Wednesday Wondering - August 16, 2023

Scripture

Matthew 8: 1 - 4

When Jesus had come down from the mountain, great crowds followed him; and there was a leper who came to him and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, if you choose, you can make me clean.” He stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, “I do choose. Be made clean!” Immediately his leprosy was cleansed. Then Jesus said to him, “See that you say nothing to anyone; but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.”

Reflection

I have been thinking a lot about who, many of us, tend to gravitate towards in our own lives. Van Jones, the American news and political commentator, author, and lawyer, speaks to what he calls our ‘resistance bubbles.’ This is our tendency in life to surround ourselves with people and groups that think the exact same way that we do. It is our resistance to actually engaging with people who are different from ourselves, or those people with whom we would never engage with in our lives. This does not mean that you have to agree with them, but it is about engaging with those who have different ideas, different spiritualities, different life stories. Our scripture from Matthew is one of those stories. Jesus sees someone that everyone else in society has shunned and rather than following what everyone else is doing, Jesus does something different. Richard Beck, author and professor of psychology at Abilene Christian University, speaks to this story in the following way, "What is intriguing about this story is the sequence. Jesus touches the leper first. Then the command "Be clean!" is offered. That is, Jesus' first move is into ritual defilement. By first touching the leper, Jesus intentionally and willfully seeks contamination, standing in solidarity with the unclean. This is striking because the expected sequence would be the initial purification followed by contact. Jesus, surprisingly for the onlookers, does the opposite. Contact occurs first. Purification follows solidarity. And one can only wonder how various Christian communities approach this sequence in their own missional endeavours.” This challenges each of us to move beyond our own resistance bubbles and to become intentional in our work to engage with others who might just be different than we are, those whom others might actually shun. It is the challenge of our faith, to engage with those we see as not the same. It is the challenge of our faith to engage with those whom society might deem unworthy. It is the challenge of our faith to be with those, to include those, whom society has shunned. Jesus spent his time with the sinners, the tax collectors, those who were seen as unclean, and in doing so he surrounded himself with those who were different and they knew that they mattered. Jesus didn’t just do this once, when he was feeling charitable, he did it throughout his entire life. We are called to the same life. We are called to live lives where everyone matters regardless of where they might find themselves in society. We are called to include everyone, those whom others have shunned, so that we might truly follow Christ. We are called to include the outcast to engage with those whom society has deemed as ‘less than.’ Jesus fought against those who would continue to sow discontent, those who would continue to marginalize, isolate, and ostracize, all in the name of their own gains and their own narrow views of the world. We, in following, Jesus are challenged to be those who see the worth in the ones that others have deemed unworthy. Jesus challenges us to touch the unclean, to be in solidarity with all those who have been cast aside, not just in word, but in deed. This is what I think it means to be a Christian today.

Prayer

God of the marginalized, help us to see those times in our lives when we are surrounding ourselves only with those who think like we do, who act like we do, who believe exactly like we do, who are always included in our resistance bubbles. Give us the courage to be among those who society has deemed unworthy, ‘less than,’ unclean, and give us the wisdom and the eyes to find you there. Help us to truly follow Jesus on a life of inclusivity and acceptance. We ask this in the name of the one who ate with the sinners and tax collectors, your son, Jesus. Amen.

Wednesday Wondering - August 9, 2023

Scripture

Isaiah 43: 1 - 2

“Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.”

Reflection

I have been thinking about this thing that we call hope and some days it seems elusive. I have to admit that there are times when I struggle with hope. I struggle with that it might mean in my life and I struggle with what it might mean in our world. The world just seems to be a mess in so many ways. We live in the midst of anger, hatred, marginalization and it seems as if we have forgotten how to talk to each other. We don’t listen to understand, it seems as if we only listen to respond and in responding there are so many who only speak words of anger and separation. How do we have hope in a world such as this and what might we actually hope for in this world? These are questions that weigh heavy on my heart, but then I remember this reading from Isaiah. This reading from Isaiah, which just happens to be the basis of the song “I Have Called You By Your Name,” which reassures us that God is with us and that we will come through the challenges that confront us. Agnostic Zetetic, a young advocate and activist, speaks to what I see as hope in the following way, "May we each find in ourselves the courage we forgot we have, to see the beauty we forgot is inside us, while battling the demons we forgot we can slay, on a battlefield we forgot we can win.” Hope is the knowledge that we can and will persevere and that deep conviction that no matter what we face, God is always with us. The poet Emily Dickenson wrote,

“Hope is the thing with feathers That perches in the soul, And sings the tune without the words, And never stops at all.”

Hope is that deep understanding that no matter what, we will continue. It is the understanding that this life is full of struggle, strife, challenge, grief, and deep sadness, yet in the face of all of this we will continue. Hope is the knowledge that when our strength fails, the strength of those around and the strength of God will carry us through to the other side. Hope is knowing that God always is with us, in the deepest of dark places and the most joyful of joyous places. It is knowing that God will never let us go, for God has called each of us by name and we are God’s. No matter what happens we are God’s and so we will persevere, we will come through these times of struggle, but we have to hope in God. In holding on to God’s hope we then are called to be that hope in the world. We are called to be that presence for others, to offer our strength when their’s might be failing. We are called to bring forth God’s world so that all may live in the knowledge and hope of a world that is based in; justice for all creation, peace, forgiveness, grace, and love. I believe this is what it means to live in the God’s hope.

Prayer

God of infinite hope, we ask that we come to know your presence with us throughout all that this life brings to us, the times of challenge and the times of joy. We ask that you give us the courage to know that, with you, we will persevere. Give us the strength to be your presence with others when their strength is waning, so that they too might know that they are not alone. Give us the wisdom to know that your hope is the hope in a world that is coming based in justice, peace, forgiveness, grace, and love, and let us see who we are called to be a part of your kingdom come. We ask all this in the name of the one who came to set the captives free, the one who brought hope to a hurting world, your son, Jesus. Amen.

Wednesday Wondering - August 2, 2023

Scripture

Matthew 25: 35 - 40

35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

Reflection

I have been wondering a lot about who we, as Christians, are called to be in the world. It is a challenging issue to consider. There is so much happening in the world. There is so much need in the world. What are we supposed to do? How do we address so much need in this world? There are so many in the world so don’t see the struggles of others to be their responsibility. There are many who look at what happens around the world and don’t see that we have, or have had, any part to play in what is happening. Yet, the reality is that we are all connected, we are all interconnected. Frankie Boyle, the Scottish comedian, has spoken to the interconnected nature of our world in the following way, ”We invade their countries and justify it by saying that our way of life is better, then boggle at the idea they might think living here is great. We pay no attention to how our actions in other countries have precipitated the situation. There has to be something wrong with a world where the best employment option for a farmer in sub-Saharan Africa isn't being a farmer in sub-Saharan Africa, but crossing the Mediterranean on a punctured lilo, only to spend days dangling under a lorry so that he can end up selling lollipops in a nightclub toilet. Our indifference is staggering. For a lot of these people, their best chance of survival is to dress up as a Leopard and hope to get Twitter onside. Of course, the true existential threat to us might come from ourselves. If we can look at another human being and categorize them as "illegal", or that chilling American word “alien", then what has become of our own humanity? To support policies that dehumanize others is to dehumanize yourself. I think most people resist that, but are pressed toward it by an increasingly sadistic elite. If you're worried about threats to your way of life, look at the people that are selling the public services from under you. The people who will destroy this society are already here : printing their own money, printing their own newspapers and responding to undesirables at the gates by releasing the hounds." This quote by Boyle not only speaks to the interconnected nature of the world but also how we also impact others in the world. The scripture from Matthew speaks to our call as Christians. It speaks to the fact that we are called to see the struggle of others as a struggle of God. This means that we are tasked with working towards the alleviation of the suffering of others. We are challenged to see that when we help others we are helping God. It speaks to the understanding that what affects others, affects us. The reading from Matthew speaks to the deeply interconnected nature of both the world and our faith. The reading call us to lives of empathy with others who struggle and suffer in the world. It is in working with those who suffer and struggle that our faith is truly lived out.

Prayer

God of all peoples, we ask that you broaden our vision so that we become aware of the struggles of the world around us. Give us the wisdom to know that we are part of a larger whole, that all peoples are interconnected and as such all person should be our concern. Give us the courage to look beyond our lives and to honestly see our own responsibility in what is happening in the world. Help us to see that you call us to work for all, not just ourselves. We ask this in the name of the one who came to show us the way, your son, Jesus. Amen.