Author: Bruce Ray

Putting Xenophilia into Practice

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Here are some suggestions for making sure you’re not hitting the “snooze button.” There are videos to inspire, stories that stir up feelings–including righteous anger–and actions to engage. Let these daily disciplines help you “get woke” and “live woke’ for migrants, asylum seekers and refugees.

  • PRAY DAILY that the Church in the US will wake up and defend the aliens and strangers among us. And pray for God’s protection of those who are living in fear of deportation or loss of their protected status. 
  • “GET WOKE” by reading the New York Times article (excerpt below) about Artemis Ghasemzadeh, a Christian woman from Iran that came to the US to seek asylum because of religious persecution.  
  • ACT to protect those who are vulnerable by calling your elected officials. Find the phone numbers for your elected at https://5calls.org/  Tell them to restore funding for refugee resettlement, unfreeze asylum applications and vote against increased funding for ICE.
  • FAST from at least one purchase this week and give your savings to help refugees that have already arrived in the US, and are still in need of support. Organizations like “REFUGEE ONE” a Chicago organization that resettles refugees and provides rental assistance for 6 months so families can get settled and find work. Refugee One, along with World Relief, Catholic Charities and others, lost their federal funding thanks to an Executive Order. They need private funds to make sure these families don’t lose their housing and support. Learn more about the plight of refugees and the organizations that want to help HERE.
  • WATCH this inspiring video about a couple of 90+ year old nuns in Chicago who have been advocating for immigrant rights for decades. You’re never too old to ‘get woke,’
  • PROTEST or sign petitions that oppose Executive Orders that target migrants, asylum seekers and refugees.  

This Christian Convert Fled Iran, and Ran Into Trump’s Deportation Policy

By Farnaz Fassihi and Hamed Aleaziz
Published in the New York Times on 2/23/25 & Updated 2/26/25

She first entered a church on a visit to Turkey. She remembers feeling a sense of calm so overpowering that she purchased a small Bible. She wrapped it in her clothes and smuggled it back to her hometown, Isfahan, in central Iran.
Artemis Ghasemzadeh’s conversion from Islam to Christianity evolved over a few years starting in 2019, through an Iranian network of underground churches and secret online classes. Three years ago, she was baptized and, in her words, “reborn.”

Converting was colossally risky. While Christians born into the faith are free to practice, Iran’s Shariah laws state that abandoning Islam for another religion is considered blasphemy, punishable by death. Some members of her Bible-study group were arrested. So in December, Ms. Ghasemzadeh set out for the United States.

“I wanted to live freely, to live without fear, to live without someone wanting to kill me,” Ms. Ghasemzadeh, 27, said in a series of phone interviews.

Her journey has landed her in a migrant detention camp on the outskirts of the Darién jungle in Panama. She and nine other Iranian Christian converts, three of them children, are among dozens detained at the Saint Vincente camp. Their fate remains uncertain.

People fleeing violent religious persecution are normally eligible for asylum. But they have been caught in the Trump administration’s deportation push as the president tries to fulfill a campaign pledge to close the southern border.
“We don’t deserve this. We are in a place where we feel helpless,” Ms. Ghasemzadeh said. “I am waiting for our voices to be heard, for someone to help us.”

Panama, which is separately under pressure from the Trump administration over control of the Panama Canal, has become a landing place for migrants who otherwise would have languished in detention in the United States — or potentially been released.

Panamanian officials have said that United Nations agencies are helping the migrants return to their countries or seek asylum in other nations, including Panama.

Read the full article HERE.

Waking Up to Xenophobia

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On January 20, 2025, Donald Trump was sworn into office of President for the second time. Following the inaguration, he went to Capital One Arena, where several thousand fans cheered as he signed 28 Executive Orders before several thousand fans. Almost 1/3 of those Order (9) specifically targeted the Southern border and the entry of migrants, refugees and asylum seekers into the US. . The 13th Executive Order he signed was titled, “Protecting the American People Against Invasion.”

For years, Donald Trump has relentlessly attacked migrants, claiming that other countries are sending “the worst of the worst” across the southern border—rapists, murderers, drug dealers and criminals released from prisons—to take American jobs and destroy our country. Migrants, refugees and asylum seekers are to be feared and must be stopped from entering the US before they take over. Since January 20, the Executive Orders have continued to be issued, militarizing the southern border, ending “birther” citizenship, freezing asylum applications, stripping Temporary Protected Status from Venezuelans and Haitians, and even making English the nation’s official language.

This is what xenophobia – the fear of strangers – looks like, and xenophobia is antithetical to our God and our Christian faith.

The Hebrew Scriptures include a classification of people known as “aliens” that resided in a place that was not their original home. The words “stranger” and “foreigner” are used synonymously or in conjunction with the word “alien.”. Aliens are outsiders. Aliens are people who are different. Aliens are “other.” In our context, we use another word to describe this group. Aliens are immigrants. And aliens are, by virtue of their “otherness”, a vulnerable people—at risk of oppression and abuse.

So what do the Scriptures say about them and how are they to be treated? While God recognizes “difference” between alien and native born, God does not does not advocate exclusion. In fact, God advocates special attention that leads to full inclusion and acceptance.

  • In Deuteronomy 10:17-19, God is identified as the “Defender of the alien.” God loves the stranger, providing food and clothing for them.
  • In Leviticus 19:34, God’s people are told to love the alien and stranger as themselves.
  • In Isaiah 56:6-7, God envisions the day that foreigners will enjoy full participation in the life of the community—including religious life.

And the Gospels—Matthew’s gospel in particular—flesh out God’s identification with the alien. Matthew presents Jesus, whom he has identified as “Emmanuel: God with us”, as an alien. In two instances in Jesus’ formative years, Jesus is the immigrant. First, he becomes the refugee in Egypt when Joseph makes a nighttime escape from Bethlehem and the coming genocide of Herod. Then, Jesus becomes the immigrant in Galilee after Joseph—out of fear for his family’s safety—settles in the backwater town of Nazareth—a place that is hardly on the map. (See Matthew 2:13 ff)

In both cases, Jesus would have experienced of being the outsider. In Egypt, Jesus would have experienced the “otherness” of language, religion and culture. He would have been an ethnic, cultural, and religious minority. And his returned from Egypt only to settle in Nazareth did not enhance his résumé. Nathanael expressed the prevailing distain for outsider Nazoreans when he asked Philip, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Galileans were considered lower class. They were identifiable by their accent. (Remember Peter warming himself outside the trial of Jesus and being identified by the servant girl as “one of them.”) They were rubes, suspicious characters, not to be fully trusted. Sound familiar?

So why is the “alien” status of Jesus important? Why does Matthew go to great pains to show us “refugee Jesus” and “immigrant Jesus” right at the start of his gospel?

Matthew is committed to presenting Jesus as one who understands the immigrant experience and identifies himself with the alien and stranger. He ministers to Samaritans and Canaanites and Roman centurions. Scandalously, he welcomes tax collectors and sinners at his dinner table.. He has a tax collector (Roman collaborator?) and a radical Zealot (terrorist?) among his closest disciples. People who would have been considered aliens, strangers and foreigners were not feared or rejected by Jesus. Jesus practiced xenophilia – love of strangers, and he expected his followers to do the same.

In his parable of the sheep and the goats in Matthew 25, Jesus makes it clear that the rejection of the stranger is a rejection of Jesus. Conversely, when we welcome them and treat them with dignity and inclusion, we welcome Jesus,

I look at Jesus’s treatment of the alien and stranger and say, “Jesus was ‘woke.'” He understood the mistreatment. He witnessed the discrimination. He spoke the truth no one wanted to hear (see Luke 4:25-30), and he defended those who were vulnerable to attack. Jesus expects us to be ‘woke’ too.

Coming Up: Practicing Xenophilia Daily, David the Asylum Seeker, and Welcoming Resources .

Living Woke

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Yesterday (March 9), was the First Sunday of Lent and the first in our “Living Woke” Lenten Compact series. A lot of people are triggered by that word, “WOKE.” For many, being “woke” is a terrible thing–even antithetical to Christian faith. A March 2023 USA TODAY/Ipsos poll found that roughly 39% of those surveyed believed the word meant “to be overly politically correct and police others’ words.” Many people associate “wokeness” with left-wing politics, DEI hiring policies, and boys playing in girls’ sports. For them, “wokeism” is a threat to our way of life and they wish it would go away. It seems their wish has been granted. Last week, in his address to Congress, Donald Trump announced an end of “the tyranny of so-called Diversity, Equity and Inclusion policies” adding, “Our country will be woke no longer.” Republicans in Congress responded with a standing ovation and shouts of approval.

So, is “Wokeness” really a bad thing that is going to destroy America? I say, “getting woke” isn’t just a good thing; it’s a necessary thing. For me, it isn’t so much a political ideology as an ongoing spiritual practice that is founded on Scripture. Yes, you heard me right. “Woke” is Biblical. In both the Prophets and the Apostles, we are urged multiple times to “Wake Up!” Or “Stay Awake!” Or “Be Alert!” In the letter to the Church at Sardis (Rev. 3:1-2), the resurrected Lord Jesus Christ says,

“I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead. Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have found your deeds unfinished in the sight of my God.”

This is a call to the Church that is asleep–the equivalent of being dead. It is unaware of its own spiritual condition and has disengaged itself from the conditions of the world around them. God calls the church to “get woke” in order to honestly and truthfully assess their relationship to Christ, and then “live woke” by actively pursuing the life-giving mission of Christ as articulated in Luke 4:18-19.

“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because [God] has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. [God] has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim [God’s year of Jubilee].”

A “woke” church connects with the lived reality of “the least of these” (ie the hungry, the thirsty, the naked, the migrant, the incarcerated, and the sick of Jesus’s parable in Matthew 25:35-40). A “woke” church understands that the mission of Jesus is more than just personal salvation, but includes a socio-political aspect that stands against injustice and the systems of oppression. A “woke” church rejects a world where those with power demean, dismiss, dehumanize and destroy those without power. A “woke” church works the works of Christ that result in abundant life (John 10:10) and the year of God’s favor – Jubilee!.

Today, I see a Church that needs to “get woke”. In too many churches, the socio-political mission of Jesus is ignored or seen as secondary or optional (ie “if we have the time or inclination”). As a result, Christians live a bifurcated life that separates the spiritual from the secular and that permits the continuation the status quo. Such a church may preach a gospel, but it’s not Jesus’s gospel. The Bible Jesus read is clear: What does the Lord require? “Act justly, love mercy and walk humbly with God.” (Micah 6:8). The Church–especially the Church in the United States–has some “unfinished deeds” that can only be done when it “gets woke” and repents. The time has come to re-align ourselves to the mission and vision of Christ.

The season of Lent is the right time to reassess and realign and reactivate.. The conditions of our world require our involvement. It’s time to “get woke,” Church. It’s time to return to the words and works of Jesus. The one with ears to hear, let them hear what the Spirit is saying to the church.

During Lent,, I’ll be posting thoughts about “Living Woke.” I invite you to join me (along with Kimball Avenue – Nuestra Señora de las Americas) on this journey.

Budgets Are Moral Documents

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On Tuesday, February 25, the US House of Representatives passed a budget by the slimmest of margins (217-215). Once a budget is passed by the House, it goes to the Senate, where it will likely be met with a competing budget that will have to go through a process of “reconciliation.” The final budget may look different from the House version–at least I hope so.

The budget passed by the House was exactly what the President wanted–$4.5 trillion in tax cuts, about $2 trillion in spending cuts, but with spending increases in the hundreds of billions of dollars for the military and border security over the next 10 years..

So who suffers from the spending cuts? Though the budget is not specific to program, it is widely assumed that the cuts will be targeted at programs that make up the safety net for poor and working families–programs like Medicaid (healthcare), Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program – aka SNAP (hunger), and HeadStart (early childhood education).

And who benefits from the tax cuts? The budget proposal extends the President’s previous tax cuts which reduced corporate rates from 35% to 21%. Tesla (owned by Elon Musk) has paid NOTHING in federal taxes in 2 of the last 3 years despite making a profit in each year. And giving tax cuts to the wealthy increases the national debt. The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget estimates that the deficit would increase at least $2.8 trillion to the deficit in the next 10 years. (see Financial Times).

In the end, most of us lose with this budget. Budgets that make the rich richer on the backs of the poor aren’t just unfair, they are immoral. Proverbs 22:16 speaks to the immorality of robbing the poor and giving gifts to the rich. “One who oppresses the poor to increase his wealth and one who gives gifts to the rich—both come to poverty.” God’s justice protects the afflicted. Jesus announced his mission to “announce good news to the poor.” This budget is an announcement of bad news for anyone already struggling. Reducing SNAP benefits while grocery prices continue to rise is condemning children and seniors to malnutrition. Cutting Medicaid is sentencing people to sickness and death. Cutting HeadStart is delivering children to the school to prison pipeline. Every cut to the social safety net is a cut to the heart of Jesus.

These cuts expose the truth. The very same people who called for the elimination of foreign aid so we can take care of the problems in the US, actually have no interest in helping people or solving social problems. The cuts make it obvious that their priority is their own wealth and power. And God has a name for that: idolatry.

Now is the time to tell our Senators that we will not accept a budget that delivers hardship to those already suffering. We will not accept any cuts to Medicaid, SNAP, HeadStart or any other social program that protects the vulnerable and is necessary to their survival. We. will not accept an immoral, idolatrous budget. Period.

Justice Takes Sides

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My wife has a collection of T-shirts that express a variety of opinions depending on the circumstances. One says, simply, “Ugh!’ (She got that one while running a school during COVID.) Another shouts, “I dissent,” quoting Ruth Bader Ginsburg. (She dissents a lot lately.) Yet another defiantly declares, “We will not go back.” Last week, she announced that she has found her next T-shirt. It says “Justice Takes Sides.”

The T-shirt is available at https://justicetakessides.com, a site developed by Dr. Jemar Tisby, a public historian, author, speaker and a Christian.. I regularly follow his Substack, “Footnotes”. Here’s why he created the T-shirt:

Elie Wiesel, a holocaust survivor and the recipient of the 1986 Nobel Peace Prize, included the following statement in his acceptance speech:

We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented. Sometimes we must interfere.

Neutrality has consequences. As Tisby writes: “Neutrality in situations of injustice only supports the status quo. It only aids the empowered and further harms the disempowered.”

The prophets of Hebrew Scripture took sides, calling out and condemning injustice and demanding accountability for the perpetrators of oppression. There was no space for neutrality; no room for fence-sitting. .

Isaiah shouts: “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!” (Isaiah 5:20 – NRSVUE) and “Woe to those who make iniquitous decrees, who write oppressive statutes, to turn aside the needy from justice and to rob the poor of my people of their right, to make widows their spoil and to plunder orphans!” (Isaiah 10:1-2 – NRSVUE)

Jeremiah cries out: “Woe to him who builds his house by unrighteousness and his upper rooms by injustice, who makes his neighbors work for nothing and does not give them their wages.” (Jeremiah 22:13 – NRSVUE)

Amos calls out: “Woe to those who lie on beds of ivory and lounge on their couches and eat lambs from the flock and calves from the stall…, who drink wine from bowls and anoint themselves with the finest oils but are not grieved over the ruin of Joseph!” (Amos 6:4, 6 – NRSVUE)

And in the tradition of the prophets, Jesus announces: ““Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the plate, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence.” (Matthew 23:25 – NRSVUE)

In this precarious time, it is the right time to ask ourselves, “Which side am I on?” The side of justice or the side of oppression? The side of the prophets or the side of the oppressors? The side of truth or the side of disinformation and alternative facts? The side of the marginalized or the side of the powerful? The side of healing or the side of harm?

When the most vulnerable are being sacrificed on the altar of “efficiency” and threatened by the forces of “unbridled greed”, sitting on the fence isn’t an option. Because sitting on the fence is actually taking the side of injustice.

The Lie of Inevitability

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Y’all have heard the quote: “Absolute power corrupts absolutely.” I’ve heard it; I’ve seen it; I’ve affirmed its truth. I’ve also listened to others speak it with a despairing tone. No matter how much we want justice, truth and integrity to thrive, it won’t happen. Those with power will be corrupted. And corruption will ultimately win. It’s too late. There is nothing that can be done about it. It is inevitable.

Psalm 11 is written by David as a response to people who are watching the foundations of the social order crumbling around them. They see what is happening: “The foundations of law and order have collapsed! What can the righteous do?” In their minds, the only option in the face of this inevitable collapse is to find the exit. They say, “Fly like a bird to the mountains for safety!”

But David refuses to flee. He refuses to believe the lie of inevitability and the despair that leads to giving up. He writes: “I trust in the Lord for protection.” David’s not going anywhere. Instead of “flight,” he is going to stick around to “fight”, trusting in the God of justice and righteousness.

Let me go back to the quote ab out corrupting power. When English Catholic historian Lord Dalberg-Acton wrote it in 1887 in a letter to a Bishop , it was not to state the inevitable, but to issue a warning of the dangers of concentrated authority. Power becomes abusive and corrupt when there are no checks, no guardrails, no resistance. Concentrated authority is the problem. Steadfast resistance to autocracy is the solution.

Sherrylin Ifill, a civil rights attorney, writes on her Substack:

Despair and believing that you are powerless is a form of “obeying in advance” which ensures the victory of autocracy. I understand the exhaustion, anger, the feeling of being overwhelmed and the grief that those of us who believe in democracy, equality and justice are experiencing right now. And painful as it is, I have accepted that there are no guarantees that we can overcome all that we are facing. But I do know that unless we fight, we cannot prevail.”

Autocracy wants us to believe that we are powerless. Autocracy thrives on despair. When someone asks, “What can the righteous do?, autocracy is standing behind us, whispering in our ear, “There’s nothing you can do, so do nothing.” But it’s a lie.

What can the righteous do? The are many ways to resist autocracy, but the one way that is available to 100% of us is to raise our voice. Whether it be on the street in non-violent protest or calling our elected representatives and senators to voice our demands as their constituents, our voices can make a difference. Don’t know who represents you? Don’t what to say? 5calls.org is a simple tool to help you speak clearly and simply on issues you care about. I used it today. I encourage you to check it out.

Let’s stand firm in our faith and act for God’s justice. Remember the word of the Psalmist: “The righteous Lord loves justice. The virtuous will see [God’s] face.” (Psalm 11:7)

Is This What You Voted For?

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Every day, there is yet another assault on our faith, our freedom, our constitutional rights, and our democracy. The government is methodically being dismantled by unelected, unaccountable appointees using illegal and unconstitutional means. We are watching an internal coup.

And while some (mostly Democratic) Senators and Representatives have spoken boldly in opposition to the take over the Treasury Department, the closing of USAID, the unconstitutional firing of Inspectors General, the illegal withholding of grants, the elimination of DEI policies and programs, etc.; many more congresspeople have either been silent or are publicly supporting the takeover.

Why are we shocked at what is happening? This is what #47 said he would do, and he’s doing it with a speed that would impress Adolf Hilter (who dismantled the Weimar Republic and its constitution in 53 days)! When he was campaigning for President, #47 made his agenda clear–a policy agenda articulated by Project 2025 (though he strenuously denied knowing anything about it). Mass Deportations. “De-weaponizing” the Department of Justice and the FBI. Scaling back USAID and placing it under the direction of the State Department. Ending DEI programs. Drill, Baby, Drill! It’s all there and the executive orders mirror it–sometimes almost word for word.

Lots of people I know voted for #47 because he was going to secure the southern border and make sure “the worst criminals.” would be taken off our streets, restoring order–especially in our cities. But something different happened. On the day of his inauguration, he signed an executive order to begin the deportation. Six days later, ICE agents descended on Chicago and other “sanctuary cities” and arrested hundreds of undocumented individuals–many with no criminal arrests or convictions. When asked about the arrests on January 28, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed that “the Trump administration sees all undocumented immigrants as “criminals” and isn’t just seeking to deport those who commit violent acts.” Families were separated; children were traumatized; non-citizens with and without documents felt fear and anxiety.

And then it got worse. By executive order, #47 rescinded Temporary Protected Status for Venezuelans. And announced daily arrest quotas for ICE agents. Could it get worse? Yep.

#47 placed a 90-day freeze on Refugee Resettlement and the funding agencies tasked with helping refugees (including Christians experiencing religious persecution in their home countries) count on. Those agencies (World Relief, Church World Services and many other faith-based agencies) have been forced to furlough staff and end assistance for those in the process of resettlement. The closure of USAID has also shut down humanitarian assistance provided by organizations like World Relief. The innocent will die.

On February 2, billionaire Elon Musk and his unconstitutional “Department of Government Efficiency” called funding of Lutheran Family Services–a faith-based organization with a 150 year history of service in multiple states including Illinois–“illegal payments,” that “must be shut down” citing General Michael Flynn, who posted on X: “Now it’s the “Lutheran” faith (this use of “religion” as a money laundering operation must end): Lutheran Family Services and affiliated organizations receive massive amounts of taxpayer dollars, and the numbers speak for themselves.” The work of the gospel is under direct attack!

Is this what you voted for? Maybe it isn’t, but it is what you got. I’m fighting the temptation to say, “I told you so!” but pointing the finger and blaming isn’t helpful. It only shuts people down, So, instead of heaping guilt on those who voted for this administration but may be having second thoughts, I want to say this:

If the acts and executive orders of the past two weeks are taking this country in a direction that is different than you expected or want, please consider changing your own direction. It is difficult to admit when we’ve been scammed, and we tend to try to hide it because we feel shame and guilt. We’ve all experienced it, but hiding isn’t helpful for our souls. Adam and Eve know something about that. They hid after making a life-altering (bad) decision, afraid of exposure. But, God still sought them out. There were consequences, but God mercifully covered their exposure. Voting for Donald Trump has had real-life consequences–many of them threatening to human flourishing, but God is still seeking us, ready to help us confront our complicity and lead us to transformation.. The apostle John wrote, “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, [the one] who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” It’s time for an altar call!

Will you stand up and speak up for Jesus’s kingdom values of neighbor-love and justice, or will you minimize (or worse–justify) the current crisis and just hope that things will work out? I hope you have the courage to honestly face this existential crisis, turn from the way of destruction, and walk anew in the way of Jesus.

The ‘Real’ Dr. King

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Today, most Americans will enjoy a day off from school and work—not because of the frigid temperatures and not because of the Inauguration, but because the nation will honor America’s greatest advocate of civil and human rights—the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  Today, we will share his quotes on social media, lift up his “dream” and maybe even sing freedom songs. Today, we love Dr. King. 

But let’s be clear.  When King was alive, he was a thorn in America’s side and was condemned and vilified for his vision of America. In 1967, King was named “the most hated man in America” because of his condemnation of the evils of racism, materialism and militarism.  

“The evils of capitalism are as real as the evils of militarism and racism. The problems of racial injustice and economic injustice cannot be solved without a radical redistribution of political and economic power.” – Dr. King to the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) board. March 30, 1967.  

Throughout his public ministry, King articulated a vision of the Beloved Community in which everyone,“regardless of their race, sex, religion, or creed, is equally valued and has the opportunity to thrive.”  In 1968, he and his trusted advisor, Bayard Rustin, developed a “Freedom Budget” and a plan to eliminate poverty that became known as the Economic Bill of Rights, demanding full employment, a guaranteed annual income and affordable housing.

King’s vision was truly radical—akin to Jesus’s announcement good news for the poor and the upside-down kingdom of heaven. King’s vision was diverse and inclusive—like the radical diversity and inclusion of Jesus’s followers—women as well as men, eunuchs, Samaritans and Gentiles as well as Jews.  And like Jesus’s message, King’s message was too radical for most people—even most Christians—and the response was an assassin’s bullet.  We killed the prophet.

But now, we love Dr. King.  We have erected monuments and statues, named highways and schools and bridges after him and set aside a holiday in his honor, but let’s be honest….we have failed to honor his vision.  It was too radical for Americans in 1967. It is still too radical.  We lift up the “dream”, but, as a nation, we continue to perpetrate the nightmare of racism, materialism and militarism.  We declare that “all people are created equal”; that we are the “land of the free”; that we are “one nation under God;” but we cast our ballots for a leader who promises great privilege for a few and vilifies anyone who protests as “threats to America’s greatness.” Today exposes our hypocrisy.  

Before Rev. King was killed on April 4, 1968, he had prepared his sermon for the following Sunday. It was entitled, “Why America May Go to Hell.”  We are well on our way. 

Link HERE to read the sermon King never preached. 

Palm Sunday 2024

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Sermon delivered at the Logan Square Ecumenical Alliance Combined Worship Service At Humboldt Park United Methodist Church by Rev. Bruce Ray
March 24, 2024

Good morning! Hosanna! Hosanna!

I have a confession to make. When I agreed to preach on this Palm Sunday, I didn’t realize that the gospel text would be from Mark’s gospel. Now, I love the Gospel of Mark, but his version of the Triumphal Entry isn’t my favorite. First, it’s the shortest version. And yet Mark spends 7 verses on getting a colt for Jesus, but only 2 verses on the procession into Jerusalem. Yes, it has the shouts of Hosanna and the cloaks and branches, but it feels anti-climactic. And it just ends too quietly with Jesus slipping away to enjoy an evening in Bethany.

I much prefer Luke’s longer version. So that’s all I’m going to say about Mark. Luke’s version especially resonated for me this year, given our efforts over the past five weeks of Lent to pass the Bring Chicago Home referendum.

Isaac Newton’s Third Law of Motion states, “For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.” That’s the only thing I remember from high school science. But what I’ve learned is that what’s true in physics is also true in social and spiritual situation. Every action for good and for God is met with an equal and opposite reaction in opposition to it.

Every time Jesus pushed forward his message of the Kingdom of Heaven and his mission, he got push-back. When Jesus healed people on the sabbath he was accused of being a law-breaker. When Jesus set demonized people free, he was accused of being in league with Satan. When he included people on the margins, he was called names. He was called “a friend of tax collectors and sinners” and a “Samaritan.” Trust me, those were not compliments.

From the beginning of his ministry, those with power saw him as a dangerous threat to the social order and they were determined to stop him. We see this play out in Luke’s version of Palm Sunday. When Jesus entered Jerusalem amid the shouts and chants, he was immediately confronted by a group of Pharisees demanding that he shut it down. “Turn down the volume!” But Jesus refused to back down, telling his critics that silencing his followers wouldn’t stop the movement. Even the rocks would take up the chants. Then, Jesus entered the temple where he disrupted the marketplace, driving out the merchants, and upsetting the authorities. Luke ends the story with the Chief Priests, the teachers of the Law and the leaders of the people plotting to kill Jesus to shut down the movement once and for all. Every action for God and justice meets resistance and hostile opposition.

But did all the push-back and opposition stop Jesus? Did the character assassination and the accusations and threats to his life silence him? No. He pressed forward, continuing the mission and spreading the message that God’s vision for the world was arriving. And though he knew that going to Jerusalem was full of risk—including the cross – he didn’t back down or turn around.

Throughout Lent, we pushed forward with God’s vision of the world—a vision of decent, affordable, safe housing for everyone. Many of us supported and worked for the passage of the Bring Chicago Home referendum to reduce homelessness in Chicago. But there was push-back. Those with a vested interest in keeping things the way they are fought the change. Realtors. Developers. Landlords. And they pushed back—HARD. They distorted the message. They resorted to lies. They used lawsuits. They used threats of higher rents and property taxes. Unfortunately, they succeeded. The referendum failed. I was disappointed. I was deflated. I was defeated. I know many of you felt the same way—maybe you still feel that way.

But here is the question before us today. Will we back down? Will we let the defeat of the referendum end the movement for housing for all? Jesus’s story didn’t end on Palm Sunday or even Good Friday, and our story didn’t end on election day, March 19, 2024. In fact, while we were going to the polls that day, God was downtown, breaking down a door that had been locked shut for over 15 years.

For years, the Chicago Housing Authority had promised to renovate Lathrop Homes as part of their plan for transformation. The renovation was completed on the buildings north of Diversey, and then it stopped. The buildings on the south side of Lathrop Homes were abandoned and neglected. On December 10, 2022, we took Las Posadas back to Lathrop Homes. We followed Mary and Joseph through the decaying and abandoned apartment buildings seeking shelter for holy families. We marched to tell CHA to keep their promise, renovate the buildings and open housing for hundreds of low and moderate-income families. And after we marched and chanted, nothing happened. Nothing changed. Nothing. Until… March 19, 2024.

That day, the Board of the Chicago Housing Authority met and approved the plans and financing for the next phase of the redevelopment of Lathrop Homes. In 2025, 300 units of housing will open on the south side of Diversey. And 100 units will be reserved for families who qualify for public housing. What moved the CHA to take action after so many years and so much silence? No one knows for sure. No one can explain it. It was a miracle. And from where I stand, that means God had everything to do with it. God moved CHA. Praise God!

You see? We are Jesus people. We are kingdom-vision people. We are resurrection people! Will we back down? I ask you again: Will we back down? Will we be silent? Will we give up or give in? We will not! In the words of the Apostle Paul, “we will be strong and immovable always abounding in the Lord’s work, because we know… we KNOW… say it with me: “WE KNOW” our work is not in vain. And we pray and we believe that God’s kingdom WILL come, and God’s will WILL BE DONE on earth as it is in heaven. Amen? Amen! So…

[SING]
Ain’t gonna let nobody turn me around, turn me around, turn me around.
Ain’t gonna let nobody turn me around! I’m gonna keep on a-walkin, keep on a-talkin,
Marchin’ on to Freedom Land.

Amen.

2023 Pride Sunday

~ Bruce Ray ~ Leave a comment

Today we celebrated Pride Sunday as an “Open and Affirming” congregation. What follows is the adapted text of today’s sermon.

Today marks the first time that KANSA has celebrated Pride Sunday. This week, we received the documentation from the Open and Affirming Coalition of the United Church of Christ that we are an officially recognized “Open and Affirming” congregation! (Yes, there was applause!) Every day this week, I have hung our Pride Flag to announce to our community that the Oasis and our church are safe places for every gender identity, expression and orientation.

While we may be a safe place, there are a growing number of places where it is dangerous to be LGBTQ+. In Uganda, the President recently signed one of the toughest anti-LGBTQ laws in the world. The law stipulates a 20-year prison sentence for “promoting homosexuality” and decrees the death penalty for “aggravated homosexuality.” It is even a crime to identify as LGBTQ. A Ugandan human rights activist has called the new law “state-sponsored homophobia and transphobia.”

You’re probably thinking, “Thank God I live in the United States!” Not so fast. Even here in the United States, LGBTQ+ rights are being threatened. This week, the Supreme Court determined that religious businesses and organizations are exempt from anti-discrimination laws regarding employment of LGBTQ+ folks. Even more troubling, the American Civil Liberties Union is currently tracking 491 bills across the United States that target LGBTQ+ rights—a record number. These bills address everything from State-issued IDs to bathroom access to school curricula to gender affirming medical care.

Last month, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a bill into law that makes it a crime for a medical professional to recommend or perform gender affirming surgery on anyone under age 18. And parents of minor trans children can be charged with child endangerment if they seek gender affirming care for their children and risk losing custody of their children to the State.

But as bad as Florida is at protecting LGBTQ+ rights, it’s Texas that takes the cake. Currently, there are 53 anti-LGBTQIA bills being considered there. Kimberly Shappley knows how unsafe Texas can be. Kimberly is the mother of Kai, her trans daughter. When 5-year-old Kai announced to her mother, “I’m a boy,” Kimberly tried to forced Kai to change. Kimberly was a devout member of a conservative church that taught that anything outside of the male/female binary was sinful. But no matter what Kimberly did, Kai (who also goes by the name Esther) insisted that she was a girl. Kimberly finally chose to support her daughter. But when the Texas Attorney General pushed for the passage of a bill that would have made gender affirming medical procedures for minors the equivalent of “child abuse,” Kimberly knew she had to fight for Kai and for herself. She was joined by other mothers of trans children who testified against the bill through a marathon legislative session. Kai also shared her story. Unexpectedly, the bill was defeated, but there was a cost. Because of her support for her daughter, Kimberly was shunned by her church, her family stopped talking to her and her community isolated her. And Kai suffered from the rejection too. At one point, little Kai prayed that God would take her to heaven.

We know that when LGBTQ+ people are condemned or harassed or rejected, death is seriously considered as an option. According to the National Institutes of Health, 82% of transgender individuals have considered killing themselves and 40% have attempted suicide. Rates are highest among transgender youth. But the rates significantly decrease for those with supportive families and communities. Thankfully, little Kai had a mother that accepted and advocated for her. Kimberley decided to leave her hometown and move to Austin—the only place in the state that felt safe to raise her daughter. (Update: In 2022, Kimberly made the decision to move out of Texas due to the number of anti-trans bills being considered by the Texas legislature.)

I hear these stories and statistic and I hear echoes of the story of Ishmael and his mother, Hagar. While Ishmael wasn’t non-binary, he was still seen as a threat to the peace and stability of his family and was rejected and kicked out of the house. This is the experience of so many trans and non-binary youth, rejected and kicked out of their communities when they don’t conform to expected gender norms. These youth often end up in the wilderness of homelessness, sex work and self-destructive behavior.

I’ve often been bothered by God’s response to Abraham. Why did God tell Abraham to listen to Sarah and do whatever she said? Why would God sanction kicking Hagar and Ishmael to the curb? But looking at the story more closely, I’m beginning to believe that God was actually liberating Hagar and Ishmael from their oppression–oppression that began the moment Ishmael was born to Hagar. As scary as the wilderness can be, the two of them were finally free from harassment and enslavement. The wilderness wasn’t a place of punishment; it was a sanctuary where they could heal and be given a fresh start. God took them out of their oppression and set them on a new course. By God’s promise of a wonderful future for Ishmael and God’s provision of water in a life-or-death moment, Ishmael learned that his life mattered to God. God had plans for his life. He would thrive. Rejection wasn’t the end of Ishmael’s story; it was a new beginning! Rejection isn’t the end of your story either. God has plans for you too. You matter to God. You have a future.

And you have a community. Kai Shappley (who is now 11 years old) was fortunate to have a mother that refused to reject her–even when others did. And Kimberley Shappley was fortunate to meet Liz Dyer—another Christian mother who refused to reject her gay son. Liz is the founder of “Mama Bears,” a national network of mothers who are fighting for protections for the rights of their LGBTQ+ children. They have become well-known as the crazy Christian ladies who show up at Pride parades and offer free Mama Bear hugs to anyone who wants them. These women are reminding the LGBTQ+ community that God’s love has no boundaries and rejection shouldn’t be the end of anyone’s story.

My hope and prayer is that people of every gender identity, expression and orientation will find mama bears (and even some papa bears) among us, and that they will find God’s healing and new beginnings though this community of faith.

Together, let’s make sure that rejection isn’t the end of anyone’s story. Together, let’s be the witnesses of God’s liberation and a reminder that nothing—not insults, not harassment, not name-calling, not weaponized Bible verses, not laws, not even death-threats—can diminish anyone’s God-given and God-affirmed value. Will we make mistakes? Probably. Will we be perfect in our affirmations? Probably not. But it is what we are committed to become–a sanctuary where life is renewed. Together, let’s work side by side to make sure rejection isn’t the end of anyone’s story. Let’s be allies to make God’s diverse, inclusive, rainbow-filled future a glorious reality here and now. Amen? Amen!

To learn more about Kai, Kimberly and the Mama Bears, watch “Mama Bears,” a 80-minute documentary from Independent Lens (link below). You can also follow Kai on Twitter @kaishappley.

https://player.pbs.org/viralplayer/3069311762/