Live Stream Worship:
Facebook: Los Angeles First United Methodist Church - Home
Instagram: Los Angeles First UMC (@lafirstumc)
YouTube: Los Angeles First United Methodist Church
Call to Worship - You are invited to light a candle in your home to welcome the presence of the Holy Spirit
Ring the Bells - El Dorado (Johnnyswim)
Ring the bells, this time I mean it
Bid the hatred fare thee well
Give back the pieces of my Jesus
Take your counterfeit to hell
Bang the drums, this means war
And not the kind you're waiting for
We say mercy won't be rationed here
That's what we're fighting for
If all is fair in love and war
Then what the hell is loving even for?
If we can't sing it loud enough
We'll keep on adding voices up
Ring the bells!
Move your feet you tiny people
You've been hiding for so long
Behind your statues and your steeple
Does that hit too close to home?
Oh, I got faith to move a mountain
And to watch that mountain move
It's time for words to fall like thunder
Sound of justice is breaking through
If all is fair in love and war
Then what the hell is loving even for?
The world laughs and the martyrs sing
Our love breaks through the cavalry
Ring the bells!
You called me boy instead of son
And I ain't the only one
Who was in the throneroom of a kingdom
Where I found that I belong
I ain't scared to face the fortress
I have seen the fall before
With broken bones you've built it
But it crumbles board by board
If all is fair in love and war
Then what the hell is loving even for?
If we can't sing it loud enough
We'll keep on adding voices up
Ring the bells!
Ring the bells, this time I mean it
Bid the hatred fare thee well
Get back the pieces of my Jesus
Take your counterfeit to hell
Passing of the Peace: Through the act of passing the peace of Christ, we offer our sincere desire to love our neighbor.
You are invited to greet one another in the live stream chat on Instagram, YouTube, and Facebook.
Announcements:
Stewardship Campaign: Our goal is to raise $20,000/month for payroll, so that we can continue to employ all the people who are working tirelessly to bring the Good News to all who need to hear it. My prayer is that we can raise enough money to cover our church’s payroll over the next three months. This allows the congregation to use any money we have on hand to directly support our ministries.
We have converted our parsonage into a co-housing community, which now has 6 residents living safely and affordably together. We have been able to support people who might not have been able to find sustainable housing in the current market, and we can ensure that they will stay housed during the pandemic. It would be an additional hope to raise $3,000/month to support the utilities and expenses of the co-housing community.
Jubilee Fund: This fund is designated to helping reduce the burden of debt in our community. As we make our way through the pandemic, the economic pressures are going to be challenging. If you feel led, you can now donate through Venmo!
VENMO: You can find us here: https://venmo.com/LAFirstUMC
From the Bishop: Guidelines for Church Re-Launch of In-Person Worship Services
Bishop Hagiya's Special Message in Response to Racism
“African-American men are literally being killed because of our racism. What this should show us is the pervasive, sinful nature of racism in our country, truly, the unfinished business of our country.
Like all printed words, we can rail against, talk about, and denounce racism until we are blue in the face. We, as Christians, however, cannot allow ourselves to move past this moment without meaningful action. Therefore, I am asking every church in our California-Pacific Conference to have open talk about the sin of racism in our own lives and what we must do about it that we have not yet done before.
This means that we have to own up to our own racism first, before we point fingers at others.
In order to spark this discussion here are some questions you might want to start with:
What are my own racist tendencies that I don’t want to talk about or admit?
How have I been complicit in American racism?
What can I proactively do about it right now?
Zoom Bible Study: LA First UMC Bible Study
Beginning Monday, June 8: Disciple Bible Study
Time: Monday evenings at 5:30 - 7:00 PM PST
Join Zoom Meeting: https://zoom.us/j/598868178?pwd=U1B2YjZYWURDRXJXMStKajI3L1RWZz09
Praying with the Daily Examen: What is the Examen?
St. Ignatius of Loyola created the Examen to be a very short prayer that can be prayed at any time. In the Examen, we review our recent past to find God and his blessings in our daily life. Ignatius would say that the Examen should be the most important moment of our day, because this moment affects every other moment.
Relish the moments that went well and all of the gifts you have today.
Request that the Spirit lead you through your review of the day.
Review your day.
Repent of any mistakes or failures.
Resolve, in concrete ways, to live tomorrow well.
21-DAY RACIAL EQUITY CHALLENGE:
The Adult Faith Formation team from Myers Park Presbyterian Church in Charlotte, NC has created a resource to encourage us on a 21-day Racial Equity challenge, based on the work of Dr. Eddie Moore, a diversity and inclusion specialist. In doing so you will be exposed to voices and perspectives different than your own through articles, videos, and podcasts. Each day you will choose one way of engagement and reflect in a journal. At the end of the challenge, we will gather together to share our reflections.
The Challenge
Pick one of the resources listed below every day for 21 days.
Diversify your understanding by doing some of each.
Track and reflect by using the planning tool.
Share your reflections at the end of the challenge.
Pray for the places you are challenged and for those you are learning about whose lives may be different than yours.
Join us for conversation June 7th and 21st at 9:45 a.m. EST via Zoom here.
Watch:
This is Us, Dr. Eddie Glaude explains why blaming current racial tensions on Donald Trump misses the point. (3 minutes)
Racism is Real, A split-screen video depicting the differential in the white and black lived experience. (3 minutes)
Confronting ‘intergroup anxiety’: Can you try too hard to be fair? Explores why we may get tongue tied and blunder when we encounter people from groups unfamiliar to us. (5 minutes)
CBS News Analysis: 50 states, 50 different ways of teaching America’s past, Ibram X. Kendi reviews current history curriculum production and use across the U.S. (5 minutes)
The Disturbing History of the Suburbs, An “Adam Ruins Everything” episode that quickly and humorously educates how redlining came to be. (6 minutes)
What Kind of Asian Are You? Humorous two minute YouTube video that illustrates the utter silliness of the way many white Americans interact with Asian Americans. (2 minutes)
Birth of a White Nation, Keynote speech by legal scholar Jacqueline Battalora, offers a blow-by-blow description of the moment the idea of, and word for, “white” people entered U.S. legal code. (36 minutes)
13th, Netflix documentary by Ava DuVernay about the connection between US Slavery and the present day mass incarceration system. (1 hour, 40 minutes)
How to overcome our biases? Walk boldly toward them, TED Talk by Vernā Myers, encourages work vigorously to counter balance bias by connecting with and learning about and from the groups we fear. (19 minutes)
The danger of a single story, TED Talk by Chimamanda Adiche, offers insight to the phenomenon of using small bits of information to imagine who a person is. (18 minutes)
How to deconstruct racism, one headline at a time, TED Talk by Baratunde Thurston that explores patterns revealing our racist framing, language, and behaviors. (10 minutes)
Indigenous People React to Indigenous Representation in Film And TV, Conversation with a diverse range of Indigenous people by FBE about media depictions of Indigenous people, Columbus day, and Indigenous identity. (15 minutes)
What Being Hispanic and Latinx Means in the United States, Fernanda Ponce shares what she’s learning about the misunderstanding and related mistreatment of the incredibly diverse ethnic category people in U.S. call Hispanic. (12 minutes)
Tyler Merrit Project: Before You Call (3 minutes)
Read:
10 Ways Well-Meaning White Teachers Bring Racism Into Our Schools, by Jamie Utt
21 Racial Microaggressions You Hear on a Daily Basis, by Heben Nigatu
Climbing the White Escalator, by Betsy Leondar-Wright
Explaining White Privilege To A Broke White Person, by Gina Crosley-Corcoran
Guide to Allyship, Created by Amélie Lamont
It’s Not Just the South: Here’s How Everyone Can Resist White Supremacy, by Sarah van Gelder
Making America White Again, by Toni Morrison
Understanding the Racial Wealth Gap, by Amy Traub, Laura Sullivan, Tatjana Mescheded, & Tom Shapiro
What White Children Need to Know About Race, by Ali MIchael and Elenora Bartoli
White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack, by Peggy McIntosh
Presbytery of Charlotte letter from Antiracism Team
My President Was Black, by Ta-Nehisi Coates
Caught Up In God, by Willie James Jennings
Who Gets to Be Afraid in America?, by Ibram X Kendi
Additional Suggestions from Rev. Mandy:
I'm Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness, by Austin Channing Brown
White Fragility: Why It's So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism, By Robin DiAngelo
The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness, By Michelle Alexander
The Cross and the Lynching Tree, by James H. Cone
A Sin by Any Other Name: Reckoning with Racism and the Heritage of the South, By Rev. Robert W. Lee
Listen:
Code Switch, hosted by journalists Gene Demby and Shereen Marisol Meraji
Black Like Me, host Dr. Alex Gee
Scene on Radio – Seeing White Series, host John Biewen and collaborator Chenjerai Kumanyika
TED Radio Hour – Mary Bassett: How Does Racism Affect Your Health? host Guy Raz speaks with Dr. Mary T. Bassett, Director of the FXB Center for Health and Human Rights at Harvard University
Here & Now – Without Slavery, Would The U.S. Be The Leading Economic Power? host Jeremy Hobson and author Edward Baptist
NPR Morning Edition – You Cannot Divorce Race From Immigration journalist Rachel Martin talks to Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Jose Antonio Vargas
Pod Save the People, Activism. Social Justice. Culture. Politics. On Pod Save the People, organizer and activist DeRay Mckesson
Notice
Test Your Awareness: Do The Test, This video shows us the importance of paying attention, and how much more we see when we are looking for particular things around us.
Use each question below separately as one day’s challenge.
Who is and is not represented in ads?
What are the last five books you read? What is the racial mix of the authors?
What is the racial mix of the main characters in your favorite TV shows? Movies?
Who is filling what kinds of jobs/social roles in your world? Can you correlate any of this to racial identity?
Zoom Fellowship Coffee Hour: Immediately following worship today. Today, we will be welcoming a new member via Zoom! Find the liturgy here.
Zoom Happy Hour: Wednesdays from 5:00-6:00 PM
Stay Connected:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LAFirstUMC/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/lafirstumc
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/LAFirstUMC/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLh1AQKTgxTXSwwXr-J9qvA
CALL TO PRAYER: George Floyd, a poem by Olusheyi Banjo
Joys and Concerns: We believe that the best way to bear our burdens is to share them with one another. You are invited to share your joys and concerns so that our community can hold these things in our hearts as we lift them to God together.
You are invited to share your prayers in the Facebook Live Chat, or on the YouTube Live chat.
OLD TESTAMENT LESSON: Genesis 1:1-2:4a
In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth, the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the face of the waters. Then God said, ‘Let there be light’; and there was light. And God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness. God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.
And God said, ‘Let there be a dome in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.’ So God made the dome and separated the waters that were under the dome from the waters that were above the dome. And it was so. God called the dome Sky. And there was evening and there was morning, the second day.
And God said, ‘Let the waters under the sky be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear.’ And it was so. God called the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas. And God saw that it was good. Then God said, ‘Let the earth put forth vegetation: plants yielding seed, and fruit trees of every kind on earth that bear fruit with the seed in it.’ And it was so. The earth brought forth vegetation: plants yielding seed of every kind, and trees of every kind bearing fruit with the seed in it. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning, the third day.
And God said, ‘Let there be lights in the dome of the sky to separate the day from the night; and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years, and let them be lights in the dome of the sky to give light upon the earth.’ And it was so. God made the two great lights—the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night—and the stars. God set them in the dome of the sky to give light upon the earth,to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day.
And God said, ‘Let the waters bring forth swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the dome of the sky.’ So God created the great sea monsters and every living creature that moves, of every kind, with which the waters swarm, and every winged bird of every kind. And God saw that it was good. God blessed them, saying, ‘Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.’ And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day.
And God said, ‘Let the earth bring forth living creatures of every kind: cattle and creeping things and wild animals of the earth of every kind.’ And it was so. God made the wild animals of the earth of every kind, and the cattle of every kind, and everything that creeps upon the ground of every kind. And God saw that it was good.
Then God said, ‘Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the wild animals of the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.’
So God created humankind in his image,
in the image of God he created them;
male and female he created them.
God blessed them, and God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth.’ God said, ‘See, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit; you shall have them for food. And to every beast of the earth, and to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.’ And it was so. God saw everything that he had made, and indeed, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.
Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all their multitude.And on the seventh day God finished the work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all the work that he had done. So God blessed the seventh day and hallowed it, because on it God rested from all the work that he had done in creation.
These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created.
One: This is the word of God, for us, the people of God.
All: Thanks be to God!
SERMON: No Justice, No Peace! Sabbath as Resistance - Rev. Mandy Sloan McDow
Lyrics:
You see us black as night
but we're invisible, invisible
You need us to shine your light
so you feel beautiful, beautiful
Blood shed stains on the sidewalk
they're not the right color for you
Why does my complexion revoke a connection?
It's not enough to be a human too
So we run, we run just to find the answers
we run, just to fight another war we run,
we run just to be a life that matters
but I still don't know what we're running for
And my tears don't benefit you
in anyway, in anyway
no you'd rather hide from it
and not hear what I say, hear what I say
But our children are dying on the sidewalk
They're not the right color for you
You see my complexion and you're scared of connection
I guess I'm not a human to you
So we run, we run just to find the answers
we run, just to fight another war
we run, we run just to be a life that matters
but I still don't know what we're running for
We run
We run
We run
but I still don't know why we're running
#BlackLivesMatter
HOLY COMMUNION
Invitation to the Table: As we understand the Body of Christ to be inclusive, we understand God’s table of grace and fellowship can extend into our homes. As you’re able, bring your own elements to this time. Bread, Juice, Coffee, Muffins… the Body of Christ is comprised of wonder and mystery. Today, we celebrate that God can reach us where we are, even if we are not together.
The Great Mystery of our Faith
All: Christ has died
Christ is risen.
Christ will come again.
The Lord’s PrayerOur Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy Name,
thy kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those
who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
and the power, and the glory,
for ever and ever. Amen.
MUSIC DURING COMMUNION: We Shall Overcome - El Dorado
Holy Ghost to Nations - Lloyd Stine & Georgia Harkness (arrangement/additional lyrics - Stephen Folds)
We shall overcome
We shall overcome
We shall overcome, some day
Oh, deep in my heart
I do believe
We shall overcome, some day
We'll walk hand in hand
We'll walk hand in hand
We'll walk hand in hand, some day
Oh, deep in my heart
I do believe
We shall overcome, some day
We shall live in peace
We shall live in peace
We shall live in peace, some day
Oh, deep in my heart
I do believe
We shall overcome, some day
We are not afraid
We are not afraid
We are not afraid, today
Oh, deep in my heart
I do believe
We shall overcome, some day
The whole wide world around
The whole wide world around
The whole wide world around some day
Oh, deep in my heart
I do believe
We shall overcome, some day
Benediction Remember:
God is with you,
God is for you,
God refuses to be God without you.
And may all of God’s people say: Amen.
Virtual Coffee Hour Begins now! Immediately following worship on Zoom