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Back to Sermon ArchivesNovember
16, 2008
The Rev. John Auer
Scripture: Judges 4:4-7, First Thessalonians 5:5-8, Matthew
25:19-27
“Barak and Beyond: At Least a Little Interest Is
Better Than None?”
The title means to me, what’s happening in our public life today takes such launching
from, yet is so much larger than, a man also named Barack. And in that same
public life today, a little interest of any kind goes a very long way. So
how can any lectionary preacher pass up the chance this morning to connect with
“Barak son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Napthali?” After all the calculated pretenses
not to know who Barack is? Where he comes from? Where he got his name?
A reluctant warrior, a warrior of last resort, perhaps, but nonetheless a warrior
– responding to such unexpected, hitherto silenced sources -- to the judge Deborah.
She is the evolution of a long line of “organizers” first trained by Moses to relieve
the pressures of leadership on him. Women leaders can be decisive and strong
-- even as men leaders can be diplomatic and gentle.
This parable is no game of beanbag. It is time for consummating God’s ends
on the earth – time for consuming all our excuses, all our escapes. It’s time
to face up to who we say God is, what God is at last about – and who we say we are
in response to who God is, what God wants. We look at this crippling
crisis we’re in. Each passing day, another church member or friend is hurt
by eroding pensions, job losses, home foreclosures, bankruptcies. The system
of usury – of money making money -- no longer works. The first two servants
love that system as it is. They love all that risk – all that debt-denying
and death-defying daredevil doubling of other folks’ money! They play the
system perfectly. They double investments immediately. They succeed
to perfection. They swell with pride at what we know can often be cheap commendation
and phony promotion.
The third servant (whom I admit I identify with – I am no warrior!) comes across
as timid, if not intimidated. He wants to stay on good terms with a master,
a boss, he knows is inherently, even systemically, harsh and unjust. He wants
to bear some kind of witness against the system – like refusal to go along with
it. But he does not want to engage in systemic change – in resistance in behalf
of a new system more apt to be working for all. He opts out, he drops out,
he buries himself in the ground. He is afraid of facing the consequences of
change.
He thinks, I’d rather give back to life just exactly what I received, thank you
very much – no more, no less – nothing ventured, nothing gained – no punishment,
no reward -- no other option. Yet the God of Jesus, the God of life, keeps
on loving freely and making demands. “The grace of his love overflows the
banks of our selfishness and false security,” one theologian says. “Faith
is not something that we keep in a safe to protect it. Faith is a life
which is expressed in life and in gift to our neighbor. In the gospels
being afraid is equivalent to having no faith!”
Ouch! We remember only “perfect love” casts out our fears. But where
shall we find “perfect love?” What are the odds against love prevailing as
ethic in this system, in this world? How can we love without taking risks,
we wonder? Without joining in struggle for human and common rights and
responsibilities?
Jesus telling such stories as this means to blow the minds of his times and
ours. Especially these stories he tells on the way up to Jerusalem to meet
his death at the hands of the powers of the very same market system corrupting
values then. The Jesus of this story heads right for the Temple courtyard
to throw out the money-changers. Jesus seeks to provoke us – to get our
attention, to wake us up, to smell the Fair-Trade coffee, to take in at least a
little of what’s going on, to think at least a little for ourselves. Jesus
takes away our sins, not our minds.
Jesus is trying to shake us up – upside down, inside out – with a whole new reality!
This one we call Kingdom and Kin-dom of God! Like any good organizer,
Jesus tries to work himself out of a job – to prepare us for his departure – his
execution, resurrection, ascension – coinciding with our arrival at
understanding our own true selves! That’s why we are baptized and
confirmed, and why we join the church. Church is an office prepared for us
from beginnings of time – to be the body of Christ -- partners and co-creators
with the one who is Creator of all.
Baptism is our ordination into the myriad ministries of everyday life – ministries
meant to multiply, to spread the reign of creation -- freely life-giving and fully
love-sharing. Julie and I were mind-blown in this way at the ordination/ installation
of the new pastor at the Unitarian Universality Fellowship last Sunday night.
Some peers from seminary and colleagues in ministry in the Bay Area invited him
to kneel and laid him a long and weighty “Charge to Counter Oppression” – which
sounded so strange to tradition – yet consisted essentially in the very questions
we ask of all who come for baptism. We are asked to take on the struggle to
undo effects of evil and sin, bondage and death, oppression and exploitation – by
justice and mercy, passion and power – to save and set free, to heal and make whole
– giving baptismal life, sharing communal love!
No wonder we take our sacraments so seriously. They are both source and
sign of our lives and our life together. Both baptism and communion spring
from Jesus’ own life and work. Some traditions count other sacraments –
such as confirmation, marriage, ordination, anointment. Every time we
perform a wedding – as we do often -- at the end of the ceremony, I sign a
license. For whom? Whose work am I doing? And paid nothing for
it? In fact, fingerprinted and licensed myself for the right to do it?
I do it for the State of Nevada!
Clearly, marriage anywhere in the United States is a partnership of “church and
state,” religious and political communities. The license is a legal, a civil,
a constitutional document. The right to it must be protected as such.
Marriage does not belong to the church alone. For most Protestants it is not
a sacrament but an ordinance, a tradition. We have handed it down in changeable
ways, shapes, and forms for most, though not all, of our history. The history
of marriage is full of profound adjustments to changing times and relations.
In fact, marriage as we commonly know it is only arguably even scriptural!
The Bible is full of all kinds of “models” of marriage. Outside of turning
the water into wine so the party at Cana could continue, Jesus, and Paul, raise
serious questions as to whether disciples of faith have any time to marry and
raise families.
Former nun Elizabeth McAlister, who married former priest Phil Berrigan, writes
in an article, “Is Marriage Obsolete?” – “The gospel parable of the talents
reveals that fidelity can’t be identified with preservation of the status quo.
No! Fidelity involves continuous vigilance against the inertia of
conformism and the sclerosis of habit. Because authentic existence is a
pilgrimage, faithfulness must be supple or it collapses into betrayal.”
That’s why this master comes across as so tough and demanding -- reaping where
he did not sow, gathering where he did not scatter. We would much rather
act on the values and commitments of some nice, normal master than we would be
challenged to keep seeking new answers to all the old questions. But we
are so crushed by this crisis today – a crisis not only of economic but of
ecological, ecumenical – crisis of all our commitments and values -- we
know neither one of these strategies works for us all any more.
Those who have much already are getting still more. Those who have nothing
already are getting still less. Yet the alternative just to opt out, drop
out, bury ourselves in the ground and hope for the best – that alternative lets
evil and oppression prosper. At least the third servant calls things as he
sees them. He sees the corruption of the system and names it for what it is.
This master may not, after all, be God but Mammon! The servant tries to speak
his truth to power. Hew refuses to participate in or perpetuate this injustice.
Yet no way can we follow Jesus without risk – without urgency in the face of uncertainty,
without persistence in the face of persecution. As Gandhi demonstrates, the
alternative to violence is not passivity. It is active nonviolent resistance
and civil (or ecclesial) disobedience. That’s what is lacking in the third servant’s
response.
Jesus is urging us with his whole being to find the courage to follow our impulse
to change toward some kind of ethically working conclusion. Jesus challenges
us to imagine all possibilities. Not to play it safe. Not to take the
path of least resistance. But to rise up! Dig ourselves out! Unbury
ourselves – and our resources! Head for the promised land. Ask ourselves
what is “buried” about us this morning? How are we hidden? Or closeted?
Of what may we be so afraid or ashamed as never to risk or reveal ourselves?
Come out, come out, wherever we are! We have seen signs – in bits and
pieces, and fits and starts – here and there and now and then – of a sleeping giant
– we are not sleepwalking, we are awake! – and a sweeping change – toward liberation
and inclusiveness for us all.
Justice is the opening of every door to every person and every people. It
is not closing a door just to open a window and call it a door. Marriage by
any other name is not marriage. We know that. We know marriage is long-term,
loving covenanted and committed relationship – blessed by beloved and beloving community.
We know those who were once slaves had to win the legal right to marry. We
know those who were divorced had to win the legal right to re-marry. We know
that persons of differing colors and races had to win the right to marry.
We know that persons with special needs and conditions had to win the right to marry.
We know, with Dr. King, “the moral arc of the universe is long – but it bends toward
justice.” And, “We are not where we want to be, we are not where we’re going
to be, but thank God, we are not where we used to be!”
Let us learn from this servant not to give up. Not to give up on ourselves.
Not to give up on each other. Not to give up on our family and friends, our
neighbors and our communities. Not even to give up on our communities of faith
– for God is not done even with us yet! Not to give up on our states, our
nations, our world.
Not to give up on creation herself. For we are entrusted with all things in
Christ.
And, Amen.
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