Luke 21:5-19 When some were speaking about the temple, how it was adorned with beautiful stones and gifts dedicated to God, Jesus said, "As for these things that you see, the days will come when not one stone will be left upon another; all will be thrown down."
They asked him, "Teacher, when will this be, and what will be the sign that this is about to take place?" And he said, "Beware that you are not led astray; for many will come in my name and say, `I am he!' and, `The time is near!' Do not go after them.
"When you hear of wars and insurrections, do not be terrified; for these things must take place first, but the end will not follow immediately." Then he said to them, "Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will be great earthquakes, and in various places famines and plagues; and there will be dreadful portents and great signs from heaven.
"But before all this occurs, they will arrest you and persecute you; they will hand you over to synagogues and prisons, and you will be brought before kings and governors because of my name. This will give you an opportunity to testify. So make up your minds not to prepare your defense in advance; for I will give you words and a wisdom that none of your opponents will be able to withstand or contradict. You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers, by relatives and friends; and they will put some of you to death. You will be hated by all because of my name. But not a hair of your head will perish. By your endurance you will gain your souls.”
Reflection The illuminating words of the theoretical physicist Carlo Rovelli describe “a colorful and amazing world where universes explode, space collapses into bottomless holes, time sags and slows near a planet and the unbounded extensions of interstellar space ripple and sway like the surface of the sea….all of this..is not a tale told by an idiot in a fit of lunacy or a hallucination… (Rovelli asserts) it is a glimpse of reality.” (Seven Brief Lessons in Physics, p11) In Jesus' words, " The days will come when not one stone (of the temple) will be left upon another; all will be thrown down." All created things change, change, even dramatically.
When we take Rovelli’s description and apply it to the planet on which we plant our feet, we step smack into Jesus’ apocalyptic assertions; “there will be wars and insurrections, earthquakes, famines and plagues… you will be arrested and persecuted and betrayed even by your relatives and friends." Yes, all created things change and change dramatically. But do not worry or look for a fortuneteller. "Do not bother preparing a defense in advance," counsels Jesus, “I will give you your words and your wisdom that none of your opponents will be able to contradict. “
Please consider this apocalyptic moment during which I felt as if I was being brought to trial before a king and his governors. The 24 governors were actually 23 white collared Episcopal priests, one lay person (the only other female present) and the singular stand in for a king, a purple shirted Episcopal bishop. This illustrious body was the Commission on Ministry, fondly referred to as the COM. The meeting with the COM followed a year of discernment with members of my parish before they recommended to the rector (chief priest of my parish) that I be an aspirant for Holy Orders. After the rector interviewed me he sent me to the bishop for an initial screening and to declare my intent. Discernment continued with the parish as I was nominated and applied for postulancy, which hinged not only on the results of continued discernment, completing mountains of forms and composing countless essays but also on an executive medical evaluation, financial review, criminal background check and the most extensive psychiatric evaluation known to humankind. Having navigated this sea of shifting hoops I finally landed in an upstairs conference room to be interviewed by the bishop and 24 COM members.
And so I prayed. “OK God, remember, this is your idea and you promised to give me words and wisdom because I have none. If I am really called to the priesthood, which is probably a very bad idea, then give me the words because I am terrified and I cannot do this.”
Following the briefest of introductions and no small talk, the river of questions flowed. I listened to each COM question, paused, closed my eyes, waited for a response, then spoke. It seemed to be going alright until Rev. Daniel, who was sitting three seats to my right, leaned back in his chair, crossed his arms and said, “Debra, tell us, what is your vision for the Church?” I think my gulp was audible as I choked out, “Church. Do you mean capital C Church?” “Yes.”
Again I paused, closed my eyes, and there was nothing. Not a single thought or word. I wondered how long I could sit there with my eyes closed before someone asked me to leave. And when I figured my time expired and my heart like a volcano threatened to erupt, I opened my eyes and words came pouring from my mouth. There were boatloads of words. I can recall none. When the words stopped, the room was so silent I was afraid to breath. I had no idea what was happening. Thankfully the bishop broke the pall saying, “Thank you Debra, you may leave.” As quickly as possible I exited. Before I got to the stairs to descend into what I assumed was my grand failure the bishop called to me from behind. “Debra, wait. You knocked the ball out of the park. Congratulations.” I was stunned and speechless.
“I will give you your words and your wisdom … for nothing will be impossible with God.”
All that to say, when challenge and change, even seemingly apocalyptic change is upon us, do not panic. When unwelcome events are exacerbated by wars and rumors of war, insurrections and betrayals, do not panic. Because, when we choose to put our faith in the one and only thing that is unchanging; the unborn, undying, eternally all that is that we call God , “Not a hair on (our) heads will perish. By (our) endurance we will gain (our) souls.”
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