Sermon: WELCOMING, GROWING IN FAITH, AND SERVING IN LOVE

I was born into this church, housed in this building, and never
left, even when I lived out of town for over fifty years. This
building and its congregation shaped my faith, and I believe it
represents yours as well.

I was born the year after the First Baptist Church and the First
Congregational Church together formed the Franklin Federated
Church. You may know the story. The great hurricane of 1938
blew the steeple of the First Baptist Church into its sanctuary,
effectively destroying the building. In the spirit of Christian love
– and a bit of self-interest – the Congregationalists invited the
homeless Baptists to use their facility – and by the way, since the
Congregationalists were without a pastor, could Reverend Schluntz
minister to the them as well as his own flock of Baptists? The
offer was accepted, Mr. Schluntz served both congregations, and
in less than three years, they decided to work together and become
the Franklin Federated Church.
So the Baptists and Congregationalists were still learning to
live together when I learned what it means to be a Christian. The
unity-out-of-diversity I learned here became the benchmark by
which I decided whether to join another church – and I never did,
always preferring to commute from wherever I lived to this
building which became the home from which I ventured into the
world and to which I always returned.
11. Brown church 1
This is the church I attended as a child. It was a sprawling
brown shingle-style church with wide porches and a tall square
clock tower. I thought it looked like a library.
2. White Church 1
This is the kind of church I wanted to attend, a big white box
with a tall, pointy steeple, like the Congregational Church my
grandparents worshiped in.
3. Brown Church 2
What I didn’t realize was that while I was wishing for a white
box with a pointy steeple, the sprawling brown building designed
by Walter Paine and dedicated in December, 1895 was shaping my
faith in ways I would not appreciate until decades later.
4. White Church 3
One day, while eating breakfast across the common from the
church my children’s father grew up in, it hit me. There were no
front windows on the entry level of the building. It looked like a
fortress. I started looking around at other old New England
churches; no porches, few front windows. Not very welcoming.
I began to appreciate the theology of this building.
25. Aerial View
I noticed that old New England churches tended not to be
embellished with crosses on the outside. That is the case with our
building – unless you are in an airplane or helicopter. From the
air, you can see that the roof tree of the church forms a cross. We
don’t flaunt our faith; it’s just who we are.
The head of the cross, the location of the communion table
and the pulpit are in the east. When we worship, we look in the
direction of the resurrection.
6. White FFC
Somewhere along the line, while I was looking at churches
that did not fit my faith, the Franklin Federated Church changed its
appearance.
So this is the church to which we brought our children. It was
still the sprawling building with wide porches, but white aluminum
siding covered brown shingles, and the bell tower was shortened,
because the wind kept blowing the siding off the taller structure.
Today our vision statement reads: We strive to be a
community of abundant welcome, growing together in Christ and
serving with love.
Please join me in a tour of this church building to see how it
embodies our vision statement.
37. Porches
Do you find porches welcoming? I do. They provide
protection from rain, sun, and even wind as you enter the building
– or a place to gather and chat with friends in the open air. Our
building is blessed with two porches, a big one over the entrance
to the south narthex near the parking lot, and an even bigger one
over the entrance to the north narthex.
I was a child when the church purchased the Lewis property
next door to pave as the present parking lot, an accommodation to
worshipers arriving mostly by automobile. I think that’s why the
south entrance now sports our “welcome” sign.
8. Porte Cochere
One welcoming feature I’ve always liked is the porte cochere
which allows automobiles to discharge passengers under cover.
9. Ramp
A more modern welcoming feature is our handicap ramp with
a dedicated parking space, allowing handicapped and even
wheelchair access to our sanctuary, parlor, and one of our meeting
areas.
Now let’s walk up the ramp, enter the building, and proceed
to the back of the sanctuary.
410. Cross and Lily Window
As we move up the north side aisle, look across the room at
the stained glass window in the south, with its cross and Easter
lilies. This is where the light of God shines in on Sunday morning
worship.
11. Sanctuary toward Pulpit
At the back of the sanctuary, we look across the auditorium
style arc of the pews toward the pulpit. Notice how the slope of
the floor allows everyone an unobstructed view of the front of the
sanctuary. There are no “best seats” in this house and everyone
has a good view of the action.
12. Dove and Bible Window
Let’s move down the south side aisle. Imagine how the slope
invites little children to run and play. This is a place for everyone,
not just adults who want it quiet. Look across the room at the
stained glass window with the dove of the Old Testament looking
down at the Bible, symbol of the New Testament, the scriptures of
our faith.
13. Chancel
At the front of the sanctuary, note that there are no bars, no
rails, no barriers between the congregation, and the minister and
others leading the service. The lower chancel with the communion
5table is accessible to all, just a couple of steps up from the level to
remind us that this is sacred space.
The upper chancel, traditionally the place for preaching the
word of God, is also reachable, up just three more steps. What
later renovations have obscured is that, by moving the pulpit, this
area used to double as a stage for shows and performances. This
was always intended as a space where humans and the divine
interacted.
Up another level up toward heaven, the choir loft and the
visible organ represent another way we mortals reach toward our
God. You can’t see it from here, but when I was a teenager, both
the senior and junior choirs entered the choir loft by a side door,
a seemingly mysterious entry by those representing the musical
heavenly host.
Note that the doors on either side of upper chancel have the
arch of the rainbow supporting the cross. These doors are special,
the only ones in the building with this motif. In more formal
times, the minister appeared through one door on the upper
chancel without being observed getting there – a little
representation of the mystery of Christianity.
14. Pulpit View
Standing at the front of the sanctuary, turn around, and look
out over the pews. Note that you have the ability to see every
person, every face in the congregation. Our own Rev. Mary Poole
says this provides a special way for the minister to connect with
6each individual in the congregation during the service.
15. Baptisms
You may be aware that the main difference between our
Baptists and our Congregationalists is their manner of baptism.
The Congregationalists tend to favor infant baptism and use our
Baptismal Font and a splash of water on the forehead. Warm
water is used to avoid little ones crying from the shock of cold on
their faces.
Notice the breaks in the chancel floor, punctuated by rings, in
front of one of those special doors. These are traps to a special
place which I’m guessing was a renovation by the
Congregationalists to welcome Baptists into their church home.
Now let us open those trap doors in the floor. Baptists don’t
baptize little children; they wait until the person being baptized is
capable of a knowing decision to be a Christian. Only then does
one receive the rite of Believers Baptism, full body immersion in
the water. Steve Kinson and I recently spent an hour poring over
the original blueprints of this building to see if they included a
place for a baptistry. They did not, leading us to conclude that the
installation of the baptistry – a major project – was one of the
marks of the two churches becoming one body that supports the
traditions of both denominations.
Under those carpeted boards is a copper tank with steps,
down which the minister and the person being baptized, both
dressed in weighted robes, descended into the water – hopefully
warm water – for a full body immersion of the baptizee. In these
7pictures, you can see the beam that was removed for baptisms, and
perhaps catch just glimpse, in the corner, of the old steps into the
tank.
Unfortunately, we have not been able to fix the leak in the old
tank. That stuff in the tank is our new portable baptistry that can
be assembled on the level of the sanctuary so we can again
perform Believers Baptisms.
16. Beams
Before we leave the sanctuary, look up at the ceiling beams
supporting the roof that protects us – rainbows and crosses in all
directions, a visible metaphor for our faith, the rainbow of our Old
Testament, the scriptures Jesus learned, supports the cross of the
New Testament, which in turn supports the covering roof.
17. Parlor
Christianity is a faith of community. Our parlor is a
comfortable place to meet in small groups, to sit and talk, to do
business and enjoy each other’s company
18. Gathering
And like Jesus’ followers, we like to eat together. (We also
have a dining room and kitchen downstairs for larger banquets.)
And notice the painting on the wall of Jesus being baptized by
John.
818b. Painting of John Baptizing Jesus
It hung in the sanctuary of the Baptist Church down the street until
1938 when it was cut out of its frame and hung here, another
symbol of the unity of our two churches.
19. Stained Glass: Jesus
When I was a child, the parlor was the children’s chapel.
This stained glass window depicts a popular scene of Jesus
welcoming children. Ours is an especially beautiful version. At
night a light shines through, so to passers-by, this is the church of
the lighted Jesus.
20. At the Temple
The painting over the mantle in the parlor shows twelve year
old Jesus and his parents at the Temple before one of the priests.
As a child, I imagined this also depicted the young prophet Samuel
being dedicated at the Temple before the old priest Eli. Two
children’s stories in one picture.
21. Faces of Jesus
We all know that Jesus was Jewish and probably had semitic
features, but the pictures we grew up with portrayed him as a light-
haired European. Realizing that people are most comfortable with
a savior who looks like them, we display pictures of Jesus as
others might think of him.
922a. Libraries
Growing in faith requires learning and information. We have
two libraries which double as meeting rooms so we can work and
learn together.
22b. FDR Library
We don’t just stay in this building. We go out into the wider
world to serve others. These are a few of the service projects we
have done under the leadership of our Missions Team.
23. Food
We feed the hungry by providing boxes of Cheerios to the
Grow Clinic and bag lunches for Common Cathedral.
24. Buckets
We help in time of disaster with donations and supplies like
clean-up buckets.
25. Giving Tree
And make sure families in need have presents at Christmas.
That, my brothers and sisters, is the theology of this building.
May we always be a community of abundant welcome, growing
together in Christ, and serving with love. Amen.

Sermon: “Trust God”

Scripture:

Proverbs 3:5-7 (The Message)

Trust God from the bottom of your heart;

    don’t try to figure out everything on your own.

Listen for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go;

    God’s the one who will keep you on track.

Don’t assume that you know it all.

    Run to God! Run from evil!

Jeremiah 29:11 (New Revised Standard Version)

11For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope.

Sermon:  “Trust God”

I took figure skating lessons when I was a teenager.  To be honest, I wasn’t very good at it.  I was pretty timid—I didn’t like skating fast, so I never got up enough speed to do the turns correctly.  My instructor was always saying to me, “You need to lean into the turns,” but I was pretty sure that if I leaned into the turns, I would fall flat on my face and be sprawled across the ice, with onlookers chuckling at how clumsy I was.  So, I would say to my instructor, “I can’t lean into the turns, I’ll fall!”  To that she would respond with confidence, “Trust your skates!  They’ll hold you up!”  But here’s the thing.  I was 99% sure my instructor was wrong about my skates.  I think she was assuming that I had the same kind of skates as the other girls at the rink:  nice, new, thick leather boots with sharp blades on the bottom.  My skates, however, were hand-me-downs from one of my mother’s friends who had worn them when she was a teenager 20 years earlier.  The boots on my skates were old and flimsy and at least one size too big, but no one could see that, as my 1970’s bell-bottom jeans pretty much covered up everything except the blades. 

One day, I finally got fed up with my instructor yelling at me, “Lean into the turn—trust your skates!” So I did.  And the result was pretty much what I had feared.  I fell right over and sprawled out on the ice.  My instructor rushed over, an anguished look on her face.  “Are you okay?!” she asked.  I was fine—not hurt, just embarrassed.  But then she looked at my skates for the first time and said something like, “Oh my goodness!  I had no idea your skates were this bad!” 

Our first Scripture reading for today, from Proverbs, starts out, “Trust God from the bottom of your heart…”  And it’s wonderful advice.  But I wonder how many of us, when we hear this kind of advice about trusting God, feel like I did when my skating instructor told me to, “Lean into the turns…Trust your skates!  They’ll hold you up!”  How many of us worry that if we take the risk and really trust God for the big things in our lives that we’ll end up like I did as a teenager—falling flat on our face, sprawled across the ice, onlookers chuckling at us (or worse)?  Isn’t it sometimes tempting to do what I did initially and play it safe--timidly skate along, never getting up enough speed to do much of anything?  That way, we don’t have to risk failure or other people’s laughter or criticism. 

But here’s the thing.  God isn’t like my flimsy old skates.  God wants us to trust him—her—for things big and small.  And God will be there for us.  How different might our lives be—as individuals and as a church-- if more often than not we fully trusted God and leaned into the turns?  How different might our lives be if we truly believed what it says in the book of Jeremiah, “For surely I know the plans that I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm—to give you a future with hope.”  If we truly believed—from the bottom of our hearts—that God is invested in our welfare and wants us to thrive, might we behave any differently?

Speaking for myself, if I put more trust in God, I know I would be less anxious in times of transition.  For instance, I wouldn’t have nights when I wake up at 3 am after dreaming that I showed up to preach at a church where I was applying for a new job only to discover, when I walked into the pulpit, that the Bible was glued shut and I had left my sermon notes home.  (Seriously, I have had that exact dream!  Trying to pry the Bible open while search committee members were rolling their eyes.) 

So, the question is, when waves of anxiety start to lap against our hearts, how do we, practically, put our trust in God?  There are many answers to that question, thanks be to God, but one answer I propose to us today is to commit to memory the verse from Jeremiah, that is printed our bulletin:  Jeremiah 29:11.  Would you read it with me?

11For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope. 

Members and friends of Franklin Federated Church, we have walked together in faith for the past 2 years and 3 months.  We have laughed together; we have cried together; we have prayed together.  We have faced joys and challenges.  And God has led us and taught us and helped us to grow in faith.  And now our paths are diverging—yours and mine.  I am grateful for the time I’ve spent with you, and I will be taking what I learned from you here in Franklin, taking your love and prayers, your welcoming spirit, into a new interim position as yet unknown, probably starting in December or January. 

And you too will be moving forward into the future, starting a new chapter on October 2nd, with a new, settled pastor, Rev. Doreen Oughton, who is a talented and gifted minister, a person of deep faith and warmth, with a passion for living out the love and justice of Jesus.  God has called her to be your spiritual leader, and she has entered into covenant with you.  She will soon join you here in ministry, and I encourage you as individuals and as a church to treat her with the same welcome that you have so lovingly shown to me.  Pray for her daily.  Be open to her ideas and gifts for ministry—whether her gifts are similar or different from mine or any of your previous pastors.    

Because following Jesus isn’t about the personality or charisma of pastors or lay-leaders.  Following Jesus is about allowing the Holy Spirit to shape us as individuals and as a community, doing our best together to embody the Purpose to which God has called us.  My prayer for you, Franklin Federated Church, is that you and your new pastor continue to be a community of abundant welcome to all, growing together in Christ and serving with love—and that by so doing you make a difference in this world for Jesus’ sake.     

Let us trust that God is—and will continue to be-- with us all, as we align ourselves with God’s good purpose, and let us walk into the future with hope, shining the light of God’s love wherever we go.  Amen.

A Costly Business – A Drama by David Winfield

A Costly Business – A Drama by David Winfield

Summary

A dialogue for two persons - based upon ‘The Disciple’ by Juan Carlos Ortiz. A new disciple discovers what the real cost is of following Christ.

Edits by Rev. Dr. Marlayna Schmidt 9/4/22

Cast

1.     Jesus

2.     A Disciple

Script

1:      Any of you,

2:      ... said Jesus,

1:      ... who does not give up everything they have, cannot be my disciple.

2:      Lord, I’d really like to be one of your followers. I’ve been thinking it over for some time now and I’ve come to the point of making a ‘decision’; I think that’s what they call it. So from here on in you can count on me.

1:      That’s most commendable; but have you considered the cost?

2:      You mean there’s an admission charge! (Laughter, which then fades out embarrassingly) No, seriously - uh - cost?

1:      It’s not easy being one of my disciples; there are sacrifices involved.

2:      Not goats and ewe lambs and turtle doves and that sort of thing? I thought that had gone out years ago, centuries even.

1:      No, not all the blood and the gore. I always found that somewhat unnecessary, not to say messy. Livestock are no longer required - but other sacrifices are.

2:      Well you just say the word and it’ll be fine by me. Nothing’s too good for you Lord, not now that I’m one of your team.

1:      I’m really pleased to hear that and I hope you’re serious.  So let’s see what we’ve got shall we?

2:      Lay it on me, Lord! What would you like to have?

1:      Well, I don’t want to startle you but, in fact, I’ll take everything.

2:      Everything?

1:      Everything.

2:      Everything - right. (pause) Everything?

1:      I think we’re clear about the word. Would it help if we made a list?

2:      Why not? I think I’ve got a pencil (extracts from pocket), and some paper (pulls out a small scrap and displays proudly).

1:      (providing a BIG pad of paper) Perhaps this might suit our purposes better.  Or, we could use a Google doc.

2:      Oh! (embarrassed) Right - yes - of course.
(Pause as each looks at the other, waiting for the next move)

(hesitantly) So I’ll begin shall I?

1:      That’s the story.

2:      Let’s just check that I’ve got this right - you want to know what I’ve got that I’m going to give up for you.

1:      (nods patiently - the message is at last getting through)

2:      Ok.  Well I just got my bank statement, just yesterday it came in my email so let’s see ... let me pull it up.  (pulls out of pocket) Here we are - $2,388.57. You’d like - uh - all of that?

1:      Correct. Any loose change?

2:      Oh! (pulls out wallet) Yes, ten, twenty, twenty-five dollars.

1:      (looks knowingly, raises eyebrow)

 2:     (with slightly guilty look, reaches into pocket)  ... and sixty cents.

1:      Great.  What about your Venmo account?

2:      Oh.  Right.  Let me open that app….  I’ve got 80 bucks there. 

1:      Fine. And what else do you have?

2:      There’s my car but I doubt you’d want that, I’ve been having loads of bother with my fuel lines. (looks at 1, hopefully)

1:      (looks back and smiles)

2:      (resigned) You’d like the car.  Guess I’ll just have to get the scooter out of the back shed now.  (awareness dawns)   You want the scooter too. I get it.

1:      You just mentioned a shed?

2:      Yes, it’s in the back yard.  down the back of my section. The shed? You want the shed?

1:      The back yard would be nice as well.  section

2:      But where am I going to put my ......... wait…  not the house as well?  All the furniture, too, I suppose. You’re a hard man.  Next thing you know I’ll be sleeping in my camper. (realizes what he has admitted to)  Oh no! How will I explain all this to my husband wife?

1:      You have a husband? wife?

2:      Yes, Paul.   Deidre. And two little grandchildren ones.  Look here’s a photo. (pulls out phone again wallet again) That’s Logan and that’s Gavin.  [Tim and Sarah.]

1:      (holds out his hand expectantly)

2:      My family? You’re not serious. You’re going to leave me penniless and on my own? How did I get into all this?

1:      I believe it was something to do with wanting to be a disciple.

2:      Well, yes.  But somehow I thought it might be a bit easier than all this. You know, just popping down to church from time to time, putting a few bucks bob in the plate.  Turning up for the occasional Mission Project.  l working bee. This is a whole lot different.

1:      Having second thoughts?

2:      No. (less convincing) No.  Well – yeah.  Maybe.  perhaps. Oh, I don’t know.

1:      I’m still very keen to have you with me. But I did say from the outset that there was sacrifice involved.

2:      Yes, I know you did. (aside)  Slitting a goat’s throat  Hunting down a sheep or two would be a whole lot easier.

1:      Pardon?

2:      Oh, nothing. Just thinking out loud.

1:      So where have you come to?

2:      A state of poverty I should have thought.

1:      Yes - and no.

2:      Huh?

1:      It’s not quite as bad as you might be imagining.

2:      (sarcastically) Oh right! You take everything I’ve got and then tell me it could be worse.  How’s that - planning on giving me a few plagues in return?   A nice case of boils or some new virus?  a dose of mad cow disease?

1:      Don’t get all bitter and twisted. You were the one who came to me - remember?   Now it’s true - I have asked for everything.  Your family, home, money, possessions - all mine now.   But, I would like you to use them, enjoy them. I’m not taking them away.  They can all stay with you. But don’t forget they are mine - as you are too. So don’t get any inflated ideas about ownership - that’s not your place.

2:      (thinking deeply and nods head slowly) Right. (pause)  There is a lot more to this disciple-thing than I had first thought… You really want the shed?
 ...........................................

Copyright David Winfield 2001, all rights reserved.
This script may be used free, provided no entrance fee is charged. In return for free performance, the author would like to be told when the script is used. He may be contacted at davenjo@xtra.co.nz

Note:   drama found on textweek.com.  link sent me to:  http://www.dramatix.org/archive/Walk/costly_business.html
 

Sermon: “Privilege into Blessing”

Scripture Reading:  Luke 14:1,7-14

1On one occasion when Jesus was going to the house of a leader of the Pharisees to eat a meal on the Sabbath, they were watching him closely. 

Humility and Hospitality

7 When he noticed how the guests chose the places of honor, he told them a parable. 8 “When you are invited by someone to a wedding banquet, do not sit down at the place of honor, in case someone more distinguished than you has been invited by your host, 9 and the host who invited both of you may come and say to you, ‘Give this person your place,’ and then in disgrace you would start to take the lowest place. 10 But when you are invited, go and sit down at the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he may say to you, ‘Friend, move up higher’; then you will be honored in the presence of all who sit at the table with you. 11 For all who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”

12 He said also to the one who had invited him, “When you give a luncheon or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers and sisters or your relatives or rich neighbors, in case they may invite you in return, and you would be repaid. 13 But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind. 14 And you will be blessed because they cannot repay you, for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.” 

Sermon:  “Privilege into Blessing”

At first glance, the parable at the beginning of our Scripture reading for today—about how to behave at a wedding banquet-- reads like a newspaper advice column on the topic of Social Etiquette.  I picture someone writing in a question like this:

Dear Miss Manners—My new boss has invited me to his daughter’s wedding celebration at a fancy country club.  I’ve been told there will be no assigned seating.  How will I know where to sit?  Signed “Anxious to Make a Good Impression”

Jesus, ghost-writing for Miss Manners, answers the question like this:

Dear Anxious—Do not sit down at the head table or at any of the other tables near the bride and groom, in case someone more distinguished than you has been invited, and you have to be asked to move.  Instead, go and find the worst table and sit there.  Maybe the one next to the amplifiers or where Crazy Uncle Fred is seated.  Your boss will be impressed by your humility and may invite you to switch to a better table—or, better yet, may even think about giving you a raise!  “For all who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” 

And, taken by itself, that could be one way to interpret the first part of this parable:  as shrewd advice on how to comport ourselves if we want to move up the social ladder. 

But, if we want to stick to that interpretation, we’d have to ignore the rest of the Gospel.  Because, as we all know, the purpose of Jesus’ ministry was not to help people move up the social ladder or advance themselves in terms of power and prestige. 

In order to appropriately interpret the first part of today’s reading, we need to look at it in context.  And as is so often the case, the next part of the chapter, the next section of our reading, verses 12 through 14, sheds light on the meaning of the first section.  In verses 12 through 14 of Luke Chapter 14, Jesus gives advice to hosts, to people throwing a banquet or party.  In these verses, Jesus tells hosts something that is completely opposite of all social norms and practices—in Jesus’ day and ours.  “When you give a luncheon or a dinner,” says Jesus in verse 12, “do not invite your friends    or your brothers and sisters    or your relatives or rich neighbors…”  Instead, says Jesus, “…invite the poor, the crippled, the lame and the blind.” 

Can’t you just see the jaws of the people listening to this drop at Jesus’ words?  Remember, Jesus recounts this advice at a dinner party thrown by a religious leader of his community—an educated man who was wealthy enough to afford to host a big gathering.  In fact, Jesus addresses the second part of his advice directly to his wealthy host.  What Jesus said would have been completely counterintuitive—to both the people of Jesus’ day—and ours.  Who among us would literally invite the outcasts of society over to our house for a meal?  It makes no sense.  It might even be dangerous.  Certainly uncomfortable.  And that, I think, is the point of Jesus’ words:  to provoke us to consider the things that make us uncomfortable.

As usual, Jesus uses the technique of story-telling to get people to intentionally examine their—our—unconscious mindset that affects our individual behavior and the behavior of our corporate systems.  In Jesus’ day and ours, we human beings tend to operate out of the mindset that sees every interaction with others as a business transaction.  That is, if we do something for others, we expect to get something in return. If others do something for us, then we owe them something back.  And, related to that, we generally do not do something for others, if we know in advance that we will get nothing from them.  That’s just how individual interactions and our human systems work, isn’t it?!

And there are some pluses to that type of interaction, that type of system, of course.  A business transaction encourages people to take personal responsibility.  In business transactions, people are expected to do their fair share.  They are rewarded for doing so.  And, conversely, people are not expected—or even allowed—to freeload or take advantage of others.  And all that is good-- as far as it goes!

But that type of interaction, that type of system, has its limitations and its flaws.  Which is what Jesus is calling our attention to in this passage.  One of the flaws to treating everything like a business transaction is that it is based on a faulty assumption—the assumption that everyone starts out on a level playing field.  Treating every interaction as a business transaction ignores the fact that, in the words of one commentator (Seminary Professor Jeanine Brown), “the system rewards the ‘haves’ and further disadvantages the ‘have-nots.’”  (Jeanine Brown on Working Preacher website.)   In Jesus’ day—and ours—if we happen to have been born “poor or crippled or lame or blind”—to use the language of this passage—it may take a lot more effort, energy and resources to engage in a transactional manner.  In fact, we may    simply not    be able to do so without help.

That’s where Jesus’ advice comes in.  Again, let me stress that in the second part of today’s reading, Jesus is not addressing those who are disadvantaged.  He is addressing his host and those who have wealth and privilege.  And, let me be clear, he is not saying that having wealth or privilege is wrong.  Another commentator (seminary professor Mitzi Smith), puts it like this:

“Wealth and Position are a blessing when shared and used for the betterment of humanity…God calls us to turn our privilege into blessing.”  (Mitzi Smith on Working Preacher website.)

“God calls us to turn our privilege into blessing.”  That is what we are called to do.  Which invites us to reflect on a number of things.  Let me name some of them, in the form of questions:

·        In what ways am I privileged?

·        In what ways are others privileged that I am not?

·        Have I been hurt by others using their privilege in a conscious or unconscious manner?

·        How might I have hurt others—consciously or unconsciously?

·        How am I using—how can I use-- my privilege as a blessing?

·        How is our church privileged?

·        How is our church using—how can it use—our privilege as a blessing?

Let me close by recounting a real-life story found in a book by Dave Ferguson, who wrote the Bless Book we looked at last month.  Dave tells the story of a friend of his, a woman named Joanne Russell, who relocated with her husband to Southern California.  She met people in her new community through the PTA, a book club, and other community activities.  Being passionate about her faith, Joanne and her husband joined a local church, and she started a Bible study for women in her home, inviting some of her new non-church friends who seemed interested.

In the course of her leadership of this Bible study group, Joanne recognized a trend:  a lot of women did not feel very confident in their own leadership abilities or their own ability to share their faith with others.  So, Joanne—who for whatever reason was privileged to be blessed with such confidence—began to mentor members of her Bible study group.  Over time, as members of the group shared their faith and life experience with each other, they each grew in their confidence and some began to lead study groups themselves.  Over a period of years, women mentored by Joanne started a total of 34 study groups, and each group helped other women grow in faith and confidence.  Joanne turned her privilege into blessing and taught others to do the same.  (Hero Maker, by Dave Ferguson and Warren Bird, p;. 52 & 53.)  Praise be to God!

In today’s scripture passage, Jesus makes clear that God’s kingdom, God’s realm, is built on grace and radical inclusion.  All are welcome; none are excluded.  We don’t buy or earn a place at God’s banquet table through a business-type transaction.  All are invited to the table, and when we accept the invitation, we become increasingly aware of the ways we are blessed and privileged.  May God be with us as we reflect on these things, and may we—each and all--find ways to turn our privilege into blessings for others. 

Message: “Empowered to Bless”

Scripture Reading: 

          I Peter 3:15 (The Message, a contemporary language paraphrase)

“…Always be ready to speak up and tell anyone who asks why you’re living the way you are, and always with the utmost courtesy.”

Acts 1:8 (NRSVUE)

8 …you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Message:  “Empowered to Bless”

Last year, this congregation—you—articulated a Vision Statement based on your hopes and dreams for the future.  The Statement included this wording:  

 “We will be both inward and outward focused--taking care of the needs of people who are already part of the congregation in order to equip ourselves to reach out and connect with new people and partner with others to meet the needs of the wider community.”  [REPEAT, as it’s a lot to take in—and it helps to hear it twice]

Later, when reflecting on this statement, a few members of church council noted that being outward focused is harder than it may seem, and they thought that the church may need some help or training to learn how to do that.  

One such training is coming up on Sunday, August 21st-when a church consultant, Rev. Paul Nickerson, is preaching and giving a short seminar after church on the topic of Reaching New People.  Another bit of training has taken place over the last several weeks through this sermon series on th3 book entitled, “B.L.E.S.S.:  5 Everyday Ways To Love Your Neighbor and Change the World.” 

The book outlines 5 ways to do be outward focused and share the Love of God with our neighbors, each way corresponding to a letter in the acronym, BLESS:

·        Begin with Prayer

·        Listen

·        Eat

·        Serve

·        Story

Depending on our personality and experience, some of the ways we talked about will feel easy—and some more challenging.

The last way— sharing our stories--that was our topic last week-- may be the most challenging.  And, as with many challenging things, if you’re like me, you might prefer to just skip it.

But I encourage you NOT to.  The reason I encourage you not to skip it is that when we respectfully share stories of how God’s love makes a difference in our lives—when we share with people who have expressed an interest, not with strangers on the street—the whole experience can deepen our connections with each other and God beyond anything we may have ever experienced before.  And isn’t that kind of deep connection what we are all striving for?! 

But to experience a deep connection with God and each other requires some thought and planning— to quote the Boy Scout motto, we need to “be prepared.”   In fact, that’s the advice of our first Scripture reading.  I Peter 3:15:   “…Always be ready to speak up and tell anyone who asks why you’re living the way you are, and always with the utmost courtesy.“ 

Which brings us to the little homework assignment I handed out last week, and I asked the greeter/usher to hand it out again this week.  I invited you—in one or 2 sentences—to answer this question:  “How has God’s love made a difference in your life?”  “how has God’s love made a difference in your life?”    

In the discussion group after last week’s worship, people began to answer that question, and I asked if anyone present would be willing to share their one or two sentence answer.  5 people said they were willing, and a few asked if they could elaborate briefly, and I said yes. 

So I invite the following people to share their 2 sentences, and possibly a little more:

          Jane

          Bob

          Lyn

          Jean

          Sue

Inspired by your fellow church members, and empowered by the Holy Spirit to be Christ’s witnesses, may we each take time today—if we haven’t already done so-- to answer the question, “How has God’s Love made a difference in your life?”  And let us be prepared for the Amazing Blessing opportunities that God is preparing even now to bring our way…

Sermon: Sharing Our Stories

Scripture:  John 9:1-12; 24-25 (NRSVUE)

A Man Born Blind Receives Sight

1As Jesus walked along, he saw a man blind from birth. 2 His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” 3 Jesus answered, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned; he was born blind so that God’s works might be revealed in him. 4 We must work the works of him who sent me[b] while it is day; night is coming, when no one can work. 5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” 6 When he had said this, he spat on the ground and made mud with the saliva and spread the mud on the man’s eyes, 7 saying to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which means Sent). Then he went and washed and came back able to see. 8 The neighbors and those who had seen him before as a beggar began to ask, “Is this not the man who used to sit and beg?” 9 Some were saying, “It is he.” Others were saying, “No, but it is someone like him.” He kept saying, “I am he.” 10 But they kept asking him, “Then how were your eyes opened?” 11 He answered, “The man called Jesus made mud, spread it on my eyes, and said to me, ‘Go to Siloam and wash.’ Then I went and washed and received my sight.” 12 They said to him, “Where is he?” He said, “I do not know.”

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John+9%3A1-12&version=NRSVUE

24 So for the second time they called the man who had been blind, and they said to him, “Give glory to God! We know that this man is a sinner.” 25 He answered, “I do not know whether he is a sinner. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.”

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John+9%3A24-25&version=NRSVUE

Sermon:  “Sharing Our Stories”

I am fairly certain that most of us have a handful of favorite stories we like to tell family and friends.  I know I do.  Maybe there’s a funny story about a grandchild or a pet—like when the dog ate the pot roast when no one was looking.  Or maybe there’s a heartwarming story of how you met your spouse.  Or maybe there’s a cautionary tale of something stupid you did in high school or college that you want younger family members to avoid.  We all have stories like this, don’t we?  And it can be particularly nice to tell them to people who have never heard them before because they often receive them with such relish; it’s wonderful to watch people savor our words and know we’ve added to their joy or enhanced their experience of life—even just a little bit.

The theme of our worship service today is “story,” and it’s based on chapter ___ of this book “B.L.E.S.S.”  One of the ways we can bless others is by sharing our stories with them.  This chapter in the book talks about how to share a specific type of story with others, the story of how we met Jesus.  This is the only chapter in the book where I found my theology differed quite a bit from the theology of the authors.  The authors are coming from an evangelical background, which was my background as well. 

I want to talk a little bit about the evangelical perspective of why sharing faith is important—and then move on from there to talk about how sharing stories of faith can be even more important when we come from a more inclusive or progressive understanding of Christianity.

I grew up in an evangelical, Baptist Church in Boston, where the pastor taught “witnessing” classes, and people were encouraged to hand out religious pamphlets on the Boston Common and talk to complete strangers about Jesus.  That’s not my theology—or practice-- anymore.  I started to question that theology—and the motivation behind such practices--when I was 19 years old, when I began to realize that it was based too much in fear. 

Back in my evangelical days, I felt that I had to share the story of Jesus—specifically how he died for our sins--because I was afraid that if I didn’t share it, then I would be depriving people of the only thing that could save their eternal soul.  It was a lot of pressure!  If anyone here grew up evangelical, you know what I’m talking about.  When I was a freshman in college, I felt so compelled to share my faith that I used to feel like a conversation was a failure when I didn’t mention Jesus.  Lest you think I am exaggerating, freshman year I actually had a friend say to me, “You know, Marlayna, we actually like you when you’re not talking about Jesus.”  Yikes!  I both laugh and cringe when I remember that…  It’s amazing I had any friends at all!   

As I got older (thanks be to God!) and started attending a UCC church, I discovered that there were other ways to understand the story of Jesus—his life, death, teachings—that focused more on love and less on fear and guilt.  I discovered that there were other ways to look at the Bible that took into account things like historical context and the concept of metaphor, that were still compatible with having faith. 

I discovered that it is still possible to experience the love, grace and forgiveness of God through Jesus while at the same time acknowledging that people of other religions-- and no religion—can also experience these things.  Christians don’t have a monopoly on God’s Love.  You all know that, but it was news to me when I was a young adult and finally let myself ask the question:  What kind of God would grant some people access to Love and deny others access based simply on the religious tradition they grew up in-- or their ability to believe specific doctrines?  I came to understand that there can be many paths to God, and one wonderful path is through Jesus, whose abundant welcome extends to everyone, no exception.  And that’s a great story to share!  One that the world—so used to religious people being closed-minded and intolerant—would be blessed to hear!

Yet, as I think about the concept of sharing our stories of faith with others, I think that those of us who have a more inclusive Christian theology may shy away from doing it for one main reason:  we don’t want to be mistaken for an evangelical who disrespectfully forces their beliefs on others out of fear. 

Having been that type of evangelical, believe me, there is a world of difference between someone who fearfully tries to manipulate every conversation into “let me tell you about Jesus,” AND someone who  humbly and respectfully shares only when they are asked about their experience of faith.

Today’s Scripture reading contains a great example of this type of humble, respectful response.   (I bet you wondered when I was going to get to that.)  Our reading is the story of a man who was born blind meeting Jesus and receiving his sight.  There’s a lot to unpack in this passage, and I can’t get to all of it, so I’m going to focus on the last part of it, starting in verse 8, after the man came back and was able to see.    

How does the man react to this amazing occurrence of being able to see for the first time in his life?  Let me tell you what he doesn’t do.  He doesn’t start knocking on doors with pamphlets—I mean papyrus-- in his hands.  He doesn’t walk up to complete strangers and say, “Look at me!  Check out my eyes.  Jesus fixed them!  And he can fix you, too, because you’re just as damaged as I was before I met him!” 

No.  The man does not do that at all.  He waits until people ask questions before he says anything!  When neighbors and others express curiosity about what happened, that’s when the man steps in and respectfully answers their questions.  And he doesn’t “over” share.  He isn’t hanging around waiting to get a foot in the door so he can recite a long, memorized spiel about Jesus and manipulate them into a conversion experience.  He simply answers what they ask. 

“Is this the guy who used to sit and beg?” 

“Yes, it’s me.” He says. 

And it’s not until people ask him point blank,

“…how were your eyes opened?”

that he gets into the details about Jesus and what he did.  And he relates his whole story in 2 sentences.   Verse 11:  “The man called Jesus made mud, spread it on my eyes, and said to me, ‘Go to Siloam and wash.’ Then I went and washed and received my sight.”

Simple, brief, to the point.

The same can be true for us.  As we practice our faith, God will give us opportunities to respectfully share our faith stories with others.  We don’t have to panic about it, we can keep it simple and answer people’s questions respectfully and briefly.  And if people ask us questions we don’t know how to answer-- or try to pressure us into a point of view we don’t share, like the man in today’s reading, we can admit what we don’t know, simply share our story in a sentence or two, and leave it at that.  In verse 25, when the religious leaders try to get the man to denounce Jesus as a sinner, he answers them like this:  “I do not know whether he is a sinner.  One thing I do know, though I was blind, now I see.” 

The man’s simple story of faith is a beautiful metaphor for the gift God offers to us all.  God blesses our lives by giving us new ways of seeing ourselves and the world.  God opens our eyes to see the Love that is all around us. 

One reason why it’s important to share our stories of faith--with people who ask us to share-- is that God works through us to bring insight and blessing to others. 

Maybe we don’t think that we have a story to share, but each of us does.  We are each here in this worship service because at some point in our lives, someone shared God’s Love with us—and it made a difference.

Maybe we experienced that Love through a church—through this church. 

Maybe when we walked through the door for the first time, someone greeted us and made us feel at home, and we came back because we felt we’d found a place we belonged.

Maybe when we got sick, members of our family of faith prayed for us or brought us casseroles—and we knew that no matter what happened, we wouldn’t have to face our illness alone, that there were people who cared.

Maybe an image we heard in a Scripture Reading stuck with us and became like a mantra that gets us through hard times. 

·        The image of the father welcoming home the prodigal son with open arms.

·        The image of Jesus taking children into his arms and blessing them.

·        The image of God’s everlasting arms underneath us all, holding us up through thick and thin.

Whatever our story—or stories of faith—when we share them respectfully and humbly with people in response to their questions, God can use our stories to bless others.

So, two bits of homework for you to help you articulate and share your story of faith:

1.     In one or 2 sentences, answer this question:  How has God’s love made a difference in my life?  How has God’s love made a difference in my life?  Write down your answer.

2.     Two:  pray for God to give you an opportunity to bless someone else by sharing your 2-sentence story of faith with someone who expresses an interest in hearing it.

May God be with us in this blessing exercise.

Sermon: B.L.E.S.S. - Serve

Scripture:  John 13:12-17 (NRSVUE)

12 After Jesus had washed the disciples’ feet, had put on his robe, and had reclined again, he said to them, “Do you know what I have done to you? 13 You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right, for that is what I am. 14 So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. 15 For I have set you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you. 16 Very truly, I tell you, slaves are not greater than their master, nor are messengers[a] greater than the one who sent them. 17 If you know these things, you are blessed if you do them.

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John+13%3A12-17&version=NRSVUE

Matthew 20:28

28 just as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve and to give his life a ransom for many.”

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+20%3A28&version=NRSVUE

It’s summertime, and the livin’ is easy—or at least, that’s the dream of summer.  And one of the quintessential symbols of that dream is the flip-flop sandal.  You see pictures of these sandals everywhere—from advertisements on the internet to stickers in the back of car windows.  I’ve even seen people wearing flip flop earrings.  (Let me clarify—I’ve seen people with small silver earrings shaped like flip flops—not actual rubber shoes hanging off the side of people’s heads…but I digress…) 

Sandals are comfortable shoes to wear in hot weather, aren’t they?  They are comfortable because so much of our feet are exposed to the outside air and cooling breezes.  But, sometimes that foot exposure can be a mixed blessing, particularly in Jesus’ day, where people either wore sandals or went barefoot in that hot, dry climate.  The BLESS book gives a compelling—and somewhat amusing-- description of what exposed feet were like back then:

In the first century, the feet were two of the dirtiest areas of the body.  Just imagine no nail clippers, no pedicures, no socks, and a culture where shoes were seldom worn.  [and] In this agrarian culture, it was almost impossible to avoid stepping into “stuff” that would make feet truly disgusting!  (BLESS, p. 98)

I think I’ll stop there.  You get the picture (probably too clearly J.)  It’s no wonder that before mealtime, members of the household and their guests always had their feet washed before sitting down to eat.  It was doubly important to do because they didn’t sit in chairs to eat back in Jesus’ time, they reclined on the floor or on cushions around tables.  So feet would have been even closer to the food-- and to the faces of those eating it than we might imagine. 

Back in that day and age, the lowest ranking person--aka servant-- in the household had the unwelcome job of being the foot-washer.  So, taking today’s reading at face value, imagine the disciples’ surprise when Jesus, in today’s scripture passage, got up from the table and started washing the disciples’ feet.  Now, since the meal was already in progress, we can probably assume that some foot-washing had already been done.  But, still, the symbolism was clear—Jesus was voluntarily taking on the position of the lowest ranking servant in the household.  And not only that, he was actually coming in close contact with people’s bunions and other unpleasant grossness!  If your reaction is revulsion, you are not alone.  Earlier in chapter 13, immediately preceding our reading, Peter—representing the rest of the disciples-- felt the same.  “No way, Lord!” he said.  “You are NEVER going to wash my feet!”   

Jesus’ response?  “Unless I wash you, you have no part with me.”  Commentators are quick to point out that Jesus is speaking metaphorically here.  Some say that this passage—written around 70 years after Jesus’ death-- is primarily about the meaning of baptism—of washing away sins, and that may certainly be one implication of this passage, but it is not the only implication.  The larger meaning is about relationship.  The word “part”—in Greek, meros—sometimes translated “share” actually meant “fellowship.”  (New Interpreter’s Bible Comentary, Vol. IX, p. 223)  So, Jesus is saying, “Unless I wash you, you have no fellowship with me.”  In other words, to be in fellowship with Jesus, to be in good relationship with him, involves sharing with him not just the parts of ourselves that we are proud of, not just our best selves, but also bringing to him our dirty feet.  The places in our lives that we struggle with.  The things we’ve messed up.  Our sins, if you will.  Our bad habits.  Our regrets.  In this passage, Jesus is calling his followers to bring to him the things we are ashamed of-- and wish we could change, but haven’t been able to. 

And here’s the amazing part of it all—the good news of the Gospel--Jesus says, “I want all of you.  I accept-- and love-- ALL of you.  All parts of you—the good, the bad, and the ugly, as it were.”  In this foot-washing passage, Jesus is teaching his followers what relationship is all about.  He is modeling what intimacy is:  the sharing of our whole selves with the God we see revealed in Jesus—even the parts that we are ashamed of and want to change.  Intimacy is taking a risk and being vulnerable; it’s trusting that God will not reject us—but, rather, will still embrace us with open arms-- and offer us grace and forgiveness and the opportunity for a fresh start.  It’s a powerful message, isn’t it?! 

But Jesus doesn’t leave it there.  The acceptance, love, grace and forgiveness that we receive in Jesus is exactly the blessing we are to offer to our fellow human beings.  And one way we do that--an entry point to building relationships and blessing others—is through service.

Our second scripture, from Matthew, chapter 20, verse 28, says that “The Son of Man”—another name for Jesus—came NOT to BE served, but to serve…”  This BLESS book calls that emphasis on service a “seismic paradigm shift.”  (BLESS, p. 99) 

In Jesus’ day—and it’s still the same in ours, the “higher you rise [in society] and the more power and wealth you accumulate, the more leverage you have to get others to serve you.”  (BLESS, p. 100)   As people move into the middle—or upper middle—class, often we begin to pay people to do stuff we’d rather not do, like clean our homes, mow our lawns, give us pedicures.  And I’m not saying there is anything wrong with paying for those things—or receiving payment for doing them--who doesn’t like a good pedicure or to come home to a clean house after a long day at work-- or to get paid for a task we do for someone else?!    But these are business transactions, not relationships.  Jesus’ main point here is that we are called to be in relationship with God and with one another.  And relationships, unlike the business transactions we all engage in, relationships require MUTUAL give and take, mutual service, mutual vulnerability. 

Over the past few weeks we’ve been talking about how people get to know each other—how they build relationships.  One of the ways is through eating, sharing meals together, like we talked about last week.  And listening, like we talked about the week before.  Today’s first scripture reading makes clear that building relationships also involves sharing the uncomfortable, difficult, painful parts of our lives—not sharing ONLY the celebrations.  We need to cry with each other, grieve with each other and pray with each other.  We need to apologize when we step on each other’s toes—and accept those apologies.  In a word, we need to serve each other—bring each other casseroles, send encouraging notes—metaphorically wash each other’s ugly, bare feet like Jesus has washed ours.  It’s in those times of mutual service that we truly deepen our relationships. 

And let me emphasize here, it’s mutual service.  Jesus said in our first reading from John chapter 13, verse 14, “…you ought to wash one another’s feet.”  This implies that sometimes we are the foot-washer and other times we are the foot-washee. 

As I said earlier, the way our world works is that people, in general, prefer to be the foot-washee—that is, when we move up the social ladder, we prefer to pay others to serve us by doing the stuff we don’t like to do.  (Think toilet-cleaning, lawn-mowing, etc.) 

In the Christian community, however, sometimes that preference can be reversed.  Sometimes we follow Matthew 20:28 to the extreme and we ALWAYS take the role of the servant, never letting ourselves BE served, because we think that’s what Jesus wants.  Except that it isn’t.  We need to hear John 13:14 as much as we hear Matthew 20:28.  Sometimes we need to let others serve us, to let others see our vulnerabilities, to embrace us in our pain, to forgive us when we mess up—because, otherwise, our relationships will not deepen much beyond the level of a business transaction. 

So, my friends, as we move into this new week, may we continue to pray for people, listen to them, eat with them.  And, as we listen, may God reveal ways we can serve others and be a blessing to them.  AND may God help us recognize and accept service from others.  May God help us practice saying, “yes,” graciously, when someone offers to do something for us.  We are probably all used to saying, “No, that’s okay, really, I’m all set.”  But sometimes Jesus wants us to say, “Okay.  Thank you.”  “Yes, it has been a hard week.  A meal would be nice.”  Or, “You’re right.  I could use that gift card-- or that cup of coffee or that prayer.”   

As we engage in this mutual give and take of service, may our relationships deepen, grow, and flourish in Jesus’ name.  And may we hear the words of Jesus from John 13:17:  “If you know these things, you are blessed if you do them.” 

Sermon: "Eat"

Scripture Reading:  Matthew 9:9-13 (NRSVUE)

The Call of Matthew

9 As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax-collection station, and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he got up and followed him.

10 And as he sat at dinner in the house, many tax collectors and sinners came and were sitting with Jesus and his disciples. 11 When the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” 12 But when he heard this, he said, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. 13 Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous but sinners.”

Have you ever thought much about how you got to know your closest friends, family, companions?

For most of us, I am guessing, food was involved.  How many of us have fond memories of late-night pizza and conversation shared with the people who became our best friends in college?  Or a nice Italian dinner with a date who later became a spouse?  Or a holiday meal at the home of a parent or grandparent or close friend where family and friends lingered around the table with wine or coffee or ice cream—or all 3?!   To quote this book “Bless,” on which this sermon series is based, the authors, Dave and Jon Ferguson, say “…we often fail to recognize the power of eating—specifically the experience of eating with someone.  Something special happens when we gather at the table.”  (B.L.E.S.S., p. 77)

Jesus certainly understood this to be true.  If we read through the Gospels looking for references to eating, we will find dozens of them!  In fact, though we may never have noticed it before, a lot of Jesus’ ministry was “centered around meals.”  (B.L.E.S.S., p. 79)  A few well known examples include:

1.     The wedding feast in Cana of Galilee, where Jesus turned water into wine, his first miracle.

2.     The feeding of the 5,000 on the hillside where Jesus took one little boy’s lunch and used it to feed the multitude.

3.     The Last Supper before his crucifixion.

4.     The breakfast on the beach after his resurrection.

These are some well-known examples of Jesus sharing food with people in a way that conveyed God’s love and blessing. 

Today’s Scripture reading contains a lesser-known example of Jesus blessing people through eating with them.  It’s the calling of the disciple Matthew.  Authors Dave and Jon Ferguson point out something about this Scripture that is counter-intuitive.  After inviting Matthew to follow him as a disciple, Jesus doesn’t then sign him up for a Bible class or a discipleship webinar—or some other traditional form of education and training.  No.  Contrary what anyone might expect, the first thing Jesus does after inviting Matthew to be a disciple is to go over to Matthew’s house and join him and his friends for dinner. 

Then, as now, one of the main ways of establishing friendships was through eating with people.  But, in Jesus’ day, the act of eating with people had a lot more rules around it than we have; how one ate in public—and with whom--was connected with the ways their culture expressed honor and shame. 

One thing you most certainly did NOT do in Jesus’ day and age—if you were at all concerned about your reputation as an upstanding religious person--was to eat with “sinners.”  And, by the way, the word “sinners” as used in today’s passage was a “catch-all term for anybody who wasn’t religious or who was involved in illicit [practices, such as financial fraud or] prostitution.”  (B.L.E.S.S., p. 81)  So, flying in the face of social and religious convention, “sinners” were the exact people that Jesus sought out and established friendships with around the dinner table. 

By eating with “sinners,” Jesus was in effect declaring that he fully accepted them as part of his social group, despite their behavior that others judged to be unacceptable.  To put it even more strongly, eating with “sinners” was Jesus’ way of proclaiming that God’s mercy extends to everyone, without exception.  By sharing bread with those whom society excluded and judged, Jesus was broadcasting God’s message that ALL are worthy to receive God’s blessings. 

Sadly, the religious establishment—represented in this passage by the Pharisees—had trouble taking in this message, as is sadly true to so many religious people in Jesus’ day and ours.  They were so focused on following the rules that they missed the spiritual truth that God desires “mercy, not sacrifice.”  This quote found in verse 11 of today’s Scripture is a paraphrase of a verse from the Hebrew Scriptures, Hosea 6:6, where God says through the prophet Hosea, “I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.”  In other words, God’s top priority is for people to reach out in love and blessing to our neighbors.  God’s top priority is not—and never was—judging people’s shortcomings and declaring them unworthy.

Following Jesus’ example and eating with our neighbors, friends, and family—regardless of whether or not we share their opinions or agree with everything they say or do-- is one way we can help others feel accepted, loved, and cared for.  Even though our culture doesn’t have the same shame and honor connotations as Jesus’ culture did, eating with people is still a powerful way to be a blessing to them. 

Just an aside here—I want to point out that the eating spoken of in today’s Scripture passage goes beyond the act of physically providing food for people who are food insecure.  Helping people who do not have enough to eat is incredibly important, and it is something we are all called to do, whether by physically providing the food and/or by helping to change the systems that shut people out of being able to adequately provide for themselves.  The Missions Team and Social Justice Team at this church help us all to do that in many ways, from working with the Food Pantry to providing sandwiches for the Common Cathedral to raising awareness of the ways racism contributes to whole groups of people not having access to healthy resources.  This passage, however, and the “Eat” chapter in the BLESS book focuses primarily on what else is provided around the table in addition to the food. 

Building on the last chapter in the book, which was entitled “Listen,” the authors point out that “listening and eating make a great combo.”  Further, in our culture when people often eat by themselves—or looking at their phones—actually eating with people and at the same time sharing a meaningful conversation is powerful!  The author’s say, “Active listening coupled with a good meal can catapult a casual acquaintance into a growing friendship.” 

In this day and age when there is such division in our country—eating together as a way of building relationships with our neighbors is one small thing we can do to help reach across the divides.  Now, I’m not talking about inviting a perfect stranger over for a cup of tea—that would be weird, possibly dangerous, and more than a bit creepy.  I’m talking about inviting a neighbor over for dessert or a work colleague out for lunch—or a friend from your exercise class out for a donut—I mean a protein shake. 

Those are all easy, organic ways to begin to expand our circles of friends and our circles of blessing.  The authors of the BLESS book point out that part of what makes eating an easy way of blessing people is that we are not trying to fit something else into our schedule.  We already eat 3 meals a day—21 meals a week—anyway.  So all we are doing is inviting someone to share one of those meals with us.  Piece of cake.  Or kale, as the case may be.  Either way, when we share meals with each other, it's a blessing.

Spiritual writer Henri Nouwen put it this way.  He said, “When we invite friends for a meal, we do much more than offer them food for their bodies.  We offer friendship, fellowship, good conversation, intimacy, and closeness.  When we say, ‘Help yourself…take some more…don’t be shy…have another glass…’ we offer our guests not only our food and drink but also ourselves.  A spiritual bond grows, and we become food and drink for one another.”  (Nouwen quoted in B.L.E.S.S., p. 85)

I want to leave you with one final thought and a challenge.  The “eat” chapter in the BLESS book asks the question, “What would it look like if you set aside just one or two meals (out of 21) every week to bless people by eating with them?  Picture a world where people are sitting together, eating, talking, listening, and connecting to one another.  [We] believe that’s a picture God is waiting to see!” (B.L.E.S.S., p. 88) 

So, here’s the challenge.  I plan to invite one of my neighbors to share some food with me and my husband Paul sometime before the end of July.  Someone in the neighborhood we’re just starting to get to know.  I wonder if you could do the same?  Invite a neighbor or friend or work colleague or someone you’re just starting to get to know to share some food with you.  Sometime before the end of July.  And when you’ve done it, let me know.  And we can celebrate together! 

Sermon: “Listen”

Scripture Reading:  Luke 18:35-42

Jesus Heals a Blind Beggar Near Jericho

35 As he approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. 36 When he heard a crowd going by, he asked what was happening. 37 They told him, “Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.” 38 Then he shouted, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” 39 Those who were in front sternly ordered him to be quiet, but he shouted even more loudly, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” 40 Jesus stood still and ordered the man to be brought to him, and when he came near, he asked him, 41 “What do you want me to do for you?” He said, “Lord, let me see again.” 42 Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight; your faith has saved you.”

Sermon:  “Listen”

“You and I live in a world where hardly anybody really listens to each other.”  Let me repeat that (in case someone was having trouble listening…J)  REPEAT  

This is a quote from the book B.L.E.S.S., 5 everyday ways to love your neighbor and change the world.  (p. 57) 

The authors list 5 ways we can be a blessing to our neighbors, and each way starts with a different letter that spells out the acronym, B.L.E.S.S.  Last week we looked at the way that started with the letter “B,” “Begin with prayer.  Today we look at the way that starts with the letter “L”. 

And that way is, in a word, “Listen.”  Listening to other people is a way we can be a blessing to them.  Which sounds so simple, but actually is harder to do that we may think.  Hence the author’s statement I quoted a minute ago, “You and I live in a world where hardly anybody really listens to each other.”

I bet you can think of any number of examples that support this statement, can’t you?  The first example that comes to my mind is the number of people I pass on my morning walk or bike ride who do not respond when I cheerfully say, “Good morning!”  My first reaction is always to feel a little offended—like they have purposely chosen to ignore my words.  But then I realize that they’ve got ear-buds in—or they’re looking at their phone or they’re concentrating on their dog or perhaps they just haven’t had their coffee yet…  There are any number of reasons why they simply don’t hear me…

And if I were being honest—which is what you would expect of a pastor, I realize-- I confess that sometimes I, too, have earbuds in for my walk or I go out pre-caffeine and may miss what’s going on around me.  God knows how many people have said “Good morning” to me that I haven’t listened to!

All that to say, not listening is a human foible that all of us fall into from time to time, and perhaps more so with the advent of technology that gives us 24/7 access to so many avenues of information—so many that we may be too overwhelmed to really listen to any one of them!

But, the good news is that listening is a skill we can all “develop and get better at.”  (B.L.E.S.S., p. 56)

Today’s Scripture can help us develop our listening skills.  It’s kind of like a case study in listening—with examples both of how to do it--and how not to do it. 

In our reading, Jesus and the disciples are on the move.  They are walking to Jerusalem to celebrate the feast of Passover, and they are on the road approaching Jericho, a city that was about 15 miles away from their destination.  As they travel, Jesus knows that approaching Jerusalem means that he is approaching the end of his life and ministry, a fact that the disciples have NOT yet come to comprehend, despite Jesus’ 3 attempts to explain it to them.  All that to say, I think we can assume that Jesus has A LOT on his mind as he’s walking along and may be using the travel time as an opportunity to prepare himself mentally, emotionally and spiritually for the suffering he will face. 

In contrast, the disciples walking with him are probably in a completely different head space.  As they near the end of their long journey, like any of us traveling for a holiday, they probably just want to get to Jerusalem as quickly as possible in order to start their vacation, their celebration of the Passover Holiday. 

So, to the disciples—the ones verse 39 refers to as those “in the front” of the crowd—to the disciples, the blind man who is shouting for mercy from Jesus—is an unwelcome distraction.  To the disciples, hearing the man shout is like hitting traffic, an obstruction in the roadway-- when you’re only a few miles away from your destination and you just want to get there.  The man and his heartfelt cries are nothing more than an annoyance they don’t even listen to, never mind consider stopping to deal with.  I think that if the disciples had had smart phones and they heard the man shouting, they quickly would have asked Siri to find an alternate route.  But they don’t have smartphones—so they go old school and shout back, sternly ordering the man to be quiet as they walk on by.   

But that’s not what Jesus does.  Verse 40 says when he heard the man’s shouts, “Jesus stood still.”  Jesus stood still.  It may sound obvious, but that’s the first step in listening.  When you hear a heart-felt cry, stop whatever it is you are doing—be still and focus your attention on the person who is speaking. 

Jesus then ordered the man to be brought to him.  I’m not saying that we should do that—the second step of good listening is not ordering people around.  Commentators tell us that ordering the man to be brought to him was probably a reference to a parable that Jesus had recently told—where the head of a household orders people on the margins of society—the lame and the blind, people who are poor and disabled—to be brought in to enjoy a great feast. (Luke 14)  The point of the parable being that God’s kingdom includes everyone, even—or especially-- those whom society tends to overlook and exclude.

But Back to this scripture.  When Jesus heard a heart-felt cry, he stopped and he paid attention to the one speaking.  Then he did something very profound.  He asked the man a question, verse 41, “What do you want me to do for you?”  This is a pretty amazing question, considering who’s asking it.  We might expect that Jesus, the Messiah, the Son of God, would already know what the man wants and just give it to him.  But that’s not the way Jesus interacts with people.  He engages them—heart, mind, body and soul.  He invites them into relationship.  He looks them in the eye and asks what they want and need.  Maybe it’s because the human part of Jesus really didn’t know what the man needed. 

Or maybe it’s because Jesus never forced his will on others.  Jesus always respected people enough to let them choose what they wanted to do.  When he called Levi the tax collector to be a disciple, Jesus issued a simple invitation:  Follow me.  When the rich, young ruler was having trouble leaving his possessions behind, Jesus didn’t demand he hand them over—or send the disciples to his house to clear it out--he let the rich man make the decision to walk away.  Jesus didn’t even stop Judas—the one who handed him over to the authorities—from making his destructive choice, despite the very dire consequences.

My point?  Jesus modeled for us what listening involves.  Listening always involves an intentional choice to stop what we’re doing, be still and focus on another person.  Listening involves asking the other person what they need, not arrogantly assuming that we know what they are going to say or that we know better than they do what’s best for them.  In short, listening involves entering into relationship with others and hearing their pains and their joys—helping them get what they want and need--not forcing them to do what we think they should do.

The authors of this book say that listening is one of the ways we can love our neighbors and be a blessing to them.  They quote pastoral counselor David Augsburger who said, “Being heard is as close to being loved that for the average person, they are almost indistinguishable.”  REPEAT.  (B.L.E.S.S., p. 56)   

I was thinking about this as I listened to the news this week about people’s reactions to the Supreme Court’s decision to reverse Roe v. Wade.  I hope that people will consider joining me via Zoom on Wednesday night to talk about our reactions to the decision and which Scriptures might have bearing on the topic of abortion.  I’m not going to talk about that right now. 

But what I do want to talk about in regard to that decision is how we listen to each other.  Years ago, there was a woman in one of the congregations I served who defined herself as “pro-life” in terms of abortion and everything else.  Yet, contrary to some stereotypes, she was incredibly respectful to people who interpreted the Scriptures different from the way she did—she understood that abortion was a complex issue, and while she was glad to share what she believed and why, she never tried to force her opinion on others. Rather, in both her job and her volunteer work, she listened to what others needed, and she dedicated herself to caring for people whom others cast aside.  She’s one of the most loving people I have ever met.

I contrast that with another voice I heard on the radio this week who also defined himself as “pro-life,” a former politician from Mississippi reacting to the Supreme Court’s decision.  When a reporter asked him what he would say to a woman who was pro-choice, he responded that he would tell her “to get down on her knees and pray to God to open her heart” so that her mind would change.  (NPR, Friday afternoon, June 24th.)  My first reaction to this comment was, “Thank God I live in Massachusetts!”  My second reaction—okay, maybe it was my third or fourth-- was a prayer, “O God, help me to follow Jesus and always ask people what they need, rather than assuming that I already know.” 

Whether we define ourselves as pro-life or pro-choice, the important thing is to listen and talk respectfully to each other, explain our reasoning, share our data and try to understand others’ point of view.  And we have an opportunity to do that around this issue, if we wish, on Wednesday night.

“Being heard is as close to being loved that for the average person, they are almost indistinguishable.”  Let us follow the example of Jesus and truly listen to what people are telling us they need.

Sermon: “Blessed to Be a Blessing”

Scripture Readings:

Genesis 12:1-3  - The Call of Abram

1Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. 2 I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”

Mark 12:28-31 - The First Commandment

28 One of the scribes came near and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well he asked him, “Which commandment is the first of all?” 29 Jesus answered, “The first is, ‘Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one; 30 you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ 31 The second is this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”
Sermon:  “Blessed to Be a Blessing”

 Our Church PURPOSE STATEMENT reads like this:  Franklin Federated Church is a Community of Abundant Welcome to All, Growing Together in Christ and Serving with Love.

Our Church Vision Statement expands on that and describes what we will seek to be and do in the next few years, starting now.  

Following Christ and led by the Holy Spirit, we articulated that “We will be both inward and outward focused--taking care of the needs of people who are already part of the congregation in order to equip ourselves to reach out and connect with new people and partner with others to meet the needs of the wider community.” 

It is a wonderful Vision Statement, very much in line with the teachings of Christ and the Hebrew Scriptures.  (And, just to review, a Transition Team put together this Statement based on a series of meetings held in 2020 and 2021 where the congregation reviewed your history, articulated hopes and dreams, and discerned what God was calling you to do and be.  The Vision was edited by Council and presented to the congregation for feedback.)

Last month I met with a few volunteers from your Church Council to put together an Implementation Plan, so you could put your wonderful Vision into action.  As we reviewed the Vision and the activities that groups in the church are doing this year, the volunteers noticed a couple things.  Let me share them with you:

1.     Most of our current church activities are more inward focused than outward focused.

2.     To fulfill the Vision God is calling us to, we need a better balance of inward and outward focus.  In other words, we need to stretch ourselves to be more outward focused.  We need to think intentionally about it.

Then someone who was part of the group of volunteers working with me to put the Vision into action said something like this, “I think we may need some sort of training regarding how to be more outward focused.  We each may need to learn how to better articulate what our own faith is, why faith is important, and how to communicate that respectfully to others.”  And the other volunteers from council, working with me, agreed. 

And, then, being even more specific, someone said, ”A sermon series on ’How would you invite your neighbor to church and why would you want to?‘ might be helpful.“

That last bit sounded like a hint to me....  So I made the mistake of praying about it—I mean, I joyfully lifted it up to God in prayer.  I prayed something to the effect of, “Lord, I’ve never preached a sermon series like this before; I’m going to need your help.  But, no rush, Lord.  I’ve got other things to preach about.”  Wouldn’t you know it, a few weeks later, my husband –a church consultant--is reading this book called, “B.L.E.S.S.:  5 Everyday Ways To Love Your Neighbor and Change the World.”  I pick up the book and read the back cover that says, and I quote:

When you’ve been transformed by God’s love, you can’t help but want others to experience the same grace and freedom.  But how do you share it without scaring them away or offending them? 

          …what if there were an organic, authentic way to share your faith with your friends, neighbors, and coworkers?

          Dave and Jon Ferguson have found five simple, straightforward practices that will allow any believer to do just that.  And by consistently living them out, you can affect not just individual lives but your entire neighborhood and community—one person at a time.

Wow!  The book sounded like it was EXACTLY what the volunteers from Church Council were asking for in a sermon series!!  What an incredible answer to prayer!!  (God is good—all the time.)

So I read the book, and I loved it!  (I hope that those of you who are reading it will love it too. ) It’s all about how we are all blessed by God to BE a blessing to others. 

Everything the book says is based on the foundational Scriptures of our faith, two of which we’ve read today.  These Scriptures make clear that God wants us to have an outward focus—to care for our neighbors as much as we care for ourselves.

In our reading from Mark, Jesus sums up what the most important commandments are in all of Scripture.  I bet we know this reading by heart.  Basically, it’s this:  “Love God and Love your neighbor as yourself.”

Today, I want to focus on the “love your neighbor” part.  The authors of this book—brothers Dave and Jon Ferguson, who are pastors of a church-- point out that the commandment “Love your neighbor as yourself” appears in the Bible 8 times.  And then, focusing on the fact that it is written as an imperative, they say, “Jesus knew that if he didn’t make it a command, we’d treat it as optional.”  Which would be very human of us.  I know I prioritize commands above suggestions, and I bet I’m not the only one…

Their point?  Loving our neighbors is not optional.  Jesus makes clear that we need to “find time, make sacrifices, and be intentional” about loving our neighbors as ourselves.  (B.L.E.S.S., p. xx)  Or, to use words from our Purpose Statement, we—each and all-- need to work at having an outward focus as well as an inward one—because that’s what God wants. 

And having an outward focus involves sharing God’s Love through both deeds and words. 

Most of us are probably fairly comfortable sharing God’s love through good deeds.  In fact, we may even quote the old line, “Preach the Gospel at all times, and when necessary, use words.”  That quote has been attributed to St. Frances of Assisi, but there’s no evidence Francis actually said it.  However, I’d say that attributing it is beside the point, because, most of the time--at least, speaking for myself—when we quote it, we do so because we are looking for an excuse not to talk about our faith.

The authors of this book don’t let us off the hook.  Using words to express how God’s grace, healing, joy, forgiveness, strength (whatever word you might choose at any given time) makes a difference in our lives is an important part of how we love our neighbors.  In fact, we do our neighbors a disservice if we don’t let them know that our grace, healing, joy, forgiveness and strength come from God and theirs can too. 

The good news found in the pages of this book is that sharing our faith through words doesn’t have to be pushy, scary, difficult, or awkward.  In case we have doubts about that, the authors reassure us by referring to data from studies that have been done.  Research—in this case, done by Gallup--shows 87% of Americans believe in God.  Further, 1 in 4 non-Christians are curious about what Christianity might mean in their lives.  And--I love this statistic—79% of unreligious people agreed with the statement, “I don’t mind talking to a friend about their faith if they value it.”  (B.L.E.S.S., p. 8)

The book then goes on to make the case that people are actually looking for friends with whom they can explore spiritual matters.  Isn’t that good news?!  People are looking for friends who can listen without judgment, allow them to draw their own conclusions, and confidently share their own perspective.  [REPEAT]  Wow!  I think we can all vouch for the fact that when WE find friends like this in our own lives, it is one of God’s greatest blessings!

And, speaking of blessings, this brings us to our other scripture reading, the one from Genesis chapter 12, The Call of Abram.  Abram-- whom God later renamed Abraham--is the patriarch of 3 religions:  Judaism, Islam, and Christianity.  God makes clear to Abraham that he is blessed—not so that he can hoard God’s blessings to himself or just enjoy them with the small circle of his own family—no.  God blesses Abraham so that he can share his blessings abundantly--with the whole world.  In verses 2 and 3, God says, “I will bless you so that you will be a blessing…in you, ALL the families of the earth shall be blessed.”  Wow!  Talk about a Vision of abundant welcome!

But back to this book.  The authors—brothers and pastors Dave and John Ferguson identify 5 every day ways we –people who love God and don’t want to be pushy or disrespectful--can love our neighbors and change the world. 

They’ve made the 5 ways easy to remember, because each one starts with a letter that spells out the acronym B.L.E.S.S.

Begin with Prayer

Listen

Eat

Serve

Story

In this sermon series, I’ll be looking at one each week.  Next week’s topic will be “Begin with Prayer.” 

And let me make another plug for the book here.  At the end of each chapter, there are a series of discussion questions.  I’ll be in the faith development room each week after worship, and we’ll discuss the sermon and a question or two per chapter.  Even if your schedule or geographic location doesn’t allow you to join that discussion, you can still answer the questions if you want as a way of putting your faith into action.  (And if there’s enough interest, we can even have one or two on-line discussions.  Let me know.)

So, may God be working in us this week to both look inward and notice the ways God has blessed us—and then to begin to look outward to be aware of the people around us whom God might be calling us to bless…

Rev. Dr. Marlayna Schmidt

Franklin Federated Church

Franklin, MA

Sermon: “Connection in the Midst of Conflict”

1 When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3 Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. 4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability.

5 Now there were devout Jews from every people under heaven living in Jerusalem. 6 And at this sound the crowd gathered and was bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in the native language of each. 7 Amazed and astonished, they asked, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each of us, in our own native language? 9 Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, 11 Cretans and Arabs—in our own languages we hear them speaking about God’s deeds of power.” 12 All were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” 13 But others sneered and said, “They are filled with new wine.”

Sermon:  “Connection in the Midst of Conflict”

When I was doing my doctoral work in Chicago, I attended a number of African American worship services.  It was there I learned the responsive call to worship, where the pastor would say, “God is good,” and the congregation would reply, “All the time.”  (We can try that if you want:  God is good.  All the time.) 

At one service I attended in Chicago, after this call to worship, the pastor said something like, “Now turn to your neighbor, and tell them one way God has been good to you this week.”  (Don’t worry, I’m not going to make you try that right now.  But it’s a good idea for future, isn’t it?)

I’ve got to admit that the “talk with your neighbor” thing kind of caught me off guard when he said it.  I mean, it’s just not something that’s been part of my worship tradition.   But I knew what the pastor was trying to do.  He was trying to get his congregation to connect with each other and talk about the goodness of God.

Something similar is happening in our Scripture reading this morning.  The followers of Jesus—along with devout Jewish people from all over the Roman Empire, had come to Jerusalem for the feast of Pentecost.  At the time, Pentecost was a harvest festival—“…one of three pilgrimage feasts when the entire household of Israel gathered in Jerusalem to celebrate the goodness of God…”  (New Interpreter’s Bible, Vol. X, p. 53.)  (Later, beginning in the second century of the common era, the festival evolved to also become a celebration of God giving the Torah to Moses.)  (https://www.britannica.com/topic/Shavuot)

But Pentecost this particular year turned out a little differently from all the years previous.  This particular year, shortly after Jesus ascended into heaven, a miracle occurs.  While the disciples are “all together in one place, suddenly there came a sound, like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting.  Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue [of fire] rested on each of them.  And they began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability.” 

Now, let me stop here for a moment and say that there are different interpretations and understandings of this Scripture reading.  Some people take it literally; some metaphorically; and some see it as a combination of the two.  The differences in interpretation come partly from recent scholarship that gives compelling evidence that the Book of Acts was written in the second century of the common era and was intended to be read more as metaphor, not as a factual, eye-witness account of the event.  (https://www.westarinstitute.org/blog/when-was-acts-written-not-in-first-century/)

Regardless of whether we take this event literally or not, there are many things we can learn from it.  One important thing I believe we can learn is that the Spirit of God enables communication and connection between people of very different backgrounds. 

We’re told that people from all over the Roman empire—

—in their own languages they heard the disciples speaking about God’s deeds of power. 

Now, this list of places from all over the Roman empire (that Sue read beautifully, despite the hard-to-pronounce names!) might not mean much to us now, since many of these geographic regions now go by different names, but it might mean something to us if we looked up and located on a map what these places are called today.  So I Googled them.  If the writer of Acts were writing today, his (or her) list of regions would have included what we now know today as Italy, Greece, Turkey, Jordan, Israel, Lebanon, Syria, Libya, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Iran, and Iraq.   Quite a list, wouldn’t you say?

And although these regions, at the time, were united under Roman rule, it didn’t mean that the people back then got along any better than they do today.  In fact, even in Jesus’ day, many of these regions had been warring with each other for centuries!  Yet, devout Jewish people from these sometimes hostile nations would come together once a year, for the Feast of Pentecost.  They would gather to share their gratitude and celebrate the goodness of God.  However, when they did so, we can assume that the groups from each nation, though united by a shared faith, would remain somewhat isolated from each other because, not only were their nations traditionally enemies, but also they were separated from each other by a language barrier. 

Yet in breaks the power of the Holy Spirit of God, and suddenly a rag-tag group of Galilean fishermen and other unsavory characters can be heard speaking in the native language of every country—friend or foe--that was represented by the people gathered for the Feast. 

And here’s a miracle:  the Holy Spirit got people from warring countries talking with each other.  Connection in the midst of conflict. 

When I read this Scripture this week, I was aware, that conflict and wars are still going on, even centuries later, between the regions listed here--and, of course, between regions that are not listed in this passage.  And, as we are all also painfully aware, conflicts are also going on within countries.  All over the globe, including our own country, men, women and children—military and civilian--die by violent means every day, even when countries are not at war.  It’s heart-breaking.

Doesn’t it make you yearn for a literal miracle, another literal in-breaking of the Holy Spirit, where enemies stop fighting and start talking?  Where connection is made in the midst of conflict?  

Now, my guess is that probably today there is not going to be another literal Pentecost miracle.  Not that God is incapable of performing such a miracle, but chances are newspaper headlines for tomorrow will NOT be:

·        Washington DC: National Cathedral shaken by Violent Wind

·        Unexplained Tongues of Fire Appear above the Heads of Worshippers Worldwide

·         Democrats and Republicans Actually Seen Talking Together

·        Language Barriers Overcome 

·        Common Ground Identified on Several Important Issues

·         World Peace Within Reach!

 That would be awesome! but probably it won’t happen today. 

But this doesn’t mean the Holy Spirit has stopped working.  I think it means that we, current-day followers of God and Christ, regardless of geographical region or political persuasion have to be more actively engaged with the Spirit.  We have to ask the Spirit to work through us as we step out and make connections with other people.  We can’t just wait for leaders to fix the world for us.  We too have to be actively involved to lay the groundwork for our leaders and the Holy Spirit to build upon.

I think this is what the African American preacher was trying to get us to do in the worship service that I talked about at the beginning of this sermon.  When he said, “Turn to your neighbor and tell them how God has been good to you this week.”  He was trying to get us to connect with each other.  He wasn’t sending us to Iraq or Moscow or even across the aisle to connect with our enemies, he was trying to get us to first practice connecting with our brothers and sisters in the faith.

I think he was onto something.  So often conversations in our society, even with people who sit next to us in the pew, are primarily superficial.  “Hi, how’re ya doin?”  “Fine, thanks, and you?”  Don’t get me wrong, that’s a good start, but often it stops there.  If we have trouble getting beyond surface-level conversation with people with whom we have a lot in common, how are we ever going to work up to talking to people who are very different from us? 

I think this is where the Holy Spirit comes in.  We can start by asking the Holy Spirit to be in our conversations as we begin to talk with people we know about the goodness of God.

In that African American service where the pastor said “turn to your neighbor and tell them how God has been good to you this week.”  I confess that my first impulse, as an introvert, was to get up and run out of the sanctuary.  But I was in the middle of a pew, so I stayed, and I turned to the woman next to me, whom I didn’t know, and she smiled, and she started telling me about how she was thankful that God had seen her through a recent illness.  And as she spoke, I relaxed, and I was able to tell her about how God had helped me develop new friendships with people in my Doctoral Program.  And when the pastor said, “All right everyone, stop talking, time to get back to worship,” I’ve got to tell you that none of us wanted to stop talking! 

My friends, the Holy Spirit of God is still active and working in the world.  May we allow the Spirit to work through us to help us form connections, even in the midst of conflict.  One way we can begin to do that is by being aware of what we are thankful for.  So, I invite you to take a minute now, and during our prayer time, to write down one thing you are thankful for on the sticker attached to your bulletin.  And, if you want, after the prayer, when the offering plate is passed, you may put the sticker into the plate to become part of our Church Gratitude Book. 

May we use our statements of gratitude as a basis for conversation this week, sharing what we are thankful for with our neighbors, as a way of making connections even in the midst of conflict.

God is good.  All the time.  Let us claim that promise. 

Rev. Dr. Marlayna Schmidt

Franklin Federated Church

Franklin, MA 

Summary of Rev. Marlayna Schmidt’s 5/22/22 sermon

Summary of Rev. Marlayna Schmidt’s 5/22/22 sermon:   Some things we can learn from Acts 16 about the Spirit’s leadership and how we might respond to it in our lives:

1.      Even the most devout Christians run into obstacles, despite sincere hearts and fervent prayers.  So, when doors are closed in our faces and our plans are thwarted, don’t give up.  Keep praying.

2.    Paul didn’t travel on his own.  He traveled with others on his journey of faith.  So, we need to enlist others to pray for us and with us, particularly when we hit the inevitable closed doors along the way. 

3.      Prayer involves listening, not just talking.  And one way we can hear the Spirit is by listening to what our fellow travelers on the journey of faith have to say.  Paul received the vision of the man in Macedonia but he didn’t move ahead until he shared the vision with his companions and they were all “convinced” of the way. 

4.      If you set out on a new endeavor--a relationship, a job, a mission--and hit a closed door, AND, if you try altering your plans only a little bit (like Paul did at first), and it still doesn’t work, be open to the idea that the Spirit may be calling you to move beyond where you thought you were going and beyond where you feel comfortable.  In other words, sometimes the Spirit stretches us.

5.      Even if you’re not sure of the way, keep moving, and trust that the Spirit will guide you.  Not every door opens, but some will.  But we need to keep moving to find them.  It’s like if you’re in a hallway and you try one door and it doesn’t work.  You don’t just stand there staring at it, you move on and try the next one.  Trust the Spirit.

6.      Use your reasoning, build off your previous strategies, but, if they don’t work, be open to going with the flow.  If Paul had not been able to switch gears--if he kept looking for a synagogue led by men within the city walls, he would never have found one. (In fact, modern archeological work backs up the fact that there were no synagogues in ancient Philippi.  New Interpreter’s Bible Commentary, Vol. X, p. 230)  Instead, because Paul was open to the Spirit, he found an open air worship center outside the city led by women.  Who knew?  (The Spirit, that’s who.)  Adaptability is key.  We need to be willing to let go of our preconceived notions.  Have you ever been in a meeting and heard the words, “We’ve never done it that way before.”  The implication being “And we’re not going to try it that way now.”  That’s a death knell to ministry.  The Spirit loves to show us new ways that work even better than the old!

7.      The Spirit brings people into our lives to work as partners with us who are sometimes very different than we might expect.  In the patriarchal culture in which Paul operated, he probably wasn’t expecting that the Spirit would choose a wealthy, foreign, business woman to work with him to start a church.  So, we need to ask ourselves:  Who is God bringing into our lives to work with us on this journey of life and faith?  We need to be open to the fact that the people God calls to work with us may be completely different than those whom we have previously envisioned.  In our world today, where racial and ethnic tensions can so sadly lead to violence like we saw in Buffalo this week, it is vitally important to remember that we are all God’s children and God calls us to build bridges between people, not cause divisions.

8.      Paul always kept his primary Vision and Purpose in mind in the midst of his travels.  He knew he was called by God to proclaim the good news and strengthen the faith of the churches.  So, God calls us, as individuals and as a church community, to stick to the Vision and Purpose that God has given us.  The particular methods by which achieve our Purpose and Vision may change, but the Purpose and Vision remain constant. 

INTRODUCTION.  Today’s Scripture Reading is set by the lectionary.  It is from the Book of Acts, which tells the story of how the church grew and expanded following the resurrection of Jesus.  Today’s reading recounts part of the second missionary journey of the Apostle Paul.  As we hear these words read aloud, let us listen for how the Holy Spirit opened some doors for Paul’s ministry and closed others. 

Scripture Reading:  Acts 16:6-15 (NRSV, Updated Edition)

6 They went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia. 7 When they had come opposite Mysia, they attempted to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them; 8 so, passing by Mysia, they went down to Troas. 9 During the night Paul had a vision: there stood a man of Macedonia pleading with him and saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” 10 When he had seen the vision, we immediately tried to cross over to Macedonia, being convinced that God had called us to proclaim the good news to them.

11 We therefore set sail from Troas and took a straight course to Samothrace, the following day to Neapolis, 12 and from there to Philippi, which is a leading city of the district of Macedonia and a Roman colony. We remained in this city for some days. 13 On the Sabbath day we went outside the gate by the river, where we supposed there was a place of prayer, and we sat down and spoke to the women who had gathered there. 14 A certain woman named Lydia, a worshiper of God, was listening to us; she was from the city of Thyatira and a dealer in purple cloth. The Lord opened her heart to listen eagerly to what was said by Paul. 15 When she and her household were baptized, she urged us, saying, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come and stay at my home.” And she prevailed upon us.

Sermon: “Not Every Door Opens”

Scripture Reading:  Acts 16:6-15 (NRSV, Updated Edition)

6 They went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia. 7 When they had come opposite Mysia, they attempted to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them; 8 so, passing by Mysia, they went down to Troas. 9 During the night Paul had a vision: there stood a man of Macedonia pleading with him and saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” 10 When he had seen the vision, we immediately tried to cross over to Macedonia, being convinced that God had called us to proclaim the good news to them.

11 We therefore set sail from Troas and took a straight course to Samothrace, the following day to Neapolis, 12 and from there to Philippi, which is a leading city of the district of Macedonia and a Roman colony. We remained in this city for some days. 13 On the Sabbath day we went outside the gate by the river, where we supposed there was a place of prayer, and we sat down and spoke to the women who had gathered there. 14 A certain woman named Lydia, a worshiper of God, was listening to us; she was from the city of Thyatira and a dealer in purple cloth. The Lord opened her heart to listen eagerly to what was said by Paul. 15 When she and her household were baptized, she urged us, saying, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come and stay at my home.” And she prevailed upon us.

Sermon:  “Not Every Door Opens”

I had a friend, years ago, who was very funny.  She used to joke about what she would put on her tombstone after she died--just to give people walking around the cemetery something to smile about.  Here’s a few of the phrases she considered:

1.     I told you I was sick.

2.     She always said her feet were killing her but no one believed her.

And my personal favorite:

3.     It seemed like a good idea at the time.

It seemed like a good idea at the time.  I could always relate to that statement.  Not that I had many ideas that were actually dangerous, but I have, over the years, had ideas that seemed brilliant at the time, but when I got a ways down the road following my brilliant idea, a door closed in my face.  I’m guessing that many of us may have had such an experience from time to time.  Maybe we felt called to pursue a particular job or relationship or an idea for a ministry or mission that simply didn’t turn out the way we’d hoped or dreamed or prayed that it would. 

If this has ever happened to you, you are in good company.  It happened to the Apostle Paul in today’s scripture reading.

It’s really easy to get distracted by all the hard-to-pronounce names and places in our reading and miss what’s really going on, so let me take you through it.  For the next few minutes, I am going to walk you through Paul’s journey, so that we can see how the Spirit leads by opening some doors and closing others.  Then I’ll talk about what we might learn from Paul’s experience of the Spirit’s leadership.

First, some background.  Earlier in the Book of Acts, the Apostle Paul, along with his colleague, Barnabus, have traveled extensively starting churches in various cities in the regions of Syria, Cyprus, and southern Asia Minor.  https://www.conformingtojesus.com/charts-maps/en/paul's_first_journey_map.htm.  

At the end of Chapter 15, Paul decides that he wants to return to the churches that he and Barnabus had started--to check on them and see how they were doing.  It seemed like a good idea at the time, but in the process of making plans, Paul and Barnabus have a sharp disagreement and part company.  In other words, the door that Paul had anticipated opening for him, ends up closing in his face.  Barnabus sails for Cyprus, leaving Paul behind, and Paul has to alter his original idea.  Paul finds a new traveling companion--a church leader named Silas, and with the blessing of the church, they head off in a different direction.  They go through the regions of Syria and Cilicia, where Silas had already been working to strengthen the churches.  (New Interpreter’s Bible, Vol. X, p. 223.) 

Now, for a while, things go really well.  Doors are opening right and left, Praise be to God!  Their ministry expands, and they pick up more traveling companions to help them in their work.  They continue their travels, and Chapter 16, vs. 5 reports that “the churches were strengthened in the faith and increased in numbers daily.”  Woohoo! 

But just when everything seems to be coming up roses, another door slams shut.  In the first verse of our reading for today--chapter 16, verse 6--we are told that Paul and his companions were “forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia.”  (Just to be clear, the Asia referred to here is a province in what is now Turkey.)  We’re not told why or how the Spirit forbids them, only that she does, and so with this door closing on them, they are forced to change plans.  Which they do.  Sort of.  Truth be told, they only alter their route a little bit, head slightly northeast, to Bithynia, a neighboring region, and try to go there. 

But again the Spirit closes another door, does not allow them to enter.  I picture the Holy Spirit--who in some ancient Jewish texts is referred to in the feminine gender--I picture her with her hands on her hips saying to Paul and his companions, “Are you even listening to me?  What part of ‘I forbid you to speak the word in Asia’ do you not understand?”

At this point, after hitting a few dead ends, we might expect Paul to feel discouraged and frustrated--perhaps even angry at the Holy Spirit for leading him all the way out here only to close a bunch of doors in his face.  In fact, I might not even blame Paul if he decided to call it a day, wrap up this mission and head back home.  But he doesn’t.  He keeps moving.  Maybe he finally gets it that the Spirit forbid him to speak the word in Asia because she was calling him to go beyond Asia.  Way beyond.  So, he and his traveling companions head west--in the opposite direction from home--and travel quite a distance, ending up in a city on the coast of the Aegean Sea, where Paul has a vision, presumably, in the midst of prayer.  In the vision, Paul sees a man pleading, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” 

Paul shares the vision with his companions--we know this because verse 10 reports that ALL of them become “convinced” that God has at last opened a new door and finally shown them the way forward.  So they cross the Aegean Sea and move deeper into Europe--ending up in Philippi, a leading city in Macedonia, which is now part of modern day Greece. 

I know this is a lot of detail--but bear with me.  I’ll get to what it could mean in just a minute. 

So, after the vision, we might expect all doors to be fully open and the path to be perfectly clear--but, still, it isn’t.  Paul and his companions find their plans thwarted again!  Up to this point, Paul’s general way of proclaiming the good news was to visit the local synagogue and be a guest speaker.  But, being now in very foreign territory, having traveled all the way to Europe, Paul discovers that there is no synagogue in Philippi!  Another dead end!  If I were Paul, I might just throw in the towel.  But he doesn’t.  Verse 12 reports that they remain in the city for some days.  And on the sabbath, they use their powers of reasoning and discover a group of gentile worshippers--all Women--praying outside the city gates, down by the river. 

Now, foreign, female worshippers are not their usual audience, but, by this time, Paul finally realizes that the Spirit opens doors he doesn’t expect, so he just goes with the flow.  He sits down, which, in those days, was the posture of a rabbi who was about to teach. And the person listening most intently is a wealthy, successful businesswoman named Lydia.  Verse 14 says the Lord opened her heart to listen eagerly.  Long story short, Lydia becomes the first leader of the church in Philippi.  In fact, she even becomes the main sponsor of the church, providing her home for its worship space.

So, what can we learn from all this about the Spirit’s leadership and how we might respond to it in our lives?

Let me suggest 8 things.  FYI:  8 is a lot.  You don’t have to memorize these points.  I’ve provided a sheet in the narthex for you to take home--and I will ask Michele to post a link to this sheet on the church’s facebook page tomorrow.  

1.     Even the most devout Christians run into obstacles, despite sincere hearts and fervent prayers.  So, when doors are closed in our faces and our plans are thwarted, don’t give up.  Keep praying.

2.    Paul didn’t travel on his own.  He traveled with others on his journey of faith.  So, we need to enlist others to pray for us and with us, particularly when we hit the inevitable closed doors along the way. 

3.     Prayer involves listening, not just talking.  And one way we can hear the Spirit is by listening to what our fellow travelers on the journey of faith have to say.  Paul received the vision of the man in Macedonia but he didn’t move ahead until he shared the vision with his companions and they were all “convinced” of the way. 

4.     If you set out on a new endeavor--a relationship, a job, a mission--and hit a closed door, AND, if you try altering your plans only a little bit (like Paul did at first), and it still doesn’t work, be open to the idea that the Spirit may be calling you to move beyond where you thought you were going and beyond where you feel comfortable.  In other words, sometimes the Spirit stretches us.

5.     Even if you’re not sure of the way, keep moving, and trust that the Spirit will guide you.  Not every door opens, but some will.  But we need to keep moving to find them.  It’s like if you’re in a hallway and you try one door and it doesn’t work.  You don’t just stand there staring at it, you move on and try the next one.  Trust the Spirit.

6.     Use your reasoning, build off your previous strategies, but, if they don’t work, be open to going with the flow.  If Paul had not been able to switch gears--if he kept looking for a synagogue led by men within the city walls, he would never have found one. (In fact, modern archeological work backs up the fact that there were no synagogues in ancient Philippi.  New Interpreter’s Bible Commentary, Vol. X, p. 230)  Instead, because Paul was open to the Spirit, he found an open air worship center outside the city led by women.  Who knew?  (The Spirit, that’s who.)  Adaptability is key.  We need to be willing to let go of our preconceived notions.  Have you ever been in a meeting and heard the words, “We’ve never done it that way before.”  The implication being “And we’re not going to try it that way now.”  That’s a death knell to ministry.  The Spirit loves to show us new ways that work even better than the old!

7.     The Spirit brings people into our lives to work as partners with us who are sometimes very different than we might expect.  In the patriarchal culture in which Paul operated, he probably wasn’t expecting that the Spirit would choose a wealthy, foreign, business woman to work with him to start a church.  So, we need to ask ourselves:  Who is God bringing into our lives to work with us on this journey of life and faith?  We need to be open to the fact that the people God calls to work with us may be completely different than those whom we have previously envisioned.  In our world today, where racial and ethnic tensions can so sadly lead to violence like we saw in Buffalo this week, it is vitally important to remember that we are all God’s children and God calls us to build bridges between people, not cause divisions.

8.     Paul always kept his primary Vision and Purpose in mind in the midst of his travels.  He knew he was called by God to proclaim the good news and strengthen the faith of the churches.  So, God calls us, as individuals and as a church community, to stick to the Vision and Purpose that God has given us.  The particular methods by which achieve our Purpose and Vision may change, but the Purpose and Vision remain constant. 

So, my friends, let us trust God to open the right doors for us on our journey of faith--as individuals and as a congregation.  Let us help each other to see the doors when they open--and let us have the courage to walk through them together.   Let us pray…

Rev. Dr. Marlayna Schmidt

Franklin Federated Church

Franklin, MA

    And let us be filled with joy as  ad enthusiasm as we move into God’s beautiful future. 

Sermon: “God, Our Mother”

Scripture:  Psalm 23 (Contemporary language paraphrase by singer/songwriter Bobby McFerrin, dedicated to his mother)

The Lord is my Shepherd, I have all I need,

She makes me like down in green meadows,

Beside the still waters, She will lead.

She restores my soul, She rights my wrongs.

She leads me in a path of good things,

And fills my heart with songs.

Even though I walk, through a dark & dreary land,

There is nothing that can shake me,

She has said She won’t forsake me,

I’m in her hand.

She sets a table before me, in the presence of my foes,

She anoints my head with oil,

And my cup overflows.

Surely, surely goodness & kindness will follow me,

All the days of my life,

And I will live in her house,

Forever, forever & ever…

Sermon:  “God, Our Mother”

TODAY is Mother’s Day, a day to celebrate mothers and people who have played a mothering role in our lives.  Psalm 23 was one of the lectionary readings set for today, and I chose singer/songwriter Bobby McFerrin’s paraphrase of Psalm 23 for our reading because he used the feminine gender for God, and dedicated his paraphrase to his own mother.  Here’s what he said about it when he was interviewed in 2012:

[This version of] The 23rd Psalm is dedicated to my mother. She was the driving force in my religious and spiritual education, and I have so many memories of her singing in church. But I wrote it because I’d been reading the Bible one morning, and I was thinking about God’s unconditional love, about how we crave it but have so much trouble believing we can trust it, and how we can’t fully understand it. And then I left my reading and spent time with my wife and our children. Watching her with them, the way she loved them, I realized one of the ways we’re shown a glimpse of how God loves us is through our mothers. They cherish our spirits, they demand that we become our best selves, and they take care of us.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/omega-institute-for-holistic-studies/bobby-mcferrin_b_1582043.html

What Bobby McFerrin said is so beautiful, isn’t it?  I quote it because he paints an inspirational picture of the way mothers can and hopefully do function in our lives.  But I quote it knowing that we live in an imperfect world, and while mothers may all aspire to cherish their children’s spirits, take care of them, and help them to be their best selves, sometimes mothers, for various reasons, are unable to do this.  And that’s painful--for the children, for the mothers themselves, for the whole family.  I want to recognize that pain--and let you know that if this was your situation--God recognizes your pain.

However, the good news of this psalm is that God, who is our ultimate mother, cherishes every member of her flock and can restore us:  body, mind and soul, regardless of any deficits we may have experienced in our lives.  Thanks be to God.

For the sermon today, I want to go through Psalm 23 and look closely at what it says about the ways God takes care of her flock.

Psalm 23 may well be the best known chapter in the whole Bible.  I think this is mainly because of Verse 4, which many of us can quote from memory:  “Yay though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, i will fear no evil.  For thou art with me.”  Verse 4 affirms that God is with us during the most difficult parts of our lives--even through death--which is a powerful, beautiful, hopeful message.  Praise be to God!  But, because we focus on that one verse, that one message, almost exclusively, we may miss some of the other equally powerful, beautiful, hopeful messages in this Psalm.  So, today’s sermon will focus on the other verses and see what we can learn.

The Psalm starts out with the analogy of a shepherd taking care of the sheep. 

Verse 1:  “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.”  Other translations, including the Bobby McFerrin paraphrase  say, “The Lord is my shepherd, I have all that I need.”

 I want to start by noticing the words “want” and “need” in these translations--because the words “want” and “need” can mean two very different things.  I may want a whole bunch of things that I don’t really need, which I think may be true of all of us.  Some of the items on my personal “want” list include:

·        an inground, heated swimming pool in my backyard;

·        a NEW bright blue, electric, mini cooper convertible;

·        a Rhodes 19 sailboat with an accessible mooring

·         

but while I may want these things, I’m fairly certain that I don’t need any of them and that God, my shepherd, is not going to supply them for me.  Not that I wouldn’t enjoy them if she did, but it's important for me to recognize that I don’t need them.

My point: verses 1-3 are talking about God supplying needs, not wants.  Basic needs. 

First for food.  God provides the sheep with green pastures not only so they can have a nice meadow to rest in--but first and foremost so they can have food to eat to sustain their bodies.  From a sheep’s perspective, green pastures are primarily for eating, secondarily for resting.  We humans may tend to forget that distinction because we get our food from other sources. 

Second.  God leads the sheep beside the still waters not primarily to provide a calm environment for them to clear their minds, meditate, or do yoga.  (When this psalm was written, Goat Yoga had not been invented yet--and sheep yoga has never been a thing, as far as I know, thanks be to God.  But I digress…)  God leads the sheep beside the still waters so they can literally quench their thirst--so they have water to drink to sustain their bodies.  God is supplying needs, not wants.

Third.  The traditional translation of verse 3 says that God leads the sheep “in paths of righteousness.”  Other versions talk about “right” paths.  Commentators agree that “right paths” is a better translation.  Which leads to the question:  “What makes a path right or wrong?” And are we talking right or wrong in a moral sense or something more practical?  J. Clinton McCann, Professor of Biblical Interpretation at a UCC seminary, makes a good case that the “right paths” being spoken of here are designated “right” in a practical sense.  In keeping with the analogy of the shepherd providing for the basic needs of the sheep, right paths are logically the ones that lead the sheep to the green pastures and still waters--places to eat and drink, where “danger is avoided and proper shelter is attained.”   (New Interpreter’s Bible Commentary, Vol. IV, p. 767.)

So, the analogy of God being a shepherd means that God is first and foremost concerned with supplying the basic necessities to sustain our bodies, just like a shepherd does for his/her sheep.  In fact, McCann the commentator suggests that a better translation for the shepherd “restores my soul” is the shepherd “keeps me alive.” 

Which brings us to something that this Psalm implies but doesn’t state outright:  that even though the word “my” is used a lot in this psalm, it is not just addressing the needs of an individual’s body or soul.  Saying the Lord is “my” shepherd doesn’t mean that I, as an individual, am taken out of the flock and favored.  No.  It is important to understand that this psalm was written in an era when the concept of an individual with individual rights apart from the community did not exist.  What that means is that the concern of this psalm was always for the entire community.  It was understood by the author and the initial hearers that the shepherd was concerned with meeting the basic needs of the whole flock, equitably.  Not favoring some and discriminating against others. 

So, an important implication of this Psalm is that just as God is concerned with meeting the needs of the whole flock equitably, so we too, as children of God should be concerned with equitably meeting the needs of our whole community. 

Which is brings us to verse 5, a fascinating verse.  The traditional version reads, “You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.”  You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.  We seem to have moved from the analogy of shepherd and sheep to that of a gracious host--or hostess--providing a meal in the midst of an armed conflict.  What a wild thing to think about! 

Professor McCann suggests that the wording used in verse 6 sheds light on this analogy.  Verse 6 reads “surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life.”  The word for “follow” in Hebrew literally means “pursue,” which is something that enemies generally do in the midst of war.  But the analogy of the table with overflowing provisions implies that the “enemies have been rendered harmless.”  It is God, the gracious hostess, who pursues the flock in order to meet their needs and surround them with overflowing goodness and mercy.  Professor McCann even goes so far as to suggest that this Psalm raises the possibility that even enemies are invited to the table to experience God’s goodness and mercy, God’s steadfast love.  Wow! 

So what difference does all of this Biblical commentary make in our lives today? 

Let me suggest two main things. 

1.     We need to allow God our Mother, Our Shepherd, to restore us:  body, mind and soul.  We need to open our hearts to God in prayer and ask God, first and foremost, to meet our needs.  Because our truest identity is found in being God’s child, and when we accept that identity and make our home in God’s steadfast love, then we will truly have all that we need. 

2.     We need to follow the example of God, our mother, our shepherd, our gracious hostess, who cares for the needs of the whole flock, equitably, not just a favored few.  So, we need to share what we have with others.  If we have found green pastures and still waters--food and drink and calm places to do yoga, then we need to continue to work to make sure our fellow human beings and other creatures on this planet have the same. 

How we do this may look different in different people’s lives.  Some examples may include working to promote:

·        legislation that protects the rights of the most vulnerable or stops climate change;

·        local efforts to celebrate Juneteenth or Pride month;

·        the work of the local food pantry. 

·         

The list of ways we can help our fellow members of God’s flock is endless.  The important thing is that each of us does something to prioritize the needs of others rather than focusing only on our own needs and wants.  And I know you already are doing such things.  This Psalm reminds us why we are doing them and encourages us not to lose heart.

So, this Mother’s Day, may we allow God our Mother, in the words of today’s paraphrase, to

…restore [our] soul…right [our] wrongs,
…lead [us] in a path of good things,
And fill [our] heart with songs.

And as we do this, may God use us to bless the rest of the flock.  Let us pray…

Rev. Dr. Marlayna Schmidt

Franklin Federated Church

Franklin, MA

Sermon: “The Power of Gratitude”

Message to Children of All Ages

I brought something with me today for “show and tell.”

Has anyone ever done “show and tell” in school or somewhere else?

I think it might be an old-fashioned thing, so if you’ve never done it, let me explain how it works.  A person brings something to show other people that is meaningful to them, and then they tell people why it’s meaningful. 

So, today I have brought with me a bucket. 

I’m going to read a list of things that people have used buckets for, and I’d like you to raise your hand if you’ve ever used a bucket in this way:

1.      To put water in so you can clean something, like a car or a floor.

2.      To use at the beach to make sand castles

3.      To put cookies in to give to your pastor--i mean, to someone for a present

4.      To use when you’re sick--i won’t go into details on that one--and you don’t have to raise your hand

5.      To use to pack cleaning supplies to send to people in need

6.      To use as a planter for flowers

7.      To put Gatorade in to pour over someone’s head

8.      To pull water up out of a well.

That last use is what i want to talk about today.  For thousands of years--before we had indoor plumbing and people used town water--people used to get their water from a town well or a well in their own yard.  The way it worked is that people would dig a hole deep into the ground until they found water, and then, to get the water out, they would use a bucket attached to a rope and someone would drop a bucket down the hole and let it fill up with water, and then, using the rope, lift the bucket full of water up out of the hole.

When the bucket full of water was lifted up out of the hole, people would be happy, because they had water to drink and cook with and clean with. 

In the Hebrew language, the language in which the Hebrew Scriptures--the part of the Bible that we call the Old Testament--is written, there is a special word for lifting a bucket of water up from a well--and that word is pronounced “ruum.”** 

It is a word that is used twice in verse 1 of our scripture reading today.  Verse one reads:  “I will extol you, O Lord, for you have drawn me up…”  In other words, “I will “ruum” you Lord, for you have “ruumed” me..”--“I will lift you up, Lord, for you have lifted me up…” 

Like a bucket drawn up from a well, God lifts us up when we are feeling down.  God gives us life and hope and strength.

So we lift up our voices to give thanks to God in return for what God has done.  And that act of Thanks lifts our spirits even more. 

So next time you lift up a bucket to use for anything.  Think of the ways that God lifts you up, and give thanks.  And speaking of giving thanks, as Steve has explained for the deacons, be thinking of something you are thankful for, and you will have an opportunity to write that one thing down after the sermon.  On the sticker in the bulletin--or in comments on line, and we will collect them to put in the church Gratitude Book. 

 **New Interpreter’s Bible Commentary, Vol. IV, p. 796 

Scripture Readings: 

Psalm 30

Thanksgiving for Recovery from Grave Illness

A Psalm. A Song at the dedication of the temple. Of David.

1 I will extol you, O Lord, for you have drawn me up,
    and did not let my foes rejoice over me.
2 O Lord my God, I cried to you for help,
    and you have healed me.
3 O Lord, you brought up my soul from Sheol,
    restored me to life from among those gone down to the Pit.

4 Sing praises to the Lord, O you his faithful ones,
    and give thanks to his holy name.
5 For his anger is but for a moment;
    his favor is for a lifetime.
Weeping may linger for the night,
    but joy comes with the morning.

6 As for me, I said in my prosperity,
    “I shall never be moved.”
7 By your favor, O Lord,
    you had established me as a strong mountain;
you hid your face;
    I was dismayed.

8 To you, O Lord, I cried,
    and to the Lord I made supplication:
9 “What profit is there in my death,
    if I go down to the Pit?
Will the dust praise you?
    Will it tell of your faithfulness?
10 Hear, O Lord, and be gracious to me!
    O Lord, be my helper!”

11 You have turned my mourning into dancing;
    you have taken off my sackcloth
    and clothed me with joy,
12 so that my soul may praise you and not be silent.
    O Lord my God, I will give thanks to you forever.

Matthew 6:21 

21For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

 Sermon:  “The Power of Gratitude”

In the message to Children of all ages, I used the image of a bucket to explain how God lifts us up--or “draws us up” like a bucket from a well--and gives us life and hope and strength.

Today’s reading, Psalm 30, uses that image in the first verse.  We extol God--we lift our praise to God--because God has first lifted us up; like water in a bucket, God pulls us up from the bottom of a well, and our response to that lifting is to lift our voices in praise.

This Psalm is a very old Psalm.  It is categorized as an individual Psalm of Praise or Thanksgiving, and tradition has it that it was written by King David, who ruled Israel around 3000 years ago.  But, back when our Scriptures were written, it was common practice to write under the name of someone famous if you were writing something that fit with their school of thought, so all that to say it’s impossible to know for certain whether or not David actually wrote this.  However, what we can know is that it was written by a person of faith, someone who had an experience similar to David’s.  It was written by someone who knew what it was like to be prosperous and successful, happy and healthy, and then have everything come crashing down around them, dragging them down into the pit of despair.  It was written by someone who knew what it was like to have enemies and to be sick to the point of almost dying.

This Psalm describes the writer’s experience of crying out to God in the midst of their despair--and then the experience of having their cries heard and their prayers answered:  the person was healed and restored to life.  But rather than just cracking open a bottle of champaign, throwing a party, and getting on with life--the person not only remembers to say “thank you” to God--but also writes down his “thank you” as lyrics to a hymn of praise, which is why we have it today in the book of psalms

In fact, this Psalm is being read in churches all over the world today as they celebrate the Easter Season--and it is read in synagogues throughout the world in December when they celebrate Hanukkah. 

This Psalm was preserved and became part of our cherished Scriptures because it celebrates something very important:  that God is always present with us, even in difficult times of sickness or struggle.  And God’s presence with us lifts us up--like water from a well--when we open ourselves to God’s presence.

And that’s where gratitude comes in.  Gratitude--the theme of today’s worship service--is a primary means by which we can open ourselves to God’s presence and power.

Being grateful for the good things in our lives--even in the midst of pain--makes it possible for God to lift our spirits and fill us withw strength to live through whatever we are facing.  Or in the words of Psalm 30, verse 11, to “turn” our “mourning into dancing” and “clothe” us “with joy.”

Not surprisingly, medical science backs up this spiritual truth.  Walt Larrimore, M.D., author of the book 10 Essentials of Highly Healthy People*  writes about the power of gratitude and its positive effects on our physical and emotional health.  He looks at research done by behavioral psychologists who have concluded that the act of being grateful and giving thanks can actually change our attitude from negative to positive and ease our emotional burdens and stress.   He writes about QUOTE

“a growing understanding among professionals and laypeople that it's not life events that make a person happy or unhappy; it's how a person copes with those events that makes the difference.”

 “Or, as [his] granddad used to say, 'Walt, if you're not content with what you have, you'll never be content with what you want!'”

It’s gratitude for what we have that lifts us up and determines our well-being!

Dr. Walt Larrimore points out that gratitude isn’t just a feeling that comes over us from time to time when good things happen; gratitude is a practice, a discipline, a response that we need to cultivate.  And one way we can do that is through keeping a gratitude journal. 

In his book, Dr. Larrimore invites his readers to conduct an experiment on themselves by keeping a gratitude journal, something he referred to as taking an “emotional aspirin.”  His simple instructions are this:  take 5 minutes every night before you go to bed to list 5 things you are grateful for and then to give thanks to God for those things.  At the end of the week, see how you feel. 

The deacons thought it would be good to do a version of this, as a church, as we move out of the pandemic and into the future.  They are inviting all of us to take part in a church “gratitude book.”  We are starting it today--and in future, you are invited to contribute to it often as you wish.

Take a moment now and write down one thing you are thankful for--church, family, friends, healing, restoration--just to name some possibilities.  Write them on the sticker in the bulletin--or, if you are worshipping with us on line, write them in the comment section, and someone will copy them down later in the week--and all of the gratitudes will be collected and put in our book.

Going forward, you are invited to contribute any time, and some entries to the book will be read out loud on communion Sundays, so we can share in each other’s gratitude, inspire each other, give thanks to God as One Body, and allow God to lift us up not only as individuals but also collectively as a church. 

So, take a moment now, while Julie plays some music, and then, when the basket is passed, those of you who are here can put your entry into the basket.  And those who are on-line can type in something you are grateful for into the comments.  Thanks be to God!

*Quotes from and summaries of Walt Larrimore’s teaching are taken from his book 10 Essentials of Highly Healthy People, pages 125-128.

Rev. Dr. Marlayna Schmidt

Franklin Federated Church

Franklin, MA

Sermon: “Blessed Are the Those who Are Persecuted for Righteousness’ Sake”

Scripture:  Matthew 5:1-12

1When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. 2Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:

3“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. 5“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. 6“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. 7“Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy. 8“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. 9“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. 10“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11“Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. 12Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Sermon:  “Blessed Are the Those who Are Persecuted for Righteousness’ Sake”

Jesus said:  “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”  And then he goes on from there and expands on what it means to be persecuted—tells us that those who are persecuted for righteousness will be rewarded.  In heaven. 

On first read, it actually sounds like Jesus is saying:  “Be a good Christian, follow the values of the Bible, seek justice, righteousness, peace-- and, in the short run, in THIS life, you will be hungry, thirsty, poor, and persecuted—but, hey, look on the bright side:  heaven is gonna be great!  So, keep your chin up, wait for it, and know that you’ll be blessed.  Eventually.”

If THIS is the correct interpretation of Jesus’ words, it does NOT sound like very good news!  In fact, what FIRST comes to mind when I read this beatitude are some lines   from a song   by Billy Joel,

“They say there’s a heaven for those who will wait. 

Some say it’s better, but I say it ain’t.

I’d rather laugh with the sinners than cry with the saints.  

The sinners have much more fun!

Only the good die young.”

 But, while Billy Joel is an excellent song-writer, he’s not such a good theologian.

In fact, in the Beatitudes—the verses we are focusing on today and all of them—Jesus is talking about how to live here and now, in the present moment, not in some distant future heaven.  And Jesus tells it like it is.  He does not sugar-coat his message.  He tells his disciples that in this world, it’s not all fun and games.  You’re going to run into difficulty if you try to do the right thing.  If you speak out about justice and try to treat people fairly, things won’t always be rosy for you.  In fact, speaking out for justice and trying to treat all people fairly will sometimes incite your fellow human beings to             “revile and persecute” you. 

This is something we learn when we’re kids, isn’t it?  That if you try to be fair, sometimes you are not treated well.  Let me give you a relatively mundane example.  I remember back when I was in 4th grade--it was recess, and all the kids in my class were outside in the schoolyard playing a game called “Four Square.”  If you’ve never played it, all you need to know for the purpose of this story is that it’s played on a court, and people use their hands to bounce a ball around into different quadrants. 

Well, the most popular, coolest kid in the class—let’s call him Robert (not his real name) hit the ball out of bounds—and it went flying across the school yard.  He then turned to my friend, let’s call her Mary, and said to her, “Mary, go get the ball.” 

“What?”  Mary said back to Robert, “That’s not fair.  I didn’t hit it out of bounds, you did.  You should get the ball.”  Now, you’d think that everyone would stand up for Mary, because she was right.  Robert wasn’t being fair.  It was Robert’s responsibility to get the ball himself—not to order other people around. 

But guess what, people didn’t get mad at Robert—maybe because everybody wanted to be Robert’s friend.  They got mad at Mary! 

My classmates started saying things like, “Just get the ball, Mary.  Come on!  Recess is almost over, and we want to play the game.  Do what he says.  You’re wrecking it for everyone!”  But Mary didn’t budge—good for her!  She stood up for what was fair, even though it meant other people got mad at her.  (And in case you are wondering, we never did finish the game.  Though I ended up getting the ball.  Not my best moment.) 

In our Scripture reading for today, Jesus tells us that speaking out for justice and fairness will sometimes incite your fellow human beings to “revile and persecute” you.  (My friend Mary got a very small taste of what that was like back in 4th grade, and it wasn’t fun.) 

Let me stop here for a minute and play an audio file by Aramaic scholar Neil Douglas-Klotz so we can hear him read verse 11 11“Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.”

I’ll ask Steve to put up the slide with the phonetic pronunciation of the Aramaic words, and I’ll play the file:

Tubwayhun immath damhasdeen l’khon waradpin l’khon wamrin eleykon kul milla bisha metolath b’dagalutha

In Aramaic, the language that Jesus spoke, the word translated into English as “revile”--damhasdeen--is a very evocative word.  In his book, Prayers of the Cosmos, that I’ve referred to throughout this sermon series, Neil Douglas-Klotz tells us that damhasdeen (reviled) refers to people who “have the strength sucked out of them,” who are completely sapped of energy.  This word-- damhasdeen-- carries “the image of being covered with a sticky glaze of blame,” like a spider web.  (Hence the picture in the bulletin this morning.)  So, when Jesus talks of people who are persecuted and reviled “for righteousness’ sake,” the audience listening to his words would have gotten a very clear picture of someone whose energy was sapped and who felt completely powerless to extricate themselves from the false and scathing criticism that stuck to them like glue.  (Prayers of the Cosmos, p. 71)

Like the mean things that my classmates said to my friend Mary, back in 4th grade, which she couldn’t easily shake off.  

Like the hateful things that I referenced last week--death threats and racist remarks directed at Rev. Dr. King, Rosa Parks, and Mahatma Ghandi when they stood up for justice. 

Like the vitriolic criticism leveled at politicians of both parties in our country when go against the party line to voice an unpopular opinion in the name of justice.

Like the angry words any of us receive when we call out a truth that another people don’t want to hear.

It is to such people, who are suffering--to a small or great extent-- because they try to do the right thing, that Jesus says, “You are blessed!...Your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” 

I think what Jesus is saying here is this:  Don’t get stuck in people’s criticism.  When people revile you and say horrible things about you because you are trying to do the right thing, don’t let their critical words stick to you.  Remember who you are—you are part of God’s family, standing in a long line of people who fought for justice.  Take your eyes off the sticky web of blame, and put your eyes on Jesus and remember how he trusted in in God’s love.  Remember that justice will prevail in the end and the sticky web will eventually be washed away. 

I heard a psychologist on the radio a while back—Susan David—who wrote a book called Emotional Agility: Get unstuck, Embrace Change, and Thrive in Work and Life.  Her point?  The way we think and feel about our world--what we choose to focus on and what we tell ourselves about what we choose to focus on-- directs our behavior.  If we let ourselves get hooked into an angry, negative mindset, our behavior will follow suit. 

As an analogy, she told the story of a sea captain who saw what he thought was an approaching ship on the sea at night.  The sea captain radioed the other ship and said, “Change course,” but the other ship did not answer.  The sea captain stubbornly continued on his course, and, as the lights of other vessel loomed larger and larger ahead, he kept radioing as he approached, becoming more and more angry and fearful and belligerent when the other ship wouldn’t answer, “I said, ‘Change course, CHANGE COURSE!!’” 

Ultimately, the story ends with the angry and fearful sea captain discovering--in the nick of time-- that what he thought was an approaching ship intent on running him down was actually NOT a ship at all, but a light house that he almost crashed into because he let his own anger and fear and stubbornness take control and direct his behavior.

I think this is what Jesus is getting at in the beatitudes.  How we think about the world-- what we choose to focus on and what we tell ourselves about what we choose to focus on-- determines how we behave.  If we let ourselves get hung up in the sticky web of blame or our own anger at other people’s reactions, we will not be effective in working for justice and fairness in the world, which is what God calls us to do. 

In the Beatitudes, Jesus reminds us what our focus should be.  He reminds us that we are blessed-- that our job is to align our thoughts, feelings, and behavior with God’s values, NOT to let ourselves get distracted by other people’s criticism of us.  Because their criticism will not have the final word.  God’s love will prevail in the end.  So align yourself with God’s love, says Jesus, and your reward will be great.  You will be eternally connected to God and God’s expanding kingdom of Love.  In fact, as you align yourself with God’s love, you will help establish God’s Kingdom starting here and now.  Thanks be to God.

Rev. Dr. Marlayna Schmidt

Franklin Federated Church

Franklin, MA

Sermon: “Blessed Are the Peacemakers”

Scripture:  Matthew 5:1-12

1When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. 2Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:

3“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. 5“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. 6“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. 7“Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy. 8“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. 9“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.

Sermon:  “Blessed Are the Peacemakers”

I once read a joke about Peace that made me smile--not because it was so funny--it wasn’t, actually, that funny--but it rang true.  The joke went like this--oh, and before I tell it, I picture the late comedian, Jerry Stiller, who played George Castanza’s father on the TV show Seinfeld, as the old man:

“A journalist assigned to the Jerusalem bureau takes an apartment overlooking the Wailing Wall (the ancient ruins of the Temple where people go to pray.) Every day when she looks out, she sees an old man praying vigorously. So, the journalist goes down and introduces herself to the old man.

She says, “You come here every day to the wall. How long have you done that and what are you praying for?”

The old man replies, “I have come here to the Wailing Wall to pray every day for 25 years. In the morning I pray for world peace and for the brotherhood of man. I go home have a cup of tea and I come back and pray for the eradication of illness and disease from the earth.”

The journalist is amazed. “How does it make you feel to come here every day for 25 years and pray for Peace and Healing?” she asks.

The old man looks at her. “How does it feel, coming to the Wailing Wall, praying for Peace and Healing, every day, for the past 25 years?  It feels like I’m talking to a wall.” (https://igbarb19.wordpress.com/2010/04/20/some-rather-few-peace-related-jokes)

Jesus said, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” 

This statement is found in the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew Chapter 5, verse 9.  For the past several weeks, I’ve been doing a sermon series on a section of that sermon called “The Beatitudes” (Blessings), and each week we’ve taking one beatitude and looking in depth at the meaning of the words that Jesus used.  Jesus originally spoke these words in Aramaic, an ancient Middle Eastern language. 

I am going to ask BRADY to put up a slide of the phonetic pronunciation of the Aramaic words.  And then I’ll play an audio file of scholar Neil Douglas-Klotz pronouncing the words in Aramaic, to give you an approximate sense of what it might have sounded like to hear Jesus speaking.  The file lasts 40 seconds, and verse 9 in Aramaic is spoken 3 and a half times.

[PLAY FILE of Aramaic:  Tubwayhun lahwvday shlama dawnaw(hie) d’alaha nitqarun. - translation from Prayers of the Cosmos by Neil Douglas-Klotz, p. 65]

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

Although the work of Peace is “blessed” by God, peacemaking is NOT an easy business.  I am pretty sure that everyone who has tried to make peace—on a big or small scale—has felt, much of the time, like the man in the joke I just told—like they are talking to a wall.  Or much worse.

History is full of examples where people, in the role of peacemaker, unfairly bear the brunt of other people’s anger.  We can see this in the lives of famous peacemakers of the last century, such as:

·        Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. who was threatened and eventually killed for preaching racial equality;

·        Rosa Parks, who lost her job and received death threats for years following her act of non-violent resistance to segregation;

·        Mahatma Gandhi, who was imprisoned for many years for his leadership in the non-violent movement to end British colonial rule in India; he was killed by someone who opposed his views, including his work of reconciling people of different religions.

I could go on, because, sadly, the list of famous peacemakers unfairly bearing the brunt of other people’s anger is long.  And I am sure that the list of non-famous peacemakers, who do their work on a smaller scale, and also unfairly bear the brunt of other people’s anger is long as well.   Had I been in any of their shoes, I’m NOT sure I would have had the strength to continue working for Peace when facing such strident and violent opposition.  It’s hard enough working for Peace when you feel like you are talking to a wall who isn’t listening; it’s a whole different level when the wall actually starts using violence to silence you. 

Yet Jesus says Blessed are the Peacemakers.

What does he mean by this?  Author John Dominic Cross-an in his book How to Read the Bible and Still be a Christian talks about how Peace in the Bible is inexorably linked to justice.  And justice, Cross-an says, is “primarily about a fair distribution of God’s [resources] for ALL of God’s people.”  (p. 17)  This was the view of Jesus when he said, “Blessed are the Peacemakers.”  In Aramaic, the language that Jesus spoke, the word used for Peace is shlama.  It has the same root as the Hebrew word shalom and the Arabic word sa-lam. The Aramaic word for Peace, shlama, refers to the health, safety, and well-being not just of one individual, but of an entire assembly of people-- including opposing parties.  (Prayers of the Cosmos, p. 66)  So Peace, as Jesus envisions it, is the state of everyone—all of God’s children-- being treated fairly and having what they need to survive and thrive. 

Further, the Aramaic word Jesus used for “makers” (as in peacemakers) sheds even more light on what it means to make Peace.  The Aramaic word for “makers” is pronounced lav-die, and scholar Neil Douglas-Klotz gives us this definition (and I will read it):   “[Lav-die/makers] refers to those who not only make or perform an action but also are committed to it.  The old roots call up …images of planting:  tilling the ground, laboring regularly bringing forth fruit…the emphasis is on that which is done periodically and regularly—despite the odds, as one might say.”  (p. 66)

I know that many of you understand what goes in to “planting.”  Many of you have gardens; you know that planting is hard work!  You don’t just stick a few tomato seeds in the ground, walk away, and expect you can harvest your tomatoes for lunch when you come back in the afternoon.  No.  You till the soil; add your compost; plant the seeds; water them daily; weed, mulch, stake the plants; keep the slugs and the birds off them; fence them in against rabbits, deer, skunks or golden retrievers; and then, eventually, if the weather cooperates, and you keep up this work day after day, you can harvest a crop several weeks later.  It’s this kind of care, commitment, work and attention that making Peace requires.  Peace is not something that can be achieved overnight.  Like growing consistent crops, it is the work of a life-time. 

So one possible new translation of verse 9 that Douglas-Klotz gives is:  “Blessed are those who plant peace each season; they shall be named the children of God.”

Peace--or lack thereof-- has been on all of our minds lately, as theb Russian President pursues his war against Ukraine.  Our hearts go out to the people of Ukraine being unfairly attacked--and to the people of Russia, who risk severe punishment if they dare to protest what is happening.  How many of us are fearful-- and feel helpless-- because the whole world is being drawn into this maelstrom against our will and our leaders, at least so far, haven’t been able to stop it?  At least, in a Democracy, we have the privilege and the obligation to discuss and debate our options and make our views known to our senators and representatives in congress.  And I trust we are doing that.

But working for Peace is about more than what our government does on an international level.  Working for Peace is also about how we choose to conduct ourselves in our interpersonal relationships. 

A few years ago, in the newspaper, I read a human interest story about someone whom I would call a Peacemaker—a young man named Andrew Forsthoefel.  After graduating from Middlebury College in Vermont, he set off to walk across the United States, and on his back he wore a sign, “Walking to listen.”  He started off from his home in Pennsylvania, then walked south and west, “through Louisiana and Texas, through the Southwestern desert to the edge of the continent in California.” 

All along the route he stopped to listen to a variety of people.  People told him “about their formative experiences:  love, loss, addiction, the military, religious conversion.”  He said that when he started out, he didn’t even really know what the sign on his back—“Walking to Listen”—meant; he discovered its meaning as he went along and heard people’s stories.  Heard their pain and their joys.  He confronted his own prejudices—some of which he didn’t even know he had.   He said he discovered that “the more authentically interested [he] was, the better [he] listened, the more it seemed people opened up.”  

In the newspaper article, Andrew related a story   that was shared with him   by a woman in Las Vegas,  who was an activist for gay rights.  The woman told Andrew how one day she was walking down a desolate street in the city, no one else was around, and then, out of no-where, approaching her a big man appeared.  He was scowling and he looked inebriated, and she was scared.  But, she kept walking toward the man, and as she got closer, she decided, unexpectedly, to smile at him, and, unexpectedly, the man decided to smile back.  “[I realized that] We’re all scared of something,” she said, and “We’re all angry at something.”  (Boston Globe, The Way Forward, by James Sullivan, March 9th, 2017)

Being a Peacemaker is metaphorically—and sometimes literally—walking with other people.  It is seeing the humanity in our neighbors—even those who are very different from us.  It is recognizing—and helping others recognize--that we are all in the same boat.  It is listening to people long enough to hear their fear and their anger, their pains and their joys.  It is sharing our joys and pains with them. Being a peacemaker is following in the footsteps of Jesus, who was called the Prince of Peace.  Being a peacemaker is engaging in God’s work to make sure that ALL of our fellow human beings have what they need to survive and thrive—physically, emotionally, and spiritually. 

As we do this, says Jesus, we will be blessed; we will be aligned with God and God’s values.  We will be tuned in to God’s heart and be part of God’s family.  May God help us all to engage in this crucial work of Peacemaking.   Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.  Let us pray…

Sermon: “Blessed Are the Pure in Heart…”

Scripture:  Matthew 5:1-8

1When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. 2Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:

3“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. 5“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. 6“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. 7“Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy. 8“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. 9“

Sermon:  “Blessed Are the Pure in Heart…”

In one of the churches I served several years ago, the one in Maine, there was a man who liked to play the piano.  When I was new at the church, I didn’t know anything about this man—other than somebody telling me that the man sometimes played the piano at church in the summer when the organist was away.  So, I am talking to this man at coffee hour, getting to know my new parishioners, making “small talk,” like you do at coffee hour or fellowship time, and I say, “Bob [not his real name], I hear you like to play the piano.”  “Yes,” he says, with a big smile, and then he mentions something offhand about his upcoming concert at Carnegie Hall in New York City. 

And here is where the conversation goes awry.  I assume the man is joking!  I mean, how many actual Carnegie Hall musicians do you run into at church coffee hours?  To my knowledge, up to this point, I had never run into any—it might have been different if I was in New York City instead of Maine, but I wasn’t.  Plus, the man was smiling—which I interpret to mean that he’s pulling my leg.  So, going in to comedian mode, I say, “Hey, Bob, how do you get to Carnegie Hall?”  I say this, expecting him to play along and finish the old joke with the line, “How do you get to Carnegie Hall?  Practice, practice, practice!”  (Ba-dum-bum.)  But he doesn’t.  He looks at me, and because he doesn’t know me very well either, he assumes I’m not joking, and he starts giving me actual directions to Carnegie Hall, which he knows by heart, because, it turns out, he plays there so often.  (Note to self:  when you don’t know people, don’t assume you know when they are joking.)

I tell you this story for 2 reasons:  1) It illustrates how words can be interpreted differently, depending on the background of the speaker and the hearer; and 2) The punchline to the joke, “Practice, practice, practice,” is part of the theme of today’s scripture reading. 

Today we are focusing on verse 8 from the Beatitudes section of Jesus’ “Sermon on the Mount,” that we have been reading for 6 weeks now.  Verse 8 reads, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” 

I am going to ask Steve to please put up a slide of the phonetic spelling of verse 8 in Aramaic, the language that Jesus spoke.  And, in just a minute, I will play an audio file of verse 8.  In this audio file, you will hear Scholar Neil Douglas-Klotz speaking this verse in Aramaic.  I play it to give you an approximate idea of what it might have been like to hear Jesus say the words himself.  The file is about half a minute long, and the verse will be spoken 3 times.

[PLAY FILE]

(in Aramaic:  Tubwayhun layleyn dadkeyn b’lebhon d’hinnon nehzun l’alaha.) - translation from Prayers of the Cosmos by Neil Douglas-Klotz, p. 62)

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

I would hazard a guess that most of us, in our culture, when we hear this phrase “pure in heart” interpret it as referring to those who are “wholesome and untainted by immorality, especially that of a sexual nature,” to quote my computer’s dictionary.  (Apple MacBook Pro.)  Bearing out this definition, when I Googled the phrase “pure in heart,” one of the first things that came up was a letter by a Catholic Bishop that denounced the evils of pornography.  (http://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/view.cfm?id=7438)  Even Protestant commentators give a similar interpretation, one referring to the avoidance of “impure thoughts” and “sexual fantasies.”  (New Interpreter’s Bible Commentary, Vol. VIII, p. 179)  However, to their credit, both the Catholic Bishop and Protestant Commentator said that the phrase “pure in heart” isn’t limited to that meaning.  Both theologians talked about the deeper meaning of the phrase “pure in heart” being those whose hearts are “undivided,” those who are whole-heartedly devoted to serving God and neighbor. 

And, speaking of deeper meanings, if we look more deeply into the language that Jesus spoke, Aramaic, then we can get a fuller interpretation of the phrase that is translated into English as “pure in heart.”  Unlike the English word “pure,” the Aramaic word for “pure” dadkeyn does not refer to sexual morality at all.  In Aramaic, the phrase “pure in heart” dadkeyn b’lebhon is much more closely related to the “whole-hearted” devotion to which the commentators also referred.  In Aramaic, dadkeyn b’lebhon refers to those whose “lives radiate from a core of love,” to those who are “consistent in love or sympathy,” to those “whose natural reaction is sympathy and friendship.”  (Prayers of the Cosmos, p. 62-3.)

Capturing this understanding, Aramaic scholar Neil Douglas-Klotz offers what seems to me to be a more accurate translation of “Blessed are the pure in heart.”  Remembering what we’ve looked at in previous sermons, that the word “Blessed” doesn’t mean happy, but rather refers to being “tuned” to God (like you would tune a musical instrument) and aligned with God’s values and priorities, Douglas-Klotz gives this translation for “Blessed are the pure in heart”: “Aligned with the One are those whose lives radiate from a core of love.” [REPEAT] (Prayers of the Cosmos, p. 62.)

Which raises the question:  how do we do this?  How do we align our lives with God so that our lives radiate from a core of love?  How do we make sure we are “consistent in love or sympathy?” How do we make “sympathy and friendship” our “natural reaction”? 

Answering those questions brings me back to the punch-line of the Carnegie Hall joke I started out with:  How do we do these things?  Practice, practice, practice.  If we want to improve in anything—dancing, singing, basketball, writing, cabinet-making, cooking--we know we have to practice.  If we are doing these things for school or work or for fun, we practice them—don’t we?--until we get consistent results.  Take cooking, for example.  How many of you who enjoy cooking—and I know there are a lot of you out there, thanks be to God!-- make your favorite dish now the same way you made it when you first tried the recipe?  I bet none of you.  All of the people I have met who enjoy cooking start out with a recipe-- for soup or cookies or lasagna-- and then keep making little changes over the years until they get it to the place where nothing needs improving and they can consistently create it for family and friends (or perhaps for the church auction?  Just a suggestion.  But I digress.)

The same is true for being “pure in heart.”  If we want our lives to “radiate from a core of love,” if we want to be “consistent in love or sympathy,” if we want to get to the place where “sympathy and friendship” are our “natural reactions,” then we have to practice. 

Every day, life presents us with opportunities to interact with other people, with animals, with the planet.  And, every day, in those interactions, we have the opportunity to practice how to be loving, caring human beings. 

Some of the interactions may be anonymous and feel like no big deal—a telemarketer calls us on the phone, interrupting our day with “hard sell” tactics OR someone cuts us off in traffic.  In both of those cases, it’s tempting-- and easy-- to be rude back to the person who is being rude to us.  No one is holding us accountable.  But if we see those situations as training exercises in being “consistent in love,” then we have the opportunity to practice respectfully saying “no” to hard sell tactics or showing restraint in our reactions to bad drivers on the road.  If we practice being loving, caring human beings in the small things, then when the bigger things happen, our natural reaction will be to respond with love instead of fighting fire with fire.

In our world today, there is a lot of fear and tempers flare when we talk about incidents we hear on the news, horrible incidents of war crimes, gun violence, decisions of politicians that scare us.  How do we even talk about such things without getting into heated arguments?           Practice, practice, practice.  We ask God to keep us aligned to the Source of Love, because we can’t do it all by ourselves.  Then we take a deep breath, and we listen more than we talk.  We ask questions more than we make judgments.  Not that we don’t state our opinions, but, when we do, we make sure that we state them respectfully.  (Like it says in our church’s Covenant for Christian communication.)  

Which brings us to the second part of our Scripture verse for today, “for they shall see God.”  When we practice being aligned with God’s love, Jesus tells us “we will see God.”  The Aramaic words for this part of the verse are d’hinnon nehzun l’alaha. 

Neil Douglas-Klotz tells us that “Nehzun could be translated ‘see,’ but also points to inner vision or contemplation. The old roots [of the word] evoke the image of a flash of lightning that appears suddenly in the sky [he says] insight comes like that.”  So putting both parts of the verse together, Douglas-Klotz offers this illuminating translation, “Aligned with the One are those whose lives radiate from a core of love; they shall see God everywhere.”

My friends, in this Lenten season, may we experience the truth of this Beatitude.  May we practice showing love and sympathy until we are consistent--until our lives radiate from an inner core of love.  And as we do this more and more, may God give us insight--that we may see God in all our interactions. 

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.  May it be so.

Rev. Dr. Marlayna Schmidt

Franklin Federated Church

Franklin, MA

Sermon: “Blessed Are the Merciful”

Scripture:  Matthew 5:1-7

1When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. 2Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:

3“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. 5“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. 6“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. 7“Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.

Sermon:  “Blessed Are the Merciful”

Jesus said, “Blessed are the Merciful, for they will receive mercy.”

When I hear the word, “mercy,” an image immediately comes to mind:  Queen Victoria in her 19th century regalia pardoning a peasant for participating in a protest against the government.  (That comes first to mind, probably, because I watch too much PBS.)  But, also, it comes to mind because the definition of mercy involves someone in a position of power bestowing a kindness on someone else who is less powerful.   Or, in the actual words of the dictionary, “[Mercy is] compassion and forgiveness shown toward someone whom it is within one’s power to punish or harm.”  (Dictionary on MacBook Pro).  REPEAT

But here’s the thing about that definition of mercy.  It doesn’t have to come from the heart.  The person in power, in my example, the queen, could have an ulterior motive for showing mercy.  Showing mercy to a peasant could help the queen in the court of public opinion.  So, showing mercy doesn’t necessarily mean that the person in power cares one way or the other about the person to whom they are showing mercy.  Showing mercy to someone could just be the means toward another end, not the means toward a deeper relationship with the person to whom mercy is granted.

But that is not the kind of mercy that Jesus is talking about in this passage from the Beatitudes.  In verse 7, when Jesus says, “Blessed are the merciful…” he’s not talking about a shallow kind of mercy.  

But before I delve deeper into that, I’m going to ask Steve to put up a slide with the phonetic spelling of the Aramaic words that are translated into English as, “Blessed are the merciful for they will receive mercy.”  I’m going to play the audio file of those words in Aramaic, so you can hear how they would have sounded when Jesus spoke them.  On this recording, which lasts about 30 seconds. scholar Neil Douglas-Klotz repeats the phrase 3 times

[M plays file, track 17, trimmed short version:  Tubwayhun lamrahmane delayhun nehwun rahme.  - translation from Prayers of the Cosmos by Neil Douglas-Klotz, p. 59]  THANK YOU, Steve

In Aramaic, the language Jesus spoke, the words translated here as “merciful” lamrahmane and “mercy” rahme share the same root meaning “womb”--as in the place where a child developes inside their mother.   The connotation of the word is that the mercy spoken of here comes from the deepest place within one’s being.  (Douglas-Klotz, p. 59-60.)  It is not a shallow mercy or a mercy with ulterior motives.  The mercy Jesus speaks of is a deep compassion--as in the compassion of a mother for her child-- that comes from the core of one’s being and “gives birth,” if you will, to a love that lives and grows in the world.

Which reminds me of a cross-stitched proverb that my grandmother had displayed in her living room when I was a kid.  The proverb went something like this, “Never criticize someone until you’ve walked a mile in their moccasins.”  REPEAT.   As a kid, I used to puzzle over what that proverb meant—to begin with, I couldn’t make sense of the whole moccasin thing.  I mean, my grandmother always wore dresses with low-heeled pumps—she wouldn’t ever wear moccasins around the house, never mind going outside walking a whole mile in someone else’s shoes! …But as I got older, I realized that I was focusing on the wrong thing.  The proverb wasn’t about footwear at all; it was about compassion!  It was about the kind of mercy and compassion that Jesus speaks of in this passage, about taking the time to walk with someone through their pain, listening to the story of their lives, not looking at them with a judgmental, critical eye.

And this kind of mercy and compassion takes work, doesn’t it?  If it were easy, I suppose, Jesus wouldn’t have to remind us to do it.  It takes work and time and energy and patience and honesty and humility.  But, my friends, mercy is a gift we can give to the world if we are willing to do it.  And when I say that it is a gift we can give to the world, I do not say that glibly.  I honestly believe that our merciful words and actions—or should I say God’s mercy shining through our words and actions-- really can change the world. 

We’ve seen this happen, haven’t we?  When people choose to allow God’s love and mercy to shine through what they/we say and do, it makes a difference.  Or, as one person said in a Bible Study that I led on this passage a few years ago, “mercy leads to mercy.”  And it’s not usually grand acts of mercy, though sometimes it is.  In that same Bible study, someone brought up grand acts of mercy that we’ve seen in great literature, like in Les Miserables.  [LAY Mee -zeh- rhab- bluh]   As you know, from the book or the musical, the bishop  shows mercy to Jean Vajean, who is about to get thrown back into prison for stealing silver, and the bishop says, “No, I gave that to him.”  That act of mercy by the bishop helped transform Jean Val Jean into a merciful man himself. 

Another example of mercy in literature that may also be familiar is Portia’s famous speech from the Merchant of Venice, a speech persuading a money-lender, to be merciful to a man who has defaulted on a loan. 

Although I read the Merchant of Venice when I was a freshman in High School, since that was 10 years ago… OK, 45 years ago-- I confess I had to Google “Portia’s speech” to remind myself of its content.  Have you listened to it lately?  If not, go to YouTube and type in Laura Carmichael “The quality of mercy.”  This actor from Downton Abbey does a superb job with this Shakespeare solo  produced by the Guardian. 

[I had hoped to be able to play it for you, but, sadly, despite Julie’s valiant efforts, we were not able to get permission in time to play it this morning.  If we get permission, I will play it next week.]

It is a beautiful speech that extols the beauty and power of mercy.  I bet many of you remember at least some of it.  Alluding to a passage from the Hebrew Scriptures, Deuteronomy 32:2, it begins, “The quality of mercy is not strained, it droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven on the place beneath.  It is twice blessed.  It blesseth him that gives and him that takes.” 

What a lovely description of the power of mercy to change for the better the person who shows it, AND the person who receives it!  I bet we can all think of examples of small acts of mercy effecting this kind of blessing and positive change.  For example, have you ever been tired and angry and snapped at a loved one and said something unkind?  (I’m sure that’s never happened to any of us.)  But, hypothetically, in that situation, we might well deserve to have the person we’ve snapped at snap back at us, and that’s how a lot of arguments start, isn’t it?!  Start and escalate.  BUT when the person we’ve snapped at turns around and responds instead with mercy, grace and compassion, saying something like, “Are you okay?  You don’t seem like yourself right now.”  That merciful response has the power to diffuse our anger and get to the heart of what is really bothering us.  It can lead to a double blessing. 

Having ministered with you for over a year and a half now, I have seen a number of examples of you offering mercy to each other and to people in the Greater Franklin Community.  But sometimes a preacher’s job is to encourage a congregation to “keep on doing what you are already doing,” reminding you that’s it worth it.  So, brothers and sisters in the faith, may you continue to walk in each other’s moccasins, showing mercy and compassion.  And, as you do so, may you know that God will bless you—and that God will use you to bless the world, a world that is in dire need of mercy that comes from the depths of our being.

Rev. Dr. Marlayna Schmidt

Franklin Federated Church

Franklin, MA

Sermon: “Blessed Are The Meek”

Scripture:  Matthew 5:1-12

1When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. 2Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:

3“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. 5“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

Meek is not a word you hear every day.  And when you do hear it, it’s not exactly used as a term of endearment.  The dictionary on my computer defines meek as “Quiet, gentle, and easily imposed on; submissive.”  (Dictionary by Apple, version 2.2.1) 

In a similar vein, I remember my mother sometimes using the word “meek” like this to describe someone who was not only shy, but also cowardly.  My mother would say, in her southern accent that she retained from childhood, “She was so meek, she wouldn’t say ‘boo’ to a mouse!”  My mother would say this when she’d witness someone who was afraid to speak up for herself--or others. 

To be “meek” in this sense of the word is not something any of us aspire to.  So, if you’re like me, when you hear the word “meek” in the Bible--like in today’s reading, verse 5, “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth”--your first response may be to cringe.  Or maybe to get angry, thinking something like this:  Really?  Jesus wants us to be meek?!  I’ve spent years and hundreds of dollars in therapy learning how to find my voice, learning how to speak up for myself and others--and now Jesus is telling me I’m blessed when I keep quiet?!  You’ve got to be kidding me?!

In case you have any of those thoughts, never fear.  Being easily imposed upon, being submissive--or too cowardly to speak up is not what “meek” means when used in the Bible. 

In today’s sermon, I’m going to look first at what the Greek word translated “meek” means in today’s Scripture passage.  Then I’ll deepen that definition by looking at the meaning of the Aramaic words that Jesus would have spoken.  Then, finally, I’ll talk about why these definitions are important and what impact they could have on our actions.

According to the New Interpreter’s Bible commentary, the Greek word translated “meek” in this verse, Matthew 5:5, is praus.  [spelled P-R-A-U-S in English.]  Praus is a key word used in the Gospel of Matthew, most often used to describe Jesus himself.  (New Interpreter’s Bible, Vol. VIII, p. 179)  You may be familiar with two popular verses where the word is used.  In Matthew, Chapter 11, verse 29, Jesus says to his disciples and the crowd, “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart [--Greek praus--] and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light,” says Jesus.   The other popular verse where the Greek word praus is used is in Matthew, Chapter 21, Verse 5--the traditional Palm Sunday reading that quotes the prophecy about Jesus, “…’See, your king comes to you, gentle [--Greek praus--] and riding on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’”

It is clear from the context that when the Greek word praus is used in the Gospel of Matthew to describe Jesus--the claim is not that Jesus was easily imposed upon, submissive, cowardly, and/or unwilling to speak up for himself or others.  No.  To the contrary, it was Jesus’ unflinching determination throughout his ministry to stand up for God’s justice and speak up for the oppressed that eventually got him killed by the Roman empire.  So, what “meek” refers to in the Bible is someone who renounces the violence of the empire and chooses, instead to submit themselves to God’s way of love, even when it takes courage to do so.  (NIB, Vol. VIII, p. 179)

Backing up this understanding of “meek” is Psalm 37--which is what today’s beatitude is based on.  Matthew 5:5--“Blessed are the meek for they will inherit the earth”--is almost a direct quotation of Psalm 37:11, which reads, “But the meek will inherit the land and enjoy peace and prosperity.”  And, when you read the entirety of Psalm 37, it becomes clear that “the meek” are those who--unlike their wicked oppressors--refrain from anger and do not use violence against the poor and needy.  (Psalm 37: 8 & 14.)  

Building on this understanding, when we look at the Aramaic word translated praus in Greek and “meek” in English, we get an even fuller grasp of the meaning of verse 5.  (And, just to review, Aramaic, as we’ve seen the last 2 weeks, was the ancient middle eastern language in which Jesus primarily spoke and taught.) 

To begin, I’m going to ask Steve to pull up a slide so you can see the phonetic version of Matthew 5:5 in Aramaic.  Tubwayhoon l’makikhe d’hinnon nertun ar’ah.  “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.” 

Today, I have an audio file to play for you of Aramaic scholar, Neil Douglas-Klotz, reading the phrase in Aramaic--to give you a sense of how the words would have sounded when Jesus spoke them. 

The file is 1 and a half minutes long, and it is read in “language lab style” to teach us how to pronounce the words. So, you’ll hear the whole phrase a couple of times, and then you’ll hear the individual words spoken, with pauses in between.  In the pauses, feel free to practice saying the words yourself. 

So, let’s look at the meaning of 4 of these Aramaic words.

First, a review of Tubwayhoon, the word translated “blessed.”  Tubwayhoon, as we’ve seen the last 3 weeks, doesn’t just mean “happy” or “favored,” it also means, “healthy,” “healed,” “aligned with the One” and “tuned to the Source.”  That is, aligned with and attuned to God --and God’s way of Love.

Second, makikhe.  This is the Aramaic word translated “meek.” Like the Greek word, praus, MA-key-kay means humble and gentle, but it means more than just that.  Neil Douglas-Klotz tells us:

Behind these words, the old roots carry the meaning of one who has softened that which is unnaturally hard within, who has submitted or surrendered to God, or who has liquified rigidities…  (Prayers of the Cosmos, p. 54)  [LET ME REPEAT THAT]

And, to explain why this expanded meaning of “meek” might be important, Douglas-Klotz goes on to talk about the final 2 words of this verse, nertun ar’ah.  He says,

Nertun can mean “inherit,” but in the broad sense of receiving from the universal source of strength... In this case, softening the rigid places within leaves us more open to the real source of power--God acting through all of nature, all earthiness.  (Prayers of the Cosmos, p. 54)

Putting together all of these understandings, Douglas-Klotz gives some suggestions of how the verse could be more accurately translated.  I’ll share three of them:

- Blessed are the gentle; they shall inherit the earth.

- Aligned with the One are the humble, those submitted to God’s will; they shall be gifted with the productivity of the earth.

- Healthy are those who have softened what is rigid within; they shall receive physical vigor and strength from the universe.

                                      (Prayers of the Cosmos, p. 53)

What this exploration of the original meaning of “Blessed are the meek…” says to me is that, as followers of Jesus, we are called to be meek--but not in the sense of cowardly submission to the forces in this world beyond our control. 

Rather, we are called to be meek in the sense that Jesus was meek--that is, we are called to speak up and renounce the powers of this world--like the Roman empire of Jesus’ day--that engage in violence and bullying in order to repress people.  AND, in the Aramaic sense of meekness, we are called to let go of our rigid resistance to such powers, our tendency to fight fire with fire.  In other words, we are called to let go of the human temptation to rigidly control the oppressive powers of this world through our own use of violence or bullying. 

Instead, like Jesus, we are called to soften the rigidness within us by surrendering and submitting ourselves to God’s love.  In that way, we become open to receive God’s strength, strength that enables us to fight back against repression NOT with violence or bullying but rather by speaking up and standing up for justice with bold integrity.

Obery Hendricks, in his book, The Politics of Jesus, refers to this as “non-violent resistance.”  (p. 174-5.)  Hendricks says:

“…what Jesus taught his followers was that they should not resist evil by resorting to violence.  In other words, they should not fight evil with evil, violence with violence; they should not diminish their own humanity by mimicking their oppressors’ inhumanity.”

Sadly, today, we live in a world where we witness, almost daily, politicians and others demeaning the humanity of people they disagree with.  It has become acceptable--even in “the land of the free”-- to speak and act in ways that promote violence and bullying.  And, right now, this week, on an international level with the invasion of Ukraine, we are also witnessing what happens when threats of violence and bullying are carried to their extreme. 

What are we to do in the face of such violence?  I believe today’s Scripture encourages us to be meek in the sense that Jesus was.  Following his example, I believe we are called to align ourselves with God’s Love and boldly speak out against violent and bullying behavior wherever we witness it, whether that be at a local, national, or international level. 

And, as we do so, may we learn the truth of Jesus’ words: 

- Aligned with the One are the humble, those submitted to God’s will; they shall be gifted with the productivity of the earth and receive strength from the universe. 

Let us pray.

Today I begin our prayer time with a prayer for Ukraine from the Church of Scotland.

.