Giving Thanks

This year I am most thankful for.....

Finding a home in a new community.
Friends who fill the lonely places and care so well.
Sunshine, snowflakes, colored leaves and raindrops.
A family who always greets me with open arms.
My sketchbook and knitting needles, which keep me sane.
Memories of late nights giggling with my sisters and cousins.
Finding hope and joy in the midst of struggles.
The adorable toothless grin of my little brother, the sweetest guy I know.
Health and safety and God's constant provision.
Being able to ask questions, being okay with not having the answers, and imagining the possibilities.

May you all be as blessed in the next year as I have been blessed this year.

Paul and Women in the Church: Transcending Culture into the Kingdom

One of my recent assignments was to study what Paul teaches in his letters concerning women in the church. This is no small issue. Women are increasingly using their gifts in leadership ministries and the wall of opposition we are faced with is tall. It doesn’t help that the New Testament seems to be so contradictory. In Romans Paul commends several women who are leaders in the church. In 1 Corinthians and 1 Timothy he writes that women should not even be allowed to speak in church. How are we supposed to interpret these Scriptures? And, if we believe that the Bible transcends history and culture, how are we to apply Paul’s words to the church today? Scholars are still divided on this issue, but I read some commentaries on the passages where Paul speaks to women in the church that offered some new and interesting insights. If you want to read farther, Willard Swartley's book Sabbath, Slavery, War & Women is a good resource.

Galatians 3:28
In this verse Paul distinctly writes that in Christ the social and spiritual norms of worldly culture no longer apply. In reading the Gospels, we can clearly see how Jesus worked to change the social structures that oppressed his culture in his time, not just bring an eschatological spirituality. Thus, the church is called to live out this new order of equality in the world as it shares in Christ's work of redemption.

Romans 16:1-16
Many believe in this passage Paul does not necessarily speak to women in leadership in the church, just women who serve in the church. An analysis of the Greek linguistics is important in translating this text.
• Phoebe: Paul uses the word diakonon, an unofficial word denoting someone who serves the church, but a masculine noun that he also used to describe himself, Apollos, Tychicus, Timothy, and even Christ. Paul also names her as a prostatis, a benefactor who would have provided financial support and housing for Paul and other missionaries like him, possibly even representing them to the courts. She would have been a wealthy woman of some influence. One can imagine that she most likely held considerable authority, even over men.
• Prisca: Paul obviously believed she played an important role in the church and for an unknown reason wants the church to know she and Aquila risked their lives for him. It is interesting, though the reason is not known, that Paul names her before her husband. She hosted a congregation in their home, and she and Aquila worked with Paul to spread the Gospel.
• Junia: Many Bible translations have changed this name to the masculine form, Junias. The earliest copies of Romans, however, clearly speak of a woman. The translation of her name is important to know because Paul also names Junia as “prominent among the apostles”. Not merely a friend of the apostles, but one of them. Junia would have been a missionary alongside her husband, spreading the Gospel and forming churches like Paul and Peter.
• The other women that Paul names are titled saints or workers of the church. The word that Paul used here for “work” is one he often used when speaking about preaching and teaching.

1 Corinthians 11:2-16
• The Greek term for “head” that Paul uses here is “source” or “origin”, not “holding authority over” as it is often translated. This still denotes inequality.
• Paul uses the argument of nature here, a popular debate tactic in Hellenistic culture and Jewish rabbinic thought. The inequality that Paul expresses here could easily be accounted to his history and the thought processes he's learned. Paul Jewett makes note that this passage is Paul writing from human influence, as his arguments are “incompatible with (a) the biblical narratives of Man's creation, (b) the revelation which is given us in the life of Jesus, and (c) Paul's [own] fundamental statement of Christian liberty in the Epistle to the Galatians.”
• In the Hellenistic era wearing a head covering was a sign of femininity, much like wearing a dress is today. Not wearing a head covering, or having cut or unkempt hair, was a signal that the woman was “available” and could be propositioned, like prostitutes or unmarried women.
• Women in the church often saw themselves free of the social norms and apparently were not wearing their coverings in church. Paul was calling them to continue to maintain self-control. You can imagine what might happen in the church if it became fairly common for women to come to church dressed as prostitutes.
• Paul writes that “just as woman came from man, so man comes through woman”, implying mutuality, if not equality, between men and women in the church.

1 Corinthians 14:34-36
• An analysis of the Greek text and the original copies show that this passage may have been inserted by a scribe or copier of the text and was not originally written by Paul. If these two verses were removed from the text, the writing would continue to flow seamlessly.
• This argument contradicts Paul's earlier address to women in the Corinthian church. In that passage he acknowledges that women are permitted to speak in the church, he only admonishes them to wear head coverings when they do so.
• This command that Paul writes is addressed to “the churches”, rather than just the Corinthian church, which seems unusual for a letter addressed to a specific church.
• Appealing to “the Law” as he does in verse 34 is uncharacteristic of Paul.
• In that time it was not appropriate for women, particularly married women, to speak in public independent of their husbands, and doing so was a breach of their marriage vow.
• A pagan cult worshiping Bacchus was very prevalent in Corinth and was popular among women. It was also a very ecstatic worship. Paul would have probably been appropriately speaking in these verses if the women of the Corinthian church were worshiping in the same ways common in this cult.

1 Timothy 2:11-15
• Scholars have now come to the conclusion that Paul most likely did not write the pastoral epistles of 1 and 2 Timothy, and would not be responsible for this command. Part of their reasoning for this conclusion is that this text is nearly identical to 1 Corinthians 14: 34-36.
• Earlier in the 1 Timothy letter the author warns against false teachers bringing heresy into the Ephesian church. These male teachers often targeted women, who were then more accessible and more susceptible because they were not trained in the Scriptures. Thus, the women in the church could have been speaking these false teachings and leading others astray.
• The words “quietness and subordination” denote a readiness to accept teaching and direction, not necessarily being mute in the church.
• The verb form for “permit” is in the present tense, indicating that the author was instructing women to learn the Scriptures well before they would be allowed to teach or speak to the church.
• The term “have authority” probably means to be overbearing, or to “seize authority”, not that women were to not hold authority at all in the church.
• The author was not necessarily disallowing women from ever speaking or teaching in the church. Rather, he was wisely instructing them to be trained and directed in the Scriptures before they taught.

The church needs to acknowledge that Scripture is written by humans, copied by humans, translated by humans, and read by humans all in different cultures and value systems. Need I also say that most of these have been males? The letters of Paul are not always entirely relevant to the church today, and they are still subject to biases and prejudices that are not theologically correct. For example, Paul often the argument from the creation account that women came from men. Using rules of nature, or what seemed to be rules of nature, was a popular argumentative method in the era Paul was writing. Today Paul's argument doesn't hold much water, especially considering that the creation story is essentially a myth. We really don't know how humans originally came to be. The church must found its practices on the teachings of Jesus, not solely on Paul. Richard B. Hays, in his commentary on 1 Corinthians, wisely speaks to the problem of interpreting what Paul was saying to the first century church and applying his words truthfully to the church today. “Our hermeneutical responsibility is to recognize these tensions where they exist and to make theologically informed judgments about how the different texts speak to our situation.” As Paul's words in Galatians proclaim, the church is called to transcend the social norms of culture and live in the new order which Christ began.

So the question remains, what does this mean for women in the church today? Paul's letters still contain important truths that are relevant to the church today, even those texts that do not affirm women in ministry. Paul breaks down the gender roles implied by society in Galatians. The church today still has far to go in abolishing the oppression of women. Paul takes great measures to encourage and affirm the work of women alongside his affirmation of male church leaders in his letter to the Romans. So too should the church today be affirming of all ministers, male or female. In 1 Corinthians Paul calls the congregation to maintain self-control and hold its leaders accountable, a calling no less relevant today, of all the church's leaders. Finally, as the author of 1 Timothy instructs, women should be taught and directed in Scripture with the same opportunity as men are taught. Women should have equal opportunity to not only learn in the local congregation setting, but to learn in the university and seminary setting as well. Women are created by God just as men. They have the same gifts and are just as able to receive a calling from God to minister to the church. Paul specifically names women who were missionaries, church founders, teachers, preachers, deacons, pastors and apostles. God calls all the redeemed to preach, to teach, to spread the gospel, to care for the congregation, to join in his work to redeem the world. Paul's commands to women to be silent are no longer relevant to contemporary culture. Yet his calling to transcend cultural oppressions and to be transformed into the Kingdom of God echoes through the centuries to speak just as loudly to the church today.

This makes me wonder how is the Church causing oppression in other ways because of the ideologies and influences from our culture? How is the Church using words written by humans, raising them up as infallible, and justifying the destruction of the Kingdom? It's time the Church looks past the words written in our Holy Bibles to the truth revealed to us in Jesus Christ. Can I get an Amen!?!

Who Are Our Enemies?/Will You Dance?

You have heard that it was said, "Love your neighbor and hate your enemy." But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you. -Matthew 5:43-44

Yesterday I attended a chapel service led by several Peace Studies students. Their message was provocative, but very much appropriate. I would like to say that I don't have any real enemies. I was challenged to look deeper inside myself and become aware my gut reactions, or soul reactions, when I see or hear about someone who does not hold the same views that I do. To use some examples from the service- How do I react when I see pictures of military personnel, or listen to someone with political views or theologies that are not my own, or when I see someone on the highway with a Confederate flag on the back of their truck or driving a Hummer, or when I sit in on a worship service at a right-wing church or even a church that is not like my own? Do I have a heart that is open and prepared to notice what gifts these people are as creations of God, just like me? Do I truly love my enemies?

This evening I attended an International Fellowship group that meets on Wednesday nights for Bible study. This is a group of diverse nationalities- Canadian, Korean, Ethiopian, Japanese, Vietnamese, Indonesian, Paraguayan, and American. Tonight we studied Matthew 9:35-38-

When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, "The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field."

Together we imagined what it would have been like to be among the crowds, harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. These people would have been oppressed by the Romans, over-worked, over-taxed and underpaid. Many were also oppressed by sickness, depression, hopelessness, and demons. As we worked to contextualize this experience in our world today we heard stories of genocide in Congo, religious and political oppression in Ethiopia and Vietnam, the struggle of the church in Japan, even students here at AMBS who are faced with the often lonely process of questioning their faith and theology. In particular, an African-American woman in the group shared her story of facing oppression from white-supremacy groups right now following Barack Obama's election and the danger she experienced even last week. It is easy to feel safe in our own little bubbles, but the world is so much bigger than the communities we live in. The world is unsafe for many, even our very own neighbors. We might be living a nice, neat, wealthy life. But just down the street or across the globe is someone who is very much feeling harassed and helpless. The harvest is plentiful.

Then we shifted to imagining how the disciples felt as Jesus sent them into the harvest. As they looked out over the crowds and later traveled through Galilee, the task before the disciples must have seemed huge, even impossible. How were they to do the very miracles that Jesus had been doing? How were they to free all these people? And we asked the same questions of ourselves. How are we to bring the Gospel to all nations? How are we to free the oppressed? How are we to stand as a light and bring the love of Christ to our neighbors, and to the world? The number is so huge and the solution seems so impossible. What are we to do? The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few.

As I listened to these stories and these questions, my mind returned to the challenge of the peace service yesterday. And I asked myself- What do I feel when I hear these stories? What is my soul reaction when I think of not just the oppressed, but also the oppressors? And I realize that I do have enemies. When we hear these stories it is easy to be overwhelmed with fear for our world, our nation, our communities, our lives. And it is easy to forget that those who kill, those who take, those who threaten, those who judge, are created and loved by God just as much as you and I. It is easy to forget that they also are a part of the harvest. It is easier to be blind than to look at the pain and evil in the world and in our nation. This, I believe, is exactly what Satan wants us to do.

So how are we being called to work among the harvest? What can we do? We can pray that "the Lord would send out workers into his harvest field", and that love would reign over hate. We each can do our own part in the places we are and with the gifts that we have (yes, you do have gifts and there is something you can do). We can tell our stories and the stories of others who are being oppressed. We can listen to these stories. We can open our hearts to be aware of who our enemies are and how our actions may be reflecting our "soul reactions". We can choose to act in love rather than hate, or even apathy. We can give a smile or kind word, or even offer our friendship to someone who does not look like us, or vote like us, or believe like us. We can stand for justice and mercy. The question is no longer "What can we do?" but "What will we do?"

Once in a while
the time is ours to look inside.
Once in a while we get the chance
to take the floor and then to dance.
And for awhile all the world will stop
to watch us dance or watch us flop.
Looking for love,
it's the heart of the dance.
Looking for love,
it's the heart of the dance.
So now it's your turn.
So tell us, what will you do?
Will you stand strong in love?
Will you do unto them as you hope they might do unto you?
Or will you run off and hide?
Look away so you don't see the tear in their eye?
And now it's your turn.
Tell us, what will you do?
Sometimes we like to turn away,
and live to dance another day.
Sometimes we sit here on the side,
afraid to dance and full of pride.
So often it seems we've all been told
of the words from days of old-
walk humbly, with just mercy your guide.
Walk humbly, with just mercy your guide.
Cause now it's your turn.
Tell us, what will you do?
Will you stand strong in love?
Will you do unto them as you hope they would do unto you?
Will you run off and hide?
Look away so you don't see the tear in their eye?
Now it's your turn.
Tell us, what will you do?
Now it's your turn.
What will you do?

-Herm Weaver, "What Will You Do?" from Stories and Songs for the Road

Will you dance?

Still I Will Fly

And I choose to fly

like a bird in the sky

when the wind blows so strong

and I just can't hold on.

I find the strength to let go,

admit I don't know

how the journey might end

with my face in the wind.

Still I will fly.

A hope that rides high on the wind

yet often crashed to the ground

when the storms hangin 'round.

How to fly high and far

when you let your hope grow.

You know you never can know.

You just gotta let yourself go.

Just gotta let yourself go.

So i choose to fly

like a bird in the sky

when the wind blows so strong

and I just can't hold on.

I find the strength to let go,

admit I don't know

how the journey might end

with my face in the wind.

Still I will fly.

And those dreams

that burn in the soul

and move the seeker from home

to travel roads all alone,

they move the timid to try,

to take to the sky.

You know deep down inside

we're all yearning to fly.

We're all yearning to fly.

So I choose to fly....

Herm Weaver, "Still I Will Fly" from Stories and Songs for the Road

This I Believe: more of a rambling than a discourse...

I feel I should precede this entry with an explanation, or perhaps a warning, of sorts. First of all, I have a tendency to ramble, which makes for a rather long entry (seriously). If you happen to be just passing through, you probably don't want to take the time to read this. I won't hold it against you. Many of you who are reading this I have not had the privilege of meeting. If I do know you, I probably don't know that you are reading. At any rate, this rambling of mine may make absolutely no sense to you. You probably already know what you believe and why and have no reason to read any further. If you are reading to analyze this theology, I assure you that you will find many holes. The thoughts I have written here are far from complete. I also must admit that this theology is heavily influenced by the postmodern culture, the rural, family-oriented, Mennonite community I grew up in, and the young-adult, Anabaptist, academic community that I am now living in. I wouldn't say that if I were in a different context I would still come to the same conclusions. But that is not to say that the theology that I have come to is any less true or correct. Perhaps I am writing more for myself than for you. I confess I feel extremely naive in admitting that I am just now coming to this theology. Yet, as I think about it more, perhaps we do not come to our belief in one moment. Perhaps conversion is not a one time event. Perhaps we grow into our convictions as we are able to see God revealed. Perhaps this theology has been growing in me with increasing clarity and will continue to grow, become more clear, and maybe even change as my life leads me to new experiences, relationships, and new revelations of who God is. And perhaps you too are still wondering, still questioning. Perhaps you too are still growing. So, if you are still with me, I welcome you to continue reading, and perhaps we can grow together.

What do I believe? If there is anything that I know it is that there is a God who created us and this world. No, I take that back. I know that there exists an intimate, powerful force that connects all of humanity and all of creation and ties us all together. It doesn't make sense scientifically or rationally, but this is what I know that I know. I know that this force reaches into the deepest part of me and knows the depths of my soul which I do not even know. I know that this Spirit orchestrates the coincidences of my life and weaves my life together with the lives of others. The threads of our lives are criss-crossed and twisted together, sometimes only meeting once, sometimes becoming so entwined that two threads become one. What other Spirit could do this other than one who created me? And I know that this Creator has worked with such wonderful imagination that even our most intelligent scientists cannot explain this world we live in, let alone the expanse of universe beyond. What other Creator except God is able? So, yes, I do believe that there is a God who created us and this world.

If I believe this, then I must also believe that God desires an intimate relationship with his creation. All of creation reveals the character of God. All of humanity and all of nature was created in the image of God. What God would make such a creation if he did not want to engage it? We are not whole, we are not even possible without God. Yet God did not create a world in which He is the Master and we are the little glass chess pieces. We are each created with intelligence, creativity, soul, and the ability to experience emotion. We are created to be in relationship with each other and with our Creator. Even more than this, we are created with free will. We are created with the ability to make our own choices and direct our own lives, even if we do not choose what God desire for us. Love without choice is not love at all.

This means, then, that there must be a choice. There exists another power in this world, Satan, who is the opposite of God. Just as God gives life to the world, Satan brings evil, destruction, and brokenness into our lives. As in the tempting of Eve, Satan tempts us and lures us with promises of power and fortune, the promise that all our desires will be met. God does not necessarily promise us this. In our humanness we do not always recognize the emptiness behind these promises. We do not always see beyond ourselves. And so things get messed up. Shit happens. And we, individually and communally, are drawn farther and farther away from God, our Creator, our Source. We are left empty. Yet God, in His deep desire to relate with us, and to love us, continues to make his presence known and find ways to draw us back to Him. Throughout history God has made his fingerprints visible in creation, in human relationship, in the Spirit-inspired stories and traditions recorded in Scripture, in the rhythm and pulse of this earth, in the hope and renewal of life. In the depths of our souls His whisper can be heard.

And when humanity just was not getting it, God thrust his hand into history and became human himself. In his desire to relate to us, to share our experience, our emotion, our humanity, he became one of us through Jesus Christ. In his birth, life, death and resurrection Jesus is the fullest image of God that we can see and understand. Jesus embodied the love that God has for us. He acted out the mercy God desires to give us. And Jesus lived out the resurrection from the death-chains of sin that God promises us.

This is a BIG God. This God is bigger than I could ever hope to wrap my mind around. This God is bigger than any image we can see expressed in creation, in ourselves, in history, in Scripture, even in Jesus. This God cannot be understood or pinned down and analyzed. Yet this God is intimate enough to care for every intricate detail and thread in the tapestry of our lives, our world, His creation. This God desires to make himself small enough so that I may know Him, so that I can love Him, because He loves me.

So what does this mean? What does this mean for me, for the world, exactly? It means that God cannot be contained in the doctrine and belief systems of religion. It means that God speaks to everyone, whether they call him God or not. It means that Christians aren't the only ones who know God. It means that no one denomination or church is closer to God or worships better. It means that if I believe that God is embodied in Jesus, and I desire to join God in communion as I was created to do, then I must follow the example and teachings of Jesus' life. If I believe that all of nature and humanity is created and loved by God, then I cannot judge or kill or hate or destroy. It means that I cannot live and act in a philosophy that says my way is right and you're wrong, I'm in and you're out, I'm better and you're not, I'm good and you're bad. It means that I must love instead of hate, give instead of take, heal instead of destroy.

I could read this last paragraph and think "Yes, yes, I believe that. I do that". But how often have I heard about Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, or any other religion or spirituality and thought they have it all wrong? I'm in and they're out. How often have I driven past a neighborhood church and think my church worships or believes better than theirs? I'm right and they're wrong. How many times have I walked past someone who is dirty, smelly and jobless thinking that the mess of their lives is their own doing? I'm good and they're bad. How often do I actually live out these words, rather than merely speaking them? How often does love, generosity, forgiveness, grace, mercy, peace, and kindness effect how I relate to people, how I make my decisions, how I work, how I play, how I shop, how I live my life for the sake of the world? How often do I practice my theology?

Watch your words: they become your thoughts.

Watch your thoughts: they become your actions.

Watch your actions: they become your habits.

Watch your habits: they become your destiny.

Be aware of your destiny, for it will form your habits.

Be aware of your habits, for they will form your actions.

Be aware of your actions, for they will form your thoughts.

And be aware of your thoughts, for they will be reflected in your words.

This theology also means that God is intimately engaged in my life. Even though I do  not always see Him, or hear Him, or feel Him, or maybe acknowledge Him, God is there. God knows my past, my present, and my future. It means that God has a purpose for my life and is continually creating me to fulfill that purpose. It means that, if I choose to trust and obey my Creator, every detail of my life is used for that purpose. It means that I cannot always see the big picture, but God can. It means that I am loved unconditionally, unreservedly and undeniably. I means that I am not alone in this life, I don't need to have everything figured out because there is Someone else who will show me the way when I am lost. It means that I am held in the hands that created me, and continue to create me, hands that envelope me, hold me close and will not let go.

Life is a journey. Walk with me.