Babylon | Grace Episcopal Church (Sheldon, VT)

Advent 2B RCL December 10, 2017

Posted on December 10, 2017 by Beth Crane

Isaiah 40:1-11
Psalm 85:1-2,8-13
2 Peter 3:8-15a
Mark 1:1-8

Our first reading for today comes from a point in history when the exiles were still in Babylon.They have been trying to go on with their lives, deepen their understanding of the scriptures, continue their prayer life as a community of faith. They have been in captivity for almost fifty years.

And now, they are receiving the news they have been hoping and praying to hear. At last, they will be going home. “Comfort, comfort my people, says your God.” It is difficult for us to grasp how they must have felt to hear those words.

As we listen to these words, we cannot help calling to mind the beautiful music of Handel’s Messiah. The people are going home! It seems almost impossible, but it is true. Yes, we humans are like grass, here today, gone tomorrow, bending with every breeze. But God’s word will stand forever. “He will feed his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms, and carry them in his bosom, and gently lead the mother sheep.”

The power and gentleness of this passage touch our hearts so deeply. This is the love of our God. No, we are not living in exile in Babylon as God’s people did fifteen hundred years ago, but we are living in difficult times, times of division and hatred and violence that seem very far from God’s shalom. In this passage, we are reminded that God is eternal and faithful, and God will lead us into God’s kingdom of peace and harmony.

In our reading from the Second Letter of Peter, the theme of God’s eternal presence is sounded again. In God’s sight, a thousand years are like one day. God is patient with us, and God is building God’s shalom and calling us to help in that work. Christ will come again to complete the work of creation. The letter calls us to remain faithful to our Lord and to be ready for his coming again.

Our gospel for today focuses on John the Baptist, who appears in the wilderness calling us to “Prepare the way of the Lord; make his paths straight.” John offered a baptism of repentance. He called people to sincerely ask God’s forgiveness for their sins and turn their lives around. He invites us to turn to God and ask God’s help in our process of transformation, in Greek, metanoia.

John definitely did not follow the current fashion. He had a coat of camel’s hair, lived very simply, and when he said something, you knew he meant it. He was a great prophet and religious leader, but he did not base his ministry in the city of Jerusalem where all the power was centered. His home base was the wilderness, where there is no sky glow. Out there, you can see God’s stars and planets very clearly and gain a divine perspective on things. It is also quiet out there—no distractions, no human power struggles, just you and God.

For all these reasons, John had a completely clear idea of who he was and what he was about. He knew he was the messenger foretold in the prophets who had gone before him. He knew he was called to let people know that they needed to prepare for the Savior.

Thousands of people were attracted to John. He was the equivalent of a rock star in his time. People followed him everywhere. They left the big city to go out into the wilderness and be with him, so powerful was his message. But it never went to his head. He knew exactly who he was. He said, “The one who is more powerful than I is coming after me. I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the thong of his sandals. I have baptized you with water; but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

John is a shining example of singleness of heart, the ability to focus on Jesus with every part of his being—spirit, heart, mind, intuition, everything. This Advent and every day, we can learn so much from John the Baptist.

Here we are, on the Second Sunday in Advent, in the year of our Lord 2017. What are these readings telling us?

Among many other things, our lesson from Isaiah tells us there is always hope. Just when we think it’s over, those little flickering fingers of a new dawn appear and the thing we had hoped and prayed for finally comes to be. And God will shepherd us every step of the way on the journey home, or closer to God, or wherever it is that God is calling us to be.

One thing our epistle tells us is that God is patient with us and with everything else, which is a great blessing because we can all can try God’s patience at times. And God is eternal. God takes the long view. But when the time finally arrives, God is going to build new heavens and a new earth. The creation will be made whole.

And our gospel? It tells us more than we can absorb. But we can say this. Here is this fellow, dressed as the great prophet Elijah was dressed, out in the wilderness attracting hordes of people. But there is no glitz, there are no lights or cameras. There is just this man, John, who absolutely tells the truth straight from God and who is here to lead us to the One we have waited for all our lives, the One who loves us so much that we are willing to follow him on the hard and joyful journey of transformation, the journey to his shalom. Amen.

Filed under: Reverend Janet Brown, Sermons | Tagged: 2 Peter 3, Babylon, Isaiah 40, John the Baptist, Mark 1, metanoia, Psalm 85 | Leave a comment »

Lent 5A April 2, 2017

Posted on April 2, 2017 by Beth Crane

Ezekiel 37:1-14
Psalm 130
Romans 8:6-11
John 11:1-45

Our first reading, which comes from the Book of Ezekiel, is one of the most compelling passages in the Bible. Ezekiel was a priest and a prophet who lived with the exiles in Babylon. His ministry took place from 593 to 563 B.C.

The people of God spent fifty years in exile. As time went on, they began to feel that their whole nation, the whole of Israel, was dead. After all, they were in captivity in an alien land. A foreign power was occupying their homeland. The temple in Jerusalem, the center of their worship, lay in ruins. They had little or no hope of ever returning. They might as well be dead. They had no future. They were prisoners in a foreign land.

Our reading this morning is Ezekiel’s God-given vision of the nation of Israel, the people of God lying dead in the valley of dry bones, and God raising these dry bones back to life. God asks Ezekiel, “Mortal, can these bones live?” Ezekiel humbly answers, “O Lord God, you know.” Biblical scholar Walter Brueggemann writes, “Only God can answer. This is not a question permitting human response, because the power for life is held only by God. Only God knows, not because God has ‘information,’ but because only God has the power to make life happen.” (Texts for Preaching Year A, p. 219.)

This passage tells us that God brings life, not only for individuals but for nations, especially oppressed nations and groups. God takes these dry bones and puts muscles and flesh on them and covers them with skin and puts breath (ruach) into them. Last Sunday we made an offering to help the nation of South Sudan. God can bring life to our brothers and sisters in South Sudan, and in Haiti and Zimbabwe and El Salvador and all the other places where death is stalking the people. Brueggemann calls us to “…trust the stunning freedom and power of the God who gives life.” (Texts for Preaching Year A, p. 221.)

No situation is hopeless. God brings life. God is going to bring the exiles home.

In our gospel for today, we have another powerful account from Jesus’ ministry. As we look at this story, we remember that Mary, Martha, and Lazarus are Jesus’ closest friends. They live in Bethany, which is about two miles outside of Jerusalem. Jesus has spent many hours at their home, which is a kind of sanctuary for him. It is a relatively safe place for him in the midst of all the intrigue and power politics of Jerusalem.

Lazarus falls ill. Mary and Martha send a message to Jesus to come as quickly as he can. Jesus waits another two days. By this time, Jerusalem is an extremely dangerous place for him to visit. But Jesus also says that he is waiting so that God’s glory may be fully revealed. Finally he tells the disciples that they are going to Judea. He says that Lazarus has fallen asleep and he is going to awaken him. Going to Jerusalem is dangerous. Thomas even says, “Let us go, that we may die with him.”

When Jesus and the disciples arrive, Martha meets them. She gently rebukes Jesus, saying that, if he had been there, Lazarus would never have died, Jesus could have healed him. Jesus tells her that Lazarus will rise again. And he says those words which are at the center of our faith, “I am the resurrection and the life.” Martha says that she believes this.

Mary comes to Jesus, kneels at his feet, and, weeping, tells Jesus that if he had come earlier, Lazarus would never have died. All of their friends who have been mourning with Mary and Martha are crying as well. Jesus himself is in tears at this point. Our Lord is fully human as well as fully divine, and this is a terrible loss. One of his best friends has died. Some of the mourners again point out that, if Jesus had arrived sooner, he could have prevented this tragedy.

Then Jesus commands them to take away the stone. The down-to-earth Martha points out that Lazarus has been dead for four days and there is going to be a smell. This is real death. But Jesus is focusing on the fact that God brings life. Yes, a beloved friend has died. This is real. But God brings life. Into every situation, no matter how seemingly hopeless, God brings life.

They take away the stone. Jesus prays, thanking God for the miracle that is about to come. Lazarus staggers out into the light, the cloths in which he had been wrapped unwinding as he propels himself out of the dark cave. Jesus says, “Unbind him and let him go!” Lazarus is alive and free.

Whenever we feel hopeless, whenever we encounter death of any kind, the death of slavery or of addiction or of oppression, God brings life. In the face of all death and brokenness, God brings life.

In the words of Walter Brueggemann, may we “trust the stunning power and freedom of the God who gives life.” Amen.

Filed under: Sermons | Tagged: "Texts for Preaching Year A", Babylon, exile, Ezekiel 37, John 11, Lazarus, Martha, Mary, Psalm 130, Romans 8, South Sudan, Walter Brueggemann | Leave a comment »

Epiphany 2A RCL January 15, 2017

Posted on January 15, 2017 by Beth Crane

Isaiah 49:1-7
Psalm 40:1-12
1 Corinthians 1:1-9
John 1:29-42

Our first reading comes from the prophet known as the Second Isaiah. Like Jeremiah, he had a sense that he was called by God from the time he was in the womb. We also were called by God to be God’s own beloved from the time we were in our mother’s womb.

God tells Isaiah that God is going to bring the people home from their exile in Babylon. This is wonderful news of great hope. But then God adds something that is almost mind-shattering: God is calling not only Isaiah but all of God’s people to be “a light to the nations, so that [God’s] salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.” This includes us as people of God. We are called to be a light to the world, sharing the gifts of faith, hope, and love with all the people we meet.

As we turn to our epistle for today, I think of Herbert O’Driscoll, who points out that, if St. Paul has to give both bad news and good news, he always begins with the good news. The church in Corinth has some dire problems. Some people think that they know more than other people and they are trying to force others to think the way they do instead of engaging in respectful dialogue. Some people think the gifts God has given them, particularly the gift of speaking in tongues, are superior gifts and people who have that gift should be able to lord it over others. Some other teachers have come in and told the people that Paul is an inferior teacher who does not know what he is talking about, and people should follow these new teachers. One of these is named Apollos.

Paul is going to have to help the people deal with these issues, which are tearing their community apart, and he will deal with them by writing a letter full of some of the most important theology in the Christian tradition, teachings that are as fresh and essential today as they were back then in the first century. But first, he centers his letter where it should be centered—in Christ and in all the gifts our Lord has given the church in Corinth. Throughout the entire letter, he will emphasize that what is important is our Lord, his presence among us and the gifts he gives us. First Corinthians is a wonderful letter full of wisdom. We will be reading selections from this letter for the next several weeks.

In our gospel, John the Baptist sees Jesus coming toward him and he describes our Lord as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. From this passage comes our solemn chant, Agnus Dei. John is absolutely sure that Jesus is the Messiah, the Savior. The next day, John again calls Jesus the Lamb of God, and two of John’s disciples follow Jesus. If John, their teacher whom they love and trust, is saying that this is the Savior, they want to be close to him. They want to see what he is about. They want to learn from him. I think they had hoped to follow him quietly and stay near him and learn something.

But Jesus turns around and sees them. He is so matter-of-fact. “What are you looking for?” he asks them. They answer with great respect: “Rabbi, where are you staying?” This may sound like a strange question and maybe they are a bit flustered and it’s the first thing they can think of to blurt out, but the fact is that they want to follow him. Their own teacher, John, has pointed out that this is the Savior. Why wouldn’t they want to follow him? Jesus says, “Come and see.”

Come and see. What an invitation. Just come and hang out and see what’s happening. So they go with Jesus and the disciples and stay the whole day. It gets to be about four in the afternoon, and we find out who one of these two men is. It’s Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother.

Now, Andrew does something that is tremendously important: he goes to his brother Simon and tells him, “We have found the Messiah.” A simple, down to earth statement. Then Andrew brings Simon to Jesus. Andrew, this quiet brother, brings Simon to Jesus. And Jesus names him Cephas, which means Peter.

We all know that Jesus later chose Peter to be the leader of the apostles. But what if his brother Andrew had not realized that Jesus was the Savior? What if Andrew had not gone to tell Peter about Jesus?

Andrew is a quiet person, but he pays careful attention to everything.

Later, when Jesus is being followed by a huge crowd and it is late and the people are hungry, Jesus asks the disciples if anyone has any food. It is Andrew who has made a connection with a little boy who has five loaves and two fish. Andrew is quiet and aware, and he connects people with each other so that good things can happen.

Peter is more demonstrative—he jumps into the water when he sees Jesus coming across the lake and begins to sink; he denies Jesus three times but then accepts Jesus’ forgiveness and renews his commitment on the shores of the lake after Jesus is risen; Peter is fiery and emotional, but he is also the rock on which Jesus builds his church. Here we have the story of how his quiet brother Andrew helps Peter to connect with our Lord, the Light of the world.

And that is what we are called to do—to listen and be aware, and live our faith, and help people to connect with Jesus because they see a glimpse of his life and love in us. Thank God for the connectors in this world, people like Andrew who bring people together, who find a little boy who is willing to share his lunch so that a crowd can be fed; people like Andrew who bring people to Christ. May we follow his example. Amen.

Filed under: Reverend Janet Brown, Sermons | Tagged: 1 Corinthians, Andrew, Babylon, Cephas, Epiphany, Herbert O'Driscoll, Isaiah 49, John 1, Lamb of God, Psalm 40, Simon Peter | Leave a comment »

Advent 3A RCL December 11, 2016

Posted on December 11, 2016 by Beth Crane

Isaiah 35:1-10
Canticle 15
James 5:7-10
Matthew 11:2-11

Our opening reading from the prophet Isaiah is God’s word of hope to the people who have been in exile in Babylon. They are going to come home. The desert will bloom. “Waters shall break forth in the wilderness and streams in the desert.” There will be springs of water everywhere.

It is a joyful thing to return home, but it is also a fearful thing. God will strengthen the weak hands and the feeble knees, and, perhaps more importantly, God will help us in our fears. Our God tells us to be strong.

And what does God do? God heals the people. The blind see; the deaf hear; the lame person leaps like a deer; those who have not been able to speak sing with joy.

There is going to be a highway in the desert. No one is going to get lost on the way home. No lions or other animals will be there to eat people. The people of God will be able to walk home singing for joy.

The coming of God means a restoration of the earth, healing of the people, peace, and safety.

In our canticle for today, the Magnificat, Mary sings of our God who lifts up the humble and lowly, casts down the mighty from their thrones, feeds the hungry and tells the rich they already have enough.

In our reading from the Letter of James, we are given more guidance as we prepare for the coming of our Savior. We are called to be patient. But this is not a passive waiting. We have the example of the farmer, an example we know very well. The farmer plants the seed, but he or she does not simply sit around and wait. The farmer works hard to do everything possible to help that seed grow. We are called to be patient, but this is an active, aware kind of patience. We are called to be awake and ready for our Lord to come to us, We are called to do everything we can to help his kingdom to grow just as the farmer helps the crops to grow.

In our gospel, we meet John the Baptist once again. This time, the situation is very different. John is no longer on the banks of the River Jordan baptizing people. He is in prison because he confronted King Herod, who had an affair with his brother’s wife. King Herod used his power to put John in prison.

John is wondering about this. If Jesus is the Savior, why am I in prison? I thought the Savior was going to separate the wheat from the chaff and burn the chaff with unquenchable fire. I thought the Savior was going to get rid of the bad guys.

Let us remember, there are two strains in the Hebrew scriptures when it comes to describing who the Savior is. One strain says that he is a mighty military hero who comes in and throws the Romans out and kills all of his enemies. The other one says that his is a kingdom, not of might and power but of healing and compassion.

John sends some of his disciples to ask Jesus if he really is the Savior or if someone else is going to come along. And Jesus tells them to go back to John and tell him what Jesus is doing—healing people, giving them hope and new life. What Jesus is doing coincides with Isaiah’s description in our first lesson.

And then Jesus tells us that John the Baptist is a great prophet. John is the one sent to prepare the way of the Lord. Yet the least person in the kingdom of Jesus is greater than John. This comment by Jesus reminds me of that wonderful line from the prophet Zechariah, “Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, says the Lord of hosts. (Zech. 4:6.) It also takes us back to the Magnificat. God exalts the humble and meek.

Mary Hinkle Shore, Assistant Professor of New Testament at Luther Theological Seminary in St. Paul Minnesota, writes, “The kingdom of heaven is the message and ministry of one who enacts God’s will, not by laying waste to his enemies, but by ‘giving his life a ransom for many.’ “

She says, “When being arrested in Gethsemane, Jesus does not appeal to his Father for ‘more than twelve leagues of angels’ (Matt. 26:53), but goes quietly with his accusers. …To our friends who want to know why things are not better if God’s Messiah has already come, we can say that God’s Messiah chose to combat evil with his innocent suffering and death. This does not answer every question about persistent injustice, nor does it absolve Christians and others from working for the good of all their neighbors. Yet the choice Jesus made for the cross over those legions of angels is testimony that God’s justice, mercy, and peace are probably not as likely to come by means of unquenchable fire as they are by means of suffering love.” (Shore, New Proclamation Year A 2007-8, p. 24.)

As we have noted before, Christ’s kingdom has begun but it is not yet complete. We are living in that in-between time. Part of our work in Advent is looking for signs of God’s justice, mercy, and peace and helping individuals and groups who are working to build God’s kingdom right now. We are blessed to be able to give to the United thank Offering and to Episcopal Relief and Development, and I know that all of you are sharing God’s love in many ways each day.

Years ago a dear friend and colleague gave me this prayer by an anonymous mystic writing in the fifteenth century:

Thou shalt know him when he comes
Not by any din of drums—
Nor the vantage of His airs—
Nor by anything he wears—
Neither by His crown—
Nor His gown—
For His presence known shall be
By the Holy Harmony
That His coming makes in thee. Amen.

Filed under: Reverend Janet Brown, Sermons | Tagged: Babylon, Canticle 15, Isaiah 35, James 5, John the Baptist, Magnificat, Mary Hinkle Shore, Matthew 11 | Leave a comment »

Pentecost 19 Proper 21C RCL September 25, 2016

Posted on September 25, 2016 by Beth Crane

Jeremiah 32:1-3a, 6-15
Psalm 91:1-6, 14-16
1 Timothy 6:6-19
Luke 16:19-31

Our first reading today is one of the most tragic yet powerful passages in the Bible. It is the tenth year of King Zedekiah of Judah and the eighteenth year of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. Babylon is what we now call Iraq. The Babylonian Empire is laying siege to Jerusalem. This is a situation very similar to what is happening in Aleppo, Syria right now. The year is 588 B.C.E. and in the next year Jerusalem will fall to the Babylonians. The temple will be reduced to rubble. The people will be deported to Babylon.

Jeremiah has been put in prison by King Zedekiah because he told the king this would happen. Jeremiah will be deported to Egypt and held captive. It is Judah’s darkest hour.

And yet—in the midst of this tragedy, Jeremiah describes in minute detail a real estate transaction. Jeremiah is from Anathoth, a town about two miles northeast of Jerusalem, just outside the city wall. Hanamel, son of his Uncle Shallum, comes to him and asks him to buy a field. According to the law, if you needed to sell a piece of property, you were required to try to sell it to the nearest relative. In Judah, just as in Vermont today, families valued and cherished their land.

Jeremiah describes the transaction very carefully. Then he asks his secretary, Baruch, to store the scrolls recording this transaction in a clay jar so that they will last a long time. We recall that the scrolls found at Qumran lasted for two thousand years.

God’s message is that fields and vineyards will again be bought in the land. At the darkest hour, there is always hope with God. The Exile will be a terrible time but out of that crucible will come deep and careful scholarship, a more profound commitment to God’s law, and a renewed dedication to worship and to compassionate life in community.

Our gospel for last Sunday ended with Jesus’ words, “You cannot serve God and wealth.” Today, he tells us the parable of the rich man and Lazarus. This is not the same Lazarus who is the brother of Mary and Martha.

There is a rich man who has the most expensive clothing, eats the most luxurious foods, and generally has the best of everything. At his gate lies the poor man Lazarus. He is starving. His body is covered with sores, which scholars tell us makes him ritually unclean. The dogs lick the sores.

Both men die. The rich man is buried, The poor man is carried by the angels to the bosom of Abraham. The rich man looks up from the underworld and sees Lazarus beside Abraham. He calls to Abraham to send Lazarus to dip his finger in water and satisfy his thirst. This is the shocking part. The rich man knows Lazarus’ name!

The rich man has gone by this man every day of his life. He has done nothing to help Lazarus. Yet he actually knows his name! His wealth and power have blinded him to the needs of this fellow human being whose name he knows. Now he is asking that Abraham allow Lazarus to become his waiter, his slave, and bring him some water.

But Abraham says No. The great reversal of the kingdom of God has happened. A chasm has been fixed. No one can cross it. The rich man then thinks of his five brothers and asks that they may be warned. But Abraham says they have Moses to warn them. In other words, the law of Moses calls us to love God and to love others as ourselves. But how easy it is to forget that law, especially when we have a great deal of wealth and a great deal of power.

That is why Jesus tells us that we cannot love God and wealth. We are called to love God first and foremost and to love others as ourselves. If wealth comes our way, we are called to put it in its proper place as a gift from God and to be good stewards of that wealth, which includes sharing it with others.

Even in our reading from the Letter to Timothy we are cautioned about the seduction of wealth. Paul writes, “The love of money is a root of all kinds of evil….” We see this in our own society. The accumulation of wealth and possessions appears to be the goal of many in our world. This parable gives us an insight into what is dangerous about wealth and power. When we humans become extremely wealthy, that wealth gives us power. People are deferential to us because our wealth gives us power over them. Then we begin to live in our own little world in which we are supreme. No one has the courage to set us right, and perhaps that is because we do not want to hear the truth. For example, King Hezekiah did not want to hear the truth that Jeremiah was trying to tell him on behalf of God, so he put Jeremiah in prison. The religious and secular powers of Jesus’ time were threatened by his message, so they had him killed.

Someone has come from the dead to lead us in the way of compassion. Our Lord Jesus calls us to know our neighbors by name and to care for them. Those neighbors may live in South Dakota or halfway around the world, and we are called to treat them as we would want to be treated.

One of the most powerful things about the history of Grace Church is the great good work done by people like Mary Catherine “Kate” Whittemore and the many others who over two centuries have ministered to the needs of our brothers and sisters in South Dakota, have helped our neighbors locally, and have supported ministries here in Vermont, in our country, and around the world.

We will be continuing to collect money to help a family who lost their home to fire, and, as we move toward the time when we make our offering to Episcopal Relief and Development, I ask you to continue to keep in mind the suffering of refugees, especially in Syria. I ask your prayers for Syria, and especially Aleppo, and I encourage us to do anything we can to help our brothers and sisters who are suffering.

Paul’s guidance to Timothy is good counsel for us, and I paraphrase: “May we pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, gentleness. …May we fight the good fight of the faith, may we take hold of the eternal life, to which we were called….may we be rich in good works, generous, and ready to share…that we may take hold of the life that really is life.” Amen.

Filed under: Reverend Janet Brown, Sermons | Tagged: 1 Timothy, Babylon, Hanamel, Jeremiah 32, King Nebuchadnezzar, King Zedekiah, Luke 16, Mary Catherine Whittemore, Psalm 91, The Parable of the rich man and Lazarus | Leave a comment »

Lent 5B RCL March 22, 2015

Posted on March 22, 2015 by Beth Crane

Jeremiah 31: 31-34
Psalm 51:1-13
Hebrews 5:5-10
John 12:20-33

Our first reading, which dates back to 587 B.C. E., over 2,500 years ago, is the first mention of the term “new covenant” and the only mention of that term in the Hebrew scriptures.

Although he lived all those centuries ago, the prophet Jeremiah had a life that could be made into a miniseries. He was the son of Hilkiah, a priest who lived in Anathoth, two miles outside of Jerusalem. Scholars tell us that living just that short distance outside the center of power made Jeremiah an outsider. When God called Jeremiah to be a prophet, God said, “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.” This is true of all of us. God has known us from the beginning, and God has called us.

Jeremiah is young, and he tells God that he does not feel that he should be a prophet because he is only a boy. But God says, “I have put my words in your mouth.”

As I thought about this sermon, I began to realize that Jeremiah, like so many of the prophets, reminds me of our Lord. Jeremiah’s ministry was anything but easy. During much of his ministry, the king, the priests, and the official prophets were corrupt. Jeremiah tried to call them back to God;s ways, but they just strayed farther and farther from God.

Jeremiah also had the extremely difficult job of telling those in power that they were going to be conquered by the Babylonian Empire. For that, he was placed under arrest.

Our reading for today is God’s revolutionary proclamation through Jeremiah of a new covenant. This happens after the Babylonian Empire has conquered Judah, leveled the temple in Jerusalem and deported the people to Babylon. It happens in the midst of the deepest possible pain and defeat and suffering, a time when the worst possible disaster has occurred.

It is clear that the people have fallen away from God. but that does not stop God from reaching out in love and mercy. Some of the most significant moments in the life of God’s people and in our lives happen in the midst of crisis and suffering.

God is going to write this new covenant on their—and our—hearts. Everyone is going to have the opportunity to be close to God. Barriers such as social status, occupation, and education, melt away. Everyone will be equal in the sight of God. There will be no need for experts or teachers. Everyone will be able to be as close to God as we are to each other right now. This is the covenant that God offered to God’s people 2,500 years ago. They had erred and strayed like lost sheep. yet God was ready to forgive all of it and begin anew.

God was saying that the spiritual life is not a matter of following rules. It is about interior transformation which leads to changed attitudes and behaviors. In our hearts, we finally realize how much God loves us, and that love touches and transforms us and our lives.

The great Episcopal theologian Urban Holmes talks about how many people still believe that the spiritual journey is about following rules. If we follow the ten commandments and do everything right, our lives will be happy and we will avoid suffering. But that is not what our faith teaches.

Following Jesus does not make us successful in the world’s terms. Following Jesus does not protect us from suffering and disaster and heartbreak and brokenness. In fact, as we see from his own life and the lives of many saints, following Jesus often takes us to a cross of one sort or another.

Sometimes you and I have to undergo suffering. It is not something that God sends upon us. It is part of living in a fallen creation. This world is not as God would want it to be. There is much brokenness that would not be God’s intention. God’s vision for the creation is a vision of wholeness and harmony. But we are not there yet.

The suffering that comes into our lives may be a family situation which is tragic and complicated. We struggle through it with God’s help. We can’t fix it; It is way too complicated, but we ask God’s help and we do the best we can one day at a time.

It may be a point of decision in our own lives. We agonize over it and seek God’s guidance, but nothing is coming clear. It may be a diagnosis that changes our lives. It may be a setback to ourselves or someone dear to us. Sometimes we may grieve deeply and cry. Sometimes we may be angry about it and have to ask God’s help to deal with that. As we look around our world and see the suffering of so many people, we suffer with them.

We are following our Lord to the cross. Our Lord is the embodiment of the new covenant. Life in Christ is not a matter of following the rules as a matter of duty. The love of Christ is engraved in the center of our being. Christ is in us and we are in him.

In 1373, Julian of Norwich, in an England ravaged by plague and war, had fifteen visions of Our Lord on the cross. She wrote, “Do you want to understand the Lord’s meaning in this experience? Understand it well. Love was his meaning. Who showed it to you? Love. What did he show you? Love. Why did he show it? For love. …Thus it was that I learned that Love was our Lord’s meaning.”

That Love has come into our hearts and into our lives. He has suffered the worst. He is with us in our sufferings, and, because we know how much he loves us, we can fall into his loving arms as a seed falls into the ground. Then wholeness comes out of brokenness. Life comes out of death. Because he has suffered and won the victory, we no longer have to fear suffering. We no longer have to fear death. We no longer have to live in fear of any kind. Instead, we can live in faith.

Amen.

Filed under: Reverend Janet Brown, Sermons | Tagged: Babylon, Hebrews 5, Jeremiah 31, John 12, Julian of Norwich, Lent, Psalm 51 | Leave a comment »

Christmas 1 Year B RCL December 28, 2014

Posted on December 28, 2014 by Beth Crane

Isaiah 61:10-62:3
Psalm 147:13-21
Galatians 3:23-25; 4:4-7
John 1:1-18

The scene of our first reading is around the year 539 B. C. God’s people have been in exile in Babylon (Iraq) for almost sixty years, in those days, three generations. King Cyrus of Persia (Iran) has conquered the Babylonian Empire and is allowing the exiles to return home.

Just imagine the scene in Babylon. The news spreads, “We’re going home! Were going home!” This is wonderful news. The people pack up and make the long journey. But when they get there, the temple is in ruins. Many buildings are in ruins. The land has been ravaged.

They want to rebuild. But they become deeply discouraged. Herbert O’Driscoll suggests that, if we want to try to imaging their plight, we should look at pictures of the destruction of war—the ruins of Coventry Cathedral, for example. Whole cities in ruins. This is how it was. The people were overwhelmed. They were paralyzed, They had no idea how and where to begin.

Into this situation, God calls the prophet Isaiah to give the people hope, to share with them God’s vision of restoration and renewal. Jerusalem is going to rise up out of the rubble and become a city of light and life. Isaiah is the one who inspires the people to get to work and tackle this huge job. Thank God for our cheerleaders who can inspire us to carry out God’s vision.

Our epistle today says so much. If all we had was the law, the Ten Commandments, we would feel like prisoners. There are things we are supposed to do, and when we do not do them, we feel awful. There are things we are not supposed to do, and when we fail and do those things. when we break God’s commandments, we are imprisoned in or own sense of our weakness and sinfulness.

Into this situation of hopelessness, God sends God’s son and God adopts us as God’s own children. This is mind boggling. Remember when we read the Book of Exodus and Moses is going up the mountain to meet God? Only Moses can get that close to God. The belief then was that you could not see God and live. Now that Jesus has come among us, we are able to call God “Abba.” This is a very intimate term, like Dad or Mom. Because of Jesus we are that close to God our divine parent. We are not caught in the prison of sin and hopelessness. We are surrounded by love and grace. We can get free of sin. We can grow and change. There is help. We are children of God. We are children of light.

Our gospel today is the prologue to the gospel of John. We have the story of Jesus’ birth under such humble circumstances, shepherds and kings coming to worship him, the whole creation rejoicing, the whole world filled with music and light and love.

St. John was trying to explain the meaning of the birth of Jesus. He was putting the story we know so well into philosophical terms that would be understood by both Jews and Greeks.

Jesus is the Word, the logos, the plan, the pattern for life. Jesus is the one who has called the whole creation into being. Remember Robert Farrar Capon’s wonderful description of creation in The Third Peacock? God thinks up the creation and Jesus, the Word, together with the Spirit, makes it all happen. The Word, the One who called the world into being, has now come among us. God has come among us.

God walking the face of the earth was not accepted by everyone. But there were some people who did see who Jesus really was—Mary and Martha and Lazarus. who gave him hospitality and support, his earthly father, Joseph, who protected Jesus and Mary so carefully, his Mother, Mary, the apostles, Mary Magdalene. There were people he healed like the man born blind, people he met, who could see deeply into spiritual reality, people like the woman at the well, who ran into the village to tell folks about him. The little people. The powerful people were too busy protecting their turf to be able to recognize him. But the little people could see immediately who he was. The light was coming into the world, full of grace and truth. Those with humility, openness of spirit, could see that. We know that.

We are children of God. Jesus is our brother. God is as close as our breath. In Jesus, God became incarnate, embodied, enfleshed.

I know we all love to sing. Here is a hymn which express the meaning of our gospel today.

O Most mighty! O most holy!—Song Sheet

Amen.

Filed under: Reverend Janet Brown, Sermons | Tagged: Babylon, Coventry Cathedral, Galatians 3, Herbert O'Driscoll, Isaiah 61, John 1, King Cyrus of Persia, Psalm 1147 | Leave a comment »

Advent 3B RCL 12/14/14

Posted on December 14, 2014 by Beth Crane

Isaiah 61:1-4. 8-11
Canticle 3
1 Thessalonians 5:16-24
John 1:6-8, 19-28

Our opening reading this morning is from the prophet Isaiah. He is proclaiming a message of hope to the people exiled in Babylon. They are going to go home. They will rebuild the temple. This reading also describes God’s kingdom. The oppressed will hear good news. The wounds of the brokenhearted will be mended. There will be peace.

Herbert O’Driscoll reminds us that it was this lesson that Jesus read when he visited the synagogue in Nazareth. This reading describes Jesus’ ministry of healing and forgiveness. It also describes the shalom that we are building with him. We, too, are called to share good news and to help those who are hurting.

Our Canticle this morning, the beautiful and beloved Magnificat, the Song of Mary, is another description of the Kingdom, the shalom of God. “He hath put down the mighty from their seat, and hath exalted the humble and meek. He hath filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he hath sent empty away.” The shalom of Christ holds up the values of simplicity, compassion, meekness, mercy, humility, healing, and peace to a world which needs these things so badly but in its headlong rush to power has little time to recognize the treasure of this other kingdom right in our midst.

Our epistle this morning is short, but it says so much. Like us, the early Christians were waiting for our Lord to come and set things right. Waiting is not just a passive thing. It is active and expectant.

Paul tells us some things we can do so that, like the maidens waiting for the bridegroom to come, we can keep oil in our lamps and we can be ready for his arrival. Paul writes, “Rejoice always.” No matter what is going on in our lives or around us, we are called to be people of joy because we are one with Christ. We have all met people whose faith is so deep that they can reach to those springs of joy.

“Pray without ceasing,” Paul tells us. Now, there is a tall order. How can we pray constantly? I think this is more of a goal than something we can achieve. The ancient Jesus Prayer, “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” is an attempt to carry out this command to pray without ceasing. We breathe in, saying “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God,” and we breathe out, saying ,”Have mercy on me, a sinner.” A shorter version of the prayer is to say “Jesus” as we breathe in, and “mercy” as we breathe out. Thus, we are breathing in the presence of our Lord, and we are letting go of our sins and accepting his mercy as we breathe out. The point is that, with each breath, we are praying. The more constantly we pray, the closer we are to Jesus, and the more faith and joy we have.

“Give thanks in all circumstances.” Now, there is a challenge. Give thanks when we have just lost a job? Or when someone we love has received a devastating diagnosis? Or when a family member is having huge problems? Yes, give thanks in all things. Not because we like to have brokenness in our lives and the lives of those we love, but because we know that our Lord is with us, to help us get through these times.

“Do not quench the Spirit.” God’s Holy Spirit is at work in us and in the world. The Holy Spirit is at work in all times and in all things, even when we cannot see it. We need to be careful to look for the presence of the Spirit and to nurture the work of the Spirit. Whenever good news is being spread and whenever the brokenhearted are being helped, the Spirit is at work. Whenever the fruits of the Spirit are present—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control, there the Spirit is at work.

To summarize, rejoice, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances, don’t quench the Spirit, look for the presence of the spirit. These are some of the things we are called to do in order to get ready for the coming of our Lord.

In our gospel, we read about that amazing figure, John the Baptist. His ministry was to call us to repentance. As we prepare for the coming of Jesus, we examine our lives and confess those sins of omission and commission—things we ought to have done but did not do, and things we ought not to have done but did anyway—and we ask God’s forgiveness and ask God to give us the grace to amend our lives. We clean out our spiritual clutter and make room for our Lord in our lives and hearts.

At this darkest time of the year, we know that the light is coming into the world.

Dear Lord, source of all love and grace, help us to make room for you in the inns of our hearts. Amen.

Filed under: Reverend Janet Brown, Sermons | Tagged: 1 Thassalonians 5, Advent 3, Babylon, Canticle 3, Herbert O'Driscoll, Isaiah 61, Jesus Prayer, John 1, John the Baptist, Magnificat, Song of Mary | Leave a comment »

Advent 1B November 30, 2014

Posted on November 30, 2014 by Beth Crane

Isaiah 64:1-9
Psalm 80:1-7, 16-18
1 Corinthians 1:3-9
Mark 13:24-37

This Sunday, we begin the season of Advent. This is the New Year of the church. We change from lectionary A to lectionary B. We change from the green vestments of the season after Pentecost to purple to denote the coming of our King and also a time of penitential preparation. We begin lighting the candles on the Advent wreath and opening the doors on our Advent calendars to count the days. Advent means “coming,” and we are looking forward to the coming of our Lord to complete the creation. We are also looking back to his first coming among us as a baby,

When Jesus was here with us on earth, he began to build his kingdom. But that kingdom is not complete. The world is not a place of peace harmony, and wholeness. As our Presiding Bishop, Katherine Jeffers Schori writes, “Shalom is a vision of the city of God on earth, a community where people are at peace with each other because each one has enough to eat, adequate shelter, medical care, and meaningful work. Shalom is a city where justice is the rule of the day, where prejudice has vanished,where the diverse gifts with which we have been so abundantly blessed are equally valued.” (A Wing and a Prayer, p. 33.)

The prophet Isaiah was one of the people who described God’s vision of shalom. Our reading from the Book of Isaiah dates back to the time of the Exile in Babylon, the time after the temple in Jerusalem was reduced to a pile of rubble, the time before the temple was finally rebuilt. Herbert O’Driscoll imagines that the prophet has returned from Babylon and is gazing on the rubble that was once the great temple, the center of worship.

Isaiah asks God to “tear open the heavens and come down” to be with the people. He looks back to the time when God was close to the people and led them out of slavery into freedom. But the people have not called upon God. They have gone about their own ways. Isaiah confesses the sins of the people and asks God to grant mercy. He gives us that powerful image: God is the potter and we are the clay. We need to ask God’s help often so that we can grow into the persons God calls us to be.

For Isaiah and the rest of God’s people, life had been reduced to a pile of rubble. They felt that they had strayed far away from God, and they believed that this had something to do with the fact that they had been conquered by the Babylonian Empire. I think we all understand those points in life when we have tried our best and worked hard and everything falls apart. Everything is in ruins. That’s where Isaiah and the people were. Especially at times like this, we realize that we can’t do it alone. We need God’s help.

In our epistle this morning, Paul is writing to the congregation in Corinth. He starts out with his typical greeting. “Grace be to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that has been given you in Christ Jesus, for in every way you have been enriched in him, in speech and knowledge of every kind.”

This is a positive thing. But there is an undercurrent. We know that the congregation in Corinth has been blessed with many gifts, but they also have been arguing about which gifts are the greatest. Paul is going to address this in the letter. Also, some of the older members of the community have been telling the newer members that they aren’t quite as good because they are still new at the faith. I would say that they are bullying the newer members. Paul is building the foundation for telling them us that we need to thank God for all the gifts we receive and we need to value all gifts and all people equally. That is the direction in which we need to be moving in order to prepare for Jesus’ coming again.

In our Gospel, Jesus is once again telling us not to spend any time trying to predict when he will come again. He tells us to put our energy into being ready to welcome him with joy when he comes to bring in his kingdom.

Well, how do we get ready? First, we can take time to be as close to God as possible. Time for prayer. Time for quiet. Time to examine our lives, to take stock. We make wills or update wills. We straighten out our finances and get our lives in shape to be ready when he appears.

As we look ahead to the coming of our Lord, we recall his first advent, when he came among among us as one of us, as a little baby.

In his anguish, Isaiah was asking God to tear the heavens and come and help us, but that was five hundred years before the birth of our Lord. God has already come to be with us, and this sheer, loving fact gives us a way to think about preparing for him this Advent. Through prayer, through taking time to think about how much God must love us, that God would come to be with us, we make room in our hearts and lives for Jesus to be born anew in us. As so many of the mystics have said, we must allow and invite Jesus to be born in our lives over and over again. We must make room in the inns of our hearts so that Jesus can come into our lives and share his love and healing and transform us so that we can transform the world.

God did not tear the heavens to come to be with us. God came to be with us as one of us. If we look back on the life and ministry of Jesus and we model our lives after that life, we will grow more and more like him, and his shalom will be even closer to its completion.

Dear Lord, thank you for your love. Thank you for coming to be one of us. Help us to make room for you in our lives. Help us to become more and more like you, so that, together, we may build you shalom.

Amen.

Filed under: Reverend Janet Brown, Sermons | Tagged: 1 Corinthians, Advent 1, Babylon, Isaiah 64, Katherine Jeffers Schori, March 13, Psalm 80 | Leave a comment »

Proper 29 A RCL—Christ the King—November 23, 2014

Posted on November 23, 2014 by Beth Crane

Ezekiel 34:11-16, 20-24
Psalm 95:1-7a
Ephesians 1:15-23
Matthew 25:31-46

Today is Christ the King Sunday. The season after Pentecost comes to a close. Next Sunday we will begin Advent. This is also the Sunday before Thanksgiving, a time when we think of all the many gifts God has given us. We gather with family and friends to give thanks. After our service, we will go to Frank and Priscilla’s to share our harvest dinner.

Our opening reading this morning comes from the time of the Exile in Babylon. At the point of our reading for today, the Babylonian Empire has conquered Jerusalem, the people have been deported to Babylon, and they have been living in exile for about ten years. Ezekiel has just learned that the Babylonians have destroyed the temple in Jerusalem, and more refugees will be coming to Babylon.

The people are devastated. They have been praying and keeping the faith and studying the scriptures, but now, they feel that they have lost everything. In today’s lesson, God is speaking to the people. through the prophet and priest Ezekiel. God is going to search for the sheep and rescue them, and gather them, and bring them into their own land and feed them with good pasture. God is going to search for the lost and strayed and is going to bind up the injured and strengthen the weak. God is going to gather the people and lead them home to Jerusalem.

God is going to destroy “the fat and the strong,” that is, the rich and powerful leaders who had gained even more power and wealth at the expense of the ordinary people. Those who abused the weak are now going to face the consequences of their actions. God is going to protect the flock. This passage from Ezekiel reminds us that God has always had special concern for the weak and those at the margins.

The people have always thought that God dwelled in the temple in Jerusalem. Now that the temple has been destroyed, they wonder where God is. We are not living in literal exile, but we are living in a time when darkness and chaos and violence are all too apparent. We may ask ourselves, “Where is God in all of this?” This reading from 2,500 years ago reminds us that God is right in the midst of us, leading us through the darkness to the light. This is a message of profound hope.

In our epistle, Paul tells us that our Lord has risen from the dead and is with us now; he has conquered the forces of darkness and he is the head of his living Body, the Church. Christ’s kingdom is growing even now, growing inexorably in the face of the darkness and brokenness that we see in the world around us. And his kingdom, his shalom of peace and harmony, will be realized when he comes again.

In our gospel, Jesus describes kingdom people. They feed the hungry; they give water to the thirsty; they welcome the stranger; they clothe the naked; they care for the sick; and they visit those who are in prison. They take care of other people, especially those who are vulnerable. And Jesus tells them, “Truly, I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these, who are members of my family, you did it to me.”

In a profound sense, whether we are kingdom people or not comes down to how we treat folks who are weak, folks who have no power, no money, no say in how things get done. We know this, not only from this gospel story, but also from the life and ministry of our Lord. He was constantly criticized because he associated with the wrong people—tax collectors, prostitutes, people who were considered beyond the pale. He valued women and children, who had no status in his society. He touched lepers and healed them. His love for every one of his children is our example.

As we think about this gospel, we look forward to Advent, when we prepare for Jesus’ coming again and we also look back to his first coming. When he came among us, he was not born in a castle. He was born to a carpenter and his wife in a little out of the way place. They were not rich or powerful. They were what Jesus in today’s gospel calls, “the least of these, my family.” Very early in his life, Jesus, Mary, and Joseph had to become refugees and flee to Egypt to get away from King Herod, who was killing baby boys.

This is how the king of creation came to be among us. Jesus knows what it is like to live on the margins of society, to be beyond the pale, to be despised. He is asking us to think about how that feels to folks and to treat our brothers and sisters with respect.

We have been given so much. He is simply calling us to share his many gifts with others. For the next two Sundays, we will be doing our U T O ingathering, and next month, we will be making our offering to Episcopal Relief and Development. We will also be making our pledges to Grace Church in thanksgiving to God.

Christ is our King, but he is a very different kind of King. He is the King of Compassion. He has a special place in his heart for those who are most vulnerable.

Next Sunday, we will begin the season of Advent, and we will once again plumb the mystery of our God, who created the galaxies and the “planets in their courses,” yet came among us just the way we came into the world, as a tiny baby.

This week, we celebrate Thanksgiving, and we have so much to be thankful for: loving families, our faith community here at Grace, the abundance of our lives, both spiritual and material, and the presence of our loving God among us, leading us and guiding us and showering us with gifts to be shared. Amen.

Filed under: Reverend Janet Brown, Sermons | Tagged: Babylon, Christ the King, Ephesians 1, Ezekiel 34, Matthew 25, Psalm 95 | Leave a comment »

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