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Spirit Found

5/27/2020

Pentecost is thus about the reversal of Babel. For the author of Luke-Acts, the coming of Jesus and the continuation of his presence in the power of the Spirit inaugurated a new age in which the fragmentation of humanity was overcome. Or, in words attributed to Paul, through Christ and the Spirit, the breaking down of "the dividing wall of separation" and the creation of "one new humanity" had begun (Ephesians 2:14-15).
–Marcus Borg, Pentecost and Babel/Babble

This coming Sunday is Pentecost, an important, powerful, and somewhat mysterious celebration in the church. It is the time when we remember and rejoice in the coming of the Holy Spirit upon the people of God in new and profound ways. It is the time when we hear once again the story of tongues of fire, a rushing wind, and diverse voices speaking as one. It might be said more precisely that it isn’t so much a celebration in the church, but of the church.

Theologian and author Marcus Borg helps us to work through some of the mystery, to bring into focus just what God is doing at Pentecost with his reminder of the story of Babel. The people of the earth sought to build a tower that would reach the heavens, and thus were scattered by God and given different tongues. Now God is breaking down those barriers, reminding us that we are all God’s children, creating a new way of being in Christ.

Times such as the current pandemic offer us the possibility to remember and rejoice that we, all of humanity, are one people in God. Moments such as this challenge us to embrace the full humanity of all God’s people, challenge us to reconsider our economic systems, our distribution of resources, our core values and institutions. The COVID-19 virus is not selective, yet survival rates are lower for people of color, the poor, the homeless. Clearly walls still exist between us.

Walls do not exist in the Kingdom of God that Jesus proclaims. When we build walls, when we separate people based on race, culture, nationality, language, class, gender, when we allow resources to be scarce for some because of the greed of others, we’re counter to the Kingdom. The proclamation of Pentecost, however, is clear – all people are God’s, all people are one, in Christ Jesus. This is the new age, and it is at hand. This is the new age, with no more walls.

Peace for the Journey,
Pastor Steve

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Jesus Lost

5/20/2020

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“[Jesus] led them out as far as Bethany, where he lifted his hands and blessed them. As he blessed them, he left them and was taken up to heaven. They worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem overwhelmed with joy. And they were continuously in the temple praising God.” –Luke 24:50-53

This week Christians celebrate the Ascension, when the resurrected Jesus is taken away into heaven in advance of Pentecost. The disciples had been through a whirlwind of experiences, from Jesus’ betrayal, arrest, trial and crucifixion, and then, having thought he was lost to them, encountering him again and again in the weeks following the resurrection. And now, after blessing them Jesus leaves once again.

We, too, have been through a whirlwind of experiences these past 9 weeks. When the severity of the COVID-19 virus first became clear information and guidelines changed daily, sometimes more often. Though we first thought we might be regathering soon, it now appears that it will be much longer, and when we do it will certainly be different. No hymns. No coffee hour. No hugs. Masks all around.

Many are enduring separation from families, some work in high-risk jobs, others have no job and are wondering how to pay the bills. Students may be struggling to learn from home, and teachers struggling to teach them from afar. Graduations, weddings, baptisms, anniversary and birthday parties, and other events have been cancelled. Worst of all, many have lost family and friends to a virus with no cure.

If it feels to you that Jesus is somehow missing, or at the very least you may have lost sight of him, that’s understandable. It seems that overnight our faith lives have changed, our context upended, much of what we’ve come to know and believe challenged. Like the disciples following Jesus’ death and his ascension, we’ve encountered a very sudden and somewhat overwhelming shift in our religious practice.

Just like those disciples of Jesus, however, I believe that we are on the verge of something amazing. Each time they lost Jesus, each time he was suddenly gone from them, they encountered God’s power in transformational ways. Jesus died, and there was resurrection. Jesus ascended, and there was Pentecost. Each time there was trial, each time God seemed distant or absent, their experience of God increased.

These past nine weeks have challenged our courage, our patience, our resolve. These past nine weeks have come with mourning and crying, but also with moments of joy and profound examples of generosity. These past nine weeks have tested our faith; they may also, however, have prepared us for what God is doing next. Each time the disciples thought they had lost Jesus, God did something new. Keep watching.

Peace for the journey,
Pastor Steve

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Piety and Mercy

5/14/2020

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Isn’t this the fast I choose: releasing wicked restraints, untying the ropes of a yoke, setting free the mistreated, and breaking every yoke? Isn’t it sharing your bread with the hungry and bringing the homeless poor into your house, covering the naked when you see them, and not hiding from your own family? Then your light will break out like the dawn, and you will be healed quickly. Isaiah 58:6-8

As we learn to practice our Christian discipleship and continue the work of the church in new ways during this time of separation, we have an opportunity to reconnect with parts of our Methodist heritage and strengthen our personal spiritual practices. Methodists are rooted in systems of mutual support and accountability, in practices of spiritual development and social change, living out the commandment to love both God and neighbor. We encounter God’s transforming grace and find spiritual sustenance through disciplines, specific practices that are what we call “means of grace.”

John Wesley identified two categories of the means of grace: works of piety and works of mercy. The first includes individual practices like studying the scriptures, prayer, fasting, regularly attending worship, healthy living, and sharing our faith, along with the communal practices of sharing the sacraments, Christian conferencing (accountability to one another), and Bible study. The works of mercy also include individual acts like doing good works, visiting the sick and those in prison, feeding the hungry, and giving generously to the needs of others, along with communal practices like seeking justice, ending oppression and discrimination, and addressing the needs of the poor.

The prophet Isaiah shares God’s word that our light will break forth when we share our bread with the hungry, shelter the homeless, clothe the naked, and satisfy the needs of the afflicted. In other words, our personal relationship with God is lived out in our care for the poor, and there is no distinction between social justice and our personal relationship with God – they are one and the same. Wesley understood personal holiness and social holiness to go hand in hand, just as Isaiah joins fasting, an act of piety, with acts of mercy like seeking justice and feeding the poor.

As we approach Pentecost and the coming of the Holy Spirit in a new and bold way upon all the people of God, we have an opportunity to reimagine and rebirth our understanding of what it means to be the church. If we are willing to recommit ourselves to the disciplines of piety and mercy, to a regular practice of prayer, study, and worship hand-in-hand with acts of charity and justice, we have an opportunity to be co-creators with God of a new earth in the wake of this pandemic. If we are willing to make the practice of our faith our first priority God can do great things through us.

Peace for the journey,
Pastor Steve

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Home Is Where

5/7/2020

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“Home is neither here nor there. Home is within you, or home is nowhere at all.” -Hermann Hesse

This Sunday as the world recognizes Mother’s Day, we in the United Methodist Church will also celebrate the Festival of the Christian Home. While home has traditionally been associated with mothering, that’s not always true for everyone. Just like homes families come in many varieties, and so we lift up nurturing units of caring in their many forms. At the same time, we also celebrate the greater sense of home we find in our relationship with God.

Under the current pandemic most people are living under stay at home orders. This, of course, raises myriad questions and concerns for those who have no home, those for whom home is not a safe place, and even those whose homes don’t provide much privacy and separation for entire families or groups of roommates now home 24/7. Even for those with more preferable living situations, home can over time feel less like a haven and more like a place we’re trapped.

When talking about the Christian home at its core, however, we’re not speaking of a physical space or address but rather a spiritual place where our souls are in touch with God. While we might associate those moments and opportunities with certain corporeal settings, we’re instead identifying something ethereal, something less tangible, something spiritual. As the saying goes, “Home is where the heart is.” That’s neither here nor there, it’s within you.

I recall the response a colleague of mine once made in describing his spiritual home. He first wrote about finding God in the beauty of creation, but then went on to say, “the place I feel most connected to God and have experienced growth in my faith has been in the presence of those I have met along the way.” We meet God in the midst creation, and in connection with one another. In other words, the heart of Christian home is about relationship.

Home is neither here nor there. The Christian home is not about a house, or an apartment, or an RV, or the couch in someone’s spare room, or a car, or a cardboard box or shelter. The Christian home lies within, or is nowhere at all. In this time of separation and isolation we’ve needed to be more intentional in order to maintain relationships with one another. We also need to be more intentional about our relationships with God, or home is nowhere at all.

Peace for the journey,
Pastor Steve

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