A welcoming world

Romans 15:7-13        A welcoming world

           Once again I feel the need to put out a reminder that Jesus welcomed all, especially the disenfranchised and the outcasts. We therefore are called to do the same. I have a friend who worked tirelessly alongside a whole group of us that worked for marriage equality and gay rights. Personally this is part of my commitment and concern for our entire LGBTQ community. So what was next on our goal after marriage equality in New York was achieved? Of course we are fighting for the repeal of DOMA. On a state level though, where are we headed? Our efforts of course must go to the entire LGBTQ community and truth be told, there is a great deal of work to be done for our transgendered brothers and sisters, the "T" in LGBTQ.  My friend diminished the need to help them and was perhaps outright repulsed. Wow! What an eye opener!

            We are so aware of our own personal alienation that we can easily fail to realize that Jesus embraced everyone, all of the God's cretaures as He (or She) created them. Who knows, perhaps God is Non-gendered! How do we feel about that? We are called to welcome all as Jesus welcomed them, as God welcomes us.

            So what outcast marginalized group are we called to embrace?  All of them as best we can, as we have the energy, the calling and the vision to see. Our vision is so often obscured by what we are often supposed to believe, what society tells us, explicitly or implicitly, and what our own fears or ignorance have lead us to believe on our own. We are not called to get all we can get for ourselves and forget the rest. Ideally we all stand together as God's creations. That not only takes in humans but all animals. It also calls us to fight for and respect all of creation as well as it's prudent use.

          Rejoice and welcome ALL of creation and give thanks!

The Gospel for Jews and Gentiles Alike

Welcome one another, therefore, just as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God. For I tell you that Christ has become a servant of the circumcised on behalf of the truth of God in order that he might confirm the promises given to the patriarchs, and in order that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy. As it is written,
‘Therefore I will confess you among the Gentiles,
and sing praises to your name’; and again he says,
‘Rejoice, O Gentiles, with his people’;
and again, ‘Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles,
and let all the peoples praise him’; and again Isaiah says,
‘The root of Jesse shall come, the one who rises to rule the Gentiles;
in him the Gentiles shall hope.’
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, 
so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. 

Raise your voices in song

Psalm 100          Raise your voices in song

          When I was just a small boy and on into my early teens I spent a portion of every day with my neighbors. I went there because they served me Vienna fingers and Hoffman ginger ale and also because they loved to talk with me and I with them. These 3 elderly spinster ladies loved to chat and seemed to just revel in my mere presence. The oldest sister, Maude, once told me that she loved watching me walk home from school or around the neighborhood because I was always singing. I always seemed to be happy. While I never was a slave to the music I did enjoy singing, often making up songs in my head and singing. Even as an adult, I find music to be a form of prayer and an outlet for both the joy in my heart and the thankfulness I feel.

           It seems to me that music can easily be a form a praise that we can embrace. God gives us voices to communicate. I also believe it is ours to praise God and express joy that wells up inside us and cannot be easily expressed or contained in any other manner.

            The hymns and songs of our faith go back seemingly forever so I do think that I have discovered something new as far as the meaning of music and song. I have previously expressed the pleasure of saying the 'hours' in seminary and the beauty of our combined voices raised in praise and song.

            One of the beauties of music is that there are so many varieties and often a secular song can be sung as a song of praise to God. The musical Sister Act easily comes quickly to mind. I encourage everyone to sing loudly and often. Raise your voices to God in song, in church, in your car, under your breath and in your heart. It doesn't matter how you sound either. God gave you that voice, sing out proudly!

            As I continue on somewhat of a theme of thanksgiving, raise your voices and give praise to God for everything. For who you are, where you are on your journey and where God promises us to be as faithful servants.

          

A Psalm of thanksgiving.
Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth.
Worship the Lord with gladness;
come into his presence with singing. 

 Know that the Lord is God.
 It is he that made us, and we are his;
 we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. 

Enter his gates with thanksgiving,
and his courts with praise.
Give thanks to him, bless his name. 

For the Lord is good;
his steadfast love endures for ever,
and his faithfulness to all generations.

Energy suckers

Ephesians 1:3-14           Energy Suckers

         Did you ever meet a person who has absolutely nothing good to say?  They find fault with almost everything. If there are energy givers and energy suckers in this world, this person seems to suck the life out of you just by their presence.

         I have noted that I could personally give you 100 reasons why I am so filled with joy and hope. I also have noted that I could give you quite a few real reasons why I could be down, depressed and pessimistic. Yet I am counting my blessings constantly. I am excited at each new day and look over at my husband each morning with a big smile. I give a gentle kiss to our cat.  I am filled with joy that being grandfathers is in our future. One of my greatest joys was the birth of my daughter and son. That renewal of life, that sign of life is continuing. I think it is a blessing to be able to recognize all the great  things in our lives but I also see it as a decision to focus on the good. 

          God created us in love and wants nothing but good things for us. He's gone so far as to suffer and die on a cross for us. That should be convincing enough. The joy of resurrection in part is the ability for renewal, rebirth and simply being an Easter people. We should always be focused on the good, the positive and the uplifting. Sometimes we seem only to focus on the bad. We should try to focus always on the good, when we do it is transformative.

           Still being thankful, let us all focus all that is good and all that is hopeful. Be an energy giver and not an energy sucker.  

             

Spiritual Blessings in Christ

          Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, just as he chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless before him in love. He destined us for adoption as his children through Jesus Christ, according to the good pleasure of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace that he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and insight he has made known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure that he set forth in Christ, as a plan for the fullness of time, to gather up all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth. In Christ we have also obtained an inheritance having been destined according to the purpose of him who accomplishes all things according to his counsel and will, so that we, who were the first to set our hope on Christ, might live for the praise of his glory. In him you also, when you had heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and had believed in him, were marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit; this is the pledge of our inheritance towards redemption as God’s own people, to the praise of his glory. 

Body as temple

1 Corinthians 3:10-23            Body as Temple

          There are scads of images going through my head, not the least of which is the three little pigs. As I try to settle my thoughts, all I can hear is 'what's your house made of'? Really I'm talking foundation. When you think about it, the foundation is kind of crucial. I can still see pictures of all the homes built on pylons that got washed away by Sandy. 

           Our foundations are even more critical when you contemplate that our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit and God's love. That's not to mention that we are created so carefully by God and with such intent that we really should have incredible respect for ourselves in what we are and what we have to offer others.

          To this end I will not be noting the obvious (to me), that is, the quality and type of food we eat as well as the way we treat our bodies or mistreat our bodies through lack of exercise etc. 

         What I am talking about is a foundation of good spirituality, self respect, good self image, acceptance of self and not demeaning oneself in any way. I once read a book at my Dad's suggestion called The Power of Your Subconscious Mind. It really was not a religious book but part of it applies here. Our subconscious mind listens naively to what it hears from ourselves and others. When we say to ourselves "what an idiot I am" or some similar phrase, we listen to ourselves. Don't say those things. We need to uplift ourselves and uplift others. We must return to the realization of our purpose built we are and how much God loves us. There is a whole host of reasons God loves us. We need to acknowledge them. That makes for a good foundation. That will help build and maintain the temple of our bodies that God graces us with. 

          
          According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation, and someone else is building on it. Each builder must choose with care how to build on it. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one that has been laid; that foundation is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw the work of each builder will become visible, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each has done. If what has been built on the foundation survives, the builder will receive a reward. If the work is burned, the builder will suffer loss; the builder will be saved, but only as through fire.

Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy that person. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.

Money and flesh

Galatians 6:1-10           Money & Flesh                                                                                                           

      

           I heard an expression once, perhaps a justification of sorts but I believe it. The saying goes something like this: Money is not the root of all evil, the love of money is the root of all evil.

          I would make a similar distinction in the part of this scripture passage about 'sowing to your own flesh'. Many churches would have you believe that sex is evil in every form, simply a means for procreation they say. I would argue that anything to excess can become an evil. Like my previous example, it's not money that is bad, it is the love of money. It is not sex that is bad, it is only when that becomes an obsession. Anything that surpasses God as our primary goal and guide in life becomes evil. That is not to say that we should not enjoy the gifts that God has given us. They were given to us for a reason.

          Sexual standards have not really changed all that much over the millenia. Puritanical views and enforcement of narrow minded behaviors have certainly grown though. This is especially true in religions that wield considerable power. The sexual standards become guided by a male dominated, euro centric paradigm. It seems to me, from what reading I have done in scripture and elsewhere, that almost all sexual activity was acceptable as long as it was not abusive, degrading and it was consensual. You can take specific note that I am not considering some sexual practices that appear in Hebrew scripture that a literalist might lead you to believe make they are acceptable. Take for example Lot. He had sex with his two daughters after the daughters get him drunk, afraid they would go childless.  Ancient scripture is rich with stories of sex, infidelity and rape. The key for me is the guide that sex not be abusive, degrading and it must be consensual.

         Otherwise, like money, sex kept in proper perspective is a joy that God has graced us with. Perhaps sex is all the more joyous and acceptable because it is given to us at birth with no strings attached. We were born sexual beings and we remain so. It is a part of our make up, the way God made us. I could not imagine that God created us with a segment of our being that is intrinsically evil.

Galatians 6:1-10

         My friends, if anyone is detected in a transgression, you who have received the Spirit should restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness. Take care that you yourselves are not tempted. Bear one another’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. For if those who are nothing think they are something, they deceive themselves. All must test their own work; then that work, rather than their neighbor’s work, will become a cause for pride. For all must carry their own loads.

Those who are taught the word must share in all good things with their teacher.

Do not be deceived; God is not mocked, for you reap whatever you sow. If you sow to your own flesh, you will reap corruption from the flesh; but if you sow to the Spirit, you will reap eternal life from the Spirit. So let us not grow weary in doing what is right, for we will reap at harvest time, if we do not give up. So then, whenever we have an opportunity, let us work for the good of all, and especially for those of the family of faith. 

           

           

Actions louder than words

1 Peter 3:13-22
          Actions louder than words

          Now who will harm you if you are eager to do what is good? But even if you do suffer for doing what is right, you are blessed. Do not fear what they fear, and do not be intimidated, but in your hearts sanctify Christ as Lord. Always be ready to make your defence to anyone who demands from you an account of the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and reverence. Keep your conscience clear, so that, when you are maligned, those who abuse you for your good conduct in Christ may be put to shame. For it is better to suffer for doing good, if suffering should be God’s will, than to suffer for doing evil. For Christ also suffered for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, in order to bring you to God. He was put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit, in which also he went and made a proclamation to the spirits in prison, who in former times did not obey, when God waited patiently in the days of Noah, during the building of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight people, were saved through water. And baptism, which this prefigured, now saves you—not as a removal of dirt from the body, but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers made subject to him.

           Many years ago,  a fellow seminarian was scheduled to preach in a church although by church law he was not allowed to. He had yet to be ordained. Perhaps that is silly but the pastor of the church wanted him to preach. To fulfill the letter of the law, the pastor woud preach and then my friend would offer a "reflection". The pastor ascended the pulpit and said he had to preach to fulfill the law. He said "Here is my homily, love one another" and then his sat down and let my friend give a proper sermon, errr, reflection. I will follow the Pastors lead in making a similarly brief blog today because I think the reading really does say it all and much better than I ever could. So here goes.       

        Perhaps as a product of my education I am reminded of two things from this passage that I learned from my undergraduate study in a Vincentian University. One is to be part of the world but not of the world (St. Vincent de Paul); the other is to preach the word of God always, use words if necessary.

       So follow as the reading suggests. Always strive to live a good and decent life without flaunting it or making a spectacle of yourself. If anyone ever does ask you why you behave as you do, gently explain it is your faith without boasting and without any speck of self righteousness.

           Actions always speak louder than words.

      

Cornerstones

Luke 20:17-19

         Cornerstones

          But he looked at them and said, ‘What then does this text mean:
“The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone”?^*
Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces; and it will crush anyone on whom it falls.’ When the scribes and chief priests realized that he had told this parable against them, they wanted to lay hands on him at that very hour, but they feared the people.

          So, you're in a hurry, driving merrily along. Well, actually you're driving along not so merrily. You're in a hurry and then it happens. You miss your exit, you forget to stop here or there. No disaster, you can turn around up ahead.

          I think of scenarios like this because they happen to us all the time and I think they hold some real meaning for our life journey. They can say powerful things to us.

          I am an avid fan of The Amazing Race. I watch along with everyone else as the couples navigate a course having to watch for clues and paying strict attention. Hilarity (or disaster!) ensues when a couple misreads something, fails to see the clue they absolutely have to see.  Whatever it is they are missing, consider that the cornerstone. If they don't get that first piece right, everything that follows is for naught.

         One more example for today.  We all know the dynamics of high school. Two major groups are jocks and geeks. It used to be the geeks were always at the bottom of the barrel in everything - except grades.  The geeks are often the ones overlooked and dismissed by whole groups of students. Now what's the story? Bill Gates (the geek) is the one laughing. That's the new dynamic. Geeks rule. Bill Gates is just the most notable example.

            If not cornerstones by pure definition, I am trying to point out things, people,  that we overlook and dismiss. When we do our lives are poorer for it. In fact, our lives are diminished and we often are headed off in the right direction. 

           I often point out the fact that 'God don't make junk'. That God creates each of us unique, special and out of total love. We should respect ourselves, love ourselves for who we are. We also need to realize that God made everyone else in their own unique way and that they are loved too. I would repeat that God loves 'them' at least as much as God loves us.

            Try not to overlok the cornerstones in our lives. Let us not be dismissive of people we find weird, not in step with our journey or even with our own values. We have an obligation to try to understand our brothers because God created them too and with good reason. If we do not, our lives are poorer for it.

And now, the time is here

James 5:7-12

         And now, the time is here....

         Be patient, therefore, beloved, until the coming of the Lord. The farmer waits for the precious crop from the earth, being patient with it until it receives the early and the late rains. You also must be patient. Strengthen your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is near.^* Beloved, do not grumble against one another, so that you may not be judged. See, the Judge is standing at the doors! As an example of suffering and patience, beloved, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. Indeed we call blessed those who showed endurance. You have heard of the endurance of Job, and you have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate and merciful.

Above all, my beloved, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath, but let your ‘Yes’ be yes and your ‘No’ be no, so that you may not fall under condemnation.

          Yesterday I wrote about graced moments. We should be thankful for all the moments of our lives.   The thing is though, as the example with my husband, we met at the right moment. Had we met at any time earlier, it would not have been that 'right moment'.

           Sometime we need to be patient for that moment. We can search and try our hardest to accomplish something but there is a proper time in the cosmos, in the eyes of God. We must do everything we can but sometimes we must wait. 

           As a child wants to expand it's boundaries of experience and knowledge but still must wait until they are older. So must we wait until the right moment for things in our personal lives and lives of the world. My thoughts are running wild with ideas that had to wait until the time had come. We have prophets who speak and we make all human efforts but some things must wait until we have understanding.

          Was the world ready to hear of sub atomic particles at the dawn of written history? Could they understand, even imagine? We were mere children, we could not understand. So God gave us somewhat simplistic stories that helped us understand for that time until we were perhaps more grown up as humans.

            In Jesus's time, in the time of Hebrew scripture, slavery was accepted. I am sure there were a few who had the knowledge it was wrong but it took many centuries of fighting, learning and growing for us to finally realize how wrong it was. I just saw the move Lincoln. It artfully, masterfully, conveys the struggles of humanity, of even a country that claims it's inalienable rights of equality endowed by the creator.  Wow.

             Recently, the great State of New York made marriage equality a reality and I was able to marry the man of my dreams. We fought hard for it and it's time had come. Many are still growing in knowledge that gay people are no different that any other group of people in God's creation. Surprising if you think that homosexuality appears in 1500 different species of God's creation. But this is the time to realize, the time has come when we can put aside ignorance and stereotypes and know that gay people are a part of God's good creation. Capable of love and commitment and capable of sin and depravity but NO different than any other of God's creations. Heterosexuals and Homosexuals are equal in God's eyes. So now is the time. We are mature enough to know this, to understand this, to know and embrace love and equality.

         And the continuum of life marches on, in maturity, in knowledge, hopefully in peace. 

         We should be wise enough to know there is a right time and a wrong time but we must push and stretch, fight and prophesy over new knowledge of God's love, creation and equality.

Thankful moments

Luke 19:41-44
          Thankful moments

          As he came near and saw the city, he wept over it, saying, ‘If you, even you, had only recognized on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. Indeed, the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up ramparts around you and surround you, and hem you in on every side. They will crush you to the ground, you and your children within you, and they will not leave within you one stone upon another; because you did not recognize the time of your visitation from God.’

          Are you aware of your graced moments? The opportunity we are given to see exactly what we have , what we are blessed with and not dimiss it or take it for granted? 

          My husband and I are keenly aware that the relationship we have is blessed. The odds of two kindred spirits meeting at the right moment, at the right place is really miraculous. We could have been two ships passing in the night but we recognized there was something there and the longer we knew each other, the more we realized how special it was and how truly blessed we are. At any step along the way, we could have walked and perhaps we would never have known the bliss, the extent of the joy we now have. God willing, our journey together in love will last to our dying breaths and beyond. We know what we have is worth fighting for.

          This prompts me to ask what else in my life, in your life, is a day that we should recognize for peace, for love, for Thanksgiving? Are we in such a hurry that we miss the scenery around us because we are driving too fast? We need to slow down, see, smell, appreciate the scenery, the people, the situations we are in? It could be a lost moment if we are not careful and inattentive. A missed opportunity, the answer to our prayers as my husband is to me.

           'Look at your life Loretta'.  

            Have a wonderful Thanksgiving, we have so very much to be tankful for. 

         

You've got to give a little

Luke 19:11-28

           Youv'e got to give a little...

          They were listening to this, he went on to tell a parable, because he was near Jerusalem, and because they supposed that the kingdom of God was to appear immediately. So he said, ‘A nobleman went to a distant country to get royal power for himself and then return. He summoned ten of his slaves, and gave them ten pounds, and said to them, “Do business with these until I come back.” But the citizens of his country hated him and sent a delegation after him, saying, “We do not want this man to rule over us.” When he returned, having received royal power, he ordered these slaves, to whom he had given the money, to be summoned so that he might find out what they had gained by trading.  The first came forward and said, “Lord, your pound has made ten more pounds.” He said to him, “Well done, good slave! As Because you have been trustworthy in a very small thing, take charge of ten cities.” Then the second came, saying, “Lord, your pound has made five pounds.” He said to him, “And you, rule over five cities.” Then the other came, saying, “Lord, here is your pound. I wrapped it up in a piece of cloth, for I was afraid of you, because you are a harsh man; you take what you did not deposit, and reap what you did not sow.” He said to him, “I will judge you by your own words, you wicked slave! You knew, did you, that I was a harsh man, taking what I did not deposit and reaping what I did not sow?Why then did you not put my money into the bank? Then when I returned, I could have collected it with interest.” He said to the bystanders, “Take the pound from him and give it to the one who has ten pounds.” (And they said to him, “Lord, he has ten pounds!”) “I tell you, to all those who have, more will be given; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away. But as for these enemies of mine who did not want me to be king over them—bring them here and slaughter them in my presence.” ’

After he had said this, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem.

         There is a great deal of imagery here that, as I said yesterday, is written with familiar scenes so that the audience will be more receptive to the message. Today, as yesterday, the message is about giving and perhaps more.

          What we do with our time, talent and treasure, those gifts entrusted to us by God, is surely our own business. We are accountable only to God. But it is clear that we are to use what we have been given for the benefit of all. 

          This reading leads me to believe that we are responsible to share in proportion to what we have been given. You will find biblical references to a figure of 10% , which is where the term tithing comes from. The writer of this passage would be very pleased I think with a pastor I once had. He was very good with money. He knew that most Catholics are more prone to 'dollaring' than to actually making a plan or budgeting money for the church. Dollaring is the practice of simply reaching in your pocket and pulling out a dollar or some loose change.  The pastor was also wise enough to know that the concept of tithing or giving 10% would also not fly far with the congregation. He devised a once a year 'mission' to explain finances to the parishioners and ask them to simply consider giving 5%. If not 5%, strive for five and at least make a plan and budget an amount instead of dollaring. The pastors told the people that he knew they all gave to other causes and so he would consider their other donations as the other 5% that God says we should give, and he freely quotes all the sections of scripture that say we should be doing so. Needless to say the money poured in. Any budgeted amount would be greater than dollaring and indeed there were some who actually did give 5% which was really great. Our parish had a spectacular outreach program to the poor , the jobless, the elderly and we had no mortgages and money in the bank. It is a beautiful community to this day even though that founding pastor has gone to his eternal reward.

             What does this have to do with the reading? We all have to give something and we all can. The wealthy should give more because they can afford to, it's proportional. The poor can give in proportion to what they have been given. That may simply be some time volunteering but ALL can give something. No one is released from the Biblical mandate to give from what they have been gifted with.

             While the imagery may be harsh, the 'truth' to this passage is that we will be held accountable for what we share with our brothers and sisters. 

Zacchaeus

Luke 19:1-10

          Zacchaeus (zah-kay-us)

          He entered Jericho and was passing through it. A man was there named Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax-collector and was rich. He was trying to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was short in stature. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycomore tree to see him, because he was going to pass that way. When Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, ‘Zacchaeus, hurry and come down; for I must stay at your house today.’ So he hurried down and was happy to welcome him. All who saw it began to grumble and said, ‘He has gone to be the guest of one who is a sinner.’ Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, ‘Look, half of my possessions, Lord, I will give to the poor; and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will pay back four times as much.’ Then Jesus said to him, ‘Today salvation has come to this house, because he too is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek out and to save the lost.’

         I love it when I hear someone, usually in an effort to condemn the gay community, speak of "the gay lifestyle". Like being gay is a choice and it is born of anonymous sex, constant orgies and drugs. I don't even find it funny. I am sad that there are such incredibly stupid people out there.  I am sure all those things go on in the straight community, why wouldn't it occur in the gay community? Does that define being heterosexual? Is being straight a lifestyle too?

        These judgements that people make about people, communities, races and nationalities are so fraught with error. I suppose they appeal to a desire of humans to categories things, people into neat holes so we can all be organized and happy. But it just isn't correct in any way.

         In this reading we hear about Zacchaeus, a wealthy man, a tax collector. For one thing, isn't it telling that Jesus looks up to him and calls him down? Zacchaeus did not call out to Jesus after all. Jesus calls this 'sinner' down and intends to spend the day with him. In the course of the visit, Zacchaeus gets to explain himself. He is in fact rich but that's the result of his job. Zacchaeus points out that if he has defrauded anyone, he will repay him four fold. Sounds like an honest man to me. As a side bar, I think that Zacchaeus realized that all is money did not bring real happiness, otherwise he would not have been climbing trees to see the man with all the answers, Jesus. 

           After their visit, I am sure there are people that labeled both of them. Zacchaeus did not explain himself to everyone so only Jesus knows the truth about his wealth. To outsiders, Zacchaeus is still a crook, a sinner. Not only that, Jesus now is tainted in some eyes for his relationship to Zacchaeus.  And so it goes.

           It is important to be justified in God's eyes but no one else's. People will always judge it seems. You can never explain to everyone what's in your heart nor should you have to. 

          I will only add that when someone's judgements about me or my people affect our rights as humans, I will fight like a madman. A justified fighter is what the Old testament is filled with. I am a reluctant fighter, but fight I will if called to do so against ignorance and for human rights. 

Real and permanent good

Luke 16:19-31

          Real and Permanent Good

          ‘There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. And at his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, who longed to satisfy his hunger with what fell from the rich man’s table; even the dogs would come and lick his sores. The poor man died and was carried away by the angels to be with Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried. In Hades, where he was being tormented, he looked up and saw Abraham far away with Lazarus by his side. He called out, “Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am in agony in these flames.” But Abraham said, “Child, remember that during your lifetime you received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner evil things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in agony. Besides all this, between you and us a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who might want to pass from here to you cannot do so, and no one can cross from there to us.” He said, “Then, father, I beg you to send him to my father’s house— for I have five brothers—that he may warn them, so that they will not also come into this place of torment.” Abraham replied, “They have Moses and the prophets; they should listen to them.” He said, “No, father Abraham; but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.” He said to him, “If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.” ’

         Two thoughts come to mind when reading this passage. There is the overall message and a more subtle message that some might take and run with.

         For all intents and purposes, I believe this reading is about how we should be generous and caring in this life, using the talents and treasures we have been entrusted with to help others who are not as fortunate as we are. Certainly not to let a beggar live on our doorstep, begging for scraps and have dogs licking at his wounds. What a horrible picture. This was a not a rich man living in this gated house, it was simply a horrible person. Yet many of us do overloof the obvious in life.

There are people in our community, people we work with who are barely making ends meet, who have to make decisions about having food or medicine, heat or eat? If we are able, we should make a conscious effort to help these people in some way.  And most important, it should not be done without any thought of reward or wish to be repaid. There is joy and reward just in the giving.  For the gay community especially, knowing how difficult it is for gay youth to come out. Coming out often means being disowned. They are often thrown into a situation of homelessness, if not helplessness, at a time when they have virtually no means of supporting themselves, no foundation for a good job all while trying to accept and revel in who they are. If the gay demographic is correct and we have more disposable income than most, then we certainly should be doing more for these youths and certainly more overall than most.

           The second portion of this reading that Luke portrays is the one of the dynamics of heaven and hell. The Gospel writers, whoever they were, wrote to a specific group of people, a community they were familiar with. They used imagery that the community would understand so that their message would come across. Here Luke speaks of the fires of Hell and a chasm that cannot be transversed. While thiscertainly is the word of God and it does convey truths, how many of us would want to take the picture Luke presents and make a verbatim Gospel truth of it? If there is a Hell and if there are people there, or souls, can you actually see those in Heaven from Hell? Is heaven a physical place?  Is there a physical chasm that cannot be transversed? These images, these words I think are more for the benefit of the audience that Luke is speaking to and NOT a truth. This is where many religions and preachers get in trouble. They take the Bible literally. There is not only a problem with verses that contradict each other but also puts God in the position of having created a flawed document which I don't think is reasonable. Perhaps even insulting.

          The truth here is how we live and what we are called to do in the here and now. If we are blessed with riches, use them for good. Enjoy life but help others enjoy life too. Help the poor. As  Andrew Carnegie would say, use te money 'for real and permanent good'. 

Some men are born to live at ease

Philippians 3:13-4:1
          Some men are born to live at ease...

           Beloved, I do not consider that I have made it my own; but this one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on towards the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus. Let those of us then who are mature be of the same mind; and if you think differently about anything, this too God will reveal to you. Only let us hold fast to what we have attained.

Brothers and sisters, join in imitating me, and observe those who live according to the example you have in us. For many live as enemies of the cross of Christ; I have often told you of them, and now I tell you even with tears. Their end is destruction; their god is the belly; and their glory is in their shame; their minds are set on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven, and it is from there that we are expecting a Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ. He will transform the body of our humiliation so that it may be conformed to the body of his glory, by the power that also enables him to make all things subject to himself.

Therefore, my brothers and sisters, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, my beloved.

          Like any self respecting gay man, I read or hear something and immediately a Broadway show tune comes to mind or worse, out of my mouth. Today is no different so this is what comes from this scripture passage. It's actually is a song from the fantastic show Godspel and here are a few lines, I hope you know the melody because it's a great song:

Some men are born to live at ease, doing what they please,                        Richer than the bees are in honey                        Never growing old, never feeling cold                        Pulling pots of gold from thin air                        The best in every town, best at shaking down                        Best at making mountains of money                        They can't take it with them, but what do they care?                        They get the center of the meat, cushions on the seat                        Houses on the street where it's sunny..                        Summers at the sea, winters warm and free                       All of this and we get the rest...                       But who is the land for? the sun and the sand for?                       You guessed! It's all for the best...                    The song tells a great story of people who seem to have it all. I don't think I have all the answers by any stretch of the imagination. Sure, I have a spectacular life. I am overjoyed that I have been blessed with the love of a great man, an extraordinary cat, have wonderful children who are married to wonderful people and there is nothing that I want for. However, I am under no illusion that I possess the wisdom of the ages, have unshakable faith or that I have all the luxuries a person is supposed to want. I am a work in progress and I think we all are.  Our journey to wholeness may begin with acknowledging who we are and living a good and decent life but the journey to wholeness last our entire lives.           So this is what I preach: self acceptance and pride in who God made you. I preach to not keep focused on the past, learn from it and grow. I preach to not be arrogant that what you know is always right or that you have the whole picture. I preach humility, love and generosity. And lastly (for today), I preach that we should enjoy the journey we are on today and not worry so much about tomorrow. Tomorrow may not be there and our only opportunity to grow, to love is today.

Pray unceasingly

Luke 18:1-8 
          Pray unceasingly

         Then Jesus old them a parable about their need to pray always and not to lose heart. He said, ‘In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor had respect for people. In that city there was a widow who kept coming to him and saying, “Grant me justice against my opponent.” For a while he refused; but later he said to himself, “Though I have no fear of God and no respect for anyone, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will grant her justice, so that she may not wear me out by continually coming.” ’And the Lord said, ‘Listen to what the unjust judge says. And will not God grant justice to his chosen ones who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long in helping them? I tell you, he will quickly grant justice to them. And yet, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?’ 

         When I read this passage of unceasing prayer I think of two things. One is Saint Monica, mother of Saint Augustine. Augustine lived, well lets just say an interesting life, one that could use a great deal of prayer. And praying is exactly what Monica did - for decades in fact. She prayed unceasingly for the soul of her son and in the end, he became a Christian. The rest would be history with probably a small amount of legend in there as well.

           The other thing I think of us the Liturgy of the Hours or simply 'the hours'. This tradition of the church and the answer to the call to pray unceasingly, involves formal prayers at certain times of the day. For example morning prayer, noon prayer evening prayers etc.  One might recall the term Vespers which is the evening sunset prayers. When they are said by all the faithful around the world at these times it amounts to an unceasing continuous prayer rising to God. I found great comfort in these prayers when I was studying in the seminary. It is especially beautiful when the voices of the seminarians, monks or other religious rise up together, alternating verses. It is magnificent.

             What doee this do for all of us who are not living in a monastery, seminary or hermitage? Those of us who have terribly busy lives with children and jobs and homes and schedules? I had a spirtual director once who told me that if I was dedicated to having a relationship with God, dedicated to having a real prayer life, that I would need to make the time. He wasn't telling me when, that was for me to figure out. I wound up getting up earlier each morning. Now, I still get up earlier but I have also discovered the joy of informal prayer all day long. I have spoken of this before.  If we are attentive and have a desire to pray, everything we do, everything we  see, witness and take part in all day long can be a prayer. A thought, a remembrance, a smile can be a prayer.

          We are all capable of praying unceasingly, each in our own way. Try it, you'll like it.

         

God don't make junk

Luke 4:16-22

          God Don't Make Junk

          When he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the sabbath day, as was his custom. He stood up to read, and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written: 

‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to bring good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
let the oppressed go free, 

to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.’
And he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. Then he began to say to them, ‘Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.’ All spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth. They said, ‘Is not this Joseph’s son?’

        There is something almost magnetic about someone you meet or hear that is very self assured.  This is not to be confused with arrogance. There is a sauve, debonaire character about someone who speaks with assurance, authority and exudes self confidence. You might even say "I wish I could be more like that person". This type of person commands a room.

          We are called to be this kind of person. We should hear how much God loves us and think "That's how God feels about me! We are called to have that kind of assurance, a knowledge deep in our gut of the self worth we have, of the love God has for us. 

          When Jesus said 'Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing' , he was acknowledging who he was. He had that self knowledge, that self assurance. It was part of his charism.

          I have often wondered how that can be instilled into someone. I wished to let every student I ever taught know it. It's not easy in a world where we get beat up and disrespected.  It seems an easy way for some to build themselves up is to denigrate others. Sadly for many that starts at home and it becomes a  shadow for most, if not all of their lives.

           Writing a blog, a ministry to the gay community, I encourage every gay person to acknowledge who they are as a first step to self respect, dignity and that self assurance we are called to have as children of God. This is true however for every creation of God. We must acknowledge who we are, embrace it and love it. God made no mistake in creating you. It goes back to a button I used to wear after experiencing a Cursillo in the 11th grade. The button says "God Don't Make Junk".

             We need to know that God don't make junk and have the respect for ourselves and every one of our fellow humans. God created them also in love and dignity. Doing so makes the world a brighter place.

            

Heaven on earth

Luke 17:20-25
         Heaven on earth

          Once Jesus was asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God was coming, and he answered, ‘The kingdom of God is not coming with things that can be observed; nor will they say, “Look, here it is!” or “There it is!” For, in fact, the kingdom of God is among
 you.’

Then he said to the disciples, ‘The days are coming when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it. They will say to you, “Look there!” or “Look here!” Do not go, do not set off in pursuit. For as the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be in his day. But first he must endure much suffering and be rejected by this generation.

         About ten years ago I went with a group of fellow seminarians to missions in the poorest part of the Dominican Republic, high in the mountains 2 miles from the Haitian border. These people were really poor and yet they were happy and very faithful people. That's one of the reasons we went, to experience their joyful lives. We got more from the visit by far than anything they received from us. The beauty of the surroundings and the people made it  seem like heaven on earth.

         This makes me wonder about what makes people happy? If the kingdom is among us, what allows  us to see it?  I am beginning to believe that it is a state of mind more than anything else.  I could give you 100 reasons why I am happy. If I chose to, I could give you another 100 reasons why I could, perhaps even should, be sad. I've seen a lot of sad things in my life but I am overwhelmed by the joy.  I'm sure there are people who would dwell on the sad things - there certainly is enough sadness around. I do ache for some of the sad things I see but it does not overcome the joy that is in my heart, the joy that is in my life. My husband says we could be happy anywhere as long as we are together and I know it's true. I  can be impressed by material things but I know they do not bring true happiness.

        Is heaven a state of joy that we can have here on earth?  The reading says that the kingdom is among us. Why not here? Why not now ? Why not you?

        Perhaps a conversion of heart is needed to find all the joy that is already in our lives but I know my heart is converted. I find joy in almost everything. I've been told I can find the silver lining in anything.  I'm not sure which comes first the conversion of heart or the acknowledgement of all that is good and the thankfulness for it but I know I am incredibly thankful and to me heaven can be the here and now.

          I beleive conversion starts with a very thankful heart. A really good meditation would be to acknowledge all the things we do have to be thankful for. A fitting preparation for our upcoming Thanksgiving holiday.

         

Unclean !

Luke 17:11-19
         Unclean !

         On the way to Jerusalem Jesus was going through the region between Samaria and Galilee. As he entered a village, ten lepers approached him. Keeping their distance, they called out, saying, ‘Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!’  When he saw them, he said to them, ‘Go and show yourselves to the priests.’ And as they went, they were made clean. Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice. He prostrated himself at Jesus’  feet and thanked him. And he was a Samaritan. Then Jesus asked, ‘Were not ten made clean? But the other nine, where are they? Was none of them found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?’  Then he said to him, ‘Get up and go on your way; your faith has made you well.’ 

       It would seem that Jesus loved to invite trouble. If he wasn't disobeying this rabinic law or that, associating with prostitutes and tax collectors, he was here willing to speak with lepers and Samaritan lepers at that (they're the worst!). What was he thinking? His mother would have been very upset with him, him being a good Jewish boy and all.

        But Jesus was (is?) a good Jew. Not unlike many of us that might say I am a good Catholic if it weren't for the fact that we don't always go to Mass, practice birth control and eat meat on fridays in Lent, etc, etc. What are we thinking? How can we consider ourselves good Catholics? In many ways it's no different than Jesus being a good Jew. Far too little credit is given to what is in our hearts. Jesus gave us good examples that rubrics and rules following is NOT what makes you holy. Clearly it is our hearts.

          So Jesus is walking along and is confronted by lepers - untouchables, unclean, to be avoided at all costs both religiously and for obvious practical reasons. What does Jesus do? He speaks to them, heals them and considers it a done deal.

          The end of this reading is something very important to consider, especially this coming week. One leper came back to Jesus to say thank you, most of the cured lepers did not. It seems entirely reasonable to me that even if you don't follow all the rules of the Church, even if you disagree with one doctrine or another or don't go to church to worship in community and to say thank you, you certainly can spend time to say thank you on your own. In community is better I think, but certainly we should be saying thank you's all over the place. God obviously would and does go to extraordinary lengths for us, we should thank God for everything we are graced with.

          To God, we are not unclean lepers, we are his precious children one and all.

What story ?

Titus 2:1-14

          What story ?

          But as for you, teach what is consistent with sound doctrine. Tell the older men to be temperate, serious, prudent, and sound in faith, in love, and in endurance.

Likewise, tell the older women to be reverent in behaviour, not to be slanderers or slaves to drink; they are to teach what is good, so that they may encourage the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be self-controlled, chaste, good managers of the household, kind, being submissive to their husbands, so that the word of God may not be discredited.

Likewise, urge the younger men to be self-controlled. Show yourself in all respects a model of good works, and in your teaching show integrity, gravity, and sound speech that cannot be censured; then any opponent will be put to shame, having nothing evil to say of us.

Tell slaves to be submissive to their masters and to give satisfaction in every respect; they are not to answer back, not to pilfer, but to show complete and perfect fidelity, so that in everything they may be an ornament to the doctrine of God our Saviour.

For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all, training us to renounce impiety and worldly passions, and in the present age to live lives that are self-controlled, upright, and godly, while we wait for the blessed hope and the manifestation of the glory of our great God and Saviour, Jesus Christ. He it is who gave himself for us that he might redeem us from all iniquity and purify for himself a people of his own who are zealous for good deeds.

            Back in the day, say 40 or 50 A.D. , the ideas of the world were quite different and based on very limited knowledge compared to today.  In many instances, lives were not seen as fluid and as changeable as they are recognized to be today. If you were a woman, your place was set for the most part, although Jesus certainly did challenge the status quo in that regard. Sadly, it's a lesson that has yet to be learned in many circles. I wish I could excuse it by saying something like "it takes time". That would be, well you know, BS. If you were a slave for the most part your station in life was set and any good you saw was at the generosity and benevolence of  your master. If you were a man, the world was your oyster except that, well, there too you could have been born into an upper class of person, especially in religious terms and be fine or you could also be born into an estate where labor was your inheritance. Many concepts were born of superstition or very superficial views of the world. Science was bare. Concepts like homosexuality did not exist but there were actions that were viewed as bad. Even so, it was okay (for a man) as long as you were not on the receiving end so to speak.
There were standards of behavior that were primarily rooted in what role you played in society. Some behavior was acceptable as long as certain criteria were met. 
So what immutable truths are here?

        This reading speaks of proper behavior but more often based in specific roles people played in society. That is very important to remember especially when reading ancient texts. Values, norms and roles are not automatically transferrable from their time to ours. The role of women is quite notable. The fact that we know slavery to be wrong is another. A truth that this reading contains is not so much the roles that people must play but being true to what we know we are as created by God.  I am not speaking of a class system or even a defined sexual identity. There is much more in God's created world than simply man or woman, black or white. But whoever you are, whatever talents God has granted to you, respect that, cherish it, grow it, embrace it.

          As far as this reading goes, be of good character and more than anything be true to yourself.

Letting go

Luke 17:1-6

            Letting go 

           Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Occasions for stumbling are bound to come, but woe to anyone by whom they come! It would be better for you if a millstone were hung around your neck and you were thrown into the sea than for you to cause one of these little ones to stumble. Be on your guard! If another disciple sins, you must rebuke the offender, and if there is repentance, you must forgive. And if the same person sins against you seven times a day, and turns back to you seven times and says, “I repent”, you must forgive.’

The apostles said to the Lord, ‘Increase our faith!’ The Lord replied, ‘If you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, “Be uprooted and planted in the sea”, and it would obey you.

         There is a song from Avenue Q, an incredibly funny and educational broadway play, that says "The more you love someone, the more you want to kill them". The same concept is in the great movie Moonstruck where Olympia Dukakis asks Loretta (Cher) "Do you love him Loretta?" Cher says "I love him something awful". Finally Olympia says, "That's too bad. When you love them they drive you crazy because they know they can". It's true, love is difficult. The people you know the best know all the perfect ways to drive you crazy. It's as true for couples as it is for kids.  But do we end the relationship over some anger, a disagreement, a fight? We might even say in jest that we'd like to kill them but we would never because we really do love them. 

           This concept of repentance and forgiveness is a hallmark of God our father. It is somthing we are called to do with everyone but we seem to master only within our marriage, our kids and maybe extend that to other family members.

          We need to remember that God is the father (or mother) of us all and we are all called to forgive as God forgives us. I know that's easier said than done. If you don't want to look at it from that angle, realize what not forgiving does to you personally. I wrote the other day about not letting the past rule you. If you live in the past you will not be able to live in the present, to grow. The same is true if we do not forgive , we wind up living in the past. As my husband says, it's like letting someone live in your head rent free!

          I can't tell you exactly how to accomplish this important task of forgiveness. I can remind you that Jesus was able to forgive his crucifiers from the cross. John Paul forgave the man who shot him and I am not speaking of the sacrament of reconciliation. John Paul forgave the man.

         There is a section of scripture that says we should not come to the alter of God if a we have an outstanding grievance with someone.  If we are to come to Jesus, to God with an open, clear heart, we must be able to empty ourselves of hate, grudges and all ill will. God understands why you might feel that way but it is anathema to His being and the any relationship you wish to have with him.

      You must forgive. You must let go.

          

It's not fair !

Matthew 20:1-16
         It's not fair!  (stomp feet, jump up and down)

        ‘For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire labourers for his vineyard. After agreeing with the labourers for the usual daily wage, he sent them into his vineyard. When he went out about nine o’clock, he saw others standing idle in the market-place; and he said to them, “You also go into the vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.” So they went. ⁵When he went out again about noon and about three o’clock, he did the same. And about five o’clock he went out and found others standing around; and he said to them, “Why are you standing here idle all day?” They said to him, “Because no one has hired us.” He said to them, “You also go into the vineyard.” When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his manager, “Call the labourers and give them their pay, beginning with the last and then going to the first.” When those hired about five o’clock came, each of them received the usual daily wage. Now when the first came, they thought they would receive more; but each of them also received the usual daily wage. And when they received it, they grumbled against the landowner, saying, “These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.” But he replied to one of them, “Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for the usual daily wage? Take what belongs to you and go; I choose to give to this last the same as I give to you. Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or are you envious because I am generous?” So the last will be first, and the first will be last.’

          So I come into work and announce (big mistake) that I got gas the other day in 13 minutes flat, 15 if you count the 2 minutes it took us to drive to the local gas station. All this in a post Sandy reality. If looks could kill I would have been dead, dead, dead. People waited for 2 hours, 3 hours, and even more than 8 hours!. Holy crap! There seems to be something almost unnatural that we don't want people to get the same good deal we got at anything. Whether it's a TV, a hotel room, the price of a car, the discount we got on A,B or C. It almost seems like a competition.  I do it myself without even thinking. Did I tell you how high I can get my mileage with my new Prius?  It can get unbearable, all this stuff.

          I guess it was the same back in the time of Jesus. The laborers didn't think very highly of getting paid the same as the workers that only worked half a day.

         But you know, God's standards are not our standards. God is incredibly generous with us, not to mention patient. So if you think about it, it really is very Godlike for him to welcome some johnny come lately into heaven when we may have been faithful servants our whole lives. What do we think of the person on death row that 'finds Jesus'? Suspicious at best. We might even be heard asking "do you think God will fall for it?"

         But it's like I said, God is patient and incredibly loving. God is so loving that we may not be able to wrap our minds around such love. But I assure you God is THAT loving. 

        I don't think we will ever be able to attain that level of loving and generosity, especially the way our media and advertising seem to grab hold of us. But it is comforting to know that God  understands but doesn't follow Madison Avenue like we do. It's also good for us to know how we should try to act even if we know we will fall short.  Just don't delude yourself into some ad exec's  line that this is what God would really wants unless it is to be loving, kind, patient and forgiving.

Mixed emotions

Luke 16:9-15

          Mixed emotions

         

          And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of dishonest wealth so that when it is gone, they may welcome you into the eternal homes.

‘Whoever is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much; and whoever is dishonest in a very little is dishonest also in much. If then you have not been faithful with the dishonest wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches? And if you have not been faithful with what belongs to another, who will give you what is your own? No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.’

The Pharisees, who were lovers of money, heard all this, and they ridiculed him. So he said to them, ‘You are those who justify yourselves in the sight of others; but God knows your hearts; for what is prized by human beings is an abomination in the sight of God.

          There once was a colorful relative of mine, divorced,  who loved to give the definition of words in folksy terms. I loved some of them, one that comes to mind here is the definition of mixed emotions. He'd say 'that's when my ex drives off a cliff in my new Cadillac'.  I am amused at the world around me as I watch and listen during the day at conflicts like this. Our lives seem full of such internal conflicts. It's a cause of anxiety, discomfort and confusion in our lives. As the scripture says you can't serve two masters. Further, what is prized by human beings is an abomination in the sight of God.

          So, rather than tell you how you should act which would be incredibly wrong of me to do in the first place, I think some examples might be more telling of what this passage calls us to do.  Starting locally and working outwards, globally, I'll try to give some examples. 

         Penny Wise and Pound foolish, you've heard the term? As my husband and I start our lives and try to get our financial house in order so that we can actually retire some day, we watch all our money and look at examples both good and bad. One of our favorites are people that give the following example - they are out of work and/or behind in mortgage payments but they are spending a week in Disney, just bought a large screen TV or just purchased an Escalade. What's wrong with this picture?

         Poverty of soul. The newly installed Bishop of a large metropolitan church throws out a group of nuns from their housing because He wants the space for himself. As if that wasn't enough, the records show incredible amounts of money being spent on renovations to the 'new' space and on items like a special dual-zone refrigerator just for wines  (to keep each wine at it's optimum temperature).  Is there an abomination in God's sight here? Can you see it?

        Church.  A show mentions the effort the gay community is putting into marriage equality. There is  a great deal of time and money put into this worthy cause. These efforts have a direct correlation to the  Gospel message about respect for life, respect for the beauty of the individual and how God created them in their diversity. I do not see an equal (or even similar) effort given to fighting for our rights within our Churches and Synagogues. We as a community settle for a sort of second best. Rather than bloom where we were planted, we search for communities that will accept us elsewhere and abandon the faith of our fathers and mothers. Are we willing to fight for that? Are we willing to fight for the revelation and change in religions in which we were raised?  

        Hypocrisy. A Church that began when it's leader, a prophet, the Son of God, rattled cages about the Pharisees adherence to law over love; who spoke to women at length, had women disciples all of which was incredibly radical for his day; now this church denies a woman's true options to serve God, denigrates gays, denigrates their desire and options to live committed loving lives while covering up child sex abuse making the institution itself more important than the message of the Gospel - love.

       Hypocrisy part deux. An organization that promotes character in young men, whose law is to be Trustworthy, Loyal, Helpful, Friendly, Courteous, Kind, Obedient, Cheerful, Thrifty, Brave, Clean and Reverent - denies admittance to gay young men to help mold their young hearts and minds to that same law but covers up for pedophiles within their ranks, does not dismiss the pedophiles but keeps secret files on them for decades thus avoiding justice and help for the abused. What 'scout law' is this?

        Gas. One of the side effects of hurricane Sandy striking the New York metropolitan area have been gas shortages. This is an mild inconvenience (really) when there are still people without electricity, heat or even a home. Much was lost. So in a world where we, as a Nation, consume in inordinate amount of resources to maintain our lifestyle, you might think that people would evaluate how they live and their use of a precious commodity - gasoline. Yet there are people racing down the road in huge SUV's like there is no connection between size, acceleration, speed and gas consumption.

          This all may seem like another rant but what ties it together is a tendency (an ability) we all have to bifurcate our beliefs, our lives and not take a step back and look at the bigger picture. We can live day to day in our closed off worlds. We need to take the time, not to judge, but to see what is really going on. We need to realize the masters we are truly serving. If it is not God, we have trouble in River City!

        

        

       

         

          

Truth

Truth

         It is not decided by votes what is true;
otherwise we could never come to any truth, ever.
People will vote for what is comfortable
- and lies are very comfortable because
you don't have to do anything about them,
you just have to believe.
Truth needs great effort, discovery, risk,and it needs you
to walk alone on a path that nobody has traveled before.

                                                                                                                Osho

         As the gay community celebrates the passage of marriage equality in the states of Washington, Maryland and Maine, I take pause amidst the celebration to comment. This reading states perfectly what I have been saying all along. Equality and human rights are not something that should really be voted on. Standing up for one's rights are often difficult. Sometimes they are recognized by the judiciary, at others times however they have been the result of forcibly taking what is your God given right. Revolutions are made of such fights for equality and justice. Our own nation was founded on this ideal and we actively and vigorously defend it.

         The fight for marriage equality and the lies that seem easier to believe than addressing serious thought, conscience and the discovery of truth, not to mention love... well, this fight is not over.  This is the same battle countless other marginalized people and citizens have fought for. Indiginous peoples, blacks and women to name a few. Hopefully our Supreme court will acknowledge the truth of gay rights and marriage equality.

           As we celebrate this weeks victories, we must not forget that ignorance is out there and it is an easy path for some to follow. Secondly and most importantly, equality, dignity and self worth are not something that can be legislated or voted on. This country should be more attuned and aware of that than most.

         

All the right stuff

Philippians 3:3-8

          All the right stuff

      

         For it is we who are the circumcision, who worship in the Spirit of God and boast in Christ Jesus and have no confidence in the flesh even though I, too, have reason for confidence in the flesh.

If anyone else has reason to be confident in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, a member of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew born of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless.

Yet whatever gains I had, these I have come to regard as loss because of Christ. More than that, I regard everything as loss because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and I regard them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ

          I am reminded of the scripture passage of a man who comes to Jesus saying he does all that is prescribed by the law and asks what more does he need to do to acheive salvation? The man goes away disheartened when Jesus tells him to give away everything he owns.

         What is it that we "own"? What is it that gives us confidence?

          First, we own nothing if you really think about it. Forget about money, job, title, station in life, breeding, culture, dress , cars (that one's for me), what schools we went to, who our parents were or our ancestors were and what church we belong to or who we know. And most especially, we do not own our spouse or our kids. We may have been graced with the 'task' of loving them or raising them by God but we own absolutely nothing. It can all be gone in the blink of an eye. Then, sadly, only then, perhaps will we realize what is important and that we truly own nothing. The rest are games we play, adult versions of childhood games.

          So, cut to the core, stripped of everything we may think of as important, what is it that we can have confidence in? What can we boast of or be assured of?

          I think you can hold your head up high because God says you are worthy just by your naked little self. Not in a sexual way, but there in your birthday suit, standing in your bedroom in the dark (or light), is the creation that God thought precious enough, perfect enough, to grace the world with. The person God places in everyone else's way each day to grace his other beautiful creations. The world is a showplace of God's creations. That, you can take to the bank. Be proud of who you are.

          Secondly, as part of that, know that God loves you and wishes to carry on a relationship with you. Have confidence in that. Imagine yourself as the one hearing God say, "wax on, wax off". He is our creator, our nurturer, our lover so to speak, and we should stand with our heads high for that. Not for any of the myriad reasons we come up with as a worldly being. Our bodies belong to this world, the world gives a reference to our actions and a means to grow but they are vessels of a transcendent being - our souls - that's the right stuff.

          

Let go

Luke 14:25-33

            Let go

          Now large crowds were travelling with him; and he turned and said to them,‘Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and even life itself, cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not carry the cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not first sit down and estimate the cost, to see whether he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it will begin to ridicule him, saying, “This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.” Or what king, going out to wage war against another king, will not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to oppose the one who comes against him with twenty thousand? If he cannot, then, while the other is still far away, he sends a delegation and asks for the terms of peace. So therefore, none of you can become my disciple if you do not give up all your possessions.

          I was chatting with a young intern at work . I noticed a few days earlier that he drove a Jeep Wrangler. I told him that I had a Wrangler once. It was a beauty. heavily modified, lifted, big tires and whole host of upgrades that made it a formidable off roader. Of course I also mentioned the fun I had with the top and doors off riding on the beach. What a great time was had in that Jeep. Why did I sell it he asked? The time had come I answered and while my heart stirs each time I see a Jeep on the road, I still have all my memories and the Jeep still lives in my heart and mind. I have no problem letting go, enjoying it while I had it and even enjoying the fact that the new owner is enjoying it now.

          Some people have great difficulty letting go of the past. There are however two options as I see it. One is to live in the past which, at the very least limits your future. The other is to fully embrace the past, savor it, learn from it, but live in the now. To some this might seem cold or even disrespectful of what has gone before.  The past will always be a part of me , of all of us. It helps make us who we are. But to live in the past means we are really ceasing to grow.

          The reading today speaks of much the same idea. We must be willing to let go, to plan for the future. That does not mean you forget about the past or not appreciate where the past has brought you. It means that you are embracing growth.

           I am not one to believe that we must literally disown our parents, wife or children to be disciples as the reading might suggest. But we must carry our crosses and move forward.  If we are called to be disciples, if we are called to be our fully human selves as God created us, we must move forward.  We do not disregard the past, we do not forget or disrespect the past but we must embrace it all and move forward in faith, in growth - in love.