Bismarck, North Dakota - News

When a pastor preaches on Sunday, he delivers three sermons, said the Rev. Thomas Marcis - the one he intends to preach, the one he actually preaches, and the one that people hear.

To which, in the case of the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, whose fiery rhetoric became a political mini-crisis for his longtime friend, Sen. Barack Obama, might be added a fourth sermon - the one the media turned into a sensation.

Wright, preaching at his church, Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago, used denouncing terminology that forced Obama to deliver a speech on race and the traditions of the African-American pulpit.

The national UCC took out a full-page ad in the New York Times on April 2, explaining its heritage of what is called "freedom of the pulpit," dating back to its Pilgrim heritage.

The ad pointed out that the UCC's Pilgrim heritage has included deep activism in abolition of slavery, the body's lead in ordaining an African-American (1785), a woman (1853) and an openly gay pastor (1972).

The Rev. Jim Moos, senior pastor at the Bismarck United Church of Christ, said he found Wright's language offensive. Though a pastor's obligation is "to speak the truth in love," that does not mean belligerence, he said.

What disappointed him was that all the coverage never led to a more serious discussion of the underlying issues of racism.

The attitude Moos saw was that "(Wright) said 'damn' from the pulpit, he was unpatriotic, so we're not dealing any further with the issues,"he said.

Preaching harsh words stands in what Christians call "the prophetic tradition," harking back to Old Testament prophets such as Jeremiah, whose words were very much gloom and doom, preaching God's displeasure with disobedience and God's judgment, said the Rev. Kermit Culver, pastor at Bismarck's First United Methodist Church.

"In the prophetic tradition, it's not only acceptable but expected that preachers call the powers of the world to account," Moos said.

Culver said pastors are from time to time led to be prophetic, "but a prophet needs to earn the right to be prophetic,"he said. Wright's words were startling, no matter what the context, Culver said.

Different denominations have different traditions about what's appropriate to preach, said Marcis, senior pastor at Zion Lutheran Church, a congregation of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod.

"I guess I would be greatly disappointed if (Wright's words) came out of a Lutheran pulpit," he said.

In the Lutheran tradition, the pastor has the spiritual responsibility to teach sin, grace and forgiveness and to give people the tools to be responsible Christian citizens, Marcis said.

Though the LCMS, along with the Catholic Church, has taken an official anti-abortion stand, Marcis said, "we don't tell people what to do, but relate it to the biblical principles of 'why.' We're not a political activist group, but we do encourage people to be involved," he said.

The degree of involvement with social issues also differs among denominations.

"Theologian Karl Barth said, you should preach with the Bible in one hand and the newspaper in the other,"Moos said.

For some contemporary issues, there is no direct reference in the Bible, Moos said, but for issues such as racism, the story of Pentecost pointedly talks of the Holy Spirit being poured out on all peoples.

"And poverty - there's nothing more important in the ministry of Christ than how we treat the poor," he said. "Grounded deeply in scripture are issues of injustice, who is included and who is excluded."

Culver preached a series on "Confronting the Controversies," tackling issues such as abortion, euthanasia and gambling, he said.

Historically, theologian John Wesley believed in the social gospel, "no holiness except social holiness," Culver said. Methodism has a long tradition of working for social change: "I'm proud of that," he said.

All three pastors touch on the concept of Christians living in "the two kingdoms," the spiritual realm and the worldly realm,and how to navigate within those two worlds.

"Augustine wrote about the City of God as opposed to the city of man," Moos said. "The key is to make that distinction. We can love our country and affirm our culture, but not uncritically. Our primary citizenship is in God's realm."

For Lutherans, it means being "in the world, but not of the world,"Marcis said. Social justice is not avoiding issues but looking at what scripture says, being involved but not taking political sides.

"We are involved in social issues, such as feeding the hungry and housing the poor," he said.

The goal, he said, "is to first demonstrate Christ's love, then preach Christ's love. With an empty stomach and nowhere to go, how can someone hear? The ultimate need is bringing the gospel."

It's important not to separate preaching from basic pastoral care, Moos said:"If you don't love the people where they are, you can't preach at them. Loving them earns you the right to say challenging things from the pulpit."

Among those challenging things is America's consumer-oriented approach to religion, Moos said, "as if it's meant to be entertainment, or just personal growth and feeling good about ourselves.

"What about the cross did Jesus feel good about?" he said. "Faith is about discipleship and serving others, costly discipleship. Jesus doesn't say to pray for our friends, he says to pray for our enemies."

Culver said he agrees:"Our cushy American life gets in the way."

All three pastors say they realize that the role of preacher holds both advantage and a responsibility when dealing with social issues.

The congregation has no recourse to disagree during a sermon, Culver said.

"Bible class might be more appropriate for those discussions, because there is a give and take," Marcis said.

Moos uses Jesus' example of telling lots of stories. "That brings things close and personal to us."

People need to listen with a discerning ear, Marcis said. "The central part of worship is not the sermon, but the reading of scripture,"he said.

"The Bible does apply to life in the 21st century, a message of hope and grace that the world needs to hear," Culver said.

(Reach reporter Karen Herzog at 250-2867 or karen.herzog@bismarcktribune.com.)