Hospital visit

Entrance to the UW Hospital

Today I visited one of my parishioners in the University of Washington Hospital in Seattle. He had surgery yesterday and today he's recovering nicely. He was patiently enduring the indignities of the hospital: IV lines, the ridiculous gown, circulation wraps on his legs, and nurses with their constant stream of pleasantly-phrased annoyances.

His wife was his constant companion -- she even slept in the hide-a-bed in the same room last night. I was impressed by her attentiveness to his needs. Whatever needed to be done, she was there to make sure it happened, whether it was something to drink, attention from a nurse, or phone calls to their family.

I said something about how much she was doing for him. She said, "It's a pleasure for me to do this."

I sensed a tremendous strength between the two of them. He was strong because she was there, and her inner strength and determination came from their common bond. They were truly going through this together.

It made me think of those words, "For better for worse, for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish..." I think together they could go to the ends of the earth.
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Living with integrity

From www.flickr.com

In the Old Testament lesson for next Sunday, the Psalmist says to God, "I have lived with integrity." Integrity seems to be a theme that runs through the readings for next Sunday.

The prophet Jeremiah laments that he has spoken God's word to the people, but he's received only rejection and humiliation in return. In answer, God tells him, "If you utter what is precious, and not what is worthless, you shall serve as my mouth...for I am with you to save you and deliver you."

God's reply is to encourage Jeremiah to keep his integrity as a man of God and not give in to those who revile him.

In the reading from Romans, Paul writes, "Let love be genuine." There are myriad ways to offer false love or shallow love. But let love have integrity, he says.

In the Gospel, Peter pulls Jesus aside and rebukes him for even thinking about his own death on a cross. Jesus reacts sharply, replying, "Get behind me Satan!" Jesus cannot lose his integrity at this point, but he must be true to his calling from God.

Daily we are tempted to compromise our personal integrity. But the scriptures encourage us to be true to our calling from God.
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Youth ministry workshop

Last Saturday I went to a workshop on youth ministry at St. Columba in Kent (I made the above sketch of the church while I was there).

I thought it would be a "how-to" workshop, but instead the presenter asked us to consider the parish resources we have that can be utilized for youth ministry. In other words, he didn't suggest a "one size fits all" style of youth ministry, but he emphasized the need to tailor your youth ministry to your own youth and your own parish.

He asked us to think about what our parishioners are passionate about, and ask them to share that with the youth. It might be baseball, or sailboats, or something about their job. He also asked us to think about what our youth are passionate about, and then tap into that passion. Is it sports, computer games, beauty pageants, art?

He asked us to think how we would approach these areas of youth ministry:
INVITE
WELCOME
INCLUDE
AFFIRM
EQUIP
SEND FORTH

All in all it was a thought-provoking workshop, and gave me lots of ideas to offer to our youth ministry.

Teaching with questions

In the Gospel reading for Sunday, Jesus asks the disciples two questions:

"Who do people say that the Son of Man is?"
"Who do you say that I am?"


As a teacher, Jesus uses various methods to help his students understand. Sometimes he gives talks, like the Sermon on the Mount. These talks usually contain pithy sayings that people in an oral culture would be able to retain and repeat easily.

Sometimes he tells stories (parables) which elicit a wide variety of responses in the listeners. The parables are designed to "tease the mind into thought", as C. H. Dodd famously said.

But in this passage, Jesus is using a third teaching method, the use of questions. First he asks them" Who do people say that I am?" This is simply a matter of reporting. All the disciples have to do is report what they've heard. It doesn't take any reflection or thought on their part.

Then Jesus asks, "But who do you say I am?" This question is much harder. Jesus isn't asking them to repeat the common understanding. He's asking them to reach down inside themselves and come up with their own answer. "Who do YOU say that I am?"

The first question doesn't require much on the part of the disciples, but the second question will lead to transformation if they really try to answer it. When we really seek to know who Jesus is for ourselves, we open ourselves to be transformed.

Most of us have a jumble of ideas who Jesus is, ideas that come from our parents, past teachers, cultural stereotypes, etc. All of those may be good. But only when we decide for ourselves and come up with our own answer will we really answer the second question.
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Do not be conformed

From www.flickr.com

In the Epistle for Sunday, Paul writes, "Do not be conformed to this world." To follow Jesus means to live with the values of Jesus and not the values we see around us. This means that sometimes we will have to be countercultural, when the values of our culture conflict with the values of Jesus.

The theologian Walter Brueggemann says that the two areas of conflicting values today are money and sex. Our world is obsessed with sex, and we have tremendous ambivalence about what is acceptable and what is not. We've lost our boundaries.

The second area he mentions is money, especially commoditization. Our culture turns everything into a commodity which can then be bought and sold. Once something becomes a commodity, it loses its sacredness, integrity, and humanness. Our earth, our time, our affections -- everything is up for sale.

"Do not be conformed to this world." Question everything.
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Our bodies

From www.flickr.com

I remember sitting in the pew as a child with the members of my family, squirming and jostling with the bodies next to me -- the bodies of my parents and brother and sisters. I knew I was supposed to be quiet and sit still, but it was hard to do. I was a "wiggleworm", my mom said.

So I learned to sit quietly, hands folded, eyes ahead, body still. Imagine how hard it was for me, then, when I started attending an Episcopal church and the priest suggested we make the sign of the cross with our hand. Forehead, sternum, left shoulder, right shoulder. "Why, that's just Catholic superstition," my mind said to me.

But when I actually tried it, it felt good. I felt I was using my physical body to signify what was going on in my mind. It seemed to integrate the mental and physical, body and soul.

Our bodies are important. Faith isn't just a matter of intense mental effort. It's also something we do with our bodies. We have to act out our faith.

In the reading from the letter of Paul to the Romans for Sunday, Paul says, "I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship."

Coming to church is often an aggravation. Why not just stay at home and read the Bible or pray? But, as Paul says, we have to get up off the couch and present our bodies before the Lord in the holy place. What we do with our bodies is important.

When I distribute Communion at the altar rail, I'm profoundly touched by those who come to receive communion. There are old bodies aching with arthritis, young bouncing children's bodies, sagging middle aged bodies, bodies with cancer, young peoples' bodies brimming with confusing sexual feelings, carefully manicured bodies, and strong athletic bodies. All kinds of bodies.

"Present your bodies," Paul says. Get up out of bed, bring your body to the altar rail, eat with God's family at God's table, and go out into the world to do the work God has given you to do.


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The Burial Office for Walt

Today we said the Burial Office for Walt. Of all the liturgies in the Book of Common Prayer, I think the Burial Office is the most profound and eloquent. The opening anthem is stark and vivid; the prayers are powerful and resonant; and the movement from grief to release is liberating.

We had a full church. Many people who have not been to St. Antony's in years were there to pay their respects. I was so proud of our congregation for their positive, loving spirit of hospitality and welcome to all who came. Thanks be to God.