Reformation Sunday C October 30, 2016
Luther Memorial Church Seattle, WA
The Rev. Julie G. Hutson
Jeremiah 31: 31-34 + Psalm 46 + Romans 3: 19-28 + John 8: 31-36
May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, our Rock and our Redeemer. Amen.
In Augsburg, Germany there is a lovely old church called St. Annakirche or St. Anna’s Church. Upstairs in this Lutheran Church, which was originally built by the Carmelites, there is a museum called Lutherstiege, or Luther’s staircase. It’s not a huge museum, but it’s pretty interesting. It’s on the site where Luther stayed as he prepared to defend himself against accusations by the church in Rome that he was in error in his criticisms of indulgences.
So that we are clear about what was going on, in the Roman church, an indulgence is a means by which a person can reduce the amount of time spent in purgatory after death. Usually that is something you earn by living correctly, according to the Roman Church. And in Luther’s day, the Roman church was raising money by selling indulgences. And it was this practice that Luther took exception with.
Rather than having to travel to Rome to defend himself, the Church allowed Luther to stay in Germany and they sent an emissary to confront him there, a man called Catjetan. Catjetan’s job was to get Luther to recant, to say he had been wrong in his criticisms.
So, I want you to picture this….Bruce and I are in the Lutherstiege, and we’re in the room that is dedicated to explaining the exchange between Luther and Catjetan.
First of all, as we walk into this room there is a large chest, that appears to be full of money and other valuables – presumably what the folks paid to the pope to purchase those indulgences. And as we walked past it, the lid moved…..and there was this hissing sound that came out, along with a little bit of smoke. We were a bit surprised by this as we weren’t exactly anticipating special effects in this very old museum, dedicated to describing the events that took place in the 1500’s. And the special effects didn’t end there…we sat on a nearby bench and picked up a large copy of one of the heated exchanges between Luther and Catjetan. We pressed a button and suddenly, angry German voices filled the entire room! There was an audio retelling of the event and, to tell you the truth, I was struck just then with the thought, that as surprising as this media laden display was, we were standing in the very place that this had happened. Or at least very close by. Luther had stood here, firmly saying that what the Church was doing was wrong. It got even more dramatic when every time Catjetan demanded: Revoca! Revoca! Or Recant! Recant! A neon sign lit up that said Revoca!
Every year when the end of October rolls around and we celebrate the Reformation…and this year is the 499th anniversary….we remember together that Luther was a young priest and a reluctant one. He didn’t become a priest in order to enjoy the status afforded to clergy in those days or even because he was particularly devout. Luther became a priest because he made a deal with God in the midst of a thunderstorm. But the Holy Spirit calls and works in mysterious ways and through the most unlikely people.
A couple of years ago when we showed the movie “Luther” to the confirmation students, one of them remarked that he had no idea the Lutheran Church had such a rebel for a leader. That student still says that watching that movie and learning about Luther’s surprising life was the high point of his confirmation instruction.
When we stop to think about it, it probably would have been easier for Luther if he’d just let these wayward errors the Church was involved with slide. After all, he might well have considered, that whatever God was going to do, and however eternal life was going to play out, indulgences or not, it was all going to happen in spite of the church. In the life to come all would be revealed, right? Why bother pushing back against powers and principalities now? Especially if they were going to chase you all over Europe, either demanding that you recount your words or perhaps planning an even worse fate for you.
But what Luther knew is that the Kingdom of God is all around us…here in this life and on this earth. And so it was the Gospel as he understood it that compelled him to speak out in the face of wrongdoing, even and especially when that wrongdoing was happening within his beloved church.
This morning we gave the current Confirmation students copies of Luther’s Small Catechism: Luther’s explanations of the commandments and the creeds and the sacraments. For those of you who feel left out….good news! Luther’s Small Catechism is available as an app for your phone and it’s printed in the back of our hymnals.
In his explanation to the Second Article of the Apostle’s Creed, we get a little bit of a glimpse as to what compelled Luther to speak out in the face of wrongdoing. He writes: I believe that Jesus Christ, true God, begotten of the Father in eternity, and also a true human being, born of the virgin Mary, is my Lord. He has redeemed me, a lost and condemned human being. He has purchased and freed me from all sins, from death, and from the power of the devil, not with gold or silver, but with his holy, precious blood and his innocent suffering and death. He has done all this in order that I may belong to him, live under him in his kingdom, and serve him in eternal righteousness, innocence, and blessedness, just as he is risen from the dead and lives and rules eternally. This is most certainly true.
Jesus has done all this in order that I may belong to him, live under him in his kingdom, and serve him in eternal righteousness, innocence and blessedness.
As lovely and noble as those words are, they describe a life that, when spent in service to God, will surely prove to be messy and miserable and hard. Standing up for what is right almost always is. Jesus reminds us that serving him often divides families and communities. Luther’s story reminds us that standing for what is right can even place one’s very life in jeopardy.
I think of those who stand this day on land that is sacred to them and that legally belongs to them, yet is being threatened by an oil pipeline that has the potential to pollute their waters and desecrate their land. And in ways that look like history repeating itself, the government is resorting to violence and force to drive them back and arrest them. Religious leaders are going to Standing Rock in solidarity. Our presiding bishop, Elizabeth and our synodical bishop, Kirby, were there this week. I can’t help but wonder if the verse from the Psalm today echoed in their hearts as they stood there: There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy habitation of the Most High.
Living with Christ and serving him in righteousness has meant that, through the years, we’ve been called as a reforming church, to stand against many injustices. Slavery, equality for women, , the doctrine of discovery, which the ELCA just repudiated this summer, the rights of our lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgendered, and queer neighbors…the rights of our dark skinned neighbors to live without fear of being killed unjustly. The call we have from Jesus to offer food to the hungry, clothes to the naked, companionship to those imprisoned, and homes to those without them.
And it is not lost on us that some churches, in the name of the same God we claim and has claimed us, work against these things. They work for the oppression of neighbor based on gender, race, and sexual orientation. Perhaps they will even sell you an indulgence or two.
The Psalmist wrote in today’s psalm that the nations are in an uproar, the kingdoms totter. It feels this way more and more. But this isn’t the first time and it will not be the last. And so, as those called by Christ to stand in righteousness for that work to which he has called us: service to others, speaking out against injustice, action despite the cost…we are a church that is always reforming. And we cling to the refrain of this morning’s Psalm: The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge.”
Thanks be to God! And let the reforming church say…Amen.