When I was in high school, I was able to acolyte pretty much every week. I loved to acolyte; I loved that it gave me a role to play in the service. I loved that I was able to anticipate the needs of the celebrant, and that I knew where everything was in the sacistry. I loved wearing an alb that made me look, if I do say so myself, quite sharp.

I loved that it brought me into a fuller relationship with God as I assisted in the service and contributed to people's worship.

I remember the Sunday that acolyting became an active choice that I made, instead of something that I fell into.

I was carrying the cross for the Gospel procession that day; and the priest was reading the Gospel. I had the words strike me, fully formed: I could do this for the rest of my life. That was the first time that I had ever articulated my call to the priest hood, and from that day onwards, I chose to serve God in that way.

So I spoke to my rector, and fortunately the assistant Bishop of New York was coming to our church in a couple of weeks for confirmation so I spoke to him as well. As I spoke to them about being called to the priesthood, they both gave me very similar advice.

"Do not," they both said, "Major in religion."

They went on to explain that seminary will provide a scholastic background, but If I was not called to the priesthood then I need to do very important things later in life, like buy food, so I can, you know, eat.

So I chose to attend Binghamton University to study chemistry. Binghamton was about two hours from where my family lived, which was he perfect distance. Close enough to go home for the weekend, but too far for my mom to visit without letting me know before hand.

So I attended Binghamton, and planned to take as many religion classes as possible. It turns out that Binghamton doesn't actually offer any Christian courses. Whoops.

They did offer, however, have a robust Judaic Studies department, which was just as good. I took a phenomenal class on Genesis.

This one class, the question was asked "why did God create the world?" The answer is to have a relationship with you. To have a relationship with me, and you and each individual one of us.

They went on to say that that is also why we have free will. We have free will so that we can choose to say yes: without the ability to say no, it means nothing if we say yes.

In Ecclesiasticus the fact that we have a choice is abundantly clear. We can choose, Ecclesiasticus 5 says we have a choice follow the commandments. We have a real option of following the commandments. U can choose to covet my neighbors donkey if I so desired.

We have a choice. We can choose to follow God, and when we follow God's commandments we ate showing God that we are choosing to be in relationship with God. Following God's commandments is a real, outward, and visible sign of our relationship.

We can choose to be in relationship with God. We can choose to follow God's commandments, and when we do, we have every choice in the world.

Be a Light in the Darkness

I wonder if you’re ready to hear a story?

There once was a little soul who knew itself to be the light. This was a new soul and it was anxious for experience.

"I am the light" it said. "I am the light" Yet all the knowing of it and all the saying of it, could not substitute for the experience of it.

And in the realm from which this soul emerged, there was nothing but the light. Every soul was grand and every soul was magnificent and every soul shone with the brilliance of God's awesome light.

So the little soul was like a candle in the sun. In the midst of the grandest light, of which it was a part, it could not see itself, nor experience itself as Who and what it really was.

Now it came to pass that this soul yearned and yearned to know itself.

So great was its yearning that one day God said, "Do you know little one, what you must do to satisfy this yearning of yours?"

"Oh, what, God? What? I'll do anything!" the little soul said.

God answered, "You must separate yourself from the rest of us, and then you must call upon yourself the darkness"

"What is the darkness, Lord?" the little soul asked.

"That which you are not" God replied, and the soul understood.

And so this little soul removed itself from the ' All ' even going into another realm. And in this realm the soul had the power to call into its experience all sorts of darkness. And this it did.

Yet in the midst of all the darkness the soul cried, "Father, Father, why have you forsaken me?"

God replied: "Even in your blackest times, I have never forsaken you, but stand by you always, ready to remind you of Who You Really Are;

Ready.

Always ready to call you home.

Therefore be a light in the darkness and curse it not.

And don’t forget who you are in the moment you are encircled by that which you are not. But instead sing praises to the creation even as you seek to change it.

And remember that what you do in the time of your greatest trial can be your greatest triumph. For the experience you create is a statement of Who You Are - and Who You Want to Be."

This story is from a favorite childhood book titled The Little Soul and the Sun. I was reminded of this story as I went over the readings for this week. As I was in search of good news to tell you I found myself drawn to two themes: The presence of God, and light.

First in Isaiah we hear, “You shall call upon the lord, and he will say, “Here I am.”

What a great comfort to hear those words.

Here I am.

These are the words frightened children are relieved to hear from their mothers and fathers.

The words we long to hear from our spouses and partners in times of need or sorrow.

The words we are so grateful to hear from our friends or co-workers when we realize we have have failed to juggle all of the tasks of our busy lives.

Here I am.

However, it is important to note where God says he is or will be. The people are questioning God’s presence and approval. “We fast and you do not see, we humble ourselves, and you do not notice.”

This passage was likely written after the people of God had been exiled and Jerusalem destroyed. The people are in mourning, and seeking justice. They were praying and fasting in hopes of God answering their prayers.

As an A-type personality, overly-responsible eldest child, I know what it means to follow the rules and do the “right” things. Perhaps you too have been caught valuing yourself not based on who you are, but what correct acts you have followed. It’s easy to do. We place value on our performances, forgetting that that is not how God works.

The people are crying out, asking God why he is not giving them justice, and God replies with a question, why are you withholding justice from others?

As with the story of the little soul, we can burn magnificently, but if we are not in darkness, we cannot experience who we are. If we are not being a light to others we will not know the brightness of our flame.

“Share with the hungry. House the homeless. Clothe the naked. Then your light shall break forth like the dawn. You shall call upon the lord, and he will say, “Here I am.””

In our baptismal covenant we state that with God’s help we will seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving our neighbors as ourselves. That we will strive for justice and peace, and that we will respect the dignity of every human being.

If we truly mean what we say, then it is not just God to us saying, “Here I am.”

But it is me to you saying, “Here I am.”

And you to me, “Here I am.”

And us to them, and them to us, "Here we are."

God says, "Here I am", not after the people have followed the rules, or fasted the appropriate amount of time, but after they have sought to help those around them. He is not looking for proper doctrine, but empathetic behavior.

Barbara Brown Taylor in a sermon about the Good Samaritan states, “Right belief means nothing if not followed by right actions."

During my time in Omaha, both at St Andrew’s and with my nonprofits I have seen compassionate people complete wonderful tasks for others, but there is more work to be done.

In Montana we have a saying that goes, “There is no such thing as bad weather, only soft people.”

As we lean down to help our neighbor up. As we comfort those in deep sorrow. As we pray for those in need. As we volunteer to feed the hungry, house the homeless, and friend the friendless we will encounter darkness. We will at times be grasping and crawling to try and get back into our comfort zones.

But we are not soft people.

We are an Easter people, and we with God’s help will call upon us the darkness, if only so we can be a light to others, and that they in turn can be a light to us.

And we must remember we are never alone.

“Then you shall call and the Lord will answer; You shall cry for help, and he will say, Here I am.”

Right here.

Right now.

Breathe deeply the breath of God.

Amen.

Get Ready for the Picture, and Say Cheese!

For every major life event, rest assured my parents were there with a camera, ready to take a picture. Although because of technology today, taking a picture and sharing it instantly; it isn’t a big of deal. But when I was four or five it felt like taking a picture was truly a big deal. My parents were capturing every special moment, a memory we could keep forever. My family used a film canister camera, which meant we had to wait for the pictures to be developed. And when we finally received those new pictures, it was so exciting to go through them, and we did so ritualistically. We had to hold each picture only at the corners, ensuring not to smudge it. And we had to keep the pictures in the exact order we took them or else! My parents emphasized caring for the pictures because they knew that one day, I would want to show someone those pictures. So we took great care in handling them.

Today’s gospel reading is full of those precious picture taking moments for Jesus and his parents; it was Jesus’s presentation, which was a big deal in Jewish tradition. During our preaching group this past Monday, Father Tom explained that the presentation of Jesus actually consisted of three separate ceremonies, not just the one presentation ceremony, which is what I initially thought. In those times it was Jewish tradition that the mother wait 40 days after the birth of her child to be ritually cleansed. So the first ceremony was the ritual purification of Mary. The second ceremony, was the presentation the first born child to God. And finally third ceremony, was to dedicate the firstborn child into the Lord’s service; three ceremonies one day.

When Mary and Joseph arrived at the temple for Jesus’s presentation ceremonies they met an older man named Simeon, who was to perform the ceremonies. He was described as “righteous and devout” individual, but there was something else unique about Simeon. Through the Holy Spirit, God made a promise with Simeon that he would see the Messiah before his death. So when Simeon held Jesus, he knew that God’s promise was fulfilled, and he could die in peace, we understand this when Simeon says, “Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation” To me this is an impressive display of pure faith. He was an older man, who could have just given up, become cynical, and dwell on the idea that God wouldn’t provide. Instead he simply had faith. He had faith that the Lord would provide. After Simeon’s revelation, he describes Jesus as, “a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel” emphasizing to Mary and Joseph the miracle Jesus will be in the lives of others. At this point, if Mary and Joseph were carrying a camera, this would be a picture perfect moment.

After the ceremonies were performed in the temple, Mary, Joseph, and Jesus walk out of the temple and pass Anna a prophet. From the reading, don’t know much, be we can understand that she was definitely an older woman. In one of the commentaries, it said she could have been around 100 years old. Even in her old age, Anna was dedicated to worship, and had a strong faith in God. So when she came across Jesus and his parents, she understood how significant Jesus was. There in front of her was the Messiah. Perhaps because of her age, she couldn’t walk around to spread the word, but she didn’t let that stop her. She simply spread the word just by talking to others about Jesus. If there was a picture taken at this moment, I imagine it would be Anna taking a picture of Jesus, so she could share it with everyone.

Today, there are lots of people that encompass both a pure devotion to faith like Simeon and a willingness to spread the word of God like Anna, but a particular person that pops into my mind this week is Shirley Cummings. When I first met Shirley, she told me about her faith journey and how she first began to attend services at Church of the Holy Spirit. Then she immediately switched to telling me about all of her children and grandchildren. Each of them having a special place in her heart. I could feel how devoted she was to her faith and family simply listening to her. Although Shirley has passed on, her devotion to God and love of others hasn’t stopped. It has been passed onward to her children and grandchildren. And I find this incredible, no matter how old or young, the love of God can be passed on.
God’s grace may always be within us, but we can learn to develop a deeper understanding of faith by listening to those who are wiser and have more experience with faith. Simeon, Anna, and Shirley were all prime examples of strong faith, and through their willingness to share their faith, they help develop everyone else’s.

Another great part about pictures is their ability to help reminisce about memories. By turning the pictures into a scrap book, putting them in a photo album, and even framing them and hanging them up. By sharing our memories with others, we learn more about who we are and others; ensuring that those precious memories stay close to our hearts.

Why are we here?

Why are we here?

I ask this not to be intentionally vague, though I understand that it is vague. I also don’t mean to “sound wise” without actually saying anything, though that question doesn’t mean very much beyond what you yourself put there. So, knowing that the question “Why are we here” means many different things, I want you to think about that for a moment.

“Why are you here?”

In the Gospel this morning, Jesus is going around Israel, living his life. His ministry is just beginning. Immediately prior to this morning’s Gospel reading, Jesus was baptized by John , and then he goes out to the wilderness in order to be tempted by Satan.

He returns, and after an unspecified amount of time, finds out that John has been arrested for preaching that the kingdom of God was approaching. We find more details later in the Gospels, but basically Herod Antipas was upset that John was declaring that a new kingdom was approaching; this would mean that a new non-roman king was going to appear.

It also didn’t help matters that Herod had a second wife, and John went around calling both of them harlots.

Anyway, John is arrested for preaching about the coming kingdom, and Jesus withdraws into Galilee. This seems prudent. Someone is arrested for doing something, and if you want to continue or begin doing that same thing, far better to move than stay put.

So Jesus wasn’t in Galilee at the time. He was in Nazareth. But the key thing is: he wasn’t in great danger in Nazareth. John wasn't preaching in Nazareth, he was preaching in Galilee. So when Jesus withdrew to Galilee, Jesus went right to where John was preaching. Jesus went right to where John got arrested; Jesus stepped right into the lion’s den.

Jesus hears that John was arrested for proclaiming “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” And you know what he did next; “From that time Jesus began to proclaim ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.’”

God had a plan for Jesus’s life and for Jesus's ministry. The fact that we are still here, almost two thousand years after this all took place is a testament to that amazing, incredible, frankly unbelievable idea. God has a plan. Even more amazing, is that God has a plan for each of us.

Still, moving into a territory where someone got thrown in prison for speaking God’s word seem reckless. It seems especially reckless when you plan to begin doing that exact same thing, in that exact same place.

Why are you here?

God does not necessarily call us to be safe. God calls us to do good, wherever that might take us. In the case of Jesus, he was called to move right to where his cousin was arrested. This can't have been easy for him.

God calling us to go somewhere is not always easy. Jesus did not always find God's call easy. When Jesus cries out to the Father, “Please let this cup pass from my lips” he is begging God, saying that it is too hard. God sometimes asks us to do really, really hard things, and Jesus totally gets that. He completely understands, because he has BEEN there.

Now, God probably hasn't asked us to die for him, so its not a perfect metaphor, but Jesus gets it. He truly and completely understands it how hard it can be when God asks us to do things.

So Why are you here? Why do you go to church where you do, live in the city or state that you do? 

Jesus was called to to Galilee, not to twiddle his thumbs, but to continue both his and John's ministry. He was called for a purpose, for a reason, to do something that mattered.

Why are you here?

So Jesus began preaching the coming Kingdom of God. And he found himself walking by the water. Maybe he is kicking the waves as they move by, maybe he is watching some kids play in the surf. Anyway, he looks up and sees these two guys throwing nets into the sea-for they were fishermen, as the gospel so eloquently puts it.

All Jesus says is, “Follow me, and I will make you fish for people.” AND THEY FOLLOW HIM.

So they walk along, and he sees two other brothers, and their father, fixing their nets in the boat. So Jesus calls to them, and they immediately left the boat and their father and follow him too. IT WORKS AGAIN!

What? They immediately left their nets. Immediately. I don't do anything immediately. I set my alarm earlier than I have to so I don't have to get out of bed immediately, and these brothers immediately follow Jesus when he says some weird thing about fishing for people.

Now that is faith. Now that is a call.

Why are you here?

What are you called to do so strongly, that you would leave your boat and your father and go and follow Jesus in order to do it?

One of the things that is amazing about Resurrection House is that it gives you the vocabulary to talk about your vocation. I was talking to a priest about why I feel called to ordained ministry, and as I described my call, I said something that I truly believed.

I believed in my call so strongly that I said, with a bit of pride, “God has called me to this; how could I say no?”

That got stomped on immediately. He jumped all over that.

This is what he told me. “You can always tell God no. We have a relationship with God. There are many different things that we are called to, and we can tell God no to any of them. If we can't say no to God, it doesn't mean anything when we finally say yes.”

If we are unable to say No, it means nothing if we say yes.

Selfishly, I want my call to mean something. I want to serve God, but for there to be any meaning you have to be able to say no. And that was something that I just did not get.

Simon Peter, Andrew, John, and James all said yes. This is so remarkable because they did not have to. They could have said that they had responsibilities; that they enjoyed life as a fisherman. They could have said no for any multitude of reasons. They Chose to follow Jesus. And because they had a real choice, it meant something when they said yes.

So why are you here? What is God calling you to do? What ministry is God calling you to? And man, wouldn't it be nice if it was as blatant and obvious as someone literally calling out to you from the shore?

Peter, and Andrew, and John, and James had it easy in that regard. They were called. Literally, by a voice that said, “follow me.” We are not as lucky. When God calls us, it can be far more subtle.

Why are we here?

Vocation is the word that sums up our call. It is our calling, our ministry, our passion and hopefully, our job. According to Matthew, Jesus went through Galilee teaching and healing and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom. If Jesus's vocation was to be summed up, the last sentence of this morning's Gospel hits the nail on the head.

Frederick Buechner, a theologian, wrote that, “Vocation is where our greatest passion meets the world's greatest need.”

Our greatest passion meets the world's greatest need. Jesus lived his life serving others, fulfilling the greatest need.

You will notice that that definition is not restricted to church work. Teaching can be a vocation; so can construction work. Any way you merge your strongest passion with the deepest need of the world, you have found your vocation.

Why are we here?

We are here to do two things. We are here to listen. And when we hear God's call for us, we are here to choose to say yes.

Camels: $500?

Camels: $500. Gold: $150. Frankincense: $100. Myrrh $200. Finding the Son of God, priceless. There are some things money can’t buy, but for everything else, well you know the rest of the commercial. For the wise men in the Gospel, I don’t know what their true expenses were, but I bet they guessed that following a star to find the Son of God was not going to be inexpensive.

It definitely sounds a little bizarre, follow a star to find the son of God. And what made God choose those wise men to follow a star to find Jesus? Would God ask anybody to follow a star to find Jesus? Was it all a coincidence?

So what made those wise men so special? When reading a commentary about this particular passage, I learned that wise men, were also referred to as Magi, and the word Magi stood for several things. It stood for a Persian priestly caste, it was also short for the word magicians, and finally Magi referred to individuals who were astrologers. And as astrologers they understood the science of reading the stars. This understanding of science was what made them wise. As a part of the science, we can infer that they had the skills to map out a journey simply using the night sky, they could follow a star to find the new born king. This was their God given gift.

Back to the story, now prepared to begin their journey, the wise men were summoned by King Herod. They were summoned because the king was frightened because this was his understanding of the birth of Jesus, “a child has been born king of the Jews”, a king to rule over all kings. This could only mean one thing, he wasn’t going to be King much longer. To prevent this new King from taking his throne, he called together all the scribes and all the chief priests to understand exactly what he was up against.

And from the gospel reading it says that they explained what the prophet had written, “‘[from Bethlehem] shall come a ruler who is to shepherd my people Israel.’” This meant King Herod needed to find that child and do all in his power to prevent him from becoming King. And since those wise men from the East were on a journey to find this new born king, he would use them to find the child and stop him from becoming King. Thus he ordered the wise men to send back the location of the child, and then Herod himself would stop the child from becoming King. Brilliant plan, but what King Herod didn’t realize was that the wise men weren’t going to follow his orders. They were warned by God in a dream not to.

So to answer the initial question, was it simply a coincidence? I don’t think so. The ability to understand the stars was a God given gift. God reached out to the wise men, to use skills particular to them, and to find the son of God. Yes, it was a challenge to use the stars as a map, but the wise men could rely on those skills because God gave those skills. Most importantly, the wise men weren’t following the word of King Herod, they were following God’s word.

What does this look like for us today? How do we listen to God to learn what our gifts are? And most importantly, who are we following? We, like the wise men, are on a journey. A journey to serve God by loving each other using the gifts God gave us to serve others. To understand what are gifts are, I think we must understand how we best serve others. For the wise men it was being able to read the stars, for those that are teachers it’s teaching, for those that are consolers it’s consoling, and for those that are doctors it’s treating illnesses.

Ultimately, this shows us that God meets us where we are. God meets us, where we are. God gives each of us different gifts to serve others, and when we listen and follow God’s word we can perform wondrous ministries. It is the beginning of a new year, and for us, it is the beginning of another journey to live out God’s mission for us. If we listen and serve God through our own God given gifts we can begin to serve others better and love one another more.

It’s won’t always easy, and there will always be expenses along the way, but how bad can they really be? Reading the bible: $0, praying: $0, listening and loving others: $0. And serving God through our gifts: priceless.

Thoughts on Sunrises and Dishes.

As I was flying home from Omaha early on Christmas morning I was taken aback by the beauty of the sunrise. Below the horizon was a deep royal blue, which slowly transitioned into purples and pinks. Within a few minutes there were yellows and oranges, and as I was watching the new day begin from thousands of feet in the air I thought it might be one of the most beautiful things I have ever witnessed. I could see the ground below, the endless sky above, and all the colors of creation being born for the new day right in the middle. Although what I seeing was pure elegance and grace, I realized I had seen it before. You see, I cannot say with certainty that the sunrise on Christmas was prettier than on any other day. I cannot say whether seeing the sun rise from an airplane is any more sacred than watching it rise over the snow-capped mountains, or watching it creep through the kitchen window while I make my breakfast. That’s the thing about sunrises, and all other magnificent things of creation: they cannot be judged fairly from day to day. Each is new. Each is being born again, and bringing with it new possibilities.

As I continued my journey home I thought back to the very first sunrise. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being.” I wondered if the word has been in the sunrises since the beginning, but we haven’t always seen. If the word has been in the vast sea, and the open landscapes, but we haven’t always paid attention. If the word has been in the singing of the birds, but we haven’t always listened.

Then there are all the little everyday things. The divine dish cloth. The psalms of dusting. The anthems of laundry. Is the word there too? Do you see it? We might praise the beauty of nature, as we should, but we should also bless the monotonous and drab.

We have been back in Nebraska for about two weeks. Back in community with each other at the house. Back in community with our parishes. Back in community with our non-profits.

Back to the routine of things.

Cooking.

Discernment.

Cleaning.

Morning Prayer.

Community Meetings.

Bulletins.

Grocery Shopping.

Spiritual Direction.

Here we are: seeing sunrises and chopping onions; praying compline and sweeping the kitchen floor; discussing liturgy and taking out the recycling. Who is to say what is holy? Who is to say what isn’t holy?

The three of us were called to Nebraska. The three of us were meant to be a part of this cornhusker-obsessed, freezing wind chilled, Midwest-friendly state. We are not the same people we were when we arrived last August, and we most assuredly won’t be the same people who leave in May. We followed God’s call to be here, and we have spent almost as much time laughing as working. Sometimes we joke about what the community would be like if just one of us was replaced with someone else. Would we still get along like we do? God is moving throughout our community all the time. I look forward to these next four months, where we have the time and space to explore even further what intentional community means, not just for resurrection house this year, but when we leave this place.

“Come unto me. Come unto me, you say. All right then, dear my Lord. I will try in my own absurd way. In my own absurd way I will try to come unto you, a project which is in itself by no means unabsurd. Because I do not know the time or place where you are. And if by some glad accident my feet should stumble on it, I do not know that I would know that I had stumbled on it. And even if I did know, I do not know for sure that I would find you there. … And if you are there, I do not know that I would recognize you. And if I recognized you, I do not know what that would mean or even what I would like it to mean. I do not even well know who it is you summon, myself. For who am I? I know only that heel and toe, memory and metatarsal, I am everything that turns, all of a piece, unthinking, at the sound of my name. … Come unto me, you say. I, … all of me, unknowing and finally unknowable even to myself, turn. O Lord and lover, I come if I can to you down through the litter of any day, through sleeping and waking and eating and saying goodbye and going away and coming back again. Laboring and laden with endless histories heavy on my back.” ― Frederick Buechner, The Alphabet of Grace

Christ the King Sunday

If anyone here doesn’t know, my degree is in microbiology. I find great joy in studying the biological sciences. I see it as a way to meet God, and a way for me to intimately study the creation story. One aspect of biology that I have always found deeply spiritual is evolutionary biology.

In Darwinian evolution a key principle, which I’m sure you have heard before is the term, “Survival of the fittest.” In this model organisms, creatures, and individuals who survive are not those that are physically stronger or more fit, but those who are most adaptable to change.

In this model there is no need for creatures to look out for each other, in fact, looking out for other another member of your species may compromise your own chances of surviving a situation.

So the question to ask is why we, as humans love one another? From a biological standpoint, why should we show compassion at all?

The answer lies in our upbringing. In terms of a brain-to-body mass ratio, we as humans have the biggest brains in the animal kingdom. As such our babies are some of the slowest to mature. In order for us to ensure the growth of our feeble infants there had to be a shift in thinking.

Because our mothers had more dependent children, they had to think of someone other than themselves. In order for them to pass on their genes, they had to ensure their children grew up. A shift was made from just birthing children, to raising them.

Our ancestrial mothers learned that to be the most adaptive, they had to care for not just themselves, but someone else.

This bond between a mother and her infant is one of the reasons we have compassion, and if you were to lay out a biological time line you would roughly be able to point out where love was born.

Now you may be wondering where I’m going with all of this.

Well, a long time ago in small quiet town, a baby was born. A baby that would change everything.

Angels sang of his birth, shepherds gathered to be a part of the celebration, and later wise men would visit this child, bearing gifts worthy of a king.

But on the night he was born, his mother looked down into his sweet face and loved him, not for what he would do, or for who he would become, but simply because he was her baby.

God did not have to come to us in the form of an infant. He could have rode in on a white horse, or with great riches, or a gallant army. But he didn’t. God chose to come among us at one of humanity’s finest occasions: the birth of a child.

A love Mary had never felt before swelled up inside her, and although she might have been scared at the thought of new motherhood, she was going to be fine. Not because she would never make mistakes, but because four billion years’ worth of mothers had come before her, and prepared her for that moment.

Now that baby grew to be a man. A man that was fully human, and fully divine. As our Colossians reading for the day states, he was a man whom all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell.

During his time Jesus made many remarkable statements, one of which was “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” This is known as the golden rule. We often think of Jesus as revolutionary, but history tells us that he was probably not the first to make this petition.

This rule, or a variation of it can be found in many religions and cultures, some well before Jesus’ time. God chose to reach down to us with outstretched arms of love in the form of Jesus and save us. But while he was here, why would he tell us things we already knew? Specifically the golden rule, which we had already heard?

Perhaps he wasn’t trying to tell us something new. Perhaps he was simply trying to remind us of who we really are. That deep down, we were made to love and be loved.

Jesus came into this world experiencing the beauty of humanity, but in the Gospel for today we learn that Jesus died seeing the worst of us.

Betrayal.

Mockery.

Destructive arrogance.

Just as he could have come into this world in glory, we might wonder why he didn’t leave in glory. “"If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!"

But Jesus was loyal to the human race to the very end. Even defending us in our failure to see what we were doing.

At his death a criminal is promised paradise. Not because he has earned it, but simply because he asks. Through the interaction with this man we witness Jesus’ compassion. A compassion towards humanity that is profound, and certainly not well deserved. Even at his death Jesus does not stop demonstrating how to love.

This week we celebrate Christ the King Sunday. A feast day where we remember the coming of Christ, and recall his claim to return in glory.

Today also marks the end of our church calendar, next week begins Advent, our church new year.

The Christ that arrived, and died to save us, is still arriving.

Between this Sunday and next Sunday we have a beginning that’s like an ending and an ending that’s like a beginning.

As we prepare our hearts for the birth of Christ, today we reflect on the promise of his second coming. As Fr. John mentioned last week, we can only speculate the date and time of this second coming.

So what do we do with ourselves in the mean time?

We strive to remember his words of hope.

We strive to remember his acts of compassion.

We strive to listen to the whisper of God which tells us we are made of love.

The whisper that is intertwined with grace that is boundless and love that is never withheld.

A whisper that is deep within us, waiting to be awakened, and which is our human responsibility to listen to.

The quiet whisper that speaks of such wonderful things that often seem too good to be true.

Patience.

Acceptance.

Forgiveness.

The Scottish theologian George Macleod puts it this way, in a reflection titled On Where Jesus Died:

“I simply argue that the cross be raised again at the center of the marketplace, as well as on the steeple of the church. I am recovering the claim that Jesus was not crucified in a cathedral between two candles, but on a high cross between two thieves: on the town garbage heap; at a crossroad so cosmopolitan that they had to write His title in Hebrew, in Latin and in Greek…. At the kind of place where cynics talk smut, and thieves curse and soldiers gamble. Because that’s where He died. And that is what He died about. That is where we ought to be and what we should be about.”

We can strive for the kingdom on earth by reaching out to everyone we come into contact with. Not just in places we are comfortable, but in places we are uncomfortable.

God calls us to love radically.

We begin with Christ, and we end with Christ.

When we love ourselves and each other for God’s sake, we can be Christ in the world, every day of the year.

Amen