Listen to the Sermon.
Good morning, friends. Today it is especially good to be here with you, with God’s people gathered in community, seeking an extra measure of hope and courage this week.
As if the many feelings swirling around the confirmation process for Justice Kavanaugh were not enough, the gospel today about divorce is one of the most difficult in the lectionary because of the emotions associated with divorce.
Whether you agree with the confirmation of Justice Kavanaugh or not, it has been difficult to watch the pain and shame of Dr. Ford laid bare for the news media to broadcast to the world. The courage of Dr. Ford and others telling their stories of abuse empowered many people to speak their own truths about their experiences.
In the past two weeks I have heard stories of sexual violence from many of my friends, mostly women and a few men. I have been shocked - and, sadly, not surprised - by the pervasive abuse of power that is condoned for perpetrators and shamed for survivors.
The stories shared for the first time or the first time in a long time, ring with hope and longing of being believed; with relief at naming aloud the fear, anger, and shame; with anguish at feeling unheard, disrespected, and discounted; with immense courage at speaking truth to power. Many survivors feel they have been told once again that those painful, shameful experiences that have been kept secret so long, don’t matter. That power will always trump compassion or justice.
In The Episcopal Church, we pledge ourselves to respect the dignity of every human being, and yet we have been confronted with a civil process that has exploited the dignity and courage of those whose voices would be shamed and silenced. And perhaps, deep in ourselves, we wonder if we have been complicit in that exploitation in that we could not stop it.
O God, “we have failed to honor your image in one another and in ourselves; we would not see your goodness in the world around us; and so we violated your creation, abused one another, and rejected your love. Yet you never ceased to care for us.” [1]
And then there’s this week’s gospel reading about divorce. My favorite commentary warned this week that the moment you read the word ‘divorce’ aloud in church, listeners automatically go to whatever negative churchy teaching they have heard about divorce. And we instantly think of whomever we know whose life has been touched by divorce - our own, our parents’ or siblings or friends. Then that internal record is playing all the condemnations we have internalized about marriage being a holy sacrament that should never be broken.
On a very human level, divorce is incredibly painful because it is about fractured relationships, disappointed expectations, and broken hearts. Divorce still carries social stigma and shame, and effects generations to come.
There is a whole sermon about the ancient law surrounding divorce, divorce in the Bible, and the dynamic of Jesus being tested by the Pharisees. Truly fascinating historical, legal and theological investigations that would be a great, kind-of-fun-in-a-nerdy-way, sermon on a day when we were intent on avoiding the emotions and pain inherent in our common human condition.
Today, many of us are wondering how to find or keep our hope and faith in God. What it means to place our faith in a God who loves and forgives everyone. How we continue to try to live faithfully when we feel defeated, disappointed, and exhausted by the brokenness of the world.
In today’s gospel, Jesus continues leading the way to Jerusalem, to his eventual trial, torture and death. Along the way, he is trying to help his disciples realize what God desires of us. He isn’t asking them to go heal people or demonstrate other great acts of faith. He asks them instead “to live well in their common human condition and in such mundane realities as family, wealth, and their gathered community.” [2]
For the past few weeks, we have been hearing stories in Mark that focus on those who are vulnerable, without power or agency - and how we should faithfully live well in unity, delighting in the gifts of all people. Jesus has often, as he does today, used little children as the ultimate symbol of these voiceless members of our community.
Did you notice that just after the discussion about divorce, “people” were bringing little children to Jesus in order that he might touch them. Who are these “people”? Where did they come from? Were they there all along - invisible, nameless and voiceless? Divorced and single mothers bringing their children to be touched by Jesus. In Mark, people who want to be touched by Jesus are usually seeking healing, and healing is often restoration to a wholeness of person, of agency and status.
Jesus says that it is to such as these - the powerless, the voiceless, the forgotten - that the kingdom of God belongs. And he lays his hands on them and blesses them.
Jesus blesses those who have been ignored, silenced, and disregarded by the powerful.
Many among us - here and in our wider community - feel like those little children - forgotten, shamed, invisible and silenced - coming to touch Jesus, to find healing and wholeness. As disciples of Jesus, we are striving to live well in our common human condition. One way we strive together is to acknowledge the pain of our common human condition - our own pain and the pain of others, to share in anger at injustice, and to offer comfort and companionship. We know that God is not magic, that pain seldom disappears instantly. We also know that God promises never to leave us alone in pain.
One important role of community is to stand with, to support and love one another when we are in pain. That is why it is good and right that we chose to be here today, to be seeking God’s healing love, in community with one another.
In a few minutes, after we pray for all humanity, we will come to God’s table, a table where no one is turned away, no one is less than, no one is invisible. Come gather around and see Christ’s face on the other, see Christ reflected back at you. Come to be nourished and strengthened. Come and remember that in “giving himself freely to death on the cross, [Jesus] triumphed over evil, opening the way of freedom and life.” [3]
Let us pray.
God of the living law, whose will is to protect the weak and educate our desires: may we learn from you not to dominate or put aside but to give each other dignity and find in you our unity; through Jesus Christ, who makes us one household. Amen. [4]
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[1] Enriching Our Worship 1 (New York: Church Publishing, 1998), Eucharistic Prayer 1.
[2] Philip Ruge-Jones, “Commentary on Mark 10:2-16”, www.workingpreacher.com, accessed 10/4/18.
[3] Enriching Our Worship 1 (New York: Church Publishing, 1998), Eucharistic Prayer 1.
[4] Steven Shakespeare, Prayers for an Inclusive Church (New York: Church Publishing, 2009), Collect for Proper 22 Year B, page 72.
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