Eulogy for the Rev. Dr. Dorothy Carolyn Spradley Pitts

Eulogy for the Rev. Dr. Dorothy Carolyn Spradley Pitts

Preached October 5, 2013, First United Methodist Church, Birmingham, AL.

Text Genesis 33:10  “For truly to see your face is to see the face of God.”

“Lo, How a Rose E’re Blooming”: Number 216, United Methodist Hymnal

We are here today to worship God, the God whose face is reconciliation, forgiveness and life for all.  The God whose face Jacob saw in the face of Esau.  This face of God was and is, not a reconciliation and forgiveness that accepts a painful unjust oppressive status quo;  but one that wrestles against evil for the glory of God.  The reconciling, forgiving face of God that Jacob saw was the reconciliation and forgiveness that opens up the covenant promises of God and always holds open the covenant promises of God so that the Children of Abraham will out number the sands of the sea and every human creature is in that number as an instrument of the good will of God for all creation.  This is the face of God we seek and worship today and every day. For God was in Christ reconciling the world to him/herself, not counting our trespasses against us but giving us a ministry of reconciliation. 

This reconciliation and ministry of reconciliation that is the face of God was the focus of the life and ministry of the Reverend Doctor Dorothy Carolyn Spradley Pitts.

Miester Eckhart, the great 12^th Century Dominican mystic, said, “

What good did it do for Mary to give birth to Jesus at the beginning of the First Century if we don’t give birth to Jesus in our century?”

 Carolyn Pitts gave birth to Jesus in many, many, many ways.  I would like for us to celebrate her life of giving birth to Jesus with the images of; 1^st Mary the mother of Jesus, 2^nd Mary of Bethany, 3^rd Mary of Magdala and 4^th as the mother of her own children.

1^st Mary the mother of Jesus: 

The Magnificate. Luke 1:51-53, “God has shown the strength of his arm; God has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts, God has brought down the powerful from their thrones and lifted up the lowly; God has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty.”

When you give birth to Jesus you do more than touch people’s lives. You, through the Holy Spirit, create and sustain institutions that continue to work for biblical restorative justice, institutions that work for racial, gender, social and economic justice, institutions that change oppressive, unjust systems.

The 1960’s were difficult and tumultuous times in Birmingham and Alabama.  Greater Birmingham Ministries was created during those times as an agency of the church to provide direct service to the poor and needy, the least of these; and to also work for systems change, to work for biblical restorative justice for the victims of Jim Crow segregation.  There arose a conflict in the church over this systems change work.  By and large the white affluent church of the suburbs only wanted to do direct service to the poor, not work for system change with the poor to end their poverty.  This resulted in a split in The Greater Birmingham Ministries and the system change aspect of the work was under threat.  Carolyn Pitts, Louise Branscomb and others worked to sustain Greater Birmingham Ministries system change work.  The Rev. Dr. Carolyn Pitts served as the interim executive director until the agency could be stabilized and GBM continues today as a strong direct service and system change agency.

In addition to her role in giving birth to Greater Birmingham Ministries she also had a significant role in giving birth to the divine feminine in the North Alabama Conference of the United Methodist Church.  Carolyn was one of the first 3 or 4 women to be ordained elder in the conference.  She had many joys and sorrows in her early years as a female ordained elder in the United Methodist Church in North Alabama.

While Carolyn served with us at Church of the Reconciler she was a great resource as we strived for the full inclusion of women and the poor in the life of the church, not just membership, but in leadership and power sharing.  She shared this story of her struggle that she experienced at one appointment.  She was scheduled to preach a community Thanksgiving service at another church of another denomination in the community.  When she arrived at the church for the service they had put chains around the pulpit area to chain her out of the pulpit.  She preached in front of the chains and continued to break the chains that kept women out of the pulpit!  There are now over 50 ordained women in the North Alabama Conference.

Carolyn also played a significant role in giving birth to the Firehouse Shelter for homeless men in downtown Birmingham. When she served on the staff at First United Methodist Church she was a leader with the Downtown Cooperative Ministries who responded to the growing homeless population and their need for emergency shelter by working to establish this ministry of the church.

Carolyn gave birth to Jesus, “as a flower bright in the cold of winter night.”  (Lo, How a Rose v1.)

2^nd Mary of Bethany

We also want to celebrate Carolyn’s ministry with the image of Mary of Bethany, the Mary who chose the better part not to be taken away from her; the Mary who sat at the feet of Jesus as disciple and scholar. Carolyn started her theological studies at Princeton, finished her Master of Divinity at Vanderbilt University and completed her Doctor of Ministry at Drew Theological Seminary. The focus of her Doctoral Project was forgiveness and reconciliation.  Carolyn Pitts, was a true disciple of Jesus.

Carolyn gave birth to Jesus, “a rose er bloming from tender stem has sprung of Jesse’s linage coming as those of old have sung.”  (Lo, How a Rose)

3^rd Mary of Magdala

We also celebrate Carolyn’s ministry with the image of Mary of Magdala, the first preacher of the resurrection. Carolyn was a preacher of the resurrection of Jesus. She served as a Spiritual Director in the Birmingham Emmaus Community where she helped many people, even her own son , see the resurrected Jesus in the breaking of the bread of life.

When she served with us at the Reconciler we experienced the reality of shattered lives and deep brokenness of the city streets.  In the midst of that reality Carolyn used her artistic gifts to preach the resurrection of Jesus who heals our brokenness and strife.  One morning when Carolyn and I came to work at the store front on 18^th Street we discovered that one of the large plate glass windows had been shattered.  In our worship at Reconciler we used a round table where there is no head or foot at the table of the Lord to symbolize our commitment to radical hospitality and inclusiveness.  To communicate this truth that the resurrected Jesus heals all our brokenness in a lasting way Carolyn took a large piece if the broken glass and had it cut in a circle with beveled edges the size of our round communion table and then with great artistic gift, she glued pieces of the shattered glass underneath the solid round glass table top.  She did this so that by her art on the table, we would be reminded each time we celebrated communion that the resurrected Jesus heals all our brokenness.

Carolyn gave birth to Jesus, “A flower to show God’s love born to us a Savior, when half spent was the night.”  (Lo, How a Rose”)

4^th As the Mother of her own children

Finally, but certainly not last, we celebrate Carolyn Spradley Pitts life as mother of her own children: Ann, Caty, Burt, and Pete.  What a joy it was last Thursday afternoon to hear them share the awesome memories of their mother.

Sister Mary Dominick talking about the musical Carolyn wrote for the youth group at Trinity United Methodist Church, “Seek, Matthew Seek.”  A musical presented not only at Trinity in Homewood, but also at the annual session of the North Alabama Conference.  How much joy she experienced learning and singing the songs that composed the musical.

They talked about how great an artist Caty is and how Carolyn supported her artistic gifts.  Carolyn let Caty paint murals all over the house.  They particularly remembered the one in Bright hippie colors on the garage wall with the bold letters “LUV” and another mural painted on the stairwell wall.

Burt talked about all of them piling into the old Rambler station wagon and going to the Bethlehem House in Titusville with their mother when she would teach piano lessons to the African American children there in the face of significant opposition.  Burt also recalled how he and Pete would play basketball with the young Black men learning appreciation and respect for difference and diversity.

Pete talked about how his mother would wake up at 3 AM on Sunday and help him deliver his paper route.  Burdened down on his bike with a heavy load of Sunday papers, she would show up in the little truck and say, “throw the papers and the bike in the truck and I will help deliver the route.”

Bert and Pete talked about their mother going to a rock concert with them, how she rolled up the tickets and put them in her ears to deal with the loud noise as she enjoyed the concert.

They shared how the whole family packed up and spent a month with Rosa and Bob Caufield in Bolivia while Dr. Marshal Pitts taught the medical people there to perform five life saving surgeries.

They shared many, many more stories of global concern, hospitality and mission!

So today in our grief and need we do not have to be afraid of the future, for God’s Covenant Promises are sure.  Just as Jacob saw the reconciling, forgiving, healing face of God in Esau’s face, so also we saw it in The Reverend Dorothy Carolyn Spradley’s Pitts face and we will always see it in the face of Jesus!

Carolyn gave birth to Jesus, “O Flower, whose fragrance, tender with sweetness fills the air, dispel in glorious splendor the darkness everywhere.”

Jesus, “True man yet very God, from sin and death now save us, and share our every load.”  (Lo, How a Rose)

God’s Covenant Promises never fail!!

R. Lawton Higgs, Sr.  12/21/13