John 15:26-27,16:4-15
Rev. Bryan Travis Hooper

I remember when I moved into my first apartment. I remember the feeling of freedom and independence, as I began to live on my own terms for the first time. I could eat in the bedroom and sleep in the living room if that’s what I wanted to do. Finally, I could set my own rules. But soon after that wonderful feeling of independence, I discovered a new feeling of responsibility. I had to pay the bills. I had to make choices between cable television and furniture. As much as I liked being on my own, there was a part of me that remembered simpler times, when I lived under my parents’ roof, and I didn’t have a care in the world. (more…)

Recently I downloaded the latest U2 album, No Line on the Horizon. I’ve been giving it a good listen the last several weeks, and thought I’d share some impressions, being that we are coming up on Pentecost and Pentecost seems to play a pretty important role in the music of U2.

First, some background. Growing up, I was not a big U2 fan until my parents oddly gave me Joshua Tree as a present for Easter. I don’t think they knew what they were doing, but if they did, they were brilliant. That album blew my 15-year-old mind. Not only did it sound like nothing I had listened to before, but it expressed something sophisticated, thoughtful, even artful. It was pop music for sure – but it had integrity and purpose.

Over the years I got more U2 albums, but seldom did they rise to the level of Joshua Tree in my mind. I even bought some of their older albums, and discovered some true gems. Nevertheless, U2 has remained a supergroup over the years, and their albums always generate a buzz, especially among Christians who want desperately to be relevant in the world today. Whatever you think about U2, they have managed to remain relevant for a surprisingly long time.

Their new album is the best since Joshua Tree in my opinion. Not only does it wrestle with meaningful themes that makes most pop music seem trivial, it also embraces a unique sound that is at once fresh and familiar. The songs on the album take a few listens to really get them, but they are intriguing and addictive from the get go.

My favorite song on the album is probably “Moment of Surrender.” At first, this song seems like a pretty straight-forward, trance-like pop song. But as the song moves on (it’s also the longest song at seven and a half minutes) the chorus takes on a powerful tinge of prayer. The initial image of the song is that of a young couple getting married, diving into an uncertain future that requires a leap of faith. The underlying theme is that under the surface of our lives moves a compassionate force that carries us through when we trust in it. Our efforts to control our lives are futile and frustrating, yet trusting in the rhythms of the earth leads to a harmonious life. Or something like that. Bono is not a great theologian. But he does try. And his ideas are not simplistic, though at times they flight with feeling a bit trite. At his best, Bono produces songs that hint at real spiritual insight. And he is able to connect those insights with images from contemporary life in a way that gives them urgency and keeps U2 from seeming nostalgic.

“Unknown Caller” is another success. If “Moment of Surrender” is an effort to describe what prayer is like, “Unknown Caller” is closer to the actually moment of prayer. It works almost as a dialogue – with a monotone voice in the chorus driving commands into us that ironically are intended to be liberating. Is this a reference to the liberating power of discipline, the strange freedom that comes from focused effort? Perhaps, or it might just be a catchy pop song.

The title track, “No Line on the Horizon,” seems to reference the blurring of boundaries and the deception of difference. Thematically, it is reminiscent of the popular U2 song “One.” And like “Mysterious Ways” the song makes rather blatant references to the Holy Spirit. I think, at least.

And that’s the funny thing about U2 to me. Their songs are ambiguous enough that you can almost make anything out of them that you want. A different set of ears might hear something very different from what a pastor hears. This is actually a strength of their song-writing in my mind, because it invites the listener to really get involved in the songs. What you bring to a U2 song is every bit as relevant as what Bono brought. And that makes for a fun pop album.

The biggest thing that annoys me about U2 is that Bono’s ego occasionally seems to get in the way. That is certainly true on this album. For example, on the song “Magnificent” (is that Magnificat?) Bono sings:

I was born
I was born to sing for you
I didn’t have a choice but to lift you up
And sing whatever song you wanted me to
I give you back my voice
From the womb my first cry, it was a joyful noise…

Well, perhaps. After all, U2 is the only pop supergroup from the 80s still standing. And with songs currently on the top of the charts like “Boom Boom Pow” and “I Know You Want Me” and “Poker Face” ensuring the vapidity of most pop music, I for one am grateful that U2 is still churning out albums that make a dent and express something more significant than the usual sexually-charged drivel of the pop charts. Ok, I admit it, I like “Poker Face,” but I bet we’ve forgotten it next summer.

Luke 24: 44-53
Rev. Bryan Travis Hooper

In recent years, science has gained a better understanding of how changes in the environment impact the life of various plants and animals. It is basically understood that as climates change, animals have to adapt to the changes in order to survive. Scientists estimate that of all the species that have ever lived on the planet Earth, 99.9 per cent of them are now extinct. That’s an awful lot of failure – and it indicates the power of our capacity to adapt and overcome the changes in our environment in order to thrive. (more…)

1 John 5: 1-6
Rev. Bryan Travis Hooper

One time, I visited a museum in New York that had installed an enormous altar right in the middle of the museum. It was from a church in Olinda, Brazil, and featured large, high sculptures of Saint Benedict, the founder of the Benedictine monastic order, his sister and the pope who officially recognized the Benedictine order. They had remove the entire altar from the church, are carefully rebuilt it and installed it in the rotunda of the museum for New Yorkers to enjoy. Crafted out of majestic cedar, the altar featured stylistic flourishes that art-historians might call late-Baroque and we might call gaudy. No doubt the towering façade which stretched over 44 feet high was intended to convey something about the majesty and might of God. The cedar curved over you as it reaches the top, almost as if it were some sort of giant cape covering you up – as if God was somehow wrapping around you. I imagine the altar is quite an impressive piece in the church where it usually resides. For the people of Olinda, the altar’s beauty and power probably provides sufficient evidence of God’s enduring presence and tangible reality. (more…)

Despite escalating spending, Connecticut’s health care system is failing to serve a growing number of state residents. Families can’t afford it, businesses can’t afford it–and we can’t afford to ignore it. We spent $15 billion last year on health care. Yet we face a crisis that is a drain on families and on the economy. Health related bankruptcies are skyrocketing. Employers can’t insure and keep employees. Doctors and hospitals can’t absorb any more “free” care. To learn more about the issues and about how you can make your voice heard on this important matter,  please visit healthcare4every1.org.

1 John 4: 7-21
Rev. Bryan Travis Hooper

Teddy is still somewhere in a closet in my parents home. My mother kept him long after I was done with him. Teddy was a brown teddy bear – creatively named by me – and as a young child, I took him everywhere. Teddy and Blanky, my light blue blanket, went wherever I went. I found them comforting – companions upon whom I could rely. Some of my earliest memories are related to Teddy. At a very young age, I accidentally burned my hand rather severely on a stove. As a result I had to have two surgeries to reconstruct my hand. One of my earliest memories is being carted off to the operating room, clinging to Teddy. A nurse walked over to me and said, as nicely as possible, I’m sorry, but you can’t take that with you. It will be here when you get back. She was talking about Teddy. (more…)

The Heifer Project is a unique approach to aiding impoverished communities around the world. Instead of simply providing aid, the Project provides solutions. Farm animals are purchased and provided to families who are able to use the animals to make a living. Training is provided so that the best practices in agriculture and animal management are used. As a result, literally millions of people who would have been hungry are now providing for their own food needs. The gift is contagious too, because recipients of gift animals commit to pass on the offspring of their animals to other needy families…Our Sunday School is hoping to raise enough money to support the purchase of an animal through this program. Receptacles for donations will be available in the church parlor during coffee hour following Sunday services, or you can mail a check made out to United Methodist Church of Hartford and marked Heifer Project.

A Children’s Garden Party, held May 2, brought lots of laughter, flowers, dirt, and great attendance – sixteen children, fourteen parents and grandparents, four teenager helpers and eight adult helpers. Flower pots were painted and filled with a plant to bring home. Five pansy baskets were prepared for Hughes Healthcare Center. Rhythmic clapping helped to bring the group together. For treats we all ate “Dirt” with “gummy worms”….The Children’s Hour will resume outdoors on the lawn for the summer starting July 7. The various themed activities and story time will take place each Tuesday afternoon from 4–5 pm for six weeks. Keep watch for complete details.

1 John 3: 16-24
Rev. Bryan Travis Hooper

For the next few Sundays, we are going to focus on readings from the first letter of John. The letters of John provide us with some of our most powerful ideas about the nature of God and the nature of Christian community. They tell us how we should live together in community, and how we ought to relate to each other. The letters are very short, yet they have influenced our faith in a very big way. (more…)