felix hominum

the horse and his boy

sermon notes for Pentecost 14: Luke 14: 1-14

Most times when the lectionary leaves out a bit, it is usually a tale of woe or some such equivalent.  This week's "official" reading is Luke 14:1, 7-14.  Which of course leaves out verses 2-6.  I wonder if the modern editors simply did not think that this passage "belongs" in this story.

The main story is about Jesus coming to a banquet at the Pharisee's house, and what he says there.  The little interruption comes in the form of a miracle of healing on the Sabbath - the man with the withered hand.  So it makes sense that this interruption is dropped from the reading, right?  I mean, after all, we are never interrupted.  At least not that we notice.  By people who need help.  As we are on our way to a banquet.  On the Sabbath.

14:1 On one occasion when Jesus was going to the house of a leader of the Pharisees to eat a meal on the sabbath, they were watching him closely.

"they were watching him closely" - as should we all

-  update:  I'll have to finish this later; there is some sort of loud activity happening which does not sound as if the gift of charity is being exercised in its fullest expression by the younger members of the felix clan...

-update #2 (sept 1):  wow, can you believe it took me two days to get the kids to quiet down?  here's some of the notes

note to self:  one of the things that sort of bothers me about the editing out of 2-6 in the lectionary version is simply that at the end of the parable, Jesus makes explicit reference to inviting the lame and the crippled; and yet a story which relates to one of them is edited out.  It strikes me that to edit this passage on the basis of having covered the same material last week is to miss the point that last week's story focussed on healing on the sabbath in a synagogue, while this encounter happens precisely as they are going to a banquet - a banquet to which it does not appear the lame man is invited, which is exactly the point  The editing treats the episode as merely another type of sabbath healing, which I suggest is insufficient.  I suggest the editing also treats people in the gospel merely as "types" and not as persons - "we had a crippled healed last week, we don't need to cover that ground again."

Luke 14:1, 7-14

[blessed are those who are called to the wedding feast of the Lamb]

14:1 On one occasion when Jesus was going to the house of a leader of the Pharisees to eat a meal on the sabbath, they were watching him closely.

The very first  line of this morning’s Gospel reading actually gives us something to think about:  Luke tells us that as Jesus was going off to the Pharisee’s house to have a Sabbath meal, “they were watching him closely”.  That is a rather obvious way of saying that they were paying attention to every detail of what Jesus was doing and saying;  a cynic or a realist might say that they were spying on him. 

But at least they go this right, whatever their motives might have been:  it is important to watch Jesus closely, to pay attention to the details of what he says and how he acts; to keep our eyes attentively on him.  We might follow their example, but with a different motive in mind.

14:7 When he noticed how the guests chose the places of honor, he told them a parable.

It appears that Jesus is also paying close attention – he is watching how the guests tend to choose the “places of honour”.  Not only are people watching Jesus closely, but he as well is watching them closely.  Jesus notices the details of people’s lives – the guests who come to the Pharisee’s house, how they act, what they do.  And Jesus is watching still – he notices the details of our lives.

14:8 "When you are invited by someone to a wedding banquet, do not sit down at the place of honor, in case someone more distinguished than you has been invited by your host; 14:9 and the host who invited both of you may come and say to you, 'Give this person your place,' and then in disgrace you would start to take the lowest place.

As Jesus is watching , he notices and comments on one general tendency which we humans have:   - we tend to assume that we are more important than we really are.  Surely there can’t be anyone more important than me coming to this banquet, right?  I deserve this place of honour at the high table. I should be publicly recognized for the great person I am.  I have the right to take whatever seat I want. 

This is when self esteem crosses the line and becomes pride – the deadliest of spiritual diseases.  Jesus shows us what happens when pride goes public.  It results in the guests thinking that they are running the wedding banquet.  They essentially try to take over what belongs to the host.  Only the host can hand out the seats.  yet these guests have such a high opinion of themselves that they expect everyone else to share that opinion.  It is a case of “Look at me;  I am important here and you all should take notice.”

But, Jesus goes on, what happens if the host should arrive and actually tell the guest:  “You’re in the wrong place, I actually want someone else to sit here.”

In the kingdom of God things often work in an upside down-fashion.  If you want a place of honour, you can only get to it by being humble.  And if you live in humility, then you will end up being honoured.  If you seek public recognition and glory and applause from others, you will end up without it.  But if you seek only to love and to serve, you will end up getting glory and applause from the One who really matters – from God.

14:10 But when you are invited, go and sit down at the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he may say to you, 'Friend, move up higher'; then you will be honored in the presence of all who sit at the table with you.

How many of us would naturally choose to sit at “the lowest place”?  And it is here that perhaps the highest form of honour occurs:  the host comes and says “Friend”.  What higher honour could there being than being called “friend” by the host of the banquet?

14:11 For all who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted."

Here we see that there is a certain amount of paradox in the Kingdom of God, some things don’t work quite the same way that we would expect them to work.  And the kingdom of God is full of these sorts of things:  love your enemies;  give away your possessions in order to be rich;  the first will be last and the last will be first;

14:12 He said also to the one who had invited him, "When you give a luncheon or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, in case they may invite you in return, and you would be repaid.  [13] But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind.  [14] And you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you, for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous."

Jesus is warning us against the “what’s in for me?” syndrome.  That is, our generosity can be conditioned by expecting something in return.  And we won’t give, unless we are sure we can get something in return.

Instead, Jesus gives us another example of “kingdom thinking”, and a picture of grace.  There are two senses:  yes, Jesus does mean for us to invite “the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind”.   And to see ourselves as the poor and blind invited to the wedding banquet.  In giving to those who cannot repay we imitate God, who gave to us what we cannot repay.

a tale of two consecrations...

Gene Robinson, New Hampshire

Bill Atwood and Bill Murdoch consecrated bishops in Nairobi; to serve as missionary bishops to the U.S.

story at BBC, and all over the anglican blogosphere

One church, one faith, one Lord...

When the culture wars were lost: Maria sings I have confidence

it was the early 60's.  A time of social upheaval and revolution.  Eyes were turned toward the new movements in music, literature and politics which were sweeping the Western world.  But the cultural phenomenon which toppled Christendom once and for all came in a Trojan horse built in Austria.  It was the release of the nefarious "Sound of Music", with its anti Christian slogans, which signaled the final assault on public morality.

Perhaps this is nowhere better seen than in the song "I Have Confidence".  Just a cursory glance at the lyrics shows how far the decay had set:

I have confidence in sunshine
I have confidence in rain
I have confidence that spring will come again.

We see in the first two lines quoted that the latent paganism which had inhabited the pre-Christian world is again on the rise.  Appeals to the powers of "sun" and "rain" are obvious incitements to nature worship.  Having confidence that "spring will come again" is an obvious reference to the fertility cult and the power of the "gods" to bring the cycle of nature to fruition again.  No doubt this is intended to lead eventually to sacrifice, as it had in early Canaanite religions.

Besides which you see I have confidence in me.

Here of course Maria exalts herself as "goddess" - she is the sole source of her "confidence".  There is no appeal to any form of deity beyond of the self.  Like the apotheosis of Roman power in the persona and cultus of the Emperor, Maria has been elevated like a Caesar, into the realm of divinity.

I have confidence in confidence alone

Finally there is a descent into the nihilistic solipsism of sefl-referential existence.  Not content to persuade the masses into nature worship, Maria encloses the principal of "confidence" back upon itself.  This final act of defiance of both external dependence and responsibility toward anything which which might be considered an "other", is a sheer negation of the outward movement toward community which is the mark both of humanity as zoeon logon politikon (the animal that speaks and lives in the polis - the city), and the self-reflective life of the deus in sui as Trinity.

I going to write to someone, and let them know the truth.

warming up for St. Augustine's day

The commemoration day of Saints Augustine is drawing near.  You might say his feast is fast approaching.  The only reason I am posting this is so I could make that horrible pun.

But for some real fun, how about a warm up to the festivities?  Something I've been poking away at for a little while when the time allows.  Not all the notes and refs are there, but I'll put them in at some point.

It will probably only be of interest to folks like Mind Your Maker, but you know, we all have our own idea of fun.

Wittgenstein thrice quotes from Augustine's Confessions in the Philosophical Investigations .  He began his Philosophical Investigations with a quotation from book one of the Confessions, where Augustine described how he learned to speak.  His critique of the "Augustinian Picture theory" of language, which extended to paragraph 64, provides "a convenient focus to present (in his new idiom) points of agreement as well as disagreement with his earlier thought."  At paragraph 89, he quotes from book XI, and Augustine's famous dilemma about understanding temporality.  We know what time is, but if we ask "what is time" we seem not to be able to explain it.  And at paragraph 436, we find Wittgenstein again quoting from book XI.  Concerning words, they are "manifest and ordinary, and yet the things themselves are too deeply hidden, and discovering them is new".  As Augustine's description of language from the Confessions seemed a good point of departure for Wittgenstein's further investigations into the nature of language, so I propose to continue the relationship. 

Wittgenstein, in his preface to the Tractatus, tells his readers the meaning and method of his work:
       

Its whole meaning could be summed up somewhat as follows:  What can be said at all can be said clearly; and whereof one cannot speak thereof one must be silent...  The book will, therefore, draw a limit to thinking, or rather--not to thinking, but to the expression of thoughts... (TLP, Ogden translation; Routledge, 1992, p 27)

From the outset of the TLP, Wittgenstein was convinced that the problems of philosophy stemmed from a "misunderstanding of the logic of our language" , a misunderstanding which was to be cleared once one understood that logic.  Thus a correct understanding of his work will take into account both the meaning and the method of the TLP.  How we arrive at the union of the two is done through an examination of language, or more properly, through language itself. 
   
Wittgenstein further elaborated on the purpose of his early work in a letter to his publisher, Von Fricker:

Montebello Summit stuff

Has anyone else been following a bit of the whole Montebello scenario?  I've found Benediction's series of  posts to be a good summary, with lots of interesting links.

book review: Real Christianity, William Wilberforce

“I would suggest that faith is everyone's business.  The advance or decline of faith is so intimately connected to the welfare of a society that it should be of particular interest to a politician.”

Reading Wilberforce reminds me of that uncomfortable feeling I had when I first began to realize that Jesus fed the crowds not before, but after He delivered His sermon.  Wilberforce’s Real Christianity is touted as “the book which helped end slavery in Britain”.  Those of us used to political and activist writing might be surprised to learn that Wilberforce says very little about the “issue” of slavery.  Instead, he addresses the spiritual state of the nation, believing that an authentic and lively faith in Christ was the chief cause for the social ills of his time.  Wilberforce’s approach seem counter-intuitive to many of us.

In 1797 Wilberforce, a member of Parliament for the County of York, published a small book which has come to be known as "A Practical Guide to Real Christianity."  The original title gives us a much clearer picture of what Wilberforce intended to accomplish with his work:

A Practical View of the Prevailing Religious System of Professed Christians in the Higher and Middle Classes in This Country, Contrasted with Real Christianity

It was a book that immediately caught public attention.  Kevin Belmonte, an up-and-coming scholar of Wilberforce's text, notes that the book became an immediate "bestseller" of the time and went through five editions within six months.  15 more editions would be printed in Britain before 1826, and 25 editions would be published in the US.  It was translated into Dutch, French, German, Italian and Spanish.

A new, rather paraphrased edition has been prepared by Dr Bob Beltz [Ventura, CA: Gospel Light/Regal, 2007].  This new edition is simply titled "Real Christianity", and retains the thought and powerful message of Wilberforce's original text.  One of the things I quite appreciate about Beltz’ versions is how he has retained the occasional emphasis with which Wilberforce wrote: italics and capitalization are kept in those passages where Wilberforce himself used them.  This gives the reader a fuller sense of the passion of the original text.  Some of what Wilberforce writes shows that the work is very much a product of his times, but the message of "authentic faith" is a timeless challenge to "cultural Christianity".

Chapter 1: The State of Contemporary Christianity:

Wilberforce intends his readers to understand that his book is addressed to those who profess to be Christians.  His lament is one that might be echoed by many today:  “I fear for the future of authentic faith in our country.  We live in a time when the common man in our country is thoroughly influenced by the current climate in which the cultural and educational elite propagates an anti-Christian message”. [20]  He places great emphasis on the Bible – he refers to it throughout the book.  He is also clear in his opinion that “what we believe determines how we live”. Belief precedes action and determines its direction.  [24]  He challenged those who have “settled for  cultural Christianity and remained ignorant or unresponsive to authentic faith”. [25]

Chapter 2: Current Ideas About the Nature of Man

Wilberforce immediately addresses what he sees as the root:  “the majority of Christians overlook, deny, or at the very least minimize the problems of what it means to be a fallen human being”. [27]  He asks his readers to take the problem of evil seriously.  This means being conscious of sin as an expression of fallen humanity.  He gives us two examples of the causes of sin.  In keeping with much of the thought of his time, he refers twice to giving in to our “lower nature” and “appetites” [29, 33], and it is clear that he is working within the framework of the rational Enlightenment.  However, he also challenges the materialist assumption that there is no “supernatural” agency involved in evil.  Wilberforce warns his readers to take seriously the existence of supernatural forces that tempt and corrupt.  He calls us to take into account how demonic activity is at work in the human heart”. [34]

Chapter 3: Understanding Cultural Christianity

Wilberforce begins with 11 “essential facts about Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit which the Bible teaches, and, historically, the Church embraced”. [41]  His 11 essential facts seem to be a propositional form of the classic creeds.  While he argues that “truths’ are foundational to authentic faith, the center of religion is a “commitment to Jesus Christ” [45].  He then adds to this rationalist approach by expanding on the necessary role of emotion in authentic faith [47-54].  In a line that is worth pondering, Wilberforce states that “[e]motions must be judged by what arouses them [49].  He then returns to the problem of “faulty thinking” about both the Spirit and the nature of God.  His summary at this point is just this:  “For those who attempt to reduce faith to a system of ethics, we respond with the words of Jesus:  ‘The work of God is this: to believe the one he sent’” [60].  What Wilberforce attempts to point out is that in his experience of contemporary society, those who practice a cultural Christianity of a system of ethics, rather than belief with ethics, fail to do justice to the ethics they proclaim.  This is because without authentic faith, one has no power to rise above fallen nature [chapter 2] and actually put into practice the ethics that Christ taught.

Chapter 4: True Standards of Christian Behavior

“We say that Jesus is our Savour, but we forget that he also said that He is our example.  he not only said ‘Believe in me’, but also, ‘Follow me.’” [64]  And here Wilberforce encourages his readers to recognize that “the pursuit of holiness is a joy.”[66]  This of course has long been the secret of the Christian life – holiness and joy are not mutually exclusive, but inseparably intertwined.  The great sin to which we are tempted is idolatry – anything which is in competition to our wholehearted love of God.  Again, it is faith which precedes action:  “It is almost impossible to live as Christ taught if we do not have a transforming belief that changes the way we live.” [78]  A necessary part of this call to Christ-like behavior is self examination.  Wilberforce refers to this process several times. [104 ff]  it is the Christian equivalent of the dictum, the unexamined life is not worth living.  And Wilberforce encourages us to be diligent and honest in our self examination. 

He gives us a simple answer to the problem of our morality:  “It is the neglect of study of the bible and reflection on the life of Christ that is at the heart of the practical errors of the majority of professing Christians.” [121  A rather simple remedy, but there you have it.  If we were to focus our time and energy on just those two pursuits, I’m certain we, and our churches would experience transformation.

Chapter 5: Arguments for True Christianity

This is the shortest chapter in the book – only 7 pages in all.  Here Wilberforce explains that he is “not trying to give proof of the truth of Christianity”, but rather it is in this chapter that he tells his readers that “Not only is the gospel intended for all of humanity, but it also has a special place among the poor.” [135]  And perhaps this is exactly one of the chief “arguments” for the living in authentic faith:  that the gospel is for the poor.

Chapter 6: The Current State of Christianity

Wilberforce next looks at the broader question of the influence of “authentic Christianity” in the culture at large.  He is critical of a national Church which has become simply indistinguishable from the general culture. [142]  He turns his attention away from the personal faith of which he wrote in the first 4 chapters, and instead writes more directly about the relationship of the institution of the Church to the institution of the nation politically.  He describes himself as a patriot, but not a nationalist. [151]  He takes some pains to show that at least on one point, the aims of Christianity and the aims of politics coincide – each is concerned to root out “natural selfishness”  in order to “develop a proper sense of who we are and what our obligations are to our fellow human beings.” [155] 

Wilberforce also recognizes, at least in part, that the political and economic systems of his day were not “naturally Christian”.  In fact he goes on to compare the health of the Church in times of persecution with what he sees as a moral decay brought about by too much attachment to new found mercantile wealth.  It is not that such recent “progress” is in itself bad (he praises the many benefits which have come with such progress), but he carefully asks his readers to think critically about the systems in which they find themselves.

Chapter 7: Practical Hints About Authentic Faith

Here Wilberforce turns his attention away from the larger political questions and back to the individual.  He looks again at the importance of self examination, noting that it is one of our great problems that we do see our faults as clearly as God sees them, nor do we perceive their gravity.  He gives some advice for those of younger years – both to men and women of marriageable age – also touches on the faults he has seen in the aged.  Temptation is everywhere present; he stresses a need for constant vigilance in spiritual growth.  Here in this chapter Wilberforce tells us that a social "benevolence" is the natural outcome of authentic faith.   "Private" faith will have an impact on the public sphere.

For Wilberforce, the route to a transformed nation is primarily through transformed individuals.   He calls cultural Christians to examine themselves and he urges them toward “authentic  faith”.  Wilberforce himself used the phrase “Evangelical Christianity” in his original text, and this book gives us a more complete picture of what evangelicalism should be about:  a lively faith coupled with a benevolence for humanity, all for the glory of God. 

Oxfam's Stamp Out Hunger: geeks & philatelists unite

Beneath my ostensibly suave exterior lies the heart of a stamp collector.  It's true.  And through my philatelic associations I recently discovered Oxfam's "Stamp Out Hunger" program.  The program is a really simple way to raise funds to support Oxfam's projects around the globe.  Anyone who gets a letter in the mail can participate.

STAMP OUT HUNGER
What do students from the Parkview Public School in Melville Saskatchewan have in common with a store in Iqualit, Nunavut, an insurance company in Ottawa and a manufacturer in Belleville, Ontario? They and hundreds of others are collecting used stamps and envelopes for Oxfam Canada's Stamp Programme. Even Provincial premiers and a former Prime Minister have donated stamps to help stamp out poverty.

How the money is raised
Those used stamps and envelopes can add up. Oxfam Canada volunteers raise about $10,000 annually by sorting and selling stamps to collectors. Over $130,000 has been given to Oxfam from the Stamp Programme since it started in 1980.

What you should save
Everything!

• foreign stamps
• Canadian stamps
• commemorative stamps
• Keep the entire envelope if there are:
• clearly identifiable town/village postmarks
• registered/special delivery postmarks

Where should I send the stamps?
Once you've collected the stamps and envelopes they can be delivered to any Oxfam Canada office or sent directly to either:

Stamp Programme
Oxfam Canada
250 City Centre Avenue
Suite 400
Ottawa, Ontario
K1R 6K7

or

Stamp Programme
Oxfam Canada
200 - 215 Spadina Avenue
Toronto, Ontario
M5T 2C7

So start saving those stamps.  I'm going to contact a few fellow philatelists and see if we can help out with this project.  If you want, you can also just drop off your stamps & empty evelopes at St Tim's church (145 St & 84 Ave).  Just put it in our mailbox & mark the package "Oxfam".

There, wasn't that easy?

book review: Girl Soldier - A Story of Hope for Northern Uganda’s Children

Grace Akallo was 15 years old when she was abducted by the Lord's Resistance Army from St. Mary's College in Aboke, Uganda.  “Girl Soldier” tells the tale of her own ordeal, as well as shedding light on the history of the conflicts – political and spiritual - which have been part of the landscape of the “pearl of Africa” for decades.

Grace tells her story, which is ultimately “hopeful”, in short first person pieces.  It is interspersed with the  writing of Faith McDonnell, a Christian activist and author.  I think the “back and forth” format of book does not work as well as intended, but I can overlook that fault for two reasons. 

First, Grace tells her story in a style which emphasizes the role of prayer.  Again and again she tells us how, in the midst of unthinkable evil, her heart turned to prayer.  There is very little “shock value” writing.  It is the bare bones of a Christian seeking God in the midst of a trial most of us could not even begin to imagine.

Second, I found Faith’s history of the conflicts enlightening.  While I was aware of the general plight of the people of northern Uganda, I knew only a little of the history behind these conflicts.  Faith supplies ample research and documentation for a novice to Ugandan history.  It is remarkable.  I’m not particularly prone to using such language, but if I was ever to point to something and call it “spiritual warfare”, then this is it.  I found myself agreeing with her conclusion that “some battle is being waged that is beyond that of flesh and blood, beyond the world that we can see with our eyes.” [213]

I picked up this book yesterday evening and finished it somewhere around 2 in the morning.  Every once in a while I would do some digging on the websites recommended in the book.  As a father to 4  children, I can't even begin to imagine the nightmare that these children and their parents are enduring.  The book offers a glimpse into this crisis, with a variety of resources and suggestions for those who are moved to prayer and action.  The immediate humanitarian needs are enormous, as are the long term needs of reconciliation and  forgiveness.

But as Archbishop Henry Orombi states in his preface to the book:  "There is hope for Uganda because the Christ, who was born, walked our world and died as a sacrifice, is alive". [16]

on the ministry of children and fools

Do children have a ministry beyond making the rest of us feel sentimental during church?

We often talk in our church about the "ministry of the baptized", meaning that we believe every baptized member of the church to have a ministry, a vocation.  In the backs of our minds this often becomes "when they grow up and can do real ministry".  But what if children have a real ministry, a real vocation, within the body of Christ now? 

It is a subject which has been on my mind for a while - the ministry of children and fools.  Partly it also comes out of my association with people with intellectual disabilities.  I sense that there are two parts to their ministry (as there are two parts to mine).  First is the broad ministry of presence:  a more complete gathering of the body of Christ.  But I find myself, and sometimes others, seeing their ministry as only a ministry of presence - a passive ministry by which they evoke certain responses or reactions in those around them, in those "regular" members of the Church.  And perhaps for some that is the ministry to which they are called.

But what if they are called to other, more "active" ministries?  The ministry of prayer comes to mind immediately.  In our tradition, we have certain "intercessors" lead us in prayer each week, leading the "prayers of the people".  What would happen if we discerned and encouraged, say, our children, to lead us publicly in prayer.  And not in some sentimental sense of look-isn't-that-cute - now let's have someone pray whom God will really listen to.  What if those in our midst with disabilities were encouraged in ministry beyond-evoking-feelings-in-us?

Just a thought.  And in case you are wondering who the fools are...