Genesis 32:22-32 (NRSV)

The same night he got up and took his two wives, his two maids, and his eleven children, and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. He took them and sent them across the stream, and likewise everything that he had. Jacob was left alone; and a man wrestled with him until daybreak. When the man saw that he did not prevail against Jacob, he struck him on the hip socket; and Jacob’s hip was put out of joint as he wrestled with him. Then he said, ‘Let me go, for the day is breaking.’ But Jacob said, ‘I will not let you go, unless you bless me.’ So he said to him, ‘What is your name?’ And he said, ‘Jacob.’ Then the man said, ‘You shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel,* for you have striven with God and with humans, and have prevailed.’ Then Jacob asked him, ‘Please tell me your name.’ But he said, ‘Why is it that you ask my name?’ And there he blessed him. So Jacob called the place Peniel,* saying, ‘For I have seen God face to face, and yet my life is preserved.’ The sun rose upon him as he passed Penuel, limping because of his hip. Therefore to this day the Israelites do not eat the thigh muscle that is on the hip socket, because he struck Jacob on the hip socket at the thigh muscle.

This is probably my favorite passage involving one of the patriarchs. In this section of Genesis, Jacob is fleeing/leaving the company of his father-in-law Laban, but also coming closer to his brother Esau. Despite Esau’s own less-than-sharp thinking under pressure, Jacob has every reason to worried about encountering Esau after many years.

So Jacob send his wives, children and maidservants across the river and tries to sleep. In that sleep, he wrestles with an angel, who may well be Y*HW*H. In this wrestling, Jacob forces a blessing and carries the mark of that wrestling for the rest of his life. It even affects generations that come after him.

This passages gives me hope because, first, no matter how big a scoundrel we are… God still finds us and pulls us into a relationship. Whether we are active in that wrestling or passive, God is there- longing for us to wrest out the blessing He desires to give. And the blessing we receive through our encounter with God can have a profound affect on our lives and on all those around us.

The grace and glory of a Living God is that encounters are possible, yea, PROBABLE- each and every day. In our travels, our work and even our dreams, God comes to us, calling us and wrestling us in relationship with Him. God’s grace, in its entirety, will pen you to the mat- but you won’t limp away without a blessing.

The third passage in my “50 essential passages” is John 20:19-31. This is the first Bible passage I ever preached on, but there are so many treasures here… possibly a thousand sermons could be written about this and enough would not have been said.

Here’s the passage from The Message translation:

19-20Later on that day, the disciples had gathered together, but, fearful of the Jews, had locked all the doors in the house. Jesus entered, stood among them, and said, “Peace to you.” Then he showed them his hands and side.

20-21The disciples, seeing the Master with their own eyes, were exuberant. Jesus repeated his greeting: “Peace to you. Just as the Father sent me, I send you.”

22-23Then he took a deep breath and breathed into them. “Receive the Holy Spirit,” he said. “If you forgive someone’s sins, they’re gone for good. If you don’t forgive sins, what are you going to do with them?”

24-25But Thomas, sometimes called the Twin, one of the Twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples told him, “We saw the Master.”

But he said, “Unless I see the nail holes in his hands, put my finger in the nail holes, and stick my hand in his side, I won’t believe it.”

26Eight days later, his disciples were again in the room. This time Thomas was with them. Jesus came through the locked doors, stood among them, and said, “Peace to you.”

27Then he focused his attention on Thomas. “Take your finger and examine my hands. Take your hand and stick it in my side. Don’t be unbelieving. Believe.”

28Thomas said, “My Master! My God!”

29Jesus said, “So, you believe because you’ve seen with your own eyes. Even better blessings are in store for those who believe without seeing.”

30-31Jesus provided far more God-revealing signs than are written down in this book. These are written down so you will believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and in the act of believing, have real and eternal life in the way he personally revealed it.

I think the access we have to the lives of the apostles is very interesting. Other than the tiny bit we know about Phillip and Nathaniel, we generally hear the stories of the ones who either couldn’t get Jesus’ message or struggled with discipleship. The stories of Peter, James, John and Thomas give me hope for my own life of faith.

Here Thomas has gone out from the Upper Room. Though everyone was hiding in fear, he decides he needs to get out of there. Maybe he needed a little air, he went for food, he wanted to get a feel for how the town was reacting to the situation. Whatever he was doing, he missed Jesus coming back to the apostles. And (!) he missed the bestowal of the the Holy Spirit.

Here, the Holy Spirit is sent into the apostles, not for faith, but so they might be able to do the work of discipleship. You must forgive one another. Why do you think Jesus thought that was the most important issue? Don’t you imagine they were all closed in that room and began to bicker about who could have prevented the crucifixion? Maybe they were steeped in anger at Judas. Jesus comes among them and gives the gift of the Spirit, so that they might forgive each other and know that they have been forgiven. They are not going to be able to fully comprehend the joy of the resurrection and Christ-among-them if they are not able to understand what it means not only for their relationship with God, but also for their relationship with one another.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch of doubt, Thomas comes back and it seems the whole group had a sincere of the risen Christ and HE MISSED IT!! Of course (!) his reaction is: “Yeah, right.” But Jesus returns and Thomas is confronted with the reality of the risen Savior. What a moment!

Yet Jesus promises that the blessings of faith will be even greater for those who believe without seeing. That’s us! Though we may understand ourselves to have encountered Christ, through other people, in sacramental life, we have not had the privilege of touching the wounds, of knowing what Thomas knows and sees.

Yet we are blessed. Faith is not the absence of doubt, it is action in spite of doubt. Though we struggle in the life of faith, Jesus has sent the Holy Spirit to us so that we may believe God’s work continues through us, with us and for us. And, someday, we will be in the company of Thomas and others, in a place where we will be able to see and believe.

In my post on 11/3, I speculated on what I might choose as the 50 most essential passages of the Bible. I’m going to attempt to choose my 50. Today’s passage is Judges 9:7-15 (NRSV)

^{89101112131415} When it was told to Jotham, he went and stood on the top of Mount Gerizim, and cried aloud and said to them, “Listen to me, you lords of Shechem, so that God may listen to you. The trees once went out to anoint a king over themselves. So they said to the olive tree, ‘Reign over us.’ The olive tree answered them, ‘Shall I stop producing my rich oil by which gods and mortals are honored, and go to sway over the trees?’ Then the trees said to the fig tree, ‘You come and reign over us.’ But the fig tree answered them, ‘Shall I stop producing my sweetness and my delicious fruit, and go to sway over the trees?’ Then the trees said to the vine, ‘You come and reign over us.’ But the vine said to them, ‘Shall I stop producing my wine that cheers gods and mortals, and go to sway over the trees?’ So all the trees said to the bramble, ‘You come and reign over us.’ And the bramble said to the trees, ‘If in good faith you are anointing me king over you, then come and take refuge in my shade; but if not, let fire come out of the bramble and devour the cedars of Lebanon.’”

I know this seems like a strange passage to be “essential”, but it is interesting in its context and outside of it. (Incidentally, the book of Judges, while a little violent, is an interesting book, telling the story that leads to Israel’s desire for a king.)

In context, the judge Jotham is speaking to the people, using this parable of the trees to remind people how they ruined good leaders and then did even worse with bad leaders. Many people have died and many rulers are being killed, and still people clamor for more solid leadership (something other than the system of judges that existed). By not accepting the judge system, the people are saying, essentially, that they want a king, just like everyone else. It’s not good enough to be a people set apart, they want to be the same as their neighbors. (Presumably, if their neighbors jumped off bridges…)

This story, outside of Judges, is also interesting. Notice how the trees and plants that seem to have “real” gifts (something tangible) don’t want to give that up to be the leader of the trees. Clearly, the power isn’t a strong enough incentive, compared to what they know they already offer and how those gifts are used.

I think it behooves us to consider this “essential” passage on Election Day (US) and in general, when we consider those who seek power. What happened to a system of reluctant leaders who sought to lead for the good of others, who would feel torn about losing (for any amount of time) the opportunity to do the very thing for which they have been created? Here we see trees finally electing a bramble (or a tumbleweed in some translations) because the bramble doesn’t have anything else to do.

In our leaders, we might consider the difference between the career politician and the person who is willing to offer their gifts for a time of need. Perhaps we need to overhaul our own system. Once we were a country set apart, but now, with nearly continuous campaigning, we’re not special. What would bring back that sense of specialness and wise leadership?

Something to ponder.

One of the most difficult things about coming in as a new pastor is realizing all the people that I did not get to meet. I hear great stories about the people who were in this congregation, how they shaped the life of this church, how they shaped your lives. Now they have gone on to their great reward and I do not get to meet them. The people who come to Hope now do not get to meet them.

But their stories are here and their work lives on, the work of Nina Morris, Robert Jester, Bernice Means, Audrey Stafford, Mae Peterson, Dave Bristol, Sarah Pennewell and Frank Wince continues in the efforts we make to become the church God calls us to be. We hear God’s call not only through the Word, but also through the people who taught us about the Word, through whom the Word was revealed to us.

However All Saints Day is not only a memorial day, a day in which we recall the beloved of God who are no longer physically in our midst. This is also a day when we are challenged to continue in the race that has been set before us, even as we believe in the great cloud of witnesses who cheer us on in our work.

And what is that work?

In the beautiful passage from Revelation we heard today, the author witnesses a multitude of people standing around the throne of God- praising and worshipping God. This multitude is in addition to the 144,000 you usually hear mentioned from Revelation. That number represents God’s promise to the children of Israel, but the multitude is even greater than that. Larger even than John, the author of Revelation, can comprehend.

This multitude has survived the persecution by the Roman empire, and others, and now embraces the task of eternal praise and worship. The goal of the book of Revelation is to remind the disciples of the early church, and us, that praise and worship is always our work, in good times and in bad. Our God is the God who is the beginning and the end, regardless of who becomes president, I mean, emperor. So a portion of our work is worshipping God and we do so with the host of heaven, some of whom are represented here by these flames.

What about when we cannot worship because of our pain or hurt? What if the circumstances of our lives, of the church or in the world leave us without a song in our hearts? Then, according to 1st John, we live in hope. Hope becomes our work.

“See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and that is what we are.” Even when we feel hopeless, God’s work holds out hope to us. We have the gift of faith so that we are able to grasp the promises of God to us through Jesus. We have hope in Jesus’ statement of the mansion in the Father’s house with many rooms. We also have hope in God’s promises of salvation for us and for those who are God’s children. It is our great privilege to have a tiny glimpse of the feast to come, here at table together, and to commune not only with one another, but also with all who have partaken of this meal before us. In that mystic and sweet communion, our hope is anchored to the day and place when we shall feast together with them. A portion of our work is continuing on in hope.

But what about the Beatitudes, that list of teachings from Matthew? Is part of our work- to mourn, to be poor in spirit, or to be persecuted? No. The Beatitudes are descriptive; they describe things that happen to us in the course of the life of faith. No one wants to mourn or to be poor in spirit. No one wants to be meek and there are very few people who are easily pure in heart. So, how are these things part of our work?

We are called to be with one another during these times. We are called to sit with mourners, to struggle with those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, to help others show mercy. We are called to bless the ones around us who are struggling and they, in turn, will bless us with their gifts when we are down. Our work is the ministering to the people all around us, in here and out there, who live in these situations. That’s what Jesus is explaining to the disciples when he takes them up the mountain, away from the crowd. That’s what Jesus is calling us to do- today and all days. Our work is blessing- like Abraham, we are blessed so that we may bless.

On All Saints’ Day, we honor the people of this church and in our lives who moved the ball forward- who advanced the cause of Christ and the life of the church. Yet it is more than that, All Saints is a chance to look at people, not only through our eyes of longing and mourning, but also through the eyes of God. When we look, even briefly, through God’s eyes- we know that those who are beloved to us are also beloved to God. And we know too, deep in our hearts, that we are also God’s beloveds.
We too are among the saints of God. We are made right with God through Christ Jesus and those who have gone to be with God do not enjoy any more special standing than we do. The only difference is that their work here is finished. Their sainthood is continual worship. Our sainthood lies in active perseverance in the life of faith. Our continued effort to do what is right, to worship, to hope and to bless, makes us saints in the eyes of God.

And God’s own perseverance makes our work possible. God continues to call to us, to pursue us, to reform us and to purify us in our hope. The God who wept for his friend Lazarus, who knew the grieving of the woman at the well and who cried out from the cross knows our efforts, knows our longings and knows our work. And, still, that God, our God, loves us. That love alone makes it possible for us to continue in our work.

The work of worship, hope and blessing flows from us, because of the path set before us- trod by the saints who have gone ahead. But the path was cleared, as Hebrews says, by the pioneer of our faith, Jesus Christ. Through Jesus, we are able to be called saints of God and it is through Jesus that we will one day be reunited with the saints of our own lives.

We worship the God whose grace makes our lives possible. We live in hope for the day when we will be reunited with the ones we love, when our questions will be answered and when the answers won’t really matter any more. We bless those around us with the gifts we have been given. On All Saints’ Day, we hold in our hearts the day when God will wipe every tear from our eyes. And, until that time, we believe that Nina, Bob, Bernice, Audrey, Mae, Dave, Sarah and Frank are cheering us on in the work we have to do.

Amen

I recently purchased an album called “The 50 Most Essential Pieces of Classical Music”. While I’m sure there are many who would argue what makes the cut in that list, I began to think (while listening to some essential classical) about the 50 most Essential Bible passages.

Of course, that’s a highly subjective list. And what makes a Bible “passage”? A verse? More than one verse, but less than a chapter? What makes a passage essential? A mention of Christ? Law and gospel? And 50? Is that limiting or too expansive?

In the coming weeks, I think I will try to list what are my 50 essential Bible passages and give some details. I encourage you to try to do the same, even if you don’t write them down- ponder them in your heart.

1. Romans 8:31-39 (All of Romans 8 is fantastic, rhetorically, theologically, fantastic. Seriously, I read it and weep!)

³²³³³⁴What then are we to say about these things? If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not withhold his own Son, but gave him up for all of us, will he not with him also give us everything else? Who will bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? It is Christ Jesus, who died, yes, who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us. Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will hardship, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written,
‘For your sake we are being killed all day long;
we are accounted as sheep to be slaughtered.’
³⁷³⁸³⁹No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

What’s not to like about this passage? The heart and soul of this passage is that God, the one Triune God, is the one who saves… us and all people. Anything in this life that seeks to separate us from that salvation cannot, because God is the beginning and the end. And, indeed, though the old Satanic foe does seek to work us woe (A Mighty Fortress), when God is for us, who can be against us? To even begin to hold this passage in our hearts is the essence of true faith and what we strive for through our hope in the Spirit.

Someone in my congregation recently commented that this must be my favorite Bible passage because I refer to it all the time. It’s not my favorite so much because I like what it says (though I do), but because my life of faith is, daily, to try to hold this passage in my heart. I want to believe this, but when I stop and consider what I do all the time: I am afraid, I get nervous and I feel (slightly) overwhelmed by my weakness. I can’t even say I sin boldly. I long to sin boldly. I long to embrace the out-loud living to which this Romans passage points.

The hope in this passage is that my timidity does not separate me from God’s love. Neither would boldness in service, bravery in preaching, firmness in conviction. I believe this; may God forgive my unbelief.

(The Friday Five source is here– a webring of bloggers to which I belong.)

As I zip around the webring it is quite clear that we are getting BUSY. “Tis the season” when clergy and laypeople alike walk the highwire from Fall programming to Christmas carrying their balancing pole with family/rest on the one side and turkey shelters/advent wreaths on the other.

And so I offer this Friday Five with 5 quick hit questions… and a bonus:

1) Your work day is done and the brain is fried, what do you do?
When my brain is fried, I like to do what my friend Anne would call “cook it out”. I usually will go home and bake something or make a large pot of some kind of soup, even if I’m not hungry. I can always freeze it or give it away and the mindless chopping, stirring and tasting uses new sections of my brain. I also am an avid penpaller– so I almost always have letters to write. If I’m too tired to write letters, I will decorate envelopes or write some postcards. Sometimes I do a little internet trolling and just read from Wikipedia article to Wikipedia article.

2) Your work week is done and the brain is fried (for some Friday, others Sunday afternoon), what do you do?
I generally consider my work week from Tuesday to Sunday, with a (sometimes) short Saturday break in there. Monday is my day. I like to sleep in (ooooh, 8 am!!) and then make a “luxurious” work-out decision… But when my brain is fried on Sunday night (and fried it usually is), I come home from Confirmation, brush my husband, kiss my dog and pet my teeth and fall into bed. (Or some combination of those verbs and nouns.)

3) Like most of us, I often keep myself busy even while programs are on the tv. I stop to watch The Office and 30 Rock on Thursday nights. Do you have ‘stop everything’ tv programming or books or events or projects that are totally ‘for you’ moments?
I don’t have television, though I do enjoy a few DVDs from Netflix. I looooooooove to read, so I’m usually involved in a book. A new book from Tony Horwitz, Celia Rivenbark or J. Maarten Troost will usually find me hiding in the bathtub and turning pages as quickly as I can read them. I also have a couple penpals whose letters I answer almost always on the day I receive them. It’s fun to read their letters and equally pleasurable to write back. I haven’t had a cross-stitch project that totally absorbed me in a couple years. Usually, it’s a book. With me, almost always a book.

4) When was the last time you laughed, really laughed? What was so funny?
This is a hard one for me. Not because I don’t like to laugh, but I usually find that people laugh at what I say. It’s hard, therefore, to remember when I laughed and laughed at something. My favorite laughter moment of all time is the first time I read (there’s that theme again) Dave Barry’s Book of Bad Songs. I had tears pouring down my face. I love that book and it makes me giggle even to think about it. The first time I read it, I was at a sushi restaurant, sitting at the bar. I really should have gone home because I was making such a spectacle of myself, laughing and laughing. The evening culminated in me reading a portion of the book to the sushi chefs and all of us joining in on the chorus of “Knock Three Times (On the Ceiling if You Want Me)”. Aaaah, good times!

5) What is a fairly common item that some people are willing to go cheap on, but you are not.
Socks. Not fancy, serviceable- just not cheap.

Bonus: It’s become trite but is also true that we often benefit the most when we give. Go ahead, toot your own horn. When was the last time you gave until it felt good?
I got the time of a woman’s surgery wrong recently and I appeared at the hospital half an hour before she did… at 5:30 am. Whoops.
Seeing the look on her face when I was there to spend a few minutes and pray with her so early in the morning was great for me. I knew it would help her go into her surgery in a good frame of mind and that’s all I needed to not think again, all day, about what time I woke up and drove to the hospital. It’s moments like that when I feel closest to the understanding of my call and I feel the most privileged to do what I do.

Eugene Peterson’s Message Translation usually can give me something to think about, even if I continue to prefer the NRSV or another translation. In working with Matthew 5 for this coming Sunday (All Saints’), I read Peterson’s version of these well-known verses for the first time. As always… there’s plenty to consider in here.

Matthew 5

You’re Blessed

1-2 When Jesus saw his ministry drawing huge crowds, he climbed a hillside. Those who were apprenticed to him, the committed, climbed with him. Arriving at a quiet place, he sat down and taught his climbing companions. This is what he said:

3“You’re blessed when you’re at the end of your rope. With less of you there is more of God and his rule.

4“You’re blessed when you feel you’ve lost what is most dear to you. Only then can you be embraced by the One most dear to you.

5“You’re blessed when you’re content with just who you are—no more, no less. That’s the moment you find yourselves proud owners of everything that can’t be bought.

6“You’re blessed when you’ve worked up a good appetite for God. He’s food and drink in the best meal you’ll ever eat.

7“You’re blessed when you care. At the moment of being ‘care-full,’ you find yourselves cared for.

8“You’re blessed when you get your inside world—your mind and heart—put right. Then you can see God in the outside world.

9“You’re blessed when you can show people how to cooperate instead of compete or fight. That’s when you discover who you really are, and your place in God’s family.

10“You’re blessed when your commitment to God provokes persecution. The persecution drives you even deeper into God’s kingdom.

11-12“Not only that—count yourselves blessed every time people put you down or throw you out or speak lies about you to discredit me. What it means is that the truth is too close for comfort and they are uncomfortable. You can be glad when that happens—give a cheer, even!—for though they don’t like it, I do! And all heaven applauds. And know that you are in good company. My prophets and witnesses have always gotten into this kind of trouble.

This post is about locations. Tell us about the five favorite places you have lived in your lifetime. What did you like? What kind of place was it? Anything special happen there?

First, I have to think about where I’ve lived for any amount of time: in North Carolina (Lakeview and Raleigh), in Alaska (Nome and Eagle River), in New York (Manhattan-ish), in Connecticut (New Haven), in Pennsylvania (Philly), and in England (Cambridge). Some of these addresses were of much shorter duration than others.

1. Nome, Alaska I moved to Nome just after graduating from college to work for KNOM radio (“Yours for Western Alaska”). I was the deputy news director. I loved living in Nome because it was right on the water (Norton Sound) and it was very small town. I knew people everywhere I went and I could walk almost anywhere I wanted to go. There was always something new to try, learn, experience or complain about. I met my (now) husband in Nome. Living in Nome helped me to come into my own and become the person I felt I really was. I was away from my family and got to establish myself as Julia, with little other connection. Between the personal formation, the tundra exploration, the romantic expansion and so many other things… there’s no place like Nome in my heart.

2. Westcott House, Jesus Lane, Cambridge, England I lived in Cambridge for three months in the fall of 2005 when I was an exchange student from Yale Divinity School to the Cambridge Theological Exchange- specifically Westcott House. This was a very hard three months for me because I had expected culture shock (the difference between being American and being in England), but I wasn’t prepared for the level of spiritual and liturgical (church-related) culture shock I experienced. Because I knew many Episcopalians, I hadn’t really expected the significant difference between Lutherans (ELCA) and the Church of England (Anglo-Catholic). Suddenly I was examining everything I believed in a new and different way. At the time, my experience was painful and frustrating, but then and now I was grateful. Living in Cambridge made me put into words how I felt about my denomination and my country in a way I never had before and might not have… without that experience.

3. Raleigh, NC I lived in Raleigh for two years while I was in college. This was my first “city life” experience. I had a bizarre sort of giddiness the first time I realized the road I was driving on was in the traffic report. (Oh, the things a country girl finds interesting.) Raleigh was my first “grown-up” city and will always have a special place in my heart.

4. Eagle River, AK I live in ER right now and I’m not sure I could move to another Anchorage community. I adore our quiet area and our proximity to so many outdoor activities.

5. Nuka Bay, AK My husband and I own almost 7 acres in Nuka… across the bay from Homer, AK and across the mountains from Seldovia. We hope to build a cabin out there and to live there for some portion of our retirement/sabbatical years. I’m looking forward to this address with all my heart.

I think I might need to follow this up sometime with a post about places I have been or would like to go. When I look at this list, it’s representative of places I have lived, but not totally revealing of places that have a hold in my heart.

Isaiah 45:1-7; Psalm 96:1-9; 1 Thessalonians 1:1-10; Matthew 22:15-22

Once upon a time there were two groups of people. Both groups had a lot of power and they struggled against each other constantly. People got tired of hearing each of them complain about the other because it seemed nothing ever changed.

One group of people was very protective of their country, very interested in national security- if you will. They were also concerned with the lives of the people around them- what people did both in public and in private. This group was considered deeply religious, even though their religious focus sometimes kept them from seeing the forest for the trees.

The second group of people was known for aligning themselves with foreign powers. Their idea of peace came through sacrificing authority to leaders far away. This group was a great supporter of taxation. Even though they weren’t always seen as religious, they developed an interest in religious leaders and issues when it became politically expedient.

I’m sure we all know to which groups I am referring. I am, of course, speaking about the Pharisees and the Herodians. Representatives of these two groups tried to corner Jesus in the gospel passage we read from Matthew today. The Pharisees want Jesus to say paying taxes is lawful. If he does, then they will say he is disloyal to God, seeking to put Caesar above the Creator. The Pharisees are the first group: concerned about their home territory, the lives of people and worshipping God.

The Herodians, then, are the second group. They see Rome as making continued life in Palestine possible. They have been zealous tax collectors. If Jesus says that paying taxes is unlawful, they will know that he opposes Rome and they can denounce him as a traitor to Caesar.

The Pharisees and the Herodians despised each other, but we can see them teaming up here because it is in their interest to trap Jesus. If they appear together, he has to pick the side of one or the other. So they say, “Teacher, we know you are honest and no person seems to be able to influence you. So, let’s hear your opinion… should we pay taxes to the emperor or not?”
Jesus asks them for a coin, which they manage to produce, though it was illegal to have Roman money inside the temple. (That’s why there were moneychangers in the courtyard.) When they show it to him, the coin with the picture of Caesar and the words declaring Caesar, a son of the gods and a high priest… when they show this coin, Jesus, famously, says: “Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and render unto God, the things that are God’s.”

When both parties hear this, they are amazed and they walk away from him. Why was this such an amazing teaching? Is it because Jesus was slippery and confound both groups? Because he could play their game better than they could? Or could it be that he gave an answer to a question they didn’t ask. They asked the wrong question, but he gave the right answer.

Jesus’ words pointed to the reality that both the Pharisees and Herodians knew. Regardless of who is emperor, the level of taxation, the state of the city… they, both Pharisees and Herodians, belong to God. Whatever they have, coins, property, food, clothes… all that they have, all that they are, all that they can be… is God’s.

This is the hinge of history. It’s never about what we can do, to whom we give our taxes, how we vote, or what we accomplish. In the end, we will always come back to the knowledge that God has been at work in our lives and that all we have is because of God.

So, if God is in control… why do we have to do anything? If God’s will is accomplished through the work of the Holy Spirit, why should we worry about it? Because the kingdom of God is at hand- our hands. God works through us for the good of the world. And we are called to be aware of that work… alert to it… active in it.

You see, God is not up for election. Ever. But when we put anything ahead of God… then we’ve voted. Like the Pharisees, we may think that some details are more important than the larger picture of God’s love for the world. Like the Herodians, we may be willing to offer our souls for the protection of our bodies, our physical safety. Daily, we cast our ballots through things done and left undone… and we forget the One to whom we belong.

And we don’t belong to God in the sense of being God’s possessions or even as creatures of God, whom he now ignores. Isaiah reminds us that God calls us by our name. Even beyond that, God gives us a surname, even before we know who God is. God pursues us and claims us. Through Jesus Christ, the holy Triune God has shared granted us all a last name. We are the people of God. That goes beyond being a Seymour… (other last names).

In a season of constantly being asked about our allegiance, our belonging, our preferences, the gospel passage calls us to remember Whose name we truly have, in Whose group we really belong, Whose mark we have truly received and Whose word we truly believe.

We vote, we pay taxes, we help organizations, we tithe to the church, but in the end… we belong to God. And in the end, belonging to God is not about bumper stickers or ballots, about tithing two percent or ten percent, about church or about state. Belonging to God is about remembering Who has the power- the power to forgive, the power to heal, the power to change and the power to make all things new.

Everyone wants to be on the side that wins. We cannot allow the world to trap us into categories that are too small, like Pharisee or Herodian. Through the living Word of God, we receive faith to believe that our God is the winner, the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. He has triumphed over princes and principalities, emperors and empires, death and the grave. Nothing can separate us from the love of the God who has given us His own name, through his Son.

While we might be running the race on the winning team, we are not yet to the finish line. When Jesus says, “Render unto God the things that are God’s”- we are challenged. Casting a vote for God, claiming the family name we’ve been given, requires nothing less than everything we have and everything that we are.

God’s everything includes sending the Son into the world that we might believe and have eternal life. God’s everything includes forgiving our shortcomings and offering us a fresh start daily. God’s everything includes sending the Holy Spirit into the world to guide us and all people. God’s everything includes, literally,…everything.

Today’s gospel challenges us to remember just that. That what we think of as going to the government, to the church, or what we keep for ourselves- it all belongs to God. And whether Pharisee or Herodian, whether sick or well, whether rich or poor, whether grieving or rejoicing, whether giving or withholding, we belong to God. We belong to God. Amen.

Recently, someone brought it to my attention that October is Mental Illness Awareness Month. While I prefer to use the term “mental health”, I think the intent is the same nonetheless. Many,many people, around us every day, struggle with mental health issues. They wrestle with depression, they fight suicidal ideation, they give in to inner turmoil, voices and struggles.

Not all mental illness is the publicized image of a homeless person mumbling to himself or a person screaming in a room. From mild depression to disorders of greater magnitude, the likelihood is that each of us will experience some mental struggle in our lives.

What can the faithful do in response? We can respond in three ways: 1) with logic , 2) with compassion and 3) with faith.

We can, logically, encourage and embrace scientific research and investigation into the real causes and solutions to mental illness. We can recognize the legitimacy of psychological disorders and psycho-social illness. We can seek genuine cures and helps- not fades of the moment that may hurt far more than they help. We can educate or support education efforts so that people understand mental health as a organic part of their lives- no different from physical health.

We can, compassionately, seek ways to use our gifts to help those around us whose lives are affected by mental illness. We can sit with a family after a suicide, even in quiet support (which is very different from silent judgment). We can bring food and clothing to homeless shelters and way-houses in our communities, recognizing that some peoples’ struggles with mental health render them unable to live life in a way we might recognize. We can forward efforts to end bullying, support legitimate rehab programs and facilities, and refuse to find humorous jokes at the expense of the mentally ill.

Finally, we can, faithfully, pray for our brothers and sisters who struggle with their mental health. We can ask for guidance in the steps above and what we can do that goes beyond those realms. We can make our churches places that people believe they will find help and consolation. We can wrestle with the tension of the world as we wish it would be and the world as it is… and we can meant it when we pray, “Your will be done on earth as in heaven.” Then we can dust off our knees and (to paraphrase Rabbi A. J. Heschel) we can pray with our feet, our hands and all else we have.