Rev. Dr. Chuck Currie

A Video Message From The Rev. Dr. Chuck Currie On The Coronavirus Pandemic

Open Letter To Students And Other Young People Regarding Recent U.S. Bombing Threats

#FourthOfJuly2018: #MAGA vs the #BelovedCommunity

This Fourth of July it is worth pausing – perhaps for longer than we usually might – to consider this moment of history in the life of the United States of America. These are not ordinary times for our nation.

The “Make America Great Again” (#MAGA) movement has turned back the clock to darker periods of our history and given voice to hatreds that not long ago were considered too unacceptable to speak.

We have long battled against institutional racism, of course. Now, however, our fellow Americans and new immigrants to this nation must endure more open misogyny, racism, xenophobia, and religious bigotry.

The Enlightenment midwifed our Revolution into being. Hard questions were asked about religion and the divine right of kings. Scientific discoveries gave birth to the industrial revolution. Other nations fighting off the yoke of colonialism looked to the United States for inspiration as first fascism, and later communism darkened vast swaths of the globe.

Hope has long been found in the American Creed: E Pluribus Unum. Right now the bedrock American principle of pluralism is under attack. Donald Trump’s white nationalist movement to make America great again stands in direct opposition to the call by the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. to build up the Beloved Community.

If we love our country, we will fight for it. We need not replicate the actions of the Nazis who marched in Charlottesville or the white supremacist group Patriot Prayer that rally in Oregon. Violence and hatred cannot be our tactics because violence begets violence and hatred consumes the soul. This fight does require non-violent direct action, however, as the instruments of our government are now in the hands of those who identify with white nationalism.

Our most potent weapon is still the vote. The majority of Americans do not actively participate in democracy (you can understand why when change comes so slowly or not at all). Progressives must advance an agenda that both challenges the politics of our time and hears the fears and insecurities of those who are both suffering and susceptible to fear mongering.

Christian nationalism plays a significant role in the difficulties we face today. For people of faith, it is critical that we confront religious leaders who preach a message of hate and make common cause with the white nationalist movement. Their religion is sick. God stands with the oppressed and calls on us to break the bonds of injustice. Faith should be about love, justice, and humility.

It is difficult to celebrate the Fourth of July as immigrant children are separated from the parents and as so much of what makes America exceptional is under attack. Still, I, like you, love this nation, and I celebrate all those who have shown that love by being part of a resistance movement that challenges all of us to live up to the best ideals of our country.

#FourthOfJuly2018: #MAGA vs The #BelovedCommunity - Thread -

1. This #FourthofJuly it is worth pausing – perhaps for longer than we usually might – to consider this moment of history in the life of the United States of America. https://t.co/x2j7GuotI2 pic.twitter.com/nXH3k2AQjE

— Rev. Dr. Chuck Currie (@RevChuckCurrie) July 4, 2018

#ParisAttacks and #SyrianRefugees

My oped in The @HuffingtonPost: Terrorism Is Not A Religious Act https://t.co/9SaYnONExU #Prayers4Paris #ParisAttacks #MuslimsAreNotTerorist

— Rev.Dr. Chuck Currie (@RevChuckCurrie) November 14, 2015

Hurricane Patricia, Climate Change And God's Call To Protect Creation

Two historic events collided this past week: Hurricane Patricia, the most dangerous hurricane in recorded history hit Mexico, and diplomats from around the world gathered in Bonn for UN climate talks meant to produce a new accord to be signed this December in Paris.

Faith leaders, with one eye on Hurricane Patricia and another on Bonn, have been worried about both.

ACT Alliance is "a global network of churches and faith-based NGOs, working with development and relief, in 140 countries around the world." In emergencies, ACT Alliance partners with groups like Church World Service to provide critical aid. Mattias Söderberg, the head of the ACT Alliance's delegation to the Bonn talks, said Friday in a press statement:

"Everybody knows that these negotiations are serious; they are not only about our own future, but also about the lives of poor and vulnerable people who are affected by climate change already today. I am deeply concerned about the slow progress and I urge negotiators to make a final effort to change their approach. All parties need to leave their comfort zones and start to look for agreeable solutions, which can foster a fair and ambitious agreement in Paris."

Söderberg continues:

"There is no agreement about climate finance, the major questions of who should provide the finance, how much, and to who remain unanswered. The poor and vulnerable community remain confident that these questions will be answered in their favour, considering the fact that they are already affected by the impacts of climate change."

We know that hurricanes occur in nature. They are not new. Hurricanes, even very powerful storms, have occurred long before the impact of climate change was felt across the globe. What is new is the size and intensity of the storms faced today. The Washington Post reports:

While one storm is only one storm and can never substitute for a comprehensive statistical analysis, the fact remains that the link between warm seas and strong storms -- the theoretical reason for believing hurricanes will worsen due to climate change -- is starkly apparent in this case...

"As ocean temperatures continue to warm as a result of human-caused climate change, we expect hurricanes to intensify, and we expect to cross new thresholds. Hurricane Patricia and her unprecedented 200 mile-per-hour sustained winds appears to be one of them now, unfortunately," adds Michael Mann, a climate researcher at Penn State University.

For people of faith, this is yet another rally cry for action to combat climate change. Faith leaders have issued a statement to those preparing the Paris accord noting that: "Our religious convictions and cosmological narratives tell us that this earth and the whole universe are gifts that we have received from the spring of life, from God. It is our obligation to respect, protect and sustain these gifts by all means."

Increasingly, the fight to address climate change takes on a sense of urgency as we reach milestones where repair of the environment might be past our ability to control. If this occurs, we fail God and sentence our children and their descendants to a future of hardship that is difficult to imagine.

Standing in our way are those that still deny the science of climate change. "A very solid scientific consensus indicates that we are presently witnessing a disturbing warming of the climatic system. In recent decades this warming has been accompanied by a constant rise in the sea level and, it would appear, by an increase of extreme weather events, even if a scientifically determinable cause cannot be assigned to each particular phenomenon," wrote Pope Francis. Those that deny this solid consensus put the future in jeopardy, often for partisan political reasons, and must be called out by faith leaders for their sin of blocking progress on addressing this great moral issue that impacts all life, God's creation. Religious leaders must also do more to call their communities to take action on climate change. We are all complicit in allowing the present age to unfold as it has.

God is calling us now to restore the natural balance of creation that allows existence.

Faith Leaders Respond To Oregon Shooting #UCCShooting

#UCCShooting

Joint Statement on Umpqua Tragedy from Oregon Faith Leaders Jan Elfers (Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon) and Rev. Dr. Chuck Currie (Pacific University Center for Peace & Spirituality)

Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon and the Pacific University Center for Peace and Spirituality join Oregonians and Americans in grief and shock over the mass shooting today at Umqua Community College (UCC). We are in contact with colleagues in ministry in the Roseburg area to see what assistance is needed.

“All of our faith traditions abhor violence, and Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon has joined the National Council of Churches in calling for action to prevent gun violence,” said Jan Elfers, interim executive director of Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon.“Our prayers go out to all those who lives have been impacted by this terrible tragedy; to the victim’s families and friends, and to the entire Roseburg community. We are grateful to those who responded to the emergency and undoubtedly prevented the loss of even more lives.”

A Resolution and Call to Action by the National Council of Churches of Christ, U.S.A.
http://nationalcouncilofchurches.us/comm…/…/gun-violence.php

“Mass shootings like this happen too often and Oregon has not been immune,” said Rev. Dr. Chuck Currie, director of the Center for Peace and Spirituality and University Chaplain at Pacific University. “Today we offer our prayers for those killed and injured. We also lift up the families of those impacted. Still, we must also work to take steps that reduce gun violence this day so that there are no more days like this.”

Dr. Currie is an ordained minister in the United Church of Christ.

Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon is a statewide association of Christian denominations, congregations, ecumenical organizations and interfaith partners working together to improve the lives of Oregonians through community ministry programs, ecumenical and interreligious dialogue, environmental ministry and public policy advocacy.

Pacific University’s Center for Peace and Spirituality provides students with the opportunity to engage in meaningful study, reflection and action based on the recognition that inter- and intra-personal peace are inherently connected and that concerns for personal spirituality are intimately related to concerns for one's social, historical, cultural and natural environment.

Founded in 1849, Pacific University offers more than 84 areas of study within its colleges of Arts & Sciences, Optometry, Education, Health Professions and Business.

Views and opinions expressed by Ms. Elfers and Rev. Dr. Currie do not necessarily reflect the position of Pacific University.


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My oped in The Portland Mercury: How All Christians Can Be More Christ-like About #MarriageEquality

My oped in The @PortlandMercury: How All Christians Can Be More Christ-like About #MarriageEquality http://t.co/1W7OvpubDp #PrideMonth

— Rev.Dr. Chuck Currie (@RevChuckCurrie) June 10, 2015

Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions: A Movement The United Church Of Christ Should Reject #GS2015

Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions: A Movement The @UnitedChurch Of Christ Should Reject #GS2015 http://t.co/gmMzJ2SphQ #BDS #bdsmovement

— Rev.Dr. Chuck Currie (@RevChuckCurrie) June 5, 2015

FMR SC GOP Head Under Investigation For Domestic Violence

Last fall, I drew attention to the Tweets of the former head of the South Carolina GOP who called for the mass executions of Ebola victims. Now that same lawyer is under investigation for domestic violence.

Todd Kincannon, a Columbia attorney and former executive director of the S.C. Republican Party, has been accused of threatening his wife and refusing to let her out of his car Thursday night, according to a report from the Lexington County Sheriff’s Department. He has not been arrested or charged with any crimes, according to a sheriff’s department spokesman.

From the sheriff's report:

Ashley (Kincannon) continued to tell me she called her mother for help and attempted to call 9-1-1 with an open line in order for the dispatcher to hear James. While driving, James saw a police vehicle and ‘freaked out.’ James threatened he would drive the car into a concrete barrier if the cops became involved. In addition, James also threatened to kill himself if Ashely left. Ashely continued to tell me James has made several threats in the past to kill himself, her, and her family. Furthermore, Ashely said she has past incidents of domestic violence and threats of homicide/suicide recorded. I saw no visible injuries to Ashely, she provided me with a written statement, and was issued a victim’s pamphlet. It should be noted Ashely was trembling as she wrote her statement.

This is a story that will not end well. Kincannon blames his behavior on cough medicine but there would seem much more wrong with this individual.

There is good news: Twitter has deleted his accounts (twice) where he had active followings.

It also appears the S.C. Commission of Lawyer Conduct, S.C. Office of Disciplinary Counsel is investigating Kincannon. He has no business holding a law license. Kincannon sued to stop the investigation but the suit was dismissed.

Please pray for his wife and that Kincannon himself is saved from himself before he does more damage.

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When Republicans Go Wild

Like most Americans (hopefully), I was bewildered to learn that GOP Senate members sent a letter to Iran trying to undermine U.S. foreign policy.  Even other Republicans are stunned.  Trying to sabotage a sitting U.S. president, as Barack Obama is (see election results, 2008, 2012), is hard to imagine.  Who would do such a thing?  Thus, my op-ed today in The Huffington Post:

People of Faith to GOP Leaders: Support Negotiations With Iran

Willamette Week, Poverty & Cylvia Hayes

Oregon has the highest rate of poverty on the West Coast.

But let’s talk about Cylvia Hayes’ past.

Journalists have the right (even a responsibility) to report on activities within government and so the role played by Hayes, Oregon’s first lady, is newsworthy.  This is particularly true if Hayes has used her influence in ways that might be unethical.  Such behavior has been alleged by Willamette Week but not proven.

What Willamette Week has uncovered, and what will define the last weeks of the election for governor, is that Hayes had a secret marriage late in her twenties.

Willamette Week has over the years done some reporting worthy of the awards they have received.  Uncovering that Oregon icon Neil Goldschmidt was in fact a child rapist rewrote state history and brought a small measure of justice to the babysitter he victimized.

More the norm, however, are stories like this one regarding Hayes.  Nothing regarding her past will impact John Kitzhaber’s term as governor or legacy in the state.  Telling this story now simply serves to embarrass Hayes.  Willamette Week has a long history of defining people by their worst moments.

As clergy, I long ago came to the conclusion that the human experience is messy.  All of us come to the table with a variety of faults (in theological terms we call these sins).  Sometimes these personal faults mean that people need to be excused from public life.  Other times, particularly when people gain fame from politics or the arts, the media seeks to exploit all too human failings for their own purposes.

The media will now pile on Hayes.  Real issues – like poverty, that weren’t being covered anyway – will be ignored even more as “reporters” follow Hayes and Kitzhaber around demanding to know about the state of their relationship. 

What will Hayes legacy be in Oregon?  That we don’t know.  But Willamette Week’s legacy will be part journalistic brilliance that shines way to infrequently and a long record of tearing good people down for the sport (or advertising dollars) of it.  On balance, WW has done more harm than good.

Still, no one will ask Kitzhaber or Dennis Richardson how they’ll address poverty if elected in November.  I’m certain neither one of them knows. 

The sin of poverty ought to be the real story.  Hayes' private sins ought to remain private.  But there are too few saints in journalism today willing to cover issues of substance over scandal.  In journalism, there are sinners too.   

Update: 10/14

Stories asking if a public official rewrote ethics rules to benefit their partner are 100% appropriate. #orpol http://t.co/8qKx6OQGQE

— Rev. Chuck Currie (@RevChuckCurrie) October 14, 2014

The Richest Cut Giving

During the Great Recession the poorest Americans increased their charitable giving 17%.  Much of that money went to relgious group providing faith based social services.  The wealthiest Americans?  They cut their giving by 4.6%.  Unlike their wealthy fellow citizens, middle income Americans joined those with lower incomes in giving away more.

Still, the wealthiest Americans enjoy the Bush era tax breaks while the wealth gap continues to grow.  Many wealthy Americans clearly understand that great economic disparity is not good morally or economically.  Yet the majority of the wealthiest Americans are forgetting that it is better to give then to receive.  Billionaires like the Koch brothers give hundreds of millions to candidates who promise to further cut taxes on the rich.

For people of faith, called to create just systems, it is imperative that we continue the work of building up the common good of this nation and the world.  That work must include raising taxes on the weathiest 1% so that we can create living wage jobs, improve public education, further improve health care, and do everything possible to make sure that every child born today has opportunities to thrive well into the future.  

Stumbling Toward A Just Peace

My latest on The Huffington Post:

The question we face today is how to employ "Just Peace" as a working model for peace building in a world so torn apart and complex. Without question, the complexities we face now are even more difficult to navigate from what those seeking peace during the Cold War encountered. Can "Just Peace" be a model for addressing the messy conflict in Syria and Iraq, which involves the terrorist group ISIS?

Stumbling Toward A Just Peace

Stumbling Toward a Just Peace - Rev. Chuck Currie from The Rev. Chuck Currie on Vimeo.

From Dallas to Sandy Hook: Lord Have Mercy

This week we mark the 50th anniversary of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy as we prepare to mark the one-year anniversary of the massacre of school children in Sandy Hook.

Do Americans put more faith in guns than in God? It is idolatry to worship false idols but the NRA and their allies tell us to trust in weapons as the last refuge of safety. Scripture tells us to trust to God "though the earth should change, though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea; though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble with its tumult." (Psalm 46 NRSV)

Arm the teachers, cried the NRA after Sandy Hook. That will stop the massacres. Then came the shooting this year at the Navy Yard where 13 died. Even soldiers at a military compound are not safe from gun violence.

President Kennedy had the best security available of his time and still a gunman took him down and changed history. Later, President Ronald Reagan would be a victim of gun violence. Power and privilege cannot always protect.

The NRA, once a respected hunting organization, has become over years the last defense of terrorists, child killers, and political extremists. Their money and influence controls the debate over how to combat gun violence in America. They are powerful. Yet they wield their power not in defense of the most vulnerable but in support of the most violent. In the end, they have become the greatest obstacle of the Prince of Peace and the Prophets of God who called for weapons to be turned into plowshares.

President Kennedy once said: "Children are the world's most valuable resource and its best hope for the future."

The NRA must shoulder some blame for the shooting at Sandy Hook that took so many children from us. That day so much hope and promise perished. Every day since gun violence has taken more Americans in senseless acts that could have been prevented if common sense gun control measured proposed by President Barack Obama had been enacted. Even a majority of NRA members supported President Obama's proposals. Tragically, the NRA's allies in Congress put their faith in guns instead of God. That is simply sin. So each day more children die.

Lord have mercy.

Church World Service Expands Appeal to Assist Typhoon Haiyan Survivors

Dear Friends, We've all watched the horror unfold in the aftermath of Typhoon Haiyan.  Yesterday I made a donation to Church World Service - a coalition of faith groups working with communities where the need is greatest.  You can trust your money will be well spent. Please give as you are able. - Rev. Chuck Currie

ALERT FROM CHURCH WORLD SERVICE

APPEAL CODE:  #700-M
APPEAL GOAL (revised):  $750,000

SITUATION:

The estimated number of fatalities from Typhoon Haiyan continues to fluctuate between 2,000 and 10,000. Whatever the final numbers, Typhoon Haiyan's effects have been devastating, with aid channels slowed due to severe damage to infrastructure and officials urging residents of decimated cities such as Tacloban to leave and relocate.

Typhoon Haiyan, with the local name of Typhoon Yolanda, may have been the strongest typhoon on record, with sustained winds of 234 kph and gusts of 275 kph. It made landfall in the Philippines on November 8. The islands of Leyte and Samar were the most devastated by this super typhoon, in terms of number of casualties and damage to property.

At least 982,252 families, or 4,459,468 individuals, were affected in some way, with an estimated 101,762 families or 477,736 individuals displaced, the ACT Alliance reports.

Among what CWS and others know today based on assessments by partners in the Philippines:

• There are still affected areas that government and non-governmental agencies have not yet reached. Urgent needs include food, sleeping materials, water, blankets, tarpaulins, tents, medicines, mosquito nets, generators, hygiene kits and kitchen utensils.
• The massive destruction of houses prevents families from returning home. As a result, there is an immediate and increasing need for plastic sheets for temporary cover and enclosed tents for families with vulnerable members.
• Among the most urgent needs are safe drinking water and hygiene kits across all affected areas as water pipelines may have been damaged and accessible water is not potable. There is acute lack of clean water and food for the population in all nine provinces where more than 9 million people are affected.

CWS RESPONSE:

CWS is supporting early response and recovery efforts of fellow members of the ACT Alliance that have significant operations in the Philippines. These partners include the United Methodist Committee on Relief, Lutheran World Relief, Christian Aid and the National Council of Churches in the Philippines.

CWS-supported efforts include providing immediate assistance to more than 200,000 persons. Initial response efforts include providing emergency food to 259,000 persons; non-food items (plastic sheeting, etc) to 192,000; water/sanitation repair to 205,000. As well, programs of cash for work for 63,400; shelter assistance for 90,000 people; and disaster risk reduction programs for 2,500.

Among the food items to be distributed include rice, canned goods, dried beans. Non-food items include plastic sheeting, blankets, and water containers.

ACT members intend to target subsistence farmers, small fishermen, poor urban dwellers and female-headed households among the most-affected by the typhoon, as they have very limited capacity, finances and resources of their own to recover from the recent disaster.

In addition, CWS is providing technical support to members of the Philippines Disaster Response and Recovery Network, known as PDRRN.

Budget

The total amount being sought for the entire CWS-supported ACT effort, plus CWS technical support to PDRRN, is $15,418,584. Each of the ACT members has a separate budget; among the largest direct cost items in most of the budgets are for food, shelter and water, hygiene and sanitation items

PLEASE NOTE: This is the first of what is expected to be several appeal revisions related to this response.

HOW TO HELP:

Contributions to support CWS emergency response efforts may be made online or mailed to Church World Service, Attn.Typhoon Haiyan (#700-M), P.O. Box 968, Elkhart, IN 46515.

Faith Leaders Challenge Pro-Life Representatives to end Shutdown

I've joined colleagues Sr. Simone Campbell, Jim Wallis and 60 other faith leaders from across the nation in telling Congress: "There is nothing 'pro-life' or Christian about taking food away from pregnant women and babies. It is hypocritical and shameful for those who tout their commitment to family values to show such callous indifference."

Faith Leaders Challenge Pro-Life Representatives to end Shutdown

International Day of Prayer for Peace 2013 #peaceday

Today, at both Sunnyside Church and University Park Church, we marked International Day of Prayer for Peace with special prayers and songs, including this prayer from the World Council of Churches:

God…
God of Life…

God of Life, Lead…
God of Life, Lead Us…

God of Life, Lead Us to Justice…
God of Life, Lead Us to Justice and Peace.

We lifted up those killed in the attack on a church in Pakistan, prayed for the people of Syria, remembered those killed in mass shootings in Washington, D.C. and Chicago this week, prayed for the end of war, for soldiers, and the coming of God's peaceable kingdom.

Let us all continue to pray and act for peace. Light us bring light to dark places.


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Obama Administration Turns To Diplomacy

President Barack Obama talks with advisors in the Oval Office, Sept. 10, 2013. Attendees include from left: Tony Blinken, Deputy National Security Advisor; Phil Gordon, White House Coordinator for the Middle East, North Africa, and the Gulf Region; National Security Advisor Susan E. Rice; and Chief of Staff Denis McDonough. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

President Obama addressed the nation regarding the on-going crisis in Syria tonight.  He spoke in deeply moral terms about the world’s responsibility to protect civilians from the use of chemical weapons and other WMD.  Barack Obama is no George W. Bush. 

The current president has argued that a military response is needed to deter Syria from further attacks against civilians using chemical weapons but at the same time we now know the president and Secretary of State John Kerry have been negotiating with the Russians on a proposal to place all of Syria’s WMD under international control so they can be destroyed – a long sought goal. 

President Obama is seeking with intention to avoid military conflict as a first resort whereas President Bush used the pretext of 9/11 to invade Iraq, a nation that had nothing to do with those terrible terrorist attacks.  At the same time, President Obama is honoring the democratic institutions of our nation by calling on Congress to debate the path forward in Syria.  Balance is being restored between the three co-equal branches of government – balance under assault since the start of the imperial presidency. 

The worldwide Christian community has been nearly unanimous in arguing against military action in Syria.  There are many good arguments not to engage in this conflict but  I believe very seriously that the world does have a responsibility protect those who cannot protect themselves.  We ought to mean “Never Again” when we talk about holocaust or genocide or the use of WMD.   

The Rev. Dr. Susan Brooks Thistlethwaite is right, however, when she notes that often such military interventions meant to protect civilians end up causing more harm. 

Like other people of faith across the globe, I pray for a peaceful resolution that not only ends Syria of their chemical weapons but also ends the bloody civil war there that has cost over 100,000 lives.  The diplomacy undertaken by the Obama Administration with Russia, soon to be debated as a resolution by the United Nations, is a much better option than more war.        

A Difference Of Opinion On #Syria

As the Obama Administration considers how to respond to the use of chemical weapons in Syria, religious leaders are weighing in. Normally Dr. Susan Thistlewaite and I draw similar conclusions in policy debates but these two op-eds show a difference of opinion on means - though not goals or ideals. Former U.S. Rep. Les AuCoin and other military experts have told me that the arguments I've presented will not, as Dr. Thistlethwaite would also argue, achieve the aim I want of protecting civilians in this conflict. We do have a responsibility to protect, I and Dr. Thistlewaite and Rep. AuCoin, would all argue, but how and under what circumstances? Read and consider the theological and moral issues for yourself:

Lines Must Be Drawn In Syria
by Rev. Chuck Currie

Syria and the ‘moral obscenity’ of war
by Rev. Dr. Susan Brooks Thistlethwaite

What course would you advocate?

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Sin and Public Life

It is vital that all of us, whether or not we hold positions of leadership, are held accountable for personal transgressions.  Accountability becomes even more important when those who wield authority – politicians, clergy, business leaders and others – abuse that authority for personal gain.  In the language of the church, we are talking about matters of sin.  All of us, at various levels, fall short.

A century ago, Walter Rauschenbusch, talking about the Social Gospel movement that remains an important source of inspiration in the theological life of the church today (using the language of the time that was non-inclusive) noted that sin is not just about mistakes made by individuals but also about mistakes made by societies and governments that harm the common good:

Walter Rauschenbusch

"The social gospel is the old message of salvation, but enlarged and intensified. The individualistic gospel has taught us to see the sinfulness of every human heart and has inspired us with faith in the willingness and power of God to save every soul that comes to him. But it has not given us an adequate understanding of the sinfulness of the social order and its share in the sins of all individuals within it. It has not evoked faith in the will and power of God to redeem the permanent institutions of human society from their inherited guilt of oppression and extortion. Both our sense of sin and our faith in salvation have fallen short of the realities under its teaching. The social gospel seeks to bring men under repentance for their collective sins and to create a more sensitive and more modern conscience. It calls on us for the faith of the old prophets who believed in the salvation of nations." (Rauschenbush, A Theology For The Social Gospel, 1917)

Still today, we pay far too much attention to personal sin – often times matters that should remain private and within the confines of family conversations with clergy and perhaps therapists.  This is not an effort on my part to excuse bad behavior.  Sometimes such behavior crosses such a threshold that it remains impossible for people in positions of authority to maintain their positions because for their personal gain they have used their positions to further relationships or financial dealings, or engage in abuse, that is unethical and raise questions about overall judgment.  We have seen this from certain Wall Street bankers, clergy pedophiles, and politicians like Bob Packwood and others. 

As a society, however, we fall short in recognizing societal sin and the role we all play in that.  Which is the worse sin: the politician who engages in an affair with another consenting adult or the politician who votes to cut food assistance to children or prenatal care for pregnant women (or the public that re-elects that politician)?  If a politician misuses their office for personal gain perhaps they deserve the 24/7 news cycle that inevitably follows.  In a more moral society, however, that same news attention – that same sense of scandal – should follow those political, business and religious leaders who participate in or advocate for sinful economic systems that create poverty, climate change, war and other forms of human suffering. 

Recognizing that, in theological terms, we all sin, perhaps in addition to holding our leaders accountable when they fail we should throw fewer stones and find ways to offer compassion (hard as that might be) even as we take steps to restore the public trust when it becomes broken.  There is too much glee in throwing people in with the lions when all of us, and I include myself, fail to measure up to the covenantal responsibilities put before us to make the world a better and more just place.    

Why Judy Bright Supported Obamacare

My latest on The Huffington Post:

"Judy Bright -- a certified nurse midwife, advanced nurse practitioner, public health administrator and my mother -- died before she could take advantage of Obamacare, but as an advocate for public health and someone with a pre-existing condition, she knew the difference it would make for millions of Americans."

Why Judy Bright Supported Obamacare

Fix IRS; Citizens United

News that the IRS targeted conservative organizations for special review as part of the non-profit certification process is deeply concerning.  It reminds me of the Bush-era IRS investigation of the United Church of Christ.  The Obama Administration needs to quickly fix the problem but much of this is the messy result of the Citizens United court decision and thus the fix will require an overhaul of corrupt campaign finance laws.  The Washington Post notes:

Campaign reform groups have been pressing the IRS for several years to conduct greater oversight of nonprofits formed in the wake of the Citizens United case, given that many have become heavily involved in elections.

“But this isn’t the type of enforcement we want,” said Paul Ryan, a senior counsel at the Campaign Legal Center. “We want nonpartisan, non-biased enforcement.”

Our government should work better than this.  No one should be targed simply for their political views.  At the same time, our election system should not be the rigged, corrupt system put in place by Citizens United.

Psalm 23: Fear Not In The Valley | Reflecting On Our Week

Psalm 23: Fear Not In The Valley | Reflecting On Our Week from The Rev. Chuck Currie on Vimeo.

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Pray For Boston, Support American Muslims

We continue to be shocked and deeply saddened as a national community as events unfold in Boston.  There is still much that we do not know: including the motive of the terrorists. What we do know is that these violent attacks are attacks against all Americans and without excuse. Sadly, already there are people blaming all Muslims and attacks of retaliation have occurred.  FOX News regular guest Erik Rush tweeted earlier this week concerning Muslims: "Yes, they're evil. Let's kill them all."  All people of good faith - Christians, Jews and Muslims - must use this moment to support our nation and bring reconciliation.  It is vital that we protect those unfairly targeted as our nation's authorities seek to bring those responsible for the Boston attacks to justice.  We are better than the terrorists and we are better than those who would use this moment to divide our nation along religious lines with appeals to bigotry.    

People Of Faith #DemandAVote For Gun Violence Prevention #NowIsTheTime

Yesterday supporters of President Obama's gun violence prevention measures - including people of faith - rallied across America to demand that Congress vote on the proposals.  I spoke at the Portland press event. Over 70% of NRA members support President Obama's call for universal background checks.  This isn't a fight between the White House and gun owners but a fight between Americans and a radicalized NRA leadership that has lost touch with their membership. A few of those out-of-the mainstream voices tried to shout down speakers yesterday - one of them yelling a racial slur - but the vast majority of Americans reject such views and believe that in a democracy it isn't the loudest voice but the strongest ideal that should win the day. 

Statment in Support Of Universial Background Checks Delivered

by Rev. Chuck Currie at Portland's Pioneer Courthouse Square.

Feb 22, 2013

Last month I joined President Obama and Vice-President Biden at the National Prayer Service in Washington, DC as part of the Inaugural celebration. There we prayed for an end to violence in America. Certain issues sometimes divide people of faith but there is strong agreement from the National Council of Churches, representing Protestant and Orthodox Christians, and the U.S. Conference of Roman Catholic Bishops - along with the larger interfaith community – that we must support common sense proposals to reduce gun violence in America. Our schools, houses of worship and movie theaters are places we should expect to be safe. In these places we worship, we learn and we are entertained. But in recent years all these places -- along with shopping malls and restaurants and public parks -- have in moments of terror become killing fields as people with often great mental instability who have access to weapons meant for battlefields open fire on innocent crowds causing mass deaths. President Obama has proposed several important measures, including universal background checks for those purchasing guns, which would make America safer. People of faith support efforts to reduce gun violence. NRA members, many of who are people of faith, support universal background checks. I call on all members of Oregon’s Congressional delegation – both Democrats and Republicans – to put the common good of our nation and the safety of our children before the out-of the-mainstream demands of a radicalized NRA leadership that is out-of-touch with their membership.

(Download PDF of statement)

Organizing For Action call on Congress to support plan to close background check loopholes. twitter.com/MikeTurnerKXL/…

— Mike Turner (@MikeTurnerKXL) February 22, 2013

Support The Violence Against Women Act! #VAWA

People of faith across America rallied in support of the Violence Against Women Act - which passed the Senate with strong bi-partisan support.  But the Act faces an uncertain future in the U.S. House.  Who could be against efforts to stop violence against women? These men.

Tell the House to pass the Violence Against Women Act.

O’ Come, O’ Come, Emmanuel: Work to End Gun Violence With Impatience

This morning my sermon - delivered at both University Park Church and Sunnyside Church - reflected on the violent events this week in Oregon and Connecticut. You can download a podcast of the sermon here:  

O’ Come, O’ Come, Emmanuel: Work to End Gun Violence With Impatience

(some browsers - like Firefox or Google Chrome - will allow you to simply click on the link and listen...otherwise click with the RIGHT mouse button on the hyperlink and choose “Save Target As” and save to your desktop or other folder – once downloaded click on the file to listen).

Now On ITunes

You can now subscribe to my podcasts on ITunes by clicking here. 

Note: In the prepared notes for this sermon, as in the audio, I talked about the 911 call made by a student at Virginia Tech after the shootings there in 2007 but in the delivery of the sermon I inadvertently said you could listen to the call when I actually meant you could read the transcript from The Washington Post's account.  I wanted to clarify this. 

The text of the sermon as prepared for delivery is below:

Churches Must Help Nation From Falling Off The Cliff

My latest op-ed today in The Huffington Post:

Falling off the cliff would mean that we would not only stop progress toward faithful goals but that we would fall further behind as the nation returns to recession and economic turmoil.

Churches Must Help Nation From Falling Off The Cliff

Statement On DOJ Investigation Of Portland Police

We have learned this morning that the U.S. Department of Justice has found that the Portland Police have engaged in a pattern of force that has violated the civil rights of Portlanders and resulted in the deaths of too many of our fellow citizens. I have not yet read the full report but applaud the DOJ for their work. As one of the clergy who called for this investigation and who took part in the memorial service for James Chasse, I continue to be outraged at the crisis in management that has developed in the Portland Police during the last several years. It will take a new mayor and new leadership at the Police Bureau to regain the full trust and faith Portlanders should have in their police. I am deeply appreciative of the many members of the Portland Police who have come forward to report violations and to work with integrity with the DOJ during this period. I'll look forward to reading the full report and hearing of the DOJ's recommendations to make Portland a safer community for all. - Rev. Chuck Currie


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Will You Marry Me? A Sermon on John 2:1-11, 15: 9-17 | Marriage Equality and the Bible

Read Will You Marry Me? Marriage Equality and the Bible on The Huffington Post

Summer is wedding season and while I'm not overwhelmed with wedding requests I've had a few and there is one that I'm really looking forward to in September. Weddings are, of course, special events. At their best, weddings bring not just two people together but families and even communities in a union bonded together in love. There is a simple joy in all that - even if the reality is that marriage itself is complex and sometimes difficult, just ask anyone who has been married longer than an hour. As we reflect on our reading from Scripture this morning, I want to discuss marriage a bit with you as we understand it in Christian terms, what marriage means as a legal institution, and to share with you some decisions that I have made about my role as a minister as it relates to marriage that have been helped along by my doctoral studies on this issue.

Let me begin by noting the reality that within the United States it is illegal for a minister or any other officiant to marry a gay or lesbian couple, much as it was illegal a generation ago to marry interracial couples. Oregonians voted to define marriage as a union between a man and a woman in 2004 - it is part of our state Constitution - thus banning marriage equality. This state Constitutional amendment plus the federal Defense of Marriage Act will both have to be overturned for gays and lesbians to receive true marriage equality. Federal law does not recognize gay marriages that are legal in states such as New York.

As a minister, I am asked to be an agent of the state when it comes to marriage. One way for a marriage to become legal is for an ordained minister to sign a marriage certificate. The United Church of Christ and the Episcopal Church USA are the only two mainline Christian denominations to support marriage equality, and that allow their clergy to perform such ceremonies. However, my religious freedom to provide pastoral care to gay and lesbian couples is curtailed by the government which says that I cannot legally marry same-gender couples - thus denying these parishioners the same care I can provide to straight couples. It does not seem the proper function of the government to tell me as a minister whom I can and cannot provide pastoral care to. That should be a decision of the church. The United Methodist Church, of course, forbids not just gay marriages but commitment ceremonies that the General Assembly of the church has deemed incompatible with Christianity. I look forward with great anticipation to the day this deeply flawed policy of this faithful denomination is overturned.

The United Church of Christ has developed an inclusive wedding liturgy, in which we pray for couples being married that:

...we come together in the presence of God to witness the marriage of the couple, to surround them with our prayers, and to share in their joy. The scriptures teach us that the bond and covenant of marriage is a gift of God, a holy mystery in which two become one flesh, an image of the union of Christ and the church. As the couple give themselves to each other, we remember that at Cana in Galilee our Savior Jesus Christ made the wedding feast a sign of God's reign of love. (So we pray that we) enter into (the wedding) celebration confident that through the Holy Spirit, Christ is present with us... We pray that (the) couple may fulfill God's purpose for the whole of their lives.

It is this idea of covenant that is so central, so important to marriage and there is no Biblical reason the marriage covenant should not be available to gay or lesbian couples.

Last fall, as I was taking a course in Biblical theology at Chicago Theological Seminary for my doctoral degree program, I wrote a piece for The Huffington Post about Chick-fil-A and their opposition to marriage equality. I note this mostly to brag that I wrote about this issue nearly a year before most anyone else was talking about it. ☺

I said then and I'll say now that I love Chick-fil-A. Their plain old chicken sandwich and a sweet tea can send me to heaven. I've always known they were owned by a Christian family and, frankly, I like that they close on Sundays. I'm old enough to remember when more stores did (of course, that often was enforced by law) and I think a (voluntary) day off from shopping and commercialism isn't a bad thing. But I was sad to hear then that the company had donated food to an anti-gay marriage group. Chick-fil-A president Dan Cathy said the contribution was made because the company believes in a "Biblical definition of marriage." Mr. Cathy has since become even more vocal in his opposition to marriage equality.

What I suggested in my piece in The Huffington Post was that Mr. Cathy ought to read Unprotected Texts: The Bible's Surprising Contradictions About Sex and Desire, a book from Boston University's Jennifer Wright Knust. This American Baptist pastor and scholar notes that: "When it comes to marriage, biblical laws are almost entirely contradictory." In short, the one "Biblical definition of marriage" that Chick-fil-A wants to promote doesn't exist.

I'm guessing Mr. Cathy never took my advice.

As I've preached, how we read the Bible matters. It is not to be taken literally. John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, argued that Christian faith required one to bring Scripture, reason, experience and tradition to the table when trying to discern the will of God. Chick-fil-A is offering fast-food theology to a world that needs more than a bumper sticker understanding of the divine.

In a post for The Washington Post's "On Faith" blog, Knust wrote:

If we do take the time to read the Bible, we are likely to discover that the biblical writers do not agree with us, whatever version of sexual morality we are seeking to promote. Written more than 2,000 years ago at a significant historical and cultural distance, the Bible gathers together a diverse collection of ancient books, edited over time, not a coherent, divinely inspired set of instructions that can easily be applied. Tracing even a few, limited topics from one biblical book to another can make the point: If one book forbids marriage between foreigners and Israelites, the next depicts such marriages as a source of blessing, not only to Israel but to all of humankind. If one insists that women are saved by childbearing, the next recommends that women avoid childbearing altogether in order to devote themselves more fully to God. If one suggests that sex with a relative, the wife of another man, or with a male lover will certainly lead to the nation's downfall, the next depicts heroic kings engaging in precisely these forms of sex. And these are just a few examples.

Knust offers the same argument in her book. Knust writes: "The Bible is complicated enough, ancient enough, and flexible enough to support an almost endless set of interpretive agendas."

That may be true, in part. Taken as a whole, the Hebrew Scriptures and the New Testament offer (for me) a vision of covenant. My sense is that covenant includes within our relationships between one another and with God that we should - in Paul's words - be subject to one another out of love. That doesn't mean we have an anything goes faith without rules or boundaries. In fact, the opposite is true. You cannot, for example, abandon your family and remain in covenant with God or your relatives. Justice and compassion are central to Christianity. Yet, not all teachings from scripture should be practiced today (if they were, we'd still own slaves, as sanctioned in some parts of the Bible).

We must use an interpretative process to discern God's will for us - and do not think for a moment this isn't just what the different authors of the Bible did during the many centuries it was transformed from oral tradition to the written word. Using Wesley's criteria for discernment, it is important that we open ourselves to the power of the Holy Spirit - God's own breathe - to help guide us and for us to undertake this enterprise with humility.

A generation ago, as I have mentioned, interracial marriage was outlawed. This was justified by the use of Scripture. Genesis 28:1 reads: "Then Isaac called Jacob and blessed him, and charged him, 'You shall not marry one of the Canaanite women." In the past, this piece of Scripture was interpreted by some Christians to mean that Hebrews and Canaanites were of different races and therefore no races should inter-marry.

We may think this silly today but when Barack Obama was born his father - a black man - and his mother - a white woman - were barred from being legally married in many states and the justification was often Biblical. We have discerned over time, led by the power of the Holy Spirit, to understand not only our own error in interpretation but also the reality that some of what is written in Scripture has no moral authority over us today. Or should I quote from 1 Tim 2:11-12? "Let a woman learn in silence with full submission. I permit no woman to teach or to have authority over a man; she is to keep silent."

You see, I'm willing to make the faith claim right here and now that God has no problems with interracial marriages, wants women to speak boldly with the voice of Sophia (the embodiment of God's wisdom), and that those who use Scripture to justify discrimination against gays and lesbians are making the same mistake in interpretation that we have made as a people over and over again.

So will I marry gay and lesbian couples?

Right now I'm a United Church of Christ minister serving two Reconciling Congregations in the United Methodist Church. The United Church of Christ affirms marriage equality. The United Methodist Church says homosexuality is incompatible with Christianity. And both Sunnyside Church and University Park Church have pledged to welcome all, and are faithfully engaging the larger United Methodist Church to change the rules and truly become a church with open hearts and open doors and open minds.

So yes, I will marry any gay and lesbian couple that I believe is ready to make that commitment, using the same criteria to make that call that I would for any heterosexual couple. To respect the rules of the United Methodist Church, I will conduct those services at Ainsworth United Church of Christ, my home congregation.

Is there a risk is making this announcement?

I remember the words of Martin Luther King, Jr. who told his church:

No member of Ebenezer Baptist Church called me to the ministry. You called me to Ebenezer, and you may turn me out of here, but you can't turn me out of the ministry, because I got my guidelines and my anointment from God Almighty. And anything I want to say, I'm going to say it from this pulpit. It may hurt somebody, I don't know about that; somebody may not agree with it. But when God speaks, who can but prophesy? The word of God is upon me like fire shut up in my bones, and when God's word gets upon me, I've got to say it, I've got to tell it all over everywhere. And God has called me to deliver those that are in captivity.

So if you're gay or you're lesbian or bi-sexual or transgendered or questioning, I want to make it clear today: I am your pastor too. I am your pastor if you're straight, if you're a Democrat or a Republican, if you're black, white, Latino. And no rulebook or law will prevent me from providing you with the pastoral care I am called to provide.

What I will no longer do after September is sign wedding licenses. Until the day comes when marriage equality is the law of the land I will no longer act as an agent of the state in an institution that is discriminatory. In this, I join a small but growing number of clergy. I will offer you the religious rites of the church but will invite you to have your marriage license signed by a judge or other official of the state.

When the General Synod of the United Church of Christ endorsed marriage equality in 2005, they noted:

The message of the Gospel is the lens through which the whole of scripture is to be interpreted. Love and compassion, justice and peace are at the very core of the life and ministry of Jesus. It is a message that always bends toward inclusion. The biblical story recounts the ways in which inclusion and welcome to God's community is ever expanding - from the story of Abraham and Sarah, to the inclusive ministry of Jesus, to the baptism of Cornelius, to the missionary journeys of Paul throughout the Greco- Roman world. The liberating work of the Spirit as witnessed in the activities of Jesus' ministry has been to address the situations and structures of exclusion, injustice and oppression that diminish God's people and keep them from realizing the full gift of human personhood in the context of human communion.

I find truth in this statement and have love for the United Methodist Church, United Church of Christ and the church universal - not as institutions, but as part of the body of Christ. We are all one in Christ. It is in that spirit of love, that I come forth today to share with you God's call to us to love all people in ways that honor and continue the ministry of Jesus. It is a ministry, as we heard this morning in our text from John, that is joyful and where the Disciples - and by extension us - are commanded once again simply to love as Jesus has loved us - without condition or judgment, and centered on God's desire for us to be free from oppression or captivity, in covenant with one another and with God. Amen.

Will You Marry Me? A Sermon on John 2:1-11, 15:9-17 | Marriage Equality and the Bible from The Rev. Chuck Currie on Vimeo.

Christians Must Counter Sikh Temple Shootings With Call For End To Gun Violence

 

Members of Sunnyside Church and University Park Church pray for the victims of the Sikh Temple shooting.

 As the people of Sunnyside Church and University Park Church gathered for a joint BBQ and celebration of our shared ministries together we learned of the mass shooting at the Sikh Temple in Wisconsin.  We offered prayers for those killed and wounded.  This terrible event reminds us once again that Christians are called to preach a message of love and compassion to a world torn apart by too much violence.  Further, it reinforces to need for Christian communities to develop interfaith partnerships and friendships to promote understanding.  We are also reminded, without question, that one of the responsibilities of the church universal is to work toward an end of gun violence.  No one in a house of worship should be cut down by bullets fired in hate.  As we know now, the suspect was a white supremacist.  Were his actions motivated by those who preach intolerance towards minority religions?  It would not come as a surprise as too many politicians and religious leaders have used faith in recent years as a tool to divide Americans.  Our faith should never be so misused and it is certainly the responsibility of Christians across this great nation not only to condemn this act of hate but to work toward reconciliation.  This terrible event, just like the mass shooting in Colorado two weeks ago, never should have happened.  It is time for all people of faith to join together in opposition to the gun lobby and others who support the legality of weapons of mass killing in our neighborhoods and streets.  Enough is enough. Click here to tell President Obama, Governor Romney and Congress that we are better than this.

A Homily On Ephesians 4: 1-16: Run, Don't Walk - And Dream (And A BBQ!)

Sunday was a busy day for the people of University Park Church and Sunnyside Church.  Dispite the high heat and no A/C in either church (this is Portland, afterall) we had good turnout for worship at both services.  Our focus Scripture was Ephesians 4: 1-16 (using The Message translation):

A Homily On Ephesians 4: 1-16: Run, Don't Walk - And Dream from The Rev. Chuck Currie on Vimeo.

Later in the afternoon both congregations gathered together for a BBQ.  We took time at the start to offer prayers of thanksgiving for the meal and for the victims of the terrible shooting at the Sikk temple in Wisconsin.  

People Of Faith Will Rejoice Over #SCOTUS Ruling Upholding Health Care Reform

Many people of faith supported President Obama's health care reform plan and today rejoice in the Supreme Court ruling that largely upholds the Affordable Care Act.  30 million Americans will receive coverage under the president's plan.  Millions already have.  All this moves us closer to the Beloved Community.  President Obama and those leaders in Congress who voted for reform are to be applauded for their commitment to fixing a broken system that has long created a moral crisis in our nation.  The Supreme Court has surprised many with their ruling and they too must be applauded for a wise decision.  There is more to do, of course, to fix the health care system.  But President Obama has moved us further down the path toward universal health care than any other president since Teddy Roosevelt first made the effort.  This has long been a goal of the National Council of Churches and many Christian denominations, along with other interfaith leaders.  Today is a good day for our nation.   

Related: Faith Leaders Celebrate Supreme Court Ruling on Affordable Care Act: “God is smiling down on today’s decision”

Related: Reason rules for Court, but Christians need to continue to advocate for the poorest

Violence Against Women Act Protections in Jeopardy

House Republicans are playing politics with the Violence Against Women Act and it is up to people of good faith to stop them. As a minister in the United Church of Christ, I support the bi-partisan version of this legislation passed by the Senate. The House version strips protections from Native Americans, immigrants, and LGBT victims of violence. Take action now by signing the below action alert from the United Church of Christ (you can modify the language to reflect your religious tradition) or call your House member directly.

JPANet: Violence Against Women Act Protections in Jeopardy

Reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), a measure which has received strong bipartisan support since it was first passed by Congress in 1994, is currently moving through Congress. The Senate passed its version of the reauthorization (S. 1925) in late April, and it included important enhancements for addressing the needs of Native American families living on tribal lands, immigrants, and those who are living in same-sex relationships and are victims of domestic violence.

These important provisions protecting Native American women, immigrants and LGBT victims of violence are being threatened!

A House version of the VAWA reauthorization, introduced by Rep. Sandy Adams (R-FL), now has the full backing of the House majority leadership and will be moving to a floor vote soon. The House version strips out the Senate provisions strengthening legal protections for Native American women and eliminates essential confidentiality protections for immigrant women seeking protection from abuse. While the Senate version includes provisions for improving services and increasing funding efficiency based on input from thousands of direct service providers, the House version rejects those improvements without any such consultation or review.

The United Church of Christ, in partnership with a diverse coalition of faith groups, has long supported efforts aimed at addressing and eliminating domestic violence. As part of the Interfaith Domestic Violence Coalition, the United Church of Christ joined with many others in supporting the Senate version of the reauthorization and applauded the expanded provisions for under-served communities. The House version jeopardizes those improvements and could put many women and families in greater danger with fewer resources and recourse.

Let your representative know that you do not support the House version of VAWA reauthorization. Urge your representative to support a House bill that reflects the Senate version and strengthens protections for women and their families.

Send your letter here.


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Tonight's Supermoon As It Emerges Over Mt. Hood And Is Seen In Portland's Grant Part #Supermoon

There were dense clouds covering between Mt. Hood and Portland this evening that delayed the arrival of the much anticipated "Supermoon."  These photos were taken with our simple family camera.  It was a beautiful sight.

Psalm 8 1-4 NRSV

 

To the leader: according to The Gittith. A Psalm of David.
¹ O Lord, our Sovereign,
   how majestic is your name in all the earth! 

You have set your glory above the heavens. 
²   Out of the mouths of babes and infants
you have founded a bulwark because of your foes,
   to silence the enemy and the avenger. 

³ When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,
   the moon and the stars that you have established; 
⁴ what are human beings that you are mindful of them,
   mortals^* that you care for them? 

John Edwards Is a Sinner, Yes. But a Criminal? Via @HuffPostRelig

As a husband, he failed. As a father, he failed. Yet these seem to be issues best left to be resolved between Edwards and God, not a court of law. There is every reason to believe the case against Edwards is overreach.

My latest on The Huffington Post.

The State Of The Union: Progressive Progress Or Return To A Failed Past?

President Obama once again offered a progressive, moral vision for America during last night's State of the Union Address - a choice between an America where we're all in this together or where some people put their personal self interests ahead of the common good, a return to the policies of the past.

“….The defining issue of our time is how to keep that promise alive.  No challenge is more urgent.  No debate is more important.  We can either settle for a country where a shrinking number of people do really well, while a growing number of Americans barely get by.  Or we can restore an economy where everyone gets a fair shot, everyone does their fair share, and everyone plays by the same set of rules.  What’s at stake are not Democratic values or Republican values, but American values.  We have to reclaim them.” 

President Obama inherited the most broken economy since the Great Depression.  And some want to return to the policies that brought us to that point?  President Obama is correct to call for increased investments in education and our public infrastructure.  We need to continue creating jobs. 

Last night, in the GOP response, Gov. Mitch Daniels made the claim that President Obama is "pro-poverty." That's absurd - particularly coming from George W. Bush's budget director whose policies created the poverty crisis we face in the United States today.  President Obama's stimulus program, opposed by every GOP member of Congress, kept 30 million additional Americans from falling into poverty (or deeper into poverty) during the worst part of the recession.  No president in recent memory has done more on this issue. 

My hope is that sometime soon President Obama will take the opportunity to speak directly to those living in poverty in America - the numbers are too high - and offer hope directly to those who struggle each day to find food and shelter, many while working. We cannot afford cuts in anti-poverty programs in the new budget.  But make no mistake:  President Obama's economic agenda will help reduce poverty if the GOP gets out of the way and stops playing politics with the economy.

I'm deeply proud of our president for again articulating a moral vision for the United States.  

Photo Credit:  Whitehouse.gov

Religious People Must Condemn New York Attacks

All people of faith - and all Americans in general - must condemn the firebomb attacks this weekend in New York against a Mosque, a small temple where Hindu services are performed, and two other locations (one a Muslim owned business and another a private home where Christians live).  Governor Andrew Cuomo was absolutely correct to say that the attacks "go against everything we stand for as New Yorkers and Americans."  100 worshippers were in the Mosque at the time of the bombing.  Thankfully, there were no injuries.   

We are living during a time of increased religious bigotry directed largely at Muslims and orchestrated as part of a political campaign to divide Americans along religious lines.  Our nation was founded on religious freedom and has grown onto to most religiously pluralistic society on earth.  That diversity has brought many gifts to the United States.  Those who seek to undermine religious freedom seek to undermine the core principles of our democracy.  It is particularly important that those of us who are Christian - the dominant faith tradition in the U.S. - stand up for religious minorities and their right to worship freely.  As The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. once said: injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.  

When one faith is under attack all faiths are under attack.

"Preaching the Occupy gospel -- or not" | My Interview On #OWS @MktplaceRadio

APM's Marketplace interviewed me for a story aired this evening on the Occupy Wall Street Movement in which they broadcast brief portions of a sermon I delivered at Ainsworth United Church of Christ about the movement and Christanity.  For the "other side" of the story they quoted the director of the Institute on Religion on Democracy (IRD) who said: "It’s usually problematic to try to identify Jesus Christ with any particular political or economic agenda."  That's ironic since IRD is a conservative political organization and not a religious group that advocates for right-wing economic policies that hurt those Jesus would have called the "least of these." 

In @washingtonpost: "Churches help Occupy movement survive crackdowns, winter"

The Washington Post has a story up tonight via Religion News Services about church involvement in the Occupy Wall Street Movement.  You'll read mention of Portland's First Congregational United Church Church of Christ and First Unitarian Church.  There are also a couple of quotes from me.  Click here.

The Christian spirit rests with Occupy protestors

My latest op-ed in The Oregonian. . Please read, "like," share on Facebook and comment.


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What Does The Lord Require Of Portland? #ows #p2 #occupyportland

Last night 25 clergy and other religious leaders stood with Occupy Portland.  This morning my sermon at Ainsworth United Church of Christ - What Does The Lord Require of Portland? - reflected on that experience and the overall Occupy Wall Street movement. You can watch the video here.

Our focus Scripture readings this morning included Isaiah 5: 1-7 and Matthew 25: 14-30.

Slower internet connection? Hit the "HD" button to turn off the high definition and watch this video in standard definition.

Occupy Portland was dismantled late this morning by the Portland Police Bureau - while we were in church - after a mostly peaceful night.  Our aim in being present all-night Saturday into early Sunday morning was to bear witness to the events and to promote non-violence.  We offered prayers for the demonstrators and police, lit candles and sang hymns. 

A statement of support for Occupy Portland was also issued on Friday evening by Portland's larger interfaith community. 

We concluded our service today with a prayer for our city: 

Below are some photos taken by K. Kendall that are used here with permission of the interfaith gathering at Occupy Portland on Saturday evening.  Additional photos can be seen here.

This final picture of myself with Rev. Kate Lore was taken on an iPhone.

Related Link:  Occupy America:  A Great New Awakening 

Clergy Call On Police, Occupy Oregon To Remain Non-Violent @OccupyOregon @PortlandPolice @MayorSamAdams

Press Release

The Rev. Kate Lore and The Rev. Chuck Currie will lead a delegation of clergy to monitor the planned eviction of Occupy Oregon from Portland area parks.

Lore is the social justice minister at Portland's First Unitarian Church and Currie is a minister in the United Church of Christ.

"Many clergy from across Oregon and the nation have supported the Occupy Wall Street movement.  We commend the non-violent nature of the protests and appreciate thus far the response from Mayor Sam Adams and the Portland Police Bureau," said Lore and Currie.  "At this time, however, we call on Mayor Adams and the Police Bureau to act with the utmost restraint on Saturday night.  Violence of the sort seen in Oakland cannot be tolerated.  We will be watching."

"We also call on the demonstrators at Occupy Oregon to remain non-violent.  The issues raised by the Occupy Wall Street  are important and must be heard.  Violence will overshadow the message about equality that Americans must face," said Currie and Lore. 

Lore and Currie are in touch with other clergy in the Metro area who have expressed support for Occupy Oregon and plan to be present throughout the night to bear witness to the events as a show of solidarity with the protestors.  "Our prayers are with the protestors, the police and the mayor during this difficult moment," said Lore and Currie.  "We believe the Occupy Wall Street movement to be a prophetic act that deserves support."       

Below please find an Interfaith Statement also released today:

We, the undersigned faith leaders of Portland, Oregon, affirm and see in the spirit of Occupy Portland and the Right 2 Dream Too the power of community, call to compassion and democracy and justice renewed.  The Occupy movement in particular has called into question both the inequities and inhumanity in much of our country’s political and economic system.   

Our religious traditions are clear: We are called to lift up the needs of those living on the margins and to challenge the inequities that impoverish the many for the benefit of the few.  The voices of our neighbors are clear: the American dream is compromised; the stability and well being of many of our people are slipping away; and in our politics, honesty and fairness are dissipating.   We identify with the protestors concerns regarding militarism, political and economic inequality and the onrushing crisis of climate change and insist that these concerns must be discussed and acted upon at all levels of American society.

While we may differ as to the tactics of these movements and their future, we urge that differences be resolved in a spirit of mutual respect and nonviolence and that the use of force is antithetical to these values. We ask that the primary focus of the public debate be not about forms of protest but rather on the larger spiritual, moral and ethical questions that these occupations raise.  

We therefore commit ourselves to the restoration of justice for all in our economy and compassion in our politics and that together we might behold a revolution of values for all of our people.  We ask all Oregonians to join us in this commitment and to listen attentively to the needs, hopes and dreams expressed by all who are suffering and dispossessed.  In doing so, we join together in democracy renewed and the building of a nation of possibility for all persons.

Rev. Dr. John Paul Davis, Minister for Outreach, St. Stephen’s Episcopal Parish
Pastor Dennis Andersen, St. James Lutheran Church
Rev. Kate Lore, Social Justice Minister, First Unitarian Universalist Church
Rabbi Michael Cahana, Senior Rabbi, Congregation Beth Israel
Rev. Dr. William Sinkford, Senior Pastor, First Unitarian Universalist Church
Rev. Dennis Parker, Rector, St Stephen’s Episcopal Church
Rev. Dr. Anton DeWet, Senior Pastor, First Congregational United Church of Christ
Rev. Dr. David Wheeler, Senior Pastor, First Baptist Church
Mr. David Leslie, Executive Director, Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon

Jesus And The #OccupyJerusalem Movement: A Sermon On Christianity And The #OccupyWallStreet Movement @occupyoregon #p2

This weekend I had the pleasure of preaching at Arlington Community United Church of Christ in the Bay Area.  The Rev. Tony Clary, a seminary colleague and friend, is the pastor.  My sermon dealt with the Christian church's responsibility to support the goals of the Occupy Wall Street Movement.  You can watch the video below:

Jesus And The #OccupyJerusalem Movement: A Sermon On Christianity And The #OccupyWallStreet Movement from The Rev. Chuck Currie on Vimeo.

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Related Link: Occupy America: A New Great Awakening

Occupy America: A New Great Awakening @HuffPostRelig #OWS #occupyamerica @occupyoregon

For Christians, supporting the Occupy America protests should be clear-cut. The protesters are lifting up principles of compassion, justice and love. These principles are central to the Christian faith.

My latest op-ed on The Huffington Post.

Why I Went To #OccupyPortland: It Was The Christian Thing To Do | #OccupyAmerica #OccupyWallStreet #OWS

I came out here today to show my support for the protesters. The United Church of Christ is concerned with the growing inequity in this nation--it's a deeply moral issue. -Reverend Chuck Currie (via Oregon Public Broadcasting)

Earlier today I stopped by Occupy Portland to show my personal support for the non-violent protests occurring across our nation that are calling attention to growing inequity and poverty in the United States.  I'm particularly impressed with the number of young people involved.

For Christians, supporting the Occupy America protests should be clear-cut.  The protesters are lifting up principles of compassion, justice and love.  These principles are central to the Christian faith.  

We need to do more to address the truly fundamental problems facing our nation.  As a start, we need Congress to pass President Obama's American Jobs Act.

But we also need to dig more deeply and make the American economy work not just for the wealthy and the largest corporations but for the common good of all Americans - while at the same time taking note of our place in the global community.  

I'll continue to support the Occupy America movement as long as it remains non-violent and positive and I urge the Portland Police Bureau and other cities to treat protesters with respect as they exercise their democratic rights to assemble and speak.

Supporting the Occupy America movement is the Christian thing to do.    

Prayer For Labor Day

God of love and justice, we come to You this Labor Day asking for Your presence and guidance. You have asked us to walk with our brothers and sisters and told us there are no strangers among us. Yet, we still turn against You and the law You have given us to love one another as we love ourselves. As the Psalm says, we know that good will comes to those who are generous and lend freely, and to those who conduct their affairs with justice. However, we have sometimes failed to be generous with our time and resources, and have neglected opportunities to treat others with human dignity.

God, as we remember those who are struggling and organizing for a living wage, healthcare, and human dignity in their workplaces, remind us this Labor Day that You have called us to walk in solidarity with our brothers and sisters, as we conduct our affairs with love and justice. May it be so.

- reprinted from Interfaith Worker Justice

 

U.S. Jewish, Christian Groups Condemn Terrorist Attacks In Israel; Demand Settlement Halt

The attacks this week in Israel, as Human Rights Watch reports, are unjustified and undermine the cause of peace:

(Jerusalem) – Attacks by unidentified gunmen that killed at least six Israeli civilians and wounded dozens more in southern Israel on August 18, 2011, were an egregious assault on the right to life, Human Rights Watch said today.

“Attacking civilians with firearms, bombs, and rockets shows an abominable disregard for human life,” said Joe Stork, deputy Middle East director at Human Rights Watch.

Churches for Middle East Peace noted the response:

At least six Palestinians in Gaza were killed in Israeli airstrikes in response to the attack. A correspondent for Ma’an News said that the home in Rafah that was bombed belonged to Popular Resistance Committees official Khaled Shaath. Official Israeli sources said the IDF raids in Gaza had killed the PRC leaders who it suspects organized these raids as well as the kidnapping of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit who has been held captive by Hamas since 2006. The IDF says that at least 10 rockets were fired from Gaza into Israel following Israel’s airstrike. Two of the rockets caused damage and injuries in the Israeli port city of Ashdod.

On-going violence is not the only factor that continues to hinder peace efforts:

As protests about the high cost of living in Israel continued in the streets for the fourth week, the Israeli government continued with its effort to expedite the construction of new housing in settlements in East Jerusalem and the West Bank. With Monday’s announcement of plans for 277 additional units in the West Bank settlement of Ariel, the government has approved the construction of more than 5,800 new homes in the occupied territories in less than two weeks.

In a statement announcing the approval of new construction in Ariel, the Israeli Defense Ministry stated that more than one-third of the new units will house settlers evacuated from Gaza in 2005. With a population of around 18,000, Ariel has seen few housing approvals in recent years. The settlement is located deep inside of the West Bank, more than 10 miles from the Green Line or pre-1967 line. Israelis insist that Ariel will be kept in any final agreement, but Palestinians say they need the area for a future state.

The Middle East Quartet released a statement on Tuesday expressing great concern about Israel’s recent announcements about new building plans in East Jerusalem and the West Bank. The document asserted, “The Quartet reaffirms that unilateral action by either party cannot prejudge the outcome of negotiations and will not be recognized by the international community.” U.S. State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said Monday, "Like every American administration for decades, we do not accept the legitimacy of continued settlement activity."

J Street, the U.S. Jewish group which condemned the terrorist acts along with Human Rights Watch and others, also issued a statement earlier stating that further Israeli settlements will destroy efforts to develop a lasting peace:

J Street strongly opposes the Israeli government’s announcement of new housing development in the outlying settlement of Ariel.

In calling the new housing “unhelpful” or “counterproductive,” the Obama administration is understating the enormous damage that daily announcements of new settlement construction are doing to the chances for a two-state solution.

This month, over 80 Members of Congress are visiting Israel. We urge them to see – as their fellow Congressmen who visit the region with the J Street Education Fund do – the damage that ongoing settlement construction in places like Ariel or the Jerusalem suburbs over the Green Line are doing to the chances for a peaceful two-state solution.

These announcements constitute exactly the sort of unilateral action that undercut Israel’s argument that the Palestinians should refrain from unilateral steps such as appealing to the United Nations as they try to create a viable state on the West Bank.

We urge the Members of Congress visiting Israel to gain further first-hand knowledge of the situation on the ground by visiting the expanding settlements and to take advantage of the opportunity they have in meeting with Israeli officials on their trip to make clear America’s long-standing opposition to these developments.

Please keep the people of Israel and Palestine in your prayers and reach out to members of Congress to demand that they fully embrace a two-state solution.

Poll Shows Muslim Americans Loyal To U.S. (How Will Tea Party, Peter King React?)

Despite all the "bad news" there is good news in a new poll:

A decade after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, a Gallup poll released Tuesday found that the vast majority of Muslim Americans say they are loyal to the United States and optimistic about the future, even though they are more likely than other religious groups to say they recently experienced discrimination.

Nine out of 10 Muslim Americans said that their co-religionists in the United States were not sympathetic to Al Qaeda, the group held responsible for the 2001 attacks. Majorities in other religious groups agreed that Muslim Americans did not sympathize with Al Qaeda, but the percentages were much lower.

The poll in many ways contradicts the stereotype of Muslim Americans as an alienated and discontented religious minority. It was conducted by telephone from Feb. 10 to March 11, 2010, and Oct. 1 to 21, 2010, by the Abu Dhabi Gallup Center, a Gallup-affiliated research group based in the United Arab Emirates. The poll, which included interviews with 2,482 adults of whom 475 said they were Muslim, has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus seven percentage points for Muslims.

“It’s not a completely rosy picture,” said Mohamed Younis, senior analyst with the Gallup Center for Muslim Studies in Washington and an author of the study.

“The prejudice and discrimination are definitely there, and that’s something we have consistently seen in the data,” Mr. Younis said. “But at the same time many of the people in the Muslim-American community seem to be doing relatively well, and part of their doing well is being able to be full-fledged Americans, to participate in the American experience.”

The poll found that Muslim Americans were the most likely of any religious group to express confidence in the fairness of elections. The researchers speculated that this might be because of their high levels of support for President Obama, who said early in his term that he would make it a priority to repair relationships with the Muslim world.

One of President Obama's greatest successes since assuming office is largely changing the nature of America's reputation across the globe from one that is adversarial to one that is partnership based.  His speech in Cairo went along way toward building bridges in the Muslim world.

More importantly, President Obama's steadfast support of Muslim Americans has helped to build trust that was violated during the previous administration.  President Obama deserves credit, for example, for speaking out in support of building a new mosque in New York City and for having his administration refute charges made by U.S. Rep. Peter King that Muslim Americans are disloyal.

Muslim Americans have proven time and time again that like most Americans they are committed to our democracy - we witness this daily as they serve in public office, serve in the armed forces, and work as first responders - and believe as all good Americans do that E pluribus unum - Out of many, one.  Those in the Tea Party and on right-wing talk radio will continue to bash Muslims to divide Americans along religious and cultural lines but each day ordinary Muslim Americans show us the path to a better America is built through unity and common purpose. 

Invoking 14th Amendment A Moral Option To Solve Debt Ceiling Impasse

My latest on The Huffington Post