tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-60666251451578995052024-02-02T03:39:48.390-05:00ZachJohn Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.comBlogger118125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6066625145157899505.post-89626760990842585062016-09-14T13:57:00.001-04:002016-09-14T14:30:12.333-04:00Christian Atheists, Your Light Has Come!<b><i><u>Because Facebook has blocked my blog <a href="http://www.shuckandjive.xyz/">shuckandjive Dot xyz</a>, I am reposting everything here and then on to Facebook in my quest to skirt around the blockade constructed by those greedy, power-hungry _________.</u></i></b><br />
<br />
Here is an excellent article on the Gretta Vosper fiasco, <a href="http://www.patheos.com/blogs/radicalchristianmillennial/2016/09/unsuitable-gretta-vosper-is-why-mainline-denominations-are-dying/" target="_blank">"Unsuitable" Gretta Vosper is Why Mainline Denominations Are Dying</a> by Christian Chiakulus. <br />
<br />
Christian is a Christian Atheist. <br />
<br />
Despite the fact that people do not want Christian Atheists to exist, they do. There are more of us than you may think. There is no school of Christian Atheism or denominational hierarchy. Christian Chiakulus said he came to the label by himself:<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
When I first took the label of “Christian atheist” for myself last year, I felt at once liberated and nervous. Liberated because I finally found a phrase that seemed to encapsulate who I am and what I believe, and nervous because I wasn’t sure how the Progressive Christian community I had been trying to join would react. Would I be accepted? Ignored? Laughed at? Puzzled over? </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
A part of my uncertainty had to do with the fact that I had come to this label on my own, not following the lead of any theologian or clergy before me. While I eventually did learn of people like Thomas Alter, William Hamilton, and Gretta Vosper, their writings had no influence over my initial “conversion,” if you will.</blockquote>
<br />
The United Church of Canada is tone deaf to what people really think and has circled its wagons around beliefs and theology. Christian writes:<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
At the end of the day, their concerns are over language and belief, which are really just methods of control. Vosper dislikes using the term “God” because she feels that for some people it may act as a barrier between themselves and the type of universal love God actually stands for. The Conference is ultimately missing the forest for the trees.</blockquote>
To illustrate, a commenter on one of my Facebook posts wrote:<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
As I get older, I understand less and less about the need for religions/churches to adhere to labeling. "I am a Christian, does that make me good? I am a Muslim, does that make me bad?" If I have to define myself, I guess it would be a seeker. Seeking what? Peace and calm for myself and helping humankind in any way I can. Where can I go to learn this - Christianity, Islam, Native American beliefs, Buddhism, Dr. Seuss, Monet, Bach, Pink Floyd, Atheism, and so much more. I think if you really need to label, go to Office Depot, they have one on sale for $24.99.</blockquote>
I think I have found a new cause. John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6066625145157899505.post-76073917339927300702014-06-10T15:41:00.003-04:002015-01-30T16:25:09.188-05:00ClosedNo more new posts here for now. I am blogging back at <a href="http://www.shuckandjive.xyz/">Shuck and Jive</a>. You can also read <a href="http://sermonandjive.blogspot.com/">Sermons</a> and of course the main page, <a href="http://www.religionforlife.com/">Religion For Life</a>. See you there! Feel free to browse this blog if you are on a similar journey or love someone who is. John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6066625145157899505.post-11508649091192879152014-02-28T12:00:00.000-05:002014-02-28T12:11:35.966-05:00Equality In MindThis month's newsletter will be out soon. Here is my letter to the congregation:<br />
<br />
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<i>Dear Friends,<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>Holston Presbytery selected me to be a commissioner to the
<a href="http://oga.pcusa.org/section/ga/ga221/">221<sup>st</sup> General Assembly</a> in Detroit this summer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was selected in 2012 to attend but Zach
passed away on the first day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Since I
wasn’t able to participate then I was selected again this time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i>I am looking forward to being a commissioner.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are many resolutions before the
General Assembly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Many have to do with
social justice and eco-justice concerns (gun violence, fossil fuel usage,
Israel-Palestine) and one of the controversial items will be <a href="http://www.mlp.org/2013/08/08/introduction-to-the-mlp-marriage-study-guide/">marriage</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></i></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiERz2ErKSU47XCf8rT6fWvSehBPRfPCes7k87eksdbJ9Q47qQ0zdE-T7GqfuUSgkBibvfYqbgNIqXySCgjwgjIDDlnsK5ASgaCPstn8666gfGQJHlM2TowQED4sxY1rV1eCMN7qfjfugYM/s1600/TalkAboutMarriage2-300x138.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiERz2ErKSU47XCf8rT6fWvSehBPRfPCes7k87eksdbJ9Q47qQ0zdE-T7GqfuUSgkBibvfYqbgNIqXySCgjwgjIDDlnsK5ASgaCPstn8666gfGQJHlM2TowQED4sxY1rV1eCMN7qfjfugYM/s1600/TalkAboutMarriage2-300x138.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>I have ordered some resources for study regarding many of
these issues.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would be thrilled if you
would learn with me on these items in our adult forum, Thursday morning study
group, or perhaps on the occasional Sunday evening gathering.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I will let you know when we have scheduled
such an opportunity.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i>As you know, I <a href="http://zacharyshuck.blogspot.com/2013/12/from-new-york-with-love.html">officiated at the wedding</a> for my daughter,
Katy, and her wife Amber in New York City over the Thanksgiving weekend.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I did so as a Presbyterian minister.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I officiated at the ceremony and signed the
license.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am proud to announce that in the eyes of New
York (if not Tennessee) that they are a married couple, Katy and Amber
Shuck.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Amber decided to take Katy’s
last name.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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<i>In the eyes of the PC(USA), was it within my powers as a
minister to do that?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now that <a href="http://www.marriageequality.org/national-map">17 states</a> allow for same-gender marriage, <a href="http://www.mlp.org/2012/10/03/stand-for-love/">this is a big question for ministers and for congregations</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of the
overtures will ask the General Assembly to pass an <a href="http://pc-biz.org/MeetingPapers/(S(wu20z53oojg5wv0glbsaw0q1))/Explorer.aspx?id=4599">“Authoritative Interpretation”</a> of the constitution that would make it clear that ministers are
allowed to officiate at same-gender weddings and that sessions may authorize
church property to be used for such celebrations in those states in which
same-gender marriage is legal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>Another resolution will ask the General Assembly to <a href="http://pc-biz.org/MeetingPapers/(S(0ywap2woqnn4l5lqhmetgotm))/Explorer.aspx?id=4593">change all references in the Book of Order</a> regarding weddings and marriage from “a man and
woman” or a “husband and wife” to “two people.” If the General Assembly were to
approve that overture it would then need to go back to each presbytery for a
vote.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If a majority of presbyteries
would approve, then the Book of Order would be changed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i>Our congregation is a <a href="http://www.mlp.org/welcoming-churches-chapters/?appSession=41747486051304">More Light Congregation</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We have firmly committed to equality for LGBT
people in the church and society.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We
hold holy unions on site.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I officiate at
several per year and have done so for some time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think there is more we can do to be
active in promoting equality in our community and in our state.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I along with you affirm that this is the
civil rights issue of our era.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One easy
and <a href="http://ga221.org/2013/11/20/the-call-to-knit-or-crochet-and-pray-our-way-to-the-ga/">fun thing to do is to knit rainbow scarves for commissioners</a> to the
upcoming General Assembly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is
information in this White Spire on how you can be involved in that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>We are in the process of forming a More Light Sub-Committee
of our Outreach Team.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This team will
help with education and advocacy in our congregation and in the larger
community.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you are interested, do
contact Rev. Don Steele or me.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>With Equality in Mind,<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i>John<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i><o:p></o:p></div>
<br />John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6066625145157899505.post-25252972484205709402014-02-17T15:08:00.000-05:002014-02-18T17:23:06.883-05:00Checking InI haven't written much on this blog. I used to write a great deal, at times several posts a day at <i><a href="http://shuckandjive.blogspot.com/">Shuck and Jive</a></i>. <a href="https://www.facebook.com/john.shuck.58">Facebook</a> drew much of that energy away from blogging for many people including me. Time previously dedicated to blogging now goes to <a href="http://www.religionforlife.com/"><i>Religion For Life</i></a>. The main change is losing Zach. My passion for writing and my passion for the causes for which I wrote has flattened. Since his death I have written about my grief, but lately I have written little. This blog has become a space to park my sermon texts. That's about it.<br />
<br />
A few weeks ago I was listening to a story on NPR about a songwriter. I have forgotten his name. He was talking about the first music album he had completed since his wife's death eight years ago. It took him eight years to find his muse. As I listened I found myself both relieved and discouraged about the length of time. It is normal to feel flat for a long time. That is a relief to know I am not alone in that. But eight years is a long time to be in a funk. Losing a son to suicide may take even longer. <br />
<br />
I was reading some old posts at <i>Shuck and Jive</i> and realized that just isn't me anymore. I cared about a lot of things. I was cocky, snarky, edgy and ready to scrap. I am not that at all any longer. I try to avoid issues now. I don't trust myself. I just get angry. I am angry and impatient. It is not pretty or exciting. It is actually boring. That is life right now. Flat. Eight more years of this? Maybe. Maybe more.<br />
<br />
I have streamlined my work to do what I think I have to do. I spend time on my strengths and rely on them. It may or may not be enough, but it is what it is. I avoid if I can all the little hassles that come with the job. I really don't have the patience and I don't trust myself not to blow up at someone. So far we have been able to keep above water. <br />
<br />
Some have wanted me to be more "spiritual." That is sweet. I never have been spiritual even on a good day. I haven't had many good days since June 28, 2012. I don't even know what spiritual means but I am pretty sure that either I don't have it or I am not it. Asking me to be spiritual is like asking a frog to sing opera. I may have a number of gifts and skills, but being spiritual is not one of them. Even so, on occasion I try to sound spiritual but I doubt I am even close. Then I feel like a trained dog jumping through hoops. Most of the time I don't try to please. I just do what I do. I am what I am. I will do the best I can with what I do have. That will either be good enough or it won't be and I am sure I'll find out. The best advice I have ever internalized is, "When in doubt, go with your strengths."<br />
<br />
The insightful among you will realize that I am not airing laundry with this post. I am writing about grief. I am writing about grief long after everyone else is finished waiting for you to get over it. But you are not "over it" and you need to deal with all the expectations and whatever else when you are, in reality, crippled. I am not asking for pity. I am not asking for anything. I am writing about my experience. Perhaps it resonates with others. Perhaps it helps you understand what some grieving people might be experiencing. Thus it is ministry.<br />
<br />
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<br />John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6066625145157899505.post-2192654589270658402014-02-08T22:39:00.003-05:002014-02-08T22:40:12.403-05:00February 8thZach's birthday. <br />
<br />
I wasn't sure if we would do anything for it. Katy and Amber saved the day. They made dinner for Bev and I. Then the four of us watched "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty" at the Real to Reel. Felt him present with us.<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI0iILDDUpabunvHUJ46WJo5CRQSKjnaLTLzZRnhie4Ly42uegICAvsOA8iRPc-2kZVrYjyjsDZMZYORbsrz3zgqWeuQvE_zeNWOW9JC7WtKLdRT7F5ZaeNBW6kVXE-_kY2qEhNpLIAaJM/s1600/395072_4864182765994_469230909_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI0iILDDUpabunvHUJ46WJo5CRQSKjnaLTLzZRnhie4Ly42uegICAvsOA8iRPc-2kZVrYjyjsDZMZYORbsrz3zgqWeuQvE_zeNWOW9JC7WtKLdRT7F5ZaeNBW6kVXE-_kY2qEhNpLIAaJM/s1600/395072_4864182765994_469230909_n.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6066625145157899505.post-74624430395912640892014-01-30T14:31:00.000-05:002014-01-31T17:15:16.273-05:00Pete Seeger and AtheismIn 2006, Pete Seeger was <a href="http://www.beliefnet.com/Entertainment/Music/2006/08/Pete-Seegers-Session.aspx#">interviewed by Beliefnet</a>. He said:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWY_LvnoXmug18zfnhgAfYcMcmplQtJ1bUQIIGs4geH2HV11zIirafwYkWtm70z5idqTPuKaA4XYnJW5KvydJUSaZB9BF0uoWfnwo6_Xv511VAQRNMKUvFjA1yMnKMRmt10kyU6pQOrCcY/s1600/seeger.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWY_LvnoXmug18zfnhgAfYcMcmplQtJ1bUQIIGs4geH2HV11zIirafwYkWtm70z5idqTPuKaA4XYnJW5KvydJUSaZB9BF0uoWfnwo6_Xv511VAQRNMKUvFjA1yMnKMRmt10kyU6pQOrCcY/s1600/seeger.jpg" height="120" width="200" /></a><i><span class="userContent">"I feel most spiritual when I’m out in the
woods. I feel part of nature. Or looking up at the stars. [I used to
say] I was an atheist. Now I say, it’s all according to your definition
of God. According to my definition of God, I’m not an at<span class="text_exposed_show">heist.
Because I think God is everything. Whenever I open my eyes I’m looking
at God. Whenever I’m listening to something I’m listening to God.<br /> <br />
I’ve had preachers of the gospel, Presbyterians and Methodists, saying,
“Pete, I feel that you are a very spiritual person.” And maybe I am. I
feel strongly that I’m trying to raise people’s spirits to get
together."</span></span></i></blockquote>
<span class="userContent"><span class="text_exposed_show">I resonate with his earthy, naturalistic spirituality and I like his use of the phrase, "According to my definition of God..."</span></span><br />
<br />
<span class="userContent"><span class="text_exposed_show">I get heat now and then (and have even lost church members over the years) because they don't think I believe in what they call "god." People tend to get passionate and emotional about it, too, which is especially odd as we are talking about matters that lack clear definition. </span></span><br />
<span class="userContent"><span class="text_exposed_show"><br /></span></span>At one time Pete Seeger called himself an atheist but in 2006 he said, "God is everything." He didn't change his philosophical views. He changed his definition of god to fit them. He said, "According to my definition of God, I'm not an atheist." He found a way to dismiss the term, atheist, and to retrieve the term, god. <br />
<span class="userContent"><span class="text_exposed_show"><br /></span></span>
<span class="userContent"><span class="text_exposed_show">So, along with Pete Seeger, according to my definition of god, I am not an atheist, even though like Pete Seeger, I don't believe in god in any traditional sense. </span></span>There are many ways that I might define the term god in such a way that allows me to say "I believe in god." For instance, I believe in love. If love is god, then I believe in god. <br />
<br />
As a minister, I honor my heritage that has used and still uses the term god. In worship, I find the use of the term to be rhetorically, liturgically, and metaphorically valuable. I often tell people in my congregation that we are BYOG (Bring Your Own God). You can define god anyway you wish and use it or not use it as you see fit. It is your life. <br />
<span class="userContent"><span class="text_exposed_show"><br /></span></span><span class="userContent"><span class="text_exposed_show">I find that according to popular consciousness god is "good" and atheist is "bad." I see little effort spent in defining terms. As long as you don't say you are an atheist and do say you believe in god everyone is supposedly happy. The labels are more important than the meaning behind the labels. </span></span><br />
<span class="userContent"><span class="text_exposed_show"><br /></span></span>That for me is where the problem lies.<br />
<span class="userContent"><span class="text_exposed_show"><br /></span></span>
<span class="userContent"><span class="text_exposed_show">One of the reasons I resist throwing the term atheist (and actual atheists) under the bus is because of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discrimination_against_atheists">discrimination against atheists</a>. My own state of Tennessee still has this law on the books:</span></span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>"No person who denies the being of God, or a future state of rewards and
punishments, shall hold any office in the civil department of this
state."</i></blockquote>
Here are eleven things atheists cannot do because they don't believe in god according to an article in <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/01/16/atheists-discrimination_n_4413593.html"><i>The Huffington Post</i></a>. You might be alarmed.<br />
<br />
A core principle of mine is resisting discrimination. I find much support for that in the Jesus tradition. This is why for my 21 years of ministry much of my effort has been to resist discrimination against LGBT people. Perhaps atheists are the new Gay? <br />
<br />
It seems to me that people ought to be able to call themselves what they want and believe what they want. That is certainly true for civil society. I also think it is true for the church. In a time in which there is a great deal of change, exploration and experiment should be encouraged. Some of that exploration and encouragement may be about redefining the term god in a way that makes sense. It may also be about letting go of the term and embracing whatever term seems to be helpful. <br />
<br />
I like to think there is room for all at the table. <br />
<br />
<br />John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6066625145157899505.post-66577983332576567292014-01-16T16:06:00.002-05:002014-01-16T18:16:56.956-05:00A Risk-Taking ChurchI have written letters for the annual report every year for twenty-one years. I don't know if anyone ever reads them. Here is this year's. The challenge facing my congregation is that we have many visitors. We have many new faces. Sunday morning is not enough. What is the glue to make church a community of meaningful work and play? That was on my mind when I wrote this.<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>Dear Friends,<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>This past August marked my eighth anniversary as your
pastor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have been pastor of this
congregation longer than I was pastor of each of my previous
congregations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You know what that
means, right?<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>It means we like each other!<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>It also means we have a lot of stuff yet to do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>I am excited, proud, and honored to be the minister of the
most progressive congregation in the region.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> That doesn't just happen. It is because faithful, visionary people have taken risks. </span>People are hearing about us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Whether it is our advocacy for marriage equality and ecological
sustainability, our Jesus Seminars on the Road and Evolution Sunday, we are
blazing a trail for a 21<sup>st</sup> century faith.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>The question is, “Where to now?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We have new people coming in our doors every
week.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How do we turn visitors into
activists, strangers into family, and observers into participants?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That is our central question. <o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>Here is a way that is tried and true.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><b>Give people a friend and a job.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></b><o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>Here is my question:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>How can I help you get that done?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>What can I and your leadership do programmatically to help people make
connections with one another and to find meaningful things to engage our bodies
and minds?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> I look forward to your ideas.</span><o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>For those of you who have been here for a while, here is a
question for you:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Remember when you
first came through the doors, a little skeptical perhaps, a bit shy, uncertain
in a sea of unknown faces.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You weren’t
sure when you were supposed to stand up or sit down during worship or if you
“really belonged.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Remember the person
who reached out to you and welcomed you and showed you the ropes?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Remember the person who befriended you?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><b>You</b> are that person today.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>If you are relatively new to our congregation, here is your
question:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What do you need to have
happen before you can say, “This is my church” and “I belong?” <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Can you make that happen?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>We are a permission-giving church and a risk-taking church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you have an idea, we have the space and
other resources.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you want to start a
class, a ministry, a cause, we are all about that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As long as you don’t burn the place down, we
are good to go.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>Exciting adventures await FPC Elizabethton!<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>I am honored to take risks with you!<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><i>John </i></span></div>
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<i><br /></i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><i></i></span></div>
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<i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSwLqL_VwPh6dLbaHoJwb7woC04hfHaurUOfXEarF874hfInsqpaL6mOUjALmWVis7YttZDr_R71UGSuBfusqls06avvFxAz1QWJ_Rmh3Xd6JWNTaJc_SN75UyT9JmjVA8uOpFW6RV8uzB/s1600/URI+at+MLK.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSwLqL_VwPh6dLbaHoJwb7woC04hfHaurUOfXEarF874hfInsqpaL6mOUjALmWVis7YttZDr_R71UGSuBfusqls06avvFxAz1QWJ_Rmh3Xd6JWNTaJc_SN75UyT9JmjVA8uOpFW6RV8uzB/s1600/URI+at+MLK.jpg" height="212" width="320" /></a></i></div>
<o:p></o:p>John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6066625145157899505.post-89194383233200184932013-12-01T18:24:00.000-05:002013-12-01T18:27:01.764-05:00From New York With LoveIt was a beautiful celebration at historic <a href="http://www.sunnysredhook.com/">Sunny's Bar</a> in Brooklyn, New York the Friday following Thanksgiving Day. <br />
<br />
My little girl, Katy, married the love of her life, Amber, and they are now Amber and Katy Shuck. Their marriage is recognized by the city and state of New York, the Presbyterian Church (USA), Sunny's Bar, family, friends, and Jesus.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9QZCpxW99ioQixU-bvUMuzSlaHvoMLIy2ACzaXg9MyQsCvv_GV0jjHkz43vaRSyz0-L1ceg09p4F2DhVx-sghyphenhyphen3ea_sAvraRoU_TPtjpKND-OAW6CN25UBxw28cSxmiPfrezX-4Z5oo2x/s1600/sunny's+bar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9QZCpxW99ioQixU-bvUMuzSlaHvoMLIy2ACzaXg9MyQsCvv_GV0jjHkz43vaRSyz0-L1ceg09p4F2DhVx-sghyphenhyphen3ea_sAvraRoU_TPtjpKND-OAW6CN25UBxw28cSxmiPfrezX-4Z5oo2x/s320/sunny's+bar.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
It was a lovely service. <br />
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Sunny's Bar has a nice little stage. They shared their vows, exchanged rings, and I pronounced them married in my unique Presbyterian way. <br />
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The only one missing was our boy. We sure missed Zach on this day...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjanrtsl9Sj6RR6dy2gSy2SWW7I40nB2cwIIrxOCPLF8z0q771xI4LbZfBGd_t1lPWJo8qc1FmwuOJWYlNzQtzlZDU_bGTL9mRk3-7W7LG2KYu8sRVV49uqi9khf1GDC6ELwx9oW0VVuUah/s1600/katyzachxmas.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjanrtsl9Sj6RR6dy2gSy2SWW7I40nB2cwIIrxOCPLF8z0q771xI4LbZfBGd_t1lPWJo8qc1FmwuOJWYlNzQtzlZDU_bGTL9mRk3-7W7LG2KYu8sRVV49uqi9khf1GDC6ELwx9oW0VVuUah/s320/katyzachxmas.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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And that is how that bittersweet holiday rolls. Love my girls... <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIInMfdfy8iOo1g3xYfFBSZbJxD4A2xLJZbenMaiGY6FfqVxLfY-NY7ah1e0gtMyaUI5wHzf4HJqSIvuF3pGtTkFIXPTgCoIYrS3h2eKeFryH6vwSg-OnfJxFU6yojV1mi5L7uzWYCPeYy/s1600/mygirls.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIInMfdfy8iOo1g3xYfFBSZbJxD4A2xLJZbenMaiGY6FfqVxLfY-NY7ah1e0gtMyaUI5wHzf4HJqSIvuF3pGtTkFIXPTgCoIYrS3h2eKeFryH6vwSg-OnfJxFU6yojV1mi5L7uzWYCPeYy/s320/mygirls.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
When you're gay, you get two weddings. While this one was good for the
paperwork, in September they will have a bigger celebration in
Tennessee. One of these days, this official marriage license will be recognized everywhere (including Tennessee)...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjT-lf7WNGLdiyg8QIKtL5jWBWgZl8D0-t0lrneBQtX8uWusoEnwDzZrqzxD34sAzNqNHOjHyTq42beNtpYZ-oI1HJMILC6N3h7X1I-LkcqvKA0aTzFL167zFZ_k96CIYsgYCrQ_iw14x5/s1600/amberkatylicense.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjT-lf7WNGLdiyg8QIKtL5jWBWgZl8D0-t0lrneBQtX8uWusoEnwDzZrqzxD34sAzNqNHOjHyTq42beNtpYZ-oI1HJMILC6N3h7X1I-LkcqvKA0aTzFL167zFZ_k96CIYsgYCrQ_iw14x5/s320/amberkatylicense.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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Here they are with the proud parents... <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgip9-pD3l4J-J2PjkKT5pl_OcJf9CWX_w2t3jbdG_lNHblhfBWkUbQzF2A6SIjCu5REqKlK18MkvlMdwPYjLqeMtf-ZSjSfLa1X9yCMknh6LKTemVlN9Hv97YrqR2V3JqRtGqJPGkwhF8v/s1600/bevkatyamberme.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgip9-pD3l4J-J2PjkKT5pl_OcJf9CWX_w2t3jbdG_lNHblhfBWkUbQzF2A6SIjCu5REqKlK18MkvlMdwPYjLqeMtf-ZSjSfLa1X9yCMknh6LKTemVlN9Hv97YrqR2V3JqRtGqJPGkwhF8v/s320/bevkatyamberme.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
We are so proud of our ladies and we wish them at least two lifetimes of happiness!<br />
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<br />John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6066625145157899505.post-10281205235544288832013-11-19T16:01:00.000-05:002013-11-19T23:17:10.679-05:00Frank Shaefer Guilty But Good I am following with interest <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2509675/Pennsylvania-Reverend-Frank-Schaefer-defrocked-officiating-gay-sons-wedding.html">the story about the conviction of Rev. Frank Shaefer</a> for officiating at the wedding for his son. A Methodist court found him guilty of showing "disobedience to the order and discipline of the United Methodist Church." The church court will pronounce its punishment later today. It could be a defrocking. Or it could be a reprimand. <br />
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He officiated at the wedding six years ago and just a month before the statute of limitations would have expired, a church member filed a complaint. The reverend did not advertise that he was officiating at this event but he didn't keep it secret either.<br />
<br />
I find this all quite interesting as <a href="http://zacharyshuck.blogspot.com/2013/11/wedding-bells.html">I plan to officiate at my daughter's wedding</a> in New York a week from Friday. Because of polity differences, the United Methodist Church as a whole has not progressed as far as other mainline churches including my own, the Presbyterian Church (USA). We have been able to remove the hurtful language. Officiating at holy unions are not against our church rules. I have been doing holy unions for same-gender couples for years. <a href="http://fpcelizabethton.org/FPC_Elizabethton/Weddings_%26_Holy_Unions.html">I advertise it</a> on our church's website. <br />
<br />
For Presbyterians, officiating at legal weddings, that is signing marriage licenses, is a bit of a different story. Rev. Jane Spahr, who I have <a href="http://shuckandjive.blogspot.com/search/label/Rev.%20Janie%20Spahr">written about</a> and <a href="http://religionforlife.podomatic.com/entry/2012-04-22T13_16_10-07_00">interviewed</a>, was found guilty of violating her ordination vows for marrying gay couples in California. She was supposed to be rebuked but her presbytery refused to rebuke her. <br />
<br />
Many PCUSA ministers have been officiating at same-gender weddings but few charges are ever filed even when they are public. Three hundred of us clergy types have <a href="http://www.mlp.org/2012/10/03/stand-for-love/">signed a statement</a> that we will do it or have done it and we will face the consequences should any arise. This is that statement:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>As a teaching elder in the PCUSA, I have married or am willing to publicly marry same gender couples in my pastoral role, in obedience to my ordination vow to “show the love and justice of Jesus Christ.” Respecting the conscience of fellow Presbyterians, I accept the consequences of this declaration, including the provisions of discipline in our Book of Order.</i></blockquote>
Yup, that's me and 300 of my closest friends. <br />
<br />
We Presbyterians will hopefully end this church court nonsense next summer at the General Assembly when we pass an Authoritative Interpretation that will allow for clergy in their pastoral roles to officiate at same-gender weddings. Shoot, we may even <a href="http://www.mlp.org/2013/08/08/introduction-to-the-mlp-marriage-study-guide/">change the definition of marriage</a> and maybe even the texts of the Bible itself. God really did create Adam and Steve (and Mike and Tony and Katy and Amber). So there. <br />
<br />
I do feel for the Methodists though. It is because of polity. Methodists allow delegates from other continents (like Africa) to vote on their issues so they have a heck of a time moving ahead. The good news is that high profile people in the Methodist church such as Bishop Talbert, are <a href="http://www.religionnews.com/2013/11/15/methodist-bishops-asked-charge-one-performing-gay-wedding/">officiating at same-gender weddings</a> anyway and inviting the rest of the clergy to "just do it." <br />
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That is what it takes in times like these.<br />
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------------------<br />
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UPDATE: Rev. Schaefer received a 30 day suspension but is now even more emboldened to be an advocate for LGBT people. <a href="http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/pastor-frank-schaefer-unrepentant-officiating-gay-son-wedding-article-1.1522430">Here is the story.</a><br />
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<br />John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6066625145157899505.post-89809644627848752192013-11-11T16:10:00.001-05:002013-11-11T16:15:20.886-05:00Wedding BellsI am looking forward to signing the marriage license for my daughter, Katy, and her betrothed, Amber, the day after Thanksgiving in New York City. In order to do this I had to be registered with the City of New York. I had to provide:<br />
<ol>
<li>A notarized signature to accompany my application.</li>
<li>A copy of my driver's license.</li>
<li>A fifteen dollar money order.</li>
<li>A copy of the cover of my denomination's directory and a copy of the page that listed me as a clergy member in good standing. I printed and sent a copy of the <a href="http://oga.pcusa.org/section/churchwide-ministries/stats/online-minister-directory/">on-line version</a>. This is <a href="http://ogaapps.pcusa.org/minister/InquiryView.aspx?id=51581&tab=0">me</a>. </li>
</ol>
Within a week I received this in the mail: <br />
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Pretty, huh? I will sign the license and officiate at the marriage of my daughter and soon-to-be daughter-in-law as a PC(USA) minister or teaching elder or whatever it is we are called these days. When the deed is done, if I remember, I will post a pic of the signed marriage license and a pic of the happy couple. <br />
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It is worth it for Katy and Amber to get a marriage license even though Tennessee won't recognize it. This summer's decision by the supreme court will give same-gender couples some federal benefits. Nevertheless, it is not equal. Until every state and the federal government recognizes marriage equality, their marriage still will not be the same as mine in the eyes of the law. Thus it is important to do this and to be public about it. Every action for equality, both personal and political, is a step toward equality. <br />
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Some have asked me if I can do this as a PC(USA) minister. The answer, <br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>"Yes, of course. Watch me.</i>" </blockquote>
The follow-up question is if I will get in "trouble" for doing this. The answer is, <br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>"One can only hope." </i></blockquote>
That is the tongue-in-cheek answer. Truth is I will face whatever consequences come to me. I have already signed the <a href="http://www.mlp.org/2012/10/03/stand-for-love/">Stand For Love statement</a>. How many more statements must I sign before we change these archaic rules?<br />
<br />
If someone makes a stink, then I will deal with it and use it as an opportunity to witness to equality. If no one makes a stink, then I hope that will encourage clergy who are afraid of "getting in trouble" to be bold. I see it as a win-win.<br />
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The bottom line is that this isn't about activism. This is my daughter. This is my blood. Even as I have been active in the equality cause since my daughter was in kindergarten, it is personal now. In a sense it has been personal for some time as I have worked alongside my sisters and brothers. But, now, it is <i>really </i>personal. When it is your child, you take no crap from anyone. Ever. <br />
<br />
My ultimate loyalty is not to Presbyterian politics. Hordes of enraged LayMEN couldn't keep me from officiating at my daughter's wedding. Even if I were to lose my ordination (which won't happen) I am at peace with that. <br />
<br />
The time has come for the country and for the PC(USA) to get on board with reality. The next <a href="http://www.pcusa.org/events/24273/221st-general-assembly-2014/">General Assembly</a> (to which I am a commissioner) will decide on whether to change the definition of marriage to reflect marriage equality and at the very least they will decide to make it kosher for clergy to officiate at Big Gay Weddings. <br />
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It's all good.<br />
<br />
And getting better.<br />
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John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6066625145157899505.post-8865026550856026002013-09-26T10:01:00.000-04:002013-09-27T10:21:43.514-04:00Suicide Loss Rights #2: StigmaHere is the second <a href="http://www.zacharyshuck.blogspot.com/2013/09/suicide-loss-rights.html">Suicide Loss Right</a> by <a href="http://lifegard.tripod.com/ssrights.html">Tony Salvatore</a> with my commentary: <br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
2. We have the right to be free of stigma. <i>In our society suicide has a negative connotation. This afflicts us as it did those we lost.</i></blockquote>
Even as I write this, I feel like I am breaking a taboo. I hear voices telling me not even to use the word "suicide" because I am exposing myself, my family, and Zach to shame. I remember in broadcasting school we were told that it was inappropriate to use the word "suicide" in newscasts. Since that time, the media has become more sophisticated. Here is a <a href="http://www.suicidology.org/resources/mediaprofessionals">media guide</a> for reporting suicides. <br />
<br />
I didn't want to talk about Zach's death as suicide. I still don't. I want to remember him for the fun, kind, intelligent, handsome, playful, caring boy and man he was. He also struggled. That is part of who he was as well. I remember reading about those who had lost adult children through
accident and realizing that I could not fully relate. It wasn't until I
could hear from those who lost someone, especially a child or adult
child through suicide that I could start to name my own
feelings. Thankfully, there were suicide survivors who did talk and write about their experience and that encouraged me to do the same. Doing so has helped me begin to lift that stigma of blame, shame, and judgment. <br />
<br />
I am not going to describe the details but at the time the police told us it wasn't a suicide. I remember the officer at first telling us that we could find some comfort that it wasn't. That reflects the stigma that it would be "comforting" not being a suicide. Later the detective and the coroner did come to the conclusion that it, indeed, was suicide.<br />
<br />
As time went on we were asked innocent sounding questions like, "Was he getting help?" and "Did you notice any signs?" that just furthered the judgment that we were class A fuckups as parents. We were "on watch" with him for five years after he had made his first attempt in college. We brought him to live with us. We were alone in this. We didn't tell people why we had brought him home. We didn't want to make it harder for him. Yes, we saw the "signs." We lived with the "signs" and yes he did get "help" and it simply isn't that simple no matter what the "experts" say. I suppose if I were Dr. Spock or perfect Rev. Lovejoy this wouldn't have happened? It isn't that simple either. But that is the stigma that parents are somehow at fault and that if we were "good" parents it wouldn't have happened. <br />
<br />
I have no idea and no one else does either what my son's experience of life was like. I can guess. I can partially fantasize about what went on inside him but I cannot know. One thing that has been helpful regarding the stigma is to use the passive, "He suicided" rather than "He committed suicide." He was a victim of illness, not a killer of himself. I am not ashamed of him. I don't want his memory, to the extent that I have control over it, to be one of shame. As I see it, he bravely fought demons day in and day out that I will never know. Finally, they got the best of him. Ultimately, I can only honor his life and his death. I wish there had been other options and other choices that he felt he could trust. I wish he were alive. I wish he were well. I am grateful to have had him for as long as I did.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjka-ouqt_qvcTXum7rz5c4oDDxuhFIGxWlNK7qgZIDXi4ajbw-KVOYxhT7axu-w2XKJQ6Rc_fFzL0BVtNnXk54ceNChHxj9S-4sbfhdTNCVaSMkNLwHNAYT35FNnuW2cgGQzktHUrM0tZU/s1600/of=50,319,480.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjka-ouqt_qvcTXum7rz5c4oDDxuhFIGxWlNK7qgZIDXi4ajbw-KVOYxhT7axu-w2XKJQ6Rc_fFzL0BVtNnXk54ceNChHxj9S-4sbfhdTNCVaSMkNLwHNAYT35FNnuW2cgGQzktHUrM0tZU/s200/of=50,319,480.jpg" width="133" /></a>I know the reality of stigma. I choose to rise above it. I will choose to hold my head high. I will choose to talk about his life and his death as I need to
do as I feel it is safe for me to do. I will choose to remember him with
pride. I will remember him with laughter and with tears. I will honor my son.<br />
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<br />John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6066625145157899505.post-49092793629967526502013-09-23T17:07:00.000-04:002013-09-23T17:49:44.185-04:00Suicide Loss Right #1<span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">I recently posted a series of blog posts on <a href="http://www.zacharyshuck.blogspot.com/search/label/mourner%27s%20bill%20of%20rights">The Mourner's Bill of Rights</a>. Now I am posting on <a href="http://www.zacharyshuck.blogspot.com/2013/09/suicide-loss-rights.html">Suicide Loss Rights</a>. Why "rights" language? I think those of us who grieve losses may feel pressures to grieve in a certain way. We feel that family, friends, "experts", society, or some other entity real or imagined is setting the parameters for our experience. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">Rights language is strong language, revolutionary and rebellious language, "fightin' words" to assert autonomy. </span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">"Do not tell me how I feel or how I should feel. I have the <b><i>right</i></b> to feel as I do and express myself as I do." </span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;"></span>
<span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">Rights language is about changing things. Whether these things be laws, habits, attitudes or values, rights language demands notice. </span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">"This isn't right! People are suffering and the powers that be need to recognize this and hear us out!" </span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;"></span>
<span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">Rights language comes from righteous anger. For those of us who have experienced loss of a child, and in my case, loss of an adult child to suicide, anger can be common. I am angry. Yes, I am angry and I have the <b><i>right</i></b> to be angry. I am <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHH8bfPhusM">not ready to make nice</a> as the Dixie Chicks eloquently put it. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">The challenge of anger is that it requires an object. Sadness doesn't need an object, not even a reason. We aren't sad <b><i>at</i></b> someone. Anger needs a someone or a something as a target. In my experience, I am angry and I don't have a target. I could make one up. I could find things and people (including myself) to receive my anger. I could be angry at Zach or me or the mental health system or the government or the church or God or forest gremlins or the internet or stupid people. Why not? It is something to do. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">Another thing to do is to make a list of rights. I am no political philosopher but I find rights language tentative. I may have the right to free speech, to bear arms, and to have my own private toilet, until these rights are taken by force or compromised by circumstance. Then it is just f__ing reality. I have a right to have my son outlive me. I can carve that in stone and put it on the courthouse lawn. Then one day I have a "right" but no son. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">Why am I ranting on rights? Oh, I don't know. Rights are a way to cling to something when there is really nothing. They resemble beliefs. At the end of the day as I see it I have reality regardless of what I believe or what right I claim. I can assert myself, use my voice, tell my little truth and try to find a way to survive. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">I translate these "rights" in my own head to simple assertions. For instance, here is the first of Tony Salvatore's <a href="http://lifegard.tripod.com/ssrights.html">Suicide Loss Rights</a>. </span><br />
<ol><span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">
<li><span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">We have the right to grieve as we wish despite the unsupportive settings that we often find ourselves. <i>Death is a normal life crisis; suicide is the ultimate abnormal life crisis.</i> </span>
</li>
</span></ol>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">In my head I change that to "I will grieve as I wish despite the unsupportive settings that I often find myself...." and so forth. If it helps to claim to have a right, then one can claim it, I guess. I'll just do it. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">The point of number one is that unless people have experienced this type of loss, they don't get it and they would prefer it if you could just get back to normal whether they say so or not. The only setting that I have found that is truly supportive outside of my immediate family and other suicide survivors is a suicide survivor's group. That is because we are surviving a unique type of loss. We get it as no one else can.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">Having said that, it doesn't mean that other settings are particularly "unsupportive." My congregation is a very loving and caring group of people who have supported us in concrete ways. Other family members and many friends are also supportive and caring. Nonetheless, they, of course, cannot "get it." Here is the deal: no one gets it unless one is in it. It is a club you never leave.</span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b><i><span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">I don't want people to "get it" because I don't want anyone to go through this. </span></i></b></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">That is the paradox of this grief. On one hand, we want people to get it. We are angry when they don't get it. But we really don't want people to "get it" because once you have entered the "get it" club, life is altered forever. The only way for people to "get it" is to become one of us. Get it? I hope you don't and never will. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">It isn't a matter of people not being insightful, or compassionate, or smart, or learned, or being able to relate via similar experience. I am not in any way judging. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">The point of number one, as I read it, is that we are kind of like the Amish. Yet we live in an "English" world. The "English" will never get us. So, Dear Suicide Survivor (who this post is really for), learn that. The "English" will always seem unsupportive. Sometimes they are obviously unsupportive and that is often a topic in our survivor's group. Mostly, it is because they have their lives to live and they are doing the best they can. You, on the other hand, have experienced the "ultimate abnormal life crisis." </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">Therefore, you have to own your grief and do it your way without expecting the "unsupportive English" to approve, understand, offer good advice, or whatever else we think we would like them to do. You have to find your own path. And you will, because you are a survivor. Believe me, that is no small thing. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;"> </span>
<br />
<blockquote>
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/IHH8bfPhusM" width="420"></iframe></blockquote>
John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6066625145157899505.post-79332898835350628682013-09-22T14:01:00.001-04:002013-09-22T14:01:38.438-04:00The Wealth of the Light--A Sermon<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<br />
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The Wealth of the Light</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
John Shuck </div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
First Presbyterian Church</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
Elizabethton, Tennessee</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
September 22, 2013</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Secret Revelation to John </i></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">3:12-12; 4:5, 37-38; 5:11-20;
7:1-6, 12</i></div>
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<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Do not be faint-hearted!</i></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I am the one who dwells with you
always.</i></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I am the Father.</i></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I am the Mother.</i></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I am the Son….<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i></div>
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<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">[The Father]</i></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">It is the Spirit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is not appropriate to think about It as
god or that It is something similar.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For
It surpasses divinity….<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is the eternity
who gives eternalness, the light who gives light, the life who gives life, the
blessed one who gives blessedness, the understanding which gives understanding,
the ever good one who gives good, the one who does good—not such that It
possesses but such that It gives—the mercy which gives mercy, the grace which
gives grace.</i></div>
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<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">[The Mother]</i></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">In every way It perceived Its own
image, seeing it in the pure light-water which surrounds It.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And Its thinking became a thing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She appeared.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>She stood in Its presence in the brilliance of the light; she is the power
which is before the All.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is she who
appeared, she who is the perfect Providence-Pronoia of the All, the light, the
likeness of the light, the image of the Invisible, she who is the perfect
power, Barbelo, the perfect eternal generation of the glory.</i></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">[The Son]</i></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Barbelo gazed intently into It,
the pure light.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She turned herself
toward It.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She gave birth to a spark of
blessed light, but it was not equal to her in greatness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is the Only-begotten who appeared from
the Father, the divine Autogenes, the firstborn son of the All of the Spirit of
pure light….<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He stood in Its presence,
glorying the invisible Spirit and the perfect Pronoia, from whom he had
appeared.</i></div>
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<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Secret Revelation of John 25:1-6;
26:21-33</i></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Therefore I, the perfect
Providence-Pronoia of the All, changed into my seed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For I existed from the first, traveling on
every road.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For I am the wealth of the
light.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am the remembrance of the
fullness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I traveled into the vastness
of the dark, and I persevered until I entered the midst of the prison….And I
entered the midst of their prison, which is the prison of the body.</i></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">And I said, ‘Whoever hears, arise
from lethargic sleep!’</i></div>
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<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">And he wept, shedding tears;
heavy tears he wiped from himself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And
he said, ‘Who is it who calls my name and form where does this hope come to me
who am dwelling in the fetters of the prison?’</i></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">And I said, ‘I am the
Providence-Pronoia of the pure light; I am the thought of the virginal Spirit,
the one who raises you to the place of honor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Arise and remember that you are the one who has heard, and follow your
root, which is I, the compassionate.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Fortify yourself against the angels of poverty and the demons of chaos
and all those who ensnare you, and be watchful of the lethargic sleep and the
garment of the inside of Hades.’</i></div>
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<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">And I raised him up and sealed
him with the light of the water with five seals so that death would not have
power over him from this day on.</i></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
Today I finish the
series of sermons on new texts included in <a href="http://www.hmhbooks.com/anewnewtestament/"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">A New New Testament: A Bible for the 21st Century Combining Traditional and Newly Discovered Texts</i></a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Next week I begin another series of sermons
on one of those new texts, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Gospel of
Thomas.</i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In less than a month, on
October 18<sup>th</sup> and 19<sup>th</sup> we will be hosting a <a href="http://www.westarinstitute.org/events/jesus-seminar-on-the-road/">Jesus Seminar on the Road</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Milton Moreland and Ruben
Dupertuis<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>will be visiting with us to
provide lectures and workshops on the<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">
Gospel of Thomas.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They will be able to correct all my heresies regarding
Thomas.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They will also be on <a href="http://www.religionforlife.com/"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Religion For Life</i></a> beginning this
Thursday on WETS.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpLast" style="line-height: normal;">
So far we have explored,
just whetted our appetites really, several documents in <a href="http://religionforlife.podomatic.com/entry/2013-04-22T14_22_26-07_00"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">A New New Testament</i></a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They
include…</div>
<br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><a href="http://zacharyshuck.blogspot.com/2013/08/normal-0-false-false-false-en-us-x-none.html">The Odes of Solomon<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"> </span></span></a></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><a href="http://zacharyshuck.blogspot.com/2013/08/the-coming-out-of-female-christ-sermon.html">The Thunder: Perfect Mind </a></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><a href="http://zacharyshuck.blogspot.com/2013/08/becoming-child-of-humanity-sermon.html">The Gospel of Mary<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span></a></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><a href="http://zacharyshuck.blogspot.com/2013/09/the-perfect-light-that-does-not-set.html">The Gospel of Truth<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span></a></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><a href="http://zacharyshuck.blogspot.com/2013/09/singing-for-our-lives-sermon.html">The Acts of Paul and Thecla<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span></a></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><a href="http://zacharyshuck.blogspot.com/2013/09/courage-under-fire-sermon.html">The Letter of Peter to Philip</a></li>
</ul>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal;">
Two texts for which I
didn’t devote sermons but used in liturgy are <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Prayer of the Apostle Paul</i> and and an ancient <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Prayer of Thanksgiving.</i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Today
we will dabble into the mysteries of <a href="http://www.gnosis.org/naghamm/apocjn-davies.html"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Secret Revelation of John</i></a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
A bit of background
about this text.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was discovered in
the 19<sup>th</sup> century and is part of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berlin_Codex">Berlin Codex</a> along with the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Gospel of Mary</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was also among the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nag_Hammadi_library">Nag Hammadi</a> collection
discovered in 1945.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I talked about
those collections in previous sermons.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
Three different copies
with significant differences among the texts were found at Nag Hammadi.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That suggests that <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">A Secret Revelation of John</i> was widely read and used in the early
centuries of Christianity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was written
before 180 at least.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We know that
because Irenaeus, who was later recognized as a church Father condemned <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">A Secret Revelation of John</i> as
heresy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Before these modern
discoveries we only had parts of this text, the parts quoted by those
condemning it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Irenaeus quotes <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">A Secret Revelation of John</i> 29 times.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apocryphon_of_John">Irenaeus</a> had other texts on his radar as
well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of the lot of them, he wrote:</div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">"an indescribable number of secret and illegitimate writings,
which they themselves have forged, to bewilder the minds of foolish people, who
are ignorant of the true scriptures."</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
Regardless of whether
or not we might agree with him, what Irenaeus shows is that early Christianity
was diverse and vibrant with many different visions at times competing with one
another, at other times complementing one another, and each adding its voice to
the chorus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now, thanks to these modern
discoveries and thanks to scholars and interested lay people who have demanded
to know these ancient texts, these voices that have been long silenced are
again finding an audience.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thanks to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">A New New Testament</i> some of these voices
are alongside familiar voices so we can get a sense of the breadth and depth of
early Christianity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
The effects of all of
this might be to enhance 21<sup>st</sup> century seekers, whether these seekers
are within Christianity, on the edges, or outside of it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Questions of what it means to be human, and
in particular, what it means to be human amidst forces that dehumanize, are
raised for us as we interact with these texts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I want to emphasize that this is not simply an academic or an historical
exercise.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As the subtitle of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">A New New Testament</i> implies, this Bible
for the 21<sup>st</sup> century is an attempt to speak to us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We are
interacting with it and with each other.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
What is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Secret Revelation of John</i>?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The
Secret Revelation of John</i> is not to be confused with <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Revelation to John</i> that has been in the traditional New
Testament canon.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is the book with
the seven bowls of wrath and the mark of the beast and the four horsemen and
all of the symbols that have had quite a run in the past two millennia.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is not an easy read.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The
Secret Revelation of John</i> is not an easy read either.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
needed some guidance following the logic of the text and trying to keep the
names straight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is helpful,
necessary really, to have a guide.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
recommend Karen King’s <a href="http://www.gnosis.org/naghamm/SBJ/King-Iintroduction-SRJ.htm"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Secret Revelation of John</i></a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Also, even
though I haven’t read it, I have heard another helpful guide is by Stevan
Davies, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1594730822/ref=nosim/gnosisarchive"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Secret Book of John</i></a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Secret Revelation of John</i> is a mythological creation
story.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It tells us who we are, how we
came to be the way we are, and how we are becoming who we will become.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
The story begins with
the Apostle John, the brother of James.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>John and James are the sons of Zebedee in the four gospels.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>According to the tradition they along with
Peter accompanied Jesus to the mountain where he was transfigured before
them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>John is an inner circle apostle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is a whole tradition of “John”
theology that includes the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Gospel of John</i>
and the letters of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">John</i>, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Revelation of John</i> in the traditional
New Testament and this <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Secret Book of
John</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That doesn’t mean the guy
John actually wrote any of this or experienced any of this, but he, like many
figures of importance is used to gain authority for other authors.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In ancient times, tradition, not innovation
is important.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you are writing a
text, you want to make sure it connects with what has gone before you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One way to do that is to have one of the
apostles as either a character or the author.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This counts for documents both within and without the traditional New
Testament.</div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
John goes up to the
temple and he is confronted by a Pharisee named Arimanios.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Arimanios asks him where his teacher
is.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>John tells him that he has “returned
to place from which he came.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Arimanios
tells John that his teacher deceived him and filled him lies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
John is grieved.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He begins to doubt who the Savior was and
who his father was.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He realizes there
are things he doesn’t know.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As he
thinking and grieving, </div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“the heavens opened, and the whole creation below the heaven was
illuminated with light below heaven.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And
the whole world quaked.” 3:1-3</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
A figure appears to
John and changes shape, from a child to an old man to other <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>various forms and all is filled with
light.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The voice said, </div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“John, why are you doubting and fearful?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For you are not a stranger to this
likeness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do not be faint-hearted!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am the one who dwells with you always.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am the Father. I am the Mother.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am the Son.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>3:9-12 </i></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
There is an early
version of the Trinity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then Christ says
to John, </div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“Lift up your face to me and listen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Receive the things that I will tell you today so that you yourself will
them to your fellow spirits who are from the immovable generation of the
perfect Human.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>3:17-18</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
Christ proceeds to tell
John of the nature of the Father or Spirit with quite poetic language.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Father/Spirit is one that cannot be named,
not God “for It surpasses divinity.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
When “It perceived Its
own image in the light-water that surrounds It, Its thinking became a thing.” <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She, the Mother appeared.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Mother is called Pronoia or
Providence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She is also known as
Barbelo.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She is the image of the
invisible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She is the primal
Thought.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She is the primal Human.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She is </div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<i>“the triple begotten one, the
androgynous eternal generation which does not grow old…”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
The whole thrust of
this language is beyond the beyond.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Then Barbelo, the Mother, the Providence-Pronoia “gazes intently into
It, the pure light.” <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In so doing, she
gives birth </div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<i>“to a spark of blessed light... the divine Autogenes, the firstborn
son of All of the Spirit of pure light.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>7:1-6</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
This is the Son or Christ.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This Christ creates everything.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Will and Thought and Life, Grace, <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Understanding, Perception, and Prudence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These
are beings, and there are many of them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They have genealogies and male/female pairs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of
the creations is the “true perfect Human, the primal revelation, Adam.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is not the garden of Eden, Adam.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That
comes later.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The perfect Human, Adam, is
“up there” as part of this whole divine thing.</div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
There is much much
more.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am condensing this down.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of the Eternal Generations, as part of
this Christ creation, who is important for our story, is Wisdom-Sophia.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
is where the story gets interesting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Wisdom-Sophia wants to express herself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So she “thought a thought.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She didn’t think her thought without
consulting first with Father/Spirit or in consultation with her male
partner.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Her thought gives birth so to
speak to this being.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This being is imperfect, ugly in fact.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She casts him away outside of the view of
the immortals.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She gives him a throne
and names him Yaldabaoth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He is the
Chief Ruler.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiShlHf9OghalKjG__BsL7WkoWXBK2cf9bAt6sdwJO3AxoztjkFogQTk4UNReDzVlAINYEhwqnEW9-FctHAd8blixHofFm6uLpBAyAM7U5IFKkKYQ8RoHK3v-kNDAWkqsu2MgVGNuPMXHqg/s1600/Lion-faced_deity.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiShlHf9OghalKjG__BsL7WkoWXBK2cf9bAt6sdwJO3AxoztjkFogQTk4UNReDzVlAINYEhwqnEW9-FctHAd8blixHofFm6uLpBAyAM7U5IFKkKYQ8RoHK3v-kNDAWkqsu2MgVGNuPMXHqg/s200/Lion-faced_deity.jpg" width="162" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
Here is the bottom
line.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yaldabaoth is the god of Genesis
in the Old Testament.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He creates all
kinds of beings and eventually the world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He says “I am a jealous God<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>without me there is nothing.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
is of course not true.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He is a basically
a low-level bureaucrat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He is the guy
who has his own little office that he thinks is his kingdom and he is paranoid
and he bosses people around.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He thinks
he is important.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You might know someone
like that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That is how <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Secret Revelation of John</i> portrays
the god of Genesis.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
If you are finding this
disturbing or offensive, we need to step back and look at the time in which <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Secret Revelation of John</i> is being
written.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is
a couple of centuries before the Nicene Creed and Constantine and the narrowing
down of Christian theology.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are
lively debates around Jesus and how he will be shaped in relation to the Jewish
heritage.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These and other authors and
perhaps even you have wondered if the god of the Old Testament is all there is
to God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You can imagine reading these
stories of the god of Genesis doing rather small-minded, arbitrary, punitive, and
violent things. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These early Christians say
God has to be better than that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So they
take these stories of Genesis and elaborate and re-interpret them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They aren’t alone in doing that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The literature of the time is filled with
rewrites and filling in the holes in the plot of Genesis and so forth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
Back to our story.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Wisdom-Sophia realizes that she has created a
monster and repents.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The immortals come up with a plan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They say to Wisdom-Sophia, “The Human exists
and the Child of the Human.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yaldabaoth
and his minions overhear this but they don’t know where it comes from.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They look at the pattern of the image in the
water and say, </div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<i>“Let us create a human
in the image of God and with the likeness.”</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
They create the human
being but the being cannot move.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They
cannot awaken it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So the Father/Spirit
uses this opportunity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He sends Christ to
tell Yaldabaoth to breathe into the being.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He does and the human becomes alive.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But the spirit he blew into the human is the power of his Mother.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In doing this, the Mother-power is extracted
out of Yaldabaoth and now the human is superior to Yaldabaoth and his
minions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
Yaldabaoth and his minions are upset that the
human is superior to them so they imprison him in flesh.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the light is in him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yaldabaoth tries various tricks to contain
the human and extract the light so he puts the human to sleep, but all this
does is create Eve and enlighten the human.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The plot is too complex to recite here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The point is that every action by
Yaldabaoth to contain, control, even violently kill through the flood, is
countered by the Divine Power.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
The bottom line is that
everyone has the divine light within them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The powers, Yaldaobaoth and his minions are always at work trying to make
human beings forget who they are.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They
do this through gold and silver, through lust, and every kind of temptation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As human beings succumb to the temptations
they become duller.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Their hearts
closed,” says the text.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
Enter Christ, the
wealth of light. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Providence-Pronoia
enters this world and wakes us up from sleep.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The Pure Light calls us to </div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“Arise and remember that you are the one who has heard, and follow your
root, which is I, the compassionate.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>26:28-29</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
Thus the human struggle
and the hope.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>John after receiving this
revelation relates these things to his fellow disciples and to all of us who
will listen.</div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
One could say this is
crazy metaphysical speculation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>OK, but
then again, what theology isn’t?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some is
your kind of crazy, some is my kind of crazy and some isn’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I invite you to withhold a judgment on that
and ask what is a possible takeaway from <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">A
Secret Revelation of John</i> as well as some of these other texts?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
Here is one thing I
take away immediately.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i>The Secret
Revelation of John</i> is a critique of the powers of this world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was written in a time in which the
Roman Empire was God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It said it was
God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Its Imperial theology was
everywhere.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Remember, from the
perspective of <i>The Secret Revelation of John</i>, Yaldabaoth is the creator of all
those Roman gods, too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This book is a
critique of all gods and all powers in the known world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All are puny bureaucrats in light of the
Divine Light that glows in each human being.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It is a critique of Rome’s arrogance and all earthly powers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
The struggle the humans
have in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">A Secret Revelation of John</i>
is to discern among all the voices, whose voice is the voice of the light.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is deceptive, because the powers use
half-truths and use divine images but distort them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What is the voice of compassion, of true
light, of goodness?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What is the right
thing to do, the correct attitude to have, the just way to be in the world?</div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
How do we evaluate the
voices who tell us they have the answers?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It is almost parody because it is so obvious, but a quote from the
<a href="http://www.newamericancentury.org/">Project for A New American Century</a> is in order.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, and Bill Kristol are all part of
this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here is their statement:</div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Project for the New American Century is a non-profit educational
organization dedicated to a few fundamental propositions: that American
leadership is good both for America and for the world; and that such leadership
requires military strength, diplomatic energy and commitment to moral
principle.</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
Is that the voice of
Father, Mother, Son, the Light or is it the voice of Yaldabaoth?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is a purity of raw arrogance in that statement from "The Project for A New American Century." <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But that statement is one of many arrogant and false voices. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Messages from advertising, economic theory,
political theory, all come at us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They tell us who we are and what we need to
do.</div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
Who are we?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Are we defined by a certain kind of militant
patriotism, by a political party, by consumption?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Is the goal of education to get a job, to be
a cog in the marketplace?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Who are you
and what will you do?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>According to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">A Secret Revelation of John</i>, the task is
to develop discernment so that we can follow the root, the core of who we are…that
is compassion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To
become a Human Being, not a cog in some power’s machine.</div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
In <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">A Secret Revelation of John</i> there is no violence on behalf of the
Divine realm, the one above Yaldabaoth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> All violence comes from Yaldabaoth and his minions.
</span>There is no myth of redemptive violence for <i>A Secret Gospel of John</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Salvation comes not from dominating
others or from revenge, but from knowing who we are and by nurturing the light
within.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
This is far more than
metaphysical speculation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i>A Secret
Revelation of John </i>provides a second-century mythical framework for ethical
action.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
When you hear that you
that you are weak or powerless or idealistic or wrong or a heretic or bad or a cog or hopelessly violent, you
can join the voice of this hopeful text and </div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“Arise, and remember that you are the one who has heard…”</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
Amen.</div>
John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6066625145157899505.post-83282003763085923602013-09-18T03:55:00.000-04:002013-09-23T17:05:31.928-04:00Suicide Loss Rights<span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">I didn't attend the seminar we held at our church, <a href="http://zacharyshuck.blogspot.com/2013/09/trees-cars-and-seminars.html">"Suicide and Its Aftermath."</a> I heard that it was helpful to those who attended. I did pick up a handout entitled "A Statement of Suicide Loss Rights" then found it on-line. <br /><br />This is from Tony Salvatore, <a href="http://lifegard.tripod.com/"><i>The Suicide Paradigm</i></a>. He lost his son, Paul, to suicide in 1996. These are his <a href="http://lifegard.tripod.com/ssrights.html">Suicide Loss Rights</a>. Much of this is true for me. I thought I would post them here and perhaps comment on each one. Or maybe not. We'll see.</span><br />
<ol><span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">
<li><span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">We have the right to grieve as we wish despite the unsupportive settings that we often find ourselves. <i>Death is a normal life crisis; suicide is the ultimate abnormal life crisis.</i> </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">We have the right to be free of stigma. <i>In our society suicide has a negative connotation. This afflicts us as it did those we lost.</i> </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">We have the right to be angry about our loss and to be able to express it appropriately at the one we have lost or ourselves. </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">We have the right to feel responsible for things we did or did not do in relation to our loss. <i>We may or may not come to feel differently.</i> </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">We have the right to grieve in a manner and timeframe that works best for us. <i>We don't have to "get over it." </i></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">We have the right to know "why." <i>All who grieve yearn for the one lost. We also seek to understand what happened. </i></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">We have the right to regard our lost loved one as a victim. <i>Suicide is the outcome of debilitation; it is not a choice or a decision. </i></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">We have the right to cooperation from police and the health care community if we seek information on how our loss came about. </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">We have the right to the truth about our loss.<i> We should have access to information as early as possible, if we need it.</i> </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">We have the right to know that we are not by definition candidates for psychotherapy or counseling, or that we must "get help." </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">We have the right to channel our experience to aid the suicidal or other suicide grievers, or to help others better understand either group. </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">We have the right to never be as we were before. <i>Other ends to grief do not apply to us. We survive, but we do not "heal." </i></span></li>
</span></ol>
<span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;"><span style="font-family: Comic Sans MS;">(Note: © <a href="http://members.tripod.com/~LifeGard/copyright.html">Copyright</a> 1998-2002 Tony Salvatore) </span></span>John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6066625145157899505.post-83279183289945882732013-09-03T20:30:00.002-04:002013-09-03T20:30:50.497-04:00Trees, Cars and SeminarsI went to presbytery meeting at <a href="http://www.holstoncamp.org/">Holston Camp</a> today. While there I took a picture of <a href="http://zacharyshuck.blogspot.com/2012/12/weeping-cherry.html">Zach's tree</a>. The weeping cherry was planted by the camp on our behalf in memory of Zach. <br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcgxd_mIgVwiWJumrGNDKq1WzUAPFlA5lrt6FBzgzzqa5q7A9StsVmt11YQ-JDqvn2qdNgAOStM31ucOHFdx_GkGJ-VIEyj3pR6TF7jB1juTfDB6Qxt8HlGRWBOWkGW2AqP0opMnxbhY96/s1600/Zach%2527s+tree.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcgxd_mIgVwiWJumrGNDKq1WzUAPFlA5lrt6FBzgzzqa5q7A9StsVmt11YQ-JDqvn2qdNgAOStM31ucOHFdx_GkGJ-VIEyj3pR6TF7jB1juTfDB6Qxt8HlGRWBOWkGW2AqP0opMnxbhY96/s400/Zach%2527s+tree.jpg" width="300" /></a></div>
<br />
Today was a Zach-filled day. During every meeting there is a time called "promotions" where anyone can talk about upcoming events. I talked about our <a href="http://fpcelizabethton.org/FPC_Elizabethton/JSOR_2013.html">Jesus Seminar on the Road, October 18-19</a> as well as a seminar coming up September 14th called <a href="http://fpcelizabethton.org/FPC_Elizabethton/Christian_Education.html">"Suicide and Its Aftermath."</a> In talking about this event I mentioned losing Zach to suicide in the summer of 2012 and the grief and shame of that. I mentioned that the Session was putting on this seminar as their own response to an event that has affected everyone. Not just Zach's suicide, but since Zach's death I now know many who have lost friends, relatives, siblings, spouses, children, and parents and it needs to be discussed. In many ways, the congregation is doing this to minister to me, and to help me minister, whether I attend it or not. <br />
<br />
I am not sure at this point if I will be able to attend. It is a little close to home. Either way, I am grateful to the congregation for hosting it and they know that. They are allowing me the freedom to attend or not attend. I will decide when the time comes.<br />
<br />
Then early this evening I watched Zach's car drive out of the driveway. We were planning on giving it and the truck away to charity and I found someone who needed a car and the truck, too. I gave them to this person instead. I am glad these vehicles will be doing something productive. They have been sitting and succumbing to the Second Law of Thermodynamics for some time now and need some energy put into their systems if you know what I mean.<br />
<br />
As the car went up the driveway, I thought of my boy and wished he could have driven a nicer car.<br />
<br />
More than anything I wish he was still here to drive the one he had. <br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6066625145157899505.post-68913387165411194112013-07-04T10:25:00.000-04:002013-10-15T09:46:52.667-04:00Engaged!Lovely and I are proud and pleased to announce the engagement of our daughter, Katy Shuck, to Amber Shaw! Both are social workers with big hearts. <br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH9V6y07ZdJFrvH0ZTUQfllPhvaZdu68MMDwGTuCB3-UagWFmHpvHhgH2zsLgbD0dsKpZ84xPFjvf-4OC5ru36KpBbdovH7-nG2DSfdPsnu0AjI-qNKdyWg75Wnbh4_gHdEBrRCSK87iBF/s649/katyamber.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH9V6y07ZdJFrvH0ZTUQfllPhvaZdu68MMDwGTuCB3-UagWFmHpvHhgH2zsLgbD0dsKpZ84xPFjvf-4OC5ru36KpBbdovH7-nG2DSfdPsnu0AjI-qNKdyWg75Wnbh4_gHdEBrRCSK87iBF/s320/katyamber.jpg" width="236" /></a></div>
<br />
The lovely couple will be legally married in New York City at Thanksgiving then in the Fall of 2014 we'll do up a big gay wedding in East Tennessee. Proud papa gets to walk Katy down the aisle and officiate at both ceremonies!<br />
<br />
Life does have its ironies. One of the main, if not the main, activities of my ministry since seminary has been education, support, and advocacy for LGBT people in church and society. I never thought (except for the past two years) that I would be working on behalf of my own daughter. <br />
<br />
A great day for fireworks, don't you think?<br />
<br />
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<a href="http://rainbowfireworksdisplays.com/"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia0m6E-5nwJ5DIlIkF8ybHfWnSp8NKt73unQKRbpkc2WJue_snehWrgqzb0XudTTXJKW0KWu9rfUCVQdXbFSXDyTJmbljz-KP7pqy90wDW-1HmUTL_s_FR8EpHHBGCXdm0FzLEnHHcZWFg/s320/rainbowfireworks.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<br />
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<br />John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6066625145157899505.post-6973453926766819092013-06-29T22:00:00.002-04:002013-06-30T11:27:46.201-04:00MichelleZach's Aunt Michelle, more like a sister as she lived with us from seventh grade through college, wrote this for his memorial service. She wasn't able to be present at the service as she had just given birth to Cooper, Zach's new cousin who he never would meet. On this year anniversary, <a href="http://zacharyshuck.blogspot.com/2013/06/a-year-and-day.html">Yahrzeit</a>, I post it here:<br />
<br />
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="MsoNormal">
For those of you who do not know me, I am Za<a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="_GoBack"></a>chary’s
Aunt Michelle whom he called Mouse or Mish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I called him Zach, Zachary, Zachy and often, I just called him
Meat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Zachary was the first little boy
I ever fell in love with.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was sweet,
sensitive, funny as hell, full of love, incredibly stubborn, protective of his
family and we all loved him deeply.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
To you Zachary,</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I will remain forever grateful for the childhood I was able
to experience because of you and Katy.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I will miss our days of watching X-Men together after
school. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I will always remember singing you and Katy lullabies and
tickling your leg (and back and arm and leg again).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
(Okay, the leg tickling never stopped.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I will never forget
you and your mom cuddling and telling jokes in our living room in
Lowville.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Your bond was always so dear
to behold.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I will never forget you and your dad playing video games and
how excited you would get when you met the next challenge together.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I will never forget the silly games and chants you and Katy
made up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Cockle doodle fun day long, Sweaty Pa,
Awuga…just to name a few.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I will never forget
the long car rides of being forced to sit between you two and how, after a good
fight, you would both end up falling asleep on me.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I will never forget your chubby baby faces and your high
school graduations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I will always remember your trip to see me in Syracuse and in New
York City when I first moved.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was such an achievement to treat you as I
started to grow up.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I will miss the months of thinking about what to do for you
for Christmas.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You always gave me such
unique challenges – probably better if we keep those an inside family joke.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I will forever be honored by the sweet poem you wrote for my
wedding.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I will forever cherish the thought of your smile, the sound
of your laugh,</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
And how it felt to be loved by you.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
When I used to leave our home in Lowville to head back to
college Zachary would stand at the door and make a sad face just so I would
cry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I always did.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I hated leaving my Shuck family and Zachy
always made it harder on me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know,
real sweet kid.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>;<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Today, I see that I am the one standing at the door making a
sad face.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I fear that I will be
crying for you, Zachary, for the rest of my life.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I know that I will be looking to find you in this
world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am not sure how we will
understand life without you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I all ready
see you in the dimple in my son’s right check.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I think of you when I tickle his little 6 day-old leg and he stops
crying.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If he offers me his arm or back
I think I ‘ll freak out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I see you in
the pictures in my home and think of you every time I want to tell a dirty
joke<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>- which we all know is quite
often.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You were my buddy, my brother, my
friend, and most simply my beautiful nephew.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Thank you Beverly and John for giving this world Zach.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My heart will always be suffering the loss of
his light in this world and will forever be filled with the love and laughter
of his memory.</div>
</blockquote>
John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6066625145157899505.post-73660372276657150742013-06-29T14:26:00.000-04:002013-06-29T22:01:23.556-04:00A Year and A DayIn the Jewish tradition remembering the year anniversary of a death is yahrzeit. <br />
<blockquote>
<i>The yahrzeit is a time of remembering the dead by reciting the
Kaddish, lighting a 24-hour candle, and remembering the person who has
died.</i></blockquote>
Thanks to <a href="http://www.scoop.it/t/grief-and-loss">GrahamForeverinMyHeart</a> for introducing me to that. I found this interesting at <a href="http://www.myjewishlearning.com/life/Life_Events/Death_and_Mourning/Burial_and_Mourning/Yahrzeit.shtml">My Jewish Learning</a>:
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>When the year of mourning is over, mourners are expected to return to a fully normal life. "One should not grieve too much for the dead," the Shulhan Arukh, the 16th-century code of Jewish law, notes, "and whoever grieves excessively is really grieving for someone else."
</i></blockquote>
I understand that and the importance of making a conscious decision to end the official period of griefdom even as I am not sure if every death is quite the same. The one year rule does seem a bit wooden. I will grieve differently over parents than I will my son, won't I? At one level it seems that grief is really beginning for me now. Yet there is a sense of needing not to "get over" or "get through" but to move consciously to a new level of relationship with Zach and with my grief. Then again, I am not sure I have any idea what I am talking about! <br />
<br />
The yahrzeit for me is taking six weeks, the six week leave my congregation has given me through the end of August. Nothing is planned really. Just taking time. <br />
<br />
One of our favorite family vacations was to Maine in 1994. Here are the two who would conquer the world. <i>Team Shuck</i>.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjWngxNDdX99JeGbC8uPBzICHnj4_VkAEsv5qyn6Q_buvflplJ9EESbu1zkoeHez6Kej_KmZ_Q_VajKo8DCBr-nsWBWpXe0mBKlpYDwRPLg7jlxE_KIL0VNTOe2daH7qwwFjnHVX2_b_hm/s960/katyzachmaineocean.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjWngxNDdX99JeGbC8uPBzICHnj4_VkAEsv5qyn6Q_buvflplJ9EESbu1zkoeHez6Kej_KmZ_Q_VajKo8DCBr-nsWBWpXe0mBKlpYDwRPLg7jlxE_KIL0VNTOe2daH7qwwFjnHVX2_b_hm/s320/katyzachmaineocean.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
At his memorial service Katy wrote and read this:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #222222; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><b>Team Shuck by Katy Shuck</b><br /><br />We battled monsters on the Montana farm<br />
We conquered in volleyball matches against giants<br />We created plays, songs, and dances to entertain the masses<br />We devoured the communion bread after church to rejuvenate<br />We took our wake boards to the Atlantic to overcome sea creatures and live on the edge of danger.<br />
We sled down steep NY mountains in the dead of winter to overcome fears<br />We created games to cease boredom<br />We joined forces with others to rake mountains of leaves<br />We made pizza and delivered to the Gods with a smile<br />
We slept in the same bed for years to ward off the boogeyman<br />We invited others to join our force<br />We became flounder and little mermaid as soon as we hit the water to battle Ursula<br />We shared our deepest secrets<br />
We performed the raptor for tips to supply us for our next adventure<br />We escaped evil doers and used our strengths to battle ignorance<br />We lived in six different states to create new memories and experience new tribes<br />
We teased the parentals to show them we care<br />We drank potent drinks and got lost in laughter<br />We gravitated toward each other because we could only fight evil as one.<br />We were a team that could never be severed.<br />
<br />He called me machine for my speed at completing tasks<br />He gave me many nicknames to make me laugh<br />He called me his big sister when he needed me<br />He mollified my tantrums<br />He gave hugs that heal<br />He moved to Idaho for it had been the longest time team shuck had been separated.<br />
He defeated many bullies in my honor<br />He had admirable powers<br />He never judged<br />He made me laugh<br />He was genuine<br />He was kind<br />He was loved and he loved<br />He was my confidant, my protector, my buddy, my heart<br />
He was my little brother Zach, who truly was, too good for this world<br />He is on a new adventure now and I know he continues to use his powers for good.</span></blockquote>
On the anniversary, yahrzeit, of Zach's death, Katy rode the waves at Myrtle Beach "for and with Zach" she said.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6066625145157899505.post-18932152512780592662013-06-28T00:25:00.000-04:002013-06-28T14:32:11.097-04:00Mourner's Bill of Rights--Tenet TenThe final tenet of the <a href="http://griefwords.com/index.cgi?action=page&page=articles%2Fmourners.html&site_id=4">Mourner's Bill of Rights</a>.<br />
<br />
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>10. You have the right to move toward your grief and heal.</i></span></h4>
<i>
</i>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>
Reconciling your grief will not happen quickly. Remember, grief is a process,
not an event. Be patient and tolerant with yourself and avoid people who are
impatient and intolerant with you. Neither you nor those around you must forget
that the death of someone loved changes your life forever. </i></div>
<br />
This is it. Day 365. One year has passed. Is this all? Are we supposed to get a medal? Am I supposed to have some profound spiritual experience? Is it a wrap for "Grief Survivor?"<br />
<br />
"Still" is the word for today. <br />
<ul>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB-sxPL95lEHSHO8zpk7rlawtyMiKNuteK6bTUhVXIEMdMIcg7RU-ORaQQFAr_TSUEBVOMFc5AHoo0NOa8s9H8DaqxX0MhNA1EaZFMfki-F7hBuBhSOBm1cOufwt0lld8yANsKs4-QYnPt/s960/katyzach.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB-sxPL95lEHSHO8zpk7rlawtyMiKNuteK6bTUhVXIEMdMIcg7RU-ORaQQFAr_TSUEBVOMFc5AHoo0NOa8s9H8DaqxX0MhNA1EaZFMfki-F7hBuBhSOBm1cOufwt0lld8yANsKs4-QYnPt/s400/katyzach.jpg" width="190" /></a>
<li>I still ache, a physical ache where my heart is supposed to be.</li>
<li>I still think this is a dream and I will wake up and Zach will be here.</li>
<li>I still weep over sentimental songs. Yesterday, Lovely and I got teary when we heard "I'll Be Seeing You" at the <a href="http://jonesboroughtheatre.com/USO-2013.htm">Jonesborough Repertory Theatre's USO Show</a>.</li>
<li>I still look at photographs and think I can reach into the picture and touch him and take him. </li>
<li>I still feel that unbearable longing.</li>
<li>I drove past three of his workplaces today. Still I look in the windows. Looking for what?</li>
<li>Still his car is in the driveway. Will I wait to do something with it until every tire goes flat?</li>
<li>Still I catch myself staring blankly.</li>
<li>Still I want to be alone.</li>
<li>Still I ask, "Why?" </li>
<li>Still I love him. </li>
</ul>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi26KeBEISxY0uHlU40U0Mvb0AdWZO-6P4UskKocvSMzpoSHT3_yjqRv_9Dx8WxDyAmMwAHPUMCRFh5d_df0v7A68tY0TahYgM6ts38iqEvTAcZTIkc1WQ9QLZE7ql_-NKf8McVZX_lApsm/s640/zachinsand.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi26KeBEISxY0uHlU40U0Mvb0AdWZO-6P4UskKocvSMzpoSHT3_yjqRv_9Dx8WxDyAmMwAHPUMCRFh5d_df0v7A68tY0TahYgM6ts38iqEvTAcZTIkc1WQ9QLZE7ql_-NKf8McVZX_lApsm/s320/zachinsand.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<blockquote>
</blockquote>
<br />
<blockquote>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi26KeBEISxY0uHlU40U0Mvb0AdWZO-6P4UskKocvSMzpoSHT3_yjqRv_9Dx8WxDyAmMwAHPUMCRFh5d_df0v7A68tY0TahYgM6ts38iqEvTAcZTIkc1WQ9QLZE7ql_-NKf8McVZX_lApsm/s640/zachinsand.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/1eOkZZgMzhs" width="420"></iframe></blockquote>
<br />John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6066625145157899505.post-61755366895713686012013-06-26T12:08:00.000-04:002013-07-02T12:52:26.718-04:00A Supreme DecisionI am thrilled to hear that the <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/27/us/politics/supreme-court-gay-marriage.html?_r=0">Supreme Court ruled</a> that the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) is unconstitutional and that California's Proposition 8 is out of the park.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>In a pair of major victories for the gay rights movement, the Supreme
Court on Wednesday ruled that married same-sex couples were entitled to
federal benefits and, by declining to decide a case from California,
effectively allowed same-sex marriages there. </i></blockquote>
This is good news for people who are very close to me. <br />
<br />
I am proud of my LGBTQ loved ones and allies who continue to advocate tirelessly for equality. I am proud of the congregation I serve, a <a href="http://fpcelizabethton.org/FPC_Elizabethton/About_Us.html">More Light Church</a>. Not too many churches in these parts will host same-sex weddings. <a href="http://fpcelizabethton.org/FPC_Elizabethton/Weddings_%26_Holy_Unions.html">FPC Elizabethton does</a>. These are marriages in every sense of the word except for the Tennessee marriage license. That will come someday. <br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.mlp.org/"><img border="0" height="43" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWyZoO9f8Ow1aqgwbViZMuc3Q72xnYFbu6fgbGepi9jCtLX5h_jKlvJyvZIM_4wn_d_dvapUdwRABSI9rmvjPPrdCFNcoYv9Mcp5HA-LYmZ7ueLjib9xqmRHpZOU-tuL7f8Hsr27OQbmNg/s400/mlp+banner.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
I am honored to join hundreds of other PCUSA clergy who will marry same-gender couples and thus <a href="http://www.mlp.org/2012/10/03/stand-for-love/">"stand for love"</a> even as our denomination is yet to get on board. Soon it will as well.<br />
<br />
I was interviewed on WJHL Channel 11.<br />
<br />
<script src="http://WJHL.images.worldnow.com/interface/js/WNVideo.js?rnd=155626;hostDomain=www.wjhl.com;playerWidth=345;playerHeight=308;isShowIcon=true;clipId=9033828;flvUri=;partnerclipid=;adTag=News;advertisingZone=;enableAds=true;landingPage=;islandingPageoverride=false;playerType=STANDARD_EMBEDDEDscript;controlsType=fixed" type="text/javascript"></script><a href="http://www.wjhl.com/" title="WJHL-TV: News: Weather, and Sports for Johnson City, TN">WJHL-TV: News: Weather, and Sports for Johnson City, TN</a>John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6066625145157899505.post-29023068209040490172013-06-20T18:50:00.001-04:002013-06-20T19:40:08.534-04:00Mourner's Bill of Rights--Tenet NineHere is tenet 9 from the <a href="http://griefwords.com/index.cgi?action=page&page=articles%2Fmourners.html&site_id=4">Mourner's Bill of Rights</a>. <br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i><b>You have the right to treasure your memories.</b></i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Memories are one of the best legacies that exist after the death of
someone loved. You will always remember. Instead of ignoring your memories,
find others with whom you can share them.
</i></div>
<br />
Normally I would include commentary at this point from <a href="http://zacharyshuck.blogspot.com/2013/01/reflections-on-chelsea.html">Chelsea</a>. Unfortunately, I tried to change my email address and messed
up the subscription. She cut me off at day 299. Thus I lost her comments on the last two Mourner's Bill of Rights. I will have to manage by myself.<br />
<br />
If you are worried about my relationship with Chelsea, fear not. I started the relationship anew and now we are on day 9. Maybe if I start the grief year over, I'll improve. Here is what she sent today:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1371767666535_9176">
<i>Dear john shuck,</i> </div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<h3 id="yui_3_7_2_1_1371767666535_9189">
<i>10 Things You Need to Know About Grief</i></h3>
<ol id="yui_3_7_2_1_1371767666535_9180">
<li id="yui_3_7_2_1_1371767666535_9179"><i>Almost every thought, feeling and behavior is normal.
</i></li>
<li><i>
You will survive.
</i></li>
<li id="yui_3_7_2_1_1371767666535_9181"><i>
Healing takes both time and work.
</i></li>
<li id="yui_3_7_2_1_1371767666535_9182"><i>
Crying is good.
</i></li>
<li id="yui_3_7_2_1_1371767666535_9183"><i>
It's okay to express your emotions.
</i></li>
<li id="yui_3_7_2_1_1371767666535_9188"><i>
Lean on others for support.
</i></li>
<li id="yui_3_7_2_1_1371767666535_9184"><i>
It's okay to fall apart.
</i></li>
<li id="yui_3_7_2_1_1371767666535_9185"><i>
Talk about it.
</i></li>
<li id="yui_3_7_2_1_1371767666535_9186"><i>
You are safe.
</i></li>
<li id="yui_3_7_2_1_1371767666535_9187"><i>
You are not alone.
</i></li>
</ol>
</blockquote>
Very good.<br />
<br />
Now back to tenet 9 of the Mourner's Bill of Rights. <br />
<br />
My congregation has given me six weeks of bereavement leave. Michelle and Cooper have come to spend a week. Here is Coop at Bob Evans:<br />
<br />
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<br />
He is a cutie and nearly a year old. We have been treasuring him and recalling Zachisms. Here are Michelle and Zach:<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbBA3xoD9ZFqvdiPc3kaeOqfdkuxDsU1cNpjqXZBmOfqqGRoCrFb8wzsC2Gfks_ti6sVw0zGsqt-yQMzCu57Wv_IJ4RxEZ1oUqJf-f12ciGSXx1vHm4mlpEWL4Y7zgkcaVsXPImEmbvD6p/s1600/zachmichelle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="232" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbBA3xoD9ZFqvdiPc3kaeOqfdkuxDsU1cNpjqXZBmOfqqGRoCrFb8wzsC2Gfks_ti6sVw0zGsqt-yQMzCu57Wv_IJ4RxEZ1oUqJf-f12ciGSXx1vHm4mlpEWL4Y7zgkcaVsXPImEmbvD6p/s320/zachmichelle.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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As I mentioned in <a href="http://zacharyshuck.blogspot.com/2013/06/the-fatherly-heart-sermon.html">my most recent sermon</a>, last year on Father's Day was the last day we saw him. We are approaching the year anniversary of his death, June 28. I still find myself in moments of denial. I still think it is temporary and he will come back through the front door. <br />
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I know I have "the right" to treasure memories. I wonder if I will ever get to the point at which I can do so. Memories feel like torture. Yes, we remember. We laugh. But it rips. I look at a picture and I want to go in there and grab him. <br />
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Like this one. Lovely found this from our trip to Maine in 1994. That was a great vacation. Zach and I climbed "the beeehive." Here are "my buddies and the sea."<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy_hdQMeyGu07DrFSzUDQeCZCVakuU5hf3uEXXK_0ySmV0GGRvsPodqqTwF9OPlvfvd_CLAuvEj5wKPiarMLnYWB3X95TbI6Mr1ijcMnenIJG2H1D2JVVD191hoxoBeRyvjzcmf4xQVCQa/s1600/katyzachmaineocean.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy_hdQMeyGu07DrFSzUDQeCZCVakuU5hf3uEXXK_0ySmV0GGRvsPodqqTwF9OPlvfvd_CLAuvEj5wKPiarMLnYWB3X95TbI6Mr1ijcMnenIJG2H1D2JVVD191hoxoBeRyvjzcmf4xQVCQa/s320/katyzachmaineocean.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I am going to be spending some of this bereavement leave finding pictures to treasure. When that gets too painful, I'll just zone out.<br />
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<br />John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6066625145157899505.post-28610779113647371992013-06-15T15:45:00.000-04:002013-06-15T16:09:35.417-04:00Disappear<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrRvpdWT6X0Wbiq9Jqc5F95nH3WjnAkFcELnqNViAUVs7FjFBqYI2XSduSrfH8OqoaSJ2iEq2e56loWZpXL19QVUcasnsBzUy9gsvtmbpXWVGHw6a9Ou5bdpOy4I4envXXQHY5AGHsbBVe/s1600/heart+infinity.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrRvpdWT6X0Wbiq9Jqc5F95nH3WjnAkFcELnqNViAUVs7FjFBqYI2XSduSrfH8OqoaSJ2iEq2e56loWZpXL19QVUcasnsBzUy9gsvtmbpXWVGHw6a9Ou5bdpOy4I4envXXQHY5AGHsbBVe/s1600/heart+infinity.jpg" /></a>I am going to disappear for a few weeks. My congregation graciously granted me six weeks of leave as I <a href="http://zacharyshuck.blogspot.com/2013/05/time.html">mentioned earlier</a>. When I return in August I will be preaching from texts that didn't make the Bible but are included in <a href="http://religionforlife.podomatic.com/entry/2013-04-22T14_22_26-07_00"><i>A New New Testament</i></a> edited by Hal Taussig. Here is the <a href="http://www.fpcelizabethton.org/FPC_Elizabethton/Welcome_files/2013%20Summer%20Worship%20Guide.pdf">worship guide</a>. <br />
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You will still hear me on <a href="http://www.religionforlife.com/"><i>Religion For Life</i></a>. I have produced new shows that will air from now through the second week of August. I may post blog entries here if I get in the mood. You will have to check in to know if the blog is updated or subscribe as I am taking both a Facebook and an e-mail break. <br />
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I have a new email for <i>Religion For Life</i> business only, religionforlife [at] hotmail [dot] com. I will post programming updates on the <i>Religion For Life</i> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/religionforlife?ref=hl">Facebook</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/religionforlife">Twitter</a> accounts. Please "like" and "follow" accordingly!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI2saBhPkKSN73-rExg-BMcZJjQ22YN9iF9ALyC6q66AUuJgrWjSFGrxkHc8q8Gq8PkVVMQ1JjCQh2NgV-rdlAH2kMP5oqZtS9rqf4-GZdhyphenhyphenhoelgBixJnlPtd758NDAJmJ6iMNdoVo72n/s1600/dadmekids.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI2saBhPkKSN73-rExg-BMcZJjQ22YN9iF9ALyC6q66AUuJgrWjSFGrxkHc8q8Gq8PkVVMQ1JjCQh2NgV-rdlAH2kMP5oqZtS9rqf4-GZdhyphenhyphenhoelgBixJnlPtd758NDAJmJ6iMNdoVo72n/s400/dadmekids.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<br />John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6066625145157899505.post-63161946429430376662013-05-30T22:23:00.000-04:002013-05-30T22:23:06.266-04:00MontanaDaughter and I are headed for Montana early tomorrow morning. By bus. We are going to visit my parents and family in Glendive. We will get there Saturday night and then go to church with them. It is the first Sunday of the month so my dad will play his clarinet for the congregation. My dad turns 95 on June 6th.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZVULMc-uLnS_V0ETPmD3jnN20XnSbGb6hXUWguyVHtdPmro5SBYyXPYAWd_NjpxbGnwOAa-a0tVO3r6rhPh3HwV6Ez9pbhT4Lx3azRoJXQQt6Pio0hQ3fxFHU8ESKemlpRZIsMmHuND1-/s1600/katymomdad.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZVULMc-uLnS_V0ETPmD3jnN20XnSbGb6hXUWguyVHtdPmro5SBYyXPYAWd_NjpxbGnwOAa-a0tVO3r6rhPh3HwV6Ez9pbhT4Lx3azRoJXQQt6Pio0hQ3fxFHU8ESKemlpRZIsMmHuND1-/s320/katymomdad.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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This pic with Katy (and Liebe) and her grandparents was from 2009. John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6066625145157899505.post-74342507768375440302013-05-29T09:43:00.000-04:002013-05-29T09:43:00.164-04:00AnniversaryLovely and I celebrated our 30th anniversary yesterday. We were married Memorial Day Weekend, <a href="http://www.historyorb.com/date/1983/may/28">Saturday, May 28th, 1983</a> at First Presbyterian Church in Billings, Montana. We went for a honeymoon to Seattle, Vancouver, and Victoria, B.C. On the way back to Seattle from Victoria we had our picture taken on the ship:<br />
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Bev added the text and the square frame.<br />
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We do look a bit young, 21 and 20 to be precise.<br />
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Oddly enough 17 years later, I accepted the call to be the pastor of FPC Billings following the pastor who married us, Rev. Jim Bell. I learned a lot from serving that congregation for four years and met some wonderful friends.<br />
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Yesterday was a good day. We are thrill a minute kinds of folks and spent the day at the <a href="http://www.jcpl.net/index.asp?speed=high&screen=wide&css=yes&print=no&section=home&page=index">library</a>, getting flowers from Lowe's and watching <a href="http://www.google.com/movies?hl=en&near=Johnson+City,+TN&sort=1&ei=_WmlUZubL5K-4APWlIFo&mid=2e8cd74d382e6c55"><i>The Big Wedding</i></a>. <br />
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What's wrong with that? I'd like to know... <br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/2_9QooYDYtU" width="420"></iframe></blockquote>
John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6066625145157899505.post-24694091532419340182013-05-26T20:44:00.000-04:002013-05-26T20:44:03.051-04:00Time<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2B8ivIKhYQwxVz5DfJr1no314bPyUUnoKjzuk0pdqlk3c_gPN90ZsTCGtiMTdYYc7AFSsJqWbd6MiQKYd-a44IPaAfnkkdOTnQLczbN-uoqRehWbUBEjNqEuhItc240_QWL85dnykqXT8/s1600/mezachet.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2B8ivIKhYQwxVz5DfJr1no314bPyUUnoKjzuk0pdqlk3c_gPN90ZsTCGtiMTdYYc7AFSsJqWbd6MiQKYd-a44IPaAfnkkdOTnQLczbN-uoqRehWbUBEjNqEuhItc240_QWL85dnykqXT8/s320/mezachet.JPG" width="240" /></a><br />
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I am going on vacation for a couple of weeks. I will be back in the pulpit for Father's Day. Then my church granted me six weeks bereavement leave. As I wrote to them: <br />
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<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal;">
Dear Friends,</div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal;">
At the last session
meeting, Tuesday, May 14<sup>th</sup>, the session graciously offered me
bereavement leave with pay in addition to my contracted study leave and
vacation time. This is very generous and appreciated. I
wasn't quite ready earlier, but now is the time that I am ready to take this
leave. I will be gone for six weeks from June 17 through July 28.
This is a light time on my calendar and it happens to coincide with the year
anniversary of losing Zach. <br />
<br />
Rev. Don Steele will provide pastoral care including funerals if
needed. I will also be in Montana next week and miss two Sundays,
June 2 and June 9. I will be back the week of June 10-16.<br />
<br />
Here is the worship schedule:<br />
<br />
June 2 Phil Steffey<br />
June 9 Don Steele<br />
June 16 Me<br />
June 23 Rich Fifield<br />
June 30 Phil Steffey<br />
July 7 Kip Elolia<br />
July 14 Rebecca Nunley<br />
July 21 Bill Kirkwood<br />
July 28 Don Steele<br />
<br />
As you know, Bev ended her position at Dobyns-Bennett on March 15 and this time
of bereavement has been incredibly valuable for her. I am looking forward
to spending time with her. She will line up the music for this
period at church. She may or may not be present at worship. Being
out of D-B and present at church has been good for her. She will do her
own thing in regards to that but she will make sure all the music is
covered. <br />
<br />
I will be taking a full break from church. My tank is on
fumes. I am not sure what I am going to do, but I know a lot of it will
be going through a lot of Zach's stuff and cleaning out a lot of things.
I may be in town or not. But I won't be doing anything church related,
except to clean out stuff. I will keep the radio program, although even
there I may run a few reruns. I don't have a plan! : ) We
will be present to Spirit.<br />
<br />
Bev, Katy, and I are very grateful for this congregation. One of the new
members who joined on Pentecost Sunday told me that one of the reasons she was
joining this church is because she saw the love this congregation had for us
during this time. That says a lot. It is the
truth. <br />
<br />
If you have questions about the specifics of the leave, you can talk to Don
Steele or to any of the session members who were at the meeting, David Roane,
Carol Ann McElwee, Jennifer Gardner, Jeff Wardeska, Michael Clark, or Kathy
Wing. <br />
<br />
One thing I do worry about is that people might slip away when I am away.
Our congregation needs everyone's support (time, talent, treasure, you know).
I hope that you all will participate in the life of the community
including worship during this time. Who knows, perhaps the congregation
itself can find ways to forge deeper bonds. <br />
<br />
I love you all...<br />
<br />
Blessed Be,<br />
John</div>
</blockquote>
<br />
<br />
<br />John Shuckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00798753206614838161noreply@blogger.com3