King Jesus

”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.” Matthew 25:44-46

I like to ask my atheist friends to  “Tell me about the God you do not believe in?” The God they do not believe in is often remarkably similar to the one that fundamentalists who stand preaching on the corner probably believe in- a kind of cosmic, cruel king who casts people into hell based on whether or not they had their beliefs properly sorted out before death. The God they do not believe in sounds like one who sorts us out based on pretty high standards for eternal pleasure or punishment. Their God sounds like a bloody tyrant.

 “Christ the King” Sunday- (the last Sunday before Advent, aka “this Sunday”), gives us opportunity to think about which God we believe in. The word “king” itself is problematic, isn’t it? Most kings - even the so-called “good” ones- ruled through violence and fear and enforced a system that sorted people out based on what they had or which family they were born into. We have no context for kings in a democratic society, anyway, because we rejected that whole monarchy thing 242 or so years ago when we broke away from English rule. I am not even so sure I like the idea of Christ as King, then. 

If Jesus were king, then, what would that look like? A King Jesus that looks like the one in Matthew 25 has high standards for  “the nations” that are gathered before him in this parable. Even harder for us is that the nations are not judged based on moral purity, proper belief, worship or any other “religious” kinds of standards. Nope. They are judged based on their compassion. The righteous are those who clothed the naked, cared for the sick, visited the imprisoned and welcomed the stranger. Period.

I don’t believe Jesus means to send anyone who does not do perfect and untiring work for the “least of these” off to hell, however. If that were true, I think we would all be pretty much doomed. Jesus gives us a  good clue on where to look for God and for what God looks like. Want to find God? Get up and walk towards the messiness this life offers us. 

God is found there – in all kinds of hunger, and imprisonment and estrangement and sickness. Do good and loving work in the hunger that surrounds you right now. Find someone you know who is imprisoned- be it in a city jail or in the prison of addiction or loneliness and offer your love and help setting them free. There are strangers in your midst each and every Sunday at church-- walk across the room and welcome them- and maybe even take them out for lunch. Jesus is right there, friends, and when we follow him to those kinds of places in this world, we are truly being his "subjects"  and his "sheep."

God’s kingdom, in fact, is already ruled by a present, living King who has proclaimed the center of his power rests with the least powerful. All of us, then, have a chance to embrace our King in the present, and live under an entirely different and holy rule. 

St. Samuel Seabury- A Complicated Dude

Bishop Samuel Seabury, the First Bishop of The Episcopal Church, had a complicated life, I would imagine. He took an oath of loyalty to the King of England at his ordination to the

priesthood back in England, yet he lived in a land that was trying to break free from the British Imperial rule. Seabury was outspoken in his opposition to American freedom from England. He was a “loyalist.” That fact put him at odds with people with whom he worshipped and worked. It might have even put his life on the line on occasion.

Seabury made his life more complicated, in fact, by writing pamphlets under the pen-name AW Farmer and getting into a kind of "flame-war" with one Alexander Hamilton. When the Continental Congress enacted a boycott on the import and export between the colonies and England, he wrote “Free Thoughts on the Proceedings of the Continental Congress and criticized the rebellion by saying:

“Though the open violator of the laws may escape punishment…. he shall feel the lash of my pen : and he shall feel it again and again, till remorse shall sling his guilty confidence, and shame cover his opprobrious head.”[1]

Whoa. Harsh. Opprobrious, even (I had to look it up. It’s not good).

Hamilton then struck back with - A Full Vindication of the Measures of Congress and insisted that theirs was the cause of liberty and opposition to what amounted to slavery:

“No person, that has enjoyed the sweets of liberty, can be insensible of its infinite value, or can reflect on its reverse, without horror and detestation. No person, that is not lost to every generous feeling of humanity, or that is not stupidly blind to his own interest, could bear to offer himself and posterity as victims at the shrine of despotism….” [2]

St. Samuel Seabury eventually went to prison for being loyal to the King and even was chaplain for British troops.

Seabury finally  took the journey back to England and was consecrated Bishop by Scottish bishops not loyal to the crown. When he returned to his new homeland some of his “flock” in the American Episcopal Church were unhappy with the fact that he was “high church” (one who places a high importance on liturgy, vestments, etc) while many of them were “low church” (less emphasis  on liturgy and more on preaching, etc). George Washington would not even reply to letters sent by Seabury. Still, Seabury embraced his new country and was Bishop for all of them.

Being the Church is often complicated, especially when we disagree with each other over important issues and problems. Seabury found himself praying for, delivering sacraments to, and even burying people who once may have considered him their enemy. In order for any of to be the Church after the War for Independence, they all had to see one another as much more than the sum total of their political views. Americans who once bitterly disagreed now had to be  children of God from the same human family.

You too will share Christ’s Body and Blood with people who disagree with you or are different from you. Yet we are all complex people with deeply-held stories that affect our way of seeing the world. God loves us all, so we are challenged to find our way to reflecting that love- especially for one another.

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[1] Seabury, The Rev. Samuel, Free Thoughts on the Proceedings of the Continential Congress, 1775, online: accessed 11.17.17 https://ia800203.us.archive.org/28/items/cihm_20488/cihm_20488.pdf

[2] Hamilton, Alexander, A Full Vindication of the Measures of Congress, 1774, online: accessed 11.17.17, https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Hamilton/01-01-02-0054

The Demon of Judgment

One of my favorite movies is Keanu Reeves’ “Constantine.” Reeves plays a doomed “spiritual detective” who gets to live out his life on earth chain-smoking and dying of lung cancer while doing his best to earn his way into heaven by eradicating the world of lawless demons who prey upon the innocent.The demons create havoc and then, through prayers and other “exorcist skills” Constantine names them, casts them out, and sends them back to oblivion.

Recently, one “demon” I see a great deal of in myself and others is one I would call “judgment.” Judgment shows its nasty face constantly these days head in  because we all are networked together in such a way that we can instantly react to others under its power. Having honest and robust arguments is not a bad thing, mind you, but judgment takes them over when we find ourselves classifying each other as “evil” or “a bad person” or,  “always wrong.” We are given tools that make it super easy to forget our common humanity. 

Jesus flatly rejects this “demon”, though. In fact, he assigns the status of “blessed” to us when we act in the opposite way. When he says, “Blessed are the meek,” for instance, he is telling us that when we listen and seek to  understand before forming our reaction to others, we are blessed. When we seek out ways to be merciful and loving (even when others are awful to us), we are blessed. 

Being merciful and loving to people we think are jerks is hard work. It does not mean allowing yourself to be abused or taken advantage of. Sometimes, the best route is to (as I had to do recently) just stop the interaction or discussion. What it also means for me is that I have to take time to breathe, pray, and remind myself that all of us are children of God. Tough stuff, sometimes, I know. 

One first step out of being controlled by judgment is curiosity. I ask myself 3 or 4 questions about the unseen person on the other end:

-What kind of day are they having?

- What are we getting out of this energetic exchange?

- How or why is this topic of disagreement a point of pain or anxiety for the other person or for me?

- How might I offer an opportunity for a more human interaction?

- What might the other person need from me?

The good news, though, is that, like John Constantine’s nemeses, this kind of common “demon”  is easily defeated – if we take the time to name it, breathe, pray through it, and  learn from it with “holy curiosity” and the spiritual resource called God's love for us all. 

Being blessed, Jesus promises, is so much sweeter than being right.

Being Right or Being Human?

“… one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. “Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?” He said to him, “’You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets. Matthew 22:34-37

Being right is easy. We have a lot of lawyers in our church, so some of you probably live with people whose job is to be right. For a Lawyer in Jesus day, Jesus probably appeared to be an easy opponent. He flouted the rules quite often, eating with outcasts, touching the unclean, healing on the sabbath and being friends with all kinds of outsiders.

His conversation partners in this scene were sure they were going to get him when they asked him, “Which law is the greatest?” If he came down on one side of some issues, he would anger their opponents (who would come after him). If the angered them, well, they could take care of getting him thrown in jail or executed.

What a surprise, then, that his answer defeats them by actually quoting the same scriptures they are claiming to live by. In fact, in Leviticus it actually appears right after the 10 commandments- “You must not take revenge or hold a grudge against any of your people; instead, you must love your neighbor as yourself…” (19:18). In their move to show Jesus just how unlawful he  was, they are convicted by their own laws. They forget to be human beings in their desire to be right.  

When I hear people  say that  we are a “nation of laws," I think of this scene. We are  a nation  governed and kept in order and in (mostly) good standing by laws, for sure, but we are much more. We are a nation of people striving to become fully- human beings . Our laws, when they are at their best, empower and enable us to love other people more fully and (as a result) be more fully human ourselves. Anything else is counter to God’s ultimate purposes for us, if we pay any attention to what Jesus (and Leviticus 19:18) says.

What would it look like if we, as a community and nation, sought to obey the law upon which Jesus says hang “all the law and the prophets?” Whatever your politics, I am sure you will agree that our world would be radically different (and probably better) wouldn’t it? Open room in your imagination to think about this world, rather than one in which we are always “right.” Jesus reminds us that being “right” often has little to do with loving God and other people or being the fully human, blessed creations God made us to be. 

Tim

Trial and Error and Repentance

From that time Jesus began to proclaim, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” Matthew 4:19-23

Being human is all about trial and error, isn’t it? I mean, we know that many things are not worth trying because they are too dangerous or that they usually will lead to bad things happening to us. (In the south, such things are often proceeded by “hey ya’ll, watch!”). We try stuff, and sometimes it hurts us or other people or God’s world. We need to “repent” sometimes, because we make mistakes. Making mistakes and learning from them is how we grow up. Making the same mistakes, over and over, is no way to lead a life. Repentance, then, is a gift.

How this is extra good for us, then, is that “repenting” can be about (as the Greek word for it- “metanoia” – suggests) simply changing directions, or trying something else. Sure, it is healthy sometimes to feel remorse, or even guilt, but even those things are meant to push towards something better for ourselves and others. Repentance is about much more than feeling bad.

God’s kindness and compassion extends to us as individuals, so we ought to show compassion towards ourselves when we repent. One of the reasons the world can be so lousy sometimes, I believe, is because we are terrible at the last half of the great commandment (“love your neighbor as you love yourself.”) Many of us have problems loving our neighbors precisely because we have a hard time loving ourselves.

Maybe, then, repentance is the ultimate act of self-love? Maybe the stupid things we do separate us from our love for fellow humans, God, and ourselves? If God is not beating us up when we make mistakes, it follows that we should take it easy on ourselves, too! Repenting is not about feeling bad or moving away from “the seven deadlies,” -it is about trying something else with God’s help and living into a new path. After all, Jesus promises us that when we do repent, God’s kingdom is near!

Tim

Pray About Everything

Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians  4:4

“In everything by prayer and supplication give thanks, because it will help you not be as anxious,” might be a good way of rephrasing Paul’s instruction to his friends in Phillipi. If I were to ask many of you when you prayed, it would probably be limited to meal times and/or bedtime. I pray then. At bedtime I think of 10 people and pray for them. At mealtimes, if it is just me or I am eating out somewhere, I pray, “God bless it and put it to work.” I don’t like long dinnertime prayers.

If you stop and think about it, eating certainly is a time when we should always give thanks. Each meal is a miracle. The food got grown via an infinite number of biological processes beyond most of our comprehension. The food got picked or slaughtered (if you are into the whole meat eating thing), preserved without getting damaged or spoiled, lovingly prepared in a way you like, and served to you in a safe, cool, comfy spot. So many good things happened so you could have the chance to eat your cheeseburger, so the least you can do is say, “Thank you!” to God.

Paul says to pray in everything, though. We should tell God what we want (supplication). We are to share openly and honestly with God our goofiest and deepest desires. Praying in everything connects with the reality that we can communicate with God in ways that reach far beyond what pops in our conscious minds. “Everything” prayer moves beyond our limited view of life and our narrow view of reality.

Anxiety is a complicated thing, I know. I will not say that prayer cures anxiety or even treats it.There is nothing too small, too petty, too goofy or juvenile for God’s healing grace found in prayer. Even so, if you are anxious, make sure that a part of your self-care is also sharing your anxiety with another person around the same time you pray about it. At the very least, my experience has been that prayer leads me to finding a new path or new way of living with, (and sometimes leaving behind)

Whatever you do, dear ones, pray in all things because, after all, God is with us in all things.

Darkness Doesn't Extinguish This Light

In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God.The Word was with God in the beginning. Everything came into being through the Word, and without the Word nothing came into being. What came into being through the Word was life, and the life was the light for all people. The light shines in the darkness,and the darkness doesn’t extinguish the light. John 1: 1-5 CEB

So much surfaced for us all when we read the news about Las Vegas and later watched the footage. Some of us found ourselves newly anxious about being in crowds or more suspicious of strangers out in public. Some  may be having nightmares and feeling depressed and reasonably frightened. All of these responses are a function of the fact that we are, in fact, human beings.

I have no answers for why some folks store up guns and then use them on innocent people in acts of random violence. The best I can do, if you want to be all cosmic, is muse upon the fact that “the world is a broken place.” You don’t need any reminder of that, though. Scroll through your news feed on any day and you can find evidence for that aplenty.

Even so, as people of faith we believe and live as if evil, even in a display as powerful as what happened Sunday, cannot ever stop good.We are a witness to this  truth about the Gospel of Christ. Countless acts of love and light are happening in each moment as we live together in the aftermath. Goodness will continue to grow (and will never stop!) 

Goodness will continue to put evil in its place when we start talking with one another about  about guns and their place our lculture We have to truly begin to see the other- the enemy- the pain the neck person – the person who might even hate us- as a brother or sister. We have to have serious, difficult, family talks about our addiction to violence and our deeply-held belief that it ever really works for anything. 

If we are people of this light, we are challenged to begin acting as if we believe what John told us. We can live as children of this light- even as we weep and continue to ask, "Why?"