Sermon for April 22, 2012 Acts 3:12-19 by The Rev. Christie S. Logan 3 Easter You Israelites, why do you wonder at this, or why do you stare at us, as though by our own power or piety we had made him walk? The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, the God of our ancestors has glorified his servant Jesus, whom you handed over and rejected in the presence of Pilate, though he had decided to release him and you killed the Author of Life, whom God raised from the dead. To this we are witnesses. And by faith in his name, his name itself has made this man strong, whom you see and know; and the faith that is through Jesus has given him this perfect health in the presence of all of you. And now, friends, I know you acted in ignorance, as did also your rulers Repent therefore, and turn to God so that your sins may be wiped out. Some early Christians (after the 3 rd and 4 th centuries) often misused this challenge in Peter s speech to the people, blaming and persecuting many Jews. Amy-Jill Levine reminds us that in this sermon, Peter is a Jew speaking to other Jews, early followers of Jesus who were part of the early 1 st and 2 nd century churches, prior to the Holy Roman state religion of the 4 th and 5 th centuries, and prior to the introduction of Greek Orthodoxy in the East. This hard accusation may more reflect the attitude of the narrator than that of Peter. The thing that first struck me in this reading was the name that Peter uses for the crucified and resurrected Lord. What descriptive words to use for the post-easter Lord -- THE AUTHOR OF LIFE. I like it! It speaks to the mind-boggling changes required of those who were witnesses to this mysterious resurrection event. It also calls for some changes in the minds and thinking of those of us who, two thousand years later, still struggle to understand its meaning and its impact in our lives. THE AUTHOR OF LIFE, the ONE who demonstrated and proved that life, even though it changes form and moves beyond what we think we know and understand, it is Life, with a capital L that survives and transcends death. Last Sunday, Garby talked about how the apostles were closed up in the upper room, paralyzed by fear, having witnessed the violence, the pain, and the merciless murder and death of their beloved Lord. Of course they were afraid. This was the ONE, the teacher, the friend, the spiritual leader on whom they had pinned all their hopes and dreams for a new life in God. Of course they would fear for their lives and their security. Fear is such an awful thing. I just read a historical novel, PILLARS OF THE EARTH, by Ken Follet. The story portrays a terrible time in the lives of the citizens and the life of
the church in 12 th century Europe. Interestingly, it took place near Lincoln, the home of the original cathedral founded by St. Hugh, probably just before the time of our patron, St. Hugh. The story tells of an ongoing vicious cycle of fear, greed, and insecurity; of wars, violence, lies, misuse of power, and corruption. The population was primarily the very poor, and those who controlled the land, thus all the power and wealth, and all were under the authority of Kings, Queens, and the Holy Roman Church. The elites were fighting among themselves to hang onto, maintain, and increase their personal well-being and power, mostly gained on the backs and labor of the common people. Fear and violence, greed and insecurity seem to go hand and hand, and inevitably lead to abuse and misuse of power. It s hard even in this day and age of such plenty, to not see the same cycle raising its ugly head in this world in which we live. This is part of our history. What, we might ask, does it have to with us here and now, in our local congregation of St Hugh of Allyn in the Diocese of Olympia under the leadership of the American Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion? We will get to that but first I have to offer you a personal confession. This week I found a book someone had lovingly bought and left for me in my church mailbox. I know that because the book has a signed dedication to me by the author. It is entitled, STILL, Notes on a Mid-Faith Crisis. As I began reading through it I thought; Oh dear, someone thinks I m having a 'Crisis of Faith.' On the inside cover, author Lauren f. Winner writes: Some days I m not sure if my faith is riddled with doubt, or whether graciously my doubt is riddled with faith. And yet I continue to live in the world the way a religious person lives in the world. I keep living in a world that I know to be enchanted, and not left alone. I doubt; I am uncertain; I am restless; prone to wander. And yet glimmers of the holy keep interrupting my gaze. I can relate to what she is saying and confess to often experiencing similar thoughts or feelings. I can assure you however, that I am not experiencing a crisis of faith. Having been there a couple of times in the history of my spiritual journey, I am confident in saying that I am not now experiencing a crisis of faith. Never in my life has my faith in a loving, nurturing Creator God, the life and teachings of Jesus Christ, The Author of Life, as Peter calls him in today s lesson, been stronger or more relevant in my life. I rest confidently in the constant assurance of the presence, guidance, and accompaniment of the Holy Spirit. I give thanks daily for the Holy Three as the foundation of faith in my life, and trust implicitly in the power of prayer to guide, heal, and comfort me, and those I love and care for, in times good and difficult; and to be a healing, reconciling power in the church and the world. Oh, I do have some issues with the Church, some of its practices, and the current state of what sometimes passes for Christianity in the world, and of our nation s 2
3 leadership. Those issues, as many of you already know, center around social justice; what I consider some of the archaic and patriarchal language used in our liturgy; and some of the things we are required to profess in the creeds. Having said that, I can assure you that the beauty and truth of our liturgy and sacraments, our sharing in the body of Christ at in the Eucharist, continue to have the power to bring me to tears of gratitude and joy. Our shared prayers for healing, guidance, and peace continue to sustain, comfort, and form me. One Sunday during Lent, The Rev. Ed Bacon, the Rector at All Saints, in Pasadena, in his sermon on the Jonah story, was addressing some of these very issues, changes in the church, and how we do or don t address social issues. He talked about repentance meaning to turn around when we have lost our direction, how we often have no choice to do otherwise, and he closed his sermon by saying that our task as today s disciples of Christ requires only four things of us: 1.That we show up. 2. That we speak up. 3. That we tell the truth. 4: That we not be attached to the outcomes. My crisis, if I have one, is one of courage, the courage to speak truth to power and be honest about what I do and do not believe. Not one to deal well with conflict, or to be comfortable with argument or debate, I struggle with this sometimes and often feel inadequate to articulate my thoughts and feelings in a manner that feels appropriate to my role as priest and pastor. I am working on this, praying with it daily, and I invite your prayers of support, as well as your questions; and I promise to be honest with you in my responses. In writing about Peter s sermon, Episcopal theologian, priest, and author, Barbara Brown Taylor, asks us to consider these questions: Two Sundays after Easter, what are the ways we still resist resurrection? What communal sins do we as a body hang onto, preferring the familiar round of guilt and relapse to the strenuous exercise of new life? Are there some who cannot bear challenges to the faith we grew up with, even when those challenges come from God s own messengers? Are there some so fearful of getting things wrong that we ignore any messenger whose name is not in the Bible?... Perhaps some of us are unfamiliar with the words of the prophets of old and so we are unable to recognizing the new ones God sends. Perhaps we can look back on Peter, reflecting on his sermon across the two millennium that have passed since he delivered it. His success was legendary. Christ s church may have been born in a barnyard, but that baby grew quickly, beyond anyone s imagination. Given everything that has happened since then the grievous abuses of Messiah s gifts as well as the healing applications of them what have we learned about what it means to be an Easter people? How did Peter s sermon work on our forebears, and how is it continuing to work in us today?" (paraphrased from Feasting on the Word, Year B, Volume 2, pg.411)
4 In closing, I offer you this prayer by James Dillet Freeman, which has formed and sustained me since it was given to me 50 some years ago: I AM THERE Do you need Me? I am there. You cannot see Me, yet I am the light you see by. You cannot hear Me, yet I speak through your voice. You cannot feel Me, yet I am the power at work in your hands. I am at work, though you do not understand My ways. I am at work, though you do not understand My works. I am not strange visions. I am not mysteries. Only in absolute stillness, beyond self, can you know Me as I AM, and then but as a feeling and a faith. Yet I am here. Yet I hear. Yet I answer. When you need ME, I am there. Even if you deny Me, I am there. Even when you feel most alone, I am there. Even in your fears, I am there. Even in your pain, I am there. I am there when you pray and when you do not pray. I am in you, and you are in Me. Only in your mind can you feel separate from Me, for only in your mind are the mists of "yours" and "mine." Yet only with your mind can you know Me and experience Me. Empty your heart of empty fears. When you get yourself out of the way, I am there. You can of yourself do nothing, but I can do all. And I AM in all. Though you may not see the good, good is there, for I am there. I am there because I have to be, because I AM. Only in Me does the world have meaning; only out of Me does the world take form; only because of ME does the world go forward.
5 I am the law on which the movement of the stars and the growth of living cells are founded. I am the love that is the law's fulfilling. I am assurance. I am peace. I am oneness. I am the law that you can live by. I am the love that you can cling to. I am your assurance. I am your peace. I am ONE with you. I am. Though you fail to find ME, I do not fail you. Though your faith in Me is unsure, My faith in you never wavers, because I know you, because I love you. Beloved, I AM there. James Dillet Freeman