Yesterday was John Wesley’s birthday– his 312th (June 17, 1703). Wesley and his brother Charles founded the movement called Methodism which eventually grew into the United Methodist Church and its many siblings. Throughout that history, particularly in America, there have been victories and defeats. Our churches have been characterized by explosive growth and dramatic decline. We have stood on the side of social change in such movements as Prohibition, suffrage for women, and the ordination of women into positions of leadership in the Church. We have stood against the side of social change by giving in to racism– on every level: from splitting the denomination over the issue of slavery before the Civil War (Methodist Episcopal Church and the Methodist Episcopal Church, South; this is why SMU, founded in 1911, is called Southern Methodist University) to re-unifying in 1939, only to formally exclude African Americans by creating the shameful Central Jurisdiction, which was later abolished in 1968.
One of those sister Methodist denominations to split as a direct result of racism in the church is the African Methodist Episcopal Church (AME). I awoke this morning to hear the shocking news of a white man entering the Emanuel AME Church during a prayer meeting last night and killing nine people, including the pastor of the church (who also serves as a state senator). The police are investigating this as a hate crime, and the FBI will assist. The gunman remains at large.
So our hearts break this morning:
- For the racism and hatred that led a person to act so horrifically
- For the institution of the Black Church in America, which has been widely attacked throughout its history, yet has endured as a symbol of hope
- For the culture of gun violence that makes our churches, schools, and government buildings unsafe for all of us
- For the brokenness that divides the Church, despite the Gospel’s call for unity among believers