+Z’ev

Today’s assigned readings:
Isaiah 55:3-9, Colossians 3:1-17, John 14:6-14

As God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. Bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other; just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.
Colossians 3:12-13

I have a conversation every once in a while where I use the line, “Christianity is the most co-dependent religion.” I realised this back when I was last writing such Bible meditations as these: over and over again our religion commands us to put responsibility for wrong on ourselves. The Sermon on the Mount starts us there: if you are offering something and remember that someone else has something against you - go be reconciled to them. Imagine: denying yourself communion until everyone loved you. Not until you were at peace everyone, but until everyone was at peace with you! Imagine the conservatives Anglicans refusing to take communion until their gay brothers and sisters forgave them. Imagine gay Anglicans refusing to take communion until their conservative brothers and sisters forgave them.

I can’t imagine it, to be honest: for I think both sides tend to be happy just saying “to Hell with ye!” (Not always, thank God, but sometimes.)

Paul asks us in another place to let those weaker in faith lead the stronger. Don’t do it at all unless everyone can do it. I wish the Episcopal Church would have waited on the weaker bretheren in the ordination of Women and Gays, but now I wish both sides could follow St Paul and “Bear with one another”.

Bearing with one another is not something we see in much of Christian history, to be honest: from Paul’s congregations up to Nicea (where Santa Claus punched out Arius); from 1054 when the Pope and the Patriarch had a pissing contest up until last year when the Patriarch of Moscow had a pissing contest with the Patriarch of Istanbul and up until the very last minute when various Anglican bishops with and without Jurisdiction are filing lawsuits against each other. We’d much rather have a public fist fight than “forgive each other just as the Lord has forgiven”.

As I was contemplating these readings a connexion came to me. For the Jews, “Jewishness” is an ethnicity. There are very few things you can do and be declared “not a Jew”. It’s not a religion, per se (as the YouTube Rebbe points out). One doesn’t “confess the faith of the Jews”. Rather one becomes a member of the tribe. It is, as Anne Rice wrote in Interview with a Vampire (albeit on another topic), a “body conversion”. One becomes a Jew - in a sense, one gets new DNA. In our better moments as Americans we model this perfectly: one becomes an American. There is no credo beyond accepting the others who are also Americans.

No matter what one does as a Jew, one is still a Jew: the genetics don’t change. One can be a lapsed, non-observant Jew. One can be a secular Jew. One can be an heretical Jew. One can be an apostate Jew. But, no matter what one’s religious status, one is still of the Jewish People. But this can not be true of Christianity.

In creating Christianity, the Apostles were founding something entirely new: a religion without a people. Old tensions had to be done away with: You can not transcend the systems, politics and races of this world when you are trapped thinking in those terms. As Paul writes, “In that renewal there is no longer Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave and free.” He is pushing us beyond our human, ethnic, religious and political divisions towards a new concept: a “peoplehood” based on a religion rather than the other way around. The early Church had to develop exclusionary doctrines in order to be a people without borders. And, in order for Christians to just get along together the Church had to lay down some strong rules about our shared social life. But the first of those rules is not judging others for breaking those same rules.

In other words: we should be acting as if we have created a new race of beings here. This is what the Apostle means in calling Jesus “The New Adam.” We are the children of “The New Adam” and we have totally new DNA. The worse we can do is lapse or be apostate. It’s between God and “the other”.

One of the cool things I was told prior to converting to Orthodox Christianity was that - in the area of the “Food Disciplines” - “we all do it together.” Everyone abstains from meat, eggs, fish, oil, wine and dairy on every Wednesday and Friday as well as during Lent, Advent and a couple of other places during the year. Roughly speaking, about half the year all Orthodox are vegans who don’t drink. The cool thing is that we all do it together. This is one of the things that makes us Orthodox. Doing it together binds us all together.

Of course, that only lasts until you get on the internet and discover the disagreements over what can and can not be eaten, what does “oil” and “wine” mean, when does the fasting start (Sunset or Midnight)? What calendar should we use (Gregorian or Julian)? What should laity be responsible for? And then, of course, there are those who don’t even use these rules as their own. Most of certain jurisdictions don’t even fast any more. The entire Western Rite has a different fasting rule.

Most Americans, finding out that things are different than advertised, seem to retreat into an adopted Ethnicity. As if “real” Orthodoxy is Russian or Greek or Serbian or whatever. Most of the American converts I know, however, stay away from the actual Ethnic types - because that’s where the liberals are! The Americans become more Antiochian Orthodox than the Arabs, more Greek Orthodox than the Greeks, more Russian than the Russians. In other words they treat their new found ethnicity as a sort of “Jewish People” and try to have a body conversion. This gets typified in the conversation that follows the question, “Can Americans (or Westerners) really be Orthodox?” For a while my answer was “no” and I tried really hard to be someone other than the person God graced me with being.

Another cool thing I was told was that “we all believe the same thing”. No, sorry. I won’t even begin to unload that. (Mostly because what we all believe is rather nebulous.) In other words we failed to create this pseudo-race of our own. But Paul and Jesus insist that the things that make us a people are exactly not the rules that we follow or the things we believe. Rather it is our willingness to “bear with one another” or, to put up with each other.

I put up with my family because I have to - no matter who gets drunk at Thanksgiving or who brings yet another trashy (new) husband to Christmas dinner. But I’ll walk right out of my church if I don’t like the sermon preached last Sunday or the colour of candles that were chosen for the Advent Wreath.

One is stuck being a Jew no matter how one fails to live up to the rules, customs or regulations, but those people ordained women, so they can’t be Christian any more.

Yup, we done good in this whole bear with one onother thing.

Much love,

Huw

Commemoration of the Martyr William Laud

Today’s assigned readings:
Jeremiah 23:1-8, Colossians 2:8-23, John 10:7-17

Therefore thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, concerning the shepherds who shepherd my people: It is you who have scattered my flock, and have driven them away, and you have not attended to them. So I will attend to you for your evil doings, says the Lord. Then I myself will gather the remnant of my flock out of all the lands where I have driven them, and I will bring them back to their fold, and they shall be fruitful and multiply. I will raise up shepherds over them who will shepherd them, and they shall not fear any longer, or be dismayed, nor shall any be missing, says the Lord.
Jeremiah 23:2-4

It is my sense that this passage, in order to be fully understood, must be seen in the 1st, 2nd and 3rd person: Myself as Shepherd, You as Shepherd, Them as Shepherds. Paul makes us responsible for each other, each the other’s faith, each for the other’;other’s participation and salvation in the Body of Christ. Thus each of us are shepherds for the other, no matter what Jeremiah might have intended or what other ways it can be read.

As a Bible Teacher, a blogger and as a preacher, I have to be accountable for the ways in which I might cause to stumble those who hear or read my words. I pray my words would not lead someone astray or scatter the flock… But I’ve experienced that ability writing from both conservative and liberal sides of the aisle. It is, mostly, that double experience that makes me certain both sides are needed, that both sides are equally Christian (or that neither side is). And so that brings me to shepherds in the second person.

My recent experience of spiritual abuse as led me to wonder how one can speak out without causing scandal. One priest suggested I write the bishop of my former pastor, but I can’t figure out how to do that without getting caught in the middle again. You - the second person - shepherd… (Not “you” as in my readers) can do things that would cause the sheep to scatter.

I see the same sort of thing in the current Roman Catholic issue with paedophilia: it is important to find and stop the perpetrators. But how can you do that in a way that does not cause scandal among the faithful, among other Christians and before the eyes of the world?

In the third person - them - shepherds are even harder to pin down. Among the possible traditional readings, the readers of the Hebrew Scriptures might understand “shepherds” to indicate those whole rule the countries where Jews sojourn during their long Diaspora. And so this prophecy might be seen as directed against the (mostly Christian) nations and peoples who persecuted the Jews over the last 2,000 years. Christians might be very wise to take that upon themselves. We have traditionally seen Jews among us as “Them” and “the Other” rather than as our Guests or, following Jeremiah, the Lord’s Sheep for whose care we are responsible.

Today’s commemoration of William Laud ties this all together, I think: for the religious debates which led to his martyrdom at the hands of Protestant extremists and iconoclasts were also political debates in his day. But his every turn seemed to be wrong for politics and extremism had besieged the church then - as now. We are no better off today: At the Iowa Caucuses, as I blogged last week, Pastor Huckabee’s cheerleader, Rebecca Sweethood, lets you know what she, at least, thinks of you in this prayer for the Pastor:

We pray that you would lift Mike Huckabee up, Lord… Lord we pray that he would not be ashamed to be known as a pastor. And that is exactly what the leader of a Nation should be, Lord, one who is is a shepherd over sheep, God…

When I pointed out that we’re electing a president, not a pastor one of my readers took me to task for reasons unclear: he seems to imagine that because I don’t want my political leader to be a religious authority I am, therefore, rejecting all religious authority at all.

Another way to look at this is the political siege caused by issues of Human Sexuality. It’s OK for African Clergy to have more than one wife (provided they were married before they converted). This is defended as a cultural position and not one of morality. But Americans are accused of abandoning the faith because they elected a openly Gay man. Or, conversely, the scandal caused by that election did, in fact, shatter an otherwise shaky communion.

As people of faith, how do we shepherd - ourselves, our loved ones and our guests? And how do we shepherd in such a way as not to scatter the flock?

Much love,

Huw

Commemoration of Julia Chester Emery

Today’s assigned readings:
Isaiah 45:14-19, Colossians 1:24-2:7, John 8:12-19

Today is the Feast of Title for the hospitality room on the 8th Floor of the Episcopal Church Center in NYC. It was donated in honour of today’s saint, Julia Chester Emery. I’m thankful for the many hours of rest and fellowship spend in that room, remembering especially the daily lunch meetings of the GenX Fellowship, most of which took place in that room. I also remember a nap I took one afternoon, with my alarm clock on my chest. I was exhausted. And I remember that my then boss (standing in while my regular boss was on Sabbatical) was horrified to find someone using the rest area for actual rest: he forbad naps after that. I can’t remember his name, but I remember the incident. Sad, really.

Anyway, thanks Julia!

Verily Thou art a God that hidest Thyself, O God of Israel, the Saviour.
Isaiah 45:15 (Jewish Publications Society Tanakh)

The first half of this chapter of Isaiah is a message to King Cyrus, whom Isaiah calls “the Lord’s Messiah” or “YHVH’s Messiah” in Isaiah 45:1. First God points out that Cyrus doesn’t know God - yet God called Cyrus to do some work. Then God says the entire world might be confused about that, but, tough: God is God and he can do what he wants - good or evil (in Men’s eyes) it’s God’s plan.

Then, seemingly in his own voice, Isaiah writes this one line (Verse 15) before launching into some Praise of God before Israel - God made everything and even if it looks confusing, it’s still God’s way. YHVH is Israel’s glory and in God shall all Israel be justified.

The entire chapter is beautiful, containing some of the more wonderful passages of Isaiah, especially in verse 8. “Drop down, ye heavens, from above, and let the skies pour down righteousness; let the earth open, that they may bring forth salvation, and let her cause righteousness to spring up together; I the LORD have created it.” (Which forms the text of an anthem that we used to sing at St Gregory of Nyssa parish.)

But that one line intrigues me - Thou art a God that hidest Thyself.

After declaring all the wonderful things God does, is this a line in the Prophet’s own voice? Is this supposed to be a comment from Cyrus? Is this a later emendation from some post-exilic redactor? This might be a sort of liturgical exclamation, intended to be Gasped piously by the congregation as the implication sinks in:

Cyrus is God’s Messiah! (Stage Whisper: Verily Thou art a God that hidest Thyself, O God of Israel, the Saviour.)
George Bush is president? Again?!?!? (Stage Whisper: Verily Thou art a God that hidest Thyself, O God of Israel, the Saviour.)
The State of Israel still survives despite the hatred of everyone? (Stage Whisper: Verily Thou art a God that hidest Thyself, O God of Israel, the Saviour.)

The line also reminded me of the Jewish mystical teaching (echoed also in the Stoics, Gnostics and Patristic writers) that we all contain divine sparks - God hiding himself.

But it is curious that this reading should turn up in Epiphany when we are supposed to be celebrating the revelation of God, the manifestation of God in very visible, very easy to grasp ways - albeit surprising:

God is born a baby in the midst of blood and waist? (Stage Whisper: Verily Thou art a God that hidest Thyself, O God of Israel, the Saviour.)
God is an unlettered carpenter from Podunk, Palestine? (Stage Whisper: Verily Thou art a God that hidest Thyself, O God of Israel, the Saviour.)
God is a Jewish Rabbi? (Stage Whisper: Verily Thou art a God that hidest Thyself, O God of Israel, the Saviour.)
God comes to us in our homeless neighbours, our coworkers who frustrate us, our lover who needs us, our children who weep for lack of an XBox360 for Christmas? (Stage Whisper: Verily Thou art a God that hidest Thyself, O God of Israel, the Saviour.)
God feeds us himself in bread and wine and fellowship? (Stage Whisper: Verily Thou art a God that hidest Thyself, O God of Israel, the Saviour.)

How can we participate in this finding of God? What are the sacraments of the presence of God that we overlook? How often can we find something new and, laughing like Isaiah, suddely exclaim “Verily Thou art a God that hidest Thyself, O God of Israel, the Saviour.”

Much love,

Huw

Commemoration of Harriet Bedell

Today’s assigned readings:
Exodus 17:1-7, Colossians 1:15-23, John 7:37-52

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation
Colossians 1:15

As noted in an earlier post, there are some doubts about who wrote this Epistle. It could have been Paul, or - in order to explain language and style differences between Colossians and other epistles - it could have been Paul dictating through someone (possibly Timothy); or it could have been written without Paul at all, but in the name of Paul by any one (or more) of his disciples.

What is certain, its theology is expanded, more fully developed than other Epistles. And it quotes hymnody - which means the Christian community would have needed time to develop such.

The passage assigned today is “‘The Christ Hymn’ Of Colossians”. Depending on who you ask the hymn is verses 11-20, or maybe 15-20, or possibly some other combo of the verses between 11 and 28.

What you can see, if you look at the opening passages of this epistle, is the number of times Paul says “All”. I think this hymn is better called the “All” hymn. “All” sorts of blessings are offered to the Colossians, then “All” kinds of things are claimed for Jesus.

“All” is a translation of the Greek word πας pas. It is used 1075 times in the New Testament. It’s used eight times in verses 15-20. Paul is making some important claims about Jesus and how God works through Jesus effecting salvation for us.

Here are all the “all” claims in verses 15 - 19

15: Jesus is “firstborn of all creation”
16: Through Jesus “all things in heaven and on earth were created” and “all things have been created”.
17: Jesus is “before all things” and in Jesus “all things hold together”.
18: Jesus has “first place in all things”.
19: In Jesus is “all the fullness of God”.

The word all in the Bible Dictionary I use links to this curious disclaimer:

“the whole world has gone after him” Did all the world go after Christ? “then went all Judea, and were baptized of him in Jordan. “Was all Judea, or all Jerusalem, baptized in Jordan? “Ye are of God, little children”, and the whole world lieth in the wicked one”. Does the whole world there mean everybody? The words “world” and “all” are used in some seven or eight senses in Scripture, and it is very rarely the “all” means all persons, taken individually. The words are generally used to signify that Christ has redeemed some of all sorts — some Jews, some Gentiles, some rich, some poor, and has not restricted His redemption to either Jew or Gentile.

The thing is how it builds up from a simple use of literary hyperbole to that final theological claim that “Christ has redeemed some of all sorts”. “All Jerusalem” is clearly hyperbole.

What about “All the fullness of God”? Is that Hyperbole?
What about the claim that “All things” are made through Jesus?

Do we need to read this disclaimer into these early verses of the hymn? Only some-but-not-all things come before Jesus? There are some other things that are before him. Only some but not all of the fullness of God dwells in Jesus, there are some things that are not Jesus at all. There are some things, in fact, that are more important than Jesus.

That would explain, of course, the final “all” in the hymn, in verse 20, that in Jesus’ actions…

All things. Oh My God, is Paul (or at least this hymn being quoted) making a claim for Universalism, again?

Well…

Does “all” mean “all”?

Yes, it is quite possible to proof-text particular salvation out of the Bible. Some people are going to be-not-saved. Some will be saved. But we normally use that proof-texting as a way to condemn some (usually those with whom we politically or theologically disagree). It is also possible to proof-text the claims of universal salvation in such a way as to override all conception of free will.

It is neither possible nor desirable for God to coerce from the hearts of his creations affection for himself.

How do we reconcile the clear Biblical and patristic claim of universal God-ward reconciliation with the clear Biblical and patristic claim that some people won’t want to be involved?

We’re so very used to the idea of “two places” for people: a good place, heaven with God. And a bad place - hell - with lots of fire. What if they are both the same place? Look to the patristic claim that “the afterlife” will mean full participation in the presence of God, full communion - to know and be known - in God and the fullness of all creation. But to some people, that will be hell for they won’t desire this at all. All things - all meaning all - are reconciled to God. But some people don’t like that idea at all.

Imagine being subject to a political leader for whom you did not vote. Imagine being subject to a political leader whom you imagine to be opposed to your freedoms. Imagine being subject to a political leader whom you imagine somehow engineered a peaceful coup, and so, for a period of time (until the next election) you’re stuck with this man in office that you did not vote for and whom you think stole the election. And here you are, stuck in the country he leads, and he is - really - your leader for some period of time or, God forbid, maybe he wins a second election and you have to suffer through yet another period of time with this leader.

Just try to imagine that happened.

Of your own free will, that man would not be leader, but, yet - either through might, or coercion, graft, skill, or just dumb luck - that man is your leader. Do you stay or do you go?

Can you walk away while keeping your home, your job, your family and friends, etc?

Or would you spend the entire time insisting that, in fact, that man wasn’t your leader? Would you spend the entire period trying to discover the assumed graft that placed that man in power? Would you wear t-shirts and bumper stickers that insisted your leader was someone else; make videos exposing the fraud, protest in the streets every chance you got, and have people snicker at you behind your back because, well, how can anyone be so dense?

If so, perhaps you might spend a period of time in my idea of “hell” in a universalist sense - full participation available but rejected.

So when this hymn says “all” does it mean “all”?

Yes, I think so - and I take comfort in that belief.

Much love,

Huw

Today’s assigned readings:
Deuteronomy 8:1-3, Colossians 1:1-14, John 6:30-33,48-51

Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.
John 6:49-51

I have a huge, internalised and living devotion to the Blessed Sacrament. I’ve watched this evolve and develop since I was 18 and joined the Episcopal Church. But I say this all on my terms, my own meanings.

I never quite “got” benediction of the blessed sacrament as a rite. It’s kinda boring, actually. But the hymnody is awesome.

Therefore we, before him bending,
this great Sacrament revere;
types and shadows have their ending,
for the newer rite is here;
faith, our outward sense befriending,
makes our inward vision clear.

For such hymns alone, rarely sung outside of a Benediction service, I love the rite itself.

Eastern Rite Orthodoxy has no such service, but during Lent, at the rite of the Presanctified, pretty much the exact same things happen including an awesome moment of full prostration in the dark as the Blessed Sacrament is carried through the Church.

Now the powers of heaven are serving with us invisibly,
for behold the King of glory enters.
The mystical sacrifice,
all accomplished is brought forth.
Let us, full of faith and love, draw near.
Let us all partakers of life everlasting.
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia

But my devotion to the Sacrament has changed mostly since I moved to Asheville, NC. The arch begins (as with a lot of things) at St Gregory of Nyssa parish.

One thing I missed in the liturgy at St Gregory’s was any sort of pre-communion preparation. We got to the altar, the presider blessed and we ate. There was no warm up. The same is true of my current parish, St Mary’s here in Asheville. So, then as now, I began to take a few moments of silence and say my own prayers. And what I would say - then, as now (and the entire time I was Orthodox) - was the Prayer of Humble Access. I love this prayer!

We do not presume to come to this thy Table, O merciful Lord,
trusting in our own righteousness,
but in thy manifold and great mercies.
We are not worthy so much as to gather up the crumbs under thy table.
But thou art the same Lord, whose property is always to have mercy;
Grant us therefore, gracious Lord,
so to eat the flesh of thy dear Son Jesus Christ, and to drink his blood,
that we may evermore ever dwell in him, and he in us.

To this I have added the Byzantine prayers -

I believe, O Lord, and I confess that thou art truly the Christ, the Son of the living God, who didst come into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief. And I believe that this is truly thine own immaculate Body, and that this is truly thine own precious Blood. Wherefore I pray thee, have mercy upon me and forgive my transgressions both voluntary and involuntary, of word and of deed, of knowledge and of ignorance; and make me worthy to partake without condemnation of thine immaculate Mysteries, unto remission of my sins and unto life everlasting. Amen.

Of thy Mystic Supper, O Son of God, accept me today as a communicant; for I will not speak of thy Mystery to thine enemies, neither will I give thee a kiss as did Judas; but like the thief will I confess thee: Remember me, O Lord, in thy Kingdom.

Not unto judgement nor unto condemnation be my partaking of thy Holy Mysteries, O Lord, but unto the healing of soul and body.

But one Sunday, bowing before the Altar at the later service, and standing in the midst of the congregation (at St Gregory’s) I opened my eyes and saw the floor was covered with bread crumbs. And not in a little way, either - it was as thick as a bad case of dandruff on a black t-shirt.

Now, anyone who has “a huge, internalised and living devotion to the Blessed Sacrament” is going to, at this moment, have a huge, internalised and living liturgical hissy fit. The odd thing is, that after a moment, it made far more sense and comfort than you can imagine. The trajectory from my prissy Anglo-Catholic Sacramentalism to the crumbs on the floor, is what I think is interesting. I don’t have enough time or space to track the entire arc, but a few points are needed.

I asked Donald (the Rector) one Sunday if, when I was giving out communion and said “the body of Christ” was I referring to the bread I held or to the person I was addressing. Donald said, “Yes.”

The realisation that fellowship per se, with Christians is what constitutes Christianity. If you to be a Christian, hang out with Christians in a Christian community.

The need to create places of fellowship within liturgical constructs rather than to divide liturgy from fellowship.

Communion is sanctified and ritualised eating - sanctify and ritualise any meal for it to be communion.

The Orthodox Trapeza meal - a fellowship meal in the context of liturgy.

The Didache communion rite celebrated at a family’s supper table.

“My Flesh - Bread” “My Body - the Church as the Body of Christ” Partaking of Church (fellowship) is the same as partaking of Christ.

Fellowshipping with Christians in love is “the mystical sacrifice, all accomplished, brought forth…” to partake in communion is to partake of communion.

You are the sacrament of God to me.

We note this today because, of course, liturgical Christians believe that the Eucharist is, itself, an Epiphany. It is. But what it reveals to us is not somehow God in any different form than he has already shown us. It’s not the “Bread” per se, but the “being”. The Communion of the Church is not mere eating and drinking. It is the presence of God in human love.

The thing that has been missing since I came to Asheville - that was very present in San Francisco and New York - is fellowship. Only rarely over the last five years have I gone out to dinner with friends and I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve had people over for dinner - or been invited over for dinner - in the last 5 years. I have been totally cut off from communion and partaking in the body of Christ.

Even through I’ve been to church every Sunday.

Much love,

Huw