After nearly two years apart, my Wednesday morning Bible Study group met IN PERSON. It was wonderful to see everyone's smiling eyes under masks and feel connected in a visceral way that Zoom and FB Live--- no matter how essential these tools are for some right now-- cannot imitate.
Unlike a Zoom session, I knew that not everyone was staring at me , and I wasn't staring at all of them. My sensory-integration wire-crossing issues in my brain { audio and visual--- Zoom is hard -- FB Live is more tolerable } were not triggered. I sat comfortably-- and spaced out--- in a big room around a table full of people I love.
After a stressful couple of weeks--- it was so good to crack open God's Word with my chosen family together in one space.
We are studying the Prophet Amos-- one whom I have not read since Year One of My Education For Ministry program. Today was just an introduction to Amos & to prophets in general
One definition of prophet really stood out for me.
According to my notes " prophet" can mean : " one who is called to speak forth...
Ding Ding.
A bell of recognition went off in my head. Four years ago, as my bishop prayed over me when I re-affirmed my Baptismal vows at St Christopher's he told me I am " a prophet" .
I remember my knees shaking as I walked back to my pew. Me: a prophet. What was my bishop expecting of me?
After all, at that time I was that " nice" White woman who never challenges the status quo and goes against her gut when she sees or hears injustices being done or bigoted words uttered. I bask in my White , middle-class hetero-normative privilege by staying silent when people I love utter bigoted words.
After George Floyd was murdered, I felt a sudden stirring in me to speak forth, to stop being that " nice" White woman
400 years of " nice" people , people like me who would not harm anyone intentionally or use racist/ ablest/ hetero-normative language have been part of the problem.
White people--- including myself-- have to begin to do the tough work of un-learning some " truths" we were taught. We need to re-learn what really happened that started The United States as a place where White skin was valued over other people-of-color. We have to begin the tough work at looking at the history of police violence against Black, Brown and LGBTQ people. Watch the mini-series "Pride" on Netflix--- I learned { and unlearned} so much truth from stories of LGBTQ persons who lived through the 50's and 60's.
Read Bryan Stevenson's book _Just Mercy_ to see how the penal system, and capital punishment unfairly targets Black men in certain states.
Read, mark, watch, inwardly digest and then SPEAK OUT.
Will you join me? This is hard, good, necessary work that needs to be done before we see God's vision of shalom.
With Love and Liberation,
~Sarah the Prophet
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