« Sunday Inspiration from The High Calling | Home | Blog Tour: Trading Places by Drs. Les and Leslie Parrott »
Brazen Politics in Church on Pentecost & Mother’s Day
By Mark D. Roberts | Monday, May 12, 2008
Yesterday was Pentecost, the day when Christians celebrate the birthday of the church, which happened when the Holy Spirit was poured out upon the first disciples of Jesus. Yesterday was also Mother’s Day. In fact, it was the 100th anniversary of the first Mother’s Day celebration in church.
Yesterday was also a day in which I heard the most obvious and brazen endorsement of a political candidate that I have ever heard in all of my years of church. Before you get on the phone to call down the IRS on my church, allow me to explain.
My church, St. Mark Presbyterian in Boerne, Texas, did a fine job recognizing both Pentecost and Mother’s Day, while keeping the focus on Pentecost, which, in my opinion, is the right emphasis. The church sanctuary was decked out in red, the liturgical color for Pentecost. In addition to red paraments, stoles, candles, and flowers, there were dozens of red balloons: red for Pentecost, filled with air to signify the Spirit.
The children’s sermon had a Mother’s Day theme. About a dozen children from ages 3 to 10 gathered at the front. Their leader began by asking: Why is today special? One kid blurted out “Because it’s the church’s birthday.” Not bad! The others filled in with “It’s Mother’s Day.”
Then the leader asked the children what they do on Mother’s Day. The answers included:
We give our mom a present.
We make cards for our mom.
We tell our mom we love her.
. . . and the like.
Then, out of the blue, came a most unexpected answer:
We’re still hoping that Hillary will win.
There it was. Politics in church. How brazen! Never heard that before in St. Mark Presbyterian! For a moment there was hushed silence. Then some of the adults in the congregation began to chuckle. I was grateful that none of the other children picked up the gauntlet, adding: “We want Barack!” “We want McCain!” (Notice that the Democrats have first names, while the Republican has a last name.)
I don’t know why this kid mentioned Hillary Clinton when answering a question about how he celebrates Mother’s Day. I’m pretty sure that kid wasn’t Chelsea Clinton. For one thing, he was a boy about six years old. Maybe his mom is a big Hillary fan and he was trying to be supportive of her passion. Maybe his folks talked about Hillary on the way in to church. Maybe he was struck by the fact that a prominent presidential candidate is also a mom. Who knows?
Given the source of the political lobbying in worship today, I doubt St. Mark Pres will have trouble keeping its non-profit tax status. The IRS tends to go after pastors who endorse candidates, not children who contribute to a children’s sermon.
Topics: Fun |
3 Responses to “Brazen Politics in Church on Pentecost & Mother’s Day”
Comments
Thanks for your willingness to make a comment. Note: I do not moderate comments before they are posted, though they are automatically screened for profanities, spam, etc., and sometimes the screening program holds comments for moderation even though they're not offensive. I encourage open dialogue and serious disagreement, and am always willing to learn from my mistakes. I will not delete comments unless they are extraordinarily rude or irrelevant to the topic at hand. You do need to login in order to make a comment, because this cuts down on spam. You are free to use a nickname if you wish. Finally, I will eventually read all comments, but I don't have the time to respond to them on a consistent basis because I've got a few other demands on my time, like my "day job," my family, sleep, etc.
You must be logged in to post a comment.
May 12th, 2008 at 12:19 am
[…] keith - MySpace Blog wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerptWe’re still hoping that Hillary will win. There it was. Politics in church. How brazen!… […]
May 12th, 2008 at 6:24 am
That is too funny!
On a more serious note, I’m glad to hear of the proper consideration of Pentecost and Mother’s Day. I heard of churches who literally postponed Pentecost to celebrate Mother’s Day first. Talk about letting the world drive your thinking!
May 14th, 2008 at 5:37 pm
I think that the Democratic candidates’first names are generally used and the Republican canditade’s last name is used, is due to the fact that the Democratic candidates’ first names are much more distinctive than the Republican candidate’s first name.
I am glad to know that children in your church are not afraid to speak about politics.