JOIN US ON MONDAY NIGHT, APRIL 3

“Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.”  (Matthew 5:16)

The MetroWest Daily News for Sunday, March 26, 2006 featured a great piece on page H2 by the Rev. Richard Hurst, pastor of the Lutheran Church of Framingham, and this year’s “Convener” of the Framingham Interfaith Clergy Association.  Rich is quite an eloquent writer.  He also has a passion for righteousness and Godliness (with humility).  Rich and Tom Wingate of the Framingham Bah’ai Faith have worked very hard to put together a candlelight vigil on the night before the Framingham Town election.  (The Framingham Town election is Tuesday, April 4; thus the vigil is on the evening of Monday, April 3.)  The vigil will be SHORT.  It will begin on the steps of the Framingham Memorial building downtown at Union and Concord Streets at 6:00 p.m.  After about twenty minutes, participating clergy will disperse to the various polling places across town and will lead in short prayers at these polling places.

I wholeheartedly back this effort and am very pleased to be participating.  This time of prayer for the elections and the Framingham community is NONPARTISAN.  We will not be endorsing any candidates or positions.  Rather, we will be praying for EACH candidate and for civility and mutual respect in our community.  For some who would sarcastically reject this effort as being “liberal, happy/sappy, pie-in-the-sky foolishness”, I want to make it clear it isn’t that at all!  Believe me, I’m no “bleeding heart liberal”.  And, I hold to some very strong political and theological positions.  I also believe in civility and respect.  WIthout civility, respect, and open dialogue, we are not a healthy society.  Without civility, respect, and open dialogue, we are nothing more than a totalitarian society.  I have no interest in being part of a totalitarian society of either the far left or the far right.  I agree with Rich and many of my colleagues that Framingham can be a far better community.  I agree with them that we need to listen to each other and (as much as possible) find common ground.  I really think Jesus would also agree with this.

Some might be surprised that I (a “conservative born-again Assemblies of God minister”) would join with a very diverse group for prayer and for the vigil.  I did not say I agree with all the theology of the clergy represented.  In fact, theologically I strongly disagree with probably at least half of them.  I’d guess that’s true of politics, too.  BUT,  I respect my clergy colleagues in this community as exactly that:  clergy colleagues and fellow citizens.  No, some of them aren’t Christians, and again, I strongly disagree with some of them on a lot of things.   I’m a conservative and I’m a Republican, but I do agree with many of my liberal Democrat friends when they say, “Diversity is very important”.  It is.  That’s a big part of “E Pluribus Unim”.  America is one nation of very diverse people who work together for the common good.  All Americans should be proud of that.

I hope many Framingham residents will join us at the Memorial building on Monday night, April 3 at 6 p.m.  AND, I hope you’ll vote on Tuesday, April 4.
AND, for those of you who don’t live in Framingham, please pray that God will bless the efforts of this vigil and that it will be a peaceful election day.