Proper 22C + A love that serves that changes lives + 10.6.13

M. Campbell-Langdell

All Santos, Oxnard

(Lam 1:1-6, Ps. 137; 2 Tim 1:1-14; Luke 17:5-10)

I think this is what our cats think of us when we get back from working all day and feed them: “You worthless slaves; you have done only what you ought to have done!" Because what are we doing? Nothing more than what is expected of us. We care for them, feed them, play with them, bring them to the vet, and brush their coats to prevent hairballs. Is that so much to do? Yes, but is the work that is expected of our relationship with our cats as their owners. And that’s like all of our relationships with others, right? Parents have expectations of their children, but also vice versa. Today's readings deal with relationships, from disconsolate daughter Zion, abandoned by those who love her in Lamentations, to Psalm 137 in which the people of Israel strive not to forget Zion and God, to Timothy in which Paul reminds Timothy not only of his relationship with his grandmother Lois and his mother Eunice, but also that Paul depends on Timothy, to the gospel in which Jesus says we are like servants who only do what we have to do.  All the readings today speak of the relationships we have – with each other, and each of us with God.

Speaking of this passage in Luke, commentator Manuel Villalobos Mendoza says that Jesus does two things - he talks about faith using the metaphor of a mustard seed, which he says does not mean that our faith produces magic, but that faith lived out in ordinary lives such as in our relationships with our family and even pets, is what helps us to make ordinary life extraordinary.[1]

Just the mention of slavery in the next section of the gospel reminds us that we human beings have very bad tendencies sometimes. We have a history of slavery that neither Jesus nor St. Paul ended during their time. But the second thing that Villalobos Mendoza says is that although Jesus did not abolish slavery, the Jesus movement began the process of thinking about our life together in a different way.[2]  This eventually led to enough cracks in the system of slavery that the system was abolished.

Many notice of one of the readings today is Psalm 137, a beautiful and sad psalm about the time when the people of Israel were captive in Babylon. But the psalms show the good, the bad and the ugly of us as humans trying to have a relationship with God, and that last verse hits us as such a shock: “Happy shall he be who takes your little ones,
and dashes them against the rock (Ps.137:9)!” How difficult this is.  How is it a part of the Bible, our sacred text?   That some people of faith had such violent thoughts, and that these thoughts are part of the Bible, is difficult to reckon with. But it's true, because the Bible is a document that contains God’s truth, but it was written by us poor humans, and we all at times have these thoughts that we must master with self-discipline and the power of love. We have a story that pains us at times, but we keep trying.

The new film "The Butler" is about an African-American butler who served in the White House for several U.S. presidents over the course of decades.  It raises the difficult history not only of slavery, but also of race relations in our country. It reminds us that even after slavery, African-American people and others of color were not completely free in the US. But it also shows how black domestic servants had a very important role in changing race relations in our country. At one point, the son of the butler is working with Martin Luther King, Jr., and he mentions with shame that his father is a domestic worker.  Martin Luther King, Jr. says this is good, and at first, the son thinks that he’s being made fun of, but MLK Jr. says no, that's good, because I due to their hard work and faithfulness, domestic workers showed that people of color were hardworking and faithful, which challenged some white peoples’ the stereotypes.[3] This perspective is big for the butler’s son.  It opens his eyes because he did not respect his father’s work, which he saw as subservient.   From this moment, he begins to see that in his father’s relationships with the presidents of the United States, he has done important work for equality in the U.S. even if he has not been an overt activist.

Having read the letter to Philemon a few weeks ago, we began to realize that, after Jesus says "I do not call you servants; I call you friends," a whole new realm of human relationships becomes possible for Christians.  Everything changes. We cannot see God in the same way - remember that in ancient times, servants could not be friends with their masters, but Jesus shows that he is the kind of master who is kind to his family. And he is a master who came to serve. Earlier in Luke, Jesus says "Blessed are those slaves whom the master finds alert when he comes; truly I tell you, he will fasten his belt and have them sit down to eat, and he will come and serve them (Luke 12:37) ." [4]

God is a God who comes to serve, so although we only do good because it is what is expected of us as his family, because of our relationship with God, we are not ashamed and we rekindle the gift that God has put in every heart. This flame is a desire to serve each other in humility, both our family and our church and community, not for reward but because it is expected of us as the sons and daughters of an all-loving God. And in this, we can continue to touch minds and hearts in our relationships with others.  Just like our pets show us a better way of being, we can show others a better way, because in showing love and compassion in our relationships, we embrace faith as we live it in ordinary life, and in so doing we infect others with our faith, making a better world in which everyone can serve and be served, sitting at the table together, living into a future together that is truly magical, truly extraordinary.

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[1] Manuel Villalobos Mendoza, “Comentario de San Lucas 17:5-10,” http://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=1839. 

[2] Ibid.

[3] Lee Daniels’ The Butler, 2013.

[4] Villalobos Mendoza reminded me of this.