There's an old, old hymn that asks the question, "Are ye able?"To this question, the chorus sings out:
"Lord, we are able. Our spirits are thine.
Remold them, make us, like thee divine.
Thy guiding radiance above us shall be
A beacon to God, to love, and loyalty" (United Methodist Hymnal #530).
Last week, at our denomination's Western Jurisdictional Conference, one of the candidates for the office of bishop asked the delegates and The United Methodist Church, "Are we able?"
The answer came as the delegates elected this candidate, unanimously, to be a bishop in The United Methodist Church. I saw and heard the news of this election in the United Methodist News Service, NBC News, and on National Public Radio that "The Rev. Karen Oliveto, senior pastor of Glide Memorial Church in San Francisco, has been elected as the first openly lesbian United Methodist bishop by delegates at the Western Jurisdictional Conference."
Many of us have long known the Rev. Dr. Karen Oliveto as a trusted and fine ministerial colleague and friend. In addition to Glide, she has served local churches and as associate dean at the Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley.
After her election, Bishop Oliveto said, "I think at this moment, I have a glimpse of the realm of God. ... I stand before you because of the work and prayers of so many, especially those saints who yearned to live for this day, who blazed a trail where there was none, who are no longer with us, and yet whose shoulders I stand on."
She continued to say, "Today we took a step closer to embody beloved community, and while we may be moving there, we are not there yet. We are moving on to perfection."
Are we able to continue to move toward this "perfection" of which Bishop Oliveto speaks? Can we work together to allow God (as the hymn sings) "to remold and make us"? This is not easy, as being remolded and remade may involve the discomfort/pain of change. It may mean that we must continue to be in dialogue with God and with all people, even those who are not like-minded.
Elected, consecrated, and ready to serve, Bishop Oliveto asked, then answered, the question: "Are we able? Yes, and Amen."
I hear a challenge to all of us to continue to be a part of the "beloved community," to not leave it, but instead to work for change, to move toward the perfection to which God is calling us. Thank you, Bishop! And thank you, God!!
Blessings,
