A Little Humility

January 25, 2026March 17, 2026
by Sara Baron

“A Little Humility" based on The United Methodist Church Social Principle on “Colonialism, Neocolonialism, and Their Consequences” and Isaiah 49:1-7

I was once a part of a team that was working fervently to restructure The United Methodist Church for greater equality. We had a diverse group of wise people on the team, we worked carefully and intentionally, we felt the movement of the Spirit, and we created legislation to enable our dream.

And then, as part of other advocacy we were doing, we asked colleagues from outside The United States to read it and support it. I was excited to share it. We were finally going to deconstruct some of the colonialist history of The United Methodist Church and put power where power belongs.

Until my colleagues told me they thought it was a really terrible idea that would harm them greatly, and asked why we hadn’t let them read it BEFORE we got so far. Which was a little bit discouraging, especially because they convinced me they were right.

Years later a new plan for restructuring The United Methodist Church emerged, one that had been created outside the United States and then adapted to fit feedback from people within the United States. It was similar to the one I’d worked on, but without the fatal flaws.

In May of 2024 that plan, “Regionalization” passed our General Conference and The United Methodist Church is in the process of implementing the plan. It means that we are less centralized and have more localized control. It means that our global voice is reserved for global issues, and it means that there is now going to be a space for the US church to work on its issues together (which didn’t used to exist.) There is balance, and equity, and shared leadership and power. It is a beautiful plan that I was happy to support and look forward to seeing live.

It also means that while The United Methodist Church has now removed its structural homophobia, we are going to give different regions in the world the chance to take their own stances on it. Which means that there will be parts of the church that are blatantly and unapologetically structurally homophobic, and I have to admit I don’t love that. But, also, I like it more than the WHOLE denomination being structurally homophobic, and in the end I don’t think that the will the global majority should define localized expressions of Christianity …. even though that means that things I don’t like may happen.

But back to the beginning, the plan we put forward: the whole experience left me humbled. I am horrified that I didn’t realize we needed feedback earlier, and that others didn’t either. I’m embarrassed that I thought that what I experienced as a good idea would be good for others and I was so arrogant that I didn’t think that required double checking with others. In trying to eliminate the colonialist history of The United Methodist Church I ended up being part of replicating it.

This may all be important to explain why I have a strong knee-jerk reaction to this Isaiah passage. Now I love Isaiah, I particularly love Isaiah 40-66, and my knee-jerk reactions to Isaiah passages are usually the equivalent of smooshy kissy faces. But in this case, I read “Kings shall see and stand up, princes, and they shall prostrate themselves because of the Lord, who is faithful, the Holy One of Israel who has chosen you” and I just think…. Ugh.

The people of God are in exile and dreaming of what God is going to do to restore them and then they get these visions of being an empire dominating others and having the kings of the earth bow down and … could we not just let other people do thing their ways and not always be trying to have our religious perspective dominate everyone all at once?

Which is also to say, I’ve been doing a lot of reading and learning about White Christian Nationalism recently and apparently I’m now reading it into the Bible whether it is there or not. I double checked my reactions, and yeah, I’m reading things in that aren’t there. It isn’t even the people of Israel that are going to be bowed down to – it is the Suffering Servant who God is working towards. Although that may help me know why I’m so sensitive about it, Christians have associated Isaiah’s suffering servant with Jesus from the get-go and White Christian Nationalists do extra nasty things with that idea.

Really nasty things. See: the news. See: ICE executing peaceful protesters. See: our country is trying to claim parts of the world it has no right to See: our country is invading the sovereignty of other nations. Maybe it isn’t shocking that I’m reading a lot into Isaiah.

What I read into Isaiah sounds like Colonialism. Probably because I’ve been steeped in colonialism and the work to free myself from its grip is work I’m still doing. It is also work that seems urgent.

So, I offer you the rest of that verse that started bugging me. “Thus says the LORD, the Redeemer of Israel and his Holy One, to one deeply despised, abhorred by the nations, the slave of rulers, “Kings shall see and stand up; princes, and they shall prostrate themselves, because of the LORD, who is faithful, the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.’” That is, the servant is the one “deeply despised, abhorred by the nations, the slave of rulers” and that servant is the one to whom the powers are going to bow down. Letting go of my fears of empire for a moment, this is a classic Godly inversion of powers. A person who is a slave, who lacks power, who is hated, is the one that God is using in the world and who ends up being God’s representative to the people.

In situations of oppression, it is the people being harmed who have the best view of what’s wrong, how it is wrong, how it impacts them, and how they’d like to change it. That’s what I wish I’d thought of when I was trying to fix the church. The people impacted are the ones who have the right to lead the change, and those of us who want to help get in line BEHIND them and do what those impacted ask us to do.

That’s part of how we participate in building the kindom of God rather that replicating the power structures of the world. And, while I believe I see the evils around us very clearly, I see other things too. Right now, those RADICAL and PROFOUND inversions of God are so very present and precious and wonderful. When impacted people lead and others are willing to follow, even the powers of violence and oppression can’t stand.

State sponsored violence is being used to harm and kill, in an attempt to consolidate power and break the will of people to claim the power love. But the power of love isn’t broken, not even by the powers of state sponsored violence to kill. WE HAVE ALREADY HEARD THIS STORY. We know how it ends. In my mind the biggest story of the week was that people working together incredibly effectively to stop harm and live love! An article I read this week pointed out that the 2020 organizing in response to the killing of George Floyd has been instrumental in allowing the Twin Cities to respond now.1 The organizing has been amazing, the outpouring of love has been amazing, the rapid responses, the breadth and depth of human love being shared is simply awe inspiring. It hasn’t stopped the violence, I know, and I rage and I grieve. But, we are people of a nonviolent revolutionary, and we see once again the power of organized nonviolence. Violence can kill, but it can’t kill love.

Friends, those who wish to dominate others and oppress them and condemn them and continue the history and actions of colonialism and racism and ethnic cleansing are doing everything they can to break the resistance. But love is winning.

Love is winning.

God is with us, and love is winning and even when we or others get it wrong – God isn’t going to stop trying. Love is going to win.

I don’t know how long it will take, but I do not believe that the power of love can be stopped. Let’s hold onto it, with all we’ve got. God is with is, love is going to win. Thanks be to God. Amen