08/21/2016 ~ Fourteenth Sunday after Pentecost ~ Twenty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time ~ Proper 16 ~ Jeremiah 1:4-10; Psalm 71:1-6; Isaiah 58:9b-14; Psalm 103:1-8; Hebrews 12:18-29; Luke 13:10-17 ~ Vacation Bible School Kick Off Service at the U.C.C. ~ A Union Service with the First Baptist Church and Emmanuel Episcopal Church.
Calling
“Then Yahweh put out a hand, / touched my mouth and said to me, ‘Look, I am putting My Words in your mouth.’” — Jeremiah 1:9
I think too often we, who are ordained types— that would be David and myself— talk about our calling— that is the calling to the ordained ministry. In our defense on that count, in the course of the process of education and the process of ordination a very specific demand is made on us. We are invited to state what that call is, what it feels like, how we first might have recognized its presence and even if we are comfortable with it.
However, it seems to me society, generally at least, somehow wants to sanctify a call to ministry, make it special, dare I say it— make a call to ministry holy. I’ve even heard pastors make claims like that. I beg to differ.
I think we can be called to many things in our life. Both David and I will tell you we are called not just to the ordained ministry but we are clearly called to be baseball fans! [1] (David responds “Amen,” so Joe responds, “Amen.”) That may not be particularly holy but it is a part of who we are. To turn that thought around, I think a call, any call, not just a call to ministry, is holy.
Let me explore that for a bit. The Rev. Michael Himes, who happens to be both a Jesuit priest and Professor of Theology at Boston College, has an interesting take on what a call is really about.
He lays out some thoughts concerning a call in a lecture. But the talk is not one given to those seeking ordination. In fact, Himes gives this talk to incoming first year students at Boston College— all the first year students. The title of the lecture is: “On Discernment: Three Key Questions.”
The first question about a call, a vocation: ‘is this a source of joy?’ The second, ‘is this something that taps into your talents and gifts, engages all your abilities and uses them in the fullest way possible? The third, ‘is this role a genuine service to the people around you and society at large?’
Then Himes restates those questions in a more vernacular way. First, ‘do you get a kick out of it? Second, ‘are you any good at it? Third, ‘does anyone want you to do it?’
Coming back to the first question about a source of joy— Himes says there is a difference between joy and happiness. Happiness changes from moment to moment and is affected by external factors— everything from sleep to illness to chance.
Joy is deeper and more central. This Jesuit defines joy as the sense of the rightness in the way in which one lives one’s life.
As to the second question: ‘are you good at it?’— Himes insists other people have to tell us that, help us discern whether or not we are good at what we are trying to do. You see, often we are not the best judges of what our talents are.
Last, ‘does anybody need you to do it?’ What does the community of people in which you live really need from your talents? I may be really good at herding sheep. But if I live in New York City, the community does not need someone who is really good at herding sheep, case closed. (Slight pause.)
We find these words in the work known as Jeremiah: “Then Yahweh put out a hand, / touched my mouth and said to me, ‘Look, I am putting My Words in your mouth.’” (Slight pause.)
As was said when this reading was introduced, this passage has been referred to as “The call of Jeremiah.” There are a lot of so called “call stories” in Scripture. But I think there is one thing we moderns tend to overlook in all the call stories.
In each of these stories about people who listen to and for God there is an implicit admission about the reality of God. After all, how can someone experience a call if God is not real?
This passage also expresses something seen in many of the call stories in Scripture— a reluctance on the part of the one being called. (Quote:) “I do not know how to speak for I am too young.”
For me these two somewhat opposite ideas— the reality of God and a reluctance to listen to God— intertwine in exactly the way Michael Himes suggests they might with the second question: ‘are you good at it?’ You see, Himes says others have to help us discern whether or not we are good at what we are trying to do.
Guess what? God is telling us we are— pardon the expression— preordained— by God to the place God might be inviting us to go. So God insists the call is valid.
And there is also this to consider (quote:) “Do not fear anyone, for I am with you to protect you...” God walks with us on the journey.
Last, God says (quote:) “Say whatever I command you.” You see, the call is not our call. We do not own it.
A call from God means God is working among the people of God. And the invitation God offers to us is that we participate in the call, participate in the work of God.
There is one more thing to note. Jeremiah is presented in the context of the events, the experiences of a specific time and place. The very life and the community of this prophet become a significant part of the work of God.
Thus, the history of the community and the biography of the prophet are joined. Therefore and as Himes states, part of the call has to do with what you have— what the community of people in which you live really need from your talents?’ (Slight pause.)
All that is well and good but this is not just any call I’ve been addressing, after all. This is the call of God. So is there something here beyond a very specific call to the work of God, for a lack of a better term, a call to ministry, as opposed to a call to be a ditch digger, a banker, a plumber, a lawyer, etc., etc., etc.? After all, part of my premise here is a call to ministry is not as holy or set aside as some would have it.
And that is the very place where the Rev. Himes has something to add. He says many of us live our lives as if we were a star in a movie and have the leading role— Himes the Movie! Therefore, everyone else in our life only plays a supporting role.
Yet, we need to see others as people, real people not as tools, actors in our movie. We should not project anything on them as if we were in their shoes. That’s because we are not in their shoes.
Further, we all have multiple vocations, says this Jesuit. (Quote:) “For instance I, Michael Himes, am a priest, an academic, a teacher, a writer, a friend, an uncle, a brother, a citizen, etc., etc., etc. I have private, public, professional identities.”
“It may be, in fact, that I have discovered my joy and that I know what my abilities are. But have I discerned what the people around me really and most deeply require? More importantly, have I got the courage and the wisdom to respond to their need?”
Himes then says this: “There is only one vocation that embraces all our other vocations: to be human. We are, thereby, called to be as intelligent, as responsible, as free, as courageous, as imaginative and as loving as we can possibly be within the context of what we do.”
“All of my other vocations, all of the many ways in which I live my life, must contribute to that one all embracing demand, that one constant vocation— to be fully, totally, absolutely as human as I can possibly be”— Michael Himes, Jesuit, College Professor. [2] (Slight pause.)
So, if our one and true calling is to be truly human, what does that entail? (Slight pause.) Let me speak for myself. First, I am flawed. But I think we need to realize and even need admit that we are all flawed. Not one of us is perfect.
Indeed, if you think you are perfect, please leave now. After all, church would be superfluous for the perfect.
Second, to be truly human we need to rely on the reality of God. Third, we need to rely on the grace of God. Fourth, we need to rely on the love of God.
That list, as you can probably imagine, might go on and on. Therefore, what I am really saying is a call is not a goal. We think of a call as a goal. But it is not.
So what is a true call, a real call? A true call, a real call is a process. It is the process of relationship with God and with one another.
Now, there’s a theological word, a theological term, which describes this process of relationship with God and with one another. This word, this term which is theological— I think you’ve heard it before. The word is love. Love is a process.
Most often in church we hear it said this way: love God; love neighbor. Loving God and loving neighbor is our one, real, true and only call— a process, not a goal. (Slight pause.)
Earlier, at the start of the service, I said this: “Our churches invited our brothers and sisters in Christ from Emmanuel Episcopal to join us in worship today, in part because they are experiencing a time of transition and in part because we wanted to find a way reach out to express our support for them after the death of our friend Chuck Taylor. The fact that we can worship together on this day is also statement of the obvious: we are all brothers and sisters in Christ.” [3] (Slight pause.)
And so, that is one way we have, on this day, tied to express our call to be human. We, thereby, acknowledge that God is real. We, thereby, acknowledge that God loves us and that we need to love one another. We, thereby, acknowledge that we are all brothers and sisters in Christ.
And so, let us continue to be in and to maintain the process of loving God and loving neighbor. Let us never let human barriers separate us, for we are brothers and sisters in Christ. Amen.
08/21/2016
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: “Having mentioned Michael Himes and his lecture about call, let me offer two quotes he used in the course of that talk. The first one is from St. Augustine. (Quote:) ‘Dissatisfaction— restlessness— is not a bad thing… indeed it’s the best thing about us.’ The next quote is from The 20th Century poet Marianne Moore. (Quote:) ‘Satisfaction is a lowly thing. How pure a thing is joy.’ Then the Rev. Himes chimes in (quote:) ‘Contentment is an obstacle. Joy always pushes us forward. It’s a impulsion, a pressure to move forward, to do more, to expend oneself more deeply, more richly, to open ones talents even more widely than one had before.’”
BENEDICTION: May God bless us and keep us. May the face of God shine upon us and be gracious to us. May God look upon us with kindness and give us peace. May the God of joy fill us with the power of the Holy Spirit, that we may abound in hope. And may we love God so much, that we love nothing else too much. May we be so in awe of God, that we are in awe of no one else and nothing else. Amen.
[1] The Rev. David Spiegel, Pastor of the First Baptist Church, who participated in this service.
[2]
http://www.visitationmonasteryminneapolis.org/2010/02/on-discernment-three-key-questions/
[3] As this statement indicates, this was a Union Service with the members of First Baptist Church. It was also a service with Emmanuel Episcopal Church who are now in a transition period and whose pastor died several months ago.
Sunday, August 21, 2016
Sunday, August 14, 2016
SERMON ~ 08/14/2016 ~ “The Cloud of Witnesses”
08/14/2016 ~ Thirteenth Sunday after Pentecost ~ Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time ~ Proper 15 ~ Isaiah 5:1-7; Psalm 80:1-2, 8-19; Jeremiah 23:23-29; Psalm 82; Hebrews 11:29-12:2; Luke 12:49-56 ~ Service in the Founder’s Room ~ Note: Used Hebrews 11:1-3, 8-16, 39-12:2a.
The Cloud of Witnesses
“Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside everything that impedes us and the sin, all that destroys, which so easily entangles us. Let us run with perseverance the race that is laid out before us.” — Hebrews 12:1.
In my comments a couple of weeks ago I regaled you with what might be called a short resumé of my background as a writer in theater and theatrically related projects. Today I’d like to, at least a little bit, say something about how I got there, some of my steps on the journey toward being a writer.
These steps started fairly early. I was probably somewhere between the age of eight and ten when I came down with the measles— not uncommon when I was a child.
Needing to be in bed for about a week, I asked for a pencil and a notebook. I was determined to outline a novel. I did not get very far since I found writing in bed quite uncomfortable.
My point is the desire to write was already there, if not the skill. And yes, writing is a talent but, if you have that talent, it is also a skill which can be honed.
Speaking of skill, I’ve always said the difference between someone who just writes and a professional writer is how the first drafts— that’s drafts, plural— the difference between someone who just writes and a professional writer is how the first drafts come into existence. Put differently, ‘where are first drafts really done?’
A professional writes all their first drafts in their head. Hence, a professional is working on a third draft before they begin to write things down in a place someone else can read the words. Someone whose first move is to write things down where someone else can read those words just writes.
So, how did I learn that skill of writing in my head first? When I was a junior in High School at least once a week there would be five topics on the board when the students arrived at English class. The assignment: write an essay on one of those topics. Take no more than 20 minutes to fill up only one side of a loose leaf sheet.
If you went over to the other side of that sheet— points off. If you fell short of the last line at the bottom of the sheet— points off. That exercise taught me something about organizing before writing— writing first drafts in my head. Interestingly— since I am a writer of lyrics— it also taught me something about brevity of form, lyrics being a fairly brief form.
Now, a milestone I mentioned in my comments a couple of weeks ago was being asked to become a member of the ASCAP Musical Comedy Workshop, a master class in writing musicals run by Charles Strouse, the composer of Annie. The other large music licensing organization is BMI, Broadcast Music Incorporated.
One composer I worked with was a member of the BMI Musical Comedy Workshop, the same kind of master class for writing musicals. These sessions were run by Lehman Engel, a well known conductor of Broadway shows.
I actually attended the BMI workshop with this BMI composer before I attended the ASCAP version, even though I was not a member of BMI. Perhaps because it came first, for me the BMI workshop was an invaluable experience. It prepared me for the ASCAP workshop and I really learned a whole lot at BMI. Specifically, I learned two necessary, intertwined, skills.
The first skill I call focus— make sure you know as much as possible about where you’re trying go before you go. Perhaps that way you can get there. Second, I learned the necessity of what Mr. Engel called familiarity with the lexicon, familiarity with the literature.
Lehman said you needed to know about the great composers and lyricists of musicals— Kern, Berlin, Gershwin— Ira and George, both (we just heard from them) [1]— Porter, Rodgers and Hart and Hammerstein, etc., etc., etc.— you needed to know what they had done. You also need to know what shows broke new ground— Show Boat, Porgy and Bess, Pal Joey, Oklahoma and why they mattered. Learning about these writers and shows helps immensely when you try to figure out where you might and can go.
Last and in the same way, you needed to know what was current and why that mattered. To be clear, when I was attending the BMI workshop A Chorus Line by Hamlisch and Kleban and Chicago by Kander and Ebb were the big hits on the Great White Way.
In short, you need to know where you’ve been and where you are before you can figure out where you’re going. Clearly, what has gone before and what is current offers guidance and example. Mr. Engel put it this way (and I am quoting here): “If who don’t know what was here before you arrived, you will not know the difference between what works and what is doomed to close on opening night.” (Slight pause.)
We find these words in the work known as Hebrews: “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside everything that impedes us and the sin, all that destroys, which so easily entangles us. Let us run with perseverance the race that is laid out before us.” (Slight pause.)
I hope this is clear: there is a specific claim made in Judaism and Christianity. Judaism and Christianity are faiths based in history. Yes, there are many individual stories in Scripture. But the real story, the overriding story, is about the history of the interaction of God with humanity. Therefore and also, it is about the history of the interaction of humanity with God.
Please note: the writer of Hebrews is not rattling off all that history about Sarah and Abraham because there will be a quiz. This writer is not concerned with who as much as how. The writer is speaking about where we, humanity, has been and is, thereby, laying out a path to follow.
And the history of the relationship of God with humanity and humanity with God is what that path is about. To be clear, that history is both long and complex. Indeed, you probably noticed, based on the notation of this reading in the bulletin, that a bunch of verses were skipped over.
In the verses we did hear, we heard these words about Sarah and Abraham over and over and over (quote:) “by... faith.” So, guess what was in the verses we skipped over? There was more information about the history of the relationship of God with humanity and humanity with God.
That history ranged from Moses to Gideon to Sampson to David to Samuel. And guess what words were used to describe that history? These words were used: “by faith.”
So, what this writer is trying to illustrate does not really concern the particulars of the story, who did what when. This is about the process illustrated by the story.
That leaves us with this question: at the end of this history, at the end of this story, where does faith lead? The writer of Hebrews supplies the answer. It leads us to Jesus, who— by faith— placed trust in God. (Slight pause.)
So what is the lesson we are to learn about faith? (Slight pause.) I want to suggest the lesson is simple and straightforward: God never gives up on us. God never gives up on calling us to follow. But, in order to know that, it might be helpful to grapple with what has come before us, to know the literature, the lexicon.
Indeed, this “cloud of witnesses” about whom we hear is not simply an indifferent group of spectators who turn out on a pretty day to see who might win this metaphoric race to which the author refers. On the contrary, this particular group of observers is anything but neutral.
They have received and understood the history of God with humanity and the history of humanity with God. Therefore, they line the roadway to encourage those who follow. (Slight pause.)
Well, let me come back to what I learned in those master classes. Yes, it is important to know where you have been and where you are at before you can figure out where you are going.
But I am not talking about knowing details, facts. I am talking about process. I am taking about action— the action called faith. And we heard about the faith which preceded us over and over and over again in the reading: (quote:) “by faith,” “by faith,” “by faith.”
That cloud of witnesses who have gone before us has set out a path for us to follow. And that path is called faith. (Slight pause.)
Well, let me say something very personal. As most of you know, I am in my twenty-first year as pastor with this community of faith.
And as I look out on the congregation on a Sunday and see your faces, I see your faith and your faithfulness. But I also see those who are no longer with us— some of whom are deceased, some of whom have moved away— I see those who are no longer with us, those whose faith and strength and courage throughout the race called life supported this community of faith.
But these are not ghosts or spirits I see. What I see is the faithful work they have done, the paths they have laid out for us. These people I can see in my mind’s eye are a cloud of witnesses in this place called Norwich and I shall not forget their faith or their faithfulness.
You know, we Americans tend to make a mistake about church. We tend to think of church as a building, a place to which you go. It is not. Church is, rather, a family to which you belong. And that family includes this great cloud of witnesses.
And it is up to us, today, to keep the work of those who have gone before us active and vital. It is up to us to be examples, to be a cloud of witnesses, for those who will follow us.
Put another way, we should not simply be an indifferent group of spectators who turn out on a pretty day to see who might win the metaphoric race. Indeed, we need to remember faith is not a feeling. Faith is an action. Faith supports, encourages, loves and nurtures. So, let us be about the work of faith this day as we, this community of faith, this cloud of witnesses, run the race. Amen.
08/14/2016
United Church of Christ, First Congregational
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: “At the start of my comments today I addressed some of my steps on the journey toward being a writer. I think it is well to remember life is not a goal, a destination. Life is a journey. Faith is not a goal, a destination. Faith is a journey.”
BENEDICTION: The loving kindness of God, the steadfast love of God, is always present to us. Therefore, may we love God so much, that we love nothing else too much. May we be so in awe of God, that we are in awe of no one else and nothing else. Amen.
[1] The “Special Music” on this mid-summer day was an instrumental version of song by George and Ira.
The Cloud of Witnesses
“Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside everything that impedes us and the sin, all that destroys, which so easily entangles us. Let us run with perseverance the race that is laid out before us.” — Hebrews 12:1.
In my comments a couple of weeks ago I regaled you with what might be called a short resumé of my background as a writer in theater and theatrically related projects. Today I’d like to, at least a little bit, say something about how I got there, some of my steps on the journey toward being a writer.
These steps started fairly early. I was probably somewhere between the age of eight and ten when I came down with the measles— not uncommon when I was a child.
Needing to be in bed for about a week, I asked for a pencil and a notebook. I was determined to outline a novel. I did not get very far since I found writing in bed quite uncomfortable.
My point is the desire to write was already there, if not the skill. And yes, writing is a talent but, if you have that talent, it is also a skill which can be honed.
Speaking of skill, I’ve always said the difference between someone who just writes and a professional writer is how the first drafts— that’s drafts, plural— the difference between someone who just writes and a professional writer is how the first drafts come into existence. Put differently, ‘where are first drafts really done?’
A professional writes all their first drafts in their head. Hence, a professional is working on a third draft before they begin to write things down in a place someone else can read the words. Someone whose first move is to write things down where someone else can read those words just writes.
So, how did I learn that skill of writing in my head first? When I was a junior in High School at least once a week there would be five topics on the board when the students arrived at English class. The assignment: write an essay on one of those topics. Take no more than 20 minutes to fill up only one side of a loose leaf sheet.
If you went over to the other side of that sheet— points off. If you fell short of the last line at the bottom of the sheet— points off. That exercise taught me something about organizing before writing— writing first drafts in my head. Interestingly— since I am a writer of lyrics— it also taught me something about brevity of form, lyrics being a fairly brief form.
Now, a milestone I mentioned in my comments a couple of weeks ago was being asked to become a member of the ASCAP Musical Comedy Workshop, a master class in writing musicals run by Charles Strouse, the composer of Annie. The other large music licensing organization is BMI, Broadcast Music Incorporated.
One composer I worked with was a member of the BMI Musical Comedy Workshop, the same kind of master class for writing musicals. These sessions were run by Lehman Engel, a well known conductor of Broadway shows.
I actually attended the BMI workshop with this BMI composer before I attended the ASCAP version, even though I was not a member of BMI. Perhaps because it came first, for me the BMI workshop was an invaluable experience. It prepared me for the ASCAP workshop and I really learned a whole lot at BMI. Specifically, I learned two necessary, intertwined, skills.
The first skill I call focus— make sure you know as much as possible about where you’re trying go before you go. Perhaps that way you can get there. Second, I learned the necessity of what Mr. Engel called familiarity with the lexicon, familiarity with the literature.
Lehman said you needed to know about the great composers and lyricists of musicals— Kern, Berlin, Gershwin— Ira and George, both (we just heard from them) [1]— Porter, Rodgers and Hart and Hammerstein, etc., etc., etc.— you needed to know what they had done. You also need to know what shows broke new ground— Show Boat, Porgy and Bess, Pal Joey, Oklahoma and why they mattered. Learning about these writers and shows helps immensely when you try to figure out where you might and can go.
Last and in the same way, you needed to know what was current and why that mattered. To be clear, when I was attending the BMI workshop A Chorus Line by Hamlisch and Kleban and Chicago by Kander and Ebb were the big hits on the Great White Way.
In short, you need to know where you’ve been and where you are before you can figure out where you’re going. Clearly, what has gone before and what is current offers guidance and example. Mr. Engel put it this way (and I am quoting here): “If who don’t know what was here before you arrived, you will not know the difference between what works and what is doomed to close on opening night.” (Slight pause.)
We find these words in the work known as Hebrews: “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside everything that impedes us and the sin, all that destroys, which so easily entangles us. Let us run with perseverance the race that is laid out before us.” (Slight pause.)
I hope this is clear: there is a specific claim made in Judaism and Christianity. Judaism and Christianity are faiths based in history. Yes, there are many individual stories in Scripture. But the real story, the overriding story, is about the history of the interaction of God with humanity. Therefore and also, it is about the history of the interaction of humanity with God.
Please note: the writer of Hebrews is not rattling off all that history about Sarah and Abraham because there will be a quiz. This writer is not concerned with who as much as how. The writer is speaking about where we, humanity, has been and is, thereby, laying out a path to follow.
And the history of the relationship of God with humanity and humanity with God is what that path is about. To be clear, that history is both long and complex. Indeed, you probably noticed, based on the notation of this reading in the bulletin, that a bunch of verses were skipped over.
In the verses we did hear, we heard these words about Sarah and Abraham over and over and over (quote:) “by... faith.” So, guess what was in the verses we skipped over? There was more information about the history of the relationship of God with humanity and humanity with God.
That history ranged from Moses to Gideon to Sampson to David to Samuel. And guess what words were used to describe that history? These words were used: “by faith.”
So, what this writer is trying to illustrate does not really concern the particulars of the story, who did what when. This is about the process illustrated by the story.
That leaves us with this question: at the end of this history, at the end of this story, where does faith lead? The writer of Hebrews supplies the answer. It leads us to Jesus, who— by faith— placed trust in God. (Slight pause.)
So what is the lesson we are to learn about faith? (Slight pause.) I want to suggest the lesson is simple and straightforward: God never gives up on us. God never gives up on calling us to follow. But, in order to know that, it might be helpful to grapple with what has come before us, to know the literature, the lexicon.
Indeed, this “cloud of witnesses” about whom we hear is not simply an indifferent group of spectators who turn out on a pretty day to see who might win this metaphoric race to which the author refers. On the contrary, this particular group of observers is anything but neutral.
They have received and understood the history of God with humanity and the history of humanity with God. Therefore, they line the roadway to encourage those who follow. (Slight pause.)
Well, let me come back to what I learned in those master classes. Yes, it is important to know where you have been and where you are at before you can figure out where you are going.
But I am not talking about knowing details, facts. I am talking about process. I am taking about action— the action called faith. And we heard about the faith which preceded us over and over and over again in the reading: (quote:) “by faith,” “by faith,” “by faith.”
That cloud of witnesses who have gone before us has set out a path for us to follow. And that path is called faith. (Slight pause.)
Well, let me say something very personal. As most of you know, I am in my twenty-first year as pastor with this community of faith.
And as I look out on the congregation on a Sunday and see your faces, I see your faith and your faithfulness. But I also see those who are no longer with us— some of whom are deceased, some of whom have moved away— I see those who are no longer with us, those whose faith and strength and courage throughout the race called life supported this community of faith.
But these are not ghosts or spirits I see. What I see is the faithful work they have done, the paths they have laid out for us. These people I can see in my mind’s eye are a cloud of witnesses in this place called Norwich and I shall not forget their faith or their faithfulness.
You know, we Americans tend to make a mistake about church. We tend to think of church as a building, a place to which you go. It is not. Church is, rather, a family to which you belong. And that family includes this great cloud of witnesses.
And it is up to us, today, to keep the work of those who have gone before us active and vital. It is up to us to be examples, to be a cloud of witnesses, for those who will follow us.
Put another way, we should not simply be an indifferent group of spectators who turn out on a pretty day to see who might win the metaphoric race. Indeed, we need to remember faith is not a feeling. Faith is an action. Faith supports, encourages, loves and nurtures. So, let us be about the work of faith this day as we, this community of faith, this cloud of witnesses, run the race. Amen.
08/14/2016
United Church of Christ, First Congregational
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: “At the start of my comments today I addressed some of my steps on the journey toward being a writer. I think it is well to remember life is not a goal, a destination. Life is a journey. Faith is not a goal, a destination. Faith is a journey.”
BENEDICTION: The loving kindness of God, the steadfast love of God, is always present to us. Therefore, may we love God so much, that we love nothing else too much. May we be so in awe of God, that we are in awe of no one else and nothing else. Amen.
[1] The “Special Music” on this mid-summer day was an instrumental version of song by George and Ira.
Sunday, August 7, 2016
SERMON ~ 08/07/2016 ~ “Worry”
08/07/2016 ~ Twelfth Sunday after Pentecost ~ Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time ~ Proper 14 ~ Isaiah 1:1, 10-20; Psalm 50:1-8, 22-23; Genesis 15:1-6; Psalm 33:12-22; Hebrews 11:1-3, 8-16; Luke 12:32-40 ~ Service in the Founder’s Room ~ Communion Sunday ~ Joe Also Preaches at North Guilford.
Worry
“But Abram said, ‘O my Sovereign, my God, what will you give me, what good are these blessings to me, so long as Sarai and I will die in disgrace? My only heir is a foreigner who lives in my household, Eliezer of Damascus.’” — Genesis 15:2.
Many of you know I am a proud graduate of Bangor Theological Seminary in Bangor, Maine. While we, here in Norwich, live in a fairly rural area, Maine is really a rural State, not simply a rural area.
Portland, the largest city in the State, is a little larger than Binghamton. Once you get beyond Bangor, which is much smaller than Binghamton, you’re better off counting moose than people.
An advantage of attending Bangor Seminary, a small seminary in a rural State, was the opportunity it offered for hands on experience, and a lot of it. Indeed, while I was still a student in Seminary I was called to be the assistant pastor at a five church cooperative in Waldo County Maine. So while I was still in school I was already working as a pastor.
After the call to those churches one visit I did to someone’s home stands out in my memory. Let me tell you about it.
The day started off as frustrating for me. I was scheduled to do some visitations. But I also knew I needed to get back up to Bangor as soon as I could because I had a paper due the next day. I was still in Seminary. So, while I needed to do these visitations I also needed to be back in Bangor.
Did you ever need to be in two places at the same time? It’s not a comfortable feeling. So that thought— the need to complete a paper— worried me all day.
As to visitations in Waldo County, in that rural context you never put in a phone call to someone in advance to ask if you can come. In some ways that’s considered an insult. You just show up. If the people you intend to visit are home and are not busy with some chore, they will welcome you.
And, if the people you intend to visit have not gone to Bangor to shop— really the only place they can shop— there is little doubt they will be there, at home. After all, there is no place for them to go, no downtown within a couple of miles.
Now, the day was frustrating not just because I had a paper due but also because I went to at least four homes and no one was in. No one was even out in the back forty with the herd.
When I reached the fifth house I was fairly confident those folks would be there. They were retired. And they were there. They greeted me graciously and invited me to sit and have tea and cookies— why, yes and thank you.
And as we sat and chatted and nibbled, yes, the paper which was due was still in the back of my mind worrying me. And as we sat and chatted and nibbled, I realized the man in this very traditional couple was quite taciturn. He let out an occasional grunt.
The woman, on the other hand, did not need prompting. She rattled on and on, telling story after story in a stream of consciousness way. I heard about everything from the weather to politics to the local High School sports teams.
Through all this chitchat, I kept thinking ‘I am sitting here listening to this small talk when I really need to be back in Bangor doing what I need to do. I need to get that paper done! That’s important!’ (Slight pause.)
Well, at one point she excused herself. A silence encircled the room as the husband and I sat staring at one another. I sipped some tea and smiled. I did not know what to say. Finally he broke the silence.
“She has cancer, you know.” (Long pause.)
“No. I did not that.”
“She never brings it up. It does not seem to worry her. She has hope. But... she does like to chat.” (Long pause.) And again he was silent. (Short pause.)
We find these words in the Hebrew Scriptures in the section known as the Torah in the work commonly called Genesis: “But Abram said, ‘O my Sovereign, my God, what will you give me, what good are these blessings to me, so long as Sarai and I will die in disgrace? My only heir is a foreigner who lives in my household, Eliezer of Damascus.’”
We get worried about all kinds of things. I was worried about that paper I needed to write. Because of that, it felt like I was wasting my time listening to small talk as I sat with that couple. Was I? I think not.
But in that moment, that’s not what I was thinking. I probably needed to be sitting there with them rather than worrying about what I had to do. (Slight pause.)
Let’s look at a different aspect of how we interact for a moment. Suppose you met someone you’ve never met before for the first time at a party. It’s quite likely not too far into the conversation one or the other of you will say, “Well, what do you do for a living? What’s your job?”
Question: does saying what you do for a living really say anything about who you are? It only says something about what you do and what you’ve done. And we often do confuse the two— what we’ve done as opposed to who we are.
That leads me to a question: Who is God? Notice, the question is not what does God do? The question is Who is God?
I think often we relegate God to a function. We offer a job description as if that was making a claim about who God is. We even have the audacity to ask God, ‘What have You done for me lately?’
Indeed, that is, effectively, the question Abram asks God (quote:) “...what will you give me, what good are these blessings to me, so long as Sarai and I will die in disgrace?” That particular question comes from how the culture of ancient times functioned. In that culture to die childless was a disgrace.
I also need to say if that question about supplying an heir is not asking God, ‘what have You done for me lately?’ I don’t know what it is. So the very question a) comes from the culture and b) says very little about Who God is.
And please notice, I am asking or at least suggesting the appropriate question here is Who is God? Now one of the things I think we fail to realize about the story Scripture relates— not just this story, the story all Scripture relates— comes down to the very simple story concept of character.
God, you see, is the main character in Scripture. Also and, indeed, there is a second main character. And the second character is Israel. Further, I would argue those two— God and Israel— are not just the main characters in Scripture. God and Israel are really the only two characters in Scripture.
All of which is to say God— to use very traditional language— God is a person. I think we forget that concept too often because instead of asking about our relationship with God we ask a question of God: “What have you done for me lately?”
We thereby turn God into a function rather than someone who lives, someone to Whom we need to relate, someone with Whom we need to be in relationship. And still, that leaves yet another question: what is the story we find in Scripture— what is the story we find in Scripture— which has these characters of God and Israel, what is this story about? (Slight pause.)
To me this is clear: Scripture is about hope. And God is a God of hope. God is about hope. Who is God? God is hope?
After all, what is it that God promises Abram about offspring? (Quote:) “Look at the sky and count the stars, if you can! As many stars as are in the sky so shall your descendants be.” And that promise is about hope.
So, when it comes to the story of God I think it is up to us, Israel, the new Israel is how some would put it— up to us, the other character in Scripture— to tell the story of God. And the story of God is not a story about being worried. The story of God is a story about hope and hopefulness.
How so? Why would I say that? The story of God is the story of this God who loves us. And since God loves us there is no better reason for hope. Love is, I think, the ultimate expression of hope. It us Who God is. Amen.
08/07/2016
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: “Here is an interesting thought: ships don’t sink because of the water around them. Ships sink because of the water that gets in them. Do not let what’s happening around you get inside you and weigh you down.”
BENEDICTION: Through God’s grace, by being attentive to God’s will, our deeds and our words will change our world for we will discover ways to proclaim release from the bondage of narrowness. Let us seek the God of Joy whose wisdom is our God. Let us go in peace to love and serve God. Amen.
Worry
“But Abram said, ‘O my Sovereign, my God, what will you give me, what good are these blessings to me, so long as Sarai and I will die in disgrace? My only heir is a foreigner who lives in my household, Eliezer of Damascus.’” — Genesis 15:2.
Many of you know I am a proud graduate of Bangor Theological Seminary in Bangor, Maine. While we, here in Norwich, live in a fairly rural area, Maine is really a rural State, not simply a rural area.
Portland, the largest city in the State, is a little larger than Binghamton. Once you get beyond Bangor, which is much smaller than Binghamton, you’re better off counting moose than people.
An advantage of attending Bangor Seminary, a small seminary in a rural State, was the opportunity it offered for hands on experience, and a lot of it. Indeed, while I was still a student in Seminary I was called to be the assistant pastor at a five church cooperative in Waldo County Maine. So while I was still in school I was already working as a pastor.
After the call to those churches one visit I did to someone’s home stands out in my memory. Let me tell you about it.
The day started off as frustrating for me. I was scheduled to do some visitations. But I also knew I needed to get back up to Bangor as soon as I could because I had a paper due the next day. I was still in Seminary. So, while I needed to do these visitations I also needed to be back in Bangor.
Did you ever need to be in two places at the same time? It’s not a comfortable feeling. So that thought— the need to complete a paper— worried me all day.
As to visitations in Waldo County, in that rural context you never put in a phone call to someone in advance to ask if you can come. In some ways that’s considered an insult. You just show up. If the people you intend to visit are home and are not busy with some chore, they will welcome you.
And, if the people you intend to visit have not gone to Bangor to shop— really the only place they can shop— there is little doubt they will be there, at home. After all, there is no place for them to go, no downtown within a couple of miles.
Now, the day was frustrating not just because I had a paper due but also because I went to at least four homes and no one was in. No one was even out in the back forty with the herd.
When I reached the fifth house I was fairly confident those folks would be there. They were retired. And they were there. They greeted me graciously and invited me to sit and have tea and cookies— why, yes and thank you.
And as we sat and chatted and nibbled, yes, the paper which was due was still in the back of my mind worrying me. And as we sat and chatted and nibbled, I realized the man in this very traditional couple was quite taciturn. He let out an occasional grunt.
The woman, on the other hand, did not need prompting. She rattled on and on, telling story after story in a stream of consciousness way. I heard about everything from the weather to politics to the local High School sports teams.
Through all this chitchat, I kept thinking ‘I am sitting here listening to this small talk when I really need to be back in Bangor doing what I need to do. I need to get that paper done! That’s important!’ (Slight pause.)
Well, at one point she excused herself. A silence encircled the room as the husband and I sat staring at one another. I sipped some tea and smiled. I did not know what to say. Finally he broke the silence.
“She has cancer, you know.” (Long pause.)
“No. I did not that.”
“She never brings it up. It does not seem to worry her. She has hope. But... she does like to chat.” (Long pause.) And again he was silent. (Short pause.)
We find these words in the Hebrew Scriptures in the section known as the Torah in the work commonly called Genesis: “But Abram said, ‘O my Sovereign, my God, what will you give me, what good are these blessings to me, so long as Sarai and I will die in disgrace? My only heir is a foreigner who lives in my household, Eliezer of Damascus.’”
We get worried about all kinds of things. I was worried about that paper I needed to write. Because of that, it felt like I was wasting my time listening to small talk as I sat with that couple. Was I? I think not.
But in that moment, that’s not what I was thinking. I probably needed to be sitting there with them rather than worrying about what I had to do. (Slight pause.)
Let’s look at a different aspect of how we interact for a moment. Suppose you met someone you’ve never met before for the first time at a party. It’s quite likely not too far into the conversation one or the other of you will say, “Well, what do you do for a living? What’s your job?”
Question: does saying what you do for a living really say anything about who you are? It only says something about what you do and what you’ve done. And we often do confuse the two— what we’ve done as opposed to who we are.
That leads me to a question: Who is God? Notice, the question is not what does God do? The question is Who is God?
I think often we relegate God to a function. We offer a job description as if that was making a claim about who God is. We even have the audacity to ask God, ‘What have You done for me lately?’
Indeed, that is, effectively, the question Abram asks God (quote:) “...what will you give me, what good are these blessings to me, so long as Sarai and I will die in disgrace?” That particular question comes from how the culture of ancient times functioned. In that culture to die childless was a disgrace.
I also need to say if that question about supplying an heir is not asking God, ‘what have You done for me lately?’ I don’t know what it is. So the very question a) comes from the culture and b) says very little about Who God is.
And please notice, I am asking or at least suggesting the appropriate question here is Who is God? Now one of the things I think we fail to realize about the story Scripture relates— not just this story, the story all Scripture relates— comes down to the very simple story concept of character.
God, you see, is the main character in Scripture. Also and, indeed, there is a second main character. And the second character is Israel. Further, I would argue those two— God and Israel— are not just the main characters in Scripture. God and Israel are really the only two characters in Scripture.
All of which is to say God— to use very traditional language— God is a person. I think we forget that concept too often because instead of asking about our relationship with God we ask a question of God: “What have you done for me lately?”
We thereby turn God into a function rather than someone who lives, someone to Whom we need to relate, someone with Whom we need to be in relationship. And still, that leaves yet another question: what is the story we find in Scripture— what is the story we find in Scripture— which has these characters of God and Israel, what is this story about? (Slight pause.)
To me this is clear: Scripture is about hope. And God is a God of hope. God is about hope. Who is God? God is hope?
After all, what is it that God promises Abram about offspring? (Quote:) “Look at the sky and count the stars, if you can! As many stars as are in the sky so shall your descendants be.” And that promise is about hope.
So, when it comes to the story of God I think it is up to us, Israel, the new Israel is how some would put it— up to us, the other character in Scripture— to tell the story of God. And the story of God is not a story about being worried. The story of God is a story about hope and hopefulness.
How so? Why would I say that? The story of God is the story of this God who loves us. And since God loves us there is no better reason for hope. Love is, I think, the ultimate expression of hope. It us Who God is. Amen.
08/07/2016
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: “Here is an interesting thought: ships don’t sink because of the water around them. Ships sink because of the water that gets in them. Do not let what’s happening around you get inside you and weigh you down.”
BENEDICTION: Through God’s grace, by being attentive to God’s will, our deeds and our words will change our world for we will discover ways to proclaim release from the bondage of narrowness. Let us seek the God of Joy whose wisdom is our God. Let us go in peace to love and serve God. Amen.
Sunday, July 31, 2016
SERMON ~ 07/31/2016 ~ “Life or Death?”
07/31/2016 ~ Eleventh Sunday after Pentecost ~ Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time ~ Proper 13; Hosea 11:1-11 ~ Psalm 107:1-9, 43; Ecclesiastes 1:2, 12-14; 2:18-23; Psalm 49:1-12; Colossians 3:1-11; Luke 12:13-21 ~ Service in the Founders’ Room.
Life or Death?
Jesus is recorded as speaking these words in the work known as Luke: “...God said to the farmer, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be required of you.’” — Luke 12:20.
I think most of you know I wound up in ordained ministry by a very circuitous route. Generally, authorized ministers in the United Church of Christ and in Main Line denominations, are required to have both a Bachelor’s Degree and a 90 credit Master of Divinity Degree or the equivalent.
So yes, I did earn both a Bachelor’s Degree in Creative Writing, as it happens, and I did earn the Master of Divinity Degree. But I earned them in my forties, later in life as those things are usually measured.
Hence and therefore, I sometimes say the first school from which I graduated was the school of hard knocks. Getting into the prestigious school of hard knocks was easy. I simply dropped out of college after one semester. Needless to say, the first class session in the school of hard knocks is finding a job. I did that.
But, as happened to many of us back when I was young, got drafted and sent to Vietnam. Not long after I got back to these shores I decided to follow my heart and take a crack at writing, at being a writer, for professional theater.
I did many things when it came to theater work from being a business manager for a children’s theater to doing office work for the Actors’ Fund of America— the largest theatrical charity in the country. On the writing end of things the list longer. I wrote material for and directed club acts. I wrote a number of plays and musicals and something in the neighborhood of three hundred songs with different composers.
I contributed material to an off-Broadway Musical. That show starred Kaye Ballard, for those of you who might remember Kaye.
Two of my plays had showcases in prestigious venues. A comedy— New Face of the Year— was presented at the Manhattan Theater Club. Another, a musical version of Much Ado About Nothing— which with great good perversity I called, All’s Well That Ends Well— was showcased at The Lambs Club, the oldest theatrical social club in the United States.
I was invited to be a member of the ASCAP Musical Comedy Workshop, essentially a master’s class for composers, lyricists and librettists. It was run by Charles Strouse, who composed Annie.
Of course, and as is true of a lot of theater professionals, I also did all kinds of other jobs outside of theater to keep food on the table. These are some of the highlights from that list of endeavors. I worked as a tour guide at South Street Seaport Museum. I worked in computer operations— back when computers were the size of this room. I even worked as a store manager.
Last, certainly not least, I worked in back office operations on Wall Street. I am sure all this experience was worth at least a graduate degree from the aforementioned school of hard knocks. Now, it’s that last job I mentioned— working in back office operations on Wall Street— that I want to connect with the fact that I served in Vietnam.
To be clear, I don’t want to overstate what I saw in Southeast Asia. As these things go, I was in relatively safe places. On the other hand, no place was really safe. I got blown out of bed a couple of times by incoming.
My point is, when you daily live with the possibility of death for fourteen months, it does change your outlook on life. So, what could have happened on Wall Street that might have connected with Army life? (Slight pause.)
One job I had on the Street was to dispatch messengers who delivered stock and bond certificates to other brokerages. This was work done against a deadline. Certificates had to be delivered by certain times of the day or they would be rejected.
Once a senior vice-president came into my office with a stack of certificates and demanded they be delivered right away. But this was after any kind deadline had past. I time stamped the delivery sheet and said, “I’ll get them out as soon as I can. The deadline is past and all the messengers are out making on time deliveries.”
He shouted at the top of his lungs, “I will have your job! I will have you fired!”
I smiled and said, “Good luck with that.” His face got very red. He turned and, clearly on a mission, quickly scurried out of the office. The next voice I heard was that of the senior vice-president in charge of my area.
“O.K. What happened?” I calmly explained I had received a stack of certificates for delivery way past the deadline, time stamped the delivery sheet and would attempt delivery A.S.A.P. My guy, shaking his head, just turned around and left. (Slight pause.)
You see, when you’ve served for fourteen months in a war zone a threat which says, ‘you’re fired’ has very little meaning. You’re reaction is, “I know what a real threat is. I saw a real threat to my life every day for better than a year. So, go ahead. Tell me, ‘You’re fired!’ Big deal.” And that, my friends, is about a lesson from the school of hard knocks well learned and then put into action. (Slight pause.)
Jesus is recorded as speaking these words in the work known as Luke: “...God said to the farmer, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be required of you.’” (Slight pause.)
Some might suggest “You’re fired” has become not just a catch phrase but a way of life in the culture today, in Twenty-first Century America. Equally, there are those who, because of the culture in which we live, might take these words of Jesus as a threat that effectively says, ‘I threaten you with death. Therefore, be good, be generous.’
But is that the case? (Slight pause.) I think seeing this text as a threat is very Twenty-first Century outlook. If we see it that way, it’s our culture informing us, not the text.
In fact, I don’t think death or any kind of threat is a part of the equation. What is a part of the equation are the obvious questions: ‘What is meaningful in life?’ and ‘Do possessions give life meaning?’ (Slight pause.)
I think freedom from greed is the real focus of this reading. And greed is a difficult issue in our culture. Indeed, many would insist to be free from greed is to deny the freedom to possess things. And yes, possessions are important to us. After all, we do live in a very material world— to quote another current catch phrase.
And yes, we do live in a culture that thrives on the profit motive, a culture puts a high premium on expansion and growth. For some, in reality, materialism is a religion.
And it is not always easy to separate greed from profit. But separating greed from need has to be done. Let me reiterate that: separating greed from need has to be done. And that leads me to the reading from Colossians.
This is one of those weeks where the matching lectionary reading from the Epistle helps illuminate the Gospel. What we hear from Colossians is that God grants us not just freedom from greed. What we have is freedom to live in goodness and with equity.
(Quote:) “...put aside your old self with its practices...” And (quote:) “...in that renewal, in that image, there is no longer Greek and Hebrew, Jew or Gentile, barbarian or Scythian, no slave or citizen.” (Slight pause.)
This brings me back to how each of us thinks about life. Yes, my time in the service, my time overseas, changed me. As I said earlier, when I got back to these shores I decided to follow my heart, take a crack at being a writer for professional theater. And, obviously, I did a lot around that.
But what my time in the service really did for me was to empower the idea that I had to follow my heart. While I label it as following my heart I think I can better describe it by mentioning the questions I raised for myself when I returned. There are two: ‘Why am I here?’ and ‘Why did I survive?’ (Slight pause.)
That brings me back to the words of Jesus we heard at the end of the reading (quote:) “...this is the way it works for those who store up treasures, riches, for themselves but are not rich in God.” This is clear: God is not vengeful. God is a God of love. Life is not about how much you have, how high you live. Life is about how well you live. Life is not about how high you live. Life is about how well you live.
The choices we make can be and sometimes are about life and death. But what really brings us life and what really brings us to life is listening for a call from God and listening to our neighbors.
And when we listen to the call of God and when we help our neighbor, our own outlook on life will not be overwhelmed by threats or by materialism, possessions. Our own outlook on life will be one which embraces freedom.
So this passage is not about any kind of threat. This passage is about the freedom to live. And not just about the freedom to live but the freedom to live well, to live in the grace God offers each of us, grace which includes an invitation from God to live and to love to the fulness of our ability.
Why is that invitation there? Because God is not a vengeful God. God is a God of love. And that is not a threat. That is a promise— the promise of God. Amen.
United Church of Christ, First Congregational, Norwich, New York
07/31/2016
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: “What I shared today was, obviously, a part of my personal story. But each of us has a unique personal story. Therefore, I think each of us needs to ask how does my own, unique, wonderful, personal story help me understand how I related to the world around me and to God?”
BENEDICTION: Let us never fear to seek the truth God reveals. Let us live as a resurrection people. Let us understand every day as a new adventure in faith as the Creator draws us into community. So, go now, go in safety— for you cannot go where God is not. Go now— go in love— for love alone endures. Go now— go with purpose and God will honor your dedication. And last, go in peace— for it is a gift from God to those whose hearts and minds are in Christ, Jesus. Amen.
Life or Death?
Jesus is recorded as speaking these words in the work known as Luke: “...God said to the farmer, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be required of you.’” — Luke 12:20.
I think most of you know I wound up in ordained ministry by a very circuitous route. Generally, authorized ministers in the United Church of Christ and in Main Line denominations, are required to have both a Bachelor’s Degree and a 90 credit Master of Divinity Degree or the equivalent.
So yes, I did earn both a Bachelor’s Degree in Creative Writing, as it happens, and I did earn the Master of Divinity Degree. But I earned them in my forties, later in life as those things are usually measured.
Hence and therefore, I sometimes say the first school from which I graduated was the school of hard knocks. Getting into the prestigious school of hard knocks was easy. I simply dropped out of college after one semester. Needless to say, the first class session in the school of hard knocks is finding a job. I did that.
But, as happened to many of us back when I was young, got drafted and sent to Vietnam. Not long after I got back to these shores I decided to follow my heart and take a crack at writing, at being a writer, for professional theater.
I did many things when it came to theater work from being a business manager for a children’s theater to doing office work for the Actors’ Fund of America— the largest theatrical charity in the country. On the writing end of things the list longer. I wrote material for and directed club acts. I wrote a number of plays and musicals and something in the neighborhood of three hundred songs with different composers.
I contributed material to an off-Broadway Musical. That show starred Kaye Ballard, for those of you who might remember Kaye.
Two of my plays had showcases in prestigious venues. A comedy— New Face of the Year— was presented at the Manhattan Theater Club. Another, a musical version of Much Ado About Nothing— which with great good perversity I called, All’s Well That Ends Well— was showcased at The Lambs Club, the oldest theatrical social club in the United States.
I was invited to be a member of the ASCAP Musical Comedy Workshop, essentially a master’s class for composers, lyricists and librettists. It was run by Charles Strouse, who composed Annie.
Of course, and as is true of a lot of theater professionals, I also did all kinds of other jobs outside of theater to keep food on the table. These are some of the highlights from that list of endeavors. I worked as a tour guide at South Street Seaport Museum. I worked in computer operations— back when computers were the size of this room. I even worked as a store manager.
Last, certainly not least, I worked in back office operations on Wall Street. I am sure all this experience was worth at least a graduate degree from the aforementioned school of hard knocks. Now, it’s that last job I mentioned— working in back office operations on Wall Street— that I want to connect with the fact that I served in Vietnam.
To be clear, I don’t want to overstate what I saw in Southeast Asia. As these things go, I was in relatively safe places. On the other hand, no place was really safe. I got blown out of bed a couple of times by incoming.
My point is, when you daily live with the possibility of death for fourteen months, it does change your outlook on life. So, what could have happened on Wall Street that might have connected with Army life? (Slight pause.)
One job I had on the Street was to dispatch messengers who delivered stock and bond certificates to other brokerages. This was work done against a deadline. Certificates had to be delivered by certain times of the day or they would be rejected.
Once a senior vice-president came into my office with a stack of certificates and demanded they be delivered right away. But this was after any kind deadline had past. I time stamped the delivery sheet and said, “I’ll get them out as soon as I can. The deadline is past and all the messengers are out making on time deliveries.”
He shouted at the top of his lungs, “I will have your job! I will have you fired!”
I smiled and said, “Good luck with that.” His face got very red. He turned and, clearly on a mission, quickly scurried out of the office. The next voice I heard was that of the senior vice-president in charge of my area.
“O.K. What happened?” I calmly explained I had received a stack of certificates for delivery way past the deadline, time stamped the delivery sheet and would attempt delivery A.S.A.P. My guy, shaking his head, just turned around and left. (Slight pause.)
You see, when you’ve served for fourteen months in a war zone a threat which says, ‘you’re fired’ has very little meaning. You’re reaction is, “I know what a real threat is. I saw a real threat to my life every day for better than a year. So, go ahead. Tell me, ‘You’re fired!’ Big deal.” And that, my friends, is about a lesson from the school of hard knocks well learned and then put into action. (Slight pause.)
Jesus is recorded as speaking these words in the work known as Luke: “...God said to the farmer, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be required of you.’” (Slight pause.)
Some might suggest “You’re fired” has become not just a catch phrase but a way of life in the culture today, in Twenty-first Century America. Equally, there are those who, because of the culture in which we live, might take these words of Jesus as a threat that effectively says, ‘I threaten you with death. Therefore, be good, be generous.’
But is that the case? (Slight pause.) I think seeing this text as a threat is very Twenty-first Century outlook. If we see it that way, it’s our culture informing us, not the text.
In fact, I don’t think death or any kind of threat is a part of the equation. What is a part of the equation are the obvious questions: ‘What is meaningful in life?’ and ‘Do possessions give life meaning?’ (Slight pause.)
I think freedom from greed is the real focus of this reading. And greed is a difficult issue in our culture. Indeed, many would insist to be free from greed is to deny the freedom to possess things. And yes, possessions are important to us. After all, we do live in a very material world— to quote another current catch phrase.
And yes, we do live in a culture that thrives on the profit motive, a culture puts a high premium on expansion and growth. For some, in reality, materialism is a religion.
And it is not always easy to separate greed from profit. But separating greed from need has to be done. Let me reiterate that: separating greed from need has to be done. And that leads me to the reading from Colossians.
This is one of those weeks where the matching lectionary reading from the Epistle helps illuminate the Gospel. What we hear from Colossians is that God grants us not just freedom from greed. What we have is freedom to live in goodness and with equity.
(Quote:) “...put aside your old self with its practices...” And (quote:) “...in that renewal, in that image, there is no longer Greek and Hebrew, Jew or Gentile, barbarian or Scythian, no slave or citizen.” (Slight pause.)
This brings me back to how each of us thinks about life. Yes, my time in the service, my time overseas, changed me. As I said earlier, when I got back to these shores I decided to follow my heart, take a crack at being a writer for professional theater. And, obviously, I did a lot around that.
But what my time in the service really did for me was to empower the idea that I had to follow my heart. While I label it as following my heart I think I can better describe it by mentioning the questions I raised for myself when I returned. There are two: ‘Why am I here?’ and ‘Why did I survive?’ (Slight pause.)
That brings me back to the words of Jesus we heard at the end of the reading (quote:) “...this is the way it works for those who store up treasures, riches, for themselves but are not rich in God.” This is clear: God is not vengeful. God is a God of love. Life is not about how much you have, how high you live. Life is about how well you live. Life is not about how high you live. Life is about how well you live.
The choices we make can be and sometimes are about life and death. But what really brings us life and what really brings us to life is listening for a call from God and listening to our neighbors.
And when we listen to the call of God and when we help our neighbor, our own outlook on life will not be overwhelmed by threats or by materialism, possessions. Our own outlook on life will be one which embraces freedom.
So this passage is not about any kind of threat. This passage is about the freedom to live. And not just about the freedom to live but the freedom to live well, to live in the grace God offers each of us, grace which includes an invitation from God to live and to love to the fulness of our ability.
Why is that invitation there? Because God is not a vengeful God. God is a God of love. And that is not a threat. That is a promise— the promise of God. Amen.
United Church of Christ, First Congregational, Norwich, New York
07/31/2016
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: “What I shared today was, obviously, a part of my personal story. But each of us has a unique personal story. Therefore, I think each of us needs to ask how does my own, unique, wonderful, personal story help me understand how I related to the world around me and to God?”
BENEDICTION: Let us never fear to seek the truth God reveals. Let us live as a resurrection people. Let us understand every day as a new adventure in faith as the Creator draws us into community. So, go now, go in safety— for you cannot go where God is not. Go now— go in love— for love alone endures. Go now— go with purpose and God will honor your dedication. And last, go in peace— for it is a gift from God to those whose hearts and minds are in Christ, Jesus. Amen.
Sunday, July 24, 2016
SERMON ~ 07/24/2016 ~ “The Climax of the Covenant”
07/24/2016 ~ Tenth Sunday after Pentecost ~ Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time ~ Proper 12 ~ Hosea 1:2-10; Psalm 85; Genesis 18:20-32; Psalm 138; Colossians 2:6-15, (16-19); Luke 11:1-13 ~ Service in the Founder’s Room.
The Climax of the Covenant
“In Christ also you have been given the Covenant through a transformation performed not by human hands but with a spiritual circumcision, by the complete striping away of your body of flesh. This is what ‘circumcision’ in Christ means.” — Colossians 2:11.
You may have noticed that my wife, Bonnie, is not here today. She is in the great State of Maine. A lot of you have heard me talk a number of times about the island in the middle of Penobscot Bay to which we travel. That is where Bonnie is right now. She sent me a Facebook picture this morning of what she saw: the beautiful bay and the dock and the island across from that.
Why, you might ask, am I not with her? Well, if you read my article in the last newsletter you know I suffer from severe pollen allergies.
By way of describing my situation this is what I wrote: “If you’ve ever noticed my attire in the Summer (not that my sartorial choices should concern you!) as much as possible I wear long sleeve shirts and long pants (never short pants). That is not because I want to have a more formal look since I am a pastor, so formal might be in order.”
“That is because one does not get an allergic response only from breathing in pollen. When pollen lands on any exposed skin it causes an allergic reaction.”
Now, the older I’ve gotten, the worse the allergic reactions have become. And the pollen to which I have the most severe reaction is pine pollen.
That being said, being on this island for a week is like sitting in the middle of a pine forest for a week. Bonnie will tell you after I spend a seven days there my eyes are nearly swollen shut and it takes me a couple of weeks to fully recover.
The paradox is I love the island. I wish I was with Bonnie right now. Bonnie and I met on this island back when my allergies were not as bad as they are now. But I can really be there for only a day or two before I need to leave.
So, why might I love this place? Besides the fact that Bonnie and I met there, some of why I love this 80 acre patch of land surrounded by ocean— an outpost with no electric, by the way— some of why I love this island has to do with the traditions of Bonnie’s family, now also my family.
Bonnie’s Great-Great-Grandfather bought the island in 1898. It’s been in the family ever since. In 1927 they build seven cabins on it— prefabs purchased from the Sears catalogue, believe it or not. In the last 25 years all the cabins have been either rebuilt or replaced but always on that same footprint of the original cabins.
When those cabins were built, in 1927,this island became a Summer place for family and extended family. And for each and every day someone, anyone, has been on the island since 1927, a log has been kept— like a ship’s log— an account of the people present and the activities in which they engaged.
Hence, Bonnie can go to the log from 1927 and see entries which involve her father who was then 13 years old at that point. She can see the first entry which talks about her arrival on the island, in 1951.
She can see the first time she, as a youngster, wrote in the log herself. And we, both Bonnie and I, can see the entry of the day we met on the island, July 11th, 1987. Keeping a log for their time on the island is a cherished family tradition. (Slight pause.)
Traditions are, in one sense, a way of remembering, a way of keeping a memory alive. In one sense they are a way of learning— learning about what has been and perhaps how that might effect us now.
A different way to look at it says traditions are a means of making sure you never forget what’s important. And of course, when it comes to family, remembering, learning and never forgetting what’s important are all central to the process of bonding into family, the process of becoming family. (Slight pause.)
We find these words in Colossians: “In Christ also you have been given the Covenant through a transformation performed not by human hands but with a spiritual circumcision, by the complete striping away of your body of flesh. This is what ‘circumcision’ in Christ means.” (Slight pause.)
British Theologian Nicholas Thomas Wright describes Jesus as (quote:) “the Climax of the Covenant.” What is it this scholar means to indicate by using that label? (Slight pause.)
In order to unpack what the term “Climax of the Covenant” might mean I think I probably need to first state something I’ve said here time an again. In fact, I said in my comments just last week.
When reading Scripture we need to place ourselves in the context of the First Century of the Common Era, when these words were written. We need to ask ‘what did the words mean to those who first read or first heard them?’
Second, we need to state the obvious: Jesus is Jewish. And this is clear: the writer of Colossians— not likely to have been Paul, by the way— probably a piece written after Paul died and, therefore, a work written by a disciple of Paul— it is clear the writer of Colossians sees Jesus in light of the God of Israel, sees in Jesus the continuity, the traditions, of Hebrew heritage.
What should be obvious is this writer is intent on making a connection between Jesus and the God of Israel. And I, personally, would describe these words as a rethinking by early Christians about the God of Israel. I, personally, would also describe these words as these early Christians striving to wrestle with the reality of Jesus, wrestle with an understanding of who Jesus is.
And the place on which they come down says Jesus is the Christ. The early Christians— by calling Jesus, the Christ, the Messiah— offer a definition of what being the Christ that might mean.
In the defining Jesus as the Christ, the Messiah, these early Christians proclaim Jesus as an extension of the Covenant made by the God of Israel with the people of Israel. By calling Jesus the Christ, the Messiah, these early Christians are making a connection to the traditions of the God of Israel. Indeed, this wrestling, this grappling with the person of Jesus, this trying to connect Jesus with the God of Israel, should be seen by us as a tradition we need to understand and with which we need to grapple ourselves.
You see, I think— if we claim to be Christians, as individuals and as a community— it is imperative that we not merely or simply accept what modern books and what modern preachers tell us about Jesus without examination or question. It is imperative that we, ourselves, wrestle with the very concept of who Jesus is, that we, ourselves, wrestle with the lineage of Jesus, that we, ourselves, wrestle with the connection of Jesus to God, that we, ourselves, wrestle with what Hebrew tradition says and with what Christian tradition says. (Slight pause.)
That brings me back to traditions. What is the purpose of traditions? Earlier I said traditions are about remembering, learning and never forgetting. Traditions are, thereby, central to the process of bonding into family, central to the process of becoming family.
So, why grapple? Why not just accept? (Slight pause.) The first verse in the reading today said (quote:) “As you therefore have received Christ Jesus,....” The Greek verb here translated as “received” refers to the reception of tradition. But this receiving of tradition is not about a static understanding or static acceptance of tradition as a collection of historical particulars and constraints. That is not the implication of that word, this language.
Rather, the language used indicates that receiving this tradition allows for being built up in Christ, allows for a continued growth and a continued development. Indeed, the means, the way to that growth and development is wrestling with and striving to understand how God and Christ are central to our own individual and collective history with God.
In short, if we are Christians, our tradition says we need to wrestle with the reality of who Jesus is, as did the early Christians. Our tradition says we need to wrestle with the idea that Jesus is an extension of the Covenant made by the God of Israel, made by God with the people of Israel. Our tradition says we need wrestle with the connection between Jesus and God.
And yes, I think examining our traditions is a means of making sure we never forget what’s important. And yes, traditions are about remembering. And yes, traditions are about learning and never forgetting what’s important and how they effect us.
And yes, I think by wrestling with our traditions we, as Christians, will accomplish what central to the process— holding and keeping traditions. And of course, then will bond into family. Then we will enter into the process of becoming family. Christians— this church— members of a family— now that is a novel idea— church— members of a family. Amen.
07/24/2016
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 need to note that the name, the word Israel has a very specific meaning. The word Israel means the one who wrestled with God. Wrestling with our understanding of God and who God is may be our oldest and even our most cherished tradition.”
BENEDICTION: This is the blessing used by natives of the islands in the South Pacific: O Jesus, please be the canoe that holds me up in the sea of life. Please be the rudder that keeps me on a straight paths. Be the outrigger that supports me in times of stress. Let Your Spirit be the sail that carries me though each day. Keep me safe, so that I can paddle on steady in the voyage called life. God of all, bless us so we may have calm seas, a warm sun and clear nights filled with stars. Amen.
Sunday, July 17, 2016
SERMON ~ 07/17/2016 ~ “Necessary”
07/17/2016 ~ Ninth Sunday after Pentecost ~ Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time ~ Proper 11; Amos 8:1-12; Psalm 52; Genesis 18:1-10a; Psalm 15; Colossians 1:15-28; Luke 10:38-42 ~ Union Service with the First Baptist Church at the U.C.C. in the Founder’s Room.
Necessary
“Jesus replied, ‘Martha, Martha! You are worried, distracted, anxious, upset by so many things but only a few things are necessary.’” — Luke 10:41-42a
As I look around the room this morning I know some of you have been in my office and others have not. Let me take a moment to describe what you will find there: a couple of computers, a couple of chairs, a couple of desks, many, many, many stacks of books, stacks and stacks and stacks of books and then there’s stacks of stuff scattered all around— stuff scattered on the floor, scattered on the desks, scattered behind furniture, scattered on chairs.
Even the most kind, generous person would have only one description of the condition in my office: chaos. To be clear, I know exactly where everything I need is.
It is, therefore, organized chaos. However, if someone else tried to look for something in there they would probably need a Machete and maybe a long stick in case anything with teeth jumped out from behind a desk or out of the stacks and tried to bite.
Based on that most people might say, “Well, Joe is merely sloppy.” Well, yes and no. After all, I can find what I need. Besides— not to brag— there are a myriad of studies which say very intelligent folk often maintain a sloppy work environment.
Now, for me as a person, there is another side of the aforementioned chaos. Some people would say I have a very serious neat streak. Say what? Neat streak? Have you seen this guy’s office?
Well, here are a couple of examples of me and neat. I cannot find it in me to leave dirty dishes in the sink. It drives me crazy. Even if I am late and need to rush out the door, if there are dirty dishes in the sink, I immediately stop and wash them and get them into the drainer.
Another item: over time many of you may have noticed I do not wear what one might call regular shoes. I wear black sneakers and only black sneakers.
That’s something I’ve done for over 40 years. And because podiatrists insist one should not wear the same pair of shoes two days in a row, I have several pairs.
But each pair of these sneakers looks exactly the same. So, how can I tell the difference from one pair to the next? Well, in order to facilitate that day to day to day rotation, those sneakers need to be lined up at the end of my bed in precise order.
The most recently worn pair sits on the right end of the line. The pair to be worn next, today’s pair, is on the left end of that line. And they move that way (the pastor indicates that movement right to left).
Another example: the cash I carry in my wallet— I need all the bills facing the same direction with the pictures facing me. And all the bills need to be in ascending order, starting with one dollar bills, next the fives, etc., etc., etc. (Slight pause.)
So, here’s my bet. When it comes to neat most of us have some things we are really very neat about. And other things— who cares? We choose. We make priorities.
Sometimes those choices make sense. Sometimes those choices make sense only to us. Sometimes we do what we do and we really don’t know why we do what we do. We’ve not thought all those choices through. This sound familiar to anyone? (Slight pause.)
We find these words in the Gospel commonly referred to as Luke: “Jesus replied, ‘Martha, Martha! You are worried, distracted, anxious, upset by so many things but only a few things are necessary.’”
There are a lot of levels in this brief story. I will try to unpack just one. But let me start by making a comment about how we read Scripture. When I facilitate a Bible Study I often remind those in attendance of an important principle.
The first question we need to ask is ‘what did the words mean to those who first read or first heard them?’ Unless we ask that question and consider that premise, we cannot even begin to ask what the words in a passage might mean to us.
Further, in order to ask what the words might have meant to those who first read or heard them, one needs know what life looked like in that era. To name just a few aspects, one needs to know something about the economic system, the system of government, the social conditions, the roles people played in their day to day lives.
That being said, there is something in this scene which would not necessarily be evident to our Twenty-first Century ears. In this era the women would be the ones who did what Martha was doing, busy with all the details of hospitality. Men were not expected to be attentive to those details at all.
To be clear, for some today that gender role situation still might be true. Not where I come from. Not in my world. Not in my house. But it still might be true for some.
So, in order to understand what’s happening here we need to be aware of not what Martha is doing. In this scene what Martha is doing what would be considered normal.
We need to pay attention to what Mary is doing. What Mary is doing is not normal. And what Mary, a female, is doing in the context of the First Century of the Common Era, is what a male would do.
For those who first read this story or heard this story, that would not only have caught their attention. That would have made the story shocking.
Why? Because Mary is pictured as being equal with a male, something not normal in that time. Further, if that is a given, a clear question becomes what are the choices Mary makes and why are they meaningful? (Slight pause.)
So let’s think about that by putting ourselves in that First Century context. In the course of this Gospel the writer has already established a link between the teachings of Jesus and the Word of God— and that’s Word, capital ‘W.’
Therefore, this scene resonates with the rabbinic lore and that’s lore— L-O-R-E and not L-A-W. And this is what the rabbinic lore in that era said (and I quote:) “Let your house be a meeting-house for the Sages and sit amid the dust of their feet and drink in their words with thirst... [but] talk not much with womankind.”
All of which is to say by sitting at the feet of Jesus, Mary is acting clearly like a male and neglecting a socially assigned role— the household tasks. This not only would have violated a clear social boundary of the time. The consequence is much larger than that. This would have been seen as bringing shame upon her house.
Hence, Martha’s protest to Jesus is not simply justifiable. It is real. And we also need to realize the narrator casts what Martha says in a negative light by characterizing Martha as “distracted” by this work. Distracted from what? What could have been so important that it demands she pay attention? [1]
Given the times, I think the conclusion is clear. Although Martha is fulfilling the role assigned by society, simply because this is only a socially assigned role, she has therefore allowed secondary matters— matters not concerning God— to distract her also from hearing the Word of God.
So, it is not just that Mary acts like a male, on its own an amazing concept in this passage. The implication is Martha also needs to act like a male.
And, once again, given the era, only a male was to be the one who listened for the Word of God. All that leads us to what makes this passage so radical and yet one which possesses a basic message of the New Testament.
Hearing the Word of God is for all people, everyone. Everyone is included. There are no outcasts, no second class citizens in the Dominion of God.
Perhaps even more importantly and therefore, roles— roles of gender, roles of class, roles mandated because one had wealth, any roles assigned by society— all these did not matter when it comes to listening for the Word. And in that era this was a totally new concept, a new idea.
All that brings me back to the question: am I messy or am I neat? Why yes I am— I am both messy and neat. You see, my point is we all pick and we choose priorities all the time. I am neat about some things, not so neat about other things— priorities.
But what is it which takes priority in our lives, in the life of each of us, in the life of all of us as communities of faith? Do we attentively listen for and to the Word of God? Is listening for and to the Word of God a necessary aspect, an essential part of our life?
I would suggest that if God’s message of inclusiveness, God’s message that we are all made in the image of God, God’s message of equity among all people is internalized within us, then we are listening for and hearing the Word. Indeed, that is the challenge for us.
Society always assigns roles. It’s what society does— not saying it’s right or wrong— it’s just what society does. So, can we as individuals and as communities of faith, overcome the messages of society to listen to and hear the necessary, inclusive message of the living God. Amen.
United Church of Christ, First Congregational, Norwich, NY
A Union Service with the First Baptist Church of Norwich, NY
07/17/2016
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: “Am I sloppy? My sister once told me I was the only person she knew who could make a pair of jeans look like a tuxedo. And my late Mother once said to me I was born with a shirt and a tie on. As I said, we all make choices. And so we need to choose to participate in the Dominion of God by listening for and to and acting on the Word of God.”
BENEDICTION: We can find the presence of God in unexpected places. God’s light leads us to places we thought not possible just moments ago. God’s love abounds and will live with us throughout eternity. The grace of God is deeper than our imagination. The strength of Christ is stronger than our needs. The communion of the Holy Spirit is richer than our togetherness. May the one triune God sustain us today and in all our tomorrows. Amen.
[1] This analysis is found in the New Interpreters Bible (The Electronic Version) in the section about this passage. Needless to say, the Electronic Version is the same as the print version but lacking page numbers for reference.
Necessary
“Jesus replied, ‘Martha, Martha! You are worried, distracted, anxious, upset by so many things but only a few things are necessary.’” — Luke 10:41-42a
As I look around the room this morning I know some of you have been in my office and others have not. Let me take a moment to describe what you will find there: a couple of computers, a couple of chairs, a couple of desks, many, many, many stacks of books, stacks and stacks and stacks of books and then there’s stacks of stuff scattered all around— stuff scattered on the floor, scattered on the desks, scattered behind furniture, scattered on chairs.
Even the most kind, generous person would have only one description of the condition in my office: chaos. To be clear, I know exactly where everything I need is.
It is, therefore, organized chaos. However, if someone else tried to look for something in there they would probably need a Machete and maybe a long stick in case anything with teeth jumped out from behind a desk or out of the stacks and tried to bite.
Based on that most people might say, “Well, Joe is merely sloppy.” Well, yes and no. After all, I can find what I need. Besides— not to brag— there are a myriad of studies which say very intelligent folk often maintain a sloppy work environment.
Now, for me as a person, there is another side of the aforementioned chaos. Some people would say I have a very serious neat streak. Say what? Neat streak? Have you seen this guy’s office?
Well, here are a couple of examples of me and neat. I cannot find it in me to leave dirty dishes in the sink. It drives me crazy. Even if I am late and need to rush out the door, if there are dirty dishes in the sink, I immediately stop and wash them and get them into the drainer.
Another item: over time many of you may have noticed I do not wear what one might call regular shoes. I wear black sneakers and only black sneakers.
That’s something I’ve done for over 40 years. And because podiatrists insist one should not wear the same pair of shoes two days in a row, I have several pairs.
But each pair of these sneakers looks exactly the same. So, how can I tell the difference from one pair to the next? Well, in order to facilitate that day to day to day rotation, those sneakers need to be lined up at the end of my bed in precise order.
The most recently worn pair sits on the right end of the line. The pair to be worn next, today’s pair, is on the left end of that line. And they move that way (the pastor indicates that movement right to left).
Another example: the cash I carry in my wallet— I need all the bills facing the same direction with the pictures facing me. And all the bills need to be in ascending order, starting with one dollar bills, next the fives, etc., etc., etc. (Slight pause.)
So, here’s my bet. When it comes to neat most of us have some things we are really very neat about. And other things— who cares? We choose. We make priorities.
Sometimes those choices make sense. Sometimes those choices make sense only to us. Sometimes we do what we do and we really don’t know why we do what we do. We’ve not thought all those choices through. This sound familiar to anyone? (Slight pause.)
We find these words in the Gospel commonly referred to as Luke: “Jesus replied, ‘Martha, Martha! You are worried, distracted, anxious, upset by so many things but only a few things are necessary.’”
There are a lot of levels in this brief story. I will try to unpack just one. But let me start by making a comment about how we read Scripture. When I facilitate a Bible Study I often remind those in attendance of an important principle.
The first question we need to ask is ‘what did the words mean to those who first read or first heard them?’ Unless we ask that question and consider that premise, we cannot even begin to ask what the words in a passage might mean to us.
Further, in order to ask what the words might have meant to those who first read or heard them, one needs know what life looked like in that era. To name just a few aspects, one needs to know something about the economic system, the system of government, the social conditions, the roles people played in their day to day lives.
That being said, there is something in this scene which would not necessarily be evident to our Twenty-first Century ears. In this era the women would be the ones who did what Martha was doing, busy with all the details of hospitality. Men were not expected to be attentive to those details at all.
To be clear, for some today that gender role situation still might be true. Not where I come from. Not in my world. Not in my house. But it still might be true for some.
So, in order to understand what’s happening here we need to be aware of not what Martha is doing. In this scene what Martha is doing what would be considered normal.
We need to pay attention to what Mary is doing. What Mary is doing is not normal. And what Mary, a female, is doing in the context of the First Century of the Common Era, is what a male would do.
For those who first read this story or heard this story, that would not only have caught their attention. That would have made the story shocking.
Why? Because Mary is pictured as being equal with a male, something not normal in that time. Further, if that is a given, a clear question becomes what are the choices Mary makes and why are they meaningful? (Slight pause.)
So let’s think about that by putting ourselves in that First Century context. In the course of this Gospel the writer has already established a link between the teachings of Jesus and the Word of God— and that’s Word, capital ‘W.’
Therefore, this scene resonates with the rabbinic lore and that’s lore— L-O-R-E and not L-A-W. And this is what the rabbinic lore in that era said (and I quote:) “Let your house be a meeting-house for the Sages and sit amid the dust of their feet and drink in their words with thirst... [but] talk not much with womankind.”
All of which is to say by sitting at the feet of Jesus, Mary is acting clearly like a male and neglecting a socially assigned role— the household tasks. This not only would have violated a clear social boundary of the time. The consequence is much larger than that. This would have been seen as bringing shame upon her house.
Hence, Martha’s protest to Jesus is not simply justifiable. It is real. And we also need to realize the narrator casts what Martha says in a negative light by characterizing Martha as “distracted” by this work. Distracted from what? What could have been so important that it demands she pay attention? [1]
Given the times, I think the conclusion is clear. Although Martha is fulfilling the role assigned by society, simply because this is only a socially assigned role, she has therefore allowed secondary matters— matters not concerning God— to distract her also from hearing the Word of God.
So, it is not just that Mary acts like a male, on its own an amazing concept in this passage. The implication is Martha also needs to act like a male.
And, once again, given the era, only a male was to be the one who listened for the Word of God. All that leads us to what makes this passage so radical and yet one which possesses a basic message of the New Testament.
Hearing the Word of God is for all people, everyone. Everyone is included. There are no outcasts, no second class citizens in the Dominion of God.
Perhaps even more importantly and therefore, roles— roles of gender, roles of class, roles mandated because one had wealth, any roles assigned by society— all these did not matter when it comes to listening for the Word. And in that era this was a totally new concept, a new idea.
All that brings me back to the question: am I messy or am I neat? Why yes I am— I am both messy and neat. You see, my point is we all pick and we choose priorities all the time. I am neat about some things, not so neat about other things— priorities.
But what is it which takes priority in our lives, in the life of each of us, in the life of all of us as communities of faith? Do we attentively listen for and to the Word of God? Is listening for and to the Word of God a necessary aspect, an essential part of our life?
I would suggest that if God’s message of inclusiveness, God’s message that we are all made in the image of God, God’s message of equity among all people is internalized within us, then we are listening for and hearing the Word. Indeed, that is the challenge for us.
Society always assigns roles. It’s what society does— not saying it’s right or wrong— it’s just what society does. So, can we as individuals and as communities of faith, overcome the messages of society to listen to and hear the necessary, inclusive message of the living God. Amen.
United Church of Christ, First Congregational, Norwich, NY
A Union Service with the First Baptist Church of Norwich, NY
07/17/2016
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: “Am I sloppy? My sister once told me I was the only person she knew who could make a pair of jeans look like a tuxedo. And my late Mother once said to me I was born with a shirt and a tie on. As I said, we all make choices. And so we need to choose to participate in the Dominion of God by listening for and to and acting on the Word of God.”
BENEDICTION: We can find the presence of God in unexpected places. God’s light leads us to places we thought not possible just moments ago. God’s love abounds and will live with us throughout eternity. The grace of God is deeper than our imagination. The strength of Christ is stronger than our needs. The communion of the Holy Spirit is richer than our togetherness. May the one triune God sustain us today and in all our tomorrows. Amen.
[1] This analysis is found in the New Interpreters Bible (The Electronic Version) in the section about this passage. Needless to say, the Electronic Version is the same as the print version but lacking page numbers for reference.
Sunday, July 3, 2016
SERMON ~ 07/03/2016 ~ “Harvest”
07/03/2016 ~ Seventh Sunday after Pentecost ~ Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time ~ Proper 9 ~ 2 Kings 5:1-14; Psalm 30; Isaiah 66:10-14; Psalm 66:1-9; Galatians 6:(1-6), 7-16; Luke 10:1-11, 16-20.
Harvest
“...Jesus appointed seventy-two others and sent them on ahead in pairs to every town and place the Rabbi intended to visit and said to them, ‘The harvest is plentiful, rich, but the laborers, the workers are few; therefore ask the overseer of the harvest to send out the laborers, workers to the harvest.’” — Luke 10:1-2
Last year at this time Bonnie and I were not here in Norwich. As many of you know, we were on a cross country trip since I had just started a three month sabbatical. We left on June the 27th. But I actually started planning for the trip the previous September— that’s September 2014.
September 2014 was the deadline to apply to be the United Church of Christ chaplain for a week at the Chautauqua Institution in Chautauqua, New York. I did not find out I had been chosen to be the Chaplin for the week of June 27th through the July 3rd, the first week of Sabbatical, until late-January— January 2015.
So I had to wait 5 months for that news. That was a long wait between planning and the eventual approval of that plan.
The chaplaincy at Chautauqua combined both service and education, to my mind the best of all possible worlds. And to be clear, Chautauqua is a place where education happens every day. Each day you can avail yourself of three hour long sessions— talks— offered by nationally known figures. We saw everyone from the broadcaster Charlie Rose to former the Texas Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison.
Now, sometimes people accuse me of trying to do too much. Indeed, having set up one educational piece, I tried to plan a second one.
I knew one thing Bonnie and I wanted to do on this trip was to visit her brother, Chuck and his wife Judy, who live near San Francisco. I also knew the Pacific School of Religion, 20 minutes from where Chuck and Judy live, held Summer sessions.
So, I contacted the Pacific School also in September of 2014. They contacted me right away and said, yes, Summer sessions will happen and we will have a scheduled published by early January, 2015— well, not quite.
January turned into February and February turned into Mach and March turned into April before their Summer scheduled was in place. The week-long session I signed up for started July the 20th, so I knew we wanted to be in the Bay area by July 18th, just to have a little down time.
Well, on July 17th, as we were having lunch on our way to see Chuck and Judy, I got a call from the Pacific School of Religion. They had just canceled the class due to the illness of the instructor.
The best laid plans of mice and men... etc., etc., etc. Sometimes plans work out. Sometimes they do not.
On the other hand, having done an education piece already, the cancellation of this second segment turned out just fine. I got to spend a lot more time with Bonnie and Chuck and Judy than I would have otherwise. And I also got to see places in San Francisco I would not have seen had I been cooped up in a classroom. (Slight pause.)
And these words are from the work known as Luke: “...Jesus appointed seventy-two others and sent them on ahead in pairs to every town and place the Rabbi intended to visit and said to them, ‘The harvest is plentiful, rich, but the laborers, the workers are few; therefore ask the overseer of the harvest to send out the laborers, workers to the harvest.’” (Slight pause.)
As said earlier, the Fourth of July is tomorrow, so let me offer a bit of American religious history that predates the Revolution, before 1776. In the 1740s there was a so called “Great Awakening,” a surge of religious fervor in the colonies.
It had a permanent impact on American Protestantism. This Awakening reoriented Congregational Churches, Presbyterian Churches, Dutch Reformed Churches and German Reformed Churches. It also strengthened what at the time were very small groups of Baptist Churches and Methodist Churches.
One of the leaders of this movement was George Whitfield, an English Anglican cleric, one of the founders of Methodism. In 1740, Whitfield traveled to America and preached a series of revivals, central to this “Great Awakening.”
Now, what I need you to know about this is twofold. First, the historic record says George Whitfield was, indeed, a good and powerful preacher.
Second, Whitfield also did something very well: he planned. He had people go to the towns where he was to preach as much as a year in advance to advertise he was coming. He had help and he had helpers.
That returns us to the thought that (quote:) “...Jesus appointed seventy-two others and sent them on ahead in pairs to every town and place the Rabbi intended to visit...” Put differently, Whitfield just copied what Jesus did.
But there is another thing going on when Jesus sends these disciples out. They are instructed with a simple message: do not worry about success or failure. Accept the generosity of others. Let go of the negative. (Slight pause.)
Preaching the Word, sharing the Word, is not a battle and it should not be approached that way. The realm of God is realized gently, one moment at a time. Further, when we live simply, when we focus on what’s really important, a new creation can emerge. Light can shine.
This passage is good news for preachers and for congregations. The passage counsels us to be faithful. Success is not a consideration. This passage counsels us to reclaim simplicity of spirit.
This passage counsels us to awaken to life transforming possibilities right where we are. This passage insists God’s creative energy is right here and with us now. Dust off your sandals, jump in the river, be renewed. (Slight pause.)
But wait a minute. If planning is imperative (and I think did say that) but we need to rely on God for everything (and I think did say that), isn’t that contradictory? Are not these two ideas diametrically opposed? (Slight pause.)
Each year the New York Conference offers a retreat for pastors before the start of its Annual Meeting in early June. This year was no exception and I went.
One of the exercises the retreat leader asked us to do was easy for me. Why? It was something I had already done. In fact, I did when I was in the eighth grade.
She said whether or not we know it, everyone has either their own life motto or a family motto. These are words we live by, sometimes unconsciously, sometimes quite consciously.
I already had a motto. You see, when I graduated from grade school, everyone in the class got a signature book. Many pages were blank and they were multi-colored, and the idea was you could get your classmates to sign the book or write things, memories of you and for you.
But the first pages of the book were pre-printed with places to fill in your name, the names of family members— that kind of personal data. At the top of one of those pages it said: “Your Motto” and then there were several lines on which to write.
I thought about what to write for a day or two. Then I came up with this. “Pray like everything depended on God. Work like everything depended on you.”
Now, I’m not recommending that course of action. Here’s why. To be a Christian, to do the work of Christ, is not meant to be work, at all. To be a Christian, to do the work of Christ, is meant to be a way of life.
Indeed, that Christianity is a way of life is precisely what our society has a hard time understanding. Why? I think we live in a society where work and the success we believe springs from that work is an ultimate for us. Success, thereby, becomes a goal.
But we need to live in a society in which faithfulness is a goal. We need to live in a society in which being aware that there are life transforming possibilities right here, where we are, within our reach is real to us. We need to live our lives as if we know God is hear, God with us.
All of which is to say, planning is important. But sometimes you travel 3,000 miles and suddenly your plans change.
Planning is helpful. But God is good. And being open to where God takes us is imperative. And when we are open to God, the Dominion of God and its fruits will await us. Amen.
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 want to call your attention to the Thoughts for Meditation found in the bulletin today. ‘Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent.’ — Isaac Asimov. ‘Power is not sufficient evidence of truth.’ — Samuel Johnson. Please notice when Jesus sent the seventy-two out they were not told to pillage and burn. They were not even told to be successful. Faithfulness was, however, a given.”
BENEDICTION: Redeemer God, Who sustains us, visit Your people; pour out Your courage upon us, that we may hurry to make welcome all people not only in our concern for others, but by serving them generously and faithfully in Your name. And may we love God so much, that we love nothing else too much. May we be so in awe of God, that we are in awe of no one else and nothing else. Amen.
Harvest
“...Jesus appointed seventy-two others and sent them on ahead in pairs to every town and place the Rabbi intended to visit and said to them, ‘The harvest is plentiful, rich, but the laborers, the workers are few; therefore ask the overseer of the harvest to send out the laborers, workers to the harvest.’” — Luke 10:1-2
Last year at this time Bonnie and I were not here in Norwich. As many of you know, we were on a cross country trip since I had just started a three month sabbatical. We left on June the 27th. But I actually started planning for the trip the previous September— that’s September 2014.
September 2014 was the deadline to apply to be the United Church of Christ chaplain for a week at the Chautauqua Institution in Chautauqua, New York. I did not find out I had been chosen to be the Chaplin for the week of June 27th through the July 3rd, the first week of Sabbatical, until late-January— January 2015.
So I had to wait 5 months for that news. That was a long wait between planning and the eventual approval of that plan.
The chaplaincy at Chautauqua combined both service and education, to my mind the best of all possible worlds. And to be clear, Chautauqua is a place where education happens every day. Each day you can avail yourself of three hour long sessions— talks— offered by nationally known figures. We saw everyone from the broadcaster Charlie Rose to former the Texas Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison.
Now, sometimes people accuse me of trying to do too much. Indeed, having set up one educational piece, I tried to plan a second one.
I knew one thing Bonnie and I wanted to do on this trip was to visit her brother, Chuck and his wife Judy, who live near San Francisco. I also knew the Pacific School of Religion, 20 minutes from where Chuck and Judy live, held Summer sessions.
So, I contacted the Pacific School also in September of 2014. They contacted me right away and said, yes, Summer sessions will happen and we will have a scheduled published by early January, 2015— well, not quite.
January turned into February and February turned into Mach and March turned into April before their Summer scheduled was in place. The week-long session I signed up for started July the 20th, so I knew we wanted to be in the Bay area by July 18th, just to have a little down time.
Well, on July 17th, as we were having lunch on our way to see Chuck and Judy, I got a call from the Pacific School of Religion. They had just canceled the class due to the illness of the instructor.
The best laid plans of mice and men... etc., etc., etc. Sometimes plans work out. Sometimes they do not.
On the other hand, having done an education piece already, the cancellation of this second segment turned out just fine. I got to spend a lot more time with Bonnie and Chuck and Judy than I would have otherwise. And I also got to see places in San Francisco I would not have seen had I been cooped up in a classroom. (Slight pause.)
And these words are from the work known as Luke: “...Jesus appointed seventy-two others and sent them on ahead in pairs to every town and place the Rabbi intended to visit and said to them, ‘The harvest is plentiful, rich, but the laborers, the workers are few; therefore ask the overseer of the harvest to send out the laborers, workers to the harvest.’” (Slight pause.)
As said earlier, the Fourth of July is tomorrow, so let me offer a bit of American religious history that predates the Revolution, before 1776. In the 1740s there was a so called “Great Awakening,” a surge of religious fervor in the colonies.
It had a permanent impact on American Protestantism. This Awakening reoriented Congregational Churches, Presbyterian Churches, Dutch Reformed Churches and German Reformed Churches. It also strengthened what at the time were very small groups of Baptist Churches and Methodist Churches.
One of the leaders of this movement was George Whitfield, an English Anglican cleric, one of the founders of Methodism. In 1740, Whitfield traveled to America and preached a series of revivals, central to this “Great Awakening.”
Now, what I need you to know about this is twofold. First, the historic record says George Whitfield was, indeed, a good and powerful preacher.
Second, Whitfield also did something very well: he planned. He had people go to the towns where he was to preach as much as a year in advance to advertise he was coming. He had help and he had helpers.
That returns us to the thought that (quote:) “...Jesus appointed seventy-two others and sent them on ahead in pairs to every town and place the Rabbi intended to visit...” Put differently, Whitfield just copied what Jesus did.
But there is another thing going on when Jesus sends these disciples out. They are instructed with a simple message: do not worry about success or failure. Accept the generosity of others. Let go of the negative. (Slight pause.)
Preaching the Word, sharing the Word, is not a battle and it should not be approached that way. The realm of God is realized gently, one moment at a time. Further, when we live simply, when we focus on what’s really important, a new creation can emerge. Light can shine.
This passage is good news for preachers and for congregations. The passage counsels us to be faithful. Success is not a consideration. This passage counsels us to reclaim simplicity of spirit.
This passage counsels us to awaken to life transforming possibilities right where we are. This passage insists God’s creative energy is right here and with us now. Dust off your sandals, jump in the river, be renewed. (Slight pause.)
But wait a minute. If planning is imperative (and I think did say that) but we need to rely on God for everything (and I think did say that), isn’t that contradictory? Are not these two ideas diametrically opposed? (Slight pause.)
Each year the New York Conference offers a retreat for pastors before the start of its Annual Meeting in early June. This year was no exception and I went.
One of the exercises the retreat leader asked us to do was easy for me. Why? It was something I had already done. In fact, I did when I was in the eighth grade.
She said whether or not we know it, everyone has either their own life motto or a family motto. These are words we live by, sometimes unconsciously, sometimes quite consciously.
I already had a motto. You see, when I graduated from grade school, everyone in the class got a signature book. Many pages were blank and they were multi-colored, and the idea was you could get your classmates to sign the book or write things, memories of you and for you.
But the first pages of the book were pre-printed with places to fill in your name, the names of family members— that kind of personal data. At the top of one of those pages it said: “Your Motto” and then there were several lines on which to write.
I thought about what to write for a day or two. Then I came up with this. “Pray like everything depended on God. Work like everything depended on you.”
Now, I’m not recommending that course of action. Here’s why. To be a Christian, to do the work of Christ, is not meant to be work, at all. To be a Christian, to do the work of Christ, is meant to be a way of life.
Indeed, that Christianity is a way of life is precisely what our society has a hard time understanding. Why? I think we live in a society where work and the success we believe springs from that work is an ultimate for us. Success, thereby, becomes a goal.
But we need to live in a society in which faithfulness is a goal. We need to live in a society in which being aware that there are life transforming possibilities right here, where we are, within our reach is real to us. We need to live our lives as if we know God is hear, God with us.
All of which is to say, planning is important. But sometimes you travel 3,000 miles and suddenly your plans change.
Planning is helpful. But God is good. And being open to where God takes us is imperative. And when we are open to God, the Dominion of God and its fruits will await us. Amen.
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 want to call your attention to the Thoughts for Meditation found in the bulletin today. ‘Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent.’ — Isaac Asimov. ‘Power is not sufficient evidence of truth.’ — Samuel Johnson. Please notice when Jesus sent the seventy-two out they were not told to pillage and burn. They were not even told to be successful. Faithfulness was, however, a given.”
BENEDICTION: Redeemer God, Who sustains us, visit Your people; pour out Your courage upon us, that we may hurry to make welcome all people not only in our concern for others, but by serving them generously and faithfully in Your name. And may we love God so much, that we love nothing else too much. May we be so in awe of God, that we are in awe of no one else and nothing else. Amen.
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