Sincere Prayer, a sermon delivered October 28, 2007
Luke 18:9-14
He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and regarded others with contempt: ‘Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax-collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, was praying thus, “God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax-collector. I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my income.” But the tax-collector, standing far off, would not even look up to heaven, but was beating his breast and saying, “God, be merciful to me, a sinner!” I tell you, this man went down to his home justified rather than the other; for all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted.’
In today’s gospel reading, Jesus tells a parable about a Pharisee and a tax collector praying. The moral of the story is clearly stated at the end. He tells us the humbled will be exalted and the exalted will be humbled. So, what else is there to talk about? If it were that easy, however, I’m not sure Jesus would have to tell us a parable to get the message across. So, maybe looking from a different angle might help us struggle for deeper meanings into this story Jesus told. To help us with that, let me tell you a different story.
Two men went inside a church to pray, one a minister and the other a drug dealer. The minister, standing right before the cross, prayed for the blessings he and his church received, for the financial and charitable giving of the church’s members, the new addition to their building and the great work being done there. The drug dealer, at the back of the sanctuary, with bowed head, clutched his chest and whispered “God, be merciful to me, a sinner.”
How does that change the parable for you? I know that for me, putting it into a modern day context drastically changes the way I feel about the text. In Jesus’ story, the Pharisees were not priests, but they were teachers and leaders in following the traditions of the Hebrew faith. They desired to bring the Tanakh, the Hebrew scriptures to the people, so they could listen and interpret together. They wished to take the word of God seriously and follow it with eager hearts. In those ways, they emulate many of the same traits the contemporary Christian ministers do. There are several modern examples of how a tax collector would be treated today. I chose one that I know challenges my own biases: a drug dealer. The tax-collector was not your friendly IRS agent, he was a henchman for the Roman Empire. He was not just a non-holy person, but an unclean person, a despised sinner of their world who disobeys God. I imagine that while not identical, the drug dealer of today’s world and tax collector of their world, might have some things in common. Because in my mind, whether it’s fair or not, a drug dealer is not a victim, but someone who takes advantage of other people. So, it’s hard for me to imagine a drug dealer desiring forgiveness and mercy from God, let alone God granting it so readily. If it weren’t for the words of Jesus here and in other stories, I’m not sure I would think it’s possible. But Jesus not only tells us it is possible, but that God prefers the type of prayer the tax collector made.
Jesus says that just because I am a “good” person, just because I am NOT like “them”, the thieves, rogues, adulterers, tax-collectors… or drug dealers… does not mean I am favored in the eyes of God. Attending church every week does not a good prayer make.
Not only that, through this parable, he tells us that saying a prayer is not the same as meaning the prayer. He’s not saying that all prayers of blessing and thanksgiving are unheard by God. God does hear our praises and thanks. He’s saying that the Pharisee was not truly open to the voice and presence of God. Notice, Jesus describes the tax collector’s prayer in detail, saying he “would not even look up to heaven, but was beating his breast” while all he says of the Pharisee is that he “was standing by himself”. Perhaps there was nothing of note to the Pharisee’s emotional expression, though by his smug words, I can imagine all kinds of arrogant postures. But Jesus demonstrated the tax collector’s vulnerability and openness to God, even though he probably wasn’t even sure if God would listen. I’m not sure I can I imagine what a tax collector’s life would have been like back then… I’m not even sure I really can imagine a drug dealer’s life today, for that matter. But I would imagine that in their lives there may be types of pain and suffering I’ve never experienced. To lay oneself before a God I wasn’t even sure existed, let alone could see me, if I was that drug dealer, I’m not sure I could take such a risk and be so vulnerable as to pray for mercy.
At every worship here in the chapel, we say a prayer of confession, admitting to God that we have faults. We also say prayers of petition for others, prayers of healing, prayers of thanksgiving. How do we keep ourselves from being like that Pharisee and praying an empty prayer? How do we “keep it real” with God? The gospel text says that we should remain humble and not “exalt ourselves” over others or think we are so righteous. But how do we do that?
Different Christian traditions respond differently on how to “keep it real” with God. Some practices, such as centering prayer or labyrinths encourage “emptying our minds” and opening ourselves to God that way. Others feel that too much ritual impedes true communion with God and rely heavily upon spontaneous extemporaneous prayer. Both of these styles, while on the outside appearing very different, are attempting to do the same thing, evoke emotion, or perhaps evoke the Holy Spirit or even bring us to that mountaintop experience. These styles of prayer tell us to not be passive in our prayers, but to actively expose our true selves to God.
There are dozens more styles of prayer out there. In fact, for every person alive, there are that many approaches or more. How do you connect to God? When do you find yourself opening to God’s presence? Some people set up disciplines for themselves, but others don’t. It can happen during church services. I know that for me, often I feel that openness right after receiving communion. The story of Jesus moves me to feel humble and grateful and desiring God’s loving forgiveness. Other times, I just cry out for God. Although the accident was almost 10 years ago, I remember with vivid detail the milliseconds I felt my car spinning and hitting one guard rail and spinning and hitting the opposite guardrail. All I cried out was “Oh God! Oh God!” with such desperation and fear. But when I did, I felt God’s presence. At the time, I still didn’t know if I would live or die, but I knew God was with me and my fear diminished for those few moments. We don’t always feel such clear responses from God, but sometimes just risking the question, the petition is the first step towards our own journey of healing and keeping it real with God.
We in today’s society are just as guilty of thinking the prayers of a minister hold more weight than the average joe, and most especially that of a drug dealer. We trust that just by the position a minister holds, the prayers have more power. But what Jesus tells us in this parable is that in a prayer to God, it does not matter what position you hold in society, what matters is the depth of sincerity and honesty in your prayer. As we sit here in chapel today, or watching in your rooms, we participate in rituals and forms of prayer that encourage us to connect to God. I invite you to see this worship as an opportunity to open yourself to God. I also invite you to find what best suits you to be sincere and honest in your attempt to connect with God. May we continue to learn and grow through the reading and contemplation of this and other gospel readings. Amen.
Monday, November 05, 2007
Trading Places, a sermon
A Sermon on Trading Places... delivered September 30, 2007
Luke 16:19-31
'There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. And at his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, who longed to satisfy his hunger with what fell from the rich man's table; even the dogs would come and lick his sores. The poor man died and was carried away by the angels to be with Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried. In Hades, where he was being tormented, he looked up and saw Abraham far away with Lazarus by his side. He called out, "Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am in agony in these flames." But Abraham said, "Child, remember that during your lifetime you received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner evil things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in agony. Besides all this, between you and us a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who might want to pass from here to you cannot do so, and no one can cross from there to us." He said, "Then, father, I beg you to send him to my father's house— for I have five brothers—that he may warn them, so that they will not also come into this place of torment." Abraham replied, "They have Moses and the prophets; they should listen to them." He said, "No, father Abraham; but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent." He said to him, "If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced even if someone rises from the dead." '
Trading places. We all have dreamt of it. What would it be like to live someone else’s life? Just look at the movies out there. For example, mother and daughter want to trade lives in the movie Freaky Friday… The mother asks wasn’t life easier as a teenager? No responsibilities, no worries… And the daughter thinks don’t parents have all the freedom to do whatever they want? But life is not as simple as that. Every life has its own burdens to bear, worries to preoccupy minds. Yet, even during those times we wish to live a different life, there are some lives we don’t wish for. I’ve never met anyone who wishes for a life lived in pain, loneliness or hunger. Those are things we wish to NOT have, so why would we want to think about what it’s like for the man asking for food at the busy street corner? Why would we want to think about a woman struggling for breath in her hospital bed? Why would we want to think about the family evicted from their homes with no where to go? These are not the lives we want to dream about. Well, some might say, because God tells us to… Jesus tells us to, even Paul tells us to. But let’s be honest here, do we always do what we’re told to do? I can tell you for sure I don’t, and in the story Jesus told the rich man didn’t follow Moses or the prophet’s advice very well, either. Even if I did listen to the advice of Jesus, would I even know how to begin imagining what life is like for someone living in a refugee camp in Africa or someone living in prison for a life sentence? I’m not sure I really can. Until I live in someone else’s shoes, I have no idea how hard or how joyous her life may be.
There’s a movie from the 80s some of you might remember, called Trading Places. It has Dan Aykroyd and Eddie Murphy in it. Aykroyd’s character, Louis Winthrop the Third, is a born into wealth commodities broker while Murphy’s character, Billy Ray Valentine, plays a man begging on the streets for money, pretending to be a legless war hero to improve his chances for help. At the start of the movie, the expensively dressed Louis thinks the worst of the scruffy-looking Billy Ray. When they run into each other on the sidewalk, Louis assumes Billy ray was trying to steal his briefcase, calls for the police and presses charges. All Billy Ray was guilty of was trying to help Louis stand and hand him his briefcase. The next day, because of the scheming of two men in power at Louis’ firm, Louis and Billy Ray unknowingly and unwillingly switch places. Billy Ray is offered a job in the brokerage firm and given Louis’s house to live in and servant to work for him. Louis is accused of a crime he didn’t commit, goes to jail, becomes disowned by his friends, and is forced to beg for the help of a prostitute to find a place to sleep and food to eat. I would imagine that for Billy Ray, this turn of events was a dream come true. He surely must have thought what life would be like with all that abundance around him. But did Louis ever dream of becoming accused, abandoned and hungry? Probably not.
The story Jesus shares in Luke 16 is also a story about switching places. A rich man who, after his death, lives for the first time in pain, loneliness and thirst. And a poor man who after suffering his whole life, receives the comfort of being with Abraham after death. I imagine that as long as the rich man had his wealth, he never truly considered what life would be like without his fine linen and sumptuous feasts. I know that when my cupboards are full, it’s hard for me to remember those whose cupboards are empty. When I’m at the store contemplating whether to get cheddar or Monterrey jack cheese, I’m not thinking about people who would think the leftovers starting to mold in my fridge were a feast they’d cherish. So, if we have a hard time following God and Jesus just as the rich man and his brothers had following Moses and the prophets, are we then, like the rich man, doomed to never understand how those around us may be suffering?
There is another way we are reminded of the suffering other’s may be going through. Our own life experience. When I underwent some tests for a potentially terminal condition and waited 6 months to hear a doctor say I wasn’t going to die, I began to understand what others with illnesses that are or may become terminal go through. The agony of waiting, not knowing, feeling like the doctors were giving me the run-around, when really, the doctors were waiting, just like me. And the re-occurring fear that every follow up check will reveal my problems have come back. My experience does not mean I understand everything a woman with breast cancer goes through, or a man with Parkinson’s goes through… but it does mean that I don’t ignore their struggle. It means I ask myself more carefully what it must be like in their shoes. Your life experience may not have potentially terminal diseases in it, but it does have other experiences that help you relate to the strangers you see every day. What kind of struggles do you have in your life? Struggles that make you human, make you closer to others who may appear different in every other way? Have you experienced long periods without food or showers? How about times you felt lost, scared, lonely, or hurt? How do those experiences help you relate to someone you don’t know? Are you able to ask yourself what life must be like in their shoes? I imagine you can and do.
Those moments where you can imagine what life is like for someone else separate us from Louis in Trading Places and the rich man in Jesus’ story. Compassion, caring and action, all in the name of God, through our life experience. Psalm 146 says that God gives food to the hungry, sets the prisoners free, watches over strangers. We, as children of God, are the hands of God acting in the world to do those things.
There may be great chasms dividing us. Differences in income, race, appearance, gender, age, social class DO affect how we treat one another. But we don’t have to wait til death to realize we all experience joy and sorrow, we all are human, trying to get by and be happy.
As the first letter to Timothy says, pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, gentleness. Those of us who live richly, with an abundance of food at our table, time in our lives, or energy in our bodies, let us be generous and ready to share. For perhaps, through our own struggles, we can imagine what those with diminished strength, time or energy might be going through. May God bless us on our journey together. Amen.
Luke 16:19-31
'There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. And at his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, who longed to satisfy his hunger with what fell from the rich man's table; even the dogs would come and lick his sores. The poor man died and was carried away by the angels to be with Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried. In Hades, where he was being tormented, he looked up and saw Abraham far away with Lazarus by his side. He called out, "Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am in agony in these flames." But Abraham said, "Child, remember that during your lifetime you received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner evil things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in agony. Besides all this, between you and us a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who might want to pass from here to you cannot do so, and no one can cross from there to us." He said, "Then, father, I beg you to send him to my father's house— for I have five brothers—that he may warn them, so that they will not also come into this place of torment." Abraham replied, "They have Moses and the prophets; they should listen to them." He said, "No, father Abraham; but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent." He said to him, "If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced even if someone rises from the dead." '
Trading places. We all have dreamt of it. What would it be like to live someone else’s life? Just look at the movies out there. For example, mother and daughter want to trade lives in the movie Freaky Friday… The mother asks wasn’t life easier as a teenager? No responsibilities, no worries… And the daughter thinks don’t parents have all the freedom to do whatever they want? But life is not as simple as that. Every life has its own burdens to bear, worries to preoccupy minds. Yet, even during those times we wish to live a different life, there are some lives we don’t wish for. I’ve never met anyone who wishes for a life lived in pain, loneliness or hunger. Those are things we wish to NOT have, so why would we want to think about what it’s like for the man asking for food at the busy street corner? Why would we want to think about a woman struggling for breath in her hospital bed? Why would we want to think about the family evicted from their homes with no where to go? These are not the lives we want to dream about. Well, some might say, because God tells us to… Jesus tells us to, even Paul tells us to. But let’s be honest here, do we always do what we’re told to do? I can tell you for sure I don’t, and in the story Jesus told the rich man didn’t follow Moses or the prophet’s advice very well, either. Even if I did listen to the advice of Jesus, would I even know how to begin imagining what life is like for someone living in a refugee camp in Africa or someone living in prison for a life sentence? I’m not sure I really can. Until I live in someone else’s shoes, I have no idea how hard or how joyous her life may be.
There’s a movie from the 80s some of you might remember, called Trading Places. It has Dan Aykroyd and Eddie Murphy in it. Aykroyd’s character, Louis Winthrop the Third, is a born into wealth commodities broker while Murphy’s character, Billy Ray Valentine, plays a man begging on the streets for money, pretending to be a legless war hero to improve his chances for help. At the start of the movie, the expensively dressed Louis thinks the worst of the scruffy-looking Billy Ray. When they run into each other on the sidewalk, Louis assumes Billy ray was trying to steal his briefcase, calls for the police and presses charges. All Billy Ray was guilty of was trying to help Louis stand and hand him his briefcase. The next day, because of the scheming of two men in power at Louis’ firm, Louis and Billy Ray unknowingly and unwillingly switch places. Billy Ray is offered a job in the brokerage firm and given Louis’s house to live in and servant to work for him. Louis is accused of a crime he didn’t commit, goes to jail, becomes disowned by his friends, and is forced to beg for the help of a prostitute to find a place to sleep and food to eat. I would imagine that for Billy Ray, this turn of events was a dream come true. He surely must have thought what life would be like with all that abundance around him. But did Louis ever dream of becoming accused, abandoned and hungry? Probably not.
The story Jesus shares in Luke 16 is also a story about switching places. A rich man who, after his death, lives for the first time in pain, loneliness and thirst. And a poor man who after suffering his whole life, receives the comfort of being with Abraham after death. I imagine that as long as the rich man had his wealth, he never truly considered what life would be like without his fine linen and sumptuous feasts. I know that when my cupboards are full, it’s hard for me to remember those whose cupboards are empty. When I’m at the store contemplating whether to get cheddar or Monterrey jack cheese, I’m not thinking about people who would think the leftovers starting to mold in my fridge were a feast they’d cherish. So, if we have a hard time following God and Jesus just as the rich man and his brothers had following Moses and the prophets, are we then, like the rich man, doomed to never understand how those around us may be suffering?
There is another way we are reminded of the suffering other’s may be going through. Our own life experience. When I underwent some tests for a potentially terminal condition and waited 6 months to hear a doctor say I wasn’t going to die, I began to understand what others with illnesses that are or may become terminal go through. The agony of waiting, not knowing, feeling like the doctors were giving me the run-around, when really, the doctors were waiting, just like me. And the re-occurring fear that every follow up check will reveal my problems have come back. My experience does not mean I understand everything a woman with breast cancer goes through, or a man with Parkinson’s goes through… but it does mean that I don’t ignore their struggle. It means I ask myself more carefully what it must be like in their shoes. Your life experience may not have potentially terminal diseases in it, but it does have other experiences that help you relate to the strangers you see every day. What kind of struggles do you have in your life? Struggles that make you human, make you closer to others who may appear different in every other way? Have you experienced long periods without food or showers? How about times you felt lost, scared, lonely, or hurt? How do those experiences help you relate to someone you don’t know? Are you able to ask yourself what life must be like in their shoes? I imagine you can and do.
Those moments where you can imagine what life is like for someone else separate us from Louis in Trading Places and the rich man in Jesus’ story. Compassion, caring and action, all in the name of God, through our life experience. Psalm 146 says that God gives food to the hungry, sets the prisoners free, watches over strangers. We, as children of God, are the hands of God acting in the world to do those things.
There may be great chasms dividing us. Differences in income, race, appearance, gender, age, social class DO affect how we treat one another. But we don’t have to wait til death to realize we all experience joy and sorrow, we all are human, trying to get by and be happy.
As the first letter to Timothy says, pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, gentleness. Those of us who live richly, with an abundance of food at our table, time in our lives, or energy in our bodies, let us be generous and ready to share. For perhaps, through our own struggles, we can imagine what those with diminished strength, time or energy might be going through. May God bless us on our journey together. Amen.
Friday, May 11, 2007
I'm back...
Well, kinda. I lost my password and my login for the longest time... and was too stupid to follow the breadcrumbs blogger put out for me. I think it was a mental block... anyway... I put a restriction on my myspace page (and blog), so if you're not on my friends list, you can't read my ramblings. sorry. i'll think about writing some stuff on here as well. right now, i'm off to do my 3rd and hopefully last revision of my thesis.