"The 1619 Project" a Reaction

  The 1619 Project

Nikole Hannah-Jones

It has been said, “History is written by the winners”.  Having studied and taught  World and US History, Political Science, and International Affairs for longer than I care to admit, I would edit that to read, History is written, edited, taught, mythologized and internalized by the winners. It becomes our national imaginaries, how we see ourselves and, therefore, very hard to change or maybe even question. This book is evidence, however, that the losers also have a history that is carried with them, a way that they too see themselves and their country. I believe that when the winners ignore the history of others, they do so to their own detriment. For good or bad the losers’ history percolates beneath the surface. It may emerge in bits or break through in the established culture, sometimes subtly and unnoticed - sometimes aggressively challenging the status quo. 

The marginalized have always “written” their history. In the past it had been easier for the winners  to control it, either burying it or absorbing useful bits into the popular imaginary. In our technological era, though, most anyone can be heard. The history of the marginalized can be shared globally before it is buried, reworked or conveniently absorbed. It sets there for all to see as an alternative account of what has transpired, as a contrast to the history written by the winners.

What do we do with this history of the marginalized, the history that may conflict with the myth we have created? It can no longer be ignored. Do we,

-Label it a lie?

-Call it a distortion of the truth?

-Acknowledge it but suggest that it will be too problematic to teach it or create public

  policy to positively address it?

-Treat it with as much validity as the history written by the winners and attempt to deal

  positively with it?

I used to teach my students that everyone has a national imaginary about their country. It has developed from the history they were taught and experienced as they grew and gained greater experiences. It drives individuals’ attitudes and level of public participation whether that be in civic matters, ideas about culture, community involvement, global attitudes, attitudes about the natural world, or economic perspectives., possibly even in religion. It is not infrequent that we encounter others who face a dissonance between their personal imaginary, history and that created by winners. How we respond to those who have another history to tell will, I think, play a large role in how successfully we increase or decrease the well-being of ourselves, and our fellow citizens, both in our own country and in the world.

A Righteous Branch

 Jeremiah 23: 1-6

A Reading for Christ the King Sunday

“A righteous branch … will deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land …The Lord is our righteousness.”

Jeremiah preaches against the people of Israel and Judah in images of human connections; unfaithful spouses, unfaithful children, cheating neighbors, as well as worship of personal idols. We can get lost in the weeds of specific (pet) sins that we find particularly bad, but I don’t think that is the point here. Jeremiah reveals a “core” problem which is reflected in the way people were treating not just God, but each other; how they (we) treated, or ignored, the marginalized and how they (we) tried to take advantage of each other for personal gain. 

The issue is self-interest, me first living. The specific sin is different for each person, but the core problem is the same; tension between God and tension among ourselves created by our self-interest (sin). The problems this kind of living causes are clear throughout the Bible. 

Into this, Jeremiah is moved to proclaim hope. Hope that one will emerge who will be righteous (God-interested and other-interested) One who will not deal with the people (us) in a self-interested way; rather, whose core will be God-interested and other-interested. The righteousness of that one will become our righteousness. A new Adam appears; Christ is our righteousness, our righteous branch.

This Sunday is Christ the King Sunday. We celebrate that we have one who would transform us to people who are God-interested, people who live justice for others and for God’s creation. 

Aside:

I have come to use the term self-interest as synonymous with the term sin because today society doesn’t really think in terms of “sin”, but self-interest is something we all get. It is the bedrock (the idol?) of modern culture; the self-made man, the individual, personal responsibly, personal rights… It is the language of our economics, our politics, our personal relationships. But, self-interest as one’s only or primary guide can lead to all sorts of things, some not so positive. It seemed only logical, then, to continue that motif when talking about our relationship to God, or maybe God’s will for a relationship with us. I have often been heard to comment that Jesus boiled down God’s law to; Love God - Love others. Thus, you will hear me refer to God-interest - Other-interest. I started thinking about this several years ago as a result of a discussion in my Issues in Economics class. We were discussing the concept of self-interest in economics, and a young lady asked the question, “ Would you say that the original sin (Adam and Eve) was self-interest?” Wow, from the mouths of children. I have found this a useful way to look at my life and with which to understand Scripture. I hope you can get some use out of it as well. 

Some thoughts on Justice

 

What is Justice?

The devotion I read this morning was based on Amos 5 which has some pretty strong accusations against a culture that is both successful and religious, a culture which sounds a bit like ours with its flourishing economy, recreational life-style and nods to public religiosity. Lately, I have been playing with the idea of God’s justice and what it means to be righteous, so several passages in this and surrounding chapters jumped out at me.

    “Ah, you that turn justice to wormwood, and bring righteousness to the ground!”

     “...who afflict the righteous, take bribes and push aside the needy in the gate” 

    “Seek good and not evil,...establish justice in the gate.”

    “...,I despise your festivals,...the offerings of well-being of your fatted animals I will not look upon.”

    “But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.” 

    “But you have turned justice into poison and the fruit of righteousness into wormwood”

It seems to me that we often expect (want?) God to mete out justice on the “unrighteous”, assuming that we are the righteous and others are the ones who deserve God’s justice, the ones who have sinned in ways that we find to be particularly egregious. But, as I read scripture, I find two ways of seeing God’s justice. One is a reference to judgement, but the other and possibly the one that pops up more is something quite different. In this second way of seeing justice, God’s people (and creation?) get what is needed, protection, shelter, necessitates of life, and it appears that God expects those who have been blessed with greater abundance to carry it out- make sure that it happens. Is this, then, a glimpse of what it means to be righteous, to be just; applying our blessings to the welfare of others, not taking advantage of the weak, rather helping the weak, caring about the marginalized?

In Amos, the writer charges the people with turning this idea of justice on its head. Those who had power seem to have considered it justice to take advantage of those not as well off, and to mock those who would act righteously. Are they presenting their wealth and power as evidence of their righteousness? (And possibly the others lack of it as their just desert?) The writer declares that God doesn’t want these “offerings of well-being” Rather, God wants people to live justly with each other as their worship - their sacrifice.

“Let justice roll down like water and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.”

Shout Above the Din, Matthew 20:29-34

 Matthew 20: 29-34

Shouting Above the Din

This is the account of Jesus healing the two blind men who were along the roadside near Jericho. Our initial attention is drawn to the miracle or to the faith for healing displayed by the two men. Something else, or in addition, drew my attention this morning. It must have been fairly loud for the men to have had to shout out to Jesus, and then they were possibly drowned out by the stern warning of others who wanted Jesus’ attention. They shouted even louder though in order to be able to "see". Jesus responded to them and then they acted as well. They followed him.

We too are surrounded by shouting, and often we are among those adding to the din, but are our shouts calls to Jesus to enable us to “see”? Do we, as the blind men did, shout over the other concerns and worries to call on Jesus to give us sight, or understanding? When I am granted that sight, do I respond and recommit to God’s way as these men did, or do I respond by thinking, well, that’s just too hard for me, or that’s not the way I want life to be? 

Most of us are not physically blind, but we all at times are spiritually blind, and that blindness always has its beginnings in ourselves. Do we really want to “see”?  we willing to shout over the din and the warnings of others to be quiet in order to see what God’s way is really about? And, when we do persist and hear the answer to our shouts, are we ready to daily follow Jesus?

Luther advises us to daily remember out baptism, to drown the old Adam so that each day a new man comes forth. Sometimes the cares, worries, and anger surrounding us mean that we have to shout above the din or our own making as those blind men did to see how that new man can walk (follow) in Jesus way. 

Psalm 146

 Psalm 146

Praise God who loves the marginalized; one of which is me!

The psalm appointed for this coming Sunday is very straight forward. 

Praise God who:

-executes justice for the oppressed

-gives food to the hungry

-sets prisoners free

-opens the eyes of the blind

-lifts those who are bowed down

-loves the righteous

-watches over strangers

-upholds the widow and the orphan

I have been blessed in such a way that I haven’t found myself in many of the above categories, at least not physically. But from a spiritual aspect, I find myself often in a number of them. God deals with us on both levels. 

In Matthew 22, Jesus said that the law of God boils down to two things; love God + love others. When God loves others, this psalm shows us what that looks like. What does it look like when I (you) love the other, the marginalized, the hard to love? 

All In, Additional Thoughts

 All In, 2

Mark12: 41-44

“…they contributed out of their abundance.”

“…she put in everything she had” 

I have been thinking about stewardship lately as I am preparing some thoughts to share at church about stewardship and education. When I came across this text for this morning’s devotion, I couldn’t help but see some implications. Earlier this year I ran across this account in Luke so I’m drawing on some of what I wrote at that time. When we think about stewardship, we think about giving, especially in terms of money, but also in terms of time and talent, It is so easy to sit down, with all good intentions, and look at our budgets, our calendars, take talent and interest inventories…. However, I think we all know that it begins with our hearts. Some might call it a mind set, but I think that it’s deeper than that. I also think that many, at least this is true for me, assume that since we are looking at ways to improve our stewardship, then our hearts are “in the right place”. But, what about stewardship of my heart, of my relationship to God and God’s community? How can I develop that more completely.

And here we have the example of the poor widow; she had developed stewardship of her heart of her very being. Notice in the account that Jesus doesn’t necessarily look down on those who had given larger sums of money. Rather, he points out a difference in motivation, maybe self-perception of where one stands in that individual’s relationship with God and God’s community. And it begs the question, with how much of my self-interest am I willing to trust God? Jesus said, “love God; love others” intimating that the rest will take care of itself. 

In my earlier thoughts on this account, I had written that the poor widow was “all in” in her understanding, her perception of her relationship with God. Her contribution was not an act of religious obligation she had planned and was now fulfilling. It was a natural extension of who she was, a natural response to being in a relationship. There were no boxes to tick off for her; tithed, check; went to church so many times, check; participated in x number of service events, check…

So, try beginning to think about stewardship with this question. With how much of my self-interest am I ready to trust God? The answer to that could leave us feeling rather low. But the good news is that God in Christ meets us, self-interest and all, where we are, and God’s Spirit guides us to growth. Jesus did not look down on the contributions of the more wealthy, yet he directed us to the attitude of the poor widow that prompted her contribution. Let’s strive to be “all in” in our relationship with God and God’s community and the rest will flow. 

Two Gems

 Today, I was reminded of two gems that my church has given me, actually to all.  One, is the use of the Lectionary, coordinated weekly and daily readings from Scripture, and two, Dr. Luther's teachings on baptism. Boring stuff right? But not necessarily, and how do they go together? 

The devotion I read this morning was based on Luke 18:18-39 chosen to go with last Sunday's assigned lesson from Luke 14. The title is "Riches Reimagined" The recent Sunday lessons have shown us a Sabbath attitude, honoring God by honoring, loving our neighbor, as how our lives look when we are committed to Christ - to the community of God. Then in this past Sunday's lesson Jesus talked about the cost of being committed. You might think he would talk about how others will treat his committed followers, but here he says something quite different. He said I should give up my self-interest, the attitude of possessing; owning/controlling people, things, ideas... But he also talked about benefits and I like the way the writer of this devotion put it,

"He wasn't promising worldly riches, but the boundless wealth of true community in the kingdom of God. Finding that depth of community can entirely rewrite our priorities."

But, daily, I sin and fall back into my self-interests; me, me, me... Enter Dr. Luther who encourages us to daily call on the grace of our baptism. "... that (daily) the Old Adam... be drowned and die ... and that a new man should daily emerge and arise..."

I don't know that I would have stumbled on these readings as a continued thought without the help of the lectionary, and when I acknowledge that I daily fall into living for self, I have Dr. Luther's reminder to daily call on God's grace in my baptism.