tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29539303105506349372024-03-17T07:30:32.060-05:00The Rev. Dr. Valori Mulvey ShererI'm cruising on the river of life, happy to trust the flow, enjoying the ride as I live into a new season of life and ministry as the Priest in Charge at Emmanuel Episcopal Church in Webster Groves, MO. I am also co-founder of the Partnership for Renewal, a church vitality nonprofit. You are most welcome to visit my blog anytime and enjoy the ride with me. Peace.Rev. Dr. Valori Mulvey Shererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18097108657207202324noreply@blogger.comBlogger551125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2953930310550634937.post-18841773809272734862024-03-17T07:30:00.009-05:002024-03-17T07:30:00.142-05:00Lent 5-B, 2024: Intimate communion with GodJeremiah 31:31-34; Psalm 51:1-13; Hebrews 5:5-10; John 12:20-33<div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/4wWIVFrD9NU" width="320" youtube-src-id="4wWIVFrD9NU"></iframe></div><p>En el nombre de Dios: creador, redentor, y santificador. Amen. </p><div>Our Collect today is a great comfort to me. The world around us often seems unruly and I don’t think I’m alone in wondering, at times, if anyone can bring order to our chaos.</div><div><br /></div><div>Then I remember that God can – and God will – over and over again, as often as we need it because God is with us. That’s the promise: God is with us. Emmanuel. God is present with us in the midst of the swift and varied changes that happen in our world.</div><div><br /></div><div>In today’s gospel, the Roman occupiers are a continual threat to everyone: believers (the Jews) and unbelievers (the Gentiles) alike. Seeking the presence of God, which they witness among their Jewish friends, the Gentiles make a profound request. Our Scripture says they want “to see” Jesus, but the word means “to know, to understand.” We want to know Jesus, they declare.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLb1-cAdtkxXMrMYDPI-UUSUEtDSWO7nUWAZTZOEE-rR1kMTemlC5i7tOeqQIdZgucrEiWhgaTgjFtfoaVYWrPlyBS5zqhNO9EF6PR5I9OeTpEdfFPEq6hem-5uUJFrCHt4pA7yrTISk51BtP90WfaSnHpLUg4YGLDjlYF06TAs6bdrvSO4BXH_xoa9uc/s737/Pride%20shield.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="737" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLb1-cAdtkxXMrMYDPI-UUSUEtDSWO7nUWAZTZOEE-rR1kMTemlC5i7tOeqQIdZgucrEiWhgaTgjFtfoaVYWrPlyBS5zqhNO9EF6PR5I9OeTpEdfFPEq6hem-5uUJFrCHt4pA7yrTISk51BtP90WfaSnHpLUg4YGLDjlYF06TAs6bdrvSO4BXH_xoa9uc/s320/Pride%20shield.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><div>How do we come to know Jesus? We’ve had some lively discussions about this in our recently concluded Episcopal 101 class called, “Be An Episcopalian About It.” Most of us have come from other traditions to the Episcopal Church and found here something real, a church that encourages us to seek to know Jesus beginning right where we are and proceeding in prayerful freedom, with companionship; a church where encountering God truly happens. That must have been similar to what the Gentiles experienced: a people among whom they could encounter the grace of God.</div><div><br /></div><div>When Philip and Andrew told Jesus that some unbelievers wanted to know him, Jesus recognized this as the inauguration of his hour, literally, the time of his blossoming. He explained this to his listeners by likening himself to a seed. This seed must die now, Jesus says, otherwise, it remains only one seed. But if it dies, it will bear much fruit.</div><div><br /></div><div>Jesus is the seed. We are the fruit.</div><div><br /></div><div>As this beautiful season of Lent comes to a close, I offer you this prayer from Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, the French philosopher and Jesuit priest (d. 1955): "…when the painful comes in which I suddenly awaken to the fact I am losing hold of myself and am absolutely passive within the hands of the great, unknown forces that have formed me; in all those dark moments, O God, grant that I may understand that it is you …who are painfully parting the fibers of my being in order to penetrate to the very marrow of my substance and bear me away within yourself… Teach me to treat my death as an act of communion… For you bring new life out of every form of death."</div><div><br /></div><div>Teilhard says, "when the painful comes…" because it will. Being a faithful believer doesn't exempt us from the painful experiences of life; but it does give us the way to perceive them within the big picture of God's plan of redemption where everything is gift. As Tiellhard says, in those moments we are awakened to something so great that we can let go and surrender ourselves recognizing that it is God who is communing with us, joining to us at the deepest level, in "the very marrow of [our] substance," to lead us to new life. For a believer, death is always the gateway to new life.</div><div><br /></div><div>Jesus' life story led him to the cross. Ours will too. We must, like Jesus, be willing to die to ourselves if we are to live in him. In order to do that, Jesus says, we must cling to nothing earthly. We cannot put the life we think we want ahead of the life God has planned for us.</div><div><br /></div><div>We also must die to life as the world presents it and instead, go deeply into "the marrow of our substance," where we will see that eternal life is already happening in us - because God, who is eternal, is already there. </div><div><br /></div><div>I want to clarify: eternal life isn't something that happens after we die. "Eternal," after all, means having no beginning and no end. Neither is it a heavenly prize for good earthly behavior. Eternal life is living our lives in communion with God - in this life and the next. As God said through the prophet Jeremiah: “… they will ALL know me intimately, from the least of them to the greatest...”</div><div><br /></div><div>Even in this intimate communion with God, we may find our souls troubled as Jesus did, but once again, he shows us how to go when that happens. We trust God’s presence despite our troubled souls and set out on the path God has set before us. We may not all hear a voice like thunder affirming us, but our faith assures us that God is truly present with us.</div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzM7Bvr6K9QOfW7-2lp-xIvbetJXGGzTS8FFcC0vIBgoukWkc3b5fAxzM6jpAsL29fdgRG92yQGh3MgldtO__KR3OLpVnxMLcdWwK9Hr6DKvLH2aHCAxeKo97N6sn5TskTAcoU53A42D_eoZ2v_7nheH6cl2hF0XEsj6dAhZj3dQZB9vtkmhxKkYxX65M/s1024/judgement%20icon.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="682" data-original-width="1024" height="282" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzM7Bvr6K9QOfW7-2lp-xIvbetJXGGzTS8FFcC0vIBgoukWkc3b5fAxzM6jpAsL29fdgRG92yQGh3MgldtO__KR3OLpVnxMLcdWwK9Hr6DKvLH2aHCAxeKo97N6sn5TskTAcoU53A42D_eoZ2v_7nheH6cl2hF0XEsj6dAhZj3dQZB9vtkmhxKkYxX65M/w320-h282/judgement%20icon.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /></div><div>The next part of this gospel is the most exciting, amazing part to me – and most of the time we skip right over it. Jesus declares that NOW is the judgment of this world. Despite what we so often hear taught in the modern church, judgment isn’t something that happens at the end of anything – our lives or the world. It has already happened. Jesus says so right here.</div><br /><div>Remembering that judgment is literally the separation of things, and that we are given free will to choose, we continually choose whether or not to align ourselves and our lives with God in Christ or with the world. The choice is always ours to make.</div><div><br /></div><div>What happens next isn’t a blessing or curse from God, but the consequences of our own choice. Do we choose to desire the ways and rewards of the world or the ways and rewards of God? As we prayed in our Collect, “Grant your people grace to love what you command and desire what you promise.”</div><div><br /></div><div>And what does God command? That we love God, our neighbors, and ourselves.</div><div><br /></div><div>When we choose to live in intimate communion with God, we find true joy. Bp. Deon Johnson wrote a prayer this week that I want to share with you now because it describes true joy so beautifully: </div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGg43VtOFzDNxu8HL0YE61c2aa9b6-XS812FIjCoDAxb8IAdkK2Ht8_Ch3sQ8MNtZ82euR_oJlikdMb2w8UfKXS7Id77NrQusnbFadEOqAvaLxVWntMh-0j-DZ-MYbr3WJnguhe-FDzrQkwSv6wepIgnso7AzyaRWqyJ0jBSVBIog95kT3Ro7UQWPYbGI/s994/Bp%20Deon%20prayer%20JOY.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="991" data-original-width="994" height="493" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGg43VtOFzDNxu8HL0YE61c2aa9b6-XS812FIjCoDAxb8IAdkK2Ht8_Ch3sQ8MNtZ82euR_oJlikdMb2w8UfKXS7Id77NrQusnbFadEOqAvaLxVWntMh-0j-DZ-MYbr3WJnguhe-FDzrQkwSv6wepIgnso7AzyaRWqyJ0jBSVBIog95kT3Ro7UQWPYbGI/w494-h493/Bp%20Deon%20prayer%20JOY.jpeg" width="494" /></a></div><br /><div>As Jesus said, judgment has already begun and it continues every time we make our choice. In this gospel story, when Jesus proclaims his purpose and destiny, he offers us hope. Now, he says, the world’s way of power and authority will be rejected, defeated, cast out. In its place will be the salvation of God: and when I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw all people to myself. All people.</div><div><br /></div><div>John says this was indicating the kind of death Jesus would die, and it was, but it was so much more than that! If death is the gateway to new life, then this statement is Jesus’ promise that he is establishing the path of salvation, and it will be perfected, that is, accomplished by his own imminent death and resurrection from the dead. This would have been nearly impossible for Jesus’ disciples and followers to comprehend until the events he is speaking about took place, but we have the advantage of knowing how it all played out.</div><div><br /></div><div>We know that Jesus' life story also led him to the grave, that dark place of emptiness, nothingness, where God continues to create beyond our sight and comprehension. We know that his life story led to the empty tomb, evidence that, in the big picture, God has been redeeming all along and we emerge from every form of death the same but different.</div><div><br /></div><div>Our Lenten purpose has been to open ourselves to deeper communion with God; to allow God unhindered access to the very marrow of our substance; to be willing to die to something that hinders us so that God can grow new life in us.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoX6prHIMUTiE9RbL_WYYxF9PGDkc8iRLTsqLfLsmhdiJ40HvvYDzsUD5927ykK0l4Ezasd3AO0fC5HiDVcEEK6DDFNwE_kLjmkCHedT4rjD6S5xmpIRXba1RTHf58M6KHk2xatzKUXf1u7fDgYoVUJhTuE8ApJLC4cwDRGHsVc8G4oZNgQ3AsHq1oKqo/s1440/Screenshot%202024-03-14%20at%2011.39.41%20AM.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="903" data-original-width="1440" height="201" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoX6prHIMUTiE9RbL_WYYxF9PGDkc8iRLTsqLfLsmhdiJ40HvvYDzsUD5927ykK0l4Ezasd3AO0fC5HiDVcEEK6DDFNwE_kLjmkCHedT4rjD6S5xmpIRXba1RTHf58M6KHk2xatzKUXf1u7fDgYoVUJhTuE8ApJLC4cwDRGHsVc8G4oZNgQ3AsHq1oKqo/s320/Screenshot%202024-03-14%20at%2011.39.41%20AM.png" width="320" /></a></div>Let us pray: God of love, we know you bring life out of every form of death. Hold us close in your embrace that your love may comfort us as we admit the painful. Breathe your Spirit into us as we let the next death happen in us. Feed us with yourself, your body and your blood, as we live into the new life you are forming in us. For we love you, we trust you, and we surrender ourselves to full communion with you. Glorify your name again in us, Holy One, our nourisher, protector, and upholder. Amen.
</div></div>Rev. Dr. Valori Mulvey Shererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18097108657207202324noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2953930310550634937.post-30555692658495452812024-02-18T07:30:00.050-06:002024-02-18T07:30:00.191-06:00Lent 1-B, 2024: Living our middleLectionary: Genesis 9:8-17; Psalm 25:1-9; 1 Peter 3:18-22; Mark 1:9-15 <p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/0oNT6bY8kGk" width="320" youtube-src-id="0oNT6bY8kGk"></iframe></div><p></p>En el nombre de Dios, que es Trinidad en unidad. In the name of God, who is Trinity in unity. Amén. <div><br /></div><div>As many of you already know, Lent is my favorite season in the liturgical year, partly because it’s a “breathing in” season, as I mentioned in my sermon last week. I always love a reason to breathe more God in. Another reason is that, during Lent, our goal is, as Meister Eckhart once said, to detach from all else and turn our attention to God… in order for the graciousness of God to be upon us… for the graciousness of God to be upon us…</div><div><br /></div><div>Detachment is the root of our giving things up for Lent. We detach from anything that tempts us or distracts us off the path of right relationship with God and neighbor. That, by the way, is the true meaning of satán.</div><div><br /></div><div>Satan (with a capital S) is a persona that has evolved over the centuries and the meaning today is radically different from the original biblical understanding. Theologian Elaine Pagels teaches us that the “word “satán” literally means “one who throws something across one’s path.”</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7_1h5QncxdtCW-4FNgDHMYEWsbbUZepm6WPNT-mmDHIWZTr5_YLatIl5Il1VnXJDSjWDhBpm3l5WL8hxDzaFTq9tPoxuRSNGHkrnthKPXiwU1SDnz7h2MlFIWdq2fjP9sqM5xmddCUS8X0jJEVyTkzhnVjoqBcwSmxAok9q6y1Yz6LdaF7UOxTiViqP0/s281/boulder.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="159" data-original-width="281" height="159" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7_1h5QncxdtCW-4FNgDHMYEWsbbUZepm6WPNT-mmDHIWZTr5_YLatIl5Il1VnXJDSjWDhBpm3l5WL8hxDzaFTq9tPoxuRSNGHkrnthKPXiwU1SDnz7h2MlFIWdq2fjP9sqM5xmddCUS8X0jJEVyTkzhnVjoqBcwSmxAok9q6y1Yz6LdaF7UOxTiViqP0/s1600/boulder.jpg" width="281" /></a></div><div>If the path we’re on is bad, the obstruction is good, thus the satán may have been sent to us by God. (pp 39, 40) If the path we’re on is good, the “satán” needs to be resisted. Remember, Jesus, who loved Peter, but said to him, “Get behind me Satan,” don’t tempt me off this path set before me. It may look horrible now, but it is a path of love, which you will see eventually.</div><div><br /></div><div>That’s the thing, isn’t it? As the path of God unfolds before us we can’t see where it will end. We can only see what’s in front of us. We can only take our next step, so we must continually pray and discern where, when, and how God wants us to go, trusting God completely despite our limited vision and understanding.</div><div><br /></div><div>It’s important in Lent to remember that we are marvelously made, knit together in our mother’s wombs by our Creator. God declared us not just good, but very good in the creation story in Genesis. That’s our starting point and our ending point.</div><div><br /></div><div>Life is what's in the middle and Lent is when we get honest about how we are living our middle. Owning the vulnerabilities we have because of our humanity isn’t the same thing as denigrating ourselves as unworthy worms. God made us and loves us just as we are.</div><div><br /></div><div>Getting honest means trusting God enough to go deeply within and getting behind the protective barriers we put up about who we are, those things we tell ourselves about ourselves that are more about our comfort than the truth. We all have them, individually, as the church, and as a global people. We think these barriers will keep us safe but actually, they put us at risk of harm because they lead us to disconnect.</div><div><br /></div><div>These are the barriers we must recognize and repent of because they cause ruptures in our relationships with God, neighbor, and creation, which lead to our sin. Sin isn’t what we do, but where we begin – in ruptured relationship. Our actions, then, are the outcome of our sin.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsOmE99Zuh-4BIOfD0vUUtIrYZy7oHaeLK6L941QpipOee0DyiTiVMk4UCWypkAyDptQYHc2G_0WrHI17alT-gDFrZb_h4cFgUESYCUX7afcC1V8uVUJ_xmbeQRi45W6cIIyCecpUxUzvq69LdqMX6ifoXsxHB8T81DBhYGEe1QBh7K3_q3wD3ACfgve8/s4221/Mamacita%20and%20Emerson%20newborn.jpeg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3795" data-original-width="4221" height="288" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsOmE99Zuh-4BIOfD0vUUtIrYZy7oHaeLK6L941QpipOee0DyiTiVMk4UCWypkAyDptQYHc2G_0WrHI17alT-gDFrZb_h4cFgUESYCUX7afcC1V8uVUJ_xmbeQRi45W6cIIyCecpUxUzvq69LdqMX6ifoXsxHB8T81DBhYGEe1QBh7K3_q3wD3ACfgve8/s320/Mamacita%20and%20Emerson%20newborn.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><div>If you’ve ever looked deeply into the eyes of an infant or elderly person who is looking back at you, you can't help but notice the presence and purity of Love, which is the face of God. For some of us, the same is true looking into the eyes of our dog or cat or bird.</div><div><br /></div><div><span style="text-align: left;">Then we hear about war bombs killing God’s children in their homes, schools, and hospitals. That’s who we are as a global people.</span></div><div><br /></div><div>Last week the Humane Society of Missouri rescued 97 Labrador retrievers, adults and puppies, from an unlicensed breeder who kept them in cramped cages with no access to water. God’s creatures are being mistreated and overbred, treated as commodities for income. That’s who we are right here in MO. <a href="https://hsmo.org/97-labrador-retrievers-rescued/">Source</a>. </div><div><br /></div><div>At the KC Chiefs’ celebration parade this week, a young mother was killed, and 21 others were wounded, including 11 children. There were over 800 armed police on hand who acted quickly and wonderfully in response to the shooting. The idea that good people with guns can stop bad people with guns is one of those things we tell ourselves that just isn’t true.</div><div><br /></div><div>Our country leads the world in mass shootings. That’s who we are now, and we need to repent.</div><div><br /></div><div>If we are tempted to say, ‘But I’m not that way,’ we need to remember our connectedness to one another and to creation. You may remember the concept of Ubuntu, a Zulu concept, practiced by our bishops at a recent Lambeth gathering. Ubuntu means, “I am because we are.”</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb0Rrclc1HaJm3zxulvKAr1uGbsyN6Hf0C6NuJL1W0lyB3y43UK9R1jxjJSKLG92H2m-PCKNBCoN7bNTkuTSHkltpNxwRJ8PpPVufdovLp6EF2FYA_KNIfA1FWvr7eofmppCvbnxta4NYBA3IJn5w8HWPu-zdwP74HwLA3Es9BqW2YKqBrk6JhyOFkkz4/s907/Screenshot%202024-02-15%20at%203.58.00%20PM.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="522" data-original-width="907" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb0Rrclc1HaJm3zxulvKAr1uGbsyN6Hf0C6NuJL1W0lyB3y43UK9R1jxjJSKLG92H2m-PCKNBCoN7bNTkuTSHkltpNxwRJ8PpPVufdovLp6EF2FYA_KNIfA1FWvr7eofmppCvbnxta4NYBA3IJn5w8HWPu-zdwP74HwLA3Es9BqW2YKqBrk6JhyOFkkz4/s320/Screenshot%202024-02-15%20at%203.58.00%20PM.png" width="320" /></a></div><div>This is the truth of the universe too. In physics, there is a phenomenon called quantum entanglement where a pair of protons or electrons remain connected and responsive to one another even when separated by vast distances. The idea of separateness is another one of those things we tell ourselves that just isn’t true.</div><div><br /></div><div>Thankfully, God knows our weaknesses, loves us anyway, and came among us in the person of Jesus to remind us that we are also connected now to heaven.</div><div><br /></div><div>The gospel story today takes us back to Jesus’ baptism, where the barrier that separated heaven and earth was ripped open, and the voice of God, speaking only to Jesus in this gospel, proclaimed and affirmed him as Beloved.</div><div><br /></div><div>Then the Spirit took him into the wilderness – this was Jesus’ Lent - to set him free from any barriers his humanity had built. When Jesus had finished his interior work, he returned to Galilee to begin living his middle.</div><div><br /></div><div>Mark says Jesus returned proclaiming the good news of God, which was this: Jesus said, “The time is fulfilled,” The long-awaited, divinely appointed time for the salvation of the world is happening now“ and here’s how: Jesus said, “the kingdom of God has come near.”</div><div><br /></div><div>The Greek word for ‘has come near’ makes clear that this isn’t something that is happening around Jesus, but rather, is something he is doing. He is bringing the kingdom of God to earth. This is the divine purpose of the Incarnate Word, isn’t it? To reconcile earth to heaven, humanity to divinity.</div><div><br /></div><div>The rest of his ministry is how Jesus lived his middle, but it’s important to remember that before he did anything, he went deeply within and faced his own beasts. And angels ministered to him. Since he was fasting from food and water, the angels were his companions on the journey – just as they are for us. We are never alone in this. </div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQhHDfBLZxvEjvUNEVv4MhPB5nVp25f8hguqbuFnn1JiIw0jAVpjGdNCh3PensTE_1u1pHycJqK5KStrXRlupYFbAh0Ls4lmwRoAqT_qcvYIko23X9312x2z8MEGm_3L0jKAYev_6Ov2mx1c-TzEJriRsBOn0-Wnexa834X5FW4DildGGWvSiooMwZ7kA/s1319/Screenshot%202024-02-15%20at%204.12.35%20PM.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="654" data-original-width="1319" height="118" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQhHDfBLZxvEjvUNEVv4MhPB5nVp25f8hguqbuFnn1JiIw0jAVpjGdNCh3PensTE_1u1pHycJqK5KStrXRlupYFbAh0Ls4lmwRoAqT_qcvYIko23X9312x2z8MEGm_3L0jKAYev_6Ov2mx1c-TzEJriRsBOn0-Wnexa834X5FW4DildGGWvSiooMwZ7kA/w236-h118/Screenshot%202024-02-15%20at%204.12.35%20PM.png" width="236" /></a></div><div>During Lent, we are called to do as Jesus did and get prepared to live our middle. Lent is not a time of shame but of release! Release from the hold the barriers we built have on us, release from all that separates us from God, neighbor, self, and all of God’s very good creation.</div><div><br /></div><div>Our repentance leads to our freedom. That is the fruit of Lent and it’s why it’s my favorite liturgical season. I pray all of us have a Lenten experience that is holy and freeing.
Amen.
</div>Rev. Dr. Valori Mulvey Shererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18097108657207202324noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2953930310550634937.post-35902696810914573222024-02-11T07:30:00.043-06:002024-02-11T07:30:00.149-06:00Epiphany Last, 2024: Trust, listen, and receive the changeLectionary: 2 Kings 2:1-12; Psalm 50:1-6; 2 Corinthians 4:3-6; Mark 9:2-9<div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/IzUu7c1V0S4" width="320" youtube-src-id="IzUu7c1V0S4"></iframe></div><br /><div>En el nombre de Dios, que es Trinidad en unidad. In the name of God, who is Trinity in unity. Amén. </div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr-9wxX_5sJ_p346x2MiJJhdG5W_0R8tYJDepCEJTb9Kncc8WlYm5qZ_cnqRTxeKzvrOzkTNuwsM-u-iv-bVbHiJfOjSPdYyCCTed2BHi_OalMhUF0NAupKgUheW1GSOwderQ84hGcWXr2Fj0vHvVIYo6v7mR05HdvByofptBehe868J52fyLZGFgLVwo/s164/feather.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="94" data-original-width="164" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr-9wxX_5sJ_p346x2MiJJhdG5W_0R8tYJDepCEJTb9Kncc8WlYm5qZ_cnqRTxeKzvrOzkTNuwsM-u-iv-bVbHiJfOjSPdYyCCTed2BHi_OalMhUF0NAupKgUheW1GSOwderQ84hGcWXr2Fj0vHvVIYo6v7mR05HdvByofptBehe868J52fyLZGFgLVwo/w230-h132/feather.jpg" width="230" /></a></div><div>For years, I have taught a spirituality workshop in which I discuss our spiritual growth in relationship with God and neighbor in terms of breathing. Breathing is a perfect choice for this because it is a biblical term: God breathed (inspired) life into humanity in Genesis and continues to breathe life into us now. The term ‘Spirit’ itself in Hebrew is <i>ruach</i>, which means wind, and in Greek is <i>pnuema</i>, which means breath.</div><div><br /></div><div>As we grow in our spirituality, we must establish balance in our breathing. If we only breathe in, that is, if we focus only on drawing into ourselves knowledge and experiences of God, and don’t breathe out the grace of God into the world, we will die. Likewise, if we only breathe out, that is, if we spend our time and energy breathing God out into the world without breathing God in, we will die.</div><div><br /></div><div>Like our physical life, our life in the spirit is dynamic and requires a balance of breathing in and breathing out; breathing God into ourselves, and breathing God out into the world.</div><div><br /></div><div>Life is constant change, from the daily cellular changes in our bodies to the global earth and cultural changes happening all around us. We can’t “put a pin in it” as the saying goes, and stop the constant changes in life, and anyone who suggests we can or should is lying to us.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqIjlurtXDEovIbKSy2sLVCnJ9QivPxsrZKJ9nuJgJINBkVODvdCznUnY11lZAfZhjlGhpovo4s5cuj6GDkKXfmiZi9ReTCQX_EwPvdR-WQyDuqjeb5HKQWuoETaA81fMYuIE6a2wVtrSv1NFOQK8yZtnE8gUsamq61DEz3_9S1okNFb-u0b8e0fjsbxU/s600/transfiguration.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="485" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqIjlurtXDEovIbKSy2sLVCnJ9QivPxsrZKJ9nuJgJINBkVODvdCznUnY11lZAfZhjlGhpovo4s5cuj6GDkKXfmiZi9ReTCQX_EwPvdR-WQyDuqjeb5HKQWuoETaA81fMYuIE6a2wVtrSv1NFOQK8yZtnE8gUsamq61DEz3_9S1okNFb-u0b8e0fjsbxU/s320/transfiguration.jpg" width="259" /></a></div><div>When we live a life of faith, we move into every change trusting in God. We flow with God in the living waters of life. Attempting to dam the river or pushing against the current won’t make any real difference, but it will wear us out. That’s why we must heed the gospel and listen to the Beloved.</div><div><br /></div><div>The story of the transfiguration is a wonderful way to wrap up the season of Epiphany – the season of light, of enlightenment. During this season we have experienced the revelation of Jesus as the light that casts out the darkness of the world through amazing things like healings, exorcisms, and the voice of God authenticating him as the Son, the Beloved - twice.</div><div><br /></div><div>Today, the focus is on how the transfiguration of Jesus happens for us. To do this, let’s look at the movements in this gospel story. Jesus takes Peter, James, and John up a high mountain (which is Bible-speak for the place we encounter God).</div><div><br /></div><div>On that high mountain, the disciples do encounter God – in Jesus himself – in a way that is both physically real and impossible at the same time. Their rabbi, Jesus, is suddenly emanating a light so bright it dazzles them. The writer ensures us that this whiteness is nothing we humans can produce. This is their breathing in moment.</div><div><br /></div><div>Then they see Moses and Elijah, Israel’s two greatest and long-dead prophets, chumming it up with Jesus. Peter, thank God for Peter, responds in a very faithful and traditional way, suggesting they build three dwelling places there and mark the spot as holy.</div><div><br /></div><div>It was also traditional to locate God in a place. When the people were moving around, God was in a tabernacle, the Ark of the Covenant, which they carried around with them. When they settled in Jerusalem, they built a temple. Within that temple was a room called, the Holy of Holies, which housed the ark. Only the chief priests could enter the Holy of Holies.</div><div><br /></div><div>Then the disciples, like Mary before them at her annunciation, were overshadowed by a cloud. From this cloud, they heard a voice say, “This is my son, the Beloved; listen to him!”</div><div><br /></div><div>Overall, this experience was so overwhelming that Mark says the disciples were terrified. When it’s over, Jesus leads them down the mountain with a warning about not sharing this with anyone yet. Essentially, Jesus is telling them to hold their breath until after he rises from the dead.</div><div><br /></div><div>There are three important teachings in this story we don’t want to miss. First, Jesus doesn’t build three dwellings to mark the spot as holy. Knowing the rest of this story, we know why: because God isn’t located in an ark, or a temple, or a church. Because of Jesus, God dwells in us. We are the tabernacles of God. Jesus was moving the disciples into a new way of knowing and experiencing relationship with God. He was also opening access to God to all people, not a select few.</div><div><br /></div><div>The second is the command to listen. God is asking them and us to do more than hear what Jesus teaches. God is asking them and us to be changed by it. There is so much we hear and believe, but it doesn’t change anything for us. The disciples heard Jesus tell them they shouldn’t share this experience until after he had risen from the dead. He told them he was going to die and rise again on several occasions, yet it still came as a surprise when it actually happened.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBb8h3yAE60spvnnnQ4ubxBJnofimWgCy-4eVleTKGqTv8KeNvxKte7iK_UHk592BE3gbJFG-sauymIMxjE5nUWljiHw8T_nVn6MrLuNIgFkq25DJZh_CrzVt9A7eMYeGfw5BFtFcMTCyEvxMONsm-R3lGL5CvRo6JQEptpAQ078hULZaQWNXgU5Ob-AQ/s243/cloud%20mtn.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="166" data-original-width="243" height="194" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBb8h3yAE60spvnnnQ4ubxBJnofimWgCy-4eVleTKGqTv8KeNvxKte7iK_UHk592BE3gbJFG-sauymIMxjE5nUWljiHw8T_nVn6MrLuNIgFkq25DJZh_CrzVt9A7eMYeGfw5BFtFcMTCyEvxMONsm-R3lGL5CvRo6JQEptpAQ078hULZaQWNXgU5Ob-AQ/w287-h194/cloud%20mtn.jpg" width="287" /></a></div>The third is this: when the disciples were terrified and being broken open to a new understanding and experience of Jesus and God and everything they knew about spiritual life, God responded, overshadowing them in the form of a cloud, which symbolizes the immediate presence and power of God. God spoke to them and reminded them to be changed, to let go of what was and move into this new revelation.</div><div><br /></div><div>The final movement in this story is that the disciples come down from the mountain. They left the presence of God and re-entered the world changed by their experience. What the change was and what it would mean would develop over time. The same is true for us.</div><div><br /></div><div>The transfiguration of Jesus for us today is the revelation that happens within us, when the Jesus of Nazareth we read about in Scripture and learned about in Sunday school, becomes Jesus the Incarnate God whose own Spirit lives and dwells in us, changing us and sending us to share the love.</div><div><br /></div><div>We may see a brilliant light with our eyes when this transfiguration of Jesus happens for us. Some have. Some still do.</div><div><br /></div><div>More likely, we will have an interior enlightenment, an infusion of transforming energy we feel in our bodies and know deeply in our souls. We’ll experience an excitement combined with terror at what is happening and what it will mean for us.</div><div><br /></div><div>God will speak to us too and show us how to go. We hear the voice of God when we are open to hearing it, when we are willing to let go of what we think we know and move in faith in response to God’s revelation to us.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx9RR8U_R_UJF6uKF84q-uDWwMIecD5aVEwXHSHteDNI8zEKd_jqaSCodPReBcSQHnoePsuYh-kbdRAly5Tn79VuvKuXdzCnQ6aJeonWu3V1RQfKOcJAZHsMYcC3oGDWkevMHRd4EazrdOysO5z21f_C0ZobxLp2ROGBNFWPGGBJV9Zr58q8UbzMqdHq8/s238/Spring%20bud%20new%20life.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="212" data-original-width="238" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx9RR8U_R_UJF6uKF84q-uDWwMIecD5aVEwXHSHteDNI8zEKd_jqaSCodPReBcSQHnoePsuYh-kbdRAly5Tn79VuvKuXdzCnQ6aJeonWu3V1RQfKOcJAZHsMYcC3oGDWkevMHRd4EazrdOysO5z21f_C0ZobxLp2ROGBNFWPGGBJV9Zr58q8UbzMqdHq8/s1600/Spring%20bud%20new%20life.jpg" width="238" /></a></div><div>In the end, like the disciples, we’ll walk away from our mountain-top experience carrying the seed of something that will begin to grow and develop in us. This takes time – and the season of Lent, which starts next Wednesday, is when we do this with intention.</div><div><br /></div><div>As we live our lives of faith, individually and together as a community, we move into every change trusting in God. We flow with God in the living waters of life. We know that attempting to dam the river or push against the current will only wear us out, so instead, we relax, heed the gospel, listen to the Beloved, and receive the change within us that comes from God, change that leads us from glory to glory into the full stature of Christ. Amen.</div>Rev. Dr. Valori Mulvey Shererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18097108657207202324noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2953930310550634937.post-64268846709912732832024-01-28T07:30:00.007-06:002024-01-28T07:30:00.147-06:00Epiphany 4, Annual Meeting, 2024: Discerning our pathLectionary: Deuteronomy 18:15-20; Psalm 111; 1 Corinthians 8:1-13; Mark 1:21-28 <p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Vc2MvkanMNU" width="320" youtube-src-id="Vc2MvkanMNU"></iframe></div><p></p>The question we continually face as Christians is whether something is of God, from God, or in the will of God. How do we know if a prophet is sent to us by God? How do we know if a decision we make as a church or for ourselves is the one God wants us to make?<div><br /></div><div>The answer is: discernment because discernment puts God at the center of our decisions and actions. It is up to us to know the Good News of salvation in Jesus Christ and discern how God is leading us to make it manifest in our time.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGqxE7u5cmCELHOQE1oqmwQfTqUp1zJLh-NCD5bpdvQGKC15n8neVLKOsjO_ZzzRRLWoHeKC3C9xfnbMnVeyaflflXdLGAaATzhj8WxdVq_P2WqugpOCuWLfPJWaI3RCoqFYtDPqnbuNFEvbX5Tqo_Ttd13F27ikchfefojiVXWT07JdWGJJoOPoI1pPg/s275/Fork%20in%20road.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="183" data-original-width="275" height="183" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGqxE7u5cmCELHOQE1oqmwQfTqUp1zJLh-NCD5bpdvQGKC15n8neVLKOsjO_ZzzRRLWoHeKC3C9xfnbMnVeyaflflXdLGAaATzhj8WxdVq_P2WqugpOCuWLfPJWaI3RCoqFYtDPqnbuNFEvbX5Tqo_Ttd13F27ikchfefojiVXWT07JdWGJJoOPoI1pPg/s1600/Fork%20in%20road.jpg" width="275" /></a></div><br /></div><div>Today, after this service, we will gather for our Annual Parish Meeting to review our decisions and actions from last year and deepen our bonds of friendship as we move forward as one body, one spirit in Christ into 2024.</div><div><br /></div><div>It’s tempting for a church to rely on the gifts that serve us well in the world, and that isn’t a bad thing. Those gifts are from God who draws them into our faith community.</div><div><br /></div><div>For a church, however, there is more to consider, the will of God, to be specific. Otherwise, we slowly and almost imperceptibly turn our church into an earthly enterprise and the guidance we end up relying on is our own.</div><div><br /></div><div>The way to stay on our path of faithfulness is to discern continually who we are, what gifts God is bringing among us, how those gifts can be nurtured and employed in order to glorify God, serve God’s people, and be stewards of God’s creation. This is what sets us apart as church: our goals are not focused on us but on God.</div><div><br /></div><div>I’ve been serving as a priest for almost 20 years now, and I can attest that this church is on a faithful path. When we worship together, we are truly giving thanks with our whole hearts in the assembly of the congregation, as our psalmist says. Our ministries include listening for how we can further ease the burdens of our neighbors while also working to transform the oppressive systems that continue to harm them.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIwsnZ0Gq03iFZZfikpt12g0UM0xct75RXmw6hk8bXq2APMsPagP7JJxHEaBtRWIIODNyIcOeNu8EENTyoMsjs2-XMhfejKcrWXmRNB1vtd-RwJ1syGvE8jCJqbJFX4DbmrqGw4Xnl82krDPZ82e0ZD2vrG-XXmj2msjad78-jQnBUxvWB_klkymhOpUE/s274/images.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="184" data-original-width="274" height="202" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIwsnZ0Gq03iFZZfikpt12g0UM0xct75RXmw6hk8bXq2APMsPagP7JJxHEaBtRWIIODNyIcOeNu8EENTyoMsjs2-XMhfejKcrWXmRNB1vtd-RwJ1syGvE8jCJqbJFX4DbmrqGw4Xnl82krDPZ82e0ZD2vrG-XXmj2msjad78-jQnBUxvWB_klkymhOpUE/w301-h202/images.jpg" width="301" /></a></div>We do this by sticking close to our roots: the Bible, worship that connects us to our past while pushing us into our present, and using our God-given intellect while striving to stay humble and, therefore, useful to God. <i>(Richard Hooker meme courtesy of Episcopal Church memes) </i></div><div><br /></div><div>Finally, we allow ourselves to be continually astounded by Jesus, much like the congregation at the synagogue was in today’s gospel from Mark.</div><div><br /></div><div>Mark has Jesus moving immediately from calling Andrew, Peter, James, and John, to Capernaum, what the Native American translation of the Bible calls the City of Comfort, from its original Hebrew name. There was only one temple in Jerusalem but there were many local synagogues.</div><div><br /></div><div>The leader of the synagogue was likely not a rabbi but more like our Wardens who tend to the business aspects of the community. They were, therefore, always on the lookout for teachers who would lead the discussions and prayers. Rabbi Jesus did that in today’s gospel.</div><div><br /></div><div>Mark doesn’t tell us what Jesus preached, but it must have been spectacular because everyone there was astounded by his teaching. As he taught, the people discerned that Jesus’ authority came not from his credentials or his ability to cite precedent as the Scribes typically did, but from God.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZIu0jaomisgMPWKyAT0QGBAcfQXnp-ITSsNp6yChQOJ0ZlQIIvFCmsooLO5ABox5D2y3KPTF70uUl5QlJ88BmfY5lDSsUp3MROP82QrpGF7XG1qYlLVwEfPWslE8cK_A61HXaqTIpY54R_lPErLNHQn17tIQWsPbVc4-URC-Cz_j1TJKyAMGAG87Jlpo/s400/jesusiconnazareth.webp" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="341" data-original-width="400" height="273" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZIu0jaomisgMPWKyAT0QGBAcfQXnp-ITSsNp6yChQOJ0ZlQIIvFCmsooLO5ABox5D2y3KPTF70uUl5QlJ88BmfY5lDSsUp3MROP82QrpGF7XG1qYlLVwEfPWslE8cK_A61HXaqTIpY54R_lPErLNHQn17tIQWsPbVc4-URC-Cz_j1TJKyAMGAG87Jlpo/s320/jesusiconnazareth.webp" width="320" /></a></div><br /></div><div>And that was only the beginning. While Jesus is teaching, a man in an unclean spirit yells out to him, “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us?”</div><div><br /></div><div>I’m not sure why the traditional translation says “a man <u>with</u> an unclean spirit” rather than “<u>in</u> an unclean spirit” which is what it actually says because a man with an unclean spirit wouldn’t have been allowed in the synagogue in the first place.</div><div><br /></div><div>Also, that makes it sound like the man was possessed by a spirit beyond himself, which isn’t what Mark said. More likely, he was a faithful member of that community who was astute enough to comprehend that what Jesus was teaching would upend the status quo, so he was unwilling to accept it or let go of the traditions and structures that protected and served him, even if they didn’t protect or serve others.</div><div><br /></div><div>I say he was astute because he declares: “I know who you are, the Holy One of God.” That’s astounding because even Jesus’ newly called disciples wouldn’t reach that understanding for years.</div><div><br /></div><div>Jesus rebukes him, but that isn’t what it sounds like. Jesus isn’t reprimanding or scolding him but elevating him. The word translated as rebuke means to put further honor upon, to estimate higher. Jesus recognized the accurate discernment of this man, even though the man’s fear was clearly a stumbling block for him, so with a word, Jesus healed him, removing his stumbling block in a dramatic way, setting him free from that which obstructed his path to a right relationship with God and neighbor.</div><div><br /></div><div>The people are again amazed! Our Scripture says they ask, what new teaching is this? But what they actually ask is, ‘What new process of teaching is this?’</div><div><br /></div><div>What Jesus did was manifest his divine power instead of talking about it. Jesus came to bring salvation, to free us from the power of sin and death, and he demonstrates this undeniably in this story from Mark, freeing a man from that which impeded his spiritual growth – with a word! The Word of God!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtkjLIt5K2VhITeDhDGURCzgq9e4n47C_HdmD74jflT-i7Y6XkYkk7xjwtlT2NSBW47pBQQJAIOtQdBQxv_9JP2ewZW9bZtd_2ptr6xng34QbD8MYlCuIRtf1PfMREy-mIgwaDahNzpDiYxXNbPyxjSmDHRJvGFDJnuPV_bhJ2Q8CNiC_RXuH_31UluYw/s410/images-1.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="123" data-original-width="410" height="96" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtkjLIt5K2VhITeDhDGURCzgq9e4n47C_HdmD74jflT-i7Y6XkYkk7xjwtlT2NSBW47pBQQJAIOtQdBQxv_9JP2ewZW9bZtd_2ptr6xng34QbD8MYlCuIRtf1PfMREy-mIgwaDahNzpDiYxXNbPyxjSmDHRJvGFDJnuPV_bhJ2Q8CNiC_RXuH_31UluYw/s320/images-1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div>It continues to surprise us how deeply Jesus knows us, cares for us, and continues to free us from whatever hinders the growth and deepening of our relationship with God and neighbor. That’s why we must constantly discern, making space for God’s love to guide us in God’s way, beyond our own understanding and habits, setting us free from whatever hinders us.</div><div><br /></div><div>Let us pray: Come dear Jesus, into our hearts and make us one with you, one in you. Give us courage to discern your path for us, strengthen our friendships to carry us forward, and grant us your wisdom as we use the gifts you’ve given us to serve in your holy name, for that will truly glorify you. Amen.
</div>Rev. Dr. Valori Mulvey Shererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18097108657207202324noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2953930310550634937.post-68831729757887159642024-01-14T07:30:00.031-06:002024-01-14T07:30:00.263-06:002 Epiphany, 2024: Bearers of the light of Christ today<p>Lectionary: 1 Samuel 3:1-10(11-20); Psalm 139:1-5, 12-17; 1 Corinthians 6:12-20; John 1:43-51</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/TMp5773Ms3I" width="320" youtube-src-id="TMp5773Ms3I"></iframe></div><p>En el nombre de Dios que es nuestra fuente, nuestra luz y nuestro sustento. Amén. In the name of God who is our source, our light, and our sustenance. Amen. </p><p>Have you ever been in the kind of darkness where you literally can’t see your hand in front of your face? What did you think or experience in that moment? </p><p>Darkness is scary, isn’t it? In darkness, we feel alone, vulnerable, and unsafe. We can’t see so we’re afraid to take a step even though we want desperately to escape. And the longer we’re in darkness, the harder it is to keep hope alive.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjakDqUitmbcnpeZDZicUKSCNZ0D0D2Ofry7tYrrl1n3GJoxVn8PEWzBIO9wJwljjnoe3pu2bN6QK599IyP4m7gnHqOciJ3KWZpu15EmGIGngmAsqUJmG2OTcbhU0cO09Hcjsb3PHEM5VbgpadLKAJkD91ivERl-iUyXeQBd5FywSiKHsR8gPUOpKwzFCE/s364/Xmas%201%20sermon%20by%20M%20Wiltfong.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="272" data-original-width="364" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjakDqUitmbcnpeZDZicUKSCNZ0D0D2Ofry7tYrrl1n3GJoxVn8PEWzBIO9wJwljjnoe3pu2bN6QK599IyP4m7gnHqOciJ3KWZpu15EmGIGngmAsqUJmG2OTcbhU0cO09Hcjsb3PHEM5VbgpadLKAJkD91ivERl-iUyXeQBd5FywSiKHsR8gPUOpKwzFCE/s320/Xmas%201%20sermon%20by%20M%20Wiltfong.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>But the moment a light appears, we have a felt sense of relief and our hope is restored. We know we are not alone and that we will be saved.<p></p><p>In my former work with trauma victims, we would ask the question: When did you know you were safe? The answer almost always included when they knew they were not alone, that someone cared about them and would help them.</p><p>That someone for us is Jesus. In the language of the Epiphany season, Jesus is the light that enters every darkness in the world. We are never alone. We are loved and cared for by the one who created us, redeemed us, and values us beyond our ability to comprehend.</p><p>When we treat Jesus like an idea, however, like a thing outside of ourselves, we steal from ourselves the comfort and hope he gives us. Jesus is God who became human, thereby lifting all humanity into the divine life. All humanity. He did this in his life, death, and resurrection, and he did it once for all. So, the question for us isn’t the popular what would Jesus do… Jesus who is out there somewhere in some far-off celestial place, but what is Jesus doing… in me, in us, in this moment, in this place, in this circumstance?</p><p>The only way for us to know the answer to that question is to be in relationship with Jesus – the real Jesus who lives and moves in us, the church, and ourselves as individual members of it. It’s a relationship that happens over time and in community, each member offering an important perspective and experience that benefits the whole.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNYB197rmVFZfiLsp7TLggJTSf3LBkLqRLMCqfcslFTUUm0QmpUYOsf0HyssuHAR0rRlVV2GPBn466VWauSl77AJRAwDumcxoy-tps5XAo4OcP-zSZLw8YNyNUMiDkoHrYKG384sPVJrGvdvtElo6Ja9Hc-kGh4D4FkLrw_tKgbXZNRb3j7z40RjvpKPM/s1564/John%20the%20Baptist%20way%20card.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="987" data-original-width="1564" height="201" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNYB197rmVFZfiLsp7TLggJTSf3LBkLqRLMCqfcslFTUUm0QmpUYOsf0HyssuHAR0rRlVV2GPBn466VWauSl77AJRAwDumcxoy-tps5XAo4OcP-zSZLw8YNyNUMiDkoHrYKG384sPVJrGvdvtElo6Ja9Hc-kGh4D4FkLrw_tKgbXZNRb3j7z40RjvpKPM/w319-h201/John%20the%20Baptist%20way%20card.png" width="319" /></a></div>Growing in this life in Christ means practicing living the John the Baptist way – he must increase so I must decrease. We must actively diminish our thoughts, ways, judgments, and limited understanding to make way for God’s plan of love to take priority in our lives and guide our every decision.<p></p><p>God’s plan always was and always will be too wonderful for us and we cannot attain to it, as the psalmist says. We rarely see it coming and it is always beyond anything we can expect or imagine, as the story from Samuel and Eli demonstrates for us.</p><p>When the divine correction began for them, Eli and Samuel didn’t stop loving one another. They didn’t demonize or exile the other. They stayed faithful to their relationship with God and one another so that in God’s time, a new path was forged through their cooperative obedience.
It turns out, Jesus was right about that great command, wasn’t he?</p><p>It turns out we really do need to love God with all our hearts, minds, strength, and souls, and our neighbors as ourselves. Everything else proceeds from that.</p><p>When I was in college, I participated in some psychological experiments in which we were placed in isolation tanks meant to remove all stimuli from our sensory experience. We were basically floating in salted water in a closed capsule. There was no sound, no light, and our bodies touched nothing being buoyed by the water. The experiment was to measure the changes in our brain waves the longer we stayed in the tanks.</p><p>Some couldn’t do it. The sensory deprivation created panic and they had to be released almost immediately. A handful of others lasted longer, but only a few of us stayed the whole time.</p><p>I loved the experience. I knew I was safe and being observed, so I was able to enter the dark emptiness and just be there in it. I could feel my body transition from mild anxiety – what is going to happen? – to relaxation, to complete surrender to the nothingness, needing nothing, seeking nothing, just being.\</p><p>Not only did this experience cure me of any fear of the dark, I also found truth there. I was not a practicing Christian at the time, but I experienced God in that tank. That experience was nothing like I was taught in Sunday school. It was a much bigger experience of love, of oneness, than I could ever have anticipated or imagined. <i>(Note: Painting by Manuela Rivera Mulvey, my mother. She called it, "God")</i></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtIrXOEJmiCwN2Eki2ysQipYPcT0oR3sYhyphenhyphenZQIb4WfmGk2Wn7qDDbAlTmUcCQZMoebn07BNEfemTyZfpMFITXCAHl4S8xL5smyj5JmYfaaQGQtVnBuKFFFTrNhjhAg8slLZ9KLGdP_t3yPgzCWV8ms_8jTttN-i9vfxU_odCVwWAsM0BqMe1UkUS93Ze4/s2363/God%20by%20Mom.jpeg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1728" data-original-width="2363" height="234" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtIrXOEJmiCwN2Eki2ysQipYPcT0oR3sYhyphenhyphenZQIb4WfmGk2Wn7qDDbAlTmUcCQZMoebn07BNEfemTyZfpMFITXCAHl4S8xL5smyj5JmYfaaQGQtVnBuKFFFTrNhjhAg8slLZ9KLGdP_t3yPgzCWV8ms_8jTttN-i9vfxU_odCVwWAsM0BqMe1UkUS93Ze4/s320/God%20by%20Mom.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p>I entered the experiment expecting to learn something about human biology, but I ended up learning something so much bigger than that. A light was lit in me, and it took years before I understood it. It was my Nathaniel moment.</p><p>In our gospel today, Nathaniel is brought by Philip to meet Jesus, whom he believes is the long-awaited Messiah. Nathaniel’s short conversation with Jesus is transforming for him in a way that will take years for him to fully understand. When Jesus explains that he saw Nathaniel under the fig tree, Nathaniel knows this is knowledge that is beyond human, and you can almost feel the startle in his body. This is for real!</p><p>Nathaniel’s response reveals his limited understanding, however, the one he got in Sunday school: “Rabbi, you are the Son of God, …the King of Israel.” Nathaniel is taking this large, unitive experience and placing it in a box he can understand and manage: you are the honored teacher, the expected Messiah, the King like David who has come to save us from this terrible moment.</p><p>Jesus, probably sighing, says to all those gathered there, It’s so much more than that. Just wait. You’ll see greater things than these… you’ll see heaven and earth in a relationship it has never known before.</p><p>And that’s the crux of it all, isn’t it? In Jesus, heaven and earth became unified in the one who is fully divine and fully human. It had never happened before, and it never needs to happen again because it is an everlasting reality. It is our reality.</p><p>As St. Paul says, Jesus made us temples of the Holy Spirit. We are where heaven and earth, divine and human, are one. What we do, therefore, matters.</p><p>In response to some pretty dark behaviors that had found acceptance in Corinth, Paul narrows in on fornication in his epistle. His point is: what we do reflects who we are and our relationship with one another and with God. So, honor your body. Honor your neighbor’s body. By doing so, you honor God, who marvelously knit us all together in our mother’s wombs.</p><p>What I appreciate about Paul’s letter is that it reminds us to live in the truth we know - that the Holy Spirit of God dwells in us. Think about the reality of that - God dwells in us.</p><p>The light who came into the world on Christmas Day, who illumines us now through Word and Sacrament… the light that dispels the darkness of the world now radiates from us, and that light is Jesus Christ himself. As the current bearers of this light, we can, and we must enter any darkness, any nightmare of the world, and bring this truth to it.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFS-3EjPeiveiWcHm9yPsoQuCymeT6daPaZ09ujvINSdOTTcquZFGWhM3wU0rTRCMyFASRo-lM2nQWZzro1iS4KHoffUKb_-a_tQ5yNruDDppiNCpaRL2tgJjHO8cfs7KMTkJLrYA6waMNSDoFp86de5Q3qUmB2wPQEJIBKkhMK9H2lj-CAeePQYqPFP0/s1500/__opt__aboutcom__coeus__resources__content_migration__mnn__images__2018__03__GettyImages-3362897-86a4d1a51ed940fca28df7d0aed86fe4.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1034" data-original-width="1500" height="221" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFS-3EjPeiveiWcHm9yPsoQuCymeT6daPaZ09ujvINSdOTTcquZFGWhM3wU0rTRCMyFASRo-lM2nQWZzro1iS4KHoffUKb_-a_tQ5yNruDDppiNCpaRL2tgJjHO8cfs7KMTkJLrYA6waMNSDoFp86de5Q3qUmB2wPQEJIBKkhMK9H2lj-CAeePQYqPFP0/s320/__opt__aboutcom__coeus__resources__content_migration__mnn__images__2018__03__GettyImages-3362897-86a4d1a51ed940fca28df7d0aed86fe4.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Tomorrow, we celebrate one saint who did that well: Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., a prophet who radiated the light of Christ, and who, like other biblical prophets, was both imperfect and faithful. Dr. King’s message of the value and dignity of every human being threatened the status quo, so it killed him, 56 years ago now.<p></p><p>In our OT story, the abuses of Eli’s sons were widely known but the system that enabled them was deeply embedded in Jewish tradition and Eli’s privilege as a Judge within that system meant he could have - and should have - interceded, but he didn’t.</p><p>The systems enabling the desolations in our time are being revealed to us in undeniable ways. Many among us who can - and should - stop the abuses in our systems haven’t done so. The moment of our accountability and divine correction is upon us. How will we respond?</p><p>It is my prayer that we will hear and respond to God’s call to us to be partners with Christ in the reconciliation of the whole world to God. While that may seem too large, too wonderful a concept for us to comprehend or accomplish, it is, nevertheless, our divine purpose and we don’t do it alone. The Spirit of God who dwells in us works through us, the church, and us as individual members of it… and nothing shall be impossible with God.
Amen.</p>Rev. Dr. Valori Mulvey Shererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18097108657207202324noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2953930310550634937.post-24948764245023845072023-12-24T16:30:00.085-06:002023-12-24T20:31:48.361-06:00Christmas, 2023: The eternally happening birth of the ChristLectionary: Isaiah 9:2-7; Psalm 96; Titus 2:11-14; Luke 2:1-14(15-20)<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/MBHmJdELHSo" width="320" youtube-src-id="MBHmJdELHSo"></iframe></div><br /><div><br /></div><div>En el nombre de Aquel que es Padre y Madre, Salvador y Espíritu Sagrado: el Uno y el Tres.
In the name of the One who is Father and Mother, Savior and Sacred Spirit: the One and the Three. Amen.<div><br /></div><div>Christmas blessings to you all!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzdyIiznpgV3hDPq_hlGYFdstWslMjasMunuQTOJAuG5ncMQKrHidRYlrnc_gNT_j6trHMoW5LWDRcWq2b_dg7tSSj_N_J1WCpkjZFcnGqaBWjICpLygxhUmTRwGKB5qlLTEhMvVGb0P6JGh74vsow4AdUu6Ehd-UHJwoGh2SXqOCgltXSIPfMU1YNwQw/s256/images.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="197" data-original-width="256" height="197" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzdyIiznpgV3hDPq_hlGYFdstWslMjasMunuQTOJAuG5ncMQKrHidRYlrnc_gNT_j6trHMoW5LWDRcWq2b_dg7tSSj_N_J1WCpkjZFcnGqaBWjICpLygxhUmTRwGKB5qlLTEhMvVGb0P6JGh74vsow4AdUu6Ehd-UHJwoGh2SXqOCgltXSIPfMU1YNwQw/s1600/images.jpg" width="256" /></a></div><br /></div><div>Each year, as we read this story from Luke, a video plays in our minds and it goes something like this: Joseph and Mary set out on a long journey - 90 miles - to Bethlehem so that Joseph can register in the census according to his family lineage – being from the house of David. They need to find a place to stay quickly because the very pregnant Mary is about ready to deliver her baby.</div><div><br /></div><div>In the Latin American tradition of Las Posadas, which means, “the inns,” Mary and Joseph knock on door after door seeking safe shelter for the birth of Jesus, but no one admits them. As a result, they end up in a stable, where the Messiah is born.</div><div><br /></div><div>The video continues with the baby Jesus, wrapped in bands of cloth, lying in a manger on top of hay, with Mary and Joseph kneeling beside him, an angel behind or above them, and above the angel is a huge star shining in the dark night pointing to the place where the newborn Savior rests.</div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWDP4KBoX3lETtxlTgvZcjg1_1SrAM0sXFEnBwblrPOa8iXMHURNZBBTaLO4AmUzYsZ-8vOXybJOjiDWVyDM7ZPaIqNRI0GjD25x9BkHEk43c0vrgFRz2p4QHF_5aqyJBmvdRl38AvQhPT2i1lzoW5U_6z5dDq-r0WGbSW00vcvcOQ5qcZZzi1rAWC9rU/s257/Christmas%20holy%20family.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="196" data-original-width="257" height="227" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWDP4KBoX3lETtxlTgvZcjg1_1SrAM0sXFEnBwblrPOa8iXMHURNZBBTaLO4AmUzYsZ-8vOXybJOjiDWVyDM7ZPaIqNRI0GjD25x9BkHEk43c0vrgFRz2p4QHF_5aqyJBmvdRl38AvQhPT2i1lzoW5U_6z5dDq-r0WGbSW00vcvcOQ5qcZZzi1rAWC9rU/w297-h227/Christmas%20holy%20family.jpg" width="297" /></a></div></div><div>Shepherds show up and join the animals who are quietly present, and all gaze with awe upon the Holy Family before them. In some of these mental videos, a little boy plays a drum – which is the subject of many hilarious memes on social media.</div><div><br /></div><div>The videos we play in our minds reflect the traditions from many nations that we’ve learned and incorporated into our spiritual experiences. They aren’t literally true, in fact, much of Luke’s gospel story of Jesus’ birth isn’t literally true, but they aren’t meant to be. They are meant to teach us important lessons about this momentous event in human history and what it means for us today.</div><div><br /></div><div>For example, in the first part of this mental video, Mary and Joseph travel to Bethlehem for the census. There is “no record of a general census of the Roman Empire under [Caesar] Augustus, nor… any record of a census of Judea at the time of Jesus' birth, and Quirinius wasn’t even governor until years later, and Roman registration did not generally require people to return to their place of birth.” (Dick Donovan) Yet our story includes these things. Why?</div><div><br /></div><div>Stories teach us important truths and one truth this story offers us is that our journey to life with Jesus involves living in the real world and doing our duty within it. It also involves a willingness on our part to go from where we are to where God is calling us to be, as tempting as it is to stay put, believing what we already hold to be true.</div><div><br /></div><div>The story also affirms for us that as we journey, we may not be welcomed by others who don’t want to know the transforming truth being born in us. They may judge us and close their doors to us because of our life circumstances, our sexuality, our gender, or the color of our skin.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsJKm6_t9U0UPexQo1vVEc68-0p2aABBH_tq5S1XT6AMOu7ZZ_6KnXgOF9B_BTZq3NFyUfLwYDUuXQ4xpeeE8t9_mJ6R83R0JcBnxhGpOiwREpFlc99R5rHoLkDbphfIjKiCeaVsfkzH41tAQoesHTyf1bk65_Ad0czpqtZo-zKcNqysy_Xtm3YmFt-zw/s243/humble%20Jesus.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="243" data-original-width="207" height="259" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsJKm6_t9U0UPexQo1vVEc68-0p2aABBH_tq5S1XT6AMOu7ZZ_6KnXgOF9B_BTZq3NFyUfLwYDUuXQ4xpeeE8t9_mJ6R83R0JcBnxhGpOiwREpFlc99R5rHoLkDbphfIjKiCeaVsfkzH41tAQoesHTyf1bk65_Ad0czpqtZo-zKcNqysy_Xtm3YmFt-zw/w220-h259/humble%20Jesus.jpg" width="220" /></a></div><br /><div>We may reach the point of feeling desperate and unfairly treated, but our faith assures us that God will provide us a place for our new birth. It may be humble, but humility is an important lesson for us all as we journey into life in Jesus, who is the icon of humility.</div><div><br /></div><div>Another lesson is the affirmation that we don’t do this journey into life in Jesus alone. The family unit of Joseph and Mary was part of a larger family whom they went to connect with as part of their preparation. Their lineage was part of their journey.</div><div><br /></div><div>We too are part of a larger family: the church, which is part of the Judeo-Christian tradition that is our foundation. Every step we take in this journey continues the steps our ancestors took first. We carry them in our hearts and they continue to guide us as part of the communion of saints.</div><div><br /></div><div>Journeying into life with Jesus requires community. We don’t do this alone. One of the most destructive beliefs of the modern era, imho, is that Jesus is my personal savior, but our Scripture and tradition tell us that salvation is for the whole world.</div><div><br /></div><div>Isaiah talks about <u>people</u> who have seen a great light, it's a <u>kingdom</u> of God being established, and in a later chapter, God speaks through the prophet saying, “It is too small a thing for you to… restore the tribes of Jacob and… Israel... I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.”</div><div><br /></div><div>Today’s psalm instructs us to declare God’s “glory among the nations and his wonders among all peoples… In the letter to Titus, Paul says God is bringing salvation to all the world. In Luke’s gospel, when the shepherds see and experience the infant Messiah in the manger as the angels told them they would, they rush out to share broadly this good news of great joy and all who heard them were amazed.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM5EKgUZNuOTtYnfTm0W3LoHVYWl4GUEv3Ix5kwzuWO7pqnn29COxswI0bfnX0R9BtH6aS4cCNHNwLEtmBz9mnzX2IeULjhd9LEBQi-UoJn2XFU_lgbOY8xjDpR1h28oXqbYj76UInlAXIWsXQDjEkh9bsSel_R-e-L6HN22d2Gd_KwUagqy1PED5ipEE/s283/body%20of%20X.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="178" data-original-width="283" height="178" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM5EKgUZNuOTtYnfTm0W3LoHVYWl4GUEv3Ix5kwzuWO7pqnn29COxswI0bfnX0R9BtH6aS4cCNHNwLEtmBz9mnzX2IeULjhd9LEBQi-UoJn2XFU_lgbOY8xjDpR1h28oXqbYj76UInlAXIWsXQDjEkh9bsSel_R-e-L6HN22d2Gd_KwUagqy1PED5ipEE/s1600/body%20of%20X.jpg" width="283" /></a></div>The lesson is simply this, as said by N.T. Wright, former Bp. of Durham in England, “There are no individual Christians.”* Christians are, by definition, a body – the body of Christ in the world. Salvation is for all of us.</div><div><br /></div><div>As the mental video continues, we see the typical creche scene with Jesus in the manger, Mary and Joseph at his side, animals peacefully present with shepherds nearby holding their crooks – all gazing in awe at the baby before them. What is the lesson of this part of the story?</div><div><br /></div><div>When we open our eyes to see Jesus we will recognize his divine presence and be overcome with a peace that makes no sense in the world but is real in our bodies and spirits.</div><div><br /></div><div>As for the drummer boy, really, the memes are hilarious. My favorite one says, “Mary, exhausted, having just gotten Jesus to sleep, is approached by a young man who thinks to himself: what this girl needs is a drum solo.”</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUiFEUMjGml0icB7LKw3kRqZVdEmtedNlsmZ7ReRdkMoYrveSQXPvDFo9zuyUH3vmqn0HiHI9kwp8R1THqmnMnkBhM3Ql_KhezLIhjeDO-YRRxpdK6Y4TQfJ8hLYP3cb0xQ306tQKs6oIr7j_LIJZRc0PSVzl9HuxyCU5Lt3yMaJlKk6N_pEzJz75tjv8/s256/scred%20drum.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="197" data-original-width="256" height="197" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUiFEUMjGml0icB7LKw3kRqZVdEmtedNlsmZ7ReRdkMoYrveSQXPvDFo9zuyUH3vmqn0HiHI9kwp8R1THqmnMnkBhM3Ql_KhezLIhjeDO-YRRxpdK6Y4TQfJ8hLYP3cb0xQ306tQKs6oIr7j_LIJZRc0PSVzl9HuxyCU5Lt3yMaJlKk6N_pEzJz75tjv8/s1600/scred%20drum.jpg" width="256" /></a></div><br /><div>For many indigenous cultures, however, the drum is an important spiritual tool that manifests the divine heartbeat in all of creation for those who learn how to listen. There are also the more traditional lessons that we give from the gifts God has given us, gifts don’t have to be expensive, and giving of ourselves makes every gift we offer a gift of great value.</div><div><br /></div><div>The shepherds teach us that God chooses those whom society wouldn’t: the poor, dirty, uneducated, and unimportant. Without any theological education, these first evangelists, the shepherds, witnessed with great effect, therefore, so can we all... so can you.</div><div><br /></div><div>As Episcopalians, we don’t read the Bible literally. We open ourselves to the truths it offers by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, eternal truths that guide us in the 21st century as effectively as they guided the believers in the first century BCE.</div><div><br /></div><div>And the truth of Christmas is this: today we celebrate the birth of new life - the Christ. This new life has been conceived by God, is God, and has been made manifest in the world. </div><div><br /></div><div>It starts small, this new life. It’s as delicate and vulnerable as it is beautiful. The people given to care for this new life know they’re going to have to tend to it for a long time before it comes into its fullness. This means they have to commit long-term to doing the little things, the every day, inglorious things, so that, when it comes to its fullness, this new life, conceived by God, will have its effect.</div><div><br /></div><div>For Mary and Joseph, that meant breastfeeding a crying baby Jesus, changing his dirty diapers, schlepping back and forth between Bethlehem, Egypt, and Nazareth to keep him from being destroyed by insane, earthly power, teaching him to be a carpenter, and taking him to church to learn his faith.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij2sKIKIROf-p8HFQE7_TzPPss0dQHSt4OzvEYPMNgbEXwMTnKSr6u-RKz9XcZj18x7CyowS6eQqDH3HJWh6HhwTL_Id6lWBwq0tpzegf2JHEHQt-HotdjQ9_cNd8gOP-hZWzha0IKbOEe7jTkvOp84C-acCqoIBkCedxnbgrYwEIKPPd15jGQzMpBzUQ/s4032/IMG_6880.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij2sKIKIROf-p8HFQE7_TzPPss0dQHSt4OzvEYPMNgbEXwMTnKSr6u-RKz9XcZj18x7CyowS6eQqDH3HJWh6HhwTL_Id6lWBwq0tpzegf2JHEHQt-HotdjQ9_cNd8gOP-hZWzha0IKbOEe7jTkvOp84C-acCqoIBkCedxnbgrYwEIKPPd15jGQzMpBzUQ/s320/IMG_6880.jpeg" width="240" /></a></div><div>For us, it means doing the everyday, inglorious spiritual and worldly work that feeds and nurtures the new life of Christ God is giving us. Practicing the disciplines of daily prayer, attending weekly corporate worship, caring for our bodies as the dwelling places of the Holy Spirit of God, and being patient, loving, and hope-filled even as tensions rise and compassion disappears in the world around us. As Marianne Williams says in her poem, "Our Greatest Fear." "We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us."</div><div><br /></div><div>One of the reasons the Christmas story never gets old, I think, is because it is so deeply within us, because Christ is so deeply in us. This isn’t just the sacred story of the birth of Jesus to Mary and Joseph, it’s the sacred story of the eternally happening birth of the Christ; the continuing birth of new life in all humankind, redeeming life conceived by God, and made manifest in us, who share this good news of great joy with the effect that one day the whole world will be reconciled to God.</div><div><br /></div><div>May the blessings of Christmas be lavished upon us all and through us, the world. Amen.</div></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br />* Wright, N.T., What St. Paul Really Said, Was Paul of Tarsus the real founder of Christianity? (Wm B Eerdmans Publishing, Grand Rapids, MI, 1997), 158.Rev. Dr. Valori Mulvey Shererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18097108657207202324noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2953930310550634937.post-13912045008545305382023-12-14T13:59:00.001-06:002023-12-14T13:59:35.472-06:00Advent 3-B, 2023: Our reason to rejoice<p>Lectionary: Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11; Psalm 126; 1 Thessalonians 5:16-24; John 1:6-8,19-28 </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/a-Xf8X8sNUs" width="320" youtube-src-id="a-Xf8X8sNUs"></iframe></div><br /><p>En el nombre del Dios: creador, redentor, y santificador. Amen.</p><p>Happy Gaudete Sunday! The Latin word 'gaudete' means ‘to be filled with joy.' The form of the word is the imperative. It’s critical – a matter of life and death.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrEr9GlJ0MXI_e9h60rgfZnu1k63eel2GQncSv5qMmDBq50AoK_Vc2RHPJ9WAvxaQC9vzpKkeAsOWMlWSjY8fqTC7_XnR2V0rQsvn2DdawS6fp4oGFKf5JGyAAlqHPXldDRAtoHjWDWaX7EM29-XsRwGvcyszhV8GluaLkWiVgXyd5gqCKSUDF_tmBLKY/s212/rose.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="210" data-original-width="212" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrEr9GlJ0MXI_e9h60rgfZnu1k63eel2GQncSv5qMmDBq50AoK_Vc2RHPJ9WAvxaQC9vzpKkeAsOWMlWSjY8fqTC7_XnR2V0rQsvn2DdawS6fp4oGFKf5JGyAAlqHPXldDRAtoHjWDWaX7EM29-XsRwGvcyszhV8GluaLkWiVgXyd5gqCKSUDF_tmBLKY/s1600/rose.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>The mandate of Gaudete reminds us that, no matter what has us weighed down, brokenhearted, angry, or hopeless, God is with us. Christ’s spirit is in us, and so, the joy that anticipates the saving action of God who will come with great might and bountiful grace to help us; the joy that trusts that nothing is impossible with God is already ours. We need only claim it.<p></p><p>Joy is different from happiness and one of the best resources I’ve found about this is in the collaborative book by Archbishop Desmond Tutu (God rest his soul) and the His Holiness, the Dali Lama, called, “<a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0399185046/ref=ppx_od_dt_b_asin_title_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1#detailBullets_feature_div">The Book of Joy.</a>” There they discuss 8 Pillars of Joy. I’ve linked a <a href="https://www.beliefnet.com/inspiration/the-eight-pillars-of-joy.aspx">webpage</a> to this sermon that summarizes these well. </p><p>These pillars include: </p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>PERSPECTIVE – a God’s-eye perspective that enables empathy. </li><li> HUMILITY which opens us to right relationships where everyone matters. </li><li> HUMOR which diffuses pain and connects us in our common humanity. </li><li> ACCEPTANCE which frees us from the illusion of our control. </li><li> FORGIVENESS which enables us to take our power and our life back from those who have harmed us and frees us to seek true justice. </li><li> GRATITUDE which opens our hearts to all that connects us, shifting our focus from what we lack to what we have. </li><li> COMPASSION - the unifying force that recognizes we are all one and enables us to love one another and ourselves in all our imperfection. </li><li> GENEROSITY which connects us to abundance - returning more to the one who gives, rather than depleting resources.</li></ul><p></p><p>The bottom line is this: joy is not attached to circumstances. It is an inner state of being that persists in every circumstance.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhPlS4ldiH0Ci43J-gnK5v71j5f_T-JHOK44ZH8B9UJK9_9JXoZ6l28m-ZhRJUbdGJGVZBE9WyRncIVJNm_pQXsqKOUXh6wR68vy3M0Blvf-x3_hjLa96WaRivepKTnvdBNdl4MOyxZKP7TQSgNQik1r_eAOryWhDcUAHbCJiUa0QSsoPJ7fWGw5l8MDQ/s489/jubilee.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="97" data-original-width="489" height="63" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhPlS4ldiH0Ci43J-gnK5v71j5f_T-JHOK44ZH8B9UJK9_9JXoZ6l28m-ZhRJUbdGJGVZBE9WyRncIVJNm_pQXsqKOUXh6wR68vy3M0Blvf-x3_hjLa96WaRivepKTnvdBNdl4MOyxZKP7TQSgNQik1r_eAOryWhDcUAHbCJiUa0QSsoPJ7fWGw5l8MDQ/s320/jubilee.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>One sure sign of joy is in the freedom from jubilee: the ancient Jewish practice of the forgiveness of debts, freedom from slavery, and resetting of access to resources. In the reading from the prophet Isaiah, we are called to proclaim both the year of the Lord’s favor, that is, the time of jubilee, and also the day of vengeance of our God.<p></p><p>The word translated here as “vengeance” also translates as “to be reassigned.” Isaiah is describing a process of divine jubilee by which God restores shalom: the wholeness and completeness of creation as intended by God from the beginning. As God restores shalom, it will be liberating for the oppressed, the brokenhearted, and the captive, but for those who hold and hoard power, privilege, or wealth, it will feel like loss and punishment – at least at first. Once right relationships are restored in the shalom of God, however, it will be clear how cherished all are to God, and that there is enough for everyone in the abundance of God, and there will be rejoicing in that truth.</p><p>Rejoice, St. Paul says, … for this is the will of God, in every circumstance.</p><p>When we rejoice, we relax in our bodies and souls. We anticipate being cared for by God whose power is love, whose gift is grace, and whose mercy is like arms outstretched drawing us into a divine hug. We are safe and at peace. In that state, we can listen because our minds are finally at rest, and we can take in the message being given to us.</p><p>This is the message of today’s gospel story about John the Baptist. John came to testify to the light, who is Jesus. The specifics of the reassigning God is doing in this story are kind of fun, so we’ll look at a few of them.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyWesuffozxrq8QPOEsTzIApJHY1KwIewaQu7laWfjKxocclXf0yu69F71ZZVtTX87eyOZBX89KJKiMcoYwGmXFBx-vxayeX0ZaszgIzk2wborLrKnGMxcZ4iX9JjJ06gRA6yIw3ycw2PHhThH64pf_h8Hl6qyAlTN8M7kyQfrqYx1ujA0gAcwaXOPaIQ/s257/John%20the%20baptist.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="257" data-original-width="196" height="257" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyWesuffozxrq8QPOEsTzIApJHY1KwIewaQu7laWfjKxocclXf0yu69F71ZZVtTX87eyOZBX89KJKiMcoYwGmXFBx-vxayeX0ZaszgIzk2wborLrKnGMxcZ4iX9JjJ06gRA6yIw3ycw2PHhThH64pf_h8Hl6qyAlTN8M7kyQfrqYx1ujA0gAcwaXOPaIQ/s1600/John%20the%20baptist.jpg" width="196" /></a></div>The Jewish people had been anticipating the saving action of God through the arrival of the Messiah who would deliver them from their oppression, brokenheartedness, and captivity, in this case to the Romans. John shows up preaching repentance instead, exhorting people to go a new way, and baptizing them with water – a practice usually reserved for Gentiles who were converting to Judaism. The people are eating up his message and following him in droves.<p></p><p>This, of course, makes the religious leadership nervous. John isn’t doing anything technically against their law, but he is becoming a powerful voice in their community – which is starting to feel threatening to them. They also worry about the Roman response to John – which as you know, ended up being a legitimate concern. More importantly, however, was that the people were conflating the hope they heard in John’s message with John himself, and rumors were beginning to foment that he, John, was the awaited Messiah.</p><p>John makes explicitly clear that he is NOT the light, he is not the prophet, he is not the Messiah. “Who are you then?” they ask.</p><p>I am a voice, he says, crying out in the wilderness, which in this case, refers to a place of political disfavor, an inhospitable region, which Jerusalem was. “Make straight the way of the Lord!” which was a quote from Isaiah, chapter 40, which begins: “Comfort, comfort ye my people, says your God.”</p><p>In that time, the Israelites were being held captive in Babylon. It was an inhospitable place of political disfavor for them, but God was promising them the restoration of shalom where everyone would be brought to a level playing field, where they would find peace and safety in the bosom of God, and the glory of God would be revealed to them.</p><p>Make straight the way of the Lord, John says. God is acting now to restore shalom. Focus your vision. Open your ears to hear the voice of God leading you. Trust in your heart and keep moving through this moment and into the shalom of God. You will find peace and safety in the care of God and the glory of God will be revealed to you.</p><p>John also proclaims in this gospel, that he is not worthy to untie the thong of the sandal of the one who is coming after him – which is a task no self-respecting Jew would have done back then. It was relegated to Gentile slaves, in other words, to the lowest of the low.</p><p>John says he himself is even lower than that. This is a colorful exaggeration to illustrate how far God will reach to raise us up, to lift us into divine glory. What was so attractive about John’s message, I think, was that he was proclaiming that there was already one among them, whom they do not know yet, who was about to do just that. It was imminent.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFOVRZHluUkqblyzsH5lRCuABRckpybZ2NDkYU9a2rdXGiasJqoy8WtFtIFFPQR1vPX7Wb61bUTG_kwJ65ac8sOaAeQvsj6H_Pc9_0-ciMG5xHbGiiDQ9ef7entbkMqhg0JvqTxdaEHxz2jwyvgiUERmtIu_1iWkU-G24lugmwChQiJ0bV2LMHan31CHQ/s252/images-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="252" data-original-width="200" height="252" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFOVRZHluUkqblyzsH5lRCuABRckpybZ2NDkYU9a2rdXGiasJqoy8WtFtIFFPQR1vPX7Wb61bUTG_kwJ65ac8sOaAeQvsj6H_Pc9_0-ciMG5xHbGiiDQ9ef7entbkMqhg0JvqTxdaEHxz2jwyvgiUERmtIu_1iWkU-G24lugmwChQiJ0bV2LMHan31CHQ/s1600/images-2.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><p></p><p>As we continue our Advent waiting in this cycle of our renewal, we also must wait and see, focusing our vision, opening our ears to hear the voice of God leading us, and trusting in our hearts. We must keep moving through the current circumstances in our lives and into the shalom of God. For it is there we find peace and safety in the care of God and joy that surpasses all understanding.</p><p>For us, the glory of God, the fullness of the revelation of God is found in Jesus. He is the place of our peace and safety. He is the voice that leads us, the light that shines in every darkness, and the love that fills us – body and soul – in every circumstance. That is the promise and our reason to rejoice. Amen.</p>Rev. Dr. Valori Mulvey Shererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18097108657207202324noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2953930310550634937.post-57885527747017330702023-12-03T07:30:00.010-06:002023-12-03T07:30:00.140-06:00Advent 1-B: Our hope is in Jesus<p>Lectionary: Isaiah 64:1-9; Psalm 80:1-7, 16-18; 1 Corinthians 1:3-9; Mark 13:24-37 </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/lg48fp6cVCo" width="320" youtube-src-id="lg48fp6cVCo"></iframe></div><p>As Christians our hope is in Jesus - that Jesus is always coming, always redeeming, always reconciling us back to God. This is the hope we pause to ponder on this first Sunday in Advent.</p><p></p>How do we do that given the pretty terrifying Scriptures assigned for today? It isn’t that hard, but it does take faith.<p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0vE2Y6MH0nLuYdg09oVZLCu5mRELrPxXwhz7GVhjjlUN3S-vozBCVuCI-NgXlr0RcynRbp8hPN-f4-1yp1eQG4NBvVDe3VdihELNNctkOaf5jWbtsHly8CtI4OtZJGP3kZAOyrj6VBfKEG2HRrLHOqGZSkf05LWXSweZp7yCJgdTDHULUsbB5TtJxiyE/s300/Advent%201%20wreath%20pic.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="168" data-original-width="300" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0vE2Y6MH0nLuYdg09oVZLCu5mRELrPxXwhz7GVhjjlUN3S-vozBCVuCI-NgXlr0RcynRbp8hPN-f4-1yp1eQG4NBvVDe3VdihELNNctkOaf5jWbtsHly8CtI4OtZJGP3kZAOyrj6VBfKEG2HRrLHOqGZSkf05LWXSweZp7yCJgdTDHULUsbB5TtJxiyE/s1600/Advent%201%20wreath%20pic.jpg" width="300" /></a></div>For example, in the reading from Isaiah, we see the acknowledgment of a God so awesome that the mountains (that is, all creation) and nations (all created people) quake in Their presence. This awesome God moves from astounding in our eyes to formidable, even frightening, as we recognize our guilt and the shame that causes us. We know what is wrong and when we do wrong, we anticipate being punished for it; and when we are wronged, we get mad, and most often, we get even, or at least we try to.<p></p><p>Road rage is a perfect example. I witnessed a car dual just the other day as I drove to work. I was the third car back at a stop light. The first car delayed moving when the left turn light came on. The second car laid down on their horn and didn’t let up, even after the first car started moving. Then I watched the second car speed around the first car and cut in front of them, forcing them across the double-yellow line into oncoming traffic, which had to swerve to avoid a collision. All of us behind them slowed down too – just in case. Both cars turned off at the next light so I don’t know how the story ended, but based on how it started, I can’t think it ended well. So many lives put at risk, and for what? There’s a reason God admonished us to leave our need for revenge in God’s hands. And seriously, over a few seconds delay at a traffic light? What has happened to our collective maturity?</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcY-ljb2S5OMwtFXeTPt8WncNgwGOjrlAvA-3WlNcMNmteZFUbcmsibd6pol0F4BefaQUsZJQL-slKu5SkD91VZRgGHE4odi16NdIV8-zqDYGmItJ53-h9kYpX8PPurv2ileYDMIA6ZiH0hTgWU5DlX1Yah2eR7y1IwwGp6PfdN-423IQApN30KQMbzy8/s225/Trinity.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcY-ljb2S5OMwtFXeTPt8WncNgwGOjrlAvA-3WlNcMNmteZFUbcmsibd6pol0F4BefaQUsZJQL-slKu5SkD91VZRgGHE4odi16NdIV8-zqDYGmItJ53-h9kYpX8PPurv2ileYDMIA6ZiH0hTgWU5DlX1Yah2eR7y1IwwGp6PfdN-423IQApN30KQMbzy8/s1600/Trinity.jpg" width="225" /></a></div>It’s common to project our responses onto God, as happens in today’s reading from Isaiah, and while the sentiments in this passage are an honest expression of human experience, they are not how God works. God, who formed us marvelously in our mother’s wombs, who led us out of slavery into freedom, who gave his life for our redemption, is not petty or retributive, but just – and God’s justice is always, always bound together with God’s mercy in service to God’s plan of salvation for the whole world.<p></p><p>Our life is sustained by the very breath of God our Creator, therefore, while we live, God chooses life for us. While we live, we are beloved of the one who formed us and promised to be with us in every circumstance in the world around us.</p><p>And that is where we find the darkness – in the world around us – and the more we encounter this darkness, the more it enters us, wears down our hope, and displaces our inner divine light. We need only flick on the news to see the devastation war wreaks on the lives of God’s created. We feel our bodies respond by clenching our stomachs, raising our blood pressure, or shutting down our thoughts. In moments like these the ancient words of today’s psalm ring out in our hearts: “Restore us, O God of hosts; show the light of your countenance and we will be saved.” </p><p>…which is the point of Jesus’ teaching today. When darkness steals our hope, we are to awaken to the truth that God is already with us, in us, redeeming and reconciling us – all of us – from the four corners of the earth.</p><p>It’s important to note that Jesus was talking to Jewish people using language and concepts familiar to them. Apocalyptic language was a common device used in ancient Jewish religion. The word apocalypse actually means unveiling or revelation, so the apocalyptic teachings were meant to provide hope to the suffering by unveiling the assurance that God will redeem all things in the end.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPx4pJu4F8MespIZ3XcL_REv-qlaYdQOYNDg_4BMl0XfZyi1zTWf8Af0oQotTel0rZ_0fLjIrPt2y_7c5_foGNlN2HwkOhPNvqSRhkLP_nLsiNYyhZiQOhaUfbspa_UDHWauDlcj02GEvbulpNh2uYo_ejcxX_84k4FV0mJ4cxvA-oDl2QfJIMctcwOmQ/s171/Cristus%20Rex.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="163" data-original-width="171" height="246" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPx4pJu4F8MespIZ3XcL_REv-qlaYdQOYNDg_4BMl0XfZyi1zTWf8Af0oQotTel0rZ_0fLjIrPt2y_7c5_foGNlN2HwkOhPNvqSRhkLP_nLsiNYyhZiQOhaUfbspa_UDHWauDlcj02GEvbulpNh2uYo_ejcxX_84k4FV0mJ4cxvA-oDl2QfJIMctcwOmQ/w258-h246/Cristus%20Rex.jpg" width="258" /></a></div>Jesus was also speaking in this gospel about something very specific to his listeners in their time: the coming destruction of the temple in Jerusalem. The Jewish people understood the temple to be where the presence of God was found. The hope Jesus was giving them was that their sense of desolation from the absence of their temple would be filled by the light of the truth that Jesus himself, is the temple. In him is the presence of God. The hope Jesus gave them was that what the prophet Daniel had said would be fulfilled: that after the destruction of their temple, God would gather the chosen people, which is what the Jewish people called themselves, from everywhere they had been scattered, and restore them to unity.<p></p><p>That was for them. What about us? What can we understand now in our time as Christian listeners?</p><p>We can hear the same truth when we listen with the ears of our faith. Our hope is in Jesus, who gave us his own spirit at Pentecost. Being temples of his spirit, we have been made partners with Jesus in his continuing ministry of the reconciliation of the whole world to God.</p><p>In the verses ahead of today’s gospel Jesus describes the human experience of trauma and tragedy reminding us that horrible things will happen: wars, earthquakes, false prophets, betrayal by family, profaning the temple, which happened later, btw, when the Roman guards sacrificed pigs on their temple altars. When unthinkable horrors happen, Jesus says, you will wonder how the stars can shine or the sun can rise the next day as if nothing happened.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8Ld31U_0JiQzrkox8GKUQ32ozenoMrZ9N5uE_tZtwY5PBVNB5t1MyH9o6QoVvA-UhP3B6jxunmQ3OXAHjmSDogapQyiCWxAE-TqNuaG-0lFscSJMeBzIvYSrinKJNoqXAxazFamqotuZp4dxJOrbqBYyfQVcwH1C7vmzvd4AhlWyR9xIhSHTIKol0W78/s2048/VMS%20pic.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1019" data-original-width="2048" height="159" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8Ld31U_0JiQzrkox8GKUQ32ozenoMrZ9N5uE_tZtwY5PBVNB5t1MyH9o6QoVvA-UhP3B6jxunmQ3OXAHjmSDogapQyiCWxAE-TqNuaG-0lFscSJMeBzIvYSrinKJNoqXAxazFamqotuZp4dxJOrbqBYyfQVcwH1C7vmzvd4AhlWyR9xIhSHTIKol0W78/s320/VMS%20pic.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>But the stars do shine, and the sunrise brings another day – not because of anything we do, but because of what God does. God breathes life into us, and so we have life. And not just life, but abundant life, full of joy as Jesus promised. That is our hope. He is our hope.<p></p><p>When horrible things happen in our lives or in the life of our community, Jesus reminds us to keep alert; to watch for him to show up as light in our darkness. We aren’t good at this. Jesus’ own disciples fell asleep when he asked them to keep watch while he prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane. When they awoke, they were startled and afraid as they watched the Roman soldiers arrest Jesus and take him away to his trial and inevitable execution.</p><p>Like the disciples, we can get lost in the despair that swirls around us when horrible things happen. We tend to ask questions like, “Where is God? Why doesn’t God stop this? What am I supposed to do?”</p><p>Jesus teaches us to wait and keep watch. He is coming. He is always coming redeeming and reconciling us back into God. We can’t know when these things may happen, so we must always allow Jesus to wake us up so we can see him and be active partners with him in his plan of salvation.</p><p>I close with a short prayer from John Donne: Keep us, Lord, so awake in the duties of our calling
that we may sleep in thy peace and wake in thy glory. Amen.</p>Rev. Dr. Valori Mulvey Shererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18097108657207202324noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2953930310550634937.post-90296416774957384652023-11-26T07:30:00.001-06:002023-11-26T07:30:00.141-06:00Christ the King Sunday, 2023: Refined, remade, and restoredLectionary: Ezekiel 34:11-16, 20-24; Psalm 100; Ephesians 1:15-23; Matthew 25:31-46 <div><br /></div><div><i>(Note: there is no video of this sermon due to the Thanksgiving holiday. This sermon, as part of our service, can be viewed on <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuGquF50MsgRQGMs834_fuA">Emmanuel Episcopal Webster Groves' YouTube channel</a>.)</i></div><div><i><br /></i>
En el nombre del Dios: creador, redentor, y santificador. Amen.</div><div><br /></div><div>Grant O God, that the peoples of the earth, divided and enslaved by sin, may be freed and brought together under Jesus’ most gracious rule.</div><div><br /></div><div>Freedom takes many forms, and when we lose it, we are truly lost – like scattered sheep - and we begin to die. Some of us lose our freedom to alcohol, drugs, food, or gambling. Others lose our freedom to money, power, reputation, or celebrity. Still others lose our freedom to people or churches with twisted theology. Our freedom also can be surreptitiously lost to mental or physical illness or to fear, hate, or hopelessness.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAzM1b-mjkqCmp1bIo4cUCiezNgOfKVAG9a6Q-D-ZmRIhHTMVkv76Af0Unna-jka2CJ3_2r8N6cS9M4z6mV6kP18EjXTzdpkNrXSelUBHhBsOmj7R3UgSvYc_VarsyjqkGjeIVWUxiJQfycCkAr5O4_bRujzEJO0NWhrZimX5JpHC8ZJOUBgEVR7osWQ4/s273/freedom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="185" data-original-width="273" height="185" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAzM1b-mjkqCmp1bIo4cUCiezNgOfKVAG9a6Q-D-ZmRIhHTMVkv76Af0Unna-jka2CJ3_2r8N6cS9M4z6mV6kP18EjXTzdpkNrXSelUBHhBsOmj7R3UgSvYc_VarsyjqkGjeIVWUxiJQfycCkAr5O4_bRujzEJO0NWhrZimX5JpHC8ZJOUBgEVR7osWQ4/s1600/freedom.jpg" width="273" /></a></div><div>Some of us lose our freedom because it’s stolen from us – by an abuser or an oppressor. This is the kind of thief specifically described by the prophet Ezekiel who said: “…you pushed with flank and shoulder, and butted all the weak animals with horns until you scattered them far and wide…”</div><div><br /></div><div>Abuse, in all its forms, is about power… misused power… and the Good News Ezekiel offers is that God sees when the sheep, that is, the people, have been scattered by this misuse of power; and God says, “I myself will search for them… I will rescue them from all the places they have been scattered… [and] feed them with good pasture… I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep… I will seek the lost… bring back the strayed… [and] strengthen the weak…"</div><div><br /></div><div>Picking up on Ezekiel’s metaphor, Jesus takes this teaching even further. It isn’t just what God will do, but also what we must do as his followers. The main point of this teaching is about responding to the power of the world using the power God has given us.</div><div><br /></div><div>This power is something we all possess. It’s a power that has nothing to do with money, or position, or age, or ability. It’s the power of Jesus’ presence within us – a power that can only be used properly when we are living in righteousness, that is, in right relationship with God and our neighbor.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu9s8mzxtkNuCdaU-MHTFVQHSPYxSN0w93zVhc0gFUrlhvix_B5oHxQcvRiU1x707et1Np7zvRuUIublU6XnSaq5moaQ6KsE_Av7oehbUFgAuRX0bmKUM2YcJeFJE8FmI2qfWDD2ZXl3RE5ut_I_u9P5wQ1XQNLbUp2PoA1eLiULu7AD_ORw0kI42WyPA/s259/pruning.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="194" data-original-width="259" height="194" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu9s8mzxtkNuCdaU-MHTFVQHSPYxSN0w93zVhc0gFUrlhvix_B5oHxQcvRiU1x707et1Np7zvRuUIublU6XnSaq5moaQ6KsE_Av7oehbUFgAuRX0bmKUM2YcJeFJE8FmI2qfWDD2ZXl3RE5ut_I_u9P5wQ1XQNLbUp2PoA1eLiULu7AD_ORw0kI42WyPA/s1600/pruning.jpg" width="259" /></a></div><div>That seemingly scary last sentence in the gospel story is not a threat. The word we translate as “punishment,” is actually “pruning.” While cutting away what is superfluous in us may be fearful and rightly anticipated as painful, the object of pruning is to increase growth and fruitfulness. It is a gift, not a penalty.</div><div><br /></div><div>The penalty would be self-inflicted: cutting ourselves off from God. Disconnection from God feels like punishment because it is disconnection from the only truth, the only life there is.</div><div><br /></div><div>I’ve mentioned having experienced hell more than once in my life. What made those experiences hell for me was that I’d lost my grip on my relationship with God. I felt disconnected, existentially alone, and eternally lost.</div><div><br /></div><div>I wasn’t, of course, because Christ marked me as his own forever at my Baptism. So, while I may have felt disconnected from God, God was not disconnected from me. God was waiting like a shepherd to guide me back to the rich pasture Ezekiel describes - the richness of right relationship with God and neighbor.</div><div><br /></div><div>While I was in hell, my entire focus was on myself. I was drowning in my own suffering. I felt alone and lost, scared, and angry about it. I couldn’t have noticed anyone else’s suffering because my focus had turned inward. I was in hell and each moment was an eternity.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiATlEZVEt9N2ox6wvXWRC0ZpyKhlsqo0fwEXD6FqBvwYSwKs1cmOAWM79Cia-_s6FNeh1zJ0Bz94zIa-ccLEA1Bx_WCj8Hqh1c9LzXNQSWWQmw1MzJsK_jGd7juxh76ujV2wcZRSm-FMt5c-axNNA6DRf6fYROWTSSYpnxf48oay9gSkeYRenncXlvh3w/s1024/burning%20bush.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="1024" height="190" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiATlEZVEt9N2ox6wvXWRC0ZpyKhlsqo0fwEXD6FqBvwYSwKs1cmOAWM79Cia-_s6FNeh1zJ0Bz94zIa-ccLEA1Bx_WCj8Hqh1c9LzXNQSWWQmw1MzJsK_jGd7juxh76ujV2wcZRSm-FMt5c-axNNA6DRf6fYROWTSSYpnxf48oay9gSkeYRenncXlvh3w/w380-h190/burning%20bush.png" width="380" /></a></div>That’s why this promise from Jesus is so vital: the accursed, that is, those whose attention is solely on themselves, or those who live in such a way that they cause pain, division, or hardship for the poor and vulnerable, will be sent into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the adversaries of good. Since “fire” is Bible-speak for the presence of God - remembering the burning bush that spoke to Moses in Genesis and the pillar of fire that led the Israelites to the Promised Land in Exodus – Jesus is promising that they will be sent back into the eternal presence of God where they will be refined, remade, and restored to right relationship with God and neighbor.</div><div><br /></div><div>I can attest to this. I have experienced first-hand the refining fire of God’s love and I highly recommend it! It is the gateway to freedom. This freedom that includes us but extends far beyond us and the path to it is right in front of us all the time.</div><div><br /></div><div>How many times have we walked or driven past a panhandler and ignored their plea for help? We may soothe our consciences saying they are addicts and we don’t want to support their habit - for their sake, or we may reason that they choose to be homeless, or that our little bit of help won’t make a difference in the long run.</div><div><br /></div><div>The truth is, we don’t want to engage with them the way Jesus engaged the Gerasene demoniac or the woman being stoned for adultery. It’s dangerous and scary. So instead, we find a way to relieve ourselves of our Christian responsibility to respond to them.</div><div><br /></div><div>Then we hear the prophetic voices call us back to truth, voices like Nelson Mandela who once said, "…to be free is not merely to cast off one's chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others." Or Dietrich Bonhoeffer who said, “[Christians] are not to simply bandage the wounds of victims beneath the wheels of injustice, we are to drive a spoke into the wheel itself.”</div><div><br /></div><div>Living into our Christian responsibility isn’t easy, but thanks be to God, we don’t do it alone. We do it as the body of Christ.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0mbnK7uoaYcVEEIC1REDSNSvr0LCQpxDswObpBkhe3MwuAa4MpMtSx_ENPWeN1SxxqhXJlWvfXVfvrHVQqlVsb016a0HiuIQALSmO0GdgrNM6YIc6aLHysKP2ZdYIOqUSQMnrAgPzAPWKOE0TKfKbVI7k-_U0u4LBWgq0Phagsf1VNos22C3SiR6cKxQ/s1478/Screenshot%202023-11-25%20at%204.43.57%20PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1478" data-original-width="1062" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0mbnK7uoaYcVEEIC1REDSNSvr0LCQpxDswObpBkhe3MwuAa4MpMtSx_ENPWeN1SxxqhXJlWvfXVfvrHVQqlVsb016a0HiuIQALSmO0GdgrNM6YIc6aLHysKP2ZdYIOqUSQMnrAgPzAPWKOE0TKfKbVI7k-_U0u4LBWgq0Phagsf1VNos22C3SiR6cKxQ/s320/Screenshot%202023-11-25%20at%204.43.57%20PM.png" width="230" /></a></div>Just this past week churches from various denominations in Webster Groves gathered together at Webster United Methodist Church for our annual community Thanksgiving Service. We raised awareness of and money for our vulnerable siblings in Christ here and in the Rosebud Indian Reservation in SD. </div><div><br /></div><div>This ecumenical group also has spent the last year driving a spoke into the wheel of racism through our efforts to inform about racist statements still present in many of our homes’ deeds from the past and to ensure that racism finds no place in home deeds in the present. We have pushed back on the shoulders and flanks that butt out and scatter the weak as we work for affordable housing options in our fair city.</div><div><br /></div><div>Each Sunday we gather as a family of faith to be nourished by Word and Sacrament so that we can go out into the world to enhance the freedom of others and drive spokes into the wheels of injustice in our time. When we truly believe that God dwells in us, we can step into any darkness, any suffering, and allow Jesus to do through us what he always does, what the prophets of old said he would do: set us free from all that separates us and guide our feet into the way of peace.</div><div><br /></div><div>Grant O God, that the peoples of the earth, divided and enslaved by sin, may be freed and brought together under Jesus’ most gracious rule. Amen.
</div>Rev. Dr. Valori Mulvey Shererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18097108657207202324noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2953930310550634937.post-22925929087371667222023-11-05T07:30:00.033-06:002023-11-05T07:30:00.182-06:00All Saints, 2023-A: Blessed, holy, and worthy of praise<p> Lectionary: Revelation 7:9-17; Psalm 34:1-10, 22; 1 John 3:1-3; Matthew 5:1-12 </p><p><i>(Note: there is no video of this sermon due to being at the diocesan convention through Saturday afternoon. This sermon, as part of our service, can be viewed on Emmanuel Episcopal, Webster Groves' <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuGquF50MsgRQGMs834_fuA">YouTube</a> channel.)</i></p><p>En el nombre del Dios Omnipotente, Cristo el Hijo, y el Espiritu Santo. Amen.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCxESkQLbYEhCGBwhWFZRNloCORFI5rcb4yx2W5w_v9eoy0WfjgpsUprbYd3pXq1iW0IDPZl9DASwpArrXM2QhrxPSCd3btF2zUC7yxiGfvBfG0SbbFZsZqBOUxCs1mXklP1Wxb_iy8pHABlSVMJE8juTed-gTEebF7cxb6__UxIz34f3G2iWESrB7esg/s549/All%20Saints%20pic.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="549" data-original-width="427" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCxESkQLbYEhCGBwhWFZRNloCORFI5rcb4yx2W5w_v9eoy0WfjgpsUprbYd3pXq1iW0IDPZl9DASwpArrXM2QhrxPSCd3btF2zUC7yxiGfvBfG0SbbFZsZqBOUxCs1mXklP1Wxb_iy8pHABlSVMJE8juTed-gTEebF7cxb6__UxIz34f3G2iWESrB7esg/s320/All%20Saints%20pic.png" width="249" /></a></div>In his book, The Magnificent Defeat, American theologian, Frederick Buechner, said: "…to be a saint is to know joy. Not happiness that comes and goes with the moments that occasion it, but joy that is always there like an underground spring no matter how dark and terrible the night. To be a saint is to be a little out of one's mind, which is a very good thing to be a little out of from time to time. It is to live a life that is always giving itself away and yet is always full." <a href="http://www.belovedcommunity.info/faith/faithfulmoderates/tobeasaint.htm">Source</a>. <p></p><p>“To be a saint is to be a little out of one’s mind…” he said. Finally, a qualification for sainthood I can meet! I live a little bit out of my mind all of the time. I always have, especially when it comes to my spiritual life. I know many others (even some here) who could say the same but mostly don’t because, well… people will think they’re out of their minds.</p><p>The early church considered a saint to be anyone who believed that Jesus is the Christ. The current church still believes that. That’s why the saints we remembered today in our Litany included people of many faiths, civil right advocates, medieval mystics, military generals, and peace activists. They are lay and ordained, women and men: they are all of us.</p><p>The gospel reading today reflects for us the character of saints. These aren’t people who rise above their human frailties. On the contrary, Jesus makes very clear that saints are deeply and totally human, and he calls them blessed, that is, holy and worthy of praise.</p><p>Jesus says that saints are blessed when they come before God in absolute poverty of spirit, because knowing they need God, they place themselves into God’s care. Saints are blessed when they suffer loss, or desire justice …when they are generous with mercy in the face of sin, … when they work to bring peace out of conflict …when they keep God’s will as their priority, even though they themselves may suffer indignities and injustices for it. Blessed are they, Jesus says. They are holy and worthy of praise.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBnyQK9TVJ1dsmPSoBH2U7r3K6pvZa-YiHyT5v5wk_8fjImQFm1TjmbkG7vxIFJfU7lQnSe3uxhuhGPfyn_GdvDlmUGzlLDvg7woZ1s449omAOoYw6pZxPMmIo6uDIgHH7kz6QR1bnbP1N2XiGcyIAzaCFHlHznH1kkPDqgh4yfoRskio6rEU4L9L0pvk/s1857/romania-children3_custom-038c988867b42f6caa7095a7ee375d79a7b99eab.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1857" data-original-width="1074" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBnyQK9TVJ1dsmPSoBH2U7r3K6pvZa-YiHyT5v5wk_8fjImQFm1TjmbkG7vxIFJfU7lQnSe3uxhuhGPfyn_GdvDlmUGzlLDvg7woZ1s449omAOoYw6pZxPMmIo6uDIgHH7kz6QR1bnbP1N2XiGcyIAzaCFHlHznH1kkPDqgh4yfoRskio6rEU4L9L0pvk/w185-h320/romania-children3_custom-038c988867b42f6caa7095a7ee375d79a7b99eab.jpg" title="Romanian street child" width="185" /></a></div>One saint I loved was an 8-year-old beggar I met when I was part of a mission trip serving the street children in Romania. This little boy was smart, savvy, and doomed by his poverty. Yet his smile, playfulness, and laughter were ever-present. One day, as we walked along the streets of Cluj-Napoca, this precocious little guy begged some money (which, by the way, he could do in about 5 languages), then went and bought a banana. As he returned to where I was sitting on the curb, he broke the banana in two and offered me half. I was overcome by the generosity that came so naturally to him. This precious little one was a saint in heaven by age 10, a victim of his life on the streets. Blessed was he, holy, and worthy of praise. <i>(Pic is a Romanian street child, but not the one I mentioned)</i><p></p><p>The call to purity in these Beatitudes is about our willingness to rely totally on God. This complete reliance, no matter the circumstances of our lives, keeps us in the will of God. It’s a choice: waiting on God’s redeeming love to act rather than asserting our wills (and solutions) into it. This was made real for me by my beloved aunt and godmother, whose bitterness and anger, though justified by the circumstances of her life, made her quite unlovable for many. But as she would tell me the stories of how she made it through terrible ordeals, I saw how she trusted God and waited the very long time it took for redemption to happen. I knew even as a small child, that when I was with her, I was in the presence of purity of heart, and it made her beautiful to me. Blessed was she, holy and worthy of praise.</p><p>In his address to our convention, Bp. Rafael Morales of Puerto Rico, exhorted us over and over to go – get out of our churches and into the world and share the good news of the amazing, transforming love we know in Jesus.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrdWtQt5_oZz6d-8qTgiMXFuf8JG4r_HXUAKwdwQj0SjA_Gx2vkRUR2hgf3vE1_V_ooIs-6KEQRy9pJtd8lTqo5tMJrT43xCRmnxxikcKPxdLjteBkHVnHlf38GDtWMs0pbLlPDEKmICqALSAwltl9NaYZs5IA_wcMr4c4MDk7-CXbyM0T4LfgzwLyuWk/s870/beatitudes.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="386" data-original-width="870" height="156" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrdWtQt5_oZz6d-8qTgiMXFuf8JG4r_HXUAKwdwQj0SjA_Gx2vkRUR2hgf3vE1_V_ooIs-6KEQRy9pJtd8lTqo5tMJrT43xCRmnxxikcKPxdLjteBkHVnHlf38GDtWMs0pbLlPDEKmICqALSAwltl9NaYZs5IA_wcMr4c4MDk7-CXbyM0T4LfgzwLyuWk/w353-h156/beatitudes.jpg" width="353" /></a></div>Thankfully, Jesus taught us how to do that by embodying the Beatitudes, showing us – in real life – what it looks like to do good to those who hate us, pray for those who abuse us, withhold nothing from anyone, and turn the other cheek. These aren’t metaphors for Jesus – or for us. They are a way of being in the world.<p></p><p>So, let’s choose to bring down the boundaries we’ve built up in our minds and in our faith - the ones that keep us safe and sane but separated from one another. Let’s be a little out of our minds and be led by God, taking our place in that eternal procession of saints who were, saints who are, and saints who are yet to come.</p><p>Then we too will be blessed, holy, and worthy of praise. Amen.</p>Rev. Dr. Valori Mulvey Shererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18097108657207202324noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2953930310550634937.post-66908189624435248482023-10-07T16:17:00.002-05:002023-10-08T13:14:14.232-05:00Pentecost 19, 2023-A: Signposts to shalom<p> Lectionary: Exodus 20:1-4, 7-9, 12-20; Psalm 19; Philippians 3:4b-14; Matthew 21:33-46 </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/aNlbCM1MU5Q" width="320" youtube-src-id="aNlbCM1MU5Q"></iframe></div><p>Sean gratos los dichos de mi boca y la meditación de mi corazón delante de ti, oh Dios, mi fortaleza y mi redentor.
Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O LORD, my strength and my redeemer.</p><p>When I was preparing for my First Communion, I had to learn the answers to the hundreds of questions in the Baltimore Catechism. I studied the catechism with my Latina mother, may she rest in peace, who would frequently say to me, “You don’t have to believe that. Just memorize the answer in case the bishop calls on you.” Early in my spiritual development, my mother taught me to respect the rules of the church while also giving me permission to discern my own relationship with God.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6sULeCAn4r7ZLxsUQg6apK9nA__wGjAlPPghCKgiqPu8RPpsov1Lbm5PMOCdwV1_Ssv6VEPisSAfLEDD6Ed_jp-lFkOpwKnXiwax85bBlIpa0r6BRaGDMFTeJYWPbk9NL9Mpjt9XJ2FEuGAlakhRJAJGDjmMktyzYqOAIhaBfDjqs4m1jZc6e6t0MWxE/s751/the%20Law.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="751" data-original-width="688" height="314" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6sULeCAn4r7ZLxsUQg6apK9nA__wGjAlPPghCKgiqPu8RPpsov1Lbm5PMOCdwV1_Ssv6VEPisSAfLEDD6Ed_jp-lFkOpwKnXiwax85bBlIpa0r6BRaGDMFTeJYWPbk9NL9Mpjt9XJ2FEuGAlakhRJAJGDjmMktyzYqOAIhaBfDjqs4m1jZc6e6t0MWxE/w288-h314/the%20Law.png" width="288" /></a></div>The Episcopal Church has rules which we call canons. They guide our common life in Christ. Our forebears called their rules “The Law.” Given by God to Moses, the Law was meant to guide their common life and bring about shalom: a fullness of harmony between God, God’s people, and God’s creation. They were meant to be signposts, but they feared getting it wrong, so they made 10 rules into 613 to ensure they were doing it just right. No one could have kept all of those rules. No one.<p></p><p>Following the rules doesn’t keep us safe from wrong. It’s like the symptoms and the disease I spoke about last week.</p><p>Where there is sin, there is a disruption of our right relationships - our righteousness - with God and one another. That is the disease, the dis-ease which is, according to the dictionary, “a disordering of structure or function.” (Source: Apple dictionary)</p><p>When we see murder or coveting or dishonoring of elders, when we don’t make time to be in the presence of God, or when we use God’s name to curse someone or invoke fear in them, falsely claiming divine power as our own, we are seeing symptoms of the disease - the disruption of righteousness – and we know we’ve sinned. Knowing that we can repent and return to the Lord.</p><p>In our Bible study this past week, someone said, “Context is everything.” Taking that to heart, I want to offer a little context for our gospel reading today. Today’s story comes after Jesus’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem on the foal of a donkey, his very public overturning of the tables in the temple and cursing of a fig tree. He cured the blind and the lame as the people cried out “Hosanna to the Son of David.”</p><p>When Jesus returned to the temple the next day, the religious leadership ask by what authority he does all these things. Jesus answers, I’ll tell you IF you can tell me whether the baptism of John was of divine or human origin. When they couldn’t answer him, Jesus refused to answer them. Instead, he began to tell parables, a common rabbinical teaching technique, only Jesus was a genius with them.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtRff8qmY9Q0eDap9wYYMGIJOHznyTCXgnTuffTB-HTz7W_4MyUXugcVXUpcSbgokopBTXwE5bnavht3CYhlOjYB8GvigNN5YEWGvcCJ3Auz36SKrhj0Lni5mzBCkSinVebuTKgnNEYuQ3hWuV7fqWTH021gKtvHGu5NUzxp-6lNFAa0ZbkmjTh6wm0v8/s316/parable%20tenants.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="159" data-original-width="316" height="159" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtRff8qmY9Q0eDap9wYYMGIJOHznyTCXgnTuffTB-HTz7W_4MyUXugcVXUpcSbgokopBTXwE5bnavht3CYhlOjYB8GvigNN5YEWGvcCJ3Auz36SKrhj0Lni5mzBCkSinVebuTKgnNEYuQ3hWuV7fqWTH021gKtvHGu5NUzxp-6lNFAa0ZbkmjTh6wm0v8/s1600/parable%20tenants.jpg" width="316" /></a></div>This second parable, the parable of the wicked tenants, is a scathing judgment by Jesus against the religious leadership and their followers. There is so much symbolism in it, so let’s take a quick review: <p></p><p></p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>the absent landowner is God </li><li>the vineyard is a common metaphor for the nation of Israel </li><li>a watchtower is built which means God is keeping continual watch over the people </li><li>the slaves represent the prophets, about whom Jesus laments later in this gospel “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were not willing? (23:37) </li><li>and finally, the tenants are the people of Israel and their religious leaders who kill even the landowner’s son </li></ul><p></p><p>What should this landlord do with these tenants? Jesus asks.</p><p>The religious leadership reply that according to their rules, ‘They should suffer a miserable death, and the land should be leased to someone else – someone who will give the owner the fruits of the harvest.’ Jesus has led the religious leadership to declare judgment on themselves – and once they realized it, they were steaming mad. But they couldn’t kill him because of the crowds.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtuAwAsHAWJV_tKkUFZslwXwNJSxx5ZSockvYbe9o9h7yn1UEjSI79iqTgjNOHPnWIqp1GfPfsOrbYcgmlrE2YqUEbCaV7JZ5cVq_4hbPaOpYT-RgpXqeInkdsxWvOuDVOOeRCfq__Y6LNzv-bf3G8h5k-4WwVW25YxCifCABEdfQUsVsua3AFfzQS0mo/s845/Screenshot%202023-10-07%20at%204.10.17%20PM.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="845" data-original-width="709" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtuAwAsHAWJV_tKkUFZslwXwNJSxx5ZSockvYbe9o9h7yn1UEjSI79iqTgjNOHPnWIqp1GfPfsOrbYcgmlrE2YqUEbCaV7JZ5cVq_4hbPaOpYT-RgpXqeInkdsxWvOuDVOOeRCfq__Y6LNzv-bf3G8h5k-4WwVW25YxCifCABEdfQUsVsua3AFfzQS0mo/w187-h224/Screenshot%202023-10-07%20at%204.10.17%20PM.png" width="187" /></a></div>Also in this parable, Jesus identifies himself both as the son <i>(ben) </i>of the landowner and as the cornerstone <i>(eben)</i> using a direct quote from Psalm 118, which the religious leadership knew well: “The same stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone.” (:22) As he did with Psalm 22 from the cross, Rabbi Jesus uses the fullness of Psalm 118 to point to the amazing things God is about to do through him: opening the gates of righteousness, overcoming death, and bringing salvation.<p></p><p>Another important thing to notice about this parable is that, like the parable of the two sons that preceded it, this parable is inclusive. Jesus doesn’t condemn the religious leadership or their followers to exclusion from the kingdom of God, but he does take from them their purpose and gives it to another people. The word Jesus uses here is ‘nation’ – and it would have meant ‘Gentiles’ to his listeners.</p><p>This new Gentile people, he says, will produce fruit for the owner to harvest. This was always predicted, though. As Isaiah prophesied, it is too small a thing for you to restore only the tribes of Jacob and Israel… “I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.” (49:6)</p><p>The Jewish people knew all along that they were God’s chosen, and that salvation would be extended one day to everyone. Jesus is letting them know that the time is now, and he is the one inaugurating it. Still, it can be hard when you’ve been the only child, to allow new siblings into the family. It’s especially hard when those new siblings are those you have traditionally despised or feared.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWB_Mzx3CJ-qojRlJEdVTPIDWhSLUSFtb40wyfw22OLKVlZBDZV6_FQnsnPyUCgm34phsN0csdERsw_5UcMufLGucaWGJx-5wzB24qb4RRHnVBhfaxxskpce6rmSgGy-3AriBKk0EbjhpgYHo9YpUEmzV5vvb0H0s4PYbwBCMfE_hQg2XkqcxW4T5BtRc/s275/vineyard.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="183" data-original-width="275" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWB_Mzx3CJ-qojRlJEdVTPIDWhSLUSFtb40wyfw22OLKVlZBDZV6_FQnsnPyUCgm34phsN0csdERsw_5UcMufLGucaWGJx-5wzB24qb4RRHnVBhfaxxskpce6rmSgGy-3AriBKk0EbjhpgYHo9YpUEmzV5vvb0H0s4PYbwBCMfE_hQg2XkqcxW4T5BtRc/w319-h212/vineyard.jpg" width="319" /></a></div>But, as we know, God is the owner of this vineyard, not us, so if we want to be faithful tenants in our day,we might look to St. Paul’s letter to the Philippians where, in three simple phrases, Paul shows us how to get there: <p></p><p>1. “I want to know Christ [he says] and the power of his resurrection…” How do we come to know Christ? We pray, but when we pray do we remember that God is always more ready to hear our prayers than we are to pray them? Do we remember that God’s plan for us is more than we can ever ask or imagine? Do we pray to a loving heavenly parent or to a fearsome judge waiting to smite us for every mistake or infraction of the rules? </p><p>As a parent, my heart would break if I thought my kids were too afraid of me to come to me for comfort or in their time of need. We don’t hate or punish our kids for making mistakes – even big ones. We guide them. That’s exactly what God did giving Moses the 10 commandments to be our signposts, our guidance.</p><p>If we want to be of that mind, then we must pray, making time for a Sabbath for our souls. The true benefit of prayer is not that we get what we want, but that it re-sets our minds and our hearts, aligning us to God’s will and we get what God wants. </p><p>2. “forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal…” God’s mercy and forgiveness set us free to let go of what was and move toward what could be, what God desires for us, for our neighbor, and for creation as a whole. In other words: shalom.</p><p>This is why the psalmist proclaims that the law of God revives the soul, rejoices the heart, and gives wisdom to the innocent. As Jesus said, it is to those who come to God like innocent children that the kingdom of heaven belongs. (Mt 19:14)</p><p>3. “because Jesus Christ has made me his own…” In Jesus, we have all been made siblings in the family of God. We are God’s own, cherished, and beloved in all our imperfection. This should give us cause to celebrate and it is this celebration that is our evangelism – the good news we have to share.</p><p>Didn’t see that evangelism twist coming, did you?</p><p>Despite what you may have heard, the purpose of evangelism isn’t to save anyone. Only God can save and Jesus already did that “once for all.” (Ro 6:10) Neither is evangelism about convincing anyone of anything. That freedom of choice, offered by God, extends to all.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4KKZVyG8HTgXc14jwUiLV7YpAbIm9qLko_j7sjGWjgkaVRzygaRgJJbEPAN7a6DvZsGQSoc82J59TvLgFjknrPx-hDMT5ahXLotOVnc2nB26jw8BkOT4-hSRwBvbLunn8LLsiHTicgZK_2-CgWG5CYy83A-IVXgNbsfGoJetu8xj2XUq-jne8smmd29g/s875/Screenshot%202023-10-07%20at%204.14.38%20PM.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="875" data-original-width="869" height="275" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4KKZVyG8HTgXc14jwUiLV7YpAbIm9qLko_j7sjGWjgkaVRzygaRgJJbEPAN7a6DvZsGQSoc82J59TvLgFjknrPx-hDMT5ahXLotOVnc2nB26jw8BkOT4-hSRwBvbLunn8LLsiHTicgZK_2-CgWG5CYy83A-IVXgNbsfGoJetu8xj2XUq-jne8smmd29g/w273-h275/Screenshot%202023-10-07%20at%204.14.38%20PM.png" width="273" /></a></div>For us, evangelism is done the St. Francis way – preach the gospel always, sometimes use words. We preach the gospel (which means good news) by what we do. As Jesus said, “By this everyone will know that you are my disciples if you have love for one another.” (Jn 13:35)<p></p><p>So, it is by living in right relationship with God, one another, and all of creation as Jesus did, that we embody and proclaim the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ, the good news that we are never alone, never forsaken, always beloved, forgiven, connected, and provided for by the One who is Unity in Trinity.</p><p>So, I offer you what my mother offered me: permission to respect the rules while also discerning your own path to shalom. While you’re at it, feel free to break the rules of traditional evangelism, trusting instead in the love, mercy, and grace of God, then celebrate the good news we have to share – that Jesus has already saved us, reconciled us to God, and calls us to share that good news by living as if it were true.
Amen.</p>Rev. Dr. Valori Mulvey Shererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18097108657207202324noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2953930310550634937.post-80159466693497669052023-09-24T07:30:00.005-05:002023-09-24T07:30:00.142-05:00Pentecost 17, 2023-A: Choosing to celebrate divine grace<p> Lectionary: Exodus 16:2-15; Psalm 105:1-6, 37-45 ; Philippians 1:21-30; Matthew 20:1-16 </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/MXzqcWMGfZw" width="320" youtube-src-id="MXzqcWMGfZw"></iframe></div><p>En el nombre del Dios: creador, redentor, y santificador. </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikkUN-mkhXC99MKmR7fVzi9MNYqUgGxuaigbDh1hhOejGOhRqmHmuwMGylolc7i9I9ZXhgbnQUYpT_IS-s8W05BtPyTapAmbXHlaoT1Ooy_pMfwAxsh5hund8lWY8JfowfROY4tSP0Z-jwg5nskWEwduldZiikuzjlKlAOP-uN8T4UUzDNP1sJX2rbaEo/s225/avocado%20meme.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="224" data-original-width="225" height="201" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikkUN-mkhXC99MKmR7fVzi9MNYqUgGxuaigbDh1hhOejGOhRqmHmuwMGylolc7i9I9ZXhgbnQUYpT_IS-s8W05BtPyTapAmbXHlaoT1Ooy_pMfwAxsh5hund8lWY8JfowfROY4tSP0Z-jwg5nskWEwduldZiikuzjlKlAOP-uN8T4UUzDNP1sJX2rbaEo/w202-h201/avocado%20meme.jpg" width="202" /></a></div>I love avocadoes, and anyone else who loves them knows how important it is not to miss that tiny magic window of their ripening. One of my favorite memes on social media says it like this, in the voice of the avocado… “Not ripe… not ripe… not ripe… I’m ripe. Eat me now!... Too late…”<p></p><p>At our Bible study this week one of our members told us about his son who has a vineyard in CA that grows grapes for wine. He says that when the grapes are ready to harvest, there is a small window to get them all picked before they go bad. It’s possible that the whole vineyard might have to be harvested in a single day, requiring lots of help. He talked about there being a sense of urgency, and that his son would welcome anyone who could come help any time during the harvest.</p><p>This urgency, and the welcoming of anyone who will help with the harvest, is reflected in our gospel story today. It’s a story that is rich in teachings about the differences between the way of heaven and the way of earth, about faith and reward, and about our sense of justice vs. God’s. Also, like last week, it comes down to our choice.</p><p>The parable of the Laborers in the Vineyard is disturbing. It pricks our sense of fairness. Why should someone who worked only an hour get paid the same as someone who worked all day?</p><p>We move easily from that question to the faith-related one: why should someone who has lived a lifetime of sin be able to have a last-minute conversion and receive the same reward as those of us who have lived a good and moral life all along?</p><p>It makes me wonder… are we jealous of them? Is living sinfully more appealing than living virtuously? Would we, if we could, choose to get away with living sinfully for as long as possible, then start living right just before we die?</p><p>And what exactly is the reward we are seeking? Is it admission into heaven after we die – or the avoidance of eternal hell and damnation?</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4cKQ7e2VS-IGPiAMAIlcF9F-s_8tA5lkiRq5M6b30874-VmddEtt5TjAH7ZyzCbWpLnnyKf5W6-qt8liqWTo14S4kGjPev4OaQ91JBgXxAIeM1cMNjVSbdavWNI8lfbjprrEC27HN-u8MeXu7bBKlEMcQu6STdQlkhkVub1XhbNpcdH2FSIe0RAb7lC8/s623/Screenshot%202023-09-21%20at%2010.51.37%20AM.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="623" data-original-width="497" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4cKQ7e2VS-IGPiAMAIlcF9F-s_8tA5lkiRq5M6b30874-VmddEtt5TjAH7ZyzCbWpLnnyKf5W6-qt8liqWTo14S4kGjPev4OaQ91JBgXxAIeM1cMNjVSbdavWNI8lfbjprrEC27HN-u8MeXu7bBKlEMcQu6STdQlkhkVub1XhbNpcdH2FSIe0RAb7lC8/w191-h240/Screenshot%202023-09-21%20at%2010.51.37%20AM.png" width="191" /></a></div>Sadly, the Church has spent a lot of time holding up our eternal reward as a carrot on a stick, an enticement. The metaphor implies that if we don’t go where the carrot leads us, we will get whipped by the stick as punishment. Effective, but not faithful, and on behalf of the Church, I apologize to anyone who received this message.<p></p><p>The truth is, God doesn’t hold up any enticements for us. They aren’t necessary. Neither is God waiting to punish us if we don’t go where we’re led or do what we “should” do. The choice to follow God, to live in the life of God on earth, is always ours to make. When we choose that, then cry out in distress because things went wrong, God is there, listening, loving, and sustaining us.</p><p>As we heard in our reading from Exodus, even when God’s people balked and complained, God remained with them, responding to their needs and providing all that was necessary as they journeyed to the Promised Land.</p><p>And what is the Promised Land? I’ll tell you what it isn’t: it isn’t a place in the same way the kingdom of God isn’t a place. The kingdom of God, in Greek the <i>basileia </i>of God, is about God’s dominion, God’s power, and God’s way.</p><p>God’s dominion is over the totality of all that is, ever was, and ever will be because God is the creator of all. God’s power is love, emanating again and again into physical form in what is created, transforming sin by forgiveness and division into unity, in other words, earth into heaven. Finally, God’s way is becoming one with the created, first in Jesus, then by our Baptism, in all of us, dwelling with us on our earthly pilgrimage, and, at the end of our lives, reconciling us back into the love that created us.</p><p>Our Promised Land, our reward is living our lives in the eternal presence of God, becoming aware of our oneness with God in our hearts, minds, spirits, and souls. How blessed are we who get to know this for most or all of our lives? How much, then should we rejoice, each time someone comes to know and live this reward - no matter how late they arrive at it?</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVU9H0M2a8cqCscbeeIevtv74catTFjvR666KPgECH25F8OxpZYdMJrK-2V0SjEAbeMNhKbXQgWjkcDH62X4LF0h5IZNl6vT-Nj0-xu8eI3s5XqoPBoPxQRGTdJ094OJ5Hik8O7FY2bi6fQjdfvQgJPbR__DLX6ETOTny73Z5SqyAlAXHRogptIPGK-C8/s249/laborers.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="203" data-original-width="249" height="203" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVU9H0M2a8cqCscbeeIevtv74catTFjvR666KPgECH25F8OxpZYdMJrK-2V0SjEAbeMNhKbXQgWjkcDH62X4LF0h5IZNl6vT-Nj0-xu8eI3s5XqoPBoPxQRGTdJ094OJ5Hik8O7FY2bi6fQjdfvQgJPbR__DLX6ETOTny73Z5SqyAlAXHRogptIPGK-C8/s1600/laborers.jpg" width="249" /></a></div>Let’s look more deeply at these latecomers. Beginning with the story from our Scripture, the day laborers were unemployed, very poor, and had little to no protection. They were desperate, which made them vulnerable to cruel employers. They usually earned a pittance, barely enough to feed themselves, much less their families. They would never get ahead on their wages. They could only survive day to day.<p></p><p>The day would begin for them standing outside in the town square waiting to get “picked” for work. Some might say that those who came early were motivated to work and, therefore, more deserving of being picked than those who came later. Unless… they had a sick family member or little ones at home they had to prepare to be alone all day. Unless… they themselves were sick or worn out from their labor the day before. Unless… they had arrived early and were picked by a cruel employer, so they left there and went back to the town square to try and get picked again.</p><p>Each day, these laborers would wonder if they would survive the day. They’d fret over not earning enough to feed their families and stress over whether or not they’d get picked to work or get picked by a cruel employer and what that would mean for them. Would they survive unhurt? Would they get sick from poor food, intense labor, or unsafe conditions?</p><p>These laborers weren’t getting away with anything. The grace the vineyard owner showed them was divine grace. Their suffering was known, and someone cared about them enough to provide what they needed. The amount they received was the right amount in the way of heaven, even if it seems unfair in the way of earth.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiswHa6TChHo3ZOuq7G-Z3nQw3fSIeX0vTFVWZxNfs6zf2eG8EJ9_M6kSV_s6zmJpqwAnJFZw62OShg4hftjFe60p6MhyyoC207yoYIQ0B7qabcl3_vBiqz-nXehneErU6IJoAxySLn-WySlK5Tq8kzhX-HhiH2YEvnjPap4dEJk9WC0NbDJWt6_p51VXs/s599/Fruit%20of%20the%20vine%20pic%20copy.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="599" data-original-width="524" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiswHa6TChHo3ZOuq7G-Z3nQw3fSIeX0vTFVWZxNfs6zf2eG8EJ9_M6kSV_s6zmJpqwAnJFZw62OShg4hftjFe60p6MhyyoC207yoYIQ0B7qabcl3_vBiqz-nXehneErU6IJoAxySLn-WySlK5Tq8kzhX-HhiH2YEvnjPap4dEJk9WC0NbDJWt6_p51VXs/s320/Fruit%20of%20the%20vine%20pic%20copy.jpg" width="280" /></a></div>Those laborers who were picked by the vineyard owner early in the day enjoyed a full day’s labor in safe conditions. They received the payment they were promised. Their hard work was rewarded. Their expectation that they should receive more than someone else, someone who didn’t work as long or as much as they did is the perspective of the way of earth, and its focus is on the self: I worked all day. I deserve more than that person over there who only worked an hour.<p></p><p>The way of heaven is different. Remembering the urgency of the harvest and the need for help, what if the laborers chosen in the morning celebrated each time more help arrived? What if their focus was on the harvest, and not themselves? What if the community of laborers bonded in solidarity with one another, celebrating what they had been given rather than complaining about what they didn’t have compared to someone else?
That would be the way of heaven happening on earth.</p><p>Now let’s consider how this metaphor works regarding faith. Do we celebrate that one who had been lost and now has been found, that one who had been separated and is now reunited in the family of God?</p><p>The way of heaven on earth is not a zero-sum game. One doesn’t get reconciled to God by kicking another one out. The love of God is inclusive of all who are created of God - which is everyone, anywhere, in any time.</p><p>Remembering that sin is separation from God, one another, and even oneself, when someone is living a sin-full life, they aren’t getting away with anything. They are lost, alone, desperate to be truly loved and to belong to a community.</p><p>They may look like they’re OK or having fun in their debauchery, but they aren’t. That’s just their public face, which is a defense against their pain and loneliness. Behind closed doors, there are drugs or alcohol to numb their pain, licentiousness to help them feel connected to anyone in any way, and self-harm to punish themselves for their unworthiness – or just to feel alive, instead of like the walking dead.</p><p>How can we not rejoice when one of these finally recognizes that they can choose to receive the grace God is continually offering? How can we not celebrate that by this choice, their suffering and loneliness are ended, they know they are loved and cared for, and that they are part of something big and wonderful: the family of God?</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglMwxQ0XspsV1zo9MC4S1bJ9I0oD-43aJbhWSiB1rLfXuWjAe6tZLN4XlwzQaQemOO_2kSiB-24g8Szabyx-wFJQ-9so1lgT2_UOyM-DT_lhswQ9xY4Db6RRRwKdUN1bc10MA9Xo7ZaV9uVbTfa2YVMEka1YizKkKbmWS9rpSbSl8TFZwOL4-C5SCbTrM/s365/Pent%2012A%20Forgiveness%20Factor.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="263" data-original-width="365" height="231" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglMwxQ0XspsV1zo9MC4S1bJ9I0oD-43aJbhWSiB1rLfXuWjAe6tZLN4XlwzQaQemOO_2kSiB-24g8Szabyx-wFJQ-9so1lgT2_UOyM-DT_lhswQ9xY4Db6RRRwKdUN1bc10MA9Xo7ZaV9uVbTfa2YVMEka1YizKkKbmWS9rpSbSl8TFZwOL4-C5SCbTrM/s320/Pent%2012A%20Forgiveness%20Factor.png" width="320" /></a></div>Reconciliation is God’s justice. It is God’s grace, God’s gift to all of us. How can we do anything but celebrate whenever it happens?<p></p><p>Let us pray: Generous God, thank you for setting us free to receive the abundance you always have ready to give to us. Help us to remember that you created us all, you love us all, and you choose us all. Unite us into one body by your Holy Spirit, that we may rejoice to serve you, working to make life on earth more like life in the kingdom of heaven. We pray this in Jesus’ name. Amen.</p>Rev. Dr. Valori Mulvey Shererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18097108657207202324noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2953930310550634937.post-51418891442299589782023-09-17T07:30:00.042-05:002023-09-17T14:39:12.691-05:0016 Pentecost, 2023-A: Co-creators of heaven on earth<p> Lectionary (Proper 19): Exodus 14:19-31; Psalm 114; Romans 14:1-12; Matthew 18:21-35 </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/79LdBc7lBhs" width="320" youtube-src-id="79LdBc7lBhs"></iframe></div><br /><p>En el nombre del Dios: creador, redentor, y santificador. Amen. </p><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioEEV8YUI2DJrin1cE6PAJmK3s868_Sh919L8TBkY0PWlV5y_EfBf6xeDZmB4u9HrEnFY4sgkq48vyc8Kh2N0mXiQgg1uM1nZZ2pM3uqO1gZy2QtidQWpLndZIy8eiFI76LMJ29vZEVesxFfX6SYZDe14wNP9XhF29a-Ute17yBLfzIbdAthOcVo1DkyY/s692/Screenshot%202023-09-14%20at%2010.21.22%20AM.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="643" data-original-width="692" height="235" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioEEV8YUI2DJrin1cE6PAJmK3s868_Sh919L8TBkY0PWlV5y_EfBf6xeDZmB4u9HrEnFY4sgkq48vyc8Kh2N0mXiQgg1uM1nZZ2pM3uqO1gZy2QtidQWpLndZIy8eiFI76LMJ29vZEVesxFfX6SYZDe14wNP9XhF29a-Ute17yBLfzIbdAthOcVo1DkyY/w254-h235/Screenshot%202023-09-14%20at%2010.21.22%20AM.png" width="254" /></a></div>Our Scripture today is all about relationship: God’s relationship with us (the way of heaven) and our relationships with one another (the way of earth). As Christians, it is our mission to make the way of heaven and the way of earth the same reality, the only reality – “on earth as it is in heaven.”</div><div><br /></div><div>Our Scripture stories teach us that the way of heaven is characterized by mercy and forgiveness while the way of earth is too often unmerciful and unforgiving. While the words of our stories today may be jarring and difficult to hear, the overriding message is such good news! The ultimate plan of God is for the redemption of the whole world, the reclamation of all back into the love from which we were created.</div><div><br /></div><div>Forgiveness is complicated. We often have to offer it in the absence of satisfaction. It’s only natural to want to be satisfied that someone knows we’ve been wronged and makes it right again, but often, what we seek as justice is really retribution or revenge.</div><div><br /></div><div>In addition, the one who sinned against us may never acknowledge their sin or accept our forgiveness. That doesn’t matter because when we offer forgiveness, it isn’t to fix a problem or heal a wound. It’s to let it go, to release it, to loose it, and trust God to do the rest.</div><div><br /></div><div>Ultimately, forgiveness is a gift of freedom. It frees our thoughts from the tyrannical presence of the sinner and the sin. It frees our bodies from the stresses of the hurt and pain. And it frees our souls from the bleeding of the ruptured relationship.</div><div><br /></div><div>I share a poem from Mpho Tutu, Desmond Tutu’s daughter. It’s called “I will forgive” </div><div></div><blockquote><div>“I will forgive you. </div><div>The words are so small, but there’s a universe hidden in them. </div><div><br /></div><div>When I forgive you, all those cords of resentment, pain, and sadness </div><div>that had wrapped themselves around my heart </div><div>will be gone. </div><div><br /></div><div>When I forgive you, you will no longer define me.<br /><br /></div><div>You measured me, and assessed me,</div><div>and decided that you could hurt me,</div><div>that I didn’t count. </div><div><br /></div><div>But I will forgive you because I do count.</div><div>I do matter.</div><div>I am bigger than the image you have of me.</div><div><br /></div><div>I am stronger. I am more beautiful.</div><div>I am infinitely more precious than you thought me.</div><div>I will forgive you.</div><div><br /></div><div>My forgiveness is not a gift that I am giving to you.</div><div>When I forgive you,</div><div>my forgiveness will be a gift that gives itself to me.”</div></blockquote><div>When I was a teenager, I was on a swim team with my younger sister. We used to practice in roped-off lanes between the docks on our lake. During one swim practice, my sister got a cramp and began to go under. When I jumped in to help her, she, like many other people who fear they are drowning, began to fight me.<br /><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbNciWCUPt-oEzgxo_fWDFoT-EvM4sM5i8jlyi2HjlZLpmLjXm7zzAF7fIX-slpCOTrpFGz3hhZrFKNast6IViNwRVxGt3B-jqaOzmNMDOBMvMuT7ELteGdKeit8Q5DXpmYZ_Uu8G_czt4h2tUgZDD2bxE0eOzC5GruDvCzFPHY69hMZV8-7zm3wiKUxM/s261/P%2015%20pic.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="193" data-original-width="261" height="193" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbNciWCUPt-oEzgxo_fWDFoT-EvM4sM5i8jlyi2HjlZLpmLjXm7zzAF7fIX-slpCOTrpFGz3hhZrFKNast6IViNwRVxGt3B-jqaOzmNMDOBMvMuT7ELteGdKeit8Q5DXpmYZ_Uu8G_czt4h2tUgZDD2bxE0eOzC5GruDvCzFPHY69hMZV8-7zm3wiKUxM/s1600/P%2015%20pic.jpg" width="261" /></a></div>I was trained as a lifeguard and she was an experienced swimmer, but the problem wasn’t about swimming. I knew my sister could die if I didn’t connect with her just then; and surprising even myself, I called out to her: “Sissy, do you trust me?”</div><div><br /></div><div>The question caught her attention, and she stopped flailing - just for a moment. I used that pause in her panic to grab her into the save hold. Once in the save hold, her head was near mine, so I could speak assurances to her as we headed for shore.</div><div><br /></div><div>Sometimes God’s save hold feels like that.</div><div><br /></div><div>In our story from Exodus God tells Moses to stretch out his hand. God is asking Moses, do you trust me? Will you go where I lead you, even if it’s into the sea where you might drown? I have promised to lead my people to the Promised Land, God says. Do you trust me? Take my people with you. Some are going to fight you. They’re just afraid. Hold onto them anyway.</div><div><br /></div><div>The part of this story that jars us is the end of it. What about those Egyptians who lay dead on the shore? How can God destroy people like that? Aren’t they also children of God?</div><div><br /></div><div>The answer is yes! There is a traditional Jewish <a href="https://www.thejc.com/judaism/all/why-did-we-sing-when-the-egyptians-drowned-1.54039">midrash</a> (commentary) that says, “on seeing the drowning Egyptians the angels were about to break into song when God silenced them declaring, “How dare you sing for joy when” my children lay dead on the ground? <i>(Talmud, Megillah 10b and Sanhedrin 39b).</i></div><div><br /></div><div>God’s plan is for the reconciliation of the whole world. Therefore, it always includes reclaiming the least, the lost, the hated, and the hateful. Reconciliation re-establishes relationship with them which restores the family of God to wholeness.</div><div><br /></div><div>By our Baptism, we have been made co-creators with God. As we heard last week, what we hold bound on earth, is held bound in heaven and what we loose on earth is loosed in heaven. This is how we co-create the reality in which we live. We choose it.</div><div><br /></div><div>The sin, the hurt, the wound we cling to remain in us. The rupture in relationship caused by the sin takes up space in our thoughts and eventually affects our bodies. Anger, resentment, and tension become stomach aches, headaches, high blood pressure, and lots of other somatic symptoms. Is this the reality we want?</div><div><br /></div><div>Our other choice is to forgive. When we forgive, we set the sin and the sinner loose. We release it from ourselves, our bodies and souls, and trust God to bring about justice and reconciliation – remembering that God’s plan includes the reclamation of all – even the one who sinned.</div><div><br /></div><div>It may take a moment, or it may take years. Sometimes justice and reconciliation may not be something we get to see happen in our lifetime, but it will happen. That’s the promise.</div><div><br /></div><div>Most of us talk about sin as those things we do that are wrong or harmful. That’s partly right. Theologian Karl Barth talks about sin as a state of separation from God and one another. It is when we are in that state of separation that we do those things that are wrong and harmful.</div><div><br /></div><div>It’s kind of like the disease versus the symptoms. We know there is a disease by the presence of the symptoms. We can treat the symptoms, but unless we cure the disease, we are not healed. That’s why Jesus brought us redemption by the forgiveness of sin, bringing down all barriers that separate us from God and from one another.</div><div><br /></div><div>In his most miserable, painful, humiliating moment as a human, as he was dying on the cross, Jesus’ prayer takes our breath away: “Father, forgive them…” At our most miserable moments, when we have been unfairly treated or wronged, is this our prayer?</div><div><br /></div><div>Years ago I visited a place in England called the Cathedral at Coventry. The city of Coventry was bombed into near oblivion during WWII and the cathedral was destroyed. When you go to the cathedral now, you will see that they didn’t clear away the rubble from the bombing. They simply built the new cathedral adjacent and attached it to the bombed-out shell with a walkway.</div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY4z46DqE6RD8i8fZAxnpHzANv8gkOYwOAs7RamS3TQnyKUiTzjxFdGvreBJeIiEHnRtZWgs79yhxZWyJ8pJ8eGJqovVKY1wiDfDxISdxg0-xj8dhitfnoK4nJuZ4q9ebVSvlRMClpF8AgCXVifluwBYDmP4MWtaHjgFYHUo319OqDHWrICjEeLI8ffHQ/s365/Coventry%20cathedral%20reconciliation%20statue.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="263" data-original-width="365" height="231" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY4z46DqE6RD8i8fZAxnpHzANv8gkOYwOAs7RamS3TQnyKUiTzjxFdGvreBJeIiEHnRtZWgs79yhxZWyJ8pJ8eGJqovVKY1wiDfDxISdxg0-xj8dhitfnoK4nJuZ4q9ebVSvlRMClpF8AgCXVifluwBYDmP4MWtaHjgFYHUo319OqDHWrICjEeLI8ffHQ/s320/Coventry%20cathedral%20reconciliation%20statue.jpg" width="320" /></a></div></div><div>The very first thing you see as you walk into the narthex of the new cathedral, written in the tile on the floor, are the words: “Father forgive” and every day they offer Noonday Prayer in the bombed-out shell. They do not forget, but they continually forgive.</div><div><br /></div><div>We all must continually forgive every time the hurt or anger rises up in us again. It’s a process.</div><div><br /></div><div>Since we all sin, we all need to be forgiven, and we all need to be forgiving. Jesus makes this very plain in the story of the wicked slave in the gospel. The slave-owner (God) forgives the slave who begs for mercy on the debt he can’t repay. Then that same slave goes out and cruelly and violently punishes those who owe him. When the slave owner learns about this, he becomes enraged: You wicked slave! he says. Shouldn’t you have forgiven them as I forgave you? By not forgiving, you have held that sin bound and condemned yourself to an eternity of torture by your choice.</div><div><br /></div><div>When we refuse to forgive, we are the ones who suffer. Whether we refuse to forgive another, or ourselves, or even when we refuse to forgive God, we suffer because our relationship has been disrupted. We, who are one, become fractured. If you’ve ever broken a bone, you know how painful a fracture is. The same is true of a fractured relationship.</div><div><br /></div><div>To forgive is to trust that God will bring about divine justice, reconciliation, and wholeness from every experience of brokenness on earth. When we try to do this ourselves, it’s like trying to save ourselves from drowning. We can’t.</div><div><br /></div><div>Each of us will need to be forgiven at some point in our lives, and each of us will need to forgive someone else. Forgiveness is a spiritual muscle we must develop and practice and church is where we do that. Offering our prayers and praise to God and sharing in God’s holy food of Communion strengthens and unites us. We need to eat together, pray together, and play together. We even need to disagree together.</div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>Church is where we co-create the way of heaven on earth. It’s where we learn and practice forgiveness so that we can take it out into the world because as you know, our world remains sorely divided and held bound by sin.<br /></div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzRe-XjQrf2lLI90Mp58XirdACbtFw1BZZuinKwIh1C-uq4x30brIzE0xUg3gg-fxJ8K1H_ISB6T4vNDeDjOL1LOi0864N_jZhHdmCHy2B2bxAXZviliJd0VE_s8BdNIcS65k17PamAOV2sPlhknaE-WrcZQa__SYepvdmLPZUNOW78p2KRqyrF9QhK1Y/s708/Screenshot%202023-09-14%20at%2010.33.01%20AM.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="708" data-original-width="678" height="273" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzRe-XjQrf2lLI90Mp58XirdACbtFw1BZZuinKwIh1C-uq4x30brIzE0xUg3gg-fxJ8K1H_ISB6T4vNDeDjOL1LOi0864N_jZhHdmCHy2B2bxAXZviliJd0VE_s8BdNIcS65k17PamAOV2sPlhknaE-WrcZQa__SYepvdmLPZUNOW78p2KRqyrF9QhK1Y/w261-h273/Screenshot%202023-09-14%20at%2010.33.01%20AM.png" width="261" /></a></div>Each one of us is created by God, treasured of God, gifted and sent by God to co-create the way heaven on earth. Our church equips and supports us to accomplish this. After our worship today we will enjoy time together at our Homecoming Picnic with Community Matters & Ministry Fair, connecting the dots, that is, listening for how God is gifting us in this moment of our Christian journey, then finding the ministries of the church that enable us to use those gifts as we work together to make the way of heaven and the way of earth the same reality, the only reality.
Amen. </div>Rev. Dr. Valori Mulvey Shererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18097108657207202324noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2953930310550634937.post-4078872774876717402023-08-13T07:30:00.006-05:002023-08-13T07:30:00.160-05:0011 Pentecost, 2023-A: In every joy and every storm<p>Lectionary: Lectionary (Proper 14): Genesis 37:1-4, 12-28; Psalm 105:1-6, 16-22, 45b; Romans 10:5-15; Matthew 14:22-33 </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/76WzpP6do7I" width="320" youtube-src-id="76WzpP6do7I"></iframe></div><br /><p>En el nombre del Dios, que es Trinidad en unidad. Amen.</p><div><br /></div><div>Look up. What do you see?</div><div><br /></div><div>Most churches are intentionally constructed to be an ark, like Noah’s ark, a vessel that protects God’s people, keeping them from harm and destruction. This building is our ark, our boat, and we are the disciples in it.</div><div><br /></div><div>Storms will happen. They are not our fault or of our own making. It’s the reality of a world that is in the “almost but not yet” time, the New Age, the New Covenant inaugurated by Jesus.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidtGcPnEL1LSisO9k7ClrIHoPtW9H24JC1vONH0Kqfp0HvneTPVzfnEzgom5SSgFf41ZHUVHksXczWv-WMdbI_kiUMLMwpXBAXcgCxTK6l5JSOc5ujIz_Txmlp4HEfxXSy-Cx8fD274iIGU222e5ETyhCjD-5LWCC3bAnU44tpJ7JI_7UkMehzpy-Gios/s275/storm%20at%20sea.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="183" data-original-width="275" height="183" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidtGcPnEL1LSisO9k7ClrIHoPtW9H24JC1vONH0Kqfp0HvneTPVzfnEzgom5SSgFf41ZHUVHksXczWv-WMdbI_kiUMLMwpXBAXcgCxTK6l5JSOc5ujIz_Txmlp4HEfxXSy-Cx8fD274iIGU222e5ETyhCjD-5LWCC3bAnU44tpJ7JI_7UkMehzpy-Gios/s1600/storm%20at%20sea.jpg" width="275" /></a></div>We will be tossed by storms, but when that happens and we are afraid, we remain together in the boat and watch for Jesus who will walk towards us, hand outstretched, ready to save, because Jesus is coming. Jesus is always coming.</div><div><br /></div><div>It is our nature as humans to seek stasis. We like things to be comfortable and predictable, and there’s nothing wrong with that. Our worship rituals are an expression of this.</div><div><br /></div><div>The challenge comes when the world doesn’t cooperate, when storms arise out there, or even in here. Storms toss us into deep water and like a child learning to swim, we turn and grab for the side of the pool, thrashing if we have to, to get ourselves to safety.</div><div><br /></div><div>That’s what I picture when I hear this story and think of Peter out there on the water – sinking.
Peter… thank God for Peter! He’s so us!</div><div><br /></div><div>The story goes like this: Jesus has just finished feeding the 5,000. Imagine the spiritual high an experience like that would create in the disciples. When the crowds are gone, Jesus compels the disciples to get on the boat without him and set out. Jesus goes off by himself to a mountain to pray.</div><div><br /></div><div>When it was evening, Jesus returns from his prayer and sees that the boat has been carried far from land and is being battered by a storm. Aware of his disciples’ predicament, Jesus waits until morning to act. They must endure this storm through the darkness of night.</div><div><br /></div><div>Do you hear this symbolism? Matthew is a genius writer.</div><div><br /></div><div>Most of us have experienced nights like that. Whether it’s an earthly circumstance that we must suffer through or a dark night of the soul that envelops us, those nights can be terrifying and seem endless.</div><div><br /></div><div>When I divorced my first husband who was terribly abusive, we had to establish a visitation schedule as all divorcing parents must. My ex used the exchange time as an opportunity to threaten me, so the court established that our child must be exchanged at my aunt’s home and someone had to be present to protect me and witness the exchange.</div><div><br /></div><div>On one occasion, I was waiting at my aunt’s house for my child to be returned. The deadline time came and went with no word. This was before cell phones so figuring he was en route, I waited, getting more and more distressed as the time ticked on.</div><div><br /></div><div>Finally, my ex called my aunt’s house to tell me that he was not going to return our child. He said he decided I needed a break and was doing this for my own good. I reminded him that the order required him to return her and his violation would be considered kidnapping – a stipulation of our agreement since he had previously threatened to kidnap her.</div><div><br /></div><div>It was a Friday afternoon at 4:30 so he knew I couldn’t reach the court to enforce our agreement. There was nothing I could do until Monday morning, so I went upstairs, knelt down on the blue-black, indoor-outdoor carpeting of my cousin’s bedroom, and prayed.<br /><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizP1zJgITzcAoQ7OhVMG70K-c0qxytZQUcRszklxo1BpPBNQZuVGFwh8k9_cL5wMOuf6GqIbj47-AX4xVfjScVfznUoTGPN2mCmju6IxqikglxBxiSm2Jx4D7qMkaHVePDJPJhWIVo_c1E8UviT3_2DZkyMSRvbm08Jgl7BOIzXNuzDUND58kQDveNC5A/s276/prayer.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="183" data-original-width="276" height="183" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizP1zJgITzcAoQ7OhVMG70K-c0qxytZQUcRszklxo1BpPBNQZuVGFwh8k9_cL5wMOuf6GqIbj47-AX4xVfjScVfznUoTGPN2mCmju6IxqikglxBxiSm2Jx4D7qMkaHVePDJPJhWIVo_c1E8UviT3_2DZkyMSRvbm08Jgl7BOIzXNuzDUND58kQDveNC5A/s1600/prayer.jpg" width="276" /></a></div>I hadn’t prayed in a long time and wasn’t sure God would hear me, or that God was even there. I was completely broken, helpless, and had no clue what to do. I had no words to pray with either. I just stayed there on my knees, hoping God would show up and guide me - and God did.</div><div><br /></div><div>I “heard” in my soul that I should wait; that my daughter would be returned to me and all would be well. A peace fell over me and though I was still terrified, I obeyed. It was the longest two days of my life. I felt like Peter sinking on the water.</div><div><br /></div><div>I called my parents to let them know what happened. My father wanted to jump into action, hire a private investigator to find my child, contact my lawyer to get an emergency hearing, and other things I couldn’t hear because I tuned him out. I couldn’t manage his storm while I was being tossed about in my own.</div><div><br /></div><div>I told my father that we would wait until Monday and ask the court to enforce the order. He responded by shouting that I was crazy; that by Monday they would be long gone never to be found again. My fear exactly.</div><div><br /></div><div>I stood firm trusting in the peace that still wrapped my soul. On Monday morning, I called my lawyer and told him what happened. He called for an emergency hearing, for which my ex was late, and I had my daughter back in my arms by lunchtime.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGENgNeNTvo21GC18QgYy399j4MoHR8VEVecyWn9BaQDYmAe2k4l1hl9G9dTpb3kDfVjFb6MR-PieZFPesKRGBKT_r6KS2CKZIlu0Qh-ulle7RbXnr3ydtoyU9m--zeCLa9yDL2cSW6nIYlqbH36WSnvJku1Hy15dR3LX-pVNqCkU9TKUw9mDwKeeFXek/s246/hand%20outstretched.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="246" data-original-width="205" height="276" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGENgNeNTvo21GC18QgYy399j4MoHR8VEVecyWn9BaQDYmAe2k4l1hl9G9dTpb3kDfVjFb6MR-PieZFPesKRGBKT_r6KS2CKZIlu0Qh-ulle7RbXnr3ydtoyU9m--zeCLa9yDL2cSW6nIYlqbH36WSnvJku1Hy15dR3LX-pVNqCkU9TKUw9mDwKeeFXek/w230-h276/hand%20outstretched.jpg" width="230" /></a></div>There is no terror, no storm, no dark night of the soul that we ever go through alone. Jesus is there so we need not be afraid, his hand outstretched ready to save.</div><div><br /></div><div>To “save” is not to direct our soul to eternal bliss and away from eternal damnation, despite what some Christians have said for so long. To be saved is literally: to make sound, to preserve safe from danger, loss, or destruction. That’s what Jesus did for Peter then and it’s what Jesus does for all of us now.</div><div><br /></div><div>When God is acting, it will often defy our ability to understand or explain. The laws we’ve discovered or developed to calm the chaos of our world are helpful, but incomplete, and easily overcome by the love of God in action. What shouldn’t be able to happen does happen.</div><div><br /></div><div>Once a man came to me for prayer. They found a mass on his esophagus, and he wanted me to offer prayer and a blessing ahead of his surgery the next day. He said he was terrified because he was now the same age his father was when he died of esophageal cancer.</div><div><br /></div><div>We met and I offered healing prayer, anointing with holy oil, and a blessing ahead of his surgery. As always, we asked God to remove the mass, knowing that God’s plan may or may not be to remove that mass, but Jesus said to ask for what we needed, and that’s what he needed.</div><div><br /></div><div>The next day, I met him and his wife at the surgery center to pray before they took him back. They told us it would take about four hours, so I went back to work. His wife assured me she would let me know when he got out of surgery so we could pray and give thanks.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLfMySjtjm2sOzdAg3ZLvxc-5B8W07UqIDtspatPZXxjbM_NwC6z0rTwZUnhgjvC039nLipRyiOf8dCgtTWc_6vvVxkHN5NLIadCDgMqFMqT4ZRkDz7JDwh08JkNEca4xEToPjnWfBKTSRXYAMlXL4-M_-_WYvm8adl48VEoYLwMDpsyVfYh-gN72WNTA/s721/Only%20God%20can%20save.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="684" data-original-width="721" height="277" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLfMySjtjm2sOzdAg3ZLvxc-5B8W07UqIDtspatPZXxjbM_NwC6z0rTwZUnhgjvC039nLipRyiOf8dCgtTWc_6vvVxkHN5NLIadCDgMqFMqT4ZRkDz7JDwh08JkNEca4xEToPjnWfBKTSRXYAMlXL4-M_-_WYvm8adl48VEoYLwMDpsyVfYh-gN72WNTA/w292-h277/Only%20God%20can%20save.png" width="292" /></a></div>An hour later, the wife called me to tell me they were bringing him to recovery. I rushed to the surgery center to find the man and his wife happily chatting. Seeing my surprise, they told me that the doctors opened him up and found no mass at all, so they closed him up and sent him to recovery. They were both on a spiritual high having received a truly miraculous answer to their prayer.</div><div><br /></div><div>Sometimes the love of God in action can’t be explained, only accepted with thanks. This man and I continue to share this story – to confess the Good News we know, not so that we will be saved (Paul got that wrong), but because we are saved, we have been made sound, preserved from danger, loss, and destruction by Jesus. All of us have.</div><br /><div>There is nothing we can do to save ourselves or anyone else. Only God can save and Jesus, who is God, already did it – once for all (Paul got that one right).</div><div><br /></div><div>So, let’s be brave and share the many ways God’s love has acted in our lives and in our world, to remind people that we are already saved and that we are loved beyond our comprehension by God in Christ who is always with us, in every joy and in every storm.
Amen.
</div>Rev. Dr. Valori Mulvey Shererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18097108657207202324noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2953930310550634937.post-67871586092866698112023-07-16T07:30:00.040-05:002023-09-14T09:52:16.133-05:007 Pentecost, 2023-A: The prodigal church of a prodigal God<p>Lectionary: Genesis 25:19-34; Psalm 119:105-112; Romans 8:1-11; Matthew 13:1-9,18-23 </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/0f3Od8Mc2JA" width="320" youtube-src-id="0f3Od8Mc2JA"></iframe></div><br /><div>En el nombre del Dios, creador, redentor, y santificador. Amen. </div><div><br /></div><div>If there is a creature to whom my soul is attached, my prayer connected, it’s a turkey vulture. That’s right… I said a turkey vulture. The turkey vulture connected with me most powerfully in 2016 while I was on spiritual retreat.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0wd4OOrbIaa02TDHxT6ZaFyFDa2V_zTE55TAjYkiyKHB3i8G6CRn3npVG3hEuhCQCWD4S6b_OR2oXeWgxDtbJ6-QO6nLFsnZjX6PGuamjzMIH16O1uQJRV8hDC9UGvjAuBiTjZmzxiYfD1CYpQmyquk0kzkGLmmZNGr9b8vo_OXPPuBMLtweOvRSp6mU/s216/turkey%20vulture.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="147" data-original-width="216" height="169" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0wd4OOrbIaa02TDHxT6ZaFyFDa2V_zTE55TAjYkiyKHB3i8G6CRn3npVG3hEuhCQCWD4S6b_OR2oXeWgxDtbJ6-QO6nLFsnZjX6PGuamjzMIH16O1uQJRV8hDC9UGvjAuBiTjZmzxiYfD1CYpQmyquk0kzkGLmmZNGr9b8vo_OXPPuBMLtweOvRSp6mU/w249-h169/turkey%20vulture.jpg" width="249" /></a></div><br /><div>For most people the turkey vulture is ugly with that wrinkly red skin on their heads; and gross because they eat dead, rotting road kill. It’s true, they aren’t beautiful like an eagle, or elegant like a hawk – until you see them in flight. The wingspan of this raptor is 5 ½ feet long with finger-like feathers that spread out and touch the wind as they ride the thermals and updrafts with effortless grace and wisdom.</div><div><br /></div><div>The turkey vulture has one great weakness, though: it’s feet and talons are weak, so it can’t swoop down to grab and kill prey like hawks and owls do. That’s why it feeds on dead animals, which seems like a disgusting way to have to go and makes one wonder what eternal sin they are being punished for (seriously, I don’t believe in that…).</div><div><br /></div><div>In reality, turkey vultures serve an immensely important role in the big picture of creation. Their powerful digestive juices allow them to eat dead animals without getting sick, thereby saving other animals from the spread of dangerous infections and harmful bacteria. Their featherless heads, while not classically beautiful, allow them to eat their food without picking up harmful bacteria or infection.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZhe-h04cc3r0cRc9cKSz6a5pWxGVqJRIG8L0RMfkuzRtcCBuABq_YaT7EpG6U2KnPpHGPmu1RJFFrrXNO_mrsoLHMzTziTOL3FaQUk2YD6JNLpsTBFgczy5ZhCq4zkDDk4OuS2E5lz33UBx9pV9BIflDGVwPAB_D9v7upCoqk8IkSoVl9OD2dL8QAeXI/s310/tv%20sunning.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="163" data-original-width="310" height="163" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZhe-h04cc3r0cRc9cKSz6a5pWxGVqJRIG8L0RMfkuzRtcCBuABq_YaT7EpG6U2KnPpHGPmu1RJFFrrXNO_mrsoLHMzTziTOL3FaQUk2YD6JNLpsTBFgczy5ZhCq4zkDDk4OuS2E5lz33UBx9pV9BIflDGVwPAB_D9v7upCoqk8IkSoVl9OD2dL8QAeXI/s1600/tv%20sunning.jpg" width="310" /></a></div>Sunlight helps disinfect their heads and feathers, so in the mornings, turkey vultures gather in great numbers, raise their heads and lift their wings, and allow the sun to cleanse them. It’s an amazingly beautiful sight – these magnificent birds doing a prayerful sun salutation.</div><div><br /></div><div>The scientific name for turkey vulture is cathartes aura, which means ‘golden purifier.’ Ancient Greeks considered them symbols of heaven and earth, spirit and matter, good and evil – all in one physical body.</div><div><br /></div><div>I see them as the perfect illustration of St. Paul’s discussion in today’s portion of the letter to the Romans. Life and death, flesh and spirit – all transformed in us because of our relationship to Jesus, who is the Christ. Since, as Paul says, “the Spirit of God dwells in” us, we are spirit and matter, good and evil, death and life – all in one physical body.</div><div><br /></div><div>From the turkey vulture, we also learn that what we might consider to be waste is actually a valuable part of God’s life-giving plan and evidence of the interconnectedness of all creation. We may judge road-kill as waste, but the turkey vulture sees it as sustenance!</div><div><br /></div><div>There is no such thing as waste in God’s economy. </div><div><br /></div><div>By being itself, and doing what God created it to do, the turkey vulture contributes to the health and well-being of the earth and the creatures of God who live on it. Everyone has a divine purpose, even those we might judge as worthless, gross, useless, or bad - a point made plain in the Parable of the Sower.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaLvFDm68mcbpAR24YfrPRgLLNSeD4hkxHq7FExgIcSJgKpoOxnGffODSUs6B2EX74s5DQSh5PwmWMFkPu9ALO1c7z2VC-gJkX9HhXSlaqeHSFydE5anWP2lufFvQLUmo6QoeQVQha_YZzUYD5CYmzW7VLRkQPRyxjcjBeEAB_zV8NxqTbrTrYf1HgJIs/s299/download.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="168" data-original-width="299" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaLvFDm68mcbpAR24YfrPRgLLNSeD4hkxHq7FExgIcSJgKpoOxnGffODSUs6B2EX74s5DQSh5PwmWMFkPu9ALO1c7z2VC-gJkX9HhXSlaqeHSFydE5anWP2lufFvQLUmo6QoeQVQha_YZzUYD5CYmzW7VLRkQPRyxjcjBeEAB_zV8NxqTbrTrYf1HgJIs/s1600/download.jpg" width="299" /></a></div><div>There are many approaches to understanding this story. Some see us, God’s people, as the seed which has been sown. Some of us grow shallow roots that fail to sustain us in times of trouble. Some of us are distracted and choked by wealth and worry. Some of us grow in good soil and produce abundant fruit.</div><div><br /></div><div>Then there are those who see us as the soil – footworn hardened paths that can’t receive a seed; or rocky ground too shallow to sustain life; or so crowded with fear and burdens that anything that takes root chokes and dies; or ground that is nourished, tended, and ready to receive seed.</div><div><br /></div><div>All of those interpretations are fine with me, but the one that compels me today is the one that focuses on the sower as God. If the Sower is God, then God scatters the seeds of love extravagantly, freely, on hard, rocky, thorny, and fertile ground alike. If the sower is God, then the fruit of these seeds is relationship, recalling Jesus’ command to love God with all our heart, mind, strength, and soul, and love our neighbor as ourselves.</div><div><br /></div><div>Theologian Dick Donovan spoke of this parable as, “a story of God's prodigality [because] (‘prodigal’ has to do with lavish or wasteful expenditure).” In God’s economy, there is no waste, and in God’s abundance, there is no end to the seeds of love to be scattered.</div><div><br /></div><div>The fruit of the plants that grow, which is relationship, is valuable, for however long they live. Do we judge relationship with a baby who dies a wasted effort? Of course not!</div><div><br /></div><div>When I was in seminary, one among us was diagnosed with cancer just months before we graduated. He walked with us but died a few months later. His bishop ordained him on his deathbed. When my friend asked why, the bishop responded: Some ministries are short, and some are long. I’m here to ordain those who are thus called by God.</div><div><br /></div><div>What if we suspend our typical judgments of the soil and the plants before us and open our eyes to see and understand God’s purpose in them?</div><div><br /></div><div>A young woman I know was born in rocky soil. Her parents were drug addicted and her family was the<br />picture of abusive dysfunction. This young woman left home as a young teenager hoping to find a better life. But she was unprepared. She had never learned the basic things so many of us take for granted, like how to read, how to brush her teeth, even how to use a chest of drawers to store clothes. She never learned or saw modeled how to earn money legally or how to be in a relationship that wasn’t abusive or exploitive.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimLWjSptXGxORp5j6b2X5N84WuBpwKfAQ4wIpbGETGw8ennw6OaLQgx-g55di9tnYuKvIJLWjJxshn7TPiHAOYVy3VdVGcZzMtaZbh318qPw0UqNV1qw_jr8WOQjMJmX3Lq-hmvFKJKakLEeeJTvonhEr3fNzcpIqoo_vQnMU8Qq9dEqwpXNhH4EhU56Y/s282/images.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><br /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimLWjSptXGxORp5j6b2X5N84WuBpwKfAQ4wIpbGETGw8ennw6OaLQgx-g55di9tnYuKvIJLWjJxshn7TPiHAOYVy3VdVGcZzMtaZbh318qPw0UqNV1qw_jr8WOQjMJmX3Lq-hmvFKJKakLEeeJTvonhEr3fNzcpIqoo_vQnMU8Qq9dEqwpXNhH4EhU56Y/s282/images.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="179" data-original-width="282" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimLWjSptXGxORp5j6b2X5N84WuBpwKfAQ4wIpbGETGw8ennw6OaLQgx-g55di9tnYuKvIJLWjJxshn7TPiHAOYVy3VdVGcZzMtaZbh318qPw0UqNV1qw_jr8WOQjMJmX3Lq-hmvFKJKakLEeeJTvonhEr3fNzcpIqoo_vQnMU8Qq9dEqwpXNhH4EhU56Y/s1600/images.jpg" width="282" /></a></div><br /><div>But this young woman, as abrasive and repulsive in appearance and behavior as she was, is a child of God with a divine purpose. So is the homeless person begging at the street corner, or the addict panhandling on the sidewalks downtown, or the person obsessed with money, power, and prestige.</div><div><br /></div><div>How, then, does a follower of Christ respond?</div><div><br /></div><div>Well, for one thing, we don’t condemn. St. Paul writes “there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus,” which to me, means everyone, since Jesus, as the second person of the Trinity, is the one “through whom all things are made.” Who, then, can exist apart from him?</div><div><br /></div><div>Each of us responds to God’s call to us according to God’s plan for us. God called me to be a priest, Jerre to be a deacon, and you to be a teacher, artist, musician, farmer, writer, or whatever!</div><div><br /></div><div>The same goes for each church, each body of Christ in the world. Each church must continually discern its unique call from God and respond to that call.</div><div><br /></div><div>So, whether person or church, we respond by setting our minds on the Spirit of God who dwells in us, and letting our weakness be the place God connects us one to another. This is the principle behind AA – alcoholics helping other alcoholics to find healing and wholeness.</div><div><br /></div><div>This is also what connected me to the young woman I mentioned. I knew the abuse she lived because I had lived some of it too. This enabled us to connect in a real way and begin a journey of healing from which both of us benefitted.</div><div><br /></div><div>When we connect with one another, weakness to weakness, the power of God’s healing love works through the faithful to transform death to life. Guaranteed.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbMviTFuZKK_yJdH5uw63ZG30e4iqfYwZRp5hjph2Eh6q4EBjhLNXskyKrVUec8WBB8rO92BXowjj2V5KWS3zVmcFRzfpNZcatyq3clsQipv8W5VhgV1ThrOwNYAovsaY2b4Ck0Od1eDfeLbAwmNAqX90Ii_a0VWBNVAFdKBAXwuFIiceZIipfQI-s2ss/s272/sharing.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="186" data-original-width="272" height="186" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbMviTFuZKK_yJdH5uw63ZG30e4iqfYwZRp5hjph2Eh6q4EBjhLNXskyKrVUec8WBB8rO92BXowjj2V5KWS3zVmcFRzfpNZcatyq3clsQipv8W5VhgV1ThrOwNYAovsaY2b4Ck0Od1eDfeLbAwmNAqX90Ii_a0VWBNVAFdKBAXwuFIiceZIipfQI-s2ss/s1600/sharing.jpg" width="272" /></a></div><div>Perhaps we might respond by sharing from the abundance of our riches, bringing our fertile soil, along with some water and fertilizer to their plot. Or maybe, with their permission, we pluck them up and transplant them somewhere in more fertile soil.</div><div><br /></div><div>Not everyone is privileged to have been sown into fertile soil, but everyone is beloved of God and has a divine purpose. And the beauty of life in the Spirit is that everyone can be made whole, reconciled by the power of Jesus Christ and his glorious resurrection from the dead.</div><div><br /></div><div>That is the Spirit who dwells in us, therefore, we are one means by which God accomplishes this in the world today. It is our responsibility as individuals and as the church, the body of Christ in the world, to know and own our weaknesses; to know and own our divine purpose.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifqpM3Aeghk6Qn4hyV8ytwPtHIVU4AGw7GgOjM67655g3IUlaI01Ry_J_4_Taagt_ItEbCZVGqgpFDM1yOP8vtWiCMnf2W1oPOF3estvwNTcdlz5tn0uh8-3-vNI6-ZDX0Xh28IFxM7PupSFCKyBSn8X8fbL0aOJ6luN0_Zx-gl-wYKA1pIVAt0lvIKGk/s311/Sower.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="162" data-original-width="311" height="162" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifqpM3Aeghk6Qn4hyV8ytwPtHIVU4AGw7GgOjM67655g3IUlaI01Ry_J_4_Taagt_ItEbCZVGqgpFDM1yOP8vtWiCMnf2W1oPOF3estvwNTcdlz5tn0uh8-3-vNI6-ZDX0Xh28IFxM7PupSFCKyBSn8X8fbL0aOJ6luN0_Zx-gl-wYKA1pIVAt0lvIKGk/w309-h162/Sower.jpg" width="309" /></a></div>We gather together each Sunday to worship God in community, to partake of holy food as God’s holy people, being made one body, one spirit in Christ. Together we discover how the unique gifts God has brought together in this community are meant to be used to bring God’s transforming love to all, but especially to those beloved ones sown in hard, rocky, or thorny soil.</div><div><br /></div><div>We do this like God does it – extravagantly. Not only is ours a Prodigal God, but ours is a Prodigal Church. We sow the seeds of God’s love lavishly, even wastefully, trusting that there is no such thing as waste in God’s economy.</div><div><br /></div><div>Let us pray. </div><div><br /></div><div>Creator of all, that is give us the courage to be like you: lavish, even wasteful sowers of your seeds of love in the world. Give us ears to hear and understand, and by your Spirit give us grace to see with your divine eyes, that we may recognize the goodness you proclaimed is in all you have created. You have chosen and empowered us by your Holy Spirit. May our fruit acknowledge the truth that we and all creation are in a continual process of sanctification and reconciliation within your abundant, steadfast, and everlasting love. In Jesus’ name we pray this. Amen.
</div>Rev. Dr. Valori Mulvey Shererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18097108657207202324noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2953930310550634937.post-83469465467148778182023-06-25T07:30:00.038-05:002023-06-25T07:30:00.139-05:004 Pentecost, 2023-A: Congruent with JesusLectionary (Proper 7): Genesis 21:8-21; Psalm 86:1-10, 16-17; Romans 6:1b-11; Matthew 10:24-39 <p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/1eYTDtFbRno" width="320" youtube-src-id="1eYTDtFbRno"></iframe></div><p></p>En el nombre del Dios: que es Trinity en unidad. Amen. <div><br /></div><div>Many of you know I began my career as an artist. Artistic vision is so much a part of how I see the world, God, and life. Growing up, I loved making animated flipbooks. Remember those? Each page in the book had the same picture with a slight change that created movement as you flipped the pages.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9Oz9imHHOXDMhADleHVosrSXS-35Nit--YBUeWMRYfAjtAA6rdLdZg0-_Hyu6dJVaGbDTt5zdPtX4CWL-HPJYwYoBNNRMS-kPiXrEJ_KldeYGoWtrFITj-jyLqgas65UsnMPz7gZvRIt4l_bnCeXvc_gFpdvkPE6-ioiBSmpBp9ljLRLeL2tPa7nUcR0/s315/flipbook.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="160" data-original-width="315" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9Oz9imHHOXDMhADleHVosrSXS-35Nit--YBUeWMRYfAjtAA6rdLdZg0-_Hyu6dJVaGbDTt5zdPtX4CWL-HPJYwYoBNNRMS-kPiXrEJ_KldeYGoWtrFITj-jyLqgas65UsnMPz7gZvRIt4l_bnCeXvc_gFpdvkPE6-ioiBSmpBp9ljLRLeL2tPa7nUcR0/s1600/flipbook.png" width="315" /></a></div><div>When I hear our Collect for today, I imagine our request for perpetual love as a flip book of our lives – each page showing how we lived love into being and action, each page slightly different than the page before, creating a visual of the movement of love through the course of our life. What holds our pages together is the lovingkindness of God.</div><div><br /></div><div>I believe that God is the source and structure of our love for one another, for ourselves, for the world, and even for God, and our readings today give us a few ways to understand that structure, as well as the character of God, so let’s take a look…</div><div><br /></div><div>Our Genesis story of Abraham and Sarah shows us how God moves to restore love when it has been lost to human foibles. Abraham and Sarah, desperate for an heir, move outside of God’s plan for them. As a result, Sarah’s slave, Hagar, is sexually assaulted - taken against her will and impregnated by Abraham. The tradition that justified this was nothing less than acceptance of patriarchal oppression.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYSvUVjrtZtWA5pHHpCOIhzBLAukthBRjitXoPSgwvfUmiy_dx5M7cQ5yY6xkmvVffTvR0KjUgGFnbtcCkMRirwxh4HHkWA9wsaFPNKx7WoNMN91B32yoKH1KKiR28zbCDEB5mVy5IlzZu6uB_pUUx9xr5ZPcQe45NYPsKVaqr0kVYH0pfXt5LoSG9uKQ/s225/Handmaid.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYSvUVjrtZtWA5pHHpCOIhzBLAukthBRjitXoPSgwvfUmiy_dx5M7cQ5yY6xkmvVffTvR0KjUgGFnbtcCkMRirwxh4HHkWA9wsaFPNKx7WoNMN91B32yoKH1KKiR28zbCDEB5mVy5IlzZu6uB_pUUx9xr5ZPcQe45NYPsKVaqr0kVYH0pfXt5LoSG9uKQ/s1600/Handmaid.jpg" width="225" /></a></div>A modern-day depiction of the evil of this tradition is found in “The Handmaid’s Tale” by Margaret Atwood. In that story, the Handmaids of Gilead are impregnated against their will in order to provide children to the ruling class of men (Commanders). The barren wives of the Commanders then take the child as their own.</div><div><br /></div><div>I can’t imagine anyone watching this series or reading the books being satisfied with the fairness or faithfulness of such a system. Neither can I imagine it being any different in Old Testament times. No matter how culturally or religiously justified, we know when systems are evil, oppressive, and wrong.</div><div><br /></div><div>As often happens, one wrong leads to more wrongs. Power does that. After bearing Abraham’s son and only heir, Ishmael, Hagar recognizes her power and lords it over, Sarah, who is shamed and disgraced by her childlessness, until she bears a son, Isaac, and takes back her power. In her privilege, Sarah banishes Hagar and Ishmael to die in the wilderness.</div><div><br /></div><div>Throughout this story, Abraham, the only character with any real power stands by impotently. Everyone in this story fails in the faithfulness category – except God – which is the point. God goes to Hagar and Ishmael in the wilderness, delivers them from the certain death of their bodies and souls, providing water and a promise to make of Ishmael a great nation. Like Sarah, Hagar also will be the matriarch of a great nation.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCz7RQGilCvWNOTLA3-mN45yvubp5WyqHqdMkStukzLM0A8tFDveJdscaYKyFOuH6gsgchF0s4oJXVBsyedD3B2TAMu8RSL8SllMF8_Zg4ZOZ3AY4ehMg0PRStqmdiQ-QVBJQDNHHiL4VTR5BouiZLKJ80qg7Q6-SNbbIRs0LUL0q5k13wvxa-eqfWe3Q/s311/anointg%20oil.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="162" data-original-width="311" height="165" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCz7RQGilCvWNOTLA3-mN45yvubp5WyqHqdMkStukzLM0A8tFDveJdscaYKyFOuH6gsgchF0s4oJXVBsyedD3B2TAMu8RSL8SllMF8_Zg4ZOZ3AY4ehMg0PRStqmdiQ-QVBJQDNHHiL4VTR5BouiZLKJ80qg7Q6-SNbbIRs0LUL0q5k13wvxa-eqfWe3Q/w316-h165/anointg%20oil.jpg" width="316" /></a></div>When we focus on our own desires, our power, our privilege, or when we stand by not acting to right an apparent wrong, we make a mess of things. Only God, whose loving-kindness is steadfast, is able to redeem us from the messes we make. In order, to do that, however, we must remember Paul’s wise words from the letter to the Romans: that we are dead to sin and alive in Christ Jesus. Our life is in him and nothing can separate us from this life-giving love for we are marked as Christ’s own forever by our Baptism.</div><div><br /></div><div>In our gospel reading, Jesus is getting real with his followers. It always makes us uncomfortable when our soft, fluffy, loving Jesus reveals his sharper edges, but he does that here.</div><div><br /></div><div>You may remember that last week, Jesus gave the disciples authority to proclaim that in the reign of God, which is overarching, all-embracing, and includes everything that is, heaven and earth have been joined into one divine, cosmic reality. The disciples were being sent out into this new reality to restore the helpless and harassed to wholeness of life, wholeness of spirit, and wholeness of purpose, in Jesus’ name. They were being sent as co-creators of God’s redemption for the world.</div><div><br /></div><div>Today’s gospel story picks up with Jesus finishing this teaching. Every truth that humans have covered up and every evil we have justified will be uncovered, exposed, and ultimately redeemed by God’s love.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ8rXcYckEO2U_YjDt1jJx2z0hZHinPksnMH2ywE_x8SqpDWFieoqfo1J1aoJQseeoJhaj91Na5ZuDyoELuDUEVi0LsTeqMLMmefkVRwCuvVBIvacAwcXzQXuqyutCyJiMeyVsKFgVDY8wa6UNT_Ytqdl1UmSSe059mIakn6ZwYL6rlgMQXDsWuLSkybU/s536/Sword.webp" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="536" data-original-width="399" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ8rXcYckEO2U_YjDt1jJx2z0hZHinPksnMH2ywE_x8SqpDWFieoqfo1J1aoJQseeoJhaj91Na5ZuDyoELuDUEVi0LsTeqMLMmefkVRwCuvVBIvacAwcXzQXuqyutCyJiMeyVsKFgVDY8wa6UNT_Ytqdl1UmSSe059mIakn6ZwYL6rlgMQXDsWuLSkybU/s320/Sword.webp" width="238" /></a></div>When Jesus says, I am come not to bring peace, but conflict, he’s making it clear that following him and his way won’t be easy. The keepers of the status quo will hate you and fight against you as their exploitive, oppressive systems are exposed. Even those closest to you. Your father, your mother, members of your church and community will become like enemies to you, but stand firm in your faith and fear not, for God is already acting to redeem.</div><div><br /></div><div>Then Jesus offers the most beautiful assurance. You are so valuable to God, who knows you so intimately, that even the hairs on your heads are counted! Think about that: every single aspect of who we are, even those aspects we don’t know about ourselves, are known to God, who values us and cares for us, which is why we can stand firm on the foundation of God’s loving-kindness.</div><div><br /></div><div>One would think that sharing the good news of God’s redeeming love would bring honor and praise, but if human systems are to be transformed, they must first be dismantled, and that rarely happens without a fight – even in the church. Those with power, wealth, and influence, those benefitting from the status quo don’t let go of it easily – even when it’s the right thing to do.</div><div><br /></div><div>Human history shows us that it often takes violent conflict to bring about change. Think about the start of our own nation 250 years ago, the Civil Rights movement 60 years ago, or the LGBTQIA+ movement happening now. In the end, everyone benefits when human dignity and freedom are won. Everyone, even those who clung to the status quo with clenched fists.</div><div><br /></div><div>Jesus concludes this teaching with a straightforward statement, once we get the translation clear. The word we translate as “worthy” is better translated as “congruent.” It’s a long-standing habit of the church to motivate us by undermining our sense of worthiness, and for that, I apologize on behalf of the church. Didn’t Jesus just finish clarifying our worthiness in his story about the sparrows?</div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>We are worthy. The question is: are we congruent with Jesus? Are we in harmony with him?</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJvxs7HpJqd-tt_efGz5r1xgtlXO81vVCBUE-kZGUonQp_WIIH6Q3-TIRlwvlgrWTbPez4gBrenScQ2FQPEu0-T5_AbRgo90RAthNeHirficcoW5vh8wETZ8kqEh3A1qD8E858m0qJtbO-eG9deNoAHdkUnMyFUsbnFa8Zk6ktwn5LX3mQxLde7-g7ZcU/s284/Jesus%20mosaic.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="177" data-original-width="284" height="177" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJvxs7HpJqd-tt_efGz5r1xgtlXO81vVCBUE-kZGUonQp_WIIH6Q3-TIRlwvlgrWTbPez4gBrenScQ2FQPEu0-T5_AbRgo90RAthNeHirficcoW5vh8wETZ8kqEh3A1qD8E858m0qJtbO-eG9deNoAHdkUnMyFUsbnFa8Zk6ktwn5LX3mQxLde7-g7ZcU/s1600/Jesus%20mosaic.jpg" width="284" /></a></div><div>Whoever seeks earthly sources of protection and community rather than finding those in Jesus, is not congruent with him. Whoever does not bear the burdens of the world with loving kindness and forgiveness, as he did from the cross, is not congruent with him. Anyone who seeks to direct their own lives apart from Jesus will find themselves in a mess of their own making. Anyone who loves in Jesus’ name despite the very real pushback the world will inflict upon them, will discover that Jesus is pleased to dwell in them and redeem them, and through them, the world.</div><div><br /></div><div>Now that’s good news!</div><div><br /></div><div>I’ve talked to many folks around here who are asking what’s taking God so long? Where is God in Ukraine? Where is God in the attacks against women and our LGBTQIA+ siblings? Being resourceful, we’re tempted to resolve these problems on our own, like Abraham and Sarah did. So, I’m here to tell you, whenever this temptation rises up, hear the wise words of my former spiritual director, Sr. Elizabeth: <b>Don’t feed it. Don’t fight it. Don’t fix it. </b></div><div><br /></div><div> God has promised redemption of the whole world in Jesus Christ. Trust that promise. When the inevitable conflict happens, we must continue to trust while God redeems even those fighting against us, for all are children of the one God who reconciles the whole world back into love.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic9gLJ-1iAg5bCHMlPEvW0ZAsjkvxNfiG_LdPOHq2I1JrX1NRioarVy4gBrDd97lGSYxdvNVvkGHsU9A5C86-FINpa53L797LGnffobwOMOmnGCKHsdtrEOgjS6n-FnLm4cjZfc9YZ3h3BDruej9oSvAfrHZE1CA0jV6keE6sN3NHQnsTtN9I4hfjeiaE/s251/hearts.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="201" data-original-width="251" height="201" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic9gLJ-1iAg5bCHMlPEvW0ZAsjkvxNfiG_LdPOHq2I1JrX1NRioarVy4gBrDd97lGSYxdvNVvkGHsU9A5C86-FINpa53L797LGnffobwOMOmnGCKHsdtrEOgjS6n-FnLm4cjZfc9YZ3h3BDruej9oSvAfrHZE1CA0jV6keE6sN3NHQnsTtN9I4hfjeiaE/s1600/hearts.jpg" width="251" /></a></div>We are congruent with Jesus when the flipbooks of our lives contain page after page of truth-telling in response to oppressive, harmful, exclusive systems in the world today; when our loving kindness is repeated so frequently as to seem seamless, uninterrupted when we watch it played back. There will be glitches in there – we are, after all, human. But God redeems those too because such is the character of God.</div><div><br /></div><div>Let’s pray: Thank you, most gracious God, for the foundation of your loving kindness. We pray that we may be as reverent of one another and of you as you are of us. Give us grace to reflect your love and make it as real on earth as it is in heaven. We pray this in the name of the Trinity, who is Unity. Amen.
</div>Rev. Dr. Valori Mulvey Shererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18097108657207202324noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2953930310550634937.post-50100314073080362422023-06-01T16:04:00.001-05:002023-06-03T21:43:24.175-05:00Trinity Sunday & Baptism, 2023-A: In the image of God<p>Lectionary: Genesis 1:1-2:4a; Canticle 2 (Rite I) and Canticle 13 (Rite II); 2 Corinthians 13:11-13; Matthew 28:16-20 </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/D_tC0__59-I" width="320" youtube-src-id="D_tC0__59-I"></iframe></div><br /><p>En el nombre del Dios que es Trinidad en unidad. Amen.</p><p>It’s a wonderfully complicated day today. We gather to celebrate the baptism of Maeve Nash, welcoming</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeVPG0FiRejn-y_c2iWPyGUWto2sG2VhQxaoBfUNezbi268FPFXtnx_eR5-OXG5q0OnJcAkHAyPOfi2l4TL4w28EwAGGxQ5wDNoNlp2dSXDqEiC3hLOkWc_k0FeflmOE8GO5CvaNDVH0Z6BbFPFcZtKi7k1N_XUe4byOXx-a5VblpMPHqTFCgC6vyI/s291/baptism.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="173" data-original-width="291" height="173" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeVPG0FiRejn-y_c2iWPyGUWto2sG2VhQxaoBfUNezbi268FPFXtnx_eR5-OXG5q0OnJcAkHAyPOfi2l4TL4w28EwAGGxQ5wDNoNlp2dSXDqEiC3hLOkWc_k0FeflmOE8GO5CvaNDVH0Z6BbFPFcZtKi7k1N_XUe4byOXx-a5VblpMPHqTFCgC6vyI/s1600/baptism.jpg" width="291" /></a></div>her into the Christian family. It’s Trinity Sunday, the day we ponder the mystery of God who is Trinity in Unity. It’s #wearorgange Sunday, complete with a march at noon to end gun violence as we remember those who lost their lives to it. And it’s the first Sunday in PRIDE Month.<p></p><p>As only God can do, our lectionary today is perfect. We begin with the story of creation from Genesis 1. God created and created and created like a mad artist; each creation leading to another burst of creative love revealing yet another dimension of the nature and character of God.</p><p>The creation story culminates with God’s creation of humankind… “in the image of God” they were created, male and female. While all of creation is infused with the breath of God’s creative love, only humans are created in God’s own image, and more than that, we are given responsibility to care for the rest of creation.</p><p>Please don’t let the phrase “have dominion over” trip you up. It can and does mean rule over, but it also means “noble.” God made humans noble in relation to all other creation. To be noble is to have higher moral principles and ideals.</p><p>Dominion is not the same as dominance. Dominion is relational. Dominance is hierarchical. Dominion is other-centered. Dominance is self-centered.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi865qNeNoG42bzPwow0FT-MC6Bjtil-rvdyPWLLXjF4p5oPMy4YtdYVn4Xf0mpAWMdynlFPR51rtE1omnpNqvNLyWPVdMYrdki0uvAdE06QKPfPi1n0FjoPUtWJr7-BrmFPFky2tPUwOvZX7IzQT_AmA7vXMShrtvw2dcBbmN18BNZd23O6G1FfiLR/s225/Trinity.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi865qNeNoG42bzPwow0FT-MC6Bjtil-rvdyPWLLXjF4p5oPMy4YtdYVn4Xf0mpAWMdynlFPR51rtE1omnpNqvNLyWPVdMYrdki0uvAdE06QKPfPi1n0FjoPUtWJr7-BrmFPFky2tPUwOvZX7IzQT_AmA7vXMShrtvw2dcBbmN18BNZd23O6G1FfiLR/s1600/Trinity.jpg" width="225" /></a></div>God did not make us the most important or powerful among the created. They made us the most trusted. God chooses us to care for creation in the image of God who created, sustains, and blesses all of creation out of love.<p></p><p>While we’re at it, there are two more phrases in our gospel text to clarify. The first is: “Go, therefore, and make disciples.” We had a lively discussion about this at our Bible study this past week. It’s the word translated as “make” that has led to so much coercive action by churches that may or may not have been trying to do the right thing. The problem is the word isn’t “make” – it’s “teach” (literally). Teach others to be disciples.</p><p>That’s exactly what we are going to promise to do for Maeve as we baptize her. We’ll promise to teach her – as her community of faith – to be a disciple of Jesus.</p><p>The second is the word translated as “obey.” Baptize them, Jesus says, in the name of the Trinity, and teach them to obey everything that I have commanded you. The word “obey” has also led many in the church to focus on enforcing compliance with rules, which is sad, because what Jesus actually said here is better translated as “observe, keep, maintain.”</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm0UpA8TAFz0fGoaCWX0Y5OerKpo0AoJKT7r-brcTZlFeh5K1jy04DAwP6EaHD7EW3y0xaApaP90pKkJiSmG8DZQZ-wdoukrdSAaPBBnCbv2VD1bkX1X2s_Y8BgPOROCB9Ey00qVxqwsBRyDfcIVUtiWGHU6SLigrCAR5aottZrT0fT-5pGoWvS5FK/s500/Love%20rainbow.jpeg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="500" height="231" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm0UpA8TAFz0fGoaCWX0Y5OerKpo0AoJKT7r-brcTZlFeh5K1jy04DAwP6EaHD7EW3y0xaApaP90pKkJiSmG8DZQZ-wdoukrdSAaPBBnCbv2VD1bkX1X2s_Y8BgPOROCB9Ey00qVxqwsBRyDfcIVUtiWGHU6SLigrCAR5aottZrT0fT-5pGoWvS5FK/w231-h231/Love%20rainbow.jpeg" width="231" /></a></div>So, the question is, observe, keep, maintain what? What did Jesus command? The answer is simple and is becoming about the only thing in my sermons lately – Jesus commanded us to love.<p></p><p>Love God with all our hearts, minds, and souls. Love our neighbor as ourselves. Love one another as heloved us. Love our enemies. Love - in all its many, complicated forms.
When we gather to worship and share Holy Communion, we reconnect ourselves to God and to one another, because answering Jesus’ command to love isn’t easy. In fact, it often seems impossible.</p><p>Every day we hear of another shooting somewhere in our country. Every day.</p><p>Gun violence is now the leading cause of death for our children. Our culture has politicized this so much that it’s become nearly impossible to have reasonable discussions about it – but we must, and church is where those difficult discussions have to happen, because church is where the love of God has dominion in our hearts.</p><p>Church is where the sacrament of the body and blood of Christ unites us into one body, one spirit. It’s where we recognize that the only true power is the power of God and that power is the power of love. Church is where we greet one another with a holy kiss – something only family did in St. Paul’s time.</p><p>We are the family of God in Christ in this time and place in the world. We baptize people and teach them how to love as Jesus commanded us to do, remembering that no matter how impossible or horrible the world seems at any moment of our experience, it is a beloved creation born of God’s love and it is our responsibility to care for it, to restore it to peace and unity, and to teach others to do the same.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDcNTcrTmvAHMwbso5knH0KCy5Ypekd98hoZKm_7uT0Gl2SrCZ1mpxF_nkiWpxD7NrousS9JwYH6Bk7ZJg5jcibzm5jey6VDIjQP6lREbfsVsBVs-Ziqaq3sefG3eIWk4quMpUI4cro9eoJose7oL905j-r7psprQXwXePEpbAcPnAzOT5BwvYajlA/s640/Sermon%20pic%20Aug%2030.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDcNTcrTmvAHMwbso5knH0KCy5Ypekd98hoZKm_7uT0Gl2SrCZ1mpxF_nkiWpxD7NrousS9JwYH6Bk7ZJg5jcibzm5jey6VDIjQP6lREbfsVsBVs-Ziqaq3sefG3eIWk4quMpUI4cro9eoJose7oL905j-r7psprQXwXePEpbAcPnAzOT5BwvYajlA/s320/Sermon%20pic%20Aug%2030.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>I once served a church that held the first PRIDE event in that deep southern town – about 15 years ago. It was a picnic, a PRIDE picnic. We invited the local gay community as well as supportive groups like PFLAG to come and share information on how to be supportive allies. We grilled food, painted faces, and played games.<p></p><p>You can see why this was so threatening. Yet apparently it was. Protestors from Westboro Baptist Church and some other local church groups showed up to scream condemnation at us using foul language – in front of the children. Horrible words were graffitied onto our church doors and walls with black paint. They tried to disrupt our worship the next morning with a bullhorn screaming derogatory names and accusations at our faith community.</p><p>Is this how they interpret Jesus’ command to love? It didn’t feel a bit like love. It felt very much like hate.</p><p>Our LGBTQIA+ siblings in Christ are currently under attack. They are not being loved as Christ commanded, and tragically, it is most often by those who identify themselves as followers of Jesus, as holders of higher moral principles and ideals. They delude themselves.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-RtbT9ZV4ghbcxOgCCk5jRz5jJi7J4YY-voSZCJ-jR2WpKa2Qkx3XY0mHcaQ1OK97VJxembMRF3b0TklUSMQzb_9q2tziYIfWGZUSU4YZrEs_l7WQZkzTfyJwEGe5--uH_PqMEtSF7SWbF_Bhx5TdOIT9HmtfDXmes8PVoLPYNsemX899OOAOKpWC/s225/A%20love%20pic.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="186" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-RtbT9ZV4ghbcxOgCCk5jRz5jJi7J4YY-voSZCJ-jR2WpKa2Qkx3XY0mHcaQ1OK97VJxembMRF3b0TklUSMQzb_9q2tziYIfWGZUSU4YZrEs_l7WQZkzTfyJwEGe5--uH_PqMEtSF7SWbF_Bhx5TdOIT9HmtfDXmes8PVoLPYNsemX899OOAOKpWC/w186-h186/A%20love%20pic.jpg" width="186" /></a></div>We are witnesses of their terrorizing and dehumanizing of God’s beloved children, and as witnesses, we must call out what we see as hate, not love. We, the church, have a responsibility to love – and to teach others to do the same - in the name of God who created us all, in the name of Jesus who redeemed us all,and in the name of the Spirit who sanctifies us all.<p></p><p>Today, as we sacramentally welcome the newest member of the Christian family, we will also renew our own Baptismal vows – vows that call us to worship together, to seek Christ in ALL others, to love and respect their dignity as fellow nobles, all of us caring for God’s creation.</p><p>These are not vows we take lightly. They are our signposts, our guides on how to live as Christians, how to love as Christians in the world as it is.</p><p>It won’t be easy. Hate is strong, but love is stronger, and Jesus promised to be with us always – to the end of the “breathing of breath,” the end of human life. While we have life, we have Jesus; and having Jesus means having the wholeness of the Trinity.</p><p>Let us pray…
Spirit of the Living God, who dwells in our noble human bodies, fill us to overflowing with your divine love, so that the world in which we stand is continually nourished by your living water. Open our hearts and minds, that we may keep your command to us to love. Give us courage to call out hate and restore relationship as we go, teach, and baptize in your name, that your peace may heal our troubled and broken world. Keep us connected to you and to one another, now and always. Amen.</p>Rev. Dr. Valori Mulvey Shererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18097108657207202324noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2953930310550634937.post-63920291880329123012023-05-21T07:30:00.005-05:002023-05-21T14:24:16.366-05:00Ascension, 2023-A: Shedding our spiritual training wheelsLectionary: Acts 1:1-11; Psalm 47; Ephesians 1:15-23; Luke 24:44-53<div><blockquote><i>Note: The sermon acutally delivered was a little different. It can be viewed on the Emmanuel <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=774kEYlfMlY&t=2358s" target="_blank">Episcopal Church Webster Goves YouTube </a>channel at 39 mins 20 seconds.</i></blockquote><br /><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/mOstKSgVB1A" width="320" youtube-src-id="mOstKSgVB1A"></iframe></div><p></p>En el nombre del Dios: creador, redentor, y santificador. Amen. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzqVUpHYxplKNxZ9Gz-D-MkUUDU-BQH3WAECVHRf3mre3XKwTjbtFYy_xK4NBrPs7EQ-3D81YPj2OYV_JEIP1fXulOn0M558Yk7JXDqz45dz3HejysCVXR2_KgRT_OL2rdC6WjQP5yUSj4MRduyHQBfB3anuACP5fqbMi8ZKAZsJdgTDG_fFtVlmAX/s856/Ascension.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="568" data-original-width="856" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzqVUpHYxplKNxZ9Gz-D-MkUUDU-BQH3WAECVHRf3mre3XKwTjbtFYy_xK4NBrPs7EQ-3D81YPj2OYV_JEIP1fXulOn0M558Yk7JXDqz45dz3HejysCVXR2_KgRT_OL2rdC6WjQP5yUSj4MRduyHQBfB3anuACP5fqbMi8ZKAZsJdgTDG_fFtVlmAX/s320/Ascension.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div>Today we are celebrating the Feast of the Ascension, which falls on the 40th day after Easter, and so it’s on a Thursday every year. We have transferred it to Sunday because it’s a principal feast, so it takes precedence over Sunday. It’s a principal feast because this is the moment Jesus hands over to the church the continuing ministry of reconciliation in His name.</div><div><br /></div><div>Reflecting on how to live in this state of reconciliation, the author of the letter to the church in Ephesus: says “I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him, so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe…”</div><div><br /></div><div>Let’s take those things one at a time… </div><div><br /></div><div><b><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy9ZYScJ8OuC1LNTVmTyPpYzsjXd1XTriX2BxBoBiDE3oJH_lutTKyQWChzVM-ajpsUG_R6ZX0O1awWJgI2Zx6ODjpnxuPZEk8CwyfnF1UbSPy8vGv_9rUHOnNlpJKUIW7hJ_TBLFdGSr7ceqqiWiVr-sZOp5w3jt1WOqe8jtk35zQvBffEut4HeIS/s254/hope.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="198" data-original-width="254" height="198" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy9ZYScJ8OuC1LNTVmTyPpYzsjXd1XTriX2BxBoBiDE3oJH_lutTKyQWChzVM-ajpsUG_R6ZX0O1awWJgI2Zx6ODjpnxuPZEk8CwyfnF1UbSPy8vGv_9rUHOnNlpJKUIW7hJ_TBLFdGSr7ceqqiWiVr-sZOp5w3jt1WOqe8jtk35zQvBffEut4HeIS/s1600/hope.jpg" width="254" /></a></div>What is the hope to which Jesus has called us?</b> That there is no one, no thing, no event, no circumstance, that falls outside the reach of God’s redeeming love. That God’s plan has been fulfilled in Jesus the Christ, in whom we have been reconciled by the forgiveness of our sins. That every one of us will, at some point in our lives, be counted among those who are lost or gone astray, but because of our reconciliation to God in Jesus, no matter how lost we get, no matter how far we stray, we can never go beyond the reach of God’s redeeming love.</div><div><br /></div><div>Our hope is grounded in the assurance that “nothing, not even death, shall separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (BCP, 862) I don’t know about you, but it’s a comfort for me to remember that even when I sin, I will not be cast out of the community of God’s love for it.</div><div><br /></div><div>Nothing can separate us from the love of God which is in Christ. When we come into the presence of someone who doesn’t know that or has forgotten it, it’s up to us, as witnesses of Christ, to help them remember. When my kids were little our prayer before bed always ended with me saying, “There is nothing you could ever say or do that could make me stop loving you.” Imagine how joyful I was to learn recently that my daughter is saying the same thing to her children before bed! God’s love is like that – only better! …More faithful… More perfect… More merciful than any love we can offer.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfs7okLCYFGjte0moPULRGP7-zY-OlIKne3ItcLCv8VMfuEBU3ORPBVWl9LRw1YpQ5I_F7KP9VNpsTaIyNpV3J4LrVea3UJpmf0f0xZj8sDLMmIhuu04I2RtIeBLhAUPCZmYQCaT-uVqULocjt3s3AO9xFtQtXzSHU6RvNS6wKTd1DG5q5kd0Vthvj/s275/riches.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="183" data-original-width="275" height="183" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfs7okLCYFGjte0moPULRGP7-zY-OlIKne3ItcLCv8VMfuEBU3ORPBVWl9LRw1YpQ5I_F7KP9VNpsTaIyNpV3J4LrVea3UJpmf0f0xZj8sDLMmIhuu04I2RtIeBLhAUPCZmYQCaT-uVqULocjt3s3AO9xFtQtXzSHU6RvNS6wKTd1DG5q5kd0Vthvj/s1600/riches.jpg" width="275" /></a></div>Next question - <b>What are the riches of God’s glorious inheritance among the saints?
</b>
The “saints” are<br /> all who believe. Think about how many people that is and how many riches they represent.</div><div><br /></div><div>We have abundant riches right here at Emmanuel. In one person there is abounding generosity, in another – innocence and purity of heart, in another – a contagious joy. One brings poverty, another wealth. One is gay, another is straight, another trans or nonbinary. One is the teller of truths (even the hard ones), another is a source of gentleness and comfort. The gifts present among the body of Christ are brought together into a synergistic whole by God for the benefit of God’s people.</div><div><br /></div><div>What is the purpose of these riches? To unite us one to another and to God – in love.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Finally, what is the immeasurable greatness of God’s power – and why is it just for us who believe?
</b>
The funny thing about God is that God gives lavishly, without regard to what we deserve. The greatness of God’s power is love and it dwells in each of us, and in all of us as a faith community, but it will go unrecognized, unobserved until seen with the eyes of an enlightened heart.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfUO-umhueeaPXDZh-bCZylEFaJ-8CsZg0oIEQh6IVqqJot9ALUT1XDm-zR2nYu-eIpesf0MwhAArk29XceJDs1oCc2Ub-jytr7QMOdmJbuFwg9rQLzkUTRokU8JN3Hmn72AiHgbarWKZM_ujafU-IOXfRdWNQOOnaHluy5DTxZg63Y3aMC7hIiy9o/s300/eyes.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="168" data-original-width="300" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfUO-umhueeaPXDZh-bCZylEFaJ-8CsZg0oIEQh6IVqqJot9ALUT1XDm-zR2nYu-eIpesf0MwhAArk29XceJDs1oCc2Ub-jytr7QMOdmJbuFwg9rQLzkUTRokU8JN3Hmn72AiHgbarWKZM_ujafU-IOXfRdWNQOOnaHluy5DTxZg63Y3aMC7hIiy9o/s1600/eyes.jpg" width="300" /></a></div>The ability to see and understand in this way comes from God. As we heard in the gospel, Jesus opened the minds of the apostles to understand the scriptures so that they could go out and proclaim the Good News to all nations, all people.</div><div><br /></div><div>The same is true for us. The eyes of our hearts are enlightened by Jesus. The spirit of wisdom and revelation in us is the Holy Spirit of God which dwells in us that we have been reconciled by the forgiveness of sin.</div><div><br /></div><div>When Jesus ascended, and the apostles were standing there gazing up at the sky, the messengers from heaven asked them, ‘Men of Galilee, why do you stand there looking toward heaven?’ What you seek isn’t up there – it’s right here – in you.</div><div><br /></div><div>To be fair, for the disciples, it wasn't yet, but it was about to be in them. Jesus told them to wait until they had been clothed with the power, that is, the love of God, from on high – which happened for them at that first Pentecost.</div><div><br /></div><div>We, on the other hand, have already been clothed with this power. It happened for us at our Baptism. Some of us recommitted to it at our Confirmation. And all of us remember it each time we gather for Holy Eucharist.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ3_SDcM98oYpcX21IOR8EFW2BcbsCQHg2fPbDtJjZmx0Fw5myJ5EREkFG-vu8XmY2Ut46Jq3Ec3cSxmN8oECdRyvPDD1LWEX7jxBmocDYp0QR8u4LpiIE5hS9HwzVbHXIrn4uovKQGmvto3nnZDbf4YvoDq124szQF10VSc28CnOxYhPj7y0QePf-/s259/bike.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="194" data-original-width="259" height="194" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ3_SDcM98oYpcX21IOR8EFW2BcbsCQHg2fPbDtJjZmx0Fw5myJ5EREkFG-vu8XmY2Ut46Jq3Ec3cSxmN8oECdRyvPDD1LWEX7jxBmocDYp0QR8u4LpiIE5hS9HwzVbHXIrn4uovKQGmvto3nnZDbf4YvoDq124szQF10VSc28CnOxYhPj7y0QePf-/s1600/bike.jpg" width="259" /></a></div>Once upon a time, I visited a young church member named Lila at her home. This precious 4-year-old brought me outside to show me her new Princess bike. She showed me how she could ride it and how the training wheels would keep her from falling. She was quick to point out that she didn’t always need the training wheels – only sometimes - and one day, she wouldn’t need them at all.</div><div></div><div><br /></div><div>I walked alongside Lila as she rode her Princess bike, leading me on a tour of the grounds of their home. She pointed out all the things I should notice as we went along, including her favorite purple flowers just coming into bloom.</div><div><br /></div><div>As we journeyed together, the experience felt to me like an illustration of the path of Christian maturity. Lila knew she needed training wheels, not all the time, but sometimes. Lila also knew that one day she would learn to ride this Princess bike with no training wheels.</div><div><br /></div><div>Walking alongside Lila and her Princess bike, I understood that if Jesus had not let us witness his ascension, we’d all still be riding around on our training wheels.</div><div><br /></div><div>Jesus knew the disciples were ready. The disciples may not have realized it until they found themselves doing it – like when Peter shared his testimony with the household of Cornelius the Roman Centurion, or when he raised Dorcas from the dead in Joppa. Yes, Peter raised a woman from the dead!</div><div><br /></div><div>Filled with excitement, fear, and confidence, the disciples went out and shared their Good News and amazing things happened. Now it’s our turn - and we're ready to shed our training wheels.</div><div><br /></div><div>Let us pray: Give us grace, O God of love, to trust you. Give us confidence to pump our legs and ride out into your world, carrying your light in our eyes, your love in our hearts, and your gentleness in our actions. May our lives reflect the joy of being in relationship with you, and may our witness be one of justice, mercy, and peace toward all you created, in your Holy Name. Amen.
</div></div>Rev. Dr. Valori Mulvey Shererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18097108657207202324noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2953930310550634937.post-22720356538149016352023-05-14T06:30:00.009-05:002023-05-14T13:37:13.738-05:006 Easter, 2023-A: The wormhole of spiritual understandingLectionary: Lectionary: Acts 17:22-31; Psalm 66:7-18; 1 Peter 3:13-22; John 14:15-21<p><i>(Note: there is no pre-recorded video of this sermon since I was out of town at my father's funeral this week. The sermon can be watched on the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuGquF50MsgRQGMs834_fuA">Emmanuel Episcopal Church, Webster Groves YouTube channel</a>)</i></p>En el nombre del Dios: creador, redentor, y santificador. Amen. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNSFUD1bryid974NO38F6UNVf5YKVfJ9L2kWNsNMw3Vepdu762TmuqRWtoJwuaGgluBLYEkfDgGAGIx9Bph3aDBtKWqNveVCny39Gl7IajwkPHry_Zl6uYLmcMPrWWPeHvBW-89tHlL_8keyBBVvXnyoAoUXSBhYSVwxG93GIHru6hnLOOmdiwKvXU/s225/A%20love%20pic.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNSFUD1bryid974NO38F6UNVf5YKVfJ9L2kWNsNMw3Vepdu762TmuqRWtoJwuaGgluBLYEkfDgGAGIx9Bph3aDBtKWqNveVCny39Gl7IajwkPHry_Zl6uYLmcMPrWWPeHvBW-89tHlL_8keyBBVvXnyoAoUXSBhYSVwxG93GIHru6hnLOOmdiwKvXU/s1600/A%20love%20pic.jpg" width="225" /></a></div><br /><div>Our gospel today is part of Jesus’ farewell discourse given at the Last Supper, and it begins with “If you love me you will keep my commandments.” He goes on to say that those, “ who have my commandments and keep them are those who love me; and those who love me will be loved by my Father, and I will love them and reveal myself to them.”</div><div><br /></div><div>Is Jesus telling us that his love of us is conditional on our obedience? It sounds like it since it says, if this then that. But the word we translate as “if” isn’t a conditional in the original Greek. It’s a word that points to a future possibility that experience determines.</div><div><br /></div><div>Also, this teaching has nothing to do with obedience. That’s a whole different word in Greek and it isn’t present here.</div><div><br /></div><div>So, Jesus is saying: When you love me, you will discover that you will maintain and continue what I have commanded you to do. So the real question is: what did Jesus command us to do?</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX5sWfLfT8tQhK38aPkBZUvMwDliLTiPoNssKrgg7Q7mQQaNjlnuPrEsWqpFZ--t2VDJy7YQi08l6-g7XEXDK7_ntcsdsFAdq36faoGdHH6wEg_ew_FRRPI1_s2Okmf6EGaQuW3gHGpBiAz6MIuztOln5hXJeTpKH50Ie33o5zpi0g0UbM7fqniOGH/s195/Pent%203%20pic%20Love.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="122" data-original-width="195" height="122" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX5sWfLfT8tQhK38aPkBZUvMwDliLTiPoNssKrgg7Q7mQQaNjlnuPrEsWqpFZ--t2VDJy7YQi08l6-g7XEXDK7_ntcsdsFAdq36faoGdHH6wEg_ew_FRRPI1_s2Okmf6EGaQuW3gHGpBiAz6MIuztOln5hXJeTpKH50Ie33o5zpi0g0UbM7fqniOGH/s1600/Pent%203%20pic%20Love.jpg" width="195" /></a></div>The answer is: love. Love one another as I have loved you. (Jn 13:34) Love your enemies. (Mt 5: 44) Love God with all your hearts, minds, strength, and souls (Deut 6:5), and love your neighbors as yourselves. (Lev 19:18) Love. </div><div><br /></div><div>Jesus is about to enter the most difficult moment of his human experience and the disciples are terrified and confused. They don’t understand what he is saying to them - again. But honestly, how could they? It sounds like riddles or circular logic: God is in Jesus, who is in us, and we are in him, and through him, we are in God… and because he lives we also will live.</div><div><br /></div><div>Perceiving the fear and confusion among his disciples Jesus speaks directly to it saying to them (and to us), I will not leave you comfortless or alone. I am coming to you in another way - to comfort you and support you forever.</div><div><br /></div><div>One day, he says, you’ll know the truth of this co-abiding with the Divine Spirit through me. It’s a truth that is beyond human logic, as much today as it was then, and can only be known by the experience of it again and again in our lives. Sometimes, it’s a series of light bulbs going off in sudden realization. Other times it’s a slow turn of the dimmer switch until, one day, the light comes on fully.</div><div><br /></div><div>I remember about 3 weeks into our Greek class in seminary and we were all feeling so overwhelmed by how vastly different Greek was, from the alphabet to the layers of meanings, and the many conjugations and tenses. Our professor assured us that one day, we’d just get it, and he snapped his fingers.</div><div><br /></div><div>Oh sure, we thought. Easy for him to say! But he was right. One day, it suddenly all fell into place and the learning began to happen at lightning speed like a wormhole had been opened.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjng8ySOnGMgkNkJK-kstcPtAXkOQrUTUV1KjVo7vr2Hlg6TTwc4eHEZLu4Y3lWpt_cRBWSj-b4FrcTnNzP0VcvXjbSQbKu0h4S9Ogx1AVQzsKWwuFiEJX_LDuzLFJMOFcLVPgJGBdZVCxJ0g87_E6a5Ei0BtKaDbONtQ0tWL4ZPhpyGDEM9ajV3QNZ/s225/Trinity.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjng8ySOnGMgkNkJK-kstcPtAXkOQrUTUV1KjVo7vr2Hlg6TTwc4eHEZLu4Y3lWpt_cRBWSj-b4FrcTnNzP0VcvXjbSQbKu0h4S9Ogx1AVQzsKWwuFiEJX_LDuzLFJMOFcLVPgJGBdZVCxJ0g87_E6a5Ei0BtKaDbONtQ0tWL4ZPhpyGDEM9ajV3QNZ/s1600/Trinity.jpg" width="225" /></a></div><br /><div>That was Jesus’ promise. On that day, you’ll get it! You’ll know that “I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you.” When that happens, you will have spiritual understanding, and my commandments will be within you, and you will be able to preserve them for all time and continue to live in them now and always.</div><div><br /></div><div>On that day, you will know union with divine love. You will know that you are cherished by God who will be eternally faithful and loyal to you, and I will be revealed to you in ways you couldn’t have understood before, and it will change everything!</div><div><br /></div><div>Our beloved Dame Julian of Norwich speaks of this experience so simply yet eloquently. Here are her words: </div><div><blockquote>“I desired in many ways to know what was our Lord's meaning. And fifteen years after and more, I was answered in spiritual understanding, and it was said: What, do you wish to know your Lord's meaning in this thing? Know it well, love was his meaning. Who reveals it to you? Love. What did he reveal to you? Love. Why does he reveal it to you? For love. Remain in this, and you will know more of the same.” </blockquote></div><div>This is the love in which “we live and move and have our being” as Paul quoted from the poets of his time… the love who “holds our souls in life and will not allow our feet to slip” as the psalmist says. It all boils down to love: divine, eternal, sacrificial, joyful, mutual love.</div><div><br /></div><div>This doesn’t change the fact that we will know suffering, doubt, and darkness throughout the course of our lives. In addition, we may get it, as Jesus said we would, then lose it again, and get it again, over and over throughout the course of our lives.</div><div><br /></div><div>Knowing this love with spiritual understanding means that we will never be alone in any of the “changes and chances of this life.” (BCP, 133) We will never be comfortless. We will always be, as Dame Julian says, clothed in the love of God, which “wraps and holds us… enfolds us for love and will never let us go.”</div><div><br /></div><div>We also have each other. Prayer not only “fastens us to God” as Julian says, it also fastens us to one another, connecting the love of God in you to the love of God in me, as it were. Those connections are real and through them God can change the world, working in and through us.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyofv7Ryl9nnn2DmW_nVydUHB3rHkb80ClTq0dUWx_NPuNLUa2Jzl2TP-peMzyxHKTIKg1d9GRAfMOUcd5nrAz27j_5gmPWWVKVRHz6MJ0Vfz31bwXKkGLgkoJpQ7TVj2fe5HVQa-XPaoiCH92J9xSPOhiKUd9U439CsNl_aSMqrAJUEVyGVYxP6PG/s2048/Julian%20by%20Anne%20Davidson.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="301" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyofv7Ryl9nnn2DmW_nVydUHB3rHkb80ClTq0dUWx_NPuNLUa2Jzl2TP-peMzyxHKTIKg1d9GRAfMOUcd5nrAz27j_5gmPWWVKVRHz6MJ0Vfz31bwXKkGLgkoJpQ7TVj2fe5HVQa-XPaoiCH92J9xSPOhiKUd9U439CsNl_aSMqrAJUEVyGVYxP6PG/w226-h301/Julian%20by%20Anne%20Davidson.jpeg" width="226" /></a></div>I pray this truth a lot because it was a life-changing revelation for me. I begin most of our Sunday services by inviting us to go deeply within, to our divine centers, where we acknowledge God’s connection to us and invite God to connect us to one another, making us all one as we celebrate our thanks together.</div><div><br /></div><div>Since Julian of Norwich has been so present in this reflection on the Word, let’s close with the prayer assigned to her feast day, which was just last week: May 8. </div><div><br /></div><div>Let us pray: Lord God, who in your compassion granted to the Lady Julian many revelations of your nurturing and sustaining love: Move our hearts, like hers, to seek you above all things, for in giving us yourself you give us all; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><i>Icon written by Anne Davidson, Diocese of Western Michigan. Used with permission.</i></div>Rev. Dr. Valori Mulvey Shererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18097108657207202324noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2953930310550634937.post-41445404771395681832023-04-30T07:30:00.005-05:002023-04-30T07:30:00.146-05:004 Easter, 2023-A: On being sheep and shepherds<p>Lectionary: Acts 2:42-47; Psalm 23; 1 Peter 2:19-25; John 10:1-10 </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/RgjQ3OOSMtk" width="320" youtube-src-id="RgjQ3OOSMtk"></iframe></div><p>En el nombre del Dios que es Trinidad en unidad. Amen.<i>
(Note: At the Rite II service, the preacher brings the children up for the demonstration…)</i></p><div><br /></div><div>Long ago, I was a Brownie Girl Scout troop leader. As an expert in the field of child abuse prevention, I was called upon every year to help teach the Girls Scouts of all ages how to stay safe. I used the following demonstration to show them that there are some grown-ups who may try to trick them in order to harm them, and it works because they are the ones who are supposed to be looking out for them and their safety.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj40oO5JkpRgwc8pJb5h1Duin6UyfajTaVTY_tPw9VG3v17WBN5gMAv4PQamr95fFX3kpzElOXPHMT4NLDb_p2F2xECAfRBggp6G0rIa-4JukrAeCf-vuurnttaTa87c2y4BZLkvD3i-Rg8MJUc02owU4829T4U3inJ3bOC9ak6TTgGRFg_c0GpcmBD/s275/Coin%20toss.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="183" data-original-width="275" height="183" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj40oO5JkpRgwc8pJb5h1Duin6UyfajTaVTY_tPw9VG3v17WBN5gMAv4PQamr95fFX3kpzElOXPHMT4NLDb_p2F2xECAfRBggp6G0rIa-4JukrAeCf-vuurnttaTa87c2y4BZLkvD3i-Rg8MJUc02owU4829T4U3inJ3bOC9ak6TTgGRFg_c0GpcmBD/s1600/Coin%20toss.jpg" width="275" /></a></div><div>I would begin by tossing a coin, saying, Ok call it. Heads I win, Tails you lose. One child would call out “Heads!” and I’d say, Heads – I win! I’d’ toss it again and another child would call out, “Tails!” Tails, you lose, I’d say. It wasn’t long before the kiddos understood the trick.</div><div><br /></div><div>In today’s gospel story, Jesus makes similar points about the Jewish leadership. It’s important to remember that this story follows the story of the man born blind whom Jesus healed. Remember how his parents hesitated to answer the questions, was your son really born blind and who healed him? It’s because they feared the Pharisees would excommunicate them for being followers of Jesus causing them to lose their family, friends, and community.</div><div><br /></div><div>Jesus is connecting this moment in the gospel to the passage in Ezekiel where God called the leaders of Israel false shepherds who fed themselves and not the sheep whom they scattered leaving them vulnerable to predators. God declares “I myself will search for my sheep, rescue them, and feed them with good pasture. (34:11-16) Jesus was a masterful Biblical scholar.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGDi7pjpTfpY1xjmyfG-sSsR1-TIVMl1UPv92liI9qMbh9Z7pbbjgi9cGil2GOtYqPan2Y1PhgB34D1hc-seZsYkfMRA4s8hi94p5Q29Len1QjMVFX2mWj9ClnvfGmMwQPm8jEL2k5DiA1u7AYzi35M2skxVjsZdHt78WyZ-XzUj4Z8RtyJVrHndNo/s225/Good%20Shep%20icon.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="280" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGDi7pjpTfpY1xjmyfG-sSsR1-TIVMl1UPv92liI9qMbh9Z7pbbjgi9cGil2GOtYqPan2Y1PhgB34D1hc-seZsYkfMRA4s8hi94p5Q29Len1QjMVFX2mWj9ClnvfGmMwQPm8jEL2k5DiA1u7AYzi35M2skxVjsZdHt78WyZ-XzUj4Z8RtyJVrHndNo/w280-h280/Good%20Shep%20icon.jpg" width="280" /></a></div><br /><div>Jesus identifies himself as the shepherd who enters by the gate. He is also the gate. This is his unique status as the Incarnate Word of God, and not surprisingly, the religious leaders don’t understand what he is saying.</div><div><br /></div><div>There is so much beautiful imagery in this short parable that may go unnoticed by those of us unfamiliar with farming sheep. For instance, it wasn’t unusual for several flocks to gather in the same place for pasturing. I’m told this still happens in that region of the Middle East.</div><div><br /></div><div>One wonders how, at the end of the day, the sheep will be separated back into their proper groups, but a shepherd knows that the relationship they build with their sheep is so personal that the sheep develop great trust in their shepherd over time. They also know the sheep trust each other, so if a group of sheep heads in one direction the rest will follow – herd mentality.</div><div><br /></div><div>The sheep know their own shepherd’s voice and will follow it. I’m told it’s pretty amazing to watch this in real life – several flocks separating following their shepherd who goes in front of them to show them the way.</div><div><br /></div><div>The shepherd leads their flock to the enclosed area where they will sleep for the night. Most shepherds would put planks across the gate to keep the sheep from walking back out during the night. But the really devoted shepherd would lay himself down across the gate and sleep there. That way no sheep could leave, nor a predator enter, without him knowing. Of course, lying across that gate also meant that the gatekeeper was vulnerable to the predators.</div><div><br /></div><div>Jesus was claiming to be that sort of shepherd – the Good Shepherd who is willing to lay down his life for his sheep.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6ne1_9IcjFI6RQKP1XhvbGIuSFWg0iu7cMAa4otu6sPdE6ni0ooCKPt7567WYJKXupdJ_tnYL16cCG12bsQPlCoQW_2DaAWlkS0UHkg1LrogVNIDwclYiXA7_FsEdwXNew25iYkoMbmr2M6h95A5ilZKK21rhtTgGoclFVNXt5ucO0pROUsijnSSz/s262/sheepgate.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="192" data-original-width="262" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6ne1_9IcjFI6RQKP1XhvbGIuSFWg0iu7cMAa4otu6sPdE6ni0ooCKPt7567WYJKXupdJ_tnYL16cCG12bsQPlCoQW_2DaAWlkS0UHkg1LrogVNIDwclYiXA7_FsEdwXNew25iYkoMbmr2M6h95A5ilZKK21rhtTgGoclFVNXt5ucO0pROUsijnSSz/s1600/sheepgate.jpg" width="262" /></a></div>Jesus identifies himself as the gate as well and says that whoever enters by him will be saved. This is often taken as an exclusive comment, but it isn’t. Not if you believe in the Trinity, and consider what Jesus says a few verses later as he continues this teaching: “I have other sheep which are not of this fold, and I must bring them too. They will hear my voice and we will be one flock and one shepherd. (16)</div><div><br /></div><div>Did you know that the word translated here as “saved” literally means to make sound, in good condition – free from injury or disease? It means to preserve someone from danger, loss, or destruction. Jesus is saying, “Whoever enters by me will be made sound, preserved from danger and destruction, but even more, they will be given freedom to come in and go out and find pasture” …the kind described so beautifully in Psalm 23.</div><div><br /></div><div>We are the sheep who follow the voice of the Good Shepherd, and we are the shepherds in the world today as the church. It is now up to us to guard the gate – not to keep anyone out, but to make sure the gate opens every time a sheep comes in or goes out following the voice of God.</div><div><br /></div><div>As shepherds in the world today, we are called to lay down our lives to protect the flock from those who would do them harm. The Emmanuel Black Lives Matter gathering every Friday night is doing that – taking insults and taunts directed at them as they stand for our African American sisters and brothers who suffer from continuing targeted racism in our culture and cultural systems.</div><div><br /></div><div>In Missouri, there are currently over 40 anti-trans, and anti-LGBTQIA+ bills under consideration by our legislators. Churches United for Justice, a local group of faith communities, is watching that legislation, showing up to testify against it, and mobilizing people of faith to protect our vulnerable siblings-in-Christ who are being attacked culturally, medically, and personally. </div><div><br /></div><div>Within our own congregation are continuing expressions of fear over the potential for gun violence while we worship, run our preschool, and just go about our business as a Christian community of faith. I’ve counseled several women and one teen about the impact of the limits being imposed on women’s healthcare under the guise of “Christian values.”</div><br /><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXOStNvIKx_g7xc29UOQFeI0Z-bz7baqMujPL1ZJClA2KtVvgRZS8DQOnuYjk7CXjAwDGIK8Ue3hHDl1vY0JT19eAGew4NJOXi718IHjPuOgNu03DAVyQqB7UAJSjjhGvVnqmtAH4Zy-FY6Jk4Oq2Vnlu_GkNI1LuUrh-JHgMCV8Sr9PDKA-VIGLql/s737/Pride%20shield.jpeg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="737" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXOStNvIKx_g7xc29UOQFeI0Z-bz7baqMujPL1ZJClA2KtVvgRZS8DQOnuYjk7CXjAwDGIK8Ue3hHDl1vY0JT19eAGew4NJOXi718IHjPuOgNu03DAVyQqB7UAJSjjhGvVnqmtAH4Zy-FY6Jk4Oq2Vnlu_GkNI1LuUrh-JHgMCV8Sr9PDKA-VIGLql/s320/Pride%20shield.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>As members of The Episcopal Church, we are out of step with the voices of false shepherds who benefit personally by fomenting fear, judgment, and condemnation of other members of the family of God they disapprove of or hate. Our Baptismal vows call us to respect the dignity of every human being and in our gospel story today, Jesus clarifies whose voice we are to follow – his, and his alone.</div><div><br /></div><div>Luke tells us in Acts, that the early church “spent much time together in the temple.” We are called to do the same. The reason is, as Episcopalians, we discern the voice of God individually and in community. Hearing the voice individually only can lead us astray. False shepherds like David Koresh and Jim Jones thought they, and they alone, heard the voice of God. Look where that led. Our commitment to corporate discernment that affirms individual discernment is one of the planks we lay across the gate to protect our flock.</div><div><br /></div><div>Listening for the voice of God is something we must choose to learn and practice, and church is where we do that. Some people worry about being able to recognize that it is God’s voice. It’s true, we are all vulnerable to temptation, but through his death and resurrection, Jesus defeated the power sin and death have over us. Do we believe that?</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA-agZ3ofZsTOY8NEWLPYlZdJS7J1zo3u0l_Bl0dcah5jcwfc41dXezgLujDZftZzgC0k5CLLZtsr4eiyuNH3xPjfR3q1Cb2Z-4-_uaHvVxDeoVV0aDl2VdVFlbGv9rO-hkYXfCrSW8xN2RBItfPofQe-q-mGi9P2_3r_9oAYCKT4Ro3thG_v3d7LQ/s290/Marked%20as%20X%20own.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="174" data-original-width="290" height="151" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA-agZ3ofZsTOY8NEWLPYlZdJS7J1zo3u0l_Bl0dcah5jcwfc41dXezgLujDZftZzgC0k5CLLZtsr4eiyuNH3xPjfR3q1Cb2Z-4-_uaHvVxDeoVV0aDl2VdVFlbGv9rO-hkYXfCrSW8xN2RBItfPofQe-q-mGi9P2_3r_9oAYCKT4Ro3thG_v3d7LQ/w252-h151/Marked%20as%20X%20own.jpg" width="252" /></a></div>Do we believe that by his wounds we have been healed? Do we believe that having been marked as Christ’s own forever in our Baptism, there is nothing that can separate us from the eternal love and protection of God?</div><div><br /></div><div>We can choose to walk away from God or the Church, mad about something, or disapproving of another thing. We can even choose to follow false shepherds who spin false narratives and employ threats, coercion, or cajoling; because the promise we cling to is that we are members of one flock, being constantly gathered back into the fold by our Good Shepherd.</div><div><br /></div><div>The way of the world kills and destroys by infecting our hearts and our churches with fear, hate, and threat of abandonment. But our faith assures us that in the face of every earthly circumstance, we are not alone. We are in the eternal presence of God in Christ, who offers us abundant life; a life in verdant pastures, beside still waters, and lavish with blessings.</div><div><br /></div><div>How can we help but share Good News like that?
Amen.
</div>Rev. Dr. Valori Mulvey Shererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18097108657207202324noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2953930310550634937.post-10047275706626076122023-04-23T07:30:00.057-05:002023-04-23T07:58:22.179-05:003 Easter, 2023: Inspired with hearts ready to serve<p>Lectionary: Acts 2:14a,36-41; Psalm 116:1-3, 10-17; 1 Peter 1:17-23; Luke 24:13-35 </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/5NucRySb3QQ" width="320" youtube-src-id="5NucRySb3QQ"></iframe></div><p><br /></p><p>I love this lectionary today. It is so full of inspiration and heart – and I use those terms intentionally because to be inspired is to be roused or urged to do or know something. Inspiration is something that comes to us from outside us but it is also an internal physical process. To inspire is to breathe in. To be inspired is to be breathed into. For us, it is God who inspires us, who breathes into us, compelling us to live, do, or understand something.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYlrbna_D3GfHb4B7dXOtJUDL8riMDxe9Tik40V7kw1zK05pS1HqBj0U2NBybrJKXjpogcTpWgEsNoQnqntfzLP37iL2FCxZGCWjdjbPNjQIk1LCiLfSQSOBrIQA2ZLSP42Pzy32YM-L1oejBgzXvT2vLSMY99HEDW6QtWCOs9leML47_oKXtIDBk7/s574/Hand%20to%20heart.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="574" data-original-width="538" height="249" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYlrbna_D3GfHb4B7dXOtJUDL8riMDxe9Tik40V7kw1zK05pS1HqBj0U2NBybrJKXjpogcTpWgEsNoQnqntfzLP37iL2FCxZGCWjdjbPNjQIk1LCiLfSQSOBrIQA2ZLSP42Pzy32YM-L1oejBgzXvT2vLSMY99HEDW6QtWCOs9leML47_oKXtIDBk7/w233-h249/Hand%20to%20heart.png" width="233" /></a></div>In modern culture, the heart is the seat of love and compassion. For those in Jesus’ time and place, however, the heart was the center and seat of thoughts. It was also considered the location of the soul. In other words, it is the place in our bodies where heaven and earth intersect. <p></p><p></p><p>So when Jesus laments that the disciples on the road to Emmaus are slow of heart, he isn’t talking about them being slow to love, but slow to understand. So, he explains the Scriptures to them, beginning with Moses, interpreting everything everyone had said about the Messiah.</p><p>They still didn’t get it though, and it wasn’t because they were stupid or resistant. It was because it wasn’t time yet. They weren’t ready.</p><p>You see, it is God in Christ who acts to open our spiritual eyes and each of us is approached differently. Mary Magdalene’s moment of inspiration happened when Jesus spoke her name. Thomas was inspired when Jesus offered to let him touch his crucifixion wounds. God always meets us where we are and inspires us to move from unbelief to belief - in God's time.</p><p>When that happens we recognize and connect with God on a deep, interior level. In the midst of the beauty and glory of this personal connection, we experience a physical sensation, the first sign of the process of transformation happening within us and it happens in that physical spot in our bodies where heaven and earth intersect – in our hearts.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOcm1wkkqDB2Dg965itC0yTOhHXP5UUyDAir3Y3Q_4Ci0H98r_dQW7PDMcjPX-JbufBMM3YmGQaFZ4GjsjZugPOoWuY_RrcoiYUvAmpcvVizii5DUwIf_RBI_PJLlbRaInnGw4sEOrtw-5CkfFOBttJ2CG-xtBBVmR3cmCw3RFbLSILX1jFnjTdBXl/s500/Heart%20on%20fire%20pic.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="411" height="247" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOcm1wkkqDB2Dg965itC0yTOhHXP5UUyDAir3Y3Q_4Ci0H98r_dQW7PDMcjPX-JbufBMM3YmGQaFZ4GjsjZugPOoWuY_RrcoiYUvAmpcvVizii5DUwIf_RBI_PJLlbRaInnGw4sEOrtw-5CkfFOBttJ2CG-xtBBVmR3cmCw3RFbLSILX1jFnjTdBXl/w203-h247/Heart%20on%20fire%20pic.jpg" width="203" /></a></div>Our Scriptures, Old and New, show us that God has always done it this way. In Ezekiel, God says, “I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you.” (36:26). In Jeremiah: “I will put my law within them, and I will write it ton their hearts.’” (31:33) This is what the disciples were experiencing when they said, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he was opening the Scriptures to us?”<p></p><p>The heart is where we co-exist, co-abide with God. It is a physical and spiritual reality that is made available for us to strengthen at every sharing of the Holy Eucharist. In the holy food of communion, we become one with the ultimate community, the community of the Divine Trinity. Jesus, the 2nd person of the Trinity, abides in us as we abide in him, making us the current locations of the coexistence of the human and the divine on earth.</p><p>The world tends to dismember us, to cut us off from God and one other. When that happens, we experience heartache. We all know how it feels to physically droop and spiritually sag under the weight of the turmoil in our world. As the psalmist says so well, “...the cords of death entangle me, the grip of the grave took hold of me. I came to grief and sorrow.” </p><p>That’s been my experience watching the news this week. As I learned about Ralph Yarl, a bright, beautiful 16-year-old in Kansas City who rang the wrong doorbell and got shot for it and now struggles to live, and 20-year-old Kaylin Gillis, who was shot and killed when the car she was in went up the wrong driveway, I felt my heart break and my spirit sag. And these weren't the only innocent lives lost this week to guns.</p><p>Listening to the discussions about why some believe that everyone needs unlimited access to a gun and the legal right to “stand their ground,” my heart broke even more. How divided, how dismembered we have become.</p><p>God save us, I thought. Show us the way to go.</p><p>I’m grateful that preparing this sermon this week I was blessed to be reminded by the psalmist that God<br /> hears the voice of our supplication. It enabled me to repent from my sadness and distress and return to the Lord, putting my trust once again in God’s love and loving plan for us.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoUZsoaWw06pfnQChb3REyr10ujOfFSjVsTIZMJPKMqTejB5LJyOjaheAMz3TUj5toElicjnEz5hqkW6P4iJyhpQy1xUOEYG1eA3DGuq-Txqcj5MAKpwbkUikePSF3eUVttC7G0ip9aZzNa3KLddqcm47q2z-IXgAvK66ZVsfLnWLuQtEcCd-oILB0/s1461/Jesus%20falls%203rd%20time.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1031" data-original-width="1461" height="226" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoUZsoaWw06pfnQChb3REyr10ujOfFSjVsTIZMJPKMqTejB5LJyOjaheAMz3TUj5toElicjnEz5hqkW6P4iJyhpQy1xUOEYG1eA3DGuq-Txqcj5MAKpwbkUikePSF3eUVttC7G0ip9aZzNa3KLddqcm47q2z-IXgAvK66ZVsfLnWLuQtEcCd-oILB0/s320/Jesus%20falls%203rd%20time.png" width="320" /></a></div>Jesus knew this experience of worldly dismemberment too. He experienced it first-hand in Jerusalem when the shouts of “Hosanna “transformed into shouts of “Crucify him!” We watched as he physically drooped, falling three times as he carried his cross to Golgotha. We heard him spiritually sag as he cried out, “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani…. My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”<p></p><p>That’s why the risen Christ gave us a way to re-member ourselves, to put ourselves back together, to co-exist with God and one another in shalom. Every Sunday when we gather to worship, we intentionally breathe in the Spirit of God through our Scriptures, common prayers, and hymns of praise. We nourish and strengthen our souls with the holy food of Communion. Then we are made ready to breathe out the effects of this in our lives when we are dismissed at the end of our worship service to go in peace to love and serve the Lord.</p><p>If we don’t keep breathing it in, however, we can’t keep breathing it out. Coming to Sunday worship is not a duty (social or otherwise), and we don’t affect our eternal outcome by going or not going, but we do affect our present – understanding who we are, whose we are, and what our purpose is. </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyy-MD8ghCySB-yhEsnBZJToO4SehPs02hUwEe37xQdjwhLEBPhNhgQyyf7OTxWBQo68XMLF4aJ8stSvvUSMlmuEKQSq9bGtYOJTo9WRw5zX8mQHRRYd5e9FE5sUK9mzNcKAp_ejMOKIgQQcFBYWy6cH7dWaa1ZDqmxHsbZRxZjuOjwSxzgPx0fJSB/s240/Holy%20Communion%20for%20Pent%2013B.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="210" data-original-width="240" height="181" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyy-MD8ghCySB-yhEsnBZJToO4SehPs02hUwEe37xQdjwhLEBPhNhgQyyf7OTxWBQo68XMLF4aJ8stSvvUSMlmuEKQSq9bGtYOJTo9WRw5zX8mQHRRYd5e9FE5sUK9mzNcKAp_ejMOKIgQQcFBYWy6cH7dWaa1ZDqmxHsbZRxZjuOjwSxzgPx0fJSB/w207-h181/Holy%20Communion%20for%20Pent%2013B.jpg" width="207" /></a></div> Being present at the Holy Eucharist opens our spiritual eyes and strengthens us, individually and as a community, to be witnesses of the Good News and stewards of the many gifts God has given us.<p></p><p>Jesus is the one through whom all things are made. All things, all people, all time, all activities, all of creation, all resources– everything comes from God and belongs to God. We are not asked to guard God or hoard God’s gifts. We are called to scatter them far and wide, welcoming all people – all people – to live as part of one family: the family of God. </p><p>As Rabbi Lynn Gottlieb says in her book, She Who Dwells Within (Harper, San Francisco, 1995, 179), “Hospitality is the ability to give things away because one has replaced the idea of ownership with the idea of stewardship. A steward… equitably distributes that which is available… provides sanctuary and shelter, extends a warm welcome to her guest, and makes strangers feel at home.”</p><p>This is what church is meant to be, and do, and understand! And this hospitality is a gift Emmanuel has in abundance.</p><p>God is breathing life into us and we respond by living a Eucharistic life: a life of thanks and grace, a life that reflects our gratitude for all God has given us and demonstrates our commitment to using those gifts to serve God and all God’s people, welcoming and advocating for all suffering injustice or indignity, reconciling with all from whom we are divided or dismembered, and making them feel safe and at peace at our church home.</p><p>Let us pray… </p><p>Eternal Reality, Creator of all that is, Opener of our spiritual eyes, and Inspirer our hearts, we willingly share your grief and sorrow each time one of your children suffers or dies as a result of our worldly dismemberment. Re-member us, we pray, Adonai-Shalom, Lord of our Peace, then send us out to be bearers of your life-giving presence to all we encounter, until your world is made one in the unity of your love. We pray this in the name of our Redeemer, Jesus the Christ. Amen.</p>Rev. Dr. Valori Mulvey Shererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18097108657207202324noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2953930310550634937.post-77242431138268720682023-04-08T19:30:00.012-05:002023-04-08T19:30:00.230-05:00Easter, 2023-A: Set free to proclaim<p>Lectionary: Acts 10:34-43; Psalm 118:1-2, 14-24; Colossians 3:1-4; John 20:1-18</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/McGrem1aHYE" width="320" youtube-src-id="McGrem1aHYE"></iframe></div><p>In John’s gospel account of the resurrection, Mary Magdalene goes alone to the tomb to finish the burial preparations interrupted by the Passover and sees that the tomb is already open. Keeping to the custom of her culture, Mary does not enter the tomb, but runs back to fetch Peter and John, who is the disciple Jesus loved. Mary, whose spiritual eyes had not yet been opened to the truth of the resurrection, informs the men that Jesus’ body was not in the tomb, supposing out loud that someone must have stolen it.</p><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkj1FhfI_wroshFrWTd-nFDueRhG56vlIcEK0cKhD4vlZ0iL0JM4_7rxbAfEdDdibPQpIxZoBj10-HaiZuaT7fYQLh1kUqnNa3B0_iubMdayRGCbmssp7QKNgs46mKn6g25LQ04-0bJfxUjJ1eAhmU_0LJdYCmCovBc3SIlJwpV-Jd5aSpUnoHEHza/s480/blogger-image-290482403.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="360" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkj1FhfI_wroshFrWTd-nFDueRhG56vlIcEK0cKhD4vlZ0iL0JM4_7rxbAfEdDdibPQpIxZoBj10-HaiZuaT7fYQLh1kUqnNa3B0_iubMdayRGCbmssp7QKNgs46mKn6g25LQ04-0bJfxUjJ1eAhmU_0LJdYCmCovBc3SIlJwpV-Jd5aSpUnoHEHza/s320/blogger-image-290482403.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div>In our Bible study this week, we were pondering what Mary Magdalene might have been thinking in that moment – the great stone had been rolled away and someone had obviously been in the tomb… but they must not have been in a hurry because the burial linens were carefully placed here and there… anyway, who unwraps a dead body before stealing it? Suddenly, my watch Siri interrupted us saying, “I’m not sure I understand.” We broke up saying, neither do we, Siri. Neither do we.</div></div><div><br /></div><div>When John arrives at the tomb, he looks inside, but he too waits until Peter, who held the top rung in the hierarchical ladder, catches up. When the two men entered the tomb and stood in its emptiness, they believed what Mary Magdalene had told them: Jesus was missing.</div><div><br /></div><div>That’s a pretty radical statement for our Gospel writer to make considering that for them the testimony of women was considered unreliable. But Jesus made Mary’s testimony reliable.</div><div><br /></div><div>Seeing the empty tomb, the disciples could only guess at what was going on “for as yet they didn’t understand the Scripture that he must rise from the dead.” The author tells us that Peter and John simply went home.
Unable to leave the emptiness she didn’t quite understand, Mary Magdalene stayed outside the tomb weeping.</div><div><br /></div><div>Unable to overcome the cultural barrier that kept her as an outsider, Mary still doesn’t go inside the tomb. Instead, she bends over to look inside it. When she does, she sees two angels in white who ask her a simple question: “Woman, why are you weeping?”</div><div><br /></div><div>It’s helpful for us to remember that in those days men didn’t speak to women who weren't family. So, either the angels looked like women, or yet another barrier that impeded Mary’s call to be a witness to the Good News was brought down.</div><div><br /></div><div>Then Mary turns around and sees a man standing near her. Motivated by her deep grief, and still unable to “see” the truth of the resurrection, Mary speaks to the man and another culture barrier comes tumbling down - the one that forbids women to speak to men.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioPmqV-kNZ6HikQb1zRTp6i7Crubqt-TIbduqvOrnm-Rv1rIkjbleFP6ZldYq0qKS5hmy7_XnWOzDmZVUUFfnJ5WV70cTVvORtRKVUihVWf3_v4dnGNVrd1QcJfoNlEHRh8MB8PyuGINTcjl_Fo4hAq_j90DWMZc5FOKQ5CzewhlSQc7BjuD5A-d9R/s264/MM%20sees%20J.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="264" data-original-width="191" height="264" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioPmqV-kNZ6HikQb1zRTp6i7Crubqt-TIbduqvOrnm-Rv1rIkjbleFP6ZldYq0qKS5hmy7_XnWOzDmZVUUFfnJ5WV70cTVvORtRKVUihVWf3_v4dnGNVrd1QcJfoNlEHRh8MB8PyuGINTcjl_Fo4hAq_j90DWMZc5FOKQ5CzewhlSQc7BjuD5A-d9R/s1600/MM%20sees%20J.jpg" width="191" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div>"Sir," Mary says, if you have taken my Lord, please tell me where he is and “I’ll take him away.” Jesus replies by simply saying her name, “Mary,” and suddenly, her spiritual eyes are opened.</div><div><br /></div><div>As promised, those who belong to the Good Shepherd know his voice. Mary spins back around to “look” again and sees – truly sees - her risen Lord. The very breath of life in Mary sighs his name using a term of endearment in their native tongue: “Rabbouni!”</div><div><br /></div><div>In that moment, Mary’s understanding, along with her once broken heart, were made whole.</div><div><br /></div><div>Jesus, her beloved Rabbi, is now Jesus, the risen Lord. She sees with her eyes. She understands with her spirit… and she believes with her whole self! Now she is ready to be a witness to the truth, and Jesus tells Mary to go and tell the others.</div><div><br /></div><div>Our Easter experience today is spiritually the same as Mary Magdalene’s was that first Easter Day. We, like Mary, are called to go to the place where we will hear the Lord call our name, which opens our spiritual eyes. Then, we go when he sends us to tell everyone of the transforming Good News we know.</div><div><br /></div><div>When my now 17-year-old mini-dachshund wore a younger girl’s clothes, she had a litter of puppies. I remember watching as my tiny dog’s belly swelled with the hidden life forming inside her.</div><div><br /></div><div>My youngest child and I participated in the birth of those four new and precious lives. Then we watched as the puppies grew and formed into a community, a family, under the ever-vigilant and protective gaze of their mama-dog.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj43Z0lJnQ8bYGPPfC5rCuwbbywi8pmDwPMpvljzpCPoVIUcgHWZveRBzc8Ha7GLtxno3RKUKVwUtrB_yBxw6fGpDO9GIINXdZaEtBDTG_NMVo1x0OcP5KczK7YkOQ1m6BefYllZhg2BtwRxmwznt7g9TsATC6OOHVqn5KSPOf6N2ryZL2U6mV3U1z1/s1600/Sophia%20n%20pups.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj43Z0lJnQ8bYGPPfC5rCuwbbywi8pmDwPMpvljzpCPoVIUcgHWZveRBzc8Ha7GLtxno3RKUKVwUtrB_yBxw6fGpDO9GIINXdZaEtBDTG_NMVo1x0OcP5KczK7YkOQ1m6BefYllZhg2BtwRxmwznt7g9TsATC6OOHVqn5KSPOf6N2ryZL2U6mV3U1z1/s320/Sophia%20n%20pups.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><div>Soon, the puppies opened their eyes. They couldn’t see well at first, but little by little, experience and biology worked together, and their vision improved. And the better they could see, the more they began to explore, motivated by an endless curiosity, grounded in their sense of safety.</div><div><br /></div><div>One of the puppies was braver than the rest. Following some interior call, he would venture out farther and farther from the birthing-box, and the others would follow him.</div><div><br /></div><div>If one puppy got scared, he would stop where he was and let out a few cries. Either the Mama dog or another puppy would respond immediately by going up close, offering themselves as comfort to the one who was crying.</div><div><br /></div><div>It was truly inspiring for me to watch the puppies grow in the newness of life that happened for them once their eyes were opened. The connection to our Easter story is easy to see.</div><div><br /></div><div>After Mary Magdalene’s spiritual eyes were opened, Jesus cautions her to remember that her spiritual vision is young and still a little clouded. Don’t cling to me, he says to her. It isn’t about my returning to you, but about my returning you to God. So go and tell the others that “I am ascending to my father and your Father, to my God and your God.”</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWlAARXvZJeuMma4N9Zdg1V6XSbFzNmDrIUeQ2ObXs8zrppw6i4EWGF-p3X3WZUTqMpalkLr0fiVsDIscZX9oU-dk3Mj5v5scDw4eIndClXQI8scoSJcQT3AwE3ZKrBOo50rr7qCOVRE5ifm1I9Kk6QtXVxp9utqBYtGMvveapCHwcXFIUfxg1V9xy/s231/Resurrex.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="231" data-original-width="218" height="231" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWlAARXvZJeuMma4N9Zdg1V6XSbFzNmDrIUeQ2ObXs8zrppw6i4EWGF-p3X3WZUTqMpalkLr0fiVsDIscZX9oU-dk3Mj5v5scDw4eIndClXQI8scoSJcQT3AwE3ZKrBOo50rr7qCOVRE5ifm1I9Kk6QtXVxp9utqBYtGMvveapCHwcXFIUfxg1V9xy/s1600/Resurrex.jpg" width="218" /></a></div><br /><div>By sending Mary with this message, Jesus commissions her as the first resurrection apostle - an apostle is one who is sent on a mission. In doing so, Jesus finishes in his resurrection, what he started in his ministry: removing all of the barriers that oppress and hinder his chosen ones in their work as witnesses of the Good News.
We too have been commissioned as resurrection apostles by our Baptism. And it is in Jesus that we are made to be reliable witnesses.</div><div><br /></div><div>We too, have been set free from all that hinders us because Christ, who has been raised from the dead has brought us with him into resurrection life.</div><div><br /></div><div>But what does that mean? When we leave here today, what does it mean to live in resurrection life? It means living in community where we gather to hear Jesus call our name, opening ourselves to spiritual awakening over and over again, remembering that once God opens our spiritual eyes, we need some time to mature before our vision becomes clear, and we do that as a family of faith.</div><div><br /></div><div>As we learn and grow in our faith, we need our community around us. Not just for when we get scared, although that is important, but because with our friends nearby, we have the courage to explore beyond our comfortable boundaries to seek, find, and do the ministries God is calling us to do in this moment of our communal life. We learn together, confident that God is watching us vigilantly and protectively, ready to respond whenever we cry out.</div><div><br /></div><div>So let us be like Mary Magdalene, bold witnesses to the Good News we know, trusting that Jesus will bring down all cultural barriers in our way. I mean… here I stand.</div><div><br /></div><div>Let us proclaim to our trans and gay siblings the good news Peter first proclaimed that “God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him.”</div><div><br /></div><div>And let us preach “peace by Jesus Christ [who] is Lord of all…” In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus told us to put down our weapons or we would die by them. He was right, of course, and it’s a daily torment for us as our culture clings to its clouded understanding of this.</div><div><br /></div><div>Finally, let us get about our work of “doing good and healing all who [are] oppressed,” as Jesus showed us how to do on Maundy Thursday, commanding us to serve humbly, as servant-leaders of our faith.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOGgDRlFo4LGV4NfQIRTtEWzoaRcxT96qhVGgfj-V52Q5SsaoW7JtTTlRjBiqL4lu5o6GAXD94WYoEKBhiadD2a9N2fhBWua5lK2nen5KyE2FNh1tq6r2RNpHtSIVRsw6mx3xXLEU1yOPd7gvjuM5NveKg-c5tMGWaTmt1qz8Q970rQSwbUOdrdM3-/s407/Episcopal%20shield%20w%20words.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="407" data-original-width="407" height="277" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOGgDRlFo4LGV4NfQIRTtEWzoaRcxT96qhVGgfj-V52Q5SsaoW7JtTTlRjBiqL4lu5o6GAXD94WYoEKBhiadD2a9N2fhBWua5lK2nen5KyE2FNh1tq6r2RNpHtSIVRsw6mx3xXLEU1yOPd7gvjuM5NveKg-c5tMGWaTmt1qz8Q970rQSwbUOdrdM3-/w277-h277/Episcopal%20shield%20w%20words.jpg" width="277" /></a></div>It is our turn - right now - to “testify that everyone who believes in Jesus receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”</div><div><br /></div><div>For Episcopalians, being “saved” isn’t about keeping the right rules, or belonging to the right church, or having a culturally approved life-partner or gender identity.
Being saved, as Jesus said so often, is about believing… believing in him. We don’t have to understand to believe. Understanding comes with time and experience and is always limited to our tiny human capacity. God is so much more than any of us can imagine or understand.</div><div><br /></div><div>Here’s what matters: Jesus’ reconciliation of the world to God brings down all barriers that hinder our call to proclaim the Good News so that everyone can share the Easter reality, which we proclaim now together:
Alleluia! Christ is risen! The Lord is risen indeed! Alleluia!
</div>Rev. Dr. Valori Mulvey Shererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18097108657207202324noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2953930310550634937.post-69493286533662216392023-04-06T18:00:00.020-05:002023-04-06T18:00:00.323-05:00Maundy Thursday, 2023: Putting our lives where our beliefs are<p>Lectionary: Exodus 12:1-4, (5-10), 11-14; Psalm 116:1, 10-17; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26; John 13:1-17, 31b-35
</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/f2GEmgdHQjk" width="320" youtube-src-id="f2GEmgdHQjk"></iframe></div><div><br /></div>En el nombre del Dios que es Trinidad en unidad. Amen. <div><br /></div><div>Do this in remembrance of me.</div><div><br /></div><div>Did Jesus actually say those words which we repeat every Sunday in our Holy Eucharist? Maybe. Paul thinks he did. Whether he said them or not, Jesus’ own tradition was big on remembering, therefore, so is ours.</div><div><br /></div><div>It’s important for us to remember that ours is a Judeo-Christian tradition, one in which the grand love-story of God and God’s people begins with the Jewish people. That love narrative continues in them as Jews, and, thanks to Jesus, it continues in us too as Christians.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsGqiv2zq2Nuxm3OXgrwLD6_V7JJeyaBRu84HY8ZujcKP8HJ8rq1QkyWTYWVV517rcU5cJz0iskX_pmjGK_NoEkh9pPuxpywFOQoIVG-t8jv20SqrkPZLgFoL3Jo9mtiJ4BJ43nJcdSwpiIN9-nH3WBaLSOfCrZ4XoJ6XSSaTg0ozQZa4A57mhEm1f/s225/images-1.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="255" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsGqiv2zq2Nuxm3OXgrwLD6_V7JJeyaBRu84HY8ZujcKP8HJ8rq1QkyWTYWVV517rcU5cJz0iskX_pmjGK_NoEkh9pPuxpywFOQoIVG-t8jv20SqrkPZLgFoL3Jo9mtiJ4BJ43nJcdSwpiIN9-nH3WBaLSOfCrZ4XoJ6XSSaTg0ozQZa4A57mhEm1f/w255-h255/images-1.jpg" width="255" /></a></div></div><div>The revelation that we are God’s people and that our salvation is from God, came to us through the Jews and was always meant to reach all nations and all peoples, as Isaiah and other prophets proclaimed. This revelation was never meant to obliterate one group in favor of another. Just as parents can love more than one child, God loves all of the branches on God’s family tree.</div><div><br /></div><div>Priest and theologian, Verna Dozier once said, “The ancient Israelites were a people of cultic memory, and in song and story and liturgy they kept that memory fresh. It was their memory of special events that had shaped them… The memory included the interpretation of these events that… had a special place in God’s plan. ... [they] began with the big picture — faith in a God who acted on their behalf.”</div><div><br /></div><div>These forebears of our faith created a ritual designed to help the generations that follow remember God’s deliverance of the Israelites from slavery to freedom. Held in the Spring, the celebration of Passover signals rebirth and renewal. The seder meal, (seder meaning order) which begins the Passover celebration, unfolds in four parts marked by four cups of wine consumed during the meal which includes ritual actions like hand-washings, prayers, and hymns of praise. It’s very beautiful.</div><div><br /></div><div>The first part of the seder meal is the telling of the story (called the Haggadah), and it focuses on the children who are asked four questions, beginning with “What makes this night different from all other nights?” The question is meant to encourage the children to ask questions and spark their curiosity. This is how Jewish children are taught about their faith and their identity as children of God.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZAAnBxLONwxcenAAQsnfhuitZE01dWe_7XJS8KY-boxYAP-vl2dpgljcI0PU7AavhQx-YvsTrc8cIrpUDjswoD3CAGJnKSMObNhEgqrblhmbtDp5tZdL8zN3PaxQf1QeBIqCEyR-dd2S5Ojy_Oyw3qNni4QUZ046o3PWJBAMU6wiuGFwipm08kon2/s259/download.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="195" data-original-width="259" height="195" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZAAnBxLONwxcenAAQsnfhuitZE01dWe_7XJS8KY-boxYAP-vl2dpgljcI0PU7AavhQx-YvsTrc8cIrpUDjswoD3CAGJnKSMObNhEgqrblhmbtDp5tZdL8zN3PaxQf1QeBIqCEyR-dd2S5Ojy_Oyw3qNni4QUZ046o3PWJBAMU6wiuGFwipm08kon2/s1600/download.jpg" width="259" /></a></div>The second part is drinking the four cups of wine. Each of the cups represents how God has acted to save and is taken from the book of Exodus (6:6-7). These four acts are: “I will bring out," “I will deliver,” “I will redeem,” and “I will take” and they occur at specified moments in the meal.</div><div><br /></div><div>The third part is eating symbolic food. Roasted lamb symbolizing sacrifice, Matza referred to as poor persons bread together with parsley or other bitter greens that symbolize the bitterness of being enslaved. The greens are dipped into water that is salted, symbolizing the tears of the people enslaved by the powers of the world. There are many more and they are fascinating, so I encourage you to go to our website and read the teaching about this posted on our Christian Education page. There are also links to Jewish sites there. Passover is, after all, their holiday.</div><div><br /></div><div>The fourth part is about hope - trusting the freedom given to them by God and looking forward to the future God has planned for them. The Jewish people acknowledge that though we live in an imperfect world, the day will come when spiritual perfection is achieved. They repeat a familiar refrain for this hope: “Next year in Jerusalem.” </div><div><br /></div><div>It matters that we know this and that we, who are not Jewish, don’t appropriate this holiday. It’s enough for us to know how we are connected to it – and we are connected in a very significant way.</div><div><br /></div><div>Remember that I mentioned the four cups. Let’s look carefully at them. </div><div><br /></div><div>The first cup is the cup of SANCTIFICATION. God says: “I will bring you out.” To sanctify is to set someone or something apart as holy. The people of God are “chosen” by God. God will bring them out from their slavery so that they can serve God, not a human master.</div><div><br /></div><div>The second cup is the cup of DELIVERANCE. God says: “I will deliver.” Only God can save. We cannot save ourselves. The temptation most of us face is spending time and energy trying to do the right thing or to live the right way, in order to earn salvation. But that isn’t possible, because, as we know, salvation is a gift from God. We can’t and don’t earn it.</div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>The third cup is the cup of REDEMPTION. God says, “I will redeem.” In the Jewish tradition the word redemption also means “avenger of blood” and it is, by definition, a family member. This family member acts to set their kin free from slavery, paying a ransom, or great price for that freedom. The traditional image is of a father sacrificing his firstborn son for the freedom of his entire family. Sound familiar?</div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOoFZodd-ZbFqoeBIsIK6P9Ua-49JGQ0Kk7CzPUwCi92Oth2Jj3pqv4GyJtZiG6bL0stJwTalD6TR-IZhOZ75I4X13IXMUduhRdN7zKCkupzwezcC54ULDcjMkj33-_jtm1jheaREZO3x9RC4IW0gzYCPLX4fIQ4yO_f3ygoHW_u3Lf8qmZKN1WYi6/s281/Last%20Supper%20pic.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="180" data-original-width="281" height="206" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOoFZodd-ZbFqoeBIsIK6P9Ua-49JGQ0Kk7CzPUwCi92Oth2Jj3pqv4GyJtZiG6bL0stJwTalD6TR-IZhOZ75I4X13IXMUduhRdN7zKCkupzwezcC54ULDcjMkj33-_jtm1jheaREZO3x9RC4IW0gzYCPLX4fIQ4yO_f3ygoHW_u3Lf8qmZKN1WYi6/w321-h206/Last%20Supper%20pic.jpg" width="321" /></a></div></div><div>At dinner with his friends, Jesus claims himself to be this third cup. It is his blood, his life that will be given for the redemption of all by the forgiveness of sin. Because he is fully God and fully human, Jesus is the Father who pays the price, the Son who is the price, and the family for whom that price is paid.</div><div><br /></div><div>The fourth cup is the cup of HOPE... hope for the future. The Jews understood this to be the cup of Elijah, for whom an empty seat is kept at the seder table. The filling of that seat would signal the coming of the Messiah. Jewish theologian, Tim Hegg says that, for the Jews, “redemption guarantees the final destination, but the journey is still necessary.”</div><div><br /></div><div>The same is true for us as Christians. The Messiah has come so our final destination - reconciliation of the whole world to God in Christ - is guaranteed. This is not about where we go when we die but about how we live in the world. The journey is still necessary, and we participate in this journey by doing our part in the continuing reconciling work of Jesus until the whole world is reconciled to God.</div><div><br /></div><div>That brings us back to the mandate: to love and serve one another as Jesus loved and served us – with a towel around our waist, in humble service to all. “I have set you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you.”<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzaEpOYew3df64gSAS2Q5-zVrdWlI1IT5UHlDd8Z9idysooEsrddQ2KhyNnSaRiAl5tTToRJ5I2sNYjKDc9f4_oQZmMa3U-r1vzS_2dd4-xli05yMXPE-5L9hrUxleg2gRU6vFxzfdTunre0dWPdLCbUIoTIGbd5X9RlNv5vqMm7B6TM7Pn6JFvw5X/s1124/J%20washing%20feet.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="623" data-original-width="1124" height="177" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzaEpOYew3df64gSAS2Q5-zVrdWlI1IT5UHlDd8Z9idysooEsrddQ2KhyNnSaRiAl5tTToRJ5I2sNYjKDc9f4_oQZmMa3U-r1vzS_2dd4-xli05yMXPE-5L9hrUxleg2gRU6vFxzfdTunre0dWPdLCbUIoTIGbd5X9RlNv5vqMm7B6TM7Pn6JFvw5X/s320/J%20washing%20feet.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /></div><div>To make this crystal clear, Jesus put this new approach into the form of a commandment – a mandate (which is the root of the word ‘Maundy”): “Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another."</div><div><br /></div><div>Maundy Thursday reminds us to put our lives where our beliefs are and make manifest our commitment to be followers of Jesus Christ. As the church in the world today, it is our duty to live as servant leaders in the pattern and practice of Jesus. God grant us the will to put into action what we believe in our faith.</div><div><br /></div><div>I close with a prayer I wrote about servant leadership. Let us pray...</div><div><br /></div><div>Fill us, most merciful God, with the power of your Holy Spirit, and free us from any bonds that continue to restrict our freedom to fully love you, one another, and ourselves. Enter our dreams each night and show us your will for us as your church’s servant leaders in this time and place. Loosen our tongues to speak your truth. Strengthen our hearts to birth your love into reality no matter the cost; and make each of us to shine with the celestial light that is the mark of your saints in heaven and on earth; for the love of your Son, our savior, Jesus, the Christ. Amen. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Links to Jewish sites for their teaching on seder meals: </div><div><br /></div><div><a href="https://reformjudaism.org/jewish-holidays/passover/what-expect-passover-seder ">What to expect at a Passover seder</a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="https://www.chabad.org/holidays/passover/pesach_cdo/aid/1751/jewish/What-Is-a-Seder-Passover-Meal.htm">What Is a Seder-Passover Meal?</a></div><div><br /></div>Rev. Dr. Valori Mulvey Shererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18097108657207202324noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2953930310550634937.post-66721995464455806762023-03-19T07:30:00.013-05:002023-03-19T07:30:00.269-05:00Lent 4-A, 2023: Peace, assurance, Laetare!<p>Lectionary:1 Samuel 16:1-13; Psalm 23; Ephesians 5:8-14; John 9:1-41 </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/5eMqA2Fkeqo" width="320" youtube-src-id="5eMqA2Fkeqo"></iframe></div><br /><p>En el nombre del Dios: creador, redentor, y santificador. Amen. </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNji_DsH2ip4JcvtqSrpRAFOqKTT_BmOu9fgsmHG3LooCgSTc7h8dyo55MlTl1JYK2JKvz8OrFrZ2h9YZtQVyN7Jf3ykQ7S6l9yFe_S31_pgUM4bZddfgmybcsTBSytJhTZIFDYJjKKKNEXc1XEuVRXkLN39Ickl1F-4Y-qtAGb79x3lfz4ve2kdq5/s1266/Calm%20Laetare.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1266" data-original-width="1200" height="229" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNji_DsH2ip4JcvtqSrpRAFOqKTT_BmOu9fgsmHG3LooCgSTc7h8dyo55MlTl1JYK2JKvz8OrFrZ2h9YZtQVyN7Jf3ykQ7S6l9yFe_S31_pgUM4bZddfgmybcsTBSytJhTZIFDYJjKKKNEXc1XEuVRXkLN39Ickl1F-4Y-qtAGb79x3lfz4ve2kdq5/w217-h229/Calm%20Laetare.png" width="217" /></a></div>Today is Laetare Sunday. Laetare means “rejoice!” What do we rejoice during Lent? The answer is in our Scripture today.<p></p><p>In the Old Testament reading, we hear a call to wake up, to stop looking back at what was. I know you grieve the loss of it, God says to Samuel, but look, I am sending you a blessing, a leader who will bring you forward into the life I choose for you, a life of peace and abundance, a life so tenderly described for us in the 23rd Psalm.</p><p>When we listen prayerfully to this Psalm a deep calm begins to happen in us. Our breathing slows, our faces relax, the knots in our stomachs and chests release. We breathe in - filling ourselves with the grace of God, and we breathe out, releasing all our stress.</p><p>Now enveloped in divine peace, we notice that a beautiful table has been set for us, but not just for us. Also present are those who trouble us, but the divine peace within us keeps us from judging or questioning or excluding.</p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcAcYFcJphAAsKuWNxJ3xnnQV-cdjSCt-raQNAOJAEEZZACTvfxmDi-NlykTJUQU_ImF2ljNCDEVyXOIgE6winitUkOSElrcwzgci46P-lEp8qL-n3R1iIvdILZtHxxoKGA50X098LBZrDghSIKmq72stX_W1ii13QwjGFtX_hIEEuNJ2UxTnWr11A/s415/zsGiQNDK8g3Yck8ycncpFQ-415-80.jpg" style="clear: left; display: inline; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="332" data-original-width="415" height="237" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcAcYFcJphAAsKuWNxJ3xnnQV-cdjSCt-raQNAOJAEEZZACTvfxmDi-NlykTJUQU_ImF2ljNCDEVyXOIgE6winitUkOSElrcwzgci46P-lEp8qL-n3R1iIvdILZtHxxoKGA50X098LBZrDghSIKmq72stX_W1ii13QwjGFtX_hIEEuNJ2UxTnWr11A/w297-h237/zsGiQNDK8g3Yck8ycncpFQ-415-80.jpg" width="297" /></a>We sit together at tables covered in fresh, white linens. The flames of the candles on the tables dance in the soft breeze but never go out, and on the tables are vases of fragrant flowers and herbs.</p><p></p><p>Sumptuous food is in the center of each table; and there are goblets of water and wine, already full, at every seat. It’s a family meal where no one is left out of the conversation, and everyone has plenty to eat. Our cups are running over, and joy abounds.</p><p>Then, to prove just how much we matter, God anoints our heads with oil - something usually reserved for kings and queens. At that moment, when the oil touches our foreheads, we feel the power of God’s love enter us and course through our bodies like light breaking into darkness. The anointing reveals to us that we have been chosen by God to lead others to this gracious place where all are made one in the family of God.</p><p>This inclusiveness in the family of God is what Jesus is demonstrating in today’s gospel from John. The man born blind would have been judged by his village as cursed, his blindness from birth a punishment for sin. Jesus reframes this saying, yes, this man was born blind, but it is you who have judged him as sinful and unworthy, and you who have excluded him from your community. Wake up and see how through him the graciousness of God will be revealed.</p><p>Then combining the dust of the earth with the life-giving water of Christ’s own self, Jesus anoints the man and tells him to go and wash in the water called “Sent” (Siloam). As he does this, the man’s sight is restored.</p><p>By restoring his sight, Jesus also offers the man a whole new future. He has the potential for a job, a family, and to be restored to his community. His days as a vilified sinner are over - or are they?</p><p>The gospel story tells us that his community’s response to his restoration was yet more judgment. His community and their leadership doubted all of it, and eventually cast him out – again! Why? </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKsNLQgTDuLDbWaCRbWy6CjrOEhbrzMta1tpwxXVecDRsFPhP0Bw7tNiMFoJzG1CYG3pk9zprN_3uMOGbqTMel3gXcFPRBn6_Nlu3HKztwPj1w7vQ-pYPEzSvuZgWr5FA6QXBYHp4vOx7k73kWpNV1SrFRlrwSCIqIkq7B7DcljSL1NKX8Srw4pc9k/s252/fear%20qtd.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="164" data-original-width="252" height="164" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKsNLQgTDuLDbWaCRbWy6CjrOEhbrzMta1tpwxXVecDRsFPhP0Bw7tNiMFoJzG1CYG3pk9zprN_3uMOGbqTMel3gXcFPRBn6_Nlu3HKztwPj1w7vQ-pYPEzSvuZgWr5FA6QXBYHp4vOx7k73kWpNV1SrFRlrwSCIqIkq7B7DcljSL1NKX8Srw4pc9k/s1600/fear%20qtd.jpg" width="252" /></a></div></div>At our Bible study a wise parishioner mentioned fear, which reminded me of an old Jewish saying attributed to Rabbi Baal Shem Tov, the founder of Chassidic Judaism, who said: "Fear builds walls to bar the light."* The reason is, the light can be challenging because it reveals truth to us – God’s truth, not a truth we concoct to comfort and affirm ourselves.<p></p><p>There were plenty of stories floating around in that time about miraculous healings where a person's sight had been restored, but this healing is different because this man's sight was created. When Jesus made mud from the dust of the earth (think about Genesis here) and wiped it on the man's eyes, he was doing what only God can do - creating something out of nothing.</p><p>This event shook all who witnessed it to the very core of their beliefs. It took them beyond their small, certain concepts about God and salvation, and left them confused and fearful as they tried to work out the conundrum they faced: such a healing could only have happened by the power of God, so Jesus must be from God. But the healing happened on the Sabbath, which violates the law of Moses, which means Jesus is a sinner…</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpnW_juzfAC8F9x4hSpFRJykAAIPZVLOw01FgkTRKcxPkgdcEYK6C8xPZ4Im_8CK_qo1RMiTXQQiKteGvRahOnRWtL8-sLC2-18pgOhU_p2kxNSMoiQsJqZC-lcMTwrst-k27GOTUTzWqfoZgZeR49-TdoH9AvxfnDczAjFyhjN59aG8sR_4DUSIkU/s254/J%20heals.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="198" data-original-width="254" height="198" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpnW_juzfAC8F9x4hSpFRJykAAIPZVLOw01FgkTRKcxPkgdcEYK6C8xPZ4Im_8CK_qo1RMiTXQQiKteGvRahOnRWtL8-sLC2-18pgOhU_p2kxNSMoiQsJqZC-lcMTwrst-k27GOTUTzWqfoZgZeR49-TdoH9AvxfnDczAjFyhjN59aG8sR_4DUSIkU/s1600/J%20heals.jpg" width="254" /></a></div>The people eventually went to their religious leaders for an answer, but they also were unable to resolve the conundrum. Instead, the Pharisees shift their focus to reviling the man who was healed. He was, after all, a nobody, a beggar, whose blindness was a sure sign of his sinfulness. How dare this sinful nobody challenge the certainty of their beliefs! So, they drove him out. Problem solved. Except it wasn’t.<p></p><p>Hearing about the man's excommunication, Jesus finds him and asks him: Do you believe in the Son of Man? Probably unsure about any of his beliefs by then, the man asks for help from his healer: Tell me so that I may believe.</p><p>Jesus' response to him is so amazing: You (who were blind) have seen him… and the man gets it (spiritually and actually), crying out, Lord, I believe! Suddenly, the one whom the people unjustly excluded is graciously included by God.</p><p>The scary part of this story is that last bit, where Jesus proclaims a truth many of us don’t want to hear. For those who are ignorant of God, their blindness is not sin, but for those who profess belief in God, ignoring the way of God is sin. </p><p>Sin is not the bad things we do - those are the evidence of our sin. Sin is a state of separation from the wholeness of God which leads to disharmony with one another.</p><p>The blind man’s community judged him as unworthy, a sin later repeated by the Pharisees. Only God can judge, and God’s judgment is always yoked to God’s mercy. As is clear in this story, ours is not.</p><p>Breaking community, casting out members of the family of God, is also sin. This is what the Pharisees did by casting out the healed man who had been born blind. The Pharisees and all of us who have received the opportunity to “see” know better than to repeat those sins.</p><p>It’s no easier for us in our time, however, than it was for the Pharisees in their time. If you have ever unjustly judged someone or cast them out of your lives (in the absence of abuse), raise your hand… No don’t! It’s a rhetorical question!</p><p></p>I'd like to close with a story about fear, friendship, and faith. Once upon a time, a woman was on a hike<br /> with a group of friends. The place they planned to stop for lunch brought them across the crest of a small mountain peak. Just past the rocky crest, was a clearing where picnic tables allowed hikers to enjoy a magnificent view of the valley below.<p></p><p>As the woman stepped onto the crest, she looked up and saw a rock ledge jutting out into the sky. Suddenly, she lost her sense of where she was. There was nothing for her to hold onto, no wall to lean on, and she found herself paralyzed, confused, and very afraid.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkt_ZV3AxAqt9qL4vO1mABu_SXfJpNiMMF9LjgcDFCOHNaxC2Bc7GvvbEllOeff7qi9JQJqNJ-V9Uiw7nKHYxH3ssHgBgo3wtad8bDDMM_GMfvSDDJxeihBto3L40Rv4sRioZhu0qgHyFrgi318zEACKJGNHvJclId1vWJm_i4UqPBNGIMUVsmkRLn/s3264/mtn.JPG" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2448" data-original-width="3264" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkt_ZV3AxAqt9qL4vO1mABu_SXfJpNiMMF9LjgcDFCOHNaxC2Bc7GvvbEllOeff7qi9JQJqNJ-V9Uiw7nKHYxH3ssHgBgo3wtad8bDDMM_GMfvSDDJxeihBto3L40Rv4sRioZhu0qgHyFrgi318zEACKJGNHvJclId1vWJm_i4UqPBNGIMUVsmkRLn/s320/mtn.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>She truly believed that if she tried to take a step, she might fall off the edge of the mountain. Seeing her friend unable to move, another woman in the group took her hand, and spoke to her, gently reminding her to look down at her feet.<p></p><p>Seeing that her feet were safely on the ground, the woman breathed a sigh of relief. Her friend continued to speak to her, asking her to trust her as she led her across the crest to the other side where their lunch was waiting on the picnic tables.</p><p>She did. And she said no lunch ever tasted as good, and no vista ever looked as beautiful as that one did that day.</p><p>We are children of God and so, we have nothing to fear. God will always provide a hand to lead us and a voice to speak the words that will center and ground us. And God will always lead us to a peaceful place where a table is already set for us.</p><p>Then, having been fed, we are sent – because we have seen him, and we believe! As a community of faith, bound together by the love of God in Christ which lives in us, as we live in him, we are assured of God's promises of forgiveness of sin, abundant grace, and steadfast love, so we can move forward together with confidence into whatever future God is leads us to, today. </p><p>Laetare! Rejoice! Amen. </p><p>*Baal Shem Tov, Reprinted from A Treasury of Jewish Quotations, edited by Joseph L. Baron, Jason Aronson, Inc. </p><p></p>Rev. Dr. Valori Mulvey Shererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18097108657207202324noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2953930310550634937.post-35298493210008278542023-02-26T07:30:00.044-06:002023-02-26T07:30:00.270-06:00Lent 1-A, 2023: Led by the SpiritLectionary: Exodus 24:12-18, Psalm 99; 2 Peter 1:16-21; Matthew 17:1-9 <div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/b3FxhiZ4r1w" width="320" youtube-src-id="b3FxhiZ4r1w"></iframe></div><br /><div>En el nombre del Dios: que es Trinidad en unidad. Amen.</div><div><br /></div><div>Welcome to my favorite liturgical season! The deep, dark, transforming beauty of Lent is very simply this: learning and practicing being led by the Spirit to the Spirit.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi0BkdLIZl2WiMOrV2iUKAQW5s9AxIxgaRbmiWj1fKsi-3LHmy1vSyUrkYMwiBkOA12BZ3kWadxRb4Q9Hjpdwkx8H9o2TkO8x6Q9hpBAYkJr1ZsIiZ2sJA3EoBlbkWZdiwuBhrZmrpei96hFsfHa0ll_Ds7CsEaSkmckLGiYyDwBsVt0-1lszOBMx0W" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="183" data-original-width="275" height="171" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi0BkdLIZl2WiMOrV2iUKAQW5s9AxIxgaRbmiWj1fKsi-3LHmy1vSyUrkYMwiBkOA12BZ3kWadxRb4Q9Hjpdwkx8H9o2TkO8x6Q9hpBAYkJr1ZsIiZ2sJA3EoBlbkWZdiwuBhrZmrpei96hFsfHa0ll_Ds7CsEaSkmckLGiYyDwBsVt0-1lszOBMx0W=w259-h171" width="259" /></a></div>Matthew tells us that Jesus was tempted by the devil, diabolos, the disturber of our connection with God. This is <u>not</u> a red demon guy with a tail and pitchfork who is nearly equal in power to God and spends his time trying to trick believers away from God. In our discomfort over our own innate propensity for evil, we humans have projected that onto an outer character from whom we think we can disassociate.</div><div><br /></div><div>The diabolos, the disturber of our connection with God, can be within us, e.g., those inner voices that mollify our guilt as we justify our decision to sin. It can also be outside of us – as Peter was when Jesus had to tell him, “Get behind me Satan. You are a stumbling block to me; for you have your mind not on divine things but on human things.” (Mt 16:23)</div><div><br /></div><div>In his letter to the Romans, St. Paul says all people sin. How he explains that isn’t a shining theological moment for Paul, imho, but his point is well taken. We all sin, so how we understand sin matters. We simply must get beyond the childhood concept of sins being bad things we do and go behind those to what motivates us to do them. That is where we find our diabolos.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVkqRnLtYBnz7F9UJRVRbx3-Jbnn4MKaWzwT1Bf99qbQIPApFtekDOogc71wWs6LC49fNdadtt9E59ca173rVXwGTfChMTD2xem6iVor1fcfiAHnJFzLnvAN-pPmcsZSkF3noAmcNQtM6BfusUUZTrJHbX1uuJPmUz3ZW9Y-81PssqjNoSTsD2Fv3k/s530/John%20Chrysostom%20quote%20pic.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="527" data-original-width="530" height="248" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVkqRnLtYBnz7F9UJRVRbx3-Jbnn4MKaWzwT1Bf99qbQIPApFtekDOogc71wWs6LC49fNdadtt9E59ca173rVXwGTfChMTD2xem6iVor1fcfiAHnJFzLnvAN-pPmcsZSkF3noAmcNQtM6BfusUUZTrJHbX1uuJPmUz3ZW9Y-81PssqjNoSTsD2Fv3k/w250-h248/John%20Chrysostom%20quote%20pic.JPG" width="250" /></a></div>When we do that, we have the ability to see ourselves in truth and claim our salvation as the gift it is. As St. John Chrysostom once said, “Let no man mourn that he has fallen again and again, for forgiveness has risen from the grave.”</div><div><br /></div><div>It's important to note that in our gospel story, Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness. This is a story describing Jesus’ discernment. Was he ready and was the world ready for Jesus to begin his ministry in the world?</div><div><br /></div><div>This also may be the most comforting phrase in Scripture this season. God had a plan for Jesus just as God has a plan for each of us, and it is always a plan of love and redemption. God is leading us exactly where God was leading Jesus, not into temptation, but into a life transformed by our connection to the Spirit of God, a connection that will transform the world.</div><div><br /></div><div>The temptations are present because that is the human condition and because we have free will in our relationship with God. Will we choose to be led by the Spirit into an unknown, possibly painful moment trusting God’s loving plan for us and the world, or will we choose not to enter, remaining where we are? The choice is always ours to make.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgazawSXKCVeyEANfNgY-H-WHLvSdq9d6JPTVwo-7FrcFu7_B_7-bHEIXHMgu9y6m2PnjZU-jNC4ZcrsK2rcSx0ab1cC5Z3QALImdLAtAVidhTaKmpQudK5EIEH8A3so52oHRbSpVV3-T8Lm9Vgk9kK2uxJZfG00eeNJraK8do_0phJZKc9g9gGzaId/s255/Lent%20pic.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="198" data-original-width="255" height="177" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgazawSXKCVeyEANfNgY-H-WHLvSdq9d6JPTVwo-7FrcFu7_B_7-bHEIXHMgu9y6m2PnjZU-jNC4ZcrsK2rcSx0ab1cC5Z3QALImdLAtAVidhTaKmpQudK5EIEH8A3so52oHRbSpVV3-T8Lm9Vgk9kK2uxJZfG00eeNJraK8do_0phJZKc9g9gGzaId/w228-h177/Lent%20pic.jpg" width="228" /></a></div>When we choose to be led by the Spirit, we know that we will see the truth about our own fragility, mortality, and all the other things about ourselves we often work hard to ignore or deny. That’s why Lent is often experienced as painful and depressing – because we confront the truth that we’ve led ourselves to believe in a version of ourselves that is comfortable but isn’t the whole truth about us.</div><div><br /></div><div>Jesus opens that truth up in his three temptations: being self-centered, self-doubting, and self-serving. The one who came among us and gave up his whole self for us was as tempted as we are in his humanness. That’s why this story is so important because, by it, Jesus is showing us that as we face the temptations every human faces, the voice of God will speak to us from within as it did for him.</div><div><br /></div><div>Please notice that at no point in this story do we hear Jesus straining as he did in the Garden of Gethsemane. Jesus didn’t need to fight or resist the temptations he faced. He simply needed to hear and heed his inner voice, which is the divine voice, that revealed the way for him to go. Our purpose during this season is to learn to hear and heed that same divine voice within us.</div><div><br /></div><div>In the first temptation, Jesus had to confront his self-centeredness. His bodily hunger made him the center of his thoughts and attention. But the temptation of hunger goes beyond the stomach and into the soul.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYJ11e6AdcszRS1CQGFSzBeeTcfnOrmU63qURlzF6fTdaoCOoZSTKw9qBKof6BLjnev1QvXbGgUouXMOJXihpYeeb6IE6Z8dVVDEdjcwuePh4hrWsMhEgaT6-SMgFQHobILradLdJJ6KVJmgYHH8KS8jfXxvViEqL2nsk_Dgf__JDsdrMp8JcYLVwz/s310/hoarding.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="163" data-original-width="310" height="163" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYJ11e6AdcszRS1CQGFSzBeeTcfnOrmU63qURlzF6fTdaoCOoZSTKw9qBKof6BLjnev1QvXbGgUouXMOJXihpYeeb6IE6Z8dVVDEdjcwuePh4hrWsMhEgaT6-SMgFQHobILradLdJJ6KVJmgYHH8KS8jfXxvViEqL2nsk_Dgf__JDsdrMp8JcYLVwz/s1600/hoarding.jpg" width="310" /></a></div>Most of us know that some hungers can drive us to terrible decisions if we let them, hungers like the over-consumption of food, drink, or things that don’t satisfy… self-hate that projects out and does harm to others… fear that kills whatever threatens our sense of security – even when those threats are other people, innocent people. Trayvon Martin an unarmed, black teenager shot to death as he walked around his family’s neighborhood, and Breonna Taylor, a black woman asleep in her bed when police busted in and shot her, come to mind here… or the hunger to be important, noticed, or acclaimed.</div><div><br /></div><div>Which leads to the second temptation: self-doubt. Are we truly worthy of God’s love, mercy, and salvation? Do we need God to prove it on our terms or would we accept it on God’s terms – as a core truth about divine grace?</div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiamjikvLz5fvpx4RjLcXEvd1_O3WIEzDoEbZCSCs5IR1VusSSiXEGOmoUgf1sapap_GgMZswshEyuFqcVsw20HBkjG8cJj4SIUQ-dUVG3vDx1EFsDxhi1VjXnZsWNeDqn9TmrpeVNi0sGleXEaraocGXKqX78ivSBBC9aK7wk5UBdTM3ZrsaAA4oQO/s618/self%20importance.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="618" data-original-width="554" height="219" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiamjikvLz5fvpx4RjLcXEvd1_O3WIEzDoEbZCSCs5IR1VusSSiXEGOmoUgf1sapap_GgMZswshEyuFqcVsw20HBkjG8cJj4SIUQ-dUVG3vDx1EFsDxhi1VjXnZsWNeDqn9TmrpeVNi0sGleXEaraocGXKqX78ivSBBC9aK7wk5UBdTM3ZrsaAA4oQO/w196-h219/self%20importance.png" width="196" /></a></div><br /></div><div>With self-doubt, there is always the conjunctional temptation of self-importance. Wasn’t Jesus so important that all of heaven and earth would tend to him if he wanted it? For us, this is a classic story of the temptation of privilege. Jesus could have stopped the whole wilderness thing with a word, a divine word, but that would have made him the object of the salvation he came to bring.</div><br /><div>Which leads to the third temptation: being self-serving. Jesus, the Christ, didn’t come among us as a King or military power like David. He came as a baby and served as an itinerant preacher whose ministry was by all earthly measures, a failure, as he ended up accused of sedition, tried, and executed. That’s because his ministry wasn’t about him or his success but about us and our successful connection with God. His was the quintessential ministry of servant leadership that we all strive to emulate today.</div><div><br /></div><div>So, how does all of this relate to our temptations, our ministry in the world, and our Lenten experience?</div><div><br /></div><div>Jesus was led by the Spirit. So must we be. Jesus was tempted. So will we be. The Spirit led Jesus through temptation, not into it, staying with him and speaking to him all along the way.</div><div><br /></div><div>In the moment of his temptation, Jesus didn’t fight or exert his human or divine will to get through. He simply allowed the words of God to happen within him and show him the way to go. Likewise, our goal in Lent is not to exert our will but to relinquish it, to let go and be led by the Spirit to the Spirit.</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGJzMN5GUb-FxYb1R6iuHiB6jSg2hDxnSuNlsO4epMdFMyxuPmRpAOn2xG2AOq0mIarodK_Cw6mWGAC0YAkNt1LeK-bHN6v64KnwYqGFNkuFJURoYx32lyO8N7zINz3mkZvONGU3wc14XYJiyjD59USbrqQQ0_Jo-k8QhztFa_-tCJTMneBBFqWMhn/s1531/Xn%20Forma%20Lent%20pic.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1234" data-original-width="1531" height="258" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGJzMN5GUb-FxYb1R6iuHiB6jSg2hDxnSuNlsO4epMdFMyxuPmRpAOn2xG2AOq0mIarodK_Cw6mWGAC0YAkNt1LeK-bHN6v64KnwYqGFNkuFJURoYx32lyO8N7zINz3mkZvONGU3wc14XYJiyjD59USbrqQQ0_Jo-k8QhztFa_-tCJTMneBBFqWMhn/s320/Xn%20Forma%20Lent%20pic.png" width="320" /></a></div>With each temptation, Jesus “heard” a Scriptural quote come into his mind. When we confront the temptations in our lives, we too will hear the words of God come into our minds. Of course, that means we must be spending time in worship and Christian Formation, learning the words of God, the character of God, and the way of God, so that when the inner conflict happens, our preparation can bear this same fruit in us.</div><div><br />The season of Lent invites us to learn and practice being led by the Spirit to the Spirit. May we choose to go on a deep, dark, transforming, journey into ourselves, knowing that we will find God there already loving us, offering to guide, comfort, and make us ready to serve the world in Jesus’ name. Amen.
</div>Rev. Dr. Valori Mulvey Shererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18097108657207202324noreply@blogger.com0