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Sermon August 28, 2022
The Rev. Rebecca S. Myers, MSW
The Church of the Nativity and St. Stephen’s
12th Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 17, Track 2
https://lectionarypage.net/YearC_RCL/Pentecost/CProp17_RCL.html#gsp1
Audio: /documents/Eucharist__August_28__2022
Video: https://youtu.be/a2nHj6Rl_hg
Let mutual love continue. Hebrews 13:1
Please be seated.
Do you remember that song from 1969, Walk A Mile In My Shoes by Joe South? While I think this whole sermon could just be the lyrics to that song, the refrain is what really has stayed with me.
“Walk a mile in my shoes
Walk a mile in my shoes
And before you abuse, criticize and accuse
Walk a mile in my shoes”
I think this song sums up our reading from the letter to the Hebrews. The writer says to let mutual love continue and then goes on to explain what that means. We should show hospitality to strangers, because sometimes they are angels come to visit us. We should remember those in prison as if we were in prison, too and those who are being tortured as if we were being tortured too. Walk a mile in their shoes. Yes, before you abuse, criticize and accuse, walk a mile in their shoes. That’s what mutual love is and it is not easy, is it?
Today is the 63rd anniversary of the famous 1963 March on Washington where The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. gave us a vision of a new world. Many of us know the ending, but if you haven’t listened or read the full text, you should do so.
For instance, in the early part of the speech, he called on our nation to uphold the ideals of our founding documents. What wonderful ideals they were and yet, how much work it has been to live up to those ideals and to continue to make them a reality.
Dr. King said
“When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all men — yes, Black men as well as white men — would be guaranteed the unalienable rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked insufficient funds.
But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt.
We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. And so we've come to cash this check, a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice.”
Yes, it has been a long road and continues to be a long road to ensure that all people have the rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, which, if you please, is just another way of saying, “Let mutual love continue.”
Last week, I was asked by my friends at the Movement of Immigration Leaders in PA (MILPA) to go to York and be part of a group providing support to a man whom our Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency wants to deport. This man has been in the United States for over 17 years. He is married and has 4 children who are citizens of the United States because they were born here. The oldest just started his senior year in high school.
I thought it was so ironic. We agreed to meet at a restaurant in York prior to his appointment with ICE. Right on the marquee the restaurant was advertising that they needed help. This restaurant also used to be open 24 hours, but has shortened their hours. Seems like everywhere you go, there are help wanted signs.
Yet, here were a group of us gathered because ICE wants to deport this man who has never been in trouble, works hard, pays his taxes and supports his family. His employer was there with us and accompanied this father to the meeting with ICE to plead with the authorities to allow the father to stay. This father is crucial to the his business, the owner explained to us. This employer said he will use as much of his financial resources as necessary to keep this man here, because he is so crucial to the employer’s business.
Legal remedies had been exhausted and the only one left was to plead to the ICE prosecutor to use his discretionary power to allow this father to stay.
Unfortunately, the prosecutor was not inclined to do so. The father now has an ankle monitor on and was told to return to the ICE office on September 30 with a ticket back to a country he has not lived in for over 17 years and a country that his children do not know.
As I said before, our country has some ugly history to deal with, which includes how often we through our government, because it is our government, have allowed families to be separated or have been allowed to carry out the separation ourselves. For all of our talk about supporting families, we continue to break them apart. We allowed it during the times of enslavement and we have seen the torture that caused for people to be separated from their children. We mandated it for the American Indians when we sent children to boarding schools and we continue to learn about the horrors and torture that caused. Most recently, we have done it for people crossing the border into the United States.
Why have we not learned that the forced breakup of families can in many cases be so devastating? Why are citizens, who are children, deprived and separated from their parents? Why is that okay?
I looked into the faces of those children when their father came back to tell them he might have to leave them on September 30. I was told if he had to leave, he could not come back for ten years. I was told there is currently no legal path to citizenship or work for this man.
I watched the younger children laugh and play, while the oldest just looked so dejected and resigned, even. I looked at his wife who will do her best to care for her family if her husband must go. I looked at his employer who was angry and said he will continue to fight to keep this father here. I had to leave and get in my car, because I was heartbroken and crying, thinking about what it means for this family and especially for these beautiful children.
On Friday evening, I received information about writing letters to request prosecutorial discretion from ICE so this man can stay with his family. Letters must be submitted via email by Monday at 10am. If you need information about how to do this, please contact me. I also sent an email to the parish about this.
Can we walk a mile in the shoes of this father? Can we walk a mile in the shoes of this family? How will we show mutual love and be with them in this time?
Amen
Walk A Mile In My Shoes https://youtu.be/In4UDYxxqVU
I Have A Dream https://www.npr.org/2010/01/18/122701268/i-have-a-dream-speech-in-its-entirety
