Baptismal font
The baptismal font in City Road Chapel, London, England. (Photo courtesy of Bishop Ken Carter/Facebook)
Sept. 13, 2023
One of my resources for early morning devotional reading is "The Rhythm of Life" by David Adam, who served as the vicar of Lindisfarne. It is a book of daily Celtic Christian prayer. This morning’s scripture was Joel 2. 8-9:
“I will pour out my spirit on all flesh,
"Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
"Your old men shall dream dreams
"And your young men shall see visions.
"Even on the male and female slaves,
"In those days, I will pour out my spirit.”
Two words resonated with me this morning.
All.
And.
As United Methodist followers of Jesus we have a beautiful doctrine.
Our doctrine is grounded in scripture, and so Joel the prophet becomes the source for the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2)
Our doctrine is made flesh in a tradition of field preaching, singing, small groups, open communion, a world parish, connectional life, offering Christ, social holiness.
Our doctrine is understood by human reason, and in dialogue with other learning (for example, in the present moment many are going more deeply into the study of trauma).
And our doctrine is the living experience of the Holy Spirit.
That experience is for all. All means all.
And.
Do you see the prominence of the word “and” in the scripture? Not just men but women. Not just the old but the young. Not just the privileged but the oppressed.
"All" requires "and." To embrace all requires both/and thinking.
So my simple conviction: We can have a beautiful and true doctrine and we can be inclusive of all people.
To say this another way, when we are inclusive of all people—and this means when we no longer single out one group for discrimination—we will be doing this because of our doctrine.
To welcome LGBTQIA people is not to abandon scripture or doctrine. It is to hear the voice of God saying, “I will pour out my spirit on all flesh.” Just as, in former times, to welcome women as preachers was not to abandon scripture or doctrine. It was to hear the voice of God saying, “I will pour out my spirit on all flesh.” Just as in former times, to free slaves was not to abandon doctrine or scripture, as these were most certainly taught at that time. It was to hear the voice of God saying, “I will pour out my spirit on all flesh.”
There is a false witness circulating that we no longer believe scripture, that we have abandoned our doctrine.
In fact, we are in a Pentecost moment. God is saying, “I will pour out my spirit on all flesh.”
Women and Men.
Old and Young.
Persons of Color and Anglo.
Gay and Straight.
In the words of Charles Wesley,
“Jesus thou art all compassion,
Pure unbounded love thou art.”*
Because we love scripture, because we have a beautiful doctrine, because the Holy Spirit has been poured out on us, we are on the way to a better church.
If you are reading this, my prayer is that you will know the Holy Spirit is for you and for all people.
Bishop Carter
Bishop Kenneth H. Carter Jr.
Bishop Kenneth H. Carter Jr. serves as resident episcopal leader of the Charlotte, N.C., Area of The United Methodist Church, which covers the Western North Carolina Annual Conference. He is the author of Unrelenting Grace: A United Methodist Way of Life. This post is republished with permission from Bishop Carter's Facebook page.