Compassion Friday (aka Good Friday)

Hebrews 4:14-16; 5:7-9

If you look up the word "compassion" in the dictionary you'll most likely see a definition that looks something like this:a feeling of deep sympathy and sorrow for another who is stricken by misfortune, accompanied by a strong desire to alleviate the suffering. In other words, when we think of compassion we think about feeling sorry for someone's circumstance and try to find a way to help better that circumstance.

We've allowed the meaning of compassion to sway far away from its origins.

Compassion comes from the combination of two words. Com is the word for with. Passion comes from the root word pasio which means to suffer. Compassion, therefore, is to suffer with. It does not mean to feel sorry for and to make something better because of that sense of remorse. Compassion is the human response to be a presence in the midst of suffering while doing our best to understand the suffering we make the decision to share in.

Jesus lived compassionately.

We are reminded in this passage from Hebrews that "we don’t have a high priest who can’t sympathize with our weaknesses but instead one who was tempted in every way that we are, except without sin." We don't have a Christ who feels bad for us, but who lived as we do, in every way. Jesus was born into poverty, grew up without a father, lived his last few years houseless, was despised and plotted against by those in power, turned against by his friends, when it really mattered was left alone to fend for himself in a trial for his life, and in the end he died a brutal and painful death.

Through it all Jesus never stopped loving. Through it all he never broke from the relationships between God, others, or himself. Through it all Jesus continued to live a life filled with compassion which in itself transformed lives. Jesus didn't force those transformations onto anyone by declaring he was here to be their savior, nor did he command anyone to believe that it was through him and because of him that all sins will be forgiven. Jesus did not say to the social outcasts, those considered unclean and sinners, you must change your lives and conform to one truth, but instead encouraged everyone, everyone, to share in the love of truth in oneness.

Jesus' message until death was this: through one love show love to all and in love unify all into one love. As Christians we are Easter people and as such we believe in resurrection. More to the point we believe that resurrection is renewal of life. As such we need to find a way to stop waiting for the second coming of Christ and realize that Christ is still here, always has and always will be. As such, and to be faithful to our Easter tradition, celebrate life, celebrate love, and on this Good Friday, celebrate compassion.

How Young People Get It Done (Older People Too)

Psalm 119:9-16

To remain true to one's "path" is probably the most difficult thing to do. I say this as I sit in a new office, starting a new path on my life's journey. I also say this as a culmination of the last 10 years (give or take) of taking the path which has just ended. Today I start anew, with new adventures and new relationships to help me along the way.

The journey hasn't been an easy one. Sometimes the trails were narrow and on the edge of a cliff, sometimes there were boulders and downed trees which blocked my way. But, through and with the help of those around me and the guidance of God I was able to overcome the difficult places and move forward.

Early on in that journey I had made the commitment to keep my travels slow, taking each step only when that step was right to take. There were times when it seemed I wasn't moving at all, but knew that those were the times when God was doing what God needed to do to clear the path ahead.

At all times and in all situations I kept one thought close to me, "I do this because it is what God wants me to do." As much as possible I kept the words of my God close to me, guarding it with my heart and keeping it safe.

As many of you know I work with 16 and 17-year olds at my full-time job in a high school. I've been doing this for 5 years now, and if those 5 years has taught me anything it's that going into the final quarter of a school year is always interesting. We run the gambit of those looking forward to higher educational opportunities to those who might not even make it past their current grade level. But, I can say that through all of their educational advancements they all hold one thing dear: friends.

I want to say the same thing goes for us older people (yes, I consider myself older). Relationships have become the thing which life revolves around. My relationship with God, my wife, my church, friends, acquaintances, and even the passers-by in my life have become very important. I have found that I enjoy taking the time to talk with the cashier at my local convenience store as much as I enjoy listening to a close friend tell me what his life's been like for the past week since we last saw each other.

It's in those relationships I see God the most. It's also in these relationships I get to be like Christ the most.

The Christ I've built my relationship with is a very personal Christ. Always with me and always ready to share in whatever I'm going through. He knows my deepest desires and has shared in the things I haven't shared with anyone else. My guess is that this same Christ is in your life.

During this Lenten time I've really made an effort to watch how other's relationships are reflected in their lives. I've watched co-workers in stores I visit, elders as they sit and talk in parks, children with their parents, strangers as they walk past one another. There's one thing I've noticed for the most part: people really don't mind being with and around other people. I think this gets to the heart of today's Psalm.

I hear the psalmist saying that we are to guard the ways of God closely and the one thing I keep seeing is how God, from the very beginning of the Bible, wanted nothing more than for the different parts of God's creation to be in relationship with one another and with God. I really think it's that simple. But, not that simple to live out. Many times in our lives we try to walk the narrow trails on the edge of the cliffs and try to move the obstacles in our way, without remembering there are so many who travel alongside us who can help us get through the difficult parts - including Jesus.

During the next few weeks as we continue our journey to the cross, let's make an effort to see God's love in everything, even the things that we find most difficult to love. Then, maybe, as we find ourselves looking for and accepting the help and guidance along our paths, we can also be a guide and help to others.

But, It's Broken

Psalm 51:1-17

Today was an interesting day. Not only did I think it was Monday because of the President's Day holiday yesterday, but I also spent part of my day explaining what Fat Tuesday was and why it mattered to Christians. I have to admit that my mind had a difficult time keeping up with the rest of me.

On the one hand there was this whole, "But it's Monday. Why are people not doing the Monday routine?" This gets messy in a job where I need to be in a certain classroom at a certain time to check in on certain students. Imagine my self-disgust (too harsh a word, but it's the first word that came to mind) when I realized that I was in the wrong classroom...for the 3rd time.

One would think...

I must say, however, it really wasn't all that bad. I actually had a chance to laugh softly at myself, something I enjoyed doing today. It's too often I take myself seriously and forget that it's okay to make mistakes - we all make them. On days like this I also have the chance to practice self-forgiveness, something that doesn't come easily for me - nor for others I would think.

The practice of self-forgiveness is also the practice of self-revelation. It's amazing to me that when we decide to no longer hold things about our selves deep within the recesses of our thoughts and feelings, we also invite into us the glimmer of light that shows us the way to a sort of freedom. The freedom I write about isn't so much the ability to do what we want to do

simply because we can. The freedom I write about is the kind of spiritual experience we get from releasing the hold we have on the things which keep us oppressed.

Addictions to drugs and alcohol, excessive spending habits, abuse to or by our loved ones, and other deep-seeded secrets is what causes our lives to eventually become broken. I can't begin to tell you how many times I've counseled someone about why they're feeling depressed only to eventually discover they've been holding on to a secret that slowly ate away at their self; at the very thing that makes them who they are.

I can still recall the night in church when a young person, a good young Christian I should add, said to me he wanted to kill himself because he was gay, and if anyone found out he'd be homeless, churchless, and worst of all friendless. He believed that if others in his life knew the true him he would be alone. This young man was broken. Not because of who he is, but because he couldn't be who he is. He couldn't exist the way he thought God wanted him to exist.

And that's really it, isn't it. That's what Fat Tuesday is all about for Christians. It's a time when we can come clean, if you will, of the things which we hold inside us that cause us to be a broken person. It's the day when we can come forward and proclaim ourselves on the mend to becoming whole.

Today I explained why the day is called Fat Tuesday. I said the tradition of this day is the clearing of our houses of the things which are unhealthy for us to eat. It's a symbolism of our intent to live as cleanly as possible for the next 40 days (not including Sundays). I really should have gone that one step further and mentioned it's also the day we commit to clearing out our souls of the things that are unhealthy as well.

I really should have taken that extra step and mentioned it's the day we as Christians make the decision to allow God to create a clean heart in us and put a new, faithful spirit deep within us.

The Psalmist reminds us that God wants us in all our brokenness. Not only does God want us to come to God as broken people, God also wants us to give to God all of our brokenness; to give to God all the things which make us broken. God wants us to come into God's presence imperfect, hurting, and full of doubt. It brings nothing but comfort to me to know that my God accepts me the way I am, even if I'm a complete broken mess.

Today I ask you to know you are broken, and to bring yourself into God's presence just the way you are. God wouldn't have it any other way.

If You Say So

1 Corinthians 8:1-13

The other day during lunch period I was watching a couple playfully tease one another. It was cute banter and made those who were watching smile or chuckle. They seemed to be enjoying one another's verbal slights, laughing each time one or the other said something. Of course, those of us who are older and wiser know that such playfulness, if allowed to go on for too long, will eventually turn into something not intended.

I could see the look in the young girl's eye as her boyfriend said something she didn't like, something that cut a little too close to being a hurtful truth perhaps. (I couldn't really hear what they were saying as I was across the room.) The girl's face changed from playful to upset and she walked away. Her boyfriend called her back, apologizing about whatever he said and followed her as she walked towards where I was standing.

As they got closer to me she stopped and held up a marker she had taken from a nearby table top and uttered the words, "Stop following me or I'll throw this at you." His response - "Go ahead, I don't think you will."

I spent the next few minutes of my day settling down what very quickly became a mean-spirited, verbally abusive fight.

When I had calmed them both down I asked them to tell me what happened. The boy said they were just playing around when suddenly she just got mad at him. The girl said she felt like he was putting her down and got tired of defending herself. I asked them how the whole thing started and they both said they didn't know.

It's funny to me (yes the haha funny) when people often harm each other without knowing how the whole thing started. The truth is, to me at least, that if people held a certain amount of respect for one another, doing their best to "tune in" to what others are feeling or going through, maybe less of these types of hurtful situations would arise.

I might be simplifying things a little, but I think Paul was trying to convey the same message to the church in Corinth.

Paul is speaking to a concern about eating rituals. The way of Jesus was new, so it must follow that Christianity was new as well. The crossover between Judaism and Christianity was new and confusing, and I have to think that there were those who still believed that the Mosaic rules were still the only way to live as God intended.

Nothing could be further from the truth for the followers of the new way; the way of Jesus the Christ. To these people it wasn't about following a strict set of rules, rather it was about living a new way of life which invited people to come into the church just as they were. Therein lay the division: to follow the rules or to throw the rules out the window.

Paul reminds the Corinthians that it isn't about rules, or lack thereof. Instead it's about respecting what others feel and think. If there are those who don't want to eat meat, don't put them down or force them to eat meat or put them in a situation where they feel obligated to eat meat. By the same token, if someone wants to eat meat don't put them in a situation where they feel guilty for doing so.

Paul's hope for the new church, and to an extension our hope for today's church, was that they would find a way to live with each other in full acceptance of one another's differences, not allowing their differences to become a stumbling block to developing relationships, but that the differences would help them to grow deeper into their relationships. In other words, to fully accept one another as the people they were, regardless of where along their life's journey they had found one another.

When relationships are new it takes a lot of communication to figure out how to respect one another's feelings and thoughts. So it was with our young couple, and so it is within our churches.

A Light To Be Shared By All

Ephesians 3:1-12

While contemplating today's passage I remembered the recent death of Nelson Mandela and the hundreds of thousands who viewed his body as it lay in state. Some estimates say that for 3 days more than 2000 people per hour viewed his body before going to his final resting place. What made the viewing more special, at least to me, was that it took place in the same place where Mr. Mandela was sworn in as South Africa's first black president just 19 years earlier.

Mr. Mandela was the unifying force for his country, finding ways to bring people from polar opposite ends of a racial-privileged spectrum together for the betterment of the country as a whole. That unification didn't come easy as many of those who enjoyed the wealth of privilege weren't willing to give up their socioeconomic standings. But, with perseverance and a peaceful approach Mr. Mandela was able to bring an end to apartheid in his country.

For the first time in a very long time the people of South Africa had the same chances at achieving happiness for their lives; whatever that happiness would be for them. Such is what Paul tried to do for the people of his time as well.

Today, Christians around the world celebrate the Epiphany, or when the magi proclaimed that the Christ has been born to bring the light of God to all people - all people. Paul's message to the church in Ephesus reminds us that "the Gentiles would be coheirs and parts of the same body, and that they would share with the Jews in the promises of God in Christ Jesus through the gospel." It is also a reminder that "God’s purpose is now to show the rulers and powers in the heavens the many different varieties of his wisdom through the church."

Paul, through his personal revelation of Jesus Christ's purpose on earth, is trying his best to unify all people under one love through the revelation that through Jesus Christ we can finally see that we are all parts of the same body and that by strengthening ourselves through our diversities and finding a way to work together we, the church, can help others achieve the happiness in life they desperately seek.

God's light shines in all living things. Let's work together to help that light shine bright for all the world to see.

Time To Enjoy The Results

Ecclesiastes 3:1-13

At Sunday afternoon's study group we watched a short video which showed how the travel conditions for Mary and Joseph might have been as they journeyed between Nazareth and Bethlehem. The host of the video took us onto the road that the couple might have traveled. The path went through olive tree orchards, next to bubbling streams, and through dry and arid lands. There were parts of the road that were flat and easy to travel and parts that went through deep valleys and over steep hillsides. The host commented that on parts of the journey they would have been part of a great caravan and on other parts they would have been alone.

The story we were told brought to mind how my personal journey is extremely similar. Sometimes it's easy, sometimes not so much. Sometimes I travel with many and sometimes with nobody. But, just as Mary and Joseph trusted in God and focused on God's purpose for them, So have I learned to trust.

One of the topics the video touched on was how Joseph and Mary sacrificed a lot of themselves to find a way to fulfill God's purpose. The host eventually lead the conversation into sacrificing ourselves for others, especially at Christmas time. He pointed out that there was a church congregation he knew of that gave a matching gift to the church on Christmas Eve based on how much they spent on gifts for their family. If they spent $500 on gifts, they gave $500 to the church. The church would then donate the money to one local cause, such as a homeless shelter, and one international cause, such as building wells in Africa.


Our group picked up on that theme and discussed different ways we could sacrifice some of ourselves, not just during Christmas, but as often as we can. We recognized that there are many times when we forget to harvest what we plant, or don't take the opportunity to speak up instead of being silent. A lot of the time we feed the hungry only during the holidays, or donate our old clothes to simply get a tax break, or close our eyes as we see social injustice happen right before our eyes.

As Christians I think we're called to know what to do and when to do it; through and with the guidance of God.

With the new year upon us maybe we, too, could start to build that trust in God to know the right time to do the things which will eventually bring goodness into the world - even if it's just one life at a time. Joseph and Mary had that trust, and when it was time they got to enjoy the results of the work they were given: raising the infant Christ to become a strong, young man.

Let's find a way for all people to eat, drink, and enjoy the results of their hard work.

And Then There Was Light, Again

John 1:1-14

I was in a conversation about the theologies (yes, plural) which helped to shape the Bible. The conversation soon centered around a Jewish belief I was told about in seminary that when the light which was created in Genesis 1 is the life force that runs through and connects all things. It is more than luminescence, it is the one thing which all of creation shares; the spirit of the one God which all of creation is a part of. This is why light is the very first thing we are told is created; nothing could have been created without God first giving it life.

I've been told that the Jewish people believe that somehow the light had become shattered and all living things became separated, but that within each living creature shines a sliver of that light. Thus it is the goal of Judaism to reconnect the light which shines within all of creation in the way which God intended the light to be connected - within, through, and a part of all of creation.

When I was enlightened (sorry) by this story I held an all too different view of the bible and how I would now approach its stories. For me, the understanding that we were created to be one people, unified by the life-force of God, pretty much formed my personal theology. It has become the words I talk about as often as I can and the way I choose to live my life. Christianity, to me, is to follow the teachings of Jesus and find a way, just as he tried, to bring people together through the unconditional love and acceptance of God's shining light.

So, on the day when Jesus was born, when God said to the world, "Here is the light which will shine forth in this time of darkness and oppression and find a way to bring all people together." I take to heart all which that involves. Not just the shepherds gathering or the angels singing or the shining star, but the sacrifices made by God, Mary, and Joseph. You see, God gave us God's only child in the hopes that humanity would see in him the shining life force meant for all, all, people. Mary's life was uprooted, as was Joseph's, in their decision to have this illegitimate child, and to raise him as their own, regardless of what others say or think about them, or do to them.

Christmas is that time when I not only completely accept the Christ-child into my life, but also a time when I move closer to being Christ-like in spreading the good news of a God who loves us all, and does so because of our diversities. God put God's son into the loving care of 2 people who weren't rich, or powerful, or important. Mary and Joseph did not have any plans to advance an agenda of any kind. They simply promised to take care of one another and the child which they were entrusted with as best as they could and to bring each other through any difficulties that would come their way.

Such is the promise we accept at Christmas time. To love one another by embracing our diversities, and to do the utmost best we can to take care of one another regardless of the situation or sacrifices we have to make for ourselves.