Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category

« Older Entries
Newer Entries »

Jesus Didn’t Come To Found A Church!

July 8, 2013

Jesus Didn’t Come to Found A Church!

While I was serving on the Presiding Bishop’s staff as ecumenical officer, I ran across something called the “Emergent (or Emerging) church.” This is a kind of movement initially started by young, evangelical pastors who were trying to relate to the post-modern, post-Christian, post-nearly-everything-else world of the 21st century, and to discern what – if anything – the Holy Spirit might be trying to say to the churches in our day.

Many of these young people had been involved in big, evangelical “mega-churches,” those big box structures with the full parking lots one can see on the outskirts of most American cities these days. And, they had become disenchanted with all the hype and the manipulation and the “marketing” of Christianity as well as with the notion that the whole Christian faith revolves around nothing  but personal conversion, and being saved from the fires of hell by “accepting Jesus Christ as one’s personal Lord and Savior!”

They began noticing, as they talked and studied and prayed together, that the Bible really has very little to say about that…when compared to its evolving message about liberation for the oppressed, justice for the poor, and peace and harmony for the whole world! They began noticing that – far from what they had been taught – Jesus did not come to found a Church. He came to inaugurate the Kingdom of God — To announce the ultimate Reign and Sovereignty of God. They began to discover that evangelism and social action are really two sides of the same coin. And, if the Church has a message in our day, this may be part of it!

I think today’s Gospel (Luke 10:1-11, 16-20), with Jesus sending out 70 disciples on what looks very much like an “apostolic” mission, may have something to say to all that. Let’s take a look at it. First of all, Jesus sent them out in pairs. That says something about the essential nature of Christian community for our mission. You can’t really be a “solo Christian” and being part of the Christian community is abolutely essential — whether that community is a large one like All Saints or just “two or three gathered in Christ’s name” in a household or a cell group. Community is central!

Secondly, Jesus tells them to go out in a spirit of vulnerability and humility – “like lambs in the midst of wolves.” In contrast to a kind of triumphalist, muscular Christianity we see so much of today, these disciples are to be humble and even vulnerable as they interact with the world. Not to have all the answers, but perhaps at least asking the right questions!

Third, they are to “travel light.” “Carry no purse, no bag, no sandals, and greet no one on the way.” They were to be itinerant preachers and evangelists, not encumbered with a lot of “stuff,” and single-minded in their purpose, not getting distracted.  Well, the Church of today – whether big box evangelicals or gothic mainstreamers – has a lot of “stuff!” And one of the things we are going to have to figure out in a day of economic stress, and changing priorities, is how we are going to deal with our “stuff.” Can it be used for mission and ministry? If not…do we really need it? How do we keep “the main thing, the main thing” in our mission?

Fourth, they are to be peacemakers: “Whatever house you enter, first say, Peace to this house.” There should be a peaceful, centeredness in our Christian discipleship. Whatever situation we walk into, we should bring something of “the peace of God which passes all understanding” with us. In a conflicted society and a violent world, what more important message can we bring than a message of peace?

Next, Jesus tells them that, while they are itinerant preachers and evangelists, they are not to “move about from house to house” but to “remain in the same house, eating and drinking whatever they provide.” In other words, they are to build relationships! And sometimes you do that by letting other people serve you! Sometimes, we are to provide hospitality to others, but at other times we need to be humble enough to let others provide hospitality to us! “Whenever you enter a town and its people welcome you, eat what is set before you… (and) cure the sick who are there.”

Cure the sick. Healing! Another essential ministry for Christian disciples: we are to bring healing. That may come in the traditional forms of prayer and the laying on of hands or sitting with people bringing counsel and spiritual direction. Or it may entail the healing of society – working to end gun violence, or for just immigration reform, or marriage equality for all God’s people. However we do it, just as it is incumbent upon Christians to be peacemakers, so we are also to become healers.

Then, the last step: “Say to them: The kingdom of God has come near you!” At some point, we have to make the connection that it is God who “has given us the will and the wisdom to do all these things!”

And, just as our evangelical friends have often failed to engage in the work of peacemaking and justice building, so we have often failed to make the connection for people that the reason we are about those tasks is not because they are “politically correct,” because we are in the service of God’s kingdom – we are about the task of cooperating with the Reign and the Sovereignty of God in this world!

Once again, what the emergent church folks are learning is that Jesus did not come to found a Church. Jesus came to inaugurate the Kingdom, the Reign, and the Sovereignty of God in the world. We need to learn the same thing.

Years ago, the evangelism office of The Episcopal Church put out a rather colorful poster. When you first looked at it, it appeared to be a chalice. But, it was an optical illusion and, when you looked at it more carefully, you could see that it was two faces, in profile, talking to one another. And there were three words beneath the picture: Go…Listen…Tell.

That was an attempt to articulate a simple, but effective, evangelism strategy for Episcopalians. A strategy which, I believe, is based on our Gospel story today of the sending out of the Seventy. Go – outside the doors if this church after we are dismissed at the end of the Liturgy. Go, into your homes and neighborhoods and schools and workplaces this week. And…

Listen. Don’t talk so much, but listen! Listen to your family and friends and co-workers and people you meet on the street. Listen to their pain and their struggles, to their joys and their celebrations. Listen deeply like those first disciples sharing meals in the homes of their new acquaintances. Then…and only then…

Tell. Tell them your story. Tell them about how God helped you when you were going through something like what they are going through. Tell them about how the Church – this church – has been there for you, in the good times and the bad. And then invite them here…

…So that they can discover for themselves the peace which passes all understanding, the healing of body, mind, spirit, and relationships that you yourself have experienced. For, when you’ve done that, they – like those first disciples’ hearers – will know that “the kingdom of God has come near…”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Posted in Uncategorized | 5 Comments »

Pentecost: And You Were There!

May 20, 2013

She always felt better when she could be with his friends. True, all of them except the young one, John, had deserted him in the end. But she understood that. She’d been afraid too. And she wasn’t even in immediate danger from the Romans like they were. In any case, he had told her just before he died, “Behold your son.” And John, “Behold your mother.” So, clearly, he wanted her to be part of them.

 She really would have preferred to stay in Olivet which is at least a little distance from where it all happened. But, as they gathered there, it was clear that Jerusalem was where he had wanted to go, and Jerusalem was where they must re-assemble as well. So, they crept in, over the course of a couple of days….individually, sometimes two by two…and began meeting in that same upper room where they had celebrated Passover.

 Now, it was the Feast of Weeks, fifty days after the ceremony of the barley sheaf during Passover. It had originally been a harvest festival, marking the beginning the offering of the first fruits. She had always loved its celebration as a child! And so had Jesus. She accepted their invitation to be together that morning. There were other women there in addition to his brothers and, of course, the Twelve (and they were 12 again now, with the addition of Matthias – who had, in any case, never been far from their assembly.)

 They had just begun to dance…and sing the Hallel – “Hallelujah! Give praise you servants of the Lord; praise the Name of the Lord” Psalm 113:1 – when the wind picked up. It first whistled and then howled through the streets of the old city. And, even though they had been careful to secure the door, suddenly the shutters rattled and blew open. Strangely, there was no rain or fog as one might expect with the wind, but sunshine – bright glimpses of it, illuminating every face around their make-shift “altar table.” But they were too caught up in their praise dance to worry about open windows now! And the volume of their singing only increased over the noise of the wind:

 “Let the name of the Lord be blessed! Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your Name give glory! How can I repay the Lord for all the good things he has done for me? I will lift up the cup of salvation…Praise the Lord, all you nations; laud him all your people!” (Psalm 113-117 passim)

 It was their custom, during the Feast of Weeks (or Pentecost) to gather the poor and the strangers, as well as the priests and Levites, for the great communal meal which was the highpoint of this great agricultural feast. It was a way of recognizing their solidarity as people of the Covenant, across all the natural divisions of life. And so, people in the streets were from all over the Mediterranean world. But their racial and ethnic diversity was no barrier to understanding God’s praise that day! She had no idea how it happened, but no matter in what language God’s praise was being spoken or sung, everyone heard it. Everyone “got it!” All of them, from east to west, from the different traditions, ethnic Jews and converts.

 And, when the praises began to abate, Mary saw Peter slowly walk to the open window and, flanked by the other Eleven, he said, “People of Judea, and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you…and listen to what I say…” (Acts 2:14)

 Well, that may not be exactly how it happened on the first Pentecost. But it must have been something like that.  Clearly, something momentous must have happened to transform that ragtag group of frightened disciples into missionaries and evangelists. Several things happened, of course, to do that…in addition to the miracle of Pentecost.

 Their experiences of the Risen Christ, perhaps particularly the one we heard about in the gospel today – the so-called “Johannine Pentecost” from the Gospel of John, with Jesus breathing on them and saying “Receive the Holy Spirit” and empowering them to forgive sins…or to withhold forgiveness. And then, gradually, their discovery of gifts in each other; gifts such as Paul would catalogue years later in his First Letter to the Corinthians:

 “Wisdom, knowledge, faith, healing, miraculous works, prophecy, discernment, various kinds of tongues and their interpretation.” (I Corinthians 12:4-11). Those were the kind of qualities they had seen in Jesus, but now began to see in one another! Clearly, they were meant to do the kinds of works he had done…and to do, perhaps, even greater works…as he had promised. What are those works for us today?

 Well, in a few moments we will be confirming about 20 young people. Or rather, they will be confirming themselves – confirming the vows which were once taken on their behalf at Baptism…making those promises themselves. And, as Bishop, I will say to them, “Young members of the body of Christ, we invite you to join us in the work of healing. We cannot give you a perfect world, but we can welcome you into the work of making it whole. We ask you to join us in a mature commitment to Christ, seeking to treat every person with dignity, to care for God’s creation, and to witness to the good news of Christ’s love and forgiveness.”

 Healing and wholeness…maturity…treating people with dignity…caring for Creation…witnessing to love and forgiveness. That’s what Jesus did. That’s what his first disciples did. And it is precisely what we are called to do today. Of course, we can’t do it on our own and that’s why we will be praying for these young people (and ourselves) today. When I lay hands on them, I will pray, “Strengthen, O Lord, these your servants with your Holy Spirit; empower them for your service, and sustain them all the days of their life.”

 I believe God will answer that prayer…in their lives and in the lives of all of us.

 And it all started on Pentecost! “Hail thee, festival day! Blest day that are hallowed forever, day when the Holy Spirit shone in the world with God’s grace!” Amen!

Posted in Blogroll, Church Life, Ecumenical, Emergent Church, Interfaith, Religion, Scripture, The Episcopal Church, Uncategorized | 1 Comment »

Can These Bones Live?

April 21, 2013

Aurora Deanery Confirmation, Trinity Wheaton.

I can’t think of three Readings from Holy Scripture more appropriate for a Confirmation service than the ones we just heard this morning. I’m always amazed at how many people still think that Ezekiel’s vision of the Valley of Dry Bones has to do with Resurrection, specifically the Resurrection of the body and the life of the world to come!

You can sort of see why since God tells Ezekiel to prophesy over the bones and so he says “I prophesied as he had commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood up on their feet, a vast multitude.” (Ezekiel 37:10). But the story goes with verses we didn’t read today and God says, “Mortal, these bones are the whole House of Israel. They say, Our bones are dried up and our hope is lost¼Therefore, prophesy and say to them, Thus says the Lord God: I am going to open your graves and bring you up from your graves. O my people; and I will bring you back to the land of Israel.” (37:11-12)

This story is actually about the renewal of Israel after their Exile in Babylon. It’s about the reformation and renewal of God’s people who – the Prophet believes – were spiritually dead and who, he prays, by the outpouring of God’s Holy Spirit would be reformed and renewed and brought back to life spiritually again!

It was for precisely that same kind of spiritual renewal that Jesus was hoping for and praying for in this morning’s Gospel when he says, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father to give you another Advocate, to be with you for ever. This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive because it neither sees him or knows him. You know him, because he abides with you, and will be in you.” (John 14:15-17).

That kind of spiritual renewal is what we are praying for here today, dear friends. When I lay hands on those to be confirmed, I will pray, “”Strengthen, O Lord, your servants with your HOLY SPIRIT; empower them for your service; and sustain them all the days of their lives.” For those received, we will recognize them as members of the holy catholic Church, receive them into the fellowship of this communion, and bless them in the name of the Father, Son and HOLY SPIRIT. And for any who may reaffirm their vows today, we will pray, May the HOLY SPIRIT, who has begun a good work in your direct and uphold you in the service of Christ and his kingdom.”

It’s all about spiritual renewal! Renewal in the Holy Spirit! The Episcopal Church – no less than the ancient people of Israel, or Jesus’ original disciples – is in need of such spiritual renewal today. All of us are in need of a fresh anointing and renewal by that same Spirit of God. And often, in Christian communities across the ages, it has been the youngest, the newest members of that Community who have led the way to renewal!

That’s why the Rule of St. Benedict is so clear that the Abbot and the community must listen very carefully to the youngest and newest members because they have special wisdom and perspective to bring to the rest of the brotherhood. May we have the same ability and willingness to listen to you, and to incorporate you into leadership so that your voices may help us to find the renewal we so clearly need!

What would that renewal look like? Well, you could look far and wide and not find a better description of what the Church is supposed to look like and to be about than the 12th chapter of Paul’s Letter to the Romans which we began to read today. Except that we didn’t read quite far enough! The chapter begins with Paul encouraging these new Christians to present their bodies as a living sacrifice to God. Sort of like you’re doing by being here today.

Then, he reminds them not to be conformed to the world, but to be transformed by the renewal of their minds. And he describes what it’s like to be a member of Christ’s Body, the Church, with each one having different gifts and abilities to be offered for the common good. But then Paul writes some of the most eloquent and descriptive lines he ever penned. He says that we are supposed to:

“Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; love one another with mutual affection; outdo one another in showing honor. Do not lag in zeal, be ardent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints; extend hospitality to strangers.”

“Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty but associate with the lowly. Do not claim to be wiser than you are. Do not repay anyone evil for evil, but take thought of what is noble in the sight of all. If it is possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.” (Romans 12:9-18)

What do you think your church would be like if you all lived like that? Do you think you’d have any problem growing, or making an impact on your several communities? I don’t think so!

So, whether we are being confirmed, received, reaffirming or simply here to support those who are, let’s rededicate ourselves to that kind of spiritual renewal today – in our lives and in our churches!

“Can these bones live?” God asked the Prophet Ezekiel. And the Prophet answered, “O Lord God, you know.”

Indeed God does¼and God has provided us with the example of Jesus and the empowering grace of the Holy Spirit to breathe life into these dry bones of ours.

May it be so.

And may it begin today!

 

Posted in Blogroll, Church Life, Ecumenical, Emergent Church, Religion, Scripture, The Episcopal Church, Uncategorized | 1 Comment »

Walking in Newness of Life

March 31, 2013

“Therefore we have been buried with him by baptism into his death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. For, if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.” (Romans 6:4a, 5)

In many ways tonight is all about Baptism! We don’t actually have a baptism tonight, but we have just received some folks who wish to be even more deeply a part of this church. And whenever we do that, we ask them, and ourselves, to renew the baptismal vows — the promises that we made, or were made on our behalf, when we were baptized.

Oh, we do other things tonight. We light the new fire of Easter and the Paschal candle. We ground ourselves in our history by rehearsing the stories of our salvation. We celebrate the first Eucharist of Easter. But the way you and I became part of it all – rather than mere spectators — was through our Baptism. And so whenever we are privileged to participate in the baptism of new Christians or the confirmation or reception of others, we are reminded of how important it is that it happened to us as well.

Why is it so important? Tons of ink have been spilled, and millions of sermons preached in attempts to answer that question. I’ve spilled a little and preached a few myself over the years. But this year I was struck by the richness of our Epistle tonight, this classic Pauline text on Baptism. And particularly the common reference to being “buried with (Christ) by baptism into his death.” What can this strange sentence mean?

The most common explanation is that of the early Church’s custom of total immersion, of submerging – burying — the baptismal candidate completely under the water. Some churches have retained that practice today; in fact I have immersed a few folks who felt strongly about that practice in my years as a priest. It really is a beautiful and rich way to celebrate Baptism! But, it is not the only way. And for most of the Church’s history baptisms have been done by sprinkling, or by affusion (the pouring of water), and in a number of other ways.

But I think there is something else, and much more, going on in St. Paul’s description of Baptism as dying and rising with Christ than just baptismal ceremonial. Jesus himself had spoken of his death as a “baptism,” hadn’t he? In answer to his disciples’ impertinent request to sit at his right and left hand when he became king, Jesus says,

“You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?” They replied, “We are able.” Then Jesus said to them, “The cup that I drink you will drink; and the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized; but to sit at my right hand or at my left is not mine to grant…” (Mark 10:38-40a)

Ever since Jesus had submitted to baptism at the hands of John the Baptizer, and thereby associated himself with John’s prophetic message of radical change, he knew that he was in danger. When John himself was eliminated at the hands of King Herod, Jesus must have become even clearer about his own fate. And by the time he rode into Jerusalem to confront the religious establishment in the very precincts of the Temple, he knew it was only a matter of time. He would soon drink the cup of suffering and be baptized in blood.

So, what can it mean for us to be “baptized into his death?” Well, by associating ourselves with Jesus’ baptism and undergoing our own, we are promising – it seems to me – that we are prepared to join all those who, throughout history, have been willing to drink the same cup that he drank and be baptized – if need be – with a baptism of blood.  Why? Because the message he brought and the life he lived made it clear that God is in charge of this world and that we are not! And the powers that be (secular or religious) are scared to death of a message like that, and a life like that. And sometimes they try to snuff  it out…or at least silence it.

We sketched out what such a life looks like in very general terms in the Covenant we renew at every Baptism and which we renewed here tonight: to trust the Triune God in all things, to continue in the apostles’ teaching and to participate in this fellowship Meal we call Eucharist… to pray, to resist doing evil in our own lives and to be willing to change when we fail, to be willing to talk about Jesus and  to walk our talk, to love other people as we love ourselves (because Christ died for them too), to strive for justice and peace in this world and to respect the dignity of absolutely, every, without exception human being we ever run across!

Those words roll trippingly off our tongues in the confines of our nice, safe liturgy, but when we go back outside these doors most of us know that it is not easy to trust God no matter what. It’s not even easy to get to church every Sunday and to pray every day. It is certainly not easy to change our ways when we mess up. It’s hard to be open and to witness to our faith (in fact, it’s sometimes positively embarrassing to be identified as a Christian)! It’s not easy to love our neighbors. And it’s sometimes downright dangerous to stand up for justice and peace, and to show our respect publicly for those whom society manifestly does not respect!

But that, dear friends, is what some people are signing on to do here tonight! It’s what you and I have already signed on to. And we need each other if we expect to get it right.  Even more, we need the help of that God whom Jesus served…and we serve.  That’s why we said, at the end of each baptismal promise – “I will, with God’s help.” We need God’s help to do it! Fortunately, we know something about what that help looks like. It looks like the story of our salvation we heard read tonight:

It looks like God creating this universe out of nothing…it looks like God delivering the Chosen People from slavery…it looks like God renewing the Covenant with a rebellious people time and time again, and breathing life into dry bones. Most of all, it looks like God the Father, in the power of the Holy Spirit, raising Jesus Christ from the dead, breaking the powers of death and hell for ever. For us!

Alleluia! Christ is Risen! The Lord is Risen indeed. Alleluia!

 

 

Tags:
Posted in Blogroll, Church Life, Ecumenical, Emergent Church, Religion, Scripture, The Episcopal Church, Uncategorized | 3 Comments »

Take Care of the Body of Christ Because the Body of Christ Cares For You

March 18, 2013

We have a very poignant story in today’s Gospel: Jesus is invited to an amazing dinner party in the home of his friends Mary and Martha in the village of Bethany, which is not far from Jerusalem. It was actually quite dangerous for Jesus to get this close to Jerusalem. There was already a plot against his life, and undoubtedly that would have been one of the topics discussed at the dinner table that evening, among these, some of his closest friends.

Death and resurrection would have been very much on their minds since another of the guests was Mary and Martha’s brother Lazarus who – John’s Gospel has just told us – Jesus had raised from the dead! The two women are fulfilling their expected and predictable roles – Martha bustling around serving the meal; Mary absolutely focused on Jesus and, no doubt, worrying about his fate and the danger he was in by just being there.

Her love for Jesus leads her to go far beyond the servants’ role of washing his feet, but to anoint them with expensive perfume – a kind which would have been imported from the Himalayan mountains! Judas takes offense at this extravagant offering, making what is actually a pretty logical argument that this expensive stuff could have been sold and the money given to the poor. Why waste it on someone’s feet?

The Gospel writer, John, interjects himself into the story at this point, calling Judas’ sincerity into question. Apparently, in this tradition, Judas wasn’t known for his commitment to the poor or for his generosity at all, but rather was known to steal from the common purse Jesus and his friends used to live on! In any case, Jesus sees a deeper meaning in Mary’s action (probably connected to the fact that they had been talking about his possible assassination).

He sees the anointing as a kind of symbolic gesture, the kind of “in-acted parable” that he and the prophets used to engage in. He sees it as a solemn warning. Before too long (Mary seems to be saying by her actions) there will be another anointing of this body. But it will be the anointing reserved for his corpse! The traditional anointing of the body before burial. So, Jesus says, “Leave her alone! You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me!” (John 12:8)

I’ve actually heard this line quoted to suggest that the Church has no responsibility to give to the poor! After all, there will always be poor people!

But Jesus was actually citing the first half of a verse from the 15th chapter of Deuteronomy. “Since there will never cease to be some in need on the earth, I therefore command you, ‘Open your hand to the poor and needy neighbor in your land!’” (Deuteronomy 15:11)

Believe me, everyone in that room would have been able to complete the second half of that verse, and would have known Jesus was not giving anyone permission to ignore the poor! I think he was saying, “You always have the poor with you (and you can help them whenever you will), but this is a special time, a unique moment in history…and it’s right for Mary to observe it in this way.”

In fact, I don’t think it’s too much of a stretch to say that when you make an offering to Jesus you ARE making an offering to the poor. And when you make an offering to the poor, you’re making an offering to Jesus. After all, didn’t he once say, “Inasmuch as you have done it to one of these least of these…you’ve done it to me?” (Pause)

Actually this is one of the reasons I like the “unified offering” system we have in The Episcopal Church. Except for emergencies and very rare occasions, we try not to take up special offerings for this and that cause, Sunday by Sunday, like some churches are wont to do. Offerings for domestic mission, offerings for overseas mission, special offerings to repair the church heating system…and on and on.

Instead, we ask you to tithe…or to give some percentage of your income…pledge to offer it here on Sunday mornings…and trust the Church to be good stewards of what you give. Because good stewardship is not “fund raising.” Good stewardship is not just paying the light or heating bills at St. James’ Church. And good stewardship is certainly not supporting things you approve of and withholding money from things you disapprove of.  Good stewardship is doing what Mary did in today’s Gospel – offering something to Jesus because you love him! Taking care of the Body of Christ…because the Body of Christ cares for you!

I’ve been a tither for most of my adult life. That means ten per cent of my income given away for purposes that I believe align with the heart of God. A good portion of our tithe goes to the Church. Some of it goes directly to poor and marginalized people. Some of it goes to programs and efforts we believe make this world a better place.

Of the amount you and I pledge to the Church, some of it goes for institutional concerns – buildings and grounds, staff salaries and the like. Some of it goes for children’s and adult education, music, evangelism, and outreach. We will promise in a few moments to help Phoebe, the young person we will baptize today, “to grow into the full stature of Christ.” That means this church needs to be here and to be strong to support her in her lifelong pilgrimage.

Some of the amount we pledge here goes on to our diocese – to support youth ministry and campus ministry and small congregations, to continue our companion diocese relationships with SE Mexico and the South Sudan, to help foster good communications so that we can work together more effectively. Of what we give to the diocese, some goes on to The Episcopal Church and even to the Anglican Communion to support missionary efforts on national and international level that we could not possibly do on our own.

I know this is Lent, not “Stewardship Sunday!” But today’s Gospel is all about giving and the three traditional Lenten disciplines include not only prayer and fasting, but also almsgiving! And Lent is a good time to remember that we all need to take care of the Body of Christ because the Body of Christ cares for us.

To remember that what we offer to Jesus, we also offer to the poor and what we offer to the poor, we also offer to Jesus.

We need to be as sacrificial in our giving as Mary of Bethany was in today’s Gospel. We need to see our tithes and offerings as pure nard…anointing the body of Jesus…so that the fragrance of that perfume (that perfect offering) may fill…this…house! Amen.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Posted in Blogroll, Church Life, Ecumenical, Emergent Church, Religion, Scripture, The Episcopal Church, Uncategorized | 3 Comments »

PLEASE Don’t Say “There but for the grace of God, go I!”

March 4, 2013

Whenever I read today’s Gospel appointed, I remember a day right after the awful earthquake in Haiti years ago which left so much devastation. My wife and I were having lunch in a little sports bar in Davenport when I happened to overhear a couple of young men at the bar, talking about it as the news continued to come in over CNN.

One of them said, “Well, they actually deserve what they get, you know. All that AIDS down there and all…” His friend just nodded…in mute agreement, I guess. Not being sure I could trust myself with a response to such heartlessness, I just paid our bill in a hurry and shot them a withering glance on the way out.

I suppose not many people would be so blatant about saying something like that. Although a well-known so-called evangelist in this country famously said that God sent Hurricane Katrina to destroy much of New Orleans because of their many sins! But there are a surprising number of people out there who really do think God punishes us like that — and that people who are suffering are really “getting what they deserve” in some way.

I guess these folks have never read the New Testament. Or at least the passage we had today from St. Luke’s Gospel.  Apparently Jesus had just learned of one of the many atrocities committed by the Roman governor, Pontius Pilate. Often, Jesus’s fellow countrymen from the north in Galilee would come to Jerusalem to offer sacrifices in the Temple. Some of them may have been making noises about the overthrow of the Roman occupation at the same time, and the historian Josephus tells us that Pilate regularly executed such rebellious Jews for that kind of talk – inside or outside the Temple!

And that must have happened to these Galileans. There had also been a recent industrial accident just southeast of Jerusalem where a tower under construction had fallen and killed eighteen people. Jesus decides to use these “current events” as “teachable moments,” so he says, “Do you think those Galileans or those eighteen who died were any worse sinners than all the others living in Jerusalem at the time? “NO, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish just as they did.” (Luke 13:5)

In saying this, Jesus is doing at least two things: First of all, he’s renouncing what was a popular teaching in those days, the doctrine of “retribution.” It basically said that, since God was in charge of everything and was a just God, then those who receive special punishment, or suffer tragedy, must be guilty of some great sin. Pretty much what those guys in the bar were saying after the earthquake in Haiti.

Jesus says that is simply not so. We don’t know why good people suffer sometimes, and Jesus doesn’t attempt a kind of global, simplistic explanation for that kind of thing. Sometimes good people, like those Galileans, suffer at the hands of bad people! They are innocent victims of human sin – like Jesus himself would finally prove to be; like those precious children in Newtown, Connecticut would prove to be, dying at the hands of a madman. As tragic as it is, God created us with free will, and some people abuse that free will and use it to hurt others.

Other people, like those eighteen on whom the tower fell, suffer because of accidents or disease. This is not a perfect Creation! It’s a good Creation, but not perfect. There is room in this Universe for accidents because not everything in life is “pre-programmed” or scripted. And we haven’t yet discovered cures for all the cancers and other diseases to which the human body is susceptible.

There are also so-called “natural disasters” like Katrina or the earthquake in Haiti or Hurricane Sandy. These can be especially difficult to understand. Sometimes they may be the result of our monkeying around with the environment and throwing things out of whack. Sometimes, they are just part of the cycles of nature or the ongoing formation of the earth and its surface.

Tragically, sometimes people have chosen, or HAVE, to live in the path of these seismic events and that results in another kind of “accident,” of being “at the wrong place at the wrong time.” Like the poor guy in Florida whose bedroom was swallowed up by a sinkhole which are all over the place in that area.

And, of course, there ARE cases of terrible things happening because of the consequences of our own actions, even our own sin – like someone dying of a drug overdose or being killed in a car crash while speeding. No less tragic, but at least these occurrences are somewhat understandable. What Jesus is saying (and this is his second point today) is that we need to very careful about making judgments in these cases about other people.  All of us are flawed, and the fact that we may survive while another dies should be no source of comfort…but rather a call to humility.

Please let us agree to stop using the phrase “There but for the grace of God, go I!” I hate that! What are we saying about the lack of God’s grace for the other guy? What Jesus is saying is that life is as tenuous and fragile for us as it was for those Galilean pilgrims or those eighteen accident victims. Their deaths came unexpectedly…and ours may as well.  We need to be in a constant state of self-examination and faithfulness so we will be ready to meet our Maker whenever and wherever our time comes!

This is part of what the season of Lent reminds us of – that we’re all in this together. None of us is perfect. All of us stand in need of God. As the old saying has it: “the ground is level at the foot of the Cross.” That’s why the prayer we offer to bless the ashes on Ash Wednesday reads like this: “Almighty God, you have created us out of the dust of the earth: Grant that these ashes may be to us a sign of our mortality and penitence, that we may remember that it is only by your gracious gift that we are given everlasting life…”

God is gracious, dear friends. Not angry or vengeful or punishing. Our task is to know that is true, to be eternally grateful for that fact, and to live our lives in humble and thankful response to that good and gracious God. Let’s not judge other people. We can leave that to God.

Let’s just be grateful that God doesn’t judge us like those two guys in the bar were judging the people of Haiti.

Because if God did…none of us would make it!  Would we?

 

 

 

 

Posted in Blogroll, Church Life, Ecumenical, Emergent Church, Interfaith, Religion, Scripture, The Episcopal Church, Uncategorized | 1 Comment »

World Mission Sunday

February 11, 2013

Last Sunday after Epiphany.

We conclude the great missionary season of Epiphany this morning. I say “missionary” because this season has been all about the Light of Christ shining into the whole world, making it clear that the Good News of God’s love was not to be limited to any one religion or ethnic group, but was truly intended to be shared throughout the world. Because of that, this Sunday of the Church Year has been annually designated “World Mission Sunday” by The Episcopal Church.

Some of you may remember Fr. Bob North, a missionary to southern Sudan, being with us here at the Cathedral a couple of years ago. He was encouraging the Diocese of Iowa to build a relationship with a new diocese (and really a new country!) in South Sudan. Bishop and Mrs. Scarfe along with two priests from this diocese are in the Diocese of Nzara this very day to see if we can forge a new companion diocese relationship. Do keep them all in your prayers. Missionary work today is not so much about us taking the Gospel to them, but standing in solidarity with these new Christians in the two-thirds world, and indeed learning from them in the process. That’s the beauty of our companion diocese relationships!

We always read the Gospel story of The Transfiguration on this Sunday because it was one of the formative experiences for Peter, James and John as they were present at a powerful mystical experience of Jesus. And they realized –quite literally “in a flash” – that Jesus was the embodiment of the Law (represented by Moses) and the Prophets (represented by Elijah). This powerful encounter left them silenced for a time, but it did not take long for them to regain their voices and to be about their mission as Apostles…as those who are sent.

Well, you and I are the “sent ones” today. We’re the ones who are to share with our families, friends, and neighbors what we have discovered about God through Jesus and his Church, and to continue to let God’s light shine in our dark world today. Our Prayer Book Catechism says that “the mission of the Church is to restore all people…to unity with God…and each other…in Christ.” But that’s a pretty sparse definition, so the Anglican Communion has tried to flesh it out a bit, by adopting something called “The Five Marks of Mission.” It’s a kind of check-list for us to see if we are being about the mission of the Church. Our Presiding Bishop says that these Marks of Mission are “digital”…that is, you can count them on the five digits of one hand!

Mark #1 is “to proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom.” Obviously, it all starts there. We are to witness, by our words and our deeds, the extremely good news that God is in charge of this world, and that we are not! That’s what it means to live under the king-ship, the reign, the sovereignty of God…and to begin doing it right now!

Mark #2 is “to teach, baptize, and nurture new believers.” That’s why it is so important to support such programs as Godly Play and Journey to Adulthood, to have an Episcopal Youth Group, to participate in and support Diocesan programs for young people like New Beginnings and Happening. Our young people deserve, not only to baptized…but to be taught…and to be nurtured in the Faith. And it’s our responsibility to see that it happens!

Mark #3 is “to respond to human need by loving service.” St. Francis famously said, “Preach the Gospel always…if necessary, use words!” And, by that, he meant that serving other people is also a way to demonstrate that they are valued and treasured by their Creator, and that God, and God’s people, want only the best for them. That’s why Trinity Cathedral supports the PUNCH program with other churches in this area. “People Uniting Neighbors and Churches” is a way to respond to human need by loving service…right here in the neighborhood.

Mark #4 is “to seek to transform unjust structures of society, to challenge violence of every kind, and to pursue peace and reconciliation.” Some people are uncomfortable with the church speaking out in the public square, but “separation of church and state” does not mean that the church has no role in society. It means that the state may not establish any one religion in this country. The Church should never be “partisan” but she is sometimes “political” if that means seeking to challenge structures that oppress and hurt people. Sometimes, you can either keep pulling people out of a raging river one at a time, or you can go upstream and find out who’s throwing them in…and try to make them stop!

Finally, Mark #5 is “to strive to safeguard the integrity of creation and sustain and renew the life of the earth.” It has to be said that the Christian Church has not always taken our responsibility to this planet very seriously. And while it is true that the first Creation story in Genesis says that we are to “be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it,” (Genesis 1:28), the second account of Creation says that God put us in the Garden of Eden “to till it and to keep it” (Genesis 2:1). In other words, to be good stewards of the earth. Like a good farmer is to be a good steward of the land – so that it will bear fruit for years to come.

We will enter the holy season of Lent this week. Lent is a time of self-examination and repentance, of prayer, fasting and self-denial. But it’s not only a time for self-examination of our personal lives. It can be a time for the Church to do some self-examination of our own –corporately. Are we carrying out the mission of the Church here at Trinity Cathedral…in the Diocese of Iowa…in The Episcopal Church? Are we proclaiming the Good News? Nurturing our young people? Serving the poor? Speaking out against violence? Being good stewards of this beautiful world God has given us?

If not, there’s still time to repent. Still time to turn around and go in a new direction. Still time to heed the voice from the cloud who spoke to Peter, James and John on the Mount of Transfiguration: Look: “This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!”

 

 

 

Posted in Blogroll, Church Life, Ecumenical, Emergent Church, Religion, Scripture, The Episcopal Church, Uncategorized | 2 Comments »

The Lord’s Prayer: Why I Can Still Pray It

January 24, 2013

 Despite its familiarity and almost constant liturgical use, the Lord’s Prayer has become difficult for even some devout Christians to pray in our day. To be sure, the thought-world of the New Testament is very different from our own. Yet, I have been helped by insights of such biblical scholars as Marcus Borg and John Dominic Crossan to, as it were, get beyond the words and find in this ancient prayer the essence of Jesus’ radical message to his age…and ours.

 Our Father in heaven; hallowed by your name…

 This first phrase is actually, for me, the most problematical. But, even though the patriarchal form of address carries with it a lot of baggage for some, and the suggestion that God dwells in “heaven” suggests for many a place above the clouds in a three-story universe, the first phrase is balanced for me by the second  about the sacred name being holy. For Jesus, the good Jew, the actual “name” of God (YHWH) could not even be pronounced except once each year by the high priest.  Whatever title we give to God will be inadequate for God’s true “name” must be forever held in silence in reverence and awe. So, as long as I use other, more inclusive and expansive names for God in my other prayers, I can use the name “Abba” which even Jesus knew was inadequate, but which we believe was his normal way of addressing the Holy One.

Your kingdom come, your will be done; on earth as in heaven…

Again, while many will prefer “reign” or “sovereignty” to “kingdom,” the primary message of Jesus was that God was king and that we are not. Empires are no less prevalent and destructive today than they were in the first century and our longing in this prayer is that, one day, God’s reign and God’s yearning will replace what passes for justice and peace in the world today – in this world, on this planet not in an ethereal, spiritual existence somewhere else.

Give us today our daily bread; and forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors…

While we may delude ourselves into thinking that we “earn” our daily bread, the reality is that all is gift, all is grace. If the earth did not produce our food and if we were not endowed with the strength and wisdom to plant seeds in the earth, harvest the crop, and prepare the meal, there would be no daily bread for anyone. And yet, while we are grateful for those gifts, we are ever mindful that so many – through no fault of their own – do not have adequate food or drink. Therefore, the proper response of gratitude would be “debt forgiveness” – in our personal lives, our national life, and our international relations so that all may receive the gift of daily bread.

Save us in the time of trial; and deliver us from evil…

This notoriously difficult-to-translate phrase speaks of our desire to be spared from the danger, violence, oppression, and degradation which are the fate of too many in a world dominated by selfishness and sin. God will not magically intervene to save us (or else why have so many others not been spared?) but if we honor God’s name, live in the kingdom, and forgive others as we have been forgiven, we can still be fearless even in the face of so much evil.

For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours; now and forever. Amen.

 The prayer concludes with a doxology borne of Jesus’ own conviction that the reign of God has already begun for those with eyes to see it, and with those same eyes behold the absolute splendor and beauty of the One who has existed for all eternity and will to the ages of ages.  So be it.

 

C. Christopher Epting

Davenport, Iowa

Week of Prayer for Christian Unity 2013

 

Posted in Blogroll, Church Life, Ecumenical, Emergent Church, Interfaith, Religion, Scripture, The Episcopal Church, Uncategorized | 5 Comments »

Light Shining…Magnificence and Splendor…Grace Appearing…Glory All Around

December 24, 2012

 

“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness on them has light shined.” (Isaiah 9:2)

“Oh the majesty and magnificence of his presence! Oh, the power and the splendor of his sanctuary.” (Psalm 96:6)

“…the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all.” (Titus 2:11)

“Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them…” (Luke 2:9)

 

Light shining…magnificence and splendor…grace appearing….glory all around.

All of our Lessons from Holy Scripture tonight seem to emphasize Light! And it’s easy to see why anciently the Eastern Orthodox Church celebrated Christmas on January 6 – or what we call the Feast of the Epiphany. Because the word “epiphany” means a “shining forth” and surely the birth of Christ was a “shining forth,” an epiphany of God’s purposes in ways the world had never seen before!

Even in evening celebrations of the Christ Mass, like this one, there is an emphasis on candlelight and “candle light services”. We’ll sing Silent Night by candlelight at the end of this service. And our homes are filled with Christmas lights of all kinds. Why all this emphasis on “light” at Christmas? Well, what does light do? It “reveals”, doesn’t it? It makes things known that would otherwise be hidden. And that is exactly what the birth of Jesus Christ did for the world. It revealed, made known, manifested, something of what God is really like.

You might think that would have been unnecessary for the people of Israel who had worshipped God for nearly 2,000 years before Jesus was born. But there were still differences of opinion about what God was like. There was a Priestly understanding of a God who approved of cult and temple and sacrifice. There was a Prophetic understanding of a God who desired justice and righteousness above all else…and was quite suspicious of the sacrificial system.

There were those who saw God as vengeful and capable of destroying entire nations if they opposed the Divine Will. And others who saw God as tender and compassionate, One who brooded over this world like a mother over her children.

To this day, people have all kinds of ideas about God. Some believe in a God who sanctions violence of the most extremist kind. On the other hand, some Eastern religions have a very peaceful, tolerant view of the Divine, but don’t say much more than that about God. Seems to be a more of a Force, or a Divine Mind, rather than a Personal Being for them.

But our claim as Christians is that we know a bit more than that about what this God is like. Without wanting to say that we know everything there is to know about the Creator of the Universe (we certainly do not!) we do believe that something of the very nature of God has been revealed to us in the Person of Jesus Christ. We have been “enlightened” to some degree about that very Nature.

For example, we know that God is not callous or cruel. God does not willingly afflict or grieve human beings. We know that God is not distant from us or from the affairs of this world. For all God’s power and majesty, there is a certain vulnerability and even the possibility of being “hurt” – like a baby in a manger, our God can be vulnerable…and even wounded.

We know that God is not static and predictable by our rules and regulations, but is perfectly capable of surprising us, like the twelve year old boy in the Temple once surprised his parents by being about his Father’s business instead of being where they thought he ought to be. God “shows up” in un

We know that God cares very deeply about what happens to us and so reaches out with a Word of wisdom and with healing, like that itinerant rabbi who once went about preaching Good News and backing up his words with actions like the healing of a paralytic, and the restoring of sight to one who had been born blind.

We know that God is capable of being betrayed by us, and delivered into the hands of sinners, for even less than the thirty pieces of silver Judas once got for betraying his friend.

But, in all this, indeed because of all this, God reigns! With all the vulnerability and unpredictability and deep compassion, God remains the creator and sustainer of the Universe, the ultimate source of all life and all that is. And this God is able and willing to bring good out of evil, and life out of death at every turn. Just as he once split open the grave and won the victory over death and hell on Easter morning.

How can we say all this? How can we believe all this with such passion? Because we believe in the essence of the Christmas story… because we believe in the “good news of great joy for all the people (for to us) is born this day in the City of David, a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”

We know something of what God is like because we believe that the meaning of the Christmas story is what St. Luke said it was, “Glory to God in the highest, and peace to his people on earth.”

We believe that Jesus Christ is “the grace of God…bringing salvation to all…” And his name will be called, “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”

Light shining…magnificence and splendor…grace appearing…glory all around.  That’s what we celebrate here tonight, dear friends. Merry Christmas!

 

 

 

Posted in Blogroll, Church Life, Ecumenical, Emergent Church, Religion, Scripture, The Episcopal Church, Uncategorized | 2 Comments »

Advent Anwers The Question, Why?

December 17, 2012

ADVENT ANSWERS THE QUESTION, WHY?

Had to scrap the sermon I prepared for Advent 3. I’m just so aware that we are all in grief and mourning the loss of all the young life in the horrific shooting in Newtown, Connecticut. We’ll be offering our Eucharist today with special intention for the souls of the victims and for comfort and healing for the families…and for all of us. It’s the most important thing we will do today.

So many people are asking “Why did this happen?” And “what can we do to make sure it never happens again?” Advent gives a stark answer to the “Why” question. This is a very serious season, Advent. It’s not just a four-Sunday countdown to Christmas. Advent reminds us that this world is broken. The kingdom of God has not yet come in its fullness. Violence and evil and sickness and danger are realities we have to face every day in some way. And it does no good to deny that.

Christians believe that Jesus was born into this world to inaugurate the kingdom of God, to usher in a time when tragedies and violence like this will be no more. But we’re not there yet. And until that kingdom comes in its fullness, Advent teaches us that we must wait for it – with patience and hope and expectation.

But that’s not all we can do. We can also cooperate with God in the building of that kingdom. We can work to make this world a better place, a place which There will be many discussions, and there already are in the media and in coffee shops, about what we can do to keep this kind of thing from every happening again – from gun violence to mental health services to school safety. And Christians should be part of those conversations. We have a contribution to make there.

But the most important thing we can do, dear friends, is to recommit ourselves to the mission of the Church, to what we’re doing here today. Our diocese has a simple mission statement: we are “to grow the Church…form the faithful…and change the world.” A pretty lofty goal, but it begins simply. “Growing the church” means more than just getting more people in the pews. It means reaching out with the message of God’s love.

What if Adam Lanza had been part of a community like this one, what if his mother had? Could it have made a difference? We don’t know, but it might have. We need to reach all people with the Gospel.

“Form the faithful.” We are to teach our children, and ourselves, that violence is never the answer to any problem! And that’s God’s will is for peace and forgiveness and healing for all. That’s “forming the faithful.”

And it’s only when we have done those things – growing the Church and forming the faithful – that we will be able to make our contribution to “changing the world.”

Let’s rededicate ourselves to that on this sad Sunday, my friends. It’s the least we can do…and the most.

Posted in Blogroll, Church Life, Ecumenical, Emergent Church, Interfaith, Religion, Scripture, The Episcopal Church, Uncategorized | 2 Comments »

« Older Entries
Newer Entries »