A trip to Philadelphia would be incomplete without a trip to Independence Mall and the site of the Liberty Bell. One of my favorite images at the monument was this image of “Liberty” being spelled in many different languages at the site of the bell. It stood out to me the moment I saw it and warmed me with a sense of inclusiveness for all of God's people. Interestingly enough, at least one of my classmates was being moved by a very different image at the same time. There are some moments after you share a time such as this trip that you just don’t forget. One of those moments was when one of my classmates, Jessie, shared in her sermon about seeing the photo of the Native American, Chief Little Bear, posing with the famous bell. She was overcome with emotion when reflecting upon the sadness of Chief Little Bear’s face. Jessie’s sermon that day was on “Scriptural Christianity”, a sermon written by John Wesley that was quite controversial at the time. Overall the message of the sermon was brought home by my new friend's emotional response to seeing the image below at the site of the Liberty Bell. It brings to the fronts of our minds that freedom in our country and freedom in this life is not free. Christ gave his life for us so that we may have eternal life (John 3:16). We are sadly reminded by this image and the sadness of this Native American’s face that freedom is far from being free both in this life and in the life to come. I set out on my recent class journey to learn about the founders of the United Methodist denomination and the impact they had in early America as well as how they shaped who we are as a church today. I hoped and expected to return home more passionate about my denomination than when I left and that is true. Interestingly enough, who I found to be my favorite person of the history that we lived into and discussed during our time of learning was Richard Allen, the founder of the African Methodist Episcopal Church. If you are not familiar with the story of Richard Allen, he and other African Americans were asked to leave the balcony of St. George’s Church while on their knees praying. He and his friends chose to get off their knees and exit the church in a historic walk-out and later start their own denomination. It saddens me that the story of Allen’s walkout from St. George’s Church is such an identifying factor in the birth of the AMEC since it was a Methodist church they were asked to leave. However, history is shaped by moments such as these. Today both St. George’s and Mother Bethel (the birthplace of the AMEC) come together to heal from this past experience and celebrate together through worship and communion with one another. I appreciate the fact that this unfortunate event that altered the life of the Methodist denominations is not ignored but rather celebrated with Mother Bethel. The joint services among these churches and other symbols of connectionalism across denominational lines were refreshing to see take place among the churches. And, although we no longer are in the same denomination, our roots of Methodism are indeed the same. It is interesting to think that history was shaped by famous AMEC members like Rosa Parks as mentioned by our museum docent at Mother Bethel. History was shaped not just in the church the day that Richard Allen and his friends got off their knees and walked out of that balcony at St. George’s church. For that, we can be thankful. While worshipping at St. George’s the first Sunday of our trip, a young girl named Angel instantly connected with many of my classmates and me. She attends St. George’s with her grandparents although she explained to me that she lives with her mother and her father can’t see her picture on Facebook or he will come "looking for her". I am not sure I understand completely how her story fits into my synopsis of the trip. But, she has stayed with me since my return. I can’t help but wonder about the absence of a stable home life. During our short visit together, she drew some images that were disheartening and downright scary. I asked her what they meant and she referenced a movie that is indeed inappropriate for a young girl her age. This broke my heart. It saddened me because a mother who barely notices this little girl and pays no attention to what she watches on television does indeed have an impact on this life. This sweet little life that is being shaped by which way the wind blows between Sundays. On Sundays this little Angel is loved by her church family and her grandparents keep close watch to make sure that she is on her best behavior. But, what happens between Sundays is what saddens me the most as a mother. This must be why my heart continues to ache for sweet Angel and that my hope in the church and the impact it can have on a life is worth the effort and energy because we never know how a life may be changed by just a few hours a week. I can’t help but wonder if this type of Spiritual Formation is exactly what John Wesley had in mind with the start of Sunday School for poor working children in the 1780s in England. It is no doubt that his own home life was greatly structured with education and offering this to others who did not have such opportunities has proved to be a blessing for years to come.
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