On America's 250th

One of the many reasons to be grateful for kids who are in their 20s is that I can sit in the backseat of our car on a raod trip with Scout cuddled up next to me and one of the kids is driving! Ah freedom!

Speaking of freedom, as we all know, this weekend is the 4th of July - the 250th celebration of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Wherever you may be, I hope you have a wonderful celebration of this day.

For this day, I wanted to share three things that have spoken to me this week around the Semiquincentennial of the founding of our country. One is a portion of a liturgy created for a multifaith service to celebrate the day. Another is a prayerful poem. And the third will take a bit longer - it is a multi-part podcast series on teh founding of our country. I hope one or more of these speak to you as they have been speaking to me.

The Liturgy - Rev. MaryAnn McKibben Dana

My friend MaryAnn has been part of planning an interfaith celebration of the 250th where she serves in Northern Virginia. For her part, she wrote this prayer and then shared the verses (including one that she wrote) of This Land Is Your Land by Woody Guthrie.

Holy One, known by many names
yet beyond our understanding—

Eternal One, outside of human history
yet always at work within it:

We come together at this particular moment,
with the words of our ancestors fresh in our ears:

O beautiful for spacious skies…

Give me your tired, your poor…

The inheritance of justice is shared by some, not yet by all…

We hold these truths to be self-evident…

God shed his grace on thee…

That all are created equal…

The blessings in which some, this day, rejoice, are not enjoyed in common…

That we are endowed by our Creator with certain unalienable Rights…

Yes you, our Creator, are present.
And may what we do here today inspire and encourage all who gather,

That we would fulfill the promise of those who came before—
That a new birth of freedom would be for us and all who come after us.

May it be so.
Amen.

And then the song
This land is your land, this land is my land
From California to the New York island,
From the redwood forest to the Gulf Stream waters;
This land was made for you and me.

Here are the additional verses that MaryAnn wrote to the song in the prayerful hope of how we keep working on helping America live up to its founding ideals.

In all our history with its twists and turning,
Remains a vision for which we’re yearning:
A world of justice, for every neighbor
This land, with room for you and me. (Refrain)

The work of freedom remains unfinished
This nation’s story, not yet unblemished
Yet we keep working, striving together
In this land that’s made for you and me (Refrain)

When we see each other in all our beauty
And work together as civic duty
Our nation’s promise, is real at last…
This land will be for you and me. (Refrain)

Original Post

The Poem - A Life of Self-Evident Truths

Rev. David Long-Higgins serves as the conference minister for one of the regional bodies of the United Church of Christ. He wrote this prayerful poem connected to this day in our country’s history. It is fairly lengthy so I'll just include part of it and then link to the rest

Yes, renew in us a commitment
 To Your self-evident truths
 
 That a life of flourishing
 Is a birthright You envision
 For all Your people
 Everywhere in every time.
 
Yes, renew in us a commitment
 To Your self-evident truths
 
 That You bestow Your freedom
 As a gift for us to bless others
 Empowered by Your agape love.

Full Prayerful Poem

The Podcast - The Founding Fathers

The Noiser podcast network specializes in historical series that are both deeply researched and also incredibly engaging. The first that I listened to from them was Titanic: Ship of Dreams. I later listened to their series on the D-Day Invasion which was also tremendous. This week, they released the first episodes of a new series on the Founding Fathers and the early history of our country. I have listened to the first three episodes and it has been such a great listen. Here’s how they describe the series:

The tale of American independence is about more than just a handful of patriotic men. It features a cast of millions - men and women, enslaved and free, indigenous and colonial. We'll explore lesser-known stories in this immense fight for liberty... and ask who lost out along the way...Brought to life with immersive sound design and original music, plus contributions from leading historians and descendants of those involved.

Here’s the main website. You can listen on that webpage or download it (free) from any of the major podcast apps.

In closing, I wanted to share this photograph from Scout and my walk at Winton Woods on Thursday morning. It was such a gift of a moment to receive this beauty. There's so much that it speaks to me but not the least of which is what we often pray... God, illuminate my path and show me way. On this 250th 4th of July weekend, that is my prayer for me and for us. Lord, illumine our path and show us the way.

And a reminder that Rev. Jim Brazell will be helping to lead in worship this weeked while I am away. I am grateful for Jim’s willingness to help and I look forward to hearing what the Spirit has laid on his heart to share this weekend.

Grace, Peace, Love, Hope, and Joy,
Pastor Ed