04/21/2013 ~ Fourth Sunday of Easter ~ Acts 9:36-43; Psalm 23; Revelation 7:9-17; John 10:22-30 ~ Note: moved Psalm 23 to 4/14 for Choir Anthem ~ Blessing of the Super Sew Sunday Quilts.
Plain Talk
“...Jesus was walking in the temple, in the Portico of Solomon when the religious authorities gathered around and said, ‘How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are really the Messiah, tell us plainly.’” — John 10:23-24.
When I, several weeks ago, preached in Corning on March 17th, it being Patrick’s Day, I wished them a happy one and said it’s commonly claimed we are all Irish on Saint Patrick’s Day. [1] My presumption, on the other hand, is if my full name— Joseph Francis Connolly, Jr.— does not say I am of Irish descent, nothing will. I, therefore, often forego the wearing of some green on March the 17th. It would be redundant.
Then I offered a history lesson about the Irish in America. I said my ancestors arrived on these shores shortly before the Civil War, an era when the Irish were stereotyped as uncivilized and their very humanity questioned. Advertisements for employment regularly said: “No Irish Need Apply.”
Many regarded the Catholicism of the Irish as an alien, rebellious religion and the Irish culture, itself, as an alien, rebellious culture. In fact, during the mid and late nineteenth century insurance companies would often refuse to sell Catholics insurance. Why? Simply because they were Catholic. [2]
And so, in 1882 the Knights of Columbus was born. The initial and real purpose of the Knights was to be (quote): “a mutual benefit society,” an insurance company, from which Catholics could buy life insurance without fear of discrimination. [3] (Pause.)
We heard a lot about violence this week— from bombs and gunfire in Boston to explosions at an ammonium nitrate storage facility in Texas. As these stories played out in the media I reflected and wondered about why my tendency is to remain calm in the face of violence.
To answer that, let me flesh out my own, personal history a little. (Slight pause.) I sometimes say I grew up in an Irish Catholic ghetto in Brooklyn, New York. There were some Italians and Germans in the mix, but mostly the names were O’Neill, Sullivan, etc.
But still, why do I label that neighborhood a ghetto? (Slight pause.) When I was about seven out a window of my family’s third floor apartment, I saw a woman being mugged.
I ran and got my mother who rushed to the street. The mugger had run off, so my Mom brought the woman to our apartment and called the precinct. A burly red-headed officer arrived to interview the victim, to take down information.
Despite my young age, I remember admiring his sense of calm. And I also remember he was clear— an incident like this was a normal occurrence. (Slight pause.)
So, why do I label that neighborhood a Ghetto? To this day I hesitate when I drop a letter into a mailbox on the street. You see, in that neighborhood it was a common occurrence for someone to dump some gasoline into a mailbox, light a match, throw it in and walk away. Those memories never leave your psyche. (Slight pause.)
So then, having reached the age of majority and having dropped out of college, I was drafted. And all that early experience of violence was reenforced as I saw first hand how inhumane people can be. (Slight pause.)
Let me fast forward a little. I was working on Wall Street in the World Trade Center— to think about the World Trade Center still leaves me with an empty feeling— I was working in the Trade Center but the place I worked was only five stories up. One day everyone in my office suddenly gathered at a window.
I joined them and saw police cars across the street. The next thing I knew a police officer came up behind us and told us to get away from the window because there was a sniper in the building opposite us.
The only ones to move back from the window were myself and another veteran. We knew precisely what violence was and had our fill of it, thank you. (Slight pause.)
Perhaps my tendency to remain calm in the face of violence is because I know what violence feels like, what violence tastes like, what violence means. Which is not to say I approve of violence. It is to say I am familiar with it. (Slight pause.)
This week I heard a lot of people, a lot of commentators trying to parse, trying to give a definition to the word terrorism. Let me give you some plain talk about what terrorism is.
Terrorism is an act of violence, any kind of violence— case closed. Motive does not matter. Means do not matter. Terrorism is any act of violence. (Slight pause.)
Therefore, terrorism is when insurance is not sold because someone is Catholic. And terrorism is when someone is mugged. And terrorism is when a mailbox is set aflame.
And terrorism is setting off a bomb in a crowd gathered to watch their friends run a marathon. And terrorism is when safety regulations for storing ammonium nitrate are not followed so it explodes obliterating a neighborhood.
And terrorism is when people are denied the right to vote. And terrorism is cheating on taxes. And terrorism is not treating someone as equal due to their sexual orientation.
And terrorism is not providing equal healthcare for everyone. And terrorism is not providing equal pay for equal work. (Slight pause.) And that, my friends, is plain talk.
Here is another piece of plain talk. When someone shuts their mind to what someone else says even though it is obviously true— that is terrorism because it is a violent act. Terrorism, you see, is when people play politics with the lives of other people to suit their own ego or their own needs or their own desirers. Violence is violence is violence is violence. (Slight pause.)
Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. said this: “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” (Slight pause.) Equally, violence— violence any kind of violence from physical violence to mental violence to economic violence to systemic violence— violence anywhere is a threat to the safety of all people everywhere. Violence anywhere is a threat to the safety of all people everywhere. (Pause.)
And these words are from the work known as John: “...Jesus was walking in the temple, in the Portico of Solomon when the religious authorities gathered around and said, ‘How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are really the Messiah, tell us plainly.’” (Slight pause.)
This passage is dripping with irony. Why? Those questioning the Rabbi have heard Jesus speak to the fact of being the Messiah in a multitude of ways. And they simply deny it. In their denial they are committing an act of violence— political violence— playing with the lives of others to suit their own ego and their own needs and their own desirers.
Again, violence is violence is violence is violence. Therefore, perhaps the real questions for us are twofold: how do we react to violence and what do we do to counter it. (Slight pause.)
Yes, I tend to be calm in the face of violence. Given the background I’ve outlined that’s not surprising. But I am also a theologian. Some of that demeanor comes from theology. The peace of God, you see, has little to do with the absence of violence.
The peace of God is the presence of God. The presence of God can be tangible, whatever the circumstances, even in the midst of violence. And when the peace of God, the presence of God is real to us, we understand that violence— any violence— is merely an attempt to divert us from the presence of God, to insist God is not real, to insist God is not present.
That realization about how people use violence can, in fact, be quite calming. (Slight pause.) So, if the presence of God is real to us, how do we take the next step? How do we counter violence, violence which can be all around us, despite the fact that we recognize the presence of God with us? (Slight pause.)
In a couple of minutes we will dedicate the quilts put together by the Chenango Piecemakers Guild. What these should represent for us is a response to violence. You see, historically some of these quilts will go to Chenango Memorial Hospital for newborns and to Roots and Wings for the domestic violence program. [4]
And that needs to be our real response to violence: to reach out to others, to try to comfort and to protect our neighbors. Our response to violence never needs to be a response of fear or a response self-centeredness. Our response to violence never needs to be more violence.
Why? God is with, by our side, present to us now and forever. And that, my friends, is plain talk— as plain as I can say it. (Pause.) Amen.
04/21/2013
United Church of Christ, First Congregational, Norwich, New York
ENDPIECE: It is the practice of the Pastor to speak after the Closing Hymn, but before the Congregational Response and Benediction. This is an précis of what was said: “This quote was going around the Internet this week, probably with good reason. It is a quote from Fred McFeely Rogers, better knows as Mister Rogers. And for those of you who do not know this, Fred Rogers was an ordained Presbyterian Pastor. (Quote): ‘When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.’ To this day, especially in times of ‘disaster,’ I remember my mother’s words, and I am always comforted by realizing that there are still so many helpers – so many caring people in this world.’ (Slight pause.) And now before invoking the Benediction I ask for a point of personal and pastoral preference.” [The pastor reaches into a bag and brings out a Boston Red Sox hat, puts it on and proceeds to the blessing.]
BENEDICTION: Go now— go in safety, for you cannot go where God is not. Go— go in love, for love alone endures. Go— go with purpose and God will honor your dedication. And go— go in peace for it is a gift of God to those whose hearts and minds are in Christ Jesus, the Second Person of the Trinity. Amen.
[1] This was a pulpit swap with the Rev. Marraine Kettell of Corning.
[2] http://www.victoriana.com/Irish/IrishPoliticalCartoons.htm
[3] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knights_of_Columbus
[4] This Ceremony of Dedication, in fact, happened after the sermon and a time of prayer.
Sunday, April 21, 2013
Sunday, April 14, 2013
SERMON ~ 04/14/2013 ~ Knocked Off a Horse?
04/14/2013 ~ Third Sunday of Easter ~ Acts 9:1-6, (7-20); Psalm 30; Revelation 5:11-14; John 21:1-19 ~ Note: Moved Psalm 23 from 4/212 for Choir Anthem.
Knocked Off a Horse?
“Now, as Saul was traveling along and approaching Damascus, a light from the sky suddenly flashed all around and Saul fell to the ground and heard a voice saying, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?’” — Acts 9:3-4.
I have mentioned a number of times that one of my mentors in ministry was the Rev. Carol Anderson, who happened to be one of the first women to be officially ordained in the Episcopal Church. Carol often said among the disciples there are three examples of our relationship with God, three archetypes of how that relationship works out, to be found in the New Testament. Hence there are three examples, three styles we might emulate as our own relationship with God develops.
Carol labeled these archetypes as the Peter type, the Paul type and the John type. She never took my advice and labeled them as Peter, Paul and Mary. She was probably right. (The choir collectively bursts into laughter and the pastor points at them.) The choir got it!
In any case, in reverse order let’s review: John and Paul, the disciple also known as Saul, and then Peter. Now, if you’ve read the stories in the New Testament, John— John never seems to be in doubt about who Jesus was and is and what he needed to do because of who Jesus was and is. Even when, from the cross, the dying Jesus asks John to look after Mary, there is no flack, no push back, as in “You want me to do what?”
In short, John is calm and secure. John knows about life, John knows about the world, John knows about God. Now, if I had to guess, we probably all want to be just like John— never any doubts. But it’s also likely not a one of us thinks we could be anything close to that— so secure, so knowing, so compassionate. Instead, we opt for wanting to be like Paul.
And what was Paul like? Well, when we ask ‘what happened to Paul?’ the traits exhibited in the story of that disciple seem obvious and quite attractive to us.
Clearly Paul got knocked off a horse. Put another way, Paul was headed in one direction— persecuting the people of ‘The Way,’— and winds up going in exactly the opposite direction.
Changing direction is, of course, the real meaning of repentance. To be celar: repentance has nothing to do with being sorry or sad. Repentance is when turns one’s life around, turns one’s life over to God, turns one’s life over to the will of God.
So, that’s archetype number two: get knocked off your horse and come suddenly into some kind of new and clear knowledge, some new way of understanding. And this new knowledge, this new way of understanding is what changes your life forever. You never go back to the old ways. (Slight pause.) As I suggested, I think it’s likely this method is how most of us would like to have things happen— over and done with in one act— quick and simple.
Then there is Peter. If truth be told, most of us want to be like Paul but most of us we are probably more like Peter. Let’s look at two incidents involving Peter to illustrate what the Peter archetype is like.
In one story Peter says Jesus is the Christ. In another Peter denies knowing the Christ. Yes, no, yes, no— that’s Peter. Peter cannot seem to steer a steady, consistent course. Peter is all over the map. And, as I said, I suspect most of us are like Peter in our relationship with God: all over the map. (Slight pause.)
So, now here’s the trick question— Bible trivia, if you will. I suggested we all want to be like Paul and get knocked off our horse. But does Paul ever even get knocked off a horse? (Slight pause.) No. Paul does not get knocked off a horse. (Quote:) “The Rabbi fell to the ground and heard a voice....” No horse is mentioned.
So, from where does the horse come? It comes from Christian Art, mostly art out of the Renaissance era. Mind you, one can assume Paul was riding. But, if that’s the case, if Paul is on a horse, that’s a pretty long fall to the ground.
You see, the phrase ‘being knocked off your horse’ is in that sense quite secular and is a little like the phrase ‘God helps those who help themselves.’ That phrase is not in the Bible, either.
Although ‘God helps those who help themselves’ has been commonly attributed to Benjamin Franklin, it probably originated in ancient Greece. But the sentiment, itself, that God helps those who help themselves, is throughly, throughly, anti-Christian, since it is contrary to the Scriptural message which says the grace of God is available to all.
Similarly, we have this image that Paul gets knocked off a horse and comes suddenly into some new and clear knowledge, some new way of understanding, which changes life forever. You never go back to the old ways when you get knocked off that horse. Was that true of Paul? Was it just that Paul got knocked off a horse, or is there more to it? (Slight pause.)
And these words are from the work know as Acts: “Now, as Saul was traveling along and approaching Damascus, a light from the sky suddenly flashed all around and Saul fell to the ground and heard a voice saying, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?’” (Slight pause.)
When the reading from Acts was introduced it was said Paul’s own account is in some tension with this version. Indeed, based on what Paul says in the letters most scholars believe that any fulness of a public proclamation about Jesus from Paul did not happen for about 14 years. This is when Paul returns to Jerusalem.
So, what happened in that time span— 14 years? (Slight pause.) We do not know. Scholars speculate Paul spends that time studying. In fact, the depth and the integrated theology Paul exhibits and writes on in the Epistles strongly suggests there was time spent in study, in reflection, in prayer and in meditation. (Slight pause.)
So, how does that apply to us? I think we can be knocked off a horse. We can have some kind of conversion experience. And that is wonderful. But it is not enough. It was not enough for Paul.
I want to suggest even if we have a conversion experience, we need to emulate Paul. How? We need to study, to meditate, to reflect, to pray. (Slight pause.)
I was privileged to be at a series of lectures Archbishop Desmond Tutu gave in New York City before he won the Nobel Peace Prize. At one session he was asked how much time he spent each day in study, meditation, reflection and prayer. He said he spent at least two hours a day, except when he was under pressure or had a lot of work to do. Then, he said, he needed to spend four or five hours a day in study, meditation, reflection and prayer.
In short, conversion does not just happen and it’s over and done. Conversion happens every hour of every day. And yes, we all lead busy lives.
But when we repent, we hand our lives over to God that can open up new vistas. This handing our lives over to God, this repentance, means we study, we meditate, we reflect and we pray every day. It means every day in our life with God we grow. And growth?— that is what relationship is really about, is it not? Amen.
04/14/2013
United Church of Christ, First Congregational, Norwich, New York
ENDPIECE: It is the practice of the Pastor to speak after the Closing Hymn, but before the Congregational Response and Benediction. This is an précis of what was said: “This is a quote from the late theologian Henri Nouwen: ‘You don’t think your way into a new kind of living. You live your way into a new kind of thinking.’ So, in a real sense repentance means when it comes to our relationship with God taking action each and every day.”
BENEDICTION; Let us go where God leads us, for surely God leads us to embrace our neighbor with love. Let us follow where Christ has gone, and see the great commandment of loving God and loving neighbor as a watchword. And may the steadfast love of God and the peace of Christ, which surpasses understanding, keep our minds and hearts in the knowledge, companionship and will of the Holy Spirit, this day and forever more. Amen.
Knocked Off a Horse?
“Now, as Saul was traveling along and approaching Damascus, a light from the sky suddenly flashed all around and Saul fell to the ground and heard a voice saying, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?’” — Acts 9:3-4.
I have mentioned a number of times that one of my mentors in ministry was the Rev. Carol Anderson, who happened to be one of the first women to be officially ordained in the Episcopal Church. Carol often said among the disciples there are three examples of our relationship with God, three archetypes of how that relationship works out, to be found in the New Testament. Hence there are three examples, three styles we might emulate as our own relationship with God develops.
Carol labeled these archetypes as the Peter type, the Paul type and the John type. She never took my advice and labeled them as Peter, Paul and Mary. She was probably right. (The choir collectively bursts into laughter and the pastor points at them.) The choir got it!
In any case, in reverse order let’s review: John and Paul, the disciple also known as Saul, and then Peter. Now, if you’ve read the stories in the New Testament, John— John never seems to be in doubt about who Jesus was and is and what he needed to do because of who Jesus was and is. Even when, from the cross, the dying Jesus asks John to look after Mary, there is no flack, no push back, as in “You want me to do what?”
In short, John is calm and secure. John knows about life, John knows about the world, John knows about God. Now, if I had to guess, we probably all want to be just like John— never any doubts. But it’s also likely not a one of us thinks we could be anything close to that— so secure, so knowing, so compassionate. Instead, we opt for wanting to be like Paul.
And what was Paul like? Well, when we ask ‘what happened to Paul?’ the traits exhibited in the story of that disciple seem obvious and quite attractive to us.
Clearly Paul got knocked off a horse. Put another way, Paul was headed in one direction— persecuting the people of ‘The Way,’— and winds up going in exactly the opposite direction.
Changing direction is, of course, the real meaning of repentance. To be celar: repentance has nothing to do with being sorry or sad. Repentance is when turns one’s life around, turns one’s life over to God, turns one’s life over to the will of God.
So, that’s archetype number two: get knocked off your horse and come suddenly into some kind of new and clear knowledge, some new way of understanding. And this new knowledge, this new way of understanding is what changes your life forever. You never go back to the old ways. (Slight pause.) As I suggested, I think it’s likely this method is how most of us would like to have things happen— over and done with in one act— quick and simple.
Then there is Peter. If truth be told, most of us want to be like Paul but most of us we are probably more like Peter. Let’s look at two incidents involving Peter to illustrate what the Peter archetype is like.
In one story Peter says Jesus is the Christ. In another Peter denies knowing the Christ. Yes, no, yes, no— that’s Peter. Peter cannot seem to steer a steady, consistent course. Peter is all over the map. And, as I said, I suspect most of us are like Peter in our relationship with God: all over the map. (Slight pause.)
So, now here’s the trick question— Bible trivia, if you will. I suggested we all want to be like Paul and get knocked off our horse. But does Paul ever even get knocked off a horse? (Slight pause.) No. Paul does not get knocked off a horse. (Quote:) “The Rabbi fell to the ground and heard a voice....” No horse is mentioned.
So, from where does the horse come? It comes from Christian Art, mostly art out of the Renaissance era. Mind you, one can assume Paul was riding. But, if that’s the case, if Paul is on a horse, that’s a pretty long fall to the ground.
You see, the phrase ‘being knocked off your horse’ is in that sense quite secular and is a little like the phrase ‘God helps those who help themselves.’ That phrase is not in the Bible, either.
Although ‘God helps those who help themselves’ has been commonly attributed to Benjamin Franklin, it probably originated in ancient Greece. But the sentiment, itself, that God helps those who help themselves, is throughly, throughly, anti-Christian, since it is contrary to the Scriptural message which says the grace of God is available to all.
Similarly, we have this image that Paul gets knocked off a horse and comes suddenly into some new and clear knowledge, some new way of understanding, which changes life forever. You never go back to the old ways when you get knocked off that horse. Was that true of Paul? Was it just that Paul got knocked off a horse, or is there more to it? (Slight pause.)
And these words are from the work know as Acts: “Now, as Saul was traveling along and approaching Damascus, a light from the sky suddenly flashed all around and Saul fell to the ground and heard a voice saying, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?’” (Slight pause.)
When the reading from Acts was introduced it was said Paul’s own account is in some tension with this version. Indeed, based on what Paul says in the letters most scholars believe that any fulness of a public proclamation about Jesus from Paul did not happen for about 14 years. This is when Paul returns to Jerusalem.
So, what happened in that time span— 14 years? (Slight pause.) We do not know. Scholars speculate Paul spends that time studying. In fact, the depth and the integrated theology Paul exhibits and writes on in the Epistles strongly suggests there was time spent in study, in reflection, in prayer and in meditation. (Slight pause.)
So, how does that apply to us? I think we can be knocked off a horse. We can have some kind of conversion experience. And that is wonderful. But it is not enough. It was not enough for Paul.
I want to suggest even if we have a conversion experience, we need to emulate Paul. How? We need to study, to meditate, to reflect, to pray. (Slight pause.)
I was privileged to be at a series of lectures Archbishop Desmond Tutu gave in New York City before he won the Nobel Peace Prize. At one session he was asked how much time he spent each day in study, meditation, reflection and prayer. He said he spent at least two hours a day, except when he was under pressure or had a lot of work to do. Then, he said, he needed to spend four or five hours a day in study, meditation, reflection and prayer.
In short, conversion does not just happen and it’s over and done. Conversion happens every hour of every day. And yes, we all lead busy lives.
But when we repent, we hand our lives over to God that can open up new vistas. This handing our lives over to God, this repentance, means we study, we meditate, we reflect and we pray every day. It means every day in our life with God we grow. And growth?— that is what relationship is really about, is it not? Amen.
04/14/2013
United Church of Christ, First Congregational, Norwich, New York
ENDPIECE: It is the practice of the Pastor to speak after the Closing Hymn, but before the Congregational Response and Benediction. This is an précis of what was said: “This is a quote from the late theologian Henri Nouwen: ‘You don’t think your way into a new kind of living. You live your way into a new kind of thinking.’ So, in a real sense repentance means when it comes to our relationship with God taking action each and every day.”
BENEDICTION; Let us go where God leads us, for surely God leads us to embrace our neighbor with love. Let us follow where Christ has gone, and see the great commandment of loving God and loving neighbor as a watchword. And may the steadfast love of God and the peace of Christ, which surpasses understanding, keep our minds and hearts in the knowledge, companionship and will of the Holy Spirit, this day and forever more. Amen.
Sunday, April 7, 2013
Sermon ~ 04/07/2013 ~ Second Sunday of Easter ~ “The Alpha and the Omega”
04/07/2013 ~ Second Sunday of Easter ~ Acts 5:27-32; Psalm 118:14-29 or Psalm 150 Revelation 1:4-8; John 20:19-31 ~ Communion Sunday.
The Alpha and the Omega
“‘I am the Alpha and the Omega,’” says our God “‘who is and who was and who is to come, the Sovereign.’” — Revelation 1:8.
My late mother used to say, “If you want to really know what’s going on in the world, don’t pay any attention to the news. When you open up the newspaper in the morning turn to the comic strip section first.” You see, she believed that day to day reporting was, for the most part, just a series of facts— she even referred to them as “so called facts.”
Facts don’t always have the ability to tell you the full impact, the full truth about what’s going on. In a real way, when you follow just facts it feels like what you are seeing is simply chaos. There are too many facts and they don’t connect, don’t provide a sense of the whole.
Indeed, that’s why an analysis of facts is necessary. And analysis, Mom believed, is what the comic strip section brilliantly gives. Good strips— Peanuts, The Wizard of Id— reflect not just a particular moment in time but the flow of time, the steady center and the general direction. In short, I think my Mom was probably right. Pay attention to the comics section first.
Of course, today, newspapers are a dying breed, the comic strip section along with them. Certainly one reason for the demise of print is the advent of the Internet. Newspapers and comic strips seem to be transferring to the web.
In fact, not only do I read the news mostly on line I, personally, know two people who draw comic strips professionally. Both of them have a presence on the web.
Now, I’ve discovered something else relating to that, and it does surprise me some. If you pay close attention to what your friends are talking about on Facebook, what they post, it can be a little like following the news— chaotic.
The secret of understanding Facebook is to not pay too much attention. If you pay too much attention, it’s just like reading the newspapers. You get overwhelmed by day to day details.
The funny thing is, occasionally, someone posts a commentary on Facebook, on the newsfeed, a commentary on the facts which reminds me of the kind of analysis we get in comic strips. One friend recently did exactly that: made an entry on Facebook which had the flavor of analysis.
I hope this won’t bore you too much, but the post read like this (quote): “In case you don’t feel like scrolling through your news feed today”— the news feed is a list of what all your friends are posting— “In case you don’t feel like scrolling through your news feed today let me sum it up, tell you what people are saying: homophobia is bad; congress is inept; we should ban all guns; the Game of Thrones is awesome; so is Dr. Who; Twilight— those books with a vampire theme?— not so much.”
“Marriage equality is good; God does not exist; congress is messing with the middle class and the poor. You should believe in yourself; God does exist; friendship matters more than money; chase your dreams; puppies are adorable; kittens are cute; George Taiki (or any one of several other ‘B’ list celebrities) posted something funny.”
“There are also those silly and totally false postings,” the soliloquy continued. “These claim that Bill Cosby or Robin Williams or Warren Buffett or Abraham Lincoln or John Boehner or Barack Obama or Queen Elizabeth or George Washington never said the silly thing I am about to attribute to them but I am posting it any way.”
“I am going to say they did say what I know is not true because it confirms to my preconceived notion of what I think they should have said. And I am positing it because it also says something about where I am at and how silly I am and how prejudiced I am.” (Slight pause.) And that was that end of commentary— long but interesting.
And, the way I see it, just like the comic strips, that stream of consciousness post on Facebook insists there is a larger picture in everyday life. And despite or perhaps because of its length, it is a commentary on so called facts. So let’s be real: a constant stream of hard news— a constant stream of so called hard facts, is not easy to take.
Sometimes you have to shut off the TV news and tune in to reruns of The Big Bang Theory or Friends or go very retro and try to find episodes of Happy Days or I Love Lucy just to give your brain some relief. To be blunt I, personally, sometimes find a string of facts either consoles me or upsets me.
Why? A stream of facts makes things feel chaotic. A stream facts does not help me with analysis, does not help me understand context. (Slight pause.)
And these words are from the work known as Revelation: “‘I am the Alpha and the Omega,’” says our God “‘who is and who was and who is to come, the Sovereign.’” (Slight pause.)
I think a lot of people believe the times through which we are living are tumultuous, chaotic. In fact, you can see that by what people post on Facebook. And I can understand where people are coming from.
After all, we were attacked on 9/11— that’s chaos; we fought 2 wars simultaneously— that’s chaos; we have now seen the worst economic times since the 1930s— that’s chaos.
However: if you believe it’s bad now, imagine the chaos experienced while the Civil War was in progress. Or think about this: in the course of a lifetime many people lived through one World War, a Great Depression and a Second World War— that’s chaos.
To make that concept of chaos a little more personal here’s a story about my family. In early in 1929 my grandparents, my father’s parents, owned some railroad stock and sold it off at the beginning of that year to make a down payment on a house.
That October the market crashed. My grandfather worked for the City of New York, so during the Depression he often worked six days a week but was paid only for three or four days. However, he had a job, some money, a house, because he had sold off that stock— the family survived. But the Depression did not just feel like chaos. It was chaos.
So, how did people get through those times? (Slight pause.) By taking life one day at a time— day by day by day and by looking at the big picture. They constantly asked themselves not what does today mean but what does my life mean, how do I live my life over a broad span of time? (Slight pause.)
I invite you to look at the cover of today’s bulletin. And let me wait a second while you do that. (Slight pause.) Those are pictures of the large Alpha and Omega we put up in the front of the nave at Christmas.
I remember being blown away when I saw that for the first time seventeen years ago. My reaction was: “Wow! This congregation gets it. The celebration at Christmastide is not simply a celebration of the birth of a child, not even simply about the birth of Jesus.”
“This is a celebration which has greater implications. And this congregation gets it that at Christmastide we celebrate the in-breaking of God.” (Slight pause.)
When the reading from Revelation was introduced it was stated that the basic themes found in the work are in the first sentences. And, indeed, they are.
I would suggest that the entire meaning of Revelation is not a prophecy of the end times. It has nothing to do with the Apocalypse. To say Revelation is about the Apocalypse is to say Revelation offers a message about chaos.
However, that God is the Alpha and the Omega conveys the thought that God transcends time, that God was before time existed and that God will be after time exists, and that God encompasses all time. Revelation says God brings order— God brings order— in opposition to chaos.
So, the work known as Revelation is not simply about a particular moment in time, not even about a moment which might come— a moment we loosely label as the Apocalypse. Revelation is about grappling with God, the eternal. (Slight pause.)
Don’t misunderstand me: that God encompasses all time is not an easy concept. But this is a more simple way to put it: to say God is the Alpha and the Omega says we need to be calm amidst the chaos of life.
We need to understand that God is with us always. In short, we need to grapple with the thought that God loves us always and that God loves us beyond time. Amen.
04/07/2013
United Church of Christ First Congregational, Norwich, New York
ENDPIECE: It is the practice of the Pastor to speak after the Closing Hymn, but before the Congregational Response and Benediction. This is an précis of what was said: “The First words in Genesis say this (quote): ‘At the beginning of God’s creating of the heaven and the earth— when the earth was unformed and void, wild and waste, filled with chaos and emptiness, as night reigned over the surface of the deep, a wind from God, the rushing Spirit of God swept over the face of the waters.” [1] God brings order to chaos. If we do not understand that the last book in the sequence of how the books are laid out in Scripture, Revelation, is placed there to be a bookend, to be a commentary when it says God is the Alpha and the Omega, and that this says nothing about the end times, the apocalypse, then we do not understand Scripture.’”
BENEDICTION: Go out in the compassion and love God provides. Praise the deeds of God by the way you live. And may the steadfast love of God and the peace of Christ, which surpasses understanding, keep our minds and hearts in the companionship and will of the Holy Spirit, this day and forever more. Amen.
[1] Genesis 1:1-3 (ILV).
The Alpha and the Omega
“‘I am the Alpha and the Omega,’” says our God “‘who is and who was and who is to come, the Sovereign.’” — Revelation 1:8.
My late mother used to say, “If you want to really know what’s going on in the world, don’t pay any attention to the news. When you open up the newspaper in the morning turn to the comic strip section first.” You see, she believed that day to day reporting was, for the most part, just a series of facts— she even referred to them as “so called facts.”
Facts don’t always have the ability to tell you the full impact, the full truth about what’s going on. In a real way, when you follow just facts it feels like what you are seeing is simply chaos. There are too many facts and they don’t connect, don’t provide a sense of the whole.
Indeed, that’s why an analysis of facts is necessary. And analysis, Mom believed, is what the comic strip section brilliantly gives. Good strips— Peanuts, The Wizard of Id— reflect not just a particular moment in time but the flow of time, the steady center and the general direction. In short, I think my Mom was probably right. Pay attention to the comics section first.
Of course, today, newspapers are a dying breed, the comic strip section along with them. Certainly one reason for the demise of print is the advent of the Internet. Newspapers and comic strips seem to be transferring to the web.
In fact, not only do I read the news mostly on line I, personally, know two people who draw comic strips professionally. Both of them have a presence on the web.
Now, I’ve discovered something else relating to that, and it does surprise me some. If you pay close attention to what your friends are talking about on Facebook, what they post, it can be a little like following the news— chaotic.
The secret of understanding Facebook is to not pay too much attention. If you pay too much attention, it’s just like reading the newspapers. You get overwhelmed by day to day details.
The funny thing is, occasionally, someone posts a commentary on Facebook, on the newsfeed, a commentary on the facts which reminds me of the kind of analysis we get in comic strips. One friend recently did exactly that: made an entry on Facebook which had the flavor of analysis.
I hope this won’t bore you too much, but the post read like this (quote): “In case you don’t feel like scrolling through your news feed today”— the news feed is a list of what all your friends are posting— “In case you don’t feel like scrolling through your news feed today let me sum it up, tell you what people are saying: homophobia is bad; congress is inept; we should ban all guns; the Game of Thrones is awesome; so is Dr. Who; Twilight— those books with a vampire theme?— not so much.”
“Marriage equality is good; God does not exist; congress is messing with the middle class and the poor. You should believe in yourself; God does exist; friendship matters more than money; chase your dreams; puppies are adorable; kittens are cute; George Taiki (or any one of several other ‘B’ list celebrities) posted something funny.”
“There are also those silly and totally false postings,” the soliloquy continued. “These claim that Bill Cosby or Robin Williams or Warren Buffett or Abraham Lincoln or John Boehner or Barack Obama or Queen Elizabeth or George Washington never said the silly thing I am about to attribute to them but I am posting it any way.”
“I am going to say they did say what I know is not true because it confirms to my preconceived notion of what I think they should have said. And I am positing it because it also says something about where I am at and how silly I am and how prejudiced I am.” (Slight pause.) And that was that end of commentary— long but interesting.
And, the way I see it, just like the comic strips, that stream of consciousness post on Facebook insists there is a larger picture in everyday life. And despite or perhaps because of its length, it is a commentary on so called facts. So let’s be real: a constant stream of hard news— a constant stream of so called hard facts, is not easy to take.
Sometimes you have to shut off the TV news and tune in to reruns of The Big Bang Theory or Friends or go very retro and try to find episodes of Happy Days or I Love Lucy just to give your brain some relief. To be blunt I, personally, sometimes find a string of facts either consoles me or upsets me.
Why? A stream of facts makes things feel chaotic. A stream facts does not help me with analysis, does not help me understand context. (Slight pause.)
And these words are from the work known as Revelation: “‘I am the Alpha and the Omega,’” says our God “‘who is and who was and who is to come, the Sovereign.’” (Slight pause.)
I think a lot of people believe the times through which we are living are tumultuous, chaotic. In fact, you can see that by what people post on Facebook. And I can understand where people are coming from.
After all, we were attacked on 9/11— that’s chaos; we fought 2 wars simultaneously— that’s chaos; we have now seen the worst economic times since the 1930s— that’s chaos.
However: if you believe it’s bad now, imagine the chaos experienced while the Civil War was in progress. Or think about this: in the course of a lifetime many people lived through one World War, a Great Depression and a Second World War— that’s chaos.
To make that concept of chaos a little more personal here’s a story about my family. In early in 1929 my grandparents, my father’s parents, owned some railroad stock and sold it off at the beginning of that year to make a down payment on a house.
That October the market crashed. My grandfather worked for the City of New York, so during the Depression he often worked six days a week but was paid only for three or four days. However, he had a job, some money, a house, because he had sold off that stock— the family survived. But the Depression did not just feel like chaos. It was chaos.
So, how did people get through those times? (Slight pause.) By taking life one day at a time— day by day by day and by looking at the big picture. They constantly asked themselves not what does today mean but what does my life mean, how do I live my life over a broad span of time? (Slight pause.)
I invite you to look at the cover of today’s bulletin. And let me wait a second while you do that. (Slight pause.) Those are pictures of the large Alpha and Omega we put up in the front of the nave at Christmas.
I remember being blown away when I saw that for the first time seventeen years ago. My reaction was: “Wow! This congregation gets it. The celebration at Christmastide is not simply a celebration of the birth of a child, not even simply about the birth of Jesus.”
“This is a celebration which has greater implications. And this congregation gets it that at Christmastide we celebrate the in-breaking of God.” (Slight pause.)
When the reading from Revelation was introduced it was stated that the basic themes found in the work are in the first sentences. And, indeed, they are.
I would suggest that the entire meaning of Revelation is not a prophecy of the end times. It has nothing to do with the Apocalypse. To say Revelation is about the Apocalypse is to say Revelation offers a message about chaos.
However, that God is the Alpha and the Omega conveys the thought that God transcends time, that God was before time existed and that God will be after time exists, and that God encompasses all time. Revelation says God brings order— God brings order— in opposition to chaos.
So, the work known as Revelation is not simply about a particular moment in time, not even about a moment which might come— a moment we loosely label as the Apocalypse. Revelation is about grappling with God, the eternal. (Slight pause.)
Don’t misunderstand me: that God encompasses all time is not an easy concept. But this is a more simple way to put it: to say God is the Alpha and the Omega says we need to be calm amidst the chaos of life.
We need to understand that God is with us always. In short, we need to grapple with the thought that God loves us always and that God loves us beyond time. Amen.
04/07/2013
United Church of Christ First Congregational, Norwich, New York
ENDPIECE: It is the practice of the Pastor to speak after the Closing Hymn, but before the Congregational Response and Benediction. This is an précis of what was said: “The First words in Genesis say this (quote): ‘At the beginning of God’s creating of the heaven and the earth— when the earth was unformed and void, wild and waste, filled with chaos and emptiness, as night reigned over the surface of the deep, a wind from God, the rushing Spirit of God swept over the face of the waters.” [1] God brings order to chaos. If we do not understand that the last book in the sequence of how the books are laid out in Scripture, Revelation, is placed there to be a bookend, to be a commentary when it says God is the Alpha and the Omega, and that this says nothing about the end times, the apocalypse, then we do not understand Scripture.’”
BENEDICTION: Go out in the compassion and love God provides. Praise the deeds of God by the way you live. And may the steadfast love of God and the peace of Christ, which surpasses understanding, keep our minds and hearts in the companionship and will of the Holy Spirit, this day and forever more. Amen.
[1] Genesis 1:1-3 (ILV).
Sunday, March 31, 2013
SERMON ~ 03/31/2013 ~ Resurrection of the Christ ~ “Home”
03/31/2013 ~ Resurrection of the Christ ~ Easter Day ~ More Appropriately Known as The Feast of the Resurrection ~ Acts 10:34-43 or Isaiah 65:17-25; Psalm 118:1-2, 14-24; 1 Corinthians 15:19-26 or Acts 10:34-43; John 20:1-18 or Luke 24:1-12 ~ Used in Place of Epistle: 1 Corinthians 15:3-7 [ILV].
Home
“As yet, they, the disciples, did not understand the Scripture, that Jesus was to rise from the dead. So, then the disciples went back to their homes.” — John 20:9-10.
He was not sure if he got any sleep. And yet it certainly seemed like there were dreams swirling about.
Peter was at home, in his own bed. So, he felt... safe. Home is, after all, where one feels... safe. And, mostly, the dreams Peter had were good dreams, safe dreams.
In many of the dreams the disciple of Yeshua— when translated to the Greek is the name Yeshua is Jesus— in many of the dreams the disciple saw the Rabbi, saw Yeshua. In the safe dreams Peter saw the Rabbi feed a crowd which must have numbered 5,000, heard the Rabbi preach, heard stories, parables.
In one dream Peter was a witness along with the rest of the disciples when Jesus called out to Lazarus, already dead for four days. And yes, Peter saw Lazarus come out of the tomb, alive. That was not a dream. It happened. It was real. (Slight pause.)
But there was also this other dream, a dream in which Peter could only watch as Jesus was executed, murdered by the soldiers of Rome. Peter wanted to turn away. He could not. He had to watch and did watch as Yeshua died, was taken from the cross, the Roman instrument of execution, and was placed in a tomb. (Pause.)
Somewhere in the middle of that dream Peter heard a banging noise. At once awake, every fiber in his being was suddenly sensitive to the conscious world. He could smell the sweetness of an early morning Spring rain, see the first streaks of dawn tumbling out of the sky through a window, feel the dirt floor as his feet hit the ground.
The banging continued. “Who is it?” he shouted.
“It’s me, Mags!” came the reply.
The voice was that of Mary, the one they all called Mags because her hometown was Magdala. Peter flung open the door. Mags and his friend John, another disciple of Yeshua, stood there.
Clearly out of breath Mags managed to say these words: “The Rabbi has been taken from the tomb! We do not know where they have put Yeshua.” Peter looked at John.
John looked bewildered and shrugged as if to say, “I don’t know.”
Not always known to be decisive, this time Peter said, “Let’s go see.”
John— he was young— John took off at a fast clip. Peter— older— could not keep up, but ran as fast as he could. Mags knew what was at the tomb: nothing. It was empty. She kept a slower pace.
Having arrived at the tomb, John stopped. Peter caught up. Peter stooped down and looked inside through a slit in the rock. The tomb was, indeed, empty. It seemed... absurd. He went in. John followed. “What does this mean, John?”
Again, John just shrugged.
“What should we do?”
Again, John shrugged, then said, “I don’t know.”
Peter shrugged. (Pause.) “I’m going home,” said Peter. (Slight pause.) “I need to be... home.”
Abruptly Peter turned, stooped again and slid through the small slit in the wall. John followed. Mags was approaching the tomb. Peter nodded and John said in a matter of fact way, “You were right; it’s empty.” They kept going.
“Where are you going?” shouted Mags.
Peter looked over his shoulder and shouted back, “Home! I don’t know what else to do. So I’m going home! I think it will feel... safe to be home.” (Slight pause.)
The two disciples walked silently, exchanging not a word. Some minutes later John split off to the left, down a narrow lane. Peter headed toward his home. (Slight pause.)
“Well?” was the greeting the disciple of Yeshua heard from his wife.
“Well, what?” he asked.
“What did you find?”
“Nothing. The tomb was empty. Mags is right. Someone has probably taken the Rabbi. It’s terrible, but there’s nothing we can do.” (Slight pause.) “I feel so... so... lost, so... empty, so sad. I feel angry. I feel I have to be here... home. It feels... safe.” (Slight pause.) “I think... I’ll lie down.” (Slight pause.)
Peter was once again in that land in between sleep and consciousness when there was more banging.
Once again he shouted, “Who is it?”
Once again came the reply, “It’s me, Mags!”
She pushed through the door this time, closed it and leaned back against it. Mags looked stunned. “I have seen the Teacher!”
“Look, Magdala, why don’t you go home?” Peter suggested. “I know this has been hard on you. It’s been hard on all of us. But the tomb is empty. Go home. It’s safe there. Home is a safe place.”
“No,” said Mags with authority. “Home is not the safe place you think it is.”
Peter looked puzzled.
“Have you not been listening all this time?” asked Mags. “The call of God Yeshua told us about is not a call to safety. It is a call to go out into the world. It is a call to protect the helpless, to protect all who are marginalized.”
“This is a call to feed those who are hungry, shelter those without homes, clothe those who are wearing tatters, tend to those who are ill. People who are hungry, homeless, poor did not cause these things. Who wants to be hungry, homeless or poor? In the realm of God, God does not want people to be hungry, homeless or poor. This is a call from God to speak truth to power.” (Slight pause.)
“Yes,” said Peter. “Yes, Yeshua told us all that. But what does that have to do with the tomb being empty and with the vision you saw of the Rabbi?”
Mags glowered. “Peter!” she said. “You do not understand! It was no vision! Yeshua lives!”
Peter looked confused. “Still, what does the call of God have to do with all this? What’s the connection?”
“Peter,” said Mags, “this is about the covenant God makes with us.” She grabbed Peter by the arm, flung open the door and pushed him through it into the bright sunlight.
“Look,” she said, thrusting her arms toward the sky. “Look! This is the world. God gave it to us. We need to deal with it. We need to work in the realm of God. We need to work for the realm of God. We need to work toward the realm of God”
Peter, still a little stunned, simply said, “Why?”
“Yeshua is risen! Yeshua lives. Yeshua is among us!” said Mags. “That’s why.” (Pause.) Amen.
03/31/2013 — Easter Sunday
United Church of Christ, First Congregational, Norwich New York
ENDPIECE: It is the practice of the Pastor to speak after the Closing Hymn, but before the Congregational Response and Benediction. This is an précis of what was said: “I am sure the well known American composer Irving Berlin was a nice fellow. I hold nothing against him. Among other works, he wrote the songs Easter Parade and It’s a Lovely Day, Happy Easter. But these are not Christian sentiments. These are secular sentiments. If someone walks up to you today and says, ‘Happy Easter’ shake their hand and say, ‘Christ is risen.’”
BENEDICTION, RESPONSIVE BLESSING AND CHORAL RESPONSE: May the peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in the love of Christ, Jesus, and in the knowledge of the Holy Spirit this day and forever.
ONE: Rejoice, people of God! Christ is risen from the dead! Go in peace to love and serve God. Christ is with you always. Alleluia! Christ is Risen!
ALL: Christ is risen, indeed. Alleluia!
CHORAL RESPONSE — “Break Forth O Beauteous Risen Light”
Lyric by J. F. Connolly
Break forth, O beauteous Risen Light,
announcing God’s salvation!
By grace the world is set aright
and made a new creation.
The deepest truth may now be told
The bonds of death no longer hold!
God’s love through Christ now dawning
with each new day and morning.
Home
“As yet, they, the disciples, did not understand the Scripture, that Jesus was to rise from the dead. So, then the disciples went back to their homes.” — John 20:9-10.
He was not sure if he got any sleep. And yet it certainly seemed like there were dreams swirling about.
Peter was at home, in his own bed. So, he felt... safe. Home is, after all, where one feels... safe. And, mostly, the dreams Peter had were good dreams, safe dreams.
In many of the dreams the disciple of Yeshua— when translated to the Greek is the name Yeshua is Jesus— in many of the dreams the disciple saw the Rabbi, saw Yeshua. In the safe dreams Peter saw the Rabbi feed a crowd which must have numbered 5,000, heard the Rabbi preach, heard stories, parables.
In one dream Peter was a witness along with the rest of the disciples when Jesus called out to Lazarus, already dead for four days. And yes, Peter saw Lazarus come out of the tomb, alive. That was not a dream. It happened. It was real. (Slight pause.)
But there was also this other dream, a dream in which Peter could only watch as Jesus was executed, murdered by the soldiers of Rome. Peter wanted to turn away. He could not. He had to watch and did watch as Yeshua died, was taken from the cross, the Roman instrument of execution, and was placed in a tomb. (Pause.)
Somewhere in the middle of that dream Peter heard a banging noise. At once awake, every fiber in his being was suddenly sensitive to the conscious world. He could smell the sweetness of an early morning Spring rain, see the first streaks of dawn tumbling out of the sky through a window, feel the dirt floor as his feet hit the ground.
The banging continued. “Who is it?” he shouted.
“It’s me, Mags!” came the reply.
The voice was that of Mary, the one they all called Mags because her hometown was Magdala. Peter flung open the door. Mags and his friend John, another disciple of Yeshua, stood there.
Clearly out of breath Mags managed to say these words: “The Rabbi has been taken from the tomb! We do not know where they have put Yeshua.” Peter looked at John.
John looked bewildered and shrugged as if to say, “I don’t know.”
Not always known to be decisive, this time Peter said, “Let’s go see.”
John— he was young— John took off at a fast clip. Peter— older— could not keep up, but ran as fast as he could. Mags knew what was at the tomb: nothing. It was empty. She kept a slower pace.
Having arrived at the tomb, John stopped. Peter caught up. Peter stooped down and looked inside through a slit in the rock. The tomb was, indeed, empty. It seemed... absurd. He went in. John followed. “What does this mean, John?”
Again, John just shrugged.
“What should we do?”
Again, John shrugged, then said, “I don’t know.”
Peter shrugged. (Pause.) “I’m going home,” said Peter. (Slight pause.) “I need to be... home.”
Abruptly Peter turned, stooped again and slid through the small slit in the wall. John followed. Mags was approaching the tomb. Peter nodded and John said in a matter of fact way, “You were right; it’s empty.” They kept going.
“Where are you going?” shouted Mags.
Peter looked over his shoulder and shouted back, “Home! I don’t know what else to do. So I’m going home! I think it will feel... safe to be home.” (Slight pause.)
The two disciples walked silently, exchanging not a word. Some minutes later John split off to the left, down a narrow lane. Peter headed toward his home. (Slight pause.)
“Well?” was the greeting the disciple of Yeshua heard from his wife.
“Well, what?” he asked.
“What did you find?”
“Nothing. The tomb was empty. Mags is right. Someone has probably taken the Rabbi. It’s terrible, but there’s nothing we can do.” (Slight pause.) “I feel so... so... lost, so... empty, so sad. I feel angry. I feel I have to be here... home. It feels... safe.” (Slight pause.) “I think... I’ll lie down.” (Slight pause.)
Peter was once again in that land in between sleep and consciousness when there was more banging.
Once again he shouted, “Who is it?”
Once again came the reply, “It’s me, Mags!”
She pushed through the door this time, closed it and leaned back against it. Mags looked stunned. “I have seen the Teacher!”
“Look, Magdala, why don’t you go home?” Peter suggested. “I know this has been hard on you. It’s been hard on all of us. But the tomb is empty. Go home. It’s safe there. Home is a safe place.”
“No,” said Mags with authority. “Home is not the safe place you think it is.”
Peter looked puzzled.
“Have you not been listening all this time?” asked Mags. “The call of God Yeshua told us about is not a call to safety. It is a call to go out into the world. It is a call to protect the helpless, to protect all who are marginalized.”
“This is a call to feed those who are hungry, shelter those without homes, clothe those who are wearing tatters, tend to those who are ill. People who are hungry, homeless, poor did not cause these things. Who wants to be hungry, homeless or poor? In the realm of God, God does not want people to be hungry, homeless or poor. This is a call from God to speak truth to power.” (Slight pause.)
“Yes,” said Peter. “Yes, Yeshua told us all that. But what does that have to do with the tomb being empty and with the vision you saw of the Rabbi?”
Mags glowered. “Peter!” she said. “You do not understand! It was no vision! Yeshua lives!”
Peter looked confused. “Still, what does the call of God have to do with all this? What’s the connection?”
“Peter,” said Mags, “this is about the covenant God makes with us.” She grabbed Peter by the arm, flung open the door and pushed him through it into the bright sunlight.
“Look,” she said, thrusting her arms toward the sky. “Look! This is the world. God gave it to us. We need to deal with it. We need to work in the realm of God. We need to work for the realm of God. We need to work toward the realm of God”
Peter, still a little stunned, simply said, “Why?”
“Yeshua is risen! Yeshua lives. Yeshua is among us!” said Mags. “That’s why.” (Pause.) Amen.
03/31/2013 — Easter Sunday
United Church of Christ, First Congregational, Norwich New York
ENDPIECE: It is the practice of the Pastor to speak after the Closing Hymn, but before the Congregational Response and Benediction. This is an précis of what was said: “I am sure the well known American composer Irving Berlin was a nice fellow. I hold nothing against him. Among other works, he wrote the songs Easter Parade and It’s a Lovely Day, Happy Easter. But these are not Christian sentiments. These are secular sentiments. If someone walks up to you today and says, ‘Happy Easter’ shake their hand and say, ‘Christ is risen.’”
BENEDICTION, RESPONSIVE BLESSING AND CHORAL RESPONSE: May the peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in the love of Christ, Jesus, and in the knowledge of the Holy Spirit this day and forever.
ONE: Rejoice, people of God! Christ is risen from the dead! Go in peace to love and serve God. Christ is with you always. Alleluia! Christ is Risen!
ALL: Christ is risen, indeed. Alleluia!
CHORAL RESPONSE — “Break Forth O Beauteous Risen Light”
Lyric by J. F. Connolly
Break forth, O beauteous Risen Light,
announcing God’s salvation!
By grace the world is set aright
and made a new creation.
The deepest truth may now be told
The bonds of death no longer hold!
God’s love through Christ now dawning
with each new day and morning.
03/28/2013 - HOLY THURSDAY - "IN THE GARDEN" - A PLAY
A READING FROM THE GOSPEL — Luke 22:39-42, 45-54a [ILV]
[39] Then Jesus left the room and the house and, as was the normal practice of the Rabbi, went to the Mount of Olives; the disciples followed. [40] When they reached that place, Jesus said to them, “Pray that you may not come into the time of trial, a test.”
[41] Then withdrawing from them about a stone’s throw, Jesus knelt down, and prayed: [42] “Abba, God, if you are willing, remove this cup from me; yet, not my will but Yours be done.”
[45] Then Jesus stood up from praying, came to the disciples and found them sleeping, exhausted with grief. [46] So Jesus said to them, “Why are you sleeping? Get up and pray that you may not be subjected to the time of trial.”
[47] While Jesus was still speaking, suddenly a crowd appeared and the one called Judas, one of the twelve, was leading them. Judas approached Jesus to offer an embrace; [48] but Jesus said, “Judas, are you betraying the Chosen One with a kiss?”
[49] Those who were around Jesus, those who were near Jesus, saw what was going to happen and said, “Rabbi, should we strike with the sword?” [50] Now the attendant of the High Priest was among those in the crowd and one of them struck this person, cutting off the right ear.
[51] But Jesus said, “Stop! No more of this!” And, touching the attendant’s ear, healed it.
[52] Then Jesus said to those in the crowd— the chief priests, the officers of the temple guard, the elders— “Have you come out with swords and clubs as if I were a bandit, a thief? [53] I was with you day after day in the temple and you did not lay hands on me, even though you could have done that at any time you wanted. But this— this— is your hour— the triumph of the night!”
[54a] And so, they arrested Jesus. They then brought the Rabbi into the house of the high priest.
In The Garden
NARRATOR: The Gospel we have come to know as Luke tells us the time came for the Feast of the Unleavened Bread, the feast commonly called Passover. Jesus and the disciples arrive in Jerusalem to keep the feast there. One of the twelve, Judas, knows the Rabbi has made enemies among the leaders in Jerusalem. Therefore, this disciple— some think of him as the practical one since it is he who keeps track of the money the followers of Jesus hold in common— Judas approaches the religious scholars and the Chief Priests, the Temple authorities. Put another way, Judas goes to the crème de la crème of society in Jerusalem with a plan. ‘Since Jesus can raise emotions by simply speaking on a street corner,’ says Judas, ‘if you arrest Jesus there will be no fear of an uprising led by Jesus among the people during the feast.’ In Luke it says the one who is to betray Jesus is at the meal but it does not say when that one leaves the company of the others. So, as this scene unfolds, the Gospel story as we are about to hear it has come to the point where the disciples and Jesus have had the meal and have gone to the garden at the Mount of Olives. Jesus withdraws to pray while the disciples, overwhelmed with a sense of the events which might be impending, have taken to sleep. Jesus hears something and speaks.
JESUS: What was that? Who is there.
JUDAS: It is I— Judas.
JESUS: You did not come with us here after the Seder.
JUDAS: No. But I thought I knew where you would be. And I was right.
JESUS: You were... missed.
JUDAS: I had... business... business to which I needed to tend.
JESUS: Business— with you is it always business. You need to think less about business, less about money and more about the Dominion of God, the Realm of God. The Realm of God draws near, you know.
JUDAS: I think you’ve made that clear these last several years. (Slight pause.)
JESUS: So, where were you... really.
JUDAS: Rabbi, let me ask you a question: are you willing to give up your strange ideas?
JESUS: Strange?
JUDAS: Yes, strange. You just repeated a prime one. Your have these ideas— you insist on talking about the nearness of the Dominion of God, the Realm of God. The Romans are too powerful to be overthrown. So it is perfectly clear the Realm of God is not near. If that were so, if the Realm of God were at hand, we would be building an army of sufficient force to drive the Romans out of our land. The Religious Scholars— they understand the Realm of God is not at hand. They understand how much force it would take to drive out the Romans. And the Priests— they have control of the Temple. So, when it comes to worship, when it comes to how we worship, what they want to do is what gets done. Do you know what they are? They are practical. They seem to get along fine with our Jewish King, Herod.
JESUS: Herod knows how to play the politics of the Temple and the politics of Rome quite well.
JUDAS: Yes, Herod gets along just fine with the Temple Authorities and with all the Romans. And, of course, you know if any of us gets out of line, then Herod will simply call on that Roman, Pilate, the Prefect, and the troops under his command. The occupying army of Rome under the command of Pilate can make things very difficult for the people. If something goes amiss, if there are riots, if there is civil unrest, there would be much bloodshed. Many people would die.
JESUS: The Romans already murder many people each year. Thousands and thousands are crucified.
JUDAS: So I am sure you don’t want any more to die than the Romans deem necessary. Rabbi, I know you love the people. I know you do not want any blood shed— not now, not in the near future. Perhaps in the distant future, when we, the Jewish people, can raise a credible army for ourselves— at that point we can strive to overthrow the yoke of Rome. But until then, cooperation seems like a wise course, does it not?
JESUS: And what makes you think I’m against cooperation.
JUDAS: What makes me think you’re against cooperation? You keep gushing on and on about the nearness of the Realm of God! You just said it a short time ago! Did you not?
JESUS: Yes. I think the realm of God is near. But perhaps I do not think the Realm of God means what you think it means.
JUDAS: It means we shall be a free people.
JESUS: Does freedom mean bearing arms? Does freedom mean committing violence?
JUDAS: It does for the Romans.
JESUS: And what is good enough for the Romans is good enough for us?
NARRATOR: Peter, who has been asleep in a different part of the garden, comes upon Judas and Jesus.
PETER: Judas! We missed you after the Seder. Where were you? Did you go somewhere? (Slight pause.)
JESUS: He had... business... business to which he needed to tend.
NARRATOR: Peter draws a sword.
PETER: I still say this is the only business we need to be in. We need to be at the throats of the Romans.
JUDAS: So, Rabbi, you see? Even your beloved Simon thinks in the end violence will prevail.
JESUS: Simon... Peter... put that away.
NARRATOR: Jesus turns to Judas and says:
JESUS: You were there. You saw it. Why do they not understand? Even at the table earlier they argued among themselves like children. “Who is the greatest?” was their question. As if... that mattered. (Pause.) Peter... Peter... by brandishing that sword once again you are asking ‘who is the greatest?’ Who can marshal enough force is not what the Realm of God is about.
JUDAS: Good luck with that one, Jesus.
JESUS: Look, Peter, when I sent you and all the others out without a purse or a bag or sandals, did you lack anything?
PETER: No, not a thing.
JESUS: So, now you need swords? Do you want to live in a world where the person who has no sword must sell a cloak in order to buy one? Or do you want to live in a world where the Realm of God reigns? Do you want to live in a world where the love of God reigns?
PETER: I need a sword to protect me. I need a sword to protect you.
JESUS: Trusting God is not sufficient then?
PETER: Rabbi, you know what the prophets say. You have already told us the prophecies will be fulfilled in you.
JESUS: Simon, Simon, listen! All of you will be sifted like wheat. All of you will be tested. But the test will not be a test of power or of greatness. It will be a test of wisdom and of fortitude. And so, I have prayed for all of you that your own faith may not fail.
PETER: Still Jesus, I am ready to go with you to prison and even to death!
JUDAS: You see? You see what your talk about the Realm of God brings? I will see you later. I have to be about my business.
NARRATOR: Judas leaves their presence. And, indeed, he will be about his business, the business which has already been transacted with the religious scholars and the Chief Priests, the Temple authorities, the crème de la crème of society in Jerusalem.
JESUS: Peter, I do not think you understand. You may think you would go to prison or even die with me. But the cock will not crow this day until you have three times denied that you know me.
PETER: This cannot possible be. I will not have it! I will not deny you.
JESUS: Peter, do you not remember what I said earlier? This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.
PETER: I heard you say that. I am not sure what you meant.
JESUS: You will understand. It will take time but you will understand.
PETER: You spoke of the covenant. Why?
JESUS: Our covenant is with God. The reign of God is at hand.
PETER: You spoke of blood. Does that not require a sword?
JESUS: (Slight pause.) I think... not. (Slight pause.) Go, Peter. Go back with the others for a bit. Let me be here alone. I need to pray. In time you will know what all this means. But right now it is a time for prayer. And I need to be alone. I need to speak with Abba, God.
PETER: All right. I will be just a little bit away. If you need me, call.
JESUS: I shall. I shall.
NARRATOR: And Peter went off, back to the others. Judas had, of course, gone off to fetch the Temple Authorities. And Jesus prayed. And so the story unfolded. Jesus was arrested and crucified by the Romans as a rebel, a rabble rouser. And there were no riots. But lives were changed. And Rome would destroy Jerusalem. And then Rome, itself, would be destroyed. But the work of the people of God remained. The covenant remained. (LONG PAUSE.) And we find these words in the Gospel known as Luke (BRIEF PAUSE.): “It was now about noon. And despite it being mid-day, the light of the sun failed and darkness came over the whole land; and the curtain in the sanctuary of the temple was torn in two. Then Jesus, crying with a loud voice, said, ‘Abba! Into your hands I commit my spirit.’” (LONG PAUSE.) “Having said this, Jesus breathed for the last time.”
SILENCE IS KEPT
Were You There? (Soloist)
Were you there when they crucified my Lord?
Were you there when they crucified my Lord?
Sometimes it causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble.
Were you there when they crucified my Lord?
SILENCE IS KEPT
[39] Then Jesus left the room and the house and, as was the normal practice of the Rabbi, went to the Mount of Olives; the disciples followed. [40] When they reached that place, Jesus said to them, “Pray that you may not come into the time of trial, a test.”
[41] Then withdrawing from them about a stone’s throw, Jesus knelt down, and prayed: [42] “Abba, God, if you are willing, remove this cup from me; yet, not my will but Yours be done.”
[45] Then Jesus stood up from praying, came to the disciples and found them sleeping, exhausted with grief. [46] So Jesus said to them, “Why are you sleeping? Get up and pray that you may not be subjected to the time of trial.”
[47] While Jesus was still speaking, suddenly a crowd appeared and the one called Judas, one of the twelve, was leading them. Judas approached Jesus to offer an embrace; [48] but Jesus said, “Judas, are you betraying the Chosen One with a kiss?”
[49] Those who were around Jesus, those who were near Jesus, saw what was going to happen and said, “Rabbi, should we strike with the sword?” [50] Now the attendant of the High Priest was among those in the crowd and one of them struck this person, cutting off the right ear.
[51] But Jesus said, “Stop! No more of this!” And, touching the attendant’s ear, healed it.
[52] Then Jesus said to those in the crowd— the chief priests, the officers of the temple guard, the elders— “Have you come out with swords and clubs as if I were a bandit, a thief? [53] I was with you day after day in the temple and you did not lay hands on me, even though you could have done that at any time you wanted. But this— this— is your hour— the triumph of the night!”
[54a] And so, they arrested Jesus. They then brought the Rabbi into the house of the high priest.
In The Garden
NARRATOR: The Gospel we have come to know as Luke tells us the time came for the Feast of the Unleavened Bread, the feast commonly called Passover. Jesus and the disciples arrive in Jerusalem to keep the feast there. One of the twelve, Judas, knows the Rabbi has made enemies among the leaders in Jerusalem. Therefore, this disciple— some think of him as the practical one since it is he who keeps track of the money the followers of Jesus hold in common— Judas approaches the religious scholars and the Chief Priests, the Temple authorities. Put another way, Judas goes to the crème de la crème of society in Jerusalem with a plan. ‘Since Jesus can raise emotions by simply speaking on a street corner,’ says Judas, ‘if you arrest Jesus there will be no fear of an uprising led by Jesus among the people during the feast.’ In Luke it says the one who is to betray Jesus is at the meal but it does not say when that one leaves the company of the others. So, as this scene unfolds, the Gospel story as we are about to hear it has come to the point where the disciples and Jesus have had the meal and have gone to the garden at the Mount of Olives. Jesus withdraws to pray while the disciples, overwhelmed with a sense of the events which might be impending, have taken to sleep. Jesus hears something and speaks.
JESUS: What was that? Who is there.
JUDAS: It is I— Judas.
JESUS: You did not come with us here after the Seder.
JUDAS: No. But I thought I knew where you would be. And I was right.
JESUS: You were... missed.
JUDAS: I had... business... business to which I needed to tend.
JESUS: Business— with you is it always business. You need to think less about business, less about money and more about the Dominion of God, the Realm of God. The Realm of God draws near, you know.
JUDAS: I think you’ve made that clear these last several years. (Slight pause.)
JESUS: So, where were you... really.
JUDAS: Rabbi, let me ask you a question: are you willing to give up your strange ideas?
JESUS: Strange?
JUDAS: Yes, strange. You just repeated a prime one. Your have these ideas— you insist on talking about the nearness of the Dominion of God, the Realm of God. The Romans are too powerful to be overthrown. So it is perfectly clear the Realm of God is not near. If that were so, if the Realm of God were at hand, we would be building an army of sufficient force to drive the Romans out of our land. The Religious Scholars— they understand the Realm of God is not at hand. They understand how much force it would take to drive out the Romans. And the Priests— they have control of the Temple. So, when it comes to worship, when it comes to how we worship, what they want to do is what gets done. Do you know what they are? They are practical. They seem to get along fine with our Jewish King, Herod.
JESUS: Herod knows how to play the politics of the Temple and the politics of Rome quite well.
JUDAS: Yes, Herod gets along just fine with the Temple Authorities and with all the Romans. And, of course, you know if any of us gets out of line, then Herod will simply call on that Roman, Pilate, the Prefect, and the troops under his command. The occupying army of Rome under the command of Pilate can make things very difficult for the people. If something goes amiss, if there are riots, if there is civil unrest, there would be much bloodshed. Many people would die.
JESUS: The Romans already murder many people each year. Thousands and thousands are crucified.
JUDAS: So I am sure you don’t want any more to die than the Romans deem necessary. Rabbi, I know you love the people. I know you do not want any blood shed— not now, not in the near future. Perhaps in the distant future, when we, the Jewish people, can raise a credible army for ourselves— at that point we can strive to overthrow the yoke of Rome. But until then, cooperation seems like a wise course, does it not?
JESUS: And what makes you think I’m against cooperation.
JUDAS: What makes me think you’re against cooperation? You keep gushing on and on about the nearness of the Realm of God! You just said it a short time ago! Did you not?
JESUS: Yes. I think the realm of God is near. But perhaps I do not think the Realm of God means what you think it means.
JUDAS: It means we shall be a free people.
JESUS: Does freedom mean bearing arms? Does freedom mean committing violence?
JUDAS: It does for the Romans.
JESUS: And what is good enough for the Romans is good enough for us?
NARRATOR: Peter, who has been asleep in a different part of the garden, comes upon Judas and Jesus.
PETER: Judas! We missed you after the Seder. Where were you? Did you go somewhere? (Slight pause.)
JESUS: He had... business... business to which he needed to tend.
NARRATOR: Peter draws a sword.
PETER: I still say this is the only business we need to be in. We need to be at the throats of the Romans.
JUDAS: So, Rabbi, you see? Even your beloved Simon thinks in the end violence will prevail.
JESUS: Simon... Peter... put that away.
NARRATOR: Jesus turns to Judas and says:
JESUS: You were there. You saw it. Why do they not understand? Even at the table earlier they argued among themselves like children. “Who is the greatest?” was their question. As if... that mattered. (Pause.) Peter... Peter... by brandishing that sword once again you are asking ‘who is the greatest?’ Who can marshal enough force is not what the Realm of God is about.
JUDAS: Good luck with that one, Jesus.
JESUS: Look, Peter, when I sent you and all the others out without a purse or a bag or sandals, did you lack anything?
PETER: No, not a thing.
JESUS: So, now you need swords? Do you want to live in a world where the person who has no sword must sell a cloak in order to buy one? Or do you want to live in a world where the Realm of God reigns? Do you want to live in a world where the love of God reigns?
PETER: I need a sword to protect me. I need a sword to protect you.
JESUS: Trusting God is not sufficient then?
PETER: Rabbi, you know what the prophets say. You have already told us the prophecies will be fulfilled in you.
JESUS: Simon, Simon, listen! All of you will be sifted like wheat. All of you will be tested. But the test will not be a test of power or of greatness. It will be a test of wisdom and of fortitude. And so, I have prayed for all of you that your own faith may not fail.
PETER: Still Jesus, I am ready to go with you to prison and even to death!
JUDAS: You see? You see what your talk about the Realm of God brings? I will see you later. I have to be about my business.
NARRATOR: Judas leaves their presence. And, indeed, he will be about his business, the business which has already been transacted with the religious scholars and the Chief Priests, the Temple authorities, the crème de la crème of society in Jerusalem.
JESUS: Peter, I do not think you understand. You may think you would go to prison or even die with me. But the cock will not crow this day until you have three times denied that you know me.
PETER: This cannot possible be. I will not have it! I will not deny you.
JESUS: Peter, do you not remember what I said earlier? This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.
PETER: I heard you say that. I am not sure what you meant.
JESUS: You will understand. It will take time but you will understand.
PETER: You spoke of the covenant. Why?
JESUS: Our covenant is with God. The reign of God is at hand.
PETER: You spoke of blood. Does that not require a sword?
JESUS: (Slight pause.) I think... not. (Slight pause.) Go, Peter. Go back with the others for a bit. Let me be here alone. I need to pray. In time you will know what all this means. But right now it is a time for prayer. And I need to be alone. I need to speak with Abba, God.
PETER: All right. I will be just a little bit away. If you need me, call.
JESUS: I shall. I shall.
NARRATOR: And Peter went off, back to the others. Judas had, of course, gone off to fetch the Temple Authorities. And Jesus prayed. And so the story unfolded. Jesus was arrested and crucified by the Romans as a rebel, a rabble rouser. And there were no riots. But lives were changed. And Rome would destroy Jerusalem. And then Rome, itself, would be destroyed. But the work of the people of God remained. The covenant remained. (LONG PAUSE.) And we find these words in the Gospel known as Luke (BRIEF PAUSE.): “It was now about noon. And despite it being mid-day, the light of the sun failed and darkness came over the whole land; and the curtain in the sanctuary of the temple was torn in two. Then Jesus, crying with a loud voice, said, ‘Abba! Into your hands I commit my spirit.’” (LONG PAUSE.) “Having said this, Jesus breathed for the last time.”
SILENCE IS KEPT
Were You There? (Soloist)
Were you there when they crucified my Lord?
Were you there when they crucified my Lord?
Sometimes it causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble.
Were you there when they crucified my Lord?
SILENCE IS KEPT
Sunday, March 17, 2013
A New Thing ~ Note: this sermon was offered at the First Congregational Church, United Church of Christ in Corning, New York. The Rev. Marraine Kattell of the Corning Church preached in Norwich ~ 03/17/2013 ~ Fifth Sunday in Lent.
A New Thing ~ Note: this sermon was offered at the First Congregational Church, United Church of Christ in Corning, New York. The Rev. Marraine Kattell of the Corning Church preached in Norwich ~ 03/17/2013 ~ Fifth Sunday in Lent.
A New Thing
“Look! I am about to do a new thing! / Now it springs forth! / Can you not see it? / Do you not perceive it? / I am making a road in the desert / I am making a way in the wilderness / I am making rivers in the desert— / setting waters to flow over parched earth.” — Isaiah 43:19.
It is March 17th. Happy Saint Patrick’s Day! (Slight pause.) Rarely on St. Patrick’s Day do I even bother to wear green.
Whereas it is often claimed we are all Irish on Saint Patrick’s Day, my presumption is if my full name— Joseph Francis Connolly, Jr.— does not say I am of Irish descent, nothing will. I figure for me the wearing of some green on March 17th would be redundant. (Slight pause.)
A few of you know me from my work in the Susquehanna Association, but most of you do not know me. Therefore, I’d like to tell you a little something about myself other than the biographical notes you will find in the bulletin.
And yes, if you have not already guessed it, my name— Joseph Francis Connolly, Jr.— by its nature tends to profess another truth. I am not just of Irish descent, but of Irish Catholic descent. Further, I grew up in an epicenter of Irish Catholicism— New York City.
But it’s worse than that. It’s not just that I grew up Irish Catholic and in New York City. For his entire career my late father was a teacher at a parochial high school. And not just any parochial high school.
My Dad taught at Regis High School, a well known Jesuit, all scholarship high school on the Upper East Side in Manhattan. One Jesuit became a particularly close friend of the family. He was another Irish fellow— the Rev. Vincent O’Keefe. At one time Vinnie— or as I liked to call him, Uncle Vinnie— was the President of Fordham University, later the second in command of the Jesuits, stationed in Rome and because of that position wound up being a commentator for ABC News on all things concerning the Vatican.
Ah, but it gets even worse than all those connections might imply. You see, then there’s my mother. My late Mom was a nun.
Now, I don’t mean to provide any scandal here so, to be clear, she had left the convent far behind and had married my father by the time I came along. But let’s address the reality of my personal history. The fact that I stand in this pulpit, any pulpit, given my family history is merely an affirmation that I went into the family business. (Slight pause.)
It is hard to escape from history. It is hard to escape from personal history. It is hard to escape from institutional history. Escaping from history to a new place, a new thing, can be done. But it is also well to be aware, in the words of George Santayana, that (quote): “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” (Slight pause.)
History— my ancestors arrived on these shores from Ireland shortly before the Civil War, an era when the Irish were stereotyped as uncivilized and their very humanity was questioned. Advertisements for employment regularly said: “No Irish Need Apply.”
Many regarded the Catholicism of the Irish as an alien, rebellious religion and the Irish culture, itself, as an alien, rebellious culture. In fact, during the mid and late nineteenth century insurance companies would often refuse to sell Catholics insurance. Why? Simply because they were Catholic. (Slight pause.)
And so, in 1882 the Knights of Columbus was born. Early on my grandfather, Edward James Connolly, joined the Knights of Columbus. He joined the 197th Council ever formed. Today there are 15,000 Councils world-wide.
The initial purpose and the real purpose of the Knights of Columbus was and is to be a (quote) “mutual benefit society,” an insurance company, one from which Catholics could buy life insurance without fear of discrimination. So, I suppose that specific history does raise the question: are we really all Irish on Saint Patrick’s Day? And if not, what does that say? And if we are, what does that say? (Slight pause.)
We find these words in the Scroll of the Prophet Isaiah: “Look! I am about to do a new thing! / Now it springs forth! / Can you not see it? / Do you not perceive it? / I am making a road in the desert / I am making a way in the wilderness / I am making rivers in the desert— / setting waters to flow over parched earth.” (Slight pause.)
On my first day in Seminary the very first class I attended was a survey course in New Testament. This is the first thing the professor said: “The New Testament is about confrontation. The New Testament is about confronting in love. The New Testament is about confronting one another in love.”
“But most importantly, the New Testament is about confronting yourself in love. Unless you can confront yourself, do not bother confronting anyone else in any way.” (Slight pause.) Perhaps that is the real lesson of history: the need to confront who we have been and, therefore, who we are and, therefore, who we might be and, therefore, who we might become. (Slight pause.)
(As was mentioned earlier), water is a recurring theme in the reading from Isaiah— from the water through which the people passed out bondage, to the cleansing, thirst quenching, life giving presence of the Spirit of God. So, is water a sign of constancy or is water a symbol of change? (Slight pause.)
The prophet, first, is clearly reminding the people of what God has done— the Exodus from Egypt, the making of Covenant. This is an appeal to consistency. This is a recognition of what has been. Only having done that does the prophet proclaim the possibility of the new. (Slight pause.)
It is only when we confront our own history and remind ourselves of our own history that approaching the new even becomes a possibility. Please note: even after confronting our history ‘the new’ does not become a given. But it does become a possibility. (Slight pause.)
Historically we Christians have taken the words of Isaiah to address the thought that in Jesus God is doing something new. However and therefore, too often we Christians have dismissed the thought that in Jesus God is also doing something old.
The theologian Nicholas Thomas Wright has said that in Jesus we find the “climax of the covenant.” Jesus, you see, is the Christ, the Messiah.
Hence, in the resurrection of Jesus, in the resurrection of the Christ, we can see and experience both a fulfillment of what has been, what is past, a retelling of our salvation history because of our covenant with God. But in, by and through our salvation history we can also see and experience the possibility of the new. We can experience seeing ourselves, experience confronting ourselves right now as a people of the covenant. (Slight pause.)
There is one thing which I believe to be constantly clear about the covenant God has made with humanity. I believe that because of the action of God in the resurrection of Jesus tribalism is no longer an acceptable way of life.
We are no longer Greeks or Jews or Irish or Americans or Hispanics or Muslims or Republicans or Democrats or short or tall or thin or chubby any other tribal distinction you care to name. We are all one, one tribe— God’s tribe— called to be in covenant with God and one another. That, my friends, is our real history played out into the present and seeing hope for the future. (Slight pause.)
So, what is this new thing of which Isaiah speaks? Is it an old thing? Well, yes, since the proclamation Isaiah makes is about covenant. Is it a new thing? Well, yes, since historically we seem to have this proclivity to break into tribes, to not see ourselves as one, in covenant with God, the new is a given. (Slight pause.)
Perhaps the issues we must face and probably need to face on a daily basis can be summed up in a series of questions. Who have we been as individuals and as a group? Can we learn from that?
Based on that, can we just consider the possibility that God honors the old and is always doing something new? If we can consider it, what will we have to do to work with God, to walk in the paths offered by God— God who clearly sees humanity as one people. Amen.
03/17/2013
First Congregational Church, United Church of Christ, Corning, New York.
ENDPIECE: It is the practice of the Pastor to speak after the Closing Hymn, but before the Congregational Response and Benediction. This is an précis of what was said: “Church Historian and Theologian Karen Armstrong says this (quote): ‘If your understanding of the divine has made you kinder, more empathetic and impelled you to express sympathy in concrete acts of loving-kindness, this is good theology. But if your notion of God made you unkind, belligerent, cruel, self-righteous or if it led you to kill in the name of God, it is bad theology.’”
BENEDICTION: Hear now this blessing, commonly known as the Irish Blessing: May the road rise up to meet us. May the wind be always at our back. May we have full moon on a dark night. May the sun shine warm upon our faces. May the rain fall soft upon our fields. And until we meet again, may the hand of God hold us and the wing of God offer us shelter, and the peace of God be with us, always. Amen.
[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regis_High_School_%28New_York_City%29
[2] http://www.jesuit.org/blog/index.php/2012/07/fr-vincent-okeefe-sj-remembered/
[3] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Santayana - George Santayana (1863 – 1952).
[4] http://www.victoriana.com/Irish/IrishPoliticalCartoons.htm
[5] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knights_of_Columbus
Sunday, March 10, 2013
SERMON ~ 03/10/2013 ~ God of Trinity and Mercy
03/10/2013 ~ Fourth Sunday in Lent ~ Joshua 5:9-12; Psalm 32; 2 Corinthians 5:16-21; Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32.
God of Trinity and Mercy
“All of this is from God, who reconciled us to self through Christ and made us ministers of that reconciliation. This means that, through Christ, the world was fully reconciled to God, who did not hold our transgressions against us, but instead entrusted us with this message of reconciliation.” — 2 Corinthians 18-19.
If you are my friend on Facebook— and I know some of you are friends on Facebook— you realize I do not post a lot or comment a lot. Many weeks the only post I have is my sermon.
In part, that’s because of the office I hold. You see, when one holds the office known as pastor, one does have to be careful about how one behaves in public. If you’re on Facebook whatever you post or comment is in public.
There is no such thing as private on Facebook. Do nothing on Facebook you would not do in the middle of West Park, right outside the church building. I am often surprised at how many people don’t get that.
Now, part of the problem with Facebook for pastors is things can be taken the wrong way when seen only in print. Or as I like to say, “Where is my irony font when I need it?”
In person you can say things in a tone that drips with irony. When people hear that, they know what is being said is a joke. An ironic tone does not translate into print. Now, that some people who hold a specific job might need to be careful in public is actually a fairly common occurrence. One example— when smoking was more popular, Major League Baseball players, even ones who were in tobacco advertisements, would not be seen smoking in the dugout. It looked bad. But between innings a lot of players would sneak back to the clubhouse and there they would puff on a cigarette, unseen. See— there’s that public presence and then there’s what you do in private. Sometimes they’re different, aren’t they?
Coming back to the office of pastor, let me tell a story about a misdeed committed by a pastor friend who served a church in New York City. She committed this misdeed despite being a pastor. And she would be the first to tell you (if I had not already said it) that because one holds the office of pastor, one does have to be careful about how one behaves in public.
To be clear, she herself, did tell this tale about her breech of behavior, so I have no hesitation in using it. (Slight pause.) My pastor friend had just had some foot surgery. So, with her foot in a cast, she hobbled on to a subway train and felt very lucky to find a seat right next to the door.
Getting that seat seemed like a fortunate coincidence, since the seat she took was the last one available in that subway car. She found herself next to a twenty-something, well dressed businessman whose head was buried in a book.
At the very next stop the train got quite crowded. No seats were left which meant people had to stand and hang onto the rails above the seats. A woman who was clearly pregnant got on with that crowd, passed by my friend, hung on to the rail and stood over that well dressed man who was reading.
With my friend’s foot in a cast, she felt it was unwise for her to get up and give this woman a seat. Thinking the fellow next to her was simply so engrossed in the book he was oblivious to what was going on around him and that it might be polite for him to offer the woman who was pregnant a seat, my pastor friend nudged this fellow. He looked up. My friend pointed to the woman.
He simply looked back down to the book again without saying a word. Two stops later as the train pulled into a station, the man stood and the pregnant woman immediately sat down, a grateful look on her face.
The fellow had not decided to become suddenly chivalrous. The train had come to his stop and he was about to get off. Since my friend was sitting next to the door and since she did have a cast on the foot which was next to that door and since that man was obviously about to go out through that door, she— a pastor— somehow decided it would be all right if she— a pastor— perhaps accidently, perhaps on purpose, held her foot out, encased as it was in a cast, just enough to trip that fellow as he got off the train.
The door opened. Out he went, tripping on her cast as he moved forward. He landed face first on the platform.
The doors closed. The train took off. She never saw him again. She did, however, exchange contact information with the woman who had taken that seat next to her.
The woman became a parishioner. My friend Baptized her newborn child. And that was certainly a new and innovative and different way of doing evangelize. [1] (Slight pause.)
Confession, of course, can be cleansing, and in that sense good for the soul. So, by way of confession, my pastor friend did use that story in a sermon, which gives me carte blanche to repeat it. (Slight pause.)
And these words are from Second Corinthians: “All of this is from God, who reconciled us to self through Christ and made us ministers of that reconciliation. This means that, through Christ, the world was fully reconciled to God, who did not hold our transgressions against us, but instead entrusted us with this message of reconciliation.” (Slight pause.)
I’ve mentioned this before: I had another pastor friend who had a ‘T’ shirt made up for himself. The shirt read: “Dear God, when I die and go to heaven, please let me not be standing in line next to Mother Teresa.”
The point is we are all good in some way but we are all also flawed. No one is perfect. Now, in this passage Paul tackles and answers some very central questions. These include: “What is the meaning of good?” and “Who is Jesus?”
Second one first— as to “Who is Jesus?” in the Epistles Paul often and in many ways asks that classic Christian question: “Who is Jesus?” The Gospels also ask the question when Jesus says, “Who do you say that I am?” What we moderns do not understand is the way in which Paul and the early Christians heard that question, “Who do you say that I am?”
We hear the question as being about our own perception of Jesus. But for those who first heard the question it was not about their perception. They knew who Jesus was.
Many had met Jesus or had met someone who had met Jesus. They knew who Jesus was from first or second hand testimony. So, they heard this “Who is Jesus?” question as being about how God and Jesus were related, how they related, about how God and Jesus interacted. The question wasn’t about us.
Paul gives us that answer about that relationship and that interaction (quote): “...through Christ, the world was fully reconciled to God,...” The language the church has historically used to express that relationship and that interaction is to say Jesus is the Second Person of the Trinity. God is Trinity.
Now I think the more important point Paul makes is the message God gives us concerning that relationship called Trinity. The message is about us. We are reconciled to God. (Slight pause.)
Now, I know what some people think. Some people think life is a buddy movie. So their reaction to being reconciled to God will be, “Well, I am reconciled to God because it’s all about God and me— we are tight. We are buddies.” (Slight pause.)
Well, how much of a buddy are you, really, if let’s say you are a pastor but you go around tripping people on the subway? Yes, the action my friend took may have been— let’s say ‘in a good cause.’ But it was still just a tad over the top, was it not? (Slight pause.)
So, reconciliation is not about our wrongdoing or even our right doing. We all do some things which are at least inappropriate, if not downright wrong. We all do things which are wonderful.
Reconciliation is about empowerment— our empowerment. Reconciliation is about the covenant with God and the empowerment God wants us to have. All of which is to say, reconciliation with God is not a result, not a goal, not an end thing.
Reconciliation with God is a journey. Reconciliation with God is about our journey with God. Reconciliation with God is about our journey through life. Or, as our denomination likes to put it, reconciliation is about the idea that God is still speaking with us. Reconciliation is about the idea that God is still speaking through us. Amen.
03/10/2013
United Church of Christ, First Congregational, Norwich, New York
ENDPIECE: It is the practice of the Pastor to speak after the Closing Hymn, but before the Congregational Response and Benediction. This is an précis of what was said: “Church Historian and Theologian Karen Armstrong says this (quote): ‘If your understanding of the divine has made you kinder, more empathetic and impelled you to express sympathy in concrete acts of loving-kindness, this is good theology. But if your notion of God made you unkind, belligerent, cruel, self-righteous or if it led you to kill in the name of God, it is bad theology.’”
BENEDICTION: Let us seek to love as we have been loved by God, welcoming our brothers and sisters. Let us rejoice in God’s goodness and steadfast love. Let us follow where God leads. Let us go on our way with Christ as our companion. And may the steadfast love of God and the peace of Christ, which surpasses understanding, keep our minds and hearts in the companionship and will of the Holy Spirit, this day and forever more. Amen.
[1] It should probably be noted that there was much laughter among members of the congregation as the pastor told this story.
God of Trinity and Mercy
“All of this is from God, who reconciled us to self through Christ and made us ministers of that reconciliation. This means that, through Christ, the world was fully reconciled to God, who did not hold our transgressions against us, but instead entrusted us with this message of reconciliation.” — 2 Corinthians 18-19.
If you are my friend on Facebook— and I know some of you are friends on Facebook— you realize I do not post a lot or comment a lot. Many weeks the only post I have is my sermon.
In part, that’s because of the office I hold. You see, when one holds the office known as pastor, one does have to be careful about how one behaves in public. If you’re on Facebook whatever you post or comment is in public.
There is no such thing as private on Facebook. Do nothing on Facebook you would not do in the middle of West Park, right outside the church building. I am often surprised at how many people don’t get that.
Now, part of the problem with Facebook for pastors is things can be taken the wrong way when seen only in print. Or as I like to say, “Where is my irony font when I need it?”
In person you can say things in a tone that drips with irony. When people hear that, they know what is being said is a joke. An ironic tone does not translate into print. Now, that some people who hold a specific job might need to be careful in public is actually a fairly common occurrence. One example— when smoking was more popular, Major League Baseball players, even ones who were in tobacco advertisements, would not be seen smoking in the dugout. It looked bad. But between innings a lot of players would sneak back to the clubhouse and there they would puff on a cigarette, unseen. See— there’s that public presence and then there’s what you do in private. Sometimes they’re different, aren’t they?
Coming back to the office of pastor, let me tell a story about a misdeed committed by a pastor friend who served a church in New York City. She committed this misdeed despite being a pastor. And she would be the first to tell you (if I had not already said it) that because one holds the office of pastor, one does have to be careful about how one behaves in public.
To be clear, she herself, did tell this tale about her breech of behavior, so I have no hesitation in using it. (Slight pause.) My pastor friend had just had some foot surgery. So, with her foot in a cast, she hobbled on to a subway train and felt very lucky to find a seat right next to the door.
Getting that seat seemed like a fortunate coincidence, since the seat she took was the last one available in that subway car. She found herself next to a twenty-something, well dressed businessman whose head was buried in a book.
At the very next stop the train got quite crowded. No seats were left which meant people had to stand and hang onto the rails above the seats. A woman who was clearly pregnant got on with that crowd, passed by my friend, hung on to the rail and stood over that well dressed man who was reading.
With my friend’s foot in a cast, she felt it was unwise for her to get up and give this woman a seat. Thinking the fellow next to her was simply so engrossed in the book he was oblivious to what was going on around him and that it might be polite for him to offer the woman who was pregnant a seat, my pastor friend nudged this fellow. He looked up. My friend pointed to the woman.
He simply looked back down to the book again without saying a word. Two stops later as the train pulled into a station, the man stood and the pregnant woman immediately sat down, a grateful look on her face.
The fellow had not decided to become suddenly chivalrous. The train had come to his stop and he was about to get off. Since my friend was sitting next to the door and since she did have a cast on the foot which was next to that door and since that man was obviously about to go out through that door, she— a pastor— somehow decided it would be all right if she— a pastor— perhaps accidently, perhaps on purpose, held her foot out, encased as it was in a cast, just enough to trip that fellow as he got off the train.
The door opened. Out he went, tripping on her cast as he moved forward. He landed face first on the platform.
The doors closed. The train took off. She never saw him again. She did, however, exchange contact information with the woman who had taken that seat next to her.
The woman became a parishioner. My friend Baptized her newborn child. And that was certainly a new and innovative and different way of doing evangelize. [1] (Slight pause.)
Confession, of course, can be cleansing, and in that sense good for the soul. So, by way of confession, my pastor friend did use that story in a sermon, which gives me carte blanche to repeat it. (Slight pause.)
And these words are from Second Corinthians: “All of this is from God, who reconciled us to self through Christ and made us ministers of that reconciliation. This means that, through Christ, the world was fully reconciled to God, who did not hold our transgressions against us, but instead entrusted us with this message of reconciliation.” (Slight pause.)
I’ve mentioned this before: I had another pastor friend who had a ‘T’ shirt made up for himself. The shirt read: “Dear God, when I die and go to heaven, please let me not be standing in line next to Mother Teresa.”
The point is we are all good in some way but we are all also flawed. No one is perfect. Now, in this passage Paul tackles and answers some very central questions. These include: “What is the meaning of good?” and “Who is Jesus?”
Second one first— as to “Who is Jesus?” in the Epistles Paul often and in many ways asks that classic Christian question: “Who is Jesus?” The Gospels also ask the question when Jesus says, “Who do you say that I am?” What we moderns do not understand is the way in which Paul and the early Christians heard that question, “Who do you say that I am?”
We hear the question as being about our own perception of Jesus. But for those who first heard the question it was not about their perception. They knew who Jesus was.
Many had met Jesus or had met someone who had met Jesus. They knew who Jesus was from first or second hand testimony. So, they heard this “Who is Jesus?” question as being about how God and Jesus were related, how they related, about how God and Jesus interacted. The question wasn’t about us.
Paul gives us that answer about that relationship and that interaction (quote): “...through Christ, the world was fully reconciled to God,...” The language the church has historically used to express that relationship and that interaction is to say Jesus is the Second Person of the Trinity. God is Trinity.
Now I think the more important point Paul makes is the message God gives us concerning that relationship called Trinity. The message is about us. We are reconciled to God. (Slight pause.)
Now, I know what some people think. Some people think life is a buddy movie. So their reaction to being reconciled to God will be, “Well, I am reconciled to God because it’s all about God and me— we are tight. We are buddies.” (Slight pause.)
Well, how much of a buddy are you, really, if let’s say you are a pastor but you go around tripping people on the subway? Yes, the action my friend took may have been— let’s say ‘in a good cause.’ But it was still just a tad over the top, was it not? (Slight pause.)
So, reconciliation is not about our wrongdoing or even our right doing. We all do some things which are at least inappropriate, if not downright wrong. We all do things which are wonderful.
Reconciliation is about empowerment— our empowerment. Reconciliation is about the covenant with God and the empowerment God wants us to have. All of which is to say, reconciliation with God is not a result, not a goal, not an end thing.
Reconciliation with God is a journey. Reconciliation with God is about our journey with God. Reconciliation with God is about our journey through life. Or, as our denomination likes to put it, reconciliation is about the idea that God is still speaking with us. Reconciliation is about the idea that God is still speaking through us. Amen.
03/10/2013
United Church of Christ, First Congregational, Norwich, New York
ENDPIECE: It is the practice of the Pastor to speak after the Closing Hymn, but before the Congregational Response and Benediction. This is an précis of what was said: “Church Historian and Theologian Karen Armstrong says this (quote): ‘If your understanding of the divine has made you kinder, more empathetic and impelled you to express sympathy in concrete acts of loving-kindness, this is good theology. But if your notion of God made you unkind, belligerent, cruel, self-righteous or if it led you to kill in the name of God, it is bad theology.’”
BENEDICTION: Let us seek to love as we have been loved by God, welcoming our brothers and sisters. Let us rejoice in God’s goodness and steadfast love. Let us follow where God leads. Let us go on our way with Christ as our companion. And may the steadfast love of God and the peace of Christ, which surpasses understanding, keep our minds and hearts in the companionship and will of the Holy Spirit, this day and forever more. Amen.
[1] It should probably be noted that there was much laughter among members of the congregation as the pastor told this story.
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