The change the Incarnation makes

Today, or rather tomorrow (as I have prepared this for Christmas Eve), is the day we celebrate the incarnation of Christ our Lord and Saviour as part and parcel of humanity. Not as something or someone that is remote and away from the average John or Jane Doe on the street but a person who is like you and me the average John / Jane Doe on the street. Luke's gospel gives the main seasonal account of the birth of Jesus the Christ child (2:1-20) and as we have heard it is as normal as any other birth in creation. Yes, the circumstances are somewhat lacking by modern circumstances, however, should you go to many impoverished countries around the world you would find birth occurring in similar circumstances. This very unremarkable birth in terms of human society is extraordinary within our own lives as a harbinger of what is to come and as a reminder of what we perhaps miss on an everyday basis, especially as we celebrate at this time of year.

The Incarnation confronts us with radical change - how will we respond?

The world has taken away the mystery of Christ's birth and left us with a commercial entity that begins even before the Advent season. It is the same in our everyday lives, the mystery and the richness that comes with new beginnings has been overtaken by a commercial outlook. Christmas is, at the end of the day, about an extreme change in how we are to see the world and our faith journey. Prior to this birth God was seen as something that was untouchable, unknowable and beyond our simple minds. In the Incarnation we see God's presence in humanity as something that can be touched upon rather than being held apart. Yes, God is and can never be truly known until we see God face to face but here in the Christ child we have the wellspring of the potentiality that allows us access to God's presence within our own lives. This is the hope that is present in the child as it is present in every child that is born into this world. Above all else this is a fundamental change in our own understanding of God's presence. A change that continues into Christ's life and must be taken up in our own Christian lives as we struggle within our ordinary lives.

In our own lives we can see that a new child brings change in the lives of the parents and family. How much more then does the Christ child's birth bring change into our lives and how we are to perceive God? The change from something somewhere to a presence within reach is mind blowing. A presence that shows to us what it means to be a God that is personified in Christ and the love that is found in the presence of a new born child. For we can all acknowledge that love is present at the moment of birth as the child becomes incarnate in the reality of this world. We cannot capture that love for we would all then be cuddling babies in a stagnant world which shows no future. The Christ child grows and suffers the vicissitudes of life just as we do demonstrating to us that love is ever pervasive and ever changing in a world that is filled with doubt. In adoring the child we become part of the ever changing story that is the growth of faith in our lives. It tells us that growth is not possible without change for us as part of God's creation who seek God in our human existence.

In the presence of the Christ child we find ourselves over awed, in the same way as the shepherds in the fields at the sight of the angels (Lk 2:9), as we are confronted with the immeasurable number of possibilities that are present in this moment. Our own response to the freedom that comes in the form of the Incarnation is indicative of our lives and our own yearnings. Are we able to encompass the possibilities or are we going to defer them becoming bound in the stone of our hearts as we are unable to let go of our past? Are we going to grow and change into what God is calling us to or are we going to become unresponsive to that call and see our faith and those around us become demeaned and belittled? God becoming human challenges us with these questions but leaves it to us to respond of our own free will. This Christmas, how are you going to respond as God calls us into the world through the Christ child's presence?

Joy comes in the morning

 Once again we have but a singular reference in Isaiah to the concept of joy (35:2) on a Sunday that is meant to speak about joy. For most of us joy is as ephemeral as all of the other things we have talked about such as hope and peace. In today's world there appears to very little joy as people no longer seem to have that concept of "joie de vivre" but rather there is an excellence at morbidity and 'downness' even when we talk of positive achievements. It takes a lot out of a person when we try to be over abundant with our lives when the world around us seems to be heavy and strained. Even when we have extended family around us we feel strained as if through a colander. (Not every one but I would say the majority at this time of year  put on a face).This is particularly so when relationships are strained within family and community. So, why celebrate something that there appears to be a lack of?

More and more we appear to be sinking into a morass of mediocrity that disallows the extreme feelings that come with joy and sadness and all those other emotions that we bandy about without really realising them to the fullest extent. We have lowered our expectations much as Christ chides the crowds when he asks them what they went out into the wilderness to see (Matt. 11:7-9). We do not live with great expectations and therefore we are surprised and, in some ways, negative to exuberance of life. Perhaps the issue is that those expressing such exuberance are only acting out so that they may achieve fame, fortune etc all for themselves. Genuine joy is a difficult concept to accept when we are so used to being in the depressed state that the world has conceived for us. Even John the Baptist, according to Matthew, is uncertain as to whether to celebrate with joy as he questions Christ's presence (Matt. 11:3). If John questions it is no wonder that in this current age we struggle so much with the possibility of joy in our world. Indeed we often turn towards the past to reflect on what was rather than to the future to see what is to come.

It is in rising to a new day that we find the future joy is here

We often yearn for a future that is filled with the joys of the past and the friendships that have been created.  What we never realise is that those joys that we are sunk into remain in the past and so we never have the ability to engage with the present to create new joys out of what we perceive to be endless sorrows.  It is only when we recognise that by dwelling in the past and attempting to re-create that past in the present we are creating our own melancholy and inability to move into the future.  In this recognition we begin our return to new life and the joy of Christ in the world.  By retreating to the past and attempting to recreate it in the present we are playing a political game that is only for our benefit, our control of the world around us, our drug of choice that pushes our own agendas without thinking of the greater whole or of Christ's life, death and resurrection. In the incarnation as it comes towards us we are reminded that we are mortal for God has created us and has become created with us so that we can live into the future.  A future that as we know involves dying and in dying we let go of the past.  In living into the future we recognise the elements of re-birth and newness of life as we co-create the joy of God's love.  It is only when we recognise the elements of death within our own lives that we can start to let go and let God's love in recreating joy, happiness and life.  It is through this healing power of understanding and anamnesis as we re-live the path of Christ that we come to the joy of new life.  This letting go and re-membering needs to occur within all aspects of our life.  We become hypocrites when we allow our past activities and politics to guide our present activities without first going through death to create new paths and new joys.

If we do this correctly, we mourn each death and move on into new life, this applies to parish life as much as to our lives in community.  This is the upside down world of God's coming kingdom, it is we who have to mourn not others, it is we who have to suffer the death of ourselves not others, it is we who have to forgive ourselves not others.  Christ gives us a clue to what healing in God's kingdom means as he proclaims those deeds that have been undertaken.  The poor and the outcast are given hope and joy.  The vicissitudes of life are not imposed by others but by by our own wants and needs our own rejection of the joy that is around us if we open our hearts to the other.  God's kingdom comes in the irruption of newness within the fecundity of our lives as we understand ourselves and so come open our eyes to joy and love in relationships we build into the future.

Preparations for peace

 Today, we are confronted by the violence of war, most directly in the Ukraine. A war that has been brought about purely and simply the result of greed and pride. Both of which have been misplaced to massage the ego of one person. Just like the majority of wars this one has been a grasping for power over the perennial understanding of how to advance in modern society. Indeed in the latest news bulletins it appears that even nature is being used as a lethal weapon towards those who do not bend to tyrannical power. These actions and those of various groups around the world are all founded on the concept of power and authority being based on the use of physical violence to topple those least able to fend for themselves. So, from where do we even begin to derive peace in such situations?

If we consider that war is apparently on top of the world's agenda then its opposite should also be on our lips that being peace. In saying this we need to really understand what it means to say that peace is the opposing force to the greed of war and along with that we need also to confront for ourselves what it means to be in a state of peace and to be part of the process that brings about this state. So what does peace mean to you and me or rather what does it mean for most people if we bandy around words like peace as opposed to war. I am of the opinion that most people associate peace with the absence of violence or war rather than anything else. Yes, I would probably tend to agree that there is a sense of peace that comes with the absence of violence and war and it is probably the most recognised understanding of what peace is. However, I believe that we are actually limiting our understanding of the concept by rigorously seeing it as an apposition to war, war's antonym so to speak.

War and peace are dichotomies that destroy our ability to seek true justice and peace

Isaiah's passage at the beginning of chapter 11 when speaking about the coming Messiah (1-10) does not contain the word peace but is focussed upon a relational understanding that brings about justice. This aspect is rarely dwelt upon when talking about peace. Even when John speaks about preparing the way he refers to relational understandings (Matt. 3:3) and indeed there is a somewhat violent image of Christ's coming (Matt. 3:11-12). In this case peace is reflected in an attitude in which we approach our relationships to achieve God's peace. God requires us to interact in a manner that serves to enhance our relationships so that we can achieve justice and an ability to interact with each other in such a manner that we do not break our relationships. This is the foundational essence of what it means to have peace. War and violence is an extreme example of what it means to break those relationships. It is not the opposite of peace but rather a symptom of our inability to achieve a good relationship when dealing with the other who is unlike us.

In Romans, Paul tackles this subject and speaks about our attitudes in welcome and relationship (Rom. 15:7). He does not speak about war and violence but rather about how we interact with people to bring about the harmony that is inherent in our relationships when we are in true community with each other. This is the alternative that God offers us through the incarnation and the presence of the Christ in our lives. The secular world promotes our own selfish needs and thus in the end it promotes violence and violent opposition to the other who is not us. God's commandments and God's requirements of us as followers of Christ and who are deeply immersed in faith, is that we walk the way of truth and love. In doing so we will inevitably promote the needs of the other, irrespective of whom they might be, rather than pouring denigration and scorn that results in violent rejection and a continuation of all that is opposed to God's love. It is clear from the Romans passage that the ability to listen and to interpret a situation is a valuable way of moving forward. Speech can render people compliant but it can also rouse them to great effort. In caring for God's people we need to ensure that our words are words that create peace rather than the conditions for violence that we so often succumb to in everyday life. By holding to the precepts of God we bring justice and peace into the world as harbingers of peace in the advent of God's kingdom.

Laying things aside

 We begin today our movement towards the incarnation of Christ and the celebration of Christ-mass. Today, is the Sunday of Hope as we look to our future hope in God's incarnation as part of humanity. Hope is something that is needed at the beginning of a new liturgical year both in terms of our personal lives and those of the community in which we serve. Perhaps the hope that is the essence of Isaiah's vision is something that should inspire us as we move forward in this period (Is. 2:1-5). Isaiah's dream or prophesy seems so unworldly in a world that is often filled with despair. Swords into ploughshares or in today's terms perhaps guns into harvesters. Perhaps, a slightly more literal interpretation as each harvest death one for the benefit of the community and one to the detriment of society. This hope that is instilled within the words of Isaiah appear not to have become reality in the fulness of time but rather a lost vision that appears unattainable.

Today, we seem more and more to be in align with Christ's message to the disciples in Matthew (24:36-54). The world appears to be heading towards calamitous situations which have no hope contained in them. All we hear about within the daily news cycle is the parlous state of the world. All we are really concerned about is the next war, famine, flood or other catastrophe. There is or appears to be no hope within the secular world despite anything we attempt to undertake or do to relieve the various crises. It is irrespective of whether we are a Christian, Muslim, Buddhist or any other denomination / religion / philosophy. Indeed the nihilist turn is perhaps closer to where we appear to be then any eschatological hope that we are meant to embrace. So how are we meant to react to the despair that is around us to find hope in the everyday? In this Advent season as we begin our journey to the ultimate hope that is seen in the incarnation what can we undertake so that we can impart the joy and love that is in God's presence in our lives to those who live around us?

Hope springs eternal from the frozen wastes of our selfish hearts

In our lead up to the beginning of the year we have been looking closely at our faith journey and in centring our foundation upon our faith journey we begin to find our hope in the year to come. Paul in his letter to the Romans is quite clear with regards what we must do (13:14). Our despair and lack of hope ultimately comes from our failure to put on Christ, that is not to say that we have not accepted Christ in our lives. It applies to all whether they have accepted Christ or not, it is the conscious putting on Christ that is living as Christ himself lived without striving for our own benefit. Christ did not look to glorify himself but rather to reach out to the other. We on the other hand over the ages have without doubt put on the mind of greed and grasping for power along with our own self needs. This is not what it means to be a Christian and it is what garners despair rather than hope in the lives of those in our communities. It can do nothing else as it is centred on the gratification of ourselves rather than those around us. Despair enters our hearts because we can no longer be satisfied ever striving for the ultimate goal of the self. A goal that truly is but a phantasm of our own minds.

True hope comes when we interact with God and find ourselves emulating Christ to such an extent that we begin to see the world around us as Christ saw his world. It is when we begin to be as Christ that we begin to have a hope that is surpassing everything else that we can believe in. The smallest set back sets us racing towards despair unless we are truly embedded in the understanding that Christ opened his arms on the cross for all. Not just all of us but all. This is an important distinction for otherwise we fall into despair. Our lives must reach out to all not just the favoured few but even those we consciously and unconsciously despise. In doing this we truly put Christ on as Paul suggests and eventually begin to realise the hope of God's love in our lives. Yes, we often fall into despair but when we begin to look to the other we begin once more to see the hope of the world for peace and the fulfilment of Isaiah's vision. Once this takes hold we will once more begin to see the world as the paradise it is meant to be beyond our individual wants.

An archaic terminology

 Christ the King has become The Reign of Christ in an attempt to update and become politically correct. We can perhaps agree on the fact that a King is archaic, although with the pomp that is about to occur in Britain perhaps not. In reality by using The Reign of Christ we are just twisting the words around to imply the same meaning just to make it look non-sexist and pc. This is really a very modern feast day invented by Pope Pious XI in 1925 to celebrate Christ's rule over the environment and the world. Perhaps going out on a limb here by asking the question: do we really need it? Surely every Sunday is such a feast for the Church rather than a specific Sunday of the year. Yes, it concentrates our thoughts on Christ's rule in our hearts or  God's dominion over all, more specifically Christ's. Yet, we seem to be losing something of the Trinity by concentrating on Christ. Naming something with archaic terminology does not create a better understanding.

 Is it really a reign or a king that we are celebrating or should be celebrating or something similar? I would suggest that what we should be celebrating is very similar to the reign of Christ as in Basiliea or rule of God. It is not something we should confine to one aspect of the Trinity but rather to the totality of God and indeed we see not Christ as the ruler/king/father but the first person of the Trinity. So what should we celebrate if we are to celebrate differently on this day. Perhaps it is the coming of God's rule here in this place through our actions based on Christ's commandments to us. A rule of God's presence in our communities through the truth, living the way and showing the life that is lived in the presence of Christ and God. It is something that we have been reminding ourselves over the past several weeks. The manner in which we show the presence of our faith in God's love. The whole of creation is ruled by God and we need to conform to that to ensure that our world is a better world. It takes courage and a change in our own behaviours.

It is through Christ that we become who we are meant to be as is suggested in Colossians (1:11-13), Even though in this small passage there is still a warning that it is not an easy route which may be the reason for our consistent failure and need to remind ourselves that Christ is in all. Even in our faith strongholds there is often issues that are not dealt with in a manner befitting the Christ that is. Jeremiah points this out in his calling out of those who serve as leaders and as people who should no better (Jer. 23:1-2). Indeed when in leadership, and that is pointing to all those who profess Christ as they are faith leaders, it is vital that we mirror what we state within our lives. There is no point in saying we follow Christ if our lives do not mirror that by stating the truth, walking the way and living the life of Christ. This is the eschatological moment that is being pointed to within the festival, the moment when we all embrace the life of Christ. We are looking towards a new beginning with the incarnation and our preparations towards that event. Yet, this Sunday cannot be just passed over as another funny festival that is peculiar to the church.

Our road may be straight and narrow but we must walk it fully

In response to the thief on the cross Christ responds with an affirmation of his presence in 'paradise' (Lk. 23.43). The question of course is why? Our response would suggest that the thief recognises his own faults and is forgiven his sins at the last hour. This of course is the 'right' answer but I think that there may be something deeper to be gleaned from the thief's answer. Our shallow response does not take into consideration the thief's actual words just 'Oh, he confessed and was forgiven' but is this all. It is in the way he makes the confession suggesting that his thoughts are not really about himself but about Christ who is innocent. In other words, the thief is displaying what it means to live as Christ even at the end of his own life. What the scriptures tell us to do that is concern for the other rather than immediate selfish desire as displayed by the other thief (Lk. 23:39). I would suggest that it is this, almost forgotten aspect that is of the utmost importance in our own lives and in determining what it means to live as Christ. Our faith demands of us an acknowledgement of the other which is almost above all else and as we move forward it is this aspect that should be foremost in our minds as we celebrate this day.

A future vision

 The one thing that we could all do these days is a future vision such as the one Isaiah seems to suggest for the people of God (65:17-25). Indeed it seems to be a world away especially after Christ suggesting so many dark and awful things that lie in store (Lk. 21:5-19) and with the current state of not only world affairs but those in our own country in terms of poverty, abuse, prejudice, etc. Yet, as Christians we should have this hope that is contained in the visions of Isaiah rather than focussing on the negative aspects of the world. A difficult proposition given that all we see is the dark side of humanity rather than the brighter side of life. We often tend to swing from one to the other as we travel through life and as the world travels through time. There are good times and then there are bad times but for Christians we should be striving for the good knowing that disaster can and often will befall us.

No matter who wrote the second letter to the Thessalonians, the final passages give us a clear understanding as to what is expected of us in the reality of the world. Last week that clarity of thought was based solely on the concept of love, which is true, however there is still something that is perhaps missing. Love is a concept and an attitude of behaviour it is not how we live as there has to be some interaction within the world irrespective of what is to come or is happening in the moment. Love leads us into a way of life that is described in the authors words (3:7-9, 13). It is how we comport ourselves by working within the world doing those things that keep us alive. The writer does not lay down the law and order to the recipients but encourages them by the example of their own behaviour which follows from last week in terms of the golden rule.

I wonder sometimes as to how we can condone the behaviour of some in the work place, particularly the public workplace, which is ultimately wrong in terms of behaviour. We just need to look at politicians and certainly some of those who are way richer than ourselves to see that they often say one thing and do another. This is often what Christians themselves are inclined to do as it appears to be a failing that we all succumb to one way or another. The Christian work ethic of earlier years was transformed into an economic thief known as the Protestant work ethic. Yet, it is still an opportune time to reflect on what it does mean to work in the world as a Christian. It is through such work that God's love is spread if we adhere to our Christian faith and understanding. The work arena is a difficult one for all of us particularly as we strive to understand how to work in difficult circumstances. COVID and economic factors are among the more drastic effects on our work place as well as our ability to obtain employment that satisfies our souls.

A Christian work ethic demonstrates love

However, neither of these things effect the Christian understanding of work which is heavily impacted not by COVID and not by economic perils but by the choices made by the employer and their understanding. Whilst we, to a certain extent, denigrate a work ethic that speaks the truth and sets an example to others in the modern cut throat world it is a Christian way of being. This is demonstrated within Paul's letters and those who emulate him but specifically in the passage from Thessalonians. Love, which is what we are asked to live, requires this sort of behaviour irrespective of the culture or behaviours that are common in the work place of today. The greater achievement is to become God's loved disciple than being top dog within  a world that is cut throat and despises the other. The choice to follow the example of God's love within the workplace follows the prophesy of Isaiah. Yet, our current world has dropped us into a bleak future as our choices turn away from Isaiah's vision to those of an apocalyptic end. For those that have moved into the golden phase of retirement this still applies. The workplace has changed to the community in which we live. A world that should be far from cut throat politics and yet is filled with lethargy as well as a lack of motivation to new ways of bringing love into fulfilment. We cannot and should not turn our backs on an ethic of honest work for the greater good of our community. We should rather work in such a manner that demonstrates God's love to the world as we work towards peace and an accepting environment within our communities striving for hope that is demonstrated in love.

The glory of the saints

 At the start of the month on the first we celebrate All Saints. A festival to celebrate all the saints, not just the named, the ones we know but also the ones we do not know or are obscured for one reason or not. Paul addresses his letter to the saints in Ephesus but what were their names? Who are these saints that we celebrate at the beginning of November each year? The forgotten ones the ones that we neither know of nor learn about. The everyday people who believed in Christ living in Ephesus, Rome, Corowa and every other place that has a Christian church. We celebrate ourselves. Yet, is it really enough to state this truth or is there actually more to our celebration than this simplicity?

In celebrating ourselves aren't we being a bit vain rather than celebrating what being a saint really means to our daily lives? I cannot really consider myself a saint, I believe, unless that something more is the truth within my life. Paul writing to the Ephesians is very particular in his terminology (1:13-14) by using words such as truth, believed, marked and redemption. We can perhaps all say that these things apply to us especially if we have been baptised and are worshipping in the here and now but I am troubled if this is all there is to it, much as Daniel was after his visions (Dan 7). Daniel's visions describe the ages of man and the various ME conquests during his period and foreseeing the Roman occupation. This is really meaningless for us to a certain extent other than to be a reminder of the disquiet that such visions bring when we look to the future of the world, if we do not change ourselves and become one with the saints of this and every other age.

Are we really saints or do we pretend that we are saints?

It is on us to conform to the words of Paul and discover the pattern towards being a saint in truth, word and deed. Our starting place is in the words of Christ to his disciples seen in the words of the Sermon on the plain (Lk. 6.20-31) (or in Matthew the Sermon on the Mount). These words have been dissected over time by numerous theologians for numerous directions and understandings. Perhaps, first and foremost is to understand that these are words said not to theologians but to ordinary people and thus are likely to have ordinary meanings in their lives. Interpreting them for a theological purpose perhaps defeats the object of the exercise whilst acknowledging that however we look at them we have our own view point that influences what we understand. If this is the case then we as normal people, non-theologians, need to understand these words and sentences in terms of our day to day lives and not necessarily as theological conundrums that can only be given by scholars in their ivory seeming towers.

The crux of the conversation that Christ has with those that follow him are in the final passage of Luke's rendition of the scene (6.27-30). It is in these phrases that we glimpse the truth of our way of acting and living within society. A way that is contrary to every society that humanity has delivered in the history of humanity on earth. It is no wonder that we know so little about the saints for they live lives that are contrary to the society in which they live and will not be found on the pages of history unless as a sub-story that is neglected and left in the cobwebs at the back of the shelf. This is the way of love which is perhaps the hardest way to live in any society in the world as it contravenes all the accepted norms of modernity that proclaims the selfishness of the self over the other. The no nonsense statements, known as the Beatitudes in Matthew, let us know how this is achieved and in Luke sets up the opposites so that there can be no escape from the meaning laid down.

We can only strive towards the achievement of these requirements as we constantly fail each and everyday. It is in the striving and attempting that we fulfil what Paul suggests in that we are marked as being different. If we do not strive to be counter to the current social pressures then we are not true to our calling in Christ as such a calling is to the truth of life in God which is a life that is situated in love rather than in the acceptance of what society tells us. Only then can we count ourselves as being among the saints as we celebrate the truth of life today.

Giving our all for faith

 Habakkuk's cry (Hab.1:2-4) right at the beginning of the prophet's book appears to be that of ours in the modern age. All that we appear to hear about in our news is disaster in one form or another. If it is not natural in terms of storm fronts and droughts then it is violence in the form of war, crime and domestic. In our prayers we cry out to God in much the same way as do the people of Israel in Habakkuk's story. A wondering where God's presence is in the midst of disaster and calamity and yet for a people of faith we are not as reflective as perhaps we need to be (Hab. 2:1), wanting to continually do something but without waiting for God's presence. Does this mean that we just sit and wait until God decides when we should do something? By no means but it does mean that we do not rush in where angels fear to tread, which is what we often do as we become galvanised to do something, just anything. For the most part it is in waiting and discerning that we see the path ahead of us and in doing so we are able to festina lente or go fast slowly. We make preparations just as those in flood prone areas make preparations, or should do, in such a manner that we are prepared to act when our discerned path becomes visible in a manner that will attain our goal of bringing Christ to the community through our deeds and lived lives.

War and violence a part of the everyday lives we live

In proceeding to rush forward we are likely to miss the opportunity that has been presented. The process of discernment and wrestling with how we proceed needs often to be undertaken through prayer. Prayer that does not necessarily ask for a revelation but rather a way forward that makes us worthy of God's call upon our ministry and where that should be (2 Thess. 1:11). Sometimes we have no real idea how to proceed and require direct intervention in our lives. Zacchaeus may well have been feeling a bit frustrated, to say the least, when he found the innovative way to see Christ as he passed. (Lk. 19.1-4) and work out what all the frenzy was about. It was not about privilege but rather about finding away even if he had to debase himself. (Climbing a tree is not the best way of portraying yourself, especially for a man in the ME at the time). Yet, the outcome was an outpouring of the grace of God upon him as Christ is welcomed to his table that evening. Was Zacchaeus looking for such an outcome? I doubt it. The reality was that he ended up depriving himself of his profits (Lk. 19.8), which if we look at it from today's perspective, is illogical because we all want to be members of the rich or at least richer then we are. So was his haste detrimental, for him in some respects yes. Could he have festina lente and not deprived himself, yes probably.

However, if we actually consider Zacchaeus' actions and words and it would probably be the reverse of the obvious as so much of scriptural writing actually is. We actually have to enter into the mindset of the man rather than take at face value the account as it is written. If we do this Zacchaeus' actions are probably a result of his pondering and what to do with his status in life. Tax collectors are not the favourite people of the time and considering he is rich he probably was not well liked. The spontaneity of his actions in giving his wealth away may not be quite as out of the blue as the writing implies. We only see the spontaneity through the written account and know nothing of the brewing thought process, which was inevitably there in the background. The circumstances arose that his gesture of faith, in terms of the Hebrew scriptures, was presented to him in the form of a choice. He did not have to and I suspect a person not of faith would chosen not to make the decision to give back. Christ recognises the choice that has been made (Lk. 19. 9-10), which is directly in contra to the rich man of the previous chapter (The image of a child). Zacchaeus has the imagination to go beyond his riches. 

We have the time and resources to think and pray about our own situation to determine what Christ is calling us to rather than ploughing straight in to ministries and possible solutions that end up on the bench. We all want what is best for the life of Christ in the communities that we serve but sometimes we rush into solutions rather than discern what is right and where Christ / God is asking us to be. For us to be like Zacchaeus we need to have his faith filled mindset rather than that of the rich man's shallow understanding of faith and the journey we are inevitably on with God by our side.

The image of a child

 The imagination is a wonderful tool that can and should be developed in the very young. Unfortunately our society's norms suggest that we drum out such imagination through education and by feeding the younger generations an amorphous mixture of bland and 'pc' computer games / apps / etc. There is a reason for Christ to tell us to suffer the little children (Lk. 18:16) because they stimulate the imaginative side of our lives by the way they play and interact with each other. Faith requires us to have the imagination of a child. I and I am sure many of you also have been in churches where any form of disruption caused by kids racing around during the service is frowned on, rather than accepting the joy and love they project. If we cannot accept the imagination of a child it is very difficult to accept the concepts embedded in the faith journey as ably illustrated by the rich man (Lk. 18:18-23).

In our education we too often chase out the imaginative process so that we are left with a dry wrinkled prune of a life that is devoid of the touch of grace that comes from God's presence in our lives. Children epitomise for us the ideal of the imaginative life that is required within our faith journey. It is when we become stagnant within those lives that we begin to deny the exuberance of Christ's joy found in the rambunctiousness of  a child. Christ calls us into newness of life that is filled with joy and laughter but we so easily destroy that when we educate children and ourselves into the world's folly to conform with society's idea of the perfect life. In baptism we ask parents and sponsors to bring the child up into Christ holding the values of truth, honesty and imaginative purpose that brings difference and grace into the lives of the community. Our faith journey is one that is forwarded by the imaginative process rather than the rationality of science and the secular world of today.

The child's imagination is the world that we need in faith

Joel's prophesy tells of a future for the Israelites in terms plenteousness (2:23-34), a future that for the Israelites was abundant to the extreme requiring the imagination to engage beyond that which they would normally. A plenteousness that requires the insurance of abundance for all as the scriptures dictate. Christ mentions the main law to the rich person and receives the response that he has fulfilled all the requirements of the law and yet he lacks for he has not fulfilled the potential of ensuring that others receive more than they have (Lk. 18:20-22). The consideration of the other which is present in the prophesy of Joel is lacking in the imagination of the young man as for him this is beyond his understanding. The child willingly, unless taught otherwise, will share if encouraged to do so. They have the imagination to see this sharing as being beneficial to them as they receive love, attention and companionship. In doing so they fill the void found in the adult world where sharing brings hardship and thus hoarding is preferable. Yet, as Christians we are enjoined to follow the childish approach of sharing. The approach that we, inadvertently or not, steer our children away from by the way we behave and model. 

Our society has engrained within us the giving up of "childish" whims to become 'adult'. In bringing up children as Christians we are asked to overturn this in the life of the child to bring them up into a contrary manner to society. We are to encourage them to have faith in their imaginative processes so that they can see sharing and friendship of the other are the norm. Where peace and justice is a requirement of our lives and where the imaginative process engages with God and a Spirit filled life that emulates Christ. Yet, it is reasonably obvious that we fail this as we ourselves are devoid of the imaginative moment in our lives and therefore cannot transfer that to those that are young in faith. We fall back on the rhetoric of science and modern insight rather than our own imaginative processes. In order to overcome those things that denigrate our lives and our society we ourselves need to have the imagination to overcome the dullness of our lives and live to our fullest in Christ.

In their hearts

 God states that the days are coming when we will not have to say "Know the Lord" but that we will have God present in our hearts in such a manner that we do not have to learn to know God but that we will KNOW God (Jer. 31:33-34). Yet, in every way we go about our Christian journey, we are always bearing in mind a need to teach ourselves and our communities to "Know God" and moan when that teaching does not happen. Unfortunately, because we have to a certain degree adopted a modern secular thinking when it comes to anything to do with religious value, we absent ourselves from the knowledge of God. It is a problematic for today as we are schooled not to believe in things that cannot be proved through the scientific method. Even then we argue about what the scientific method's results mean interpreting each and every data point to our advantage.

Stone and cold hearts are transformed by God's presence

In our faith lives many of us live in an in-between world of faith and science with neither really taking hold unless it suits our purposes. Much of the time we pride our selves in our presence at 'church' and make an assumption that we are profoundly faith driven as a result. To a certain extent we need to make an effort to contemplate the parable regarding the pharisee and the tax collector (Lk. 18:9-14). The difference in attitude displayed correlates quite well with the two attitudes in today's society. We either treat our religious life as an extension of secular society (i.e. as a commodity) or secreted away from everyone and not shown.  In the first case we believe that through a pious attitude our demands are to be met and anyone else who does not agree can go elsewhere seeking their own commodity religion. The other way is that we hide our faith and believe ourselves not worthy of God's attention bumbling through life not expecting anything and when grace comes our way we brush it off.

It is the humility of the tax collector, the despised person, that attracts Christ's comments with regards who is deemed worthy and grace filled in the sight of God. This is the person who has taken to heart the requirements that are laid out in scripture (reminding ourselves that for Christ and those writing in what we call the NT this means the Hebraic scriptures). In this case the tax collector has the law written within his heart as God prophesies in Jeremiah (31:33b) and is demonstrated by Christ for us. It is this state of being that we must portray or rather live into as we live our lives in our communities. We are too familiar with the attitude of the pharisee in this day and age with examples from within both the Anglican denomination and the wider faith world.

One of the truisms from the Gospel is how well it encapsulates the everyday life of human beings irrespective of the milieu in which we live or look at. We have this idea, today, that we should get something immediately and if it does not come we give up. However, if we persist with our asking, attempting, etc, we get to the end point. In the first part of Luke's 18th chapter there is a story of persistence ((1-8), which you might find strange in terms of what we are talking about. This story tells us that despite our despair about not getting it right immediately and turning away or being tempted into the situation of the pharisee should we persist in the manner of Christ we will eventually turn things about. We know that often times in life it is our persistence that pays off in the long term. We find that doing those things that are closer to God comes at a cost in today's world, a cost in negativity and despair, yet should we persist in being as Christ to the community it will in the end pay off, not only for us but also for the community in which we live as we begin to change attitudes and behaviours.  This is the gospel story being played out in our lives to the fulfilment of God's dreams.

Thanking God

 It is often the case nowadays that the words 'please' and 'thank you' are forgotten in our normal standard conversations. If we then take that into the world of faith I believe that they went out the window a long time ago. Our prayers and our supplications often sound like demands of God rather than a seeking of God's grace to come into our lives and when that grace settles upon us we are too often either upset or astounded to ever think of giving thanks and praise. I indicated briefly a couple of weeks ago that the leper had a deeper significance in the psyche of the Rabbinic interpretations than the straightforward interpretation we place on it today. Perhaps, when we look at the ten lepers in the story from Luke (17:11-19) we can look at it from the point of view of relationships and their worth within the eyes of faith.

Due to how we have consistently seen leprosy purely as the disease we find it difficult to think of it as an indication or analogy of dis-ease within our lives. A dis-ease that places us outside of the community through our lack or mis-understanding of the situation in which we find ourselves. Too often we feel ashamed of who we are as members of a faith group (2 Tim 1:8) and in not making ourselves known through thought, word and deed we suffer dis-ease in the world around us. We are masks that are worn so that people will not feel uncomfortable around us and accept us into their company. We are relying on our own wiles and ingenuity rather than allowing the grace of God to carry us in any situation that we can conceivably be placed into. We are dis-eased from our knowledge of God and Christ's presence in our lives to show a shadow of our selves to others. In doing so we begin to fall away from God and Christ as we take on the persona of the secular society in which we live and the glories of God fade from our lives.

Giving thanks in a spiritual life graced by God

We can only grow comfortable in our faith personas if we actually wear them continually and not the mask that we habit each day to face secular society. We seem to have lost the impetus that was there in the early part of the journey and have now come to a long lonely struggle as if we are going or are in exile. Like the Israelites in exile we mourn as no one comes to the faith being led astray from our purpose by the prophesies of the modern age (Jer. 29:8). We are perhaps not as vigorous in our defence or as prayerful as perhaps we should be not seeking and not knocking (Jer. 29:12-14). In our PC climate we seem to be unable to express our emotions and our absolute faith in claiming retribution against a culture that denies our very beliefs and faith. Yet, we too are to blame as we have sunk into a sort of semi-comatose posture when it comes to our faith journey, without joy and thanks for the endeavours that God has given to us however hard they appear to be. 

The thing that commands our attention at the end of the day is the outsider, the Samaritan leper, who turns back and is reconciled by giving thanks to God and Christ for his acceptance back into society. Yes, the leprosy is cleansed but it is much more than that it is an easing back into the embrace of God and the re-start of the lapsed faith journey. We give thanks for what God has done for us when we realise how badly we have fallen on the road by relying upon our own self indulgences and our own thoughts. We need to judge our own faith progress and not place obstacles in the way of others. Christ only requires that we fulfil the law and give thanks to God for his grace to come to us and cure us of our ills. We need to like the psalmist claim our joy to God (Ps 66:1) that despite being led astray by society God has led us into a new place. Let us give thanks to God for the grace that enables our lives to be filled with the truth of God's love for us and those we form community with. We change society violently with an aggressive love that tells only the truth and not the lies that society would have us believe. Only then can we begin to thank God for the resurgence in our faith that forms around a community that is filled with spiritual prayers and supplications living a life that is formed in Christ and not in our conception of the moral dimensions of human life.

Small faith for large response

 In Lamentations the prophet Jeremiah laments the loss of faith in the city of Jerusalem and its peoples dispersal into exile (Lam 1:1-6). Even the roads mourn as no one comes to festival to show their faith through song and dance (Lam 1:4). The inhabitants of Judah and Israel are now cut of from God in their faithlessness. Perhaps, a commentary on today's world that is focussed on the human here and now and not on the possibilities that come with faith. Since the enlightenment and our turn to science so has our faith become side lined from our lives. Faith is no longer a concern and when we do talk about faith we speak in terms of institutions of faith such as churches and other places of worship. It is as if we have scientified our world so much that we cannot but breakdown what we believe into relevant small chunks. Chunks that can be dissected and held up against a specified standard as a measure. For example, Mother Theresa or some other well known personage is the standard to which we must live.

The smallest packs the biggest wallop

Yet, in the Gospel the only measure is the smallest grain that was known at the time, a mustard seed (Lk 17:6). In this day and age we want the biggest and the best but Christ points out that it is the smallest amount of faith that can do the greatest deed. Unfortunately we have obscured even that small amount of faith within our lives by succumbing to the ultimate understanding of a scientific world view. In such a view we can no longer even have the smallest amount of faith for that will be obscured by our own beliefs and our own understanding of how the world works. We are to a certain extent like those who are railed against in the psalm for we are the ones who have burnt down the towers of the land of faith and have razed the foundations (Psalm 147:8). We no longer are able to understand what the faith journey is about as we have a tendency to try and fit it into a scientific paradigm. We can go on courses to achieve an abundance of faith or find a multitude of resources that will point our way along the path of faith. This is canned faith this is not what God and Christ entice us towards. Faith has to be a struggle for knowledge and understanding that changes our hearts to those that are Christlike. John of the Cross and others have written about the journey of faith not in a scientific manner but in a faith manner a style that is beyond most of us today. The faith that changes everything in the world is a seed that grows in Christ's love and God's presence. It is not something that can be bought over the shelves of a supermarket or exchanged because it has not done anything for me. 

It is through grace that we manage our faith not through our own efforts. Grace that has been given to us in Christ. We do that which is commanded of us through our baptism and acceptance of Christ in our lives what we do not do is laud ourselves believing that we are better than others for we are slaves to the cross not to the world. We have forgotten or we are unaware that like anything else faith is built up from a base and solid foundation. If we think about it a small amount we can see that Christ in talking about the mustard seed speaks to the smallest grasp of the foundation of a life that is built on the foundation of faith. In modern terminology we know the power of an atom, aka atomic bomb and nuclear reactions both fission and fusion, which is equivalent to the mustard seed in modern physics. It is also amongst the smallest building blocks of life and this is the power that Christ is referring to when he speaks about faith. Our primitive understanding has not advanced any further than when the disciples heard this story. There have been some who have been able to go beyond but we are caught in a perpetual cycle of unknowing in terms of faith. We can only begin with the basics of prayer, discipline and love to prepare the foundation and build. Our issue, as it is so many times when speaking about faith, is that the rationale understanding that comes with science blinds us to the irrational understanding that comes with faith. To live our lives in faith means that we must give over almost every rational process that binds us to the modern world. We must rely solely on God and the grace of Christ to ensure that we live as Christ has shown and as God demands; in love and charity contrary to the world in which we live.

On the out and on the in

 Exclusion from our community, whether it is a faith community or a secular society or general community in which we live, is something that we should all be aware of. Even within any one group there is always an 'in' group and a group which is seen to be on the 'outside' when it comes to decisions, policy, camaraderie or anything that is being undertaken together. One only often has to look at a gathering after a church service or at a social meeting to quickly determine who is 'in' and who is 'out'. In the famous story of Lazarus and in the society at the time it was the 'leper' who was on the outside. (As a side it is often fascinating to see that in the Midrashic texts the prohibitions regarding the leper are seen as deeper psychological issues rather than just a straightforward understanding of the disease). In making the decision as to who is 'in' and who is 'out' we are making a judgement often on little factual evidence but rather a gut feeling or tradition.

In the reading from Jeremiah the context is one where the people have given up and all they know is war and violence so no land exchanges hands until the despised Jeremiah initiates a transaction that tells of the coming bounty (32:6-15). What was in was the understanding that no land was exchanged but here a person who is generally despised initiates something new. At what point do we stop our own judgement of others and begin to accept that those that we despise may be filled with God's love for the other. In our churches and ministry gatherings we need to be very careful with regards our labelling of the other. Too often it is our need to regulate who is 'in' and who is 'out' that removes us from God's presence as we continually judge in our terms and not in God's terms. Everything that we see is coloured by our own imperatives rather than the imperatives of God's work. In a manner of speaking we are like those that are ensnared by our own desires leading people into ruination and a severing of their ties to God (1Tim 6:9). 

Even as children we are taught to judge who is 'in' and who is 'out'

Yet, when we move to be Christian and stand up to say that this is our faith we are moving to be images of Christ and God in the world. If we are to become more Christlike we need to ensure that we reflect the understanding that we do not overlook the person we walk past on a daily basis without judgement. Recently, Martin Percy wrote that we make judgements on a routine and daily basis as it is in our nature being apart from God. This makes us people who automatically categorise the lepers in our society whether they are actual lepers or just a group we categorise as being unworthy of our attention. However, to God all are worthy. Once we begin to exclude and make people 'out' then we fall away from God creating the chasm that is between Lazarus and the rich man. The faith of following Christ is a faith that is accepting of all in the sight of God it is not one that rejects a person, for whatever reason, but rather loves them into being who God wants them to be. It is we who make the judgements of who is 'in' and who is 'out' not God to God all people are in no matter what we may think or consider to be right or proper.

The letter to Timothy speaks about the temptations of riches (1 Tim 6:9-10) including that most misquoted verse (6:10). It is however more important to note what follows as this is the key as the author writes "shun all this" or words to that effect (1 Tim 6:11) so as to pursue those things which are closer to God. It is not the temptation of riches per se that is being written about but the sole pursuit of these things as this is what changes our view. Once we start along the line of wanting more in terms of the riches of the world we increasingly make our judgements in the world and of the world. This is when we get caught up in the spiral that takes us away from God as we begin to follow those around us in determining the right and the wrong rather than aligning our hearts with God. We begin to move towards the pursuit of everything that is worldly rather than that which is from God. In doing so we alienate the other as they are not of us and thus we determine our judgement on them.

Letting go to start afresh

 In Luke's gospel the parable of the shrewd manager (Lk 16:1-9) seems to be a bit strange among the many strangenesses of the biblical story. Here is, what amounts to a corrupt manager, being commended for his corruptness by the owner and supposedly by Christ. In the passage following Christ then states quite plainly that one cannot serve two masters at the same time, in this case God and wealth (Lk. 16:13). So, what is going on here? Perhaps we need to expand our horizons somewhat when we look at this text, in much the same manner in which the rabbinical tradition expands the readings of the Hebrew scriptures. In this case with a bit of imagination and in depth look at everyone's actual motivations. We can perhaps wonder where this parable comes in terms of Christ's understanding of those very same scriptures as this is where he is, one has to presume, deriving his teachings from (the Hebraic law).

In somewhat of a reverse analogy this parable is about letting go in terms of our thoughts and how we think about God and secular life. Too often we are caught up in the dilemma of when to let go of what we think and when to take on new thoughts about God and our lives of faith. We have a propensity towards two different ways of thinking when it comes to our faith journey. The first is to be adamant on our own knowledge of God and place that as the defining agenda for a faith lived life. This can be seen in the attitudes of those who would determine how we "must" read the bible, irrespective of denomination or church, this sort of attitude is found. There is here a failure to release our thinking or rather our hold on what we have been taught and consider what God wants us to learn. The second is the understanding that the religious life or rather the faith life is irrelevant and has no hold on us in the modern saeculum. This inevitably leads to a denial of those things which lead us into the spiritual dimensions of our lives as these are no longer relevant for modern society. These failures are taken up in the Hebrew scriptures when they discuss the relevance of the sabbath in terms of the land and those who have become bound through debt slavery in Leviticus which could be the source of Christ's unusual line of thought in the Lukan parable.

A fresh start means a letting go of our perspective

If we take a look at the parable it gives us a marvellous insight into the stewards thinking in terms of his retirement. We do not have to think about the probable corrupt practices going on but rather on the understanding in the stewards mind as to what comes after. In some respects the man is saying to himself I must look to God to look after me in my old age because I am not going to be able to continue in my current post. In doing so I will also assist my letting go by opening possibilities in my later life so that I am cared for within the community. I am not going to hang on to my previous understandings, I am willing to let go and open myself to new possibilities. A vacating or freeing of what was once bound up in a continuation of the way forward. This is what is being praised and  this, in a manner of speaking, also speaks to the later passage with regards not serving two masters. This happens if we cling to what we think or know regarding our faith without giving up our aspirations in terms of our secular age. We are torn between the two and most likely will turn away from the path of faith, as so many have done, choosing to go with the lure of wealth or power whilst paying lip service to God's law. The steward frees himself, if you will, and allows God to take a hand in his forward journey.

In believing ourselves to be following God's commandments and hanging on to what we interpret as God speaking to us from the scriptures we open ourselves up to hypocrisy and condemnation. As we aggrandise our lives whilst scheming in a political and sinful manner to such an extent that we neglect love of neighbour and eventually on the slippery slope we fail to love God with all our hearts. This is due to our failure to let go of our own thinking and manner to allow God into the space of freedom and release that comes with beginning anew. It is only when we die that we can gain new life, it is only when we release ourselves from the bondage of our own thoughts that we attain the peace that comes with God's love.

Sin and the sinner

 We really do not understand the concept of sin per se in today's world. We bandy the word about but without any true meaning behind it and I also suppose with little understanding of what it means to sin or be a sinner. This means that we use sin as a cast off word rather than a word with reality in its meaning. There are a number of understandings of what sin is very dependent on the culture and the religious belief people have been brought up in. At the end of the day for most sin is a moral wrong doing either against God or against some other authority that is sublime. This then bends us towards understanding that sin is something that we have a choice over rather than something that is thrust upon us from outside ourselves. This in turn tells us of our own need to make decisions that are in alignment with the moral code of God which is seen in the love of God and the love of neighbour. If we understand this then we can understand where in our lives sin exists but also that redemption lies with Christ.

In understanding our failures we begin to rejoice over our redemption even when those failures were small as shown in the parables at the start of Luke chapter 15 (1-10). This rejoicing is emphasised and taken further in the parable of the prodigal son later in the chapter. The main point for us is that we cannot overlook what appears at first glance to be small and inconsequential. We cast aspersions of sin  when we speak about major incidents like murder and theft often overlooking our own minor misdemeanours that we do not go looking for. The parables in Luke 15 other than the prodigal are all about minor things, a single sheep and a single coin. How well do we know our own proclivities that we can point to those things that we believe to be so minor as to stay lost? Perhaps what I am trying to point out is that we neglect and overlook many things that we believe to be minor but are actual causes of our continual sin. Reminding us that our sin is that which is not in keeping with the law of love. I think that if we were to deeply delve into our own actions over say the last week we could easily come up with circumstances where we were not loving towards God or our neighbour.

What is the sin and who the sinner?

The saying is that the little things trip you up and for the most part it is the same in our faith journey. It is those things that we overlook that trip us up. Our attitudes, our reliance on our own thinking, our reliance on tradition, etc. all of these things eventually highlight our own hypocrisies and our lack of love for those around us. We become protective of our 'territory' and would rather our neighbours leave us alone so that we do not have to share what we perceive to be our wisdom. In doing so we neglect the basics of our faith journey and act out of ignorance (1 Tim. 1:13b) rather than out of faith and knowledge. Our ignorance appears to be related to our own self understanding of what it means to live a life of faith. More often than not we impose on others the meaning and relevance of scripture that we are happy with even if it moves away from the bedrock of love. We cannot see the irregularity and disjunction between our own perceptions and those that highlight God's love. Irrespective of where we sit on the spectrum from ultra conservative to ultra liberal.

Perhaps the words from Jeremiah are more apt than we would think "For my people are foolish, they do not know me" (Jer. 4:22). People do not want to understand the scriptures or to be led in the way of love rather they prefer what they are told what scripture says even if the words are words against love. Whilst it is sometimes difficult for people to gather around the scriptures in the fashion of the old style bible study it is even more difficult to come to terms with scriptural passages if there is not real means of debate or reading at a local level. The common complaints are often along the lines of "I do not agree with x, y and z's comments so won't continue to go" or else "it is to high faluting and I am immediately lost, so what is the point". Perhaps, also there seems to be little enthusiasm to delve into aspects of scripture in an academic way and in any case the minister tells us all about it in the Sunday sermon. I understand that because often in the past it has come down to a liking or a disliking of a person leading a group that has turned people away or else it has been "shoved" down the throat in an unacceptable manner. This is where our centrality in Christ comes into play and if we forget this we unintentionally sin automatically turning from God who is justly angered by our neglect.

A slave to the cross

 We are often presumptuous about our faith and what it means for our lives. We think that what we know and how we interpret scripture is always the right way. We need look at the recent ructions within the Anglican Church of Australia to see how true this is. It is presumptuous of us to believe that what we interpret is the absolute truth in terms of what God is trying to impart to us through those very scriptures. It is assuming an all powerful knowledge of impossible power to understand the writer, the receiver and the intention as well as the context in which everything is written. Just looking at the very brief letter that is called Philemon calls many of our presumptions into question let alone our understanding of our own lives. Slavery is not so much a thing of the past, as we are well aware, yet we presume that this is the case when we read things like Philemon. Yet, the release from slavery is something that comes with the knowledge of Christ in our lives for we are too often slaves to our own perpetuation of tradition, interpretation, thought and wants.

No matter who we are the story in Jerimiah (18.1-11) shows us how we should begin to look at what we are doing in the name of Christ and God. We are the clay that the potter moulds into the pattern that is required for the time and the day. If we think we are the directors of our journey in faith and that what we suggest is the correct way then we have truly forgotten this lesson. It is not ourselves that lay the path that we follow in faith but God and when we attempt to achieve things in God's name we need to be well aware that God requires of us a discernment of his will. This is particularly important when we consider our own lives within the parish community and context that we inhabit. A context that is fraught with possibility and with potential for God's working. We are so filled with our own thinking that we neglect the need to prepare, discern and plan (Lk. 14.28-30) along with God rather than neglect God's presence. We can see this happening in the broader church but we often are blind to our own inability to do the same as we are reliant on our own choices and thought processes.

Free in our slavery to the cross

We always find it almost impossible to understand when God calls us into something new. It often takes something much more then one person suggesting a new thing for anything to begin. The reason being is that we are so often caught up with what we have done in the past and what we are doing in the present. It takes a lot of discernment to understand the pull of God into a ministry that is new and in some ways undetermined. We like someone to say to us this is what you need to do and often we look to those who lead to be the well from which our ministry develops. However, we are all called by God and often times it is not from leadership that the new ministry develops but rather from something that we have already discerned as being the way forward. We just lack the courage and the discernment to push forward with what God is calling us into as we are too often sitting with complacency and comfort in the present. None of us likes the upheaval that comes with God's call because make no mistake our lives are disrupted by the indwelling of God's Spirit as we are guided and directed into new pathways. However, we are to a large extent bound to fulfil God's wishes through our covenanted vows and promises made at baptism.

In coming to Christ and following Christ we are freed from our own needs and responses as we become tied to Christ's death on the cross. Our freedom and slavery is bound by the cross as we are bound to Christ's guidance and direction in life to bring into being God's promises of love, peace and community. We open ourselves up to God so that we build a firm foundation upon which we raise an edifice of love that overcomes all our own boundaries and distinctions and yet remain constrained by the slavery of the yoke of love that frees us from our own biases. We are clay in God's hands and serve Christ as slaves to the cross of our redemption.

The position of honour

 We do not have the same culture as we did in earlier times. The Japanese culture is closer to that but it is really something we have lost along the way and that is the honour system. Rightly or wrongly the system fell by the wayside and is not as respected as it once was. Yet, some of it's aspects still remain inherent in our culture and in our faith. In some respects it is the poorer issues of the system that hang around rather than the richer nuanced understandings that have been lost. It is all wrapped around how we respect the other and how we engage with the other. If we think about the gospel of Luke's description of Christ's criticism of the invitees to a dinner we get a clear picture of what I am talking about (Lk. 14:7-14). You can just imagine everyone shuffling around trying to find the seat that they want rather than that which comes with who they are. Indeed I can just imagine that sort of thing happening at a gala function in this day and age when everyone wants to sit as close as possible to the guest of honour and shuffle their seats accordingly.

One of the Christian attributes is hospitality which is brought out a lot in Luke's gospel usually around the table or entertainment, for a better word. In the culture at the time of Christ this was of particular note especially when it came to hosting members of the community as the proper respect and honour had to be given. In the Christian faith this has translated across to the Eucharist, originally a simple meal which has been ritualised with the bishop at its head. Thus, the honour was found at the head in other words with the bishop as presider over the eucharistic meal. Yet, things have changed somewhat in that the pseudo honour is no longer a thing for us but is still somewhat present in our interactions with the other. It takes a lot of courage for an outsider to attend a worship service or a space of worship where there is already a congregation or at least a formative group. The reality is that the new person attending often will feel as if they are unwanted by the group and become 'honour' bound to sit away from the existing group. An existing congregation does this in a number of ways. Perhaps, the greatest manner in which this is done is through seating arrangements within the worship space.

Who has the place of honour at the Lord's table?

 I have been in numerous parishes and they all have the same challenge. People get used to sitting in the same place and when furniture is moved then people get upset because they do not know where to sit. Then when people from outside come to join the family of God at worship there is tension because inevitably there is someone who is sitting in "MY" seat. This results not only in loss of respect for the outsider but also a deliberate closing of ranks by those who are on the "inside" and thus the loss of opportunity to minister to the other. We fail in doing the good (Heb 13:16) as we shun our neighbour and deliberately exclude those who may indeed be more deserving than ourselves. We do ourselves no favours by insisting on "our" seats or "our" spaces as soon as we pull out that card of discriminatory behaviour we begin to turn away from Christ who is constantly with us (Heb 13:8). In turning away from Christ we turn away from God who then has every right to lament as he did in the time of Jeremiah (Jer. 2:4-ff). Indeed I wonder if God would also accuse us in our failure as Jeremiah reports (2:9), for our failures in caring for our neighbour. Each time we claim our seat in the presence of God we must be sure that we are worthy to be called if on the other hand we are hesitant about our own position then we should step back and allow others to go before us only seeking to do that which God is asking of us.

Our hospitality begins not in our homes but in the presence of God as we are invited to the Lord's table. This is where we learn the lesson of honour and find our place in God's world. It is when we go back out into the world that we announce the love that God has for all people and bring those who deem themselves unworthy into the presence of God's love through our own hospitality to the other. The other is not those we congregate with but those that are on the outside, who are feeling neglected as they feel not worthy to enter into God's place of worship. Let us remind ourselves to look at our own behaviours in our parishes and pews as we welcome those who are other. 

The laws we make

 In our faith journey we are continually confronted with change. Change that affects our lives if we are to continue to follow Christ. In that vein we are substantive as our roots and foundations cannot be shaken if we are bound to God's kingdom and Christ's rule in our hearts (Heb. 13:28-29). However, in moving into alignment with Christ there comes a time when we sometimes stop and think to ourselves "no more" we cannot continue this change that Christ has started. The reason being is that we leave behind the safeguards of law and order or at least we think that is what is happening as our anchors appear to have come adrift. In doing so we automatically start to cling to what we believe is the right and proper to the extent that we prevent others from progressing because of our own frailties and issues.

This is clearly demonstrated by Christ in the Synagogue as he is presented and heals the woman afflicted on a sabbath (Lk. 13:10-17). Supposedly going against everything that the rabbis had been teaching Christ heals on a day set aside for rest. Yet, he immediately shames them by citing the everyday things they themselves do in contravention of the very law they are citing. This is what happens when we become so bound by the things we suppose are the law or the dogma or the worship style or the pew positions until the obvious fallacy of what we are doing is pointed out to us. For us our tradition sometimes becomes hidebound and allowed to stagnate and so eventually does our own faith journey. We sometimes need to think very carefully about what we think of as tradition within our community to ensure that what we are doing is not fulfilling the commandment to love our neighbour and to love God. Especially in reflecting on this particular story from the gospels.

Christ shows us the fulfilment of the law in the intent

We are often to blame for making things more difficult for ourselves when we turn to dogma, tradition and our own interpretation of what it means to be Christian. We have a tendency at parish, diocesan, provincial and even worldwide levels to think that what has been normal and working for decades to be the law that binds rather than sets free. We too often rely heavily on our own understanding and perception of what we hear, say or do. How often, I wonder, have we said "We have always done it this way" or "The pews cannot be moved because I won't know where to sit" or similar words. Just listen to Jeremiah as he responds to God as to how he perceives himself and his ability to be God's prophet (Jer. 1:6). This is often how we respond when there is something new or something we think is not how it should be. We can almost hear the whine in Jeremiah's voice and in some respects that is how we sound to the Lord, I suspect. We fail to discern God's path not only for ourselves but for our own communities for whom we are responsible as too often we fail to listen with an open heart to God's call and direction.

The question really comes down to how do we balance our faith traditions with where God calls us? Are we misinterpreting what God is saying to us through the scriptures and through our discernment of what is around us? Perhaps, it is just a matter of actually listening. You might think that it cannot be as simple as that, well maybe not but if we were to add the word discerning as well that may bring us closer to the truth.  The issue is we seldom listen and we seldom discern. What we actually do is pretend to listen and discern our own thoughts and not those of God. There has to be a willingness to allow God to direct us in the manner that God wishes not what is in our hearts. Jeremiah was a boy and yet he allowed God in to his heart and to open his lips so that he may speak (Jer. 1:7-10). We do not want anything to disturb our own thoughts and minds as we have been led to believe in the autonomous individual. Yet, Christ demands our following in thought, word and deed. We cannot leave out the thought just as we cannot leave out any other aspects. Only when we can fully trust that God will lead us and not our own derivation of God's thinking will we eventually begin to bring Christ into our lives. We must be like Jeremiah who understands his limitations but is willing to be corrected by God and follow God's voice. In the end we either listen to God or ourselves, listening to ourselves is refusing the one who has shown us the path to salvation (Heb. 12:25), for we have then closed ourselves of from God and placed our thoughts higher than God's.

The settlement of debt

 In today's world we see an escalation of debt not only at the private level but also at the larger national and international level. When we discuss debt it is always in terms of finance rather than anything else and that is probably because we have become more and more dependent on lenders to whom we become beholden; for the car, the home, education, the move, etc. However, when we talk about debt in terms of our religious practices we are not necessarily talking about financial debt even though that features. Debt can be what we owe to God or even what we owe to our neighbours in terms of what God has asked of us. The judge towards whom we are taken is not the district court or magistrate but God who judges us not by what we have done but by what we have failed to do in terms of our faith journey. Even in the Lord's prayer the forgiveness of debt is not only that which we have garnered through our own living but that which we have garnered through our neglect.

Isaiah tells the parable of the vineyard (Is. 5:1-7) and its cultivation or rather what happens when the vineyard does not produce grapes. We are in a similar position today as members of a faith community that proposes its following of Christ, the anointed of God. In looking back over the history of the Church one has to admit that much has been done but as we say that we also must admit to our folly and our inability to adhere to the requirements of our following God in Christ. It can be seen at all levels of the church from the parish to ecclesial conferences such as Lambeth. It is our mistake to think that we can think as if we were God and totally know the mind of God in what we do and how we do it. The problem is that we often do not understand or realise which side we are actually on because we are so eager to promote our own which creates and causes the disruptions that we see. In Luke's gospel Christ speaks about the family being against each other (12:52-53), a very clear indication of our own situation within the Anglican Communion let alone other denominations, who ultimately must be considered family as well. The question that is often neglected in these situations is the question not who is right and who is wrong but rather who is actually listening to what God is saying?

A vineyard that does not produce incurs a great debt

In everything from divorce to major arguments there are always three sides and the truth. We continue to believe that we are blameless when we take this side or that side but both sides fail as neither side is listening to what is being said as each interprets what the other is saying coloured by their own beliefs. We are not God! The author of Hebrews suggests that we need to look to Christ who bore the pains of the cross and in doing so we follow the way of salvation. In doing this, what should we focus on as we journey in faith? We often think of the words of Christ and make all our interpretation of what and how from Christ's sayings. Yet Christ lived by the Judaic law and everything that Christ states is with reference to Judaic law it is often post-Christ works or interpretations of Christ's words that we look to for our faith journey. It is Christ himself we should look to and most of what we understand is that Christ embodied God's presence in the world and suffered the cross out of love. This then is our call, a call into love which is echoed in Paul and the other scriptures from Genesis through to Revelation. If this is true then we need to settle a huge debt which has accumulated through a life that has been lived as we continue to rely one way or another on those who began that debt. We need to make the correct judgement (Lk. 23:57) as to the error so that we can begin once more to live as Christ not as ourselves.

What is the error that has put us so far away from God and Christ's path? It is simplicity itself and yet it is the hardest part of our faith journey. Christ and God proclaim the way of love, not the hippie generation, but true love that works to build community and enjoys the worth of others made in the image of God. It is the love that allows us to form our own views and yet follow Christ in so many different and exciting patterns of thought, work and inspiration that it is a delight. Scripture guides us along the path but as Christ has shown it is not law if it does not encourage love and the building of community. If we are unable to dialogue and inspire each other with the vagaries of God's Spirit that blesses each of us then we have become like the scribes and the pharisees. it is not the letter of the law but the spirit of the law that should guide our faith journey allowing love of the other to shine in our communities.