Monday, November 22, 2010

King of Kings

On Friday night, I had the pleasure of watching The Women of Lockerbie, a play about the Pan Am Flight that was blown up over a small Scottish town in the late 1980’s. The play was at Florida State Community college and was directed by Ken McCullough, one of our beloved choir members. In an hour and a half, these brilliant college students took us into the horror and grief that developed as a result of this tragedy. They sobbed on stage, portraying aspects of grief that are rarely seen and never discussed in public. It was a play about the depths of human sadness and the way that love can begin to help it heal.

A 20-year-old boy was killed in the crash. His mother cannot recover from his death. She questions God. She questions everything. The boy’s father, her husband, concludes that God must be simply absent from this mess of a world. After all, how can God be in charge when things are so broken?

This is the question, isn’t it? If indeed God is King, Lord of all the Universe, then why does God allow the tragedies that occur? Why allow us to suffer? And why is the suffering so random, so unpredictably dispersed? Some people have such difficult lives while others of us seem to know such blessings. What kind of a system is this? Maybe God just danced with us at the beginning, in the creation, and then sent us off spinning into the Universe by ourselves…

Today is the final Sunday of the Christian year. Next Sunday, we will begin the season of Advent, or the coming, when we wait for the coming of Christ. But today we culminate another year of worship and prayer . This Sunday is called Christ the King Sunday. It seems that at the final Sunday of the Christian year, the Church recalls that God is in fact in charge.  God has the final word.

Of course, the title King came originally to Jesus as slander. The term King of the Jews was used to mock him when he hung naked and helpless on a cross. It was a name that was designed to make Jesus feel shame. After all, he wasn’t being treated as a King but as a common criminal. King of the Jews. It was the name that was meant to get under his skin, the kind of name that you and I have been called, the one that plays again and again in our minds like a broken record when we don’t feel good about ourselves. King of the Jews. King of the Jews.

But Jesus turned that name around. With the power of the resurrection, he turned what was a shameful death into the ultimate act of power and forgiveness and we have been calling him King of the Universe since.

Do you remember the words of Handles Messiah, the Halleluia Chorus?

King of Kings


Lord of Lords.


He shall reign forever and ever.

Back in Jesus’ day, the best form of government was a peaceful kingdom, a kingdom ruled by someone who truly loved his subjects. A true king could bring peace and prospertity, like David and Solomon once had done. A king was someone who could literally change the world and make it a better place in which to live. The ideal king would be so smart, so almost divine that he would know how to make the most difficult of decisions and could render justice and instill goodness in the hearts of people. Under a true king’s rule, all things would be righted.

We no longer have this concept of kingship. It is just a fairytale to us. We just hope that our Presidents will boost the economy and not make too many horrific mistakes. We take the time to gossip and gawk as Prince William finally proposes to Kate Middleton, but its nothing that could effect our lives. It;s nothing more than something to gossip about, a beautiful wedding on TV.  We certainly don’t believe that a king could fix anything. Kingdoms are usually either purely ceremonial or else corrupt and backward these days.

Think back to when you were a child, to the time when someone read you a fairytale. Think back to the good man who became King, married the beautiful Queen and rode off into the sunset. It was happily ever after when a good king came, remember? Sometimes, we can catch glimpses of this at the movies or at the Magic Kingdom, but it is hidden under special effects and sales pitches. So you must use your imaginations today to think of what a benevolent king could do and mean for a kingdom, and to reach back to understand what such a term meant in Jesus’ day.

But if Jesus is in fact the King that we all have been looking for, why do we suffer? Why do those who agree to submit to his rule still have bad things happen? What kind of a king lets his subjects suffer? What kind of a king allows cancer and hunger, homelessness and helplessness? There is so much beauty in the world, yes, but there is also so much pain.

At the beginning of the service, every week, we say Blessed be God, Father Son and Holy Spirit. And Blessed be the Kingdom, now and forever. Amen. Where is the kingdom? Does God rule here or not?

To realize that Jesus is King is to admit that Christ is in charge. And in order to admit that God is in charge, we must admit one more thing as well.  We must admit that we do not understand that rule, that we do not have the answers.

People often ask me if their prayers make a difference. Will God do what I ask? They inquire. Sometimes yes, sometimes no, I say. But God does answer every time, often we just don’t see the answers. God does reign, but how exactly, we do not know.

Why is it so hard for us to admit that we do not know? Does God make cancer, no, I do not believe that, but cancer is part of what happens to many of us here. Here is what I believe it means when we say that Christ is King.

It means that despite all the things we do not understand, that everything will be alright. It means that we cannot see clearly here on this earth. One day, as St. Paul says, we will see face to face and everything will become clear, but until that time we are to trust, for subjects often do not understand the ways of the one who reigns, we are simply not capable. Christ’s kingship means that everything will be OK, that we too will one day live happily ever after. Maybe that is why the fairytales mean so much to us.

There is a beautiful video on YouTube. The Knight Foundation decided to fund a project called Random Acts of Culture. They hired opera singers, a conductor, and an incredible organist. This past October, on a random Saturday, they pulled off a random act of culture at Macy’s in downtown Philadelphia. The place was packed with shoppers getting a jumpstart on their Christmas shopping, as the camera runs, you see the crowds, the impatience, the anxiety as money is changed hands. And then something happens to break into the world of the mall.

All of a sudden, the organ begins to play. The organ at Macy’s in Philly is one of the most famous pipe organs in the world. And then, random people all over the store begin to sing The Halleluia Chorus from Handle’s Messiah. KING OF KINGS they sing! And LORD OF LORDS. KING OF KINGS and LORD OF LORDS. AND HE SHALL REIGN FOREVER AND EVER.

All of a sudden the store changes. It becomes a vision of the Kingdom of Heaven. People begin to sing along, the smiles are huge. A baby is lifted into the air to dance. Old women and young children are looking up with radiance in their eyes. Some conduct. And oh, the smiles, the looks on the faces of these people. They are so beautiful.

The Kingdom was there all along, hidden in the midst of their harried lives. And when the music began, it was awakened. For a few moments, they knew as we know, that God is in charge and that everything will be OK.

Amen.

Monday, November 01, 2010

The Obstacle Course

I was one of those kids that went trick or treating far too late in life. I was fourteen and still out there, pounding the pavement, hoping to get gobs of candy. Maybe it was the fact that my mom was a healthfood freak. Maybe it was the fact that I loved costumes. But whatever the reason, I went out there every year far into my teens.  I was one of those kids that people dread appearing, who comes late in the evening with a huge sack full of sweets.

This one year my girlfriends and I were carrying pillowcases and we had been out for hours. It was pitch dark and we were on the edge of a park. We had just climbed the stairs to the home of an old woman, who had opened her door and was about to reach towards her candy bowl when someone came up behind us. The old woman let out a shreak and shut the door in our faces. We turned around to see three young men with nylons over their faces. “Give us your candy,” they said.

One of the girls with me was named Julie Getman. Julie had red hair and she was someone that you didn’t want to mess with. Julie was not at all mean, she was just tough. She would tell it like it was and she did not put up with anything. When Julie wanted something, she usually got it. She was incredibly tenacious.

One of the young men grabbed Julie’s pillow case and tried to yank it from her. Well, he chose the wrong girl. She held on for dear life. That young man dragged her down the street for almost half the block before he gave up altogether and Julie was wearing really high heels! But she was NOT about to give up that great candy that she had worked so hard to collect. No Way. She just held on.

Zaccheus had a lot in common with my friend Julie. He was a short guy with enormous will and tenacity. Zaccheus got what he wanted and, for most of his life, what he wanted was money.  He worked his way up as a tax collector, collecting money from his brother and sister Jews no matter how poor they were or how much they begged him. He gave out loans, sometimes cheating people. After all, the people were so gullible.  It was easy for him to make an easy buck. He lived in a nice home and had every kind of comfort in life. But something was missing.

One day, Zaccheus heard that the great teacher Jesus was coming. When he heard the news, something in him became hungry. He longed to see Jesus fiercely, though I doubt he could have articulated why. Somehow it became incredibly important that he be able to look upon the face of this prophet, this man who was so close to God.  Zaccheus was hungry to encounter Christ.

On the day that Jesus came through Zaccheus’ home town of Jericho, the crowds were out in full force. Zaccheus could not see a thing. He was surrounded on every side by people, pressing in and talking, hoping to catch a glimpse of the Rabbi, the man who had performed miracles. Zaccheus could not stand taking a back seat, so he did whatever he could to see the face of Jesus. He ran up ahead and climbed a tree.

I can just see the little man, scrambling up a tree in his fancy robes. Like a lizard, he must have climbed with enormous skill and dexterity. He was no longer concerned with appearances or what people might think of him. He just focused on getting up there, so that he could catch a glimpse of the holy man. From the tree, Zaccheus could finally see. He watched as Jesus walked toward him. And to his surprise, Jesus stopped under that tree and spoke.

“Zaccheus,” Jesus said. “I want to come and eat at your house today.”

Zaccheus scrambled down the tree. Everyone must have been staring. Here was one of the most hated men in town.  Loathed by all, he was always alone, a social outcast. And Jesus wanted to go eat in his house, the home of one who had robbed and cheated most of the population of the city? What was Jesus thinking? It made everyone angry. How could a holy man eat with such a sinner?

But Zaccheus pursued Jesus with the same intensity that he had pursued his wealth. And once he saw Jesus, his money meant nothing to him. “Lord,” he said, “I will give half of everything that I own to the poor and if I have cheated anyone, I will give him four times as much.” And so, a sinner was found.

Zaccheus was found, but let’s look at what it meant for him to be found. For Zaccheus, to be found by Jesus meant a lot of work. He had to give stuff awa.  He had to face a lot of angry people and make ammends for the things that he had done in the past. He had to admit that he had cheated and offer to repay those whom he had hurt. Zaccheus was entering into a life-long journey of sacrifice and service. This meeting with Jesus, this was only the beginning.

Dining with Jesus, looking at him, changed Zaccheus’ life forever. But the story did not end there. The story had only begun. Zaccheus was saved, he was found, as Jesus said. But being found by God means a lot of work. Believe you me, I don’t think that life for Zaccheus was free from obstacles or pain. But no matter what the road blocks, I believe that Zaccheus mastered them, after all, he was a climber.

I met an incredible man this week. His name is John Baxter. He is an Episcopalian, a member of St. Mark’s Church here in Jacksonville. He retired from a successful business and found himself asking a question of Jesus: “What can I do to follow you?” Broken-hearted by the racial disparities in this city, he asked some black leaders what he could do to help. They told him that he could do nothing for their generation, but please, help the children.

So John began to look into building a school. He visited with churches and leaders in the city and began to get the impression that perhaps a charter school might be best. He visited with KIP schools across the country, but they refused to come to Florida for a variety of reasons. Determined to let nothing stop him, John began to fundraise and to dream. Today, Tiger Academy sits on the North West part of the city. By partnering with the YMCA, John was able to build an incredible new school. I walked its halls on Friday. It is truly amazing. The children are so happy and so much learning is taking place. When they see visitors, they make the sign of a tigerclaw by reaching out their fingers and then pulling them back. I never saw so many smiles.

The story of Zaccheus didn't end when Jesus dined with him, it was only just beginning. And your story does not end here at the altar, it begins here. Out there, God has asked you to follow into a world that is FULL of obstacles, crowds that obscure your vision, people who dislike you, failure, you name it. The Christian walk is not a stoll, it is an obstacle course. Believe me, it is an obstacle course.

So please, do not think that you are doing anything wrong if you come to church and when you leave this place, life is no easier to you than before you came. Believing in Christ does NOT make your life easier, if anything , it makes it harder. How we came to assume that the Christian walk was peaceful and easy, I will never know. He brings us a SWORD. He asked us to follow him and then he walked to Golgotha to die.

If you are not challenged by what you are giving and how you are serving, then you are not doing enough. The Christian life should leave you afraid almost all the time. You should be doing things, stretching yourself in ways that feel almost too much. Life with Christ is that way, it is a series of trees to be climbed. But the joy that comes along with the fear is great. Oh, it is great.

As I drove back to the Cathedral from Tiger Academy, I could see two things in John’s eyes. I could see light and joy and I could see fatigue. And when I asked if he would be willing to serve on the Board of our Cathedral School, he said Yes. Even though he didn’t know if he could make all the meetings, even though he is tired, he said YES.