Euodia and Syntyche and the Culture
“Do it in this way: I urge Euodia and I urge Syntyche to be of the same mind, to come to an agreement with each other in Christ.” — Philippians 4:2
I am sure you all know the co-founder of Apple Computers, Steve Jobs, died this week. His was a classic American success story. The company he helped start had its first base of operations in his parent’s garage and money was borrowed from relatives to get it going. Apple is now worth over $350 billion— that’s billion with a ‘B.’
Edwin Catmull, computer scientist and co-founder of Pixar, the animated film production company Jobs helped become a giant in the motion picture industry, quoted Jobs as saying this: “You need a lot more than vision— you need stubbornness, tenacity, belief and patience to stay the course.” Indeed and as that quote might indicate, it has often been reported Jobs was one of those rare people who was both demanding, a perfectionist— difficult to work for— and beloved by those who worked for him.
The reports written this week about his life say he was— among other things— an entrepreneur, an inventor, a leader of industries, in fact several industries— music, motion pictures, computers— a CEO, an innovator in marketing and in advertising. Some even claim he was a prophet.
In different ways all these assessments are true. I want to suggest Jobs also was a keen observer of the culture. Hence, he understood how the culture in which we live influences people. He also understood most people don’t realize they are influenced by their culture. Thereby, my claim is he understood that sometimes culture, itself, stands in the way of not just progress but fairness, even justice.
You see, when you look at the names of the products for which Jobs is most famous, what do you find? “-i-”— i-pod, i-mac, i-tunes, i-pad, i-touch, i-phone. In just using those names it’s clear Jobs understood a basic human desire which transcends culture: none of us want to be controlled by the culture. But, to be blunt, it’s likely most of us are controlled by the culture. We don’t want to be but we are. And we don’t even recognize that we are. (Slight pause.) More on that in a bit.
Joan Chittister is a Catholic Benedictine nun, a social activist and a well known author. In just the last 4 years she has published 10 books. Like many writers these days, she maintains a blog. This week she had blog post titled A Too Modern Fairy Tale. It addressed how any culture operates.
“Every culture, including ours,” she said, “raises its children on fairy tales— archetypes of social relationships.... It is in fairy tales we learn our place in life at a very early age.”
“Social roles, human ideals are clearly defined. Human types and public values emerge in vivid colors— ogres... witches,... princes, authority... obedience are painted in broad, bright strokes.” In many fairy tales, little girls learn the proper roles of women in society.
In Cinderella, for instance, little girls learn beauty really counts and men value them for their looks, not their brains, said Joan. With The Little Mermaid girls learn to be silent and listen since nice girls are not loud, sassy, confident, self-initiating. In Hansel and Gretel they find out who is in charge as Gretel goes along, trusting, dependent on Hansel’s strength and wisdom.
We like to think fairy tales come from another era, an ancient mythical, whimsical, foolish kind of unsophisticated place but, Sister Chittister pointed out, these themes were played out in real life at the Supreme Court in June. 5 male justices, with no support and in fact serious dissent from the 3 justices who are women, ruled against a group of women who brought suit against Walmart for discrimination.
The women who brought the suit realized 65 percent of the hourly workers in the company are women. Only 33 percent of the managers are. The company appointed men, not women, to positions of leadership. They also realized women were commonly paid less than men doing the same work.
You see, the claim being made was that de facto discrimination existed. By definition, de facto discrimination is institutionalized only by the fact of its existence, by its practice. Hence, by definition, de facto discrimination means the condition does not exist by edict. It is not a written rule.
Even though the claim being made was one of de facto discrimination, not discrimination embodied by a written rule, Justice Scalia wrote an opinion— the majority opinion— using these words. (Quote): “Even if every single one of the anecdotes is true,” he said addressing the evidence presented, “that would not demonstrate the entire company operates under a general policy of discrimination.” So, you see— wink, wink, nudge, nudge— de facto discrimination does not exist unless there is a written policy enshrining de facto discrimination— which exists only when there is no written rule— wink, wink, nudge, nudge.
Chittister comments (quote): “On the weight of this decision the fairy tales go on: women are not to be valued for their work;... women aren’t meant to lead; Hansel will do that for them.... most of all, women are not meant to be mouthy mermaids, to speak up for themselves, to take matters into their own hands. They are to be silent and do what they’re told.” {1} (Slight pause.)
And these words are from the work known as Philippians: “Do it in this way: I urge Euodia and I urge Syntyche to be of the same mind, to come to an agreement with each other in Christ.” (Slight pause.)
I need to define culture. Culture can be thought of on a large scale. Culture can be thought of on a small scale. You can have a national culture. You can have a company culture. You can have a family culture. But cultures, large and small, exert influences on us we often do not even recognize.
Healthcare professionals will tell you smoking, for instance, tends to be cultural. Just this week a report released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the three groups of workers where smoking is most likely to be found are miners, construction workers and food service workers. {2}
Just the fact that a prevalence toward smoking can be located in those sub-cultures says the existence of cultural, social pressure to smoke in those specific cultures is real. Further, social pressure is rarely even noticed by the people who live within those cultural arenas. [Slight pause.] Hey! How about a smoke break? Sure. Why not? [Slight pause.] (If you think I didn’t see that while I was in the Army, you’ve got another thing coming.)
This is clear: Euodia and Syntyche are women. These names are names given to women in New Testament times. This is clear: Euodia and Syntyche are leaders in the church in Philippi.
However, and literally for centuries, these names— Euodia and Syntyche— were translated as if they were male names, this despite the fact that if one consults the original Greek, it is clear they are female. Why? Is it not likely the dominant male culture discounted the possibility that women could have been leaders in New Testament times? (Slight pause.)
This too is clear: in New Testament times men and only men counted in the culture. Patriarchy ruled. Men were in charge. And yet, here are two women singled out by Paul as leaders in a church. (Slight pause.)
So, what’s going on here? What could have altered not just the thinking of these early Christians but their actions to the point where they both realized and understood the culture in which they lived presented them with fairy tales about the worth of people?
What could have altered their thinking to the point where they realized the culture in which they lived did not model how God would have people live? What prompted them to realize that given the reality of God and the reality of God as revealed in Jesus, these fairy tales about male dominance and superiority which ruled their culture were simply preposterous and were to be ignored? (Slight pause.)
Paul calls for Euodia and Syntyche to (quote): “be of the same mind, to come to an agreement with each other in Christ.” Whatever disagreement they had is not directly mentioned and is lost to antiquity. But, in the context of this letter the request both to them and to us is clear: this is a call to see the world the way God sees the world.
Our (quote): “...thoughts should be wholly directed to all that is true, all that is honorable, all that deserves respect, all that is honest, all that is just, all that is pure, all that is decent, all that is pleasing, all that is commendable, all that is virtuous, all that is excellent and all that is worthy of praise.”
In short, just as was true for these early Christians, we need to avoid being confused or overwhelmed by the culture in which we find ourselves. We need to heed a call of God to equity, to justice, to unity, to harmony, to freedom, to hope and to love. (Slight pause.)
In a commencement address at Stanford University in 2005 Steve Jobs said this (quote): “Don’t be trapped by dogma— [dogma] is living with the results of other people’s thinking.” {3} (Slight pause.)
My friends, the culture in which we live is a place filled with dogma— the thinking of other people. But we need to think for ourselves and we need to pay attention to the thinking of God.
The thinking of God, the culture in which God would have us live is a holy culture. It is a culture in which loving God and loving neighbor is key. The simple name for this holy culture is covenant.
Now, if we adopt a way of thinking in which the culture of covenant is foremost, will we occasionally be invited to think in ways that our own culture might frown on? Yes.
But don’t take my word for that. Why don’t you ask Paul and Euodia and Syntyche. My bet is they saw this culture of covenant, a culture of loving God and loving neighbor as the place to which we are all called by God.
And my bet is they saw the places where the culture which surrounded them violated that. And they said: “We will be in covenant. We will love God and we will love neighbor. Amen.
10/09/2011
United Church of Christ, First Congregational, Norwich, New York.
ENDPIECE: It is the practice of the Pastor to speak after the Closing Hymn, but before the Choral Response and Benediction. This is an précis of what was said: “Steve Jobs said ‘Don’t be trapped by dogma’ and defined dogma as the result of other people’s thinking. Indeed, in theology the difference between dogma and doctrine is this: dogma is someone else telling you what to believe— someone else’s thinking. Doctrine is an explanation of what you believe. We, in the United Church of Christ, have doctrine. We explain what we believe. We do not espouse dogma. We do not tell people what to believe. That is our culture.”
BENEDICTION: God can open our minds to what is true. God can fill our lives when we participate in the work of God’s realm, participate in seeking justice and peace and love. When we seek what is pleasing to God we are doing the will of God. And may the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, guard your hearts and your minds in Christ, Jesus, and in the unity of the Holy Spirit, this day and forever more. Amen.
{1} http://ncronline.org/blogs/where-i-stand/too-modern-fairy-tale#.TosDXfJIA9o.facebook
{2} http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/44720458/ns/today-today_health/t/jobs-where-workers-are-most-likely-smoke/#.TpC9vJSA1NQ
{3} http://news.stanford.edu/news/2005/june15/jobs-061505.html
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