Blessed are You!

Blessed are You!

You are Blessed in Boston!
You are NOT Banned in Boston!

Jesus began his ministry by recruiting some ordinary working people; like fisherfolk as you may remember from last week. Folks like us and he said plain as day; “Let’s go fishing.” 

Mind you he wants us to go fishing for people. After all, we’re spending way too much time walking in the Darkness. It is time for us to proclaim the Gospel of Light!  You will remember how we put it last week; 

Christ has died

Christ is risen

Christ will come again.

In the darkness there is much too much violence, bigotry and hatred. In the light we die to sin and rise to newness of life.

We are forgiven

We receive the gift of eternal life

We are filled with the unbounded joy of Jesus

This Gospel message then gives us the kernel of a Gospel life

Love God

Love one another

Love yourself.

No need to complicate the Gospel. Jesus didn’t; neither need we.

So then, he called his working folk to him, his fisherfolk and then Jesus went public with his ministry. 

He began healing the sick. Jesus wanted to make sure that everybody had access to Universal Health Care through his sacred and holy touch. This is first and foremost. He gave us power and commandment to heal the sick. Why then is this matter of Universal Health Care so controversial? For Jesus, the was of the highest priority.

Of course the crowds followed him wherever he went. They longed for his healing touch. And there they were today gathered with him up on the mountain. He begins his first campaign speech; the one we call “The Sermon on the Mount”.

He begins with a blessing. 

“Blessed are the poor in spirit”. Jesus knew what it was to be exhausted and oppressed by the burdens of his life. He had sense to withdraw in moments when he was spiritually spent. We may not think of Jesus as “spiritually spent” but the scripture tells us exactly that; 

“But now more than ever the word about Jesus spread abroad; many crowds would gather to hear him and to be cured of their diseases. But he would withdraw to deserted places and pray.” ~Luke 5:15,16

In the Lucan version of this sermon, the one the biblical scholars call the "Sermon on the Plain", Jesus says "Blessed are the poor." Period. 

"Blessed are you who are poor,

for yours is the kingdom of God.

“Blessed are you who are hungry now,

for you will be filled.

“Blessed are you who weep now,

for you will laugh." ~Luke 6:20-21

Jesus goes on to say this of the rich and powerful

"But woe to you who are rich,

for you have received your consolation.

“Woe to you who are full now,

for you will be hungry.

“Woe to you who are laughing now,

for you will mourn and weep." Luke 6:24,25

Notice how Jesus comforted the afflicted; but afflicted the comfortable. 

In both sermons Jesus begins with a blessing. In fact, he begins with many blessings: A blessing on the poor and those whose hearts are torn with grief. He blesses the meek, and those who hunger and thirst for righteousness.  The merciful and the pure in heart; these folks obtain mercy and they shall see God. Blessed too are the peacemakers, they are God children. And then there is this. Don’t forget those of you who are persecuted for righteousness sake. Blessed are you too! When they revile you and utter all kinds of evil against you Jesus wants you to rejoice and be glad because this is how they have always treated the prophets in times gone by.

Oh my God!

How prophetic are these words. Its still the same now! What kinds of things do we hear now in public about all the above? Where are the blessings from our public leadership at the very top of our nation’s Capitol? Rather than blessings, we hear bullying at the very least, and at worst nothing less than persecution.

How tragic that in these United States of America among those persecuted are folks singled out because of their religion. Just because you are Muslim! In our history, you might be persecuted because of the color of your skin, you may be discriminated against because of your gender, you may face violence, rejection and hatred just because of your orientation. This is not to be among Christian folk. 

Jesus begins with blessings on the people. All the people. So much so, he seeks out those the rich and powerful reject; you know who they are; sinners, the despised, the rejected and the outcast. Jesus blesses those banned by the rich and powerful.

In the person of Jesus, God’s love extends well beyond those accepted in polite social circles. He goes to the sick in body, mind and spirit. He seeks out the sinners; the prostitutes and the unclean lepers, the despised tax collectors, the foreign born Samaritan; Jesus loved them, forgave them. Jesus blessed them!

Contrast these blessings with the language we hear now from the halls of power and the extremist managed media. Jesus tells us that the truth shall make us free. Now we have well funded executive leadership that makes up the truth as it goes along particularly about voter fraud. This is an attack on our very democracy. 

Ah but calm yourself Fr Paul! There I go. I too can get so easily caught up in all the negative talk! We can easily fall prey to the darkness these days if we focus too much on all the hateful speech.

Rather, let us begin our ministry as Jesus began his; with the blessings of God. In Greek, the language of the New Testament, the word for blessed is “makarios” which means 

“You are the ones who are supremely blessed and holy in God’s eyes”

“You are the fortunate one”

“You are the well off in God’s eyes!”

“In fact, you are the ones God admires!”

Makes sense, doesn’t it?

We order our lives with a blessing first and foremost. Make it a rule in your families. Make it a rule in your church. In fact, lets make it a rule of heart to bless God the Holy Trinity. We can get too easily caught up in finding fault, God knows there is much to find fault with.

But Jesus knows that's a trap. This is the darkness of the world in which we live and we are way too much caught up in it. In our politics, God knows. There is so much to find fault with in our church or in our diocese. Good Lord we can find fault with each other, without so much as taking a sober look at ourselves.

Jesus pointed that one out very clearly, remember? In the same Sermon on the Mount that begins with today's, Jesus said;

“Why do you see the speck in your neighbor’s eye, but do not notice the log in your own eye? Or how can you say to your neighbor, “Let me take the speck out of your eye”, while the log is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your neighbor’s eye.” ~Matthew 7

Jesus began his every waking moment with a blessing. Good lord, there is so much to be grateful for. You have your life, your family, your friends, your work. We have God at the center of our lives, and an indelible picture of who God is in the person of Jesus. By God’s grace and through the generosity of so many we have this church. 

Oh yes, blessed are you for your generosity and your pledges for without them we could not prepare this year’s budget, which, by the way, we will be doing directly following this service. I’m sure you have all pledged. You have, haven't you?

Which brings us back to where we began; “Blessed are the poor”. I’m confident in saying none of you is rich. If you were, then I’d know somebody’s holding out on God’s work in this place.

Let me will tell you this. The biblical standard for giving is the tithe. That means we are called to give 10% of what God gives us. Everyone has some income. This is God's gift to you.  And this is God’s church and we want to be certain that we make provision for the ministry of God’s church in and from this place. Don’t we?

Let me ask you, do you give 10%, 5%, 4%, 2.5% or some other proportion your income? If any of you have difficulty with decimals or percentages, I know somebody here can help you.figure it out. Oh yes, I know about the poor widow who only gave a few copper coins in the Temple Treasury out of gratitude for something God had done for her. But let me ask you, what percentage of what she had did this poor woman give, according to God? 10%? No! She gave much more than that my friends, she gave everything she had. That’s 100% folks! ~Mark 12:41-44.

Finally, “Blessed are you” you are God’s blessed people. You have been blessed. 

“You are the ones who are supremely blessed and holy in God’s eyes”

“You are the fortunate one”

“You are the ones well off in God’s eyes!”

“In fact, you are the ones God admires!”

Now, you are to go forward to bless. 

So then in our first two weeks together; what is it that Jesus is teaching us?

1. Let’s go fishing!
2. Let's go blessing!

In the Name of God, the Most Holy, Blessed and Everlasting Trinity. Amen.

Fr Paul

The Week in Summary: Blessed are the Peacemakers

Blessed are the Peacemakers

The news in summary from Jesus as he might confront the events of this past week; I suspect be might say something like this;

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God.” ~Matthew 5:9

This is not the news of what did happen, it is the news of what must happen. It is Good News!

The Psalmist says; “I have seen violence and strife in the city”

~Psalm 55:10

From Bagdad to Baton Rouge, from Minnesota to Dallas, dreadful images of violence assault the senses this week. Live and in living color, indelible images of violence are etched in our memories. We are left with a sense of hopelessness and helplessness. Where shall we turn?

Jesus was confronted with violence and terror. The Parable of the Good Samaritan, by the way, I have often thought, could easily have been a biographical one for Jesus. Geographically, it would be unlikely for a Samaritan to be so far south as the road from Jerusalem to Jericho. 

But what of the road from Nazareth down to the Sea of Galilee where Jesus set up his base of operations? Had he taken this road, he would have gone through an area known as the Horns of Hittim, an area famous for its robbers. Imagine if Jesus had taken such a route. Imagine Jesus, beset by thugs and miscreants, robbed, beaten and left to die. Imagine a priest and a Levite passing by afraid to touch this unclean unfortunate. Then imagine a Samaritan who could easily have passed by the area. Geographically, that would have made more sense since Samaria was not that far away. 

Samaritans were despised by the Jews of the day, imagine him stopping and taking his time, risking his life, bandaging the wounds, and saving the life of Jesus, this most unfortunate and vulnerable of human beings. Imagine the Samaritan taking his hard earned money and providing for him during his recovery.

Imagine if this were Jesus and what an indelible and formative mark this would have left on his life and how God could have used such a moment as this to enflesh what love is and how we are all intended to live it out.

Imagine such a love as this in a violent world. 

Then and now. 

Imagine such a love as this.

A love that breaks all boundaries.

We need to come back to our senses. It is not enough for us to wring our hands as if there is nothing we can do. After all we are called to preach the Gospel and moreover we are called to live the Gospel. So then lets get on with it.

I remember it like it was yesterday. Folks it is as simple as Sunday School. We had to memorize certain portions of Scripture and this was one of the very first and favorite passages to learn by heart; The Beatitudes.

Remember them?

 ‘Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

 ‘Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

 ‘Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

 ‘Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

 ‘Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.

 ‘Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

 ‘Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.

 ‘Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

 ‘Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

These words satisfy something deep within the human soul. It is in the living of these words that God's kingdom is built!

Jesus goes on; 

 ‘You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything, but is thrown out and trampled under foot.

 ‘You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hidden. No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.

We know these words by heart. We know this way of life instinctively. Let us proclaim and live the Gospel of Jesus. The world is desperate to hear the words. The world is desperate to live them. There is no hope or salvation for us unless we live lives like this.

My English teachers used to teach us to “compare and contrast” various passages in literature.

I suggest to you; compare and contrast the words of Jesus to the words we listen to in the news, read in the papers, or hear along the campaign trail. How do they measure up to the words of Jesus?

I find it compelling that Paul begins his letters with these words; “Grace and Peace to you from God our Father”. He goes on to say that God, “has rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of God’s beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins”. May I remind you, these folks lived in a dangerous and violent time.

If ever there were a time of rescue from the darkness of violence this would be it. If ever there were a time for redemption and forgiveness, it has arrived. The time is always here and always now.

Peacemakers may be persecuted or killed outright. Dr. Martin Luther King, for instance. I came across his words this week. Timely words for us, for as Black lives matter, so do police lives. All our lives matter; Dr. King wrote;

“The ultimate weakness of violence is that it is a descending spiral, begetting the very thing it seeks to destroy. Instead of diminishing evil, it multiplies it.Through violence you may murder the liar, but you cannot murder the lie, nor establish the truth. Through violence you may murder the hater, but you do not murder hate. In fact, violence merely increases hate. So it goes. Returning violence for violence multiplies violence, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.”

~The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Finally, God knows we need to learn how to live our lives better than we do now. Too much violence. Too much hate.

Black and white,

Arab and Jew

Shea & Sunni Muslim

Rich and poor

Gay and straight

Republican & Democrat

On and on and on it goes.

O for heaven sake, we can do better than this!

The collect for the day asks this simple prayer “grant that we may know and understand what things we ought to do and also may have grace and power faithfully to accomplish them”

This week's news in summary; the Good News in summary this week and every week;

"Blessed are the Peacemakers".

In the Name of God, the Most Holy, Undivided and Everlasting Trinity. Amen

Fr Paul

Would You Take a $20

Would You Take a $20

Suppose I hold up this relatively new $20 dollar bill, and ask how many of you would be glad to take it? Would you? If it were a $100 dollar bill you'd take it in a heartbeat! Suppose I were to crumple it up in my hands, would you still be willing to take it? Suppose I sully it in dirt and grime, how about then? Would you still take it? And if I were to toss it disdainfully on the ground and stomp on it and treat it as shamefully as I could, what would it be worth to you then?

Anybody?

Yes, it is still worth $20.

Some of you might be horrified at such treatment of legal tender. I was when I first heard the story. Something innately within me cried out for respect of legal tender. 

So then, what about you? How much do you suppose you are worth? Especially in the eyes of God? Suppose you are crumpled up by misfortune? Suppose you are dirty, grimy and sullied by sin of your own doing or somebody else’s? Suppose you are stomped on by oppression and shamefully mistreated at home or in the workplace or anywhere else; how much are you worth then in the eyes of God?

Exactly! Your value is not diminished in the least in the eyes of God whatever becomes of you. 

In Jesus’ campaign speech, or what we more commonly call the Sermon on the Mount, he was fond of saying this: “Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?” ~Matthew 6:26 

In this same speech or sermon at the very outset, he blessed the poor and those who mourn, the meek and those who hunger for righteousness, the merciful, the pure in heart and the peacemakers, and he blessed also those who are persecuted for righteousness sake. He repeats the essence of this message in what biblical scholars refer to as the Sermon on the Plain which you can read in Luke 6:17-49. Because the essence of the message occurs in different places, many scholars suppose that Jesus went back to these themes time and again as he made his way around Galillee. 

What price then does God put on your head? Of how much value then are you? Can you put a price tag on a human life? your own or anybody else’s?

It is one of the mysteries of the Gospel that your life is worth as much as the life of the Savior. God gives his life for you in the person of Jesus. You are worth dying for. God will give his life for you. God did give his life for you in the person of Jesus. 

The Psalmist says "worship God in the beauty of holiness." What does it mean for us to "worship" God? Interestingly enough, if we look at the word “worship” in the dictionary, we learn that it is both a noun and a verb. As a noun it can be described as a feeling of reverence to God or to anything or to anyone that is sacred. Typically, worship comes with a set of rites and rituals to help us recognize that which is sacred and holy. As a verb, worship is the act of rendering reverence and homage to God or to something or someone who is holy. 

You see, when we come together week by week to worship God, we ascribe to God the Glory and Honor that is due God’s Name. We recognize God's worth to us. God's value is infinite, absolute, the ultimate worthiness of our lives. But what of your value as part and parcel in the act of worship? To me this is the key to our worship. We learn in these songs we sing, in these Holy Writings we listen to week by week, even on occasion, in a decent sermon or two, and above all in the sacrament; that God’s life has been and is being given for us in order that we might learn not of God’s worth alone, but our own as well. For insofar as God's worth is infinite, absolute and the ultimate reality of life, so too we come to discover the same of ourselves. 

In today’s first lesson, what upsets Elijah and this whole business of the prophets of Baal is that the folks had gone off to worship graven images. They had forgotten God. They actually had forgotten much more than what can be understood merely to be a petulant and jealous God. No, there is much more to this contest between the prophets of Baal and Elijah than a bit of trickery as to who could make the carcass of a bull ignite in flames. 

What had happened is that the folks had forgotten their own worth in the eyes of God. For what really matters to God is that we understand our worth to God as much as God’s worth to us. Instead off we go chasing after some graven image or another time and again throughout our history.

In our own time, what is the object of our worship? What is our bottom dollar? In colloquial idiom we call it The Almighty Dollar as if it were a god to us. Take a good look at Wall Street; you may notice that there is a bull ensconced there and there are those whose greed and love of money reaches such an extent that the bull of Wall Street becomes an idol and an object of worship to many. I needn’t point out to you that at the bottom of the crash of 1929 or 2008 was greed gone wild. Time and again we need to learn and relearn that such misdirected worship will always come crashing down upon itself. 

In today’s Epistle, Paul notices a similar phenomenon. Have the folks forgotten the Gospel so soon? Are they chasing after other gods so quickly. Has the Gospel message become so quickly confused with the secularism of their time?

And what of today’s Gospel? It seems appropriate that a soldier comes to the fore on Memorial Day weekend. Jesus is astonished at his faith. In fact the entire Gospel passage is astonishing. This particular soldier has a profound respect for the Jewish People. That’s unusual right there. An occupation force is more likely to despise the people and the place it occupies and vice versa. But not so here. In fact, this particular Centurion was instrumental in building the Synagogue. Therefore both the Jewish elders and the Centurion have a profound respect and admiration for one another. For this particular Centurion, the slave who was sick was of deep value to him. The people were of value. Even their God was of value to him. And more than that Jesus was of value. He knew that as he gave orders to his soldiers, so too, all Jesus had to do was give the word. 

This is astonishing! Jesus said that nowhere in all of Israel had he seen such faith. Here was a man who understood what it meant to worship. Worship led him to value people, even if they were slaves, or a foreign people who worshipped a foreign God. For this particular Centurion people were of much more value than the whole pantheon of Roman gods. Nowhere had Jesus seen such faith. 

This soldier got it. This is what Jesus had come to teach us; "Love one another."

How astonishing indeed! Think of the foreigner in your life. Think of the slave and the poor and how well they are treated and spoken of. Think of those who worship God differently than we do. How well do we honor “the other” in our time and in our nation? 

Our lives are of immeasurable value to God. All lives do; domestic and foreign. However crumpled, sullied by sin or stomped on by oppression and violence, in the eyes of God we all remain of infinite value.

The Psalmist wants us to “sing a New Song to God”.

The Psalmist wants us to “worship the God in the beauty of holiness.” For then we shall see the beauty of holiness.

Then we shall see the holiness of all God's people.

"Sing to God a new Song!"

In the Name of God, the most holy, undivided and everlasting Trinity.