[Propertalk] Proper 27 a

[robertpmorrison at charter.net]

Here's my first draft for Sunday ...

Bob

THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH OF ST. ALBAN, ALBANY  	           THE TWENTY-SECOND 
SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST
JOSHUA 24:1-3a, 14-25			    		                         			 
PROPER 27 A
1THESSALONIANS  4:13-18  				   	  			                9th NOVEMBER, 2014
MATTHEW 25:1-13							                		               PSALM 78:1-7

	Who is this?

	Em - It’s Jesus.

What are you wearing – Jeez- us?

Uh ….

Do you want to belong? Even without knowing to what the invitation is 
being extended, nine out of ten would probably say, “Yes! Of course!” 
Belonging – that’s what life is about.
	
	For all but a VERY few people, belonging is incredibly important, even 
if it’s only a few people in the relationship. In fact, the smaller the 
group, the more important are the bonds. One can’t afford to hurt or 
offend anyone, because that affects the lives of everyone in the group. 
This doesn’t mean complete agreement on everything, of course, simply a 
willingness to say everything face-to-face, with nothing going on behind 
closed doors, with deliberately ambiguous or misleading statements 
issued at semi-regular intervals.

	Rules and adherence to them ARE vital, then. So is commitment; and 
openness; and frankness. Everyone has to know whether or not the other 
is dependable.

	It’s not all on the shoulders of any one, however. Even if it’s simply 
a couple of people engaged in one activity, both have to be engaged.

	It’s really remarkably simple and obvious. If you wish to belong to any 
group, if you and I wish to travel to a particular place, there are 
certain rules, certain behaviours which will be expected of you and me.

	Sometimes we get somewhat lax, however. We take things for granted. We 
assume that we can skate by with limited involvement.

	The Hebrews had spent so much time wandering in the desert, hearing 
about God and what God wanted to do for them; they’d been promised that 
they would reach a certain destination which would make them fulfilled 
and give them a sense of purpose and rootedness; the Hebrews, despite 
some detours, probably thought that they had God figured out. There they 
were at Shechem, in the heart of the land which the Canaanites occupied, 
and Joshua drew all the people together. Knowing how the folk had 
behaved, there was good reason to run through the rules.

	The old city of Shechem, first mentioned about 4000 years ago, had a 
patron deity – Rasap. All towns and countries had them, and seldom were 
any two the same. So if you were a commercial trader and travelled to 
Shechem, which was in the middle of vital trade routes through the 
region, you’d probably make some sort of a sacrifice to ensure that your 
grapes, olives, wheat, livestock or pottery sold for a good price.

	But Shechem also had strong ties to Abraham. This was where Abraham 
heard God promising Canaan as a home to the Hebrews, where they’d become 
a nation, where they’d flourish. 1

	It’s not simply a handy place in which Joshua could give some sort of a 
pep talk before the land rush started. It was a place that was part of 
their history already. That’s why Joshua was so blunt.

	The people were told right up front about all the possibilities that 
could be theirs. But there was a price attached. There were expectations 
and responsibilities. Nothing was free.

	It’s somewhat ironic that this reading, with its call for a clear 
commitment, should fall after election day.

	No matter what your party affiliation, no matter whether you’re dog 
catcher or Senator for the State or the Nation, there IS no free ride. 
There’s always an obligation. Everyone – voter and candidate; citizen, 
resident and visitor – everyone has to examine his or her values, then 
make a conscious decision how she or he will live; what will help 
determine the most important issues.

	One of the most difficult things about life, I believe, is 
understanding that everything we do involves choices. You and I chose to 
get out of bed this morning and to gather with folk whom we know because 
we share a common desire to explore our relationship with whom we 
believe is the Creator of everything that is. We chose this no matter 
that it may have been an extraordinarily busy week; no matter that the 
bazaar preparations and final take down may have tired us out. We chose 
to come, no matter that visitors arrived from out of town, or are coming 
over for dinner tonight. We chose – we ALWAYS make choices – based on 
what it is that feeds us. We’ve discovered from past action what or who 
it is who gives us a sense of purpose, who helps us to make the most of 
our resources, who offers comfort and strength when we’re wrestling with 
difficult decisions or issues that impact our lives strongly.

	Again, this goes for those who were elected as well as those who did 
the voting. It applies whether or not the person for whom we voted was 
elected, or whether or not the ballot measures of which we approve 
passed. We have to live in the situation in which we find ourselves. We 
hoped we were acting responsibly when we marked our ballots, just as we 
hope we’re being responsible about all the other matters that impact us, 
even if we may find ourselves challenged now.

	The Hebrew leaders, gathered in Shechem, possibly eyeing an altar and a 
statue dedicated to Rasap; perhaps looking at the Visitor’s Bureau sign 
that said: “Abraham’s Altar – one mile; Jacob’s Well – three miles”; the 
Hebrew leaders seemed pretty ready to commit to listening to God, and 
following the desires of God, and worshipping the Creator of the 
starried universe. They didn’t seem to take much time at all, if any, 
before responding to Joshua’s challenge. In fact, Joshua barely 
challenged them. He said, simply, that God had been faithful to them and 
now wished the people to live in this land, to celebrate its fertility 
and to benefit from that. But Joshua said that following God took effort 
and dedication. The prophet said that he and his family would be 
worshipping God. However, it was left entirely to the rest of the people 
what they did with their lives.

	Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the German theologian who was killed in the last 
days of the Second World War for plotting against the dictator and his 
regime, wrote from his prison that, “We have learned a bit too late in 
the day that action springs not from thought but from a readiness for 
responsibility.” 2  He knew what consequences his actions would bring 
about. He knew that standing up for what was just, what was honourable, 
would be costly. This was the same man who’d written about Christian 
faith under the title “The Cost of Discipleship”.

	In other words, it’s not enough to say, “Sure, we’ll listen to God, and 
follow the teachings of Moses”, but enter Canaan and simply behave any 
old way we wish. It’s not enough to promise the moon, but then, after 
the election, forget what principles to which the electorate responded 
in the campaign, and back-pedal as fast as one can – not that THAT ever 
happens.

	It’s not enough to repeat the Baptismal Covenant three or four times a 
year, and not think about it the other three hundred and sixty one days.

	Even claiming to be descended, spiritually, from Abraham and Moses 
isn’t enough unless the promises we make form the basis for every action 
we make. Of course, this can make things awkward, even dangerous. It may 
cost us friendship. It may even lead to being ridiculed by others 
because of our sense of obedience to our promises and principles. What 
it boils down to, in my mind, is in being prepared, at a moment’s 
notice, to respond to the needs of Jesus.

	And here’s where we can run into trouble with how the Gospel parable 
can be interpreted. Yes, we are told, at the end, to “Stay awake”. But 
the bridesmaids were not criticised for sleeping. In fact, probably they 
should have been commended. If you’re about to attend a wedding 
reception, or any strenuously joyful occasion, you’ll need all the 
energy you can muster, so grab a cat-nap whenever you can.

	The criticism, however, lies in the fact that they didn’t have 
sufficient supplies with them. It’s not enough that we have the right 
clothing. It’s not even enough that we’ve replenished our energy levels. 
If we don’t have the means to make the banquet visible to everyone, if 
we don’t have the ability to make sure that everyone is fed and 
sheltered, and then brought in to the dance of life, then, said the 
Gospel writer, we’ve fallen far short of God’s hope for us.

	It’s not enough to support a candidate or a ballot measure. It’s not 
enough to go on-line or answer a phone call to send some dollars to the 
campaign committee. It’s not even enough, I’d wager, to get a hold of 
some people and talk to them about the issues involved. Where the real 
work of embellishing God’s reign takes place is in the way that we make 
sure that no one is left out.

	When all the confetti is swept up, and the last empty champagne bottle 
is put away – in the recycling bin, I pray! – when the last lawn sign 
advertising the coming of Jesus is pulled up and put away, the real work 
of engaging our sisters and brothers begins. THIS is where our energy 
needs to be at its peak. THIS is where we need to have on hand not only 
whatever we need for ministering to the bridegroom. But also this is 
where we need to have on hand whatever it may take to make sure that no 
other people are left out of the place that God has prepared for them 
too.

	What’s at the back of my mind, as I try to superimpose on each the 
message of the Old Covenant and Gospel readings, is what will come up in 
a little more than two weeks when, at Thanksgiving, the texts will 
remind us again of the Hebrews being strangers in a foreign land, and 
that they had, then, a moral responsibility to make sure that anyone who 
was lacking anything would have that provided.

	None of us knows when Jesus, the bridegroom, will come. But we have 
Jesus’ word that His appearing may well be sudden, unexpected and, as 
likely as not, completely unrecognisable – because the person 
panhandling on a street corner, or trying to get a ride to Portland, or 
needing to talk over with someone sympathetic the latest crisis in her 
or his life, may well be Jesus. And if we CAN say, “It’s Jesus”, even if 
it IS three in the morning, then it doesn’t matter one bit what Jesus is 
wearing. The only thing that matters is that we have something to share, 
something to bring warmth, something to bring nourishment, something to 
bring light, for the party to which we’re all invited.

NOTES:

1 	Based on information at  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shechem

2	Dietrich Bonhoeffer  1906-1945  “Letters and Papers from prison “. See 
http://seattletimes.com/html/thearts/2014591268_taproot25.html

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