Theology

“This Christmas season finds us a rather bewildered human race. We have neither peace within nor peace without. Everywhere paralyzing fears harrow people by day and haunt them by night. Our world is sick with war; everywhere we turn we see its ominous possibilities. And yet, my friends, the Christmas hope for peace and goodwill toward all men can no longer be dismissed as a kind of pious dream of some utopian. If we don’t have goodwill toward men in this world, we will destroy ourselves by the misuse of our own instruments and our own power….

Advent: Middle English, borrowed from Medieval Latin adventus, going back to Latin, "arrival, appearance"

Refugee claimants (people who have fled their countries of origin to make a refugee claim, and do not yet have refugee status) have been arriving in Canada, via plane, boat, train, long before the topic of border crossings was making headlines.

“Difficulty lies not so much in developing new ideas; as in escaping old ones.” – John Maynard Keynes

There are many things in life as a person of color and faith that present great challenges. I vividly remember going to do some temporary work for a very prestigious company in downtown Chicago. Not long after starting there I was hired for a permanent position, with promises of promotion and other wonderful things that the higher-ups offer new talent. I was eager to gain new employment and willing to do what I must to aid my 3-person team.

I am the pastor of a church that has a lot of people involved in each Sunday morning service. We have a Bible reader, a liturgist, a music leader, an elder, a deacon, and a congregational prayer pray-er each and every single Sunday.

It’s quite the cacophony of voices behind the pulpit each week.

It’s quite the team. It’s quite the cacophony of voices behind the pulpit each week, and I love it. Each Sunday morning before the service we meet to make sure everyone is present and ready. And they always are. Because it’s a good team.

We so rarely know where we really are. We drive around in cars, spend our days under fluorescent lights in artificially re-circulated air, staring at screens and moving so quickly from task to task the actual location where all this happens hardly matters. We move from the city of our birth to another, and then another, and another, following education, jobs, and opportunities.

My family of believers and I are privileged to live, pray, dance, and eat among those the kingdom belongs to. As a family we seek to recognize Jesus in our neighbourhood called Traynor-Vanier where we live in apartments that have been neglected, among neighbours who have faced abuse and injustice. We share homes, food, and a courtyard with beautiful people who live month-to-month relying on God for provision.

My wife and I were ready for our new adventure as a future clergy couple in New Jersey. In 1993, Sharon and I, along with our Persian cat Kuzak, stuffed our yellow Pontiac Sunbird to begin our ministry at Northside Chapel Community Christian Reformed Church in Paterson, New Jersey. My co-pastor, the late Rev. Stan Vander Klay, found a spacious apartment for us in neighboring Clifton.

We offer you this prayer and litany to support your congregations as they work to welcome the stranger, in word and in deed. 

Prayer

Leader: Triune God, in Jesus, you entered our human world -- vulnerable, oppressed, and seeking refuge. You dwell among those who have no place to rest, who are fleeing persecution, who rely on the charity of others.

Congregation: God of mercy, hear our prayer.

The primary strategy white Christians have taken over the past 45 years to reduce abortions has been to make abortion illegal. This goal can only be accomplished by getting conservative justices on the Supreme Court, which can only happen if conservative (usually Republican) presidents are elected. With Justice Kennedy stepping down this year, we have a moment like this once again.

In Hong Kong, two things are very valuable. One is space. There isn’t much of it. Hong Kong has one of the highest population densities on the planet. The Mong Kok neighborhood where we have been staying in Hong Kong has approximately 130,000 people per square kilometre. That is a lot of people.