The Messenger - July 1, 2010 - Freedom

Pastor's Corner

The Framework of Freedom

Isn't it fun when July 4 falls on a Sunday? Freedom of Religion is a cornerstone of our constitution, and we have a chance to celebrate that freedom in Worship on this special day. We'll sing the great hymns of freedom, we'll hear the great anthem of freedom, and we'll think about the elements that make this nation great. One of those elements is justice: "liberty and justice for all." I have come to believe this element is essential, but it's an element that we often miss.

At the end of a foreign conflict, our nation often tries to build "democracies" in other parts of the world. Sometimes, as is West Germany, we have been brilliantly successful. At other times, we have failed--partially because those we sought to help didn't really WANT to establish liberty and justice for ALL. Instead, they sought justice for their family, justice for their neighborhood, or justice for their tribe--but vengeance for everyone else. And you simply can't heal a nation that operates like that.

Even in peace time, real freedom is impossible without an equitable and reliable system of justice. Hugo Chavez heads a "democracy" in Venezuela, for example, but everybody knows he runs a one man show. Hugo controls the media, Hugo controls the judges, Hugo controls the election commission, and Hugo sacks the government administrators as well. Hugo's supporters are promoted regardless of their incompetence, and his opponents are imprisoned regardless of the justice of their cause. The nation of Argentina is sitting on several billion dollars of crude oil, but the infrastructure of Argentina is literally crumbling under inept and autocratic rule. They pretend to be a democracy, but freedom without justice is a sham.

Even in our country, justice for some groups (like African-Americans) took centuries to prevail, and many lives were lost in the process. That's why justice is such a thundering theme in Scripture. God set up a system of justice beginning with the 10 commandments on Mount Sinai, God refined that system of justice in many remarkable ways, and God punished the kings and leaders who failed to use it. Whole books of Scripture are devoted to this theme, but these are books we often fail to read. I'll admit that some parts of these books (e.g., Leviticus) are difficult to understand, but the principles beneath them are powerful.

This Sunday, I'll explain a few of the principles that undergird Old Testament texts. Many of those texts were remarkable in their day, and some would be considered "progressive" in our day as well. My prayer is that these texts will give us a greater appreciation of those who keep us free by preserving and defending justice. After all, Scripture teaches that the foundation of freedom is faith (as we talked about last week), but the framework of freedom is justice. A free country cannot stand without it.

I'll see you on the 4th!

A Word from Pastor Neal

Have you been harassed?

Some of you know that our church has gone to extraordinary lengths to preserve the freedom, health, and well being of those who fear radio wave emissions that might come from the AT&T antennas to be installed in our bell towers. We hosted 2 public forums, we listened to their complaints, we allowed them to speak at Session, we researched the matter carefully, we brought in outside experts, and we measured the actual level of RF emissions that would come from our tower, finding it to reach less than 1% of the legal limit.

In spite of these assurances, a very small number of protesters have picketed our church, attempting to divide us or embarrass us. That is their legal right. But they do not have the right to disrupt our worship service with loud noises, and they do not have the right to harass us. What is harassment? According to California's Code of Civil Procedure, Part 2, Title 7, Chapter 3, harassment is any act directed at a specific person that:

seriously alarms or annoys the person

serves no legitimate purpose

would cause a reasonable person distress

Protestors have a right to express their opinions about cell phones quietly until the cows come home, but if a protestor yells at you personally, shakes his fist at you, or makes any other threatening gesture, that is harassment. And harassment can be curtailed by law. If you think that any protestor has committed harassment, please report it to Gary Smith, along with a description of the person involved. He'll take up the case from there.

Celebrate this Summer with "Zoe Party"!

Click here for more info and to sign up. Party will be held on Saturdays and Sundays at various times throughout the summer. Hope to see you there!

Any questions about signing up, please contact Erik Larson.

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