Live by the Spirit

St. Paul, in the Letter to the Galatians says that we are to “live by the Spirit.”  He then lists what the results of living this way include: “the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.”  Those who live by the Spirit have been called to freedom, a freedom that comes directly from observing the second commandment, freedom as the result of loving one’s neighbor as one’s self.

Beginning in September I will be teaching a philosophy course at Rhode Island College titled "The Idea of God."  I have found that when I teach courses about the philosophy of religion or God I sometimes get into a discussion with students about their understanding of what it means to live by the Spirit and whether this is different from their understanding of religion.  More often than not, students respond by telling me they are spiritual but not religious.  Religion for them invokes an institution, one that is hierarchical and authoritative.  They question authority and they see hierarchy as hypocritical and old fashioned in response to the many social and cultural issues of our day.

Maybe because I am older and my experience is different, I do not see a clear distinction between religion and living by the Spirit.  These two terms used to be understood as synonymous, but today their common usage has separated them into categories of what is communal or public and what is individual or private. 

In his book titled “Spiritual But Not Religious,” the author, Robert C. Fuller says, “A large number of Americans identify themselves as ‘spiritual but not religious.’….  This phrase probably means different things to different people.  The confusion stems from the fact that the words ‘spiritual’ and ‘religious’ are really synonyms.  Both connote belief in a Higher Power of some kind.  Both also imply a desire to connect, or enter into a more intense relationship, with this Higher Power.  And, finally, both connote interest in rituals, practices, and daily moral behaviors that foster such a connection or relationship.”

Robert Fuller then discusses the forces that have caused a separation between religion and spiritual life.  “Before the 20th century the terms religious and spiritual were used more or less interchangeably.  But a number of modern intellectual and cultural forces have accentuated differences between the ‘private’ and ‘public’ spheres of life.  The increasing prestige of the sciences, the insights of modern biblical scholarship, and greater awareness of cultural relativism all made it more difficult for educated Americans to sustain unqualified loyalty to religious institutions.  Many began to associate genuine faith with the ‘private’ realm of personal experience rather than with the ‘public’ realm of institutions, creeds, and rituals.”

In responding to Fuller’s explanation of the difference between spiritual and religious, between the private and the public, Lillian Daniel, the author of a United Church of Christ online publication says, “Being privately spiritual but not religious just doesn't interest me.  There is nothing challenging about having deep thoughts all by oneself.  What is interesting is doing this work in community, where other people might call you on stuff, or heaven forbid, disagree with you.  Where life with God gets rich and provocative is when you dig deeply into a tradition that you did not invent all for yourself.”

I like this statement.  Being in relationship within a dynamic tradition that has survived the test of time and has also been challenged and has changed with the developments of science, art, and culture, is important for understanding what it means to be part of a community.  This is very different from being in an institution that is static and resistant to change.  A dynamic tradition is also important for developing self-knowledge and identity as a child of God.  It is about living in relationships within a community.  I do not understand how a person can truly be a follower of Christ without being engaged with other Christians who also live by the commandment to “love your neighbor as yourself.”

As Paul wrote in his Letter to the Galatians, we are “called to freedom,… only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for self-indulgence, but through love become slaves to one another.”   In his comment about this, the Biblical scholar and theologian, Walter Brueggemann  says, “Jesus does not sugar-coat his call to discipleship.  There were many candidates to become his followers.  But he tells them… discipleship is not a picnic.” 

“Discipleship after Jesus does give freedom, of a very peculiar kind.  It is … freedom that enhances the neighborhood…. The new freedom of the gospel refuses the ordinary ways of the world that include quarrels, dissensions, carousing, and fornication.  New life is under new freedom and new mandate.  Life with Jesus is indeed another way in the world.”

Brueggemann makes an important point.  Discipleship, following Jesus, is no picnic.  No-one can do this alone; it takes a community committed to caring for one another and for those outside the immediate community.  It is our mission and the mission of the Church to reconcile all people to God and each other in Christ.  Being called to freedom is about serving others.  As Paul said, the life-giving fruits of the Spirit are "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control.”  Relationships within these fruits of the Spirit are those that give peace and hope for our common future.  Amen.

Experiencing Healing

In Luke’s Gospel we heard, “people came out to see what had happened, and when they came to Jesus, they found the man from whom the demons had gone sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind. And they were afraid.”

A man possessed by demons had fallen down before Jesus.  He had been bound with chains and shackles and was afraid that Jesus, like others before him, was going to torture him.  He was powerless and in bondage.  He saw Jesus and shouted at the top of his voice, “What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God?  I beg you, do not torment me.”  He was obviously scared because “Jesus had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man.”  Jesus then asked him his name.  The man said, “‘Legion’, for many demons had entered him.”

Jesus had many gifts.  One of those gifts was the ability to heal.  The New Testament scholar, Marcus Borg writes in his book, “The Heart of Christianity,” that Jesus was also a Jewish mystic, a wisdom teacher, a social prophet, and a movement initiator.”   Borg discusses the historical life of Jesus, what he refers to as the “pre-Easter” Jesus as opposed to the “Christ of Faith,” which is about our understanding of Jesus after the Resurrection.

It is helpful to summarize briefly how Borg understands the historical life of Jesus.  He notes that Jesus’ life included five distinct traits:

First, he was a Jewish mystic.  Like the formative figures in the Old Testament, the Hebrew Bible, he often went off alone to pray.  “Stories about Abraham, Jacob, Moses, Elijah, Elisha, and the classical prophets portray them as people for whom God was an experiential reality.”  Jesus was like these.  He fasted, prayed constantly, and spoke of God in intimate terms.

Second, he was a wisdom teacher.  Jesus spoke of “dying to and old identity and being born into a new identity.  This “new identity and a new way of being was a life radically centered in God, in the Spirit of God Jesus knew in his own experience.”

Third, he was a social prophet.  Jesus spoke strongly about the injustices of the dominant political and economic systems of his day.  He was critical of wealth being for the few at the expense of poverty for the many.  He was a “prophet of the Kingdom of God – of what life would be like on earth if God were king and the kings and emperors of this world were not.”

Fourth, he was a movement initiator.  Jesus advocated an inclusive society that incorporated the marginalized and outcast.  He reached out to women, widows and orphans, and dined with gentiles and sinners.  The “most visible public activity” of this movement “was its inclusive meal practice.”

Fifth, Jesus was a healer.  Jesus’ healing encompassed “a wide range of phenomena.  Physical healing,… psychological healing, inner healing, healing of memories,…and also healing of societies and institutions.”  Driving the demons, the unclean spirit, out of the man demonstrated the level of Jesus’ care for those in desperate situations.  The name “Legion” that the man gave to himself means “many.”

To summarize, Jesus was a mystic, a wisdom teacher, a social prophet, a movement initiator, and a healer. Throughout his life he had an experiential relationship with God.

Why did Luke focus on the story of Jesus driving the unclean spirit, demons, out of the man’s body?  The Rev. Dr. Susanna Metz, a priest in the Diocese of Exeter, England, writes about this question in her quarterly journal, Tuesday Morning, she says, “We need to look for the underlying message and not worry about whether Jesus sent something calling itself Legion into a herd of pigs. It may not have happened exactly like that.

“Jesus truly cared for the poor and hurt of the world. Jesus was showing that God’s love included outsiders, like the gentiles.  Jesus showed that God’s power was mightier than the power of evil.”

Then, pointing out that there are some things we cannot fully understand, she says, “There are some things we have to give over to faith and the presence of mystery in our human lives, and that’s OK.  We should allow awe and wonder to fill our souls and direct our gaze toward the Almighty, who thankfully, loves us with an unconquerable love.”

Here at All Saints’ Memorial Church we have this magnificent sacred space where we can come and be still.  In our worship we can “allow awe and wonder to fill our souls” and experience the majesty and grandeur of God.  We can, as Dr. Metz says, “listen for God’s voice in the silence and in the gentle breeze.  The voice will be there.  We can imitate Jesus and open our eyes and hearts to the needs of those who are right there beside us – those we don’t see even as we step around them.  And we can pray that we will live out the pronouncement of Paul: ‘There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus.’”  Amen.

Living by Faith and Generosity

If we take all of our Scripture readings together and reflect on them as a unit we may conclude that they are about the contrast between our own selfish needs and desires for security and God’s generosity, love, and what it means to be justified by faith.  Our reading from the First Book of Kings is about selfish need and security; the Gospel is about forgiveness and generosity, and the Epistle from Galatians is about justification by faith in Jesus Christ.

In our reading from the First Book of Kings, Ahab, the king of Samaria, wanted a vineyard that was right next to his palace and belonged to his neighbor Naboth in an area called Jezreel.  Ahab thought it would make a good vegetable garden so he offered to give Naboth a better vineyard in exchange for it, or, if that wasn’t acceptable, he was willing to buy it for a price equal to its value.

In response, Naboth rejected Ahab’s offer because his vineyard was part of his ancestral inheritance.  It would be wrong to sell it or exchange it for another vineyard.

As the story unfolds, we realize that King Ahab is entitled and selfish.  He doesn’t get his way so he feels depressed, resentful and sullen.  He reacts by going to bed, burying his face in a pillow and refusing to eat.  It is like a little boy who doesn’t get his way.  Upon seeing this his wife Jezebel asked Ahab why he was so depressed.  Ahab related what happened and she replied by saying he is the King and deserves to have what he wants.  She said, “I will help you get Naboth’s vineyard.”

Jezebel then arranged a plot whereby a couple of scoundrels in Naboth’s city brought a public charge against him by accusing him of cursing God.  Taking the Lord’s name in vain was a serious charge, punishable by death.  So Naboth was taken and stoned to death.  When he learned about Naboth’s death, King Ahab went to Naboth’s vineyard to take possession of it and claim it as his own.

Had the story ended here we would feel that a terrible injustice had been done.  Having someone killed for personal gain is a travesty of justice. There had to be an investigation.  And, in effect, that is what happened.

The word of the Lord came to the prophet Elijah who was directed to go and meet King Ahab and say to him, "Thus says the LORD: In the place where dogs licked up the blood of Naboth, dogs will also lick up your blood.  Because you have sold yourself to do what is evil in the sight of the LORD, I will bring disaster on you."

Our second story comes from the Gospel of Luke.  It is about a sinful woman who showed up at a dinner party Jesus was having in a Pharisee’s house.  She brought with her an alabaster jar of ointment, stood behind Jesus, wept, and began bathing his feet with her tears and then drying them with her hair.  Then she anointed his feet with the ointment. 

The Pharisee host, Simon, told Jesus that the woman was a sinner.  She was nameless and certainly someone not to be bothered with in the patriarchal society of the time.  Jesus replied by telling a parable about two debtors who owed different sums of money to the same creditor.  The creditor forgave the debts when he learned they could not pay.  Then Jesus asked Simon, “Now which of them will love him more?”  Simon replied that it is likely the one who owed the most.

Jesus then accused his host of not providing common hospitality for him when he entered his house.  “You gave me no water for my feet…. You gave me no kiss…. You did not anoint my head with oil.”  The sinful woman did all of this and more; she even “anointed my feet with ointment.”  Then, turning to the woman, Jesus said, “Your sins are forgiven…. Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

This story is a wonderful and generous expression of grace and mercy.  The woman’s sin is never identified.  Jesus was impressed by her love and concern for him, and he responded by expressing gratitude and forgiveness.

These two stories are, in a sense, interpreted by Paul’s writing in his Epistle to the Galatians.  What is inferred by Paul in his letter is that justification by observing the law is not sufficient for those who follow Christ.  Paul writes, “We ourselves are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners; yet we know that a person is justified not by the works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ…. The life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.  I do not nullify the grace of God; for if justification comes through the law, then Christ died for nothing.”

In commenting on this passage the Biblical scholar Walter Brueggemann says, “Paul offers a classic statement about an alternative life that is lived out of God’s limitless generosity, for which we use the term ‘grace’….  All of these texts witness to the summons put before us by the gospel—a choice between self-securing that brings death or reliance upon God’s generosity.”

The message for you and me is clear.  Are we selfish and legalistic, seeking our own sense of security, or are we committed to living lives characterized by generosity, love and forgiveness?  As we prayed in today’s Collect, through God’s grace may we proclaim truth with boldness, and minister God’s justice with compassion.  Amen.

New Life from Healing

“Forward Day by Day” is a quarterly pamphlet published by Forward Movement in Cincinnati.  It has been an Episcopal Church publication since 1935.  It consists of daily meditations on biblical verses written by a number of clergy and other authors.  The present editor and Executive Director of Forward Movement is the Rev. Scott Gunn who served for a time in our Diocese of Rhode Island.

A reason for mentioning this is that in the current quarterly issue of “Forward Day by Day,” the meditation selected for last Tuesday, June 4^th is about faith that makes us well.  It is based on today’s Gospel reading.  As we heard in the Gospel of Luke, Jesus said to the widow’s son, “’Young man, I say to you, rise!’  The young man got up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother.”  The crowd that gathered around Jesus was amazed, and word about Jesus’ healing powers spread throughout Judea and the surrounding country.

This is an awesome account. Is it magic?  Is it a miracle?  Does it reflect the power of God’s Spirit at work in the world?  How do we account for it and how are we to understand this brief story?

The meditation in “Forward Day by Day” says, “The man who recognizes his healing comes back in thanks and then discovers healing at an even deeper level.  That’s the way it is in life: generosity becomes its own generator of further generosity…. Jesus is calling attention to the way the world works and to the power that is available in it.”

At another level, Jesus is repeating an action that the Prophet Elijah did as we heard in our reading from the First Book of Kings.  In this story the son of a widow became ill.  “His illness was so severe that there was no breath left in him.”  So Elijah took the child to the lodge where he was staying and cried out to the Lord. “O Lord my God, have you brought calamity even upon the widow with whom I am staying, by killing her son?”  He then asked the Lord to let the “child’s life come into him again.”  The Lord listened to Elijah, the child was revived and restored to his mother.  Then, in gratitude, she said to Elijah, “Now I know that you are a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in your mouth is truth.”

These are stories about healing and generosity and gratitude.  They are stories that reach out beyond the comfortable boundaries of the local community.  Widows had no power.  People of other regions like the Samaritans, were not “one of us.”  They were not part of the worshiping community.  In both of these stories, Elijah and Jesus are calling their followers and thereby all of us to reach beyond our comfort levels and welcome others into our community.  Healing the divisions that keep people separate from one another, being generous toward those in need, and being grateful and offering thanks to God for the new life we experience as a result is what matters.

As our Collect, our opening prayer for today states, “O God,…grant that by you inspiration we may think those things that are right, and by your merciful guiding may do them.”

There is nothing magical about these stories.  They are practical narratives to inspire us to do what God expects of his people.  The only thing miraculous about them is the results that accrue from healing the divisions that separate us one from another.  The generosity we show to those in need brings rewards of thankfulness and appreciation; it is the new life bestowed on those who are outcast because of their circumstances.  They may be hungry or homeless, in need of health care or a job or a place to live.  They may be immigrants from other lands in need of welcome and friendship. 

The Spirit of God at work in the world is what the season of Pentecost is about.  It is a time for ministry to others.  It is a time for imagining what the Church is and can become in our time as it was during the times of Elijah and Jesus.  What is good and right and beautiful comes from God.  What we do with the gifts we have received is our response to the life-giving spirit of God.  Amen.