Two days before this week’s catastrophic election, I was asked to do a Q&A with a church that utilized my book as the basis of a sermon series on Jesus’ teaching “love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven.”
This is a helpful piece. I think you’re hitting it right on the head - there will be a lot of churches that may disagree with the evils of a Trump administration, but will not have the courage to resist in ways that threaten their autonomy or cost real sacrifice on behalf of the vulnerable. Especially in white progressive churches whose social privileges (white, economically well off) will shield them personally from the harshest consequences of Trump.
Really appreciate your intervention and pressing us beyond the hagiography of the Confessing Church. The camps/interests you describe of that period map so well onto the patterns today. The collection of Jim Lawson essays Revolutionary Nonviolence is at the top of my stack right now. Feels like that’s what’s going to be needed for the work ahead.
Thank you Melissa! This is very interesting and helpful. As a pastor in a progressive Christian tradition, I am looking out and trying to see where the roads may lead. Your insights and historical context help shine a light for me today. Peace be with you!
"the realization that “Jesus is Lord” will lead us towards coordinated and organized resistance of the powers that work against God’s beloved" - yes! With you in the resistance.
Melissa, thank for your this insightful reflection. I was particularly struck by the fact that "almost every pastor trained in the illegal Confessing Church seminaries became a Nazi soldier." I know the basic contours of the Confessing Church story, but had never heard this. Is this from Barnett's work? If so, which book? I'd love to hear more of the story of how/why this happened.
This is a helpful piece. I think you’re hitting it right on the head - there will be a lot of churches that may disagree with the evils of a Trump administration, but will not have the courage to resist in ways that threaten their autonomy or cost real sacrifice on behalf of the vulnerable. Especially in white progressive churches whose social privileges (white, economically well off) will shield them personally from the harshest consequences of Trump.
Thank you. It is voices like yours that form a strain of Anabaptism I can call home.
Really appreciate your intervention and pressing us beyond the hagiography of the Confessing Church. The camps/interests you describe of that period map so well onto the patterns today. The collection of Jim Lawson essays Revolutionary Nonviolence is at the top of my stack right now. Feels like that’s what’s going to be needed for the work ahead.
Thank you Melissa! This is very interesting and helpful. As a pastor in a progressive Christian tradition, I am looking out and trying to see where the roads may lead. Your insights and historical context help shine a light for me today. Peace be with you!
"the realization that “Jesus is Lord” will lead us towards coordinated and organized resistance of the powers that work against God’s beloved" - yes! With you in the resistance.
Melissa, thank for your this insightful reflection. I was particularly struck by the fact that "almost every pastor trained in the illegal Confessing Church seminaries became a Nazi soldier." I know the basic contours of the Confessing Church story, but had never heard this. Is this from Barnett's work? If so, which book? I'd love to hear more of the story of how/why this happened.
https://www.livedtheology.org/resources/the-rise-and-fall-of-the-confessing-church/
Thanks so much! I look forward to reading/reflecting on this…