Epiphany III

The Reverend Martha Frances
Year B, Third Sunday after the Epiphany
25 January 2009

Text:  Mark 1: 14-20
Other:  Jonah 3: 1-5, 10; Psalm 62: 6-14; I Corinthians 7: 29-31

 
Living overseas gives folk an opportunity to view their own countries with new eyes, so to speak, & Barbara Cawthorne Crafton, an author to whom I often refer, is spending this year as an exchange priest in Florence, Italy.   The invocation she gave at an inauguration watch party in Florence reminds us of some of the blessings we Americans often take for granted.  Please pray with me part of Mother Crafton's prayer:

Creator & sustainer of the universe, known in so many different ways by so many different people, we rejoice today in the privilege of living in a society in which peaceful political change is possible.  We rejoice in our power to do a new thing, to act on our beliefs & to amend our ways.  We rejoice that today marks a milestone in our life together that many of us thought we would live & die without seeing.  We rejoice in the witness of all who gave their lives so that we all might inherit freedom, & we pledge ourselves to be worthy of their sacrifice, to strive always to be the people they died believing us to be. . . . All of this we pray in unity of heart & purpose.  And let the people say AMEN.

Certainly this week's events signal our country's doing new things in many areas.  As has not been true, perhaps, since the Roosevelt election early in the Great Depression, the bleak economic picture with its partner of rising unemployment is part of the call for change rampant in our elections this year.  We know very little of the background circumstances in Galilee as Jesus begins choosing his followers at the beginning of his public ministry, but certainly his call signals a drastic change.

After all, the fishing business has been about as fruitful for Simon & Andrew, James & John this season as business has been in the US this year.  Then Jesus comes along by the seashore with his invitation to "Follow me & I will make you fish for people."  After all, the 4 fishermen are clearly middle-classed members of their society for they have homes & families & their own fishing boats, & they employ hired men, so the complications of running a fishing business which support rather large extended families may really be getting to them, & anyway, Zebedee has been particularly overbearing lately.  Also, Peter is feeling put-upon by both wife & mother-in-law who have been rather sickly, don't you know?  Jesus, the charismatic rabbi from up the road, offers an alternative which sounds like the equivalent of running off & joining the circus to these hometown boys.

Jesus' call to the first 4 disciples sounds much like God's calls to patriarchs & prophets such as Abraham & Isaiah in the sacred history of the Hebrews that these fishermen recall from their synagogue study, yet their response indicates none of the hesitancy of their ancestors:  Peter, Andrew, John, & James leave their nets immediately & follow Jesus.  Never mind how countercultural their response is; how is Zebedee going to manage without his sons?  Peter's wife without his visible means of support?  In fact, later passages indicate that the fishermen return to their craft in between missionary journeys, or at least after Jesus is crucified.  Actually, Jesus' Galilean center of operation during his public ministry is Capernaum & is probably from Peter's house.   The point isn't how extraordinary are the men & women who join Jesus' band of traveling disciples but rather how ordinary they are, how much they are like the man or woman down the block to whom we speak at the grocery store, or how much they are like you & you & you, & me. 

Jesus' call to a spiritual journey arises out of a tradition in which the Hebrew people were regularly called from the everydayness of their lives to once again make faithfulness to God the first priority in their lives.  Moses spent 40 years molding a people to make JHWH their one & only God.  Centuries of prophets followed him.  In our 1st lesson today, God calls Jonah for a 2nd time, even after he runs off & gets swallowed by the whale in trying to duck out on God's will for him.  This time Jonah heads to Nineveh, preaches the message of repentance that God gives him, & is astounded when the people respond positively causing God to change God's mind about destroying the city. 

In neither of these instances is the audience a group of professional preachers-to-be which God is calling to be set apart to work for the Church.  No, these calls & a myriad of others are to folks who have daily lives & responsibilities yet are called to a new orientation in the lives they're already leading. 

This gospel, the good news which Mark is so anxious to record for future generations, Jesus issues to fisherman & tax collectors & housewives & even professional religious folks like Nicodemus who come to him at night.  This invitation to "Follow me, & I will make you fish for people" is issued to us here today also.  And what might that look like in our lives?

When Jesus calls people to repent & believe in the good news, the initiative is always Jesus's.  God reaches out to us first.  Often, that call comes through other Christians.  Many of you have shared that you came to the Christian community first because someone invited you.  Jesus operates through you & me to call people to further faithfulness, but it is Jesus' impetus to begin with.  I wouldn't have the courage to reach out if Jesus weren't urging me to do so.  How about you?  You see, even our invitation to others is our responding to God's call.

Those who are called to make God the center of their lives are usually going about doing ordinary things.  Jesus didn't go out on the street corner to those hanging out to pick his disciples from those who didn't have anything better to do.  Jesus reaches out to folks who are effective members of their professions; Jesus wants those who know how to get things done, so now they'll get holy things done. 

How many times have you heard or read the Gospel that we've read today?  How many times have you & I said, "Here am I; send me" & really meant it?  Jesus issues a clear summons to follow him over & over again in our lives because it's not an easy task to fulfill & we have to keep being reminded.  That's part of why we renew our baptismal promises several times a year on baptismal Sundays just as we did a couple of weeks ago & would have done even if we hadn't had children being baptized.

The word "repent" means to turn around & let Jesus reorient our whole lives—& Jesus expects such a call to disrupt business as usual.  Our initial response may be as immediate & unreflective as was that of the fishermen, & an emotional response to a powerful religious experience is often how we begin a deeper path in our journey.

However, keeping our lives Christ-focused isn't a once-&-for-always proposition; we can't stay on task on our own will power; if we could, we wouldn't need a savior.  This journey is just that:  a journey.  It will take the rest of our lives, & we're called to share Christ's mission so we have to keep getting plugged into the source.  We do that through daily prayer & regular Bible study & exploration of an abundant Christian life.  Christ calls us to share, so we have to discipline ourselves to nurture our conscious contact with Christ.

And you know what? A deepening & maturing faith isn't a solo, just-you-&-me, Jesus proposition.  Jesus called 12 apostles & had a far larger community of disciples beyond his closest friends.  Jesus expects us to travel in community with others who have responded, & that's part of the reason why we are planning small study groups for the Lenten season; we need others as we engage in spiritual study, reflection, & prayer.  We're hoping every youth & adult will choose to be involved in one of the small groups for 5 weeks.  We ALL need to hear Jesus call to follow & to say "Yes" to the good news & share it with others anew.  We need to lift each other up in prayer. We need to offer ourselves up to the larger community in ministry—being willing to give of our time, or talent, & our resources that we can be a light of Christ in this neighborhood. 

Now, we don't have separate altar calls in the Episcopal Church.  Instead, we're all called to come forward & be nurtured by the body & blood of Christ each week at the Eucharistic table. Two of our children will celebrate their 1st Communion today because they want to feel fully part of the family.  And just in case you haven't ever felt personally included in such a call as Jesus made to the 4 fishermen & the multitude of other disciples, I want you to hear loud & clear today that Jesus is calling you—or is calling you anew—to follow him.  Jesus is calling you so you may grow in Christ's love & then minister in your daily life.  Hope Episcopal needs each of you in our fishing expedition.  Jesus says, "Follow me, & I will make you fish for people." 

 

Epiphany 1

By The Reverend Martha Frances
Year B, Epiphany 1 - The First Sunday after the Epiphany
11 January 2009

Text:  Mark 1: 4-11
Other Readings:  Acts 19: 1-7;  Ps 29;  Genesis 1: 1-5

 

This morning we celebrate Jesus' baptism, one of the great themes of the Epiphany season: Jesus' being manifest as God's Son, the Beloved, with whom God is well pleased.  That's what "epiphany" means, of course:  manifestation, a showing forth.  Certainly God's greatest manifestation was Jesus Christ, & with this rite of passage, his baptism by his cousin John, he began his public ministry. 

Mark's version of Jesus' baptism by John tells us that Jesus appeared to his cousin John to be baptized, & that even as John baptized Jesus, he distinguished his own ministry from that of Jesus, telling everyone that Jesus was more powerful than he & would baptize with the Holy Spirit.  Our epistle reading today expands on the theme of the importance of Jesus' baptism having new meaning distinguished from Jewish baptisms, even John's.  One who is baptized by Jesus is created anew, & just as our Hebrew scripture this morning recalled the first creation, so John proclaims one baptized in Jesus' name is recreated, made new.  We're reminded that Christianity is a new creation though fully steeped in the Jewish tradition.

        Only a few words—one simple sentence—are necessary to describe John's baptism of Jesus.  Other gospel writers describe both the appearance of a dove & the voice from heaven as a public event, but Mark indicates it was a private showing forth seen & heard by Jesus alone.  When the heavens are torn apart for the dove to descend, the rigid Jewish social fabric that separate the rich & poor is destroyed, & Jesus' ministry continues to emphasize his concern for all God's creatures with whom he shares a common humanity.  God's incarnation is proclaimed at the time of Jesus' baptism.   

        Each year in celebration of Jesus' baptism, we renew our baptismal vows because they are fundamental in our understanding of our own personal & communal ministry as Christians.  Today, we are fortunate to have 3 young boys coming forward for the sacrament of baptism.  These boys & their parents & some of the godparents have met with me to discuss the sacred step they are taking, & Aaron & Zane have asked to be baptized themselves.  When parents present their children for baptism within the Christian community, you see, they show an awesome trust in the community, because they recognize that it really does take a village to rear a child.  These parents step forward with these precious little people to entrust to all of us their spiritual nurturance.  How many of us have done the same thing, perhaps without even realizing the radical nature of our action?  In this world of separateness & individualism, we say that we are truly family, that we are responsible & that we have the ability to respond to the religious upbringing of these precious children of God. 

        Therefore, as we affirm our baptismal vows with Xabi, Zane, & Aaron, we proclaim our intention to live out the promises which we make with them & for them.  This is pretty serious business which we're about, sisters & brothers in Christ, & I hope you recall today those infants, youth, & adults you've supported around this & other baptismal fonts so that today's reaffirmation of faith will be your re-creation, your recommitment to allow the Holy Spirit to strengthen your own faith & make you bold to model it for others in this & the wider community.

        First, God is the primary actor in both Jesus' & our baptism.  While Jesus is the human actor, God initiates the action, & it is God's spirit appearing as a dove, speaking to Jesus to commission or ordain him for his ministry.  Our baptism, whether it occurred when we were babies, teenagers, or adults, is first & foremost God's gracious action upon our lives.  It "marks us as Christ's own forever" as the baptismal rite states.

        We begin in a few moments by joining in the Apostles' Creed, probably not actually as old as the original apostles, but one of the earliest affirmations of the basics of the Christian faith.  We might take issue with some of the phrases today, but the basics themselves are pretty solid.  Then, I'll ask you 5 powerful questions which are really an outline for discipleship. Notice that your response to each of these 5 questions is "I will, with God's help."  We're in this spiritual quest together, you see.

        You may want to follow along with me in the Book of Common Prayer on pages 304-305.  In a few moments, we'll promise, with God's help, to grow each day as we support others to continue their Christian formation.  We promise regular worship attendance where we share bread & wine as we do in the Holy Eucharist, to learn through regular Bible study, & to really get to know each other in fellowship with one another.  That's the first vow.  The second is a promise to try to avoid evil, but when we recognize that we have stumbled into sin, we'll ask & believe in the forgiveness God gives us & return to doing God's will.  Next, we promise to tell people about the good news of Christ's love for us & to live in such a way that others believe that news.  St. Francis used to say that we all need to preach the gospel & when necessary, use words.  How many ways can we live as Jesus desires us to live?  Our fourth promise is to stay alert to others' Christlikeness, treating our neighbors as we want to be treated, & recognizing all we encounter as our neighbors.  Finally, we promise to work within the structures of our church & society to make our world more just & peaceful, affirming each other's God-given dignity, even when others act as if they don't believe it themselves.  These are not frivolous promises, but we share in their fulfillment with God's help as we commit to growing up our children to join the larger community as faithful disciples ourselves.  How about it, folks?  Are we ready to recommit to being the village these & our other children should be able to trust & believe in?

Christmas II

By The Rev. Martha Frances+
Yr. B, Christmas II - 4 January 2009

Text: Luke 2: 41-52
Others:  Jeremiah 31: 7-14; Psalm 84; Ephesians 1: 3-6, 15-19a

 

          This morning we have the opportunity to hear a story not often read in church because many years we do not have a second Sunday of Christmas before the Epiphany.  This year we have this wonderful transition Sunday between all the stories of Jesus' birth from the last couple of weeks & next week's celebration of Jesus' baptism when we will baptize three young folks—so be sure to come back for that celebration!

        Luke gives us a snapshot really—the only picture we have of Jesus between the infancy narratives & the beginning of his public ministry—with his visit in the temple at the age of 12.  Since Jewish males are expected to take on adult responsibilities at age 13, when they also entered adulthood in Jesus' day since there was no such thing as adolescence, it is significant that Jesus was still a boy at 12.  Passover was one of the festivals centered in the Jerusalem temple, so observant Jews were expected to travel there to observe the anniversary of Moses' leading the Hebrews out of Egypt & God's rescue of the Hebrew children from slaughter. 

Clearly, a whole group of family & friends venture from Nazareth to Jerusalem at this time—a 4-day journey on foot—so Mary & Joseph assume Jesus is with the pilgrims as they begin their return journey.  At night when children return to their parents' fire for a meal & bedtime, Jesus does not appear so Mary & Joseph search the group of pilgrims in vain.  They must be weary after the day's travel as well as panicked when they pack up their belongings to return to Jerusalem to find Jesus.  They leave the protection of their hometown community as they set their faces back to Jerusalem to find their lost son.

Luke tells us they search 3 days before finding Jesus in the temple.  Now I'm the mother of 4 boys—now grown men with their own families—but I can remember the panic I experienced when we lost one of them at a public event like at a festival or sports game, even for a little while.  For Mary, 3 days must have been an eternity!  Can't you just imagine her tone of voice when she finally finds him in the temple & asks him, "Child, why have you treated us like this?"  A clearer head would tell her & us that Jesus has not set out purposely to upset his parents but rather, as a 12-year-old is wont to do, has been so intent on his own agenda that he forgets to check in with his parents.  How human of him!  Which is exactly the point:  he is fully human just like other boys.  And his parents have searched anxiously for him!

Even Jesus' sitting among the elders of Israel listening & learning & expounding upon the scriptures himself is not that unusual of a child prodigy if we remember the amazing library of compositions Mozart had written by this age, for example.  Granted, the rabbis were astonished at the depth of his wisdom, but we have the pleasure of hearing insightful wisdom from even very young children at times, don't we? 

It is rather Jesus' early self-awareness which might take us aback were we in the crowd that day.  In the first words we hear from Jesus in Luke's gospel, he states clearly that they should recognize he is about his Father's business.  Mary has just referred to his earthly father Joseph, but Luke lets it be known that even when Jesus is still a child he is aware of the special relationship with God his Father.  He now claims for himself what had been previously stated by others: his divine relationship with the Creator.  Jesus' claim of his heavenly Father is beyond his earthly parents' comprehension, repeating a Gospel theme of even those closest to him not understanding who Jesus is.

As the little family returns to Nazareth, it is clear that it is not yet the "fullness of time" for Jesus, for he remains obedient to his parents according to the passage, presumably learning the craft of carpentry from Joseph for whom this is his final appearance.  Once again, we see Jesus maturing as a young Jewish man, learning a trade as he matures in his understanding of the scriptures & lore of Judaism.  Next week we continue this story with his next recorded public appearance—his baptism by his cousin John.

Another of the themes Luke emphasizes in his gospel is the central importance of the temple in the lives of Jewish people.  This same theme is picked up in the passage from Jeremiah we read this morning.  The joy of worshipping in the temple once again is evident for the exiles returning from Babylon.  God is their shepherd who leads the flock back to their homeland & to their central place of worship, the temple, as God turns their mourning into joy & they are satisfied with the bounty of their homeland. 

Psalm 84 picks up on this theme as the psalmist sings "How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord of hosts!" and continues "For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere."  Although our "temple" is a small parish church in northwest Houston, the celebratory nature of both these passages as well as Jesus' making the temple his spiritual home at age 12 reminds us that it is in our faith community that we nourish our own spirituality & rear our children to love & follow Christ as the exemplar in their lives.  May we cherish the community of Hope as the Jewish people celebrated their time in their temple, & may we continue to provide for our community's spiritual growth here at Hope.

Luke's story of Jesus in the temple at 12 is transitional in the telling of the gospel—the good news—& we can learn even from this early appearance how he grew spiritually from his teachers, the rabbis & Jewish elders, but also of his developing relationship with God which he recognizes is not like other humans'.   Jesus wasn't afraid to venture beyond his comfort zone, or at least the comfort zone of his family, when he fulfilled an obvious desire for learning beyond what he could gain in Nazareth, yet he also prepared for his later life by developing as a typical young Jewish man in a family setting in Nazareth.  May we continue to develop our own spiritual lives, pass that yearning on to our parish children, & reach beyond to offer the blessing of a life with Jesus the Christ to those who may not yet know him.