26 Pentecost C November 13, 2016
Luther Memorial Church Seattle, WA
The Rev. Julie G. Hutson
Malachi 4: 1-2a + 2 Thessalonians 3: 6-13 + Luke 21: 5-19
Grace, mercy, and peace to you, from God who Creates us and names us beloved, from Jesus who saves us, and from the Holy Spirit, who sustains and comforts us. Amen.
Well, today is either your lucky day or your unlucky day….depending on how you look at it. You are going to get 2 sermons this morning. Because I’m going to be just brutally honest here….I don’t know how else to do this. You see, I had a sermon ready for today, this Sunday after the election. And you’ll still hear that sermon. But first there must be this.
Wise preachers, and I hope that I am among them, do not preach about politics. We just don’t. But we do preach about justice. Because that’s what Jesus cared so deeply about. That’s what God cares so deeply about. And it is what we, God’s people, and followers of the risen Christ, are called to care deeply about. The entirety of Scripture is about caring for and loving ALL people. And it is about how God is always on the side of the poor, the oppressed, the marginalized. God calls us to stand there too.
This week has been, without a doubt, the most difficult in my ministry. I’ve been keeping a tally of the people who have reached out to me as their pastor, as the pastor in the neighborhood, as a colleague, as a friend, as a family member, as a neighbor…beginning on Tuesday evening. As of this morning, there were 70 of them. Sixty eight of those beloveds were afraid…distraught….sixty eight of them believed that their lives were about to change in fundamentally horrifying ways. And it was not because their candidate didn’t win….they weren’t “sore losers”. It was because they believe that the evidence points to an absence of values and an abdication of our responsibility to one another to protect the humanity and dignity of all people.
Some wondered if this is part of God’s plan. I don’t believe that it is, insofar as I don’t believe the outcome of any election or football game or a sudden hard turn in life is a part of God’s plan. I believe where we are today as a people and a nation is at is has always been…. a result of our own decision making. We will see whether it unfolds toward justice or whether it unfolds toward oppression. If you need to be reminded of times when humankind made decisions that did not turn out well, just read Scripture. Or history books. Or both.
Make no mistake…God DOES in fact, have a plan for us. And that plan is abundant life. That plan is based in love. And we have wandered time and time again…throughout history, away from God’s desire for us. The first humans wandered toward a tree in the garden. Israel wandered. The disciples wandered. It’s a well worn path.
Wednesday evening we opened this space up to the community for prayer…to light candles….and to have supportive conversation. The tears flowed easily and readily. From young mothers, afraid for their children. From LGTBQ folks, afraid for their marriages or their lives. From women, afraid for their safety. Neighbors of other faiths and no faith came here.
One woman said to me: What does this church stand for?
That question has rung in my ears and in my heart all week long.
Here’s what I want to tell you about what we stand for. We stand for exactly what we have always stood for:
We believe that God’s love is for ALL people. Regardless of political party. Regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, or religion.
This building, which represents the Church universal, is a safe space. We will protect the rights of the young and old, the male and female, those whose skin is dark and those whose skin is light and everything in between. Refugees and immigrants are safe here. This building is sanctuary for body and spirit. We will protect the gay and the straight and the trans. In this place, all are welcome. And we mean all. And there is no place here for intolerance and bullying or hatred in any form.
We will not be silent in the face of language or actions that harm the children of God.
We will continue to pray for our elected officials. All of them. And we will hold them accountable to the principles of justice as they are found in the Gospels of Jesus Christ.
Most importantly, we are called to do what our mission statement says we do: Actively share Christ’s love in community. And that is what we will do, because that is what this church stands for.
This spring when we were in Germany, we happened upon a pottery shop. The women we met in the shop were the potters. They fashioned the items that were for sale there. As we chatted with them about their work, they became very interested in my role as your pastor, although there are many female clergy in Germany too. Eventually, I asked them to make a gift for you. And I want to give it to you today….because for reasons you’ll see, I’ve held onto it until now.
A couple of weeks ago I found the thank you note that the call committee here gave me after I interviewed to be your pastor. The names are there, including Paul Bartling. I remember Paul asking me what the most meaningful part of the worship service was for me. I told him it was when we come to the Eucharistic table. When we receive bread and wine. Because when we gather there, it is an incarnational time….Christ is truly present. Christ is present in bread and wine. But Christ is also present in you and in me.
No matter how we may be feeling on any given Sunday – hopeful or despairing….loving or angry…..bored or completely engaged…..Jesus is present with us there. Every single time. And not just present like he is in our spirits and hearts and minds….but present in ways we touch and taste. Really and truly…Emmanuel….God is with us.
So I had that potter make this for you. And today, beloved community, I offer it to you. It is a sign of my gratitude for the time away you so graciously granted to me. But it is also a symbol and a reminder of who it is that binds us together. Of the God who loves us and calls us in spite of ourselves. Who offers us God’s very self in this sacrament of the table.
This flagon will hold the wine. This paten will cradle Christ’s body.
However, when the chalice arrived in Seattle….it was broken apart.
I was heartbroken to see it. For several weeks I couldn’t even look at it. Eventually I gave it to our resident potter, Carolyn Baker, who has tended it and will help us replace it.
I knew, months ago, that when we gathered on this day, that we would, as a nation and as varied people….still be broken. We would be broken by all that has divided us. I could not have imagined, though, the depths of that brokenness.
But Jesus tells us, however we are feeling this day…whatever the cause of our brokenness. Whether it is grief. Whether it is anger. Whether it is a lack of understanding for those who are despairing. Jesus tells us that in spite of this, we are people of hope. Even when we are betrayed by parents and brothers, relatives and friends, as he predicted in today’s Gospel reading….we will gain our souls because we will endure.
We will continue to act in love.
Not hate. Never hate.
Always Love. Every single time.
Beloved community, do not be weary in doing what is right. Love God. Love your neighbor. Work for justice and peace. Know that Jesus Christ is the same, yesterday, today, and forever. Don’t lose hope. “Hope was never just a pretty word….it is gritty and human sized and faithful.”[1] Hope is incarnational. It comes to us every time we gather around Christ’s body….broken for us….Christ’s blood shed for us….every time we bring our brokenness to the table and find Jesus there.
Thanks be to God…and let the church say….Amen.
[1] Carrie Newcomer