SermonWorship – March 25, 2007 (5 th Sunday in Lent) Rather than doing all of the talking this morning, I want us to take a brief journey together based on one sentence in our Gospel reading. Jesus said to Judas, "You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me." Let's unpack this statement a bit. Jesus drew on a text from the Torah, "T here will always be poor people in the land. Therefore, I command you to be openhanded toward those people who are poor and needy in your land. " In other words, "You will always have the poor with you -- be generous to them." This contrasts to the John text, where the higher concern was that Jesus would soon be gone. How many of us have heard this logic, "since the poor will always be with us, there's nothing we can do about it, so all we can do is accept it as a fact of life." Pretty fatalistic, don't you think? Does this sound at all like the Jesus we know in Scripture? No. And I will not preach that Jesus gave up his concern for the poor in his final days and focused on himself. I'll suggest to you, that Jesus was saying, "You always have the opportunity to be generous to the poor – so be generous! Listen to me while I am with you; time is running out!" I hear a sense of purpose and urgency. Jesus could have said to Judas, "Stop stealing the money we raise for the poor if you're so concerned for them." This would make sense since the writer of John accused Judas of being a thief. However, at the Last Supper, it is clear the disciples didn't think Judas was a crook; when Jesus sent Judas out -- to betray him -- the disciples thought Judas was leaving to buy food for their feast or to give money to the poor. So when Judas rebuked Mary for wasting expensive perfume on Jesus, it's more likely Jesus is saying to Judas, "Pay attention. I'm going to die soon, and she's preparing me for burial. Learn now what I've been teaching because I won't always be with you to instruct you." And what did Jesus teach? This is the beginning of our journey. We all know Jesus was a teacher and healer to the marginalized, the outcast, and the poor. He traveled where he was likely to encounter them, and they him. His message to them was that they were blessed: the poor in spirit, those who mourn, those who are insulted and persecuted like the prophets. They were all blessed. Jesus challenged the wealthy and powerful. Their riches would be lost in the end – not a popular message for the Pharisees to overhear, but Jesus didn't let that stop him. Those who suffered or didn't seek wealth would be rewarded for eternity. A word of caution: we should not let ourselves off the hook with the poor and marginalized, believing it will all work out in the end. Maybe the poor and those who suffer will gain rewards in the end -- but what about now? Let's journey into our community. Who are the poor? Our church building sits on the cusp of the Powderhorn and Phillips neighborhoods. Do we know the poor of our community? What do we believe about them? And who are the Pharisees in Minneapolis? What do we know of them? I'll share some information before we continue on this journey into our community. The Family Housing Fund Web site states: "Nearly 300,000 low-income Minnesota households are currently ‘cost burdened' or paying more than 30 percent of their incomes for housing…In the Twin Cities metro area, 171,000 or 46 percent of low-income households are considered cost-burdened… On any given night… nearly 9,000 people (including 2,862 children) are homeless or living in transitional housing in Minnesota." That was in 2003. On March 18 of this year, the Southwest Journal, an online community newspaper for Southwest Minneapolis (www.swjournal.com), reported that in Hennepin County, an estimated 1,045 single adults are homeless, about 500 people are experiencing homelessness with their families, and we have about 250 homeless youth in our county.On any given night. These numbers don't include an estimated 4,585 homeless students in Minneapolis Public Schools. Homelessness among individuals, families, and child ren has increased to intolerable levels. When we think about this and how Jesus and the disciples walked among the poor – they depended on others for their survival, too – what do we make of this Jesus who allowed Mary to lavish expensive perfume on his feet? Was the fact that he was about to die justification for allowing this extravagant hospitality? Can't we defend Judas here? This perfume was costly; it equaled a year's wages. How do we reconcile the Jesus who indulged in this extravagance with his teachings to take care of the poor, the widows, and the orphans? Mary somehow obtained this expensive perfume. She could've chosen to keep it for herself; instead, she shared it with Jesus as a gift. And its essence filled the room – others could enjoy it as well. Jesus, Mary, Martha and Lazarus were a chosen family, and Jesus was about to die after bringing Lazarus back to life. Imagine the joy at the miracle of life contrasted to the grief over certain death. Is Mary's gift a wasteful extravagance? Certainly most of us have made tough financial decisions. When should we buy a new car instead of repairing the old one? Perhaps without a car payment and added insurance costs we can afford to extend more charity to others. Perhaps we could increase our church pledge if we would occasionally forego Starbucks, or dining out and movie theatres. Each day we choose what takes priority. We, too, must pay attention. Opportunities abound; and since we will always have opportunities to help the poor; isn't it OK to choose ourselves every once in awhile – like Jesus did? To allow ourselves a bit of extravagance, or to accept an expensive gift? How do we make these decisions? On our journey we'll wrestle with decision-making. We will ponder questions for which we may not have perfect or obvious answers. But it's important to wrestle with the questions. Let's pay attention. Let's challenge ourselves to hear each other and Jesus through our conversation this morning. God is with us in the struggle, and I'm sure God delights in our questions. Our church plans to occupy a new building within the next couple of years. Let's discern what we're going to "do" with that space. Our Church Needs Assessment Group has begun discussing what we need and what we want. We toured other churches to see what they have that we like, and to rule out what we don't want or need. The new space is empty; we can design and fill it just about any way we choose within the limits of square footage, and the structure above and around it. So let's ponder a potential scenario together, and set ourselves on the path to work through it, and see where we wind up. Are you ready to walk with me? The mission statement of Spirit of the Lakes reads, "Drawn by God's Spirit and rooted in gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and allied (GLBTA) experience, we, the members of Spirit of the Lakes UCC, covenant to create a loving faith community gathered around Christ's inclusive banquet and in nurturing circles. As we are touched and transformed by this inclusion, we are challenged by a liberating gospel to embody the values of spirituality, compassion, and justice making in our community and in the world." That's our mission statement. We currently are a small and self-sufficient family-size faith community, and we are "challenged by a liberating gospel to embody the values of spirituality, compassion, and justice making in our community and in the world." Wow! How will we rise to this challenge as we plan our new worship space… office space… kitchen… and other rooms? What decisions will we make and how will we make them? We have a pretty blank slate today. We also have individually held visions, and we'll talk through them to create our community vision. So… let's peek ahead and ponder one potential decision of many possible decisions. Most of us know Spirit helps sponsor Families Moving Forward. How many of you personally have participated in cooking or serving a meal to these families, or have played with the children, or helped with their homework? How many do this on a regular basis? I want the rest of us note the importance of this outreach on behalf of our community. Just suppose that a few months from now, the Church Needs Assessment Group comes to a Community Meeting seeking a recommendation. We can either pay an artist to paint a mural in the worship/kinship space that will represent our inclusivity and outreach; or, we can provide a room large enough to host Families Moving Forward, including adequate beds and bedding, toys for the children, a crib or two, plus a changing table. With this room we can host Families Moving Forward for an entire week each quarter, maybe even monthly, and eventually may also provide emergency shelter or sanctuary if needed. However, if we approve the painting of the mural, we will help support a local artist who happens to be a Latino single mother, raising three young children. In recent weeks they have worshiped with us, and the woman is gifted. She is willing to paint this mural to honor the GLBTA community and our anti-racism efforts, and will donate materials as a gift to the community if we will pay her for her time. What is our mission? What is our call? What is our priority? How do we decide between two equally deserving causes: one that is now familiar to us, and one we are passionate about? Maybe some of us feel passionately about both projects. What will we do? This is where we come together on the journey. (Explain the colored strips of paper and process: each person has two strips of paper; each counts as an opinion or input. Each person is limited to two pieces – can't be given to someone else. If you don't speak up, consider why.) Flip charts:
Clarification: These are not things we "like" but rather what is important to us:
*Depicts our top 3 this morning (by this time several people had used both papers). Given our values, what are our priorities specific to these two options? Help the most people over the long-term (this led to discussion around next item) 4) Option: Mural Pros: Help family of the community now, express inclusiveness, beautify space for worship (which may lead to growth) Cons: What is it going to look like? (the unknown – what if we saw the design first?) Option: Families Moving Forward Pros: Touch many families long-term, Facility could have 7-day use for other activities, we would be sharing our time with others Cons: Only one space for all families?, time-intensive for community – need commitment, Union UCC currently sponsors Families… 5) Other options not listed?
Decision? Yet to be determined… It's clear that we have strong opinions and passions. There is no right or wrong choice. In supporting Families Moving Forward we demonstrate compassion and justice by creating a room to extend hospitality to families trying to get back on their feet. In hiring the local artist, we help one family we've come to know, and possibly foster a deeper relationship with them. We also create a meaningful work of art that identifies us as a community of welcome to people of color and GLBTA persons. Our space will make a statement about our identity and values to visitors, whatever we decide. Creating this space is an important decision, just as committing to Families Moving Forward and our relationships with visitors and members is important. Is one cause more right or moral than another? How will our decisions today impact not only our future, but our community and the world? These are the questions. Let's ponder these things in our minds and our hearts as we continue on this journey together. May it be so. |