February is Black History Month, a time to reflect on issues of race and religion and celebrate the important roles African Americans have played in the development of the United States. Recognition of those roles from a historical perspective is an important step in celebrating the contributions of individuals and the collective changes the African American community has brought about.

"Black History Month is with us, because, for a variety of reasons, black history has been ignored, revised, or distorted too often in our history books. We find it difficult to explore honestly the reasons a study of black history makes so many of us uncomfortable," the late Rev. Gilbert Caldwell, who was active in the civil rights movement, wrote in a UM News Service commentary a few years ago.

"We know it is essential to be historically correct about the issues in England that energized the efforts that established the United States. We understand Israel exists in the main because of the history of the oppression of the Jewish people. However, there is difficulty for some people in admitting the existence of American slavery made necessary the abolition movement, and the reality of racial segregation provoked and evoked the U.S. civil rights movement," he said.

If we do not remember accurately the negatives of the past, he said, we may repeat them. "Failure to remember the negatives deprives us of the opportunity to celebrate the magnificent progress we have made as a nation since slavery and legal racial segregation," he explained.

The above excerpt can be found at www.wpaumc.org/blackhistorymonth and I encourage you to go and take a closer look at the resources attached to that article. One of those resources, which can be found in this month’s newsletter on page 7, is an easy-to-understand do’s and don’ts list titled “Anti-Racism Starts for White Christians: Do’s and Don’ts.” This list helps to simplify some very basic steps we can all take to aid in the fight against racism.

As long as we at Sewickley United Methodist Church continue to profess the good news of Jesus Christ, we will live out our faith by fighting against systems of oppression starting with our own hearts. We will not be on the side of history that repeats itself and continues to benefit from the dehumanization of our black brothers and sisters. And if we do in any way, may God forgive our sins, call them to light, and allow us to do all in our power to make right the harm we were part of.

We can make a difference, because it is not by our power, but by the power of God that flows through us. We will help to overcome the evil that persists in this world. If you want to be a part of that “we,” don’t stop reading here, but continue to ask the question, “what can I do?” and use the resources that are available to you. Let’s help to make history something worth repeating!

From one light to another,
Pastor Hannah Loughman