Reflection for Kathleen's Day of Remembrance

"I am so happy to be back at this church," said Pastor Kathleen Ross, her voice quivering with emotion, "I can hardly hold back the tears." These words were spoken at Walteria United Methodist Church this Saturday afternoon three years after Kathleen's death at a special "Day of Remembrance" service. Around 50 people gathered for this special occasion, and many were moved to tears (I know I was) when they saw Kathleen's image projected above the pulpit and heard an audio recording of her spiritual journey--a sermon she gave 25 years ago at Orange United Methodist Church. (See http://laquaker.blogspot.com/2010/03/spiritual-journey-of-kathleen-ross.html).

I decided to have this three-year memorial in part because it is a Greek orthodox tradition, and in part because this seemed like the right time to honor her memory and scatter her ashes. For the past three years, her ashes have been in an urn in my office. They needed to return to the earth from which they came so that Kathleen's spirit can soar free, and so I can move on with my new life and my new wife.

My new wife Jill was very understanding and was a huge help with this commemoration. She and I baked bread together for communion. It took us three tries because we had trouble with the yeast and the bread wouldn't rise, but we finally produced a beautiful and yummy loaf of white bread flavored with herbs from the garden. Kathleen's Greek orthodox cousin Karen said this was because of the trinity: everything spiritual has to happen in threes!  Jill also baked cookies for the reception afterwards.

During the service we sang some of Kathleen's favorite hymns, such as "Hymn of Promise" and "Let There Be Peace on Earth." Jill read Kathleen's favorite scripture passage, Roman's 8: 34-39:

"I am convinced that neither death nor life nor angels nor principalities nor things present nor things to come nor power nor height nor depth nor any other created thing will be able to separate us form the love of God, which is in Jesus Christ our Lord."

There was also a time of sharing in which those who knew Kathleen had a chance to share memories. I shared a reflection which is included here.

After the service and fellowship, Jill and I went down to nearby Riviera beach and walked down to the end of the cove where there are few people and many rocks. It was a gorgeous day, with the wind blowing briskly and the sky vibrantly blue and wind surfers skimming across the waves. When we finally arrived at the rocks,  I kneeled down, opened the urn and carefully scattered the ashes as Jill watched, her eyes brimming with tears. Soon the waves began to wash the ashes away and we both had a good cry. It was hard, but good, to share this experience together as a newly married couple.

I am grateful to Jill for appreciating Kathleen, and understanding why she continues to be important in my life. And  know that Katheen would be well pleased that I have chosen Jill to be my new wife and spiritual partner. Jill is an amazing woman, one I am glad I am going to spend the rest of my life getting to know and love.

************ 

    I am thrilled to be here with my friends at Walteria UMC. As Kathleen made abundantly clear in her moving spiritual journey, she loved the Methodist church, and so do I. Kathleen loved Walteria United Methodist Church, and so do I. She would be thrilled to learn that this church is thriving: its fledgling children's center is growing, its vacation bible school is flourishing, and its hotmeal program continues to be a place where God’s beloved community gathers each month, and where guests are treated like kings and queens.

    Kathleen would be pleased that this church continues to have a deep and ongoing commitment to the poor and to children—those for whom Christ felt a special love.

     I know that Kathleen would also be pleased that a special fund has been established in her name at Walteria United Methodist Church. Contributions to this fund will be used to help the homeless and the new Children's Center. Kathleen would be very happy to learn that this school is sharing with children the good news about God's love.

    When Jesus’ disciples tried to keep him from being distracted by a group of parents with their noisy kids, Jesus rebuked them, saying: “Let the kids come to me. You can’t enter the Kingdom of God unless you are like these kids.”

    I want to begin by sharing a story about Kathleen and children that she found embarrassing. As you know, Kathleen was always involved in starting children’s programs, and she was especially interested in reaching out to children who were unchurched. At the preschool at Del Rosa UMC, Kathleen started a chapel for these unchurched kids. She told Bible stories and taught them songs, with lots of gestures, and the kids loved it. Kathleen had a real gift with children.

    Well, one day Kathleen decided to put up pictures of Jesus in the room where the kids met for chapel. When some of the kids arrived early, one of them asked their teacher, “Who is that man on the wall?” The teacher replied, “That’s Jesus.” The child responded with the kind of absolute certitude that only children can muster: “No, it isn’t.” The teacher was taken aback. “What do you mean it isn’t Jesus?” The child replied, “It doesn’t look anything like Pastor Kathleen!”

    Kathleen was embarrassed by this story. But for me, this story embodies a profound truth. Anyone who lovingly shares the message of Christ with children becomes Christ for that child. In fact, any of us who shares the message of Christ with anyone becomes Christ for that person. The child understood this deep truth, and I have never forgotten it.

     Kathleen loved the poor and homeless, and was always doing what she could to help them. Through her example I came to realize how important it is that we have friends who are poor, and to do what we can to help our friends.

       Kathleen also loved people of different ethnicities, and that’s one of the most appealing things about the Methodist church: it is truly a rainbow community, with people of all races and nationalities. Kathleen loved to support and nurture start-up ethnic congregations, like the Korean congregation here at Walteria.

      Kathleen was a contemplative. At one point in her life, she wanted to become a nun, until she found out the Methodists don’t have nuns! I’m sure glad she wasn’t born a Catholic! Kathleen was also interested in healing prayer. During our cancer journey, we both went to a class on something called “laughter yoga.” As you may know, laughter helps the immune system, as Norman Cousins helped to prove. Kathleen tried laughter yoga to help with her cancer treatment. It didn't cure the disease but it sure made us feel a lot better. I'd like to share with you a video of Kathleen practicing laughter yoga with her guru.

See Guru Elmo http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lQMAf_5zzWI&feature=plcp

   I don't know who has the better laugh, Elmo or Kathleen!

    Kathleen was my teacher as well as my wife. She taught me how to live like a Christian, how to love like a Christian, and how to face life-threatening illness and death like a Christian. And after her death, she continues to provide me with guidance and inspiration.

There have been many times when I have felt her presence, but one stands out as particularly memorable. It occurred about six weeks after Kathleen passed. I had to go to the DMV to have the title changed on her car. Because I dislike crowds, I decided to go to the DMV early so I could be the first in line when it opened. When I entered the DMV, it was utterly quiet. Then I heard a woman singing. She was a large black woman and she was singing “This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it.”

     She was the woman who was supposed to wait on me.

     As she sang, I joined in and the two of us belted out this hymn with lots of gusto. It was as if we were in church.

     When we finished, she and I smiled at each other. Then I spoke:

     “You need to know something about why I am here. My wife passed away six weeks ago and I am here with her death certificate so I can have the title changed on her car. She died of cancer and this is the song we sang together every morning when we got up.”

      This black lady and I looked at each other and we knew that this was a holy moment and that Kathleen was present. This woman shared with me about her struggles to be a Christian at the DMV and how hard it was sometimes to be loving when people are mean and difficult. And I shared with her some of my struggles. It was a precious moment when we connected at a deep spiritual level.

     Kathleen's death changed my life in many positive ways. I became much more open to the pain and suffering of others. People with problems came to me, and I could listen with more empathy. I visited the sick as Kathleen used to do. And I became the clerk of Pastoral Care in my Quaker meeting.

     I came to understand better the meaning and the power of Jesus' resurrection. Like me, Jesus' disciples were very slow learners. They didn't get the power of Jesus' message of love until he died. It was only when he was no longer physically present that they become empowered with the Holy Spirit and were able to practice what Jesus preached and exemplified.

    Since Kathleen went home to God, I have learned that Love never dies, and that those we love can live on in our hearts, if we let them, and empower us to live more fully and deeply the life that God calls us to live. A life of love and service. A truly abundant life.

     When Kathleen was diagnosed with cancer, she didn't despair. She did everything she could to be cured, but she also prepared to die like a Christian. She even prepared for her memorial service. She choose the hymns, the order of worship, and even the pastor she wanted to lead the service.

She also made plans for me in case she wasn't around. She knew that I needed a wife, and thanks to her, I was a well-trained husband, so she told a close friend of hers that if she passed, it was okay for me to get remarried. A year after Kathleen died, this friend told me what Kathleen had said about remarrying. I am grateful for Kathleen's thoughtfulness. It made it a lot easier for me to move on with my life.

      I am deeply grateful to God for my new wife Jill who embodies many of the qualities I admired in Kathleen. Jill and I met at the Palm Sunday Peace Parade in Pasadena; and like Kathleen, Jill is passionate about peace and justice. Jill loves Jesus and expressed that love by loving the poor and children. Jill started a tutoring program for low-income kids in Pasadena, and works tirelessly to help provide affordable housing for those in need. I believe that God brought Jill and me together to continue the kind of ministry that Kathleen and I practiced in our marriage. Kathleen provided the chalice and Jill and I made the bread for the communion. And Jill also made the cookies you’ll be enjoying afterwards. This is the day the Lord has made. Let us remember Kathleen by rejoicing and being glad in it.

The Secret of Happiness, According to the Apostle Paul

I shared this "secret" with guests at the hotmeal program at Walteria United Methodist Church this past Saturday. Every second Saturday around 60-80 people--mostly homeless, or very low income folk--show up for food and fellowship at this small, but big-hearted church. I have been part of this fellowship for many years and have come to see this motley, good-hearted group as my spiritual family. When Jesus compares the Kingdom of God to a party in which everyone is invited, but the rich are too busy to attend, I always think of Walteria's hotmeal feast--where the homeless gather along with middle class volunteers of all ages and religious backgrounds, and there is an outpouring of love and friendship along with good homemade cooking. This past Saturday I shared this reflection just prior to the "Day of Remembrance" service for Kathleen, my wife of blessed memory. Many of those present knew and loved Kathleen, who was the pastor of Walteria UMC for six years and ardently supported the hotmeal program. After I spoke, several people came up to me and said how moved they were. One man, who was drunk and something of a comic, told my wife Jill: "I was almost moved." That was quite a compliment, coming from this sardonic gentleman!


Today I’d like to share with you the secret of happiness, according to the Apostle Paul.  Paul considered himself a happy man, even though he decided to give up his privileged status as a Roman citizen and a Jewish religious leader to live like Jesus and like the poor and homeless. Paul willingly and even gladly suffered many hardships as he traveled about the Roman empire sharing the Gospel of Christ. He was beaten up, jailed, and even tortured. But he was always content. He told himself, and us, to rejoice in the Lord at all times and in all situations. He knew that God gives us what we need, and so this is what he said in his letter to the Philippians (not to be confused with the Filipinos: as a preacher did at the World Conference of Friends, where people of different nations gathered).

"Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. ⁷ Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus."

Paul goes on to say:

"I have learned how to be content with whatever I have. ¹² I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little. ¹³ For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength."

I love the idea of being content with whatever we are given—whether it’s a full stomach or an empty one.  But I know it isn’t easy. I often found myself tempted to complain about this or that—my computer isn’t working, or my electrical bill is too high. But then I think: At least, I have a computer and I have electricity.

I’m glad that all of you here full stomachs today, but we never know about tomorrow, do we? I had a rabbi friend who was always happy and I wondered about why, so I asked him. He paused and thought for  a moment and then said, “I guess I’m always content because I never know what I want until God gives us to me.”

My teacher and friend Gene Hoffman used to say: “Treat everything that happened to you as if it’s something you prayed for.”

Wow, treat everything that happens as if it’s something you prayed for. That’s pretty easy to do when you are sitting with friends having a nice meal. But what about when you’re hungry, when you’re sick?

Many of you know that my wife Kathleen died of cancer three years ago. Soon after she got the diagnosis of cancer, she had a dream in which she heard the phrase: “Treat everything that happens to you as if it’s something you prayed for.”

That was a hard saying when you have cancer! Who in their right mind would pray for cancer!

Yet we would pray to be closer to God, closer to our loved ones and to our friends. We would pray to know what love is really all about. And sometimes that’s what happens to you when you or your loved one has a life-threatening illness. You learn how precious life is, and what a miracle life and friendship are, and you feel God’s presence as you have never felt it before. This doesn’t happen to everyone. You have to be open to what God has given you, and to see the blessing in the hard times as well as the good times.

Kathleen and I went on a cancer journey that wasn’t easy, or painless, but it taught us many important lessons. Among other things, we learned the meaning of true love. When Kathleen had beautiful long hair, I loved her. When she had chemo and her hair fell out, I loved her even more. I have always appreciated friendship, but when I went on a cancer journey with Kathleen, I came to realize how incredibly important friendship is. To paraphrase the Beatles, I couldn’t have gotten by without the help of my friends. And I couldn’t have gotten by without my faith in God. It was God who showed me the blessing that comes with having one’s heart broken. After all, Jesus told us:

“Blessed are those who mourn. Blessed are the poor. Blessed are the meek, the merciful, those who hunger and thirst after justice.”

The have-nots are blessed? It sounds crazy. Yet turn those beatitudes around and you’ll see Jesus had it right. Blessed are those who never mourn. If you never mourn, that means you’ve never really loved. Is that how you want to live your life? Blessed are the rich, the arrogant, the merciless and those who hunger for injustice.  I don’t think so. Anyone who lives a life of riches without mercy or justice cannot be truly happy.

Paul had it right. He had been privileged and he had been poor, and it was all good, as long as he was following in the footsteps of Jesus, as long as he was true to the Lord. I don’t just believe Paul’s words, I know them to be true from experience. And that’s why I can rejoice today as I remember my dear wife Kathleen of blessed memory and the song we used to sing every day during our cancer journey.

“This is the day the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it.”

Let’s sing this song together. [And sing it we did, with great gusto.]

Thank you, and remember that you are all invited to a special service honoring Kathleen at 1:00 PM. This service commemorates the third year since she passed away.  In the Greek orthodox traditions, widows and widowers make bread and have communion and then share their bread with the world. My new wife Jill and I made bread for this special occasion. We also have established a Kathleen Ross Fund to help the homeless and to support the Children’s Center here at Walteria UMC. I hope you’ll join us on this special occasion.

A War and Peace Report from Africa

[This is a reflection on my experience in Africa that I will give at Interfaith Communities United for Justice and Peace on June 6. Your feedback would be much appreciated.]

When we think of Africa, we are apt to think of war and violence, and for good reason: during the past twenty or so years, the death toll on the African continent has been horrendous. Around 5 million people were killed in the Congo during its various civil wars since 1990. Two million were slaughtered in Sudan’s civil wars. Over 200,000 were killed in Liberia and another 200,000 in Sierra Leone. Over a million people have perished through genocide in Darfu, Rwanda, Burundi and elsewhere. Most of those murdered have been women and children, and countless women have been raped and worse, infected with HIV. Hundreds of thousands more have been tortured and mutilated. Countlesss millions have lost their homes, their spouses, and their children and are deeply traumatized. Because of war and violence, millions of Africans have become displaced persons, living in refugee camps. War is one of the major causes of homelessness and poverty in Africa, just as it is in the United States.

In addition to wars, thousands have been killed in mob violence or “lynchings.” This violence is the legacy of a colonial period in which millions of Africans were murdered, exploited, and enslaved by European powers. Africa is a deeply wounded continent in need of healing.¹

What is not widely known about Africa are the inspiring stories of its peacemakers. Nine Africans have received the Nobel Peace Prize since 1960. The first was Albert Luthuli who was elected president of the African National Congress (ANC), which at the time was an umbrella organization that led opposition to the white minority government in South Africa. Luthuli was awarded the 1960 Nobel Peace Prize his role in the nonviolent struggle against aparteid. He was not only the first African, he was also the first person from outside Europe and the Americas to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Since then, the Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded to Kofi Anan, UN General Secretary; Nelson Mandela and Frederick de Kerk of South Africa (1993); Anwar Sadat (1993); Desmond Tutu (1984); Mohammed El Baradei (2005), the UN weapons inspector; and Wangari Maathai, the Kenyan founder of the Green Belt movement, and a fearless advocate for democracy and women’s rights. In 2011 the Nobel Prize Committee decided that the Nobel Peace Prize should be divided in three equal parts between three African women: Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Leymah Gbowee and Tawakkul Karman “for their non-violent struggle for the safety of women and for women’s rights to full participation in peace-building work.” The Committee noted: “We cannot achieve democracy and lasting peace in the world unless women obtain the same opportunities as men to influence developments at all levels of society.”

Today I want to lift up those brave women and men in Africa who are working for peace and justice, many of whom are unsung heroes.

I’d like to begin by acknowledging the women of Liberia. I had never even heard their story until I saw the documentary “Pray the Devil Back to Hell.” This powerful film, which was produced by Walt Disney’s grand daughter, dramatically depicts the amazing work that the women of Liberia did to overcome the brutal dictator Charles Taylor and the equally vicious warlords who opposed him. Using the power of prayer and nonviolence in creative ways, Christian and Muslim women united and not only helped oust these war-crazed men, they also helped reintegrate into society the young boys who had become child soldiers and committed atrocities at their behest. Liberia can now boast that its leader, Ellen Sirleaf Johnson, is the first democratically elected woman president of an African country. And what a remarkable woman! Johnson is not only a Harvard-educated economist, she is also a United Methodist!

You've probably heard that the infamous Charles Taylor, the brutal dictator they ousted, was recently given a 50 year sentence by the International Court of Justice for his involvement in the Sierra Leone's blood diamond war. It's good news that the rule of law is prevailing over the rule of so-called Big Men.

When I went to Kenya for the World Conference of Friends last month, I had the opportunity to connect with heroes of peacemaking who have not received the acknowledgement they deserve. I should add that Kenya has the largest concentration of Quakers of any country in the world. There are over 140,000 Quakers in Kenya, far more than in all of North and South America combined!

When I was driven through Nairobi, I was shown some trees planted by Wangari Maathai, the Kenyan woman who won the Nobel Prize for her work as founder of the “Green Belt” movement. Although I didn’t meet her personally—she died of cancer a year ago —I felt her presence among the strong women leaders I met in Kenya, and in the beautiful trees I saw in Nairobi and elsewhere that testify to her work. I also read her memoir, aptly title “Unbowed,” and was deeply impressed by her keen intelligence and the courage she showed in the face of unbelievable odds. I'm sure she'd be pleased to learn that the new constitution of Kenya grants women more rights than ever before, including one third of the seats in the Parliament. This is cause for rejoicing! (See http://msmagazine.com/blog/blog/2010/08/10/resounding-yes-to-kenyas-new-constitution/)

I'd like to conclude this reflection by sharing briefly about what Quakers are doing in Kenya to promote peace. Prior to the World Conference of Friends I took part in a Quaker peace tour in Turbo, a city in western Kenya where a lot of violence took place after the election in 2007. There Kenyan Quakers have trained over 10,000 people in a program called “Alternatives to Violence.” This program teaches conflict resolution skills and has proven very effective when used in high schools and prisons here in the US. Kenyan Quakers are also teaching community organizing, transformative mediation, and trauma healing. Other Quakers are training to be observers during the upcoming election. During the previous election, Quakers were deeply involved in helping to calm things down after violence erupted. This time the Quakers are being proactive and hope to prevent violence before it gets out of hand. Let's pray these efforts are successful. (See http://www.fum.org/worldmissions/FUM%20News_FCPT_May2012.pdf)

I met two Kenyan religious leaders, Pastor Wilson and Imam Issa, who are models of interfaith peacemaking. They live in Turbo, a city of 200,000 inhabitants, where there are only 400 Muslims. When the post-election violence broke out five years ago, Muslim homes and stores were burned, and the Muslim community had to take refuge in the local mosque and police station. Wilson, the pastor of the local Quaker church, reached out to Imam Issa and invited Muslims to take part in an Interfaith Peace Task Force. “The Quakers were the only Christians who welcomed us,” explained Imam Issa. He was so grateful he took nonviolence training and is now teaching it to his people. He hopes to reach out to Muslim youth are most prone to violence.

These are baby steps towards peace, but they can make a big difference over time. As Fatma Reda once observed, “Peace is achieved one person at a time, through a series of friendship.”

The work that is going on in Kenya and other parts of Africa to end the cycles of violence could have far-reaching consequences. My hope is that just as India became a model of nonviolent resistance in the 1930s and 1940s, Africa could become a model for nonviolent social change in the 21^st century. The women of Libera and the Quakers of Kenya have shown us the way. Let's pray that the African peace movement grows, and let's do what we can to support it.

1 1983-2002: Sudanese civil war (2 million)
1988-2004: Somalia's civil war (550,000)
1989-: Liberian civil war (220,000)
1989-: Uganda vs Lord's Resistance Army (30,000)
1991-97: Congo's civil war (800,000)
1991-2000: Sierra Leone's civil war (200,000)
1993-97: Congo Brazzaville's civil war (100,000)
1993-2005: Burundi's civil war (200,000)
1994: Rwanda's civil war (900,000)
1998-: Congo/Zaire's war - Rwanda and Uganda vs Zimbabwe, Angola and Namibia (3.8 million)
1998-2000: Ethiopia-Eritrea war (75,000)
2002-: Cote d'Ivoire's civil war (1,000)
2003-09: Sudan vs JEM/Darfur (300,000)
2004-: Sudan vs SPLM & Eritrea (?)
2004-: Yemen vs Shiite Muslims (?)

Celebrating my birthday and the first anniversary of my marriage proposal to Jill

How quickly the year has flown by since Jill and I first met, had our whirlwind courtship, and then were married and honeymooned in Hawaii! This past week I celebrated my 63rd birthday, which also happens to be the day I proposed to Jill a year ago. We celebrated by going to the herb garden of the Getty Villa in Malibu, where I made my proposal, and reenacting this magic moment. Then we drove off to Paradise Cove for a romantic walk (and dance) by the beach. God is good, life is beautiful, and I am grateful!

Jill and I have had an amazingly busy, challenging and fulfilling year, as we set up house together, learned how to be a couple, traveled to the east coast, Germany as well as to conferences, and finished up Jill’s revised version of her book, Making Housing Happen: Faith-Based Affordable Homes.

I've just returned from a three-week trip to Kenya, where I attended the World Conference of Friends, an event that brought together 850 Quakers from around the world. At this historic gathering, which takes place every 25 years, I shared my book Quakers and the Interfaith Movement and made many new Friends. It was my first trip to Africa and I loved it. (Jill visited Kenya in 1988).

 In a mini pre-conference stint to western Kenya I learned more about Quaker peace-making efforts. Quakers are training Kenyans in Alternatives to Violence (AVP), community organizing, trauma healing, and transformative mediation—skills that will help them to resolve their conflicts nonviolently. Quakers are also training to serve as monitors during the next Kenyan election, hoping that they can help reduce tension and violence. (1,200 Kenyans were killed during the past election, and over 200,000 displaced.) I was pleased to learn that after the last cycle of violence in Turbo, a city of 200,000 residents, the Quaker Church was the only Christian group to reach out in friendship to Muslim neighbors whose homes and businesses had been destroyed. As a result, leaders in this tiny, beleaguered Muslim community are enthusiastically taking training in nonviolence. (One of the Muslim leaders told us “for Muslims, Jesus is the most beloved prophet.”)

 After the conference, I went on a Quaker-sponsored safari to Lake Nakuru (home of the pink flamingoes) and then to Amboseli (on the slopes of Mt. Kilimanjaro) where herds of elephants roam along with lions, giraffes, cheetahs, hippos, rhinos, impalas, baboons, etc. I visited a Maasai village, where I took part in a jumping contest (this white guy can't jump but I sure had fun trying), and then I stayed in the home of a Quaker family in Nairobi, where I felt as if I were part of the family. What a blessing it is to travel among Friends, sharing spiritual insights and witnessing to God’s grace and love!

 While I was away, Jill was busy going to conferences, continued recruiting churches to become host to homeless families for San Gabriel Valley Family Promise (sgvfp.org), connecting with friends and giving workshops. The day after I left for Kenya, Jill drove to Sacramento for Housing CA, a statewide affordable housing convention. This was both inspiring and sobering, as she was able to connect with people across the state determined to find ways to house our most vulnerable citizens despite funding cuts at every level. San Gabriel Valley Family Promise opened its doors in November 2011 and to date has graduated three homeless families who are now employed and living in housing that they can afford (one family has seven kids!). The contagious love these families receive from congregations plays a significant part in their rapid reentry jobs and housing. Jill had a blast reconnecting with many old and new friends sharing with them about married life. Her new friend Martha and our neighbor Kathy had a never to-be-forgotten evening on the town.

Several months ago, Martha had been scoping out our neighborhood for a documentary she was making. When she saw Jill in the yard, she stopped to and shared how much she loved our “Faith Park”—a drinking fountain, park bench and hammock for those passing by. When she mentioned that she and her husband had recently purchased a home around the corner through Pasadena’s affordable home program, Jill informed her of book on faith based affordable housing. Martha stayed up all night reading it and has now become an advocate. She and her husband attended a workshop that Jill did while I was in Kenya for the La Paz Conference sponsored by local churches, Fuller and APU. Two minutes before the workshop was to begin, Jill realized she had left the PowerPoint presentation at home! Martha’s grabbed Jill and held her tight and prayed and God answered! Despite Jill’s blunder it went abundantly well. One gal from a ministry in Orange County shared how the workshop made the whole conference worth her effort to come and gave clarity in her next steps to help house the chronically homeless.

In the past month, we have had two fundraisers for Family Promise. Martha designed a fabulous Master’s Pageant reenactment of the Lord’s Supper and two weeks later we had “Empty Bowls,” where we made $12,000! We gathered up 480 designer bowls donated from some famous local potters. Local restaurants filled the bowls with donated soup. At our host church in Sierra Madre, we sold the filled bowls for $25 and broke bread and enjoyed live music. Jill’s churches disbanded service that day become servers. The money helps to support the full time social worker who helps our homeless families find jobs and housing.

In the past month, 18 churches in the city of Alhambra, which has been inhospitable to allow churches to host homeless families, have now collaborated to seek to move the city to embrace this urgent need.

In addition to our ministry, we’ve enjoyed spending time with friends and family. In April Jill went to visit her mom, who had a big art show at her home in Shell Beach. We are looking forward to visiting her on Mother’s Day. She is amazing mom as well as a delightful artist for whom I am deeply grateful.

 

Happy Easter! A service of remembrance for Kathleen on Pentecost

Happy Easter! Christos anesti! Christ is risen! I have good news: there will be a service of remembrance for Kathleen on Sunday, May 27, at 4 PM at Walteria United Methodist Church. 3646 Newton Street, Torrance, CA
90505. http://www.gbgm-umc.org/walteria_umc/index.htm click here for a map. 

May 27 is also the feast of Pentecost, the “birthday of the church,” a holiday that Kathleen loved because she dearly loved the church. You are warmly invited to attend. This will be the third year since Kathleen died, and went home to God.

In the Orthodox tradition, in which I was baptized, it is customary to have a special memorial for a departed loved one on the third anniversary of their passing.

When Kathleen and I were in Thessalonica, following in the footsteps of the Apostle Paul with Bishop Mary Ann Swenson and a boat load of Christians, we saw Greek women leaving a church and giving passers-by pieces of bread. We were curious and asked what this was about.

“This is what Greek widows do three years after their husbands die,” a Greek man told us. “They bake bread and gather at the church for prayer and to console each other. And then they leave the church and share their bread with everybody.”

Sharing one’s bread, the bread of grief and comfort, with the world: what a fitting way to remember and honor a loved one, especially during this special time of Easter, when we recall the suffering and rejoice in the resurrection of the one who shared his bread and his life with the world.

The best way I can think of to “make bread” and honor Kathleen’s memory is to start a fund in her name at Walteria UMC—a small, but mighty church she loved dearly.

The fund will help the homeless, and also the children at a school that was recently started at Walteria. This school was something that Kathleen dreamed about, and that Pastor Diane has helped make a reality with the support of the congregation.

If you can’t make it to the memorial, but would like to honor Kathleen, please feel free to make a contribution to this fund and let Pastor Diane know whether you want your donation to help the school or the homeless or both.

Kathleen loved children, and she loved the homeless. I’m sure she would be pleased by the idea of this fund.

I also think Kathleen would be pleased that I am married to Jill Shook, a “Free” Methodist woman who also cares deeply about children and the homeless.

To honor Kathleen, I’d like to share words from a sermon called “Beyond Our Fears” that she gave at Walteria UMC on the second Sunday after Easter in 2006:

 

We are a resurrection people! We feel the power of the life of Jesus flowing through us whenever we care for each other and work on behalf of peace, justice and compassion.

When the young people were demonstrating on behalf of fair immigration laws, Jesus was alive.

When there was an outpouring of donations and volunteers after the Midwestern tornados, Jesus was alive.

When a Christian shares their faith story with someone who has lost their way, Jesus is alive.

We celebrate Christ’s life among us as we worship and offer daily prayers of thanksgiving and concern for others.

We want our children to know Jesus as their Good Shepherd, and grow up to be loving and strong in the world. We long for our church to be a light of hope in the midst of our community. And we want to stand for values of openness, inclusion and welcome in a world where more doors are being closed. And we want to be people who have strength to face what is genuinely fearful in life; we don't want to be manipulated by the fear mongers of our age. We want to be ready to face the challenge to eliminate poverty, hunger and war, because we know it threatens all God's children, here and around the world.

Like the role of the Shepherd, what we Christians are doing here is not at the center of society. Being a Christian, making a commitment to the life of the Spirit of Jesus Christ in an age of anxiety, is not an easy or glamorous job. We are making a courageous commitment by saying that we believe in faith, hope, and love, because that’s how we’re going to make the world a better and safer place to live, day by day.

Yes, Kathleen, we are a resurrection people. We carry on your work, and we do it with joy, knowing that we do not do it alone. You are with us, and Jesus is with us, and the Living God is with us, guiding, encouraging and helping us….


Since Kathleen loved children, I'd like to end with an image of a child that Jill and I encountered on Palm Sunday. This little girl was part of the Palm Sunday Peace Parade and carried a sign that warmed our hearts. It simply said: "No More War."

I know that Jesus and God are smiling.... Happy Easter from Jill and Anthony.....

Jill's book on faith-based affordable housing is finished!

After six months, Jill and I have finally finished revising Jill's amazing book on faith-based affordable housing models, and the manuscript has been sent to the printer. Alleluia!

This book was originally published in 2006 and features articles by a wide range of authors--mostly religious leaders and pastors--who have helped create affordable housing for thousands of low-income people. This is a story of Christianity-in-action that deserves to be more widely known. See http://makinghousinghappen.com/

The book is especially relevant and important today when a clueless Congress is slashing budgets for affordable housing despite increasing need. Because of deregulation that led to the foreclosure crisis and the housing bubble, millions of people are losing their homes, rents are skyrocketing, and homelessness is on the rise. Yet politicians are not even discussing, much less addressing, this growing problem!

The good news is we know that faith-based affordable housing works. In researching the revision of this book, we learned that the foreclosure rate for those in faith-based housing was less than one percent--far below the national average. This fact explodes the myth that low-income home buyers were at fault for taking out loans they couldn't afford. The real culprits were big predatory banks who didn't bother to screen applicants and give them good financial counseling. When churches followed old-fashioned, responsible banking practices, first-time home buyers did not lose their homes or their equity.

Major policy changes  are needed, as this book makes clear in a chapter called "Hopeful Trends and Calls for Change."

I am excited that this book is coming out this year and will help churches and faith-based groups to "make housing happen" for those in need. I hope our elected officials will also get the message.

I am proud to be married to a woman who cares passionately about housing justice and is making a difference here in Pasadena and around the country with this important book.

One last concern: we are thinking of changing the subtitle of this book because we have learned that "housing" has negative connotations and conjures up images of failed public housing projects. (Successful affordable housing tends to be mixed income and smaller scale; concentrating poverty in huge projects doesn't work.) Housing advocates are now using the word "homes" instead of "housing" and we would like to incorporate that word into the subtitle. Currently the subtitle is "Faith Based Affordable Housing Models."

These are up for consideration for a possible new subtitle:

• Faith-Based models of affordable homes.
• Models of Faith-Based Homes for all Income Levels.

Which do you prefer?

Abstract for  "Making Housing Happen":

The growing housing crisis cries out for solutions that work. As many as 3.5 million Americans experience homelessness each year, half of them women and children. One in four renters spend more than half their income on rent and utilities (more than 30 percent is considered unaffordable). With record foreclosures and 28 percent of homes “underwater,” middle‑ and low-income homeowners are suffering.

Many congregations want to address this daunting problem, yet feel powerless and uncertain about what to do. The good news is that churches are effectively addressing the housing crisis from Washington state to New York City—where an alliance of 60 churches has built 5,000 homes for low-income homeowners, with virtually no government funding or foreclosures.

This book offers workable solutions with true stories by those who have made housing happen. Each story features a different denomination, geographic area, and model: adaptive reuse, co-housing, cooperative housing, mixed- income, mixed-use, inclusionary zoning, second-units, community land trusts, sweat-equity and more. It also offers powerful theological thinking about housing.

Making Housing Happen is about vision and faith, relationships and persistence. Its remarkable stories, such as turning a prison into affordable housing, will inspire and challenge you to action.

Jill's bio:

Dr. Jill Shook, author and "catalyst," works with churches and community leaders to bring about housing justice. She earned degrees from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo (BA), Denver Seminary (MA) and Bakke Graduate School (D. Min. in Transformational Leadership), led work teams from Berkeley to Harvard for Food for the Hungry to developing countries, started a church-based tutoring program, taught at Azusa Pacific and Bakke Graduate School, published articles (Sojourners) and gives workshops locally and nationally.

Building a New Ark: Our Covenant with Nature

This week the children at our Quaker meeting were told the story of Noah's ark, and their response was telling (and very Quakerly):

"Why did God have to kill all the children?"

"Good question," was the response of Quaker adults who love good questions more than pat answers.

Why did God have to kill the innocent in order to punish the guilty?

I don't have an answer to that question--maybe I will someday, or maybe not--but the story of Noah is one that I grappled with many years ago when I was asked to give a sermon on Earth Day. What I came up with was an interpretation of this story that focuses on non-violence and on our need to care for the earth and all creation. I also discovered something that links care for animals with care for children:

Much closer to home, we are discovering that those who abuse animals are also likely to abuse or neglect their children. According to a recent report, the first case of child abuse to be prosecuted in the United States was brought to trial at the end of the nineteenth century through the efforts of the ASPCA. Today the animal abuse and child abuse agencies have started working together once again. They have discovered that neighbors are more likely to report animal abuse than child abuse. So when animal abuse officers go into home, they also look for signs of child abuse or neglect. As one ASPCA worker put it, "When I go into a home with animal faeces all over the floor, and the dog's food dish is covered with mold, and a child is crawling on the floor through all this unhealthy filth, I now must report the neglect of the child as well as of the animal."

We'd be wise to follow Noah's example and care for all critters, children as well as animals.

*****

The Bible (1966), John Huston's epic film version of the Book of Genesis, contains a fascinating glimpse of life inside Noah's ark. After Noah has followed God's directive and corralled thousands of species of animals into the ark, his skeptical family turns to him and says, "How are we going to feed all these animals?" Noah smiles, points to the cows and chickens, and replies, "No problem. We have plenty of eggs and milk." His wife laughs, "Tigers and lions drinking milk!" "Why not?" replies Noah, "They are really just big pussycats, aren't they?"

The scene is amusing and absurd on a literal level. But the more I observed the way that the Noah and his family dutifully tended to the needs of the animals, the more I was struck by the unique spiritual message of the Biblical story. In Graeco-Roman and Babylonian versions of the universal flood myth, the surviving human beings save only themselves. They have no moral or ethical responsibility to save other species; that is left up to the gods. However, in the Hebrew version, human beings are given the responsibility to preserve and protect all life. The Bible makes quite clear that the human race was threatened with destruction because of its violent tendencies. God tells Noah, "The loathsomeness of all mankind has become plain to me, for through them the earth is full of violence" (Genesis 6: 11). To atone for this sin of violence, human beings must build an ark and become caretakers and caregivers for endangered species.
Noah and his family survived because they faithfully executed God's plan to give human beings and animals a new chance to live together harmoniously. Noah's commitment and compassion restored God's faith in humanity. God therefore promised, "Never again will I curse the ground because of man, however evil his inclination may be from youth upward" (Genesis 8: 21). God told Noah that man will still have dominion over the natural world--"the fear and dread of you shall fall upon all wild animals on earth" (Genesis 9:2)--but man will also be held accountable for any unnecessary bloodshed, whether of animals or of human beings. The myth ends with God's creating the rainbow as a sign of the "everlasting covenant between myself and all that lives on earth" (Genesis 9:17).
The Jewish holy of holies is called "the ark of the covenant," which is sometimes interpreted to mean God's agreement with His chosen people. However, the covenant actually is much broader: it concerns the relationship between God and "all that lives on the earth." A key provision of this covenant is the responsibility of human beings to be stewards of nature.
Long before Buckminster Fuller talked of our planet as a spaceship, the Hebrews imagined all earthly creatures housed in a great boat, which is what the word "ark" actually means. What the story of Noah suggests is that all of us--human beings and animals--are "in the same boat." We sink or swim together. We are all answerable to the same Higher Power--the Creator of Life.

As sailors on this earth ship, we need to do what is in the best interest of all who are on board. According to the Bible, we also need to obey the commands of our captain, the Lord of the Universe.This is what the Hebrews meant when they spoke of a "covenant." To appreciate the Bible's environmental message, we need to look carefully at the three important provisions in this covenant.

1) God's covenant is based upon the belief that all life is sacred. God did not say, "Noah, I want you to do a cost-benefit analysis to determine which animals you feel are profitable, and which animals deserve to die." Instead, God said: "Save all the animals, and I will save you." In the Bible's view, all life deserves to be protected because it is God's creation. Jesus is therefore echoing a well-established Scriptural tradition when he says that God cares for the fall of a sparrow. By the same token, God may be said to care about the fate of the spotted owl, the snail darter, the Bay smelt, and other endangered species.

2) The business of human beings is not business, but serving God and respecting life. It was evident from Huston's film and from the Biblical story that everyone on the ark had a great deal of work to do. There can no problem of unemployment when you have to feed and care for all the species on earth! One may therefore infer from the story of Noah that the issue for God is not "jobs or the environment." The issue rather is, "How do we create attitudes and occupations that will help us to live harmoniously with our environment?"

The Buddhists call this kind of work "right livelihood," a way of life that helps us and others to be happy and to achieve enlightenment. Christians call spiritually enlightened work a vocation or calling. In any case, we need to make the Spirit, not employment, the guiding principle in our lives. Only then can we live in harmony and balance with all living creatures.

3) We need to be willing to risk doing seemingly silly or futile things to save the planet. Noah was not a practical man. He did not build a boat with an eye to making a profit. He is described as someone who "walked with God" and was willing to do what God commanded, even at the risk of seeming ridiculous to his neighbors and to his family. What could be more absurd than building a boat on dry land in the midst of a drought? If Noah were alive today, some people would call him an "eco-radical" or "environmental socialist" or even an "ozone man." Fear of seeming ridiculous sometimes prevents us from doing all we can to help preserve the environment. It sometimes seems futile or absurd to re-cycle newspapers, compost our garbage, or plant a tree when the whole planet is on the verge of ecological disaster. We should take heart from Noah's example, however, and do what God commands us to do to help preserve the natural world. We must be willing to say, with Noah, "Okay, God, if you want me to save all the species on this planet, I'll do it."

Today more than ever before in the history of the human race, it is crucial for us to reaffirm the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures. We need to identify with the non-human members of God's family. Furthermore, we need to take God's covenant with Noah one step further by applying the Golden Rule to our relationship with animals and plants.

In order to "do unto nature as you would like nature to do unto you," try to imagine how you would you feel if you were an endangered species. How would you feel if your food supply were cut off or drastically reduced? How would you feel if you had to abandon your home, the place where you and your family had lived for countless generations? How would you feel if your offspring were born deformed or dead?

These feelings are not too difficult to imagine since the problems which face animals are shared by far too many human beings on this planet. Hunger, homelessness, genetic damage, and a breakdown of family life have become all too common features in today's world. It is becoming increasingly clear that the fate of animals and the fate of human beings are inextricably linked.

In fact, the fate of animals may be compared to that of native peoples who were threatened with extinction after Columbus' "encounter" with the New World. The European invaders regarded animals and Native people in much the same way. Indians were either enslaved, slaughtered or compelled to live on reservations, just as many endangered species have been either exterminated or forced to live in parks and zoos. In these alien environments, animals often feel isolated, confused, and lonely. They fall prey to disease. They even lose their ability to function in the wild.

Many zoo keepers are becoming aware of this problem and are changing their attitudes and policies. Instead of preserving animals merely to satisfy human curiosity, many zoo keepers are now trying to breed endangered animal populations and restore them to the wild. Take, for instance, the wild tamarin monkeys of the Brazilian rainforest. When they became nearly extinct in the 1960's, zoo keepers decided to breed them in captivity and to release in the wild. But first, these civilized monkeys had to be taught basic survival skills.

National zoo primatologist Benjamin Beck assumed the role of master teacher in a tamarin "outward bound" program. The first class, in 1983, enrolled fifteen pupils--a group of tamarins from the National Zoo and four others....The pupils were, in effect, pampered city kids who needed to learn survival skills for a wholly different world. They had never searched for food, but had it presented--literally on a platter--on a regular daily schedule.... Here, then, were fifteen monkeys who did not comprehend the business of peeling a banana. (Jake Page, Smithsonian's New Zoo (1990), p. 33)

Captive breeding is obviously just a stop-gap measure. As Jan de Blie wrote in Meant to Be Wild (1991), a book about the struggle to save endangered species through captive breeding, this policy "provides no lasting solution to the problem of vanishing species, no means of stemming the environmental destruction that threatens to bleed the world of most of its natural diversity. It offers hope that someday human attitudes will change, political turmoils will cease, and wild landscapes will be restored; but it does not address the deep cultural and religious beliefs that encourage people to kill wildlife and destroy natural areas" (p. 7). In other words, there is only so much that science can do. We must also change our religious and cultural attitudes.

The story of Noah offers a model to help us re-think our attitudes towards wild life. Noah did not set out to dominate nature; he did not capture animals for sport; he did not study them to accumulate scientific knowledge or to discover how they can benefit human beings. He followed a simple directive: "Save all the animals, and I will save you." This spiritual principle deserves prayerful reflection. It suggests that if we save animals for their sake, and not just for our own selfish purposes, we will benefit all life on this planet, including our own, in ways that we cannot fully imagine.

The Bible shows us that human beings and the natural world are spiritually and physically linked. The Hebrew prophets frequently remind us that the moral behavior of human beings has a significant impact on the natural world. According to the prophets, if we mistreat widows and orphans, if we become greedy and selfish, if we worship material things, if we forget about social justice, the natural world becomes desolate. On the other hand, if we treat the poor and oppressed with justice, if we live simply and "walk with God," the natural world flourishes and we experience what Quakers call "the Peaceable Kingdom."

Recent events confirm this profound spiritual insight. As we look back at the legacy of Viet Nam and the Gulf War, we can see that not only people, but also entire eco-systems are damaged or destroyed by modern-day weapons of mass destruction.

Much closer to home, we are discovering that those who abuse animals are also likely to abuse or neglect their children. According to a recent report, the first case of child abuse to be prosecuted in the United States was brought to trial at the end of the nineteenth century through the efforts of the ASPCA. Today the animal abuse and child abuse agencies have started working together once again. They have discovered that neighbors are more likely to report animal abuse than child abuse. So when animal abuse officers go into home, they also look for signs of child abuse or neglect. As one ASPCA worker put it, "When I go into a home with animal faeces all over the floor, and the dog's food dish is covered with mold, and a child is crawling on the floor through all this unhealthy filth, I now must report the neglect of the child as well as of the animal."

Domestic violence, animal abuse, war and pollution: they are all related problems. To solve our ecological crisis, we must also work to eliminate the violence pervading our lives. To end violence, we must be concerned about the rights of animals and plants as well as of humans. Social justice, environmental well-being and spiritual redemption are inextricably interconnected. This is what the Hebrews meant by shalom, or peace. We therefore must work together to build a new global ark whose main business will be to preserve and protect all life. As we build this new ark, let us remember the rainbow---that beautiful and precious symbol of God's "everlasting covenant with all that lives on earth"