As my last post indicated, each gospel has its own character, and the Revised Common Lectionary makes this fact less clear.
Well, I can’t just leave it like that—complain and not suggest a fix for said complaint.
So, here is my bare bones proposal for how to re-organize the lectionary:
Year 1: Matthew, The Law, Non-Pauline Letters
Matthew goes to certain lengths to connect Jesus with Moses and the Law, what better place to point this out than in the books of the Bible we read. Additionally, giving the non-Pauline letters some space to talk to the church on their own seems healthy.
Year 2: Mark, The Histories, Pauline Letters
Mark is a shorter Gospel, but that just means we can focus on smaller sections of Mark and larger sections of Paul and really get to know the history and story found in Joshua, Judges, Ruth, Samuel, Kings, Chronicles, Ezra-Nehemiah, and Ester.
Year 3: Luke, The Prophets, The Book of Acts
Reconnecting Luke and Acts, since they are by the same author and two halves of his same story, makes good sense. Luke’s focus on some of the social and economic aspects of Jesus’ ministry and world he lives in echoes in the Prophetic books of Hebrew Scripture.
Year 4: John, Wisdom Literature, The Book of Revelation
Sigh with me for a second, feel the extra space? The gospel of John finally gets to breath! As I indicated in the previous post one of the ways to describe Jesus as Word of God is “Incarnate Divine Proverb.” Well, what better place to look at Wisdom Literature than side by side with a gospel that proclaims Wisdom’s incarnation. As for Revelation, both authors are known as John, and both describe Jesus in ways that differ greatly from the other Gospels. Additionally, wrestling with Revelation for a whole year might force main-line churches to admit that this strain of apocalyptic literature is our property too.
Thoughts?
Friday, December 02, 2011
What I learned in Seminary 2: Gospels
In New Testament 1 it was hammered home that each gospel has its own character.
Specifically, Dr. Mattison sharply focuses on the variety of values expressed in each gospel. She sharpened this reality by her “Creed assignments.” We wrote a creed focusing on the particular values of each gospel. Additionally, we looked at one particular piece of scripture which occurred in multiple gospels and compared and contrasted gospel to gospel.
Mark is a gospel with a jagged edge. Its grammar is rough and Mark’s two favorite words are “and” and “Immediately.” It feels like he is breathlessly telling the Jesus story, and once finishing running to the next village or campfire to tell it again. Mark, while affirming Jesus as Son of God, has not fully worked out the meaning of the statement as clearly as the other gospels. Or, alternatively, what he worked out is simply a much “lower” understanding of Son of God than the other authors. He is very aware that the gospel story is a Jewish story about a Rabbi from Galilee.
Matthew ensures that the Jewish story he is telling meshes with the Jewish scriptures he knows. He ties Jesus to King David and the Patriarch Abraham. Jesus acts as a second Moses who is leading people to repentance. He is salt and light in a bland and dark world, and those who repentant are in turn to be savory and illuminating as well.
Luke’s gospel is an apology for Christianity to a gentile audience. Jesus’ lineage goes all the way back to Adam, thus making him the son of not only the Jewish Patriarch, but the son of all of humanity. Additionally, the gentile worldview sneaks into this gospel in several ways. The spiritual universe the story is set in is much more peopled than the other gospels; in other words, there are more angels. Also, Jesus expresses himself less with action and more with words. Additionally, Luke very clearly does not know the geography of the holy land, and assumes his readers don’t either. Luke has a tendency to emphasize the crowds around Jesus and has a greater concern for economic issues than the other writers.
And then there is John. There is a lot more philosophical proclamation about Jesus in this last gospel. Jesus has become a sort of super-man, the kind of King Mel Gibson pointed to in his film about Jesus. John proclaims Jesus to be, “Incarnate Divine Proverb” the very Word of God and because of that He is shown to be very aware of everything that is happening to him. John uses a phrase that I have found fascinating for a long time. “I am.” This is derived from the Divine Name and is used to affirm Jesus’ nature throughout the Gospel of John.
I learned that it is no enough to talk about the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Instead, we must speak of the Gospels—of different good news for people of different places and times. This is why gospel harmonies do a disservice to the unique content of each book.
For that same reason the three year lectionary cycle that most churches use, in which Matthew, Mark, or Luke are focused on and the gospel of John is focused on during “special” Sundays, muddles the very clear variety of Good News handed down to the Church.
Finally, Dr. Mattison, through her in-depth and unique assignments, insisted that part of being a pastor is creativity.
Specifically, Dr. Mattison sharply focuses on the variety of values expressed in each gospel. She sharpened this reality by her “Creed assignments.” We wrote a creed focusing on the particular values of each gospel. Additionally, we looked at one particular piece of scripture which occurred in multiple gospels and compared and contrasted gospel to gospel.
Mark is a gospel with a jagged edge. Its grammar is rough and Mark’s two favorite words are “and” and “Immediately.” It feels like he is breathlessly telling the Jesus story, and once finishing running to the next village or campfire to tell it again. Mark, while affirming Jesus as Son of God, has not fully worked out the meaning of the statement as clearly as the other gospels. Or, alternatively, what he worked out is simply a much “lower” understanding of Son of God than the other authors. He is very aware that the gospel story is a Jewish story about a Rabbi from Galilee.
Matthew ensures that the Jewish story he is telling meshes with the Jewish scriptures he knows. He ties Jesus to King David and the Patriarch Abraham. Jesus acts as a second Moses who is leading people to repentance. He is salt and light in a bland and dark world, and those who repentant are in turn to be savory and illuminating as well.
Luke’s gospel is an apology for Christianity to a gentile audience. Jesus’ lineage goes all the way back to Adam, thus making him the son of not only the Jewish Patriarch, but the son of all of humanity. Additionally, the gentile worldview sneaks into this gospel in several ways. The spiritual universe the story is set in is much more peopled than the other gospels; in other words, there are more angels. Also, Jesus expresses himself less with action and more with words. Additionally, Luke very clearly does not know the geography of the holy land, and assumes his readers don’t either. Luke has a tendency to emphasize the crowds around Jesus and has a greater concern for economic issues than the other writers.
And then there is John. There is a lot more philosophical proclamation about Jesus in this last gospel. Jesus has become a sort of super-man, the kind of King Mel Gibson pointed to in his film about Jesus. John proclaims Jesus to be, “Incarnate Divine Proverb” the very Word of God and because of that He is shown to be very aware of everything that is happening to him. John uses a phrase that I have found fascinating for a long time. “I am.” This is derived from the Divine Name and is used to affirm Jesus’ nature throughout the Gospel of John.
I learned that it is no enough to talk about the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Instead, we must speak of the Gospels—of different good news for people of different places and times. This is why gospel harmonies do a disservice to the unique content of each book.
For that same reason the three year lectionary cycle that most churches use, in which Matthew, Mark, or Luke are focused on and the gospel of John is focused on during “special” Sundays, muddles the very clear variety of Good News handed down to the Church.
Finally, Dr. Mattison, through her in-depth and unique assignments, insisted that part of being a pastor is creativity.
Saturday, October 22, 2011
Quote of the Day: A bad prediction
"Thus we have learned that except for a somewhat different understanding of the words “earthquake” and “rapture” or “catching up” no other past teachings of Judgment Day or the end of the world have been changed. The time line, the certainty of it, the proofs, and the signs are all precisely the same. No other past teachings have been changed or modified. Indeed, on May 21 Christ did come spiritually to put all of the unsaved throughout the world into judgment. But that universal judgment will not be physically seen until the last day of the five month judgment period, on October 21, 2011."--Harold Camping
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Or they could do a Commercial
Yesterday I mentioned a few directions that Occupy Wall Street could go in. Part of the not so subtle subtext of my post was that Adbusters was sort of hijacking a movement that had multiple voices.
Well, today OWS came out with a TV commercial expressing the viewpoints of a few protesters. I like it!
Check it out here
Well, today OWS came out with a TV commercial expressing the viewpoints of a few protesters. I like it!
Check it out here
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
What I would advocate for if I was “in charge” of Occupy Wall Street
One of the main complaints about Occupy Wall Street is that, despite their initial billing, they do not have “one demand.” Adbusters, who helped started this movement does have one demand planned, they want to add a 1% tax on all financial transactions and currency trades in the world.
Thinking about how Adbusters intends to transform the wide variety of voices participating in the Occupy Wall Street protests into a singular voice on a singular issue, I thought I would offer a few other options.
1. Tough enforcement of Dodd-Frank—There is a fair bit of worry from people who think Dodd-Frank didn’t go far enough to make sure “too big to fail” doesn’t happen again. Even worse, the implementation of Dodd-Frank might be softer than intended because businesses will flex their muscle and their money in order to be regulated as little as possible. If OWS-folk started to wave signs saying, “Enforce Dodd-Frank or the people will”—or less inflammatory—“The 99% are behind tough enforcement of Dodd-Frank” this issue would come to the forefront.
2. Target Citizens United—We have seen a little of this, signs saying things like, “I won’t believe corporations are people until they execute one in Texas” but we could see a lot more of this. For more on this idea check out Dahlia Lithwick’s article on slate.
3. Advocate for a Jobs Bill—Obama is now trying to pass his Jobs Bill in pieces. NPR is in fact constantly comparing this piecemeal set of Job bills to putting less meat in a sandwich. Most people see this as a defeat for those who want to lessen unemployment… but OWS could see this as an opportunity. They could hold breakout sessions in which they write their own Job Bills, effectively adding meat to the President’s sandwich. After these bills were written they would then have to go through the hard work of rallying the troops to email and call their representatives, exerting people powered pressure in order to grease the wheels of our great representative democracy and show the world that the dream of ancient Athens, and the dream penned in that Philadelphia state house nearly two hundred and twenty five years ago—of people shaping their own destiny through compromise, persuasion, and rightly representing the voice, the vision, and the needs, of the 99%--is still alive and well.
Thinking about how Adbusters intends to transform the wide variety of voices participating in the Occupy Wall Street protests into a singular voice on a singular issue, I thought I would offer a few other options.
1. Tough enforcement of Dodd-Frank—There is a fair bit of worry from people who think Dodd-Frank didn’t go far enough to make sure “too big to fail” doesn’t happen again. Even worse, the implementation of Dodd-Frank might be softer than intended because businesses will flex their muscle and their money in order to be regulated as little as possible. If OWS-folk started to wave signs saying, “Enforce Dodd-Frank or the people will”—or less inflammatory—“The 99% are behind tough enforcement of Dodd-Frank” this issue would come to the forefront.
2. Target Citizens United—We have seen a little of this, signs saying things like, “I won’t believe corporations are people until they execute one in Texas” but we could see a lot more of this. For more on this idea check out Dahlia Lithwick’s article on slate.
3. Advocate for a Jobs Bill—Obama is now trying to pass his Jobs Bill in pieces. NPR is in fact constantly comparing this piecemeal set of Job bills to putting less meat in a sandwich. Most people see this as a defeat for those who want to lessen unemployment… but OWS could see this as an opportunity. They could hold breakout sessions in which they write their own Job Bills, effectively adding meat to the President’s sandwich. After these bills were written they would then have to go through the hard work of rallying the troops to email and call their representatives, exerting people powered pressure in order to grease the wheels of our great representative democracy and show the world that the dream of ancient Athens, and the dream penned in that Philadelphia state house nearly two hundred and twenty five years ago—of people shaping their own destiny through compromise, persuasion, and rightly representing the voice, the vision, and the needs, of the 99%--is still alive and well.
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
sermon: Christians Sing Cross Shaped Songs
Christians have been singing for a long time.
During the Communist era in East Germany, Christians sang songs of resistance and peace—songs about swords turning into plowshares—as the walls of authoritarian oppression came tumbling down.
During the Civil Rights era, hymn writer Charles Tidley’s song “We Shall Overcome” became the theme song for racial equality and justice.
During the Reformation, traditional bar tunes were overlaid with words that conveyed Luther’s understanding of God’s grace.
During the early period of the church, as questions surrounding the divinity of Jesus and the meaning of the Trinity were debated, songs were written to express these complex ideas in simple, and memorable, ways.
You could even say Christian theologies, and Christian ethics, are not fully formed until they can be sung.
Often times Pastors fancy themselves the theologian of the church—but I would venture to say the church musician is in fact the theologian of the church—because church musicians choose the words that the church sings.
And today—in Paul’s letter to the Philippians—we read the earliest recorded Christian hymn—commonly called the Christ Hymn.
“Christ, who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to grasp.
Christ, who emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness and being found in human form.
Christ, who humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
Christ, who God also highly exalted and gave the name that is above every name
Christ, at whose name every knee shall bow in heaven, on earth, and even under the earth
Christ, confessed by every tongue as Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
And at the center of this hymn—smack dab in the middle—between the section that deals with emptying and the section that deals with exaltation—is the phrase, “even death on a cross.” “Even death on a cross.”
And, this section of early Christian song—this hymned phrase, “Even death on a cross.”—is a paradigm, a blueprint, a model,
for the songs that alight from the lips of the faithful of every age. It is the refrain of every Christian song.
Know today that Christians Sing Cross Shaped Songs. Christians Sing Cross Shaped Songs.
Let us pray—
Christians Sing Cross Shaped Songs.
Our songs are songs like that of the Christ Hymn found in Philippians. Our songs are songs of emptying and exaltation. Songs that affirm two things.
First that: God is in the last place we would think to look.
Second that: Nothing looks the same after God finds us.
God is in the last place we would think to look.
The reason we find this Cross Shaped Song in Paul’s letter to the Philippians is because the cross was the last place that Paul would have ever thought to look for God.
You see, the Apostle Paul, before his conversion, was a strict interpreter of scripture. He read the Bible carefully and when he came into contact with Christians, and they told him about their messiah—when they told him that Jesus had died on the cross—he said,
“Well then, I know you must be wrong. After all scripture says that all who die on a tree are cursed and God would not curse His Messiah. Therefore, Jesus is not the Messiah.”
In other words, Paul was proof texting. He was using Deuteronomy chapter 21 to prove that God could not—in any way—be doing something in the life of Jesus, or in the life of Jesus’ followers, because of the way Jesus died.
He believed God could never be there. The cross of Christ was not a place to find God.
But then, on Paul’s way to the city of Damascus, he had an experience that made him changed his tune—that made him sing a new song. He had to hum an impossible hymn.
He intoning that the immortal put on mortal flesh—the fullness of all things became empty. He sang that the One who cannot die, died. He chanted that the King of Kings was crucified, like, and with, criminals.
He had to sing that cross-shaped song that the Christians he met were singing to him—that Christians continue to sing. And part of that melody is admitting that God is in the last place we would think to look.
Some of you, who came to my ordination last week, mentioned to me that the service was wonderful—the sermon was great—the Bishop was warm and friendly—everything made sense—everything seemed right—except the neighborhood the ordination happened in.
The part of Trenton my ordination happened in was a rough neighborhood—a neighborhood you might not expect to go to for an ordination. You could even say it would be the last place you would think to look for an ordination at.
Yet there was Trinity Cathedral—there the Word of God was proclaimed—there ordination vows were taken—there communion was received. Perhaps the last place you would think to look… but there it was.
So too with God.
The Christian song, however, does not end with this first stanza—that God is in the last place we would think to look.
No. It continues on, as we sing out, “Nothing looks the same after God finds us.”
Listen to what Paul is singing about this humiliated man on the cross—this man emptied of Godhood—this Jesus.
He sings out that God exalted him—that his name is above all names—that all of creation bows before him and confesses his Lordship!
Paul himself—at Damascus—fell down and made this confession.
Paul makes this confession—he sings out this song of exultation—even as he copes with the fact that Jesus was crucified on a cursed cross
—even death on a cross.
And think of how the way Paul viewed the world changed, when he was confronted with God’s messiah on the cross!
Paul’s religiosity—his proof-texting—spoke against God—nothing looked the same.
The crucifying power of the Roman Empire became weakness—nothing looked the same.
The wisdom of this world became foolishness—nothing looked the same.
Every piece of reality, every piece of Paul’s very self, was confronted by the cross, and nothing looked the same.
I remember when I received my first pair of glasses—you see I can’t see the big E on the eye chart without glasses or contacts.
All of a sudden I could see the blackboard in the classroom,
I could see people’s faces,
I could read street signs from far away!
Through those glasses lenses nothing looked the same.
The cross of Christ is that kind of lens as well. When we look through it, nothing looks the same.
And that is the song we sing.
Christians sing cross shaped songs.
The repetitive refrain of our song is Cross—Cross—Cross.
The first verse is “God is in the last place we would think to look.”
The second verse is “Nothing looks the same after God finds us.”
Cross
Cross
Cross.
A+A
During the Communist era in East Germany, Christians sang songs of resistance and peace—songs about swords turning into plowshares—as the walls of authoritarian oppression came tumbling down.
During the Civil Rights era, hymn writer Charles Tidley’s song “We Shall Overcome” became the theme song for racial equality and justice.
During the Reformation, traditional bar tunes were overlaid with words that conveyed Luther’s understanding of God’s grace.
During the early period of the church, as questions surrounding the divinity of Jesus and the meaning of the Trinity were debated, songs were written to express these complex ideas in simple, and memorable, ways.
You could even say Christian theologies, and Christian ethics, are not fully formed until they can be sung.
Often times Pastors fancy themselves the theologian of the church—but I would venture to say the church musician is in fact the theologian of the church—because church musicians choose the words that the church sings.
And today—in Paul’s letter to the Philippians—we read the earliest recorded Christian hymn—commonly called the Christ Hymn.
“Christ, who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to grasp.
Christ, who emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness and being found in human form.
Christ, who humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
Christ, who God also highly exalted and gave the name that is above every name
Christ, at whose name every knee shall bow in heaven, on earth, and even under the earth
Christ, confessed by every tongue as Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
And at the center of this hymn—smack dab in the middle—between the section that deals with emptying and the section that deals with exaltation—is the phrase, “even death on a cross.” “Even death on a cross.”
And, this section of early Christian song—this hymned phrase, “Even death on a cross.”—is a paradigm, a blueprint, a model,
for the songs that alight from the lips of the faithful of every age. It is the refrain of every Christian song.
Know today that Christians Sing Cross Shaped Songs. Christians Sing Cross Shaped Songs.
Let us pray—
Christians Sing Cross Shaped Songs.
Our songs are songs like that of the Christ Hymn found in Philippians. Our songs are songs of emptying and exaltation. Songs that affirm two things.
First that: God is in the last place we would think to look.
Second that: Nothing looks the same after God finds us.
God is in the last place we would think to look.
The reason we find this Cross Shaped Song in Paul’s letter to the Philippians is because the cross was the last place that Paul would have ever thought to look for God.
You see, the Apostle Paul, before his conversion, was a strict interpreter of scripture. He read the Bible carefully and when he came into contact with Christians, and they told him about their messiah—when they told him that Jesus had died on the cross—he said,
“Well then, I know you must be wrong. After all scripture says that all who die on a tree are cursed and God would not curse His Messiah. Therefore, Jesus is not the Messiah.”
In other words, Paul was proof texting. He was using Deuteronomy chapter 21 to prove that God could not—in any way—be doing something in the life of Jesus, or in the life of Jesus’ followers, because of the way Jesus died.
He believed God could never be there. The cross of Christ was not a place to find God.
But then, on Paul’s way to the city of Damascus, he had an experience that made him changed his tune—that made him sing a new song. He had to hum an impossible hymn.
He intoning that the immortal put on mortal flesh—the fullness of all things became empty. He sang that the One who cannot die, died. He chanted that the King of Kings was crucified, like, and with, criminals.
He had to sing that cross-shaped song that the Christians he met were singing to him—that Christians continue to sing. And part of that melody is admitting that God is in the last place we would think to look.
Some of you, who came to my ordination last week, mentioned to me that the service was wonderful—the sermon was great—the Bishop was warm and friendly—everything made sense—everything seemed right—except the neighborhood the ordination happened in.
The part of Trenton my ordination happened in was a rough neighborhood—a neighborhood you might not expect to go to for an ordination. You could even say it would be the last place you would think to look for an ordination at.
Yet there was Trinity Cathedral—there the Word of God was proclaimed—there ordination vows were taken—there communion was received. Perhaps the last place you would think to look… but there it was.
So too with God.
The Christian song, however, does not end with this first stanza—that God is in the last place we would think to look.
No. It continues on, as we sing out, “Nothing looks the same after God finds us.”
Listen to what Paul is singing about this humiliated man on the cross—this man emptied of Godhood—this Jesus.
He sings out that God exalted him—that his name is above all names—that all of creation bows before him and confesses his Lordship!
Paul himself—at Damascus—fell down and made this confession.
Paul makes this confession—he sings out this song of exultation—even as he copes with the fact that Jesus was crucified on a cursed cross
—even death on a cross.
And think of how the way Paul viewed the world changed, when he was confronted with God’s messiah on the cross!
Paul’s religiosity—his proof-texting—spoke against God—nothing looked the same.
The crucifying power of the Roman Empire became weakness—nothing looked the same.
The wisdom of this world became foolishness—nothing looked the same.
Every piece of reality, every piece of Paul’s very self, was confronted by the cross, and nothing looked the same.
I remember when I received my first pair of glasses—you see I can’t see the big E on the eye chart without glasses or contacts.
All of a sudden I could see the blackboard in the classroom,
I could see people’s faces,
I could read street signs from far away!
Through those glasses lenses nothing looked the same.
The cross of Christ is that kind of lens as well. When we look through it, nothing looks the same.
And that is the song we sing.
Christians sing cross shaped songs.
The repetitive refrain of our song is Cross—Cross—Cross.
The first verse is “God is in the last place we would think to look.”
The second verse is “Nothing looks the same after God finds us.”
Cross
Cross
Cross.
A+A
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Sermon: God’s economy of Grace
This week the US census bureau reported that the Poverty rate in the United States has reached just over 15%. That means 1 in 6 Americans live off of less than 1,000 dollars a month. This is the deepest level of poverty America has experienced since 1983.
And while the state of the American economy is bad—I want to let you know today—that the state of God’s economy continues to be strong. God’s grace rate is over 100%, God’s mercy level is astronomically high—it continues to stay at the same level as it was at in 33AD.
And today, I want to talk to you briefly about God’s economy of Grace. God’s economy of grace.
Let us pray:
Economies have differed throughout time and from place to place.
There have been economies where stone wheels served as currency and economies that use the barter system.
There are economies that are regulated and economies that are less so.
There are underground economies, green economies, local economies and global economies.
But, one overarching principle is the same throughout, they involve wealth of some kind being traded for a good, service, or idea. If you do this, then I do that.
If you pay Apple 99 cents/then you will receive a song on your I-pod.
If you give the mugger your wallet/then he won’t stab you.
If you work hard on your homework/then you will get an A.
It is not so, however, in God’s economy of grace. Instead of an If/Then economy, God’s economy is a Because/Therefore economy.
A Because/Therefore economy.
Because God is gracious/ Therefore you shall have eternal life.
Because God is merciful/therefore you shall receive mercy.
Because God is slow to anger/ therefore you shall receive continual pardon.
Because God abounds in steadfast love/ therefore you receive God’s love.
Because God is ready to relent/therefore even the most hardened sinner finds salvation.
One of the best images of this economy of Grace is one we say every time we pray the Lord’s prayer. We say, “Our Father.”
Now I know, for some people, Father isn’t an image that jives with grace—but I saw an example of a Father’s grace this last Thursday that I think makes it worth mentioning.
Some of us from St. Stephen were at the Patriot’s baseball game. It drizzled a little, and then got kinda cold. Dale, without missing a beat, took off his sweatshirt and gave it to his daughter Emma. Because he is Emma’s father/ therefore he kept her warm.
For that matter, one of the means of grace—one of the ways we as Lutherans say “you are God’s beloved child,” is in the waters of Baptism.
And I want to tell you, Mom, Dad, Kate. We here on the East Coast have known something about water recently. We know it can be unstoppable—literally a force of nature—we know it finds a way to come in. It doesn’t stop for roofs, for libraries, for trees, or for parks.
Likewise, God’s love—God’s amazing grace—is an unstoppable force. It won’t be stopped by our sins, by our upbringing, by our country of origin, by our wealth, by our poverty, by what other people say about us, by anything!
God loves us unconditionally.
God won’t quit us,
God will never leave us—God loves us even when we don’t love ourselves.
And this is wonderful—liberating—joyful news to hear!
But… what do we do when God’s grace flows toward the heart of every human being? What do we do when God loves EVERYONE as a loving parent toward a beloved child?
What do we do when we realize the Because/Therefore economy isn’t just for me. It isn’t just for you. It isn’t a local economy, it is a global, universal way that God deals with all people!
Even people we don’t think deserve it!
I think there is a tendency to respond to the universality of God’s love, as Jonah did. To say, like Jonah, “Hey, the Ninavites are Assyrians—and the Assyrians dispersed and kidnapped 10 of the 12 tribes, they broke my people. I cannot accept that You God, are going to give them a break. I know that You are merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love—but that’s toward us, Your chosen people—not toward Ninavites!”
Likewise, like the laborers who arrived on time, who served the full day, through the desperate heat of the noon-day sun, who have calloused hands and sun burnt brow,
we grumble, about those late comers—more than that we grumble about the very Landowner who has treated us fairly and generously—because He is now generous to another generation of workers,
to the last as much as to the first.
It reminds me of the book Animal Farm. In it a group of farm animals overthrow their wicked human overseer and then create a new social order at their farm. They create 7 commandments to live by—the last of them being, “All animals are equal.” Yet, as their farm is corrupted by greed and depravity, that last commandment becomes, “All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.”
“All Animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.”
We too, when we, like Jonah and the early laborers, respond with jealousy, we are saying, “God loves us all equally, but some of us God loves more equally than others.”
We are unmasking ourselves. We are revealing that we still buy into the other economy—the If/Then economy. We are saying, “If you are God’s chosen people, if you have labored in God’s vineyards from the start, if you are a good person/then then God will love you.”
But, if we are honest with ourselves, we have to admit we too have fallen short of all those ifs.
We have to admit that we ourselves have nothing to offer God in an if/then economy.
We, just like those who we don’t think deserve God’s grace, have to admit that we too rely on God’s because/therefore economy. God’s gracious love for us.
We admit that we too are like the residence of Ninevah, we so often do not know our right hand from our left. In the ambiguity of life and the limited vision all mortal beings have—we screw up.
We admit that we too are like those workers—bashfully admitting to the Master, “No one has hired us.”
Oh! Think of the pain that rattles around behind those words, “No one has hired us.”
Anyone who has waited, with eager longing, for a job—for a vocation to fill their time and contribute to the world and community they live in—knows how wounded you feel while you wait for work.
We recognize that the If/Then economy doesn’t work because we humans, every last one of us, are out-of-work Ninevites in need of God’s grace, in need of love that is uncompromising and eternal. We need God’s Because/Therefore economy. We need God’s economy of Grace.
And that’s all I want you to know today—the state of God’s economy continues to be strong. Ninevah has been spared from destruction and those workers, who have waited so long for work, have heard the master’s voice saying, “You also go into the vineyard.”
A+A
And while the state of the American economy is bad—I want to let you know today—that the state of God’s economy continues to be strong. God’s grace rate is over 100%, God’s mercy level is astronomically high—it continues to stay at the same level as it was at in 33AD.
And today, I want to talk to you briefly about God’s economy of Grace. God’s economy of grace.
Let us pray:
Economies have differed throughout time and from place to place.
There have been economies where stone wheels served as currency and economies that use the barter system.
There are economies that are regulated and economies that are less so.
There are underground economies, green economies, local economies and global economies.
But, one overarching principle is the same throughout, they involve wealth of some kind being traded for a good, service, or idea. If you do this, then I do that.
If you pay Apple 99 cents/then you will receive a song on your I-pod.
If you give the mugger your wallet/then he won’t stab you.
If you work hard on your homework/then you will get an A.
It is not so, however, in God’s economy of grace. Instead of an If/Then economy, God’s economy is a Because/Therefore economy.
A Because/Therefore economy.
Because God is gracious/ Therefore you shall have eternal life.
Because God is merciful/therefore you shall receive mercy.
Because God is slow to anger/ therefore you shall receive continual pardon.
Because God abounds in steadfast love/ therefore you receive God’s love.
Because God is ready to relent/therefore even the most hardened sinner finds salvation.
One of the best images of this economy of Grace is one we say every time we pray the Lord’s prayer. We say, “Our Father.”
Now I know, for some people, Father isn’t an image that jives with grace—but I saw an example of a Father’s grace this last Thursday that I think makes it worth mentioning.
Some of us from St. Stephen were at the Patriot’s baseball game. It drizzled a little, and then got kinda cold. Dale, without missing a beat, took off his sweatshirt and gave it to his daughter Emma. Because he is Emma’s father/ therefore he kept her warm.
For that matter, one of the means of grace—one of the ways we as Lutherans say “you are God’s beloved child,” is in the waters of Baptism.
And I want to tell you, Mom, Dad, Kate. We here on the East Coast have known something about water recently. We know it can be unstoppable—literally a force of nature—we know it finds a way to come in. It doesn’t stop for roofs, for libraries, for trees, or for parks.
Likewise, God’s love—God’s amazing grace—is an unstoppable force. It won’t be stopped by our sins, by our upbringing, by our country of origin, by our wealth, by our poverty, by what other people say about us, by anything!
God loves us unconditionally.
God won’t quit us,
God will never leave us—God loves us even when we don’t love ourselves.
And this is wonderful—liberating—joyful news to hear!
But… what do we do when God’s grace flows toward the heart of every human being? What do we do when God loves EVERYONE as a loving parent toward a beloved child?
What do we do when we realize the Because/Therefore economy isn’t just for me. It isn’t just for you. It isn’t a local economy, it is a global, universal way that God deals with all people!
Even people we don’t think deserve it!
I think there is a tendency to respond to the universality of God’s love, as Jonah did. To say, like Jonah, “Hey, the Ninavites are Assyrians—and the Assyrians dispersed and kidnapped 10 of the 12 tribes, they broke my people. I cannot accept that You God, are going to give them a break. I know that You are merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love—but that’s toward us, Your chosen people—not toward Ninavites!”
Likewise, like the laborers who arrived on time, who served the full day, through the desperate heat of the noon-day sun, who have calloused hands and sun burnt brow,
we grumble, about those late comers—more than that we grumble about the very Landowner who has treated us fairly and generously—because He is now generous to another generation of workers,
to the last as much as to the first.
It reminds me of the book Animal Farm. In it a group of farm animals overthrow their wicked human overseer and then create a new social order at their farm. They create 7 commandments to live by—the last of them being, “All animals are equal.” Yet, as their farm is corrupted by greed and depravity, that last commandment becomes, “All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.”
“All Animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.”
We too, when we, like Jonah and the early laborers, respond with jealousy, we are saying, “God loves us all equally, but some of us God loves more equally than others.”
We are unmasking ourselves. We are revealing that we still buy into the other economy—the If/Then economy. We are saying, “If you are God’s chosen people, if you have labored in God’s vineyards from the start, if you are a good person/then then God will love you.”
But, if we are honest with ourselves, we have to admit we too have fallen short of all those ifs.
We have to admit that we ourselves have nothing to offer God in an if/then economy.
We, just like those who we don’t think deserve God’s grace, have to admit that we too rely on God’s because/therefore economy. God’s gracious love for us.
We admit that we too are like the residence of Ninevah, we so often do not know our right hand from our left. In the ambiguity of life and the limited vision all mortal beings have—we screw up.
We admit that we too are like those workers—bashfully admitting to the Master, “No one has hired us.”
Oh! Think of the pain that rattles around behind those words, “No one has hired us.”
Anyone who has waited, with eager longing, for a job—for a vocation to fill their time and contribute to the world and community they live in—knows how wounded you feel while you wait for work.
We recognize that the If/Then economy doesn’t work because we humans, every last one of us, are out-of-work Ninevites in need of God’s grace, in need of love that is uncompromising and eternal. We need God’s Because/Therefore economy. We need God’s economy of Grace.
And that’s all I want you to know today—the state of God’s economy continues to be strong. Ninevah has been spared from destruction and those workers, who have waited so long for work, have heard the master’s voice saying, “You also go into the vineyard.”
A+A
Thursday, August 11, 2011
tidbits from the LIFT document that might be interesting to seminarians
So, here are a few quotes from the LIFT document the ELCA will be voting on at churchwide assembly:
“Seminaries need to prepare to graduate at 4,000 candidates for ordained ministry in the next ten years.”
They should focus on teaching in a way that leads to:
“A Lutheran theological witness that is more audible in the North American marketplace of religious ideas.
A church with significantly more multicultural rostered leaders and broad cross-cultural capacity.
A church with a significantly younger average age on the ordained roster.
A church which relies less and less on seminarian student debt to support theological education.”
One of the ways to make seminary go quicker is to have colleges and seminaries work together. This "could include B.Th. and articulation agreements that shorten time to M.Div. and MA”
Another way to shorten seminary/make it cost less/ etc is to:
“Recognition of alternate credentials for ministry and Fewer moves for seminary students with longer mentoring in contexts."
In order to make sure first-call pastors aren't overburdened with debt lift recommends:
“That the ELCA as a church commit to giving 1 percent (approximately $18M) of its unrestricted congregational giving as mission support directly to theological education. That the ELCA Church Council appoint a blue-ribbon panel to propose the most strategic, connective and direct manner in which to receive and allocate these monies. Such a commitment aligns with the critical role of faithful and effective evangelical missional lay and rostered leadership in this church’s future.”
“Seminaries need to prepare to graduate at 4,000 candidates for ordained ministry in the next ten years.”
They should focus on teaching in a way that leads to:
“A Lutheran theological witness that is more audible in the North American marketplace of religious ideas.
A church with significantly more multicultural rostered leaders and broad cross-cultural capacity.
A church with a significantly younger average age on the ordained roster.
A church which relies less and less on seminarian student debt to support theological education.”
One of the ways to make seminary go quicker is to have colleges and seminaries work together. This "could include B.Th. and articulation agreements that shorten time to M.Div. and MA”
Another way to shorten seminary/make it cost less/ etc is to:
“Recognition of alternate credentials for ministry and Fewer moves for seminary students with longer mentoring in contexts."
In order to make sure first-call pastors aren't overburdened with debt lift recommends:
“That the ELCA as a church commit to giving 1 percent (approximately $18M) of its unrestricted congregational giving as mission support directly to theological education. That the ELCA Church Council appoint a blue-ribbon panel to propose the most strategic, connective and direct manner in which to receive and allocate these monies. Such a commitment aligns with the critical role of faithful and effective evangelical missional lay and rostered leadership in this church’s future.”
Monday, August 08, 2011
What I learned in Seminary: 1 Rotation Group
The first year of Seminary we are required to attend a wide variety of churches (both Lutheran and non-lutheran) along with a small group of other seminarians. After this is done we processed our experiences together.
We attended a suburban youth oriented Lutheran church. There I bristled at several worship songs that stole tunes from The Mamas and The Papas and another by Peter, Paul, and Mary and replaced the lyrics with songs that can be qualified as “Jesus -s-my-boyfriend” music. I was however very impressed by how many youth showed up jazzed-up and excited about church.
We attended a liberal Roman Catholic Church that had more icons and statues in it than I could sneeze at. I ended up asking myself whether “social justice and statues of saints go together?” I recognized that, “I’ve always thought of social justice as a prophetic thing, and prophets as smashers of statues and all attempts to put God in a box.” I suppose the question becomes, does creating statues and icons of prophets lead to more prophetic action, or does it freeze them in concrete and end their witness?
We went to a Unitarian Universalist church near the seminary and I experienced the only “Fundamentalist UU” sermon I’ve ever heard. The preacher essentially said the War on Terror is going to be a new 30 years war and only UUers can save the world from massive destruction. And if that doesn’t happen the only faith that will be left afterwards will be that of the UU. I am pretty sure he managed to break (or at least bend) the UU principle about “free and responsible search for truth and meaning.”
We also went to a bi-lingual Spanish/English Lutheran church that I felt very at home in. It took me the three weeks we worshiped there to figure out why. It was congregation size—despite ethnic/linguistic/liturgical differences the size matched the church I attended in Cheyenne. When I went to request a field-ed site I requested this church “or an African American church with a similar feel.” I ended up going to Tabernacle Lutheran, at least partially, because of my experience at this church.
We attended a suburban youth oriented Lutheran church. There I bristled at several worship songs that stole tunes from The Mamas and The Papas and another by Peter, Paul, and Mary and replaced the lyrics with songs that can be qualified as “Jesus -s-my-boyfriend” music. I was however very impressed by how many youth showed up jazzed-up and excited about church.
We attended a liberal Roman Catholic Church that had more icons and statues in it than I could sneeze at. I ended up asking myself whether “social justice and statues of saints go together?” I recognized that, “I’ve always thought of social justice as a prophetic thing, and prophets as smashers of statues and all attempts to put God in a box.” I suppose the question becomes, does creating statues and icons of prophets lead to more prophetic action, or does it freeze them in concrete and end their witness?
We went to a Unitarian Universalist church near the seminary and I experienced the only “Fundamentalist UU” sermon I’ve ever heard. The preacher essentially said the War on Terror is going to be a new 30 years war and only UUers can save the world from massive destruction. And if that doesn’t happen the only faith that will be left afterwards will be that of the UU. I am pretty sure he managed to break (or at least bend) the UU principle about “free and responsible search for truth and meaning.”
We also went to a bi-lingual Spanish/English Lutheran church that I felt very at home in. It took me the three weeks we worshiped there to figure out why. It was congregation size—despite ethnic/linguistic/liturgical differences the size matched the church I attended in Cheyenne. When I went to request a field-ed site I requested this church “or an African American church with a similar feel.” I ended up going to Tabernacle Lutheran, at least partially, because of my experience at this church.
What I learned in Seminary: 0.5 My first seminary paper
As I wrote earlier I am starting a new series that looks back at the various classes I took at seminary in order to look more carefully at some of the more interesting "theological nuggets" I came across in my 4 years of seminary.
In order to start this off I thought I would publish the first paper I wrote at Seminary--pretensions, non-sequitors, warts, and all.
Why Study Theology
By Chris Halverson
Professor Donald Luck believes in a fallen world. One where academic rigor and logic has been shunned, and those skills forgotten. No more heinous proof of this fact need be given than the conversion of the pastors’ studies into offices. (60) Thinkers in this world have fallen into two camps, the Absolutists and the Relativists, both of whom object to theology for their own unique reasons. Luck plants himself at a third point, which defends theology, convinced openness. (136)
The Absolutists see things as black and white, and assume their position is right and therefore all others must be wrong. They hold tight to their ideas, but don’t have a nuanced understanding of them. They do not recognize that accepting “just the Bible” encourages eisegesis. (3) They emphasize being lead by the spirit, but do not come up with a good way to test to ensure the spirit is that of God. Luck gives the example of a student who quit his medicine he was taking for his mental health and discerned that God wanted him to walk around and tell everyone the world was about to end. (10-11) In response to another objection, that “We should focus on committed discipleship” (17) instead of theology Luck argues that theological assumptions prompt actions. (18) He also challenges the idea that theology creates doubt instead of faith; this is the mentality behind the bumper sticker that says, “God said it! I believe it! That settles it!” (21) Luck’s response is that faith is not unquestioning, but instead trust. (22)
The Relativists make the opposite mistake when dealing with theology. They recognize the weakness of their own understanding and ideas, and universalize this intellectual pauperism. Thus all ideas are equal. Therefore they revolt against the idea of Ideas, specifically against abstraction, theory, and a seeming lack of clear-cut results, all of which can be intimidating. (27-43) Luck’s basic response to this impotence of thought is that ideas are real. Ideas have practical consequences(28), are no more theoretical than politics(35), and that carefully thought out theology, while intimidating, is worth it because it is furthering the goals of the church (38) though he admits it does take some practice. (40)
Luck’s third way moves a person beyond ignorant absolutism and impotent relativism. Convinced openness moves people to think critically, recognizing that some ideas and things are relatively better than others. The reader is given seven criterions by which to do this measuring; an assertion should be more informed, faithful to the church’s faith and life, more comprehensive in scope, informative and relevant, more consistent, more aware of the context from which it came, and more aware of alternatives to it. (134-136)
An attitude of convinced openness makes for a good theologian, and Luck things everyone should be one. Being a theologian allows a person to integrate the sacred and the secular in a healthy and consistent way. (47) It also helps church bodies, which are often run by the masses, not professional theologians, to make informed decisions. (55) Encompassing these and other reasons for justifying theology is its goal as defined by Luck. “Theology aims at providing perspective on the church’s faith and life, guiding its mission to the world and its own inner preaching and teaching life.” (65)
Luck’s middle path is a very mature way to look at the modern world’s competing truth claims. The world is neither black and white, nor bla unintelligible greyness; it is shades of grey, carefully examined and continually re-appraisable.
In order to start this off I thought I would publish the first paper I wrote at Seminary--pretensions, non-sequitors, warts, and all.
Why Study Theology
By Chris Halverson
Professor Donald Luck believes in a fallen world. One where academic rigor and logic has been shunned, and those skills forgotten. No more heinous proof of this fact need be given than the conversion of the pastors’ studies into offices. (60) Thinkers in this world have fallen into two camps, the Absolutists and the Relativists, both of whom object to theology for their own unique reasons. Luck plants himself at a third point, which defends theology, convinced openness. (136)
The Absolutists see things as black and white, and assume their position is right and therefore all others must be wrong. They hold tight to their ideas, but don’t have a nuanced understanding of them. They do not recognize that accepting “just the Bible” encourages eisegesis. (3) They emphasize being lead by the spirit, but do not come up with a good way to test to ensure the spirit is that of God. Luck gives the example of a student who quit his medicine he was taking for his mental health and discerned that God wanted him to walk around and tell everyone the world was about to end. (10-11) In response to another objection, that “We should focus on committed discipleship” (17) instead of theology Luck argues that theological assumptions prompt actions. (18) He also challenges the idea that theology creates doubt instead of faith; this is the mentality behind the bumper sticker that says, “God said it! I believe it! That settles it!” (21) Luck’s response is that faith is not unquestioning, but instead trust. (22)
The Relativists make the opposite mistake when dealing with theology. They recognize the weakness of their own understanding and ideas, and universalize this intellectual pauperism. Thus all ideas are equal. Therefore they revolt against the idea of Ideas, specifically against abstraction, theory, and a seeming lack of clear-cut results, all of which can be intimidating. (27-43) Luck’s basic response to this impotence of thought is that ideas are real. Ideas have practical consequences(28), are no more theoretical than politics(35), and that carefully thought out theology, while intimidating, is worth it because it is furthering the goals of the church (38) though he admits it does take some practice. (40)
Luck’s third way moves a person beyond ignorant absolutism and impotent relativism. Convinced openness moves people to think critically, recognizing that some ideas and things are relatively better than others. The reader is given seven criterions by which to do this measuring; an assertion should be more informed, faithful to the church’s faith and life, more comprehensive in scope, informative and relevant, more consistent, more aware of the context from which it came, and more aware of alternatives to it. (134-136)
An attitude of convinced openness makes for a good theologian, and Luck things everyone should be one. Being a theologian allows a person to integrate the sacred and the secular in a healthy and consistent way. (47) It also helps church bodies, which are often run by the masses, not professional theologians, to make informed decisions. (55) Encompassing these and other reasons for justifying theology is its goal as defined by Luck. “Theology aims at providing perspective on the church’s faith and life, guiding its mission to the world and its own inner preaching and teaching life.” (65)
Luck’s middle path is a very mature way to look at the modern world’s competing truth claims. The world is neither black and white, nor bla unintelligible greyness; it is shades of grey, carefully examined and continually re-appraisable.
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Latest sermon:Have you seen the Kingdom Tree?
Have you seen the Kingdom Tree?
Greetings on behalf of the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia where I have recently graduated from.
Greetings on behalf of the Rocky Mountain Synod—my Synod of origin as well as from New Jersey Synod, the Synod I have been assigned to.
(Greetings on behalf of your Pastor Rev. Churchill Wortherly, who has graciously opened up this pulpit to a young upstart like me today. )
And most importantly Greetings and Peace in the name of Jesus Christ.
Today’s reading, from the Gospel according to Matthew, is a curious one. In it, the word of the Kingdom of Heaven is compared with a seed, which is placed in a variety of soil, grows up, and bears fruit.
This is the first time in Matthew’s account of Jesus’ life that a parable is used to describe the Kingdom of Heaven.
Now a parable is a simple story told to make a complex point.
For example, in order to express that God’s command to love our neighbor transcends race, ethnicity, and religion, Jesus tells a story about a Samaritan man going out of his way to help a Jewish man—That story is often entitled the Parable of the Good Samaritan. As I said, a parable is simple story to make a complex point.
And when it comes to Parables I have certain convictions about them. I believe parables are to be read in a particular way.
I do not believe parables are to be read as proof texts—that is I think it would be absolutely silly if someone was to decide who is or is not a Christian based on whether they agree, or disagree, with the proposition that a Seed is the same as a Kingdom. I think clinging to a parable and using it to define the totality of one’s belief is to misunderstand why parables are in the Bible and Why Jesus used them.
Because you see, parables are more important than proof texts. Parables are truth texts. Parables are truth texts.
Parables express something that is abstract and out there in a concrete way right here. Parables speak truths into being.
And when a deep truth blossoms forth from our Savior’s lips the raw images he uses cling to our ears, our minds, and our hearts for a very long time. Jesus’s Parables are not to be read—instead they eventually begin to read us.
And so, today I will try to stick closely to the story, and the images, that Jesus uses about the Kingdom of Heaven—because I believe this parable all but preaches itself. Therefore, I would like to ask you an extended question in the form of a sermon—this question/sermon/subject is “Have you seen the kingdom tree?” “Have you seen the kingdom tree?”
Let us pray:
Decrease
Words of my lips
Have you seen the kingdom seed?
Have you seen it? So small, so unexpected? This seed of the Kingdom.
It is a seed made from that, which is called the least.
It is a seed, like the very smallest of seeds—the Mustard Seed.
It is so small it is almost hidden—like a treasure buried deeply beneath the soil waiting to be discovered.
It is so small it is almost invisible—invisible like fish hiding in the deepest depths of the sea.
Have you seen it—so strange a seed! Have you seen the Kingdom seed?
Have you seen it hidden amongst the poor, the sad, the meek, those who hunger and those who thirst for righteousness?
Have you seen it amongst the merciful and the persecuted?
Have you heard it hidden in the quiet heart of the peacemakers?
Have you seen it? It is such an odd seed—a seed sampled and savored by tax collectors, the destitute, and the prostitute?
Have you seen it in the hands of children toddling toward our Savior?
Have you seen it sought after like a single small sheep alone separated from the other 99, found by the Good Shepherd?
Have you seen it in the words of a Cannanite woman asking Jesus to heal her child?
Have you seen it buried—like Jonah—in the belly of a big fish and like Christ’s body, in the heart of the earth—for three days.
Have you seen the kingdom seed? It is so small, so unexpected.
Have you seen the Path its on?
Have you seen the path crowded by birds—cawing and clawing and crowing—gulping and gasping—as they swallow up the seeds?
Have you seen the Kingdom of Heaven—the Kingdom of God—trampled on the path by birds who practice their piety to be seen.
Those religious for the sake of men, not God.
Have you seen them lock out the little ones from the Kingdom in the name of the kingdom?
Have you seen the first firsted and the last lasted—on the Path?
Have you seen those birds swallow seeds because they have no clue that they can grow into plants bearing life-giving fruit? Birds so captivated by the shell of a seed that they have become captive to sin.
Have you seen a gaggle of birds become like a brood of vipers—dangerous because of the poison locked within their fangs—a sort of stultifying, intoxicating, drug—making the bitten believe that they have it all right—that the Kingdom of God—the Kingdom of Heaven—is nothing more than a seed—nothing more than that which they have perceived—a white washed tomb.
Have you seen the Path?
Have you seen the Rocky Ground?
Have you seen the seeds these—in their infancy—poke out and stretch their yawning arms to the sun—proclaiming the Kingdom of Heaven is near—only to be faced with hard soil and strength-sapping sun—heat withering the young branches of the Kingdom.
Have you seen the roots of the Kingdom try to push down deep—but fail? Have you seen unnourished and undernourished versions and visions of the Kingdom continue go unfed? Have you seen Godly ideas wither on the vine?
Have you seen a sapling persecuted?
Have you seen it in shock as it leaves everything for the Kingdom of God?
Have you seen it at that frightened and fragile ah-ha-moment when it realizes this-faith-thing is for-real-for-real!
Have you seen it cry out with full meaning and voice—and full need, to that great and loving Father, the words, “Thy Kingdom Come!”
Have you seen a sapling flogged, crucified, and killed?
Have you seen the Rocky Ground?
Have you seen the Choking Thorns?
Have you seen those same seeds—saplings—young trees—resting comfortably upon an unnatural throne—a throne of thorns.
Those same seeds saying—not praying—the words “Thy Kingdom Come” and not meaning it.
Have you seen the Kingdom growing complacent—its love growing cold—because it just got tired?
Have you seen it shrug its plant shoulders, hearing the words, “Neither a rich man nor a camel will make it through the eye of a needle.”
Have you seen a sapling unable to keep awake—unable to keep its lamp lit?
Have you seen a sapling swept away with the overabundance of worries of the world?
Have you seen the Sapling of the Kingdom trust its house to a foundation of sand?
Have you seen the Choking Thorns?
Have you seen the Kingdom Tree?
Have you seen it! Oh how it has grown!
Like some child—groaning through a massive growth spurt—it is small no more.
From the smallest seed the largest tree—with branches reaching far and wide so that all may rest in its shade.
Have you seen it—a single gift of loaves and fishes expanding to feed a field of famished folk.
In the Kingdom Tree the last have become first!
In the Kingdom Tree kingdom-swallowing-birds can come to be redeemed.
The Kingdom Tree clapping its hands in happiness at the goodness of God.
Have you seen the Kingdom Tree? Have you seen that what was hidden has been revealed!
Like Jonah it has been spewed out in full form to forgive the forsaken.
Like Jesus’ body it rises fully and beautifully!
Have you seen the Kingdom Tree?
Have you seen the Kingdom’s fruit?
The fruit of the Kingdom of Heaven? There is so much of it—100 fold here, 60 fold there, 30 fold everywhere.
The blind have seen it when they receive sight and the deaf can hear the wind blow against its bow when they regain their hearing.
The lame lean against its trunk as they take their first fresh steps. The lepers are touched by it when they are cleansed.
The hungry—oh how the hungry feast like the patriarchs and matriarchs of old upon this nourishing fruit!
The Kingdom fruit is there when the dead are raised and when the poor hear good news.
The Kingdom fruit is Spirit.
The Kingdom fruit is leaving with joy and coming back in peace.
It is the pathway becoming straight.
It is the hard ground becoming good soil.
It is thorns becoming cypress, and briers becoming myrtle.
Taste the Kingdom fruit—know that the kingdom is near.
Have you seen the seed and its struggles, the tree and its fruit?
Have you seen the Kingdom Tree?
A+A
Greetings on behalf of the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia where I have recently graduated from.
Greetings on behalf of the Rocky Mountain Synod—my Synod of origin as well as from New Jersey Synod, the Synod I have been assigned to.
(Greetings on behalf of your Pastor Rev. Churchill Wortherly, who has graciously opened up this pulpit to a young upstart like me today. )
And most importantly Greetings and Peace in the name of Jesus Christ.
Today’s reading, from the Gospel according to Matthew, is a curious one. In it, the word of the Kingdom of Heaven is compared with a seed, which is placed in a variety of soil, grows up, and bears fruit.
This is the first time in Matthew’s account of Jesus’ life that a parable is used to describe the Kingdom of Heaven.
Now a parable is a simple story told to make a complex point.
For example, in order to express that God’s command to love our neighbor transcends race, ethnicity, and religion, Jesus tells a story about a Samaritan man going out of his way to help a Jewish man—That story is often entitled the Parable of the Good Samaritan. As I said, a parable is simple story to make a complex point.
And when it comes to Parables I have certain convictions about them. I believe parables are to be read in a particular way.
I do not believe parables are to be read as proof texts—that is I think it would be absolutely silly if someone was to decide who is or is not a Christian based on whether they agree, or disagree, with the proposition that a Seed is the same as a Kingdom. I think clinging to a parable and using it to define the totality of one’s belief is to misunderstand why parables are in the Bible and Why Jesus used them.
Because you see, parables are more important than proof texts. Parables are truth texts. Parables are truth texts.
Parables express something that is abstract and out there in a concrete way right here. Parables speak truths into being.
And when a deep truth blossoms forth from our Savior’s lips the raw images he uses cling to our ears, our minds, and our hearts for a very long time. Jesus’s Parables are not to be read—instead they eventually begin to read us.
And so, today I will try to stick closely to the story, and the images, that Jesus uses about the Kingdom of Heaven—because I believe this parable all but preaches itself. Therefore, I would like to ask you an extended question in the form of a sermon—this question/sermon/subject is “Have you seen the kingdom tree?” “Have you seen the kingdom tree?”
Let us pray:
Decrease
Words of my lips
Have you seen the kingdom seed?
Have you seen it? So small, so unexpected? This seed of the Kingdom.
It is a seed made from that, which is called the least.
It is a seed, like the very smallest of seeds—the Mustard Seed.
It is so small it is almost hidden—like a treasure buried deeply beneath the soil waiting to be discovered.
It is so small it is almost invisible—invisible like fish hiding in the deepest depths of the sea.
Have you seen it—so strange a seed! Have you seen the Kingdom seed?
Have you seen it hidden amongst the poor, the sad, the meek, those who hunger and those who thirst for righteousness?
Have you seen it amongst the merciful and the persecuted?
Have you heard it hidden in the quiet heart of the peacemakers?
Have you seen it? It is such an odd seed—a seed sampled and savored by tax collectors, the destitute, and the prostitute?
Have you seen it in the hands of children toddling toward our Savior?
Have you seen it sought after like a single small sheep alone separated from the other 99, found by the Good Shepherd?
Have you seen it in the words of a Cannanite woman asking Jesus to heal her child?
Have you seen it buried—like Jonah—in the belly of a big fish and like Christ’s body, in the heart of the earth—for three days.
Have you seen the kingdom seed? It is so small, so unexpected.
Have you seen the Path its on?
Have you seen the path crowded by birds—cawing and clawing and crowing—gulping and gasping—as they swallow up the seeds?
Have you seen the Kingdom of Heaven—the Kingdom of God—trampled on the path by birds who practice their piety to be seen.
Those religious for the sake of men, not God.
Have you seen them lock out the little ones from the Kingdom in the name of the kingdom?
Have you seen the first firsted and the last lasted—on the Path?
Have you seen those birds swallow seeds because they have no clue that they can grow into plants bearing life-giving fruit? Birds so captivated by the shell of a seed that they have become captive to sin.
Have you seen a gaggle of birds become like a brood of vipers—dangerous because of the poison locked within their fangs—a sort of stultifying, intoxicating, drug—making the bitten believe that they have it all right—that the Kingdom of God—the Kingdom of Heaven—is nothing more than a seed—nothing more than that which they have perceived—a white washed tomb.
Have you seen the Path?
Have you seen the Rocky Ground?
Have you seen the seeds these—in their infancy—poke out and stretch their yawning arms to the sun—proclaiming the Kingdom of Heaven is near—only to be faced with hard soil and strength-sapping sun—heat withering the young branches of the Kingdom.
Have you seen the roots of the Kingdom try to push down deep—but fail? Have you seen unnourished and undernourished versions and visions of the Kingdom continue go unfed? Have you seen Godly ideas wither on the vine?
Have you seen a sapling persecuted?
Have you seen it in shock as it leaves everything for the Kingdom of God?
Have you seen it at that frightened and fragile ah-ha-moment when it realizes this-faith-thing is for-real-for-real!
Have you seen it cry out with full meaning and voice—and full need, to that great and loving Father, the words, “Thy Kingdom Come!”
Have you seen a sapling flogged, crucified, and killed?
Have you seen the Rocky Ground?
Have you seen the Choking Thorns?
Have you seen those same seeds—saplings—young trees—resting comfortably upon an unnatural throne—a throne of thorns.
Those same seeds saying—not praying—the words “Thy Kingdom Come” and not meaning it.
Have you seen the Kingdom growing complacent—its love growing cold—because it just got tired?
Have you seen it shrug its plant shoulders, hearing the words, “Neither a rich man nor a camel will make it through the eye of a needle.”
Have you seen a sapling unable to keep awake—unable to keep its lamp lit?
Have you seen a sapling swept away with the overabundance of worries of the world?
Have you seen the Sapling of the Kingdom trust its house to a foundation of sand?
Have you seen the Choking Thorns?
Have you seen the Kingdom Tree?
Have you seen it! Oh how it has grown!
Like some child—groaning through a massive growth spurt—it is small no more.
From the smallest seed the largest tree—with branches reaching far and wide so that all may rest in its shade.
Have you seen it—a single gift of loaves and fishes expanding to feed a field of famished folk.
In the Kingdom Tree the last have become first!
In the Kingdom Tree kingdom-swallowing-birds can come to be redeemed.
The Kingdom Tree clapping its hands in happiness at the goodness of God.
Have you seen the Kingdom Tree? Have you seen that what was hidden has been revealed!
Like Jonah it has been spewed out in full form to forgive the forsaken.
Like Jesus’ body it rises fully and beautifully!
Have you seen the Kingdom Tree?
Have you seen the Kingdom’s fruit?
The fruit of the Kingdom of Heaven? There is so much of it—100 fold here, 60 fold there, 30 fold everywhere.
The blind have seen it when they receive sight and the deaf can hear the wind blow against its bow when they regain their hearing.
The lame lean against its trunk as they take their first fresh steps. The lepers are touched by it when they are cleansed.
The hungry—oh how the hungry feast like the patriarchs and matriarchs of old upon this nourishing fruit!
The Kingdom fruit is there when the dead are raised and when the poor hear good news.
The Kingdom fruit is Spirit.
The Kingdom fruit is leaving with joy and coming back in peace.
It is the pathway becoming straight.
It is the hard ground becoming good soil.
It is thorns becoming cypress, and briers becoming myrtle.
Taste the Kingdom fruit—know that the kingdom is near.
Have you seen the seed and its struggles, the tree and its fruit?
Have you seen the Kingdom Tree?
A+A
Friday, June 24, 2011
What I learned in Seminary:A New Series
So, I intend to read each paper I wrote in Seminary and from them summarize each class I took in Seminary, a post a piece.
Hopefully my readers will enjoy these insights into these last 4 formative years preparing to be a pastor.
Peace,
Chris
Hopefully my readers will enjoy these insights into these last 4 formative years preparing to be a pastor.
Peace,
Chris
Monday, June 20, 2011
Citizenship
Last night I had a dream that the Federal Government was reviewing my productivity as a citizen in compliance with the “New DREAM Act.” Specifically, they were judging if I was a productive pastor—and in the review decided I needed to take an additional 20 hours of continuing education. If I did not comply with this decision they would strip me of my citizenship and throw me out of the country.
Kind of a strange dream, but it has brought up a few questions:
1. What would America look like if we judged citizenship based on economic productivity instead of place of birth?
2. What is the value of religious leaders for a country? Is there any way my being a pastor is valuable in capitalist system (other than being a purveyor of the opiate of the masses of course… that’s a joke)
3. What should make a citizen? Specifically I’m thinking of the book Starship Troopers (not the movie) which features a society in which the only people who are granted citizenship are those who have fought in their country’s military.
4. How can we become more gracious as a society toward non-citizens?
Kind of a strange dream, but it has brought up a few questions:
1. What would America look like if we judged citizenship based on economic productivity instead of place of birth?
2. What is the value of religious leaders for a country? Is there any way my being a pastor is valuable in capitalist system (other than being a purveyor of the opiate of the masses of course… that’s a joke)
3. What should make a citizen? Specifically I’m thinking of the book Starship Troopers (not the movie) which features a society in which the only people who are granted citizenship are those who have fought in their country’s military.
4. How can we become more gracious as a society toward non-citizens?
Friday, June 17, 2011
LTSP graduation speech!
Below is the graduation speech I did along with Senior class co-president Ria.
Truly Seminary has been both bizarre and faithful.
Truly Seminary has been both bizarre and faithful.
Monday, June 06, 2011
My Testimony to the Fanatics and to the New Atheists
As most of my readers know I am a man of that certain age—the age that came to adulthood in the 9/11 era. I have seen faith in God horribly abused, and I’ve tried to figure out what that means.
Ultimately that led me to do an M.Phil. over in Cambridge and study retellings of Genesis 22 from the 2nd century BCE to the 2nd century CE, which eventually became my book An Uncomfortable Bit of Rope.
Since then I’ve gone to seminary and now graduated (with Honors) from LTSP!
The following is a sermon I did for the class Next Level Preaching. I would say it is the current summation of my attempt to make meaning out of the 9/11 era. It is My Testimony to the Fanatics and to the New Atheists:
Ultimately that led me to do an M.Phil. over in Cambridge and study retellings of Genesis 22 from the 2nd century BCE to the 2nd century CE, which eventually became my book An Uncomfortable Bit of Rope.
Since then I’ve gone to seminary and now graduated (with Honors) from LTSP!
The following is a sermon I did for the class Next Level Preaching. I would say it is the current summation of my attempt to make meaning out of the 9/11 era. It is My Testimony to the Fanatics and to the New Atheists:
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