Blessed are the meek.......

This being Super Bowl weekend, it is hard to decide which of the beatitudes are the direct opposite of the over-the-top craziness which is this last week of the NFL.  Blessed are the meek has to be a front runner (my alternate choice is blessed are the poor in spirit....)

Meek is the last work we would use to describe any of the men who make their living playing professional football.  I was reading an article this week about one player who was caught on tape (the ultimate faux pas) being outrageous, ridiculous, and at moments incoherent.  The author noted that this man (like all the others who play his position) had to be a warrior in order to enter the fray of this physically destructive 'sport' and sometimes warriors get a little crazy.

OK, back to the meek.  The American tendency is to equate meek = weak.  Doormat.  Walter Mitty.  Mice. Cowards.  Meek is not what any American wants to be called.  So we need to ask, What did Jesus mean by 'being meek'?  Perhaps we are missing something here because Jesus promises that they will inherit the earth.....and that surely sounds like a good thing.

A great deal of what Jesus teaches is about power and how it is used in this world.  He speaks of political power (John 18) and economic power (Lazarus at the rich man's gate Luke 16) and relational power (see Matthew 5: marriage and enemies) and religious power (healing of the crippled woman Luke 13). Jesus is not fond of folks who use their power to make the lives of someone else miserable.  Using power to get more for yourself, no matter how you define 'more' is the antithesis to being a neighbor or a brother or even a friend.  Using power to secure your position is the perfect example of counting yourself more worthy than the other. And there is no way you can Love God. Love your Neighbor. if you are busy ignoring someone's humanity in order to use them as your stepping stone.

Jesus takes a different road.  He refuses to play by this world's rules.  He refuses to strike back.  He refuses to destroy the humanity of the one who is destroying him.  Jesus chooses meekness.

Jesus does not hesitate.  He does not run away when the situation gets hot.  Speaking the truth, Jesus holds up to the light the actions of the oppressors, and calls them to choose truth and  love over power.  Jesus prays for his enemies as much as he prays for himself and his followers.  Jesus allows his own death for the sake of those who are killing him.

Jesus is meek, but it takes an enormous degree of courage to be that strong.  Follow this Jesus and along with him, you too shall inherit the earth.....no matter how awful today might look.

Blessed are those who mourn.........

.......for they will be comforted.  Matthew 5.4

Now, that's a promise.  When you are sitting in the darkness of grief, knowing for certain that comfort is coming may be hard to believe, but it is at least something to hold on to. God's comfort in the face of our grief as a very real blessing.

But there is more.  Jesus is not just teaching about our personal faith life; he is teaching about the kingdom of heaven (other gospels use the phrase kingdom of God but Matthew prefers kingdom of heaven).  Jesus is laying out before his disciples and potential followers the dimensions of the kingdom Jesus is creating even as he sits teaching the crowds.

These crowds are well aware of the kingdom in which they currently live.  They understand the power of the ruling Romans, their oppressive taxation system, the tendency of their own people to take advantage of fellow Israelites, and the terrible toll that life itself takes on a body.  Jesus is announcing the intervention of God in this system through Jesus.....and in Jesus....and the establishment of a new kingdom with new ways of being.

In this kingdom, God blesses a series of behaviors and attitudes. Kingdom behaviors include those who are poor in spirit, those who mourn, the meek, the merciful.  These are the folk you will find in God's kingdom. At the same time, those who seek the kingdom of heaven will become those who are poor in spirit, mourn, etc.

So this mourning is rooted in a larger picture.  Jesus is calling out to those who mourn the system that oppresses and destroys.  These mourners are crushed by the evildoers and the powerful elite whose actions lead to the kind of mourning that all families know.  They mourn the very presence of such evil in the world. In God's kingdom, those who have been oppressed will see freedom; oppression will not have the last word.

Perhaps that is the most helpful of images when dealing with the Beatitudes.  They are about who gets the last word - and what that last word will be.

Jesus tells the crowds the last word is blessing...God's blessing... and it will include those who know no blessings today.

Blessed are the poor in spirit........

It's Beatitude time again, that time in the cycle of our Sunday gospel readings where we wrestle with Matthew's massive teaching block known as the Sermon on the Mount (because Jesus went up the mountain and sat down to teach).

The Sermon runs from chapter 5 through chapter 7 of the gospel of Matthew.  It begins with a series of pronouncements known as The Beatitudes.  A beatitude is an announcement of blessedness.....ergo, 'blessed are the poor in spirit.'  A whole series of human conditions are covered by these verses 5.1-11.  Blessed are the poor in spirit, those who mourn, the meek, those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, the merciful, the pure in heart, the peacemakers and the persecuted ones.

So you and I need to uncover what it means to be blessed, and then we have 8 other conditions to figure out as well.

Some Bible translators decided that 'happy' would convey the core meaning of the Greek word markarios. That translation has gone out of favor.  Some have suggested the word 'luck' since in 21st century America our closest concept to receiving a blessing is to have good luck.  Luckily (ha!) none of the Bible translations took up that 'lucky' suggestion.

Commentators wrestle with this word because most of our English words lack the understanding that this blessedness is deeply rooted in our relationship with God.  One cannot be blessed apart from God. In fact, the 'happiness' we experience is because we are in right relationship with God.  So perhaps a better translation would be 'blessed [by God] are' the poor, the meek, etc.  God favors certain human actions; certain human actions are consistent with the kingdom of God and how it operates.

The second concern is how to interpret this blessedness.  Is it an experience of the present or is it a hope for tomorrow? Is Jesus trying to tell us that the poor in spirit are content now?  or that they will be content one day?  Are the Beatitudes an announcement of reassurance to those who experience these sometimes dire circumstances that God's favor is with them [in spite of apparent evidence to the contrary]?  Could they be requirements for participation in the reign of God?

Oh, we love to quote these pithy statements, but I have to confess, they are challenging for preaching.  It took me all this space just to explore the meaning of the word 'blessed.'  What am I going to do with 'poor in spirit'?

Faith: taking the leap

One of my favorite advice columnists, Carolyn Hax, is often called on to find a way for people to get good results without taking risks.  Her expertise is in relationships.  How can I know that he loves me without me taking the risk of being hurt?  How can I get my mother-in -law to stop dropping by without hurting her feelings?  How can I accept a promotion and still not change the dynamics in my marriage?

There are a thousand variations to the question but the short answer Carolyn generally gives is "You can't".  Relationships and risk go hand in hand.  Sometimes the risks are small (I really don't like football, do you mind if I don't watch with you?) and sometimes the risks are big (I think living next door to your parents would be a nightmare.)  But there is always risk.  Who knows?  Not liking football could, indeed, be a deal breaker.

So it is no surprise that a life of faith....which is by definition, a life of trusting in Divine Power....is a life lived by trust.  And trust is always risky.  You know that.  I know that.

Furthermore, we tend to call on our faith in our personal lives when things are at their riskiest.  After a bad diagnosis or before a scary operation.  After a bad break-up or before applying for a new job.  We tend to call on our faith when we realize that the world is tilted off balance, injustice is real, evil is real, power is abused at the highest levels.

Each time we rely on our faith in God to unravel a dilemma, right a wrong, or make us feel better, we risk learning something new about ourselves and something new about God.  Let me say that again.  Each time we turn to God seeking a response for our lives, we risk learning something new about ourselves and God.

When our vision of God is rigid and our definition of God is precisely bounded, God's response is too often not only a surprise but a disappointment as well.  That is all well and good.  What we do next is important.

Do we then reject God for being something other than what we expected....or do we stop and listen and wonder and explore this new revealing of God in our lives?  Do we become one of the folks who got to know God in second grade and haven't upgraded our relationship since then even as our world and our lives became more complicated and confusing?  Have we allowed God to grow as a real presence in creation and in this life that we know, or has God remained a reassuring teddy bear on a shelf, reminding us of a good time long ago?

When God doesn't live up to our expectations, do we change.....or do we reject the God now revealed? To call God 'God' is to recognize that most of the time we will have just a small understanding of the universal picture....and to trust that holding the hand of this God is way better than walking alone.

Faith: origins

If faith is a relationship, then faith is about trust.  That in which you put your trust is the God in which you have faith, so says Martin Luther.  This applies to lower case 'gods' as well.  Some of the stuff we trust is nothing more than the ephemeral trappings of life, status and money.

So where does this trust come from?

If we talk in human terms, we learn about trust from our first relationships, generally with our parents.  We cry; we are comforted.  We are hungry; we are fed.  They are bigger than we are; we look to them for safety and protection.

That is the most basic of trusting relationships and it is forged right out of the womb.  But it grows.  Don't worry, this won't hurt.....and it doesn't.  Come on, jump!  I'll catch you....and they do.  I wouldn't tell you something if it wasn't true....and well, most of the time that one works out as well.

As we grow, and our relationship with parents and friends and strangers grows, we learn about the depth and limits of trust.  Humans are not all powerful; they are not perfect.  Not all humans are to be trusted.  Into every life comes some disappointment, hurt, loss, anger.

Our relationship with God begins in a different way.  God is reflected to us - we watch our parents' interaction with this unknown 'God'.  We listen to the stories about how God has acted throughout history (Bible) and how God is active in the lives of folks around us (testimony or witness, generally over coffee). We participate in faith rituals (worship, sacraments, service projects, funerals) where the rituals help shape us and our understandings.

We begin to ask questions. The questions grow as we do.   Is God bigger than the tallest tree?  How does God know when I am praying?  Where is God when I am hurt - physically or emotionally?  Lord, why do you feel so far away?

We begin to listen for answers.  Not just the answers that others around us offer, but we begin to listen for God's voice in our life - leading, correcting, assuring...even weeping with us.  We begin to understand that the answers are not always easy.

The witness of others is critical to our growing relationship with God, a relationship that has all the usual ups and downs.  Without the witness of the saints, we wander and wonder looking for a framework for our decisions and our lives. Some find that framework in the NFL, some in fashion, some in industry, etc.  For Christians, Christ crucified is the frame by which we lead our lives.

Luther teaches that it is the Holy Spirit who calls us to faith.....through the witness of faithful saints all around us.  We become the reflection of God to others, their guide to this God we have found....or should I say, who has found us.

I'd love to hear the story of how God found you.  Stop by for a chat....and some coffee.

For Luther references, check out the Small Catechism, Apostle's Creed, article 3 and the Large Catechism, Ten Commandments, Commandment #1.

Faith: witness

Have you ever been a witness in a courtroom?  The closest I've come was testimony before a Grand Jury.  It was a bit intimidating.  I knew that there would be consequences to my testimony; not only a trial but a jail sentence was a real possibility.

So what we say when we give testimony....what kind of witness we bring to the proceedings is very important.  We must be clear about what we know and clear about what we do not know.  We can't say Yes just because we want it to be that way.  We must stick to the truth and trust the system to work it all out.

Our witness to our faith is equally important.  Each person of faith is a reflection of the God s/he calls on.  We witness with both our words and our deeds.  Let's start with words.

Tell your story.  Tell us how God found you.  Tell us about all the questions you have had, all the situations when you turned towards God and insisted on a better explanation.  Tell us about the Aha! moments and those moments when your breath was taken away.  Witness to what you know, what you have experienced with this God of creation.

Stick with your story with God and leave out all the grander explanations and churchy sounding pronouncements.  Resist the temptation to pontificate on matters.  Try not to speak for God unless you are using God's own words, and even then, a great deal of humility is called for since we have amazing skills at twisting what God is saying to our own ends.

No two of us experience God exactly the same way - and yet your experience will help me find my experience.  I understand the power of a sunset; the relief of being healed; the fear of losing a loved one.  I understand the terror of the night and the arrows that fly by day.  I understand that sometimes the pain is so great that I will not be able to hear or see God, and God will wait alongside of me until I am able.

Find a passage of scripture that helps explain what you have experienced.  The Psalms are the perfect locale, but many of the stories of the Bible are equally powerful.  Hannah, childless and yet faithful, cried out to God for the gift of a son.....and her prayer was answered, and her answer was to dedicate that child to the Lord's work.  (1 Samuel)  Moses was in trouble with the law and couldn't speak effectively in front of others....and yet God called him to head his people out of slavery and into relationship with this God. (Exodus)  Dorcas was so dedicated to serving others through the beautiful garments she made that when she died, her companions held up those same beautiful garments as examples of God's love flowing through her.  (Acts 5)

Tell your story.  God is at work through your story; through you others see and come to know God.

Now that God has found you, let everyone else in on the story.

Faith not doctrine

For years any discussion about faith was in truth a discussion about doctrine.  We wanted to talk about what we believe.  The content.  The logic.  The implications.  These discussions often ended in "Well, I can't believe that!"

What if we talked about faith as a verb?
   What if we talked about faith as a process?
       What if we talked about faith as a surprise?
       

Think about it.  When you talk about the weather, do you debate whether the barometric pressure is 113 millibars or 85?  Or do you complain about shoveling snow, or your air conditioning bills?  You mention how many days it has rained or your hope for a sunny day for your daughter's wedding?  We discuss the weather in terms of our lives, our hopes, our dreams, even our finances!  (The heating bills up north this year will be an issue.)

Let's talk about children's soccer leagues.  The parents whose discussions are all about strategy and discipline and winning are not welcome in the groups who are laughing at their children's antics, wondering if young David will ever stop running away from the ball, or simply cheering from the sidelines.  For these parents, soccer is about social skills, physical development, group activities and most of all, having fun!

Or cars.  I was once in a discussion about what car we would own if money was no object.  You can imagine there were a few sports cars and luxury cars in the mix.  "A red Maserati"  "A silver BMW" and on and on.  One participant said he'd purchase a Volvo.  "What color?"  "Oh, the color doesn't matter, I like their safety ratings."  Now that was a perfectly legitimate reason for purchasing a Volvo, but this group wanted a little poetry and to them color was critical.  Our Volvo guy didn't realize this wasn't a discussion about reality but about status, and self-image!

Faith is about a relationship with the Divine.  Christians call the Divine God, and we see God manifest in a man called Jesus who lived and died.....and yes, we believe he was raised from the dead.....a long time ago. That is at the center of our belief system.

But our faith is about relationship.  Can I trust this one called God?  What are the intentions of this God towards me?  When I am in a pinch, can I call on this God and expect an answer?  Is this God all smiles one day and all lightening bolts the next?   When this God looks at me, what does God see?  Those are the basic questions that faith asks.

or, perhaps, this  "Can I be safe with this God?"

Let's begin our faith discussions with the questions that we are really asking ourselves; the questions which have answers which interest us.  These are the truly hard questions because these are the questions that we live day after day.  Most of us can manage a long time without a definition of predestination.
 Let's answer the important questions first.

Let's talk about story.....#3

It starts with a teenager who appears to be giving his time and attention only to his i-phone while the family gathers for holiday activities.  It ends with a video he's made of all the family working and playing together - his rendition of a video diary.  It is touching, really.  It is also a glimpse of the new age of storytelling....which can obviously be in the hands of all owners of i-phones!


Sitting around the campfire (real or metaphorical) and telling stories has been the iconic image for the passing on of our history and beliefs.  When you are in the hands of a good storyteller, you are captured, leaning forward for the next revelation; you are asked to identify with some of the characters.

Well constructed stories pass on much more than just a cast of characters and an exciting plot line.  Underneath the plot are the relationships, the emotions, the lessons and ....here is the important part....the values of the one who has put the story together.  No matter what the actual subject of the story, what is really being said is this, 'This is who we are.   This is how we behave.'  Becoming one with story, identifying with the main characters is possible when you identify with the values being expressed.

People of faith have stories as well.  From Abraham to Isaac to Jacob to King David.....we are invited into the lives and adventures of Moms and Dads and siblings and emperors and servants.  Underlying each story is this "Here is the God I know.  This is how I came to faith."  Now, of course we get some interesting interpretations of natural events, but don't let that hold you up.  We also encounter all the emotions we experience:  loss, jealousy, envy, lust, grief, love, frustration, irritation, rebellion.  I could go on, but you get the idea.  They may be ancient people but their lives soared and crashed pretty much the same as ours.  And through it all, they continued to witness to the faith they held.  That is where their stories become treasures for us.

How do you go on when you have behaved very badly?  Look up the story of King David and Bathsheba and listen to his cry of confession.  How do you give thanks for a gift you have longed for all your life?  Read the story of Hannah and her son Samuel to see the depth of thanksgiving.  Know someone who has been sexually assaulted?  The rape of Tamar is the story to check out.  Think God doesn't hear your prayers because you are not worthy?  Then you need to look up the story of Jesus and the Syro-Phoenician woman.

It's all there.  Love. Loss. Betrayal. Joy. New Life.  It's there to help you reach the point where you can say, "This is my story.  This is my God."

Shalom my friends.

you will be misunderstood.

You will be misunderstood.

If it's critical that we understand you, say it more clearly. 

Say it twice.

Better yet, act it out, live it, make it an action, not merely a concept.  

This advice comes from Seth Godin, a business man and visionary. 

However, it is good advice for us as well.

As people of faith we are not called to assault others with God's good news or to rush to God's defense. 

 We are called to live with our lives the faith that we proclaim with our lips.

Because, in the end, actions speak louder than words.

It is easier to talk the talk than it is to walk the walk.

 That's why Christ walks with us.

Let's talk about story....'You is kind. You is smart. You is important.'

Once upon a time......the beginning of fairy tales of every stripe....and the first indicator that what you are reading is not intended to be taken literally.  Fairy tales of princesses and wicked witches and gremlins in the forest are not factual and in fact, are sometimes mythical. They often capture something primal, like our fear of the dark and the unknown that awaits us in the deep dark forest.  They are cautionary tales (like Hansel and Gretel) and heroic tales (the boy with his finger in the dike) and tales that reassure us (such as the rescue of Rapunzel).

Fairy tales are limited in their usefulness.  At some point we need to realize that we are not Cinderella, that no handsome prince is coming to make us happy ever after, and wolves cannot eat grandma and then spit her out again alive.  If our expectations of this life are based on fairy tale endings a lot of us are going to be disappointed.  If our self-image is built around fairy tale descriptions then a lot of us are going to be unhappy. If we sit around waiting for a handsome prince to rescue us, we will wait in vain.

Motivational speakers have had a handle on this forever.  When you use a mantra like "I am capable of great things" you are simply shortening your story and using it to shape your perspective and attitude from day to day.  Remember how the maid in The Help continually told the toddler she cared for "You is kind.  You is smart.  You is important."  She knew that the family surrounding that little girl was writing an entirely different story for her; she was not going to have that story of failure be the only story in this little girl's life.

This is what God is saying to you, "You are beloved.  You can be a part of changing the world."  Hold on to that today - 'I am beloved of God'   and see what it brings for you.   More tomorrow.

Let's talk about story ....#1

When my children were little, they loved to hear the story of their birth.  They would listen to what became a familiar narrative of back pain and sending children to a sitter and long hours waiting.  A secret smile would crease their faces as they heard again what Daddy said, and what the Doctor said, and how I felt when at last they were born.

Story is powerful.  Who hasn't been frightened by the right combination of words on a page?  Who hasn't been moved - to tears, to anger, to generosity - through a story that has been told?  Who doesn't have a story tucked away in their memory that gives them comfort in the dark.

Stories help us figure out who we are, from the first stories about our birth through the years of our lives - I hated going to school, I played football in high school, I fell in love at first glance.  We all have a warehouse full of stories which shape us.  First these stories help us to know ourselves, then they become the narrative by which we interact with the world around us.

Which stories we hold close to us are critical; they are the source material for our self-understanding, our sense of meaning and even point us forward with purpose and determination.  Think of the trajectories of these stories "Once I was the most important person in my office..."  "My mother always told me I was in the way...."  "When I started playing hockey, the coach said I had some skill..."  We can use the stories of our lives to look backward with longing, to shape our sense of self worth, or as a springboard to new adventures.

For those of you who are not familiar with TED talks, it is very difficult to explain what they are.  But if you follow this link, you will be able to watch an African writer speak about the power of story to both open your world or to lock it down.  Take some time and enjoy.  Then watch for more talk about story

http://www.ted.com/talks/chimamanda_adichie_the_danger_of_a_single_story.html

Forgiveness is so old school

Whatever the newer generations are looking for it isn't forgiveness.  I  keep hearing words like meaning or purpose or connection.  Folks want to make a diffference, participate, contribute to the greater good.

So here is a plan.  Blanket your life and the world around you with an act which says, "Yup, I know how things can get out of hand."  Look at your neighbor and see yourself: behaving badly, at the end of your rope, exhausted and worried sick.  Remember that day when you were sure the entire world was against you or the one when you were against the entire world.

Make space for other human beings to be human beings.  Give each other some room to breathe.

It will give meaning and purpose to your life; your connections with your neighbors will increase and you will make a difference in this world, contribute to the greater good.

Call it anything you want, but be sure not to skimp. Forgive.  Not once. Not twice, but each time you encounter something that needs forgiving. For at the heart of our lives, it is forgiveness we crave the most.