Ramblings

Sons of Thunder – 10-21-2012

Sermon preached on October 21, 2012.

The "Bandidos" and the "Hells Angels" are all well-known American motorcycle gangs. But have you heard about the "Sons of Thunder?"

That's the nickname given in Mark 3 by Jesus to James and John, the sons of Zebedee. They are two of the first disciples called by Jesus, a couple of guys in his inner circle.

But now a couple of chapters later these two brothers think that it would be even better to be known not as the Sons of Thunder but as "the Great." So they walk up to Jesus and say, "Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you."

We might want to shake our head at their arrogance, but the request they make is really not surprising. Presumptuous behavior is all around us, so although we may think James and John are audacious to say to Jesus, "Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory." When we believe that we are doing well, when we have been learning and ready for the next step, we are naturally going to not only make demands with the danger of being caught up in our own illusions or confusion.

For example about 170 years ago a Hungarian doctor named Ignaz Semmelweis (Ig-nahts Zem-uhl-vahys) was working in Vienna, Austria. He was in charge of two birthing clinics that offered free birthing services to poor or single mothers.

However, in his work Semmelweis was troubled because he noticed that one out of every ten women who gave birth at his clinics died from something termed "Childbed Fever." Then in 1847 a close friend of Semmelweis died after being accidentally poked with a scalpel during a procedure. When they examined his body, they found many similarities to the mothers who had died of Childbed Fever. Semmelweis made the connection that something was being transmitted from mothers to birthing mothers on the very hands of the doctors.

So, Semmelweis had a revolutionary solution: have the doctors wash their hands and instruments in a chlorinated solution. The result of the new policy was astounding. The death rates at the clinics dropped 90%.

But here comes the tragedy. When Semmelweis suggested to the larger medical community that the reason for these deaths was a lack of cleanliness, his hypothesis was dismissed. The medical community felt insulted because the implication was that THEY were causing these deaths. After all, they were gentlemen, they were not unclean.

So, let us not be too harsh on James and John and instead consider what this lesson teaches us. This lesson teaches us of at least two challenges that hinder us from living fully and healthy lives as disciples. The first challenge is a life of illusion, and the second challenge is a life in a state of confusion.

History is full of men and women who are described as "the Great." For example, Alexander the Great was the Macedonian king and general who took control of a vast empire in the 4th century B.C. Tutored by Aristotle, he went on to achieve an undefeated record in military battles. But Alexander was not invincible --- he was probably brought down by a lowly mosquito. Evidence suggests that he died of malaria at age 32.

This example simply points out that greatness can be linked to a life of illusion, one which causes people to believe that we are more invincible, powerful and righteous than we really are. Although a man could conquer countries, Alexander was vulnerable to a mosquito.

That leads to a second challenge in our lives; we can live lives in a state of confusion, namely, confusion about the true meaning of importance. This second challenge is one that Jesus addresses in the gospel of Mark. "You do not know what you are asking," says Jesus to the aspiring great ones, James and John. "Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?" Jesus senses that the disciples are confused about what they are getting into, and he makes clear that the path goes straight through the wilderness of suffering.

Nevertheless, John and James reply, "We are able." The two come across as supremely confident, but you have to suspect that they do not know what they're talking about. They're still confused about the path that lies ahead.

Jesus however, does not shoot them down. Instead, Jesus nods in agreement. "The cup that I drink you will drink," he promises; "and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized."

Later in the book of Acts we learn that James was put to death by the sword, on the order of King Herod Agrippa (Acts 12:2), the first of the apostles to be martyred for the faith. As for John, he too suffered under the persecution of Herod Agrippa, but did not lose his life. Tradition says that he lived for a time in exile and died of natural causes in Ephesus. Yet both suffered. They drank the cup and experienced the baptism.

But as for positions of honor, Jesus says: "to sit at my right hand or at my left is not mine to grant." Jesus can promise suffering, death and new life to all who follow him in faith, but the granting of special places in the kingdom of heaven? That's God's call.

What does this mean for us? Well before we get ahead of ourselves we need to follow the story further for when the 10 other disciples hear what John and James are asking, they blow up at the Sons of Thunder. In response, Jesus uses this squabble as a teaching opportunity, and attempts to clear up any confusion, any illusion, about the true meaning of what it means to live a praiseworthy life. Jesus begins by pointing to the way that the leaders of the Gentiles act as tyrants, lording it over their people, "But it is not so among you," he says; "but whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all."

Since Jesus refuses to preach what he will not himself practice, Jesus reveals that he is the model for this approach: "For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve." Let there be no illusion or confusion about who is "the Great," the one who is great is the one who serves. Let there be no illusion or confusion about life as a disciple.

We all know that the reality we live in, with winners and losers, what is a triumph and what is a failure, it can be easy to lose sight of Christ's approach to life. Jesus reminds us that the admirable life among us is the one who serves --- not the one who simply wins an election, or conquers an empire, or teaches doctors to wash their hands.

Rather, Jesus teaches that for us to lead healthy lives in Christ, it means recognizing that a life of illusion is unhealthy; we are fragile human beings. The truth is that we can die from a mosquito bite, but we serve a Great God. With Christ's forgiveness and inspiration, we can have a powerful impact --- especially if we serve others through our support and our skills. And rather than enduring in an unhealthy state of confusion, of what is important, we are to know the true meaning of a worthwhile life built on service to others.

So that begs the question, when the world looks at us, our community, what do they see now? Do they see a community of people all welcoming the kingdom of God as toddlers? Or do others see in us a community that presumes to argue about who is greatest, or presumes to argue about who is biggest, who is best, and who is worst? Do those outside this door see us as a group of people who live lives of illusion or confusion or do they see fragile human beings, warts and all, responding in service? I am thankful for our senior nutrition center, our facility that houses so many. I am thankful for our worship open to all and the support our offering provides, but yet I recognize that we are challenged to respond in even new and various ways. As Sons of Thunder, let us continue to find new ways of service. Amen.

Living Stone – 10-14-2012

Sermon in honor of my congregation's 60^th anniversary based on 1 Peter 2: 1-9.

"Living Stones" is an odd phrase isn't it? Stones can't live can they, or do they?

It wasn't until I went to Israel/Palestine as a volunteer for an archaeological excavation in 2005 through the Pittsburgh Theological Seminary that I began to have a deeper sense of what living stones with Christ as our cornerstone can mean. I began to learn about living stones ironically when I was digging away dirt gently with a trowel and brush from a buried wall under the hot morning sun. It was a wall that dated from the 10^th century B.C.

The village that we were slowly excavating from centuries of soil is in the lowlands of present day Israel/Palestine and is called Tel Zayit (Tel Zeitah), and although now empty is a village with a long history. It may have been the biblical city of Libnah mentioned in Joshua and 2 Kings or Ziklag mentioned in 1 Samuel. Regardless, of its name, over the centuries the archeological evidence suggests that it had been destroyed and re built several times.

I learned a great deal about archeology, geography and gained new insight into the Old Testament during my six weeks. But on that day, I began to understand more deeply what is mentioned by Paul and in our second lesson today, about what it means to be "living stones."

What did I learn? Well first you need to hear the opinion of dry-stone waller Steven Allen, "Cement," he asserts "is a sin."

To understand what Allen means, we need to look at the dynamics of dry-stone construction. Dry stone construction is building walls without any mortar, no cement, nothing, it is simply stone on stone. By what authority does Steven Allen have to say that cement is a sin, it is because Allen works full-time, nine hours a day, six days a week, every week of the year building stone walls. Allen can safely be described as the best dry-stone waller in Great Britain. By extension, he may well be the best wall-builder in the world --- so he can teach us a few things about dry-stone construction.

For example, when Allen builds a wall, all the stones tilt slightly downward, like roof tiles, so that water can drain out of the wall. The pebbles and rock chips placed in the wall's center are packed tightly, giving the structure critical strength. Moreover, before placing the stone in their location, Allen studies each carefully, chips them sharply with a hammer and then clicks them into place --- wedging them between their neighbors as tightly and neatly as if he were building with Lego toys.

So why is cement a sin? Because, a well-built dry-stone wall can stand intact, without needing repair, for hundred of years or more --- many times the life span of a cemented wall. As I mentioned the dry stone wall that I stood next in 2005 was from the 10 century B.C. --- over 3000 years old. Without cement, or mortar, if built well, dry-stone walls shift and bend in order to conform to the natural movements of the land --- the frost heaves, the sinkholes, the settlings in the rainy season.

Cement walls, on the other hand, do not reach old age. Cement walls do not move. They crack, and then they fall. That's why cement, Allen says, is a sin. Walls that are constructed without cement or mortar, are held together solely by their own weight and the skill of the builder. So when the Bible teaches us to be living stones it is with dry wall construction in mind.

In today's second lesson, the author of 1 Peter spoke to a Christian community that was struggling to establish its sense of identity and commitment in a largely pagan, alien culture. But the author tries to encourage and provide them some guidance. Although 1 Peter acknowledges these Christians are little more than "infants" in the faith, requiring a careful diet of "spiritual milk" --- the author nonetheless calls them to become "living stones."

In other words the author is reminding this community that although small and immature, this Christian community is one being built by God, living stone by living stone, and the author predicts that they will stand strong until the end of time and the return of Christ.

But just how is God fitting these stones together? By dry-stone walling! As I marveled at a wall built 3000 years ago, I was reminded that cement does not work when you are building for eternity. Now, we might be tempted to think that Christian "love" is the mortar that holds this community in 1 Peter together. But the truth is that the church is stronger without cement or glue. When we "settle in" together under the direction of the Master Waller, we are more likely to last until the end of time --- more likely to endure than if we try to patch up our cracks, and cement over our sins with generous daubs of love.

Today, we are celebrating sixty years of being part of the global Church that God, the master builder has built. It has been 60 years where we have had to deal with sinking's, settlings and unexpected movements of the Holy Spirit. It has been 60 years of building and renovation when needs arose. It has been sixty years of living stones who have now died or moved to the north side or away. So, it would be easy to only focus on the times of sinking or change. It would be easy to focus only on times of growth, and try to patch up our memories the walls of time with love.

That is exactly why today it is important to consider the essentials of our dry wall construction since the Christian community is called to stay strong until the day of Jesus Christ, we had better be built to shift and bend, not to crack and fall. We are a Dry stone church and if we are going to be continue to be a Dry Stone Church, our shaping by God is clearly more important in the long run than any cementing by human love.

Not that love is a sin. Far from it. For example, Christian love reminds us of the community of saints before us who with their gifts, talents and resources built the Christian community that we celebrate this day. Love and hope keeps us going during difficult times. But when we depend on human love alone --- love that is tied to emotion and interpersonal relationships and other qualities that as we know can crack at times --- we can make decisions that could affect the foundation and integrity of the church. And that is precisely why cracks in the wall soon appear.

Too often our concern to apply the mortar of love to hold things together is actually destructive, so we slap on layer after layer of compassionate cement ... and then changes come, and the community cracks and may fall. Or we become so paralyzed by our interpersonal patches that we cannot shift and survive when the world challenges us to move into new areas of mission and new styles of worship.

Fortunately, God in God's grace continues to offer another construction model: The dry-stone approach as living stones. It is in God's grace lived out by dry living stones that built this Church as part of the global church. It is with this building technique, that we all have the support of the stones around us --- stones that have been shaped by a Master Waller. That's it, but sufficient. It is a grace that no matter our gender or sexuality, no matter or race or ethnicity, no matter our poverty or wealth, we can be honed, chipped, in good spiritual shape and we can rely on each other, we can shift as needed --- and paradoxically, we can actually stand closer to our fellow stones than if we had a crusty line of cement between us.

Now that we begin another year of ministry with many more to come, the focus we have as a Dry-Stone Church is on living the faith, not on getting along per say, but as living stones with Christ as our cornerstone. If we live by faith, then harmony is experienced.

Our challenge is to continue to trust God, the one who studies us, shapes us and snaps us together by grace. Our challenge is to trust in this master builder, who feeds us in word and sacrament and who brings us together as living stones, stones placed in such a way that the church can shift and bend in changing circumstances, so we can continue to stand strong -- no matter what. Isn't it wonderful to be living stones? Amen.

Debates – 10/7/2012

The first of the three US presidential debates is now over. Although there was a great deal of discussion on who "won" the debate, I had a totally different question. The question that came to my mind is: Do we talk too much?

Talking is such a natural act we tend to take it for granted. But when you think about it, this life skill is crucial to the development and maintenance of strong and healthy relationships whether between friends and relatives, partners and spouses, co-workers and acquaintances, or managers and employees. Talking is a life skill even between politicians and voters.

Our talking habits can also be very revealing of our personality. For example, some people talk way too much --- they are the kind of people you try to avoid at a party. Others avoid talking when actually it would help quite a lot.

For those who are too talkative it can be a sign of something like nervousness and insecurity in their personality. Those who are nervous and insecure talkers feel an obligation to fill any silence with conversation --- even if it is mostly meaningless and conversation just for the sake of it. Or, if we lack a sense of inner poise, we cover up by nervously chattering.

On the other, some people think that shyness has a certain cuteness. However, shyness often prevents us from expressing ourselves and from talking to people we would like to. Shyness in speaking springs from personality traits like insecurity and fear about saying the wrong thing.

So, I wonder what is being revealed in today's conversation. In this week's text, Jesus is addressing a debate about relationships. While the words are apparently about divorce and accord between couples, it's also about a shift in a conversation on relationships from the personality of law to the personality of love.

Interestingly enough however, the lesson (vs. 1) does not begin with words but with geography: "the region of Judea and beyond the Jordan." Why would Mark do that? Just remember, although we take snippets of the Bible to read each Sunday, Mark was not spoken or written that way so context is everything.

By starting with geography, Mark returns to the same words that began the gospel --- that not only began with geography but also with John the Baptist. It was the same geography in which John the Baptist had operated during his ministry.

Why does Mark to that? Well, do you remember what happens to John the Baptist? In Mark 6:14-29, we read the story of how John the Baptist had died at the hands of King Herod Antipas. John was beheaded because he challenged the king's … divorce and his quick remarriage to his brother Philip's wife … Herodias.

It was like a first-century soap opera: The king ditches his lawful wife, Phasaelis, and Herodias divorces Philip so that the two can be together. While this was legal according to Roman law, Jewish law was quite different, and John the Baptist called the king on it, saying, "It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife." Herodias wanted John dead for calling attention to the sordid relationship and had to trick Herod into having the prophet beheaded. John makes an argument from Jewish law and in response the king's new wife comes up with a "legal" solution to bump him off; the king's oath being legally and socially binding.

With that context in mind, it is interesting then that when the Pharisees want to "test" Jesus, they do it with the vocabulary of the law court not Jewish law. "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?" Perhaps, the Pharisees are hoping that Jesus' answer will allow them to bring him up on charges of treason against the king where their argument could get him convicted and executed like John. Furthermore, the question put to Jesus has to do with loopholes, how shall we interpret the text from Torah on divorce?

Initially in this debate, Jesus sounds like a lawyer, answering the question with a question: "What did Moses command you?" Jesus knew the law as well as any of them did and he already knew the answer. Yes, it was technically legal in Jewish law for a man to divorce his wife by simply writing her a certificate of dismissal. Do the paperwork and it was done; something by the way which at the time of Jesus was a problem because it took money to get a certificate of dismissal which benefited the wealthy. It was those who had money and time that could play the games of breaking relationships.

At this point, Jesus then shifts the nature of the conversation from the legalese of the court to the language of the Scriptures. Rather than the legal bonds his speakers are concerned about, Jesus is only concerned about the bond of love. Forget the Law of Moses in this case, says Jesus because the Law of Moses was given because the people had hard hearts, they had become stubborn and resistant against God. Instead, Jesus said, look at what God intended from the very beginning.

Going back to Genesis, Jesus outlines the intent of marriage in the first place: the leaving and cleaving of two people. What were once two separate people now becomes "one flesh" – two people joined together by God for emotional, physical and spiritual well being. As God's own nature is three-in-one, so too is the nature of human relationships: loving adults and, later, children all becoming one family and one flesh, reflecting the image of God they were created to be from the beginning. The legal debate of divorce is all about separation. The conversation of love is always about bonding.

We live in a world that conjures up complex debates and conversation when it comes to relationships. Jesus on the other hand, seems to understand divorce as a failure to have the right conversation. And what is that conversation? Rather than a bunch of words that pivot all around, refusing to be consistent, or truthful or honest, conversations that sound forceful but are meaningless. This conversation of love is heartfelt and is neither talkative nor shy but that carry a lot of meaning. Conversations like: I am sorry. Please forgive me. I love you.

These conversations perhaps are not any easier to say than to discuss taxes and the national debt, but they mean so much more. When our relationships become strained, Jesus calls us not to turn to debates on the merits of family values but toward each other.

Now let me be clear, from this lesson it is clear that Jesus is anti-divorce. This is not to say that there aren't times when separation is necessary, such as an abusive situation. Jesus is not implying here that divorce is forbidden under every circumstance. What Jesus does say, however, is that we need to sharpen our conversations to use every word and every opportunity we have, to bring reconciliation to our relationships with a spouse or partner, with children, with parents and, most importantly, with God as God first intended. In our conversations with our loved ones we need to either stop talking and listen to the other person or if we are hesitant to speak up, now may be the time. That's how we were designed by God to be regardless of one's gender and sexuality: two become one flesh. Moreover, Jesus is not addressing past mistakes and problems but speaking to present and future relationships and possibilities.

That means, what kind of conversation would we use to characterize our relationships, our marriages? What words do we need to add to our vocabulary to strengthen the bonds we have between each other, between us and our children and between us and God? Do we talk too little? Do we talk too much? Are we talking around our problems or are we working out our relationships. Are we trying to win debates or are we having conversations of love.

Dangerous Profession – 9/30/2012

    According to the US government, the top ten most dangerous professions are: fisherman, loggers, aircraft pilots, farmers/ranchers, roofers, steel workers, garbage collectors, machine maintenance workers, truck drivers and construction workers in that order. There are many reasons why that is the case … machinery being the most obvious. But surprisingly another reason why some of these professions are the most deadly is because of garbage. Debris, junk and scrap can be dangerous. Many of these professions have to work with hazardous waste, from pesticides to lumber with hidden nails to throwing away fish caught with poisonous spines. Garbage is dangerous. No wonder that in the Disney/Pixar movie WALL-e, the hero --- a garbage man --- is a robot.

    Hazardous waste in our everyday lives can be as dangerous as stumbling blocks can be for our lives as Christians. I thought about that because that is one aspect of the gospel that Jesus is driving home in this discussion with his disciples; an admonition about the attitudes and actions that can do damage to themselves and others. This teaching from Jesus is not new and fits with the last few chapters of Mark that we have been discussing and may even seem repetitive, yet it is one we must consider again. What kind of junk do we produce as we move through our daily activities? What are the potentially deadly stumbling blocks of our everyday words and deeds?
    The gospel begins with the disciple John peevishly reporting that an outsider has been using the name of Jesus without permission. "'Teacher,' said John, 'we saw a man driving out demons in your name and we told him to stop, because he was not one of us.'"

    Did you catch that? Why did Jesus' followers try to stop the man who was doing his work in the "your name?" Was it because the person was not doing the right kind of exorcism? Was it perhaps that he was not a good representative of the work of God? And why would the disciples want to stop someone from working in the name of Jesus anyway?

    Whoever the exorcist was this unnamed person believed in the person and the power of Jesus and was working under Jesus' authority. The second thing we know about the person is that he was not one of the inner circle and apparently not one of the larger group of men and women, like Luke tells us that Jesus sent out as disciples. The third aspect we see is that this nameless disciple is apparently successful at what he was doing, and this quite likely where the rub began.

    Why would a nameless person's positive impact upset the inner circle of Jesus? We need to remember that the disciples were already on shaky emotional ground from something that had happened earlier: Here's how Mark tells the story.

    We will begin where the disciples are arguing. Jesus asked what was going on. Someone from the crowd answered him, "Teacher, I brought you my son, who is possessed by a spirit that has robbed him of speech. Whenever it seizes him, it throws him to the ground. He foams at the mouth, gnashes his teeth and becomes rigid. I asked your disciples to drive out the spirit, but they could not."

    A few verses later, when the crowd is gone and the disciples are alone with Jesus, they ask him about their failure and Jesus gives them an answer. "After Jesus had gone indoors, his disciples asked him privately, 'Why couldn't we drive it out?' He replied, 'This kind can come out only by prayer."

    Does this clear thing up a bit? It is difficult enough to be unsuccessful in front of your teacher, but to be unsuccessful when someone who isn't even "following us" is flourishing can be a bitter pill; this nameless disciple is even doing better with his prayer life than they are. Ouch!

    Well, how does Jesus respond to John's question on how to handle this exorcist? Although the wording is harsh, simply put, we should never be more exclusive than Jesus himself. Jesus uses exaggerated notions and actions to make his disciples face the gravity of what they have done, attempted to stop someone. The disciples, by rebuking the unknown man who offered healing in Jesus' name, had stopped up a river of divine compassion and grace from flowing to those in need.

    That of course is not saying that all ways, paths and roads lead to God, and thus healing, rather followers of Jesus are to be more concerned about the stumbling blocks, the walls we may erect, then say the nuances of Christian belief; for as Mark makes clear, the disciples where not happy because this exorcist was "not following us." The central allegiance of every Christian and every Christian community is to following Jesus Christ. We stumble when we follow someone other than Christ, even when the other person tells us that to follow them is to follow Christ. We also slip up when we adopt the notion that all who follow Christ will follow Christ as we do.

    But, as I said, this lesson makes me wonder about our own garbage that we may leave around that cause us to question others who follow Jesus.

    The first stumbling block I noticed is exclusivity. John and the others see themselves as the "only" chosen ones, guardians of faith and practice. Certainly we need to guard ourselves and those in our charge from what can hurt them and ourselves, but the danger in that is that we are not God. God's loving grace is for all. We have not exclusivity to God's grace.

    Another piece of rubbish we can spread is insensitivity, especially insensitivity to the emotional and spiritual needs of others. The disciples avoid or consider less important other people's needs in comparison to their own hurt feelings. In other words, whose feelings are more important the jealously of the disciples or those who need healing? I've been a pastor long enough to have experienced congregations being insensitive to the good news of Jesus Christ to placate certain individuals.

    Exclusivity and insensitivity are two, but there are more. We can be careless simply in judgment of others. For example, the person who was combating evil in the name of Christ was successful in ministry even though as I said he is and was an "unknown." Meaning, our judgment in what is significant or insignificant can hamper those around us. There is no such thing as an insignificant disciple in the eyes of God's love and grace. We can easily let envy and jealousy foul the air.
    Ambition and hard work are good, the disciples had been chosen, we have been chosen, we are the salt of the earth, but yet others success does not mean that our own service as disciples is somehow tasteless or unsatisfactory to God or not needed in this world.

    But there is one additional rub in our lesson that we should not avoid and that is the harsh response of Jesus. In order to understand that as the way Mark reports the story; the disciples were not even successful in stopping the man! "We tried to stop him," they say to Jesus.

    Certainly we may be exclusive or insensitive, inadvertent judges, envious and jealous, but we need to be sure we are not actively preventing God's grace working in others. Perhaps that is why Jesus continues with such harsh words for those of us who do: "it would be better for them to be thrown into the sea with a large millstone tied around his neck."4

    When Jesus is replying to the disciples, his answer should be seen in the context of excuses by the disciples, as attempts to minimize others and their gifts. Moreover, by minimizing others we may actually be seeding maximum suffering; by passing blame or critiquing others we can become not only stumbling blocks, but actually hinder God's healing of the world.

    In God's grace given to us freely in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ we are loved and forgiven. Certainly, we are forgiven for our ignorance and accidents acted in faith; nevertheless we need to be careful in our discipleship so that we are not a millstone hampering the work of God by placing garbage --- stumbling blocks --- in front of others. Let us be at peace with each other and the many more nameless ones serving in Christ's name. Let us work on our exclusivity or insensitivity, let us shun our inadvertent judgments and evade jealously and envy. Instead, let us rejoice in the success of others as children of God and like salt let us be humble, and in that way, season all so that all hear the good news of Jesus Christ. Amen.