Canterbury at Cal

Drop in for a movie and dinner at the Canterbury House

Today we remember a unique group of people in the gospel accounts, Jesus’ friends in Bethany.  We know that Jesus traveled with many disciples and we also know that this group often fell into bickering and the other petty squabbles which we all fall into when living in close quarters under emotional duress.  Life with and for Jesus was hard.

Is the reading selected from the gospel of Luke the beginning of this friendship?  We are introduced to Martha and Mary and also shown a bit of their personalities.  Martha bustles about preparing a space of hospitality and Mary sits at the feet of Jesus and listens.  Though the story might indicate Jesus’ preference for Mary as the contemplative the greater view of this story is the recognition that at certain times we are all called to work to make space and hospitality while at other times we need to cease our hurry and simply be in the presence of Christ.

In John’s gospel we are told that Mary tenderly washes Jesus’ feet with her tears and her hair while pouring an expensive perfume on Jesus an action that scandalizes his disciples.  At the death of and raising of Lazarus, Martha demonstrates supreme faith in Jesus announcing her trust that he will restore her beloved brother to life and calls Jesus “the Son of God who has come into the world.”  Mary is hurt that Jesus did not arrive and yet Mary’s tears stir Jesus’ heart deeply leading to the most profound display of emotions we find in the gospels by Jesus as well as the shortest sentence in the Bible “Jesus wept.”

The town of Bethany was obviously an oasis of rest and friendship for Jesus.  Who are the friends and where are the places that restore your soul?  Are you making the time in your life to sit and be in the presence of Christ?  What are you doing to make a space of hospitality and safety for the tired and weary in the world around you?

Readings for todays feast:

Collect of the Day

O God, heavenly Father, your Son Jesus Christ enjoyed rest and refreshment in the home of Mary and Martha of Bethany: Give us the will to love you, open our hearts to hear you, and strengthen our hands to serve you in others for his sake; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Romans 12:9-13

Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; love one another with mutual affection; outdo one another in showing honor. Do not lag in zeal, be ardent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints; extend hospitality to strangers.

Luke 10:38-42

Now as Jesus and his disciples went on their way, he entered a certain village, where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. She had a sister named Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to what he was saying. But Martha was distracted by her many tasks; so she came to him and asked, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself? Tell her then to help me.” But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things; there is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part, which will not be taken away from her.”

The Canterbury summertime group will meet at the Canterbury House at 6:30 for an evening tea.  The discussion will focus on brainstorming ideas for the coming year.

Although our church calendar marks today as the feast of liberators and prophets it is also worth commemorating another event which happened on this date forty years ago.  Human beings found themselves on a space that was not the earth.  This event for ever changed how we viewed our own place on this planet and in our universe.  To some degree we can never return to “the way things were.”  Although the event of the lunar landing was met with much celebration (and a persistent denial as well) another part of this experience, kept quiet for 20 years, was a small act of piety by Buzz Aldrin, a member of the Episcopal Church.

The moon lander touched down at 3:17 Eastern Standard Time, Sunday, July 20, 1969.

Aldrin had brought with him a tiny communion kit, given him by his church, that had a silver chalice and wine vial about the size of the tip of his finger. During the morning he radioed, “Houston, this is Eagle. This is the LM pilot speaking. I would like to request a few moments of silence. I would like to invite each person listening in, whoever or wherever he may be, to contemplate for a moment the events of the last few hours, and to give thanks in his own individual way.”

“In the radio blackout,” he wrote later, “I opened the little plastic packages which contained the bread and the wine. I poured the wine into the chalice our church had given me. In the one-sixth gravity of the moon, the wine slowly curled and gracefully came up the side of the cup. Then I read the Scripture, ‘I am the vine, you are the branches. Whosoever abides in me will bring forth much fruit.’ I had intended to read my communion passage back to earth, but at the last minute Deke Slayton had requested that I not do this. NASA was already embroiled in a legal battle with Madelyn Murray O’Hare, the celebrated opponent of religion, over the Apollo 8 crew reading from Genesis while orbiting the moon at Christmas. I agreed reluctantly…” “Eagle’s metal body creaked. I ate the tiny Host and swallowed the wine. I gave thanks for the intelligence and spirit that had brought two young pilots to the Sea of Tranquility. It was interesting for me to think: the very first liquid ever poured on the moon, and the very first food eaten there, were the communion elements.”

Joseph Campbell wrote in his book The Hero With a Thousand Faces “Wherever the poetry of myth is interpreted as biography, history or science, it is killed.  The living images become only remote facts of a distant time or sky.  Furthermore, it is never difficult to demonstrate that as science and history mythology is absurd.  When a civilization begins to reinterpret its mythology in this way, the life goes out of it, templese become museums, and the link between the two perspectives is dissolved.  Such a blight has certainly descended on the Bible and on a great part of the Christian cult.  To bring the images back to life, one has to seek, not interesting applications to modern affairs, but illuminating hints from the inspired past.  When these are found, vast areas of half-dead iconography disclose again their permanently human meaning.”

In our world faith is often attacked for being irrational and at the same time people within many faith traditions try to kill the living movement of belief by legalizing it and saying that interaction with God is solely about moral behavior.  The Apollo mission relied on a great deal of science and mathematics in order to bring about the feat of putting two human beings on the surface of a lifeless rock.  It could be said that in this moment there was conclusive proof that God was not in the heavens and that all there was was more space.  Yet, in the sea of Tranquility, a young pilot found that even on the moon there was a deeper reality that transcended life on earth.  In the furthest heavens God’s love continues to make a home within us.

Readings for remembering the First Communion on the Moon

Romans 8:35-39

35Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36As it is written:
   ”For your sake we face death all day long;
      we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”[l] 37No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,[m] neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

From Psalm 139

7 Where can I go from your Spirit?
       Where can I flee from your presence?

 8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
       if I make my bed in the depths, [a] you are there.

 9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
       if I settle on the far side of the sea,

 10 even there your hand will guide me,
       your right hand will hold me fast.

 11 If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me
       and the light become night around me,”

 12 even the darkness will not be dark to you;
       the night will shine like the day,
       for darkness is as light to you.

John 15:4-5,8-9

Jesus said, “abide in me as I abide in you.  As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me.  I am the vine, you are the branches.  By this is God glorified, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be my disciples.  As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you; abide in my love.”

Collect of the Day

O God, whose Spirit guides us into all truth and makes us free: Strengthen and sustain us as you did your servants Elizabeth, Amelia, Sojourner, and Harriet. Give us vision and courage to stand against oppression and injustice and all that works against the glorious liberty to which you call all your children; through Jesus Christ our Savior, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Wisdom 7:24-28

For wisdom is more mobile than any motion;

because of her pureness she pervades and penetrates all things.

For she is a breath of the power of God,

and a pure emanation of the glory of the Almighty;

therefore nothing defiled gains entrance into her.

For she is a reflection of eternal light,

a spotless mirror of the working of God,

and an image of his goodness.

Although she is but one, she can do all things,

and while remaining in herself, she renews all things;

in every generation she passes into holy souls

and makes them friends of God, and prophets;

for God loves nothing so much as the person who lives with wisdom.

Psalm 146 Page 803, BCP

Lauda, anima mea

1

Hallelujah!

Praise the LORD, O my soul! *

I will praise the LORD as long as I live;

I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.

2

Put not your trust in rulers, nor in any child of earth, *

for there is no help in them.

3

When they breathe their last, they return to earth, *

and in that day their thoughts perish.

4

Happy are they who have the God of Jacob for their help!*

whose hope is in the LORD their God;

5

Who made heaven and earth, the seas, and all that is in them; *

who keeps his promise for ever;

6

Who gives justice to those who are oppressed, *

and food to those who hunger.

7

The LORD sets the prisoners free;

the LORD opens the eyes of the blind; *

the LORD lifts up those who are bowed down;

8

The LORD loves the righteous;

the LORD cares for the stranger; *

he sustains the orphan and widow,

but frustrates the way of the wicked.

9

The LORD shall reign for ever, *

your God, O Zion, throughout all generations.

Hallelujah!

Luke 11:5-10

Jesus said to his disciples, “Suppose one of you has a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say to him, `Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; for a friend of mine has arrived, and I have nothing to set before him.’ And he answers from within, `Do not bother me; the door has already been locked, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything.’ I tell you, even though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, at least because of his persistence he will get up and give him whatever he needs. “So I say to you, Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you. For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.”

liberators and prophets

Today we remember the lives of four women who dramatically impacted the world through their engagement with the Jewish and Christian scriptures.  The scriptures and collect (prayer) for the day is found in a separate post.  

Elizabeth Cady Stanton - Born in upstate New York, Stanton organized the first Women’s Right’s Convention in Seneca Falls New York in 1848.  Her entire life she held the Church accountable for using scripture as a weapon for oppressing women and prevent ordination to the ministry.  When a revised version of the Bible was published in 1881 with no input from women scholars, Stanton used the Greek she had learned growing up to bring forward new understandings of the passages used to oppress others.  She attended Trinity Episcopal Church in Seneca Falls with Amelia Jenks Bloomer and was a close friend of Susan B. Anthony.  On her death bed Stanton said, “My only regret is that I have not been braver and bolder and truer in the honest conviction of my soul.”

Amelia Jenks Bloomer - Amelia is most famous for the clothing known as Bloomers.  The loose fitting pants were a statement against the restrictive (and often dangerous) clothing women were forced to wear.  Clergy attacked the clothing citing Moses, “Women should not dress like men.”  Amelia had the retort “It matters not what Moses had to say to the men and women of his time about what they should wear.  If clergy really cared about what Moses said about clothes, they would all put fringes and blue ribbons on their garments.”  Believing that scripture had been given a “strained and unnatural meaning” she felt deeply that the writers of scripture including St. Paul would have never left their writings open to such interpretations had they been able to foresee “all the sorrow and strife the cruel exactions and oppression on the one hand and the blind submission and cringing fear on the other” that women would undergo.  Ultimately Bloomer believed that the same power of God which set free the slaves would “bring about the emancipation of woman and make her the equal in power and dominion that she was in the beginning.”  Trinity Episcopal Church in Seneca Falls, where she was baptized and where she attended with Elizabeth Cady Stanton, records her as a “faithful Christian missionary all her life.”

Sojourner Truth was born as a slave on the estate of a wealthy Dutchman in New York. After 28 years of being sold from household to household she escaped with the help of Quaker friends and felt the call to become a street corner evangelist.  Eventually she focused a lot of her energy on a homeless shelter for women.  Following a call from God she set out east on foot.  Up to this point she had gone by the name of Belle, but upon stopping at a Quaker farm and being asked her name she thought for a moment.  She replied” My name is Sojourner” and when asked for a last name she thought about taking a name from one of her former masters as was customary and then realized that the only master she had was God and the name of God is Truth.  As a traveling preacher she impressed all with her knowledge of scripture in spite of her illiteracy.  She remained a steadfast champion for the emancipation of slaves and the rights of women.

Harriet Ross Tubman - Harriet was born in 1820 in Maryland.  After years of abuse and injury at the hands of her owners she escaped to Canada.  In freedom she could not forget those who were left behind and ultimately made 19 trips back to Maryland between 1851 and 1861 freeing over 300 people all the time remembering her favorite story of Moses bringing his people forth from slavery.  Eventually a $40,000 reward was offered for her capture.  Tubman received a vision preparing her for the U.S. civil war.  When war broke out Harriet volunteered as a cook and nurse for the Union Army but cared for wounded on both sides.  Once she lead 300 troops on a raid that freed 750 slaves and became the first woman to lead U.S. troops into military action.  Though not formally educated she established schools for young African-Americans and fought alongside Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton for women’s rights while always supporting African American women to found their own organizations to address equality.  In all her efforts Harriet felt the never ending guidance of God in omens and dreams.

All of these women found the ability to listen to God and to hear beyond restrictive readings of scripture and discover the true voice of God that is only found when one enters dialogue with the writings of the Bible.  All too often we believe that revelation is closed and yet think of all the injustices that would have been inflicted on our world had women such as the four we remember today not engaged more deeply with their faith.  Questioning and wrestling with scripture is not a sign of faithlessness but ultimately truly holding to faith.  It is also challenging to me that the Christian faith has such a history of oppression and yet so many of the great movements of human rights were born from those who were lead by their Christianity to change the world.  Christianity also has a legacy of bettering human life and the call to take up that cross lies before all of us.

(biographical information taken from Lesser Feasts and Fasts)

And so it happened - once again the Episcopal Church finds itself in the news for stating that ordination to the priesthood and consecration to the episcopate are open to those who are called and found to be able to uphold those positions regardless of sexual orientation.  The news outlets are happy because they have a scandal to report on.  The venerable Anglican family is torn apart by the pushy Episcopal Church.  Bishops and Deputies have once again flouted authority and tradition around the world.

If only it were so simple.  People act as though this is a process entered heedlessly by our church.  Our church is all too aware of the political and financial consequences of these decisions as we have been living out these consequences for years upon years.  As a friend of mine also present at General Convention said, “this Church for the first time in its history is on the cross of Jesus.”

This is and it is not about issues of sexuality.  The issue is forced by the plight of the LGBT community who even now still face life threatening situations in many places in our country.  At best every member of the LGBT community has to deal with the possibility of losing each and every important relationship because of a reaction to the reality of their lives.  Offering care, sanctuary and the understanding that each experience contributes in its own unique way to the sacramental life of the church has become the charism and the painful crucible of the Episcopal Church and has become its witness to the larger world of catholic Christianity.  Yet, not reported on, is the fact that this is only a part of the work the church is undertaking.  Even now we are seeking how to expand our work of welcome and ministry with the ever growing Latino population of the United States.  Across our body the question of “radical welcome” is spreading.  

I spent a great deal of my life in a part of the church that accepted me in ministry as long as my life appeared to be “normal.”  I lived in fear and suspicion.  At this General Convention, for the first time, I felt able to participate in the eucharist offered by Integrity, the LGBT community within the Episcopal Church.  In the same event I saw those who were able to bless and live out their sacramental calling and I saw those who still are scared to come out of the closet and be able to own their lives.  

I also heard at another eucharist Ray Suarez, correspondent for The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer.  Mr. Suarez spoke of hospitality on the feast day of Benedict of Nursia.  Our church was challenged to know what it has to say to the world.  We were reminded that we do not have to agree on everything as long as we agree that we can bring Christ and peace to a hurting world.  

As I write this I am struck by two things and with these I will close.  One, in the English calendar it is the feast of St. Swithun.  Swithun was a bishop in Winchester and is known for healing that which was broken.  Many lives are broken and it seems that maybe the church is broken yet  ultimately if we are engaged in Christ’s work of healing then we will live into our calling.

The second is this: while doing morning prayer this morning, the reading for the day from the gospel was in Mark chapter 2.  It seems Jesus was hanging out with the wrong people and it was asked “why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners.”  This prompted Jesus to observe a few verses later on that one cannot pour new wine into old wineskins without causing the old wineskins to burst.  Sometimes the old is beyond repair and the world is in need of something new.  The old world of righteous indignation about the right sort is passing away.  If we’re going to dine with Jesus then we need to be ready to meet anyone at the table.  Its time to drink in the new wine of God for the one who heals the broken and the broken hearted is among us.

The Feast of St. Benedict of Nursia

I arrived at LAX around 9:45 on Wednesday July 8.  I will admit, L.A. tempted me to go out and enjoy as I dreaded going to Anaheim and being trapped in the plastic infection of Disneyland and the snares of Church politics.

Disneyland strikes me as a startling juxtaposition of the life of the church and the entertainment culture essentially born in the United States of America.  The French philosopher, Jean Baudrillard (of “The Matrix” concept fame) diagnosed Disneyland as the penultimate stage of development when an image goes from representing greater truth to becoming the ultimate deception of generating its own truth.  In the third stage of this dissolution process the image proclaims to possess its own truth, thus the visitor to Disneyland enters into a contract with the amusement park whereby all parties participate in the illusion of eternal childhood and magical realities.  All the time it is known by the workers that they go home at the end of the day to begin with “magic” again the next day and the visitors know that somewhere in section 7G of the parking lot they have a car waiting for them and bills piling up in the mailbox back home.

In opposition to this, the first layer of the image is the one of true art which points to a truth greater than that which is represented.  Baudrillard calls this the level of the sacrament.

In our faith we are primarily concerned with the sacraments, the incidental bread and wine, the body and blood of Christ made known in the communion are the physical types connecting us to the greater reality.  Every point of worshipful connection brings the reality of God’s presence in us and points us to creating that reality in the world around us.

So then, how amazing it is to have the work of the church in tension with the very culture of consumption (and yes I am drinking starbucks coffee while I write this) which threatens the planet on which we live.  In short we are reminded each day by our engagement with the very real in the eucharist that the work both legislatively in this convention and more importantly the work called forth of Christians to respect the dignity of all life becomes imperatively recognized when put in focus by the illusory environment with which we are often presented.

The church struggles still with how to be a witness in the world, how to offer hope and inclusion to those pushed to the outer edge while acknowledging that we all have different understandings and relationships with God and the texts of the bible, to pretend anything else would be putting us on the road to Disneyland.

There is a sense of hope present in this convention which seems to be striking many.  Our little corner of Christendom has been through a lot in the last decade and we are not out of the woods yet.  Nonetheless I see people listening to one another’s experiences in new ways.  I am encountering many people who are understanding that the message of hope, new life and forgiveness offered by the reality of Jesus are the essential work of our faith.  And, particularly important to me, I see the young church here in large numbers.  Slowly we are coming to welcome the voice of those not often blessed with material resources and yet bring the wealth of commitment to a faith that is truly counter-cultural.  More to come, but as for now I can say I excited to be in such a church.

Pace e bene - Tom