Dr. Martin Luther King & Canada

 

This is the annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day in the United States and most years I reflect on some aspect of the legacy of Dr. King, one of the central figures in the civil rights movement in the United States. King was a married Baptist pastor with four young children when he was assassinated at the age of 39. I have a son who is a married United Church pastor with two young children and is a year older than MLK was when he died. King is such an iconic figure in civil rights history we can forget that he was a relatively young man who left behind a grieving family. In the years leading up to his death he sacrificed so much of his personal life for the cause he was drawn into and led with such determination and courage. 

                              Emancipation Day in Windsor, Ontario, 1956, with Dr. King as keynote speaker 

While this is an American holiday I've noted before that there are Canadian connections with Dr. King, including an appearance of the CBC show Front Page Challenge where a panel of four attempted to guess the identity of mystery celebrity guests. According to a CBC piece about that guest spot in 1959: 

On the subject of non-violence, panelist Gordon Sinclair asked King if his ideas came from the teachings of Mahatma Gandhi. "Yes, I would say from Mahatma Gandhi and Jesus," said King."My whole Christian background had a great deal to do with my coming to this conclusion: that love and non-violence should be the regulating ideals in any struggle for human dignity."

Mystery Front Page Challenge guest Martin Luther King Jr. was likely to be recognized by the panel and was placed behind them as they tried to guess the headline he was associated with on April 28, 1959. (Roy Martin/CBC Still Photo Collection)

Christ Mass & The Dark is Rising

No more let sins and sorrows grow,

nor thorns infest the ground:

he comes to make his blessings flow

far as the curse is found, far as the curse is found,

far as, far as the curse is found.

                       Joy to the World vs 3 Voices United 59

 You may recall that before Christmas I encouraged you to listen to the 12-part BBC Radio adaptation of Susan Cooper's 1973 award-winning children's fantasy novel  called The Dark is Rising, The Wikipedia synopsis is quite good: 

It has been described as a "folkloric tale of an English boy caught in a battle between light and dark".Will Stanton begins to have strange and magical experiences on his 11th birthday, which is at the winter solstice – a few days before Christmas. He discovers he is one of a group of an ancient magical people called the Old Ones, who are guardians and warriors for "the Light" (i.e. good), who are waging a centuries-long battle against the forces of "the Dark" (i.e. evil), whose evil power is rising. 

We read this novel and the others in the series back in the 70s.Happily, the radio play, which we've finally finished,  is an excellent adaptation with fine acting, along with great atmospheric sound and music. It is a reminder of a day when the CBC did radio series' with some of the best actors of the day. Radio ignites the imagination akin to what happens reading a book rather than watching television. 

The seventh episode is called The Beseiging and it includes Will and other Stanton family members trekking to church on Christmas morning. They do so through what is a intense, supernatural snowstorm and while the vicar welcomes them cheerily it becomes apparent that the church and those in are surrounded by Dark forces and Will must create a wall of protection around them.

The Dark is Rising is not an overtly religious book and yet it grapples with the realities of good and evil, darkness and light. 

I was struck by this vivid description of Christmas Day, with the celebration of the birth of Christ, as being a moment in time when these forces are both intensely present. It's so easy for Christ Mass to become cozy and safe and even devoid of religious meaning. Yet why would we celebrate Christ's birth if it weren't for Good Friday and Resurrection morning?

 Perhaps we need a renewed sense of the blessings of the Christ Light as the dark seems to be rising in our world, the "sins and sorrows" of polarizing populism,  senseless war, and destruction of the planet. 

Again, I recommend listening to The Dark is Rising and here is the BBC link: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w13xtvp7

A Serenity Prayer for the 21st Century

 

God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
courage to change the things I can,
and wisdom to know the difference.

You are probably aware of the Serenity Prayer, written by the theologian Reinhold Niebuhr in the 1930's. Niebuhr used it in sermons and publications during the Second World War but it wasn't given a title until it became commonly used by Alcoholics Anonymous in the 1950's. 

There have been lots of variations on this prayer, including a fair number which tend toward rudeness. I like the version by Father James Martin, a Roman Catholic priest in the United States who has been a strong advocate for LGBTQ2S+ people despite taking a lot of heat for doing so. Pope Francis has shown respect for Father Martin but many haven't. He has also written a best-selling book. Learning to Pray. 

He does bring it home with:

Basically God, 

grant me the wisdom to remember that I'm not you. Amen 

Have a Blessed Friday the 13th!

 

For the message about the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, 

but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.  For it is written,

“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,
    and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.”

Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scholar? Where is the debater of this age? 

Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?

1 Corinthians 1:18-20 NRSVue

Very superstitious, writing's on the wall,
Very superstitious, Ladders bout' to fall,
Thirteen month old baby, broke the lookin' glass
Seven years of bad luck, The good things in your past

When you believe in things That you don't understand,
Then you suffer, Superstition aint the way

                               Stevie Wonder

Today is Friday 13th, which most of are aware is an unlucky day in the minds of some. Apparently this superstition that thirteen is a cursed day originated in a Norse story, although there is also a tradition that Judas was the unlucky thirteen person to be seated at the Last Supper. There is nothing in the gospels to suggest this, and it seems to me that seating order was the least of Judas' misfortunes. 

Are you supersitious? I would say that I am not, generally, although I am not one to tempt fate, when possible. There are plenty of non-theists and anti-theists who would say that anyone who is religious is superstitious, pathetically held captive to the notion of a divine being who not only exists but is active in our lives. The incarnation  in the person of Jesus, is absolutely preposterous, foolishness, from their point of view.

I would agree that religion can be inclined toward superstition, at its worst. We saw and continue to see this when it comes to COVID19. Remember all the Christians who refused to be vaccinated because they were "washed in the blood of the Lamb"? A century or more of scientific advancement was discarded in the blink of an eye, and even though many died as a result, it didn't change the outlook of lots of those left behind. They might as well have walked around with bunches of garlic around their necks. 

While I have experienced seasons of doubt and questioning through the years I continue to put in my lot with the brilliant theologian, Paul of Tarsus, who conceded that the Way of Christ could appear as foolishness to the supposed wise ones of this world. 

I hope I will celebrate scientific advancement and rationality to my dying day, and actively resist shadowy superstition which is used to control others or engender fear. But I continue to affirm the Good News of the Christ who is the Light of the World, a different embodiment of wisdom. 

Now, I wonder if there is a special prayer to expunge the consistent bad luck of the Montreal Canadiens? 

The Via Dolorosa of EO, the Donkey

1 He came riding on a donkey, he came riding into town;

slow and easy kind of lowly, he came riding with the dawn.

His disciples walked beside him, staying close, a little shy;

not too sure where he would guide them, on to live or on to die.

But all the morning sang his praises; waking birds and dancing wind;

here he is, the Son of David; riding on to take his throne.

                                                  Voices United 124

 I went to watch a film yesterday. On a big screen. In a movie theatre. Ruth has done so several times during the safer periods of the pandemic, mostly with grandchildren, but this was a first for me, even though I have long loved going to the movies.

We saw a Cannes Jury Prize winner called EO which "follows a donkey who encounters on his journeys good and bad people, experiences joy and pain, exploring a vision of modern Europe through his eyes."  Ruth spotted this quixotic film (hey, didn't Don Quixote's companion Sancho have a donkey named Dapple?) on the roster of the Quinte Film Alternative. So off we went to see a flick with a non-human star who is definitely the strong, silent type, except for the occasional bray. 

Why was I willing to give it a try? I read that the film-makers saw EO in a Living Nativity amidst a gaggle of critters and were taken by the quiet dignity of the donkey. In the end they used six different donkeys to portray EO but I found this attraction intriguing because for years a donkey named Cricket was the longest starring creature in the Living Nativity of the congregation I served in Bowmanville, Ontario -- for something like 30 years. When the aged Cricket quit, the nativity ended,  and a couple of years later when Cricket went "crickets" we showed her image in Sunday worship and held a moment's silence. Lots of people grew up with Cricket as part of their Christmas. 

In our Christian tradition we have our imaginary and real donkeys at the beginning and end of Jesus' earthly sojourn. Devotional art often portrays Mary on a donkey for the journey to Bethlehem and a donkey amidst the critters in the stable. They just ain't there in scripture. Jesus does ride a donkey, or the foal of donkey, into Jerusalem at the beginning of Holy Week. 

I realized that as EO moves about he/she is actually a sort of Christ figure, with the story as part Incredible Journey and part Via Doloroso, the Way of Sorrows.If this all sounds bizarre it is, yet it is beautifully filmed and surprisingly moving in ways which would be hard to describe. 

Perhaps it's best to leave you with this description of a scene which is mystical in quality from the Los Angeles Times review: 

In one of the most astonishing sequences in “EO,” a rapturous hymn to the natural world from the 84-year-old Polish director Jerzy Skolimowski, a wandering donkey gets lost in a forest primeval. Night has fallen, but pools of moonlight illuminate this hushed, dark world in all its living glory. A little frog skims along the surface of a rushing stream. A skittering spider spins its web. An owl frowns down at the donkey from its treetop perch, as though registering an intruder’s presence. There are also a couple of howling wolves, a wary red fox and, in time, an array of green laser beams announcing the presence of nearby hunters, whose gunshots shatter the serenity of this woodland idyll.

Psalms & a Fumbling Pastor

 

 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.

He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

Psalm 23 King James Version 

A couple of weeks ago I shared in a blog entry that I'd experienced two dreams which involved religion, one of which was scripture. It was actually the 23rd Psalm, and in the dream I was grappling with the order of the first few phrases. This was actually not far from the truth of my experience during ministry when a parishioner in a home setting or hospital bed would ask if we could repeat this psalm/prayer of comfort.

 I had a travel bible which I carried with me for visits, most times, but not always. It was the New Revised Standard Version but I pasted the King James Version of this psalm inside the cover because it was the one most of these elders had learned as children. When I forgot to bring along this bible I would fumble about with the "maketh" and "leadeth" and other 17th century phrases. Sometimes they were the shepherds and I was feeling sheepish. Some pastor (which means shepherd.)!

This dream prompted something in me and we'll be engaging in a three-week study of the psalms at Trenton United during February. Here is the announcement. You are welcome to "joineth" us.

The Gift of the Psalms

A responsive psalm from the prayer book of the 150 psalms was once a weekly, and perhaps rote, element of worship. 

Can the psalms, with their acknowledgement of joy and sorrow and even anger, still have a place in our lives? 

Does God speak to us through these prayers of the Judeo/Christian tradition? 

Join us in a three-week exploration of the psalter (book of psalms) including those which are some of our favourite hymns.

Wednesdays, February 1, 8, 15 at 10:30 AM, in person and online. 

Unto the hills around do I lift up my longing eyes

O whence for me shall my salvation come, from whence arise? 

from God the Lord doth come my certain aid,

from God the Lord who heaven and earth hath made.

Psalm 121, verse 1, Voice United 842 (also in Mohawk and Ojibwe)

Uninhabitable?

 

For many decades the state of California has had a special aura for me and I think many other Canadians. It is the place of Hollywood and movie stars, along with spectacular beaches and giant redwoods. California has enjoyed the climate we end up longing for in the dead of Winter, not to mention supplying fresh vegetables and fruit when local produce is not available here. And let's not forget California wines. 

Is this almost mythical state, with a population greater than all of Canada, becoming unihabitable? In recent years there have been protracted droughts which result in massive, almost unquenchable wildfires with their own names. These fires create havoc for humans and other creatures, including the trees of the forest. There has been loss of life as communities can no longer be protected from the encroachment of these fires and thousands have lost homes and possessions. The droughts have led food producers to look to Canada as a potential source, an irony after more than half a century of our dependence on California.

This is an apocalyptic scenario in itself, but changing weather patterns have resulted in "atmospheric rivers" and "bomb cyclones", terms which were unknown to us in the past. Drought-stricken California is now overwhelmed by relentless floodwaters, the opposite extreme. Today 90% of the population, which actually exceeds that of all of Canada, is under a flood watch. 

This lack of a middle ground has also afflicted Canada's version of Lotus Land, British Columbia, with unprecedented weather events. Whole communities have disappeared as fires swept through and this Winter there have been snowstorms which paralyzed Vancouver. 

California and BC have no immediate plans to move citizens to other parts of their respective countries, but what will happen in the years ahead if conditions become more chaotic. 

I've written about the book by the late Sally McFague with the clever title Super Natural Christians. McFague moved from the States to British Columbia to teach at a seminary and never left. Her title was a play on BC's motto at the time, a celebration of natural beauty which she explored as an earthy, grounded Christian theme. 

We really do need to wake up to the reality that huge numbers of people around the world may become climate refugees if we don't address climate change, even in the wealthiest countries of the world. The Creator graciously came up with a habitable planet, so the least we can do is make sure that we continue to have a place to call home. 

Stone Soup & Seeing the Unhoused

 While in congregational ministry we had what were then called intergeneratonal worship services where the "sermon"  was presented in dramatic form which would be accessible to all ages. One skit which was used at Thanksgiving was "Stone Soup", based on a tale of stranger who shows up to a village claiming to be able to cook up a delicious soup from a stone. As he proceeds he notes that it would be enhanced by cabbage or onions or carrots, which villagers provide, bit by bit, until the magic of the stone soup is actually the collaborative effort of the community.

This morning I listened to an interview with the Rev. Alexa Gilmour on CBC Radio Metro Morning from Toronto. She helped found the Stone Soup Network in Toronto which reaches out to those on the margins in a city where it can be a challenge to make ends meet for those who are employed, let alone those who are unhoused. She talked with the host about the death of a person on Christmas Day who perished of the cold, while another person died in an encampment fire this past weekend. Shelters and warming centres are filled beyond capacity in Toronto, in practical terms, and more and more people are "living rough" around the city. 

Faith leaders within the Stone Soup Network are encouraging citizens of Toronto to let municipal leaders know that shelter and sustenance for the homeless must be a priority in a wealthy city. I was grateful that Alexa put these stories of loss in the context of the Christian story of the birth of the Christ in a stable, and the Christian imperative to see "the least of these" with eyes of compassion and care. 

                                             Sudbury Homeless Encampment in Memorial Park

I am so impressed that members of our congregation, Trenton United, support the warming centre in our building through the use of space and volunteer work. Today Ruth will do her weekly shift in the "stone soup" team of volunteers at Bridge St. United, a ministry which feeds lunch to roughly 100 people every day. The dedication of these team members is examplary and the goal is to provide nutritious and tasty food. Ruth mentions the gratitude of those receiving meals nearly every week. 

The need is also signficant and requires broader, collaborative solutions. There are encampments around Belleville which we see regularly when we walk, and while they shift locations they have existed for years.

 Recently I've spoken with parishioners in congregations I served in the past who say that this has become a reality in their communites, including an encampment in a park adjacent to the church building in Sudbury. In many municipalities across Ontario the crisis of unhoused people is growing and we must be prayerfully aware and civically engaged for better outcomes.  https://stonesoupnetwork.ca/

Baptism in the Great White North

 

                                                           Baptism of Jesus from the St. John's Bible 

Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan, to be baptized by him.  John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?”  But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now, for it is proper for us in this way to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented. And when Jesus had been baptized, just as he came up from the water, suddenly the heavens were opened to him and he saw God’s Spirit descending like a dove and alighting on him. And a voice from the heavens said, “This is my Son, the Beloved,[a] with whom I am well pleased.

                                                     Matthew 3:13-17 NRSVue

This is Baptism of Jesus Sunday in the Christian liturgical calendar, as lots of you will hear today. The gospel lesson reminds us of Jesus' immersion in the waters of the Jordan River by his cousin, John. Above hovered a dove, symbol of the Holy Spirit, and the voice of God declares approval -- "God in three persons, blessed Trinity." 

It always struck me as odd timing in the Great White North when lots of our bodies of water are either frigid or frozen. Not that we actually baptize outdoors, for the most part, but the symbolism is chilly. While in decades past there were years when I presided at lots of infant baptisms it seemed that there were seldom candidates for this particular Sunday. 

In three months, to the day, we will be in Israel, celebrating Easter, providing so much disruptions such as unrest in Israel, or a resurgence of the virus whose name we dare not speak.  Ruth has a step-sister who has lived there for 35 years and while she and her husband have worked and raised a family there they will retire next year and return to the States. So, "now or never." I have visited three times but always as "tour nanny". This will be an opportunity to choose where we go and without doing a head-count to ensure everyone is on board.

We're not all that interested in visiting the baptism sites set up by the Israeli and Jordanian governments. That's right, there are several. In the north, where there is more water in the Jordan, there is a pretty location which simply couldn't be historically accurate. Just north of the Dead Sea there are two sites, across the river from each other and they are prone to running dry thaks to the siphoning away of water for agriculture and other purposed. In Jordan about a quarter million people a year visited, pre-pandemic with 750,000 on the Israeli side. Not exactly the setting for a contemplative experience. 

Who knows, we may have the freedom to visit the Jordan somewhere less hectic and we may actually have a sense of Christ's presence with us. 

Today is also the opportunity to renew baptismal vows, often made by parents which we are unable to recall. We don't have to get out the chainsaw to cut a hole in the ice to do so. 

Here is what our United Church of Canada "A Song of Faith" says about this sacrament:

Baptism by water in the name of the Holy Trinity
is the means by which we are received, at any age,
into the covenanted community of the church.
It is the ritual that signifies our rebirth in faith
and cleansing by the power of God.
Baptism signifies the nurturing, sustaining,
and transforming power of God’s love
and our grateful response to that grace. A Song of Faith UCC

Baby Jesus on the Lam

 

                                                            Baby Jesus missing in Belleville

 “Ask, and it will be given to you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you.  For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.

                                                   Matthew 7:7-9 NRSVue

As we know, this weekend marks Christmas for hundreds of millions of Orthodox Christians around the world. In many places, though, including churches, the displays and trappings of Christmas were dismantled during the past weeks and stored away for another year. 

Here in Belleville city workers realized the infant Jesus who is part of the Nativity Scene in a park near the water had "gone walkies." The figure is placed in the creche each year on Christmas Eve day, which certainly would have been stormy this year. According to a Belleville Intelligencer article: "One of the workers remarked the last confirmed sighting of the baby Jesus was probably Dec. 29 leaving the city to speculate the ornament was stolen sometime between then and Jan. 2."

This is not the first Ontario community in which the Christ Child has disappeared. In fact, a quick search reveals a number of similar stories through the years. The baby disappears, sometimes to reappear after the public outcry. Don't you wonder who would do this, and why? It is a bizarre form of vandalism and does beg the question about unresolved spiritual issues for the perpetrators. Of all the babies with whom to abscond! 

I served congregations which included living nativity scenes as part of the Christmas season and in the "good old days" we often had a family with a newborn which was transformed into the Holy Family. That even happened in the multi-evening outdoor living nativity when we lived in Bowmanville, where there were some very frosty nights. To be honest, I think Cricket, the donkey and the pooping sheep were bigger draws for small children, but it was lovely. No actual infants were ever kidnapped. 

We live in a society in which it seems people are more inclined to steal Jesus than to search for him, literally or metaphorically. But I'm hoping for a miraculous recovery of the missing statuary. Baby Jesus deserves to be reunited with his mom and one of his dads. The adult Jesus did teach, "seek and you shall find" and he did embody forgiveness. 

The Magi, Epiphany, & Modern-day Iran

 

The Magi (Three Wise Men) sleeping, choir capital in St. Lazare Cathedral, Autun, Burgundy, France, c. 1300 // sculpted by Gislebertus

In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, magi from the east came to Jerusalem, asking, “Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star in the east and have come to pay him homage.”

                             Matthew 2:1-2 NRSVue

This is the Feast of the Epiphany with it's scriptural story from Matthew's gospel of the Three Wise Men, as they were called when I was a sprout. I've been fascinated by artistic depictions of the Magi for decades, whether they be in paintings or sculptures. Is the angel above comforting an insomniac wise guy, or stirring him from sleep? Who gave the go-ahead for this particular scene? 

Who were these mysterious travellers from the east who sought out the Christ Child? If they were, in fact, Zoroastrian magi they were astrologers and astronomers, people of science and divination. 

For me they represent a quest, both physical and metaphysical, which transcends any one religion. These emmissaries of one ancient religion found a child of another, who became revered as the founder of yet another. There is a gold shrine to the Magi in Cologne Cathedral from the 12th century, so Christianity's fascination with the "three kings" is longstanding. Matthew's gospel names the gifts but doesn't specify the number of the travellers, nor does it say that they were on camels.

It's likely that they came from what is modern-day Iran, and there is a huge irony that this country is under the oppressive grip of a regime which claims allegiance to another religion which didn't exist at the time of the birth of Jesus. The Islamist state in Iran has far more to do with patriarchal and hierarchical control that the actual tenets of the Muslim religion. Every effort is made to close borders and minds. 

I'm not going to pray for an "epiphany" on the part of Iran's leaders nor the thugs who serve them. I do hope that in 2023 the internal pressure from courageous protesters, along with international condemnation and sanctions, will bring about increased freedoms of expression and religion and equality. We can pray for members of the Bahai minority in Iran whose lives are often in peril. There is still a remnant population of Zoroastrians in Iran, about 25,000 and they too have been ostracized and persecuted over time. 

Christmas in Ukraine

 

                                   Twelve-Dish Christmas Eve Supper -- Jacques Hnizdovsky

This is no time for a child to be born,
With the earth betrayed by war & hate
And a comet slashing the sky to warn
That time runs out & the sun burns late.

That was no time for a child to be born,
In a land in the crushing grip of Rome;
Honor & truth were trampled to scorn—
Yet here did the Savior make His home.

When is the time for love to be born?
The inn is full on the planet earth,
And by a comet the sky is torn—
Yet Love still takes the risk of birth.

The Risk of Birth by Madeleine L'Engle

As you can see, I have circled back around to a poem I shared a few weeks ago by the late Madeleine L'Engle, marvellous children's author, essayist, poet and Christian. 

Tomorrow is Christmas Eve Day for Orthodox Christian communities around the world and I've been apprehensive this week that the Russian military would choose this occasion to rain missiles on the people of Ukraine. The Russians have consistently lied about not targetting civilian targets, as they were lying to the world a year ago at this time that they were not preparing to invade their neighbour. There is no truth-telling whatsoever in the Putin regime.

This Christmas is even more complicated for the Christians of Ukraine and Russia because of the hideous support of this unjust war by Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill, who is a Putin minion. Today Kirill called on Thursday for both sides of the war in Ukraine to observe a Christmas truce. While this sounds encouraging it is a step dismissed by leaders in Ukraine  as a cynical trap.Some congregations in Ukraine celebrated on the Western Christmas date of December 25th to avoid the threat and to disassociate from Russia. 

Even though many of us were disappointed to have our Christmas Eve services cancelled because of a Winter storm on December 24th, we live without threat to our security and safety. I hope that there is opportunity for Ukrainians to gather for worship and celebration of the birth of Christ tomorrow and Sunday across the country, despite the possibilities of attack. They are such a resilient people. 

Dreams Which Tell Stories & Stories Which Allow us to Dream

 

                                                                   Jacob's Dream -- Marc Chagall

1. Tell me the stories of Jesus I love to hear;
   Things I would ask Him to tell me if He were here;
   Scenes by the wayside, tales of the sea,
   Stories of Jesus, tell them to me.

During the past couple of nights I've had vivid dreams which involve 'ligion. Normally I have dreams which are so vivid that I'm sure I'll recall them later, only to have them drift off like wisps of morning mist. Theses two I was determined to remember, and while much of the context has faded there were specific aspects of each I willed myself to retain, one a scripture passage, the other an old childrens' chorus. 

In the latter I was exhorting a group of people about the importance of story-telling in faith, and I gave biblical examples from the Hebrew scriptures and from the life of Jesus. Of course, with Jesus there are the explicit stories he told which we call parables, a specific story form. But even the cerebral and theological apostle Paul told stories when he preached, and we have pieced together the "back story" of his journeys and the letters which followed them. The book called the Revelation of John is a sort of sci-fi vision which may also be code for the very real persecution of Christ-followers at the time. I hasten to assure you that I was not droning on with all these specific thoughts in the dream. 

Then, I attempted to conjure up the words of a chorus I learned as a child which was in the For Little Children section of the old blue Hymnary of the United Church, Stories of Jesus...please turn with me to number 605 in your books... Do any of you remember that one? It was cloyingly sweet, so no real loss from subsequent hymn books, but more than half a century later it is literally the hymn of my dreams -- go figure!

Since awakening I have been wondering what was going on, and it got me thinking about the narratives or stories of our lives. Individuals and families have stories which can "make or break" them. So do congregations of people, including religious communities and societies. there is the "greatest country in the world" narrative of the United States and the "kindest country in the world", both of which have been exposed as only partially true, if not outright fraudulent, in recent years. 

 I have realized over time that a common thread of religions at their truest and best are the narratives about their founders and their teachings, but also of the sub plots of kindness, generosity, humility, and forgiveness. Religion at its worst, including toxic Christianity, insists that the real stories are of dominance and superiority and rampant individuality. 

The narrative of individualistic, "I gave my heart to Jesus" Christianity, tied closely to the American Dream of prosperity, is imploding in the United States at the moment, and re-emerging as a selfish, controlling, and dangerous parody of our faith. We would be mistaken to think that similar threads don't exist on this side of the border, as we saw graphically during the pandemic when some congregations pouted and flouted about making choices for a greater good, not to mention the so-called Freedom Convoy. 

I wonder if the absolute nightmare in the US congress currently prompted my dream? Someone has said, "if you elect clowns you end up with a circus" and some of the those clowns claim to be Christians but are more like something from a Stephen King novel. 

As a Christian I'm glad to share basic principles with other religions, as a shared narrative for meaningful coexistence. Still, I continue to love the improbable particularity of God-with-Us in Jesus the Christ, and the power of the resurrection to overcome sorrow and grief and death itself. As a Christian I dream of a healed and hopeful world. 

God. break the bow and shatter the spear

 

Come, behold the works of the Lord;
    see what desolations he has brought on the earth.
9 He makes wars cease to the end of the earth;
    he breaks the bow and shatters the spear;
    he burns the shields with fire.
10 “Be still, and know that I am God!
    I am exalted among the nations;
    I am exalted in the earth.”
11 The Lord of hosts is with us;
    the God of Jacob is our refuge

                              Psalm 46: 8-11 NRSVue

Yesterday more than 60 and perhaps several hundred young men died after a rocket attack blew up a barracks which was inexplicable placed next to an ammunition storage area. These were Russian soldiers, most recruits for the unjustified war of invasion against Ukraine. It's not surprising that the Ukrainian military celebrated this strike. Every dead or seriously injured Russian combatant reduced the potential a Ukrainian soldier is killed, and strategic strikes such as these must weaken the resolve of the Russian people. 

My heart sank when I heard about these deaths. It's likely that many of the soldiers were in their late teens and early twenties. We know that new recruits have been conscripted into the army against the will or have enlisted to escape poverty. While many Russian men fled the country rather than be called up to service, these are the ones who had limited options. Now they are dead, probably without ever having fired a shot in combat.

What is the sense of all this? There is none. When the new, ill-equipped, poorly trained, Russian soldiers are deployed there is fanfare with military officials extolling their courage and corrupt Russian Orthodox clergy blessing their ill-fated service. Nationalism and religion become a toxic brew. It's wicked, as war is so often wicked. 

I want the Russians to withdraw from Ukraine and for the courageous and resolute Ukrainian people to have the opportunity to rebuild and celebrate their independence. Just the same, the deaths of these soldiers and all who have died leaves a bitter taste in my mouth. God, break the bow and shatter the spear. 

The Most Important Resolution of 2023?

As the new year commences I'll offer the observation that resolutions for chumps and those who court failure. Okay, I may be a bit cynical after decades of mixed success in my own earnest attempts. Even though "they" have discovered that resolutions don't change much I do feel that doing an "examen" in different aspects of our lives, including spiritual, asking what we can change to bring health and reconciliation in personal relationships and in the broader perspective. Cynicism isn't an option for people of Christian hope. 

There is a resolution I would heartily recommend to everyone, and particularly those of us who are getting on in years. Prepare for the end. I don't mean adopt a catastrophic worldview, which is a mistake at any age. I'm talking about the practicalities of aging, failing health, end-of-life plans, and arrangements for the send-off of choice. 

One of our most painful experiences of 2022 was attending the memorial service of a beloved elder, a woman of faith and joi de vivre, who died rather suddenly. Her adult children were not on speaking terms, or at least with one of them, because of mental illness which resulted in this person's erratic behaviour, angry outbursts, and general belligerence. 

In the absence of clear plans for a funeral or memorial this sibling was given carte blanche to make arrangements. This became hellish for the funeral directors, the clergyperson, and the church musician. In the service, this person gave the only "tribute" which became an interminable ramble which was so self-absorbed that neither the lovely mother nor siblings and grandchildren received much more than passing attenton. At the cemetery adult grandchildren were reduced to tears by unacceptable behaviour. Only the skill and pastoral care of the minister and musicians saved this occasion from total disaster. 

I appreciate that this sounds like an extreme situation, and it certainly was. Yet we were also aware of another last year where a service was never held because of family tensions. I also spoke with decent, caring folk who were trying to provide support and direction for ill and dying family members while others were actually an impediment to doing so because of indifference or denial. 

Most of these issues were a reality all through my ministry but they seem to have become more pronounced in a time when fewer and fewer people are connected to communities of faith and are often suspicious of traditions and the expertise of others. 

Please, please live your life fully,  but do everything you can to make your wishes known in terms of power of attorney, end-of-life directives, and funerals. Put it in writing and, whenever possible, have a direct, eyeball to eyeball conversation with those who are closest to you, preferably all in the same room at the same time. This may require patience, and courage, and insistence, but for God's sake and your sake, do it. It's one of the most loving and practical things you undertake in 2023. 

How is that for a resolution?!

Resolution of a Devious, Be-wildered, Outsider

 

 

                                                      Ruth on Change Islands, Newfoundland 

Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth;
    break forth into joyous song and sing praises.

                                           Psalm 98:4 NRSVue

 When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain, and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. And he began to speak and taught them...

                                                  Matthew 5:1-2 NRSVue

Devious: definition 

(of a route or journey) longer and less direct than the most straightforward way.

"they arrived at the town by a devious route"

When I retired from congregational ministry five and half years ago I wrote that it was my goal to become more of a "bewildered outsider." a play on words to describe my commitment to enhancing my wellbeing and deepening my faith through time spent outdoors. I think I inserted a hyphen in "be-wildered" to emphasize that this wasn't about being "dazed and confused." It celebrates the enchantment of Creation and Creator. And while "outsider" conjures up not belonging, for me it is about being a member of the "communion of saints" which is all living creatures. 

Despite the hectic pace of ministry I always endeavoured to include rambling and paddling into my life, from the very beginning. Well before my ordination this was a shared interest with Ruth, and as children came along we figured out how to do this together. Looking back it seems that some of our adventures were a bit risky yet all three of our adult kids love the outdoors today.

As we begin 2023 I want to add another word to the phrase "devious." Again, what immediately comes to mind is someone sneaky or underhanded in their dealings with others. There is an alternate definition which is following a route other than the established way. 

In retirement we've done well with including time outside into our lives, nearly every day, and we make a conscious effort to acknowledge the Creator and the gifts to our senses during most outings. This has been immeasurably enriching, and a form of prayer.

What I haven't done is initiate opportunities to include others as a collective, "congregational" activity. I have been involved in the Algonquin Park Outdoor Ministry and a couple of other initiatives but it's been limited. Mind you, half of my retirement has been during the pandemic, which we all know knocked our best laid plans sideways, Getting outside saved our souls during the grimmest days of the pandemic but gathering wasn't possible, for the most part. 

Looking back through the years I have many positive memories of ministry in Christ's name, including camping trips with teens and congregational hikes. 

Yet I also regret the endless hours of discussion and wrangling over the "bricks and mortar" of church life, as though physical structures mattered more than anything else. And there were rivalries between congregations who were wedded to buildings which are now shuttered. It might be an exaggeration to say that choirs brawled over choir gowns, but it came close at times.  I estimate that the congregations I served collectively spent more than a million dollars on pipe organs, and while all of those churches are still open the musical instruments simply aren't used to anything like full effectiveness. 

Efforts to get people to think differently were often resisted and rebuffed, and some folk were just plain mean. Lots of them have gone to their eternal reward... or somewhere. Why, when Jesus ministered outside for so much of his ministry did we Christians become such rigid insiders? 

In 2023 I hope to be the "devious, be-wildered, outsider" God intends me to be. I pray that you can discover less established routes to a deeper, richer faith as well. 

Perhaps there will be opportunities to join with others in doing so, for the sake of all our souls and the health of the planet.