Why Are You Weeping?

Pastor Don’s Corner . . .

“Woman, why are you weeping?”John 20:13a, 15a NRSV

In the Gospel according to John, this question is asked twice on the third day after Jesus’ death, both times of Mary Magdalene: Once by the two angels in the tomb who were sitting where Jesus’ body had been lain; and, the second by Jesus himself as Mary turned away from the empty tomb and saw him standing nearby.
The question, “Woman, why are you weeping?” could easily be dismissed as a rhetorical question in the face of Mary’s perceived loss in the death and, now, disappearance of her friend, Jesus. Still, that the question is repeated, first by the angels who announce ‘Good News’ both at Jesus’ birth and at Jesus’ resurrection, then by Jesus Himself as he stands near to one who knew Him well and now does not recognize Him, gives even the most casual reader of this account reason to pause. “Woman, why are you weeping?” is a question demanding personal response in this age. “Why are you weeping?”
Don’t you understand?
Don’t you see what God is doing?
After all of these signs, including Lazarus, do you still believe in death’s power?
How can it be that Rome still has such control over your spirit?
How is it that a heart can be led to freedom yet, when challenged, return to slavery?
“Woman, why are you weeping?”
This question is not just of Mary, it is addressed to the Mary in all of us: to the doubt that prevails over faith, to the despair which darkens hope, to the death which tears apart life, to the separation which rends unity. “Woman, why are you weeping?” is heaven’s question of our trembling knees and tear-streaked faces as we look heavenward and cry out for answers in the face of earthly tyrants, all the while facing the Christ of God among us, Alive, Conqueror, King.
“Woman, why are you weeping?” is an invitation to Truth, to Spirit, to New Life, from the lips of the One who shows the way.
Maybe this is why the author of John diminishes the power of death in Jesus speaking our name: “Mary!” At the sound of her name, Mary recognizes Jesus. At the sound of her name, Mary no longer weeps. At the sound of her name, what is lost is Found. At the sound of her name, what was grief becomes Joy. At the sound of her name, what was unrecognizable is now Apparent. At the sound of her name . . . at the sound of our name, Jesus announces a new community and extends His nail-scarred hand to walk with us into it.
In the nearing of Holy Week, in the imminence of Jerusalem, in the shadows of betrayal, in the shame of desertion, in the visage of a cross being borne down the streets of the city, in the starkness of death in Golgotha . . . maybe what all of us long for most is to hear our name upon the lips of Jesus calling us to life from the hell of death surrounding us every day. We weep for earthquake victims, bombing victims, abused children, abused spouses; We weep for diagnosis’ of cancer, MS, CF, Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, and even for the lack of diagnosis; We weep for children who will not grow up and for adults who never mature; We weep for a world that believes more in financing assistance of every kind than offering a hand of any kind; We weep for futures never realized and a present which overwhelms us. We weep outside the tomb while the angels and Jesus ask, “Woman, why are you weeping?” Then He calls our name and we realize we do not have to weep anymore. This is the power of Easter for which Jesus came.
A blessed Easter to all!

Your Servant in Christ,
Pastor Don

In Perspective

"Government big enough to give you everything you want is large enough to take everything you have." Thomas Jefferson

It is easier to blame the State of Illinois for failing to pay the monies owed to school districts than to face our own part in making those monies unavailable.

It is easier to blame Representatives and Senators for failing their responsibility to their citizens than to be a responsible citizen.

It is easier to have high expectations of those who debate health care reform than to have high expectations of our own health care behaviors.

It is easier to expect government to provide necessary services for all citizens than to provide necessary care for each other.

It is easier to make bricks for, and eat the meat of, Pharaoh than to follow God's leading out of slavery and trust the manna God provides.

We have the government we demand, but can we survive the government we have?

Pharaoh

“That same day Pharaoh commanded the taskmasters of the people, as well as their supervisors, “You shall no longer give the people straw to make bricks, as before; let them go and gather straw for themselves. But you shall require of them the same quantity of bricks as they have made previously; do not diminish it, for they are lazy; that is why they cry, ‘Let us go and offer sacrifice to our God.’ Let heavier work be laid on them; then they will labor at it and pay no attention to deceptive words.” Exodus 5:6-9 NRSV
Seldom do we hear the name, ‘Pharaoh’, anymore, outside of history classes, museums and Egypt, yet often we see Pharaoh hard at work, giving orders in our current age as he strives to obscure people’s minds with labor so hard they cannot even think. ‘Heaven forbid people have time to worship the Lord our God. Heaven forbid people have time to think. Heaven forbid people have time to spend with each other. Heaven forbid that God should have a voice in how people behave . . .’
What Pharaoh does not understand is that God will not be obscured by the manipulations and treachery of any Pharaoh in any age, nor will Heaven forbid access to any of God’s children as they beseech the One who is Holy above all. Still, Pharaoh persists in Pharaoh’s commanding, exerting insidious influence upon those who are least able to speak for themselves, willing monuments and vast empires to be built upon the backs of ‘those people’ who make many bricks from nothing at all.
You don’t see Pharaoh today, you say?
What portion of your local community’s economy has been adversely affected by the advent of major discount stores like Wal-Mart, Target, and K-Mart?
What portion of your local community’s economy has been eliminated by the exodus of neighborhood grocery stores bowing down to the presence of Schnucks, Dierbergs, and Wal-Mart?
What portion of every dollar you earn goes to pay Federal taxes, State taxes, local taxes (not that support of the government is a bad thing, but do you know?)?
What portion of your tax dollars are used to prop up a ‘free-market system’ riddled with mismanagement but in need of your bail-out ‘assistance’?
What portion of your leadership in local, State, and Federal levels, live with the same level of healthcare and cost as do you?
What are the interest rates you earn for the money you are able to save or invest?
What are the interest rates you are charged if you have to borrow money or use credit cards?
Now that we have been seduced by cheap travel and nearly every person having at least one car, how much of your income is being required pay for cars, gas, service, and roads?
How much of your insurance costs are a direct result of extravagant court settlements?
How much of your income goes to fund a union hierarchy that is meant to ‘protect you’?
How much of your income is handed to those who are able-bodied, but under/unemployed?
How much straw are you collecting and how many bricks are you making today?
The season of Lent is about reminding us that Pharaoh is not God and God is not amused by Pharaoh. Sometimes the cost of deliverance from such systems of oppression is the First-Born.
Sometimes we need to be reminded of Whose we are in the journey towards the Promised Land and at what cost has come our covenantal identity. Do not mistake this, God hears your voice and God comes to save. The question is, “Are you ready to leave Egypt?”
Your servant in Christ,
Pastor Don

Forgiveness

I was recently asked a question regarding forgiveness, which led me to offer the following observations:

Forgiveness is hard stuff, hard stuff. It is easier to ‘love the sinner’ than to forgive the transgression which has impacted our living, all of which makes Jesus upon the cross saying, “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do”, all the more poignant.

A couple of things cross my mind in response to your questions:
1. Forgiveness is a process, not an event.
2. Forgiveness gives you permission not to be enslaved by the choices of others.
3. Forgiveness does not mean ‘forgetting’, rather the practice extends peace in the place of anger and/or guilt.
4. Forgiveness is an acknowledgement before God of how much we all struggle with our behaviors.
5. Forgiveness is an extension of God’s grace to others, not a guarantee that they will receive it or be changed by it.
6. Forgiveness is more about the heart of the one offering it, than the transformation of the one receiving it.
7. Forgiveness has to be practiced daily, even moment after moment.
8. The more you practice the forgiveness of others, the greater your capacity to receive it from God.
9. Little that others may say of forgiveness makes it easier for you to embody it.
10. Finally, forgiveness is between you and God. Others may only receive of your relationship with God, not shape it.

Just some things to ponder on your daily journey of faith.

Your servant in Christ,

Pastor Don

My Dad's Voice

“I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father. And I lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd.” John 10:14-16 NRSV

I recently attended the Sparta Mid-Winter Classic basketball tournament to watch our youngest son, Ched, play. Mid-way in one of the games, while rooting on our Lebanon Greyhounds, a gentleman made his way up the bleachers towards where I was sitting. Though I really hadn’t paid much attention to him as he stepped his way carefully up the bleachers, his voice calling my name quickly pulled me out of my ‘game mode’. A distant cousin whom I had not seen in quite some time, Loren warmly smiled and offered his hand to shake as he sat down then said, “When I walked into the gym I heard a voice above the others encouraging the Greyhounds and thought to myself, ‘I know that voice’. I knew it was you.” Laughingly, I asked him, “How did you know me in the midst of all the other voices?” To which he replied, “You sound just like your Dad.”
I told him not to hold that against my Dad, he’s a good guy even if I sound like him, and then moved the conversation on to mutual friends and family. Yet, his words, even today, resonated in my soul, “You sound just like your Dad.”
I really hope that Loren’s observation is true because, in my heart, my Dad’s voice is one of wisdom and faith. When I hear my Dad speaking, I listen, not because I have to, but because I want to. He knows me and I know him. To be known by others because my voice sounds like his is a blessing to me – and a challenge, for his voice speaks of the Presence of God.
Jesus invites us into a similar, yet even deeper relationship with the words, “I know my own and my own know me . . . .” and “ . . . . they will listen to my voice.”
In a world not unlike a basketball tournament setting, with competing voices resonating throughout the venue of our existence, knowing (and being known by) His voice is a gift beyond understanding. His voice is our root, our calling, our being. His voice creates and nurtures, challenges and sustains, chastises and praises, sends out and welcomes home. His voice calms our weeping and shares in our laughter, tells the Story and listens to our experience of that Story, paints the landscapes of our journey and defines the nature of our existence. His voice brings life. Others may speak the words, yet only one Voice is the Word. Others may give direction, yet only one Voice is the Way. Others may council and prod, yet only one Voice is Wisdom and Calling. His voice is the voice by which I would, both, love to be known and make known to others. His voice is the core of my being.
As much as I think my Dad would be flattered to know the pride that I feel in being known by the sound of his voice, I have to acknowledge, too, he would be the first one to point me beyond himself. That is what makes my Dad so wise and full of faith, he points me to the God whose Voice has his ear.
In these days approaching Lent, whose voice is it that has your ear? And, by whose voice are you known? I pray for you, “I know my own and my own know me . . .” is the One who has your ear, your voice . . . and your heart.

Your servant in Christ,

Pastor Don

Watching A Soldier Go Home

We stood along the highway near our home and watched the procession pass through our town. This was not one of those parades you can't wait to see, it was a procession of family, comrades, and friends, all taking a soldier home. Folks standing along the highway did so with tears in their eyes, hands over their hearts, and flags flying at half-mast as the white hearse, tended to by a Patriot's Guard, made its way towards a neighboring town from whence the young man hailed. A young widow, with their infant daughter at her side, rode in a limousine pondering the days ahead without the presence of the Airman she so dearly loved.

War does not respect hometowns, family, loved ones, hopes, children, dreams, or ambitions. Shrapnel, copper-coated bullets, and other such dealers of death claim their victims with wild abandon . . . as hearts break and those closest are left to make sense out of gifts unopened, talents unused, and love silenced.

Our community exercised its grateful voice of support and consolation for those who remain as we took our places, stopping in the midst of our busy-ness to share one soldier's journey home. Yet, one can only wonder after the last flag is put away and the last fire truck turns off its lights: How many such processions will it take? How many such processions will be enough? How many tears must fall? How many hearts must break? How many children must grow up without parents . . . before we, the world collectively, listens to Micah: "And what does God require of you, O mortal, but to do justice, to love mercy, and walk humbly with your God?" . . . and answers with peace, equity and sharing.

One can only wonder as another soldier makes his final journey home.

Your servant in Christ,

Pastor Don

In the Days of Life

In the days of life between here and There
God’s love has guided the way,
Held always by Heaven’s Spirit
Every night is lived as day.
We cannot imagine our world
Outside the salvation history of God,
For before we were, God was,
And after we will be, there still is God.
Human life arrives and passes away,
Kingdoms totter and fall,
Armies ride into yet another battle
And come face to face with a wall:
The one enemy they cannot conquer
Is, in fact, the one that limits them,
Death holds it sway in a mortal world
Severing mother from child like a limb.
Yet, all of Pharaoh’s armies
And all of Caesar’s men,
Proved what God knew from the beginning,
The tomb shall be empty in Him. DCW