UCC GMP Thompson Charges CHHSM Members to Wade Deeper, and Find Strength in God’s Love and Presence

The opening worship service of CHHSM’s 87th Annual Gathering was filled with moment of joyful celebration and moments of somber reflection. Held March 11 at 11 a.m. at First Church of Cambridge (Mass.), Congregational UCC, the service included a sermon by UCC General Minister and President the Rev. Dr. Karen Georgia A. Thompson and the installment of the Rev. Dr. Zaria Davis as CHHSM’s associate for member engagement.

“Our Annual Gathering begin in a truly special way as the Rev. Dr. Karen Georgia Thompson opened us in worship, grounding us in faith and purposed,” said Jamar Doyle, CHHSM president and CEO. “In this sacred space, we also welcoming the Rev. Dr. Zaria Davis officially into the CHHSM team with a moving blessing ceremony, celebrating her leadership and call to service.”

The worship service centered around the gathering’s theme, “Into the Deep: Casting Nets of Justice” (Luke 5:4). Interim Minister the Rev. Michael Solberg welcomed Annual Gathering attendees, which was followed by a gathering prayer led by CHHSM board members the Rev. Beth Long-Higgins of United Church Homes in Marion, Ohio, and the Rev. Andrea Asselmeier of Emmaus Homes in St. Charles, Mo.

CHHSM board member Nichelle Simmons of UCAN in Chicago preceded Thompson’s sermon with a reading of “Deep Sea Theology on Whales,” written by the Rev. Dr. Elyse Berry for the UCC Christmas Fund. Thompson’s sermon was based on the Gospel reading, Luke 5:1-11.

Thompson told attendees that “We are church together,” and regardless of where we are in the church, “we hold together this ministry of love and justice and inclusion.” She then opened her sermon by sharing her poem, “Broken Sidewalks.”

we, waters of flowing free
children of breath
bearers of courage
luminaries of change
marching across broken sidewalks

we, creators of tranquility
children of radiant brilliance
defying obstacles
sidesteppers of defeat
building pathways to our destiny.

— Broken Sidewalks excerpt, Karen Georgia A. Thompson

She discussed the topsy turvy world in which we currently live. “The truth is that the status quo, the current order of things, is built on years of confusion and upside-down endeavors,” she said. “The world is calling for help. People are being left behind and this planet we call home is bearing the brunt of years of abuse and neglect.”

Thompson referenced the most recent Bloomberg’s Billionaire Index that reports that of the top 50 billionaires in the world, 25 reside in the United States, and that Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, and Mark Zuckerberg are the top three. Their collective worth exceeds $800 billion. “These are individuals,” she noted, “not corporations. Siblings in Christ, we are living through a time of chaos and confusion. Things are upside down.”

According to visualcapitalist.com, as of 2023, 1 percent of American households held $43 trillion in wealth, which is 30 percent of the country’s net worth, Thompson said. Quoting Bon Jovi’s “Living on a Prayer,” Thompson reminded those in attendance that “we need to hold onto each other tighter than ever. We need to keep praying like we never prayed before.”

“And yet,” she added, “our action will be what helps us to make it through. The work of CHHSM agencies is more important than it has ever been.”

Quoting CHHSM’s website, she said, “ ‘CHHSM supports member organizations’ transformation of the world through healing and mission ministries to make the world as right as God intends it to be.’ That is the bold vision of CHHSM, a vision for today, seeing God’s love present in the world.”

Thompson talked about the continued strife and how it effects people, with some feeling overcome, “overtaken in their body, mind, and spirit by the brokenness we are witnessing in the world.”

“And then there is the weariness that sets in over time,” she added. “The ache that comes with the knowledge that the desire to see a just world for all is still a long reach.”

“The justice we seek still requires work and we are not sure how all of this is going to happen. Like those who have gone before us,” she says, referencing the Annual Gathering theme, “we will need to dig deep. We need to step out believing that the presence of God is with us and makes the difference in achieving the vision for today.”

Thompson reminded us that in the Gospel reading, Peter resisted a bit when Jesus asked him to push out into the deep and cast out the nets — into a spot he had been all night and caught nothing. Peter acted a bit like all of us do sometimes — a bit petty, and a bit snarky — but, Thompson reminds us, he did it. He released some of his pettiness and snarkiness and pushed the boat out. He caught such an abundance of fish that the nets broke, and they called another boat to help. 

“Into the Deep” is an invitation to our depth, Thompson said, even in this time when we have been doing health and human service justice work for many years. 

“We have been in the forefront of community ministries providing services for healing and wholeness,” Thompson said. “We are tired and just when we thought we were about to get some relief, the playing field has shifted once again.”

“Regardless of how we are feeling in our body, mind and spirit, there is yet deeper that we can go,” she said. “The call for today is deeper. Deeper into the spirit. Deeper into our Commitment to justice. Deeper in our relationship with God. Deeper in our commitments to one another.”

This is a time to consider how we do this work together, Thompson said. “No one person can do it alone and we need to do the work together.”

Thompson closed with the passage in 2Corinthians 4, reminding us that “we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not us. We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed.”

“Siblings, this is the time,” said Thompson. “If you ever felt that you were being prepared for something, it is this time. It is time to step into the call of this moment. A just world for all. May it be so.”

The installation of Davis followed the sermon. CHHSM President and CEO Jamar Doyle and the Rev. Dr. Kirsten Peachey of Advocate Health and board chair led a values blessing for Davis. This was followed by a blessing and affirmation from the Rev. Dr. Dave Long-Higgins, conference minister of the UCC’s Heartland Conference. 

Thompson’s words in the service’s benediction called Annual Gathering attendees to service. “We leave changed,” she said, “because we’ve experienced God and the Spirit in this place.”

then as now
we transmogrify
then as now
we swim rivers to generational healing

then as now 
we dream afloat
riding flotsam
rearranging shards of broken sidewalks

into sweeping mosaics of freedom

— Broken Sidewalks, poem’s final stanzas, Karen Georgia A. Thompson