Sermon
Epiphany VII Year A
19/2/17
Eltham
Readings
OT: Leviticus 19:1-2,9-18
Psalm: Psalm 119: 33-40
NT: 1 Corinthians 3: 10-17
Gospel: Matthew 5: 38-48
+FSHS
Yesterday we held a meeting to talk about what we as a community, here at St Margaret’s, might do to help and engage with the refugees who are being settled here at Arundel House. There were representatives from local Catholic, Uniting, and other Anglican churches, and three speakers addressed us: our own Dave Miles talking about his experience, Nick from the Brotherhood of St Laurence, and Fr Samir, who is a Syrian Catholic priest, and whose presence really was a gift. He shared stories of his homeland, of the people he knows, works with, and ministers among, who have fled their homes and lives. Of a ten year old girl whose legs were blown off when she was at school on a Saturday, receiving instruction for her confirmation. Of the frustration of people who have fled persecution, who are currently in camps in countries hostile to their faith, who have no hope of ever going home, and whose application to come here was turned down and denied. Of an initiative to gather medical supplies and old prostheses to send back to Syria, because the hospitals have been bombed, and surely desperate people would find a use for that which we have thrown away. He spoke with passion, anguish and heartache powerfully present in his words and stories. For the first time, for me he put a human face to the anguish and suffering shown on the news each night and to which we have largely become immune. Inflexibility of law and the rule of injustice justice paradoxically brings.
If you remember, through January we reflected on titles for Jesus: Davidic King and Messiah, New Moses, Son of God, Lamb of God. Last two weeks we’ve been thinking about how we live, following through the first part of the Sermon on the Mount. Last week we heard some pretty confronting truths about how to deal with conflict, and about examining the motivations in our thoughts and hearts. Our readings today pick up on the theme of the law, and the command to “be holy”, “be perfect”. Remember, Matthew has a interest in portraying Jesus in a particular light. He has what's called a high christology - Jesus is the Son of God, the Son of Man, the Son of David. Matthew's church community were trying to work out who they were: they had been kicked out of the synagogue because of what they were saying about Jesus. Instead of Moses the Lawgiver, to whom the synagogue rulers appealed for authority, Matthew paints Jesus as the Lawgiver, the New Moses, thus giving divine authority to the fledgling church community. This also explains why the Pharisees and Sadducees are painted throughout Matthew's gospel as the mean baddies.
The Pharisees and Sadducees were keen on the law of Moses and its interpretation. Jesus' Sermon on the Mount is a smack in the face to the righteous professionals of Jesus' day. In each instance Jesus says, "You've heard it said... but let me tell you." "But wait! there's still more!" And each time, unlike in the cheesy commercials, it's not an extra pot or pan or a twofer deal, but a demand which so exceeds the original law as to be ridiculous... "Turn the other cheek." "Go the extra mile." These sayings have become part of English language usage, and we've heard them (and used them) so many times that the sting in them - supposedly about selfless giving - has become just one more of the "good Christian" things we are "supposed" to do.
There's so much more to it than that. If we stop with "Jesus says to turn the other cheek" then we miss out on what lies behind what he's saying. The point he's making is not that we should be foolish and allow people to beat us up, exploit us, rob us, and embrace people who want to kill us. The sort of outlook and behaviour he is pointing towards is behaviour which ends violence. An attitude which refuses to engage and play the same violent games. Jesus came, afterall, to end our violence - towards God, towards each other, towards ourselves. And he is simply instructing his would-be disciples to do the same - to live lives of integrity and peace. It's therefore not enough to love your neighbour (ie, those around you) - but to love those who want to violently end life... that’s much much harder, especially when we realise that this is not just a passive acceptance, but an active decision to absorb the violence and end its path of destruction. Looking at it this way, what Jesus is commanding is not a burdensome "thou shalt" rule or law. It becomes an active and liberating and exciting choice.
But even so, his last exhortation "be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect" places the whole venture well beyond our reach. "Well," we say. "We might as well pack up and go home, because hell will freeze over before we are able to be perfect, at least in this life." Once again we remind ourselves that Matthew is painting Jesus as the New Moses. And the original Moses said something which is almost an exact echo of what Jesus says here. Speaking God's words Moses says, "Be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy." Unfortunately being commanded to be holy is not something that’s easy; that didn’t play out particularly well in the life of the people of Israel..
What is holiness? Is holiness just following rules? That's the very mistake the Pharisees of Jesus' time made. Holiness looks like this: being generous and having compassion for the most vulnerable people, which also precludes avariciousness in oneself - that attitude of "it's mine, all mine!" Holiness looks like this: being honest in all dealings, not stealing what belongs to another, dealing honestly with one another, telling the truth and not weaving a web of lies and deceit. Holiness therefore also looks like this: doing justice and seeking to bring about justice for all, especially those who are disadvantaged. Holiness looks like this: compassion and genuine love. Holiness is not glory enclosed in an unassailable and eternal crystal - far off, the inapproachable light surrounding a distant God. Holiness is lived out among us, among people, in community, in relationship with one another, in every day, simple ways. Once again we're back to exactly what Jesus was saying... Being holy, being perfect, is about living with justice, compassion, generosity, integrity, honesty - seeking to end the violence, oppression and injustice which marrs relationships and communities. Being holy, being perfect, is not a pipe dream far far away, but something that we live here, now, in this moment, and in the next minute, next hour, next week, next year. Far from being a lifeless set of commands, Jesus and his precursor Moses both point to what God has been saying all along: love me, work with me, love my people, work with my people. Love is relationship, not dry and joyless obedience. Holiness is about wholeness, unity in diversity, and living in right relationship with ourselves, with others, with God.
Holiness shone through what Fr Samir was saying yesterday at our meeting: the small initiatives for children to learn musical instruments and be part of a band; the gift of space from a Catholic parish on Sydney road; the fact that the group of volunteers who come in to help teach English once a week go away more blessed than the blessing they have shared with the refugees of learning our language. And the interesting thing is that in all these (relatively) small things, the energy, life, and growth of the Spirit was tangible.
We know that Jesus in the power of the Spirit is also among us, guiding us, leading us, teaching us as his disciples. Holiness for us might look like exploring how we might be involved in supporting refugees in finding rental accommodation after their initial settlement at Arundel House, and/or befriending them. Holiness for us might look like continuing to work together, to love one another, to choose to resolve our conflicts with integrity and mutual respect - without wallpapering over our differences, because different points of view are a gift to us. We can choose - because holiness is a journey and not a destination - to end the violence in our relationships. To do so is to be made Jesus' disciples. There is a further sense too, that we really are being called to focus on this year. Our working together as a community in loving relationships, becoming holy together is incomplete if there's not a corresponding openness to the world around us. In fact, our holiness and truly being Jesus' disciples can't happen without striving for justice, compassion, generosity, integrity, and actively seeking an end to violence in relationships in our wider community. What happens here, in our midst, carries out into the world. That’s both daunting and exciting. May we have grace to live lives that are holy, as God is holy.
The Lord be with you
And also with you.
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