Our Bible story from the Book of Acts this morning is really a very uplifting story, isn’t it? We have this woman, Dorcas, and she is a simply wonderful woman. Everybody loves her. She makes all of her friends these beautiful clothes that they treasure. And yes, she gets sick and dies and that is so very sad. But then Simon Peter shows up, he prays and he raises her from the dead and basically everyone lives happily ever after. It is just so beautiful. It reminds us of the power of the resurrection of Jesus to renew our own lives and to give us the hope for a life beyond this one.
A Few Questions
So, it is absolutely a feel-good story. And yet, at the same time, it is also the kind of story that, when you look at it closely, is going to make you ask a few questions. We’ve talked about prayer, and it certainly makes you ask a few questions about prayer.
Questions like, what if Simon Peter hadn’t been in a nearby town so they could ask him to come and pray for her? Would God have just left her dead simply because there wasn’t a good enough prayer around? And what about all of the other really nice women who made beautiful clothes that didn’t have Peter to pray for them? Why wouldn’t God care enough to raise those women?
And then there is an even more delicate question about prayer in general. Why is it necessary? I mean, apparently God had already decided that he was going to raise Dorcas. The story ends by telling us, “This became known throughout Joppa, and many believed in the Lord.”
Why Would Prayer Change Anything?
That seems to be the point of it. God wants the message to spread and raising somebody from the dead is definitely a public relations coup! So, if God had already decided to do it, why did he need Peter to ask? And if God didn’t want to do it, why should the almighty Creator of the universe be persuaded to change plans just because this one guy asked God to do it?
In short, the question is, why pray for these things? If God already knows what we want, then why do we need to ask? If God is really in charge, why should we think that God might change course on something just because we ask? These are all really good questions, and they deserve answers.
Transactional Prayer
The root problem, I think, is this. We just don’t understand prayer the way that God does. We tend to think of it, like we do most things, as a transaction. You go into the candy store, you slam down your toonie down on the counter and the cashier gives you a box of Reece’s Pieces®. That’s a transaction. And we think of prayer that way – we do an act of devotion for God, or we ask in just the right way in just the right words, and God gives us the thing that we want in return.
Based on a Certain View of God
The biggest problem with that way of thinking about prayer is the picture of God it is based on. It presumes that God is somewhere “out there,” and that prayer is the post office or the email server that we can use to contact God in that distant place. But here is the thing, God is not “out there.” God is certainly not just up there in the sky looking down. If God is truly God, then God is right here. God is right beside you, perhaps closer than anyone has ever been. Come to think of it, if God is God, then God must be in some sense already within you.
So, of course, when you think to pray and ask for something, God already knows that you need it. God is a part of that need. When you worry and pray for someone who is sick or in danger, God already feels your sorrow, anxiety and fear for that person. Prayer is not a transaction, it is participation. It is God participating in what you need or in what you are feeling. It is you participating with God in the ongoing work of creation.
A Master Dancer Seeking a Partner
On one level, yes, I would affirm that God does not need us to pray in order for God to do whatever needs to be done. But, on another level, I would say that God acting without us entering into that conversation of prayer would be kind of like a master dancer who was able to do all of the steps absolutely perfectly and flawlessly. But the problem with that is that the best Tango dancer in the world cannot dance the Tango without a partner.
God wants you to be that partner. It’s not because you have to say the right thing or do it in the right way. It’s not even because you know all of the steps of the dance. God wants a partner. God wants to give you the privilege of being part of the dance.
Or think of prayer as a song. When you pray, you get to put your concerns into words, however imperfectly, so that God can take up your melody and sing the perfect harmony. That’s what prayer is, not a transaction. It’s a dance, it’s a song, it is an exercise in making that eternal connection between the human and divine perceptible, even if only for a moment. So, yes, let us pray!
This morning I would like to tell you about two gospels that we know were very popular and widely read in the early church. One of them you are very familiar with. It is a gospel attributed to someone who is only identified as the beloved disciple of Jesus, but tradition decided a long time ago that that disciple was named John. That does not necessarily mean that the book was literally written by that disciple, but it probably means that it was produced in a church that traced its stories and traditions about Jesus to a particular apostle, possibly John.
The Gospel of John, as it is known, is rather unique among the gospels in the Bible. Jesus is presented somewhat differently than in Matthew, Mark or Luke. He doesn’t tell parables, for example, but instead gives these long discourses in which he explains many things to his disciples. In particular, the Gospel of John makes it clear that Jesus came to present a number of signs – seven are highlighted – that would convince everyone that he was the Messiah.
A Missing Gospel Found
But there is another gospel that you are maybe less familiar with that was also very popular in the early church. This gospel doesn’t quite say who wrote it either, but it does say that the traditions in it also come from one of the disciples – specifically the one called Judas Thomas the Twin. And so, it is called the Gospel of Thomas.
We knew for centuries about this gospel. It is mentioned by a number of very early historical sources who even sometimes quote a few lines from it. But for hundreds of years, we could not read it. It did not make it into the New Testament. At some point it seems as if all of the copies of it were rounded up and destroyed. It was sad, but there was nothing that anyone could do about it.
The Gospel of Thomas, found at Nag Hammadi
That is until 1898 when a huge trove of papyrus fragments was found in an ancient garbage heap in Oxyrhynchus, Egypt. Three of those fragments contained text from the ancient Greek Gospel of Thomas. But we didn’t actually know what had been found until 1945 when an entire library of books was discovered at a place called Nag Hammadi in Egypt. One of those books was a translation into Coptic of the Gospel of Thomas. So, amazingly, we can now read this ancient lost gospel that was so well known and loved in the early church.
The Gospel of Thomas
The Gospel of Thomas is very different from any other Biblical gospel. It is more a collection of sayings than it is a narrative of Jesus’ life. It shows no particular interest in Jesus’ death or resurrection, but rather focuses on his teaching and especially on super secret teachings that it claims to have preserved. Let me read you a short passage to give you an idea of what it is like:
Jesus said to his disciples, “Compare me to someone and tell me whom I am like.”
Simon Peter said to him, “You are like a righteous messenger.”
Matthew said to him, “You are like a wise philosopher.”
Thomas said to him, “Master, my mouth is utterly unable to say what you are like.”
Jesus said, “I am not your master. Because you have drunk, you have become intoxicated from the bubbling spring that I have tended.”
And he took him, and withdrew, and spoke three sayings to him.
When Thomas came back to his companions, they asked him, “What did Jesus say to you?”
Thomas said to them, “If I tell you even one of the sayings he spoke to me, you will pick up rocks and stone me. Then fire will come forth from the rocks and devour you.”
Two Distinct Communities
There was probably an early Christian community for whom the Gospel of John was their most important document. It contained their best recollection of the person of Jesus and what he had done. These were traditions and teachings that they had carefully cultivated and passed on until it eventually got written down.
But there was also an early Christian community for whom the Gospel of Thomas was that kind of document. These communities seem to have been able to live alongside each other because the gospels they used seem to have been aware of each other. Sure, they didn’t agree about everything, but they respected and honoured the teaching and the portrayal of Jesus that each one had preserved. That does not mean, however, that there was not some rivalry between them.
Imagine it this way. There are two churches in a town. On this side of town, the Church of St. John and on the other the Church of St. Thomas. The churches get along fine with each other. They have a long-standing basketball rivalry between their men’s teams. They also often cooperate in doing good works for the people of the city because they both want to live as their master did. But they still cannot stop from noticing how differently they approach the Christian life.
A Celebration of the Resurrection
The people of the Church of St. John are gathered. They are celebrating the day that is, for them, the most important day of the year. They call it the Pascha; we would call it Easter of course. It is the annual celebration of the day when their Lord Jesus rose from the dead. People of the church have been anticipating this day for a long time. They have prepared themselves by fasting and praying. But now that the day has arrived, they gather with great rejoicing and the place where they meet is decorated with banners and flowers. They greet one another with the good news. “He is risen!” one calls out only to be answered with, “He is risen indeed!”
After a while, they settle down and join in a shared feast. Then they sit and listen while some of the elders share the stories of Jesus that have been handed down to them, traditions that they believe go back to the most beloved disciple of Jesus. One of the elders begins a favourite story.
Jesus Appears to the Disciples
“On the day when our Lord rose from the dead, that very evening, the disciples were gathered even as we are gathered on this same day. They, like us, knew that they had many enemies in that city, and so the doors of the house were shut and locked. And yet, despite that, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you.’ After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.”
She pauses then and waits while the gathered church emulates the disciples with their own shouts of joy and sighs of contentment. But, even as she does so, she notices one young boy sitting nearby who seems a little bit troubled. And so, once everyone has settled down, she turns to him to ask what it is that he is concerned about.
What about the Other Church?
“Oh, nothing, I was just wondering,” he says. “As I came to our Pascha celebration today, I passed by the Church of St. Thomas on the other side of town. And I noticed that it wasn’t decorated for the festival, and they didn’t even seem to be gathering today. Why is it that they don’t celebrate the resurrection like we do? Do they not believe that Jesus rose from the dead?”
“Well,” the elder replies, “of course they believe in the resurrection. That is the basis of all our faith as followers of Christ. But they do think about these things differently from how we do.”
Johannine Traditions about Thomas
She pauses and thinks for a moment. She remembers that the stories of Jesus that have been passed down in her church say a few things about the disciple Thomas – things that she is convinced illustrate the character of the people in the church of St. Thomas. She knows that, when Jesus had first suggested that the group should go down to the Jerusalem near the end despite the clear danger to him, it had been Thomas who had said to the others, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.” (John 11:16) And, indeed, the Thomasites have proven themselves to be extraordinarily brave in the way they live out their faith in the city. The people in the Church of St. John cannot help but admire that.
They also tell the story of the time when Jesus said to the disciples, “And you know the way to the place where I am going.” And Thomas had had been the one who piped up immediately to say, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” (John 14:4-5) They know that that has always been something that obsesses the people of his church. They always want to be in the know about everything and nothing disturbs them more than the thought that there might be some secret piece of knowledge out there that they don’t have. Indeed, all the leaders of Thomas’ Church pride themselves on the secret knowledge that they have accumulated.
A Different Focus
The people of this church don’t see things that way. They think it is enough to be aware of all the things that Jesus did openly to show the whole world who he was. They celebrate how Jesus healed the blind man to show the whole world that he was the light of the world, how he gave the bread to the people because he was the bread of life.
The people of John’s Church have always known these things about the believers on the other side of town. They don’t pretend to understand them completely, but they still value them as sisters and brothers who share in a common cause. But this issue does trouble the elder somewhat. The belief that Jesus rose from the dead is so central to everything at the church of John that it is really hard to imagine anyone seeing it any other way. How can she explain how little attention the other church pays to that?
A New Tradition?
But at that point the elder remembers something – a tradition that must have been passed down or that may have come to her in a dream one day. She immediately picks up the story. “On the day when our Lord was raised from the dead and when he first appeared to all of the disciples, there was one who was not present. Thomas was not there.”
This declaration certainly causes a stir among the people of the congregation. How could one of the twelve not have been present, especially on that day of all days? Even on this day, this anniversary so many years later, there is not one of them who could imagine being anywhere else than with their fellow believers.
That Thomas should not have been there seems to imply that he put little importance on the truth that Jesus had been raised from the dead. And yet, as they think about it, it does seem to make sense. Did not those who revered the Gospel of Thomas betray much the same attitude. Is that not why they have not bothered to even meet on this day?
Thomas is Convinced
But the elder has not finished her story. She goes on to relate Thomas’ foolishness – how he refused to believe even when the others had shared with him their experience of the resurrected Christ. “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side,” he had said, “I will not believe.” It was his way of saying that whether or not Jesus had risen from the dead didn’t matter to him. Instead, he only sought after the secret knowledge that Jesus could offer him.
“But even Thomas learned better in the end,” she concludes. “For Jesus did return the next week, and when Thomas was confronted with the reality that the risen Christ stood in front of him, all of his secret knowledge was not enough to prevent him from falling upon his knees and crying out, “My Lord and my God,” as he realized that he stood before the risen one.”
Many Different Understandings
We are often given the impression upon reading the New Testament that early Christianity was unanimous in it’s understanding of who Jesus was and what his resurrection had accomplished. This was simply not the case. We have uncovered a great deal of evidence that there was a great diversity of belief among early Christians. Many early Christians did put a great deal of emphasis upon the resurrection. But there seems to have been others, like the communities that greatly valued the Gospel of Thomas, who were less interested in the resurrection and much more interested in amassing special secret knowledge.
It is kind of interesting to wonder how the differences between these churches and the discussions that took place amongst them may have influenced the ways that people remembered the stories of Jesus and how they eventually came to write them down.
John’s Criticism of Thomas
I’ve often thought that poor Thomas got a bit of a bad rap in Christian tradition. The only thing that people know about him, apparently, is that he doubted the resurrection. But I suspect that that story has less to do with anything that the historical Thomas did than it has to do with the attitude held towards those who revered the Gospel of Thomas by the people who revered the Gospel of John.
Yes, they probably were puzzled and maybe even disturbed by the failure of the Thomasites to understand the importance of the resurrection as they did. But really, in the history of the church, such differences in emphasis are hardly unique. Presbyterians and Baptists, Roman Catholics and Anglicans, Lutherans and Pentecostals, we are all in our different churches because we have different perspectives on various aspects of the Christian faith and we have clashed over these things both in the past and in the present.
But I would like us to know one thing. The people who preserved the Gospel of John did struggle, I think it is plain, with the people in that other church and how they approached the Christian life. But, even as they criticized Thomas and those whom Thomas represents in the gospel, as doubters who did not bother to be around on the day of resurrection, they still knew that they had a shared mission and that they had one Lord. They understood that Thomas did fall to his knees before his risen Lord just as they did, that he did cry out, “My lord and my God,” together with them. And that was enough.
I hope that that is something that we can keep in mind as we do our best to live out our Christian faith alongside other believers who have different priorities and understandings but still have the same risen Lord.
The Gospel of Luke tells us about a very particular group of women who went out to Jesus’ tomb on Easter morning. They were “Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the other women.” But here is the interesting thing. This is not just a random bunch of women that the gospel writer is talking about at this point. Luke actually went out of his way, to introduce these women at an earlier point in his story. And here is what he says about one of them back in chapter eight. He tells us that she was Joanna, the wife of Herod’s steward Chuza. (Luke 8:3)
Chuza’s Wife?
And I know that, at first glance, that might not seem to mean anything at all, but think about it for a minute. This was a woman who was married and yet she was apparently traveling all over the Galilean countryside with a bunch of men to whom she was not related. I know that, if that were to happen today, it might hardly raise any eyebrows, but think about what that meant for a woman back then. Back then, that would have been considered wildly inappropriate conduct for any woman at best. All sorts of sordid accusations would have certainly been made.
And then there is the question of who Joanna was married to. She was married to Chuza who was a very important official of King Herod – that is Herod Antipas, the Tetrarch of Galilee. Herod is someone who we are told was literally trying to kill Jesus at one point in this gospel (Luke 13:31). So, do you really think that Herod’s top official, Chuza, was good with the idea that his wife was wandering all over the Galilean countryside with a guy that his boss wanted to kill? Somehow, I do not think so! So, what was Joanna’s story?
The Women Go to the Tomb
As she made her way towards the place where he had been buried together with Mary Magdalene, the other Mary and the other women, Joanna was undoubtedly the one who wept the loudest and was the most inconsolable. Jesus had done so much for each one of them. Mary had had such a huge number of problems that it had been said of her that she had been beset by seven demons. But, of all of them, Joanna had been the one who had felt the most unsafe and alone until Jesus had reached out to her.
A Bad Marriage
Joanna had been given to her husband, Chuza, at a very young age by her parents. Chuza was at least two decades older than her and he had already been married twice before. Joanna was never told what had happened to the other wives, why they had died so young, but once she had gotten to know her new husband a bit, she began to have her suspicions.
Chuza was very wealthy and a very powerful official in the king’s court. Much to her surprise, Joanna found herself the mistress of a very prosperous household, with many servants at her beck and call. She had jewels and fine clothes, and she tried to do her best to be kind to all the people of the household.
But Chuza was also a very cruel and demanding man. I will not tell you all of the ways that he mistreated his wife and most of the people of the household. I will just tell you that Joanna quickly found her life to be filled with fear and dread. So hard was her life, that her health began to fail, and it was as if she was fading away.
Sympathetic Servants
But then, one day, the servants decided that they simply could not allow this to go on anymore. They had already watched as two mistresses had faded and died under their watch. They came together and made a plan to save this one who had been so kind to them.
Servants, it turns out, know a great deal about their masters. These ones knew enough about Chuza and, in particular, about how he managed the affairs of his master, King Herod, to cause him a few problems. There were secretaries who kept his accounts for him and other slaves who managed the king’s storehouses on his behalf. They had known for some time that the steward had been embezzling from Herod.
The Servant’s Plan
The plot was fairly simple. The proofs of Chuza’s deceptions were assembled and sent to the king anonymously by means of the trusted slave of another lord who was the distant relation of one of the secretaries. Of course, Herod was furious when he received it! Soon, a summons from the king arrived at the house—a summons that could neither be ignored nor refused. He fretted and complained, but Chuza had no choice. He packed up immediately and headed off to Herod’s court. He would not be able to return for weeks.
Once he had left, the servants went and explained everything to their poor mistress. It was not easy, but they persuaded her that she needed to escape and save her own life. She did not leave empty-handed but took with her some jewels and fine fabrics—not because she desired these things, but because she knew that they could be exchanged for money. It also felt as if she was at least getting some revenge on her husband by taking these things from him.
A Harrowing Journey
Two servants went with her—personal slaves who were very devoted to her and to whom she had grown very close. They were debt slaves from the region north of the Sea of Galilee and their task was to conduct her safely to Capernaum at the northern tip of the lake. The route was very carefully planned, and the travelers were hosted in the slave quarters of many prominent houses without the masters of those households even being aware.
When they arrived at Capernaum, Joanna gave the two slaves their freedom (a small thing for her to give them in exchange for taking such a risk for her sake) and they left her with many tears and cries of blessing, clutching manumission papers in their hands.
Alone in Capernaum
As she watched them go, Joanna realized how alone she was now. She had no friends and no family. No one would dare to help her. She had the precious things that she had brought with her but could not safely sell or trade them for what she needed. She might easily have ended up robbed and beaten to death on the side of some road, or perhaps forced to ply the trade of a prostitute just to survive, if no one had come to protect her. All the same, she could not regret having chosen to live, for a little while at least, free of the tyranny of her husband.
No one should have helped her. To assist a woman who had fled from her husband—and especially a husband as powerful as Chuza—would have been madness for anyone.
A Rescue
That is exactly what the followers of Jesus told him when he heard about her. Peter actually tried to forbid Jesus from even approaching her. But Jesus said to him, “Simon, if I had been governed by fear I would never have even begun.” With that, Jesus simply pushed his way past the Rock that stood in his path and moved directly towards the woman who looked so very lost in the town square. From that day on, Joanna was part of the group, and no one ever questioned it again.
What his Death Meant to her
So perhaps you can understand why Joanna was so distraught on that early morning of the third day after his crucifixion. When she had been at her worst, most lost and alone, he had seen her for who she was. Everyone else had seen her as a problem, a risk. As a woman who was on the run from her husband, she was damaged goods because she would never be able to escape her husband’s power and influence.
But Jesus had seen none of that. He had only seen a beloved child of God. His open embrace of her was the bravest thing she had ever seen anyone do, and yet he done it without fear and without hesitation. The very idea that such a brave man could even live in the world had given her enough hope to go on living and to actually find the first true joy she had ever known in her life in this community of women who had come with him to Jerusalem.
But now his lack of fear, his willingness to do the right thing no matter what the cost, had brought him to this. If the world could destroy such perfect love as was found in him, what would happen to her?
The Incident at the Tomb
The women came to the place where he had been buried. You have all heard about what happened next. The tomb was open. They immediately feared that it had been plundered or, worse, that wild animals had gotten to the remains. Their worse fears seemed to be confirmed when they discovered that his body was gone.
But then, even while they were still in shock, trying to understand what they were seeing, two strangers appeared seemingly from nowhere. They were dressed all in white and their sudden appearance was overwhelming. Already struggling with grief and confusion, they now found themselves filled with fear and terror.
But then the men began to speak, “Why do you look for the living among the dead?” said one. “He is not here, but has risen,” added the other. And then they began to speak to them of some of the things that Jesus had said about what was to happen when he went to Jerusalem. And then they were gone—disappeared so quickly that the women were left wondering if they had imagined the whole thing or if it had been a vision.
Joanna Makes Sense of it
The women stood in confusion for some time. It was not immediately clear to them what all of this meant. But it was Joanna that was the first to start to make sense of it all. For suddenly, in the midst of all of the darkness that had been overwhelming her, she could see the possibility of a little bit of light.
When she had been utterly defeated and alone, as good as dead, he had brought her back to life by giving her a place where she belonged. Now he had been defeated in turn. But what if his defeat were able to be turned into a new victory beyond hope and beyond reason. Even the possibility seemed to change her perspective on everything.
What the Resurrection Means
On this day we celebrate that Jesus, once killed, was raised up to new life. And we talk about what that means. We talk about forgiveness, how we can be forgiven for our failures, shortcomings and defaults because of his suffering and his resurrection.
We talk about reconciliation as Jesus brings together all of the warring parties of the earth and demonstrates to us all that violence and power do not bring victory, but his submission does.
Sometimes we talk about how his rising means that we also may be raised and that gives us the hope of heaven. But we mostly think about it in terms of what Jesus’ resurrection accomplishes for us and for people like us.
Raised for Joanna
But we need to realize that Jesus was raised for Joanna who escaped an abusive marriage. He was raised for Mary Magdalene who had been so damaged by the suffering of her life that it had been said of her that she had had seven demons before she met him. Jesus was raised, above all, for the broken ones of this world.
He did it because he was often the only one who was brave enough and loving enough to reach out to them when no one else dared. Throughout his ministry, he had already put his life on the line many times by standing up for people who had no one else to help them. So, of course, when the time came, he was willing to literally lay down his life for them because he knew that no one else would.
Jesus came back for the Joannas and Marys because no one else would. That is how much Jesus cares for those who have been broken by this world. If we want to know the true power of his resurrection, then I would suggest that the best way to do that is to take up that same task—to stand up for the rejected and scorned of this world. As we come alongside them, I promise you that we will see such power in action.
Nicole and Charles, I just have to begin this morning by thanking you for sharing such an important event in the life of your family with us today. It really means a lot to me and to us that you should have invited us into this very meaningful moment. And yet, while I greatly appreciate you, I cannot help but acknowledge that you have given me an enormous challenge today precisely because you’ve given us such a wonderful opportunity to celebrate a joyful event.
The Season of Lent
Here is my problem. Normally, in the church, we are only too happy to focus on the positive and promising things of life. But today is the final Sunday in the season of Lent. And Lent is a bit of a different time for the church. It is still a joyful time of the year, but it is also a season when we do feel it’s important to dwell on the simple reality that there is a lot of darkness and discouragement in the world too.
For how can we be a truly joyful people if we do not come to terms with some of the very real struggles that people have in this world? And so, during this season, we do turn towards difficult questions like what do we do about violence and poverty and hatred. How do we deal with the challenges of living with everything that life can throw at us?
A Difficult Season
And, yes, during this Lenten season we have really embraced that struggle because the situation kind of demanded it. As we entered into the third year of a global pandemic, as Canadians became more sharply divided over questions about how to deal with it and as we dealt with the reality of war in Ukraine and a less peaceful, more chaotic world, we acknowledged those realities. We have symbolized the growing darkness of this world each week by extinguishing a candle each Sunday.
In many ways, this Sunday is meant to be the moment when the darkness feels the greatest. The tradition in the church has long been to read the entire account of the suffering and the death of Jesus from one of the Gospels. I mean, how dark is the world when an innocent man is being tortured to death? And somehow, I need to find a way to connect all of that to the joyful and lovely celebration of Charlotte’s new life that we have just had.
Plans Go Astray
Let me be clear, Nichole and Charles, that I do not blame you for the timing. I know that you didn’t plan it this way. In fact, you tried to make it happen earlier in the year or even tried to make it work last week. But guess what happened to all of those plans. That same thing happened to those plans that have happened to a whole lot of plans over the last couple of years. Covid happened, together with all of the restrictions, guidelines and limitations that it brought. A whole lot of us have thrown out a lot of plans over the last couple of years, haven’t we?
But despite all of that, I am so glad that we got to do this today. I’m convinced that, even though we didn’t exactly plan it to work out this way, that God did. I’m pretty sure that God has a message for us that speaks to us right at this moment.
A Dark Moment
In our reading this morning from the Gospel of Luke, Jesus and his disciples have come to a pretty dark moment. They have come together to celebrate the Jewish Passover, which should be a moment of celebration, but it doesn’t particularly feel like one.
Ever since they came down to Jerusalem for the festival, tensions have been extremely high. The disciples are not complete idiots. They have seen just how much trouble Jesus has been getting into. They understand that he has made a number of very powerful enemies in the city. It is really looking as if this whole story is going to end very badly – maybe even on a cross. And then Jesus takes the bread and starts talking about how his body is going to be broken and then he takes the wine and talks about his blood being poured out. I don’t know about you, but this is not sounding to me like a light and happy celebration.
A Stressful Time
So, I do feel as if the disciples are in the place where we all are at the end of this season of Lent. The stress of the situation is getting to us. We are exhausted by the experience of a pandemic that just doesn’t want to end. We are frustrated by the limitations and strictures that we’ve all been putting up with for way too long. We are frightened and angry with Vladimir Putin and his decision to victimize the people of Ukraine and take the whole world to the brink of disaster. Add to that some inflation, a housing crisis and various other economic factors and you have a perfect storm. I know that some people might not want to admit it, but the simple truth is that all of this is stressing us out and we’re understandably not really handling it all that well.
And so, what do human beings do when things get that stressful? It is actually perfectly predictable. In the initial phases, as we saw at the beginning of the pandemic, people will pull together and support one another. But as the situation goes on and on, we get into another reaction. We start to turn on each other. We saw that happen during this Lent here in Canada – we literally saw it on the streets of our capital city in the supporters and opponents of the trucker convoy. That is just a very concrete example of what’s been happening in many places in our society most recently. We are cracking up under stress.
Turning on Each Other
That’s exactly what happens to the disciples too. With that whole world turning against them, instead of supporting each other, they start fighting. “A dispute also arose among them as to which one of them was to be regarded as the greatest.” And isn’t that just typical? They don’t want to face up to the people who are actually trying to kill them and so they start making enemies of each other. What’s more, they specifically start fighting over which one of them is most important, which one gets to have his way. This is so on the nose about where we are as a society right now that it is kind of scary.
Jesus’ Response
So when Jesus – who, don’t forget, is the actual target of this entire dangerous situation – responds to what the disciples are doing, I think we ought to pay very close attention. Since they are arguing over questions of leadership, he reminds them that he came to model a very different kind of leadership than what they seem to be imagining “‘The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those in authority over them are called benefactors,” he says. “But not so with you; rather the greatest among you must become like the youngest, and the leader like one who serves.”
True Leadership
He is saying, first of all, that true leadership is not what the world generally assumes it is. The world assumes that it is all about power and dominance. But I suspect that Jesus is saying that that is not a reflection of true strength but rather of a deep weakness and insecurity on the part of a leader. We certainly see that on display in the world right now as everything that Russian President Vladimir Putin does to cow the world with displays of power and force only seem to convince the world of what a poor leader he really is.
But I am particularly interested today in what Jesus has to say about greatness. It is, I think, the more important issue given the challenges we are facing. I really do think that many of the failures of leadership that we have seen in the last couple of years (and I don’t think I need to convince you that there have been many, many such failures) have all come down to various leaders trying to convince themselves and the world that they matter – that they are great.
True Greatness
So what does Jesus teach us about greatness? “The greatest among you must become like the youngest.” And this is what I love about Jesus’ teaching. He doesn’t just offer a definition or explanation of greatness – he shows us something. He promises us that if we look closely at the youngest among us and seek to be like them, we will find greatness.
That is why I am so convinced that Jesus has sent Charlotte as a prophet to us today. There is no question that she is the youngest among us. What’s more, she comes among us at a moment when we have not seen a lot of young people in the sanctuary for quite a while. Jesus sent her to us to teach us about true greatness.
How We Got Here
In order to catch that lesson, we need to perhaps step back and look at the bigger picture of what brought her here. It started with a passion for excellence. Nicole, her mother, had a passion for highland dance. She wanted to be one of the best and to be able to represent her country of Canada. That dream took her to the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo where she danced in celebration of the Queen’s ninetieth birthday.
Meanwhile in the United Kingdom, Charles was pursuing excellence in his own ways – including by serving his country in the military. His distinguished service led to the prestigious position of serving in the Queen’s Guard at the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo in honour of the Queen’s ninetieth birthday.
Was it just random chance that took both of them to that same place and time as they both achieved great personal accomplishments? Some would say so. But I say that God was planning to bring Charlotte here to teach us all something about true greatness. All of a sudden, their pursuit of personal excellence was transformed into a brand-new challenge – a harder one in some ways – building something in partnership.
Parents’ Hopes
I asked Nichole and Charles to share with us today what their hopes and dreams are for their little girl at this moment in time and this is what Nichole wrote to me:
“As parents, our hopes and dreams for Charlotte is for her to live a full, content and happy life. We hope she discovers her passions and hobbies and may they present her with many opportunities. We hope that she has the courage, determination and confidence to always choose the right path. We hope that she is resilient throughout all of life’s ups and downs, stays true to herself and that she shines bright wherever she goes.”
In some ways, I know, that is similar to what many parents might say, but I think you’ll agree with me when I say that those words take on special meaning when you know a little bit about the people who are saying it. You just know that they are going to let her have her own personal passions and will do it with an expectation that something very special (and perhaps surprising and unexpected) will also happen as a result of that.
Charlotte’s Message to us
So, what, then, is Charlotte teaching us about greatness today? Well, she comes among us today in great weakness. At this point in her life she is entirely dependent on others. I think she is telling us something about the true strength that is found in vulnerability.
But she also comes to us as a huge bundle of possibility. As her parents have pointed out, she could grow up to do anything. And as she comes terms with who she is and what her particular passions and talents are, it may lead to some big surprises (just like a chance encounter in Edinburgh led to big changes) but can also bring great new things into the world.
The darkness of these present times can be overwhelming – so much so that they begin to mess up our relationships. Only true leadership and greatness can lead us out of that kind of darkness. We affirm today that Jesus came to offer us that leadership and that kind of greatness. Charlotte, too, has come today to demonstrate that kind of leadership and greatness – a symbol of hope and new possibility during the challenges of a difficult time.
How many people are there whose first reaction to our reading this morning from the Gospel of John is to say, “Ah hah, I knew it”?
The story is about, or at least it appears to be about, the whole question of whether or not we ought to give money and resources to the poor. And I suspect that there are a lot of people out there – and I’m not necessarily talking about people out there in the sanctuary this morning or people watching on zoom, I’m talking about people out there in the world at large – who do not want to see their hard-earned money going to support the poor. They don’t want to see it taken in their taxes and spent on things like welfare. They don’t want to give their money to feed or clothe or otherwise help the poor either. It’s their money; they want to keep it.
The Need for Rationalization
It is not an unusual sentiment, I suspect, but it’s also not really one that very many people want to own. Nobody wants to seem unkind or cheap or cruel towards the poor. And so, they’ve got to find a reason not to give to the poor. They need a rationalization. And our reading this morning from the Gospel of John seems to offer two really extraordinary rationalizations. In fact, I think they are the main ones that people offer. One comes to us from Judas Iscariot. The other one comes from Jesus.
So, let’s take a look at these two very biblical reasons not to give to support the poor. When Mary comes in and begins to lavish this really expensive perfume on Jesus, pouring it out so wantonly that the scent of it fills the entire room, it is Judas it brings up the topic of giving to the poor. “Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and the money given to the poor?” he cries out to Mary.
Bad Spokesperson
And the first problem with that is obviously the spokesperson. I mean, it doesn’t seem like a very good endorsement to put the suggestion of giving to the poor on the lips of the most vile, hateful and despicable character in the entire book. If Voldemort made the suggestion that everyone should go down to the beach in a Harry Potter book, it wouldn’t make that seem like a very good idea, would it? And if Pennywise the Clown suggested that we all go down and play in the sewers, I don’t think that would be a big endorsement. So, when we hear Judas making this suggestion, it certainly doesn’t make it seem as if giving to the poor is a good thing to do.
But, of course, it is actually even worse than that because we are also told exactly what Judas’ motivations were. “He said this not because he cared about the poor,” the gospel writer tells us, “but because he was a thief; he kept the common purse and used to steal what was put into it.” And that has got to be the number one excuse that people offer for why they don’t want to give anything to the poor. They are pretty convinced that there must be some sort of theft involved. And this is where I see such people looking at this passage from the Gospel of John and saying, “Ah hah!”
The Assumption of Theft
This is, of course, an assumption that you run into all the time when you are involved in helping those living on the margins of society. There are always stories or suspicions about people stealing – which is to say about people getting benefits that they are not entitled to or that they don’t use in the ways that we want them to. We run into this sometimes here at St Andrew’s. There have been accusations, from time to time, of people taking more clothes than they can use and then selling them on Kijiji.
Often people make observations concerning the lifestyle of people who come. Maybe they observe that they are driving a car that seems like it’s in good shape or that would have cost too much. They also make comments when people have expensive habits like smoking. So, the argument seems to go, if there are some people who don’t look or act poor enough or they use the resources in ways we don’t like, that is stealing and it invalidates the entire exercise, even if only a small percentage of the people are doing it.
Government Programs have the Same Problem
We also see the same argument being employed on larger scale efforts to alleviate poverty. Welfare programs have often been cut back based on accusations of people using drugs or not wanting to work. In a number of jurisdictions, things like drug testing and rigorous requirements that people be searching for work have been put into place.
Now I am not saying that there should be no restrictions or regulations surrounding people accessing programs. And obviously it is not sufficient simply to provide the monetary support without giving people the tools and assistance they need to move towards supporting themselves. But the fact of the matter is that, when punitive measures have been put into place because of the perception that generosity leads to theft, they have generally failed. Programs, for example, that have required drug testing for people to receive welfare have been an enormous failure. The numbers of positive tests were ridiculously low, and the programs did not save any money, they made the whole program cost a lot more. All of that makes me feel as if this tendency to suggest that programs to help the poor are ridden with theft is not really about a concern for any theft itself, but rather a way of justifying not doing anything.
Second Rationalization
So, that is one rationalization, the accusation of theft, that we should be wary of. The second rationalization is also found in this gospel passage. What’s more, it is actually Jesus who says it this time. “Leave her alone,” Jesus says. “She bought it so that she might keep it for the day of my burial. You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me.” And I know exactly how a lot of people will interpret that saying of Jesus. They will understand Jesus to be saying that it is okay that the money was not given to the poor because the problem of poverty is not going to go away. They would take him to mean that we shouldn’t give money to help the poor because the problem of poverty is intractable. So, this quickly becomes another excuse not to do anything for poor people and it even seems to have Jesus’ endorsement on not doing anything.
But is that really what Jesus is saying? No, he is not. One of the main reasons why we can know that for sure is because this saying does not have its origins with Jesus. What Jesus is doing here is quoting from an Old Testament passage. The passage is found in the Book of Deuteronomy 15:11 where Moses says, “Since there will never cease to be some in need on the earth, I therefore command you, ‘Open your hand to the poor and needy neighbour in your land.’”
The Context in Deuteronomy
When Jews did that kind of thing, when they quoted one line from their scriptures, they did it with the expectation that their fellow Jewish listeners or readers would recognize the quote and go back and read it within its larger context. So, when he quotes this passage, Jesus does not expect the disciples to take that quote alone but rather to go back and see what it was that Moses was talking about around that.
That passage in the Book of Deuteronomy is a description of a specific law in Ancient Israel known as the Sabbath Year law. It describes a series of measures that were to be taken every seven years. These measures included things like canceling debts and giving freedom to those who had been sold into slavery because of their debts. The Sabbath Year law was a series of measures, in other words, that were intended to address the systemic problems in society and in the economy that tended to push people into a state of permanent poverty that they could not find their way out of.
Addressing Systemic Problems
There is evidence to indicate that this law and others measures like it were very active in the popular imagination in Jesus’ time. They were popular because the people in general were very aware of the kind of systemic issues in society, things like inflation, income inequality and the structure of taxation that had made it quite impossible for large portions of the population to escape from endless cycles of poverty. So, essentially what Jesus was doing by directing his disciples’ attention towards this law was saying something very important about how we ought to address the problem of poverty.
Jesus was pointing out that there is a problem with focusing only on giving money or doing things like running food banks and giving away clothing. That kind of charity is obviously essential when people can’t feed or clothe their children, but it doesn’t actually solve the problem behind poverty because most of that problem comes down to the system, the way that society is set up and the economic and political policies that are in place. The ancient law of the Sabbath Year was an effort to address some of those larger systemic issues.
That is not to say that such a law is a perfect tool to address those issues or that the ancient law would actually work in our modern society and economy. I am pretty sure that it wouldn’t work and would probably make things much worse. But the principal is an important one. It is not enough to just give to the poor without addressing those larger systemic issues.
The Danger in Just Giving
I believe that we are truly blessed in this congregation and in the church in general when we are able to reach out in compassion and support people who are really struggling to get by. It is actually a privilege to be able to have that kind of ministry. But there is a danger that comes with such a ministry; we may fail to look at the bigger picture. If we really cared about the poor, we should be advocating for policies that address the systemic issues in our society. We should be involved in pressing for changes in how people are compensated and respected in their work. We should be involved in addressing income inequality.
And I do realize that some of that is a bit problematic for a church that does not want to become directly involved in partisan politics. We are not in a position where we can endorse a certain party’s policies about these things. But none of that should get in the way of us speaking out and informing ourselves as citizens because these really are systemic issues that affect the whole of society. I think it is important for us to understand that Jesus was saying that, as good as giving to the poor is, it is not the whole response that we need to be making.
Changing the Atmosphere
Perhaps a good image for what we need to be doing about poverty would be that woman, Mary, and her jar of expensive perfume. Yes, that perfume was costly, and the money could have been used to support many struggling families. But what did she do with it? I think it’s significant that the gospel writer points out something that she did accomplish with that perfume. He tells us that, “The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.” He notes that she literally changed the atmosphere in that entire house. And I think that that is what we need to aspire to as we address the problem of poverty in our society. There is a need to change the atmosphere.
People will always find excuses and justification for not giving to those who are in need. The accusation of theft is often a handy excuse, but when you look at it closely you recognize that it is mostly based on misrepresentation. The excuse that poverty is an intractable problem and that meeting the needs of one poor person will not fix the systemic issues is definitely one that requires more thought on our part. If we really want to pay attention to what Jesus is saying in this passage, I believe that we need to find ways to balance the need to respond to immediate problems with the imperative of addressing the larger issues in our society and the way it is structured by actually changing the atmosphere and the way that we and others think about how the system needs to work.
For two long years he had nursed his grudge. He had done so, he felt, for very good reason. He had always known that his little brother was a bit of an idiot. And I know, I know, almost all big brothers believe that, but he knew it was especially true in this case. Even as an infant, the boy had been wasteful about everything. When big brother was called upon to help out and feed his little brother his lunch, the food – cheerios, dunkaroos, brussels sprouts – would always end up strewn all over the floor and yet the boy would still be asking for more.
Proddy and Parsi
When he was about eleven years old, big brother found a dictionary. He looked up a word that would perfectly describe his brother. That was when he stumbled on the word prodigal: a person who spends resources in a recklessly extravagant way. It seemed perfect, and so from that day forward he resolved that that was what he would call his brother. Soon the nickname caught on with the entire family – Prodigal; they started calling him Proddy for short.
The next day, the younger brother sought some revenge on his elder and tried to come up with a nickname for him. He took the dictionary and looked up a word for someone who was stingy and unwilling to give anything. He found the word parsimonious and gave that to his brother. That one stuck too: Parsi for short.
A Wasteful Lifestyle
Proddy didn’t really mature as he got older. Anything that he did – any job or chore that he took on – he managed to carry out in the most wasteful way possible. When the time came for him to go out for some higher education, of course he chose to go for the most expensive program that would never lead to any sort of lucrative job opportunities. That’s right, he went for a theology degree.
Proddy just never seemed to learn. But what really bothered Parsi was that his father never seemed to learn either. He just kept on enabling Proddy. Whatever crazy scheme he came up with, somehow their dad just found a way to go along with it. And so, he was somehow not all that shocked when Proddy told him about his most ridiculous idea yet.
A Bad Idea
“Hey, Parsi, “Proddy said one day, “you know how Dad is getting a little bit long in the tooth these days. I’ve been thinking. Someday, when he’s finally gone, everything that he owns will be passed on to us. And I know, that you, as the eldest, will get the biggest share. I don’t see how that’s fair, but I know that’s how it’s going to be. So, I was thinking. What if I were to go to the old man today and ask him if I could have my share of the inheritance now while I can still have a bit of fun with it. What do you think?”
“Oh man, this is it,” Parsi thought to himself. “Proddy has finally gone too far. When he goes to Dad with this idea, he is going to freak out. I mean, it’s almost as if he was telling Dad that he wishes he was already dead.” So he told his brother to go ahead and ask and see what happened. Imagine his surprise, therefore, when Proddy came back a few minutes later and he asked, barely able to contain his glee, “So, how did it go?”
I don’t think I need to tell you that his jaw dropped when his brother responded, “Fantastic, Dad said that he was fine with the idea. He said to just give him a couple of days to get his affairs in order and he’ll have the money ready for me.” “Fantastic,” replied Parsi.
Proddy Leaves
It only took a matter of days, once Proddy had received his inheritance, for him to pack up and head out into the big wild world. The older brother tried to talk to their father about it, tried to convince him that this was going to be nothing but a disaster that would bring shame on the family name, but the father would hear none of it. He just said that, someday, Proddy would come to his senses and come home. He would wait for that day and welcome him when he arrived. In fact, since Proddy had left, the old man seemed to spend every hour he could standing and watching the road approaching the house. Everyone knew that he was doing nothing but waiting for the first glimpse of his son.
But Parsi was not going to just wait. He knew that this was going to be a disaster and he resolved that he would document it and throw it all in his father’s face when the day came. Through his father’s business connections, he managed to put together a network of informants who would keep an eye on what Proddy was doing with his inheritance. They began to report back at regular intervals and every time he received the report, Parsi got more and more enraged.
Bad Reports
He somehow wasn’t surprised to hear all of the ways in which Proddy was wasting his wealth on parties and luxuries. He was scandalized when he got word that he had been spending money on prostitutes, but he made sure that he got all the proof of it. Oh, how superior he would feel when he showed that evidence to his father.
After a while, he began to receive a very different kind of report. Apparently, Proddy’s money had run out and there had been a famine in that far off land. When he heard the report that Proddy had been reduced to working for a pig farmer, his brother laughed and laughed and laughed. He had the most intense experience of schadenfreude – of joy at the misfortune of somebody else – he had ever had in his life.
Surprise Party
One night, several weeks later, the older brother was coming back home after a long day’s work in the fields. He was just expecting to have a late supper and a few quiet hours at home before turning in. But, much to his surprise, the house was anything but quiet. He heard music playing and the sound of people dancing. Everyone seemed to be having a grand old time. He quickly called over one of his father’s servants to ask what was going on and the man joyfully explained that Proddy had finally returned home. The father had sacrificed his best young calf and everyone was busy feasting and celebrating. It was a party, and the older son should come and join in.
I don’t think it will surprise you when I say that Parsi was not happy. He absolutely refused to come any closer to the house. Finally, his father came out and began to beg him to come in. It was at this point that Parsi gleefully pulled out all of the information he had been documenting on his brother for the past few years. He had been carrying it with him every moment of every day all this time waiting for this very opportunity. He began to relate all of the irresponsible things that Proddy had done with their father’s wealth. He ended with a flourish, pulling out a huge stack of copies of receipts from various brothels in the distant land. “Look, Father,” he cried, “can you believe what Proddy spent on prostitutes alone?”
But the father just looked at him sadly. “Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours.” he said. “But we had to celebrate and rejoice, because this brother of yours was dead and has come to life; he was lost and has been found.”
What we Should Call the Parable
The parable that we read this morning is popularly known as the Parable of the Prodigal Son. Of course, Jesus never called it that and neither did the author of The Gospel of Luke in which it appears. It was tradition that decided a very long time ago that this parable was all about the younger son, the prodigal or Proddy for short. But I am pretty sure that tradition is wrong about that.
Oh, there is no question that the younger son’s story is very important and meaningful. In fact, it is a wonderful story that has brought a great deal of comfort to people down through the ages. It stands as a great teaching that, no matter what mistakes you’ve made, how much you have messed up your life and done everything wrong, there is always a way back to God and God is ready to welcome you with open arms and perfect love and approval.
So what Proddy went through is important, it is just not the main reason why Jesus told the story. He told it, apparently, because “the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, ‘This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them.’” He told it specifically because there were people who were criticizing the fact that Jesus was celebrating and partying with the wrong sorts of people. He was telling it to a bunch of party poopers. And who, do you suppose, is the party pooper in this parable? This is not the Parable of the Prodigal, it is a parable of the sanctimonious Parsimonious brother! It is the Parable of the Party Pooper.
Did he Go to the Party?
Let me just ask you the only question that Jesus’ parable leaves open: did the elder son go to the party? Did he give into his father’s pleas and join in the celebration? Or did he just keep sulking? In a way, that’s the only question that matters. Because, if I understand anything that Jesus is saying with this and other parables like it, the point of the parable is the party. The kingdom of God is what you discover in the middle of that kind of celebration. The message of the parable, therefore, is that even if you make all kinds of mistakes, even if you waste every opportunity that is sent your way, even if you make some wicked choices, you are not cut off from the promise of God’s Kingdom because God is like that father in the story. God is gracious and welcoming to those who lose their way.
But if you hold on to your resentment against those who, in your mind, don’t deserve to be forgiven, if you are much more interested in cataloging the sins of those who have gone wrong and telling them their mistakes and sanctimoniously declaring how they are not worthy of God’s love, you are very much in danger of cutting yourself off from the celebration, which is to say from the kingdom of God.
How we Cut Ourselves Off
Now, please do note what I’m saying here. I’m not saying that God is going to cut you off from the kingdom. I’m not saying that God will refuse you entrance. I’m just saying that you’ve cut yourself off. To understand the difference, let’s return to the parable and imagine a certain outcome. Let us say that the father somehow convinced his eldest son, Parsi, that he had to come into the party. Perhaps he made him feel as if it was his duty or turned it into an obligation in some other way. But, because it was simply an obligation, Parsi attended while still holding onto all of his resentment, judgment and grievances against his brother.
How do you think that Parsi would have looked as he sat in the corner at that party? Yes, pretty much like that. Is there any sense in which someone who looks like that is really attending a party? Oh, they might be in the party, but they are not in the party, if you know what I mean.
Do we Make the Same Mistake?
And it would be one thing if it was just him who made that mistake. And I suspect that he made that mistake. But how many of us make it too? So long as any of us are obsessed with making sure that people who, for whatever reason, we think are undeserving do not get what they need, we are cutting ourselves off from the kingdom of God that Jesus was talking about. A kingdom, by the way, to be found first and above all in this world.
And that includes wanting to cut people off from having enough money to subsist in this world because they haven’t worked hard enough according to our definition of what hard work is. That includes wanting to cut people off from our generosity because maybe they’re not poor enough for our standards or because they have been so damaged by the system that they’re no longer willing to play by its rules. Oh, we find all kinds of reasons not to want to extend God’s grace to certain people. If we really understood what Jesus was saying in this parable though, we would understand that what we are really cutting ourselves off from it is the celebration of life that is the kingdom of God.
Come on down to Crazy Scott’s Discount Emporium today! You won’t believe the deals I’ve got for you. You better grab them while you can, before they take me away for being so crazy!
Would you like to have some gasoline? That is right, I am talking about that precious liquid that, as of last night, was selling for $1.70 litre at the local gas station. At Crazy Scott’s, you can have as much of it as you possibly could desire! Want to fill up your Humvee? Here you go! Heck, if you want to fill up your swimming pool you can do that.
No Money
What’s that? You want to know how much it costs? Well, that is the truly crazy part because this gasoline is not being pumped based on how much money you have but rather based on what your need is. In fact, let me say this: “You that have no money, come, buy and guzzle!”
In fact, let’s not just make this about gasoline. What if you are in need of the basics of life: bread, meat, vegetables or wine? Or how about water? Everybody needs water! We’ve got all of those things too and you can get them right now at the amazing, unbeatable price of, well, no money at all – no money down, no payments, no interest. I’m sure you’re all asking how do I do it? Well, if you are asking that then you haven’t been paying attention because there is only one explanation: I’m just plain crazy!
Inappropriate Commercial
So, what would you think if you saw a commercial like that right about now? In the middle of some kind of economic crisis, at a moment when inflation seems to be galloping out of control, there are a lot of people, especially those who are living on fixed incomes or whose pay has been depressed for a very long time, who are really struggling to make ends meet. Meanwhile people all over the place just can’t afford to live in homes anymore. How would that make you feel?
You might take it as some kind of joke, perhaps a bad joke, but at least as an attempt at humour. Or you might receive it as something in pretty bad taste. How cruel to make fun of people who are struggling to get by making a joke of giving all of this stuff that’s getting too expensive away. You might even say it would be inappropriate to include it in a sermon. But what if I were to tell you that that commercial was inspired by our reading this morning from the Prophet Isaiah?
The reading starts out very strangely. It starts with about the closest thing to a television commercial that you could find in the ancient world. Basically, back then, the only way that merchants had to market what they had to sell in the marketplace was to literally call out to the people passing and tell them that they should buy their wares. It’s the kind of thing that still sometimes happens in marketplaces to this very day. But back then, it was really the only way to market. So, the really weird thing is that this prophecy from the book of Isaiah begins with one of these calls that merchants traditionally would have made in the marketplace.
The Merchant’s Call
“Ho,” they would cry out to passers by, “Ho, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters.” One would call out. And then, from another booth, “You that have money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk.” Still another would be calling, “Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labour for that which does not satisfy? Listen carefully to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food!” Everyone would have been very familiar with these cries; they heard them all the time.
But, although the prophet is clearly imitating these cries, he’s not copying them precisely. And that is because of what was going on at the time that this prophecy was made. There was an economic crisis. Inflation was out of control. As a result, huge numbers of people were just unable to afford the basic needs of life. They were being forced into debt that they would never be able to pay off. People were losing their homes and even having to sell family members into slavery.
The Prophet Changes it
So rather than call out what all the merchants would have called, he does the Crazy Scott’s Discount Emporium version of the traditional market call: “Ho, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and you that have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labour for that which does not satisfy? Listen carefully to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food.”
Now, the really unfortunate thing about these ancient prophecies is that all that got retained and written down were the words. Nobody wrote down the stage directions. Nobody wrote down what the prophet was doing as he or she said these things. But, in this case, I think it’s pretty easy to imagine what he was doing. I am pretty sure that he actually set up a stand in the marketplace, probably in the big marketplace in Jerusalem, and he stood there alongside the other merchants and he was literally giving away his entire stock to anyone who needed it. This was actually the kind of thing that ancient prophets often did in Israel.
And of course, it was ridiculous. No one is going to sell their goods in the marketplace for nothing. And can you imagine the reaction of the other merchants who were trying to profit from all the inflated prices on everything? They must have been livid.
Why He did it
So why did he do it? He did it for the same reason that a prophet did anything. He did it because he was trying desperately to get a message from the Lord across to the people. And it was not a message that was just about spiritual realities that were totally disconnected from the physical struggles of people’s lives.
I imagine that he really was giving away free water and bread and other things that people couldn’t afford to buy. But, at the same time, he was not just playing at running a food bank. He was proclaiming something really important about God, and especially about what God cares about when people are really struggling to make ends meet.
Reacting to a Bad Economy
What happens when we are living through trying economic times? We see the reaction very clearly in our world right now. The worst economic effects in the last while have been in Russia, of course. Because if you think that we have been experiencing inflation lately, the Russians – reeling from sanctions and a plummeting Ruble – would probably tell you that we ain’t seen nothing yet.
But we see the extreme reaction to economic disaster on full display there. There have been runs on the banks. People, who cannot even exchange what they have for foreign currency, have been desperate to buy anything they can possibly get their hands on. They’re buying anything that might actually maintain its value. Basically, it seems, the present crisis has shown up just what an illusion the entire economic and monetary system is. The things that we thought had all the value, things like money, turn out to be almost without value and we are desperately searching for something valuable to replace them with. It is kind of a metaphor for the whole of modern society.
The Message We Need to Hear
So, what message is the prophet trying to get across, because I’m really starting to think that it might be a message that we need to hear. I believe that it particularly comes down to this verse: “Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labour for that which does not satisfy?” We have all been caught up for so long in this endless cycle of working in order to get the good things in life. But we don’t get the good things in life. We get money, and money, it turns out, does not necessarily equal value. The value can just disappear. Even more important, having the money, even if you spend it on things, does not mean that you will get the satisfaction that you truly need.
Yes, we are all struggling to get by in difficult times. It is heartbreaking to watch families having trouble feeding their children. It is disheartening to watch those who are on fixed incomes as their purchasing power gets less and less. But what we are discovering is that the things that we have built our economy on have a lot less value than we have been led to believe. They have value that can disappear so easily. We are learning that we cannot put our trust in these things.
What We Can Trust
So what can we trust instead? Well, that is really interesting, because the prophet reaches out to these people all around him who are just struggling to get by, and he tells them what they can trust in. “Incline your ear, and come to me; Listen, so that you may live. I will make with you an everlasting covenant, my steadfast, sure love for David.” The one thing that you can count on, in other words, is God’s commitment to you. God has made an everlasting covenant and so will never fail to love God’s people. The world teaches us to trust in money, but money will fail us.
We are seeing it happening in the world right now. I know that many would consider it foolishness to trust in God instead. I would argue that, at the very least, it is no less foolish to trust in that than in the false and potentially vanishing value that is found in money.
“Seek the Lord while he may be found, call upon him while he is near; let the wicked forsake their way, And the unrighteous their thoughts.” Of course, our tendency is to do the opposite. When we discover that our way of doing things is empty and meaningless, what do we do? We tend to double down. We bail out our currencies, we take measures to build up their false value because we are afraid to let go of the illusion of value. But we really ought to take advantage of times of crisis like this to be willing to look at the entire system and just ask the question, can we really think of value in a very different way?
“Let them return to the Lord, that he may have mercy on them, And to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.” I think we would all be better off putting our trust in a God who is forgiving rather than a currency system that is anything but – that never offers any grace for those who fall through the cracks of the system for any reason.
The Prophet was Crazy
Was the prophet crazy to do what he did? Did everyone think he was being just plain foolish? Absolutely. But he was trying to shock the people who were living through a crisis into seeing a fundamental truth about God’s ways. “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways, says the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” So high above the ways of this world that, yes, they certainly do seem like complete and utter foolishness as far as this world is concerned. That was kind of the point of what he was doing.
And, I’ve got to tell you, I think we’ve seen some of that foolishness here at St. Andrews. We have become a key place in this community for people to turn to when they are struggling to make ends meet. They come here, not because it’s the only place they could go, not because there are more resources available here than any place else.
They come here because we try to do our best, and the incredible volunteers we have here try to do their best, not to treat people as the world treats them. We try not to judge them according to the system of this world and how they measure up within it. And make no mistake, my friends, that is pure foolishness. That is craziness according to this world. And yet by the grace of God, we have seen good things happening here in people’s lives because of it. God’s love has been made real in countless incidences.
I do not say any of this in order to toot our own horns. We have done nothing really apart from being in the right place at a time of need. We have just been fools who have rejected the wisdom of this world. And God has brought blessing into our lives and into the lives of others as a result. There is real value in that, just not like the world measures value. No, the world is pretty sure that we are crazy.
First of all, let me make one thing perfectly clear. There was absolutely nothing wrong with Eliezer of Damascus. He was a very nice young man. And Abram had felt very close to him ever since he was born to one of the slave girls in his household. He was reliable, trustworthy and had risen until he became the steward of all of his master’s possessions. So long as Eliezer was managing things, Abram rarely had to worry. He knew that, no matter what, the man would do well in life.
So, Abram certainly knew that he could do a whole lot worse than to pass down all of his possessions to such a fine young man. There was only one problem, despite the rumours that unfortunately did still persist in the household, Eliezer was not his son. He did not carry his blood and would never be able to carry his name. And Abram had held onto the hope that someday he would be able to have a child of his own body who would be able to carry on his true legacy. He had thought that it was something that God had promised him that he could have and he had clung to that promise beyond all reason. But maybe it was time to re-evaluate that.
Past the Point of Hope
Abram was seventy-five years old now. Sarai, his wife, was closing in on sixty-five. It was now way past the point where you could call Abram hopeful or optimistic. We were now talking in terms of him being downright delusional. So, he had finally made the decision. He was going to call in some of the local elders as his witnesses and make the formal declaration that Eliezer would inherit everything when he was gone. He kept telling himself that this was just wisdom and prudence. He wasn’t settling, he was embracing a new and realistic possibility. It was the right thing to do. It was a good thing to do. But, no matter how often he told himself that, he just couldn’t quite bring himself to believe it.
An Eliezer in your Life
And I can’t help but wonder today whether you might have an Eliezer of Damascus in your life. And please understand me that I’m not talking about a person in your life, or at least not necessarily a person. I am more wondering whether there’s not a situation in your life which is an Eliezer situation. Is there something that you are settling for? Now, remember that in this story Eliezer is not a bad option. In fact, he seems to be a pretty good option. He is someone who would do a pretty good job as an heir of all of Abram’s goods. He’s just not the best option. He is not what Abram has always dreamed of, and he’s not the fulfillment of what God has called Abram to be.
So, what is the good thing in your life that you have settled for instead of doing what, somewhere deep down inside, you know is really the best thing? Obviously, this is a very personal question. It is also not something that anyone else can decide for you. But perhaps you know of something in your own life that just doesn’t quite measure up to what you know it could be. Have you opted for some job or for some activity not because it’s what you know you should be doing but just because it seemed like the safest option to go for? Or maybe you have settled for a certain level of knowledge or a certain proficiency even though you know that you are capable of more.
Why it’s Sometimes Necessary
Now, there are all kinds of reasons why we make these sorts of decisions. And they may be very good reasons. There may be a real need to embrace the safe option for a time because you need to give your family some stability, for example. That is perfectly legitimate. But it also doesn’t mean that you need to stay with the safe option forever.
Or perhaps think of it in these terms. We have been living through some very difficult times for the last two years almost to this very date. And as a result of that, we have all made some choices. And those have been very good choices. It is good to stay home and not socialize in certain ways when there’s a great danger that you will spread a dangerous illness if you do so. It was a good choice for people not to come to church in person. And there are all kinds of other good choices that people have made. I don’t really need to go on and make a list here because I know that you have all been making these kinds of choices again and again over the last couple of years.
If you are like most people, you have likely also fallen into certain patterns to manage the stress of these unusual times. Perhaps you have indulged yourself in ways that would not have been normal for you before such times. I certainly know that there are people who have imbibed more or eaten more or been less active than is ideal. There are also other habits that people have embraced that might be addictive – gambling, social media doom scrolling and even, dare I say it, Wordle. (Okay, I am totally joking about that last one. And I was actually able to solve yesterday’s puzzle in two lines!)
Survival is Good
If any of that reminds you of the things that you have settled into over the last couple of years, then perhaps you should consider that to be an Eliezer response. Because you did something good: you survived. You managed to make your way through a very difficult time. That is not just good; that is fantastic. But what if we are getting to the place where you don’t need to settle for Eliezer of Damascus anymore? What if it is time to get back to embracing a little bit more of who you are really meant to be?
Well, if any of what I have said speaks to you and where you feel you are in your life right now, then please do pay heed to what happened to Abram next. Abram had resolved to settle for the good thing that was Eliezer, but then he apparently took a step outside of his tent. Now, Abram was in the middle of a desolate place. There was clearly nobody around. There were no streetlights or big city lights, there were not even any campfires or lamps burning.
The Night Sky
And so, Abram was immediately confronted with a sight that folks like us who live in cities rarely see. For there, blazing over his head was the most breathtaking display of stars imaginable. And if you have ever been out in the wilderness and looked up and seen that sight, you know that it can greatly affect you. It’s not just a beautiful sight, it is a sight that can overwhelm you with the sheer size of it. There is this sense that you are looking on something that is truly infinite. It is no accident that since ancient times, people have looked up at nighttime and found themselves confronted with powers and beings far beyond their understanding.
And so, when Abram looked up that night, just after making that fateful decision about the disposition of his assets, he was reminded that he was dealing with a God of infinite possibility. When such a God is involved, anything can happen. He realized that it was not only possible that he might have one child, there could be as many as there were stars overhead.
Abram Believed God
And in that moment, Abram did a very simple thing. It was small, but it changed everything. He believed God. He didn’t believe in his own body’s ability to produce an heir. He didn’t believe in Sarai’s ability to carry a child at her age. Maybe that had been the problem up until now. He had been trying to believe in those things. But somehow the sight of that infinite heaven, of the stars far beyond all counting, that made it possible to believe in a God of infinite possibility.
And there is a message in that for you as you ponder that question of whether you should settle for your Eliezer of Damascus or if it is time to aspire for what you were really made to do and be. I am not suggesting, and no one should suggest, that you have been lacking in faith before this point. I am sure that your faith has brought you this far. But perhaps a vision of a God of infinite possibility might persuade you to approach the question of where you go from here from a new perspective.
What if I don’t Deserve it?
Ah yes, you might say, but there is a problem. Maybe Abram was an extraordinary man. Maybe he just deserved to have the deepest desire of his heart realized. But what if that doesn’t apply to me? After all, I’ve made too many mistakes in my life. I’ve let too many opportunities go by, I’ve been weak or indecisive or foolish in my choices. That’s why I don’t really deserve to have my deepest desires, hopes and dreams fulfilled. In short, what if I’m just not good enough to have it? I don’t feel like I deserve it.
I know that that is how we often feel. I honestly feel that, for many of us, that is the real reason why we don’t reach for the things that we are meant to do. It is not because we are lazy or timid. It is because, somewhere deep down inside, we are just terribly afraid that we just don’t deserve to succeed. Maybe Abram felt that too and that was the real reason why he had decided to settle for Eliezer. But that is why what happened next is so important.
When Abram had been swept away by the sight of those stars and decided that he was going to trust God to fulfill God’s promises instead, this is what happened. “And [Abram] believed the Lord;” it says, “and the Lord reckoned it to him as righteousness.”
The Theme of Grace
What does that mean? It means that right there and then, God decided that Abram was good, that he was worthy of all sorts of good things to happen to him. And on what basis did God decide that? It was not because Abram had done anything special. It was not because he had worked hard for it or because he had made all the right decisions. God simply took Abram’s willingness to believe and trust as enough to declare him righteousness and worthy.
This is, in case I need to say it, a key theme that runs through the whole Bible (not just the New Testament like some people think). It is the simple truth that God loves, accepts and approves of us, not because we have done all the right things, but just because we are willing to trust and believe in God. It is when we forget that truth that we are most likely to stop believing in ourselves, which sometimes means we usually end up settling for Eliezer.
Two Reasons not to Settle for Eliezer
So, there you are. There are two reasons why you can ask for and expect something better for your life than just settling for Eliezer – for the thing that is just good enough. The first reason is that you have a God whose potential is as vast as all the stars in the sky. If you have been limiting your expectations because the God you think you serve is too small, let me suggest that you do like Abram and spend some time contemplating the vastness of the heavens that your God created.
The second reason why you have settled for Eliezer may be because you don’t think that you deserve any better. That is a lie. You deserve it all and more. But not because of anything you have done, not because you made all of the right decisions or worked the hardest. You deserve it because of what Christ has done for you. All God is looking for is that you trust him. God will count that as righteousness and will declare you worthy. So don’t settle for Eliezer. Dream of what God is truly calling for you to be.
Lemon meringue pie is my father’s favourite dessert. You give him a choice of pies and he will go for the lemon meringue every time. My mother, who is the baker of the family, makes some of the most wonderful and tasty pies I’ve ever eaten. But she doesn’t particularly make lemon meringue. I think it’s because she doesn’t think that her lemon meringue is as good as what her mother used to make. But anyways, when we were growing up, we had some wonderful pies but not often lemon meringue. When we did, it was always an occasion.
The Story
And whenever such an occasion came along, there was a story that got repeated in our family. We all knew the story, but we never tired of hearing it. The story went like this. When my parents first met and started dating, the day came when my father got an invitation to my mother’s parents’ house for supper.
My mom is the eldest child of her family, and you can imagine that her younger siblings were very excited to have their sister’s beau come to dinner for the first time. And, as the time to dine approached and my mother was helping out in the kitchen, they were entertaining my dad by telling him that my mother had prepared the entire meal including, they promised him, a very special dessert prepared in his honour. This was, of course, a lie. My mother had helped, but she had hardly prepared it all and she had not made the dessert. But perhaps we can forgive those younger siblings for their exuberance in talking up their elder.
The Surprise
Finally, the moment came, and the meal was served. It was all excellent, of course. And then the dessert – my grandmother’s inimitable lemon meringue pie. My father was served up a great big piece of pie and everyone present, especially those younger siblings, looked on as he took that first delicious bite from the tip. It was indeed delightful. But at that very moment, he looked down to see that, nestled between the lemon and the meringue, in the next bite he was about to take, there was a huge, dead beetle.
At this point in the story, we would all lean forward expectantly until someone would ask the necessary question. “What did dad do then?” “Oh,” came the ritual answer, “he just took out the beetle, put it by the side of his plate and kept on eating.”
What the Story Means to us
That was just one of the stories that was told in my house as I was growing up. I’m sure you have stories from your background as well. And the reason why some stories in particular get remembered and repeated is because they are more than just the memories of unusual events. They are remembered because these stories give meaning and even a sense of identity to the people who tell them. I mean, if you know my mother and father, you will quickly realize that that story conveys a great deal about their positive character traits and the loving relationship that they’ve shared for so long.
Stories and Memories
The other thing about such stories is that they are not exactly the same thing as memories of the actual event. Even though that story was told and passed on by people who were there, that doesn’t mean that it all happened exactly as the story is told. Quite possibly, some of the other people present would have seen the events of that night quite differently. The beetle probably didn’t look like I imagine that it looked when I tell the story. I imagine that it was huge! All of this is because memory doesn’t actually work the way that we think it does.
Human beings are actually not all that great at remembering events unless they do something. In order to store an important event in our long-term memory, we actually need to find some way to turn it into a story. It can be a story we tell ourselves or, even better, the story that we tell out loud to others, but unless we turn it into a story, it can very easily be lost to us.
How Stories Create Memories (and Not the Other Way Around)
But the simple act of turning the memory into a story modifies our recollection of the events. We change the memory to fit a narrative. And once we create a story, we remember the story rather than the original events. After that, every time we tell the story, we are constantly making our memory of those events fit what we need the story to tell us at this particular moment in time.
If, for example, the pie story were told at a celebration of my parents’ anniversary, we would probably hear it as a very romantic kind of tale. But, if it was told when someone was passing on the recipe for lemon meringue pie, it might be heard as something a little less romantic and a little more of a food safety warning. What’s more, researchers have demonstrated, when we remember that story, what we are actually remembering is not the original events, but rather the last time we heard or told the story.
A Sacrifice
All of this is basically because the way that we make sense of our world is by telling stories about it. And this is something that our reading this morning from the Book of Deuteronomy seems to understand and appreciate. The passage that we read this morning is an instruction for a particular kind of sacrifice.
It is the sacrifice of the first fruits, where the worshipers are to bring the first produce of their land and present it to the priest, who, by the way doesn’t burn it on the altar or anything like that, it is basically a gift to support the priestly family. But what is really different about this sacrifice is the requirement for every worshiper to tell a story.
And a Story
The story goes like this: “A wandering Aramean was my ancestor; he went down into Egypt and lived there as an alien, few in number, and there he became a great nation, mighty and populous. When the Egyptians treated us harshly and afflicted us, by imposing hard labour on us, we cried to the Lord, the God of our ancestors; the Lord heard our voice and saw our affliction, our toil, and our oppression. The Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, with a terrifying display of power, and with signs and wonders; and he brought us into this place and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey. So now I bring the first of the fruit of the ground that you, O Lord, have given me.”
And I find it fascinating that there would be this requirement in order to bring the sacrifice. Each worshiper is required to recite, not a prayer, not some liturgy, but a full story. One question I’ve got to ask is how tired did the priests get having to listen to that same story over and over again? But surely this was required for a reason. The writers of this law in Deuteronomy understood something important about human nature. They understood what I’ve been saying, just how important stories are to human beings. As I said, the stories that we tell are able to form and shape our memories. That is particularly important when you want to help your people form a common identity. They need to have a shared story.
How Stories Help us Process Memories
But stories are also really important for helping us to process our memories. Do take note of what this story in the Book of Deuteronomy tells. It’s actually a horrible story of mistreatment, abuse and trauma. It is a story of a whole nation that lost its homeland, that was subjected to slavery, oppression and abandonment by their God. And I’m sure you are aware of the extreme damage that those kinds of memories can do. You have heard, I imagine, of post-traumatic stress disorder or PTSD. When people have gone through traumatic events, the memories that they carry in their mind and even in their body can be extremely destructive to their lives and their relationships. The more traumatic the events, the more potential for damage there is, but even mild trauma, if you carry it around with you, can have a very damaging effect.
How We Deal with Trauma
And here is one reason why that happens. When you’ve lived through something difficult, you tend not to want to think about it or dwell on it. This is understandable, of course. Remembering it stirs up painful feelings and so you’d rather just put it out of your mind. But remember what I said about us being storytelling creatures. In order to helpfully integrate a memory into our lives so that we can deal with it in a constructive way, we need to turn it into a story.
But if you don’t want to think about something traumatic that happened to you, you’re not going to be able to turn it into a story. That is precisely how a memory of a negative event can become dangerous. Because when you have not turned it into a story because you don’t want to think about it, the memory of the traumatic event doesn’t just disappear. Your brain holds on to those sorts of memories as a kind of survival instinct. They are, after all, memories of things that were or seemed to be dangerous. Your brain wants to keep those memories because they seem like vital information that will help you to survive future dangerous events.
When We Fail to Process Traumatic Memories
But, if you don’t examine those memories and turn them into stories, they cannot be stored in the productive part of your brain that can use them constructively. Instead, they get stored in a much more primitive part of your brain, you might think of it as your animal brain, called the amygdala. And when a traumatic memory is stored in your animal brain, you cannot deal with it rationally. Instead what happens is that you tend to get triggered by things that remind you of the original traumatic events. You may react irrationally with fear or by lashing out at the people you love with anger. As you can imagine, this can lead to some very difficult problems in your life.
So, what you actually need to do is to have the courage to examine the memories of the traumatic things that you have lived through. This can be extremely hard, and people often need help to do that. At the very least, they need friends who understand them and who they can trust to talk through these memories. Some people need trained professionals to help them to do this and there is absolutely nothing wrong with needing that kind of help.
But the process itself is relatively simple, even though it can be extremely painful and hard. The process is to turn it all into a story, a story about your life, about who you are. It is about telling a story in which the suffering is not the end of the story but rather a point on the way to the end. It is also about telling a story in which you discover something about who you are on the way through the struggle.
What the Story did for Ancient Israelites
That why I find that the story that the worshiper tells in the Book of Deuteronomy is so powerful. It is indeed a story about trauma, about slavery and oppression that an entire nation went through. The point of telling the story is indeed to face that dark history. But it is also very clearly the story of a people who do not allow their trauma to define or limit them. It is a story about people whose God heard them and who saved them “with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, with a terrifying display of power, and with signs and wonders.” That certainly makes it seem as if they are indeed a very special people to have such a God.
The Stories You Tell
So here is the challenge I would like to leave you with today. Take some time to consider the stories that you tell about yourself or about your family – the stories that you tell to others and the stories that you tell to yourself. Consider how they shape not only your identity and your self-esteem but also the memories of the things that have happened to you. Are there ways that you could tell those stories differently so that they are more uplifting and affirming?
And if you do have some events in your life that you find particularly hard to remember for some very good reasons, I have an even greater challenge for you. In a safe context, preferably with someone you truly trust, tell those stories and find some way to tell them that don’t just make the trauma the end of the story. Consider how they can be stories of survival, hope and maybe even victory. Above all, find a way to tell those stories that makes it clear that there was a God who cared about you in the midst of what you struggled with. If you’re able to find that story, I suspect you might discover the truth that God really was there and has been with you ever since.
Moses sighed. He knew that this time of quiet and reflection would soon be over. Every moment he spent outside of this tent seemed to be a moment filled with requests, frustrations and endless demands. People were constantly looking to him to solve their disputes and fix their problems, tell them what to do and say the words that would bring them all together to face the daily challenges of a wandering life.
They would ask him to make decisions that would affect the lives of men, women and children. If they turned this direction, would they meet a dangerous enemy? If they turned that way, would they find themselves in a wasteland in which there was no water and no fodder for the animals to eat? The latest complex question they’d come up with had been about a matter of the inheritance of a family that had had no sons.
Escaping into the Tent
And this tent was the only place that he could go to escape all of that. He knew that no one would ever follow him into this place because they were all too afraid. They knew that he met with God in here – with Yahweh who had first been revealed to him at the burning bush – and they much preferred to let Moses wrestle with their demanding God on their behalf alone.
Moses knew that it was true, that he did indeed meet his God in this sacred space. But it didn’t happen in the ways that they all imagined that it did. It wasn’t really about spectacular lights and resounding voices. Most of the time, what happened in here was that Moses was able to quiet all of the thoughts that were in his mind. As he eased into a quiet state, pushing aside all of the worries and fears that he struggled with out there, it sometimes happened – by no means always, but sometimes. A word or a phrase or a thought would come into his mind that he knew did not originate from himself. He knew that it was a word from Yahweh.
Uncertainty
But even then, he still struggled with the messages that he received. He was not always sure that he understood them. He was not always certain that he had the interpretation or the application right. And, when God is involved, it seems really important that you should be able to get it right. People think that having some kind of divine experience makes things easier, but Moses knew from long experience now that it usually makes things harder.
And one of the hardest things about it was that people outside of the tent didn’t understand that. When he came out of the tent, when he spoke to them of the will of God, they expected him to speak in absolutes. There was no room for doubt or questions out there. There was no room for shades of gray; they wanted it all laid out in black and white. Moses couldn’t show himself as a fallible human, but rather as a spokesperson for the divine. And so, when he went out, it helped that he put on the veil.
How it All Started
There was a bit of a story behind the veil. It went back to the time when Moses had gone up to the top of the holy mountain all alone. There, on top of Mount Sinai, he had had the most extraordinary experience of his life. The encounter he had had with Yahweh up there was unlike anything that had happened to him before or since. Everything had been so clear up there and there had been no room for doubt. He had been given a keen insight into what measures were needed so that this people, who had so recently been freed of a life where everything had been controlled for them, could live together in peace and prosperity. He had been able to distill it all down to a series of laws that he knew would guide the people for generations to come.
It had been so exciting and exhilarating and, in those first few days afterwards, everything had seemed so very clear. But, when he came down and met the people, all of it was frightening to them. It was so clear to them that he had been in the very presence of God that they said that it was as if the skin on his face was putting off this strange radiance. They were afraid that they would die if they came too close to him. And so, Moses realized that he needed to tone it down a bit. He covered his face to put a little distance between himself and the people. It helped them to manage the fear and it helped him to moderate the way he was speaking to them. And so, they had been able to communicate in those heady days.
After the Mountain Top
But in the time since, the veil had come to be deployed differently. The kind of clear experience of the presence of God that Moses had had on that mountain was not repeated. Honestly, Moses was glad of that because it had left him drained and weary. People don’t actually manage that well with absolute certainty over the long term. It was replaced now with this seemingly endless struggle in the tent as he sought out the brief flashes of clarity in the midst of all the questions and the doubts.
But the harder the struggle in the tent became, the more important it seemed to hide that struggle from the people outside. If they were expecting him to come out of the tent every time with the same certitude that he had brought down the mountain, that was not going to happen. If they were looking for that same sense of radiance coming from him, they were likely going to be disappointed. But by pre-emptively donning the veil before he went out, he managed to maintain both the illusion of certainty and the inspiration of fear. Both of these things simply made it a whole lot easier for Moses to lead these stubborn people.
Back to Reality
And so, with yet another deep sigh, Moses opened his eyes. The time of quiet meditation was over. He felt as if he had been able to sort out some of the problems and challenges that were facing the people. Somewhere in there, he was pretty sure that he had heard a genuine word from Yahweh. He uttered a prayer of thanks, acknowledging the God who had allowed him to lead these people thus far. As he turned, he plucked the veil from the hook by the door and carefully covered his face. He could see very little through it, mostly just shadows and shapes. He knew that the people would see almost nothing of his own features. That was as it needed to be.
He stepped outside and all over the camp he saw the people turn towards him. All noise and conversation fell away as they waited to hear a word from Yahweh. And so Moses began to speak through the veil regarding the difficult question that had been posed to him. “This is what Yahweh commands concerning the daughters of Zelophehad,” he cried. “‘Let them marry whom they think best; only it must be into a clan of their father’s tribe that they are married, so that no inheritance of the Israelites shall be transferred from one tribe to another; for all Israelites shall retain the inheritance of their ancestral tribes.’” (Number 36:6-7)
An Ancient Religious Practice
The story of Moses and the veil in the Book of Exodus is one that has always struck people for its strangeness. It has long been thought that, somewhere behind this story, are ancient religious practices that may stretch back to prehistoric times. The idea was that the ancient priest or shaman would put on some kind of mask or face covering and, in so doing, be able to impersonate and speak for the god.
Such an ancient practice may indeed lie somewhere behind this story in the Bible, but I’m a little less interested with how it may have contributed to the creation of this story than I am in what such a practice tells us about it what it means to be human beings trying to relate to the divine. I see two key forces at play. On the one hand, we have the experience of the divine and on the other we have the practice of religion.
Religious Experience
There is a simple reality and it that is that people have been experiencing God for a long time. There are varying experiences, of course. And the God that people experience can be wildly different. But the reality that people have such experiences cannot be denied. I know we often are tempted to dismiss such things because personal experiences, almost by definition, cannot be independently verified. You cannot scientifically prove that somebody experienced God. Nor can you really disprove it.
But people have been having such experiences for centuries and they have sometimes had huge impacts on historical events. I have also had such experiences in my life, and I know a number of other people who have as well.
Fear and Authority
And there are two big problems that arise because people have such supernatural experiences. One is fear. People have a very natural reaction to be very afraid of such experiences and the people who have them. The other problem is the question of authority. How do we tell if someone’s experience of God is something that we should trust and listen to?
We see both of these problems being addressed in this story of Moses and the veil. We are told, first of all, that the veil is placed there to create a kind of distance between Moses’ powerful experience and the people because they are afraid. And we are also told that when Moses speaks through the veil, it becomes a sign that he is speaking for God and that, therefore, everything he says is authoritative.
The Function of Religion
In many ways, I would say, this veil is a symbol of the function of religion. Human religion is there in order to accomplish two things: to manage our human fear in the face of the experience of God and to sort out which pronouncements have authority. We don’t use symbols like a mask or a veil anymore to manage these things, but that does not mean that they are no longer important aspects of our religion.
Because here is what is at stake. No matter what happens to religion and the state of religion (and I realize that religion has been going through some rough times lately) these are issues that are not going to go away. People are going to continue to have experiences of God along with all of the fear and the difficult questions of authority that come with such experiences. It seems to be something that is built into our human nature.
Why we Need Religious Tools
And religion in all its various forms has been something that we have developed to help us manage those very problems. And I know that the history of religion has had its horrible moments. All kinds of terrible things have been justified by religious belief down through history. But I honestly do not think that just getting rid of all religious structure is the solution.
I believe that religion, done well, can give us the tools to manage and interpret these very frightening and powerful experiences in helpful ways. I believe that that is what Moses and other figures like him managed to do, not perfectly, but they at least tried to direct these powerful impulses in more productive ways.
What Paul has to Add
There is one other aspect to this story that is added in the New Testament. In his Second Letter to the Corinthians, the Apostle Paul makes reference to this story of Moses and the veil and he says that in Christ, the veil is set aside. The point he seems to be making is that because Christ revealed to us the very nature of God in human form, the old constraints of fear, authority and religion are no longer necessary.
I do have some reason to wonder whether Paul got that completely right. There is no question that Christianity has never stopped setting up religious systems to manage those very things throughout its long history. But Paul’s point is still rather helpful. So long as we are ruled in our religious practices by our need to manage fear and our desire to project authority, I don’t think we will fulfill our fullest potential as human beings seeking to relate to the divine.
The Problem with Religious Authority
In particular, that desire to project absolute authority from our religious experience has been particularly problematic throughout our history. The fact of the matter is that our experiences of God are rarely absolute. Oh yes, very occasionally, someone will have that top of Mount Sinai experience when everything is absolutely made crystal clear. But most of our experiences of God come when we are in the midst of our doubts and questions. That need to put on a veil and project absolute certainty means that we often hide the true nature of our encounters with God. And that is a problem.
I think that if we were truly honest, we would admit that much of our struggle to work out our relationship with the divine is in there, with Moses as I have imagined him, in the tent. We are often consumed with more questions and doubts than we would like to admit. But I do think it’s time to lay aside that temptation to hide that struggle behind a veil in order to project absolute certainty about our beliefs to the world. That doesn’t serve us, and it doesn’t serve the world. And it actually serves to obscure the real power of religious experience that I believe is our heritage as the children on God.
