Delivered by Dean Emilie Townes, Emerita May 12, 2023
each year, i am reminded that you and i (and countless others)
are often called to ministry in the midst of the senselessness of our worlds
now some folks would say that this is depressing
a downer
somewhat despairing
maybe even abject —— the ultimate doom and gloom
but i think that this is an exciting call because it reminds us that we are working with a Creator
who delights in shaping the infinite
who walks with us, even when we feel that we may be on the road alone
who invites us into a vibrant creation that we get to help make
who welcomes all of us—yes every single one of us
regardless
though we are all too human, but perhaps not humane enough
all too passionate, but perhaps needing more guidance and better strategies to help find answers to the questions we seek
all too comfortable, all too disconcerted, all too anxious and not at all clear, let alone certain, about how we will do what we are being called to do at this point in our journey
or we may be still trying to figure all this out
we are finite
and desperately so
but, also part of the faithful remnant
who are the ones that keep on holding on and striving to make this a better world
a more loving world
a world that takes justice and peace
and yes, even love—but a bone-deep love built by ornery, stubborn, and bodacious hope that flaunts its stuff when times are tough
and folks, we are in tough times
but, i think this makes each of us extremely interesting to God
because when God shows up and then also shows out, God is holding us in the immediate infinite of the holy
that lets us know that we are not alone
and that we must reach out to others as well
because God’s infinite is not a possession for us to keep, but a gift to be shared
no hoarding allowed!
and as chaotic and scary and violent as these times are that we live in now
there are also spaces of clarity and reassurance and love and hope and peace
but the thing is, none of these things just happen
no, they all require our attention, our participation—either we are calling out the shenanigans or being helpmates of evil
and there is little room to try to live in between these poles and think we can wait it out
or act like it does not matter that we have decided to do nothing
either we are a part of helping this world be what it can be and take a consecrated turn to the new heaven and new earth or be the doo wop pom pom squad of inequity as we cheer on calculated wickedness
for it takes each of us, doing whatever it is we are doing, or failing to do, to bring in either peace and hope or wreck and ruin
so, which will you choose?
now this is a somewhat sobering picture i have painted this morning
after all, i am a Christian social ethicist
but i say to you that senselessness does not, must not have the final word
so, as i give my last charge as dean to a graduating class, i want to gift you with something that has helped me over the years when facing the troubles of this world, let alone this institution
it seems like a small thing
some of you may say it is trite
but i assure you that it has power if you can embrace it, if not master it
and it is this: whatever you encounter in life and living, live your ministry and your lives with joy
now i am not talking about: don’t worry, be happy
rather than looking for happy, i encourage you to look for joy
happy helps us see that a more robust future is possible
joy gives us the fire and insight to refuse to give up on making that future real
happy gives us a lens into the hope for the world
joy pulls us, gooses us into not settling for far too little in our lives and witness
joy helps you stretch into the ministry and scholarship and activism that God calls you to
to celebrate the spiritual gifts we’ve been given
to walk around in them
to sit down and play with the holy sand God has given you
joy refuses to let you live your life in the past tense
the sad what ifs
the dead-end maybes
the rootless and fruitless could bes
joy dares you to live justice
joy takes us out of the folds of the old wounds that make all of us perform unnatural acts like homophobia and sexism and heterosexism and transphobia
racism, ethnocentrism, classism, Christian supremacy, ableism, ecological exploitation
joy means creating communities that are bodies of hope and righteousness that spit in the face of the cultural production of evil
a community made up of folks like miss rosie across the street
miss montez around the corner
cousin willie mae down by the juke house
mr. press over at the barber shop
mrs. m.o. sneed lee who taught generations of children to read, do their plus ones, and not kill themselves on the jungle gym
mr. butler who also taught generations of children to love math and science through rhymes and counting games and took you fishing on saturday mornings
and really didn’t care if you never caught a thing (and that was me)
joy—that takes like and turns it into love
takes care and turns it into passion
takes concern and turns it into commitment
joy—that takes all the ways that black folk, white folk, brown folk, beige folk, and all folk have come to love themselves and each other and remember that we used to leave people be when it came to who they love or face forward into who they are
joy—it’s what gets God up doing a standing ovation in creation
humph…
it may seem that my invocation of joy in the face of searing senselessness comes from a place of a disembodied eden
but i am not arguing for a theme park with gerrymandered thrills and fears
this is not a banal joy that clings to the rimbones of nothingness
or a bout of holified indigestion after woofing down a mess of Christian nationalist gruel
nope, not a marvel comics world
no avengers
dungeons and dragons
dune
hunger games
ghosted
transformers
flash, or
ant man
but do take a break from time to time, but you must come back to engage and reengage in the struggle
because regardless of how tough it gets some days, i am encouraged to live my work with joy and to remind myself that i want to be very old black woman when i die
because dying of old age is the ultimate joyous womanist move
please join me
hallelujah, alleluia, ashe