The 25th Sunday After Pentecost
October 23rd, 2022
Chanthip Phongkhamsavath
Good morning. It has been a few weeks since I’ve seen you all either virtually or in person. It seems like a long time. I was happy to read in this week’s bulletin that we are going to go back to full time church in person starting in Advent. Always one of my favorite times of anticipation and hope.
Oddly one of the things that stuck out to me this week as I was thinking about my reflection and not surprisingly was working on it yesterday afternoon was the fact that we are currently in the 25th Sunday After Pentecost. And I had to think a minute about Pentecost and Ordinary time and since it felt like it’s been awhile actually decided to look them both up in the online version of An Episcopal Dictionary of the Church. And in the end it was the definition of “Ordinary Time” that really tied together my musings about the readings this week as well as the things that happened around me.
From part of the definition about Ordinary Time – “Ordinary time can be understood in terms of the living out of Christian faith and the meaning of Christ’s resurrection in ordinary life.”
A lot happens in ordinary life.
From the first reading there’s abundant rain and there were swarming locusts. There is even mention of the sun turning to darkness and the moon to blood – which reminded of that one day two years ago when the sky was filled with ash and the day was red – when the sun really did seem to be dark.
In the Psalm there is happiness in the rejoicing in the living God as well as a trip through the desolate valley to find it a place of springs.
From the second reading there is righteousness and yet at first no defense with no one coming to his support. And lastly in the Gospel there is the tax collector, standing far off, who would not even look up to heaven, but was beating his breast and saying, `God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’
There is happiness, rejoicing, dark times and humbleness – all in ordinary life – or just life in general. This week though I wondered about the hard time, those times when the locusts were about and the initial journey into the desolate valley. The times when ordinary life is challenging and there is so much injustice in the world it seems. I went and watched last week’s morning prayer because I was struck by what was in this week’s bulletin and Margaret’s statement that “We have absolutely nothing to lose by praying for the kind of world we want.” I wonder though about the times when ordinary life can seem so dark and so hard how to get back to even being in a place where prayer is a relief rather than a pain.
This stemmed from wondering about my childhood friend who lost her only child to cancer this week. Whether the prayers of strength and love are able to make their way to her. Whether the words meant to comfort her in knowing that her child is now with the Lord are more burdensome than not.
It’s what probably drew my attention to the hard times in the reading because in ordinary life there is the hard time. And it is just that. We will never have answers in our living days why there is injustice, why there are those moments that might push us away from God. Yet that is a part of the Christian Life. Knowing that there is God and making our way through everyday life as a Christian.
In happy times it may be easier, only I think in part because of the hard times. This made me think about the Pixar movie from a few years ago – Inside Out with the five core emotions Joy, Fear, Sadness, Anger and Disgust trying to control the reactions of the young girl – and not to go into too much detail and apologies if I spoil the movie for anyone – however the core part of the movie in my opinion was one could not be happy without also knowing sadness – and the other emotions too.
It is a part of life, sadness and hard times, although for some it is more abundant than others. And although I generally try to highlight and live in the happy times, I think more and more we also have to recognize the hard times too – together. That in everyday ordinary life there are sometimes things that make us hurt, make us sad, angry, and happy too. That it is ok to be in all of those spaces, to be able to live in them.
As much as one young life came to an end this week, I also had the joy last night of celebrating a new life at a full moon ceremony. All of this is a part of our ordinary days, living out our lives as Christians – hopefully in being humble as the tax collector – that despite knowing we are sinners – we are doing our best or the best we can in the moment at hand. And hopefully with a community around us we can all support each other through the desolate valleys into the eternal springs.
Amen.
