These writings are designed for preaching on the Sundays that correlate to the scripture listed in the Lectionary of the 1979 Book of Common Prayer. As of Advent 2010, these are no longer the texts selected for use in most Episcopal Churches. But mine does.
Each sermon links to the scripture that influence it.
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Party Gone Out Of Bounds
A sermon for Proper 17: Year C (1979)
Most mornings when I’m available, I take an hour long walk through the town. It’s a good healthy walk that gets most of my 10,000 steps in for the day. It’s also relatively rote which allows me to just be centered. Occasionally I’ll be amazed by seeing the rare fox or groundhog, instead of just squirrels, bunnies and birds. Or my curiosity is peaked by someone’s home renovation.
But still the walk is relatively free from surprises, and the thing you would expect from a small town. Though when I lived in Philadelphia, or traveled to other large cities, because of the size and the diverse populations, surprises were almost rote in of themselves, in that you should expect them.
Recently though, one morning in Bordentown I encountered a man who had a different thing to say than the typical, “Hello”, “Morning”, or “How are you.” He said, “Hello Jeff Bezos, I’m your long-lost nephew.” True story.
Now if you know me, you will know that that is impossible. For one thing I never flew to space in my own rocket wearing a cowboy hat.
And as taken aback by this proclamation as I was, I was able to respond quickly and kindly, “That’s great. Have a nice day” and continued on my way.
I was reminded by that encounter when reading today’s gospel. I was thinking how difficult it would be to invite that person to my house, how ill-equipped I would be to entertain such a stranger, and how I would be in continuous fear that what I perceived as a mental disability would lead to consequences that I would not be able to respond quickly and kindly to.
“The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can anyone do to me?” so says the writer of today’s passage in Hebrews.
Nice words. And truly they comfort me to not feel afraid.
But I believe that I’m afraid of what people will do to me. And I don’t think I’m alone in this thought. If I was we would not have war, genocide, and xenophobia.
Jesus would do better than me in this case. He would not think twice about inviting Jeff’s nephew into His house. I know this because everyone’s invited into Jesus’ house _ the poor, the sick, the unlucky, the starving, the afflicted, ___and the scared.
During our time of Peace today, you surely will gladly exchange pax tecum’s to everyone you see. This will not be a frightening moment. But during The Peace, I want you to think of someone who’s not in front of you _ someone you despise for whatever reason, someone you think is gross, someone who you think is not worthy of your peace, or maybe just someone who you’ve lost touch with over the years, or someone who frightens you for whatever reason. It doesn’t even need to be someone you know, just someone you know about.
And then think about their face in your mind.
Then think, that face is a person. They are a person equal as to you as a person on this planet.
Last week’s gospel also included a paradox in that those who are last will be first, and vice versa. Today Jesus lays on us another parable, “For all who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” Furthermore, don’t invite those to your house who will repay you.
These paradoxes are counter intuitive to some, contradictory to others, in that this is not what the writers of good etiquette would recommend. Unfortunately, my experiences of having dinner parties over the years and inviting others invites a competition. A competition to have finer tableware, a better bouquet of flowers, more expensive food, and drink than the last dinner party I attended. Then when it comes back to me, I can’t just do what I did last time. Everyone will remember, and so I compete with my past self and strive for something grander. All of this because I owe a debt to someone who invited me to their home.
This is ego and pride taking over. When you hear Ecclesiasticus’ words “The beginning of human pride is to forsake the Lord; the heart has withdrawn from its Maker. For the beginning of pride is sin, and the one who clings to it pours out abominations.” it’s easy to see this is the inspiration that Jesus is hoping to instill through His parable.
What’s not being said here is, to stop entertaining your family and friends, and to reciprocate their kindness.
What is being said here is that invite who you want. But sometimes the best parties are the ones we don’t know anyone at, or the ones in which no one knows anyone. At one of those types of parties, who knows you may even meet Jeff Bezos’ nephew and become good friends. And before you know it, through that connection, you’re in a rocket ship to space wearing a cowboy hat.
And all because you opened your mind, your heart, your home to someone who was a bit scary at first, (or gross) _ but still first you recognized them as a face and a person equal as to you as a person on this planet. To even do this is truly a blessing because in no way can you be repaid for such an action.
Referenced scriptures:
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It’s The System
A sermon for Proper 16: Year C (1979)
Smoking is bad for your health. Pretty much, everyone knows this and agrees.
Thus, I’m guessing it’ll be tough to find someone who will counter with a competitive _ “Yeah but it’s not as bad as [fill in the blank with anything you can think of].” … (“Yeah, but it’s not as bad as having a tornado hit your house.” “Yeah, but it’s not as bad as hitting yourself in the face with a hammer.”) Smoking is one of those few topics that is rarely debated nor ranked as something worse than others. People might still rationalize why they smoke (and there are some very good rationalizations to make, such as physical addiction to nicotine).
It’s almost a universal truth or a scientific law.
I say it’s rare because people disagree and debate constantly about everything _ Businesses and their products _ from aftershave to movies, from necklaces to zippers _ about TV shows _ other people > their children and their family’s values _ and with the risk of getting somebody too excited, our political beliefs and affiliations.
People also make rankings. People say, “I like this more than this. This one is my favorite.” We make Top 10 lists of things we like the most and things we like the least.
How were all these decisions made though? Through experience mainly. But still many choices are unbeknownst to ourselves. Some of its clever marketing. A cute mascot or the right color choice can go a long way in getting attention or boosting sales. Or the right word uttered at the right time that goes in the right ear.
But when we really think about every one of our preferences, our choices to like and dislike, and to decide how much we like, the origins can be truly difficult to trace. Especially as one gets older, and the collection of experiences becomes too numerous to count.
But that’s how the brain works. Experiences help your brain to create a pattern, so you don’t have to focus on or remember every detail of the world. The brain does this to make you happy and healthy. Forget how you got there; have faith in your brain that it’s right. A quick example _ experience tells you when you’re thirsty to drink a cold soda instead of a bottle of tabasco sauce. Unless you’ve actually done the latter, how would you know to agree with that statement?
When we think about today’s scripture and Jesus’ words to the unnamed person who approached him “some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last”, this sounds a bit unfair and maybe a bit shocking.
This totally goes against our system of winning. If you cross the finish line first or get the most votes, you’re the winner. First is first. So, what can Jesus possibly mean by such a paradox?
First of all, He’s not talking about your system of winning, or the systems of certainty and clarity that you or our society has built for us.
One example of our society’s system would be when corporations during the post-WW II United States mapped out a white-collar worker’s future. This model was called the Company Man. Company Man knew when the next training was, the next promotion, the next raise, and when they could retire. People liked knowing what the future steps were, and how they could be first.
That model of certainty is practically non-existent these days, and most companies use performance metrics and then decide when the moment is appropriate to train, promote and raise a salary. And it’s that uncertainty that is one of the causes of lower worker engagement and happiness. It’s the cause of a lot of distrust, lack of faith, and the belief in equity.
So when it comes to God and this statement, you may say that is not God’s system does not build certainty.
And you’re right. But again He’s not talking about your system. God is talking about a system far different from earth’s system.
Unfortunately, this makes life very messy since you can’t expect that God will be fully aligned with all the preferences and rankings that you have. It can also seem a little hopeless.
But I’m not feeling hopeless. I’m not really a fan of all the earthly competitions and the rankings that I believe won’t account for much after I pass away. I’m glad God is not operating within our system, and that the life beyond this one is rid of such notions.
So instead of asking ourselves whether we’re “first” in this statement, perhaps we should be asking, will I trust God’s system?
In Hebrews today, the message to trust God’s system is a difficult one to hear for Hebrew Christians in the first century who to avoid persecution began drifting back into the outward observance of Judaism just so they wouldn’t be noticed. Think of it this way, they were doing their darndest to not be ranked last in the eyes of society.
Granted some systems are hard to trust. It’s hard because our earthly beings are pulled in many directions, and when talking to our neighbors or watching the news, we can unwittingly be moved to disagree on everything, even on the path to heaven. And once again, it seems that we can’t agree on anything, until you remember two things.
One, this earthly system is meaningless in the eyes of God and hoping that we can all agree on who and what is first is not for us to decide. But that doesn’t mean that we’re incapable of making universal decisions; we’re all in agreement that smoking is bad for you.
So, turn to have trust and faith in God’s system. Know that it is there and if you look for it everywhere you go, you will see it. You’ll see it when looking at the ocean or someone you love, or sometimes in a puff of smoke.
Referenced scriptures:
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No Sugar Tonight
A sermon for Proper 15: Year C (1979)
I look to the publication, “Forward Day By Day” almost everyday for daily scripture reading and inspiration, and some historical information as well. It’s full of different prayers _ for the World, for the Church, for your family, for the sick, for giving thanks and from the Prayer Book of St. Augustine. All are great in their own rite. But the two prayers that I gravitate toward every day and feel that hold the most prominence are the prayers for “Today” and “A Morning Resolve”.
The prayer for “Today” is asking God to stand with me, and help me to not be recreant, help me not to lose faith, help me to stay kind even when others are not.
“A Morning Resolve” is me telling God what I will do. It’s similar in nature to the phrase in our Post-Communion prayer “… and do all such good works as thou has prepared for us to walk in;” in that _ go out into the world and be a good person to yourself and others. And how this ties in with today’s readings is the part of that prayer that goes on to say, “In particular I will try to be faithful in those habits of prayer, work, study, physical exercise, eating and sleep which I believe the Holy Spirit has shown me to be right.”
When I combine these two prayers, it’s as if I’m forming my own personal daily covenant with God. And as part of that, I need to fulfill my part of the agreement. And this is the discipline that I hear that is expected of us. I know that if I stay up late binge watching some TV show, or eat too much sugar at night, I’m going to get bad sleep. Bad sleep for me has a snowball effect _ the next day, I won’t want to even think about exercising, or give 100% at work, or worse spend time praying.
In those times, Jesus is saying to me, “why do you not know how to interpret the present time?” In other words, Jesus is sayin, “You’re old and experienced enough to know better. What are you doing with your life?!!!” (And by the way, during these time Jesus’ voice sounds a lot like Olympia Dukakis’ as Cher’s mother in the movie, Moonstruck.)
Chances are during those moments I was avoiding. I didn’t want to be responsible. I did not want to be an adult. I wanted to pretend that work and school don’t exist. That my actions don’t have consequences. I wanted to be a child. I wanted to act with no sense of discipline.
But today’s readings are not for children even though we are addressed as children. It’s for us to hear as adults and recognize that we have a responsibility to hold up as our part of the bargain, to act responsibly, to be disciplined in this world. And that discipline is to do all the things, that as the prayer says _ “which I believe the Holy Spirit has shown me to be right”.
I’m glad that Jesus says he’s stressed in today’s gospel. I have to admit, I have a little bit of schadenfreude when I read this because I’m stressed too, and why should he get to go through life without stress. But kidding aside, Jesus is stressed. He’s got A LOT ON HIS PLATE. At this point in his life, he knows he’s the Messiah and he doesn’t have a lot of time left on Earth. And the schadenfreude goes quickly away when I realize my To-Do List will never ever be like his.
So that’s really the message here. No matter how busy we think we are, as Christians we made a deal with God. If you know the Kate Bush song, it may be to “swallow places”. It may be to metaphorically do an infinite number of things that you call God to do.
But like any deal or agreement, you have a role to play too. And Jesus notes he’s dividing the world from those who are living up to their part of the agreement and those who are not. And to live up to that deal or agreement requires discipline.
As the scripture says, “Now, discipline always seems painful rather than pleasant at the time, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.”
And with that in mind, we can fulfill the Mission of our Church to unify mankind. So go forth with your deal with God and “try to be faithful in those habits of prayer, work, study, physical exercise, eating and sleep which you know the Holy Spirit has shown you to be right”.
Or at the very least, like me, don’t eat too much sugar before going to bed.
Referenced scriptures:
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Go-Bag of Faith
A sermon for Proper 14: Year C (1979)
“You also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour.”
Gee, that sounds ominous and somewhat unnerving. It reminds me of the 1970’s TV Show, Welcome Back Kotter and one of Horshack’s famous lines (besides “Oohh Oohh Oohh”), “When you least expect it, expect it.”
But letting Jesus’ words about the unexpected hour ping inside my head for a couple of moments and letting that message travel from my amygdala to my central cortex _ as there always is _ there’s a message of wisdom to halt us. And that message is not ‘Be afraid’, but to ‘Be prepared’.
When I think of being prepared, I think about being prepared for disaster, and mitigating the inconvenience of the disaster as much as possible. At home, we have a Go-Bag. Our cats have a Go-Bag. The car has supplies if we break down. We have an escape ladder for the 2nd floor of our house. We have fire extinguishers at home. I regularly check my credit score and credit card statements for fraud. And I balance my checkbook to the penny.
Outside of wrapping bubble wrap around myself and our house, I feel prepared. But I’m smart enough to know that when that lightning-strike-moment occurs _ we’ll be making use of our supplies, and my spouse will ask did you pack X or Y or Z. And at that moment, I will think _ I should have thought of that.
In the business world, they call this continuity of operations. To the extreme, the recommendation is to prepare 100% redundancy for your business. Conceptually, you should already have another location rented, full of everything you need (internet, phone, computers, desks, etc.) and when disaster strikes one workplace, you simply go to the other workplace.
Can you imagine setting this up for yourself and your family and having to sustain a complete duplication of your life? If you’re doing this, one might say you have too much time on your hands, or that you are truly blessed.
What I’m getting at is that no matter how much effort you are in being prepared, you’re probably going to miss something.
But that’s OK, we’re just humans. We weren’t created to think of everything. God knows there are infinite possibilities of situations to be prepared for. And God doesn’t expect us to be. But God expects us to do our best to prepare. And that Go-Bag is full of faith, prayer, and trust.
Is that enough though? And who has time for this? Are earthly lives are made up of obligations, responsibilities, and commitments. “My house is flooding, a chemical spill is in the air, and someone is using my credit card. I don’t have time for the ethereal future.”
People want quick answers. They want to read the Bible once, pray once and be told they have a ticket to heaven. They got stuff to do. They want to know exactly how much faith, prayer, and trust that their Go-Bag needs.
My favorite part of today’s readings is from Genesis. Abraham is worried about the future. He’s worried that Sarah and he are too old to procreate. At their respective approximate ages of 90 and 100, who would blame them. He’s worried that he hasn’t prepared enough.
But God tells Abraham to, “Look toward heaven and count the stars, if you are able to count them.” The image that I conjure when I read this is an endearing one of God standing next to Abraham with one hand on his shoulder and the other hand pointing up to the night sky, and Abraham silently in awe.
Through this simple moment of God directing Abraham to look up, it’s comforting for Abraham to learn he has the right amount of faith in his Go-Bag.
Remember today’s psalm, “Our soul waits for the LORD; he is our help and our shield. Indeed, our heart rejoices in him, for in his holy Name we put our trust.”
So don’t worry that you’re not prepared enough. Simply look up to the stars and listen for God and let the awe overtake you. With that, you will have the Go-Bag of Faith that you need.
Referenced scriptures:
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Who Owns Who?
Sermon for Proper 13: Year C (1979) scriptures:
Today’s Epistle, Gospel and Psalm reminded me of a quote that I think about frequently, “The things you own end up owning you.” This quote comes from Chuck Palahniuk’s book “Fight Club” which was made into movie with Ed Norton and Brad Pitt.
In the book, this is a pivotal point for the unnamed protagonist. An explosion in his apartment destroyed all his earthly possessions. He’s unsure what to do next and calls a person he barely knows whose name is Tyler Durden and meets Tyler at a bar who upon hearing this poor man’s story, Tyler utters this quote, “The things you own end up owning you”.
Spoiler alert here because the reader or viewer (and the protagonist), think the protagonist is talking to his new friend, Tyler. But we all eventually discover that the protagonist is instead talking to himself. Or as I prefer to say, talking to someone who’s not there (or sometimes ‘talking to someone who’s not there yet’).
What’s happening here is a revelation for this character. Before the explosion the protagonist confessed to striving to possess more and more. Getting that last piece of IKEA furniture was going to make him “complete”. But now his new voice, Tyler, points out to him the power the possessions had over him. Because no matter how much was consumed, it provided no long-term satisfaction, and it would never make him “complete”.
But instead, it made him more splintered.
All in all, to me when I think of idol worship in these current times, this is what I think of. And my concern is that our ‘things’ or our relationship with our things holds more importance than our relationship with each other and with God.
Peter Kreeft in his book, “Heaven: The Heart’s Deepest Longing,” asserts, “Since an idol is not God, no matter how sincerely or passionately it is treated as God, it is bound to break the heart of its worshipper, sooner or later,” Kreeft asserts. “Good motives for idolatry cannot remove the objective fact that the idol is an unreality. Moreover, you cannot “divine joy from non-divine things.”
Or as the proverb says, “You can’t get blood from a stone’. And you can’t get love from one either. And I’m fairly certain if you think about all of the possessions you love, not one of them loves you back.
So, what are we supposed to do _ give away every possession, and begin a life of walking the earth like David Carridine in ‘Kung Fu’? Not necessarily. It’s not a sin to be rich. But it is a sin for that wealth to be your God. It is a sin to let yourself be bound by their weight and let their power reign over you.
Jesus warns in today’s Gospel, “Take care! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of possessions”. And note, this is not a decree to give it all away, but instead to watch for signs of greed.
And a way to do that is from today’s letter from Paul, “clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience … clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony”
From here, the Church asks us to be good stewards. Much in the way we expect our governments to be good stewards of our tax dollars, God wants us to be good stewards of our wealth.
And our wealth is made up of more than how much money we have in the bank. It is “Our personal response to God’s generosity in the way we share our resources of time, talent, and money. Stewardship reflects our commitment to making God’s love known through the realities of human life and our use of all that God has given us. It is also our service to God’s world and our care of creation.” *
Our true wealth is measured in our “commitment to ‘working, praying, and giving for the spread of the kingdom of God’” **
Back to the start of the sermon, the character Tyler Durden’s second line of imparting wisdom after stating “The things you own end up owning you” is_ “it’s only after you lose everything that you’re free to do anything.” To me, this means if you can lose the shackles and weight of your possessions, you’re free as God intended us to be, to live in his image, “to make choices: to love, to create, to reason, and to live in harmony with creation and with God.” ***
Referenced scriptures:
*from “An Episcopal Dictionary of the Church, A User Friendly Reference for Episcopalians,” Don S. Armentrout and Robert Boak Slocum, editors.
**(BCP, p. 856)
***(BCP, p. 845)
Wired For Faith 
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