Where Has the Passion Gone?

The most recent issue of Time Magazine carried the headline Youthquake; How the World Will Change When the Next Generation Leads.  One of the feature articles was on how the youth of Hong Kong are leading the protest against Beijeng’s attempt to limit the freedom that differentiate that city from the rest of China.  The article related how the young protesters say they would rather be martyrs than inmates.  One of the protesters name Calvin is quoted. “I would rather die than be arrested.  If I die at least the fury would sustain this movement.”

I recall the images of the Hong Kong protests that were carried on the news a few weeks back.  In many ways it brought back memories of the protest against the Vietnam War in the late 60’s.  Like today’s residents of Hong Kong, youth of the 60’s passionately opposed what they viewed a government oppression. It all came to a head in Chicago during the 1968 Democratic Convention. While I was back in Michigan for the summer but I remember watching in horror as Grant Park, a place of which I was very familiar, became a battle ground. 

I hope that the Hong Kong protester's effort have a more lasting impact.  The peace protesters of 60’s grew up and blended into the American landscape.  They became bankers, business executives, and attorneys.  Now they are in their sixties and seventies and most have retired.  As “older Americans” many of them struggle to understand the needs and struggles of today’s younger generation. 

Unfortunately, I do not see the same passion among today’s teens and young adults.  Interest in politics and social problems is at an all-time low.  A recent Current Population Survey found only 42% of 12^th graders planned on voting in the Presidential election, down from 52% in 1970.  The same survey found only 14% would contribute to a political campaign, compared to 21% in 1970. 

It appears that many American young people are as apathetic about the state of our nation as they are the state of church.  The passion over inequality, environmental and political issues that seem so passionate among young people around the world seems lacking here. That makes me sad.  

Reflections on Martin Luther King Day

Tomorrow is Martin Luther King Day. Having lived through the turbulent sixties, I marvel at how things have changed. I recall sitting in a junior high classroom and hearing my teacher talk in an angry tone about how disgusted she was at seeing a "nice young white man" give up his seat on a bus to a "colored woman." A few years ago I visited the Henry Ford Museum in Detroit where the bus that Rosa Parks took her historical stance on is displayed. I reached the back of the bus where I found a mom explaining the significance of the event to her two grade school age children. This time it was a White family in the back of the bus.

I once almost had a close encounter with Dr. King. I was in 8th grade and a member of our church basketball team. Our games were played on Saturday morning in the gym at Grosse Pointe High School. Grosse Pointe was, and still is, a very affluent suburb of Detroit. In those days it was highly segregated. Dr. King was scheduled to speak at the school on a Saturday afternoon. His appearance was highly controversial. There was a strong police presence as we left after our 11:00 AM game. Behind barricades stood some angry people. They were holding signs that said some pretty ugly things.

I was home in Detroit on spring break from college on that night in 1968 when Dr. King was shot. I was at church. I had been recruited to sing with the church choir for Easter. A member of the bass section was the one who broke the news. "The King is dead," he said with a smile. There was a real sense of satisfaction in his voice. 

Now we have had a Black Man as a President and the Chief of Police for the City of Dallas is not only Black but female.  I have always felt we need to evaluate others not by the color of their skin but by what they stand for.  I live in a house where my neighbors are Hispanic, Indian, Vietnamese and Cambodian. I recently remarked, "all we need is a Black Family to move in to make things complete." 

Thank Dr. King for being the catalyst for change.

What The Young Folks Want Sounds Familiar

Fifty years ago Barb and I were pursuing our dream. We had been married less than a year and were living in a “small” one bedroom apartment in Cape Girardeau, Missouri.  We were both in our first year at new jobs; Barb as a 2^nd grade teacher and I as a youth director.  One of our goals was to own a home.  We managed to live off my salary and put her paychecks in a savings account.  That allowed us to purchase our own house after just a year of apartment living.  We stayed in Cape Girardeau three years and moved to the Chicago area with the plan to start a family.  Within a year we checked that goal off when we welcomed Peter into the family.  I can add some other achieved aspirations to that list; I earned my Master’s in Education and wrote a book.

I thought of the dreams of our youth last week when I read a new report from The Barna Group.  The study looked at the aspirations of the current generation of young adults ages 18-35.  Surprisingly, fifty years has not made a lot of difference in terms of what young people want.  The top two priorities were “buying a house” (53%) and “getting married” (41%).  “Becoming a parent” was fifth (33%) on the list.  Sandwiched in between were “following my dream” (38%) and “starting a business” (33%).    Interestingly, while I did not originally intend to, I was a partner in a publishing business for a few years.  I guess you could say I was just “following my dream,” so I can check that one off as well. 

The truth is the ambitions of the current generation are not much different than from previous generations.  So much has changed in the way we communicate, travel and seek entertainment.  While dating, Barb and I walked miles to get to a movie theater, today couples stream movies on a laptop.  We sent daily letters to each other during those times when we were apart, today couples text and facetime. 

In the end, today’s young folks just want to become financially independent, find someone to share their lives with and then start a family.  Kind of refreshing to think that in a time of such change, somethings remain the same.

Reflections on Life in Full-Time Ministry

Today has been a very emotional day for our family.  Our oldest son, Peter, concluded twenty-two years of ministry at St. Paul Lutheran Church in Fort Worth, Texas.  For the last fourteen years he has been lead pastor at their satellite campus in Aledo.  Our whole family, along his wife Amy’s family, were able to be present to him preach his farewell sermon.  The congregation hosted a luncheon and short program for Peter and his family following the second service.  A definite highlight was hearing the mayor of Aledo talk about Peter’s impact on not just the City of Aledo but on her personally. 

As I shared in a previous blog, Peter has accepted a call as a mission developer in Towson, Maryland, a suburb of Baltimore.  Peter and our oldest grandson, Andrew, will leave the end of this week to being the trek east.  Amy and the other two boys, Caleb and Jonathan, will finish out the school year in Fort Worth before relocating.  Peter’s new assignment is unique.  It is a joint call to First Lutheran Church in Towson and Concordia Preparatory School.  First Lutheran is closing and selling their property and partnering with the school to start something new.  On the plus side, Peter and the whole family will be part of the school community; Peter as chaplain, Amy as teacher and the boys as students.

 

It is a bittersweet time for Barb and me.  We are excited to see what God has in store.  In some ways we should accustom to saying goodbye.    Between us we have served five different congregations, plus my tenure at Lutheran High – Dallas, prior to retiring.  On the plus side, we have lived in the same house in Dallas for the last thirty-one years and have had the added blessing of having our three children all in ministry in the DFW area. Mark is pastor at Tree of Life Lutheran Church in Garland and Katie serves as director of worship and the arts at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Carrollton, where Barb and I worship.

Today was a reminder that being a ministry family can be difficult at times.  When you work in a congregational setting life can get messy. I often commented during my DCE years that sometimes I felt like the whole congregation was my boss.  Everyone has expectations and many of them also had needs.  Life can be difficult if you are an affirmation addict, which I am.  All of this puts a strain on a marriage and family.  Sometimes I have seen those I love get hurt the most.  And then there is the impact of "God;s divine call."  When He surprises us and sends us in a different direction our only response can be "Yes Lord."

Still I feel very blessed to have had the opportunity to be in full-time ministry.  God is good, and I have felt the presence of my Savior every step of the way.  I continue to wait in joyful anticipation as to what God has in store next.