Epiphany 3A + To See Christ, Construir el Reino, To Share Love + 1.26.14 (Bilingual)

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M. Campbell-Langdell+
All Santos, Oxnard
(Is. 8:23-9:3; S. 27:1, 5-13; 1 Cor. 1:10-18; Mat. 4:12-23)

“Do what you love, love what you do” is a mantra that we hear all over the place, from the Oprah magazine to a casual coffee with a friend.  Todos hemos escuchado el dicho “Haz lo que amas, ama lo que haces”, pero una escritora para la revista Slate.com dice que hay problemas con este concepto. An article posted on Slate.com by Miya Tokumitsu points out that when we say this, it devalues work and blurs the lines between the fact that meaningful work is still work and makes those who work at low-wage or low-skill jobs or simply jobs that are just jobs to them feel less than. Ella dice que tenemos que recordar que trabajo es trabajo, si lo amamos o no, y que no es algo peor si nuestra vocación no se vive en nuestro trabajo pero en otra parte de nuestra vida. Sure, you may have a job that is your calling, but Tokumitsu points out that you may also have a job and a calling, and that is okay.[1]
Esta súper si su llamado es su trabajo, pero a veces hay cosas que hacemos para ganar el sueldo y cosas que hacemos para Dios. Y el comentarista David Lose dice que nosotros los clérigos, para quien nuestro llamado es nuestro trabajo, a veces olvidamos esto.  David Lose, a Lutheran theologian, points out that clergy, whose work is and should be their vocation, often forget this aspect.  So when we see these passages in which Jesus empowers us to go out and fish for men, to spread the good news, we get all hyped up about “do what you love, love what you do,” but it could be that your fishing time is separate from your work time.  David Lose dice que no es sobre trabajo, compartir el evangelio es sobre estar en relación uno con el otro.  Lose points out that it is really less about work than about relationships, this gospel-sharing stuff.[2] Being fishers of people means that we get to build relationships, just as we do at church.  Siendo pescadores de hombres significa estar en relación, construir amistades, en la iglesia y afuera.  It means feeding and clothing people.  Significa cuidar un jardín junto, ensuciando las manos en la tierra con una sonrisa. Because when we do these things, we build something.
Which brings me to the Tower of Babel.  Lo que me trae a la Torre de Babel.
What!? ¿Qué quiero decir con esto?
Well, meditating the other day on my daily office readings, I saw the passage about the Tower of Babel again. The people said: “Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves; otherwise we shall be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.” The LORD came down to see the city and the tower, which mortals had built. And the LORD said, “Look, they are one people, and they have all one language; and this is only the beginning of what they will do; nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them (Genesis 11:4-6).” En español: “ Después dijeron: «Vengan, vamos a construir una ciudad y una torre que llegue hasta el cielo. De este modo nos haremos famosos y no tendremos que dispersarnos por toda la tierra.»  Pero el Señor bajó a ver la ciudad y la torre que los hombres estaban construyendo,  y pensó: «Ellos son un solo pueblo y hablan un solo idioma; por eso han comenzado este trabajo, y ahora por nada del mundo van a dejar de hacerlo (Génesis 11:4-6).”
Ahora, muchas veces pensamos en lo que pasa próximo. We usually think about what happens next here.  Anyone know what happens?  ¿Alguien sabe que pasa próximo? God brings all the languages into the mix.  There is confusion. Hay confusión. Y posiblemente Uds. están pensando que a veces parece un poco como Babel aquí.  And you might even think at times it seems like Babel in here! But the focus for me is: look what the people can build when we work together, all the people.  Si toda la gente trabaja juntos, pueden construir algo grande.  When we don’t let our differences confuse and confound us, but allow them to nurture a creative spark, when we remember that we are all baptized in Christ.  Cuando reconocemos que todos estamos bautizados en Cristo y cuando vemos a Cristo uno en el otro, we build something special.
Just listen to the people we will recognize later.  Justo escuchen a todas las personas que vamos a dar gracias más tarde.  Look at the wall of photos of all the fun and ministry that we have done this year that Mabel and Mario put up yesterday. Ven el mural de las fotos de todas las cosas divertidas y llenos del amor de Dios que hemos hecho en el año pasado en el salón parroquial.
And I see glimpses of something deeper too, of you seeing Christ in each other.  Veo que ven a Jesús uno en el otro cuando se toman la mano durante el Padrenuestro.  I will admit, I have peeked out when you hold hands during the Lord’s Prayer, or other times, and it makes me tear up a bit.  Me hace un poco emocional porque veo el Cuerpo de Cristo unido allí. Another example is when folks tell me that they feel loved here.  También otro ejemplo es que varios me han dicho que sienten amados aquí.  And if God is love, that feels pretty real. 
There’s Jesus, right there. Si Dios es el amor, sentir amado es casi lo más importante en una iglesia, así que esto me hace muy feliz. You may have your own moments of seeing Jesus in each other. Uds. posiblemente tienen sus propios momentos de ver a Cristo uno en el otro.
But the point is, Jesus calls us to be fishers of people—to build relationships and something greater. Esto es el llamado de cada uno. This is our real call as Christians. Jesús nos llama a ser pescadores de hombres, de construir relaciones de amistad y de algo más grande—no solo una iglesia.  Not just a church, but a kingdom. El reino de Dios. The Kingdom of God.
Let’s get started. ¡Empezamos ya! 


[1] Miya Tokumitsu, “In the Name of Love: Elites embrace the ‘do what you love’ mantra. But it devalues work and hurts workers.” From: http://www.slate.com/articles/technology/technology/2014/01/do_what_you_love_love_what_you_do_an_omnipresent_mantra_that_s_bad_for_work.2.html (January 16, 2014).
[2] David Lose, “Fishers of People” http://www.workingpreacher.org/craft.aspx?post=3018 (January 20, 2014).

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