St. Paul wrote:  Besides this, you know what time it is, how it is now the moment for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we became believers; the night is far gone, the day is near. Romans 13:11-12a

As we were visiting with my sister and her family during the Thanksgiving holiday we began to talk about movies that would be good for us as a whole family to watch – from age ten on up. Someone suggested the “Back to the Future” series, and my about to be twelve-year-old nephew, said “How can it be back to the future?  That doesn’t make sense?” And his question launches us firmly into Advent – for that is where we are: Back to the Future.

Advent is a season that messes with our minds, because it is all about time: the intersecting, overlapping realities of future, past and present as lived in God’s time. We begin by hearing the ancient promises of God made to the prophets, about God’s vision for his people, what is the ultimate goal of life. This year we are hearing the promises as they came through Isaiah, two thousand, seven hundred years ago, words that speak of the end of war, and of turning weapons of destruction into farm tools; they are the words on the Isaiah wall across the street from the United Nations: “they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.” This is a vision from a time long past for the future that is yet to come.

In the Gospel reading Jesus speaks of the time of his return, referring to himself as the Son of Man, and he says that no one knows when that time will be, but that we should be ready, be on the lookout. The time of Christ’s return is the future – when he will come as Judge at the consummation of history, but as to trying to assign a time or date…we are getting way out in front of ourselves. I’m sure you have heard or read all kinds of predictions and supposed “de-coding” of Biblical passages that purport to tell us when this will happen, but they all fall into the category of over-reach. The truth is, we just don’t know when Christ will return, and all Jesus tells us is that we need to be awake and alert – prepared and ready for God’s future.

And then, of course, Advent is the season when we are preparing to celebrate the birth of Jesus, the Christ Child, the baby in the manger at Bethlehem, the Feast of the Incarnation. That event took place two thousand years ago, and yet we are still celebrating in the present, because God who became fully incarnate in human life in the person of Jesus, is always present with us. In God, it is always “now.”

Past, future, and present – in Advent they weave together too tightly to fully unravel. And the pictures around the walls of the church, and on your bulletin covers, remind us visually of present, future and past existing together. The photos are from the Hubble Space telescope; it was launched by NASA twenty-three years ago, and ever since has been sending photographs to earth of galaxies, nebulas, stars; some of the most recent photos of extreme deep space are pictures of light that has traveled six billion light years into to the future and is just now reaching us. When we see those photos we are seeing the past in the present, and yet it is new every second; the future is unfolding in front of our very eyes. Like I said at the beginning – Advent messes with your mind! We wait and prepare for the coming of Christ – in his first Advent in Bethlehem, and in his second Advent at the conclusion of this age, and we do not wait alone; the stars and planets and galaxies, the entire cosmos, waits with us.

In his letter to the Romans Paul said: “you know what time it is, how it is now the moment for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we became believers; the night is far gone, the day is near.” The day is near, the time is now, God is present with us always – so what do we do while we wait: wait for Christmas, wait for the return of Christ?

We do the things that will keep us spiritually awake and alert, ready to respond to God with a glad and generous heart:
·         be attentive in prayer;
·         be eager to deepen your understanding of God and the Christian life by reading Scripture or theology or a book on spirituality;
·         be curious about other people – what their life is like, what their needs are, what brings them joy or sorrow, what you might be able to do to help;
·         be willing to work and speak and pray for what is good and right, especially in the places our society needs it most;
·         be a blessing – let God use you to bless others, most often in ways that you could never have imagined for yourself;
·         be quiet – especially as this Advent season has come to be defined by frantic and out-of-control shopping; be quiet and calm within yourself and a non-anxious presence to those around you.

As we allow ourselves to be in this way, to just “be” in God’s presence as future, past and present is woven around us, we will be ready for the coming of Christ – at least as ready as we’ll ever be, as ready as God wants us to be. May your waiting be full of the quiet wonder and glory of God, and may you know yourself to wait in the company of God’s magnificent and mysterious cosmos.

Let us pray.
Lord God, you have called your servants to ventures of which we cannot see the ending, by paths untrodden, through perils unknown.  Give us faith to go out with good courage, not knowing where we go, but only that your hand is leading us and your love supporting us; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.  ~ Lutheran Book of Worship, 1978

Victoria Geer McGrath
All Saints’ Church, Millington, NJ
First Sunday of Advent
December 1, 2013

 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him God was pleased to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, by making peace through the blood of his cross. Colossians 1:19-20

There has been much reflection this past week on the 50th anniversary of John F. Kennedy’s death – where people were when they got the news, how they felt, and how we and our country were changed by it. No matter what your politics were, nearly everyone recognized the sense of energy, youth, vitality, optimism, and style that the Kennedys brought to public life that overflowed to the rest of the country. For those of you who were too young to remember the assassination, the death of Princess Diana under very different circumstances thirty-four years later carried the same sense of almost mythic tragedy.

In 1960, the same year that Kennedy was elected, the musical Camelot was first produced on Broadway. It was based on the old legends of King Arthur and the knights of the Round Table, and a kingdom that was known far and wide for its justice and chivalry, honor and respect; even the weather (according to the title song) was supposed to be a model of temperance and perfection.
But like all mythic stories, this one eventually had its share of betrayal in love, sadness, death, disappointment, and a longing for a glorious legacy. Very quickly, the show came to be associated with the atmosphere and glamour that surrounded President Kennedy and his administration; so much so that his time in office came to be referred to as Camelot, the mythical kingdom - making his assassination all the more shocking when it happened.

Funny thing about that kingdom imagery…we have spent the last six months of the Church year exploring the Kingdom of God.
Back in May when we celebrated Ascension Sunday we marked Jesus’ return to heaven after the resurrection, and we claimed his lordship and sovereignty over all of life – including our own lives. And throughout the summer and fall we have spent our time, in our Sunday Gospel readings, unpacking what it means to be a disciple, to be a follower of Jesus, and for him to be Lord of life.
And now we have arrived at Christ the King Sunday – the bookend to the Ascension; it, too, affirms that Christ is the true and rightful Ruler, the Holy One whose kingdom shall have no end.

And intersecting as it does at this point in the cycle of the secular calendar and observances, this day reminds us that the sovereignty of Christ trumps the political and social power of our world. Luke, the Gospel writer we have been listening to the most in this past year, makes it very clear; and he particularly wants us to remember that God’s kingdom in not just that parallel universe we call “heaven.” God’s kingdom, Luke tells us, has important “this-world” implications:

When we say “Jesus is Lord,” it means also that Caesar is not Lord, as the first-century Roman emperors claimed.

Saying “Jesus is Lord,” means the power of the Roman Empire is not Lord; “Jesus is Lord” means that all of our governmental and political arrangements are only of human origin and cannot be given the status and power of God.

“Jesus is Lord,” means that materialism and consumer culture is not Lord.

“Jesus is Lord,” means that any individual with pretensions to power and absolute authority is not Lord.

We Christians, and Jews long before us, have always lived in a world where there are competing claims for our loyalty and devotion. Three thousand years ago the People of God lived with and were often led astray by the temptation to worship other ancient Near Eastern deities, instead of the Lord God who had led them out of slavery in Egypt and established with them a life-giving relationship – the covenant.

Two thousand years ago it there was the temptation to give in to the Roman conceit that military power – when held absolutely – was the highest and most absolute authority, and could control the fate of any person in the Empire who defied Rome’s right to rule. And at the same time, the Emperor’s, beginning with Julius Caesar, began to claim for themselves the status of gods, and titles like “Lord” and “Savior,” requiring the peoples of the Empire to express their loyalty and worship of Caesar by offering incense at his statue in the public square of every major town.

And ever since, there have been individuals and movements and human systems and whole societies that sought to make themselves the final authority, the greatest power, demanding ultimate loyalty. In contrast to all of that, in every age, God has offered a different vision, a different kind of kingdom that is based not on human power and ambition, but on God’s justice and goodness and purpose.

In his letter to the church at Colossae, Paul describes it this way: “[God] has rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” God’ purpose is to offer us wholeness and life and restoration, even as we live in the here-and-now, not in a magical or mythical sort of way, but by making it clear that the rules of engagement the wordly powers put forward are not, in fact the true laws of the universe at its deepest, most God-given level.

That is why we have the portrayal of the Crucifixion as the Gospel today – as strange and out of sequence as it may seem. When we see Jesus on the Cross – that ultimate symbol of Roman domination – we see Jesus acting as Lord and Sovereign, offering pardon and forgiveness to those who were crucified with him, even as he absorbed into himself the totality of death and destruction, and came out the other side into new life. The Kingdom of God was inaugurated in all its fullness by Christ’s death and resurrection, tearing open the veil, breaking down the wall of human pridefulness and over-reaching ambition that separated us from God’s best intentions for us.

The Kingdom of God operates on very different principles from the spheres and fiefdoms of human power. And it begins with forgiveness of sin – that which separates us from God and from each other. Think for a moment about someone with whom you are at odds, estranged from – either currently, or in the past; what is it that keeps you locked into that place with them? It might be fear, anger, rejection, a sense of betrayal, wanting to protect yourself or something you hold dear; that person may have well and truly wronged you, sinned against you and yet you are both caught in a strangle-hold, a Gordian knot that can only be cut through by the power of forgiveness.

Forgiveness does not mean that everything between you is all right, or that pain and suffering and wrong-doing never happened.
Forgiveness is the way, sometimes the very risky and costly way, that the light and love of God enters the relationship or situation and begins the process of healing, restoration and reconciliation. And all of this is possible only because we first know the forgiveness and loving-kindness of God in Christ. That is one of the hallmarks (there are others) of the Kingdom of God in which we are citizens, one of the operating principles of life when we say “Jesus is Lord.”

“In [Christ] all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell,” Paul wrote to the Christians in Colossae, “and through him God was pleased to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, by making peace through the blood of his cross.”
Reconciliation, justice, goodness, peace – with God, with others, and with ourselves – this is what it means to live with Christ as King, as Sovereign, as Lord; and it all begins with Jesus’ gift of forgiveness and new life.

Let us pray.
Gracious God, fill us with the knowledge of your will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that we may lead lives worthy of the Lord Jesus, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and growing in the knowledge and love of God. May we be made strong with all the strength that comes from Christ’s glorious power, and may we be prepared to endure everything with patience, while joyfully giving thanks to you, Heavenly Father, as we share in the inheritance of the saints in the light. You have rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of your beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins, and for this we give you thanks and praise, this day and always.  Amen.

Victoria Geer McGrath
All Saints’ Church, Millington, NJ
Last Sunday after Pentecost: Christ the King
November 24, 2013

Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning: Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them, that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life, which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

What gives you hope? For yourself, for your family, for humankind – what gives you hope? Hope is not optimism, or wishful thinking, or keeping your fingers crossed.

The Catechism in the Prayer Book puts it like this: “The Christian hope is to live with confidence in newness and fullness of life, and to await the coming of Christ in glory, and the completion of God’s purpose for the world… [and] our assurance as Christians is that nothing, not even death, shall separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (pp. 861-862) That is what Christians mean by hope, for ourselves and for the world God has made, and it is this “blessed hope of everlasting life” given to us in Christ that today’s Collect prays we may “embrace and ever hold fast.”

If the Collect sounds particularly familiar to you, it’s because it formed the basis for our Bible Challenge prayer, which we have been praying each Sunday, and some of us have been praying daily, as we have been reading through the whole Bible over the course of the year. The Collect asks God to help us to hear, read, mark, learn and inwardly digest holy Scripture; another way of saying that is to take in the Bible on as many different levels as possible:

·         First, by listening to the words as they are read aloud in worship, or in a study group, or even if you are at home by yourself; some people learn better when they listen, and (no matter what) different words and images will strike us when we hear the Bible read aloud.

·         Second, we read; whether we do this by following along with the printed inserts, or in the pew Bible, or when we read Scripture at home, it allows us to take in the text on a different level than hearing alone.

·         Third, to mark Scripture has to do with paying attention – as in “mark my words”, pay heed to what I say; we may well read the Bible with a highlighter or a pencil in hand and literally mark the page, anything that will help us take note of what is important and what the Holy Spirit is saying to us.

·         Next, we learn the Scriptures in a number of different ways; some people like to memorize Scripture – particularly the Psalms; some find the footnotes in a study Bible or a Scriptural commentary helpful; sometimes it’s asking questions of someone you know who is well-versed in the Bible – whatever will help you to get inside the meaning and context and spiritual import of the text. I meet every Wednesday noontime with a group of Episcopal clergy to read, study and discuss the lectionary passages for the coming Sunday – and lest you think that would be a dull and solemn group, I can assure that the most common emotion in our meetings is laughter.

·         Finally, the Collect bids us to inwardly digest the Bible; we can do that through meditating on a phrase or passage in a prayerful way; by carrying a Gospel story around with us during the day and letting it speak to us throughout the day’s events; by noticing when an image or phrase from the Bible pops into our head or heart when we least expect it, and know that the Spirit is speaking to us.

All of these ways of taking in Holy Scripture are meant to lead us more deeply into that place where we can “embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life which [God has] given us in our Savior Jesus Christ.”

The words of the Bible, and the story of the Bible – God’s whole, big, amazing story of Creation, sin, the covenant of faith, the call and exodus of God’s people, the building of the Temple, the continual announcements by the prophets of God’s purpose even when the people and their rulers wandered away from it, the coming of God into human life in Jesus and his death and resurrection, the calling and sending forth of the apostles with the message of redemption and new life in Christ, the formation of churches and their growth in faith and ministry, and the vision for the ultimate destiny of God’s People and God’s Creation – a New Heaven and a New Earth; from Genesis to Revelation – this whole big story is meant to give us hope, the hope that comes from knowing that God will never leave us nor forsake us, and that God’s goodness will, in the end, triumph.

Sometimes, of course, it is hard to see that.

How often do we hit a stretch – days, weeks…years – when it seems that life is much harder than it should be, than we can bear; and illness, financial worries, relationship difficulties and a host of other things take their toll on us?

Or we look at the world around us and see the kind of natural devastation caused by hurricanes and typhoons, or the fact that civilian gun violence seems to be continuing a-pace, or the statistics reported in this past week’s Star-Ledger that income inequalities in our state continue to grow by significant amounts thereby harming families – we look at all of this and it can be hard to see and feel that God has a handle on what’s going on in this world he has made.

And then there are those times when we turn to the Bible for comfort and strength and solace, and we encounter the book of Leviticus with its holiness code; or the endless battles of military leaders like Saul and David in the books of 1 and 2 Samuel, 1 and 2 Kings, 1 and 2 Chronicles; or the strange and frightening imagery in Ezekiel, Daniel and Revelation; or even the apocalyptic vision the Jesus holds out in today’s Gospel, talking about wars and insurrections  and the destruction of the Temple – how in the world, and in God’s good Name, do we find hope in any of that?

It helps to remember that the Bible doesn’t whitewash anything – it “tells it like it is” about human nature and life on earth; the details may be from the ancient world, but the feelings and spiritual realities are the same as we have today – and we see this best expressed in the Psalms. Another thing to keep in mind, particularly when we read the Old Testament, is that the group, the community, the People of God as a whole (rather than the individual) is what is being valued and addressed.

Of course God loves us each uniquely and boundlessly, but the Old Testament wants to remind us that faith and salvation and the gift of life are not about us alone – or even us and God – but about each one of us taking our place in the purpose that God has for the whole of his creation.

And then there are so many passages and places in Scripture where we can turn for encouragement, comfort, support and hope. The 23rd Psalm, of course, is best known and best-beloved, but also Psalm 121: “I lift up my eyes to the hills; from where is my help to come?”, or Psalm 139 “Lord, you have searched me out and known me; you know my sitting down and my rising up; you discern my thoughts from afar.”

Visions – word paintings – of humanity’s future in God’s care offer beauty and inspiration, as in today’s reading from Isaiah: “They shall not labor in vain, or bear children for calamity; for they shall be offspring blessed by the Lord— and their descendants as well. Before they call I will answer, while they are yet speaking I will hear. The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, the lion shall eat straw like the ox; but the serpent—its food shall be dust! They shall not hurt or destroy on all my holy mountain, says the Lord.” Isaiah 65:23-25

And then the Gospels give us so many words of hope – as well as challenge:

·         Do not be afraid; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is the Messiah, the Lord. Luke 2:10-11

·         For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. John 3:16-17

·         I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? Matthew 6:25-26

I’m sure you have your own favorite passages that you turn to when you need encouragement.

But the point of the Collect is that as we read the Bible – day in and day out, and as a church community week in and week out – the point is that the whole big overarching story of God and all the small bits and verses and passages give us a framework to hold on to, a foothold and a foundation to stand upon, and inspiration and hope as we live each day, loved by God, held together as the Body of Christ and sent forth in God’s service as God’s own people.

Let us pray.
Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning: Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them in this year of Bible Challenge, that we may be drawn ever closer to you and be strengthened, deepened, and enlivened for your service in the world.  In Jesus’ Name we pray.  Amen.

Victoria Geer McGrath
All Saints’ Church, Millington, NJ
Twenty-sixth Sunday after Pentecost
November 17, 2013