Sermon for June 24, 2018
Proper 7B – RCL – Track 1
When evening had come, Jesus said to his
disciples, “Let us go across to the other side.” And leaving the crowd behind,
they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. Other boats were with him.
A great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that the boat was
already being swamped. But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they
woke him up and said to him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” He
woke up and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” Then the
wind ceased, and there was a dead calm. He said to them, “Why are you afraid?
Have you still no faith?” And they were filled with great awe and said to one
another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?”
“Who is this, that even the wind and the sea
obey him?” This is a question that may
seem odd to us having just been through nearly four chapters of the Gospel of
Mark. Chapters that are filled with
miraculous healings and teaching on the kingdom of God.
In this one day – or at least it appears that the fourth chapter
of Mark is a series of teachings that happened in one day – in this one day
Jesus has talked a lot about the kingdom of God. The parables of the Crazy Farmer – better
known as the scattered seed, and the mustard seed growing wildly as the kingdom
of God is spread throughout the land.
And now Jesus wants to go to the other side. And after all the teaching he falls asleep. I would too.
There is somewhat of a tradition among preachers of the liturgy of the
nap after a long Sunday of services.
The storm that comes up is threatening to sink the boat. Water is pouring in and it is scary. There is a palpably sense of fear in the
boat. So they wake Jesus and he calms
the water. And then the disciples trade
the fear of drowning to another fear. “Who
is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?” Who is this itinerate Rabbi who can even
command the wind?
Well it is the same Rabbi who thus far in the Gospel of Mark,
been baptized by John and spoken to by God.
It is the same Rabbi who has kicked out demons and healed leapers and
paraplegics. It is the same Rabbi who
has been teaching that the kingdom of God is here – and not quite here. It is the same Rabbi who is calling outcasts
into his inner circle – tax collectors and fisher people. It is the same Rabbi that is showing by
actions and teachings that God’s dream is for the Kingdom to be present in the
present.
And yet the disciples at this point in the narrative still have
not quite gotten the message. And so
they are surprised that he is able to still the wind. And then Jesus lectures them that they should
have faith. Faith that God would not
abandon them in their hour of fear on the wind and waved tossed sea.
I think we all sometimes have the same type of question that the
disciples had. “Who is this Jesus?” and “What in His name does he want us to do?” If we have been paying attention to the
parables of the Kingdom of God and Jesus radical ministry to the outcasts then
there is a pretty simple answer. Jesus
wants us – you and me – all of us, to bring God’s dream of a loving and
inclusive kingdom to this earth.
We are called to implement policies and procedures that build up
the Children of God. To create
structures that include rather than exclude.
To really and truly follow the Great Commandments to Love God with all
of our hearts, mind, soul and strength and the second is to Love our neighbor
as ourselves. All of our neighbors. No exclusions. We are called to even love the politicians
with whom we disagree. And these days of
hyper media reactions and social media that one can be hard. When we hear multiple stories about children
being separated from their parents it can be hard to find love.
Karoline Lewis, from Luther Seminary, said “Jesus knows. It’s one
thing to talk about the Kingdom of God. It’s another thing to experience it. It’s
one thing to expound on theories about the Kingdom of God. It’s another thing
to act on those claims. It’s one thing to imagine what the Kingdom of God might
be like. It’s another thing to insist on what the Kingdom of God is and needs
to be.
Because, it’s one thing to have certain ordinances in mind when
it comes to the Kingdom of God. It’s another thing to implement policies that
are counterintuitive to the very heart of God’s reign.”[1]
From what I have read in many places – both left and right
leaning sources – is that sadly separating children from their parents is not a
new thing. What is new is that it has
been happening at an accelerated pace in recent weeks after our Government
announced a zero-tolerance policy that includes detaining anyone who doesn’t
have the correct papers or who tries to sneak across the border. What is new is some of the rhetoric and
inflammatory statements that include claims that these are not really parents
but child smugglers.
The prior policy of both democratic and republican
administrations was to release parents and children making asylum claims until
the immigration court system could get to their case. And that system is terribly backlogged. An immigration judge was interviewed on BBC
News who said he has cases where asylum seekers have been in line for 30
years. And in those 30 years have set
down deep roots in this country. Roots
that can include American citizen spouses and American citizen children. And in some cases he has to send those people
away. Away because they cannot make a
valid claim of asylum. This judge said
he has been tearing parents away from children in this fashion for years.
So while separation of children from parents has happened for
many years what has changed is both the numbers that have been separated and
the language that has been used around the separations. And just because there was not the level of
outrage about the separations that there is now does not mean that they have
ever been morally correct.
It is also true that many faith-based organizations, including
the Episcopal Church have been working for years to advocate for new
immigration laws and advocating for the least in society. It is the amount of press coverage and
rhetoric used by our politicians and others that has increased the spotlight on
some of our more egregious immigration practices. Practices that have continued even when it
seems that both sides of the political aisle agree that something needs to
change – and bipartisan groups of legislators agree that increased separation
of children from their parents is not what should be happening.
Enough noise was made this week that the President issued an
executive order that requires children to be detained with their parents. The details of its implementation will have
to be worked out and the means of reuniting children that have already been
separated with parents is work that still needs to be done. And there is much work to be done to improve
our immigration system
This week the Bishops of the seven Dioceses of California along
with the Diocese of the Rio Grande and the Diocese of Arizona issued a
statement on immigration. In part is
reads:
As Christians in the
Episcopal branch of the Jesus Movement, we are appalled by this practice of
separating children from their parents. This cruel and inhumane treatment can
cause long-lasting physical and emotional injury to children, according to the American
Medical Association and the American Psychological Association.
In addition, it is morally
indefensible. In Hebrew and Christian Holy Scriptures, we are enjoined again
and again to love the resident aliens and strangers and treat them as our own,
to extend hospitality, and to share our resources with them, for we recognize
that all that we have is a gift from God. We also are charged with paying
special attention to the most vulnerable in our community.
Children are some of the
most vulnerable members of society, and they need their families' love as well
as our care and attention. We Episcopalians join with many other people of good
will across the United States in asking the government to return migrant
children to their parents immediately and to allow migrants to process asylum
claims or to unite migrant children with family members in the United States.
Finally, we call upon Congress and our Administration to
overhaul our immigration system to relieve the suffering of all those who have
been harmed by our policies.
“Who is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?” It is Jesus, the Son of God, who called his
disciples into a different way of seeing the world. A way that does not put empire above all
else, a way that values all people as beloved children of God. It is the one who is calling us to bring
about the dream of God in our own world.
Karoline Lewis continued to say, “Every single day these days, we
need a reminder of the nature of the Kingdom of God. Every. Single. Day. A reminder
that the Kingdom of God lives out, seeks out, marches for, demonstrates for,
protests about, life over laws. That the Kingdom of God works for equality over
contracts. That the Kingdom of God chooses choice over a kind of chastisement
that accuses the other so as to discharge one’s own discomfort.
A kingdom willing to be accountable to its own actions rather
than casting culpability on those who were never at the table.
A kingdom dedicated to dissolving boundaries and borders rather
than building barricades.
A kingdom recognizable by a radical resistance to any and all
powers that perpetuate fear over persistence.
For you see, the Kingdom of God is not for the faint of heart....
And the sooner the disciples, the sooner we, realize that truth, the better.”
Our call is, to bring about the kingdom of God by loving God and
loving our neighbors. Sounds so
easy. But we know in our hearts it is
hard. It is hard to love people who hurt
others. It is hard to love those who
seem non-responsive to our attempts to reach out and who instead leave messes
all over this property. And sometimes it
is even hard to love ourselves.
Jesus came to show a way that over two thousand years ago was
radically different. To show a way that
was transformative without violence. To
bring about God’s Dream. And we as the
Episcopal Branch of the Jesus movement are called to continue that
transformation. Both here and throughout
this fragile earth.
Amen.
