish. The Festival hosts the following main areas, all of which help to enunciate our vision:
A single stage hosting musical, educational, performative and ceremonial content; the programming on the stage will strive to serve as a narrative describing the true unity of all people, the planet, spirit and matter;
A Temple Meadow which will be designed as a place for individual and group prayer and will also host workshops in Yoga, Qigong, etc. designed to give a non-denominational guidance in prayer and meditation;
A Health and Well-Being Area including saunas, showers, massage and bodywork offerings;
A Village featuring a carefully curated selection of merchants selling thematic goods, whole foods, treats, beverages and tonics, an information booth to assist patrons in their navigation of the Festival, and a first-aid booth to provide assistance to patrons with their physical, mental and/or physic health.
Visit our website Beloved Festival for more information or click below to Register Online.
Images
Visit our website Beloved Festival for more information or click below to Register Online.
Images
Start:
August 7, 2015
End:
August 10, 2015
Location:
Tidewater Falls
12154 E Alsea Hwy
Tidewater Falls United States Oregon
Organization:
Beloved Festival
Website:
https://belovedfestival.com
READ ON ...
View all upcoming events here!
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Our mailing address is:
ProgressiveChristianity.org
4810 Pt. Fosdick Drive NW#80
View all upcoming events here!
News
Job Listings
Website
YouTube
Our mailing address is:
ProgressiveChristianity.org
4810 Pt. Fosdick Drive NW#80
Gig Harbor, Washington 98335 United States
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