Passing It On

 

Passing It On

 

2 Kings 2:1-2, 6-14

Elijah ascends into heaven 

 

2:1 Now when the LORD was about to take Elijah up to heaven by a whirlwind, Elijah and Elisha were on their way from Gilgal.

 

2:2 Elijah said to Elisha, "Stay here, for the LORD has sent me as far as Bethel." But Elisha said, "As the LORD lives and as you yourself live, I will not leave you." So they went down to Bethel.

 

2:6 Then Elijah said to him, "Stay here, for the LORD has sent me to the Jordan." But he said, "As the LORD lives and as you yourself live, I will not leave you." So the two of them went on.

 

2:7 Fifty men of the company of prophets also went and stood at some distance from them, as they both were standing by the Jordan.

 

2:8 Then Elijah took his mantle and rolled it up and struck the water; the water was parted to the one side and to the other, and the two of them crossed on dry ground.

 

2:9 When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, "Tell me what I may do for you before I am taken from you." Elisha said, "Please let me inherit a double share of your spirit."

 

2:10 He responded, "You have asked a hard thing, yet if you see me as I am being taken from you, it will be granted you; if not, it will not."

 

2:11 As they continued walking and talking, a chariot of fire and horses of fire separated the two of them, and Elijah ascended in a whirlwind into heaven.

 

2:12 Elisha kept watching and crying out, "Father, father! The chariots of Israel and its horsemen!" But when he could no longer see him, he grasped his own clothes and tore them in two pieces.

 

2:13 He picked up the mantle of Elijah that had fallen from him and went back and stood on the bank of the Jordan.

 

2:14 He took the mantle of Elijah that had fallen from him and struck the water, He said, "Where is the LORD, the God of Elijah? Where is he?" He struck the water again, and the water was parted to the one side and to the other, and Elisha crossed over.

 

 

Each year at our United Methodist Annual Conference meeting, we hold an ordination service to commission provisional candidates for ministry, and to ordain Elders and Deacons for service in Christ’s church. As part of this ceremony, a “passing of the mantle” is often included, wherein a retiring Elder, referencing this scripture from II Kings 2, removes a symbolic cape (mantle) from her/his own shoulders and places it on the shoulders of a newly-ordained Elder, who responds with a paraphrase of Elisha’s words, having received Elijah’s mantle. It’s a moving thing, indeed, but over the years, as more second career pastors enter the ministry, the age difference between the retiring pastor and the “newly minted” pastor is diminishing. So it was with this year’s “passing of the mantle.” My younger brother, Jay Sterling, was chosen to pass the mantle to a second-career pastor who, frankly, looked older than my brother. I realize it was just a matter of appearances, and the meaning of the tradition was still quite intact, but as our culture continues to change, these kinds of “unusual” juxtapositions seem to be cropping up more often.

 

What WAS a “mantle,” anyway? Here’s what Google’s “artificial intelligence” summary says:

 

Elijah's mantle was a cloak or garment that symbolized his prophetic authority and power. It was likely made of a hairy material, possibly camel's hair. When Elijah ascended to heaven, the mantle fell from him, and Elisha picked it up, signifying the transfer of this authority to Elisha. The mantle was a tangible symbol of Elijah's role as a prophet and was used by Elisha to perform miracles, such as parting the Jordan River. 

 

Thankfully, the one we use at Annual Conference is just a velvet cape, of some sort, although I must say it is looking rather mangy. (Perhaps we should print in the ordination booklet, “Nothing with MANGE died to provide the mantle used in today’s ceremony.”) AUTHORITY is the key word to this whole thing. As a prophet chosen by God, Elijah was given the authority of a prophet. He was called upon to speak forth future realities coming upon God’s people, due to how they had managed CURRENT realities. Typically, the people wouldn’t like what the prophet had to say, so they persecuted and threatened them, and then acted surprised when what they had “sown” began to grow in their midst. Unlike a traveling evangelist who might bring a good band with him to draw a crowd, God’s actual prophets were never popular for what they had to say. I did not generally seem to be God’s practice to send one to give them a “high five,” or to endorse their behavior, which was usually afoul of God’s law. However, God DID have the welfare of God’s people in mind, particularly their sustainability in a given time and place, and so did God’s prophets, like Elijah. Elijah got kudos from Israel when he took on the “bad guys”—the priests of Baal, the nasty, rival God—and won. Oh boy, did he!  This love/hate relationship with God’s prophets drove them all a bit schizophrenic. One moment, for example, Elijah was boasting over the authority he had over these Baal guys, and the next, he was hiding in a cave, fearing for his life. Honestly, it makes me wonder whether BEING a bit bipolar wasn’t a prerequisite for the prophetic office in the first place? This resulting instability may have been God’s way of keeping God’s prophets both humble and at least a bit dependent on God’s Spirit and guidance.

 

The same could certainly be said for us preachers, so it’s a good thing we do that mantle-passing as part of our ordination! We all know what happens when someone with “authority” gets too high on themselves. There’s one in the White House right now, and he’s making us ALL a bit schizo. We’ve seen those TV evangelists and mega-church pastors fall like a meteorite, usually from the peak of their trajectory. Proverbs 16:18 says, “Pride goes before a fall,” but it should probably be interpreted to mean EXCESSIVE pride goes before a fall, as a little pride in one’s work and abilities can be a healthy, motivating thing. The problem happens when feeding an overly “hungry” pride becomes the object of one’s pursuits. It reminds me—as things often do—of a sports story, that of the then young Steelers quarterback, Ben Rothlisberger, who was sued by a few women for sexual assault, or harassment. Several friends asked me what I thought about how he could “do” such things as what he was accused of doing, and my answer was something like this: “I don’t know, as I’ve never been tall, handsome, famous, and with $100 million in my pocket. I’d like to think that it wouldn’t go to my head, but I really don’t know.” Any kind of “authority” we earn and/or are given may certainly go to our head, if not buffered and guided by higher ideals, a higher power, or both. That mantle can get PRETTY HEAVY real fast!

 

Elisha wanted the mantle possessed by his “mentor,” Elijah. So those who desire, or even crave, an authority they don’t have, often do. Elisha was bold enough to ask for it. Years ago, after I had been appointed to St. Paul’s as its Lead Pastor, following in the footsteps of my friend and mentor, Rev. Dr. Ron Hoellein, several younger pastors chided me as to how I got such a “big, prestigious church.” (Thankfully, having served as an associate pastor at St. Paul’s years earlier, I knew what I was in for, so not only did this new “authority” go to my head, but it frankly scared the hell out of me. Still does, when I think of it.) ANYWAY, I would challenge these young “pups,” thusly: “If you think serving a big church is a ‘cushy’ thing, just come out and follow me around for a day.” A couple of them did, and later told me how “surprised” they were at the required pace, stamina, and stress management such responsibility entailed. I’m guessing that Elisha might have missed some of those “cave hiding” moments of his mentor, or the threats on his life by disgruntled “hearers” of his prophetic word. 

 

Honestly, every change of appointment we pastors endure is a kind of “passing of the mantle,” aren’t they? We hand the keys to the next pastor, offer some words of support and “pearls of wisdom” gleaned from our experience, and move on. I have done my best to offer nothing but encouragement to my successors, but this is not always what I got on the receiving end for my new appointment. One pastor told me, “Jeff, this will be the hardest church you will ever serve!” Not exactly “Live long and prosper.” Interestingly, that particular church turned out to be my favorite of all the churches I served, at least up until this last one I took for a year while retired. I’d like to think it was due to my attitude, going in the door, but it really was a God thing, I’m sure. I’m not that competent. Years ago, a retired district superintendent told me, “Just love the people.” It’s good counsel, really. I have been quite fortunate in that all of “the people” I was to love in my ministry made it very, very easy. This last stop on the appointment “bicycle” was one of the best.

 

In the II Kings text, Elijah is about to be rewarded by God for his faithful service by “skipping death” as a prerequisite to entrance into heaven. He would ride into the ultimate realm of God in a fiery chariot, while Elisha, who had asked for a “double portion” of Elijah’s spirit AND for his mantle of prophetic authority (not asking for much, was he?), watched for the mantle to fall in his direction. A couple of thoughts occur: 1) Elijah must have had faith in Elisha to grant his wish and to “pass the mantle” to him; 2) A “chariot of fire” is a lot different from a chariot that is just on fire. The church has too often confused the latter distinction. The United Methodist disaffiliation is too often viewed by the exiting party as meaning they are “on fire” with the Spirit, while the reality for both parties is turning out to be more like the proverbial dumpster fire. Rather than a mantle being passed—or even shared—I’m afraid time may tell that the Global people my find the grass not really greener on the “other side,” while the remnant United Methodist Church will make a mistake by trying to return to “business as usual.” The scriptural story of the mantle-passing between Elijah and Elisha is an extravagant event, clearly signaling God’s blessing on the anointing being granted Elisha. Not so much, though, in the case of the Methodist disaffiliation. The aforementioned dumpster fire comes to mind, but I guess we shall see.

 

On the more local front, this week, near countless members of the clergy in the United Methodist Church will be changing places. Some will retire, being replaced by other active pastors, while others will just change appointments. Each transition is a kind of mantle-passing. Lots of things get passed on—keys, friendships, responsibilities, visions, problems, and traditions. God calls us, though, to focus on passing on the Gospel message and the command of Jesus Christ to “love one another” as the most potent witness of how God loves the world. Believe me, keys and parsonages are easier to pass! What makes passing the Gospel on, from pastor to pastor, is that we each have differently encultured versions of what it means; what makes it exciting is that we each have differently encultured versions of what it means. When one pastor has done her or his best to elucidate on the teachings of Jesus, and to encourage a given congregation to live them out, the next one is charged with taking up the mantle of doing the same, and the differences should complement each other, in a perfect world. God is always about trying to make a perfect world.

 

I will be passing the mantle on to a new pastor for Faith Community UMC. She is a very smart person with a “fiery chariot” view of community connections and ministry, and she will be good at loving the people. I am excited for her, and for the people called Methodists at Faith Community UMC. Interestingly, we know very little of what happens to Elisha after the incident in this weekend’s text, other than the “teaser” that he is able to part the waters of the Jordan, which is no small feat. It is just a teaser of what is to come when the mantle of authority is passed on, along with God’s Word. We don’t hear of Elijah again until he shows up with Moses and Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration—again, no small feat. The former incident is a sign of things to come. The latter event is a glimpse back into a splendid history. 

 

So it is with the mantle passed from pastor to pastor in the ritual we Methodists call “change of appointment.” May the many “dumpster fires” set by the disaffiliation be transformed into a “fiery chariot” that transports the Word of God and God’s love for the people out into our communities and the world, for as John 3:16 says, “For God SO LOVED the world…” Amen.

 

 

Leaving Nursery School

Leaving Nursery School

 

Galatians 3:23-29

Clothed with Christ in baptism 

 

3:23 Now before faith came, we were imprisoned and guarded under the law until faith would be revealed.

 

3:24 Therefore the law was our disciplinarian until Christ came, so that we might be reckoned as righteous by faith.

 

3:25 But now that faith has come, we are no longer subject to a disciplinarian,

 

3:26 for in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith.

 

3:27 As many of you as were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.

 

3:28 There is no longer Jew or Greek; there is no longer slave or free; there is no longer male and female, for all of you are one in Christ Jesus.

 

3:29 And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to the promise.

 

 

Growing up is hard to do…there should be a song about it. At almost 71 years of age (!), I still feel like I’m a teenager, at least in my head. There are other parts of me that have taken their own path, but my brain still thinks I’m much, MUCH younger, although the memory recall is on a time delay. That’s not exactly true—some things I recall with immediacy and great clarity—but it’s usually the stupid stuff. You know, like the plotline of a “Get Smart” episode, or the dialogue of the “Summer of George” Seinfeld episode? And who among us of my generation can’t mimic most of the bits from Monty Python’s “The Holy Grail”? But ask me where I put my church keys, or the important letter I just got in the mail TODAY? No luck. Thankfully, I still have a good hold on the scriptures and their wonderful parables and stories, however, my wife says that I tend to mix them up with a little Python or Seinfeld humor, from time to time. Sorry, I tell her, “Missed it by THAT much!”

 

But I digress. Having written a major exegetical paper on one word from today’s text—paidagogos—that’s about all I can think about when I read this. As my sermon title might clue you in, it has something to do with nursery school. Personally, I never went to nursery school, or “preschool,” as it’s known today. I actually never even attended kindergarten, either, but that’s a different story. By the time my youngest brother came along—he’s eight years my junior—nursery schools were busting out all over, even in small towns like Oil City. The Tree of Life Synagogue just down the street had one, so my parents sent my little brother. When asked what he did on his first day, he answered honestly: “Threw crayons at the girls.” As I recall, I don’t think he made it through the whole year of nursery school. Personally, I grieved missing kindergarten, as we moved mid-school-year, and my parents figured it wasn’t worth sending me, knowing I would have to be transplanted later. I heard stories later in elementary school about the fun the kindergartners had had, and that they actually took naps! I tried it a couple of times in Second Grade, and it didn’t go well. I do remember being so tired I fell asleep at my desk in Fifth Grade, but a trip to the school nurse and then my pediatrician discovered that I had some weird form of pneumonia. A couple of weeks in the children’s ward of the Oil City Hospital, and I was good as new.

 

The translation of Galatians 3 I’ve used here translates the Greek word paidagogos as “disciplinarian.” That’s actually a really poor rendering. You want an English word that is much more accurate? How about “nanny.” The paidagogos in Greek society was a man who was given charge over the “character” development of young children of wealthy families. He pretty much raised the kids under his care, but was especially charged with seeing that they were enrolled in the best education money could buy, were protected at all times, escorted from activity to activity, and tucked in at night after all proper hygiene issues had been addressed. This specialized “nanny” figure was also responsible for teaching his charges the various philosophies that would govern their morals and ethics. As you know, the Greeks were philosophical “giants,” and well-to-do children were to be schooled in the thought of Plato, Socrates, Aristotle, and even the locals who ruminated over such things in the regional acropolis. If it sounds like the paidagogos had to be an intellectual, medical, and “security” jack-of-all-trades, he did. One of the hardest things to do for them was to “set free” the children who had been under their care when they reached a majority age and/or went off to university. There aren’t many historical records detailing if any of these childhood “mentoring” relationships continued into adulthood, even if friendships were formed, but we can guess that some might have? 

 

Probably the reason Paul chooses this “model” for Christian nurture and mentoring is that the responsibilities of the paidagogos were paramount during the childhood phase, but were then immediately cut off when the “child” reached the adult right of passage, be it age or education related. It wasn’t usually a gradual thing. I suppose, to a degree, it could be seen as a Greek, intellectual version of what happened in Judaism when a child experienced the bar mitzvah. Time to move on—you are an adult now, and must be responsible for your own life, and in the case of the Jew, your own FAITH. So it was with the Christian, as well.

 

And Paul is NOT just using this as an illustration of the Christian pathway in life. He seems to be saying that this is a theological truth, as well. Even as all faith experience that came before—including his own Jewish faith—so with the coming of Christ into the world, these earlier expressions of faith—the paidagogos—were no longer needed. Christ BECAME the “adult” faith now presented to the world. It would be easy to fault Paul here for suggesting that these other faith traditions, including Judaism, were now “obsolete,” but I’m not sure this is what he is saying. Instead, he seems to be holding to his Christian theological perspective that in Christ, God is offering the world an “allie-allie in free” introduction to faith, with our sins being forgiven via the fiat of the cross. In Paul’s thinking, so much of these earlier faiths was about how to be absolved of sin and to get on God’s “good side.” In Christ, God is awarding both of these important “statuses” by grace alone. Having been forgiven AND redeemed, positionally by God, the individual Christian is now free to explore, learn, and experience the rudiments of Christian discipleship. Like how the paidagogos was required to detach from the children in whom he had invested so much of his life in so they could “flee the nest,” so the Christian is set free by Christ to LIVE as a Christian, discover and use one’s spiritual gifts, and be a witness to “Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the ends of the earth” of God’s love and grace. Nursery school is over, so stop throwing crayons at the girls!

 

Speaking of which, it is next in this passage that Paul writes one of his most radical and powerful sentences: 

 

 

There is no longer Jew or Greek; there is no longer slave or free; there is no longer male and female, for all of you are one in Christ Jesus.

 

Friends, this was written in the first century of the Christian faith! Paul is proclaiming what Jesus modeled for us all: EVERYONE is one in Christ Jesus. Note that he doesn’t say that Jews and Greeks had to give up being either Jewish or Greek, nor would “male and female” have to give up their gender orientation. Instead, he says that Christ is drawing all people into a community of faith—what the late theologian John Cobb called the “Divine Commonwealth”—wherein we can all inhabit common ground, even while maintaining our own cultural, national, and even gender-based territories. Maybe even our own “religious” territories, as well. (This last one may be a bit controversial for some of you, but it’s where my mind is going. After all, how much must Christ be limited? Can not Christ redeem and draw into this Divine Commonwealth ANYONE, even if they—as of yet—don’t “believe” exactly the same things? You tell me.)

 

Perhaps the modern church is stifled because it hasn’t stopped throwing crayons at the girls? (Just recently, the Southern Baptism Church voted more restrictions on women in leadership roles in their denomination…and this is 2025!) Our own denomination split right down the middle over doctrines and rules we use to either “free” or “restrict” what Christ is allowed to do in the church. I’ll bet Christ doesn’t give a flying fig about our doctrines and rules! At least according to this passage, PAUL doesn’t think so! Here’s another scary thought: even as the religious leaders of Jesus’ time sought to maintain their control over the practices of the Jewish faith, so our Christian religious leaders seem bent on using these doctrines and rules to keep their hands on the helm and throttle of the church. Is this an example of the paidagogos not being willing to detach? Are we religious leaders afraid of the kind of freedom Christ Jesus wants to grant to believers everywhere, and in all times and places? 

 

What might a church that was allowed to enter its “adult” life without its dominating paidagogoslook like? Perhaps this is what Dietrich Bonhoeffer had in mind when he wrote of a “religion-less” Christianity? Might the adult church live so fully into inclusion and acceptance granted by Christ Jesus that it could invest all of its gifts, resources, and personnel into working for justice and peace in our world, and welcoming the “strangers” into the Divine Commonwealth? I once heard a United Methodist historian recall how, in Wesley’s day, the role of the religious leaders and the local congregation was to BE that paidagogos of the faith, teaching and mentoring children and new adult converts toward a mature faith in Christ. Then, if they received God’s call into ministry, they could be ordained immediately. This historian recounted how we have turned that whole practice around. Now, we invite people to say the “sinners prayer” to invite Christ into their lives “immediately,” but if they then perceive God’s call to ministry, we make them attend years of training before being set apart to do it. What are we more afraid of? Giving up control? It seems to me that Paul is advocating for mentoring the faith, not just “winning souls for Christ.” 

 

The bishops of the United Methodist Church have “unveiled” a new proposed vision statement for that denomination: 

 

The United Methodist Church forms disciples of Jesus Christ who, empowered by the Holy Spirit, love boldly, serve joyfully, and lead courageously in local communities and worldwide connections.

 

I confess I’m not wild about it, because it sounds a bit more like a slogan, offering little actual guidance as to “how to” accomplish the mission, which a good vision should do. A lot of time will be spent “unpacking” what it means to “love boldly,” “serve joyfully,” and “lead courageously,” when we still don’t get “empowered by the Holy Spirit.” Frankly, I think we could get much more practical guidance from the “old” UMC slogan, “Open Hearts, Open Minds, Open Doors…the People of The United Methodist Church.” Paul’s language in Galatians 3:28 would seem to prefer the “slogan” as marching orders, rather than this new “vision” put forth by the bishops. Here’s another “adulting” statement of faith the late scholar, Walter Bruggemann put forth:

 

The prophetic tasks of the church are to tell the truth in a society that lives in illusion, grieve in a society that practices denial, and express hope in a society that lives in despair.

 

Now THAT’S not nursery school language, friends! Is not the church called to speak truth—God’s truth—to a world that often finds “comfort” in falsehoods and empty boasts? Are we not called to walk along with those who grieve until they achieve wholeness and healing? And we most certainly are called to offer Christ’s HOPE to a world that stumbles in hopelessness! Now THAT’S a vision I can get behind!

 

It's graduation day, church. Put away the crayons! Amen.

 

One Thing Leads to Another

One Thing Leads to Another

 

Romans 5:1-5

God's love poured into our hearts 

 

5:1 Therefore, since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,

 

5:2 through whom we have obtained access to this grace in which we stand, and we boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God.

 

5:3 And not only that, but we also boast in our afflictions, knowing that affliction produces endurance,

 

5:4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope,

 

5:5 and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.

 

 

You should know I am a Seinfeld freak. I know that there are those of you who are of a younger generation who have looked in on this relic of television sitcoms and have judged it as “disturbing,” due to its having fun with all kinds of human fits, foibles, and fetishes. Maybe it’s one of those “I guess you had to be there” kinds of things, but for many of my generation, it is still one of the most entertaining things on television. Like we can with “Monty Python and the Holy Grail,” many of us can almost quote the entire script of our favorite Seinfeld episodes, and those quirky characters have bored their way into our hearts, if not our brains. The only one who plays himself in the program is Jerry Seinfeld, who was already a quite successful standup comic before he and writer Larry David launched this TV series, which, after almost being cancelled several times early on, became a major hit and now a “cult” favorite. Flipping through the channels, I may come across a Seinfeld episode, and can instantly recognize, “Oh, this is the YADA-YADA,” or “THIS is the SOUP NAZI episode!” The channel surfing stops and I dig in, laughing at the same stuff I’ve laughed at since the 1990s with this thing. Doesn’t matter—the “show about nothing” IS something. George, Elaine, Kramer, Newman, the Costanzas and the Seinfelds, a revolving cast of major stars who happen by, including former Met star Keith Hernandez, and of course Jerry, have my attention.

 

So how did this passage from Romans remind me of Seinfeld, you may ask? It was an episode called “The Betrayal,” the 164^th show of the series that did the trick. In this bizarre episode, everything moves backwards in time. It begins with the “ending,” and each scene is “the day before,” or “several hours earlier.” Kramer is pictured at first gnawing on the stick of what was obviously once one of those giant lollypops you used to get at a county fair. As the show “progresses,” more and more of the lollypop is evident, until in the final scene, it is new and huge. The novel approach to time-keeping and storytelling is a bit confusing, until you realize what they are doing with it, but for sure, it is clear that, as we would say, “one thing leads to another” in a profound way. One of Kramer’s large cache of bizarre friends—“FDR,” Franklin Delano Romanoski—is featured, as is Elaine’s nemesis, Sue Ellen Mishki, the braless heir of the “Oh, Henry” candy bar fortune. Doesn’t exactly sound like any kind of parallel to one of Paul’s writings, does it? Well…maybe the Corinth letters?

 

But the Epistle to the Romans? (No, not ROMANOWSKI.) But Paul does a lot of “one thing leads to another” in his writing—a unique kind of parallelism, and in this particular passage, he “begins” with the ending, kind of like “The Betrayal” episode of Seinfeld: Therefore, since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ… And then Paul kind of “backs up” to rehearse some of the Christian faith journey, and how we must navigate the temporal and often challenging affairs of that journey. One thing leads to another.

 

In “The Betrayal” episode, the cascade of things begins with Kramer nailing FDR with an ice ball he had been saving in the freezer since Winter. For Paul, after comforting his audience with the “happy ending” about us being justified by faith in Christ, he then moves to the “curse” of our difficulties, but with a twist—he suggests that, thanks to the grace of God operating in the Christian, we can “boast” about our afflictions. While that sounds a bit goofy, we know that Paul often boasts about his own, and uses them as a testimony to either God’s ability to get us through them, or the strength of his human will to accomplish his mission, and most often, he refers to both “working” in him, simultaneously. But let’s look at the “process” of how navigating the trail of our troubles builds us up, rather than tearing us down.

 

First rung of the “steps”: Affliction produces endurance. Someone has said, “What doesn’t kill you, makes you strong.” I’m guessing maybe it came from Paul here in Romans 5? Some translations use “suffering” in place of “afflictions.” The root of the Greek word thus translated is thlibo, which literally means “to crush.” Sounds like stress to me! No matter how you cut it—or translate it—Paul is saying, basically, “Whatever doesn’t kill you, makes you strong,” isn’t he? As much as I hate to admit it, I know I did some of my best ministry during those weeks when things “piled on,” created monumental stress, and forced me to rely on my “better angels,” my professional training, and most especially, God. I know some of you have heard my story about one particular week in seminary. Dara was out of town on business, so I had charge of the children, relying on a neighboring clergy spouse to help with the day to day. Finals were coming up in school, I had a “knockdown-drag-out” battle with one of the younger church leaders, had two funerals on the docket, and then Evan, who was just a tiny toddler, got very sick, sending me to the emergency room of Forbes Regional Hospital, late one night, having spiked a fever of 105. The part of the story I often relate is one of true grace. As that term in seminary was winding down, with its obvious “crushing” stress, our Pastoral Care professor walked into a room of students for the second half of that week’s class, which was a “seminar” time. At seminars, the larger class was divided into smaller groups for discussion of the week’s lecture and readings. As Dr. Andrew Purves entered the room, I think he could immediately sense the tension in the room (believe me, I was not the only student under great stress that week!). This Church of Scotland Presbyterian scholar sat down, kept his seminar notebook closed, folded his hands across the table, looked around the room into each of our eyes, and asked JOHN WESLEY’S famous question: “How is it with your soul, today?” We all broke into tears, a few sobbed out loud. The rest of that seminar was the good doctor just listening to our stories, our grief, our stress, and offered the sweetest dose of grace I have probably ever received, during that hour, then closed us in a compassionate prayer and let us go. That got me through the week. Not only did one thing lead to another, but the application of grace to my afflictions gave me the endurance to, well, endure! 

 

Step two: Endurance produces Character. The Greek word translated “character” literally means “to prove.” Paul is saying that when we endure our afflictions it builds strength in us. As a budding cook and baker (a retirement “bucket list” thing), I might like to think not of “proving,” but “proofing.” In baking bread, one must let the bread rise or “proof,” which lets the natural gluten in it create bonds and elasticity. Then when kneaded, it stretches these gluten “chains” and creates a wonderfully resilient and “chewy” bread. Enduring our hardships “proofs” us, letting our natural psychological and spiritual “gluten” become bendable, flexible, and resilient. Believe me, when under great duress, the last thing you want to be is stiff and inflexible. You can really hurt yourself that way!

 

We’re not done with the “one thing leads to another” scenario yet, though! Next, Paul writes that CHARACTER produces HOPE. Has there ever been a time for you lately when you couldn’t use a major shot of HOPE? We are living in times that are not at all hopeful, so HOPE may be the most powerful witness of the grace and love of God we can muster! When we are properly “proofed” by enduring our headships, the resulting resilient “character” oozes HOPE. It’s like the old story of a guy who falls into a deep hole and begins crying out for help. Eventually, a man comes along who jumps down into the hole with him, which leaves him shocked and incredulous: “WHAT are you doing? How is that helpful?” to which the friend responds, “Because I’ve been here before, and I know the way out!” One thing leads to another, and in this case, the “another” is hope, when hope is hard to come by. The dictionary defines “hope” as: a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen.” So, hope is both a feeling AND an expectation, and it may often be tied to a specific desired outcome. I like that. And so will others, when we share the source of OUR hope. Remember the “large lollypop” at the beginning of this passage! Jesus is more than just the “reason for the season,” friends.

 

Now we can see the wonderful ending of the story: God’s love being “poured into our hearts” by the Holy Spirt. Life will always take us on many “one thing leads to another” experiences, and while our tendency is to fear this as a “bad to worse” description, Paul backs it up and shows us that with God’s available grace, it CAN progress from worse to BETTER, or even to “healed,” if we set our eyes on Jesus, especially in the worst of days. There is one thing in this text that I don’t want to miss, though, and its something I touched on in a recent sermon: shame.

 

Paul says that hope does not “put us to shame.” There are enough things out there that will do their best to put us to shame. Remember that, unlike guilt, that says, “You have done a bad thing,” leading to confession and forgiveness, SHAME tries to tell us instead, “You’re a bad PERSON,” leading only to self-condemnation and mental and spiritual paralysis. Hope, according to Paul, puts SHAME to shame! Hope is both the salve and the ultimate remedy for the haunting shame, and its key ingredient is grace. The “rest of the story,” as the late Paul Harvey might have said, is that this “process” of one thing leading to another here in Romans 5 is a divine “cheat sheet” for getting through our “afflictions” not only less scathed, but strengthened, enlightened, and hopeful. Amen!

 

Ivory Towers and Street People

Ivory Towers and Street People

 

Genesis 11:1-9

God destroys the tower of Babel 

 

11:1 Now the whole earth had one language and the same words.

 

11:2 And as they migrated from the east, they came upon a plain in the land of Shinar and settled there.

 

11:3 And they said to one another, "Come, let us make bricks and fire them thoroughly." And they had brick for stone and bitumen for mortar.

 

11:4 Then they said, "Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves; otherwise we shall be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth."

 

11:5 The LORD came down to see the city and the tower, which mortals had built.

 

11:6 And the LORD said, "Look, they are one people, and they have all one language, and this is only the beginning of what they will do; nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them.

 

11:7 Come, let us go down and confuse their language there, so that they will not understand one another's speech."

 

11:8 So the LORD scattered them abroad from there over the face of all the earth, and they left off building the city.

 

11:9 Therefore it was called Babel, because there the LORD confused the language of all the earth, and from there the LORD scattered them abroad over the face of all the earth.

 

 

Friends, today’s text is a wonderful Bible “myth,” not necessarily a piece of actual human history. Those of us fortunate enough to have been to seminary know that Bible “myths” are stories or accounts originally designed to relate a truth—a truth that is not contingent upon whether the “event” related actually ever occurred. Parables are Bible myths, for example. What they communicate has nothing to do with whether they ever occurred. In antiquity, folk would have recognized the “medium” being used, and would have immediately seized upon the intended lesson, possibly after a little pondering, but they wouldn’t have gotten lost in the historicity of the format. Unfortunately, today the Bible and its interpretation has become obfuscated by those who focus mostly on ways to harmonize its message and “taking it literally,” something never intended by most of those who penned it. Having recently preached a sermon on the parable of Job from the Hebrew Bible, I know that for at least one person who heard the sermon, my calling it a “parable” was a bit too much. She had been “assimilated” by the “must take it literally” version of the evangelical faith, and therefore had to believe that the story of Job was actually an historical account. My suggestion otherwise simply meant I was wrong, and she had to discount the message along with the messenger. The wonderful messages from this remarkable story ARE real, whether there was a “real” Job, or not. So it is with the parables of Jesus, although you may be surprised to learn that even THEY have been distorted by this “taking it literally” bug, in some circles. Likewise, today’s text of the infamous “Tower of Babel” has been similarly distorted.

 

Note that in understanding this principle of the Bible “myth” it is not necessary to believe that the story DIDN’T happen, either. Could there have been a real guy named Job who had the “weird” experiences painstakingly told in the parable? Sure. Could there have been an actual “prodigal son” who did the things this famous parable tells? Of course there could have been. It’s just that the truths the stories are intended to teach us don’t require them to be “true” stories to BE true. And, truth be told, they are timeless stories because they are so universal! Down through the ages, countless children of God have found themselves in these stories, and turned to God for rescue and relief. One of our late United Methodist scholars and storytellers, Andy Langford, used to tell some marvelous parabolic stories as part of his sermons and lectures that SO captivated his audiences! Invariably, someone would come up to him afterwards and ask, “Is that a TRUE story?” to which Andy would answer, “Well, it OUGHT to be!” 

 

Having been fully corrupted myself by the storytelling of the late Douglas Adams, and most especially by his “Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy,” I can’t even hear the word “Babel” without thinking of his “Babel Fish,” a mythical creature of his slightly off-kilter mind, that when inserted into a person’s ear canal, “drinks” brainwaves for nourishment and belches language interpretation. The skinny is that with a Babel Fish inserted, the user will “hear” anything said to them in their own language, as the Babel Fish does its feeding thing. Now, a whole sermon could be written around Adams’ “interesting” suggestion that language might be made “universal” as the waste of a fish’s digestive process. Think about it: it eats brainwaves and “regurgitates” words, or at least the translation of them. Might Adams be suggesting that words are not necessarily the best representation of the height of human cognitive genius? This idea might be worth considering by those who desire to take the Bible literally, come hell or high waters of baptism. Incidentally, Adams’ Babel Fish story is a “myth,” not to be taken literally, just in case you missed it.

 

Why would I suggest that the Babel story is also a Bible myth or parable? The first verse is a dead giveaway: “Now the whole earth had one language and the same words.” Seriously? You would want to take that literally? Ancient audiences would have pulled up a stone near the fire to hear the rest of the story unfold. Most of them would have already been quite familiar with the kinds of people who liked to build towers—almost exclusively the wealthy and power-hungry ones. I am reminded of a story (surprised?) of the late Ohio State football coach, Woody Hayes, who was known for keeping the ball on the ground, most of the time (his critics used to say, “Three yards and a cloud of dust…”). When asked by some journalistic wag WHY he rarely called a passing play, he said: “When you pass the football, three things can happen, and two of them are bad.” So it was with the tower-builders in this story, although all of the outcomes may have been bad. First of all, it would cost enormous amounts of money and man-hours to erect such a thing. If you don’t believe THAT, just ask the crews who built the Egyptian pyramids. And for why? Building the tallest tower was an ego trip, a bragging point among the well-healed. Some built towers, like those in various religious structures, as “homes” for God or the gods, but less out of hospitality and more for possession or control of them. And then there were those who sought to “storm heaven” by building a tower high enough to reach their primitive ideas of “heaven above,” which in early modes of interacting with the gods meant they could just crash the divine party. 

 

Thankfully, we live in modern, enlightened times, and certainly have no wealthy people in our world today who believe that having the tallest towers or the biggest anything—or having your own space program--is a true sign of either status or power. Yeah. Scary, huh? 

 

Why would this “faulty tower” crowd be a threat to God such that an author would be inspired to record this particular parable? One could say that it was the author’s attempt to explain why the world was so divided by language, ideology, religion, and politics—not to mention inequitable wealth distribution--it was God’s doing, but our fault. Our pursuits of power and stature, and wasting a fortune on acquiring them, was against what God had intended for humanity, and so God “foiled” their efforts by scattering those responsible and messing up their means of communicating. The Hebrew word, “Babel,” literally means “confused” or “to jumble.” 

 

Again, thankfully, in our advanced state of self-awareness, we don’t experience these things that drive us apart…yeah. Scary, huh? It would seem that God’s “Babelizing” of the power-seekers/brokers only bought some time. Of course in our day, we could elect leaders who would focus our efforts back on building a healthy world community and who worked for wider economic opportunity for all people. OH boy…

 

My sarcasm is designed to highlight the universality of the Tower of Babel story, and its continuingly relevant message. Even as we still glorify and “celebrate” the Egyptians who built the “magnificent” pyramids as monuments to their legacies, and as “spaceships” to take them to heaven, so we still idolize those who do the same thing today, whether it’s “Trump Tower,” the various sports “Hall of Fame” players, or even Taylor Swift’s music empire. I’m not saying that it is wrong to develop one’s gifts so as to excel in some field or arena, but this story in Genesis DOES make us wonder how “impressed” God is that so many who suffer only get to watch, and in some cases, pay dearly to do so. 

 

I’ve never believed that God “visits” evil upon God’s people, believing instead that we tend to bring it upon ourselves. Jesus numerously reiterated an ancient truth from Judaism: “What you sow, you reap.” Don’t blame God for “judging” you, if you caused the calamity yourself. I confess that, as a pastor visiting folk in the hospital who were gravely ill, it was hard to hold my tongue when a lifetime heavy smoker or drinker lying in the sickbed would say, “Why is God doing this to me?” Inside my head was a voice jumping up and shouting, “WHAT?!? Why is GOD doing this to you?” Thankfully, my rudimentary psychology and better pastoral care training kicked in, and I quickly accepted the grieving of the sufferer, for this is indeed the question of one in grief over their tragic sitz im leben. If I’m really honest, I’d confess that my “inner outburst” is more a product of my temporary faithlessness, for we Judeo-Christians believe in a God who just keeps forgiving and forgiving, and never abandon’s God’s love for us, even when we are totally responsible for the bad “crop” we are harvesting because of what we have sown. 

 

So it is with the Babel story. The author wants us to know that we humans are profoundly responsible for the division and fouled communication among the human community. Locating this as God’s judgment is a way to cope with the mess we ‘s in. The hopeful message of the Gospel is that God WILL come along side us and help us begin to extract ourselves from the “tares” that we have seeded along with the good wheat God provided. However, it will mean turning ourselves godward—how one of my professors defined “repentance”—and beginning to turn from our incessant “tower building,” as well. Jesus said our eternal legacy will be defined by what we did for “the least of these,” and not by the size of our pyramids, our bank accounts, or our fame. In short, it’s not about our Ivory Towers, but how we treated and cared for the “street people” all around us, and I’m not just talking about the homeless and those in “definable” poverty. There are people all around us who have bought this tower-building definition of “being successful,” and who will never live up to it. They see themselves as failures, therefore. They need our compassion, our encouragement, our friendship, AND our Gospel. They are every bit as much children of God as the rest of us, but they’re not feeling it. As a pastor, I know it’s hard to lift such folk up, and may demand us rearranging our schedules to encourage and edify them, but how wonderful it is to see the earliest stages of their transformation when we do. You see, there are all kinds of “street people” in our lives. You may even BE one, yourself. God wants to lift you up, as well. I suggest you stop trying to build that tower to lift yourself up, and accept God’s willingness to do the “heavy lifting” in Jesus Christ. And expect that the others whom Christ is “lifting up” all around you will be your greatest assets and allies. 

 

How wonderful to believe in a Deity who, rather than asked us to build a tower to God’s “glory,” came down to US, and sent God’s Spirit to inhabit US and OUR WORLD! The Holy Spirit may indeed BE God’s “Babel Fish.” When we take in God’s Spirit, into our hearts, minds, and souls, we begin to “hear” what others are saying and understand both their joys and needs. In the Divine Commonweath of the Spirit, we join them in celebrating the joys, and have the tools—“gifts of the Spirit”—to meet their needs! On this Day of Pentecost, we are invited to take a fresh “drink” of God’s Spirit, and then enjoin the spiritual discipline of listening for the translation of both the cries of our human siblings in distress, AND the “marching orders” of God to mobilize. Amen.