you are not far from the kingdom of God

I get my scribes, Saducees, and Pharisees mixed up, but it seems to me they all had one thing in common; they focused too much on doing the right liturgy and having the law memorized and they missed everything else their faith called them to. So it is so amazing to me that this Saducee in Mark 12 (Proper 26b) seems to get it all right, down to his last words to Jesus, "this is much more important that all whoe burnt offereings and sacrfices."

When asked by this man "Which commandemnt is the first of all" Jesus didn't run to the 10 (or 11 depending) commandments of Exodus. Instead he recalled for those around him the words of Moses on the edge of the Promised Land, "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." Within this one commandment, this Great Commandment, is a whole set of doctrine that defined for the Israelites, and still us today, what God really wants.

Hear, O Israel - Israel is the name given to Jacob after he wrestled all night with the god-man at the river. Israel came to be the name of Jacob-Israel's tribe, his family, his nation. To be called the People Isreal is to be called a people unafraid to wrestle with God. Although, here they are called to "hear" they are forever expected to come back to God with the hard questions.

The Lord our God - to claim the Lord as "our God" is to understand God's deepest desire; to be in relationship with His creation. The Lord our God is the direct correlation to we, God's people. We are called, each by name, to be in relationship with the Lord so that he might be our God.

the Lord is one - monotheistic religion is a radically new concept at the time of the Exodus. For this group of ragtag people to cast of the majority belief of the rest of the ancient world is, in fact, quite a statement. The Lord is one is the basis of the Nicean concept of Trinity (of one being, begotten not made, proceding from the Father...). To worship one God, to recognize only one God is to make a giant statement about the nature of that God.

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. - this is not a little expectation on the part of God. To love God with all heart, soul, mind, and strength is not an easy endeavor, but to know that God loves you before, in fact whether or not, you love him back makes it all the more easy. Note that this Great Commandment, when uttered by Moses, is after God has saved his people from bondage. It is as they prepare to enter the land promised to them by God. God didn't wait for Israel to love God to save them, but rather saved them, loved them, from before.

These imdedded statements of doctrine are not, by anymeans, the exclusive understanding of our relationship with God. They are however, the beginning of an understanding that right liturgy and memorized law are not the way to meet God. It is rather in the act of naming God and loving God that relationship begins. It is this relationship that Jesus spoke about when he told the Saducee, "You are not far from the kingdom of God."

Of course the other half of the kingdom lies in the second commandment. See my friend Peter's post on loving your neighbor as yourself for some great insights (and some good sarcasm).

Loving thy Neighbors

And, so we quote this greatest commandment quite a lot ...

"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 neighbor as yourself.' There is no other commandment greater than these."

I hear these words very often, and they seem to be at the root of much of our Christian Ethics, as I guess they should be. Loving our neighbors as we love our selves.

Well, it gets tricky here ... ours is a culture that lifts up the self, we have magazine racks and self-help sections of bookstores full of advice for our "selves," and we hear the advice that we should be "Getting the Love we Deserve," and that we should be proactive, stand up for ourselves, advocate for our best position - salary and all that ... In the church, we hear these terms of "self care" which, to me, is a good thing - clergy, and everyone, should take care of our selves - however, the tricky thing is that when we privilege self-care, we forget that what Jesus called us to do is to not only love our selves, but love our neighbors as our selves. LOVE OUR NEIGHBORS, as we love our selves. Here is where the bookstores are of little help, there are no sections on "How to care for your neighbor," "How to offer hospitality to the stranger," "How to do small things for others," "How to transform your self-orientation to an 'other-orientation.' "

Actually, there is a book that outlines some of these practices, and it is a very old book, telling the Old Old Story of God's hospitality to the Israelites in the Desert, God's gift of a covenant, God's gift of the Law, God's gift of making a People, rather than individuals. It is a story of God's love that so overflowed that God sent his Son as a gift to the world. And, this son perhaps practiced some self-care in going to the desert to commune with his Abba (father), but Jesus spent far more time doing "other-care" than "self-care," ... and far more time hanging out with a group of loyal (mostly) but clueless (mostly) followers, and hanging out with those in society that were no one's neighbors.

As I look at this passage, I wonder if churches could take a whole season - perhaps Advent (when too much focus can be on commercialism), and just preach, discuss, and act on this saying - love the Lord, Love the Neighbor, Love the self (in that order).

Naaah, I am talking crazy ... ( Jesus must have been talking metaphorically. ;))

it is more than the law...

For the law appoints as high priests those who are subject to weakness, but the word of the oath, which came later than the law, appoints a Son who has been made perfect forever.

I am in no way insinuating that I consider myself a "high priest", but I am, at least, on the road to the priesthood. In the olden days it was the law that appointed priests, now it is the Holy Spirit which that calls us to the priesthood. Be it the law or the Holy Spirit doing the calling, it is still human "who are subject to weakness" being called.

As I write this I am painfully aware of my own weakness. Its the end of the quarter, and I've handed in my paper for Church History and my Student Body Report for the Board. I'm tired. I've done work in the evening for the first time in over a year, and it really took its toll on me. I'm about to begin a class session at Wesley which I HATE!!!! HATE HATE HATE!!! (sorry).

Anyway, its the weakness part of this letter to the Hebrews that I'm relating to today. And its in much excitement that I look at the Son, "who has been made perfect forever" offering intercession for me, for my sin, for my weaknesses.

The Shema

Hear, O Israel: The LORD is our God, the LORD alone

שמצ ישראל יהוה אלהינך יהוה אחד

This poor approximation (my first attempt at Hebrew unicode) is the Shema (שמצ) of Isreal, the words bound on their hands and on their doorposts. The key to understanding the relationship between God and his people. Hear O Israel, The LORD is our God, the LORD alone.

It is a reprise of this ancient saying that Jesus gives as the Great Commandment. This statement of fact, that the LORD is God and that the LORD is one is the key to understanding the New Covenant - between God and man through the godman, Jesus of Nazareth.

Whether Jew of Christian the entreaty of Moses remains for us both, "Keep these words that I am commanding you today in your heart. Recite them to your children and talk about them when you are at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you rise. Bind them as a sign on your hand, fix them as an emblem on your forehead, and write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates."

what do you want me to do for you?

Wouldn't it be nice to hear those words coming from the mouth of God? As the end of the first quarter looms less than a week away I'm realizing all the things I need to do; my church history paper, my board of trustees report, a trip to harrisburg for the consecration of our new diocesan bishop, my church history exam, my systematic theology paper, etc. Lots and lots of things to do and enough stress to keep them from getting done.

"What do you want me to do for you?" God has already done one thing, my systematic paper got pushed back by a week. I'd love it if God would go ahead and write the papers for me. But I know this is not what God has in mind when he asks questions like these.

"What do you want me to do for you?" God wants me to be reconciled; to him and to humanity. God wants me to be healed; from illness and from sin. God wants me to want these things. When God asks this question in the person of Jesus Christ he is saying, "What can I do for you to bring you into relationship with me?" Mearly in the answering of the question we succeed in the call. To answer, like Bartimaeus, "let me see again" is to say "I believe you can make me well." Believing in the power of God to restore health, to restore right relationships, to restore us to wholeness is to have faith. See, its not us asking "What can I do to have faith?" No, its Jesus asking us "What can I do for you, so that your faith my be restored?" If our hearts have been opened, we can answer this question. If our hearts remain hard, then we walk away still blind, still sick, still in broken relationships.

What do you want Jesus to do for you?

God and the future

What follows is a more theological rambling than usual. While I don't normally get comments on my writings, this is something I am struggling to comprehend, so please, if you have a thought, pass it along.

The LORD saw it, and it displeased him

that there was no justice.

He saw that there was no one,

and was appalled that there was no one to intervene;

The Isaiah reading for Proper 25b brought forth the above passage in light of a conversation I had with a friend at seminary just the other day. This friend was laughing at the fact that he was considered by some to be a heretic, but those who called him such couldn't figure out what exactly about his theology was heretical. He shared with me two points that ususally lead to contention; 1) God does not know the future and 2) God exists within time. As we were walking to class at the time we didn't have much opportunity to flesh out what he meant by those two things, but we at least began to discuss point one.

His assumption that God does not know the future goes as follows. The future is not a thing. God does not know things that do not exist,for example, my twin brother George, since I have no twin brother. Therefore God does not know the future. I got him to admit two points; 1) God knows all possibilities of the future based on the freewill actions and decisions of human beings and 2) God is a pretty good guesser of what action humankind will take as he is vey much in tune with the human condition (see the Incarnation).

The passage I pulled from Isaiah seems to give some credence to my friends position. God is displeased by his people upon seeing their actions - he is not displeased prior. God is appalled that he can find no one to intervene - God must seek someone, He does not already know who will intercede. This has interesting ramifications on God the Son being made incarnate, i.e. was it the plan from before time? did God the Son have another option? does God even know when God the Son will return?

As will all theological suppositions this carries a ton of unintended consequences. If you see any please let me know. Also, I hope to discuss more about God existing within/outside of time witht this friend, but I think that may be where we find him to be "heretical".

a different focus

This morning I couldn't help but notice how the story of blind Bartimaeus (25b) is almost the exact opposite story of the young rich man (23b). While the confident young man boasted of the laws he had kept since his youth, Bartimaeus calls only for mercy. While the young man wants to know what he can do to inherit eternal life, Bartimaeus knows only to call upon Jesus. While the young man goes away shocked and grieving, Bartimaeus regains his sight and follows Jesus.

How often have I had the focus of the young rich man. "Look at me! Look, I left a coushy job and came to seminary God. I'm a good person. What else can I do for you God?" It is in these times that I forget just who got me here. If it weren't for God's grace in the midst of my own poor discernment I would have never brought so low as to only know to call upon Jesus. I would have never met my wife. I would have never received my call.

How often have I had the focus of blind Bartimaeus. "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!" Not often enough I'm afraid. But, over the past two years the words of Bartimaeus have begun to invade my heart. The Jesus Prayer "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner" have sustained me in times of frustration, times of exhaustion, and times of spiritual dryness. How often have I had the focus of blind Bartimaues? Hopefully a little more every day.

Seeking light...growling like a bear

Therefore justice is far from us,
and righteousness does not reach us;
we wait for light, and lo! there is darkness;
and for brightness, but we walk in gloom.
We grope like the blind along a wall,
groping like those who have no eyes;
we stumble at noon as in the twilight,
among the vigorous as though we were dead.
We all growl like bears;
like doves we moan mournfully.
We wait for justice, but there is none;
for salvation, but it is far from us.
For our transgressions before you are many,
and our sins testify against us.
Our transgressions indeed are with us,
and we know our iniquities:
transgressing, and denying the LORD,
and turning away from following our God,

Isaiah snagged me this morning. I nodded while reading Hebrews and thought there is a lot of the Blind Man in me as I read Mark. Yet what leapt of the page (or the screen) was Isaiah. It is no wonder that Paul loved Isaiah for Isaiah so easily lends it self to seeing Christ among his pages.

Therefore justice is far from us,
and righteousness does not reach us;
we wait for light, and lo! there is darkness;
and for brightness, but we walk in gloom.

I have been wrestling this past semester with my own form of Pelegianism. No I'm not an official heretic proclaiming as Pelagius did that "human beings are able to achieve their salvation by their own powers." I am conscious of the fact that my strength came in defeat. I am conscious of the fact that when I could not...He could. But how often in the midst of knowledge do I revert back to handling my life? How often in the midst of the everyday do I revert to the practice of simply making it by effort? My mouth may proclaim "Christ, Christ" but my actions reveal a Christ who looks conspicuously like myself.

And here is Isaiah proclaiming that the people are waiting. They too are unable to approach Justice. They too are unable to make righteousness. They grope along the wall like the blind man in Mark. They growl like bears unable to remove from the world one once of sin.

Do we not in this church tend to collectively believe (at least a little bit) that it is our responsibility to make justice, end poverty, fight for freedom? Is there not a collective understanding that we are able to pull that off, that we are wise enough, rich enough, righteous enough that God has chosen us to figure it out? Do we, like I know I do, proclaim "Christ, Christ" revealing a church wedded to a salvic image that looks like it self?

Unlike Isaiah we do not need to wait. The light has entered the world. Our righteousness and our Justice will always come up tainted...corrupted. Yet the Light has entered the world. The candle holds back darkness. There is One who has taken transgression and sin, darkness and despair, and transformed them. That light points us back and throws a great light on our struggles. "Dear brother" he says "mine is enough." If we are to have any hope of bringing justice, peace, mercy to the world it is not enough to say "we can do it because he did it" If we are going to have any success we must surrender to that great light realizing that we are able only after surrendering to the fact that He continues to do so.

like one who needs milk

I'm really resonating with the letter to the Hebrews today - but not the way the author intended, I'm sure. Diving into the readings for Proper 25b I'm really left feeling lost. This spiritual discipline is intended to create a life lived in the word, so that it exists so deeply within me that the word and my life cannot be torn apart. But today, today I feel like I can't find a place for these readings. Blindness and sin and evil and death pervade these texts so profoundly I can't seem to get past my own blindness.

And so, today I feel like those poor Christians to whom the letter to the Hebrews was written. By this time I ought to be a teacher, hell I'm in my third year of seminary, but today I need someone to teach me again the basic elements of the oracles of God. When I should be eating the solid food of Proper 25b, I am left nursing the milk set aside for the unskilled.

But maybe that's ok. Maybe we all have those days where we're just too tired or too stressed or too whatever to have the scales of humanity removed from our eyes. Maybe today I am called to take confidence in my salvation and trust that tomorrow (or some other day in the future) I will have my sight restored. "For God is not unust; he will not overlook your work..." So I keep at it. I'll try again tomorrow hoping to realize the full assurance of God's gift of sight.

what God requires

I'm fairly certain we used the wrong Gospel reading in small group this morning, but as is typical with those things, it worked out quite well. What we read, and ultimately did a sort of lectio divina of was Luke's version of the Transfiguration. In it, Peter, James, and John are brought to the mountain with Jesus for no apparent reason, but are able to see the Moses and Elijah, to see Jesus transfigured, and to hear the voice of God "since they stayed awake." What an awesome event for them, and all because they were able to stay awake.

Contrast that with Mark 10.35-45 (Proper 24b) where James and John are scheming to be the two chosen friends of Jesus; to sit at his right and left hands in glory. Jesus here requires of them much more than to stay awake, they are to drink the cup that he drinks and be baptized with the baptism he was baptized with. This is serious stuff. He's not talking about the threat of the rhinovirus in the cup or the chill they might get from being sprinkled with water; he is talking about his death; his crucifixion, quite possibly the most awful means of death known to man.

Still later, after the other 10 get angry at James and John for their conniving, Jesus has requirements of them. "Whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all." Here Jesus is requiring that his disciples throw off any power they may seek in order to serve. It is in the service of others, Jesus says, that glory is achieved. It seems to me that he is talking not about the glory of these men, but rather the glory of God. It is in the service of others in the name of God that God is glorified.

So what then does God require of those who follow Jesus? Sometimes all we're called to do is stay awake. Other times we will be called to the service of others. And yes, even to this day, we might even be called to lay down our lives, to drink from the cup of Christ, in order to live out our faith. It seems as though God requires different things of different people at different times. I guess our job is that of discernment.

the suffering servant

I am continually intruiged by (I, II, III, or Deutero - I can't remember) Isaiah's treatment of the suffering servant. In Year B Proper 24 we have a wonderful chunk of prophecy regarding this servant's deep suffering. Back in my more evangelical days I could tell you how many prophecies from Isaiah 53 Jesus fulfilled in his life, death, and resurrection, but alas that has gone the way of the Greek alphabet. What strikes me more these days is the richness of Isaiah's language and how vivid the suffering is in my mind. I think this is partly because of The Passion of the Christ, but even moreso it is having seen suffering first hand in the slums of San Jose, Costa Rica. The suffering described by Isaiah, the suffering experienced by Jesus is the same suffering lived out by the poor and oppressed in the world. So many are silent due to hunger, infirmity, and pain, while others are silent due to threat of jail, torture, or death.

What does it mean to be a Christian in this world of suffering? There must be more than telling those who suffer to "cheer up, Jesus suffered worse." There must be a way to help those who are silent, not by choice, to speak up and be heard. It just seems so hard, like there is so much to do, and I'm just one person. Though there again I'm reminded of the people I met in Costa Rica. Each person was just one person, but with vision, with faith, and with community they were doing great things.

an open letter to those fighting over human sexuality

To Whom it may concern:

Please read the first half of the Epistle for Proper 24 Year B.

Sincerely,
Steven J. Pankey

Honestly, I was really struck by Hebrews 4.12ff.

The word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing until it divides soul from spirit, joints from marrow; it is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And before him no creature is hidden, but all are naked and laid bare to the eyes of the one to whom we must render an account.

The word of God is living and active - yes, yes, a thousand times yes. The word of God comes to life every time it read, silently or aloud. The word of God is alive in the hearts of those who have heard it, directing the course of their actions.

BUT... The word of God is... sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing until it divides soul from spirit - the two-edged sword works for me in the current debate because I happen to think both "sides" are wrong. By "sides" here I mean the extremes (i.e. the loudest mouths). Ultimately it is the sin of pride that creates these sides - and it is only through confession that the church will be blessed to move forward. The two-edged sword of the word of God has, I think, struck both sides. Both sides are feeling the pain of this injury (be it self-inflicted or not) and it is this discomfort that leads to harsh speech and uncharitable responses.

We are all laid bare before the living Word, Jesus Christ. We know the choices we have made. We know that we have not lived a life worthy of the gospel. We know that we must render account. "The sting of death is sin" says St. Paul - here in the letter of Hebrews we begin to undertand that the sting of life is also sin.

the key to understanding mark

I took VTS's survey course on the New Testament during my first year at seminary. I had The Rev. Dr. John Yieh, one of the most passionate professors on our faculty, and was blown away every class by some insight he had gleaned over his years of ministry in China and the US as well as his in-depth research on the New Testament. We talked about so much in that class it is hard for me to remember a lot of it, but this morning as I read the Mark passage for Proper 24 (10.35-45) I was pleased to notice what Dr. Yieh calls the KEY PASSAGE for understanding Mark's Christology.

"For the Son of Man came not be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." I feel like Proper 24 of Year B could be called Ransom Theory Sunday. In all three readings (the suffering servant - Isaiah, the sinless high priest - Hebrews, and James & John at the right and left - Mark) atonement theory seems to be the focus of the text.

Especially clear in the KEY verse in Mark, the Ransom Theory roughly explained is that due to our sin, the devil holds us hostage. In return for us the devil wants something he has not gained the right to; a perfect and sinless person. In the death of Jesus Christ, God gives the devil this Ransom, however it is only long enough to get us back from the devil as eternal death is the result of sin and therefore a sinless person cannot die forever, but must rise again.

There are lots of implications within Ransom Theory that make me uneasy; inherent universalism/paternalism, God using trickery to gain us back, etc., but it is a good theory to know as one begins to work out their own theology of atonement.

What's more - I'm just excited I'm remembering stuff from classes - GOEs here I come.

on the collect

For the first time this week I have realized just how neatly the collect for Proper 23 Year B ties the readings (at least OT and Gospel) together. I've written this week about choices, choosing to seek the LORD and live, choosing to follow Jesus, and all the while I missed that the collect too is about choices.

Lord, we pray that your grace may always precede and follow us, that we may continually be given to good works; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

If we earnestly pray this prayer we will be left in the position of making good choices. For if the grace of God truly precedes and follows us we have no right alternative but to do good works. It is out of God's grace that good works flow. Out of our gratefulness for the free gift of grace that we are motivated to act. Just as out of God's overwhelming love and communion within the Trinity led God to create, so too God's overwhelming love and communion outside, toward us,
leads us to do work, good works.

Having begun this week with the ugggggh of some rather rocky texts I must admit I'm excited now to be preaching on these passages. The grace of God which precedes and follows our every move motivates us to good works for the glory of God. I see my sermon percolating...

a strange reaction

The interaction between Jesus and his disciples always makes me laugh. For the most part, these 12 guys just don't get it. They don't get what Jesus is doing, yet they continue to follow along. In Mark's telling of the rich young man we see, yet again, an odd response from the 12.

Jesus has just watched an eager young man walk away from him saddened because the demands Jesus made were too much. Dismayed himself, Jesus responds, I'd like to think minus the exclamation points, "how hard it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God" and again "how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God. It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God."

Now stop and think what some reactions might be. "Why is it so hard for the rich?" "This guy just liked his stuff too much, he's not indicative of all rich people." You know, something specific to the situation at hand. But no, not the disciples, "Then who can be saved?" they ask greatly astounded. "Holy crap! If the rich aren't gettin' in, ain't nobody gettin' in."

What is it about these guys that allows for non sequiters every time they speak? I don't know about you, but it makes me feel pretty good. The 12 who followed Jesus as disciples. Those who were very closest to him (replacing even his own family) continually miss the point. They just can't get it right. And what does Jesus do? He loves them. He continues to try and teach them. He gives them authority to heal and cast out demons. He keeps at them.

2000 years later it looks like Jesus' hard work with those guys really paid off. Yet the tradition of missing the point and asking the wrong question is one that continues throughout history. I wonder if that's why God decided to give us the gift of the Holy Spirit? Maybe in his relationships while on earth, God realized just how clueless we are and decided we needed some help - someone to love us, to teach us, to give us authority.

Either way, I'm grateful for this tenacious God who continuously seeks me out no matter how often I miss the point.

Seek the LORD and live

Sounds easy enough to me. The prophet Amos speaking to the people of Israel before the exile knows all the terrible things going on in this corrupt and unjust nation. Yet these people can still turn it around with one, seemingly simple action, seek the LORD.

The Hebrew Bible Prof over at Wesley told us last week that in the Psalms the technical term for worship of YHWH is to seek God's face. While she gave me no reason to believe her, it helps with my case here so I'll give her the benefit of the doubt.

To worship YHWH, to seek the LORD, is to strive for justice, for righteousness, for truth. And yet its even easier than that. To worship YHWH, to seek the LORD, is to help the poor, to refuse bribes, to seek good; in fact to LOVE good and HATE evil. To not do these things, to not worship YHWH, to not seek the Lord is to face total destruction. In the case of Israel it was to face the extinction of a culture and a people by way of the exile. For us today to not do these things is to choose hell, the ultimate and final place where we can be free from this loving God who judges. But beyond that, throughout all time to not choose these things is to tarnish the face of God - for it was YHWH who was looked down upon when His chosen people were destroyed and it is God who is looked down upon when disciples of Jesus Christ live as hypocrites in the world.

For God's sake (literally) and not for ours is why we should listen to Amos and "hate evil and love good, and establish justice in the gate" for it may be that YHWH; God the most gracious and merciful; Father, Son, and Holy Spirit "will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph."

let the seminarian preach

The readings for Proper 23 remind me of the way George Sherrill began his first sermon at his field ed site, "you know that if I'm standing in the pulpit Dan didn't want to preach these texts, so he thought to himself, 'we'll let the seminarian preach that Sunday.'"

Uggggh. What a weighty set of texts. Doom and gloom from Amos (with a dash of hope). Jesus and the young rich man in Mark (with a dash of Peter and persecutions). Rambling about Moses and Jesus in Hebrews (with a dash of confidence and pride). Uggggh. Maybe I'll preach on the Collect.

As I re-read the passages though I'm left with a question. How hard is it for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God? Easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle!?! What does that mean? [a side note - these musings are intended to be done before exegesis - so you'll have to excuse me for missing the point of the passage on occasion] Life is all about choices. We make choices everyday. Should I snooze one more time? What shirt should I wear? Where should I invest my money? Etc. It seems that here Jesus is giving us a choice. I must choose to use money in a way that is glorifying to God. I must choose to use the gifts God has given me for the kingdom of God. To choose anything is else to choose not to enter into the kingdom of God here on earth. To choose not to enter here is to choose to walk apart from God. For me it really isn't a choice at all. As a Christian it is a part of my character to do these things - to choose to walk with God. But if it is a choice. If I am left to my own devices - how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God!

Still though, I know why I'm preaching for Proper 23 - "ick, nasty passages - let the seminarian preach" ;-)

i'm not a literal creationist mind you...

By that I mean I don't believe (anymore) that God created the world in six 24-hour time periods. The second creation story in chapter 2 however is one of great interest to me. Especially, I find the second story of the creation of animal life and ultimately women to be particularly fascinating.

Two questions come to mind when I read the part about God taking a rib from Adam and creating from it. First, I wonder when this began as an oral tradition? Secondly, I wonder when humankind first figured out that women have one more rib than men. Seems an interesting coincidence to me.

I had a conversation at a party this weekend with a friend of a friend. He's a devout Lutheran who works with youth and young adults and is deeply involved in small group Bible study. Everytime we run into each other the conversation turns to work (for me) as he runs through all that he's been struggling with since last we spoke (welcome to my life - i know). Anyway, I'm not really complaining about this becuase it keeps me from the extremely awkward conversations that abound in a party like this one. So this weekend we were chatting about creation. He being an engineer has always struggled with the 6-day creation thing but had an even harder time with evolution (sounds a lot like me acutally). We spent most of our time talking about how God might exist in evolution (micro or macro - though micro is easier for me to swallow). *Wow this is a long story* So then I come back to this spiritual practice and what awaits me, but another call to belief in the creative power of God through this amazing story that seems to have some scientific evidence behind it. Wow, 2 days and 2 revelations. I'm so glad to be back in touch with God.

one of these things is not like the others

In reading the propers for 10/8 I couldn't help but notice a couple of things. First, and most obvious is the direct link between Gen 2 and Mark 10. "For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh." A part of me noticing this was noticing just how (seemingly) different the Hebrews reading is. Yet in re-reading it there is still a sense of becoming one flesh through our salvation. We are sanctified by one who comes from the Father, just as we come from the Father. While this sanctification will last forever we are still expected to put forth some effort toward continuing the process, "We must pay greater attention to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away from it. For if the message declared through angels was valid, and every transgression or disobedience received a just penalty, how can we escape if we neglect so great a salvation?" Sure salvation is a free gift from God, but its kinda like getting a puppy for Christmas. The puppy is free, but if you want it to grow up to be a well-behaved dog (or at least you want it to live) you must put forth some effort.

The other thing I noticed relates directly to my last post "so my prayer life is in the toilet, so what?" Did you see that collect? Its the "more ready to hear than we to pray" one. It kills me. Thank you Lord for putting it on my heart to get back to this blogging thing just as this collect comes up in the church year. Amen.

It's time

The readings for Proper 22 (Oct 8) are up and ready for Monday. I'll see you all in prayer.

I need this

So here's what I'm gonna do. I will be doing my Lectionary Reflection on my blog. I will then copy over what I wrote here for the greater community, unless however it is decided that this is dead and then I'll quit the extra step.

Blessings!

Slack-i-tude

So for those of you who check this blog every now and again, or for those who count on it for help with sermons, or for those who like the guilt of another posting in order to motivate your own, many apologies.

I am deep in the midst of summer slack-i-tude/working my tail off with the maintenance crew. I hope and pray for the strength to return to this blogging thing very soon, but for now, pray for me as I continue to slide down the hill of slack-tasticness toward total, unmitigated slack-i-tude.

Mediation- BCP

I was tempted to reflect on the readings. In the first reading and then in the Gospel of John we get mention of Judas. He hear of the field of blood, the choosing of Mathias (like General Convention?). In John we learn of his being chosen to betray Jesus. With the Gospel of Judas all over the news this Easter it seems the most interesting thing to discuss for a potential sermon.

However I am rarely ever able to escape any reading that deals with Exodus. I love the exodus. I can't really tell you why except that the book always helps me fill out my understanding of Christianity. As a Christian if there is a backstory to the Cross, betrayal of the Christ, and the adventure of Acts it is Exodus. One could argue that Christianity is the second exodus where God gives himself to all. In one of my favorite rationales as to why Jesus expands the covenant is that God wanted all to experience the love that God gave the Jews in the covenant.

And today's reading had me thinking of the consistency between it and Hebrews. Aaron as Priest is a vehicle of mediation. He is to deliver the peoples gifts and sins to God at the altar so that God may sanctify the people. In today's reading Aaron wears the names of the tribes upon his chest. He wears the stones and in doing so carries the judgment of the people. The man and priest Aaron "takes on" the judgment of the people by wearing the names of the tribes.

In Hebrews the sermon stresses the difficulty of any man to present the sin of another. This is compounded by the very sins the priest has (identify with this one). How could a sinner present to God the sins of another if the persons very sins have not been dealt with? In Hebrews we identify the only priest who is able to do so. That priest is Jesus who without sin can take on sin and in sacrificing himself on the altar thus mediates the sins of the people. A difficult idea to be sure. Like the priest Aaron, Jesus in his body takes on the judgment of the people not in his breastplate but through his very self.

Checking in- weak I know but my best

I am here. This is the best that I can do. Sometimes one needs to simply show up to continue on the journey. Today is my day.

Showing up

Steve is correct. It is so easy to let go the center and begin seeking the outside things. It is exactly this loss of center which feeds us for all those other things. This is the best I can do today. I arrive for future hope.

Must....go....on....can't.....give.....up....now

short short short

In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins.

Life is too busy for time spent with God. No! Must read Scripture, must pray, must not let the bastards get me down.

today is brief and is based on 1John. What a great chance preachers have on this sunday to explain to people just what Jesus did for them. Atonement is something we talk about alot in classes, but hear little about in the pulpit. Let's get back to teaching people what their faith means.

not feeling generous (BCP)

So it was that for an entire year they met with the church and taught a great many people, and it was in Antioch that the disciples were first called "Christians."

The title above has more to do with me than it does with any of the readings for today. I'm not feeling very generous today. The flipping acting director of field education is up my ass about my work learning agreement. I feel like I'm in the opening scene of Office Space and have placed the wrong cover sheet on my TPS Reports. Grrrr!

Along those not so generous lines, guess what I learned today. I learned that followers of Jesus were first called Christians in Antioch (Acts 11). Guess where I didn't learn that. New Testament class, that's right. Grrrr!

And then I read this
Beloved, let us love one another, because love is from God; everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love. (1 John 4)

A perfect end to my not so generous day. Convicted of my need to love more. I know! Seriously, I know!

So, its back to prayer for a more generous spirit and a softer heart.

Almighty and eternal God, so draw our hearts to you, so guide our minds, so fill our imaginations, so control our wills, that we may be wholly yours, utterly dedicated to you; and then use us, we pray, as you desire, and always to your glory and the welfare of your people; through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

What is it with these people (BCP)

Has any people ever heard the voice of a god speaking out of a fire, as you have heard, and lived? Or has any god ever attempted to go and take a nation for himself from the midst of another nation, by trials, by signs and wonders, by war, by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, and by terrifying displays of power, as the LORD your God did for you in Egypt before your very eyes?

Over and over and over again the people turn from their God. Over and over and over again they get enamored with a shiny calf.
Over and over and over again they fail to live up to God's call which
over and over and over again leads to problems in judges, in kings, in syncrtistic worship.

Over and over and over again I turn away from God.
Over and over and over agian I get enamored with the empty boxes on my to-do list.
Over and over and over again I fail to live up to God's call which
over and over and over again leads to problems in relationships, in time-management, in practices.

This part of the book of Deuteronomy sounds like something I should try to memorize. It seems like if I had this as a mantra defining the beat of my life I might not do these things over and over and over again. I might listen to God. I might do the things that He has asked me to do. I might live into the covenant.

In Honor of Philip (BCP)

There are few stories in the Bible that I find cooler than Philip and the Eunuch. And how appropriate on this feast day of Philip and James the less!

Being in OT this year has opened my eyes to a lot of things that I had never before thought of or heard. Philip didn't have the great benefit of Stephen Cook as his OT professor. No. Instead, Philip drew on his experience with the risen Jesus of Nazareth to unpack the ancient Hebrew Scripture.

"Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter,

and like a lamb silent before its shearer,

so he does not open his mouth.

In his humiliation justice was denied him.

Who can describe his generation?

For his life is taken away from the earth."

The suffering servant passages in II-Isaiah are amazing in the light of 750 years of history between when they were uttered and when they came to fulfillment in Christ Jesus. I know I'm all over the place tonight, but all that aside what is really fascinating to me is the way in which Philip trusts the Spirit. An angel appears to him first and says "go" and he goes. Then the Spirit commands him to go over to an Ethiopian chariot, and he goes. Then, one can only assume that the Spirit opens the Scriputres to Philip and allows him to speak, and he speaks. Then Philip is called upon to baptize (without formal training "gasp") and he baptizes the man. Still again, the Spirit snatches up ol' Philip and upon his arrival at the new place, Philip goes on proclaiming the Good News.

Wow, what faith!

Ezekiel- BCP

So they were scattered, because there was no shepherd; and scattered, they became food for all the wild animals. My sheep were scattered, they wandered over all the mountains and on every high hill; my sheep were scattered over all the face of the earth, with no one to search or seek for them.

I was speaking with a friend at school two days ago. We were discussing the fact that Heresy does not simply go away but keeps re-emerging. I asked him how he felt about our church with the growing acceptance of what constitutes truth. I asked him how that may effect his ministry. Without blinking an eye he made the causual but profound reply. The mission field begins in the pews.

Ezekiel is called to prophesy against the shepherds. In their gorging themselves on the fruits coming from the sheep themselves (fat, wool) they lost sight of the task at hand. Shepherds are not to cull the heard but shepherd. The judgement is not that shepherds are not supposed to eat but that in their eating and feasting they have lost sight of the sheep and now the sheep are wandering becoming food for all type of wild animals.

How large is the sex trade in the world? How seductive its claims? How easy is it to get lost in the seduction of gratification? How easy to lose sight of the fact that millions are dying of Aids or the other host of other sexually transmitted diseases or the fact that sex often trumps relationship so children are abandoned in the pursuit of greater and greater gratification.

How large is the corporate ladder? How important the paycheck? By making the right moves now a person could make the salary and find himself or herself at the top. By saving every dime and investing it in the market you can protect yourself for a self indulgent retirment. So what if you need to work 80-90 hours a week. So what if persons around you are not making it . So what if communities are being compromised for profits. So what if individual success calls us to lose sight that others (our families, our neighbors, our communities)

Libertarianism, Democracy, Socialism, Communism, Maoists, Republians, federalists, Jihadists, all have their claims. They all if followed will help us be better people. They will help us become the community that will overcome corruption, greed, envy, hate, war, and oppression. Each has its claim the idea that it will bring people to a better life. By following its tenets these human systems will enrich and deliver.

And so the sheep have become scattered. They walk through high mountains and become pray for wild animals. Lost and with out guidance they will seek strange places to lay their heads. They will seek comfort, solace, salvation in lands that willingly offer to take them in. They will be bathed and gloried for entering these lands. Yet will what our scattered sheep find be enough. Will sex and work and politics be enough to sustain the sheep. Will it comfort the sheep in times of crises. Will it lift up the sheep for who they are? Will it love them without seeking anything in return? Will it save?

Yet the shepherds eat losing sight of the sheep. The collar and the stole becoming the very thing that judges us.

even truth (BCP)

Now the whole group of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one claimed private ownership of any possessions, but everything they owned was held in common.

My sister, 4, and I, 6, had the following fight on a trip from Lancaster, PA to Chicago, IL.

Lisa - Say the sky is green
Steve - the sky is green
Lisa - NO! the sky is blue!
Steve - NO! the sky is green!
and so on...

I feel like this is the fight that goes on each and every day within churches mainline and otherwise.
Theologian - Say the resurrection was a metaphor
Other Theologian - the resurrection was a metaphor
T - NO! It is an historic event!
OT - NO! It was a metaphor!
and so on...

We spend so much time an effort holding on to our possessions, not the least of which is (T/t)ruth these days, but to what avail? We ignore so much fighting over the color of the sky, fighting over stuff we're not even sure we believe, fighting over possessions. What would it look like if everything we owned was held in common? As a good capitalist I realize this would be a mess, but bear with me for a second. what would it look like if instead of holding tightly onto my Truth I opened my eyes and saw the bit of truth you hold? Seeing your truth, I might share with you mine, and we both walk away with a bigger piece of the truth pie than we had before. Eventually through conversation after conversation my truth piece will be enormous, so big that I cannot comprehend the depth of it, but a mere kernal in comparison with the Truth of the godhead.

What do you know that you might share with me?

Hard, hard words- Ezekiel

Ah, you shepherds of Israel who have been feeding yourselves! Should not shepherds feed the sheep? You eat the fat, you clothe yourselves with the wool, you slaughter the fatlings; but you do not feed the sheep. You have not strengthened the weak, you have not healed the sick, you have not bound up the injured, you have not brought back the strayed, you have not sought the lost, but with force and harshness you have ruled them. So they were scattered, because there was no shepherd; and scattered, they became food for all the wild animals.

I am this. These words strike deeply. These are words of challenge to be sure. They challenge in that shepherds are called to act as servants of others and not servants of self. How often do I find myself worried, consumed even, with ideas of taking care of self. What will my salary be? Will I be able to afford a large house? Will the church stay together that I may be eligible for the pension? Me, me, me

And Ezekiel comes slamming through in judgment: You have not strengthened the weak, you have not healed the sick, you have not bound up the injured, you have not brought back the strayed, you have not sought the lost...They were scattered

They were scattered. The sheep are scattered and God's judgment weighs down, "Do you love me? Yes Lord "Feed my sheep", Do you love me? Yes Lord, "Take care of my lambs", Do you love me? Yes Lord. "Feed my sheep"

Who would of thought that Jesus was speaking judgment to Peter?

the gift of sickness

Strangely, I have learned a bit about the gift of sickness over the last day or so. My son came down with a stomach bug a few days ago and gave it to me. I found myself laid up for much of yesterday afternoon and today, while lying restlessly, I found myself saying a shortened form of the Jesus prayer, "Lord Jesus Christ, Have Mercy On Me". I found myself able to pray even in the midst of some agony, and all my overly intellectualized faith became nothing but a murmur on my lips, it was an experiential parable for me.

I second Steve's to do list comment, I am far too busy; did Jesus die for me to have to do so much work?

my idol (the to-do list) is back

I've set up the readings for the week, but will excuse myself ahead of time due to way too much stuff on my to-do list. I'll be praying for you, please pray for me.

Micah and continued drippings of sweetness- like apple pie bubbled over...

He shall judge between many peoples,
and shall arbitrate between strong nations far away;
they shall beat their swords into plowshares,and their spears into pruning hooks;
nation shall not lift up sword against nation,neither shall they learn war any more;

Whether it is real blood or proverbial blood there is a promise delivered in these words. Conflict rarely shows what is the best in us. The conflict arrises, our hackles rise and we lash out. Enemies can come in many guises. They look different. They smell different. They wear their hair different. And as we so often see under our own Christian roof our enemies are not those on the outside but usually those within. They think different.

In Micah we are encouraged to take some important steps prior to the promise. Already the persons of faith have been called to go to the mountain. The first step is not act or react but pray. Wait on God. Seek first the kingdom. Seek first the kingdom? Seek first the kingdom! As creatures we are willfully ignorant. Like my 13 year old son who is convinced that anything that I might say is ignorant due to the fact he already understands. When we live with the idea we got it all wrapped up- taken care of- figured out- we are in contempt. Contempt! "Who are you to say there is no God?" or God's rant to Job "Have you created the heavens?" We are given a great gift with our intelligence but when we confuse the gift as the giver we are in contempt. It has been said, nothing will keep a man in everlasting ignorance but contempt prior to investigation. Micah reminds us first, "Go to the mountain." "that he may teach us his ways".

In our waiting on God, God will give us his instruction. "The beginning of wisdom is fear of the Lord." Fear in this context has been said to really mean Awe. That dramatic understanding of both terror and excitement. The understanding that when we wait on God we're not waiting on some two bit servant boy but the very creator and sustainer of the universe. We are waiting on the same Jesus who can command healing with his word. This is no patsy boy Jesus but a powerhouse..."The father and I are one." As Micah suggests here in our moving toward God, God will move toward us and is willing to teach us. If Micah is a good witness this is exciting stuff. Why do I so often go it alone- see first paragraph. On a larger level our going it alone in the church might undermine all our good intention. Seek first and the teaching will come. This brings us to,

He shall judge between many peoples,
and shall arbitrate between strong nations far away;
they shall beat their swords into plowshares,and their spears into pruning hooks;
nation shall not lift up sword against nation,neither shall they learn war any more;

The promise is held out there before us. In our current political and ecclesiastical debates over sexuality and the faith I see and hope for the promise. God will judge. Period. He will judge. Whom will he judge? All of us. While initially daunting I find comfort in ABC Rowan Williams when he accentuates that judgement and grace come together. As we wait and he teaches I believe that he will uphold those things we have been faithful with while seeking to root out and destroy our faithlessness, resentment, anger, pity, and hardheartedness. God will arbitrate. We will suddenly realize that our war like stances need to be dropped. We will see with clarity the beauty of Christ in the gaze of our brother. Network will not lift up sword against ECUSA and the west will beat their swords into plowshares for their southern cone bishops.

Not possible you say? Have you sought first the kingdom?

koinonia

Meaning: 1) fellowship, association, community, communion, joint participation, intercourse 1a) the share which one has in anything, participation 1b) intercourse, fellowship, intimacy 1b1) the right hand as a sign and pledge of fellowship (in fulfilling the apostolic office) 1c) a gift jointly contributed, a collection, a contribution, as exhibiting an embodiment and proof of fellowship

The kind of fellowship the first letter of John is calling for is some serious stuff. Community, communion, intercourse, intimacy!?!? This isn't just Dunkin' Donuts and Coffee after church, this is FELLOWSHIP. In light of all the conversation going on in the run up to General Convention this passage can't help but catch my attention.

we declare to you what we have seen and heard so that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ... If we say that we have fellowship with him while we are walking in darkness, we lie and do not do what is true; but if we walk in the light as he himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.

As we struggle to stay in conversation (apologies to those who consider this a 4-letter word) we struggle to stay in communion, in fellowship. We share so that you might have fellowship with us... this conversation is Biblical. Keep talking for it is in sharing stories (not least of which the Gospel) that we find fellowship. And fellowship with you models fellowship with the father. "If we say that we have fellwoship... while we are walking in the darkness, we lie" I read this as "In order for us to be in fellowship we must be willing to admit, 'Yeah I might be wrong.'" Let's keep the conversationi going. Let's not run away to our camp. Let's not say things like, "we don't need you anyway" or "you'll come around." Let's enjoy the conversation, for that is were we find fellowship, koinonia, community, communion, intimacy.

Psalm 4 (RCL)

Psalm 4 Page 587, BCP

1

Answer me when I call, O God, defender of my cause; *
you set me free when I am hard-pressed;
have mercy on me and hear my prayer.

2

"You mortals, how long will you dishonor my glory; *
how long will you worship dumb idols
and run after false gods?"

3

Know that the LORD does wonders for the faithful; *
when I call upon the LORD, he will hear me.

How long, indeed will I run after dumb idols, how long will I run after false gods? What about the idol of grades, trying to get just a few more points on my GPA, for what? So I can feel smrt? So I can gain God's salvation? What about the idol of filling up my time all the time? Who do I think I am, God?....isn't this idolatry, not obeying the Sabbath, thinking that my work is what gets me into the promised land? So, I read, I write, I rush to field ed, I rush home, I go to forums, I get pooped. Then there is a moment, when I am rushing down the GW parkway in my painted trashcan of a car when I see the created world, not nature only, but that I see nature as the creation, and I reflect upon my own created being, and I see that so soon the ashes will not just be placed upon my forehead, but that my entire earthly body will be ashes, and I will return to my creator. I remember Yoda in Empire Strikes Back referring to his body as "this crude matter" ... he had a sense that his creation was contingent (for him the Force, for us God).

In running after false gods, in making myself and my own study, busy-ness, and activity my idol, I do dishonor God's glory. Can't I see that this is just a short stop at the station of this world, and can't I accept the gift of the time here with gratitude and reverence?

I'm sticking with Micah- Sweetness 3

For out of Zion shall go forth instruction,
and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.

My handy, dandy Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church defines Zion as "the mount on which the temple stood, 'God's holy hill' at Jerusalem." Hence it is the home of God, the place of the seat of the Covenant. The home of God, the holy of the holies. As Christians we are heirs to our 'elder brothers'. JPII referred to the Jews as our 'elder brothers' when he came to Jerusalem and asked them for forgiveness. As Christians who claim their legitamacy by being chosen through God's grace we would be unwise to forget that an older tribe was chosen first to deliver this message. They were servants before we were servants.

Our history should not be forgotten in our rush to try and fix the world. I think specifically here of our mad dash toward San Fransisco seeking to put forward another homosexual bishop in the name of Justice. While certainly I do not want to forget the word of the lord that came out of Jerusalem "love one another as I loved you" I want to hold it in tension with more difficult words, "as he (Jesus) drew near (to Jerusalem), he saw the city and wept over it saying, "If this day you only knew what makes for peace- but now it is hidden from your eyes. For the days are coming upon you when your enemies will raise a palisade against you; they will encircle you and hem you in on all sides. They will smash you to the ground and your children within you, and they will not leave one stone upon another within you because you did not recognize the time of your visitation."(Luke 19:41-43)

I wonder in our rushing, seeing all those opposed to ECUSA's actions as enemies or worse homophobes we are not first ignoring Micah's simple prounouncement. Could we be failing to God to God first? Is God only found in the social gospel? Does God call us to fix the world or does God first seek us into relationship with Him. This is the message I think Micah is saying here to the ECUSA. First seek God. Seek God first to hear what the rest of the church is saying. Allow them to begin to understand. Trust that they are your brothers and sisters in Christ. Allow them to see that our Church seeks first the kingdom as Micah suggests. Allow them to see and discover the same spirit that you are witnessing to. To act now in civil disobedience will only convince the wider world not of our love of justice but our love of autonomy. Our call may be first to trust not in our own understanding of Justice but that our God seeks to guide us if we are but willing to listen.

For out of Zion shall go forth instruction,
and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.

Have you read Acts?

When they had made the prisoners, Peter and John, stand in their midst, they inquired...


I'm rushing tonight to be done before American Idol. I know, I know, one shouldn't rush through a spiritual discipline. I know, I know, American Idol?!? I know, I know. But actually it was in my rushing (read reading in a different context) that I saw something I have yet to realize this week. Peter and John are in jail already, and its only Easter 3; its only Acts 4. Wow, how did we get here from the empty tomb? We're already in trouble, we're already causing problems, we're already blessed with the Holy Spirit (well sort of, we've got some time before Pentecost).

There seems to be a lot to reflect on as our Lectionary propels us so quickly from Resurrection to Martyrdom to the Catholic Epistles of John. Wow!

OK Rod Stewart Nite on IDOL!!!! Do you think I'm sexy?

Sweetness 2- BCP

"Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD,
to the house of the God of Jacob;
that he may teach us his ways
and that we may walk in his paths."
For out of Zion shall go forth instruction,
and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
He shall judge between many peoples,
and shall arbitrate between strong nations far away;
they shall beat their swords into plowshares,
and their spears into pruning hooks;
nation shall not lift up sword against nation,
neither shall they learn war any more;
but they shall all sit under their own vines and under their own fig trees,

I must admit I am not happy. I had this great reflection on the first four lines of Micah. It was lost while attempting a spell check. ARRGGGGGG!!!! I reflected on Rowan Williams and his use of Richard Hooker. RW discusses in his last article on Hooker that Hooker while upholding Scripture was not, unlike his opponents the Puritans, bound to believe that Scripture was the only way to know the mind of God. Hooker upholds the idea, which struck me like a ton of bricks the first time I read it, that while we go to the Bible and read the witnesses of the Bible, we often lose sight of the fact that all the hero's of the Bible did not have a Bible. They had God and as Micah reveals, God is present to us here and now and can be sought. Micah reveals a witness and understanding that can shake the boots of any of us who tend to live in the illusion that I am here and God is in some high and distant place. Micah suggests not only are God's ways open to us but that God himself is close enough to teach us if we are willing.

Sweet! Micah! (BCP)

So glad to have written a one-page refelction on this text for OT just two weeks ago. I share it with you becasue I am still exhuasted from Easter but am trying to live into my Good Friday call to blog.

In the story of the Tower of Babel (Gen 11.1-10) it becomes very clear that the idol of self-help is one that is despicable to God, and yet it seems that the people of God still hadn’t figured it out. In reading Micah we see a time when many different nations had built themselves up on their own self-interests. We see, in fact, a time when the nation of Judah, part of God’s chosen people, had chosen to rely on its own political capital rather than the God of their ancestors who had shown over and over again his authority over even the strongest of political powers. The Judgment of Jerusalem which precedes this pericope calls forth – once again – God’s people to be God’s people.

And then… And then, Micah shows that this judgment is not without grace. That if/when the people do return to God it will not be just God’s chosen people, but instead all those dispersed at the Tower of Babel will be brought together again at the mountain of the Lord in search of his way. The people who had for so long relied on themselves would again turn to the will of the Lord. This returning to the Lord will bring about the kingdom of peace which God had in mind from the beginning.

As we know, however, this returning to the Lord will not happen on this side of the Eschaton. As Christians we live in constant hope for the Kingdom of God. In this time of war, terrorism, natural disaster, and the general polarization of society we are keenly aware that this time of peace is far, far away.

And then… And then we come to this passage of hope in the midst of great despair in Micah. We are called to look past this time of judgment to see the promises of God enacted as we ascend Mount Zion and are cleansed of the sin of pride.

Into your hands I commend my spirit

Good Friday Reflection

We Remember his hands,
Gesturing to the fishermen, He called them
To set down their nets and become fishers of people.
His hands gave healing to the sick and the unclean
The spirit of healing flowed from his hands
He laid his hands on each of them and cured them
He laid his hands on one, and immediately she stood up straight and began praising God.
Water became wine and a few loaves and fishes became a feast.

He predicted he would end up betrayed into human hands
But he continued to heal and to teach parables of the kingdom
The powers wanted to lay hands on him at that very hour, but they feared the people.
Though they tried, they did not lay hands upon him when he was a babe
They did not lay hands upon him in the temple
They did not lay hands upon him on the plain
They did not lay hands upon him when he healed
They did not lay hands upon him when he cleaned the temple
And he saw that they did not lay hands upon him
Day after day in the temple, they did not lay hands on him.
But this is their hour, and the power of darkness
Brought their hands upon him.

The journey he has made into the world from God
is nearly done,
but his work and his life will endure in a new way.

His work of healing,
of teaching,
of preaching,
of walking the way of God in the world.
Welcoming the outcast,
visiting the lonely,
the sick
those in prison,
healing those in turmoil,
liberating the oppressed.
He walked with them,
healed them
and offered hope.
But his work and his life will endure in a new way.

His life is gift,
God’s gift to God’s creation.
Ours, too are pure gift,
We are brought into the world
and are held in loving hands as infants,
hands of our parents,
hands of our guardians,
hands of the ones who baptize us,
the hands of our siblings,
and the hands of our teachers, priests and the hands of our friends.
We lay our hands upon others in healing,
we hold the hurt of others as we offer our open hands up in prayer,
we hold up our hands to receive the Eucharistic Feast.
We offer up our hands as we commend our lives to God’s service.
From your hands we have received our lives,
Into your hands we commend our lives and our spirit.

Their hands held him,
Their hands nailed his hands to the cross.
In the moment that worldly hands bound him
He offered no curse
No condemnation
But the gift of radical forgiveness
He saw the hands that would bring him home,
The hands that had supported him all along,
The hands that had held him up in the temple,
The hands that supported him in the wilderness,
The hands that had offered direction and comfort.

In that moment that the hands of the world bound him,
He commended his spirit to the hands that endure,
When he might have cried out in anger or fear
Jesus offered a prayer from the Psalms,
“Into your hands I commend my spirit”
No longer bound by the hands of his captors,
No longer bound by his hands to the cross,
Jesus makes his own funeral commendation,
This cry is no cry of loneliness
of dereliction,
but is a prayer and a deep hope.
He seeks out the hands of his father, from whose hands he became incarnate
The hands that hold the entire world, and caress from when newborn children until today.

In that moment of cosmic loneliness,
He felt God’s hands reaching to him,
He saw the hands of his Father,
his Abba,
caressing him
offering love,
"Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.”
In the moment when the hands of the world betrayed him
a prayer.

Calling out into the darkness
But, in hope and love,
God would hear him and hold him
Not a distant deity without care or concern
But a compassionate and loving God
He trusted the loving hands of his Father
He trusted those hands that had held him from the beginning
And were there all along
Holding him, supporting him, and guiding him.

His life is gift,
God’s gift to God’s creation.
Darkness came over the whole land,
The sun’s light failed,
The curtain of the temple was torn in two,
Crying with a loud voice,
“Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.”

Good Friday 2006 - I am called to blog.

On Good Friday we are called to be like Thomas. We are called to live in doubt and fear. We are called to remember what it was like not only for the disciples, but for Jesus, the Son of God, God himself, who decended to hell.

As I write it is just past noon. The skies around Gathsemane have gone dark. The people who have mocked, spit, and scorned are now beginning to wonder; are now beginning to fear. "What if we got this wrong?" The disciples have scattered (hence the link above) and are now continuing to wonder; are now continuing to fear. "What if we got this wrong?" I sit in front of my computer, some 2000 years later, now wondering; now fearing, but my wonder and fear are a little different. "What if in all my business, all my field work, I miss the point? What if I forget to put my fingers in his hand and my hand in his side? What if I don't feel the sorrow and doubt before revelling in the resurrection?" I'm so thankful to have this place to read, pray, think, and write. For 15 minutes I am able to get out of my business and focus on my faith.

Today I am called to be like Thomas. I am called to fear and doubt. I am called to forget what I know is going to happen on Sunday and focus on the pain and sorrow of today. I am called to remember my role in the crucifixion. I am called to reflect on my God decending into hell.

I am called to blog.

From Fear to Joy: John 20 (BCP & RCL)

In Easter 2’s Gospel reading, we hear the story of Jesus on the evening of his resurrection as he enters the house of fear and doubt, re-creates his disciples and sends them out to embody God’s peace to the world. However, before he enters, the disciples hide in a house behind locked doors in fear of the Jewish authorities. This setting is quite different than the one in which the disciples sat with Jesus just a few days before: eating bread and drinking wine with their Lord. Then, they were twelve with Jesus. Now they are but ten: Judas betrayed Jesus, and Thomas is absent. Like sitting in a coastal home awaiting a tropical storm surge they sit in a house of fear.

They have some reason to be anxious. Wouldn’t we also be stressed out? This is not a poker night, this is a frightful night. The Greek word for fear in John’s gospel is “phobos,” fearfulness, timidity; shrinking from fear” – and the disciples do shrink from fear. We can imagine that the disciples bolting the doors; duct taping the windows, and stockpiling the canned food. Though the disciples hear Mary’s message of the resurrection they obviously don’t yet believe that message. In this house of fear, the disciples probably long for the past. They remember their Lord and wonder: “what will happen now?” Would he judge mercifully when he returns? The disciples were not model followers in those last days. Even Peter denied Jesus at the end. While he was alive and taught them, the twelve believed; or thought they did. But, now two are gone, what will happen to the rest of the disciples? Jesus had come, and promised he would come again. John reminds us just earlier in Chapter 20, v. 9:

“For as yet they did not understand the Scripture,

that He must rise again from the dead.”

Sitting there in that room, the disciples long for the past. But, in the present, they sit nervously, breathing the spirit of fear.

And how fear can immobilize us! Though we work to keep fear at bay, we, too, are no strangers to fear: terrorism, global warming, environmental destruction, gun violence, aging, and death. Fear can grab us and once started, it can overwhelm us like a flood. We fear for the safety of our young ones, our aging parents, and our fragile friends. Our hearts pound when the telephone rings in the middle of the night. We have resided in the house of fear. We know fear, and it can immobilize us, it can cause us to hole up in our own safe houses, our own gated communities. We can hide behind locked doors, security systems, and we try to avoid “dangerous areas.” Does our fear prevent us from living abundant lives? (Jn. 10.10) Does our fear also prevent us from looking beyond ourselves to those who don’t look like us, who don’t sound like us, who are the “other”? Does our fear prevent us from opening our doors and reaching across the divides of religion, of race, of class, of theological position?

In the midst of this house of fear, Jesus enters and says: “Peace Be With You.” Fear drains from hearts; and thoughts of the past and future are annihilated in the present. The doors open. Looking at the eyes of Jesus, hearing his voice, and seeing his outstretched arms, the disciples see the beauty and calm of the present moment. Jesus enters the house of fear and transforms fear into the radical Joy of the Resurrection!

Rules (BCP)

For the love of God is this, that we obey his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome, for whatever is born of God conquers the world.

It is used so often its almost cliche, but CS Lewis' analogy of the world as a football match (soccer game) is an apt one. I used to be an under-8 soccer referee and believe me, a soccer game without rules is NOT FUN. So too, John writes that the rules of God are not a burden, but in fact a set up for the overcoming of the world.

It is so easy during the Easter season to preach only the triumphalist gospel, but if we give due reverence to the Lectionary we can see that we are to model the sacrifice of Christ. We are to give up those things which may feel good, but take us away from the love of God. Grace is given freely, but faith without works is dead.

High Christology (BCP)

And now, friends, I know that you acted in ignorance, as did also your rulers. In this way God fulfilled what he had foretold through all the prophets, that his Messiah would suffer. - Acts

Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name. - John

We spent a lot of time in New Testament and ST-1A (Jesus Christ and Salvation) debating the assertion of the development of a high Christology (view of Jesus) over time. Now I can't say I recall definately who was saying what, nor can I say much about Acts (since we didn't get there), but comparing Acts and John has proven interesting for me.

Acts, and early history of Christianity, is thought to have been written by the same author as the Gospel According to Luke. Both texts were from about 1 generation following the resurrection. John on the other hand is considered to be a much later text (150 or so CE). In comparing the verses above however it seems both hold within them a rather high view of Jesus. Acts alludes to Isaiah and the suffering servant, while John comes straight out and calls Jesus not only the Messiah, but the Son of God.

No story today, just seems like an intersting place to go on the exegetical journey.

BCP- Aslan

When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you." After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you." When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained."

I must admit that there is still a large part of me who believes that I will gain some type of spiritual fruit through intention. While I believe with Luther that there is nothing that I can do to earn Grace that Grace does become more evident by actively working toward it. Jesus does not say "Your saved now go about your business" He says, "Follow me." For me actions are important if for nothing else it takes me out of the mindset that I can somehow think my way somewhere. It is good to be back doing something even through the effort.

For a class I am to think about persons who have influenced me. Providing I do not disappear again (again I sometimes forget that intention is not action so while my intention today is not to disappear it will be my feet that will have the final vote) I will be seeking to reflect on persons who have influenced. Aslan has definitely influenced me.

More than that CS Lewis vision has influenced me. I was struck this morning with Jesus "breathing" the holy spirit on them. While I had connected Aslan to Jesus I never connected his breathing with anything. This was a pleasant discovery. More on Lewis later...

go, tell

Jesus Christ is risen today!

What joyful words we have to share. What a great story summed up in Acts. God came to save us from our sin(s). God took on the sin(s) of the world. God was reconciled to himself, and so too we are reconciled through God the Son. I don't have much to say today, just that I can't wait til Easter when I can sing out in my own joyful noise that Jesus Christ is risen today!

Oppression

...how [Jesus] went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. (Acts)

Then the Lord GOD will wipe away the tears from all faces,

and the disgrace of his people he will take away from all the earth... (Isaiah)

"Do not be alarmed; you are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has been raised; he is not here..." (Mark)

The discussions of the past 2 days here on campus really have me wondering, "what is oppression?" The three passages above all seem to give different indications of oppression. Jesus healed those "oppressed by the devil." Isaiah promised that God would wipe away tears and disgrace. The young man in white of Mark tells of Jesus rising from the dead.

As I struggle with white privledge and the original sin of racism I can't help but run across all these different ways of looking at oppression. But each of these definitions is used as a description of what it looks like to end oppression. People are healed, disgrace is wiped away, Jesus is alive.

Here's the point. Oppression only ends with God. With Jesus we are reconciled to God. As such we have the opportunity to be reconciled to one another. For as on Easter we come to know that God cannot be defeated, so too as an Easter poeople we must know that we are no longer slaves to sin, but to Jesus Christ who calls us to love the poor, to embrace persecution, and to be reconciled.

The hard part of course is what this end of oppression and reconciliation looks like. For that I don't have an answer. All I have is a hope that on Easter I will once again be reminded that 1- all things are possible for God and 2- its not about me.

Welcome Happy Morning

So they went out and fled from the tomb, for terror and amazement had seized them;

Isn't this the day we wait for all year long? Sure Christmas is a great holiday both secularly and in the Church, but the feast of the Nativity hardly holds a candle to this day, this happy morning when with terror and amazement we come to realize the empty tomb. After 40 long days of Lent (and 7 more "in" Lent) we have come to the Feast of the Resurrection. We have come to the happiest day of the year for we know that it is through Christ that we are saved. Jesus who died on the cross but 3 days; Jesus who fulfilled so many prophecies; Jesus who was 1 with the Father rose from the dead and defeated death once and for all.

Welcome Happy Morning, age to age shall say!

To God be the Glory (SS)

when Jesus heard it, he said, ‘This illness does not lead to death; rather it is for God’s glory, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.’

I have to admit it, I hate to do it, but I just have to. Seminary has been pretty good to me. I have been blessed by great friendships, great professors, humbling experiences and those which make me proud, and just with the opportunity to know God more/better.

My struggle continues though as I try to tread that thin line between my pride and God's glory. Offering up each day to God's glory and not my own is helpful, and yet still I struggle. Last night on Americal Idol, Mandisa sang a praise song while everyone else sang pop standards from the last 6 years. Then the judges and Ryan all talked about the new religion with 40 million members all worshipping at the altar of Mandisa. She looked mortified. She had stepped out on a rather large career limb by singing this song and claiming her faith in Jesus as Lord and all society could do was give her the glory.

Sometimes I feel that way too. I send my notes out not to show how great I am at taking notes, nor for the praises of my classmates, but merely to share my gift for notetaking with those for whom interpreting Sedgwich speak doens't come easliy. Then my name goes up for Student Body President and it all rushes to my mind, what if people think I do this stuff just to get an elected position, what if my ego is crushed under the presumption of my hubris?

Then I read the passage of Jesus raising Lazarus. Down to his death, Lazarus glorified God. "When Jesus heard it, he said, ‘This illness does not lead to death; rather it is for God’s glory, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.’" If my ego is crushed under the presumption of my own hubris I should be thanking God for the humility that comes from glorifying God only. Thanks be to God for those moments when we come to our knees, when we are at our lowest, and at that exact moment the one God; Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is glorified.

Encouragement (ss)

What a great set of passages on which Scott will get to preach. We don't spend a whole lot of time talking about the other fortunate folk who have been raised from the dead. This story from 2 Kings is a fabulous one (and deserves the whole pericope if I might add). When the woman sends for Elisha saying, "didn't I tell you not to pray for me, I didn't want to have a child, and now look" it makes my heart ache. As Paul says "the sting of death is sin." In this life we make decisions; we get married, we have children, and all is fine and fun. But these decisions to love come with great heartache. People get sick, people die and sometimes we even wish we (or they) had never been born rather than bear this pain. But G0d turns it all upside down. God tells us our loved one will rise again, and we respond, "I know that he/she will rise again in the resurrection on the last day." And whether or not the conversation goes on, we are confident in that. We celebrate lives, ministries, and relationships knowing the confidence that maybe not today, but someday soon we will see our loved on again, on the other side of the river Styx.

A new twist?- SS

One of the reasons I have slacked (see last post) is that I am working on a sermon for this monday. I thought through it and realized that while not identical to our goal, reflecting on -line on "other" readings would be in the spirit of our activity together. So, providing I don't cause a riot in my small community (Steve, John, and sometimes Peter), I will be reflecting on readings to prepare a sermon for next monday this week. I have listed the readings under the readings page as Special Sermon.

Slacker (ie negligent)

I love the web for being able to cut and paste. The two definitions below basically describe the efforts of spiritual practice this week. I have slacked whose meaning is akin to Negligent.


Main Entry: 1slack Pronunciation: 'slakFunction: adjectiveEtymology: Middle English slak, from Old English sleac; akin to Old High German slah slack, Latin laxus slack, loose, languEre to languish, Greek lagnos lustful and perhaps to Greek lEgein to stop1 : not using due diligence, care, or dispatch : NEGLIGENT2 a : characterized by slowness, sluggishness, or lack of energy b : moderate in some quality; especially : moderately warm c : blowing or flowing at low speed 3 a : not tight or taut b : lacking in usual or normal firmness and steadiness : WEAK 4 : wanting in activity : DULL 5 : lacking in completeness, finish, or perfection synonym see NEGLIGENT- slack·ly adverb- slack·ness noun


Main Entry: neg·li·gent Pronunciation: -j&ntFunction: adjectiveEtymology: Middle English, from Middle French & Latin; Middle French, from Latin neglegent-, neglegens, present participle of neglegere1 : marked by or given to neglect especially habitually or culpably : not taking prudent care2 : marked by a carelessly easy manner- neg·li·gent·ly adverbsynonyms NEGLIGENT, NEGLECTFUL, LAX, SLACK, REMISS mean culpably careless or indicative of such carelessness. NEGLIGENT implies inattention to one's duty or business . NEGLECTFUL adds a more disapproving implication of laziness or deliberate inattention . LAX implies a blameworthy lack of strictness, severity, or precision . SLACK implies want of due or necessary diligence or care . REMISS implies blameworthy carelessness shown in slackness, forgetfulness, or neglect .

My Burnt Offering (BCP)

Had you desired it, I would have offered sacrifice, *
but you take no delight in burnt-offerings...
The sacrifice of God is a troubled spirit; *
a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise...
Then you will be pleased with the appointed sacrifices,
with burnt-offerings and oblations; *...

I preached a few weeks ago on God's coveant with Noah and found something quite interesting. Between the J and the E texts God makes his covenant with Noah, but across both texts God recalls the sweet smell of Noah's first burnt offering upon dry ground. It got me thinking, as did the Psalm about what my "burnt offerings" are this season of Lent. I guess blogging is one. Maybe getting back to regular chapel attendance will be another. Loving the roommate in spite of her inane nature should be one.

Yet what is my motivation for all of these? Are they offerings in which God takes no delight? Are they from a troubled spirit, a broken and contrite heart? Will God be please with these offerings? I think God will take delight in some of them, so long as their are pure motivations in my heart (read not just to get a big mansion in heaven). Yet, God doesn't need any of these. God has lifted up the once for all offering in Jesus Christ on the cross.

God may or may not delight in my offering, but in Jesus Christ, God will once again open my lips so that I might again proclaim His praise.

A Sinner Redeemed (BCP)

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.

I'm sure Peter can clear this up for me, but I seem to recall somewhere reading Karl Barth saying preachers are in a unique position of being a Sinner Redeemed talking to a group of redeemed sinners. Studying to be a priest, this sounds good to me. As Paul points to Jesus as the High Priest for all time in the order of Melchizedek (a priest even before Levi) he points also to me. No, I am not Jesus, but I am studying to be a priest. I am getting ready to put on a mantle that is thousands of years old, and for as long as it has been around, fallen, just like those who hold the position.

As I lead my congregation in the Confession, I too ask for forgiveness. As I (God willing) offer absolution, I too feel the power of God fill me. As I (God willing) offering thanksgiving in the Eucharistic Prayer, I too seek to find my strength in Jesus Christ, the high priest forever. In all these things I lead as a sinner redeemed a group of redeemed sinners. Hopefully I do so not presuming the honor, but called by God, just as Aaron was.

Now if I could just work on that part about dealing gently with the ignorant. DANG!

Does Jesus draw ALL people? (BCP)

And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.

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 (BCP 101)

Scott emailed me about this collect a couple of days ago. He mentioned that he knew I liked this collect, and I'm not sure if he was being sarcastic or not. It made me think for a while as to whether I do actually like this collect. I think I do.

As I read through the readings today it struck me how apt this collect is (even if it isn't used on 5 Lent). We go from a universalist statement by God in Jeremiah to Jesus drawing all people to himself as he is lifted up from the earth. Its hard to read this as an orthodox Christian in light of Jesus claiming to be "the way and the truth and the life." (Jn 14.6).

But then I come back to this collect. Jesus did bring all to himself on the cross, but there are still those who still do not know. We are charged by God to bring those who don't know what it is they see on the cross to a relationship with God through Jesus Christ. We do this so that God might be glorified as once again this Lent we recall Jesus being lifted up from the earth at once defiled and at the same time glorified. Even Christ the Lord.

Shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life! (BCP)

Create in me a clean heart, O God, *and renew a right spirit within me.
Cast me not away from your presence * and take not your holy Spirit from me (NRSV)

We just looked at Psalm 51 in OT2 two weeks ago, much to everyone's displeasure. Psalm 51 is not an easy psalm to handle. Attributed to David following the Oracle of Nathanel (2 Sam 12). What really struck me was how trite "Create in me a clean heart..." has become for me. This really hit home when I read Eugene Peterson's translation

10God, make a fresh start in me, shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life.
11Don't throw me out with the trash, or fail to breathe holiness in me. (Ps 51 - The Message)

Looking at depth of sin in David's life brought me to my own. Sin so deep that it requires God to take another 6 days to refashion it. Sin and chaos that requires a Genesis week to fix. Yuck. But God doesn't throw me in the trash. God does not fail to breath holiness in me. Sure holiness hurts, but God's love feels so good.

Create in me a clean heart, O God. And renew a right spirit within me.