Hero of Athens

J. Neal Ensminger, editor of The Daily Post-Athenian, stood before the Chattanooga Civitan Club in 1974 and said, "Let me tell you about the historic Battle of Athens and its hero, Bernie Hampton, the pastor of Keith Memorial Methodist Church." He went on to say that the battle of Athens, Tennessee stands as the most violent manifestation of a regional phenomenon of the post-World War II era. Seasoned veterans of the European and Pacific theaters returned in 1945 and 1946 to southern communities riddled with vice, economic stagnation, and deteriorating schools. Undemocratic, corrupt, and mossback rings and machines kept an iron grip on local policy and power. Moreover, their commitment to the status quo threatened the economic opportunities touched off by the war. Across the South, veterans launched insurgent campaigns to oust local political machines they regarded as impediments to economic "progress." See http://tennesseeencyclopedia.net/imagegallery.php?EntryID=A043

The editor of The Daily Post-Atheian told us that officially, the "Battle of Athens" in McMinn County began and ended on August 1, 1946. Following a heated competition for local offices, veterans in the insurgent GI Non-Partisan League took up arms to prevent a local courthouse ring headed by state senator Paul Cantrell and linked to Memphis political boss Ed Crump from stealing the election. When Sheriff Pat Mansfield's deputies absconded to the jail with key ballot boxes, suspicious veterans took action. A small group of veterans broke into the local National Guard Armory, seized weapons and ammunition, and proceeded to the jail to demand the return of the ballot boxes. The Cantrell-Mansfield deputies refused, and the veterans, now numbering several hundred, opened fire. As the battle continued through the night a mob started turning over police cars and burning them. The ensuing battle lasted all night and ended only after the dynamiting of the front of the jail. As dawn came to the battle scene, out of the smoke and fog stepped a small man, the Reverend Bernie Hampton. He had a Bible in his left hand, and his right hand was lifted as he bravely stepped out between the veterians and the deputies. No one else dared to move out into the open. All eyes were upon the Bernie, knowned as "the quiet man", the pastor of Keith Methodist Church. He lifted his right hand and said, "Boys, the war is over. The victory is won. Let us end this destruction and begin now to work together to rebuild our town." As the hero of Athens stood there the deputies came out and surrendered. Within days the local election commission swore in the veteran candidates as duly elected. The McMinn County veterans had won the day in a hail of gunfire, dynamite, and with the faith and courage of a pastor.

The late J. Neal Ensminger, former editor of The Daily Post-Athenian and the popular teacher of a weekly radio broadcast from a Keith Memorial Sunday school class, was inducted into the Tennessee Newspaper Hall of Fame at a banquet ceremony Nov. 6, 2009. at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Knoxville.

Gospel Story in Poetic Verse

For sharing the Gospel with others.



Day One Existence Before Time

Paraphrase of John 1:1-3 in Poetic Verse

In the first inning, in the very beginning, before all time,

There was the Messenger, standing with God, the Father.

By Spirit power, the Messenger is present in prime time.

For the Messenger, going the extra mile, is no bother.

His deeds of kindness go beyond goodness and fairness.

Though-out history there has always been an awareness,

Of the activity of the Messenger in all the universe's frame.

All creation, not just humanity, has had a sense of the same.

This Gospel proclaims that the Messenger is eternal,

God is one and there is no other. We experience Him,

As Spirit, the Presence; as Father, the General; as Messenger, the Colonel.

In John we experience God primarily as Messenger, the Journal.

All things came into existence though Messemger's foreseeing.

Without Him, not even one thing has come into being.







Day 2 In Darkest Night a Prayer is Heard

Paraphrase of John 1:4-7 in poetic verse

The Messenger is the Word of Life,

And Life is the Father's gift to all; both women and men.

Through the Word light has shined in the darkness,

And continues to brighten the whole universe again and again.

The darkness has never over-shadowed the Messenger's Word.

Demonstrated in the darkest night, when a prayer is heard.

God provided an answer by an agent from the Hebrew Klan.

His name was John, the Messenger's "special agent" man.

John introduced the Messenger, who gives amazing ligh,

So all might live victoriously, even in the darkest night,

Overcoming our terrible loneliness and paralyzing fright.

The Messenger as God's Word is He makes the Creator heard.

In the Messenger, God's presence receives prime time accent.

By the influence of the cross, the empty tomb, and pentecost,

Given to us when He came in the great visitation event.



Day 3 The Visitation Event

Paraphrase of John 1:8-14

John came as the special agent of the Promised One.

He was not the long awaited Christ, the Father's Son.

He came to introduce the Son, as the Messenger of Light.

He helped us to meet the Son, who illuminates our night.

He revealed how the Promised One always shares with us,

As the Messenger revealing to human nature spiritual insight.

His revelation is confirmed by the image of God in every person,

Providing from our birth the gift of the Creator's Light.

John introduced us to the Messenger as the living Word,

And through Him the heavenly Father's voice is heard.

He came as a human being into the world He made,

And we did not recognize nor welcome Him with a serenade.

Though we belonged to Him and are eternally indebted to Him,

Most of us did not invite Him to lead our personal parade.

And we did not recognize Him as the One who all creation made.

In fact, we are ashamed that we hide from Him when He came,

Like dishonest tenants who've been stealing the Master's grain.







Day 4 Some Received the Messenger

Poetic paraphrase of John 1:12-14

A few received Him, like Spring welcomes the great blue heron.

They did not experience Him as being over-barren.

With Jesus we enjoyed being in the Father's family,

In Him we moved to the Father's house, accepting his name.

We who live with Him have a new birth and a new fame.

Our birth did not come from this world's well known blood lines,

Nor from the adventures of discoveries, bringing new finds.

Nor did it come from the DNA of some outstanding combatant.

But it was life, coming from our Heavenly Parent.

And the Messenger, who is Christ, the Son, became one of us,

And it is recorded history that He lived for awhile in our town.

We actually saw Him as a real person, living in God's glory,

As He healed the sick and taught the people all around.

Such glory as the only begotten Son receives from his Father,

An obedient Son, full of loving-kindness and scriptural truth,

With a life of service, filled with miracles of living proof.



Day 5 A Secret Message Has Been Given

John 1:15-18 paraphrased in poetic verse

John testified about Him and cried out, with a shout.

"This is He of whom I said, 'Jesus of Nazareth is number One.'

He, who comes after me, has priority over me, there is no doubt,

For He existed before I did, as God's only begotten Son."

Our lives were transformed when in Him we believed.

For out of His abundance we have all received,

Grace upon grace and spiritual blessings shared "a plenty."

And favor upon favor and gifts heaped upon gifts for many.

While the wonderful gift of the Law was given through Moses,

The "icing on the cake" of unearned amazing grace,

Was given to us by Jesus Christ who suffered in our place.

And as we follow Him by faith, and share, "Jesus is the One,"

We are given assurance that God gives us new life in His Son.

No one has ever seen God, the Father, at any time;

Only the Messenger has an intimate presence with the Father.

He helps us communicate with our Fater on a daily routine.

He has revealed God, bringing Him out where He can be seen;

The "hidden" Deity is now welcomed on the human scene,

Just like we as children of our dairy farmer, earthly father,

Welcomed our dad's love gift of a milking machine.



Day 6 Who is This Man, John?

Paraphrased poetry of John 1:19-27

The leaders, from Jerusalem, sent messengers to Elizabeth's and Zechariah's son,

Asking, "John, Who are you?" "Are you the Promised One?

He responded, "I am God's Christ. I swear it is true."

They asked, "Are you Elijah? " And he said, "I am not!"

"Are you then a new Prophet, passing through?"

John said, "You are on the wrong track; You have a blind spot."

Then they said to him, "Tell us, Who are you?

Whatever credentials you have, it is time for you to show.

It is important now that we, as religious leaders, know."

John answered, "I am the voice of one shouting in the desert,

It is time for you to wake up and become alert.

Begin to do your job and prepare the way of the Lord,

Start over, and walk the path you have tried to divert."

And they asked him, "If you have a word from God,

Why are your garments so simple?

Why are you not wearing a prophet's shirt?

Why then are you baptizing if you are not the Christ?"

John answered, "Do not focus on me. I baptize only with water.

It is a preparation ceremony to help us to be alert; to Him.

Never fear; He is here. He has already entered our earthly shire.

Look, there stands the One, Whom you are too blind to see.

With your lack of vision you have lost the ability to deduce.

It is He coming after me, as the One preferred before me,

The sandals on His feet, we are not worthy to unloose."







Day 7 The Future Started in the Past

John 1:28-34 Paraphrased As Poetry

There was a wonderful faith response in Bethany near the Jordan crossing,

Where the Gospel through John's preaching and baptizing was unfurled.

The next day John saw Jesus coming to him and said, "Look!

There is the Lamb of God, Who takes away the sin of the world!

This is He of Whom I said, after me comes a Man Who takes rank above me,

Because He was before me and existed before I did.

And even though we grew up together as children running free,

I knew him as my cousin, but I did not know His true identity.

I could not clearly see, limited by my humanity.

But it is time that He should be made fully known,

As the Builder puts a corner stone to hold the structure together,

And to mark the historic site, where some important foundations were put right.

"I am now preaching and baptizing so we might come to know the Chief Artist's Son."

John gave further evidence, saying, I have seen the Spirit descending on Jesus of Nazareth,

As a dove out of heaven, and the Spirit dwelt on Him, witnessing that He is the Promised One.

Even though we grew up together, I did not know Him nor recognize his true nature.

But He was the Father's Messenger, the One, who sent me to baptize and said to me,

"Upon Him Whom you shall see the Spirit descend and remain,

He is God's only Son, Who by baptizing with the Holy Spirit makes all new."

And I actually did see it, and my testimony that "Jesus is the Savior" is true.



Day 8 An Invitation: Come and See

John 1:35-42 Paraphrased as Poetry

John was standing with two of his disciples, the next day,

And he called their attention to Jesus as He walked along the way,

And John said, "Look! There is God's Passover Lamb",

Remembering how God provided the Lamb meal in Egypt,

To set the children free from bondage to slavery.

The two disciples left John and went with Jesus,

Hoping to hear Him say, "Follow me!"

When Jesus saw them following closely,

He said to them, "And what is it you wish to see?"

And they answered Him, "Rabbi, where are You staying?"

He invited them, "Come with me."

So they went and saw the place where Jesus planned to stay,

And they remained with Him all day.

One of the two who had heard what John had to say,

Was Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, known as a great fisherman.

Andrew first sought out and found his own brother and said to him,

We have found the Messiah!--which translated is the Christ (the Anointed One).

Andrew then led Simon to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said,

"You are Simon, son of John. You shall be Cephas, known as Peter, the rock.

Follow me and I will make you a shepherd, a great leader of the flock."







Day 9 You Shall See Greater Things

John 1:43-51 Paraphrased as Poety

The next day Jesus desired and decided to go into Galilee;

And He found Philip and said to him, If you would be My attendant, follow Me.

Now Philip was from Bethsaida, of the same city as Andrew and Peter.

Philip sought and found Nathanael and told him,

We have found the Christ, the One Moses talks of in the Law.

He is the One, the Prophets wrote about--Jesus from Nazareth, a carpenter's son.

Nathanael responded,"O me, Nazareth! Can anything good come out of such a place?"

Philip looked a Nathanael face to face, and said, "Come and see!"

Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward Him and said concerning him,

"See! Here is a true descendant of Jacob, an Isaelite indeed.

He has grown from pure and healthy seed. To refine his life there is not need.

In him there is no guile nor deceit nor falsehood nor duplicity!"

Nathanael, overheard Him and said to Jesus,

"How is it that You know these things about me?"

Jesus answered him, "Before Philip called on you,

I saw you when you were at home under the fig tree."

Nathanael answered, "Teacher, You are the Promised One!

You are the King of Israel! You are God's Son."

Jesus replied, "Because I said to you, I saw you beneath the fig tree,

Do you believe in and rely on and trust in Me?

Be a faithful disciple and greater things than this you will see."

Then Jesus said, "I assure you, most solemnly I tell you all,

You shall see heaven opened, revealing the Father's plan,

And the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man!

Why is the First Amendment in the Constitution?

Amendment I

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

The following is an example of why there is a need for nations to have laws that protect their people from leaders of government denying citizens of the freedom of speech and worship:

In 1933, Martin Niemöller, a German pastor, founded an organization of pastors to combat rising government discrimination against Christians, especially those of Jewish background. By the autumn of 1934, Niemöller joined other Lutheran and Protestant churchmen like Karl Barth and Dietrich Bonhoeffer(who was later executed in early 1945 by the Nazi government) in founding the Confessing Church, a Protestant group that opposed the government leaders, who were seeking the Nazification of the German Protestant churches.

In a celebrated manifesto, produced and smuggled out of the country, and reprinted in the foreign press just prior to the 1936 Olympics, he along with nine other pastors wrote to Hitler, who, in their opinion was attempting to influence the churches to replace their historic Biblical morality and theology with the political beliefs and standards of the Nazis leadership, who controlled the German government.

"Our people(leaders) are trying to break the bond set by God. That is human conceit rising against God...We ask that liberty be given to our people to go their way in the future under the sign of the Cross of Christ, in order that our grandchildren may not curse their elders on the grounds that their elders left them a state on earth that closed to them the Kingdom of God." [from TIME Magazine July 27, 1936]

Arrested on July 1, 1937, Niemöller was brought to a "Special Court" on March 2, 1938 to be tried for activities against the State. He was fined 2,000 Mark and received a prison terms of 7 months. As his detention period exceeded the jail term, he was released by the Court after the trial. However, immediately after leaving the Court, he was re-arrested by Himmler's Gestapo. He was interned in concentration camps from 1938 to 1945. He was released by the allies in 1945. After his release in 1945, he was president of the Evangelical church in Hesse and Nassau from 1947 to 1961. He was one of the initiators in the Stuttgart Declaration of Guilt, signed by leading figures in the German church. The document acknowledged that the church had not done enough to resist the Nazis. In 1961, he became president of the World Council of Churches.

Niemöller is famous from writing a poem that challenges us to stand up for our Christian principles even when powerful forces in government are forbidding us to do so.

The famous poem: The variant found on most English and American posters reads:

First they came for the Socialists, and I didn’t speak up,

because I wasn’t a Socialist.

Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I didn’t speak up,

because I wasn’t a Trade Unionist.

Then they came for the Jews, and I didn’t speak up,

because I wasn't a Jew.

Then they came for me, and there was no one left

to speak up for me.

by Rev. Martin Niemoller, 1945

You will be given the Nations

Psalm 2:1-12 (Paraphrase of the New Living Translation)

1 Why are the twenty first century nations so angry?

Why do they waste their time with a futile plan?

2 The so called national leaders are in a great battle,

Against their own religious historic stand;

The rulers of education and government plot together

To deny the existence of the Creator of the Universe;

Especially against his anointed One.

3 "Let us break our historic national chains," they cry,

"And free ourselves from slavery to faith in God and his Son."

4 But the one who rules in heaven laughs.

The Lord scoffs at them.

5 Then in anger he rebukes their rebellion and sin,

Terrifying them with great recessions in their faces.

6 For the Lord declares, "I will place my chosen ones,

On seats of power in the great cities and in my holy places"

7 The chosen will proclaim the Lord’s decree:

"The Lord said to me, ‘You are my daughters and my sons.

You are the chosen ones.

You, who live like orphans recognize me as your Father.

8 Only ask, and I will give you the nations as your inheritance,

The whole earth is under the stewardship of my chosen ones.

9 You will break the secular rebels with an iron rod

And smash their progressive governments like broken sod."

10 Now then, you leaders, act wisely!

Be warned, you rulers of the earth! God says,

"This world is mine. It is not your turf!

11 Accept your place of leadership with reverent fear.

Rejoice with trembling, and to Me draw near."

12 Submit to God’s royal Son. Then He will not be angry,

And you will not be humiliated by your self proclaimed glory.

For only the obedient will live to tell a victory story.

What joy will be theirs, all who take refuge in Him,

Finding victory over selfishness, rebellion and sin.

-Paraphased by Curtis R. Schofield

Retired United Methodist Minister

Fishing

He loved to go trout fishing in the Smoky Mountain streams. This time he was anticipating "the big one". Hilton and Ella Ruth had arrived the afternoon before, and had camped in a familiar area. He rose before dawn, gathering all his equipment, and was on the banks of the cool fresh stream by the time the Almighty said once again, "Let there be light."

He slowly worked his way upstream, quietly throwing the fishing fly exactly where he wanted it to go. In the first thirty minutes he caught several fine trout. He was anticipating the big one, when all of a sudden he was interrupted by a very low voice somewhere nearby. His eyes searched the foggy area, but he could see no one until he looked up and saw an old fisherman sitting on top of a large rock overlooking a beautiful waterfall just ahead. The old man was talking to someone, but he was not looking at Hilton and no one else could be seen. Listening very carefully, Hilton could hear the low voice saying, "I hear him. I hear him. I hear him." Then after a few minutes went by, the old man spoke again. He was still not looking at Hilton, but this time he spoke a little louder, as if trying to get someone's attention. He began to ask, "Can you not hear him? Can you not hear him?" Hilton then began to focus on trying to hear what the old man was hearing.

After several minutes went by with the old man saying, "I can hear him. Can't you hear him?", Hilton decided that the old man was following the same pattern that Jesus did, "And a great while before dawn Jesus rose and went out in a quiet place and prayed." Hilton decided to use this same time to seek to listen to God speak. Hilton began to silently praise God for His wonderful creation, and for revealing Himself to human beings, whom He had made in God's own image.

Finally, after a long silence the old man spoke again, "I can hear Him! Can you?" It was then that Hilton answered the old man. Speaking in a low voice, but very clearly, "Yes, I can hear Him. Thank you for including me in your morning talk with Him."

Hilton says that as he made his way back to have breakfast with Ella Ruth, it became clearer to him the meaning of the words of Jesus to his fisherman friends, Simon Peter and Andrew, "Follow me and I will make you a fisher of men" (Mark 1:17).When he arrived, Ella Ruth had breakfast ready and asked, "Well, did you catch the big one?" He responded, "I surely did!"

"Thou shall not's"

How do you handle life when you feel like you are hemmed in by "Thou shall not's"? That was the question Lucille Campbell was dealing with in the devotional she wrote for "Time-Out for the Spirit" by Guidepost. One morning after reading to her children from Exodus 20 the Ten Commandments, her eleven year old daughter responded with a rebellious statement, "Thou shall not! That is all the Bible ever says." Her mother decided to wait and pray for a more influential opportunity to respond to Donna.

Later that day the Campbell family packed a picnic and explored some woods nearby. On one old tree, next to a fence that cut them off from a beautiful meadow, filled with green grass and thousands of beautiful short wild flowers, was a sign that said, "No Trespassing." Down in the lower part of the field was a small stream that was very inviting to the children. They asked, "Can we go down to the creek and put some of these dead leaves in and play like they are our boats going down a great river?" To that question their mother responded, "What does that sign on the tree say?" To that question Donna responded, "That sign and that fence are just two more 'Thou shall not's!' Before her mother could stop Donna she quickly climbed over the fence.

Suddenly, from the woods on their left, about fifty yearling steers burst forth, bawling and bucking. They seemed to be heading toward Donna. The family and Donna had a few moments of fear until Donna was able to reach the fence and roll under it, just in time. When the family arrived home and had their evening meal together, they had a sharing time about their experiences of the day. They all enjoyed the picnic and their searching through the woods for different types of leaves and the games they played, but the one event that got the most attention was the scary experience of the steers coming out of the woods toward Donna after she had climbed over the fence and gone into their pasture. Together they concluded that the Ten Commandments are signs that God is posting around activities that could be very dangerous for our lives. Therefore, they concluded their sharing with a pray of thanks to our heavenly Father who has given us warning signs for our safety and protection.

Scriptural Guide: "And walk in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well with you" (Jeremiah 7:23).