For Everyone Born, a place at the table, for everyone born, clean water and bread, a shelter, a space, a safe place for growing, for everyone born, a star overhead. And God will delight when we are creators of justice and joy, compassion and peace, yes God will delight when we are creators of justice, justice and joy.
- Shirley Erena Murray, For Everyone Born
A new setting of this powerful hymn is going to be introduced at General Conference. This setting was written to celebrate the decision by the First UMC in Vermillion, South Dakota, to become a reconciling conference. It is our "reconciling song" that we use all the time in our church, and we are proud to share it with the wider reconciling community. It has just been published by the Global Praise unit of the General Board of Global Ministries in a book that bears its name: For Everyone Born. Here is some of the story of that song, with words from some of the key players.
Vermillion, South Dakota, population 8,000, is home to The University of South Dakota. In 2000, the First UMC of Vermillion opened up a housing unit for college students called the Student Christian Community, which was a part of the campus ministry (coffeeloft.org). Six men lived in the house that first year (in subsequent years a second living space for women was opened). All of us were musicians and we quickly became heavily involved with providing music for church - and we all fell in love with the church, and they with us.
It was about this time that I started to come out as a gay man, and my five roommates were an immense well of support to me - I was astounded. The discussions we had eventually led me and some of the others in the house to start conversations with first the pastor, then with members of the church. These informal discussions led to study groups, Sunday school classes, sermons, and eventually open questioning and dissent from the UMC's official exclusionary policies.
As Brook McBride, pastor, recently wrote: I recall the first time someone in our church came out to me and then to a Sunday School class and then to the entire congregation and the spirit of acceptance that overwhelmed all of us.
Several years later, the church (and the campus ministry) became Reconciling communities, officially aligned with RMN. To celebrate that decision, we commissioned a reconciling song that we could use in worship. After months of discussion, we decided on the beautiful words penned to the hymn by Shirley Erena Murray, For Everyone Born. Although the words do not mention GLBT people by name, their awesome power resonated with everyone in the congregation. We decided to ask Brian Mann, one of the former members in the SCC, and the music leader of our group, if he would set these words to a new song that could be distinctive of our voice.
Brian took up the challenge. He recently wrote:
" . . .Being a part of the Vermillion (United) Methodist church made me feel at home and gave me an opportunity to reach out to the surrounding community. I was always so amazed at how accepting of others the Vermillion church was. . . Young, old, gay, straight, everyone was welcome at the church. It didn't matter what burdens you brought through the doors, it only mattered that you were there and wanted to know Jesus. After graduation, I was asked to write a praise song for the church based on the hymn For Everyone Born. I was honored. As I read through the words, I couldn't help but notice how fitting the message was for the Vermillion church. They are a community of Christians who have always demonstrated that EVERYONE has a place at the table."
The song was first sung at the first year anniversary of our decision to become a reconciling congregation. The congregation immediately fellin love with Brian's new setting of the song and we sang it loudly and proudly every chance we could. It has become an anthem of sorts, that declares the identity and commitment of the First UMC of Vermillion. Every time we sing it we remind ourselves of our commitment to justice and proclaim to the church and to the world that All really means All.
As beloved as this song is to us, it is also bittersweet. As Brook McBride again says:
Today is the day....it's finally arrived...our new edition of the Global Praise book "For Everyone Born" is finally in my hand. As I hold it in my hand tears both of joy and pain come to my eyes. At the same time as I hold all of this hope and joy, I also hold the pain of this song's incompleteness. The nauseau I literally experienced, and still experience, when I read and reread the phrase in our UM book of discipline.... "incompatable with Christian teaching"...and the tears of pain it has caused for so many of my friends and family. This song carries so much of my hopes for the church I love and the dreams of what we can become...and yet as I hold all those hopes, I cry in pain and anger at the injustice of this song's incompleteness. Sometime in those dark moments I secretly wonder.."Is this song just some candy for us? Some placebo we sing to sooth our hungry souls...given to us so that we don't rise up? And yet as I sit here today I see it instead as a "walking" song...indeed as a "marching" song...calling us out to be...to do...to act...no matter what! It has become an essential part of my gospel...a gospel that means nothing unless it is inclusive of all. "for everyone born...a place at the table!"
I hope that others will find this song to be equally inspiring and a way to positively state what the church should be, even as we continue to challenge the church to live up to these ideals.
Peace with Justice
Reconciling Ministries Network mobilizes United Methodists of all sexual orientations and gender identities to transform our Church and world into the full expression of Christ’s inclusive love.

Striving for Normalness, but never normality
I am numb - physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Returning home after General Conference has been rather surreal - I am comforted by my friends, my apartment, my City, even by returning today to work, and I am striving to get back to the normalness of life. Slowly, I will get back to my regular routine - catch up on my sleep, and be able to get through a day without thinking about General Conference, maybe even get through a whole day without thinking about the United Methodist church.
Yet, I know that I am changed by General Conference - just as I was changed by General Conference in 2004. I have lived through a harsh rejection, by the church that I have loved since I was young. I have said often in the last week that it is not for me that I am in pain, but for the many others who have been so deeply hurt by the Church. My numerous friends who have been denied their call to ministry, my friends whose love is not recognized by our church, my friends who seek a place where they can be themselves wholly and fully. Today, for the first time, I was able to admit to a friend that I too have been hurt deeply by this church, a denial that I had not faced up to this last week. For some reason, I felt like I was being naive and foolish to open myself up to be hurt yet again, but I was and continue to be stung by the words and actions of our church.
In 2004, I experienced a very powerful movement of the Holy Spirit - it happend on the prayer line outside of teh Pittsburgh convention center. I have described it to some friends as being like a phoenix rising up inside me, calling me to action. I have felt the same spirit within me this last week - beginning with the powerful witness on the floor of General Conference, and continuing as I speak with friends around the country, both who attended and did not attend GC.
There is no normality to be had, we cannot let up on our work - for it is not our work, but God's work. There is no returning to a time when I was oblivious to the words of the church, to the time before I had learned about the deep sin the church has committed to its gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender sons and daughters, to a time when I was content to sit back and let others do the work of justice.
I do need to take some time. I have wounds that must heal, and a weary body which must rest. We as a community need to gather ourselves together to support each other during this valley, but we cannot step away from this work. It is our calling and we have been put here for such a time as this. As we get back to our daily lives, I hope that we do not fall into the normality of complacency, but are able to find the deeper, truer, call to justice.
Posted at 09:59 PM in Commentary, Jayson Dobney | Permalink | Comments (0)
| Reblog