JOHN 20:19-31
THERE WERE SOME BRILLIANT PHILOSOPHERS IN EUROPE DURING THE 18TH AND 19TH CENTURY. IT WAS A TIME WHEN THE WORLD WAS BEING TURNED UPSIDE DOWN. THE REFORMATION HAD NOT HAPPENED THAT LONG AGO, AND THERE WERE STILL BITTER FEELINGS BETWEEN CATHOLICS AND PROTESTANTS; AND EVERY COUNTRY IN EUROPE BELONGED TO ONE CAMP OR ANOTHER. RELIGION, ONCE THE GREAT UNIFIER, WAS NOW A DIVIDER. MODERN SCIENCE HAD BEGUN TO EMERGE AS WELL, AND IT WAS BECOMING INCREASINGLY OBVIOUS THAT THE HISTORY THAT WAS REPORTED IN THE BIBLE COULD NOT BE PROVEN AND IN MANY CASES, HAD BEEN DIS PROVEN. AND PEOPLE HAD BEGUN TO STUDY THE BIBLE FROM THE STANDPOINT OF WHAT WAS CALLED THE HISTORICAL CRITICAL METHOD. BY LOOKING CAREFULLY AT THE TEXT, IT WAS CLEAR THAT MOSES COULDN'T HAVE WRITTEN THE FIRST FIVE BOOKS OF THE OLD TESTAMENT; AND WHEN YOU LOOKED AT THE GOSPEL OF JOHN, THE THREE EPISTLES, AND THE BOOK OF REVELATION, IT WAS CLEAR THAT THERE WAS MORE THAN ONE AUTHOR HERE.
AND IN THE TIME WE ARE TALKING ABOUT, THERE WAS INCREASING CONTACT WITH OTHER SOCIETIES, AND OTHER RELIGIONS, AND OTHER SACRED SCRIPTURES. AND IT BECAME A PROJECT OF THESE PHILOSOPHERS TO FIND THE “NATURAL RELIGION” OF MANKIND, THE RELIGION THAT WAS BEHIND ALL THE RELIGIONS IN THE WORLD. IF YOU TOOK AWAY THE SCRIPTURES AND THE PROPHETS AND THE SPECIAL ROLE OF JESUS, YOU COULD FIND WHAT WAS THERE IN THE BEGINNING. AND HEGEL AND KANT AMONG OTHERS, USED THEIR TALENTS TO DEVELOP A REASONABLE APPROACH TO RELIGION, A RELIGION IN WHICH NO FAITH WAS NECESSARY. OF COURSE, ONCE YOU REMOVE FAITH FROM RELIGION, YOU SOON FIND YOU DON'T NEED RELIGION EITHER, AND IN THE NEXT GENERATION, KARL MARX, SIGMUND FREUD, AND FRIEDRICH NIETZSCHE CARRIED THE LOGIC FURTHER AND DECIDED THAT RELIGION OF ANY SORT WAS NOT ONLY FOOLISH, BUT POSITIVELY HARMFUL.
WHEN I READ THE RESURRECTION ACCOUNTS, I'M ALWAYS PUZZLED AS TO WHY JESUS WAS SO HARD ON THOMAS. MARY MAGDALEN DIDN'T BELIEVE UNTIL SHE ACTUALLY MET HIM IN THE GARDEN; AND THE APOSTLES DIDN'T KNOW WHAT TO THINK UNTIL JESUS APPEARED TO THEM IN THE UPPER ROOM. BUT IT SEEMS THOMAS WAS SINGLED OUT FOR HIS LACK OF FAITH. WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?
I THINK THE DIFFERENCE IS IN WHAT THOMAS SAYS. THE OTHERS STARTED OUT NOT BELIEVING, BUT WHEN JESUS APPEARED TO THEM, THEY BELIEVED. AND THOMAS MIGHT HAVE BEEN LIKE THAT ALSO; HE MIGHT HAVE NOT BELIEVED, BUT WONDERED, AND AT SOME POINT, JESUS MAY HAVE APPEARED TO HIM, AND HIS REACTION MIGHT HAVE BEEN LIKE THOSE OF THE APOSTLES. BUT THOMAS, HEARING THE TESTIMONY OF HIS FRIENDS, FRIENDS HE HAD KNOWN FOR A LONG TIME, FRIENDS WHOM HE KNEW TO BE HONEST, REFUSED TO BELIEVE, IN FACT LAID DOWN THE CONDITIONS WHICH WOULD BE NECESSARY FOR HIM TO BE CONVINCED. AS IT TURNED OUT, HIS CONDITIONS WERE NOT MET BY JESUS, ALTHOUGH JESUS OFFERED; AND THOMAS BELIEVED WHEN JESUS APPEARED TO HIM, JUST AS HAD HAPPENED WITH THE OTHER APOSTLES.
CHRISTIANITY IS A REVEALED RELIGION. CHRISTIANITY DEPENDS ON BELIEF IN THINGS WE CAN'T PROVE, THINGS WE CAN'T SEE. ONCE REVELATION IS GONE, IT ISN'T CHRISTIANITY ANYMORE, AS THE PHILOSOPHERS KNEW. BUT TO BE A CHRISTIAN IS TO ACCEPT SOME THINGS AS TRUE THAT WE WILL NEVER BE ABLE TO PROVE. LONG BEFORE OUR BRILLIANT PHILOSOPHERS, THOMAS AQUINAS AND OTHERS TRIED TO SHOW THAT THE TRUTHS OF CHRISTIANITY WERE REASONABLE. HEGEL AND KANT TRIED TO SHOW THAT RELIGION, AT LEAST BARE BONES RELIGION WAS REASONABLE. BUT I REMEMBER IN THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES, SAINT PAUL ONCE TRIED TO BE REASONABLE WHEN PREACHING TO THE ATHENIANS. AND THEY MET HIS REASONABLENESS WITH NEITHER AGREEMENT NOR DISAGREEMENT; BECAUSE FAITH CAN'T BE BUILT ON REASON. AND SAINT PAUL RESOLVED AFTER THIS THAT HE WOULD ONLY PREACH CHRIST, AND HIM CRUCIFIED.
I THINK MANY OF US WHO GO TO CHURCH FAITHFULLY, WHO CONSIDER OURSELVES GOOD CATHOLICS, AREN'T TOO DIFFERENT FROM THOMAS. WE HAVE A CERTAIN FAITH, A TENTATIVE FAITH, BUT IT'S NOT A BURNING FAITH, IT'S NOT THE FAITH OF THE APOSTLES, WHO EXCLAIM, “WE HAVE SEEN THE LORD!” AND CANNOT BE MADE TO SIT DOWN AND SHUT UP. AND MAYBE WE FEEL THAT IF WE COULD ONLY WITNESS A MIRACLE, IF SOMETHING WOULD HAPPEN THAT WAS CONVINCING BEYOND ALL DOUBT, THEN WE COULD REALLY COMMIT OURSELVES. SO WE HOLD BACK A BIT; WE BELIEVE IN GOD, WE BELIEVE IN JESUS CHRIST, AND WE ARE NICE PEOPLE.
ONCE THERE WAS A MAN WHO ANSWERED JESUS' QUESTION ABOUT WHETHER OR NOT HE BELIEVED, WITH THE WORDS, “I BELIEVE, LORD. HELP MY UNBELIEF!” AND THAT IS OUR ONLY RECOURSE. NO AMOUNT OF REASON CAN STRENGTHEN OUR FAITH. IF WE ARE ALLOWED TO SEE THE WOUNDS, WE WILL INSIST ON TOUCHING THEM; IF WE ARE ALLOWED TO PUT OUR FINGERS IN THE WOUNDS, WE WILL INSIST ON PUTTING OUR HAND IN JESUS' SIDE. BUT ONE THING CAN STRENGTHEN FAITH. THAT IS TO LIVE OUR FAITH, TO LIVE THE WAY WE IMAGINE A PERSON OF FAITH LIVES. AND IF WE LIVE THIS WAY, WE ARE PRAYING, “I BELIEVE, LORD. HELP MY UNBELIEF.” AND WITH TIME OUR FAITH GROWS RICHER AND DEEPER.
FOR A PERSON WHO BELIEVES, NO PROOF IS NECESSARY; FOR A PERSON WHO DOES NOT BELIEVE, NO PROOF IS SUFFICIENT.
WE ARE ALL LOCKED IN THE UPPER ROOM, FEARFUL OF WHAT LIES OUTSIDE. WE DISTRACT OURSELVES WITH THE HERE AND NOW, WITH BEING BUSY AND DOING THINGS, WITH FAMILY AND TELEVISION AND TRAVEL AND ANYTHING THAT KEEPS US FROM CONFRONTING THE LOCKED, EMPTY ROOM IN WHICH WE FIND OURSELVES. WE CAN SAY, “I WILL NOT BELIEVE, UNLESS JESUS CHRIST MEETS MY CONDITIONS. UNTIL THEN, I WILL BE CONTENT WITH THE WAY THINGS ARE, WITH THE WAY I LEAD MY LIFE. OR WE CAN SAY, “I WILL BELIEVE, HELP MY UNBELIEF” AND JESUS WILL COME INTO OUR LOCKED EMPTY ROOM AND STRENGTHEN OUR FAITH SO THAT WE CAN BE JESUS FOR THE REST OF THE WORLD, SO THAT WE CAN GIVE JESUS HANDS AND FEET AND EYES AND EARS, SO THAT WE CAN BREAK OUT OF THE EMPTY ROOM AND SPREAD THE GOOD NEWS THROUGH OUR WORDS AND OUR ACTIONS. BECAUSE WHEN WE SPREAD THE GOOD NEWS, WE BEGAN TO BE UNITED TO JESUS MORE COMPLETELY. SO LEAVE HERE TODAY BELIEVING IN THE RESURRECTION, BELIEVING THAT OUR FOUNDER DIED, REALLY DIED, AND WAS BROUGHT BACK TO LIFE, AND RESOLVE TO TELL SOMEONE ABOUT YOUR FAITH. IT GETS EASIER THE MORE YOU DO IT.
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Monday, April 5, 2010
Easter Sunday, 2010
JOHN 20:1-9
MARY MAGDALEN SAW THE EMPTY TOMB AND CONCLUDED THAT SOMEONE HAD COME AND TAKEN AWAY THE BODY OF JESUS. PETER SAW THE EMPTY TOMB AND WE DON'T KNOW WHAT HE THOUGHT; IT DOESN'T SAY. BUT I GUESS WE COULD ASSUME THAT HE PROBABLY THOUGHT THE SAME AS MARY. WE ARE TOLD THAT THE BELOVED DISCIPLE, THE ONE WHOM JESUS LOVED, WITNESSED THE SAME SCENE, THE BURIAL CLOTHS NEATLY FOLDED AND THE HEAD COVERING ROLLED UP AND PUT IN A SEPARATE PLACE. IT SAYS THAT HE BELIEVED, BUT BELIEVED WHAT? BECAUSE THE NEXT SENTENCE TELLS US THAT NONE OF THEM UNDERSTOOD.
WHAT WAS IT, THEN, THAT THE BELOVED DISCIPLE BELIEVED?
LAST NIGHT WE CELEBRATED THE EASTER VIGIL. IF YOU'VE BEEN TO ONE, YOU KNOW THAT THERE ARE SEVERAL READINGS FROM THE OLD TESTAMENT. ONE TELLS THE STORY OF ABRAHAM AND ISAAC. PUT YOURSELF IN ABRAHAM'S SHOES. A LIFETIME AGO HE HAD LEFT HOME TO LIVE THE LIFE OF A WANDERER; HE DID SO BECAUSE HE HAD HAD AN EXPERIENCE. HE WAS TOLD THAT HE WOULD BE THE FATHER OF A GREAT NATION. THERE WAS A TIME WHEN HE THOUGHT THAT THE PROMISE WAS GOING TO BE FULFILLED. HE HAD A CHILD BY SARAH'S SLAVE, A BOY NAMED ISHMAEL. BUT SARAH, IN A JEALOUS RAGE, INSISTED THAT HE DRIVE THE WOMAN AND HER CHILD AWAY, AND ABRAHAM HAD NO IDEA WHETHER THE BOY WAS ALIVE OR DEAD. AGAIN, HE HAD BEEN PROMISED THAT THEY WOULD BE TAKEN CARE OF, BUT IT WAS NO CONSOLATION. AND THEN FINALLY, LONG AFTER HE AND SARAH HAD GIVEN UP HOPE OF HAVING A CHILD, THEY WERE TOLD BY STRANGERS THAT A CHILD WOULD BE BORN, AND SO ONE WAS. ABRAHAM WAS ABOUT 90.
AND NOW, THIS SELF-SAME GOD, THE GOD WHO HAD STARTED THE WHOLE THING, HAD TOLD HIM TO TAKE HIS ONLY SON AND SACRIFICE HIM. THAT SOUNDS APPALLING TO US, OF COURSE. BUT IT WASN'T OUT OF THE QUESTION IN THOSE DAYS TO SACRIFICE A CHILD TO A GOD. THE SCRIPTURE EVEN TELLS US THAT GOD RECOGNIZED THAT ABRAHAM LOVED ISAAC. SO ABRAHAM, WITHOUT ANY EXPLANATION TO SARAH, OR THE PEOPLE WHO TRAVELED WITH HIM, TOOK ISAAC AND SOME FIREWOOD AND A KNIFE AND STARTED UP THE MOUNTAIN. BECAUSE NO EXPLANATION WOULD BE BELIEVED, NO EXPLANATION MADE SENSE – NOT EVEN TO ABRAHAM.
WAS THIS BLIND FAITH? COULD YOU DO THIS? EVEN IF GOD HIMSELF ASKED YOU TO DO THIS? I DON'T THINK I COULD. AND I THINK ALL OF US HAVE A PROBLEM UNDERSTANDING ABRAHAM.
SO WHAT IS THIS FAITH OF ABRAHAM? I THINK ABRAHAM WENT UP THE MOUNTAIN WITH HIS SON, WITH THE FIREWOOD, WITH THE KNIFE, BECAUSE HE HAD FAITH. HE HAD MORE FAITH THAN I DO, BECAUSE HE TRUSTED THAT WHATEVER HAPPENED, GOD WOULD KEEP HIS PROMISE. FAITH, FOR ABRAHAM, WAS SOMETHING LIKE FALLING IN LOVE. WHEN YOU FALL IN LOVE, YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT THE FUTURE WILL HOLD, BUT YOU MOVE FORWARD WITHOUT KNOWING.
REAL FAITH IS COMPLICATED. FIRST OF ALL, IT'S NOT LOGICAL AT ALL. YOU CAN'T REALLY FIND A REASON FOR BELIEVING. IF SOMEONE GIVES YOU A REASON, SOMEONE ELSE CAN GIVE YOU A REASON FOR NOT BELIEVING. FAITH IS ROLLING THE DICE, IT IS DECIDING TO BELIEVE SOMETHING, AND TO BELIEVE IT STRONGLY ENOUGH TO CHANGE YOUR LIFE. AFTER MOTHER THERESA PASSED AWAY, SOME OF HER CORRESPONDENCE WAS PUBLISHED. IN THESE PRIVATE LETTERS TO HER SPIRITUAL ADVISER, IT WAS CLEAR THAT MOTHER THERESA LIVED IN PAIN, BECAUSE SHE HAD EXPERIENCED NOTHING TO CONVINCE HER THAT HER FAITH WAS JUSTIFIED. AND YET, SHE KEPT FAITH, SHE LIVED HER FAITH, AND CRIED HERSELF TO SLEEP AT NIGHT. AND HER FAITH MADE HER DO THINGS THAT THE OTHER SIX BILLION PEOPLE ON THE EARTH WOULD NEVER DO.
THERE AT THE ENTRANCE TO THE OPEN TOMB, THE BELOVED DISCIPLE DID NOT CONCLUDE THAT JESUS' BODY WAS TAKEN AWAY. HE DIDN'T KNOW WHAT TO THINK, BUT HE DID BELIEVE. HE BELIEVED THAT JESUS CHRIST WOULD KEEP HIS PROMISES, THAT SOMEHOW EVEN THOUGH HE HAD SEEN THE MAN DIE, HE HAD WITNESSED THE SPEAR THRUST IN HIS SIDE, HE HAD WATCHED AS THE BODY WAS TAKEN DOWN FROM THE CROSS, WRAPPED IN LINEN, EMBALMED, AND PUT IN THE TOMB – THE BELOVED DISCIPLE STILL BELIEVED THAT GOD WOULD MAKE IT RIGHT, THAT SOMEHOW GOD WOULD TURN THIS TRAGEDY INTO SOMETHING GOOD. THE BELOVED DISCIPLE HAD THE SAME KIND OF FAITH AS ABRAHAM.
WE CHRISTIANS BELIEVE THAT JESUS ROSE FROM THE DEAD, AND WHEN HE ROSE FROM THE DEAD, THIS WAS NOT A METAPHOR, THIS WAS NOT SOME GHOSTLY THING. IT WAS NOT THE FACT THAT THE APOSTLES SUDDENLY FELT AS THOUGH JESUS HAD NEVER REALLY DIED, BUT WAS LIVING ON IN THEM. AND WHEN JESUS ROSE FROM THE DEAD, WE ARE TOLD THAT ABOUT 500 PEOPLE WITNESSED THIS. AND WHEN SAINT PAUL WAS WRITING HIS LETTERS, HE STATES THAT MANY OF THEM ARE STILL AROUND, PEOPLE WHO SAW AND TOUCHED AND HEARD THE RISEN JESUS. BUT WITNESSING THE RISEN JESUS IS ONE THING. FAITH IN THE RESURRECTION IS ANOTHER. BECAUSE IF IT DOESN'T DO SOMETHING TO US, THEN IT IS MERELY A CURIOSITY. WHEN WE STAND BEFORE THE EMPTY TOMB, WE DON'T UNDERSTAND EITHER. THE FACT THAT SO MANY PEOPLE HAVE TRIED TO EXPLAIN THE RESURRECTION AWAY JUST MEANS THAT THEY DON'T WANT TO MAKE THAT LEAP OF FAITH THAT JESUS DID RISE FROM THE DEAD IN A REAL SENSE, NOT IN SOME SYMBOLIC OR METAPHORICAL SENSE. AND OUR BELIEF IN THE RESURRECTION HAS CONSEQUENCES. IF WE BELIEVE IN THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS, THEN WE MUST BELIEVE IN EVERYTHING JESUS SAID BEFORE HE WAS PUT TO DEATH. IF WE BELIEVE, WE KNOW THAT WE WILL RISE AGAIN, IN OUR BODIES, BECAUSE JESUS PROMISED IT AND HE SAID, “WHERE I AM, THERE SHALL MY SERVANT BE.” IF WE BELIEVE, WE KNOW THAT GOD IS IN CHARGE, AND GOD CAN AND WILL TAKE THE WORST DISASTERS, THE GREATEST TRAGEDIES, AND BRING GOOD OUT OF THEM. IT'S NOT LOGICAL, IT'S AGAINST EVERYTHING IN OUR EXPERIENCE, BUT THAT IS WHAT ABRAHAM BELIEVED, AND THAT IS WHAT THE BELOVED DISCIPLE BELIEVED, AND AFTER JESUS APPEARED TO THE APOSTLES IT IS WHAT THEY BELIEVED, BECAUSE THEY SAW THE DEATH OF JESUS, THEY SAW AN INNOCENT MAN PUT TO DEATH; AND THEY SAW HIM RISE AGAIN. THEY BELIEVED STRONGLY ENOUGH TO GO OUT AND PREACH AND TEACH AND ULTIMATELY DIE, STILL BELIEVING.
SO TODAY, WE CONFRONT THE EMPTY TOMB. IT DOESN'T MAKE SENSE. BUT DO WE ASSUME THAT SOMEONE TOOK THE BODY AWAY? OR DO WE HAVE THE FAITH THAT GOD WILL ACT IN OUR HISTORY TO BRING GOOD OUT OF EVIL, EVEN IF WE DON'T KNOW HOW?
MARY MAGDALEN SAW THE EMPTY TOMB AND CONCLUDED THAT SOMEONE HAD COME AND TAKEN AWAY THE BODY OF JESUS. PETER SAW THE EMPTY TOMB AND WE DON'T KNOW WHAT HE THOUGHT; IT DOESN'T SAY. BUT I GUESS WE COULD ASSUME THAT HE PROBABLY THOUGHT THE SAME AS MARY. WE ARE TOLD THAT THE BELOVED DISCIPLE, THE ONE WHOM JESUS LOVED, WITNESSED THE SAME SCENE, THE BURIAL CLOTHS NEATLY FOLDED AND THE HEAD COVERING ROLLED UP AND PUT IN A SEPARATE PLACE. IT SAYS THAT HE BELIEVED, BUT BELIEVED WHAT? BECAUSE THE NEXT SENTENCE TELLS US THAT NONE OF THEM UNDERSTOOD.
WHAT WAS IT, THEN, THAT THE BELOVED DISCIPLE BELIEVED?
LAST NIGHT WE CELEBRATED THE EASTER VIGIL. IF YOU'VE BEEN TO ONE, YOU KNOW THAT THERE ARE SEVERAL READINGS FROM THE OLD TESTAMENT. ONE TELLS THE STORY OF ABRAHAM AND ISAAC. PUT YOURSELF IN ABRAHAM'S SHOES. A LIFETIME AGO HE HAD LEFT HOME TO LIVE THE LIFE OF A WANDERER; HE DID SO BECAUSE HE HAD HAD AN EXPERIENCE. HE WAS TOLD THAT HE WOULD BE THE FATHER OF A GREAT NATION. THERE WAS A TIME WHEN HE THOUGHT THAT THE PROMISE WAS GOING TO BE FULFILLED. HE HAD A CHILD BY SARAH'S SLAVE, A BOY NAMED ISHMAEL. BUT SARAH, IN A JEALOUS RAGE, INSISTED THAT HE DRIVE THE WOMAN AND HER CHILD AWAY, AND ABRAHAM HAD NO IDEA WHETHER THE BOY WAS ALIVE OR DEAD. AGAIN, HE HAD BEEN PROMISED THAT THEY WOULD BE TAKEN CARE OF, BUT IT WAS NO CONSOLATION. AND THEN FINALLY, LONG AFTER HE AND SARAH HAD GIVEN UP HOPE OF HAVING A CHILD, THEY WERE TOLD BY STRANGERS THAT A CHILD WOULD BE BORN, AND SO ONE WAS. ABRAHAM WAS ABOUT 90.
AND NOW, THIS SELF-SAME GOD, THE GOD WHO HAD STARTED THE WHOLE THING, HAD TOLD HIM TO TAKE HIS ONLY SON AND SACRIFICE HIM. THAT SOUNDS APPALLING TO US, OF COURSE. BUT IT WASN'T OUT OF THE QUESTION IN THOSE DAYS TO SACRIFICE A CHILD TO A GOD. THE SCRIPTURE EVEN TELLS US THAT GOD RECOGNIZED THAT ABRAHAM LOVED ISAAC. SO ABRAHAM, WITHOUT ANY EXPLANATION TO SARAH, OR THE PEOPLE WHO TRAVELED WITH HIM, TOOK ISAAC AND SOME FIREWOOD AND A KNIFE AND STARTED UP THE MOUNTAIN. BECAUSE NO EXPLANATION WOULD BE BELIEVED, NO EXPLANATION MADE SENSE – NOT EVEN TO ABRAHAM.
WAS THIS BLIND FAITH? COULD YOU DO THIS? EVEN IF GOD HIMSELF ASKED YOU TO DO THIS? I DON'T THINK I COULD. AND I THINK ALL OF US HAVE A PROBLEM UNDERSTANDING ABRAHAM.
SO WHAT IS THIS FAITH OF ABRAHAM? I THINK ABRAHAM WENT UP THE MOUNTAIN WITH HIS SON, WITH THE FIREWOOD, WITH THE KNIFE, BECAUSE HE HAD FAITH. HE HAD MORE FAITH THAN I DO, BECAUSE HE TRUSTED THAT WHATEVER HAPPENED, GOD WOULD KEEP HIS PROMISE. FAITH, FOR ABRAHAM, WAS SOMETHING LIKE FALLING IN LOVE. WHEN YOU FALL IN LOVE, YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT THE FUTURE WILL HOLD, BUT YOU MOVE FORWARD WITHOUT KNOWING.
REAL FAITH IS COMPLICATED. FIRST OF ALL, IT'S NOT LOGICAL AT ALL. YOU CAN'T REALLY FIND A REASON FOR BELIEVING. IF SOMEONE GIVES YOU A REASON, SOMEONE ELSE CAN GIVE YOU A REASON FOR NOT BELIEVING. FAITH IS ROLLING THE DICE, IT IS DECIDING TO BELIEVE SOMETHING, AND TO BELIEVE IT STRONGLY ENOUGH TO CHANGE YOUR LIFE. AFTER MOTHER THERESA PASSED AWAY, SOME OF HER CORRESPONDENCE WAS PUBLISHED. IN THESE PRIVATE LETTERS TO HER SPIRITUAL ADVISER, IT WAS CLEAR THAT MOTHER THERESA LIVED IN PAIN, BECAUSE SHE HAD EXPERIENCED NOTHING TO CONVINCE HER THAT HER FAITH WAS JUSTIFIED. AND YET, SHE KEPT FAITH, SHE LIVED HER FAITH, AND CRIED HERSELF TO SLEEP AT NIGHT. AND HER FAITH MADE HER DO THINGS THAT THE OTHER SIX BILLION PEOPLE ON THE EARTH WOULD NEVER DO.
THERE AT THE ENTRANCE TO THE OPEN TOMB, THE BELOVED DISCIPLE DID NOT CONCLUDE THAT JESUS' BODY WAS TAKEN AWAY. HE DIDN'T KNOW WHAT TO THINK, BUT HE DID BELIEVE. HE BELIEVED THAT JESUS CHRIST WOULD KEEP HIS PROMISES, THAT SOMEHOW EVEN THOUGH HE HAD SEEN THE MAN DIE, HE HAD WITNESSED THE SPEAR THRUST IN HIS SIDE, HE HAD WATCHED AS THE BODY WAS TAKEN DOWN FROM THE CROSS, WRAPPED IN LINEN, EMBALMED, AND PUT IN THE TOMB – THE BELOVED DISCIPLE STILL BELIEVED THAT GOD WOULD MAKE IT RIGHT, THAT SOMEHOW GOD WOULD TURN THIS TRAGEDY INTO SOMETHING GOOD. THE BELOVED DISCIPLE HAD THE SAME KIND OF FAITH AS ABRAHAM.
WE CHRISTIANS BELIEVE THAT JESUS ROSE FROM THE DEAD, AND WHEN HE ROSE FROM THE DEAD, THIS WAS NOT A METAPHOR, THIS WAS NOT SOME GHOSTLY THING. IT WAS NOT THE FACT THAT THE APOSTLES SUDDENLY FELT AS THOUGH JESUS HAD NEVER REALLY DIED, BUT WAS LIVING ON IN THEM. AND WHEN JESUS ROSE FROM THE DEAD, WE ARE TOLD THAT ABOUT 500 PEOPLE WITNESSED THIS. AND WHEN SAINT PAUL WAS WRITING HIS LETTERS, HE STATES THAT MANY OF THEM ARE STILL AROUND, PEOPLE WHO SAW AND TOUCHED AND HEARD THE RISEN JESUS. BUT WITNESSING THE RISEN JESUS IS ONE THING. FAITH IN THE RESURRECTION IS ANOTHER. BECAUSE IF IT DOESN'T DO SOMETHING TO US, THEN IT IS MERELY A CURIOSITY. WHEN WE STAND BEFORE THE EMPTY TOMB, WE DON'T UNDERSTAND EITHER. THE FACT THAT SO MANY PEOPLE HAVE TRIED TO EXPLAIN THE RESURRECTION AWAY JUST MEANS THAT THEY DON'T WANT TO MAKE THAT LEAP OF FAITH THAT JESUS DID RISE FROM THE DEAD IN A REAL SENSE, NOT IN SOME SYMBOLIC OR METAPHORICAL SENSE. AND OUR BELIEF IN THE RESURRECTION HAS CONSEQUENCES. IF WE BELIEVE IN THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS, THEN WE MUST BELIEVE IN EVERYTHING JESUS SAID BEFORE HE WAS PUT TO DEATH. IF WE BELIEVE, WE KNOW THAT WE WILL RISE AGAIN, IN OUR BODIES, BECAUSE JESUS PROMISED IT AND HE SAID, “WHERE I AM, THERE SHALL MY SERVANT BE.” IF WE BELIEVE, WE KNOW THAT GOD IS IN CHARGE, AND GOD CAN AND WILL TAKE THE WORST DISASTERS, THE GREATEST TRAGEDIES, AND BRING GOOD OUT OF THEM. IT'S NOT LOGICAL, IT'S AGAINST EVERYTHING IN OUR EXPERIENCE, BUT THAT IS WHAT ABRAHAM BELIEVED, AND THAT IS WHAT THE BELOVED DISCIPLE BELIEVED, AND AFTER JESUS APPEARED TO THE APOSTLES IT IS WHAT THEY BELIEVED, BECAUSE THEY SAW THE DEATH OF JESUS, THEY SAW AN INNOCENT MAN PUT TO DEATH; AND THEY SAW HIM RISE AGAIN. THEY BELIEVED STRONGLY ENOUGH TO GO OUT AND PREACH AND TEACH AND ULTIMATELY DIE, STILL BELIEVING.
SO TODAY, WE CONFRONT THE EMPTY TOMB. IT DOESN'T MAKE SENSE. BUT DO WE ASSUME THAT SOMEONE TOOK THE BODY AWAY? OR DO WE HAVE THE FAITH THAT GOD WILL ACT IN OUR HISTORY TO BRING GOOD OUT OF EVIL, EVEN IF WE DON'T KNOW HOW?
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Palm Sunday, cycle C
Luke 22:14 - 23:56
TODAY WE HEAR THE STORY OF JESUS' LAST HOURS, FROM THE LAST SUPPER TO HIS BURIAL. HE HAS BEEN BETRAYED, CAPTURED, JUDGED, MADE TO CARRY HIS CROSS, AND EXECUTED. PETER HAS DENIED THAT HE EVEN KNEW HIM. ALL HIS FRIENDS ARE WATCHING FROM A DISTANCE, TOO AFRAID TO COME NEAR. ONLY THE DAUGHTERS OF JERUSALEM APPROACH HIM. JESUS HANGS ON THE CROSS, ABANDONED, AND THEN DIES.
WE CHRISTIANS, OF COURSE, SEE THE TRAGEDY OF AN INNOCENT MAN, WHO ALSO HAPPENS TO BE GOD, BEING DELIBERATELY AND CRUELLY PUT TO DEATH. WE KNOW OUR SINS PUT HIM THERE, AND THAT STILL DOESN'T STOP US FROM SINNING. BUT WE ALSO SEE THAT THIS MOMENT IS THE GREATEST MOMENT OF ALL TIME, BECAUSE THANKS TO JESUS' DEATH, WE OVERCOME DEATH, WE HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO ENTER INTO ETERNAL LIFE, JESUS' OWN LIFE. IN FACT, FOR MOST OF US, THAT HAS ALREADY STARTED; OUR BAPTISM IS A SOLEMN PLEDGE FROM GOD THAT HE SEES US AS HIS ADOPTED SONS AND DAUGHTERS, AND LIKE THE FATHER OF THE PRODIGAL SON, HE WATCHES US FROM AFAR AND WAITS FOR US TO TURN BACK TO HIM SO THAT HE CAN FORGIVE US.
THE RULERS OF THE PEOPLE SEE JESUS HANGING ON THE CROSS, AND CRY OUT “HE SAVED OTHERS, NOW LET HIM SAVE HIMSELF, IF HE IS THE CHOSEN ONE, THE CHRIST OF GOD.” THE RULERS OF THE PEOPLE, THE PRIESTS, THE SCRIBES, THE PHARISEES, THE OFFICIALS OF HEROD'S COURT – THEY SEE THEMSELVES AS ABOVE THE FRAY; THEY LEAD AFFLUENT LIVES, THEY DON'T GET THEIR HANDS DIRTY; THEY COUNT ON THEIR POSITION AND THEIR WEALTH, AND THEIR OBSERVANCE OF THE LAW TO SAVE THEMSELVES. CERTAINLY THEY DON'T LOOK TO THE MAN DYING ON THE CROSS TO SAVE THEM. IT JUST DOESN'T MAKE SENSE.
THE SOLDIERS, PERHAPS MORE SYMPATHETIC TRY TO OFFER HIM WINE. THEY ARE FROM DISTANT LANDS, AND THEY KNOW VERY LITTLE ABOUT THE PEOPLE THEY CONTROL. THEY'VE HEARD RUMORS, AND THEY SEE THE SIGN ABOVE HIS HEAD, “KING OF THE JEWS”. “IF YOU ARE THE KING OF THE JEWS,” THEY SAY, “SAVE YOURSELF.” BECAUSE THE SOLDIERS DO NOT NEED TO LOOK ELSEWHERE FOR SALVATION; THEY ARE STRONG, THEY HAVE WEAPONS, AND THEY HAVE THE FORCE OF THE GREATEST EMPIRE THE EARTH HAS SEEN BEHIND THEM. AND WHATEVER THEY BELIEVE ABOUT THE NEXT LIFE, IF THEY HAVE ANY BELIEF AT ALL, THEY ASSUME THAT SINCE THEY SERVE THE EMPEROR, AND THE EMPEROR IS A DIVINE PERSON, THEIR FUTURE IS ASSURED, AS FAR AS IT CAN BE IN HUMAN TERMS.
ONE THIEF, CONDEMNED TO DEATH, DYING, JOINS THE MOCKERY. “IF YOU ARE THE CHRIST, SAVE YOURSELF AND US!” HE LONG AGO GAVE UP ANY HOPE OF ETERNAL LIFE; HE DECIDED THAT WHAT SALVATION HE COULD EXPECT CAME HERE ON EARTH, BY HIS OWN HANDS. AND HE KNEW THAT DEATH WAS THE END, AND HE WOULD JUST CEASE TO BE. THE VERY THOUGHT THAT THERE WAS A “SALVATION” ANGERED HIM. RIGHT THERE ON THE NEXT CROSS OVER WAS PROOF THAT THERE WAS NO FUTURE AFTER DEATH; THE VERY ONE WHO PROMISED THAT IS HANGING THERE DYING.
THE OTHER THIEF CRIES OUT, “JESUS, REMEMBER ME WHEN YOU COME INTO YOUR KINGDOM.” HE TOO HAS LONG AGO GIVEN UP HIS RELIGION, HIS HOPES FOR ANYTHING AFTER THIS LIFE. BUT HE SEES SOMEONE WHO HE KNOWS IS INNOCENT – PILATE SAID SO, HEROD SAID SO. AND YET HE IS DYING ON A CROSS. THE GOOD THIEF SEES THE CROSS, NOT AS AN INSTRUMENT OF TORTURE, BUT AS A THRONE ON WHICH A KING REIGNS. AND HE IS PROMISED, WITH THE NEXT BUT LAST WORDS THAT JESUS UTTERS, “TODAY YOU WILL BE WITH ME IN PARADISE.”
THE GOOD THIEF RECOGNIZED WHAT WE ALL HAVE TO LEARN AND RELEARN; OUR SALVATION COMES THROUGH THE CROSS. THERE IS NO OTHER WAY TO RESURRECTION. ALL OF US HAVE HAD CROSSES, OR WILL HAVE THEM, OR ARE HAVING CROSSES TO CARRY RIGHT NOW. MAYBE AN ILLNESS, MAYBE A FRACTURED RELATIONSHIP, MAYBE A CHILD WHO SEEMS HOPELESSLY LOST. MAYBE IT'S THE BODY THAT IS WEARING OUT, AND WILL NEVER GET BACK TO THAT WONDERFUL HEALTH THAT WE TOOK FOR GRANTED WHEN WE WERE YOUNG. MAYBE IT'S WORRY ABOUT MONEY, ABOUT A JOB THAT I MIGHT LOSE.
TURN YOUR HEAD AND LOOK AT THE ONE NEXT TO YOU, ON THE CROSS, INNOCENT, AND ASK HIM TO REMEMBER YOU. AND GOD WILLING, HE WILL SAY, “BEHOLD, TODAY YOU WILL BE WITH ME IN PARADISE.”
TODAY WE HEAR THE STORY OF JESUS' LAST HOURS, FROM THE LAST SUPPER TO HIS BURIAL. HE HAS BEEN BETRAYED, CAPTURED, JUDGED, MADE TO CARRY HIS CROSS, AND EXECUTED. PETER HAS DENIED THAT HE EVEN KNEW HIM. ALL HIS FRIENDS ARE WATCHING FROM A DISTANCE, TOO AFRAID TO COME NEAR. ONLY THE DAUGHTERS OF JERUSALEM APPROACH HIM. JESUS HANGS ON THE CROSS, ABANDONED, AND THEN DIES.
WE CHRISTIANS, OF COURSE, SEE THE TRAGEDY OF AN INNOCENT MAN, WHO ALSO HAPPENS TO BE GOD, BEING DELIBERATELY AND CRUELLY PUT TO DEATH. WE KNOW OUR SINS PUT HIM THERE, AND THAT STILL DOESN'T STOP US FROM SINNING. BUT WE ALSO SEE THAT THIS MOMENT IS THE GREATEST MOMENT OF ALL TIME, BECAUSE THANKS TO JESUS' DEATH, WE OVERCOME DEATH, WE HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO ENTER INTO ETERNAL LIFE, JESUS' OWN LIFE. IN FACT, FOR MOST OF US, THAT HAS ALREADY STARTED; OUR BAPTISM IS A SOLEMN PLEDGE FROM GOD THAT HE SEES US AS HIS ADOPTED SONS AND DAUGHTERS, AND LIKE THE FATHER OF THE PRODIGAL SON, HE WATCHES US FROM AFAR AND WAITS FOR US TO TURN BACK TO HIM SO THAT HE CAN FORGIVE US.
THE RULERS OF THE PEOPLE SEE JESUS HANGING ON THE CROSS, AND CRY OUT “HE SAVED OTHERS, NOW LET HIM SAVE HIMSELF, IF HE IS THE CHOSEN ONE, THE CHRIST OF GOD.” THE RULERS OF THE PEOPLE, THE PRIESTS, THE SCRIBES, THE PHARISEES, THE OFFICIALS OF HEROD'S COURT – THEY SEE THEMSELVES AS ABOVE THE FRAY; THEY LEAD AFFLUENT LIVES, THEY DON'T GET THEIR HANDS DIRTY; THEY COUNT ON THEIR POSITION AND THEIR WEALTH, AND THEIR OBSERVANCE OF THE LAW TO SAVE THEMSELVES. CERTAINLY THEY DON'T LOOK TO THE MAN DYING ON THE CROSS TO SAVE THEM. IT JUST DOESN'T MAKE SENSE.
THE SOLDIERS, PERHAPS MORE SYMPATHETIC TRY TO OFFER HIM WINE. THEY ARE FROM DISTANT LANDS, AND THEY KNOW VERY LITTLE ABOUT THE PEOPLE THEY CONTROL. THEY'VE HEARD RUMORS, AND THEY SEE THE SIGN ABOVE HIS HEAD, “KING OF THE JEWS”. “IF YOU ARE THE KING OF THE JEWS,” THEY SAY, “SAVE YOURSELF.” BECAUSE THE SOLDIERS DO NOT NEED TO LOOK ELSEWHERE FOR SALVATION; THEY ARE STRONG, THEY HAVE WEAPONS, AND THEY HAVE THE FORCE OF THE GREATEST EMPIRE THE EARTH HAS SEEN BEHIND THEM. AND WHATEVER THEY BELIEVE ABOUT THE NEXT LIFE, IF THEY HAVE ANY BELIEF AT ALL, THEY ASSUME THAT SINCE THEY SERVE THE EMPEROR, AND THE EMPEROR IS A DIVINE PERSON, THEIR FUTURE IS ASSURED, AS FAR AS IT CAN BE IN HUMAN TERMS.
ONE THIEF, CONDEMNED TO DEATH, DYING, JOINS THE MOCKERY. “IF YOU ARE THE CHRIST, SAVE YOURSELF AND US!” HE LONG AGO GAVE UP ANY HOPE OF ETERNAL LIFE; HE DECIDED THAT WHAT SALVATION HE COULD EXPECT CAME HERE ON EARTH, BY HIS OWN HANDS. AND HE KNEW THAT DEATH WAS THE END, AND HE WOULD JUST CEASE TO BE. THE VERY THOUGHT THAT THERE WAS A “SALVATION” ANGERED HIM. RIGHT THERE ON THE NEXT CROSS OVER WAS PROOF THAT THERE WAS NO FUTURE AFTER DEATH; THE VERY ONE WHO PROMISED THAT IS HANGING THERE DYING.
THE OTHER THIEF CRIES OUT, “JESUS, REMEMBER ME WHEN YOU COME INTO YOUR KINGDOM.” HE TOO HAS LONG AGO GIVEN UP HIS RELIGION, HIS HOPES FOR ANYTHING AFTER THIS LIFE. BUT HE SEES SOMEONE WHO HE KNOWS IS INNOCENT – PILATE SAID SO, HEROD SAID SO. AND YET HE IS DYING ON A CROSS. THE GOOD THIEF SEES THE CROSS, NOT AS AN INSTRUMENT OF TORTURE, BUT AS A THRONE ON WHICH A KING REIGNS. AND HE IS PROMISED, WITH THE NEXT BUT LAST WORDS THAT JESUS UTTERS, “TODAY YOU WILL BE WITH ME IN PARADISE.”
THE GOOD THIEF RECOGNIZED WHAT WE ALL HAVE TO LEARN AND RELEARN; OUR SALVATION COMES THROUGH THE CROSS. THERE IS NO OTHER WAY TO RESURRECTION. ALL OF US HAVE HAD CROSSES, OR WILL HAVE THEM, OR ARE HAVING CROSSES TO CARRY RIGHT NOW. MAYBE AN ILLNESS, MAYBE A FRACTURED RELATIONSHIP, MAYBE A CHILD WHO SEEMS HOPELESSLY LOST. MAYBE IT'S THE BODY THAT IS WEARING OUT, AND WILL NEVER GET BACK TO THAT WONDERFUL HEALTH THAT WE TOOK FOR GRANTED WHEN WE WERE YOUNG. MAYBE IT'S WORRY ABOUT MONEY, ABOUT A JOB THAT I MIGHT LOSE.
TURN YOUR HEAD AND LOOK AT THE ONE NEXT TO YOU, ON THE CROSS, INNOCENT, AND ASK HIM TO REMEMBER YOU. AND GOD WILLING, HE WILL SAY, “BEHOLD, TODAY YOU WILL BE WITH ME IN PARADISE.”
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Fifth Sunday of Lent, cycle C
JOHN 8:1-11
ISN'T IT FUNNY HOW THINGS CHANGE? IN THE DAYS WHEN THIS GOSPEL PASSAGE HAPPENED, ADULTERY WAS CONSIDERED BY THE JEWISH PEOPLE TO BE ONE OF THE THREE MOST SERIOUS SINS, ALONG WITH MURDER AND IDOLATRY. TODAY WE STILL CONSIDER MURDER SERIOUS, BUT IDOLATRY? WE DON'T CARE. AND ADULTERY? IF THIS WOMAN HAD BEEN ALIVE TODAY, SHE'D BE ON THE COVER OF PEOPLE MAGAZINE OR TALKING TO OPRAH ON NATIONAL TELEVISION.
IN THE GOSPEL TODAY, JESUS' ENEMIES ARE TRYING TO TRAP HIM, AND WE SEE HOW HE CLEVERLY AVOIDED THEIR TRAP. WE SEE HOW MERCIFUL JESUS IS TO THE WOMAN, WHEN HE REFUSES TO CONDEMN HER. AND WE COULD COMMENT ON THE DOUBLE STANDARD WE SEE HERE – BECAUSE IF THIS WOMAN WERE CAUGHT IN ADULTERY, THERE HAD TO BE ANOTHER PERSON INVOLVED. WHERE WAS HE?
BUT JESUS LOOKED DOWN ON THE GROUND. THINK OF IT. THE SON OF GOD, THE SINLESS ONE, FACES NOT ONLY A WOMAN WHO WAS A SINNER, BUT A MOB OF PEOPLE, ALL FULL OF SIN, ABOUT TO COMMIT STILL ANOTHER – THE SIN OF MURDER. AND JESUS MUST HAVE NEEDED TO LOOK AWAY, BECAUSE SIN IS SO TERRIBLE IN THE EYES OF GOD. AND JESUS MUST HAVE NEEDED TO LOOK AWAY, AS HE THOUGHT ABOUT HOW HE WOULD SOON BE UNDERGOING AN AGONIZING DEATH BECAUSE OF SIN, AND WHAT HE WAS SEEING RIGHT THAT MOMENT WAS ONLY A TINY FRACTION OF THE OCEAN OF SIN FOR WHICH HE WOULD DIE.
JESUS TOLD THE MOB THAT THE ONE WHO WAS WITHOUT SIN SHOULD CAST THE FIRST STONE, AND TO THEIR CREDIT, NONE OF THEM COULD STAND THERE AND TAKE UP THAT CHALLENGE. THEY SUDDENLY BECAME CONSCIOUS OF THEIR OWN SINFUL STATE.
WE HUMAN BEINGS MAKE SEVERAL MISTAKES ABOUT SIN. THE FIRST IS THAT WHEN WE THINK ABOUT SIN AT ALL, WE ARE MUCH MORE LIKELY TO CONDEMN PEOPLE FOR SEXUAL SINS THAN FOR MANY OTHER KINDS OF SIN. USUALLY WHEN WE FIND OUT THAT SOMEONE HAS COMMITTED A MURDER, WE ARE FINDING OUT THAT THEY'VE BEEN ARRESTED AND ARE IN THE HANDS OF THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM; THEY ARE ALREADY PAYING. BUT SEXUAL SINS REPEL US BECAUSE THE GUILTY PARTY DOESN'T SEEM TO PAY, AT LEAST PAY ENOUGH. AND IF YOU ARE A CROOKED BUSINESSMAN OR A CORRUPT POLITICIAN, WELL, THAT DOESN'T SEEM NEARLY AS BAD AS A SEXUAL SIN.
THE SECOND IS THAT WE TEND TO SEE SINS OF COMMISSION AS MUCH MORE SERIOUS THAN SINS OF OMISSION. IF WE DON'T DO SOMETHING THAT WE SHOULD HAVE DONE, WE DON'T FEEL NEARLY AS GUILTY AS WHEN WE DO SOMETHING THAT WE SHOULD NOT HAVE DONE. AND OUR SINS OF OMISSION ARE FAR MORE COMMON THAN SINS OF COMMISSION. EVERYONE IN THIS CHURCH CAN THINK OF SOMETHING THAT HE OR SHE SHOULD HAVE DONE OR COULD HAVE DONE WITHIN THE LAST WEEK, BUT DID NOT DO; AND IT HARDLY TROUBLES OUR CONSCIENCE AT ALL. YET JESUS CONDEMNED THOSE WHO ASKED, “LORD, WHEN DID WE SEE YOU HUNGRY AND NOT FEED YOU?” SOMETIMES OUR SINS OF OMISSION RESULT IN PEOPLE WHO DIE OF HUNGER, PEOPLE WHO NEVER ACHIEVE THEIR HUMAN POTENTIAL BECAUSE OF THEIR POVERTY, PEOPLE WHO ARE CONDEMNED TO THE MARGINS OF SOCIETY – ALL BECAUSE WE HAVEN'T BEEN GENEROUS, BECAUSE WE HAVEN'T SHARED OUR TALENTS, OR TREASURE, OUR TIME.
THE THIRD MISTAKE IS THAT WE THINK THE LONGER IT'S BEEN SINCE WE COMMITTED A SIN, THE LESS SERIOUS IT IS. IF YOU GO TO CONFESSION FREQUENTLY, YOU PROBABLY COME UP WITH A REASONABLE LIST OF SINS TO CONFESS. IF YOU JUST GO ONCE A YEAR OR LESS OFTEN, YOU PROBABLY HAVE A REALLY HARD TIME THINKING OF ANYTHING TO CONFESS. I KNOW THAT'S TRUE, BECAUSE I'VE BEEN THERE, BOTH WAYS. AND WE TEND TO LOOK BACK ON SINS COMMITTED WHILE WE WERE YOUNG AND FOOLISH WITH A SENSE OF BENIGN TOLERANCE. AND WE TEND TO DISMISS SINS COMMITTED LONG AGO AS WATER OVER THE BRIDGE.
TO GOD, OF COURSE, WHO LIVES OUTSIDE TIME, WHO SEES EVERYTHING FROM A GOD'S EYE PERSPECTIVE, THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A LITTLE SIN. EVERY SIN PUTS A BARRIER BETWEEN GOD AND ME, EVERY SIN DISTURBS THE ORDER IN THE WORLD; EVERY SIN CONDEMNS JESUS TO DIE. EVERY SIN IS A HORROR TO OUR GUARDIAN ANGEL, EVEN WHEN WE DON'T GIVE IT A SECOND THOUGHT. AND I THINK THAT IS THE INSIGHT THAT THE MOB HAD WHO SURROUNDED THE WOMAN CAUGHT IN ADULTERY.
WE CATHOLICS EITHER DON'T WORRY MUCH ABOUT SIN, HAVING CONVINCED OURSELVES THAT GOD IS GOING TO FORGIVE US NO MATTER WHAT WE DO, OR IF WE DO THINK ABOUT SIN, WE TEND TO GRADE OUR SINS, AND MOST OF THE TIME, WE GIVE OURSELVES PRETTY GOOD GRADES. IN THE OLDEN DAYS, WE TALKED ABOUT VENIAL SINS AND MORTAL SINS, AND WE CATHOLIC SCHOOL KIDS COULD RATTLE OFF WHAT THERE HAD TO BE FOR A MORTAL SIN TO HAPPEN, AND WE WENT TO BED COMFORTED BY THE FACT THAT WE DID NOT DO ONE OF THOSE.
MARTIN LUTHER WAS NOT THEOLOGICALLY CORRECT WHEN HE SAID THAT EVERY SIN WAS A MORTAL SIN, BUT HE HAD THE RIGHT ATTITUDE. THE VERY FIRST THING WE HAVE TO DO IF WE WANT TO LIVE HOLY LIVES IS TO BE CONSCIOUS OF THE FACT THAT WE ARE SINNERS, AND THAT SIN IS REALLY SERIOUS. AND EVEN THOUGH WE'VE BEEN FORGIVEN AND WILL BE FORGIVEN AGAIN AND AGAIN, THANKS TO THE PASSION AND DEATH OF JESUS, WE CAN'T BE COMPLACENT. JESUS TELLS THE WOMAN CAUGHT IN ADULTERY THAT HE DOES NOT CONDEMN HER, BUT HE ALSO TELLS HER THAT SHE MUST NOT SIN AGAIN. GOD WANTS TO FORGIVE US, NO QUESTION. BUT THE PRICE OF FORGIVENESS IS A DECISION TO SIN NO MORE. TO REALLY SIN NO MORE IS PROBABLY POSSIBLE ONLY FOR A FEW OF US, BUT AS WE STRUGGLE TO SIN NO MORE, WE GAIN IN GRACE AND BECOME MORE ABLE TO RESPOND TO GOD'S VOICE WITHIN US.
SIMPLY PUT, THE JOB OF THE CHRISTIAN IS NOT TO BE SINLESS, BUT TO STRUGGLE AGAINST SIN. AND IF WE LAUGH OFF OUR OWN SINS AND FAILINGS, IF WE FAIL TO RECOGNIZE THEM, IF WE DON'T TAKE INVENTORY ONCE IN A WHILE AND MAKE PLANS TO CHANGE, WELL, WE AREN'T HEARING THE GOSPEL AND WE ARE BLOWING OUR OPPORTUNITIES TO RECEIVE GOD'S GRACE.
SO DURING THIS LENT LET US REFLECT UPON OUR SINS, AND TRY TO DEVELOP THAT GODLY PERSPECTIVE, THAT EVERY SIN IS AN AFFRONT TO GOD, AND A REASON THAT JESUS DIED. BUT LET US NOT LOSE HEART; AS LONG AS WE ARE ALIVE, OUR LORD WILL SAY THOSE HEALING WORDS, “NEITHER DO I CONDEMN YOU” BUT HE WILL ALSO SAY, “SIN NO MORE.”
ISN'T IT FUNNY HOW THINGS CHANGE? IN THE DAYS WHEN THIS GOSPEL PASSAGE HAPPENED, ADULTERY WAS CONSIDERED BY THE JEWISH PEOPLE TO BE ONE OF THE THREE MOST SERIOUS SINS, ALONG WITH MURDER AND IDOLATRY. TODAY WE STILL CONSIDER MURDER SERIOUS, BUT IDOLATRY? WE DON'T CARE. AND ADULTERY? IF THIS WOMAN HAD BEEN ALIVE TODAY, SHE'D BE ON THE COVER OF PEOPLE MAGAZINE OR TALKING TO OPRAH ON NATIONAL TELEVISION.
IN THE GOSPEL TODAY, JESUS' ENEMIES ARE TRYING TO TRAP HIM, AND WE SEE HOW HE CLEVERLY AVOIDED THEIR TRAP. WE SEE HOW MERCIFUL JESUS IS TO THE WOMAN, WHEN HE REFUSES TO CONDEMN HER. AND WE COULD COMMENT ON THE DOUBLE STANDARD WE SEE HERE – BECAUSE IF THIS WOMAN WERE CAUGHT IN ADULTERY, THERE HAD TO BE ANOTHER PERSON INVOLVED. WHERE WAS HE?
BUT JESUS LOOKED DOWN ON THE GROUND. THINK OF IT. THE SON OF GOD, THE SINLESS ONE, FACES NOT ONLY A WOMAN WHO WAS A SINNER, BUT A MOB OF PEOPLE, ALL FULL OF SIN, ABOUT TO COMMIT STILL ANOTHER – THE SIN OF MURDER. AND JESUS MUST HAVE NEEDED TO LOOK AWAY, BECAUSE SIN IS SO TERRIBLE IN THE EYES OF GOD. AND JESUS MUST HAVE NEEDED TO LOOK AWAY, AS HE THOUGHT ABOUT HOW HE WOULD SOON BE UNDERGOING AN AGONIZING DEATH BECAUSE OF SIN, AND WHAT HE WAS SEEING RIGHT THAT MOMENT WAS ONLY A TINY FRACTION OF THE OCEAN OF SIN FOR WHICH HE WOULD DIE.
JESUS TOLD THE MOB THAT THE ONE WHO WAS WITHOUT SIN SHOULD CAST THE FIRST STONE, AND TO THEIR CREDIT, NONE OF THEM COULD STAND THERE AND TAKE UP THAT CHALLENGE. THEY SUDDENLY BECAME CONSCIOUS OF THEIR OWN SINFUL STATE.
WE HUMAN BEINGS MAKE SEVERAL MISTAKES ABOUT SIN. THE FIRST IS THAT WHEN WE THINK ABOUT SIN AT ALL, WE ARE MUCH MORE LIKELY TO CONDEMN PEOPLE FOR SEXUAL SINS THAN FOR MANY OTHER KINDS OF SIN. USUALLY WHEN WE FIND OUT THAT SOMEONE HAS COMMITTED A MURDER, WE ARE FINDING OUT THAT THEY'VE BEEN ARRESTED AND ARE IN THE HANDS OF THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM; THEY ARE ALREADY PAYING. BUT SEXUAL SINS REPEL US BECAUSE THE GUILTY PARTY DOESN'T SEEM TO PAY, AT LEAST PAY ENOUGH. AND IF YOU ARE A CROOKED BUSINESSMAN OR A CORRUPT POLITICIAN, WELL, THAT DOESN'T SEEM NEARLY AS BAD AS A SEXUAL SIN.
THE SECOND IS THAT WE TEND TO SEE SINS OF COMMISSION AS MUCH MORE SERIOUS THAN SINS OF OMISSION. IF WE DON'T DO SOMETHING THAT WE SHOULD HAVE DONE, WE DON'T FEEL NEARLY AS GUILTY AS WHEN WE DO SOMETHING THAT WE SHOULD NOT HAVE DONE. AND OUR SINS OF OMISSION ARE FAR MORE COMMON THAN SINS OF COMMISSION. EVERYONE IN THIS CHURCH CAN THINK OF SOMETHING THAT HE OR SHE SHOULD HAVE DONE OR COULD HAVE DONE WITHIN THE LAST WEEK, BUT DID NOT DO; AND IT HARDLY TROUBLES OUR CONSCIENCE AT ALL. YET JESUS CONDEMNED THOSE WHO ASKED, “LORD, WHEN DID WE SEE YOU HUNGRY AND NOT FEED YOU?” SOMETIMES OUR SINS OF OMISSION RESULT IN PEOPLE WHO DIE OF HUNGER, PEOPLE WHO NEVER ACHIEVE THEIR HUMAN POTENTIAL BECAUSE OF THEIR POVERTY, PEOPLE WHO ARE CONDEMNED TO THE MARGINS OF SOCIETY – ALL BECAUSE WE HAVEN'T BEEN GENEROUS, BECAUSE WE HAVEN'T SHARED OUR TALENTS, OR TREASURE, OUR TIME.
THE THIRD MISTAKE IS THAT WE THINK THE LONGER IT'S BEEN SINCE WE COMMITTED A SIN, THE LESS SERIOUS IT IS. IF YOU GO TO CONFESSION FREQUENTLY, YOU PROBABLY COME UP WITH A REASONABLE LIST OF SINS TO CONFESS. IF YOU JUST GO ONCE A YEAR OR LESS OFTEN, YOU PROBABLY HAVE A REALLY HARD TIME THINKING OF ANYTHING TO CONFESS. I KNOW THAT'S TRUE, BECAUSE I'VE BEEN THERE, BOTH WAYS. AND WE TEND TO LOOK BACK ON SINS COMMITTED WHILE WE WERE YOUNG AND FOOLISH WITH A SENSE OF BENIGN TOLERANCE. AND WE TEND TO DISMISS SINS COMMITTED LONG AGO AS WATER OVER THE BRIDGE.
TO GOD, OF COURSE, WHO LIVES OUTSIDE TIME, WHO SEES EVERYTHING FROM A GOD'S EYE PERSPECTIVE, THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A LITTLE SIN. EVERY SIN PUTS A BARRIER BETWEEN GOD AND ME, EVERY SIN DISTURBS THE ORDER IN THE WORLD; EVERY SIN CONDEMNS JESUS TO DIE. EVERY SIN IS A HORROR TO OUR GUARDIAN ANGEL, EVEN WHEN WE DON'T GIVE IT A SECOND THOUGHT. AND I THINK THAT IS THE INSIGHT THAT THE MOB HAD WHO SURROUNDED THE WOMAN CAUGHT IN ADULTERY.
WE CATHOLICS EITHER DON'T WORRY MUCH ABOUT SIN, HAVING CONVINCED OURSELVES THAT GOD IS GOING TO FORGIVE US NO MATTER WHAT WE DO, OR IF WE DO THINK ABOUT SIN, WE TEND TO GRADE OUR SINS, AND MOST OF THE TIME, WE GIVE OURSELVES PRETTY GOOD GRADES. IN THE OLDEN DAYS, WE TALKED ABOUT VENIAL SINS AND MORTAL SINS, AND WE CATHOLIC SCHOOL KIDS COULD RATTLE OFF WHAT THERE HAD TO BE FOR A MORTAL SIN TO HAPPEN, AND WE WENT TO BED COMFORTED BY THE FACT THAT WE DID NOT DO ONE OF THOSE.
MARTIN LUTHER WAS NOT THEOLOGICALLY CORRECT WHEN HE SAID THAT EVERY SIN WAS A MORTAL SIN, BUT HE HAD THE RIGHT ATTITUDE. THE VERY FIRST THING WE HAVE TO DO IF WE WANT TO LIVE HOLY LIVES IS TO BE CONSCIOUS OF THE FACT THAT WE ARE SINNERS, AND THAT SIN IS REALLY SERIOUS. AND EVEN THOUGH WE'VE BEEN FORGIVEN AND WILL BE FORGIVEN AGAIN AND AGAIN, THANKS TO THE PASSION AND DEATH OF JESUS, WE CAN'T BE COMPLACENT. JESUS TELLS THE WOMAN CAUGHT IN ADULTERY THAT HE DOES NOT CONDEMN HER, BUT HE ALSO TELLS HER THAT SHE MUST NOT SIN AGAIN. GOD WANTS TO FORGIVE US, NO QUESTION. BUT THE PRICE OF FORGIVENESS IS A DECISION TO SIN NO MORE. TO REALLY SIN NO MORE IS PROBABLY POSSIBLE ONLY FOR A FEW OF US, BUT AS WE STRUGGLE TO SIN NO MORE, WE GAIN IN GRACE AND BECOME MORE ABLE TO RESPOND TO GOD'S VOICE WITHIN US.
SIMPLY PUT, THE JOB OF THE CHRISTIAN IS NOT TO BE SINLESS, BUT TO STRUGGLE AGAINST SIN. AND IF WE LAUGH OFF OUR OWN SINS AND FAILINGS, IF WE FAIL TO RECOGNIZE THEM, IF WE DON'T TAKE INVENTORY ONCE IN A WHILE AND MAKE PLANS TO CHANGE, WELL, WE AREN'T HEARING THE GOSPEL AND WE ARE BLOWING OUR OPPORTUNITIES TO RECEIVE GOD'S GRACE.
SO DURING THIS LENT LET US REFLECT UPON OUR SINS, AND TRY TO DEVELOP THAT GODLY PERSPECTIVE, THAT EVERY SIN IS AN AFFRONT TO GOD, AND A REASON THAT JESUS DIED. BUT LET US NOT LOSE HEART; AS LONG AS WE ARE ALIVE, OUR LORD WILL SAY THOSE HEALING WORDS, “NEITHER DO I CONDEMN YOU” BUT HE WILL ALSO SAY, “SIN NO MORE.”
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Fourth Sunday in Lent, cycle C
LUKE 15:1-3, 11-32
DO YOU KNOW ABOUT THE TELEVISION PROGRAM, THE SIMPSONS? I'M SURE NO ONE HERE ACTUALLY WATCHES IT, BUT I REMEMBER AN EPISODE THAT I THINK HAS SOME BEARING ON TODAY'S GOSPEL. THE SIMPSONS BELONG TO A NON-DENOMINATIONAL CHURCH. MARGE, THE WIFE AND MOTHER, IS MUCH MORE INTERESTED IN RELIGION THAN HER FAMILY. THE DAUGHTER, LISA, CONSIDERS HERSELF A BUDDHIST, AND HOMER, THE FATHER, IS GIVEN TO MAKING UP QUOTES FROM THE BIBLE WHEN HE THINKS IT MIGHT GET HIM SOMEWHERE.
IN THE EPISODE I'M THINKING OF, HOMER AND HIS SON BART RESCUE A PRIEST, AND ARE QUICKLY CONVINCED TO CONVERT. THE PRIEST TELLS THEM THAT CATHOLICS CAN DANCE, DRINK BEER, AND GENERALLY CAN DO ABOUT ANYTHING, BECAUSE THEY CAN ALWAYS GO TO CONFESSION AND START ALL OVER. THIS SEEMS LIKE A GOOD DEAL TO HOMER AND BART. EVENTUALLY MARGE HAS A DREAM. SHE IS IN PROTESTANT HEAVEN, HAS A SMALL HARP, IS GIVEN A CUP OF TEA AND A ROCKING CHAIR. SHE SEES OVER ON THE NEXT CLOUD THE CATHOLIC HEAVEN, WHERE HOMER AND BART AND JESUS HIMSELF ARE ALL HAVING A WILD PARTY. I DON'T KNOW WHETHER HOMER AND BART EVER CONVERTED; THE SIMPSONS PROGRAM IS NOT BIG ON CONTINUITY.
AS I WAS READING THE STORY OF THE PRODIGAL SON LAST WEEK, I REALIZED THAT I PROBABLY WOULD HAVE LIKED THE YOUNGER SON. HE BLEW HIS INHERITANCE BECAUSE HE WAS INTERESTED IN NOW, IN HOW MUCH FUN HE COULD HAVE. HE WASN'T WORRIED ABOUT TOMORROW. AND WHEN THINGS GET DESPERATE, HE KNEW WHERE TO GO, WHAT TO SAY, WHAT TO DO. HE'LL NEVER BE RICH, BUT YOU CAN BET HE WILL HAVE FUN, HE WILL ENJOY LIFE. AND IN THE END OF THIS STORY, HE IS HAVING A WONDERFUL TIME AT THE PARTY THE FATHER HAS THROWN FOR HIM, STILL NOT THINKING ABOUT TOMORROW, JUST ENJOYING HIS GOOD FORTUNE.
AND I PROBABLY WOULDN'T HAVE LIKED THE OLDER BROTHER. HE ACCUSES HIS FATHER OF NOT EVEN GIVING HIM A GOAT TO CELEBRATE WITH HIS FRIENDS, BUT I SUSPECT HE DIDN'T HAVE ANY FRIENDS, OR IF HE DID, HE WOULD NOT HAVE WASTED A GOAT ON THEM. HE REFERS TO HIS BROTHER AS “THIS SON OF YOURS” BECAUSE HE CAN'T STAND THE TASTE OF THE WORDS, “MY BROTHER.” HE PROBABLY KNEW TO THE PENNY HOW MUCH HIS FATHER'S PROPERTY WAS WORTH, AND WAS JUST WAITING TO TAKE OVER. THE FATHER REJOICED THAT THE YOUNGER SON HAD RETURNED; THAT WAS A REACTION OF UNCONDITIONAL LOVE. BUT THE FATHER'S REACTION TO THE OLDER SON'S COMPLAINT IS ONE OF DUTY -- “ALL THAT I HAVE IS YOURS”. THAT STATEMENT DOES NOT HAVE THE RING OF LOVE IN IT, DOES IT?
THE TWO SONS HAVE VASTLY DIFFERENT PERSONALITIES, AND MAYBE NOTHING COULD CHANGE EITHER OF THEM VERY MUCH. BUT I WOULD SUBMIT THAT ONE OF THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THEM IS FIXABLE; THE YOUNGER SON IS FORGIVEN, THE OLDER SON IS NOT. JESUS TALKED ABOUT THIS IN OTHER PLACES AS WELL, WHEN HE SAID THAT HE DID NOT COME FOR THE RIGHTEOUS, BUT FOR SINNERS; AND HE POINTED OUT THE TAX COLLECTOR SITTING IN THE BACK OF THE TEMPLE, AND SAID THAT HE WOULD BE FAVORED OVER THE PHARISEE. AND JESUS WAS CRUCIFIED IN PART, BECAUSE HE CHALLENGED THE GOOD PEOPLE OF HIS TIME, WHO WERE GOOD, WHO WORKED VERY HARD TO WORSHIP GOD PERFECTLY AND LIVE ACCORDING TO GOD'S LAW. THE PEOPLE JESUS CRITICIZED FASTED, GAVE ALMS, PRAYED, AND WERE VERY SINCERE. BUT THEY DID NOT SEE THAT THEY NEEDED FORGIVENESS.
LOOK HOW THE PRODIGAL SON ACCEPTS FORGIVENESS. HE COMES TO HIS FATHER WITH NOTHING, AND HE EXPECTS NOTHING. HE IS JUST HOPING THAT HE COULD BE A SERVANT IN THE HOUSE, A PERSON WHO WAS ALLOWED TO HAVE A ROOF OVER HIS HEAD AND A COUPLE OF MEALS EVERY DAY. AND HE THROWS HIMSELF ON THE MERCY OF HIS FATHER, KNOWING THAT HE HAS NO CLAIM ON HIM FOR ANYTHING. AND HE IS FORGIVEN, AND HE ACCEPTS FORGIVENESS, AND HE ENTERS IN TO THE FATHER'S BANQUET.
THE OLDER SON HAS DONE EVERYTHING RIGHT, AND BELIEVES THAT BECAUSE OF THIS, HE IS ENTITLED. HE DOESN'T NEED FORGIVENESS. BUT THAT IS JESUS' POINT. EVERYONE NEEDS FORGIVENESS, NO MATTER HOW GOOD YOU THINK YOU ARE. AND IF THE OLDER SON FELL ON HIS KNEES IN FRONT OF THE FATHER AND ADMITTED THAT HE TOO NEEDED FORGIVENESS, HE WOULD RECEIVE FORGIVENESS AS WELL, AND HE WOULD BE CHANGED AND HE WOULD JOYFULLY GO IN AND ENJOY THE BANQUET. THE YOUNGER SON IS WILLING TO TELL HIS FATHER WHAT HE HAS DONE WRONG; THE OLDER SON DOESN'T BELIEVE HE HAS DONE ANYTHING WRONG.
BUT HERE'S THE THING. EVERYONE NEEDS FORGIVENESS. THE VERY FACT THAT YOU ARE A FEW POUNDS OVERWEIGHT, SLEEP IN A WARM BED, HAVE A CAR AND A GOOD JOB -- YOU NEED FORGIVENESS FOR THAT – BECAUSE THERE ARE A SOME OF YOUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS OUT THERE WHO ARE SLEEPING UNDER BRIDGES, TRUDGE FROM PLACE TO PLACE IN WORN OUT SHOES OR EVEN IN BARE FEET; HAVE NOTHING, AND SOMETIMES GO TWO OR THREE DAYS WITHOUT ANYTHING TO EAT. AND THAT SHOULDN'T BE, AND THAT IS PARTLY YOUR FAULT. IF YOU HAVE NOT LOVED GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, SOUL, MIND, AND STRENGTH, AND YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF, AND WHO HAS, YOU AND I NEED FORGIVENESS.
OUR LOVING FATHER WAITS FOR US, HOPES THAT WE WILL COME HOME; HE HOLDS OUT HIS FORGIVENESS UNCONDITIONALLY. BUT FORGIVENESS IS A KIND OF LOVE, IT CANNOT BE A ONE-WAY THING. IT REQUIRES SOMEONE TO OFFER FORGIVENESS, AND SOMEONE TO ACCEPT IT. AND IF I AM TO ACCEPT IT, I HAVE TO HAVE A CLEAR IDEA AS TO WHY I NEED FORGIVENESS. AND THAT'S THE WHOLE POINT OF OUR SACRAMENT OF RECONCILIATION. IT'S TRUE THAT GOD IS ALWAYS WILLING TO FORGIVE US; BUT IF WE DON'T GO OVER OUR MOTIVES AND OUR BEHAVIOR, AND CLEARLY IDENTIFY WHY WE NEED FORGIVENESS, AND HAVE THE INTENTION OF TRYING TO IMPROVE OUR LIVES, THE INTERACTION CANNOT TAKE PLACE. GOD WILL STILL GIVE US EVERYTHING WE NEED, HE WILL STILL HOLD OUT HIS OFFER; BUT WE CAN'T ENTER IN TO THE BANQUET UNTIL WE HAVE ACCEPTED THE FORGIVENESS THAT WE NEED. SO GO TO THE SACRAMENT OF PENANCE AND GET IN THE HABIT OF BEING FORGIVEN; AND THEN WHEN YOU AND I ACCEPT THAT WE ARE SINNERS, WE WILL BE FORGIVEN SINNERS, WE WILL ENTER INTO A FORETASTE OF HEAVEN HERE ON EARTH.
DO YOU KNOW ABOUT THE TELEVISION PROGRAM, THE SIMPSONS? I'M SURE NO ONE HERE ACTUALLY WATCHES IT, BUT I REMEMBER AN EPISODE THAT I THINK HAS SOME BEARING ON TODAY'S GOSPEL. THE SIMPSONS BELONG TO A NON-DENOMINATIONAL CHURCH. MARGE, THE WIFE AND MOTHER, IS MUCH MORE INTERESTED IN RELIGION THAN HER FAMILY. THE DAUGHTER, LISA, CONSIDERS HERSELF A BUDDHIST, AND HOMER, THE FATHER, IS GIVEN TO MAKING UP QUOTES FROM THE BIBLE WHEN HE THINKS IT MIGHT GET HIM SOMEWHERE.
IN THE EPISODE I'M THINKING OF, HOMER AND HIS SON BART RESCUE A PRIEST, AND ARE QUICKLY CONVINCED TO CONVERT. THE PRIEST TELLS THEM THAT CATHOLICS CAN DANCE, DRINK BEER, AND GENERALLY CAN DO ABOUT ANYTHING, BECAUSE THEY CAN ALWAYS GO TO CONFESSION AND START ALL OVER. THIS SEEMS LIKE A GOOD DEAL TO HOMER AND BART. EVENTUALLY MARGE HAS A DREAM. SHE IS IN PROTESTANT HEAVEN, HAS A SMALL HARP, IS GIVEN A CUP OF TEA AND A ROCKING CHAIR. SHE SEES OVER ON THE NEXT CLOUD THE CATHOLIC HEAVEN, WHERE HOMER AND BART AND JESUS HIMSELF ARE ALL HAVING A WILD PARTY. I DON'T KNOW WHETHER HOMER AND BART EVER CONVERTED; THE SIMPSONS PROGRAM IS NOT BIG ON CONTINUITY.
AS I WAS READING THE STORY OF THE PRODIGAL SON LAST WEEK, I REALIZED THAT I PROBABLY WOULD HAVE LIKED THE YOUNGER SON. HE BLEW HIS INHERITANCE BECAUSE HE WAS INTERESTED IN NOW, IN HOW MUCH FUN HE COULD HAVE. HE WASN'T WORRIED ABOUT TOMORROW. AND WHEN THINGS GET DESPERATE, HE KNEW WHERE TO GO, WHAT TO SAY, WHAT TO DO. HE'LL NEVER BE RICH, BUT YOU CAN BET HE WILL HAVE FUN, HE WILL ENJOY LIFE. AND IN THE END OF THIS STORY, HE IS HAVING A WONDERFUL TIME AT THE PARTY THE FATHER HAS THROWN FOR HIM, STILL NOT THINKING ABOUT TOMORROW, JUST ENJOYING HIS GOOD FORTUNE.
AND I PROBABLY WOULDN'T HAVE LIKED THE OLDER BROTHER. HE ACCUSES HIS FATHER OF NOT EVEN GIVING HIM A GOAT TO CELEBRATE WITH HIS FRIENDS, BUT I SUSPECT HE DIDN'T HAVE ANY FRIENDS, OR IF HE DID, HE WOULD NOT HAVE WASTED A GOAT ON THEM. HE REFERS TO HIS BROTHER AS “THIS SON OF YOURS” BECAUSE HE CAN'T STAND THE TASTE OF THE WORDS, “MY BROTHER.” HE PROBABLY KNEW TO THE PENNY HOW MUCH HIS FATHER'S PROPERTY WAS WORTH, AND WAS JUST WAITING TO TAKE OVER. THE FATHER REJOICED THAT THE YOUNGER SON HAD RETURNED; THAT WAS A REACTION OF UNCONDITIONAL LOVE. BUT THE FATHER'S REACTION TO THE OLDER SON'S COMPLAINT IS ONE OF DUTY -- “ALL THAT I HAVE IS YOURS”. THAT STATEMENT DOES NOT HAVE THE RING OF LOVE IN IT, DOES IT?
THE TWO SONS HAVE VASTLY DIFFERENT PERSONALITIES, AND MAYBE NOTHING COULD CHANGE EITHER OF THEM VERY MUCH. BUT I WOULD SUBMIT THAT ONE OF THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THEM IS FIXABLE; THE YOUNGER SON IS FORGIVEN, THE OLDER SON IS NOT. JESUS TALKED ABOUT THIS IN OTHER PLACES AS WELL, WHEN HE SAID THAT HE DID NOT COME FOR THE RIGHTEOUS, BUT FOR SINNERS; AND HE POINTED OUT THE TAX COLLECTOR SITTING IN THE BACK OF THE TEMPLE, AND SAID THAT HE WOULD BE FAVORED OVER THE PHARISEE. AND JESUS WAS CRUCIFIED IN PART, BECAUSE HE CHALLENGED THE GOOD PEOPLE OF HIS TIME, WHO WERE GOOD, WHO WORKED VERY HARD TO WORSHIP GOD PERFECTLY AND LIVE ACCORDING TO GOD'S LAW. THE PEOPLE JESUS CRITICIZED FASTED, GAVE ALMS, PRAYED, AND WERE VERY SINCERE. BUT THEY DID NOT SEE THAT THEY NEEDED FORGIVENESS.
LOOK HOW THE PRODIGAL SON ACCEPTS FORGIVENESS. HE COMES TO HIS FATHER WITH NOTHING, AND HE EXPECTS NOTHING. HE IS JUST HOPING THAT HE COULD BE A SERVANT IN THE HOUSE, A PERSON WHO WAS ALLOWED TO HAVE A ROOF OVER HIS HEAD AND A COUPLE OF MEALS EVERY DAY. AND HE THROWS HIMSELF ON THE MERCY OF HIS FATHER, KNOWING THAT HE HAS NO CLAIM ON HIM FOR ANYTHING. AND HE IS FORGIVEN, AND HE ACCEPTS FORGIVENESS, AND HE ENTERS IN TO THE FATHER'S BANQUET.
THE OLDER SON HAS DONE EVERYTHING RIGHT, AND BELIEVES THAT BECAUSE OF THIS, HE IS ENTITLED. HE DOESN'T NEED FORGIVENESS. BUT THAT IS JESUS' POINT. EVERYONE NEEDS FORGIVENESS, NO MATTER HOW GOOD YOU THINK YOU ARE. AND IF THE OLDER SON FELL ON HIS KNEES IN FRONT OF THE FATHER AND ADMITTED THAT HE TOO NEEDED FORGIVENESS, HE WOULD RECEIVE FORGIVENESS AS WELL, AND HE WOULD BE CHANGED AND HE WOULD JOYFULLY GO IN AND ENJOY THE BANQUET. THE YOUNGER SON IS WILLING TO TELL HIS FATHER WHAT HE HAS DONE WRONG; THE OLDER SON DOESN'T BELIEVE HE HAS DONE ANYTHING WRONG.
BUT HERE'S THE THING. EVERYONE NEEDS FORGIVENESS. THE VERY FACT THAT YOU ARE A FEW POUNDS OVERWEIGHT, SLEEP IN A WARM BED, HAVE A CAR AND A GOOD JOB -- YOU NEED FORGIVENESS FOR THAT – BECAUSE THERE ARE A SOME OF YOUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS OUT THERE WHO ARE SLEEPING UNDER BRIDGES, TRUDGE FROM PLACE TO PLACE IN WORN OUT SHOES OR EVEN IN BARE FEET; HAVE NOTHING, AND SOMETIMES GO TWO OR THREE DAYS WITHOUT ANYTHING TO EAT. AND THAT SHOULDN'T BE, AND THAT IS PARTLY YOUR FAULT. IF YOU HAVE NOT LOVED GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, SOUL, MIND, AND STRENGTH, AND YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF, AND WHO HAS, YOU AND I NEED FORGIVENESS.
OUR LOVING FATHER WAITS FOR US, HOPES THAT WE WILL COME HOME; HE HOLDS OUT HIS FORGIVENESS UNCONDITIONALLY. BUT FORGIVENESS IS A KIND OF LOVE, IT CANNOT BE A ONE-WAY THING. IT REQUIRES SOMEONE TO OFFER FORGIVENESS, AND SOMEONE TO ACCEPT IT. AND IF I AM TO ACCEPT IT, I HAVE TO HAVE A CLEAR IDEA AS TO WHY I NEED FORGIVENESS. AND THAT'S THE WHOLE POINT OF OUR SACRAMENT OF RECONCILIATION. IT'S TRUE THAT GOD IS ALWAYS WILLING TO FORGIVE US; BUT IF WE DON'T GO OVER OUR MOTIVES AND OUR BEHAVIOR, AND CLEARLY IDENTIFY WHY WE NEED FORGIVENESS, AND HAVE THE INTENTION OF TRYING TO IMPROVE OUR LIVES, THE INTERACTION CANNOT TAKE PLACE. GOD WILL STILL GIVE US EVERYTHING WE NEED, HE WILL STILL HOLD OUT HIS OFFER; BUT WE CAN'T ENTER IN TO THE BANQUET UNTIL WE HAVE ACCEPTED THE FORGIVENESS THAT WE NEED. SO GO TO THE SACRAMENT OF PENANCE AND GET IN THE HABIT OF BEING FORGIVEN; AND THEN WHEN YOU AND I ACCEPT THAT WE ARE SINNERS, WE WILL BE FORGIVEN SINNERS, WE WILL ENTER INTO A FORETASTE OF HEAVEN HERE ON EARTH.
Monday, March 8, 2010
Third Sunday in Lent, cycle C
LUKE 13:1-9
THERE IS A BUMPER STICKER YOU WILL SEE NOW AND THEN, BUT I CAN'T TELL YOU WHAT IT SAYS IN CHURCH. IT COMES FROM A SCENE IN THE MOVIE “FOREST GUMP” WHEN FOREST, WHO IS NOT TERRIBLY BRIGHT BUT VERY WISE, ACCIDENTALLY STEPS IN SOMETHING ON THE SIDEWALK THAT HAD BEEN LEFT THERE BY A DOG. HIS COMPANION POINTS THIS OUT, AND FOREST REPLIES WITH THOSE TWO WORDS WHICH ARE SOMETHING LIKE “MANURE HAPPENS.” IN OUR GOSPEL, IT SEEMS AS THOUGH SOME OF THE PEOPLE WITH JESUS MUST HAVE ASKED HIM ABOUT THE TWO DISASTERS ON EVERYONE'S MIND. SOME JEWS, BUILDING A TOWER FOR THE ROMANS, HAD DIED WHEN THE TOWER COLLAPSED. AND SOME JEWS FROM GALILEE HAD BEEN SLAUGHTERED IN THE TEMPLE WHEN THEY WERE TRYING TO OFFER SACRIFICE. “JESUS,” THE PEOPLE ASKED, “HOW DO YOU EXPLAIN THIS?” DID THE JEWS WHO WERE BUILDING THE TOWER DIE BECAUSE THEY WERE WORKING FOR THE ROMANS? WHAT DID THOSE GALILEANS DO THAT BROUGHT SUCH DISGRACE UPON THEM AND UPON THE TEMPLE ITSELF? BECAUSE IN JESUS' TIME ANYTHING THAT HAPPENED HAPPENED FOR A REASON, AND ANYTHING THAT HAPPENED TO PEOPLE WAS OBVIOUSLY BECAUSE GOD WAS EITHER REWARDING THEM OR PUNISHING THEM, OR SOMETIMES, REWARDING OR PUNISHING A CHILD OR A PARENT.
AND JESUS REPLIES, SOMETHING LIKE THE STATEMENT MADE BY FOREST GUMP, “MANURE HAPPENS.” THE JEWS THAT BUILT THE TOWER AND THE GALILEANS WHO WERE SLAUGHTERED, THEY WEREN'T ANY DIFFERENT THAN THE REST OF US. AND JESUS GOES ON TO SAY THAT WE ARE ALL IN THE SAME BOAT, SOONER OR LATER, ALL OF US WILL EXPERIENCE MANURE HAPPENING, AND IF WE KNOW WHAT IS GOOD FOR US, WE HAD BETTER LOOK AT WHAT WE ARE DOING RIGHT NOW, RIGHT HERE; ARE WE REPENTING? ARE WE LIVING LIVES OF SELFISHNESS OR GIVING AWAY OURSELVES; ARE WE WASTING OUR TIME, OR USING OUR TIME WELL? ARE WE BEING GENEROUS WITH GOD AND OUR NEIGHBOR, OR ARE WE COUNTING UP OUR GOOD FORTUNE AND TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO GET MORE. IN SHORT, ARE WE TRYING TO WALK WITH GOD, OR ARE WE GOING OUR OWN WAY. BECAUSE JUST LIKE THOSE TOWER-BUILDING JEWS AND SLAUGHTERED GALILEANS, MANURE HAPPENS. WE'D BETTER BE READY.
AND JESUS GOES ON TO PREACH THE PARABLE OF THE FIG TREE. THINK ABOUT THAT STORY FOR A MINUTE. IT'S RELATED TO WHAT HAS JUST BEEN GOING ON. WHICH ONE ARE YOU? THE OWNER OF THE ORCHARD, THE GARDENER, OR THE FIG TREE? FIG TREES GENERALLY GROW FOR ABOUT THREE TO FIVE YEARS BEFORE THEY BEGIN BEARING FRUIT. ONCE THEY START, THERE ARE FIGS ON THE TREE FOR TEN MONTHS OUT OF THE YEAR, WHICH WAS THE REASON THEY WERE PLANTED ALL OVER THE MIDDLE EAST; THEY WERE A MAJOR SOURCE OF FOOD. IN THOSE DAYS, PEOPLE DIDN'T KNOW THAT THE FLOWERS OF THE TREE HAD TO BE FERTILIZED BY WASPS CARRYING POLLEN FROM ANOTHER TREE. AND WHEN THAT DIDN'T HAPPEN, THE TREE COULD NOT BEAR FRUIT. SO WHEN A TREE FAILED TO BEAR, IT WAS GENERALLY CONSIDERED WORTHLESS AND CUT DOWN.
USUALLY THE OWNER OF THE VINEYARD IS THOUGHT TO REPRESENT GOD THE FATHER, AND JESUS IS THE ONE TENDING THE TREE, AND THE TREE IS THE NATION OF ISRAEL, OR PERHAPS YOU AND I. IT IS A PARABLE OF MERCY. AND THAT'S ONE WAY TO LOOK AT IT.
BUT THOSE WHO WERE SPECULATING AS TO WHY THE TOWER BUILDERS AND THE SLAUGHTERED GALILEANS HAD DIED WERE JUDGING; THEY WERE LIKE THE OWNER OF THE VINEYARD, WHO KNEW ENOUGH TO SAY THAT YOU SHOULD GIVE A FIG TREE THREE YEARS, BUT KNEW VERY LITTLE MORE THAN THAT ABOUT GROWING FIG TREES. AND WE AREN'T DIFFERENT; WE OFTEN CATCH OURSELVES WONDERING WHAT SOMEONE DID TO DESERVE WHAT HAPPENED. SOMETIMES WE CRY OUT, “WHAT DID I DO TO DESERVE THIS?” WHEN WE SEE SOMEONE BETTER OFF THAN WE ARE, SOMETIMES WE SAY, “HE DOESN'T DESERVE THAT.” AND I THINK THAT IS THE POINT JESUS IS MAKING. HE SAYS THAT THE GARDENER PROMISES THE VINEYARD OWNER THAT HE WILL CULTIVATE THE GROUND AND FERTILIZE THE TREE, AND THEN IT MAY BEAR FRUIT. IN OTHER WORDS, WHEN MANURE HAPPENS, IT ISN'T BECAUSE GOD IS REACHING OUT TO STOMP OUT SINNERS, OR HARM THOSE WHO DON'T TOE THE LINE. THAT ISN'T GOD, THAT HASN'T GOT ANYTHING TO DO WITH GOD. BUT RATHER, WHEN MANURE HAPPENS, IT MAY BE A SIGN THAT GOD IS WORKING TO HELP SOMEONE BEAR FRUIT. IF GOD EVER CHOOSES TO INFLICT SOME SORT OF TRIBULATION ON SOMEONE, THAT WOULD BE THE REASON; NEVER IN ORDER TO PUNISH OR DESTROY.
SO A WAY TO LOOK AT THIS PARABLE IS TO SEE OURSELVES NOT ONLY IN THE TREE, TO WHICH MANURE WILL SOON BE HAPPENING, BUT WILL BE ADMINISTERED BY A LOVING GARDENER WHO ONLY WANTS THE BEST FOR US, THE BEST BEING THAT WE WILL BEAR FRUIT, THAT WE WILL BRING ABOUT OUR PART OF THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN, THAT WE WILL LIVE SO THAT WE WILL ENTER IN TO OUR MASTER'S JOY; BUT WE ARE ALSO THE OWNER OF THE VINEYARD, NOT REALLY ABLE TO SEE WHAT GOD IS PLANNING, BUT QUICK TO JUDGE AND QUICK TO CONDEMN. AND ALL THE WHILE THE GARDENER IS AT WORK, BRINGING GOOD OUT OF EVIL, BRINGING SOMETHING OUT OF NOTHING, CONSTANTLY DOING EVERYTHING HE CAN TO HELP US ACHIEVE OUR DESTINY AND OUR HEART'S DESIRE.
COULD GOD KEEP MANURE FROM HAPPENING? COULD HE PREVENT THE DEATHS OF THE TOWER BUILDERS AND THE SLAUGHTERED GALILEANS? HE COULD. BUT ONLY AT THE COST OF FREEDOM, ONLY AT THE COST OF DESTROYING WITHIN THEM THE IMAGE AND LIKENESS OF GOD. BECAUSE GOD MADE US LIKE HIMSELF, FREE, ABLE TO CHOOSE, BUT OF NECESSITY, IF WE CHOOSE, WE EXPERIENCE THE CONSEQUENCES OF OUR CHOICE. WHEN WE ARE MORTAL, THAT MEANS SUFFERING AND DEATH; AND THE CHOICES OF OTHERS AFFECT US AS WELL. BUT GOD GIVES US FREEDOM, FREEDOM TO CHOOSE LIFE OR CHOOSE DEATH. AND SINCE FREEDOM IS WHAT MAKES US LIKE GOD, WE SHOULD NEVER GET UPSET WITH GOD BECAUSE MANURE HAPPENS. WHEN MANURE HAPPENS, WE CAN ONLY TELL OURSELVES THAT IT WAS NOT GOD'S INTENTION TO HARM US, BUT RATHER, THE CONSEQUENCES OF HUMAN FREEDOM. BUT WHEN MANURE HAPPENS, GOD WILL IN SOME WAY BRING GOOD OUT OF IT. AND THAT'S A PROMISE, THAT IS A GUARANTEE, AND ALL WE HAVE TO DO IS LOOK TO THAT BODY HANGING LIFELESS ON THE CROSS, AND FLASH FORWARD TO THAT GLORIOUS DAY OF RESURRECTION.
THERE IS A BUMPER STICKER YOU WILL SEE NOW AND THEN, BUT I CAN'T TELL YOU WHAT IT SAYS IN CHURCH. IT COMES FROM A SCENE IN THE MOVIE “FOREST GUMP” WHEN FOREST, WHO IS NOT TERRIBLY BRIGHT BUT VERY WISE, ACCIDENTALLY STEPS IN SOMETHING ON THE SIDEWALK THAT HAD BEEN LEFT THERE BY A DOG. HIS COMPANION POINTS THIS OUT, AND FOREST REPLIES WITH THOSE TWO WORDS WHICH ARE SOMETHING LIKE “MANURE HAPPENS.” IN OUR GOSPEL, IT SEEMS AS THOUGH SOME OF THE PEOPLE WITH JESUS MUST HAVE ASKED HIM ABOUT THE TWO DISASTERS ON EVERYONE'S MIND. SOME JEWS, BUILDING A TOWER FOR THE ROMANS, HAD DIED WHEN THE TOWER COLLAPSED. AND SOME JEWS FROM GALILEE HAD BEEN SLAUGHTERED IN THE TEMPLE WHEN THEY WERE TRYING TO OFFER SACRIFICE. “JESUS,” THE PEOPLE ASKED, “HOW DO YOU EXPLAIN THIS?” DID THE JEWS WHO WERE BUILDING THE TOWER DIE BECAUSE THEY WERE WORKING FOR THE ROMANS? WHAT DID THOSE GALILEANS DO THAT BROUGHT SUCH DISGRACE UPON THEM AND UPON THE TEMPLE ITSELF? BECAUSE IN JESUS' TIME ANYTHING THAT HAPPENED HAPPENED FOR A REASON, AND ANYTHING THAT HAPPENED TO PEOPLE WAS OBVIOUSLY BECAUSE GOD WAS EITHER REWARDING THEM OR PUNISHING THEM, OR SOMETIMES, REWARDING OR PUNISHING A CHILD OR A PARENT.
AND JESUS REPLIES, SOMETHING LIKE THE STATEMENT MADE BY FOREST GUMP, “MANURE HAPPENS.” THE JEWS THAT BUILT THE TOWER AND THE GALILEANS WHO WERE SLAUGHTERED, THEY WEREN'T ANY DIFFERENT THAN THE REST OF US. AND JESUS GOES ON TO SAY THAT WE ARE ALL IN THE SAME BOAT, SOONER OR LATER, ALL OF US WILL EXPERIENCE MANURE HAPPENING, AND IF WE KNOW WHAT IS GOOD FOR US, WE HAD BETTER LOOK AT WHAT WE ARE DOING RIGHT NOW, RIGHT HERE; ARE WE REPENTING? ARE WE LIVING LIVES OF SELFISHNESS OR GIVING AWAY OURSELVES; ARE WE WASTING OUR TIME, OR USING OUR TIME WELL? ARE WE BEING GENEROUS WITH GOD AND OUR NEIGHBOR, OR ARE WE COUNTING UP OUR GOOD FORTUNE AND TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO GET MORE. IN SHORT, ARE WE TRYING TO WALK WITH GOD, OR ARE WE GOING OUR OWN WAY. BECAUSE JUST LIKE THOSE TOWER-BUILDING JEWS AND SLAUGHTERED GALILEANS, MANURE HAPPENS. WE'D BETTER BE READY.
AND JESUS GOES ON TO PREACH THE PARABLE OF THE FIG TREE. THINK ABOUT THAT STORY FOR A MINUTE. IT'S RELATED TO WHAT HAS JUST BEEN GOING ON. WHICH ONE ARE YOU? THE OWNER OF THE ORCHARD, THE GARDENER, OR THE FIG TREE? FIG TREES GENERALLY GROW FOR ABOUT THREE TO FIVE YEARS BEFORE THEY BEGIN BEARING FRUIT. ONCE THEY START, THERE ARE FIGS ON THE TREE FOR TEN MONTHS OUT OF THE YEAR, WHICH WAS THE REASON THEY WERE PLANTED ALL OVER THE MIDDLE EAST; THEY WERE A MAJOR SOURCE OF FOOD. IN THOSE DAYS, PEOPLE DIDN'T KNOW THAT THE FLOWERS OF THE TREE HAD TO BE FERTILIZED BY WASPS CARRYING POLLEN FROM ANOTHER TREE. AND WHEN THAT DIDN'T HAPPEN, THE TREE COULD NOT BEAR FRUIT. SO WHEN A TREE FAILED TO BEAR, IT WAS GENERALLY CONSIDERED WORTHLESS AND CUT DOWN.
USUALLY THE OWNER OF THE VINEYARD IS THOUGHT TO REPRESENT GOD THE FATHER, AND JESUS IS THE ONE TENDING THE TREE, AND THE TREE IS THE NATION OF ISRAEL, OR PERHAPS YOU AND I. IT IS A PARABLE OF MERCY. AND THAT'S ONE WAY TO LOOK AT IT.
BUT THOSE WHO WERE SPECULATING AS TO WHY THE TOWER BUILDERS AND THE SLAUGHTERED GALILEANS HAD DIED WERE JUDGING; THEY WERE LIKE THE OWNER OF THE VINEYARD, WHO KNEW ENOUGH TO SAY THAT YOU SHOULD GIVE A FIG TREE THREE YEARS, BUT KNEW VERY LITTLE MORE THAN THAT ABOUT GROWING FIG TREES. AND WE AREN'T DIFFERENT; WE OFTEN CATCH OURSELVES WONDERING WHAT SOMEONE DID TO DESERVE WHAT HAPPENED. SOMETIMES WE CRY OUT, “WHAT DID I DO TO DESERVE THIS?” WHEN WE SEE SOMEONE BETTER OFF THAN WE ARE, SOMETIMES WE SAY, “HE DOESN'T DESERVE THAT.” AND I THINK THAT IS THE POINT JESUS IS MAKING. HE SAYS THAT THE GARDENER PROMISES THE VINEYARD OWNER THAT HE WILL CULTIVATE THE GROUND AND FERTILIZE THE TREE, AND THEN IT MAY BEAR FRUIT. IN OTHER WORDS, WHEN MANURE HAPPENS, IT ISN'T BECAUSE GOD IS REACHING OUT TO STOMP OUT SINNERS, OR HARM THOSE WHO DON'T TOE THE LINE. THAT ISN'T GOD, THAT HASN'T GOT ANYTHING TO DO WITH GOD. BUT RATHER, WHEN MANURE HAPPENS, IT MAY BE A SIGN THAT GOD IS WORKING TO HELP SOMEONE BEAR FRUIT. IF GOD EVER CHOOSES TO INFLICT SOME SORT OF TRIBULATION ON SOMEONE, THAT WOULD BE THE REASON; NEVER IN ORDER TO PUNISH OR DESTROY.
SO A WAY TO LOOK AT THIS PARABLE IS TO SEE OURSELVES NOT ONLY IN THE TREE, TO WHICH MANURE WILL SOON BE HAPPENING, BUT WILL BE ADMINISTERED BY A LOVING GARDENER WHO ONLY WANTS THE BEST FOR US, THE BEST BEING THAT WE WILL BEAR FRUIT, THAT WE WILL BRING ABOUT OUR PART OF THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN, THAT WE WILL LIVE SO THAT WE WILL ENTER IN TO OUR MASTER'S JOY; BUT WE ARE ALSO THE OWNER OF THE VINEYARD, NOT REALLY ABLE TO SEE WHAT GOD IS PLANNING, BUT QUICK TO JUDGE AND QUICK TO CONDEMN. AND ALL THE WHILE THE GARDENER IS AT WORK, BRINGING GOOD OUT OF EVIL, BRINGING SOMETHING OUT OF NOTHING, CONSTANTLY DOING EVERYTHING HE CAN TO HELP US ACHIEVE OUR DESTINY AND OUR HEART'S DESIRE.
COULD GOD KEEP MANURE FROM HAPPENING? COULD HE PREVENT THE DEATHS OF THE TOWER BUILDERS AND THE SLAUGHTERED GALILEANS? HE COULD. BUT ONLY AT THE COST OF FREEDOM, ONLY AT THE COST OF DESTROYING WITHIN THEM THE IMAGE AND LIKENESS OF GOD. BECAUSE GOD MADE US LIKE HIMSELF, FREE, ABLE TO CHOOSE, BUT OF NECESSITY, IF WE CHOOSE, WE EXPERIENCE THE CONSEQUENCES OF OUR CHOICE. WHEN WE ARE MORTAL, THAT MEANS SUFFERING AND DEATH; AND THE CHOICES OF OTHERS AFFECT US AS WELL. BUT GOD GIVES US FREEDOM, FREEDOM TO CHOOSE LIFE OR CHOOSE DEATH. AND SINCE FREEDOM IS WHAT MAKES US LIKE GOD, WE SHOULD NEVER GET UPSET WITH GOD BECAUSE MANURE HAPPENS. WHEN MANURE HAPPENS, WE CAN ONLY TELL OURSELVES THAT IT WAS NOT GOD'S INTENTION TO HARM US, BUT RATHER, THE CONSEQUENCES OF HUMAN FREEDOM. BUT WHEN MANURE HAPPENS, GOD WILL IN SOME WAY BRING GOOD OUT OF IT. AND THAT'S A PROMISE, THAT IS A GUARANTEE, AND ALL WE HAVE TO DO IS LOOK TO THAT BODY HANGING LIFELESS ON THE CROSS, AND FLASH FORWARD TO THAT GLORIOUS DAY OF RESURRECTION.
Second Sunday in Lent, cycle C
LUKE 9:28B-36
THEY WENT UP TO THE MOUNTAIN TO PRAY. SO MUCH IS HIDDEN IN THOSE WORDS. I GOOGLED MOUNT TABOR AND DISCOVERED SOME INTERESTING THINGS. MOUNT TABOR IS ABOUT 2000 FEET HIGH, NOT HUGE BY MOUNTAIN STANDARDS. BUT IT IS PRETTY MASSIVE. IT STANDS ALONE ON A PLANE IN NORTHERN ISRAEL. TODAY THERE ARE TWO SIZABLE TOWNS AT ITS BASE. IN THE OLD TESTAMENT, WE HEAR ABOUT MOUNT TABOR AS A LANDMARK, REFERRING TO THE DIVIDING POINT BETWEEN THE LAND OF THREE OF THE TWELVE TRIBES. THERE ISN'T MUCH ELSE; UNLIKE MOUNT SINAI, IT DIDN'T SEEM TO HAVE ANY GREAT SIGNIFICANCE IN THE JEWISH RELIGION.
YOU WOULD HAVE TO TRAVEL THIRTY THREE MILES TO WALK AROUND THE BASE. AND IF YOU CLIMBED IT, TO GO STRAIGHT UP WOULD BE ABOUT TWO MILES OF REALLY HARD CLIMBING, OR IF YOU WENT UP BY GOING MORE GENTLY, YOU COULD STRETCH THE JOURNEY OUT TO FIVE OR SIX MILES, THE LENGTH OF THE TRAIL TO THE TOP THAT EXISTS TODAY. IN JESUS' TIME, THOUGH, THE MOUNTAIN WAS NOT A TOURIST ATTRACTION, NOR DID IT HAVE A MONASTERY ON IT. IT WAS KIND OF WILD, COVERED WITH TIMBER. IF THERE WERE ANY PATHS, THEY WERE PROBABLY VERY ROUGH AND HARD TO NEGOTIATE. YOU CAN IMAGINE THE APOSTLES TRUDGING ALONG AFTER JESUS, WONDERING WHAT THIS IS ALL ABOUT.
AND WHEN THEY GOT TO THE TOP, THEY MUST HAVE BEEN WORN OUT, AND NO WONDER THEY FELL ASLEEP. BUT THEY WOKE TO AN AMAZING SIGHT, JESUS TRANSFORMED, TALKING TO MOSES AND ELIJAH.
MOSES, THE GREATEST LEADER OF THE JEWISH PEOPLE. MOSES WHO GAVE THEM THE LAW, WHO SPOKE DIRECTLY TO GOD, AND WHO WAS HIMSELF TRANSFIGURED WHEN HE WENT INTO THE TENT OF MEETING AND SPOKE WITH GOD. AFTERWORD HE HAD TO WEAR A COVERING OVER HIS FACE BECAUSE NO HUMAN BEING COULD LOOK AT HIM. AND ELIJAH, THE GREATEST PROPHET, THE ONE WHO SINGLE-HANDEDLY SAVED THE JEWISH RELIGION FROM QUEEN JEZEBEL, SHE WHO HAD ALL THE OTHER PROPHETS OF GOD PUT TO DEATH AND TRIED TO INSTITUTE THE WORSHIP OF HER OWN GOD, BAAL. AND ELIJAH WAS TRANSFIGURED, WHEN A CHARIOT OF FIRE SWOOPED DOWN AND CARRIED HIM OFF TO HEAVEN. AND PETER'S FIRST REACTION IS THAT THIS IS EVIDENCE THAT JESUS IS EQUAL TO MOSES AND ELIJAH, AND PETER, BEING A GOOD JEW, MUST HAVE THOUGHT THAT GOD WAS FINALLY KEEPING HIS PROMISE TO HIS PEOPLE; HERE WAS MOSES TO RESTORE THE NATION, AND HERE WAS ELIJAH TO RESTORE THE RELIGION, AND OF COURSE THAT MEAN THAT JESUS WAS THE KING, THE MESSIAH, THE ONE EVERYONE HAD BEEN WAITING FOR.
DO YOU REMEMBER WHEN MUMMAR KADAFFI VISITED NEW YORK LAST YEAR TO ADDRESS THE UNITED NATIONS? HE BROUGHT ALONG A TENT THAT HE WANTED TO ERECT IN CENTRAL PARK TO LIVE IN WHILE HE WAS IN NEW YORK. WE ALL THOUGHT THAT WAS PRETTY CRAZY, BUT ACTUALLY SETTING UP A TENT FOR AN HONORED GUEST IS STILL A CUSTOM IN PARTS OF THE MIDDLE EAST. PETER WANTED TO EXTEND HOSPITALITY TO THESE THREE, AS THEY PREPARED TO LEAD THE REVOLUTION.
BUT PETER HAS MADE A MISTAKE AND GOD THE FATHER HIMSELF CORRECTS HIM. MOSES AND ELIJAH ARE GONE, AND THERE IS ONLY JESUS, AND THE VOICE IN THE CLOUD SAYS, “THIS IS MY CHOSEN SON, LISTEN TO HIM.” LISTEN TO HIM ALONE, THERE ARE NO OTHERS; HE IS MY WORD, MY LAST WORD, MY ONLY WORD. AND THE VOICE OF THE FATHER, THE VOICE WHICH CREATED THE WORLD, WHICH SPOKE TO ABRAHAM AND MOSES AND THE PROPHETS, THE VOICE WHICH SPOKE AT THE BAPTISM OF JESUS; THAT VOICE IS NEVER HEARD AGAIN, BECAUSE THE FATHER HAD FINALLY SAID ALL THAT HE WOULD EVER SAY.
THERE ARE SO MANY VOICES. POLITICIANS, ADVERTISEMENTS, PUNDITS ON TELEVISION, ADVOCATES FOR THIS OR THAT. CONTRADICTING VOICES, EACH ONE TELLING US WHAT WE NEED TO DO, WHAT WE NEED TO AVOID. BUT THERE IS ONLY ONE WORD THAT MATTERS, THE WORD THAT THE FATHER SPEAKS, THE WORD THAT IS JESUS CHRIST.
HOW DO WE LISTEN? WE DON'T LISTEN LIKE WE LISTEN TO CASUAL CONVERSATION. THIS KIND OF LISTENING IS THE KIND THAT MOVES US, THE KIND THAT MAKES US CHANGE. IF WE TRULY HEAR THE WORD, WE WILL CHANGE, BECAUSE GOD'S WORD IS NEVER IN VAIN.
IF YOU AND I ARE REALLY CHRISTIANS, THEN WE SHOULD ALWAYS BE TRYING TO CARRY OUT THE COMMAND OF GOD THE FATHER TO THE APOSTLES, AND TO US. WE NEED TO PRAY, BY OURSELVES, SPEAKING TO GOD, LISTENING TO GOD. WE NEED TO BE LEARNING ABOUT JESUS, WHICH MUST TAKE US TO SACRED SCRIPTURE. WE HAVE THE OLD TESTAMENT, WHICH IS THE UNIVERSITY IN WHICH JESUS WAS EDUCATED. AND WE HAVE THE NEW TESTAMENT, IN WHICH WE CAN SEE HOW THOSE FIRST CHRISTIANS RESPONDED TO THE WORD OF THE FATHER. AND WITH THESE TOOLS, WE CAN DRAW CLOSE TO JESUS HIMSELF, AND LET HIM SPEAK TO US.
THE PURPOSE OF LENT IS TO DEEPEN OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS CHRIST. IT IS A TIME FOR DEVELOPING NEW HABITS, GETTING RID OF OLD ONES; IT IS A TIME WHERE WE ARE CALLED TO BE ATHLETES OF THE CHRISTIAN LIFE, FASTING AND PRAYING SO THAT WE CAN LISTEN MORE CAREFULLY.
THE APOSTLES STRUGGLED UP THAT MOUNTAIN, PUTTING ONE FOOT IN FRONT OF THE OTHER, UNABLE TO SEE WHERE THEY WERE GOING, TRUSTING IN JESUS TO LEAD THEM . AND WHEN THEY GOT TO THE TOP, THEY WERE SO TIRED THEY FELL ASLEEP. BUT THERE WAS JESUS, JESUS TRANSFIGURED, JESUS LOOKING AS HE REALLY DOES, BECAUSE ONCE YOU CLIMB THE MOUNTAIN, ONCE YOU STRUGGLE WITH YOUR LENTEN DISCIPLINES, YOUR PRAYERS, YOUR STUDY, YOUR WORKS, YOUR MEDITATION, YOU TOO WILL SEE JESUS AS HE REALLY IS, AND YOU WILL HEAR THE VOICE OF THE FATHER. AND AT THE END OF LENT, OUR PENANCE AND OUR DISCIPLINE HAVING BEEN OFFERED TO GOD, WE TOO CAN WITNESS JESUS RISEN FROM THE DEAD, TRANSFIGURED. AND THAT WILL STRENGTHEN OUR FAITH SO THAT WE CAN GO DOWN INTO THE VALLEY AND BUILD HIS KINGDOM, AND PROCLAIM TO OTHERS, AS THE FATHER PROCLAIMS TO US, “LISTEN TO HIM!”
THEY WENT UP TO THE MOUNTAIN TO PRAY. SO MUCH IS HIDDEN IN THOSE WORDS. I GOOGLED MOUNT TABOR AND DISCOVERED SOME INTERESTING THINGS. MOUNT TABOR IS ABOUT 2000 FEET HIGH, NOT HUGE BY MOUNTAIN STANDARDS. BUT IT IS PRETTY MASSIVE. IT STANDS ALONE ON A PLANE IN NORTHERN ISRAEL. TODAY THERE ARE TWO SIZABLE TOWNS AT ITS BASE. IN THE OLD TESTAMENT, WE HEAR ABOUT MOUNT TABOR AS A LANDMARK, REFERRING TO THE DIVIDING POINT BETWEEN THE LAND OF THREE OF THE TWELVE TRIBES. THERE ISN'T MUCH ELSE; UNLIKE MOUNT SINAI, IT DIDN'T SEEM TO HAVE ANY GREAT SIGNIFICANCE IN THE JEWISH RELIGION.
YOU WOULD HAVE TO TRAVEL THIRTY THREE MILES TO WALK AROUND THE BASE. AND IF YOU CLIMBED IT, TO GO STRAIGHT UP WOULD BE ABOUT TWO MILES OF REALLY HARD CLIMBING, OR IF YOU WENT UP BY GOING MORE GENTLY, YOU COULD STRETCH THE JOURNEY OUT TO FIVE OR SIX MILES, THE LENGTH OF THE TRAIL TO THE TOP THAT EXISTS TODAY. IN JESUS' TIME, THOUGH, THE MOUNTAIN WAS NOT A TOURIST ATTRACTION, NOR DID IT HAVE A MONASTERY ON IT. IT WAS KIND OF WILD, COVERED WITH TIMBER. IF THERE WERE ANY PATHS, THEY WERE PROBABLY VERY ROUGH AND HARD TO NEGOTIATE. YOU CAN IMAGINE THE APOSTLES TRUDGING ALONG AFTER JESUS, WONDERING WHAT THIS IS ALL ABOUT.
AND WHEN THEY GOT TO THE TOP, THEY MUST HAVE BEEN WORN OUT, AND NO WONDER THEY FELL ASLEEP. BUT THEY WOKE TO AN AMAZING SIGHT, JESUS TRANSFORMED, TALKING TO MOSES AND ELIJAH.
MOSES, THE GREATEST LEADER OF THE JEWISH PEOPLE. MOSES WHO GAVE THEM THE LAW, WHO SPOKE DIRECTLY TO GOD, AND WHO WAS HIMSELF TRANSFIGURED WHEN HE WENT INTO THE TENT OF MEETING AND SPOKE WITH GOD. AFTERWORD HE HAD TO WEAR A COVERING OVER HIS FACE BECAUSE NO HUMAN BEING COULD LOOK AT HIM. AND ELIJAH, THE GREATEST PROPHET, THE ONE WHO SINGLE-HANDEDLY SAVED THE JEWISH RELIGION FROM QUEEN JEZEBEL, SHE WHO HAD ALL THE OTHER PROPHETS OF GOD PUT TO DEATH AND TRIED TO INSTITUTE THE WORSHIP OF HER OWN GOD, BAAL. AND ELIJAH WAS TRANSFIGURED, WHEN A CHARIOT OF FIRE SWOOPED DOWN AND CARRIED HIM OFF TO HEAVEN. AND PETER'S FIRST REACTION IS THAT THIS IS EVIDENCE THAT JESUS IS EQUAL TO MOSES AND ELIJAH, AND PETER, BEING A GOOD JEW, MUST HAVE THOUGHT THAT GOD WAS FINALLY KEEPING HIS PROMISE TO HIS PEOPLE; HERE WAS MOSES TO RESTORE THE NATION, AND HERE WAS ELIJAH TO RESTORE THE RELIGION, AND OF COURSE THAT MEAN THAT JESUS WAS THE KING, THE MESSIAH, THE ONE EVERYONE HAD BEEN WAITING FOR.
DO YOU REMEMBER WHEN MUMMAR KADAFFI VISITED NEW YORK LAST YEAR TO ADDRESS THE UNITED NATIONS? HE BROUGHT ALONG A TENT THAT HE WANTED TO ERECT IN CENTRAL PARK TO LIVE IN WHILE HE WAS IN NEW YORK. WE ALL THOUGHT THAT WAS PRETTY CRAZY, BUT ACTUALLY SETTING UP A TENT FOR AN HONORED GUEST IS STILL A CUSTOM IN PARTS OF THE MIDDLE EAST. PETER WANTED TO EXTEND HOSPITALITY TO THESE THREE, AS THEY PREPARED TO LEAD THE REVOLUTION.
BUT PETER HAS MADE A MISTAKE AND GOD THE FATHER HIMSELF CORRECTS HIM. MOSES AND ELIJAH ARE GONE, AND THERE IS ONLY JESUS, AND THE VOICE IN THE CLOUD SAYS, “THIS IS MY CHOSEN SON, LISTEN TO HIM.” LISTEN TO HIM ALONE, THERE ARE NO OTHERS; HE IS MY WORD, MY LAST WORD, MY ONLY WORD. AND THE VOICE OF THE FATHER, THE VOICE WHICH CREATED THE WORLD, WHICH SPOKE TO ABRAHAM AND MOSES AND THE PROPHETS, THE VOICE WHICH SPOKE AT THE BAPTISM OF JESUS; THAT VOICE IS NEVER HEARD AGAIN, BECAUSE THE FATHER HAD FINALLY SAID ALL THAT HE WOULD EVER SAY.
THERE ARE SO MANY VOICES. POLITICIANS, ADVERTISEMENTS, PUNDITS ON TELEVISION, ADVOCATES FOR THIS OR THAT. CONTRADICTING VOICES, EACH ONE TELLING US WHAT WE NEED TO DO, WHAT WE NEED TO AVOID. BUT THERE IS ONLY ONE WORD THAT MATTERS, THE WORD THAT THE FATHER SPEAKS, THE WORD THAT IS JESUS CHRIST.
HOW DO WE LISTEN? WE DON'T LISTEN LIKE WE LISTEN TO CASUAL CONVERSATION. THIS KIND OF LISTENING IS THE KIND THAT MOVES US, THE KIND THAT MAKES US CHANGE. IF WE TRULY HEAR THE WORD, WE WILL CHANGE, BECAUSE GOD'S WORD IS NEVER IN VAIN.
IF YOU AND I ARE REALLY CHRISTIANS, THEN WE SHOULD ALWAYS BE TRYING TO CARRY OUT THE COMMAND OF GOD THE FATHER TO THE APOSTLES, AND TO US. WE NEED TO PRAY, BY OURSELVES, SPEAKING TO GOD, LISTENING TO GOD. WE NEED TO BE LEARNING ABOUT JESUS, WHICH MUST TAKE US TO SACRED SCRIPTURE. WE HAVE THE OLD TESTAMENT, WHICH IS THE UNIVERSITY IN WHICH JESUS WAS EDUCATED. AND WE HAVE THE NEW TESTAMENT, IN WHICH WE CAN SEE HOW THOSE FIRST CHRISTIANS RESPONDED TO THE WORD OF THE FATHER. AND WITH THESE TOOLS, WE CAN DRAW CLOSE TO JESUS HIMSELF, AND LET HIM SPEAK TO US.
THE PURPOSE OF LENT IS TO DEEPEN OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS CHRIST. IT IS A TIME FOR DEVELOPING NEW HABITS, GETTING RID OF OLD ONES; IT IS A TIME WHERE WE ARE CALLED TO BE ATHLETES OF THE CHRISTIAN LIFE, FASTING AND PRAYING SO THAT WE CAN LISTEN MORE CAREFULLY.
THE APOSTLES STRUGGLED UP THAT MOUNTAIN, PUTTING ONE FOOT IN FRONT OF THE OTHER, UNABLE TO SEE WHERE THEY WERE GOING, TRUSTING IN JESUS TO LEAD THEM . AND WHEN THEY GOT TO THE TOP, THEY WERE SO TIRED THEY FELL ASLEEP. BUT THERE WAS JESUS, JESUS TRANSFIGURED, JESUS LOOKING AS HE REALLY DOES, BECAUSE ONCE YOU CLIMB THE MOUNTAIN, ONCE YOU STRUGGLE WITH YOUR LENTEN DISCIPLINES, YOUR PRAYERS, YOUR STUDY, YOUR WORKS, YOUR MEDITATION, YOU TOO WILL SEE JESUS AS HE REALLY IS, AND YOU WILL HEAR THE VOICE OF THE FATHER. AND AT THE END OF LENT, OUR PENANCE AND OUR DISCIPLINE HAVING BEEN OFFERED TO GOD, WE TOO CAN WITNESS JESUS RISEN FROM THE DEAD, TRANSFIGURED. AND THAT WILL STRENGTHEN OUR FAITH SO THAT WE CAN GO DOWN INTO THE VALLEY AND BUILD HIS KINGDOM, AND PROCLAIM TO OTHERS, AS THE FATHER PROCLAIMS TO US, “LISTEN TO HIM!”
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