Sermon for November 8 at Emmanuel, Mercer Island

This week in the mail I received my pledge card for 2016

            to fill out and bring back to church and put in the offering plate.

Yes, it’s that time of the year again,

            and I actually like it!

This year the mailing also included some graphics and information

            about the budget and what we use the money for here.

But beyond that what I “like” (?!) is the open opportunity

            for the preacher to talk about money and giving.

I mentioned this to Hunt earlier this week,

            and did he notice what the Gospel for today was?

                        and he had asked me, a Franciscan, to preach.

Hunt said maybe he should rethink this.

Yes, it’s dangerous to turn a Franciscan loose with a Gospel like today’s.

St. Francis of Assisi was a lot more than the patron saint of pets,

            or as common as the bird bath in garden décor.

Francis rejected his father’s wealth producing business,

            and, in fact, stripped himself of even the clothing his father’s wealth provided,

                        to embrace Lady Poverty

            and live in radical obedience to the Gospel.

Imagine for a moment how Francis would respond to today’s Gospel.

            Yes, he took it literally and followed the example

                        of the widow who gave all the money she had.

Let’s look at this Gospel and the context in which it takes place.

Why did Jesus, after cleaning out the Temple

            and taking on the chief priests and scribes and elders

                        with preaching heard by the crowd of people that had gathered,

            preaching that called out the hypocrisy of these holy leaders

                        and warned about following their example,

why did Jesus then sit down and watch the people putting their money

                                    in the “offering plate” of that day?

It wasn’t by accident or because he was tired and wanted to rest,

            or that he was checking out what everyone was wearing.

This was a purposeful action with an intention directly connected

            to what had just been happening and what he had just said.

It was part of his teaching. 

            “Here, guys, sit down beside me and watch.”

The disciples were going to see a living parable

            played out before them,

a lesson that they needed to observe closely and get

            before what was going to happen next.

And what was going to happen next?

Well, the setting is in the middle of Holy Week:

            between the entry into Jerusalem, and the purging of the Temple,

            and the Last Supper, the Garden of Gethsemane and you know the rest.

We heard the story:

            People are putting their offerings in the chest as they enter the Temple.

Some who are wealthy are giving their offerings

                        with a certain amount of flair

                        so that it is apparent that theirs is a substantial gift.

Good for them, that money will go into the building repair fund,

            or buy some new vessels and thuribles for the priests,

            or fund some special project.           

And then there is the widow.

The disciples would remember that Jesus had just said,

            “Beware of the scribes… They devour widows’ houses…”

Here is what you need to know:

Women in those days could not own property,

            indeed, they were essentially the property of their husbands.

If the husband died,

            then the property went to the sons.

            (Not the daughters, of course.)

If there were no sons,

            then the property is taken by some other close male relative.

The scribes, the doctors of the law, those who were learned in the Torah,

            were consulted in cases of interpretation

                                                                        of the Torah and the commandments.

In the case of a widow with no children,

            the widow was considered to have no value in the culture,

                                    since there were no children to raise,

            which would be the woman’s fault, of course – she was barren.

I think you can see where this is going:

            the door is wide open for neglect,

even though the scribes would have known full well

                        what the prophets had said

about God’s special care and attention to

                                                widows, orphans, the poor and the resident aliens.

So here comes a widow, no child in tow.

Jesus knows, as he always knows,

             exactly how much she has put into the treasury chest –

                        (probably very discretely)

                                                two tiny copper coins worth about a penny.

"Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more

            than all those who are contributing to the treasury.

For all of them have contributed out of their abundance;

            but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had,

            all she had to live on."

That was the living parable Jesus was showing his disciples.

Now, just when you thought I was going to launch into

                        a stewardship rant in this sermon,

            I am going to say that this is not about stewardship.

It’s about something else,

            the lesson the disciples were to observe.

A parable is a biblical mirror.

We look into it and see our own condition

            in how we respond or react to the parable.

Some will just scratch their heads and say I don’t get it.

“For this people’s heart has grown dull,

    and their ears are hard of hearing,

        and they have shut their eyes;

        so that they might not look with their eyes,

    and listen with their ears,

and understand with their heart and turn—

    and I would heal them.’”

the words of Jesus in Matthew 13:15 quoting from Isaiah 6:10.

But some will look into the mirror of the parable

            and discover a truth about themselves,

                        maybe a joyful thing, or maybe a moment of conviction.

"Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more

            than all those who are contributing to the treasury…”

This woman, poor, homeless, in desperate straits,

                        giving away ALL that she had to live on,

            is a living example of a life style of faith.

She is an exemplar of discipleship defined in terms of a life-style

                        of 100% self offering,

                        total non-possession.

Jesus was showing the disciples what he was asking of them.

Yes, I really think this was the point.

Didn’t he previously send them out two by two

            to proclaim the Kingdom of God was at hand?

And remember, he told them not to take anything with them,

            no money in their wallets, no provisions, no change of clothes.

He sent them out as penniless as that widow,

            totally dependent upon those to whom they were going

                        with their Gospel message of the Reign of God.

This is the life-style of the disciple,

                                                a life-style of faith.

Jesus shows them this poor woman, worthless to the culture,

            and presents her as an example

                                                            of fulfilling what it means to be a disciple.

These chosen twelve are to live with the same generosity,

            the same clarity,

            the same completeness of commitment and self-offering.

This is the way they are to be in the world

                        so that they will be a revelation of the Holy

                                                                                    and what the Reign of God is like.

This is the way to be the bearers of the Presence of Jesus,

                        the Resurrection Spirit of Jesus,

            that brings the power of liberation and redemption

in the midst of suffering, violence, greed and all that sucks life out of people.

Well now,

so for us, what do we see when we look into the mirror of this parable?

None of us here are a disciple of Jesus like that.

What kind of a disciple am I, or are you?

The widow gave all that she had, and why was that?

It is an indication that she has peace within herself in her relationship with             

a world that does not seem to be very kind to her,

and she has utter trust in God,

            who does not see her as worthless, merely an empty womb.

Last Sunday, our new Presiding Bishop for the Episcopal Church,

            Michael Curry, was installed at the National Cathedral,

and in his sermon he called for the church to be a church that follows Jesus,

            to be on the move, a Jesus Movement church.

And this will be the theme of our diocesan convention coming up

                                    the end of this week.

In his sermon Michael Curry made some points about following Jesus.

One the Church must go out to people declaring God’s liberating love.

            He talked of being agents of a creative engagement

                        between the world and the Gospel.

God knows the world is in need of some real liberating love!

There is also the image of meeting the resurrected Jesus in Galilee,

            what the angel told the women at the tomb,

                        “Go and tell the disciples that Jesus has risen

                                    and has gone before you to Galilee. 

                        You will meet him there.”

In the African American preaching tradition Galilee

            is wherever there is suffering, strife, oppression, violence and poverty.

There the healing, reconciling love of God is to be proclaimed and offered.

It is there in the places of suffering in the world

            and our engagement in that for the sake of God’s love

that the revelation of the Resurrection Jesus will be seen with clarity.

So a final word that may have some stewardship implications:

Security in this world is measured in ownership and insurance policies.

            For the world that is the faith system that is being lived out.

Where is your security? in ownership?  That is your faith system.

In faith and the accompanying joy and generous love that comes from an intimate encounter with God?  That is your security.

Don’t be afraid to look deeply into the mirror of the parable.

                        God’s liberating love is there.

Sermon at Emmanuel, 3rd Sunday after Pentecost

During spring break this year I went with my grandsons to Orlando,

            and we spent a few days totally enjoying the delights

                        of the Universal Theme Parks and Harry Potter World.

One of the things I particularly noticed was the various roller coasters

            and how they were rather different from the roller coasters of my youth.

Instead of the slow ascent to the highest point

                        and the acceleration of that first steep descent

            followed by a series of ups and downs,

today this amusement ride is much more creative and exhilarating.

For instance, the Incredible Hulk roller coaster ride

                                                                                    started slowly up the steep ascent,

            but then suddenly speeded up towards the top

            and then, instead of the dip down, it made a sharp turn to the left

                        and went into a corkscrew completely catching you off guard.

For me life is like the roller coaster ride:

            the butterflies in the stomach in nervous anticipation,

            the unexpected surprises,

            the rising to great heights and sudden drops to the depths,

            the feeling of being out of control and hanging on for dear life,

            the adrenaline rush that heightens awareness,

            the relief when the ride comes to an end.

This is a metaphor for life that I can relate too, especially regarding control.

            Forrest Gump says life is like a box of chocolates,

            and you may have another metaphor that works for you,

but usually whatever the metaphor, life is full of the unexpected.

“…we walk by faith, not by sight…”

That great Apostle and missionary Paul wrote this

            to the faith community in the Greek city of Corinth 2 millennia ago,

                        in a time of turbulence and uncertainty.

He was writing to people who knew the truth of these words,

            who experienced what it was like to enter the unknown

                        and place their faith in this new Savior,

            who discovered the presence of this Savior

                        in the Holy Spirit as an intimate encounter with the Divine

                                    in their innermost beings

                                    and in the midst of their fellowship with one another.

“…we walk by faith, not by sight…”

Today we are all taking part in witnessing

            and joining our prayers and support

for Victoria and John in the blessing of their marriage.

Love is most important in marriage, but faith is also needed.

            Who knows what will come?

            It will be a roller coaster ride, no doubt.

Love will be important.

But faith in God and God’s presence with you in all the surprises life will bring

            will see you through

so that the ride will be exhilarating rather than terrifying.

“…we walk by faith, not by sight…”

Dorian and her family have perhaps had more than the usual share

            of ups and downs in their roller coaster ride.

Hunt related to me something Dorian said.

He was visiting with Dorian and her son Mike

            the morning of an important doctor's appointment.

She said, “Mike, you know my faith is very important to me.

            I don't wear it on my sleeve,

            but I want you to know that it's very important to me.” 

 “…we walk by faith, not by sight…”

This statement, “…we walk by faith, not by sight…”, is truth for us

            when we experience that Holy Presence in our loves,

                        moving us in that innermost part of our being

                                    that is so hard for us to put into words,

                        but which we know to be as real as anything.

“…we walk by faith, not by sight…”

This faith is putting our trust into that Holy Presence in the innermost being

            which has no tangible dimension to measure empirically.

This faith is a surrendering of the illusion we hold onto

            about being in control of our lives.

This faith is a letting go, like raising your hands on the roller coaster

            as you go over the top.

“…we walk by faith, not by sight…”

The Apostle Paul continued writing:

For the love of Christ urges us on,

because we are convinced that one has died for all;

therefore all have died.

And he died for all,

so that those who live might live no longer for themselves,

but for him who died and was raised for them.

Paul was always making this connection with the death of Jesus,

            of our incorporation into this in a spiritual union.

For this is the way faith is at work in us,

            as a gift of that union with Christ in death and resurrection.

“…we walk by faith, not by sight…”

So if anyone is in Christ,

there is a new creation:

everything old has passed away;

see, everything has become new!

Because the resurrection Presence of Jesus is in us as Holy Spirit

            working in us as grace, making of us new creations,

                        bringing about something new in us,

faith will become much more reliable than sight.

It may look like stage 4 metastatic cancer,

                        and the body will soon be consumed by that,

            but there is a new creation of life going on that endures through all that.

Two lives come together in a surprising way

                        and a relationship develops and deepens,

and the journey changes in a way which brings new liveliness and mutuality,

            and who knows what else.

“…we walk by faith, not by sight…”

It is as if someone would scatter seed on the ground,

and would sleep and rise night and day,

and the seed would sprout and grow,

he does not know how.

The earth produces of itself,

first the stalk,

then the head,

then the full grain in the head.

As sure and as certain as this natural, organic process

                                                                                    of a seed sprouting and growing,

            so faith is planted by Holy Spirit in us where it sprouts and grows,

                                    and grows and grows

                        with the same potential as a mustard seed.

So what is faith?

It is letting yourself be attracted into Jesus

Now the thing about faith is that we really don’t know how it happens

            We have faith in the midst of what is happening

                        because of the relationships we have with those with us.

            We are willing to be related.

And we are not trusting for a specific outcome assured to go our way,

            turning out according to my expectations.

And so today here we are with Dorian:

            Dorian in your hearts and minds, your memories, in your feelings

                        in your relationships is still alive for you.

She is there in you; she is with you and you in her .

But you are no longer in her like you were.

But she is still in you like she was.

And you can remember her and feel her and hear her voice,

            you can see her in the mind’s eye.

You can remember when she dealt shortly with you,

            and you can remember when she did everything she could

                        to give you what you wanted.

You can remember that she is still in you.

And you know there is a bigger framework here,

            because we go through death, but what we are does not die.

What do we know about that?  What do you know about yourself

            as you face this death?

This death? Is it a “birth?” Is it a divorce from this life?  Is it a tragedy?

            Is it a loss or a gain?  What do you think?

And we are here today with John and Victoria.

At every wedding we pledge our support of the couple,

            and most of us know enough about the bride and groom

                        to have some questions or considerations

                        and wonder what their chances are for the long run

-- and oh, I have had a number of weddings where I had my doubts --

But at the very same time we are happy and celebrating with the couple

                        on their special occasion.

Wherever we are or whatever we think about them or who they are

            we support the couple.            -- This is an act of faith.

So this marriage of John and Victoria.

I want to ask you two, John, Victoria, to stand up,

            and turn around so people can see you.

Look at them.  They found one another. 

You know where they discovered each other?  At a funeral!

This is a miracle that we must support.

            You two found one another.

What follows next in the liturgy today

            is the opportunity for all of us to bless John and Victoria.

And we follow that with the Eucharist, the Great Thanksgiving,

            which has also been likened to the Marriage Feast of the Lamb.

And we will join our voices with angels and archangels

                        and all the company of heaven,

            and Dorian is here with us,

                        as well as so many others we have known and loved.

Life can be exhilarating or terrifying;

life can be threatening or enticing,

            and the events of life can take us to the heights and to the depths.

We can have faith that when life is being like a roller coaster ride,

            taking us where we may not want to go,

the Resurrection Presence of Jesus is carrying us through.

And for me when I get to the end of the ride, I want to say,

“Thank you! What a great ride!”

Nepal Update, May 3

This afternoon I had a conversation with my sister, Barbara.  She had gotten word about the Shree Mahankal Primary  School in the tiny village I told you about in my sermon earlier today.  One of the teachers was able to hike out of the village around avalanches to get to a phone to contact Tula.  The word is that the village was decimated, most all the houses destroyed, but the new parts of the school remained standing.  They are currently being used as shelter for those who lost their homes.  We are so thankful for this.  Please continue to pray for the people who are injured and who have lost loved ones.  Pray for speedy efforts in getting safe water and food to everyone.  And help us in the long term effort that will now be required in rebuilding.

Previously:

From the Rev. Barbara Novak, Deacon, St. John's Cathedral, Diocese of Spokane:

Far East Handicrafts has been importing many handcrafted items and Buddhist and Hindu ritual items from Nepal for over 25 years. Since 1998 the Stephen R Novak Foundation has been partnering with Tula Shakya and Himalayan Lotus Crafts to sponsor the Shree Mahankal Primary School in a hill tribe village southeast of Kathmandu and outside of the Kathmandu Valley. We have also partnered with Joy Foundation Nepal to provide free eye care and cataract surgery for remote hill tribe villagers.

The 7.8 magnitude earthquake that struck Kathmandu on April 24, 2015, has devastated Nepal. I wish I was there to help. But what I can do is make a plea for monetary donations to the Stephen R Novak Foundation. 

As always, 100% of all donations will go to rescue efforts in Nepal. All donations are tax deductible because of our 501(c)3 status. 

Donations can be sent to St. John’s Cathedral and marked for the Stephen R Novak Foundation, or sent directly to me at: 1822 E 34thAve. Spokane, WA 99203.

Sermon for May 3

This last weekend I was in Spokane giving my sister some relief

                                    in caring for my 91 year old mother.

They live together, and Barbara provides total care for Mom

            along with the help of a few home health aides,

so whenever possible I go over there to give her a break.

On Saturday morning we got the news

                                                                        about the huge earthquake that hit Nepal.

It is bad enough to try to comprehend the extent of such a natural disaster,

            but for us the impact of the news was worse,

                        because in a real sense people there are second family to us.

In 1995 when my first son-in-law and my nephew, Barb’s son,

                        were killed in a recreational accident,

            one of the outcomes was that Barb came into possession

                                    of her son Steve’s import business from Nepal.

It was then that we discovered that he had been quietly taking business profits

            and turning them back into public works projects in Nepal.

My sister is a deacon in the Diocese of Spokane

                                                                                    and serves at the Cathedral there,

            and suddenly she was seeing a whole new diaconal ministry opening up.

A few months later she and I were in Nepal meeting the people there

            that Steve had been working with.

We fell in love with the people and the country

            despite the unstable political situation, the poverty and corruption.

Yet there is a beauty to Nepal like no other,

            reflected both in the Annapurna mountain range

                        that is a whole string of mountains twice the height of Mt. Rainier,

            and in the beauty and sweetness of the hard working people.

My sister established a non-profit foundation in memory of her son

            and has used it to support some great work in Nepal,

                        most significantly with a school in a tiny village

                                    just outside the Kathmandu Valley.

When she first visited this village, the road only went so far;

            then they had to get out and walk the rest of the way.

The village was so poor they didn’t even have garbage,

            and the school – grades K through 4 –

            had a chalk board, a couple of well worn books and an small globe.

                                                                                                                                    That was it.

The foundation began supplying educational materials

            and working with the villagers to build new classrooms

                        and the first toilets in the village.

Scholarships were given to provide for schooling beyond the 4^th grade,

            which covered tuition, uniforms, and books

                        for children to leave the village to continue study.

First it was boys, but Barbara also encouraged girls to get these scholarships.

More girls started attending school,

            and each year Barb would come to the village

                        and hand out back packs filled with school supplies.

The mothers then came to Barb and asked for classes for them too.

When she first came to the village the only local industry was

            hand pounding large rocks into little rocks for use in road construction.

After a few years of support from the foundation for the school,

            the whole village began to improve

            and diversify in trade and in what could be manufactured.

And, yes, every time Barb was in Nepal, she registered at the US embassy,

            not because of political unrest,

            but because everyone knew that THE Earthquake was overdue.

It was important to know who and how many US citizen were there

            for alerting families back home of survivors and casualties.

And so it finally happened, THE Earthquake,

            and for a desperate 24 hours we heard nothing from Nepal.

Then a call came from Tula Shankya,

                                                            the head of the Kathmandu Handicrafters Guild.

            He and his family had survived the first earthquake and aftershocks.

            Their home had been so damaged that they were sleeping outside

                        with so many others in parks and open spaces.

Barb has continued to be in daily communication with him and now others,

            but there have been some losses and some we have not yet heard from.

The school and the village, we haven’t heard anything from them yet.

Now why do I tell you all of this?

The answer is in the Gospel and the Epistle reading for today.

Jesus said, “I am the vine, you are the branches.”

            “Abide in me as I abide in you.”

That divine oneness with God that Jesus lived

            is what he shares with us in a very organic way in this parable.

He is the vine, he supplies life to the branches.

            The branches are all part of that one organic life, that one organism.

No matter how far away one branch may be from another,

                                    the branches are all connected.

Our lives are organically connected,

            even if we live on opposite sides of the planet from each other.

If we abide, that is live in, realize that our source of life is in Jesus,

            we will come to recognize that truth of organic connection.

            We will come to recognize that every living being is brother or sister.

            We will actually come to realize that if another hurts,

                        I am hurting too.

We feel that most easily with those we love and who are near us,

            but have we matured enough to feel it with those whom we don’t see,

                                                                                                who are farther from us?

Have we matured spiritually enough to feel this?

From the first epistle of John, a rich passage packed with wisdom, we hear:

“Beloved, let us love one another, because love is from God…

Beloved, since God loved us so much, we also ought to love one another.”

“God is love,

            and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them.…

God sent his only Son into the world so that we might live through him.…

By this we know that we abide in him and he in us,

                                                                        because he has given us of his Spirit.…

We love because he first loved us.”

And, “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear;

            …whoever fears has not reached perfection in love.”

Love – that is what I am about – love.

            You should know that about me by now.

Love lived out in relationship:

            relationships with those who are near

                                                and those who are far away,

                        with those with whom we have a natural affinity and attraction,

                        and those who are hard to get along with,

                                    those we dislike and those we fear.

Love that comes from God and is given to us

                                                                        casts out fear.

When fear is cast out we may come to see

            that those we disliked or even hated

                        were actually ones we feared.

Then the whole relationship gets reconfigured.

Once we have looked into each others’ eyes and breathed the same air,

            it is only a small step

                                                to seeing that we are indeed related.

We are more similar than different.

We are all branches on the same vine.

We all have the same Divine Source of what animates our bodies

                                                                                                and our consciousness.

Then the practical application of this spirituality of love is easy and apparent.

In the Gospel for today Jesus says to his disciples,

            “Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit,

            because apart from me you can do nothing. …

            My Father is glorified by this,

            that you bear much fruit and become my disciples."

And what is that fruit?  It is the mission of the disciples,

            which is to carry out the same love and service that Jesus gave,

                        the very same self-giving that Jesus demonstrated

                                    with each person who came to him.

So when things like this earthquake happen,

or a senseless death at the hands of those who are meant to protect life,

or angry, frustrated rioting,

            love activates a response.

We do what we can – give, pray,

                                    or more: engaging in direct service.

We are always given a chance to activate love.

Every day the news brings us new opportunities.

If we say we love God,

            but ignore all these opportunities to love our neighbor,

then we are either lying to ourselves,

            or have gone numb inside and are hiding out.

Now, we don’t have to wear ourselves to a frazzle

                                    in attempts to respond to everything.

Each of us needs to discern which opportunity to respond to

            according to what each of us has to offer.

And then live that love everyday in selfless service.

The Resurrection Presence of Jesus is ready to flood hearts that are open

            with Divine Love,

                        Love that can transform our vision                                   

                        and empower us to respond in ways we never could imagine.

If you want to help our sisters and brothers in Nepal,

            I can tell you about one way.

Talk with me after the Eucharist.

If the situation in Baltimore pulls at your heart,

            examine your own reactions

            and look deeper at racism here as well as there.

If you are engaged in a ministry that has captured your heart,

            then may the Holy Spirit empower you to bear much fruit.

And above all, love.