(remember to sing to the song tune) Father Child, locked as one, in this empty

Transcription

1 (remember to sing to the song tune) Father Child, locked as one, in this empty room. Spine against spine, yours against mine, till the warmth comes through, remember the breakwaters, down by the waves, I first found my courage knowing daddy could save, I could hold back the tide, with my dad by my side.with my dad by my side, got my dad by my side / Out on the Moors, we take a pause, see how far we have come. You re moving quite slow, how far can we go, Father and child, With my dad by my side, with my dad by my side, got my dad by my side, with me. The lyrics are by Peter Gabriel/ A song titled Father Son. Half a fresh lime, 7-8 good sized, fresh mint leaves, Two teaspoons/bar spoons of sugar (fine white or coarse brown) 50ml/1.5oz white/anejo rum. A splash of soda water (optional) Mint sprig to garnish and you have the perfect Mojito that will let you drift off to Santiago de Cuba as you hear the sounds of The Buena Vista Social Club, or Mampoer (mum - poor) samegemoer(beaten together) 2 measures peach mampoer (peach brandy), 2 measures orange juice, 2 measures peach pulp or juice.shake well then put dash of grenadine in bottom of glass fill with ice and pour the mixture over (it mustn't mix with the grenadine so pour carefully) For decoration we then put on a cocktail fork a fresh cherry with a slice of canned peach and a sprig of fresh mint. Creative experiments in my early 20 s like these taken in excess, then driving a car led me to drive too fast on a gravel road, loosing control and causing the car to flip and roll down a hill, smashing my hand and putting me in the hospital for 15 days. I will always remember the hand of the man

2 who raised me, the man who shaped me, the Father who loved me, my Grandfather, on my forehead. I was in such pain, and I still had small shot bottles in my pocket as I was getting prepped for surgery, this giant of a man touched my forehead and said Les, you will be ok, I love you, you will be ok. This is the image that stay s with me as we hear the words from today s Gospel. Jesus touching his head as he sits at the feet of Jesus, our Lord saying you ll be ok, I love you, you ll be ok, very much like a loving father. The scripture states that he lived in the tombs, in the darkness preoccupied by death I am sure, he was isolated from society like a beast, naked.one demon speaks for the multitude through the man s own voice. The very confession What do you want with me, Son of the Most High God? - In ancient magic, one could try to gain control over a spirit by naming it. The attempt at magical self protection is powerless against Jesus. Note the disciples were asking Who is this? The demons know exactly who Jesus is - and tremble "Sticks and stones can break my bones, but names can never hurt me." We've learned subtlety in the years since our time in school, but not always compassion. Names hurt because, true or not, they have the power not just to describe but to define. The names others call us, and the ones we sometimes call ourselves, serve as the boundary markers of our imagination of who we are and what we can do. They become limiting factors all too often reinforced by those around us. The names we bear create a self-fulfilling future that can feel nearly

3 impossible to transcend. Which is what breaks my heart about the answer the demon-possessed man gives Jesus when he asks him his name. "Legion," he replies, acknowledging that he no longer has a name of his own but is now only known by his infirmity, by the magnitude of his oppression. I think that's why I imagine Jesus' healing of him as something akin to giving him a new name. You know, like when Abram and Sarai are given new names and an open future with the promise of a child. Like when Jacob is defeated by the angel at the River Jabbok and must confess his dodgy past and shoddy character, only to receive the name, Israel. Like Simon who becomes Peter and Saul who becomes Paul. Names good names as well as bad ones are powerful. So Jesus doesn't just cast out his demons, doesn't just alleviate his condition, but gives him a new name and with it a new and open future. Which, naturally, is terrifying, if not for him then certainly for everyone around him. The thing is, you see, we get used to our calamities, to our pecking orders and systems of definition and discrimination. The people were used to Legion. They were used to his shackles, to his raving, to keeping guard on him. He'd become part of the moral and social order of their world. And so when the demons leave and he's now just plain old John Doe, or whatever his name was, they don't know what to do. In fact, Luke tells us, they're down right upset. No, it's Jesus' ability to rock their world and create unforeseen and unexpected futures that terrifies them. If he

4 can do this to good old Legion, they might be thinking, what will he do to us? And so they ask Jesus to leave, and he does. But not before first conferring with the one who received a new name and future at his command. He wants, understandably, to follow Jesus. But Jesus tells him to stay home, to proclaim to those around him just how much God has done for him.picture with me if you would, this man, this new missionary, this new disciple sitting at the feet of Jesus wanting to be close.yes people were very afraid, because if he was able to free this man who was in the dark, in the shadows, in the corners hiding away what would Jesus do with us!! Jesus say s to the man stay, tell them what God has done for you. Jesus has brought the light of life, the Paschal Candle of hope to this community and encourages this healed man to share with his community the changes that have occurred in him, changes by the grace of God! No easy task, that: to eschew the exotic for the familiar, the extraordinary for the mundane, the excitement of a new adventure for the ho-hum relentlessness of the every day. But perhaps this is the only way Jesus' mercy and grace can penetrate the region of West Los Angeles, I mean the region of the Gerasenes. If they're too afraid to tolerate Jesus, perhaps they'll learn to live with the witness this man, now healed and whole, represents. So here's my question, St. Matthew s Parish Community: how can we become communities where we not only confer upon each other new and life-giving names, but also strengthen and encourage each other to live into the open futures they

5 represent? That is why we gather every week. That is why we come together and challenge each other in love to stretch and grow. Each week we have the opportunity to bring to this Divine Supper which we do in remembrance, the names that keep us up at night and chase us through the day. And then the Holy Spirit, our Holy Father pokes us to proclaim them not for the first time, I know, but this stuff is hard to believe, so repetition is key! that God has called us by a new name and opened to us a new future. We are, in fact, given the name of "Christian" at Baptism, and with it the promise that no matter what happens no matter where we may go or what we may do or what may be done to us yet God will always regard us as loved, as God's own beloved child. This may, I know, seems like small stuff in the face of the hardship and oppression that too often seem to govern our world, but keep this in mind. Names really are powerful, they not only have the power to hurt and harm, but also to help and to heal. Indeed, names and in particular the Name God gives each of us has the power to end oppression, to alleviate calamity, to disrupt discrimination, to nurture community, to effect reconciliation, to create a new and better future. In all these ways and more, God's new name for us has the power to lead us through death into new life. (remember to sing to the song tune) Father Child, locked as one, in this empty room. Spine against spine, yours against mine, till the warmth comes through, remember the breakwaters, down by the waves, I first found my courage knowing daddy could save, I could hold back the tide, with

6 my dad by my side.with my dad by my side, got my dad by my side. Out on the Moores we take a pause, see how far we have come. You re moving quite slow, how far can we go, Father and child, With my dad by my side, with my dad by my side, got my dad by my side, with me. What demons will we name in this place so we too may be healed?