Casting seed

Mark 4:1-10,13-20

         One of my favorite expressions about faith is to 'preach the Gospel at all times, if necessary, use words'. It is an absolute truth that our faith is expressed more by our actions than by any words ever could. Perhaps some will appreciate it's relationship to love. You can say I love you to some one until your blue in the face but it is the daily living, the actions of love that are more convincing, the actions are a testimonial and true evidence of your love.

         In that vein then, when we wish to 'plant the seeds' of God's good word, we do so more by how we live our lives. People see how we act and know we are a faithful person. People see what that means in our heart and in our actions.  In this way, we do not show the arrogance of aiming our witness at a specific person whom we would be deciding is a suitable candidate. We might very well miss someone else who is in greater need of 'hearing' the Good News. It seems better to cast a wide net by our expansive and loving actions, our lives being a witness to everyone.  Then God can do that special stuff that only God can do and open the eyes, ears and hearts of people to hear the 'words' of our actions. Our lives are simply the biggest testimony of our faith.

          The other day at work a part time employee whom I get along with very well shared a story. I'll call her Mary. Mary and I have a mutual friend, actually to Mary it's a relative but whom to me is simply a friend. I guess that's not quite true either in a way. Mary's 'relative' is actually a religious with whom I studied in seminary and was ordained with. When I came out this person along with most of the members of my ordination class and religious, they simply abandoned me. I was persona non grata. At a family wedding, Mary's relative apparently asked her how I was doing.  Mary , who is an avowed atheist, but who knows enough about the Good News to know how faithful people are called to act, told this relative point blank that she thought it was horrible my religious colleagues abandoned me. It must have been an awkward moment. Mary actually said she thought it was "un-Christian" But the point is not about cosmic comeuppance that I might revel in. The point is Mary knows what a decent person is and sees how I live out the Gospel. She is smart enough to see the hypocrisy and what true goodness, or at least how hard I try to live a good and decent life. In this case, I cast seed (by my actions) on an atheist.  I am not convinced she is truly an atheist so much as she is repulsed by pseudo faithful/religions and all the asinine rules and rubrics.  The seed of actions fell, unbeknown to me, on this intelligent woman who knows oh too well what I proclaimed in my first sentence today. Preach the Gospel at all times, if necessary, use words.

            

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, ‘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.’

Dying to the closet

John 12:24-28

          It seems the summer has almost come and gone with the a bit of summer trying to hang on in the way of heat and humidity that we were actually spared for most of the summer.  Autumn seems like a magical time. Nature puts on a magnificent show even as the leaves indicate a death of sorts and a preparation for the darkness of winter.  Still in this dying there is a harvest that beckons good hearty meals and an opportunity to be thankful for all we have been graced with. There is a lot to be said about this dying (and rising stuff).  It is all about life itself, it is about the core of our faith.  The very first line of today's passage says everything about life, 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.

          The fact of death and rebirth is a constant for us. The seasons certainly show us the way, a universal guide given by God to all mankind. We grow and mature as people come in to our lives and leave (die) and we are the better for knowing people (both good and bad) and for all that they teach us. Others become part of who we are. On an even more personal level we must constantly die to ourselves and are reborn constantly as we aim to be all we are made to be, to reach wholeness, happiness and our destiny with divinity and infinity.

          In our dying and rising, I could not help see a parallel to being gay, closeted and 'out'.  Those  who remain closeted are trying very hard to survive as best they can. At least that is what I imagine. I try not to think that people are too lazy to be honest or that they want to have the best of both worlds while denying their true essence and losing their true life in the process.   Those who remain in the closet to 'save their life' wind up living a horrible existence and a miserable death. They are neither here nor there, they are in limbo. They foster a sense of self loathing in their deceit and denial of who they truly are. In this respect, those who try to save their life really die a miserable death. The closet is a horrible place to live. The active goal of every (gay) person should be an active effort to come out into the light of day - to come out of the closet.

        When you die to the closet you gain self respect and new life. How joyous to live out and proud! How joyous to die to the closet and burst forth like a butterfly from a cocoon beautiful and rainbow-esque, celebrating the life God has graced you with. 

        There is much to be said about dying and rising. Dying as a single grain of wheat but bursting forth bearing fruit in love of self, the ability to openly love others and enjoying the self respect God wishes us all to have.

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.’

Gay audacity

Matthew 9:20-22

         The audacity of this woman! By the custom ( and 'knowledge' ) of her time she would clearly be a sinner. Who else would be so cursed as to have twelve years of hemorrhages? As such, where does she come off approaching Jesus, none the less to touch him? Touching Jesus would render him ritually impure. She has a lot of nerve, don't you think?

          How does Jesus (God) respond?  Don't touch me sinner? Repent and sin no more" Wow! Jesus says simply your faith has made you well. This clearly would not be the response of the Pharisees or most of the Elders of the time. The woman would be cast out and not be allowed to return until she was better which would probably be never because as we know now, it was no fault of her own.

          How do many religious respond to those in gay community? Repent sinner ! Unclean! There is a litany of the alleged sins and total lack of knowledge or realization that God created us this way. There are broad sweeping beliefs about what we "do".  Some people are as ignorant and prejudiced about gays in the same way some people believed all blacks eat chitlins, watermelon and fried chicken. There is a fundamental lack of knowledge and ignorance about people who are part of the gay community which is sadly often fed by the religious right, the media and the Internet. Did you know you can't believe everything you read on the Internet?

         But be all that as it may, like the woman in today's passage, God's love is not dependant on a "cure" for something that we don't understand. What Jesus said, as he has said many times before without restriction, is that your faith has healed you. All are welcome. Most people do not need to be cured, simply understood and be told they are loved and welcome.

        Like the woman in today's passage, we too in the gay community need to reach out and touch God because we know God loves us and our wholeness resides not only in accepting all that we are but all that we are meant to be in terms of being one with God.

Then suddenly a woman who had been suffering from haemorrhages for twelve years came up behind him and touched the fringe of his cloak, for she said to herself, ‘If I only touch his cloak, I will be made well.’ Jesus turned, and seeing her he said, ‘Take heart, daughter; your faith has made you well.’ And instantly the woman was made well.

Praying for Wisdom

Psalm 119:33-40

          When you look back at your life it's funny the things that you can see. This is a bit of the honest self reflection that I often speak of.  The funniest thing looking back was of course not realizing I was gay. The signs were as clear as day. OMG my friends, OMG!  But when I look back I also see the challenges that I had with trying to be more spiritual and balancing that with things of the world. That is, material things.  I don't know how much more of my journey in life I have ahead of me but I seem light years from the naivete of my earlier years.

           In case you were not aware I love cars and everything car related. I have had quite a varied stable over the years. One vehicle that I simply had to have was oddly enough a van. This was the van of vans. It wasn't a high topped curtained living room on wheels but it was the absolute top of the line. All wheel drive, every option was checked off. I had convinced myself that it was logical, I deserved it and I could use it for some very good purposes - like taking my mom on day trips from the nursing home.

        So parked in my driveway was this extremely expensive toy. As it turns out, it was very illogical. The payments were so high I could barely afford gas. My Mom, who professed to want to come home had grown accustomed to her new surroundings and was stricken with an almost panic when we removed her from her now comfortable surroundings. 

         You could say there were many flaws in the basis for my decision to buy this super-van but in truth I think it comes down to a lack of wisdom. I was reminded of all this from today's selection from the Psalms. So often we pray for specific things without understanding or the wisdom to appreciate what we are truly asking for. Give me understanding, that I may keep your law and observe it with my whole heart.  

         As adults we know full well the practicalities of life. When a young boy asks for real live M1-Abrams tank for his birthday or a pet horse when they live in a 2 bedroom walk up in Manhattan, the parents are sure to see the folly and ridiculousness of such requests. Somewhere along the line though we often fail to see how ridiculous we are. We pray for unrealistic things. But more importantly, we fail to have the wisdom to see our own folly. We fail to see that what we should perhaps be asking for is to do what we can do (for ourselves) and leave the rest in God's hands. We should pray for wisdom.

    In almost all things, as the Psalmist writes, we should pray less for the specific and more for knowledge, understanding and most of all, wisdom.

Teach me, O LORD, the way of your statutes, and I will observe it to the end.

Give me understanding, that I may keep your law and observe it with my whole heart.

Lead me in the path of your commandments, for I delight in it.

Turn my heart to your decrees, and not to selfish gain.

Turn my eyes from looking at vanities; give me life in your ways.

Confirm to your servant your promise, which is for those who fear you.

Turn away the disgrace that I dread, for your ordinances are good.

See, I have longed for your precepts; in your righteousness give me life.

Standard of living

John 10:1-18

           There are many standards for living. The world offers so many varieties and the secular world tries desperately to convince you that theirs is correct, separating you from your money at the same time. Still there are others that focus more on God for their rule of life. Even in the spiritual realm there are many varieties. Oddly, some of them also seem to focus on parting you from your money while offering little evidence that the "tithe" or 'offering' is used in any way to promote Gods works of love and mercy. There are still other religions that focus more on a defined and rigid path to life as a means of salvation.  The rules and rubrics as I say, the dogmas and directives.  There is also an entirely more spiritual path to enlightenment. This path is usually typified by religions like Buddhism, Zen and forms of personal enlightenment and elevation.

        I would argue that Jesus is of this last type.  I would half jokingly steer you towards a comical yet enlightening book entitled The Gospel According to Biff. This would an amusing diversion from the serious aspects of which I write. In all seriousness though, Jesus seemed to be more spiritual than anyone. He railed against the rules and rubrics, moneychangers in the Temple and he often sought out solitude and personal reflection in quite places like the desert, the mountain tops and out at sea to commune with the Creator God or Father.

        As the Shepherd of the flock he tries to lead us through the gate. Any other way will lead to trouble, any other route is not true. But how is that gate defined? What rule or measure does Jesus provide for us? Certainly it is the two great commandments. Aside from that Jesus' life is an example of what the gate is or how to proceed honestly through the gate.  Jesus' life was a total embracing of two things. He embraced his humanity and an embracing of his divinity. Both were integral to who Jesus is.
       So too for us then, we must embrace our humanity. That sounds great but what does it mean in practical terms. This last question is where many people fall prey to a pattern of rules and practices which they have been convinced is the enlightened path to reach their goal. In truth, the practicality of it as individual as each one of us. We must embrace who we are as a person. Whatever our talents are and what God made us as individuals. That is how Jesus lived, a total embracing of self in all that it entailed. For us it means finding out everything about who we are. Talents, gayness, straightness, in between, neither. Perhaps even one at one time in life and transitioning to another. Your artistic side? Explore that. The fact that we are meant to love our creator and one another and return to our Creator? Explore and revel in that. Head to the hillside, the desert and seek God. Seek God in everything and everyone. That is an integral part of who we are. Explore it all! That is your personal gate.

      The gate is as individual as each of us is made but the path is shown to us in the life of Jesus Christ. When Jesus says that he has other sheep that do not belong to this fold, I believe he references other peoples and other paths that God has revealed. These paths are as valid as any other but Jesus typifies the journey. Jesus would have been a great Buddhist. Jesus could be the world's best Zen master.

      The standard of living is unique as God's created world, as individual as you and me, celebrated by God, lived by Jesus.

‘Very truly, I tell you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold by the gate but climbs in by another way is a thief and a bandit. The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. They will not follow a stranger, but they will run from him because they do not know the voice of strangers.’ Jesus used this figure of speech with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them.

So again Jesus said to them, ‘Very truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. All who came before me are thieves and bandits; but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.

‘I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand, who is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs away—and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. The hired hand runs away because a hired hand does not care for the sheep. I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father. And I lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd. For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life in order to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it up again. I have received this command from my Father.’

Blind leaders and faithful servants

John 9:18-41

          All of my life I was drawn close to God. You might think it was a form of indoctrination. I am sure some of it was. After 20 ears of Catholic education at the hands of nuns, Priests and brothers, I firmly believed  ( and experienced ) the love of God in my life. From the ever so simple, "Jesus loves me, this I know" to the moments in the desert and the highs of the mountaintops, I know how much God loves me.  It was a sad moment then that when I realized I was gay and decided to be honest and up front about it, that I could not fathom the Churches de-facto stance that God no longer loved me and that being exactly who I am  was wrong (that is "intrinsicallly disordered") . It was too late though, I already knew God loved me just as he (or she) created me. All that love they gave so freely and all the mantras about God is love came around to bite them in the ass. I was gay and I know that God loves me just as I am - no matter what they say or have postulated.

            I have mentioned for several days the story of Daniel Ashley Pierce whose (so called) Christian family disowned and beat him for coming out gay. Undoubtedly raised as a Christian from day one, he (like myself) was able to integrate the fact of being gay and loved by God. His actions show it. This week he announce he wanted the monies donated to him to go to an LGBT charity called Lost N'Found. This organization helps those in similar situations as Daniel. It seems wholly appropriate and a truly Christian action to offer to help more than just himself. Daniel is spreading the love in his heart as a true Christian does. He did not embrace the hate or answer in kind when faced with his pseudo Christian family.  Once Daniel integrated a) I am gay and b) I am loved by God, everything was possible. It was too late to tell Daniel he was a sinner. Daniel knows in his heart he is loved, cherished by God and inherently good.

           If they will know we are Christians by how we act, countless televangelists from Pat Robertson to Pastor Robert Gallatry to any number of the NOM cult will all be marked by God as grand hypocrites and sinners. Those that love and seek love in the word of God will be believers and faithful servants.

           You cannot see the positive actions of God and contort it into acts of the devil. The blind man from today's passage knew this and the religious elite could not see it at all. The irony of their blindness is comical and is a true message to all of us. 

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 worshipped him. Jesus said, ‘I came into this world for judgement 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.

What is the word?

John 8:31-32

         What a short snippet of Scripture. Sort of a 'can you name this tune' of Scripture. None the less, the shortness does not equate with a less valid message or one that can't teach us about our lives and the world today.

        I have spoken before ( most notably, 8-30-14, The Original Free Radical ) of how we behave as Christians. How Jesus acted seems at least equally important as what he actually said. I look at what Jesus said, he did not speak out one way or another about homosexuality. He did however give implicit approval by way of the Roman Centurion and his "dear slave".  One thing Jesus actually did speak about was the sanctity of marriage. He was not in favor of divorce. It seem hysterical to me then that the thrice divorced AG of Florida is the one promoting restrictions on valid loving committed relationships in her state. Hypocrisy abounds! You just have to laugh (or cry).

         One of the few clear cut and crystal clear messages that Jesus did give us was the two great commandments.  Are these the words Jesus is referring to in today's passage?  the Jews already had at their disposal all the writing of the prophets, all of the Hebrew Scriptures. What "word", if I can be so bold as to pick a single word out of Scripture, is Jesus referring to? But of course He is the Word.

        Of all the laws and all of the musing and prognostications of the prophets, Jesus claimed the two great commandments summed up everything.  It's not so nice and tidy for those who want all those rules and rubrics, Canon Laws and codifications.  But Jesus says he is the Way. His words. We also give great credence to the way Jesus lived, but it is those two great commandments uttered by him that give discipleship and salvation. 

Then Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, ‘If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.’