52 Ways to Care for Creation
Martin Luther King Jr. Day
All right, why is Martin Luther King Jr. Day such a big deal?
1. It’s Our Holiday
How many holidays are dedicated to a pastor? We have got a couple for saints (Valentine and Patrick), but whatever Christian origin those holidays had they’re now drowned in romantic love and beer. In an age when marketers will use George Washington to sell anything, it is at least still considered tacky to offer MLK Day sales (though as Stephen Colbert pointed out in 2011, it’s happening).
“This holiday should be a big deal for churches,” our founder Brad Abare wrote about MLK Day, “Outside of Christmas and Easter, no other holiday represents the heart of God so much.”
Martin Luther King Jr. is our people. Churches should be embracing and celebrating this holiday like no other.
2. We Are Not Innocent
We tend to look back on the civil rights movement with rose colored glasses. It was a just cause and simply inevitable, right? Wrong. King went to jail. While sitting there, he wrote a letter and referenced the many Christians who stood silent:
“All too many others have been more cautious than courageous and have remained silent behind the anesthetizing security of stained-glass windows.”
While the church may be able to claim the greatest civil rights hero of the 20th century, we are also complicit in the injustice King stood against. For all the marches and lunch counter sit-ins, we forget that there were also “kneel-ins” targeting segregated churches. Yeah, the ‘bad guys’ weren’t just swinging batons and fire-bombing buses. Churches barred the doors and would not let people in.
Churches must own our broken past and work for a better future.
“This holiday should be a big deal for churches. Outside Christmas and Easter, no other holiday represents the heart of God so much.”
3. We Are Not Free at Last
We have not made it to the mountaintop yet. Electing (and reelecting) a black president is an incredible milestone, but it does not mean racial issues are behind us. See: Ferguson. People still argue about the details, but similar incidents—including Eric Garner and Tamir Rice—spark even more debate and protest.
If the headlines do not convince you, maybe the research will. We have come a long way in racial relations (say 74%), but 81% say we have a long way to go.
Your church should care about MLK Day because it is a ready-made opportunity to bring the gospel to this often-divisive issue. We are still short of King’s dream and we’ve got some work to do.
4. Speak Up for the Minority
“On the surface, most Americans agree that racial reconciliation matters,” says Ed Stetzer, executive director of LifeWay Research. “But we’re divided about how important this issue is. For many white Americans, progress on issues of race is a good thing but not urgent. For many African Americans, it’s front and center.”
Even if this issue is not pressing for you personally, it is an opportunity to speak up for the minority. That is something the Bible continually champions with calls to care for the “alien, the fatherless and the widow.”
I cannot say it enough: MLK Day is the church’s holiday.
How Can My Church Celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day?
OK, we get it. MLK Day is a holiday we should get behind. So, what can we do?
Lots. It is probably too late to plan your own event, but there is plenty you can do to take part in Martin Luther King Jr. Day and celebrate the legacy of this Baptist minister.
5. Not a Day Off
First and foremost, do not take the day off. Yes, it is a federal holiday. But it is also an opportunity to do good. Make it a day to volunteer. Look for local opportunities to serve and mobilize your church to take part.
6. Confront Racial Realities
A recent study showed there’s not much diversity among our friends. On average, for every 91 white friends a white person has, they have only one black friend. Blacks do better with 8 white friends for every 83 black friends. But a full 75% of white people have zero black friends.
Not an easy conversation is it? Kind of awkward.
But it is a conversation we need to have. Use MLK Day to address racial issues in your church, your families, your friends, and neighborhood.
(And let us be clear: A lack of diversity does not make anyone racist. These stats are the simple reality that were segregated, hopefully unintentionally. Let us change that.)
About the Author
Kevin D. Hendricks
When Kevin isn’t busy as the editor of Church Marketing Sucks, he runs his own writing and editing company, Monkey Outta Nowhere. Kevin has been blogging since 1998 and has published several books, including 137 Books in One Year: How to Fall in Love With Reading, The Stephanies, and all the Center for Church Communication’s books.
Web: KevinDHendricks.com Twitter: @KevinHendricks
CELEBRATE EARTH DAY SUNDAY 2020
The Bible is full of beautiful language and theology for celebrating God’s creation. Yet sometimes, in the rhythm of the liturgical year, it can be challenging to find a specific time in the Spring to focus as a church community on the theme of God’s creation. Earth Day Sunday provides just such an opportunity. Since 1970, communities have taken one day each year to be especially mindful of the Earth and its many gifts: April 22, Earth Day. Soon after, churches started celebrating God’s creation on the Sunday closest to Earth Day. This day has ecumenical and bipartisan roots.
This year’s theme, “The Fierce Urgency of Now”, comes from a quote from Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr: “We are now faced with the fact that tomorrow is today. We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now. In this unfolding conundrum of life and history, there “is” such a thing as being too late. This is no time for apathy or complacency. This is a time for vigorous and positive action.”
OUR RESPONSE TO COVID-19
While the Health Officer of San Mateo County has put in place a shelter in place order until April 7 that may or may not be extended, depending on recommendations from public health officials, The St. James family will continue to gather weekly for worship, just in a different way.
Until the shelter in place order lifts, this will be our plan:
- Sunday Bible study @ 10 am via the conference line. Call in and put your
phone on mute. Unmute when you have a comment, want to ask a question
or get clarification. - Sunday Worship @ 11 am via the conference line.For church service, call in,
and mute your phone. You will be unmuted three times during the service as
we strive to keep the service as authentically STJ as possible. - The call in number is: 1-877-285-8520 (no access code needed).
- Bible study will continue, via conference call on Wednesday evenings at
7:00pm. - Tithes and offerings can be given electronically through our Givelify app or
can be mailed to the church since it will continue as an essential service. - All other ministry activity will be postponed until the order lifts.
- The church building is not only being cleaned but sanitized each week and
this will continue for the foreseeable future. - Check in with one another. Being out of our routine can be unsettling and
isolating. A card of encouragement or a phone call may be a welcome
distraction.
Please remember to pray for one another, for the permanent cessation of this
virus, for healing of all infected and affected by it, and that we will all, as citizens
of the world, be kinder and more compassionate towards one another as a result.
WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH
During the month of March, we give a little extra attention to all of the amazing accomplishments of strong, determined women. Since 1987, the United States has formally recognized March as National Women’s History Month. Every woman has a story to tell and gifts to share with the world. So get ready, because this month is about honoring magnificent ladies, and we are ready to celebrate it to the fullest.
The National 2020 theme celebrates the women who have fought for woman’s right to vote in the United States. In recognition of the centennial of the 19th Amendment, we will honor women from the original suffrage movement as well as 20th and 21st century women who have continued the struggle (fighting against poll taxes, literacy tests, voter roll purges, and other more contemporary forms of voter suppression) to ensure voting rights for all.
LENT 2020
In Lent, we reflect on Christ’s ministry, death, and resurrection. We slow down, and examine our internal spiritual lives as well as the way we live out our Christian faith in the world.
Our faith teaches us that humans were put on this earth with the responsibility to be stewards. We also know our individual as well as collective U.S. lifestyles have led to serious harm to God’s good creation.
During this Lenten season we invite you to worship with us as we take time to learn, reflect, repent, ask God for forgiveness, and take concrete steps to change course.