Second Sunday after Pentecost: Peace, Obedience, Inclusive Love

Today's Scripture Readings

Genesis 21:8-21 (NRSV)

The child grew, and was weaned; and Abraham made a great feast on the day that Isaac was weaned.  But Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, whom she had borne to Abraham, playing with her son Isaac.  So she said to Abraham, "Cast out this slave woman with her son; for the son of this slave woman shall not inherit along with my son Isaac."  The matter was very distressing to Abraham on account of his son.  But God said to Abraham, "Do not be distressed because of the boy and because of your slave woman; whatever Sarah says to you, do as she tells you, for it is through Isaac that offspring shall be named for you.  As for the son of the slave woman, I will make a nation of him also, because he is your offspring."  So Abraham rose early in the morning, and took bread and a skin of water, and gave it to Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, along with the child, and sent her away. And she departed, and wandered about in the wilderness of Beer-sheba.

When the water in the skin was gone, she cast the child under one of the bushes.  Then she went and sat down opposite him a good way off, about the distance of a bowshot; for she said, "Do not let me look on the death of the child." And as she sat opposite him, she lifted up her voice and wept.  And God heard the voice of the boy; and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven, and said to her, "What troubles you, Hagar? Do not be afraid; for God has heard the voice of the boy where he is.  Come, lift up the boy and hold him fast with your hand, for I will make a great nation of him."  Then God opened her eyes and she saw a well of water. She went, and filled the skin with water, and gave the boy a drink.

God was with the boy, and he grew up; he lived in the wilderness, and became an expert with the bow.  He lived in the wilderness of Paran; and his mother got a wife for him from the land of Egypt.

Psalm 86 (BCP., p.709)


Romans 6:1b-11 (NRSV)

Should we continue in sin in order that grace may abound?  By no means! How can we who died to sin go on living in it?  Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?  Therefore we have been buried with him by baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.

For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.  We know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be destroyed, and we might no longer be enslaved to sin.  For whoever has died is freed from sin.  But if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him.  We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him.  The death he died, he died to sin, once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God.  So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.

Matthew 10:24-39 (NRSV)

Jesus said to the twelve disciples,

"A disciple is not above the teacher, nor a slave above the master; it is enough for the disciple to be like the teacher, and the slave like the master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign those of his household!

"So have no fear of them; for nothing is covered up that will not be uncovered, and nothing secret that will not become known. What I say to you in the dark, tell in the light; and what you hear whispered, proclaim from the housetops. Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. And even the hairs of your head are all counted. So do not be afraid; you are of more value than many sparrows.

"Everyone therefore who acknowledges me before others, I also will acknowledge before my Father in heaven; but whoever denies me before others, I also will deny before my Father in heaven.

"Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.

"For I have come to set a man against his father,
and a daughter against her mother,
and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law;
and one's foes will be members of one's own household.

"Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever does not take up the cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Those who find their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it."

Blog Reflection

Given how much the Bible is used to suggest the subordination of women, the reading from Genesis is a  bit refreshing.   Here we have the Lord God telling Abraham to do as his wife Sarah wishes with regards to Hagar's son who was also a son of Abraham.  The narrative also gives us a glimpse into a non-traditional marriage.   Abraham has not one wife and son, but two.  So much for the one man, one woman thing.   Some additional background into what is going on in this reading from Genesis is good for us to consider.

Isaac the son of Abraham and Sarah, and the son of Abraham and Hagar have a symbolic meaning.   Hagar the slave and her son are symbolic of Israel being held in the bondage of Egypt later in Exodus.   Isaac the son of Abraham and Sarah are symbolic of Israel being free from slavery in Egypt and wondering through the desert for forty years being led by Moses and Aaron into the land promised to Abraham and his offspring.

As I  read through the story in Genesis, I was struck by a profound and powerful thought.  God looking after Hagar and her thirsty son without distinction or bias.  God gave of God's abundance to the mother and son born in bondage, as God does to those considered free.   Whatever human made label that can be given to any person or group of people on any basis, God sees all persons through the eyes of loving care.  God has just as big of a plan for salvation and prosperity for those the Church and society considers unwanted or unlovable as God does for the so called "privileged".   Such may be privileged by humankind, but are no greater or least in the mind, heart and eyes of God.

The relationship of parents and their children who come out as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and/or questioning continues to be of tremendous concern.   Young women and men who contain within themselves a deep desire and capacity to love their parents and others as they truly are, seek acceptance and the opportunity to mature in a healthy home, church community and neighborhood free of violence, bullying and bias.   However, for way too many even in 2014, that is just not what happens.   Parents still attempt to commit their LGBT daughters and/or sons to self-abusive ex-gay or "reparative" therapists to "change" what is beautifully natural.  There are parents who threaten their children who are LGBT with the horrors of hell if they do not repent, loss of their homes, inheritance and/or participation in the family business.  

Whether a woman or man is LGBTQ or straight or cisgender, she or he is someone valued by God without distinction.   Who they are, who they love and whatever their true gender is, such to those belongs God's unconditional love and transforming grace to change society and the Church into a more just and inclusive existence.   God offers to them the waters of freedom,  hope and possibility.   For they are "fearfully and wonderfully made" (Psalm 139:15).

At first glance our Gospel Reading sounds as if Jesus is talking nonsense.  He is talking about a servant and the master, what is hidden, the relationship between parents and children.   I would suggest that His words to us today, suggest our willingness to listen more intentionally to the Holy Spirit and what our relationships with others around us need to look like.

It is important to take note that in the time in which this Gospel narrative would have taken place, children had no rights.  They were often committed to slave labor once they were old enough.  They were owned by their parents as property, and could be sold by a local governor if one could not pay their taxes or debts.  A fair majority of children lived in poverty with their parents.  Life for parents and children was anything but family bliss.

As Jesus tells us about the relationship of the master and the servant, He is talking about the relationship of God with us to respond "for the love of God" (See The Rule of St. Benedict, Chapter 7:34) in obedience to the will of God.   In this is a truth that many of us in our time of "do as you please without limit" do not like to hear.   Yet, the contrary is more true than we would like to admit.  When we see ourselves as free to do what we want with no guidance or accountability to another, we are in fact in slavery.   When we submit ourselves to be obedient to God through the wishes of another, we find real liberation from our false-selves to a true knowledge of who we really are.  

Jesus is not saying here that we are not to value our relationships with our parents or others in authority.   What He is saying is that to the extent that we rely on any relationship apart from the reverence and/or consciousness of God who is present in all relationships; is the point in which we have surrendered our true peace for something that cannot fulfill or complete us.   If an LGBTQ child is so bound to her/his parents Christianist faith that she/he cannot be who God made her/him to be, there can be no peace for the child.   Closets are places of death, not life.   Keeping oneself enclosed in a false shame to be self-abusive and suppressed can only lead to a death of one's true identity and being.   When we live openly and faithfully to who we are, and are able to mature in a healthy way into who we are and who we love, we can find God and be obedient to God's will.   There is no obedience to the will of God, without self-knowledge and the freedom to be who we are lovingly created to be.  When we are, we can be obedient to God, because we will be surrendering our true-selves freely and without coersion.

As Christians who have received the Holy Spirit by the Death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ, we must surrender ourselves to the peace that God gives to our lives through Christ.   That peace that the world cannot give, can be ours when we experience that true love that casts out all fear has been our experience to know and share.   In being open to the conversion of the Holy Spirit through our daily life experiences, relationships and failures, we can discover anew the merciful love and grace of God again and again.  It should not only help us experience a new freedom in Christ for ourselves, but it should transform our biases into loving acceptance of others who are different from ourselves.   The notion of sacrificing our prejudices to be inclusive of others, is something we give over freely and without reserve.   Because the love of God is so wonderful an experience in our own lives, we would not dream of  not sharing it with others around us.

Amen.

Prayers

O Lord, make us have perpetual love and reverence for your
holy Name, for you never fail to help and govern those whom
you have set upon the sure foundation of your loving-kindness;
through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you
and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.  (Proper 7, Book of Common Prayer, p.230).

Look with pity, O heavenly Father, upon the people in this
land who live with injustice, terror, disease, and death as
their constant companions. Have mercy upon us. Help us to
eliminate our cruelty to these our neighbors. Strengthen those
who spend their lives establishing equal protection of the law
and equal opportunities for all. And grant that every one of
us may enjoy a fair portion of the riches of this land; through
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.  (Prayer for the Oppressed, Book of Common Prayer, p. 826).

Grant, O God, that your holy and life-giving Spirit may so
move every human heart [and especially the hearts of the
people of this land], that barriers which divide us may
crumble, suspicions disappear, and hatreds cease; that our
divisions being healed, we may live in justice and peace;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.  (Prayer for Social Justice, Book of Common Prayer, p.823).

Seventeenth Sunday after Pentecost: God's Everlasting Mercy Searches for Us

Today's Scripture Verses

Exodus 32:7-14 (NRSV)

The LORD said to Moses, "Go down at once! Your people, whom you brought up out of the land of Egypt, have acted perversely; they have been quick to turn aside from the way that I commanded them; they have cast for themselves an image of a calf, and have worshiped it and sacrificed to it, and said,
`These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!'" The LORD said to Moses, "I have seen this people, how stiff-necked they are. Now let me alone, so that my wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them; and of you I will make a great nation."

But Moses implored the LORD his God, and said, "O LORD, why does your wrath burn hot against your people, whom you brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? Why should the Egyptians say, `It was with evil intent that he brought them out to kill them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth'? Turn from your fierce wrath; change your mind and do not bring disaster on your people. Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, your servants, how you swore to them by your own self, saying to them, `I will multiply your descendants like the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have promised I will give to your descendants, and they shall inherit it forever.'" And the LORD changed his mind about the disaster that he planned to bring on his people.

Psalm 51 (BCP., p.656)


1 Timothy 1:12-17 (NRSV)

I am grateful to Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because he judged me faithful and appointed me to his service, even though I was formerly a blasphemer, a persecutor, and a man of violence. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief, and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. The saying is sure and worthy of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners-- of whom I am the foremost. But for that very reason I received mercy, so that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display the utmost patience, making me an example to those who would come to believe in him for eternal life. To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.

Luke 15:1-10 (NRSV)

All the tax collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to Jesus. And the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, "This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them."

So he told them this parable: "Which one of you, having a hundred sheep and losing one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and go after the one that is lost until he finds it? When he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders and rejoices. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, `Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.' Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.

"Or what woman having ten silver coins, if she loses one of them, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, and search carefully until she finds it? When she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, `Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin that I had lost.' Just so, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents."

Blog Reflection

Of all the things that people spend money and time on, none is more precious than searching for someone who's been lost.  Children who were separated from their biological parents have searched to find their birth mother and/or father, because they just want to know them.  People who get separated from their loved one's and want to know where they are, will go at great lengths to be reunited.  

God, our Creator, though humankind still refuses to grow up in our love for God, our neighbor and ourselves, still searches for us.  Our sins that keep us from growth spiritually and socially hurt God very much.  God does not force God's will upon any of us.  God gave us the opportunity to chose growth in grace, or to remain as stubborn children.  Yet, even our decision does not stop God from loving us so much.  God still remains faithful to us, and waits for us to turn back to God.  Not just as a matter of personal spiritual growth, but in our relationships with one another.

The Christian Faith is not a religion that is all to ourselves. Our Faith is about community.  As Christians we share our lives of faith with others in this world, including those who do not share our particular world view.  Yet, we live by faith and not by sight.  In other words, what we believe and practice in our worship and prayer, needs to become how we live.  If as the hymn says; 'There's a wideness in God's mercy..." then why are the hearts and arms of Christians so narrow?

The readings for this weekend are all about God's transforming grace & everlasting mercy.  They invite us into relationship with our God and one another, so to experience and share that mercy.    It is so easy to be the recipients of God's wonderful works, and then forget what God has done and put other things between us and God.  The Israelites in Exodus, did just that.  God's anger was so roused. Yet, Moses interceded for them, and God's mercy was abundant. God's generosity was extended.

In the Gospel today, Jesus tells us that no one is so horrible a sinner, that He will not search for them and bring them back to safety.  We are all like that sheep who get lost, or the coin that is missing, and God gives up everything God has to find us, and bring us back into redeemed relationship with God through Christ.  All of us are counted as precious in God's sight to the point that God gave us Jesus Christ so that we may find our way back to God to live holy lives.   To bring comfort to those who mourn.   To feed the hungry, and give company to the lonely.  To welcome the immigrant and help her/him to find their home among us.  To encourage LGBTQ teens to live as they are without the fear of bullying or religious based violence.  To call for an end to the out of control anti-gay violence in Russia.  To call for justice for the oppressed in those who experience racial and gender bias in their jobs, communities and churches.

God's grace and mercy want so much to transform us and the world around us.  God's Holy Spirit gives us God's gifts so that we can be people of mercy and help others find their way to God.  It begins with the ministry of hospitality and reconciliation, through which God's mercy gives new hope to those in despair.  As recipients of God's mercy, we must give praise, honor and glory to God by sharing with others the mercy that we have received. After all, what could be better in our world of violence, oppression and darkness, than to share the Light of God's everlasting mercy in Christ Jesus, our Lord?

Amen.


Prayers

O God, because without you we are not able to please you,
mercifully grant that your Holy Spirit may in all things direct
and rule our hearts; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives
and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and
for ever. Amen. (Proper 19: Book of Common Prayer. p.233).

Almighty God, who created us in your image: Grant us
grace fearlessly to contend against evil and to make no peace
with oppression; and, that we may reverently use our freedom,
help us to employ it in the maintenance of justice in our
communities and among the nations, to the glory of your holy
Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with
you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.  (Prayer for Social Justice, Book of Common Prayer, p.260).

Lord Jesus Christ, you stretched out your arms of love on
the hard wood of the cross that everyone might come within
the reach of your saving embrace: So clothe us in your Spirit
that we, reaching forth our hands in love, may bring those
who do not know you to the knowledge and love of you; for
the honor of your Name. Amen. (Prayer for Mission, Book of Common Prayer, p.101).

 

Sixteeenth Sunday after Pentecost: Are We Followers or Disciples?

Today's Scripture Readings

Jeremiah 18:1-11 (NRSV)

The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD: "Come, go down to the potter's house, and there I will let you hear my words." So I went down to the potter's house, and there he was working at his wheel. The vessel he was making of clay was spoiled in the potter's hand, and he reworked it into another vessel, as seemed good to him.

Then the word of the LORD came to me: Can I not do with you, O house of Israel, just as this potter has done? says the LORD. Just like the clay in the potter's hand, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel. At one moment I may declare concerning a nation or a kingdom, that I will pluck up and break down and destroy it, but if that nation, concerning which I have spoken, turns from its evil, I will change my mind about the disaster that I intended to bring on it. And at another moment I may declare concerning a nation or a kingdom that I will build and plant it, but if it does evil in my sight, not listening to my voice, then I will change my mind about the good that I had intended to do to it. Now, therefore, say to the people of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem: Thus says the LORD: Look, I am a potter shaping evil against you and devising a plan against you. Turn now, all of you from your evil way, and amend your ways and your doings.

Psalm 139 (BCP., p.749).


Philemon 1-21 (NRSV)

Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus, and Timothy our brother,

To Philemon our dear friend and co-worker, to Apphia our sister, to Archippus our fellow soldier, and to the church in your house:

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

When I remember you in my prayers, I always thank my God because I hear of your love for all the saints and your faith toward the Lord Jesus. I pray that the sharing of your faith may become effective when you perceive all the good that we may do for Christ. I have indeed received much joy and encouragement from your love, because the hearts of the saints have been refreshed through you, my brother.
 
For this reason, though I am bold enough in Christ to command you to do your duty, yet I would rather appeal to you on the basis of love-- and I, Paul, do this as an old man, and now also as a prisoner of Christ Jesus. I am appealing to you for my child, Onesimus, whose father I have become during my imprisonment. Formerly he was useless to you, but now he is indeed useful both to you and to me. I am sending him, that is, my own heart, back to you. I wanted to keep him with me, so that he might be of service to me in your place during my imprisonment for the gospel; but I preferred to do nothing without your consent, in order that your good deed might be voluntary and not something forced. Perhaps this is the reason he was separated from you for a while, so that you might have him back forever, no longer as a slave but more than a slave, a beloved brother-- especially to me but how much more to you, both in the flesh and in the Lord.

So if you consider me your partner, welcome him as you would welcome me. If he has wronged you in any way, or owes you anything, charge that to my account. I, Paul, am writing this with my own hand: I will repay it. I say nothing about your owing me even your own self. Yes, brother, let me have this benefit from you in the Lord! Refresh my heart in Christ. Confident of your obedience, I am writing to you, knowing that you will do even more than I say. 

Luke 14:25-33 (NRSV)
 

Now large crowds were traveling with Jesus; and he turned and said to them, "Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and even life itself, cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not carry the cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not first sit down and estimate the cost, to see whether he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it will begin to ridicule him, saying, `This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.' Or what king, going out to wage war against another king, will not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to oppose the one who comes against him with twenty thousand? If he cannot, then, while the other is still far away, he sends a delegation and asks for the terms of peace. So therefore, none of you can become my disciple if you do not give up all your possessions."

Blog Reflection

There is an old hymn written by Adelaide A. Pollard that I think says quite beautifully what the Prophet Jeremiah is talking about.

Have Thine own way, Lord!  Have Thine own way!
Thou art the potter; I am the clay.
Mold me and after Thy will.
While I am waiting, yielded and still.

Jeremiah is prophesying God's word to God's people.  God is disappointed with the people that are God's inheritance.  They have been turning away from the Lord, and forgetting their obligations to the One who delivered their ancestors, and gave them so much to be thankful for.  Rather than sharing what they had with the poor and the oppressed around them, they became empathetic.  They resisted the opportunity for repentance and conversion for that sake of God's Name.  They resisted the opportunity to allow God to change them, so that they would live holy lives.  God wants so many good things for God's people, but there is only so much God can do, if we do not give ourselves over so God can do God's will in our lives.

Are we willing to let God shape and mold us to serve God and others?

How much do we cling to those things that keep us from growing closer to God?

What might we do to allow God to mold and change us?

The Psalmist in Psalm 139 is praying that God knows so much about us, that there is very little God does not know about us.  God alone knows what is in the depths of our hearts, and there is no where we can go where God is not found.  We are all "fearfully and wonderfully made" and God knows it well.  Regardless of what people may do with the many labels that are used to denigrate others, in God we are all wonderful and loved in every fiber of our being.  

Reading today's Gospel too literally will get any reader into a lot of trouble. Jesus is not telling us to hate our family.  He is not telling us that if we love our parents and family, we are not His disciples.   William Barclay in The New Daily Study Bible: The Gospel of Luke tells us that Jesus is helping us to understand that there is a difference between being a follower of Jesus and a Disciple.  Anyone can follow the leader, but not everyone will understand and follow in the footsteps that were leading Jesus to the Cross.  A Disciple will need to do more than just follow Jesus, but will have to be willing to pick up their own Cross.  A follower will say that one is a Christian, may be attend worship services, pray the creeds, and go to Communion.  A Disciple will do all of those things and more, not to just get them done, but because growing closer to God and discerning God's will for their lives is more important to them, than having a name that just gets them a good reputation. 

In this Gospel the second piece is taking in to account what you have, so that you may determine how serious one is about the call to Discipleship.  A great example of this is the formation process a person and a Religious and/or Christian Community go through to discern God's will.  The purpose is to be sure that both sides take into account where they themselves are, and where God is leading them, so as to determine as best as possible, that God is leading both to a life long commitment to each other.  The same can be said about two people preparing for marriage.  The preparation for marriage is to be sure that all parties are prepared to be Disciples and not just followers as they enter into a relationship that is about love, commitment and responsibility.  Whether the couple is lesbian, gay, straight, bisexual and/or transgender, the commitment to God and each other in marriage is the same.  It is a life lived by giving of oneself for the benefit of the other.

The Church and society find ourselves in some major situations that are God's call on our lives to be Disciples and not just followers.  As we take into account the terrible consequences of a military strike in Syria, we should be considering the equally terrible consequences to the civilian people there, who have already suffered terrible losses.  If we do not think very carefully about the further damage to our own economy as we take money out of important public services like education, public safety, infrastructure, food stamps and health care to go to war more people here will suffer from poverty and joblessness.   We do not need more war and military destruction.  We need conversations, and political actions that make what the Syrian Government has done to it's own people, morally unacceptable, without more casualties to add to those that have already happened. 

We need to decide if we are followers of Christ only, or actual Disciples when it comes to telling the world what the message of Christ is really about with regards to sexual orientation and/or gender identity/expression.  If we wish to be Disciples then we will do everything we can to speak up against bullying of students and children because they are LGBTQ.   Because being a Disciple means upholding the dignity and integrity of all people, and no one is a scapegoat.  Suicide because of bullying is a societal tragedy, and must not be acceptable for any reason.

As Disciples who carry our Cross, we will speak up in favor of immigration reform, call for an end to racism, sexism, and using the Christian Faith to bully people by creating and promoting conspiracy theories to create fear and intimidation.  

As Disciples we are to promote peace, justice, inclusion and equality for all people.  We are called to ask for the grace of God so that we can be do our part with the Holy Spirit to "renew the face of the earth" (Psalm 104:31).

Are we followers of Christ only, or are we Disciples?

Amen.


Prayers

Grant us, O Lord, to trust in you with all our hearts; for, as
you always resist the proud who confide in their own strength,
so you never forsake those who make their boast of your
mercy; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns
with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.
Amen. (Proper 18, Book of Common Prayer, p. 233).

O God, you made us in your own image and redeemed us
through Jesus your Son: Look with compassion on the whole
human family; take away the arrogance and hatred which
infect our hearts; break down the walls that separate us;
unite us in bonds of love; and work through our struggle and
confusion to accomplish your purposes on earth; that, in
your good time, all nations and races may serve you in
harmony around your heavenly throne; through Jesus Christ
our Lord. Amen. (Prayer for the Human Family, Book of Common Prayer, p. 815).

Eternal God, in whose perfect kingdom no sword is drawn
but the sword of righteousness, no strength known but the
strength of love: So mightily spread abroad your Spirit, that
all peoples may be gathered under the banner of the Prince of
Peace, as children of one Father; to whom be dominion and
glory, now and for ever. Amen.  (Prayer for Peace, Book of Common Prayer, p.815).

Fourth Day of Christmas: The Holy Innocents

Today's Scripture Readings

Jeremiah 31:15-17 (NRSV)

Thus says the LORD:

A voice is heard in Ramah,

lamentation and bitter weeping.

Rachel is weeping for her children;

she refuses to be comforted for her children,

because they are no more.

Thus says the LORD:

Keep your voice from weeping,

and your eyes from tears;

for there is a reward for your work,

says the LORD:

they shall come back from the land of the enemy;

there is hope for your future,

says the LORD:

your children shall come back to their own country.

Psalm 124 (BCP., p.781)


Revelation 21:1-7 (NRSV)

I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying,

"See, the home of God is among mortals.

He will dwell with them as their God;

they will be his peoples,

and God himself will be with them;

he will wipe every tear from their eyes.

Death will be no more;

mourning and crying and pain will be no more,

for the first things have passed away."

And the one who was seated on the throne said, "See, I am making all things new." Also he said, "Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true." Then he said to me, "It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give water as a gift from the spring of the water of life. Those who conquer will inherit these things, and I will be their God and they will be my children.

Matthew 2:13-18 (NRSV)

When the wise men had departed, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, "Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him." Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother by night, and went to Egypt, and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet, "Out of Egypt I have called my son."

When Herod saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, he was infuriated, and he sent and killed all the children in and around Bethlehem who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had learned from the wise men. Then was fulfilled what had been spoken through the prophet Jeremiah:

"A voice was heard in Ramah,

wailing and loud lamentation,

Rachel weeping for her children;

she refused to be consoled, because they are no more."

Blog Reflection

I really do not think it is a coincidence that we commemorate the Holy Innocents exactly two weeks to the day since the horrific shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, CT.   Indeed, two weeks ago, America witnessed a massacre of innocence.   Or, should we say that we were made aware of the mass murder of twenty innocent children along with 8 adults?   How many other such incidents happen that we just do not know about?

In the past on this Holy Day in our Church calendar I have written about the dangers of political maneuvering.  The slaughter of all of the male children in and around Bethlehem was an act of political maneuvering on the part of Herod.   He was so fearful of being supplanted, that the idea of an infant who was a new born king, was something he just could not leave alone. 

I have also written about the fact that this date of December 28th also falls one day before the anniversary of another massacre that many of us hear very little about.  One hundred and twenty seven years ago, a horrific number of Native Americans were slaughtered in the Wounded Knee Massacre.  A Nation said to be about with liberty and justice for all, turned out to be another set of words that meant everything to some, and nothing to others.  A Nation of liberty so long as one was white, male, of European origin and Christian.  A Nation of oppression and injustice if you were so unfortunate to be a Native American. 

We still live in a time of political maneuvering.  At present we have a looming date for going over the fiscal cliff with the middle class and the poorest among us who have the most to lose.  Every political maneuvering imaginable is being done to be sure that one political party or individual is the one(s) to blame.  But, even if we do go over the fiscal cliff, they have very little to lose.  They will still  have their enormous salaries.  Their homes.  Businesses.  Their high priced places to stay in Washington, D.C.  Those who will really feel the impact of losing their unemployment benefits, and experience the greatest loses, well, they would just be out of luck.  Yet, in an effort to arrive some where, who's benefits are placed as a bargaining chip?  The elderly, retired and disabled.   Is this not another political maneuvering by which innocent people remain at risk?

We were horrified beyond belief two weeks ago.  What we read about in our Gospel today, terrifies us, and for good reason.  But, why are we not so terrified about the thousands of children who are dying every day by drone missiles being fired in Pakistan?   Why are we so apathetic about the many immigrant children who face deportation or being put in prison along with their parents over their "papers"?   Why are we turning a deaf ear to the number of suicides every year of LGBT youth due to bullying?    Why are we not equally concerned about a woman who gives birth to a child, because of all the laws made to make abortion services harder to get, but we have no charity to provide her with funding for housing, child care, education, job training and health care services?

Our Gospel today gives us a glimpse into how much Jesus shares in our human nature.  The child Jesus, his mother and father, were refugees in Egypt.  The Son of God identifies with those who must flee from their homeland to escape oppression and death.  How much are we concerned with the LGBT citizens in a place like Uganda who may have to flee their homes to escape the looming death if the "Kill the gays" bill is passed?

As we continue to celebrate the coming of Christ among us on Christmas, I think we would do well to pray about what role we might play in the ending of injustice and oppression.  It is quite obvious that Jesus did not come to end those things.  Even if the words of O Holy Night says: "in his Name all oppression shall cease."  It is apparent, that oppression is still with us.  Jesus comes to let us know that God suffers right along with us when it comes to injustice and oppression.  God hurts as humans hurt through so much suffering and death. 

God also promises to be with us when we are ready to become proactive in doing something about it.  God knows that there is the Cross involved with doing something about the injustices in this world.  We could very well lose our popularity, prestige or even our lives for doing so.   Whether losing our lives means giving of our time, talent and treasure away from those things we want most, or literally our lives.  God promises to walk with us through those things and to suffer along with us, but also help us to achieve things that only we can do.  But, it all begins when we say yes to God.

Amen.


Prayers

We remember today, O God, the slaughter of the holy
innocents of Bethlehem by King Herod. Receive, we pray,
into the arms of your mercy all innocent victims; and by your
great might frustrate the designs of evil tyrants and establish
your rule of justice, love, and peace; through Jesus Christ
our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the
Holy Spirit,, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. (Collect for the Holy Innocents, Book of Common Prayer, p. 238).

Look with pity, O heavenly Father, upon the people in this
land who live with injustice, terror, disease, and death as
their constant companions. Have mercy upon us. Help us to
eliminate our cruelty to these our neighbors. Strengthen those
who spend their lives establishing equal protection of the law
and equal opportunities for all. And grant that every one of
us may enjoy a fair portion of the riches of this land; through
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (Prayer for the Oppressed, Book of Common Prayer, p. 826).

Twenty First Sunday after Pentecost: Faith and Service are Inseparable

Today's Scripture Readings

Isaiah 53: 4-12 (NRSV)

Surely he has borne our infirmities

and carried our diseases;

yet we accounted him stricken,

struck down by God, and afflicted.

But he was wounded for our transgressions,

crushed for our iniquities;

upon him was the punishment that made us whole,

and by his bruises we are healed.

All we like sheep have gone astray;

we have all turned to our own way,

and the LORD has laid on him

the iniquity of us all.

He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,

yet he did not open his mouth;

like a lamb that is led to the slaughter,

and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,

so he did not open his mouth.

By a perversion of justice he was taken away.

Who could have imagined his future?

For he was cut off from the land of the living,

stricken for the transgression of my people.

They made his grave with the wicked

and his tomb with the rich,

although he had done no violence,

and there was no deceit in his mouth.

Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him with pain.

When you make his life an offering for sin,

he shall see his offspring, and shall prolong his days;

through him the will of the LORD shall prosper.

Out of his anguish he shall see light;

he shall find satisfaction through his knowledge.

The righteous one, my servant, shall make many righteous,

and he shall bear their iniquities.

Therefore I will allot him a portion with the great,

and he shall divide the spoil with the strong;

because he poured out himself to death,

and was numbered with the transgressors;

yet he bore the sin of many,

and made intercession for the transgressors.

Psalm 91 (BCP., p. 720).


Hebrews 5: 1-10 (NRSV)

Every high priest chosen from among mortals is put in charge of things pertaining to God on their behalf, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. He is able to deal gently with the ignorant and wayward, since he himself is subject to weakness; and because of this he must offer sacrifice for his own sins as well as for those of the people. And one does not presume to take this honor, but takes it only when called by God, just as Aaron was.
So also Christ did not glorify himself in becoming a high priest, but was appointed by the one who said to him,

"You are my Son,

today I have begotten you";

as he says also in another place,

"You are a priest forever,

according to the order of Melchizedek."

In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to the one who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. Although he was a Son, he learned obedience through what he suffered; and having been made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him, having been designated by God a high priest according to the order of Melchizedek.

Mark 10: 35-45 (NRSV)

James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came forward to Jesus and said to him, "Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you." And he said to them, "What is it you want me to do for you?" And they said to him, "Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory." But Jesus said to them, "You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?" They replied, "We are able." Then Jesus said to them, "The cup that I drink you will drink; and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized; but to sit at my right hand or at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared."

When the ten heard this, they began to be angry with James and John. So Jesus called them and said to them, "You know that among the Gentiles those whom they recognize as their rulers lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them. But it is not so among you; but whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all. For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many."

Blog Reflection

By now the political mudslinging has just about everyone fatigued from all the negativism and competition.  Whether on the television, radio, internet, just driving on the roads with bill boards, lawn signs and bumper stickers in our faces no matter where we go.   Billions of dollars being poured into the campaigns for President, Congress, State and local offices, on many sides of the political debates. 

In today's Gospel it appears as if Jesus found himself present for a political debate.  James and John wanted from Jesus the decision concerning who would sit on his right or his left.  They are seeing the Reign of God as a matter of power, prestige and a position of dominance.   Jesus replies to them with the reality of what God's Reign is really about.  Jesus is the Reign of God who came to give those who had been shut out, a place at the table.   Jesus not only called his followers to be servants and to give their lives, he was the very example of what he was calling others to do in his Name.   Jesus was not afraid to take off his clothing, wrap a towel around his waist, kneel down and wash the feet of the disciples.   Jesus reached out to the woman who wept at his feet, and dried them with her hair, and showed her that the mercy of God was greater than her social status and her sins.  Jesus saw the value of a tax collector called Matthew and invited him to be part of those who serve others so that God's Reign might be more present in the world.  Even though our sins put Jesus on the cross, he had the faith and selfless love to say: "Father, forgive them, they know not what they do."

As followers of Jesus Christ, we are called to see that our faith and service are inseparable from each other.  What we believe, needs to be visible by what we do.  All of us are redeemed by the Grace of God.  We have been invited to partake of the Presence of God in worship, prayer and Sacrament, but we are also empowered to be an example of Christ in our world.  In our jobs, families, communities and relationships.   This means that our prejudices and violent rhetoric that could serve to exclude and oppress others who are different from ourselves, is out of line with what Jesus calls us to in the Gospel today.

This past Friday, we celebrated Spirit Day, when we take a stand against bullying of LGBT youth.  Too many young people who are questioning their sexual orientation and/or gender identity/expression, find it so difficult to tell their families, friends, church community leaders and any one close to them.  This fear is not without its legitimacy.  In addition to these and many other challenges, they face being bullied for their actual sexual orientation and/or gender identity/expression, or even if they are perceived as LGBT.   While concerned parents and citizens seek to ask local school districts to create stronger policies addressing the bullying being experienced by LGBT youth, other individuals who call themselves Christians or even "true Christians" feel it is their duty to the "infallible Word of God" to allow bullying.   "If only they are bullied, the just might change or want to be changed."  Such is their attitudes.

Sexual orientation and/or gender identity/expression are not the only issues by which people are bullied.  People of different faith backgrounds, or no faith at all, individuals of different races, cultural backgrounds, physical/emotional and developmental challenges, wealth status etc are bullied by politicians, religious folks and common people every day.  Hard working, middle class people are being bullied by corporate CEO's to vote for the candidate that best supports their CEO's billion dollar profits.   Veterans who have fought in our wars and come home with injuries, PTSD and multiple issues are ignored by our political and social systems.   People who are poor and in need of local social services are losing the agencies they need, because the public dollars are being spent on billion dollar ad campaigns and so forth.  

Jesus invites us today, to see beyond the rhetoric of what it means to be a Christian.  He calls upon you and me to know that our discipleship is about being willing to see past our prejudices and see an opportunity to serve Christ in others.  Whether by our vote, our worship, our volunteer services or even our occupations, as Christians we have been given an example of inclusive and unconditional love in the Person of Jesus Christ.  Rather than look for the greatest of glory by being God's Son, Jesus "does not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, and being born in human likeness.  And being found in human form, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death--even death on a cross" (Philippians 2:6-8, NRSV). 

How is God calling us to be servants?  

How are we answering that call?

What might we do so that others may know that our faith and service are inseparable?

Amen.


Prayers

Almighty and everlasting God, in Christ you have revealed
your glory among the nations: Preserve the works of your
mercy, that your Church throughout the world may
persevere with steadfast faith in the confession of your
Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns
with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
Amen. (Proper 24, Book of Common Prayer, p. 235).


Lord Jesus Christ, you stretched out your arms of love on
the hard wood of the cross that everyone might come within
the reach of your saving embrace: So clothe us in your Spirit
that we, reaching forth our hands in love, may bring those
who do not know you to the knowledge and love of you; for
the honor of your Name. Amen. (Prayer for Mission, Book of Common Prayer, p. 101).


Look with pity, O heavenly Father, upon the people in this
land who live with injustice, terror, disease, and death as
their constant companions. Have mercy upon us. Help us to
eliminate our cruelty to these our neighbors. Strengthen those
who spend their lives establishing equal protection of the law
and equal opportunities for all. And grant that every one of
us may enjoy a fair portion of the riches of this land; through
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (Prayer for the Oppressed, Book of Common Prayer, p. 826).

Thirteenth Sunday after Pentecost: Bread and Word of Life: Not Violence or Prejudice

Today's Scripture Readings

Joshua 24:1-2a,14-18 (NRSV)

Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem, and summoned the elders, the heads, the judges, and the officers of Israel; and they presented themselves before God. And Joshua said to all the people, "Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel:

"Now therefore revere the LORD, and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness; put away the gods that your ancestors served beyond the River, and in Egypt, and serve the LORD. Now if you are unwilling to serve the LORD, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD."

Then the people answered, "Far be it from us that we should forsake the LORD to serve other gods; for it is the LORD our God who brought us and our ancestors up from the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, and who did those great signs in our sight. He protected us along all the way that we went, and among all the peoples through whom we passed; and the LORD drove out before us all the peoples, the Amorites who lived in the land. Therefore we also will serve the LORD, for he is our God."

Psalm 34 (BCP, p. 628)


Ephesians 6:10-20 (NRSV)

Be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his power. Put on the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For our struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to withstand on that evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. Stand therefore, and fasten the belt of truth around your waist, and put on the breastplate of righteousness. As shoes for your feet put on whatever will make you ready to proclaim the gospel of peace. With all of these, take the shield of faith, with which you will be able to quench all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

Pray in the Spirit at all times in every prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert and always persevere in supplication for all the saints. Pray also for me, so that when I speak, a message may be given to me to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it boldly, as I must speak.

John 6:56-69 (NRSV)
 

Jesus said, “Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me, and I in them. Just as the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever eats me will live because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like that which your ancestors ate, and they died. But the one who eats this bread will live forever." He said these things while he was teaching in the synagogue at Capernaum.

When many of his disciples heard it, they said, "This teaching is difficult; who can accept it?" But Jesus, being aware that his disciples were complaining about it, said to them, "Does this offend you? Then what if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before? It is the spirit that gives life; the flesh is useless. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life. But among you there are some who do not believe." For Jesus knew from the first who were the ones that did not believe, and who was the one that would betray him. And he said, "For this reason I have told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted by the Father."

Because of this many of his disciples turned back and no longer went about with him. So Jesus asked the twelve, "Do you also wish to go away?" Simon Peter answered him, "Lord, to whom can we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and know that you are the Holy One of God."

Blog Reflection

One of the joys of being a musician is the ability to read notes on a piece of music and turn them into a magnificent melody with the harmony.   To someone who does not read music, the notes and staffs, sharps and flats all look like ink blots on paper.  It takes a skilled musician to read the music and give it life so that it goes beyond just a beautiful piece played or sung.  It becomes a living medium that moves the heart and stirs the soul.

Over the past 20 years or so, Gregorian Chant has made a huge come back.  When the Benedictine Monks of Santo Domingo De Silos recorded their first Chant CD, they gave new life to something that was considered by many to be dead.   They breathed new life into the lives of many people, with those simple chanted melodies and phrases that moved people to cherish a tradition that is long removed from our own time.  Yet, somehow, it is all still with us.  It is because of the Bread of Life, that brings the words of everlasting life, to all who will take time to praise God in what ever time and situation we may find ourselves.

I do love the Holy Eucharist.  The day that I was finally convinced for myself that Jesus is really present in the consecrated Bread and Wine, was a moment of conversion for me.  I fell in love with the idea and practice of receiving Christ in Holy Communion and seeking God's grace to be nourished and strengthened by the Sacrament.  However, every day, I am challenged in my heart, mind and actions about how I make the real presence of Jesus real in my relationships with Jason and others.   That is why the Eucharist is so important to my own life.  Without it, I would not be able to keep my faith in Christ amidst the violence and prejudice I have experienced as a gay man, and/or as a gay man who is a Christian. 

In today's Gospel, Jesus again tells us that he is the bread of life.  He invites us to feast on himself so that God may abide in us, and we abide in God.   There are followers in his audience who just find this too much to take.   So they leave.  Jesus asks those who remain if they too want to leave.  Peter answers: "Lord, to whom can we go?  You have the words of eternal life."

What so many in our time are looking for, is for Christians to be an authentic example of the real presence of Christ. To give life and meaning to the Holy Communion we receive and the Word we listen to.  Unless Christians are ready and willing to surrender ourselves to the will of God, by accepting who we are, and agreeing to love others with openness and inclusiveness, Holy Communion is just a potluck supper, and the Word who is Jesus, is just another old world legend.   How can we call others to believe and love, what we ourselves do not practice in our daily lives?

Over these past two weeks we have seen the Christian Faith once again used as an excuse for violence and prejudice.  When an individual running for the US Senate suggests that when women are raped, their bodies are able to not get pregnant, and therefore laws should be made that affects a woman's ability to make the choice that is best for her, the Christian Faith becomes an offensive means of brutality.  When whole political parties, claiming to be following the Gospel are prepared to take health care away from seniors and the disabled because of the greed of Wall Street executives, the real presence of Christ in Holy Communion, becomes Sunday morning snack.  It was good to share it, but it really doesn't mean much.  When money and greed is more important than helping immigrants find a home where there is no racial profiling or degradation, the Gospel is just a story book, by which it's main character is dead.

Jesus, the Bread and Word of Life, calls us to authenticate the one whom we receive, by being who we are, the Body of Christ.  We are commanded by Jesus, to love one another as he loves us.   To give of ourselves, our time, resources and even sometimes just holding up in prayer, the marginalized and oppressed among us.   This means that we open ourselves to opposing harmful amendments that ban marriage equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people.  The Bread and Word of Life, does not condone, nor bless the work of ex-gay ministries or therapies that attempt to change a persons sexual orientation and/or gender identity/expression, because of violence and prejudice towards LGBT and Questioning people.  Jesus, does not laugh when young women and men attending middle, high school or college are bullied because of their sexual orientation and/or gender identity/expression.  Whether actual or perceived. 

When women, LGBT people, Muslims, Jews, Atheists, people of different races, cultures, classes and health are targeted and attacked socially and politically, Jesus weeps, because his message of salvation becomes moot and no longer lives and breaths among God's precious children.   No wonder people are losing interest.

The good news for us in 2012, is that Christians can still give meaning and authenticity to the message of the Gospel.  We can speak up on behalf of those stigmatized by radical religious and political groups.  We can act on the fact that voters are being suppressed all over the country with voter ID laws, by letting our governments know that we do not approve and we are prepared to do something to restore the right to vote. 

Jesus invites us to receive him in the Eucharist, and to remain with him, who has the words of eternal life, by seeking God at all times, and preferring nothing whatsoever to the love of Christ.  Hence, the two foundational pieces of the spirituality of St. Benedict.  We are asked today, to give life and meaning to our Baptismal Covenant, by working for peace and justice, and respecting the dignity of every human person, by standing up against violence and prejudice.  We can be people of radical hospitality and reconciliation, as we extend our hands in friendship and our hearts ready to receive and love others as Christ.

Let us all pray for one another to open our hearts to the Holy Spirit, and ask for her leadership so that we can receive and live the Bread and Word of Life.  

Lord, to whom can we go?  You have the words of eternal life.  May we be authentic examples of what we pray and receive in our lives.

Amen.


Prayers

Grant, O merciful God, that your Church, being gathered together in unity by your Holy Spirit, may show forth your power among all peoples, to the glory of your Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.  (Proper 16, Book of Common Prayer, p. 232).

Gracious Father, we pray for they holy Catholic Church. Fill it
with all truth, in all truth with all peace. Where it is corrupt,
purify it; where it is in error, direct it; where in any thing it is
amiss, reform it. Where it is right, strengthen it; where it is in
want, provide for it; where it is divided, reunite it; for the sake
of Jesus Christ thy Son our Savior. Amen.  (Prayer for the Church, Book of Common Prayer, p. 816).

Grant, O God, that your holy and life-giving Spirit may so
move every human heart [and especially the hearts of the
people of this land], that barriers which divide us may
crumble, suspicions disappear, and hatreds cease; that our
divisions being healed, we may live in justice and peace;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.  (Prayer for Social Justice, Book of Common Prayer, p. 823).

For All the Children....Vote No

Today is one of those days when I must share a work of God's grace that is so powerful, that I cannot keep it to myself. As many of you may know, Minnesota is facing a vote on limiting the freedom to marry to straight couples, effectively banning marriage equality for LGBT people. The effort to push this amendment is getting a lot of strength from the local Catholic Archbishop. A group of Catholic choral members with other faith allies, came together to record this beautiful song: For All the Children...Vote No. The message is powerful, the voices magnificent and the movement of the Holy Spirit very real. Please consider watching this powerful video and sharing it. Help it to go viral. The message of this video and those who sing, should be the message of all Christians for all the marginalized, by virtue of our Baptism. In the words of the music: May God's welcome, be our song.

Thursday of the Fourth Week in Lent: Finding God in the Midst of Injustice

Today's Scripture Readings

Exodus 32: 7-14 (NRSV)

The Lord said to Moses, ‘Go down at once! Your people, whom you brought up out of the land of Egypt, have acted perversely; they have been quick to turn aside from the way that I commanded them; they have cast for themselves an image of a calf, and have worshipped it and sacrificed to it, and said, “These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!” ’ The Lord said to Moses, ‘I have seen this people, how stiff-necked they are. Now let me alone, so that my wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them; and of you I will make a great nation.’

But Moses implored the Lord his God, and said, ‘O Lord, why does your wrath burn hot against your people, whom you brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? Why should the Egyptians say, “It was with evil intent that he brought them out to kill them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth”? Turn from your fierce wrath; change your mind and do not bring disaster on your people. Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, your servants, how you swore to them by your own self, saying to them, “I will multiply your descendants like the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have promised I will give to your descendants, and they shall inherit it for ever.” ’ And the Lord changed his mind about the disaster that he planned to bring on his people. 

John 5: 30-47 (NRSV)

‘I can do nothing on my own. As I hear, I judge; and my judgement is just, because I seek to do not my own will but the will of him who sent me.

‘If I testify about myself, my testimony is not true. There is another who testifies on my behalf, and I know that his testimony to me is true. You sent messengers to John, and he testified to the truth. Not that I accept such human testimony, but I say these things so that you may be saved. He was a burning and shining lamp, and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light. But I have a testimony greater than John’s. The works that the Father has given me to complete, the very works that I am doing, testify on my behalf that the Father has sent me. And the Father who sent me has himself testified on my behalf. You have never heard his voice or seen his form, and you do not have his word abiding in you, because you do not believe him whom he has sent.

‘You search the scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that testify on my behalf. Yet you refuse to come to me to have life. I do not accept glory from human beings. But I know that you do not have the love of God in you. I have come in my Father’s name, and you do not accept me; if another comes in his own name, you will accept him. How can you believe when you accept glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the one who alone is God? Do not think that I will accuse you before the Father; your accuser is Moses, on whom you have set your hope. If you believed Moses, you would believe me, for he wrote about me. But if you do not believe what he wrote, how will you believe what I say?’ 

Blog Reflection

The news today is bursting at the seams over the murder of Trayvon Martin.  A 17 year old, African American who was doing nothing more than walking home, when George Zimmerman shot him.  His community, family and folks all across the nation are outraged by the failure of the Sanford City Police Department to appropriately apprehend the suspect.   Martin's parents are calling for justice for their son.  Rightly so, this issue has brought to light the issue of racism, and the dangers that exist for African American's in our country.  Clearly, something has gone terribly wrong.

It appears from Exodus that something had gone wrong.  The Israelites who had been brought out of the land of Egypt by God's strong arm, created for themselves a golden calf and began to worship it.  All of this is happening as Moses is up on Mount Sinai receiving from God the Commandments by which the people are to live.  God is enraged that God's people would forget God's mighty acts and make for themselves a graven image to worship and sacrifice to, in the place of the Almighty Yahweh.  Moses pleads to God on behalf of the people, to not destroy them, suggesting that God's reputation is on the line if God does something so evil.  I love what happens here.  God changes God's mind.  

We must remember that the accounts of God in the Hebrew Scriptures as well as in the New Testament are written from a human perspective. The events were written down only after they had been passed on orally for thousands of years.  Our perspective is very limited.  And, we are so far removed from that generation of people. 

The message that is here for us, is that when we take our minds and hearts off of the God who loves and provides for us, we can give ourselves over to evils and ways that infect us. They blind our sense of God and we stop paying attention to the needs of those around us. Our behavior becomes destructive and we lose sight of what is really important. Our God has given so much for us to love and enjoy. When our physical and spiritual vision no longer sees that, we are no longer worshiping God through our daily lives.  Instead, we worship things, problems and everything becomes too big for us.

I do believe in many ways that is what is wrong with the Trayvon Martin matter.  When we take our eyes off of recognizing God's creation that gives dignity to every human person, suddenly someone's race, sexual orientation and/or gender expression, etc becomes our god.   We have to take control of it.  We have to make an "other" out of it.  Whatever, we do, we must take a stand and even wipe it out. 

So many of us who are white have gotten so use to thinking things that are completely inappropriate about people of different races.   The language we hear through the 911 recording of George Zimmerman calling in this incident should wake all of us up.  He was labeling Trayvon as a possible drug user, dangerous, but most importantly, he was black.  Too many times, we take another person's race and from there, we make presumptions about their activities, their behaviors and make them a target without any thought what so ever to what we are doing.  We may not shoot someone down in cold blood, but how many of us have had a conversation about another person's character, and made certain judgments about that person based on race, sexual orientation etc?  

In our Gospel today, Jesus is in a conflict with people around him, who are unbelievers.  They are people who see things happening in front of them, but they are not convinced.   Jesus has just finished telling them about the coming resurrection.  Now he is telling his audience about how he cannot do anything on his own and about his testimony.  Jesus claims oneness with God, yet he is not the Father.  God testifies on behalf of the Son.

In the last part of this Gospel, Jesus says something that I think many who read the Bible literally should pay very close attention to. 

"‘You search the scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that testify on my behalf. Yet you refuse to come to me to have life. I do not accept glory from human beings. But I know that you do not have the love of God in you. I have come in my Father’s name, and you do not accept me; if another comes in his own name, you will accept him.'"

It is not by the Scriptures alone that we will find salvation in Jesus Christ.  It is through hope in God through Jesus Christ that we can believe in the promise of eternal life.  

It is very important to be careful with John's Gospel here.  The point is not anti-Semitism.  There is a lot of evidence to suggest that the Gospel of John was not written by the Apostle and Evangelist himself.  But, was written by the Johannine's.   There is even the possibility that it was a combination of things the Johannine's wrote about the same stories, and then they were all put together in one book.   "The expression "the Jews" (which should not be understood as a condemnation of Jews in particular or in general) virtually becomes a technical term for those who reject Jesus." (New Oxford Annotated, New Revised Standard Version, New Testament, p. 124).

Jesus challenges us to see God's presence in the work that he is doing.  Jesus has been drawing criticism, because he dared to associate with a Samaritan woman (See John 4).   He has crossed the lines of cultures and gender associations to bring those outcast by society closer to the heart of God.  God is in the midst of injustice and division, bringing inclusion and unity to welcome through hospitality and reconcile through healing and mercy.

As we are all kind of consumed by the injustice of what happened to Trayvon Martin, we are asked to find God working through the injustice of the situation.  God never endorses violence as a way to solve anything.  God is in the middle of it, communicating to us if we will listen.  

People are coming together to express concern about what happened.  We are seeing people of many different races and backgrounds raising their voices in outrage and calling for justice for not only Trayvon, but also anyone who has to fear what might happen to them, the next time they are walking peacefully down a sidewalk.   People are recognizing that what happened to Trayvon is about what can happen to any of our children.

Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people know all too well about youth being bullied in our schools, communities and even their own families.  To ignore these things and allow them to go unacknowledged, only lets them to get out of hand.  It is our business to speak up in the face of injustice and oppression and be the voice of reason, when people irrationally invoke violence as a means for dealing with prejudice in our communities.  Christians have the message of hope and salvation in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.  All scapegoating and stereotyping stops there.   Any prejudice that becomes violence done, using the Cross as it's excuse, is a counterfeit Christianity.

As we have only two weeks left before Holy Week, let us ask God to help us to see and hear God working in the midst of injustice.  May we seek to be God's peace makers in the times we live in.  May we be part of the solution, by choosing love and inclusion as our way and purpose for what we do.


Prayers

Almighty and most merciful God, drive from us all weakness of body, mind and spirit; that, being restored to wholeness, we may with free hearts become what you intend us to be and accomplish what you want us to do; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen (Thursday of the Fourth Week in Lent.  Holy Women, Holy Men, Celebrating the Saints, p. 57)

Almighty and everlasting God, you hate nothing you have
made and forgive the sins of all who are penitent: Create and
make in us new and contrite hearts, that we, worthily
lamenting our sins and acknowledging our wretchedness,
may obtain of you, the God of all mercy, perfect remission
and forgiveness; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives
and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever
and ever. Amen.  (Collect for Ash Wednesday, Book of Common Prayer, p. 217).

O God, you made us in your own image and redeemed us
through Jesus your Son: Look with compassion on the whole
human family; take away the arrogance and hatred which
infect our hearts; break down the walls that separate us;
unite us in bonds of love; and work through our struggle and
confusion to accomplish your purposes on earth; that, in
your good time, all nations and races may serve you in
harmony around your heavenly throne; through Jesus Christ
our Lord. Amen. (Prayer for the Human Family, Book of Common Prayer, p. 815).  

Friday of the Third Week in Lent: The Cross is About Love

Today's Scripture Readings

Hosea 14: 1-9 (NRSV)

Return, O Israel, to the Lord your God,
   for you have stumbled because of your iniquity.
Take words with you
   and return to the Lord;
say to him,
   ‘Take away all guilt;
accept that which is good,
   and we will offer
   the fruit of our lips.
Assyria shall not save us;
   we will not ride upon horses;
we will say no more, “Our God”,
   to the work of our hands.
In you the orphan finds mercy.’


I will heal their disloyalty;
   I will love them freely,
   for my anger has turned from them.
I will be like the dew to Israel;
   he shall blossom like the lily,
   he shall strike root like the forests of Lebanon.
His shoots shall spread out;
   his beauty shall be like the olive tree,
   and his fragrance like that of Lebanon.
They shall again live beneath my shadow,
   they shall flourish as a garden;
they shall blossom like the vine,
   their fragrance shall be like the wine of Lebanon.

O Ephraim, what have I to do with idols?
   It is I who answer and look after you.
I am like an evergreen cypress;
   your faithfulness comes from me.
Those who are wise understand these things;
   those who are discerning know them.
For the ways of the Lord are right,
   and the upright walk in them,
   but transgressors stumble in them.

Mark 12: 28-34 (NRSV)

One of the scribes came near and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, he asked him, ‘Which commandment is the first of all?’ Jesus answered, ‘The first is, “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one; you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.” The second is this, “You shall love your neighbour as yourself.” There is no other commandment greater than these.’ Then the scribe said to him, ‘You are right, Teacher; you have truly said that “he is one, and besides him there is no other”; and “to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the strength”, and “to love one’s neighbour as oneself”,—this is much more important than all whole burnt-offerings and sacrifices.’ When Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, ‘You are not far from the kingdom of God.’ After that no one dared to ask him any question. 

Blog Reflection

If you have ever read any kind of book about sexuality, you will find that the chapter about love is the one that author have the most difficult time writing about. Love is something that has it's objective meanings, but also has subjective origins.  In love we can say how much we love another person. Yet, there is always that part of ourselves that doesn't love the other in quite the way we would like to. We really should make more time for that someone we are avoiding, but our work stuff, our taking care of our homes, churches, doing our activism always gets in our way.  We have been meaning to call our long time friend, but every time we sit down to dial the number, someone else calls us or we read something on the internet and we have put the other person off again.

Among the things to understand about God's love is that we are "the apple of God's eye's." (Psalm 17: 8).  Each of us is some one that God loves very personally and deeply.  Yet, God loves us in the same way a Parent loves all her/his children.  Each of us is loved and provided for by God.  As a Parent who seeks the very best for us, God also challenges us to love God and others with the same love, with which God loves each of us.  A love by which God is the apple of our eye.  A love for our neighbor, because God is present in her/him. We would not dream of offending and/or hurting that person so as to violate the love of God or the dignity of the other person.

Our problem is that we live in a world where love is based on conditions.  Wealth, race, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity/expression, ethnic origin, language, etc.  These and others I could name have become reasons for withholding and in some cases excuses for offending and denigrating the dignity of another person.  There is this kind of "you don't measure up" so we have a reason to treat and think of others different than ourselves, so as to justify ourselves for not thinking about what we might be saying or doing.  In some instances, we even use Bible verses violently to back ourselves up.

Last year, while at Creating Change 2011, I attended a workshop that addressed how non-white individuals see those of us who are, by way of the things we say and/or do.  It is so easy to think that our best of intentions are enough to give an individual of another race a view that we don't see them as different from ourselves. Except for one problem. We do not see ourselves from their point of view.  Their world view is different from ours. Their perspective on what is a racially biased behavior and/or comment.  For example, there are many who will say: "I am a white person, with black friends. I don't have a race problem."  When this is said by a person who is white, it means something very different to that individual, than it would for a non-white person to hear what was said.

The anger that has risen over these last few weeks about the attacks on women, and their rights to reproductive health care including contraception, from a male's view of the world, seems pretty foolish.  However, the world as we have it, has always put a man's perspective ahead of a woman's.  Hidden in there is a kind of "women should be grateful for all that we have provided for them."  But, men are not women.  Men do not face the consequences of an unplanned for pregnancy on their personal bodies, or future.  That is why Sandra Fluke's testimony is so important.  It helps men like me, be able to see the issue from where she is.  Because of her courage and excellent understanding of the issue, she is able to help men understand, even from a very limited point of reference, that a woman's reproductive health care is no political game chip.  We are talking about real women, who face real living consequences to their over all health and future when we subjugate their reproductive health care to the legislative actions of male privilege.

As a gay man, I can tell you that when I read or hear a comment such as: "Gays are after your children to recruit them"  it hurts in more ways that can be understood by heterosexual people.  It basically says that because I love my partner, I am now a danger to a child.  Especially one who suddenly finds out he might be gay and is looking to confide in another gay person to better understand himself.  That means that I now have to take every personal precaution, should I ever be approached by a questioning youth, as to what legal or personal consequences I could face if I advocated on a gay youths behalf.   I am someone that struggled intensely with my sexual orientation and my Faith.  When I hear of other gay youth struggling and/or committing suicide because of bullying and/or rejection in their schools, homes, churches and communities; I thank God that I had good people to inspire me.  A great man such as Bishop Gene Robinson and many more.  A Catholic Priest who told me to "love other people in the way God created you to love them."

Lent is a season to bring us to the Cross.  We are brought to the Cross as we look upon Jesus, hanging there in pain and bleeding so badly, out of love for all of us.   He faces every pain, every insult, rejection and injustice with love for all of us.  He hangs there on the Cross, while each of us are still the apple of God's eyes.  There is no one person who is rejected in God's love, nor subjugated to oppression, fear or hopelessness as Jesus dies for our sins.  In Jesus, God shows us that total love of God, neighbor and self is possible, even when it seems impossible.  All are lovable at the Cross.  Everyone of us receives a prayer for forgiveness from Jesus, who recognizes our helplessness and feelings of vulnerability to forces more powerful than our own.

A great Priest once told me to stop looking at myself through the eyes of the world, but to see myself through God's eyes.  To see that God sees in me, God's beloved, with whom God is well-pleased.  God sees me (and all of us) as a perfect masterpiece of God's creative design.  In those places where we are not so prefect, God sent Jesus to take upon God's Self our human condition with all of our sins, grief, despair and disappointments.  At the Cross, God shows us that out of sacrificial and self-giving love, death will meet it's match at the resurrection.

Do we see the Cross as the point at which God loves us unconditionally and all-inclusively?

Do we see ourselves masterpieces of God's creation?

Do we know ourselves as people redeemed by the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ on the Cross?

How might we seek God's love so that we love others as Jesus loves each of us?

Where do we see ourselves in the Good Friday and Easter Day stories?


Prayers

Grant us, O Lord our Strength, a true love of your holy Name; so that, trusting in your grace, we may fear no earthly evil, nor fix our hearts on earthly goods, but may rejoice in your full salvation; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. (Friday in the Third Week of Lent. Holy Women, Holy Men, Celebrating the Saints, p. 52).

Almighty and everlasting God, you hate nothing you have
made and forgive the sins of all who are penitent: Create and
make in us new and contrite hearts, that we, worthily
lamenting our sins and acknowledging our wretchedness,
may obtain of you, the God of all mercy, perfect remission
and forgiveness; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives
and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever
and ever. Amen.  (Collect for Ash Wednesday, Book of Common Prayer, p. 217).

Lord Jesus Christ, who didst stretch out thine arms of love
on the hard wood of the cross that everyone might come
within the reach of thy saving embrace: So clothe us in thy
Spirit that we, reaching forth our hands in love, may bring
those who do not know thee to the knowledge and love of
you; for the honor of thy Name.  Amen.  (Prayer for Mission, Book of Common Prayer, p. 58).