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The Power to Serve

1/31/2018

Jonah 3:1-5, 10; Mark 1:21-28

Last week the Pastor Nominating Committee of Union Church faithfully, diligently and successfully brought for a candidate to serve as Union Church’s next installed pastor. Ironically, I came across another Pastoral Search Report that didn’t go so well. Here were some of leaked comments about potential candidates from their confidential report:

Moses: A modest and meek man, but poor communicator, even stuttering at times. Sometimes blows his stack and acts rashly. Some say he left an earlier church over a murder charge.
Solomon: Great preacher but our manse would never hold all those wives.
Peter: Known to have a bad temper—even has been known to curse. Aggressive, and a loose cannon.
Paul: Powerful CEO type leader and fascinating preacher. However, short on tact, and has been known to preach all night.
Jesus: Has had popular times, but once when his church grew to 5000 he managed to offend them all and this church dwindled down to twelve people. Seldom stays in one place very long. And, of course, he’s single.
Judas: His references are solid. A steady plodder. Conservative. Good connections. Knows how to handle money. We’re inviting him to preach this Sunday. Possibilities here.

It isn’t easy to discern God’s call, especially when it comes to pastoral leadership. Because of this, the Presbyterian church insists on a process of interim ministry. Therefore, today is a momentous day. We celebrate that Union Church has successfully completed this journey of transition. This congregation has navigated the waters well. The gut-wrenching process of selling the educational building two blocks down on Ridge Blvd., the church’s home to the arts, support and educational groups signaled the beginning of a new era.
Yet Union has carried that history forward in new and caring ways. You have created a new life and projects in this sanctuary building. Through the mission review process this congregation has discovered a deep yearning to be rooted and engaged with the people and the issues of this community. New leaders have stepped forward. You have remained faithful to the mission offerings of the presbytery and the denomination at large, as well as our sister churches and neighboring agencies. You are ready to move on eager to move on, with a pastor whom God has sent. Well done.
It hasn’t been an easy journey, but then journeys worth their while have their ups and downs, their highs and lows. Being a small church with a heart for big mission has created some frustration. We’ve tried projects that haven’t worked. Remember name tags? We have seen the frustration of having numerous families, then see many of those families move away for job opportunities, family issues or because the rents have skyrocketed in Bay Ridge. For me, one of the saddest days was when the children sermon was no longer necessary. However, I am confident that time will come around once more. The seeds have been planted. You will grow with abundance.
Be encouraged by our readings today. In the gospel lesson we heard about Jesus ministering with great authority, willing to break the rules to heal on the sabbath. He was judged harshly by religious leadership for this. We heard how Jonah answered the call from God, even after fleeing, facing the storms, struggling in the belly of the whale. Despite his reluctance, Jonah recommitted himself to God’s mission to save Nineveh. Follow their footsteps. Don’t be afraid to struggle, to step outside the box.
Take all this as a sign of hope. The scriptures say, continue to do what you have done so well: embrace the risk. Follow the call even when you have doubts. Be willing to seek the solution from new viewing points. Claim your power to serve.
Our paths will go separate ways, but I will not forget you. I felt your love in times of growth, in spiritual plateaus, in illness and the times of great creativity we shared together. I will always love you and pray for you. You have a place in my heart that will never diminish. You have made me a better minister, and I will always, always treasure that.
Union Church: go forth with a renewed sense of call developed over these past six years. Own your power to serve. Do not be afraid to be amazing as you truly are. Claim your new authority. May the knowledge of your love, mission and teaching spread throughout Bay Ridge and wherever God leads you, giving glory to God. Amen.

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Under the Fig Tree

1/16/2018

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1 Samuel 3:1-10, John 1:43-51

A long time ago, an ancient rabbi asked his pupils how they could tell when the night had ended, and the dawn was breaking.
“could it be,” asked one student, “when you can see an animal in the distance and tell whether it’s a sheep or a dog?”
“No,” answered the rabbi.
   “Could it be” asked another, “when you look at a tree in the distance and tell whether it’s a fig tree or a peach tree?”
“No,” said the Rabbi.
“well, then, what is it?” his young pupils demanded.
“The coming of day is when you look on the face of any woman or man and see that she or he is your sister or brother. Because for as long as you cannot do this, no matter what time of day it is, it is always night.”

  Today we learn that the task of the spiritual disciple is two-fold. The first task is to discern the face, or hear the voice, of God in the midst of surrounding darkness. The second, is, through the presence of God in the darkness, we come to recognize in the stranger one’s own brother or sister. In our Old Testament lesson, we saw how God calls the boy Samuel, in the middle of the night four times, and how he comes to recognize the voice of the Lord with the help of Eli the Priest. In the gospels, the disciple Nathaniel came to recognize Jesus through the darkness of ignorance around him, through the fog of misconceptions, that keep him from recognizing Jesus son of Joseph, from Nazareth.

Now Jesus saw Nathaniel from a distance, under a fig tree. Nathaniel will forever be famous for his incredulous remark, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Nazareth, a despised, unremarkable town in Galilee-a province of a mixed population of Jews and Gentiles. How could the messiah, the divine teacher, be found there? Nathaniel thought like a traditional Jew of his time. His thinking was shrouded in a spiritual darkness that only Jesus could overturn. Jesus does this. Jesus responds generously to Nathaniel in dialogue. Nathaniel, in conversation with Jesus, comes to understand Jesus as Rabbi, the Son of God, and the King of Israel. Nathaniel began to know the messiah from under the fig tree.

        The fig tree was one of the first plants to be named in the Bible – remember the story in Genesis, how the leaves of the fig tree covered the nakedness of Adam and Eve? The fig tree was useful in other ways and sacred in many religions. The Bodhi tree, under which the Buddha found enlightenment, was a very old fig tree.   Moslems call the fig tree the “tree of Heaven” because the prophet Mohammed solemnly swore by it, saying by fig and the olive, it says in the Koran. The fig tree was even sacred to the Greeks, Romans and Egyptians.

        If we were to look at figs the way the ancients did, we would observe an inwardly blossoming flower. The blossoming of figs conveyed the human going through internal ‘blossoming’ during a time of self-reflection. Prophets throughout time have noticed this unique trait about figs, and often used its traits as an analogy to teach the importance about contemplation, meditation, self-reflection and inner growth.

For the Jewish people therefore, the fig tree was a common place of study and prayer. Under the shade of the fig tree, one could pray, contemplate and seek God. No doubt Nathaniel, under the fig tree, recalled how in Jewish tradition the fig tree was a comprehensive symbol of security, God’s power and blessing, economic prosperity, political stability and peace.

Under the fig tree, no doubt Nathaniel recalled how the reign of King Solomon was described (1 Kings 4:25) “During Solomon’s lifetime Judah and Israel, from Dan to Beersheba, lived in safety, each man under his own vine and fig tree.”

Under the fig tree Nathaniel recalled the promise of healing and hope from Zechariah “I will remove the sin of this land in a single say. In that day each of you will invite his neighbor to sit under his vine and fig tree, declares the Lord Almighty.” (Zechariah 3:10).

Nathaniel, reflecting under that fig tree, remembered the prophet Micah, who reassured the people”….they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree and no one shall make them afraid.”(Micah 4:4).

So, Nathaniel sat under a fig tree. Seeking what we all seek. Respite from the trials of life. Peace in our frazzled, confused days. Protection from that which threatens us. A sense of prosperity—that somehow, our life has meaning, a sense of spiritual abundance, stability. We seek energy to continue our journey, because we know at times it is long and arduous. We long for that Holy Spirit – to hear our name called, to encounter that or the One who opens our eyes... who pulls us up and out of our pettiness, up out of our judgmental nature. Somehow who guides us to see a brother or sister in the eyes of a stranger or even an enemy, so we can dispel the night that clings to us so tenaciously.

Under the fig tree we pray. That God will call us by name and change us into something better, something more decent and caring.

Tomorrow, as a nation, we honor the life and witness of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., one the greatest prophets God raised up in the 20th century – and who was murdered 50 years ago this April. While many remember him as a leader and catalyst of the civil rights movement in the United states, his work was broader. He grounded all he did in his faith in God. He fought for economic justice, working on behalf of the poor. He died fighting on behalf of sanitation workers in Memphis, TN, as part of the Poor People’s Campaign – a movement that has been rekindled in our country last month by our nation’s religious leaders. Furthermore, Dr. King called for peace and an end to the Vietnam War.

        How did he do it all? He did it all because Dr. King had his fig tree to turn to. He referred to the fig tree in his speeches, like the one he gave at Oslo in 1964 where he accepted the Nobel Peace Prize. Rev. King reclaimed the potent image of the fig tree and all it stands for in scripture: He said:

“….I believe that what self-centered men have torn down, men other-centered can build up. I still believe that one-day …the lion and the lamb shall lie down together and every man shall sit under his own vine and fig tree and none shall be afraid.’ I still believe that we shall overcome.” [Where do we go from here? Peace prize acceptance speech in 1964]

   Dr. King claimed the image of the fig tree, that image of a place of prayer, enlightenment, safety and abundance as a place for all peoples.

    Dr. King had many fig tree moments to get him through. For example, in January 1956, during the Montgomery bus boycott, Dr. King received a threatening phone call late at night. He couldn’t sleep. He went to his kitchen and took his problem to God. He sat under his fig tree. He was at a breaking point of exhaustion and about to give up. He spoke to God. At some moment, he experienced the Divine and “could hear the quiet assurance of an inner voice, saying, “stand up for righteousness, stand up for truth. God will be at your side forever.” His fears and uncertainty ceased because God spoke and gave him “inner calm.” God called him by name in the middle of the night. God found him at the fig tree and gave him strength and knowledge to respond to the injustice that threatened him, his family, his community.

Today we come as disciples, seeking to find dawn in the presence of darkness. We listen in the night like Samuel, for God’s summons. We sit, today, like Nathaniel, under the fig tree to pray, to find Jesus in the most unexpected of places – the Nazareths in our hearts. That place in ourselves we least expect to find God. The places least distinguished, where we are most judgmental – Glory to God, Jesus find us there.

There, under the fig tree, with those moments of desperate prayer, uncertainty, of endless reflection, There, we find ourselves called by God, and we learn to proclaim Jesus as “Divine Rabbi, Son of God! the King of Israel!”

We rest assured that all prophets, all people of faith, have faced the darkness. We acknowledge, as the ancient rabbi reminds us, that we are surrounded by darkness in the middle of the day, a darkness cast by the shadows of the ignorance of our mind.

It is then, that like Dr. King, we turn to the fig tree. To pray. To face the confusion. The sorrow. The Fear. There, under the fig tree, we pour out our hearts. We hear the voice of Jesus, who tells us, like he once old Dr. King, to stand up for righteousness and truth, with the knowledge That that God is forever at our side. And when in our neighbor, in the stranger, in the estranged, in all we mistakenly called different-- we see as our brothers and sisters, we will discover, light, light that darkness can never overtake, has finally come. Thanks be to God.
https://painlesseats.wordpress.com/2016/01/04/figs-are-significant-in-religion-ancient-culture-mythology/

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By Another Road

1/8/2018

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Isaiah 60:1-9; Matthew 2:1-12

Happy New Year! Christmas trees may be slowly coming down, decorations put away or in disarray, cookies reduced to crumbs and diets begun, but the Christmas season did not officially end until yesterday, with the celebration of Epiphany. Epiphany comes on the 12th day after Christmas, and brings us the story of the visit of the magi to the child Jesus. I think it’s worth to extend the season one more day to lift up what has been once considered one of the greatest feast days of the Christian calendar.

Epiphany, which means revelation, lifts up the journey of those mysterious figures, the magi, and been popularly known throughout history as wise men, astrologers, court officials, even three kings, as the well-known hymn, “We Three Kings of Orient Are” immortalizes. Our experience of Christmas is not complete until we explore the visit of the three kings, the consequences of that visit to the child Jesus on ultimately for us. In their story lie the challenges and clues for how we are to move forward from Christmas into our New Year, 2018. For we, like the magi, are called to a people of the journey, a people bearing gifts, a people bringing truth to power, a people who face crisis with faith, a people who discover joy in worship; a people whose trek draws them close to God, the creator of that bright shining star and the whisperer of dreams.
The gospel of Matthew records part of the birth story of Jesus. However, if we study Matthew closely, we see that a crisis of faith bookmarks the birth of Jesus. It is in facing these crises of faith that we discover what epiphany, or the revelation of the birth of Jesus Christ, means for our lives.

So, today we need to take a big step back to see the overview of the entire birth story in Matthew. At the beginning we recall the impact on Joseph, husband of Mary, when he first hears the news of Mary’s pregnancy. Engaged, but not yet living together as husband and wife, Joseph learns Mary is carrying a child not his own. This knowledge sends Joseph into a crisis of faith. What betrothed man wouldn’t be stunned, filled with pain? The Gospel tells us that Joseph plans to call off the marriage, divorce her quietly, and send her away. For a man raised in a traditional patriarchal culture, Mary’s unexpected pregnancy struck at the heart of what Joseph knew to be his honor as a man, as a Jew, a husband and father. He even could have had Mary killed – and Jesus, the promise, along with her. The text says he had resolved or reflected to divorce Mary – the core root of this word, is anger, wrath, indignation, or rage. Joseph was hurting. Still, he didn’t want to harm her, so he went about to fix things quietly.

Through a dream an angel appears to Joseph – Joseph, son of David – the angel says, pointing out his lineage back to the greatest king of Israel. Do not be afraid. Joseph discovers he must humbly put aside everything his cultural and religious upbringing has taught him. He must trust in this angelic message. We have no words from Joseph. Just his actions. After the angel’s words, Joseph takes Mary as his wife, and names the baby, Jesus, as he the angel instructed, when he was born. The crisis is averted by the leap of faith Joseph takes. Perhaps not understanding, but accepting, he becomes the foster father of Jesus.

But Joseph’s is not the only crisis of faith in the great Christmas story. Today we also hear of one person who does not receive the news of Jesus’ birth with joy, wonder or curiosity: King Herod. Matthew tells us that the journey of the magi takes them straight to Jerusalem, to the very palace of King Herod. They are in the final stage of their journey less than 10 miles away from Bethlehem.   They have come as far as they could with the guidance of the star and now they need help. Of all people they should end up consulting, it is King Herod. Herod: known for his paranoia, sociopathy and cruelty. He is called a “murderous old man” in ancient texts. So, before this notoriously jealous, bloodthirsty King appear these exotic foreigners and their unusual request: “Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage.”

        Herod is alarmed. In fact, the text says he becomes frightened. He summons all the chief priests and Jewish leaders who are also stirred up. They experience an agitation of the soul with a word that John uses to describe Jesus’ state of mind the night before his death. Profoundly agitated. Deeply upset.

How is it that the news of a birth can threaten them so? It incites a crisis – right to the top echelon of leadership in Jerusalem. Theirs is a crisis of faith that this new upstart will remove them from power and challenge their way of life.     Herod meets with the magi and gets them to tell him when the star first appeared. He instructs them to return to him afterwards, so that he too might pay him homage. It is not homage on Herod’s mind but homicide.

        Herod’s crisis of faith is similar in some ways to Joseph’s.   The birth of Jesus threatens to disrupt the proper order of things; how power and privilege are supposed to work. Joseph has to accept and love a child not his own progeny. Herod is faced with an up and coming ruler not of his own choosing and not within his power to manipulate – someone who might supplant him on the throne. Unlike Joseph who was open to dreams and the advice of angels, Herod closes down, gives in to fear. When the magi don’t send word back to Herod, he reveals his hand and resorts to murder of the male children under two in Bethlehem; forcing Joseph and Mary to take Jesus and flee with Jesus to Egypt. They become refugees while the children left behind in Bethlehem are slaughtered.

        So, two crises of faith. Both rooted in turmoil and suspicion. The first resolved with faith and hope. The second resolved in fear and death.

        In the midst of all the crisis of faith of Jesus’ birth, we encounter the magi. Was there a crisis of faith for them when they saw that star in the sky?   We do know that they represented the learned, the scholars of the east. They were members of the priestly class of ancient Persia, given to the study of the esoteric; adept at dream interpretation and divination. It would have been very easy for these magi to dismiss this star as having no relevance for them. They could have stay home, safe and sound. Yet they didn’t. They traveled a journey some say of up to 1,500 miles. It was a long journey. It took months if not years. These Magi had their own epiphany. They had an inkling of something much greater than humankind has experienced before was happening – of the Divine not limited by national or cultural boundaries; a God who would draw all diverse peoples together in a bond of love.

        This was the epiphany of the magi. The epiphany that inspired of Joseph. The epiphany that threatened Herod. The kind of epiphany we need today.

        So, our Christmas story begins and ends with a crisis of faith. We must ask ourselves: have we been confused or shaken to the core by the birth of Jesus? Has our encounter with the Christ Child upended our world? Have we rediscovered that we have gifts to offer that we never knew of? That our in-the-rut routines can be replaced by irrepressible joy?

Epiphany us: can we believe we are loved so much, that we mean so much to God? Can we believe we can love so much – so powerfully -- to give so much of ourselves to make this love alive in the world?   What does the love of Christ expose in us about how we live our lives? The passage would lead up to the crisis of faith that keeps us from embracing the light of Christ.   So what we must discern for ourselves is that as we leave the Christmas season, have we been changed? Has our faith deepened by the encounter with Jesus? Has it been the same old, same old, or has our faith been shaken to the core by the nativity of Jesus Christ?

        Epiphany awakens the crisis of faith. We can let the teachings of Jesus – the love of Jesus -- shine a light on how we live. Can we struggle like Joseph and take the great leap of faith to let Jesus be the center of our lives? Can we emulate the magi – who begin an unknown journey beckoned by a star, be gift bearers, joy-filled as a result of the process of seeking Jesus?

So, the question for all of us today is: will we leave Christmas a different people? The magi did return home but they took a different road. The encounter with Jesus had so transformed them that they took a different road, as a way to turn their back on King Herod. They chose Jesus instead. So as the Christmas winds down, we are asked, what evils do we need to turn our back to? What fears do we need to let go of?

        This is what Epiphany would have us do. Choose Jesus. The Jesus who leads us by faith into foreign places. The unknown terrain of our hearts we never knew existed. The light of Epiphany that challenges our way of thinking and living. Like Herod and Joseph, we might find our lives turned upside down. This may cause fear. Or anger. Like Joseph, we might be tempted to walk away. Like Herod, we may want to strike back. But like the Magi, we might just embrace the journey to discover a new place, new people, who teach us to worship in new ways and upon us wellsprings of joy in our heart.

Whatever the challenge may be or what crisis manifests, the light of Epiphany leads us away from fear into a faith that transforms us. A faith that trusts the journey. A faith that faces evil but turns away from it. A faith that bears gifts. A faith that finds the divine in the most ordinary. A faith that worships. A faith that finds joy. A faith that goes home changed, discovering that there are many ways to find home in this world.

journey. Let every challenge, crisis and opportunity expose the fear and overcome it. May we find ourselves moving deeper to faith. May we discover joyful service. This year, may we know more deeply the love manifested in Christ Jesus – The light of the World. May that Epiphany Star shine brightly this whole year long – as we travel home by a different road – may it be a road of faith, enlightenment and joy throughout 2018. Amen.

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The Power to Serve

Under the Fig Tree

By Another Road

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