Jesus said, "Beware of practicing your piety before others in order to be seen by them; for then you have no reward from your Father in heaven. "So whenever you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be praised by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your alms may be done in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. "And whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, so that they may be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
"And whenever you fast, do not look dismal, like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces so as to show others that they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that your fasting may be seen not by others but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. Matthew 6:1-6, 16-19
People in Jesus’ day were using their devotion and worship- fasting, alms giving and praying- to enhance their own status. Their outward acts were turning into a competition. Jesus knew his followers could do better. We can do better. We Episcopalians love our liturgy. So much so that we can pick teams for fights over things incense or no incense-Rite I or Rite II? An institutional or personal need for approval, Jesus reminds us, hinders us from an authentic faith. Worship and devotion is about being in right relationship with one another and God, not another reason to divide ourselves from one another. When we do, we become just like the rest of the world- craving the dollars and attention of consumers of religion.
Our forebears heard the same voices that whisper to us that when we are seen doing all the right things and hope it makes people think we are good (or help us to think we are better than them. Jesus tells the religious folks of his day that it is a false Gospel of pride and competitiveness. People who practice this kind of loud religion get their reward-- but it is only the approval of other people.
We are offered during Lent a time to “slow down.” We can take a pause- practice our spiritual life quietly. Jesus tells us, quiet religion is more likely to be something that is of ultimate reward- and ultimate worth. Quiet religion leads to the greatest reward-- authentic faith.
Fasting quietly might even offer us a new perspective on our relationship to food and hospitality and help us to notice how we over-consume. When we give with quiet generosity, we raise the likelihood that we are making a true offering and sacrifice rather than our purchasing favor or social status. When we pray privately then our prayers can be more open to God and to one another.
Jesus, our great High Priest, invites us all to lives of quiet integrity and oneness with His purposes: oneness with God, healing for a broken world and deeper love for one another and for humanity.
Tim
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