July 13, 2015 ♦
It’s been quite an eventful few weeks since my last report. The rapid swings between good news and not-so-good news both in the church and in the public square have given many of us an acute case of spiritual whiplash.
As regards good news, General Convention elected our first black presiding bishop, and added its voice to the recent Supreme Court ruling on marriage equality by adjusting the language of the Prayer Book accordingly.
But on the not-so-good counter-swing, Donald Trump’s racist announcement of his candidacy for president has given xenophobia a new lease on life, and drawn only mealy-mouthed responses from other candidates who should know better.
But then, Pope Francis embarked on a homecoming tour of Latin America, denouncing the ravages of global capitalism among the poorest of the poor in a way that does honor to the saint’s name he has chosen as his own.
It is a good thing, too, that South Carolina has retired the Confederate battle flag at last. But few if any politicians have connected the dots between the racist massacre that finally forced the argument and the steady increase of gun violence in this country, abetted by the radical right’s continued stretching and distortion of the Second Amendment.
It’s time for faithful people to connect the dots.
Hard to believe, but we will soon mark the one-year anniversary of the events in Ferguson, Missouri following the shooting death of Michael Brown. To mark that anniversary, Bexley Seabury will welcome Dean Mike Kinman from Christ Church Cathedral, St. Louis as the keynote speaker for our Convocation Columbus 2015 on Wednesday, September 23. Mike has been a powerful voice in promoting racial justice in St. Louis in the aftermath of Ferguson. His working title for his time with us is “Faith After #Ferguson: We Have Nothing to Lose but Our Chains.” Mike will join the Bexley Seabury community—students, alumni, and friends of the seminary—on the 23rd for 10 a.m. Eucharist, the student I-group (the weekly small group discussion integrating faith and practice), a plenary address and workshop in the afternoon, and a reception that evening. If you will be anywhere near Columbus on that date, mark your calendars now.
And for those of you in the Chicago area, you should know that earlier that week the seminary will be partnering with St. Chrysostom’s Episcopal Church, in Chicago’s Near North neighborhood, to host Professor Walter Brueggemann, renowned scholar of the Hebrew Bible and passionate teacher and advocate for a renewed sense of Biblical justice. Professor Brueggemann will preach at Sunday Evensong at St. Chrysostom’s on September 20, and present a public lecture on Monday morning, September 21.
In the strident cacophony of our public square, it is a privilege for Bexley Seabury to host such powerful voices for reason, Biblical integrity, and racial justice. More details to follow. But I hope you will spread the word about these two important events, and join us in Columbus and Chicago this fall.