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Temptation!

3/11/2025

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Romans 10:8-13; Luke 4: 1-13,
 
In The Beginning, God created the Heaven and the Earth. And the Earth was without form, and void, and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And so God created the human being in God’s own image and likeness.
And God said, “this is good.”

      And God looked upon the human ones called Adam and Eve and saw that they were lean and fit. And God populated the earth with broccoli, cauliflower, spinach, green and yellow vegetables of all kinds, so that Adam and Eve would live long and healthy lives.  And so, the Devil created McDonald's. And McDonald's brought forth the 99-cent double cheeseburger. And the Devil said to the Adam and Eve, "You want fries with that?" And Adam and Eve said, "Super-size It!." And Adam and Eve gained 5 pounds.

God said, "Hey, try my crispy fresh salad." And the Devil brought forth Ben and Jerry's and Krispy Kreme.  And the Devil said, “you want hot fudge with that?” And Adam and Eve gained 10 pounds.  And God said, "Why doth thou eatest thus? I have sent thee heart-healthy vegetables and olive oil with which to cook them."  But the Devil brought forth chicken fried steak so big it needed its own platter. And Adam and Eve’s bad cholesterol went through the roof.

        And so God brought forth running shoes so that his children might lose those extra pounds.  Then the Devil brought forth cable TV with remote control so Adam and Eve would not have to toil to change channels.  Adam and Eve gained another 20 pounds.

And so, God brought forth the potato, a vegetable naturally low in fat and brimming with nutrition.  The Devil peeled off the healthful skin and sliced the starchy center into chips and deep-fat fried them. The Devil added sour cream dip.  Adam and Eve clutched the remote control and ate the potato chips swaddled in bad cholesterol. And the Devil saw and said, "This is good."

       Adam and Eve went into cardiac arrest. God sighed and created quadruple bypass surgery.  The Devil then created the for-profit health insurance company (you can fill in the blanks!)
Since the story of the Fall of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, temptation has been a constant, unrelenting part of human life.   Today in our gospel from Luke we find Jesus, himself encountering temptation in the wilderness. 

After fasting for 40 days Jesus encounters   the Tempter.  The devil comes across sympathetic to Jesus’ plight.  He wants to appease Jesus’ hunger by turning stone into bread. Who’s going to miss one measly stone? Next the devil promises all the kingdoms of the world and all earthly power and glory if Jesus would just worship him. Just one time.  Wouldn’t that make Jesus’ work go more smoothly to have world-wide dominion? Finally, the devil tries to coax Jesus to leap from the pinnacle in the Temple in Jerusalem - because the angels will catch him.  That’s a neat parlor trick to show off his Son of God superpowers. Won’t that make it easier to convince people to follow him?  The devil is so suave and convincing.  Ultimately the devil fails and slinks away, waiting for another opportune time to tempt Jesus – and us.

It’s not surprising this passage appears on the first Sunday in Lent.   It is customary among many Christians to give up something or add some practice to our lives as part of our Lenten observation.  Giving up candy. Coffee. TV. Helping out weekly at a soup kitchen.  coming more frequently to worship on Sundays or Lenten activities during the week. Anyone here familiar with these practices?   In the practices of Lent we discover that making changes isn’t easy. We learn how weak we are, how hard it is, how much help we need.  Because we are tempted - To eat that piece of candy.   To stay home and lounge in front of the TV.  To ignore the plight of the homeless, the lonely, the exploited. Whatever it is - the Tempter knows our weak points better than we do and is eager and waiting to exploit them.

I had a professor once who was a consultant on the movie, “The Exorcist.”   We called him the Devil expert – the “devil whisperer.”  His insight on Evil is that, actually, the devil prefers to tempt us subtly, quietly, almost without us even realizing. We think the devil’s goal is to break our promises or even to do something wrong – but that’s even not the real goal. The Tempter’s ambition is for us to feel badly about ourselves, about others – about the world about us - so we’ll give up the fight – so that our relationships will be strained and hopefully severed -- and in our shame we will turn away from God.  As we give up, it is easy for us to become self-centered instead of other-centered.

We all carry that popular image of the devil as a pointy eared creature with horns, a tail often carrying a pitchfork, and with an evil grin on his face. Right? Or the movie the Exorcist, right?  Nothing can be further from the truth. The devil doesn’t want to stand out – he wants to fit in nicely. The image I find of the devil that is most convincing is from the movie about the life of Jesus that came out I believe in 2000.  There the devil is depicted as a sympathetic man in a three-piece suit, who speaks to Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane with a soothing and caring voice, showing Jesus a vision of the future full of wars, hatred, bigotry, prejudice and injustice that would all be carried out in his name.  They’re not worth it Jesus- The devil says, sadly shakes his head, as Jesus sweats drops of blood and begs God to let this cup pass from him.

My professor “the devil expert” says that Satan’s ultimate goal is to destroy relationships, to weaken and tear apart community. He doesn’t care about the means so much as the result.  Satan’s longs to isolate us. To kill us, spiritually, and to smash the image of God within our soul, and to force us to flee from the presence of God, convinced that God does not love us or will forgive us.

Why else would we have a world where 8 billionaires control more wealth than 4 billion people – without so much as a global yawn at this situation?  Why the chaos in the world with so much conflict and war – and the world remains immobilized to reconcile or heal?  What about the discord in our own churches? In our families – or at work? It can become so bad that discord becomes the new normal and we become resigned – even oblivious to the pain right in front of our noses.  And in the background the devil smirks, “ah, this is good.” 

So, our scriptures encourage us to begin Lent with our eyes wide open. Jesus teaches us to pray – lead us not into temptation – but deliver us from evil – because as scriptures tell us – the tempter is a roaring lion seeking to devour us.  We’ve painted a pretty bleak picture – but our scriptures teach us the good news is this – although Jesus was tempted he did not succumb. And he is with us – walking with us through everything we face.  No matter how many forbidden chocolates we eat, or mcdoubles we sneak, or how many times we may rationalize not getting involved in some cause, how many times we fail and have start over, God is there. Waiting. We can pick ourselves up, so today, whatever you may be struggling with in your lives – from debt to doubt, from fractured relationships to hidden struggles that shame causes us to hide – we don’t have to face it alone. God is with us in Christ.  Jesus went to the cross – and we have each other – if we just humble our hearts to open and ask for help.  Call the devil out on his game as the saints of old would advise. Laugh in his face. Let grace, through Jesus, - through each other - give us the strength to stand – through the mercy of God

So, as we begin our Lenten journey with humility – asking God’s help – and the help of each other to overcome temptations when they strike.    As the old gospel songs tells it:  We fall down. But we get up.  Because a saint is just a sinner who fell down – but got up. So, no matter where we find ourselves today today’s takeaway point is that we are loved and forgiven.  This Lent let’s repair relationships – between us and God – with each other and not give up on our world.  Because Jesus didn’t – and still doesn’t - give up on us – and  - it doesn’t get any better than that. Amen
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Sleepy in the Face of Splendor

3/11/2025

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Our Gospel Lesson today   describes for us a pivotal moment in Jesus’ ministry - which we call the Transfiguration. Jesus, with his disciples Peter James and John, goes to a mountaintop to pray.  Suddenly, Jesus’ face was transformed – his clothes turned a brilliant, dazzling white. Moses and Elijah, the great representatives of the law and prophets from the Old Testament, appear out of nowhere.  They too appear in splendor and began talking with Jesus about his upcoming suffering, rejection by the religious establishment, and his death in Jerusalem, and resurrection on the third day.

 Can you imagine having a front-row seat to such a spectacle?   Jesus, shining with the glory of God.  His divine essence emanating through every pore of his entire being.   Hearing the voices of  the great lawgiver, Moses,  and the great prophet Elijah, giving credence to Jesus’ prediction of his impending death. It’s a vision of a lifetime.  What’s fascinating to note is how the disciples react at first. They were quite sleepy – overcome with sleep! They can barely keep their eyes open they are so tired!  They almost missed this stunning and transformative experience.

Let's set the scene.  Ministry has been nonstop. They’ve been working hard spreading the good news and ministering to the people. Jesus had just revealed to His disciples the necessity of his suffering, rejection, and ultimately, the cross. It was a difficult teaching, one that likely left them confused and troubled. To provide encouragement, Jesus takes Peter, James, and John up to a mountain to experience a breathtaking revelation of His divine glory.

 Yet, as Jesus prayed and His appearance transformed before them, the disciples struggled to stay awake. Luke notes their heavy eyes, hinting at both their physical fatigue and their spiritual lethargy. They awaken from their stupor, and Peter’s mumbles some nonsense about making booths, or shelters for Moses and Elijah to hang out on the mountaintop.  Peter is trying to be deferential and polite – but he seems to miss the boat about the implications of the transfiguration of Jesus. Not until a cloud appears – from which a heavenly voice speaks – This is my beloved Son – the chosen one - listen to him – do they fully awake and begin to take in the majesty of the setting.

Sadly, this is a scene that many of us might find familiar—an encounter with divine glory around us - that almost slips away because of we are distracted or tired.   This is a reflection of our human condition; how often do we find ourselves physically or spiritually drowsy in moments that demand our full attention?   It is reported that, on average, we experience an interruption every eight minutes or about seven or eight per hour. In an eight-hour day, that is about 60 interruptions. The average interruption takes about five minutes, so that is about five hours out of eight.  These interruptions include finding our minds wandering, daydreaming, and actually getting drowsy and falling asleep.   This often happens when we are bored. Let’s admit it - who here hasn’t gotten drowsy while driving during a monotonous drive?  Who here hasn’t drifted off during a boring speech or report - maybe even during a sermon or two?   

Just like the disciples, we are easily overwhelmed—by fears and doubts, or simply by the hectic pace of life. We may miss the divine working in our lives because we are not fully present. We too become spiritually drowsy. God often seeks to reveal His glory in those very moments when we are tempted to doze off.  Maybe it’s when a child tells you with excitement what happened that day.  Maybe we ignore a glorious sunset. Our favorite song comes on the radio, and we don’t pause to hum along, or pause to remember the feelings or events that the music stirs up. Maybe even right now, as we talk about experiencing the Holiness of God here at church – God is trying to reach us, speak to us, love us in the ordinary and extraordinary moments of life.  Are we awake right now to hear what God has to say to us?

How might we do this? How do we stay alert?  The best way to stay alert is to realize that God is speaking to us, every minute of every day.  God is always seeking to make himself known and present in our lives. Through our interactions with others. Through nature. Through music.  Through a small child’s chatter. Through the remanence’s of the elderly.  Right now – here in worship. All we need to do is open our hearts to each moment of the precious life God has given us.

The Transfiguration is not merely about witnessing glory; it is a transformative experience, both for Jesus and for the disciples. Following this encounter, they are charged with a deeper understanding of who Christ is and what it means to follow Him. They emerge from the mountain, prepared to carry forth the ministry and message, knowing they are about to face hardship, rejection  and death on the cross.
In our lives, we too are called to transformation. God desires that we not only behold His glory but also reflect it to those around us. How do we become beacons of His love, grace, and mercy? By allowing His light to penetrate our hearts, awakening us from spiritual slumber, empowering us to embody the Gospel in all we do.

As we approach the Lenten season, let us put at the top of our spiritual duties over the next six weeks to become spiritually awake: to be present, attentive, and receptive to Christ's voice in our life. Right now. As you breathe - can you take in the power of the realization that God loves you?  That God has given us Jesus, the chosen one?  Today, can  we listen to him – and in listening to Jesus deepen our awareness of the blessings and grace that surround us and fill us?  Spiritually awake, can we express gratitude for all God has given to us – including the gift of being here with one another -worshipping God together.  Our worship together should be the most powerful hour of our week –as our member and friend Pam Simmons often reminds us -  fueling us and inspiring us to be the best we can be.

So today, let us shake off that spiritual sleep. And like the disciples let’s descend the mountain into the reality of everyday life, transformed and ready to see and reflect His glory in all we do.  Amen.
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Fishers for People

3/11/2025

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​Luke 5:1-11, 1 Corinth 15:3-11, Isaiah 6:1-8
OSLC 020925  
 
        One of the great joys I’ve experienced while serving Our Saviour Lutheran Church is listening to the many stories people have told me over the years about how they immigrated to the United States.  Whether you are first generation or second generation, memories of back home are still fresh.   Stories of struggling to get started, modest beginnings, starting over, working your way up the ladder, staying close to family – even staying close to one’s mother land – with family all over – Canada, England, other parts of the states or the world. Is this familiar to anybody?  These stories always warm my heart. How many transplants do we have here - first or second generation? I’m a transplant too.  Not in such a significant way as many members of our Saviour are – but I’m from the Midwest – Ohio- which might as well be another country!  Here’s a fun fact about my home state:
There are 4 seasons: Winter, Still Winter, almost Winter, and Construction. 😊 Today’s snow storm? Just a ho-hum to the folks of my hometown of Cleveland, OH.!
Our Scriptures in recent weeks described Jesus leaving his native town of Nazareth for good to branch out into the wider world.   Jesus was a transplant too. He left 30 years of life behind to venture into new regions, to create a new homebase for himself – just like many of us have.  Jesus knew what it was like to say goodbye to the old, turn the chapter, and welcome the new. Jesus chose to go eastward, to the shore of the Sea of Galilee, the Lake of Gennesaret as it is referred to by Luke today in the Gospel.  We ask ourselves: why did Jesus transplant himself to the shoreline of the Sea of Galilee as the main site to carry out public ministry?
 I believe the answer lies in Jesus’s actions that we hear today in our gospel lesson.  Jesus tells the fishermen to go out into the deep water and let their nets out.  This was after a long night of fruitless effort.  Yet they still obey Jesus – perhaps as a courtesy to this rabbi who has appeared out of the blue.  Their catch was so great, the boat nearly sank-- (Luke 5:4) Peter -- falls on his knees and exclaims, “go away, Lord, for I am a sinful man.” Nonplussed, Jesus replies, “I will make you fishers of people.  Here, along the Sea of Galilee Jesus himself makes his first catch for the kingdom– a fisherman named Simon Peter along with James and John.  Jesus identifies himself as the divine fisher of people – bringing us out of the abyss into the abundance of divine life.
It's interesting that Jesus goes to the sea to begin calling disciples. The sea has a negative, even feared, connotations throughout the Bible. To the Israelites, the sea appeared alien and threatening.  In the New Testament, the sea continued to symbolize chaos, evil, and evil beings. The depths of the sea are seen as the home of demons, a place called the Abyss, according to Jewish tradition. The sea was the home of the terrible dragon, Leviathan (Isa. 27:1, 51:9-10).  It was believed that someday the devil himself will rise from the sea (Rev. 13:1). Only God could control the sea (Ps. 65:5-7, 77:19, 89:9, 93:3-4; Ex. 14-15; Isa. 51:10).  The people were afraid of the sea –- but yet took their main sustenance from the sea. 
In his ministry, Jesus demonstrated his authority over the sea and its destructive power – proving his divinity. He walked on the stormy water (Mark 6:47-50; Matt. 14:22-33; John 6:16-20). He calmed the storms on the sea (Mark 4:35-41; Matt. 8:23-27; Luke 8:22-25). He even empowered Peter to walk on the water (Matt. 14:28-32). Jesus had power over the sea and all it contained. In the same manner, Jesus has authority over the monsters that dwell in the dark depths of our hearts. Jesus knows how to bring calm and peace to us.  Most importantly, Jesus, knows our efforts - how hard we try, how often we fail – yet Jesus knows how to draw out the abundance of goodness in us, just as he caught his first disciples – by the sea.
          Having grown up by the Lake Erie (can you imagine a spookier name for a body of water)—I understand the why Jesus would carry out his powerful ministry by the sea. The sea reflected the human condition – scary, unpredictable, full of unseen demons, but also a place of nurturance and abundance. That’s us in a nutshell.  Or shall I say, seashell? 
        Jesus took fishing practices and made them into outreach practices for people: Jesus encouraged his disciples - and us - to: “toss the net from the other side,” “go to the other side,” “go out into the deep.” He taught them – and us - how to go through the storm, to be still, to have peace in turmoil; and be nourished, and to take risks and step out into the deep unknown. The disciples are called to give witness to how God is with us -when our nets are empty and our spirits are discouraged. How the waves fomented by our fears can be stilled by Jesus.  Jesus brings out the best in us – despite all the times we’ve failed.  Like Simon Peter, James and John– we are transplants – from fisherman to disciple - from sinner to saint.  Those first disciples became transplants into the body of Christ that Jesus established here on earth. It is no wonder that the fish was an early symbol of the Christian community. The word “fish” in Greek is an acronym for perhaps the church’s first statement of faith: “Jesus Christ, Son of God, Savior.”
So just as we have left our native lands, our native states behind – we are now called once more today to leave our former selves behind and enter a new chapter.  This is the call God has placed on Our Saviour –to cast out our nets into the deep. To keep trying even when efforts seem futile, and it feels we haven’t accomplished much.  Jesus continues to teach us to fish for the lives of others – others who live in that deep, who can’t escape the abyss on their own. Jesus’s vision is for us – for Our Saviour –is to be transplants to the body of Christ – where we discover the abundance within when we let down the nets as the Lord commands.
        So today, where are you feeling empty? Discouraged? Lost in the deep?  Have nothing to speak of?   Even with the storms raging around us, the waves crashing into the shore –the nets coming up empty – even after a long hard fruitless night - Jesus call us again to fish – and we are called to trust when we lower our nets again – that through Jesus – we’ll find an overflowing abundance.  
So, let us leave behind the old life of fear and be transplants in the body of Christ – with new dreams- and follow Jesus by the sea. Caught by Jesus like Simon Peter James and John – we too become fishers of people – transplanting them from sadness, lack of hope, baren lives - into an overflowing, abundant Kingdom of God, the Body of Christ – together proclaiming, “Jesus Christ, Son of God, Savior.” Amen. 
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March 11th, 2025

3/11/2025

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Jesus' Inaugural Address

2/4/2025

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Luke 4: 21-30
 
It’s been quite a season for the inaugural address.  President Trump gave his inaugural address on January 20, which he called Liberation Day. The American dream will soon be back and thriving like never before.  He promised to return the United States to a “golden age,” respected all over the world, its safety restored.  The inaugural address was challenged by the inaugural sermon delivered by the Right Rev. Mariann Budde at the National Cathedral said, “You have felt the providential hand of a loving God. In the name of our God, I ask you to have mercy upon the people in our country who are scared now.” Speaking on behalf of the LGBtQ+  and immigrant community.  Both Trump’s address and bishop Budde’s sermon created controversy.   Bishop Budde has received death threats for her comments.  Not off to a great start. Both President Trump and Bishop Budde have had their detractors and supporters.

It's not uncommon for inaugural speeches and sermons to create controversy.  After all, inaugural means the beginning of something – a new administration, a new direction, a new message, a new perspective.   The passages from Luke today are often called Jesus’ inaugural address.  Jesus had gone to numerous synagogues throughout Galilee – making a name for himself.   Now he is in Nazareth, his hometown.    He is handed the scroll for Isaiah 61 – very pertinent – because it is a passage that spoke to the longing of the Jews for renewal – a time of a restored world full of joy and abundance.   If refers to the year of the Lord’s favor – which the Jewish audience would have taken as a year of grace and deliverance – harkening back to the theme of Jubilee – a theme spoken of in Leviticus – a time when debts are forgiven, slaves set free – a time we might say when the world is rebooted – to clear out the problems – to right the wrongs,  to start over.  Jubilee is a time of liberation and renewal.

It was a powerful message – but what made it more stunning is that Jesus declares in the briefest sermon ever heard  -- “today these words are fulfilled in your midst.”  Jesus identifies himself as the instigator of the year of the Lord’s favor – the year of Jubilee.  Jesus is God rebooting the world. Jesus’s message is that he will right the wrongs, his ministry will set captives free, bring sight to the blind, heal the brokenhearted and that God’s blessings will be showered on all.

Initially the audience in Nazareth found Jesus’ words beautiful – they were astonished by him. But then the doubts creep in.  “how can this be?”  they asked.  “Isn’t this Joseph’s son?”  Their wonder grew to doubt and suspicion.  In their doubt were the seeds of rejection, a rejection that grew so violent that they tried to throw Jesus off a cliff.

The problem was that the memory of Jesus as an ordinary boy, teenager young man, growing up in Nazareth got in the way of what Jesus was declaring: “These scriptures are fulfilled in your midst.”   This was the boy who played in the streets.  This is the boy who did family chores, most likely assisted Joseph in jobs around the town and surrounding region. This was that awkward teenager.  This was the quiet young man who helped run the family business.   How can this ordinary fellow proclaim he would do the mighty acts described in Isaiah 61?  The people of Nazareth had an image of Jesus engrained in their minds that clashed with Jesus’s declaration.  “These scriptures are fulfilled in your midst.”   Their experience of the Jesus of the past 30 years made it impossible to embrace a new Jesus.  A Jesus who had come into his own.  A Jesus who would be liberator, healer, the conduit of God’s grace and favor.  This was hard enough to stomach. Jesus was not only claiming a liberation to the Jews – but a liberation for the gentiles as well.   This was unacceptable to the Nazareth Community – who clung to traditional teachings that God’s favor rested on the Jews alone.  Jesus had gone too far.   And so, his own people rejected Jesus and the message he had come to proclaim.

  Have you ever gone home as an adult and found yourself treated by family or old friends just like you were in past?  Our parents still treat us like a child instead of an adult with responsibilities.   As the youngest and the only girl, every time I am around my family I emotionally revert to the quiet, invisible kid at the bottom of the heap- that was my lot growing up. Whenever I gather with my brothers – the conversations always gravitate to football – the Cleveland Browns or the Ohio State Buckeyes – just like it was growing up – all family gatherings were dominated by them huddling around the TV – watching the latest football game. Now I don’t know a lick about football – never have – probably with some luck – never will!  But that does keep me out of the loop with my brothers.  Now I know my brothers care for me and love me.   And I love and care for my brothers.  Yet when I’m with them, I will always see them as larger than life, I’ll always be that timid kid, admiring and in awe around them.  It’s just an automatic psychological response.  When we are with our family we revert to the roles we had growing up. 

Have you ever had that experience?   Do old roles return when you are in your family or former communities?   It’s the rare person who doesn’t experience that tug and pull to revert.   It takes all our energy to stay our ground, to be who we are –with different goals, aspirations that our family once had for us.  Even Jesus experienced this and he was ostracized by his family as a result.

       This dynamic holds true not only in families but in churches as well.   It’s so easy to think of our church in its heyday 20 - 30 - 40 years ago.  We cling to fond memories we had back in the day.  The pull to contrast our present church -to a time when Sunday school was overflowing, the youth group was vibrant, the pews filled and the choir full – its all so tempting indeed – because those memories are deeply imprinted on our minds and hearts.  We face the same challenge as Nazareth -  can we let go of the past – and embrace the grace and favor God has for us now – in the present – in Jesus – can we open our hearts to a new Jesus – a Jesus who wants to heal us, restore us to God’s vision, who seeks to be inclusive all peoples in our midst. That’s the challenge the scriptures invite us today.   To help us let go of ingrained ideas of who we are, and see that God is about new visions, a new restoration, one beyond our imaging? 

       Finally, we see this same dynamic unfolding in our civic life.  As a nation we are craving to return to a past that exists decades ago- what ever that golden age is.  The problem is – when we are so fixed on the past – we become closed to the present where God wants to find us – heal us –renew us - liberate us – and make us co-liberators in the world we live in right here and now.

       This year, as we embark on the year of the Lord’s favor, let us as a church write out a new inaugural address – one that contains a vision of love, compassion, recommitment to God – to the church – and each other – while finding new ways to serve our community?  Can we put aside old memories of ourselves and allow the Holy Spirit shape into something new?  
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With the help of Jesus, let us break through old conditioning, and begin to see ourselves, our church, our nation through the liberating eyes of Jesus.  We care called to live into an uncomfortable new vision – and let us join Jesus in this new restoration – willing to accept rejection, letting go of old expectations so we too become healers, dreamers- liberators- grace-filled people inclusive of all, so God’s mandate can be fulfilled – now, in our midst. Amen
 
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Wedding Signs

1/19/2025

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Isaiah 62:1-5; John 2:1-11

 
The miracle of changing the water into wine at the wedding feast of Cana has lent itself to more jokes than we can imagine.  A cartoon has been making its way through cyberspace that depicts stacks of bottles of wine, underneath is the caption: Jesus was here.  Also:   Jesus walks into a bar with his disciples and tells the bartender, “"Thirteen glasses of water, please!

       According to John, it is his first miracle of his public ministry.  Weddings were huge social events in the ancient world, just as they are now, but then they involved not just the immediate family and friends, but the entire village. In dreary, grueling, monotonous village life a wedding was a break from hardships of routine living.  So, there was an expectation that the family would provide appropriately for the guests who had come to celebrate this marriage. Accommodations along with the best food and drink the family could afford signified not only the importance of the event and but conveyed the value of hospitality, the highest code of conduct people lived by.  It was a matter of family honor to pull off what was often a week-long celebration. Families then as now saved for years, sold the prize cow, to afford a proper wedding.

But then an unthinkable emergency happened.  Somehow, at some point during the celebration, the wine ran out. An unheard-of miscalculation. A social catastrophe in the making.  Even today we could imagine the embarrassment of a modern wedding couple if the liquor suddenly ceased to flow at their reception. No more booze?  Let the wedding cake topple over, let the chicken be dried out, let the Let the DJ not show up, let the flower girls throw a tantrum, but friends, at a wedding, the wine must flow.  
It is not Jesus, but Mary, his mother who notices the predicament. Out of this sense of goodness for those who would face great shame in their community, shame from which they would not recover, she turned to her son, says, “They have no wine!”  Jesus is respectful but hesitant.   His hour has not come, Jesus says. How often we seek the right timing or wait for just the right moment to make a pronouncement or take a desired action.  Jesus, fortunately, realized like Dr. King once said, “the time is always right to do what is right.”  So, Jesus instructs the servants to fill the six huge stone water jars with water and take it to the chief steward. Upon tasting it, the steward declares it to be the best wine ever – the best saved for last.  

What an amazing sign this is for us: that God cares for us, cares that even there’s enough wine to celebrate. God provides goodness and abundance for all. Jesus wants all the guests to enjoy the goodness and the abundance of wine whether they are aware of how it got there or not. Few people knew the source of the wine, but everyone enjoyed its abundance—that’s how God’s grace and love and generosity work. Jesus shows us that God’s abundance is not earned—it is given; God’s grace is not paid for—it is freely offered; God’s love is not won—it is simply received. Do you know how much wine there is in six stone jars holding twenty to thirty gallons each it’s about 3,200 glasses! That’s the party of lifetime!

Mary took a stand against humiliation and for compassion, and this interchange between Mary and Jesus reflects the encouragement for action between Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King, Jr.  By refusing to give up her seat on the bus on that ordinary day, December 5, 1955, in Montgomery, Parks set the stage for King’s entry into that civil rights moment. The wine of justice had run out.  Jesus, in raising up the prophet that Dr. King was, made sure that wine would flow again.

       Rosa Parks noted that there was no more wine of justice.  Dr. King was the relatively unknown but rising force at the Dexter Street Baptist Church, when he was called upon to head the Montgomery Improvement Association.  Under Dr. King’s leadership the historic Montgomery bus boycott, spurred on by Rosa Park’s action, which lasted 381 days, resulted in a Supreme Court ruling that segregation on public buses was unconstitutional.   Did Dr. King know his hour had arrived?  Surely, he had his qualms and indecisions.  But he responded to the situation brought forth by Rosa Parks, and others before her. 

“While Martin Luther King, Jr did not change water into wine, he did change a movement into the new wine of commitment.  Thousands gathered to hear him.   He led the sanitation workers strike in Memphis, TN.  King proclaimed to the educated of America that they needed to born again in mind and spirit to see the sin of racism and poverty.  Writing an unforgettable letter to white clergy in a Birmingham jail, King lifted up the dead daughters of Birmingham, killed in a bombing at 16th Street Baptist Church.  Yes, King lifted up a cup of living waters, transformed to the wine of justice and compassion and we drink from it still."

“From his studies and years of activism, Dr. King further developed the concept of the Beloved Community as a global vision, in which all people can share in the wealth of the earth. Citing King’s papers, in the Beloved Community, poverty, hunger and homelessness will not be tolerated because international standards of human decency will not allow it. Racism and all forms of discrimination, bigotry and prejudice will be replaced by an all-inclusive spirit of sisterhood and brotherhood. In the Beloved Community, international disputes will be resolved by peaceful conflict-resolution and reconciliation of adversaries, instead of military power. Love and trust will triumph over fear and hatred. Peace with justice will prevail over war and military conflict.”  Remember Dr. King’s famous words?
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We must learn to live together as brothers(and sisters) or perish together as fools. . . .The hope of a secure and livable world lies with disciplined nonconformists who are dedicated to justice, peace, and brotherhood.  MLK,Jr.“Strength to Love”]

Our celebration of the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, and Rosa Parks, and through them the civil rights movement shows us the signs of the wedding are everywhere.  They are there whenever we say no to oppression and yes to love and justice.  They are there when we are invited to take action to help others, and we say yes, even if we are not ready.   The signs are there whenever we take delight in what is right, good and just.     
So let us be the signs of wedding by forging the Beloved Community wherever God plants us.  Turn water into wine through our caring, our joy, our commitment to turn wrongs into rights, the tragedies and complications into celebration.   This way, the glory of God will be revealed, and God will take delight in us—and we as signs of the wedding feast – will be a delight to the world.
Amen.
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/biteintheapple/cana-an-unexpected-time/
http://www.thekingcenter.org/king-philosophy#sthash.NQCtbq8q.dpuf
http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/m/martinluth106169.html
https://www.soulstorywriter.net/177-mlk-day-through-the-lens-of-the-wedding-at-cana
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January 08th, 2025

1/8/2025

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John 1: 1, 10-18

 
    One of the things I enjoy about the New Years is the lists that are created for us to remember the best of last year. such as: list of the bestselling books of 2024; the top 10 songs of 2024—the    or worst movies of 2024. The top news story of 2024.  Have you come across any of these lists?  I’ve shared before and I’ll share again -  My favorite are the new words that made it into the dictionary in 2024.  How many have heard of:
Bed rotting: The practice of spending many hours in bed during the day, often with snacks or an electronic device, as a voluntary retreat from activity or stress.
.Bussin:’  Great; wonderful; amazing.
Barbiecore:. An aesthetic or style featuring playful pink outfits, accessories, decor, etc., celebrating and modeled on the wardrobe of the Barbie doll.

Kenergy: a term used to describe the characteristics of Ken, from the film Barbie.
Greedflation : a rise in prices, rents, or the like, that is not due to market pressure or any other factor organic to the economy, but is caused by corporate executives or boards of directors, property owners, etc., solely to increase profits that are already healthy or excessive.

Doomscroll:   the act of spending too much time looking at online news or social media which makes you feel anxious or negative
Boujee  - Rich, luxurious, special, fancy.
Vibe check  - To make sure someone is having a good time.  Is everyone doing OK?  Just doing a vibe check.
 
Aren’t words wonderful?  Words – as a part of our complex language – spoken and unspoken - is one of the primary features that make us human and separate us from other creatures – although science is proving that from molecules to planets – communicate in some fashion or another.  Animals communicate through sounds and actions.  Words and communication helps us connect to  each other – and connect as one great living system we are all a part of.

   It was God who in the beginning brought the world into being through the spoken word. God spoke – let there be light – and there was light. God spoke creation into existence.  God gave us the gift of words, the creative gift of naming, beginning with the animals.  With naming comes mastery. With naming comes relationship.  Words enable us to connect. The words we use define us – and say something about us.  We tell others who we are by the words we share.

 To be a person of your word means you’re reliable. You can be trusted.  For centuries  it has been said  that for a an – or woman- word is his/her bond.”  Your word given was a promise – as strong as a binding contract.  Our words define our reputations.  We are told to walk your talk.   That means you live what you say.  Words are that powerful.  It used to be your word and a handshake were enough.  Unfortunately – our words don’t carry the power or force they once did.   We now need legal systems to enforce a commitment.  That’s too bad – isn’t it?  We need to bring back the power of the spoken word.

Nonetheless words still convey power.  Words can bless and heal.  Who hasn’t felt the positive power of these words: You can do it! I believe in you! You’re the best! Great job! I’m proud of you! I love you!  Way to go! Magnificent!!  You’re very special to me. I trust you. Hurray for you.  Beautiful work. You’re a real trooper. Well done! You make my day.  I love you.  You’re the best.  I couldn’t be prouder of you. You light up my day. I’m praying for you.  I’m behind you.  I’m here for you. These words open our heart.  They plant powerful, living words in us. Through these statements and associated actions, the word lives among us – and transforms us.  Never underestimate the power of the spoken word and it’s affect on our hearts and on others.

        Throughout the holidays, we’ve heard God’s powerful words to us in the story of Jesus’ birth.  We heard the familiar story of angels and shepherds, the journey to Bethlehem, the journey of the Magi which we heard in our first reading.   Today we hear a nativity story of a different kind.  We hear John’s version of the nativity.  The birth of the Word, God’s Word.  The word that was in the beginning. That word that was present when God said, “let there be light.”  The Word that was present throughout time and eternity.  The word that spoke God’s truth to people of every age and every situation.  A word that became flesh –became light - our divine brother, Jesus.  It is to this sacred living light that the Magi came and offered their gifts – following the light of the star to find the light of the world.

In Jesus God kept his word to us.  God promised not to leave us in darkness.  God promised not to leave us in sin and despair.  Jesus is God’s powerful Word to us. To inspire us and up builds us: A word that says:  I love you – you are my precious child! I forgive you – all debts are paid.  I believe in you – you can accomplish great things with me. The scriptures remind us that the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart (Hebrews 4:12).  The scriptures remind us that God’s word is a lamp unto our feet (Psalm 119).  That is what the Word of God – Jesus – does for us – He lights our way – he is at work in our lives – making us the best versions of ourselves – as people created in the image of God.

So, we are God’s new word to the world for 2025.  Words that haven’t been created.  What new word will we be? What will define us going forward?  Is that the way we want to define ourselves? 

Maybe we can be God’s new words for a world deluged by words that are so clever but don’t bring about a transformation of the heart.  We need to be those living Words that bring light in the darkness.    We need to be the lamp to the feet of others. How do we do this? 

What words are living and active?  God loves you and so do I.  In Christ you are forgiven.  You are saved. You can do it! I believe in you! You’re the best! Great job! I’m proud of you!  I love you!  Way to go -- you did it, Magnificent, I knew you could do it, What a good helper, You’re very special to me, I trust you, What a treasure, Hurray for you, Beautiful work, You’re a real trooper, Well done, That’s so creative, You make my day, You’re a joy, Give me a big hug, You’re such a good listener, You figured it out, I love you, You’re so responsible, I will not forget you, You’re the best,  I couldn’t be prouder of you, You light up my day, I’m praying for you, You’re wonderful, I’m behind you, You’re God’s special gift, I’m here for you, God has a vision for your life. Vibe check – how do these words make you feel?  Great, right?
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The Word lives among us – so gather and drop those life-giving words – in this world of texts and tweets and doom scrolling - spread your words that bring the light and life for a world hungry for a truly good word.  Amen.                                        

 
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New Year's Eve - Embrace the Light!

1/2/2025

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Good night my friends, and I pray that the Christmas season has been time of blessings to you.   So here we are. Another year winding down.   Where did all the months go?  For some of us, 2024 has been a year with painful memories, maybe illness, loss or other obstacles and challenges.  Some of us are ready to say good riddance to this past year.  Of course, others look back and see a year of blessings, opportunities, growth – we are looking at the remainder of the year and saying bring on some more!   Most likely - for most of us – it’s been a combination of both.  Some good stuff and the not so good.  Our Christmas was bittersweet – we mourned the recent loss of two dear family members – my husband's cousins both lost their spouses last year - whose places at the Christmas table were empty.  Yet the little ones at the table, their laughter, their sweetness, was a soothing balm.
        Old Year’s night – our few hours remaining of 2024 – is a gift we give ourselves to suspend the celebrations - to put aside the time to reflect on our lives.  The lessons we have learned. The goals we have achieved.  The plans that are unfolding and what we hope to carry over in 2025.  Tonight, as we reflect, we give thanks to God for his providence, his strength, his love and grace –that has carried us through the past twelve months and will surely bring us forward in the months ahead.
       It is interesting that New Years – Old Year’s night - falls in the middle of the Christmas season – those twelve days that began on December 25 and takes us to January 6 – when we observe the feast of the Epiphany – or the coming of the three kings – the Magi – the wise ones -- to the child Jesus.  For us - as people of faith - the placement of New Years in the middle of the season of Christmas is significant.  New Years is immersed in the themes of Christmas season.  The Christmas season grounds us and teaches us how to say goodbye to the passing year and how to welcome the new year.   And so, in the midst of celebration we pause – we reflect – and we resolve to move forward with God’s help.
      Christmas reminds us that the center of our lives is Jesus –who brings us new life.  Everyday Jesus seeks to be born in our hearts.  So, Old Year’s night asks to consider how was Jesus born in our lives this past year?  What good and kind deeds did we do?  Who did we help?  To whom did we share the good news?  Did we feed the hungry? Take care of the ill visit those in prison, care for the stranger in our midst?   So tonight, let’s pause and ask ourselves these important questions.   The holy holidays reminds us -as we approach 2025- to explore how shall we continue birthing Jesus in the new year.  Our goal for 2025 is to start everyday with the prayer that the Lord be born in the deeds and words we share. 
      When we look closely at the Christmas story, it teaches us there are two types of people in the world.  Those who embrace the Christ light and those who refuse to accept the Christ light.   We see this in the unfolding of the gospel lessons - Luke tells us of the journey of Joseph and Mary from Nazareth to Bethlehem where Jesus is born. Shepherds and angels travel to greet Jesus, as do the Magi or three kings from eastern lands. These are people who celebrate the light, who nurture it however they can.
 Matthew also tells us of a different journey – a dangerous journey where Joseph and Mary flee with the child Jesus to Egypt to escape the murderous threats of King Herod – who ended up massacring the little boys of Bethlehem in his attempt to kill Jesus. Herod feared the light – he was jealous of the light – he wanted the power and glory for himself.  Only after the danger passes does the Holy family finally travel back to Nazareth, where Jesus is raised. 
     There are two kinds of people.   Old year’s night tells us there are people who embrace the light of the Christ Child and those who seek to extinguish the light of the Christ Child.   We are asked the hard question:  which kind of people are we:  Which kind of people do we surround ourselves with?  Do we celebrate and give to others the light of Christ?  Do we have people in our lives who celebrate our life and light?  Or – do we have people – do we – dim that light, chase it away or snuff it out by our words and deeds?
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       The Christmas scriptures encourage us to be people of the light – to support the light, to bring that light to others and encourage its growth.  Will we resolve to we open our hearts to all the people God places around us - these are the people who see the Christ light in us and celebrate the gifts of God within us – just like the shepherds and angels did at Jesus’ birth.  We all need people in our lives who affirm us – who remind us we are good and have much to offer.  Every day God sends us support and affirmation.  We would be wise to acknowledge and see this – to receive it and allow it to fill and inform our lives.  We don’t journey through life alone.  God sends us our shepherds and angels as to accompany us as we go on our way.   Can you name the angels in your lives who lift you up, support you and protect you?  Furthermore, have you been an angel, shepherd, a wise person, who has furthered Christ’s light in others and in our world.
       At the same time in our world there are people like King Herod who would put us down – who seek to extinguish the Christ light within us – those circumstances that threaten our lives – valleys of challenges and obstacles.   So Old Year’s Night we pause and reflect on our life situation.  What’s weighing us down?  Will we have the wisdom to remove ourselves from dangerous spiritual situations – to remove ourselves from toxic people that mean to destroy the goodness within us?   We all face circumstances we are called to flee – to save our life and light – our families are worth protecting - the season calls us to be alert to the dreams and signs of danger to have the ability to discern what is good from what is evil- and choose wisely.   Just as important – each of us is called to task for the times we have diminished others – have threatened others with meanness or gossip – or maybe simply jealous of the good others have in their lives.   Old Year’s night calls us to be honest with ourselves – because the truth is- none of us is perfect.  We all have a mixture of angels and Herod in us.  But tonight – through the grace of God – the choice is ours.
     As we prepare to enter 2025 - as we move forward consciously and deliberately - we may not know the specifics of the new year – its blessings and challenges.  But we do know we have a choice.  Will we be a people who supports life and light?  Or, will we be a people that threatens and diminishes the light Jesus has place in each of us?   Our Christmas story tells us that God sends opportunities to let the Christ light be born in us and around us every day. God shows us how to support this light in ourselves and others.  Everyday God sends us angels, companions, wise people. God sends us dreams, warnings, to protect the Christ light within us.  Are we open to receive this?

     So let us enter 2025 with great expectations.  Let us choose to be people of the light – who live the Christ light – and support its growth in others and in our world.  Let us awake to each new day giving thanks - excited to embrace how God will be present to us, through us and alongside us.   So, no matter where we are today what we face today, may the grace of God carry us lovingly forth into the new year and beyond.   May your New Year shine its light for all to see and give glory to God in the highest – and peace to all God’s people on earth. Amen  Happy New Years Everyone!
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Merry Christmas!

1/2/2025

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Merry Christmas Church!  Are you traveling over the Christmas holidays?  It is reported that a record 120 million Americans will be on the road for at least 50 miles between now and New Year’s Day.  And that doesn’t count those trips to family or friends across town.  Of course, we don’t have a hand count of those who are already on holiday – and but from the conversations that I’ve been having with congregants over the past few weeks - there is quite a fair number of us are on the road - in the air - and even on some nice cruises to warm places.   And today, we welcome those who are visiting here and joining us for worship.  
      All this talk about traveling reminds me of the Christmas classic by Perry Como, “There’s no place like home for the holidays.”  What does the song tell us? “If you want to be happy in a million ways, For the holidays you can’t beat home sweet home.”
       
It's not surprising then, that at the center of the Christmas story is a tale of travel.  Mary and Joseph make the 90-mile, 4-day trek from Nazareth to Bethlehem – to comply with the emperor’s census decree, which sent untold thousands to go to their native birth places to be registered.   We don’t know how the mechanics of this census was carried out. We don’t know why people were sent to native birth places.  Why couldn’t people be counted where they currently lived, like we do nowadays? What was the timing of the census? The story doesn’t tell us. 
​       All we know is that Mary and Joseph made that arduous journey, with poor Mary nine months pregnant.  The story we tell ourselves about the birth of Jesus leaves more questions than answers.  We see pictures of Mary on a donkey, but no donkey appears in the story.  We assume there’s an innkeeper, but no innkeeper is mentioned. We also assume that an inn door was slammed in their faces.    In fact, the word used in Luke is more accurately translated guest house – not inn.  A guest “house” was really a guest room in a private home – not some commercial enterprise. So, the place Mary and Joseph went to was most likely a relative of Joseph’s.   Furthermore, it is most likely that Joseph’s family had so many people coming in for the census that even the guest room was full – and they so Mary and Joseph were given space on the lower level of the house – where the animals were kept.
       How many people heard that Jesus was born in a stable? This actually isn’t what the bible tells us.   Lodging in this room was not necessarily seen as a slight – over the centuries people slept alongside their animals – it brought warmth, companionship and protection. There was no stigma attached to it. 
         Furthermore, there are good theological reasons to put Mary, Jesus and Joseph with the animals.  Adam and Eve lived with the animals in paradise.   The birth of Jesus signals a new paradise for us. Isaiah tells us a sign of the messiah is the peaceable kingdom, when animals of all types would sleep together. Furthermore, the famous carol, “What Child Is This, ponders: “why lies He in such mean estate, Where ox and ass (or donkey) are feeding?  In the Bible, the ox is a clean animal, but the donkey was considered an unclean animal.  In bringing these two animals together - the ox represents Israel - the donkey represents the Gentiles – gives us an image of Jesus uniting all of humanity in his birth.  So, Jesus, laid in the manger, because the source and symbol from which all people on earth – Jew and Gentile alike - take their sustenance.  So, it makes all the sense in the world that Jesus, Mary and Joseph would be given the lower room of the home – where the domesticated animals were kept. 
      Let’s pause and consider - Given the strong customs of hospitality in the Biblical times, it seems completely unthinkable that Joseph’s relatives – or anyone for that matter - would turn away a woman about to give birth.  But like many of us, when family comes into town, you double up, you clear out the spare rooms, you find room wherever you can – you don’t turn away.   To our minds, shaped by modern euro-western values - it makes an exciting story to think that Mary and Joseph were rejected and cast off to some stable to fend for themselves. While we may turn our nose to a room with animals, to a manger for a bed – for ordinary people of Jesus’s day, animals and mangers were acceptable.  People made do. Bottom line – there was no scandal – nothing to raise indignant minds at how poorly they were treated.   It gives us pause to think – maybe we’ve been getting it wrong. Because there is enough room.   We make room.  We don’t turn away.   That’s what home is about.   You are always welcome.  
       Maybe that’s the challenge of Christmas after all, the western, euro-centric culture around us insists that there is never enough. There are winners and losers.   You have to fight to get what you want – which has created a world of haves and have-nots.  We are suspicious of strangers – even far distant relatives.  We don’t want to get too close.  We want our space, and we don’t want to be inconvenienced.  I will always remember the deepest experience of hospitality I ever felt – it was when I stayed with very poor families in Nicaragua and Mexico – who opened their very humble homes – small, cramped homes that would never make the cover of Home and Garden – to me and my fellow travelers. 
      I believe our Christmas story would have us rethink what home means.  Home means no one is turned away. Home means there always is space.  And if we can’t imagine opening our houses to others - perhaps we can begin with our heart.   Home is where the heart is, the saying goes.  So, this Christmas, let us search our hearts and reflect – who are we struggling to embrace in our hearts?   Who is knocking at the door of our hearts?  Because the Christmas story reminds us, the person knocking on the door of our heart tonight – the person seeking a home with us – is none other than Jesus, the Christ Child.  The Christmas story invites us to find room for all whom God places in our lives.
       Our hearts are full of so much – we are pulled this way and that way – worries and concerns – fears and doubts – we don’t think we can cram in anymore.  But that doesn’t matter.  Jesus is not seeking much room.  Just a niche.   Jesus is happy with whatever corner we can spare.  No matter what it looks like – neat, clean and orderly – or messy, stinky, overflowing with stuff we find hard to let go of.   Jesus comes to us, no matter what it looks like in here.
       So let us learn from our biblical ancestors - whose homes were overflowing – but who still made space.  Let us see the gift of that room even the one with the animals – the warmth, protection and companionship that is there and waiting to welcome the Baby Jesus.   Because if you want to be happy in a million ways, well then realize this day, that you are the perfect home Jesus seeks – no matter what you got inside here – your heart - you are to Jesus – home sweet home Amen
      
 
 
 
 
 
 

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Broken and Blessed

10/6/2024

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Picture
Mark 10:2-16 
On World Communion Sunday, it seems odd to have a reading on divorce.   But consider this: there are over 33,000 different denominations in the Christian tradition. Some are limited to members of a particular family; the largest contains well over a billion members. We acknowledge the hard work to overcome our differences.  However, we acknowledge the splits.  The infamous fights in which insults where hurled, people where excommunicated, battles were fought, blood spilt, people burnt at the stake. All in the name of Christ.  All which reminds me of divorce. Acrimonious divorce, in fact.

At a divorce there is no casket. No floral arrangements.  No sitting shiva, no Service of Resurrection to attend, no tombstone to order, no grave to tend, no ceremony, no lament to sing when a certificate of divorce arrives.  Yet, psychologists tell us that divorce is the second highest cause of stress of all life events – right behind the number one cause of stress – the death of a spouse, or a long-time partner.  Marriage only feebly cashes in at number 7 on the stress test lists.

 As a divorced person myself, today’s passage from Mark makes me squirm.  I have spent many hours on this text trying to coat some sort of solace from this passage, but in the end I couldn’t.  Jesus flat out forbids divorce.  Jesus calls remarriage adultery—for both a man and a woman.

     Most divorced and separated people I know and have counseled did not marry with the intention of breaking up. They /we took our vows seriously.  They / we have no problem acknowledging that divorce is evidence of a failure, a rupture, sin, that it is truly not God’s vision for humanity and that they have indeed fallen short.  “When I married, I thought I married for life” is the mantra that is repeated over and over.
However, the Pharisees here ask an interesting questions: It’s not:  is divorce lawful, but, is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife.

In Jesus’ time, divorce was exclusively a man’s prerogative.    A wife could be dismissed by her husband by a written decree of “indecency” according to Deuteronomy 24. Strictly meant to be adultery, or immoral conduct, it was broadened to be interpreted that a husband could divorce his wife for any offense she gave him.  She burnt his dinner.  She raised her voice and the neighbor heard her. She left the house with her hair unbound.  Men stood to gain everything while the spurned wife lost everything:  her social standing, her right to raise and be with her children, her home and her future.  So, the most common result for a divorced woman was destitution, poverty, and social isolation.

Jesus refuses to debate with the Pharisees on their ground.  He challenges them to refocus on God’s vision and God’s intent: not on legalisms and loopholes.

In a society that where marriage has devolved to degrade women and where it is the only institution for women and children’s means of economic security, Jesus refuses to allow women to be cast off for the slightest excuse.  Instead, Jesus insists on lifting up God’s holy purposes for relationship: union, relatedness, durability.

Jesus’ point to the Pharisees in its first century context is radical:  women are not to be casually divorced.  Jesus redirects their attention from Moses back to God in the act of creation of gender and relationship. 

Our Brokenness is a reality.  I am a divorced woman. I failed at my first marriage.  Each one of us can name a breach in a relationship – from an infidelity to something abusive, to a sin of omission, a sharp word, a stingy attitude. We are a broken, here or there. According to Hebrews, however, Jesus, the perfect image of God, sustains all things for us, and made that purification of sins.   Listen to this at v.11, it says that Jesus is not ashamed to call us brothers and sisters.   Despite all we’ve done. Where we’ve been.   Now to me, that gives me hope.

The passage from Mark doesn’t end with the Pharisees.   It goes to Jesus’ disciples, who get in trouble again- what else is new-- for speaking sternly to people about bringing their children to Jesus to be blessed.  Jesus is indignant. “Let the little children come to me; do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of God belongs. Truly I tell you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will never enter it.” And he took them up in his arms, laid his hands on them, and blessed them.
Our salvation lies in this. Jesus knows we are a broken people. We are a broken church.  Yet he calls us to him nonetheless. Children, just want to be loved, to be close to for security and closeness.  They don’t care about the endless debates on dogma, how many angels can dance on the head of a needle, what’s the right title of the hierarchy, and who’s trending and who’s not.  Just be with Jesus, blessed and broken, that all that matters. That’s all Jesus wants us to know - we are loved: broken and blessed.  That’s all we need to know and that’s all it takes.

The disciples see little worth in the children, as the Pharisees see little worth in their wives. We know even Children aren’t perfect.  Yet Jesus takes them into his arms and blesses them. What other group of people does he do this with?  With this gesture he gives us hope. Come to me like children, my little brothers and sisters, he says, and you are welcome in my house, at my table. You will have the father’s embrace of the prodigal.  The brother’s loving hug which says, all is forgiven, you are love welcome home.

      Today as we come to the table, each one of us has a heart that potentially be divided by a number of issues. As we examine our lives, we can think of what can separate us. As we review our actions of this week we can think of all that can drive us away. But for all that leaves us broken, that does not have the final say. Jesus says, come to me. Learn to enter the kingdom of Heaven like a little child, a favorite child, of a large, loving extended family. That is the blessing God has for us – despite our sin, our brokenness, our many divisions, Jesus embraces us all, loves us, and promises us the kingdom of heaven. And that unites us and reminds us – divisions and all – we are brothers and sisters in Christ indeed.
     
 
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    Moirajo is a minister, social worker, wife, mother, writer and animal lover. That's just for starters. Join the story, there's so much we can share together! 

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