LIBERATION LECTIONARY

Liberated Faith

“Only a broad movement for human rights can prevent the Black Revolution from becoming isolated and can insure ultimate success.” - Pauli Murray

Faith is our theme for week two of Pentecost in Pride month. Download the full devotional, Liberated Pride.

Faith is how many people live and identify when they choose to follow a religion, or commit to a cause. Faith is the seventh principle of Kwanzaa. While it is often defined similarly to the word belief, the two words are different. Belief means feeling sure, acknowledging or accepting something as true, with proof or without proof. Faith means having such confidence in a set of values, a person or outcome that it impacts what you do, and who you are. We communicate our beliefs, we live our faiths.  

Faith was sealed and proved by Holy Spirit at Pentecost. People who could not understand each other were all of a sudden sharing and receiving God’s promises in their homeland tongues. Groups of people who would never socialize with each other connected in spiritual and material ways. By faith, in the power of the Holy Spirit, we can be our whole selves, and change our lives. Faith is the proof of what we believe. We believe that God designed a welcoming world where justice brings peace. That world is not yet built, but by faith we will work with the Holy Spirit to make it happen.

Meditation: Hebrews 11.1-3

Now faith is the substance of what we hope for and the evidence of what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for. By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.

Inhale, fill your whole self with breath. Then say: Faith is the substance of things hoped for.

Exhale slowly and say: Faith is the evidence of things unseen.

Inhale: Faith is proof of God’s pride in me. Exhale: Faith is the evidence of things unseen.

Inhale: Faith is proof of God’s welcoming world.  Exhale: Faith is the evidence of things unseen.

Inhale: Faith gives us power, for being and becoming our whole selves. Exhale: Faith is the evidence of things unseen.

Daily Readings - The Story of Pentecost

Sunday: Galatians 5:22-23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 

Monday: Acts 2.18-21 Especially upon oppressed people of all genders, I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy. And I will show portents in the heaven above and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and smoky mist. The sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood, before the coming of the Lord’s great and glorious day. Then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.

Tuesday: Acts 2.22-28 “Fellow Israelites, listen to what I have to say: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with deeds of power, wonders, and signs that God did through him among you, as you yourselves know— this man, handed over to you according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of those outside the law. But God raised him up, having released him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for him to be held in its power. For David says concerning him, ‘I saw the Lord always before me, for he is at my right hand so that I will not be shaken; therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced moreover, my flesh will live in hope. For you will not abandon my soul to Hades or let your Holy One experience corruption. You have made known to me the ways of life; you will make me full of gladness with your presence.’

Wednesday: Acts 2.32-33 This Jesus God raised up, and of that all of us are witnesses. Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you see and hear.

Thursday: Acts 2.37-39 Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and to the other apostles, “Brothers, what should we do?” Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you, for your children, and for all who are far away, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to him.”

Friday: Acts 2. 40-42 And he testified with many other arguments and exhorted them, saying, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” So those who welcomed his message were baptized, and that day about three thousand persons were added. They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.

Saturday: Acts 2.43-47 Awe came upon everyone because many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. All who believed were together and had all things in common; they would sell their possessions and goods and distribute the proceeds to all, as any had need. Day by day, as they spent much time together in the temple, they broke bread at home and ate their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having the goodwill of all the people. And day by day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved.

Black Music Month: Keep the Faith

Experience the “Keep the Faith” Gospel choir performance on youtube.

June is Black Music Month. We are sharing our favorite sub-genres of Black music. This week the sub-genre we’re celebrating is known by many as modern gospel, and contemporary gospel. The timeline of this genre is not exact, but its known as a type of gospel whose elements match R&B songs that are non-spiritual - what most people of faith know as “secular”. Gospel singers and choirs created performance experiences that could be played in clubs and in sanctuaries. And that is exactly what happened. Earlier modern gospel examples are Edwin, Walter and Tramaine Hawkins, and the Clark Sisters, whose acclaim was strongest in the 80s. Then in the 90s, additional artists of note are Keith Pringle, BeBe and CeCe Winans gave us “Heaven” and their brothers, The Winans, produced multiple records in this genre.  Kirk Franklin is probably the most successful artist in this genre, along with Fred Hammond. Another example of this style is the duo Mary Mary. Their song “Shackles” is one of the biggest so-called crossover hits of all time. 

This week’s meditation jam is a performance by vocalist Myrna Summers, of the Rev. Timothy Wright’s choral anthem “Keep the Faith”. The song opens with a bass solo, inviting us to expect a groove from this performance. The choir begins with the refrain, “keep the faith!”, which tells us the main idea of the song: what we are meant to sense emotionally, intellectually. Then the line “hold on” is on repeat. Later in the song, these two words are repeated dozens of times. This is the core activity that the writers and performers want us to cling to. Keep holding on - that is what it looks like to keep the faith. This is the how. Then Ms. Summers' voice shines through to tell us why. She sings “it won’t be long!”and the choir answers “before a change comes” indicating what’s on the way. 

Sometimes a song’s instrumentation is so good that the lyrics don’t matter. That is never the case in modern gospel, because the music is written specifically to carry a message, made clear by lyrics written in the genre whose message is made clear by its name: Gospel. 

For the people singing and listening, this song gives faith a bass and a back beat. Gospel music gives hope a strong melody to match the Spirit’s strong medicine. 

The Holy Spirit is said to be the author of inspiration and creativity. That’s certainly true for the greats of gospel music. During Black Music Month, especially as it falls during Pentecost Season, we are honored and blessed to remember the Spirit’s inspiration on all musical creators. In the Spirit of honoring and remembering those creative hearts and minds, we offer this prayer inspired by the inspired ones.

Keep the faith, my brother. Keep the faith, my sister. Hold on! Hold on! It won’t be long before your change comes. 

Dear Lord, we pray today for your Holy Spirit’s power to help us keep the faith. We desire your goodness and your glory. We are looking for you to show up in our lives, make faith-keeping one of our most dedicated actions. And Lord, today we pray for everyone who cannot call up the strength to keep the faith. No catchy song, no exciting choral performance is going to do it. 

How are we supposed to hold on and trust that a change is going to come, when many of our needs are going unmet? Many of our neighbors are without crucial resources. We are still fighting for our children’s lives, for protections over birthing bodies, for the rights of every human to chose their own identity as you reveal it to them, not as we designate for others. How are we supposed to hold on? 

No matter what the problem, I know that God can solve them.

Lord if you would, teach us to repeat this belief, and teach us to hold on to this as much as we hold on to your presence. Give us more than information about your power, give us a confidence that bears Holy Ghost certainty. Give us a guarantee that you will solve the sicknesses that plague us. 

And if you can just believe it, according to your faith you shall receive it.

There’s nothing too hard for my God - to work it out. God’s gonna work it out.

Creator, Artist, Mother, Father, God, you have given us the faith to believe. Your Spirit provides us the faith to receive. You are the substance of things we often dare not hope for.  You have given us a living, moving guarantor as evidence of the things we fear we will never perceive. Justice for your Black children. Freedom for oppressed and persecuted people around the world. Children everywhere, all over, shielded and supported. Liberated queerness in our time. 

Holding on! 

And now Holy Spirit, let us make a promise to and through you: that we will do what our ancestors did, what our mothers and movement mentors have taught us. We will hold on. The enslaved ancestors who gave us spiritual songs, the aunties and uncles, deacons and mother boards, our elders and our babies, all of the people in us have told us - Hold on. When it is difficult - help us to hold on.

When it seems hopeless - help us to hold on. 

When we cannot find employment. When we cannot seem to get healthy, or stay there. When our loved ones die. When our friends become enemies. When neighbors feud with neighbors. When parents despise their children. When politicians abuse their power. When we fail the earth. When we wage wars over pronouns. When we are refused care and compassion because of our identities. When we oppress people and discriminate against them. When our prejudice is showing through our pride flags. 

Help us to keep on holding on to you - and help us to help us to cling more closely to you Oh Lord, Oh Holy Spirit, than to our own understanding. Give us the faith that our ancient ones were commended for. By faith we pray your power and justice, so that we can know the fruits of your love, joy and peace. 

Aśe