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Daily Scripture

+ Ascension Thursday

There is no proof; there are only witnesses.

Readings: Acts 1:1-11 Ephesians 1:14-23 Luke 24:46-53

You are witnesses of all these things. And now I am sending down to you what the Father has promised. Stay in the city then, until you are clothed with the power from on high. [Luke 24:50-51]

In an age of technology and scientific progress, we have an explanation for everything or at least the promise of the same. Yet, there are still truly human experiences – both positive and negative—that defy human explanation. Death is one such experience. Doctors know the medical reasons for death but an autopsy doesn’t tell the whole story. Conversely, who can explain the field of energy that binds lovers for life?

During his life on earth Jesus created a field of energy that changed the course of history and it did not cease at his death or even at his resurrection. It continues to this day – locally and globally. Or else how explain the heroism of the saints of yesterday and the saints of today? Women and men, energetic witnesses who have said ‘yes’ to unconditional love under any and all circumstances continue to change the course of history in the face of those who attempt to chain the Word of God. No, most of them are not formal preachers or even religious teachers per se, but people who live the message of the Gospel of Jesus day in and day out.

The gospel today is typical of the departure of a hero. We might even consider it the conclusion of a hero story. Jesus assures his disciples that he is not abandoning them. Not only that but he will send an advocate who will empower them to continue his mission. “You will be clothed with power from on high.” They will be clothed with the mantle of Christ just as the ancient Elijah was clothed in the mantle of Elias before Elias departed in his chariot to the heavens. It’s metaphor and allegory, of course but the underlying truth of Jesus mission will continue to be proclaimed as Good News for all.

But hang in there until Pentecost when the gifts of the Spirit will be renewed and we will be empowered once more to preach the Good News—using words only when necessary.

Weekly Message

Sunday October 10, 2004

It’s All About Healing, Conversion, Gratitude and Hope

It was Karl Barth who said that we need to read the Bible with a copy of the daily newspaper at our side and it was Martin Buber who said that the preacher must have the Bible in one hand and the newspaper in the other. I feel certain that they were not the first to coin those phrases but never was the notion so poignant as now.

Namaan was a man of pagan privilege, a mighty warrior who was not exempt from human frailty and the curse of leprosy. But he was open to the pleas of this Jewish servant girl taken in captivity. He took the appropriate steps to seek healing in a land foreign to him and despite his doubts about the ritual of the ordinary—washing in what he considered a ‘dirty river’ compared to rivers in his homeland—an extraordinary thing happened. He was cured. It must be said that his faith and his trust in the ‘foreign’ God of Israel was not only his cure but also his salvation. His faith led to hope and hope spilled over into gratitude.

There is no indication that the ten lepers in Luke’s gospel were of privilege except that we know that nine were Israelites and one was a Samaritan. Nevertheless, all had lost their privileges. Despite the enmity that existed between the Israelites and the Samaritans, their common misfortune had broken down racial and national barriers. Luke was less interested in their geographical differences than in their theological similarities. Instead of calling out to warn passersby of their contamination as required by Jewish law, they shouted out to Jesus for mercy. Their loss of privilege became the doorway to their healing but one of the lepers went even further. He saw something more in Jesus, “and this man was a Samaritan!” His faith gave him hope of a cure and his cure led to profound gratitude.

I don’t believe that there is one person here this morning who has not suffered hurt of one kind or another and current world events surely continue to add yet another layer to wounds of the past and may have triggered a wave of confusion if not anger or anxiety, political rhetoric notwithstanding.

If anything, the threat of terrorism has made us very conscious of our vulnerability and has moved many people—though certainly not all—to look beyond racial and national differences toward the qualities that join us in the face of a common threat. And despite the ongoing battle on foreign soil we know that we cannot abandon hope in the God whose love is universal. In fact, the Gospel cautions us today despite racial differences, cultural boundaries and global tensions, not to characterize people of another race or religion as enemies. Extreme positions of every kind right or left can and often do deteriorate into irrational thought that inevitably leads to destructive behavior of the kind that we have witnessed in recent months and years.

We admire the tenacity those who listen before they speak and we continue pray for wisdom to world leaders that their pursuit of democracy not deteriorate into a vengeance that can never yield justice or preserve freedom and lead only to a new fascism.

People of faith can be healed by that faith and in the process become witnesses to the hope that goodness will ultimately prevail. People of faith know their vulnerability and renounce their sense of privilege in deference to the call of justice and freedom for people of every race and nation. People of faith find reason to be grateful for the mercy and compassion of God who wants nothing more than for all wounds to be healed and for all people to be one in gratitude.

We in the Christian tradition need to recognize and expose our ‘leprosy’ or whatever it is that prevents us from being our best selves even in the face of evil. Be it anger, hurt, depression, confusion, we cry out, Lord, have compassion and lead us not to the killing fields but to green pastures and beside restful waters where our souls may be refreshed. May we choose wisely and walk courageously forward in the sight of our foes despite our desire to seek revenge. In you, O Lord, justice and mercy meet. May we pursue that justice with integrity and never forget that your rod and your staff will be our strength.