[Propertalk] Proper 20 b

[robertpmorrison at charter.net]

Here's what I'm editing just now.

Happy preaching!

Bob


THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH OF ST. ALBAN, ALBANY                    THE 
SEVENTEENTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST
PROVERBS 31:10-31                         					                                       	 
PROPER 20 B
JAMES 3:13 4:3, 7-8a						                     		            23rd 
SEPTEMBER, 2012
MARK 9:30-37								     				          PSALM 1

	One charge which is still leveled against the church – against all 
religion – is whether or not those who believe are realistic; whether or 
not believers are in touch with what’s happening in the homes, and 
streets, and stores just outside these sacred walls. And there CAN be 
certain justification for this comment. We ourselves, while we want to 
hear about what’s going on in our friends’ lives, and to share what’s 
happening in our own, a good part of our desire in coming here is taken 
up with finding some sort of respite, some sort of “first aid” station 
in which we can leave behind all the things with which we have to 
wrestle from Monday through Saturday. Many of us don’t want to have to 
deal with decision-making, or conflict resolution, or even calendar 
juggling, when we walk through those doors at the back.

	Again, there’s a point to this desire. It’s not for nothing that this 
small area of the building behind the altar rail is called the 
“Sanctuary”, and that this word is still used to this day to define a 
“safe space”, a place where people may find refuge when they’re under 
pressure and stress.

	The word sanctuary means the place where things are made holy, or where 
their holiness is discovered and recognised – holy being that which 
belongs to God and is infused by God.

	Think about this, then. We’re invited here, we’re drawn here, by God’s 
Spirit, not only to discover the marvellous holiness of God’s silence, 
but also to discover the holiness that already exists in the decisions, 
in the frantic noise, in the uncertainty of our lives, in our anxieties 
and fears. God hopes that we’ll come here not to abandon our daily 
lives, but to find within all our tensions and worries, and fear of 
loneliness, to find that God has already blessed these and hopes that 
we’ll be able to see that blessing in what we do and have decided to do.

	Rather than leaving reality outside this hour and a half, then, we’re 
all invited to explore the reality of the world and of our lives in 
light of what we already know and accept as being holy.

	We look at the Gospel Book; we look at the Altar set to distribute 
Jesus’ Holy Presence; we look at the Altar in the Narthex on which bread 
and wine are sitting in anticipation of blessing; we see this and know 
that, somehow, they’re agents of God’s transmission of beauty and 
holiness to us. But we’re called also to see the Prayers that we make, 
the silent longings of our hearts for some clue about how to resolve 
whatever is worrying us this week; whatever is burdening us and slowing 
us down; whatever is making us wince at the thought of having to face 
someone or something that we find so draining; we’re called to see God’s 
hand stretching out in calm blessing over all of our lives. And not just 
for an hour and a half per week. God isn’t on the clock. God doesn’t 
limit anything we need. God reaches out to transform everything in and 
about our lives ALL THE TIME.

	This isn’t set up as the trap of a sadistic God, however. This isn’t 
some heavenly “gotcha” to make us more miserable as we cope with our 
routines and our difficulties. This is a sign to us of the loving power 
of God to transform our minds and our imaginations so that we can see 
with our hearts and souls how God takes the ordinary and vests it so 
that we can discover the extraordinary way in which everything has a 
role to play, from bathroom cleaning to dealing with mosquitoes, from 
political ads to accounts of warped human behaviour here and around the 
world.	

	Knowing, then, that what we might think of as insignificant or as 
drudgery may actually be a blessing in disguise, think about this 
morning’s reading from the Wisdom Book of Proverbs.

	It may not be clear at first hearing, but there are some interesting 
facts hidden in this story of what has been called the description of 
“The Ideal Wife”. Firstly, it’s a wonderful poem, a twenty-two line 
poem, the first word of which begins with a different letter of the 
Hebrew alphabet in exact sequence. Imagine the author, no matter how 
skilled, trying to come up with an interesting parable, perhaps showing 
off a little, but working to capture the minds of the readers by doing a 
little literary sleight of hand.

	So while the poet wouldn’t sabotage the message, there would be no 
problem with some flight of imagination being employed. But what IS the 
message? In many other places a women’s physical beauty is praised. Here 
that isn’t the primary focus. This is someone who’s filled with wisdom 
and is an expert manager of all the resources at her disposal – from her 
relationship with her family and other villagers to the property and raw 
material she controlled.

	There’s an old Arab proverb which “states, ‘A clever woman is never 
without wool.’ This ideal woman is prepared; she is the opposite of a 
fool or lazy person. She ‘delights’ in her primary responsibility to her 
family, working late at night, creating things by the skills she has 
mastered, seeing needs ahead of time. Making clothes is the chief 
metaphor of such practical wisdom.”  1

	Think back to the end of that story about the exit from the Garden of 
Eden. Things are falling apart. Humans are going their own way, apart 
from God. They want to run their own show and, in distancing themselves 
from God, they put themselves at risk. They’re completely vulnerable to 
anything and everything that might disrupt and destroy their lives, and 
God can’t stand aside, no matter what the humans may have done – so God 
provides clothes, their protection against the elements as well as 
everything else.

	Now this “Ideal Wife” takes over this role. She ensures that the human 
family will be cared for and will flourish, to the extent that she 
assumes roles normally the sole provenance of men. “Rather than (this) 
being just another passage describing the submissive wife in the ancient 
world, it reveals the remarkably even-handed approach of Proverbs that 
recognizes wisdom where it is found – in men and women alike.” 2

	Everyone has the responsibility to care for one another. It doesn’t 
matter who we are; it doesn’t matter what our abilities; we have to care 
for one another so that not one of God’s children is put at risk, from 
anything. THAT’S why we come here. As we’ll pray to God in the 
Eucharistic Prayer in a few moments, “Deliver us from the presumption of 
coming to this Table for solace only, and not for strength; for pardon 
only, and not for renewal.” 3

	Each of us has been graced by God with the gift of time and talent. In 
all likelihood, no two of us are the same, so the unique person that 
each is is invited to find our niche, discover how you, how I, can make 
a huge difference in the lives of others.

	We may protest that we can’t even spin woollen thread or prepare flax, 
far less manage real estate, or second guess the market, or be strong in 
the face of adversity. And maybe we can’t do half the things entrusted 
to that “Ideal Wife”; but have we tried? I mean, instead of or in 
addition to what we’re doing right now, have we thought of the impact we 
have on the lives of those in and outside of this building?

A friend back on the East Coast wrote in her column last Thursday about 
her afternoon and how she saw herself fitting into life. I wonder if I 
agree with everything she said, but even if I don’t, it certainly got me 
thinking.

She wrote, “this afternoon, the sun is out and the sky is a bright 9/11 
blue, gorgeous weather that will always be linked in my mind and the 
minds of many others with that terrible day. I long ago lost track of 
how many people remarked on how lovely the weather was that day. I did 
it myself -- in fact, I'm doing it right now. Why was the beautiful 
weather on 9/11 so noteworthy? I suppose it's because we think the 
universe should weep with us when we weep.
	
“It doesn't, though. It just carries on. We are not pivotal to very much 
in this world. Its arrangements don't mirror our drama. It's a little 
touching, the way we think they should, like people who scan their 
horoscopes every day, convinced that the very stars wait breathlessly 
upon their romances, job searches and financial fixes. No, the weather 
doesn't manage us. Neither do the stars. Stuff just happens. Whatever 
meaning it has, we attach to it later on.
	
“Does this mean that life is meaningless? Not at all. It is simply the 
case that meaning arises from the community witnessing its parade of 
events. We make it, inheriting it from the past and agreeing to make it 
our own, observing the stuff of the present and interpreting it as best 
we can. And so beautiful weather on a funereal day is potent to us, 
packed with significance. It was a cruel joke to some, a sign of hope to 
others. A lot depended on who you already were.
	
“Because we bring ourselves to the meaning we make.” 4

I like that last line – “we bring ourselves to the meaning we make.” God 
gives us special gifts, yes, every last one of us. No one is without 
time or talent. I believe also that God also brings us into contact with 
special others. But at each step of the way, we have to decide whether 
or not to be open to whether or not a certain gift or behaviour is 
helpful. We have to make the decision whether or not to meet that 
special person, to engage her or him, to interact with that person. I 
doubt seriously that the so-called “Ideal Wife” woke up one morning and 
discovered she was married, had children and knew how to spin, sew, 
cook, buy and sell property, trade favourably in the marketplace, and so 
on. God gave her the propensity to be able to do all these things, as 
God gives us. But then God takes a deep breath and waits to see how 
we’re going to react. Hoping, praying – and smiling when we catch the 
hint.
	
	Last week, “Polish troops on patrol in southern Afghanistan ( …) found 
a newborn baby abandoned on the side of a road.
	
	“The towel-wrapped girl was found Wednesday by soldiers who were 
checking the safety of a route near their
Waghez military base, according to Defense Ministry spokesman Janusz 
Walczak.
	
	“The soldiers were first suspicious about the item in a country where 
hidden roadside bombs are prevalent.

	“No other people were found in a 2-kilometer (about 1 mile) radius, and 
it was unclear who had left the baby there and why.

	“The entire column took the girl to a medical center at the base, and 
soldiers were sent to buy baby formula, a bottle and a bib.

	“The troops named the girl Pola, after Poland, and planned to give her 
to Afghan authorities.” 5

We’re brought into God’s Presence, into the potential of indescribable 
joy and happiness through recognising the Holy in every issue, every 
challenge, every person in our lives. God uses each moment to talk of 
hope, of love, of strength, no matter what’s going on this morning. I’d 
bet that crucifixion isn’t on everyone’s “to do” list for today. Yet 
Jesus wouldn’t hear of anyone changing His mind.  He knew that if that 
was what would happen, He’d be able to use it for love of others.

Like Jesus, then, let’s think about “bringing ourselves to the meaning 
we make,” and use our time, use our talents as God’s blessings for all 
our everyday encounters.

NOTES:
1 	“Introduction to the Wisdom Literature Proverbs” Lawrence E. Boadt, 
C.S.P. The Liturgical Press, Collegeville, MN. Page 100.
2	Boadt, op. cit. page 101
3	Book of Common Prayer, page 372

4	“THE MEANING WE MAKE”, “The Geranium Farm” by Barbara Crafton 
bccrafton at geraniumfarm.org 20th September, 2012

5	“Polish troops find abandoned baby in Afghanistan” The Associated 
Press. Thursday, September 20, 2012 1:16 PM EDT 
http://www.charter.net/news/read.php?ps=921&rip_id=%3CDA1DKV0G3@news.ap.org%3E



Robert P Morrison
Interim Vicar
The Episcopal Church of St Alban
PO Box 1556
Albany OR  97321   541-921-1076 (cell)