Tough love

2 Corinthians 5:16-6:2

        I alluded to something the other day on this blog, about how we are all loved. I want all of us to know just how enormously loved by God we are, especially those in the gay community. I also want us to know that even those right wing nut jobs who hate us are also enormously loved.

         This Christianity thing is pretty difficult, it's tough love in the sense that it is sometimes tough to love when our human reaction is to turn away or reject those who disagree with us or even persecute us. It is probably why Gandhi admired the concept of Christianity or the message of Christianity but believed he had never really met one. Perhaps we all fall short of what we are called to do, who we are called to be.

          One thing that I keep thinking of from this passage today is thinking of things in human terms and then not thinking in human terms. It's a conundrum. We are called to be fully human but not act in a human way. As Linda Richmond would say "discuss".   Our salvation through Jesus is based on our humanity and being fully human. At the same time our reactions and our love are to be transcendent, God like which we have as heirs to through Jesus. Jesus' whole life was a testimonial to both, fully human, fully divine. 

            When we base our judgements, decisions and opinions on each others humanity, there is no level playing field in being human. That is we all are different. All have different talents. We look different. We experience life differently. That is something that needs to be recognized and respected because it is in the end, God who created all these wonderful gifts, variations on a theme if you will.  The only level playing field we have is as children of God which is not of this world. When we see everyone and everything as beloved  creations of God, we are elevated to being human and more, godlike. I believe this is part of the message of Jesus' whole life.

            If we respect each others human reference points, see each others divinity, we are no longer seeing with human eyes but as God sees.  This is something to think long and hard on. To discuss, meditate on. A prayer for this morning.

From now on, therefore, we regard no one from a human point of view; even though we once knew Christ from a human point of view, we know him no longer in that way. So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting the message of reconciliation to us. So we are ambassadors for Christ, since God is making his appeal through us; we entreat you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

As we work together with him, we urge you also not to accept the grace of God in vain. For he says,
‘At an acceptable time I have listened to you,
   and on a day of salvation I have helped you.’
See, now is the acceptable time; see, now is the day of salvation!

True gift

1 John 2:12-17

            It is difficult at times to discern what is my voice and what is the voice of God. It is easy to convince oneself that what you want is what God wants. You simply say, God wants me to do that or God wants me to have that. I am one of the first to say that God would want us all to be rich and so largely blessed by wealth or nice things.

                But truth be told, this passage tells of the truly important stuff of the world. What does God really want from us. The message as far as I can tell going back to youth is to love one another, oneself and of course God. I think if you love others and yourself you are in fact loving God but that's not my point. They key is simply love.

           Love is not born of all the material things of the world. While we are finishing up Christmas proper, we have probably been a bit overwhelmed by some of those material things. What will last much longer than any to, cell phone, laptop or whatever will be the joy in our hearts which came not from the gifts but from the love, fellowship and family. It is again the love which is most important.

          It is the love in our hearts and how all that plays out in our lives that is the most important. It is our humanity in all it's aspects that we use to celebrate and share love. From hugs and sharing, to making love and simply 'being there' for each ther. All the aspects of human love which has very little if anything to do with material things.

          So go love someone, show your family how much you love them. Love your spouse, partner, friend and be the most loving and appreciateive you can be. Offer yourself and all that you are.  Your humanity and your love are the route to our salvation and wholeness, not worldly things. 

I am writing to you, little children,
   because your sins are forgiven on account of his name.
I am writing to you, fathers,
   because you know him who is from the beginning.
I am writing to you, young people,
   because you have conquered the evil one.
I write to you, children,
   because you know the Father.
I write to you, fathers,
   because you know him who is from the beginning.
I write to you, young people,
   because you are strong
   and the word of God abides in you,
     and you have overcome the evil one.

Do not love the world or the things in the world. The love of the Father is not in those who love the world; for all that is in the world—the desire of the flesh, the desire of the eyes, the pride in riches—comes not from the Father but from the world. And the world and its desire are passing away, but those who do the will of God live for ever.

The religious Kinsey scale ( for men )

Matthew 2:13-23

         Two images of men. Joseph and Herod. I would like to align myself with the likes of Joseph but that is perhaps a bit self righteous. I don't think I am in the Herod category though either so perhaps I am somewhere in between. Where are you on this religious Kinsey scale?

         Although we often equate supreme cooperation with God as a trait of Mary, I think that perhaps Joseph is a greater example of God's love. In the first place, it would have been sooo easy for Joseph to follow the letter of the law and have Mary stoned to death because she was 'found to be with child' when Joseph had not yet 'known her'. That is, in a biblical sense. For those religious zealots who love to quote Leviticus about homosexuality, Joseph should have had Mary stoned for being pregnant using that same kind of Levitical judgement.  But Joseph is not only a religious man, he is a religious man in the vein of why Jesus came to become human. Joseph has compassion, love and perhaps most importantly, Joseph is aware of the voice and movement of the Holy Spirit. So no, Joseph does not have Mary stoned to death. Had Joseph followed Levitical rules, the Savior would never have been born in the first place. 

          True to form then, Joseph is still listening to the Holy Spirit when he accedes to the message of God to move his family to Egypt.  Joseph puts love of God and love of family first. And I should note, this definition of family is not your ordinary definition of family. Yes, there is a father, mother and child but really, who is the father here - it isn't Joseph. That perhaps was just another dig at those same zealots who drag on about traditional families. Jesus, Mary and Joseph were not a traditional family.

         Now what of Herod?  Herod it seems would do anything to maintain his power grip. Even if he does not see his actions as supporting his own personal power, he would have been acting to maintain the power of the Empire. Do we see any similarities in our own life on how we as individuals try to maintain our power grip on things? Are you a control freak so to speak?  Do you see any similarities in how the Roman Catholic church has acted to maintain it's power grip, seemingly at any cost? The cost of victims of abuse who seem to be judged less valuable that the value of the power and bureaucracy of the church?

          There are two visions here of men and of those that wield power and responsibility. How do we handle it? Are we like Joseph? Are we loving, faithful and mindful of God? Or, do we think we are God and mindful only of our own plans, our own wants and maintaining our own power?

          Just a meditation for today.  

Now after they had left, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, "Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him."

Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother by night, and went to Egypt,

and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet, "Out of Egypt I have called my son."

When Herod saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, he was infuriated, and he sent and killed all the children in and around Bethlehem who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had learned from the wise men.

Then was fulfilled what had been spoken through the prophet Jeremiah:

"A voice was heard in Ramah, wailing and loud lamentation, Rachel weeping for her children; she refused to be consoled, because they are no more."

When Herod died, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt and said,

"Get up, take the child and his mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who were seeking the child's life are dead."

Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother, and went to the land of Israel.

But when he heard that Archelaus was ruling over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And after being warned in a dream, he went away to the district of Galilee.

There he made his home in a town called Nazareth, so that what had been spoken through the prophets might be fulfilled, "He will be called a Nazorean."

Indignant

Mark 10:13-16

          I don't think the word indignant was even a word in Jesus' time but I am sure it makes a good attempt to be as close as possible to whatever word was used. If anything, I think the intensity of Jesus' reaction has been muted by this translation. Often words of this nature, words that express guttural, emotional reactions, all by themselves elicit deep emotional heartfelt meanings.  It's usually a word we can only approximate in Greek, Latin or English.

          I always like it when Jesus is shown to have a strong emotional reaction. First, it shows just how human he was and just how human we are. I've heard the reactions we have are not what's bad, it's what we do with those reactions.

           This is a real teachable moment for Jesus. What is he telling the disciples and by extension, us? We can be so cocksure that we know so many different things. I would mention the arrogance of the Westboro Baptist Church and what they feel they know about homosexuality, about 'their' translation of the Bible. I can also easily imagine Jesus' indignance at them. Part of the interesting part of this passage is that Jesus turns things upside down, he alters the prevailing wisdom and the status quo. Children would have no place in an adult world or in an adult situation. Certainly Jesus would not preach to children and yet Jesus welcomes the children. Jesus uses them as an example of God's kingdom, God's love and God's embrace.

          How sure are we about who will be embraced and who will not? It is my fervent desire that we all know, gays especially, just how loved and welcome we are by God. That may be contrary to the prevailing opinion but it is true. We are loved, accepted and welcomed by God. Not as celibates that abhor our own sexual nature but as sexual beings alive and loving in all our human capacity.

          Having said that, are we as the gay community ready to accept that the religious zealots who would hate us, are equally loved by God even if God weeps for the damage and hate they spew?

          When we are indignant or have a strong emotional reaction, it would be interesting to see what it is we are reacting to. I confess it might be that I am looking in a mirror. It also might be that it insults my sense of decency and demeans our very good and Godly nature. If so, what will I do about it? What will you do about? Is a teachable moment for us? Is it an opportunity for personal conversion of heart, even if it is our own?

        

People were bringing little children to him in order that he might touch them; and the disciples spoke sternly to them. But when Jesus saw this, he was indignant and said to them, ‘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.

Feast of St. John - The disciple whom Jesus loved.

          As this is the feast of St. John, I thought I would re-run a blog entry I wrote in September of 2012 about John, the Apostle, Evangelist and the "disciple whom Jesus loved". So here it is, all about

'that' disciple whom Jesus loved.  While it would be wishful thinking to run with the idea that Jesus was gay, this reading especially and others do certainly point to a special relationship between John and Jesus. 

           Let's address the Jesus is gay idea. The references to the "disciple whom Jesus loved" not withstanding, there is no reason set forth in the accepted books of holy scripture that would suggest to me that Jesus was gay. However, let's not bypass what I just said, "the accepted books" of scripture. As it turns out, there were (are) many books that told the story of Jesus. It was up to man, and in this case I mean the church, to decide which books were accepted or forbidden.  A judgement was made as to  which books woud be officially accepted. This was a judgement based on many criteria but basically the church was deciding which books were actually the inspired word of God. Some of the criteria were things like, did the book in question actually have a following? Was it used in worship? Did the book have a sense of truthiness to it? Did the facts bear out what we already know and accept? Did the book agree with the other accepted texts. Since these decisions were made a very long time after the actual life of Jesus and the church was in somewhat of a formative stage, questions arose about what the text in question might say going forward. For example, with regard to our question of Jesus being gay, did the church want a text (book) in the accepted list of books (the canon) that would give the image or message that they wanted to portray and set forth.  This raises theological, sociological, historical and many more questions about how and what books were accepted into the canon. Lets just be aware that there are in fact other texts ('books') that exist and could have made it into our accepted scriptures of the New Testament. I will leave it to you to google The Gospel of Thomas, The Gospel of Mary and the Gospel of Bartholomew and many others.

            In reference to John 19:25-27, his could easily be seen as a man dying (on a cross) and him saying to his most trusted and loved friend (partner?), see my mother here? she is now your mother too. I want you to honor our relationship by making her your mother now. And as Jesus was hanging there, he calls to his mother and says to her as he looks at his BFF John, "behold your son". This is quite a powerful image that  John is portraying of Jesus. Even if it does not signify an ancient right of same sex family dynamic where John accepted Mary as a mother-in-law so to speak, the whole concept here is one of a very deep relationship between Jesus and John. While the idea of Jesus being gay might seem repulsive, heretical and insulting to some, it is not meant to be demeaning in any way at all. The images of John (who was younger than the other apostles) sitting next to Jesus with his head resting on Jesus' chest are straight from scripture. It isn't disgusting, it is loving and warm. The relationship of some sort is clearly there.

          Why is it so referenced in John's Gospel that he (John) is "the disciple whom Jesus loved"? I struggled with that for years. I believe that as the writer of the Gospel, John had the assuredness in his heart that Jesus loved him. While Jesus loved all his disciples, John is the writer of this Gospel and he is conveying what he felt even if it means incorrectly, or correctly, that he (John) thinks that Jesus loves him more than the other apostles. Sounds childish perhaps, like Tommy Smothers saying "Mom loves me best!". John felt that Jesus loved him best! At the very least we know that John believed it because he saw fit to immortalize that thought in his Gospel by the writing numerous times "the disciple whom Jesus loved". I wish we could all could know that with such certainty because it is true. Jesus does love us!

          The idea that John is aware that Jesus loves him as a disciple is a foundational belief. As I've  said before, I wish we all knew that 'Jesus loves us' in our hearts as certain as we know what our name is.  Whether the scriptural statement "the disciple whom Jesus loved" means more and that there was a more significant bond between Jesus and John is up for interpretation. I personally do not know but I like the idea that Jesus could appreciate the attraction and love of another man. In his complete knowledge of creation (since He was there from the very beginning), he knew that within his created world there were examples of both hetero and homosexual activity and attraction across the spectrum of the animal kingdom. One can only believe that it was part of his design to begin with. Bear in mind, I am speaking of loving and attraction, not immoral sexual activity.

           Was Jesus gay? Who knows. Is it really important? It certainly goes against accepted belief but there is more information out there to pursue in that line of thought. You can research it yourself and decide.

         I am content to not know either way for sure. I am sure that I am a disciple whom Jesus loves.  Are you aware that Jesus loves you?

Stoned for Christ

Acts 7:59-8:8

         This passage conjures up some memories of the very first time I preached in church as an ordained minister.  It was in fact St. Stephens day and I had just been ordained a Deacon (which is what St. Stephen was). The church itself was surrounded by small stones to assist in drainage and I had difficulty dismissing the image of the congregation grabbing those stones and aiming them me if my preaching was not up to their expectations.

          As the Christmas season comes to an end, I wonder who will throw the first stone at us so that we will turn to a type of behavior that is perhaps more equated with the rest of the year. If Christmas is all holly and spice and everything nice, the rest of the year is a time when we may find ourselves waiving at total strangers as we drive but not with all of our fingers. We'll have an excuse though. Some one will piss us off and that will be the official end in our hearts of whatever holiday goodness and holiness we mustered.  Our conviction to keep Christmas in our hearts every day will be gone in the wind.

             What of St Stephen though and Saul. Saul? Yes, you probably recall him by the name Paul, as in Saint Paul. Persecutors of Christians then miraculously, the most fervent convert. The man in this passage that approved of Stephens stoning is the man who would become one of our greatest.

             When we use whatever excuse to abandon our Christmas spirit or even our faith, we are really simply giving up. We certainly are taking the short view, the easy way out. Saul had a conversion of heart and that is perhaps what we really need to proceed with Christmas in our hearts all year long. Saul's conversion would not bring Stephen back no more than exercising patience will stop a knucklehead from cutting us off on the road or someone saying something less than nice to us. It really is not an excuse to abandon anything. If anything we must recognize our own failures and accept them as Saul certainly must have done so he could move forward. If we are asking everyone else to act perfectly then we must act perfectly ourselves. I don't think we can though. We are not perfect and we do sin.

        Keeping Christmas in our hearts all year long is not about perfection of actions and not making mistakes. Christmas is about being human, making mistakes and having a heart big enough to embrace and love in spite of mistakes and being dissed.

         In the early church there were a great many people who were very wary about accepting Saul as a convert because he was such a fervent hater. I am glad the early Christians came around. Where would we be otherwise?  We need to maintain our open, loving hearts if we are to keep Christmas all the year long. So don't be picking up any stones, literal or otherwise.  

While they were stoning Stephen, he prayed, ‘Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.’ Then he knelt down and cried out in a loud voice, ‘Lord, do not hold this sin against them.’ When he had said this, he died.

And Saul approved of their killing him.

That day a severe persecution began against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout the countryside of Judea and Samaria. Devout men buried Stephen and made loud lamentation over him. But Saul was ravaging the church by entering house after house; dragging off both men and women, he committed them to prison.

Now those who were scattered went from place to place, proclaiming the word. Philip went down to the city of Samaria and proclaimed the Messiah to them. The crowds with one accord listened eagerly to what was said by Philip, hearing and seeing the signs that he did, for unclean spirits, crying with loud shrieks, came out of many who were possessed; and many others who were paralysed or lame were cured. So there was great joy in that city.

Christmas Day ! - Unwrapping the gift

Luke 2:1-14, (15-20)

          Yesterday I gave out the last of an array of Christmas gifts at work.  Many of these people have known me for many, many years. They have seen me at some of the highest points of my life and some of the lowest. Through new life and deaths, they probably have as good a snapshot of me as anyone.  With this backdrop I took some by surprise when I started doling out presents. Many simply said thank you and others were embarrassed and perhaps felt uncomfortable that they were not prepared to say "here, this is what I got you". Perhaps I was unfair in being so generous but I explained it has been a wonderful year and I simply have so much to be thankful for, so much joy in my heart that I had to share it. No strings attached.

         I am sure in some small way they treasured my words and pondered them, not so unlike what Mary did in this passage.

         One of the many miracles of this time of year is the ability to connect with the simplicity and joy that is in our hearts, often covered by so many daily concerns and anxieties. Today I noticed on a friends Face book page a picture of some tulip bulbs he had left over from a recent planting. One of the bulbs appeared to be sprouting. The planted bulbs indeed will sprout in spring, perhaps the subject of an Easter sermon. For now, that lone sprouting bulb reminds me, and reminds us, to keep the spirit of Christmas in our hearts now. Don't wait until Easter. Our best shot at peace, love and joy is now.

           The gift of Jesus' incarnation is a present ready to be unwrapped now. It is our humanity that Jesus embraced.  In our humanity we have the capacity for all the most wonderful miracle of Christmas. Love, joy, peace, generosity and hearts filled with fun. These are human capacities that we can feel freely now and it is a gift we should try to make last all year. 

           I know how tough it seems sometimes, I mean the rest of the year. I do remember though how wonderful it feels when my husband comes along with me when I have some place to go, perhaps to a wake or to a meeting or simply to be by my side. The sharing makes it easier, better. Jesus knows this and it is one of the reasons he embraced our humanity. In embracing our humanity he is always with us making life better, peaceful and more joyful all year long, all life long. 

           One of the keys for us is to remember this fact. One of the keys is to listen and ponder as Mary did so long ago about the gift she was being graced with. If we can remember to spend some time, even some small amount of time, pondering and remembering this Christmas message of God, perhaps we'll have a better chance of making the peace, the joy, the love and generosity last all year long.  

          

          

In those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the world should be registered.

This was the first registration and was taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria.

All went to their own towns to be registered.

Joseph also went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was descended from the house and family of David.

He went to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a child.

While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child.

And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.

In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night.

Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.

But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid; for see--I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people:

to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord.

This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger."

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying,

"Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors!"

When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us."

So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger.

When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child;

and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them.

But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart.

The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.

Advent Day 24 - Christmas Eve Day - I can see clearly now

Luke 1:67-80

         We perform a great many cataract surgeries at our facility. A Cataract obscures the vision and quite often the patients' vision after surgery is astoundingly better. It's as if someone peeled away a foggy layer away. I suppose the same could be say about getting your first pair of glasses,  all of a sudden everything is in much sharper focus. You might have been amazed by just how unclear your vision really was.

        The last few verses of this passage say it all, especially to the gay community where it might have special meaning. By the tender mercy of our God, the dawn from on high will break upon us, to give light to those who sit in darkness. All of us go through life with some kinds of cataracts, emotional issues that obscure or prevent us from loving or being loved. Many of us have poor vision or we are convinced that we can't see the truth.

         In the case of the gay community, we have been led to believe that we belonged in the shadows, we were not capable of love. We were told scripture condemned us and we would not delve into the realm of scripture ourselves. Why would we, the scriptures condemn us, right?

        In fact they do not and in fact they have been used as weapons by those who chose to use bad translations, mistranslations and hateful agendas to keep the gay community in the shadows.

        Jesus comes along and sheds light. He shows us what it is to be human. He shows us the true meaning of scripture which is love, tolerance and inclusion. The Spirit guides us to the knowledge of just what these weaponized scripture passages really mean. God sheds light on us, God takes us from the shadows and elevates us as His beloved children. We are worthy of love, we are worthy to share and even make love. I am reminded of the song I can see clearly now, the rain is gone... (Johnny Nash)

         Of all the reasons we can think of in the celebration of Advent, and God's gifts to us are legion, one is how he embraced humanity. In so doing he celebrates and shows us that in being fully human we share in His divinity. We are given the gift of new life, out and about in the sunshine. We are no longer reegated to the shadows. We are free to be and free to find our place at God's table.

           

Then his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke this prophecy:
‘Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
   for he has looked favourably on his people and redeemed them.
He has raised up a mighty saviour for us
   in the house of his servant David,
as he spoke through the mouth of his holy prophets from of old,
   that we would be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us.
Thus he has shown the mercy promised to our ancestors,
   and has remembered his holy covenant,
the oath that he swore to our ancestor Abraham,
   to grant us that we, being rescued from the hands of our enemies,
might serve him without fear, in holiness and righteousness
   before him all our days.
And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High;
   for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways,
to give knowledge of salvation to his people
   by the forgiveness of their sins.
By the tender mercy of our God,
   the dawn from on high will break upon us,
to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
   to guide our feet into the way of peace.’

The child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the wilderness until the day he appeared publicly to Israel.

Advent Day 23 - An Advent message - embrace your humanity

Luke 1:1-25

           There are four primary Gospels that most of us are aware of. There are others but for one reason or another they were not officially accepted by the church when the New Testament was formalized. You can google some of the others if you wish such as the Gospel of Thomas or Mary. One of the 'proofs' for a Gospel was it's prevalence among the faithful. Another was how it 'fit' ( agreed with, corroborated) the other Gospels. Relatively recent scientific studies have shown when each of the four accepted Gospels were written, their sources, common sources and who actually wrote them. Hint: It wasn't Matthew, Mark, Luke or John ( although John is more of a possibility than the others ).

             Why am I seemingly debasing the value or authority of Holy scripture? The same reason that I would argue against the literalism of Genesis. The same reasons I make arguments about translations, original texts and the nuances of words' meanings taken by us 250, 500 or 2000 years later.

              The facts that remain, even if you agree literally or disagree with the actual words is the essence of the word of God. What truth is God trying to convey? Is it that, if you doubt you will be rendered mute? Is it a warning against strong wine or drink? I think not, although anything in excess is not good.

              The true message is our repeated calls to return to faith and to honor the message of Jesus Christ.  Is that found in rules and rubrics? Can Jesus' true message be taken from questionable sources, spurious translations and literalism? What word should be taken literally? Whose definition? What human agenda does the person deciding have? Their own vision or God's?

               As we celebrate the incarnation, it is at the very least an annual reminder to return to the faith and life we are called to. To appreciate our very own  humanity, the humanity Jesus embraced.

Since many have undertaken to set down an orderly account of the events that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed on to us by those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the word, I too decided, after investigating everything carefully from the very first, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the truth concerning the things about which you have been instructed. 

In the days of King Herod of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly order of Abijah. His wife was a descendant of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. Both of them were righteous before God, living blamelessly according to all the commandments and regulations of the Lord. But they had no children, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were getting on in years.

Once when he was serving as priest before God and his section was on duty, he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to enter the sanctuary of the Lord and offer incense. Now at the time of the incense-offering, the whole assembly of the people was praying outside. Then there appeared to him an angel of the Lord, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. When Zechariah saw him, he was terrified; and fear overwhelmed him. But the angel said to him, ‘Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will name him John. You will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He must never drink wine or strong drink; even before his birth he will be filled with the Holy Spirit. He will turn many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God. With the spirit and power of Elijah he will go before him, to turn the hearts of parents to their children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.’ Zechariah said to the angel, ‘How will I know that this is so? For I am an old man, and my wife is getting on in years.’ The angel replied, ‘I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news. But now, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time, you will become mute, unable to speak, until the day these things occur.’

Meanwhile, the people were waiting for Zechariah, and wondered at his delay in the sanctuary. When he did come out, he could not speak to them, and they realized that he had seen a vision in the sanctuary. He kept motioning to them and remained unable to speak. When his time of service was ended, he went to his home.

After those days his wife Elizabeth conceived, and for five months she remained in seclusion. She said, ‘This is what the Lord has done for me when he looked favourably on me and took away the disgrace I have endured among my people.’

Fourth Sunday of Advent - Day 22 - A gift to all, thank you Paul.

Romans 1:1-7

           I will resist the call in this passage for 'God's beloved in Rome'. That would be too easy a dig if you will and besides, I praise God that Pope Francis seems very capable to stir up the status quo and perhaps return that church to the roots of faith.

           But as usual, I digress.  Paul as a willing servant of God and to the Gospel, is calling people to faith. It is not the faith of Jesus alone. Far from it, Paul is preaching to a whole new group of people. The Spirit, alive and well and all embracing has broken the lines of restraint that God chose only the Jews. How could God choose only one race? or one group of people? One subset of his entire creation? Paul really got the message correct and although it took time and arguments, he prevailed. The message of God's love is extended to all. Not just Samaritans, slaves or women. The message is experienced and offered to all, slaves, 'dear slaves' of Roman Centurions, women, prostitutes and tax collectors and now into Asia, Rome and all the corners of the world. If we do not believe in the massive all encompassing embrace that Paul is speaking of, what he preached and believed, then we should all be banished from Christendom unless we fully embrace Judaism first. The fundamental argument is that Jesus is a Jew and that he came to save the people of Israel. Jesus was a practicing Jew.

         No, either the message is limited to the Jews or it is open to all. The gift of Christmas is that Jesus was born for ALL of humanity. Every race, nationality, gay, straight, yellow, white, blue, purple and black. EVERYONE. ALL of God's people.

          The magnificent gift of Christmas is not just that God is gift us individually (although he certainly is ) , God is embracing all of humanity. Praise Jesus ! Praise God !

Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God,

which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy scriptures,

the gospel concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh

and was declared to be Son of God with power according to the spirit of holiness by resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord,

through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles for the sake of his name,

including yourselves who are called to belong to Jesus Christ,

To all God's beloved in Rome, who are called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Advent Day 21 - The gift of creation and eternal salvation

John 14:1-7

          I just finished a book by Dan Savage, another book in a line of books by gay authors or gay themed or about God and being gay. Get the picture?  I tend to focus on the community to which I belong to offer hope all year round even though now is the time we tend to focus on the gift of Jesus and all the wonders that it entails.

           One of the themes' I tend to focus on is the acceptance and expansive embrace of Jesus.  It is evident to me in the passage, in the statement that In my Father’s house there are many dwelling-places. It is evident in the passages of scripture that state there is neither Greek nor Jew, nor slave nor free. Jesus embraced everyone and saw beauty in everyone. Jesus saw the innate goodness in every creation that he himself had a hand in creating. The diversity of God's creation is evident to me without texts as well. God is revealed in his created world. A thorough search of our blue orb shows such diversity and not just sexually. The diversity is awe inspiring and magnificently beautiful, whether you are looking at the animal kingdom or the vast expanses of forests versus desserts, oceans versus teaming ponds or even life that apparently survives and thrives at great depths and at great temperatures in the ocean floor.  What a wonder we live in.

        How could God not love every aspect of the world He created. Let me rephrase that, how could God not love every aspect of the world She created. All of this is gifted to us. We are stewards and benefactors.  

        The icing on the cake is God becoming man so that when the time comes we may have a place in one of God's many rooms. We are all welcome and as we are gifted, we are called to gift, to bestow love and accept others as God does, with dignity and respect.

        

‘Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house there are many dwelling-places. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, so that where I am, there you may be also. And you know the way to the place where I am going.’ Thomas said to him, ‘Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?’ Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you know me, you will know my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.’

Advent Day 20 - You've got talent!

Matthew 25:14-30

             Once again I am faced with translational issues or words, only today I think that it's working in my favour. First, I often quote this passage, in a joking way. The phrase is You wicked and lazy slave!  The translation I use is 'you wicked and lazy lout! probably because I love alliteration. 

             The real word is 'talent'. It's a unit of money like a dollar, a euro, a ruble or denarii. But it also quite cleverly refers to a gift that God gives each one of us. I wouldn't dismiss either. I also would not take either lightly.  Whatever 'talents' we have we are clearly called to use wisely and generously.

          With only five days left until Christmas , when gifts and money (or lack thereof) seem omnipresent, it would be good to focus on three gifts. Perhaps somewhat analogous to the gifts of the three wise men. One, the gift of the Jesus' incarnation. A gift that can never be taken lightly. This gift in which Jesus not only shares in our humanity but enters into every aspect of life and ultimately death as well, freeing us from sin and offering us salvation. Two and three are the 'talents' I spoke of earlier. We are graced by God at our birth with certain talent(s) which we are to nourish and cultivate. In so doing we cooperate and elevate ourselves that much closer to the wholeness God wishes for us. The 'talents' that refer to money is something perhaps we get too preoccupied with especially at this time of year more than any other. But we are called to use our money wisely, if not shrewdly, if we are to take this passage as truth on any level. The sin of the rich man in the story of Lazarus is not that the man was rich, it was that he did not share his 'talents'. The rich man, and I mean all of us because we are all rich, truly rich, are called to share our wealth, take care of our brothers and sisters and do not as my friend says 'piss it away'.

         So, you've got talent! Enjoy!

    

             

‘For it is as if a man, going on a journey, summoned his slaves and entrusted his property to them; to one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away.The one who had received the five talents went off at once and traded with them, and made five more talents. In the same way, the one who had the two talents made two more talents. But the one who had received the one talent went off and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money. After a long time the master of those slaves came and settled accounts with them. Then the one who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five more talents, saying, “Master, you handed over to me five talents; see, I have made five more talents.”His master said to him, “Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.” And the one with the two talents also came forward, saying, “Master, you handed over to me two talents; see, I have made two more talents.” His master said to him, “Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.” Then the one who had received the one talent also came forward, saying, “Master, I knew that you were a harsh man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter seed;so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.” But his master replied, “You knew, did you, that I reap where I did not sow, and gather where I did not scatter? Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have received what was my own with interest. So take the talent from him, and give it to the one with the ten talents. For to all those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away. As for this worthless slave, throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

Advent Day 19 - Pain has value?

2 Corinthians 1:3-7

           When I was a teenager, we had a practice of putting a pebble in our shoe. We did this with someone particular in mind, it served as a constant reminder of the discomfort they might be going through, the pain that often accompanies growth while that person was on retreat. In another way, it was a willingness on our part to suffer for that person who was object of our concern. Now that all of that seems childish. There is no need and no value in inflicting pain on anyone to show concern. It now all seems bogus. There is more than enough pain in the world without inflicting any on oneself. Self flagellation has thankfully gone the way of blood letting and 'the rack'.

          That isn't to say however that there is no value in pain. Jesus willingly endured incredible suffering for us, he just wasn't standing there begging 'whip me one more time!' It is incredibly disrespectful of the value we place on life and love.

        So where is the value in pain?? Like the poor, pain will always be with us. It is a part of life by accident, by bad choices, illness, malicious hearts and perhaps social sin. Can we try to transform that pain into something of value? Something like this: I do not like this pain, I did not ask for this pain, I would like this pain to cease but while it is present may I offer it up in a willingness to appreciate the pain others may have? May I appreciate in some small way the suffering our savior endured on our behalf? Can we not want pain then but put it to some use however distasteful?

       We all have afflictions of one sort or another. I don't think we are called to enter into that affliction as a badge of honor or as something we can use to have people feel sorry for us. We all know people who always have drama, always have one problem or another. These people are energy suckers. Their negativism is infectious. If we could only endure and transform our pains, we can grow and can appreciate others pain.

          This is the value of pain. Self inflicting is barbaric, wrong hearted and unnecessary. Sadly, pain  will come to us. Embrace what we must, offer it up and know that God is aware of our pain, understands it, cries with us and walks with us on our journey.

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all consolation, who consoles us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to console those who are in any affliction with the consolation with which we ourselves are consoled by God. For just as the sufferings of Christ are abundant for us, so also our consolation is abundant through Christ. If we are being afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation; if we are being consoled, it is for your consolation, which you experience when you patiently endure the same sufferings that we are also suffering. Our hope for you is unshaken; for we know that as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our consolation.

Advent Day 18 - don't panic

Matthew 1:18-25

          I read this and cannot help but think of the emotional reactions that Joseph had. He was a normal man just like the rest of us. What emotions and thoughts come over us in unforseen situations? 

I could hear myself say "what will the neghbors think?" if one of my kids came home in a loud drunken stupor one night. Of course while not angels, my 'kids' never gave me reason to say such a thing. I do recall a situaton where a neighbors  child of 14 became pregnant. Besides being astounded and saddened, I wonder how her parents felt? How did she feel? Was she even old enough to ccomprehend the import of  the sitaution?

           We all have situations that arise in our lives that elicit strong reactions, emotions and urges to take immediate action. Joseph certainly did. It is difficult not to try to 'fix' things if we are capabe of doing so. Joseph certainly had that reaction. how do we react.

           We have an expression in our house, "panic is not your friend". It refers to just this kind of emotional reaction and the desire to address things immediatly. I suppose wisdom is what is requireed to know when you really do need to take care of things post haste but for the most part it seems better not to panic or let yourself be overcome by emotion. Rarely are things so ccriticl that it requires immediate attention. 

         Whether Joseph took the time to discern ( not panic ) or whether it was strictly his response to the angel, he did not rush into anything. If this teaches me anyhting it is to reaaffirm caution action, discernment and not acting in a rash manner. What simple decision by Joseph could have changed the course of the world.  How many decisions are we called to that we may not know the import of? If anything, I beleive we are called to have due concern,  use diligence, thought and discernment to help all our brothers annd sister in the world, in our nations, in our communites and in our families.

          

Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly. But just when he had resolved to do this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.’ All this took place to fulfil what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet: 
‘Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
   and they shall name him Emmanuel’,
which means, ‘God is with us.’ When Joseph awoke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took her as his wife, but had no marital relations with her until she had borne a son; and he named him Jesus.

Advent Day 17 - a roomy closet is still a closet

Mark 5:25-34

          Twelve years of hemorrhage, the movie twelve years a slave, my 50 years of uneasiness. I am thinking of the maladies, illnesses and issues we all have and how to cure them.  All of us want to be healed and want to be whole, that is a gift we would all wish for this Christmas. How would we attain it?

         The woman in this passage has tried everything and in the end, tries to cheat her way to a cure, to salvation or wholeness.  Whether hemorrhage is literal or a metaphor it does not really matter. She knew her help was in Jesus. If she could not touch him on the sly, even in a busy crowd, she'd be cured. Jesus knew of her plight, knew the 'energy' left him but he was also quite generous and loving in his response.

         In the case of twelve years a slave which I still would like to see, I am using it as a metaphor in which we are all slaves. We are all crying out for freedom from one ailment or another, from one situation or another. We all want to leap out of the closet. This however is harder to cheat your way out of.

           I was in a closet I wasn't even aware I was in. All I knew is an uneasiness. I knew something wasn't right and with this 'illness' I searched for wholeness. I tried to get closer to God and 'touch' him. God in return loved me, supported me and showed me that I am loved as I am. Still I was in a closet. In the fullness of time I began to realize what was going on. Through the advice of a true friend (now husband), I sought out a qualified therapist who also had a grasp of my spiritual beliefs. While he was of great help to me, allowing me the freedom to discover my feelings and the truth about myself, he oddly suggested I might want to cheat as the hemorrhagic woman did. I could leave the church, leave my wife and he suggested I did not have to tell anyone the reason. I could touch the cloak to cure myself but try to be quiet about it.  The truth of the matter is, that just makes your closet a bit roomier. It is still dark because there still is not the light of truth and love that you need to grow and be a whole person.  Hiding who you are, hiding the truth, leaves you with a feeling that there is a reason why you are still hiding. I can understand not coming out for fear of safety or becoming homeless. But not coming out, not acknowledging does leave you with a feeling that you are cheating your way out of the closet. You feel there is still something wrong with you otherwise you would feel free to come out and tell everyone. 

            The gift of freedom, the gift of holiness and uniqueness, the gift of salvation and the gift of the incarnation are all gifts from God. Free and total. However limits placed on our freedom, limits we place on our cures are man made. I can't help but think of Jean Valjean who did his time but still had to carry papers. He was free but not quite free.  Out of the closet to some people and not others, or 'out' at night, or in one situation or another is not really out of the closet either. We deserve total freedom and wholeness that God wishes us to have. Nay, that God gives us freely and totally as a right of being one of his beloved creations. We must fight and demand the equality, freedom and dignity that would keep us 'ill' or in chains when such bonds are man made. 

Now there was a woman who had been suffering from haemorrhages for twelve years. She had endured much under many physicians, and had spent all that she had; and she was no better, but rather grew worse.She had heard about Jesus, and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, for she said, ‘If I but touch his clothes, I will be made well.’ Immediately her haemorrhage stopped; and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease. Immediately aware that power had gone forth from him, Jesus turned about in the crowd and said, ‘Who touched my clothes?’ And his disciples said to him, ‘You see the crowd pressing in on you; how can you say, “Who touched me?” ’He looked all round to see who had done it. But the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came in fear and trembling, fell down before him, and told him the whole truth. He said to her, ‘Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.’

Advent Day 16 - Near and far, two edged sword.

Ephesians 2:17-22

          I recall seeing a Christmas card many years ago, it may have been from the United Nations, it had many pictures of Christmas as it's expressed throughout the world. It seems fitting for this passage. Jesus proclaimed peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near.  Jesus  may have been brought up as a good Jewish boy but as the son of God, he could not contain his compassion and love for anyone. And so, we have scripture passage replete with Jesus befriending outcasts, the marginalized and those who would be considered condemned. Tax collectors, prostitutes, Roman soldiers, Pharisees, Samaritans and sinners. All loved, befriended and/or cured by Jesus. He was a lover of all mankind, near and far.

         It seems that might be a fundamental message that Jesus delivered to us. How can we translate this message of openness and inclusiveness in our time? Is not everyone included? Do we dare say everyone is welcome except x, y or z? I don't think that is what Jesus had in mind. I don't believe that is what Jesus lived. I also don't think it is what the Spirit shows us.

          This is a two edged sword though. We can give praise and thanks that we are welcomed into Jesus' all embracing arms no matter who we are and no matter what any human may say to the contrary. It is a truly great feeling to know that you are loved especially when others say you are not. I put my trust in God. I say thank you to God. The other edge of that sword though is knowing that everyone else is loved as well. The inclusiveness and respect we wish for ourselves should apply to everyone, even those we ourselves may not be comfortable with. 

              

So he came and proclaimed peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near; for through him both of us have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone. In him the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; in whom you also are built together spiritually into a dwelling-place for God.

Third Sunday of Advent - Day 15 - What gift?

James 5:7-10

           I can easily imagine a small child making a list of toys for Christmas. I can almost imagine an unruly child say "if I don't get this toy, I won't love you nay more!".  I don't need any imagination to know that any child will in fact love their parents no matter what.  They might be disappointed at what they do get and they may pout but always and intensely and unreservedly love their parents.  Unless the parents are evil monsters, this love is always so.

           How about you?  Have you got any presents on your list this year? Anything you are pining for?   Sometimes we ask for a great deal. If prayers are wish lists we ask for a whole lot. But we don't always get our prayers answered, at least not the way we may want them answered. Are we pouty? Do we stomp our feet and say to God 'I'm not going to love you any more?' No, I don't think so.

            As we prepare for the greatest gift to mankind that ever was, the gift and presence of the Christ child, let us think perhaps about what we would like for Christmas.   Part of faith is being open to His will because we don't know it all even if sometimes we think we do.

            As we prepare for Christmas and say thank you, as we prepare for Christmas and celebrate, let us be open to the gifts that God grants us. I guarantee there will be something special and wonderful 'under the tree' for you. If you believe. If you have faith.

             So what gift will come your way?

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.

Advent Day 14 - And it was good.

John 16:12-15,25-28

          When you read the book of Genesis, you get a picture of a world that resembles our own and speaks about things we are familiar with but oddly different. When you read about "the dome" that is the sky you translate that into the sky and perhaps into more technical terms like stratosphere and the like.  There is virtually no way an intelligent person would read Genesis or look at some pictorial representation of Genesis and take it literally. Yet, that is what the ancients believed and perceived the world around them, and it was good.  They could not comprehend more than that.  

         As time marched on for humanity, God gave us laws and sadly man made more laws out of those laws - and it was good. This furthered humanity in so many ways, from order and discipline to ways we could honor our creator. 

        Time marches on and we are now capable of understanding more and perhaps more importantly we are in need of redemption. God wishes us to live full and holy lives so as we celebrate now, God became a man. God showed us how to live and love and even die.  Jesus revealed things we could not perhaps have understood back in the day. ( to us that would be waaaaay back in the day ). Jesus preached forgiveness, love, healing, inclusiveness. He reached out to the marginalized as if to show us more. Jesus showed us that we are now capable of understanding more. In this passage he speaks of the Spirit which will teach us even more. Perhaps as we are a bit more capable of understanding. Humanity is growing, moving, maturing. 

            Time marches on and the Spirit guides us to know that the message of salvation is for everyone. The Spirit guides us to know slavery is not an acceptable practice, nor are concubines and many other practices that were once perhaps 'the norm'. The Spirit is revealing the dignity of all people. Women's right? Absolutely. Gay rights? That too. Marriage equality? Can the dignity and consecration of love be for more than procreation? Absolutely.  The message of movement of the Spirit is alive and well.

             As time marches on, I have no doubt that there will be other revelations, new frontiers of rights, new frontiers of knowledge that we were not capable of understanding. Perhaps it will be that we should all be vegetarians and that animals, other creations in God's kingdom deserve the same respect as any other of God's creations.  Perhaps. I would have a difficult time with that seeing as how I love a good steak once in a while or a good slab of bacon.  I use it though as an illustration that as time marches on, the Spirit promised to us by Jesus is alive and well and working in the world. We must respect and cooperate with the Spirit.

                In the meantime, it is a great time to say thank you to God for sending his son to us in human form to show us how to love, to learn, to grow and to become whole. Jesus is pure gift, pure love. Seems to me like it is a great time to appreciate everything we have from families and friends to the knowledge we have of our world and the brains God gave us to discover it all. And it is good.  

‘I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own, but will speak whatever he hears, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, because he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine. For this reason I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.

‘I have said these things to you in figures of speech. The hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures, but will tell you plainly of the Father. On that day you will ask in my name. I do not say to you that I will ask the Father on your behalf; for the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God. I came from the Father and have come into the world; again, I am leaving the world and am going to the Father.’

Advent Day 13 - words and deeds

Matthew 11:16-19

            Not too long ago, being gay meant a person who lived from one encounter to the next, hid from society in dark corners and could not come to terms with themself. There are exceptions but that pretty much says it all about being gay. Really there was no choice, you were vilified, demonized and a consecrated relationship was out of the question. But which came first? You can't marry because you live from one encounter to the next? or is it that you lived from one encounter to the next because marriage vows were closed to you. It really was a vicious cycle that perpetuated itself in the eyes of society.  It is only when people dared to step into the light, love openly and demand respect that the cycle started to break. 

          In today's passage the religious elite who want what the want and have their own agenda, condemn John and Jesus for opposite ends of the same argument. Not too much different from the reasoning for condemning gay people.

           What conquers both is the light of love. 'Wisdom is vindicated by her deeds'. People began to accept marriage equality when they saw that gay people are capable of the same love as anyone else and are capable and desiring of living in the same long term committed relationships as everyone else. Again, it is the light of love that conquers. Another way of saying it is that actions speak louder than words.  Just as the religious zealots of Jesus' time were betrayed by their actions compared to their words, so too today, religious zealots are betrayed by their words compared to their actions.  Whether it is the Westboro Baptist church or the Roman Catholic church, actions speak louder than words. You can mouth anything, come up with seemingly flawless logic but your words are empty unless it followed by the works and signs of love. People see through the two faced nature of contrived arguments.

          What matters is love, lived out and displayed and witnessed. This is the sign and example of Jesus come to earth as a human.  Jesus did not come with contrived arguments or circular logic. Jesus walked, loved, had empathy, sympathy, he cured, he laughed, he cried. He was fully human and fully engaged in living. What a gift he gave us. The God man that epitomizes love. 

‘But to what will I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the market-places and calling to one another,
“We played the flute for you, and you did not dance;
   we wailed, and you did not mourn.”
For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, “He has a demon”; the Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, “Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax-collectors and sinners!” Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.’

Advent Day 12 - First, listen.

Matthew 23:13-26

          I once knew a man that would wind up in the same meetings I did. We were both chairs of committees. When asked if his committee had anything to report, he would invariably say "no" and then proceed to speak for 15 minutes on nothing.  It was frustrating. This is what I think of when I read the term "blind guides".  In life, there seems to be no shortage of those who know nothing but are more than willing to tell you all about it - and swear to it.  Perhaps we are are guilty. How many times have we been willing to convict and condemn based on a media report of some incident or event?

           So often we do not know the facts. The first basic skill for us should really be to listen. The clue might be why God gave us two ears and only one mouth. Listening is key.  And what does this have to do with Advent?

           It seems God was listening to us. God always listens to each one of us. God also heard the groanings of the Jewish people, of all humanity. Weary of rules and laws, capable of thoughts and love,  his creations losing ground, getting stuck in a  behaviors that will not yield wholeness or a holy people. Humanity still grumbles and prays. Even if it is a secret subconscious prayer for hope and for change, for freedom and love - we pray. God hears all our prayers. God hears the prayers we utter praying fervently on our knees and the prayers we pray silently in our hearts even if we cannot find the exact words for what our problems are.

         The answer to all of us is the word. The word who is Jesus Christ. The word who was with God and who decided to become man and share in our humanity, to show us how to live. Jesus became man to answer our prayers by donning our fragile earthly shell and walk with us, eat with us and explain truths that have been tortured and restricted almost out of recognition. Jesus synthesized the ten commandments into two. Jesus showed, embraced us and showed us how to live. Eventually, Jesus showed us how to die and give us freedom and hope.

        This Advent, pray and listen. Listen to your heart. Listen to what people are saying, not just with their words but with their actions and demeanor. I suspect the man in my meetings who spoke on and on about nothing simply was looking for affirmation and attention, perhaps love. Telling him to shut up or that he is an idiot would be exactly the wrong thing to do. We should listen first and the love as God loves us.

          So first, listen.

‘But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you lock people out of the kingdom of heaven. For you do not go in yourselves, and when others are going in, you stop them. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cross sea and land to make a single convert, and you make the new convert twice as much a child of hell as yourselves.

‘Woe to you, blind guides, who say, “Whoever swears by the sanctuary is bound by nothing, but whoever swears by the gold of the sanctuary is bound by the oath.” You blind fools! For which is greater, the gold or the sanctuary that has made the gold sacred? And you say, “Whoever swears by the altar is bound by nothing, but whoever swears by the gift that is on the altar is bound by the oath.” How blind you are! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that makes the gift sacred? So whoever swears by the altar, swears by it and by everything on it; and whoever swears by the sanctuary, swears by it and by the one who dwells in it; and whoever swears by heaven, swears by the throne of God and by the one who is seated upon it.

‘Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint, dill, and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. It is these you ought to have practised without neglecting the others. You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel!

‘Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the plate, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. You blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup, so that the outside also may become clean.

Advent Day 11 - indictments and exaltations

Matthew 23:1-12

          Setting aside Pope Francis who seems to have a genuine heart, lets look at the hierarchy in general and the bureaucracy that is the Roman Catholic Church. If lineage can in fact be traced to the Roman church over any other center of Christendom, they have been given such by God himself. If true we are to listen attentively to what they say but do not do as they do.  The Roman church makes burdens for so many and leaves virtually  none for itself to obey. It would be unfair to single out clergy who live well healed lives of leisure in opulence because there are so many who live the life of St. Francis, the life of simplicity, love and service. Still there are many who say feed the poor and instead feed themselves. Many say starve your natural sexuality and have secret liaisons and families on the side. If the seat of Rome is in fact the direct and unbroken lineage of Peter, there is an incredible burden that goes with it to live by example.  While this may not be so, there is no burden greater than any other human, then there should be heavy burdens laid on anyone if not done so to themselves.

           If there is anyone who can lead by example, by whatever title you wish to choose, that person is Jesus Christ. He is the greatest who made himself the least. He took human form and lived as we did. he suffered indignities we fear and embraced them. He lived life to the full enjoying the company of men and women he called friends, family, brothers and sisters. He loved the same as we do and taught us how we can elevate our humanity, live whole and complete lives and how we can find redemption through him.  This is no small task for him and no small task for us but he showed us that it is possible.

        For all of this he is exalted on high and we celebrate his birth like no other before or since. It is a time to reflect on the humanity and divinity of Jesus Christ and the possibilities of being human. Let us celebrate, not so much with fine things and self indulgence but instead with joy, simplicity of pureness of heart.

Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, ‘The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat; 

therefore, do whatever they teach you and follow it; but do not do as they do, for they do not practise what they teach. They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on the shoulders of others; but they themselves are unwilling to lift a finger to move them They do all their deeds to be seen by others; for they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long. They love to have the place of honour at banquets and the best seats in the synagogues, and to be greeted with respect in the market-places, and to have people call them rabbi. But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all students. And call no one your father on earth, for you have one Father—the one in heaven. Nor are you to be called instructors, for you have one instructor, the Messiah. The greatest among you will be your servant. All who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all who humble themselves will be exalted.

         

Advent Day 10 - Come as you are.

Matthew 18:12-14

          The news of the world is that Nelson Mandella has died. A massive memorial service is planned in South Africa with the largest array of world dignitaries that has ever assembled.  I do not know much about Nelson Mandela other than the major points of his life. I still remember calling my children into my room to have them watch as Apartheid fell, it was momentous and a hope for all of humanity.  I heard on the radio just this morning a guest extolling his virtues and at the same time noting that he overcome whatever flaws he might have had. He never gave up striving for goodness, forgiveness and never gave up hope. Sounds like a plan to me.

          We are all destined for greatness and I am not talking about our supposed 15 minutes of fame either. Whether this is true or not is a matter of opinion and degree but one thing is certain to me, we are all imperfect beings on a journey to wholeness. No surprise there, I've said it before.  But I would place an accent on our imperfections, whatever they are. Nelson Mandela achieved lofty goals and greatness in spite of whatever shortcomings he had. We too can attain greatness and wholeness. 

         For in spite of getting lost on our journey or taking side trips of questionable value, Jesus still calls us to him and to wholeness and holiness. If we are the lost single sheep, Jesus calls to us by name. Jesus still calls us. We are loved and accepted just as we are.

         Can we accept ourselves just as we are?  Jesus does.

What do you think? If a shepherd has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one that went astray? And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that never went astray. So it is not the will of your Father in heaven that one of these little ones should be lost.

Advent Day 9 - In your hearts

^{Psalm 85: 8-13}

       ^{I can't help but think of all the outcasts that Jesus spoke to.  People we would not consider an outcast today perhaps but outsiders of their own time. Surely we are called to embrace the outsiders of our time.} 

       <sup>I am reminded of how my mother felt when she was separated from the man she had married. Eventually she would muster the strength to seek a divorce. This took considerable courage in her time and as a devout Catholic she was banned from all sorts of woman's groups. Ostracized from social groups and the altar society, she was anathema.  Although she needed to do it,  her spirit was beaten down in so many ways. I know she doubted that God loved her, she was so convinced or indoctrinated that "the church" could not be wrong. In her heart, she held some dignity and I was thrilled that she was able to realize later in her life just how much God loved her. I thought of her when I read this line from Psalms when it says he will speak peace to his people, to his faithful, to those who turn to him in their hearts. 

        How many people today feel abandoned, looked down upon for any number of reasons. Their ethnicity, their religion, their sexual orientation. As humans and as religions we have a long history of looking down on people. Internally, mentally, emotionally, spiritually, what holds us together is that God is always on our side, especially when, and because we seek Him in our hearts. God's love is so limitless. His embrace so broad.

       God's love for us is so intense that he became human, born of Mary to live as we do, to share in our humanity.  No matter who we are or what we are, this is a time to celebrate God's unlimited love for each one of us. Always have hope. Know you are loved. Keep God's love in your heart always.</sup>

Let me hear what God the Lord will speak,
   for he will speak peace to his people,
   to his faithful, to those who turn to him in their hearts. 

Surely his salvation is at hand for those who fear him,
   that his glory may dwell in our land. 

Steadfast love and faithfulness will meet;
   righteousness and peace will kiss each other.
Faithfulness will spring up from the ground,
   and righteousness will look down from the sky.
The Lord will give what is good,
   and our land will yield its increase.
Righteousness will go before him,
   and will make a path for his steps.