In declining to be interviewed or quoted about
the recent controversial situation at Central Presbyterian Church in
Owensboro, the majority group of Elders said they didn't think their
talking "would do any good" and they didn't think "anybody
would listen to them."
Where did they get that idea?
Although they were accused of not supporting the
new ministry to "the marginalized people" of Owensboro, could
it be that they themselves were being marginalized because they were
old? Had they been rejected in favor of a younger group? If your hormones
aren't raging (in either direction), are you less engaging?
The "marginalized" people of Owensboro
were said to be "gay, lesbian, Hispanic or bi-racial couples."
I think there is plenty of evidence that you can add "old"
to that list, not just in Owensboro, but all around America.
And there may be others out there in the margins,
as well: African Americans, uppity women, Muslims, tree huggers, hillbillies,
bald people, Southerners, Yankees, Californians, Arabs and Jews.
Maybe clergy wives and preachers' kids have been
marginalized. Maybe the clergy themselves have been, too. In a sermon
she preached to Presbyterian Women in the Synod two months ago, Betty
Meadows said there's evidence that the church itself has been relegated
to the margins of this post-modern 21st century culture.
After September 11, the church may have become
suddenly more relevant, representing the opposite of the evil witnessed
in the form of extreme terrorism. Many more people around the country
went to church on September 16, looking for meaning and comfort. Let
us pray that they will continue to find goodness in church.
Let us hope that our churches will be welcoming
to everyone, that no one will be left out in the margins again, for
any ridiculous reason.
