IF HE SAW PHILADELPHIA TODAY
As he came near and saw the city (Jerusalem), he wept over it, saying, “If you, even you, had only recognized on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. Luke 19: 41-42, NRSV
I lived in downtown Chicago from 1972 to 1974. Moving there from my parents’ home in the southeast suburbs made it easier for me to attend DePaul University, where I was taking classes after work for a master’s degree in public management. During that time, I attended the First United Methodist Church of Chicago, usually called the Chicago Temple. The Chicago Temple building was completed in 1924. It is a unique church building – 23 stories high with the church sanctuary, social hall and offices occupying the first four floors, and commercial office space taking up several stories above the church. The office space rental income supports the church. At the top of the building is a parsonage apartment and the Sky Chapel, which seats 30 people. It is the world’s highest (400 feet above ground) worship space, being built in 1952 as a memorial to Charles Walgreen, founder of the pharmacy chain.
The altar in the main sanctuary contains a large woodcarving. It depicts Jesus weeping over Jerusalem, as mentioned in the verse from Luke above. There is a companion carving on the altar of the Sky Chapel, where Jesus is weeping over the City of Chicago as it looked in 1952.
If Jesus looked over Philadelphia today, I am sure that He would weep again. Instead of the peace which passes understanding, we have had over 950 people who were victims of gun violence in the city since January. The number murdered now exceeds 300, some of whom were children caught in crossfire. That homicide rate exceeds the rate last year by 34%. Christian churches are being closed due to a loss of membership. Philadelphia is no longer a City of Brotherly Love. How it must pain Our Savior to see that so little progress has been made centuries after His resurrection!
Lord, we pray for the City of Philadelphia. May the violence which plagues its streets come to an end and Your peace descend to all its citizens.
Carol Rice
