Oddly, the first thing to pop into my head when I finished reading the gospel passage for this Sunday was a Bobby McFerrin song. You probably know it; this is how it starts:
Here’s a little song I wrote
You might want to sing it note for note
Don’t worry, be happy
In every life we have some trouble
When you worry you make it double
Don’t worry, be happy…[1]
I fully admit I am a worrier. I’m the one who can get locked into the “what if” cycles, but Jesus’ message to us is very wise. Worrying only gets in our way and causes trouble. If we are to serve God, all we do must be focused on bringing the Kingdom of God to the world right now – in the here and now. Obsessively worrying about things we cannot control in the future only detracts from what we can do today.
So I invite us to consider what, beyond the necessities, we worry about. How does that worry get in the way of our lives of Christian witness? How can we teach each other to stay in the present, and focus on the difference we can make in the world right now? Maybe we can remind each other by humming the song I’m betting is stuck in your head now! : )
[1] Bobby McFerrin from the album Simple Pleasures, 1988.
Peace,
The Rev. M.E. Eccles, LPC
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Monday, February 21, 2011
20 February
There is a wonderful trait in us human beings. We are always seeking to achieve another goal, attain another personal best. We can remember the first attempts at climbing a seemingly unconquerable mountain, Mt. Everest. Or the attempt by a runner to break the four-minute mile barrier. So we will go on, searching in other places for new horizons to push back.
Jesus is like that in what he does for us and to us. Just as there are physical horizons which recede even as we reach a certain point, so our Lord gives us moral and spiritual horizons which always remain ahead of us, calling us further and further to respond to his call.
For thousands of years there had been a standard which limited the extent of the revenge which a person could take on another – that the revenge should reflect the extent of the original injury, and no more, as in, “an eye for an eye . . ..” By doing so, even though it may sound cruel to us, the law was improving life greatly, since before that law, revenge could be unlimited! Now, Jesus takes that standard and moves it to even higher ground. As we look at the four examples which Jesus uses in our gospel(Matthew 5:38-48), realize that the common factor in them all is that we are being asked to give over our will to that of another. We are being asked to respond in a way that seems totally beyond our capacity. Jesus is in fact showing us what it would be like to respond completely as the will of God would have us do. And then we realize that this is the level on which Christ himself will respond when his time of suffering comes.
Everything in us backs away from seeming to give up control of our lives. But just as we are backing away from that demand, we hear him make an even greater one! Love your enemies, pray for your persecutors, do good to those who hate you. We read this and feel overcome. And then, as we read this, we realize that Jesus himself lived out every single one of these things, and he did not do it because he is totally unlike us, or has some magical resources we do not have. He did it in spite of his sharing our human nature.
We can see these seemingly impossible standards being approached by great and saintly men and women, and we know that we are in the presence of greatness, that we are in act in the presence of our Lord. Their response to his demands calls each one of us to greater response in our own lives. Perhaps you and I will be able to climb that mountain in our future, or maybe sooner.
Peace,
Fr. Bob+
Jesus is like that in what he does for us and to us. Just as there are physical horizons which recede even as we reach a certain point, so our Lord gives us moral and spiritual horizons which always remain ahead of us, calling us further and further to respond to his call.
For thousands of years there had been a standard which limited the extent of the revenge which a person could take on another – that the revenge should reflect the extent of the original injury, and no more, as in, “an eye for an eye . . ..” By doing so, even though it may sound cruel to us, the law was improving life greatly, since before that law, revenge could be unlimited! Now, Jesus takes that standard and moves it to even higher ground. As we look at the four examples which Jesus uses in our gospel(Matthew 5:38-48), realize that the common factor in them all is that we are being asked to give over our will to that of another. We are being asked to respond in a way that seems totally beyond our capacity. Jesus is in fact showing us what it would be like to respond completely as the will of God would have us do. And then we realize that this is the level on which Christ himself will respond when his time of suffering comes.
Everything in us backs away from seeming to give up control of our lives. But just as we are backing away from that demand, we hear him make an even greater one! Love your enemies, pray for your persecutors, do good to those who hate you. We read this and feel overcome. And then, as we read this, we realize that Jesus himself lived out every single one of these things, and he did not do it because he is totally unlike us, or has some magical resources we do not have. He did it in spite of his sharing our human nature.
We can see these seemingly impossible standards being approached by great and saintly men and women, and we know that we are in the presence of greatness, that we are in act in the presence of our Lord. Their response to his demands calls each one of us to greater response in our own lives. Perhaps you and I will be able to climb that mountain in our future, or maybe sooner.
Peace,
Fr. Bob+
Monday, February 14, 2011
14 Novemeber
I visited another Episcopal church for worship today, a small congregation that meets in a loft-like space in Chicago: Grace Church. I enjoy the opportunity to worship occasionally in other settings and experience our familiar liturgy with variations unique to a another faith community. At Grace today, instead of the familiar “Glory to God” in the first part of the service, we recited a canticle: “A Song in Praise of Wisdom.” The canticle is part of new worship materials that have been approved for use in the Episcopal Church. Wisdom is another word for Holy Spirit. It is often used with feminine pronouns such as “she” and “her.” One sentence in the canticle caught my attention: “In every generation Wisdom enlightens holy souls, making them friends of God.”
That line stayed with me as I listened to the readings for the day, all focused on following the law and, in the case of the Gospel, going beyond a traditional understanding of the law. Jesustells his listeners (and that includes us) that it is not just their actions that are important. Our attitudes and our feelings are just as important. It struck me, as I heard these words, that Jesus is telling us that we should be “friends of God.” If we are faithful to Jesus’ teachings about what God wants of us—that we love God, that we love one another, that we treat one another with respect— then we are friends of God.
As I move forward into the coming week, I am resolved to be a friend of God, a better friend that I have been. I invite you to join with me in the resolution for your own lives in the days ahead.
Peace,
Deacon Sue
Monday, February 7, 2011
6 Feb
Are you the salt of the earth?
Are you the light of the world?
Yes!
That’s what Jesus said. He didn’t say: “you might the salt of the earth” or “maybe one day you’ll be the light of the world”. He said: “You are the salt of the earth…You are the light of the world.”
We tend to remember the names of the beacons of light, like Martin Luther King Jr. But people die all the time standing against injustice and often we don’t know their names; but sometimes we learn them.
A week ago, in Uganda, a man named David Kato was murdered. Maybe you heard it on the news or saw a clip about it. Why is this important? Well, David Kato was murdered because he was the “most out gay man in the country”. Why does that matter? Well, because there’s a bill on the parliament floor in Uganda that’s called the “Kill the Gays” bill, wherein, if passed, it will become illegal to be homosexual and punishable by life imprisonment or death. This matters internationally because Uganda gets a tremendous amount of aid and many countries are watching what they’re doing.[1] Our Presiding Bishop and the Archbishop of Canterbury both made statements about the murder, saying that it was a horrible, tragic event and reminding us that we are all children of God.
Do you need to be martyred to be a light in the world?
Does God require that of us?
Does God require that of me? I don’t know. I gotta say, I hope not.
And why might we want to hide our light? Embarrassment of being disciples of Christ? Fear that our light might go out? Fear of persecution?
I make the argument that we are already shining our lights in the world. Take disasters and big events – take the blizzard last week. Lots of people’s light shone forth as neighbors and strangers helped each other dig out, helped make sure that Meals-On-Wheels happened and did wellness checks. We don’t know who those people are. We don’t know the people who gathered Gatorade and granola bars and brought them to the people stuck on Lake Shore Drive to give them some sustenance and company until they were rescued. What a way to shine forth!
So…remember that you are a light in the world and live into it!
[1] The Rachel Maddow Show: “Roots of anti-gay hate abroad traced to U.S.”; 4 February 2011. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26315908/#41434173
Peace,
The Rev. M.E. Eccles, LPC
Are you the light of the world?
Yes!
That’s what Jesus said. He didn’t say: “you might the salt of the earth” or “maybe one day you’ll be the light of the world”. He said: “You are the salt of the earth…You are the light of the world.”
We tend to remember the names of the beacons of light, like Martin Luther King Jr. But people die all the time standing against injustice and often we don’t know their names; but sometimes we learn them.
A week ago, in Uganda, a man named David Kato was murdered. Maybe you heard it on the news or saw a clip about it. Why is this important? Well, David Kato was murdered because he was the “most out gay man in the country”. Why does that matter? Well, because there’s a bill on the parliament floor in Uganda that’s called the “Kill the Gays” bill, wherein, if passed, it will become illegal to be homosexual and punishable by life imprisonment or death. This matters internationally because Uganda gets a tremendous amount of aid and many countries are watching what they’re doing.[1] Our Presiding Bishop and the Archbishop of Canterbury both made statements about the murder, saying that it was a horrible, tragic event and reminding us that we are all children of God.
Do you need to be martyred to be a light in the world?
Does God require that of us?
Does God require that of me? I don’t know. I gotta say, I hope not.
And why might we want to hide our light? Embarrassment of being disciples of Christ? Fear that our light might go out? Fear of persecution?
I make the argument that we are already shining our lights in the world. Take disasters and big events – take the blizzard last week. Lots of people’s light shone forth as neighbors and strangers helped each other dig out, helped make sure that Meals-On-Wheels happened and did wellness checks. We don’t know who those people are. We don’t know the people who gathered Gatorade and granola bars and brought them to the people stuck on Lake Shore Drive to give them some sustenance and company until they were rescued. What a way to shine forth!
So…remember that you are a light in the world and live into it!
[1] The Rachel Maddow Show: “Roots of anti-gay hate abroad traced to U.S.”; 4 February 2011. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26315908/#41434173
Peace,
The Rev. M.E. Eccles, LPC
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