What must I do to inherit eternal life - It's Stewardship Season!

"As Jesus was setting out on a journey a man ran up to him and knelt before him and asked…  Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?"   Mk 10:17

Three years ago I completed my first pilgrimage on the Camino de Santiago.  There is a tradition on the Camino that on the last hill, just before Santiago comes into view, the Pilgrims run up the hill in order to be the first in their group to see the city and its cathedral spire.  I was walking with a group of three or four women.  Having just completed a 500 mile trek the thought of running up anything gave all of us pause.  The angst was compounded by the fact that no one knew just exactly which hill was the last hill. 

On the last day, immediately after a pretty hefty lunch, we came to what we believed was the last hill.  And so I began to run, slowly for sure, up the hill.  Lots of comments erupted from other pilgrims.   What the heck is she doing?  They called out encouragement - sprinkled with laughter from the bottom.  I got to the top, raised my arms and shouted Santiago!!  Slowly my friends made it to the top to join me.  What did they say?  Not “Wow great run!!”  But….. They reminded me the first shall be last and the last shall be first.  Popped my bubble pretty quickly.  The Camino de Santiago is not about winning and humility is doled out in daily doses.

It is said that whoever walks the Camino will find answers to their questions.  The problem for many is that we go out to walk the Camino without knowing what our question is?  And if we do have a question in mind we often go into the pilgrimage with a pre-conceived notion of what the answer will be. 

As I set out from St Jean Pied de Port I had no clear notion of what answers I might find or what questions I should ask.  I definitely had a pre-conceived notion of what I should find on my Camino.  I was out to discern how my life might play out in the coming years as I got older and began to contemplate such weighty matters as being a grandmother, maintaining my health so that retirement years would be fruitful, how best to ensure that I would be able to care for myself and not be a burden on my children, perhaps trying to prove that I was physically capable of doing the trek at all….  Well no such profound insight came to me on that journey.  In fact I had a great deal of trouble getting myself to even consider such weighty matters as I walked.  Instead I found myself obsessed with sunflowers, the labels on cans, toenails, bathtubs, internet access, and with learning the Spanish word for fig – which is higo by the way.

What I came to understand, although a hazy awareness even now, is that pilgrimage is not about heading out with a question and finding an answer.  Pilgrimage is about being present to that particular moment in time and place and about perceiving the nature of God through the relationships that are honed on the way.  In my quest to prove my physical stamina, to be the first to the top of the hill, or to be the most prepared for any situation, I often could not see the forest for the trees so to speak.  Other pilgrims occasionally admonished me…  “You are walking too fast – you will miss the signs along the Way”  It only takes one time of missing the signs and walking a couple of kilometers the wrong way to make one see the wisdom of that advice.  No matter how clear the signs are, no matter how numerous the signs are..  If you do not slow down enough to take notice, if you do not listen to the voices of others who have walked the road before, if you do not stop, look, listen and then follow - you will surely head off in the wrong direction.

In this story of the rich young man, Mark tells us that the first thing on Jesus’ mind is not to answer the question, but rather to simply be totally present to this pilgrim with profound love.   I think there is a sadness in Jesus’ voice when he realizes that all of those “things” that this man holds in high esteem – his wealth, his material possessions, his status in society – these are the things that are blocking his spirit entering into the Kingdom of God.

Arriving in Santiago all I had left was tears.  Tears of regret for the times I was immersed in my own self and missed God’s presence, tears of sadness that those times of quiet on the road were behind me, tears of fear that the road ahead might be too much to bear, tears of gratitude for that moment in time when I had nothing to do but to give my life to the journey.  I met many other pilgrims on the road from dozens of countries – some whose names I remember some whose names I never knew.  But each encounter revealed something of God’s Kingdom, each encounter enriched my soul in ways that I have yet to understand.  One does not have to travel around the world to experience that truth.

I want to invite you to go with me on a pilgrimage through prayer this fall.  It will be a pilgrimage to discover what it is that draws us close to God.  Draw a line down the middle of a page.  On one side write "Pushes God away" and on the other side write "Draws me close to God" Now think back over the past week.  Think about your activities, think about what you bought, think about what you did not do, think about your responses to people you met, to events, to yourself.  Were they angry or manipulative or were they responses marked by  compassion, care, respect, and love?  Think about how you used your gifts, your time, your possessions.  Mark these things down on one side or the other - on whichever side you feel they belong.  As this next week goes by do some mental assessment of the value of these things in God's time.  How do these things draw you closer to God's loving embrace or how do they push you farther and farther away?

It’s stewardship time at St Patrick’s - the time when each of us is asked to take a look at how we support the ministry of our faith community.  As you consider your pledge to St Patrick’s please consider all of the ways God enters into your life through the life of our parish and then prayerfully decide how you might make a sacrificial commitment to support the work of your church.  Jesus is telling us that we need to find what it is in us that's a stumbling block--a detriment--to our living as children of God, and then to pray about it, to turn to God for the strength to face whatever that thing might be, and then with God's help to do something about it.  We need to do this as individuals, and we need to do this as a faith community.  It takes prayer, honesty, and a serious decision to want to live as a people of God. 

But be forewarned - considering the implications of our actions in this way might really turn our lives upside down.  Jesus is calling us to get rid of the stumbling blocks that infect our lives.  No doubt about that!  And he lets us know that it's not easy to get rid of them, and that deciding to try sometimes leads to the Cross.  But he also promises us that if we follow Him, the reward is many times greater than what we've been clinging to.  And - this is the real kicker - Jesus promises us that God will be the power behind us in this journey. 

Remembering 9/11

Bronze of Mary Magdeline at the Norbertine House

I am not a big fan of television, but there is one show, no longer on TV, that I really liked watching called West Wing.  It centered around the White House and the presidency of a character named Jed Bartlett, who, surrounded by his bright, articulate and committed West Wing staff struggled to steer a course between what is politically right—or I should say, politically expedient, and what is—reflective of his core beliefs.

One sequence I remember dealt with the difficult issue of capital punishment.  Jed Bartlett the man is opposed to the death penalty.  But Jed Bartlett has been elected by a country in which 70% of the people support the death penalty.  It falls to Jed to decide whether or not to commute his sentence.  It is an agonizing decision -one that he had not wanted to make, a cup from which he did not want to drink.  As the program progresses, he asks various aides, advisers and friends what they think of capital punishment.  Toby, who is Jewish, tells him that capital punishment is wrong.  Another aide, a Quaker, tells him capital punishment is wrong.  His Roman Catholic faith tells him that capital punishment is wrong.  Still he wrestles with his obligation to uphold the will of the people.  Should he follow his conscience—or uphold the decision of the Court.  In the end, he decides to allow the legal system to proceed, and the young man is executed. 

After that decision is made he meets with his priest who asks him if he prays.  “Constantly,” the President replied, “and I don’t get many answers.  I’m getting pretty tired of it.” Thoughtfully the priest tells him the story about a man who lived in a town where a hurricane was due.  Despite multiple attempts at rescue the man refused help saying that God would protect him, but in the end he drowned.  Marching up to the gates of Heaven, he demanded to see God.  “I had faith,” he cried, “I prayed, I believed you would save me from the flood.” God looked at him sadly.  “I sent you a radio message.  I sent you two guys in a rowboat.  I sent you helicopter.  What are you doing here?”

The priest looked at the President, sitting very quietly.  “God sent you a Rabbi.  God sent you a Quaker.  God sent you a priest.  What are you doing here?” The president looked down at his hands.  The priest asked, “would you like me to hear your confession?” The program ended with the President kneeling beside his priest’s chair, hearing him pour out his pain and suffering for the cup that had not passed from him.

Tuesday is the 17th anniversary of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.  It is one of those events that has left so great an impression on the fabric of society that life - as it was known before - no longer exists.  In those 17 years since, we have seen hurricanes, tsunamis, wars, more bombings and the reactionary rise of fascism.  Trump is not the cause, President Obama said yesterday, he is the symptom.  I agree, we have been headed down this path at a pace that has accelerated to light speed in the years since 9/11.  We have seen violence on the streets, and drug and gang wars.    We have seen the church –torn apart by its own malfeasance and entitlement.  Torn apart by one exclusive group after another – by differing factions who think that they know the mind of God and who choose anger, separation, and hostile rhetoric over restoration and reconciliation.  We have seen our country and others respond to violence with more violence.  We have seen our elected public officials, including our president, flaunt power and wealth and turn public oratory into a mayhem of bullying and boasting at the expense of the most vulnerable in our society.  The people who have been hurt the most are those who were simply in the way – the weak, the elderly, the children, the women, people of color, people of differing sexuality, or the poor.  So here’s my question.  Given that we live in a world where such tragedies happen what kind of a response does God expect from us?  If violence changes the life we know, what does our scripture, tradition, and reason tell us our response is to be?

It’s not my favorite piece of Hebrew scripture but this coming Sunday we will hear from the book of Proverbs.

"A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches,
and favour is better than silver or gold.

The rich and the poor have this in common:
the Lord is the maker of them all.

Whoever sows injustice will reap calamity,
and the rod of anger will fail.

Those who are generous are blessed,
for they share their bread with the poor.

Do not rob the poor because they are poor,
or crush the afflicted at the gate;

for the Lord pleads their cause
and despoils of life those who despoil them."

Proverbs 22:1-2, 8-9, 22-23

Sometimes the tragedies that beset us are outside of our understanding or ability to intercede, but too many times they are of our own making - through ignorance, greed, or the desire for power over one another.  We who desire Love so much - constantly alienate ourselves from it.  So what is it that we are left with?  How do we, who live in the constant murkiness of real life, respond authentically to the persistent itch in our souls that is our conscience - our desire for God’s closeness?  How do we reconcile our faith with life’s realities?   Do we turn our backs on the suffering or do we engage?

Anger, vengefulness, simmering hatred and violence are products of fear - not faith and the only possible outcome is more anger and violence.  I wish that I could tell you that I have all the answers.  Some pastors seem to believe that they do.  Some politicians believe that they do also.  But I just do not believe that any action or inaction that we might take will reconcile this world of ours.  Only God can do that – and yet I also know that we are part of that healing process.  Our faithful turning back to God does make a difference.  This conundrum of faith and works in response to the realities of life that we face every day is at the core of the mystery of the Gospel that I preach each week.  Our hurting world will not be totally healed by our own actions.  No bombs, or missiles, or security measures, or miracle drug, or laws can protect us from the ravages of life.  But it is our fear, our lack of faith - that causes us to move about blindly, to turn our backs on the weak and helpless, to strike out at those we perceive to be our enemy and causing pain to those who are innocent in the wake of our action.  Whether we are acting on the global stage or in our own backyard, the result is the same. 

But there is another way.  It is the path of reconciliation and restoration and redemption in response to God’s pleas for us to turn back.  It is the path of welcoming all comers into our midst and ministering to their needs in the same manner as we minister to our own without regard to the color of their skin or their faith, or their age, or their sexuality.  It is the path of forgiveness and compassion and it is the hardest request that God makes of us. 

The reality of our lives is the same as the reality of the fictional president on West Wing.  We are never quite sure whether we have done the right thing or not.  But we keep trying, we keep praying, we keep turning and turning back to God who loves us, who cares for us, who calls us, and who walks with us through all of the 9/11s of our lives.  Jesus did not promise us a tragedy free life – no matter how "right" we might be.  What Jesus told us is that we would never be alone. 

Slave labor???

Look what popped out of the bottom of the can!

A letter to my representatives in Congress and in the Mississippi State Legislature in response to the nationwide inmate labor strike now underway and to reports on CNN that inmates are fighting fires in CA for a dollar an hour with no possibility of receiving work in the field after their release due to restrictions for certification with regard to criminal records. (https://www.cnbc.com/2018/08/14/california-is-paying-inmates-1-an-hour-to-fight-wildfires.html)

August 25, 2018

Dear Sir/Madam:

What is the purpose of incarceration?  Is it to provide an avenue for vengeance for those who are injured in some way?  Is it to separate criminals from the general population?  Is it to provide punishment for acts of criminality?  Or is it to improve the safety and prosperity of our society?

I vote for the latter and I would like to offer my opinion on how that might be better accomplished within our criminal justice system…  Foundationally we should base our justice system on restorative justice rather than retributive justice.  Most criminals have the capacity to learn, grow, rehabilitate and to become productive citizens. (http://tedtalkspsychology.com/the-neuroscience-of-restorative-justice-with-daniel-reisel/)  Inmates who are released with basic financial resources and a means to support themselves vocationally are less likely to become repeat offenders.   I believe that our society will be made safer by reducing the number of repeat offenders and my hypothesis is supported by research.  “Highly rigorous studies of educational and vocational programs have found lower recidivism rates for program participants and positive returns on investment.”  And furthermore education and vocational training is cost effective to me the tax payer.  “Prison-based vocational training programs provided an average of $5.76 in taxpayer benefits for every $1 of cost.” (Two quotes taken from a Colorado study https://cdpsdocs.state.co.us/ccjj/Resources/Ref/WhatWorks2008.pdf) 

I want my elected representatives to support justice programs that will:

• Encourage inmates to learn a trade and pay them fairly for a job well done.  (Mississippi pays them nothing which is literally slavery:  https://www.prisonpolicy.org/blog/2017/04/10/wages/)
• End the practice of forcing inmates to purchase items such as tampons, deodorant and phone calls to family unless there is a means for them to make a salary that will support those basic necessities.  Rehabilitation will not be possible unless we treat our inmates with respect and dignity that is the right of all God’s creatures.
• Provide training for law enforcement and correctional officers in the ways to obviate the prevalence of minority detentions, arrests, and convictions.
• Provide immediate and sustained access for all detainees to both physical and mental healthcare and to substance abuse treatment.

Thank you,

Rev’d Jane Bearden

The ABCs of Worship with Chidlren

“Then Jesus took a child and had him stand in front of them.  He put his arms around the child and said: “Whoever welcomes in my name one of these children, welcomes me;  and whoever welcomes me, welcomes not only me, but also the One who sent me.”                                                                                                    Mark 9:36-37

“The ABC’s of Worship” were adapted from materials by St. Columba’s Episcopal Church
(Washington, DC) Adaptations and additional
material written by Tracey E. Herzer©2004

ARRIVE in time to use the restroom, get water, and find a good place to sit – a place where your child can really watch what is happening. When possible, let children sit near the front or on the aisle so they can see.  Don’t feel you must resign yourself to the back pews!

BRING quiet toys or books for young children and gradually increase the amount of time you ask them to pay attention. Children can usually be expected to participate in most of a 60-minute service
by 2nd or 3rd Grade. Remember it is important to actively participate in worship yourself. Children will see that what we do in church is important and will take their cues from you.

CREATE some family rituals about church.  Spend some time “playing church” at home, practicing periods of silence, singing the doxology, etc. Consider using the Lord’s Prayer at home before meals or bedtime.

DECIDE on a family signal to let children know when to settle down. Go over the service with your child or softly whisper hints about what happens next. Children like to be ready, so help them mark pages.

EXPRESS joy at having children here! During the Peace, welcome any children near you. Include them in conversation before or after the service and try to send an occasional smile their way. Children might not remember every word of a service, but they’ll retain the experience of being a valued part of a faith community!

FEEL FREE to leave the service at any time if your child is crying or restless… but also know
you can come back in at any time!  Taking a break in the back of the church is often a good alternative to leaving the service completely. Times that are particularly easy to move with a child might be during a hymn, during the Peace or when we stand to say the Nicene Creed.

GIVE your child a chance to explore the church with you after the service is over. Although there is a holy mystery surrounding the altar, familiarity with the physical setting may make your child more at ease. You can also ask a priest to give you a tour of the church.

"Off with their heads!!" Apologies to Lewis Carroll

Part of reredos in "the Baptistry" in Florence, Italy 

The Gospel lesson coming up for this Sunday is from Mark.  You might remember it…  Mark tells us that Herod was afraid of Jesus – in part because some folks thought he was John the Baptist come back from the dead.  That would definitely upset Herod because JtheB had called Herod out for taking is brother’s wife.  Herod in order to silence John had thrown him into prison and then, at the request of his neice and wife, had beheaded him.  Pretty grizzly way to die.  I am reminded of the images of the French Revolution and Marie Antoinette’s head rolling off into the basket below the guillotine.  Awful awful images that can turn my stomach and I suspect yours too.  I would much prefer not to have such a text of terror for the Sunday Gospel reading.  But here it is in all of its blood and gore. 

This story is John’s “passion narrative” and it underscores and heralds the passion narrative of Jesus.  John, like Jesus, was headed for this place of execution from the moment he accepted God’s call to him to be a prophet.  John like Jesus turned the common societal values and the standards upside down and called for a radical change in the way their followers lived their lives and in their relationship to God and to each other.   John rejected the clothing, the housing, the standard of living, the food – he rejected everything about the established ways of being a Jew in 1^st century Palestine and he called the people to a place of repentance, of simplicity, of renewed passion and vigor for God.  John was humble, contrite, honest, forthright, and faithful – all of the things that Herod was not.  John drew the multitudes to himself, a charismatic man who commanded awe and attention.  Herod Antipas was a man, appointed to rule not for his leadership skills, but for his birthright as one of the descendants of another equally notorious Herod. 

If I go much further here I’m gonna get preachy and I hope there are folks reading this who are not regular church goers.  So here’s my point….  We think that we Christians have moved on past these days of evil deeds.  But the reality is that human beings can be just as insipid today as they were in the 1^st Century. 

 Mark gives us the impression that Herod is a reluctant executioner.  Mark tells us that this ruler who was schooled in Hellenistic ways, not strictly following the Jewish code of Law but having been exposed to the teachings all of his life, liked to listen to John, Herod even seems to admire him and on some level I believe that he heard in John the prophetic words of a man of God.  But Herod was caught in between his faith and his folly – because Herod did not want to give up the pleasures of his desire for beautiful women, including his niece, and he did not want to raise the ire of his wife.  So Herod turned his back on what he knew to the right and just and did what was expedient – he did what would get him the worldly pleasures he desired and not rock the boat. 

Such temptation is the familiar bedfellow of each one of us.  How easy it is to turn our back on someone in need because they do not quite meet our expectation of what is socially acceptable.  Or how easy it is to withhold that charitable donation because we really need to get the roof replaced on our house.  Or how easy it is to pocket that $5 left on the counter by mistake, to lie to  friend, or to take one’s anger out on a child, because everyone else does it and the person I am hurting has no way to get back at me.  Or how easy it is to spend the weekend with that wonderful friend from the office because my spouse will not find out and what he or she does not know will not hurt them.  How easy it is to cheat on a test, or shoplift, or use drugs, or drive after just a few beers – because there is not really a victim of my sin – at least not one I can see at the moment.  How different are we really from Herod and how many John the Baptists have our white lies and harmless sins beheaded.  How many are hurt or injured by our giving in to our own avarice.  How many have turned away from Christ because we failed to be a faithful witness to God’s love in our words and actions. 

Today we are living in a society where cheating on your taxes, bullying people who are disabled or at risk, using foul language in public places, and perhaps the worst of all…. being silent in the face of injustice is the "norm" because we don’t want to rock the boat or put ourselves at risk.  At the march in New Orleans my daughter carried a sign that said “Silence is Violence”.  Indeed…  It is time to step outside our safety net and challenge our neighbor who sneers or jeers at compassion, kindness, hospitality, and generosity.  If we cannot then we might as well just dance with the Herodians, because we are just as complicit as they are. 

Body Shots

Those who know me know that I am an avid tennis player.  I have played tennis for 62 years.  I began with a wooden racquet with a broken string and three dead tennis balls.  Now I use titanium racquets with especially big sweet spots for aging players….  LOL   

Tennis (especially at Wimbledon which begins next week) is a polite sport.  It is full of rules and traditions designed to maintain order and decorum.  At least that is the ongoing myth.  In truth, tennis is a wildly competitive sport in which the players rush the net in order to intimidate and cut short an opponent.  One of the most difficult shots in doubles to defend against is a high volley driven into the opponents face or mid-section.  And it is – at least at the club level – rude and unsportsmanlike conduct. 

Make such a shot and you will most certainly turn and say.  “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to do that”  Bull….  Yes you did!!  I have done it, my opponent has done it.  The desire to win drives us to do things that under less stressful situations we would not think of doing.  But that does not make it right.

It seems to me that our country is in the midst of a hotly contested match right now.  Lines of conflict have been drawn and players on both sides are rushing the net in order to get the upper hand, to prove their point, to denigrate and dehumanize those who are not playing on their team.  And instead of the coach (aka president) encouraging good sportsmanship, fair play, and focusing on skill development – being the best you can be, - he mocks those who are disabled or weak, blames and shames anyone who tries to speak out in disagreement, and tries to intimidate and humiliate everyone he meets.  In other words one body shot after another deliberately and with malice.  The challenge for me and for you is to make the play that I think Jesus calls us to make….  to not return rage for rage - malice for malice.

The truth is that those who hit the courts with rage and malice rarely win.  Oh, they may take the first set, but if we remain calm, focused, and intent on hitting the ball one more time over the net we will very likely prevail.  At the very least we will walk off the court with our heads high knowing that we played a good game.  These players will be the ones who endure through the years, who will endear themselves to their partners and to their opponents, and who instill the desire in others to play a good and fair match.

Mahatma Ghandi said, ““When I despair, I remember that all through history the way of truth and love have always won. There have been tyrants and murderers, and for a time, they can seem invincible, but in the end, they always fall. Think of it--always.”

When I am down 0 games to 3, I always turn to my partner and say…  “we’ve got ‘em just where we want ‘em.  Let’s get this next game.” 

It has been a rough week for those of us in this country who are trying to uphold the dignity of every human being.  But it is not time for us to despair.  Keep playing with dignity, with love, and with faith in God because arrogance and greed will not prevail. 

“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven,
    and do not return there until they have watered the earth,
making it bring forth and sprout,
    giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,
¹¹ so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;
    it shall not return to me empty,
but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,
    and succeed in the thing for which I sent it.”  Is 55:10-11

Rough Seas

Sermon st St Patrick's June 24, 2018 - Rev'd Jane Bearden

Text is Mark 4: 35-41 

Work by James Seward

Last Wednesday in our midday Eucharist we used these same lessons for our text.  I usually do very little preparation for a reflection at a midday week service.  Instead I prefer to open up a conversation with those who are gathered and let the Spirit lead us into some understanding or observation.  This past Wednesday as the news from the US Mexico border grew direr, I opened with my sense of helplessness and bewilderment over the complexity, the extent, and the severity of the crisis.  There were nods of assent among the 5 or so folks gathered around the altar. 

Now it is not my intent to open a conversation that - given the state of our society today - would quickly dissolve into controversy.  But what I do want to do is talk about our Christian faith and how it speaks to the feelings and responses we are experiencing. 

A few years back I spent some time in Israel traveling back and forth into the West Bank.  I want to share with you a reflection that I wrote then.  The situation has not changed much there and in fact it has gotten worse not better.  But what is most disturbing to me is the similarity between the situation there and our situation on the border.  Listen to what I wrote back then.  I asked again and again as we went from one devastated town to the next, "Lord, where are you?  How can these atrocities be happening?  Don't you care?  This is what I wrote in my journal.

“Last Sunday we woke up early and boarded our bus at 7:30.  We had planned to attend the 10 AM Eucharist at St. Andrew's in Ramallah, but we had not been allowed to pass through the checkpoint and so we had continued on our journey the long way, crossing through the occupied territory on roads made for Israelis and internationals only and then heading north on the eastern border with Jordan to make our way to Nazareth.  That is how we ended up, unexpectedly, on the shore of the Sea of Galilee near where Jesus had prepared breakfast for his disciples after the Resurrection.  We had some extra time on our hands and we were hungering for a Eucharistic celebration that the soldiers had denied us earlier in the day.

The beauty and the peaceful quiet of the place contrasted sharply with the grotesque, harshness of the checkpoint.  As I was standing in the shallow water letting the waves wash around my ankles Bishop Tom came up and began to tell me about the topography of the place.  There is a valley running between two mountains through which the wind is funneled onto the lake.  That wind is the cause of the sudden and violent storms that are typical of the Sea.  Tom reminded us of the story in the gospels of Jesus who had wanted to get away for a while and so he asked the disciples to put to sea and to go to the other side of the lake.  But on the way a great storm arose and these fishermen who were thoroughly familiar with the dangers of storms at sea and who should have been able to handle the boat - panicked and ran to Jesus for help.    In response Jesus calmed the wind and the waves and then asked the tense disciples, "Why are you afraid? Have you still no faith?" 

In Israel today there is a lot of fear.  The fear manifests itself in suicide bombers and snipers - in bulldozers and tanks, rocket firing helicopters and a system of oppression that is intent on the eradication of the Palestinian people from the Holy Land.  The fear is manifested in a gigantic wall.  You see there is this gaping hole that weaves in and out of the landscape there that takes the form of a gigantic wall of concrete, razor wire, and guard towers.  Cities have become isolated from each other and the barren earth has been violated by with bulldozers and cranes. The Israeli government calls it a security fence.  It is an Apartheid Wall.  It is designed to protect Israel from terror, but in fact only serves to isolate and alienate people who are trying desperately to live their life with some sense of normalcy in a place that is far from normal.  Surely, there are kind, generous, faithful people on both sides of the Wall, but there are also those who are consumed by fear and hatred and their will seems to be dominant. 

That reflection was written over 10 years ago but sadly it is strikingly applicable to us today.

Mark’s story

1.                  Mark picks up right where we left off last week.  His sermon is complete and now he and the disciples set off for some quiet time across the lake and we hear that story that I had included in my reflection. 

1.                  Mark does not elaborate but simply says that they went to him and with a sense of incredulity at his apparent disinterest in their situation, asked Jesus whether or not he cared about what happened to them. 

2.                  They clearly did not want to die in the storm and they could not understand why Jesus was not as frightened as they were.

                                                                  ii.                        Mark tells us that Jesus came onto the boat “just as he was”.

1.                  He brought no outward symbols of his power but only his faith that God from whom he was called would be present with them in the chaos of the storm.

2.                  Jesus chose to forgo the very human but vain attempts that we make so often to control the happenings – both good and bad – that swirl around us.   Instead, in Jesus’ response, we see how absolute faith in God’s authority over creation brings calm in the midst of chaos.  From the depths of that faith is Jesus’ authority to still the raging storm and bring about the Peace that passes all of our understanding.

1.                  The harsh reality is that we live and breathe in the midst of chaos. 

a.                  The fragile vessels of our lives – our planet, our cities, our churches, indeed our own bodies are constantly assaulted by the windstorms that rage around us.

b.                  Fear grips us as surely as the sun comes up in the morning.  Fear of failure, fear of the unknown, fear of change, fear of rejection, fear of loneliness, fear of death – these are all very real and present dangers of our lives. 

c.                   Nothing in our lives is truly under our control. 

2.                  Sunday by Sunday we come into this church with all of our storms raging around us.

a.                  We get on our knees and ask God to change things for us.  We pray for a cure from illness or addiction.  We pray for a job or for some change in our life that we believe will make everything better.  We pray for the children – ours and those we do not know, that they will have someone there to comfort and to reassure them that they are safe and will be cared for.  We pray for our leaders in government, in the church, in our cities and towns that they will have wisdom and compassion in governing.  We pray for those who are oppressed or incarcerated, those who are victims of violence.  And we pray for those who have died and for those who are grieving.

                                                                    i.                        And I know with all my heart that God is right there listening, caring, sustaining us who come in prayer. 

b.                  But this I also know.  Life does not always turn out the way that our prayers ask.  Sometimes illness overtakes us.  Sometimes a job interview does not come through.  Sometimes our father or mother or brother or sister continues to suffer from addiction.  Sometimes we are bullied or shamed or assaulted.  Sometimes the very people to whom we look for guidance fail us miserably.  Sometimes life just does not seem to ease up at all.

i.                        The last thing that I would want to do is to say that we must roll over and let life blow us where it wills, because I believe with all my heart that we are God’s very hands and feet in this world and so we are called to respond, to act in ways that alleviate the pain in our world.  We are called to step out and to express our outrage at injustice.  And most of all we are called to love and to treat others in the same way we would want them to treat us were the situation reversed. 

                                                                  ii.                        When someone is driven from their home by violence, poverty or natural disaster and met with shaming, anger, and isolation from individuals or from governments, they are traumatized in ways which stay with and influence their actions for the rest of their lives.  For people who are made to feel as though they do not deserve love or compassion the damage has been done.  We have done it.  There is no “I’m sorry” that can fix it.  Maya Angelou in reflecting on the effect our actions or inactions have on others once said…   “I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”  Those children, taken from their parents – no medicine can fix their fear.  They will never forget nor will we.  But despair is not what faith offers either to those who are injured or to those who have offended.  So let’s set our minds to offer something else. 

                                                                iii.                        The role of the Church in conflict is to offer hope for reconciliation, even between the bitterest enemies.  Although in the end a political solution is necessary, before a lasting political solution can be found, immigrants and nationals, city folk and country folk, blue states and red states and everything in between need to sit down together to acknowledge the suffering and grief they have experienced in this conflict’s history and the struggles they will all face going forward together.  We need to listen to each other.

                                                                 iv.                        And in response to another’s pain we must offer love and hope – the same things that Jesus offers us today.

                                                                   v.                         Jesus comes to us with these words… Peace!  Be still!  That boat that they were in was still out in the middle of the sea.  There was still the potential for storms.  The promise of God is not one of changing the ordinariness of life.  That ordinariness is the very storm in which we live.

                                                                 vi.                        The promise of God is that the evils of this world do not have ultimate power over us or of creation.  It is God who laid the foundation, God who stilled the storm, and it is God who is present with us no matter what ills befall us.  Jesus offers us in image and in word a blessing of calm amidst the chaos.  Peace.  Be still!  

Amen