21 Pentecost, Year B

Proper 24: Job 38:1–7, 34-41a; Psalm 104:1–9, 25, 37b; Hebrews 5:1-10; Mark 10:35-45

 

A homily by Fr. Gene Tucker, given at Trinity Church, Mt. Vernon, Illinois on Sunday, October 21, 2012.

 

“SURVIVAL OF THE SPIRITUALLY FITTEST”

(Homily text:  Mark 10: 35 - 45)

“Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, when you come into your glory.”         (James and John, making a request of Jesus)

Earlier this week, while we were visiting family back east, we had the delightful experience of visiting the tourist railroad that I was involved with before we moved to Illinois.  So it was on Tuesday morning that several family members boarded a small track inspection car and took a ride up the track.  Looking up the track, I saw a hawk swoop down out of the trees and snatch up a snake (about two and a half feet long) in his claws.  He flew away to another nearby tree, with his prize dangling below him.

This little, quiet and swift drama was a chapter out of nature’s book….those creatures with the means to do so will dominate the weaker and the defenseless.

Charles Darwin, writing about this aspect of the created order, gave such a reality a name:  “The Survival of the Fittest.”

And so it was that the hawk, being more mobile, swift, and possessed of keen and sharp eyesight, was able to conquer the snake, carrying it off as his midday  meal.

The patterns we see in nature also exist in the realm of human affairs…..

About six decades before Jesus’ birth, the Romans had swept into the Holy Land, conquering it and subjecting the people who lived there to a brutal occupation.  The strong had defeated the weak.

Spiritually, the axiom also held true in the common thinking of Jesus’ day.  The rationale went something like this:  If a person was rich and well off, or was healthy, then it was evidence that God had blessed that individual because of their faithfulness to God’s commandments. 

Therefore, the strong and the powerful were that way because they had earned God’s favor.  Those who were weak were the way they were because of some terrible sin.  Evidence of this mindset can be found in the account of Jesus’ healing of the blind man in John’s gospel account, chapter nine…the Pharisees want to know if the man was born blind because of some of his own sin, or because of the sins of his parents.

 Into this equation of power and weakness, both secular and spiritual, Jesus comes.  He brings with Him evidence of God’s power, God’s power over sickness, over demons, over nature itself.

Jesus’ power is being noticed by more and more people who hear of His teaching, or see His power to heal in action.  Things are moving in the right direction, as Jesus’ strength defeats the enemies of illness, of demonic possession and of nature out-of-control.

Perhaps it’s possible then, that Jesus’ disciples are beginning to think that their Teacher is possessed of so much power that the prevailing order of the Roman occupation, and the corrupt leaders of the temple in Jerusalem, will be conquered, as well.

And this perception, that God has, at last, sent the promised Messiah, the Christ, the Anointed One, to deliver God’s people, might be the perception that motivated James and John, in our gospel text for today, to ask the Lord, “Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, when you come into your glory.”

Cast in contemporary English and placed in a corporate setting, we might characterize James and John’s request thusly:  “Allow us to become the Chief Operating Office and the Chief Financial Officer when you set up your corporation and dominate the market.”

The bottom line here can be expressed thusly:  We want to be on the winning team, the team that will overcome everything in its path.

But Jesus’ response, in addition to being a bit cryptic (as they often are), also demonstrated the truth of a true walk with God:

• The walk of faith involves self-sacrifice, not self-advancement,
• Those who walk in God’s path must be willing to give up everything, in order to gain everything,
• Survival of the spiritually fit involves self-denial.  Only then will the true self be found.

Having mentioned that Jesus’ response was cryptic, let’s look more closely at what He says, putting ourselves into James and John’s shoes as we do….The Lord says to these two men, “Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?”

To their ears, and in the time of Jesus’ earthly ministry, Jesus’ references to a “cup” and a “baptism” must not have made much sense.

However, in due time, they would come to understand exactly what these terms meant.  Recall with me that James and John both reclined with the Lord at the Last Supper, as He offered the cup to them and said, “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many.”  Remember also that James and John were present with the Lord in the Garden of Gethsemane as He said, “Remove this cup from me….”

In time, both James and John would follow the Lord in a martyr’s death.  Perhaps between the time that Jesus responded to them as He did in our text today, between that time and the Lord’s passion and death, and their own deaths, they thought a lot about what the Lord had said to them, and perhaps they wondered how they would drink the cup that the Lord had taken from, and would follow the baptism that the Lord had undergone, wondering when that time and the place would come when they, too, would die for the faith.

James and John were martyrs.

Remembering that the word “martyr” comes to us from the Greek, where it means “witness” (its meaning has changed a lot over the years!), how can we be martyrs/witnesses to our Christian faith today?

Here are some practical suggestions to get our own thoughts going:

• Putting God first means that we will be second, third, or maybe even last.
• Being willing (with God’s help!) to step out of first place ensures that we will find our truest and fullest self in God, to become what God intends for us.
• Strength in God’s kingdom often looks a whole lot like weakness to the world.
• God’s power is made perfect in weakness (II Corinthians 12: 9b).  What is true for God is also true for us!

May we, by the power of the Holy Spirit living within, allow God to be first, and ourselves to be second, third, or even last, that God’s strength can be seen and known in our weakness.

AMEN.

19 Pentecost, Year B

Proper 22:  Job 1:1; 2:1-10; Psalm 26; Hebrews 1:1–4; 2:5-12; Mark 10:2-16

A homily by Fr. Gene Tucker, given at Trinity Church, Mt. Vernon, Illinois on Sunday, October 7, 2012.

“UPHOLDING THE IDEAL, OR LOOKING FOR LOOPHOLES?”

In today’s gospel reading, Jesus says, “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her.  And if she divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery.”  (Mark 10:11–12)

 The lectionary cycle of readings from the Bible that we follow isn’t perfect.  No system of reading through Holy Scripture is.  But the lectionary does have the benefit of forcing us to read some of the “difficult sayings” of Jesus, ones like the one I’ve cited above.  Today’s gospel contains one of Jesus’ “difficult sayings”, those things we’d rather just skip, tempting us to turn the page of Mark’s gospel to find a more gentle, less-challenging text.

But today’s gospel is a tough one to read and to hear.  The words leap off the page of the Bible and hit us squarely in the face.  Even after the passage of time, they sting like wind-driven snow.

In today’s gospel, Jesus has been approached by His archenemies, the Pharisees, who ask Him if it is lawful for a man to divorce his wife.  Mark notes that they asked the question in order to test Jesus.

The test involved trying to pin Jesus down as to His position on the question of marriage and divorce….In Jesus’ day -  as in our own – this was a hot topic.  Two thousand years ago, basic Jewish teaching from the rabbis fell into three main groups: 

• Rabbi Shammai said that a man should divorce his wife only for the most serious of offenses, such as sexual infidelity.
• Rabbi Hillel said that a man could divorce his wife for quite a few causes, including something as trivial as “spoiling a dish for him.”
• Rabbi Aqiba was the most liberal…he said a man could divorce his wife “even if he found another woman more beautiful.”  (Wow!)

Underlying these answers to the question of marriage and divorce that Jesus provided are matters of commandment, pastoral allowance, the nature of marriage and God’s ideal for marriage.

Let’s explore these various concerns about marriage.

We can begin with the matter of commandment.  Notice that the Jesus asks the Pharisees, “What did Moses command you?” concerning marriage and divorce.  Putting the issue squarely in the realm of the Law, the Torah, Jesus asks the Pharisees to quote to Him the basis for divorce.  They reply, citing the provision of Deuteronomy 24:1-4 , which allows a man to divorce his wife by giving her a certificate of divorce.   This provision says that a bill of divorce may be given to the wife if the husband found something “objectionable in her”.  (The various answers provided by the rabbis, cited above, had to do with the definition of the term “something objectionable.”)  The Pharisees demonstrate that, for them, the Law is paramount in determining proper behavior.  Their answer also shows that their understanding of marriage is that it is a legal arrangement between two persons.

We might pause here for a moment and consider marriage practices within Judaism at the time of Jesus’ earthly ministry….A marriage was an arranged affair, usually between a woman’s father and the future husband (and his father).   (Remember that this was a “man’s world”, a culture in which men ran everything, a culture in which a wife was regarded as a husband’s property, a world in which a man, normally – according to Jewish law – was the only one who could initiate a divorce.)  Our contemporary notions about a man and a woman’s relationship being built on love and mutual respect, and about a marriage being brought into reality as a result of the free will of the man and the woman to enter into the marriage did not apply in that culture and in that time.  Marriage was seen as a legal contract, not as a loving relationship.

Now, let’s return to the matter of commandment.  Once the Pharisees have (correctly) provided the answer from the Law, Jesus responds by refocusing their attention onto God’s original design for the relationship between a man and a woman…..“From the beginning of creation,” He said, “the two shall become one flesh.”

Now, the second aspect of our consideration of the issue of divorce comes into view.  Jesus says that Moses’ allowance was given due to the “hardness of heart” of God’s people.  Quite frankly, Jesus’ answer raises so many questions….His answer seems to raise the possibility that a pastoral provision was made, out of consideration for a basic fact of the human condition:  the reality that many human beings are simply hard-hearted.  In the Bible, hard-heartedness is a condition in which people do not want to hear God’s voice, or to follow God’s leading.

But Jesus’ answer also puts God’s original intent above the legal provisions of the Law of Moses.  “From the beginning,” He said.  This is the third reality of Jesus’ answer that we should hold in view….It is apparent that the Pharisees are not only looking to test Jesus, trying to see which of the three views of the rabbis He would uphold, but they are also seeking legal justification for the view that Jesus would choose, looking to the Law for the basis for the choice.  Instead, Jesus redirects the Pharisees’ test, holding God’s ideal for marriage as the paramount concern.  In essence, we could summarize Jesus’ answer by paraphrasing it this way:  Don’t look for loopholes through which to walk, but seek to uphold God’s ideal for marriage.

Much has changed in human culture over time…..We no longer arrange marriages, but expect them to arise as a result of a loving relationship that upholds both parties to the marriage as equal partners in it.  And, thankfully, it is no longer a “man’s world” (for the most part)….That, too, is a positive development.

But there is no shortage of “hardness of heart”, is there?  Parties to a marriage seek divorce for the least of reasons, it seems, these days, even to seek a new partner who’s more attractive than the old one.  Rabbi Aqiba’s view is held by many today.

 So what do we do about the matter of marriage and divorce?  Unfortunately, divorce is quite common in our culture and in our time today….about one half of all marriages end in divorce, even among committed Christians.

We should consider the matter of marriage, first of all, and then, we should look at the reality of divorce.

Beginning with marriage, the Church is called to uphold God’s ideal in marriage….Accordingly, The Episcopal Church requires those who wish to be married in the Church to sign a statement, affirming their commitment to the forthcoming marriage as being a lifelong, exclusive relationship of the two persons.

In addition, the Canons of the Church require premarital counseling, as well as a thirty day notice to the priest or bishop who will officiate the ceremony.  The idea here is to prevent hasty marriages, and to properly consider the various aspects of marriage in an orderly and thorough way.

Then, we see marriage as a part of our common life together as a parish church.  During the ceremony, those attending are asked, “Will all of you witnessing these promises do all in your power to uphold these two persons in their marriage?”  This question affirms the reality that the marriage that is created by the coming together of the husband and wife isn’t their relationship alone, but that their marriage affects the community, and is affected by the community of faith of which they are members.

Now, we should turn to the matter of divorce.

We said a moment ago that there’s no shortage of “hardness of heart” in our culture today.  Unfortunately, though that has always been true, down through the ages, we seem to have an abundance of an unwillingness to allow God’s presence, God’s love, and God’s truth to penetrate hearts and minds in the time in which we live.

As a result, sometimes one partner to a marriage will simply announce that they are leaving the relationship.  (Unfortunately, changes in our legal practices make such a move a lot easier than it was in an earlier time.)  If the one partner leaves, the remaining partner is often devastated emotionally and financially.  Here we return to one of Jesus’ apparent concerns in upholding God’s ideal for marriage: the devastating effects of divorce on the powerless partner…In His day, women – who had little or no legal power – became victims of the ruthless behavior of men.  Not only were women in the culture of that time devastated emotionally, but their financial wellbeing was also devastated.

In other cases, “hardness of heart” manifests itself in behavior that is dangerous to the other marriage partner. Domestic violence is an example.

In such cases, the remaining partner should never be demonized for becoming a divorced person.

The Church has struggled with Jesus’ ideal, seeking to provide pastoral consideration for some of the circumstances that can lead to divorce.  St. Paul outlines the possibility for divorce and remarriage in his first letter to the Corinthians (see chapter seven).  Matthew’s gospel account also recognizes the possibility of divorce for the most grave of causes, specifically, for “uncleanness” in the marriage partner (usually interpreted as sexual infidelity) (see Matthew 5:32 and 19:9).

Sometimes, divorce is the only advisable choice, given the alternative.  We can see this clearly in cases where a spouse is physically or emotionally violent.  The choice then becomes one of choosing to remain in a dangerous relationship, or to end the relationship entirely for one’s own safety.  It is the more advisable of two difficult choices.

 The Church recognizes this reality, allowing remarriage in the Church for persons who have been divorced, but only after the Bishop has considered the matter, and has granted a judgment in the matter.  The idea here is that the Church does not condone what is called “serial monogamy” (a series of marriages that follow one another), but takes remarriage as a possibility in some cases, and which seeks to look closely at the after effects of the first marriage on the second one.

Alas, there are still some Christians who view divorce as the one unforgivable sin.  To hold such a view brings with it the possibility that a person who has been the victim of a bad situation that has resulted in divorce will become the victim all over again.  Such a view also discounts Jesus’ clear teaching about the one unforgivable sin, which is “blasphemy of the Holy Spirit” (see Matthew 12:31).

Above all, the Church is called to uphold God’s ideal in marriage as a life-long, faithful and loving relationship between a man and a women.  As we do so, we are also called to uphold those whose marriages end for good and sufficient reasons.

May we, through the power of the Holy Spirit, seek to prepare men and women to enter into a Christian marriage, a marriage in which God’s ideal is ever in view, and which is supported by the faith community.  And may we, through the power of the Holy Spirit, support and uphold those whose marriages have ended, enabling God’s healing presence to take effect.

AMEN.