Second Sunday in Lent: Take Up the Cross by Letting Go

Today's Readings

Genesis 17:1-7, 15-16 (NRSV)

When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said to him, "I am God Almighty; walk before me, and be blameless. And I will make my covenant between me and you, and will make you exceedingly numerous." Then Abram fell on his face; and God said to him, "As for me, this is my covenant with you: You shall be the ancestor of a multitude of nations. No longer shall your name be Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you the ancestor of a multitude of nations. I will make you exceedingly fruitful; and I will make nations of you, and kings shall come from you. I will establish my covenant between me and you, and your offspring after you throughout their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your offspring after you."


God said to Abraham, "As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name. I will bless her, and moreover I will give you a son by her. I will bless her, and she shall give rise to nations; kings of peoples shall come from her."

Psalm 22:22-30 (BCP., p.611)


Romans 4:13-25 (NRSV)
 

The promise that he would inherit the world did not come to Abraham or to his descendants through the law but through the righteousness of faith. If it is the adherents of the law who are to be the heirs, faith is null and the promise is void. For the law brings wrath; but where there is no law, neither is there violation.

For this reason it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his descendants, not only to the adherents of the law but also to those who share the faith of Abraham (for he is the father of all of us, as it is written, "I have made you the father of many nations") -- in the presence of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist. Hoping against hope, he believed that he would become "the father of many nations," according to what was said, "So numerous shall your descendants be." He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was already as good as dead (for he was about a hundred years old), or when he considered the barrenness of Sarah's womb. No distrust made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, being fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised. Therefore his faith "was reckoned to him as righteousness." Now the words, "it was reckoned to him," were written not for his sake alone, but for ours also. It will be reckoned to us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead, who was handed over to death for our trespasses and was raised for our justification.

Mark 8:31-38 (NRSV)

Then Jesus began to teach his disciples that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. He said all this quite openly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, "Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things."

He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, "If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it. For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life? Indeed, what can they give in return for their life? Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels."

Blog Reflection 

Why do we Christians even need the Season of Lent?  We go to our churches, pray, participate in coffee hour right after a Worship Service, go to Shrove Tuesday, and Ash Wednesday, attend Holy Week services, etc.  We are good Christian people.  Why do this thing called Lent every year? 

I would like you to join me in an exercise.  Immediately after you read this blog post, turn off your computer or phone.  Ignore that "ding" that just let you know you have another email waiting for you.  Try walking away from your IPad, or better yet, forget where you left it and not go into a panic because you can't find it.  Let's say you can't detach yourself from your phone or pad, try paying no attention to how many notifications you have on your Facebook wall.  Ask yourself if it does not bother you that you are ignoring the notifications on Facebook or Twitter.

In the last week, I know of a man who works in tech support.  His company ran into a problem in which no one in the entire corporation could get into their computer or account.  Not even the help desk staff.  Before the first hour was up, there were over 100 calls in the queue of angry company employees who could not get into their email, do their projects or sales information, etc.  As of this week, the help desk staff are still clearing all the repair tickets from the fall out.

The reason we need the Season of Lent, is because of how easy it is for all of us, myself including to put things like our computers, cars, television sets, food, drink, moods, addictions and behaviors of all kinds between us and our relationships with God and others around us.  We yelled at our spouse because our computer crashed.  We cry over a work project lost because of the Windows Update.  Think you have "detached" yourselves from most possessions, but not your computer?  What happens to you the next time you get a flat tire, or someone scratches the door of your car?   How do you talk with others around you after a representative at a customer service call center does her/his job and you just can't stand them telling you that they cannot help you?   Someone sat in your favorite pew in church, which means you have to find a new place to sit.  How do you respond or do you react?

The point is, all of us have something to work on.  We are all human.  No one of us is perfect, no matter how diligently we try.  What is right in our behavior is all wrong in our attitude.  What seems to be going well on the surface, has an undercurrent that is in a lot of turmoil.  We say yes, when in our hearts we are shouting no.  We are all get wrapped up in ourselves at one time or another.

Lent is God's gift to us to tell us that the Christian life is not about being perfect as in a perfectionist.  Lent is about accepting the reality of who and what we are, and to continue letting it go.  When we talk about obedience in the Monastic tradition, we are not talking about doing what is asked for the sake of itself.  St. Benedict says, "Listen, incline the ears of your heart." (Prologue. The Rule of St. Benedict, vs. 1).  Obedience is about listening from the whole of ourselves so that we can discern how we will respond to what God asks of us through our Superior.  We cannot listen and know what we are to be obedient to without taking some time in solitude and silence.  Obedience in the Benedictine Monastic Tradition is about responding out of love.  The love we respond with is what is referred to in 1 John 4:18 which reads, "There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear; for fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not reached perfection in love."    

Jesus invites all of us this Lent to take up our cross by letting go.   To "deny ourselves" is to let go our false-sense of self, and live from our essence in union with God's Essence in which we find our true self.  In our false self is our prejudices, fears, self-absorption that hangs on to all those wounds, our anger, possessiveness and more.  In seeking union with God's Essence within our own essence, we accept all that is contained within our false self and we learn to practice the spiritual art of letting it go.  We accept that we fail, that we have issues with those around us who are different from ourselves, that we are affected by our arrogance and perfectionism.  We simply let go of all of that, and walk on carrying the cross out of love and obedience of what God asks of us in the here and now.  We accept that we cannot do any of this on our own.   St. Benedict wrote in The Rule, "What is not possible for us by nature, let us ask the Lord to supply by the help of his grace." (Prologue, vs. 41).

One of those things God asks of us, is to respond in love to the needs of the marginalized in the Church and society.  Our Baptismal Vows are a promise to live more deeply into our mission as Christians in a world in which the love of God, neighbor and self has become a matter of convenience.  If upholding the dignity of every human person does not work for us because we will acquire enemies inside and outside of the Church; then we can simply not do it.  If it takes us too close to the cross and we just can't let it go; then we simply ignore it and pretend it doesn't hurt anyone else but us.  This kind of thing is so contrary to what it means to deny ourselves and take up our cross to follow Jesus.

Why do we need Lent?

That is what God wants to talk with us about this Lent.

Are we really ready to listen and respond out of love?  

Amen.


Prayers

O God, whose glory it is always to have mercy: Be gracious
to all who have gone astray from your ways, and bring them
again with penitent hearts and steadfast faith to embrace and
hold fast the unchangeable truth of your Word, Jesus Christ
your Son; who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.  (Collect for the Second Sunday in Lent.  The Book of Common Prayer, p. 218).

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.  (The Book of Common Prayer, p.101).

The Presentation of Our Lord Jesus Christ in the Temple: Humility, Prophecy, Obedience

Today's Scripture Readings

Malachi 3:1-4 (NRSV)

Thus says the Lord, See, I am sending my messenger to prepare the way before me, and the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple. The messenger of the covenant in whom you delight-- indeed, he is coming, says the LORD of hosts. But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears?

For he is like a refiner's fire and like fullers' soap; he will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the descendants of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, until they present offerings to the LORD in righteousness. Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the LORD as in the days of old and as in former years.

Psalm 84 (BCP., p.707)


Hebrews 2:14-18 (NRSV)

Since God's children share flesh and blood, Jesus himself likewise shared the same things, so that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by the fear of death. For it is clear that he did not come to help angels, but the descendants of Abraham. Therefore he had to become like his brothers and sisters in every respect, so that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make a sacrifice of atonement for the sins of the people. Because he himself was tested by what he suffered, he is able to help those who are being tested.

Luke 2:22-40 (NRSV)

When the time came for their purification according to the law of Moses, the parents of Jesus brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord (as it is written in the law of the Lord, "Every firstborn male shall be designated as holy to the Lord"), and they offered a sacrifice according to what is stated in the law of the Lord, "a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons."

Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; this man was righteous and devout, looking forward to the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit rested on him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Messiah. Guided by the Spirit, Simeon came into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him what was customary under the law, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying,

"Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace,

according to your word;

for my eyes have seen your salvation,

which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples,

a light for revelation to the Gentiles

and for glory to your people Israel."

And the child's father and mother were amazed at what was being said about him. Then Simeon blessed them and said to his mother Mary, "This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed-- and a sword will pierce your own soul too."

There was also a prophet, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was of a great age, having lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, then as a widow to the age of eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshiped there with fasting and prayer night and day. At that moment she came, and began to praise God and to speak about the child to all who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem.

When they had finished everything required by the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth. The child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the favor of God was upon him.

Blog Reflection

The Feast of the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple has always been a significant one for me.  I was first introduced to this glorious Feast at Glastonbury Abbey in Hingham, Massachusetts in 1994.  The Benedictine Monks there observe The Presentation with an actual Candle Mass of lit candles as part of the celebration of the Eucharist.  The candles symbolize the Light of Christ that comes to the House of God in obedience, humility and prophesy.  The experience is similar to what many Christians will celebrate at the Great Vigil of Easter when the new Baptismal Candle enters the church.  The light that came into the world, brings with Him a new era.  The darkness of sin is extinguished by the Light that is Christ by His death and resurrection.   We celebrate the Light of Christ's Redemption in the Paschal Mystery, and participate in it, through the waters of Baptism.   Hence the commitment of Christians to live in that Light of the Easter event, because of God's grace through Christ

One of the meanings of the Presentation is to recognize that we are now between the Nativity at Christmas, and Ash Wednesday the beginning of Lent.   Here the two meanings of the coming of Christ as the Word made flesh, from the cradle to the cross find their crossover point.  

There are three main points about the Presentation of Christ in the temple that have meaning for our spiritual lives.  They are humility, obedience and prophecy.   Mary, Joseph and Jesus fulfill these by their humble submission to the law of Moses, and is confirmed through the Prophets Simeon and Anna.

In this 21st Century, the very idea of humility and obedience seem archaic, useless and things of the past.  However, the necessity of them could not be more real.

In humility, we acknowledge that we are not an entity unto ourselves.  Nor can we save ourselves without God's help.  Mary, Joseph and Jesus come to the Temple in humility, recognizing their humanity, and need for the God of their salvation.  We too, must return again and again to the God who has redeemed us in Christ, confess our sins, and accept God's mercy.   We cannot do this if we cling to a false sense of self.   Humility means we accept that God is God, and we are not.  Our true selves are found in Christ, who humbled Himself to the point of death on the Cross. (See Philippians 2:1-11).

Obedience says that we respond to God's mercy, by placing ourselves in God's hands, and serve others in the Name of Christ.  The humility of Jesus was such that the God who created us, became one like us in all things, yet did not sin, became a servant of all of us.  Even those of us who will not get up and wash our neighbors feet, or accept others who are different from ourselves.  The humility and obedience of Jesus, is our example of how to love one another, and be reminded that none of us are really above anyone else in any way.  We are all sinners, saved by God's grace.  In faith, our response needs to be one of obedience.

Lastly, is prophesy.  The Prophets Simeon and Anna greet Christ, recognizing that He is the hope that they have been awaiting.   As they both declare to have received the answer to their prayers, they also prepare Christ for the fulfillment of His life.   He has come to be the rise and fall of many.  He is the Light revealed to the nations, as God's perfect revelation of Self.   He has come to set free the marginalized, the oppressed and to give a sense of purpose to those who are left on the sidelines to fend for themselves.  Jesus has come as God's love embodied in the human person; living, serving and dying.   In God's revelation that there is no such thing as one so lost, that God is not concerned or reaching out for us.

These past couple of months and weeks, Christians have been called to a new era of humility, obedience and prophecy.  The momentous event of the ordination of the Rt. Libby Lane that continues the movement of women becoming more active in the ministry and leadership of the Church; suggests that God is calling us in humility, to be obedient and to be prophetic witnesses for an evolving faith.   

 

The violence that continues because of sexism, racism, heterosexism, gender discrimination; as well as those who are poor, sick, lonely, discouraged and/or live with mental illness; are symptoms of a deeper problem.  It is a problem of self acceptance, and a willingness to not only tolerate, but to accept and work towards living in peace with others who are different from ourselves.  It is a work we must give ourselves to in humility, and loving obedience as prophetic witnesses for a Christianity that is ever changing and continually renewing itself with each generation.

Humility, obedience and prophecy on this Presentation of Christ in the Temple, calls on us to see the Light of Christ in others around us.   To honor Christ's presence and to serve others in His Holy Name.  Without distinction, exception or excuse.   After all, which one of us is truly worthy of God's love in Christ?   Which one of us is so humble and obedient to not need God's grace to save us, so that we have the hope of everlasting life?    Therefore, who are we to withhold it from others?

Amen.


Prayers

Almighty and everliving God, we humbly pray that, as your
only-begotten Son was this day presented in the temple, so
we may be presented to you with pure and clean hearts by
Jesus Christ our Lord; who lives and reigns with you and the
Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.  (The Book of Common Prayer, p.239).

O God, who wonderfully created, and yet more wonderfully
restored, the dignity of human nature: Grant that we may
share the divine life of him who humbled himself to share our
humanity, your Son Jesus Christ; who lives and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. (The Book of Common Prayer, p.252).

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.  (The Book of Common Prayer, p.260).

Third Sunday After The Epiphany: Jesus Calls and Loves Us Where We Are

Today's Scripture Readings

Jonah 3:1-5, 10 (NRSV)

The word of the LORD came to Jonah a second time, saying, "Get up, go to Nineveh, that great city, and proclaim to it the message that I tell you." So Jonah set out and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the LORD. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly large city, a three days' walk across. Jonah began to go into the city, going a day's walk. And he cried out, "Forty days more, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!" And the people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast, and everyone, great and small, put on sackcloth.

When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil ways, God changed his mind about the calamity that he had said he would bring upon them; and he did not do.

Psalm 62 (BCP., p.669)


1 Corinthians 7:29-31 (NRSV)

I mean, brothers and sisters, the appointed time has grown short; from now on, let even those who have wives be as though they had none, and those who mourn as though they were not mourning, and those who rejoice as though they were not rejoicing, and those who buy as though they had no possessions, and those who deal with the world as though they had no dealings with it. For the present form of this world is passing away.

Mark 1:14-20 (NRSV)

Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God, and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news."

As Jesus passed along the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the sea-- for they were fishermen. And Jesus said to them, "Follow me and I will make you fish for people." And immediately they left their nets and followed him. As he went a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John, who were in their boat mending the nets. Immediately he called them; and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men, and followed him.

Blog Reflection

I often wonder what score those first disciples would have gotten on their General Ordination Exams (GOE).  Who would their facilitators been?  Even more so, who would have been on their discernment committees?   Who would their Formation Masters have been?  If a church body were able to determine their suitability for ministry, what kind of criteria would be used?  What might the Church look like today if a Vocation's Director decided that Peter or John were not qualified to be Apostles?

The readings for today are all about God calling us.  God called Jonah to go to the people of Nineveh.  Paul tells us to go on our way as if we have nothing.  Jesus calls those first disciples from where they are.  In Mark's Gospel, this narrative does not go one with the endless names.  It just gives a few names and says they left what they had in hand and followed Jesus.  It sounds to me like Mark doesn't want to waste any time.

God calls us where we are, because God loves us where we are in Jesus.  Jesus was God's prefect revelation in the human person.  All of our human limitations, potential and promise came to us infused by the Divine Presence in God's Anointed One.  "All the fullness of God's Divinity was pleased to dwell" (see Colossians 1:19) in our humanity in Jesus who came to love us where we are, and call us to do God's work in obedience to God's will in the here and now.  The obstacles we face in our lives including the labels others place upon us, along with whatever our history may say about us; prevent God from bringing us where God wants us, only if we put ourselves in God's way.

Though I am a Monk in training, there are so many ways in which I fail to be obedient, or agree to conversion of my manners, and evade God through instability.  God does not ask me (or anyone) to always succeed.  All God asks of us is to be faithful in responding to Jesus who loves us and calls us from where we are.  The way to holiness of heart and life is through allowing God to love us in the midst of our pain, disobedience and confusion and bring about God's healing and reconciliation in our lives and those around us.  In The Rule of St. Benedict at the end of Chapter 4 On the Tools of Good Works, he writes: "never despair of God's mercy." 

God calls us without discriminating against our gender, race, culture, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, health condition, disability, language or for any other reason.  It is we who discriminate against ourselves and/or one another.  Each of us are called and loved by Jesus to do in this moment, in this vocation and doing this work what the Holy Spirit empowers us to do.  Whether that vocation is ordained ministry, parents, spouses, manual labor, religious life, lay people, teaching, social justice work and/or administration.  This list is hardly comprehensive.  I have left out a vocation that someone is being called to right now.

Are we listening for God to call us right here and now?

What are we ready to set aside to follow the God who loves us and calls us "by name"?  (See Isaiah 43:1b).

What do we hear God calling us to in the depths of our hearts?

Jesus is calling each of us to let Him love us here where we are.   The sky is the limit with the possibilities that are before us if we accept the love and call of Jesus.  

What will your answer be?

O Jesus, joy of loving hearts,
the fount of life and our true light,
we seek the peace your love imparts,
and stand rejoicing in your sight.
(Hymnal 1980 #649).

Prayers

Give us grace, O Lord, to answer readily the call of our
Savior Jesus Christ and proclaim to all people the Good News
of his salvation, that we and the whole world may perceive
the glory of his marvelous works; who lives and reigns with
you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.  (Collect for the Third Sunday After the Epiphany.  The Book of Common Prayer, p. 215).

Almighty and everlasting God, by whose Spirit the whole
body of your faithful people is governed and sanctified:
Receive our supplications and prayers which we offer before
you for all members of your holy Church, that in their
vocation and ministry they may truly and devoutly serve you;
through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.  (Prayer for Mission, The Book of Common Prayer, p.100).

Almighty Father, whose blessed Son before his passion prayed
for his disciples that they might be one, as you and he are one:
Grant that your Church, being bound together in love and
obedience to you, may be united in one body by the one Spirit,
that the world may believe in him whom you have sent, your
Son Jesus Christ our Lord; who lives and reigns with you, in
the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.  (Prayer for the Unity of the Church, The Book of Common Prayer, p.255).

Sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost: Living Our Faith from the Heart

Today's Scripture Readings

Exodus 17:1-7 (NRSV)

From the wilderness of Sin the whole congregation of the Israelites journeyed by stages, as the Lord commanded. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. The people quarreled with Moses, and said, "Give us water to drink." Moses said to them, "Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you test the Lord?" But the people thirsted there for water; and the people complained against Moses and said, "Why did you bring us out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and livestock with thirst?" So Moses cried out to the Lord, "What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me." The Lord said to Moses, "Go on ahead of the people, and take some of the elders of Israel with you; take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. I will be standing there in front of you on the rock at Horeb. Strike the rock, and water will come out of it, so that the people may drink." Moses did so, in the sight of the elders of Israel. He called the place Massah and Meribah, because the Israelites quarreled and tested the Lord, saying, "Is the Lord among us or not?"

Psalm 78:1-4, 12-16 (BCP., p.694)


Philippians 2:1-13 (NRSV)

If then there is any encouragement in Christ, any consolation from love, any sharing in the Spirit, any compassion and sympathy, make my joy complete: be of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves. Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others. Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus,

who, though he was in the form of God,

did not regard equality with God

as something to be exploited,

but emptied himself,

taking the form of a slave,

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.

Therefore God also highly exalted him

and gave him the name

that is above every name,

so that at the name of Jesus

every knee should bend,

in heaven and on earth and under the earth,

and every tongue should confess

that Jesus Christ is Lord,

to the glory of God the Father.

Therefore, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed me, not only in my presence, but much more now in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for his good pleasure.

Matthew 21:23-32 (NRSV)

When Jesus entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him as he was teaching, and said, "By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?" Jesus said to them, "I will also ask you one question; if you tell me the answer, then I will also tell you by what authority I do these things. Did the baptism of John come from heaven, or was it of human origin?" And they argued with one another, "If we say, `From heaven,' he will say to us, `Why then did you not believe him?' But if we say, `Of human origin,' we are afraid of the crowd; for all regard John as a prophet." So they answered Jesus, "We do not know." And he said to them, "Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.

"What do you think? A man had two sons; he went to the first and said, `Son, go and work in the vineyard today.' He answered, `I will not'; but later he changed his mind and went. The father went to the second and said the same; and he answered, `I go, sir'; but he did not go. Which of the two did the will of his father?" They said, "The first." Jesus said to them, "Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are going into the kingdom of God ahead of you. For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes believed him; and even after you saw it, you did not change your minds and believe him."

Blog Reflection

I am going to be blunt in this blog post.  We Christians can be among the most selfish of all the worlds religions.   It is easy to dismiss how much Christians think only of ourselves with ISIS murdering individuals of various faiths, in particular Christians who in fact are martyrs.  Christian Church history is full of real martyrs and self made martyrs.  Christians in the here and now, can make martyrs of ourselves, whether or not there is a persecution of Christians.  A great example of such is the whole "Religious Liberty" argument to stop marriage equality.  When we stop listening to the voice of the Holy Spirit within ourselves and in others, that we become so self absorbed, that we cannot see what is really happening.

God showed the people of Israel how powerful God was in delivering them out of the slavery in Egypt, and crossing the Red Sea on dry ground.   God supplied them with manna from heaven so they would not starve.  Now they are thirsty.   Just like they did before they went through the Red Sea, and finally got the manna, they grumbled against Moses because they had no water.   In both situations, they pleaded for the life they had in Egypt.   A life of oppression, forced labor and the killing of all the male children which were thrown into the Nile River.   In the end, God grants them what they wanted.

There are many things that St. Benedict shows his dislike for in The Rule. The one that he expressly forbade, was murmuring or grumbling.   His reason for that, was that murmuring or grumbling has the power to disrupt the life of the community.  When a member begins to grumble, the focus of the community is taken away from silence, prayer and searching for union with God.   Instead, the focus is the grumbling member.   On one hand, St. Benedict had the flexibility in The Rule so that such grumbling can be avoided.  On the other, if a member is endlessly murmuring, it is difficult for the member to pay attention to God in the heart.  In addition, she/he can distract others.    The best way to keep the focus on our prayerful vocation, is to eliminate as many distractions as possible.   St. Benedict wants the members of his communities, to focus on what God is doing in the life of the community.  To seek union with God through a continuous life of prayer and work.

The reading from Paul's Epistle to the Philippians and the Gospel of Matthew ask the reader to take our Faith to our hearts and live it from there.  Those who were challenging Jesus wanted to know where He got the authority to do what He was doing.  As Jesus challenges them with the question about John the Baptist, they are missing the point.  John the Baptist and Jesus are doing the work of God, because people who were thought to be on the margins of society are coming forward and experiencing a deep conversion that awakens in them, a heart felt living faith in God.   How far does that go?   The conversion experience means that people are feeling the call of God to be obedient from the heart, even after they have said no, like the first son in the parable.    The other son may have said yes, but in his heart, his faith was dead.  

This past week, many of us in the Twin Cities area received the distressing news that Archbishop John Neinstedt of the Catholic Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, requested the resignation of a music director.   He was asked to resign, not because he is gay.   He was asked to resign because he married his same-gender partner.  Jamie Moore has held the job for 17 years.   Those who have worked with him all these years were aware that he is gay, and has a partner.  So long as he lived as a second class citizen without the rights, privileges and responsibilities of a married man, his job was safe.   As soon as he married his partner, his job as a lay employee was considered a matter that could "confuse Catholics about the teachings of the Church."  That is a paraphrase.   As if the blatant hypocrisy was not enough, a Priest who has been accused of inappropriate sexual contact with children, has been promoted to the Archdiocesan marriage annulment panel.   

Things like what I just wrote about above are why the Christian Religion in all of it's various denominations, including the Anglicans gets a bad name.   When people who are wondering whether or not God really exists, or if Jesus Christ really is the loving Savior read about things like this; they just find our Faith so difficult to believe in.   The same conclusion might be reached by people who just cannot understand why the faculty at General Theological Seminary in New York is on strike.   There is an impasse that cannot be over come between the faculty, the Dean, President, and Board of Trustees in an Episcopal Seminary?   Disagreements are one thing.   This kind of thing is a disgrace.

As I began this blog post, Christians can be very selfish.   We would like to believe that we own all the religions in the world, along with all the governments and provinces.  The fact is, we do not.  As Episcopalians, our Baptismal Covenant asks us to answer "We will, with God's help" to "Strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human person" (The Book of Common Prayer, p.305).   When we make these promises with a sincere desire to be open to how the Holy Spirit leads us to live into that vow, and do our work even though we may say no with our voices, our Faith is lived from the heart.   When and if we do otherwise, our yes is lip service only.  

That is why the Epistle from Paul is so important for this Sunday's lectionary.   Jesus Christ did more than pay lip service to God and humankind.  Jesus made becoming a servant to humankind so important, that not even equality with God was something He exploited.  If doing so meant that he had to die the horrible death on the Cross, that's what He did.   Because of that, the Name of Jesus Christ is exalted and glorified.   How much more exalted and glorified is the Name of Jesus Christ, when Christians work for equality and justice to end oppression due to the sin of prejudice?  Is there any greater evidence of how real living the Christian Faith from the heart can be?

How are you being called to live the Christian Faith from the heart?

In what ways do you say no and do what you must do to live your Faith from the heart?

In what ways do you say yes to living your Faith from the heart, but do not do it?

This weekend, Jesus is calling on us to see the work of God's redemption in our lives, and to live from the heart the Faith we proclaim.    Now is a good time to respond to that call.

Amen.


Prayers

O God, you declare your almighty power chiefly in showing
mercy and pity: Grant us the fullness of your grace, that we,
running to obtain your promises, may become partakers of
your heavenly treasure; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who
lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for
ever and ever. Amen.  (Proper 21, The Book of Common Prayer, p. 234).

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, The Book of Common Prayer, p. 815).

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, The Book of Common Prayer, p.823).

Third Sunday after Pentecost: Welcome with Humility is Something to Celebrate

Happy Pride

Today's Scriptures

Genesis 22:1-14 (NRSV)

God tested Abraham. He said to him, "Abraham!" And he said, "Here I am." He said, "Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains that I shall show you." So Abraham rose early in the morning, saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and his son Isaac; he cut the wood for the burnt offering, and set out and went to the place in the distance that God had shown him. On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place far away. Then Abraham said to his young men, "Stay here with the donkey; the boy and I will go over there; we will worship, and then we will come back to you." Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife. So the two of them walked on together. Isaac said to his father Abraham, "Father!" And he said, "Here I am, my son." He said, "The fire and the wood are here, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?" Abraham said, "God himself will provide the lamb for a burnt offering, my son." So the two of them walked on together.

When they came to the place that God had shown him, Abraham built an altar there and laid the wood in order. He bound his son Isaac, and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. Then Abraham reached out his hand and took the knife to kill his son. But the angel of the LORD called to him from heaven, and said, "Abraham, Abraham!" And he said, "Here I am." He said, "Do not lay your hand on the boy or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me." And Abraham looked up and saw a ram, caught in a thicket by its horns. Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up as a burnt offering instead of his son. So Abraham called that place "The LORD will provide"; as it is said to this day, "On the mount of the LORD it shall be provided."

Psalm 13 (BCP., p.597)

Romans 6:12-23 (NRSV)

Do not let sin exercise dominion in your mortal bodies, to make you obey their passions.  No longer present your members to sin as instruments of wickedness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and present your members to God as instruments of righteousness.  For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.

What then? Should we sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means!  Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness?  But thanks be to God that you, having once been slaves of sin, have become obedient from the heart to the form of teaching to which you were entrusted,  and that you, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness.  I am speaking in human terms because of your natural limitations. For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to greater and greater iniquity, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness for sanctification.

When you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness.  So what advantage did you then get from the things of which you now are ashamed? The end of those things is death.  But now that you have been freed from sin and enslaved to God, the advantage you get is sanctification. The end is eternal life.  For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Matthew 10:40-42 (NRSV)

Jesus said, "Whoever welcomes you welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. Whoever welcomes a prophet in the name of a prophet will receive a prophet's reward; and whoever welcomes a righteous person in the name of a righteous person will receive the reward of the righteous; and whoever gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones in the name of a disciple-- truly I tell you, none of these will lose their reward."

Blog Reflection

Reflecting on being welcoming is easy on Pride weekend.   Thinking about humility is not quite so simple.  Yet, without setting aside our self-center-ed-ness it is very difficult to be welcoming.   To exercise the ministry of hospitality that Jesus is talking about in the Gospel for this weekend, requires an abandonment of self to the point of seeking the common good of someone else, without the expectation of anything in return for ourselves.   We cannot do that freely and without reservation, unless we have that self-knowledge by which to trust ourselves into God's hands to guide us by the power of the Spirit.

Abraham was gifted by God to be the ancestor of a multitude of nations.  His offspring Isaac was God's proof to Abraham that God would carry out the promise made to Abraham.  Yet, God threw a wrench into the works.  God asked Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac to see just how dedicated he was to trusting in God, even beyond the physical sign of Isaac.   As frightening and as questionable as Abraham must have been with the notion of sacrificing Isaac, he was willing to do what God asked.  Abraham was able through the gift of faith to see beyond the physical dimension of what he was about to do, to see that God was more important than the son of his own flesh and blood.   God honored Abraham's faith and recanted.  God saw the faith of Abraham and provided another way for him to honor God with an acceptable sacrifice,without Abraham sacrificing his son.

All too often the debate about whether or not homosexuality, bisexuality or transgender behavior is moral; people get too weighed down in the details to see the tremendous gift of faith in LGBTQ people.   The women and men who struggle with their sexual orientation and/or gender identity/expression within the context of their faith, families, communities, schools, work places, medical care, marriage, etc. are determined to be productive people giving and adding so much to society and the Church.  They come with gifts of artistic abilities including craftsmanship, administration, well thought out philosophy and personal maturity that can add so much to any place in which they dwell or work.   Though many have been so injured by religions and spiritual communities, they still believe that humankind is capable of reaching a greater potential for inclusive justice and an equal sharing of the goods present in our world.   The faith that is present can bring belief to where there is doubt.  Hope to where all seems hopeless at the point of despair.  My Christian Faith and personal experience as a gay Christian, tells me, that LGBTQ people are full of life to be lived, and love to be shared that goes well beyond whether who they sleep with, or who they really are; as written into a judges ruling or legislative bill. 

Paul's letter to the Romans is commonly used as a ploy to bring condemnation to LGBTQ people.  The words of today's reading from the New Testament is one of the most commonly used texts to suggest that "the wages of sin found in homosexuality is death."   Evangelists are quite merciless about using that as a scare tactic for LGBTQ young adults attending a Christian College or University.   However, the message in this text, is broader than the issues of sexual orientation and/or gender identity/expression.   This Epistle Reading from Romans calls those who have decided that the Christian Faith is their religious and spiritual expression is about an obedience that accepts the Cross on which Jesus died for our sins.  Obedience to Christ and His Cross calls us to respect the dignity of every human person.

It is quite possible to be zealous about helping a person to decide to become a Christian and still violate that individual's dignity or not even be conscious of it.  It is for reasons such as this, that I personally oppose sending missionaries to places to convert Jews, Muslims or other religious practices in the world.  If you ask me if I think sending missionaries to other countries feed the hungry, care for the sick to show that we are personally concerned for their humanitarian needs; I am in all agreement.   If in the course, people freely decide to become a Christian, that is one thing.  But to do missionary work for the sole sake of converting Muslims, is something I cannot in good conscious condone.  

On the other hand, with regards to the expression of human sexuality straight or gay, this reading from Romans fits very well with the Gospel.   If we rethink things and answer these readings today with a determination to respect the dignity of every human person. and that we should never use (nor condone using) another person for the sole purpose of satisfying ourselves at the expense of who such a person is; then we are living the meaning of these readings.  We are to remember that each and every person is the presence of Christ in our midst.  Jesus must be welcomed and given a cup of water to satisfy His thirst to be received without prejudice or exploitation on our part.    

To live and/or act with humility on this Pride Sunday is to welcome Christ and to serve Christ in each other with a consciousness of God's presence with reverence.  A reverence demonstrated by the arms of love outstretched on the Cross, that welcomes everyone within Christ's embrace of all human persons without distinction or self interest.  The wages of the sin of exploitation and discrimination brings about the destruction of an individual's dignity and the meaning of community.   Human dignity and seeking peace and justice on their behalf, requires us to welcome them with our eyes and minds on Christ Jesus to bring about healing and reconciliation for all persons.

Jesus is not asking us to do everything perfect.   He is not even wanting us to understand Him without question.  Jesus is wanting us be willing to see past our own prejudices and to see the face of God in those who are different from ourselves.

The final verse of Hymn #603 in The Hymnal 1982 reads as follows:

Thus freely loved,
Though fully known,
May I in Christ be free
To welcome and accept his own
As Christ accepted me.

On this Pride Sunday, may our work, our celebrating, our parades and parties draw us to a deeper relationship with God in all the diverse people, places and things in which the Spirit's presence is found.

Amen.


Prayers

Almighty God, you have built your Church upon the
foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself
being the chief cornerstone: Grant us so to be joined together
in unity of spirit by their teaching, that we may be made a
holy temple acceptable to you; through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God,
for ever and ever. Amen.  (Proper 8, Book of Common Prayer, p.230).

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).

Loving God, bless us as we gather to celebrate LGBT Pride.  We are, each of us, created in your image lesbian, gay, straight, bisexual, and transgendered, alike.  Hasten the coming of your kingdom when all are welcome and all are equal.  Anoint us with the balm of hope and send us your healing Spirit, that we may be known as a just and unified community.  We ask this in your Name, through Jesus Christ our Redeemer, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.  Amen.  (I have been told this prayer can be found in the Book of Occasional Services).

 

The Presentation of Our Lord Jesus Christ in the Temple: Humility, Obedience, Prophesy

Today's Scripture Readings

Malachi 3:1-4 (NRSV)

Thus says the Lord, See, I am sending my messenger to prepare the way before me, and the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple. The messenger of the covenant in whom you delight-- indeed, he is coming, says the LORD of hosts. But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears?

For he is like a refiner's fire and like fullers' soap; he will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the descendants of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, until they present offerings to the LORD in righteousness. Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the LORD as in the days of old and as in former years.

Psalm 84 (BCP., p.707)


Hebrews 2:14-18 (NRSV)

Since God's children share flesh and blood, Jesus himself likewise shared the same things, so that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by the fear of death. For it is clear that he did not come to help angels, but the descendants of Abraham. Therefore he had to become like his brothers and sisters in every respect, so that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make a sacrifice of atonement for the sins of the people. Because he himself was tested by what he suffered, he is able to help those who are being tested.

Luke 2:22-40 (NRSV)

When the time came for their purification according to the law of Moses, the parents of Jesus brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord (as it is written in the law of the Lord, "Every firstborn male shall be designated as holy to the Lord"), and they offered a sacrifice according to what is stated in the law of the Lord, "a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons."

Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; this man was righteous and devout, looking forward to the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit rested on him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Messiah. Guided by the Spirit, Simeon came into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him what was customary under the law, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying,

"Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace,

according to your word;

for my eyes have seen your salvation,

which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples,

a light for revelation to the Gentiles

and for glory to your people Israel."

And the child's father and mother were amazed at what was being said about him. Then Simeon blessed them and said to his mother Mary, "This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed-- and a sword will pierce your own soul too."

There was also a prophet, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was of a great age, having lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, then as a widow to the age of eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshiped there with fasting and prayer night and day. At that moment she came, and began to praise God and to speak about the child to all who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem.

When they had finished everything required by the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth. The child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the favor of God was upon him.

Blog Reflection

I could not rejoice more that this feast of the Presentation is on a Sunday this year.   This Holy Day on our Church calendar has many significances that are worth reminding ourselves of.  Their significance to our faith and our spiritual lives are so crucial.   It is so wonderful that we get to observe them as part of our Sunday Eucharist.

One of the meanings of the Presentation is to recognize that we are now between the Nativity at Christmas, and Ash Wednesday the beginning of Lent.   Here the two meanings of the coming of Christ as the Word made flesh, from the cradle to the cross find their crossover point.  

In the history of the Church, this Feast is also referred to as Candlemass.  It was on this date that all the candles used over the previous year were melted down, as the early Christians prepared the wax for the Easter Candle for the Great Vigil of Easter.   The light that came into the world, brings with Him a new era.  The darkness of sin is extinguished by the Light that is Christ by His death and resurrection.   We celebrate the Light of Christ's Redemption in the Paschal Mystery, and participate in it, through the waters of Baptism.   Hence the commitment of Christians to live in that Light of the Easter event, because of God's grace through Christ.

There are three main points about the Presentation of Christ in the temple that have meaning for our spiritual lives.  They are humility, obedience and prophesy.   Mary, Joseph and Jesus fulfill these by their humble submission to the law of Moses, and is confirmed through the Prophets Simeon and Anna.

In this 21st Century, the very idea of humility and obedience seem archaic, useless and things of the past.  However, the necessity of them could not be more real.  

In humility, we acknowledge that we are not an entity unto ourselves.  Nor can we save ourselves without God's help.  Mary, Joseph and Jesus come to the Temple in humility, recognizing their humanity, and need for the God of their salvation.  We too, must return again and again to the God who has redeemed us in Christ, confess our sins, and accept God's mercy.   We cannot do this if we cling to a false sense of self.   Humility means we accept that God is God, and we are not.  Our true selves are found in Christ, who humbled Himself to the point of death on the Cross. (See Philippians 2:1-11).

Obedience says that we respond to God's mercy, by placing ourselves in God's hands, and serve others in the Name of Christ.  The humility of Jesus was such that the God who created us, became one like us in all things, yet did not sin, became a servant of all of us.  Even those of us who will  not get up and wash our neighbors feet, or accept others who are different from ourselves.  The humility and obedience of Jesus, is our example of how to love one another, and be reminded that none of us are really above anyone else in any way.  We are all sinners, saved by God's grace.  In faith, our response needs to be one of obedience.

Lastly, is prophesy.  The Prophets Simeon and Anna greet Christ, recognizing that He is the hope that they have been awaiting.   As they both declare to have received the answer to their prayers, they also prepare Christ for the fulfillment of His life.   He has come to be the rise and fall of many.  He is the Light revealed to the nations, as God's perfect revelation of Self.   He has come to set free the marginalized, the oppressed and to give a sense of purpose to those who are left on the sidelines to fend for themselves.  Jesus has come as God's love embodied in the human person; living, serving and dying.   In God's revelation that there is no such thing as one so lost, that God is not concerned or reaching out for us.

These past couple weeks we have become aware of the increased violence towards LGBT people in Uganda, Nigeria and of course, Russia.   Thanks be to God that there have been responses by the Archbishops of Canterbury and York, and the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church.   Yet, we cannot over look the unfortunate reality that there are Christians within the Anglican Communion and beyond who support the criminalization of homosexuality based on erroneous interpretations of the Bible.  A difference of opinions by which we dialogue and debate with mutual respect and charity, is a response worthy of Christ.   A response through the violence of putting people in jail or threatening them with death because of who we are, getting people into the government to pass and administer such laws cannot be a greater contradiction to the mind and heart of Jesus Christ.  

Humility, obedience and prophesy on this Presentation of Christ in the Temple, calls on us to see the Light of Christ in others around us.   To honor Christ's presence and to serve others in His Holy Name.  Without distinction, exception or excuse.   After all, which one of us is truly worthy of God's love in Christ?   Which one of us is so humble and obedient to not need God's grace to save us, so that we have the hope of everlasting life?    Therefore, who are we to withhold it from others?

Amen.


Prayers

Almighty and everliving God, we humbly pray that, as your
only-begotten Son was this day presented in the temple, so
we may be presented to you with pure and clean hearts by
Jesus Christ our Lord; who lives and reigns with you and the
Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.  (The Book of Common Prayer, p.239).

O God, who wonderfully created, and yet more wonderfully
restored, the dignity of human nature: Grant that we may
share the divine life of him who humbled himself to share our
humanity, your Son Jesus Christ; who lives and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. (The Book of Common Prayer, p.252).

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.  (The Book of Common Prayer, p.260).

Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany: Advice from Someone Who Loves Us

Today's Scripture Readings

Deuteronomy 18:15-20 (NRSV)

Moses said, The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own people; you shall heed such a prophet. This is what you requested of the LORD your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly when you said: "If I hear the voice of the LORD my God any more, or ever again see this great fire, I will die." Then the LORD replied to me: "They are right in what they have said. I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their own people; I will put my words in the mouth of the prophet, who shall speak to them everything that I command. Anyone who does not heed the words that the prophet shall speak in my name, I myself will hold accountable. But any prophet who speaks in the name of other gods, or who presumes to speak in my name a word that I have not commanded the prophet to speak-- that prophet shall die."

1 Corinthians 8:1-13 (NRSV)

Now concerning food sacrificed to idols: we know that "all of us possess knowledge." Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up. Anyone who claims to know something does not yet have the necessary knowledge; but anyone who loves God is known by him.

Hence, as to the eating of food offered to idols, we know that "no idol in the world really exists," and that "there is no God but one." Indeed, even though there may be so-called gods in heaven or on earth-- as in fact there are many gods and many lords-- yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.

It is not everyone, however, who has this knowledge. Since some have become so accustomed to idols until now, they still think of the food they eat as food offered to an idol; and their conscience, being weak, is defiled. "Food will not bring us close to God." We are no worse off if we do not eat, and no better off if we do. But take care that this liberty of yours does not somehow become a stumbling block to the weak. For if others see you, who possess knowledge, eating in the temple of an idol, might they not, since their conscience is weak, be encouraged to the point of eating food sacrificed to idols? So by your knowledge those weak believers for whom Christ died are destroyed. But when you thus sin against members of your family, and wound their conscience when it is weak, you sin against Christ. Therefore, if food is a cause of their falling, I will never eat meat, so that I may not cause one of them to fall.

Mark 1:21-28

Jesus and his disciples went to Capernaum; and when the sabbath came, he entered the synagogue and taught. They were astounded at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. Just then there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit, and he cried out, "What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God." But Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be silent, and come out of him!" And the unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying with a loud voice, came out of him. They were all amazed, and they kept on asking one another, "What is this? A new teaching-- with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him." At once his fame began to spread throughout the surrounding region of Galilee.

Blog Reflection

Listen carefully, my child, to my instructions, and attend to them with the ear of your heart.  This is advice from one who loves you; welcome it and faithfully put it into practice.  The labor of obedience will bring you back to God from whom you had drifted through the sloth of disobedience.  This message of mine is for you, then, if you are ready to give up your own will, once and for all, and armed with the strong, and noble weapons of obedience to do battle for Jesus, the Christ (Prologue, Rule of Benedict, vs 1-3).

A priest once said in a sermon: "I do not have a problem with the concept of obedience.  I have a problem with the practice of obedience."  As a guy who has Asperger's Syndrome, I have no problem with the concept of obedience.  I may or may not have a problem with the practice of obedience.  I have a problem with the authority figure to whom I am suppose to be obedient.

As a gay man who struggled for many years with my sexual orientation, my relationship with God and the Church.  I have a real problem with those who use their Ecclesiastical "authority" and "their understanding" of the "authority" of Scripture to judge my relationship with God as injured or even destroyed because I am gay.   Religious "authorities" have misused their so called "power" to manipulate LGBT individuals and other groups of people to believing, thinking and acting as they do.   

So, the idea of authority and what obedience is to mean for me is a counterfeit understanding.  To better understand, I need both the Rule of St. Benedict and today's readings to help me put authority and obedience in their proper places.  That is why the opening to the Prologue from the Rule is such a powerful reflection, especially in light of today's Gospel.

What does the word "authority" mean when Christians think of the Person of Jesus Christ?  The Greek word for "authority" is "exousia".  The word is literally translated as meaning: "out of being."  It comes from a full sense of self.  A realization of who I am.  When I speak with authority according to the Greek word "exousia" I am talking from the point of who I am. 

The people who were listening to God in the reading from the Hebrew Scriptures are hearing a prophecy about the future.  God is going to send someone who can say everything that God has to say to God's people.  It will be said with a sense of authority.  The authority will be a historical change that will mean a pivot from one direction to another. 

As Christians, we understand this to be a prophecy about Jesus.  The Jesus who came as a Jew like his own people.  Not as one who came to suppress the Jewish people into another religion or they would go to hell.  As Christians we recognize for ourselves that Jesus was God's perfect revelation.  Knowing that alone is not enough to convince us of what is being said in the Gospel.

The people who were listening to Jesus and witnessing him casting out the evil spirits, were amazed that he was speaking "out of his being."  Jesus was not only able to say such things, he was also a living example about that of which he spoke.  The religious authorities of his day had become so wound up with keeping the rituals and their own reputation among each other and the people, that living the meaning of their faith had lost it's focus.

Sound familiar?

We hear a lot today about how Jesus Christ is suppose to bring redemption and forgiveness for the sin of adultery.  We are all expected to just let go of the media stories of presidential candidates with a reputation of continuing to harass women and totally disregard their dignity.  Forgiveness of sins relieves us of the guilt of our past actions.  It does not excuse us from repentance and it does not mean we don't take seriously an effort to "cast out the evil spirits" of sexism, racism, class discrimination and sexually violent behavior.  It also does not give us license to act like the Pharisee in Luke 18: 9-14 who stands their exalting himself against others who are not quite as "good" as he is.  All of us are broken human beings in one way or another.  It is from these things that we are suppose to grow into mature people. None of us are any better than anyone else.  We are all still earthed. 

St. Benedict, a holy man totally aware of his own weaknesses, admits as he calls others to return from the sloth of disobedience, to embrace the call to a new way of life.  Whether inside or outside of a monastery, St. Benedict calls us to a change of heart and a "conversion of manners".  To place others before ourselves.  To be understanding and compassionate with those who are different from ourselves.  We are to take the focus off of ourselves to serve the other out of reverence for Christ.  We do this from a complete acceptance of ourselves, placing all our hope in the God who accepts and redeems everyone.  No exceptions. No exclusions.

We see religious "authorities" all around us talking about passing constitutional amendments to take away the rights of LGBT people to marry the person they love.  It would all be laughable, if they also weren't using even more violent rhetoric and basing their work on false claims about LGBT people.  All being done in the "authority" of the Scripture and some kind of ecclesiastical "right" to look down on others. Suggesting that spreading hate and division is some how "compassionate." 

Jesus is teaching out of his being as one who is a living model of generosity and mercy.  Jesus lives as one who welcomes the marginalized and seeks those injured and held back by oppression. He's got his whole person open to the call of God and is able to speak directly to evil in such a way, that it has to go.  It cannot stay in the presence of such awesome love as the Holy One of God.  People marvel at what they hear and see. Now, in front of them is one who speaks out of his being, while he lives out of his being.

Obedience to God's will is not a matter of being a wise thinker or a well spoken theologian.  It has little to do with quoting from the Bible along with the Book, verse number and version.  Obedience in the Christian context is about being willing to serve the needs of someone else ahead of our own.  We obey, not because we want to avoid punishment.  We obey because the one who calls us to serve is someone who loves us.  The last thing we would want to do is offend someone who loves us so completely and without condition or exclusion.

We cannot be obedient to God if we are trying to hide or change the very essence of who we are as LGBT people.  We cannot serve the best needs of another person, expecting to reverence Christ who is present in the other person, if we cannot first be honest with God, others and ourselves about who we are.  Because Jesus spoke and lived out of his being as the face of God among humankind.  He wore no masks.  He did not run away.  He faced who he was in the fullness of his being and lived it openly and freely.  He loved differently.  He was crucified for it. 

Even if it means we are risking all, we will cast out the darkness of discrimination and violence when we act and speak out of our being as LGBT people of faith. This means understanding our sexuality as a gift from God.  Using it as a means to love and receive love. Exercising it in healthy and wholesome relationships. Reverencing the Presence of Christ in our partner(s) by serving their needs ahead of our own.  It is also an opportunity to help other people know how good LGBT people are.  That we honor and love other people.  We do not use them. We regard every person as a sacred being, worthy of our respect and to treat them with care and concern. Seeking their peace and justice and respecting their dignity.  Doing all, of course, with God's help. 

How do we accept this story as advice from the God who loves us? 

How do we do the work of speaking and acting out of our being so that we can cast out the unclean spirits of oppression, injustice and prejudice from our world?

What ever our answer is, as it will be different for all of us, may we be a people who act with radical hospitality, to bring about healing and reconciliation in the Church and society.

Amen.


Prayers

Almighty and everlasting God, you govern all things both in
heaven and on earth: Mercifully hear the supplications of
your people, and in our time grant us your peace; through
Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the
Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. (Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany, Book of Common Prayer, p. 215).

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).

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. (For the Oppressed, Book of Common Prayer, p. 824).

Almighty God, you proclaim your truth in every age by many
voices: Direct, in our time, we pray, those who speak where
many listen and write what many read; that they may do their
part in making the heart of this people wise, its mind sound, and
its will righteous; to the honor of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (Prayer for Those Who Influence Public Opinion, Book of Common Prayer, p. 827)