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VOL. 14, NO. 7

Praying for peace as war begins

By Melissa Lauber UMConnection Staff

As the first bombs exploded over Baghdad March 19, the Wednesday night Bible study class at Milford Mill UMC in Pikesville fell into song.

It was This Is My Song, number 437, said the Rev. Joan Carter-Rimbach, who hummed the tune and recalled the words: O hear my song, thou God of all the nations, a song of peace for their land and for mine.

It seemed the only appropriate response, a prayer and a cry from the heart for peace and the safety of the service men and women there, said Carter-Rimbach.

The mixed emotions that swept through the Bible study echoed throughout many of the churches of the Baltimore-Washington Conference as people struggled with their hopes for peace and the realities of war.

In its official stance, The United Methodist Church deplores war, believing it incompatible with the teachings and example of Christ. The church also says, when peaceful alternatives have failed, the force of arms may be preferable to unchecked aggression, tyranny and genocide, language that was added to the Social Principles in 2000. As U.S. military personnel streamed into Iraq in an invasion authorized by President George Bush, who is a United Methodist, emotional and spiritual waters became muddied.

At Lincoln Park UMC, in Washington D.C., the preaching point remains We aint going to study war no more, said the Rev. Harold D. Lewis Sr.

Lewis, who preached to Bush when he attended Lincoln Park UMC early in his presidency, prays that the commander in chief leads under the gbwc_superuserance of the Holy Spirit. He also prays for the soldiers in his congregation who are fighting in Iraq and for Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein. The same Jesus that died on a cross for us, died for Saddam Hussein, he said. The blood of Christ was shed for the salvation of everyone. Thats what our faith hinges on.

At John Wesley UMC in Glen Burnie, the Rev. Diane Dixon-Proctor is certain that no one values peace more than a soldier. Many members of her congregation work for the National Security Agency and other military-related institutions and one young man in the church is on a ship in the midst of the battle. Her daughter, Sgt. Angelic Proctor-Rainey, has been deployed on special duty.

As the mother of a soldier, Dixon-Proctor is certain that her daughter understands her role in the military and her walk with Jesus Christ. She knows God is with her.

As a pastor, Dixon-Proctor revised her Sunday sermon to speak directly about the war. I wanted to include words of comfort and thoughts to give people strength, she said.

Many conference pastors found themselves in a similar position. Even those who oppose the war attempted to offer solace to anxious congregations.

At Bel Air UMC, the Rev. Peggy Groseclose, associate pastor, agreed about the need for the church to be a provider of hope.

We are entering a time of uncertainty that most of us have not yet faced in our lives, she wrote in the churchs electronic newsletter. I am so grateful to have a faith that lifts us up in times of trial, and a God whose message is of hope and not despair. That we know the end of the story, that God will ultimately prevail, is what makes us Christian.

Many of Bel Airs members work at Aberdeen Proving Ground and Edgewater Arsenal and have relatives that have been deployed.

While Christians worship the Prince of Peace, it is imperative that they support the troops, Groseclose said. Were still picking up pieces of broken lives from Vietnam. I feel so strongly that that cant ever happen again.

Bel Air UMC, Glen Mar UMC in Ellicott City and many other churches have opened their doors on Wednesday evenings to give people opportunities to pray for peace.

At Oakdale-Emory UMC in Olney, where almost 20 percent of the congregation is associated with the military, the Rev. Roger Carlson is convinced that these prayers will make a difference.

He is also hopeful that the tensions present in issues of war and peace can be resolved. But not through confrontation, he urged. Rather, people should be accepted, and the Scripture laid out for all to study, he said. All people who follow Christ are to be about peace, Carlson concluded. Let it begin with each of us.