I don't usually feel inspired to write publicly about religion, but today I read an ABC.com article chronicling the rise in hate crimes since Obama was elected. The lead quote took me up short:
"If you had real change it would involve all the members of (Obama's) church being deported," he said.
My parents are members of the the United Church of Christ (UCC). The the church Obama belonged to before Rev. Wright caught the headlines is one of their largest congregations. My grandfather and great grandfather were UCC ministers. The Congregationalists, the founding members of the UCC, have quite a history in the United States. I'd hardly want to deport the people responsible for the following:
- 1620: sailed to the new world calling themselves Pilgrims in search of a land where they would be free to worship their beliefs
- 1700: Wrote the first anti-slavery pamphlet.
- 1773: Gathered in Old South Meeting House in Boston to protest the tax on tea -- inspiring the Boston Tea Party.
- 1777: Saved the Liberty Bell from being melted down by the British
- 1785: Ordained the first African American minister
- 1810: Formed the first international missionary organization
- 1853: Ordained the first woman minister
- 1943: Wrote the Serenity Prayer recited by people in recovery programs throughout the world.
- 1972: Ordained the first openly gay minister
Now you may not agree with everything the UCC has accomplished in the United States over the years, but you cannot deny that if you removed the presence of this church from our nation by whatever means, the United States of America would not exist as we know it and we would be much poorer for it.
We owe these people a debt of gratitude, not an deportation order. And I, for one, am proud of my family's UCC heritage.
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2 comments:
Peggy, thank you for sharing your thoughts on this issue. Your post inspired me to write a post on my blog, Mom Unplugged and I want to thank you for inviting me back here to post the link. I think this is an important topic to discuss, especially with Obama now being president-elect.
http://www.momunplugged.com/ugliness-midst-change/
Peace my Sister!
As a life time member of the United Church of Christ and its predecessor, the Congregational Christian church, I thank you for
honoring your family's heritage as well as pointing out some of the actions which our predecessors in the U.C.C. took which have brought positive change to our country. Bringing change means taking a risk and speaking out. You are to be commended for doing that in your blog.
EGD
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