Gospel text for 4th Sunday in Advent, 21 December 2015

Luke 1:26-38        In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin's name was Mary. And he came to her and said, "Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you." But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. The angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end." Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I am a virgin?" The angel said to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called Son of God. And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren. For nothing will be impossible with God." Then Mary said, "Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word." Then the angel departed from her.

Reflection       “For nothing will be imposssible with God.” I believe the most important word in this sentence is “with.” With God. I know from time to time I “hear” this sentence as, “Nothing will be impossible FOR God.” In so doing I neatly cut myself out of the equation. Shirk any personal responsibility. It (whatever “it” is) is up to God. I play no part in “it.” But that is not what the writer of Luke’s text wrote. 

In concert with, in dwelling with, imbued with, sitting with, endowed with, acquainted with, impregnated with, this mere preposition makes all the difference because it locates us in relationshiip “with” God. “With” may also be a statement that characterizes humanity; for people with God all things are possible. I believe it is to all of the above that Mary consented when she proclaimed, “Here I am… let it be with me according to your word.” 

And there “it” is again. What is “it?” It is a simple pronoun referring to a non-gender specific person or concept previously mentioned, about to be mentioned or present in the immediate context.* With her few words in response to the Angel of God Mary consents to every manner of being in relationship with God; Mary claims her relationship by God and with God and in God from before beginningless time, eternally in the present moment. 

Oh how I long to do the same. To put down my fears and unequivocally proclaim, “Here I am God… Let it be with me according to your word.” And I gulp knowing that giving myself unequivocally to God is giving myself over to the cloud of unknowing yet,  it is giving myself to a grandeur so incomprehensible it can only be called God. 

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*http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/it?s=t

Gospel text for 2nd Advent - Sunday, 7 December 2014

Mark 1:1-8

The beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. As it is written in the prophet Isaiah,  "See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way; the voice of one crying out in the wilderness: `Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight,'"

John the baptizer appeared in the wilderness, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. And people from the whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem were going out to him, and were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. Now John was clothed with camel's hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. He proclaimed, "The one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the thong of his sandals. I have baptized you with water; but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

Reflection    What does this have to say to us, many of whom were baptized as infants? Isn’t baptism a done deal? Not according to John. “This is the beginnning of the good news, ” news that always we begin again. There is no shortage of opportunities for each of us to pause, listen to the words of the prophet, examine our lives for vestigages of sin asking; To what am I clinging for my safety and security? How do I use alcohol, drugs, food, shopping, sex, work, video games, people or the internet for comfort or esteem? What means do I employ to acquire and exert power and control? What if I found my safety, security, affection, esteem, power and control in relationship with God instead?

Now let me be crystal clear. I am not suggesting that the things of earth or creation are evil. That would be a heresy.  It is our attachment to things as sources of that which is of God that is sin. Just another way of saying, we have a tendency to turn things into idols - golden calves, golden parachutes.  When we decide to repent, to change our minds, to let go of our idols, our habits, attachments and addictions, we are ready for something new. This is how we prepare the way for the one who is and is to come. This is our work for the Advent season; preparing the way for the Christ to be born again in each of us. 

Surely preparing the way for something new is as natural as new families making countless trips to Babies R Us as they prepare for the coming of a child ? Aunties buy cribs and friends cuddly blankets. Parents search the web for advice, install baby monitors and socket guards. With nothing but the best of intentions boatloads of things are gathered to welcome the child into a world of safety, security, affection, esteem, power and control. This is as it should be - and - immediately the writer of Mark’s gospel invites us to put that child in God’s hands, drenched in the water of baptism to die to a life constrained by things and rise into a life of safety, security, affection, esteem, power and control born in the hands of God. We prepare the way to give our children away to God in baptism.

At the other end of the spectrum linger those of us in later seasons of life faced with the burden of scores of physical stuff, habitual stuff,  stuff we no longer have the energy to sustain. Mountains of possessions possess us. Decades of habitual behaviors and reactions stand between us and freedom like barbed wire prision walls. Are we not like the people of the Judean countryside and Jerusalem compelled by a sense of desperation and desire for something more than old stuff and the empty promises of city, state, empire? How many of us long to walk into the wilderness, throw all the things that possess us into the Jordan river, watch them sink to the watery depths and experience the lightness of being born anew in the hands of God? “This is the beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God….” Do you dare to prepare the way of the Lord?   

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Gospel text for Sunday 30 November 2014

Mark 13:24-37        Jesus said to his disciples, "In those days, after that suffering,the sun will be darkened,and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will be falling from heaven,and the powers in the heavens will be shaken. Then they will see `the Son of Man coming in clouds' with great power and glory. Then he will send out the angels, and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven.

"From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near. So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that he is near, at the very gates. Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.

"But about that day or hour no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Beware, keep alert; for you do not know when the time will come. It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his slaves in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to be on the watch. Therefore, keep awake-- for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or at dawn, or else he may find you asleep when he comes suddenly. And what I say to you I say to all: Keep awake.”

Reflection      To wait and watch and work, that is the way of God’s kingdom, already not yet. The kingdom of God is here, now present in every moment. The thing is it is a radical perspective that turns our ideas about heaven and earth unside down and inside out…. stars falling, heavens shaking. 

What we are waiting for is already here but we do not see, so Jesus instructs us, “Keep alert. Keep awake.”  But what does that mean? Open the eyes of our hearts, the place from which we “see” with unconditioned consciousness. WIth the eyes of our hearts we “see” the impermanance of all created things (yes, even stars like our sun fall). As Jesus says, “The sun will be darkened and the moon will not give its light…” THEN we will “see” the Son of Man, God with us. We must see beyond the impermanant things to perceive the unborn, undying eternal Presence of God with us. 

For as long as our eyes are afixed to the conditions of life; the turning of seasons, the rise and fall of fortune, the ebb and flow of suffering, our vision is obscured. But, our unconditioned consciousness cuts to the core like a knife piercing flesh or a lightening bolt penetrating the earth. Our unconditioned consciousness is the unborn, undying participation in Divine Presence that resides at the depth of our own being. It is the state of our being within which our waiting and watching and working converge. In us, with us and of us, God’s kingdom is come, already not yet. Keep awake! 

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Gospel text for Sunday 23 November 2014

Matthew 25:31-46         Jesus said, "When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left. Then the king will say to those at his right hand, `Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.' Then the righteous will answer him, `Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?' And the king will answer them, `Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.' Then he will say to those at his left hand, `You that are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.' Then they also will answer, `Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not take care of you?' Then he will answer them, `Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.' And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

Reflection       From the beginning Matthew’s gospel proclaims, God is with us, among us. Which begs the question, “How do we experience God with us?” Jesus minces no words in his parable. We experience God with us when we recognize our neighbors need and respond. 

Two things are required to experience God, recognition and response. We recognize hunger and we feed, we recognize thirst and we give drink, we recognize the stranger and welcome them, we recognize the naked and give them clothes, we recognize the sick and give them comfort, we recognize the imprisioned and give them companionship. As we offer blessing to our neighbors in need we experience God’s blessing, God with us. 

Here is the twist. We need the people who need us more than they need us. We need the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the naked, the sick and the imprisioned because without them we do not have the opportunity to recognize their need and respond with blessing. Without people who need us we miss our opportunity to be counted among the God's sheep. Without the opportunity to serve the least among us we miss out on God’s blessing, we lose our place in the kingdom of God, we do not experience God with us. 

It is interesting, nowhere in Jesus’ teaching do we hear, “Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you…” for you crossed all your tees, dotted all your eyes, followed all the rules. Nowhere do we hear Jesus say, Blessed are you who are wildly successful, have prepared a royal festival, rich with gold and incense and elaborate prayers to welcome kings and priests and holy people. Instead we hear, blessed are you who are moved to extend God’s Spirit of compassion to those in need. For in tending to your relationship with those in need you are indeed tending to your relationship with God.

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Gospel text for Sunday 16 November 2014

Matthew 25:14-30        Jesus said, "For it is as if a man, going on a journey, summoned his slaves and entrusted his property to them; to one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. The one who had received the five talents went off at once and traded with them, and made five more talents. In the same way, the one who had the two talents made two more talents. But the one who had received the one talent went off and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master's money. After a long time the master of those slaves came and settled accounts with them. Then the one who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five more talents, saying, `Master, you handed over to me five talents; see, I have made five more talents.' His master said to him, `Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.' And the one with the two talents also came forward, saying, `Master, you handed over to me two talents; see, I have made two more talents.' His master said to him, `Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.' Then the one who had received the one talent also came forward, saying, `Master, I knew that you were a harsh man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter seed; so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.' But his master replied, `You wicked and lazy slave! You knew, did you, that I reap where I did not sow, and gather where I did not scatter? Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have received what was my own with interest. So take the talent from him, and give it to the one with the ten talents. For to all those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away. As for this worthless slave, throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' “

Reflection       The slave who received five talents, went off, invested all of them and received five more. What an enormous leap of faith. What if he lost the five talents?  What would his master do to him? Still, he risked everything, acted in faith and put all that he was given to work for his Master. And the Master was pleased. By contrast, the slave who received one talent was afraid, by clinging to the little he had he ended up with nothing. There it is, the bottom line. fear is the opposite of faith. Fear contracts, cuts us off from joy, from God’s kingdom on earth. Fear clearly is not the response desired by the master. (God)

Living as we do in God’s economy, like the slaves we are stewards of all that is given to us and we are expected to respond to God’s generosity with faith, not fear. As God’s stewards we are invited to take the risk and deepen our faith by  giving more than is comfortable in faithful response to God’s generosity. Whether it is a little or a lot, every penny that we have is gift. And so we turn to God and pray, “Lord, how are you inviting me to respond to your generosity in my life?” 

The slave in Matthew’s parable who invested everything he was given ended up with more than twice as much as he started. This is the economy of gift. This is the economy of the Church. This is God’s economy. It’s bottom line is not balance sheets and budgets. The mechanism of exchange is not quid pro quo, it is faith. Our faith is that God who has given us the capacity to live and breathe and experience our being will continue to gift us with all that we have, all that we are, and all that we need. So let's leap - in faith. 

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Gospel text for Sunday 9 November 2014

**

Matthew 25:1-13      Jesus said, "Then the kingdom of heaven will be like this. Ten bridesmaids took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. When the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them; but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. As the bridegroom was delayed, all of them became drowsy and slept. But at midnight there was a shout, `Look! Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.' Then all those bridesmaids got up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish said to the wise, `Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.' But the wise replied, `No! there will not be enough for you and for us; you had better go to the dealers and buy some for yourselves.' And while they went to buy it, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went with him into the wedding banquet; and the door was shut. Later the other bridesmaids came also, saying, `Lord, lord, open to us.' But he replied, `Truly I tell you, I do not know you.' Keep awake therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.”

Reflection     I believe we have been lured into settling for way to little. We are not ‘only human.’ We are creatures made in the image of God intended to reveal God’s presence on earth. In Jesus’ parable about the kingdom of heaven, all of us are the bridesmaids. Being created in the image of God we are intended to be in loving relationship with God, the bridegroom. The question is, do we desire and expect to experience God with us? Are we wise or foolish bridesmaids?

The minds of the foolish bridesmaids were dark. Their lack of oil for their lamps represents their lack of awareness that God is with them even when they cannot see or experience God present. In other words, the foolish bridesmaids failed to develop their spiritual awareness or interior light. Consequently they were living in a state of interior darkness or lack of awareness that God, the bridegroom, is with them from the beginning and for all time.

By contrast, the minds of the wise bridesmaids are illumined, like lamps with ample oil. They have done the work to develop their consciousness. They desire and expect to experience the bridegroom, God with them. Consequently, they experience interior light, which is to say, even when they cannot see or viscereally experience God’s presence they know God is with them from the beginning for all time. As such they live in the kingdom of heaven on earth.

What is the kingdom of heaven? The kingdom of heaven is hiding in plain sight. It is not something outside ourselves that we can find or purchase. It is not delayed payment for a life of obedience. The kingdom of heaven is the light that shines from the center of each one of us. As we turn around and direct our attention inward the light of our self awareness and our God awareness grow. The apostle Paul described it this way,  “It is no longer I who live but Christ who lives in me.” Gal 2.20) The bridegroom comes and takes us into the wedding banquet. This is the mystical union or marriage; the realization that our interior light, the essence of our true self, is not other than God’s light. We experience the light of new relationship with God given by Jesus to all of us who choose to believe. 

** Alexander Grey image  Praying

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Gospel text for Sunday 2 November 2014

Matthew 5:1-12       When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:

"Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

"Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

"Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

"Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.

"Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.

"Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

"Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Reflection       Jesus begins his first sermon with “Blessed are the poor in spirit.” It has taken me years to arrive at what I believe Jesus means when he refers to the poor in spirit. I believe the poor in spirit are those of us who know that we are in need of blessing. Who among us does not need blessing? Yet, who among us wants to leap up, wave our arms and shout, “Here is am, poor in spirit?” Frankly, I have never heard anyone say those words, including myself. However, there are other ways to say it.

A week ago Saturday at Riverfront park during our Community Blessing of the Animals I heard teenages say, “We need blessing”  Please picture this. A bevy of apostles with sunglasses, visors, a wheelchair, floppy hats milling about with Joshua the donkey and Hooligan the horse weaving in and out among unsuspecting neighbors enjoying a Saturday morning stroll, some with and some without four legged friends. Also in this picture are three collared clerics hawking  blessings, waving wands of rosemary and sprinkling water on anything that moved. The extra holy water and bowls were home on a picnic table under the Bighorn Ramada. All the while an interesting thing was happening at the next door table. During the course of an hour a bevy of ten or twelve high school students gradually collected; watching and listening from a near distance. We could almost touch their curiosity.

When I asked them if it would be alright if Deacon Jon blessed them, their assent was immediate and unanimous, “Ah yes, we need blessings. He needs lots of them.  She does. So does he. I sure do….” a delightful repartee.  Every single one of them bowed their head to receive their blessing. A few even moved around for seconds.  “Blessed are the poor in spirit,” for they know that they need blessing. 

What is the take away from that experience? We are people of blessing and it is time for us to get our of our church building and deliver blessings to all the people. Who among us does not need blessing? And, who among us is not called to live in imitation of Jesus, seeing with the eyes of our hearts and being purveryors of blessing for all of humanity?

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