To be With You Forever

6EasterA, Sullivan Park Care Center, May 25, 2014, by Sr Annette Fricke, OP

            Chapter 14 of the gospel of John is a long discourse that Jesus has with his disciples.  It actually takes place before Jesus goes to the cross although in the lectionary, it is appointed for the Sunday preceding the Ascension.  In ways that are similar to the resurrection, yet a bit different, the Ascension is a confirmation that Jesus is doing and will do that which he promised at every step in his ministry.  Above all else, this section of scripture is meant to be a comfort to his disciples, who by this time are in a state of panic, realizing that Jesus is telling them that he is going away.  Jesus says, “I am leaving, but I will also return.”  The language can be a bit confusing.  How is it that Jesus can leave and return?  Unlike the other gospels and Paul, the teaching here is a departure.  Do we need a dramatic second coming of Jesus that will set everything straight?  Or do we go along with John who essentially says that Jesus remains with us, is in us, and abides with us, even when we don’t sense his presence with us in any sort of way.  After all, few people among those who call themselves by the name ‘Christian’ actually have mystical, personal experiences of him.  I am not here to step on anyone’s personal beliefs about Jesus—you are free to believe what you want-- but merely to point out that there is no thief in the night or talk of Jesus coming a second time to reward the faithful and punish the unfaithful in John’s gospel.  John simply offers the picture of Jesus’ comforting presence that continues beyond the resurrection appearances.  There is also no ascension in John. 

On the other hand, the liturgical tradition that I grew up with and thought about many times was also going through the minds of the shapers of the liturgy.  The words I was raised on in my church still echo in my head, “He who believes and is baptized shall be saved.  Grant this, O Lord, unto us all.”  When you really think about these words, they are not comforting. They are exclusionary. As of 1978, those words were stricken and were deemed to be false and not true to the gospel.  It was and still is, for some people, a cataclysmic idea.  If you expressed this idea in my seminary class, you were at the least, looked upon with suspicion and you had better not express this idea openly.  John represents a Christian tradition that is not exclusive, but inclusive.  Jesus does not discriminate.  His life is one of treating all of society on an equal plane, discounting no one, not even a Samaritan woman or a Gentile. In spite of our temptation to make Christianity like a club in which some are in and some are out, it is not a club and the exclusionary rules of a club do not apply.

Because of our tendency to wander from the path, the question is posed to us every day: how do I follow Jesus?  How can I be the presence of Jesus, i.e., of God to others?  The answer to that question, we are told is this, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.”  God’s love is the source of life and as Jesus walked in love, so we are also expected to walk in love.  Jesus’ whole life is one of a demonstration of God’s love.  There is no more perfect example to lie before us than that of Jesus’ love for all people.  God’s love is personified in Jesus.  Jesus, despite betrayal, rejection and abandonment of even his closest friends, continues to love to the very end of his life in the flesh.  This chapter tells us that it extends also into eternity.  Nobody can quench the love of God in Jesus because Jesus is sending another advocate.  The phrase seems to imply that Jesus is an advocate as well as the Holy Spirit that Jesus promises to send.

The word in Greek that translates as ‘advocate’ here means one who is called to assist someone in need.  The sense is somewhat like that of a lawyer.  A lawyer is to stand by your side when you are on trial and is to be your aide.  In this setting, as well as that of other Christian and non-Christian uses of the time, it appears to be more of a general sense, one who appears in another’s behalf, a mediator, intercessor, or helper. It seems most appropriate that Jesus is the one who intercedes for us by way of context, but here, the ‘another advocate’ is identified as a separate entity. It appears, in fact that the Holy Spirit is the designated one who functions in this sense.  The Holy Spirit is the one who is the comforter and will abide with us when Jesus is no longer in sight. As to whether this is a first or second coming or just the interlude when Jesus goes to the cross is ambiguous and maybe even purposefully ambiguous.  The point is this: Jesus promises to never leave us, even though his presence with us in the flesh is long gone.

We are still here and are bidden by Jesus to continue his work on earth.  His presence is our comfort and our strength to do it.  He is in us just as he is in the Father.  His spirit resides in the Holy Spirit promised to all who believe in him.  As we wind our way through the gospel of John, we see the Jesus of hospitality at the wedding at Cana where water is changed to wine.  We see Jesus informing us that God loves the whole world when he spoke with Nicodemus.  John the Baptist says of him that Jesus gives the Spirit without measure.  Jesus tells the Samaritan woman details of her life, yet withholds judgment, telling her that he will give her living water.  Jesus heals a man unable to walk for 38 years.  Jesus feeds the hungry.  Jesus causes a man blind from birth to see. Jesus taught and Jesus preached.  In spite of Jesus’ constantly being challenged, ridiculed, and rejected by those he came to give both physical and spiritual life, he continued to the end to bear the burden of that rejection, to be chastised, and reviled in so many ways.  These are the sorts of things that Jesus expects of us if we indeed love him.  Doing, preaching and teaching these things and teaching others to do the same is keeping his commandments.  This is how Jesus lives and abides in us.  This is how we live a resurrected life.

The story is told about a judge who lived in a southern town, where prejudice pervaded every corner and crevice of the community.  He was approached by the pastor of his congregation to participate in the annual foot washing service on Maundy Thursday.  He was invited to wash the feet of his own former slave.  They both thought it best if it was not announced beforehand.  When the time came, he called her up.  In front of the whole gathered congregation of over 500 in attendance, she came forward and he tenderly and lovingly washed her feet.  No words were exchanged. He figured there would be some backlash and there was.  Daring to love others always carries with it that risk of becoming vulnerable before the opinions and actions of others.  Instead of the negativity of some, it inspired others to continue to work to break down the long standing prejudicial treatment of many. If you love me, you will keep my commandments.  And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you forever.  Amen.

Easter Re-run

This is a sermon I previously wrote and preached on Easter Wednesday.  I was sick with a sinus infection this week, thus the re-run.  Enjoy anyway.

Easter Sunday Text, Cycle A, Sullivan Park Care Center, May 18, 2014 by Sr. Annette Fricke, OP

            I have been keenly aware recently of the presence of my mother in my thoughts.  Her birthday was April 24, the Thursday following Easter, the same as it was in the year of her birth, 1924. The question that runs through my mind is one of vocation.  All of us are called to witness to the gospel, to live out that gospel of the resurrection in our lives.  That is what the pastor was getting at when he asked our family about her at her death and yet, we had little to offer.  Imagine this: her children who had been born, baptized, confirmed and communed in the church, in the shock of our grief, were unable to come up with only very little for an answer.  Maybe it was put in such a way that we did not understand what he was getting at or maybe we just hadn’t thought about it that much---perhaps we should have.  Perhaps we should have paid more attention. The moment of our mother’s death had come, and we had few answers.  Somewhere along the line, we lost sight of what the church was trying to teach us.  Was the failure our church or our own seeming inability to understand?  Even though he spoke to us in plain, simple English, we did not comprehend his meaning.  The question remains for all of us.  What is your vocation and how do you proclaim the gospel in that vocation?  Our vocation encompasses more than just the occupation that we are paid to do or volunteer to do as the case may be.

Throughout the Gospel of John, we see contrasts in what people say and do as being the difference between dark and light, night and day.  In this story, Mary of Magdalene runs to the tomb while it is still dark, while it is still difficult to see to make ones way.  She is looking for Jesus’ body because she believes that Jesus is probably dead in the tomb, just like any other man, despite what he said about coming back in three days.  She is clearly in deep grief.  She truly loved the Lord with all her heart. The other disciples come and see the burial wrappings, but then go home. We are not told what they thought or felt. But Mary stays back; weeping outside the tomb.  Two angels have asked her, “Why are you weeping?”  Then she is asked the same question by Jesus, “Why are you weeping?”  In this resurrection account, it is Mary who sees and has conversation with Jesus.  She is a true eye witness to Jesus’ resurrection.  If we take the interpretation that some have purported, John separates the believers from the non-believers.  In John, the people who sit in darkness are not believers.  We are told that “the other disciple” saw and believed, but Peter saw and went back home. Mary, in fact, has a special encounter with the risen Christ in the garden.  In her grief and probably still unbelief, she thinks maybe he is the gardener.  Even though her words betray her still inability to understand what has happened, she is still seeking understanding.  Faith is not static.  It is not a noun, but a verb which calls us to action and is ever evolving over time.  We also continue to grow and learn in our faith, even in the midst of sorrow.  As I saw it in my mother when I last saw her, I continue to believe that the death of many of her friends led her into grieving because of her loss of their active friendship.  I think the primary focus of this text is Mary and has little to do with the other disciples.  Mary is truly a model of discipleship.  She sees Jesus and she proclaims to the other disciples that she has seen the Lord.

Who is this Jesus?  Think about the setting in the garden and that Mary thought him to be the gardener. This passage is reminiscent of the Garden of Eden in Genesis chapter 3, where God is in the garden.  This is one of those passages where Christians got the idea that Jesus is the second Adam.  The first Adam disobeyed God whereas Jesus was fully obedient, even to death on a cross.  Mary is confronted by Jesus in the garden, “Why are you weeping?” and “Who are you looking for?” 

            It is difficult to see things clearly when we are grieving or in pain.  Things are distorted.  Our world gets darkened and sometimes depressing.  We may have a feeling of being lost and alone.  We may feel that there is a cloud hanging over us that we are not able to dispel. It is difficult for us to see beyond our present moments, our thoughts and desires, our inmost wishes.  Our hearts and our lives are broken and we weep also,  just like Mary.  Just as my mother, we can become preoccupied with the loss of our friends.  The first thing many of us look for in the paper is the obituary column to see who died. We want to know who died and yet, it creates sadness when we find out. Some try to avoid that sadness by not reading the paper or not going to the memorial service.  People do the same with Jesus and do not attend the Good Friday service. Some want to skip straight to the resurrection and not think about death which awaits all of us. None of us are immune to death, not even Jesus.  Death is inevitable.

            Why are we weeping?  We weep because death comes to all of us.  It is a fact of living as a human on earth.  The trees we love die.  The dogs and cats we love die.  The people we love the most also die. Even though through the study of science, we may be able to extend the life span of some and eradicate certain illnesses, death remains.  In the movie, The Green Mile, the warden was blessed with the power of one of his prisoners who gave him an extended life.  He grew to be very old, but he was also keenly aware that death would also someday come to him.

            Note the details of the gospel of John.  Nowhere in the entire gospel does Jesus actually address anyone by his or her name.  He speaks almost equally to both men and women, but only at this moment of resurrection does he address anyone by name.  In no other place before, but here he does that when he says, “Mary!”  It is in the middle of our grieving that Jesus comes to us and calls us by our names.  Jesus is no longer with a crowd, but going to people individually and two walking alone, and to his eleven disciples.  Jesus is no longer the sought after, but goes seeking his disciples, those he loved here.  But that is not enough and that is not the end of the story.  Our grief and our sorrow over the losses in our lives are not the end, but a new beginning. We need to go beyond this story and see that he seeks us out as well because we now take on that role as his disciples. 

            Jesus’ seeking others to be his disciples is now our role.  Remember what he said to us in this gospel.  Feed my sheep.  Feed my lambs.  These words are not just for the inner circle of the faithful, but apply to every believer.  In Jesus, God has flung open the doors to the kingdom.  All are invited to the celebration of the one who rose to live forevermore and calls us too, to live in that resurrected life.  Can you hear him call you? He is calling your name now. Listen. You are a new person in Christ.  He calls you by name.  Those who have sat in darkness have seen a great light. Let that light shine; let everyone know that Jesus is alive.

Shepherd and Gate

4EasterA, Good Shepherd Sunday, Sullivan Park Care Center, May 11, 2014 by Sr Annette Fricke, OP

            Today is known as Good Shepherd Sunday, even though this image may have been lost over the years as our main way of living and working has gone from that of an agrarian society to that of lesser and lesser manufacturing to that of technological advances.  The gap has widened so much that the older generation often needs extensive instruction on how to make use of these high tech devices that children seem to pick up with ease. Many of the older generation have firsthand knowledge of sheep, but fewer of our children know anything about sheep or have actually seen sheep unless they have seen them at a local fair.  But seeing sheep at a fair or auction tells little about them and even less is known if they are simply seen at the grocery store.  I think I would be pretty accurate in saying that the age of someone has much to do with how understandable this gospel text is.  This gospel text is confusing, even if you do know about sheep.  I am hoping that this passage from Acts 20 might shed some light for us as to what John 10 might mean. 

Acts 20:28-29 uses some of the same language as our gospel text: “Keep watch over yourselves and over all the flock, of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God that he obtained with the blood of his own son. I know that after I have gone, savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. Some even from your own group will come distorting the truth in order to entice the disciples to follow them.”

Ever since the Christian movement began, even as Jesus went to the cross, there were the detractors, the deceivers, and the people outside Jesus’ followers as well as his own disciples who didn't like the direction Jesus was going.  Sometimes these misguided leaders take others with them.  We see this when there is the argument between the disciples as to who is the greatest among them.  We see it when a disciple of Jesus is asks, “Who can sit at your right and your left when you come into power?”  Who will become the first pope?  Is it Peter or Paul?  And later down the line it was questioned as to whether we need a pope at all.  Some in the churches have never let go of that need for power.  When I was working in mental health, I had a conversation with my cubicle mate about the fact that both of us had been in seminary and ended up working with the mentally ill.  He said to me that he never really wanted to be a priest.  I asked him why and he said it was because he thought that the hierarchy of the church was caught up in a need for power.  It left a bad taste in his mouth.  He found his answer to that by staying within the framework of helping people through counseling.  I see him as a great example of shepherding people by encouragement, direction, and nurturance.  He helps people through counseling to be their best selves.  He serves God in this way.  Another of my co-workers at the same agency was once a nun.  She decided later in life to become an advanced nurse practitioner.  Her role was to prescribe medications for those in counseling.  She once said that she thought people ought to be able to go through school without having to sit through all those lectures, just read the materials and come to your own conclusions.  She also was a strong advocate of over the counter medications, by-passing the prescription process.  Both of these people were just the opposite of power-seeking individuals. 

Be aware of the people around you.  What are their motives?  Don’t discount your own powers of coming to a conclusion on your own.  Ask others whom you trust about people you don’t know.  Are people guiding you to the truth or falsehood?  It’s not just being paranoid of others, it’s seeking to know the truth about others and where they might be trying to guide us.  For example, some of you may remember a few years ago when federal agents “joined” churches and Bible study groups who were supporting sanctuary for Central Americans. These people were not interested in learning about Jesus and becoming Christians.  Remember also a number of years ago, the “moonies” were going through towns soliciting funds. However, they never identified themselves as “moonies” or members of the Unification Church. They had a list of registered names such as the “Fellowship of the Holy Spirit.” They were not honest about who they were and what they were about. I have witnessed personally religious groups coming to my door to witness, but they never come right out and say what religious group they belong to at the beginning of the speech.  And they always assume that I do not believe in Jesus Christ, even if I tell them that I do.  But in this regard, I offer this.  In sorting out what it now past, even if in your mind, you did not like specific people coming to your door to convert you to their way of thinking, think of it this way: what if they gain your heart on another level.  What if, instead of arguing over what is true or not true about Jesus, you simply try to be a friend.  We don’t have to agree to anything that is contrary to our beliefs, but we can be friends.  There is only so much you can do with arguing and correcting, but speaking from the heart will have the most impact in any relationship.  All true conversion is a conversion of the heart.  More hearts are won through invitation than through argument.

Jesus is the gate for the sheep.  We are, each of us as believers in Jesus, the sheep.  We all are still learning to the very end of our lives how to follow Jesus.  Jesus knows each of us personally and calls each of us by name.  In the gospel text a couple of Sundays ago, Jesus meets Mary Magdalene in the garden and says to her, “Mary.”  Up to that point, she thought maybe he was the gardener.  He is the one who laid down his life for us in order that we too might live and all the other sheep of his flock.  Jesus calls each of us to enter by him, for he is the one who gives to us sustenance and nourishment.  It is he who will protect us from those who would lead us astray. He says to us, “Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture.”  John is concerned about the integrity of the Christian community, that they remain faithful to Jesus’ words and teaching.  He knows that there will be others who will come along and try to destroy Christians and distort the word of God.  Do not believe them, but continue to believe the faith that has been handed to you throughout the generations alongside your own search for truth in the scriptures, your own Bible Studies among the faithful, your own seeking in prayer.  Don’t be led astray, but know that Jesus is always there for you and looking out for your best interests. 

Jesus models for us during his ministry here on earth how we also are to be both a gate and a shepherd.  In our reading from I Peter, we read, “For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you should follow in his footsteps.”  We are not called to complain, but to remember that Christ, in his suffering suffers with us.  When we remember this, we are enabled to keep his charge: Keep watch over yourselves and over all the flock, of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God that he obtained with the blood of his own son. 

The Day is Long

3EasterA, Sullivan Park Care Center, May 4, 2014 by Sr Annette Fricke, OP

            There is a common thread that runs throughout the gospel stories.  Crowds of people flock to hear Jesus throughout his entire ministry.  The gospel of Luke is no exception.  We are told as early as this gospel’s chapter 5 that the crowds were pressing in on Jesus so much that he got into a boat to speak to them.  People were hungry for his words, sometimes so hungry that they would not even think to bring food with them, but would listen intently to him for hours.

            As Jesus nears the cross, the crowds disappear and one by one, almost all of his followers leave his presence.  They leave because they still have the idea stuck in their heads that Jesus would be an earthly king to replace Caesar, to overturn Roman rule. The people are keenly aware of the bondage they feel, but the solution Jesus presents just doesn’t make any sense.  In fact, it is nonsense. Their sentiment is that, “Jesus led us down the road and now he is abandoning us.” And with the resurrection appearances, the trend continues.  It is no longer the crowds coming and seeking Jesus.  Not only do the crowds abandon him, but even those most loyal and close to him.  They still do not really comprehend what has happened. So Jesus goes about seeking his disciples.  He wants them to know that he is alive. He comes to them individually, by pairs, in small groups. 

This gospel text is one of those stories.  The day is long.  The resurrection appearances of Jesus are told in such a way that we are given the impression that it is one very long, stretched out day, like a day that lasts forever.  The Passover is over, and the Jewish observers of this most important feast on their religious calendar are returning to their private residences and lives.  The high, celebratory feast is over, but even more of a letdown is that Jesus guy, the one we thought to be the Messiah, who we thought would save Israel isn’t here.  He even talked about saving the whole world. It was a great feast and it was great to see all the relatives and catch up on what’s been going on in their lives, but now it’s time to get back to our ordinary, mundane lives. We know he told us several times that he would suffer and die and return, but it’s been three days and the women who went to the tomb told the apostles that he was raised, but where is the proof?  Where is Jesus? The disciples were shocked, sorrowing, profoundly discouraged and downright disappointed. In one word, they felt betrayed. The witness of the women was simply not enough.  You may or may not understand a lot about sports, but I think you can understand this.  One of the most important things to remember in a sport like football or baseball is to not drop the ball.  Why?  Because then it goes to the other team.  Possession is supremely important.  If you don’t believe me, watch at the emotional reaction from parents and fellow students when a player does this in an actual game, especially a final tournament match for first place.  The disciples dropped the ball.  The disciples’ whole identity was bound up with Jesus.  What are they to do if what he told them is not true?  What if Jesus did not rise from the grave?  What if what the women said really was an idle tale? Jesus turned their lives upside down into a whole new way of thinking, and believing in God.  If Jesus did not rise from the tomb, the disciples have a huge identity crisis.  I cannot speak for you, but I think most of us living in the post-resurrection era really don’t grasp the full impact of that first day of resurrection. And further, I don’t think we give enough credit to the gospel writers.  If there is any section of any gospel that includes the emotions of what happened, the resurrection appearances are them.  Luke says they were amazed.  Mark says that terror and amazement seized them and they were afraid. Matthew says that even the women left the tomb with fear. 

So here we are in the midst of our own ordinary lives.  We have our times of struggle, foibles, and misunderstandings.  We sometimes live as though Jesus is not risen, as though he is still dead in the tomb.  We react with anger or depression and sometimes really wishing things had been different.  A first cousin dies as a teen in a car crash.  An aunt gives birth to a baby that only lives a couple of days.  A mother has a couple of miscarriages.  A sister’s marriage ends in divorce.  A son or daughter does not come back from the war.  A spouse, son or daughter dies before you do.  A family is disappointed about the care received in a nursing facility or hospital.  The Malaysian plane that may never be found and all the lives lost in that crash. People in our own state die from a mud slide. People are fearful when they see in the news that scientists have predicted another eruption of Mt St Helens. The list goes on.  There are times when we also want to ask Jesus, “Why have you abandoned us?” “Why are you so far from helping us?” The people of today also ask the same questions as the disciples.  We also want to know, “Where is Jesus?”  Even those who profess belief in Jesus sometimes sense his absence more than his presence.

The story on the road to Emmaus is the story of our life’s journey as Christians.  It is a continual re-reading of the scriptures, participating in the sacrament of Jesus’ body and blood, both of which are a renewing of our faith by doing this.   Both of these things are tools by which Jesus is summoned to live with us and in us. Where is Jesus?  Jesus is in the scriptures and the sacraments.  Where does the gospel of John say the disciples actually recognized Jesus?  It is in the breaking of the bread, the sacrament of Holy Communion.  Verse 30 reads quite plainly, “When he was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them.  Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him.”  Jesus wants us to have a continuing relationship with him, to continue to walk with him down our entire life’s journey.  Jesus invites himself into our lives in all our joys and all of our sorrows, especially when we are suffering through any life event that may be happening to us or others.  Jesus himself endured the ultimate suffering by dying on the cross.  His presence is always there, even though we don’t always recognize it.

Jesus explained to his disciples back then so many years ago and explains it again to us just who he is and what he came to do.  He explains the whole story of Moses and the prophets, what they said, and how Jesus is God’s answer who brings wholeness between God and all of creation.

We all come before God as broken people, but if left as just broken people, we will have no hope; just like the disciples on the road to Emmaus.  Our sorrows in life cause us to be blind to Jesus who is always before us, even in the fellowship as we gather together in worship. The day is long.  The resurrection appearances of Jesus are told in such a way that we are given the impression that it is one very long, stretched out day, like a day that lasts forever.