in community

Mark 7:24-37

          A deaf man who had an impediment in his speech? Why is that ? I know that this is a spiritual blog but please bare with me while I go over a bit of an explaination. One of the ways in which we learn to speak is through our hearing. We hear words and then we try to make similar sounds from our mouth and our hearing again plays a role, comparing what we originally heard to what our mouth produced. It is a system of checks and balances. If you ever noticed how poorly a deaf person speaks, especially someone who was not born deaf, it's because that auditory checks and balance system is not working. Even though they once may have had perfect pronunciation, the words gets slurred a bit over time because there is not that constant check and balance from the hearing. We are always hearing what we say, always performing an auditory fine tune of our words.   This is what comes to mind in this passage because it says They brought to him a deaf man who had an impediment in his speech. Now you know why.

         What I find interesting is that this analogy can be used for our faith.  In many religions, kids are brought up to study the faith of their parents.  Very often the faith is not as important to the parents but rather than make an intentional decision to break away from the faith, they insist their kids attend classes, or shul. The kids learn and in time, after Confirmation or Bar Mitzvah, they fall away. Not unlike the deaf man whose speech becomes slurred, their faith then becomes slurred. What they learned falls away, outside influences take hold, the realization that it is not re-enforced at home makes their faith a mish mosh. Boom, they are spiritually mute.

         In terms of faith then, what do we do?  What kind of theological or faith checks and balances system is there that we can employ?  Many people will say, I am a faithful person but I find no need to attend services to prove it or show it. Frankly, that's BS and a cop out. Actually, it's a lie and to those who actually believe it, it only shows how we can rationalize our own laziness and stupidity.

          Everything Jesus did and every religious celebration, holiday and action of faith is done in communion. That is, in community. All the sacraments are based on our inherent communal nature. Nothing is solitary. Jesus lived that way and showed us what community is all about.

         Community is the checks and balance system that our ears are to our speech. Through the community our faith is sustained, it grows and is reaffirmed. Faith not put into action or acknowledged is sure to die. Faith would mutate into some set of empty, meaningless rituals that have no  connection to God or our brothers and sisters. 

        A faith that is alive is always in community. For Lent then, one more thing to do, return to community. Many who read this will not find a welcoming hand or embrace in the faith of their youth. If that is the case, do some leg work, google "inclusive churches" or "LGBTQ friendly churches". Being faithful and gay are not mutually exclusive. In fact, being gay is a special and extraordinary gift from God. We really need to find a welcoming community that allows us to praise and thank God for all we are, no matter who we are - in community 

From there he set out and went away to the region of Tyre. He entered a house and did not want anyone to know he was there. Yet he could not escape notice, but a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit immediately heard about him, and she came and bowed down at his feet. Now the woman was a Gentile, of Syrophoenician origin. She begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter. He said to her, ‘Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.’ But she answered him, ‘Sir, even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.’ Then he said to her, ‘For saying that, you may go—the demon has left your daughter.’ So she went home, found the child lying on the bed, and the demon gone.

Then he returned from the region of Tyre, and went by way of Sidon towards the Sea of Galilee, in the region of the Decapolis. They brought to him a deaf man who had an impediment in his speech; and they begged him to lay his hand on him. He took him aside in private, away from the crowd, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spat and touched his tongue. Then looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, ‘Ephphatha’, that is, ‘Be opened.’ And immediately his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly. Then Jesus ordered them to tell no one; but the more he ordered them, the more zealously they proclaimed it. They were astounded beyond measure, saying, ‘He has done everything well; he even makes the deaf to hear and the mute to speak.’

Blind from birth

John 9:1-41

          I don't know about you but this all sounds a bit repulsive. Talk about practicing medicine without a license, Jesus takes his spit, makes mud with dirt, places it in a blind man's eyes and asks him to wash it off in the pool of Siloam. The shocker is that the man can then see. Then the trouble really begins.

          There seem to be so many things wrong here. The mud. The ancient notion that a man could be blind from either the sins of the man or even his parents.  Is that how God's world works?  Then there is the nonsense about Jesus doing this "work" on the sabbath and finally ( I think ) is the issue of the Pharisees who simply refuse to see what has happened themselves because it does not jive with their rules. The Pharisees will come up with any excuse or logic to deny what has really happened.

          Of course it's easy to see now in retrospectivision ( see, new words: Chris Christie ). Try and place yourself in the scene at the time though. In a effort to understand why someone was blind, there was a belief that it could be your sins that caused it or even the sins of your parents. Making mud with dirt and spittle? That is disgusting even now but probably even more so then. Dirt was the crud on your feet, always in need of being washed off (remember, everyone wore sandals). You greeted house guests by washing the street dirt off their feet. Lastly, if you were an observant Jew at the time, it was all about rules and strict worship. That also has not changed even today and even extended to Roman Catholicism and a few other notable religions.  So it would be a challenge on many levels for anyone to understand Jesus making a blind man see.  I have no doubt that he did however.

           As Jesus clearly states though, there is a greater purpose in the man's blindness. I do not believe God made the man blind but that Jesus saw the human condition and was able to use it for the glory of the Father.  Jesus saw and felt the Father's presence everywhere and at all times. But know, God did not strike the man blind. I do not believe in such orchestrations that make us nothing more than puppets.   

Jesus did use this man's blindness to show how blind we all are. In this case he used it to also show how far afield the Pharisees had become.  God cannot cure on the Sabbath?? Wasn't it God that created the Sabbath? Wasn't it God making the cure?  In true circular logic (and it made complete sense to them), Jesus could not be God or even the son of God because he disobeyed the rules of the God's sabbath). Hey, makes sense doesn't it?

           So by our own rules and logic and biases, we fail to see. That is the message. We can rationalize anything. Something considered dirty cannot be of God. Something that breaks the rules cannot be of God. 

          What are the situations we encounter in our world today that seem dirty, messy, unruly or against God's "rules" (really rules that man makes in God's name). I am sure I am one. A gay man who is honest, decent and faithful. There's a whole heap of hurt in that statement to some.  Oh, and I am married to a man.  The hurt goes off the charts. 

           What do you fail to see? What do you rationalize away?

As he walked along, he saw a man blind from birth.

His disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?"

Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned; he was born blind so that God's works might be revealed in him.

We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming when no one can work.

As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world."

When he had said this, he spat on the ground and made mud with the saliva and spread the mud on the man's eyes,

saying to him, "Go, wash in the pool of Siloam" (which means Sent). Then he went and washed and came back able to see.

The neighbors and those who had seen him before as a beggar began to ask, "Is this not the man who used to sit and beg?"

Some were saying, "It is he." Others were saying, "No, but it is someone like him." He kept saying, "I am the man."

But they kept asking him, "Then how were your eyes opened?"

He answered, "The man called Jesus made mud, spread it on my eyes, and said to me, 'Go to Siloam and wash.' Then I went and washed and received my sight."

They said to him, "Where is he?" He said, "I do not know."

They brought to the Pharisees the man who had formerly been blind.

Now it was a sabbath day when Jesus made the mud and opened his eyes.

Then the Pharisees also began to ask him how he had received his sight. He said to them, "He put mud on my eyes. Then I washed, and now I see."

Some of the Pharisees said, "This man is not from God, for he does not observe the sabbath." But others said, "How can a man who is a sinner perform such signs?" And they were divided.

So they said again to the blind man, "What do you say about him? It was your eyes he opened." He said, "He is a prophet."

The Jews did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight until they called the parents of the man who had received his sight

and asked them, "Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see?"

His parents answered, "We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind;

but we do not know how it is that now he sees, nor do we know who opened his eyes. Ask him; he is of age. He will speak for himself."

His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jews; for the Jews had already agreed that anyone who confessed Jesus to be the Messiah would be put out of the synagogue.

Therefore his parents said, "He is of age; ask him."

So for the second time they called the man who had been blind, and they said to him, "Give glory to God! We know that this man is a sinner."

He answered, "I do not know whether he is a sinner. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see."

They said to him, "What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?"

He answered them, "I have told you already, and you would not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become his disciples?"

Then they reviled him, saying, "You are his disciple, but we are disciples of Moses.

We know that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this man, we do not know where he comes from."

The man answered, "Here is an astonishing thing! You do not know where he comes from, and yet he opened my eyes.

We know that God does not listen to sinners, but he does listen to one who worships him and obeys his will.

Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a person born blind.

If this man were not from God, he could do nothing."

They answered him, "You were born entirely in sins, and are you trying to teach us?" And they drove him out.

Jesus heard that they had driven him out, and when he found him, he said, "Do you believe in the Son of Man?"

He answered, "And who is he, sir? Tell me, so that I may believe in him."

Jesus said to him, "You have seen him, and the one speaking with you is he."

He said, "Lord, I believe." And he worshiped him.

Jesus said, "I came into this world for judgment so that those who do not see may see, and those who do see may become blind."

Some of the Pharisees near him heard this and said to him, "Surely we are not blind, are we?"

Jesus said to them, "If you were blind, you would not have sin. But now that you say, 'We see,' your sin remains.

Find the love

1 Corinthians 10:1-13

          God was not pleased with most of them. The truth of the matter is, the signs were all there, the information was all there. If you paid attention, you got the message and God was pleased. If you read Hebrew scripture, it really tells you all you need to know. In theory, Christ did not have to become human and die for us. 

          When you read Hebrew scripture you can get a bit scared. Peoples mowing down peoples, the stories about Lot,  concubines,  brothers killing each other and much much more. What is the message of love that I profess is actually there? What makes this sacred? Is the inspired word of God all about these trials and tribulations? In a way it is. Because although I don't think the message of scripture is that we should embrace "mowing down" peoples or having concubines or incest or stoning people, there are some perfect messages in there. These are stories of people trying to integrate God into their troubled daily lives. These are stories of God trying to embrace people who are struggling. Make no mistake, if you read scripture, these people were struggling and tormented.  And yet, these are stories of people that have a message from God. These are stories of a people who loved God and wanted to have a deep abiding relationship with Him even in their imperfect and troubled lives.

           For those who were able to see and live the message, they were the chosen people, the ones God was pleased with.  To those that took away the opposing message, the ones that embraced simply laws, God was not pleased with them. God is not pleased with concubines, killing, mowing people down and rote obedience to laws.

           Lets look at the Jews wandering in the desert. What message is there? So many messages from God. How often do we wander aimlessly? For some it is not just 40 years, it is their entire lives. But lets think about life in a desert. Whoever said ' the desert is an ocean with it's life underground' had great wisdom. Even in the desert there is life. Plants and animals all survive in the desert though it is not perhaps that obvious or easy. Can we find the life in our lives when we are seemingly in a desert?  Could this be the message about these scripture passages about the Jews in the desert? Even in the desert, God is with us? And what of manna? Did not God feed them? Will not God feed us while we are in our own deserts in life? 

        God is pleased with us when we read scripture and see the 'hidden' messages of love. It is not about the killing, the slavery, the 'rules'. It is about love. But for the most part, people did not get that message. The hierarchy of Judaism embraced rules, laws and saw that as a way to salvation. I believe that makes God sad because rules without love do not work. That is why when the man came to Jesus and said he obeyed all the commandments, what else did he have to do to attain salvation? Jesus said, give everything away to the poor. The man was crushed. Why? because the man was rich? Perhaps. But because the man knew that it was not the obeying of the laws that would save him. It is the love behind the laws.

         Perhaps this is the human condition. Our propensity to be legalistic.  And so Jesus did become a man and did show us what love is all about. It is not about rules and exclusion. Love is all about the love behind the laws and all about inclusion. That is Jesus' life. The exclamation point, the icing on the cake is His willingness to die on a cross for each and every one of us. Is it an endorsement of capital punishment or the right of the Romans to do it to maintain order? If that's the message you take away, then I am absolutely sure God is not pleased. That is not why Jesus accepted and embraced his death.  It was not so that a new church could create even more laws, more rules and rubrics either. It was and is all about love. 

          This is our last chance folks. Find the love. Don't forsake the rules but find the love. 

                

           

                         

I do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, that our ancestors were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea, and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, and all ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank from the spiritual rock that followed them, and the rock was Christ. Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them, and they were struck down in the wilderness.

Now these things occurred as examples for us, so that we might not desire evil as they did. Do not become idolaters as some of them did; as it is written, ‘The people sat down to eat and drink, and they rose up to play.’ We must not indulge in sexual immorality as some of them did, and twenty-three thousand fell in a single day. We must not put Christ to the test, as some of them did, and were destroyed by serpents. And do not complain as some of them did, and were destroyed by the destroyer. These things happened to them to serve as an example, and they were written down to instruct us, on whom the ends of the ages have come. So if you think you are standing, watch out that you do not fall. No testing has overtaken you that is not common to everyone. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tested beyond your strength, but with the testing he will also provide the way out so that you may be able to endure it.

The Jewish Carpenter / Lawyer

Mark 12:28-34

           I know Jesus was not a lawyer but it seems he could have been. When asked a question he invariably answered with another question, a story or another answer that really threw his inquisitor off balance.

        I attended a day of reflection once and the Priest made an interesting point about confession, formal or otherwise. When we fail to confess or rationalize away things we are really trying to fool only ourselves. God already knows the truth of our actions and our hearts. After all we are not confessing for God's good, it is for our benefit.  We can ask God any questions we like about our actions or why things are the way they are but are we willing to hear the answer? Just as Christ answered in an unexpected way, are we trying to hear only what we want to hear? Like I said if we aren't honest and aren't honest and cooperative, we are only fooling ourselves. God knows it all.

        To our surprise and what should be our joy and delight, God loves us as we are at whatever point in the journey we are on. But to continue on the journey this Lent (and always) we must listen, we must be honest with ourselves and accept our responsibility in moving forward. We may not get the answer we are seeking to justify ourselves with. We may not get the answer we like and we may have to change course, ask for forgiveness and move on.

         Confession, formal or otherwise is not a Law and Order, LA Law or some other lawyerly show. Confession is about self assessment and the need and willingness to move move forward. 

One of the scribes came near and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, he asked him, ‘Which commandment is the first of all?’ Jesus answered, ‘The first is, “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one; you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.” ³The second is this, “You shall love your neighbour as yourself.” There is no other commandment greater than these.’ Then the scribe said to him, ‘You are right, Teacher; you have truly said that “he is one, and besides him there is no other”; and “to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the strength”, and “to love one’s neighbour as oneself”,—this is much more important than all whole burnt-offerings and sacrifices.’ When Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, ‘You are not far from the kingdom of God.’ After that no one dared to ask him any question.

Can I have a cookie?

Mark 6:30-46

           When I was a very young lad, I had three spinster ladies that lived next door. Of course they fauned over me and always made me feel like a million bucks. I don't know how the habit started but almot every day I would wind up at their back door and ask if I could have a cookie. The routine then was to invte me in, sit me down with a glass of milk or Hofmann ginger ale and vienna fingers. If I was really lucky, lady fingers were on my little plate. I think, even then, they recgnized how different I was from a lot of the other kids in the neighborhood and they took me in and loved me. Not only did these wonderful, saintly ladies feed me with food, they fed my soul, made me feel loved, welcome and I was a better person for it. 

           This passage actually speaks about being fed in both ways as well. Jesus said to his disciples ‘Come away to a deserted place all by yourselves and rest a while.’  The time away is a way of feeding your soul. Jesus is shown to do this often in scripture. This practice of getting away either in the form of a retreat or a walk in the woods or sitting at the beach is what we need sometimes to re-invigorate ourselves. The solitude is a time to collect ourselves and perhaps more importantly, time to sit and listen to God.

            So there are other forms of feeding that have nothing to do with loaves and fishes even if it that is the object of probably every other reflection involving this passage. Yesterday at work I had lunch with my daughter who was attending a class. After lunch she treated me to coffee and each of us met people we knew and many who did not realize we belonged together. One woman heard my daughters name called out and saw me grab the coffee. She commented on my 'female' name. I jokingly added "do you have a problem with that?" It turned out it was a very, very old friend who had returned to work at the hospital after a long absence. She had lost a great deal of weight but I finally recognized her new (and older) persona. My heart lept. I was so thrilled to see her, it fed my soul and enriched my day.

             I am not sure if we realize the capacity we have to feed others. I suppose I could focus on how we can starve others by marginalizing them or cutting people out of our lives. That seems too negative even if it is true. (perhaps that might be a good daily Lenten reflection for yourself?) I don't think we realize how much even a simple hello and a smile can feed some one's soul. I hate to think that someone might be that fragile but we all are in some ways. Some people are so broken and all they need is to be fed by some kindness that we could so easily supply.

             As much as I enjoy a good meal, I think it is wholly more important that we think about the other ways we feed ourselves and feed others.  Let us feast on love.

The apostles gathered around Jesus, and told him all that they had done and taught. He said to them, ‘Come away to a deserted place all by yourselves and rest a while.’ For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat. And they went away in the boat to a deserted place by themselves. Now many saw them going and recognized them, and they hurried there on foot from all the towns and arrived ahead of them. As he went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion for them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things. When it grew late, his disciples came to him and said, ‘This is a deserted place, and the hour is now very late; send them away so that they may go into the surrounding country and villages and buy something for themselves to eat.’ But he answered them, ‘You give them something to eat.’ They said to him, ‘Are we to go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread, and give it to them to eat?’ And he said to them, ‘How many loaves have you? Go and see.’ When they had found out, they said, ‘Five, and two fish.’ Then he ordered them to get all the people to sit down in groups on the green grass. So they sat down in groups of hundreds and of fifties. Taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven, and blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to his disciples to set before the people; and he divided the two fish among them all. And all ate and were filled; and they took up twelve baskets full of broken pieces and of the fish. Those who had eaten the loaves numbered five thousand men.

Immediately he made his disciples get into the boat and go on ahead to the other side, to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd. After saying farewell to them, he went up on the mountain to pray.

John Boswell

John Boswell

         I am haunted by this picture of John Boswell. I never knew him but I would have liked to have met him. John is an inspiration to me and his relatively short presence here on earth was time well spent and surely we were graced by his life.  March 20th was his birth day 65 years ago.

         When supposed conservative wingnuts rant about gays redefining marriage or say "they don't get to do that" I tend to bristle. I usually counter that traditional marriage isn't what most people think it is. The 'traditional' definition of marriage as witnessed by holy Scripture includes bartering for a spouse, selling of daughters into marriage, concubines gallore and of course, polygamy. The story of Lot's two daughters getting dear old dad drunk so they could have sex with him isn't exactly an Ozzie and Harriet moment. Certainly it isn't what so called conservatives want people to think of either but it is right there in scripture as well as so much more.

          There is a mountain of evidence that the gay community is not redefining anything. If anything, it is consistent with the relatively new 'straight' concept of humans marrying for love. Love had not really been a part of most marriages. At least they were not based on it. If it came later it was a blessing. Marriages were more likely arranged by parents for the purpose of enlarging farms, as business deals and to raise cash and herds.  That would be, 'I will sell you my daughters hand in marriage for 15 goats and 3 sheep'.

           This is not to say that there are not great love stories in scripture. Love is held high, it just wasn't the norm. A business transaction was the norm, women were chattel. I would hasten to add that some of the the most beautiful love stories are in scripture, several notable ones involve same sex couples. Jonathan and David, Ruth and Naomi, the Centurion and his 'slave'. The history of Christ's church is replete with saints that lived as couples and had been recognized as such. Until that is, it was not expedient to the agenda the church was selling. Some of these were Perpetua and Felicity, Saints Polyeuct and Nearchus and also Saints Sergius and Bacchus. All celebrated same sex couples.

          Aside from scripture there is this man named John Boswell who contributed greatly to the research, study and recognition that same sex couples existed, were recognized and even celebrated long before our modern era. So called conservatives will make no mention of this. John Boswell created a full body of work  that remains with us even though he has returned to God for his heavenly reward. Some of his groundbreaking and affirming works are Christianity, Social Tolerance and Homosexuality: Gay People in Western Europe from the Beginning of the Christian Era to the 14th Century and also Same-sex Unions in Pre-modern Europe.

            I write this all, perhaps in more detail than I previously have over the years because there is so much misinformation, lies and religious bias out there. There is no penalty for blatantly lying about such things in the media or on the internet. Revisionist history seems a specialty of religious fanaticism everywhere. More importantly than this though, the reason I wish to restate all these facts is to pay homage to John Boswell and his works. he was a man of faith, a gay man and a very good man. We were blessed to have you and sad that you left us at only 47 years old. God Bless you John. Thank you.
       

Are we there yet?

John 1:9-14

           I have learned not to say the word "never". Invariably when I do, it comes back to bite me in the ass. If anyone had told me in my teens and twenties that one day I would be a Deacon of the church, married, divorced and married again - to a man! - I would have said never, what are you smoking? 

Life is full of so many twists and turns. Things we could never imagine come true. Our lives take such unusual turns, it is almost beyond our comprehension. So much of life is mystery. Perhaps life is mystery.

           Many of the things which I probably would say is crazy talk I now am open to, or at least acknowledge the possibilities of. I don't dismiss things I don't understand or perhaps have never experienced.  When people talk about mystics, readers and visions, I am not quick to say they are wrong.

        Many of things that we believe in cannot be proven and cannot even be seen.  We must open our minds and adjust our thoughts to accept some of the truths that God has reveals directly or indirectly.

        I am sure the ancients had no concept of oxygen or that "air" actually was made of gases. We still cannot see those gases and yet we know without them, we would die.

        So how about some of the religious truths that we may not understand or cannot prove and yet we accept as truth. Perhaps we try to accept but we know better than to dismiss it. The fact that Jesus is the Word and was present at creation, that God became man for us, for our sins and lived among us. Do we believe this?  At the Friary the other day we discussed creeds, specifically the Apostles Creed and the Nicene Creed. How often do we say those words out loud, proud and very little of it can be proven as fact and yet we know it is true.  When we say that Mary became pregnant by the Holy Spirit, do we understand it? Do we accept it? Do we fathom the magnitude of this event , gesture of God and offer of salvation? It's part of the Nicene Creed.

       God's world has so many unseen and perhaps unprovable powers and yet we know they exist, we accept them. All of nature gives witness to the unseen,unprovable, unimaginable. This passage today is another sign of the invisible and unprovable that we accept and know as fact.

        Part our growth in Lent and in our lives is to try to deal with many of the unseen truths. They involve faith, they involve our very beings. One of the beauties of the Episcopal church is the idea that we can ask any question of God with fear of judgement. God who sees all and knows all, knows our hearts and knows our minds and sees our intention even if that is a struggle to understand or believe unseen truths. If we can remain as children as God wishes us to be, that means a constant array of questions, searching and trying to learn His ways - for our entire life.  Be free with questions and inquiries, seek the unknown, love the mystery.

           Don't get weighed down with "are we there yet". Enjoy the ride, seen and unseen.

The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.

He was in the world, and the world came into being through him; yet the world did not know him. He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God.

And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth.

That's the story of, that's the glory of love ( and Lent )

John 12:23-32

          You've undoubtedly heard the expression no pain, no gain. It's a very popular secular expression usually in reference to exercise and body sculpting.  I'm here to tell ya that it holds a great deal of truth. I'm not talking about lunks or no necks. I mean, if you want something, if it's worth attaining, it usually takes some effort.  

          While the love of our Father is free and boundless and there is nothing we can do to deserve it, our wholeness and life journey is not so easy.  Anything approaching perfection is nearly impossible for us humans but an effort to be all that we can be, and should be, is greatly appreciated by God.

          What this whole Lenten season is about for us is dying to ourselves, preparing to be changed, morphed into the glorious that we are meant to be. No easy task. That grain of wheat John speaks of has to fall from the plant, essentially die and wait for just the right conditions to sprout into a wheat plant and it's glorious yield.  I've spoken of the beautiful butterfly that is stuck inside it's cocoon and must fight it's way out. We all know the beauty that results. What a metamorphosis!

           How many young men and women dare to give up everything just to be the beautiful person God made them to be? How tough is it to say "I am gay" knowing your family may abandon you, disown you and reject you? These are life changing events for sure but the outcome is the joy of being honest, genuine and who God made you to be. 

            There are countless ways in which we die to ourselves to achieve a bigger goal. Many are secular but the all image the big and glorious. The cast has been set. Jesus died for us and rose in three days to the most magnificent glory we could ever know and he did it in the most selfless way we can ever know.  This is why in every Sacrament we engage both new life and embrace the death that is necessary to achieve it.

            So you gave up candy for lent? Coffee? Wine? Facebook? Dinners out? Lets move on to some bigger stuff. If you haven't embraced the joy of dying to self and rising to new life and being a better person, do it now.

Lent is progressing, are we? Have we something on our agenda, a plan, to become the better person? Are we moving forward towards wholeness? What are we willing to die to? for?

           

Jesus answered them, ‘The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Very truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. Those who love their life lose it, and those who hate their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, there will my servant be also. Whoever serves me, the Father will honour.

‘Now my soul is troubled. And what should I say—“Father, save me from this hour”? No, it is for this reason that I have come to this hour. Father, glorify your name.’ Then a voice came from heaven, ‘I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.’ The crowd standing there heard it and said that it was thunder. Others said, ‘An angel has spoken to him.’ Jesus answered, ‘This voice has come for your sake, not for mine. Now is the judgement of this world; now the ruler of this world will be driven out. And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.’

An extra part left over?

John 4:5-42

          When you read this passage you realize the history of the Samaritans is not that far removed from the Judaism that was practiced in Jerusalem. They certainly have common roots and yet the Samaritans were looked down upon. Can we think of any groups that are looked down upon today? 

           What is astounding in this passage is that Jesus seems to overlook not only that he is speaking to a Samaritan but also to a woman. This was unthinkable at the time. Yet Jesus witnesses to this woman as if she is co-heir and capable of thought and discipleship. And of course the answer is yes to all.  There are few today that are ignorant enough to profess that women are not worthy or that there place is in the home, silent, barefoot and pregnant,  simply a source of sexual satisfaction and a minor player in God's plan. I don't think this passage convinced anyone of that, we seem to have come to that realization on our own. Of course that's a bit arrogant on our part. The Holy Spirit is guiding us and this passage does in fact teach us a great deal about equality and the broadness of Jesus' message and life. He not only spoke of equality and reaching out to the marginalized, he lived it in countless ways. Today's passage is just one example.

          Who are the marginalized that we willingly or intentionally overlooked? Is that what Jesus would do?  

         Perhaps you have had the experience of putting together a complex toy for a child at Christmas or  a piece of furniture with pages of directions.  In the end you have what looks correct and yet you are holding an extra part in your hand? What to do?  Hopefully it will not impact the final product but many times your project will be faulty from the get go (and not work) or it won't work as intended and it's lifespan cut short.

         It seems pretty sad to me then that we even consider overlooking or dismissing one segment of God's creation for one reason or another.  They are surely part of God's plan.  They surely are a facet of the diamond that God has created in us. God is all inclusive because God created all and God loves all. As difficult as it may seem to be, we are called to embrace. We are called to learn, study, welcome and love.

          One of the biggest divisions that exists in the world and a division with a common denominator is the friction and hate that exists between Jews, Christians and Muslims.  Considering how we all act (or acted)  it is perhaps rightfully so.  Do we have the chutzpah to dismiss each other though? Radical fanatics aside, are we not called to embrace our brothers and sisters?  There are localized examples of this. The God Squad that consists of a Rabbi and Roman Catholic Priest was a notable example. Perhaps we can create our own examples.

           If Jesus died on the cross for us, he died on the cross for all of us, for all of creation. The example has been set. Jesus message of love and inclusiveness is open to all, women, blacks, Asians, gays.....everyone. The secular world and the religious world cannot afford to omit a part that God created that is intended to make the whole plan 'work'.

So he came to a Samaritan city called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob had given to his son Joseph.

Jacob's well was there, and Jesus, tired out by his journey, was sitting by the well. It was about noon.

A Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, "Give me a drink."

(His disciples had gone to the city to buy food.)

The Samaritan woman said to him, "How is it that you, a Jew, ask a drink of me, a woman of Samaria?" (Jews do not share things in common with Samaritans.)

Jesus answered her, "If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, 'Give me a drink,' you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water."

The woman said to him, "Sir, you have no bucket, and the well is deep. Where do you get that living water?

Are you greater than our ancestor Jacob, who gave us the well, and with his sons and his flocks drank from it?"

Jesus said to her, "Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again,

but those who drink of the water that I will give them will never be thirsty. The water that I will give will become in them a spring of water gushing up to eternal life."

The woman said to him, "Sir, give me this water, so that I may never be thirsty or have to keep coming here to draw water."

Jesus said to her, "Go, call your husband, and come back."

The woman answered him, "I have no husband." Jesus said to her, "You are right in saying, 'I have no husband';

for you have had five husbands, and the one you have now is not your husband. What you have said is true!"

The woman said to him, "Sir, I see that you are a prophet.

Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you say that the place where people must worship is in Jerusalem."

Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.

You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews.

But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such as these to worship him.

God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth."

The woman said to him, "I know that Messiah is coming" (who is called Christ). "When he comes, he will proclaim all things to us."

Jesus said to her, "I am he, the one who is speaking to you."

Just then his disciples came. They were astonished that he was speaking with a woman, but no one said, "What do you want?" or, "Why are you speaking with her?"

Then the woman left her water jar and went back to the city. She said to the people,

"Come and see a man who told me everything I have ever done! He cannot be the Messiah, can he?"

They left the city and were on their way to him.

Meanwhile the disciples were urging him, "Rabbi, eat something."

But he said to them, "I have food to eat that you do not know about."

So the disciples said to one another, "Surely no one has brought him something to eat?"

Jesus said to them, "My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to complete his work.

Do you not say, 'Four months more, then comes the harvest'? But I tell you, look around you, and see how the fields are ripe for harvesting.

The reaper is already receiving wages and is gathering fruit for eternal life, so that sower and reaper may rejoice together.

For here the saying holds true, 'One sows and another reaps.'

I sent you to reap that for which you did not labor. Others have labored, and you have entered into their labor."

Many Samaritans from that city believed in him because of the woman's testimony, "He told me everything I have ever done."

So when the Samaritans came to him, they asked him to stay with them; and he stayed there two days.

And many more believed because of his word.

They said to the woman, "It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is truly the Savior of the world."

Self made man

Mark 5:1-20

             I imagine that the man in this passage, possessed of so many demons, is a hulk like man in as much as chains and shackles could not subdue him. Perhaps he even looked menacing. No one would mess with him. At the very end of the passage I am picturing a strapping shirt and tie kind of guy proclaiming the good news in the Decapolis.

             I spoke the other day of the fact that years ago I was in some distress. Happy, but not happy,  I had several issues to deal with and it wasn't until I dealt with my problems that I 'came out' ok. Like the demoniac I had sought out God to solve my problems, thinking I suppose that if I got closer to God I would achieve wholeness and true happiness. There really is nothing wrong with that, actually it is desirable and God wishes us to have a deep abiding relationship with him. But if we delude ourselves into thinking we can pray our problems away or worse, if we think we can pray the gay away, we are sadly mistaken.

              So of course I did pray but I also sought out friends, acquaintances and professional help once I got an inkling of what my issues were.  I suppose I could be proud of what I have accomplished. "Wasn't it "I" who sought out God for so many years?  Wasn't it "I" who worked so hard at therapy? Wasn't it "I" who struggled? Was it not "I" that tried to make whole  (as best as possible) those who would be directly affected by my decision to come out?

           I could liken it to a very successful business man, very wealthy, works hard, shrewd, competent and takes great pride in every penny "he" earned. We can do nothing without God. We need to remember that and be always giving thanks and praise.

        While we can take some amount of pride in cooperation with life, with God's plan for us and the actions we take, the ultimate thanks have to go to God. The demoniac knew that. I know that with all the turmoil I went through coming out at the age of 50, the people that helped me, my future husband, my therapist and yes even that backward Roman church, were all agents of God. I could have accomplished nothing without them, nothing without qualified professionals and all of it comes from God. God was along side me on my journey "the whole long way" as they say in The Quiet Man".

           There seemed to be much media attention in the last Presidential campaign about a statement that our President made that for every successful person there were many people who helped in that success. While perhaps not totally disagreeing with him, the other candidate stressed the accomplishments the person makes to their success.  No matter which your view is, know that without God and the myriad people that are placed in our lives by him, we could accomplish nothing.

          No one is a self made man. God made us and it is our cooperation with who we are and our life in community that makes us wealthier by any measure. Always though, thank God.

They came to the other side of the lake, to the country of the Gerasenes. And when he had stepped out of the boat, immediately a man out of the tombs with an unclean spirit met him. He lived among the tombs; and no one could restrain him any more, even with a chain; for he had often been restrained with shackles and chains, but the chains he wrenched apart, and the shackles he broke in pieces; and no one had the strength to subdue him. Night and day among the tombs and on the mountains he was always howling and bruising himself with stones. When he saw Jesus from a distance, he ran and bowed down before him; and he shouted at the top of his voice, ‘What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I adjure you by God, do not torment me.’ For he had said to him, ‘Come out of the man, you unclean spirit!’ Then Jesus asked him, ‘What is your name?’ He replied, ‘My name is Legion; for we are many.’ He begged him earnestly not to send them out of the country. Now there on the hillside a great herd of swine was feeding; and the unclean spirits begged him, ‘Send us into the swine; let us enter them.’ So he gave them permission. And the unclean spirits came out and entered the swine; and the herd, numbering about two thousand, rushed down the steep bank into the lake, and were drowned in the lake.

The swineherds ran off and told it in the city and in the country. Then people came to see what it was that had happened. They came to Jesus and saw the demoniac sitting there, clothed and in his right mind, the very man who had had the legion; and they were afraid. Those who had seen what had happened to the demoniac and to the swine reported it. Then they began to beg Jesus to leave their neighbourhood. As he was getting into the boat, the man who had been possessed by demons begged him that he might be with him. But Jesus refused, and said to him, ‘Go home to your friends, and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and what mercy he has shown you.’ And he went away and began to proclaim in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him; and everyone was amazed.

It's not all about us (humans)

Mark 4:35-41

           There's a great Star Trek Movie, filled with great quotables I might add, that involves the crew travelling back in time to save Humpback whales.  Great story. The Earth is besieged by an Alien vessel whose inhabitants are wreaking havoc on the earth in search of Humpback whales (which, in the story, had apparently become  extinct) Humans had no way to respond to the 'foreign' tongue of the aliens or what they wanted. Spock cleverly states that 'only human arrogance assumes the message is meant for man'. 

           I have been ruminating about something I heard in last Sunday's sermon and the passage today brings it to the fore once again.  On Sunday our homilist noted that scripture states "that God so loved the world....". I have noted already that it doesn't say ' God so loves humanity' or 'God so loved man'. It says God so loved the world, as in, it's entirely. All of creation. It is not surprising then that Jesus could command the wind and sea that he had a hand in at creation. I said it before and I shall say it again that God's cannot help but love all of his creations. That would include rabbits and rhinoceri, humans and Humpbacks (whales that is). 

              Perhaps part of our journey to wholeness is not simply about ourselves and our relationship to God and our relationship to each other but also our relationship to the entirety of God's creation. We can ask ourselves if we are good stewards of ourselves (our personal temple of God's creation). Are we the best gay person we can be? The best artist, or whatever. We can ask if we are good stewards of those to whom we have been entrusted (spouse and family) but do we ponder how well we are stewards of God's creation that is all around us?

             When I see a deer standing by the side of the road on my (incredibly) early morning drive to work, I often slow my Prius down, turn the radio off, power down my window and exhort the deer to be careful. I drive slowly in those wee hours because I see far too many of my brother deer 'sleeping' on the side of the road. I drive a Prius in an attempt to save some precious resources and saving us from yet more greenhouse gasses. I know arguments can be made that I might be more harmful to the environment but that is not really my point. My point is that I actually consider creation in my decisions. I try to respect and love my husband, my family, my cat and the entirety of God's creation as best I can. We are one on this giant blue orb. God has created us all and I am absolutely sure God loves every molecule he created.

          I mention all this as a possible source of thought, mediation and part of our journey to wholeness during this Lenten season as humans and citizens of this planet that God created. 

On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, ‘Let us go across to the other side.’ And leaving the crowd behind, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. Other boats were with him. A great gale arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that the boat was already being swamped. But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they woke him up and said to him, ‘Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?’ He woke up and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, ‘Peace! Be still!’ Then the wind ceased, and there was a dead calm. He said to them, ‘Why are you afraid? Have you still no faith?’ And they were filled with great awe and said to one another, ‘Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?’

What's your problem? What's important?

Philippians 4:4-9

           I think I am pretty good at praising God always, at least I try. I don't walking around saying "Praise Jesus!" all day but I say it quite frequently in my head as I walk around and do my work.  Several people know that I am a faithful person and it comes as a surprise to some who have know me for many years. I once was an angry person inside, fighting internal demons if you will. I was faithful in that I constantly sought God but I often failed. I was a troubled man. You probably know that realizing I was gay and coming out was a herculean task that lifted the weight of the world off my shoulders. God has indeed been great to me. 

        I was sitting at my workbench the other day when one of my coworkers came in to me sobbing, "I am so sorry".  She dented my car in the parking lot. It was somewhat ironic since four of us park alongside each other to prevent others from damaging our cars.  This person knows how nice I am but also knows me from the time I was unhappy and perhaps a bit volatile. She expected the volatile man to  appear and begged forgiveness. Imagine her shock  and almost disbelief when she was met with a consoling understanding workmate. She actually asked "don't you care?" I assured her I did and I'd prefer my car not be damaged but that it was after all only a car and no one was hurt. I was more concerned for her. Stunning for me, I hadn't even seen the damage yet! As it turns out the damage was pretty small, still expensive to fix because the dent was on a crease. Calmness and sanity had prevailed. 

        I could not help but think of this whole episode when I read this passage for today.  Sometimes we can get so wrapped up in the world and things of the world we may forget what is really important, we worry, we get distracted. Yesterday I noted things I am thankful for and I would (will and do) repeat the same list today. 

         What are you thankful for?  Today I will be focus on my relationship with God. I will say thank you for making me gay. I will be try to appreciate what it is that it means to be gay and cherish the gift, the perspective and the love of being gay. I will cherish my family who I am graced with and who show me the love of God and who give me the opportunity to share my love, God's love with them.

       Now what's your problem? what's important?

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. 

Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honourable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.

The right stuff

Mark 4:1-20

          Bill Maher apparently went on a rant yesterday about religions.  How could we believe in a punishing unloving God, a vengeful God? How could it be that God would punish thousands simply  to punish a few? Bill railed against some of the inane made up rules that religions create out of thin air and that stifle us and restrict us. In some peculiar way we think we are holy or holier and loved if we obey all these prescriptions and tenets. This shows that people want to believe in God and want to be one with Him but in all the wrong ways. Jesus came to show us the way, that is why he is called "The Way". Jesus is, the way, the truth and the life.

          So what to believe? Jesus used parables even though his fundamental message was love of God, self and others. Let's look at this passage.

          What of the seeds on the path?  A path is a highly trampled, walked upon area. Hardly the atmosphere or conditions for soaking in anything or growth of any kind. Perhaps like trying to meditate in a rock concert. Conditions have to be right and a well travelled dusty path doesn't seem like the right idea for seeds of any kind. That is, actual seeds or seeds of faith.

           What is the rocky ground?  I would suggest one possibility are all the prescriptions, rules and rubrics that religions create out of thin air.  Many of these minuscule rules are really personal acts of piety - at least in the Roman church.  They aren't bad unto themselves. In fact, many actions can enrich your faith. Dipping your fingers in holy water and making the sign of the cross is not something instituted by Christ except that it is a reminder of our Baptism. That's something perhaps we should remind ourselves of. However, when that action becomes a mandate and you are chastised for not doing it or thought of as less holy for not doing it, the practice becomes a big fail. Faith can be enriched by some rules and actions but it cannot be the basis of your faith. Basing your faith in so much man made minutia is very rocky ground indeed. I would add that those who insist on such actions and pay scrupulous attention to such rules and rubrics are really like the thorns in this passage, they will choke the faith out of you.

          What then is the good soil?  A few minutes a day really. Ideally, you would recognize the need to praise God all day in everything but in lieu of that, in the face of a sprouting faith, eager to grow, a few minutes a day. This is quiet time. Set aside time. Uninterrupted time. Time for you and God - alone. Jesus found the desert a good place. Monks have found a hermitage is a good place. For me, even a quiet walk alone at lunch can be quality time with God. What you have to do is be silent, listen and have an atmosphere that allows it. Perhaps an introductory breathing exercise would help. Perhaps a simple thank you and a litany of things you have to be thankful for.

          Thank God for the most wonderful husband in the world. For grandsons and a pussycat. For a job and friends, for sunlight and moonbeams. For family and food. For your love God and for letting me know always how much you love me and all of us. Praise God

            

Again he began to teach beside the lake. Such a very large crowd gathered around him that he got into a boat on the lake and sat there, while the whole crowd was beside the lake on the land. He began to teach them many things in parables, and in his teaching he said to them: ‘Listen! A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seed fell on the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Other seed fell on rocky ground, where it did not have much soil, and it sprang up quickly, since it had no depth of soil. And when the sun rose, it was scorched; and since it had no root, it withered away. Other seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no grain. Other seed fell into good soil and brought forth grain, growing up and increasing and yielding thirty and sixty and a hundredfold.’ And he said, ‘Let anyone with ears to hear listen!’

 When he was alone, those who were around him along with the twelve asked him about the parables. And he said to them, ‘To you has been given the secret of the kingdom of God, but for those outside, everything comes in parables; in order that
“they may indeed look, but not perceive,
   and may indeed listen, but not understand;
so that they may not turn again and be forgiven.” ’

And he said to them, ‘Do you not understand this parable? Then how will you understand all the parables? The sower sows the word. These are the ones on the path where the word is sown: when they hear, Satan immediately comes and takes away the word that is sown in them. And these are the ones sown on rocky ground: when they hear the word, they immediately receive it with joy. But they have no root, and endure only for a while; then, when trouble or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately they fall away. And others are those sown among the thorns: these are the ones who hear the word, but the cares of the world, and the lure of wealth, and the desire for other things come in and choke the word, and it yields nothing. And these are the ones sown on the good soil: they hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirty and sixty and a hundredfold.’

A little light on sexual immorality

1 Corinthians 5:1-8

         If you have read very much of this blog, you'll know that I refer to the difficulty of reconciling ancient words , concepts and philosophies with today. Our words are not their words, they meant different things and words have been translated and translated and re-translated and mis-translated.  I often use the example of letter from my great grandmother who said her birthday party was delightful, every one had coke and was gay.  It had a different meaning then didn't it? Coke was Coca Cola not a drug and gay simply meant happy. It would be wrong to infer something of our society back onto my great grandma's time.

       So where does that leave us? Well certainly scholarship and studying original texts is important. Getting to know and understanding ancient cultures on their own terms is also important.

       One of the problems even the Apostles had was trying to minister to and proclaim the Gospel in an area (Greece) where philosophies were different and where words were different in myriad ways than they were in Jerusalem. Concepts were different, behavior was different. It would be not dissimilar to trying to integrate an American into Japanese society with all it's cultural differences.

       We catch a glimpse of the differences with the story of the Centurion and his beloved "slave" (the actual word was "pais" which was really a less dominant younger male lover). This was common, accepted and desirable in Roman culture, especially for a soldier. In a similar way, sexual relations between younger and older men in Greek culture was acceptable. What was not acceptable was using one man against another man in a sexually subservient way, without respect. Casting an equal male in the "female" role was considered wrong and demeaning. From what I understand it would also be wrong (immoral?) in Greek culture to have a youth as a prostitute. 

        When the Apostles speak of immorality, we cannot transpose our norms to their time or their norms to us. We certainly cannot paint with a broad brush.  To say the Apostles railed against homosexuality or considered it immoral would be wrong simply because the term did not exist. The term homosexuality as we know it was not created until recent times. The idea of a long lasting love between same sex couples was viewed as normal for certain people and even celebrated. It was not loving relationships that were immoral, it was other specific cultural activities. Most often they are not spelled out in scripture. If anything, the nebulous term of 'sexual immorality' was mentioned alongside a litany of other 'sins' with no preference to one being any more of a problem than the other.

         What would I argue is sexual immorality then? In light of scripture and the love Jesus showed us, I would say immorality are actions devoid of mutuality, respect and commitment., they certainly should not be harmful in any way. It does not involve dominance. It involves freely given love. Rape, incest, objectives would all be moral wrongs.

          Not much of a Lenten reflection per se, but if we are to grow to love ourselves as gay men and woman, we must come to accept and know that our love is celebrated and elevated in two people created by God for the very purpose of togetherness and love. It is not right that man be alone. Part of our Lenten journey to wholeness is accepting who we are and knowing our love is beautiful and pleasing to God.

     

It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and of a kind that is not found even among pagans; for a man is living with his father’s wife. And you are arrogant! Should you not rather have mourned, so that he who has done this would have been removed from among you?

For though absent in body, I am present in spirit; and as if present I have already pronounced judgement in the name of the Lord Jesus on the man who has done such a thing. When you are assembled, and my spirit is present with the power of our Lord Jesus, you are to hand this man over to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may be saved on the day of the Lord.

Your boasting is not a good thing. Do you not know that a little yeast leavens the whole batch of dough? Clean out the old yeast so that you may be a new batch, as you really are unleavened. For our paschal lamb, Christ, has been sacrificed. Therefore, let us celebrate the festival, not with the old yeast, the yeast of malice and evil, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

Jesus, Inc.

Mark 3:7-19

          If it wasn't a business it sure seemed like it was. This would be the first meeting of the new start up with the twelve initial executives chosen. There would be other additions to 'the company' but these were the twelve he would rest it all on. After he was physically gone, his spirit would live on and the whole business would thrive through them. And at the end of the meeting he went home. 'Mom, what a day'. Do you have some bread and some soup for me? Some matzah would go down nice right now'.

          This is the business of life and if Jesus did not intend a whole new religion to come out of his mission, it sure seems that way. Perhaps Jesus realized growing up and seeing how his initial exchanges with the authorities were going, he would have to make some wholesale changes. The spirit of Jesus, that is the Holy Spirit, was instrumental in assuring that this fledgling religion took off and expanded throughout the world. I've said it before, when Jesus came to save the chosen people, how could he deny his love and salvation to the rest of mankind, the rest of God's creations. The message soon was open to all, not just as Paul extended the Good News to the gentiles but in Jesus' own time in ministering to the sick, the sinners, the lame, the Samaritans, the Romans and even to the young male lover of a Centurion. 

        I suppose the way to help a business endeavor succeed is to make everyone part of the business plan. What was His plan?  God's love simply could not be contained to the Jews since that would leave out the rest of the world. God's plan, God's business is life and love and no one is excluded.  When scripture says "God so loved the world" it not only opens it to all mankind but it opens God's salvation and love to the entirety of God's created world. Only human arrogance thinks the message is meant just for us. But the scripture says world, not humanity, not humans, not 'man', but world. Now that is a business plan. Something to think about.

       Wht was God's intention then, to save the chosen people? No, not just the jews but everyone and everything. God created us notto fail but to live and to love and to with him (her) forever. To  make the plan work, Jesus came to earth as a human to make the message clear. It was not a message of rules, it was a resounding message of love. 

Jesus departed with his disciples to the lake, and a great multitude from Galilee followed him; hearing all that he was doing, they came to him in great numbers from Judea, Jerusalem, Idumea, beyond the Jordan, and the region around Tyre and Sidon. He told his disciples to have a boat ready for him because of the crowd, so that they would not crush him; for he had cured many, so that all who had diseases pressed upon him to touch him. Whenever the unclean spirits saw him, they fell down before him and shouted, ‘You are the Son of God!’ But he sternly ordered them not to make him known.

He went up the mountain and called to him those whom he wanted, and they came to him. And he appointed twelve, whom he also named apostles, to be with him, and to be sent out to proclaim the message, and to have authority to cast out demons. So he appointed the twelve: Simon (to whom he gave the name Peter); James son of Zebedee and John the brother of James (to whom he gave the name Boanerges, that is, Sons of Thunder); and Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus, and Simon the Cananaean, and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.

Then he went home;

God is tapping

Genesis 12:1-4a

          One of the things that I feared the most about ministering were wake services. As it turned out, this ministry was one of the most rewarding and touching of the many things I did. Sure, I enjoyed witnessing marriages and certainly welcomed new babies with enthusiasm but wakes were different. In something I feared, I found a gentleness, a time of vulnerability, an opportunity to witness and be present to people that were aching and needed love and comfort.

          I often say that when God wants you to do something she will tap you on the shoulder. If you disregard the request you are not so subtly reminded with a 2 by 4 or a baseball bat.  God gets what God wants and asks for our cooperation in his plan of love. The problem always is our unwillingness to take part, to engage God and cooperate. Sometime we are happy to sit at home on the couch. We love the status quo. We'd rather not leave our comfort zone. Sometimes we are afraid.

           In this passage God asked Abram to pick up everything and go to a new country. I don't think most of us will be asked to do that. I also don't think God will ask us to give up our lives nailed to a cross for the sins of our brothers and sisters. Jesus did that for us and it need not be done again. We are asked to do any array of things, much simpler things, some harder, but we are asked. Do we cooperate or do we succumb to complacency or fear?

             On the simplest level we are asked to love. Then things get more complicated. We are asked to love our neighbor, you know, that one we are not too happy with. The ugly one. The one that dresses funny. The one that smells. The one that does not share our views of the world. The one that may hate us. Considerably more complicated and a bit tougher to embrace , eh?

               There has been a great deal of discussion recently about conversion therapy. This is a thoroughly discredited method of try and make gay people into straight people. To me this is not only saying no to God but saying no and trying to run in the opposite direction. In religious terms this would be a mortal sin. Taking something of great significance, a grave matter (our very nature), and turning your back on it and thus, turning your back on God and slamming the door. I know, being gay isn't all it's cracked up to be. Sure there is great joy in accepting who are. There is the great sex. ( notice I did not say indiscriminate, random, immoral sex ). But still, gay love s extraordinary. At the same time there are haters. The gay community is very misunderstood. Scripture is warped to lambaste us, gay people people are lumped into broad categories of sick people like pedophiles and hedonistic monsters. To some people, gays are equated with the devil. So untrue. So if you think you are gay, why would you come out? Your family may disown you. You may lose friends. You have a fairly good likelihood of being mistreated and abused by ignorant people claiming that it is God's will.

           The thing is this, if you are gay, God made you that way. Just as God wanted Abram to gay to a foreign land and embrace it, God made you gay and is asking you to embrace it. Do not shrink away from what you are are. Gay or straight or whatever, it is a gift from God that you are being asked to embrace. This is the tool with which you experience God's love, God's plan for you. This is the witness of God's love in your life. Will it be easy? Maybe, maybe not. There will be joyous times and lonely times and sad times and beautiful times like everyone else. 

           Sometimes we think that when God asks us to do something, it's donating food to a food bank, helping (loving) a neighbor with a chore or simply doing the right thing. We are indeed called to do all those simple things and more. We are also called to accept ourselves, to love ourselves and accept the life journey God created us to have. If you are gay embrace it, revel in it and love it. Being gay is a gift from God, an extraordinary journey of love.

Now the LORD said to Abram, "Go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you.

I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.

I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed."

Things denied

Mark 2:23-3:6

           It seems to me that there is a big difference between a Lenten sacrifice and actually forbidding certain foods and actions. Yet religions have denied the faithful things, foods and gifts freely given by God for millenia. I would not say that this is a fine tradition. What may be a fine tradition is some honest self assessment and a decision to do without something for spiritual gain and personal growth.

           I recall as a youth walking through an arboretum and plucking the pine nuts out of pine cones to eat. Still, I recall making blueberry pancakes from blueberries we picked as we were hiking in Maine. These seem to be gifts from God that take us back to the Garden of Eden or such time that we realized that what the earth provides              is a gift from our creator. The notion of plucking wheat while walking, while hungry or not, being a sin (as in this passage) seems against all that God wishes for us. Is it somehow disrespectful of God's gifts? Was it considered 'work' and disallowed on the sabbath for that reason? Did it break some man made fast? This kind of law only hits the tip of the iceberg.

            For one reason or another, religions have found it necessary to take gifts from God and place restrictions on them. In most cases there is some rationale, some circular logic that makes it 'holy'. My Father-in-law and I would call this happy horse-shit. My example is not being able to eat meat on Fridays. Perhaps that in itself is ridiculous but even more so when St. Patrick's day is a Friday in Lent and then a special dispensation is given to those who feel it would not be St. Pat's without Corned Beef and cabbage. That is bullshit. I'm not picking on the Irish though this kind of mandatory denials and hypocrisy abounds. My Father-in-law would point to one's inability to press a button to use an elevator on the sabbath (is it considered work?) unless someone else pressed the button. Then and only then could you use the elevator without sin. Again, happy horse shit.

            If you look at the rules about pork for instance, there you can see some semblance of intelligence. To a nomadic people in a time of no refrigeration and dusty hygiene at best, it makes sense to protect your population (the Israelites) against trycanosis. Is that a valid stricture today? Probably not, at least not in the United States. I know many Jews who have the same hankering for a good bacon cheeseburger as I do and they feel the bacon does not make them a sinner or less godly.

        Sadly, it isn't just food. Religions see fit to deny a whole array of things, if it's not foods it's one  practice or another and even sex. Of all the most wonderful gifts from God, sex?  Not even Saint Peter was celibate and yet the Roman church makes what could be a wonderful and joyous gift for some (celibacy) into a mandatory stricture that limits the calling to either those that can and to those that can't but can lie about it. The latter is quite prevalent I might add.

         Another sex related rule involves being gay.  Supposedly, being gay is ok and gay people should be loved in spite of being 'intrinsically disordered' (according to the Roman catechism). But you are "called" to live a celibate life. Really? Loving sexual relations are forbidden? Where did that come from and who invited any church into any bedroom?  Is it one specific act or is there a master list of what crosses the celibate sinful line?

         Denying people certain foods, actions and states of life is intrinsically against the love of God that Jesus so beautifully lived and gave example of.  If one wishes to feel a kinship with the denials that Christ lived or to offer a share in his suffering by denying something to one's self that becomes a whole different story. Self assessment, personal conscience, decision making and choice are all avenues to personal and spiritual growth. This kind of decision cannot be made for you though. Decisions and routes to spirituality cannot be mandated or legislated.

One sabbath he was going through the cornfields; and as they made their way his disciples began to pluck heads of grain. The Pharisees said to him, ‘Look, why are they doing what is not lawful on the sabbath?’ And he said to them, ‘Have you never read what David did when he and his companions were hungry and in need of food? He entered the house of God, when Abiathar was high priest, and ate the bread of the Presence, which it is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and he gave some to his companions.’ Then he said to them, ‘The sabbath was made for humankind, and not humankind for the sabbath; so the Son of Man is lord even of the sabbath.’

Again he entered the synagogue, and a man was there who had a withered hand. They watched him to see whether he would cure him on the sabbath, so that they might accuse him. And he said to the man who had the withered hand, ‘Come forward.’ Then he said to them, ‘Is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the sabbath, to save life or to kill?’ But they were silent. He looked around at them with anger; he was grieved at their hardness of heart and said to the man, ‘Stretch out your hand.’ He stretched it out, and his hand was restored. The Pharisees went out and immediately conspired with the Herodians against him, how to destroy him. 

The wrong crowd

Mark 2:13-22

          Being a parent gives you a different perspective in life. I now know how different it is from being a grandparent. Being a grandpa is all love and considerably less responsibility. Being a parent involves a lot of love and a lot of responsibility. One of the tasks we have as parents is to make sure the kids grow up right, part of that is having good examples and safe surroundings. We watch what crowd our kids hang with.  I can just see Mary cringing at the crowd Jesus has been hanging out with. Tax collectors, perhaps prostitutes, lepers and sinners all. If ever there was an example of a suffering Jewish mother, Mary had to be it.  Can you picture her complaining about who he's been hanging out with? Oy vey!

           As life has it though, our kids quite often teach us a thing or two when they grow up. Mary always knew Jesus was special but it remains unknown whether she realized how special. Even if she knew that she was truly the Messiah, what kind of Messiah had she been expecting as a devout Jewish woman?  Imagine though how blessed she was experiencing his ministry. Undiluted and not bastardized by any religious pretension's or rules, she was able to experience the raw message and lessons of love. Imagine her joy when word gets home to her of this man (her very own son) who is performing miracles, interpreting the law and showing love and mercy wherever he went. Perhaps that is the true origin of the words ver klempt.

          I know we are all so very concerned that our own kids (the kids we have been entrusted with by God) are hanging out with the right crowd, good kids with good families.  We would prefer they not hang out on the corner, associate with druggies or drinkers.  These are normal concerns.  I am sure Mary in her time had relatively the same concerns.  Jesus however saw the goodness in everyone and was able to look past labels and effectuate change in everyone he associated with.  The wrong crowd became the right crowd through Jesus. Turning the tables and shaking up the accepted norms was clearly a part of Jesus' ministry and part of God's love and design.

         We are too quick to judge. Even if there is an inkling of truth in our judgements we paint with too broad a brush, often at the expense of some one's character or reputation. It seems we should be less concerned with the wrong crowd and more concerned with our own actions. As always, those actions are loving our neighbor, seeing the godliness in everyone including ourselves. By our love we can effect the same change Jesus did. By our love.

Jesus went out again beside the lake; the whole crowd gathered around him, and he taught them. As he was walking along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, ‘Follow me.’ And he got up and followed him.

And as he sat at dinner in Levi’s house, many tax-collectors and sinners were also sitting with Jesus and his disciples—for there were many who followed him. When the scribes of the Pharisees saw that he was eating with sinners and tax-collectors, they said to his disciples, ‘Why does he eat with tax-collectors and sinners?’ When Jesus heard this, he said to them, ‘Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick; I have come to call not the righteous but sinners.’

Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting; and people came and said to him, ‘Why do John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?’ Jesus said to them, ‘The wedding-guests cannot fast while the bridegroom is with them, can they? As long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast. The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast on that day.

‘No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old cloak; otherwise, the patch pulls away from it, the new from the old, and a worse tear is made. And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and the wine is lost, and so are the skins; but one puts new wine into fresh wineskins.’