Proper 28C + Moral Center + 11.17.13

M. Campbell-Langdell

All Santos, Oxnard

(From: http://gruenagency.com/gruen-compass-part-2)

(Is. 65:17-25; Is. 12; 2 Thess. 3:6-13, Luke 21:5-19)

Brothers and sisters, do not be weary in doing what is right.

I do not think I am the only one here today who thinks that sometimes, living in this world is overwhelming.  I am overwhelmed, hearing about the ten thousand dead in the Philippines, about the continued struggles of so many in our midst.  Sometimes we see so much need around us that we can feel paralyzed or guilty.  We can sometimes seem so far away from that heavenly vision of Jerusalem in Isaiah 65.  “They shall not hurt or destroy on my holy mountain, says the LORD (Isaiah 65:25b).” When will we see this come to pass? Yet there are those of us who find, in the midst of the injustices of the world, the calamities that can strike, an inner compass. From where do they get their strength?

First Isaiah, or the first of the three prophets that scribed the book of Isaiah, answers: “… the LORD GOD is my strength and my might; he has become my salvation (Isaiah 12:2b).” ^[1]

I saw a good example of drawing upon inner strength in a movie I watched this past week.  It is called “The East” (2013) and, since it is a modern spy-thriller, I should make certain disclaimers—it does contain material that might be inappropriate for children.  The story centers on the protagonist, Jane, whose cover identity is Sarah Moss.  She is a spy working for a private corporation that protects multi-national corporations around the world, and who as a part of her job must infiltrate an anarchist collective to subvert the attacks that they have planned on certain big companies.  What is most pressing about the story is the process of seeing Jane wrestle with both her loyalty to her position as a spy and then her increasing sympathy for the ideals of her new friends.  She, like us, ultimately, has to make up her own mind about her course.  And the source that she looks to for guidance in this film is none other than God!  She has a cross, and holding it in one of the early scenes she says a quiet prayer: “give me the strength to do well, to not be arrogant, but to not be weak. Amen.”  And I thought, reading the second letter to the Thessalonians this week, how similar, “Brothers and sisters, do not be weary in doing what is right.”  I also thought of Jesus, telling his disciples not to make up their minds in advance, but to listen to the Spirit’s wisdom which far surpasses our own.
So, how do we, like this character Jane, strive to find our moral center in the midst of the changes and chances in this life?  One answer is prayer.  In prayer, we can connect to God to look for guidance in what we should do, and having a practice of daily prayer, be it a quiet time in the morning or before bed, be it reading “Forward Day by Day” or the Daily Office, can give us a foundation to find guidance and strength for the journey that comes from outside of ourselves, to leave a door open in our soul for the winds of the Spirit to blow in. Today’s collect, or “prayer of the day,” says that we must “read, mark and inwardly digest” the Holy Scriptures.  And I feel that reading, praying over, and otherwise “inwardly digesting” scripture (love that image) can be tremendously helpful over time.  As you take time to read and delve, you begin to build into yourself a kind of moral compass that will rarely lead you astray.  

But it is so important not to look to scripture on the surface, not to, as some call it, “cherry pick” certain verses that just feel good, without looking for a deeper meaning.  We also must be so careful not to use texts for easy judgment without delving deeper.  The 2^nd Thessalonians passage from today is a good example.  At first glance, the text seems clear.  Don’t be lazy.  Those who don’t work don’t eat.  It would be very simple to hear this as a very cut-and-dry statement that gives all the moral authority to those who work and casts moral scorn on those who don’t.  Taken very literally, this passage might lead some to say that social welfare programs such as food stamps and social security disability payments should be done away with.  And yet I believe this interpretation would be very, very wrong.  Can we truly imagine St. Paul, or Jesus, whom he proclaimed and followed, and whom we also attempt to proclaim and follow, turning away someone who really was unable to work, leaving him or her hungry?  I certainly cannot. In fact, Jesus makes it clear that when we feed the hungry and clothe the naked, we are really feeding and clothing him.  So, to find our moral center in this passage we must do the work of delving deeper. 

What I see here is not a demand that those unable to work, work, but rather a description of an expectation of Christian culture.  If, as I have sometimes heard, there is a sense in American culture that there is “a duty to be cheerful,” then perhaps in Christian culture there is a “duty to pitch in.”  This is part of our sense of communal consciousness-that no part of the body is complete if another part is lacking, and that no part of the body of Christ is useless.  I think this church “gets” this idea of pitching in really well.  Folks here, once they have been here any length of time, tend to get roped in to some ministry or other.  And we love it!  Whether it’s the choir, Bread of Life, or something else, I have seen and heard of folks who have barely begun attending being included in one of our vibrant ministries.  And even folks who might feel that they cannot “work” in the traditional sense have a role and a purpose here, whether that is in being super active and hands-on, or whether that is just in showing up and praying alongside us and being part of the community.  Whatever it is you do, you are special to us, loved as a part of this community.  That’s what I hear St. Paul talking about.  If we are to learn anything, it is that everyone pitches in, but the way that he or she does so is according to the ability of each saint, each member of the community of faith.

And working together in community is another way we get a sense of moral compass or direction.  Because our individual prayer, our grounding in scripture, then combines with our sense of tradition in our community and gives us guidance.  When the fire happened about a month back, I was there with our family that evening, and that week, parishioners began responding, not just in prayer but in concrete ways.  Then, the Red Cross really stepped up for a while. And just this week as I have been back, I have been amazed to hear how others in our community have collaborated with MICOP, the Mixteco group, and Child Development Resources Center, to help not only our own affected family but all the families affected.  Through prayer, scripture and community we can find guidance.  We can take a step, and we can be undaunted. 
So my prayer, this week, is to not cease in doing good, and to listen to the prayer from “The East.” I pray for the strength to do well.  And if I am called to something, I ask God to help me not to do it arrogantly, for that is not how we win the race, and in fact it can keep us from hearing what the Spirit is telling us to do in the moment.  But I will try to be strong, because each of us can do something. And as a community we can do a lot, and already do, to make the world more loving and more just.  And in this endurance, we have a promise.  We will gain our souls!  We will see that holy mountain of the LORD, that vision of abundance and mercy.  Amen.

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[1] Susan Ackerman, “Isaiah Introduction,” New Interpreter’s Bible (2003, Abingdon), 955-957.