Proper 8 C + No excuses, follow + 6.29.25
M. Campbell-Langdell
All Saints, Oxnard
(2 Kings 2:1-2, 6-14; Psalm 77:1-2, 11-20; Galatians 5:1,13-25; Luke 9:51-62)
Good morning!
Thank you for welcoming me back and for your support of my time of rest and
renewal during my sabbatical this past six weeks. It was not only a time of
refreshment, but also a time to dig into my academic project. I am much closer
to a working draft on best practices for Intercultural Ministry. I hope the
visiting preachers inspired you and a special thank you to the preachers from
our congregation who also participated. Please know that I have been praying
for the whole community, especially in light of all the recent events related
to ICE raids and more.
During part of this time, I also got to travel. Pastor Alene
and I traveled to Costa Rica for ten days, and the first week was spent in a
retreat center in the beach town of Nosara, on the West side of the country.
After arriving in town over some tremendously bumpy roads (turns out the rental
car person was not just trying to upsell us when he recommended an SUV, which
we may have foolishly declined, and full coverage, which we wisely accepted),
we finally made it to the retreat center. And the next day, the leadership
provided us with an orientation. As they described the center, not one but two
presenters said, “We’re not a cult, but” describing some aspect of their life
there. Alene leaned over to me and said, “Methinks thou dost protest too much.”
This came to mind when I was listening to the Sermon
Brainwave podcast for this week, and Rolf Jacobsen, Karoline Lewis, and Matt
Skinner pointed out that Christianity is not a death cult, and then I believe
it was Matt who said, “Of course, if you have to say it…”[1]
In truth, much of Christianity may seem focused on getting to
God and our great reward after running the race of life. But here, Jesus models
the Christian journey as something we must get on with in the here and now. We
cannot be focused on our dead, he seems to say, but on the business of living.
One commentator pointed out that Jesus seems to be channeling one of their
tennis coaches, who used to say, “There are a lot of good excuses, but none of
them are accepted.”[2]
This sounds rather harsh, but it just expresses a simple truth about life. He
is using hyperbole- I don’t think he means we shouldn’t bury dead relatives.
But he seems to imply that, while we may go about our everyday life, we must
not allow the details of life to become an excuse not to follow him.
This is hard to read in our current society. Rituals related
to death in the European-American context can be foreshortened as we are all in
a hurry to get back to our regularly scheduled lives. Sometimes I feel
European-Americans, such as myself, could learn a lot from our Latino
community, for example, that models a proper process of grieving. I don’t think
Jesus is saying we shouldn’t honor our families. But at the same time, no
ritual or obligation imposed by society should become our excuse for not
following Jesus.
No excuses, follow. Jesus seems to say.
This is not always an easy word, because all the other calls
on our time seem necessary, and they are. So we are constantly discerning how
to live this out. How do we do this work of following Jesus with integrity?
As we attempt to do this, we must remember that our freedom
in Christ is not for us individually but always for others. St Paul says in the
reading from the letter to the Galatians today: “For you were called to
freedom, brothers and sisters; only do not use your freedom as an opportunity
for self-indulgence, but through love become slaves to one another (Gal 5:13).”
Slave language is often problematic, but I think Paul means
we must live dedicated to each other. We must live as if our purpose is to
serve each other. This is an essential word in a world where ICE raids may
cause neighbors to look the other way if everyone in their household has their
documents in order. The pernicious aspect of recent rhetoric is the selfish view
that we are all in it for ourselves. We are unaffected if others’ misery does
not directly touch ours. But we know that is not true. What affects one of us
affects all of us. There are laws, but laws should never supersede human life
and dignity. That is why I showed up at the Ventura County Government Center in
support of immigrants on Friday morning and why I will continue to listen to
our community members who are affected to see how we can all help.
In these turbulent times, it is easy to feel overwhelmed.
There is so much happening in the world, and sometimes it feels like there is
so little we can do. Other times, it seems there is so much we can do, yet we
know we can’t do it all. As you see the resources shared that invite you to
respond, please remember that prayer is also a vital action of support. And
then you may wish to do what Pastor Alene has been talking about lately, as
“boy scouting it.” She says, “What one good deed can I do today?” and then does
that. It helps her feel less overwhelmed by the possible actions and makes her
think she is doing something proactive to make a positive difference. Our
Daughters of the King order has a similar motto: "For His Sake.
I am but one, but I am one. I cannot do everything, but I can do something.
What I can do, I ought to do
What I ought to do, by the grace of God, I will do. Lord, what will have you me
do?” This is a touchstone for me. Keep your hand on the plow when things get
tough, and hold on, as the old song says. And then find one thing—the one next
step to take.
Because we live for each other, our freedom is for each other.
Related to this, I love the image Jesus shares here in the
gospel passage: "Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but
the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head." The Son of Man had no
big palace, but somehow Jesus built something greater with the disciples
because their shelter was in each other’s presence. Their shelter was the
relationships they built together in the presence of Jesus. We say, when two or
three are gathered, there is Jesus. How can we be sheltered from the storm for
another? Not doing everything, but doing that one thing that we can do? How can
this church be a refuge? And a beacon of light that reflects the love of Christ?
Amen.
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