NOTE: It is World Interfaith Harmony Week and this
church is the Christian venue highlighted, meaning an advertised invitation to
the service and an expectation of a large number of people.
As the children are coming forward for the Kid’s
Corner the musician plays the being two verses of the “Gloria;” liturgical
setting 8 in Evangelical Lutheran Worship. The talk with the children is
related to football. As the pastor moves to the pulpit, the final verse and
chorus of the “Gloria,” is played, revved up – like the after-touchdown
celebration moment. Picture a player in
the end zone, waving arms to the crowd to get them cheering louder.
--------------------------------------------------------
It’s game day!
There are many
in North America this morning who will hear that and translate it to mean the
Super Bowl; where later on today the championship game of the National Football
League will be played. Game day snacks have been bought, wings and guacamole
are being prepared. Bets have been made
and jerseys put on.
Thousands will
gather in the stadium. There will be cheering and singing; crying and grief.
It’s game day.
Just like it
is every Sunday. Communities of Christians meet in their sacred spaces: to
cheer, to sing, to cry, to grieve. Game
day coffee and tea are perking, as the Holy meal is shared in the service.
Handshakes, hugs, how-do-you-dos, are exchanged like the wave that travels
around the Super Bowl stadium. We come game day ready: prepared to work through
the liturgy, with ears open to the calls made by the Coach -God, hearts set to
catch the balls thrown by the quarterback -the pastor, attitudes are in line
for the Spirit to move among us that we might be challenged to be more, and we
come ready to wrestle with difficult ideas and tackle that which defeats
us.
It’s game
day. Are you game day ready?
The Gloria, the song we sang earlier, the song
that moved me from the chancel steps to the pulpit, this is our game day chant. The music, at the beginning of the service
builds and builds to create the atmosphere of being a part of a community, a
world, quantum, infinity - a God beyond-
something far bigger than ourselves. The Gloria
is the best we have at articulating with words and music – thoughts and
feelings- God. It is the moment of touchdown, of thanks and
praise, worship and celebration from the very depths of who we are. Glory to God in the highest.
In the sharing
of the moment, time collapses. There is
celebration and rejoicing, knowing on a deeper level that there is a price for
glory.
Our touchdown
celebration is not just a hyped up two minutes on Sunday Feb. 4; it is all time
rolled together.
In football
world, the touchdown is the culmination of hours of practice, sacrifice, conditioning;
concussions, broken bones, torn hamstrings; the lifestyle, the fame, the
pressure. This is the price of glory.
In Christian
life, the touchdown is not our own, it is God’s – lived through Jesus in the
hours of compassion, attention to the sick, the possessed; prayer and
preaching; fulfilling expectations from generations past. Jesus fame spreads – glory so to speak- but, there
is a price, ultimate sacrifice, for in the end Jesus dies; that is the price of
glory.
And at this moment – the
price of glory hits home - we are reminded that the Gloria celebrates what Bonhoeffer said: Christianity preaches the infinite worth of that which is seemingly
worthless and the infinite worthlessness of that which is seemingly so valued. Glory is found
in the moments when Jesus, when anyone, dares to speak truth to power, to
upturn economics, to reframe justice…to give the worthless worth.
It’s game day.
Not because it
is the Super Bowl, not because it is Sunday.
Not because
proper snacks have been prepared, jerseys dawned, Glorias sung, and communities have gathered…
It’s game day.
As it should be every day - by those who
celebrate, and then try to live a life where the seemingly worthless has
infinite worth, and that which seems to have so much value in the world is
infinitely worthless. Do you live this way? Are you game day ready?
In
a 2010 resolution, the General Assembly of the United Nations, established
World Interfaith Harmony Week, as a way to promote harmony between all people
regardless of their faith. The week is to point out that mutual understanding
and interreligious dialogue constitute important dimensions of a culture of
peace and cooperation among people. The UN General Assembly encourages all States
to support during this week the spread of the message of interfaith harmony and
goodwill in the world’s churches, mosques, synagogues, temples and other places
of worship, according to their own religious traditions or convictions.
(adapted from UN
web-site).This is in the Coach’s playbook. One of the ways that can be practiced, to have us ready for game day. You are here this morning, prepared: to learn, to interact, to share peace, to ask questions, to articulate matters of faith; to eat and celebrate together; to be revved up in the pre-game hype, to experience a portion of a glorious vision, so that you can go and execute well-formed plays in the field of the world: passes of peace, tackling injustice, kicking field goals of harmony, actions of sportsmanship, providing water to the thirsty, handwarmers to the cold, team support to those sitting on the bench, encouraging and cheering on those on the line taking the hits, mentoring those around you to participate in dialogue, cooperation, harmony, and mutual understanding.
With an event
like the Super Bowl, we are reminded that our world takes sides; that the world
judges plays as dichotomies, where plays and players and officials are bad or
good, booed or cheered. We see that human beings move ideas and stances from
one end zone to the other -without being okay spread across the field.
When we come
to this space we are confronted with texts, play charts, that illustrate
tension; that say it is okay to live in the grey; to value tension and
diversity. The texts this morning illustrate a Creator God who in that role is
both creator and destroyer; God, in Jesus, who showed busy-ness with people and
needing time alone, with no people- a tension between times of compassion and
self rejuvenation; we hear of Paul living in tensions while focusing on godly living
– he who boasts, yet, can not boast; who is one thing and then another. The
plays are complicated and worked out on the field, not in the end zones.
The world
would like us to believe that the Super Bowl, that life, is about winners and
losers. Game day is not about winners and losers; one team against another. Game
day requires teams, people who work together towards a goal. Game day is about
being the best we can in making plays for peace and cooperation, perhaps even
outdoing each other in our attempts. We gather this morning as members from various
teams: we may approach life with different plays in our handbooks, use
different symbols on our charts, express the rules distinctly in sacred texts,
have unique jerseys; yet, as teams we work with each other in the field
enjoying the work we do – the same game with different approaches and
strategies.
This week I
invite you to unite in carrying the football – a vision- a vision of harmony,
with plays that include dialogue, welcome, and fellowship. Together dare to
tackle injustice, to give worth to those deemed worthless. Celebrate and sing; cry and grieve, with
those with whom your path crosses or who you find sitting beside you on the
bench.
For those of
us in Christian community we come to the field not with our own strength, or
our own plays, we come at the behest of our Coach -God- who paid the price of
glory, so that we may be empowered to live love and leave it on the field for
the healing of the whole world. We come for game day prepared to get dirty, to
tackle tough situations, to play and dance with all teams on the field; to wave
banners and act on harmony and mutual understanding.
It’s game
day. Are you game day ready?
No comments:
Post a Comment