You and I normally think of
Jesus as peace-loving and family-oriented. However, in today's Reading from
Luke's Gospel we heard Jesus' threats of bringing about division and family
discord. Imagine if a person running for office made comments such as, "Do you
think that I have come to bring peace to the earth? No, I tell you, but rather
division. From now on households will be divided. ... You folks just don't know
what's going on around you!" These are not crowd-pleasing remarks!
We sometimes forget that our
Lord never promised an easy, forced peace, and he did not extol all forms of
family. The Charles Manson "family" was a kinship of sorts, and many
brainwashed, religious groups live in so-called "peace" controlled by their
tyrants. Neither of these manifest the Peace of Christ.
Jesus realized well that
Covenant living is not all-embracing and inclusive. Individuals who - in the
words of today's Collect - "follow daily in the blessed steps of his most holy
life," make a specific commitment to the Creator through Christ. Imperfectly,
and we trust, gracefully, we live out our love for God, our neighbors, and
ourselves. God's Covenant does not affirm other ultimate loyalties, other
covenants, or a do-your-own-thing pattern of living. For us, God through Christ
is at the center, no other person, value, or thing. It follows that disciples
of Christ will often be at odds with people centered other than on the Lord.
It is quite possible that a
given household might have as its ultimate concern, its highest commitment,
prestige, power, success or one of many other goals. If a member of the
household chooses instead to value most highly a loving relationship to God, to
one's neighbor, and to oneself - and all that such a life involves - there may
well be discord in that family. Likewise, if any nation's ultimate
concern, its primary driving force, becomes economic prosperity, territorial
expansion, or the like, it is guilty of idolatry and will be at odds with the
Gospel. Christians have the responsibility to proclaim the Gospel and, where
appropriate, to challenge their own families, communities, and nations. No easy
peace here!
When I served as a chaplain of
a boarding school, I cautioned the students in a Sunday sermon not to deify
class standings, grades, and extracurricular activities. To elevate these
legitimate pursuits into be-all and end-all gods would diminish their lives and
relationships. The Headmaster, an ostensible Episcopalian, was shocked; he
believed that I was at odds with the school's goals. In his view, no doubt
shared by many parents, the quest for admission to a well-known college should
be first and foremost in each student's life. How many young lives are twisted
year after year by such tin gods! When made a god, even academic success needs
to be challenged.
I must add at this point that
no one here respects academic achievement more than I, but within a more
profound context. I know first-hand what I'm talking about. I graduated from a
secondary school founded in 1635. Unfortunately, in practice the school's
ultimate concern was academic success. That was terribly short-sighted; the
very humanity of students was all but overlooked. Christians value achievement,
but not in any ultimate sense. For us, the God of Abraham and Jesus is the only
Sacred Ultimate, and Covenant living is the sole trustworthy context for all
pursuits, including education. To apply the Gospel of Christ to educational
objectives will result in conflict with most educational institutions. No easy
peace here!
In recent years I've developed
more than a nostalgic affection for what we sometimes call the old "battle
hymns" - "Onward Christian soldiers, marching as to war..." "Stand up, stand
up, for Jesus, ye soldiers of the cross..." "Lead on, O King eternal, the day
of march has come..." and "Fight the good fight with all thy might..." As I
approached retirement, I was drawn to these hymns, not mindful of secular
global conflicts, but in my car on the way to work. You see, I was a
Connecticut state employee, a union member, a philosophy professor, in a system
that serves students fairly well. Nonetheless, it is a system corrupted in so
many ways - from the worst forms of affirmative action to incredible financial
waste and deception. When I made similar comments from the pulpit of our
Connecticut cathedral, the lieutenant governor was in the congregation. She
called the next day to say that the Commissioner of Higher Education (also an
active Episcopalian) would be in touch with me for a private conference. When
we met in his office, I delivered a multi-page documentation of my challenges.
He was sincerely grateful, somewhat surprised, and pledged to do what he could
to remedy the abuses. As of this date, in spite of his efforts, I am not aware
of any remedies. The Christian struggle with some secular priorities and
ignored dishonesty will be lengthy. For the followers of Christ an honorable,
Christian peace in our occupational settings is yet to be achieved. No easy
peace here!
So many false gods, deceptive
ultimate concerns, and their negative consequences for daily living enter our
lives ever so subtly! You and I have the responsibility of discovering them and
putting them in their proper context or even extinguishing them.
Consider how they enter church
life! You are on a search committee for a new staff member. One application is
from a man in his early 30s whose abilities and holiness of life are
unquestioned. The first interview is completed carefully on professional
issues; the committee is most enthusiastic. He is asked to meet with the
committee again, this time with his family. He shows up with his mother, 12
male companions, and a couple of women - one with a "reputation." I don't
know of any congregation that would call Jesus Christ to its staff! A 1940s
form of American family, quite different from any notion of family in the
Bible, has been idolized, even in the Church. It has become an Absolute to
which ambitious church workers are usually expected to conform. Moreover, we
are suspect of any women and men who do not readily comply. We fail to ask
about the quality of all candidates' lives, namely: do they live faithfully,
though imperfectly, within God's Covenant community? do they continue to grow
in Christ's love and service? We the Church are called to center exclusively on
God through Christ, not on a 1940s form of family or other absolute
expectations. I hasten to add another example of this idolized vision of
"family." When I became vicar of a small congregation, the vestry was
considering labeling the one Sunday service as "family worship." It was felt
that this would be attractive to people looking for a new church. In plain
English, it was a marketing device. As I checked the parish roster, I
discovered many faithful worshippers who were divorced, widowed, otherwise
single, and those whose relatives were unknown. In talking with several people
privately, I was told that they would feel second-rate or unwanted if we
classified our Service as "family worship." How insensitively the Church
sometimes imports categories that would unintentionally demean or shun Christ
himself! When we center on God through Christ alone, we are less likely to
affirm structures and expectations that would exclude even him!
Jesus calls us to combat the
various idolatries we encounter in our institutions, among our relatives, and
within the Church. The Peace promised by our Lord may be readily established
within our hearts, and realized with some others, but not so easily established
among our many associations. So, my fellow parishioners, interpret the present
time well, and be ready when necessary to "fight the good fight...." in our
careers, our households, and even within the Church.