12/27/2015 ~ First Sunday after Christmas, i.e.: the First Sunday after the Celebration of the Nativity of Jesus, the Christ ~ 1 Samuel 2:18-20, 26; Psalm 148; Colossians 3:12-17; Luke 2:41-52 ~ Also with A Hymn Sing.
Finding Jesus
“When the festival had ended they started to return. But Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, something Mary and Joseph did not realize.” — Luke 2:43-44.
I have, over time, regaled you with stories about the Great State of Maine, and about the fact that Bonnie and I met at a place, an island of about 80 acres large (or small, depending on your point of view) in the middle of Penobscot Bay, owned by her extended family. Paul Johnson, her cousin, my best friend, often invites his friends to this spot.
Now, I met Bonnie on this island in 1987. But because Paul is my best friend I had been there before. Since the island has been in her family since 1898, it goes without saying that Bonnie had been on the island nearly every year of her life.
When we met I was 39 and Bonnie was 38. I think I had reached that point in life when the words which best described me were written by George Bernard Shaw and later turned into an introduction to a song lyric by Allan Lerner. I was (quote:) “a confirmed old bachelor, and likely to remain so.” Bonnie will tell you her thinking was along similar lines.
Put differently, when we met on the island we were not looking for anyone. As Bonnie puts it: we had kind of given up. And we were certainly not looking one another. Indeed, we both agree, had we met ten years earlier— which could have happened since ten years earlier I already knew Paul for 5 years— it’s unlikely we would have found one another because our heads were in a very different place. At that point we were both, in fact, looking for someone— those ten years earlier— we were looking for someone.
In short, we were together on a small island when we found one another. But neither of us was looking. (Slight pause.)
We find these words in Luke/Acts in the section commonly referred to as Luke: “When the festival had ended they started to return. But Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, something Mary and Joseph did not realize.” (Slight pause.)
As was stated when this reading was introduced, there are apocryphal gospels, works which did not make it into the canon. These contain astonishing stories about the boy Jesus striking down difficult playmates and raising them up again. The boy Jesus shaping sparrows out of clay and bringing them to life. One can readily see why these apocryphal gospels were voted off the island, or the canon called Scripture.” (Sight pause.)
For me, one of the recurring themes throughout all the Gospels, reflected here, is people try to find Jesus. People seek out Jesus.
The disciples seek a Messiah. In the Gospel we know as John the one called Nicodemus, a member of the Sanhedrin— effectively the city council in Jerusalem— seeks out Jesus but does so at night. Nicodemus seeks Jesus at night, afraid that someone of such a high station would be seen with this revolutionary, this rabble rouser.
In this story of the twelve year old Jesus there is a lot happening and a lot to be reckoned with— everything from the fact that Jesus appears at a young age to be learned to the fact that Mary and Joseph are clearly devote Jews. They visit Jerusalem each year at Passover. I think there’s enough for a couple of sermons or at least a couple of hours of sermonizing here.
But fear not: I will limit my observations. Indeed, let me concentrate on one way to look at this story. In fact, perhaps one reason this story finds its way into the canon is, just as in other Gospel stories, people seek Jesus.
I think there is a twofold the seeking of Jesus is interesting. First, Jesus is there. Jesus in not in hiding. Jesus is simply there. Yet people seek Jesus.
Second and as you probably know, people are not expecting the Jesus Who is there. People are largely expecting a Messiah who will overthrow, perhaps violently, the existing order, the Roman Empire. But the Messiah they get is not the Messiah they expect. The Messiah they get is a Messiah of peace.
I think we sometimes have the same problem today. The Messiah some of us want is not the Messiah Who is there. So people seek the Jesus who is not there instead of recognizing the Jesus Who is there.
I said this Thursday night, Christmas Eve. The reason we celebrate Christmas is to remind us that Christ is with us— here, now. The presence of Christ is a reality, whether or not we admit it. And because of that presence, Christ invites us to participate in the Dominion of God— here, now.
And what is that work? That work is the work of peace, hope, love, joy, freedom. Here’s the short version of this message. Relax: we do not need to seek Jesus. Jesus is here. Amen.
12/27/2015
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 Response and Benediction. {The firs thing the pastor said was a reference to the fact that the service contained a hymn sing.} And this is a précis of what was said: “First, thank you for all your input. Second, we all have relatives who give us great, funny, silly Christmas presents. Here is mine. {The pastor removes his robe to reveal a sweatshirt emblazoned with the word Sermonator.} The Sermonator. Can’t beat that, right?
BENEDICTION: Hear now this blessing from the words of the Prophet Isaiah in the 60th chapter (Isaiah 60:19-20)— The sun shall no longer be / your light by day, / nor for brightness shall the moon / give light to you by night; / but Yahweh, God, will be your everlasting light, / and your God will be your glory. / Your sun shall no more go down, / or your moon withdraw itself; / for God will be your everlasting light, / and your days of mourning shall be ended. / Amen.
Monday, December 28, 2015
Friday, December 25, 2015
SERMON ~ 12/24/2015 ~ “Source of Peace”
12/24/2015 ~ 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.
Source of Peace
“In those days the Emperor Augustus published a decree ordering a census of the Roman world.” — Luke 2:1.
Rabbi Baruch had been sleeping for some time. Suddenly he was wide awake. Loud banging noises cluttered the air.
He would have jumped up if his old bones had allowed for that. But he was advanced in years, no longer possessing the agility of youth.
Slowly he placed his feet on the floor and with some pain stood. The noise kept repeating. He heard shouts also.
“It’s those shepherd boys,” he said out loud. That too was another sign of age. Instead of simply thinking things, he said them out loud, even though he was the only audience. “Those shepherd boys are trying to annoy me, trying to make me come out and curse them.”
He knew and they knew he would not curse them. Not only was he a Rabbi. His very name, Baruch, meant blessing. So he blessed. He would not curse.
They were shepherds— the lowest of the low, a cut above common criminals— but these were his shepherds, boys he had hired to tend his flock. He knew they had good hearts.
And he knew exactly how they were making this racket. They were banging the metal gate that led to the stable open and shut, open and shut— bang, bang, bang, bang.
Baruch stood, paced carefully toward the door, pushed on it and put his head outside the frame. The noise of the gate stopped immediately. Together the boys shouted his name: “Rabbi Baruch! Rabbi Baruch!” and laughed. One of them asked, “Have you come to curse us Rabbi?”
The Rabbi waved at them. “No, I will not curse you. You know that.” The Rabbi then offered a blessing.
“May you be blessed,” he said. “May you be blessed far, far away from here. Please, go to the hills and be a blessing to the herd I hired you to watch.”
“Ah, Rabbi,” one of the boys said, “you are no fun.” The others laughed and then as one they turned and headed down the road toward the hills out of town.
Baruch went back inside, wide awake now. He sat and stared at a wall, contemplating about how he got to this small town, Bethlehem. It was not that far from Jerusalem. Even at his age he could walk from Jerusalem, where he had once lived, to Bethlehem in half a day.
But he knew he was getting old. And he was tired of what he had to put up with to live in Jerusalem. So he found this small place in Bethlehem where he could live out his years in some comfort, some peace. He kept sheep for income.
Because of his age he found boys in the village willing to help him, work for him. This keep the flock going.
And if he knew anything, he knew he needed to be in a place like Bethlehem, where it was at least more tranquil than the big city. He also knew he needed to get away from Jerusalem, get away the noise, the congestion, the politics.
Politics— a dirty business— politics, these days something which started and ended with Rome. The Rabbis and the Priests of the Temple seemed to be deeply involved in the politics of the Empire. They even were cooperating with this silly Roman census thing.
Everyone needed to go back to their towns it was said. But there was no room for all those people, certainly not in a tiny place like Bethlehem. Just this day he told a young man and his pregnant wife who had no place to stay they could at least find some shelter in the stable behind the house, if they liked.
He was sure the Rabbis and Priests in Jerusalem thought they were doing what they could for the people by cooperating with Rome. But were they?
After all, the Romans continued to crucify people every day. Yes, some were common criminals. But many were not. It seemed to him Romans simply liked to kill people.
This is what Roman theology said: peace through victory; peace is attained through victory. This much he knew: victory did not produce peace. Victory produced only a lull in the fighting, a brief break in war making.
And what about the ancient faith of Israel? How did that fit in with the Romans?
Caesar was not simply a ruler, not a king to them. Caesar was a God. And the Rabbis and Priests had to offer at least tacit acknowledgment of that to stay the good side of the Romans. Calling Caesar a god certainly sounded like blasphemy to Baruch.
Out loud, as he was given to do, Baruch spoke these words: “And where does the God of Israel, fit in if Caesar’s a god? Because of their belief in peace through victory the Romans even call Augustus a name attributed to my God, the God of Israel: ‘source of peace.’ Augustus— ‘source of peace’ Ha!”
Even though there was a tone of loathing in his voice, Baruch immediately realized what he, by implication, had done. He had taken the name of God in vain. He had cursed— a real curse, not a mere vulgarity. Out loud he had used the words ‘source of peace’— a title for God, and applied it not to the God of Israel but to Caesar Augustus.
What happened then was simply a physical reaction— he lifted his hand, spit between his forefinger and middle finger {the Pastor does this and that sound is heard}, fell to his knees and wept. He... had... cursed. Between his tears he said, “May God forgive me.” (Slight pause.)
Overcome with emotion, he must have either passed out or fallen asleep on the floor because the next thing he knew was he was looking at the ceiling and once again there was shouting and banging. Familiar voices called his name.
“Rabbi! Rabbi Baruch!” It was the boys. This time they burst through the door. They were all speaking at once about a light, singing, a baby.
The only words which made sense as they grabbed him by the arm were, “Come, come with us quickly. Come to the stable.”
They pushed him out the door, through the gate to the back of the house. There he saw a man and a woman and a baby. She had given birth. (Slight pause.)
The woman smiled. It was a kind smile, a gentle smile. She beckoned him forward and held up the child. He smiled. She reached out her arms with the baby.
Again, what happened was simply a physical reaction. He took the child in his arms.
He looked into the eyes of the baby. The longer he looked into the eyes of the infant, the deeper he looked, the more he saw. What was it? What was there? It took a while for words to form.
Finally, a phrase kept on repeating over and over in his head. He had no idea from where the thought would have come but as was his wont, he said the words out loud: “source... of... peace.” Amen.
12/24/2015 — 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 Response and Benediction. This is a précis of what was said: “A couple of weeks ago at the end of the Sunday Service I pointed out that ‘source or prince of peace,’ ‘son of god,’ ‘the one to be worshiped,’ ‘savior of the world’ were all titles of Caesar. The secular world of Rome claimed connection with divinity. We live in a secular world. Hence, I never wish people a ‘Merry Christmas.’ That’s a secular term and as an alternative I’ve often, therefore, suggested that as Christians we wish one another a ‘Happy Christmas.’ But instead, I want to make a suggestion. If somebody says to you either ‘Happy Christmas’ ‘Merry Christmas,’ say to them ‘Christ is with us.’ That is the Christian sentiment the Feast of the Incarnation— Christ is with us.”
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.”
Source of Peace
“In those days the Emperor Augustus published a decree ordering a census of the Roman world.” — Luke 2:1.
Rabbi Baruch had been sleeping for some time. Suddenly he was wide awake. Loud banging noises cluttered the air.
He would have jumped up if his old bones had allowed for that. But he was advanced in years, no longer possessing the agility of youth.
Slowly he placed his feet on the floor and with some pain stood. The noise kept repeating. He heard shouts also.
“It’s those shepherd boys,” he said out loud. That too was another sign of age. Instead of simply thinking things, he said them out loud, even though he was the only audience. “Those shepherd boys are trying to annoy me, trying to make me come out and curse them.”
He knew and they knew he would not curse them. Not only was he a Rabbi. His very name, Baruch, meant blessing. So he blessed. He would not curse.
They were shepherds— the lowest of the low, a cut above common criminals— but these were his shepherds, boys he had hired to tend his flock. He knew they had good hearts.
And he knew exactly how they were making this racket. They were banging the metal gate that led to the stable open and shut, open and shut— bang, bang, bang, bang.
Baruch stood, paced carefully toward the door, pushed on it and put his head outside the frame. The noise of the gate stopped immediately. Together the boys shouted his name: “Rabbi Baruch! Rabbi Baruch!” and laughed. One of them asked, “Have you come to curse us Rabbi?”
The Rabbi waved at them. “No, I will not curse you. You know that.” The Rabbi then offered a blessing.
“May you be blessed,” he said. “May you be blessed far, far away from here. Please, go to the hills and be a blessing to the herd I hired you to watch.”
“Ah, Rabbi,” one of the boys said, “you are no fun.” The others laughed and then as one they turned and headed down the road toward the hills out of town.
Baruch went back inside, wide awake now. He sat and stared at a wall, contemplating about how he got to this small town, Bethlehem. It was not that far from Jerusalem. Even at his age he could walk from Jerusalem, where he had once lived, to Bethlehem in half a day.
But he knew he was getting old. And he was tired of what he had to put up with to live in Jerusalem. So he found this small place in Bethlehem where he could live out his years in some comfort, some peace. He kept sheep for income.
Because of his age he found boys in the village willing to help him, work for him. This keep the flock going.
And if he knew anything, he knew he needed to be in a place like Bethlehem, where it was at least more tranquil than the big city. He also knew he needed to get away from Jerusalem, get away the noise, the congestion, the politics.
Politics— a dirty business— politics, these days something which started and ended with Rome. The Rabbis and the Priests of the Temple seemed to be deeply involved in the politics of the Empire. They even were cooperating with this silly Roman census thing.
Everyone needed to go back to their towns it was said. But there was no room for all those people, certainly not in a tiny place like Bethlehem. Just this day he told a young man and his pregnant wife who had no place to stay they could at least find some shelter in the stable behind the house, if they liked.
He was sure the Rabbis and Priests in Jerusalem thought they were doing what they could for the people by cooperating with Rome. But were they?
After all, the Romans continued to crucify people every day. Yes, some were common criminals. But many were not. It seemed to him Romans simply liked to kill people.
This is what Roman theology said: peace through victory; peace is attained through victory. This much he knew: victory did not produce peace. Victory produced only a lull in the fighting, a brief break in war making.
And what about the ancient faith of Israel? How did that fit in with the Romans?
Caesar was not simply a ruler, not a king to them. Caesar was a God. And the Rabbis and Priests had to offer at least tacit acknowledgment of that to stay the good side of the Romans. Calling Caesar a god certainly sounded like blasphemy to Baruch.
Out loud, as he was given to do, Baruch spoke these words: “And where does the God of Israel, fit in if Caesar’s a god? Because of their belief in peace through victory the Romans even call Augustus a name attributed to my God, the God of Israel: ‘source of peace.’ Augustus— ‘source of peace’ Ha!”
Even though there was a tone of loathing in his voice, Baruch immediately realized what he, by implication, had done. He had taken the name of God in vain. He had cursed— a real curse, not a mere vulgarity. Out loud he had used the words ‘source of peace’— a title for God, and applied it not to the God of Israel but to Caesar Augustus.
What happened then was simply a physical reaction— he lifted his hand, spit between his forefinger and middle finger {the Pastor does this and that sound is heard}, fell to his knees and wept. He... had... cursed. Between his tears he said, “May God forgive me.” (Slight pause.)
Overcome with emotion, he must have either passed out or fallen asleep on the floor because the next thing he knew was he was looking at the ceiling and once again there was shouting and banging. Familiar voices called his name.
“Rabbi! Rabbi Baruch!” It was the boys. This time they burst through the door. They were all speaking at once about a light, singing, a baby.
The only words which made sense as they grabbed him by the arm were, “Come, come with us quickly. Come to the stable.”
They pushed him out the door, through the gate to the back of the house. There he saw a man and a woman and a baby. She had given birth. (Slight pause.)
The woman smiled. It was a kind smile, a gentle smile. She beckoned him forward and held up the child. He smiled. She reached out her arms with the baby.
Again, what happened was simply a physical reaction. He took the child in his arms.
He looked into the eyes of the baby. The longer he looked into the eyes of the infant, the deeper he looked, the more he saw. What was it? What was there? It took a while for words to form.
Finally, a phrase kept on repeating over and over in his head. He had no idea from where the thought would have come but as was his wont, he said the words out loud: “source... of... peace.” Amen.
12/24/2015 — 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 Response and Benediction. This is a précis of what was said: “A couple of weeks ago at the end of the Sunday Service I pointed out that ‘source or prince of peace,’ ‘son of god,’ ‘the one to be worshiped,’ ‘savior of the world’ were all titles of Caesar. The secular world of Rome claimed connection with divinity. We live in a secular world. Hence, I never wish people a ‘Merry Christmas.’ That’s a secular term and as an alternative I’ve often, therefore, suggested that as Christians we wish one another a ‘Happy Christmas.’ But instead, I want to make a suggestion. If somebody says to you either ‘Happy Christmas’ ‘Merry Christmas,’ say to them ‘Christ is with us.’ That is the Christian sentiment the Feast of the Incarnation— Christ is with us.”
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.”
Sunday, December 20, 2015
SERMON ~ 12/20/2015 ~ “Joy?”
12/20/2015 ~ Fourth Sunday of Advent ~ The Sunday on Which the Christian Virtue of Joy Is Celebrated; Micah 5:2-5a; Luke 1:46b-55 or Psalm 80:1-7; Hebrews 10:5-10; Luke 1:39-45, (46-55).
Joy?
“...the moment I heard the sound of your greeting reach my ears, the child in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed what our God said to her, what was spoken to her would be fulfilled, would be accomplished.” — Luke 1:44-45.
I think most of you know I came to Norwich from the great State of Maine. So I know Maine. And I’d like to briefly address the size and demographics of the state.
First, Maine is the largest New England State. The rest of the New England States— Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Connecticut can fit inside Maine. For all that land, it has only 1,300,000 residents. Maine is a rural state.
The Waldo County Cooperative of Churches, where I served as a part time pastor, was spread out over 40 miles. And the five towns in the co-op have less than 3,000 people all together. You could travel 10 or 15 minutes by car on the road from one of these towns to another and not see a house. It may feel rural in the Norwich area but not as rural as that.
I mention all this because, despite being in a small, rural state, Bangor Seminary, in Bangor, Maine, where I attended, had one of the outstanding New Testament scholars in the world on its staff. And I had the privileged of sitting in the classroom listening to this scholar— the Rev. Dr. Burton Throckmorton— just plain Burt to the students.
Now, I bring up Burt and Maine in the same breath for a couple of reasons. As I said, it was a privilege to learn from a scholar like Burt. He could have taught anywhere, you see— New York, Chicago. He had a world-wide reputation. He chose Bangor.
Further, this is what I mean when I say Burt was a scholar: he would stand in the front of the classroom with the Greek New Testament in his hands and translate it on the fly— just say the English words that were sitting in front of us. Then, occasionally, he would stop and explain why it was nearly impossible to translate a specific word into English, since there was no concurrent meaning in our language.
That brings me to what I think is the most important lesson I learned from Burt. When looking at the passage in 1 Corinthians 15, where it says (quote:) “I handed on to you as of first importance what I in turn had received....” Burt told us there was no good English word for underlying Greek of “handed on.”
The closest he could come was a bit of gibberish— understandable gibberish but not good English. He said the word effectively meant not ‘handed on’ but ‘tradition-ed on.’
He then explained what ‘tradition-ed’ might mean. When you get married, he said, odds are you and your spouse have different family traditions about celebrating Christmas. And odds are you grapple with this.
It’s quite likely you wind up taking some traditions from column ‘A’ and some from column ‘B.’ But what you’ve done is made it your own. And making it your own is the point of ‘tradition-ed on.’
But be careful, said Burt. In order to make the tradition of Scripture your own you need to deeply, deeply, deeply understand what the tradition is. (Slight pause.)
We find these words in the work known as Luke/Acts in the section commonly called Luke: “...the moment I heard the sound of your greeting reach my ears, the child in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that what our God said to her, what was spoken to her would be fulfilled, would be accomplished.” (Slight pause.)
Among American Protestants there was largely no religious celebration of Christmas for our first two hundred years on these shores, the 1600s and the 1700s. There were no such things as Christmas Carols back then.
However, in the early 1800s religious observances slowly become accepted in Protestantism, among Protestants. But secularism crept in nearly right away.
Indeed, an article in the New York Times this week told about the history of secular Christmas traditions in which New York City had a hand. Santa Claus— at least the common way in which the jolly old elf is portrayed today— is a New York invention.
In an 1809 in a short story Washington Irving created a comic version of St. Nicholas based on a Dutch tradition. Clement Moore then wrote An Account of a Visit from St. Nicholas in 1823 borrowing from Irving this “portly rubicund Dutchman.” The poem had a massive impact on Christmas gift giving it should be noted. Suffice it to say this figment of 19th Century literature bore no resemblance to the original Saint Nicholas, a Bishop from fourth century Turkey.
Just as a by the way, New York also had one of the first public Christmas tree lightings. But this did not happen until the 20th Century, 1912 to be precise. Before then there were essentially no public Christmas tree lightings anywhere in America. [1]
Here’s my point: what we do not realize, since a certain secular way of observing Christmas has been present for our entire lifetime these are new traditions. Acknowledging that these are new traditions leads me to a question.
Have we taken up the challenge of Paul about making the Christian tradition— not the Christmas tradition but the Christian tradition— our own? Or are we merely passive participants in what are obviously traditions based in the culture. Coming back to the Christmas traditions— for instance, these traditions about Christmas from Santa Claus to Christmas Trees?
Put another way, have we asked ourselves deep questions about Christian traditions around what the birth of the Messiah might mean? Have we asked ourselves not just what is the joy we should consider today, the day on which we celebrate joy. Have we asked ourselves why the child of Elizabeth might leap for joy? (Slight pause.)
When the reading from Luke was introduced, this was said. (Quote:) “Luke writes about not one birth narrative. Luke has a number of stories and two births in the first two chapters, and all of them are important.” (Slight pause.)
What makes these other sections important is the clarity they bring to the birth of the Messiah. How does this section of the First Chapter make the Second Chapter reading more clear?
I think some of the secular, cultural traditions we’ve developed over time get in the way of the real claim being made by Scripture. This is the claim: joy abounds because the proclamation here made is that this is not just a pastoral story of shepherds and the baby. This is the birth of the promised Messiah. And this is why we are joyful. (Slight pause.)
Theologian John Dominic Crossan says the one who leaps in the womb of Elizabeth, John, the one who goes before Jesus preaching, this Baptizer, has it wrong. John preaches that the Dominion of God will happen soon. Jesus, the cousin of John, says, “No, no that’s not quite right.” The Dominion of God is now, right now. And Jesus says we are invited to participate in that Dominion, now— right now.
Why? The Messiah is here— right now. The Messiah is present, is real, now. That’s the reason to be joyful. And we are invited by God to participate in the Dominion, now.
Here’s another way to put it. Jesus insists our lives are not about waiting for a second coming. Jesus insists our lives are about being willing to deal with the present reality of the first coming— Immanuel— God with us. (Slight pause.)
My friend Rebecca Fraser is a college professor and a talented poet. She is fond of writing in haiku, a Japanese style of poetry, often a three-line observation about a fleeting moment. Yesterday she posted this Christmas haiku but it had eight stanzas, not just one. Hence the title of this poem, this haiku, is A Christmas Haiku Times Eight.
Up and on the couch / With coffee at five a. m. / White lights, dark morning.
Slowly a gray sky / Emerges and I savor / The quiet and peace.
Comfortable and so / Uncomfortable knowing / Many are without.
Injustice explodes / Before my eyes when I choose / To see this darkness.
Come Emmanuel / Teach me love and compassion / Outside my safe home.
Show me where to care / And when to reach out a hand, / Present. Eye to eye.
And this is Christmas / Dark and light intermingle / Till light pierces dark.
Hope is born anew / And dreams of old women speak / Truth into worldly lies. [2]
Old women... old women like Elizabeth speak truth. And we— old and young— we are called to speak truth into worldly lies. Perhaps one truth is we fail to acknowledge the real joy of the advent of the Messiah. We fail to acknowledge is the real joy of the advent of the Messiah because we ignore the real truth of the first coming.
We ignore the real truth of the first coming by overlaying it with culturally acceptable practices. And what is the truth of Scripture as opposed to the truth of the culture? God... is... present. (Slight pause.)
Let us, this Christmas, this celebration of the first coming which we call Christmas, fully know the joy and the truth expressed by Scripture: God is with us, now. Let us celebrate the joy of the first coming by dealing with injustice, by dealing with our fears, by dealing with oppression, by dealing with violence.
Let us understand that the first coming means God is at our side on this journey. That is what Christmas is about. Christmas is about, therefore, fully understanding the hope, the peace, the love, the joy of God Who is present and Who is with us. Amen.
United Church of Christ, First Congregational, Norwich, New York
12/20/2015
ENDPIECE: It is the practice of the Pastor to speak after the Closing Hymn, but before the Response and Benediction. This is a précis of what was said: “Why are Christians invited to celebrate joy on this Sunday? Because the Christ is with us. This is not a statement in the past tense. The Christ is with us and our claim, as Christians, is the transformation of the world began with the birth of the Christ. That transformation is not simply an internal, private, spiritual reality. That transformation is an external, societal, communal process because the Dominion of God is among us. And we are invited to participate in that transformation.”
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 hope for God reveals to us, daily, that we are a part of God’s new creation. Go in joy for God knows every fiber of our being. Go in love, for we rest assured, by Christ, Jesus, that God is steadfast. Amen.
[1]
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/18/nyregion/new-york-today-a-little-history-of-christmas.html?emc=edit_ur_20151218&nl=nytoday&nlid=11820119
[2] Used with permission.
Joy?
“...the moment I heard the sound of your greeting reach my ears, the child in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed what our God said to her, what was spoken to her would be fulfilled, would be accomplished.” — Luke 1:44-45.
I think most of you know I came to Norwich from the great State of Maine. So I know Maine. And I’d like to briefly address the size and demographics of the state.
First, Maine is the largest New England State. The rest of the New England States— Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Connecticut can fit inside Maine. For all that land, it has only 1,300,000 residents. Maine is a rural state.
The Waldo County Cooperative of Churches, where I served as a part time pastor, was spread out over 40 miles. And the five towns in the co-op have less than 3,000 people all together. You could travel 10 or 15 minutes by car on the road from one of these towns to another and not see a house. It may feel rural in the Norwich area but not as rural as that.
I mention all this because, despite being in a small, rural state, Bangor Seminary, in Bangor, Maine, where I attended, had one of the outstanding New Testament scholars in the world on its staff. And I had the privileged of sitting in the classroom listening to this scholar— the Rev. Dr. Burton Throckmorton— just plain Burt to the students.
Now, I bring up Burt and Maine in the same breath for a couple of reasons. As I said, it was a privilege to learn from a scholar like Burt. He could have taught anywhere, you see— New York, Chicago. He had a world-wide reputation. He chose Bangor.
Further, this is what I mean when I say Burt was a scholar: he would stand in the front of the classroom with the Greek New Testament in his hands and translate it on the fly— just say the English words that were sitting in front of us. Then, occasionally, he would stop and explain why it was nearly impossible to translate a specific word into English, since there was no concurrent meaning in our language.
That brings me to what I think is the most important lesson I learned from Burt. When looking at the passage in 1 Corinthians 15, where it says (quote:) “I handed on to you as of first importance what I in turn had received....” Burt told us there was no good English word for underlying Greek of “handed on.”
The closest he could come was a bit of gibberish— understandable gibberish but not good English. He said the word effectively meant not ‘handed on’ but ‘tradition-ed on.’
He then explained what ‘tradition-ed’ might mean. When you get married, he said, odds are you and your spouse have different family traditions about celebrating Christmas. And odds are you grapple with this.
It’s quite likely you wind up taking some traditions from column ‘A’ and some from column ‘B.’ But what you’ve done is made it your own. And making it your own is the point of ‘tradition-ed on.’
But be careful, said Burt. In order to make the tradition of Scripture your own you need to deeply, deeply, deeply understand what the tradition is. (Slight pause.)
We find these words in the work known as Luke/Acts in the section commonly called Luke: “...the moment I heard the sound of your greeting reach my ears, the child in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that what our God said to her, what was spoken to her would be fulfilled, would be accomplished.” (Slight pause.)
Among American Protestants there was largely no religious celebration of Christmas for our first two hundred years on these shores, the 1600s and the 1700s. There were no such things as Christmas Carols back then.
However, in the early 1800s religious observances slowly become accepted in Protestantism, among Protestants. But secularism crept in nearly right away.
Indeed, an article in the New York Times this week told about the history of secular Christmas traditions in which New York City had a hand. Santa Claus— at least the common way in which the jolly old elf is portrayed today— is a New York invention.
In an 1809 in a short story Washington Irving created a comic version of St. Nicholas based on a Dutch tradition. Clement Moore then wrote An Account of a Visit from St. Nicholas in 1823 borrowing from Irving this “portly rubicund Dutchman.” The poem had a massive impact on Christmas gift giving it should be noted. Suffice it to say this figment of 19th Century literature bore no resemblance to the original Saint Nicholas, a Bishop from fourth century Turkey.
Just as a by the way, New York also had one of the first public Christmas tree lightings. But this did not happen until the 20th Century, 1912 to be precise. Before then there were essentially no public Christmas tree lightings anywhere in America. [1]
Here’s my point: what we do not realize, since a certain secular way of observing Christmas has been present for our entire lifetime these are new traditions. Acknowledging that these are new traditions leads me to a question.
Have we taken up the challenge of Paul about making the Christian tradition— not the Christmas tradition but the Christian tradition— our own? Or are we merely passive participants in what are obviously traditions based in the culture. Coming back to the Christmas traditions— for instance, these traditions about Christmas from Santa Claus to Christmas Trees?
Put another way, have we asked ourselves deep questions about Christian traditions around what the birth of the Messiah might mean? Have we asked ourselves not just what is the joy we should consider today, the day on which we celebrate joy. Have we asked ourselves why the child of Elizabeth might leap for joy? (Slight pause.)
When the reading from Luke was introduced, this was said. (Quote:) “Luke writes about not one birth narrative. Luke has a number of stories and two births in the first two chapters, and all of them are important.” (Slight pause.)
What makes these other sections important is the clarity they bring to the birth of the Messiah. How does this section of the First Chapter make the Second Chapter reading more clear?
I think some of the secular, cultural traditions we’ve developed over time get in the way of the real claim being made by Scripture. This is the claim: joy abounds because the proclamation here made is that this is not just a pastoral story of shepherds and the baby. This is the birth of the promised Messiah. And this is why we are joyful. (Slight pause.)
Theologian John Dominic Crossan says the one who leaps in the womb of Elizabeth, John, the one who goes before Jesus preaching, this Baptizer, has it wrong. John preaches that the Dominion of God will happen soon. Jesus, the cousin of John, says, “No, no that’s not quite right.” The Dominion of God is now, right now. And Jesus says we are invited to participate in that Dominion, now— right now.
Why? The Messiah is here— right now. The Messiah is present, is real, now. That’s the reason to be joyful. And we are invited by God to participate in the Dominion, now.
Here’s another way to put it. Jesus insists our lives are not about waiting for a second coming. Jesus insists our lives are about being willing to deal with the present reality of the first coming— Immanuel— God with us. (Slight pause.)
My friend Rebecca Fraser is a college professor and a talented poet. She is fond of writing in haiku, a Japanese style of poetry, often a three-line observation about a fleeting moment. Yesterday she posted this Christmas haiku but it had eight stanzas, not just one. Hence the title of this poem, this haiku, is A Christmas Haiku Times Eight.
Up and on the couch / With coffee at five a. m. / White lights, dark morning.
Slowly a gray sky / Emerges and I savor / The quiet and peace.
Comfortable and so / Uncomfortable knowing / Many are without.
Injustice explodes / Before my eyes when I choose / To see this darkness.
Come Emmanuel / Teach me love and compassion / Outside my safe home.
Show me where to care / And when to reach out a hand, / Present. Eye to eye.
And this is Christmas / Dark and light intermingle / Till light pierces dark.
Hope is born anew / And dreams of old women speak / Truth into worldly lies. [2]
Old women... old women like Elizabeth speak truth. And we— old and young— we are called to speak truth into worldly lies. Perhaps one truth is we fail to acknowledge the real joy of the advent of the Messiah. We fail to acknowledge is the real joy of the advent of the Messiah because we ignore the real truth of the first coming.
We ignore the real truth of the first coming by overlaying it with culturally acceptable practices. And what is the truth of Scripture as opposed to the truth of the culture? God... is... present. (Slight pause.)
Let us, this Christmas, this celebration of the first coming which we call Christmas, fully know the joy and the truth expressed by Scripture: God is with us, now. Let us celebrate the joy of the first coming by dealing with injustice, by dealing with our fears, by dealing with oppression, by dealing with violence.
Let us understand that the first coming means God is at our side on this journey. That is what Christmas is about. Christmas is about, therefore, fully understanding the hope, the peace, the love, the joy of God Who is present and Who is with us. Amen.
United Church of Christ, First Congregational, Norwich, New York
12/20/2015
ENDPIECE: It is the practice of the Pastor to speak after the Closing Hymn, but before the Response and Benediction. This is a précis of what was said: “Why are Christians invited to celebrate joy on this Sunday? Because the Christ is with us. This is not a statement in the past tense. The Christ is with us and our claim, as Christians, is the transformation of the world began with the birth of the Christ. That transformation is not simply an internal, private, spiritual reality. That transformation is an external, societal, communal process because the Dominion of God is among us. And we are invited to participate in that transformation.”
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 hope for God reveals to us, daily, that we are a part of God’s new creation. Go in joy for God knows every fiber of our being. Go in love, for we rest assured, by Christ, Jesus, that God is steadfast. Amen.
[1]
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/18/nyregion/new-york-today-a-little-history-of-christmas.html?emc=edit_ur_20151218&nl=nytoday&nlid=11820119
[2] Used with permission.
Sunday, December 13, 2015
SERMON ~ 12/13/2015 ~ “Love?”
12/13/2015 ~ Third Sunday of Advent ~ The Sunday on Which the Christian Virtue of Love Is Celebrated ~ Zephaniah 3:14-20; Isaiah 12:2-6; Philippians 4:4-7; Luke 3:7-18 ~ Music Sunday ~ Sing Out and Celebrate Sunday ~ Readings Added for Music Sunday ~ Micah 5:1-3 [ILV]; Isaiah 11:1-6, 10 [ILV].
Love?
“Sing aloud! Shout for joy / O fair Zion; / shout, O Israel and be glad! / Rejoice and exult with all your heart, / O fair Jerusalem!” — Zephaniah 3:14.
I need to start with three disclaimers. First, I do not normally make any comments on a Music Sunday. Our musicians always preach far better than that for which my limited abilities allow, as was true today. Second, I am loathe to inflict a lengthy hardship on anyone with what I add, so I shall be brief.
Third, why say anything today? The observant among you will notice my sermon titles the first two Sundays in Advent have matched the Christian virtues celebrated, hope and peace. Each of those titles were followed with a question mark— Hope? — Peace?
The title today is Love followed by a question mark. I am sure you can guess what the title will be next week. I was loathe to break up the set.
Now, as you heard when the reading from Zephaniah was introduced, some of the gloomiest passages in the Hebrew Scriptures appear in this writing. Then, without warning, the night dissipates, the day breaks in when these words are uttered. Which poses the question, why is the prophet suddenly jubilant? (Slight pause.)
I want to suggest the prophet realizes one thing. God is in love with humanity. Let me repeat that: God is in love with humanity. And this is why the prophet is ecstatic. Hence, this reading is used in Advent because Christians realize that the Incarnation, the birth of the Christ, this in-breaking of God, reenforces the love of God for us and the love of God is present in ways far beyond our understanding.
The late poet Madeleine L’Engle explains this sentiment well. This is her poem First Coming. (Slight pause.)
“This One did not wait till the world was ready, / till humans and nations were at peace, / but came when the Heavens were unsteady, / and prisoners cried out for release.”
“Nor did this One wait for the perfect time, / but came when the need was deep and great / and dined with sinners in all their grime, / turned water into wine.”
“This One did not wait till hearts were pure. / But in joy came to a tarnished world of sin, of doubt, / to a world— like ours— of anguished shame / this One came, and this / Light would not go out.”
“This One came to a world which did not mesh, / to heal its tangles, shield its scorn, / in the mystery of the Word made Flesh / the Maker of the stars was born.”
“We cannot wait till the world is sane / to raise our songs with joyful voice, / for to share our grief, to touch our pain, / This One came with Love: Rejoice! Rejoice!” (Slight pause.)
As I suggested, both our musicians and also Madeleine L’Engle address the Word better than I. And it seems to me it does boil down to this: God loves us— all humanity... God loves all humanity in our frailty— what an amazing gift. Amen.
121/13/2015
United Church of Christ, First Congregational, Norwich, New York.
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.
Love?
“Sing aloud! Shout for joy / O fair Zion; / shout, O Israel and be glad! / Rejoice and exult with all your heart, / O fair Jerusalem!” — Zephaniah 3:14.
I need to start with three disclaimers. First, I do not normally make any comments on a Music Sunday. Our musicians always preach far better than that for which my limited abilities allow, as was true today. Second, I am loathe to inflict a lengthy hardship on anyone with what I add, so I shall be brief.
Third, why say anything today? The observant among you will notice my sermon titles the first two Sundays in Advent have matched the Christian virtues celebrated, hope and peace. Each of those titles were followed with a question mark— Hope? — Peace?
The title today is Love followed by a question mark. I am sure you can guess what the title will be next week. I was loathe to break up the set.
Now, as you heard when the reading from Zephaniah was introduced, some of the gloomiest passages in the Hebrew Scriptures appear in this writing. Then, without warning, the night dissipates, the day breaks in when these words are uttered. Which poses the question, why is the prophet suddenly jubilant? (Slight pause.)
I want to suggest the prophet realizes one thing. God is in love with humanity. Let me repeat that: God is in love with humanity. And this is why the prophet is ecstatic. Hence, this reading is used in Advent because Christians realize that the Incarnation, the birth of the Christ, this in-breaking of God, reenforces the love of God for us and the love of God is present in ways far beyond our understanding.
The late poet Madeleine L’Engle explains this sentiment well. This is her poem First Coming. (Slight pause.)
“This One did not wait till the world was ready, / till humans and nations were at peace, / but came when the Heavens were unsteady, / and prisoners cried out for release.”
“Nor did this One wait for the perfect time, / but came when the need was deep and great / and dined with sinners in all their grime, / turned water into wine.”
“This One did not wait till hearts were pure. / But in joy came to a tarnished world of sin, of doubt, / to a world— like ours— of anguished shame / this One came, and this / Light would not go out.”
“This One came to a world which did not mesh, / to heal its tangles, shield its scorn, / in the mystery of the Word made Flesh / the Maker of the stars was born.”
“We cannot wait till the world is sane / to raise our songs with joyful voice, / for to share our grief, to touch our pain, / This One came with Love: Rejoice! Rejoice!” (Slight pause.)
As I suggested, both our musicians and also Madeleine L’Engle address the Word better than I. And it seems to me it does boil down to this: God loves us— all humanity... God loves all humanity in our frailty— what an amazing gift. Amen.
121/13/2015
United Church of Christ, First Congregational, Norwich, New York.
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 6, 2015
SERMON ~ 12/06/2015 ~ “Peace?”
12/06/2015 ~ Second Sunday of Advent ~ The Sunday on Which the Christian Virtue of Peace Is Celebrated ~ Communion Sunday ~ Baruch 5:1-9 or Malachi 3:1-4; Luke 1:68-79; Philippians 1:3-11; Luke 3:1-6.
Peace?
“In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea; Herod was Tetrarch of Galilee; Philip, his brother, was Tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias was Tetrarch of Abilene.” — Luke 3:1.
I hope it will not come as a surprise to you if I say I study Scripture. Aside from the fact that I am a pastor, why study Scripture? After all, being a pastor does not qualify me and me alone to study Scripture. It’s something we can, all of us and each of us, do.
In fact, one of our Pilgrim ancestors, John Robinson, said this just before leaving Europe: “God has yet more light and truth to break forth out of the holy Word.” That’s the short version as to why one should study Scripture— seeking light, seeking truth— these are there and yet to break forth.
Back to the thought that I might study Scripture and, more to the point, as I studied this week, I was looking at the specific verse I recited. This is precisely the place from where light and truth seemed to break forth for me. So let me explain that.
I need to start by saying chapters and verses are inventions of the 13th and 16th Century, respectively and are not a part of the original manuscript. Still, the text has a specific structure. There clearly are sections to the story.
And, as was indicated when this reading was introduced, the overall story seems to restart at this point. That restart is more obvious and pronounced than we might think.
You see, in the first verses of the first chapter of this Gospel we find an erudite introduction. It copies the form of great classical Greek and Latin writers. Further, the work is addressed to one Theophilus, clearly a Roman of high station.
Once the introduction is out of the way, the story begins. But to whom and how this work is written is pivotal when one recognizes how the next two sections start.
You are, unquestionably, familiar with the first words of the second section. (Quote:) “In those days the Emperor Augustus published a decree ordering a census of the Roman world.” This is not just a clear reference to Rome. This states a time, a place within the context of Rome.
Then we get the opening words of this section, the words we just heard. Yet again, this is a clear reference to Rome, a statement of a time, place within the context of Rome.
So, what’s significant about that? What is the import of citing Rome at the start of the first three sections in this work? (Slight pause.) If nothing else is clear to you about the New Testament, this should be: from beginning to end, from the Letters of Paul, the earliest writing in the New Testament, to the Gospels, to the later writings, Christian Scripture is an indictment of the Roman Empire.
Hence, that these first sections, all three of them, start with references to Rome is not happenstance and should not be a surprise. It also needs to be said, if the reader knows nothing about the Roman Empire, then it’s not easy to understand some of the issues being engaged in this text.
Let me illustrate that with one fact many gloss over when reading the New Testament. The Army of Rome occupies the land of the Jews. The Romans set up Herod, a Jew, as a puppet ruler.
They needed only a small garrison of soldiers in this place in part because they maintained order by killing people, by crucifying people. Jesus is, unquestionably, crucified. Jesus is crucified not by the Jews but by the Roman Empire.
But we also need to recognize Jesus is just one of probably ten thousand Jews the Roman Empire crucifies in the land of the Jews each and every year in an effort to terrorize. Instilling fear and committing acts of violence is a modus operandi, a method of operation, an institutional way of doing business for the Roman Empire.
Here is an unfortunate truth. Fear and violence are a modus operandi of any empire. Fear and violence are an institutional way of doing business which extends from the Romans to each and every empire throughout the ages to this very day.
And let us not think, even for a minute, that we fail to have empires today. Further, for we humans, fear and violence seems to be a way we organize ourselves, especially when that organization is matched with the self-aggrandizing thirst for power and domination associated with empire. To be clear: empires always practice violence, all kinds of violence— economic violence, social violence, structural violence, physical violence— there are all kinds and shapes of fear and violence practiced and empires are outstanding practitioners.
Which is also to say, when we look at Scripture, when we study Scripture, one aspect we need to examine is not just the fact that Scripture condemns fear and violence. Scripture is especially vocal in its condemnation of the fear and the violence associated with empire— any empire. (Slight pause.)
We find these words in Luke/Acts in the section commonly referred to as Luke: “In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea; Herod was Tetrarch of Galilee; Philip, his brother, was Tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias was Tetrarch of Abilene.” (Slight pause.)
To this day all over what was the Roman Empire there are inscriptions on ancient public buildings with these words: “Peace through victory.” Those words represent and display the theology of the Roman Empire.
Make no mistake about it. What a theology of ‘peace through victory,’ means is this: if we crush the spirit of those we encounter with fear and subjugate them with violence we will attain the peace we want. The peace we want is safety for us and only for us. Others do not count. (Slight pause.)
The choice offered by Scripture seems clear. It asks the question ‘are we to buy into the reign of empire, a reign of terror maintained through fear and through violence or are we to heed and to seek the reign of God?’ Given that analysis it is, you see, hard to not view the entire New Testament as a challenge to the reign of terror, the reign of fear, the reign of violence imposed by empire.
Why did that reign of terror, that reign of fear, that reign of violence exist in the empire? It seems to me we humans are both addicted to violence— economic violence, social violence, structural violence, physical violence and we strive to perpetrate on each other and the world in which we live economic violence, social violence, structural violence, physical violence.
If you’ve been reading the headlines in the last couple of weeks, you know that. If you’ve been paying attention to what Scripture says, if you study Scripture— the Bible which was written between three thousand and two thousand years ago— you know that also.
And if you pay attention to the reign of God rather than the reign of empire you understand that to use fear or violence is never an appropriate response to the world. (Slight pause.) So, what tools might that give the people of God? (Slight pause.) People who strive to adhere to the reign of God attempt to use compassion, attempt to use judgment, attempt to seek hope, attempt to pursue joy, attempt to embrace love and attempt to work for peace— true peace— the peace of God. (Slight pause.)
This is the day on which the church, in its wisdom and in its tradition, celebrates the peace of God. That begs the question: what is the peace of God? Certainly the peace of God is not about empire. But is the peace of God the absence of violence? (Slight pause.)
The promise we hear in Scripture is that the peace of God is with us, present. Indeed, one title for Caesar was Source of Peace, sometimes called Prince of Peace. So, in using Source of Peace/Prince of Peace as a title for the Messiah, Scripture is not just mocking Rome and mocking empire. Scripture is making a claim about the Christ.
The claim is Christ lives. The claim is Christ is with us. The claim is Christ is among us. And, indeed, the claim being made is that the peace of the reign of God is present to us because in Christ God is with us.
God walks among us. God is at our side. Put another way, the claim which says the peace of God is real is a claim which says the presence of God is real. (Slight pause.)
Given the fear and violence we see around us, there is a theological word that covers what we need to do. It is a word that’s fallen out of favor on both the theological left and the theological right.
This word has fallen out of favor because no one understands what is means anymore. The word is repent. The word means we need to turn toward God. Repent: we need to turn toward God, work toward and cultivate the reign of God— the meaning of the word repent. (Slight pause.)
Perhaps in so doing it is we who will be empowered to make the crooked straight and the rough plain. But we need to repent.
In a moment you will hear a song which has these words: “Stay close by My side / Keep your eyes on Me / Though this life is hard / I will give you perfect peace.” [1] God... is... with... us.
That God is with us should reenforce the idea that we need to work for justice, participate in the justice of God— the justice God wants and the justice God sees for all. And that justice is not the justice of empire. The justice of empire is about who has what and who controls whom.
The justice of empire is about violence. The justice of empire is about fear. The justice of empire is about victory.
The justice of God, the justice of God is about love, joy, hope, trust, freedom. And, indeed, the justice of God is about peace, God’s peace— the presence of God. Amen.
12/06/2015
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 a précis of what was said: “I said earlier we can see the entire New Testament as a challenge to the reign of terror, the fear and the violence perpetrated by the empire. Here is further proof of the challenge of the New Testament to empire. This is a list of titles: ‘source or prince of peace,’ ‘son of god,’ ‘the one to be worshiped,’ ‘savior of the world.’ No these are not the titles of the Christ. These are the titles of Caesar. The fact that these are, in turn, applied to the Christ is meant to mock the fear and violence of the reign of Rome and to proclaim the reign of God.”
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. Let us go in joy for God knows every fiber of our being. Let us go in hope for God reveals to us, daily, that we are a part of God’s new creation. Let us go in love, for we rest assured, by Christ, Jesus, that the love of God is steadfast. Let us go in peace for God is with us. Amen.
Perfect Peace by Laura Story, Sung by Mary Williams.
Peace?
“In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea; Herod was Tetrarch of Galilee; Philip, his brother, was Tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias was Tetrarch of Abilene.” — Luke 3:1.
I hope it will not come as a surprise to you if I say I study Scripture. Aside from the fact that I am a pastor, why study Scripture? After all, being a pastor does not qualify me and me alone to study Scripture. It’s something we can, all of us and each of us, do.
In fact, one of our Pilgrim ancestors, John Robinson, said this just before leaving Europe: “God has yet more light and truth to break forth out of the holy Word.” That’s the short version as to why one should study Scripture— seeking light, seeking truth— these are there and yet to break forth.
Back to the thought that I might study Scripture and, more to the point, as I studied this week, I was looking at the specific verse I recited. This is precisely the place from where light and truth seemed to break forth for me. So let me explain that.
I need to start by saying chapters and verses are inventions of the 13th and 16th Century, respectively and are not a part of the original manuscript. Still, the text has a specific structure. There clearly are sections to the story.
And, as was indicated when this reading was introduced, the overall story seems to restart at this point. That restart is more obvious and pronounced than we might think.
You see, in the first verses of the first chapter of this Gospel we find an erudite introduction. It copies the form of great classical Greek and Latin writers. Further, the work is addressed to one Theophilus, clearly a Roman of high station.
Once the introduction is out of the way, the story begins. But to whom and how this work is written is pivotal when one recognizes how the next two sections start.
You are, unquestionably, familiar with the first words of the second section. (Quote:) “In those days the Emperor Augustus published a decree ordering a census of the Roman world.” This is not just a clear reference to Rome. This states a time, a place within the context of Rome.
Then we get the opening words of this section, the words we just heard. Yet again, this is a clear reference to Rome, a statement of a time, place within the context of Rome.
So, what’s significant about that? What is the import of citing Rome at the start of the first three sections in this work? (Slight pause.) If nothing else is clear to you about the New Testament, this should be: from beginning to end, from the Letters of Paul, the earliest writing in the New Testament, to the Gospels, to the later writings, Christian Scripture is an indictment of the Roman Empire.
Hence, that these first sections, all three of them, start with references to Rome is not happenstance and should not be a surprise. It also needs to be said, if the reader knows nothing about the Roman Empire, then it’s not easy to understand some of the issues being engaged in this text.
Let me illustrate that with one fact many gloss over when reading the New Testament. The Army of Rome occupies the land of the Jews. The Romans set up Herod, a Jew, as a puppet ruler.
They needed only a small garrison of soldiers in this place in part because they maintained order by killing people, by crucifying people. Jesus is, unquestionably, crucified. Jesus is crucified not by the Jews but by the Roman Empire.
But we also need to recognize Jesus is just one of probably ten thousand Jews the Roman Empire crucifies in the land of the Jews each and every year in an effort to terrorize. Instilling fear and committing acts of violence is a modus operandi, a method of operation, an institutional way of doing business for the Roman Empire.
Here is an unfortunate truth. Fear and violence are a modus operandi of any empire. Fear and violence are an institutional way of doing business which extends from the Romans to each and every empire throughout the ages to this very day.
And let us not think, even for a minute, that we fail to have empires today. Further, for we humans, fear and violence seems to be a way we organize ourselves, especially when that organization is matched with the self-aggrandizing thirst for power and domination associated with empire. To be clear: empires always practice violence, all kinds of violence— economic violence, social violence, structural violence, physical violence— there are all kinds and shapes of fear and violence practiced and empires are outstanding practitioners.
Which is also to say, when we look at Scripture, when we study Scripture, one aspect we need to examine is not just the fact that Scripture condemns fear and violence. Scripture is especially vocal in its condemnation of the fear and the violence associated with empire— any empire. (Slight pause.)
We find these words in Luke/Acts in the section commonly referred to as Luke: “In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea; Herod was Tetrarch of Galilee; Philip, his brother, was Tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias was Tetrarch of Abilene.” (Slight pause.)
To this day all over what was the Roman Empire there are inscriptions on ancient public buildings with these words: “Peace through victory.” Those words represent and display the theology of the Roman Empire.
Make no mistake about it. What a theology of ‘peace through victory,’ means is this: if we crush the spirit of those we encounter with fear and subjugate them with violence we will attain the peace we want. The peace we want is safety for us and only for us. Others do not count. (Slight pause.)
The choice offered by Scripture seems clear. It asks the question ‘are we to buy into the reign of empire, a reign of terror maintained through fear and through violence or are we to heed and to seek the reign of God?’ Given that analysis it is, you see, hard to not view the entire New Testament as a challenge to the reign of terror, the reign of fear, the reign of violence imposed by empire.
Why did that reign of terror, that reign of fear, that reign of violence exist in the empire? It seems to me we humans are both addicted to violence— economic violence, social violence, structural violence, physical violence and we strive to perpetrate on each other and the world in which we live economic violence, social violence, structural violence, physical violence.
If you’ve been reading the headlines in the last couple of weeks, you know that. If you’ve been paying attention to what Scripture says, if you study Scripture— the Bible which was written between three thousand and two thousand years ago— you know that also.
And if you pay attention to the reign of God rather than the reign of empire you understand that to use fear or violence is never an appropriate response to the world. (Slight pause.) So, what tools might that give the people of God? (Slight pause.) People who strive to adhere to the reign of God attempt to use compassion, attempt to use judgment, attempt to seek hope, attempt to pursue joy, attempt to embrace love and attempt to work for peace— true peace— the peace of God. (Slight pause.)
This is the day on which the church, in its wisdom and in its tradition, celebrates the peace of God. That begs the question: what is the peace of God? Certainly the peace of God is not about empire. But is the peace of God the absence of violence? (Slight pause.)
The promise we hear in Scripture is that the peace of God is with us, present. Indeed, one title for Caesar was Source of Peace, sometimes called Prince of Peace. So, in using Source of Peace/Prince of Peace as a title for the Messiah, Scripture is not just mocking Rome and mocking empire. Scripture is making a claim about the Christ.
The claim is Christ lives. The claim is Christ is with us. The claim is Christ is among us. And, indeed, the claim being made is that the peace of the reign of God is present to us because in Christ God is with us.
God walks among us. God is at our side. Put another way, the claim which says the peace of God is real is a claim which says the presence of God is real. (Slight pause.)
Given the fear and violence we see around us, there is a theological word that covers what we need to do. It is a word that’s fallen out of favor on both the theological left and the theological right.
This word has fallen out of favor because no one understands what is means anymore. The word is repent. The word means we need to turn toward God. Repent: we need to turn toward God, work toward and cultivate the reign of God— the meaning of the word repent. (Slight pause.)
Perhaps in so doing it is we who will be empowered to make the crooked straight and the rough plain. But we need to repent.
In a moment you will hear a song which has these words: “Stay close by My side / Keep your eyes on Me / Though this life is hard / I will give you perfect peace.” [1] God... is... with... us.
That God is with us should reenforce the idea that we need to work for justice, participate in the justice of God— the justice God wants and the justice God sees for all. And that justice is not the justice of empire. The justice of empire is about who has what and who controls whom.
The justice of empire is about violence. The justice of empire is about fear. The justice of empire is about victory.
The justice of God, the justice of God is about love, joy, hope, trust, freedom. And, indeed, the justice of God is about peace, God’s peace— the presence of God. Amen.
12/06/2015
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 a précis of what was said: “I said earlier we can see the entire New Testament as a challenge to the reign of terror, the fear and the violence perpetrated by the empire. Here is further proof of the challenge of the New Testament to empire. This is a list of titles: ‘source or prince of peace,’ ‘son of god,’ ‘the one to be worshiped,’ ‘savior of the world.’ No these are not the titles of the Christ. These are the titles of Caesar. The fact that these are, in turn, applied to the Christ is meant to mock the fear and violence of the reign of Rome and to proclaim the reign of God.”
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. Let us go in joy for God knows every fiber of our being. Let us go in hope for God reveals to us, daily, that we are a part of God’s new creation. Let us go in love, for we rest assured, by Christ, Jesus, that the love of God is steadfast. Let us go in peace for God is with us. Amen.
Perfect Peace by Laura Story, Sung by Mary Williams.
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