Friends,
On the fourth Friday of June I participated in an ecumenically-organized march though East Oakland. The group wasn’t huge—we numbered 24—but the impact was powerful. We held signs calling for an end to violence and the ethnically-diverse group of us walked through a neighborhood that has seen far too much violence in recent decades. As we walked together we came to know folks from other faith communities and the people we met along the way seemed genuinely appreciative for our presence among them.
I loved the time I spent on the walk because it helped me feel as if all of Oakland—not just the hills—was my new home. I loved meeting my new neighbors. I loved walking alongside my new partners in ministry. I loved walking with the MPC folks who invited me to join them on the walk, and I hope more people will come along when the walk happens again, this time on July 25. I will be on vacation that Friday, but I plan to walk whenever I am in town on a fourth Friday, and when I walk, I would love to walk with you.
***
On another, unrelated issue: on Sunday, July 6, I preached about the Presbyterian Church (USA)’s recent divestment from Caterpillar, Hewlett Packard, and Motorola. In the sermon I mentioned that our denomination divested from these corporations because they currently are profiting from the Israeli occupation of Palestinian land, but I didn’t give details (Caterpillar produces bulldozers specifically designed to knock down Palestinian homes, HP provides high-tech logistical support for Israeli roadblocks in the West Bank, and Motorola supplies communication systems specifically tailored for the Israeli Defense Forces occupation of the West Bank). After celebration some of you wanted to know more about what these three businesses are doing in the Holy Land, and so for more information on the reasons the Presbyterian Church has divested from these three corporations, I invite you to follow the link below to a pair of opinion pieces published on the Tikkun website. Tikkun is a progressive Jewish organization whose work I have admired for years. Here’s the link: http://www.tikkun.org/nextgen/perspectives-on-presbyterian-divestment.
God’s Peace,
Ben