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Back in January, we had a Wired Word lesson based on the news of an
Episcopal bishop who, while driving drunk and texting, veered into a bicycle
lane where she hit and killed a cyclist. Because of a new development, we are
returning to that story today.
The driver, Heather Elizabeth Cook, 58, who at the time was an assistant
bishop in the Episcopal Diocese of Maryland and the first female to serve in
that post in that diocese, has now pled guilty to these charges: automobile
manslaughter, leaving the scene of a fatal accident, driving while under the
influence and texting while driving. She will be incarcerated for 10 years.
(Her full sentence is 20 years, with 10 suspended, plus an additional five
years' probation.)
Cook has also resigned from her office as bishop, and in an
"accord" reached between her and the Episcopal Church, she is no
longer allowed to function as an ordained person in that denomination. An
"accord" means that Cook agreed to the terms of her deposition under
the terms of church law and thus was able to forgo an ecclesiastical trial.
Except for one part of the original story that is germane to today's
discussion, we are not going to rehash the January lesson, but if you wish to
review it, it's The Wired Word for the week of January 18, 2015:
"Drunken Bishop Kills Cyclist in Hit-and-Run Collision." You can find
it in the "Choose a different lesson" list on the Wired Word
website, www.TheWiredWord.com.
The germane section of the original story is this: In 2010, at Cook's
previous assignment in the Diocese of Easton on Maryland's Eastern Shore --
before becoming a bishop -- Cook was charged in another drunken driving
incident. According to a police report, an officer found Cook in the middle of
the night driving on three tires. She had vomit on her shirt and was too
intoxicated to complete a sobriety test. She was also charged with possession
of marijuana.
In that case, Cook pled guilty to drunken driving. The drug-possession
charges were dropped. She was fined and sentenced to probation before judgment
on the DUI charge, meaning her record could be cleared if she stayed out of
trouble.
After Cook killed the cyclist, many Episcopal leaders and clergy demanded to
know why she was selected to be a bishop, considering the nature of that 2010
arrest. The leaders in the Diocese of Maryland also wanted to know why only the
search committee, but not the full voting convention, was told about the
earlier charge when considering Cook's candidacy for the office of bishop.
According to the search committee, they did not tell anyone about the 2010
incident because it was confidential, and because they had "at least
twice" encouraged Cook to share it herself. If that's the case, she
apparently chose not to.
Following the news of Cook's hit-and-run accident, Diana Butler Bass, a
prominent church historian and Episcopalian who lives in Northern Virginia,
said she wondered if the denomination's liberal tendencies had been harmful in
this case.
"We love to give people the benefit of doubt," Bass said.
"'There but for the grace of God,' and all that. We're not the church that
likes to condemn people. In this case it worked in the wrong direction."
Bass added, "Forgiveness isn't the solution to addiction."
Of interest to us for this lesson is a comment from Rev. Anjel Scarborough,
in an open letter to her congregation at Grace Episcopal Church in Brunswick,
Maryland. She wrote the letter in January, right after Cook's arrest, but a
portion of it was quoted in one of the news stories last week reporting Cook's
plea and sentencing.
"In the end, this was an epic failure," Scarborough wrote.
"It was the failure of a process to stop a candidate for bishop from being
put forward when clearly her alcoholism was not in remission. It was a failure
of Heather's to choose not to treat her alcoholism and conceal her past. This
resulted in the death of a husband and father [the cyclist] -- something which
Heather will have to live with for the rest of her life and for which she may
be incarcerated. This was our failure of Heather too. As the Church, we set her
up to fail by confusing forgiveness with accountability. We did not hold her
accountable to a program of sobriety and we failed to ask the tough love
questions which needed to be asked. In so doing, we offered cheap grace -- and
that is enabling."
In Scarborough's mention of "cheap grace," we find the primary
topic for this lesson. As far as we know, the term was coined by the German
Lutheran pastor Dietrich Bonhoeffer, who was executed by the Nazis for actively
resisting Hitler. In his 1937 book The Cost of Discipleship,
Bonhoeffer wrote, "Cheap grace is the grace we bestow on ourselves ... the
preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church
discipline, communion without confession. Cheap grace is grace without
discipleship."
Bonhoeffer contrasted cheap grace with "costly grace," which he
said "is the gospel which must be sought again and again, the gift which
must be asked for, the door at which [we] must knock .... It is costly because
it costs [us our] life, and it is grace because it gives [us] the only true
life."
More on this story can be found at these links:
The Big Questions
1. Grace is typically defined as "undeserved favor." How is it
related to the matters of second chances and accountability? What needs to
happen before giving a person a second chance? What needs to happen in
addition to giving a person a second chance?
2. Does the current trend toward tolerance in our culture fit into the
discussion of cheap grace? If so, how? And how might costly grace fit with
tolerance?
3. In our desire for our churches to grow, should we welcome people without
any demands for righteous living? Should we offer an expectation-free welcome
up front in the hope that we can later move people toward righteous living?
4. How are judgment and grace related? Is there a difference in kind between
God's forgiveness of sinners and our forgiveness of those who have sinned
against us? Explain the distinction, if any.
5. In the Heather Cook situation, who, in addition to God and Christ, has
the purview to offer her grace?
Confronting the News With Scripture and Hope
Here are some Bible verses to guide your discussion:
Psalm 145:8
The LORD is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast
love. (For context, read 145:1-9.)
This is an important statement about the character and intent of God, but
it's a verse that is too easily used to misunderstand God's grace and to excuse
all manner of unrighteousness.
God's slowness to anger is good news for us because we need time to discover
we are on the wrong road when we do not include Christ in our lives. We need
time to be convinced of our need for forgiveness. We need time to grow in the
Spirit and mature in the faith. We usually cannot become the people God calls
us to be overnight, and so, thankfully, God is slow to anger and is patient
with us.
At the same time, however, God does not withhold judgment forever, so we
should not use God's slowness to anger as an excuse to live as we please
without attending to God's call to be righteous. That's a cheap -- and
inaccurate -- view of God's grace.
Questions: When have you benefited from God's slowness to
anger? Did you understand that as an expression of God's grace?
Matthew 18:32-33
Then his lord summoned him and said to him, "You wicked slave! I
forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. Should you not have had
mercy on your fellow slave, as I had mercy on you?" (For context,
read 18:21-35.)
These lines are from what's often called "the parable of the
unforgiving servant," which Jesus told after answering Peter's question
about how often he should forgive someone who sinned against him. The parable tells
of a servant who owed a vast sum of money to the king he served, but when he
couldn't repay it, the king forgave him the debt. The servant then went out and
found a fellow servant who owed him a paltry debt, but who also couldn't pay.
The first servant had his workmate thrown into prison. At that, the king
withdrew the forgiveness of the large debt and had the man tortured until such
a (hypothetical) time as he could pay.
The parable is about forgiveness, but it's also about grace, for grace is
the motivation behind forgiveness. The problem was, the bestowal of grace by
the king didn't translate into the debtor's offering forgiveness to his fellow
servant. We could say that the man forgiven of the huge debt considered the
grace shown toward him as something "cheap," which, of course, it was
not.
The man also devalued the second chance at a life unencumbered by debt that
the king had given him.
Question: What has and does God's grace cost him?
Galatians 6:1-2
My friends, if anyone is detected in a transgression, you who have received
the Spirit should restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness. Take care that
you yourselves are not tempted. Bear one another's burdens, and in this way you
will fulfill the law of Christ. (For context, read 6:1-5.)
Paul addressed these remarks to the whole community of Christ in Galatia.
They were to deal with one another, helping each other live faithfully and in a
manner true to their calling.
The Episcopal Church has taken ownership of the tragedy caused by Heather
Cook, including reaching out to the family of the slain cyclist with support,
accepting blame for not making sure Cook's alcoholism was under control before
electing her to the new responsibility, and revising their whole approach to
recognizing and dealing with addictions. (See the Anglican Ink article
in the links list above.) We assume, but don't know since such matters are
usually kept confidential, that there has also been some offer of ministry to
Cook since her dismissal from the ordained ranks of the church.
Questions: When has your congregation sought to help a
member who has conspicuously sinned or fallen into addiction? What was the
outcome? What might you do differently if a similar situation were to arise?
Are there any ways in which the Episcopal Church's "accepting the
blame" -- with no personal consequences for those in authority who made
decisions -- exemplify cheap grace: a "grace we bestow upon
ourselves"? Explain.
2 Corinthians 7:9-11
Now I rejoice, not because you were grieved, but because your grief led to
repentance; for you felt a godly grief .... For godly grief produces a
repentance that leads to salvation and brings no regret, but worldly grief
produces death. For see what earnestness this godly grief has produced in you
...." (For context, read 7:5-13.)
At one point after leaving Corinth, Paul felt it necessary to write a severe
letter to the Christians there because of some serious misbehavior among some
of the church members. The letter was apparently effective, for here, Paul
writes to say how pleased he is that the letter caused some "godly
grief" among the members and led to repentance.
Godly grief, we suspect, was a recognition of the costliness of the grace of
God that had been extended to them.
Question: What might be the "cheap" version of
grief caused by Paul's letter, and what might it have led to?
Mark 1:16-17
As Jesus passed along the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother
Andrew casting a net into the sea ... And Jesus said to them, "Follow me
and I will make you fish for people." (For context, read 1:16-20.)
John 21:22
Jesus said to [Peter], "If it is my will that he remain until I come,
what is that to you? Follow me!" (For context, read 21:15-23.)
In his book The Cost of Discipleship, Dietrich Bonhoeffer referred
to these two passages, saying, "On two occasions Peter received the call,
'Follow me.' It was the first and last word Jesus spoke to his disciple. A
whole life [of discipleship] lies between these two calls." Bonhoeffer
went on to explain that the first call came while Peter was fishing, and the
second when Peter had gone back again to his old trade. Bonhoeffer also noted
that between these two calls came Peter's confession that Jesus was the Christ
of God (Matthew 16:13-20).
"Three times Peter hears the same proclamation that Christ is his Lord
and God -- at the beginning, at the end, and [in between the other two],"
Bonhoeffer wrote. "Each time, it is the same grace of Christ which calls
to him 'Follow me' ... the one grace proclaimed in three different ways."
Bonhoeffer continued, "The grace was certainly not self-bestowed. It
was the grace of Christ himself, now prevailing upon the disciple to leave all
and follow him, now working in him that confession which to the world must
sound like the ultimate blasphemy, now inviting Peter to the supreme fellowship
of martyrdom for the Lord he had denied, and thereby forgiving him all his
sins. In the life of Peter, grace and discipleship are inseparable. He had
received the grace which costs."
Questions: What do these texts and Bonhoeffer's commentary
on them say about second chances? What do you now understand about cheap
grace/costly grace that you did not understand previously?
What do you think might be God's call to Heather Cook at this point in time?
For Further Discussion
1. Comment on this, from TWW team member James Berger: "It is important
to realize that there can be no grace until there has been judgment. One must
be judged as guilty before grace can be extended. Bypassing judgment is only
excusing an action. For example, the two high school football players in Texas
who apparently assaulted a referee, one smashing him from behind, the second
jumping on him as he lay on the ground -- this happened two weeks ago and I saw
the video online. Some might say, 'Boys will be boys.' That is excusing their
actions. The school has suspended them pending an investigation, and legal
charges are being considered against them. That is judgment. Forgiveness can
only come from the official they attacked. He is the arbiter of grace, not the
fans, families or media. Cheap grace is just another name for excusing the
action without holding the party accountable. To me 'cheap grace' is an
oxymoron."
2. In 1 John 2:1-2, John wrote, "My little children, I am writing these
things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an
advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; and he is the atoning
sacrifice for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the
whole world." What does this have to do with second chances?
3. Respond to these two comments, from the article "How to Connect Forgiveness and Accountability":
"Second chances require forgiveness with accountability."
"Forgiveness is starting again with clear expectations."
4. Discuss this, from TWW team member Mary Sells: "As Christians, we
are just as likely to offer cheap grace even when no sin is involved. Our
actions tell that there is no expectation -- but I think that is contrary to
Jesus' teaching. Yes, Jesus forgives all and so should we; however, I think we
often forget the 'go and sin no more' after the 'your sins are forgiven.' Is it
because we do not want to have God put expectations of change on us that we
fear having expectations of others?"
5. Respond to this, from Dietrich Bonhoeffer: "This cheap grace has
been no less disastrous to our own spiritual lives. Instead of opening up the
way to Christ, it has closed it. Instead of calling us to follow Christ, it has
hardened our disobedience."
6. The phenomenon of the "non-apology apology" has become almost a
cliche in our political culture; if you can't think of an example from your own
political group, no doubt you can think of an example from someone you oppose.
Discuss this in the context of "cheap grace."
Responding to the News
This is a good time to consider in what ways you have been taking God's
grace for granted and what you need to do to change that.
If you have a problem with certain temptations or addictions, this is a good
time to review what accountability measures you have put in place to address
them.
Closing Prayer
O God, whose grace has cost you so much, thank you for its bestowal on us.
Help us not to cheapen it by accepting it without re-aiming our lives toward
the ways of righteousness. In Jesus' name. Amen.
