Things You Ought to Know

The Rev. Joanne Sanders

Stanford Memorial Church

June 1, 2008

THINGS YOU OUGHT TO KNOW

Thoughts for graduates and all those facing new beginnings

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. ~Ps. 46

The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew…but the house did not fall because it had been founded on rock. ~ Matthew 7: 25

Today is an extraordinary day. It is because of the privilege --- one I do not take lightly or for granted ----- to stand in this pulpit in a most magnificent sacred place like Memorial Church. But Joanne what’s the big deal you might ask? You’ve done it before so many times.

It’s extraordinary because I have the honor to share this sacred time of reflection this morning with Cheryl Pruce, a graduating senior and upon entering Stanford in 2003, one of my first freshmen advisees. So this is no ordinary day for me – who would have thought Cheryl that we would mark both an end and a new beginning for you in this way? It is an extraordinary moment, and one I’ll cherish for a very long time.

Morris and his wife Esther went to the state fair every year, and every year Morris would say, 'Esther, I'd like to ride in that helicopter.'
Esther always replied, 'I know Morris, but that helicopter ride is fifty dollars, and fifty dollars is fifty dollars.'
One year Esther and Morris went to the fair, and Morris said, 'Esther, I'm 85 years old. If I don't ride that helicopter, I might never get another chance.'
To this, Esther replied, 'Morris that helicopter ride is fifty dollars, and fifty dollars is fifty dollars.'
The pilot overheard the couple and said, 'Folks I'll make you a deal. I'll take the both of you for a ride. If you can stay quiet for the entire ride and don't say a word I won't charge you a penny! But if you say one word it's fifty dollars.'

Morris and Esther agreed and up they went. The pilot did all kinds of fancy maneuvers, but not a word was heard. He did his daredevil tricks over and over again, but still not a word.
When they landed, the pilot turned to Morris and said, 'By golly, I did everything I could to get you to yell out, but you didn't. I'm impressed!'
Morris replied, 'Well, to tell you the truth, I almost said something when Esther fell out, but you know, fifty dollars is fifty dollars!'

On the topic of today’s reflections: Things you ought to know, one of the first that came to mind for me was ---

Find your voice. True, there may be a time to speak and a time to be silent, as this little humorous story illustrates, but it’s important to use our voice and speak with authority when the time comes. There may be too much at risk.

So what does finding our voice really mean?

Mahatma Gandhi, spiritual and religious leader of India, once wrote, “If you want to feel the aroma of Christianity, you must copy the rose. The rose irresistibly draws people to itself, and the scent remains with them. Even so, the aroma of Christianity is subtler even than that of the rose and should, therefore, be imparted in an even quieter and more imperceptible manner if possible.”

Christianity, as one example, has largely been filtered through the mind and experience of Western civilization, and thus shows a preference for the words of Scripture, which are supposedly active, rational, aggressive, decisive, conclusive, measurable and provable. One could suggest that as a result, much of Western Christianity lacks a deep inner authority and is often caught up in disguised struggles to find that authority.

The illustration in today’s gospel of Jesus as one having authority, which astounded the crowds, is one I would suggest is counter to this disguised struggle. Though his followers and adherents had made claims to prophesy and perform many deeds of power, which might seem impressive, Jesus used the imagery of storms to depict the difficulties of living alternative practices out of step with an imperial society. Those alternative practices are those I suspect come from a deep, quiet and imperceptible authority. You know who are you are and do not need to prove yourself or even convert others to your side.

“Finding one’s voice is about discovering an inner authority and seems to come from experiencing our experiences, and experiencing them as deeply as our own…those with inner authority draw life from within because there is a life within – not just laws, principles, duties or fears, but life. And they know what wisdom has taught them: you can only build on life,” wrote theologian Richard Rohr.

Continues Rohr: “When the world meets people whose center of gravity is within themselves and not just in religion or answers, the world will draw close like moths to a flame. When we meet people who know that they know, and know that they know so much more than they can possibly understand and yet have the trust, confidence and patience to remain in that knowledge, we’ll perhaps

begin to have people who can truly represent a distinctive, deep and authentic inner authority.

The inner authority, the authentic voice that we need must be total. It can no longer come only from mere religious mandates or scriptural interpretation. It must also come from our own souls and from community. It does not happen alone.”

As my religious life colleagues Scotty, Patricia, and I read the speeches seniors had submitted for the Baccalaureate contest – and one you will hear momentarily from Cheryl – there was a common and resounding theme that emerged: that we are not essentially self-created, but all tied together in a chain of being and dependency – community – which in fact allows for entrance into a deeper life. The senior class presidents – who helped select our finalists and eventual classmate who will speak at Baccalaureate, were clearly impacted and drawn by this notion of our dependency on community, on one another. I found that quite striking.

We find our voice, or come into our sense of inner authority as we admit and recognize a positive and mature dependency on others and freely enter into a mature exchange of life and power. This is necessary and good. “The powers of the world, who are always fighting time deadlines, management goals, and profit scales do not expect to be motivated from within,” writes Richard Rohr. “They cannot afford to be, lest people seek truth instead of control. But we who seek to build the earth in the image of God – what about us?”

The author of life bids us to share in this endeavor of God’s freedom and authority in finding our voices. This will take longer, but it will also last longer; and this God seems to be building for the long haul. God, our refuge and our strength as the psalmist declares today, bids us to build wisely upon a rock, one that can withstand the storms and uncertainties of our time.

Mary Oliver, a marvelous and favorite poet, writes in Song of the Builders:

“On a summer morning I sat down on a hillside to think about God – a worthy pastime. Near me, I saw a single cricket; it was moving the grains of the hillside this way and that way. How great was its energy, how humble its effort. Let us hope it will always be like this, each of us going on in our inexplicable ways building the universe.”

Notes:

Sojourners Magazine; March 1981.

Why I Wake Early; Mary Oliver; Beacon Press, 2004.

Linda G. Miller

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