Sermon for October 21, 2019

A New Way

Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came over and spoke to him. “Teacher,” they said, “we want you to do us a favor . . . When you sit on your glorious throne, we want to sit in places of honor next to you, one on your right and the other on your left.” But Jesus said to them, “You don’t know what you are asking! Are you able to drink from the bitter cup of suffering I am about to drink? Are you able to be baptized with the baptism of suffering I must be baptized with?”

“Oh yes,” they replied, “we are able!”

Then Jesus told them, “You will indeed drink from my bitter cup and be baptized with my baptism of suffering. But I have no right to say who will sit on my right or my left. God has prepared those places for the ones he has chosen.”

When the ten other disciples heard what James and John had asked, they were indignant. So Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers in this world lord it over their people, and officials flaunt their authority over those under them. But among you it will be different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant . . . For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Mark 10:35-45

Being a good Christian isn’t easy. I’ve had people tell me that they don’t feel like good Christians. I’ve had people tell me that I’m not a good Christian. What makes someone a good Christian? Is a Christian the same as a churchgoer? Is a Christian a good person with strong moral fiber? Is a Christian someone who believes and confesses the correct creeds and doctrines? Sometimes we hear that a real Christian is someone who makes a decision to accept Jesus as Lord and Savior – someone who is filled with joy and never has one’s faith shaken. Is a Christian a conservative Republican or a passionate liberal? Is a Christian someone who acts just like you do?

I typed in the words “true Christian” into Google just to see what would come up. You won’t believe how many people out there claim to have the correct litmus test for whether you are a real Christian, including lots of Christian dating sites where you can find God’s true match for you.

Many sites have more traditional claims about what makes a real Christian. A true Christian will desire to obey God and study the Bible. Real Christians will increasingly understand the Bible, admit they sin, follow Jesus, sin less and less, love others, not love the things of world more than God and have the fruit of the Spirit.

The Atheist Foundation of Australia has a test to be able to spot a true Christian. They say that a true Christian is one who follows the words of Christ literally. So, true Christians will be able to literally handle snakes, drink poison, and walk over scorpions. They must hate their families and also be hated by their families. True Christians can move mountains and wither fig trees. The site goes on to say “There are many different types of Christians, many sects and denominations. In their pride and arrogance they all claim to be true believers. But it is important to make sure that we have the real thing because Jesus said that there would be many fakers. In [many Bible passages] Jesus tells us about false prophets, false Christians. When dealing with Christians ask them if they are 'true' Christians. If the answer is 'yes' then chuck a [poisonous snake] at them and stick a few scorpions in their shoes.”

What these sites all have in common is that Christianity is defined by following a certain set of rules and behaviors. First you pick and choose Scripture passages that you think are the most important ones to follow. Once you fulfill an unreasonably long list of requirements, you can know that you are (or someone else is) a Christian.

I want to reconsider the definition. Instead of true Christians, I want to talk about authentic Christians. For me, authentic Christianity starts when we give up the notion that Christianity is God’s favorite religion. In today’s Gospel story, two of Jesus’ disciples, James and John, ask for a favor. “When you sit on your glorious throne, we want to sit in places of honor next to you, one on your right and the other on your left.” I can’t really blame them for asking. To have a special place helps to overcome the fear of being nobody and the fear of having no power. Christians claim special access and favored status all the time. It’s a way of claiming power.

Notice how Jesus changes the focus of the conversation. As soon as the other ten disciples hear about the request made by James and John, they get angry. Jesus does not tell James and John that they are wrong or bad for wanting to have a special status. Jesus says, “Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant.”

The word used here for servant can also mean “slave.” Slaves in the Roman Empire included prisoners of war, and captured sailors. In hard times, it was not uncommon for desperate Roman citizens to raise money by selling their children into slavery.  All slaves and their families were considered to be the property of their owners, who could sell or rent them out at any time. Their lives were harsh. Slaves were often whipped, branded or cruelly mistreated. Slaves worked everywhere – in private households, in mines and factories, and on farms. They also worked for city governments on engineering projects such as roads, aqueducts and buildings. As a result, they merged easily into the population. In fact, slaves could look so similar to Roman citizens, the Roman Senate once considered a plan to make them wear special clothing so that they could be identified at a glance. The idea was rejected because the Senate feared that, if slaves saw how many of them were actually working in Rome, they might be tempted to join forces and rebel.

Jesus listens to his disciples who want to attach themselves to his rising star, and tells them if they want to be great, then become a slave and follow Jesus along the Way – a Way that turns the tables on power and position, a Way where the first become the followers, a Way where senators become the subjects, A Way where the leaders become the last. It is a Way where following Jesus means taking on the role of a slave as a form of protest against the worldly political order of an oppressive political empire. The Way of Jesus is ruled by grassroots protesters who act in direct resistance to the Roman economy supported by slavery. The reign of God come when we become the servants of all, against all oppressive politics. It comes as we kick up some dust and grime, as we involve ourselves in that which is common and low, grimy and unclean.

There's an old phrase from 2000 years ago: "The dust of the rabbi". When rabbis and their disciples used to walk everywhere (like Jesus and his followers), the greatest disciple would be the one following the teacher most closely, listening to every word and watching every gesture. This one would be covered with the dirt and dust the rabbi's feet kicked up as he walked. Authentic Christians are like that. Their overriding concern is not seeking status but walking in the dust of the Rabbi. Is it costly? Oh yeah! It means following the Master, no matter what; loving no matter what; serving no matter what; speaking the truth, no matter the cost. Authentic Christians allow our words and actions to be rooted in mercy, not positioning ourselves as the best in the religious pecking order.

So, authentic Christianity harmonizes our outward faith and inward journeys in ways that help us own our limitations. Authentic Christianity is also concerned with our efforts to make us more HUMANE. In every human encounter, we have an opportunity to reach out in common humanity – to listen, to encourage, to reach out, to lift up . . . and to recognize in every person the presence of The Holy One. We affirm the importance of taking responsibility for our thoughts, words and actions. We join side by side to identify, challenge and move beyond excuses and the ways we limit and side step much of life and relating. We humbly affirm, encourage and commend each other to live fully in a spirit of service to others.

I find it interesting that the early church did not call one another “Christians”. They called one another sister. They called one another brother. An authentic Christian is not only a follower of Christ, but a brother or sister to others. An authentic Christian is one who strives to be like Jesus AND embraces the Jesus in others. An authentic Christian is one who loves Jesus AND also loves the Jesus in others – even if the person is different – even if the other person disgusts us or hates us – even if the other person is an enemy.

May our resourcefulness and resiliency be more fully demonstrated; may our god-likeness and divine presence be known, heard and felt; may this community of care cause inspiration and be inspired as this day unfolds.

Sources:

https://www.pbs.org/empires/romans/empire/slaves_freemen.html

https://www.religion-online.org/article/minjung-and-power-a-biblical-and-theological-perspective-on-doularchy-servanthood/

Sermon for October 14, 2017

Finding Our Way

As he went out into the street, a man came running up, greeted him with great reverence, and asked, “Good Teacher, what must I do to get eternal life?” Jesus said, “Why are you calling me good? No one is good, only God. You know the commandments: Don’t murder, don’t commit adultery, don’t steal, don’t lie, don’t cheat, honor your father and mother.”

He said, “Teacher, I have—from my youth—kept them all!” Jesus looked him hard in the eye—and loved him! He said, “There’s one thing left: Go sell whatever you own and give it to the poor. All your wealth will then be heavenly wealth. And come follow me.” The man’s face clouded over. This was the last thing he expected to hear, and he walked off with a heavy heart. He was holding on tight to a lot of things, and not about to let go.

Looking at his disciples, Jesus said, “Do you have any idea how difficult it is for people who ‘have it all’ to enter God’s kingdom?” The disciples couldn’t believe what they were hearing, but Jesus kept on: “You can’t imagine how difficult. I’d say it’s easier for a camel to go through a needle’s eye than for the rich to get into God’s kingdom.”

That set the disciples back on their heels. “Then who has any chance at all?” they asked. Jesus was blunt: “No chance at all if you think you can pull it off by yourself. Every chance in the world if you let God do it.” Peter tried another angle: “We left everything and followed you.” Jesus said, “Mark my words, no one who sacrifices house, brothers, sisters, mother, father, children, land—whatever—because of me and the Message will lose out. They’ll get it all back, but multiplied many times in homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children, and land—but also in troubles. And then the bonus of eternal life! This is once again the Great Reversal: Many who are first will end up last, and the last first.”

Mark 10:17–31

Let me start with question. A simple question. A dreadfully hard question. What is the one thing that is at the core of who you are that holds you back you from being the follower, the disciple, the believer, the witness God wants and needs you to be?

The rich man in our Gospel lesson for today faced that question. It’s as if Jesus asks, “What’s the one thing that keeps you from following me as we walk along the Way?” I can’t help but wonder, if Jesus looked lovingly at me and asked me the same question, what would I say? My family? My livelihood? My house and car? Would I sell my possessions and give the proceeds to the poor? These are the middle-class nightmares of those like me who have more than enough to be comfortable, but don’t have enough to make ends meet all at the same time. Is that what Jesus wants? Because if it is, he is not going to have a lot of followers. The one’s he gets either have nothing to lose, or they are insane.

Or, maybe Jesus experiences something else going on with the rich man – something beyond the money.

Have you ever wondered how the rich man got rich in the first place? Being a rich Jew in first century Palestine was rare. Most of the Jewish population was reduced to poverty by oppressively high rents and excessive taxes set by the Herods and the Romans. Many sold themselves or their children into debt bondage or slavery. A select few participated in the system from the inside. There were Jewish landlords, Jewish tax collectors, and Jewish governmental officials who were part of Herod's court and Pilate’s executive offices. A handful of Jews had been granted privilege.

A Jewish resident who accepted insider privilege knowingly violated God’s Law. If a Jew was a landlord, he knew that he was part of the problem. He could see the harm of the dominant system on his fellow nationals. I’m sure Jewish landlords and tax collectors did some good. They might have given to the poor. Government advisors may have counseled against harsh new regulations and laws. They went to worship and put money in the collection plate. But, they knew their gains from the system were illegal under the Law of Moses. The problem was not that they were rich. The problem was that riches were given to a few insiders by a government that imposed suffering on their fellow occupied people.

One of these people of privilege approaches Jesus. Respectfully. Sincerely. He wants to be saved. Jesus diagnoses the problem right away. It’s not just about the money. The man needs to be healed. The man approaches Jesus just like all the others who come to him and want a miracle. A healing. An exorcism. They both know that whatever his appearance looks like on the outside, whatever his pious life looks like, he’s still missing something that’s a matter of life and death. Jesus perceives here is someone who might be ready to renounce the privilege system at the root of the people's plight. Better to renounce all its trappings than to compromise. Better to let go than try to change it from the inside. God's Law eliminated privilege. God's Law provided for everyone. It had in the past and it would again – if only his people would remember it. Jesus offers the cure – “Give up your privilege and follow me along the Way” –  and this guy can’t accept it. Mark says the man is “clouded up.” Jesus loves the man, but the man's love of privilege obscures his soul sickness so much, he can’t embrace the love of God.

“What’s the one thing that keeps you from following me as we walk along the Way?” I can’t help but wonder, if Jesus looked at me and asked me the same question, what would I say? Certainly not riches? My family? My livelihood? My house and car? Do I sell my possessions and give the proceeds to the poor? What if it’s not about the money, the clothes, the cars, and the trappings of wealth? What if it’s about the privilege? What if Jesus were to look at us with deep love and offers to heal us if we can find a way to deny privilege and follow him along the Way.

Deny privilege. That’s where it really starts to hurt. I like to think my happiness and success have to do with the fact that I work hard and earn what I have. That’s the American Way, right? My happiness can also be attributed to the fact that our culture affords me privileges as a white, middle-class, educated, heterosexual male. Are people like me in need of some healing because we benefit from unjust social structures that treat us like insiders and reward us for arbitrary qualities like the lightness of one’s skin, or male gender identity, or being a heterosexual marriage? None of that is my fault. I did not choose any of these qualities. So, what is my responsibility?

To be honest, when someone tells me I have privilege, I don't always know what to do with that information. In America, most of us want all the privileges we can get. Some might think, “I'm going to take full advantage of my privileges!” It gets confusing in our individualistic culture to decide that the privileges one has, whether through effort or circumstance, is a negative thing.

We need a different kind of discourse. We can tune ourselves to the voices of those for whom our systems do not benefit. In the case of white male privilege, I can walk around with a lot of shame and guilt. I can lament my own unintentional participation in the ways white supremacy continues to leave racial relations undone in the United States. But feeling sorry for myself doesn’t do much. What transformation can take place when I begin to really listen to the pain and anguish of my sisters and brothers who are hurting and suffering, and then do something about it. I can divest from my advantages, beginning with ways that whiteness and maleness has been used to name God and define the human condition. What we need is a different method -- a different relationship with the world that has borrowed the loving eyes of the Divine; a different set of ears that hear God summoning us to follow Christ along the Way. Those obstacles that seem like they will never change, those boundaries that separate us from one another – they are not as fixed as we think. You are I are living in a condition that God wants us to change.

When it comes to our racial justice work here at CCC, I believe white Christians must renounce any desires to dominate and control everything. Christians from the dominant culture can no longer follow the lead of mainstream and popular Christianity. Within the Church, some of us need to do the truly hard work of demoting ourselves, turning down decision-making opportunities, and refusing to accommodate the dominant culture’s strongholds. We begin by getting rid of the idea of White Jesus. We all know him. White Jesus is the domesticated diety who is made in White America’s image. Sometimes he looks like a Swedish mystic with flowing robes and a glowing halo. Sometimes he looks like Uncle Sam, a good citizen. White Jesus doesn’t ask people to follow along the Way. White Jesus asks that you maintain the status quo: Be a devoted American, eat your vegetables, say your prayers, and don’t cause any trouble. The Americanized Jesus must be rejected for the Jesus that brought good news to the poor and came to liberate the oppressed. Following him puts us in solidarity with the oppressed. His Way takes us to the most vulnerable in our society, including those that have been historically oppressed by race, class, gender identity, or sexual orientation in America. The Way of healing becomes clear when the oppressed are privileged at the table of Christ, and where oppressors can turn around from their way of life and join in Christ's vulnerability in a world that cannot recognize him.

The liberated community cannot be achieved through our own productivity and hard work. Liberation comes by yielding to the Spirit. It comes through risk. No longer conformed to the racialized, male-dominant patterns of America, the Church can confront police brutality, the school to prison pipeline and mass incarceration, patriarchy and sexism, economically-deprived communities and the lack of access to livable conditions and wages.  I am calling for a risky, Jesus-shaped vision that renounces the dominant culture’s inclination to control and run things. I’m calling for a liberated community that embodies the struggle for healing and peace. When we can work on these things, we will begin to understand the true nature of God, always coming to us, always at work in us, always inviting is to follow Christ along the Way.

In a moment of quiet, I invite us to a contemplative exercise – a way to begin to become aware of how our thoughts, prayers, and actions can intertwine … how we can live into the vision of becoming a liberated community…

• Knowing how deeply our lives intertwine, I vow not to destroy the life or spirit of others.
• Knowing how deeply our lives intertwine, I vow not to take what is not given.
•  Knowing how deeply our lives intertwine, I vow not to engage in abusive relationships.
• Knowing how deeply our lives intertwine, I vow not to speak falsely or deceptively.
• Knowing how deeply our lives intertwine, I vow not to harm self or others through poisonous thoughts or deeds.
• Knowing how deeply our lives intertwine, I vow not to dwell on past errors. 
• Knowing how deeply our lives intertwine, I vow not to speak of self-separate from others.
• Knowing how deeply our lives intertwine, I vow not to possess any form of life selfishly.
• Knowing how deeply our lives intertwine, I vow not to harbor ill-will toward any human being.

https://acton.org/rich-young-man-law-versus-privilege

https://www.christiancentury.org/blogs/archive/2014-09/beyond-white-privilege-modelnbsp

http://lectionarygreek.blogspot.com/2012/10/mark-1016-31.html

http://www.crossmarks.com/brian/mark10x17.htm

http://www.davidlose.net/2015/10/pentecost-20-b-curing-our-heartsickness/