The Evangélico Boom - HuffPost Live

The Evangélico Boom - HuffPost Live

Our Call as Disciples of Christ

Last month we observed one of the most sacred seasons in the Christian calendar: Lent. We observed Ash Wednesday, Passion Sunday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and the greatest celebration of the Christian year: Resurrection Sunday (or as it is better known, Easter).

During this season we have come to pray, we have studied the scriptures, we have practiced fasting (at least some of us!), and we have worshiped together. We have been reminded again and again that this season is the most sacred time of the Christian year; during this time we have been challenged to remember Jesus’s sufferings and death on the cross, as well as the resurrection – without which, as Paul says, there would be no hope (1Co. 15:1-19).

Indeed, we are a resurrection people, a people who live under the cover of Christ’s death and life:

In the same way, my friends, you have died to the law through the body of Christ, so that you may belong to another, to him who has been raised from the dead in order that we may bear fruit for God. (Romans 7:4).

Yes, we are the people of the resurrection! On the other hand, we are also the people of the cross, we are the people who Jesus called to take-up our cross (Matthew 16:24; Mark 8:34; Luke 9:23), just like the one he carried. 

Some preachers and teachers have sold us the doctrine that the people of the resurrection do not have to take up their cross because Jesus did that for us already. Somehow in some churches people are being taught that to take-up our cross is like salvation through works-righteousness instead of by grace. But nothing can be further from the truth. To take up the cross was the sign Jesus required those who followed him if they were to become real DISCIPLES.

Paul helps us understand this when he declares:

“For just as the sufferings of Christ are abundant for us, so also our consolation is abundant through Christ” (2 Corinthians 1:5). And again,

“If we are being afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation; if we are being consoled, it is for your consolation, which you experience when you patiently endure the same sufferings that we are also suffering” (2 Corinthians 1:6). Yet, again,

“For he has graciously granted you the privilege not only of believing in Christ, but of suffering for him as well—” (Philippians 1:29). Finally,

“I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the sharing of his sufferings by becoming like him in his death” (Philippians 3:10).

This desire to eliminate suffering as part of the Christian experience has been with us for a long time. Many Christians in the Middle Ages confused this idea of suffering with flagellation, with mortification of the body, as if that was going to grant them greater access to the divine, or as a way to sanctifying themselves before God. Clearly, that is not what Jesus or Paul had in mind. This perversion of the understanding of suffering became a tool of people living in privilege and with power within the church, to move many in the church to focus away from Jesus’ way, and into a worldly faith which focused instead in a distant heaven, and away from the people Jesus came to proclaim the good news: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor.” Or as he tells John’s disciples: “Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, the poor have good news brought to them” (Luke 7:22). Yes, Jesus’ mission was to bring the message of God’s redemption (of God’s reconciliation -2Co. 5:18-19) to the masses of people in the world who are suffering, who are being oppressed, exploited, marginalized, discriminated against, excluded, those who have little or nothing to eat, etc. Therefore, to take one’s cross is not merely a metaphorical expression. Jesus has asked us to take his “yoke,” which brings with it the reality of suffering and pain as we find it in the world.

Although Jesus’ message has universal consequences, it is clear that Jesus had a clear audience in mind, as the verses above show. This segment of the population today represents more than 80 percent of the population of the world. As a matter of fact they are the 80% of the human race living on less than $10 a day. (see Global Issues: http://www.globalissues.org/article/26/ poverty-facts-and-stats). If we add those who live on $20 a day the percentage will grow even larger.

It is to the exploited and excluded of this world to whom Jesus says: “Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:28-30).

The “burden” might be “light” but it is still a burden. Suffering and the conditions that maintain poverty have not yet been eliminated from the world. But we, who proclaim Jesus, must take the task that Jesus began (Ephesians 2:10). In order to do this we need to have faith, and we must love each other just as God loves us. However, we must also pray, study God’s word together, worship together, and truly recognize ourselves as the body of Christ on earth, as Paul declared: “Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it” (1 Corinthians 12:27).

Let us rise-up to God’s call, and as people filled with God’s Spirit let us make a difference. For we “can do all things through him who strengthens” us (Philippians 4:13). Amen!

Celebration of Diversity

March is a month, like every month, with celebrations up-the-wazoo. Last month we observed Black History Month, a celebration that helped us focus on the contributions that people of African descent have made to the United States’ culture and heritage; no one can deny that we would not be the people we are today without the contributions of Black people in American society. However, usually people respond to this observance with the question: But how about Italian, Irish, German, English, etc., heritage months? Well, what about it? Let’s see. In March we celebrate:

• Irish American Month
• National Irish American Heritage Month- designated by Congress in 1995.
• National Women's History Month

Just to name a few of the things we celebrate.

You see, the fact of the matter is that many groups have had celebrations during different months of the year for many years, we just hardly ever hear about them. So besides January, February, and March, which we know what is celebrated in those months, we have April as Scottish American Month, May is Asian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month (as well as Jewish American Heritage Month), June is Caribbean American Heritage Month, July is American Heritage day, a day to celebrate all the people who have made the United States the place it is. From September 15 to October 15 is German Heritage Month (as well as Hispanic Heritage Month), October is Italian Heritage Month as well as Polish Heritage Month, November is Native American Heritage Month, and December is the month to celebrate human rights around the world.

If there is something you can see from this list of celebrations/observances is that we already are a multi-ethnic, multi-lingual, and multi-cultural people. Some of us want to maintain ethnic and cultural supremacy as if that is a positive thing. But the reality is that in this shrinking world we have to come to terms with the reality that we all come from so many backgrounds, from so many different places, some of us have been in this country longer than others (although longevity has not been a guarantee of acceptance, as is the case with African Americans, Native Americans, and others). Some of us have always been here, some of us just got here, but what makes us all special is that we are all together under the same “roof.” We must come to terms with the reality that unity is possible in diversity. As Michael Novak stated some years ago: “Unity in diversity is the highest possible attainment of a civilization, a testimony to the most noble possibilities of the human race. This attainment is made possible through passionate concern for choice, in an atmosphere of social trust. (Michael Novak, epigraph opening Unity in Diversity: An Index to the Publications of Conservative and Libertarian Institutions [1983]).

This idea of unity in the midst of diversity is one of the most significant messages that the Gospel presents to us. Indeed, although we come from every possible place on the face of the earth we all share the household that God had built for us. As in American society, we, in the church, also struggle with our own issues of inclusion and exclusion. We in the church also struggle with issues of acceptance and rejection. We have been struggling with who is in and who is out, who is one of us and who is not.

Notwithstanding, the liberating agenda of the Kingdom of God help us understand that under God’s roof, in God’s household, “we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another (Rom. 12:5). Indeed, even when there was a time when we had been divided/separated, that ought to be no more, for Paul reminds us that:

“at one time you Gentiles by birth, called “the uncircumcision” by those who are called “the circumcision”— remember that you were at that time without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace; in his flesh he has made both groups into one and has broken down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us.” “In him the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; in whom you also are built together spiritually into a dwelling place for God.” (Eph. 2:11-14, 21-22).

Indeed, my beloved, ALL of us are a part of God’s arrangement. We are called to welcome each other (Heb. 13:1-3), to work with each other, to love each other, to help each other until WE ALL come to “the stature of Christ” (Eph. 4:13). This is why Paul would say to the Church in Ephesus:

I therefore, the prisoner in the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called, ² with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love,³ making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. (4:1-3).

This is not something we work on our own, the Holy Spirit has empowered us, has gifted us to achieve this unity, unity in diversity of languages, cultures, and ideologies; as Paul states:

The gifts he gave were that some would be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, ¹² to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, ¹³ until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ. (Eph. 4:11-13).

Therefore, let us celebrate each other’s histories and heritages, let us celebrate those who are different, let us in love build each other up, enrich each other, be a blessing to each other, for that is the will of God for all of us under God’s roof.

Brian McLaren Leads Son's Same-Sex Commitment Ceremony

I think that you are going to find this article very interesting. Enjoy it.
Brian McLaren Leads Son's Same-Sex Commitment Ceremony: Author and well-known Christian speaker Brian McLaren led a commitment ceremony for his son and his same-sex partner this past Saturday.

In Support of Bishop Mel Talbert

Dear Brothers and Sisters:

Join me in this important effort. Brother Talbert is a Bishop (retired) in the United Methodist Church, but above that he is a follower of Christ, as such he must follow his heart and the lead of the Holy Spirit. There are many things that Bishop Talbert and I do not see eye to eye, but to ask that he be silenced is like trying to silence an Army general because he speaks about the immorality of the war and urging that we end our intervention in Iraq (i.e.,Maj. Gen. Paul Eaton) . Bishops did not have to check their brains at the door when they entered the episcopal office. We need Bishops with conviction and passion for justice, people willing to speak truth to power, and therefore Bishops who can speak in support of those who are at the margins of our church as well as society. Read below, join in and share.

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Dear friend,
In September 1960, a young pastor named Melvin Talbert was arrested and jailed alongside Martin Luther King, Jr. for sitting in at a segregated lunch counter. He went on to become a bishop in the United Methodist Church and serve as president of the National Council of Churches.
Fifty years later, Bishop Talbert is under attack again - this time for calling on Methodist pastors to join him in an "act of biblical obedience" by putting Jesus' commandment to love our neighbors ahead of "immoral and unjust" church rules that prohibit same-sex marriage.
Now a group of conservative pastors are accusing him of "advocating anarchy and chaos" and demanding that the Methodist Council of Bishops take action to "hold those who have been disobedient .. accountable for their inflammatory actions."
This story has gotten some media attention, and we've got a chance to show the world how everyday Christians are standing in solidarity with Bishop Talbert as he continues to struggle against the church's discriminatory policies towards LGBT people.
Will you join me in standing with Melvin Talbert? Sign this petition to the United Methodist Council of Bishops:
http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/2518/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=11599

Hagan presente el Reino de Dios

A la verdad que el mensaje de las Buenas Nuevas es tan sencillo, ojala y lo viviesemos con la misma claridad. Cuanto tiempo vamos a seguir hablando de un evangelio que es imperialista, prepotente, militarista y anit-vida? Cuando vamos a hablar de un evangelio que promueve la vida, es anti-imperialista, anti-militarista? Hasta cuando vamos a seguir pregonando una noticia que es esclavizante y anti-humana. Escuchen esta produccion, difrutenla y compartanla! Es de gran bendicion.
Ord 23 B Mc 7, 31-37: Hagan presente el Reino de Dios

Put in an end to hate.

There has been a while since I have written something for this page. I thought it was a bout time. I hope to be able too write at least on a monthly basis, so stay connected. Here is on of my latest reflections, the subject is on the increase incidence of hate crimes. I hope you be edified by it.

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Last year I wrote about 9/11 and how we came together as a people. I closed last year’s letter stating:

The days described… may be infamous days, but that does not mean that we, as a people, need to continue living infamously. We have seen what ignorance and hate can do to nations (i.e., Germany, and others), we must not allow our faith to be clouded by hate or ignorance, we must be vigilant to ugly expressions of hate that pop-op all over the world and around us. We must learn from Jesus, and learn to respond how Jesus responded to hate and ignorance: with love and sacrifice. We are one human race, one human family, the way God intended it from the beginning. Let us glance in our neighbors the image of the living God.

The Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) issues a report every year on the incidence of hate crime rates in the USA; for the past 10 years the Bureau has reported that hate crimes have been on the rise. Hate crimes against people of different faiths (non-Christians), immigrants, race, and sexual orientation has been a problem for us as a people. This is very disconcerting because we have heard of many countries where people are suffering of persecution and hate for similar reasons.

This problem is accentuated by the political partisanship and by the ideological dived that continues to drive a wedge between people, because of our inability to have meaningful and civilized dialogue based on the acceptance and tolerance of different believes and ideas. I do not mean to imply that we accept evil and call it good, there are some issues that are a matter of principle (and, of course we all have our own scale for our principles).

In the last 10 years we have seen this polarization of American society increased to the point that it does not seem to be possible for people to come to a meeting of the minds; the issue is summarized as: “it is my way or the highway.”  In this time of partisan politics, in this year of elections, I would like to suggest a better way, the way of the Kingdom.

For us as people of faith, Paul offers us some good ideas:

In your relationship with one another, have the same mindset as in Christ Jesus… not looking to your own interest but each of you to the interests of the others.” (Phil. 2:5,4).

Can you imagine how our world would be if we were to do this, if we were to look for the interest of others before our own; just as Jesus did!

Indeed, we who are followers of Jesus have received this call to be like Christ, to imitate Christ (Rom. 8:29; 1Co. 15:49), for to imitate Jesus is to be imitators of God (Mat. 5:48; Col.3:10). Undeniably, we have a higher calling to fulfill; as citizens of the Kingdom of God we are ambassadors of the Kingdom, as such we are to be hospitable, loving, patient, kind, faithful, gentle, self-controlled, and more (Gal. 5:22-23). For Paul reminds us: “Those who belong to Christ have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. …let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited,…” (5:24-25).

And, As John Wesley would remind us:

[G]ospel holiness is no less than the image of God stamped upon the heart. It is no other than the whole mind which was in Christ Jesus. It consists of all heavenly affections and tempers mingled together in one. It implies such a continual, thankful love to him who hath not withheld from us his Son, his only Son, as makes it natural, and in a manner necessary to us, to love every child of man; as fills us with ‘bowels of mercies, kindness, gentleness, long suffering. (The New Birth, Sermon 45-1760, Section III, ¶1 (p.340-41).

As we address the surge of hate crimes in our country, as we approach the coming elections with its political ramifications and its ideological pundits, let us not forget who’s we are, let us not forget that our loyalties must lie with the Kingdom of God where we have also our citizenship. I am not saying that we should not be concerned with the political process in our land, on the contrary, but what I am saying is that before anything else in this world our commitment must be with the proclamation and realization of the Kingdom’s message. A Kingdom where the meek will inherit the earth, where those who are thirsty for justice will be filled, where the merciful will receive mercy, where the peace makers will be called children of God, and where the pure in heart will see God (Matt. 5). Indeed, as Luke reminds us: “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. … Do unto others as you would have them do to you” (6:27-28 & 31).

Yes, my brothers and sisters, we are called to be the presence of Christ in the world, and to be the ambassadors of God’s Kingdom, and as such we are called to present to our country the possibilities of the Kingdom of God. We are not simply people traveling through this planet waiting for our time to get “to heaven.” Our life on this planet is not an inconvenience while we wait for something better to come. We are the ones who following Jesus’ example are the bearers of the Kingdom of God. Therefore, during these troubling times let us be inspired by the words of John: “Dear friends do not imitate what is evil but what is good. Anyone who does what is good is from God. Anyone who does what is evil has not seen God” (3John 1:11). (Important to highlight here that John speaks of doing good or evil in relation to the way we treat each other, it is not about “spiritual” good or evil, but rather, it is about how we treat each other).

So, as God’s children, let us reject the ways of the world; let us reject hate, let us reject bigotry, let us reject racism, sexism, and every “ism.” Let us reject that which does not seeks to sustain life and human realization. Let us build bridges, let us make a difference in the world not only because we can but because we must. Can I get an Amen?