The Fourth Sunday after Trinity

5th July 2009: Choral Evensong 6.00 pm

Preacher: The Revd John Chynchen, Cathedral Chaplain

Readings: Jeremiah 20. 1 – 11a; Romans 14. 1 – 17

“Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, Behold, I am bringing upon this city and upon all its towns all the evil that I have pronounced against it, because they have stiffened their neck, refusing to hear my words.” (Jeremiah 19. 15)

This was the particular prophecy that once again landed Jeremiah in trouble with the religious authorities of the time and the King of Judah. It was a harsh and unwelcome message, especially to the ears of the priests of the temple and the people who felt they had the right to order things as they pleased. They had forgotten that this land and everything within it was theirs by covenant…God had chosen them to occupy it because they were his people and he had specific expectations of them.

The King and religious hierarchy detested Jeremiah for spelling out the truth that they didn’t want to hear. Their collective vested interests lay firmly entrenched within the status quo. They had fashioned a comfortable religion that underpinned their pre-eminence in the land. God, on the other hand, was demanding lives of faithfulness…people who loved other people as they loved themselves.

It is in such a context that we can begin to understand the heartbreaking lament of Jeremiah. He is the one who has to proclaim the message of change and renewal and so he is the one who has become the scapegoat on which the people heap their anger. There is plenty of evidence throughout the prophecy that these people considered God as just one of the many influences impacting upon their lives…and not the defining influence. They knew that God was a jealous God but could not surrender their association and dalliances with other earthly powers and influences.

In the New Testament reading from Romans 14, Paul is not confronting evil but cultural differences that stand in the way of what is good for all. There is that marvellous verse that says, “Welcome those who are weak in faith but not for the sake of quarrelling over opinions.” 

This hits at all of us. We love to quarrel with others over attitudes, opinions, and customs, over petty things that ultimately have very little to do with who God is and God’s desire for us to live in communion and peace.

The same old arguments that the Pharisees used in their efforts to make Jesus stumble in his answers are now being confronted by Paul in today’s reading. The Jewish converts to Christianity are scandalized by the Gentile converts who are used to eating meat and drinking wine, and who don’t have any traditional commitment to Sabbath observance. So they pick fights with one another. Who here is the weaker and who is the stronger, Paul doesn’t say, but we can guess. He seems to be comfortable with those who eat meat and who don’t agonize over all the minutiae of keeping the Sabbath, but he is also understanding about the differences and a bit amused with the pettiness.

The passage from Romans carries a bittersweet message. "We do not live to ourselves, and we do not die to ourselves. If we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord; so then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord's." These verses proclaim that we humans have our life and being grounded in God. That is sweet, indeed! Then, comes the uncomfortable edge: "Why do you pass judgment on your brother or sister? Or why do you despise your brother or sister? For we all stand before the judgment seat of God." Try as we will to divide ourselves into "we" and "they," the truth remains that all human-beings are related-like brothers and sisters of God. Hate and bitterness have no room in God's family. We cannot deny that we hold others with hatred or bitterness. That, too, is to be added to our inner, prayerful struggle.

Paul’s reaction is founded on tolerance of differences and respect for those who seem weak to the strong. This is an excellent lesson for us in this age of multicultural encounters and global concerns. Two thousand plus years ago, when people prided themselves on not being tolerant of strangers, this early Christian came along and urged them to respect and tolerate what today we would call cultural differences. This is something we need to remember as we contemplate the differences in our Anglican Communion.

One of the great weaknesses of our modern church is the reluctance of too few of us to readily take on the sacrificial life that the gospel demands. Everyone thinks that he – or she – is right. This is a symptom of a Church where the institution has become more important than the message the institution was called into being to serve. People throw their energies into endless, exhausting battles over finances, procedural mechanics of meetings, music, incense and the various shades of human sexuality and so on and so on. Their depleted energy bank has little left for what God is truly demanding of his people: Engaging with the poor, the needy and those who have yet to find Jesus Christ.

As the Episcopal Church in the USA prepares to hold its triennial convention in Anaheim, California, next week, most of the media focus has been on continuing divisions over the role of gays and lesbians in the church. Delegates are expected to vote whether to develop formal marriage rites or blessings for same-sex couples, and on continuing with or reversing a 2006 moratorium on the consecration of bishops who are in same-sex relationships.

Yet, I came across a fascinating report about most of the Episcopal parishes throughout the Inland area outside Los Angeles, where the divisions over homosexuality rarely come up in conversation. Theologically conservative and liberal members worship and volunteer side by side, disagreeing on issues such as gay bishops but united by the combination of a Catholic liturgical tradition and a Protestant belief in letting non-clergy interpret the Bible.

"That's what the Anglicanism is all about: Being able to respectfully disagree and still be in communion," says the Rev David Starr, vicar of St John's Episcopal Church in San Bernardino.

More than 7,000 people belong to Inland Episcopal parishes. The Rev John Saville, rector of St. John's Episcopal Church in Corona, embodies the philosophy of Anglicanism and illustrates why parishes like his attract people from across the theological spectrum. Fr Saville opposes changing church liturgy to include same-sex matrimonies but said he respects priests who support liturgical change and understands why some want to recognize committed same-sex relationships for pastoral reasons. "There is a great respect for individual conscience," Saville said. "Not that people can do anything they want, but informed by Scripture, prayer, conversation with others and tradition, we can make decisions and still feel we're part of the community. We believe the Holy Spirit is guiding us, through Jesus' presence, guiding us into new truths and understandings."

"Whether we're liberal or conservative, we can still enjoy the beautiful worship services and the way they're conducted," said 70 year old Beth Johanneck who supports the consecration of gay bishops, "We care for each other in mutual tolerance and realize that when you work together, you form a special bond that goes beyond disagreements.”

God creates us and we then participate in God's creating. God heals and reconciles us to God, one another, and ourselves and then, we participate in that healing reconciliation. God awakens wholeness that invites us to share in that holiness. Tolerance, healing, reconciliation, and forgiveness together sketch an embodied way of life of an ever-deepening friendship with God and with one another. Amen.