The Rev. Greg Allen-Pickett opened his workshop at Stewardship Kaleidoscope by asking attendees to share observations on the political climate in their own congregations. Stewardship Kaleidoscope is a conference presented by the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.
His question produced a litany of frustration, anxiety, and dismay from pastors and church leaders.
Among the responses:
- “Suddenly everything is political.”
- “There is nothing that I can say that is not seen by someone as political.”
- “Everything I say is examined for a hidden agenda.”
“Politics and faith are colliding in our pews in ways that they have not been in recent time,” said Allen-Pickett, who referred to the Civil War split of the Presbyterian Church as a historical comparison. “There are even different versions of what our stewardship dollars should fund.”
But Allen-Pickett, pastor of First Presbyterian Church of Hastings, Nebraska, told workshop attendees that there is hope for stewardship messages in a time of political division in society and in church. Purple, he pointed out, may be used to describe congregations whose members reflect the full range of political views, but it is also the liturgical color of the two seasons in the church calendar that are focused on Christ — Advent and Lent. “By keeping our focus on the life and ministry of Christ, we have been able to have conversations about politics within the word, life, death and resurrection of Jesus,” he said.
Allen-Pickett shared stories from his church to illustrate that practice. A member of the congregation who serves on the local governing board visited him with news of a proposal to display the phrase “In God We Trust” in the courthouse and to solicit Allen-Pickett’s support. “I told him I didn’t think that was a good idea,” he said. “I think he was shocked, but we had a conversation about it.” The next day, another member came to express her disagreement with the proposal, citing her atheist husband’s opposition; he had also served in the military and felt strongly about the separation of church and state.
“So, I have two members of my congregation on opposite sides of a highly charged local issue,” Allen-Pickett said. “I ended up mediating a conversation between them to try to reach some understanding. It was hard, but I tried to model civil dialogue.”
He shared another illustration about how his church has a long relationship with Catholic Social Services. For one month every summer, church members make sandwiches and pack sack lunches. The program is popular and well attended. “We may disagree about how children ought to be fed, but we are not going to stop feeding them,” he said. “When your hands are covered in peanut butter and jelly, it’s hard to have fights.”
Finally, as part of capital campaign planning, he learned that “even solar panels can be political.” A retired ecotheology professor from nearby Hastings College advocated for installing such panels on the church roof as an act of environmental stewardship. The proposal was met with resistance from some members of the church until a conservative member who had installed panels on his weekend cabin touted the economic benefits.
“This two-pronged approach generated support across the political divide,” Allen-Pickett explained. “The church bought into it, and we are one of two buildings in town with solar panels.”
Stewardship, then, includes the financial and tangible gifts with which God has entrusted us, but also the relationships God calls us to build with each other. It is, Allen-Pickett said, “about our very lives and how we choose to live them. It is about how to make our lives a living offering to God.”
He offered four strategies for engagement in an age of sharp political division:
- Listen first.
- Focus on shared mission.
- Frame conversations biblically and theologically.
- Preach with hope.
“Almost every week, I say to my congregation that we are the hands and feet of Jesus, sharing the love and light of Christ,” Allen-Pickett said. “Our goal has always been to model the way of Christ. If I can point to the red letters in the Bible and I have built trust with them, they will come to me and have the conversation.”
Chuck Toney for the Presbyterian Foundation (Click here to read original PNS Story)
Let us join in prayer for:
Lucille Kearns, Summer Fellow, Office of Public Witness – Washington, Presbyterian Life & Witness
Katie Murray, Summer Fellow, Office of Public Witness – Washington, Presbyterian Life & Witness
Let us pray:
O God, help us to know each other and to appreciate the rich, cultural diversity that defines our sisters and brothers in the world. Amen.
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