This is the final episode of a 3-part series. Steve Taylor and Ernesto Barriguete meet at Pilgrimage, an annual youth event in the NC Conference, just after the 2016 United States presidential election. During the event, a clothespin that stated: “Build That Wall” was placed on a Hispanic youth.
Announcements
Day 6 – Rev. Robin Jones
My mind takes me back to the winter of 2004. My husband, Eric Todd, was preparing to retire out of the North Carolina Army National Guard after 30 years of service, our son was twelve years old, and life was going great. But soon, a massive number of troops were to begin to deploy for Operation Iraqi Freedom. My husband’s troop was in the midst and I was not prepared to become a single parent.
I recall going to the altar and praying that God’s will be done and that regardless of the outcome, HE would give us the strength, comfort, and peace that we would need to get through this upheaval in our lives. Looking back 16 years, I am so grateful that HE gave this to us in love displayed to us by family, friends, church members, and even strangers. My faith never wavered during this deployment. Our family and friends never allowed us to feel depressed or lonely.
During this time, our Lord guided us as we never had a missed meal, received phone calls and drop-ins, and love packages sent to Todd and his fellow soldiers. When the backdoor to our house needed replacing, our church family came right over and completed the task and would not accept compensation. Love was rained down on us and carried us through, and it continues to do so!
Prayer
Dear Heavenly Father, you constantly amaze me with all your wonderful works. Thank you for loving us through all our doubts, fears, and frustrations. Loving you for the awesome people that you place in our lives at the right time and place. In your Son’s name, we pray! AMEN!
Rev. Robin Jones is the pastor of Gibson UMC in Gibson
Women’s History in the Methodist Movement
March is Women’s History Month, and the Methodist Church has a rich history of women’s leadership. Borrow these books to learn about this history and teach it to others. We also have some DVD documentaries on general women’s history to add to your watch list.
Ask the UMC is highlighting the stories of groundbreaking Black women in U.S. Methodist history including Ida Bell Wells-Barnett, Mary McLeod Bethune, Rev. Sallie Crenshaw, and Bishop Leontine T.C. Kelly.
Methodist Women’s History
Mothers in Israel: Methodist Beginnings Through the Eyes of Women by Donna L. Fowler-Marchant. Eighteenth-century women like Susanna Annesley Wesley, Sarah Ryan, Mary Bosanquet Fletcher, Frances Mortimer Pawson, Sarah Crosby, and many more were pivotal in the growth of the Methodist movement as class leaders, visitors to the sick, devotional writers, teachers, and even preachers. Discover the richness of their legacy of faithful witness through this exploration of their own theological writings and reflections and their message for the Church today. Rev. Dr. Fowler-Marchant is an elder in the NC Conference.
Nevertheless: American Methodists and Women’s Rights by Ashley Boggan Dreff. This book tells the story of American Methodist women’s efforts fight for women’s rights, beginning with the Women’s Christian Temperance Union and ending with the #MeToo movement. Each chapter documents particular Methodist women and provides the reader with a basic historic context of the time or situation at hand as it shows how Methodist women engaged and fought for women’s equality or women’s rights in American society and American Methodism. Dr. Boggan Dreff is the General Secretary of the General Commission on Archives and History.
Women Bishops of The United Methodist Church: Extraordinary Gifts of the Spirit by Sharon Zimmerman Rader and Margaret Ann Crain. Bishop Sharon Zimmerman Rader and Dr. Margaret Ann Crain interviewed the women bishops of The United Methodist Church, the first denomination to elect women to the episcopacy. Through the stories they collected, they learned what enabled these women to persevere, claim authority, define leadership in their own ways, and rise to the episcopacy. NC Conference Bishop Hope Morgan Ward is included in this book.
She Offered Them Christ: The Legacy of Women Preachers in Early Methodism by Paul W. Chilcote. This book collects the stories of Methodism’s early women preachers and fosters an understanding of John Wesley’s appreciation of and support for women in early Methodism. Women preachers in John Wesley’s day had his support, encouragement, and formal approval to travel and preach.
Spirituality and Social Responsibility: Vocational Vision of Women in the United Methodist Tradition edited by Rosemary Skinner Keller. Here is a collection of essays and primary source documents that tells the stories of pioneering ministries of United Methodist women–of diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds–from the eighteenth century. Each essay traces the individual faith journeys and self-understanding of its subject. The stories also reveal the sexism and racism that confronted each woman overtly or covertly in church and society, as well as their own attitudes toward it.
Biographies
Breaking Barriers: An African American Family & the Methodist Story by Angella P. Current. On July 19, 1984, Leontine Current Kelly was elected bishop of The United Methodist Church, making her the first African-American woman to become a bishop within a major American religious denomination. This book recounts the story of her journey while also illustrating the experience of African Americans within United Methodism, and the important roles that faith, the church, and family played in molding the character and work of numerous individuals throughout the denomination.
Anna Howard Shaw: The Work of Woman Suffrage by Trisha Franzen. Acknowledged by her contemporaries as the most outstanding woman suffrage orator of her time, Anna Howard Shaw was also one of the first women to be ordained in the Methodist Church. Challenging traditional gender boundaries throughout her life, she put herself through college, worked as a doctor, and built a tightly-knit family with her secretary and longtime companion Lucy E. Anthony.
Sojourner Truth: A Life, A Symbol by Nell Irvin Painter. Sojourner Truth was a freedom fighter for Blacks and for women. She was also, for a time, a Methodist. This biography explores her transformative life and its effect on those who encountered her, as well as the legacy that remains today.
A Wheel Within a Wheel: How I Learned to Ride the Bicycle with Some Reflections by the Way by Frances E. Willard. Frances Willard, founder of the Women’s Christian Temperance Union, fought for women’s suffrage and other social justice issues for workers and women. In 1888, she was one of five women elected as delegates to General Conference, but they were replaced by male reserves. She wrote this book after she took up bicycle-riding at the age of 53.
DVD Documentaries
Portrait of Susanna: The Story of Susanna Wesley written and performed by Lynette Bennett Danskin. The mother of John and Charles Wesley, founders of Methodism, is profiled in this one-act play. Amidst the hardships of an impoverished early eighteenth-century English home, Susanna trained her sons in a style of Christian discipline and spirituality that would forever leave its mark on world Christianity.
Julian of Norwich. This program looks at Julian of Norwich, recognized today as one of 14th century England’s most compelling mystics. A contemporary of Chaucer and survivor of the black plague, Julian received sixteen startling images of the crucified Christ that forever changed her life. Her descriptions of her visions in Revelations of Divine Love have given birth to enduring images of God’s nurturing and familial love that continue to inspire seekers today.
Not for Ourselves Alone: The Story of Elizabeth Cady Stanton & Susan B. Anthony by Ken Burns and Paul Barnes. Together, Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony fought for women everywhere, and their strong willpower and sheer determination still ripple through contemporary society. Ken Burns’s Emmy® Award-winning documentary recounts the trials, tribulations, and triumphs of two pioneers striving to give birth to the women’s movement.
One Woman, One Vote. Birthed in a small Methodist Church in upstate New York, the women’s suffrage movement is documented in this PBS video. Witness the 70-year struggle for women’s suffrage. Discover why the crusaders faced entrenched opposition from men and women who feared the women’s vote would ignite a social revolution.
Creation Care Moment for February: Environmental Justice
In the spirit of Black History Month, it is important to recognize the environmental racism and injustice endured by Black communities and other communities of color. This webinar explores the birth of the environmental justice movement in Warren County, North Carolina. Feel free to watch snippets of the Warren County presentation or the Q & A session afterwards to learn about the necessity of environmental justice in the present day.
What is the Creation Care Moment?
Every month, the NCCUMC Caretakers of God’s Creation Committee will provide a brief snippet of information surrounding sustainability in Connections. The moment will vary from the individual level all the way to the global level and seek to provide insight on how to become more aware of sustainability in our world. If you are interested in joining the Caretakers of God’s Creation Committee, please contact Jarrod Davis at jdavis@nccumc.org.
Day 5 – Rev. John Gumbo
Early morning in May 1963, as the sun was rising and the birds of the forest were singing songs of praise, in a small thatched mud house in Africa, a baby boy was born; weak and sick with no hope to survive. His mother, Victoria, a strong believer in God, told the priest to come and pray for the baby. The priest prayed for the water and sent it back with his brother to go and baptize the boy and name this baby John and said, “If he survives, he will be like John the Baptist.”
The father was not home but was at work. When he heard the news about birth, he rushed back home and found the newborn baby very sick. As a traditional healer, he named the baby Simbarashe, which means “God’s power” in his native language. He said if this baby survives, it’s nothing else besides God’s healing power. That boy survived and grew up. He became a preacher, evangelist, teacher, counselor, and pastor. He planted 51 churches and baptized more than 2,000 people in Africa before coming to the United States, where he is serving as the senior pastor of Shepherd House United Methodist Church and the Black Church’s chairperson in the North Carolina Conference.
As I reflect on my own story, I see God’s guidance consistently, providing for all our needs, protecting us, making us strong in our weaknesses, and caring for us like a farmer who cares for his garden.
Prayer
During this Lenten season let us remember that there is hope for all of us in Jesus Christ. Amen.
Rev. John Gumbo is the pastor of Shepherd’s House Mission Congregation in Durham
Day 4 – Rev. Carolyn Cummings-Woriax
Joyfully, as we prepare for the Lenten Season, Isaiah’s action words – guide, satisfy, and strengthen – remind us of God’s faithfulness. Psalm 23 also demonstrates God’s continual faithfulness.
We were excited to arrive at the Grand Canyon National Park. While hiking the trail down to the Colorado River, many “oohs” and “aahs” were voiced as we gazed at the majestic view. Suddenly, we realized our water supply was left behind. My husband voiced, “We must go back.” “No!” At the river, a direction sign read, “Going back up is 2x coming down.” While ascending the trail, one member’s knees gave out, and the group dismantled to find help, leaving three members behind.
Determined, I was climbing with one bottle of water and horehound candy drops. I found myself alone, in solitude and serenity while climbing among the beautiful semi-arid desert’s landscape. I marveled at the topography, the magnificent sunset colors, and the darkening of the sky with the moonlight reflecting against the strata. I sat down to rest. Strengthened, I moved my hands to lift myself up and felt a plastic jug. I shook it – its contents sounded, smelled, and tasted like refreshing water. Suddenly, a voice from an upper ridge rang out, “Charlie, are you there?” I dared to respond. Quickly, I filled my empty bottle with water from the jug. Again, “Charlie, are you there?” I answered, “No, Charlie is not here.”
Suddenly, a stranger approached and offered assistance. Finding a telephone, I sought help for family members.
Prayer
Creator God, my soul thirsts for Thee.
Rev. Carolyn Cummings-Woriax is retired clergy