The Talk (continues from You Are the Salt)

Matthew 5:21-48

In recent days I have heard black and brown fathers and mothers speaking of “The Talk”. This is not a about the birds and the bees. It is a cautionary conversation of how to remain safe while driving. The talk is about how to behave in a way that will preserve their lives. I am embarrassed, saddened, and ashamed every time I hear that this conversation needs to take place, even as I know it is necessary.

When one is confronted with oppressive power structures that can imprison, injure, and even kill you because you are somehow different, extra care and caution is required if one is to have any sense of safety in the world. In some way, at some time, all people who are disenfranchised get to hear “The Talk”. For them, extra vigilance and extra effort is part of being “accepted” in society generally. It is a kind of detente that will hopefully lead to a more hospitable welcome in the future.

In 1960, after I first lost my eyesight, Saphronie Peterson, my fourth-grade teacher, herself blind, told me that I was going to have to put in some extra effort if I was going to keep up with my class. And if I were going to compete with the sighted world, I would need to work even harder because, as a blind person, I would always have to be better than my sighted peers just to be treated as equal. Somehow average was never going to be the goal.

As a blind pastor, I can tell you that I learned Ms. Peterson was right—average is not enough. When I again lost my sight in 2010 while serving a call to a congregation, I learned they no longer thought that I could be their pastor. I was asked to resign, take disability, and be satisfied. I refused to take permanent disability. Therefore, after several years, my continued roster status was in question, and I needed to all but beg for an active call to ministry. I certainly did not feel like my call to serve had ended, but I needed administrative confidence in order to even get an interview. I had some professional advocates and a new bishop who was willing to listen, but it was an uphill road.

Even with the professional support, convincing congregations that I could be a spiritual leader, that I could preach, teach, and administer the sacraments effectively, was questioned. Each interview had its challenges. But in the process, I have been blessed by some amazing people and served several congregations along the way. Still average could never be the goal.

Wherever the standards are established, I have always tried to surpass that mark. I have not always succeeded, but I have always made the effort. For those of you who are not part of the white, able-bodied, standard setting community, you know what I am talking about. Life and physical well-being may not be the only threat in an unwelcoming world. And so, we all need “the talk”. It is there to keep this newly formed community safe.

To this newly formed community created on the mountainside, to this newly empowered group of people, Jesus says, "You can’t be this new community and just live up to the standards of the past. That could get you killed, on crosses/trees along the way, in courts of Rome, by refusing the demands of soldiers/police, by following leaders that do not bring life to the living body of Christ. You have heard it said, … but I say, you’re going to have to be more circumspect than that if you are going to be treated as equals. The world is going to expect more of you because you are my follower.

“No longer is refraining from murder, enough, even nothing more than hateful thought and demeaning language will bring judgment on you. So, find ways of being reconciled before going to court because you know the consequences of putting your future in the hands of the oppressor.

 “You have heard it said, do not commit adultery, but for you, my followers, you will need to be more careful. Establish healthy boundaries. Don’t leer. Don’t use language with intentional double meanings. And in the midst of this new community, if those with vision lead you astray, be prepared to remove them. If the working hands of the new community offend, be prepared to remove them. There is a standard of purity that the world expects, and, if this community is to thrive, it is necessary that there is a singleness of purpose that all will witness.

 “The standards for divorce are to be seriously considered. Divorce affects not only the one who is being divorced but the whole community. Still, let it be understood, God does not intend for us to live in abusive, non-lifegiving relationships. God intends for us to not just survive in the world, God gives us gifts to share intending that we all should thrive.

 “The standard of recompense that has served in the past will not satisfy. Stand firm; do not let those who would strike you down succeed. Remain in the game; let the world know that you will not go quietly. Show the people how determined you are; carry the soldiers load farther than he demands. Resistance is not done in a single act but through persistently standing up again and again until God’s beloved aspirational kingdom of heaven becomes a reality. There will be days when you will not believe that you have the energy to go on, but those who will follow you depend on your faith, courage, and steadfastness.

 “It is easy to love the people who love you, but it is necessary to love those who oppose you, who do not want you to succeed. Yes, love them, pray for them. Heap coals of goodness upon their heads and prove that you are able to continue the struggle in faith, with hope, seeking wholeness in Christ.”

 Learning to live in God’s communion which we know as the body of Christ is going to require work if we are to keep up with our class, so we need to hear “The Talk” in order to be safe. And if we are going to compete in the society of the standards makers, we are going to need to be better in order to be regarded as equal. It can be exhausting, but that is the place we need to claim in the public square if we are to have a voice and room to participate in the world. Remember, God loves you even when the world does not. Keep the faith. Know who you are and whose you are. Resist in peace. Speak truth to power. Pray for your oppressors.