Them Too? Yes, Even Them!

Acts 10:44-48

I recently had another one of those discussions which always seems to get me in trouble. You know, the one where I mention that in my personal theology I believe all people go to heaven, regardless of race, gender identification, political affiliation, or religious belief. These conversations get me in trouble because it's sometimes difficult to comprehend how deeply I believe the love of God to be.

As the conversation proceeded I was eventually asked, "But isn't it our duty as Christians to bring the news of Jesus to everyone?" To which my reply was, "But, isn't the love of God as shown to us by our Christ already known to everyone?"

You see, I cannot imagine a God who loves any less than to include all people in such a way as to bring them into God's family in heaven.

Of course I also mentioned that for me the way into God's heavenly family was through my personal savior, Jesus Christ. What I tried to make the distinction between is that for some the path to heaven went through Jesus Christ, and for others the way into God's family went down a different path; one which God also provided. I tried my best to make it clear that I believe there is only one God, and that one God would be ecstatic to have everyone take their path to be in God's heavenly home.

I told a story of a young woman I know who at the beginning of our relationship told me she wanted nothing to do with God or religion or church. In fact, she had even asked me to stop talking about such things in her presence. I agreed, but still included her in other conversations about life. We talked about family, friends, weekend activities, and other things like that.

One day, while she was going through one of lie's difficulties she asked me if I really believed that there was a God who loved us no matter what. I simply said yes, which began a new relationship between us; one based in conversations surrounding God's love through Jesus Christ.

It was through my respect for her and the path she was on that brought her closer to God. It's through this same respect I fully understand God's love to live in all people whether they are Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, Christian, straight, gay, bisexual, male, female, transgender, or whatever. As Paul reminds us in his letter to the church in Galatia, it's in our act of trusting that we all are participants in the fact that Jesus has come to ensure the world that through his mere existence everyone will know the love of God, and that through his mere existence all people are equal citizens within the Kingdom of God.

To me, there is no greater knowledge that God's all-encompassing love for all of God's people extends throughout all the world so that we can all participate in God's heavenly home, whatever that home may look like for you, or wherever that home may be.

Tanomoshi Ko

Acts 4:32-35

In our high school's Social Studies class we're learning about the early days of plantation life in Hawaii. We're especially taking a very close look at how, through plantation life, the many different cultures of other countries make up current Hawaiian culture and how it began as a way for people to better understand one another.

Imagine, if you will, you decide to take a job in a place where you don't know anything or anyone. You don't know what the land looks like or how the weather patterns are. You don't know what kinds of foods are eaten. You don't look like, dress like, or sound like anyone around you. In fact, you don't even know the language.

You travel with a few friends, so at least there's some comfort among those with whom you are alike. When you get to your new job's destination you find yourself settling into life with many others like you. As your first week progresses you notice there are others; and these others don't look like you, dress like you, sound like you, nor do you know their language. Yet, you need to work with these people day in and day out as well as live side by side with them.

You find your job to be not what it was indicated to be, making far less money than you were guaranteed. Your grand idea to bring the rest of your family into the new world which was promised is now only just that; an idea. So, because you don't have enough money to get home, or to get out of your situation, you continue to work this job with the hopes that one day you'll find a way out so you can be reunited with your family, friends, and loved ones.

You awaken one day to watch as others from a nearby camp say goodbye to a couple who have been working in the plantation for 10 years. You ask a friend how it is they saved enough money to finally begin a new life somewhere else.

He answers, "Tanomoshi." You smile, not understanding what he just said.

He explains that tanomoshi ko is what the Japanese plantation workers did to support one another financially so that, in time, all of them would eventually find a new home outside of the plantations. How tanamoshi works is that an account was created and supported from whatever monies could be spared by the people within a village. When the monies were enough it was given to the one for whom it was agreed to save the money for. This person would enter society outside of the plantation to start a business. Then, when the business did well it would give back to the village who helped them in the first place.

That cycle of giving and receiving continued until everyone from that village was out and able to enter society as a contributing citizen.

Our story from the Acts of the Apostles describes the exact same thing. Early Christians lived in settlements where food and supplies were scarce. They often found themselves outcasts from their original homes or villages because of their beliefs, and as such found themselves living away from city centers where life was a little simpler. The sharing of their possessions made for the best, and most just, living conditions for all.

For the early plantation workers of Hawaii, the sharing of their monies made life for all of them better, it offered hope. For the early Christians, the sharing of their possessions was a result of hope. In either case, hope and sharing go hand in hand.

Today, when we take a look around we are witness to a lot of hope being lost for those who just can't seem to make life better. They work 2 or 3 jobs and save and scrimp were they can. They sometimes have to choose between the rent, medication, or food on the table. In many cases none of the three can be met, and when they look for assistance their government leaders say they need to just try a little harder.

They sit at the bottom of the hill and watch as those at the top of the hill keep shoveling dirt onto them, making that hill bigger and bigger, almost impossible to climb out of.

I'm not saying that we begin living a communal life, what I am saying is that we recognize there are those within our village, those who work in the same plantation as we do, who need our help. Whether it's donating food to the food bank or hygienic supplies to a shelter or giving our time volunteering in retirement homes, or something else, we, as a society called to care for the sick, poor, and widowed, need to start doing something.

When all hope seemed lost because the realization that a better life wasn't going to happen, the neighbors within a plantation village found a way to make people's situations better in order to restore hope; and they did so
one life at a time. Shouldn't we find a way to do the same?

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.