Redeeming Doubt 4/22/12

Redeeming Doubt

Rev. Lee Ann Bryce

Community Christian Church

April 22, 2012

When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.”

A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe.” Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.” Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.                 John 20:19-31

I grew up going to Sunday School every week and our text for today seemed to stick with me.  As a child, I suppose I always thought of Thomas as “bad.”  I knew the story well.  After Jesus had been crucified, the other disciples told Thomas that Jesus was alive, but Thomas refused to believe it.  He demanded to see Christ for himself.   Thomas was the dull, doubting follower of Christ who had no faith.  In my child’s mind the takeaway message was clear – don’t be like Thomas!  Believe!  Don’t doubt!

Over the next two weeks we’ll be taking a look at some of the post-resurrection appearances of Jesus.  As you examine these texts it becomes clear:  Jesus’ followers, his closest friends, knew Jesus in a different way after his death than they did before his death.  Before his death they knew him as a finite, mortal, flesh and blood human being.  Specifically he was a Galilean Jew.  If his body was typical for that time he might have stood just over five feet tall and weighed 110 pounds.  (This would be small by today’s standards, but is considered representative of a first century male.)  Jesus, 110 pounds soaking wet, had to eat and sleep like any other human being.  He was born and he died.

After his death, Jesus’ followers came to know him in a different way.  Paul experienced him on the road to Damascus as a brilliant light and a voice.  In II Corinthians, Paul says, “Even if we did once know Christ in the flesh, that is not how we know him now.”  (5:16)  In the gospel stories of Easter, it is clear that Jesus after Easter is different from what he was like before his death.  In our text for today from John chapter 20, Jesus passes through walls and mysteriously enters locked rooms.  Earlier in John Jesus is mistaken for a gardener near the tomb.  In Luke two of his followers walk with him for some time and have an in-depth conversation with him without recognizing him (Luke 24).  He appears and then vanishes.  Though we’re not quite sure what this post-Easter Jesus is, the gospel accounts all indicate that he was significantly different after his death than the flesh-and-blood person they had come to know before his death.

Given this background and the confusing mysterious appearances of Jesus after his death, doesn’t Thomas get a bum rap?  In several gospel passages Thomas shows himself to be a practical, concrete sort of guy.  In the midst of Jesus’ long farewell discourse before his death, Jesus assures his followers, “In my Father’s house are many dwelling places…where I am, there you may be also.  And you know the way to the place where I am going.” All the other disciples nod their heads like they know what Jesus is talking about, but Thomas replies, “Lord, we don’t know where you’re going.  How can we know the way?”  Thomas is plainspoken and gutsy.  He wants to understand what’s going on, and be able to face the situation at hand. 

In our gospel passage for today, Jesus has already shown his hands and his sides to all the rest of the gathered disciples earlier when Thomas wasn’t around.  And Thomas is just not the sort of person to say, “If all ten of you saw Jesus at the same time, then that’s good enough for me!”  Thomas wants proof.  He’s merely asking for the same assurance that the others have already been shown.  He says, “Unless I see…I will not believe.” 

And with these words, Thomas becomes a stand in for all of us who want to see something for ourselves before we decide whether or not it is true.  Often we distance ourselves from Thomas by pretending we would respond differently.  When we call someone a doubting Thomas it’s generally not a compliment.  We assume Jesus was chiding Thomas with the words, “Have you believed because you’re seen me?  Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.”  But Jesus wasn’t scolding Thomas.  He offers his hands and his side.  Jesus gives Thomas exactly what he needs to believe.

In our culture, doubt is often viewed as a weakness.  We value strong, decisive opinions and actions.  A “strong faith” implies that no doubt is present.  That’s all well and good, but what do you do when you pray and wonder if anyone is listening?  What do you do when you question whether God really exists?  When you have trouble believing the old religious formulas?   When doubt creeps into your life and leaves you sarcastic and cynical about faith?  Some people keep those thoughts and feelings to themselves because they don’t want to be judged by those who seem to have all the answers.  Others decide it’s all hocus pocus and give up altogether on religious faith or traditions that seem irrelevant or outmoded.

Think about it like this.  During these past years of economic uncertainty, perhaps we’re tempted to give up altogether on investing in the stock market.  After all, we’ve seen it  spiral downward and we see our investments lose money.  During time like that, fear rises and we’re not sure what to do.  Some investors bury their heads in the sand, hoping things will get better.   They look with envy on the savvy investors who seem to be doing well.  Others respond by panicking and selling their stock and putting the cash in a metal box for safekeeping.  Most financial advisors would say that neither response is the appropriate one.  They might even say, “Buy more!” when the market is down.

Religious faith is a bit like that.  Or should I say religious doubt?  When doubt creeps into our souls, it may frighten us.  We may feel like hiding or running away.  There is an alternative response.  What if we understood doubt as fertile ground for growing our faith.  Doubt helps us to ask deeper questions, notice things that were invisible to us before, seek for what has been hidden, test what we think we believe to see if it has staying power. 

A faith without some doubts is like a human body without any antibodies in it.  People who blithely go through life too busy or indifferent to ask hard questions about why they believe as they do will find themselves defenseless against either the experience of tragedy or the probing questions of a smart skeptic.  A person’s faith can collapse almost overnight if she has failed over the years to listen patiently to her own doubts, which should only be discarded after long reflection.  (The Reason for God:  Belief in an age of skepticism by Tim Keller.)

Maybe we’re reluctant to confront our doubt because we’re afraid we’ll find we’ve made a bad religious investment.  On the other hand, if we are willing to take the risk and stay for a while in the land of doubt, we may find doubt as the door into a vast expanse of faith.  If we deny or run from doubt, we will always wonder what is or is not true.  But, if we face our doubt, we may just find that faith is real.  That God exists.  The there is more to those old religious formulas than we thought.  We might be surprised to discover that we are held in the palm of God’s hand;  that our certainty and trust have grown. 

Yes, we may just find that faith is the best investment we could have made.  Like Thomas, we just couldn’t see it until we passed through the rocky, inhospitable land of doubt.

Practicing Our Faith: Improvisation 4/8/12

Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” Then Peter and the other disciple set out and went toward the tomb. The two were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent down to look in and saw the linen wrappings lying there, but he did not go in. Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen wrappings lying there, and the cloth that had been on Jesus’ head, not lying with the linen wrappings but rolled up in a place by itself. Then the other disciple, who reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; for as yet they did not understand the scripture, that he must rise from the dead. Then the disciples returned to their homes.

But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb; and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet. They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni!” (which means Teacher).Jesus said to her, “Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”; and she told them that he had said these things to her.                                                                       John 20:1-19

Our son, David has become quite involved with comedy improv.  If you’re not familiar with that, let me explain.  Improv is not stand-up comedy in which a performer prepares a routine in advance and then presents it in front of an audience.  Improv involves a group of people and it is entirely unrehearsed and spontaneous.  A few months ago when I was visiting him in Texas, his troupe happened to have a performance at the Dallas Comedy House.  In the weeks leading up to it they rehearsed a lot (by the way, rehearsing how to be spontaneous had to be explained to me, but I am told that there are exercises that can increase your creativity and your ability to think quickly). 

There are a variety of formats for improvisation.  One of them is called “post-it.”  Here’s how it works.  A few audience members are asked to write single words, nouns specifically, on some post-it notes.  Then the notes are collected and during the show, one of the performers picks up one of the notes, sees it for the first time, reads it aloud, and the troupe then improvises a comedy sketch on-the-spot about whatever word is on the post-it note.  The word might be insurance or arugula or lumber or geranium or iced tea (that would be two words but you get the idea.)  One of them thinks of something to say about iced tea and hopes that someone else keeps it going.  And so, with no collaboration, no planning, no huddle for 1 minute before to discuss what to do, no time to think things through and in front of an audience (who expects them to come up with something hilarious and brilliant) they’re off.  They improvise together.  Frankly, it terrifies me.  Preachers have nightmares about having to come up with an impromptu sermon!  But in a comedy improve show, the thing that ties it all together is that post-it note that provides the basic theme that gets them started and the rest is up to the performers.

We’ve just read from the gospel of John about the empty tomb on that first Easter morning.  John, of course, was the last gospel written down and if you compare the gospel accounts of the resurrection, something interesting happens.  You see that story gets a little bigger each time it’s told.  In Mark’s version, our earliest gospel written 20 years or so after Jesus’ crucifixion, the women come to the tomb and see “one young man in a white robe.”  Then a decade or so later, according to Luke, there were two men in dazzling clothes who suddenly appear out of nowhere.  Matthew says that there was a “great earthquake,” and that the women were greeted by “an angel of the Lord,” this time – “descending from heaven.”  (Matthew 28:2)  And by the time we get to John’s gospel, written perhaps 50 years after the crucifixion, Mary is greeted, not by a young man, not by two men, not by one angel, but by “two angels in white”.  And for good measure, John throws in a cameo appearance of the resurrected Jesus, cleverly disguised as a gardener.  The story gets better every time it’s told.

And for some, this inconsistency between the gospels is disconcerting.  What’s going on here?  How can we trust these accounts that so clearly contradict each other?  Is this a “true” story or not? 

Friends, what’s going on here is not contradiction.  It’s something else entirely.  The gospel writers are improvising!  Their post-it note reads:  Christ is risen!  Christ is risen indeed!  What is central, what is absolutely non-contradictory is this great truth – somehow, Jesus still lives!  And like a good improve troupe, each Gospel writer takes off and throws something into the mix.  And so we get dazzling white robes or cascading light or earthquakes or angels descending from heaven or Jesus being mistaken for a gardener.  All of these details express a truth that transcends strict factuality.  In Christ, all things are made new.  Neither life nor death can separate us from the love of God.  Everyone in Christ is a new creation. 

I don’t know about you, but Church as I knew it growing up was anything but improvisational.  There was no freedom to improvise; to figure out the finer points for yourself.  The doctrines were clearly spelled out.  This is what you must believe.  Believe it and you’re “in,” you’re saved, you’re secure.  Don’t believe it and you’re out.  And I am convinced that many people this time of year, far more than are gathered in churches around the world today, want to embrace the message of Easter, that love wins and that the presence of Christ is felt today.  But they’re not so sure about the rigid, socially conservative view that is too often exclusively put forth as Christian with all its doctrines and the political views. 

We have some notion of what it means to be a fundamentalist Christian, a right-wing Christian, an evangelical Christian.  Is there such a thing as an improvisational Christian?

The apostle Paul had improvisation down.  He said, “There are varieties of gifts but the same spirit.  And there are varieties of services but the same Lord.  And there are varieties of activities, but it’s the same God who activates all of them in everyone.” 

Did you hear that?  One spirit, one Lord, one God.  That’s his theme.  (Do you suppose they had post-it notes in the 1^st century?)  Varieties of gifts, varieties of services and activities, all inspired by one God.  That’s improvisation.  And then Paul refines his theme with an even clearer definition, “Now faith, hope, love abide, these three gifts.  But the greatest of these is love.”

Jesus does exactly the same thing.  “Which commandment is the greatest?”  When Jesus was asked what our post-it note should read he said, “Love God and love your neighbor as yourself.”  That’s it.  All the rest is commentary.  Love is the theme.  All the rest is improvisation.  As Christians our lives are to be an improvisation on love.  Love of God, love of neighbor, love of self.

There will always be times when we wish we had the whole script instead of a measly little post-it; times when we want the security of a carefully worked out script that tells us where we’re going and shows everything that’s going to happen.  As a pastor, God knows there are times I wish I could put a script in your hands, ready to go.  When death or sickness or heartbreaking struggle threatens to overcome; when someone asks me, “What should I do now?” my heart aches to have the perfect answer to slap in their hands. 

Of course, I don’t.  What I can do is keep reminding you of our major theme, what’s on our post-it note.  For we may be certain that nothing in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God.  Nothing.  Neither life nor death nor grief nor loss nor anything else.  “What do I do now?”  The answer is improvise.  Do the next thing there is to do and trust that someone else will come along to add to your story; trust that love is the only thing that lasts.  Walk through the doors that open.  Accept the doors that close before you and trust the presence of God.

Today, on Easter Sunday, we know that love wins.  That is the story of our faith.  And as our lives flow on, through all of us, God is always at work in the world to bring about life from death, community from isolation, wholeness from brokenness, love from hate. 

Christ is risen.  Christ is risen indeed.  Thanks be to God!

Practicing Our Faith: Forgiving Our Enemies 4/1/12

But I say to you that listen, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. If anyone strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also; and from anyone who takes away your coat do not withhold even your shirt. Give to everyone who begs from you; and if anyone takes away your goods, do not ask for them again. Do to others as you would have them do to you. If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. If you lend to those from whom you hope to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to receive as much again. But love your enemies, do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return. Your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High; for God is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked. Be merciful, just as God is merciful.                                                                        Luke 6:27-36

This is one of those passages that proves that we are all spin doctors when it comes to reading the Bible.  It can’t possibly mean what it says, we tell ourselves.  Or maybe we say, “love your enemies” is a high ideal and we should all try for it, but it’s just not feasible in some situations. 

Where there is threat, we need to kill or we will be killed.  So we tell ourselves.

Our video clip today features Sister Helen Prejean, author of Dead Man Walking.  [show video, “Forgiveness and Reconciliation”]

Sister Helen Prejean speaks specifically in the context of capital punishment.  She was drawn into prison ministry, beginning when she agreed to be a pen pal for a prisoner on death row, Patrick Sonnier, a convicted killer.  Though she only intended to write a few letters and be of some comfort to Sonnier, God had other ideas.  Over the years, Prejean would become very familiar with the horrible facts in the murders that Sonnier had committed.  David LaBlanc and Loretta Bourque were his victims, two teenagers, parked at a “Lover’s Lane” remote area following a high school football game, when they were abducted, Loretta raped, then both were murdered. 

Sister Prejean became a spiritual advisor to Patrick Sonnier, the killer, as he awaited his execution by the State of Louisiana for these crimes.  Her relationship with him was not based on a presumption of his innocence.  He was guilty.  She was repulsed and horrified at Sonnier’s crime, as was anyone who knew of it.  She simply believes that Jesus calls us to go deeper than just being charitable and friendly and kind.  Awakening to the nature of the love of God meant to her that she must resist injustice.  And she has responded with her advocacy for many years to have the death penalty overturned. 

She has served as spiritual advisor to many men (and some women) on death row.  She visits them before they die, helping them come to terms with the crimes they’ve committed (when possible), and accompanies them to their executions.

The existence of the death penalty reinforces a common belief in our society that redemption can come through violence.  We think:  killers deserve to die, it’s what we know to do.  It is somehow honorable to kill people who have killed us; it’s the way you get things done finally; meet your enemies with the only language they understand; strike boldly and meet your enemy with force.  Meanwhile we are one of the last nations in the world that still executes people for their crimes.  We kill to show that killing is wrong.

The gospel, on the other hand, is counter cultural.  Love your enemies.  Do good to those who persecute you.  Be merciful, as God is merciful.

Lloyd LeBlanc’s son, David was one of the teenagers Patrick Sonnier killed.  And in Prejean’s memoir, Dead Man Walking, it is Lloyd LeBlanc's powerful example of forgiveness that most moved Sister Prejean.  The father’s first reaction, as a parent whose son had been killed, was devastating grief, fear, anger, and outrage.  But ultimately, he didn’t stay there.  He told her, “Forgiveness is not something you do for another, but for yourself.”  Lloyd LeBlanc said, “I knew how it felt to hate Patrick Sonnier; to call for the death penalty,” as he initially had.  But eventually, he realized, “Patrick Sonnier killed my son.  I will not let him kill me.”  He found his way out of hate and bitterness; he saved his own life by not allowing himself to be turned over to hate. 

Love your enemies.  Do good to those who hate you.  Is that even possible for ordinary people like me and you?  One thing I know, to forgive doesn’t mean that we don’t have feelings of revenge or hatred.  It just means that we don’t have to stay there.  God’s grace calls us to a new way of living.  With God’s grace we can be loving persons and not wish harm to anyone, even those who have hurt us.  With God’s grace we can be on the side of both victim and criminal. 

Today is Palm Sunday.  In the coming week, Christians see this call played out in the story of our faith, for after a life of love, Jesus will be arrested, tried and unjustly condemned, and then turned over to be crucified and his response will be, “God forgive them, for they know not what they do.” 

To follow Christ means that we practice forgiveness.  We are called to this deeper, wider love; a love that resists evil and injustice; a love that calls us to let go of our desire for revenge; to forgive.

Many of us have struggled with forgiving another person who has caused us pain.  Maybe the offense was small and petty.  Perhaps it was life-changing or devastating.   We all have different journeys through forgiveness. 

Remember, forgiveness is not saying that the incident that caused us pain never happened.  It did.  Forgiveness is not saying that everything’s ok.  It isn’t.  Forgiveness is not saying that we no longer feel the pain of the offense.  We do.  Forgiveness is not always reconciliation.  We may want no further relationship with the person who’s hurt us and it may be essential to our emotional health that we not have a continued relationship. 

Forgiveness is a feeling toward the person who hurt us, “I still feel the pain, but I am willing to let go of your involvement with my pain.”  Forgiveness is an attitude of faith whereby we are able to turn over to God the business of how the person who hurt us is doing.  It’s saying, “I am willing to let God deal with you, and I am willing to let go of my need to be the instrument of correction and rebuke in your life.”  When we forgive, the wrong is remembered, but it no longer sets the agenda for our future or consumes our lives.

Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. May we truly be followers of Christ, ordinary people who, with the help of God, live out the gospel of mercy.

Amen.

Practicing Our Faith: Friendships and Intimacy 3/25/12

                  

As God has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept God’s commandments and abide in God’s love. I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete.  “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.  No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.                                                                        John 15:9-13

[Watch video, “Friendship and Intimacy,” with Stephanie Paulsell, 0:00-3:35. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3YQ0bB0jaBI

I’ve heard a lot of sermons in my day, but I can’t really recall one about friendship.  I think Stephanie Paulsell is right.  Friendship is an often neglected topic in Christianity.  And I don’t believe I’ve ever heard a sermon about sexual intimacy.  This sermon’s going to devote some attention to both topics:  friendships and intimate relationships.  I can imagine some might say, a sermon’s not the place to talk about sexual relationships!  And respectfully, I must disagree.  Do we really want to reflect on sexual relationships only in the context of R-rated movies or forbidden websites? 

Today’s video featured Stephanie Paulsell, a Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) ordained minister who teaches at Harvard Divinity School.  Her bio says that she has been married to her husband Kevin, “with whom she has enjoyed friendship and intimacy for more than twenty years.”  As we just heard in the video, Paulsell begins by talking about the spiritual practice of friendship.  Have you ever thought of friendship as a spiritual practice? 

And yet, in her book, The Happiness Project, Gretchen Rubin states that everyone who studies happiness, from contemporary scientists to ancient philosophers agrees that having strong social bonds is probably the most meaningful contributor to happiness.  “Of all the things that wisdom provides for living one’s entire life in happiness, the greatest by far is the possession of friendship.”  (Epicurious, 341-270 BCE) 

You need close long-term relationships, you need to be able to confide in others, you need to belong.  Studies show that if you have five or more friends with whom to discuss an important matter, you’re far more likely to describe yourself as “very happy”…Not only does having strong relationships make it far more likely that you take joy in life, but studies show that it also lengthens life (incredibly, even more than stopping smoking), boosts immunity, and cuts the risk of depression.   (Rubin, p. 142)

Friendship is an important spiritual practice.  In John, Jesus describes deep love as “laying down your life for your friend.”  Many of us come to our relationship with God through our friendships.  Of course, friendships aren’t instantly achieved.  They are nurtured over time with people that we love and yet Christian life requires us to be open to newness, to new people coming in.  As Christians, our circle around the table at communion always has to be ready to get bigger. 

We’d probably all agree on this, but yet there’s a balance in relationships between the need to attend closely to your friends and the need to be open and attentive to others.  We recently talked about this in a church meeting.  Most people describe our congregation as very friendly.  Many newcomers say this church feels like family.  And while being a family is good, families can also make new people feel like outsiders.  If I am new and I don’t know people’s names or connections or all the inside jokes that the “family” shares, then I am not likely to feel welcomed. 

Can you think of times in your life when you’ve felt torn between deepening friendships and reaching out and making new friends?  I was just at a clergy retreat this past week and what I really wanted to do was hang out with a dear friend from across the state who was there.  We’re very close and we rarely get to spend time together.  I didn’t want to make new friends, I wanted to keep the old.  I realized I was really limiting myself by not being open to new friendships that might develop in that setting with my peers. 

Can you relate to this?  It’s true – we are drawn to some people more than others, for a variety of reasons but that does not require us to be closed to the rest of the community.  The spiritual practice of friendship requires balancing deep friendships with having an open heart toward others.  Who knows who might become cherished friends?  Marge Piercy has a great line about this in her poem, “The Low Road.”  “It starts when you say We and know who you mean, and each day you mean one more.” 

I like how Paulsell makes a natural progression between friendships and intimate relationships.  I think we tend to separate these two types of relationships and think different rules apply, when in fact friendships and sexually intimate relationships are on a continuum.  They have a lot in common.  They take time, trust, hope and patience.  The difference, of course, is the degree to which our bodies are also intimate. 

Just as I never thought of friendship as a spiritual practice, I never really considered our sexual relationships as a spiritual practice, but I see the wisdom of doing so.  Just as there are ground rules for life-giving friendships, the same is true for the spiritual practice of sexual relationships.  Sexuality is a gift from God for expressing love, for bringing forth life, for mutual companionship and pleasure.  It needs to be celebrated with joy and integrity.  We affirm today the goodness of creation, our bodies, and of our sexual expression and we are called to stewardship of these gifts.

Healthy sexual relationships are, of course, consensual; both partners want to engage physically.  Neither person is pressuring the other and both receive pleasure.  Respect is key; which means that you’re honest with each other and you both respect any commitments you’ve made to others.  Sexual intercourse is only one way to express sexual feelings and it’s healthier for adolescents to postpone.  A spiritual practice of intimate relationships means that you’re safe – there’s no or low risk of unintended pregnancy or sexually transmitted diseases or emotional harm to either person. 

And sexually intimate relationships are based on caring.  When two people decide to become sexually active, the friendship remains which means that you continue taking time to know each other, to support each other, to help each other become the people you want to be. 

Have you known people who have a romantic relationship who also seem to be dear friends to one another?  Not every couple falls into this category.  If you share sexual intimacy with another, do you consider your partner your dear friend? 

Relationships, be they friendships or life-long/committed or anything in between have something in common:  they are based on care and respect.  May we all intentionally engage in our relationships as a spiritual practice.    May we be eager to share, quick to listen, and willing to give the benefit of the doubt to the other.  May God give to us understanding hearts and discerning spirits in all our relationships.  Amen.

Practicing Our Faith: Discernment 3/18/12

The Fourth Sunday of Lent

Practicing Our Faith:  Discernment

Rev. Lee Ann Bryce

Community Christian Church

March 18, 2012

I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect.                                           Romans 12:1-2

Like a lot of ministers these days, I did a lot of different jobs before I went to seminary and became a pastor.  I’ve been a waitress, a secretary, an aerobics instructor, a teacher, a choral director, and a parks and recreation administrator.  I enjoyed all those other jobs (mostly) but it wasn’t until I was ordained that I had the feeling that all of those other jobs were preparing me for this calling.  I felt like I was born to do this work in the world; to serve a local church as its pastor. 

You don’t have to be a minister to feel this way about your work.  I’ve known teachers, social workers, medical professionals who feel called to their work.  Others find this sort of fulfillment not with the work they do that is their primary source of income, but from personal investment in volunteer activities or with non-profit agencies.  I can imagine all kinds of professions could give that feeling of being “in the groove,” of having one’s talents and gifts and values match what you do.

Our Lenten series on spiritual practice continues today with the spiritual practice of discernment, listening to God.  Discernment is about how we decide what to do with our lives.  That’s not a question that has relevance only for 20-somethings, deciding whether to go to college or what field to study or what job to take when you get out of school.  Doing something meaningful with our lives has relevance for all of us.  Job changes take place at any age, especially these days, and it’s never too late to check-in with yourself and ask questions like:  Does my life have meaning?  Do my activities reflect my deepest values?  Do I invest myself in ways that feel important to me?

The video we’re going to view today features Dr. Jennifer Grant Haworth, a spiritual director and professor at Loyola University of Chicago.  We’ll stop the video along the way to talk further about what she says.  Haworth echoes Frederick Buechner’s idea that identifying meaningful ways to invest your energies comes down to finding “the place where your deep gladness meets the world’s deep hunger.” 

[Watch “Discerning God’s Call” with Jennifer Grant Haworth, 0:00- 1:41; video found on youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fVq3DBiYOYw]

Haworth defines discernment as “listening to your life speak and listening to love speak back to you.”  It’s about listening to God, but also about listening deeply to yourself, trusting that your deepest self will resonate with the divine voice.  The two components she references are 1) knowing yourself well enough to know what you’re passionate about and 2) figuring out how your passion can feed the world’s hunger.  Discernment is about bringing these two things together.

And so I invite you to consider:  What are you passionate about?  For some this is an easy question to answer.  For others, it’s difficult.  In your bulletin you’ll find an insert with the following questions and space for you to jot down some notes on these prompts:  What are you passionate about?  What gives you energy?  What catches and keeps your attention?  How do you choose to use your free time?  What are you doing when you feel fully alive?  How would your friends or others you trust answer this question for you?

The next piece to discernment is to figure out how you take your passion and turn that towards the world so that it helps to feed the world’s deep hunger.  That’s the trick – to bring those two pieces together.  And if you’re able to do that, then your work, for the most part, becomes a joy and not a burden. 

Again, I’m using the term “work” to describe the various ways we invest ourselves be it paid or volunteer work.  It’s a fact of life that not everyone can afford the luxury of finding a job that fits their passions.  Jobs are hard to come by, especially these days, and most of us need to work in order to support ourselves and care for others.  Along the way, we might work at jobs that are not a perfect fit, but it’s necessary for us to do that for a time.  Ideally, however, as time goes onwe can all gravitate toward work that gives our lives meaning.  And if not, we can find other ways to invest ourselves in an unpaid capacity that adds deep satisfaction to our lives.

In any event, discerning God’s call starts with understanding what we love to do and then creatively matching that up with what the world hungers for. 

[Watch next segment of video, 1:41- 4:02]

When we seek to discern God’s call in our lives, fear and doubt play a role, and it’s often not a helpful role.  Fear, doubt, and anxiety can corrode our sense of self and our ability to discern “what is the truth that wants to live through us?” as Haworth puts it. 

I love the illustration she used of the Mississippi River.  The deep current keeps the river moving towards where it needs to go though there are also these little cross currents on the surface.  Most of the time when we’re plagued with fear and doubt and anxiety, they are like these little cross currents that are competing for our attention and clouding our ability to discern faithfully the love and life that wants to live in us.  And so we must set aside time to “hit the pause button”; to ask ourselves, are these thoughts real?  Are they illusory?  It is in the silence when we sit and listen that we can hear what God is saying to us.  We can learn what our own lives are saying to us.

We’re going to take a few moments to “hit the pause button,” right now.  On your handout, you’ll see a few questions to help you better understand any fears and doubts you may have.  Do fear and doubt corrode your sense of self?  If yes, when?  How?  What are the cross currents that cloud your ability to discern the deepest current running through your life?  Does being a part of a community help you in times of fear and doubt?   Take a few moments in silence to consider these questions.

[Watch final video segment, 4:03-6:30]

“The glory of God is a person fully alive.” (St. Iraneus)

Let us pray.  O God of love and light and goodness, awaken us to all that is around us and help us to find ways to engage with it.  What we do is not as important as how we live.  May the fruits of the spirit be awakened in each one of us so that we may live in a space of joy, love, patience, and gratitude for all that is given to us.  Help us to connect the dots in our lives and to pay attention to your purpose for us revealed in the circumstances of our lives.  May we learn to listen to our hearts and to give back the life we’ve been given.  Amen. 

Lenten Series on Spiritual Practice: Caring for Creation 3/11/12

The Third Sunday of Lent

Practicing Our Faith:  Caring for Creation

Rev. Lee Ann Bryce

Community Christian Church

March 11, 2012

Then God said to Noah and to his sons with him, “As for me, I am establishing my covenant with you and your descendants after you, and with every living creature that is with you, the birds, the domestic animals, and every animal of the earth with you, as many as came out of the ark. I establish my covenant with you, that never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of a flood, and never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.”

God said, “This is the sign of the covenant that I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all future generations: I have set my bow in the clouds, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. When I bring clouds over the earth and the bow is seen in the clouds, I will remember my covenant that is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. When the bow is in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.” God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant that I have established between me and all flesh that is on the earth.”                                                                    Genesis 9:8-17

{Watch excerpt from video, “God’s Covenant With Creation,” by Dr. Dan Spencer, Professor of Environmental Studies, University of Montana) http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=dan+spencer+God%27s+covenenat+with+creation&oq=dan+spencer+God%27s+covenenat+with+creation&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&gs_sm=3&gs_upl=5170l16754l0l16924l42l37l4l0l0l0l350l4802l0.12.12.1l25l0

We commonly think of the Bible as the story of God’s relationship with humanity.  Funny how we tend to limit the scope of what is actually in the biblical narrative.  God’s love for all of creation is demonstrated throughout the Bible.  In the creation story, God creates great sea monsters and every living thing that moved and called them good.  According to Noah’s story (which we should understand as an ancient story told around camp fires to explain why things are the way they are, rather than a factual news account) animals were valued enough to preserve in all their varied forms.  Following the flood, God makes a covenant and provides an occurrence in nature, a rainbow, as a sacred symbol.   In a great story from the Old Testament in the book of Numbers, God gets the attention of Balaam when he’s acting badly because his donkey opens his mouth and speaks to him (Numbers 22).  God is entwined with all of creation.  The Psalms tell us that the very rocks would shout out God’s glory even if humans couldn’t and elsewhere in the Bible God is manifest not only in human speech and action but though wind and fire. 

Humans are not the only creatures spoken of in the Scriptures.  Far from it.  God created a vast and highly complex world.  But we often become narrow-minded when we study the Bible and talk about our faith.  We assume that it’s all about us and we lessen the importance of all the parts of God’s creation that are not human.  When we minimize the rest of creation we fail to realize our interdependence.

It’s true, the Genesis story of creation says that humans were created in God’s image.  No other part of creation was given that distinction.  And in one of the creation stories, humans are put in charge of caring for the rest of creation.  Some read this to say that humans are superior; that humans are more important. 

There are competing messages in scripture.  On the one hand, God created all that is and called it good and according to Genesis 9, God is even in covenant with all living things.  But on the other, God created humans and set them apart; gave them responsibility over the rest of creation.  And so, we are in conflict with ourselves.  On the one hand we try to be good stewards of God’s creation, but we also, at times, go after what we want even if creation is harmed because, well, God put us in charge, right?

Look again at this covenant from Genesis 9 and this time as I read it, count the number of times the text says that God’s covenant is broader than with humanity. 

Then God said to Noah and to his sons with him, “As for me, I am establishing my covenant with you and your descendants after you, and with every living creature that is with you, the birds, the domestic animals, and every animal of the earth with you, as many as came out of the ark. I establish my covenant with you, that never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of a flood, and never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.”

God said, “This is the sign of the covenant that I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all future generations: I have set my bow in the clouds, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. When I bring clouds over the earth and the bow is seen in the clouds, I will remember my covenant that is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. When the bow is in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.” God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant that I have established between me and all flesh that is on the earth.”

Doesn’t that make you want to say, “Okay!  Okay!  I get it!  Enough already!”  God repeats six times in this short passage that the covenant includes not only humans, but is very wide reaching.  God is the creator, redeemer, and sustainer of all that God made.  That should impact how we view and interact with all of creation.  If God values it enough to make a covenant with it, then we should not be so quick to abuse and destroy it, should we? 

Think for a moment.  What are some of the ways that human action has caused harm for other parts of God’s creation?  The list is long – global warming/climate change, water contamination, overpopulation, deforestation, extinction of animals, etc.  Last week I saw a news piece about the so-called plastic ocean – a collection of bits and pieces of plastic from landfills floating in the middle of the North Pacific that measures 7 million tons, twice the size of Texas.  (And it’s not the only plastic ocean.  Several exists in the world’s oceans.)  Of course, fish become entangled or poisoned; some of the fish we eat are affected. 

Human action has harmed the earth in huge and small ways.  In some cases, humans have acted with full knowledge of the harmful implications.  In others, we’ve acted in ignorance or without fully understanding the extent of the damage.  Thinking about oceans of plastic that are twice the size of Texas can get overwhelming pretty quick.  The problems seem so huge that it often leaves us feeling paralyzed because of the sheer magnitude of the problems.  We don’t think there’s anything we can do that will make any difference and so we do nothing.

But God calls us to resist this illusion of powerlessness.  As Christians, we are in covenant with God.  That means we have promised God that we will care for creation; we understand ourselves as a people as having the job of taking care of the earth and its creatures

Of course, I’m fully aware that this is asking a lot.  It’s hard enough to get humans to consider every person on earth as a brother, a sister.  It’s something else to also consider every living thing, animals, nature, oceans, forests, bugs, cows, and snakes as part of the family?  Is it even possible to encounter every living thing as my brother and sister?

Yes, I think it is.  I’ve known people who set this as their goal and who are much, much farther along in this practice of caring for creation than I and their example inspires me.  If we are to do a better job in holding up our end of this covenant of caring for God’s creation corporate actions and personal actions are necessary.  As a church we’re trying to do a better job.  For example, we now use only fair trade coffee in our coffee hours (thanks to a couple of members who purchase it and donate it for the church’s use.)  We rarely use disposable paper products for church meals and we wash plastic utensils so they can be reused.  We recycle bulletins and office paper.  And when Palm Sunday rolls around in a few weeks, we’ll be waving eco-palms which means that they are sustainably harvested and fairly traded and that they money we spend on them directly benefits the communities where they’re harvested.  And so the extra nickel per palm spent can send young girls to school, employ women, and build community centers and forests won’t be clear cut in Guatemala just so we can wave palms one Sunday a year.

There’s so much more that we can do on a personal level.  We are all forced to make value judgments every day.  We, as Christ’s followers, are called to think and value things differently than the culture at large.  We are called to value things the way God does, not always as fellow human beings do.

You’ll find an insert in your bulletin titled, “My Commitment to God’s Creation,” that will give you some ideas about things we can do to more fully hold up our end of the bargain in caring for creation.  Remember:  you needn’t take an “all or nothing” approach.  Work toward doing these things by gradually making changes in your life; changes you feel you can sustain.  Even a small change can make a significant difference.  Start somewhere and see where the new direction takes you.

Let us pray.  Loving God, our well-being is tied to the well-being of all creatures.  Help us to recognize our dependence on all of creation left in our care even as we accept its dependence on us.  Help us to practice our role as  gentle, compassionate, humane caretakers of all creatures and their environments.  Amen. 

My Commitment to God’s Creation

Ideas to consider:

·        Wash clothes in cold water to save on energy.

·        Use cloth napkins instead of paper ones.

·        Eat less meat.  Start by eliminating one meat based meal a week.

·        Plan for your household to observe one “lazy day” a month on which you walk, take public transit, or carpool rather than driving your car.

·        Buy fair trade items.

·        Shop at stores that sell fair trade items or request them if not offered.

·        Conduct an energy audit of your home to evaluate your heating system’s efficiency and determine where heat loss may occur.  You can even perform your own home energy audit by going to the Department of Energy’s Website:  www.homeenergysaver.lbl.gov.

·        Run washing machine and dishwasher only when full.

·        When washing dishes by hand, don’t let the water run while rinsing.  Fill one sink with wash water and the other with rinse water.

·        Wash fruits and vegetables in a pan of water instead of running water from the tap.

·        Have your car tuned regularly and keep tires properly inflated. 

·        Carry a water bottle with you instead of buying water.

·        Eat locally and organically whenever possible.

·        Teach children to turn off faucets tightly after each use.

·        Turn off water while brushing your teeth.

·        Wash pets outdoors in an area of your lawn that needs water.

·        Reuse towels.

·        When washing your hands, don’t let the water run while you lather.

Remember:  you needn’t take an “all or nothing” approach. 

Work toward doing these things by gradually making changes in your life. 

Even a small change can make a significant difference. 

Start somewhere and see where the new direction takes you!

Lenten Series on Spiritual Practice: Hospitality 3/4/12

Lenten Worship Series Week 2:  Hospitality in a Multi-Faith World

Rev. Lee Ann Bryce

Community Christian Church

March 4, 2012

When a stranger lives with you in your land, don’t take advantage of him.  Treat the stranger the same as family.  Love him like one of your own.  Remember that you were once strangers in Egypt.  I am God, your God.                                                                                                Leviticus 19:33-34

Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; love one another with mutual affection; outdo one another in showing honor. Do not lag in zeal, be ardent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints; extend hospitality to strangers.                                                                       Romans 12:9-13

(“Hospitality is Salvation” video by Diana Butler Bass.  This short video may be viewed at theworkofthepeople.com.)

Prior to watching this video by Diana Butler Bass, if I were to have asked you the path to salvation, I wonder if many of us, including myself, would have said that the definition of salvation is hospitality.  Salvation is loaded word for Christians.  It conjures up the image of someone knocking on the door with little pamphlets asking if you’ve been “saved” (or does that only happen in Texas?)  Among our conservative Christian friends, and perhaps for some here, salvation likely has something to do with going to heaven when we die. 

But Diana Butler Bass reframes for us the concept of salvation.  In his book, Speaking Christian:  Why Christian Words Have Lost Their Meaning and Power and How They Can Be Restored, Marcus Borg argues that though we commonly associate salvation with what happens after we die, when the Bible speaks about salvation, it is seldom about an afterlife (p. 39).  Salvation, as it is used in the Bible, is almost always about personal transformation of ourselves and of the world, right here, right now.  And I think we all yearn for this kind of salvation. 

Most of us yearn for personal transformation – for a fuller connection to what is, for liberation from all that keeps us in bondage, for wholeness, for the healing of our pain.  And don’t we yearn for a world that is a better place?  We may have disagreements about how a better world can be brought about.  But most of yearn for a better world, for ourselves, our children and grandchildren for all the people who will come after us. 

This yearning for transformation is shared between all the world’s major faith traditions.  And this commonality is what I’d like to focus on today.  How are Christians to practice hospitality in an interfaith world?  How do Christians relate hospitably to people who follow other religious paths?  If Diane Butler Bass is right and salvation is hospitality, then it is also true that the salvation of the church, of our faith, is in learning how to be hospitable.

The Bible can be described as having a grand progression of hospitality, of estrangement to welcome.    There are certainly critical points in the narrative of our faith where welcoming the stranger turns out to be a real fork in the road.   Abraham and Sarah,  extending hospitality to the strangers who wind up being God’s representatives who have come to deliver the good news that a child will be given to them who will fulfill God’s promises to the Hebrew people. 

And in the New Testament we find a parallel in the story of the Emmaus Road.  Following the crucifixion, the broken-hearted disciples welcome a stranger to dinner and when the stranger breaks the bread, they realize that it is Jesus.  He was made known to them in the breaking of the bread.  Time and time again, our faith has survived because our forebears chose a path of hospitality and welcome, rather than exclusion and judgment.

In case you haven’t noticed, the future of mainstream Christianity, is up in the air.  Millions of people across the world have rejected the faith we practice.  Maybe you’re someone who has toyed with the idea of giving up on the church.  There have been times in my life when I confess that I have.  The form of Christianity that has been, too often, imperialistic, judgmental, and even violent has been rejected.  And until Diana Butler Bass said it in today’s video, I never considered the widespread rejection of Christianity to be a hopeful sign but now I recognize it as one.  That rejection shows that there is indeed a deep longing for a God of love and a church that practices true hospitality.  People are asking for something better, more authentic, more Jesus-y, than what the church has typically offered.  The challenge for the church then is to embrace that longing and to set hospitality as our highest goal.

I think we understand what it means to welcome the poor, the meek, the vulnerable in our society.  We don’t always succeed in doing it, mind you, but in theory we understand that God calls the church to welcome the last and the least.  Perhaps it’s a bit more confusing to know how Christians are to relate to members of other faith traditions or no faith tradition.  We know what we’re not supposed to do.  We’re not supposed to judge, but should we engage in dialogue?  And when we do, what should be the nature of that dialogue?  Should we witness about our faith?  We know we shouldn’t condemn, but if we affirm the truth found in another tradition, does it lessen the claims of truth we make?  How are Christians to be hospitable in a multifaith world?

To be hospitable, we must first acknowledge that religious pluralism is a natural condition of our world.  And as Christians, we can absolutely celebrate that diversity!  Spirit speaks in many languages and the spiritual practice of hospitality helps us to receive more messages of that expression.  There are some conditions that we should practice in speaking with members of another faith tradition if we are to be hospitable.  The first condition is that dialogue with friends from other faiths should be without any ulterior motive.  In the past, the motive for Christians to engage in dialogue has been either because we want to convert the other person or to provide a forum for Christians to demonstrate the supposed superiority of our own positions.  This kind of attitude has got to go!  Hospitable interreligious dialogue seeks to engage respectfully and not to manipulate or coerce. 

And so Christians must come to the table with essential openness.  This openness involves deep listening, trying to understand not only what the other says, but also what they mean, the reality they’re trying to convey.  We listen, not looking for flaws but listening for truth as the other understands it.  We listen, seeking to understand what the other is.  It is imperative that other religious traditions are taken seriously for what they are in and of themselves.  This means, for example, not assuming that another faith is the rough equivalent of our own. 

In hospitable dialogue, differences are not the enemy.  Difference can be appreciated because difference can challenge us and cause us to rethink our own assumptions.  It is in the respectful exploration of difference that a deeper awareness of our own tradition can emerge.  We can discover similarities that can teach us much about what may be universal to religious paths.  We often make the mistake of avoiding difference or playing it down.  It is often the difference that makes the dialogue particularly fruitful.

And last, hospitable interreligious dialogue means avoiding hasty assumptions about the other.  We must keep in mind our need to overgeneralize or categorize the religious practice of another.  Isn’t it tempting to ask questions like, What are the three things that all Muslims (Buddhists, Hindis, etc) believe?  Interreligous dialogue is holy ground with much mystery and we must be patient and walk with humility and reverence.

If the church is to survive, it will practice radical hospitality in our multifaith world.  Hospitality is our salvation.  We must be willing to let go of the superiority complex so often demonstrated by Christians and truly look at the other as equal.  If we welcome the stranger with openness and respect, then the  stranger can enter and become a friend instead of an enemy. 

Hospitality is salvation.  And it has never been more important that Christians recognize this and learn how to practice true hospitality.  Amen.