Weekday Email to Members and Friends – 2020-07-09
Thursday July 9 2020
A daily e-mailer from
Matt Matthews
To Members and Friends of
First Presbyterian Church
Champaign, Illinois
Dear Friends,
If there was anger or rage at Todd Ledbetter’s funeral last night in the parking lot of CU at Home I didn’t see it. There was rage and violence, certainly, when he was beaten to death within view of my office window on July 1st. One week after his death, however, peace, quiet, and muggy heat washed over the crowd. There were quivery voices. Tears. Lots of media. One elected city official (Jon Rector). Methodists, Episcopalians, Presbyterians that I recognized. About sixty gathered. It was hot. The folding chairs were spread out wide. You could ride a bicycle through the spaces in the crowd. Prayers were offered. Guests shared remembrances.
A representative of his family was present. Todd’s mom was the second-born of a family of twelve kids. He learned the Bible from his grandmother. One man said Todd shared everything he was given. “Wealth brings many friends, but the poor are left friendless,” says Proverbs. While this may be often true, it’s not always true.
Last night was proof.
Ten or so people spoke. They all shared some variation of one theme: friendship. Friends make our lives rich, somebody said.
One man said he was rich because Todd was his friend. Take on Race:
One Thing I Learned About Racism Last Week
By Ian Evensen
“Black lives matter!”
“Actually, all lives matter.”
You might not see anything wrong with saying “all lives matter”. “All lives” includes “Black lives”, so what’s the problem? Until recently, I thought that “Black lives matter” and “all lives matter” were interchangeable, because they were both phrases that advocated the idea that everyone should be treated equally. For this reason, some people might say “all lives matter” with good intent, but I’ve learned why we should stop using this phrase.
The Black Lives Matter Movement was created because of the excessive amount of people in this society that have failed to understand that “Black lives” falls under the category of “all lives”. The movement fully recognizes that all lives matter- it’s simply saying that in order to truly believe that, you must also believe that Black lives matter as much as all other lives.
An analogy I read online sums it up perfectly: imagine you are having dinner with your family, and everyone gets a serving except for you. You say “I should get my fair share”, but your family replies, “everyone should get their fair share”. This analogy represents the problem with countering “Black lives matter” with “all lives matter”- you didn’t mean “only I should get my fair share”, you meant “I should get my fair share too.” Likewise, the Black Lives Matter movement isn’t saying “only Black lives matter”, it’s saying “Black lives matter too.”
In today’s world, Black Americans are the ones that need attention. They are oppressed, mistreated, and subject to systemic racism and violence. The countless instances of Black Americans being brutally treated by White police officers clearly demonstrates that they are chronically treated like their lives don’t matter. While “all lives matter” is a true statement, it draws attention away from the unique struggle that Black Americans face- it’s a general statement that ignores the fact that there is one group of people that is disproportionately impacted by injustice and inequality.
The analogy I discussed earlier is applicable in this regard as well- the reason you complained at dinner was that you didn’t get your fair share when everyone else did. Similarly, the reason people say “Black lives matter” is that Black Americans are the ones that don’t get treated with the same justice, objectivity, and righteousness that other people get treated with. How could your family say that “everyone should get their fair share”, and at the same time, choose not to address the fact that you didn’t get yours? In the same way, people who say “all lives matter” avoid addressing the fact that Black lives are the ones that are in need of help.
This issue with the phrase “all lives matter” was one that I learned about recently, and I now know how important it is for all of us to educate ourselves about racism. We need to be aware of it in order for us to learn how to treat Black Americans better. We need to learn about racism and encourage others to learn about it so that we may better understand why so many people are upset, and so that we can make a change.
News:
Thank you Rachel Matthews for hosting, Eric for teching, and Claudia for telling her story at the Wednesday Vespers last night.
A daily e-mailer from
Matt Matthews
To Members and Friends of
First Presbyterian Church
Champaign, Illinois
Dear Friends,
If there was anger or rage at Todd Ledbetter’s funeral last night in the parking lot of CU at Home I didn’t see it. There was rage and violence, certainly, when he was beaten to death within view of my office window on July 1st. One week after his death, however, peace, quiet, and muggy heat washed over the crowd. There were quivery voices. Tears. Lots of media. One elected city official (Jon Rector). Methodists, Episcopalians, Presbyterians that I recognized. About sixty gathered. It was hot. The folding chairs were spread out wide. You could ride a bicycle through the spaces in the crowd. Prayers were offered. Guests shared remembrances.
A representative of his family was present. Todd’s mom was the second-born of a family of twelve kids. He learned the Bible from his grandmother. One man said Todd shared everything he was given. “Wealth brings many friends, but the poor are left friendless,” says Proverbs. While this may be often true, it’s not always true.
Last night was proof.
Ten or so people spoke. They all shared some variation of one theme: friendship. Friends make our lives rich, somebody said.
One man said he was rich because Todd was his friend. Take on Race:
One Thing I Learned About Racism Last Week
By Ian Evensen
“Black lives matter!”
“Actually, all lives matter.”
You might not see anything wrong with saying “all lives matter”. “All lives” includes “Black lives”, so what’s the problem? Until recently, I thought that “Black lives matter” and “all lives matter” were interchangeable, because they were both phrases that advocated the idea that everyone should be treated equally. For this reason, some people might say “all lives matter” with good intent, but I’ve learned why we should stop using this phrase.
The Black Lives Matter Movement was created because of the excessive amount of people in this society that have failed to understand that “Black lives” falls under the category of “all lives”. The movement fully recognizes that all lives matter- it’s simply saying that in order to truly believe that, you must also believe that Black lives matter as much as all other lives.
An analogy I read online sums it up perfectly: imagine you are having dinner with your family, and everyone gets a serving except for you. You say “I should get my fair share”, but your family replies, “everyone should get their fair share”. This analogy represents the problem with countering “Black lives matter” with “all lives matter”- you didn’t mean “only I should get my fair share”, you meant “I should get my fair share too.” Likewise, the Black Lives Matter movement isn’t saying “only Black lives matter”, it’s saying “Black lives matter too.”
In today’s world, Black Americans are the ones that need attention. They are oppressed, mistreated, and subject to systemic racism and violence. The countless instances of Black Americans being brutally treated by White police officers clearly demonstrates that they are chronically treated like their lives don’t matter. While “all lives matter” is a true statement, it draws attention away from the unique struggle that Black Americans face- it’s a general statement that ignores the fact that there is one group of people that is disproportionately impacted by injustice and inequality.
The analogy I discussed earlier is applicable in this regard as well- the reason you complained at dinner was that you didn’t get your fair share when everyone else did. Similarly, the reason people say “Black lives matter” is that Black Americans are the ones that don’t get treated with the same justice, objectivity, and righteousness that other people get treated with. How could your family say that “everyone should get their fair share”, and at the same time, choose not to address the fact that you didn’t get yours? In the same way, people who say “all lives matter” avoid addressing the fact that Black lives are the ones that are in need of help.
This issue with the phrase “all lives matter” was one that I learned about recently, and I now know how important it is for all of us to educate ourselves about racism. We need to be aware of it in order for us to learn how to treat Black Americans better. We need to learn about racism and encourage others to learn about it so that we may better understand why so many people are upset, and so that we can make a change.
News:
Thank you Rachel Matthews for hosting, Eric for teching, and Claudia for telling her story at the Wednesday Vespers last night.
Fridays
Men’s Prayer Group 8:30 am
Email zoom@firstpres.church for the link.
Friday Night Lights Study Group 7:30 pm
Email zoom@firstpres.church for the link.
* * *Rob Dalhouse, director of CU at Home told me after the funeral that if Todd Ledbetter was murdered because of the $200 somebody had allegedly given him that evening, that was a waste. “Todd would have given the money away had they asked.”
As of yesterday, the $2,500 PCUSA grant check First Pres sent to CU at Home is in their bank account with their gratitude. Lola Ruthmansdorfer, our Community Mission Deacon, called Rob today to touch base. He said, “It meant a lot.”
* * *
Nobody has asked me where the jokes went. Remember how I used to collect corny jokes for you each day? I’ve been saving some up. Please send me your favs.
What kind of driver NEVER gets a ticket? (I’ll tell you tomorrow.)
Good Word:
John 15:12-17
12 “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. 13 No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command you. 15 I do not call you servants any longer, because the servant does not know what the master is doing; but I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from my Father. 16 You did not choose me but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask him in my name. 17 I am giving you these commands so that you may love one another.
Let us pray
Our Holy Father, we confess the weakness and sinfulness of our lives. We have often turned away from thee to seek our own desires. And often when we have done no evil, we have undertaken nothing of good, and so have been guilty of uselessness and neglect. From this sin of idleness and indifference set us free. Lead us into fruitful effort, and deliver us from profitless lives. We ask this in the name of Jesus. Amen.
[Martin Luther King, Jr.]
PEACE to you all,
Matt Matthews
Cell: 864.386.9138
Matt@FirstPres.Church
As of yesterday, the $2,500 PCUSA grant check First Pres sent to CU at Home is in their bank account with their gratitude. Lola Ruthmansdorfer, our Community Mission Deacon, called Rob today to touch base. He said, “It meant a lot.”
* * *
Nobody has asked me where the jokes went. Remember how I used to collect corny jokes for you each day? I’ve been saving some up. Please send me your favs.
What kind of driver NEVER gets a ticket? (I’ll tell you tomorrow.)
Good Word:
John 15:12-17
12 “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. 13 No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command you. 15 I do not call you servants any longer, because the servant does not know what the master is doing; but I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from my Father. 16 You did not choose me but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask him in my name. 17 I am giving you these commands so that you may love one another.
Let us pray
Our Holy Father, we confess the weakness and sinfulness of our lives. We have often turned away from thee to seek our own desires. And often when we have done no evil, we have undertaken nothing of good, and so have been guilty of uselessness and neglect. From this sin of idleness and indifference set us free. Lead us into fruitful effort, and deliver us from profitless lives. We ask this in the name of Jesus. Amen.
[Martin Luther King, Jr.]
PEACE to you all,
Matt Matthews
Cell: 864.386.9138
Matt@FirstPres.Church
