Sermon Proper 20 B

When we want to be seen as the best we are living in a zero-sum world, where if I win you lose. The Kingdom of God is a non-zero-sum world, where everyone can win.

Proper 20 B

Sermon given on September 23, 2012

By Rev. Valerie Ann Hart

At St Barnabas Episcopal Church

It seems like I was not the only little girl that dreamed about being Miss America when I was growing up. I guess today little girls might dream about winning American Idol. And the boys all dreamed about being the best baseball player, or the best football player or the best whatever. It seems we all have this fantasy of being the best at something. And in our culture a lot of energy goes into determining who is the best. This summer we saw the Olympics and the Olympics is a huge industry where for four years people train and work and struggle so that they can be named the best in the world. They get to have that short little time where they are labeled "The Best".

We all know that feeling of wanting to be the greatest. We can understand the disciples in the scripture today. Our society is so focused on determining who is the best that some of the most popular TV shows are the quote “reality shows” where week-by-week, losers are sent off. They may be kicked off the island or no longer dancing with the other stars. Now if you are a star, doesn't that mean you are a success at something, that you are one of the greatest? Yet you have these people that already have some great ability learning to dance and working really really hard to be the best dancer on Dancing with the Stars. It is all about being that number one - about being the greatest. It doesn't seem to be enough to just do our personal best, we want to be the greatest.

We want our children to do well. We want it to be l like it is in Lake Wobegone where all the children are above average. We are constantly measuring ourselves against other people. And that is what the disciples were doing. But sometimes, trying to be first, trying to be the fastest, trying to be the best, trying to get attention can backfire. My brother had an interesting experience when he went to Vietnam. A large group of soldiers took a big airplane over to Nam. When they got off the airplane there was a bus and everyone was loaded on the bus and taken to the base. Now this brother of mine was never one to be overly enthusiastic about anything so when they got to the base he sat as people were pushing and shoving trying to be the first ones off the bus. You've seen that in airplanes, how people are hurrying to try and get off the airplane. With not much effect. So soldiers were pushing and shoving to get off while standing outside the bus was a lieutenant. The first half of the people who came off the bus were all put over to one side. And after enough people were off the bus, the ones who got off later were put in another group. Now the ones who got off first were the ones who were sent to the front lines because they figured that those were the ones who were going to be enthusiastic soldiers. The ones who took their time went to the base, so my brother spent his time in Nam working in an office.

We all know about that drive to be the best, to be acknowledged. And that drive to be best, to be first, comes from seeing the world as what is called a zero-sum game. In game theory, a zero-sum game is where there is a certain amount, and the more that I get the less you get. And the more you get, the less I get. It is like a pie. There is one pie and the bigger your piece the smaller my piece. It is a game where you either win or lose. There is no such thing as both people winning, or both people losing. I win you lose, you wind I lose. Therefore I have to fight. It is seeing the world as not enough and therefore I have to struggle - to get the love from my parents or the respect from my colleagues or the pay raise from my boss.  I have to be the best, to stand out because if they get it, I don't. That's a zero-sum game. And that is how most of us spend most of our lives.

But the Kingdom of Heaven that Christ proclaims isn't a zero-sum game. It is what is brilliantly called a non-zero-sum game. A non-zero-sum game is one in which the total amount available can be increased. In other words how much I get is not lessened by how much you get. It would be like when you have the pie instead of saying if you get a big piece I don't get as much you say “Hey, let's bake pies together so we can have more pies.” Most economic interactions are non-zero-sum games. If I am getting more than enough milk from my cow with more milk than my family can drink, and your apple tree is over abundant, I'll trade you some of my milk for your apples and we both win! We both have a healthier diet. That's a non-zero-sum game. That's what most exchanges are because you wouldn't trade for something if it wasn't going to help you, even though people sometimes negotiate as if buying a car or buying a house was a zero-sum game and try to win the negotiation process. But the truth is that if you didn't want that house and think that you would be better off by getting that house and the person selling it didn’t want the money for selling it, you wouldn't be there to negotiate anyway. No matter what, you are both going to win.

God’s world, the Kingdom of Heaven that Christ proclaims, is a non-zero-sum game. When there are five loaves of bread, if you get two that doesn't mean that anybody else is going to get less because there is more than enough to feed five thousand people. In the kingdom world, in the world of God, there is abundance and there is abundance on this earth. I was just reading an article that said that studies have shown that all around the world approximately forty percent of the food that is raised for human consumption never reaches a human being, but gets thrown away. Forty percent. Some times that because there is a problem of storage or shipping. In the United States it is more likely to be because we buy too much and restaurants buy too much. We end up throwing some away. In developing countries it has to do with not having the shipping or not having storage facilities. It is sometimes difficult to get the food from where it is raised to the people who need to consume it.

We live as if this world were a zero-sum game, but if we work together we have more than enough. In a hunting/gathering society the hunters go out as a team because it is hard to hunt large animals by yourself. Then when an animal is killed, it is more than one person can eat, so it is brought back to the whole tribe and everybody shares. It doesn't matter who is the one that kills the animal in fact everybody is cheering everybody else on. Because when one does well we all do well.

It doesn't have to be a zero-sum game. Imagine two men, two families who have houses on the same block and they both have very large lawns They start to get into a competition of who is going to have a better lawn mower. The first one gets a riding mower and the other one has to buy a better riding mower. Then the first one has to buy even better riding mower and pretty soon they have these two fantastic riding mowers that cost so much that they are both in debt. And they ride them for a couple of hours a week. Now the other option they had would be to say, “Hey, let's put our money together and we can buy one mower that we both can use and we can get the top of the line without going into debt.”

The way we see the world - is it an issue of being the best or doing what is the best? Is it seeing life as a zero-sum game where the more you get the less I have or do we see it as a non-zero-sum game where the more you have the more we all have together? Where the more we work together the more we thrive.

And you see the problem with wanting to be the greatest is that it is completely unchristian. Remember, Jesus told us we are to love one another. We are to love our neighbors as ourselves not compete with them. So, if I am busy trying to get what's best for me, if I’m trying to get on top, I'm not being loving to the ones I consider less than I am. Every time someone says I am the greatest they are saying that others are less, and that's not loving, that's not compassion. And we will find that for those who have ever won an award for being the best, the ones who won a contest, who have gotten the gold medal, that satisfaction doesn't last for very long. But the satisfaction that comes when we help another person - when we help someone else to thrive and to grow and to be a better human being - that is a satisfaction that stays with us and feeds us.

Sermon Proper 19 B

Who is Jesus to you, today?

Proper 19 B

Mark 8:27-38

Psalm 19

Transcribed from a sermon given

September 16, 2012

Rev. Valerie Ann Hart

St. Barnabas Episcopal Church

Let the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be always acceptable in your sight oh our Lord our strength and our redeemer. Amen

And now you know where I get that statement I make before each sermon, from the psalm that we read today. In fact the Prayer Book is quite full of direct quotes from scripture, we just don’t always put down chapter and verse.

But I want to talk to you today about the Gospel reading and the questions that Jesus asks. Because these are the most important questions any person wrestles with. Now the first question is, “Who do people say that I am?” “Who do people say that I am?” Any thoughts? Who do people say that Jesus is? Lucille, any thoughts? Who do people say that Jesus is?

“The savior.” “The son of God.”

Anyone over on this side?

“A really good man.” “Our Lord.” “A perfect example.” “The good shepherd.” “The messiah.” “A healer.” “A great teacher.” “Son of man.”

We’ve got lots of words for him. Later be saying the Nicene Creed which is the ancient statement of faith that says such things as “God from God” but of those words, some of them we’re pretty familiar with. You can probably tell me what a teacher is, because we know teachers. Or a good man, we know about good men. But what does “Savior” mean? What does it mean to say that Jesus is the savior? Saving whom? From what?

Or the Messiah. Now that’s the quote “correct” answer that Peter gave. But the Messiah? What does the word messiah mean? For the Jewish people of Jesus’ time the Messiah was going to be a warrior king like David, who was going to come and get the Jewish people to once again have control of their land, that would fight Rome so that once again they would be free and a great nation. That’s not what Jesus turned out to be. He was a very different kind of messiah. A different kind of savior.

One of the problems with trying to say who is Jesus, when we listen to all the different ways he has been described, is that most of the time it is kind of complex. It is not easy language. But we have heard a lot about who Jesus is. If you went to Sunday School as a child you heard one thing. In the secular world you might hear something else. Here in church we hear other things. So we have lots of answers to, “Who do people say that I am?”

But all of those comments, all the theology, all the books written about who Jesus is, all the creeds - all of that doesn’t really matter. It is the second question that really matters. That’s when Jesus looks at his disciples and says, “Who do you say that I am?” How do you know who Jesus is? What do you say? Not quoting someone else, not based on what someone else says that Jesus is, but who is Jesus to you? Right now, today, this morning.

I find that when we are on a spiritual journey our understanding of who Jesus is changes over time. Sometimes from day to day. It changes as we study scripture. It changes as we are in discussions with others. It changes as we read meaningful books.

“Who do you say that Jesus is?” is the most important question. It makes all the difference in the world. And only you can answer that question. Some might answer that to you Jesus is a great teacher. That is accepted pretty much around the world. There is almost no one who doesn’t say that he had some wonderful teachings and that he showed a great deal of wisdom. That is one way to approach Jesus. It is not quite consistent, though, with what he said. C. S. Lewis wrote that if you say that Jesus was just a great teacher then you have to assume that he was either a liar or insane because he said that he was much more than that. It is hard to take the wisdom and teachings that we find in the Gospels and separate it from what he said about himself. But often the first way we get to know Jesus is as a great teacher. And that is important.

What about when we say that Jesus is my savior or my Lord. Well savior is a tricky word. What does savior mean? How has he saved you? Think about your own personal life. What have you been saved from? What have you been saved for? Or when we say he is my Lord, we don’t have lords these days. We live in a time and place where we have senators and presidents, but we don’t have lords. So there isn’t a real existential sense of what it means to serve under someone else.

So maybe you might want to think about what other language would describe your relationship with Jesus. As I have sat with this Gospel reading for the last week, preparing a sermon, it has affected a little bit how I describe my relationship with Jesus, and I’m going to share that with you. It is personal; it is where I am at today having studied that scripture. Where I am this morning, it may change, but it is what’s true for me right now.

I would say that who Jesus is to me is that he is my friend. He is my friend who loves me no matter what. He is my friend who values me and holds me precious because he helped to create me. I am of incredible worth to this friend; and he accepts me for who I am. Loves me for who I am. And loves me enough to not let me stay who I am but encourages me to become more than I think I can be. He is my friend who is always there, whenever I need him. He always cares.

And he is my friend that gave his life for me. And no love is as great as offering your life for another. We don’t have a lot of experiences of what it means for someone to give their life for us. People who have been in war or people like police or firefighters know what it is like to have companions that go into dangerous and difficult situations together. And they know that these companions will offer their lives to protect each other, risk their lives to protect each other. It is said that when soldiers go into battle once the battle gets intense they are not concerned with their country, they are not concerned with any grand statements of principle, they fight because of their comrades, the ones they are fighting with. And they want to protect them, and they will risk their lives in order to protect their friends, and they would be willing to die for one another.

Christ died for me. He is my friend that was willing to die for me, and in this passage he asks for me to be willing to do the same. To pick up my cross and follow him. And to be his friend the way he is a friend to me. That might mean giving my life, although being in the United States it is unlikely I will give up my physical life for being a Christian. Although there are other parts of the world where that is not so sure. But it does mean transforming my life. It means giving up my self-centeredness. It means giving up my sense of ego control. It means changing my priorities, and it affects every decision that I make every day of my life. There is a prayer in the red prayer book that I often say in the evenings. It is called a prayer of self dedication. It is on page 832 in the red prayer book. It is prayer number 61. I invite you, if you like, to pray along with me.

Almighty and eternal God, so draw our hearts to thee, so guide our minds, so fill our imaginations, so control our wills, that we may be wholly thine, utterly dedicated unto thee and then use us we pray thee as thou will, and always to thy glory and the welfare of thy people through our Lord and savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

And who do you say that Jesus is?

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.

Proper 14 B - Ephesians 4:25 - 5:2

You are invited to the greatest banquet ever. How should you behave?
The answer can be found in Paul's letter to the Ephesians.

Proper 14 B

Transcribed from a sermon given on

August 12, 2012

At St Barnabas Episcopal Church

By Rev Valerie Ann Hart, Ph.D.

Ephesians 4:25 - 5:2

Imagine that you are invited to the greatest banquet ever given by the richest person on the earth - the most powerful, most well respected, most famous. This person is giving a banquet and you are invited. He or she has picked out the most magnificent setting. It is a banquet hall that is filled with chandeliers and beautiful curtains and gorgeous tables. There are waiters and waitresses all dressed up and fancy. As you get there people are arriving in their limousines. Everyone is dressed to the T. It is the most magnificent banquet - and you have been invited.

Of course the first thing you do when you are invited is, if you are a woman, to get your hair cut and your nails done. And if you are a guy you might still get your hair cut. If you don’t buy new clothes, at least you pick out the best clothes that you have, and you make sure that they are clean. Of course you take a nice shower because you want to be your best at the banquet.

You go to this banquet and it lives up to be every thing you imagined it would be. There is beautiful music playing in the background, but not so intrusive that it gets in the way of conversation. There is food - oh there is food. If you feel like seafood you get your choice. You can have salmon or you can have crab, and there’s lobster You could have lobster tails in all kinds of different ways. If you are more of a red meat kind of a person there is steak that is cooked just the way you like it. And chicken, oh the chicken, all the different ways you can possibly imagine chicken. And there is rice, and there is pasta, and there are fruits, and there are vegetables. And of course there are deserts. Ah the deserts! And you know what is great about this feast, no matter how much you eat you don’t get uncomfortably full and it is all healthy for you. Even the deserts are healthy for you! This is the most magnificent banquet ever.

So how would you behave when you are at that banquet? How would you expect other people to behave? Well first of all you wouldn’t expect a whole lot of swearing to be going on. You would expect people to be fairly kind to each other and polite. You certainly wouldn’t expect to look around and see people taking the food and sticking it in their pockets to take home. You wouldn’t imagine a lot of arguments, but kind conversation and a lot of thankfulness. And a lot of joy. It would be sort of like the best Thanksgiving you can imagine at your grandmother’s.

You see this banquet, this banquet we are invited to, is Christ’s banquet. And just like our grandmothers when we went to the best most amazing possible Thanksgiving, it is from him. He is offering himself. He has prepared the banquet. He is the banquet. He wants us to be there, and he wants us to consume him. He wants us to eat him. He wants us to fill ourselves on his love and his grace. Just like Grandma spent days making pies and cooking food and giving of herself, of her time and of her love so that we can all be nurtured, not just by the food, but by the relationship, by her love and by the gathered family.

Of course one difference with Thanksgivings is if you are in a family that is like most families not all them live up to what they are supposed to be. We aren’t always kind to one another when we come together on Thanksgiving, but we’ll get to that.

Now imagine this wonderful feast, this perfect feast, this gift of Christ - and all we have to do is show up. It is the Kingdom of God. It is how Jesus described the Kingdom of God as a wedding feast that we are all invited to. And all you have to do is show up and be willing to receive it - to feel that love, and that joy, and that thankfulness.

Like I said not every Thanksgiving is perfect. We sometimes don’t live up to what we are called to be as family. We don’t always love each other, but we are invited to. If you take a look at the passage that Paul wrote in the letter to the Ephesians you will see that Paul is writing a description of how we are supposed to behave at the great banquet, how we are supposed to behave at the banquet of the Kingdom of God. He is saying to the people that they have been invited and have said yes and have chosen to become part of the family of Christ.

This passage begins with the words, “So, then.” So then since you have come to the banquet this is how you are supposed to behave. “So then, put away falsehood, let us speak the truth.” It doesn’t make any sense to lie at the banquet where everyone has more than enough. Why would you need to lie? “For we are members of one another.” It’s a family. We are all the family.

Then he ads, “Be angry, but do not sin”. This is interesting. In my family Thanksgivings were often uncomfortable because there was someone who was angry but didn’t think they should say anything about it in front of the family. You know what it is like when you walk into a room where everybody is angry, but no body is talking about it. They all pretend everything is just fine. Sometimes you wish they would just fight with each other because at least they would get it out. Paul is saying its okay to be angry. It’s okay to express your anger. If someone steps on your toe, tell them, “Hey, you stepped on my toe.” But then you let it go. Don’t go to sleep. “Don’t let the sun go down on your anger.” Don’t go you stepped on my toe three years ago at Thanksgiving. You stepped on my toe and I was too polite to tell you then but today I just can’t stand it any more and I have to tell you.” We have all been to those kind of Thanksgivings as well. At least if you had as dysfunctional a family as I did. So it is okay that we sometimes hurt one another and that we feel angry because we have to know what our anger is before we can forgive and then once we forgive we are starting all over again.

Paul adds what seems obvious, “Thieves must give up stealing.” If you are at the banquet and Christ has given you everything you possibly could need, the promise that you will never hunger or thirst, all the love you need, all the support you need, all the caring you need, why would you ever steal? Why would you have to hoard things? At this great banquet where there is more than enough for everyone, why would you keep stuff aside for yourself? Instead Paul says that we should get a job so we can make money to give to others. When we are at the banquet where there is more then enough our job is to give away to other people, not to hoard it for ourselves.

Paul continues, “Let no evil talk come out of your mouths, but only what is useful for building up.” Who would want to be at a fancy banquet where everybody was trash talking everybody else. It would ruin the whole thing. Instead you would want to be at a place where people are encouraging one another, lifting one another up.

We don’t want to, as Paul puts it, “grieve the Holy Spirit” so we are encouraged to “Put aware all bitterness and wrath and anger and wrangling and slander, together with all malice and be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another as God in Christ has forgiven you.” That’s how we are to live in the Kingdom. That’s how we are to behave at the great banquet of Christ.

Paul concludes, “Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children, and live in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us.” This banquet is an offering from Christ. You see there is no greater delight for Christ than to feed us. That is his purpose. That is why he became incarnate - to feed us - to be the bread of life - to nurture us - to give us the love and forgiveness, the caring and the compassion, that we need to thrive, to grow. It is his delight to give the banquet, all we have to do is show up and then live lives as if we truly were receiving all that we need, all the love that we need, all the compassion that we need - to live lives that are fully alive and filled with hope and tenderness and compassion.

Sermon for Proper 8 B

This sermon was given in 1994 before the most recent changes in the lectionary. At that time the story of the woman who had been bleeding for 12 years was left out of the readings. It is a reflection upon why Mark included it in the middle of the story of the healing of Jairus' daughter.

Sermon for Proper 8 B

Given on June 16, 1994

At St. Alban’s Episcopal Church, Brentwood

By Rev. Valerie Ann Hart

If the Gospel reading seemed a bit long to you today, that’s because it was. I added a bit extra. Each Sunday we are mandated to read what is in the lectionary for that week, but it is up to the discretion of the priest to add to the readings. If we followed the lectionary today we would hear only the story of Jairus’s daughter. This is a powerful story even if standing alone. Certainly much could be preached about it. Themes of faith, and resurrection, the meaning of death and of life are there to be drawn upon. But when Mark wrote the story down he chose to add in the middle of it the story of the woman who had been bleeding. By editorial prerogative he could have put that story somewhere else, or even left it out, but instead he sandwiched it in the middle of another story. The people who put together the Sunday lectionary, unlike Mark, chose to leave the story of the hemorrhaging woman out. She doesn’t show up in the readings for any other Sunday, and I feel her story is too important to ignore. In addition, I feel that Mark must have had a reason for combining these two stories together, so I read the whole thing.

Jairus is a leader of the synagogue, that would be like being a Bishop and a mayor wrapped into one. Leaders of the synagogues had religious respect and authority, and were also community leaders. He was undoubtedly also well off financially.

In contrast, the woman who is hemorrhaging doesn’t even have a name. She has spent all her money on doctors, so she must have been quite poor. She has been bleeding for twelve years, which is usually interpreted to be a menopausal problem. When a woman was bleeding in ancient Israel she was considered unclean, ritually impure. In fact a man who touched (or was touched by) a menstruating woman was considered impure and had to go through certain rituals and wait at least twenty-four hours before being considered clean again. A man who was ritually impure was not allowed to enter the temple or partake in any religious services. Imagine what it would have been like for this woman. An outcast, untouchable for twelve years. Desperate she committed an unthinkable act - she touched a rabbi - thereby making him unclean as well.

Yet Jesus responded to her with as much compassion and love as he did to the rich Jairus. She is healed, not condemned.

Then Mark describes Jesus as continuing on with Jairus, without any purity rituals, without waiting the appointed time, and bringing the little girl back to life. A great miracle is performed by a ritually impure rabbi.

I believe Mark put these two stories together to emphasize Jesus’ total acceptance of all people. The rich and powerful and the most lowly and outcast are all welcomed and loved by Christ. It is the model which Mark would have us follow - total acceptance of all. It would have been easy for Jesus to focus his ministry on the rich - he could have healed them and lived will. But he didn’t, he responded to the poor, the outcast as well. It would have been easy for Jesus to only focus on the poor, to say that the powerful were already too corrupt. But he didn’t, he healed the rich and the powerful as well.

The community which Christ began - the Church - is called to welcome all. There is never a fee to enter the church. We are not judged by the amount of money in our pockets or the power that we wield. We are all in need of Christ’s healing love, rich or poor, powerful or outcast. We are all equal in his loving eyes.

Right now I feel a little like that hemorrhaging woman. I feel a bit awkward and unsure. I need to reach our and touch your robes for the health of this church. Asking for money is difficult for me. I don’t like to focus on the needs of the church, especially in a sermon, but I don’t know any other way to do this. This church, this tiny part of the great Kingdom of God, is in financial need. Each month we spend more than we receive and our savings are being quickly consumed. If St. Alban’s is to continue as a light in the world, if Christ’s work of reconciliation and healing is to continue here, in this form, we quite frankly need more money. The work of Christ will go on regardless of what happens here. The Kingdom of God is greater than you or I or St. Alban’s, but I believe we have some unique gifts to bring to this community and if you feel so also I ask you to increase your pledge or fill out a pledge card in the back of the church.

In the letter read today Paul writes to the Corinthians about members of the church in another city saying:

During a severe ordeal of affliction, their abundant joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part. For, as I can testify, they voluntarily gave accord to their means, and even beyond their means, begging us earnestly for the privilege of sharing in this ministry to the saints. Begging for the privilege of sharing in the ministry.

In my mind from the readings today there can be no question about the kind of life a Christian is called to live. It is a life in which all people are valued, where no one needs to be ashamed because of their lack of the ability to give and no one is to be proud because of their wealth. It is a life in which one gives all that one can. It is a life where people give out of the abundance of joy that they have experienced as Christ’s gift to them.

All of us, rich and poor alike, are like the woman who feels she is unworthy to speak to the Lord and ask for his healing, yet has faith that just to touch his hem will heal her. We come on our knees to Christ, awed by the greatness of his gift to us, knowing that there is nothing we can do that would even begin to equal it. So we offer to Christ what we have, our time, our talents, our treasure. Not out of ought, but joyfully wanting to share in the privilege of Christ’s ministry to the world.

Sermon Proper 6 B

Parables are like seeds sown in the heart where they can sprout and grow.

Proper 6 B

Sermon given on June 15, 1997

At St. Alban’s Episcopal Church, Brentwood

By Rev. Valerie Ann Hart

Mark 4:26-34

A handful of wheat, five thousand years old, was found in the tomb of one of the kings of ancient Egypt. Someone planted the grains and, to the amazement of all, the grains came to life.

A parable is like a seed. No matter how long ago the story was told, when planted in the heart, in the mind, in the soul, it can come to life and grow. Each time we remember the story, each time a new event in our lives triggers a remembrance of the parable, there is a new understanding, and the seedling grows. Each time, each retelling, each rereading, each remembering the depth of understanding grows.

Jesus taught in parables, in puzzles, with stories that his hearers would remember, would think about, that would aid and nurture the spiritual growth of the hearer.

There are parables of words, and parables of action.

A sannyasi, an Indian holy man, had reached the outskirts of a village and settled down under a tree for the night when a villager came running up to him and said, "The stone! The stone! Give me the precious stone!" 

"What stone?" asked the sannyasi. 

"Last night the Lord Shiva appeared to me in a dream," said the villager, "and told me that if I went to the outskirts of the village at dusk I should find a sannyasi who would give me a precious stone that would make me rich forever.” 

The sannyasi rummaged in his bag and pulled out a stone.  "He probably meant this one, " he said, as he handed the stone over to the villager.  “I found it on a forest path some days ago.  You can certainly have it.”

The man gazed at the stone in wonder. It was a diamond; probably the largest diamond in the whole world for it was as large as a person’s head.  He took the diamond and walked away.

All night he tossed about in bed, unable to sleep. The next day at the crack of dawn he woke the sannyasi and said, "Give me the wealth that makes it possible for you to give this diamond away so easily.” 

A gift, an act of love, a touch, a statement, the telling of one’s own story can be a seed, planted in the heart, which grows to enlighten the soul. The gift given without expectation, the seed planted without knowing how, or why or if it will grow. The faith of the farmer who keeps scattering seed on the ground even though he doesn’t know why or how. Even though sometimes for days and nights he sees nothing above the ground. The seeds are scattered in faith - faith that somehow they will bear fruit.

The Samaritan woman put down her water jar and went off to the town.  She said to the people, "Come and see the man who has told me everything I ever did.  Could this be the Messiah?"

What a wonderful teacher was the Samaritan woman! She gave no answers. She only asked a question. She planted the seed of a question. It must have been tempting to give the answer because she had gotten it directly from Jesus when he said, “I am the Messiah.  I who am talking to you."  But she was content to scatter the seed of a question and let it grow.

Many more became disciples because of what they heard from his own lips. They said to the woman, "It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard him ourselves, and we know that this is, indeed, the Savior of the world.  "

We too need to be like the farmer who scatters seeds. We are called to scatter seeds - seeds of our own stories - the parables of our own lives - seeds of faith, seeds of love, seeds of gifts given without expectation. We plant the seeds in those we care for, in those we meet, in our neighbors, our friends, and our children. We tell the stories, we ask the questions, we give the gifts and then we sleep and rise night and day and let the seeds sprout, and grow and rejoice that the smallest of seeds can become the greatest of all shrubs.

Sermon Proper 5 B

Here is something I wrote back in 1994 that includes some reflections on martyrdom. Who would have thought then that 20 years later the news would include information about people killed just because they are Christians.

Proper 5 - Year B

June 5, 1994

Sermon Given at St. Alban’s, Brentwood

By Rev. Valerie Ann Hart

During the past several weeks I have received in the mail two letters asking that vicars and rectors set aside this Sunday for a special purpose. The first was from the bishop of our diocese concerning the Episcopal Charities Appeal and the second was from the Ugandan AIDS project, asking that we remember the Ugandan Martyrs who appear on our calendar on June 3rd. I said something about the Episcopal Charities appeal in my newsletter and I will say more about it later, but first I’d like to talk somewhat about the Ugandan Martyrs. If you are like I was before I started Seminary, you probably never heard of the Ugandan Martyrs. Rather than try and describe them myself, I would like to read you the letter describing the background on the Ugandan Martyrs that I received

(Here I read from the letter which I no longer have)

It is hard for us who live in the United States, a country that has had total religious freedom for more than 200 years, to really comprehend martyrdom. It is hard for us who have never had to chose between life and our belief in Christ to realize that people have been systematically killed because of the belief in Christ not just centuries ago, but in 1977. It is hard for us who come to church on Sunday mornings when it is convenient, when we are not too tired, when there is nothing else we need to do on Sunday to imagine what it was like for Christians who lived under communism to meet in secret and risk losing everything in order to go to receive the Eucharist. It is hard for us who live such secular lives to realize that a religion could be that important in a person’s life.

What is it that would bring someone to a willingness to give their lives for Christ? It is not out of duty, or ought, (the primary motivators in much of American religion) but rather a response - a response to the love of God demonstrated through Jesus Christ. It is a response to the freedom we have been given through Christ’s sacrifice, the freedom from bondage to sin and guilt. The Old Testament reading today concerning Adam and Eve’s refusal to accept responsibility for their actions and the subsequent separation from God was wiped out by Christ’s loving sacrifice. All need to feel guilty and separated from God was wiped clean by the inconceivable love shown by Christ. Christ knows us, sees us, sees through us, sees all the little fears and guilts and mistakes…and…he loves us. To paraphrase Mr. Rogers, “he loves us just the way we are.” And that love transforms us, and helps us to become the people God intends for us to be.

To be willing to die for someone who gives us ourselves is not so surprising. To be willing to give up all for the one who is the source of all the we are, all that we have, is not so surprising When we realize how much we are loved, when we realize that all we have, all we are, is a loving gift from God, when we know that we belong to Christ, then we must respond.

In the Gospel reading today Jesus says:

And looking at those who sat around him, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! Whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother.”

Those who just say that they are related to Christ, are not acknowledged, only those who “do the will of God.” When we know that we are Christ’s, that each breath is a gift, that all we have is a gift, that every penny that passes through our hands is a gift, that the beauty of the sky and the trees are gifts, that our very lives are gifts from a loving sacrificing God, how can we not respond? How can we not try to do the will of God?

The Episcopal Charities are one way in which the will of God is done in our name by the Episcopal Diocese of California. There are people out there ministering to the homeless, the elderly, the lonely, those addicted to drugs and alcohol, mothers who are struggling to raise children alone, people dying, people diagnosed with AIDSS. These people who are doing the will of God in our name thorough these Episcopal Charities ask for our support, especially our financial support. By giving to the Episcopal Charities Appeal we do the will of God by financially supporting those who are doing the will of God throughout the diocese.

We as a church, as the St. Alban’s community, are also called to do the will of God. When you financially support the church you help this entity to do the will of God. Now we do not have enough money even to balance a very limited budget. How can we together do what our church is called by God to do in the community of Brentwood without consistent financial support?

And we are called to do the will of God as individuals. To strive to do the will of God in our work environments, to strive to do the will of God in our families, and to strive to do the will of God during our leisure time.

All that we have, all of our time, all of our talents are gifts from God and we are called to be stewards of these gifts and to in all ways and at all times consider whether our choices are consistent with the will of God. When we do this, when we feel our actions are consistent with the will of God, we experience a deep inner satisfaction and we know that we are indeed Christ’s sisters and brothers.