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Lectionary - April 2006 |
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April 2, 2006 - Year B - Lent 5 Wesley White Jeremiah 31:31-34 Two ways to refreshment and reorientation: Reapplication of the past and a shift of orientation toward the future. Both can bear much good fruit and when combined offer a quantum leap of presence in an iffy world. This week count how many changes you ring on the past. This will give you a clue about your ability to not be bound by its tendrils. This week count how well you are able to live with an ambiguous, guarantee-less future. This will give you a clue about your ability to wait for the prompting of Spirit. Wesley White John 12:20-33 There is quite a pecking order in order to see Jesus - Philip to Andrew and both had to have their respective keys for a nuclear strike order ready to simultaneously see Jesus. This arrangement can be a lens through which to view Jesus' next comments. Note that John records no meeting with the Greeks that started this scene. In fact, Jesus subsequently departs and hides from everyone. We could read this, because of the crowd scene mentioned in verse 29, that Philip and the Greeks were on the outer edge of a crowd and the Greeks didn't have a faith that was active enough to push and shove their way to the center, to be with Jesus. Looking for an intermediary that won't require one's life is enough to keep one from life. To this end, it would be instructive to put Jesus' words about glory in our own mouths. If this is a teaching for us rather than a self-reflection by Jesus it would begin to give us our daily minimum requirement of brazenness, chutzpah, and active faith. We would be thunderstruck at what was possible for us beyond politely working through butlers like Philip. Thus we would find Jesus' final words here reflective of our life, "While you have the light (active faith), believe (act) in the light, so that you may become children of light." This is close to Peter Bohler's advice to John Wesley to, "Preach faith until you have it. And then because you have it you will preach faith." A place to see this at work in denominational advertising is at the United Methodist's Igniting Ministries. Wesley White Hebrews 5:5-10 There is an interesting wordplay in verse 8 that links "learning" with "through which he suffered". One interest is the picture that Jesus learns. This is different from the eternal, co-creator with God, king of the universe image of Jesus who thus has every situation well-in-hand. One might posit, without having to go to any particular foreign scenario, that the blank places in Jesus' biography are times of learning. This would also account for Jesus' understanding that a key aspect of a coming Holy Spirit would be teaching us that which was too difficult for us up to this point. Another interest is re-looking at the issue of suffering to move it away from an immediate connection with pain. It is not the amount of pain that Jesus suffered that makes his life redemptive, but the amount of living and learning that he did. This larger way of looking at the metaphor of suffering is a helpful antidote to overemphasis on the passion of the christ. How else might you play, given your particular life experiences, with this wordplay to bring this passage into view? Wesley White Psalm 51:1-12 or Psalm 119:9-16 We cry out for mercy. When asked about a consequence of receiving same it is so easy to start bargaining, talking about works that one will do in response. You give me mercy and I'll do whatever you say. Give me mercy and I'll hedge myself round with the law so I will never have to ask for mercy again. The more difficult route is to receive mercy and humbly ask for more. This presumes that there is not a static juridical balance point for blind justice. Receiving mercy is to live boldly again, not to hide away in respectability. Receiving mercy is to pass mercy on, not handy one-liner proverbs or aphorisms. Receiving mercy is to see one's secret heart, to know creation is good, and to experience the spirit of the law. Yes, to be law-observant or dutiful is a minor virtue. To live mercy is the better part of virtue. On this last point check out the whole Charles Wesley Hymn based on Psalm 116 or hear a shortened version with music at CyberHymnal. Wesley White Jeremiah 31:31-34 We live in anticipation of a new covenant. One aspect of this is the sense that there is more than what we currently experience. There is a larger vision within which we might better make sense of the present. It is this more-ness that will make a next covenant different than any one or combination of previous covenants. A part of the struggle of emergent theologies and communities is to articulate a key element of a next or new covenant. This is something that will coalesce our sense of more-life beyond whatever stage of maturity we currently posit as ours. There will be something about this new covenant that will break the barriers we currently affirm, the dilemmas we are currently between. Here it is forgiveness that sets the least and the greatest into a new relationship. Today we hear much about an increasing gap between the least and the greatest, economically and in many other ways. Where do you see the fulcrum point to place the lever of your life to again nudge us into new, common relationships? It is at this point that you help the rest of us figure out how to hear a far-off hymn (covenant), pick up its tune and lyric, and join in the singing. Until then we continue to deconstruct the hymns, covenants, scriptures we have used that have gotten us to our current gap. Wesley White Hebrews 5:5-10 Handy mnemonic device - Melchizedek can be sung to the Mickey Mouse Club theme song. Try it, you won't soon forget how to spell it. And . . . forever hold His banner high! It seems true that "Christ did not glorify himself in becoming...." Can we leave it there without going on to the High Priest stuff? How soon we forget that High Priests have one function and lowly prophets another. My sense is that we need to reclaim Jesus as lowly prophet, remembering the Priestly function is part of what he lived against. To be hung on our walls as a Great High Priest, with all the rest of us being pale imitations, doesn't seem in keeping with the Jesus I hang out with. As a lowly prophet Jesus engages our brokenness to shift our focus toward wholeness. This is different than the distance of Priestly perfection that magically, ipso facto and quid pro quo, slips us in to the eternal realm and bars others. Wesley White John 12:20-33 "I have glorified [my being] , and I will glorify it again." So says G*D. This is to be a word for our sake (the crowd). Jesus goes on to talk about his death and his presence with the people. It would be very easy to presume that the future glorification is about Jesus' death and judgment. We can catch a larger glimpse if this glory has something to do with our lives (including our deaths). G*D intends to be glorified in you and me and we. Will we reflect as does Jesus, "Shall I be saved from this glory?" Will we respond in more than words, "No, it is for this I am alive!" It is time to turn up the universal Glory rheostat by engaging our lives and loves with the larger life and love of G*D and one another. Enjoy the warmth, we've been too cold for too long. April 9, 2006 - Year B -Palm/Passion Sunday Wesley White Psalm 118:1-2, 19-29 Passion or Palm Sunday? Some years one seems more appropriate to the situation than the other. There is also the reality of ruts and we keep focusing on one or the other, year after year. How might we continue to hold these two in tension as we need both to walk steadily along taking events as they come (Palm emphasis) and to recognize our aversion to tough spots and to keep them ever before us as a way of looking at the world (Passion emphasis). My bias is for Palm Sunday and to let the troubles of tomorrow take care of themselves in due time. There is a surfeit of being able to find the downside of life and a deficit of finding something to celebrate in the direst of situations. Wesley White Mark 11:1-11 or John 12:12-16 In Mark we play an important part of setting up the recognized presence of Jesus. We go out of our way to get the colt/donkey/vehicle of peace ready to present Jesus and place our outer lives/coats on the line (vulnerable to receiving the "mark of the donkey" as it passes over). In John, King Jesus has resources available at the snap of a finger, only royal palms are used, and, instead of retiring for the night, the Pharisees stay up to complete and confirm their assessment of having no option but to destroy this king in their midst. Two very different perceptions and recounting of the same event. In some sense this is a reversal point. Usually speedy Mark lingers over preparation processes while loquacious John is the briefest of the four accounts. Finding which of these stories best describes the situation we are in will give us another piece of information about next steps. In Mark, our part is taken back as Jesus goes on to his last act of power, a cursing of the fig tree, and the cleansing of the temple money/sacrifice exchange system. In John, we then see outsiders moving toward Jesus. There is a continuing play between myself and G*D as represented here with my active going to prepare and then Jesus retiring or with Jesus riding forth and my response to find out more. In the back and forth specifics we also find a generally forward arc toward life renewed and life eternal. Wesley White Psalm 118:1-2, 19-29 G*D's steadfast love - - for me! - - endures. Now comes a question of whether that steadfast love is inclusive or exclusive. Am I an example of all and so the gift to me is a gift available to all? Am I an example to all and so the gift to me shines against the darkness of their non-gift? Wesley White Isaiah 50:4-9a There are those behind who push and those before who pull, neither in a good way. Hurt is intended and received. It does no good to spin around to confront the strikers as they become the pullers and those who were pulling now push. We simply become more and more unstable as we try to address each and every hurt along the way. Finally we topple over, exhausted. An alternative is simply not hiding, riding in to the presence of death's door. Perhaps this is not a setting of one's face, like flint, hard and immovable, but a setting of one's eyes on the created goodness within every adversary. We are still upright and moving toward another with steadfast intention to love them. We are not simply reacting to the situations around us, but, not understanding the fuss when all about us are running in all directions, we listen for the teaching of the moment and ready to bring a parabolic word to set imaginations free. What city will you be riding into today? Who will you meet and how will you meet them? Wesley White Psalm 31:9-16 One of the deepeners of distress is a consideration of control. Where we think and feel and behave as though we have or deserve a place of privilege because of one small factor or another, we find ourselves in distress when our expectation of an edge doesn't pan out in ways measurable by our idiosyncratic standards. G*D, in particular, sets us up for a distressing downfall. We invest all manner of powerful privilege in G*D and expect it to redound to our benefit in the context of whatever modernity is around us. It is difficult to think and feel and behave beyond the culture in which we live and move and have our being. When we find ourselves at odds with getting an edge or another rung on our ladder, the establishment (be it religious, political, economic or whatever) intentionally adds to our distress to bring us around to its standard. Our steadfast love, will be called upon to preemptively celebrate defeat and continue living with provocative beauty and challenge in the face of such expected distress. Riding into the hypocrisy of a city named for peace that acts otherwise is a powerful moment that can inform the generations to come. Where has your steadfast love ridden these past days? What has encouraged that and what has gotten in the way? Wesley White Philippians 2:5-11 This is not a passage that stands up well to the violent imagery of The Passion of the Christ. It is much more celebrative, more Palm Sunday-ish. The humility of the cross is not something that goes over very well in today's digital age. We don't do nuance very well. If it is cross-oriented, the baggage of our religious institutions says it must focus on violence. And so a question about where you find encouragement: Well? It is out of the Palm or the Passion part of the story? Both together, you say. Then how would you weight them? Wesley White Here we may look primarily at the Palm story in light of creation. In Mark the section ends with a rest. This punctuates the "it is good" refrain from the Word/Logos/Spirit of GOD moving over the deep with a singing retranslation of, "Peace on Earth" and with the days of an evolving ministry with periodic pronouncements booming retranslations of "you are my beloved" that finally come to this Sabbath when it is already late. Now we lay ourselves down to dream of an 8th day, an easter, if you will. It is so easy to get caught in the fevered brow of nightmares to come. It is so hard to rest with friends in Bethany knowing this day has had troubles enough of its own without borrowing some from Thursday or Friday. Might this be a humble story that also needs telling? Is this enough? Even if folks, like the disciples of old, run away from the Passion stuff and we are not there to repackage it for them? Wesley White Mark 14:1 - 15:47 [Anointing Oil] She anoints my body for its burial. [Waving Palms, Laying Coats] They herald my ministry for its trial. [Wrapping Linen] He wraps fear and death in compassion. [Living Life] We imitate Christ to learn forsaken faithfulness. Wherever good news is proclaimed these stories will be told of a woman, a crowd, a man, and you. April 16, 2006 - Year B -Easter Wesley White Acts 10:34-43 or Isaiah 25:6-9 Sabbath is prelude. There is evening (1) and morning (2). The first day of the week begins again. A new earth and new heaven continue underway. Easter is tied with these progressions. Our difficulty is that of taking a snapshot and trying to see it in three- or four- or more-D. In some sense we are vaccinated, year by year, with the static theory of eggs and bunnies and butterflies. We have a devil of a time getting our minds around resurrection, whether it be resuscitation or reincarnation or some other re-. Mark might well be our guide here with his dramatic ending of fear and silence. Without these Easter is but a variation on a bonnet parade, full of sound and fury, signifying naught. What is your fear and silence quotient this year? Wesley White John 20:1-18 or Mark 16:1-8 Did the women run away, end of story? Did Mary Magdalene run on telling the story? Did Mark or John get this detail accurately? Both, you say, then what can't you excuse? Do the shorter and longer additions to Mark make his gospel more palatable? Is an unrecognizable Jesus attributable to an internal state on the part of Mary and Cleopas or an external state of Jesus? If our imaginations have not been captured along the way with Jesus life, these questions are but interesting speculations. If we have followed the story and connected it to our lives with an increasing hope and actual investment of life, resurrection becomes a viable conclusion to reach. But it is not the details that prove anything. They merely complete the suspension of our disbelief - the unchangableness of our past and present can be moved on to a new day in a new way. May you bless Easter by beginning a new 8th day of creation after a night of resting in peace. Wesley White 1 Corinthians 15:1-11 or Acts 10:34-43 G*D shows no partiality . . . in appearing to all. There is a popular presumption that Jesus' appearances were to a limited number and occurred immediately after Easter. In these passages we find out that those who considered themselves witness of Jesus noted his appearance. It happened with Mary Magdalene, the Emmaus wanderers, the Twelve, more than 500, and later with Saul/Paul. That is a variety of settings, numbers of people, and timings. Listen again to there being no partiality. As the star of old appeared in the sky, some got it and some didn't. As Jesus lived and taught and wondered/miracled, some got it and some didn't. It would not at all be surprising for Jesus to appear to many (including Peter at the tomb?), some got it and some didn't. The difference may not be Jesus' appearance, but, like Thomas, our not being ready to acknowledge an appearance that would shift our focus one more time. Even at this late date, G*D’s partiality is not compromised. Easter appearances still are made, even on a Tuesday prior to Easter. Did you notice the "crack in the cosmic egg" just widened a bit. An interview of Joseph Chilton Pearce (author of said crack) casts some light on what is caught and what passes by. Are you keeping your metaphoric education alive? Wesley White Psalm 118:1-2, 14-24 Steadfast love endures forever. This is a lens through which we can posit a sense of connection beyond our experience. It has been going on since before we were conscious of being. It goes on long after we cease consciousness. It is not tied to body, mind, spirit, or relationship. It simply is and we have choices about how we will respond to it. We can presume upon it and get away with what we can and rely upon some deathbed conversion to make it all right. We can desire to expand its presence in our dealings with creation and others and leave the dying process to care for itself. To have a warmed heart that experiences a touch of such steadfast love is to focus life anew. It is a welcoming into the strange world of resurrections. A vehicle bringing such an awareness may be very specific or cosmically and comically diffuse. Whatever that vehicle is, it might be termed "the Lord's doing." May your reception and continuing of such an enduring quality find your own life being recognized as "the Lord's doing." In this light we find such a time as this is the resurrection that the Lord has made and we can rejoice and be glad in it. Wesley White Psalm 118:1-2, 14-24 This is poetry. Poetry may be the only way to respond to resurrection. Here is a resurrection poem from D.H. Lawrence, New Heaven and Earth Do you have a favorite resurrection poem (in addition to the poem that is your life)? Wesley White Acts 10:34-43 or Isaiah 25:6-9 God shows no partiality. There is a time for all things. A time for a feast and a time for destruction. A time for being praised for doing good and a time for being hanged for doing good. We tend to think in series and if one expectation goes awry, all our expectations are dimmed or deleted. In a series you have hierarchy the first resistance needs to paid attention to and then the next. While the last can stop the whole chain it is generally best to check from first to last to see where the problem is. God tends to be in parallel. If something goes awry the circuit continues. In parallel it is easier to see where the difficulty is. It is in this way that no partiality be shown. All that is needed is to care for the situation at hand. The recent March 29, 2006 issue of The Onion carried one of their lovely heretical cartoons that had Jesus being crucified on parallel pieces of wood rather than a cross. How else might you look at life the through parallel eyes of no partiality? Wesley White 1 Corinthians 15:1-11 or Acts 10:34-43 "By the grace of God I am what I am." By extension I am what have been and will be. This is no whitewashing of past betrayals and killings, of present betrayals and dislocations, or ability to withstand coming temptations to betray and do away with. A significant question is what movement is going on with this am-ness of mine? Is it showing that I haven't learned anything from the past, that I have stopped learning in the present so my future will be stuck right here? Is it turning G*D's steadfast love into vanity, vanity, all is vanity? On this Good Friday we recognize am-ness, all the sordid joy of it. We are with Christ on a cross, we are with all those who die this day from hunger and violence. We are with Christ on a cross, we are with all those who live non-violence in the face of violence. We are with the soldiers poking dead bodies, we are with our friend Fred Brancel and the others who went to prison yesterday for crossing the line at the School of the Assassins to protest the training of those who create and poke at dead bodies. We are with those who betray and run and those who stand afar and witness. We are with a cry so deep it tears open every barrier that has kept sacred and secular apart. We are with so many different am-nesses. May we help support one another to not have our am-ness be in vain. Wesley White John 20:1-18 or Mark 16:1-8 In John, Mary M. is all over getting to the bottom of Jesus' disappearance, like a dog on a bone. She goes after friend Peter. When that doesn't avail, it's look into herself. Then it is just hang around, almost Columbo-like, checking out who else is around. So intent is she that when she finally finds the culprit, wascally wabbit, she falls back on, "What's up, Doc?" In Mark, Mary M. can hardly wait to get out. John's rough-and-tumble Mary seems closer to the image I have in my head and rings truer to my heart. But I must admit I have a certain appreciation for Mark's consistent presentation of the disciples as those who don't get it. Glad to have the women join us guys in finally running away, even if it is long after we had cut-and-run. As we draw nigh to Easter, may we recognize it ain't over 'til its over. This is true of both death and resurrection. Some of us get caught with a tropism toward one or the other, others just go on their merry way. Whether we are focused on the half-empty of death, the half-full of resurrection, or the full-inertia of other fish to fry, it is helpful to know the other stories. We will eventually get to all the possibilities. April 23, 2006 - Year B -Easter 2 Wesley White Acts 4:32-35 It is one thing to look toward what we might have in common as property. It is another thing to find ourselves in common regarding vision and hope. As we follow along to find where we have our commonality it will be important to remember the differences that will help sharpen the similarities and keep them alive past any present moment of confluence. A clue to us will be those points of humor where we recognize how silly we have been and how open the future continues to be. Wesley White John 20:19-31 Here is a reference to the humor of Jesus and Thomas. It is from Early Christian "Heresies" of the East. Later it is made safe by "imitating Christ" (an important insight for its time and still an important first step for many that keeps "twinning" within the institution). = = = = = = = . . . Like most spiritual communities, the relocated Jewish Christians suffered from factionalism. All they seemed to do was multiply and divide. One community went on to become the Ebionites, who became more and more legalistic until they finally died out in the fourth century. But much longer lived were the St. Thomas Christians, who after James' death, followed another of Jesus' brothers, Judas Thomas. Also known as "doubting Thomas," Judas Thomas was the author of the canonical epistle of Jude, and was the only one of Jesus' brothers who was also an apostle. But wait, there's more! Not only was Thomas Jesus' brother, but the writings of the Jewish Christians make it very clear that he was Jesus' TWIN brother! Of course that had to be covered up by the Pauline churches, as one could not have a virgin birth if Jesus was born as a twin--unless of course, Thomas was divine, too! Like other Jewish Christians, the Thomas school of Christianity attached no importance to Jesus' death, nor entertained any mythology regarding his miraculous birth. Instead, they focused directly on his teaching, believing that embedded in his koan-like proverbs were the secret of eternal life. Indeed, the Gospel of Thomas starts off by saying that whoever finds the secret to the sayings contained within would never die. For these Christians, Jesus is simply a teacher who had achieved unitive consciousness, and was keenly aware of his union with divinity. Through his teachings he tried to awaken his listeners from their spiritual slumbers and make them likewise aware of their unity with all things. According to them, Jesus did not teach anything about some coming kingdom or imminent apocalypse. Instead, when his disciples asked him when the kingdom would arrive with power, he answered them by saying, "The Kingdom of God is spread out upon the earth, and human beings simply do not see it." He also told them, "Do not listen to those who tell you the kingdom is in the sky, for then the birds of the air will precede you. Likewise do not pay any attention to those who say it is in the sea, for then the fish will get there before you do. Instead, the kingdom is inside you AND it is outside you." Now this is a great example of Jesus' humor, as no one that I know of ever said that the kingdom of God was in the ocean, but it also reveals his deeply mystical approach to religion. The kingdom is in all of us, and is all around us. We are surrounded by, filled with, bathed in God. Oneness is the primary theme in the Gospel of Thomas, and much like the Buddha, Jesus did not seem to think that it was something that could be taught, but only experienced by the disciple directly. According to Thomas, the goal for the disciple is to also be Jesus' twin; in other words to gain the unitive consciousness that Jesus enjoyed and thereby also become God's son or daughter. Now, this sounds so much like Buddhism that we have to ask--how did Jesus know this stuff? Contemporary bible scholars contend that he Gospel of Thomas is more reliable than any of the canonical Gospels, so this is not a question we can easily dismiss. Did he, as some contend, actually visit India as a child? Probably not, but we do know that there were Buddhist missionaries in Palestine in Jesus' time, so it is not unlikely that Jesus picked up a little Buddha with his regular diet of Moses, leading to not only his own enlightenment, but an amazing new school of Buddhist thought in Jewish guise. Now the St. Thomas Christians eventually died out in Syria, but inexplicably, they thrived in India. Probably it is because the Thomas school taught doctrines very similar to what was already known in India, and was more easily inculturated than Pauline forms of Christianity. The Thomas Christians in India, in fact, believe that Thomas himself brought the good news of the kingdom to their land. The tale is told that Gundaphorus, king of some province or other of India, wrote to Jesus and asked him to recommend an architect to build his palace. Now, I wasn't aware--and maybe you weren't either--that Jesus of Nazareth was considered such an expert in exotic architecture that distant kings contacted him for referrals. But that is the tradition, anyway. So Jesus tells his brother to make the journey. Now this story is not as far-fetched as it sounds. The Mar Thoma Catholic Church in India traces its beginnings all the way back to the very first century, and it is their contention that it was indeed St. Thomas who first brought them the Gospel. Unfortunately not much is known about the early period of this church, since in the twelfth century the Portuguese made the first attempts to colonize India, and coerced the Mar Thoma church into compliance with Roman Catholic belief and practice, which had previously been completely alien to them. All of their ancient prayer books, sacramentaries, and theological writings were burned by the Portuguese, and today we are left with precious little evidence regarding the origins, theologies, and liturgies of the Mar Thoma Christians; a great loss not only for Christianity, but for historians of religion in general. The Mar Thoma Christians still proudly proclaim Thomas as their founder, even though their distinctive theology has been denied them. What a story, huh? The Jewish Christians in general, and the Thomas Christians in particular are an important reminder that it is the victor who gets to write history, and sometimes the real pearls get lost among the sands of time. Wesley White 1 John 1:1 - 2:21 God is light. Let's be sure to change those light fixtures to keep us from stumbling. Have you considered the church to be a custodian? We are to spruce the place up and part of that is changing bulbs that light might shine. = = = = = = = Q: HOW MANY METHODISTS DOES IT TAKE TO CHANGE A LIGHTBULB? Whether your light is bright, dull, or completely out, you are loved -- you can be a lightbulb, turnip bulb, or tulip bulb. A church-wide lighting service is planned for Sunday, August 19. Bring bulb of your choice and a covered dish. - - - - - - - Q: HOW MANY JEWISH RENEWAL RABBIS DOES IT TAKE TO CHANGE A LIGHTBULB? One if it's an eco-kosher bulb that isn't going to be lit by electricity from nuclear power. Two, as long as a man and a woman rabbi have equal turns putting in the bulb. Three, one to change it, one to do a Buddhist mindfulness practice during the change, and one to document the paradigm shift in a best-selling book called "The Jew in the Lightbulb." Four, same as above plus an additional rabbi to study the psycho-halachic implications of such a change and then lead a retreat weekend on the experience. - - - - - - - Q: HOW MANY ZEN BUDDHISTS DOES IT TAKE TO CHANGE A LIGHTBULB? One to change the lightbulb, one NOT to change the lightbulb, and one to neither change nor not change the lightbulb. - - - - - - - Q: HOW MANY EPISCOPALIANS DOES IT TAKE TO CHANGE A LIGHTBULB? - - - - - - - Q: HOW MANY EXISTENTIALISTS DOES IT TAKE TO CHANGE A LIGHTBULB? One to screw it in and one to observe how the lightbulb itself symbolizes a single incandescent beacon of subjective reality in a netherworld of endless absurdity reaching out toward a cosmos of nothingness. - - - - - - - Q: HOW MANY QUAKERS DOES IT TAKE TO CHANGE A LIGHTBULB? Who needs a lightbulb when you have an inner light? - - - - - - - Q: HOW MANY SOUTHERN BAPTISTS DOES IT TAKE TO CHANGE A LIGHTBULB? Seven on the Lightbulb Task Force Sub-committee, who report to the twelve on the Lightbulb Task Force, appointed by the fifteen on the Trustee Board. Their recommendation is reviewed by the Finance Executive Committee of five, who place it on the agenda of the eighteen-member Finance Committee. If they approve, they bring a motion to the twenty-seven Member church Board, who appoint another twelve-member review committee. If they recommend that the Church Board proceed, a resolution is brought to the Congregational Business Meeting. They appoint another eight-member review committee. If their report to the next Congregational Business Meeting supports the changing of a lightbulb, and the Congregation votes in favor, the responsibility to carry out the lightbulb change is passed on to the Trustee Board, who in turn appoint a seven-member committee to find the best price in new lightbulbs. Their recommendation of which hardware is the best buy must then be reviewed by the twenty-three-member Ethics Committee to make certain that this hardware store has no connection to Disneyland. They report back to the Trustee Board who then commissions the Trustee in charge of the Janitor to ask him to make the change. By then the janitor discovers that one more lightbulb has burned out. - - - - - - - How many times does it take for a pastor to change a light bulb? - - - - - - - How many Calvinists does it take to change a light bulb? - - - - - - - How many in the "Church of Christ" does it take to change a light bulb? - - - - - - - How many Southern Baptists does it take to change a light bulb? - - - - - - - How many Anglicans does it take to change a lightbulb? None. The old one is complete and sufficient unto itself, and should not be changed according to the world's whims. Four. One to call the electrician, one to clear it with the vestry, and two to argue about how much better candles were. Five. One to screw in the new bulb and four to found an organization for the preservation of the old bulb. A whole synod. One to move that the bulb be changed while the others debate until the room spins. - - - - - - - How many United Church members (in Canada) does it take to change a light bulb? - - - - - - - How many Assmbly of God church members does it take to change a light bulb? - - - - - - - How many post-modernists does it take to change a lightbulb? - - - - - - - How many Bishops does it take to change a light bulb in the Lutheran church? - - - - - - - How many Amish does it take to screw in a lightbulb? - - - - - - - How many Mennonites does it take to change a light bulb? - - - - - - - How many Catholics does it take to change a light bulb? - - - - - - - How many pentecostals does it take to change a light bulb? - - - - - - - Official United Methodist responses to the question, "How many United methodists does it take to change a light bulb?" "Change?!?" "You can't change that light bulb! Harry Finnigan's family gave that as a memorial during the big merger." And or course, my favorite... This Statement was issued. "We neither affirm nor reject the use of a lightbulb. If you have found a lightbulb helpful in your journey, that is good. If one would wish, they could submit an original poem or interpretive dance about their lightbulb, or light source, or non-dark resource, for the annual lightbulb celebration, where a variety of light bulb traditions will be explored, including long-life, incandescent, three-way, and tinted, all of which are valid paths to luminescence." - - - - - - - How many choir directors does it take to change a light bulb? - - - - - - - How many Amish DITTCALB? - - - - - - - How many youth pastors DITTCALB? - - - - - - - How many European Roman Catholics does it take to change a light bulb? - - - - - - - Q: How many Southern Baptist does it take to change a lightbulb? - - - - - - - How many worship leaders who use guitars does it take to change a light bulb? - - - - - - - How many neo-orthodox does it take to change a light bulb? No one knows. They can't tell the difference between light and darkness. - - - - - - - How many TV evangelists does it take to change a light bulb? - - - - - - - How many independent fundamentalists does it take to change a light bulb? - - - - - - - How many liberals does it take to change a light bulb? - - - - - - - How many Calvinists does it take to change a light bulb? = = = = = = = = Are you tired yet? Finally we come to say that God so loved the world that God sent Jesus as a light for the world. How many churches does it take to change Jesus from challenging prophet to comforting profiteer? Wesley White Psalm 133 "For there the Lord ordained a blessing, life forevermore." What is it that keeps life alive? "Humor is mankind's greatest blessing." [Mark Twain] Blessings Revisited May the road rise to meet you, may the wind be always at your back, may the sun shine warmly upon your face, and the rain fall soft upon your fields, and until we meet again, may the Lord hold you in the hollow of His hand. This is an old Gaelic blessing often quoted. Many such classic blessings are inspirational and reflect the qualities of the folk represented. However, we can think of a lot of other blessings that might be more representative of the sort of good wishes we would like to have. While the traditional blessing is nice enough, as far as it goes, it just doesn't go far enough. So we are going to add a few more blessings of our own. . . just to be sure that the actual needs are all covered. May the wind at your back never mess up your hair, Wesley White Acts 4:32-35 The shared wealth (commonwealth) was distributed to each as any had need. What a hoot! In our current state of capitalism this is the greatest of laughers. What could possibly be any more laughable a concept? Even though it can make a lot of sense it isn't within the arena of conversation. Taxes and tithes must be lowered (its a meme, a mantra). What we consider our part of the commonwealth must become smaller and smaller. Any surprise that our commonwealth of politeness, of mutual care, of inclusion of the weakest and the strangest is correspondingly smaller? Nope. Some economy jokes: Remember, they reveal something about ourselves and are not just about others. = = = = = = = = "Democrats were quick to point out that President Bush's budget creates a 1 trillion dollar deficit. The White House quickly responded with 'Hey, look over there, it's Saddam Hussein.'" —Craig Kilborn "President Bush says he has just one question for the American voters, 'Is the rich person you're working for better off now than they were four years ago?'" —Jay Leno "President Bush unveiled his new economic stimulus plan this week. It was reported that if the plan passes the president himself would save $44,000 in taxes, Dick Cheney would save $327,000, and you could afford to take the whole family down to Burger King to pick up job applications." —Tina Fey, on Saturday Night Live's "Weekend Update" "Arnold Schwarzenegger announced he is going to ask President Bush for help with the budget. What better way to deal with a $38 billion deficit than get advice from a guy that created a $450 billion deficit." —Jay Leno "President Bush's economic plan will create 2.5 million new jobs. The bad news, they are all for Iraqi soldiers." —Craig Kilborn A mathematician, an accountant and an economist apply for the same job. The interviewer calls in the mathematician and asks "What do two plus two equal?" The mathematician replies "Four." The interviewer asks "Four, exactly?" The mathematician looks at the interviewer incredulously and says "Yes, four, exactly." Then the interviewer calls in the accountant and asks the same question "What do two plus two equal?" The accountant says "On average, four - give or take ten percent, but on average, four." Then the interviewer calls in the economist and poses the same question "What do two plus two equal?" The economist gets up, locks the door, closes the shade, sits down next to the interviewer and says "What do you want it to equal?" TOP 10 REASONS TO STUDY ECONOMICS
An economist is a trained professional paid to guess wrong about the economy. An econometrician is a trained professional paid to use computers to guess wrong about the economy. Talk is cheap. Supply exceeds Demand. I asked an economist for her phone number....and she gave me an estimate. Q: How many economists does it take to change a lightbulb? An economist is someone who gets rich explaining others why they are poor. Economic forecasters assume everything, except responsibility. An economist returns to visit his old school. He's interested in the current exam questions and asks his old professor to show some. To his surprise they are exactly the same ones to which he had answered 10 years ago! When he asks about this the professor answers: "the questions are always the same - only the answers change!" An economist is someone who sees something working in practice and asks whether it would work in principle. Q: How many economists does it take to change a light bulb? They say that Christopher Columbus was the first economist. When he left to discover America, he didn't know where he was going. When he got there he didn't know where he was. And it was all done on a government grant. Santa Claus, the tooth fairy, a practical economist, and an old drunk are walking down the street together when they simultaneously spot a hundred dollar bill. Who gets it? The old drunk, of course, the other three are mythological creatures. A Harvard economist had a summer house in the Maine woods. Each summer he'd invite a different friend (no, that's not the punch line) to spend a week or two. On one occasion, he invited a Czechoslovakian to stay with him. They had a splendid time in the country - rising early and living in the great outdoors. Early one morning they went out to pick berries for their morning breakfast. As they went around the berry patch along came two huge bears. The economist dashed for cover. His friend wasn't so lucky and the male bear reached him and swallowed him whole. The economist ran back to his car, drove to town as fast has he could, and got the sheriff. The sheriff grabbed his rifle and dashed back to the berry patch with the economist. Sure enough, both bears were still there. "He's in THAT one!" cried the economist, pointing to the male. The sheriff looked at the bears, and without batting an eye, leveled his gun, took careful aim, and SHOT THE FEMALE. "Whatd'ya do that for?!" exclaimed the economist, "I said he was in the other!" "Yep," said the sheriff, "and would YOU believe a economist who told you that the Czech was in the Male?" Wesley White 1 John 1:1 - 2:21 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves. If we say, they are greedy, we are honest; We are all of this and more. If we say we don't make distinctions that make us look good and someone else look bad, we deceive ourselves. The opportunity for deception of self and another is ever-present. The participation in same is all too tempting. There used to be a list of different ways of phrasing behavior that said one way would put one in a good light and if phrased differently would cast grave doubts upon another's motivation and action ["I'm careful with money; you're a tightwad"]. If anyone has such a list I would appreciate a reference to it. Wesley White Thanks to the one who submitted the following additions to the differences between myself and yourself. I am assertive; you are aggressive. There is another form of this that goes: 1st person: I am assertive Pooh is not just a silly old bear, we are silly old folk. Wesley White John 20:19-31 As the Jesus story winds down in John we hear parallels: "Peace be with you" and "Receive the Holy Spirit"; "God, through Christ, sends us forth" and "Forgive sins, retain sins." These remind us of parallelism with the beginning of Jesus' story: "In the beginning the word was Good/God" (peace, spirit) and "Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world" (sent, take away). The peace of a good beginning is still present, receive it. Forgiving or retaining sins are not equal acts as there is a beginning bias toward forgiving. May our peaceful spirit lead us to repent our retention and sin no more, or, at the storyteller puts it: Once there was a painter who was very poor. When his parish church needed repainting the members of the congregation and the church elders got together and when bids were considered for the job, offered him the job because while his bid was not the lowest it was close and he was of their congregation. So the painter bought paint for the job and set to work. When he got about three quarters of the job finished it became apparent that he wouldn't have enough paint. Well his bid was about as low as he could go and so he decided to thin his paint some so that it would spread farther. Well he got about half of the remainder done and concluded that he would have to thin what he had left just a little and his paint would stretch to cover the whole church. Unfortunately, that night a terrible storm came to the town and when the painter was awakened by the crash of thunder he realized the thinned paint wouldn't stick to walls of he church and would be washed away. Well then the painter is panicked and he realizes that he has betrayed the trust put in him by his neighbors and that he will be shamed in front of everyone. As soon as the next day has dawned, he rushed out of the house to the church and sees all of the thinned paint covering the lawn in front of the church. Faced with humiliation and possible ruin of his business, he does what is only natural and falls down on his knees and prays. "God," he says, "please forgive me and help me to see the error of my ways." Just then the heavens open above him and he is bathed in a pearly radiance from above. A voice can be heard in the sudden stillness of the morning that rings as if it comes from Heaven itself. God speaks to the painter and says: "Repaint and thin no more! April 30, 2006 - Year B -Easter 3 Wesley White Acts 3:12-19 Peace goes beyond the comfort of ignorance or being consciously deceived. A way to peace is through awareness of sin and suffering and a moving beyond them by steps, individual and communal, to a place of safety in gladness. As the week proceeds we prepare ourselves for a holistic peace beyond a piecemeal peace. Wesley White Luke 24:36b-48 "Have you anything to eat?" When the response is, "Yes", the action is to share. In United Methodist circles this next Sunday is Native American Awareness Sunday. Hear this story: Knowing Who You Are by Ray Buckley Some history-altering events happen quietly. Like Seuss-esque descriptions of Christmas in Whoville, we stand amazed that something has happened without much noise, without trappings. We are almost embarrassed. It doesn't fit the model. And then we hear the singing. The story is simple. Yupik native people on St. Lawrence Island, Alaska, separated from their Yupik relations in Siberia during the Cold War, began to make the trip across the Bering Strait in boats. As the exchanges increased, so did the intentional sharing of personal lives and personal faith. Yupik People, or "Real People," still exist as hunting and gathering societies. They continue subsistence living on the land, islands, and sea of north-northwest Alaska and eastern Siberia. Their lives continue to revolve around the fish, caribou, polar bear, seal, walrus and whale. In the past, St. Lawrence Islanders had traded seal oil and walrus for caribou products with their Siberian cousins in the Chukotka region. In a society that promoted sharing as a cultural foundation, it was normal that the Gospel would be shared as naturally as a meal or the rewards of a hunt. But there was also a determination. There was risk and danger. There was suspicion on the part of the Chukotka government, and neglect by many agencies and state organizations in the United States. There were pressing needs. As economic conditions in Russia became severe, life in Siberian Yupik villages became difficult. Food was scarce, and many families were forced to eat their dogs. In Anchorage, Alaska, Della Waghiyi, a beautiful, United Methodist Yupik elder, heard the reports from Chukotka. Della (whose husband, John, had been one of the first St. Lawrence Islanders to cross to Siberia by boat, after the Cold War) wept when she heard the news. Unable to eat, she contacted the Rev. Jim Campbell, a non-Native United Methodist pastor, and together with members of the Moravian Church, the ministry to Chukotka expanded. From the heart of one woman, to a small congregation, to a small missionary conference, God brought about a series of events that caught the attention of the world. The quiet miracle is that most of the people directly involved in this story are Yupik. The faces crossing the Bering Strait are Yupik faces. They are American Yupik and Siberian Yupik. They would not think of themselves as missionaries as much as family. And family doesn't allow family to go without. What has emerged quietly and strongly is something we have not yet seen in the history of missions among Native people. It is the emergence of a new church. Native voices, speaking through native culture, becoming the Body of Christ in a native society. In this process, neither the richness of Yupik culture nor the Gospel has been compromised. There has been wisdom in the history of the Yupik Christians, who have not seen the leaving behind of those things inconsistent with the faith as synonymous with Yupik culture. Rather, they have believed that the work of God in their lives would produce a people of faith, and God has chosen to strengthen them as a people who hunt walrus, seal, and caribou, and at whose singing, the angels fold their wings. Despite international conflict and forced separation, the Yupik have held tenaciously to their connectedness and their responsibility for each other. And that is shaping the emerging Yupik church. Yupik culture in Siberia is being preserved both as self-awareness, and as means for economic development. The concept of communal sharing has expanded beyond the Yupik community to all people in need. The traditional values reflected in the relationship of people to creation as a whole, and responsible subsistence living, are impacting environmental policies. The Gospel is being preached, the hungry fed, the naked clothed and justice sought. The church will be different, but it will be valid. It will be valid, because the provisional work of Christ is also for Yupik. And the provisions of Christ are for those who speak Yupik, choose a subsistence lifestyle and maintain a connected society. Often, Native ministry emulates the larger church. We develop a bureaucracy, in the belief that ministry must first be regulated and funded. We must have jurisdictional ministries to prove that the church supports us. We wait for the apologies or the election of a Native bishop. We wait, sometimes quietly, sometimes not, for the credibility that comes with the recognition of the church. The danger is that we don't often believe ourselves, what we are asking the church to believe. We're not quite sure that in this time, in this place, that the voices of Native people have something to refresh the Body of Christ. We are not quite sure, Native or non-Native, that God can do anything with just our obedience. God is waiting for us to get in the boat. When Della Waghiyi sings in Yupik, it is like the soft clicking sounds of knitting needles. The sounds are rounded and smooth with glottal inflections. There is a glow on her face. She is a person who seems intimate with her Creator. But there is also another sound. It is the sound of the loaves and fishes, in Yupik baskets, being broken once again, to feed as many as are hungry. Wesley White 1 John 3:1-7 To be a child of G*D who doesn't claim to be the only child of G*D is a blessing to one and all. It seems to take a heap of living and walking with others to pull this off. It is worth it and as Karen Armstrong reminds us in a radio interview, we don't get to a compassionate image of G*D by improving our image of G*D, but by beginning to practice compassion (this allows us, then, to see this quality in G*D). Here is a link to some liturgical elements that might be connected with this passage and with our sister and brother Native American children of G*D. The site is usually a tad slow in coming up, so patience. Wesley White Psalm 4 In many ways poetry is the common language of all people. Yes, it is difficult to translate, but there is a feel that comes with cadence that moves beyond the content. Here is a connection between the Psalms and Black Elk's Prayer found at Psalms Relating to Black Elk's Opening Prayer Psalm 4 4:1 Answer me when I call, O God of my right! Psalm 24 24:1-2 The earth is the Lord's and all that is in it, Psalm 25 25:4-5 Make me to know your ways, O Lord; Psalm 86 86:1-7 Incline you ear, O Lord, and answer me, Psalm 136 136:1-9 O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, Black Elk's Opening Prayer Hey hey! hey hey! hey hey! hey hey! Grandfather, Great Spirit, And you, Mother Earth, the only Mother, Great Spirit, Great Spirit, my Grandfather, This is my prayer; hear me! Wesley White Acts 3:12-19 "You Israelites!" can be affirmation or dismissal. It is so easy to make determinations of who is in and who is out. A part of our peace is moving beyond categorization of people, whether an individual or a community. Hear this story: Opinion: Knowing Who You Are by Ray Buckley It was not always popular to be Native American. In many areas of the Americas it still is not. Yet, as Native American art and music have come in vogue, and portrayals in motion pictures and television have become increasingly positive, many people are reaching for a Native identity. Sometimes the identity is a fascination with Native culture. Sometimes it is the unexplainable attraction and identification with those who have suffered. Sometimes the roots are close at hand and easily accessible. Sometimes they are faraway or non-existent. In the political arena, the boundaries are not equitable, but they are at least, identifiable. Blood quantums and/or substantial documentation to tribal heritage are the criteria. Therein lies the confusion and the strength of Native people. We were, and are still, tribal people. Whether full-blood or metis (mixed-blood) , on this side of the border or the other, we are who we are, because our people recognize us. Our strength as people has always been our ability to define ourselves and those who will be called by our name. In the church, the lines are not always clear. It is our mission to reach out to the disenfranchised. We seek out the lost, spiritually and culturally. In our effort to increase Native American awareness within the church, we have stressed the presence of Native Americans in every facet and region of American life. In many areas of the church, where there is no longer a strong tribal presence, it has sometimes become easier to "discover" a Native person or group. To fulfill our own expectations of ministry, we have offered "Indianness" as a prize, and then, often resented those who have taken it. The face of Native American ministries in the church can be a confusing one. Is there a ministry to those in "Native discovery" within the mission of the church? What should be the role of Native Americans in ministering to those seeking to find acceptance within the Native American community? Helping individuals find identity, is a mission of the church. That identity is found in our relationship to God through Christ. That identity is also found within the Body of Christ. Our ministry, therefore, is to all persons. Period. That means that as some Native American ministries grow, others will be drawn to the faith community. What is essentially a Native American-based community may no longer meet the church's criteria of a Native American congregation or fellowship. There may be too many non-Indians. There is a political function that the Church at large, and the Native church in particular, can pursue. We can address the issues of tribes and individuals and support them in their quest for justice. We can actively seek social justice for all Native peoples, but by doing so, we must recognize the right of tribes to define themselves. We can assist those with legitimate claims to tribal affiliation by helping them identify the steps to recognition and net-working them within the faith community. Those who are re-discovering their heritage, which often includes tribal members, often fall prey to pan-Indian apologists who negate tribal traditions in favor of what "all Indians do". We can also minister to those with marginal claims of Indian ancestry, by assisting them with avenues of learning about their heritage. Just as critical, is assisting them in appreciating all of the cultures which make up their background, and loving the person God has made them. To attempt to create something "Indian" is to circumvent the validity of their identity in Christ, and to raise Native identity to an idolatrous level. It is also to risk losing for the church those unique characteristics that God has given persons for ministry. We must, however, recognize that tribal membership is not the "end-all". Membership in a state or federally recognized tribe is a valuable social and political tool. There are many persons of significant Native ancestry, who, due to tribal or governmental regulations have no legal status as Native people. In some tribes, membership is lost if one marries outside of their tribe. In some the blood quantum is 100%. In some, one can only join the tribe at birth or age 18. There are many thousands of Native people who were "adopted out" before acceptable laws were passed, and were never registered. During the relocation of Indian families in the 1950-60's, many children born away from reservations were unregistered, and still are. Status is merely a matter of documentation. It does not measure the heart or consciousness of a Native person. It is an appropriate time to begin addressing the issues of non-status Native people. It should begin in our church. We must not be afraid to "speak the truth in love". We alienate tribal communities when we are free to label persons as Native American indiscriminately. We cannot use the words "Native American" to legitimize ministries, even if it suits our purpose. We must also learn to use "of Native descent", and "Native American advocate", with equal value for the heritage and gifts that God has given those persons. These are our children, grandchildren and friends. The circle of our arms is wide, and they are part of us. Sometimes the best pastor for a non-Native church is a Native pastor. Sometimes the best leader for a Native American ministry may be a non-Native leader. Sometimes it is not the best thing to establish a ministry for the sake of having one. Our mission as the church is to love the world, not to make them Indians. Wesley White 1 John 3:1-7 [a repeat post to correct a bad link. -- Bad Link! Bad Link! is not a helpful way to speak so let's revise that to an incorrectly formatted link.] Everyone who commits sin is guilty of lawlessness. What law are we talking about? Well, it comes in the next section of 1 John and elsewhere - the law to love one another. This is a law requiring intentional action that can't be met by benign neglect. This is a law requiring intentional action that builds both the one and the other up, assists all toward larger wholeness from where we are (moves toward a more open future). One of the ways in which we can most clearly see this lawlessness and thus see sin is to open our eyes to issues of race and poverty. Here is a PDF study on race and poverty that looks quite usable to illustrate the ways in which we play at sin rather than play at being G*D's children. It is important to look at race and poverty to remind ourselves of how lawless we are, but not to look so intently that we miss the missing love and focus only on how far short we fall. Wesley White Luke 24:36b-48 You are witnesses of these things. What things? Our fear of the unexpected (a flight or fight response seems to be on a hair-trigger and very strong). One thing that helps manage that is an expectation of the unexpected. We are also witnesses of joy and disbelief living side by side. Our tendency is to emphasize one side of that pairing, or the other. One thing that helps us keep perspective is to anticipate them both being present, even if one appears in the foreground and the other takes the momentary background. We don't need to make up a story that would prioritize them. We are also witnesses of the importance of table fellowship, whether it be ritualized bread and cup or a piece of broiled fish (or my treat today of smoked salmon). We are also witnesses of the promises and threats of the past coming to fulfillment. This makes us a bit hesitant about the pronouncements we make in this day because of their echoing into tomorrow and coming back to haunt in different circumstances. We are also witnesses that we are but witnesses. No eternal truths here. We simply say what we have experienced. We don't need to fudge the truth to make G*D look better, ourselves look better, or our enemies look worse. [In the real world this piece of spam was attached to our blog. It came a week late for Holy Humor or Bright Sunday. Numbers have been disguised to protect the innocent. Too bad the humor is lost through the sheer quantity of wasteful time. WW] george24destiney Are you stuck in a job that is leading you on the path to no where? Well now you can get them! Call this number now 24 hours a day 7 days a week (413) 208-XXXX Get these Degrees NOW!!! BA, BSc, MA, MSc, MBA, PHD, Within 2 weeks! 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