"The Hay that Heals" - St. Francis and the First Live Nativity

This is a written version of my second Christmas Eve meditation on December 24, 2020. Because of the pandemic, we met for livestream-only worship in the sanctuary, followed by outdoor communion serving and candlelight circle. I shared this meditation on St. Francis by the manger scene outdoors.

Earlier tonight, we gathered virtually by livestream to ponder the scripture, enjoy the music, and explore the meditations of this holy season. We joined in the Great Thanksgiving at the table of grace. Now we gather outdoors to receive this blessed communion and create a candlelight circle. And we do so around this manger for a reason.

Have you heard the origins of the manger scene? The manger scene was created by St. Francis of Assisi.

Francis, who was born into merchant family in Assisi of modern-day Italy, rejected his family’s wealth and even cast off his expensive garments in a public square. He founded the Franciscans, a movement that is dedicated to works of charity with the poor and marginalized. He was, of course, known as a lover of animals and all God’s creation.

In 1223, St. Francis did something special to kindle devotion on the birth of Christ, God’s concern for the poor and oppressed, and God’s love for the animal kingdom. He created the first live nativity. A generation later, in the year 1291, the first pope that was from the new Franciscan order had a permanent manger scene placed in front of one of Europe’s churches. That began the tradition of carved manger scenes we still enjoy today.

But that very first live nativity scene set up by St. Francis himself was placed near the town square. A real manger was placed there with hay, with Mary and Joseph, a carved baby Jesus doll, an ox, and an ass. Francis invited the villagers to come and gaze on the scene while he preached on the “babe of Bethlehem” (they say he was so overcome with joy, he could not say the name “Jesus”).

One witness said the wooden doll of the baby Jesus appeared to cry tears of joy and “seemed to be awakened from sleep when the blessed Father Francis embraced Him in both arms.”

There was another miracle, too, a miracle that I invite us to get our hearts in touch with during this pandemic. I call it the legend of “hay that heals.” The story is that the hay in the manger, from this very first live nativity, healed sick animals and protected people from disease.

We gather outside tonight in the middle of a world-wide pandemic that has changed our gatherings but will not kill our spirits. And we gather because of the healing power of the one who was laid in a manger.

Our staff prepared a little cluster of hay to give each family tonight. We share it with all of us who have come and gathered safely outdoors for closing communion by candlelight.

I invite your family to ponder your little bundle of hay. I invite you to place it under your tree, or on your mantle, or under your centerpiece on this most unusual Christmas Day. Tell others the story of St. Francis and the first manger scene. Recall the legend of the “hay that heals.”

We share this little gift because our world need healing right now, more than ever. We pray that the healing that pours out from the manger of grace will touch us in every broken place.

"O Holy Night" - A Super-Charged Political Statement

   

This is a written version of my first Christmas Eve meditation on December 24, 2020. Because of the pandemic, we met for livestream-only worship in the sanctuary, followed by outdoor communion serving and closing candlelight circle. I shared a separate meditation later by the manger scene outdoors.

Did you know the classic Christmas song, "O Holy Night," contains a political statement that was bold and brazen for its time?

On Monday, many of us gazed into the sky and saw what has been dubbed the “Christmas Star.” Since this rare conjunction of planets is one way astronomers say God might have sent us the star of Bethlehem, I took it as a sign of hope in difficult times. How wonderful that for us, the "Christmas Star" happened to appear on the longest night of year. It’s been a year which has felt like one long night.

As I woke up Monday morning in what seemed like utter darkness, the song “O Holy Night” popped into my head. On the day of our darkest night, the first thing on my mind was the holiest of nights. So I did a little research.

Did you know “O Holy Night” was written in 1847? The text was written in the French language bv the French poet Placide Cappeau and set to music by French composer Adolph Adam. It wasn't translated into English until 1855.

Obviously, the major social issue blazing in the world in 1847 was slavery, and that's not just what was boiling in the United States. In fact, the following year, 1848, was the year slavery was finally abolished in France and the French colonies.

This simple fact deepens the impact of the last verse of "O Holy Night":

Truly He taught us to love one another;

His law is Love and His gospel is Peace;

Chains shall he break, for the slave is our brother,

And in his name all oppression shall cease, … 

That was a daring and direct statement with political implications! When the world was enraged and even on the brink of war over slavery, they openly sang that "the slave is our brother" and that in Christ's holy name, all such oppression shall cease. Period.

This gives us an angle on Luke's second chapter tonight. The very first "Christmas carols" in history - the canticles of Mary, Zechariah, and Simeon recorded in Luke - all sing that the coming of the Messiah had everything to do with God's concern for the lowly, the poor, the oppressed, and the marginalized.

That’s why Jesus was born in poverty. That’s why he came from a technically unwed mother. That's why his family didn’t have the connections to find a decent room when traveling to Bethlehem. That’s why they laid the baby Jesus in a messy feeding trough full of hay, and that’s why they were visited by smelly shepherds who’d been working all night long.

God adores the poor and lowly, the needy and oppressed. So in God's odd way of saving the world, God became one of them, so that Christ might save us all.

This year, which has felt like one long night, has been a year when we’ve been acutely aware of stubbornness of systemic racism, and yet we worship the one in whose name all oppression shall cease. This year, when politics have been so divisive, we worship the one whose gospel is peace. This year, when some of us live on the brink of religious division, we worship the one whose law is love. This year, when we have been dealing with the blows of a world-wide pandemic, we worship the one who taught us to love one another.

This holy child, this Messiah, this savior, this prince of peace came to not only show us what true love is, but to bust open the door holding back God's radical grace. The singers of these songs can see that the love of God saves the whole world, but especially pours out upon the places and spaces love hasn't been reaching.

May it reach you tonight.

O Holy Night

This is a Christmas gift for you, my friends, on the longest night of the year. Blessings.

Spirit of Christmas

This is an original Christmas carol to share with you, my friends.

May you have a blessed and wonder-filled season.

I wrote it years ago during seminary, when I was enrolled in a class on the history of Christian thought with Drs. Roberta Bondi  and Bill Mallard (and sitting next to an attractive young woman named Sandy O'Quinn who I was not yet married to). We were studying Athanasius, who was very influential in the 4th century in clarifying the doctrine of the incarnation. He was well known for the idea that God in Christ came down from above that we might be brought from below.

For more on Athanasius see this article.

Martin Luther on the Pandemic

Some have asked about the quote I shared this morning on dealing with a pandemic from Martin Luther, famous leader of the Protestant Reformation. 

It is from an open letter he wrote in 1527, during an outbreak of a plague in the middle of the throes of the Reformation he had started ten years earlier. I remind myself he wrote it during extremely divided times - yes, worse than ours - when people were polarized by the Reformation. Their struggle with death was filtered through their religious disagreements.

It is said that Protestants saw the plague as God’s judgment on Catholic idolatry, and Catholics accused Protestants of weakening the unity of the Church in a time of crisis. Both sides painted the opposition in the worst possible light. Luther himself was being accused of irresponsibility by staying in Wittenberg to do ministry when officials had asked religious leaders and others to flee the city. 

The open letter is entitled “Whether One May Flee from a Deadly Plague.” I shared only part of the quote this morning (the boldfaced part), but it is so incredibly applicable to our times that I am giving you a more complete quote from this famous spiritual giant:

“Others sin on the right hand. They are much too rash and reckless, tempting God and disregarding everything which might counteract death and the plague. They disdain the use of medicines; they do not avoid places and persons infected by the plague, but lightheartedly make sport of it and wish to prove how independent they are. They say that it is God’s punishment; if he wants to protect them he can do so without medicines or our carefulness. That is not trusting God but tempting him. . . .

“No, my dear friends, that is no good. Use medicine; take potions which can help you; fumigate house, yard, and street; shun persons and places where your neighbor does not need your presence or has recovered, and act like a man who wants to help put out the burning city. What else is the epidemic but a fire which instead of consuming wood and straw devours life and body? You ought to think this way: ‘Very well, by God’s decree the enemy has sent us poison and deadly offal. Therefore I shall ask God mercifully to protect us. Then I shall fumigate, help purify the air, administer medicine, and take it. I shall avoid persons and places where my presence is not needed in order not to become contaminated and thus perchance infect and pollute others, and so cause their death as a result of my negligence. If God should wish to take me, he will surely find me, and I have done what he has expected of me and so I am not responsible for either my own death or the death of others. If my neighbor needs me, however, I shall not avoid place or person but will go freely, as stated above. See, this is such a God-fearing faith because it is neither brash nor foolhardy and does not tempt God’.”

Imitate the Fish

 

What is Truly Essential about Wesleyan Spirituality?

These are difficult times in North American Methodism. I don’t know what all the answers are related to moving forward, though I know unequivocally that I am not leaving my spiritual home.

I believe traditional, centrist, and progressive United Methodist are called to love and serve together and move forward in history, allowing diversity of thought and practices rather than drawing lines in the sand mirroring the culture wars of America, over issues that are not even mentioned in the gospels or the ancient creeds. It’s in our Wesleyan DNA to be connectional, and  it’s Christ’s vision for the Church evident in his prayer for us in John 17. We are indeed better together.

What is essential to Wesleyan spirituality that will guide us through these times and help us move forward together? I found an excellent article on this subject here and wanted to share it with you.

If you’d like to hear more about our efforts to stay in the UMC, see this website.

#stayumc

New Content on Stay UMC Website

There is some new content posted in the Stay UMC website. If you are a North Alabama United Methodist, I encourage you to have a look.

The website features a video testimony by Rev. Kip Laxson of Asbury UMC in Birmingham. As one of my fellow Stay UMC board members, he puts succinctly why so many of us in North Alabama do not want to leave the UMC in the present impasse.

I do not condemn the North Alabama chapter of the WCA or the “New Methodist Movement” they are hoping to give birth to as they leave our denomination. However, I believe we are better together. I believe traditionalists, centrists, and progressives can be one church without a schism over issues that are’t even mentioned in the gospels or ancient creeds. We can find a way to contextualize ministry across the country without losing integrity and truly move forward as people of “open hearts, open minds, and open doors.” And we can be known for our love, not our intolerance.

I also do not believe those who are leaving our denomination should force the entire conference to leave and go with them against our will.

There is also new content in the FAQ section of the Stay UMC website For the Stay UMC website, which may be found here.

God Brings Life to the Dead Branches

Today, I spent some time with the most unlikely of roses.

We have lived in our new home for over four months. As always, moving is a chore (for pastors, it's an occupational hazard). There has been an enormous amount of things to do.

I have loved meeting the people of our new church. That's the best part. But I often say "I love going to new churches, I just don't love moving to get there!" Between unpacking and getting settled, decorating the house, reclaiming the yard, meeting my neighbors, and starting a new ministry, it's always a challenge to get it all done. With COVID, it's been strange challenge indeed.

One of the tasks that went undone was tending to a particular dead rosebush in our backyard. I've noticed it countless times. It's right behind the house, in front of the garage and under an old clothesline post we've reclaimed with teal spray-paint and bird feeders. The branches are brittle and it has looked dead as a doornail for four straight months. I've been meaning to cut it away.

I'm glad I didn't. Last Sunday, suddenly, I noticed a breach of the deadness with a burst of life. A new rose blossom had appeared. Out of the deadness, there is life. Out of the dryness, there is joy. Wow. God did it again.

I have contemplated all week this gift of God. There is so much deadness around us right now. The coronavirus has been an unimaginable curb of normal life, not to mention the death it has brought to hundreds of thousands. The country has been through divisive times politically, as if there are two alternative worlds we live in, not one. Signs of structural racism abound, and I wonder if the energy to bring about prophetic change will fall away as it too often does. The denomination I love is going through a long, drawn-out, slow division as a group makes plans to secede and go start a new denomination.

It feels like there is a dead rosebush that I can't seem to get around to. It just lingers. Where are the signs of life? Then when I least expected it, it appeared. There is hope.

This week, I spent some more time with that little rose. It's moved from being a rosebud to a fully formed thing of beauty. I just can't bring myself now to break away the dead branches, for now they stand behind the rose as a reminder of the deadness God has brought life to.

God did it again. And God will keep doing it again.

Here's a picture of what I experienced in my quiet time today. May the joy of the Lord burst forth in your life, too.

For Your Birthday

Today is my "half birthday" (my actual birthday is April 22, six months from now).

In morning quiet time, I ran across this beautiful birthday blessing in John O'Donahue's To Bless the Space Between Us: A Book of Blessings.

I wanted to share it on my blog this day, in hopes that is serves as a blessing to many of you on the "echoing-day of your birth."

For Your Birthday 

Blessed be the mind that dreamed the day 

The blueprint of your life 

Would begin to glow on earth, 

Illuminating all the faces and voices 

That would arrive to invite 

Your soul to growth. 

Praised be your father and mother, 

Who loved you before you were, 

And trusted to call you here 

With no idea who you would be. 

Blessed be those who have loved you 

Into becoming who you were meant to be, 

Blessed be those who have crossed your life 

With dark gifts of hurt and loss 

That have helped to school your mind 

In the art of disappointment. 

When desolation surrounded you, 

Blessed be those who looked for you 

And found you, their kind hands 

Urgent to open a blue window 

In the grey wall formed around you. 

Blessed be the gifts you never notice, 

Your health, eyes to behold the world, 

Thoughts to countenance the unknown, 

Memory to harvest vanished days, 

Your heart to feel the world’s waves, 

Your breath to breathe the nourishment 

Of distance made intimate by earth. 

On this echoing-day of your birth, 

May you open the gift of solitude 

In order to receive your soul; 

Enter the generosity of silence 

To hear your hidden heart, 

Know the serenity of stillness 

To be enfolded anew 

By the miracle of your being. 

 — John O’Donohue, To Bless the Space Between Us: A Book of Blessings

A Few Basic Facts for North Alabama Laity

Are you confused about all this? 

1. The “New Methodist Movement” is curated by a few clergy in the North Alabama Conference of the UMC that plan to leave our denomination and start a new one.

2. The post-separation UMC will not force or compel pastors or churches to change any policies concerning wedding ceremonies.

3. Forcing all clergy, churches, and parishioners of our Conference to leave our own denomination with a 57% vote would be an injustice. Those who wish to leave will be able to do so without requiring others to leave against their will.

4. A proposed new traditionalist denomination has not yet formed, so the Conference would be voting to become part of something that doesn’t exist. The uncertainties are endless.

5. If we leave our own denomination, we will no longer receive any benefits that come from it.

6. Churches in a proposed new denomination may or may not have a pastor at a given time, because there will no longer be an appointment system.

To learn more, see www.stayumc.com.

Stay UMC

Dear Methodist friends,

These are difficult times, and there are many more pressing things on our plate.

However, a group of North Alabama Methodists are advocating that the North Alabama Conference "Stay UMC," should there be a vote called for on the Annual Conference level to secede from the United Methodist Church and form a new "traditionalist" denomination. This vote could take place in 2021 or 2022 if the Protocol passes at General Conference in 2021, as many expect. There are some clergy and laity in the North Alabama Conference who are actively working toward the goal of leaving the UMC.

"Stay UMC" released www.stayumc.com today. This was to be unrolled in early March and the pandemic caused a heavy pause. General Conference has now been postponed to August/September of 2021, so it is still something in front of us.

I wholeheartedly support “Stay UMC!” I invite you to explore www.stayumc.com and join the movement.

I hope that discussions around the “Stay UMC” movement will lead to greater transparency so we can be a better Church.

I have nothing against clergy and churches who wish to leave the UMC in the present impasse. They are brothers and sisters in Christ. Some are very traditionalist, others are very progressive, but on both edges there are those that would choose to no longer stay in communion with the traditionalists, centrists, and progressives that believe we are called to be one diverse Church. The denomination is making withdrawal possible now, and churches may keep church properties if they follow the appropriate requirements. I just don't believe those who wish to form a new denomination should attempt to force the entire Annual Conference to go with them.

Please check out www.stayumc.com to understand what the Protocol is, why we wish to "Stay UMC," and what's at stake if we don't.

Invocation for JSU Commencement

It was an honor to lead the invocation for Commencement Exercises at Jacksonville State University, held outdoors on August 1, 2020 at the JSU Gamecock Stadium. This was spring graduation that was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

I carefully wrote my invocation as a gift to the JSU community, and I thought I'd share it here as well.

Let us pray.

God of Solomon and Sophia, God of Divine Wisdom and Grace,

We pause this day to pray. We pause as outstanding scholars are honored here, and we pause to honor the One that merits our greatest respect. We pause to point to the Source and Sustainer of all that is true and all that is good. It is with deep gratitude that we pause, and it is with deep gratitude that we pray.

We pray for these candidates, that the academic degrees awarded today might be more than accolades. May these degrees serve as seeds. May they be seeds that are nourished by the soil of real-life experience, and may they be watered by the rain of struggle. May they be seeds that are fed by the sun of enlightenment, so that they blossom and make the world a more beautiful place.

May these degrees, these seeds, represent not only the accomplishment of knowledge but the continued quest to become.

Fill these candidates with a faith in what the future brings. May they have soundness of mind in a world that can’t seem to agree on what constitutes truth. May they have abundance of hope, no matter if their graduation was delayed due to disease and unease.

May the memories of this day not be overshadowed by a pandemic. May they unleash the power of the academic so that the seeds planted today spread like an epidemic.  

May these commencement exercises be exactly that, commencement exercises. May they be a commencement, a kickoff, a fresh start … not only the ending of a helpful chapter in life but the beginning of a hopeful chapter in life.

May they be commencement indeed. May they also be exercises, knowing that you are not finished with us yet. You are never finished with us yet.

God of both enlightenment and love, we pray (in the words of the Apostle Paul) that these candidates be transformed by the renewal of their minds. In that spirit, we offer these exercises to you.

And now with deep respect for all faiths that might be represented here, I pray in the name of my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, whom scripture calls the “Wisdom of God.”

Amen and amen.

 

Invocation for School Board

I'm delighted to have had the opportunity to offer the invocation at the Jacksonville City Schools Board of Education meeting recently. Some important decisions were discussed regarding entering the school year in the midst of this pandemic.

Here is my prayer. I am sharing it here in hopes that you will join me in praying it.

---

BOARD OF EDUCATION INVOCATION

Steve West – July 22, 2020

God of our wisdom’s years, God of our children’s tears, God who transforms us by the renewal of our minds,

Our hearts are grateful for the gift of this day and the opportunity to share in this way. We thank you for the grand history of the Jacksonville City School System, and for the opportunity to gather tonight because we are concerned about its future. Remind us, oh Lord, that regardless of what disagreements we have or what common ground we discover, we are all on the same team. We are here because we care.

We pray for the precious children and strapping young men and women served by our school system. We pray for their health and safety, and for their vitality and growth. We pray that during these uncertain times, when questions fly faster than answers, we might find a way through the night of this pandemic to the dawning of a better day. For both the safety and sanity of our children, walk us through this wilderness, Lord. Give us a wisdom beyond our natural abilities and a strength that comes from you.

We pray for our teachers and staff, that they might have the courage to make the right decisions for the greater good, and the stamina to lead during strange and uncomfortable times. Fill them with insight as they make the difficult decisions of each day. Give them a peace that passes all understanding to guard their hearts and minds. Help them be graceful and patient with themselves as they manage the multiple expectations of the present situation.

We pray for our community, that they might come around this school system with both patience and perseverance, understanding that none of us have a crystal ball and all of us are doing our best to navigate unchartered waters due to COVID-19. 

We offer this school year to you, oh God, as a humble offering, and commit our lives to strengthening character in our community one child, one youth at a time.

Bless the schools in this system with security along with safety. Bring sanity along with all the sanitizing. Bring a sense of connection along with all the social distancing. Help us be intuitive leaders when forced to use all these new and necessary procedures.

In short, be with us, oh God. Free us for joyful obedience to the task before us, and shape our minds and hearts tonight.

And now, with respect for the many faiths that might be represented in this gathering here, I offer this prayer in the name of my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen

Technology and Tough Times

Here is my mid-week devotional for July 21, 2020.

We are using the technology of our time to share the gospel in tough times ... and it’s not the first time. My Grandpa West did it during the Spanish Flu epidemic.

A Word for Jacksonville First United Methodist Church

Jax First UMC has a new YouTube Channel! Join us there for livestreaming on Sundays at 9:00 am. Or you can catch it afterward on YouTube or Facebook! Subscribe at:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxsqwHW4D7Ln9Li4ipO2QOg?fbclid=IwAR1DlO-NkqUHo4POUYuvzYlCQ4p75_iHYrTLpIYzj5yCeYC-jI3hBmb85j4

Today was a really good day. I feel like one of the early American Methodist preachers, who preached and visited during the week from house to house. It doesn't feel sad because of COVID-19. It feels exciting, like we are "back to the basics" of what it means to be the church.

Because of Stacie's brainstorm on how Sandy and I could meet the children of our church during these weird times of pandemic, we joined her this morning for my very first "Popsicle Parade." We showed up with Stacie and her cooler of frozen treats, meeting the first set of families with kids in our children's program and visiting at their doorstep or driveway. And yes, one of the popsicles tasted really good when it started getting warm outside.

It was a delightful morning, and I can't wait to meet the rest of our families with kids. Watch for the Popsicle Parade coming to your neighborhood!

Starting out in a new ministry setting is strange due to COVID, and yet I'm realizing how wonderful it will be. After we finish parading with popsicles over the next few days, I plan to make the rounds to visit our homebound members (socially distanced, with masks, and on the porch steps or through the glass door ... whatever is safe). We will also jump into our "Socially Distanced Socials with Steve and Sandy" in neighborhoods or out under the big tree by the Garden of Eatin.'

This afternoon, I heard some news from the congregation I just came from. Their new pastor's wife tested positive for COVID-19, and they've had to shut down and go back to online-only worship for a few weeks. I'm sad for them, but I feel truly blessed. I'm also aware that we simply have to watch and pray, and be flexible along the way.

So, let's enjoy the strange and wonderful adventure of figuring out the next few weeks and months together. I met with program staff and then trustees yesterday to begin laying out plans to communicate to you about reopening things one step at a time, after meeting with the leaders of Thrive last week to put together a timeline for rebooting. Then today our governor announced an ordinance that requires masks in most public situations, so it all feels like aiming for a moving target. But the God we serve is the rock, the firm foundation of our unwavering faith. We will publish our plans in the next few days so you know what to expect, but they are indeed flexible plans and I personally appreciate everyone's patience.

Thanks for such a warm welcome into the continuing adventure of trusting in the Lord with all your heart, and leaning not on your own understanding. In all our ways, let's submit to God, and he will make our paths straight. (Proverbs 3:5-6)

Wisdom for Difficult Times

This is my recent podcast on biblical wisdom for difficult times. In it, I reflect on Ecclesiastes 9:

“Go, eat your bread with enjoyment, and drink your wine with a merry heart ... Enjoy life with the wife whom you love, all the days of your vain life that are given you under the sun ... Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might.”

Here it is:

https://www.podbean.com/eu/pb-qsvay-dec431

Salvation is Created

Most of you know we will be moving in a few weeks to serve Christ in Jacksonville, Alabama with a new church family. What you may not know is that marching band is big part of who I am (being first chair trombone at Grissom High School shaped me in powerful ways). So I have always known the JSU Marching Southerners.

I ran across this brief, socially distanced rendition of “Salvation is Created” by Tschesnokoff by the JSU band. It brought tears to my eyes, not only because of memories of playing it at Grissom, but because I am touched that they would go to the trouble in honor of the JSU staff and administration during these pandemic times.

The piece is powerful (and perfect for this). It was the last religious work the composer wrote before the communist party in Russia required him to write only secular music. As if boldly answering this suppression, the words are simple. The translation is “Salvation is created, in the midst of the earth, O God.”

I’m inspired. God is saving us in the midst of this earthly crisis. Do what you can to keep the spirit alive. Follow requested protocols with a good attitude for the sake of others. Maintain a zest for life, hold on and trust God, and be a good neighbor. Don’t give in to negativity. No matter what the earth faces, salvation is created. Amen and amen.

Making Worship Youth-Friendly

I recently ran across the first article I had published. It has never been available online, so I thought I'd share it. It is about Millennial youth and written in 1995, so you can decide what applies and what doesn't!

It was entitled "Making Worship Youth-Friendly," and I wrote it when I was on staff at Vestavia Hills UMC as Associate Pastor and Minister of Youth and Worship.

I still believe much of what I have written here, though I would definitely say things differently now.

As she left the sanctuary after the Youth Sunday service, she asked me, "is there going to be preaching at the next service? I haven't 'been to church' yet!" This was the most creative Youth Sunday service we'd ever had; but for her, it wasn't "church." On the other hand, passing out parts to read on Youth Sunday doesn't feel like "church" either.

Sunday worship in the average congregation is "R-rated"; it is for adults only. As pastors charged with leading the worship of the Christian community, how can we make worship more "youth-friendly" without compromising the integrity of the liturgical tradition?

Why Change?

Worship is where memory meets practice. The memory of grace through history, celebrated through sacred stories, symbols, and acts, meets our everyday fears. hopes, experiences, and dreams. In worship, God meets us and we meet God. So renewal in worship must happen precisely because of its purpose, which is bringing the gospel to bear on modern experience.

We tend to see youth as basically nontraditional and bored with anything that looks or sounds "old." Sometimes, in an attempt to appeal to a new generation, we try to replace traditional liturgy with something "new."

Boredom with the old and fascination with the new is not the way to make worship youth-friendly. First, it departs from the power of the commonality and familiarity of the liturgy. In a world where youth are exposed to myriad images, ideas, conflicts, and choices, worship is a "sanctuary" for adolescents. It is a place of comfort and familiarity, where they can come home. Second, the attempt to give up on traditional liturgy is based on an inaccurate assessment of the needs of today's youth.

The emerging generation of Millennials (those born after 1982, some of whom are now entering their teens) are more "civic oriented" than their immediate predecessors. In practical terms, this means that they will value optimism, cooperation, community, structure, and tradition. Efforts to form a liturgy that assumes that youth are cynical about tradition are outdated.

I am not surprised to find Millennials described as neo-traditional. More and more, I have found that youth have a loving relationship with tradition. They simply want to be a part of making it. To make worship more meaningful for a new generation of youth, we must go deep into our past and discover where it meets with our experience in the present. We can do this in at least three ways:

Take a New Look

In our quest for innovation, we must remember that our own tradition is our best resource for change. Millennial youth will find greater value in the central structures of worship, such as creeds, psalms, the sacraments, and traditional forms of prayer. However, we need to find new ways to revisit these elements creatively, as if exploring them for the first time. It is important for youth to experience a balanced diet of the new and the old in hymns, music, prayers, and other acts of worship as they connect their lives with our common memory of God's work in the world.

Plan Experiential Worship

Today's youth receive and process most of their information in fast-moving visual and audio images. It is no surprise, then, that Millennial youth are described as activity- and experience-oriented. Our youth will help us rediscover that when we worship, we are doing something, and we are doing it together.

Responsive singing, reading, and praying will be more and more meaningful for our young people. We will need to explore or re-explore forms of communication such as drama, dance, television, congregational movement, and electronic art in worship as these provide opportunities for experiential participation. Our sermons will need to be planned knowing that youth respond better to meaningful images than to formulated doctrinal statements (so do adults, for that matter).

Be Youth-Inclusive

If the trends are correct, youth will increasingly want to move from the periphery to the center of involvement in the worship life of congregations. It is no secret that youth learn more through involvement than through any other form of education. They need to be included at all levels of planning and organizing. Youth choirs, when available, need to participate regularly in Sunday worship. Youth leaders need to be called on to assist younger choirs. Sacred dance and visual art groups are other creative opportunities for involvement. Youth also enjoy instrumental music and may be able to contribute in that arena. Serving as lay liturgists or ushers is another important option for youth. We must also be careful as leaders of worship to make sure our language is intentionally inclusive (for example, youth are not just "our future," they are part of the present congregation).

Worship is, by definition, both expressive of who we are and formative for spiritual growth. So all worship planning must keep our diversity in mind as we discover the needs of the youth among us. The practice of old traditions and the development of new traditions, along with experiential involvement by youth in the worship life of the congregation, are a must for "youth-friendly" worship.

Originally published in Circuit Rider: For United Methodist Clergy from The United Methodist Publishing House in March 1995.

My Prayer of Hope for Today

I feel the grief deep in my soul tonight. 50,000 Americans are now deceased from COVID-19 (and tomorrow it will pass 200,000 world-wide).

Gracious Lord, we have sung since we were children that you’ve got the whole world in your hands. So hold it gently, Lord. Gaze upon it lovingly. Pour out a wave of healing on it in your mercy. Inspire your children upon it to be diligent in our practice of distancing, trusting that it saves lives. Teach those you have created in your image to trust, to persevere, and to remember what’s truly most important instead of bickering about things that aren’t. Call us to times of silence and patience and understanding. Heal and bless this ball of earth you hold in your hands, Lord. We yearn for restoration in you.

Amen and amen.

Finding Easter perspective in these strange times

This my column which appeared on the front page of The Arab Tribune on Thursday, April 9, 2020 during the Coronavirus pandemic.

These are strange times.

Just like almost everyone else, we have closed the church office, and all of us are working at home. I’m spending way more time on the phone and much less time in person. I’m about to completely wear out my house shoes.

For the first time I can remember, my phone starts feeling warm on my ear every day. I became an amateur aficionado of Zoom and got over my distaste and discomfort with selfie videos. Somebody has to record the sermon for online worship, and I might as well let other people stay home, right?

My son came back from Germany a few months early and self-quarantined in the teardrop camper parked in my garage. My daughter has been nursing in all-COVID units, and today she feels sick, so she is getting her second test since the first one came back negative. A member of my church got the Coronavirus after a heart procedure but, thank God, she is recovering and off the respirator. I can’t go see her, so phone calls will have to do. Every day I pray for those who take ill and for those who are on the front lines, for people whose lives are disrupted and for those who find themselves looking for a job.

All this brings me to the weirdest Holy Week we’ve ever known. The White House issued a statement warning that “one of the toughest weeks is ahead,” and this happens to be the week of all weeks.

I grew up in the Church and have been a pastor for over 30 years. It’s going to be strange not gathering in the building on Easter (or Maundy Thursday and Good Friday, for that matter). My congregation won’t be “in” church, though we’ll definitely be “at” church. Thank God we can worship online.

No matter how bizarre Holy Week is this year, in a way it’s a “tough” week every year because it is the week of the suffering, death, and resurrection of Jesus. But like my pastor friend says when giving his two word summary of the mystifying book of Revelation, “God wins.” And that keeps it all in perspective.

My wife and I were talking this morning over coffee, and I told her I’d been asked to write a column for Easter. Off the top of her head, she said there are four different perspectives we have on this journey. There’s the steering wheel, the windshield, the road ahead, and the horizon. She’s pretty intuitive, so I went with that.

The “steering wheel perspective” is about what’s right in front of you. You have to get food and medical supplies, as well as that extra roll of coveted toilet paper. You have to find what you need for a functioning household or get someone you love to the doctor. You download Zoom so your kids can go to school and spend time with them so they don’t go stir crazy. Sometimes your knuckles turn white holding onto the steering wheel, so it’s important to try and relax. But my wife makes me wipe my steering wheel with a napkin soaked in alcohol. It’s not always easy to keep focused on what’s right in front of you, but it’s all you’ve got in our hands. That’s “steering wheel” perspective.

The “windshield perspective” is how you perceive the larger world around you. How do you keep your windshield clean so you can see what do do next? You can’t keep it disinfected, but you have to clean off the coat of yellow pollen. It’s important to think about others on the road, not just what’s right in front of you. How do you get exercise without endangering anyone? Are you willing to wear a cloth mask? I have been disturbed by high-profile pastors who held public worship, defying the orders of government and the strong recommendations of health officials. For me, that’s not seeing the forest for the trees. My church has gone to online worship and we are finding new ways to be in community. Simply put, it’s the right thing to do. It’s not easy, but with a little creativity we can figure out how to do it together. That’s “windshield” perspective.

The “road ahead” perspective is to begin to see where all this is going and how you are going to get there. Most of us aren’t there yet, but after surprise after surprise has unrolled during the last few weeks, at some point you need to move from reacting to the latest stats to a long-term vision. Humanity is resilient and our country is strong, so there will be a way through. We’ve made it through through times before, but if you are going to look back on history and see this is as one of our finest hours (like Churchill famously said of England in World War II), it has to do with the direction we take in all this, not just what’s in right front of you. That’s “road ahead” perspective.

The “horizon” perspective is where Easter comes in. There is a bigger picture that lies at the end of the road and illuminates it along the way. Yes, you must deal with what’s right in front of you, operate with high regard for others, and find direction during tumultuous times. But this week is not just a “tough week ahead of us.” It’s a replay of the toughest and greatest week of all time.

Our faith reminds us that no matter what, our lives belong to God. Through the passion, death, and resurrection of Christ, we are given power over death and destruction. Easter is not just about bunnies, eggs, and springtime.

One of the serendipitous blessings of these strange times is that I get to hear friends preach online, and as a pastor friend in Ghana said this week, every healing, blessing, and deliverance you are seeking from God is imbedded in the Paschal Mystery ... in the suffering, death, and resurrection of Christ. That’s “horizon” perspective.

So keep your chin up. Look beyond the steering wheel, beyond the windshield, and even beyond the road ahead of you. There is a horizon up ahead.

Steve West is a husband, father, minister, musician, and writer who pastors Arab First United Methodist Church. His blog, “Musings of a Musical Preacher,” is at www.stevewestsmusings.blogspot.com.

Palm Sunday Online!

This is the "Palm Sunday Online" worship experience of Arab First UMC on April 5, 2020, during the coronavirus pandemic.

Participants were invited in advance to place palm or greenery arrangements on their doors and send in pictures, as well as have palms for their kids to wave during children's time in the service. Children had received a delivery from the church on their front porch the day before with special Holy Week toys, books, and activities. During Holy Week, they will be invited to bedtime stories each night on Facebook Live.

Included is a sermon on TRUST during uncertain times.

There is a three-minute countdown at the beginning and you may want to fast forward through that.

Are you having to improvise?

During these strange times when we are only able to worship and fellowship online due to the Coronavirus pandemic, I am sharing devotionals every Tuesday morning on Facebook Live and YouTube. This is one way we are staying connected as people of faith for mutual encouragement.

Here is one of my Tuesday morning devotionals. I reflect on how we are all IMPROVISING. I am encouraged by a story in the book of Acts when Peter and John improvised.

Why Jesus Wept

This is the sermon segment that was a part of the online worship experience of Arab First UMC on March 29, 2020, during the coronavirus pandemic.

The building may not have been open, but the church is alive!

The sermon explores how these two words, "Jesus wept," speak volumes ... especially right now.

Praying through Music

This is my recent podcast on "Praying Through Music." I created for the "Pray Together" podcast series put together by members of the North Alabama Conference of the United Methodist Church.

In it, I suggest one who sings "prays twice." See if you agree:

https://prayingtogether.podbean.com/e/praying-through-music/

Why I'm Not Leaving the UMC

This blog post went viral and got 37,000 hits in the first month, plus it was picked up by Al.com and UMNews.

A few weeks ago, hundreds of North Alabama Methodists that consider themselves traditional, orthodox, and conservative met at Clearbranch UMC to talk about splitting from the United Methodist Church. I have had good interactions with the pastors who organized the meeting. They are my colleagues. They are part of the Wesleyan Covenant Association, an organization of 1,500 churches nation-wide and about 60 clergy here in North Alabama planning to launch a new denomination a few months from now, once the General Conference in May allows for their gracious exit.

I respect their convictions. But I won’t be joining them. Here’s why.

1. I made a promise. My Dad is a retired pastor, and he and I agree neither of us will leave the UMC (until recently, it was beyond my imagination that any of us would consider it). It would dishonor our family history, but there's something even more important at stake. I feel it would disregard the vows I made at ordination. I promised I would be faithful to the UMC and uphold its discipline. I have done so even if others haven't, and I am only responsible for my own vows. I follow the Discipline of the UMC even when I get heat for it, gently insisting that all people may participate fully in the ministries, sacraments, and programs of the church (yes, that’s in there). I would not perform a same sex marriage, but I’m passionate about inclusiveness in the church. For me, it’s the way of Jesus but it's also about the vows I took. Speaking of vows, I feel leaving the UMC would be hypocritical when for over 30 years, I have welcomed members into God's Church by asking them to take a vow to be loyal to the UMC and support it.

2. This has evolved past social issues to schism. I am a centrist and have varied opinions on issues. The UMC is not perfect, but diversity of thought is one reason I love it. Wesley taught Christianity was essentially about love for God and neighbor, growing through the means of grace, and staying connected even when we "agree to disagree" (yes, he coined that phrase). We have made it through divisive issues such as slavery, voting rights, temperance, civil rights, and ordaining women. It is the most evenly widespread denomination in the United States, so there will always be cultural issues. But this is a moment where I must decide whether to stay at the table and work it out or not, and to me, that’s the very definition of Church. There is no plan on the table that involves telling pastors they have to perform weddings they’re not comfortable with, telling local churches they have to do something inappropriate for their context, or telling conferences that they can’t set standards for ministry. I respect that others may leave the UMC because of their convictions, but I am staying precisely because of mine. Wesley said that separating "from a body of living Christians with whom we were before united is a grievous breach of the law of love" and hence it "is only when our love grows cold that we can consider separation."

3. There is too much to be lost. The UMC is not perfect, but it's my home. In a romanticized view of starting a new Methodist denomination, one can forget there are so many positive things to be lost by leaving. Together we have created UMCOR, the Upper Room, the Walk to Emmaus, the Academy for Spiritual Formation, Africa University, and all sorts of regional treasures like Sumatanga and the Children’s Home. In America, we have started more colleges and universities than any other faith group, and we charter more Scouts than any other denomination. No Church is perfect, but there is much to be lost by leaving. I respect those who can't live with differing practices across the country, but our DNA is connectional, not congregational. Small churches will be the biggest losers if they suddenly have responsibility to recruit their pastor (this is in the proposed Discipline of the new denomination). Promises are being made, of course, but I believe that the DNA of a new denomination that forms over cultural disagreements will end up splitting again over the next one. I honor their decision, and perhaps we will all be able to move forward more freely with bringing people to Christ. But I can't be a part of leaving.

4. I believe in the authority of the Bible. The debate is incorrectly framed as being about Biblical authority when it is really about culture wars. I hold the Bible in high authority under the lordship of Christ. It was inspired by the Holy Spirit, written by human hands, and codified by holy councils. God was in all of it. Wesley didn’t teach fundamentalist ideas such as inerrancy and infallibility. Instead, he taught the importance of interpreting it faithfully through tradition, reason, and experience. He said in our Articles of Religion that the Bible contains everything necessary for salvation, but he didn’t say it spells out everything. How do I interpret the Bible over complex issues like acceptance of LGBTQ Christians? The reason we call it the Word of God is because it reveals Christ, who the Bible calls the Word. So I read the Bible through the lens of Christ, who fulfills the law and confounds the Pharisees. I don’t worship the Bible. I worship Jesus, so to make sense of the Bible, I read it through the person of Christ. He loved every broken person he encountered. The only people he criticized were the Pharisees who had lost sight of love because of religious rules based on their tight interpretation of scripture. The Bible says God is love, and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God, so I believe it.

5. I am traditional and orthodox. The schism is being planned over a set of social issues that are neither discussed in the gospels nor addressed in the ancient creeds. So it is odd for people of only one viewpoint to exclusively claim the terms “traditional” and “orthodox.” There are indeed moral issues addressed in scripture we must grapple with. But our Wesleyan tradition is, once again, to interpret scripture through tradition, reason, and experience. I believe in the virgin birth, the resurrection, the humanity and divinity of Christ, the Trinity, and the things addressed in orthodoxy. I also follow the tradition of Wesley, who loved to use the saying “In essentials unity, in non-essentials liberty, in all things charity.” Jesus didn’t even mention the issues that divide us, but there’s something else that he most definitely did talk about - our unity, for that’s what Jesus prayed for in John 17. I have friends that say they are not leaving the Church; the Church has left them. I get that, but I honestly find it to be an echo of southern secessionism. The UMC agrees on what’s essential, and I’m going to stay at the table and work out what’s secondary.

6. I follow Jesus. I keep coming back to the way Jesus treated the woman at the well. He offered her living water, then after indicating he knew of her past, he took her seriously in discussing the religious issues on her mind. I have noticed what he did NOT say. He gently pointed out that she was committing adultery (that one’s in the ten commandments), but he didn’t say “oh, now I take back what I said about living water.” Christ’s offer was still good, and then they had a fascinating discussion about faith. So I choose to accept people for who they are and invite them to God’s table for relationship with Christ. God handles the rest.

7. I believe in grace. Do our churches rebuke people who are divorced and remarried, not allowing them to serve in ministry? I’m not saying we should hold remarried people in judgment, not at all. I’m saying that if we offer grace in one situation addressed in scripture and not in another, it's clearly not about Biblical authority but about culture wars. I can't be a part of a new movement that insists LGBTQ people can't be Christians. I know too many that are.

8. I believe in the Church. We are the body of Christ, and I don't have all answers about the future, but leaving the table is out of the question. Our divided culture needs a witness to love that transcends our differences, not giving in to the prevalent “us vs. them” and “either/or” mentality. The biggest criticism Jesus got was that he “ate with sinners.” Who am I to decide that I can’t be in communion with someone I don’t agree with? The only people Jesus didn’t tolerate were the religious elites who were intolerant. I’m not going to be one of them.

That’s why I’ll stay UMC. I agree with Pinson UMC pastor Joe DeWitte who said “The UMC continues to discover that our church is big enough (because our God is big enough) to include people who disagree on matters that are not creedal."

Here I stand, I can do no other.

Letter from the Bishop during the Civil Rights Movement

I have a gift from the family of the late Rev. Talmadge Clayton that has now taken up permanent residence in my study.

It was written by Kenneth Goodson, the resident bishop of the North Alabama Conference of the Methodist Church. I did have the fortune of meeting him at a dear friend's wedding before he died, but this letter comes from a time before my time. It's a letter expressing support for voting rights of African Americans during a time when it was quite controversial in Alabama. I include the postal stamp in the display case because it reminds me that this was mailed to the members of the Annual Conference the very month I was born, April of 1965. For those of you with a keen sense of history, you may know that this was just a few weeks after the March from Selma to Montgomery by those who believed in the constitutional right to vote, in defiance of segregationist repression.

I will keep this on the wall in my study and read it from time to time. It gives me hope that the church always has, and always will, endure trying times for the sake of the truth of the gospel and the purity of love. In many ways we have come a long way, and yet history repeats itself and we have a long way to go. We are on the road to perfection, as John Wesley would say. Notice that I keep his bust close by.