wfn.org | [ENS] Listening: King's message spans Americas,

["Matthew Davies" <mdavies@episcopalchurch.org>]

Episcopal News Service
Listening, Learning & Epiphany

Tuesday, January 17, 2006

King's message spans Americas, Panama's bishop declares

Presiding Bishop shares in observance at L.A. Cathedral Center

By Pat McCaughan

[ENS, Los Angeles] The struggle for justice and freedom continues to
link
those deprived of "the opportunity to dream" across the Americas today,
Panama's Bishop Julio Murray told the congregation gathered at L.A.'s
Cathedral Center for its annual King Day observance.

The "triple evils of poverty, racism and war," against which the Rev.
Martin
Luther King fought, "still plague all of us today," Murray told the
congregation, hosted by Bishop Suffragan Chester Talton.

"My friends, the work is not over," Murray said. U.S. economic policies
continue to exert social, political and economic pressures on Panama and
Latin America, "especially the poor and excluded. The rich keep getting
richer. In Panama, we don't talk about the middle class anymore. The
poor
class lives in poverty and we try to stand in solidarity with them."

The underclass dreams "of building houses and living in them, in their
country. They dream of the opportunity for education for their children,
in
their country. They dream of the dignity of getting a job and sustaining
a
family, in their country. They dream of raising their children in a
serene
life-sustaining environment, in their country," he said.

King's ethic of love and nonviolence ignited a spark among the poor and
excluded which spread across Africa, Asia, Central and South America and
the
Caribbean in a common struggle for justice and freedom, he said.

"Many of us turned, looked to King. We had no voice, no face of our own.
The
struggle of the movement in the United States by King gave people out of
the
U.S. in the Americas the opportunity to reclaim our voice again."

The annual King Day observance also featured musical selections from the
Episcopal Chorale, led by Canon Charles Cheatham, and readings from the
Rev.
Canon Malcolm Boyd, well-known author of Are You Running With Me,
Jesus?.

Presiding Bishop Frank Griswold joined Los Angeles bishops Talton,
Robert
Anderson and Sergio Carranza in a panel discussion moderated by the Rev.
Eric Law.

"King's death released an energy that is still coursing through nations
of
the world today, helping us to see Christ in one another," Griswold told
the
gathering. He praised those assembled at the celebration: "Our presence
here
underscores that fact that we are one."

Murray recalled touring the house where King was born and the King
Center
for Nonviolent Social Change while attending the Triennial Black Clergy
Conference in Atlanta last November.

That tour "became a journey for me" after which he decided to strengthen
connections and links to the church in the United States, Murray said.

"I wish to share with you from the eyes of Central America, the central
region of God's vineyard, how it is to face racism and discrimination,
and
the reflection of Jesus Christ who is the light for those who still live
in
darkness and oppression and poverty," he said.

"We are forgetful people. We need to hear it, again and again. Some are
still in need of a real interpreter. I am someone with a face and a name
to
connect with to hear from the other side of the sea how it really is,"
he
said.

"Many people don't know the impact of the U.S. economic policies on
people
of other countries. They take away from people material benefits. The
liberation movement from the third world is not separate from that of
the
U.S., their struggle for liberation and ours is one and the same," he
said.

But, the people have faith," he added. "We hope the grace of God hasn't
abandoned them, is guiding them to be creative in the midst of the
crisis."

He cited the church's role in brokering a new social security law for
the
Panamanian government in June, 2005, as a sign of hope for the role of
the
church in bringing about social justice. "The President of the republic
called upon the church to guarantee the dialogue would be done in a
respectful way. The people were looking for ways to live in peace. They
believed the church could be present and guarantee things were done with
transparency. It says something about the church, about the people of
God.
It can happen, if people get involved," he said.

"It was the first time in the country that such a decision was made with
the
use of all sectors of society. It was the first time the church was
involved
in such a way. The people of Panama placed a lot of trust in the
church," he
said.

When asked about the attitude of people in Latin America toward the U.S.
and
involvement in the war in Iraq and the reputation of the Episcopal
Church in
the United States, he said:

"Why are you so worried about what other people think about you?" he
replied. He recalled the Dec. 19, 1989 U.S.-led invasion of Panama to
oust
then-dictator Manuel Noriega. "With all the technology of this
government,
things could have been done differently. Yet the decision was made to
invade. To take one man, more than 5,000 people were killed. There were
casualties on both ends. The guys killed first were Black and Latino.

"We saw that it wasn't because of who we are, but because a clear
message
was being sent to Nicaragua to get their act together. We were
surprised, we
felt we had solidarity with the U.S., because of our help with the
construction of the Canal. We don't have a problem with what was done,
but
the way in which it was done. We don't have a problem with North America
but
we question the administration and impact of national policies on our
country."

About the controversy over human sexuality he said: "This church has
been in
dialogue about human sexuality for more than 30 years. We can stand on
the
other side and tell you that, when you have nothing else to think about,
the
rest of the people around the world have a lot of other threatening
issues
we really need to be wrestling with. We respect and honor the decision
(of
General Convention 2003 to affirm the consecration of the Rt. Rev. Gene
Robinson) but maybe we question the timing.

"We pray and hope over and over again because when you sneeze in the
U.S.,
we in Panama have pneumonia."

"We emphasize the fact there is North America and Central and South
America.
Thank God we can listen to one another, dialogue, to share stories. In
sharing we are more in solidarity with each other. It's very important
for
church leadership to get to know the country and constitution well. It's
also important to get to know other countries and their people well.
We're
in this together. It's time for us to start getting to know one another
as
neighbors. What's important is that we love one another as brothers and
sisters.

"Your struggle is my struggle and my struggle should be yours, too. Be
ready
to be part of what God is doing. And be ready to be part of what God is
blessing."

The Rev. Butch Gamarra, who is Panamanian-born and serves at St.
Philip's,
Los Angeles, said it was important to hear the connections Murray made
between theology, the issues of justice, oppression and faithfulness.

"We need to realize that the Episcopal Church affects the polity and
life of
other provinces in Latin American countries, Central and South America
and
the Caribbean in a very powerful way," he said. "We need to be more in
conversation and dialogue with other provinces of our church before we
make
decisions.

"And," he added, "he was clear that if we do the right thing, we
shouldn't
worry about what others think. In affirming the consecration of Gene
Robinson, we did the right thing," Gamarra said. "People get upset when
you
do the right thing. We're on the right track as a church. We are
including
everyone, not excluding anyone. A large segment of the church preaches
the
Gospel and yet excludes people."

-- The Rev. Patricia McCaughan is senior correspondent for Episcopal
News
Service and associate rector of St. Mary's Church in Laguna Beach.

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