Transformation through School--and prayer!
Having just finished the 2nd Weekend of my 3rd year at the School for Deacons I have that strange feeling that I just started this process a few months ago, and at the same time forever and a day ago. The School for Deacons (sfd.edu) does more than educate the future deacon--it is a formative process that results in the building of a unique community of people.
When I started the process of discernment I had so many self-doubts. How would I get the work done? How would I have the time? How could I ever be "good enough" to be a Deacon? I've come to realize that I have been transformed by this process at School and in my Diocese.
Preach a homily? Me??? Yet now I find myself doing just that, thanks to a combination of training, praying, and inspiration from the Spirit.
Here is my latest homily given at the School for Deacons on September 10th, 2017:
Proper 18, Year A
Exodus 12: 1-14
Psalm 149
Romans 13: 8-14
Matthew 18: 15-20
The Book of Exodus begins, “Now a new
king arose over Egypt, who did not know Joseph” (Ex. 1: 8). This brief passage,
almost a footnote, speaks volumes to us this morning. Even though it doesn’t
appear in today’s reading, it is the event that leads to the confrontation
between Pharaoh and Moses—between secular ruler and Heavenly Ruler.
Joseph, his
family, and the Israelites were welcomed into Egypt centuries earlier when Joseph
interpreted Pharaoh’s dream and predicted seven years of bounty and then seven
years of famine. Joseph is appointed Pharaoh’s steward, and his project to
store grain and food is such an overwhelming success that the people of Egypt
continue to prosper under Pharaoh’s leadership while selling surplus grain to
the kingdoms around them.
From a strategic
standpoint Joseph’s plan to survive seven years of famine didn’t just maintain
the status quo in Egypt. Seven years of a famine would have drained the
resources of every kingdom surrounding Egypt. To feed their people, kingdoms
would have sent money and goods to Egypt in exchange for food for their people.
One year of this would be hard enough—seven years would have cleaned out the
treasury of any kingdom. By the end of the famine, kingdoms who hadn’t already
pledged loyalty to Pharaoh would have quickly folded in the face of any
Egyptian offensive.
By welcoming
these strange people of Joseph’s, and apportioning land in his kingdom for
them, Joseph’s Pharaoh made a brilliant strategic move that magnified the
strength of the Egyptian empire for generations to come.
So what
happened? How did these people who gave Egypt a competitive edge over its
neighbors end up as slaves 430 years later (Ex. 12: 40)? In my Union career I
noticed that you could negotiate the best contract for a group of people that
included raises, job security, better medical benefits, and improved pensions,
and a week or so later be asked by the members “So, what have you done for me
today??!!” Gratitude seems to last as long as short term memory!
These people of
Joseph’s not only looked different than Egyptians—they acted differently, too.
They worshiped a different God—“Heck, they don’t even know his name! They
mutilate themselves as part of some agreement with their God! They smell
bad—look at how many of them herd sheep! Just how many sheep does one need?” (I
can see them complaining about this as they’re eating a leg of lamb for dinner.
Think of who picks our crops in the Central Valley.)
Eventually
Egyptians become envious of these “Joseph people”. “Why should they have all
that land? What are they doing for us? “Let’s give Egypt back to the
Egyptians!!!” In the meantime successive Pharaohs start discounting the value
these people have brought to Egypt as they convince themselves that really it
was Pharaoh God-King who made Egypt an Empire. Over time the imposition of laws
and edicts reduce the descendants of Israel to slave status.
We aren’t told
how many generations the Israelites lived as slaves for Egypt, but the only
ones who knew freedom were Moses and Aaron. By the time of this morning’s
reading, the specifications for the
Passover remembrance, the Egyptians and Israelites had already witnessed
nine miracles of these brothers from Midian.
While Moses
claimed the mantle of speaking directly with God, Aaron was his spokesperson
and performed many of the rubrics himself—almost a pseudo-Deacon! In this
Passover event, however, it is God who performs the last act of freedom while
Moses and Aaron are left waiting.
For the
Israelites the miracles continued on: God led them with a “pillar of cloud by
day” and a “pillar of fire by night” (Ex. 13: 21). The waters of the sea were
parted, Pharaoh’s army was destroyed, and manna rained down from heaven. Moses
is not gone long up Mount Sinai, however, when the Israelites fall back to
making idols. “What have you done for me lately?” comes to mind.
Keep in mind,
though, these people had lived a lifetime in fear while slaves in Egypt:
·
fear of the whip,
·
fear of the overseers,
·
fear for their next meal,
·
fear for their children,
·
fear of being singled out when the safest play
was to blend into the herd.
In other words, Herd
Mentality—Mob Rule. When people live with a herd mentality, self-preservation takes
precedence over care for others. Individuality becomes the victim of survival.
“Blend in! Agree
with the group! Find a scapegoat! I’m afraid—let’s find an idol!” Fear
transforms relationships into an ugly evil of Mob Rule.
Looking at it through
this lens, the remembrance of Passover takes on new meaning. The lamb is
divided proportionally based on who is at the table. There is order and
equality to this meal of community, quite different from a herd mentality of “take
what you can get”.
The “Law of
Moses” becomes a “Guideline for a Loving Community”. The 40 years of “Wandering
in the desert” is really a “Journey of Faith” that transforms these slaves into
a community of people who trust that God cares for each of them individually,
as they also come to recognize the value of each individual: “These are my
brothers and sisters because God cares for them, too!”
Where are we
on this Journey of Faith today? This country, that has as its motto “E pluribus
unum” (out of many, one), finds its citizens marching around with torches
dressed in uniforms of white shirts and brown khakis, or black masks in black
clothes, demanding uniformity in belief or race.
People who have
contributed greatly to this country, thanks to their diversity and work ethic,
are victimized by people who have been left behind in this age of globalization
and free trade, by a culture that worships the gold-plated idol of greed. Love
is replaced by fear, and debate is replaced by violence. Is this the way of
Jesus?
By the time of
Jesus, the teachings of Moses, meant to bring people together in loving
community, had been distorted by an aristocracy that used the “Law of Moses” to
keep its people subjugated and oppressed.
·
Don’t rock the boat!
·
People who are different are excluded.
·
Fear is the motivator; uniformity is the
requirement.
Any prophet that
comes along to say otherwise is eliminated—John the Baptist, Jesus, Paul—all are
executed!
Paul’s message
in today’s reading is “’Love your neighbor as yourself.’ Love does no wrong to
a neighbor; therefore, love is the fulfilling of the Law.” This is a dangerous
message, because when fear is replaced by Love, miracles happen, and miracles free
the oppressed and depose the oppressors.
Our Gospel
reading this morning reflects the importance Jesus places on individuals. There
is no demand that everyone must conform to the same standard. People who are
different are not excluded or thrown out. In this reading Jesus stresses the
importance of individuals in the community. We see here an encouragement to
work out our differences—to talk to one another, both alone AND in community.
We are not
expected to be uniform in our beliefs! We are only expected to love each other
and be open to each other’s differences.
It is easy for
people to give up on Love and fall back into fear and herd mentality—to forget
the heights we have achieved thru “e pluribus unum”. Somehow it was easy for
Aaron, our pseudo-Deacon, the man who witnessed the miracles that freed the
Israelites, to give in to the herd mentality and fashion the golden idol while
his brother conversed with God on Mount Sinai!
As
Servant/Leaders of the God of Love we are called to be prophets for the God of
Love to dispel the darkness, expose the fear, and call God’s people to wrap
themselves in the Love of God and Love of neighbor.
I pray that God
will give each of us the courage and wisdom to call our brothers and sisters into
loving community. Jesus says, “For where two or three are gathered in my name,
I am there among them.”
Amen.
