Sermon: “From Corporate Officer to Incarnational Leader"

John 15:12-15 (Message)

This is my command: Love one another the way I loved you. This is the very best way to love. Put your life on the line for your friends. You are my friends when you do the things I command you. I’m no longer calling you servants because servants don’t understand what their master is thinking and planning. No, I’ve named you friends because I’ve let you in on everything I’ve heard from the Father.

Sermon:  “From Corporate Officer to Incarnational Leader"

(#8 in a series on the book Weird Church)

I am in the middle of a sermon series on the book, Weird Church, which talks about shifts that the church needs to make in terms of ministry, in order to better shine the Light of God’s Love in the world.  I want to acknowledge that some of the stuff in this book is hard to read because it calls us to stretch beyond our usual comfort zone.  Some of you have read the book, and I’m guessing you might feel the same.  I found the chapter on which today’s sermon is based--chapter 7-- particularly difficult to get through, because it talks about how church, in general, has a bad reputation these days, and really, who wants to hear that?

Part of me wanted to say, “Yeah, yeah, we know that some people don’t like church.  Let’s not go over that ground again.  Let’s move on.  Quickly.”  But it occurred to me that all change requires an accurate assessment and true recognition of our weaknesses as well as our strengths, before we can recover and thrive.    

It’s like when my left arm hurt a few years ago and I diagnosed myself; I  thought my main problem was weak triceps muscles.  Unfortunately, the exercises I had found on the internet to strengthen triceps were making my arm hurt worse.  When I finally talked to my doctor, it turns out that my main problem was my left shoulder, not my left triceps muscle.  Who knew?  I needed a whole different set of exercises to address the real issue.  My point:  until I looked at what wasn’t working, consulted with an experienced expert and got accurate advice on how to move forward, I couldn’t recover.

So, I am asking you to bear with me as we look at some of the things that aren’t working with the church at large, not to be down on ourselves but so that we can hear the advice of these experienced authors who are currently helping many churches move forward into the future in a healthy way. 

This book points out in Chapter 7 that in the eyes of the culture at large, the church has a bad reputation.  Not only are church people stereotyped as judgmental, boring, and hypocritical, the church, as an institution (Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox), over many centuries has colluded with governments to oppress nations and peoples.  I will share just a few concrete, historical examples:

·        In the 1500 and 1600’s, Christian priests were actually loaded onto sailing ships along with soldiers who went out to conquer nations in the name of various European countries.    

·        After that, for more than 2 centuries, the church, as a whole, sanctioned slavery.  In the words of this book, the church sanctioned a “human trafficking economy, chasing down people like large game in Africa to ship them abroad as free labor.”

·        Final example:  From the 20th century through to the present, the church has missed many opportunities to speak out against the unethical behavior of large, multinational corporations that put profit above people and exploit their workers, while executives rake in millions of dollars. 

Even if we argue that church has stopped doing the first two things--and many churches, thanks be to God, do speak out about the third, this book points out that church systems may still be more intertwined in these ills than we recognize.  For instance, most church organizational structures still mirror the corporate business structures that arose in the last century.  And just as we can and should critique the behavior of corporations out in the world when that behavior causes damage, so too we can and should critique--and change-- our own corporate structures when they actively cause damage or are so outmoded they sap our energy and no longer function in ways that help us live out our purpose. 

The authors propose that change to our church corporate structures needs to begin with  a change in our thinking about the function of pastoral leadership.  The title of Chapter 7 is “From Corporate Officers to Incarnational Leaders.”  We--pastors and people--need to stop focusing so much on the business of running the church and focus more on living out, embodying, the love of God that we see in Jesus.  To quote from page 74:

“[We need to make] The shift from church leadership as a business enterprise to a spiritual enterprise [that is] bathed in prayer, and deep, deep listening as a group of friends seek to discover what is possible with God.  Once the God stuff becomes clear, you can find the help to write a reasonable busines plan in a day.”

Which brings us to today’s Scripture Reading, where Jesus calls the disciples his “friends” and spells out what that means.  His words are rather challenging.  Particularly when he tells his followers to “Put your life on the line for your friends.”  Probably most of us hearing these words jump to the conclusion that Jesus is speaking literally, telling his followers that some of them may face literal death, as Jesus did, when he challenged authority and stood up for the marginalized in society.  And that was true for many people in the early church and some martyrs today.  However, if we read this passage only from that perspective, we may gloss over it, think it doesn’t apply to us, because, in our society, most of us will not be called upon to literally give our lives for the people that we love. 

(Though, as I prepared this sermon, it occurred to me the literal meaning of these words--physically putting yourself in harm’s way for the sake of others, is something that police officers and military personnel do every day, and perhaps we do not tell them often that we are grateful for their service.)

But “Put your life on the line,” as the Message paraphrase reads-- or “lay down one’s life for one’s friends” as the New Revised Standard version of the Bible says--can also be taken less literally.  I believe it can also mean, as Jesus says elsewhere in the Bible, that there are times when we need to choose to put others first.  There are times when we need to set aside our own understandings, privileges and preferences so that we can listen to and learn from others.  This passage calls us to the mutual give and take of friendship, where one person chooses to put their own preferences on hold for a time, so that someone else can get their needs met--and then the other person does the same in turn. 

It’s like when you are trying to negotiate activities at a large, family vacation.  Aunt Agatha doesn’t get to dictate the plan for everyone for the entire week.  Rather, everyone shares what they would like to do, and they make compromises.  Sometimes they go play mini-golf instead of visiting the museum that Agatha would have preferred.  You know what I’m saying.  (I am guessing that almost every family has someone like the proverbial Agatha.  And sometimes more than one!) 

And I know that was a superficial example.  The mutual give and take of friendship goes much deeper than that.  In this passage Jesus calls the disciples “friends” and says that he wants them to understand what he has been thinking and planning.  In other words, he invites them into relationship with him, and relationships, as we all know, involve listening to and learning from each other.  Asking questions and putting our own thoughts-- or rebuttals-- aside long enough to truly understand what the other is thinking and feeling. 

I watched a very powerful documentary film this week called the “Wisdom of Trauma,” featuring the work of medical doctor, Gabor Mate, a holocaust survivor who asks and answers the question, “Can our deepest pain be a doorway to healing?”  The film acknowledges the brokenness, disconnections, and polarization in our world and examines ways we can heal through deep, compassionate listening to one another. 

I highly recommend this documentary--and associated talks--which are available over the internet.  (Again, it’s called, the Wisdom of Trauma.)  One of the things Dr. Mate says in the film is that when people around us say or do things that hurt us or others, rather getting defensive--or just screaming in our heads, “What’s wrong with them!?”  we need to reframe the issue in our minds.  We need to have a compassionate mindset, asking instead, in our heads, “I wonder what happened to them?  What traumatic event has shaped their lives, leading them to behave like this?”  And then, from that place of compassion, we can begin to respond in a way that fosters friendship with those around us. 

As we interact in the world in these divided times, as we have conversations with friends and family members and church members about important things-- like if and when it’s appropriate to ask each other to wear masks (something that I know we are all talking about)-- let us remember that Jesus calls us to engage as friends.  Jesus calls us to practice setting aside our own understandings, privileges and preferences to listen to each other.  To collaborate.  To pray.  To learn and grow together.  As we embody and prioritize this kind of friendship in our lives and in our church, God will bless us and help us change our world for the better.  May it be so. 

Our next hymn is #530.    “I’ve Got Peace Like a River,”

May this  hymn help ground us in the Peace, joy, and love of God,

which provide the foundation for our friendships--and any change

we may make in the world. 

Let us pray:

Loving God, you call us to be kind, compassionate friends to one another and to all people.  And it is not always easy to do.  In fact, we can’t do it by our own strength alone.  We need your Spirit, your strength, your power to put our own understandings, privileges and preferences aside for long enough to listen to those around us.  Help us to do this in the church in all our interactions, whether we are just chatting with each other during fellowship time or engaging as leaders or members of a ministry team.  Change our mindsets to be like the mindset of Jesus, who despite having the power to dictate change, chose instead to collaborate with those around him and listen to those whose voices and cries of pain were largely ignored. 

And now, O God, hear our prayers for our communities, our nation and our world, as we figure out how to work together to protect each other from the Delta Variant of the virus.  Help us to see each other with eyes of compassion, not blame, and help us to find a way forward that strengthens our relationships.

[LOOK AT PHONE]

- Moment of silence…lifting up in prayer those we hold in our hearts.. others in this room and in our livestream…  [PAUSE]

- O God, bless the sick… those who are struggling… those who are grieving…caregivers… Give them strength and healing….  In Jesus name, Amen

PLEASE JOIN ME IN THE LORD’S PRAYER

- Our Father, who art in heaven
Hallowed be Thy Name
Thy kingdom come 
Thy will be done on earth
as it is in heaven 
- Give us this day our daily bread
And forgive us our debts
As we forgive our debtors`
- And lead us not into temptation
But deliver us from evil. 
For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.  AMEN

Rev. Dr. Marlayna Schmidt

Franklin Federated Church

Franklin, MA

Sermon: From Broadcast Control to Social Collaboration (#7 in Weird Church series.)

Call to Worship (based on Romans 12:1-2, NRSV)

ONE: The Apostle Paul writes: 

“I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God,

ALL: to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God,

ONE: which is your spiritual worship. 

ALL: Do not be conformed to this world,

ONE: but be transformed by the renewing of your minds,

ALL: so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect.”      

We gather together, here and now, inviting God to renew us during this service of praise. 

Scripture Reading:  Romans 12:1-2 (from The Message paraphrase)

Place Your Life Before God

1-2 So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for God. Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what God wants from you, and quickly respond to it.  Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.

Sermon:  From Broadcast Control to Social Collaboration (#7 in Weird Church series.)

Years ago while doing research for a sermon about transitions, I learned a new word:  “tropophobia.”  Which is the fear of change.  At the time I was doing this research, I remember thinking to myself, “Who knew fear of change was a thing?”  I was surprised to learn that it was a condition, a disorder recognized by psychologists.  And I learned that some people had such extreme cases of tropophobia that they experienced severe anxiety, panic attacks even, if they had to do something new.  I remember feeling sad for people who experienced this level of anxiety around change, because, for the most part, I had always enjoyed change--I experienced it as fun and exciting, something that made life interesting.  And it made me sad that there were people who missed out on the joy that change could bring. 

But that was years ago.  The older I get, the more I understand tropophobia.  Not that I’ve experienced severe anxiety, but these days, I would have to say that change is less fun and more stressful.  Part of it is a physiological thing, I’m sure.  My brain is older and doesn’t operate as well as it used to.  I mean, I groan every time my smart phone goes through an update.  Rather than thinking, “Great!  I wonder what improvements this update will bring?”  I think sarcastically instead, “Great.  I wonder how many Youtube videos I’m gonna have to watch before I can figure out this update?”  I’m not even kidding.  Last time I upgraded my phone, I had to watch a Youtube video simply to learn how to turn it off!!  (I know, I sound like a 100-year-old curmudgeon complaining about newfangled devices.)

But I don’t think my growing annoyance with change is just my aging brain.  Some of it, I think, is related to the losses we all experienced in the Covid 19 pandemic.  And when I say all of us, I mean all of us experienced loss to one degree or another.  Some people experienced horrible losses--the death of loved ones, damage to their own health, financial burdens.  And recovery from that level of loss is slow and difficult and painful.  For others, the losses were more mundane, but over time such losses add up.  All loss take an emotional toll, as Dr. Elizabeth Kubler-Ross outlined in her stages of grief:  denial, anger, bargaining, depression, acceptance.  And going through these stages, experiencing these emotions is exhausting, isn’t it?! 

And then add to that all of the new things we’ve all had to learn during the pandemic--new routines, new technologies, new protocols--it’s no wonder that our energy levels for everything--particularly for change--are flagging right now. 

And then we come to this scripture from Romans 12, verses 1&2, that reads, “…fix your attention on God.  You’ll be changed from the inside out.”  Pre-pandemic, this was one of my favorite scriptures.  But now I read it and my first reaction is, “Changed from the inside out?  I don’t want any more change in my life, thank you very much.  It sounds like way more work than I have energy for.  God, can’t you just let me coast for a while?” 

As you know, I’m doing a sermon series on this book, Weird Church, and the premise of the book is that the world around us is changing, so the church needs to make changes as well in order to connect with the people around us.  The first several chapters of the book deal with shifts that the church needs to make in terms of ministry so that we can continue our mission of sharing the Love of God in the world. 

The chapter I’m preaching on today--Chapter 6--is entitled “From Broadcast Control to Social Collaboration.”  It talks about how the church, for most of our lifetimes, has followed the same model of communication as the culture around us.  For most of the 20th century, the church operated under the “broadcast” paradigm.  Professionally trained pastors preached sermons to congregations who received them, similar to newscasters sharing information over TV or radio with audiences who took in what they were saying and trusted what the expert told them.  The book even used the example of CBS news anchor Walter Cronkite, who, from the 1960’s through the 1980’s, always ended his broadcast with the line, “And that’s the way it is.”  How many of us remember that?  The authors of this book suggest that when Cronkite said that, “…all the people sitting in their living rooms nodded, ‘Amen.’”  (Weird Church, p. 63)

But our culture has moved on from there.  The broadcast model of communication (one expert sharing one message with one audience at one time) is no longer the primary model of communication in our culture--or even in the world at large.  With the advent of the internet and other media like FaceBook, Twitter, Instagram--and other platforms I’m sure I’ve never even heard of, information is now shared on multiple platforms from multiple sources.  And the Covid pandemic sped up the pace of this trend.

There are, of course, plusses and minuses to any kind of communication the culture or the church chooses to use, but the point this chapter makes is that if the church chooses not to follow the communication trends that the culture is making, we miss the opportunity to share our message of God’s transforming love with the people around us.  Further, we miss the opportunity of learning from the people around us and growing in love and understanding through discussion and collaboration with them.  This chapter encourages the church to engage in multiple communication platforms because that is the way of the future. 

They mention livestreaming worship services--which is something we are already doing!  Yay, church!  But they also say that another thing the church of the future needs to do is engage in more conversation and collaboration.  The cool thing about the media platforms I mentioned earlier is that they all encourage such engagement.  For example, sermons won’t be the main means of spiritual education in the future; dialogue and conversations about Bible passages and themes will also take place more and more.  And when people put their heads and hearts together about such things, they can move on from there to take action.    

In the words of this book:

Imagine networks of people who learn from and empower each other.  Imagine small groups of people getting together to dream about God’s preferred future for them and their neighborhoods and then daring to make that a reality.  Imagine an open-source movement where people are allowed to contribute as much or as little as they like.  Imagine a potluck of sorts where everyone is fed spiritually and physically no matter what they bring to the table… Instead of broadcasting our truth, maybe we could just set a table of grace.  (Weird Church, p. 67)

It’s a wonderful, inspiring vision, isn’t it?  It would mean some change on our part, but the change doesn’t have to be onerous or something we force ourselves to do because we know it’s good for us or because some book tells us we have to do it if we want to survive in the future.

This Scripture from Romans 12 reminds us that it is God who brings about the changes in us and the church, not us.  “Fix your attention on God,” says the Apostle Paul.  “Place your life before God as an offering.”  Then relax.  Okay, so Paul doesn’t actually say, “then relax.”  But he implies it.  As I said earlier, part of what makes change so hard is all of the emotional and physical energy we expend in bringing it about. 

But that’s not what this passage is saying.  This passage is telling us to give up our control over the change.  This passage is encouraging us to say to God, “I’m willing to change, for the sake of sharing your love with the world, but you’ll have to lead me.  I’m feeling tired and spent, but if you, God, give me the energy and direct me, I’ll follow you.”

When we say that to God, that’s when amazing things happen, isn’t it?  God helps us to let go of the things that sap our energy, and God fills us with strength and energy in doing things with others that make our hearts sing.  May it be so!

Let us pray.

Loving God, this has been an exhausting year and a half, and all of us are still feeling the effects of the pandemic, which is not over yet.  Bless those who suffered great loss in the past year and a half.  Comfort them as they grieve.  Help them to rebuild their lives.  Bless all of us as we feel the lingering emotions of grief, and help us to rest in you.  Help us each and all to set our lives before you as an offering, and change us in the ways we need to change.  Give us joy as we collaborate with each other and strengthen us for ministry. 

And, God, Hear now our prayers for our community and our world…

-

-

-

[LOOK AT PHONE]

- Moment of silence…lifting up in prayer those we hold in our hearts.. others in this room and in our livestream…  [PAUSE]

- O God, bless the sick… those who are struggling… those who are grieving…caregivers… Give them strength and healing….  In Jesus name, Amen

PLEASE JOIN ME IN THE LORD’S PRAYER

- Our Father, who art in heaven
Hallowed be Thy Name
Thy kingdom come 
Thy will be done on earth
as it is in heaven 
- Give us this day our daily bread
And forgive us our debts
As we forgive our debtors`
- And lead us not into temptation
But deliver us from evil. 
For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.  AMEN

Rev. Dr. Marlayna Schmidt

Franklin Federated Church

Franklin, MA

Sermon: “From Head Trip to Heart-Warmed” (#6 in Weird Church series)

Scripture Reading:  Philippians 2:1-11 (from The Message paraphrase)

1-4 If you’ve gotten anything at all out of following Christ, if his love has made any difference in your life, if being in a community of the Spirit means anything to you, if you have a heart, if you care—then do me a favor: Agree with each other, love each other, be deep-spirited friends. Don’t push your way to the front; don’t sweet-talk your way to the top.. Don’t be obsessed with getting your own advantage. Forget yourselves long enough to lend a helping hand.

5-8 Think of yourselves the way Christ Jesus thought of himself. He had equal status with God but didn’t think so much of himself that he had to cling to the advantages of that status no matter what. Not at all. When the time came, he set aside the privileges of deity and took on the status of a slave, became human! Having become human, he stayed human. It was an incredibly humbling process. He didn’t claim special privileges. Instead, he lived a selfless, obedient life and then died a selfless, obedient death—and the worst kind of death at that—a crucifixion.

9-11 Because of that obedience, God lifted him high and honored him far beyond anyone or anything, ever, so that all created beings in heaven and on earth—even those long ago dead and buried—will bow in worship before this Jesus Christ, and call out in praise that he is the Master of all, to the glorious honor of God the Father.

Sermon:  “From Head Trip to Heart-Warmed” (#6 in Weird Church series)

John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church back in the 1700’s, had a couple of life-changing, spiritual experiences.  The first occurred on a sailing ship headed to America.  During a powerful storm, so powerful that most people on board thought they were going to die, the only people who seemed at peace were a group of Moravian Christians (Moravians were a Protestant denomination that originated in an area that is now part of the Czech Republic).  While everyone else on the boat--including John Wesley, who at the time was an Anglican missionary--were at the mercy of their own panic, the Moravians were calmly gathered in faithful prayer.  John Welsey saw them and realized that he wanted what they had:  an experience of God’s loving presence that grounded him even in the midst of crisis, rather than a faith that was based only on intellectual beliefs. 

The good news is that John Wesley and everyone on board the ship survived the storm, and Wesley began a friendship with the Moravians.  He worshipped with them and studied with them, and when he returned to London, he found a Moravian mentor.  Long story short, one night at a study group with the Moravians, Wesley felt his heart, in his words, “strangely warmed.”  The authors of Weird Church describe Wesley’s experience as follows: 

“…he experienced a different kind of faith…a sure trust and confidence that even he was a beloved child of God--a personal experience of God’s grace!”  (p. 55)

The authors of Weird Church contend that most people today--particularly the “spiritual but not religious” crowd--are looking for what John Wesley experienced back in the 1700’s:  “heartwarming experiences of the Holy.”  (p. 48)  Further, “They are interested in … practices that will help them to grow in the ways of love as well as make a positive difference in the world.”  I am guessing that most of us feel the same way.  This is what we want, too, isn’t it?!  In the words of Franklin Federated Church’s Purpose Statement-- which is both descriptive and aspirational, we are  “A Community of Abundant Welcome to All, Growing together in Christ and Serving with Love.”  We want a faith that consists of a combination of intellectual belief and spiritual experience that leads to actions that make a positive difference in our world.

The challenge is that the Western institutional church as a whole, both Catholic and Protestant, has focused MUCH more on intellectual belief than we have on heartwarming experiences of the Holy.  And the intellectual belief that traditional Western Christianity has focused on most is the belief that God sent Christ as a sacrifice for our sins.  As you may know, this is called “the doctrine of substitutionary atonement,” and it grew out of a primitive, tribal theology dating back thousands of years.  Basically, this doctrine sees God as a punitive king whose anger at humanity’s disobedience can be satisfied only by a perfect blood sacrifice, which is where Jesus comes in.

More and more people these days are rejecting that view of God and the shame that comes with it.  And most of them are leaving the church!  This book invites those of us who are still part of the institutional church to think about the theology we are proclaiming--in our sermons, our liturgies, our hymns.  Is it a theology that focuses heavily on Jesus’ blood sacrifice?  If so, is this a theology we still believe in and want to proclaim?  Have we thought much about it?  [There is a wonderful, easy-to-understand book that looks at the various Christian theories of atonement (which is becoming “one” with God--"At-one-ment”), including the one I just described, and explains how each has arisen, along with the implications of each.  It’s worth reading if you want to do more research on this topic. It’s called Making Sense of the Cross by Dr. David Lose.] 

Interestingly enough, Weird Church points out that while the Western institutional church (Catholics and Protestants) focused on morality, sin, and sacrifice, the Eastern institutional church (Orthodox Christians) focused instead on “divinity and death.”  Page 56 of Weird Church described the focus of Eastern theology like this:

“Jesus shared in our suffering and death so that we can share in his divinity through the resurrection.  In essence, our journey to God is dying to this life and waking up to God in us…  In the Christianity of the East, Jesus was Ma-hy-ana, the Life-Giver, the Enlightened One.  The focus was on the Way of Jesus, which was a path that we can follow to become enlightened as well.” (p. 56)

Today’s Scripture reading from Philippians chapter 2 emphasizes that understanding.  Christ, in this passage, is seen as an example of self-giving love, which is different than self-sacrifice.  Verse 5 in the Message paraphrase says, “Think of yourselves the way Christ Jesus thought of himself. He had equal status with God but didn’t think so much of himself that he had to cling to the advantages of that status…he didn’t claim special privileges.” 

So, if that’s the ways Christ behaved, then his followers should follow suit.  Verse 4 puts it this way, “Don’t be obsessed with getting your own advantage. Forget yourselves long enough to lend a helping hand.” 

Let me talk about the main difference I can see that this makes. 

If we proclaim a self-giving theology rather than self-sacrifice, we are not inviting people to feel shame or saying that the self is bad and steeped in sin.  We are instead saying that there are times when everyone needs to set their ego aside in order to help someone else.  It is mutual caring for one another so that we can all enjoy the good gifts of God, not some people making huge sacrifices so that others can live a privileged existence. 

This self-giving way of living can make a significant, positive difference in our world, especially right now where it feels very “dog-eat-dog” out in the world.  Over and over, we hear stories in the news where one person or one group or one political party promotes only their own agenda, seeking to exploit any advantage they can, to the detriment of the other.  There is not nearly enough focus on listening, learning, compromising, caring for and meeting the needs of all concerned, not just the winner. 

If we truly followed this Scripture and the self-giving example of Jesus painted here, we would set our egos aside for long enough to hear what others want and need.  And, when a whole group of people do that in a church, it can make a powerful, positive impact in our community and world. 

This summer, can we--can I--focus on following the self-giving example of Christ, praying for ways we can “forget ourselves long enough to lend a helping hand?”  And in the words of Kathy’s song earlier, can we:

- celebrate each life.

- let hate go.

- let love grow. 

May it be so! 

Would you please join me in singing, “Pass it on,” a song written in 1969, that celebrates the heart-warming experience of God’s Love…

Let us pray.

Loving God, you call us to follow the example of Christ, to set our egos aside and give of ourselves to help others grow and flourish.  You call us each and all to heart-warming experiences of the Holy.  You call us to discover the gifts and talents that make our hearts sing, and to joyfully pour ourselves out using those gifts and talents to make our world a better place.  Help us to do just that.  And give us the added gift of discernment, so that we know the difference between self-sacrifice, which leads to resentment and burnout, and self-giving, which leads to building up both others and ourselves. 

And, God, Hear now our prayers for our community and our world…

- For people all over the world who are contracting the virulent COVID Delta variant.  Bless particularly those who are on respirators struggling for their lives-- and those need to be admitted to the hospital but cannot be because there is no room for them.  We pray that more resources can be found. 

We pray for health care workers the world over who continually pour themselves out to help others--keep them safe, keep them strong, give them the rest they need. 

- Bless also people who have are eligible for the vaccine but have not yet chosen to get it.  May their decisions be based on factual information and not mis-information.  May they do what is best for BOTH themselves and their community. 

And may those who are intentionally spreading misinformation about this health crisis recognize the error of their ways and stop doing so.

[LOOK AT PHONE]

- Moment of silence…lifting up in prayer those we hold in our hearts.. others in this room and in our livestream…  [PAUSE]

- O God, bless the sick… those who are struggling… those who are grieving…caregivers… Give them strength and healing….  In Jesus name, Amen

PLEASE JOIN ME IN THE LORD’S PRAYER

- Our Father, who art in heaven
Hallowed be Thy Name
Thy kingdom come 
Thy will be done on earth
as it is in heaven 
- Give us this day our daily bread
And forgive us our debts
As we forgive our debtors`
- And lead us not into temptation
But deliver us from evil. 
For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.  AMEN

Rev. Dr. Marlayna Schmidt

Franklin Federated Church

Franklin, MA

Sermon: “From Insider to All”

Scripture:  Joel 2:28-29

God’s Spirit Poured Out

28 [a] Then afterward
    I will pour out my spirit on all flesh;
your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
    your old men shall dream dreams,
    and your young men shall see visions.
29 Even on the male and female slaves,
    in those days, I will pour out my spirit.

 Sermon:  “From Insider to All”

When I was a kid, growing up in Revere, Massachusetts in the 60’s and  70’s, everyone in my neighborhood was a member of a religious congregation--either of the Catholic Church down the street or the Synagogue in Chelsea or, in my case, a Baptist Church in Boston.  And we rarely set foot in each other’s houses of worship.  In fact, one of my Catholic friends told me that her grandmother had told her that she’d go to hell if she went into my church.  I was disturbed by this comment and told my mother about it, and to my surprise, she laughed.  And my mother said to me, “I was told that, as a Baptist, I would go to hell if I set foot in a Catholic Church!  It’s not true,” she said.  And then she continued with words to this effect:  “None of us is going to hell.  God is with us all.”  I was much relieved.

The Prophet Joel, writing to the ancient Hebrew people sometime between the 9th and 5th centuries B.C.E. said something similar to what my mother told me.  In today’s Scripture Joel tells us that God says, “I will pour out my spirit on all flesh.”   Emphasis on the “all.”  And in case the people didn’t get it, Joel spells it out a bit further for them:  God has chosen to gift God’s Spirit on all people, even on those whom society granted no power.   Old people (you know, those whom our society calls “geezers”); young people (folks we may call “naïve idealists”); daughters (the gender whom Joel’s society actively discriminated against); slaves (people whom the ancient world barely recognized as people.)  God has chosen to pour out God’s Spirit on all of them, particularly on those whom society deemed as unworthy. 

Interestingly enough, however, from the context of the whole Book of Joel, it’s clear that “all flesh” to the Prophet Joel meant “all of ancient Israel”--NOT including Israel’s enemies.  For Joel, the coming of the Day of the Lord when the Spirit will be poured referred to a time in history not yet arrived when “God will do away with all enemies and usher in a final Kingdom of Goodness and Peace” for Israel.  (NIB, Vol. VII, p. 327)  The outpouring of God’s Spirit was good news for everyone in ancient Israel, not just the privileged in Israeli society, those with power and ability  to control their own destiny.  Yet, according to Joel’s understanding, the outpouring of God’s Spirit did not extend beyond ethnic, racial and national boundaries.  So, the coming of the Day of the Lord was thought to be very bad news for everyone else other than the ancient Israelites.

Not so in the days of the early church.  In the late first century, when the Apostle Luke (or someone from his community) was writing the Book of Acts (in the New Testament) he quotes this passage from Joel, and Luke’s understanding of the people on whom God’s Spirit was poured out, people whom God deemed as worthy, has expanded exponentially.  As we see from the stories included in Acts, Luke and the other early church leaders understood that when this passage said “all” it meant that God was pouring out God’s Spirit on Jews and Gentiles, people from all ethnicities, races, nations, and genders who repented of their sins and were baptized into the name of Jesus--both the privileged and those whom various societies deemed as unworthy and granted no power.  And Joel’s prophecy was not seen as something that would happen at some point in the future, it was seen as something that had already started happening, beginning with the resurrection of Christ and his giving of the Spirit--and continuing on into the future.  (NIB, Vol. VII, p. 327.) 

Over the centuries of Christian history, this passage from Joel has been interpreted many times.  And usually it was understood to mean that God’s Spirit was poured out only on a particular denomination of Christians, and which particular denomination depended on your viewpoint.  If you were Roman Catholic, you believed that God’s Spirit was poured out only on Catholics.  After the year 1054, when the Eastern Orthodox officially split with the Roman Catholic Church, if you were Eastern Orthodox, you believed God’s Spirit was poured out only on other members of the Eastern Orthodox brand of Christianity.  And after the Protestant Reformation, which began in the 16th century, when various other brands of Christianity began to arise, most people believed the Spirit “belonged” only to their own brand--be that Lutheran or Congregationalist or Baptist or Methodist or Presbyterian or whatever, and not the others. 

In the 1800 and 1900’s, thankfully, that understanding began to change.  In the early 1800’s, the Unitarians split with the Congregationalists and emphasized One God and the universal “salvation” of all of God’s followers.  Later, within Christianity, there was also an ecumenical movement, and people of our parents’ generation began to see the similarities in the various brands of Christianity and began to understand that God’s Spirit was not poured out exclusively on any one brand. 

And now, nearly 2000 years after the church began, we are reinterpreting this passage yet again, and more and more people are beginning to believe that God’s Spirit isn’t being poured out only on people who call themselves Christians--or even on people who are particularly religious.  More and more people--particularly those whom this book, Weird Church, describe as belonging to the green, yellow and turquoise value systems--are calling themselves “spiritual but not religious”--and it is the author’s understanding that God’s Spirit is being “poured out” on them as well.  (For an explanation of the various value systems described in this book, please refer to the spiral dynamics handout sheet, which is also accessible through the Thursday e-blast, which you can also find on the church website in the email section.)  In the words of this book, “The doors have been blown off [churches and religious institutions] and the sheep come and go as they will.”  (Weird Church, p. 45)

Which is a wild concept, isn’t it?  In some ways, it is incredibly exciting.  God’s Spirit is available to all, and new connections can form between people who in previous generations have not had much to do with each other.  But, in other ways, it is rather unsettling.  The “spiritual but not religious” folks are not joining religious institutions because they see no need to do so, which means that religious institutions are not taking in many new members, which also means that the institutions as we have known them are not sustainable.  We have to get creative if we want to sustain our religious institutions.

And we will talk more about ways we can get creative like that in later sermons in this series on the book Weird Church. 

But right now I want to make something very clear.  Jesus did not call his followers to sustain religious institutions.  He called his followers to be receptive to God’s Spirit.  To listen to God’s voice.  To be filled with God’s Love.  To dream dreams.  To catch a glimpse of God’s Vision for the world, which is a world in which those on the margins of society have as much “say” in how people are treated as those in positions of power and privilege. 

The chapter in Weird Church that talks about this Scripture is entitled “from Insider to All” and it describes a ministry shift that the church needs to make in the twenty first century.  We need to shift our focus from those who are “insiders” in our institutions to those who are not members.  And not for the purpose of making them members.  (Of course, some of them may become members, and that’s fine, wonderful, even, but seeking members should not be our purpose.)  Our focus on non-members should be for the purpose of listening to them, learning from them, hearing God’s voice in them, and growing with them in love and service.

How many times have people told us, “I’m spiritual but not religious”?  I’ve had 2 people say that to me in the past month.  I bet you have as well.  Some of our neighbors, our friends, even our own children and grandchildren have uttered those words.  What do they mean by them?  Have you asked them?  Have you listened to their answers?  I’m not sure I’ve listened closely enough.

As part of our recent Vision Process here at Franklin Federated Church, you articulated your Purpose as being “A Community of Abundant Welcome to All, Growing Together in Christ, and Serving with Love.”  One way we could grow in Christ would be by intentionally having conversations with people who are not members of FFC and listening for God’s Spirit speaking through them.  What do they have to tell us?  What values are they living out that Jesus preached?  Have they found ways to love and serve their neighbors that we haven’t thought of?  Could we partner with them in those ways? 

If I could give you--and me--some “homework” this summer, it would be to continue to engage in conversations with people who are not members of our church.  Next time you are walking around the farmer’s market or are at a cookout with your family, pray for an opportunity to engage in conversation with someone who identifies as spiritual but not religious.  Think of questions you might want to ask them ahead of time, and remember to listen to their answers.  Remember that God’s Spirit has been poured out on them, and pray that they will share something with you that you need hear. 

And remember, our goal in engaging people in conversation is to build connections and learn from them.  May God be with us in our welcoming, learning and growing this summer. 

Let us pray.

Loving God, we thank you for the words of the Prophet Joel and his expansive thinking that leads us to understand that your Spirit is poured out on all people, even those whom society grants no power.  Help us to form more connections with people around us.  Draw us into more conversations with people outside the four walls of our church, and help us to learn from them.  Lead us into the future that we might learn and grow and shine the light of your love in our community and beyond. 

And, God, Hear now our prayers for our community and our world…

- for people in Germany, France, and Belgium experiencing terrible floods.  We ask your blessing on the recovery effort.  May people receive the resources they need to survive and rebuild in ways that are safe.  Bless those who are grieving the loss of home and community and loved ones.  Give them comfort and strength …

- In the wake of a Federal Judge’s recent decision on DACA, we pray for Dreamers, who were brought here illegally as children.  Bless them as they face an uncertain future.  Keep them safe.  Help our congress to work together to come up with comprehensive immigration reform.

[LOOK AT PHONE]

- Moment of silence…lifting up in prayer those we hold in our hearts.. others in this room and in our livestream…  [PAUSE]

- O God, bless the sick… those who are struggling… those who are grieving…caregivers… Give them strength and healing….  In Jesus name, Amen

PLEASE JOIN ME IN THE LORD’S PRAYER

- Our Father, who art in heaven
Hallowed be Thy Name
Thy kingdom come 
Thy will be done on earth
as it is in heaven 
- Give us this day our daily bread
And forgive us our debts
As we forgive our debtors`
- And lead us not into temptation
But deliver us from evil. 
For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.  AMEN

Rev. Dr. Marlayna Schmidt

Franklin Federated Church

Franklin, MA

Sermon: “From the Illusion of a Christian Society to Christian Subversion"

Scripture:  Acts 4:7-20 - The Message

5-7 The next day a meeting was called in Jerusalem. The rulers, religious leaders, religion scholars, Annas the Chief Priest, Caiaphas, John, Alexander—everybody who was anybody was there. They stood Peter and John in the middle of the room and grilled them: “Who put you in charge here? What business do you have doing this?”

8-12 With that, Peter, full of the Holy Spirit, let loose: “Rulers and leaders of the people, if we have been brought to trial today for helping a sick man, put under investigation regarding this healing, I’ll be completely frank with you—we have nothing to hide. By the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, the One you killed on a cross, the One God raised from the dead, by means of his name this man stands before you healthy and whole. Jesus is ‘the stone you masons threw out, which is now the cornerstone.’ Salvation comes no other way; no other name has been or will be given to us by which we can be saved, only this one.”

13-14 They couldn’t take their eyes off them—Peter and John standing there so confident, so sure of themselves! Their fascination deepened when they realized these two were laymen with no training in Scripture or formal education. They recognized them as companions of Jesus, but with the man right before them, seeing him standing there so upright—so healed!—what could they say against that?

15-17 They sent them out of the room so they could work out a plan. They talked it over: “What can we do with these men? By now it’s known all over town that a miracle has occurred, and that they are behind it. There is no way we can refute that. But so that it doesn’t go any further, let’s silence them with threats so they won’t dare to use Jesus’ name ever again with anyone.”

18-20 They called them back and warned them that they were on no account ever again to speak or teach in the name of Jesus. But Peter and John spoke right back, “Whether it’s right in God’s eyes to listen to you rather than to God, you decide. As for us, there’s no question—we can’t keep quiet about what we’ve seen and heard.”

Sermon:  “From the Illusion of a Christian Society to Christian Subversion

Have you ever noticed how little kids can’t keep quiet when they have news to share?  Even when you tell them, “It’s a secret--don’t tell Mommy,” almost the first words out of their mouth when Mommy walks in the room are, “Daddy got you a present!”  Or, “Johnny broke the window!” Or “Uncle Tony doesn’t live with aunt Suzy any more!”  Watching children’s faces when they know a secret or have news to share, it’s almost like they physically struggling to keep the words inside--and to do so might make them burst.

I think that’s how it was with the Apostles, Peter and John, in today’s Scripture reading.  In Verse 20, Peter and John say, “As for us, there’s no question--we can’t keep quiet about what we’ve seen and heard.”  Like little kids with a secret, they simply can’t keep the words inside--they are bursting with news. 

And their news is all about Jesus.  About how God raised him from the dead.  About the message of salvation that Jesus preached:  about healing and wholeness and eternal life for ALL people who open their hearts to God. 

This was particularly good news for people living under the oppression of the Roman Empire, a totalitarian government that cared only about the citizens at the top of the food chain.  Jesus preached that, in contrast, God cares about those at the bottom of the food chain.  God cares about those whom the civil and religious authorities considered throw-aways:

·        lepers

·        prisoners

·        widows

·        orphans

·        women and children in general

·        prostitutes

·        tax collectors

·        people who were sick or disabled

·        foreigners

Peter and John couldn’t keep quiet about this radical message of God’s kingdom, of God’s tender, loving care for those at the bottom of the social ladder who are struggling to survive.  They preached that God cares about the people at the bottom--and we human beings should care about them too.  And they got in trouble for preaching that.  And not just preaching it--living it! 

After healing a man in Jesus’ name, a disabled man who had been unable to walk for years, Peter and John were arrested and brought before the combined civil and religious authority called the Sanhedrin, which was “the highest court of justice and the supreme council in ancient Jerusalem.” (MacBook Pro dictionary.)  The Sanhedrin kept them in jail overnight and then ordered them to keep quiet--about this particular healing, about Jesus’ name, about the resurrection from the dead, about everything. 

Why?  Because the Sanhedrin understood what would happen if Peter and John kept preaching and people kept listening:  Rome would crack down on them because they dared to challenge the empire.  And Rome wouldn’t only crack down on Peter and John--Rome would crack down on the Sanhedrin as well, because they had allowed Peter and John to preach against Rome.  And members of the Sanhedrin then would lose their privileged positions--and perhaps even their lives. 

This is the kind of passage that makes me glad we are living in a democracy that values free speech.  Thank God we do not live in a totalitarian regime that cracks down on people who speak up for justice, who advocate for people at the bottom of the food chain.

But even in a democracy like ours, it’s not always easy to speak up for justice, to question the status quo.  One reason is because when we start speaking up, it can make people uncomfortable--both the speakers and the hearers.  Part of the discomfort is because it is often anger that motivates us to speak.  We see someone being treated unfairly, and we speak out with an angry tone or use inflammatory words because we can’t stand what is happening, particularly if it has been happening for years and we havne’t been able to change it.  But the way we speak, sadly, can add fuel to the fire--because no one likes getting yelled at. 

We see this dynamic often in political discussions, don’t we?  Sometimes political discussions sound more like 2 enemies yelling at each other, using words as weapons against each other rather than 2 fellow citizens trying to understand each other’s point of view.  We are in such a divided place in our country right now that even the word “political” sounds like an derogatory epithet.  For example, one of the golf courses near my house actually has a sign in the club house, “No political discussions here.  This is a place of enjoyment.”  When I first saw the sign, I thought it was a joke, but wasn’t. If you want to play the course or eat in the clubhouse, you aren’t allowed to talk politics because it’s too volatile a topic!  And it affects business.  Wow!

In an atmosphere like this, it is a whole lot easier to keep quiet and talk about mundane things.  But as Christians, that is not what Jesus calls us to do.  Jesus calls us to speak up for justice for people at the bottom of the social ladder.  The hard part is finding ways to do it without having anger poison the conversation or turn it into a divisive political discussion.  And hear me:  I’m not saying we shouldn’t be angry when we witness injustice.  Of course, seeing vulnerable people treated unfairly makes us angry, as well it should!  And the longer the unfair treatment continues, the more the anger builds.

But if we let our anger steer the discussion, we aren’t going to be effective agents for change--and we aren’t going to be effective ambassadors for Christ, whose main characteristic and power is healing Love.  So when we see people at the bottom of the social ladder--outsiders, minorities, foreigners--being treated unfairly, we--as insiders, members of the majority, natives--we need to speak up in love on their behalf.  Like Peter and John, we need to witness to what we see and hear.  Like Peter and John, we need to be clear about our understanding of our mission in Christ’s name--to bring healing and wholeness to all people, especially those who are suffering most at the bottom of the social hierarchy. 

And, when we speak, we need to speak with humility.  Because, truth be told, we are not always in the shoes of Peter and John.  Sometimes, we are in the shoes of the Sanhedrin.  It’s like that old Dire Straits song from the 90’s, “Sometimes you’re the windshield, sometimes you’re the bug.”  I know that song is about the relationships, so it doesn’t fit exactly--but my point is that we are not always in the position of “good guy” apostles, underdogs speaking up for justice.  Sometimes, we are insiders, in a position of privilege and power, and our power and privilege, unbeknownst to us, is hurting other people.  Like the Sanhedrin, sometimes we are the ones at the top--or near the top--of the food chain, passing judgements, in control of resources.  And when we are in that position, like the Sanhedrin, we need to stop and ask questions. 

The questions the Sanhedrin ask in this passage are actually good ones:  “Who put you in charge here?  What business do you have doing this?  What should we do with these men?”  If only they had truly listened to Peter and John’s answers to these questions, considered the truth in their statements, and considered how God might be calling them to join Peter and John in speaking up for justice for the outsider, they could have actually used their power and privilege to help bring healing and wholeness to the whole community. 

As you know, I am preaching a series of sermons on this book, Weird Church.  Each week I am talking about a shift in ministry that the church needs to make in order to survive and thrive in this century--and to keep sharing the message of God’s transforming love with the world.  This week’s shift is described by the authors as a shift “From the illusion of a Christian Society to Christian Subversion.”   It’s mouthful of a title, but by it they mean that Christianity isn’t about just about passing down the same moral values that our society as a whole promotes.  Christianity is about having a relationship with the Risen Christ--accepting his Love in our hearts--and following his teachings in our lives, even when his teachings go counter to our culture.  So, even when our society says, “Be quiet.  Stop talking politics, you are making us uncomfortable.”  We need to answer as Peter and John did, continuing to work toward healing and wholeness for those on the bottom of the food chain and lovingly saying, “Whether it’s right in God’s eyes to listen to you rather than to God, you decide. As for us, there’s no question—we can’t keep quiet about what we’ve seen and heard.”

Let us pray:

Loving God, we thank you that you call us to be the church and continue Jesus’ work of love in the world.  We thank you for the privilege of being called to speak out for justice and fairness, especially for people on the bottom of the social ladder--outsiders, minorities, foreigners.  Help us to speak up for them in ways that can be heard, with care and humility.  Save us from poisoning conversations with our own anger.  By your powerful Spirit, give us the strength and courage we need to engage honestly and thoughtfully with others, particularly those who have different perspectives from us, and give us all ears to hear and hearts to act in love. 

And, God, Hear now our prayers for our community and our world…

- for our Jewish brothers and sisters experiencing a rise in antisemitic behavior, even here in Franklin…

[LOOK AT PHONE]

- Moment of silence…lifting up in prayer those we hold in our hearts.. others in this room and in our livestream…  [PAUSE]

- O God, bless the sick… those who are struggling… those who are grieving…caregivers… Give them strength and healing….  In Jesus name, Amen

PLEASE JOIN ME IN THE LORD’S PRAYER

- Our Father, who art in heaven
Hallowed be Thy Name
Thy kingdom come 
Thy will be done on earth
as it is in heaven 
- Give us this day our daily bread
And forgive us our debts
As we forgive our debtors`
- And lead us not into temptation
But deliver us from evil. 
For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.  AMEN

Rev. Dr. Marlayna Schmidt

Franklin Federated Church

Franklin, MA

. 

Sermon #2 in Weird Church Series: “From Fear to Freedom”

1 John 4:18

18 There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear; for fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not reached perfection in love.

Jeremiah 29:11

11 For 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.

1 Peter 2:9

9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people, in order that you may proclaim the mighty acts of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.

Sermon #2 in Weird Church Series:  “From Fear to Freedom”

My husband Paul and I live in Beverly, Massachusetts, which is right next to Salem.  Over the years, we have known a number of people who have had jobs in the tourism industry, since Salem is a tourist destination primarily because of the history of the witch trials--and also because of the city’s openness to a variety of spiritual practices.  One of our acquaintances, let’s call him Fred--not his real name--was working on his PhD in English literature at Salem State University, and to make ends meet, Fred took a part-time job as a fortune teller, reading tarot cards for tourists.  He took this job not because he believed in any magic behind tarot, but because he understood symbolism and was good at making up entertaining, optimistic predictions to go along with the symbols on the cards.  The tourists who came to him for readings enjoyed his predictions, didn’t take what he said too seriously, and paid him for his services, money that he sorely needed as a full-time student.  A win/win all around. 

Until Fred got a repeat client.  A local woman started coming to him for readings every time she had a decision to make in her life and was fearful she would make the wrong decision, fearful her future would be bleak.  The woman believed in the magic of the cards and wanted direction from Fred--assurances that would quell her fears--assurances that her future would turn out well and be pain free.  She looked for Fred to advise her what job to take, which relationship to pursue, what house to buy. 

When Fred realized what she was doing, he could not with good conscience continue telling the woman’s fortune.  He told her something to the effect of, “Your trust in me and my fortune telling is misplaced--I need you to know that this is supposed to be entertainment--I am making everything up.”  Fred was more than a bit worried that having said this, the woman would complain to his boss and Fred would lose his job.  But that’s not what happened at all.  The woman, interestingly enough, did not believe Fred.  She said something to the effect of, “Maybe you think you are making things up, but the cards don’t lie.”  It turned out there was nothing Fred could say to make her change her mind--to make her take him less seriously.  So, despite his needing the revenue, Fred, led by his conscience, quit his job.

My point?  In some ways, we are all like this woman.  We all harbor some fear of the future, and we all want to control--to some extent, at least--what our futures look like.  We all crave assurances that one choice is better than another, and, if are honest, I think we all could admit that, at least sometimes, it would be nice to have someone point out exactly which choice we should make to get the outcome that we want.   Wouldn’t it be nice, in some ways, to be told how to live so that pain could be eliminated--or at least minimized--for us and our loved ones?  It is very human to want this kind of control. 

And as Christians, haven’t we at times looked to God or the Bible for similar assurances and clarity of direction in order to quell our fear of the future, minimize pain, and get the outcome that we want?  Please don’t get me wrong, it is very appropriate to bring our fears to God and to look to God for direction and assurance.  In fact, our Scriptures for today all give us assurance that God loves us and wants the best for us--a future with hope. 

But here is what our Scriptures don’t say.  They don’t say that pain will be eliminated.  They don’t say that if we pray hard enough, we can control our future or that every step along the way will be happy and comfortable.  They don’t say that if we have faith we can maintain the status quo and that nothing will ever change in our lives.

In fact, the middle Scripture, from Jeremiah 29:11 that talks about God giving the people of ancient Israel a “future with hope” was written to them in 597 BCE, when they were in exile in the foreign land of Babylon, having experienced the overwhelming pain of losing homes and livelihoods and loved-ones--even their own freedom.  (New Interpreter’s Bible Commentary, Vol. VI, p. 791)  The hope in their future is not to be found in specific assurances that they will be restored to the same level of wealth and comfort they experienced before.  The hope in their future is to be found in relationships.  God’s love has never left them, and they will find hope and peace not in a restoration of wealth, but in an investment in relationships with God and with each other in their faith community. 

And even beyond the faith community.  Earlier in this same chapter (Jeremiah 29:7), the prophet directs them to also invest in the people around them who are NOT part of their faith community.  Specifically, the people of ancient Israel--the displaced exiles-- are directed to do something that must have seemed radical to them, counterintuitive.  They are directed to seek the peace and well-being of the foreigners among whom they are living--including the leaders who conquered their country and took them captive! 

It is in focusing on relationships--not outcomes--that we can move from fear to freedom.  When we focus on allowing the gift of God’s Love to fill our lives--when we focus on loving our neighbors as ourselves, regardless of our circumstances, that is when our fear will be cast out.  Our first Scripture (from the first letter of John the Elder) tells us that “perfect love casts out fear.”  Another way to translate the Greek word for “perfect” is “mature.”  Mature love.  (NIB, Vol. XII, p. 431) This is love that has moved beyond the rudimentary understanding of love as “warm feelings” to a deeper understanding of love as that which seeks the welfare of the other.  This is the kind of love that God has for us; it is a gift that we accept from God, and it is a gift that we can offer others. 

When we love like this, in the words of our last Scripture, we move “out of darkness into God’s marvelous light.”  When we love like this, our fear is “cast out” and both the present and the future shine with possibilities. 

Now, I realize that I am preaching these words in a time when we are-- hopefully--coming to the end of the worst pandemic the world has experienced in 100 years.  A pandemic that has led to the loss of over 3 million lives world-wide, according to statistics provided by the World Health Organization (who.int).  And I know that a number of people here participating in this worship service have lost loved ones in this pandemic--which is painful beyond words.  If you have experienced that kind of loss, know that your church family stands with you in that pain, and continues to hold you in our hearts.

I also realize that on top of that pain that has affected some of us, there are, other pains as well that affect us all.  The pandemic has also led to--and/or exacerbated-- huge shake-ups in all of our world’s systems:  government systems, health systems, economic systems, communication systems, education systems, justice systems, just to name a few.  We are still feeling the effects of these shake-ups, some more than others, and although we are in recovery in many ways--thanks be to God!--we are not out of the woods yet.  All of our institutions have been affected by these shake-ups, including the institution of church. 

As you may know, I have just started preaching a sermon series on a book called “Weird Church”--which has an upside down church building on the cover as a symbol of all of the social and cultural shake-ups we’ve been experiencing.  And in this book, chapter 1, entitled “Fear to Freedom” (where I got the title for today’s sermon), it says that the world is changing and predicts that we will see “the end of the institutional church as we have known it by 2050.”  Or perhaps a lot sooner--because this prediction was based on cultural shifts happening in 2016, when the book was written, which have been made worse by the pandemic. 

Now, we could react to our fear of this impending loss by just collapsing in despair--OR by trying hard to hold on to the institutional church as we’ve always known it, praying hard for God’s intervention to keep things the same and spare us the pain of change. 

However, while it may well be our natural, human tendency to react this way--to try to control the future to get the outcome we want and spare ourselves pain--reacting this way is not what God calls us to.  It is not God’s way. 

God’s way is to focus on building loving relationships rather than spending energy keeping the status quo in our systems.  Or in the words of the authors Estock and Nixon, p. 12 of the book, “It is incumbent on us to dare to cast aside fear, let go of our need to control the outcome, and put our hope in God.” 

This will free us up to try new ways of doing things, new ways where the marvelous light of God’s love can shine both for us and for people around us, some of whom may have never experienced God’s Love before. 

Let me give you an example--from your own experience here at Franklin Federated Church.  Last summer we--you--dared to try the new experience of having an outdoor worship service in the church parking lot.  It took A LOT of planning and organization and hours and people and equipment.  But you did it!  And not only did you provide a way for church members to connect with each other face-to-face, you provided an opportunity for folks in the neighborhood--people who just happened to be walking by, to hear the inspirational music that Julie planned and members of the choir sang with her.  And on top of that, you figured out how to livestream worship so that the congregation could expand beyond a physical location.  (Since we started meeting again in person, an average of 15 people watch live every Sunday morning--and many more watch during the week.)  And, who knows what seeds may have been planted by those moments of spiritual encounter when people saw and heard the faith community that meets in this place? 

So, may this book Weird Church and our own experiences of trying new things continue to inspire us to let go of our fear and trust God.  Specifically, may we dare to let go of our fear of not being able to control the future--in terms of the church and other things too.  And may we trust in God--that when we allow ourselves the freedom to focus on relationships, God will provide amazing opportunities for the marvelous light of God’s Love to shine in ways that transform the world. 

Let us pray. 

In the words of Rev. Al Carmines, we pray:

God of change and glory, God of time and space,

when we fear the future, give to us your grace…

As the old ways disappear,

let your love cast out all fear.

God, Hear now our prayers for our community and our world…

[LOOK AT PHONE]

- Moment of silence…lifting up in prayer those we hold in our hearts.. others in this room and in our livestream…  [PAUSE]

- O God, bless the sick… those who are struggling… those who are grieving…caregivers… Give them strength and healing….  In Jesus name, Amen

PLEASE JOIN ME IN THE LORD’S PRAYER

- Our Father, who art in heaven
Hallowed be Thy Name
Thy kingdom come 
Thy will be done on earth
as it is in heaven 
- Give us this day our daily bread
And forgive us our debts
As we forgive our debtors`
- And lead us not into temptation
But deliver us from evil. 
For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.  AMEN

Rev. Dr. Marlayna Schmidt

Franklin Federated Church

Franklin, MA

Sermon #3 in Weird Church Series: “From Settled Camp to Shalom on the Move”

Scripture Reading:  Luke 10:1-11

1After this the Lord appointed seventy others and sent them on ahead of him in pairs to every town and place where he himself intended to go. 2 He said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. 3 Go on your way. See, I am sending you out like lambs into the midst of wolves. 4 Carry no purse, no bag, no sandals; and greet no one on the road. 5 Whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace to this house!’ 6 And if anyone is there who shares in peace, your peace will rest on that person; but if not, it will return to you. 7 Remain in the same house, eating and drinking whatever they provide, for the laborer deserves to be paid. Do not move about from house to house. 8 Whenever you enter a town and its people welcome you, eat what is set before you; 9 cure the sick who are there, and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’ 10 But whenever you enter a town and they do not welcome you, go out into its streets and say, 11 ‘Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet, we wipe off in protest against you. Yet know this: the kingdom of God has come near.’

Sermon #3 in Weird Church Series:  “From Settled Camp to Shalom on the Move”

Did anyone hear or read the story in the news this week about Michael Packard, the lobsterman who was swallowed by a whale?  (All I could think of was--this is the Bible Story of Jonah the prophet come to life!)  I read about Michael’s adventure in the Boston Globe.  And when I say a read about it, I mean I devoured the article and enjoyed it immensely.  In case you didn’t read or hear about it, let me summarize it in one sentence:  A lobsterman was scuba-diving off the coast of Provincetown, when a humpback whale swallows him whole, scuba-equipment and all, and then brings him up to the surface of the water, spits him out, and, long story short, the man survives the whole thing unscathed with just some torn ligaments in his left leg.  And one heck of a fish story. Amazing!   (Boston Globe story by David Abel, June 17, 2021.)

As I was reading along, questions surfaced in my head, like they always do when I read anything.  My first question was, if the guy was a lobsterman, why didn’t he stay in the boat like all of the other lobstermen I’ve ever met?  What kind of lobsterman scuba-dives for his catch?  Isn’t that a little extreme?  But as I read the story, I got answers to my questions.  Michael Packard isn’t your run-of-the-mill lobsterman.  He’s a real character who loves the ocean and lives life to the full.  He sees his work as an opportunity for joy and adventure and interaction with nature.  It’s clear from what he told the Globe reporter, David Abel, that living any kind of conventional life--even the conventional life of a lobsterman who stays inside a boat, would severely dampen his spirit.  Michael Packard finds joy and fulfillment in getting out of the boat and into the sea to look for his catch, despite any dangers he might encounter there, like whales looking for their next meal--or great white sharks, which he’d run into a time or two!!    

When reading this story, my mind kept flashing back to today’s Scripture reading where Jesus sends out 70 of his followers into the towns of Samaria, the foreign land north of Judea.  Up until this point, most of his followers had been sticking close to Jesus--staying in the boat, if you will, and Jesus was the one doing the outreach.  But in this chapter Jesus changes tacks and sends his followers out instead.  Commentators speculate that this group of 70 may actually have been ALL of his followers--both men and women, including the 12 disciples.  If you’re wondering about the number “70”, scholars suggest that this alludes to a passage in Genesis chapter 10 where the number of nations in the world is listed as 70.  So Jesus sending out 70 of his followers symbolizes his command for the church to go out into the whole world--to all nations, no one excluded-- with the message of God’s love. 

And, thankfully, Jesus gives them some instructions.  He tells them to begin with prayer.  And he tells them it’s not always going to be easy.  Yes, some people will receive the message with joy and acceptance.  BUT, others will reject it.  Alluding to this mixed reaction, in verse 3 Jesus says, “…I am sending you out like lambs into the midst of wolves.”  (Or, if he was speaking to us today, he might say, “like lobstermen into the sea with sharks.”)  Jesus was letting the followers of his day know that getting out with his message of love carries some risks, so they should be aware of those risks and do things to mitigate them, but they were not called to play it safe.  Similarly, Jesus’ followers today--we--are not called to play it safe and just stay inside our church buildings.  We are called to get out of our buildings and go out into the world, starting with the neighborhoods right around us.  And not just a few of us are called, not just those who are extroverts or those who want to be missionaries.  ALL of us are called to get out of our buildings and into the communities around us.

The Greek word for church used in the Bible is “ec-clee-sia,” and it means “a called-out people of God.”  Or, as this book describes it, the word ecclesia refers to “a community of believers called out of the mainstream to a weird enterprise…for the sake of sacrificial love...”  (Weird Church, p. 14)  One of this book’s main points is reminding us of what we sometimes forget--that the main definition of “church” is the people, not the building.  In fact, when the word ecclesia was first used in the Bible, there were no church buildings.  Churches--that is, ecclesia, communities-- met outside or in people’s houses for the first few centuries after Jesus’ death.  Churches only began to have designated buildings after Christianity became institutionalized as the State Religion of the Roman Empire following the conversion of the Emperor Constantine in the year 312.  That’s when temples that had previously housed Roman gods were given to communities of Jesus’ followers and began to be used as places of worship for Christians. 

But having buildings for churches to meet in--wonderful though it was in many ways, brought its own set of challenges.  Particularly in our day and age, church buildings are often old and in need of repair and were designed to meet the needs that congregations had a hundred years ago, not needs that the church has today.  Further, church buildings are often expensive to maintain--not just in terms of money but also in terms of time and energy.  (I’m not telling you anything you don’t already know.)

However, church buildings, if designed and built--or retrofit-- with a current community’s Vision in mind, can be great assets!  Buildings can serve as launching pads for ministry.  Church buildings can be places where the community of Christ can meet to re-charge their batteries through worship and prayer, education, support and planning for mission.  Church buildings can also be places open to the wider community where people can gather to engage in activities that are in line with a church’s Vision and values.  So church buildings aren’t bad in and of themselves, as long as the people of the church--the ecclesia-- recognize that the buildings are tools to be used to serve Christ’s mission of going out into the world. 

But let me get back to our Scripture reading.  Jesus sends out all of his followers 2 by 2 into the surrounding towns to interact with people who share God’s Peace:  to eat with them, heal their sick, and share the good news of God’s Kingdom of Love.  In other words, Jesus’ followers are directed to build relationships with those who are open to it, to take care of people’s physical needs, and proclaim the Gospel.  And he had to send them all out into the surrounding towns to do that, because that’s where the people were. 

Because, when it comes right down to it, building relationships with the people around us is what Jesus calls us to do.  That is what church should be all about.  Because it is is within the mutual give and take of relationships-- where people grow to trust each other enough to share their stories of hope and disappointment, pain and celebration-- it is in relationship that God’s Love comes near to us and transforms our lives.

You know what I’m talking about.  I know that many of you listening to me have found those kind of trusting relationships here at Franklin Federated Church.  You have found people with whom you can share your stories of hope and disappointment, pain and celebration--and with whom you can lift all of those up in prayer to God.  And that is wonderful!  Relationships like that are what make life worth living.  Relationships like that--real community--are what people are longing for and may not have found.  May not even know exist. 

So, we need to continue what we/you have been doing--using the church building as a launching pad for ministry.  Grounding ourselves in worship and prayer and THEN going out as Jesus calls us to.  Getting outside the church building.  Striking up conversations with people on sidewalks, out by the little library, on the common, at town events like the Farmers Market, in the grocery store.  Everywhere we go, we need to look for opportunities to get to know the people around us, people whom God loves.  And as we get to know people, as we listen to their stories of hope and disappointment, pain and celebration, and as we share our stories with them, we build the kind of community that Jesus calls us to, a community that is not bound by the 4 walls of any building but shines brightly out in the world. 

******

Let us pray

Loving God, we thank you that you call us to be the church, the ecclesia, the called-out people of God.  We recognize that it is both a wonderful privilege and a challenging opportunity for growth.  Renew us with your Spirit so that we have the strength and enthusiasm to live out this calling.  Gently nudge us out into the world to build relationships with people who are seeking the same things we are:  your peace, fellowship, healing, and good news.  Give us courage to strike up conversations with the people that we meet.  Increase our awareness and our ability to listen.  And grant us joy and grace as we share together our stories of hope and disappointment, pain and celebration. 

And, God, Hear now our prayers for our community and our world…

[LOOK AT PHONE]

- Moment of silence…lifting up in prayer those we hold in our hearts.. others in this room and in our livestream…  [PAUSE]

- O God, bless the sick… those who are struggling… those who are grieving…caregivers… Give them strength and healing….  In Jesus name we pray…

PLEASE JOIN ME IN THE LORD’S PRAYER

- Our Father, who art in heaven
Hallowed be Thy Name
Thy kingdom come 
Thy will be done on earth
as it is in heaven 
- Give us this day our daily bread
And forgive us our debts
As we forgive our debtors`
- And lead us not into temptation
But deliver us from evil. 
For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.  AMEN

Rev. Dr. Marlayna Schmidt

Franklin Federated Church

Franklin, MA

Sermon: “The World is Changing. Will the Church Change with it?”

Scripture:  Revelation 21:1-5a

1Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. 2 And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying,

“See, the home of God is among mortals.
He will dwell with them;
they will be his peoples,
and God himself will be with them;
4 he will wipe every tear from their eyes.
Death will be no more;
mourning and crying and pain will be no more,
for the first things have passed away.”

5 And the one who was seated on the throne said, “See, I am making all things new.”

Sermon:  “The World is Changing.  Will the Church Change with it?”

Several years ago on a Sunday morning, in a church I was serving, I talked about reasons why people come to church.  I don’t remember all that I said, but I know that I focused on coming to church to experience the healing presence of God, who comforts and cares for us.  After that service, a member of the church came up to me and said something I will never forget.  I don’t remember his exact words, but the gist of it was this, “Comfort and care are not the main reasons I come to church.  I come to be challenged by God’s Spirit into new ways of thinking and acting-- and responding to the changes in the world.” 

 “Wow!”  I remember thinking.  And, then later I asked myself this question:  “Is my way of preaching and leading worship making enough room for God to lovingly challenge the status quo?”   

This book, Weird Church, by Beth Ann Estock and Paul Nixon, can help us do just that.  I will be preaching a sermon series on this book over the summer.  The descriptions and stories and examples in this book make room for God’s Spirit to challenge us--the church-- how to better respond to changes in our world.  And let me be clear from the beginning--the church isn’t called by God to respond to change only so we can keep an institution going.  We are challenged by God’s Spirit to better respond to change so that we can be faithful in experiencing and proclaiming the message that Jesus preached and lived.

And that message, in a nutshell, is found in today’s scripture from the last Book in the Bible, the Book of Revelation.  In this Book, the writer, known as  “John the Elder” a Jewish Christian possibly from the city of Ephesus, poetically describes the vision he received from God.  It is a hopeful vision given by God to the church that was going through a time of conflict in the first century A.D.  It is a vision that gives hope and reminds the people that the brutal aspects of the Roman empire-- the painful things of this world-- will not have the last word.  God will.  God is in the process of creating a NEW heaven and NEW earth, which verse 3 describes like this. 

Verse 3:      “See, the home of God is among mortals.
God will dwell with them;
they will be God’s peoples,
and God himself will be with them;

“God himself will be with them.”  God is with them and us. We human beings are not left alone or destitute.  There is a power stronger stronger than the destructive forces at work in the world.  There is a power stronger than death.  And that power is the Love of God, who like a caring parent, hears us when we cry, takes us in her arms, and tenderly wipes away every tear from our eyes. 

This is the God the Scriptures point us to--and the God whose Love we are to proclaim and share with our world.  The God whose Love and Grace, Forgiveness and Justice has the power to transform lives.

But the problem is, our world is changing, and some of the ways we used to experience, share and proclaim God’s Love no longer work, at least not for a majority of people.  So this book--and God’s Spirit--challenge us to find new ways to experience, proclaim and share the Love of God--because we still have a message that people need to hear, but they can’t hear it if we keep saying it the same old ways.

This book starts off in the introduction giving us framework for understanding the social changes happening in our world that “are driving the North American decline of organized religion.” (Weird Church, p. ix).  The framework is called Spiral Dynamics, and it describes the cultural and social evolution of human beings over time--both of the human race as a whole, and of individual human beings.  The basic premise of this Spiral Dynamics framework is that as “the conditions of existence change,” we human beings “change our psychology and rules for living to adapt to these new conditions.”

I know I’m giving you a lot of information here, but I ask you to bear with me, because understanding this framework of social change is necessary in order to understand how we in the church can positively respond to the changes happening around us. 

The framework consists of 8 different “value systems,” each one created by human beings in response to their living conditions at the time.  In this framework, the human race started out in the first “value system,” and then evolved into the next one.  Also, as individual human beings, every one of us starts out in the first value system as a baby, and then we move along into the next one as our living conditions change.  Depending on how our conditions change, we may move back and forth among value systems.  And although the general movement is from one value system to the next one in line, it is important to note that one is not necessarily better than the other, each one can be a faithful response to the conditions people find themselves in.  And, to quote Estock and Nixon, “Each of these value systems can be expressed in both healthy and unhealthy ways.” 

So, drawing on this book, let me give a brief, verbal snapshot of each value system, noting that each system is assigned a color to make it easy to refer to them.  People who are present in person today have received a detailed summary sheet they can refer to throughout this series.  That sheet will be available on-line this coming week.  People watching via the internet will see summary slides--with pictures!-- as I talk. 

[SHARE CAVE MAN SLIDE] First value system is Beige.  It literally dates back to the Stone Age and is best described as a “survival mentality.  All humans begin at this stage at birth and can revert to this stage through illness or catastrophic disasters.” (p. x)

[PURPLE SLIDE] Second value system is Purple.  Purple is a “self-sacrificing value system” that arose when people banded together in tribes.  It is characterized by “allegiance to the chief, elders, ancestors, and clan.”  Story, myth, ritual and superstition were the ways people found meaning in life and explained what they could not understand.  “The primordial stories in the early part of the Book of Genesis originated in a purple context.”  One place we see the purple value system displayed in our world today is when people feel it would be disloyal to God if they chose to believe the Scientific Theory of Evolution rather than the literal interpretation of the Creation Story in the Bible (p. x)

[RED SLIDE] Third value system is Red.  Red arose as a reaction to the self-sacrificing mentality of Purple.  It is an “ego-centric system” which--on the one hand--encourages the healthy expression of energy and creativity.  But, on the flip side, can encourage “dominating and aggressive” behavior.  Out in the world, we currently see this value system lived out in the behavior of two-year-olds, teenagers asserting their independence, gangs, contact sports, the mafia, and Mardi Gras. (p. x)  In the church, I bet we’ve all seen this value system lived out in healthy ways when teams of people are allowed to creatively run with a new idea for ministry--and unhealthy ways when a small group tries to dominate agendas and force through a change without considering other options. 

[BLUE SLIDE] Fourth value system is Blue.  In this system, “character and moral fiber [are built] as one sacrifices the self to a transcendent cause, truth, or righteous pathway…  With all blue systems, the ‘old and cherished ways’ are the only ways.”  Haven’t we all witnessed this dynamic at a church meeting at some point or other when a respected member of the church--someone who has given much of their time, talent and treasure--speaks out against a proposed change not because they have weighed all the pros and cons but only because “we’ve never done it that way before and so it will never work.”  

[ORGANGE SLIDE] Fifth value system is Orange.  “Orange shows up once blue stabilizes the world and brings order.”  The focus is on promoting individual “achievement and personal success…  This is a movement from the sacred to the secular, [and stresses] the conviction that societies prosper through reason and science.”   (p. xi)  The “self-help” movement grew out of this value system, and the life-coaching style of preaching arose in it as well.  (p. xi)

[GREEN SLIDE] The sixth value system is Green.  “Green came onboard as people began to question the affluence and excesses of orange.  Global warming, world peace, eliminating hunger, Black Lives Matter, and closing the gap between the “have’s” and the “have not’s” are important issues within this value system.  The focus moves back from the individual to the larger community.”  You may be noticing a pattern here--Each successive value system is a reaction to the one previous--the pendulum swinging between the poles of self-sacrifice and self-focus.   Many Millennials live out of a Green value system, “which is why they struggle with church organizations designed for folks with Blue and Orange sensibilities.” (p. xii)

[YELLOW SLIDE] The seventh value system is Yellow.  “Yellow is the first value system that can respect all the perspectives along the spiral as healthy and needed [depending on circumstances]… People operating in the yellow zone think and act from an inner-directed core…they are comfortable with paradox, taking ‘both/and’ perspectives.  They look to chaos as a gift that helps to leverage the potential for healthy change… You will know them by their capacity to think beyond the confines of politically regimented thinking or behavior.” (p. xii)

[TURQUOISE SLIDE] The eighth and final value system is Turquoise.  Turquoise “stands in awe of the cosmic order in which every person, species, and creature belongs… “ This value system works to get everyone-- on all sides of an issue-- to the same table to talk--literally (when groups are small) and figuratively (when they are not).  The people operating out of this value system--both in and outside the church-- aspire to “move beyond all the barriers of race, culture, and nation toward a global tribalism.” (p. xiii)

[STOP SHARE]

So, let me summarize:  in this Spiral Dynamics framework, there are 8 value systems, and each of us, depending on the circumstances in our lives, operates primarily out of one system, and we are most comfortable in that one system.  So when we bump into people or organizations operating primarily out of a different value system, it can feel very weird and unsettling.  In fact, the authors of this book point out that many of us feel very weird and unsettled much of the time these days--both in and outside the church-- because “this is the first time in history when all the colors of the spiral [--all the value systems--] are bumping into each other, creating cultural wars and political polarities around the globe.” (p. xiii)  In the words of these authors, the whole world is going through “an epic cultural shakeup.”  (p. xv)

Because of this shakeup, churches face great challenges in terms of how to minister to both our current members and the new people we want to reach--because different value systems require different types of ministry.  All that to say, we in churches need to learn how to adapt our ministry to the different value systems that are changing around us.   

This book--and this series of sermons I am preaching this summer-- will explore 7 significant ministry implications that flow from the ways the value systems are shifting around us--particularly those that are moving from blue to orange to green to yellow. 

Each chapter in the book--and each sermon--will describe a different cultural shift and a shift the church at large needs to make in ministry in order to continue to proclaim the Love of God in ways that can be heard.  May the God who continues to work to make “all things new” be with us as we explore these shifts.  And may we examine which shifts God is calling us to make in our own lives in order to travel with God into God’s vibrant future.

PRAYER

God, we trust that you are with us even now making “all things new” in our world.  Bless us as we encounter value systems that seem weird to us.  Help us to engage with people who operate out of systems different than ours, and help us learn from them.  Guide us into the future and help us to change in the ways you want us to so that your church may continue Jesus’ mission of Love in the world. 

Hear now our prayers for our community and our world…

- Moment of silence…lifting up in prayer those we hold in our hearts.. others in this room and in our livestream…  [PAUSE]

- O God, bless the sick… those who are struggling… those who are grieving…caregivers… Give them strength and healing….  In Jesus name, Amen

PLEASE JOIN ME IN THE LORD’S PRAYER

- Our Father, who art in heaven
Hallowed be Thy Name
Thy kingdom come 
Thy will be done on earth
as it is in heaven 
- Give us this day our daily bread
And forgive us our debts
As we forgive our debtors`
- And lead us not into temptation
But deliver us from evil. 
For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.  AMEN

Rev. Dr. Marlayna Schmidt

Franklin Federated Church

Franklin, MA

Sermon “Reflections on Memorial Day”

Scripture Readings 

Psalm 34:14 - “...seek peace, and pursue it.”  

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

Sermon “Reflections on Memorial Day”

Twenty or so years ago, when my sister and I cleaned out the family home after my mother died, we found a box of old keepsakes we had never seen before.  One of the items in the box was a typed copy of excerpts from my Grandmother Schmidt’s diary.  One of my aunts had typed it up and given it as a present to all of her siblings, including my dad.  (My Grandmother Schmidt had 13 children, 11 of whom lived until adulthood; she raised her children on a farm in Pawnee Rock, Kansas.)   

My grandmother started her diary in the early 1940’s, after all of her children had grown up and left home.  By that time, she had been a widow already for 18 years, and two of her sons were serving in active combat in the Army in World War II.  I want to share with you a couple of her brief diary entries.  She writes: “And now we are in the Beautiful Month of May in 1944 and never have the lilacs, yellow roses and peonies been so pretty and full of blossoms as in this year, lilies, too.  But I long for my children.  I am alone so much and war goes on, and I don’t know where the boys are, but are under God’s sky somewhere and I must wait till they come.” 

And then another entry, a year and a half later:  “Now it is October, 1945.  Everything looks pretty, rains have come, and the good news [is] that war is over and the boys will be home sometime soon.  Be it said that God has kept my sons, in this conflict of bloodshed, so far.  Almost four years have passed and I have been by myself a good bit but I could pray for my family.” 

Every time I read these excerpts, I cry.  You can hear the pain in her writing:  the pain of loneliness; the pain of not knowing what horrors her beloved sons were living through; the pain of not knowing whether or not they were even still living.  And there was another pain, as well.  My grandmother was a pacifist.  She was a Mennonite, which is a Protestant denomination, like Amish, and it is a central Mennonite belief that human beings should abstain from war, no matter what.  Her understanding was based in Scripture, which I will get into a little bit later.  However, as often happens in families, some of her children believed differently, and two of her sons--my uncles-- volunteered to fight for their country. 

I bring all of this up to illustrate what we already know--and some of you know firsthand--that war is painful and complex.  Even when we are fighting for the ideals that we all hold dear--justice, freedom, democracy--combatants and their families are not spared from pain.  Some of it is physical pain from injuries; some of it is the emotional pain of combat:  grief and guilt, fear and anger and shame; and some of it is the emotional pain that arises because family members have different beliefs and understandings of a particular war--or war in general.

And this is why communities come together on Memorial Day, and why we remember Memorial Day in our worship this weekend. Regardless of any of our particular beliefs or understandings about war, we come together to acknowledge our shared pain.  We come together to thank all those who have served and to remember especially those who have paid the highest price and given their lives fighting for democratic ideals--so that the rest of us could live in freedom.  In fact, we are able to be here today in freedom because of them--thanks be to God.  So to honor them, let us remember today to pray for them, for each other, for our country, and for our world.  And, as followers of Jesus, let us each and all pledge our lives to work for peace, for that is what both of our Scripture readings today call us to do. 

Psalm 34:14 says, “…seek peace and pursue it.”  This verse of Scripture is an acknowledgement that peace is not something that is to be passively accepted; it is something to be actively pursued.  The word for peace in Hebrew is shalom, which does not mean absence of conflict but rather means finding healing, wholeness, and salvation in God even despite our circumstances.  And the pursuit of peace begins by humbly turning to God and joining in partnership with God to create a peace that is based on God’s values.  We can’t create a peace by ourselves, at least not peace that lasts.  We need God’s love, justice, grace, and forgiveness as a foundation in order to build a lasting peace in our world.

Jesus, in Matthew 5:9, says:  “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God.”  For Jesus, also, peace is not something that is to be passively accepted; it is to be actively pursued.  He says we need to “make” peace.  One commentator puts it this way, “[The word] ‘Peacemakers’ does not connote a passive attitude, but positive actions for reconciliation.”  (Professor Eugene Boring in New Interpreter’s Bible Commentary, Vol. VIII, p. 180).  In fact, this verse, as you may know, is part of a larger passage in Matthew called “The Beatitudes,” which all scholars agree can be traced back to the teaching of the historical Jesus.  Jesus, in the Beatitudes, says things that challenge the common wisdom of people in his day-- and ours.  He encourages his followers to base their actions NOT on things that may help them succeed in the world in terms of money or possessions or power--but rather to base their actions--our actions-- on God’s values.  Values which build God’s Kingdom of Love, God’s kindom of relationships. 

So my friends, this Memorial Day weekend, let us come together to remember in prayer those who have died to defend the values we all hold dear.  Let us acknowledge the pain and sacrifices made by them and their families, and let us honor their memory by following Jesus--pledging ourselves to be channels of God’s love, justice and peace in the world.  Let us pray.

PRAYER (first paragraph adapted from Touch Holiness)

Spirit of the Living God, we confess that we have not always accepted the challenge of living your peace in the world.  Sometimes we define peace in ways that preserve our own self-interests, overlooking the possibility that your peace may call us to great sacrifice.  Sometimes we are content to believe that speaking of peace is sufficient, forgetting that your peace calls us to action and transformation.  Sometimes, when we are speaking of peace, we may disrespect the sacrifice that men and women have made in fighting to preserve human freedoms.  Merciful God, forgive our lack of imagination and courage; forgive our disrespect.  Empower us to strive anew to make our world a place in which your just and loving peace abounds. 

In the name of Jesus, who is called “the Prince of Peace,” hear us as we pray for our world.  We pray for those places that are torn by conflict and war.  And we pray that leaders--and people-- will align themselves with your values of justice for all, particularly for those who have suffered for generations, the poor and marginalized.  We think particularly of Israel and Palestine.  We are grateful for the ceasefire that is now in place, and we pray that leaders and people can find ways to move forward that address the issue of equity between peoples.

And God, in our own country, we remember the 100th anniversary of the Tulsa massacre, where a thriving African American community was decimated and 300 black people lost their lives at the hands of white people fueled by hatred and fear.  Oh God, help us to learn from this horrific history.  Help us to acknowledge that, as human beings, there are times when hatred and fear leap into our hearts like armed warriors--leading us to lash out at those who are different from us in race or culture.  And the more power we have, the more damage we can do to the other.  Help us, O God, not to surrender to these base emotions.  May reason prevail that we may see all human beings as brothers and sisters despite our skin color.  And may we truly work for liberty and justice for all. 

  We pray also for our community….

 - Moment of silence…lifting up in prayer those we hold in our hearts.. others in this room and in our livestream…  [PAUSE]

- O God, bless the sick… those who are struggling… those who are grieving…caregivers… Give them strength and healing….  In Jesus name, Amen

PLEASE JOIN ME IN THE LORD’S PRAYER

- Our Father, who art in heaven
Hallowed be Thy Name
Thy kingdom come 
Thy will be done on earth
as it is in heaven 
- Give us this day our daily bread
And forgive us our debts
As we forgive our debtors`
- And lead us not into temptation
But deliver us from evil. 
For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.  AMEN

Rev. Dr. Marlayna Schmidt

Franklin Federated Church

Franklin, MA

Note:  First part of sermon is based on comments I made on May 27, 2019 at Memorial Day Services in Manchester-by-the-Sea, MA.

Sermon: “The Mothering Work of the Holy Spirit"

Scripture:  John 14: 23-29

                23Jesus answered him, “Those who love me will keep my word, and my Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. 24Whoever does not love me does not keep my words; and the word that you hear is not mine, but is from the Father who sent me.

          25 “I have said these things to you while I am still with you. 26But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything, and remind you of all that I have said to you. 27Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid. 28You heard me say to you, ‘I am going away, and I am coming to you.’  If you loved me, you would rejoice that I am going to the Father, because the Father is greater than I. 29And now I have told you this before it occurs, so that when it does occur, you may believe.

****

Sermon:  “The Mothering Work of the Holy Spirit

In a couple of weeks it will be Pentecost, when we celebrate the coming of the Holy Spirit.  I will be away on that day, so I thought I would preach on the Holy Spirit a couple of weeks early—because it seems to me there is a strong connection between the Holy Spirit and the work of mothering…

Although my own mother passed away 22 years ago, I can still remember many of the things she would say to me on a regular basis: 

-         “Beware of bacteria—always wash your hands!”  (She was a nurse, always mindful of good hygiene, as we all are, these days…) 

-         “Don’t wear underwear with holes in it—just in case you’re in an accident and have to be taken to the hospital.”

-         “You can’t always get what you want.” (I think my mother got that one from the Rolling Stones rock group.) 

I’m sure that each of you can think of things that your own mother or grandmother or mother-figure said to you that have stuck with you over the years.  (In fact, perhaps during coffee hour today, you might want to share some of those sayings with each other.)

For lots of us, our mother’s sayings have stuck with us over the years and have guided our behavior even years after we’ve become adults.  (Even if sometimes we’d prefer that the sayings wouldn’t stick quite so much, there they are!)

Each time I read today’s Scripture text about the Holy Spirit, I am struck by how much the Holy Spirit functions like a loving, caring mother.

Today’s scripture is from the Gospel of John in the New Testament.  The New Testament was originally written in Greek, and in today’s reading, we find an interesting Greek word that is used to refer to the Holy Spirit; the word is “paraclete.”  (I remember the first time I heard this Greek word in seminary, I thought the professor was saying “parakeet!”  which immediately sent my mind off on a tangent.  I mean, I’d heard the Holy Spirit compared to a dove, but a parakeet!?) 

But, of course, the professor was saying, “paraclete,” which is a word full of meaning.  It is found in verse 26 of today’s reading, and it is translated here as “Advocate.”  But, actually, it means a lot more than just that.  It can be translated as “counselor,” “comforter,” “helper,” “advocate,” “teacher,” and “friend.”  (I remember the words by remembering their first letters:  CCH, ATF.  Counselor, comforter, helper, advocate, teacher, friend.  One commentator suggests that “perhaps the true meaning [of the word] lies in a combination of all these meanings together.” (from Whole People of God, “Biblical Background” section, May 13th, 2007.) 

So, in other words, the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity, is the spiritual presence of God that counsels us, comforts us, helps us, advocates for us, teaches us, and is a friend to us.  All of these things are what Jesus did for the disciples when he was physically present on earth.  And they are now the things that the Holy Spirit does in Jesus’ physical absence.  They are also the things that a loving mother does for her children.  In fact, one ancient translation of today’s text from John 14, a translation written in Palestinian Aramaic, dates back to the 2nd or 3rd century and actually refers to the Holy Spirit in the feminine gender.  Verse 26 of that ancient translation of John 14 reads,  
“But She—the Spirit-the Paraclete, whom He will send to you--my Father-in my name—She will teach you everything; She will remind you of that which I have told you.” *

(So, apparently, I am not the first one to make the connection between a loving mother and the Holy Spirit of God!)

Why would the Holy Spirit need to play the role of a loving mother for us?  The answer, of course, is obvious:  because, there are times when we all could use a Heavenly Mother!  Life is fraught with difficulties.  There is just no way around it.  Each of us has our fair share—and sometimes more than our fair share--of pain, distress, dysfunction, illness, loss, and financial troubles-- just to scratch the surface of the things we have to deal with in this life.  Sadly, none of these things can be fixed overnight.  In fact, sometimes they can’t be fixed at all—only managed.  In my job, I often wish that I had a magic wand sent from God that I could wave over the congregation during the benediction and say, “Everything is fixed now; go in peace!” 

But we all know life doesn’t work that way.  God doesn’t work that way.  Yes, sometimes there are miracles, and we thank God for them!  But, most of the time, we don’t have a magic cure-all.  What we have instead is a Paraclete, a Holy Spirit, a Heavenly Mother who doesn’t fix things, but rather walks beside us as “counselor,” “comforter,” “helper,” “advocate,” “teacher,” and “friend,” through all that life can bring, even through the “Valley of the Shadow of Death.”  This loving presence doesn’t take the pain away, but she helps us bear it.

And this, my brothers and sisters in Christ, brings us to the crux of this passage.  Because the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete, our loving, Heavenly Mother, walks with us, we are able to live a life characterized by Peace.  As Jesus says, this Peace is not the same as “the world’s” definition of peace.  It is not a “false promise of security…nor is it the end of conflict.”  (New Interpreter’s Bible, Vol. IX, p. 751.)  It is a “peace that passes all understanding,” a Peace that is grounded not in circumstance, but in the loving presence of God with us. 

Let me give you an example of how this works.  Many years ago a small group of people from a church I was serving decided that we would do the 26-mile “Walk for Hunger” together in Boston, a walk that I am guessing some of you have done as well.  This year I heard that it is being held virtually, like so many things…Our group of walkers, back in the day, consisted of a spry woman in her 50’s, an athletic man in his 40’s, a spunky teenage girl, and me—I was in my early 30’s at the time.  I thought I was in pretty good shape when we started the walk, but by the time we were half-way through, 13 miles in, my feet hurt so bad, I thought I was going to keel over!  At first, I tried to hide my pain from the group, because I didn’t want to seem like a wimp when the rest of the group was doing so well, but after a while, it was hard to hide the fact that I was limping from my blisters. 

So, at my request, we all sat down on the lawn of a church we were passing at the time, and I took off my sneakers.  The woman in her 50’s opened her back-pack and handed me a zip-lock baggie full of ointment and Bandaids; the athletic man confessed that he was glad I wanted to stop, because his feet hurt too, but he was too embarrassed to admit it; and the teenaged girl pulled a candy bar out of her pocket, broke it in 4 pieces, and shared it with all of us.  It reminded me of communion!  Then somebody told a joke and we all laughed so hard that our bellies hurt.  All of this didn’t take away the pain in my feet, but it completely transformed my attitude and gave me a sense of Peace that words aren’t quite able to explain.  And, amazingly, with the support of the group, I was able to walk the remaining 13 miles.

This is what the Holy Spirit does for us—what she is for us.  A counselor, comforter, helper, advocate, teacher, friend.  She hands us spiritual Bandaids:  she doesn’t take away our pain, but she helps us bear it as we go along.  So, on this Mother’s Day, as we give thanks for the love we have received from our own mothers—and/or from others who have been like mothers to us, may we also give thanks for the Holy Spirit of God, whose loving presence “mothers” us through all that life can bring.

Let us pray:  (first part of prayer adapted from Touch Holiness)

O God our Mother, for the miracle of continuing creation in the conception and birth of a child, we give you thanks.

For the miracle of our own birth and the lessons we have learned about your love from a mother’s tenderness--whether that person was our biological mother or someone else you brought into our life to be there for us--we give you thanks. 

And, God, even as we are thankful for the ways people have mothered us, we are also aware of the pain that occurs in our human families, the pain of grief and loss, the pain where there has been neglect or abuse, the pain when one is not able to have a child, the pain when a child dies.  O God, sometimes this pain feels unbearable.  May your Holy Spirit step into the gap in these times, that we may feel her--your--loving presence holding us and healing us through the heartbreak. 

O God, hold us all in your love, and continue to shape us all into the people you call us to be. 

Hear now our prayers for our world:.  

·        We continue to pray for the people of India as they work to combat Covid 19.  May they get the help they need from the international community.  And may they be able to get more vaccines to the people who need them.

·        We continue to pray for all who face prejudice and racism--and racist violence...  We think especially of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, LatinX and African Americans.  May we all work together peacefully to change our racist systems and may those of us who identify as white humbly look at our own behavior and make the changes we need to make to treat people of all races with respect.

·        We pray also for police, for the vast majority of the officers who do their best to protect and serve…  pray for safety… for respect…

·        …school bombed in Afghanistan… girls who lost their lives…families grieving their loss…

·        We pray now for the people we know and love…

·        For the family of former church member, Randy Priesing, who had Downs Syndrome, who moved to North Carolina years ago with his elderly parents, who passed away last week….We particularly hold in prayer Randy’s brother Bobby, who asked for prayers from FFC.

·        Lyn Pickhover’s Star Island roommate Ellie Duhamel and her husband Marcel.  Ellie has been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and faces 4 months of chemo and then surgery. 

LORD’S PRAYER

******

An earlier version of this sermon was written and preached by Marlayna on 5/13/18 in Manchester-by-the-Sea, MA.

*Quote is from “…the most ancient of the rare Old Syriac copies from the 2nd or 3rd century, written in the Palestinian Aramaic, the then common language of Israel. It was named the Siniatic Palimpsest. It was found by Mrs. Anes Lewis in the Covenant of St. Catherine in the Sinia and purchased in Cairo. It was then transcribed by Syriac Professor R.L. Bensly of Cambridge University in 1892…Translation courtesy of Danny Mahar, author of Aramaic Made EZ.”  This quote is from an article by Steve Santini entitled, “The Feminine Gender of the Holy Spirit.”  http://www.musterion8.com/feminine.html. 

Rev. Dr. Marlayna Schmidt

Franklin Federated Church

Franklin, MA

Sermon: “Speaking the Truth”

Scripture:  Ephesians 4:11-16  11 The gifts [Christ] gave were that some would be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13 until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ. 14 We must no longer be children, tossed to and fro and blown about by every wind of doctrine, by people’s trickery, by their craftiness in deceitful scheming. 15 But speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is working properly, promotes the body’s growth in building itself up in love.

Sermon:  “Speaking the Truth”

Verse 15 of today’s Scripture reading sounds really good, doesn’t it?  “…speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ.”  I love that verse.  I quote it a lot in my ministry.  Our church Covenant for Christian Communication is based on this verse.  But, what does it really mean?  What, exactly, is truth?  (I figured that our first Sunday back in-person should deal with an easy topic J.)  

What is truth?  “Speaking the truth in love” is the theme for a 3-part sermon series on our Covenant for Christian Communication that we are in the middle of.  This is the second sermon in the 3 part series (the last sermon happening after Mother’s Day), so let’s bravely delve right in:  “What is Truth?”  Philosophers and theologians have been asking this question for millenia, and they’ve been coming up with definitions, sometimes supporting, sometimes contradicting each other.  The Bible--as well as ancient philosophers, such as Plato and Socrates--link truth to the Divine.  In fact, Jesus himself is quoted as saying, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.”  (John 14:6) 

I read a great article this week by Dr. Neel Burton--who is both a philosopher and a psychologist.  He was writing for the magazine Psychology Today and gave a very understandable, comprehensive overview of the philosophy of truth, quoting both theologians and philosophers down through the centuries, as they sought to answer the question, “What is truth?”  He summarized by saying, “[many philosophers] have agreed that thought or language is true if it corresponds to an independent reality.”1   In other words, we speak truth when what we say agrees with the objective, independent reality outside ourselves.   That makes sense, doesn’t it?

But lest we get too comfortable and think we can actually define truth, modern philosophers jump into the fray, reminding us that our human minds are limited and have trouble seeing things as they really are.  Dr. Burton puts it this way:   “the mind does not perceive reality as it is, but only as it can, filtering, distorting, and interpreting it. In modern times, it has been argued that truth is constructed by social and cultural processes, to say nothing of individual desires and dispositions.”2  [REPEAT]

Dang, just when we thought we had a handle on it, truth slips away…  But I think Dr. Burton makes an extremely important point:  even if we define truth as an objective, independent reality outside ourselves, we still need to acknowledge that due to the limitations of our human brains, none of us can completely perceive it.  Any one human being’s understanding of truth is, at best, only partial. 

Which reminds me of that old fable about the blind men and the elephant.  You may have heard it before--or perhaps not.  To paraphrase the fable:  A bunch of blind men were sitting in a circle around a very tame elephant (it must have been a slow day at the circus…), and each blind man was instructed to use his hands to gently touch the creature, and then define, based on his own sensory experience, what an elephant is.  The man who touched the trunk said, “An elephant is a long, slender creature that writhes like a snake.”  The man who touched the foot said, “An elephant is a round, sturdy creature shaped like the trunk of a tree, with hard scales at its base.”  The man who touched the side of the elephant said, “An elephant is a creature of vast proportion, much bigger than even a giant could wrap his arms around.”  You get the picture.  Each blind man described the elephant based on his own experience of the objective, independent reality that was the elephant, and each man’s description was true--but only partial.  Each man needed the other’s men’s perceptions, added to his own, to come closer to understanding the complete truth, the complete, objective reality. 

But even then, when we add together everyone’s perceptions, we may not be able to exactly define or describe what is true, because people’s perceptions--or their descriptions of their perceptions-- are not always accurate.  And not just because each person’s understanding is partial or incomplete.  Sometimes people’s descriptions or definitions of truth are inaccurate because the people themselves have ulterior motives.  They are not trying to describe an objective reality.  Sometimes people are deliberately trying to mislead others to get what they want!  We see this dynamic sometimes in our world today, don’t we?  People deliberately trying to distort “truth” to get what they want.  I am sure we can all think of examples of this. 

We see this dynamic also in today’s Scripture reading.  Verse 14:  The Apostle Paul says, “We must no longer be children, tossed to and fro and blown about by every wind of doctrine, by people’s trickery, by their craftiness in deceitful scheming.”  Even 2000 years ago, some people--the New Testament refers to them as “false teachers”--were trying to lead sincere people astray using trickery, craftiness, and deceitful schemes.  We are not told exactly what those deceitful schemes were, but when you look up the 7 references to false teachers in the New Testament where the word “deceit” is used, the motives of such false teachers become clear:  power and greed.3

I found those references in a commentary this week and thought to myself cynically, “Distorting the truth, motivated by power and greed--some things never change.”  But we should not despair.  God is with us.  And God will open our eyes, ears, and hearts to God’s truth--as Julie sang to us earlier--if we ask God to.  God does not leave us destitute or at the mercy of false teachers.  If we sincerely seek to “grow together in Christ” (to quote FFC’s Purpose Statement), God will help us do so. 

Our covenant for Christian Communication is a practical tool to help us in that regard as well.  We looked at the first part of it last week.  The middle part was in our Call to Worship earlier.  I’ll ask Steve to bring that back up on the screen for the people viewing the livestream.  Those of you here in person can look at it in your bulletin. 

FIRST SLIDE:  We will be as honest as we can with each other.  If we want to come close to the truth, we have to begin with honesty.  We begin by honestly seeking that independent, objective reality outside ourselves, even when that reality is something that makes us uncomfortable, or something that we don’t want to hear.  We only grow when we are willing to face reality as it is, not the way we may want it to be.

NEXT SLIDE:  We will strive together to understand.  Back to the story about the elephant.  We have to strive together  to understand because each of us sees only part of the picture, only part of the truth.  We need each other to see the whole of it.  And when I say “each other”--in the church context, I mean everyone who is honestly trying to grow in Christ--not just the people who think exactly the way I do.  Because if I listen only to the people who think exactly--or very closely--to the way I think, I may well miss an important aspect of reality, something that Jesus is trying to teach me. 

We will speak from factual information, rather than leaping to conclusions based on assumptions or speculation.  This sounds easy to do, but it’s not always as easy as we may think it is.   One reason is that factual information is not always as solid as we think it is-- or want it to be.  Sometimes “factual information” changes, based on an improved understanding of the subject matter.  But it is still VERY important. 

We are running into this dynamic in our larger culture a lot these days, aren’t we?  For example, when we try to make decisions about how to stay safe and protect ourselves and others from the corona virus.  The CDC publishes factual information about the virus, but then new studies are done on the virus and new variants of the virus appear, and sometimes what people thought was a fact--or actually was a fact at the beginning of the pandemic, is different now.    Then add into the mix that still today--like back in New Testament times, there are “false teachers,” whose motives are power and greed who spread false information intentionally--and everything gets mixed up and it’s hard to know who or what to believe.  And it can be so tempting to just rip off our masks and throw up our hands and say, “Since we can’t know exactly what the truth is about Covid, let’s just be comfortable.”  But, as tempting as that may be, it wouldn’t be mature or responsible--because we need to be concerned for the safety of our neighbors as well as ourselves.  We still need to look for facts from reputable sources.  And in the case of Covid, reputable sources are those whose “facts” are based in the scientific method that emphasizes the importance of continuing to ask questions, form hypotheses, conduct experiments, evaluate and share results, and revise hypotheses based on data collected.    

NEXT SLIDE:  We will speak only for ourselves, Not speculating about what others may think.  Have you ever used this strategy in an argument?  When you are trying to convince someone that what you are saying is true, you say something like, “And it’s not just my opinion.  I ran this by everyone in my Zoom group, or I talked to the rest of the family--and, from what they told me, I am confident that everyone thinks you are wrong.”  Yikes! I’ve done that sometimes myself, but it’s not caring, thoughtful, wise, or effective.  Attempting to paraphrase the opinions of others inevitably ends up putting words in their mouths, words that others may not have chosen to say if they were in the room.  To quote from today’s Scripture, verse 16, attempting to speak for others does not “build up the body of Christ” or help “each part to work properly.”

OK.  There’s still A LOT more left to say about truth… but we’ve made a beginning.  Let me stop there.  But I’ll leave you with a summary of my main points about “speaking the truth.”  1) We need to speak with humility, recognizing that like the fable of the blind men around the elephant, none of us has the whole picture, so we need each other to come to a more complete understanding.  2) We need to be aware that--just like in Biblical times-- there are “false teachers” out there, motivated by power or greed, who distort the truth to get their own way, and we need to watch out for them and make sure we are not be taken in by their rhetoric or spread their false information.   AND 3) We do this by grounding what we say in factual information, looking to reliable sources, letting people know what our sources are, and why we trust them. 

As I said last week, I invite each of you to download the Covenant for Christian Communication from the email blast--if you haven’t already--or download it from the link I will put in the comments in just a few minutes.    I invite you to read through the covenant --and read through this scripture from Ephesians, notice what words stand out to you, and think and pray about how God might be calling you to grow in Christ by practicing speaking the truth in love.   I will be doing the same thing.  Feel free to send me a short email, if you want, about insights you’ve gained or how you have practiced speaking the truth in love.   May God bless all that we say, that we may continue to grow together in Christ and become equipped for ministry, for serving the world with love.

Let us pray:  O God, you call us to grow to maturity in Christ--and part of how we do that is speaking the truth in love.  Be with us as we practice speaking in new ways, because it isn’t always easy.  Bless us in our talking together, help us to forgive each other when we mess up and our words wound, and help us grow together in compassion despite our differences, that we may become more and more like Jesus and shine the light of your love in our world. 

Bless now the people and situations in our lives and in our world that are on our hearts.  We lift up in prayer….

1)    the people of India who are experiencing a devastating surge in Covid cases and a critical SHORTAGE of hospital space and medical supplies, especially including oxygen.  

2)    The people of Israel, who are mourning the loss of the 45 people who died in the stampede at a religious festival.  May God hold the people in their grief, giving  comfort,  particularly, to the families of those who lost their lives.  We pray also for the over 150 people who were wounded at that event.  May they recover in body, mind, and soul. 

Moment of silence…lifting up in prayer those we hold in our hearts.. others in this room and in our livestream…

O God, bless the sick… those who are struggling… those who are grieving…caregivers… Give them strength and healing….  In Jesus name, Amen

PLEASE JOIN ME IN THE LORD’S PRAYER

- Our Father, who art in heaven
Hallowed be Thy Name
Thy kingdom come 
Thy will be done on earth
as it is in heaven 
- Give us this day our daily bread
And forgive us our debts
As we forgive our debtors`
- And lead us not into temptation
But deliver us from evil. 
For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.  AMEN

Rev. Dr. Marlayna Schmidt

Franklin Federated Church

Franklin, MA

FOOTNOTES

1 from  https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/hide-and-seek/201808/what-is-truth

2 Ibid.

3 Here are the references to false teachers where the word “deceit” is used:  2 Peter 2:18 & 3:17, 1 John 4:6, Jude 11, Acts 20:29-30, 1 Tim 4:1, 2 Tim 3:13.  References listed by Pheme Perkins, New Interpreter’s Bible Commentary, Vol. XI, p. 423.

Sermon: “We Will Speak…”

Scripture:  Ephesians 4:11-16  11 The gifts [Christ] gave were that some would be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13 until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ. 14 We must no longer be children, tossed to and fro and blown about by every wind of doctrine, by people’s trickery, by their craftiness in deceitful scheming. 15 But speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is working properly, promotes the body’s growth in building itself up in love.

Sermon:  “We Will Speak…”

Every year I am struck by the beauty of Spring, but perhaps because we are coming out of a pandemic, Spring feels extra vibrant this year.  I’ve been noticing--as I’m sure you have as well--the new growth that is popping up everywhere around us:  in our yards, along the highways, in people’s window boxes, on trees, in garden beds--it’s miraculous to behold. 

Perhaps because of this burgeoning Spring, when I read through today’s Scripture passage from Ephesians this week-- chapter 4, verses 11 through 16, I was acutely aware of all the words and phrases in the passage that refer to growth:

·        “building up”

·        “maturity”

·        “full stature”

·        “no longer be children”

·        “we must grow up in every way…into Christ”

In the first century A.D., the Apostle Paul--or a later author strongly influenced by Paul’s teachings writing under Paul’s name--wrote to the newly established church in the city of Ephesus in Asia Minor (which is now Turkey) and encouraged them to keep growing together in faith, to become more and more like Christ.  Paul wrote to encourage them to grow because he knew that making a decision to follow Christ was only the starting point of their faith--it was like planting a seed.  He knew that what people do after they make that decision, how they grow, is what determines what their life will be like, how much they will change and how much of a positive impact they will have on the world.   

The fact that Paul wrote this letter implies that growing is not automatic or necessarily easy.  We have to do something in order to grow and get stronger in our faith.  Which reminds me of a conversation I had with my doctor at my last physical.  My doctor asked me how my knees were feeling, because last time he’d seen me, he had sent me to physical therapy for recurring knee pain, something I’ve had off and on for over 36 years, since I used to run way back in my early 20’s.  I said, “Doctor, it’s the darndest thing.  When I actually take the time to do my exercises faithfully, my knees rarely hurt.  But when I skip the exercises, my knees ache.  I guess it’s not rocket science…”  He laughed.

It occurs to me that the same thing is true of our faith.  When we actually take the time to engage in spiritual practices on a regular basis--such as prayer and worship and study and reflection--our faith “muscles” grow and get stronger.  But when we don’t engage in these practices --or don’t engage much, then our faith isn’t as strong.  It’s still there, of course, and God still loves us!  But we aren’t enjoying-- or passing along the blessings of faith--as much as we could.  In short, we are missing out.  And I say “we” because faith in Christ was never meant to be a solitary practice.  Faith in Christ is something that is meant to be practiced--and enjoyed!--with other people.  (Which I know is not news to you.  You all know the joy   of being part of a church family, growing together in faith--words that you chose to put in your Purpose Statement--thanks be to God!)

But let me get back to this passage.  Ephesians Chapter 4, Verse 15 reads, “But speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ.”  Did this verse strike any of you as odd?  I have to confess, it strikes me as odd every time I read it, because it’s not the advice I would have expected.  After Paul talks about the importance of growing to maturity, I would have expected him to coach the church in how they need to practice the “usual” spiritual disciplines of prayer and worship and study and reflection in order to grow in faith.  But that’s not what he says here!!  He links growing to maturity in Christ with “speaking the truth in love.”  Why would he say something like this?  What does speaking the truth in love have to do with growing to maturity in Christ?

The answer to that question, I believe, is connected to the context and culture of the ancient city of Ephesus, the city in which the church    Paul was writing to   was located.  The ancient city of Ephesus was a cosmopolitan center of business and commerce because it was accessible by both land and sea.  It was where caravans coming from the far east, the Arabian Peninsula and Northern Africa would end up.  It was where their goods could be loaded onto ships and distributed throughout the Mediterranean region “to Greece, Italy and the rest of the Roman [Empire.]”2 

Because Ephesus was such an important city for international business and commerce, it was also a place that had people from multiple countries and ethnic groups.  Since its founding in the eleventh century B.C.E., “it survived multiple attacks and changed hands many times between conquerors.” 

With the constant influx of people from a multitude of cultures and races, not to mention hostile governments and politics, it’s fair to say, I think, that the people of Ephesus--including those who formed the first church there--were no strangers to conflict.   So, it makes sense that Paul needs to coach them how to find ways to maturely engage with each other despite their differences--to grow up into Christ, whose primary character trait was compassion.  And the way to do this, says Paul, is by “speaking the truth in love.” 

Today and for or the next 2 weeks, I will be giving a sermon series on what it means, practically, to speak the truth in love.  Because, like the people of Ephesus, we too are no strangers to conflict, and we too need to find ways to maturely engage with each other despite our differences, to grow together in Christ’s compassion.  I will be basing the sermon series on this passage--and on the Covenant for Christian Communication that Franklin Federated Church voted to follow at Last February’s annual meeting. 

Today’s Topic is “We will speak…”  (Next week we’ll talk about truth, and the final sermon in this series will talk about love.)

Perhaps it is obvious, but in order to grow together in Christ’s love and compassion, we have to speak to each other.  We cannot be silent.  We cannot leave important things unsaid, even when those things do not fall into the category of what we might consider “nice speech.”  This might be hard for some of us who grew up with the old adage, “If you don’t have something nice to say, don’t say anything at all.”  I want to be clear, that even though many Christians of my parents’ generation taught their kids to live by this creed, Jesus did not say that.  The Apostle Paul did not say that.  In fact, no one knows exactly who came up with that old adage--when I Googled it, it is attributed to sources as different as Thumper’s mother from the Disney movie Bambi to the famous Aesop’s Fables!

All that to say, contrary to this old adage, being able to speak truth to each other--which can sometimes include things that are not necessarily nice--is crucial to becoming mature Christians.   But the way we speak to one another is very important.  Our words need to be chosen carefully--and spoken in ways that increase love and compassion.  Our words need to bring life and health--they need to “build each other up”--in the words of this passage-- rather than tear each other down. 

And, like the people of ancient Ephesus, we too need to be coached in how to find such words.  That’s where our covenant for Christian Communication comes in.  The first part, which we used for our Call to Worship today, has to do with how we speak.  I’m going to ask Steve to please put the CALL TO WORSHIP slides back up on the screen now.

Using the covenant, let me go through these slides and give you some examples of things we can say to each other when we need to speak a “truth” in ways that build up our brothers and sisters in Christ.  

Our covenant, says,

a.     We will communicate calmly and directly to each other using the first person.  Words spoken calmly and directly open up the conversation instead of shutting it down.  (For example, in response to someone saying words that “sting,” rather than reacting in anger, we can give the other person the benefit of the doubt.  We can respond by saying something like, “I know it’s not your intention, but when you said such and such, I felt dismissed or hurt [or some other adjective that names our feeling]….”  And when we manage to speak calmly and directly like this about our own feelings, we set the tone and our tone invites the other person to respond in the same manner.   And the beauty of this approach is that 99% of the time, they do!  I can’t tell you how many times i’ve witnessed other people responding something like “I’m so sorry, that’s not what I meant at all…here’s what I meant” and they go on to explain further.  And our compassion for each other grows…  I bet you’ve experienced that too.

b.     We will listen without interrupting (unless someone is breaking this covenant and needs to be asked to rephrase.)  That’s a hard one, isn’t it?  Listening without interrupting.  But we all know how good it feels to be able to get our thoughts out without being interrupted.  We all know how much we feel valued when someone listens to us without interrupting.  And, conversely, we all know how invisible or devalued we feel when someone cuts us off or talks over us.

c.      We will ask questions for clarification in order to confirm that we have understood correctly and ask others to do the same.  As you have probably already discovered at various times in your life, this is one of the best techniques to avoid an argument.  Rather than responding with anger to a statement that feels critical or contrary, one of the best ways to increase compassion and understanding is to ask questions.  My favorite question--which I picked up from a therapist years ago, “I’m not sure I’m following what you mean, can you tell me more about that?  Can you tell me why this is so important to you?” 

d.     We will value all opinions and recognize that everyone is equally important.  

e.     We will communicate with each other as if we were standing face-to-face with Jesus, asking what would God have us do, and seeking God’s voice in the other person.  Both of these statements are grounded the understanding that we are all brothers and sisters in Christ, all equally loved by God, and God’s Spirit resides in each of us.  Therefore, God’s Spirit could be speaking through any of us at any time.  That’s not to say that EVERYTHING we say has its source in God’s Spirit.  But we need to value each other’s opinions because we never know when God will choose to speak through other people telling us something that we need to hear. 

f.       We will take responsibility for our own speech, stopping ourselves if/when we notice our own words escalating tension or breaking this covenant.  One of the signs of growing to maturity is being able to regulate ourselves.  Rather than waiting for someone else to tell us when we’ve crossed a line, we need to be aware of our own behavior and feelings and monitor our own speech.  AND, we need to be willing to stop ourselves when we notice that our words are having a negative effect on others.  This is hard to do--I am trained in this, and I don’t always do it!  But rather than continuing in a direction that’s not working, sometimes the smartest thing to say is, “You know, I think I need to stop talking for right now, I’m not helping the situation.  Let’s pick this up another time.” 

g.     We will recognize that our words--and how they are presented--have consequences.  Another old adage goes “sticks and stones can break my bones but words will never hurt  me.”  Not completely true.  Words can wound us and others--and those wounds can take a long time to heal.  When we recognize this, we can then take more care in how we say what we say-- and our words will build each other up more than tearing each other down. 

I know this sermon has given A LOT of information.  For homework, I invite you to download the Covenant for Christian Communication from this week’s email blast--if you haven’t already--or download it from the link I will put in the comments in just a few minutes.    I invite you to read through the covenant a few times this week--and read through this scripture from Ephesians, and think and pray about how God might be calling you to grow in Christ by practicing speaking the truth in love.   I will be doing the same thing.  Feel free to send me a short email, if you want, about insights you’ve gained or how you have practiced speaking the truth in love.   May God bless our work that we may continue to grow together in Christ! 

Let us pray:  O God, you call us to grow to maturity in Christ--and part of how we do that is speaking the truth in love.  Be with us as we practice speaking in new ways, because it isn’t always easy.  Bless us in our talking together, help us to forgive each other when we mess up and our words wound, and help us grow together in compassion despite our differences, that we may become more and more like Jesus and shine the light of your love in our world.  Amen. 

FOOTNOTES

1  Most scholars these days agree that Ephesians was “written by a later author strongly influenced by Paul's thought, probably "by a loyal disciple to sum up Paul’s teaching and to apply it to [a new situation in a later context after Paul’s death.]”   (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epistle_to_the_Ephesians#:~:text=Christ%2Dinspired%20lifestyle.-,Composition,and%20the%20Epistle%20to%20Philemon.)

2Ephesus, in the first century during the time of the Apostle Paul, was one of the largest and most important cities in the ancient world in terms of business and commerce.  “Situated at end of the Royal Road—the chief thoroughfare of the Roman East—[it] was a western terminus of East-West trade, with one of the most important Mediterranean harbors for exporting products to Greece, Italy and the rest of the Roman West.” (https://en.unesco.org/silkroad/content/ephesus) 

3Because it was such an important city, since its founding in the eleventh century B.C.E., “[Ephesus] survived multiple attacks and changed hands many times between conquerors.”  (https://www.history.com/topics/ancient-greece/ephesus)

Rev. Dr. Marlayna Schmidt

Franklin Federated Church

Franklin, MA

Sermon “Christ Among Us”

Luke 24:36-48

Jesus Appears to His Disciples

36 While they were talking about this, Jesus himself stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” 37 They were startled and terrified, and thought that they were seeing a ghost. 38 He said to them, “Why are you frightened, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? 39 Look at my hands and my feet; see that it is I myself. Touch me and see; for a ghost does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.” 40 And when he had said this, he showed them his hands and his feet. 41 While in their joy they were disbelieving and still wondering, he said to them, “Have you anything here to eat?” 42 They gave him a piece of broiled fish, 43 and he took it and ate in their presence.

44 Then he said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you—that everything written about me in the law of Moses, the prophets, and the psalms must be fulfilled.” 45 Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures, 46 and he said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Messiah is to suffer and to rise from the dead on the third day, 47 and that repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. 48 You are witnesses of these things. 

Sermon “Christ Among Us”

The disciples are so human, aren’t they?  I love that about them.  They aren’t painted as perfect...  The Bible doesn’t present them as heroes to whom, in comparison, we could never hope to measure up.  No.  The Bible presents them as normal, flawed human beings who are doing their best to follow Christ, people who make mistakes and learn from them, as we are called to do. 

So, when the resurrected Christ appears among them and greets them with words of Peace, they don’t react as perfect people might.  They don’t immediately embrace him with joy.  To put it simply, they freak out.  In the words of our Scripture text, Luke 24, verse 37, “They were startled and terrified and thought they were seeing a ghost.”  When I read those words this week, the image that came to my mind was that they were “besieged by fear.”  Fear, like an invading army, surrounded them and was in the process of forcing a surrender. 

Do you ever feel like that?  Besieged by fear?   I know I do sometimes, and I don’t think I’m alone in that feeling.  In fact, Jean talked about fear a little bit last week in her sermon.  There are many things to be afraid of these days.  All we need to do is listen to the news for a few minutes and there’s enough to freak anyone out.  Although more and more people are being vaccinated, Covid 19 still wreaks havoc--on our health and on our economy.  Gun violence is rampant.  Unarmed black men continue to be shot by police at a rate twice as high as unarmed white men (Ibram X. Kendi, How to Be an Antiracist, p. 73).  AND police are often disrespected and sometimes killed in the line of duty.  I could go on and list other things that cause us fear--like Global warming-- but I think you get the picture.  Being besieged by fear has become a constant state for most people these days, as it was for the disciples of Jesus’ day.

And, here’s the interesting--though disheartening--thing about fear.  When it has us in its grip, it colors everything we see and can lead us to misinterpret facts and act out of ignorance instead of reality.  The disciples, having witnessed Jesus’ betrayal, arrest, beating, and horrible death, were, understandably, afraid for their own lives, worried about what the future would hold, worried about what the religious and civil authorities could and would do to them.  Their fear had so colored their interpretation of the world, it made them forget much--most??-- of what Jesus had told them, including the fact that he had to suffer and die, including the prophecy that he would be raised from the dead.  They simply did not remember these things.  So, when the risen Christ appeared, the disciples were filled with fear and misinterpreted the facts and jumped to the wrong conclusion--they assumed they were seeing a ghost. 

Do we ever do that?  (Not see a ghost--that’s another sermon topic for another time…)  But being besieged by fear, do we ever misinterpret facts, unconsciously let fear affect our interpretation of reality?  Do we ever jump to conclusions, assuming that we already know exactly what we are looking at without bothering to “fact check” our assumptions?  I know I do sometimes.  How many times do I listen to only part of a news story--or read only half-way through an article in the paper, and stop with disgust, muttering unkind things about the people whose opinions are diametrically opposed to mine, assuming they are ignorant idiots?  How many times do I NOT bother to put myself in their shoes or ask what fear might be coloring their viewpoint--or ask myself what fear might be coloring mine?  I won’t ask for a show of hands--well, I could--because in the comfort of your own home, with no one but your own family members or pets watching, you might want to raise your hand.  Do any of you ever do this?  Misinterpret facts or jump to conclusions based on fear or incomplete information or on assumptions that you haven’t bothered to completely fact check?  I do.  Not always, but sometimes. 

And, if we ever do it, it’s important to admit it so that we can change.  Because here’s the thing:  if we don’t change, the divisions in our country and in our families and in our churches are going to keep getting worse.  Fear and our reaction to it separates us from each other--and perhaps even from God. 

The good news is that there is a remedy for divisions that are caused by fear.  Jesus addresses it in this passage.  His first question to the disciples in our reading-- Luke chapter 24, verse 38-- after they react with fear and misinterpret facts is this, “Why are you frightened, and why do doubts arise in your hearts?”  That is the question that we each need to ask ourselves when we feel fear or doubt.  What is causing it?  Because if we don’t ask ourselves that question, we’re never going to be able to change our behavior.

Psychologist Alfred Adler said, and I’m paraphrasing here, “It’s not what happens to us that determines our behavior, it’s what we tell ourselves about what happens to us.”  [REPEAT.]  So, if I tell myself, “People whose opinions are diametrically opposed to mine are all a bunch of ignorant idiots,” then I can more easily justify having nothing to do with them or treating them with disrespect when I do engage.  However, if I ask myself the question Jesus raised, “’Why are you frightened and why do doubts arise in your heart’ when you hear those opinions?”  Then my behavior could be a whole lot better.   I might more often read through a whole newspaper article and seek to understand other people’s opinions.  I might stop and ask people whose opinions differ from mine, “Would you tell me why you think that?” and really listen.  And I might learn something I didn’t know.  And I might see that their behavior is based in fear, as mine sometimes is.  And I might begin to feel more compassion than anger.

When Jesus interacted with the disciples, he invited them to stay and talk even though they were afraid.  And not just talk.  He invited them to reflect on their own feelings and listen to him and pay closer attention to what was actually happening around them.  He invited them to “Look” at his hands and feet and “see that it is I myself.”  He invited them to touch him.  To engage with him.  To feed him some fish.  (I love that detail about the  fish--it points to the power of food to bring people of faith together… but that’s yet another sermon topic for another time.)  For this sermon, suffice it to say that Jesus is inviting the disciples to use all of their senses--sight, smell, sound, touch, taste--to stay in the present moment with him.  To examine the facts that were right there in front of them that they were missing.  And then, once they started to do that, once they had reached a calmer state, then he shared with them some more facts.  Luke 24, verse 45.  He led them through the Scriptures.  Explained the meaning of the prophecies about him.  And opened their minds to understand. 

And that is, actually, the key to it all.  Fear and assumptions close our minds.  And once our minds are closed, we become more and more divided from other people.  We, all of us, need God to open our minds

There is a lot of talk today about unity in our country, but it is not easy to achieve, is it?  It has to begin with a willingness to want it.  It has to begin with a willingness to change, even a little bit. It has to begin with a prayerful stance, asking God to open our minds.  As verse 47 of today’s scripture tells us, it has to begin with repentance and forgiveness on everyone’s part.  Not giving up our heart-felt convictions that are based in facts, but being willing to admit that we are not perfect.  We don’t, any of us, have ALL of the facts.   Like the disciples, like our enemies, we too are at least somewhat fearful-- and that fear colors, at least a little bit, all of the things that we see.  That’s not to say we are all equally wrong or right, but we all have something to learn from those we see as other.

To use a couple of examples I heard this week, can I, as a white person acknowledge that it was a lot easier for me, as a parent of a teenager back in the day, to let my white, teenage step-son go out at night wearing a hoodie because I didn’t have to worry or give him “The Talk” of how to behave if he was pulled over by police?  Can I, as a person who believes that our criminal justice system needs extensive reform also acknowledge that it is very scary these days to be a police officer and wonder whether people are going to target me as someone on whom to vent their rage against the system?

We live in very scary times.  We are all besieged by fear to one extent or the other.  As Christians, can we put ourselves in Jesus hands, pray for minds and hearts to open, examine our own fears, see which fears are based in facts and which are not, and then act in ways that promote Christ’s Peace?  May it be so…

Let us pray…

Loving God,  You call us to love our neighbors as ourselves, and it is hard.  Hard to love when we feel attacked.  Hard to be respectful of other people’s humanity when they are not respectful of ours.  Hard to speak up for justice and to keep our minds and hearts open when others seem more interested in putting us down than in listening to what we have to say.  And it is hard to address fear in others when we are feeling it ourselves.

O God, help us to remember that we are not alone.  Help us to remember that the spiritual presence of Christ is among us and will grant us the Peace that passes all understanding if we ask for it.  So, O God, boldly we ask for it now.  Let Christ’s amazing Peace descend on us like a soft spring rain.  Let it water our hearts, minds and souls, so that the hard shell of fear will begin to break open; and the seeds of hope, love and unity will begin to sprout and grow into something beautiful. 

We pray all this in the name of the Risen Christ, whose Spirit still lives and works among us, and whose perfect love casts out all fear, Amen. 

Rev. Dr. Marlayna Schmidt

Franklin Federated Church

Franklin, MA

Sermon: “Picking up after a Parade”

INTRODUCTION:  Today’s Scripture reading is from the 21st chapter of the Gospel of Matthew—verses 1-11.  It is the story of Jesus’ “triumphal entry” into Jerusalem nearly a week week before his death and resurrection.  He is greeted by the crowds as Prophet, King, and Messiah--yet the people of Jerusalem do not recognize him.  Their question at the end of the reading invites us to ask ourselves the same thing:  “Who is this?”  And why does it matter?  …  May God’s Spirit speak to us through these words.

Scripture:  Matthew 21:1-11

                21When they had come near Jerusalem and had reached Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, 2saying to them, “Go into the village ahead of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her; untie them and bring them to me. 3If anyone says anything to you, just say this, ‘The Lord needs them.’ And he will send them immediately.” 4This took place to fulfill what had been spoken through the prophet, saying, 
5 “Tell the daughter of Zion,
Look, your king is coming to you,
humble, and mounted on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.” 
6The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them; 7they brought the donkey and the colt, and put their cloaks on them, and he sat on them. 8A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9The crowds that went ahead of him and that followed were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David!
   Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!
Hosanna in the highest heaven!” 
10When he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was in turmoil, asking, “Who is this?” 11The crowds were saying, “This is the prophet Jesus from Nazareth in Galilee.”

Sermon:  “Picking up after a Parade”

[My sermon today is going to be a story, a fictional account written by myself and my husband, based on today’s Scripture Reading.  It’s told from the perspective of someone in Jerusalem who watched Jesus ride into town on a donkey.  I’m going to invite you to participate, if you wish.  Whenever I say, “Hosanna to the Son of David!”  I invite you to raise your hands--or if you have a palm branch, you can raise it and say, “Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.]

So, the witness to Jesus’ Palm Sunday Parade speaks:

I’ve seen a lot in my day, but what happened this last week takes the cake.

You see, I’m a city employee in Jerusalem.  I’m the one that cleans up after all the political parades when the governor, Pontius Pilate, and other Roman officials come into town.

But, I gotta tell you, the parade that happened last week was the biggest I’d ever seen.  People lined the streets, 6 or 7 people deep.  People stood on roof-tops, porches, camels, even climbed trees to see the man who was coming into town, and everybody was so happy!  They were waving palm branches and singing and shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David!  Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!” 

When I came toward town that day from my house on the outskirts of the city, the crowds were already gathering.  Judging from their accents—and the way they were dressed--they had come from the countryside—not from inside the city.  “What’s going on?” I asked.  I knew there was no official visit expected.  The word that spread through the crowd was that the Messiah was going to be riding into town—the Messiah who was predicted by the prophets of old.  The Messiah, Jesus of Nazareth, whom everybody said was going to save us from the oppressive Roman rule.

So, of course, I’m excited.  I’m wondering, “What’s this Jesus going to be like? I found a place along the parade route, like everybody else.  When I heard him coming—I could tell by the shouts that got louder that he was on his way, “Hosanna to the Son of David!  Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!”—I stood on my tiptoes and stretched out my neck, preparing to get a good look at him.  I figured he’d be some big guy in a suit of armor, carrying a sword and shield, riding in on a war horse, ready to do battle.  But, let me tell you, that’s not what he was like at all!

You wouldn’t believe it!  Jesus turns out to be the furthest thing from a warrior you’re ever gonna see.  He looked like a normal person--a peasant, like me.  You’d probably think that he looks like a hippee!  You know, someone who needs a haircut and wears sandals and a robe, and he comes riding in—get this—on a donkey!  A donkey!!  No armor at all, not even a helmet.  And, on top of that, he’s not scowling like most of the soldiers I’ve seen—he’s smiling, waving at the crowd.

And, the crowd goes wild when they see him!  Their shouts get louder-- “Hosanna to the Son of David!  Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!”  And then they start taking off their coats and throwing them on the ground, to make a carpet for him to ride over.  Of course, being the one responsible for keeping the streets clean, the first thing I think of when I see them throwing their coats on the ground is, “Come on, you guys!  I’ve gotta pick all this stuff up tomorrow—coats, palm branches, donkey droppings—don’t make it harder for me!”

But then Jesus rides by me, where I’m standing in the crowd, and he looks right at me.  And when he looks at me, it’s like I have some sort of spiritual experience or mystical encounter.  I suddenly feel all warm inside—from the top of my head to the bottom of my feet, like when you’re a kid and you’re feeling lousy and your mother or father says, “Come here!” and they give you a big hug and when they’re holding you, you feel safe and warm and protected—it was like that when Jesus looked at me.  Like I was loved and held by something—someone—bigger than me—and that, no matter what happened, everything was going to work out all right because no one could take me out of God’s embrace.  And I knew in that instant that the crowd was right—Jesus was the Messiah.

And my heart felt like it was gonna burst and tears sprang to my eyes and my voice cried out “Hosanna to the Son of David!  Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!”  and I suddenly forgot about all the cleaning I was going to have to do after the parade, and I picked up a palm branch and joined the crowd following Jesus into town. 

Well, I’d like to tell you that after the parade everything just kept getting better and better for Jesus, but that’s not what happened.  The mood in Jerusalem changed faster than you could say, “Jehosophat!”

When the parade was over, instead of going straight to the governor’s palace and leading the people in an armed protest there against the Romans, Jesus went straight to the Temple!  The Temple of God!  And, let me tell you, he caused quite a stir!  He turned over the tables of the money changers, chased out the people who sold animals for sacrifice.  That was okay with me, those merchants were just ripping people off anyway—everybody knew that—charging way too high a price for their wares.  But I’m getting side-tracked.

My point is that, after this, a lot of the religious people turned against Jesus.  Thought he was too critical.  They called him a hothead, a zealot.  And everyone who thought he was going to gather an army to take on the Roman government—they turned against him too, because it became clear that taking up arms against the Romans was not part of Jesus’ plan.  Instead, he stayed in the Temple courts, preaching and teaching and healing the blind and the lame!  (Even though a lot of people turned against him, there were still some who got healed and said, “Hosanna to the Son of David!  Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!”)

When I watched him that day putting his hands over people’s eyes and restoring their sight, I had one of those “aha” moments—when I suddenly saw everything clearly.  It’s like I was one of the people whose sight he healed. 

Here’s what I saw:

The people were turning against Jesus because they expected him to change their outside circumstances, to make everything easy for them.  They expected him to lead a revolt against the Romans, to put an end to oppressive rule, give them all tax cuts and better paying jobs.  Which would have been nice, but changing their outside circumstances isn’t what Jesus came to do.  He didn’t come to pluck people out of their difficulties like a lifeguard pulls someone who can’t swim out of a pool.  No. 

Jesus came to change their hearts--  not their circumstances!  He came to give them the inner resources they needed to cope with what goes on in the world.  He came to change them on the inside—not the outside—so that they would then have the strength and the insight and the spiritual power to first combat, not the Romans, but their own fear, anxiety, and despair.

Jesus came—not to save them from external suffering—but to give them inner strength, peace, and forgiveness, so that they could be centered in God no matter what their outer life circumstances were.  And then, from that centered and healed place, together they--the faith community-- could begin to change the world around them. 

Well, you know what happened to Jesus at the end of that week.  He was arrested, put up on a cross to die, and all of his followers deserted him, except for some women who watched from a distance.  And, yes, he died, but that’s not the end of the story!  The women who stayed with him ‘til the end were the first ones to hear the good news that God raised him from the dead!  Woohoo!  I mean, “Hosanna to the Son of David!  Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!” 

So, you know that that means, don’t you?  The same inner strength, peace, forgiveness and healing that Jesus came to give the people of Jerusalem in my day, is still available in yours.  Claim it—this holy week, and always!  So that, together, we can witness to God’s power and love which overcomes all obstacles and gives us the strength to change the world for the better. “Hosanna to the Son of David!  Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!” 

Let us pray:

O God, in some ways, we are like the people of Jerusalem so long ago.  We are hungry for a hero.  We crave some glimpse of greatness.  We are starving for the spectacular.  We gather for worship like those who watched the Passion-Parade in Jerusalem, craning our necks to catch a glimpse of our Messiah.  As we wait for the Savior to come, forgive our disappointment when the when the special one appears in ways we do not expect.  Open our hearts to the life-changing love that you offer us, even when your love catches us by surprise.  Change our hearts and minds in the ways they need to be changed, and show us how we can act together as followers of Jesus to change our world for the better. Amen.

Rev. Dr. Marlayna Schmidt

Franklin Federated Church

Franklin, MA

This sermon based on a sermon written by Rev. Paul Nickerson many years ago.  It has been adapted by Marlayna over the last 15 years.

Sermon: “How Do We Know It Is God?”

INTRODUCTION:  Both of our Scripture readings today are from the writings of the Apostle Paul.  Our second Scripture reminds us that for God, love is more important than anything else.  Our first Scripture calls us to dedicate ourselves to God’s love.  May God’s Spirit speak to us through these words.

Scripture:  Romans 12:1-2

I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. 2Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect.

I Corinthians 13:13 And now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love.

Sermon:  “How Do We Know It Is God?”

My cousin, Jalane Schmidt, who is a professor of religion in Charlottesville, Virginia—received an award a few years ago along with 3 other alumni at Harvard Divinity School.  My husband Paul and I were honored to be in the audience as Jalane received her award for speaking out for justice in the public sphere.  After the award ceremony, each honoree was given a chance to speak briefly about his or her work.

The racial and ethnic diversity of the 4 alumni who received awards was striking:  two of them, including my cousin, were African-American, one was Asian-American, and one was Indian-American.  Three of them were Christians; one was a Sikh.  The Indian-American man, the Sikh, was from Texas.  He had brown skin and was wearing a turban.  When he spoke, he joked that he had no idea why his parents thought that raising 3 brown-skinned, turbaned boys in Texas was a good idea.  He smiled and asked, “What were they thinking?” But then his tone became serious.  He said that after 9/11, when he was a young man in Texas, many people started treating him differently.  He didn’t go into great detail, but it was clear that he had been threatened and feared for his safety.  In fact, all of the honorees had been in circumstances where their lives were in danger, including my cousin, who, after attending a worship service in Charlottesville in the summer of 2017 ended up trapped in the church for hours, not daring to leave because self-proclaimed white supremacists stood outside surrounding the church building carrying torches and chanting English translations of slogans used in Nazi Germany to stir up racial hatred. 

I don’t know about you, but if I was in my cousin’s shoes—or, perhaps more accurately, in my cousin’s skin, I would have been terrified.  After being threatened by men carrying torches and chanting Nazi slogans,* I don’t know whether I would have had the courage to speak out in public and put myself and my family at risk.  (That summer that racial unrest erupted in Charlottesville, my cousin had the courage to continue to speak out for justice, but she had to stay in a safe-house for a while, without her family, because her life had been threatened, and she didn’t want to stay at home and put her kids in danger.)  But when my cousin spoke a year later to receive her award at Harvard, she was calm and she was clear.  It was because of her Christian faith that she was speaking up and speaking out against racism and teaching other people how to engage in non-violent resistance.  In addition to her work as a professor, she continues to work, in her words, “mobilizing others to be brave…and faithful to the gospel” because, she said, “the gospel calls all of us to be non-conformists.”  I’m sure she was thinking of our first Scripture reading from Romans 12, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds so that you may  discern what is the will of God…”

When my cousin spoke about feeling called by God and the gospel to do her work, her words made me think of Richard Peace’s Book, and today’s sermon topic—“How Do we Know It is God?” -which is the title of the conclusion of Richard Peace’s book, Noticing God.  When we think we hear the voice of God calling us to do something, how do we know it is really God calling us and not some other voice inside our head or in our culture?  How can we be sure we are really following God’s will?

As a congregation--in our Sunday sermons--we have just spent 8 weeks going through a book by Professor Richard Peace called Noticing God.  To review:  the premise of the book is that God is “deeply present in our world,” but we human beings do not always notice God because we haven’t learned “where to look or what to expect.”  (p. 14)   The book seeks to coach us in this learning; over the past 8 weeks, we have examined 7 ways to notice God:  [SHARE THE 7 WAYS POWERPOINT SLIDE]

1.     In mystical encounters,

2.     in the ordinary activities of daily life,

3.     in the still small voice,

4.     in the power of Christian community,

5.     in the written Word,

6.     in Creation, Culture, and Creativity, and

7.     in the church.  [STOP SHARE SLIDE]

But even with all of these ways to notice God, God’s presence can still be somewhat elusive and subtle—we can never be 100 percent sure the things we’ve attributed to God actually are God. (p. 149)  But do not despair--because even though “there is no such thing as absolute certainty” (p. 149) when it comes to noticing God, there is such a thing as discernment.  There are ways to figure out whether what we noticed or sensed or heard is likely to be God—or not. 

But before I delve into this concept of discernment - another concept from our first reading, let me say a word as to why it matters--why it IS very important to figure out whether my claims about noticing God—or your claims about noticing God-- or my cousin’s claims about noticing God--are likely to be true or not.  It’s important because our claims about God determine our behavior.  REPEAT

Richard Peace says this, “Unfortunately, we have a long history of people claiming to hear God’s voice and then launching into dumb, crazy, or even terrible acts.  Remember Jim Jones in Guyana and all those people who drank the poison Kool-Aid [in 1978], trusting that they were following God?” 900 people died.  And Peace gives other examples—some from our life-times, some from history, where Christians did horrific things because they thought they were following God.  I will mention 2 more—but only briefly—I know these stories are hard to hear—but it is important to remind ourselves of how damaging the consequences can be when people think they hear God’s voice but are SORELY mistaken.   Peace gives the example of a devout Christian man who thought he heard God’s voice calling him to kill a doctor who performed abortions--and the man did it—in 1994 the man killed the doctor and the doctor’s bodyguard.  Chilling!  Peace also gives an historical example:  talking about how a Pope 1000 years ago stirred up Christians to kill Muslims because the Pope was convinced it was God’s will.  In fact, “God’s will!” was the rallying cry as Christians engaged in the killing that launched the Crusades.  (p. 142)

So, what makes us different from them when we claim to notice God or hear God’s voice?  What makes my cousin’s belief -- that her Christian faith calls her to non-violent resistance --  different or better or closer to God’s will than the beliefs of the torch-carrying white supremacists  in Charlottesville, Virginia back in 2017 who may well have believed that God ordained white people to be in charge?  Or, to put another way, when we think we are noticing God, how do we know if we’re right?  How do we know if what we are sensing is likely to be God or not? 

Richard Peace proposes three tests or questions that help us in this important discernment.  [SHARE 3 QUESTIONS SLIDE]  If we think we are noticing God, and we think that the God we are noticing is calling us to respond in some way, we need to ask ourselves 3 questions:

Is what I am sensing in line with:  1) the Word of God, 2) the Community of God, and 3) the fruit of God?  [Marlayna repeats] 

Let me briefly explain each of these in turn. 1st question of discernment:   “Is what I’m sensing in line with God’s Word?” (Meaning in line with the Bible.)   Of course, the Bible is 1200 pages long, and people can—and do—find texts in the Bible to justify almost anything.  So when we are looking to see if something is in line with God’s Word, we should NOT look for obscure texts to prove our own point of view.  The best standard to use is the standard Jesus himself used.  When a lawyer asked him, “What is the greatest commandment?”  Jesus answered: “’You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’” 38This is the greatest and first commandment. 39And a second is like it: “’You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’” 40On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.”  (Matthew 22:37-40)

So, if we think we are noticing God, and we think God is calling us to respond, if what we are noticing—and what God is calling us to do—is NOT LOVING of God, neighbor, and self, then we can be sure it is not of God.  (And we need to remember that Jesus is very clear—the word “neighbor” does not just refer to people of our own ethnic group—in the Good Samaritan story, the neighbor was the foreigner who stepped in to rescue the injured man despite risks to his own safety. 

2nd question of discernment.  “Is what I am sensing in line with the community of God?”  If we think we are noticing God and we think God is calling us to do something, then we need to run it by our fellow Christians—people we trust who are also seeking to follow God. People who know us, people who will pray with us, people who aren’t afraid to tell us when they think we are off track.  Of course, says Richard Peace, “Christian Communities can become self-serving and blind to themselves,” (p 145), but if we are honestly seeking to notice and follow God’s will, and find other people who are doing the same, God will guide us through our fellow Christians. 

3rd question of discernment.  “Is what I am sensing in line with the fruit of God?”  Richard Peace here is using the metaphor of fruit to talk about outcomes and consequences.  He’s inviting us to play the scenario out in our imaginations:  What would it be like if I responded in the way I sense God is calling me to?  “Would the outcome [of my actions] be good for [myself] and others?”  (p. 146)  Would the outcome build up community?  Would it further the development—in me and others-- of what the Apostle Paul calls “the fruit of the Spirit”—“love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.”  (Galations 5:22-23)

So, to summarize:  we have 3 questions to help us discern whether we are truly noticing God or not:  Is what I am sensing inline with the 1) Word of God, 2) the Community of God, and 3) the fruit of God?   May we remember to ask ourselves these important questions as we continue our quest to notice God.  And, when we answer “yes” to these questions, may we have the faith and the courage to stick to our convictions, allowing ourselves to be transformed by God’s love and used by God for God’s good purposes.  Amen.

Rev. Dr. Marlayna Schmidt

Frankin Federated Church

Franklin, MA

* for a summary of what happened in Charlottesville, see https://www.actionnewsjax.com/news/trending-now/what-happened-at-charlottesville-looking-back-on-the-anniversary-of-the-deadly-rally/810428843/

SERMON: “Noticing God in the Church”

SCRIPTURE:  Matthew 18:20

“[Jesus said:] ‘For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them.’”

SCRIPTURE:  Hebrews 10:24-25

“24And let us consider how to provoke one another to love and good deeds, 25not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”

SERMON:  “Noticing God in the Church”

Have you ever noticed how church is portrayed on TV?  Generally, it’s not good.  On TV, people who go to church—lay people and clergy alike-- are often portrayed as crazy, naïve, judgmental, hypocritical, abusive, or all of the above.  In fact, in most of the “whodunit” crime dramas or detective shows that I watch on TV, whenever they introduce a character who is a priest or a minister or a religious lay person, you can pretty much count on that religious person being unmasked as the murderer in the end.  I find this phenomenon somewhat amusing—or perhaps a better word is “ironic”--because it is the exact opposite of my experience:  most of the religious people I know who go to church (present company included) are people of great faith and integrity who do their best to follow the teachings of Jesus. 

Sadly, though, much of our culture today does not see the good side of church.  In chapter 7 of his book, Noticing God, Richard Peace acknowledges that the general stereotype of church or organized religion is something that [QUOTE] “…reek(s) of rules and regulations… hierarchy and lifelessness, [and] is seen as irrelevant at the best and destructive at the worst.”  (Peace, p. 121)  But nevertheless Peace goes on to say that even though some of these “indictments… have truth to them, it is virtually impossible on one’s own to explore, much less to live out faithfully, the Way of Jesus…We need others both to find and to follow God…We need the stories of others to point the way.”(Peace, p. 122)

We need the stories of others to point the way.  That is what church at its best provides:  the stories of others to point the way, to help us find and follow God. 

So, how does church do this?  How does church provide the stories of others to point the way, to help us find and follow God?

Professor Peace lists a number of ways church—at its best—provides those stories. 

One way is through worship, through all the elements that make up a worship service:  music, scripture, prayer, sermons, sacraments.  In any given worship service, we may notice or experience the presence of God through one or more of these elements. 

You know what I’m talking about, right?  You come to worship bringing your own personal joys and concerns, the issues you are struggling with, the things you are celebrating—and you pray for openness.  And, then something happens as worship progresses—you hear something specific that makes you think that the music or the pastor is speaking directly to you.  Maybe it’s a melody that lifts your spirits, or maybe a phrase from the scripture or an image in the sermon connects so perfectly with something in your own life that you get goose bumps as you realize:  “This is exactly what I needed to hear to give me the strength to handle what I’m facing.”

It’s pretty amazing when that happens, isn’t it?!  And the more we are open to it, the more it happens.  This is what our first scripture reading is talking about when Jesus says, “…where 2 or 3 are gathered in my name, I am there among them.”  These words are not just metaphorical.  When we gather together with our fellow Christians, the Spiritual presence of Jesus actually shows up.  Christ is here in our worship.  Our task is to be open and aware enough to notice!

But Worship is not the only time the spiritual presence of God, of Christ, shows up in the church.  Christ also shows up in our interaction with each other in community:  in what we call “fellowship.”  One church I worked with, in their Vision process, described and defined fellowship like this:  “enjoying each other’s company and deepening our connections with one another in our family of faith.”   It is through fellowship that we can more completely share our own personal stories with one another—and in the process encourage one another in our journey of life and faith.  Our second scripture reading puts it like this: 

let us consider how to provoke one another to love and good deeds, 25not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another…”

If you’re like me, the word “provoke” might have jumped out at you.  Really?  We are called to “provoke” one another?  That might not be the first word we think of when we think of “fellowship.”  At least, I hope not, as “provoke,” in our culture, tends to have more of a negative connotation, like baiting each other or needling each other.  Needling for Jesus—not what church should be about!  So, this is one of those cases where going back to the original Greek to see if there are other ways to translate the wording sheds some light. According to Biblical Scholar Fred Craddock, the Greek word translated here as “provoke” is intended to have a positive connotation in this context.  It is used here in the sense of  “disturbing [or spurring on] the apathetic… person into activity.”  (NIB, Vol. XII, p.   )  So, in other words, Craddock understands this passage to mean that Christians are called to meet together in order to motivate and encourage each other to lovingly engage in good deeds.   

Because, here’s the thing.  Each individual can only get so far on our own.  Whether we are talking about learning a new language, improving our golf game, giving up a bad habit, recovering from an addiction, or following Jesus, we human beings do a lot better in our learning, our growth, our recovery, our faith when we engage with other people.  When we work on things together, when share our stories, we motivate and encourage each other. 

Richard Peace gives an example of this kind of encouragement in faith and fellowship when he quotes from an email he received from Rev. Mike Duda—who happens to be the pastor of a church in Wenham, Massachusetts where my husband Paul and I are members.  Rev. Duda describes an interaction he witnessed on a church mission trip—when a group of adults and teenagers from the church went to a low-income community in the Appalachian mountains to help repair houses.   Mike writes, “…as we gathered around a campfire in the mountains and shared the high points of our experience, a young man stood up and said how for the first time in his life he had seen his father as a man, a separate individual and not just his dad, and how he was inspired by what a compassionate and caring person [his father] was [and the email goes on to say] (his dad wasn’t the only one with tears in his eyes.).”  (Peace, p. 136.)   This kind of sharing in Christian community is a powerful way to encourage one another to “love and good deeds.”

As I relate this story--of the powerful fellowship that occurred when a small group of Christians on a Mission Trip gathered around a fire to share stories, it occurs to me that many of us are longing to be able to gather again like this in close proximity with our fellow church members--in person, on Mission trips, in the church dining room and sanctuary, in each other’s homes.  And it has been so hard not to have been able to gather in person for a full year!!  We are not used to being physically apart from the people who support and nurture us in the faith. 

But, that said, this year it has been inspiring to see the creative ways we have still been able to gather as church - for support, prayer, and outreach during this pandemic.  Zoom meetings--though not the same as face to face, have still been platforms where we have gathered for Bible Study, book discussion, prayer, outreach, and organizing.  And one of the gifts of Zoom is that people who may tend not to speak up in large gatherings, are more apt to share in small group Zoom sessions.  Plus, people who live far away--or who can’t drive at night can still participate.  So Zoom has enabled more voices to be heard.  Further, you have used virtual tools such as email and Facebook announcements and on-line giving options to encourage donations to mission projects such as the giving tree, which was a huge success this past Christmas in providing gifts to families in need and gift cards to women at the Meadows House.   And, isn’t it incredible that despite all the challenges, we have still managed to worship God each week through our livestream services and prayer times.  And, even more amazingly, we have connected with some new people during this pandemic who would not have found us if we had not been streaming on line!  Praise be to God! 

So, as we move forward and work toward phasing back into in-person worship down the line--which your church council is working on, let us continue to be led by God’s Spirit.  Let us continue to look for creative ways to provoke each other to love and good deeds and, in the words of our new purpose statement:  to be “a community of abundant welcome to all, growing together in Christ and serving with Love.”  Amen

Rev. Dr. Marlayna Schmidt

Franklin Federated Church

Franklin, MA    

SERMON: “Noticing God in Creation, Culture, and Creativity”

INTRODUCTION:  Our first Scripture reading this morning is from the first chapter of the first book in the Bible:  Genesis 1, verses 26-31.  These verses pick up near the end of the Story of Creation, after God has created the earth, the sea, the plants, and all the non-human creatures that live on land or in sea.  In this passage, the writer describes, in poetic terms, God’s creation of human beings and their relationship to the other creatures of the earth.  Let us listen for the Spirit speaking through these words.

SCRIPTURE:  Genesis 1:26-3126 Then God said, ‘Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the wild animals of the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.’ 
27 So God created humankind in his image,
   in the image of God he created them;
   male and female he created them. 
28God blessed them, and God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth.’ 29God said, ‘See, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit; you shall have them for food. 30And to every beast of the earth, and to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.’ And it was so. 31God saw everything that he had made, and indeed, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.

INTRODUCTION:  Our second Scripture reading is from the Apostle Paul’s letter to the Romans, chapter 1, the first part of verse 20.  Paul reminds the church in Rome that if people pay attention to the world around them, they can easily notice God in creation.  I will be reading from a modern-language paraphrase of the Bible, called “The Message.”

SCRIPTURE:  Romans 1:20 (The Message)

But the basic reality of God is plain enough. Open your eyes and there it is!  By taking a long and thoughtful look at what God has created, people have always been able to see what their eyes as such can’t see: eternal power, for instance, and the mystery of his divine being. 

SERMON:  “Noticing God in Creation, Culture, and Creativity”

My sermon today is based on Chapter 6 of Richard Peace’s book, which is entitled, “Noticing God in Creation, Culture and Creativity.”  I will take these topics in turn, starting with “Noticing God in Creation,” then moving to how we reflect God in culture and creativity. 

First, “Noticing God in Creation.”

Professor Peace begins this chapter with a quote from Laird Hamilton, who is “arguably the greatest living big-wave surfer,” who has ridden waves over 100 feet high all over the world.  Regarding such waves, Hamilton is quoted as saying, “If you can look at one of these waves, and you don’t believe there is something greater than we are, then you’ve got some serious analyzing to do and you should go sit under a tree for a very long time.”  (Laird quoted by Richard Peace in Noticing God, p. 103.) 

Professor Peace goes on to say, “In creating this planet and all that is on it, God left fingerprints all over creation [isn’t that a great image?!]:  in the wind and the waves, in the breathtaking beauty of a sunset, …in the complexity of a drop of water, in the annual two-thousand-mile, multi generational migration of Monarch butterflies, and so on.  [And then Peace reminds us:]  you [each] have your own examples [of where you have seen the fingerprints of God in creation].”  (Peace, p. 104)

A few years ago I asked a group of people at a Bible study if anyone wanted to share an example of a time when they had witnessed “the fingerprints of God in creation.”  Sometimes I ask questions like this, and I’m met with silence because people have a hard time coming up with examples on the spot.  Not this time.  People had so many examples of times when a they had seen the fingerprints of God in the world, I had a hard time keeping the group to its agreed upon time limit.  Perhaps the most vivid example was witnessing the phosphorescence of ocean water at night—which, amazingly to me, almost everyone in the group had seen at various times in various places throughout their lives.  I won’t give you a list of all of them, but the most dramatic was a description given by a woman in her late 60’s who remembered a vacation she had taken as a child with her family on Vieques Bay in Puerto Rico. 

The woman was a retired marine biologist, so she could share with the group the scientific explanation behind phosphorescence--which is usually caused by tiny algae that glow whenever they are jostled.  But, she told the group, her voice hushed in awe, even knowing the science behind it, seeing it again years later, it still feels like magic when you run your hand along the surface of the water and leave a trail of shimmering light in your wake.  She talked about her family diving into a sea of phosphoresence and coming up out of the water as if “dripping diamonds” off their fingers.  Beautiful!

Richard Peace says that “Creation is a gift to us that expresses the giver, and so we can find God in [the beauty and wonder of] creation.”  (Peace, p. 107).  That’s not to say everything in God’s creation is beautiful or uplifting, but “in spite of…the destructive forces on our planet…we can still sense [God’s] glory [even if sometimes we sense it] through the fog of distortions.”  (p. 107) 

Our first Scripture reading this morning is from the first chapter of the first book of the Bible—Genesis. It is an ancient text often referred to as “the Creation Story.”  But let me be clear—2500 years ago it was NOT written as a scientific account to be taken literally, but rather as a poetic work meant to inspire faith and worship.  (New Interpreter’s Bible Commentary, p. 341.)  It was written to express a truth:   that God is behind the creation of the world. 

The writer of Genesis—it is traditionally attributed to Moses but understood to be edited by priests and scribes—the writer was NOT interested in exploring the means or method that God used in creation, but rather in reminding us that GOD is the author and artist who brought the world into being. 

But, back to the topic, “Noticing God in Creation.”  One of the things often claimed from the reading in Genesis is that humanity is the crowning achievement of God’s creation, made in the image of God.  Down through the centuries, there has been much discussion and argument as to what that means exactly.  Most current scholars believe that “the image of God” refers to the “entire human being, not [just] to some part, such as the reason or the will.”  (NIB, p. 345.)  And while scholars do not rule out the possibility that being made in the image of God might somehow refer to our physical bodies, they agree the emphasis is more on our behavior, how we act in the world.  One scholar puts it this way:  being made in the image of God means that we human beings—BOTH male and female—are called to “mirror God to the world.”  (NIB, p. 345)  In other words, we are called to reflect God’s love and care to each other, our planet, and its creatures. 

One of the tragedies of this passage is that it has often been misinterpreted--with destructive consequences.  Specifically, when this passage talks about how humans are to have “dominion” over the world and its creatures, that word has been taken to mean—by some-- that we human beings have been given free reign by God to exploit the world’s natural resources for our own gain, however we see fit.  But that is NOT what the word translated as “dominion” actually means.  In fact, it means just the opposite.  The other places in Scripture where the word “dominion” is used refer to God’s loving care of humanity, especially God’s care of the poor and needy, the injured and weak, whom God rescues from violence and oppression (Psalm 72 & Ezekiel 34).   

Being made in God’s image means that we are to offer this kind of loving care to our world:  the kind of care that prioritizes the needs of the most vulnerable above the needs of the most powerful. 

Which brings us to the second topic of this sermon:  how we reflect God in culture and creativity.  When we notice God in the beauty of creation and recognize that we are made in God’s image, then we can work together to create a culture where care and love take precedence over violence and exploitation.  Richard Peace describes culture like this:

Culture is what we humans make of creation.  Our cultural products give testimony to the reality of God when we have eyes to see and ears to hear.  So it is that we turn in a God-ward direction under the power of a great symphony, through the transcendence of medieval murals in majestic European cathedrals or via the mesmerizing vision of Dante’s great poem Divine Comedy.  Our cultural products in all their creativity move us toward [God’s Love.]  (Peace, p. 108)

Having been part of a group of people here at FFC who are reading Ibram Kendi’s book, How To Be an Antiracist, I am aware that all of the examples of culture given in that last paragraph are limited to White European culture.  They are still wonderful examples of culture, but to get a full picture of the Love of God, we need to add to them.  Our understanding of God’s Love can be expanded when we look, also, at creative works by artists of color, including, for example, Amanda Gorman, whose poem at the presidential inauguration called us all to be our best selves    and   Lin-Manuel Miranda, whose musical Hamilton invites us to see American history from multiple perspectives.   

If we look for it, we can see God’s Love in creation and culture that is all around us.  We can also reflect God’s Love in our own creativity, even if we are not famous artists, writers or poets.  In Professor Peace’s words, “Each of us has been given the ability to create.  We can weave together various elements to produce something unique, something that sparkles with truth and reality…In the creative process, we are touching God in us and around us.”  (Peace, p. 117) 

Whether our creativity is expressed in photography, cooking, writing, gardening or playing with our grandchildren, may we see it for what it is--a reflection of our Creator’s Love.  May our awareness of God in the world around us increase with each new day, and may God continue to work in and through us to creatively bring healing and wholeness to our neighbors, ourselves, and our world.  Amen. 

Rev. Dr. Marlayna Schmidt

Franklin Federated Church

Franklin, MA

Note:  An earlier version of this sermon was written and preached by Marlayna on March 18, 2018. 

SERMON: “Noticing God in the Written Word”

INTRODUCTION:  Our first Scripture reading this morning comes from the first chapter of the Gospel of John, from the section known as “The Prologue.”  Drawing on lyrics of an early Christian hymn, these verses begin to poetically describe the role of Jesus, who is described here as “The Word” of God. 

SCRIPTURE:  John 1:1-5

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2He was in the beginning with God. 3All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being 4in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. 5The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.

INTRODUCTION:  Our second scripture reading today is from the Apostle Paul’s second letter to Timothy, a younger pastor to whom Paul served as mentor.  In this letter Paul reminds Timothy—and all of us—of the purpose of Scripture. 

SCRIPTURE: 2 Timothy 3:16-17

16All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17so that everyone who belongs to God may be proficient, equipped for every good work.

SERMON:  “Noticing God in the Written Word” 

The late comedian and vaudeville performer, Gracie Allen, once wrote to her husband, George Burns and said this:  “Never place a period where God has placed a comma.”  (repeat).  Many years later this quote was remembered and used by the United Church of Christ, one of the denominations to which our church belongs, as a motto or slogan to refer to the theological truth that “God is still speaking.”   In other words, God is still interacting, still communicating with human beings.  God is still speaking.

Richard Peace’s book “Noticing God”—on which this sermon series is based—reflects this truth as well.  The premise of the book is that if we pay attention—if we open our eyes and ears, minds and hearts—we can “hear” God speak.  The title of Chapter 5 is “Noticing God in the written word,” and in it Richard Peace contends that the written word—the Bible—is “the primary avenue by which we encounter God.”  (p. 87). 

Now, I am guessing that some of you may well be shaking your heads in complete agreement with Professor Peace—thinking that Of course the Bible the primary avenue by which we encounter God!  Perhaps you’ve been reading the Bible since you were a little kid in Sunday School, and you are deeply grateful for the way your faith has been shaped and nurtured by its stories-- of Moses and the prophets, of inspiring women like Deborah and Ruth, of Jesus and the disciples.  Or perhaps you discovered the Bible as an adult—maybe you’re just starting on your journey of Bible reading, and you’ve begun to notice that the words of the Psalms or the laments of Job—seem to echo the deep questions, griefs and longings of your own heart in ways you had not thought possible. 

OR perhaps you are inwardly shaking your heads in disagreement with Professor Peace.  Perhaps your experience of the Bible has not, overall, been a good one.  Perhaps you first picked up a Bible as an adult and tried to read it because you thought it would be good for you, only to discover that parts of the Bible are long and boring, and parts are filled with details that applied to a tribal culture 2 or 3 thousand years ago but NOW seem not only irrelevant, but also sometimes scary.  Scary, because, tragically, parts of the Bible have been used, at times, down through the centuries to incite hatred, bigotry, racism, violence and even war.  How many of us cringed at the Christian symbols and words of Scripture used by members of the violent mob that stormed the Capital on January 6th?

And that use of the Bible is horrible.  It is NOT God’s intent to incite hatred, bigotry, racism, violence or war.  I can say this with conviction because when you read through the 66 books of the Bible--both the Hebrew Scriptures and the New Testament--its central message is clear.  And that message is two-fold:  1) God’s main character trait is steadfast love, “hesed” in Hebrew; and that love extends to the whole world and all its peoples; 2) human beings are commanded to reflect God’s love.  So, ALL parts of the Bible—especially the difficult parts—need to be judged and interpreted through a lens of Love, which is its main theme.  (I would like to claim that as my own idea, but, actually, St. Augustine pointed that out in the 4th century A.D.—so that idea has been around for a while.)

UCC Pastor and writer Lillian Daniel builds on this idea in a recent essay entitled, “Do We Believe in the Bible?”   She answers that question in the affirmative, saying QUOTE, “We believe in the Bible so much that we think it deserves our best questions.  We believe that the Bible is the opening of a conversation in which God is still speaking.”  And she goes on to say, “As mature, thinking Christians… we can marvel that God thought so highly of us that we were not left with a mere rule book, but rather a word of so many dimensions that it would take a lifetime to explore.” END QUOTE

Looked at this way, the Bible is an invitation—and a means by which—we can engage in a life-long conversation and relationship with our Loving God.   

Our first reading from the Gospel of John is a beautiful reading.  It is part of an early Christian hymn from the first century.  It refers to the “Word” of God using the Greek word logos, which is a term used in both Greek and Jewish philosophy in the first century. 

So, when the first chapter of the Gospel of John speaks of the logos, the Word, of God, the first-Century audience hearing these words would have understood the term to mean more than the static word of a story written on a page.  They would have understood the logos, the Word, to refer to an active, creative entity, a Presence related to, if not synonymous with, God.  In fact, the first-century readers of the Gospel of John--members of his faith community--would have immediately understood that the active, creative logos—the Word--referred to Jesus himself, whom they believed to be God incarnate. 

And they would have understood, as John spells out, that the Word of God—Jesus himself—continues to be spiritually present and active in the world and in our lives—and that we get to know him through the words of Scripture. 

National Public Radio Reporter Barbara Bradley Hagerty experienced getting to know Jesus through the words of Scripture, and it was such a powerful experience, that she wrote a book about it called The Fingerprints of God.  Richard Peace quotes from Hagerty’s book where she describes reading the Gospels as a visceral experience, one in which she said the words “reached up and grabbed me” and “demanded that I pay attention.”  She describes hearing the sound of Jesus’ voice as she read, tasting the “salty air of the Galilean Sea,” and smelling “the fear of the fishermen caught in a vicious squall.”  She said, “This two-thousand-year-old story sprung, like those pop-up birthday cards, from two dimensions to three—from myth to concrete reality.

            What unnerved me [she said] was that this feeling seemed to come from outside me, not within:  it was as if someone had tied a rope around my waist and pulled me slowly and with infinite determination, toward a door that was ajar.”

 “Hagerty then goes on to tell how she opened herself to this God to whom she was being drawn:  “I prayed—and in that split second of surrender, I felt my heart stir and grow warm, as if it were changing.  It was a physical thing, exquisite, undeniable.”  (Haggerty quoted in Peace’s Noticing God, p. 89.)

Barbara Bradley Hagerty experienced the active, creative logos, the Word, the incarnate Christ engaging her through the pages of Scripture, and as she opened herself to God’s presence, her life was changed. 

Have you ever had that type of enlivening, life-changing experience when reading the Scriptures?  If you haven’t--or haven’t had it for a while, in next week’s e-blast I will include a one-page description of a spiritual exercise called lectio divina, which is an ancient method of deeply reading the Word of God that can be traced back to the Benedictines.  If you’ve never tried this exercise I invite you to try it next week. And let me know how it goes, or if you have any questions!  And I’ll invite you to share your experiences with lectio divina scripture reading at next week’s fellowship time. 

But all this brings us to our second scripture reading for today, from 2nd Timothy, chapter 3, which reads:  “All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that everyone who belongs to God may be proficient, equipped for every good work.”   These verses contain a lot of churchy words, but basically what they are saying is this:  God engages us through Scripture for a purpose—that we might be equipped for “every good work.”  In other words, engaging more deeply with the love of God through the Scriptures is not an experience to keep to ourselves; we are called to savor it and then share it with others through good works. 

My friends, may we continue to notice God in various ways as we go through our daily lives.  May one of those ways be through the written Word of God, the Bible.  When reading this ancient text, may we open ourselves up to the real, spiritual presence of God speaking through its pages.  May we not only read about, but may we actually encounter, the Living Word, the logos, the Spirit of Christ whose Love transforms our world for the better.  May we know the truth of today’s reading, that Christ’s light “shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”  Amen. 

Rev. Dr. Marlayna Schmidt

Franklin Federated Church

Franklin, MA

 INTRODUCTION:  Our first Scripture reading this morning comes from the first chapter of the Gospel of John, from the section known as “The Prologue.”  Drawing on lyrics of an early Christian hymn, these verses begin to poetically describe the role of Jesus, who is described here as “The Word” of God. 

SCRIPTURE:  John 1:1-5

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2He was in the beginning with God. 3All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being 4in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. 5The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.

INTRODUCTION:  Our second scripture reading today is from the Apostle Paul’s second letter to Timothy, a younger pastor to whom Paul served as mentor.  In this letter Paul reminds Timothy—and all of us—of the purpose of Scripture. 

SCRIPTURE: 2 Timothy 3:16-17

16All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17so that everyone who belongs to God may be proficient, equipped for every good work.

SERMON:  “Noticing God in the Written Word” 

The late comedian and vaudeville performer, Gracie Allen, once wrote to her husband, George Burns and said this:  “Never place a period where God has placed a comma.”  (repeat).  Many years later this quote was remembered and used by the United Church of Christ, one of the denominations to which our church belongs, as a motto or slogan to refer to the theological truth that “God is still speaking.”   In other words, God is still interacting, still communicating with human beings.  God is still speaking.

Richard Peace’s book “Noticing God”—on which this sermon series is based—reflects this truth as well.  The premise of the book is that if we pay attention—if we open our eyes and ears, minds and hearts—we can “hear” God speak.  The title of Chapter 5 is “Noticing God in the written word,” and in it Richard Peace contends that the written word—the Bible—is “the primary avenue by which we encounter God.”  (p. 87). 

Now, I am guessing that some of you may well be shaking your heads in complete agreement with Professor Peace—thinking that Of course the Bible the primary avenue by which we encounter God!  Perhaps you’ve been reading the Bible since you were a little kid in Sunday School, and you are deeply grateful for the way your faith has been shaped and nurtured by its stories-- of Moses and the prophets, of inspiring women like Deborah and Ruth, of Jesus and the disciples.  Or perhaps you discovered the Bible as an adult—maybe you’re just starting on your journey of Bible reading, and you’ve begun to notice that the words of the Psalms or the laments of Job—seem to echo the deep questions, griefs and longings of your own heart in ways you had not thought possible. 

OR perhaps you are inwardly shaking your heads in disagreement with Professor Peace.  Perhaps your experience of the Bible has not, overall, been a good one.  Perhaps you first picked up a Bible as an adult and tried to read it because you thought it would be good for you, only to discover that parts of the Bible are long and boring, and parts are filled with details that applied to a tribal culture 2 or 3 thousand years ago but NOW seem not only irrelevant, but also sometimes scary.  Scary, because, tragically, parts of the Bible have been used, at times, down through the centuries to incite hatred, bigotry, racism, violence and even war.  How many of us cringed at the Christian symbols and words of Scripture used by members of the violent mob that stormed the Capital on January 6th?

And that use of the Bible is horrible.  It is NOT God’s intent to incite hatred, bigotry, racism, violence or war.  I can say this with conviction because when you read through the 66 books of the Bible--both the Hebrew Scriptures and the New Testament--its central message is clear.  And that message is two-fold:  1) God’s main character trait is steadfast love, “hesed” in Hebrew; and that love extends to the whole world and all its peoples; 2) human beings are commanded to reflect God’s love.  So, ALL parts of the Bible—especially the difficult parts—need to be judged and interpreted through a lens of Love, which is its main theme.  (I would like to claim that as my own idea, but, actually, St. Augustine pointed that out in the 4th century A.D.—so that idea has been around for a while.)

UCC Pastor and writer Lillian Daniel builds on this idea in a recent essay entitled, “Do We Believe in the Bible?”   She answers that question in the affirmative, saying QUOTE, “We believe in the Bible so much that we think it deserves our best questions.  We believe that the Bible is the opening of a conversation in which God is still speaking.”  And she goes on to say, “As mature, thinking Christians… we can marvel that God thought so highly of us that we were not left with a mere rule book, but rather a word of so many dimensions that it would take a lifetime to explore.” END QUOTE

Looked at this way, the Bible is an invitation—and a means by which—we can engage in a life-long conversation and relationship with our Loving God.   

Our first reading from the Gospel of John is a beautiful reading.  It is part of an early Christian hymn from the first century.  It refers to the “Word” of God using the Greek word logos, which is a term used in both Greek and Jewish philosophy in the first century. 

So, when the first chapter of the Gospel of John speaks of the logos, the Word, of God, the first-Century audience hearing these words would have understood the term to mean more than the static word of a story written on a page.  They would have understood the logos, the Word, to refer to an active, creative entity, a Presence related to, if not synonymous with, God.  In fact, the first-century readers of the Gospel of John--members of his faith community--would have immediately understood that the active, creative logos—the Word--referred to Jesus himself, whom they believed to be God incarnate. 

And they would have understood, as John spells out, that the Word of God—Jesus himself—continues to be spiritually present and active in the world and in our lives—and that we get to know him through the words of Scripture. 

National Public Radio Reporter Barbara Bradley Hagerty experienced getting to know Jesus through the words of Scripture, and it was such a powerful experience, that she wrote a book about it called The Fingerprints of God.  Richard Peace quotes from Hagerty’s book where she describes reading the Gospels as a visceral experience, one in which she said the words “reached up and grabbed me” and “demanded that I pay attention.”  She describes hearing the sound of Jesus’ voice as she read, tasting the “salty air of the Galilean Sea,” and smelling “the fear of the fishermen caught in a vicious squall.”  She said, “This two-thousand-year-old story sprung, like those pop-up birthday cards, from two dimensions to three—from myth to concrete reality.

            What unnerved me [she said] was that this feeling seemed to come from outside me, not within:  it was as if someone had tied a rope around my waist and pulled me slowly and with infinite determination, toward a door that was ajar.”

 “Hagerty then goes on to tell how she opened herself to this God to whom she was being drawn:  “I prayed—and in that split second of surrender, I felt my heart stir and grow warm, as if it were changing.  It was a physical thing, exquisite, undeniable.”  (Haggerty quoted in Peace’s Noticing God, p. 89.)

Barbara Bradley Hagerty experienced the active, creative logos, the Word, the incarnate Christ engaging her through the pages of Scripture, and as she opened herself to God’s presence, her life was changed. 

Have you ever had that type of enlivening, life-changing experience when reading the Scriptures?  If you haven’t--or haven’t had it for a while, in next week’s e-blast I will include a one-page description of a spiritual exercise called lectio divina, which is an ancient method of deeply reading the Word of God that can be traced back to the Benedictines.  If you’ve never tried this exercise I invite you to try it next week. And let me know how it goes, or if you have any questions!  And I’ll invite you to share your experiences with lectio divina scripture reading at next week’s fellowship time. 

But all this brings us to our second scripture reading for today, from 2nd Timothy, chapter 3, which reads:  “All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that everyone who belongs to God may be proficient, equipped for every good work.”   These verses contain a lot of churchy words, but basically what they are saying is this:  God engages us through Scripture for a purpose—that we might be equipped for “every good work.”  In other words, engaging more deeply with the love of God through the Scriptures is not an experience to keep to ourselves; we are called to savor it and then share it with others through good works. 

My friends, may we continue to notice God in various ways as we go through our daily lives.  May one of those ways be through the written Word of God, the Bible.  When reading this ancient text, may we open ourselves up to the real, spiritual presence of God speaking through its pages.  May we not only read about, but may we actually encounter, the Living Word, the logos, the Spirit of Christ whose Love transforms our world for the better.  May we know the truth of today’s reading, that Christ’s light “shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”  Amen. 

Rev. Dr. Marlayna Schmidt

Franklin Federated Church

Franklin, MA

Sermon: “Noticing God in Christian Community”

INTRODUCTION:  The Scripture Readings today focus on behavior.  Specifically, they direct us how God expects-- and empowers-- us to behave as followers of Christ.  May we take these words to heart and embody them in our actions.

Galatians 5:22-23 “...the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness,     23gentleness, and self-control…” 

Matthew 25:34-40

34Then the king will say to those at his right hand, “Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; 35for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.” 37Then the righteous will answer him, “Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? 38And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? 39And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?” 40And the king will answer them, “Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.”

Sermon:  “Noticing God in Christian Community”

“Noticing God in Christian Community” -- this is the title of today’s sermon and the focus of Chapter 4 of Richard Peace’s book.  On page 77, Peace says this, “…despite the struggles, community is the laboratory in which we learn to love and be loved.”  (p. 77)   [REPEAT]

And, by “community,” he is talking specifically about Christian community, which we find in the church, the Body of Christ.  Peace refers to a few Scriptures in this chapter, two of which we have used as our readings for this morning’s service.  The first is the short reading from Galatians, where the Apostle Paul gives one of his famous lists, this list being “the fruit of the Spirit.”  (I’m sure you’ve run across this list before; I’ve even run across it printed on a pillow at the Christmas Tree shop.  Maybe you memorized it in Sunday School as a child:  “Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.”  [If you didn’t memorize it as a child in Sunday school--it’s not too late--memorizing this verse could be something you/I decide to do as part of our Lenten devotions.]  Commentators agree that this is not meant to be an exhaustive list—we can name other fruits, such as humility and hope—but rather this list is meant to suggest the “inner attitudes (graces and virtues)” that God’s Spirit brings out of us.   (Quote from Noticing God, p. 78; Concept also found in New Interpreter’s Bible, Vol. XI, p. 328.) 

But here’s the interesting thing about this list and way God works:  we simply cannot develop these inner attitudes, graces, virtues in ourselves if we sit alone in a room—even if we sit alone in a room and pray continually.  Two things are required of us in order for these fruits to be fully developed: 1) We must open our hearts to God.  AND 2) we must consciously, prayerfully interact with one another. 

For instance, I can pray for patience until I am blue in the face, but until I interact with other people with whom I can practice patience, the virtue will never bloom or—to use the Apostle Paul’s image—never develop into a fully ripe piece of fruit.  And that’s where the church comes in.  In fact, in our small group discussions on “Purpose” that took place a few weeks ago as part of the Vision Process, every group named this dynamic:  We come together as a group of people to be fed and nurtured in faith--to learn and grow in Christ—and we help each other do that.  At our best—in worship, conversation, study groups, and committee meetings-- we bring out in each other “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” 

Now, let me stop here for a moment and acknowledge that, as human beings--whether we are part of a Christian community or not--we are not always at our best.  The fruits of the Spirit mentioned in Galatians are not “automatic” gifts from God, bestowed upon us when we walk through the doors of a church building or log into a Facebook worship service and interact with other followers of Christ.  Even when God grants us an amazing shift in attitude and perspective, that shift comes because we have made the choice to pray about it, to open ourselves to it.  That shift comes because we have recognized that we cannot bear such fruit solely on our own; we need to ask God and each other for help.  And, sometimes, we need to ask God and each other for forgiveness when the fruit we’ve tried to bear on our own doesn’t quite resemble the fruit God has in mind for us. 

Which reminds me of the vegetable garden that I planted when my husband Paul and I first moved to our house in Beverly 21 years ago.  Let me give you a little background.  On my father’s side, I come from a long line of farmers.  My dad was originally from Kansas, and when he moved to Revere, Massachusetts, he turned our backyard into a veritable mini-farm.  He grew everything, including the most delicious ears of corn you could ever imagine.  So, when Paul and I bought our first--and only--house, I tried to re-create the garden of my childhood.  I even planted corn.  But, unlike the corn my father planted, my harvest was abysmal.  I had 4 corn plants--two that lived--and although there actually were a few ears of corn on those 2 corn plants, when I picked those ears and husked them, the ears of corn could only be described--at their best--as mutant.  Some of the kernels were big, some small.  And the ears themselves were misshapen.  They didn’t taste too bad, but the whole experiment was something of an embarrassment.  I later called my uncle in Kansas who still had a small farm to ask him what went wrong.  Two things.  Apparently corn plants need full sun.  Who knew?  AND--and this is the part that really ties in with our  scripture:   2 corn plants just wouldn’t cut it.  Corn plants need to be part of a group of other corn plants in order to grow and thrive and bear good fruit. ( I wish I’d called my uncle before i planted that garden.  Live and learn...)

My point?  We are like corn plants.  We need to be in a group--we need Christian community in order to grow and thrive and bear good fruit.  But, practically speaking, how do we do this?  How do we help each other grow and thrive and bear good fruit?  One way is by paying attention to how we talk with one another when we get together for fellowship, study groups, committee meetings.   At our church annual meeting on February 7th we voted on a “covenant for Christian communication,” which spells out how we will choose to communicate with each other, even when we don’t see eye to eye.  From my perspective, the most powerful line in that covenant is “We will communicate with each other as if we were standing face-to-face with Jesus, asking what God would have us do, and seeking to hear God’s voice in the other person.”  Wow!  How much good fruit might God produce in us as a church if we—each and all—consciously, regularly sought to do this, by the Grace of God?  This practice will help us bear good fruit, help us to serve the world in love.

That’s where our second scripture reading comes in.  This Scripture is from Matthew 25--from Jesus’ last discourse to his disciples (and the crowd) before the events that lead up to his arrest and crucifixion.  In this passage, Jesus tells the crowd that when they meet the needs of each other and the world—when they offer food to the hungry, water to the thirsty, hospitality to the stranger, clothing to the naked, care to the sick and imprisoned—they are, in effect, serving and caring for Christ himself.  Our closing hymn puts it this way, “Sister, let me be your servant; brother, let me walk with you.  Pray that I may have the grace to let you be my servant too.”

Which makes me wonder:  How would we be different—how would our world be different-- if we each consciously chose to look at each other and ALL of the people around us as if they were Christ?  AND if we consciously chose to behave toward people the way Christ calls us to—seeking to serve and meet their needs? 

We here at Franklin Federated Church are in the middle of a Vision Process.  Your Transition Team met this past Tuesday to compare notes on the small group discussions that we had about what our Purpose is as a church.  Although some different words were used, it was actually amazing how many of the same words appeared in each group’s draft purpose statement.  In fact, it became clear that each group described the same process:  we come together as a welcoming faith community to be nurtured by God and to grow and learn as followers of Christ, so that we can share God’s Love with the world and meet the needs of our neighbors.  Drawing on this concept and the words that were mentioned in the various groups, the Transition Team is in the process of articulating a unified draft purpose statement that they will send out to the congregation in a week or so.  Please be on the lookout for it.  They/we would love your feedback!

In the meantime, let us take today’s Scriptures to heart.  Let us strive to see Christ in each other, to bring out the best in each other in Christian community, that God may empower us to bear fruit that makes a positive difference in the world. 

Rev. Dr. Marlayna Schmidt

Franklin Federated Church

Franklin, MA 

PRAY

Gracious God—

- To love someone else’s life

            As much as our own,

- To reach out in support

            Of another person’s weakness

                        When we ourselves are falling;

- To give another person hope

            When we are close to despair;

- And to offer forgiveness

            When we feel unforgiven;

- This is what you ask of us, Lord,

            And it is hard:

Hard to give

            When we are struggling;

Hard to help

            When we need help

Hard to encourage

            When we are discouraged.

Yet, you help us along the way.

- You give us glimpses of your healing love--you

Help us to see Christ in each other. 

- You remind us

            that even when our world is shaking,

            We are not alone; we are part of your community.

you hold us all in your hands.

So, guide us, now, O God, that we may continue to care for one another, growing together, bearing fruit, and making a difference in our world, for Jesus sake.  Amen. 

[prayer based in part on a prayer found in New Prayers for Worship]

Sermon: “Noticing God in the Still Small Voice”

Scripture:  I Kings 19:11-16

11 He said, ‘Go out and stand on the mountain before the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.’ Now there was a great wind, so strong that it was splitting mountains and breaking rocks in pieces before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake; 12and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of sheer silence.13When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. Then there came a voice to him that said, ‘What are you doing here, Elijah?’ 14He answered, ‘I have been very zealous for the Lord, the God of hosts; for the Israelites have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword. I alone am left, and they are seeking my life, to take it away.’ 15Then the Lord said to him, ‘Go, return on your way to the wilderness of Damascus; when you arrive, you shall anoint Hazael as king over Aram. 16Also you shall anoint Jehu son of Nimshi as king over Israel; and you shall anoint Elisha son of Shaphat of Abel-meholah as prophet in your place. 

Sermon:  “Noticing God in the Still Small Voice”

Singer Songwriter Paul Simon had a big hit in 1964 that began like this:

Hello darkness, my old friend

I’ve come to talk with you again

Because a vision softly creeping

Left its seeds while I was sleeping

And the vision that was planted in my brain

Still remains

Within the sound of silence.

Interviewed on National Public radio years later, Paul Simon told the radio audience that the song was about “youthful alienation…[the feeling that] nobody’s listening to me, nobody’s listening to anyone.” Simon mused that part of the reason why the song was so popular is that this feeling of being alone and not being heard had “some level of truth to it and it resonated with millions of people.”  (that, and because it had a “simple and singable melody.”  (songfacts.com) 

I dare say that Paul Simon’s song—“The Sound of Silence”--had it been written 3000 years earlier, would have resonated with the prophet Elijah in today’s Scripture reading, which was set in Israel back in the 9th Century, BC.  Just before our reading picks up, Elijah’s life has taken a turn for the worse, and that is an understatement.  Let me give you the background. 

Here’s what had happened.  Elijah, being a prophet, was the mouthpiece of God, so God had sent him to confront the king and queen of Israel—Ahab and Jezabel—who were, to put it mildly—behaving badly.  Ahab and Jezebel had led the people of Israel away from worshipping God; they had persecuted and killed the prophets of God (I Kings 17-18); had torn down the altars of God and set up, in their place, shrines to the fertility God Baal; and, to put it in modern terms, they had engaged in human trafficking, forcing young women into prostitution at the shrines they had set up.  So, Elijah confronts them—and rather than seeing the error of their ways and repenting—Ahab and Jezebel threaten to kill Elijah, forcing him to run for his life.   

Right before our reading picks up, Elijah has just traveled a hundred miles from the northern Kingdom of Israel down to Beer Sheba, a city on the edge of the Negev desert.  He leaves his servant there in the city and travels a day’s journey out into the wilderness, alone and on foot.  In a story that is touching and tender, Elijah collapses in the desert, expecting to die, but he is met the next two mornings by an angel of the Lord, who gently wakes him up, gives him food and water--and gives him the strength to keep going.  So, he does.  And, finally, after 40 days and 40 nights, Elijah completes a 200 mile trek through the wilderness and arrives at his destination, Mt. Sinai, “the mountain of God,” the site where, 500 years earlier, God had given Moses the Ten Commandments.  Arriving exhausted, Elijah basically collapses again, this time in a cave on the mountainside, where once again met he is met by an angel of God, who listens to his lament.     

Our reading picks up in verse 11, where the angel, responding to Elijah’s litany of complaints, tells Elijah to come out because the Lord is about to pass by.  But Elijah doesn’t move.  And you know what happens next,

·        First, there is a gale-force wind, but the Lord is NOT in the wind. 

·        After the wind, there is an earthquake, but the Lord is NOT in the earthquake. 

·        After the earthquake, there is a fire—but the Lord is NOT in the fire either. 

·        Finally, after the fire, there is the “sound of silence”—(which makes me wonder if Paul Simon was thinking of this text when he wrote his famous song!)    

Be that as it may, commentators tell us that the Hebrew Word used in this verse is “notoriously difficult to translate.” (Peace, p. 52)  Almost every version of the Bible states it a little bit differently. 

o   The New Revised Standard Version—the one Alan read-- calls it “a sound of sheer silence,”

o   the New International Version refers to it as “a gentle whisper,”

o   the New Jerusalem Version, “the sound of a gentle breeze,”

o   the New English Bible, “a low murmuring sound,”

o   and perhaps most familiar to us, the King James Version translates it as “a still, small voice.”  

            Richard Peace, in his book Noticing God tells us, “Quite simply no one really knows what this particular [Hebrew] word actually means, though the sense of it is some sort of interior communication.”  

What we do know, is that when this sound comes to Elijah, it comes after a series of spectacular displays of nature—all of them ways in which we might expect God to appear—because God has appeared in all of these ways before-- in fact, 2 out of three of them (fire and earthquake) are ways God appeared in the past on this very mountain.  But God does NOT do what we—or even Elijah—might have expected in this setting.  In contrast, God forgoes the spectacular and speaks in a gentle whisper.  And when Elijah hears it, he recognizes it as God, and he wraps his face in his cloak—and walks to the entrance of the cave.  (In case you wonder why he wraps up his face, it’s because tradition dictates that no one sees the face of God and lives, so, Elijah evidently didn’t want to take any chances.)  The gentle voice of God then says a very surprising thing.  “What are you doing here, Elijah?”  God asks.   

On first read, this question from God feels a bit harsh.  Wouldn’t a loving God lead with something more compassionate?  Maybe something like:  “Elijah, I am so sorry that Ahab and Jezebel have threatened you like this… You do not need to fear, I will protect you.”  But that’s not what God says.  The still small voice asks Elijah a question.  What are you doing here?  In a Bible study I led once on this passage, someone said it reminded him of a question that Jesus had asked one of his followers who was suffering from an ailment:  Do you want to be healed?  

As much as we may resist it at times, God does not always tell us what we expect or what we want to hear.  God does not swoop in like a superhero and remove us from painful situations.  Rather, God engages us in ways we NEED to be engaged-- so that we can grow in faith and compassion.  And, sometimes that involves speaking to us with the gentle whisper of a question to catch our attention, to get us to search our own hearts, to discover a new direction in which we are called to go, a new thing we are called to do.   

Which reminds me of something a friend of mine once told me.  She told me that when her kids were little and were really acting up, she wouldn’t yell at them, because she quickly learned that yelling would just escalate the situation.  Instead, she would stand there, and as calmly as she could, she would speak in a low, gentle, but firm voice, almost a whisper.  “Do you really want to do that?  Put the cat down, and go to your room.  Now.”  And then my friend would give her children time to think about their behavior, and she would talk with them after everyone had cooled down.  Those of you who have children probably have done and said something similar with your kids as well.   

I wonder if that is what God is doing with Elijah.  Speaking to him in an unexpected way to catch his attention.  Getting him to think about what he is doing.  What he really wants.  Why he is here.  Elijah has already told God that he is done with being a prophet, and God accepts that, but then God works with Elijah to discover the direction his future will take from here.  And, in case it’s not clear because you haven’t looked at a map of Ancient Israel lately, when the voice of God directs Elijah to “return on your way to the wilderness of Damascus,” God is NOT telling him to go back into harm’s way.  (Ahab and Jezebel are in Jezreel, which is a hundred miles away from Damascus.)   God then directs Elijah to go anoint two other kings, one of whom will replace Ahab, which means the death threat against Elijah will disappear.  Furthermore, God directs Elijah to anoint Elisha as his successor, so Elijah will soon be able to rest from the stress of his work. 

So, what does all of this tell us about God—or how we might notice the “still, small voice” of God in our lives?”  Richard Peace suggests that God still addresses people in this manner, through an interior voice—not something we hear with our ears, but in the form of “thoughts that are our thoughts though tangibly not from us.”  (Peace quoting Dallas Willard, p. 52.)  “The challenge,” Peace says, is “to learn to recognize [the inner voice of God] over against other inner voices.” (p. 52) An example:  in chapter 3 of his book, Peace talks about a time when he was under stress at work, when someone was pressuring him in a way that felt unfair, so he took some time to go and pray about it on a retreat.  And while he was praying, he felt an interior voice say, “Stand up for yourself.”  It was not a message that Peace expected; it came in the form of a thought, but not a thought he had generated from his own mind.  The voice, as he described it, was “gentle.  It was unobtrusive.  It was not insistent but it felt ‘true.”  Professor Peace said that in the weeks that followed, he did what he felt God was directing him to do.  He stood up for himself, and the issue resolved itself.  And eventually he “got a letter from the other party, apologizing for the pressure he had put” him under. (p. 58)   

My friends, I don’t have to tell you that our world is not always a joy-filled place.  Sometimes there is stress at home or at work, like Richard Peace described.  Sometimes there is more than stress—there is horrific violence--like Elijah experienced with Ahab and Jezebel, like people in Parkland experienced 3 years ago, like people in other parts of the world—such as Syria or Afghanistan--experience on a daily basis.  Such situations are heart-breaking and can leave us feeling helpless or paralyzed—or, like Elijah, cause us to wail in angry lament and try to flee from the pain.   

Our Scripture reading for today suggests another, more helpful, thing we can do.  Like Elijah, we can bring our laments to God.  And, like Elijah, we can listen for the still, small voice of God.  The voice that asks us unexpected questions.  The voice that is gentle and loving and unobtrusive.  The voice that surprises us with new insight and then leads us in directions we might never have thought to go.

Thinking again of Paul Simon’s song, The Sound of Silence, when he says,

“hear my words, that I might teach you

Take my arms that I might reach you”

May we hear those words as God speaking to us, may we embrace God’s whispers, learn from them, and may we follow where they lead us. 

Would you join me in prayer? 

Creator God,

still Center of the world you have made,

we come to you this Sunday morning, poised to begin

the Season of Lent, the season of turning and returning.

O God, we do not always know how to hear your voice, how to seek you with our whole hearts,

but we do know that you are our source-- and our destiny.

In the midst of life,

we return to you, we turn toward you,

opening our ears, our eyes, our hearts.

We thank you that you receive even the broken heart,

the troubled conscience, the conflicted spirit.

Seeking you in secret,

may we turn around to honor you among humanity;

we pray through Jesus Christ, our path homeward to you, Amen.*

Rev. Dr. Marlayna Schmidt

Franklin Federated Church

Franklin, MA

[An earlier version of this sermon was first written and preached by Marlayna in February of 2018]

* closing prayer was adapted from Touch Holiness.