Events of Sunday, January 30, 2011

                Today is our first full day in Mississippi. Did you know that Robert E. Lee’s Birthday is a state holiday in Mississippi? Same with Jefferson Davis, state workers get the day off. That started me to thinking about the lingering north-south divide: how united are these United States? If given the chance, would some states secede today? What factors contribute to these sentiments? What might resolve them? I look forward to exploring these issues during our sojourn here in the Deep South.

                I awoke at 6:30 and took a long walk on a Mississippi country road. I passed empty fields, dark farmhouses, crowing roosters, a collapsing barn and a very friendly horse.  Though I could hear the freeway in the distance, the quiet of the morning refreshed me. I enjoyed a time of prayer and meditation, during which some questions came to mind. What would have happened if Lincoln had allowed the South to secede? If the Union had responded with peace rather than war, how would that have affected the North? The South? Would the southern states be more developed and prosperous that they are now? Would slavery have been abolished eventually? And what about modern Sudan: why do we rejoice in their peaceful efforts to divide north and south but we object to the idea of a divided USA? By the time I returned to the RV at 7:45, the rest of the family was awake but quiet and in bed. And it started to rain.

                After breakfast, we drove about a quarter mile to the bathhouse. There we showered and dressed for church. Choosing a church is sometimes tricky, but today was more difficult than usual. There are many churches in the town of Canton (where we spent the night), but none had a website or online comments. So I would have to choose based on denomination or name. Do we want a Presbyterian, Pentecostal, or Missionary Baptist Church? I did not like that way of choosing. So I searched a broader area and found Broadmoor Baptist Church in the nearby city of Madison. From the website, we learned that their attire is mixed, parking is plentiful, and worship is paramount. That was all I needed to know.

                We easily found a parking spot and walked through the drizzle into church. I asked the usher where we should sit as newcomers, hoping to spark conversation, but my attempt fizzled. So we found a seat in a huge auditorium with a large stage. As we settled in, we noticed whole sections of young people wearing burgundy T-shirts. We learned as the service proceeded that their High School (pronounced Haaa Skooo) group were finishing a weekend conference on discipleship. It became clear that this church puts a high value on their youth: in their staffing, in their volunteerism, in their scheduling, and in their teaching. The sermon was not geared toward youth specifically, but it was very accessible to them. Pastor Rob taught from Luke 18 about the rich ruler who had a hard time following Jesus’ call to sell his possessions, give to the poor, and follow him. His challenge to us all was, is there one thing in your life that you would not willingly give up if Jesus called you to?

                The staff member doing announcements introduced two soldiers in the audience, in full dress uniform, who had recently returned from their tour of duty in Afghanistan. The congregation rose to welcome them with a standing ovation. How would these young men have been welcomed, I wondered, in the Atlanta church we visited last week?

                A small instrumental band accompanied six miked vocalists and a choir of about sixty. Except for me, all of us enjoyed the worship. During the offering, a high school senior sang a solo quite nicely.

                Not wanting to worry church parking lot attendants, we did not stay there for lunch. Instead we drove down the street about a mile and found an isolated parking spot looking out onto a field of dry grass (and the rain). After lunch, we drove about an hour to the city of Vicksburg on the western border of the state. Our destination here was the Vicksburg National Military Park that features a 16-mile driving tour of historic Civil War sites. The rain was coming down hard now, so we stayed in the parking lot and pulled out our books to read. (It’s not that we’re afraid to go out in the rain. We each have a rainjacket, rain pants, and waterproof boots. When we want to go out in the rain, we go out fully prepared and we have a blast. But in looking ahead, we see that tomorrow will be a better day to go outside than today. Plus, it’s Sunday: a day quiet reading and reflection!) Caitlin found that weather.com forecast heavy thunderstorms starting at 4:00, so we put on our raincoats and went inside the visitor center. There we educated ourselves about the battles surrounding the siege of Vicksburg. The largest exhibit there is called a fiber optic map. A recorded narrator describes General Grant’s campaign to occupy Vicksburg, the only part of the Mississippi River still controlled by the Confederacy. On the map, bright blue moving lights (from fiber optic cable) represent union troops, red lights represent confederate troops, and yellow lights represent combat gunfire. In this way, we can see and hear troop movements and battles.

                After watching this ten-minute narration, we entered their movie theater and sat on pews. (Ironically, in church this morning we had theater-style seats!) The twenty-minute video  there gave us a better sense for the hardships endured during the 46-day siege. After this we returned to the other exhibits. When I was done, one of the rangers asked if I had any questions. Indeed, I had several. I asked about the secession of Mississippi and learned that Vicksburg’s residents opposed it! I also posed to him some of the questions that occurred to me during my morning prayer time. My ranger friend had no clear cut answers but held the opinion that technological advances would have made slavery economically unfeasible by the early 1900s.

                We departed in the rain and drove to a nearby Walmart. The manager said we could park overnight as long as we kept to the far end of the lot. So that is where we stayed. Pam made up a delicious skillet of sausages, apples and onions, just perfect for a rainy Sunday dinner. After dinner, we had some more time to read and relax. Our final activity today was to plan our next several days. We found many fun options in New Orleans and Baton Rouge. Ben found us a good campground in New Orleans, a KOA with a free shuttle. Maybe we’ll be there by tomorrow night.