12/29/2013 ~ First Sunday after Christmas Day, i.e.: the First Sunday After the Feast of the Incarnation ~ Isaiah 63:7-9; Psalm 148; Hebrews 2:10-18; Matthew 2:13-23 ~ HYMN SING ~ 5TH SUNDAY.
The Other Story
“Now after they, the Magi, had left, an angel of God appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, ‘Get up, take the child and Mary, and flee to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you otherwise. Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.’” — Matthew 2:13.
I had a friend, a member of the laity, a woman in her early 20s, who was put in charge of patching a Christmas Pageant together at a church in a metropolitan area. As is true in a lot of churches today, this was not a pageant just for children. A broad range of age groups were to be included in the cast— all ages— adults and children.
In this particular church happened to be very, very few children between the ages of say 3 or 4 and 11 or 12. Often this age group would be seen as prime candidates to populate these productions.
On the other hand, there were a lot of what we sometimes and quite loosely call youth— ages 13 through 17. Further complicating matters, there were about 8 boys and one girl.
My friend, being very organized, had obtained a script from some religious publisher. And that script relied heavily on quotes from Scripture, not necessarily a bad thing. But that’s where the trouble started.
In this case, that script relied on the King James Version of the story as we find it in Luke. The Twelfth Verse of the Second Chapter in Luke turned out to be quite problematic.
For those of you who, off the top of your head, cannot bring the Twelfth Verse of the Second Chapter of Luke in the King James translation immediately to mind, let me refresh your memory. The angel says to the shepherds (quote:) “And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.” (Slight pause.)
Now, I know what you’re thinking: “What’s the problem?” The problem was teenage boys. Or more accurately, since I do not want to condemn all teen age boys as a group (I was, after all, a teen age boy once), the problem was one teen age boy.
The oldest among the aforementioned boys, their ring leader, a natural cut up, had been cast as the angel, precisely because he was the ring leader. The first time the youngster read through that twelfth verse, this is what it sounded like: “And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe...” Oh, wow! There’s a babe in this play. Is the babe an angel too?” And then he laughed and he laughed and he laughed. (Slight pause.)
That is when my friend decided the one girl present would read the part. And she decided none of the boys would have a speaking roles in this pageant. (Slight pause.)
We do find these words in the work known as Matthew: “Now after they, the Magi, had left, an angel of God appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, ‘Get up, take the child and Mary, and flee to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you otherwise. Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.’” (Slight pause.)
I have another story of a Christmas pageant gone amuck. This one concerns a large Episcopal Church on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. The pastor felt fortunate that a professional actor, a young lady all of twelve years old who had already appeared in two Broadway plays, was available to play the part of Mary.
The young actor was given the script. So she went home to study it. This script included, as many pageant scripts do, the arrival of the Magi. Of course, it conflated, merged the Luke version and the Matthew version of the story— two very different stories.
Now, just like many other pageant scripts, it did not include what happened after the Magi arrived, everything you heard in today’s reading. It left out the fact that Mary and Joseph and Jesus flee to Egypt and Herod slays all the children under two.
Now, the young actor who had been assigned the part of Mary decided she needed to consult the source material, the Gospels of Luke and Matthew, and even looked at some commentaries for background. After all, she was a professional actor. That is what professional actors do. They research the part.
Having read the Gospels and some of what is said about them, she made an appointment with the pastor. When she came in she demanded to know why the script left out some important details. She had a whole list. I’ll mention two.
The shepherds were terrified when they angel appeared. The script did not say that. She also demanded to know why the script said nothing about Herod sending the palace guard out to kill all the children under two. (Slight pause.)
I need to be clear. I am not recommending churches suspend Christmas pageants. I am suggesting we do need to be clear that what we find in Scripture is not what we find in Christmas pageants.
Indeed, when we read portions of the Second Chapter of Luke on Christmas Eve, this introductory comment is made. (Quote:) “Our culture fails to recognize the announcement is not meant as a pastoral tale, but is meant as a fulfillment of the prophecy in Isaiah that the birth of the Messiah will be announced to the poor and the outcast. The shepherds, in this era, would have been counted among the lowest of the low on the cultural ladder” (unquote).
Further, as must be clear to you, especially given the reading from Matthew, one of the things Scripture strives to deal with— one of the things Scripture strives to do— is to deal with reality. Indeed, earlier we heard The Coventry Carol.
As the write up about the carol in the bulletin says, it was a part of The Pageant of the Shearmen and Tailors. [1] The pageant in which this carol was presented dates from at least as early as the Fifteen Hundreds, the Sixteenth Century. Historians are fairly confident it was performed for Henry the VIII— this pageant.
And this play did depict— did depict— the part of the Christmas story from Chapter Two in the Matthew. The carol, itself, clearly refers to the Massacre of the Innocents, as it is called. In short, the generation alive in the Sixteenth Century was dealing with the real issues this passage presents, perhaps more so than our so called modern society.
All of which leaves us with a key question: if we look at the message underlying the angels in Luke and the message underlying today’s reading, both of those messages— as we theater people might say, the sub-text in those messages— are about reality. So what conclusion can be drawn from that?
What conclusion can be drawn about the reality that Scripture, itself, addresses? (Slight pause.) God cares. God cares about human pain and human suffering in this world, right now. (Slight pause.)
There is one more conclusion which can be drawn from the two very different nativity stories: God is real. The birth of Jesus is retold in the Gospels to send us that one unmistakable message. God... is... real. (Slight pause.)
You see, I think one of our problems, especially in modern times, is we have actually trouble with the concept of the reality of God. So, for some reason, we find it easier to transform the reality of these stories into something which, perhaps, feels like magic.
In its own way, that substitution of magic denies a singular and basic truth about God. God seeks justice. God seeks equity and through justice and equity God seeks peace and joy and hope and love.
Jesus, you see, represents the true light of God. The true light of this God who seeks justice and equity and peace and joy and hope and love. And Jesus has come into the world to illuminate this truth, this reality, this light that God does, in fact, seek justice, equity, peace, joy, love.
All of which is to say God invites us to engage in the real world with all of its trials and all of its challenges. And God also reminds us with the birth of Jesus that the presence of God is with us always as we strive to engage the world.
God walks with us. God guides us. Dare I say it— God is still speaking to us. And I believe my friends, that this is a reality which we should not deny. Amen.
ENDPIECE— It is the practice of the Pastor to speak after the Closing Hymn, but before the Congregational Response and Benediction. This is an précis of what was said: “Churches more liturgical than ours celebrate The Feast of the Holy Innocents sometime between Christmas and New Year’s Day. The Gospel from that Second Chapter of Matthew is read. Episcopal Theologian Diana Bass recently said this in reference to that feast (quote): ‘The Feast of Holy Innocents is always disturbing. The powers of this world want to destroy the Light; those who deny the justice and love of God seek to end the reality of light in its infancy.’”
BENEDICTION: Hear now this blessing from the words of the Prophet Isaiah in the 60th chapter (Isaiah 60:19-20a): The sun shall no longer be / your light by day, / nor for / brightness shall the moon / give you light by night; / for Yahweh, God, will be your everlasting light, / and your glory. / Amen.
[1] This was the write up in the bulletin.
THE COVENTRY CAROL
The Coventry Carol is a Christmas carol dating from the 16th century. The carol was performed in Coventry in England as part of a mystery play called The Pageant of the Shearmen and Tailors.
The play depicts the Christmas story from chapter two in the Gospel of Matthew. The carol refers to the Massacre of the Innocents, in which Herod ordered all male infants under the age of two in Bethlehem to be killed.
The lyrics of this haunting carol represent a mother’s lament for her doomed child. It is the only carol that has survived from this play.
It is notable as a well-known example of a Picardy Third (the use of a major chord of the tonic at the end of a musical section that is either modal or in a minor key). The composer of the carol is unknown.
The oldest known text was written down by Robert Croo in 1534, and the oldest known printing of the melody dates from 1591. The carol is sometimes sung a cappella.
The only manuscript copy of that text to have survived into recent times was destroyed by a fire in 1875. Hence, our knowledge of the original lyric is based on two very poor quality transcriptions from the early nineteenth century. As a consequence, there is considerable doubt about many of the words.
Indeed, it can be difficult to make sense of some of the transcribed words. For example, in the last verse “And ever morne and may For thi parting Neither say nor singe” is not clear.
Various modern editors have made different attempts to make sense of the words, so such variations may be found as “ever mourn and say,” “every morn and day,” “ever mourn and sigh.” The following is one attempted reconstruction.
Lully, lullay, Thou little tiny Child,
Bye, bye, lully, lullay.
Lullay, thou little tiny Child,
Bye, bye, lully, lullay.
O sisters too, how may we do,
For to preserve this day
This poor youngling for whom we do sing
Bye, bye, lully, lullay.
Herod, the king, in his raging,
Charged he hath this day
His men of might, in his own sight,
All young children to slay.
That woe is me, poor Child for Thee!
And ever mourn and sigh,
For thy parting neither say nor sing,
Bye, bye, lully, lullay.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coventry_Carol
Sunday, December 29, 2013
Wednesday, December 25, 2013
SERMON ~ 12/24/2013 ~ “The Glory of God”
12/24/2013 - 12/25/2013 ~ Nativity of the Christ, Known in Some Traditions as the Feast of the Incarnation, Known in other Traditions as the Feast of the Birth of the Messiah, Commonly Known as Christmas Eve and Christmas Day ~ Proper I ~ Isaiah 9:2-7; Psalm 96; Titus 2:11-14; Luke 2:1-14, (15-20) ~ Proper II ~ Isaiah 62:6-12; Psalm 97; Titus 3:4-7; Luke 2:(1-7), 8-20 ~ Proper III ~ Isaiah 52:7-10; Psalm 98; Hebrews 1:1-4, (5-12); John 1:1-14.
The Glory of God
“An angel of God suddenly stood before them and the glory of God shone around them— and they were terrified.” — Luke 2:9.
Benjamin did not know his father. Neither did he know his mother. His parents were never present to him.
Left on the street when he was an infant, he had been abandoned. A couple from the village took him in. By the time he was ten he was living on the streets of Bethlehem. By the time he was eleven he was part of a gang, hoodlums.
By the time he was twelve, he was adept at stealing fruit off carts at the bazaar without being noticed. By the time he was thirteen, he could easily climb a fence, gently pick up a chicken, keep the foul from squawking, be back over the fence and off with it in moments. Often it would be hours before anyone noticed the count of birds was off.
Many people knew exactly who he was. Most looked on him with scorn. Many people knew exactly who was in the gang. Most people looked on the gang with scorn.
The gang was, however, family to him, family for him. And they were family to one another, looked out for one another.
When any one of them was sick, the gang offered care, protection, food, shelter. They lived together in tents set up in a field, not far from town.
Occasionally the local authorities would come from the village, burn tents to the ground, scatter whatever else they found. The gang would rally, rebuild their tents still further out into the hills. (Slight pause.)
As Benjamin grew older— he was now seventeen— he moved into the leadership ranks of the gang. And he realized the problem with being a crook is the profession relies on opportunity. An opportunistic profession is always feast or famine.
When you steal chicken or fruit, it’s feast. But days might pass before another opportunity presented itself— famine. (Slight pause.)
Eventually, the gang decided moving still further out into the fields was smart, since they— the gang— had made peace with many farmers who were scattered over the hills away from the village. That peace grew from the fact that they had started to tend sheep for the farmers.
Sheep will eat nearly anything. The farmers needed someone to herd the sheep, to keep them away from the crops. Benjamin’s rag-tag crew may have been hoodlums, brigands, in town. But out in the hills they were just what the farmers needed.
This was hard work, marginal work. But it gave the gang just enough food and shelter to exist. Unlike the feast or famine business of burglary, it offered consistency. There was always just enough. Somehow, if felt peaceful— like a sanctuary. (Pause.)
And so, on a cold spring night the gang gathered outside their tents around a soft fire. [1] The full moon was as bright as Benjamin had ever seen it. In the distance they could hear jackals howling. (Slight pause.)
Benjamin once had a conversation with a Rabbi who told him ritual was important and prayer was important. So, as their leader, Benjamin had developed a ritual they followed before turning in each night.
They stood in a circle. They held hands. They prayed. They felt mutual support. They felt energy transfer from hand to hand to hand to hand. They were... family. (Pause.)
That night he was unsure what happened as they prayed. No one else in the gang could ever explain what happened, either.
All they knew was this: first, everything was suddenly dark. A full moon had been there moments ago. It was gone. Darkness surrounded them.
They were family, so they tightly held onto each other’s hands. And, despite or perhaps because of that hold on one another, it felt as if they were they were levitating. Their feet no longer touched the ground. (Slight pause.)
And then there was light. Or was it light? If felt like light, but it could not really be seen. It was more like a presence— like the Hebrew word kabod— glory: the presence of God. That was as close as any of them could come to describing how it felt.
And that was how they later described it: whatever was happening, was not seen. It was not heard. It was a presence. It was felt.
Then there was something which sounded like a voice. But the voice was not heard, either. It was felt. Again, the Hebrew word kabod— glory— seemed apt. The presence of God was close. That was the only way any of them could describe it. (Pause.)
Suddenly they were again standing around the fire. The moon was full. The jackals screeched. Yet something had changed. They felt at peace. They did not know what to make of it. (Slight pause.)
They were unsure why, but together, they started to drift toward town. When they were on the outskirts, they wandered toward a barn. They found a man, a woman, a newborn.
They formed a circle. They held hands. They prayed. This time there was no darkness. But there was this same presence— kabod— glory. Was it because of a child?
Benjamin looked around and saw... family. He had not known his father. Neither had he known his mother. His parents were never present to him. But he sensed this child was present to him, present to them. It felt... safe.
The child seemed to be somehow present to everyone in the circle, present to the family. He did not feel abandoned.
Was that possible? Could a child have that kind of presence— a sense of kabod— a sense of glory.
He did not know. He squeezed the hands of the shepherds on either side of him. They all let go. In unison they nodded to the man. They nodded to the woman. They bowed to the child. They turned and headed back toward the hills.
As they walked Benjamin had but one thought— kabod— a sense of the presence of God. Is it real? Is it possible? Can even lowly shepherds be so blessed as to experience the real presence of God? (Slight pause.)
Maybe that was what the presence of God— the glory of God— is about. It is about God Who is present, Who is real to all people, no matter who they are. (Slight pause.)
As they wandered back toward the hills Benjamin fully realized kabod was what he felt in the presence of the baby. And that was when Benjamin also fully realized there was something he had to do.
He had to tell everyone he met that God is real, that God is present for everyone. After all, God was present in the child. Amen.
12/24/2013 ~ Christmas Eve
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: “I have often said Christmas is the most important Christian feast on the secular calendar. At the very least for we Christians Easter, Pentecost, the Epiphany and Trinity Sunday should be counted as more important than Christmas. Which is not to say Christmas lacks importance. It is to say we need to reclaim Christmas as a Christian feast. In an effort to reclaim real Christmas, let me make a suggestion, one I make each year. Please do not wish people a ‘Merry Christmas.’ When you greet someone say ‘Happy Christmas.’ People can be merry about the new year, but let’s be happy about what we celebrate tonight: the birth of the Messiah, present in our midst. Further, if we are really interested in putting Christ in Christmas, we need to feed the hungry, clothe those in tatters, care for the ill, etc., etc., etc.”
BENEDICTION: Hear now this blessing from the words of the Prophet Isaiah in the 60th chapter (Isaiah 60:19-20a): The sun shall no longer be / your light by day, / nor for brightness shall the moon / give you light by night; / for Yahweh, God, will be your everlasting light, / and your glory. / Amen.
[1] At the beginning of the service this was said: “Ancient Rome had a winter solstice celebration, celebrating the return of the sun and on their calendar the solstice was on the 25th of December. It’s likely Christians adopted it to celebrate the birth of the Messiah, as we claim Jesus to be both the Messiah and the Light of God born to our lives. Many scholars think Jesus was born in what we would call the year Four Before the Common Era and not in the winter but in the Springtime of that year.
The Glory of God
“An angel of God suddenly stood before them and the glory of God shone around them— and they were terrified.” — Luke 2:9.
Benjamin did not know his father. Neither did he know his mother. His parents were never present to him.
Left on the street when he was an infant, he had been abandoned. A couple from the village took him in. By the time he was ten he was living on the streets of Bethlehem. By the time he was eleven he was part of a gang, hoodlums.
By the time he was twelve, he was adept at stealing fruit off carts at the bazaar without being noticed. By the time he was thirteen, he could easily climb a fence, gently pick up a chicken, keep the foul from squawking, be back over the fence and off with it in moments. Often it would be hours before anyone noticed the count of birds was off.
Many people knew exactly who he was. Most looked on him with scorn. Many people knew exactly who was in the gang. Most people looked on the gang with scorn.
The gang was, however, family to him, family for him. And they were family to one another, looked out for one another.
When any one of them was sick, the gang offered care, protection, food, shelter. They lived together in tents set up in a field, not far from town.
Occasionally the local authorities would come from the village, burn tents to the ground, scatter whatever else they found. The gang would rally, rebuild their tents still further out into the hills. (Slight pause.)
As Benjamin grew older— he was now seventeen— he moved into the leadership ranks of the gang. And he realized the problem with being a crook is the profession relies on opportunity. An opportunistic profession is always feast or famine.
When you steal chicken or fruit, it’s feast. But days might pass before another opportunity presented itself— famine. (Slight pause.)
Eventually, the gang decided moving still further out into the fields was smart, since they— the gang— had made peace with many farmers who were scattered over the hills away from the village. That peace grew from the fact that they had started to tend sheep for the farmers.
Sheep will eat nearly anything. The farmers needed someone to herd the sheep, to keep them away from the crops. Benjamin’s rag-tag crew may have been hoodlums, brigands, in town. But out in the hills they were just what the farmers needed.
This was hard work, marginal work. But it gave the gang just enough food and shelter to exist. Unlike the feast or famine business of burglary, it offered consistency. There was always just enough. Somehow, if felt peaceful— like a sanctuary. (Pause.)
And so, on a cold spring night the gang gathered outside their tents around a soft fire. [1] The full moon was as bright as Benjamin had ever seen it. In the distance they could hear jackals howling. (Slight pause.)
Benjamin once had a conversation with a Rabbi who told him ritual was important and prayer was important. So, as their leader, Benjamin had developed a ritual they followed before turning in each night.
They stood in a circle. They held hands. They prayed. They felt mutual support. They felt energy transfer from hand to hand to hand to hand. They were... family. (Pause.)
That night he was unsure what happened as they prayed. No one else in the gang could ever explain what happened, either.
All they knew was this: first, everything was suddenly dark. A full moon had been there moments ago. It was gone. Darkness surrounded them.
They were family, so they tightly held onto each other’s hands. And, despite or perhaps because of that hold on one another, it felt as if they were they were levitating. Their feet no longer touched the ground. (Slight pause.)
And then there was light. Or was it light? If felt like light, but it could not really be seen. It was more like a presence— like the Hebrew word kabod— glory: the presence of God. That was as close as any of them could come to describing how it felt.
And that was how they later described it: whatever was happening, was not seen. It was not heard. It was a presence. It was felt.
Then there was something which sounded like a voice. But the voice was not heard, either. It was felt. Again, the Hebrew word kabod— glory— seemed apt. The presence of God was close. That was the only way any of them could describe it. (Pause.)
Suddenly they were again standing around the fire. The moon was full. The jackals screeched. Yet something had changed. They felt at peace. They did not know what to make of it. (Slight pause.)
They were unsure why, but together, they started to drift toward town. When they were on the outskirts, they wandered toward a barn. They found a man, a woman, a newborn.
They formed a circle. They held hands. They prayed. This time there was no darkness. But there was this same presence— kabod— glory. Was it because of a child?
Benjamin looked around and saw... family. He had not known his father. Neither had he known his mother. His parents were never present to him. But he sensed this child was present to him, present to them. It felt... safe.
The child seemed to be somehow present to everyone in the circle, present to the family. He did not feel abandoned.
Was that possible? Could a child have that kind of presence— a sense of kabod— a sense of glory.
He did not know. He squeezed the hands of the shepherds on either side of him. They all let go. In unison they nodded to the man. They nodded to the woman. They bowed to the child. They turned and headed back toward the hills.
As they walked Benjamin had but one thought— kabod— a sense of the presence of God. Is it real? Is it possible? Can even lowly shepherds be so blessed as to experience the real presence of God? (Slight pause.)
Maybe that was what the presence of God— the glory of God— is about. It is about God Who is present, Who is real to all people, no matter who they are. (Slight pause.)
As they wandered back toward the hills Benjamin fully realized kabod was what he felt in the presence of the baby. And that was when Benjamin also fully realized there was something he had to do.
He had to tell everyone he met that God is real, that God is present for everyone. After all, God was present in the child. Amen.
12/24/2013 ~ Christmas Eve
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: “I have often said Christmas is the most important Christian feast on the secular calendar. At the very least for we Christians Easter, Pentecost, the Epiphany and Trinity Sunday should be counted as more important than Christmas. Which is not to say Christmas lacks importance. It is to say we need to reclaim Christmas as a Christian feast. In an effort to reclaim real Christmas, let me make a suggestion, one I make each year. Please do not wish people a ‘Merry Christmas.’ When you greet someone say ‘Happy Christmas.’ People can be merry about the new year, but let’s be happy about what we celebrate tonight: the birth of the Messiah, present in our midst. Further, if we are really interested in putting Christ in Christmas, we need to feed the hungry, clothe those in tatters, care for the ill, etc., etc., etc.”
BENEDICTION: Hear now this blessing from the words of the Prophet Isaiah in the 60th chapter (Isaiah 60:19-20a): The sun shall no longer be / your light by day, / nor for brightness shall the moon / give you light by night; / for Yahweh, God, will be your everlasting light, / and your glory. / Amen.
[1] At the beginning of the service this was said: “Ancient Rome had a winter solstice celebration, celebrating the return of the sun and on their calendar the solstice was on the 25th of December. It’s likely Christians adopted it to celebrate the birth of the Messiah, as we claim Jesus to be both the Messiah and the Light of God born to our lives. Many scholars think Jesus was born in what we would call the year Four Before the Common Era and not in the winter but in the Springtime of that year.
Sunday, December 22, 2013
SERMON ~ 12/22/2013 ~ “God with Us”
12/22/2013 ~ Fourth Sunday of Advent ~ Isaiah 7:10-16; Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19; Romans 1:1-7; Matthew 1:18-25 ~ The Sunday in Advent on Which We Commemorate Joy.
God with Us
“While this was the intention of Joseph, and he had resolved to do this, at that point an angel of God appeared in a dream and said, ‘Joseph, son of David— do not be afraid to wed Mary; it is by the Holy Spirit that she has conceived this child.’” — Matthew 1:20.
At the beginning of our shared time today you heard me briefly address the “Christmas Fund.” As I said, this money helps pastors who often retire at a relatively low fixed income. [1] For a bit, I’d like to look at the other end of that spectrum: from where do pastors come? Where does a call to ministry start? (Slight pause.)
The short answer is: a call to ministry starts in the pews. It starts with you. After all, we do make the claim that I am a “Pastor and Teacher” but you are the ministers. [2] Above and beyond that, the United Church of Christ is known to be a bottom/up, grass roots organization. Nothing illustrates that more clearly than the ordination process.
Generally, there are three participants when we ordain an individual to authorized ministry. The first is the local church— you. It is the duty of the local church, your duty, to identify those in your midst who have the gifts necessary for ministry.
When one such soul is identified, that local church needs to work with that individual and to then recommend that individual to the local Association as a candidate for ministry. This process is known as assisting a person in discernment— person in discernment— PID. In short, you act as mentors in this process.
That individual, raised up as a candidate for ministry, is assisted by the local church and by the local Association as training is pursued. In one sense, this is a time of test, trial and discernment which explores and questions whether or not a person does have gifts for ministry and where they might be used. But the process is also collegial, as the local church, the Association and the individual work together.
The third participant involved in ordination is the “calling body.” A calling body is a church, an institution or a ministry where the gifts and talents of the perspective ordinand will be initially used. Once a call is tendered by that church, institution or ministry, the local church who has supported the ordinand in conjunction with the local Association ordains the candidate. And that candidate is ordained for the whole church but ordained on the local level— bottom/up, not top/down. (Slight pause.)
Those of you who were here last week heard me say I was headed to Preble for an ordination last Sunday afternoon. We— the United Church of Christ in Preble cooperating with the Susquehanna Association the Association that this church is part of, we ordained the Reverend Ms. Brenda McCutcheon of the Preble Church.
Brenda is the Director of Elder Life and Spirituality at the Loretto Skilled Nursing Care facility. At one point, when an elder had passed away at Loretto, a funeral director would quietly take the deceased out a back door of the facility. This left other residents and staff with a longing to mourn, to remember, to appreciate and to celebrate a life well lived.
Brenda changed that. Now with Loretto’s End of Life program, which she established, calling hours are held in the chapel at the facility. Someone who has died is given a dignified departure out the front door. All who wish have an opportunity to pay respects, offer words of gratitude, to say good-bye. [3]
And so, the calling body this time, at this ordination— that necessary third piece on a path to ordination in the United Church of Christ— was Loretto Skilled Nursing Facility. (Slight pause.) Oh... by the way... did I mention that Loretto is a skilled nursing facility operated by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Syracuse? They were the calling body for a pastor with United Church of Christ. (Slight pause.)
And, by the way, did I mention a Roman Catholic priest led the Call to Worship at the service of ordination? (Slight pause.) And, by the way, did I mention a Roman Catholic nun held the cup at communion? (Pause.)
We find these words in the Gospel we have come to know as Matthew. “While this was the intention of Joseph, and he had resolved to do this, at that point an angel of God appeared in a dream and said, ‘Joseph, son of David— do not be afraid to wed Mary; it is by the Holy Spirit that she has conceived this child.’” (Slight pause.)
You have heard me say this before: there are two things the Bible is not about. First, the Bible is not a rule book. Second, the Bible is not a history book— a repository of facts.
Equally, there are two things the Bible is about. First, the Bible is about the relationship of God with humanity. Second, the Bible is about the loving relationships God calls people to maintain with one another.
Within this passage we find exactly that idea. The Bible is about the relationship of God with humanity. And the Bible is about the loving relationships God calls people to maintain with one another. And most of the time we do not pay any attention to that important message contained in these words.
To what do we pay attention in this passage? We pay attention to this (quote): “All this took place to fulfill what had been spoken by God through the prophet: “The virgin shall be with child, shall give birth,...”
We pay attention to the virgin birth. Hello! This is nearly meaningless— a historical oddity in the context of that era which gets included in part because Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar were also said to be born of a virgin. [4] If it was not included Jesus, in terms of the writings of that era, would have been seen as abnormal.
So, what is important here? The very next words (quote): “...‘the child shall be named Emmanuel’— a name that means, ‘God is with us.’”
There is something else important in the passage we tend to miss. It’s the fact that Jesus is actually given two names and a title. (Quote:) “...this is how the birth of Jesus, the Messiah, came about.”
The name with which we tend to be familiar— Jesus— this gets complex, so follow me now— the name with which we tend to be familiar— Jesus— is the English transliteration of the Latin version of the Hebrew name Yoshuah. The anglicized version of that Hebrew name is Joshua.
But, once you go back to the original Hebrew, the name is Yoshuah. And what does Yoshuah mean? Yoshuah means God is our salvation or God saves.
And, needless to say, this passage also states Jesus is the Messiah. Messiah means an anointed one of God.
All of which clearly insists this passage is not about virgin birth. It is about Jesus, the anointed one of God who is here to offer salvation. It is about Jesus who is with us now— Emmanuel.
That God is with us, present to us, now— illuminates a basic understanding of Christianity. God wants to be in relationship with humanity and God calls us to be in loving relationship with others. (Slight pause.)
That brings me back to the ordination— an ordination where brothers and sisters in Christ gathered to recognize that nothing separates us from the love of God in Christ, Jesus. It was an ordination where brothers and sisters in Christ gathered to recognize that one to one, person to person— the work of pastoral ministry, the personal work of pastoral ministry— is what we are called to do.
And where does that work of one to one pastoral ministry start? It starts in the pews. It starts with you and with you and with you and with you and with you, etc. (Slight pause.)
There is a fallacy which goes around. It says personal, pastoral, one to one ministry is easy for some— extraverts perhaps. That is not true. Personal, pastoral, one to one ministry is not easy for anyone. It is hard.
But the truth is personal, pastoral, one to one ministry is our calling. And this personal, pastoral, one to one ministry starts with you.
Why? God saves. God is with us. God is present to us. God is present to you and you and you and you, etc. And that, the fact that God is present my friends, does not just empower ministry. That is the real the message of Christmas: God is with us. Amen.
12/22/2013
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 Congregational Response and Benediction. This is an précis of what was said: “This is also something you’ve heard me say. In fact, I said it last week: Biblical prophecy is not about predicting the future. Biblical prophecy is about speaking the truth of the word of God. So here, once again, is a piece of Biblical prophecy: God calls us— each of us— to personal, pastoral ministry.”
BENEDICTION: Let us be present to one another as we go from this place. Let us share our gifts, our hopes, our memories, our pain and our joy. Go in peace for God is with us. Go in joy for God knows every fiber of our being. Go in hope for God reveals to us, daily, that we are a part of God’s new creation. Go in love, for we rest assured, by Christ, Jesus, that God is steadfast. Amen.
[1] The pastor addressed “The Christmas Fund” an all church offering for retirees at a time for mission.
[2] This is noted in the bulletin each week.
[3] http://www.loretto-cny.org/news-and-events/news/show/51
[4] The illustrates one of the dangers of public speaking: the pastor meant to say Caesar Augustus and it came out as Julius Caesar.
God with Us
“While this was the intention of Joseph, and he had resolved to do this, at that point an angel of God appeared in a dream and said, ‘Joseph, son of David— do not be afraid to wed Mary; it is by the Holy Spirit that she has conceived this child.’” — Matthew 1:20.
At the beginning of our shared time today you heard me briefly address the “Christmas Fund.” As I said, this money helps pastors who often retire at a relatively low fixed income. [1] For a bit, I’d like to look at the other end of that spectrum: from where do pastors come? Where does a call to ministry start? (Slight pause.)
The short answer is: a call to ministry starts in the pews. It starts with you. After all, we do make the claim that I am a “Pastor and Teacher” but you are the ministers. [2] Above and beyond that, the United Church of Christ is known to be a bottom/up, grass roots organization. Nothing illustrates that more clearly than the ordination process.
Generally, there are three participants when we ordain an individual to authorized ministry. The first is the local church— you. It is the duty of the local church, your duty, to identify those in your midst who have the gifts necessary for ministry.
When one such soul is identified, that local church needs to work with that individual and to then recommend that individual to the local Association as a candidate for ministry. This process is known as assisting a person in discernment— person in discernment— PID. In short, you act as mentors in this process.
That individual, raised up as a candidate for ministry, is assisted by the local church and by the local Association as training is pursued. In one sense, this is a time of test, trial and discernment which explores and questions whether or not a person does have gifts for ministry and where they might be used. But the process is also collegial, as the local church, the Association and the individual work together.
The third participant involved in ordination is the “calling body.” A calling body is a church, an institution or a ministry where the gifts and talents of the perspective ordinand will be initially used. Once a call is tendered by that church, institution or ministry, the local church who has supported the ordinand in conjunction with the local Association ordains the candidate. And that candidate is ordained for the whole church but ordained on the local level— bottom/up, not top/down. (Slight pause.)
Those of you who were here last week heard me say I was headed to Preble for an ordination last Sunday afternoon. We— the United Church of Christ in Preble cooperating with the Susquehanna Association the Association that this church is part of, we ordained the Reverend Ms. Brenda McCutcheon of the Preble Church.
Brenda is the Director of Elder Life and Spirituality at the Loretto Skilled Nursing Care facility. At one point, when an elder had passed away at Loretto, a funeral director would quietly take the deceased out a back door of the facility. This left other residents and staff with a longing to mourn, to remember, to appreciate and to celebrate a life well lived.
Brenda changed that. Now with Loretto’s End of Life program, which she established, calling hours are held in the chapel at the facility. Someone who has died is given a dignified departure out the front door. All who wish have an opportunity to pay respects, offer words of gratitude, to say good-bye. [3]
And so, the calling body this time, at this ordination— that necessary third piece on a path to ordination in the United Church of Christ— was Loretto Skilled Nursing Facility. (Slight pause.) Oh... by the way... did I mention that Loretto is a skilled nursing facility operated by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Syracuse? They were the calling body for a pastor with United Church of Christ. (Slight pause.)
And, by the way, did I mention a Roman Catholic priest led the Call to Worship at the service of ordination? (Slight pause.) And, by the way, did I mention a Roman Catholic nun held the cup at communion? (Pause.)
We find these words in the Gospel we have come to know as Matthew. “While this was the intention of Joseph, and he had resolved to do this, at that point an angel of God appeared in a dream and said, ‘Joseph, son of David— do not be afraid to wed Mary; it is by the Holy Spirit that she has conceived this child.’” (Slight pause.)
You have heard me say this before: there are two things the Bible is not about. First, the Bible is not a rule book. Second, the Bible is not a history book— a repository of facts.
Equally, there are two things the Bible is about. First, the Bible is about the relationship of God with humanity. Second, the Bible is about the loving relationships God calls people to maintain with one another.
Within this passage we find exactly that idea. The Bible is about the relationship of God with humanity. And the Bible is about the loving relationships God calls people to maintain with one another. And most of the time we do not pay any attention to that important message contained in these words.
To what do we pay attention in this passage? We pay attention to this (quote): “All this took place to fulfill what had been spoken by God through the prophet: “The virgin shall be with child, shall give birth,...”
We pay attention to the virgin birth. Hello! This is nearly meaningless— a historical oddity in the context of that era which gets included in part because Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar were also said to be born of a virgin. [4] If it was not included Jesus, in terms of the writings of that era, would have been seen as abnormal.
So, what is important here? The very next words (quote): “...‘the child shall be named Emmanuel’— a name that means, ‘God is with us.’”
There is something else important in the passage we tend to miss. It’s the fact that Jesus is actually given two names and a title. (Quote:) “...this is how the birth of Jesus, the Messiah, came about.”
The name with which we tend to be familiar— Jesus— this gets complex, so follow me now— the name with which we tend to be familiar— Jesus— is the English transliteration of the Latin version of the Hebrew name Yoshuah. The anglicized version of that Hebrew name is Joshua.
But, once you go back to the original Hebrew, the name is Yoshuah. And what does Yoshuah mean? Yoshuah means God is our salvation or God saves.
And, needless to say, this passage also states Jesus is the Messiah. Messiah means an anointed one of God.
All of which clearly insists this passage is not about virgin birth. It is about Jesus, the anointed one of God who is here to offer salvation. It is about Jesus who is with us now— Emmanuel.
That God is with us, present to us, now— illuminates a basic understanding of Christianity. God wants to be in relationship with humanity and God calls us to be in loving relationship with others. (Slight pause.)
That brings me back to the ordination— an ordination where brothers and sisters in Christ gathered to recognize that nothing separates us from the love of God in Christ, Jesus. It was an ordination where brothers and sisters in Christ gathered to recognize that one to one, person to person— the work of pastoral ministry, the personal work of pastoral ministry— is what we are called to do.
And where does that work of one to one pastoral ministry start? It starts in the pews. It starts with you and with you and with you and with you and with you, etc. (Slight pause.)
There is a fallacy which goes around. It says personal, pastoral, one to one ministry is easy for some— extraverts perhaps. That is not true. Personal, pastoral, one to one ministry is not easy for anyone. It is hard.
But the truth is personal, pastoral, one to one ministry is our calling. And this personal, pastoral, one to one ministry starts with you.
Why? God saves. God is with us. God is present to us. God is present to you and you and you and you, etc. And that, the fact that God is present my friends, does not just empower ministry. That is the real the message of Christmas: God is with us. Amen.
12/22/2013
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 Congregational Response and Benediction. This is an précis of what was said: “This is also something you’ve heard me say. In fact, I said it last week: Biblical prophecy is not about predicting the future. Biblical prophecy is about speaking the truth of the word of God. So here, once again, is a piece of Biblical prophecy: God calls us— each of us— to personal, pastoral ministry.”
BENEDICTION: Let us be present to one another as we go from this place. Let us share our gifts, our hopes, our memories, our pain and our joy. Go in peace for God is with us. Go in joy for God knows every fiber of our being. Go in hope for God reveals to us, daily, that we are a part of God’s new creation. Go in love, for we rest assured, by Christ, Jesus, that God is steadfast. Amen.
[1] The pastor addressed “The Christmas Fund” an all church offering for retirees at a time for mission.
[2] This is noted in the bulletin each week.
[3] http://www.loretto-cny.org/news-and-events/news/show/51
[4] The illustrates one of the dangers of public speaking: the pastor meant to say Caesar Augustus and it came out as Julius Caesar.
Sunday, December 15, 2013
SERMON ~ 12/15/2013 ~ “Living in the Moment”
12/15/2013 ~ Third Sunday of Advent ~ Sunday in Advent on Which We Commemorate Love ~ Isaiah 35:1-10; Psalm 146:5-10 or Luke 1:46b-55; James 5:7-10; Matthew 11:2-11 ~ Music Sunday Added Readings: Isaiah 40:3-5; Isaiah 11:1-6, 10; Isaiah 9:2b, 6-7; Luke 2:15-17 ~ Music Sunday Canceled Due to Snow! Rescheduled for 1/5/2014.
Living in the Moment
“A voice cries out: / ‘In the wilderness / prepare the way for Yahweh; / make straight in the desert / a highway for our God.’” — Isaiah 40:3.
The late comedian George Cariln is famous for a lot of ironic but iconic one liners. I like many of them.
Certainly one of my favorite Carlin quotes is this one: “I went to a bookstore and asked the clerk, ‘Where’s the self-help section?’ In return I got a glowering stare. ‘If I told you,’ was the response, ‘it would defeat the purpose of self-help, wouldn’t it?’” (Slight pause.)
There is little doubt that one of the slogans of the self-help movement has been to (quote:) “live in the moment.” One author who wrote about this called it “the power of now.”
Whereas the implication of this current popular way of looking at one’s life and the world is that only now is important— only now, not the past nor the future— I think living in the moment needs to be approached in a different way. Indeed, I think the idea of living in the moment is an important concept. I approve of the idea.
Therefore, one of the things I think needs to be brought to the fore when we talk about living in the moment is the thought that it encompasses not just the present but the past and the future as well. I think when living in the moment, when living in the present, can somehow encompass the past and the future, it really does have the potential to be life changing.
You see, living in the moment while forgetting the past or the future is nothing more than ego-centric— not a good place to be, I think. That kind of approach insists only our time— not the past— is important. It insists only our time— not the future— has significant potential. In short, if only now matters ‘living in the moment’ rejects others— other times, other places, other people. (Slight pause.)
We find these words in the work known as Isaiah: “A voice cries out: / “In the wilderness / prepare the way for Yahweh; / make straight in the desert / a highway for our God.” (Slight pause.)
I have said this here before: Biblical prophecy is not about predicting the future. That Biblical prophecy is about predicting the future is a conceit of the popular culture. Saying that Biblical prophecy is about predicting the future is, to put it bluntly, an anti-Biblical sentiment.
Biblical prophecy is not about prognostication. Biblical prophecy concerns speaking truth— a truth— about the Word of God.
I have also said this: in order to begin to understand what we read in Scripture we need to place ourselves in the time and the place of the people who were first hearing the writings. And, indeed, those who wrote what we now call Scripture and those who first heard what we now call Scripture did not know it as Scripture at that point in time. What was recorded was, in fact, nothing more than an attempt to understand their own experience of God.
They certainly did not think in terms of making a prediction that would be listened to as if it said about anything concrete or definitive about what might happen in the future. They were simply trying to address what God might be saying to them, right then.
In fact, it might be said that they were living in that moment. But in so doing, they were trying to make sense of the places from which they had come and the places to which God might be calling them. They were looking to the past and to the future but being in the moment.
Therefore, for us to use what we read in Scripture as a prediction of what might happen, is to start in the wrong place. In short, we always first need to ask what they recorded might have meant to them.
Indeed, I think what we fail to realize in what was recorded in the Fortieth Chapter of Isaiah is the immediacy of it. Let me repeat it: “A voice cries out: / ‘In the wilderness / prepare the way for Yahweh; / make straight in the desert / a highway for our God.’”
So, if they were living in the moment what was it they might have heard from these words? What might they have discerned? (Slight pause.) Perhaps one thing they might have heard was that God beckoned them to do the work of God, right then— in that place and in that time.
Given that concept, given that idea, we need to put ourselves in their shoes in order to begin to discern what Scripture might be saying to us. Certainly one question for us is this: ‘can we hear something in these writings about the place to which God calls us?’ (Slight pause.)
And that brings us to Luke. (Quote:) “When the angels had left and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, ‘Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this event which has taken place and which God has made known to us.’” (Slight pause.)
So, is this simply about the birth of the Messiah or is there sometime more being said? (Slight pause.) You see, once we understand Isaiah in its own context, on its own terms the words of Isaiah can clearly read as Biblical prophecy— speaking a Word of truth about God.
I say that because the Word which Isaiah speaks addresses God who calls us to do the work of God. And perhaps we miss this next piece. the birth of the Messiah also addresses God who calls us to do the work of God.
How so? It has been often said the birth of the Messiah is about the in-breaking of God into our lives.
Hence, the Biblical prophecy Isaiah addresses is that God beckons us to do the work of God right now in our place and in our time. And the birth of the Messiah also tells us God beckons us to do the work of God right now in our place and in our time.
And I do not think we have to look too far to find out what that work might be. We are to feed the hungry, clothe those in tatters, care for and comfort those who are ill, etc., etc., etc.
Last, I want to suggest the real way we can do those things God calls us to do, is by living in the moment. The real way we can do those things God calls is to do, is by listening to the Word of God and by recognizing what we are to do now and the places to which God continues to call us in the future. Put differently, this is the call of God: we are to live in the moment— God’s moment— remembering that God forgets neither the past nor the future. Amen.
12/15/2013
United Church of Christ, First Congregational, Norwich, NY
ENDPIECE— It is the practice of the Pastor to speak after the Closing Hymn, but before the Congregational Response and Benediction. This is an précis of what was said: “There is no question that living in the moment calls us to remember the past, the history of the relationship of God and humanity, calls us to be aware that what we do today shall effect the future of our race. We should also be reminded that God calls us to live in the moment by reaching out to those around us as we share the love God offers to us with all people— that’s all people, not just some people. And perhaps, when we do all that we are, ourselves, fulfilling a prophecy by striving to do the will of God.”
BENEDICTION: Let us go in hope and in joy and in peace, for we find love in the One who has made covenant with us. And, indeed, God reigns. And may the face of God shine upon us; may the peace of Christ rule among us; may the fire of the Spirit burn within us this day and forevermore. Amen.
Living in the Moment
“A voice cries out: / ‘In the wilderness / prepare the way for Yahweh; / make straight in the desert / a highway for our God.’” — Isaiah 40:3.
The late comedian George Cariln is famous for a lot of ironic but iconic one liners. I like many of them.
Certainly one of my favorite Carlin quotes is this one: “I went to a bookstore and asked the clerk, ‘Where’s the self-help section?’ In return I got a glowering stare. ‘If I told you,’ was the response, ‘it would defeat the purpose of self-help, wouldn’t it?’” (Slight pause.)
There is little doubt that one of the slogans of the self-help movement has been to (quote:) “live in the moment.” One author who wrote about this called it “the power of now.”
Whereas the implication of this current popular way of looking at one’s life and the world is that only now is important— only now, not the past nor the future— I think living in the moment needs to be approached in a different way. Indeed, I think the idea of living in the moment is an important concept. I approve of the idea.
Therefore, one of the things I think needs to be brought to the fore when we talk about living in the moment is the thought that it encompasses not just the present but the past and the future as well. I think when living in the moment, when living in the present, can somehow encompass the past and the future, it really does have the potential to be life changing.
You see, living in the moment while forgetting the past or the future is nothing more than ego-centric— not a good place to be, I think. That kind of approach insists only our time— not the past— is important. It insists only our time— not the future— has significant potential. In short, if only now matters ‘living in the moment’ rejects others— other times, other places, other people. (Slight pause.)
We find these words in the work known as Isaiah: “A voice cries out: / “In the wilderness / prepare the way for Yahweh; / make straight in the desert / a highway for our God.” (Slight pause.)
I have said this here before: Biblical prophecy is not about predicting the future. That Biblical prophecy is about predicting the future is a conceit of the popular culture. Saying that Biblical prophecy is about predicting the future is, to put it bluntly, an anti-Biblical sentiment.
Biblical prophecy is not about prognostication. Biblical prophecy concerns speaking truth— a truth— about the Word of God.
I have also said this: in order to begin to understand what we read in Scripture we need to place ourselves in the time and the place of the people who were first hearing the writings. And, indeed, those who wrote what we now call Scripture and those who first heard what we now call Scripture did not know it as Scripture at that point in time. What was recorded was, in fact, nothing more than an attempt to understand their own experience of God.
They certainly did not think in terms of making a prediction that would be listened to as if it said about anything concrete or definitive about what might happen in the future. They were simply trying to address what God might be saying to them, right then.
In fact, it might be said that they were living in that moment. But in so doing, they were trying to make sense of the places from which they had come and the places to which God might be calling them. They were looking to the past and to the future but being in the moment.
Therefore, for us to use what we read in Scripture as a prediction of what might happen, is to start in the wrong place. In short, we always first need to ask what they recorded might have meant to them.
Indeed, I think what we fail to realize in what was recorded in the Fortieth Chapter of Isaiah is the immediacy of it. Let me repeat it: “A voice cries out: / ‘In the wilderness / prepare the way for Yahweh; / make straight in the desert / a highway for our God.’”
So, if they were living in the moment what was it they might have heard from these words? What might they have discerned? (Slight pause.) Perhaps one thing they might have heard was that God beckoned them to do the work of God, right then— in that place and in that time.
Given that concept, given that idea, we need to put ourselves in their shoes in order to begin to discern what Scripture might be saying to us. Certainly one question for us is this: ‘can we hear something in these writings about the place to which God calls us?’ (Slight pause.)
And that brings us to Luke. (Quote:) “When the angels had left and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, ‘Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this event which has taken place and which God has made known to us.’” (Slight pause.)
So, is this simply about the birth of the Messiah or is there sometime more being said? (Slight pause.) You see, once we understand Isaiah in its own context, on its own terms the words of Isaiah can clearly read as Biblical prophecy— speaking a Word of truth about God.
I say that because the Word which Isaiah speaks addresses God who calls us to do the work of God. And perhaps we miss this next piece. the birth of the Messiah also addresses God who calls us to do the work of God.
How so? It has been often said the birth of the Messiah is about the in-breaking of God into our lives.
Hence, the Biblical prophecy Isaiah addresses is that God beckons us to do the work of God right now in our place and in our time. And the birth of the Messiah also tells us God beckons us to do the work of God right now in our place and in our time.
And I do not think we have to look too far to find out what that work might be. We are to feed the hungry, clothe those in tatters, care for and comfort those who are ill, etc., etc., etc.
Last, I want to suggest the real way we can do those things God calls us to do, is by living in the moment. The real way we can do those things God calls is to do, is by listening to the Word of God and by recognizing what we are to do now and the places to which God continues to call us in the future. Put differently, this is the call of God: we are to live in the moment— God’s moment— remembering that God forgets neither the past nor the future. Amen.
12/15/2013
United Church of Christ, First Congregational, Norwich, NY
ENDPIECE— It is the practice of the Pastor to speak after the Closing Hymn, but before the Congregational Response and Benediction. This is an précis of what was said: “There is no question that living in the moment calls us to remember the past, the history of the relationship of God and humanity, calls us to be aware that what we do today shall effect the future of our race. We should also be reminded that God calls us to live in the moment by reaching out to those around us as we share the love God offers to us with all people— that’s all people, not just some people. And perhaps, when we do all that we are, ourselves, fulfilling a prophecy by striving to do the will of God.”
BENEDICTION: Let us go in hope and in joy and in peace, for we find love in the One who has made covenant with us. And, indeed, God reigns. And may the face of God shine upon us; may the peace of Christ rule among us; may the fire of the Spirit burn within us this day and forevermore. Amen.
Sunday, December 8, 2013
SERMON ~ 12/08/2013 ~ “That One Shall Not Judge”
12/08/2013 ~ Second Sunday of Advent ~ The Sunday in Advent on Which We Commemorate Peace ~ Isaiah 11:1-10; Psalm 72:1-7, 18-19; Romans 15:4-13; Matthew 3:1-12 ~ Ceremony of .-: (Shalom) for Margaret Rasely.
That One Shall Not Judge
“The spirit of Yahweh, God, / shall rest on this branch, / the spirit of wisdom and understanding, / the spirit of counsel and strength, / the spirit of knowledge and / reverence for Yahweh.” — Isaiah 11:2.
A little bit ago there was much ink spilled in the print media and air time spent on cable news, over the air television and radio about the phenomena labeled as Thanksgivukkah. This— Thanksgivukkah— was the convergence of the American holiday, Thanksgiving, and the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah. Needless to say that was last Thursday, November 28th, 2013.
Much of that ink and air time was given over to the thought that this was the last time these holidays would converge for the next 77,000 years. Now, I don’t mean to be a spoil sport, but this is meaningless. In a real sense it was just made up out of whole cloth. What do I mean by made up?
First, Hanukkah actually started on the 27th, not the 28th. Second, Thanksgiving— at least the version mandated by secular authority as opposed to any religious celebration of giving thanks— did not even have the firm, set date it currently has— the fourth Thursday in November— until Congress made it so by passing a law setting it that way. And when did that law take effect? 1943.
Before that, the American Thanksgiving was a movable feast, most often celebrated on the fifth Thursday in November, when there was a fifth Thursday. But from the time of George Washington until the time Lincoln, the date observed varied from state to state. Lincoln issued a proclamation affixing the date to that last Thursday and after that most folks adhered to it— most but not all.
And of course, the Jewish calendar— that’s a lunar calendar— 28 days IN each month. Because of that, some years have more months that others to keep the calendar from getting totally out of wack with the seasons.
And this is year 5,774 on the Jewish calendar. As to Hanukkah and its date, the feast has a history of about 2,000 years. But that’s less than half of the aforementioned 5,000 plus years on the Jewish calendar. So Hanukkah’s a newcomer.
Well, look at all these facts. If Thanksgiving was not a fixed date until 1943, by definition that fixed date is new. And while Hanukkah is much older, it’s new on its calendar.
Add to that the fact that Hanukkah really started on the 27th, not the 28th, and the fact that these two dates never coincided before and barely converged now and shall not converge for another 77,000 years, there is only one conclusion to draw. This story was made up to entertain. And that is all it is— entertainment.
Which is also to say, the story was really not worth the amount of the ink and the amount of air time devoted to it. But it did attract a whole lot of noise. (Slight pause.)
Now, also recently, much ink and much air time was devoted to the fact that stores opened on Thanksgiving. And much of what was said had to do with painting merchants as putting money over family.
To be clear, I agree. I do not think it’s good that stores opened. And does it pit money over family? Why yes, it does.
But do you know why Thanksgiving was set by Congress as the fourth Thursday in November, as opposed to the fifth Thursday in November? (Slight pause.) It was set that way (in 1943, mind you) to ensure that the selling season before Christmas was as long as possible. And when it was set up that way, Congress was very vocal in saying it was about money and it was not about family and it was definitely not about religion.
So there is one more thing which should be clear about this move to the fourth Thursday for Thanksgiving. Commerce, if not Congress, was usurping Christmas for its own purposes.
Now, having mentioned that Christmas, the Feast of the Incarnation, the Feast of the birth of the Messiah has been usurped, let me make one more point. As you heard earlier, we are not now in the season of Christmas. [1]
In the church the season of Christmas happens from December the 25th to the 5th of January. We are now in the season of Advent. But you might not be able to tell it’s Advent based on the hustle and bustle of the cultural noise— cultural noise— we see around us.
To be clear, I have nothing against commerce. But I do ask that we make one distinction. Please do not confuse commerce of any kind with the Feast of the Incarnation, the Feast of the birth of the Messiah. The two have nothing in common. (Slight pause.)
And we find these words in the Scroll of the Prophet Isaiah: “The spirit of Yahweh, God, / shall rest on this branch, / the spirit of wisdom and understanding, / the spirit of counsel and strength, / the spirit of knowledge and / reverence for Yahweh.” (Slight pause.)
Based on what I just said, I hope this much is evident. The culture in which we live imposes a lot of things on us which are simply frivolous. Many of those things the culture imposes are not in any way dangerous and many of those things can be great fun.
But, for the most part, many of those things the culture imposes on us should not be taken seriously. They should not become or be made into the center of our lives. Why should we should waste energy, precious energy, on things which are no more than cultural noise? (Slight pause.)
In the passage the Prophet Isaiah speaks of the One on whom the Spirit of Yahweh, God, shall rest. The Prophet says that this One shall not judge by what the eyes see, by appearances, or decide by what the ears hear or by hearsay. In short, this one shall be focused on God— and focused on God, alone. In short, this one realizes nothing else matters but God. (Slight pause.)
The world throws a lot of stuff at us— appearances. Our ears hear a lot of “stuff.” But it is really, really of little matter— this stuff.
So, for me, a pivotal question becomes this: ‘What is really, really important?’ (Slight pause.) For me, the made up stuff has become less and less important over time.
For me the key issue has become ‘How does my relationship with God grow and how does God call me to grow in relationship with others?’ For me the key issue becomes ‘how do I turn my life toward God, turn my life over to God?’ (Slight pause.)
In the Gospel John the Baptizer says this (quote): “Change your hearts and minds,....” In the older, more archaic translation instead of saying “Change your hearts and minds...” a single word is used— repent.
As I have said here before, ‘repent’ in no way means to feel sorry or to regret. Repent means to turn your life toward God. Repent means to turn your life over to God. And perhaps more precisely, repent means, as much as possible, to ignore the clutter in the culture around us which distracts us from God. (Slight pause.)
I think one reason the church celebrates and we should celebrate Advent, why we should take Advent seriously, is the celebration should help us move away from the cultural clutter— the noise around us. Advent, you see, is meant as a time to grapple with the idea that God is with us at all times, in all places and in all ways because of the birth of the Messiah, the Christ, this one they called Jesus.
Therefore, Advent is meant as a time to help us see through culture clutter. (Slight pause.) Can all that cultural clutter be fun? Why, yes it can. It can be lots of fun. I have a lot of fun, myself, with it.
But we need to see cultural clutter as mere background noise. We need to realize the central message of Christmas is summed up in that other name connected with Jesus, the one we find here in the Gospel of Matthew— Emmanuel: God is with us. Amen.
12/08/2013
United Church of Christ, First Congregational, Norwich, NY
ENDPIECE— It is the practice of the Pastor to speak after the Closing Hymn, but before the Congregational Response and Benediction. This is an précis of what was said: “This, the Second Sunday in Advent, we commemorated Peace. As I have said here many times before, the Peace of God is not the absence of conflict. The Peace of God is the presence of the Spirit of God. And, as Christians, we recognize the presence of God at all times and in all places. It is my hope that in when recognize the presence of God that helps us filter out the cultural clutter which surrounds us.”
BENEDICTION: Let us be present to one another as we go from this place. Let us share our gifts, our hopes, our memories, our pain and our joy. Go in peace for God is with us. Go in joy for God knows every fiber of our being. Go in hope for God reveals to us, daily, that we are a part of God’s new creation. Go in love, for we rest assured, by Christ, Jesus, that God is steadfast. And may the peace of God which surpasses understanding be with us this day and forevermore. Amen.
[1] At the beginning of the service each week the day being celebrated on the Christian Calendar is noted.
That One Shall Not Judge
“The spirit of Yahweh, God, / shall rest on this branch, / the spirit of wisdom and understanding, / the spirit of counsel and strength, / the spirit of knowledge and / reverence for Yahweh.” — Isaiah 11:2.
A little bit ago there was much ink spilled in the print media and air time spent on cable news, over the air television and radio about the phenomena labeled as Thanksgivukkah. This— Thanksgivukkah— was the convergence of the American holiday, Thanksgiving, and the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah. Needless to say that was last Thursday, November 28th, 2013.
Much of that ink and air time was given over to the thought that this was the last time these holidays would converge for the next 77,000 years. Now, I don’t mean to be a spoil sport, but this is meaningless. In a real sense it was just made up out of whole cloth. What do I mean by made up?
First, Hanukkah actually started on the 27th, not the 28th. Second, Thanksgiving— at least the version mandated by secular authority as opposed to any religious celebration of giving thanks— did not even have the firm, set date it currently has— the fourth Thursday in November— until Congress made it so by passing a law setting it that way. And when did that law take effect? 1943.
Before that, the American Thanksgiving was a movable feast, most often celebrated on the fifth Thursday in November, when there was a fifth Thursday. But from the time of George Washington until the time Lincoln, the date observed varied from state to state. Lincoln issued a proclamation affixing the date to that last Thursday and after that most folks adhered to it— most but not all.
And of course, the Jewish calendar— that’s a lunar calendar— 28 days IN each month. Because of that, some years have more months that others to keep the calendar from getting totally out of wack with the seasons.
And this is year 5,774 on the Jewish calendar. As to Hanukkah and its date, the feast has a history of about 2,000 years. But that’s less than half of the aforementioned 5,000 plus years on the Jewish calendar. So Hanukkah’s a newcomer.
Well, look at all these facts. If Thanksgiving was not a fixed date until 1943, by definition that fixed date is new. And while Hanukkah is much older, it’s new on its calendar.
Add to that the fact that Hanukkah really started on the 27th, not the 28th, and the fact that these two dates never coincided before and barely converged now and shall not converge for another 77,000 years, there is only one conclusion to draw. This story was made up to entertain. And that is all it is— entertainment.
Which is also to say, the story was really not worth the amount of the ink and the amount of air time devoted to it. But it did attract a whole lot of noise. (Slight pause.)
Now, also recently, much ink and much air time was devoted to the fact that stores opened on Thanksgiving. And much of what was said had to do with painting merchants as putting money over family.
To be clear, I agree. I do not think it’s good that stores opened. And does it pit money over family? Why yes, it does.
But do you know why Thanksgiving was set by Congress as the fourth Thursday in November, as opposed to the fifth Thursday in November? (Slight pause.) It was set that way (in 1943, mind you) to ensure that the selling season before Christmas was as long as possible. And when it was set up that way, Congress was very vocal in saying it was about money and it was not about family and it was definitely not about religion.
So there is one more thing which should be clear about this move to the fourth Thursday for Thanksgiving. Commerce, if not Congress, was usurping Christmas for its own purposes.
Now, having mentioned that Christmas, the Feast of the Incarnation, the Feast of the birth of the Messiah has been usurped, let me make one more point. As you heard earlier, we are not now in the season of Christmas. [1]
In the church the season of Christmas happens from December the 25th to the 5th of January. We are now in the season of Advent. But you might not be able to tell it’s Advent based on the hustle and bustle of the cultural noise— cultural noise— we see around us.
To be clear, I have nothing against commerce. But I do ask that we make one distinction. Please do not confuse commerce of any kind with the Feast of the Incarnation, the Feast of the birth of the Messiah. The two have nothing in common. (Slight pause.)
And we find these words in the Scroll of the Prophet Isaiah: “The spirit of Yahweh, God, / shall rest on this branch, / the spirit of wisdom and understanding, / the spirit of counsel and strength, / the spirit of knowledge and / reverence for Yahweh.” (Slight pause.)
Based on what I just said, I hope this much is evident. The culture in which we live imposes a lot of things on us which are simply frivolous. Many of those things the culture imposes are not in any way dangerous and many of those things can be great fun.
But, for the most part, many of those things the culture imposes on us should not be taken seriously. They should not become or be made into the center of our lives. Why should we should waste energy, precious energy, on things which are no more than cultural noise? (Slight pause.)
In the passage the Prophet Isaiah speaks of the One on whom the Spirit of Yahweh, God, shall rest. The Prophet says that this One shall not judge by what the eyes see, by appearances, or decide by what the ears hear or by hearsay. In short, this one shall be focused on God— and focused on God, alone. In short, this one realizes nothing else matters but God. (Slight pause.)
The world throws a lot of stuff at us— appearances. Our ears hear a lot of “stuff.” But it is really, really of little matter— this stuff.
So, for me, a pivotal question becomes this: ‘What is really, really important?’ (Slight pause.) For me, the made up stuff has become less and less important over time.
For me the key issue has become ‘How does my relationship with God grow and how does God call me to grow in relationship with others?’ For me the key issue becomes ‘how do I turn my life toward God, turn my life over to God?’ (Slight pause.)
In the Gospel John the Baptizer says this (quote): “Change your hearts and minds,....” In the older, more archaic translation instead of saying “Change your hearts and minds...” a single word is used— repent.
As I have said here before, ‘repent’ in no way means to feel sorry or to regret. Repent means to turn your life toward God. Repent means to turn your life over to God. And perhaps more precisely, repent means, as much as possible, to ignore the clutter in the culture around us which distracts us from God. (Slight pause.)
I think one reason the church celebrates and we should celebrate Advent, why we should take Advent seriously, is the celebration should help us move away from the cultural clutter— the noise around us. Advent, you see, is meant as a time to grapple with the idea that God is with us at all times, in all places and in all ways because of the birth of the Messiah, the Christ, this one they called Jesus.
Therefore, Advent is meant as a time to help us see through culture clutter. (Slight pause.) Can all that cultural clutter be fun? Why, yes it can. It can be lots of fun. I have a lot of fun, myself, with it.
But we need to see cultural clutter as mere background noise. We need to realize the central message of Christmas is summed up in that other name connected with Jesus, the one we find here in the Gospel of Matthew— Emmanuel: God is with us. Amen.
12/08/2013
United Church of Christ, First Congregational, Norwich, NY
ENDPIECE— It is the practice of the Pastor to speak after the Closing Hymn, but before the Congregational Response and Benediction. This is an précis of what was said: “This, the Second Sunday in Advent, we commemorated Peace. As I have said here many times before, the Peace of God is not the absence of conflict. The Peace of God is the presence of the Spirit of God. And, as Christians, we recognize the presence of God at all times and in all places. It is my hope that in when recognize the presence of God that helps us filter out the cultural clutter which surrounds us.”
BENEDICTION: Let us be present to one another as we go from this place. Let us share our gifts, our hopes, our memories, our pain and our joy. Go in peace for God is with us. Go in joy for God knows every fiber of our being. Go in hope for God reveals to us, daily, that we are a part of God’s new creation. Go in love, for we rest assured, by Christ, Jesus, that God is steadfast. And may the peace of God which surpasses understanding be with us this day and forevermore. Amen.
[1] At the beginning of the service each week the day being celebrated on the Christian Calendar is noted.
Monday, December 2, 2013
SERMON ~ 12/01/2013 ~ “Keep Awake”
12/01/2013 ~ The First Sunday of Year ‘A’ of the Three Year Cycle of Lectionary Readings ~ First Sunday of Advent, the Sunday We Commemorate Hope ~ Isaiah 2:1-5; Psalm 122; Romans 13:11-14; Matthew 24:36-44 ~ Communion Sunday.
Keep Awake
NOTE: IF YOU ARE READING THIS ON THE BLOG POST, THERE ARE SOME VISUALS THE CONGREGATION SAW WHICH YOU WILL FIND ONLY IN THE PDF VERSION OF THE TEXT ON THE WEB SITE OF THE NORWICH CHURCH UNDER THE DATE OF THIS SERMON:.
ALSO, YOU CAN CLICK ON THIS PDF FILE AND THAT WILL BE JUST THE VISUALS.
“Therefore, keep awake— be vigilant, for you do not know the day on which your Savior is coming.” — Matthew 24:42.
Many of you know the Nichols family who used to be members here. However, some of you do not know them, since they moved to Western Pennsylvania about— my memory says five or six years ago. Needless to say, some of you were not attending this church that long ago.
Micah Nichols, one of four brothers, must have been in Middle School (or maybe still in Elementary School) depending on when the family left when the family left at that point. I presume that since I know he is now a Rotary Exchange Student and he is a Senior in High School.
Now, of all the places one could be a Rotary Exchange Student, Micah certainly wound up in one of the most exotic and perhaps even a little dangerous since there has been a little violence in the capital earlier this week. He is currently in Thailand. I know this because I am Micah’s Facebook friend.
And not only does he post on Facebook he writes an occasional blog. And just so I say this out loud, I have told him by e-mail he is a magnificent writer. He writes well, he is a keen observer and his insights are interesting. Well, Micah added a post to his blog just a couple of days ago and it contained yet another fascinating observation.
In what he wrote he first noted his Thai language abilities are coming along nicely. They are not yet what he would call great— and knowing Micah my bet is he has high standards for determining what is great— they are not what he would yet call great but they are improving.
After a couple of months in country he can understand much, as he listens to conversation in Thai. It is always a good feeling, he said, to realize you can understand what people are saying, even without dedicating your total focus to it.
As to the fascinating observation he made, this is a direct quote from that recent blog post of Micah Nichols: “Something mildly interesting about Thai culture is that there is no such thing as sarcasm. Being an American, a lot of my humor is sarcastic. This causes some definite communication issues and certainly makes Thai people think I’m absolutely insane.”
“For example, someone will tell me about how busy their day will be. I might say something along the lines of ‘oh, that should be fun, right?’ I normally get strange looks in response— but I think I’m slowly training my host family to understand sarcastic humor.” [1] (Slight pause.)
I have another Facebook friend who is fond of occasionally posting picture with a single sarcastic phrase attached. He posted some this week. The pictures from this week were interesting from a historical perspective, given the season. They were pictures of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade taken in the 1930s.
Back in the 1930s the parade had what we might think of as some pretty bizarre balloons. In part because these photos got posted, I’ve done research about the parade. And I think the balloons and floats in the parade back then in the 30s and even some photos from some later dates were pretty strange when seen through today’s eyes.
There are several peculiar strange dragons— balloons— which traversed the parade route in different years. I found them quite off-putting. There is one of a disembodied head. So you can see a couple of these pictures, let me pass out a sheet with some of them on it. [Pause as the pastor passes out sheets with pictures on it.]
[The pastor keeps talking as the pictures are passed out: “two sides on these; two different sheets— one has tinted pictures on it, the other doesn’t.” The pastor returns to the pulpit.]
THE VISUALS:
Some of those seem pretty strange, right— with today’s eyes, at least. Well, my friend who posted this on Facebook is in the habit as I suggested of posting a number of strange pictures, not just these from the parade.
And he posts strange pictures with some regularity. The caption he gives them is always the same. The caption is meant to be sarcastic, I’m sure. He posts a strange picture and then he proclaims: “Further Proof of the Apocalypse.” Proof of the Apocalypse? (Slight pause.)
We find these words in the Gospel we have come to know as Matthew: “Therefore, keep awake— be vigilant, for you do not know the day on which your Savior is coming.” (Slight pause.)
So, let’s ask the obvious question: is this text meant to be apocalyptic? Is this text meant to be about the end of time in the modern sense, in our sense? Or, for our purposes today, would it be more accurate to take the words in this text as sarcastic? (Slight pause.)
I want to be careful here. I have no need to demythologize these words, to make them too modern, to take all the interesting imagery found in the passage in such a way as to render the words meaningless and, therefore, useless. To do so would be to rob the images of the early Christian witness they were meant to be and are.
But taken in the context of the times in which they were written, the witness was not intended to convey despair. Taken in the context of the times, New Testament times, this is a witness about hope. But how can that be since, when we look at this text with our modern eyes, it is easy to read fear into them? (Slight pause.)
Just like sarcasm does not come across in a Thai culture, in the culture of New Testament times, these words are not meant to convey a message about fear. They would not have even understood— they— the people in New Testament times— would have even understood what seeing these words as fearful was about. This is witness is about hope for them. This is a witness, you see, about the consummating activity of God.
Indeed, we need to carefully listen to the witness of the text. And we do need to allow the symbols found therein to evoke in us a sense of urgency. We do need to allow the symbols found therein to create some expectancy about the future God might have for us and a sense of anticipation about the future God might have for humanity.
How so? This passage, you see, begins and ends with declarations that the hour in which the hope of God is fully realized but cannot be known— the hour cannot be known. And the fact that Jesus and the angels are not privy to the time should provide a sharp warning against speculation and any overeagerness to seek some kind of hidden message. In fact, any claim to special insight about the future based on this passage merely exposes human arrogance and pretense.
Therefore, we need to acknowledge there is actually a positive word in the very unknowable-ness of the hour. We need to be reminded that we should not live as speculators guessing about the future nor as prospectors hunting for gold nuggets in the text. We need to live as a people to whom a promise has been given.
And we need to count on the reliability of the One who makes promises of hope. You see, it is not that the future is somehow mysteriously shrouded and that armchair predictors of the apocalypse must seek to break the secret code and discover when the end will be. The promises God makes do not depend on the natural possibilities inherent in the past or the present. [2]
All of which is to say, taken in the context of the times in which this was written, this is not a warning of any kind. This is not about, as some today might have it— this is not about being afraid because the end is near. This is about being aware that doing the work of God right now is a necessary component of the Christian way of living.
And what does doing the work of God right now mean for us today? It means feeding the hungry— something we participated in just last week— sheltering the homeless, clothing those in tatters, welcoming the alien in our midst, offering adequate healthcare for everyone.
Therefore, doing the will of God means offering a word of hope. That— offering hope— is the message of Advent promise. And the Advent promise is the promise of the Messiah— God in our midst. Amen.
United Church of Christ, First Congregational, Norwich, New York
12/01/2013
ENDPIECE— It is the practice of the Pastor to speak after the Closing Hymn, but before the Congregational Response and Benediction. This is an précis of what was said: “I hope this is clear: our culture effects our understandings— just like sarcasm won’t make sense in Thai there are things which won’t make sense in our culture becasue it’s alien to us. An example: as you know, it was cold yesterday, in the single digits. Today it supposed to be over 40. But Bonnie and I came here from Maine. What the culture in Maine says is when you see single digits expect that to last for several weeks— sometimes below single digits for several weeks. My point is we need to examine how the culture informs us. A friend of mine said when he found out we were going to Norwich, ‘Oh, you’re going to the tropics, aren’t you? Does a language accommodate sarcasm? If not, you will not get the jokes. Is the message of God meant to be one of hope? If your cultural tendencies steer you away from hope and toward fear, you will not be able to grasp that God offers hope.”
BENEDICTION: Let us know and understand that our hope is in God. May we carry the peace of God where ever we go. Let us share that peace and that hope, which is God’s, with all whom we meet. For God reigns and the joy of God’s love is a present reality. Amen.
[1] Used with permission.
[2] Texts for Preaching: A Lectionary Commentary, Based on the NRSV, by Walter Brueggemann (Editor) , Charles B. Cousar (Editor) , Beverly Roberts Gaventa (Editor) , James D. Newsome Jr. (Editor) — this from the electronic version, which is exactly the same as the print version.
Keep Awake
NOTE: IF YOU ARE READING THIS ON THE BLOG POST, THERE ARE SOME VISUALS THE CONGREGATION SAW WHICH YOU WILL FIND ONLY IN THE PDF VERSION OF THE TEXT ON THE WEB SITE OF THE NORWICH CHURCH UNDER THE DATE OF THIS SERMON:
ALSO, YOU CAN CLICK ON THIS PDF FILE AND THAT WILL BE JUST THE VISUALS.
“Therefore, keep awake— be vigilant, for you do not know the day on which your Savior is coming.” — Matthew 24:42.
Many of you know the Nichols family who used to be members here. However, some of you do not know them, since they moved to Western Pennsylvania about— my memory says five or six years ago. Needless to say, some of you were not attending this church that long ago.
Micah Nichols, one of four brothers, must have been in Middle School (or maybe still in Elementary School) depending on when the family left when the family left at that point. I presume that since I know he is now a Rotary Exchange Student and he is a Senior in High School.
Now, of all the places one could be a Rotary Exchange Student, Micah certainly wound up in one of the most exotic and perhaps even a little dangerous since there has been a little violence in the capital earlier this week. He is currently in Thailand. I know this because I am Micah’s Facebook friend.
And not only does he post on Facebook he writes an occasional blog. And just so I say this out loud, I have told him by e-mail he is a magnificent writer. He writes well, he is a keen observer and his insights are interesting. Well, Micah added a post to his blog just a couple of days ago and it contained yet another fascinating observation.
In what he wrote he first noted his Thai language abilities are coming along nicely. They are not yet what he would call great— and knowing Micah my bet is he has high standards for determining what is great— they are not what he would yet call great but they are improving.
After a couple of months in country he can understand much, as he listens to conversation in Thai. It is always a good feeling, he said, to realize you can understand what people are saying, even without dedicating your total focus to it.
As to the fascinating observation he made, this is a direct quote from that recent blog post of Micah Nichols: “Something mildly interesting about Thai culture is that there is no such thing as sarcasm. Being an American, a lot of my humor is sarcastic. This causes some definite communication issues and certainly makes Thai people think I’m absolutely insane.”
“For example, someone will tell me about how busy their day will be. I might say something along the lines of ‘oh, that should be fun, right?’ I normally get strange looks in response— but I think I’m slowly training my host family to understand sarcastic humor.” [1] (Slight pause.)
I have another Facebook friend who is fond of occasionally posting picture with a single sarcastic phrase attached. He posted some this week. The pictures from this week were interesting from a historical perspective, given the season. They were pictures of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade taken in the 1930s.
Back in the 1930s the parade had what we might think of as some pretty bizarre balloons. In part because these photos got posted, I’ve done research about the parade. And I think the balloons and floats in the parade back then in the 30s and even some photos from some later dates were pretty strange when seen through today’s eyes.
There are several peculiar strange dragons— balloons— which traversed the parade route in different years. I found them quite off-putting. There is one of a disembodied head. So you can see a couple of these pictures, let me pass out a sheet with some of them on it. [Pause as the pastor passes out sheets with pictures on it.]
[The pastor keeps talking as the pictures are passed out: “two sides on these; two different sheets— one has tinted pictures on it, the other doesn’t.” The pastor returns to the pulpit.]
THE VISUALS:
Some of those seem pretty strange, right— with today’s eyes, at least. Well, my friend who posted this on Facebook is in the habit as I suggested of posting a number of strange pictures, not just these from the parade.
And he posts strange pictures with some regularity. The caption he gives them is always the same. The caption is meant to be sarcastic, I’m sure. He posts a strange picture and then he proclaims: “Further Proof of the Apocalypse.” Proof of the Apocalypse? (Slight pause.)
We find these words in the Gospel we have come to know as Matthew: “Therefore, keep awake— be vigilant, for you do not know the day on which your Savior is coming.” (Slight pause.)
So, let’s ask the obvious question: is this text meant to be apocalyptic? Is this text meant to be about the end of time in the modern sense, in our sense? Or, for our purposes today, would it be more accurate to take the words in this text as sarcastic? (Slight pause.)
I want to be careful here. I have no need to demythologize these words, to make them too modern, to take all the interesting imagery found in the passage in such a way as to render the words meaningless and, therefore, useless. To do so would be to rob the images of the early Christian witness they were meant to be and are.
But taken in the context of the times in which they were written, the witness was not intended to convey despair. Taken in the context of the times, New Testament times, this is a witness about hope. But how can that be since, when we look at this text with our modern eyes, it is easy to read fear into them? (Slight pause.)
Just like sarcasm does not come across in a Thai culture, in the culture of New Testament times, these words are not meant to convey a message about fear. They would not have even understood— they— the people in New Testament times— would have even understood what seeing these words as fearful was about. This is witness is about hope for them. This is a witness, you see, about the consummating activity of God.
Indeed, we need to carefully listen to the witness of the text. And we do need to allow the symbols found therein to evoke in us a sense of urgency. We do need to allow the symbols found therein to create some expectancy about the future God might have for us and a sense of anticipation about the future God might have for humanity.
How so? This passage, you see, begins and ends with declarations that the hour in which the hope of God is fully realized but cannot be known— the hour cannot be known. And the fact that Jesus and the angels are not privy to the time should provide a sharp warning against speculation and any overeagerness to seek some kind of hidden message. In fact, any claim to special insight about the future based on this passage merely exposes human arrogance and pretense.
Therefore, we need to acknowledge there is actually a positive word in the very unknowable-ness of the hour. We need to be reminded that we should not live as speculators guessing about the future nor as prospectors hunting for gold nuggets in the text. We need to live as a people to whom a promise has been given.
And we need to count on the reliability of the One who makes promises of hope. You see, it is not that the future is somehow mysteriously shrouded and that armchair predictors of the apocalypse must seek to break the secret code and discover when the end will be. The promises God makes do not depend on the natural possibilities inherent in the past or the present. [2]
All of which is to say, taken in the context of the times in which this was written, this is not a warning of any kind. This is not about, as some today might have it— this is not about being afraid because the end is near. This is about being aware that doing the work of God right now is a necessary component of the Christian way of living.
And what does doing the work of God right now mean for us today? It means feeding the hungry— something we participated in just last week— sheltering the homeless, clothing those in tatters, welcoming the alien in our midst, offering adequate healthcare for everyone.
Therefore, doing the will of God means offering a word of hope. That— offering hope— is the message of Advent promise. And the Advent promise is the promise of the Messiah— God in our midst. Amen.
United Church of Christ, First Congregational, Norwich, New York
12/01/2013
ENDPIECE— It is the practice of the Pastor to speak after the Closing Hymn, but before the Congregational Response and Benediction. This is an précis of what was said: “I hope this is clear: our culture effects our understandings— just like sarcasm won’t make sense in Thai there are things which won’t make sense in our culture becasue it’s alien to us. An example: as you know, it was cold yesterday, in the single digits. Today it supposed to be over 40. But Bonnie and I came here from Maine. What the culture in Maine says is when you see single digits expect that to last for several weeks— sometimes below single digits for several weeks. My point is we need to examine how the culture informs us. A friend of mine said when he found out we were going to Norwich, ‘Oh, you’re going to the tropics, aren’t you? Does a language accommodate sarcasm? If not, you will not get the jokes. Is the message of God meant to be one of hope? If your cultural tendencies steer you away from hope and toward fear, you will not be able to grasp that God offers hope.”
BENEDICTION: Let us know and understand that our hope is in God. May we carry the peace of God where ever we go. Let us share that peace and that hope, which is God’s, with all whom we meet. For God reigns and the joy of God’s love is a present reality. Amen.
[1] Used with permission.
[2] Texts for Preaching: A Lectionary Commentary, Based on the NRSV, by Walter Brueggemann (Editor) , Charles B. Cousar (Editor) , Beverly Roberts Gaventa (Editor) , James D. Newsome Jr. (Editor) — this from the electronic version, which is exactly the same as the print version.
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