Locking Out Hate

Matthew 16:13-20

August 27, 2017

 

A man dies and arrives at the pearly gates where he sees St. Peter…

And I don’t know the punchline of the joke…

 

I actually googled “best pearly gates jokes” and they just weren’t very funny.

Some were sexist;

And some were about lawyers – which seemed unkind.

 

But all those ‘pearly gates’ jokes we’ve heard over the years

Stem from this passage in the gospel of Matthew

Where Jesus passes on the keys to the kingdom.

 

Today’s story begins as Jesus and his disciples are walking in the region of Caesarea Philippi.

 

It’s important to know something about this place.

Caesarea Philippi was the hub of Roman power and wealth.

It was a trading port and people came with money to spend.

Rome had started massive building projects there at the time of Jesus.

 

It wasn’t only a place where money and power were worshipped…

Other gods were worshipped there as well.

There were shrines to the god Ba’al and the god Pan.

 

Jesus goes to a place where rabbis say no good Jew would go.

 

And as he’s walking around he asks his disciples,

“who do people say that I am?”

 

They answer that some say, “John the Baptist.”

John the Baptist had been recently beheaded…

Jesus was his cousin – and perhaps they looked alike.

 

Others said that Jesus was Elijah.

Scripture said that the messiah would come after Elijah returned –

So perhaps Jesus was Elijah.

 

Still other said that Jesus was Jeremiah or one of the prophets.

He certainly sounded like a prophet –

Proclaiming words of warning and words of hope from God to the people.

 

But then Jesus turns directly to the disciples and asks them,

“But who do you say that I am?”

“Why are you following me?”

 

(And perhaps that’s a question for us to consider this week as well –

Why do we follow Jesus?)

 

Simon Peter answers,

“You are the messiah;

The son of the living God.”

 

All the names the people were giving were dead –

Jesus is the son of a God who is alive!

 

And then Jesus turns and blesses Simon.

He says, “Blessed are you Simon, son of Jonah….”

 

You are Peter

(The Greek word for ‘rock’ is ‘petra’ – so it’s a play on words.)

 

“And on this rock I will build my church;

And the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.”

 

On this rock I will build my church;

And the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.

 

Over the years there have been many interpretations what Jesus meant by this.

 

Roman Catholics generally believe that Jesus was talking directly to Peter…

And so when he said “on this rock,” he meant “on Peter I will build my church.”

This is why Peter is at the pearly gates in those jokes – and not Andrew or Bartholomew or Peter.

 

And it’s why the RC understanding is that the pope is the descendent of Peter,

The foundation of the church.

 

Protestants on the other hand generally have the understanding that

When Jesus said, “On this rock I will build my church,”

He meant not Peter the person, but Peter’s confession:

“You are the messiah, the son of the living God,”

And that the church is built on Jesus as the son of the living God.

 

I’d like to introduce a third possibility for today..

And it has to do with the location of where this story takes place – in Casarea Philiipi.

 

Just outside of Ceasarea Phillipi there is a shrine to the god Pan.

It’s at the opening to a large cave.

And through the cave a tributary to the Jordan River passed through.

In Jesus’ day the opening to this cave was thought to be the opening to the underworld –

The opening to the power of evil.

And it was called, the “Gates of Hades.”

 

So perhaps, when Jesus said,

“On this rock I will build my church,

And the Gates of Hades shall not prevail upon it,”

He meant that his church was built here… at the Gates of Hades..

To directly confront the forces of evil, the forces of death, the forces of the underworld.

 

That the church wasn’t called to be away from the source of evil,

But directly in front of it.

 

Some of you probably saw an article in yesterday’s Washington Post.

It was an interview with Pastor William Lamar of Metropolitan AME church in DC.

 

The reporter said that in the 50’s and 60’s the church was at the forefront

Of the movement for civil rights.

But that seemed not to be the case anymore – the reporter asked Rev. Lamar why that was.

 

Pastor Lamar said that the church is called to confront evil and hatred and racism and bigotry.

It is still called to be at the forefront of the fight for civil rights…

And when it is not – it is committing “theological malpractice.”

 

Theological malpractice.

 

Tomorrow is the anniversary of the March on Washington.

There is a 1000 Ministers March walking from the MLK memorial to the DOJ.

(the Lutheran contingent is meeting up ahead of time – let me know if you’d like to meet us there.)

 

I suppose that Washington, DC isn’t much different from Caesarea Philippi –

A place that worships power and wealth.

 

Tomorrow we are committing ourselves to be a church that confronts evil;

A church built on this rock that will not be silent;

A church built  in front of the Gates of Hades –

And the Gates of Hades will not prevail.

 

So I have a new pearly gates joke that isn’t really funny…

It goes like this:

 

A man, or a woman, or a group of people find themselves at the Gates of Hades;

And they meet at those gates not just St. Peter, but the entire church.

The church that was built to be in that spot.

 

And the church stands together and says,

“We’re locking the door.

There is no room for hate here.”

 

Amen.

 

 

 

Darkness is Temporary – Eclipses Don’t Last

Audio of today’s sermon is here: https://www.dropbox.com/s/q2bqleehqevtcjx/New%20Recording%202.m4a?dl=0

Darkness Is Temporary/Eclipses Don’t Last

Matthew 15:10-28

August 20, 2017

 

There’s an eclipse tomorrow….

If you didn’t already know that, it’s probably too late to get your special eclipse glasses.

 

Eclipses are fascinating.

One reason is that they’re rare –

The last total eclipse that could be see in the continental US was in 1979.

The sun and moon and earth have to be aligned just right.

And there can’t be cloud cover to obscure the event.

 

People have been fascinated about eclipses for as long as they have been looking at the heavens.

There’s a tortoise shell in China dated 3000 years ago

With the story of an eclipse drawn on it –

3 flames ate the sun and the stars came out.

 

In Scandinavian folklore, eclipses were bad omens.

They meant that the deity was angry at the king,

And so ate the sun.

Kings in Scandinavia and other cultures were so nervous about eclipses,

That the field of astronomy was born –

They wanted people close at hand who could study the skies.

 

Not all people have been frightened by eclipses, however.

Some have taken advantage of the events and birthed new learnings.

A Turkish mathematician in 130 BCE viewed an eclipse

And using trigonometry – sins and cosins – was able to calculate the distance between the earth and the moon.

 

Later, others plotted the orbits of the planets

Using eclipses.

And Einstein’s theory of relativity was proven

Using an eclipse.

 

New discoveries have been made from eclipses.

Out of the darkness, something new has been learned.

 

This year, University of Missouri researchers are studying animals and plants.

The path of totality is a 70 mile swath of land from the northwest down to S Carolina

Where the full eclipse will be visible.

This covers much of America’s farmland.

 

During an eclipse, not only is the sky darkened,

But the temperature will drop by 10 degrees;

Winds will shift;

Birds will stop chirping;

And the stars will come out.

 

University of Missouri researchers are studying what happens to corn and soybeans;

And they are looking at chickens – apparently it is expected that chickens may freeze in their steps.

 

Something new can be discovered during this temporary darkness.

Move On Over. He’s Getting In.

Matthew 14:22-33

August 13, 2017

Link to audio of sermon:  https://www.dropbox.com/s/mdey1lhpstpe3f2/Move%20over%20-%20I%27m%20Getting.%20In.m4a?dl=0

 

I was in Charlottesville on Friday.

A group of clergy in Charlottesville invited clergy across the nation to join in an alternative event than the rally planned by White Supremacy groups on Saturday.

I knew I couldn’t be there on Saturday, but I drove down for the mass prayer service on Friday. Night.

 

Knowing how the traffic is, I got there early.

I arrived around 4pm and my dog and I walked around the beautiful campus of the University of Virginia. It was a cloudy day, but students were outside and some looked like they were moving into their dorm rooms for the fall.

I had no idea what would happen on that same campus, among those same buildings a few hours later.

About an hour before the service was to start, I went into the church which was on the edge of the campus. It was a good thing I went in when I did because the sanctuary was packed. People were lined up on all sides of the worship space – there wasn’t even any more standing room.

 

It was a powerful service.

A Muslim woman read a verse from the Q’uran which she translated as, “I created you different so that you need one another.”

I’d never heard that verse from the Q’uran before: I created you different so that you need one another.

 

A couple of rabbis led us in a song: Chesed Olam Yibeneh – “we build a world of love together.”

 

There were readings from the Psalms.

 

And then Rev Traci Blackmon, a pastor from the United Church of Christ preached. And did she preach! She used the text of David and Goliath as she gave courage and hope to those who had gathered to protest the evil of White Supremacy.

 

By this time in the service, I felt powerful; I felt confident; I felt strong.

 

But just before the closing benediction, one of the organizers of the event came to the microphone. He said, “We need to tell you that across the street there is a group of klan members who are holding torches and shouting slogans.”

 

We sang a couple of more songs.

 

Then the organizer spoke again: “The group with torches is on the left side of the building. If you are parked there, stay inside. Others may go out in small groups the back door and down the alley to your cars.”

 

I didn’t feel confident and powerful and strong any longer. I was frightened.

 

But I also had the strong sense that I was exactly where I was meant to be.

Sometimes I think Jesus sends us into the storms;

Sometimes God places us in frightening circumstances;

Sometimes the faithful thing to do is not to avoid the storm,

But enter into it.

 

Listen again to the gospel story…

And listen to where the disciples become afraid…

 

As the story begins, the disciples have just seen Jesus do the miraculous –

Feed 5000 people with 5 loaves and 3 fish.

They are feeling confident; they are feeling strong and powerful with a leader

Who could do such things.

 

It gets to be evening,

And Jesus tells his disciples to get into a boat…

Our text says he ‘makes’ them get into the boat – he compels them, he forces them.

 

Meanwhile he dismisses the crowd and goes up a mountain to pray by himself.

 

Throughout the Bible, God is revealed on mountains…

Think of Mt Horeb from our first reading;

The sermon on the mount;

Transfiguration;

The Mt of Olives

 

Throughout the night, the disciples in the boat are being battered by the waves.

But the text doesn’t say that they are afraid of the storm…not yet.

 

Early in the morning – during the 4^th watch – about 3-6am,

They look toward shore and they see Jesus walking towards them on the water.

 

Now they’re terrified!

They cry out – It is a ghost!

 

Jesus responds, “Take Heart. It is I. Do not be afraid.”

 

And then there is the part of Peter and Jesus.

Peter says, “If it is you, command me to come toward you.”

Jesus says, “Come.”

 

Peter climbs out of the boat but then he notices the waves

And he falters, crying out, “Lord save me!”

 

Jesus reaches out and catches him.

Together they get back in the boat.

And Jesus says to Peter, “You of little faith…why did you doubt?”

 

Now many people preach this text as I have before as Jesus chiding Peter for looking down at the waves –that he should have kept going, keeping his eyes on Jesus.

 

But on closer look, that’s not necessarily what Jesus chides him for.

Jesus is the one who sent them on the boat.

He had a purpose for them on the other side of the sea (when they arrive there are crowds of sick people Jesus heals).

 

Perhaps what Jesus is chiding Peter for, is getting out of the boat in the first place.

Instead Jesus is saying – stay in the boat, keep going – but move over and let me in. I’m going with you.

 

When we’re frightened there are some very human responses we have.

 

One response is to fight –

We’ve heard some of that rhetoric this week with our interactions with North Korea.

 

Another response to fear is to flee –

Some of you probably saw the video of the hikers at Sequoia National Forest this week.

They were hiking along the trail when they looked up to see a mountain lion watching them.

They have this conversation with each other which is exactly the kind of conversation I’d have: “Now what are you supposed to do when you see a mountain lion? I don’t think you’re supposed to run. Are you supposed to make a lot of noise?”

They decide to look for their whistle – but can’t find it in their packs, so they slowly back away.

After the video was released a park ranger was asked what you are supposed to do if you meet a mountain lion on a trail – he said – ‘the key is not to look like you’re prey.’

Don’t run – don’t flee.

 

If we don’t fight or flee in the face of fear, another human reaction is to freeze – it’s the deer in the headlights phenomenon.

 

Now scientists say that those responses are okay in the face of true fear – for about 45 seconds. After 45 seconds, it’s best if our rational brain kicks in and we respond more appropriately.

 

Jesus says – there’s a different way.

Instead of fight/flight/freeze – move over, and let me in. Let me go with you.

 

In Charlottesville after we heard the announcements about the klan with torches, I knew I needed to get to my car. My dog was there, the doors and windows were open and she had water, but I needed to know she was okay.

 

Laura and Jerry, two residents of Charlottesville were sitting next to me. I told them that I needed to leave. They immediately said – we’re going with you.

 

When we’re afraid, Jesus says, move over, and let me in. I’m going with you.

 

We left through the back door, down the alley and to my car. Carly was safe and I drove Laura and Jerry to their car.

 

Now many of us have choices we could make to avoid fear.

I didn’t have to go to Charlottesville.

The disciples could have stayed on shore….but Jesus compelled them to go out into the sea.

 

Sometimes Jesus compels us to get away from the shore,

And get into the boat, among the waves and the storm.

When he does, he promises not to leave us alone – move over, I’m getting in.

 

An interesting thing happens to the disciples as a result of being out on the sea;

As a result of being afraid.

 

We’re told that when Jesus arrives, they worship him.

This is the first time in the gospel where they recognize him –

Not after the great miracle of the feeding of the 5000,

But here in the midst of their fear, as he comes toward them.

It took chaos and fear for them to truly see God.

They fall to their knees and say, “Truly, you are the Son of God.”

 

I know many of you are dealing with different fears at the moment:

• Upcoming surgery;
• Family or marital distress;
• Fears about international crises with the US and N Korea;
• Wondering how to respond to the evils of white supremacy.

 

Jesus pushes us out in our boats into the midst of these waters;

But he doesn’t send us out alone;

He says – Move over, I’m getting in too.

 

Thanks be to God.

 

Amen.