Power from On High and Deep Within

This past week Jai and I celebrated our 60^th wedding anniversary.  I racked my brain for an appropriate gift to celebrate this auspicious occasion.  Finally, in a flash of inspiration I thought of helping her celebrate our Dear Leader’s birthday by getting her a ticket to the cage match on the White House Lawn.

Sure, isn’t this spectacle something all our wives would want?  Two guys beat each other bloody in a no-holds-barred gladiatorial contest.  And like the leader’s buddies, maybe make millions on advertising and wagering the outcome of the event.  Step right up, folks, place your bets.  Who will first get the bloody nose?  Who will be first to lose an eye?  Broken bones?  All bets must be placed one hour to the bell-ring.  Advertising space will be sold.

Refs?  No need.  It’s like a knife fight – there are no rules.  At the sound of the bell, go at it, fellows.  May the most ruthless win.

Such kitsch!  Beyond the pale.

Can you imagine our fore-mothers and fore-fathers observing from the Great Beyond?  Madison would be saying, “This is exactly why I didn’t trust the unwashed mob of the hoi polloi with this republic.”

The leaders of our First Peoples would, scratching their heads, be in deep mourning.  “We lost our tribal lands for this?  These folks really are the ‘white devils’ our elders warned us of.”

Along with Eddie Glaude, looking at this travesty, I too can say, “I do not love America.”  There are bits and pieces of it I deeply cherish, places gone and places remembered.  There are traditions and rituals I revere.  It used to be going in person to cast my vote when I was better able to get around.

We have an artistic heritage second to none.  To celebrate our 250^th anniversary I have been dipping into some of the readings from the Library of America.  Compared to this incompetent and immoral administration, these are people of substance.

In our bathroom reading room I have next to me the writings of Abigal Adams.  The tender solicitude she holds for her husband John, the longing in his absence, the concern for his labors to bring about a new nation birthed in liberty. – It often brings tears to my eyes when I think of the mediocracy and mendacity of today’s rule by greed and lies.   And our supine political class.

This heritage do I love and treasure.  I draw hope from its substance.

But love America?  Considering how most of white Americans are dismissive of half my family?  Of my new grandson?  Love?  No.  I can only join with those who presently engage to resist such racist lies.  I can only take up the struggle against those who would senselessly seek to diminish the opportunities of my little grandson Luther.  On this I will go to the mat.

It’s time for telling it like it is.  As we said in the 60s, “Let it all hang out.”

Moses comes down off the Mount of Revelation with a similar warning and an austere promise.  Wisdom from on high.  And also dredging up wisdom from our depths of memory.

Moses has received from The Almighty on those heights a message of solicitude and deliverance.  “You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you up on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself.”

In your journey I will be with you if you obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession of all the peoples.  Indeed, the whole earth is mine.”

Hundreds of years later, the prophet Jesus would expand upon this covenantal understanding.  All means all.  We are all God’s treasured possession.  Let’s honor it with being in Solidarity with one another, creation and God.  He sends us out two by two to broadcast that Good News – a renewed Kin-dom of Love is being birthed among you.

Wisdom from on high.  Peak moments of revelation wherein we find purpose, meaning and our connection with our brothers and sisters – with all creation.  And the One who left us here and gave us the brains, insight and Grace to figure it out.

But this revelation is also wisdom from deep within.  Moses pulls out of his people the cherished memories of God’s saving actions.  Our deliverance from slavery to liberation from oppression.

Would that these saving memories instruct the descendants of those ancient desert pilgrims that they behave accordingly to the wisdom Moses delivers — in Gaza, Lebanon, and with their Palestinian neighbors.  Would their hearts be broken by the genocide they presently inflict.  A racist, ethnic cage match.  No holds bared.  No rules.

That we still have courageous journalists who will shed the Light of Truth on what we do to one another, gives me hope.  That courage of our free press I do love in this nation.  At least the part that hasn’t been bought out by gazillionaires.

That our society should produce a new Moses in the leadership of Pope Leo XIV is testimony to the democratic heritage we have received and still maintain.  The Gospel tradition we have received.  Wisdom from the heights of compassion to the depths of malignant power.  On war, the Pope has given the warmongers no quarter.

Like many others, I was the victim on an internet spoof.  A fabricated confrontation between Pope Leo XIV and Franklin Graham, a spokesperson for White Christian Nationalism, was concocted out of whole cloth.

This never happened, yet how we might wish.  I’ll adjust the sermon to indicate a hypothetical, and hoped for exchange of our dreams.  This is what needs to happen. 

Here is the hypothetical exchange that needs to happen.  As the Native American storyteller would say, “This never happened but if it did, this is how it happened.

The fantasy begins as Pope Leo XIV engaged Franklin Graham, self-appointed spokesman for the racist Christian Nationalist movement. The headlines of that encounter reverberated around the globe.  Electricity rippled through the internet.  “SIT DOWN — YOU DON’T SPEAK FOR THE WORLD.”

What began as a routine televised discussion turned into one of the most talked-about moments of the year — a rare, unscripted clash between Pope Leo XIV and Franklin Graham that instantly ignited debate across religious and political circles.

It started with a pointed remark.

Graham, speaking with confidence, leaned into a familiar argument — that spiritual leaders should remain within the boundaries of faith and avoid entangling themselves in political discourse. He framed it as a matter of clarity, of purpose… even of responsibility.

For a brief second, it seemed like just another televised exchange.

Then everything changed.
Pope Leo XIV didn’t interrupt.
He didn’t react emotionally.
He simply waited.
Calm. Still. Unshaken.

Then, with a measured breath, he lifted his gaze — not just toward Graham, but directly into the camera, as if addressing something far beyond the room.

And when he spoke, every word landed with precision.

“You assume your voice carries for all,” he said quietly.  “It does not.”

Silence.

Not the kind of silence that fills time — but the kind that stops it.

Graham shifted slightly in his seat, his posture tightening. The audience, sensing the shift, held their breath. No one moved. No one spoke.

But the moment wasn’t over.

The Pope leaned forward — not aggressively, but with unmistakable intent. His tone remained low, controlled… yet impossible to ignore.

“You speak from proximity to power,” he continued, his voice steady. “From alignment. From influence shaped alongside figures like Donald Trump. But influence is not the same as representation.”

The words didn’t come fast.

They didn’t need to.

Each sentence carried weight — not as an attack, but as a correction.

“A leader,” the Pope added, “is not defined by who they stand beside… but by who they are willing to stand for — especially when it is difficult.”

At that point, Graham opened his mouth slightly, preparing to respond.

He never got the chance.

Because that’s when Pope Leo XIV delivered the line that would ripple across the internet within minutes:

“Sit down. Listen carefully. The future cannot afford loyalty without understanding.”

The reaction was immediate.

A wave of murmurs swept through the studio — some stunned, some impressed, some visibly uncomfortable. A few scattered claps broke through the tension, quickly spreading as the weight of the moment settled in.

On live television… no raised voices.

No chaos.  No theatrics.  Just control.  Clarity.  And consequence.

Within minutes, in this story, clips of the exchange flooded social media.  Millions watched. Then rewatched. Then shared. (And of course, they did share this conjured conversation).

The post included Imagined commentators from every side weighing in.

Some might call it bold.  Others, necessary.  For most, simply unforgettable.

But what would stand out wasn’t just what was said.  It was how it was said.

In this fantasy, Pope Leo XIV never raised his voice.  He never resorted to insults.  He didn’t attempt to overpower — only to reframe.  And in doing so, he shifted the entire conversation.

One viral post would sum it up perfectly:

“He didn’t silence Franklin Graham. He forced everyone to think beyond him.”

That distinction mattered.  Because this wasn’t just a clash between two figures.

In this telling, it was a deeper confrontation — between influence and responsibility… between alignment and accountability… between speaking for people, and actually understanding them.

And perhaps that’s why the moment resonated so widely.

Not because it was loud.  But because it was clear.

In a world driven by reactions, this was something different.  A pause.

A challenge.  A line drawn — not in anger, but in conviction.

And whether people would agree or disagree, one thing would become undeniable:

That night, on live television, Pope Leo XIV didn’t just respond.  He redefined the conversation.  We need to redefine this critical conversation.

That America could raise up such a Prophet of Light, that I do cherish and love.  Even if this telling is only wishful thinking.  The fact is, America has produced a stalwart and courageous champion for Gospel Truth.  A sign that the promise of America yet continues forth.  This would be the necessary rebuttal to the insane racist nonsense emanating from 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, D.C.

That’s the task before each of us.  “We are the leaders we’ve been waiting for.”

By the way, Jai and I are not going to a cage match to celebrate our anniversary.  Christopher and Alexis took us to Pasadena on the 11^th for three wonderful surprises:  our favorite bookstore, Vroman’s; a most delicious Italian dinner; and to top it off, the play “Brigadoon” at the Pasadena Playhouse.  It was a great show.  And for the occasion, a touching romance.  And in July, we’ll be in San Francisco to celebrate some more.  We lived there the first year of our marriage.  Yeah, left my heart (and also my wallet).  For such national delights, I treasure and give thanks.

For all this, even this imaginative fantasy, as we approach our 250^th national birthday, I do love and give thanks.  And will continue to work my butt off to ensure that everyone else can partake in its opportunity and freedom.  And to that I say – a Big Amen!

June 14, 2026
Pentecost 3, Proper 6

“Power from On High and Deep Within”

The Rev. Dr. John C. Forney
Exodus 19:2-8a; Psalm 100
Romans’ 5:1-8; Matthew 9:35-10:8