September | 2018 | Grace Episcopal Church (Sheldon, VT)

Pentecost 19 Proper 21B RCL September 30, 2018

Posted on September 30, 2018 by Beth Crane

Esther 7:1-6, 9-10; 9:20-22
Psalm 124
James 5:13-20
Mark 9:38-50

Our first reading is from the Book of Esther. It is set during the reign of King Ahasuerus, better known to us as Xerxes I (485-404 B.C.) It was actually written around 150 B.C.

The story is in our Revised Common Lectionary because the RSV was created to let us read and learn about stories of women and other marginalized people in the Bible, texts which had not appeared in our earlier lectionaries.

All of our readings today give us good food for meditation, but I want to focus on the entire story of Esther, a courageous woman who saved her people from genocide.

Esther is a Jew. Several generations earlier, her ancestors had been taken from Jerusalem to Babylon during the Babylonian Captivity. Esther had been adopted by her cousin, Mordecai, when her parents died. They are now living in Susa, a city two hundred miles northeast of Babylon.

Mordecai is a minor official in the king’s court. He tells Esther never to tell anyone that she is Jewish. Esther is also part of the king’s court. She lives in the castle as a member of the king’s harem.

The story begins with the king throwing a party for all the leaders of the kingdom from India to Ethiopia. The party lasts for a week, and on the last day the king, who has had more than enough to drink, wants his wife, Vashti, to come in and dazzle the guests with her beauty. Vashti refuses. The king’s sages tell him that he has to take decisive action to discipline her, or all the women will stop obeying their husbands. King Xerxes dismisses her from her job as queen and holds what is essentially a beauty contest to choose a new wife. Esther becomes the new queen.

Soon after, Mordecai uncovers a plot to assassinate the king. Mordecai tells Esther. Esther tells the king and saves the king’s life. The plotters are hanged on the gallows.

Then Haman, another of the king’s minor officials who is extremely anti-semitic, and also has a huge ego and a very thin skin, receives a promotion. He becomes the king’s right hand man. The king orders all the other officials to prostrate themselves on the ground whenever Haman approaches. Mordecai refuses to do this. Some of the other officials ask why, and he tells them he is Jewish. The news reaches Haman. In revenge, Haman plans to have all the Jews in the kingdom killed. He convinces the king to issue a proclamation for this genocide, sealing the deal with a huge bribe of ten thousand silver talents.

Mordecai finds out about the decree, puts on sackcloth and ashes, and goes about the streets wailing. Soon all the Jews are in mourning. Esther’s maids and eunuchs hear about this and tell Esther, who sends a trusted servant to ask Mordecai what is going on.

Mordecai gives the servant a copy of the proclamation and tells him about Haman’s bribe. He asks the servant to convince Esther to appeal to the king and save her people.

Esther is terrified. She knows that the king has a law that you do not go to see him unless you are called. If you approach the king without permission, you can be killed. She asks Mordecai to tell all the Jewish people to fast for three days and pray for her.

With this prayer support, Esther does the unthinkable. She goes to the inner court opposite the king’s hall. She could lose her life for this. The king sees her, calls her into the hall, and asks what she wants. She says she wants to invite the king and Haman to a feast the next day, and at the feast she will have a special request of the king. Shortly thereafter, Haman sees Mordecai at the king’s gate, and Mordecai fails to honor Haman. By the end of the evening, Haman has decided to build a gallows to hang Mordecai for his insolence.

That night, the king has trouble sleeping, so he asks for the book of records. He reads about how Mordecai warned him about the assassination plot. The king is reminded that Mordecai has saved his life. He asks what has been done to honor Mordecai and finds out that nothing has been done.

The next morning, the king asks Haman, “What should be done for the man the king wishes to honor?” Haman of course thinks the king wants to honor him, so he tells the king that the man should be given royal robes that the king has worn and a horse that the king has ridden, and a crown should be placed on the horse’s head, and an official should lead the horse carrying the honoree through the square of the city proclaiming that this is the man the king wishes to honor. The king tells Haman to go and do all of this for Mordecai.

Then comes our reading. We are at the feast Esther has arranged for Haman and the king. Esther bravely tells the king about the planned genocide. The tables are turned. Haman is hanged on the gallows he had built for Mordecai and the king gives Mordecai Haman’s job as his right hand man.

Mordecai sends out a decree that the feast of Purim should be celebrated to honor the Jews’ escape from death.

Esther shows great courage in carrying out her plan. She risks her life and saves her people. She also shows deep faith. What a wise thing—to ask all of her people to fast and pray for her. Those prayers gave her the faith to approach the king.

Haman has great power, and he uses it to promote his anti-Semitic agenda. King Ahasuerus has even greater power, and this time he uses it to promote justice. This little story, only ten chapters in the Hebrew Scriptures, gives us a wonderful example of a courageous woman speaking truth to power and saving many lives. Thanks be to God for people of courage. Amen.

Filed under: Reverend Janet Brown, Sermons | Tagged: Babylonian Captivity, Esther 7, Esther 9, Haman, James 5, Mark 9, Mordecai, Psalm 124, Vashti, Xerxes | Leave a comment »

Pentecost 18 Proper 20B RCL September 23, 2018

Posted on September 23, 2018 by Beth Crane

Proverbs 31:10-31
Psalm 1
James 3:13—4:3, 7-8a
Mark 9:30-37

Our opening reading is the conclusion of the Book of Proverbs, written about twenty-five hundred years ago. Some scholars advise us to simply skip this passage because it was written in a patriarchal culture, but, if we take a moment and look a bit more deeply into it, this passage is quite interesting, even inspiring.

This woman is intelligent and gifted in many areas. She spins wool and flax and makes clothes for herself and her family. She also makes garments for sale. She buys a field and plants a vineyard. In other words, she is a businesswoman. She works hard and manages her household including servants, with care and efficiency. She has deep faith. She does not fear the future. She is a person of justice, generous with the poor and needy. Although this description was written over two thousand years ago, this woman is a holy example for all of us.

Our reading from the Letter of James is timeless in its relevance. If we want to be seen as wise, we are called to show our faith and wisdom in our actions. If we have “bitter envy and selfish ambition in [our] hearts,” and if we are “boastful and false to the truth,” we are not following our Lord. In fact, James says, “Where there is envy and selfish ambition, there will also be disorder and wickedness of every kind.” How true this is.

By contrast, James writes, “But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without a trace of partiality or hypocrisy.” That is what we are aiming for. We may never get there one hundred per cent of the time, but, with God’s grace, we try to get as close as we can to that goal.

Then James tells us, “And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace for those who make peace.” If we have God’s peace within us and we share that peace with others in our actions, we help to make the world a better place.

Then James talks about conflicts. He says that, if we want something we do not have, and we let that govern all our actions, we can actually commit murder. We can actually see this happening on a international level. For example, Mr. Putin wanted to take over Crimea, so he sent troops in and killed people to accomplish that goal.

On a level slightly less harmful than murder, James points out that, if we “covet something and cannot obtain it,” we humans “engage in disputes and conflicts.” This was written about two thousand years ago, but it is as true today as it was all those centuries ago.

To move away from this human need for power and control, James calls us to “Draw near to God, and [God] will draw near to [us].” Good advice in any age.

In our gospel for today, Jesus is teaching the disciples about the horrible things that are going to happen to him. They are not understanding what he is saying, and they are afraid to ask him. This reminds us that no question is stupid. Asking questions is the way we learn.

Then our Lord finds out that, not only do the disciples not understand what he is telling them, they have also been arguing along the way about which of them is the greatest. This is a huge sign that they are missing the point. I think they still had vestiges of the idea that the messiah is a military leader who will overthrow the Romans, and they are concerned with what rank they will have in the new kingdom.

As James has pointed out, we humans are so concerned about our rank and status that we will get into conflicts about it, and that is what the disciples have done, arguing about who is the greatest.

They arrive at Capernaum, and Jesus asks them what they were discussing. They are silent, but obviously Jesus figures out what the topic was. He sits down, calls the twelve apostles, his closest followers, and tries to get the point across.

First, he expresses his message in words, “Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all.” What a shocking statement. He is turning everything upside down. If we want to be first with Jesus, we have to do what he did. We have to be servants of all. Jesus is throwing out all our human notions about power and prestige and privilege. In his eyes, a buck private is just as good as a five star general. A custodian is just as worthy of respect as the CEO. A little baby in a tiny parish in Vermont is as precious as our Presiding Bishop.

And then he takes a little child in his arms. We have to remember that in Jesus’ time, it was a patriarchal society. Men had all the power. Our woman in the Book of Proverbs is extraordinary. Women and children were considered chattel—possessions, belongings. They could be treated badly, even beaten and thrown out on the street, and no one batted an eye.

Jesus takes a little child in his arms. This little person is at the bottom of the social scale, like a cat or a dog or a chair—a possession, an object. But Jesus says, “Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me.” This is a revolutionary, earth-shattering statement.

Our Lord is saying that every little child is Christ. The most vulnerable people among us are Christ. We are called to treat them as we would treat our Lord Jesus. The hungry, the thirsty, those who have no clothes, those who are homeless, those who are in prison—and little children—when we treat them with love and care, we are doing that to our Lord. He is calling us to see him in the most vulnerable among us.

Lord Jesus, you are alive among us and in us, and we are alive in you. Give us the grace to follow you, to love and serve others in your Name. Amen.

Filed under: Reverend Janet Brown, Sermons | Tagged: Capernaum, James 3, Mark 9, Proverbs 31, Psalm 1 | Leave a comment »

Pentecost 17 Proper 19 B RCL September 16, 2018

Posted on September 16, 2018 by Beth Crane

Proverbs 1:20-33
Psalm 19
James 3:1-12
Mark 8:27-38

In our first reading today, Wisdom calls the people to return to God, to respond to God’s call. Wisdom is always a female figure. Wisdom is considered to be a part of God, an aspect of God, who was present at the creation. Jesus is often thought of as being one with Wisdom. Herbert O’ Driscoll says, “ Wisdom expresses the mind of God.” (The Word Among Us, Year B, Vol 3, p. 102.) Wisdom practice is designed to help us attune our minds to the mind of God and to follow the will of God.

Our passage from the Letter of James is also considered to be wisdom literature. It gives guidance on how to live our lives in harmony with God’s will. Much of today’s reading focuses on that very small but very powerful part of our body, the tongue. James tells us that it is easier to control the rudder of a ship that it is to control our tongues.

Biblical scholar Beverly Gaventa quotes that old adage that we all recited when we were children: “Sticks and stones can break my bones, but words can never hurt me.” Gaventa writes, “The lines carry within themselves their own contradiction, for if words did not in fact have the power to do harm, the lines would not be necessary.” (Gaventa, Texts for Preaching Year B, p. 509.)

With social media, we can send messages to hundreds and thousands of people. We are not saying something to just one or two people. The misuse of social media to send negative messages is particularly harmful to our children and youth. We have all read or heard accounts of young people actually committing suicide because of bullying that has occurred over social media. James points out that with our tongues we can either bless or curse, and we pray that, in everything we say, we will be extending blessings.

In our gospel, Jesus has been doing healings and touching many lives. He has realized that his ministry is to all people. He has also endured verbal attacks by the religious authorities who scold him for putting the needs of people before the traditions.

In today’s reading, Jesus asks his followers who he is. They report on the opinions others have been offering. Jesus asks them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter says, “You are the Messiah.” Then Jesus tells them what is going to happen. He is going to suffer, he is going to be rejected by the authorities, he is going to be killed, and then he is going to rise again.

Peter cannot bear this, He takes Jesus aside and begins to scold him, “Lord, this simply cannot happen.” In one way or another, all of our readings today are about how we respond to God’s call. Jesus knows what he is called to do. His revolution of the spirit is so frightening to the authorities that they are going to kill him. He is going to suffer.

I think Peter is responding to this on at least two levels. First, he loves Jesus. He has left everything and followed this man, and now Jesus has become like a big brother to him. He cannot bear the idea of Jesus suffering and dying.

Secondly, there are two strains of thought regarding the messiah. One is that the messiah will come as a conquering hero, defeat the oppressor—in this case, the Roman Empire—and establish a new kingdom, the reign of God. It’s one thing to be following a military hero who achieves a military victory. It is another thing to be following a leader who suffers and dies. Prophets such as Isaiah clearly present the concept of the suffering servant, and Peter knows this, but it is still very difficult to hear.

But let us consider how Jesus is feeling. He knows what he is called to do. But now his dear friend Peter, the one who will lead the apostles, is saying that this simply cannot happen. He loves Peter. He knows Peter is emotional and impulsive at times, but Peter is the one who has recognized Jesus as the Savior. When Peter tells Jesus that our Lord’s description of his death and resurrection can’t be true, it tempts Jesus to waver in his resolve. And that is why our Lord says, “Get behind me, Satan.” Peter is tempting Jesus to veer from the path he is called to walk. Peter is setting his mind on earthly things instead of heavenly things.

And then Jesus calls us to take up our cross and follow him. He calls us to lose our lives for his sake. That does not necessarily mean dying for his sake, but it does mean putting heavenly things above earthly things.

If we go back to the theme of Wisdom as expressing the mind of God, or the mind of Christ, following Jesus means that we are called to make our minds and hearts one with his mind and heart. This means that we are called to be people of love and compassion, to care about others as our Lord did.

As we pray our collect for today, we are asking that we nay follow the guidance of the Holy Spirit in all things. That is what it means to take up our cross and follow Jesus— to follow the guidance of the Holy Spirit in all things. When we do that, we are following our Good Shepherd, who is leading us into new life, Amen.

Filed under: Reverend Janet Brown, Sermons | Tagged: "The Word Among Use Year B", Beverly Gaventa, Herbert O'Driscoll, James 3, Mark 8, Peter, Proverbs 1, Psalm 19, Wisdom Liberature | Leave a comment »

Pentecost 16 Proper 18B RCL September 9, 2018

Posted on September 9, 2018 by Beth Crane

Proverbs 22:1-2, 8-9, 22-23
Psalm 125
James 2:1-10, (11-13), 14-17
Mark 7:24-37

In our baptismal vows, we are asked, “Will you strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being?” Donna Hicks, the author of the book Dignity, was with us at our Diocesan Convention to help us to understand the meaning of dignity on a deeper level. Our bishop has done a great deal of work on this topic, and this has led him to become a part of Jerusalem Peacebuilders. All of our readings today reflect on the topic of dignity in one way or another.

Our passage from the Book of Proverbs tells us that a reputation for honesty and integrity is a precious thing. Justice, generosity, and compassion bear good fruit. God is the creator of all people, rich and poor, powerful and vulnerable. We are called to honor the dignity of every person, because the dignity of every person is a quality given to
them at birth. Every person is a child of God.

Our reading from the Letter of James builds on these ideas, asking, do we treat people differently according to their position in society? Do we show a rich person to his or her seat and ignore a poor person? Or do we recognize every person as a beloved child of God? James tells us that our faith must be lived out in action. If a person comes to us who has no clothes and no food, we cannot say, “Go in peace; have a good day.” We are called to take care of that person. Food shelf ministries are one way to respond to that call. Thank you for your support of that ministry.

In our gospel, we have some encounters which teach us about dignity and God’s love on a very profound level. Jesus has just been trying to teach us that what is in our hearts is what really matters. The Pharisees were chiding him and his disciples for not washing their hands and therefore being ritually unclean and Jesus was trying to
teach us about the importance of compassion.

Now our Lord goes into what was then called Phoenicia and now would be called Syria. This is a Gentile land. He goes into a house and tries to keep his presence a secret. He is tired; the crowds are around him constantly, and he is trying to get some privacy. A woman whose daughter is ill hears about him. She comes and bows down before him, pleading with him to heal her daughter.

Jesus is a rabbi, a teacher. Rabbis are not supposed to be near Gentiles. He has gone into a Gentile territory. Rabbis are not supposed to talk to women. If they talk to Gentiles and women, they will be ritually unclean. So Jesus is now ritually unclean according to the law. He is still thinking that his ministry is to his own people, so he tells the woman that the children need to be fed, that is, the Jewish people. He says, “It is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.” It makes us squirm to hear this language. Herbert O’Driscoll writes, “One cannot help wondering if there were moments in [Jesus’] life as in ours, when he regretted saying something.” (O’Driscoll, The Word Among Us, p. 99.)

The woman is desperate to get help for her daughter. She genuinely believes Jesus can bring about this healing. And she is deeply spiritual, highly intelligent, and a first-class theologian. “Sir, even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.” Jesus recognizes the woman’s faith. And her wisdom. Her daughter is healed.

The woman refuses to accept that she is inferior, either because of her gender or because of her nationality or religion. She goes home and finds her daughter well.

Jesus has just had his ministry clarified and vastly expanded by a woman he had never met before and probably will never meet again. Although he responded at first from his exhaustion and frustration, a moment he will probably regret, he has, in this brief but life-changing encounter, respected her dignity and allowed her to teach him
something about his ministry.

Jesus goes on, into another Gentile territory, Sidon and the region of the Decapolis, and they bring him a deaf man. This man can neither hear nor speak. This time, Jesus has no hesitation. He takes the man to a quiet spot, puts his fingers into the man’s ears, spits on his hand and touches the man’s tongue. This is a deeply intimate encounter. Now he is even more ritually unclean. Jesus says, “Be opened.” The man can hear and speak. He and his friends cannot be stopped from spreading the good news of his healing.

Jesus has been opened to the breadth of his ministry. The new faith is for all people. This was good news indeed to the many Gentiles who were flocking to the new faith in the first century.

Our Lord was fully human and fully divine. In his first response to this courageous woman, his humanity shows through. But his compassion, his humility, his own openness to all people is clearly demonstrated when he opens his own heart to her response. Jesus had just had a long and tiring discussion with the Pharisees about ritual purity. One must eat the right foods and associate with the right people. In these two encounters today, he learns from a most unlikely teacher that his ministry is to all people. In listening so carefully to her words, he accepts her as a teacher, one who changes his life.

Loving and gracious God, help us to respect the dignity of every human being. Help us to be people of compassion. Help us to follow where you lead. In your holy Name. Amen.

Filed under: Reverend Janet Brown, Sermons | Tagged: "The Word Among Us Year A, Donna Hicks, Herbert O'Driscoll, james 2, Mark7, parables, Peacebuilders, Proverbs 22, Psalm 125 | Leave a comment »

Pentecost 15 Proper 17B RCL September 2, 2018

Posted on September 2, 2018 by Beth Crane

Song of Solomon 2:8-13
Psalm 45:1-2, 7-10
James 1:17-27
Mark 7:1-8. 14-15. 21-23

Our opening reading for today, from the Song of Solomon, is a poetic description of the love between God and God’s people. Spring has come; everything is blooming, and God calls to God’s beloved, namely, us. The answering psalm is a royal wedding song.

Our epistle, from the Letter of James, is one of the most down to earth portions of the Bible. James begins by saying that all generosity and all generous acts of giving come from God. God gave us the creation and made us stewards of this beautiful world. God came among us as a human being, Jesus of Nazareth. These are two gifts beyond imagining. God loves us so much that God has come among us. God gives us every moment of our lives; God gives us the gift of being alive. At the root of our faith is gratitude for God’s many gifts, especially God’s love.

Out of deep awareness of these gifts from God, we are guided to certain ways of living. We are called to be quick to listen and slow to speak. When we give others the gift of being heard, we are giving a gift of love. Not only does God call us to be slow to speak and to listen carefully, God also calls us to be slow to anger, because anger does not lead to right relationship with God. James actually calls us to pull out the weeds of anger and other unhelpful traits and prepare the soil of our hearts as we would plow and harrow the earth to receive the planting of the Word within us. We are to “welcome with meekness the implanted word that has the power to save (our) souls.” This reminds us that humility is not groveling before God, It comes from the root word humus, good earth plowed and harrowed, prepared to receive the word of God.

Then we get to the nitty gritty. “Be doers of the word and not hearers only.” We gather to hear the word of God and then we go out and do our best to live the word of God seven days a week. All of you are doing just that, with God’s help. Thank you for that witness to God’s love.

And then James sums up the essence of both the old and new testaments in his succinct but powerful last sentence: “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 from the world.” The words of great prophets such as Isaiah and Amos and the life of our Lord all proclaim that truth. God calls us to care for those who are the most vulnerable. And God calls us to learn to cope creatively in this world while continuing to live according to the values our Lord has taught us. Not an easy thing, but possible with God’s grace.

In our gospel for today, the Pharisees scold Jesus and his disciples for failing to wash their hands before they eat. The Pharisees were not evil people. They were deeply concerned with making sure that everyone followed the law in order to make sure that they were ritually pure.

Jesus is saying that it is not what goes into us that causes a spiritual problem, it is what comes out of us. In spiritual life, what matters is our hearts, the seat of our will and intentions.

Jesus says that the words and actions that come out of us can hurt others and hurt us and grieves the heart of God. Jesus says that destructive words and actions come from within, from the human heart, and that’s exactly what James is saying, too.

We are being called today to allow our hearts to beat in harmony with the compassionate heart of God and to conform our words and actions to God’s loving will. God has planted God’s words, God’s love, the presence and power of Jesus and the Spirit within us, and God is calling us to cope from God’s presence in everything we say and do.

This is a tall order, and we can’t do it ourselves. Thanks be to our Savior and Brother, Jesus, the Good Shepherd, who is walking out there ahead of us, leading and guiding us, holding us by the hand, helping us over the rocky places, sometimes carrying us. And thanks be to the Holy Spirit, energizing us to synchronize our hearts with the loving heart of God, who is still calling to us, God’s beloved, and still building the shalom of harmony and wholeness, God’s peace in our hearts, God’s peace in our lives, God’s peace in the whole creation. Amen.

Filed under: Reverend Janet Brown, Sermons | Tagged: Amos, Good Shepherd, Isaiah, James 1, Mark 7, Psalm 45, Song of Solomon, Song of Solomon 2 | Leave a comment »

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Pentecost 19 Proper 21B RCL September 30, 2018

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