I know. I know. On St. Patrick's Day here in the States everyone is Irish. As time goes by March 17 becomes less and less a religious observance, less and less a celebration of ethnic pride, and more and more an excuse for drinking and acting foolishly--a mid-Lent Mardis Gras, so to speak.
However, not everyone is welcome. ILGO, the Irish Lesbian and Gay Organization, is still denied a place in the New York City parade by its organizers, the Ancient Order of Hibernians (AOH). In order to keep ILGO out, the AOH continues to resort to the argument that the parade is primarily a religious observance, and since lesbians and gays are not welcome by the Roman Catholic Church, and the AOH is an organization primarily of Roman Catholics...
It's enough to make me want to wear orange in protest.
I am not, however, that naive. The color orange carries enormous political, social, and historical baggage in Irish Communities. The Loyal Orange Institution (or Order) is a staunch defender of a Protestant Northern Ireland as a part of Great Britain. Every year they insist on their right to march through Catholic neighborhoods, keeping the generations old bitterness alive.
I could legitimately wear orange. My Irish forebears were Presbyterians from Ballymena, County Antrim, in the north. My great-great-grandfather James Dick Blakley and his brother served in Irish regiments of the British Army. He even wrote a letter to the editor of the Westchester County Reporter (while he was living in Montreal, Quebec) proudly giving a history of the family's military history, including participation in the fight against the rebels during the Uprising of 1798.
But I know better, especially in New York City on St. Patrick's Day...
Peace,
Jeff
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Sunday, March 8, 2009
Midrash
This is the first time I've had to preach two Sundays in a row. Last week I adapted "Reflection Beginning with A Text" from Education for Ministry as a basis for an interactive sermon. I wanted to do something different this week, but still keep with our theme of learning how to engage Scripture. It was not until Friday morning that inspiration--or the Spirit--hit. I still hadn't finished writing when I left to spend the late afternoon and evening with friends. Truth be told, I had almost nothing on paper by the time I left.
I spent most of the night writing. Lots of uninspired words. Finally, I put down the stories and quotes I knew were going to be part of the sermon and went to bed at about 4 a.m. I got up briefly at some point to jot a note down on a piece of paper by my bed that I typed into the appropriate place before printing out the text and heading out the door. I truly left it up to the Spirit this morning.
After the service, a couple of the parishioners told me how much they appreciated the sermon. One said that it spoke directly to her, that she needed to hear about Sarah. I thanked her and let her know that it truly had come from God this morning. "Then it came through for me!" she responded. I'm glad I was there to bring the message.
Here is the sermon reconstructed as best as I can recall from what I said this morning. It is almost twice as long as the printed text I took with me to church.
Peace,
Jeff
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
Revised Common Lectionary Year B: Genesis 1-7, 15-16
Loving God, you call us to be your stories in the world. We come before you seeking to be touched by your story. Open our lips to share our stories with one another and to bring comfort, inspiration, joy and laughter to each other. Amen.
A student asked, “why did God choose Abraham?”
Rabbi Hiyya replied, “Abraham’s father was an idol-maker. He would make stone images and sell them in a shop in the market. One day, Abraham’s father asked him to watch over the idols in his shop while he was away. While he was gone, Abraham seized a stick, smashed all the statues, and placed the stick in the hand of the biggest of them. When his father came back, he asked, ‘Who did this to the gods?’ Abraham answered, ‘The biggest of them rose up and smashed all the others.’ His father replied, ‘Are you making fun of me? They cannot do anything! They are merely pieces of stone!’ Abraham answered, ‘Let your ears hear what your mouth is saying!’”
A student asked, “Genesis 12 tells us that Abram and Sarai took all the people they acquired, or some translations read ‘made,’ in Haran. Why is it said 'that they made'?”
Rabbi Huna said, “Abraham would convert the men, and Sarah would convert the women.”
And what about Sarah? Today’s reading from Genesis says only
I’m going to ask you some questions, but this week I won’t ask you to answer them now. Take them home with you and ponder them over the coming week.
Why doesn’t Scripture tell us more about Sarah?
If Sarah is the mother of nations, what does that tell us about us as a people spiritually? Genetically?
What is your story about Sarah?
A student asked, “And what about Sarah?”
The rabbi replied, “As long as Sarah was alive, a cloud was fixed at the entrance to her tent. When she died, that cloud ceased. But when Rebekah arrived, the cloud returned. As long as Sarah was alive, the doors were wide open. When she died, that generosity ceased. But when Rebekah arrived, that generosity returned. As long as Sarah was alive, a blessing was associated with the dough. When she died, that blessing ceased. But when Rebekah arrived, that blessing returned. As long as Sarah was alive, a lamp burned from one Sabbath night until the next. When she died, that lamp ceased. But when Rebekah arrived, that fire returned.
And where do these stories from the rabbis come from? Midrash, a body of Jewish literature that looks at Scripture in a particular way. In fact, there are volumes and volumes of it. In her book God’s Echo, Rabbi Sandy Sasso says
I spent most of the night writing. Lots of uninspired words. Finally, I put down the stories and quotes I knew were going to be part of the sermon and went to bed at about 4 a.m. I got up briefly at some point to jot a note down on a piece of paper by my bed that I typed into the appropriate place before printing out the text and heading out the door. I truly left it up to the Spirit this morning.
After the service, a couple of the parishioners told me how much they appreciated the sermon. One said that it spoke directly to her, that she needed to hear about Sarah. I thanked her and let her know that it truly had come from God this morning. "Then it came through for me!" she responded. I'm glad I was there to bring the message.
Here is the sermon reconstructed as best as I can recall from what I said this morning. It is almost twice as long as the printed text I took with me to church.
Peace,
Jeff
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
Revised Common Lectionary Year B: Genesis 1-7, 15-16
Loving God, you call us to be your stories in the world. We come before you seeking to be touched by your story. Open our lips to share our stories with one another and to bring comfort, inspiration, joy and laughter to each other. Amen.
A student asked, “why did God choose Abraham?”
Rabbi Hiyya replied, “Abraham’s father was an idol-maker. He would make stone images and sell them in a shop in the market. One day, Abraham’s father asked him to watch over the idols in his shop while he was away. While he was gone, Abraham seized a stick, smashed all the statues, and placed the stick in the hand of the biggest of them. When his father came back, he asked, ‘Who did this to the gods?’ Abraham answered, ‘The biggest of them rose up and smashed all the others.’ His father replied, ‘Are you making fun of me? They cannot do anything! They are merely pieces of stone!’ Abraham answered, ‘Let your ears hear what your mouth is saying!’”
A student asked, “Genesis 12 tells us that Abram and Sarai took all the people they acquired, or some translations read ‘made,’ in Haran. Why is it said 'that they made'?”
Rabbi Huna said, “Abraham would convert the men, and Sarah would convert the women.”
And what about Sarah? Today’s reading from Genesis says only
As for Sarai 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. [Genesis 17:15-16]There are very few stories about Sarah. One tells of another time God came to Sarah and Abraham yet again to tell them that they would have a child in their old age, and Sarah laughed. During an earlier visit Abraham laughed, but when Sarah laughed, the angel asked her why she laughed. They did not rebuke Abraham for his laughter.
I’m going to ask you some questions, but this week I won’t ask you to answer them now. Take them home with you and ponder them over the coming week.
Why doesn’t Scripture tell us more about Sarah?
If Sarah is the mother of nations, what does that tell us about us as a people spiritually? Genetically?
What is your story about Sarah?
A student asked, “And what about Sarah?”
The rabbi replied, “As long as Sarah was alive, a cloud was fixed at the entrance to her tent. When she died, that cloud ceased. But when Rebekah arrived, the cloud returned. As long as Sarah was alive, the doors were wide open. When she died, that generosity ceased. But when Rebekah arrived, that generosity returned. As long as Sarah was alive, a blessing was associated with the dough. When she died, that blessing ceased. But when Rebekah arrived, that blessing returned. As long as Sarah was alive, a lamp burned from one Sabbath night until the next. When she died, that lamp ceased. But when Rebekah arrived, that fire returned.
And where do these stories from the rabbis come from? Midrash, a body of Jewish literature that looks at Scripture in a particular way. In fact, there are volumes and volumes of it. In her book God’s Echo, Rabbi Sandy Sasso says
Midrash is both a product—a body of literature written over a period of time, and a process—a way of interpreting sacred text that continues to the present day. In addressing questions about how to apply the Bible to new historical and social situations and how to find contemporary communal and personal meaning and significance in the Torah’s ancestral legacy, the rabbis produced numerous collections of midrash. [p. 23]Midrash is a conversation. One Jewish text says
Moses received the Torah from God at Sinai. He transmitted it to Joshua, Joshua to the Elders, the Elders to the Prophets, and the Prophets to the members of the Great Assembly. [Avot 1:1]I don’t see anything here about priests or professors! It is a conversation between all of us, and each of us, and Bible, that continues to this day. Dr. Burton Visotzky, who I’ve quoted before when speaking with you, says
It is only in the reading and the rereading which each community does together that the Bible becomes a timeless text, the Word of God… The give and take of interpretation creates an extra voice in the room, the sound of Reading the Book. When that happens, the Bible speaks not only to each community of readers…but to all humanity. [Quoted in God’s Echo, p. 15]And so I leave you today with one more question to consider: What’s more important, the questions or the answers?
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Today's "Sermon"
Beginning with the past two Sundays, and continuing through Lent, Lois is using the sermon time to teach the congregation different ways in which we can engage Scripture. On the Sixth Sunday after Epiphany she gave us a lesson on one way to read the Bible. Last Sunday she led us through a guided meditation on the Transfiguration. When Lois asked me to preach for the two Sundays she is in Sierra Leone, she told me that I didn't have to follow what she was doing. She did not tell me what that was, and I experienced it with the congregation.
Having participated in and observed what Lois did, I decided that I would do theological reflection with the congregation, at least for the first Sunday. Those of you familiar with Education for Ministry (EfM) will recognize a modified TR Beginning with A Text and ending with the writing of a collect. As an EfM Mentor, I lead Theological Reflection a couple of times a month, so I really did not have that much preparation to do. It felt very strange not writing a sermon during the week and not having a last minute visit from the Holy Spirit late Saturday night or in the wee hours of Sunday morning. Yesterday I worked hard to ease my anxiety of not having a prepared text for today. I walked into church this morning figuring it would be either an unmitigated disaster or a quiet success. Finally, I just had to let it go and have faith that the Spirit would do her thing when the time came.
With Lois away, having lay-led (by me) Morning Prayer, and the on-again-off-again predictions of snow, I wondered how many folks would actually show up for the service. While attendance was low (35), it wasn't the lowest we've experienced in the two years since I returned to the parish. As I began the reflection with the congregation, only a couple of people responded to the questions. However, as it went on, more people participated, including some who don't usually speak up during interactive sermons, and one of our youth. The youth who did respond to a couple of the questions also served on my Discernment Committee, and his speaking out models for the congregation that everyone can participate AND that our youth have a voice in our church that is heard and acknowledged. I was very proud of him.
Here is how I led the reflection on Mark 1:9-15:
Peace,
Jeff
Having participated in and observed what Lois did, I decided that I would do theological reflection with the congregation, at least for the first Sunday. Those of you familiar with Education for Ministry (EfM) will recognize a modified TR Beginning with A Text and ending with the writing of a collect. As an EfM Mentor, I lead Theological Reflection a couple of times a month, so I really did not have that much preparation to do. It felt very strange not writing a sermon during the week and not having a last minute visit from the Holy Spirit late Saturday night or in the wee hours of Sunday morning. Yesterday I worked hard to ease my anxiety of not having a prepared text for today. I walked into church this morning figuring it would be either an unmitigated disaster or a quiet success. Finally, I just had to let it go and have faith that the Spirit would do her thing when the time came.
With Lois away, having lay-led (by me) Morning Prayer, and the on-again-off-again predictions of snow, I wondered how many folks would actually show up for the service. While attendance was low (35), it wasn't the lowest we've experienced in the two years since I returned to the parish. As I began the reflection with the congregation, only a couple of people responded to the questions. However, as it went on, more people participated, including some who don't usually speak up during interactive sermons, and one of our youth. The youth who did respond to a couple of the questions also served on my Discernment Committee, and his speaking out models for the congregation that everyone can participate AND that our youth have a voice in our church that is heard and acknowledged. I was very proud of him.
Here is how I led the reflection on Mark 1:9-15:
This morning, in keeping with our theme of engaging the Gospel ourselves, we're going to do some Theological Reflection using the Gospel reading.
What is the world like in this reading?
What causes pain in the world of this reading?
What surprises you in the world of this reading?
What is there to celebrate in this reading?
After having spent some time talking about the reading, what might our newspaper say if it happened today?
What are some of the things we might do in response to this reading and our discussion?
Now I'm going to ask you three more questions, and your responses will become the prayer at the end of the Prayers of the People.
Based on what we've talked about, what do we believe about God?
What do we pray for?
And what do we hope results from our prayers?
What we've done here is studied the Gospel together. The Gospel isn't some book up there that we only pull out and read on Sundays--although we are doing it on Sunday now. We don't need some theology professor to explain it to us. After all, the Scriptures are OUR story, and we can engage them every day.
And here's the prayer the congregation created:
O God, You will always provide, set an example for us, and give us hope. We pray for strength, persistence, healing for those that are sick, and for people who are really hurt by the bad things happening to them in the economy; in order that we have comfort, more people participate in the Good News, and we become more connected with You. Amen.Now all I have to do is figure out what I'm going to follow that up with next Sunday!
Peace,
Jeff
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)