The Guy in the Weird Looking Shirt

On January 19 I wore a banded clergy collar, affectionately called a “dog collar.”  These days we usually see those on Episcopal priests.  I wore it as a reminder of the work of Rev. Dr. Eugene Carson Blake, the stated clerk of the United Presbyterian Church in the USA back in the sixties who worked with and marched with Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.  Rev. Blake faced fierce opposition from his own Presbyterian Church and even received death threats, yet he stood up for what was right anyway.  A large number of Presbyterians were opposed to the stand he took.  They thought it made them look bad with their other white Christian neighbors.  I greatly respect what he did and so I wore the same kind of collar he did when he marched with Dr. King and made a point of telling the congregation about it.  I used it as a visual aid.  Afterward I received several positive comments about wearing it.  “I like that,” several people said.  “That makes a statement,” another commented.  “I really like the collar, but it doesn’t fit your personality,” said another.  Surprisingly, I liked it too, but I wasn’t quite sure why.

After worship my family and I finally made it back over to the house.  Almost immediately, my seven-year-old son Wyatt said, “Take off your collar, Dad, so we can play some Nerf basketball.”  So I did just that, and I experienced something that I hadn’t experienced in seven-and-a-half years as a pastor.  It was like I was taking off a uniform and going from being Rev. Miller or Pastor Everett to Daddy.  As I changed out of it I felt “off duty” for the first time in years.  This is made all the harder living in a manse within thirty feet of the church building.  So I started asking myself, “Should I start wearing the collar when I’m performing pastoral duties?  Then I can ‘take off’ my pastoral role when I get home.”  It needed more discernment, so (as I always do) I’ve been stewing on it for the past ten days.

I know that most folks in our congregation (and many Presbyterian congregations) probably think, “Presbyterians just don’t do that.  If you do that you’re playing Episcopalian or Catholic.”  That may be what people think, but that is not accurate.  First of all, the modern clerical collar seems to have evolved out of the clothing worn by English preachers in the 1700’s.  These pastors included Presbyterians.  In fact, the modern detachable clerical collar is said to have been invented by Rev. Donald McLeod, a Church of Scotland (Presbyterian) minister.  It was then adopted by Anglicans as well.  In fact, to this day, all Church of Scotland (Presbyterian) pastors are required to wear the collar as an official uniform when performing pastoral duties. 

“Okay,” some may say.  “But that’s Scotland and this is the United States.  Presbyterians don’t do that here.”  Again, that’s not entirely true.  Just because you’ve never seen it done doesn’t mean it isn’t done.  As I mentioned earlier, Rev. Dr. Eugene Carson Blake wore the collar.  In fact, when you look at all the old photos that have been displayed in our church building since the 200^th anniversary celebration, you will see that Rev. Hand, our congregation’s pastor during part of the 50’s and 60’s, wore one at least on Sundays. 

A current PC(USA) pastor wearing the "dog collar."

I remember when I was a pastor in Oklahoma, one of my colleagues received a new call to a Presbyterian Church in New York and they told him that it was a requirement of the position at their church to wear the clerical collar whenever “on duty.”  Some of the Presbyterian pastors I graduated seminary with have started to revive the collar in their own parishes.  Since the clerical collar evolved from Presbyterians, was invented in its current form by a Presbyterian, is worn by the original Presbyterians (Church of Scotland), has been worn in this very congregation at least by one pastor some of the time, and still is worn by some PC(USA) pastors (along with other Protestants such as Episcopalians and Lutherans), I decided that I’d give it a try for a second Sunday. 

The first thing I noticed about my second Sunday wearing the collar (many pastors wear it every day) was that I didn’t have to spend any time figuring out which shirt and which tie to wear.  I just grabbed it and put it on.  Then I realized that when I put it on I really thought about what my role was and got a sense of how people view me anyway.  I view myself as Everett.  Most folks, especially at church on Sunday, see me as Rev. Miller or Pastor Everett (and rightly so).  As you know, I’ve struggled with that.  But I didn’t struggle with it when I was wearing the collar.  It just was what it was.  I thought to myself, “I’m Rev. Miller or Pastor Everett.  That’s who I am to these folks and that’s the way it’s supposed to be.  God didn’t call me here to be ‘just one of the family,’ although I am a part of the family.  God called me here to fulfill a particular role in the family, that of pastor.”  So to the opposite of what I always thought would happen, I felt more secure in my pastoral role while wearing the collar and for the first time in my 7.5 years of ministry I had surrendered myself completely to that role.  I never wanted to do that because I felt I was completely surrendering my whole self to the role.  But when I went home I took the collar off and that feeling of surrender went away.  I had surrendered myself while wearing the collar and freed myself to be husband and dad when I took the collar off.  What I’d been battling with for my entire ordained career had been alleviated (at least for the time being) by accidentally “discovering” the clergy collar as job uniform.

I’d always been afraid that people would think that I think I’m better than them if I wear a clergy collar.  But then I started thinking that as long as I don’t act like I’m better than others if they still feel I’m “putting on airs” because I wear the collar then that is their own self-esteem problem, not mine.  Do you walk into Target and say to the people with khaki pants, a red polo shirt, and a name tag, “Do you think you’re better than me?  I’m out of here!”  Do you say that to the repairman who comes to fix your appliances?  No, you’re probably glad he wears a uniform; it looks more professional and you can trust who he is.  Do you say to a police officer or firefighter, “Just who do you think you are wearing that uniform?”  No, you’re glad they’re identified by their dress.  Have you ever said to your doctor, “I hate when you wear that white coat.  You should just be one of us.”  Personally, I like a doctor in a lab coat.  I don’t want the doctor to be my friend.  I want the doctor to tell me what’s wrong with me and whether or not it can be treated.  A clerical collar is a uniform like every other uniform.  It says, “This is what I do for a living.  I have training and experience in this field.  If you need someone in this field of work, you can come to me.”  The collar, like any other uniform, says that without me having to say it.  In fact, as soon as a guest walks into our church at any time they will say, “There’s the pastor.”  If they came to speak to the pastor, they’ll know that’s me.

Finally, there is a real trend in the greater Church of pastors being super-trendy rock star types.  To me, spending a bunch of money to look hip goes against my calling to be a pastor and a disciple of Jesus Christ.  There are pastors who have to wear faded jeans and a trendy (often very expensive) black vintage shirt.  There are pastors who wear suits that cost thousands of dollars.  Each clergy shirt/collar cost me about $50 and I can wear it as often as I wash it because nobody will say, “You wore that one yesterday.”  They keep me from trying to be trendy or look good.  I like what Anthony Voltattorni, a contemporary Lutheran pastor, writes, “While the clerical collar may be old-fashioned, I find it comforting that, for the most part, it doesn’t depend on fashion or fads or hipness.  While the clerical collar may be plain, I find it comforting that it covers the individuality of the man [or woman] wearing it.  While the clerical collar may be stuffy, I find it comforting that it is not my job as pastor to entertain.  Very simply, the uniform represents the office of the pastor well.”

So I’m going to start wearing the banded clergy collar (dog collar) every Sunday.  Most likely I will begin to incorporate it more into my daily life as a pastor.  This may be new to you.  This may even bother you.  I’m sorry.  I’m not out to ruffle any feathers.  I just think it makes sense for me to try this.  I’ll still be the same guy I was when I was wearing the shirt and tie.  I’ll still say funny stuff.  I’ll still hug the kids during the passing of the peace.  I’ll still talk about Cincinnati Reds baseball and zombie movies.  I’ll still drink a beer with you at your cook out.  I just think this clergy collar thing may be a valuable tool for me, and perhaps for this congregation.  So I’m going to give it a try.  If it ends up being a distraction I can give it up.  I’ll just have to see.

See you on Sunday!  I’ll be the guy in the weird looking shirt.

Peace,

Pastor Everett   

MLK 2014: We're Not There Yet

Back in early December there was a bit of a media frenzy over a tweet posted by the Republican National Convention.  The tweet said, "Today we remember Rosa Parks' bold stand and her role in ending racism." The problem with that statement is that it seems to say that racism is over when it most certainly isn't.  Now I tend to give people the benefit of the doubt so when I read that it just seemed to me that somebody made a poor choice in words.  My guess is that the person who posted that for the RNC meant to say something like "her role in the fight against racism."  That would have been better, clearer wording and there wouldn't have been an issue.  It was probably written by someone who never thought they'd need to pay attention in English classes.  So maybe (I think probably) the person representing the RNC didn't mean it that way.  But the very fact that there was such a backlash over it shows that racism is not over and that there are wounds that have yet to heal.  For the purpose of transparency, you should know that I'm not a Republican or a Democrat.  

Something else that happened in the media that caused a firestorm back in December is that Phil Robertson of Duck Dynasty made some comments in a magazine interview that upset the GLBT community and their supporters (which includes me) and also upset a lot of African American folks.  The comments about homosexuality got all the press because that is the hot button issue right now but his comments about the pre-Civil Rights African American experience were incredibly ill advised.  He said:

“I never, with my eyes, saw the mistreatment of any black person," Robertson is quoted in GQ. "Not once. Where we lived was all farmers. The blacks worked for the farmers. I hoed cotton with them. I’m with the blacks, because we’re white trash. We’re going across the field.... They’re singing and happy. I never heard one of them, one black person, say, ‘I tell you what: These doggone white people’—not a word!... Pre-entitlement, pre-welfare, you say: Were they happy? They were godly; they were happy; no one was singing the blues.”

I think the key words there are "with my eyes."  I think Mr. Robertson committed the error of universalizing his experience.  We do this all the time when we say things like, "I made something of myself so everybody can." Well, that's not necessarily true.  This can also be done when someone thinks something like this: "Phil Robertson shows that Christians are anti-gay."  That's not true either.  Some Christians are anti-gay, but others aren't.  I know a lot of Christians who aren't anti-gay.  Anyway, Phil Robertson's comments made some African American folks mad because his words universalize the experience of their forebears from a limited outside perspective.  Here is what the Human Rights Campaign and the NAACP said in a joint letter:

"We want to be clear why Phil Robertson’s remarks are not just dangerous but also inaccurate. Mr. Robertson claims that, from what he saw, African Americans were happier under Jim Crow. What he didn’t see were lynching and beatings of black men and women for attempting to vote or simply walking down the street. And his offensive claims about gay people fly in the face of science. In fact, it’s important to note that every single leading medical organization in the country has said that there is absolutely nothing wrong with being [lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender] -- it’s not a choice, and to suggest otherwise is dangerous."

Again, for full disclosure I should tell you that, while I do not share Mr. Robertson's views on these issues, I am a fan and viewer of Duck Dynasty.  I have never laughed harder than when Phil and Uncle Si did career day at Willie's kids' school.  I laughed so hard I was sore.  Also, when Uncle Si was a wise man in the church Christmas pageant and presented the baby Jesus with the gift of "Franken Scent" while drinking iced tea from a goblet I nearly peed my pants.  I love the show.  However, I think he said some hurtful things that not only offended people but reflected badly upon his employer (A&E).  When he was suspended (which I think they gave in already anyway) people claimed it was a violation of freedom of speech.  To make that claim shows a misunderstanding of what the First Amendment is about.  Freedom of speech means that our laws can't limit our freedom to express our views.  It doesn't mean that employers can't discipline an employee for saying certain things.  Try calling the CEO of your company a racial slur or the back end of a donkey and see where freedom of speech gets you.  Try doing the same to a federal judge and then claim that you can't be disciplined.  If I stood in the pulpit on Sunday and said, "Jesus was a fraud!" would the First Amendment mean that the church couldn't or shouldn't fire me?  That's ridiculous.  I remember my cousin having his mouth washed out with soap when I was a kid.  He should have just appealed to the first amendment.  We are free to say what we please but there are still consequences for our actions within that freedom.  

All this is to say that we are not yet to Dr. Martin Luther King's dream of the beloved community in which people will live at peace with one another and respect and even celebrate diversity.  If you still don't believe me I can give you two examples on a more local level.

Just two months ago I was having a conversation with a person who lives here in Washington Court House. This person made a few derogatory comments about President Obama because of his race and then said, "I'm not racist but, white people and black people shouldn't be allowed to marry.  The reason I say that is because it's cruel to the kids.  If something happens to the parents nobody's going to want those kids."  I couldn't believe what I was hearing in 2014 in Ohio, the land of the Underground Railroad.  My response was, "I would want those kids.  By the way, you're talking about my own niece and nephew and I don't appreciate that.  Christians aren't allowed to think that way and be faithful to Christ."  His response was, "Black people feel this way too."  Oh really?  All of them?  This person had committed Phil Robertson's sin of universalizing about something he doesn't know anything about. 

Finally, a couple of weeks ago when we came to the church building on Sunday morning there was a flyer sticking out of the door.  When we opened it up we couldn't believe who it was from.  It was from the KKK trying to gather people together for a meeting to start up a chapter here in Fayette County.  That evening as I walked my dog through downtown I pulled the KKK flyers off the doors of as many businesses as I could. The KKK?  Really?

When you encounter racism or sexism or homophobia take a stand against it, not because you're politically correct but because you're a disciple of Jesus Christ.  As Dr. King said, "He who passively accepts evil is as much involved in it as he who helps to perpetrate it. He who accepts evil without protesting against it is really cooperating with it."

May we all celebrate the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. not just with ceremonies but by loving and living in peace with others regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, and so on and so forth.  May we do this in the name of the same Lord and Savior that Dr. King served, the lover of the outcast and the Prince of Peace, Jesus Christ.

In Christ,

Everett

And You Think It's Cold Here Part II

A few weeks ago I shared with you what I’d learned about churches in Antarctica.  Well, today I’m going to tell you just a tiny bit about the world’s northernmost church, which is in Longyearbyen, Norway.  Actually, however, it is deceiving to say that Longyearbyen is a part of Norway because it is on the island of Spitbergen, which is controlled by Norway, but which is many hundreds of miles north of mainland Norway.  It is much farther north even than Iceland!  It is so far north actually that the sun sets on October 25 and then doesn’t rise until March 8!  So the little orphan Annie would have been wrong had she lived in Longyearbyen.  Sorry, the sun won’t come out tomorrow.  It’s not only a day away.  You'll have to wait 'til spring.

Longyearbyen was originally founded as a coal mining settlement and there had been whaling in the area for centuries.  About 2,000 people live there and there are officially more registered snowmobiles than people.  Do they ride two at a time?  Who knows?  Maybe the tourists use them.  Yes, there are tourists who visit to see the aurora borealis as well as to see the glaciers, reindeer, and polar bears. 

The church in Longyearbyen is called the Svalbard Church.  It is a congregation of the Church of Norway, which is Lutheran.  There is a pastor and two employees.  Although the congregation is officially Lutheran it serves as the one church for everyone in the area.  They have a beautiful church facility and even have their own large café.  According to what I’ve read, that congregation has done a great job of being a welcoming place and people of hospitality for all people.  I think this church is a wonderful example of a group of people of faith who realize that it can be really cold and dark out there (literally and figuratively) so why not put everything else aside and just be together.  Give thanks to God.  Enjoy each other’s company.  Get out of the cold.  I read the reviews written by tourists who have visited Longyearbyen and every one of them mentioned how warm, open, welcoming, community oriented, and hospitable the Svalbard Church is.  That sounds like true church to me.  To tell you the truth, it makes me want to visit for a Sunday worship service.  Amazing what hospitality can do, huh?  It can make you want to visit a church 10,000 miles away practically on the north pole.  It is that powerful.

Stop for a moment today and say a prayer for our brothers and sisters in Christ of the Svalbard Church.  Pray that God will continue to bless them in their ministries of hospitality and that their worship and mission will bear much fruit for the Kingdom of God.  May we all learn from their faithful, yet open, example.

Peace,

Everett