Today’s readings paint a pretty stark picture for God’s followers who do not do their best to treat their neighbors as they would like to be treated.
In Amos, the Lord warns that it will be “darkness, not light” if religious practices are not centered on righteousness and fairness for all; thus “the day of the Lord” they are expecting will not be a day of deliverance for Israel. As one commentator puts it: “God will not tolerate comfortable worship, and social and political isolation. God will not tolerate a full church, and a vacuum of justice. If you don’t take care of the less fortunate, God does not want your praises and prayers. There is no form of worship, however devout or rightly observed or full of praise and prayer, that is invulnerable to the judgment of God.”
In Psalm 70, David urgently seeks God’s deliverance, by praying for God’s help in dealing with his adversaries, and acknowledging his need for salvation, saying “Great is the Lord!” One commentator posits that such prayers are flawed in their understanding of God; “God never has to be called on to hasten. He is never tarrying uselessly or carelessly.”
In Thessalonians, Paul offers hope and comfort to the living about those who have died. One commentator says that Paul promises believers in Jesus that no one will be left behind: “Those who are alive will be caught up together with the Lord, and those who have already died will actually beat them to this ethereal encounter.”
In the parable of the Ten Bridesmaids, Matthew reminds us of the importance of vigilance in uncertain times; that if we want to be properly prepared to enter the Kingdom of God, we need to always be ready “with our lamps full of oil,” or when the time comes, we will be locked out.
These are descriptions of the “tough” love God provides to encourage all of Jesus’ followers to do our best to love our neighbor.
In past Reflections I have talked about my struggle to believe in something I cannot understand, finally coming to terms with the fact that all I need to know is that I am NOT God. I now believe in the loving God that Jesus taught, and that it’s not me. I try to keep it that uncomplicated so that in virtually any situation, I can call on God’s help by simply reaching outside of myself; by not going it alone.
I know there is a God, because on more than multiple occasions things have happened to and for me “out of the blue,” when I most needed them; not a lot, but often enough for me to believe. I call them “God things.”
In my last Reflection I talked about the Rev. Harry Emerson Fodsick, who believed that the Bible is a record of the unfolding of God’s will, and is not the literal “Word of God.” He saw the history of Christianity as one of development, progress and gradual change, alongside, but not at odds with, those made by we humans.
I recently ran across a quote of his that underscores the validity of a way I have come to visually depict God.
Many years ago, I started attending an annual fishing trip on the Owens River, in the Eastern Sierras. I got there by driving through Yosemite, over Tioga Pass and South on U.S. 395 to a ranch near Mammoth Lakes.
After I started my 12 Step journey and trying to “understand” God, a mentor asked me to draw a picture of God as I thought of him as a child, and then my present conception of God. The picture of the childhood God was one of a Santa Claus figure sitting on a cloud, but the present-day depiction was more difficult to imagine.
On one of these fishing trips, I had a pretty profound spiritual experience one clear night, as I walked back to my cabin after dinner. Looking up at the night sky, free from city lights and other obstructions, I saw the vast array of stars and suddenly realized that here was an obvious example of a “power greater than myself.” So, the picture I drew was of a bunch of stars. *
The Rev. Harry Emerson Fosdick quote I referred to earlier says:
“The fact that astronomies change while the stars abide
is a true analogy of every realm of human life
and thought, religion not the least of all.
No existent theology can be the final formulation
of Spiritual truth.”
Another thing I have realized is that, as we humans “discover” things about our Universe, what we discover is “more.”
Some years ago, a headline about the Hubble Telescope in the San Francisco Chronicle read: “Experts Discover New Universes.” But our “Universe” was already supposed to include everything! So, we had to make that word plural to begin to describe what we have “discovered!”
That pretty much says it all. We finite humans cannot fully understand the infinite, which is God.
In reviewing today’s Bible readings, and in these very difficult times, another Fosdick quote from his famous sermon Shall the Fundamentalists Win? – Or The New Knowledge of the Christian Faith hits home:
“I have heard stories from the depths of human lives where men and women were wrestling with the elemental problems of misery and sin – – stories that put upon a [person’s] heart a burden of vicarious sorrow, even though [they]do but listen to them. Here was real human need crying out after the living God revealed in Christ. Consider all the multitudes of [women] and men who so need God, and then think of Christian churches making of themselves a cockpit of controversy when there is not a single thing at stake in the business. So much of it does not matter! And there is one thing that does matter – – more than anything else in the world – – that men [and women] in their personal lives and their social relationships should know Jesus Christ.”
In prior Reflections, I have also referred to Paul’s letter to the Galatians, where he concludes: “For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself,’” (Galatians 5:14). Romans repeats that message, concluding: “Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore, love is the fulfilling of the law.” (Romans 13:10)
Paul emphasizes our actions, as opposed to what we’re thinking, telling us to treat our neighbors the way we want to be treated; those who act as if they truly love their neighbors, have kept the law fully.
The Universe, like Mother Nature, can be both predictable and spontaneous, beneficial and destructive; but always uncontrollable by us.
That reality better explains Paul’s injunction that if we Christians live by the Spirit; that is, do our best to love our neighbors as ourselves, we will inherit the kingdom of God, whether we like it or not!
Let’s keep loving our neighbors, no matter who they are, what they believe, or where they came from. Neither the Universe nor Mother Nature are concerned with such things.
We can do this in a very tangible way during this Stewardship season by supporting St. Alban’s with our financial pledges, and in our works. As one member has said: we at St. Alban’s are a 21st Century version of First Century Christianity.
So, let’s give of ourselves and what we have in support of our efforts to keep St. Alban’s on this latter-day road to Emmaus, where we welcome all who want to walk with us.
* I’m no artist! The drawings were very “rough.”
