Good Samaritan

Proper 10 C RCL

Amos 7:7-17
Psalm 82
Colossians 1:1-14
Luke 10:25-37

Just then a lawyer stood up to test Jesus. "Teacher," he said, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?" He said to him, "What is written in the law? What do you read there?" He answered, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself." And he said to him, "You have given the right answer; do this, and you will live."

But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?" Jesus replied, "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell into the hands of robbers, who stripped him, beat him, and went away, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down that road; and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan while traveling came near him; and when he saw him, he was moved with pity. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, having poured oil and wine on them. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said, `Take care of him; and when I come back, I will repay you whatever more you spend.' Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?" He said, "The one who showed him mercy." Jesus said to him, "Go and do likewise."

Today’s gospel story is very familiar to many of us.  The concept and story of the Good Samaritan has made its way into popular culture.  We have Good Samaritan Hospitals and Good Samaritan Laws on the books. Did I really even need to proclaim the gospel or could I have simply said Good Samaritan and sat down?  The challenge for me is trying to find something to say about this parable that will make us think and hopefully give back to it some of the power and shock that the story had for the people in Jesus day. Is it possible for the parable to call us to action today?

One of the first things that hit me square between the eyes this time I read it was how the parable acts to judge the clergy!  Now that I am a member of the clergy I see that one lens is a call for clergy not to be too self-righteous.  There is a danger, both as a member of the clergy – and as members of the congregation that we want to serve only other Episcopalians.  We want to make sure that we minister to each other.  The priest and the Levite did not even bother to see if the man in the ditch belonged to their congregations.  Who is the man in the ditch?  Did they jump to conclusions about the person beaten and left to die?  Was he not well enough dressed that he could not possible have been one of their flock? One of the messages of this parable is a call to expand whom we, as religious people, consider our members – our tribe.  It is a call to a radical hospitality.

Follow me as I try to paint a picture of how this story might be told today.  A clergy person and a vestry member are walking down J street and see someone obviously in pain sitting on the ground in a doorway.  They both cross the street to avoid the person.  After all the service at St. Paul’s begins in 10 minutes.  They are running late.  The next person who comes up is someone who might be a terrorist for all we know.  They certainly don’t look like a respectable person who we would invite to a dinner party.  They stop and help the man in pain.  They take them to the Sheraton and get a room so they can get clean and fed.  Can you imagine it – I am not sure that the inn-keeper would even let someone who was disheveled and bloody come in with someone who is suspicious – not unless they could produce a very generous line of credit.  More likely the only people who might take in the pair would be Loaves and Fishes.  Who is being the neighbor now?  Also think bout it from the point of view of the man in the ditch – the person who comes to his rescue is someone who he would just a soon die as be helped by them.  Are there people who you would not want to help you – that you would rather die than ask them for assistance?

Several years ago – when I worked off of Richards Boulevard by the American River -  as I was biking to work I had a flat tire – at 6:30 in the morning – not the way I wanted to start the day.  I went to change the tire only to discover that my patch kit glue had gone dry.  The only thing I could do was to walk and half carry my bike the last mile or so to the office.  As I was walking along many well-dressed bike commuters on their expensive bikes with their expensive jerseys flew past me.  Not one of them stopped to see if I could use some help.  As I passed Discovery Park a man who I had seen a number of times with all his possessions piled on a trailer attached to his bike stopped and asked if he could help me!  I have to admit I probably thought that he was going to ask for a handout when I saw him change direction to come my way.  But instead he offered help.  When I explained that I had a flat and my tube of glue was dry.  He told me he just got a new tube and offered to let me use it.  This person who – in my worldview at the time looked like he lacked everything offered what little he had to me.  As I was only a short way from my office I thanked him and declined to take him up on the offer.  This encounter caused me to remember who was being neighborly.  It was – I suspect – an encounter with God.  This homeless man was my neighbor.  God was calling me to see that. 

It is no surprise that the last three weeks have the sermons preached by three different preachers have all brought up our baptismal covenants.  The gospel readings for the past four weeks – including todays – are all about expanding the definition of who is our neighbor.  There has been a thread about hospitality in each one of them.  Hospitality is in the very DNA of our Episcopal Church.  When we are baptized we promise to Love God and Love our Neighbors and to seek and serve Christ is all persons.  We promise to respect the human dignity of every person.  Wonderful promises.  Today’s gospel reading reminds us that God is calling us to ever expand who we call neighbor.  God is calling us to see the world as God sees it.  So what are we called to do as a result of this gospel? 

Another preacher, the Rev. Brian Konkol – in his sermon on this parable said that “…the narrative [of the Good Samaritan] seems to promote short-term aid without addressing long-term justice, and the appearance of such an omission needs to be explored more thoroughly. For example, what were the social conditions that led to such a dreadful act of violence on the road to Jericho? Why was the stranger so brutally victimized at that particular location and not somewhere else? Was the event merely a crime of momentary opportunity, or was it a predictable outcome of a deeper societal illness? In other words, was short-term aid all that was necessary in response to the incident, or was the Good Samaritan later inspired to engage the dilemma through advocacy?” 

Is it enough that we at St. Paul’s open our doors to all people?  Is it enough that we make and give out around 100 sack lunches every month?  I don’t think it is enough.  We need to also look at how society creates homelessness and hunger.  We need to get over our squeamishness of entering into the political realm and challenge a system, a society creates a culture of haves and have-nots.  I know many of you are doing that in your daily lives and work.  But what is St. Paul’s doing?  When we leave this beautiful sanctuary and advocate for a better world I hope we do it blatantly as members of St. Paul’s.

 I attended a fundraiser this past week for Sacramento Self Help Housing.  I was shocked to see that while there are wonderful corporate sponsors – like Wells Fargo Bank - and individual sponsors but that there are no churches listed and no obvious clergy involved.  I wonder why?  They have a mission to “assist persons who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless to find and retain stable and affordable housing. (http://www.sacselfhelp.org/index.php/about-us)” which seems compatible with our baptismal call to seek and serve Christ in all persons.  Perhaps there are churches that support this group that I am unaware of but it does make be wish that I had worn my clergy shirt to the fundraiser.  I have friends and co-workers who are involved with Sacramento Self Help Housing so I will follow up to see if there are things I can do as a clergy person and that perhaps we can do as a congregation to help.

As St. Paul’s continues to do our strategic planning and working with the New Dollars/New Partners program I hope we will find ways to expand who we see as our neighbor.  I hope we can find partners that we can both help and who can help us to change this world into one where we as a society no longer leave people in ditches to die.  To find ways to both give assistance and to accept assistance from people who we would classify as our enemies and who God knows are truly our neighbors.  Amen.

Sermon for Pentecost 5 2013 “AIDS Ride Sermon”

-->

Proper 7C RCL

1 Kings 19:1-4, (5-7), 8-15a
Psalm 42 and 43
Galatians 3:23-29

Luke 8:26-39

Jesus and his disciples arrived at the country of the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee. As he stepped out on land, a man of the city who had demons met him. For a long time he had worn no clothes, and he did not live in a house but in the tombs. When he saw Jesus, he fell down before him and shouted at the top of his voice, "What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, do not torment me" -- for Jesus had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. (For many times it had seized him; he was kept under guard and bound with chains and shackles, but he would break the bonds and be driven by the demon into the wilds.) Jesus then asked him, "What is your name?" He said, "Legion"; for many demons had entered him. They begged him not to order them to go back into the abyss.

Now there on the hillside a large herd of swine was feeding; and the demons begged Jesus to let them enter these. So he gave them permission. Then the demons came out of the man and entered the swine, and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and was drowned.

When the swineherds saw what had happened, they ran off and told it in the city and in the country. Then people came out to see what had happened, and when they came to Jesus, they found the man from whom the demons had gone sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind. And they were afraid. Those who had seen it told them how the one who had been possessed by demons had been healed. Then all the people of the surrounding country of the Gerasenes asked Jesus to leave them; for they were seized with great fear. So he got into the boat and returned. The man from whom the demons had gone begged that he might be with him; but Jesus sent him away, saying, "Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you." So he went away, proclaiming throughout the city how much Jesus had done for him.

One of the things that strikes me about our Gospel reading today as well as the one last week is something that Dean Baker from Trinity cathedral said at the Integrity Eucharist in the park last week.  And that is that both today and with the unclean women last week that Jesus sees the person.  In last weeks gospel Jesus sees the women for who she is and not for what she had done in her past.  This week Jesus sees the humanity that is being masked by the demonic force in the young man.  The townspeople no longer saw the young man but only saw his demons.  They were so afraid of the demons that the chained the young man up in the graveyard.  They put him among the dead for he surely was dead to the rest of society.   Jesus arrives and goes to the possessed man and, like an earlier story of exorcism in Luke, the inhabiting unclean spirit recognizes Jesus and the demons ask what Jesus is going to do to them.  Jesus goes against societal norms and instead of shunning the unclean he heals the tormented soul.  Jesus sees the humanity that still is there – unlike the rest of the people who have encountered the unclean he does not shun but touches and heals.  Jesus restores the humanity that others fail to even recognize anymore.

What does this story say to us today?  After all most of society does not recognize actual demonic possession anymore.  But there are certainly demons that can and do inhabit us today.  Today we frequently call the demons mental illness.  We come up with psychological diagnoses and chemical treatments to try and control the underlying imbalance that science has determined leads to some mental illness.  The ability to control chemical imbalances is fine as far as it goes but Jesus calls us to do more.  Jesus calls us to see the person behind the disease.  Jesus calls us to touch and care for those whom society would just as soon chain in the cemetery like the community did to the demonic in our Gospel reading. .  Jesus calls us, as his disciples, to see the human and not the disease.  To see God’s holy creation.

The first week of June I had the privilege of participating in an event that truly does see the person and not the disease.  The first week of June was AIDS Lifecycle 12.  The amazing bike-ride from San Francisco to Los Angeles over seven days that raises money for the San Francisco AIDS Foundation and for the L.A. Gay and Lesbian Centers AIDS treatment and prevention services.  The ride this year broke records.  It was the 20^th year that people have ridden their bikes 545 miles to raise money and to support each other.  But the ride is more than a ride – as I have observed for 13 years now.  The ride creates a wonderful supportive community that sees the individuals as beloved children of God and as good.  It doesn’t matter their HIV status, their sexual orientation, their race, their gender or gender expression.  All are cared for by each other and the wonderful volunteer roadies – as the crew is called- and staff on the ride.

This year the ride raised a record breaking $14.2 million!  In the 20 years of the rides existence it has raised an amazing $182.5 million.  This year another milestone was reached as the ride calculated that over 20 million miles have been ridden to date to raise money and awareness of a pandemic that is still all to prevalent in the world. A disease that has, in some ways become invisible to the vast majority.  But it is still a terrible pandemic. 

In California:

·       An estimated 117,213 people are living with HIV and 72,496 are living with AIDS.

·       In 2010, more new AIDS diagnoses were made in California than any other state: 4, 243, or 12.6% of all new diagnoses in the U.S.

In the United States:

·       1.1 million people are living with HIV/AIDS.

·       Close to one-fifth of those infected with HIV doesn’t know it.

·       New infections among young gay and bisexual men (ages 13–24) increased by 22% between 2008 and 2010, the most significant increase of any age group.

·       Racial and ethnic minorities have been disproportionately affected by HIV/AIDS since the beginning of the epidemic and represent the majority of new AIDS diagnoses, new HIV infections, people living with HIV/AIDS, and AIDS deaths.

In the world:

·       Approximately 34 million people are living with HIV and nearly 30 million have died of AIDS-related causes since the beginning of the epidemic.

·       About half of new HIV infections are among those under age 25.

·       HIV is a leading cause of death worldwide and the number-one cause of death in Africa.  (www.aidslifecycle.org/about/press-room/press-kit/alc2013-press-kit.pdf)

This year there where 2203 riders and over 500 Roadies.  The oldest rider was 82 and the oldest Roadie was 83.  The youngest rider was 19 and the youngest roadie was 18.  While the ride is impressive in its statistics – and I could give you some impressive numbers for the amount of food, water and porta-potties that it takes to create this event – it is more than just numbers.  It is truly about the cohesive community that is created from the diverse community that comes together. 

This year was a different for me.  I did not participate in the entire week.  I only participated in orientation and ride-out and pack-up on day one before coming back up to Sacramento so that I could attend the pre-ordination retreat Monday through Wednesday at Mercy Center Auburn with the Bishop, the Archdeacon Cookie Clark and eight other diaconal ordinands.  The Bishop gathered those of us being ordained as transitional and vocational deacons together to reflect on the ministry of a deacon.  After the retreat I got up early on Thursday morning and drove to Lompoc to rejoin the ride.  It was quite a treat to rejoin the ride on Red Dress day! I then participated in Days 5, 6 and 7 of the ride

In some ways the pre-ordination retreat helped focus my participation on the parts of the ride I was able to be part of.  The pre-ordination retreat asked me, and the other ordinands,  to reflect on the promises that I will make at ordination.  Among the promises that a deacon makes is to  “…look for Christ in all others, being ready to help and serve those in need.   And… in all things seek not your glory but the glory of the Lord Christ? (BCP 544)”  When I rejoined the ride I certainly recognized that what happens over and over again on the AIDS ride is true diaconal service.  The riders, roadies and staff all are ready to serve those in need.  There are examples of selfless giving that happen all over the place from people cheering the riders up steep hills to helping change a flat tire or perhaps most importantly to truly seeing and loving each other as Jesus calls us to love each other.  And I have yet to run across anyone in my 13 years of participation that does this for their own glory.  Sure there is a sense of accomplishment when riding at making it up quadbuster – or completing any of the days rides – not to mention the sheer joy of riding into Los Angeles.  There is a similar sense of accomplishment for the Roadies when we complete our day and see the sea of bikes parked in bike parking and hear the laughter and joy ringing through camp.  The motivation of the riders and the crew is to make a difference in peoples lives – both in the lives of people we know with HIV/AIDS and for those we will never meet and for those who will never get the disease due to the education and outreach into at-risk communities that is funded on account of the ride.  It is in giving life to people who thought they had lost their lives.  Each year I encounter people who are literally in tears of Joy because for at least one week a year they are part of a community that sees them.  That does not see HIV status, sexual orientation, or physical ability but sees a wonderful child of God.  For my part this ride was truly one of diaconal service.

After the ride the logistic director posted an excerpt from an e-mail that came across her desk.  It read “'AIDS/LifeCycle literally saved my life ... I never really told anyone how I felt I was just losing steam, energy and the desire to keep moving forward in my life ... The Lifecycle changed that. After doing this ride I feel like I can do anything ... '  That is why many of us keep coming back over and over again.  The ride saves lives.  The ride casts out demons just as Jesus cast out the legion of demons inhabiting the young man in our Gospel story.

As we go about our lives in our communities let us strive to see the beloved child of God in each person we encounter.  To assist each other and especially those in need to cast off our demons rather than to figuratively chain them up in societies’ graveyard.  Let us strive to live into our baptismal covenants to “seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving our neighbor as ourselves” and “to strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being” (BCP 305) And there is no escape clause in our Baptismal promises.  We are to love all of our neighbors…even, and perhaps especially, those who do not look or act like us.  Amen.

Good Shepherd Sunday

Sermon for Easter 4 – Good Shepherd Sunday

Acts 9:36-43
Psalm 23
Revelation 7:9-17
John 10:22-30

At that time the festival of the Dedication took place in Jerusalem. It was winter, and Jesus was walking in the temple, in the portico of Solomon. So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, "How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly." Jesus answered, "I have told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father's name testify to me; but you do not believe, because you do not belong to my sheep. My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one will snatch them out of my hand. What my Father has given me is greater than all else, and no one can snatch it out of the Father's hand. The Father and I are one."

Alleluia Christ is Risen! 

Today s the fourth Sunday of Easter.  Not the fourth Sunday after Easter.  We still have our Easter finery in the church.  However the Easter Lilies and other flowers are starting to fade.  For the secular world Easter with its cute bunnies and Easter egg hunts and oodles of candy – can you say peeps and cadbury cream eggs? – has faded into the background.  All around us society is already starting to think about the next holiday and the beginning of the summer season that is just around the corner.  But it is still Easter in the church.  How do we hold on to a celebration that lasts 50 days in our world of short attention spans?  How do we celebrate the joy of the resurrection when faced with the bombings at the Boston Marathon this past Monday and the manhunt that captivated the nation coming to a close with one suspect dead and the other captured and hospitalized in serious condition?

How do we celebrate Easter in the midst of violence and death?  And to top it off this Sunday is what we refer to as Good Shepherd Sunday.  It is a Sunday full of images of sheep and shepherds.  It was tempting for me to ignore the events of this past week and to preach about shepherds and cute sheep but instead the events of this week caused me to go deeper into the readings.

It useful to put the Gospel into context.  The setting is a cold December day.  It is the festival of the Dedication or as we know it today Chanukah.  It’s a far cry from our spring filled Easter setting.  The portico of Solomon is also the seat of judgment.  It is where the king would sit and pronounce judgment on the people.  And that is where we hear the people asking Jesus to tell them plainly if he is the messiah.  No more riddles.  And how does Jesus reply?  Seemingly in another riddle.  But behind that riddle is hope.  Jesus reminds the people of all that he has done in their presence.  Jesus has not only been telling the people that his is the messiah but he is demonstrating it though his acts.

Jesus then tells those people that because they are not his sheep they cannot hear – and I would add cannot see – that Jesus is the messiah.  There is a tenderness to this passage.  There is a promise of hope in the midst of doubt.  It is a two way street.  The sheep know the shepherds voice and the shepherd knows his sheep.  The shepherd will protect them.  There is a promise that we just have to listen for Jesus voice.  But it’s not that easy during weeks like this past week.  Weeks like this can make us doubt.  Another preacher I follow said “So often in church we talk about faith and that is a powerful thing to talk about, but to not claim the flip side of faith, the perpetual travelling companion of faith -- doubt -- means we are not leaving room for the real life experiences of people. Even the most faithful have moments of doubt. (Workingpreacher.org)”

----------------------------------------------

Where is Jesus voice in the midst of the destruction? Can you hear it above the roar of helicopters and ‘flash-bang’ grenades?  Can we hear Jesus voice calling us above the media frenzy that followed the manhunt all day on Friday?  The good news for us is that God is persistent.  Even when we doubt God’s presence we can – if we look find God’s presence.  We can see evidence of God in the reactions of those who – instead of running away from the bombsite – ran to the site to help those in need.  We can see God’s presence in a community that refuses to live in fear.  We can see and hear God whispering to us.  God will take care of us even in the midst of tragedy.  It can be hard to believe that God is present in times of tragedy but that is the good new of Easter.  God suffered death on the Cross and rose on Easter to prove to us that nothing on this earth can kill the love of God.  God’s love will pursue us all the way to the grave if necessary.  Let me repeat that – NOTHING ON THIS EARTH CAN KILL THE LOVE THAT GOD HAS FOR US. We can trust in that.  Even – and perhaps especially when we have doubts.  We hear it in our Gospel reading today - God’s promise that even from Solomon’s portico – from the judgment seat – that God knows us and we know his voice. 

We also hear that promise from the Psalmist today.  The Lord is my Shepard, I shall not want.”  When we are confronted by doubt and despair the psalms are good places to turn.  They express all the doubt, fear, anger and joy towards God that we experience.  There is one particular line in the psalm today that when translated differently emphasizes Gods relentless pursuit of us.  The last line of the psalm can be translated from the Hebrew to read “Surely Goodness and mercy shall chase or pursue me all the days of my live, and I will dwell in the house of the lord forever.” (Sermon Brainwave at workinpreacher.org)  In the midst of our crazy lives.  When nothing makes sense try saying the 23^rd Psalm.  Say it for your self or for someone else. Lynell has preached about using this psalm as a method to lift up to God people or situations when we don’t know how to pray.  Change the pronouns and instead of it being a personal response it can become a prayer for the victims or even the perpetrators of violence.

Lets try it together.  Change the pronouns anyway you want.  It can be for someone(s) in need of consoling or those who we don’t know how to forgive because of what they have done. (BCP 612)

1

The LORD is my shepherd; *
I shall not be in want.

2

He makes me lie down in green pastures *
and leads me beside still waters.

3

He revives my soul *
and guides me along right pathways for his Name's sake.

4

Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I shall fear no evil; *
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

5

You spread a table before me in the presence of those who trouble me; *
you have anointed my head with oil,
and my cup is running over.

6

Surely your goodness and mercy shall [pursue] follow me all the days of my life, *
and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.

God’s pursuit is never ending.  It is sometimes hard for us to hear or see the love that never refuses to die but it is there.  How will we hear God’s voice through the tumult?  It is not easy.  But the Easter promise is not one of judgment. The Easter promise is that God’s love for his creation can’t be killed.  I invite you to find a way to be able to listen for God’s voice in your life.  Is God’s voice there for you in the beauty of creation?  Is it in your relationships with others?  Is it in the beauty of worship and the sacraments?  The good news of Easter as expressed by the psalmist is that God will pursue us and call us all the days of our lives – even on those days we doubt in the goodness of creation and in the love of God.

Alleluia!  Christ is Risen!

The Parable of the Prodigal Son

-->

The Parable of the Prodigal Son

Lent 4C RCL

Joshua 5:9-12

Psalm 32

2 Corinthians 5:16-21

Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32

Who are you in this parable?  That is the question that came into my mind when I first read the parable this week.  Am I the younger son who squandered his inheritance and out of desperation came crawling back to his family?  Or Am I the father who doesn’t hold onto the hurt that was inflicted when the younger son left and who radically embraces the return of his lost child and throws a party?  Or perhaps, just perhaps I am the older son sulking and refusing to join the celebration.  Absolutely refusing to come to the party even after dad tried to get me in!  The fact is that I have been all of these people.  Biologically I am the oldest son so I can emphasize with the older brother even if I don’t think I have the same reactions as he does to the return of his brother.  But perhaps there is just a little of the older bother in all of us.  It is enough to make me squirm.

Being able to recognize ourselves in this story is both a great thing about it and a danger.  This parable is so familiar that just the title tells us the whole story.  It has the effect of taming the parable to the point that it become like one of Aesop’s fairy tales.  Really- I bet all Deacon Cindy had to do for the gospel reading was to say two words.  Prodigal Son.  After all we really know this story don’t we?  But do we? 

In one way we all do know the story.  And whether we take it as a cautionary tale for our selves or a great story that God accepts us no matter what it is a wonderful story.  Unfortunately the temptation is to turn it into a two dimensional cautionary tale. What we gloss over is the really radical nature of the story.  And the reason for Jesus telling it.  Jesus tells the story in reaction to the Pharisees and scribes grumbling about the company he is keeping. This is the third of three parables that Jesus tells about the lost in response to the Pharisees’ grumbling. The three are the parable of the lost sheep, the parable of the lost coin that his parable.   As another preacher I follow (http://www.workingpreacher.org/brainwave.aspx) said that there are elements of all three of the three lost parables in this section of Luke that are not believable.  What Sheppard would really leave the 99 to find the one?  No responsible shepherd would…at least without making sure the 99 are safe.  What person would search the house for one lost coin and then call their neighbors in for a party when it is found?  Not anyone I know?  These are crazy stories!  Even this one is crazy!

Perhaps we need to first remember how radical this story really was in its day.  Today we don’t think all that much about a child asking for a nest egg as they set out on their own.  But at the time the parable was written the younger son was basically saying that his family was dead to him.  The father might as well be dead and the younger son demands his share now.  It meant real hardship.  It most likely meant selling land.  The nest egg was meant for the younger son to have something to set him up in business or on his own land when his father was gone.  It was not a gift to use to go to the ancient version of Los Vegas where what happens in Israel stays in Israel!

 It is just as radical that his father agreed to give him the money.  It just wasn’t done.  So while the youngest son set up the family for disgrace the older son stays the course.  Naturally – he was always going to get the lion’s share of the family fortune being the oldest.  But he is the best boy.  He stays and labors. And everything that is left legally will belong to him when his father is gone.  That is why he is working in the field.  Not necessarily out of the goodness of his heart but also because it will all legally be his.

Now the younger son goes out and parties the money away and lands as an indentured servant.  Bad enough you say.  He got what is coming to him.  But it gets worse.  Remember he is a Jew and he is now in charge of taking care of pigs.  Unclean animals.  It can’t be worse than this…but it is! He is actually coveting the feed of the pigs.  While wallowing in his self-pity he remembers how good it was at home.  And he rehearses a story that he is going to tell his father and offer himself as a servant – after all he does not deserve to be treated as a son.  We have all done that step!  We have rehearsed our stories on how we are going to get out of a bad situation or how we are going to explain ourselves – particularly when we know we are wrong;

The amazing thing is his father doesn’t wait for the story.  Seeing his son the father disgraces himself and runs – you see the only people who ran in the ancient world where athletes…it is not dignified for an old man – but run he did.  The father forgives even before the young son repents.  Its crazy.  To act this way means that the father will be seen as crazy by his servants and his neighbors…not to mention the older son. 

On Sunday’s we don’t celebrate saints days, with a few exceptions.  Sunday’s take precedent.  If it wasn’t Sunday we could remember someone else today who was a great person.  A person who most of us would say did crazy things out of love.  A person who was so significant that our national church is adding her to our “saints calendar”.  A person I could not let pass without mentioning.  Today marks the 100^th anniversary of the death of Harriet Tubman. 

Our Episcopal Book of Saints, as I call it (Holy Women Holy Men) has this to say about Harriet Tubman – also known as the Moses to her people.

Slave births were recorded under property, not as persons with names; but we know that Harriet Ross, sometime during 1820 on a Maryland Chesapeake Bay plantation, was the sixth of eleven children born to Ben Ross and Harriet Green.

Harriet suffered beatings and a severe injury, but grew up strong and defiant, refusing to appear happy and smiling to her owners. To cope with brutality and oppression, she turned to religion. Her favorite Bible story was about Moses who led the Israelites out of slavery. The slaves prayed for a Moses of their own.

When she was about 24, Harriet escaped to Canada, but could not forget her parents and other slaves she left behind. Working with the Quakers, she made at least 19 trips back to Maryland between 1851 and 1861, freeing over 300 people by leading them into Canada. She was so successful, $40,000 was offered for her capture.

Guided by God through omens, dreams, and warnings, she claimed her struggle against slavery had been commanded by God. She foresaw the Civil War in a vision. When it began, she quickly joined the Union Army, serving as cook and nurse, caring for both Confederate and Union soldiers. She served as a spy and scout. She led 300 black troops on a raid which freed over 750 slaves, making her the first American woman to lead troops into military action.

 (http://liturgyandmusic.wordpress.com/2010/07/20/july-20-elizabeth-cady-stanton-1902-amelia-bloomer-1894-sojourner-truth-1883-and-harriet-ross-tubman-1913-liberators-and-prophets/)

The life of Harriet Tubman fits the mold of what Jesus is trying to tell us in this parable.  She lived a life that most would think was crazy.  After all how many of us would willingly go back into harms way after escaping to rescue other people.  Sure we might go back to rescue our family… but 300 or 750 other people.  Harriet was a living example of the extraordinary extravagance of God’s love.

Getting back to our Gospel story.  A question that I am left with is what was the younger son’s motivation for returning? Was he really sorry?  Did he really repent of the wrongs or was it his stomach speaking?  We don’t know.  And that is the point.  It doesn’t matter.  The father forgives and welcomes the younger son.  That is what God does.  God’s radical grace accepts our return too.  It doesn’t matter our motivations for returning.  It is that we return that matters.  The word that we translate as repentance is “Metanoia” and another way we can translate that word is a turning around.  When we have metanoia/repentance we turn around.  That is what the younger son did.  He turned around.  And the amazing thing is it does not matter why he turned around only that he did.  That is also true for us.  It does not matter why we turn to God only that we do.  God’s answer is Love.  Nothing more nothing less.   

So if anyone ever tries to tell you that keeping St. Matthew’s open is crazy take it as a compliment.  You all are just as crazy as our loving God.  Willing to step out of what the world would say should happen and live in a world where God’s love is the law of the land.  Not the laws of humans.  It doesn’t matter how much or how little you have you share it.  The people in this church are a lot like the father in our parable.  We don’t care why people are here!  And your response is one of love.  That is the crazy radical thing about our God and being a follower of our God.  Our call is to Love.  To radically love our selves and those who come to us. 

Sermon for Transfiguration Sunday

-->

Sermon for Transfiguration Sunday

Year C RCL

Exodus 34:29-35
Psalm 99
2 Corinthians 3:12-4:2

Luke 9:28-36, [37-43a]

About eight days after Peter had acknowledged Jesus as the Christ of God, Jesus took with him Peter and John and James, and went up on the mountain to pray. And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became dazzling white. Suddenly they saw two men, Moses and Elijah, talking to him. They appeared in glory and were speaking of his departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. Now Peter and his companions were weighed down with sleep; but since they had stayed awake, they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him. Just as they were leaving him, Peter said to Jesus, "Master, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah"--not knowing what he said. While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were terrified as they entered the cloud. Then from the cloud came a voice that said, "This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!" When the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent and in those days told no one any of the things they had seen.

[On the next day, when they had come down from the mountain, a great crowd met him. Just then a man from the crowd shouted, "Teacher, I beg you to look at my son; he is my only child. Suddenly a spirit seizes him, and all at once he shrieks. It convulses him until he foams at the mouth; it mauls him and will scarcely leave him. I begged your disciples to cast it out, but they could not." Jesus answered, "You faithless and perverse generation, how much longer must I be with you and bear with you? Bring your son here." While he was coming, the demon dashed him to the ground in convulsions. But Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, healed the boy, and gave him back to his father. And all were astounded at the greatness of God.]

Today is the last Sunday after the Epiphany.  This is the last Sunday before we start Lent.  If you are an alleluia person better get it out of your system now.  After Tuesday we the church will not sing out with alleluia until Easter.  Every year the church ends the season of Epiphany with the story of the transfiguration.  Unlike some preachers who seem to agonize over what to do with this story I actually like it.  I find that the transfiguration can provide a wonderful lens on how we see our ministries in this world.  For many the story of the Transfiguration is one of those stories that leaves us wondering what to do with it. Is this the end of Epiphany? Is it a foreshadowing of Easter when we will see Christ's glory revealed?  Is it an entry into lent which starts in just a few days? I think the answer is yes. It can be all of these things but the importance is not what it is but how we use the transfiguration in our lives. How can we be transfigured or transformed? For me the transfiguration is a lens through which to see our ministries.

But before I go into using the transfiguration as a lens for our ministries I find it useful to put the story into context within the larger Gospel Story.  In the Gospel of Luke this story happens right after the story of Jesus asking the disciples who do people say that he is, and perhaps more importantly for the story who do the Disciples think that Jesus is.  It is at that point the Peter, that wonderful disciple that, like us, can run hot and cold, blurts out that Jesus is the Messiah of God!  Peter gets it!

After this Jesus takes Peter, John and James up onto the Mountain to pray.  I love the narrative here because in my minds eye I can see what happens.  The dialogue is so rich that it paints wonderful Technicolor pictures.  I can picture the event in my minds eye!  While on the mountain suddenly Jesus is transformed.  His whole body including his clothing is transformed – Jesus is gleaming.  Whiter than anything.  And suddenly Moses and Elijah are there talking with Jesus. 

And what to the disciples want to do?  They want to freeze that moment.  They want to build three dwelling or tents for Jesus, Moses, and Elijah.  The disciples do not want this to end.  Can you blame them?  It had to be both awe inspiring and frightening all at once. 

We do the same thing.  When something wonderful happens to us or in our communities we want to freeze time.  We want to build dwellings that will preserve the moment.  At a minimum we use technology to take pictures or videos of the moment.  But really we can’t freeze time.  After awhile the captured moment no longer has the same effect.  It can be a little like going to a zoo to see the animals.  Yes the animals are magnificent, and for many of us that is the only place we will encounter some of these marvelous creatures.  But no matter how good the setting – how good the scenery has been built - part of us knows that it is not real.  The zoo animals are captive.  The experience is a mere shadow of what it must be like to encounter them in the wild.  In our own lives we have to savor the moments but we also have to let them go.  I’m not saying that we should not memorialize wonderful events but that those events need to be used as building materials for the next event. 

The next thing that happens in the story is one of those rare occurrences in our bible.  We hear God speak directly.  This doesn’t happen very often.  Usually we hear God speak through others not directly to the disciples.  One of the other times we heard God speak directly happened right after Christmas – when we remembered Jesus Baptism we also heard God Speak.  This time God speaks not to Jesus – but to the disciples.  “This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!” After which Moses and Elijah disappeared and they were alone with Jesus again.  Not the shining neon white Jesus but the Jesus they had gone with to pray. 

In this story the disciples encountered not only the Messiah but God the father also spoke directly to the three disciples.  For Peter, John and James they probably thought that this was the beginning of the Messiah that they expected.  The one who was going to overthrow the Roman Empire that was oppressing the Jewish state.  After all God was there.  They witnessed the wonderful glory of God manifested in Jesus.  They heard God speak! But that was not to be. 

What is remarkable for me is what come next in the story.  When they come down off of the mountain Jesus does not confront the occupation forces.  The disciples do not go around bragging that they had seen the glory of God revealed on the mountain.  No.  They go back to the work they have been doing.  Healing the sick.  In the next part of the story Jesus confronts a demon who possessed a boy and heals him. The healing brings the whole story into focus.  It gives us a lens for our ministry. 

If we look at our ministry through the lens of the transfiguration we are confronted with both the Glory of God and a call to help cast out the demons in our world.  When we encounter God we are not called to stay in that moment. Our encounters with God are meant to propel us out into our world.  Our encounters with God are fulfilled when we go out from them and work to bring God’s wonderful healing love into our world.  When we encounter God we too are transformed.  We are transformed to do the work of a disciple.  We are called to fulfill the great commandment to love God and love our neighbors as ourselves.

Ultimately I believe the feast of the transfiguration is a feast about unveiling. The disciples see the glory of God unveiled in the transformation of Jesus on the mountaintop just as Moses was transformed in his encounter with God. Just as we can be transformed in our encounters with God. We too can be transfigured but we need to be open to God’s transforming power in our lives. We need to listen for what God is saying to us. What does it mean for you to listen to God? Where do you see God in the world about us? How do you respond to God and what does in mean for your identity? What does it mean for your mission in this world and what does it mean for the mission of the church?

For me every time I come to church there is the opportunity for the mountain top experience. There is the opportunity, if I am open for it, to see the veil lifted and glimpse the Glory of God. Those moments that I glimpse the Glory of God - be it in the sacraments, in the music, or in observing and being part of you the people of God - those moment strengthen me and empower me to go out into the world and work to share the Glory of God in the world. To work to bring God’s ultimate loving reign to earth.  I see that in you – the Good People of St. Matthew’s.  In my short time with you I have been amazed at the work you do to bring God’s love to all people.  I truly believe that you are people of the transfiguration.

As we enter into Lent I would invite all of us to look and see where we can be transfigured.  Is there something that can open us up even more to see and hear the glory of God in our lives and in the lives of each other?  Are there practices that we can take up – or stop doing that will allow us to see our ministry and our lives through the lens of the transfiguration?