Emmaus Road Days

Sunday was all about encountering Jesus on the Emmaus Road. We heard the story, we sang the story, we participated in a dramatic contemporary rendition of the story, we meditated on the story. And it was good. The sanctuary was all set up in tables; like we were at a banquet or something. I was at one of the youth tables, and one of them commented that in ordinary worship, we're directing our attention and focus on God; in this set up we're directing our attention at each other. Now, it's not that simple (and he didn't mean it to be that simple) but there are those dimensions. The vertical and the horizontal. And something about facing each other, talking to each other about the text and singing side by side around the table gives a solid experience of church as a community of folks discerning together what the will of God is.

I had fun leading the congregation in Bryan's Emmaus Road song. The kids were dancing. I don't have Bryan's facility with the guitar, but had two guitars and an electric bass jamming with me. Ah, it's fun. I guess there's more of a 'performer' in me than I generally give myself credit for. Kendall said that when we were rehearsing before the service, I seemed awkward, wouldn't sing into the mike, and it seemed tense. But when the kids were up front, the congregation was standing and singing, I was just having a great time. I was relaxed, enjoying the song and the experience. And celebrating the chance to bring this great story to life in another way.

It seems as though I'm in a bit of a 'troubadour' phase, since I'm bringing in another song for worship next week. I'm preaching next week on Acts 9:1-19, the story of Paul's call and his encounter with Ananias. And I am bringing in a song I remember well from my childhood, written by Ken Medema. The song's called 'Sittin' by the Window Prayin'" and tells that story from the perspective of Ananias. It's a fun song, refreshing in its outlook. I won't be singing that one (I hope). If it all works out, it will be sung/played by two other members of the congregation. :)

I'm looking forward to preaching; it's been a while since I've praught. (shouldn't that be the past tense? teach, taught; preach....)

The sun is out today, the trees are blooming, and life is just good. So I'm sending out my general well-wishes to the world. :)

Imagining Jesus

Here’s what I imagine. If you were in Galilee, let’s say in the 30’s. You would have seen a person called Jesus. Let’s imagine there were three different people responding to that person. One says, “This guy’s a bore. Let’s leave him.” The second one says, “This guy’s dangerous. Let’s kill him.” The third one says, “I see God here. Let’s follow this guy.” Now each of these, in its own way, is an act of faith.” ~John Dominic Crossan

In his introduction to a special issue of Theology Today on the historical Jesus, Editor Thomas Long tells a story of a little boy who comes home from school appalled. “I found out today that Santa Claus is not real,” he sputtered to his mother. “And another thing,” he hissed as he turned away. “I’m going to get to the bottom of this Jesus business, too.”(1)

I just finished writing a short paper surveying a variety or perspectives on the relationship between history and faith in the "Jesus quest". This was the introduction. Fascinating, really, how tangled up this question can be. I used some of the findings in leading worship over the Easter week, particularly during the Maundy Thursday service. It was helpful to start naming the different ways we approach the person of Jesus. Do we start from above (i.e. Jesus as a divine figure, the second person of the trinity) or from below (Jesus as historical person, born in Nazareth, etc). How do we hold these together?

Fascinating.

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[1] Thomas G. Long. “Stand Up, Stand Up for (the Historical) Jesus.” Editorial Theology Today Vol 52 (April 1995) p. 1.

Six Imposssible Things Before Breakfast

It hardly seems fair that it's already Tuesday. My precious Spring Break is slipping away from me, and I've hardly gotten started on my 'list'! I was going to have the house cleaned from top to bottom by now! I was going to have written a paper and started a sermon and baked bread and called my brother and gone shopping for new running shoes and taken the car in for some repairs and ... I guess it's only been two days. And I've been tired. But I do long a bit for the impossible... sometimes.

I'm thinking about 'impossible' right now, trying to give shape to the children's story this upcoming Sunday - Easter Sunday. I want to talk about faith - that the Christian faith is rooted in something that is technically 'impossible' but that we believe to be 'possible'. I'd love some help in this endeavour....

I've got some lines from Alice in Wonderland and Cinderella bouncing about in my head:

ALICE in WONDERLAND
Alice laughed: "There's no use trying," she said; "one can't believe impossible things."

"I daresay you haven't had much practice," said the Queen. "When I was younger, I always did it for half an hour a day. Why, sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast."

and CINDERELLA (the Disney version):

Godmother (singing): Impossible! But the world is full of zanies and fools who don't believe in sensible rules and won't believe what sensible people say..

and because these daft and dewey eyed dopes keep building up impossible hopes impossible things are happening every day!

And also this African American proverb: God makes a way where there ain't no way!

But I want to have more than just words... perhaps a song.... perhaps an action... or a story, or an example, or.... (help me, please?)

Love and pancakes, Faith and doubt

We celebrated a special all-campus break yesterday with creative renditions of 'I Corinthians 13'. Lots of fun. Kendall and I won 'the most romantic' rendition - hmmmm..... It probably fit best the category "most interactive" since we encouraged folks to hug each other each time they heard the word "love". From the front of the room, the view was enjoyable. People lined up to 'catch' someone in a hug at the next moment, and at one moment of silence I heard one professor say to another, "You're next, Jake!". Ah, good fun.

I enjoy celebrations so much. They're truly the stuff life's made of. The next celebration I anticipate is Pancake Tuesday. That's coming up next week! I've never really fallen for the Mardi Gras celebrations, probably because in my experience the pancakes came first. I grew up in a small town in Ontario with British roots, Dorchester. And in the fog of my memory, I recall an outdoor celebration of Pancake Tuesday at the community centre. Somehow in my memory, we were even eating the pancakes out side Looking out at the snow right now, it seems hard to believe that memory.... I recall people flipping pancakes on huge griddles, and eating pancakes, sausage and syrop outside on paper plates. Probably we were inside the hall.

The point is, I remember eating pancakes in the larger Dorchester community. What's more, I remember that my family picked up the habit, and most years we had pancakes. I don't know if my mom and dad have kept up that tradition, but somehow it stuck with me.

At Calvin, I hosted a pancake open house - I flipped dozens of pancakes for my friends. I've probably served pancakes every year since I left home.... and next week will be no exception. If you live locally, you're welcome to our apartment sometime after 6:30 for some pancakes!

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Thinking biblically: This evening after supper, Kendall and I read from the letter of James, chapter 1 and I was struck by a number of things in the passage.

James 1:6-7 But ask in faith, never doubting,
for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea,
driven and tossed by the wind;
for the doubter,
being double-minded and unstable in every way,
must not expect to receive anything from the Lord.

I had a bit of a revelation about this passage, which has quite frankly bothered me for a long time. I noticed the context. Allow me to explain.

In our day and age, we still read the language of faith and doubt through lenses tinted by Luther and by rationalism/modernism. We read 'faith' and a concept of rational/mental assent to intellectual doctrine and/or dogma... with certainty! We correlate 'belief'. Consequently, 'doubt' means the lack of assent, or lack of certainty regarding these doctrines and dogmas. Having questions about God, the church, the nature of salvation, (etc.) is equated with lack of faith - and sometimes this passage is thrown up as dis-incentive for asking such questions.

Doubters are double-minded, unstable, and outside the generosity of God. (outside of grace?)

Having a long (and I think healthy) history of doubt, I dislike this interpretation. I am certain that doubt is a healthy part of an active faith life - questioning is frequently a sincere and authentic part of the search for truth in discipleship.

But tonight, as I said, I had a revelation. This verse is not in Galatians, or Romans. This verse is in the letter to James! James is so perfectly clear that faith is not mental assent, but faith is lived out in a life of justice. Faith is lived out in action!

When James is talking about doubt - James is talking about those whose actions do not match their words (or their mental assertions?). He's talking more about hypocrisy or empty living than about questioning. If we look further at verses 22ff we see that's where he's going even in this chapter

James 1:22-27 But be doers of the word,
and not merely hearers who deceive themselves.
For if any are hearers of the word and not doers,
they are like those who look at themselves in a mirror;
for they look at themselves and, on going away,
immediately forget what they were like.
But those who look into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and persevere,
being not hearers who forget but doers who act
-- they will be blessed in their doing.

If any think they are religious,
and do not bridle their tongues but deceive their hearts,
their religion is worthless.
Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this:
to care for orphans and widows in their distress,
and to keep oneself unstained by the world.

And that, my friends, is the heart of the matter.
Thanks for hearing me out on this one....

Re-thinking heresy

To preface this post a bit - I'm currently taking a course in the Early Church. This blog is an excerpt from my journal, following some readings and a course discussion on Augustine's interactions with two major Christian communities of his day, with whom he disagreed:

I don’t think I had really appreciated until now how much the Donatists and the Pelagians are like Mennonites. But they are! Oh now, an inner voice inside me shudders; That’s it, I’ve really done it! I’ve joined the heretics. My Opa has warned me about those Mennonites since I started hanging around them in 1997. Maybe he’s right. Maybe I should turn myself in to the local authorities and make myself right with God again.

Seriously. I have always had a hearty fear of being labeled as a ‘heretic’ when I express views which diverge from the majority of the church. But I haven’t actually given much thought as to what exactly I fear. I sense that my fear is more about the label within the Christian community than about my status with God. And it’s not even a wide-reaching status these days; a heretic merely has to change churches and she’s found a new church home... Heresy is commonplace these days; in former times we killed or we died to prevent and protect it. (of course, heretics don’t label their own belief heresy!)

In class today, Alan’s [my prof] sadness over the suppression of these heresies by Augustine was evident. What if Augustine had held out in patience; what if he had followed through with processes of reconciliation. What if he had recognized that these persons were his brothers and sisters in Christ; and refused to get the state involved in the issue? The world would have looked different. What if we truly do have a chance in post-Christendom to take another stab at ecumenical diversity? What if?

But what about real heresy? Should we not get riled up when someone tries to preach that the gospel teaches us to torment gay people? Or that the Bible ‘clearly states’ what the Bible most clearly does not state (in my humble opinion) Or that the Arian race is superior to all? Or that the gospel permits racial/ethnic cleansing? Or that we should ignore the AIDS crisis because the disease is God’s punishment for sexual immorality? (I’m picking the big apples here)

I’m not a big fan of fundamentalism, or ‘orthodoxy’ in the sense of a stubborn clinging to old ways and old views of truth. But I do believe that some truths are worth clinging to, and that the gospel has a central core that is worth defending and promoting in our Christian communities.

If I deny the category of heresy, then do I deny orthodoxy as well? And if I deny orthodoxy, how can I preach with confidence?

They seem to be a co-related; you can’t have one without the other. Can you? How? The question is, I think, how to relate one to the other? How to discern, sift, process, nurture and defend? And how is power used in this process?

It's the principle of the thing

Recently, someone I respect described me as "principled". He was referring to my general commitment to the principle of Sabbath, and was encouraged to take up the practice himself. This comment sparked an inner conversation in me - I have been mulling it over for a few days now.

That comment led me to thinking about principles and the way they function in my life. Is that not a universal thing? Is this a particular strength of mine that I have not really identified in such a way?

Almost everything I do arises out of my principles. I make home-made yogourt in order to save plastic containers from the landfill (environmental stewardship) and because it probably saves us some money in the end (financial stewardship); and because we value healthy eating and yogourt is a part of that for us.

We make space in our life for social gatherings and dinners with friends and family - because hospitality and relationship are our values. Almost at every turn, when faced with a decision, no matter how small, it seems that principles come into play. I'll choose this (or that) on the basis of principle.

What we eat, where we shop, what we clean with and how often, how we spend our money, what we wear - this is faith in action. Faith embodied in various broad principles.

I imagine that most people function with governing principles, but perhaps not everyone is as intentional about choosing which principles they shall follow. I am glad that my principles provide an inspiration and a challenge to others. I know I am inspired and challenged by the principled living of others.

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on another note - I started 'strength training' in earnest today at the YMCA. Today was my first day of multiple 'reps. I am focussing for now on my upper body. Osteoporosis runs in my family (maternal side) and I know that strength training is one of the most important ways to guard against frailty in the bones. Besides, I value health (those pesky principles in play again)
Soon, I suppose, I should stop imbibing caffeine. That's another bone-killer. Sigh. I think I'll wait to give up caffeine till I'm finished with school!

Epiphany

Today is Epiphany Sunday.

Yesterday was Christmas in much of the Eastern church.... Merry Christmas to all of you who have been celebrating Christmas this week. I wish you joy.

Kendall and I are taking an intensive course this month on the history of the Early Church. It's fascinating. It's truly a cross-cultural experience, learning about the ways and practices of people who lived in a faraway place nearly 2000 years ago. But phenomenal.

One visual piece that I am struck by is some graffiti circa 200 C.E. - it's an image crudely scratched in rock of a donkey being crucified - and a man in prayer near it. And the writing underneath it writes: "Alexander worships his god". So much of the early church experienced taunting and gossip from their neighbours and communities. People didn't know what to make of this strange community that was developing in their midst.

They called the christians antisocial, because they didn't attend any of the festivals or social gatherings that the others did. They didn't attend festivals dedicated to the gods or eat the meat provided there - which was pretty much the biggest social event in town. And they didn't go to the gladiator shows, both because of the god-worship that came with it, and because they didn't want to participate in violence by watching it.

And they spread rumours about the christians. Rumours that they met secretly and practiced cannibalism, and incest, or baby-sacrifice.

It's an eye-opening experience reading what the Romans thought about the Christians. And how the Christians responded and thought in that context. Fascinating.

About Epiphany - which is where this entire tangent began - Epiphany is one of the oldest holidays of the Christian church. In its earliest form, it was a remembrance of Jesus' baptism in the river Jordan, and there many baptisms in the early church may have occurred on this day. The association with Christmas and/or the visit of the Magi came later.

I can get excited about a church holiday celebrating the baptism of Jesus - and encouraging us to remember our baptism and that we are beloved by God (as the Spirit said to Jesus as he was baptised).

Frankly, I don't get all that excited about a day set aside to remember the Magi, which is all I have known about Epiphany. By early January, I'm tired of Christmas and the infancy narratives; I'm ready to move on.

On another note, today is the 13th birthday of my Little Sister (mentee) in Toronto, Brigitte. Happy Birthday, Brigitte!

Longest Night

Tonight, December 21st, is the longest night of the year. For some people, this a night to honour lament. In the middle of a season of Advent joy, with Christmas lights and parties everywhere, many people find it difficult to join the spirit of celebration. For some, it's the first Christmas without a loved one. Some are longing for a child but are unable to conceive. Some suffer depression. Some are far from home. Some are sick or dying. Some have chronic pain. And the list is long; we struggle. Life is full of shock, trauma and sorrow. Longest night is a time to weep with those who weep and mourn with those who mourn.

Tonight after supper, Kendall and I will be praying in solidarity with those who grieve; those who are longing for the light of day but are at present sitting in the darkness.

We know that God weeps with us. We wait, in hope, for the coming again of the Prince of Peace.

The counter-intuitive Nature of Rest

I'm musing a bit about 'rest' these days. Perhaps it's because I'm writing a final paper on the topic of Sabbath. The truth is, I'm writing about Sabbath because resting has been on my mind.

Here's an insight that I've been mulling over recently.

When I'm anxious about money, I have learned to seriously consider my own giving habits. In my experience, my points of highest anxiety around money are often connected to times when I have not 'kept up' with my intentions for giving and general generosity. So, my counter-intuitive response has become - I'm feeling anxious about money. It must be time to check the books and see how my giving's been lately. And sure enough, when I get 'on top of' my giving, so to speak, my anxiety tends to lessen. My money situation may not be different in actuality, but my perspective has been transformed. I shift from 'not enough' to 'more than enough'.

It's the same way with time. When I'm most anxious about time, I am learning to seriously consider my 'rest time'. How have I protected it? How have I maximized it? Perhaps I need to inject a bit more rest into my days. Perhaps I need to stretch it out, celebrate a bit more. And so even when - especially when - my 'to-do' list is incredibly long and heavy, I am learning to protect my rest time even more. Go to bed on time. Play a game. Get some perspective. Relax after 9 p.m. (my plan).

It's counter-intuitive. But it's transformative for me.