Amethyst Review

Amethyst Review publishes poems on spirituality and the sacred (broadly defined), and its editor was kind enough to accept two of my poems.  Paradox is based on my understanding of Wesleyan works of mercy as a means of grace.  My poem The Iron of the Holy Spirit is about grace in its sanctifying aspect.  If you love poetry and have an interest in spirituality, I think you will enjoy the poems in this online magazine.

Bold Alliance

My thanks to President Trump.  Truly.  If not for his decision to reverse the denial of the Keystone pipeline building permit, this week's display of solidarity across boundaries would not have taken place.  Given the violent conflicts happening in other parts of the world,  the news out of Nebraska was a needed counter example.

The advocacy group Bold Alliance did just as the name states, its leaders were the catalyst that formed an alliance between a wide-ranging collection of landowners, tribal members, and environmentalists.

The landowner group is made up of Nebraska ranchers and farmers whose property is being threatened with eminent domain seizure.  This group includes descendants of the original homesteaders who claimed land in the Nebraska Sandhills over one hundred years ago and converted it to agricultural use.

The tribal members are from the Ponca, Pawnee, Omaha, Santee, Sioux, and Winnebago nations, many of whom are descendants of the ancestors who were forcibly removed from the Great Plains by a foreign army to make way for the homesteaders.

The environmentalists are members of the Center for Biological Diversity, Sierra Club, 350.org, Oil Change International,  Credo Action, National Resource Defense Council, MoveOn.org, and Friends of the Earth.  Most of them are not Nebraskans, but their opposition to the Keystone pipeline brought them to the state this week to testify at a series of the Public Service Commission hearings.

The Public Service Commission will decide whether or not the pipeline serves the public interest. These commissioners have to define what is meant by "the public interest," and then determine if the pipeline meets that standard.  If the commissioners vote in favor of the pipeline, the State will act on its right of eminent domain and cede portions of private agricultural property to the TransCanada corporation.

At the hearings, each group gave voice to the issues that most concern them.  The Bold Alliance protested the transfer of private property to a foreign corporation.  The landowners described the fragility of their sandy soil and the danger of leaks contaminating the water necessary for their crops, animals, and families.  The tribes asserted their right to preserve burial grounds, ancestrals artifacts, and treaty lands.  The environmentalist warned of the threat to the endangered whooping crane posed by the power lines needed to support pipeline infrastructure.

In addition to testifying, alliance members also organized other events including a protest rally and march at the State capital building, a Treaty Alliance Against Tar Sands Expansion signing ceremony and Prayer Walk, and the delivery of approximately 460,000 anti-pipeline public comments to the Commission.  Bold Alliance's ability to build relationships around creative, non-violent public protests is an example that Christian advocates can learn from.

The defiance and determination I heard coming out of Nebraska inspired a poem.  I am taking an online class offered by the International Writing Program at the University of Iowa.  Part of the lesson this week was a lecture on documentary poetry.  These poems document a social justice event by using language found in court records, interviews, and reports and applying poetic techniques to bring out the emotions that are sometimes missing from archived facts.

The poem was inspired by a press conference given by Jane Kleeb, the president of the Bold Alliance, as well as the comments offered at the treaty signing by Casey Camp-Horinek, councilwoman of the Ponca Tribe of Oklahoma.

Iowa Grandmothers

At the Ground Level

The map below comes from an article on City Lab.com about current economic conditions around the United States.  Green represents counties where kids living below the poverty line might make it into the middle class given the social safety net available where they live.  Red marks counties where those currently born into poverty don't have the community support they'll need to make it out.

I look at this map and am reminded that the playing field is not equal.  We don't all start out with the same prospects to live the American Dream.  If you live in a red county and are struggling financially, there may be systemic reasons why you are finding it difficult to get out of the hole.

Riding the Bus

A poetic moment on the bus.  Putting my hospital chaplaincy training to use.

Earliest Memory

Post-Election Hyper-Helpfulness

Walk This Way

The chart below is the 40-day reading schedule I plan to use the next time moral outrage starts to get the better of me.


It's based on the reading schedule I followed during my lenten reflection on Whiteclay.  The readings start with Jesus setting his face towards Jerusalem and end with the Cross.  The exercise helped me cope with the frustration and anger I felt over the injustice happening in Whiteclay and move into a healthier frame of mind.

I walked the road to the Cross with Jesus, and he walked the streets of Whiteclay and the Pine Ridge Reservation with me,  I trust that he will walk with me the next time I'm confronted with an ugly social truth and try to respond by sticking with it and not look away or get distracted from it.

Hoping for the best in Whiteclay

On March 29, State Senator Pansing Brooks introduced a bill to the Nebraska Legislature calling for an interim study of the situation in Whiteclay.  On April 1, the responsibility to carry out the study was assigned to the General Affairs committee of the Legislature.

The purpose of the resolution is "to examine and review the sale of alcohol in Whiteclay and the secondary effects of such sales. The study committee shall develop recommendations for what should be done to address the issues arising from such sales and shall seek the input of the State-Tribal Relations Committee."  A link to the full text of the resolution is here.

Thank you to everyone who held Whiteclay in your prayers during Lent.  I am so grateful that the Nebraska Legislature is taking this step.  I pray that God will cause more people to care, and will inspire us with insight into a wise way to address and solve the problems there.

The members of the 2016 General Affairs committee are:
Tyson Larson (Chair)  tlarson@leg.ne.gov
Colby Coash (Vice Chair) ccoash@leg.ne.gov
Matt Hansen, mhansen@leg.ne.gov
Dan Hughes, dhughes@leg.ne.gov
Mark Kolterman, mkolterman@leg.ne.gov
John McCollister,  jmccollister@leg.ne.gov
Merv Riepe,  mriepe@leg.ne.gov
Ken Schilz, kschilz@leg.ne.gov

If you would take a moment to pray for the committee, I would appreciate it.  And if you'd like to take an additional step and email the committee members and let them know that you prayed for them, I'm sure they would appreciate it, too.

Lenten Devotion: Day Forty

Jesus dies.  His body is taken down from the cross, wrapped in burial linens, and placed in a tomb.  (Luke 23: 46-56)

(Adaptation of "Christmas in Whiteclay" by Frank LaMere)

CHRISTMAS IN WHITECLAY

Written by Frank LaMere

     His father told Him it was a forlorn and fearful place, where you could see life but no willingness to live and where ghosts beckon their relatives and the weak to leave this creation less their suffering be prolonged…
     His father told Him of grandfathers and grandmothers who had been lost and of generations to come, whose fate has been sealed by those who would watch them die slowly as they hurry away…
     His father told Him to walk among them in this season as they celebrate His being, to make them smile and let them know He has not forgotten them for even one second…
     His father bid Him go to Whiteclay and be with them as they await brothers and sisters who will care for them…
     Jesus went to Whiteclay and found all there to be freezing, beaten, dying and forsaken. Jesus cried and through his tears saw it to be the holiest of places.
     He remains there, walking among the lonely and sleeping outside, as He slept on the night He was born. Jesus is there this Christmas season, huddled by a building, waiting for someone to recognize Him, if even for one second.
     You will see Him if you wish to. He will be the most pitiful among all those gathered. He always has been, and we have always known that.
Pray for Whiteclay.

Lenten Devotion: Day Thirty-nine

Jesus is crucified.  Darkness falls across the land.  (Luke 23: 33-44)

(Bruce BonFleur of Lakota Hope Ministry posted this reflection on his Facebook page.)

     Christ, you are the Light of the World.  Your Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can not overcome it.  Help us to shine a light on Whiteclay and drive the darkness there away.

Lenten Devotion: Day Thirty-eight

Pilate pronounces the death sentence on Jesus.  Jesus is forced to walk to Golgotha.  (Luke 23: 24-31)
  

Martin Pilcher and his son Dominic at the Pilcher's new grocery store, Arrowhead Foods in Whiteclay, Ne.  Photo by Josh Morgan for the Rapid City Journal.
The opening of a Native-Owned store in Whiteclay, Nebraska is seen as a sign of progress in the community.

     Christ,  thank you for this sign of progress in Whiteclay.  Help those who are trying to do something positive and life-affirming in this community.

Lenten Devotion: Day Thirty-seven

Jesus is taken before Pilate and then Herod for questioning.  (Luke 23: 1-16)

Shawna Thornton, a teenager from Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota, looks out at the sweeping views of the prairie on the reservation. She has grown up surrounded by alcohol abuse. (Photo: Nikki Kahn/'The Washington Post' )
(New school for girls opening on the Pine Ridge Reservation.)

     Christ, thank you for this sign of hope.  We pray for the staff and students of the Pine Ridge Girls' School.  Help them to make a difference in the community.

Lenten Devotion: Day Thirty-six

Jesus is beaten and then brought before the Sanhedrin for trial.  (Luke 22: 63-71)

(Update to "Standing Silent Nation," a POV documentary about Alex White Plume's efforts to legalize the cultivation of industrial hemp on reservation lands.)

     Christ, so many advocates have been beaten down by those in power that we are afraid to speak out for fear of something similar happening to us.  Give us the faith to speak your truth and lovingly rebuke those who obstruct your mission.

Lenten Devotion: Day Thirty-five

Jesus is arrested and taken to the home of the Chief Priest.  Later that night, Jesus overhears Peter denying knowing him.  (Luke 22: 61)

(Excerpt from Days of Destruction, Days of Revolt by Chris Hedges and Joe Sacco)

     Christ, we pray for the girls on the reservation who have been traumatized by rape and incest.  Great Physician, heal them.  Reveal the truth to them-- that they deserve better; that they deserve family and friends who do not betray them; ones who will give them a stable and loving home.

Lenten Devotion: Day Thirty-four

Judas betrays Jesus.  (Luke 22: 47)

(2014 Washington Post story of alleged sexual abuse on the reservation.  The accused was indicted by a grand jury but died in prison before his trial.)

     Christ, we pray for those who have been abused by a religious leader.  A sacred trust has been broken.  Individuals, families, and communities have been betrayed.  We grieve over the harm that has been done to the innocent.  In the lives of the perpetrators, in the lives of the betrayed, may your will be done.

Lenten Devotion: Day Thirty-three

The disciples argue over which one of them is the greatest.  Jesus argues that greatness is shown through service.  (Luke 22:23-27)

(Fundraising video for a church mission trip with Re-Member non-profit)

     Christ, thank you for the opportunity to serve others.  Keep us humble.  Give us hope.  Show us how best to support the community's own strengths and possibilities.

Lenten Devotion: Day Thirty-two

Jesus shares a last meal with his disciples.  He tells them that he eagerly anticipated celebrating Passover with them before his sufferings begin.  (Luke 22:15)

(Aaron Huey's 2010 TEDxDU talk)

     Christ, you generously share all that you are and all that you have.  We grab the best for ourselves, and claim that we deserve it more than others do.  Forgive us for our self-aggrandizing ways.  Save us, and train us to be your servants.

Lenten Devotion: Day Thirty-one

Judas plots with the chief priests and the officers of the temple police.  He agrees to betray Jesus, and they agree to pay him.  (Luke 22: 3-6)

A suicide crisis is unfolding on the Pine Ridge Reservation

(Stephanie Schweitzer Dixon, Executive Director of the Front Porch Coalition and Amber Sam, Project Director of the Sweetgrass Project interviewed on KEVN Black Hills Fox.)

Christ, we see the horrific evidence that alcohol abuse hurts more than the body.  It hurts everyone around the alcoholic.  It unravels the fabric of a community.  It breeds despair.  It is the opposite of your will for our lives.  Enabling this to continue is a betrayal of you.  Show us how to withdraw our support from the system that keeps the alcohol flowing uncontrolled.

Lenten Devotion: Day Thrity

Jesus spends his days teaching at the Temple and his nights on the Mount of Olives.  People are getting to the Temple early in the morning so that they can listen to him teach.  (Luke 21: 37, 37)

(Data from the Nebraska Liquor Control Commission)

     Christ, our leaders know the numbers.  Why doesn't this knowledge make them care?  Lord, we don't want to be like them, people who see others suffering and whose only response is a shrugging of the shoulders, a spreading of the hands, and a hardening of the heart.  Save us from such a weak moral imagination.  Early in the morning, we seek you out.  Teach us!