Dear church, we need to talk about some logs
Dear Church!
That’s the title of the book we are currently reading with our Book Club/Bible Study at Christ the King. The subtitle states: “A love letter form a Black preacher to the whitest denomination in the U.S.” It’s a love letter to the ELCA by Lenny Duncan.
Let me say this: it’s a true love letter. One of the kind we rarely receive. It’s full of beautiful images, personal stories. And it’s full of truth. A truth we need to hear and ponder about and a truth that can be hard to stand.
Lenny loves the ELCA deeply. He sees the best in us. And he sees the many barriers that keep us from being who we want to be. We claim to be “welcoming to all”. We claim to not judge people by the color of their skin. And yet, Lenny has quite a lot of stories to tell about microaggressions and racism he and other friends of color have experienced in our Lutheran churches. And yet, Black seminarist looking for a first call often must wait for years. Because most churches still don’t call Black pastors.
At times the book is all harsh critique, all about the log in our eyes. Talking about how our liturgy follows a “Black and White” symbolism from darkness to light. Talking about how a white supremacist like Dylan Roof is not just coincidentally Lutheran. We at the book club have wondered: Why does Lenny stick to our church? And we have to answer the question: “Why do you see the speck in your neighbor’s eye, but do not notice the log in your own eye?” (Matthew 7:3)
The answer is simple. Lenny loves the ELCA. The openness, the unconditional love some people have shown him, the amazing grace given to us by God. When he first entered an ELCA church he ran into a pastor who invited everyone to the table of the Lord. Lenny had never experienced that before. When he was in seminary without a lot of money, some people from his church stepped up and bought him all the Christmas presents on his list. When he felt down and weary, there was always someone to catch him, pray for him, care for him, show him the love of God.
That’s the most important lesson I take away from this book. That there is hope. That we are resurrection people. People who don’t get threatened to death by death. But people who open up tombs and follow the risen Lord. No matter how few might believe us at first.
What we as individuals do, matters. We don’t have to wait for the entire church or country to change. We can be the change and we will be the change. Day by day we can build the kingdom of God, a kingdom of justice and peace, filled with hope and love. Filled with backpacks for kids in Newark and with masks for everyone around us.
“We put money and resources toward what we care about in this church.”, Lenny writes in his book. We do indeed. That’s why I am so grateful to the people of Christ the King, that we are going to put resources towards Racial Healing. Over the last months I have been developing a curriculum for a Racial Justice Activation Circle. This work has left me changed. I am much more comfortable talking about racism, talking about my own racist thoughts and behavior and I feel closer to my Black friends and neighbors. I will never entirely share their pain, but my heart hurts and my soul cries to God and my mouth speaks out against injustice. Starting September 7th, you are invited to join or continue that journey.
Let’s start seeing the log in our eyes. (Mine was surprisingly large.)
Hopeful blessings, Pastor Tia!
