Rev. Shelia O’Mara

Moderator, 189^th General Assembly of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church

 

This first week of 2021 has turned out to be quite the start of what many of us hoped would be the beginning of a new year that would bring the end to a pandemic that has disrupted our lives in ways that we are still wrestling with and still do not know how it will all turn out.  I think it is safe to say many of us have also prayed that somehow whether at our government leadership level or right in our own communities we can find ways to bring healing and unity and find our way out of the divisiveness which has plagued us for many, many years as a nation.  I do not know about you, but I am still processing the events of the week.  It seems that the observance and message of Epiphany on Wednesday, January 6 has been consumed by other national events that day:  the contentious U.S. Senate race in Georgia, the Save America rally in Washington, D.C., the certification of the Electoral College results by both chambers of Congress, and finally the deplorable breach of the U.S. Capitol and desecration of a symbolic place that represents who we are as a democratic republic.   If you are like me, Wednesday night was a restless night with not much sleep as I wondered what has become of us a nation. Somewhere in the wee hours of the morning of Thursday, January 7, I happened to come across a video of my former boss, Senate Chaplain Barry Black (retired Navy Rear Admiral, former Chief of Navy Chaplains).  Here is the transcript of his prayer on the floor of the Senate chamber just after the Senate certified the Electoral College results of the presidential election.  His words strike at the heart of what I think we as a people of faith, and a nation, need to hear.

“Let us pray. Lord of our lives and Sovereign of our beloved nation, we deplore the desecration of the United States Capitol building, the shedding of innocent blood, the loss of life and the quagmire of dysfunction that threatened our democracy.

These tragedies have reminded us that words matter, and the power of life and death is in the tongue. We have been warned that eternal vigilance continues to be freedom’s price.

Lord, you have helped us remember that we need to see in each other a common humanity that reflects your image. You have strengthened our resolve to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, domestic as well as foreign.

Use us to bring healing and unity to our hurting and divided nation and world. Thank you for what you have pleased our lawmakers to accomplish in spite of threats to liberty. Bless and keep us. Drive far from us all the wrong desires, incline our hearts to do your will and guide our feet on the path of peace.

And God Bless America. We pray in Your Sovereign name. Amen”.

In his prayer, Chaplain Black quotes scripture: “The tongue has the power of life and death.” (Proverbs 18:21).  Once words are spoken, they cannot be taken back.  One can apologize but the words are still out there.  It is sort of like trying to put toothpaste back into the tube. Our words can speak life and death.  They can build up or tear down.

James in his New Testament letter talks to a group of people who tore each other apart with their words.  He admonishes them to be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger.  He also makes a connection between our words and actions because often our words lead to actions, ones that build up or tear down.

In Mark’s gospel (Mark 7: 14-23), Jesus is talking about the greater concern is not so much what we eat that makes us unclean but what comes out of a person that is defiling.  The concern should be about what affects the heart.  It is a heart issue that is inside each of us.  The issue is not everyone else.  It is what is inside each of us.  External words and actions come from internal places, the heart.

As I continue to “marinate” on the events of this week, I realize that in fact the message of Epiphany that I spoke about in my New Year’s pastoral letter to the Church has not gotten lost after all.  God, through Jesus Christ, has broken into our world.  I choose to recognize God’s mercy and grace in the everyday stuff around me, even when it means I am outside my comfort zone and listen to voices of God’s children that I might not normally pay attention to.   The place to start, for me, is to examine my heart, my words, my actions and let the Holy Spirit engage me in ways that help me bear witness to and affirm the good news of Jesus Christ in authentic ways.

May this prayer of the Senate chaplain help guide us all in the days and weeks ahead.

 

Rev. Shelia O’Mara

Moderator, 189^th General Assembly of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church