This week we received a special message from our guest speaker, Molli Mitchell, a chaplain and member in discernment with the UCC.
In this six week series, Pastor David will be leading us through sermons where we can learn how to reclaim our Christian DNA. Have you asked yourself lately: “Am I going crazy? Why does it feel like common sense, the dignity of all human beings, truth telling, and the Golden Rule have all vanished?”
No, you are not crazy! Not since the Civil War of the 19th century, has the democracy of our country been at greater risk.
To reclaim our Christian DNA in today’s world means understanding the forces that oppose our belief in a radically inclusive God – Who is Love.
Why “reclaim”? Simply put, a competing interpretation of the Christian faith espoused and promoted by conservative Christian Evangelicals has been very successful in shaping public policy and public life. The movement is best defined as white Christian Nationalism. The architects of the movement are primarily white, privileged men - who believe that the “salvation” of the nation depends on following their narrow, rigid, exclusive understanding of the Christian faith. The world and the way we should live as human beings is seen entirely from the lens of white men and women who want to protect their power, control and privilege. Whether conscious or not, white Christian Nationalists believe that they are the ones who deserve to have power-over others.
We need to acknowledge and understand more clearly what white Christian Nationalism is and how we are called to confront it.
We’ll be guided by Carter Heyward’s recent book: “The Seven Deadly Sins of White Christian Nationalism: A Call to Action.”
The world needs our Christian DNA. We need each other. God needs our courage and our perseverance to move toward a peaceable kin-dom. Let’s learn and grow in the Light of God.
Bethel UCC is one of the most vibrant and friendly churches in the Beaverton/Portland Oregon Area, an inclusive Christian congregation, welcoming and supporting the LGBTQIA+ community, affirming their full participation in the life of the church. Join us in worship 10:00 AM Pacific Time Sundays In person at 5150 SW Watson Ave, Beaverton, OR 97005, on Facebook Live: Https://www.facebook.com/BethelBeaverton or Zoom: https://zoom.us/j/140844207/