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Uncommon Devotion

~ God is calling for a prophetic community to emerge, drawn from the nations of the world, that is characterized by uncommon devotion to the compassion and peace of God revealed in Jesus Christ. – D&C 163:11a

Uncommon Devotion

Tag Archives: Social Justice

Sean, What’s On Your Mind?

30 Thursday Mar 2023

Posted by Sean Langdon in Culture

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

christianity, discipleship, Gun Reform, Social Justice

When I log on to Facebook, it asks me, “Sean, what is on your mind?”. Oh Facebook, sometimes you don’t want to know. Some days, that would be too long of a post to make! And yet, at this time, so many thoughts seem to be flooding my head, and heart as well. I’m thinking about Spring and the newness of life that comes with it. How we’re fast approaching Palm Sunday, Holy Week, and Easter. That I leave for World Conference in just three weeks from today! How I have to watch live streams and clips of the Taylor Swift “Eras” Tour on TikTok because I still don’t have tickets to see it in person! I think about Greg and Alice, both of whom I know from Oregon. One recently passed away after losing a battle to cancer and the other because age caught up with her. I also think of Viola and Carol, both of whom recently passed away in our mission center and though I never got to meet them in person, I know they were well loved here. I think about how I will be traveling to Maui in May for a friend’s 30th Birthday trip. I also think about the constant legislative attacks on the LGBTQIA+ community, particularly those who are trans, in states around the nation.

And then my brain also goes to this…

I was in 8th grade when the mass shooting at Columbine happened. It affected me greatly as a young teenager. Often waking up in the middle of night with nightmares of it happening at my school. 11 years after I graduated, I was standing in the foyer inside our Temple in Independence, Missouri. I was at the 2014 Peace Colloquy. And while talking to Rob Borkwoski and Janne Grover, a text alert from Huffington Post came across my phone. School Shooting at Marysville-Pilchuck High School. This was my high school. Where I had graduated. I went to the local coffee shop on Independence Square to read the updates and watch the kids on the news be escorted in a single file line from their classrooms, the classrooms I once was a student in. Though I was no longer attending, my nightmares had turned into a reality. Just this week in Denver. More gun violence in our schools. When lives are cut short in safe spaces for the young… O God, out of the depths, we cry. 

The above is text from the sermon I gave at Colorado Springs Community of Christ just this past Sunday. Then the news came on Monday morning. Another Mass Shooting at a school. Of those who died that day, 3 of them were under the age of 10. My heart breaks again. I’m left wondering, “How many people? HOW MANY CHILDREN!?”

Earlier this week while driving to the RMMC Office on Tuesday Morning, “We Are The World” starts playing in the car from my the playlist on my phone. “There comes a time. When we heed a certain call. When the world must come together as one. There are people dying. Oh, and it’s time to lend a hand to life. The greatest gift of all.” And then the chorus begins, “We are the world. We are the children. We are the ones who make a brighter day”. My friends, tears just started pouring like waterfall down my cheeks as I drive into work that day and considered this song in light of what took place at Covenant school in Nashville, TN.

As I noted above, Holy Week is fast approaching. We will soon be entering a time where we reflect on Jesus. Jesus on the Cross. And I have to wonder at times like this, when we fail our kids to the point where schools can no longer be safe spaces because of the high rate of gun violence in our country, does Jesus stay on the cross? Does our inability to address the issues that are related to gun violence keep Jesus on the cross? Resurrection Sunday is coming. The hope celebrated and embraced by an Easter People because of the Resurrection is coming. So therefore, again, I have to wonder, what is our response to the issues in our world today that seem to keep Jesus on the cross rather than embracing the hope of new life?

I realize this week’s focus may not be the version of inspiration you anticipated in our weekly update today. But my friends, this is where we are at, yet again. As we continue our journey through these last few days of Lent and into Holy Week towards Easter, may we consider our response as a people of faith. Not just in response to what has happened but also because of our calling to be at the forefront of practicing the teachings of Christ as we seek to reduce future tragedies from occurring.

I was once asked by a congregation what they could do to engage their community in opportunities that would require minimal funds. I suggested sponsoring Community Meetings to explore the various perspectives related to the issues that their specific community as well as the nation and world was facing. To put Faithful Disagreement and Unity in Diversity into practice through intentional listening and compassionate sharing. As Community of Christ, maybe that is a good place for us to start.

We are a people dedicated to the pursuit of peace. Let us continue to not only pray for peace but to act for it as well.

This was originally shared with the Rocky Mountain Mission Center for Community of Christ in their weekly update on Thursday, March 30, 2023.

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When the Nativity makes us uncomfortable

10 Tuesday Dec 2019

Posted by Sean Langdon in Community of Christ, Culture, discipleship, Politics

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Advent, Borders, christianity, Christmas, Community of Christ, discipleship, Faith, Immigration, Manger, Nativity, Religion, Social Justice

“God, the Eternal Creator, weeps for the poor, displaced, mistreated, and diseased of the world because of their unnecessary suffering. Such conditions are not God’s will. Open your ears to hear the pleading of mothers and fathers in all nations who desperately seek a future of hope for their children. Do not turn away from them. For in their welfare resides your welfare.” – Community of Christ Holy Text

This past week there has been an image of the nativity scene at Claremont United Methodist Church in California in where Baby Jesus, Joseph, and Mary find each of themselves in their own cage. It’s a protest visual in response to our governments border policies. To view the image, check out this article from CNN. To use the nativity in this way is provocative, sad, disconcerting, and even maddening, and that is why it is incredibly appropriate. I wish more faith communities were brave enough to make a similar statements. For the purpose of Christ’s message wasn’t to spread a message of rainbows and butterflies with pats on the back for good deeds done. It was to challenge unjust laws and spread a message of Joy, Hope, Love, and Peace in the midst of a society that seemed to contradict that message. It was to bring hope to those who were lonely, oppressed, marginalized, and forgotten. It was to live within a spirit of shalom, not fear.

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National Coming Out (Every)Day

11 Friday Oct 2019

Posted by Sean Langdon in Culture, Personal

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Tags

Bisexual, Coming Out, Gay, Lesbian, LGBT, Portland, Social Justice

“I am brave, I am bruised. I am who I’m meant to be, this is me”
– “This is Me” from “The Greatest Showman”

A couple nights ago I attended the “Coming Out Monologues” in Portland with my IMG_5501good friend Dylan (pictured on the right). We listened to stories of those who are gay, lesbian, and trans as they vulnerably shared their journey of coming out. We heard from parents who shared stories of love for their child who came out to them. One parent shared the story of her trans daughter who knew about her gender identity when she was 2 ½ years old. She then invited her courageous now 12-year-old daughter up to share her own story of transition and coming out while being a pre-teen. Throughout the evening there were many moments of laughter, tears, hope, and real-world realities brought to light.

Today is a day of mixed emotions for many. We celebrate our coming out stories. We remember the pain of the journey it took to get to that point and the pain that has happened since. With stomach in knots, tears flowing, fear suffocating, and a new sense of freedom, many choose to come out on this day. While others wonder if one day, they too will be able to fully live as themselves among their family, friends, co-workers, classmates, and strangers in society. Meanwhile there are those who just aren’t sure and are still trying to figure out what their orientation and/or identity is. That’s okay. Questioning is okay. Experimenting is okay. Studying the varied expressions of orientation and/or identities to see if one is right for you is okay. YOU are okay. Figure it out in your time, no one else’s. Maybe your experience doesn’t resonate with what I’ve mentioned here. Maybe you feel who you are is no one else’s business. No matter how you choose to come out or when or if you do, know that you are loved. You are respected. By me, and by many kickass amazing people that I know!

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Yesterday There Was A Storm (Transgender Military Ban)

23 Wednesday Jan 2019

Posted by Sean Langdon in Culture

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

LGBT, Military, Social Justice, Transgender

Yesterday there was a storm.

Lighthouses are used for navigation during stormy, dangerous weather. To warn captains of hazards before them and to guide them safely into port.

Yesterday there was a storm

A friend and I visited the Oregon Coast on a blustery, rainy Tuesday afternoon.

Yesterday there was a storm.

Through the haze of stormy weather, Heceta Head lighthouse shined brightly on the land and sea.

Yesterday there was a storm. Continue reading →

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Where does it hurt?: Another Day, Another Mass Shooting

08 Thursday Nov 2018

Posted by Sean Langdon in Culture

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Tags

christianity, EnoughIsEnough, Faith, Gun Control, Gun Reform, Healing, Hope, Religion, Social Justice, Sugarland

I woke up this morning to see the Huffington Post alert on my phone. Mass Shooting at a bar in Southern California. This one only an hour and half from where I am currently at in Southern California while away for work and some play. I flashback to waking up on June 12, 2016, and seeing the alert on my phone of the Pulse Nightclub Massacre. My heart sinks.

We learn that it was college night at the bar. My emotions flood me as I recall every school and college shooting that is embedded deep in my memory. Of young, innocent lives lost. Of lives full of hope and promise gone in a matter of minutes. In a matter of seconds. Gone. The high school I graduated from suffered it’s own shooting a few years back. Images of the school being evacuated from the same classrooms I once learned in, haunted me. They were similar images I saw as an 8th grader watching the events of Columbine unfold on the television. My heart sinks. Continue reading →

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I'm a minister, progressive, Jesus following, music fanatic, friend, son, nature loving, ocean dreaming, Gospel preaching, spontaneous road trip driving, camping enthusiast.

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