Authentic Religion. Sermon written and delivered by Rev. Ruth MacKenzie St. Joan of Arc, December 18, 2016

Transcription

1 Authentic Religion Sermon written and delivered by Rev. Ruth MacKenzie St. Joan of Arc, December 18, 2016 Reading: Today, I begin with an excerpt from Roman Catholic mystic and teacher, Richard Rohr. It is a reading that is pushing me, compelling me, haunting me, strengthening me, calling me into deeper living and ministry. Is your religion helping you to transform your pain? If it does not, it is junk religion. We all have pain it s the human situation, we all carry it in a big black bag behind us and it gets heavier as we get older: by betrayals, rejections, disappointments, and wounds that are inflicted along the way. If we do not find some way to transform our pain, I can tell you with 100% certitude we will transmit it to those around us. We will create tension, negativity, suspicion, and fear wherever we go. Both Jesus and Buddha made it very clear to their followers that life is suffering. You cannot avoid it. It is no surprise that the central Christian logo became a naked, bleeding, suffering man. At the end of life, and probably early in life, too, the question is, What do I do with this disappointment, with this absurdity, with this sadness? Whoever teaches you how to transform your own suffering into compassion is a true spiritual authority. Whoever teaches you to project your doubt and fear onto Jews, Moslems, your family, heretics, gays, sinners, and foreigners, or even to turn it against yourself (guilt and shame) has no spiritual authority. (Richard Rohr, The Authority of the Suffering I can t think of a better question to ask of ourselves, to ask of our faith, and our faith communities: Does this faith help you transform pain into compassion? Will this faith help you to engage, build up and repair the moral infrastructure of our society, and work for the good of the whole today and in

2 the days to come? Will this faith help you get up tomorrow and the next day, with all the absurdities, the disappointments, the panic, the missed opportunities, harrassments and real dangers for people, and help you move forward in this new political reality that is unfolding? Every religious household has its wisdom to share, and its drawbacks, but at the heart of it all, they all begin from the standpoint that life isn t easy and we need help. Philosopher and devout atheist Alain de Botton says: Religions recognize that we all need constant, public reminders of the importance of being good and being kind, that this is something religions really get in a way secular culture does not. ( ) I would add that every religious household espouses different spiritual practices to help us sit in the real discomfort and suffering of living in order for pain to be transformed into compassion, to step out of our ruts and start searching for different ways or truer answers, as Scott Peck puts it. This is true spiritual authority, rather than junk religion. ( This past month, we have landed in a heap of suffering. And this question posed by Rohr has taken hold of me...does your faith help you to transform pain? It could just as easily be stated in the form of your theme for this Advent Season: Does your faith help you throw off the darkness and put on the light? Does your faith offer transformative spiritual technologies that help when the going gets really tough? Cause it s going to get really tough? A spiritual practice that has kept me afloat over the course of this past month has been a technology innovated by Jesus. It has consistently helped me navigate my fear, my exhaustion, my sadness, my anger, consistently revived my spirit and helped me transform pain, rather than transmit it. At the heart of Jesus spiritual practice was putting himself in places of intersectionality, places where he would meet, confront, challenge, and affirm the other. When I use the word confront, I

3 use it with Martin Buber s definition in mind, meaning, making no assumptions about the other, but moving in the absolute present tense with another human being. Jesus modeled over and over again Buber s adage: all real living is meeting. He practiced meeting Thou, the whole and holy within himself, in the other, and building the now of the kingdom from there. (Martin Buber, I and Thou) In this time when the pull of checking out is strong, when a sense of dislocation and fear is rampant, or the wish to fold in or lash out, this Jesus practice of connection to self and others, this call to intersectionality really matters. Local psychologist, and master Chi-Quong practitioner, Patrick Dougherty talks about what we re learning about our brains, and the spiritual practice of intersectionality in essence. As many of you know, we have three modes of thinking/reacting to situations, to hardships, to trauma. There is the reaction of anger, or fighting mode, which he places here (head region). There is the depressive response to trauma, or the folding mode, which he places here (pelvic region), both of which are human, and real, and understandable, especially in this time of a communal experience of heavy heartedness, but in the end they aren t effective modes of sustained health and wholeness. Where we want to get is this middle space, the heart mind space (heart region). As Patrick explains, this is the place where we can feel what we feel, and still stay connected and conscious, stay connected and conscious to our worth, connected and conscious to one another, stay connected and conscious to God or the Godflow as I like to name it. ( Patrick Dougherty, M.A., L.P., Theologian Cynthia Bourgeault says in essence that Jesus message was how to let go of reactionary thinking and response, and cultivate the heart/mind reality. His constant refrain of

4 repent can just as accurately be translated as change the direction of wherever you re seeking happiness, and go towards reconnecting with the big mind, the heart/mind reality. One of the most powerful access codes at your disposal is practicing intersectionality. (Dr. Rev. Cynthia Bourgeault, The Wisdom Jesus: Transforming Heart and Mind A New Perspective) I read the beatitudes after the election, as translated by Rev. Eugene Peterson, and my heart/mind is activated, my spiritual antenna is tuned in and tuned up (Matthew 5, The Message translation). The beatitudes are guiding me these days. Take a listen with new ears. "You're blessed when you're at the end of your rope. With less of you there is more of God. "You're blessed when you feel you've lost what is most dear to you. Only then can you be embraced by the One most dear to you. "You're blessed when you're content with just who you are - no more, no less. That's the moment you find yourselves proud owners of everything that can't be bought. "You're blessed when you care. At the moment of being 'carefull,' you find yourselves cared for. "You're blessed when you can show people how to cooperate instead of compete or fight. That's when you discover who you really are, and your place in good and grace. "You're blessed when your commitment to good and grace provokes persecution. The persecution drives you even deeper into the kingdom. You can be glad when that happens - give a cheer, even! - All heaven applauds. Know that you are in good company. Prophets and witnesses have always gotten into this kind of trouble. "Let me tell you why you are here. You're here to be salt-seasoning that brings out the God-flavors of this earth. If you lose your saltiness, how will people taste godliness? You've lost your usefulness and will end up in the garbage. "Here's another way to put it: You're here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. Good and grace is not a secret to be kept. We're going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. If I make you light-bearers, you don't think I'm going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I'm putting you on a light stand.

5 My friends, throw off the darkness and shine. Keep open house; be generous with your lives (Matthew 5:16) Practice intersectionality all the time, in your everyday lives, in your racial justice work, and social justice activities. It is not easy work. In fact it s a provocative and sometimes dangerous undertaking. But it is real. It is authentic religion. May it be so and Amen.