Skye Perryman coined the term “courage is the new currency.”
And while she is involved in political and legal matters in hopes of bolstering democracy, this term is an excellent mission statement for people of faith. The same day I heard Perryman’s term for the first time, I read this article by our favorite graph creator Ryan Burge who has rightly declared that the Presbyterian Church U.S.A. – the largest Presbyterian denomination in the nation.
He declares what many of us have known for decades: that this once-esteemed denomination is on the cusp of falling below one million members. We PCUSA church people who once prided ourselves in having over three million members in the 1980s – the second largest Mainline Denomination – are now outnumbered by Missouri Synod Lutherans, Jehovah’s Witnesses and Seventh Day Adventists.
We Presbyterians pride ourselves in sharing our form of government with the authors of the Constitution, of whom twelve of the 56 signers were Presbyterian. We also claim among our Reformed and Always Reforming siblings eight U.S. Presidents (not counting Donald Trump who has actually never been Presbyterian), George Pullman, Andrew Mellon, George Armour, Sam Walton, Fred Rogers, and Condoleezza Rice. It used to be true that civic and business leaders throughout the United States claimed to be Presbyterian Christians. Yay for us.
And then things changed. The narrative is that things started to go south for the largest Presbyterian denomination when our leaders started to meddle in issues like segregation and unjust wars. Some say that we became too political, and specifically that we became too politically liberal. I see it another way.
While Constantinian Christianity was the norm in the early part of the 20th Century in the United States, there were courageous Christians who said, “Wait a minute. Some of the things our nation is doing are in no way aligned with the teachings of Jesus.” Cue people like Jerry Falwell, James Dobson, and Tim LaHaye who literally broadcast a Christian belief system that aligned with a specific political agenda. To be “Christian” meant being homophobic, anti-immigrant, complementarian in gender roles and maybe a little racist. To be a “good Christian” was equated with being a politically conservative citizen.
Lots of Presbyterians in my denomination left. They started more conservative Presbyterian denominations. They joined non-denominational congregations. They became Southern Baptists. Or they just left the Church altogether. And yet, many who stayed in the PCUSA were trying to be courageous, speaking up for People of Color, LGBTQ folks, and others who were previously not at home in the Mainline Church.
Yes, this is incredibly simplistic. And yet, we Mainline Presbyterians (and United Methodists, Evangelical Lutherans, Episcopalians, Disciples of Christ, Progressive Baptist, etc.) now find ourselves in a season when Christians who previously voted for the red team apparently voted for the blue team recently. Do yourself a favor and read The Donkey and Jesus by Kimberly Winston.
In many places and in many families, it’s still courageous to say that you voted for candidates who campaigned on “Love Thy Neighbor” rather than the candidates who campaigned on “if they can’t afford high beef prices, they should pick another protein.” The courage to quote Chapter 25 of The Gospel of Matthew became the new currency. Check out this article too.
It is true for all People of Faith – Christians, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, Sikhs – that the truest understanding of our belief system involves loving our neighbors. It is a spiritual creed to say that we are less concerned with left vs. right than we are concerned with up vs. down. The Bible is an equal opportunity offender, politically speaking. But Jesus’ constant message was that we are to be concerned with those who are “down.”
It takes courage to be the one child who defends another child being taunted. It takes courage to be the worker who stands up to an immoral boss. It takes courage to preach prophetically. It takes courage to tell the truth. It takes courage to know the truth about ourselves. But courage is – at least today – an increasingly valuable currency.
Final note: Here is an opportunity to show courage if you happen to live in the Northern Virginia, Suburban Maryland or DC area. There is a public hearing in support of Major Jason Watson who stood on the steps of the U.S. Capitol Building in August calling for “the impeachment, conviction, and removal of President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance, criticizing administration policies including military actions in Venezuela, Cuba, and Iran, as well as immigration and First Amendment concerns.”
The public hearing is on Tuesday, November 17 at Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling, Washington, D.C* and the purpose is to ask for the release of Major Watson prior to his trial. He has been in solitary confinement since his arrest “for crowding and obstructing the Capitol steps and making contemptuous remarks under Article 88 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice.”
While he may or may not be guilty of these charges, Major Watson is a 2005 graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy and a recipient of the Defense Meritorious Service Medal. It’s not all that courageous for me to stand up for someone who doesn’t deserve solitary confinement for this accusation, but I hope to do so.
*Because this public hearing is on a military base, please contact his attorneys via Monument Legal to ask for access.
