I Made a Promise, Mr Frodo. A Promise.

This was very nearly an entry about prophecy, despite the fact that the reading from Genesis that we find in the lectionary for Sunday isn't really a prophetic story.

I could wax poetic about how the word "prophecy" has been misunderstood and how therefore its very meaning has changed over the years.  But that will be a post for some other day.

No, the story of God and Abram forming their covenant with each other is more like the Council of Elrond than it is some obscure and obfuscated rhyming prediction of the future!

I don't know about you, but when I think of the Abrahamic covenant, what I tend to remember is God's promise:  do these things and I will make of you a great nation.

Similarly, when I think of the Council of Elrond, what I remember is Aragorn standing up and saying, "If by my life or death I can protect you, I will.  You have my sword."  Followed by Legolas and Gimli.  You can almost hear the sweeping music, can't you?

What you may not remember quite so clearly is the arguments concerning whether to use the One Ring or destroy it.  And then the more bitter arguments concerning who should carry the Ring into Mordor.

And perhaps you forget the part that was actually most important--Samwise bursting out of hiding and demanding to go along.  And the decision to include Merry and Pippin instead of more of Elrond's elves.

Because friendship and loyalty were deemed more important that strength.

And you know what?  That's not a bad description of what's actually going on between God and Abram.

It is a matter of friendship and loyalty.

Instead of bearing a Ring of Power, Abram and his wife Sarai bear being uprooted and settled in a strange land.  They bear circumcision--well, Abram and his male offspring do.  They even bear having their names changed to Abraham and Sarah.

Instead of arguing about what to do with the One Ring, or who is to do it, 100-year-old Abraham literally falls on his face and laughs when God tells him that his 90-year-old wife is about to become pregnant after experiencing barrenness all her life.

But in the end, this agreement, these promises, this covenant between Abraham and God are most like the Fellowship of the Ring in these ways:

Sometimes the people of God are like Boromir, too weak to keep our promises and sorry for it.
Sometimes the people of God are like Frodo, brave and diligent, plodding along even when our strength is failing.

But God?  God is like one Samwise Gamgee.  A loyal friend who is determined to walk beside us, no matter what we say.

All the way to Mordor, if that's what it takes.

Be good to each other,
Rev. Josh
022415





The scripture lessons for March 1st—The Second Sunday in Lent Year B—are:


Genesis 17:1-7, 15-16

When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to Abram, and said to him, "I am God Almighty; walk before me, and be blameless. And I will make my covenant between me and you, and will make you exceedingly numerous." Then Abram fell on his face; and God said to him,

"As for me, this is my covenant with you: You shall be the ancestor of a multitude of nations. No longer shall your name be Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you the ancestor of a multitude of nations. I will make you exceedingly fruitful; and I will make nations of you, and kings shall come from you.

"I will establish my covenant between me and you, and your offspring after you throughout their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your offspring after you."

God said to Abraham, "As for Sarah your wife, you shall not call her Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name. I will bless her, and moreover I will give you a son by her. I will bless her, and she shall give rise to nations; kings of peoples shall come from her."

Psalm 22:23-31

You who fear God,
   praise God!
All you offspring of Jacob,
   glorify God;
stand in awe of God,
   all you offspring of Israel!

For God did not despise or abhor
   the affliction of the afflicted;
God did not hide God's face from me,
   but heard when I cried to God.

From you comes my praise
   in the great congregation;
my vows I will pay
   before those who fear God.

The poor shall eat and be satisfied;
   those who seek God shall praise God.
May your hearts live forever!

All the ends of the earth
   shall remember and turn to God;
and all the families of the nations
   shall worship before God.

For dominion belongs to God,
   and God rules over the nations.

To God, indeed, shall all who sleep in the earth
   bow down;
before God shall bow all
   who go down to the dust,
and I shall live for God.

Posterity will serve God;
   future generations will be told about God,
and proclaim God's deliverance
   to a people yet unborn,
saying that God has done it.

Romans 4:13-25

For the promise that he would inherit the world did not come to Abraham or to his descendants through the law but through the righteousness of faith. If it is the adherents of the law who are to be the heirs, faith is null and the promise is void. For the law brings wrath; but where there is no law, neither is there violation.

For this reason it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his descendants, not only to the adherents of the law but also to those who share the faith of Abraham (for he is the father of all of us, as it is written, "I have made you the father of many nations") — in the presence of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist. Hoping against hope, he believed that he would become "the father of many nations," according to what was said, "So numerous shall your descendants be." He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was already as good as dead (for he was about a hundred years old), or when he considered the barrenness of Sarah's womb. No distrust made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, being fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised. Therefore his faith "was reckoned to him as righteousness."

Now the words, "it was reckoned to him," were written not for his sake alone, but for ours also. It will be reckoned to us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead, who was handed over to death for our trespasses and was raised for our justification.

Mark 8:31-38

Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. He said all this quite openly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, "Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things."

He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, "If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it. For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life? Indeed, what can they give in return for their life? Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels."

Because We Shouldn't Have To.

So, today is Fat Tuesday—Mardi Gras, for many of you—and plenty of folk are going absolute hedonistic bananas tonight.

For the record, the idea of partying on Fat Tuesday—indeed the very name—came out of the need for getting rid of all the fat and sugar in the house before you buckle down for Lent tomorrow.

And yet, somehow I have the feeling that most of the people going absolute hedonistic bananas tonight aren't going to be showing up for Ash Wednesday tomorrow.

Anyway, while tonight there is much fun to be had, as I look ahead to Sunday I have to be thinking about Lent.

The scriptural focus for Sunday is Psalm 25.  Well, a portion of it anyway.  The thing about the Psalms is that they have language that doesn't fit into the serene (and polite) atmosphere of the average American church.

On the other hand, I think maybe that's one of the great things about the Psalms. They help us to say (and to pray) things that we all have felt at one time or another.

Impolite things.

They may not usually be prayers, but I feel the same way about comic books.  Like the way Mystique says what so many closeted people are afraid to say in this scene with Nightcrawler:



Or even the catharsis of watching the Hulk enact the depth of anger and rage that every one us has felt at least once in our lives (trust me, Loki has this coming):



Hulk smash, indeed.

The Psalms, though, have the benefit of helping us to say things we might be afraid to say to God.  The Psalms are prayers, in other words, that go to uncomfortably true places.

If you're out of practice talking with God—or even if you're just in a terribly polite rut—perhaps you should take the opportunity to familiarize yourself with the Psalms for Lent!

And perhaps we should all learn how to channel that Hulk-like rage into the steely resolve of Mystique.  Fight the good fight, even if you don't have to hide.

Because nobody should have to.

Be good to each other,
RevJosh
021715

The scripture lessons for February 22nd—The First Sunday in Lent Year B—are:


Genesis 9:8-17

Then God said to Noah and to his sons with him, "As for me, I am establishing my covenant with you and your descendants after you, and with every living creature that is with you, the birds, the domestic animals, and every animal of the earth with you, as many as came out of the ark. I establish my covenant with you, that never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of a flood, and never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth."

God said, "This is the sign of the covenant that I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all future generations: I have set my bow in the clouds, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. When I bring clouds over the earth and the bow is seen in the clouds, I will remember my covenant that is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. When the bow is in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth." God said to Noah, "This is the sign of the covenant that I have established between me and all flesh that is on the earth."

Psalm 25:1-10

To you, O God,  
    I lift up my soul.
O my God,
    in you I trust;  
do not let me be put to shame;
    do not let my enemies exult over me.

Do not let those who wait for you  
     be put to shame;
let them be ashamed  
     who are wantonly treacherous.

Make me to know your ways, O God;  
     teach me your paths.
Lead me in your truth,  
     and teach me,

for you are the God
     of my salvation;
for you I wait all day long.

Be mindful of your mercy, O God,  
      and of your steadfast love,
for they have been from of old.

Do not remember the sins of my youth  
      or my transgressions;
according to your steadfast love  
      remember me, for your goodness' sake, O God!

Good and upright is God; therefore  
      God instructs sinners in the way.

God leads the humble in what is right,  
       and teaches the humble God's way.

All the paths of God are steadfast love  
       and faithfulness,
for those who keep God's covenant  
       and God's decrees.

1 Peter 3:18-22

For Christ also suffered for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, in order to bring you to God. He was put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit, in which also he went and made a proclamation to the spirits in prison, who in former times did not obey, when God waited patiently in the days of Noah, during the building of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were saved through water.

And baptism, which this prefigured, now saves you — not as a removal of dirt from the body, but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers made subject to him.

Mark 1:9-15

In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. And just as he was coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit descending like a dove on him. And a voice came from heaven, "You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased." And the Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. He was in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan; and he was with the wild beasts; and the angels waited on him.

Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God, and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news."

I Want To Believe

We all have a little Fox Mulder in us.

Things are not what they seem.  I'm not usually prone to uttering strange, David Lynch-style, inscrutable phrases—even if there is something up with the owls.  But if there's one thing I'm reasonably sure of, it's that I'm not reasonably sure of much.

I'm trying to lead you to less of a David Lynch place than I am a George Orwell, 1984, 2 + 2 = 5, doublethink kind of place.

We all have a tendency to believe what is easiest, or what is popular, or what fits best with our expectations.  Orwell asks the question, "If everyone believes it, does that make it true?"  And it is so, so easy for you to sit there and read this and say with conviction "Of course it doesn't!"  And yet, how many of us have been swayed by the classic McDonald's advertising, "BILLIONS AND BILLIONS SERVED," which of course implies that those billions and billions can't be wrong?

Can they?

I find that most people read the story of the Transfiguration of Jesus with the same sense of superiority. How can the disciples—Peter, especially—be so utterly dense?  The Transfiguration is literally a mountaintop experience.  It is literally an epiphany.  A Voice From On High literally identifies Jesus as the Son of God and commands the disciples to listen to him, for crying out loud!

And yet, they are still afraid, they don't know what to say, and Peter manages to insert foot and chew... "This is great!  Uh...  I know!  We'll pitch tents and stay here..."  Even though Jesus has just told them that he "...must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again."

Then again, Peter's immediate response to that idea was to rebuke Jesus.  After all, Peter had only just then proclaimed that Jesus was the Messiah.  Which was a politically charged claim, to say the least.  The Messiah was supposed to ride in like King David killing his tens of thousands of enemies and take the throne back from Rome!

The Messiah?  Die?  Inconceivable!

Peter is scared and he doesn't know what to say.  And if we're honest with ourselves, that's a perfectly reasonable response.

I don't think that what I'm about to say is a spoiler, but I'll alert you anyway:  I'm about to pick up a theme from the Divergent series.

Perhaps it's appropriate to turn to the character of Beatrice "Tris" Prior, the main character in the Divergent Trilogy, to help us get our brains—and our hearts—around what we're talking about here.  You see, there's a moment where someone Tris loves very much makes it crystal clear that she is about to sacrifice herself in order to save Tris.

Tris is scared and she doesn't know how to react.

And it might be fair to say that everything she does after that point is shaped by Tris's need to make meaning out of that act.

Including her need to understand when you should allow someone to sacrifice themselves for you—or, conversely, when sacrificing yourself is something more nobel than suicide.  And the answer she settles on is, "...if it's the ultimate way for them to show they love you."

It takes Tris a very long time and a lot of water under the bridge to get there.  And the same goes for Peter, too.

But that's what the death of Jesus is—the ultimate way for him to show us that he loves us.  And his Resurrection, among other things, is God telling us just how powerful and important that love is.

Be  good to each other,

RevJosh

021015

The scripture lessons for February 15th—The Last Sunday After Epiphany—are:


2 Kings 2:1-12

Now when the Lord was about to take Elijah up to heaven by a whirlwind, Elijah and Elisha were on their way from Gilgal. Elijah said to Elisha, "Stay here; for the Lord has sent me as far as Bethel." But Elisha said, "As the Lord lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you." So they went down to Bethel. The company of prophets who were in Bethel came out to Elisha, and said to him, "Do you know that today the Lord will take your master away from you?" And he said, "Yes, I know; keep silent." Elijah said to him, "Elisha, stay here; for the Lord has sent me to Jericho." But he said, "As the Lord lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you." So they came to Jericho. The company of prophets who were at Jericho drew near to Elisha, and said to him, "Do you know that today the Lord will take your master away from you?" And he answered, "Yes, I know; be silent." Then Elijah said to him, "Stay here; for the Lord has sent me to the Jordan." But he said, "As the Lord lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you." So the two of them went on. Fifty men of the company of prophets also went, and stood at some distance from them, as they both were standing by the Jordan. Then Elijah took his mantle and rolled it up, and struck the water; the water was parted to the one side and to the other, until the two of them crossed on dry ground.

When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, "Tell me what I may do for you, before I am taken from you." Elisha said, "Please let me inherit a double share of your spirit." He responded, "You have asked a hard thing; yet, if you see me as I am being taken from you, it will be granted you; if not, it will not." As they continued walking and talking, a chariot of fire and horses of fire separated the two of them, and Elijah ascended in a whirlwind into heaven. Elisha kept watching and crying out, "Father, father! The chariots of Israel and its horsemen!" But when he could no longer see him, he grasped his own clothes and tore them in two pieces.

Psalm 50:1-6

The mighty one, God the Sovereign,
  speaks and summons the earth:
from the rising of the sun to its setting.

Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty
  God shines forth.

Our God comes and does not keep silence,
   before God is a devouring fire,
and a mighty tempest all around.

God calls to the heavens above
   and to the earth,
that God may judge God's people:
"Gather to me my faithful ones,
  who made a covenant with me by sacrifice!"

The heavens declare God's righteousness,
  for God indeed is judge.

2 Corinthians 4:3-6

And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. For we do not proclaim ourselves; we proclaim Jesus Christ as Lord and ourselves as your slaves for Jesus' sake. For it is the God who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

Mark 9:2-9

Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and John, and led them up a high mountain apart, by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his clothes became dazzling white, such as no one on earth could bleach them. And there appeared to them Elijah with Moses, who were talking with Jesus. Then Peter said to Jesus, "Rabbi, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah." He did not know what to say, for they were terrified. Then a cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud there came a voice, "This is my Son, the Beloved; listen to him!" Suddenly when they looked around, they saw no one with them anymore, but only Jesus.

As they were coming down the mountain, he ordered them to tell no one about what they had seen, until after the Son of Man had risen from the dead.

Ahh, a bear in his natural habitat - a Studebaker.

Usually the hero journey is described in terms of the hero encountering and then overcoming (or not) a series of challenges.  It's no accident that so many rpgs use language like "encounters" and "challenges" for the battles and puzzles their players experience.

But it recently hit me that there's another way to see that journey, with it's string of challenge after challenge.  It's true of many stories, but it recently hit me particularly hard about The Lord of the Rings--there's simply no rest.  Every time Frodo reaches a place of sanctuary, a place where he can take a breath and take stock--something propels him forward again.  Sometimes it's an attack that breaks the sanctuary of a place, sometimes it's the knowledge that he's the only one who can bear the ring and destroy it's evil, but something always keeps him moving.



The Gospel writer of Mark paints a picture of Jesus's ministry that's like that.  Every time Jesus finishes preaching and seeks out some time away, he ends up healing someone.  And his fame increases.  And with fame, the crowds arrive.  Only they aren't there to hear the message.  They're there for the miracles.  And so Jesus keeps moving from place to place.  Preaching.  Healing.  Helping and subsequently escaping the crowds.

No rest.



There is another way to look at this dynamic, though.  Katherine Matthews Huey recently wrote a reflection over this aspect of Jesus's ministry in which she repeated the phrase "moving right along."

Which of course made me think of The Muppet Movie.



Maybe there's a positive side to being constantly on the move like that.  After all, Kermit wouldn't have met all the many, many good friends he'd gathered around him by the end of the story if he's stayed in the swamp or had a smooth journey from there to Hollywood.

I wonder how many friends Jesus had by the time he made it to the end of his story?

Be good to each other,
RevJosh
020315

The scripture lessons for February 8th—The 5th Sunday After Epiphany—are:


Isaiah 40:21-31

Have you not known? Have you not heard? Has it not been told you from the beginning? Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth? It is he who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers; who stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them like a tent to live in; who brings princes to naught, and makes the rulers of the earth as nothing. Scarcely are they planted, scarcely sown, scarcely has their stem taken root in the earth, when he blows upon them, and they wither, and the tempest carries them off like stubble. To whom then will you compare me, or who is my equal? says the Holy One. Lift up your eyes on high and see: Who created these? He who brings out their host and numbers them, calling them all by name; because he is great in strength, mighty in power, not one is missing.

Why do you say, O Jacob, and speak, O Israel, "My way is hidden from the Lord, and my right is disregarded by my God"? Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the faint, and strengthens the powerless. Even youths will faint and be weary, and the young will fall exhausted; but those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.

Psalm 147:1-11, 20c

Praise God! How good it is
  to sing praises to our God;
for God is gracious,
  and a song of praise is fitting.

God builds up Jerusalem;
  God gathers the outcasts of Israel.

God heals the brokenhearted,
  and binds up their wounds.

God determines the number of the stars;
  God gives to all of them their names.

Great is our God, and abundant in power;
  whose understanding is beyond measure.

God lifts up the downtrodden;
  God casts the wicked to the ground.

Sing to God with thanksgiving;
  make melody to our God on the lyre.

God covers the heavens with clouds,
  prepares rain for the earth,
makes grass grow on the hills.

God gives to the animals their food,
  and to the young ravens when they cry.

God has no delight in the strength of the horse,
  nor pleasure in the speed of a runner;

but God takes pleasure in those who fear God,
  in those who hope in God's steadfast love.

Praise be to God!

1 Corinthians 9:16-23

If I proclaim the gospel, this gives me no ground for boasting, for an obligation is laid on me, and woe to me if I do not proclaim the gospel! For if I do this of my own will, I have a reward; but if not of my own will, I am entrusted with a commission. What then is my reward? Just this: that in my proclamation I may make the gospel free of charge, so as not to make full use of my rights in the gospel.

For though I am free with respect to all, I have made myself a slave to all, so that I might win more of them. To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though I myself am not under the law) so that I might win those under the law. To those outside the law I became as one outside the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ's law) so that I might win those outside the law. To the weak I became weak, so that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, that I might by all means save some. I do it all for the sake of the gospel, so that I may share in its blessings.

Mark 1: 29-39

As soon as they left the synagogue, they entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. Now Simon's mother-in-law was in bed with a fever, and they told him about her at once. He came and took her by the hand and lifted her up. Then the fever left her, and she began to serve them.

That evening, at sundown, they brought to him all who were sick or possessed with demons. And the whole city was gathered around the door. And he cured many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons; and he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him. In the morning, while it was still very dark, he got up and went out to a deserted place, and there he prayed. And Simon and his companions hunted for him. When they found him, they said to him, "Everyone is searching for you." He answered, "Let us go on to the neighboring towns, so that I may proclaim the message there also; for that is what I came out to do." And he went throughout Galilee, proclaiming the message in their synagogues and casting out demons.

Since I Look Like A Demon...

The Gospel lesson for this Sunday is one of those passages that it simultaneously very simple and very, very complicated.  Basically, it goes something like this:  One Sabbath, near the beginning of Jesus’s ministry, Jesus went into a synagogue and began to preach.  And everyone was amazed at the authority with which Jesus preached.  Just then there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit, and he cried out, "What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?  Have you come to destroy us?  I know who you are, the Holy One of God."  But Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be silent, and come out of him!"  And the unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying with a loud voice, came out of him.  This only served to make the people even more amazed at Jesus’s authority--he can even command spirits!--and the news of what he had done spread all over the countryside like gossip through a middle school cafeteria.

It terms of the plot, it’s pretty simple, right?  But there’s one element that complicates matters for the post-modern reader.

And that one element is…  Demons.

Already it is happening—with the invocation of that single word, each and every one of you has experienced a different set of images, thoughts, and emotions.  Some of you are probably remembering the disturbing imagery of any number of popular movies and even television, from The Exorcist and The Amityville Horror to Buffy the Vampire Slayer and The Exorcism of Emily Rose.  Perhaps some of you disapprove of such dark musings, believing that such entertainment indirectly or unintentionally worships Satan.  And I imagine that some of you do not believe in Satan, or demons, at least not literally—humanity is capable of enough evil on its own and the real demonic forces are societal and personal and very human.

On the other hand, I once heard someone say that only rich white folk can afford to not believe in the devil.

There’s always another hand with which to say, “On the other hand…” isn’t there?

I have heard stories of addiction referred to as a battle with personal demons.  I have heard stories of struggle with mental illness in which the concept of demons seemed to be very literal.  Others see this Gospel lesson as demonizing what is simply an illness.

Actually, the idea of demonizing--presenting something or someone as purely evil or diabolic--is something geeks could teach a thing or two about.

For example, this concept always reminds me of one of the X-Men.  His name is Kurt Wagner, but he is known as Nightcrawler.   Kurt is covered in dark, blue fur, he has glowing eyes, his hands and feet have too few digits, he has a barbed, prehensile tail, and he has the power to disappear in a puff of smoke that smells of brimstone.  He looks like a demon, and yet not only is he one of the good guys, but he is also a devout Roman Catholic who was in training for the priesthood.  Can you imagine being Kurt Wagner, a truly good person who is unable to go out in public because the people, in their fear, might seek to harm you?

I’m still not sure what to say about the impudent little demon from the Gospel lesson.  But I once had a really interesting conversation with a group of clergy about how they would preach over the passage.  One pastor immediately described this passage as presenting itself as silly to the modern reader and concluded that the only way to make any kind of connection for you would be for me to share at least one of my personal demons with you all.  The next pastor said that I should be very careful of that kind of sharing and that he himself would not share any of his personal demons from the pulpit.  A third pastor said that this would be a great chance to say a prophetic word and name the demons of the church.  And a fourth pastor said that we should be very careful about naming the church’s demons, as she had heard a horrible story about a pastor naming something that turned out not to be true at all.

All this talk of naming or not naming demons reminds me of Harry Potter.  The arch-villain of the story is an evil wizard of unimaginable power who calls himself Lord Voldemort.  Most of the wizarding community refuses to call him by name out of fear that doing so might somehow invoke his evil presence.  He is instead called You-Know-Who, He Who Must Not Be Named, and The Dark Lord.

If Arthur has Merlin, and Luke Skywalker has Obi-Wan Kenobi, then Harry Potter has Albus Dumbledore.  And at the end of the first book, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, Harry almost slips and says the name “Voldemort” in the presence of Dumbledore.  When he catches himself and says “You-Know-Who,” instead Dumbledore says, "Call him Voldemort, Harry. Always use the proper name for things. Fear of a name increases fear of the thing itself."  Dumbledore’s advice is wise, for needlessly increasing your fear of something is to give it power that it would not normally have.

In fact, no matter how you define what a demon, or a demonic force, is, we can learn from Dumbledore’s advice here.  We have to be careful not to give the demonic power that it does not have on its own.  And so I want to let you in on a little secret.

Sunday’s Gospel lesson is not about the demon.

Even the demon acknowledges that it is not the star of the story.  This Gospel lesson is about Jesus.  Jesus is the one with the power in this story.  Jesus is the one with the authority.  When Jesus teaches, he teaches as one who has authority.  And whether you believe in a literal demon who speaks, saying, “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?  Have you come to destroy us?  I know who you are, the Holy One of God.” or if you believe that the demon is a metaphor for the societal ills that Jesus continually preached against, or if your beliefs fall somewhere between the two—when Jesus interacts with the demon, Jesus is the one with the power.  Jesus is the one who speaks with authority.

It really is just that simple.

Be good to each other,
RevJosh
012715

The scripture lessons for January 25th—The 4th Sunday After Epiphany—are:


Deuteronomy 18:15-20

The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own people; you shall heed such a prophet. This is what you requested of the Lord your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly when you said: "If I hear the voice of the Lord my God any more, or ever again see this great fire, I will die." Then the Lord replied to me: "They are right in what they have said. I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their own people; I will put my words in the mouth of the prophet, who shall speak to them everything that I command. Anyone who does not heed the words that the prophet shall speak in my name, I myself will hold accountable. But any prophet who speaks in the name of other gods, or who presumes to speak in my name a word that I have not commanded the prophet to speak — that prophet shall die."

Psalm 111

Praise God! I will give thanks to God
  with my whole heart,
in the company of the upright,
  in the congregation.

Great are the works of God,
  studied by all who delight in them.

Full of honor and majesty is God's work,
  and God's righteousness endures forever.

God has gained renown by wonderful deeds;
  God is gracious and merciful.

God provides food for those who fear God;
  God is ever mindful of God's covenant.

God has shown God's people
  the power of God's works,
in giving them the heritage
  of the nations.

The works of God's hands
  are faithful and just;
all God's precepts are trustworthy.

They are established forever and ever,
  to be performed with faithfulness
  and uprightness.

God sent redemption to God's people;
  God has commanded God's covenant forever.
Holy and awesome is God's name.

The fear of God is the beginning of wisdom;
  all those who practice it have a good understanding.
God's praise endures forever.

1 Corinthians 8:1-13

Now concerning food sacrificed to idols: we know that "all of us possess knowledge." Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up. Anyone who claims to know something does not yet have the necessary knowledge; but anyone who loves God is known by him.

Hence, as to the eating of food offered to idols, we know that "no idol in the world really exists," and that "there is no God but one." Indeed, even though there may be so-called gods in heaven or on earth — as in fact there are many gods and many lords — yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.

It is not everyone, however, who has this knowledge. Since some have become so accustomed to idols until now, they still think of the food they eat as food offered to an idol; and their conscience, being weak, is defiled. "Food will not bring us close to God." We are no worse off if we do not eat, and no better off if we do. But take care that this liberty of yours does not somehow become a stumbling block to the weak. For if others see you, who possess knowledge, eating in the temple of an idol, might they not, since their conscience is weak, be encouraged to the point of eating food sacrificed to idols? So by your knowledge those weak believers for whom Christ died are destroyed. But when you thus sin against members of your family, and wound their conscience when it is weak, you sin against Christ. Therefore, if food is a cause of their falling, I will never eat meat, so that I may not cause one of them to fall.

Mark 1:21-28

They went to Capernaum; and when the sabbath came, he entered the synagogue and taught. They were astounded at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. Just then there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit, and he cried out, "What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God." But Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be silent, and come out of him!" And the unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying with a loud voice, came out of him. They were all amazed, and they kept on asking one another, "What is this? A new teaching — with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him." At once his fame began to spread throughout the surrounding region of Galilee.

The Little Ones Were Crawling Into A Strange Glowing Ooze...

Yup, all from the same cosmic rays!

If you prefer your science fiction hard, look away now!  But I've always thought that the origin stories of comic book superheroes (and supervillains for that matter) are really interesting.  They might not be very scientific—heck, Stan Lee freely admits that he has no idea what a mutant or gamma radiation is but that he recognized that they sounded pretty cool—but I think it's fun to look at all the different ways super powers have been bestowed on characters over the years.  Because the last thing we need is more than one character having the same origin story, right?
Well...  I suppose there's the Fantastic Four, all gaining their powers from the same cosmic rays.

But that's not my favorite shared origin story!

My favorite shared origin story has to do with the Marvel character, Daredevil.  As a young man, Matt Murdock saw that a blind man crossing the street was about to be run down by a speeding truck.  He rushed into traffic and tackled the man as the truck swerved to avoid them both.  In the ensuing traffic accident a container of radioactive material is knocked loose from the truck, striking Murdock in the head, blinding him and heightening his remaining senses to superhuman levels.

Hey!  Where'd that cylinder go?

Ah, but what happened to the canister after it hit Murdock between the eyes?  Well...  it's not official because the heroes I'm about mention originated in an indie comic, not Marvel.  But...  if you look at the origin story of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, you'll see young man save a blind man from being run down in the street by a truck.  In the ensuing traffic accident a container of glowing green ooze (hey, that has to be radioactive, doesn't it?) strikes the young man in the head before bouncing off the pavement and striking a glass bowl with four turtles inside from the hands of a young boy.

Should someone call HAZMAT?  No?

Turtles, shards of glass—and a canister of glowing green ooze all end up in the sewer together.  The ooze causes the turtles to mutate, becoming humanoid, along with their rat ninjutsu-master.  So that one container of ooze is responsible for the origins of five (six if you include Splinter) heroes who can trace their origins back to that one container.

That's even more insidious than the cosmic rays that brought about the Fantastic Four!

There's something about the origin stories that remind me of the call narratives in the gospels—especially the more insidious origin stories, like the cosmic rays and the green ooze.  I think it has something to do with the way the disciples are suddenly, irrevocably changed.  I mean, think about it, Jesus is strolling along the shoreline and sees a couple of fishermen.  And he just kind of goes, "Hey you, yeah you, follow me!"

And they do.

They walk away from their jobs, their livelihoods, their families and follow Jesus.  And you have to wonder why, don't you?  In fact, many, many words have been written about the disciples and why they answered the call of Jesus and what that all means.  More and more I'm inclined to approach this story the same way that I approach Genesis.  The gospel writers aren't primarily telling a story about the disciples.  They're telling a story about God and God's relationship with humanity.  And so the sudden shift in the disciples shouldn't be any more surprising than Matt Murdock gaining super-senses or four turtles becoming crime-fighting ninja.

Because God's presence in our lives is even more insidious than green ooze!

Use your power for good,
Rev. Josh
012015




The scripture lessons for January 25th—The 3rd Sunday After Epiphany—are:

Jonah 3:1-5, 10

The word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time, saying, "Get up, go to Nineveh, that great city, and proclaim to it the message that I tell you." So Jonah set out and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the Lord. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly large city, a three days' walk across. Jonah began to go into the city, going a day's walk. And he cried out, "Forty days more, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!"

And the people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast, and everyone, great and small, put on sackcloth. When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil ways, God changed his mind about the calamity that he had said he would bring upon them; and he did not do it.

Psalm 62:5-12

For God alone my soul waits in silence,
   for my hope is from God.

God alone is my rock
 and my salvation, my fortress;
I shall not be shaken.

On God rests my deliverance and my honor;
 my mighty rock, my refuge is in God.

Trust in God at all times, O people;
 pour out your heart before God;
 who is a refuge for us.

Those of low estate are but a breath,
 those of high estate are a delusion;
in the balances they go up;
 they are together lighter than a breath.

Put no confidence in extortion,
 and set no vain hopes on robbery;
if riches increase, do not set your heart on them.

Once God has spoken; twice have I heard this:
 that power belongs to God,
and steadfast love belongs to you, O God.

For you repay to all
 according to their work.

1 Corinthians 7:29-31

I mean, brothers and sisters, the appointed time has grown short; from now on, let even those who have wives be as though they had none, and those who mourn as though they were not mourning, and those who rejoice as though they were not rejoicing, and those who buy as though they had no possessions, and those who deal with the world as though they had no dealings with it. For the present form of this world is passing away.

Mark 1:14-20

Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God, and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news." As Jesus passed along the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the sea — for they were fishermen. And Jesus said to them, "Follow me and I will make you fish for people." And immediately they left their nets and followed him. As he went a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John, who were in their boat mending the nets. Immediately he called them; and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men, and followed him.

The Lidless Eye

Maybe it's the poet in me, but I love the Psalms.  And I think my very favorite is in the lectionary for Sunday, Psalm 139.  That's the one that starts:

O God, you have searched me and known me.
  You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
you discern my thoughts from far away.

Maybe it's kind of funny that it's my favorite.  After all, that psalm kind of makes God sound like Sauron and his all-seeing Eye.  Or maybe Big Brother watching you.

Or this classic restroom prank!

But that's not how I read the 139th Psalm.  I actually find it comforting, not creepy!  For example, when I have the opportunity to pray with a group through the sharing of joys and concerns we frequently respond to each little prayer with words like, "God of Grace, hear our prayer."  When the people are done voicing their prayers out loud I like to end with this thought, "The Psalmist tells us that God knows what we are going to say before the words can even form on our tongue.  And so we know.  We know that God has heard our prayers, both those spoken out loud (or typed into Second Life chat) and those spoken in the silence of our hearts..."  I don't know about you, but I find that comforting.

But that's the pastoral perspective more than a geek perspective.

When I look at Psalm 139 as a geek, I'm struck by the idea of labels—of identity.  The word "geek" probably has Germanic roots, "geck" meaning "fool" or "freak."  The word eventually came to be synonymous with a certain kind of freak show act—one where people did insane things like bite the heads off of live animals.  (I don't condone that, by the way.)  I don't know how it came to mean somebody who loved something so much—be it comic books or video games, or the work of J.R.R. Tolkien—that they're considered socially retarded.

But the first person to watch someone wax poetic about the work of Jack Kirby and say, "What a geek!" can't have meant it as a compliment.

And despite the whole geek chic phenomenon, that pejorative still at the heart of what it means to be a geek.  I know I've quoted her before, but I still think that Felicia Day said it best:  

The substance of what it means to be a geek is essentially someone who’s brave enough to love something against judgment.  The heart of being a geek is a little bit of rejection.

So, what happens when it's you that people are comparing to the freak that can only make a living biting the heads off animals?  What happens when it's you that Julie Smith is accusing of being:

...a bright young man turned inward, poorly socialized, who felt so little kinship with his own planet that he routinely traveled to the ones invented by his favorite authors, who thought of that secret, dreamy place his computer took him to as cyberspace—somewhere exciting, a place more real than his own life, a land he could conquer, not a drab teenager's room in his parents' house.

The only positive thing you can do is stand up and define yourself as something worthwhile.  As someone who grew up Christian, I was able to do that by turning to scripture like Genesis 1:27 or Psalm 139 and define myself as created, declared good, and unconditionally loved by God.  So when I read this psalm, I didn't see Sauron or Big Brother.  It's more like reading that my best friend and biggest fan will always, always be there.  It's like hearing the truth of Fred Rodgers's ministry:  God loves you just the way you are.

That truth made it so much easier for me to do what every geek ends up doing.  You see that people are going to judge you for loving what you love.  And you love it anyway.  And then you stand up and say, "Yeah, I'm a geek.  And I'm proud of it.  And I don't care if you judge me for it."

God loves you just the way you are.
Be good to each other,
Rev. Josh
011315