"And the Word became flesh and lived among us"

"And the Word became flesh and lived among us"

John 1: 1-18

Opening Prayer: May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be always acceptable to you, our rock and our redeemer. Amen.

Introduction: If you were here two nights ago on Christmas Eve, or yesterday, which was Christmas Day; you would have heard the Gospel according to Luke about the birth of Jesus. It is easy to picture it in our minds; after all, we have seen it re-enacted in Christmas pageants and Christmas presentations each year. It is very concrete. There is a donkey, Mary, Joseph, and a baby. There are shepherds and angels. Pictures. Pictures.

What a contrast to today's passage from the Gospel according to John! It is very abstract, and somewhat "foggy". However, the theology in it is very powerful! In addition, the hymn writers have "snuck" some of the theology into Christmas songs. An example is the hymn, 'O Come, all ye Faithful'; in the second verse, it mentions 'God from God, Light from Light eternal'. That is right out of the gospel passage for today.

I believe the placement in the lectionary is significant. When we hear the Christmas story, it is easy to keep thinking of Jesus as a little baby, or as a man that did everything right. By following up with this passage from John, we are reminded that 'The Word became flesh and lived among us.'

With today's passage, I feel the need to use more of a teaching style than I usually do when I preach.

As many of you are aware, the words we use are influenced a lot by the culture we are in, and the time period. The Gospel according to John was the last of the gospels written, and was influenced by the Greek culture of the day.

The Text: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being." In the Gospel according to John, the Greek word 'logos' is used for "the Word". Word refers to Christ (the second person of the Trinity). In the book of Genesis, we notice that God spoke and then something happened. In other words, the Word is a mixture of something heard and something observed.[1]

Previously, the Jewish Wisdom literature used the term 'sophia' (Wisdom) to describe the second person of the Trinity. Wisdom (sophia) is a feminine noun in Greek, and is often shown as a female character in the wisdom literature. It is thought that by using the term 'logos' instead of 'sophia', John was reshaping the tradition to reflect the historical reality of the incarnation; that is, that Jesus was a man.[2]

If we substitute 'Christ' for 'Word', it becomes easier to get a handle on the passage. "In the beginning was Christ, and Christ was with God, and Christ was God. Christ was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Christ, and without Christ not one thing came into being. What has come into being in Christ was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it....And Christ became flesh and lived among us as Jesus." Does that help the passage become clearer to you? It does to me.

All things come into being through Christ, and without Christ not one thing came into being. WHY?? would Christ give all of that up in order to come to earth in human form? I am sure a number of you have felt as I, and wished to have more than 24 hours in the day to get things done with, and more than 7 days in a week. What about needing to be in more than one place at a time? What about when your mind wanted to do something, but your body couldn't go on anymore? So why in the world would the second person of the Trinity choose to give all that up and come to earth as a human? That's a lot of power to give up! It is a tremendous sacrifice.

God has been reaching out to God's creation ever since we were created. God has and will continue to reach out to creation because God loves us. We cannot earn God's love; God freely gives us that love.

Christ has been part of God from before creation, therefore, if we have seen Jesus, we have seen God.

"And Christ became flesh and lived among us." so that we might see God.

We then need to be Jesus to others so that they may also see God.

---

[1] Sydnor, William. More than Words.

[2] The New Interpreter's Bible, Vol. IX, p. 519.

Emmanuel - "God is with us"

Emmanuel - "God is with us"

Matthew 1:18-25

Opening Prayer: May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be always acceptable to you, our rock and our redeemer. Amen.

Introduction: It is always interesting for me when I am preparing a sermon to get a balance between historical/cultural stuff that is good to know, versus, what will edify people spiritually.

First, I believe it is important to have some information about why it was a big deal for Mary to become pregnant while engaged. It was much more serious then than if a woman today is engaged, gets married, and has a "premature" birth, with a baby weighing 7 pounds. In the ancient Mediterranean world (as in a number of places today), marriages were arranged by the parents to join extended families. They did not wed out of love for each other, but for the political or economic advantage of their families. It was arranged by the parents, and was a legal contract.

Honor is a very important code in the Mediterranean culture, and it demands that no one take what properly belongs to someone else. When Joseph found out that Mary was pregnant, he knew the child was not his. In addition, the husband was expected to display publicly the "tokens of virginity" on his wedding night (Deut. 22:13-21). The "token of virginity" consisted of spreading out the bloodstained wedding garment. If the husband found out she was not a virgin, she was to be taken to the door of her father's house and stoned to death.[1]

Unfortunately, "honor killings" are still going on in some Arab countries. If a woman has been raped, often it is the male family members that she has to fear the most, because the family honor has been affected, and the only way to save the family honor is to kill her.

There are a number of theologians that do not believe Mary was a virgin when Jesus was born, and do not think it is important. Some believe that Joseph was the biological father, and others believe that she was probably raped by a Roman soldier. However, I believe Mary was impregnated by the Holy Spirit, and that it is important theologically. In addition, today's gospel refutes the Roman Catholic belief that Mary remained a virgin. In the last verse, "he took her as his wife, but had no marital relations with her until she had borne a son; and he named him Jesus."

In today's gospel, it is stated that "they shall name him Emmanuel, which means, "God is with us." Over the centuries, the nature of Jesus has been debated, and where it currently stands is that Jesus was fully human, and fully divine. From a biology point view; how could he be full divine, if both parents were human?

I started thinking about what it means that "God is with us." The idea will have different connotations for different people. The first thought that came to my mind was the poem called 'Footprints'.

Footprints in the Sand

One night I dreamed I was walking along the beach with the Lord.

Many scenes from my life flashed across the sky.

In each scene I noticed footprints in the sand.

Sometimes there were two sets of footprints,

other times there were one set of footprints.

This bothered me because I noticed

that during the low periods of my life,

when I was suffering from

anguish, sorrow or defeat,

I could see only one set of footprints.

So I said to the Lord,

"You promised me Lord,

that if I followed you,

you would walk with me always.

But I have noticed that during

the most trying periods of my life

there have only been one

set of footprints in the sand.

Why, when I needed you most,

you have not been there for me?"

The Lord replied,

"The times when you have

seen only one set of footprints,

is when I carried you."

Mary Stevenson[2]

Because God is with us, God bears witness to our suffering. There are times when others cannot "fix" a situation, such as when a loved one dies, but it sure makes a difference when we know that we are not alone, that others are walking with us during that time as best as they can.

Nothing is hidden from God. If I am by myself, and have an accident; or if (God forbid) I am assaulted by someone; God still knows about it. It is not hidden from God. God is with us every minute.

The other thought that came to me when I thought about what it means that God is with us, is that "God has our back." I had not realized until recently, but apparently, that phrase is a jailhouse slang expression. (It shows who I hang out.) If I am on guard against danger, God is keeping alert at my back (where I am not looking), and will warn me if danger is starting to come at me from another direction.

We see in scripture that from the very beginning, God has been reaching out to God's creation. However, often people saw God as a real scary, harsh judge that was unreachable. Or else, God was seen as something that only "special" people could have contact with. And yet, when we read in the Hebrew scriptures (i.e. Old Testament) all of the "special" people also had "feet of clay".

The Incarnation is about God reaching out to us by coming to earth as a human baby, and born in a manger. Now That Is Being Vulnerable! Communication systems being what they were in that time period, when Mary and Joseph went to Bethlehem to register for the census, they were not able to make reservations in advance at the Hilton, or Comfort Inn; not even Super 8. It is likely that someone took pity on Mary and let them stay with the animals, where at least they would have shelter and have the warmth from the animals. Probably there were a lot more people sleeping on the streets.

It has been said that Jesus is "God with skin on." I believe the Incarnation continues today. Even though Jesus is not physically here on earth, I believe that God still reaches out to us through other human beings. We are God's hands and feet. We are the Body of Christ; and that is an awesome responsibility. We can draw people toward God, or drive them away.

When Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts-Schori was here in September, she talked about the Theology of Risk. She said that there is a difference between 'reckless' and 'risk'. When we take a risk, we do our homework and prepare. She also said that discipleship does not promise a safe harbor; and that God has never been one to play it safe. After all, God created the human race. Relationships are the riskiest thing to do. We were also challenged with the question of "What would I do in response to God's call if I was not afraid to risk?"[3]

So, remember, "God is with us". Knowing that God "has your back"; what would you do in response to God's call if you were not afraid to risk.

---

[1] Pilch, John J. (1995). The Cultural World of Jesus: Sunday by Sunday, Year A. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press.

[2] Stevenson, Mary. (1984) Footprints in the Sand. Located in www.footprints-inthe-sand.com.

[3] Clergy Gathering at St. Mary's Episcopal in Anchorage, AK. September 3, 2010.

Unity, not Uniformity

Love One Another

5/2/10 at Holy Spirit in Eagle River
Love One Another
John 13: 31-35
Opening Prayer: May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be always acceptable to you, our rock and our redeemer.

Introduction: My guess is that a number of your are wondering, as I did, why this passage is being used during the Easter Season. After all, this gospel passage takes place shortly before the crucifixion, and is often used during Maundy Thursday services.

Jesus was preparing his disciples for how to live when he was no longer with them. The lectionary is preparing us for how to live after Ascension Day, when Jesus was longer walking around after the Resurrection.

"I give you a new commandment, that you love one another."
I believe it is telling that when Jesus gave his disciples this new commandment, it was not a suggestion or a recommendation. Neither was it religious advice - something that would be good for them if they would get around to doing it.
Jesus' last instruction to his disciples was to "love one another as I have loved you." Jesus showed his love to his disciples by washing their feet, even though he was the Master, and they were the followers. He also showed his love by dying for us. That is the kind of love he was talking about when he told them to love others as he had loved us. Love is an action, not just a mushy feeling.

The sacrificial love that Jesus showed went way beyond respecting the rights and needs of others. That is what made this a "new" commandment. Almost every society and religion value love; but God gives us grace to love our enemies, those who differ from us, or disagree with us, and those whom we find most difficult to love or understand.

If sacrificial love was easy to do, or was natural for us, Jesus would not have "commanded" us to do it. We usually are most likely to show sacrificial love for close family members.

I remember one preacher saying "Love your enemies. It will drive them crazy." When we can show that kind of love, it comes from a position of strength, and not weakness. Walter Wink tells the story of how South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu once walked by a construction site on a temporary sidewalk the width of one person. A white man appeared at the other end, recognized Tutu, and said, "I don't make way for gorillas." At which Tutu stepped aside, made a deep sweeping gesture, and said, "Ah, yes, but I do."'

The reference for today was especially of the need for the members of the community of faith to have love for one another. Many of you probably recall where the gospels make reference to the disciples arguing with themselves which one of them was the greatest. In addition, when the Gospel according to John was written, the Johannine church was having a tough time. They were having a lot of doctrinal disputes, and various members responded differently to outside pressure. Therefore, the unity of the Johannine church was wearing down. It was essential that if they were going to survive as a community of faith that they have love for one another.

When we as a community of faith can love each other in spite of differences in doctrine, we will grow. I am not talking just about the Holy Spirit congregation, or the Episcopal Diocese of Alaska, or even the Anglican community as a whole. I am talking about the Christian church as a whole. We are our own worst enemies. It is fine to go to a particular service because we prefer Rite I or Rite II, or because we prefer organ music or guitar music. It is also fine to prefer the Episcopal Church because we like the liturgy, or the moving around during the service by standing, sitting, or kneeling. My parents prefer the Methodist church because they like the informality of the service. What is destructive is when congregations evaluate other congregations on if they are "real" Christians. One of the Christian radio stations was advertising for a position awhile ago. They described the position at the radio, and also stated that the applicant needed to be part of a "Bible believing church."

One reason I like Baptisms and Confirmations in the Episcopal Church is I get to renew myself when we recite the Baptismal Covenant. It helps me get back on track. I also love that after each question, the answer is "I will, with God's help."
Will you continue in the apostles' teaching and fellowship, in the breading of bread, and in the prayers?
I will, with God's help.
Will you persevere in resisting evil, and, whenever you fall into sin, repent and return to the Lord?
I will, with God's help.
Will you proclaim by word and example the Good News of God in Christ?
I will, with God's help.
Will you seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving your neighbor as yourself?
I will with God's help.
Will you strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being?
I will with God's help.

LOVE ONE ANOTHER!

The Prodigal Father

The Prodigal Father
Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32
Opening Prayer: May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be always acceptable to you, our rock and our redeemer.
Introduction: When Ed first called me about the two Sundays you were needing a priest for, I decided that with my school schedule, I could only do one Sunday. However, when I started to work on sermon preparation for last Sunday I noticed that the gospel for this week is the one I did my Christology paper on. So I called Ed and begged to be able to do this Sunday also.
Many of us grew up hearing this story referred to as "The Prodigal Son"; however, I like to think of the story as "The Prodigal Father." The term 'prodigal' is often meant to refer to someone being wastefully or recklessly extravagant. And certainly, the younger son wasted his inheritance. However, 'prodigal' can also refer to someone being lavishly abundant; giving or yielding profusely. I think that is a wonderful description of God, which of course the Father in the story is showing us.
Each gospel writer has their own unique view of Jesus. The Lukan Jesus was compassionate, and a friend to outcasts. Jesus is shown as the Savior sent to seek and save the lost. Jesus also talks a lot about the rich and the poor. In this section of the gospel of Luke, there were those who were concerned about how many would be saved (13:22-30). When we are concerned about how many will be saved, we are operating out a scarcity model; that there is a limited amount of God's mercy, so we have to make sure "we get ours". However, God is lavishly abundant! In the gospel of Luke, we see many examples of the upside-down values of God's kingdom in which the poor are more important than the rich.
The Revised Common Lectionary for today includes the first few verses of the chapter, which gives us the context in which the parable was told.
Now all the tax collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to him. And the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, "This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them." (Lk.15:1-2)
A rabbinic tradition cautions: "Let not a person associate with sinners even to bring them near to the Torah" (Mekilta 57b on Exod 18:1). Feeding sinners is praiseworthy; eating with them is forbidden. "Hosting" or "welcoming" sinners, as Jesus does here (15:2), makes the Pharisees furious.
Table fellowship was a very important issue in Jesus' day. To eat with another person was a sign of deep fellowship. In addition, one only ate with people in one's own social class. The Pharisees were upset that Jesus ate with all the wrong people. Jesus responded by telling several stories about God who welcomes sinners and eats with them.
The first story is about lost sheep. The shepherd leaves the 99 to find the one lost sheep. Then we go to the parable about the lost coin. One coin out of 10 is lost. The value keeps increasing. We go from one out of one hundred sheep, to one out of ten coins, to one out of two sons.
The Lost Son and the Prodigal Father
The parable of the lost son is powerful at face value, but it becomes more powerful when the cultural factors are recognized. "The younger of them said to his father, 'Father, give me the share of the property that will belong to me.' So he divided his property between them." (Lk. 15:12) For the younger son to request his share of the inheritance was to basically tell his father to "drop dead". This request was totally out of line. The father would have every right to explode with anger at such a request, but instead he granted the request. Honor and shame are the core values in the Mediterranean culture. By asking for his inheritance, the younger son was shaming his family's name since he was basically wishing his father was dead. In addition, the Mediterranean culture is very strong-group. Weak-group societies such as the United States encourage individualism. People are encouraged to stand on their own two feet as distinct individuals. In the Mediterranean culture, the individualism that the younger son was showing was just not done.
"Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living." (Luke 15:13) We Westerners usually interpret that to mean he was engaging in immoral living. However, Eastern commentators do not take it to mean a necessarily immoral lifestyle. Certainly the son was spending money excessively. It was the older brother who indicated the lost son was spending his money on prostitutes. How would he know? He had not even talked to his brother yet. So, the younger brother has spent all him money in "wild living", whatever that may have been. In doing so, he finds that when he had money, he had lots of friends. But now that he has spent the money, his "friends" have vanished.
He humbles himself and returns home when he realizes that even the servants on his father's land eat better than he is. The father sees him when he is still a long way off; he then runs to his son, throws his arms around him, and kisses him. The lost has been found. The father had been regularly looking for his son, and sees him when he was still far off. "No other image has come closer to describing the character of God than the waiting father, peering down the road longing for his son's return, then springing to his feet and running to meet him. In ancient Palestine it was regarded as unbecoming - a loss of dignity - for a grown man to run. Yet the father set aside all concern for propriety and ran...The kiss expressed forgiveness." All this happened before the son had a chance to ask for his forgiveness. The father throws a celebration that his son has been found. When the elder son hears the celebrating going on, he becomes angry and refuses to join the celebration. So, the younger son has been found, but now it is the older son who is lost.
Relationships
I am drawn to this parable because of the strong relationship theme. When the son asks for his inheritance, the loving father allows him to use his free-will and to allow natural consequences to occur. Unlike the poem of 'The Hound of Heaven', the father does not pursue the son in his travels, but waits for him to return. When the father sees the son return, he does not have a difficult ritual for him to go through, but runs and kisses him even before the son has a chance to express repentance. Even though the son has already spent his inheritance, the father lets him know he is still his son, and will always be his son.
One of my favorite passages is Romans 8:38 -39. "For I am certain that nothing can separate us from his love: neither death nor life, neither angels nor other heavenly rulers or powers, neither the present nor the future, neither the world above nor the world below - there is nothing in all creation that will ever be able to separate us from the love of God which is ours through Christ Jesus our Lord."
If God is full of mercy and compassion, why do we not always experience it? In today's parable, the older son separated himself from the father's mercy and compassion. He cut himself off from the relationship. We are not told what the older son decided to do. That's where the decision comes to each us. The younger son was not just "that son of yours!" He was also the oldest son's brother. Both of them belonged to the same family where they liked it or not.
reached at Holy Spirit Episcopal in Eagle River.

The Prodigal Father

PThe Prodigal Father
Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32
Opening Prayer: May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be always acceptable to you, our rock and our redeemer.
Introduction: When Ed first called me about the two Sundays you were needing a priest for, I decided that with my school schedule, I could only do one Sunday. However, when I started to work on sermon preparation for last Sunday I noticed that the gospel for this week is the one I did my Christology paper on. So I called Ed and begged to be able to do this Sunday also.
Many of us grew up hearing this story referred to as "The Prodigal Son"; however, I like to think of the story as "The Prodigal Father." The term 'prodigal' is often meant to refer to someone being wastefully or recklessly extravagant. And certainly, the younger son wasted his inheritance. However, 'prodigal' can also refer to someone being lavishly abundant; giving or yielding profusely. I think that is a wonderful description of God, which of course the Father in the story is showing us.
Each gospel writer has their own unique view of Jesus. The Lukan Jesus was compassionate, and a friend to outcasts. Jesus is shown as the Savior sent to seek and save the lost. Jesus also talks a lot about the rich and the poor. In this section of the gospel of Luke, there were those who were concerned about how many would be saved (13:22-30). When we are concerned about how many will be saved, we are operating out a scarcity model; that there is a limited amount of God's mercy, so we have to make sure "we get ours". However, God is lavishly abundant! In the gospel of Luke, we see many examples of the upside-down values of God's kingdom in which the poor are more important than the rich.
The Revised Common Lectionary for today includes the first few verses of the chapter, which gives us the context in which the parable was told.
Now all the tax collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to him. And the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, "This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them." (Lk.15:1-2)
A rabbinic tradition cautions: "Let not a person associate with sinners even to bring them near to the Torah" (Mekilta 57b on Exod 18:1). Feeding sinners is praiseworthy; eating with them is forbidden. "Hosting" or "welcoming" sinners, as Jesus does here (15:2), makes the Pharisees furious.
Table fellowship was a very important issue in Jesus' day. To eat with another person was a sign of deep fellowship. In addition, one only ate with people in one's own social class. The Pharisees were upset that Jesus ate with all the wrong people. Jesus responded by telling several stories about God who welcomes sinners and eats with them.
The first story is about lost sheep. The shepherd leaves the 99 to find the one lost sheep. Then we go to the parable about the lost coin. One coin out of 10 is lost. The value keeps increasing. We go from one out of one hundred sheep, to one out of ten coins, to one out of two sons.
The Lost Son and the Prodigal Father
The parable of the lost son is powerful at face value, but it becomes more powerful when the cultural factors are recognized. "The younger of them said to his father, 'Father, give me the share of the property that will belong to me.' So he divided his property between them." (Lk. 15:12) For the younger son to request his share of the inheritance was to basically tell his father to "drop dead". This request was totally out of line. The father would have every right to explode with anger at such a request, but instead he granted the request. Honor and shame are the core values in the Mediterranean culture. By asking for his inheritance, the younger son was shaming his family's name since he was basically wishing his father was dead. In addition, the Mediterranean culture is very strong-group. Weak-group societies such as the United States encourage individualism. People are encouraged to stand on their own two feet as distinct individuals. In the Mediterranean culture, the individualism that the younger son was showing was just not done.
"Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living." (Luke 15:13) We Westerners usually interpret that to mean he was engaging in immoral living. However, Eastern commentators do not take it to mean a necessarily immoral lifestyle. Certainly the son was spending money excessively. It was the older brother who indicated the lost son was spending his money on prostitutes. How would he know? He had not even talked to his brother yet. So, the younger brother has spent all him money in "wild living", whatever that may have been. In doing so, he finds that when he had money, he had lots of friends. But now that he has spent the money, his "friends" have vanished.
He humbles himself and returns home when he realizes that even the servants on his father's land eat better than he is. The father sees him when he is still a long way off; he then runs to his son, throws his arms around him, and kisses him. The lost has been found. The father had been regularly looking for his son, and sees him when he was still far off. "No other image has come closer to describing the character of God than the waiting father, peering down the road longing for his son's return, then springing to his feet and running to meet him. In ancient Palestine it was regarded as unbecoming - a loss of dignity - for a grown man to run. Yet the father set aside all concern for propriety and ran...The kiss expressed forgiveness." All this happened before the son had a chance to ask for his forgiveness. The father throws a celebration that his son has been found. When the elder son hears the celebrating going on, he becomes angry and refuses to join the celebration. So, the younger son has been found, but now it is the older son who is lost.
Relationships
I am drawn to this parable because of the strong relationship theme. When the son asks for his inheritance, the loving father allows him to use his free-will and to allow natural consequences to occur. Unlike the poem of 'The Hound of Heaven', the father does not pursue the son in his travels, but waits for him to return. When the father sees the son return, he does not have a difficult ritual for him to go through, but runs and kisses him even before the son has a chance to express repentance. Even though the son has already spent his inheritance, the father lets him know he is still his son, and will always be his son.
One of my favorite passages is Romans 8:38 -39. "For I am certain that nothing can separate us from his love: neither death nor life, neither angels nor other heavenly rulers or powers, neither the present nor the future, neither the world above nor the world below - there is nothing in all creation that will ever be able to separate us from the love of God which is ours through Christ Jesus our Lord."
If God is full of mercy and compassion, why do we not always experience it? In today's parable, the older son separated himself from the father's mercy and compassion. He cut himself off from the relationship. We are not told what the older son decided to do. That's where the decision comes to each us. The younger son was not just "that son of yours!" He was also the oldest son's brother. Both of them belonged to the same family where they liked it or not.
reached at Holy Spirit Episcopal in Eagle River

When Bad Things Happen To Good People

Preached at HolyWhen Bad Things Happen To Good People
Luke 13:1-9
Exodus 3: 1-15 Psalm 63:1-8 I Corinthians 10:1-13

Opening Prayer: May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be always acceptable to you, our rock and our redeemer.
Introduction: As always, it is a pleasure to be with you again today. This week is Spring Break at UAA, so I have a chance to get more caught up on my studies this week. Otherwise, I would not be able to afford to take the time off from studies to work on sermon preparation to be with you today.

When calamities happen, there is a fine balance between asking "why"
questions, and just dealing with what needs to be done. Asking "why" is good if we are asking if it can be prevented in the future, but if we are asking "Why did God allow this" or "Why did God cause this" then we are asking unanswerable questions. Lots of times, we are asking "why" because we feel powerless, and want to feel more in control. Some of you may remember that when the huge earthquake happened in Haiti in January, Pat Robertson from the Christian Broadcasting Network said that the earthquake happened
because its people "made a pact with the devil". "Something happened a long time ago in Haiti, and people might not want to talk about it," Robertson said. "They were under the heel of the French...and they got together and swore a pact to the devil. They said, 'We will serve you if you'll get us free from the French." "True story", he continued. "And the devil said, "OK, it's a deal.' Ever since they have been cursed by one thing after another."
Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. Haiti became the first black republic to declare its independence in 1804. It was forced to pay France 90 million francs - a huge sum- over the course of decades under the Royal Ordinance of 1825, in which French King Charles X demanded restitution for the loss of France's colony in change for diplomatic recognition. The country was long oppressed by dictators and corrupt leaders. (Google)
When people are saying a whole country devastated by a natural disaster is because they made a pact with the devil, it is using OT thinking. It isn't even Jewish thinking.
In today's gospel, the people told Jesus about a group of Galileans whom Pilate had killed while they were offering sacrifices to God. Jesus answered them, "Because those Galileans were killed in that way, do you think it proves that they were worse sinners than all other Galileans? No indeed!...What about those eighteen people in Siloam who were killed when the tower fell on? Do you suppose this proves that they were worse than all the other people living in Jerusalem? No indeed!"
Jesus then tells the people that even though those who were killed were not worse sinners than we are, it is still important for us to repent. Some people think we need to repent in order to get "fire insurance". Christianity is about a RELATIONSHIP with God. In order to have a healthy relationship, we need to continually make the decision to listen to God, and to the best of our ability, follow what we hear God telling us what to do. In a marriage, the wedding is only the beginning. We need to regularly renew our relationship with our spouse, listen to our spouse, and regularly choose to remain married to and in relationship to our spouse. However, unlike a marriage, our relationship with God is not between two equals. God is all powerful, all knowing. God is the perfect parent. As the perfect parent, God wants us to do the right thing, but also gives us free will to decide whether or not to follow God's way, and to be in relationship with God.
It is horrible theology to believe that our diseases and handicaps are direct punishment for our sin or someone else's. Punishment for sin is not the same as having logical consequences as a result of our behavior or someone else. An example is Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder. The damage to a baby as a result of the mother's drinking is a consequence, and not a punishment by God. In addition, it is important for the mother to know, so that she can stop drinking and not put any other future babies at risk for FASD.


As Jesus walked along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" Jesus answered them, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned; he was born blind so that God's works might be revealed in him." (John 9:1-3) Instead of looking for who we can blame, it is often more productive to ask, "What good might God reveal through this affliction?"

During Lent we are to focus on self examination, which is not the same as flogging ourselves. Instead of wallowing in guilt, we are to repent. That is, we are to change our behavior - to turn 180 degrees and do something different.
Repentance is not the same thing as a careless expression of "My Bad" or "Sorry 'bout that". It means a change of behavior. I means confessing one's sin before one is caught. Several Christmases ago, a young man accidentally broke an ornament when he was decorating my tree. He had come from an abusive background so was real scared about how I would react. I told him, "That's OK, I know you didn't mean to break it.." He responded "That's right, it was an accident, which means it's not my fault." WRONG ANSWER! He was not repenting. When we repent, we take responsibility for our actions.

When we look at ourselves, we need to also ponder on how our behavior affects our community. Our behavior affects other people. Both within the body of Christ, and in witnessing to people who are not believers. In the parable about the fig tree, the tree was not bearing fruit. Christians are supposed to bear fruit. Galatians 5:22 "The fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, humility, and self control." Being in community is one way to develop the fruits, sort of like rocks in a tumbler. The rough and tumble of being community is what knocks the edges off and polishes us up to become gemstones.
Spirit Episcopal Church in Eagle Riverp

When Bad Things Happen To Good People

Preached at Holy Spirit Episcopal Church in Eagle River,Alaska.