July 2014 - OE - lists.wedgeblade.net

Fwd: GMCA June 28-29
by David Zahrt via OE 04 Jul '14

04 Jul '14

*SAT Jun 28* On Friday night, we had an early dinner and then scooted to the church to avoid the lightening, wind and thundershowers. I saw no indication that there was a camp meeting scheduled so I went downstairs where I could have a table and an outlet for my computer and did some journaling. When I came upstairs to the auditorium I discovered a camp meeting in progress. The issue was financing the March. There is approximately $14,000 in the bank. It seems the March will cease when it runs out of money. Currently there is no source of additional income. Some were uncomfortable with Ed Fallon being the chair of the non-profit organization that is sponsoring the March. The board is currently making decisions about how the money is spent. The drift of the conversation seemed to be that we should have Marchers on the board and replace Ed as the chair. I was not able to follow the discussion and determine what difference that would make. The group broke up about 9:30 with a resolution to form a group to talk with Ed about the issue. I slept in the church as did most, but I left my clothes bag in the tent. The bag, and everything in it was damp in the morning. After breakfast cleanup we circled up, had announcements, and got the route information—19 miles east on Hwy 34. Some still had tents that needed to be taken down and packed on the Gear truck. There were several people over at the church vacuuming and straightening up. The route was clear, it was time to go, so I got on my bike and started east on Hwy 34. I left about 7:15 and arrived at the campsite about 10:30. The campsite is an Auction House along Hwy 34. It is not near a town so there are no amenities. *SUN Jun 29* After we circled-up I got on my bike and rode off because I now have texting on my phone. The route is sent every morning as a text-message. We continued east on Hwy 34 for another 19 miles. Faith, one of our 19-year old Marchers, rode a bike today without a helmet and reflective vest. She always kept out in front of me. Although there are some uphill slopes we are basically descending in altitude. There were several things we used to symbolize the border crossing: 1) The campsite was chosen to be a mile and ½ from the Colorado-Nebraska border. 2) We set our tents up in a circle facing into the circle. 3) We set the wakeup time for 4am 4) We chose to remain silent until we crossed the border 5) We would set up a gateway that everyone would pass through 6) We could choose to verbalize our intent for being on the March. We also agreed to authorize Jeffrey and John A. to have a conversation with Ed. Peace, David

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Fwd: GMCA June 27
by David Zahrt via OE 03 Jul '14

03 Jul '14

*FRI Jun 27* It was a Rest Day In Yuma, CO. We had French toast for breakfast. After breakfast cleanup we had some time before a camp meeting began. We started at 10:30 and spent ‘til noon working on a statement using Chris’ model of the 5-D Cycle of Appreciative Inquiry. 1. DESIGN—co-creating what will be 2. DESTINY—living and sustaining the change 3. DEFINE—what to learn about; create the inquiry process 4. DISCOVER—the best of what is 5. DREAM—visualizing what could be I think Chris, the Colorado logistics coordinator, kept us focused on what I would call a mission statement. We went over and over the statement. Chris was not ready to get a consensus. At one point I suggested that we move ahead to the next step and come back to the statement we had created to evaluate it and add to it if need be. This was because I think it was a waste of time since we’ve already had this group conversation and created a mission statement. After the meeting I got John J to help me mend the bike seat. Then I collected all that had gotten damp in the tent and hung my clothes up to dry. I had lunch and went to the library to use the computer and WiFi. I came back took my clothes off the line. By 4:30 it was thundering. We had an early dinner and as soon as it began to sprinkle, I got my sleeping gear over to the church. There was no further camp meeting so I caught up on my journaling and went to sleep in the church. Peace, David

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7/3/14, Spong: Part XXIV Matthew - Interpreting Atonement Theology, Part II
by Ellie Stock via OE 03 Jul '14

03 Jul '14

HOMEPAGE MY PROFILE ESSAY ARCHIVE MESSAGE BOARDS CALENDAR Part XXIV Matthew Interpreting Atonement Theology, Part II “Atonement Theology” assumes that human life, though created in the image of God, is now both fallen and evil. It assumes that God is a being who can be “offended” by human disobedience, is incapable of forgiving and must, therefore, exact the deserved punishment on the sinful human life. It assumes that Jesus’ death was the punishment that God required and that Jesus’ willingness to satisfy God’s anger on our behalf has brought us the reconciliation for which we yearned. Consequently, it assumes that salvation comes to us through the suffering and death of Jesus, enabling us to reclaim the status for which we had originally been created. When one strips away the piety of the ages and states its premise boldly, as I have sought to do above, “Atonement Theology” is revealed as a barbaric idea, hardly worthy of a deity whose nature is supposed to be that of love. “Atonement Theology” needs to be seen for what it is and purged from Christianity. It is not about grace, as is so often claimed; it is about wrath. “Atonement Theology” is wrong at every point. In this column I want to expand on just why a Christianity that still speaks in the language of “Atonement Theology” has no future. First, I begin by looking at what “Atonement Theology” does to our concept of God. It is not only an expression of dated theism in that it defines God as an external, supernatural being, but it also turns God into a monster. The God of “Atonement Theology” is a deity intent upon punishment. The God of “Atonement Theology” lacks the qualities of both love and compassion and is more concerned with guilt than with grace; with punishment than with forgiveness. Salvation, according to “Atonement Theology” requires the suffering, sacrifice and death of the divine Son, which means that “Atonement Theology” portrays God as the ultimate child abuser. Why anyone would be drawn to worship such a sadistic deity is beyond me, yet this concept is at the heart of the Christianity in which I was raised and the religion that has permeated my culture. Our hymns proclaim it, our liturgies reflect it, our sermons are based on it and that ever present mantra of traditional Christianity, “Jesus died for my sins,” proclaims it. This is the God before whom we are taught to kneel like slaves might do before a king. This is the God whom we are taught to beg for mercy. This is the God who proclaims us to be “wretches,” “miserable offenders,” people in whom there is “no health” or wholeness. Will an enlightened world continue to worship, to say nothing of continuing to believe in such a deity? I do not think so unless we are willing to accept a definition of human life that borders on being pathological. Second, look next at what “Atonement Theology” does to Jesus. It reduces him to the status of a perpetual victim. Maybe he is a masochist, eager to suffer, eager to mount his cross, constantly reminding us of the pain that we have forced him to endure. Perhaps this is the reason that the primary symbol of Christianity through the ages has been, not the cross, but the crucifix. The crucifix was a constant reminder of the suffering that Jesus was forced to endure “for us and for our salvation.” The crucifix adorned the cell of every monk and nun in Christian history, reminding him or her constantly of the debt each of us owes this Christ. The church was apparently not aware in those days of the psychological truth that one never really loves the one upon whom we are made to be both dependent and constantly grateful. Who then needs the Christ of “Atonement Theology?” This Christ becomes an object only of our mental sickness. Finally, look at what “Atonement Theology” does to you and me. It fills us with a debilitating guilt. Guilt indeed becomes the coin of the realm in Christianity itself. In every way possible, the church encourages us to feel guilty. We are controlled by guilt. We are taught to wallow in it. That is why our worthlessness is proclaimed so frequently in our worship. That is why we are taught to beg God for mercy over and over and over again. That is why the dignity of our humanity is systematically stripped from us in liturgy in the name of Christianity. Guilt, “the gift that keeps on giving,” is instilled in us daily. Can one imagine a more effective guilt producer than to proclaim to all of Jesus’ followers that it is our sins that are the cause of Christ’s suffering and death? The Christian Church made sado-masochism a virtue in worship, extolling whips and nails as Christ absorbs the pain due us and because of us. We even wrote sado-masochism into our hymns. What else could be the meaning of these words? “Before thy throne, O Lord, we kneel, Give us the conscience quick to feel. “A ready mind to understand the meaning of thy chastening hand; “Wean us and train us with thy rod; teach us to know our faults, O God.” This God is not urged to “spare the rod” and thus “to spoil the child,” but to use it! Another of the Lenten hymns of my church also makes this guilt message very clear: “Who was the guilty, who brought this upon you? Alas my treason, Jesus, hath undone thee; ‘Twas I Lord Jesus, I it was denied thee, I crucified thee!” Is guilt ever a positive or healthy emotion? If not, why are we taught to wallow in it? Has any one of us ever known another to be helped by being told how evil he or she is? Would a parent do that to a child? Can any one of us imagine this parent-child conversation: “Look, child, you were born in sin! You can do nothing good without God. You deserve nothing but God’s wrath.” Would such a style of parenting ever produce a healthy adult? If, however, that is deemed to be an unhealthy way to raise a child, why have we Christians ever thought that this is the proper way to treat worshipers in liturgy? Is controlling behavior ever a pathway to holiness? It is, however, not just in this life that the guilt message of “Atonement Theology” has been both projected and practiced. The Christian Church’s traditional understanding of life after death has simply extended this theology into eternity. “Be a good boy or girl and you will be rewarded with heaven. Be a bad boy or girl and you will be sentenced to the eternal punishment of hell.” Does that not sound familiar? How do these things give us the abundant life about which the Fourth Gospel’s Jesus is said to have spoken? If that is the essence and meaning of Christianity, then why does anyone think it will appeal to another? Is there any wonder that as consciousness grows and people begin to see that the Christian message really has been psychologically abusive, that more and more Christians are walking away from the church? What once was a trickle has today become a flood. In our generation Christianity is dividing into two mutually repelling camps. First there are those who do not wish to escape the message of “Atonement Theology.” They have grown comfortable with this theology of abuse. They believe its only weakness is that it has not been proclaimed more stridently in the words of militant, hysterical fundamentalism. As the traditional adherents and yes, the victims of “Atonement Theology,” they do not see their own limited tribal mentality, causing them to fear racial differences. They seek to force women back into submissive pattern as the victims of male domination. They seek to reinstate male control over female bodies by not including birth control coverage in health insurance. Both by political vote and the establishment of new laws, they seek to force even those women who are pregnant by rape or incest not to abort the fetus. It is also hard not to notice that the primary source of negativity expressed in our society today toward gay and lesbian people comes from the institutional Christian Church. Those are the ones who seem intent on reducing the Christian Church to the theology of yesterday, seeking to recover that security they think they once had in their “unchanging church.” It is an appealing fantasy to many and those congregations that live this message out are filled with worshipers. Everyone recognizes, however, that a church built on dehumanizing people of color, women or homosexual persons will not survive into the next generation. Does anyone really think that black people will stop clamoring for the power long denied them? Does anyone really believe that women will resubmit to male authority? Can anyone really believe that homosexual persons will be content to return to their closets of denial, fear and shame? Such tactics at best are a pitiful quest for security. It will not endure. The other camp into which Christians are flowing in ever widening streams is made up of those who leave organized religion in general and Christianity in particular, to become members of the “Church Alumni Association.” That is the fastest growing organization today in the Christian West. The largest single “Christian” group in America now is made up of secularized former Roman Catholics. Exiled Christians are not always sure why they have left their churches. They have only a vague sense that what they hear in church no longer relates to the world in which they live. They are mostly subconsciously, though sometimes it rises to a conscious awareness, that the words they hear or the words their liturgy requires them to say are no longer believable and they are tired of being told that they should feel chronically guilty. If “Atonement Theology” is the meaning of Christianity then the “millenials” are correct and their massive abandonment of religion is actually a step into health and wholeness. There is no future in a Christianity that is still bound to “Atonement Theology.” The real questions are “Can Christianity step out of those concepts which, in the past, have so totally defined it, and still have something of value to offer the world? Can Christianity still be Christian outside of “Atonement Theology?” My conclusion is that every precept underlying “Atonement Theology” is now inoperative. So is Christianity if we cannot extricate ourselves from this theological pattern of the past. ~John Shelby Spong Read the essay online here. Question & Answer Robert Pike, via the Internet, writes: Question: I read your article on homophobia. I know that the topic is the immorality of homophobia and I agree with you on this topic. Concerning slavery and the Civil War, there is an additional moral question rarely mentioned. That is, what was the best means to end slavery? Yes, slavery is immoral, but so is war. The defeat of the South resulted in slaves being freed; while at the same time the Confederate veterans lost their right to vote. This resulted in much racial hatred and the birth of the KKK. It would have been better to kick the South out of the Union and refuse to readmit them until they abolished slavery. In Utah, polygamy was legal before Utah became a state. Utah was not allowed to become a state until polygamy was abolished. It worked for Utah and would have worked for the South. Because of the violent way in which slavery was ended, it took 100 years until the Civil Rights movement and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. peacefully ended the Jim Crow era. Answer: Dear Robert, Thanks for your letter, but I must tell you that I regard it as a rather weak attempt to do some revisionist history. I am a child of the South, raised in segregation in North Carolina and I think your assumptions are incredibly naive. You do not seem to recognize that the South decided they would rather have slavery than remain in the Union. Utah was willing to give up polygamy so that they could join the Union. I suppose that if slavery had not been ended on the battlefields of Gettysburg, Harpers Ferry, Antietam, and Appomattox, that economic pressure on a slave-owning confederacy, might have forced them to give up slavery in another 100 years or so. Economic pressure from the world did force the Republic of South Africa to give up Apartheid in 1994. You seem to assume that to achieve a peaceful end to slavery legitimizes that inhumane institution lasting for another hundred years or so; that is a moral compromise I would never be willing to accommodate. Slavery is wrong, it is inhumane and it violates everything I believe about the Christian faith. Its end had to be achieved and the hidden racism that still lives just below the surface in the world and in our nation today also needs to be confronted openly. Listen to the racist voices that still speak in our world. Watch those states where Republicans control both the governor’s office and the state legislature where overt efforts are still being made to prevent people of color from voting. I am not willing to countenance a system of government that will compromise the freedom and dignity of black people, to give white people more time to adjust to required changes or to enable changes to take place at a pace white people can tolerate. Justice delayed is not morally neutral, it is justice denied. It must be condemned, confronted and rooted out. Yes, I think war was a dreadful alternative and the Civil War brought great suffering on a lot of innocent people, but if slave owners were not willing to give up slavery voluntarily and immediately, I will not say that that war was somehow unnecessary. When Adolph Hitler burned Jews in the crematoriums, I believe that act warranted a war to force the Nazi government out of power. So I regard your analysis as simply wrong. The Arc of the Universe bends toward justice and when justice is systematically denied to people because of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation or religion, I believe the power of an ultimate force must be brought to bear on those who think their behavior should be tolerated, I would be quite prepared for Confederate veterans to lose their right to vote as punishment for supporting a state that sought to enslave human beings legally. Racial hatred is a disease that must be rooted out; it is not an attitude that anyone should support because changing it might upset some of the slave owners. Racial hatred needs to become so expensive that the racists are forced to give it up in order to continue to live. Slavery itself is violent; to remove it from life is not to increase violence. I enjoyed a church sign board recently that read, “I have made some of you black and some of you gay. Get over it!” It was signed “God.” I do not just want to “get over it,” I want to celebrate it. ~John Shelby Spong Announcements This month at ProgressiveChristianity.org we delve into the topic of Music in Sacred Community. Join in the discussion, sign up for our free monthly eBulletin, today!

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Charles Moore info
by Mary Hampton via OE 03 Jul '14

03 Jul '14

Who ever is monitoring, Please remove all addressees I inadvertently left in with Alison Dieter letter. ty! mary

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Re: [Oe List ...] Rev. Charles Moore. Self-immolation in protest for injustice - perpetrated or allowed by our government
by Mary Hampton via OE 03 Jul '14

03 Jul '14

Alison, thank you for information. I also knew Charles and will miss his presence in this plane. I am passing the letter from his son-in-law on to other friends and colleagues of his. Love, Light, Mary Hampton > On Jul 3, 2014, at 2:18 PM, Alison Dieter <popmomdieter(a)aol.com> wrote: > > Charles Moore was a good friend. We stood outside the Gov's mansion for many years, protesting executions. Often, he stood by himself. I feel as he did about the injustices being heaped on the tired, the poor, the dispossessed . And understand why he did what he did. It is up to us to make his life and death meaningful. I cannot stop crying. Alison Dieter > > His stepson-in-law, the Rev. Bill Renfro, provided the Tyler Morning Telegraph with a letter he hopes might provide some perspective: > > -------- > > In the middle of the night, Monday, June 23rd, my wife, Kathy, and I had to drive to Allen (just north of Dallas) to be with her mother. Kathy's stepfather, Charles Moore, a retired United Methodist minister, chose Monday to self-immolate in the Grand Saline town square, the town in which he grew up. Monday was the 50th anniversary of the discovery in Mississippi of the burned automobile that belonged to three young civil rights workers who had been missing since June 21st and found later to have been murdered by members of the KKK. The three students had gone to Mississippi to help blacks register to vote. Charles sacrificed his life in this manner as a statement that he was dying on behalf of others to call attention to the plight of the powerless people struggling to live who are being denied justice, equality, constitutional rights, health and quality education. He gave his life on behalf of the hungry, the poor, the imprisoned, and the jobless as well. > > Charles wrote that he was concerned that the programs that were developed for those who don't have enough for food and adequate nutrition are being cut; that health care for millions is being denied with no reason except spite toward the President; that racism is rampant; that the performance of a same-sex union by a minister of the United Methodist Church is considered to be on a par with crimes such as rape, pedophilia, extortion, etc.; that LGBTQ persons still suffer discriminatory practices; that the death penalty is still used as a supreme punishment without deterrent effect; that cuts are being made in quality public education for all children; that voting rights are being taken away by discriminatory laws; that justice is unbalanced for the minorities and the poor; that tax cuts are proposed for the wealthy; that leaders and lawmakers enjoy social injustice. Charles Moore considered his act to be a supreme sacrifice for the sake of others, for all, including the powerful and the powerless. He believed that the memory of his act would allow healing to evolve. > > As written in the notes that were left behind, Charles Moore determined that he had not done enough in his life to alleviate these problems. He had not gone to Mississippi to register black voters fifty years ago; he had not participated in the Selma march; he had not fought enough for justice nor had he acted enough to erase the specter of segregation because he feared for his life or for the possibility of removal from a church or from the ministry. (His inaction is debatable since, as a young minister, he was kicked out of churches in East Texas for standing up for integration and since he went on a hunger strike to bring attention to the polity of the United Methodist Church that would not allow gays or lesbians to hold any office within the Annual Conference or in Local Churches. These rules were relaxed some later. These are only a few of his many acts for justice during his life.) He decided that his final act would be the ultimate sacrifice on behalf of others in an attempt to fulfill in death where he had failed in life. > > Time will tell what effects and affects his death will have on society. > > Rev. Bill Renfro > > / / / / / > > http://www.tylerpaper.com/TP-Religion/202014/up-in-flames-selfimmolation-da… > Wednesday, 2 July 2014 - 22:31 | Tyler Morning Telegraph > > Up in flames: Self-immolation dates to political, religious figures inworld history > by Rebecca Hoeffner | rhoeffner(a)tylerpaper.com > > On June 23, a retired minister drove to his hometown of Grand Saline, parked his car in a Dollar General lot, doused himself in gasoline and set himself ablaze. > > The note he left behind explained that he committed the act as a protest of what he saw as Grand Saline’s long-standing unrepentant racist culture. > > The Rev. Charles Moore died later that day from his injuries. > > “A light in the fight for justice has expired,” wrote Kathy Renfro, Moore’s stepdaughter, on his online obituary page. > > According to a letter written to friends and family by Kathy’s husband, Bill Renfro, Moore was concerned about more than racism. > > “Charles sacrificed his life in this manner as a statement that he was dying on behalf of others to call attention to the plight of the powerless people struggling to live who are being denied justice, equality, constitutional rights, health and quality education,” reads the letter. “He gave his life on behalf of the hungry, the poor, the imprisoned, and the jobless as well. > > “As written in the notes that were left behind, Charles Moore determined that he had not done enough in his life to alleviate these problems. He had not gone to Mississippi to register black voters 50 years ago; he had not participated in the Selma march; he had not fought enough for justice nor had he acted enough to erase the specter of segregation because he feared for his life or for the possibility of removal from a church or from the ministry. (His inaction is debatable since, as a young minister, he was kicked out of churches in East Texas for standing up for integration, and since he went on a hunger strike to bring attention to the polity of the United Methodist Church that would not allow gays or lesbians to hold any office within the annual conference or in local churches. These rules were relaxed some later. These are only a few of his many acts for justice during his life.) He decided that his final act would be the ultimate sacrifice on behalf of others in an attempt to fulfill in death where he had failed in life.” > > Self-immolation has a long religious and political history, and usually has been used to protest injustice. The practice dates back in Chinese Buddhist tradition to the late fourth century, according to a CNN article. People of other faiths have embraced the practice, although most faiths forbid suicide. Though self-immolation has the longest history in the Buddhist tradition, it is still controversial within the faith; some see it as the ultimate self-sacrifice, while others condemn the practice. > > Other religious have different roots to the practice. > > “Though outlawed in India for nearly two centuries, some Hindu communities practiced the ritual of sati — in which a widowed Hindu woman would throw herself, or be thrown, on her husband’s funeral pyre,” reads the CNN article, named after a Hindu goddess of the same name. > > In the mid-1800s, a Russian sect of Christians known as the Soshigateli, or the “self-burners,” burned an estimated 1,700 or more of themselves. They believed it was the only way to be purified of their sins, according to the book “The Secret Societies of All Ages & Countries” by Charles Heckethorn. > > Other acts of self-immolation have been in protest of political actions. Several Vietnam protesters in the United States in 1965 and 1966 — of several different faiths, including Christian and Jewish denominations — used the practice. And, “Malachi Ritscher, 52, lit himself on fire near a downtown Chicago, Illinois, expressway in 2006,” according to the CNN article. “The musician and activist was said to be protesting the war in Iraq, but he was also reportedly a recovering alcoholic who battled depression.” > > The uprising that crumbled the Tunisia government began in December 2010 with Mohamed Bouazizi setting himself ablaze. Others followed suit shortly after in Egypt, Algeria and Mauritania. > > But friends and family say that Moore’s actions may have been motivated by his own misplaced guilt as much as they were a protest against the culture. > > The Rev. Sid Hall, pastor of Trinity United Methodist Church in Austin, became friends with Moore when he was pastor of Grace United Methodist in Austin. Hall recalled when Moore went on a hunger strike in protest of the exclusion of the LBGTQ community from the church. > > “He walked the talk of social justice in his life,” Hall said. “He understood that his privilege as a straight, white male created obligations. He didn’t feel like he ever lived up to that obligation. That’s where we disagreed. No one can live up to that. ... He did nothing without serious reflection. He had a brilliant mind, and I think he was in that mindset a lot. There will be those who want to paint him as a nutcase, but Charles was someone who really stewed about issues of conscience. ... If I’d known he was planning something like this, I would have tried to talk to him. If nothing else, Methodism is about grace. And even though Charles certainly preached that for other people, I’m not sure if he accepted it for himself.” > > / / / / / > Steve Hall > The StandDown Texas Project > PO Box 13475 > Austin, TX 78711 > > 512.879.1675 (o

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Charles Moore
by via OE 03 Jul '14

03 Jul '14

Charles Moore is an impressive man whose life remains in the sphere of "eternity" in my baggage of Christian metaphors. We had his young teenage son at the Saskatoon House. Like many of our Order youth, he was not at ease with assigned "authority" figures, Duncan Holmes nor I. But I liked the son probably because he was "rebellious" enough to be assertive. Being an SMU/Perkins grad myself, Charles is a brother! Will light up a candle here in Canada (will most likely just turn on a LED flashlight) as Calgary goes on a Stampede, and I take five couples to Lake Louise in Banff on a three day tour. Canada Day was a big deal, and tennis bonne femme Bouchard just made the Wimbledon Finals. Charles lit a bigger fire. He remains aflame in me. Jaime

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Fwd: Tyler Morning Telegraph - Madman or Martyr? Retired minister sets self on fire, dies
by Randy Williams via OE 03 Jul '14

03 Jul '14

Sent from my iPad > Date: July 3, 2014 at 11:20:00 AM CDT > To: "oe(a)lists.wedgeblade.net" <oe(a)lists.wedgeblade.net> > Subject: Tyler Morning Telegraph - Madman or Martyr? Retired minister sets self on fire, dies > Here is a story that appeared in the Tyler, Texas Morning Telegraph regarding Charles Moore's death, along with a copy of the note he left on the windshield of his car. The note is, well, moving, to say the least. > Randy > > http://www.tylerpaper.com/TP-News+Local/201968/madman-or-martyr-retired-min… > > Madman or Martyr? Retired minister sets self on fire, dies > > Published on Tuesday, 1 July 2014 22:40 - Written by KENNETH DEAN kdean(a)tylerpaper.com > > Graphic copy alert: Accompanying this story is an image of Charles Robert Moore's suicide note, provided by Grand Saline Police. It contains graphic language. > > GRAND SALINE – A 79-year-old Methodist minister who died after setting himself on fire on a busy street in this town of about 3,100 residents left behind a suicide letter asking the community to repent for its racism. > > Charles Robert Moore, who had addresses in Allen and Sunnyvale, drove to Grand Saline on June 23, parked his vehicle in a Dollar General lot in the 500 block of East Garland Street, doused himself in gasoline and committed self-immolation, Police Chief Larry Compton said Tuesday. > > “I have never seen anything like this in my entire career in law enforcement, which includes my years as an arson investigator for the Mesquite Fire Department," the 66-year-old chief said. > > Horrified witnesses ran to the man and tried to put out the fire. Another witness then arrived with a fire extinguisher. > > "They got the fire put out, and the man was transported to Parkland Hospital in Dallas, where he later died of his injuries," Compton said. > > Moore put a typed suicide note on his car windshield before he set himself on fire, the chief said. > > In the note, which Compton provided to the Tyler Morning Telegraph, Moore – who is white - stated he was born in Grand Saline and grew up around racial discrimination. > > His letter claimed that the community shunned blacks and resorted to violence, including hangings, burnings and decapitations. > > "I will soon be 80 years old, and my heart is broken over this,” Morris wrote. “America, and Grand Saline … have never really repented for the atrocities of slavery and its aftermath. What my hometown needs to do is open its heart and its doors to black people as a sign of the rejection of past sins.” > > Moore wrote that visions of violence haunted him greatly. > > "So at this late date, I have decided to join them by giving my body to be burned,” he wrote. “With love in my heart not only for them but also of the perpetrators of such horror ... " > > Morris signed the letter, which was dated June 23. > > Angi McPherson, 44, was working in the Sophistikutz hair salon when she saw the man walking around the parking lot. > > "He had been walking around the parking lot for a while, but he didn't seem like anything was wrong,” Ms. McPherson said. “After awhile we saw him grab something square (police report would show it was a 2-by-3-foot piece of foam) and knelt down. Then we saw him grab a gas can and begin pouring something all over him. We were like, ‘Is that gas?’” > > Ms. McPherson said she will never forget the next few moments. > > “He suddenly burst into flames, and he stood up and started screaming,” she said. “One of the guys ran and tried to put him out with his shirt, while my boyfriend ran to him with a fire extinguisher and finally put him out.” > > Ms. McPherson called the incident troubling. > > "I have never seen anything like that, and it was like watching some kind of a horror movie. Who sets them self on fire?" she said. > > Compton said the preacher’s death disturbed him. He added that while Grand Saline might once have been racially divided, today it is a community of acceptance. > > "It might have been that way in the 1930s, ’40s and ’50s like a lot of places, but today we are a community of different ethnicities and racial makeups," he said. > > According to citydata.com, whites compose about 76 percent of the population, while Hispanics make up about 21 percent. The black population – at 20 people - numbers fewer than 1 percent. > > Ms. McPherson said she has lived in the town all of her life and she knew there was still racial divide in the small community. > > "It's not as big as it used to be, but it is here. It is everywhere," she said. > > By comparison, the East Texas town of Gilmer, which has about 5,000 residents, is 65.3 percent white, 15.7 percent Hispanic and 15.5 percent black. > > Of Gladewater’s population of about 6,500, about 76 percent are white, 15 percent are black and 5.1 percent are Hispanic. > > Mineola has a population of about 4,500, of which about 61 percent are white, 23.4 percent are Hispanic and 13 percent are black. > > Blacks compose about 10 percent of Winnsboro’s population of about 3,250, with whites numbering at about 84 percent and Hispanics at 4.3 percent. > > According to the U.S. Census bureau’s figures, Texas’ population in 2013 was about 26.4 million, with the nation at 316.1 million. > > The state’s population was 80.6 percent white, compared to 77.9 percent nationally. Blacks numbered 12.3 percent for Texas and 13.1 percent for the United States. Hispanics numbered 38.2 percent for the state and 16.9 percent for the nation. > > James Chase Sanchez, a Texas Christian University Rafford Research Fellow working on his doctorate in racial rhetoric, said self immolation is the second most symbolic form of suicide only behind self-crucifixion. > > "When someone sets themselves on fire in order to commit suicide, they have something to say," he said. > > Sanchez said he is from Grand Saline and knows there is a history of racism in the town. > > "We all want to think that there is no racism among us today and that any racism is on an individual level, but our past memories can affect us as a community,” he said. “Everyone in Grand Saline knows there is a history, but no one wants to talk about it." > > > > > Sent from my iPad

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Tyler Morning Telegraph - Madman or Martyr? Retired minister sets self on fire, dies
by rcwmbw via OE 03 Jul '14

03 Jul '14

Here is a story that appeared in the Tyler, Texas Morning Telegraph regarding Charles Moore's death, along with a copy of the note he left on the windshield of his car. The note is, well, moving, to say the least. Randy http://www.tylerpaper.com/TP-News+Local/201968/madman-or-martyr-retired-min… Madman or Martyr? Retired minister sets self on fire, dies Published on Tuesday, 1 July 2014 22:40 - Written by KENNETH DEAN kdean(a)tylerpaper.com Graphic copy alert: Accompanying this story is an image of Charles Robert Moore's suicide note, provided by Grand Saline Police. It contains graphic language. GRAND SALINE – A 79-year-old Methodist minister who died after setting himself on fire on a busy street in this town of about 3,100 residents left behind a suicide letter asking the community to repent for its racism. Charles Robert Moore, who had addresses in Allen and Sunnyvale, drove to Grand Saline on June 23, parked his vehicle in a Dollar General lot in the 500 block of East Garland Street, doused himself in gasoline and committed self-immolation, Police Chief Larry Compton said Tuesday. “I have never seen anything like this in my entire career in law enforcement, which includes my years as an arson investigator for the Mesquite Fire Department," the 66-year-old chief said. Horrified witnesses ran to the man and tried to put out the fire. Another witness then arrived with a fire extinguisher. "They got the fire put out, and the man was transported to Parkland Hospital in Dallas, where he later died of his injuries," Compton said. Moore put a typed suicide note on his car windshield before he set himself on fire, the chief said. In the note, which Compton provided to the Tyler Morning Telegraph, Moore – who is white - stated he was born in Grand Saline and grew up around racial discrimination. His letter claimed that the community shunned blacks and resorted to violence, including hangings, burnings and decapitations. "I will soon be 80 years old, and my heart is broken over this,” Morris wrote. “America, and Grand Saline … have never really repented for the atrocities of slavery and its aftermath. What my hometown needs to do is open its heart and its doors to black people as a sign of the rejection of past sins.” Moore wrote that visions of violence haunted him greatly. "So at this late date, I have decided to join them by giving my body to be burned,” he wrote. “With love in my heart not only for them but also of the perpetrators of such horror ... " Morris signed the letter, which was dated June 23. Angi McPherson, 44, was working in the Sophistikutz hair salon when she saw the man walking around the parking lot. "He had been walking around the parking lot for a while, but he didn't seem like anything was wrong,” Ms. McPherson said. “After awhile we saw him grab something square (police report would show it was a 2-by-3-foot piece of foam) and knelt down. Then we saw him grab a gas can and begin pouring something all over him. We were like, ‘Is that gas?’” Ms. McPherson said she will never forget the next few moments. “He suddenly burst into flames, and he stood up and started screaming,” she said. “One of the guys ran and tried to put him out with his shirt, while my boyfriend ran to him with a fire extinguisher and finally put him out.” Ms. McPherson called the incident troubling. "I have never seen anything like that, and it was like watching some kind of a horror movie. Who sets them self on fire?" she said. Compton said the preacher’s death disturbed him. He added that while Grand Saline might once have been racially divided, today it is a community of acceptance. "It might have been that way in the 1930s, ’40s and ’50s like a lot of places, but today we are a community of different ethnicities and racial makeups," he said. According to citydata.com, whites compose about 76 percent of the population, while Hispanics make up about 21 percent. The black population – at 20 people - numbers fewer than 1 percent. Ms. McPherson said she has lived in the town all of her life and she knew there was still racial divide in the small community. "It's not as big as it used to be, but it is here. It is everywhere," she said. By comparison, the East Texas town of Gilmer, which has about 5,000 residents, is 65.3 percent white, 15.7 percent Hispanic and 15.5 percent black. Of Gladewater’s population of about 6,500, about 76 percent are white, 15 percent are black and 5.1 percent are Hispanic. Mineola has a population of about 4,500, of which about 61 percent are white, 23.4 percent are Hispanic and 13 percent are black. Blacks compose about 10 percent of Winnsboro’s population of about 3,250, with whites numbering at about 84 percent and Hispanics at 4.3 percent. According to the U.S. Census bureau’s figures, Texas’ population in 2013 was about 26.4 million, with the nation at 316.1 million. The state’s population was 80.6 percent white, compared to 77.9 percent nationally. Blacks numbered 12.3 percent for Texas and 13.1 percent for the United States. Hispanics numbered 38.2 percent for the state and 16.9 percent for the nation. James Chase Sanchez, a Texas Christian University Rafford Research Fellow working on his doctorate in racial rhetoric, said self immolation is the second most symbolic form of suicide only behind self-crucifixion. "When someone sets themselves on fire in order to commit suicide, they have something to say," he said. Sanchez said he is from Grand Saline and knows there is a history of racism in the town. "We all want to think that there is no racism among us today and that any racism is on an individual level, but our past memories can affect us as a community,” he said. “Everyone in Grand Saline knows there is a history, but no one wants to talk about it." Sent from my iPad

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FW: [Dialogue] death of Charles Moore
by Del Morril via OE 03 Jul '14

03 Jul '14

Can you imagine what this act has done to his family?! He may think it was sacrificial, but I think, like any open suicide for any reason, it is totally self-serving, regardless of his philosophy! An insane demonstration, from my perspective, and yet, in some ways, understandable. I just don't think it will make a bit of difference in changing the social conscience. That's the truly sad part of this act. -----Original Message----- From: Dialogue [mailto:dialogue-bounces@lists.wedgeblade.net] On Behalf Of George Holcombe via Dialogue Sent: Thursday, July 03, 2014 12:19 AM To: ICA/OE List Serves; ICA/OE List Serves Subject: Re: [Dialogue] death of Charles Moore Our colleague Charles immolated himself June 23, see article at http://www.umc.org/news-and-media/retired-pastor-saw-destiny-in-self-immolat ion Memorial service will be held July 12 at Faith Presbyterian Church in Austin. George Holcombe 14900 Yellowleaf Tr. Austin, TX 78728 Mobile 512/252-2756 "...we have the choice: we can gratefully cultivate the relationships that make us part of a vast network, or we can take them for granted and allow them to wither and die." Brother David Steindl-Rast, Deeper than Words Sent from my iPad _______________________________________________ Dialogue mailing list Dialogue(a)lists.wedgeblade.net http://lists.wedgeblade.net/listinfo.cgi/dialogue-wedgeblade.net ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------- Text inserted by Panda IS 2014: This message has NOT been classified as spam. If it is unsolicited mail (spam), click on the following link to reclassify it: http://localhost:6083/Panda?ID=pav_754&SPAM=true&path=C:\Documents%20and%20S ettings\Del%20Morrill\Local%20Settings\Application%20Data\Panda%20Security\P anda%20Internet%20Security%202014\AntiSpam ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- -----------------------

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