Repairers of the Breach
Rev. Jacqui Lewis, Ph.D.

The storms had names: Katrina, Wilma and Rita. They battered the land and soaked the soil. Lives and livelihood were lost to enormous destruction and devastation. But, it did not have to be that way. As Senator Barak Omaba said on the floor of the United States Senate a few weeks after the storm,

“I hope we realize that the people of New Orleans weren’t just abandoned during the hurricane. They were abandoned a long time ago. To murder, to mayhem in the streets, to substandard schools, to dilapidated housing, to inadequate health care, to a pervasive sense of hopelessness.”

The storms had names, but there are other storms raging. The storms of Racism, Classism and Greed are equally responsible for the disaster in New Orleans. To be sure, the natural disaster caused unspeakable damage in Louisiana and all along the Mississippi Gulf Coast. I don’t ever believe God is in the business of teaching lessons through natural disaster. Storms happen, and some of them are strong enough to break levees. As we think about that, we might want to ask ourselves about how we are destroying our planet a little at a time, and how THAT behavior is affecting climate patterns all over the world. I will save that discussion for another time.

I want to think about the HUMAN disaster—the lack of response from several governments, the segregation and isolation that left poor, Black people in the worst possible pockets of the city; the scars of racism in America that continue to be etched in our psyches and physical realities; people are responsible for those, not God. Humans are responsible for the storms that break the spirit and kill the soul. When the storms of Racism, Classism and Greed are not raging, they are ill-winds that are constantly blowing, stirring up the worst in humanity, robbing us of compassion and hope. When they are not raging, those storms ruffle up a sense of foreboding and fear, and leave us feeling as though we can do nothing to change ancient patterns of clamoring for limited resources. We forget that we have so much and that we can do much with what we have. We can’t stop the winds from stirring up the sea, but we can change the way we live in America.

We need a change in the way we do business in America. We need a sea change in expectations from our national leaders. We need a sea change in what we expect from ourselves. We need a sea change in what it means to be the faithful people of God. Maybe the unfortunate, life-stealing, receding flood waters can leave us with a sea change. Perhaps if we come to feel more powerful, more responsible, more able, we can make our lives of faith and our sense of politic more potent. We can travel our journey toward wholeness, not so much as individuals but as a community.

At Middle Church, we will continue to work on what it means to be the people of God. We will study and have our minds transformed by the Word of God. We will pray together, hold on to each other and care for each other in times of need and joy. We will worship with passion and creativity. We will play together and laugh and break bread together. And we will take that worship with us into the streets as social action and outreach. We will stand with and for the poor. We will advocate for better housing and healthcare for the most vulnerable of us. We will think and act as though we are good global neighbors. We will partner to do justice and love mercy here in New York City, in this country and around the world. And we will not rest until we celebrate the just rebuilding of the Gulf Coast.

The Reverend Freeman Palmer staffs the Gulf Coast Task Force. It is not ad hoc. It is not short term. You can join it. We are committed, and we want you to be to. Stay tuned for letters that you can send to congress that push at the political edges. Be ready for an invitation to show up at some rally or congress persons’ office. Join us as we continue to raise funds for partners like Common Ground Relief and Habitat for Humanity. Partner with us as we help to organize other congregations in this effort. Save your money so that you can join a group who go to the Gulf Region in March. Pray unceasingly.

The levees broke. America is built on broken constructs that entitle some and disable others. But the faithful people of God, who come from all theological perspectives and religious affiliations, can repair what is broken. We can be repairers of the breach.

Isaiah says it this way: If you remove the yoke from among you, the pointing of the finger, the speaking of evil, if you offer your food to the hungry and satisfy the needs of the afflicted, then your light shall rise in the darkness and your glom be like the noonday…your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt. You shall raise up the foundations of many generations. You shall be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of streets to live in.