Sermon Proper 17 B

Rules, rules, rules - there seem to be so many rules.

Sermon for Proper 17 B

Given by Rev. Valerie Ann Hart

September 3, 2006

St. Alban’s Episcopal Church, Brentwood

Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23

James 1:17-27

There is a story about a man who had the opportunity to visit hell. Upon entering he saw that people were divided up into groups. He asked Satan about the groups. Satan pointed to the first group and said that those were Jews that worked on the Sabbath. He pointed to the second group and said that they were Catholic (pre Vatican II) who ate meat on Fridays. The third group was made up of Methodists who danced and drank wine. Who is that last group that seems to try to keep themselves apart from the others? Oh, those are the Episcopalians who used their dinner fork to eat their salad.

I remember my mother carefully teaching me exactly were things were to go when I set the table. The forks on the left with one to be used first on the outside. The knife and spoon were to be put on the right with the knife blade pointed inward. The napkin on the left. The water glass above the knife, etc. etc.

Our acolytes are taught that the gospel candle, the one on the left of the altar, should never burn alone, so it is always the last to be lit and the first to be put out.

We stand when we listen to the Gospel, out of respect, but only during a Eucharist. We don’t stand for the Gospel during Morning Prayer. Is it that we don’t respect the Gospel as much during Morning Prayer?

Rules, rules, rules, there are lots and lots of rules. My mother used to sum it up by saying, “It just isn’t done.”

We all have an idea of how we are “supposed” to act. We can easily discover we are judging ourselves if we don’t live up to these various rules which in the gospel today would be described as the tradition of the elders.

It is not that there is no basis for many of these rules. Washing one’s hands before eating is a healthy thing to do. But some people take the rules to an extreme.

For example someone with a compulsive disorder will have an action, such as hand washing, which they will do over and over again. A person with compulsive hand washing may wash their hands, come out of the bathroom, and then go and wash them again. They are not doing it because their hands are dirty. In fact often their hands will get red and soar from too much washing.

They don’t do it to get clean, but to relieve their anxiety. When we are anxious, when we have that sort of generalized fear that doesn’t have a name, we look for something solid, stable, consistent. Rules provide a structure. They keep us safe. They make it easier to make decisions. They are predictable.

We tend to get particularly anxious during times of change. When our world is changing around us we want something, anything that is unchanging. We look for stability.

Often we look to the church for that stability. But now is a time of change in the church. General convention this summer has lots of people talking. There are questions about our relationship to the Anglican Communion, who should be ordained and the implications of a woman presiding bishop. The Episcopal Church is changing and that can be a source of anxiety.

And St. Alban’s is in a time of change. I will be leaving October 1. There is be an interim time while you look for a new Vicar, and then there will be a new priest to guide this congregation. Some of you now, or during the next few weeks, may find yourself anxious and unsure. The church you look to for stability is now anything but stable.

It is a temptation in times of anxiety to cling to the rules. To try to find the correct way to do things. We look for something solid, predictable. We want things to be done the way they always have or at least the way they are “supposed to”.

But that is not of Christ. He was constantly changing, stirring things up. There was nothing predictable about him.

And to those who would cling to a set of rules he says, “You abandon the commandment of God and hold to human precepts as doctrine.” He is saying that rather than focusing on what God wants – to love God and love our neighbor – we tend focus on less important, but more measurable, things.

Let me ask you, would you rather have a neighbor that does all the right things, mows his lawn, doesn’t make noise at night, etc. or one who has a good heart?

Would you rather have a friend who said and did all the right things, or one who had a good heart?

Would you rather have a spouse that did all the right things, he would open doors for you, she would cook great meals, or would you want one who had a good heart?

And would you want a son or daughter who always obeyed all the rules, or one who had a good heart?

Jesus said that there is nothing outside a person that can defile; rather it is what comes from the heart.

It is easy for us to look at the outside and judge based on whether someone is following the rules. Only God can judge the heart.

Let’s take a look at the end of the Gospel reading, Mark 7:21-22. This is one of the few lists of behavior from Jesus. Usually our behavioral lists come from Paul. But here Jesus spells it out, the evil intentions that come from a person’s heart.

I had one person, not from this congregation, use these verses as evidence that gays and lesbians should not be ordained because they don’t live up to Jesus’ standard. Well, let’s take a look at this list.

Fornication, theft, murder – ah – murder. Just what is murder? Some would say that abortion is murder and judge everyone who is involved with abortion as breaking Christ’s rules. Others would look at the heart of a young girl who struggles with the decision for an abortion. Some would say that capital punishment is murder and pass judgment on everyone involved, others would look at the heart of a governor trying to consider the concerns of the victims loved ones and honor the law. Some consider war to be murder and judge those involved while others would see a soldier with a good heart trying to do his duty and protect her fellow soldiers.

The rules look simple, but they never are. They always have to be considered with the heart.

But lets move on with the list – adultery – avarice. Oh, that’s getting a little close to home, wanting too much for ourselves. Then we have wickedness, deceit, licentiousness – okay – but then comes envy – guilty – slander, pride – guilty again – folly – I know that I am foolish sometimes.

Whenever we look at a list in the Bible and start using it to judge others, or ourselves, we can get into a lot of trouble. It looks so clear, so black and white, but Jesus never spoke of black and white. He spoke of mercy, compassion, forgiveness, and love.

Yet we are always judging others, and even more so ourselves. We see others as not doing it right, or we see ourselves as not doing it right. And we are often prone to do it at church – in spite of Christ’s continual message that we should not judge.

This is a time of change at St. Alban’s. There will be anxiety. It will be easy to get lost in the little rules. It will be tempting to judge one another. But remember what James said in the Epistle today:

“If any think they are religious, and do not bridle their tongues but deceive their hearts, their religion is worthless.” Worthless. Think before you speak, pray before you judge.

He goes on to say “Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.”

Compassion, self control, that is what religion is all about.

Remember, it doesn’t’ matter which candle is lit first. What does matter is that you love one another.

During this coming time of change, whenever there is change in your life, whenever there is anxiety, remember that there is only one adequate response – Love God with all your heart and mind and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself. That will get you through the tough times, and that is the only rule that ever really matters.