A Spiritual Posture: Morning and Mourning

 One day this past week, as I was coming across the Commons, the sky was a spectacular array of clouds. Clouds of all kinds, colours, shapes, dimensions. As one turned 360 degrees it was like multiple snapshots of different days and their clouds put together side-by-side. It was beautiful and ominous. It was a full spectrum between a contrast of dense charcoal clouds, accumulating and moving quickly, and wispy feather clouds floating in bright blue sky. Another day, a windy day, in the late afternoon, all of a sudden it was still, the sky was heavy with blue-grey cloud and the sun shone through; golden. There was a full rainbow and the air was momentarily magical, before all was lost in fog.

For those of you who are sky watchers, this year has been one filled with the dancing of spectacularly brilliant Northern Lights. This was also a year of super moons: in August a Blue Moon, in Sept a Super Harvest Moon with a partial lunar eclipse, in Oct a Super hunter’s Moon, and this past Friday a Super Beaver Moon. The Beaver moon is called such because beavers are settling into their lodges for the winter. An alternate name is mourning (as in grieving) moon, as it is the last full moon before the Winter Solstice.

 

As we come to the end of the church year, texts draw our attention to the skies and the heavens. The readings are apocalyptic and speak about the end of time and beginning of time, the coming of Messiah, God’s justice and kindom. Apocalyptic texts are bigger than one life, bigger than one generation, bigger than human history.

We heard this morning from Daniel: Those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever. – Dn. 12: 3

And from Mark: When you hear of wars and rumours of wars, do not be alarmed; this must take place, but the end is still to come. Mk13: 7

Jesus talks with the disciples about signs that will happen within 40 years of his speaking. The group is gathered with a view of the Temple, Jesus predicts the building’s destruction. The Temple has been reconstructed and fortified by Herod the Great. It has been a capital building project for 46 years and is magnificent. An older Temple expanded and newly walled and fortified in Roman ashlar blocks. Two generations of tradespeople have worked on the latest additions to the building. It is unimaginable to the disciples that this strong colossal structure will be destroyed.  

It is not so unfathomable today. News reels are inundated with rubble of crumpled buildings and devastated cityscapes in the aftermath of bombs and missiles. After hundreds of generations of tradespeople and faithful forebears – this many years after Jesus’ conversation with the disciples overlooking the Temple- the words are as relevant and as immediate to us: When you hear of wars and rumours of wars, do not be alarmed; this must take place, but the end is still to come.

A little farther on in chapter 13 of Mark, Mark writes:

But in those days, after that suffering, the sun will be darkened and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers in the heaven will be shaken. Then they will see ‘the Son of Man coming in the clouds’ with great power and glory. Then he will send out the angels, and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven. Mk. 13: 24-27

 

Using images from Prophets like Isaiah, Ezekiel, and Joel, Apocalyptic texts in the Bible -Daniel, Revelation, and this snippet in Mark- go beyond Jesus’ conversation of the destruction of the colossal Temple structure. The images are vast, big, out of human control – apocalypse is played out in the skies with sun, moon, stars, clouds, and winds.

Through November we have been singing, My Lord What a Morning, as our post-communion canticle. The lyrics of the hymn are an expression of apocalyptic texts and appropriate as we contemplate the end of time, beginning of time, and Christ’s coming. Key phrases of the hymn include:

My Lord what a morning … when the stars begin to fall… You will hear the trumpet sound to wake the nations underground … Looking to my God’s right hand when the stars begin to fall.

 

I learned something very interesting about this hymn. As we sing it, we sing my Lord what a morning – morning as in the break of day, when the sun rises. In the mid-1800s there are publications of the hymn that used the word mourning - as in to feel or express great sadness, deep sorrow as a response to loss; an expression of grief. Both words, morning -as in daybreak, and mourning- as in an expression of grief- were common in the hymn’s singing. The use of words makes me think about my reaction to the sky full of different clouds, simultaneously beautiful and ominous. Hymn commentators have suggested how accurate both spellings of morning/mourning are. In Christ’s coming there is new hope dawning and a sadness as the old world falls apart. When God’s promise of justice finally arrives there is both dread and awe.

On the theme of this hymn, African American Theologian and civil rights leader Howard Thurman wrote: “the judgement is personal and cosmic so that even the rocks and the mountains, the stars, and the sea, are all involved in so profound a process.”

 

The redeeming of the world, God’s justice, the making of all things new, the coming of Christ is so profound a process that creation and the universe are involved. I would ask you to try to wrap your heads around that, but it is way beyond us. For today, let us simply reflect on morning hope and mourning tears.

Over the years I have read stories of people imprisoned in deplorable places who found hope by looking out a tiny cell window and watching the freedom of the sky, the movement of clouds, the twinkling of stars, the rhythmic passing of night and day; similar stories of those who are exiled, under house arrest, prisoners of war, displaced, lost – who look to the skies for hope, guidance, assurance.

Considering that apocalyptic texts always take to the skies – I wonder if turning our gaze to the skies might be a spiritual practice for times of war and rumours of war, to calm our natural instincts of being alarmed; to connect us to generations of other stargazers and to bathe us in awe and ground us in Mystery. I have heard members of the congregation talk about the joy of leaving the city lights behind and marveling at the beauty of the stars from the countryside; I have seen your pictures on Facebook of rainbows and Northern Lights; I have heard others talk about cloud formations during the day, and the haze that can accompany full moons. Who of us has not been wowed or awed by something magnificent in the skies?

On those days when you find yourself anxious, overwhelmed, alone, or lost, gaze up. The prophets directed people to the skies before apocalyptic literature, the prophets taking a long view of history. The skies fill humans with an awe and wonder, beyond understanding, further than we can imagine (even with modern telescopes, satellites, and rovers). And as part of the spiritual posture as we turn to the skies, waiting for Christ’s return, may we sing my Lord what a morning – as in dawn of hope; and my Lord what a morning – as in tears for that which comes to an end.

 

Cloud-Mover,

We are coming to the end of the church year.

There have been highs and lows. We have bumped and stretched; accumulated and thinned.

Blow us to open skies; air out our brains, relax our bodies, free our spirits and imaginations. For now, make our billows of thoughts and worries cease.

Blanket us in the cloud of mystery ---to see visions, to dream holy dreams; to awake with inspired innovation, and billowing hope.

Uplifted and cushioned in your power – we let go of ourselves – having faith that by your grace all shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well. Amen.

Called by the Widow: For the Sake of the Truth

 Dear Congregation,

This morning I would like to thank you for allowing and encouraging me to continue to accept invitations to ecumenical and interfaith events. Whether it is Week of Prayer for Christian Unity services, monthly peninsula clergy gatherings, observer at Synods, workshop attendee or retreat leader, relationships have been nurtured.

There are times when I think about the value of ecumenical or interfaith events and wonder if my time might be better spent elsewhere. Every so often I am reminded why this work is important, not just for me, not just for this congregation, not just for the whole church, but for the whole world.

After the US election President Obama wrote: in a country as big and diverse as ours, we won’t always see eye-to-eye on everything. But progress requires us to extend good faith and grace – even to people with whom we deeply disagree. That’s how we’ve come this far, and its how we’ll keep building a country that is more fair and more just, more equal and more free.

Ecumenical and interfaith relationship requires each participant and the community they represent to extend good faith and grace – even to people with whom we deeply disagree. I have attended events where I can not fully participate in the rituals like receiving communion, have restrictions not extended to male colleagues like where I sit and whom I can shake hands with. I have been to places where I feel like a token. And yet, I go, knowing that the invitation itself was pushing the boundaries and was offered in good faith and grace. Accepting an invitation means that I have to learn how to hold my truth, and listen to the truth of others; to be able to articulate my beliefs and values, and live my faith- not pointing fingers or trying to change others, but share where I am and from where I draw hope and life. Accepting ecumenical and interfaith invitations is to show our communities and the wider world, that those who deeply disagree can sit together, share together, and be civil and hospitable with each other.

The first half of this week I lead a retreat for the clergy of the Anglican Diocese of NS and PEI. The retreat explored the scriptures for this coming Advent and how as preachers we can engage with the texts and preach the texts with a renewed sense of wonder and purpose; preaching living Word. Not only am I prepared for Advent I learned much from my Anglican colleagues.

The closing worship included the Nov.3^rd commemoration of an Anglican theologian whom I had never heard of: Richard Hooker. Richard Hooker created a distinctive Anglican theology in the mid-late 1500s, describing Anglican theology as a “threefold cord not quickly broken.” Picture a three-legged stool where balance and strength comes through: scripture, reason, and tradition. Hooker was firmly moderate, defending Anglican theology in the milieu of papist heavy Roman Catholicism and Radical Puritanism. Bishop Sandra in her sermon reminded the Anglican clergy of Hooker’s moderation and civil style of argument, remarkable in the religious atmosphere of his time.

Hooker emphasized what was held in common. He articulated a vision of unity in an age of disunity where a church both catholic and reformed, full of angry raised voices, could both be quieted by the mystery of the Eucharist. In the hospitality of Christ’s table, communion with Christ, there was experienced a communion with others (including and especially those who disagreed with each other).

It is for times like these that I am grateful for scripture, reason, and tradition.

Within Christian tradition there is a unity among us, despite angry raised voices, although interpreting differently- we share scripture, the Lord’s Supper, Christ. We all believe that these things change our lives and how we act. Today the readings remind me that Jewish tradition and Christian tradition have continued to share the stories of the widow, the foreigner, the marginalized, along side the scoffing religious leaders and less than compassionate political authorities. Denominations have various interpretations of the stories, but we have in common the stories. Every time the scripture story of a widow is read, listeners hear the divide in humanity; the separation of relationships. Widow stories always highlight human division: divisions of gender, race, status, economics.

In the stories, the widow, who by many or most in her society categorized her as less than, exemplifies a grace and good faith, a hospitality and courage to live a life that is ‘other.’ In the opening her door to a foreign male, in the making and sharing of bread, in the going to the Temple, in the giving of her only coins – the widow- lives and proclaims God’s kindom. She is not dissuaded by the interference of ‘man’s games.’ She is not thwarted by fear or overwhelmed by other’s cynicism. She is persistent and hopeful. She is gracious and faithful. She bears witness to what can be.

 

How apropos that the stories of two widows greet listeners this Sunday. The Revised Common Lectionary is used across mainline denominations, throughout North America and around the world. Millions of Christians are simultaneously confronted by human disparity and reminded who we are called to be by the story of widows. Whether worshipping in a Lutheran Church in the Palestinian city of Ramalla, the Roman Catholic Basilica in Amsterdam, an Episcopal cathedral in the United States, listeners are invited to follow the example of the widow – to exemplify grace and good faith, a hospitality and courage to live a life that is ‘other.’

We are called to not be dissuaded by the interference of ‘man’s game,’ to not be thwarted by fear or overwhelmed by other’s cynicism. We are called to be persistent and hopeful, to bear witness to what can be.

 

We accept God’s call and gather strength to bear witness to what can be, with the appointment prayer from the Anglican Book of Common Prayer for the commemoration of Richard Hooker:

O God of truth and peace, you raised up your servant Richard Hooker in a day of bitter controversy to defend with sound reasoning and great charity the catholic and reformed religion: Grant that we may maintain that middle way, not as a compromise for the sake of peace, but as a comprehension for the sake of the truth; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

 

Unbound: See I am Making All Things New

 When was the last time you saw a roadside memorial or put flowers or teddy bear at a pop-up memorial?

After the death of a young woman at the Halifax Walmart, it didn’t take long for a public memorial to form. In the parking lot around a light standard there are flowers, and teddy bears, and cards. Placed there by people from the wider community, not knowing the girl, but needing to do something with the emotions being felt.  

 

When was the last time you took yourself on a date?

Every year, on the same day, I take myself out or do something special for my non-birthday. A non-birthday is any day but, your actual birthday. I have chosen a date that I celebrate my non-birthday. I celebrate me. I go on a date with myself.

 

When was the last time you asked your friends to talk about you?

This past week I saw an episode of Blue Bloods. The main characters are in one family, a family that gets together for Sunday dinner. At dinner the grandfather shares a story about a funeral he attended for a friend. Lots of nice things were said about the friend, but he felt sad afterward because his friend didn’t get to hear all that was said. So, the grandfather asked those gathered around the table to participate in a ‘living wake.’ Everyone around the table shared what they would say if they were at grandpa’s wake right then.

 

Welcoming disquieted emotions. Dating yourself. And living wakes.

 

For the past week I have been thinking about grief and sadness, considering those who have lost loved ones this year, and those living in amplified scenarios of violence, war, climate events, and restrictive regimes. What words of good news can be preached into hearts wrapped in grief and spirits saturated in sadness?

 

In my role as pastor, I have stood by, sat with, accompanied, prayed for, prayed with, guided, supported, wanted to support, those who are grieving, those who carry sadness from all kinds of loss. My professional opinion is that grief and sadness are always with us, each of us. Just as connection and happiness are always with us, each of us. In a manner of speaking, we share a dinner table, where over the course of the meal some speak more or louder than others. Some days sadness gets the floor, other times connection, and so on. What I have learned from listening to people and participating in the grief journeys of others is that people have unrealistic expectations, are often swallowed up by fear, and people are not compassionate with themselves. Unrealistic expectations. How do we get it into our heads that grief is a set of stages that fall in sequential order and can be ticked off once complete? How do we come to believe that life will settle out and resemble what it used to be and go back to normal?

Swallowed by fear. Why are we so afraid of crying in public? Why do we feel guilty for what the ifs or what we should/could have done? Why do we feel shame that others will find out we are not coping, or that we are grieving different or too slow? Why do we feel a need to keep busy so we don’t feel emotions or lack the thereof? Why do we dread future days and how we will be, when those days aren’t even here?

Not compassionate with ourselves. Where does that feeling of having to do something come from? Where did we get the idea that we just need to be stronger or pull ourselves together? Where did we loss compassion for ourselves and not allow ourselves a stay in bed day, or the permission to be sad?

 

If I was to write a book about the journey of grief it would have three sections: Welcoming disquieted emotions, dating yourself, and living wakes.

In my ponderings, two phrases specifically spoke to me from this morning’s scriptures:

Speaking to the mourners at the tomb of Lazarus. Jesus said to them, Unbind him, and let him go. Jn 11: 44

In the summation of Revelation, the author has God say, See, I am making all things new. Rev 21.

Unbind him and let him go. See, I am making all things new.

 

Unbind him and let him go – I picture the scene of Jesus telling those around a risen Lazarus to unbind him. Lazarus wrapped in earth covered cloth, with a smell of decay. The words are for the mourners, not for Lazarus. And I wonder if the words are more than just for that moment. ‘Unbind him.’ It is not long into the future when Jesus dies, and the women find the tomb empty. What do the disciples do? They go and hide in an upper room behind locked doors, in a grief bound by fear.  Binding themselves in a way: acting from fear they hide, put up barriers, close themselves off, and bind Jesus, relocating him back to the world of the dead. In time the disciples open the door. Opening themselves they are whelmed by the spirit. Casting off fear, they unbind themselves and in this unbinding Jesus is also unbound, set free as they share the Good News of his death and resurrection.

Unbind him and let him go –

When is the last time you unbound yourself and let yourself go?

Welcoming disquieted emotions. Dating yourself.  A living wake.

Jesus’ words offer the grieving permission to grieve, and the words commend a continued posture of walking with grief, or in other words building a grief muscle. Last week I spoke about setting one’s shoulders to face the world with a posture of Grace. The posture of grace has many facets, one being a release from bondage – being set free.

 

Unbind him and let him go -

Welcome disquieted emotions. This unbinding is about giving permission to yourself to take the time to feel. Rather than staying busy and putting flowers on a pop-up memorial - acting, this posture of walking with grief has one stop, and give time and quiet space for one’s grief wrapped heart and sad-saturated spirit to suffer through the emotions. To be unbound, grief and sadness need time and a quieting space.

Disquieted emotions are good for it means you are concerned, engaged, and care for people and are aware of the events happening in the wider world. It is good to be sad, it means you have loved deeply that which has been lost. It is good to be sad, it means you lived outside of fear. It is good to be sad, it means that you were full of hopes and dreams and life.

 

Unbind him and let him go – see I am making all things new.

Date yourself. This unbinding is about letting go of other’s expectations on you, dropping the expectations you have placed on yourself, honouring and letting go of your identity connected with who or that which you have lost, and discovering who you are becoming. This posture of walking with grief sets one’s shoulders to nurture hopes, recreate dreams, and embrace new purpose and meaning for life.

I shared the non-birthday date story with you because I have found that many people are afraid to be by themself, afraid to find out what lies inside, afraid that they will find that they are not enough. To unbind oneself from this fear is to walk through the shadow of the valley of death and grief. And rest assured, you are enough. You are enough and Christ -risen Jesus- is there in the shadow waiting. Christ with God’s words will say, see I am making all things new. You are my beloved in you I am well pleased. Let your light so shine. In Christ you are set free. You are free indeed.

 

See I am making all things new –

Living wakes. This posture of grace is about hearing in the now, from those who love and know you the best, that you are enough, you are free, that Christ has set you free. Holding a living wake reminds us that we matter, that our lives have affected the lives of those around us. It shares with loved ones that we are unbound, that it is normal to dance with grief, sadness, connection, and happiness. It is okay to talk about death. Living wakes allow us to be unbound and share with others that grief is always present at the table and in the disquieted emotions that arise, we have settled deep within us a confidence and hope in Christ, see I am making all things new.

 

 

O Lord, support us all the day long of this troubled life, until the shadows lengthen and the evening comes and the busy world is hushed, the fever of life is over, and our work is done. Then, in your mercy, grant us a safe lodging, and a holy rest, and peace at the last, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. – ELW pg 325

Reformation: The Posture of Grace

 An Elder tells a story of four frogs. Frog, Frog, Frog, and Frog sit side by side on a log. Before them is an expanse of water. One frog makes a decision to jump off the log. How many frogs are on the log? … Four.

Three green frogs and one orange frog. The orange frog has not yet jumped off the log, Frog has only made the decision to jump off. The frog changed from green to orange when deciding to be open to change. This is being open to Creator. The decision to change spots changed everything. That orange frog can not go back to being green. Even if a few days down the road the orange frog wakes up cranky and wants to go back to being a green frog on a log, it can not return to that version of itself.

 

Martin Luther’s story mirrors that of the orange frog. Monk, Monk, Monk, and Monk sit side by side on a pew. Before them is the book of Romans. Luther makes a decision to ask a question.

In that decision Luther is changed, open to hearing the Word. Luther can not go back to the monk he was before asking the question. The decision changed him. Once pondering Romans and hearing the perspective of grace, being justified by God’s grace, how does one return to not seeing it on the printed page; they don’t.

 

Reformation is a re-forming. Although an historic movement of the 1500s, reformation has been and is continual. For over 500 years, Lutheran Christians have continued to emphasize and ponder God’s grace; and each time the church does, or we do, there is change.

 

This morning when we decided to come to church, we changed, we opened ourselves to hear the Word.

During your time in this space, you hear the Word, you participate in a community experience, you have thoughts, you decide to come for communion, you choose to sing and pray… every decision changes you because it opens you to something bigger than yourself, to more options, to a new experience, to meeting God, hearing Creator. When you leave this space, you are different than when you arrived. You can not go back to the person you were before you decided to come to church.

 

How many of you had a grandmother, or teacher, maybe a parent, who repeatedly told you to stop slouching, sit up straight, shoulders back, head up? When I was young, I was often reminded to correct my posture. I can still hear the words when I catch myself not standing up straight. Paul wrote the words, they are now justified by his grace as a gift. Justified by grace as a gift, were words that repeatedly rang in Luther’s ears. The words changed him. The words changed his posture.

 

On this Reformation Sunday you are invited to ponder the posture of grace.

An American theologian, Cindy S. Lee, writes about de-Westernizing spiritual formation. Traditionally spiritual formation included spiritual practices, disciplines like prayer, fasting, reading the Bible, activities designed to draw an individual closer to God. Lee suggests that spiritual practices are ‘Western’ in orientation, as they are development focused, getting better at something, achievement based, seen as a direct path to a pre-set goal. Her writing offers a different perspective. She orients spiritual formation through the lens of postures. Postures are experience based. Postures do not have an end point or final goal. Postures are a way of being. Postures are integrated learnings and wisdom. Postures are attitudes and ways of facing the world.

 

Have you had the experience of ‘setting your shoulders?’ A breathing in, shoulders up back and down, a breathing out  - a collecting of yourself, before facing a task at hand? Perhaps a job interview, a public speaking engagement, walking into a hospital room of a dying friend. That experience is setting a posture to help you face and live through what is before you.

 

On this Reformation Sunday you are invited to ponder the posture of grace.

We are the orange frog from the Elder’s story with a decision to embrace a posture of grace – this attitude opens us to the expectation of hearing, seeing, smelling, tasting; finding and experiencing grace throughout our day; in the people we meet, the places we go, encounters of every kind. We open ourselves to God’s grace.

Lutheran theologian, Joseph Sittler wrote about the occasions of grace, pointing readers to the plethora of phrases in the Gospels: and suddenly…along the way…now it happened… immediately. The Gospels express and proclaim an understanding of surprise, the might-not-have-seen, the indeterminable quality of God’s grace. Rather than a state or attribute of God, “grace is understood as the energy of love, having its origin in the freedom of God who finds “occasions” for the bestowal of that love, not in the regularities of law, but in and by the instant and uncalculated response to man in the matrix of the historical madness of human cussedness and glory, that is according to the dynamics of gospel, then the “occasion” of grace must be thought of in fresh ways. The common life is the “happening-place” of it, and man as man in nature and in history supplies its normal occasions.”pg155-6 (Evocations of Grace)

When we parse Sittler’s words, the surprise is that Grace requires us. Occasions for God’s love to be given happen in human life. Humans are the receivers. God’s unconditional love – the birth of Jesus, the death of Jesus – is Grace Incarnate. Among us. For us.

 

The Posture of grace is one that is grace upon grace, an ever-deeper dwelling of God’s presence. The more we experience grace our posture changes. When we feel forgiven, we raise our heads. When we feel like we belong, we stand taller. When we experience compassion and mercy, we no longer slouch. When we feel God’s love, our posture shows confidence.

And this posture of grace, leads to a Posture of grace that sets our shoulders towards the world; a posture that pours the same grace -forgiveness, belonging, compassion, mercy, love- back into the world.

 

My posture of grace is gifted out as it is preached and taught; prayed; painted and written; crafted and gardened; smiled and hugged. I have been told that I have a positive attitude, optimistic, wear rose coloured glasses, but no I do not; today I set my shoulders to boldly share the truth – it is not positivity or optimism that is overflowing. I continually receive and give something that is far more profound and mysterious  - I’ve chosen a posture of grace.

Not only when I decide to come to church on Sunday morning, but every step from the first one getting out of bed I set my posture - Grace. I decide to be open to grace. I expect grace everywhere. I experience grace everywhere. I share grace everywhere.

 

I like the words of American author and activist Anne Lamott, words that draw us back to the story of the orange frog: I do not at all understand the mystery of grace – only that it meets us where we are but does not leave us where it found us. Amen to that.

 

And as we begin each worship service, with a blessing to adjust our posture, to a posture of grace upon grace – so we end the sermon:

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

To Sit Beside Jesus

 My household had ten people at Thanksgiving dinner. As I set the table, I was particular about where I put the extra chairs, imagining where people would sit. I considered peoples’ needs: a sometimes shy 8 year old, people with hearing aids, those who like to talk, those who don’t, one who is most comfortable beside someone they know well, those who need access to get to the kitchen. It takes a little bit of planning to have a well-balanced gathering around the Thanksgiving dinner table.

This image sat with me as I thought about the reading from Mark.

James and John want to sit beside Jesus.

 

Let’s imagine the story giving the disciples the benefit of the doubt – James and John simply want to sit beside Jesus. Have you ever been going somewhere with a group of people, and you hope that you get seated beside a certain person, or you pray not to get stuck beside so-and-so? Have you attended a social event, a party, where you are attracted to having conversations with some people and avoid others as much as possible?

 

Let’s imagine the story giving the disciples the benefit of the doubt – James and John want to sit beside Jesus.

The beginning of the chapter tells us that Jesus and the disciples, that is 13 men, are on the road to Jerusalem. These 13 men have been a group, teacher and disciples, for 3 years. I am sure that they did not all get along. In fact, some of them may not even have liked each other. There are enough clues in the Gospels to know that the disciples were from various backgrounds, with diverse understandings of Messiah, and have a range of opinions on Roman occupation and how to address this. Let’s just say the disciples tolerated each other for Jesus’ sake.

 

Let’s give the disciples the benefit of the doubt – James and John want to sit beside Jesus because they know something about Jesus. I believe the disciples know a whole lot more than we give them credit for.

Let’s imagine that James and John are not asking to sit beside Jesus -at Jesus’ right or left hand- for reasons of status or ego, or to be chief officers in the Messiah’s earthly court in Jerusalem. Let’s imagine that to sit beside Jesus in glory, was seen not as of this world and realms of ruling, but rather the disciples had an inclining that Jesus was talking about the coming of God’s kindom, spiritual realms, and eternal life. The 10^th chapter of Mark goes on about conversations on the street  - ‘what must I do to inherit eternal life?’ Jesus talks about “how hard it will be for the those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!’ Jesus talks about the age to come and the turning around of circumstances – reward- for those who spread good news, where first become last and last first. Then we get the story of James and John asking to sit beside Jesus. They understand in part, that Jesus is talking God’s vision, larger than their one life. Oh course, they don’t specifically know that Jesus is going to die. And certainly not the surprise of resurrection.

But let’s get real, they know death is a possibility. John the Baptist has been beheaded for what he said and did. There are those who are continually trying to trap Jesus into a fight, to insight anger from Roman authorities. Jesus has been chased out of towns. His talking with the marginalized and foreigner, eating with them, touching them or them touching him are all disruptive radical actions. Jesus draws large crowds, preaching an overthrowing of human ways – a redistribution of wealth, a change of power and authority. The disciples know that it is risky to hang around with Jesus. Jesus’ protest of the authorities in his time through word and deed is anything but quiet. Of course, the disciples know that sitting with Jesus is dangerous.

 

Let’s give the disciples the benefit of the doubt. James and John want to sit beside Jesus, to reserve their seats, to make a statement that they have chosen to sit beside Jesus, believing beyond a shadow of a doubt that Jesus is bringing change, that God has heard the cries of the people and is about to fulfill God’s promises.

 

This weekend the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Halifax-Yarmouth hosted a Eucharistic Congress, with the theme: ‘Communion to Heal the World.’ A Eucharist Congress is a gathering of Catholics to reflect on unity via the communion meal, to reaffirm and re-emphasize the source of faith, and to focus on the heart of the matter Jesus Christ. As part of the event, a 5km procession was walked between the church on Mumford Rd. and the Basilica downtown. The purpose was in a sense – to sit beside Jesus- the procession was a bold witness of faith, proclaiming to the world Christ is alive. The act of procession made a statement by the participants, we have chosen to sit beside Jesus, believing beyond a shadow of a doubt that Jesus brings change, that God has heard the cries of the people and has and is fulfilling God’s promises.

 

Let’s ask ourselves, do we have the courage of James and John, to not only ask, but actually sit beside Jesus? Are we prepared to reserve our seats, to make a statement that we have chosen to sit beside Jesus, believing beyond a shadow of a doubt that Jesus is bringing change, that God has heard the cries of the people and is fulfilling God’s promises.

Every week we come and participate in Eucharist – in Holy Communion- Do you realize that by participating we are putting ourselves in a hot seat? When we participate in Communion, we sit with Jesus at the table. Jesus invites us to sit beside him at the table and share his body and blood; this sitting beside Jesus changes us for we are rubbing elbows with the incarnate Word. The Word that from the beginning has breathed God’s breath into every creature and atom of creation. As we eat at Jesus’ table, Christ’s presence rises to resurrect in us a creative grace that through the Spirit works in us to overflow into the world. Re-unified with God, Christ sits within, and we can do no other than proclaim Christ is alive!

 

Let’s ask ourselves, do we have the courage to sit beside Jesus?

The Gospels recount many instances of Jesus and who he chose to sit beside, and in many of the stories the disciples question Jesus’ choices. Not so sure themselves that they wanted to sit beside those Jesus’ invited: the marginalized and the nobodies of the time, described as widows, orphans, women, children, foreigners, Gentiles, lepers, the demon possessed, sinners. If we chose to sit with Jesus, we also sit with those whom Jesus has invited.

If we eat with Jesus at Jesus’ table, it means that we eat with the marginalized, convicted through our union with God, and Christ sitting within, we eat at a thanksgiving table that is not as nicely curated and balanced as my Thanksgiving dinner table was. When we ask to sit beside Jesus, we are choosing to sit- inviting ourselves to sit- in dangerous and risky places, meaning uncomfortable, maybe unpalatable, and certainly outside of our regular practices. We will be sitting with the least favourable persons we can imagine. When we sit beside Jesus, we will know in our hearts and by the reaction (probably unfavourable) of society around us, that we are in Christ’s presence.

To actively sit beside Jesus –

 We sit in tent encampments, we sit in prisons, we sit beside foreigners, we choose to invite the hungry to our tables and into our homes, we protest injustice with word and deed; we choose to invite others to come, sit with us in church, and to participate in God’s meal. We embrace that sitting with Jesus will be seen as disruptive radical action because we are about sitting in the heart of Christ- where there is a reversal of human ways, a redistribution of wealth, a change of power and authority. To sit in Christ is to be recreated, to experience resurrection from the ashes of humanity to all humanity and creation sitting beside Jesus – for the fulfilment and wholeness of God’s promises; a the healing of the whole world.

Swarming Locusts and Vats Full of New Wine

 

Every week I send the lector the scripture passages, so they know what they are reading on Sunday. This week I loved Bob’s response: “Got it. Swarming locusts and vats full of new wine!” Doesn’t this describe life? Since the beginning, there have been the ups and downs of devastation and abundance that are out of human control. These things happen and indiscriminately affect those in their path.

To this, the prophet Joel speaks to the people, to us, repeating the words:

Do not be afraid. Be glad and rejoice. -Joel 2: 21

 

Do not be afraid – easier said than done –

In the wake of double hurricanes hitting the Floridian coast.

In the continued ravaging of war in Ukraine.

In the ever-escalating war in the Middle East.

In the rise of antisemitism and Islamophobia.

In the stress of systems, institutions, and government.

In the increase of marginalized and displaced persons. …

Do not be afraid.

 

Be glad and rejoice – it is Thanksgiving Sunday-

For the beauty in the colours of autumn leaves.

For the nourishment of food and water.

For the blessing of fellowship and community.

For the comforts of home and shelter.

For the relative safety and peace across the country.

For the allowance to gather to pray and worship God.

Be glad and rejoice.

 

I have to admit there were a number of times this past week, when I realized I had tears in my eyes. I was overwhelmed by things from the realm of swarming locusts, that is things that brought worry, fear, sadness, hopelessness, no control; hurricanes, war, dirty politics, and the like. And then there were other moments where I was overwhelmed by things from the vats full of wine, that is something that brought life, wonder, joy, hope, love: rainbows, the Northern Lights, hearing miracle stories, the giving of gifts, the sharing of a meal.

 

The tears in my eyes, started last Sunday, from being overwhelmed by both the swarming locusts and the vats full of new wine, at the same time!

The Evangelical Lutheran Church of Jordan and the Holy Land celebrated their Thanksgiving festival last Sunday and posted pictures on their Facebook page from their six congregations.

 

The churches each had a display of food items brought to be shared and distributed to those in need: rice, olive oil, and fresh produce. Children are seen at the front for a kid’s corner. There are readers and preachers.

The picture that touches me the most is a pastor, behind an altar which is decorated with bananas, grapes, tomatoes, eggplant, and cabbage. The pastor is presiding at communion and is holding a large loaf of bread. There is a seriousness about him, carrying the weight of a people who are scared, hungry, and in an uncontrollable situation, and, yet, the pastor’s face has a do not be afraid, be glad and rejoice depth to it.

The ELCJHL page says:

Despite the suffering of the last year and the current situation in the Holy Land, congregations came together this weekend to give thanks to God for all he provides. As the season of many important harvests begin we pray that the coming year will be one of abundance and peace.  -FB page ELCJHL Oct. 6, 2024

 

Coming together to give thanks to God and to pray for a year of abundance and peace. The ELCJHL shares this recipe for living the prophet Joel’s words do not be afraid, be glad and rejoice. Although not in the same extreme of circumstances, we understand the benefits of coming together to give thanks to God and to pray. We fear less, have more gladness, and feel like rejoicing (have gratitude) because we are engaged in faith community.

 

I often find that when I am overwhelmed phrases from hymns come to my mind; I might even catch myself singing them in a whisper. This week I had two phrases that I continually prayed, and eventually they melded together into a mantra like practice that satisfied my spirit’s need for prayers for the swarming locusts and praise for vats full of new wine; holding both kinds of prayers in tension, and embracing all together.

Today, I share this prayer with you as a living practice of the words of the prophet Joel, do not be afraid. Be glad and rejoice.

The two hymn lines are:

For the troubles and the suffering world and For the beauty of the earth.

Both tunes are very different and between them it takes a moment for the brain to remember the other tune. There is a rhythm that is created that overwhelms me more than the locusts and the wine. I enter into a place where abundance and peace seem quite possible no matter what is going on in the world. I pray you find the practice as overwhelming.

I will start. Please join in when you are ready. Note there is a pause to breathe and birth the next tune. We will close out the sermon praying.

 

For the troubles and the suffering world. Breathe. For the beauty of the earth. Breathe.

  …….repeat until…

...

Divorced from the Foundation of Creation

 

God. 

God is relationship.                                                                                                                

God in the act of breathing life created relationships.

God is in relationship with the void.

God is in relationship with water.

God is in relationship with earth.

God is in relationship with Tree and Plant.

God is in relationship with every wild animal, with every creeping thing.

God is in relationship with every animal of the field, with every bird of the air, with every living creature.

God is in relationship with man.

God is in relationship with woman.

 

Scriptures on this 20^th week after Pentecost have us considering relationship. The first and second chapters of Genesis present us with two different versions of the creation story. One is oriented from God’s perspective and God’s work through seven days, highlighting each day of creation in relationship to the day before. The story tells of water before grasses, grasses before animals, because one needs the other for its survival. The second story in chapter 2 is focused from the perspective of man where everything was created for man’s use: the garden, every fruit tree (save one), gold, precious stones, water of great rivers named by man, used by man, and ends with the creation of woman, man’s partner.

By the way I opened the sermon, you can tell which story I have a better relationship with. I understand relationship as crafted in the first story, where relationship starts with God, and God’s relationship with each creation. You have heard me preach many times on the theme of relationship. Relationship with God, with each other, and with creation --- for me this is the Law and the Gospel, as scripture speaks repeatedly, love God and love your neighbour. When humans get this relationship with God and each other in order, all of creation breathes easy. When humans fail in relationships creation groans. When humans get relation with God and each other in order, relationships will be whole. Creation will be whole, as in the beginning when God saw that it was good.

 

Now the Pharisees who approach Jesus in the Gospel of Mark, know the creation stories from Genesis, and the Law from Exodus and Deuteronomy with the commandments about relationship with God and commandments related to their relationships with people and animals. They come to Jesus to ask specifically about one kind of relationship, that of husband and wife, and push Jesus for his teaching on divorce.

The Pharisees who approach Jesus are cunning. They are not as interested in the answer, as they are in tripping Jesus up. This is evident when some of the Pharisees later approach Jesus asking to whom they should pay taxes, to Caesar or God? Here divorce was on their minds, for John the Baptist had recently been beheaded because he had angered Roman authorities by speaking out against the divorce of Philip and Herodias, so that Herodias could marry Herod. Tripping Jesus up would make for a bad relationship between Jesus and the Roman officials, the hope being that ‘the Jesus problem’ would disappear at the hands of angry Roman authorities.

Rev. Philip Ruge-Jones, Grace Lutheran, in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, wrote commentary that suggests a deeper meaning, where the author of the Gospel compared the harm done by a husband divorcing his wife, as echoing the regular violence of Rome towards the people of the occupied area. Oh course, in this moment that went above the heads of those asking the question. Stuck in the mechanics of human transaction, their distaste for Jesus, they wait to hear Jesus’ words regarding the Law, a Law where divorce was initiated only by men. Wives, at this time, were at their husband’s mercy. Divorce meant being cast away. Everything was lost: the women was divorced of security, housing, children, family, future marriage, community, safety – for women a divorce was a living death sentence.

But Jesus, in the continuation of the story, is surrounded by people bringing their children to have Jesus lay hands on them. In Mark’s Gospel, being touched, the laying on of hands, is an act that brings healing and wholeness. Jesus welcomes the children – the lowest of the low--- and blesses them, affirming that to receive the kindom of God one must be as a child --- to them belongs the kindom. And in the action of welcoming and blessing the lowest human according to human standard, Jesus also welcomes the women who are cast out and all who are marginalized, those divorced by society.

Jesus’ answer to the Pharisees does not upset Roman authorities. The answer upsets the Pharisees. Jesus takes issue with the relationship the supposed righteous have with Law, as opposed to, the relationship they have with the actual people around them. Jesus takes issue with the relationship religious leaders have with the Law, as compared to their relationship with God.

 

The Gospel is not relegated to the past. Questions about divorce, in fact in some Church denominations, rules about divorce have affected many. But the conversation is bigger that spouses. Jesus’ in answering the question returns attention to creation, mentioning one part of the story brings to life the whole story. Jesus points back to God creating relationship.

When was the last time you did a relationship audit? When has the church, this congregation, done a relationship audit?

We are all divorced. We are all in relationships that are broken, separated, estranged, or tenuous.

We are divorced by never having started relationships.

We are divorced.

Divorced from the vulnerable and marginalized.

Divorced from community.

Divorced from neighbours.

Divorced from friends.

Divorced from family members.

Divorced from children.

Divorced from creatures (mammal, bird, fish, insect).

Divorced from Mother Earth.

Divorced from God.

Long ago, reads the letter of Hebrews, God spoke to our ancestors in many and various ways by the prophets, but in these last days God has spoken to us by a Son, whom God appointed heir of all things, through whom God also created the worlds. The Son is the reflection of God’s glory and the exact imprint of God’s very being, and he sustains all things by his powerful word.

God continually and repeatedly from the time of creation pursued and persisted in tending and furthering relationship. God became incarnate in Jesus, suffering and dying, not because God needed a sacrifice, but to show human beings to what extravagant lengths God will go to unconditionally love creation ---

And so, in relationship with God, as children of God, loved unconditionally--- to what extravagant lengths will you, will we, as a community of faith go to tend our relationships and move from divorce to partnership? Relationship is the foundation of God’s creation, woven into the very breath we breathe; shared breath, shared life. Today experiencing relationship in this place, hearing the Gospel, fed by God’s grace, we are new creations, in better relationship with God and each other than when we arrived. Let us go into the world whole, living relationally and in each footstep plant a furthering of God’s relational kindom. 

For the healing of the world. Amen.  

Asters: Persistent in Apocalyptic Times

 

The Michaelmas Daisy, aka a richly dressed dainty petaled flower with a golden eye.

Small in size it is wise, for it grows when others die;

The last pollen of the season, tasty feast for bees;

It brings the viewer to their knees,

A bevy of purple, a myriad of bloom, splendent abreast the goldenrod; Living reciprocity.

Manifesting virtues… Love, wisdom, faith, colour… a natural star.

 

September 29^th is Michaelmas, the Feast of St. Michael and All Angels. The story is Archangel Michael at the height of a cosmic and epic confrontation between the forces of good and the forces of evil. It is a cinematographer’s bounty of vast scenes of war and conflict, fire and smoke, dragons and winged beings, armies traversing the heavens and the earth. It is a time of woe and fear.

 

Canada’s ambassador to the United Nations, Bob Rae was interviewed on CBC radio during this past week.

Simply put, he said, “It’s a very tough time in the world.” We know, we have seen or heard the news of the rise of aggression and armed conflict throughout the world; scenes of war and conflict, fire and smoke, armies traversing high and low, a time of woe and fear. A time wherein conflict ravaged areas exponentially expand, devouring cities and peoples, destroying nations.  

Yet Ambassador Rae, did not leave the interview with listeners mired in the ‘tough times,’ he highlighted the work that the United Nations has and is accomplishing. To begin, the dragons of the world, are still at the table talking. Rae talked about the UN work reducing and forgiving debt, work in development particularly in impoverished areas, and the great work – teamwork- combatting gang presence and violence in Haiti. Optimistic despite the suffering and the troubles of the world, Rae shared what I call his star virtue for moving forward in troubled times; we need to remain PERSISTENT.

 

The apocalyptic prophet Daniel lived at a time, when simply put, “it was a very tough time in the world.”

Ancient Near East histories before Daniel’s time recorded war after war and recounted a land full of gods, where each nation ascribed to a god. The Assyrian conquest as record in 2 Kings asks if any nation’s god could deliver the nation from the strong hand of Assyria. There was an understanding that the gods participated in war, comprising of cosmic and epic confrontations between them and mirroring their battles in earthly realms. By Daniel’s time, it was no longer gods who waged war, but princes, who were powerful patron angels. Wars played out between nations’ patron angels and it affected people on the earth.

Chapter 10 of Daniel records the Persian period and the conquest of the kings who followed the reign of Cyrus, King of Persia. Chapter 11 accurately records Hellenistic history, including in verse 11 reference to Alexander the Great. This part of Daniel was written before 163 BCE and the death of Antiochus IV which was prophesied as the prelude to the end of the world.

The apocalyptic text of Daniel was written to a people in the path of dragons. In a time of great oppression, revolt, riots, and civil war. A time where high priests were removed, Jewish religion was outlawed and Zeus, along with the sacrificing of pigs, was added to the Temple in Jerusalem.

Optimistic despite the suffering and the trouble of the world, Daniel shared hope:

At that time Michael, the great prince…shall rise. … at that time your people shall be delivered, everyone who is found written in the book. Many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. Those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever. (Dan. 12:1-3)

 

This text is the first writing of resurrection in the Bible and a reference to the ‘book of life.’ Many, not all, rise; some rise to everlasting life and some, to eternal contempt. Commentaries point out that only the very good and the very bad are raised; not everyone. There is an additional reflection that the wise will shine like stars, implying that the person is a companion of the angels.

At the time of the writing of Daniel his listeners would have been familiar with Greek legends. One legend was a story espousing beauty amidst the common where the ‘Starry Maid,’ Astraea, cried when she noticed there were no stars upon the earth. Her tears fell to the earth and sprouted as flowers that looked like stars, the autumn flower we know as asters.

 

250 years after Daniel, the apocalyptic writer of Revelation repurposed the language and images from the book of Daniel to speak to some in the Jewish Diaspora (people who had fled the First Jewish Revolt when the Temple in Jerusalem was destroyed) and congregated with others in the Seven Churches of Asia Minor; people who were heavily persecuted under the ruthless cruel tyrannical reign of Roman Emperor Domitian.

A war broke out in heaven; Michael and his angels fought against the dragon. The dragon and his angels fought back but were defeated, and there was no longer place for them in heaven. The great dragon was thrown down.

The outcome of the war in heaven was the reason for the persecution and oppression of believers on earth, and yet, the optimism in the text is a voice that proclaimed,

Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Messiah, for the accuser of our comrades has been thrown down (Rev. 12: 10)

 

Apocalyptic texts are arrangements of extremes layered upon each other, written when, “it’s a very tough time in the world.” The texts are filled with utopian language of the promise of hope amidst the chaos of suffering and oppression, war and conflict, and judgement that separates the righteous and the wicked. Within the apocalyptic imagery there is hope for Restoration.  

 

Apocalyptic texts were forefront in my mind when CBC radio interviewed philosopher Todd May talking about his book, “Should We Go Extinct? A Philosophical Dilemma for Our Unbearable Times.” In an apocalyptic sort of way, he asks human beings to face this question.  

May posits that humans have lots to offer, but humans also cause lots of destruction. How does the scale of value balance out? While contributing value to the world by producing and infusing large degrees of happiness, meaningfulness, and creating and appreciating art/science/beauty and the richness of planet; while having vision for a future; and birthing culture and gratitude, humans generate and devise egregious amounts of cruelty, suffering, and devastation (in his opinion one need only consider factory farming and deforestation to get the point). Does human contribution of good into the world balance the moral scale of evil perpetrated by humans? His apocalyptic coloured philosophy ends with the hope of focused minds that open us up to possibilities, a willingness to try to make human existence more justifiable. The stars will be those who embrace change and generate virtue while living in and addressing the sufferings and struggles of the world.

 

Apocalyptic texts resonate when the world is …well… like it is now. Peril and forces beyond our control have humans searching for something: explanations, justifications, a long view that this shall pass; and glimpses of words, actions, or stories that kindle hope. Humans open their understanding to the possibilities of that which we do not see: heaven and hell, angels and demons, cosmic chaos and Creator; and the possibility of contributing value to a world yet to be.

The writer of Daniel, the author of Revelation, Ambassador Rae, Todd May describe what was, is, and is yet to be.  All commend us to be Persistent (wise) – meaning engaged in the struggle to balance out fear and peril with infusions of hope, appreciation, beauty, value, and at all times protesting the forces that defy God, the devil, and all empty promises.

In Daniel the fullness of promise is that: Those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever. (Dan.12: 3)

 

In the end

God’s tears shed in response to conflict in the realm of Angels,

in protest to the struggles and the suffering of the world,

Tears fallen through the heavens to the earth, stars.

Asters of purple Wisdom, manifesting virtues, Love and faith

Shining in apocalyptic brightness,

May we, bathed in God’s tears, be wise and lead many to righteousness.

Persistent -living reciprocity- Stars forever and ever …. Purple asters.