In 1813, Morris Brown started a church for black slaves in Charleston, South Carolina. He was joined by Denmark Vesey, a man whose name came from the slave owner who sold him. Denmark had purchased his freedom for $1,500 because he was a gifted carpenter. However, the slave owner would not sell him the freedom of his wife and children. So Denmark Vesey began to preach at the church about the Book of Exodus and how Almighty God led the Hebrew people from slavery into freedom.
No one knows if Denmark Vesey ever did anything more than preach about the Exodus. What we do know is that his church grew to 3,000 strong. And in December of 1821, Denmark Vesey was arrested along with dozens of other members of the church. They were tortured and some broke down, confessing a plot to fight for their freedom. All of them were hanged. They say that Denmark Vesey was stabbed to death but no one ever found his body. And, as a punishment for insurrection, the black churches in Charleston were closed for over thirty years.
After the Civil War, Denmark's son, Robert Vesey, rebuilt the church as an African Methodist Episcopal Church. They named it Emmanuel which means God is with us. Booker T. Washington and Dr. Martin Luther King would later preach in that church. It became a leading church in the Civil Rights movement.
On this past Wednesday, a 21 year old man named Dylan Roof walked into Emmanuel AME Church and joined a prayer group. After almost an hour of sharing and praying in which he was welcomed and included, Dylan shot and killed the participants. He killed them simply for being black.
A storm arose at sea when the disciples were in the boat with Jesus. It was night and it was dark so they could not have seen where the storm came from. It was strong. It blew the water causing great waves and wind. The disciples were afraid. Terrified. And Jesus remained asleep.
I have always wondered how Jesus could have slept through all that. Was he just so exhausted that nothing could wake him? Or was he so trusting in God's providence that he knew he would not die? Or was it that he was not afraid of dying? Could he simply ride the waves without fear? How could he have slept through all that wind and water, while the disciples were scurrying all over the little boat trying to get the water out and talking and praying and yelling to each other. How could Jesus have slept through that storm?
There are so many storms in our lives. Violence that makes no sense. Racism. Terrorism. These evils just seem to rise up and almost swallow us whole. There are more Christians dying in this century than at any other time. And sometimes it feels like God is just asleep. How could an all-powerful God allow a man like Denmark Vesey to be hanged just for preaching a truth in Scripture? How could God allow the innocent pastor and the faithful members of a Emmanuel Church be murdered for nothing but the color of their skin? Is God just asleep? Does God even care?
The disciples at least had Jesus in the boat. Physically, bodily, their Lord could be woken up. They could shake him awake. They could talk to him, ask him what the heck was going on. They could ask him how he could sleep through such a storm. "Do you not care about us?" they said. "Do you not care that we are going to die?"
That's what we all want to ask when a storm comes. "God, why don't you do something about this? Don't you care at all?
When Jesus awakened, he calmed the storm. He brought peace. Just like he healed when he saw someone who was sick or cast out demons when someone possessed crossed his path. He calmed the sea for the disciples but he was clearly disappointed that they asked him to do that. After he calmed the sea, he turned to them and asked them THE QUESTION.
"Why are you afraid? Have you still no faith?"
"Why are you afraid? Have you still no faith?"
When we come to God asking God to calm the storm, asking God to save the lives of those faithful at Emmanuel, asking God to simply stop this evil and violence in our world, God responds with a question...Why are you afraid? Have you no faith?
It is the same with our brother Job. The storm destroyed his whole life. His family was dead, his wealth gone, his friends were no help. He sat alone in the dust and when he asked God to wake up, God said, "Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth?" In other words, "who are you to ask me how this is supposed to happen?" You cannot understand me. You must trust.
There are some questions that cannot be answered in this life. Why are there storms? Why do people suffer? Why is there evil? Why is life unfair? Why do good people like our brothers and sister at Emmanuel AME Church have to die? They did not deserve it. They did nothing but be kind and loving and good.
And when we say to God, "Please wake up and stop this storm! Please just bring us peace. Please just fix our problems," God answers with a question. One very important question...
"Why can't you trust me?"
Faith is not just about believing in God. Faith is also believing that God knows more than we know. Faith is believing that when good people suffer and die, it is not the end of the story. Faith is ability to trust that something beyond our understanding can come out of violence and hatred and death itself. Faith is believing that the cross can become the resurrection, even when we don't know how or when or why. Faith is believing that God is God and we are not.
My yoga teacher took the day off on Thursday and drove with her husband up to Charleston. There were thousands out on streets. Flowers left at the church. The families of the victims were talking about forgiveness and people were flooding into the city, just to be there, to pray and to eat at the restaurants and offer our condolences. People were so kind, she said. They thanked her for coming.
And all across the country at 10 a.m. this morning, church bells will ring to remember those who died. Let us not let them die in vain. It is time for this country to unite and vow to serve one another, to bridge racial boundaries, to look out for our youth, especially when they seem lost or disturbed, to take better care of our children, to pray for one another. Out of these ashes, let us rise.
Denmark Vesey dreamed of a time when black people would be free. So long as there is violence and hatred like what happened on Wednesday, none of us our free. So we must put aside our whys and work toward peace and pray. We must always pray to the One who alone can bring peace, to Jesus.
Let us read aloud the names of our brothers and sisters who died at Emmanuel AME Church.
