THE VISION & THE REALITY

Isaiah 65:17-25; Luke 21:5-19

23rd Sunday after Pentecost, November 13, 2022

The Rev. Dr. Ritva H. Williams

Today’s scriptures call us to contemplate God’s vision for the world alongside the reality of the world in which we live. 

Isaiah tells of God’s vision of renewing heaven and earth, restoring Jerusalem and her people. In this vision joy and delight replace weeping and cries of distress. Everyone enjoys long life and the fruits of their labor. Former enemies — wolves and lambs, lions and oxen —  dine together. No one hurts or destroys another. 

Jesus predicts the destruction of the temple, and warns his disciples about false messiahs, wars and insurrections, earthquakes, famines and plagues, and signs in the heavens. But the disciples should not fear, these events will be an opportunity to testify. By enduring in the face of persecution, betrayal, and even hatred, they will gain their souls. 

Jesus prepares his disciples for necessary realities that must be confronted and endured in order for God’s vision to come into being. We got a small inkling of that reality this week.

These two Facebook posts appeared on election day. The first one was posted in the review section of our public FB page:

St Stephen's Lutheran Church is a polling/election place that violates tenants of neutrality. The Iowa Secretary of State and Linn CountyAuditor had to remove outwardly political displays during election on Tues, Nov 8. It's appalling they had these displayed in violation of basic election norms, both outside the entry doors as well as hanging overhead of the polling booths themselves.

Communications Coordinator Pam Polglaze responded: 

St Stephen’s has been a polling place for many years. Before all the elections, the building and grounds are inspected by elections officials. None of the officials asked that our flag or our Black Voices Matter sign be removed. These are and have been up for many years. On the day of the election we were asked to take them down and we did immediately. The sign and the LGBTQ flagger not up as a political statement, but as a statement of support for Human Rights. Just like all churches used as polling places there are fixtures that support their beliefs: for example, Crucifixes, crosses, artwork. If you believe these influence voters I suggest you take up your concern with Elections Officials. 

The same person also posted on their own FB page these pics with the comment:

Election shenanigans at St Stephen Lutheran Church polling place for precincts CR27 & CR38 in Cedar Rapids. I thought it not legal for political displays at polling places? Reported to lowa Secretary of State and Linn County Auditor office, both seemed to agree shouldn't be on the property & sending tech to remove. Directly above the voting booth is that flag.

President DeeAnn Hebrink responded: 

I am a member of St Stephen's Lutheran Church. We welcome any and all people, as we believe that is what Jesus' life on earth teaches us. We want people in all of society to know that God loves them and we welcome them. The flag is not a political statement- it's a human rights statement. We have had the flag hanging since 2016- no election shenanigans here. Those who evaluate our space for polling have never indicated it was a problem.

Thank you Pam and DeeAnn for your thoughtful responses to these inaccurate and derogatory posts. Here’s what actually happened. The week before the election, John Williams walked the Precinct Captain through our building to work out details for unlocking and locking the doors, setting up tables, etc). Nothing was said about our Pride flags or the “Black Voices Matter” lawn sign.

We learned of the complaint when the Precinct Captain called John, and then asked Pam in person to remove the Pride flags and Black Voices Matter sign. Since the request came from the Linn County elections office via the Precinct Captain we felt we should comply. So Pam brought the pride flag and the sign in from the front yard, but pointed out that we could not take down the flag in the narthex. The Precinct Captain told her not to worry about it as the complainers had left.

It honestly never occurred to me that anyone would regard our Pride flags or the Black Voices Matter sign as equivalent to political campaign signs. Pam and DeeAnn describe them as statements about human rights. I personally view them in light of Christ’s call to love one another as he loves us. They are visible symbols our commitment to the full participation of all persons, regardless of age, race, gender identity, sexual orientation, physical disability or any source of discrimination. The Pride flags and the Black Voices Matter signs let victims of discrimination know that St Stephen’s is a place of safety, refuge and sanctuary, assuring them that here they will be seen and heard, loved and cared for.

The bottom line for me is that our Pride flags and Black Voices Matter signs are proclamations of the gospel of Jesus Christ. They are not made by any political party. They are not paid for by any political party. There are people in both political parties who support LGBTQ rights and/or are members of the LGBTQ community, just as there are Black, Indigenous and People of Color in both political parties. Check out the senate race between Raphael Warnock and Herschel Walker in Georgia. Let me lift up George Santos, the winner of New York’s 3rd congressional district who will be the only LGBTQ Republican in the new Congress. No single political party can claim to represent all LGBTQ or BIPOC people, but God can and does love all without discrimination. Political parties and affiliations are human choices in ways that gender identity, sexual orientation, race or ethnicity are not.

In his reflections on this week’s scripture readings, Pastor John van de Laar writes: evil and strife are at work in the world. The result is that people who live according God’s alternative values are misunderstood, misrepresented and persecuted. Yet we believe and trust that God’s reign continues to work to transform the world and its people into loving, peaceful and just humans. This is not so much a war between good and evil as it is an evolution from chaos and immaturity into beauty, creativity and maturity as humans conform to God’s gracious, compassionate purposes.

Pastor van de Laar encourages us to grow towards God’s vision of a world of peace and reconciliation, as he writes:

In a world where violence seems to rule, we commit, O God, to small random acts of peace making. Where people are oppressed because they look, act, speak, think or love differently we will affirm their freedom. Where people are exploited because they lack the strength or resources to refuse, we will seek to create alternatives. Where people are controlled through threat and fear, we will offer safety and hope. Where people believe their violence and power give them the right and ability to act as they please

we will call them to account. Wherever violence is done to another, through physical force, manipulation of truth, or the subtle workings of power, we will opt out, we will speak out, and we will stand out in opposition, through small, random acts of peace making. 

 Amen, Amen. Let it be so.