Sermon: Put on Christ

Putting on Christ
A Sermon for Sunday, September 7th, 2014
By Father John R. Smith

Readings:
Lesson: Exodus 12:1-14
Psalm: Psalm 149
Epistle: Romans 13:8-14
The Holy Gospel: Matthew 18:15-20

Last week at coffee hour someone said they had trouble understanding my sermon.  (This is not too surprising for me, because I have trouble with my sermons too!) Her question:  What are we to do about the violence in the world?  Are we supposed to sit back and let violent people kill others and us?  Is this what God wants?

I was truly thankful for the questions, and, given the person's discomfort, caused by me, I thought coffee hour was as good a place as any to begin to address them! 

Here goes:  God is Sovereign over all life:  Only God gives life and only God can take life away.  God does not want us to have our lives or the lives of our loved ones taken away by violence, or, for us to do violence to anyone else, including the violent.  Like the Passover story from the Exodus reading today, God loves his chosen people, they have been suffering as slaves at the hands of the Egyptians, so before the final and tenth plague, God gives them directions for a meal of a perfect lamb and the smearing of the blood of that lamb on the door posts and lintels of their homes, so that, when the Angel of Death sweeps over Egypt it will “Passover” the houses of the Israelites and they will live.  Christians have been given a meal where Christ, the Lamb of God, saves us by his Blood.  “Alleluia, Christ our Passover has been sacrificed for us.”  God has a plan for saving the world, and is working this plan right this minute, but it helps so much if we choose to seek and follow it.

What is “it?” God has invested one hundred percent of this plan in Jesus, his Son's life, death, and resurrection.  For us, the most operative part is Resurrection.  As St. Paul put it:  If Christ is not raised from the dead, then our faith is in vain.  Period.  When we, as followers of Christ, contemplate death, whether natural, from disease, or from violence, we have to keep the hope of Resurrection foremost in our mind.  This is what I prayed most recently in the dramatic beheading of James and Scott.

With whatever faith we have, even a mustard seed's worth, it will always comes down to this:  Do I believe that Jesus was truly raised from the dead and that I too, believing in him, will be raised from the dead as well?

Coffee hour conversations go all over the place.  But as we pursued this difficult subject of violence I think we both came to the realization that it did all come down to firm belief in the Resurrection.  That Christ rose from the dead, and promised that those who believe in Him will also conquer death, becomes the great equalizer when someone has a gun pointed at your head or a knife on your throat.  “Don't be afraid of those who can kill the body, but can't kill the soul,” scripture says [Matthew 10:28].

Truth is, I said to my friend, if I faced that trial I  probably would be afraid and even XXXX in my pants,  but in that moment of testing, I hope I could persevere in my faith in Jesus and his resurrection.  I hope that I had, like Romans says today, “Put on Christ.”

“Again, truly I tell you, if two of you agree on earth about anything you ask, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven.  For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them.” [Matthew 18:20]

I don't think it would work if my coffee hour companion and I agreed to ask that we win the lottery and give the money to the church, but what we did ask for:   an ever-deepening faith in Jesus' resurrection and the ability to “love our neighbors as ourselves,” doing no wrong to a neighbor far away or near.  I think the Father will answer that prayer.  Nothing could be clearer in these confusing and violent times than the admonition to “Owe no one anything, except to love one another.”  Of course this is Jesus' “agape” love that lays down one's life for another and not the “sweet-nothing” variety.

Let's end these thoughts with a prayer by St. John Chrysostom that often concludes Morning Prayer each day:

Almighty God, you have given us grace at this time with one accord to make our common supplication to you; and you have promised through your well-beloved Son that when two or three are gathered together in his Name you will be in the midst of them: Fulfill now, O Lord, our desires and petitions as may be best for us; granting us in this world knowledge of your truth, and in the age to come life everlasting.

Amen.

Sermon: Blame It On God

Blame it on God
A Sermon for Sunday, August 31st, 2014
By Father John R. Smith

Readings:
Lesson: Exodus 3:1-15
Psalm: Psalm 105:1-6, 23-26, 45b
Epistle: Romans 12:9-21
The Holy Gospel: Matthew 16:21-28

Last week in the Gospel Peter got the Gold Star from Jesus, his teacher.  How? In Caesarea Philippi, a royal city in Galilee named after Emperor Caesar and Philip the Tetrarch, Jesus asked Peter “Who do you say that I am?”  And in this city, where, if you asked anyone on the street, “Who is the Son of God?” they would reply, “Why, Caesar is, of course.”  That was one of Caesar’s first and greatest titles:  Caesar was the Son of God.  Peter got the Gold Star because he with full faith in the middle of a society that had a completely different opinion of who was God, he says “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”

But Gold Stars can lose their stickiness and fall off pretty easily.  Following directly last week’s Gospel, after Peter’s faith-filled confession, Jesus begins to tell his disciples that he must go up to Jerusalem, be tried at the hands of men, and be put to death.  When Peter objects and protests that this cannot be allowed to happen to his Lord, after all, Jesus is supposed to be doing the punishing of the evildoers, not the other way around.  So, Jesus, in the strongest possible words, calls “Gold Star” Peter, Satan:  “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; for you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.”

(I would like to think that James Foley, as he was kneeling there, about to be beheaded, was setting his mind on divine things, on Jesus, in whom he always believed, who gave his life and was raised from the dead.)

We have to know the purposes of God in whom we believe.

It is not divine violence or wrath that Jesus wants for us who sin, but release from the human violence of this world.  And the only way to be released from that violence is to believe in Him and follow his teaching.

Satan was behind Jesus’ eventual death, so much more so than the fearful leaders at the time.  Peter senses this.  Peter is against Satan’s plan.  You can’t blame him for objecting to Jesus’ desire to face the Cross in Jerusalem.  Peter still doesn’t understand what Jesus is about.  He doesn’t want Jesus, The Messiah, to be identified as a victim or scapegoat. This is all too close for Peter, if anyone is going to be a victim, let them be at a distance from us.  Peter wants Jesus to be a victorious God to crush the enemies of Israel, using violence if necessary.

Peter stands in the long tradition of belief which says that God will punish all evildoers (and, unfortunately, we add:  I’ll help you punish them Lord!) that even persists to this day, helped along by even the best translators of the bible.  People do bad things (We think:  I’m a sinner too, but I don’t do anything “that” bad) and God is the Punisher.  For example, in today’s reading from the Letter to the Romans where it states  “Do not repay anyone evil for evil, but take thought for what is noble in the sight of all.  If it is possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.  Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave room for the wrath of God for it is written, ‘Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.”

What strikes me about the translation “wrath of God” (and I mentioned this before) is that no place in the Greek text is there “of God” (tou Theou).  It’s not there, nor is it implied in any way.  In other words “wrath” is what human beings do to other human beings, not brought about by God at all.  The weight behind this translation probably stems from reading the Hebrew Bible where “vengeance” from God was called down upon Israel’s enemies.  Sometimes we blame the violence in the world on God as necessary to bring protection and peace.  We feel better when we think in terms of “Sacred Violence,” violence that God sanctions against those we judge as evil, but God is not for anything that disregards the sacredness of life.  If we are going to continue with our notion of Sacred Violence, hurting others in God’s Name, thinking we’re doing God’s will, God lets us, and the “wrath” that ensues is wrath that we humans bring upon ourselves is our own doing.

Why is this, the case?  We should pick it up loud and clear in the question of Moses to the Lord at the burning Bush:  Who shall I tell the people you are?  And God said to Moses, tell them,  “I AM WHO I AM.” God is the verb “to be,” essence, life itself.  God is all about this life, learning to live with others, listening to their needs even if we disagree or have another take on the issue, trying to meet their legitimate needs as we are able.  Giving human beings, who receive their life from God alone, real respect and resist calling them names, refusing to hear them, and cutting off any dialogue that can lead to peace and away from the sin of violence. And, as the Eucharistic Prayer says: When we became subject to evil and death, God, in his mercy, sent Jesus Christ, your only and eternal Son, to share our human nature, to live and die as one of us, to reconcile us to you, the God and Father of all.  God is Father of all, not just some.

So the Good News is, if we accept it, is that God is one hundred percent into LIFE and, when death enters the picture of our human existence, God had a plan to bring life out of death manifest in the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, our Lord.  May we dedicate ourselves to this LIFE and, when we die, be raised up with Jesus. 

Amen!

Announcements for Week Ending September 21st

Guatemala Project 2014 Team Reports, Tea and Textiles – Sat. Sept. 20^th, at 4 pm in the Parish Center. Free. Summer team volunteers share timely stories and photos from rural Guatemala, while you enjoy tea, coffee, jamaica (hibiscus-flower punch) and tea-time treats. Among the presenters are medical students, nurses, a doctor and generalists,including a UA senior Taylor Nash and Coordinator Ila Abernathy.

 Newly-acquired Maya textiles available for purchase. Please join us and welcome Project guests to this public program. To help, contact Ila at 623-3063 or ilaa@mindspring.com.

Ενορία ζωή σας προσκαλεί να πάτε ελληνικά

Parish Life invites you once again to go Greek!

Join us on Thursday, September 25 at 6:30 pm

Fronimos Greek Café

3242 E. Speedway Blvd

(enter from the walgreen’s parking lot (in the rear)

east of country club and follow the signs)

                                       menu pricing ranges from $6 to $16m per entré

 

Saturday, October 4^th ~ Forum on “Global Climate Change ~ A Religious Response”. Top experts on the subject attending. 9:00 am – 3pm. Free will offering for lunch. 8:30 am Mass (optional) All are invited. Stay tuned!

Sunday October 5^th ~ Episcopal School Sunday and St. Francis Sunday with Blessing of the Animals at the combined 9:30 AM Mass. (No Mass at 9am and 10:15 am)

Last Minute Updates from the Parish Office

As many of you know, or may not, have heard, Steve Coulter has passed away. His funeral is THIS Saturday at 11am. Steve will be sorely missed.  Steve was so dedicated to St. Michael's and may other venues. We will miss his infectious smile and being ready to help at any given moment in any way.  May Steve's Soul and the soul's of all the faithful departed rest in peace.  Amen

_________

Looking ahead:

THIS SUNDAY:  The Social Action Committee will meet immediately following the 10:15 AM Mass.  The meeting will take place in the Womble Library.

Tuesday, September 16: Taize at 6:45 pm

Wednesday, September 17:  Bible Discussionfacilitated by Peter Schmidt continues at 10 am in the Womble Library. All are invited.

      Also on Wednesday the 17th. ~ ECW Women will have their Annual Fall Pot Luck.Just bring a dish to share, all ladies of the Parish are invited. During the meeting this coming year's activities will be planned.  Hope to see you there for fellowship, lively conversation and good food !

       Wednesday evening at 6:30 pm the Women's Bible Study will meet at 6:30 pm in the Parish Center. All women are invited to join us for video and lively conversation while learning about the Psalms.

       Sunday, September 28th ~ Celebration of Michaelmas.  One Mass only at 9:30 amfollowed by a "Festive Brunch" in the Parish Centered prepared by Chef Andy Bruno. Join us for the Holy Eucharist at 9:30 AM. All are invited to join us to celebrate the Feast Day of St. Michael and All Angels!

        Stay tuned!

 Peace,

Nancy

*****

Also: Karen Blocher, the editor of The Messenger, is out of town arranging her brother's funeral and burial. Parishioner Carrie Harris has kindly agreed to guest edit this week's issue. Thanks, Carrie! Please contact Senior Warden John Hsieh, Carrie herself or the church office for Carrie's email address to submit your article.

Announcements For Week Ending September 6

Taizé is held Tuesday September 2nd in the church at 6:45PM Come to Taize service of Prayer, Readings and Meditation. All are invited to join is in this quiet and peaceful 45 minutes as the day closes.

Many thanks to all those who continue to generously donate to the small Central American children traveling with their mothers. The numbers of recent border crossers have declined considerably. Give to the Florence Project to ensure that unaccompanied immigrant children have legal support a they face immigration judges. About 500 of these children are still detained in Arizona on any given day. There is no public defender system in immigration. The Florence Immigrant and Refugee Rights Project is the only organization that provides free legal services to unaccompanied children, along with the thousands of men and women, who are detained by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Arizona. The staff from the Florence Project are available to speak with churches who want to assist unaccompanied children with social and legal services. Address is PO Box 654, Florence, Arizona 85132. http://www.firrp.org.

Parish Life invites you once again to go Greek! Join us on Thursday, September 25 at 6:30 PM at Fronimos Greek Café, 3242 E. Speedway Blvd. (Enter from the Walgreen’s parking lot at the southeast corner of Speedway and Country Club and follow the signs.) Menu prices range from $6 to $16 per entree.

Sermon: Shiphrah and Puah in Tucson: White Privilege and the Power of One

Shiphrah and Puah in Tucson: White Privilege and the Power of One
A Sermon for Sunday, August 24th, 2014
By Mother Clare Yarborough

Readings:
Lesson: Exodus 1:8-2:10    
Psalm: Psalm 124
Epistle: Romans 12:1-8    
The Holy Gospel: Matthew 16:13-20

1.    The first I heard about the news out of Ferguson was from a cryptic remark on Facebook made by Mike Kinman, dean of Christ Cathedral in St. Louis, Mo on August 10. It said, “Sometimes events happen that compel you to tear up your sermon and start over.  Yesterday’s shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson is one of those events.”

At the time I sort of assumed that this was a local kerfluffle in St. Louis that needed to be addressed but would quickly subside.  Mike cares for his community and he’s in the forefront of trying to make systemic change for the better in St. Louis and its neighboring communities.  (Not surprisingly, he’s a St. Michael’s Eagle.)  So I thought it was natural that, of course, he would tear up his already written sermon to address a local concern—that’s the mark of a good pastor.

It wasn’t until the next day that I realized that the shooting of Michael Brown was not a small local incident, but one more chapter in a much larger story that implicates every one of us in this country. 

Another unarmed black youth shot by a white police officer in the name of self-defense.  His body lay on the street for hours, his mother prevented from going to him as it was a “crime scene”. 

You can imagine the rage that erupted as a result in that mostly black community with the mostly white police force.  You can also imagine the fear in the police force, the defensive reaction to the rage that resulted in the riot gear, the tear gas, the rubber bullets and the sound horns.

This, (of course), produced more rage, then more fear, and even more violence. 

2.    There came a time in Egypt where a king came to power who did not know Joseph.  And he said to his people, “Look, the Israelite people are more numerous and more powerful than we. Come, let us deal shrewdly with them, or they will increase and, in the event of war, join our enemies and fight against us and escape from the land.”

Bring out the riot gear!

At first the fear simply led to enslavement.  Pharaoh needed builders and the Hebrew slaves built, first Pithom and then Ramses.  They became more numerous.  Pharaoh’s fear grew and so he instructed the midwives Shiphrah and Puah: “When you act as midwives to the Hebrew women, and see them on the birthstool, if it is a boy, kill him; but if it is a girl, she shall live.”

The Scripture says that these two women feared God more than Pharaoh, and so they did not do what they were commanded.  They let the boys live and became the first non-violent “conscientious objectors” of Scripture.

When questioned, they adopted a nonchalant shrug: “Oh, it’s those Hebrew women, they aren’t like the Egyptian women, they are vigorous and have their babies before we even arrive!”  Thus, Pharaoh’s fear is intensified—the Hebrews aren’t like us.  The Hebrews are the other. 

3.    Egypt and the Israelites.  Europeans and Native Americans.  Turkey and the Armenians.  The Nazis and the Jews.  The Killing Fields of Cambodia.  Montt and the Ixil Mayans.  The Hutu and Tutsi of Rwanda. 

The history of genocide is a long and bloody one.  Although there are some overall patterns of how a single population is first defined, then marginalized and then systematically persecuted—each genocide seems to leave its own distinctive mark.  Some erupt almost spontaneously, such as Rwanda and Cambodia, others develop gradually over time—moving so slowly that it’s hard to actually identify the Tipping Point into wholescale mass slaughter.

Not every genocide has a Kristallnacht. 
But all usually have a Ferguson, and not just one, many.  There has to be a well-defined other to be feared.

Ferguson is Ferguson because it is not an isolated incident.  Mike Brown is not the only young unarmed black man shot because of being in the wrong place at the
wrong time, mouthing off the
wrong words to the
wrong person. 

This has happened too many times.  Too many times this has been the end result of a situation that could have been resolved in so many other ways.

Except time and time again we have the same end result because that we have a
•    a history of oppression and persecution,
•    A history of threats and intimidation
•    A history of fear that has created a deadly dance of violence between black and white in our country.

4.    We are invited to a different dance. 

Instead of dancing with Pharaoh, we have the opportunity to partner up with Shiphrah and Puah and dance with God.

So how do we join in when it looks as though the dance floor is in another part of the country? 
How do we know in fact whether we are dancing to the right tune when there are conflicting reports about what actually happened at the time of the shooting, and its aftermath?  How do we know we are picking up the right rhythm to this dance?

First, I think we have to realize that whether we realize it or not, we are on the same dance floor regardless of whether we find ourselves in Ferguson or Tucson.  White privilege looks the same across the country.  It’s so embedded in our cultural DNA that most of the time we aren’t even aware of it—
•    We turn on the tv and most of the people will look like us. 
•    We don’t have to scrounge to find toys for our kids that have the same skin color or eye color. 
•    We can walk along the sidewalk without hearing car doors lock as we approach.  Or women nervously cross the street. 
•    We can even pretend that white privilege doesn’t exist because if we choose, we can surround ourselves pretty easily with other white people.

And so we benefit from the same set of circumstances that created a Ferguson.  And we, like it or not, are on the same dance floor.  The first step to doing anything about it is to recognize the privilege and the fact that we did not earn it, we were born with it.  We can feel a little guilty about having something we did nothing to obtain—but quite frankly, guilt is useless if it does not spur us on to action.  So we are obligated to acknowledge the advantage of white privilege and the power it gives us, and then use it to act.

And the first action we can take with this privilege and power is to SHUT UP and LISTEN.  We need to listen to the voices of those who live in other realities.

•    Listen to the mothers who have to tell their sons NOT to run down the sidewalk lest it attract too much attention from the authorities.  Listen when they tell you how their hearts are in the mouths every time they hear of a shooting until they see their own sons come through the door safe and sound.
•    Listen to the youths who all too often are stopped by police just because they look as though they might not have a valid driver’s license. 
•    Listen to the young women who leave history class during a movie on the Civil Rights Movement because the police are turning fire hoses on men who look just like their dads and granddads. 

When we feel their pain and their anger and their fear, then it is easier to replace our fear with compassion and empathy.

Then we are ready to dance with God.  We will be ready to stand up and witness that we human beings are ALWAYS going to have more that unites us rather than divides us.  We will be ready to act on the truth that there is no “other” when we are all children of God.

We do not have to journey to Ferguson to make this point.  There are ample opportunities to witness here in Tucson: ample opportunities to listen to stories of oppression with compassion and empathy! 

5.     Shiphrah and Puah were not exactly considered privileged by the standards of Egypt—not when compared to Pharaoh.  But they were able to make their own moral decisions and act accordingly within the sphere of their influence.  The moment came when their sphere of influence coincided with Pharaoh’s interests.  Where before they had limited power, in the birth room they had all the power.  

They chose compassion over fear.  Life over Death. 

And the boys lived.

None of us know when we will be called to moral action.  We do know for sure is that we have the power to choose: compassion over fear, God over Pharaoh. 

There may be more Fergusons in our future as a nation.  What we can do here is our best to keep our Tucson Compassionate, Kind, and Free of Fear.

We can be the Shiphrah and Puahs of the Old Pueblo—

and do what we can to keep our Michael Browns safe so that they can go home to their mothers at the end of the day.

AMEN.   

Casa Maria and Other Notes from the Parish Office

CASA MARIA News: The Last Gasp of Summer!

Friday Aug 22nd - it's time again for Casa Maria sandwich making!
Kitchen opens at 5pm, come anytime after that!
St. Michael's Parish Center, 602 N. Wilmot
BRING FRIENDS!!  COME join the fun!

Please bring 2 OR 3 dozen peeled eggs  We NEED extra eggs!

We need medium sized boxes for transporting the lunches.
Fruit boxes from Costco or banana boxes are ideal.

YOU ALL have been so FAITHFUL since April! THANKS ARE NOT ENOUGH! In Sept we'll have student help.

JILL will deliver the sandwiches.**  (Thanks to KARL for July!)
NEXT CASA MARIA: FRIDAY SEPT 19TH. Mark your calendars for 2014. Casa Maria is every 4 weeks...
Aug 22nd * Sept 19th * Oct 17th * Nov 14th * Dec 12th

IN MEMORIAM: STEVE COULTER

Some of you may know that our faithful driver for Casa Maria, Steve Coulter passed away on July 31st. Steve recruited volunteer drivers and proposed a yearly schedule to share the delivery responsibility so lunches would be arrive at Casa Maria promptly. Steve also served as Junior Warden at St. Michael's for many years, keeping the buildings sound and dry and the landscaping beautiful!

Steve was scheduled to deliver the lunches to Casa Maria this Friday. We are blessed that his loving and caring wife Jill has taken upon herself to do what Steve would have done. Thanks to Jill, to Steve and to God!

Steve's life will be celebrated on Saturday Sept 13th, 11 AM at St. Michael and all Angels Church.

PS. If you would like to lighten the load by becoming a driver once or twice a year, please let us know and we will add you to the schedule!  

PARISH LIFE: AN ITALIAN NIGHT BEFORE OUR GREEK NIGHT!

Please note:  The Parish Life gathering at Fronimo's has been changed to THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 28TH AT 6:30.

THIS THURSDAY.....AUGUST 28, Parish life invites you to Viro's Real Italian Bakery, 8301 East 22nd Street, at 6:30 pm.  A special Spaghetti Dinner will be served.  Cost is $7 per person.  Join us for good food, lively conversation and fellowship. All are invited.  Sign-up sheets are i n the back of church.

SUNDAY FUNDRAISER: A MEXICAN LUNCH!

This Sunday, after the 10:15 am Mass, you are invited to a Mexican Lunch of chicken enchilada, beans and rice. The meal is prepared by Maria, a member of Mision San Miguel, to raise money for past-due house payments.  Several months ago, Maria's husband fell from a roof and broke eight ribs and his spine in three places and is unable to work.  They have three children and their son was confirmed here last year. Maria is working three jobs in order to keep their family afloat.  They are behind three months in their house payments.  The lunch is a free will offering.  The suggested donation is $5.  (Checks may be made out to Mision San Miguel with "Maria" place in the memo.)  Lunch will be served from 11 AM until 3 PM in the Parish Center. All are invited!