Year B, Advent 3 St. Paul’s Episcopal Church North Andover, Massachusetts The Rev. Stephanie Chase Wilson
In the name of God: Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer. Amen.
There’s a story that Jesus had become fascinated with the game of golf, and one day persuaded Peter to be his caddy while he tried a round. Things went OK, with Jesus going all over the course, hitting trees, just missing other golfers. On the 12th hole, he hit one into the water. “Now what?” asked Jesus. Peter informed him the proper procedure was to drop a ball and add an extra stroke to the score. Jesus replied, “Forget that,” and proceeded to walk on the water, out to where his ball was floating for him. Just then some other golfers came by, saw the amazing sight, and asked Peter, “Who does that guy think he is?” “Oh him?” said a disgusted Peter, “He thinks he’s Tiger Woods.”
“Who are you?” That is the question posed several times to John the Baptist. The priests and Levites from Jerusalem confront John and asked about his identity. John says he isn’t the Messiah.
The religious leaders then ask John is he is Elijah. John says no. “Who are you?” they ask again. They are puzzled about his identity. Why is he baptizing? Who does he think he is? John then quotes Isaiah, “I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord.” John makes clear he is the proclaimer. He is a witness to Jesus. In Isaiah [49:6] the prophet speaks of the Messiah, “I will give you as a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.” The gospel of John then picks on this with the opening sentences about John the Baptist saying, “He came as a witness to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. He himself was not the light, but he came to testify to the light.” [Jn. 1:7-8]. John is here to tell people about Jesus, to proclaim that God is coming.
The prophet Isaiah too is a proclaimer. The people of Israel had suffered with their conquest and exile in Babylon. Finally after generations they have returned home only to discover that things are not all that great. Isaiah comforts them with words of hope and promise. He proclaims that God’s Kingdom is coming, that their land will be restored and things made right. Isaiah is here to proclaim that God is coming.
Both John and Isaiah are witnesses to God. They each attract the attention of their respective communities, but both are quick to point beyond themselves. They are clear about their identity. They know who they are. They preach the good news of God’s Kingdom. They are the proclaimers.
What about us? During baptisms we make vows where we are asked, “Will you proclaim by word and example the Good News of God in Christ?” and we answer, “I will, with God’s help.” So when asked, “Who are you?” We too can say, “We are proclaimers. We are witnesses to the Kingdom of God.”
But you know, there are two problems with this. First of all, most of us are terrible proclaimers! Frankly, Episcopalians are too discreet and well mannered to do much witnessing out in the world. It might offend someone! It might make us sound evangelical and, worse, emotional! New England Episcopalians just don’t do emotion.
The second problem is, there are a lot of people who are unchurched out there whose vision of the Christian God is really rather unpleasant. Their understanding is that God is eager to find fault with them so they can be sent to hell. God is all about judgment and punishment. And the church is simply the handmaiden of this God. That we as church people look down our nose at the unchurched. While this is not true, through the years parts of the church have done things to encourage this vision, resulting in the belief in a vengeful judging God whose vengeful judging minions are found in the church. This gives Christianity a bad name. This discourages us from publicly announcing ourselves as followers of Christ and asking others to follow too. If you believe God to be harsh and judgmental, you will look to the day of God’s coming as a bad thing. Who wants to be a proclaimer of that?
But we are called to be witnesses to the light. We have made vows to be proclaimers. But perhaps we don’t always know what we are supposed to proclaim. Let’s consider again Isaiah, “He has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and release to the prisoners… For I the LORD love justice, I hate robbery and wrongdoing… so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to spring up before all the nations” [Is. 61:1, 8, 11]. These are the sorts of things that start happening when the Kingdom arrives. These are the things we are to look for and proclaim - a restored world order. Are these things starting to happen? Is the church playing a role in this? Maybe there’s another vision of God that we may proclaim. Let’s take a look at some examples of Isaiah’s vision in action through the Episcopal Church:
There’s something called the Episcopal Policy Network which is an advocacy group for the Kingdom of God on Capital Hill. It lobbies for issues such as the Millennium Development Goals, which you probably know including fighting poverty and disease, empowering women, encouraging education, canceling the debts of poor countries, and ending poverty. They want Congress to keep God’s vision of distributive justice in mind as they create the laws of our country.
The Episcopal Church strives for justice for prisoners. “Resolution adopted by the [Episcopal] Executive Council in May 2007 … Resolved, That the Executive Council, calls on the United States government to close the military prison at Guantanamo Bay; and be it further Resolved, That the Executive Council calls on the United States government to oppose the use of secret detention centers around the world, and to cease the practice of “extraordinary rendition,” in which terror suspects are sent without judicial review to nations where they may be tortured; and be it further Resolved, That the Executive Council directs the Secretary to send copies of this resolution to the President of the United States and to appropriate members of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives.”
The Episcopal Church also works with prisoners here at home. Reading from a documents about these ministries, “Statistics show that the United States has the highest incarceration rate in the world. Approximately 2.1 million men and women are behind bars. Furthermore, the number of women in prison has tripled, making them the fastest growing segment of the prison population. This translates into an estimated 1.5 million children living without a parent or parents in the home. Pastoral care in these contexts is the work of prison chaplains across the Episcopal Church. These ministries provide mentors, recreational programs, and spiritual guidance for both the incarcerated and those left to live life without them.… Rev. Jacqueline A. Means, criminal justice officer in the Episcopal Church’s Office of Peace and Justice Ministries. … founded Craine House for Women, a facility which began as a half-way house for women transitioning from prison, and continues as a facility where women serving prison time can keep their pre-school children with them. .. Their mission is to bring Christ’s love and forgiveness to all incarcerated individuals, their families and those who work with them, and to assist in the transition of becoming a productive citizen.”
You all are also probably aware of Episcopal Relief and Development which provides money for people around the world for projects as diverse as relief and support from natural disasters, war, disease, and poverty. They take their “mandate from the words of Jesus, found in Matthew 25: 37-40, that call us to feed the hungry, care for the sick and welcome the stranger.” “It provides relief in times of disaster and promotes sustainable development by identifying and addressing the root causes of suffering.” It strives “for justice and peace among all people.”
Looking locally, Boston Episcopalians, through the Cathedral, have founded Ecclesia Ministries. “Ecclesia's programs support the spiritual and physical needs of homeless men and women. It works full-time throughout the week, serving over 1,000 homeless men and women a year on the streets, in institutions, and in the shelter programs of Boston. Ecclesia primarily serves homeless men and women in Boston who live on the street, in shelters, in jails, or in housing for people with disabilities. About 75% of [their] community is male with diverse racial, cultural, and economic profiles…. [There are several facets to this ministry including] Common cathedral is the heart of Ecclesia Ministries. [they write] It is our church with Sunday worship service held outdoors on the Boston Common at 1:00 pm, come rain or shine, or snow. .. Between 100 to 200 people gather every week for the service…. Ecclesia Ministries has trained over 100 lay and ordained volunteers to provide pastoral care to many of the more than 8,000 homeless people admitted to Boston area hospitals annually who have no one to visit or offer spiritual support… Ecclesia also provides free legal services… Ecclesia ministers and interns spend time in direct street ministry to homeless people, providing for immediate needs such as food, winter clothing, blankets, and medical emergency referrals.”
Here in the Merrimack Valley Episcopalians have founded Esperanza Academy to provide a free quality education and a future for middle school girls in Lawrence, MA, to help raise families out of poverty.
Here at St. Paul’s we ring our bells to announce the dangers of climate change and our responsibilities as Christians to address this. We bring in food, baby formula, and diapers for the needy, we raise money during the Faire to give to non-profits around the region. We have had young people reading to children at Hancock Courts. We provide clothes and gifts to foster children at Christmas.
These are just a small fraction of the Kingdom work being done by churches, and people of God, throughout the world. Isaiah writes, ““He has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and release to the prisoners…” Are these things happening in the name of Jesus Christ? Yes! The Kingdom hasn’t fully come, but it’s starting, we are the proclaimers, and we have much to proclaim! Who are you? Don’t think of yourselves as evangelists, think of yourselves as Bearers of Blessings. Good things are happening in the church, in the name of Jesus Christ! We are witnesses to this light. Climb on board the Kingdom wagon. It’s already rolling. Amen.
