Isaiah 65: 17-25
Isaiah 12: 1-6
Luke 21: 5-19

Endurance

A number of years ago, I received a call from my sister and on that particular occasion she was looking for help with some of her computer settings. I was able to help her without even getting up from the book I was reading or even looking at my own computer. At that time I often helped friends with simple tech issues. You also have to know SHE worked as tech support for an internet company, but this was not her exact area of expertise. After her issue was solved, I remarked that it was ironic that while she worked in tech support, and I worked for the United Church, I was the one who helped HER fix HER computer.

I said “maybe I should do your job.” She was quite willing for me to do her job, as long as she still got the pay-cheque. You also need to know that this was back in the days of, “dial-up.” I then said something like this: “Wouldn’t it be great if you could use the same phone line to talk and surf the net at the same time. You could save money because you could get rid of one phone line, and you would never be kicked off the net when someone in the house picked up the phone.” (Remember that?!)

Her response, “Well that’s impossible.”

“Well, it’s nice to dream,” I replied. (pause)

Fast forward to today and most of you who are on the internet have been able to do both on the same line for years and we barely remember the tedium of the early days of slow as cold molasses internet. A colleague informed us that when he was at his cottage, he only had dial-up and would not be sending or receiving large files such as pictures. I read the other day that some internet providers will be phasing out “dial-up” altogether. These days most computers don’t come with any kind of phone jack. Come to think of it, “how long has it been since you have actually “dialled” a phone number? Young people these days when faced with a rotary dial phone may not be sure how to get it to work! It would be nice if children came, as they say in the tech world, “backward compatible.”

This, and the lesson I read from the first testament, got me thinking about the other things that would be nice.

Wouldn’t it be nice if electronics, and mechanical stuff lasted longer?

Wouldn’t it be nice if the new technology was not replaced long before you figured how to make full use of its capabilities?

Wouldn’t it be nice if — if all children who were born - were healthy and lived a healthy and fulfilling life?

Wouldn’t it be nice if all children had enough to eat and a warm coat for the winter?

In preparing for Remembrance Day last week I have been thinking about the courage of those who fought Hitler as civilians, in the resistance or even within the camps themselves. I have thought it would have been nice if more people had actively opposed Hitler and his policies.

The other day I found a post on Facebook about a Polish midwife, Stanisława Leszczyńska (sorry Chris, that’s the best I can do!) who was interned in Auschwitz and because of her profession, put in charge of the “maternity” ward. Though the name was highly misleading. There was a building for expectant mothers but it had no specialized equipment whatsoever. The infamous Dr Josef Mengele ordered her to drown all Jewish babies as soon as they were born but to save the babies of non-Jewish mothers who had Aryan features - who could be adopted and thus “Germanized.” She flatly refused to do so, “midwives brought life, not death” she said, but because her services were necessary she was not executed for disobeying orders. Many of the over 3,000 babies she delivered did not make it anyway but she noted that she never lost a mother due to complications related to childbirth - despite the total lack of prenatal care and conditions in the camps. She kept secret records of her work and after the war tried to reunite those who survived with their families. A Roman Catholic, she is now on the way to official sainthood because of her courage and her refusal to kill defenceless infants.

Wouldn’t it be nice if; in a situation of ethnic cleansing there were more people like her, unwilling to trade their humanity for a misguided sense of superiority.

Wouldn’t it be nice if there was no loss of life in traffic accidents, plane crashes, house-fires and random acts of violence.

Wouldn’t it be nice not to live in a world of crop failures and natural disasters and wars.

Wouldn’t it be nice if nation did not go to war against nation and if everyone had enough and no one took too much.

It would be.

It would be very nice.

However, as we know, we do not live in that kind of world. The vast majority of the news stories we see are “bad news.” Sometimes you see one of these “bad news” pictures and it remains seared into your memory. I will give you two examples of pictures I will never be able to “un see”. One was taken in April of 1995, just over 30 years ago, and it shows a firefighter carrying the lifeless body of a child, on the day after her 1st birthday, when the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City was bombed.

It would be nice to live in a world where people did not respond to life’s disappointments with such chilling anger.

The next one was taken in 2015 and shows the body of Alan Kurdi, a Syrian refugee who was trying to cross the Mediterranean with his family and find refuge in Europe.

It would ne nice if all countries were safe places and people did not have to risk life and limb to flee from their own country to seek protection elsewhere.

We protest the death of children, most especially. We read the passage from Isaiah which proclaims that the days are coming when children will not suffer calamity, when all those things that harm human community will be no more. We say again and again, “dream on.”

Yet, things CAN be done. After the death of Alan Kurdi, Canada opened our doors to many groups of refugees. I was part of a group in the Annapolis Valley of Nova Scotia which sponsored a family of 3 from Myanmar. Even though they left for Ontario, after their first year, we felt satisfied that we had made a difference in their lives and their futures. Many of us follow them through facebook and have been invited to visit.

If we cannot change the world, we can change the circumstances of a few individuals and families! In the midst of a much less than perfect world we are asked to dream. The Reign of Christ asks us to dream of and imagine a different world, a world of possibilities, a world without hatred and racism and economic injustice - but yet not to be ostrich like with our heads in the sand and ignore the signs of the times. It IS a fine line sometimes.

I admit that I am not trained in economics but it seems to be that we need a different way to measure prosperity than the endless cycles of production and consumption. We need another metric than the GDP or the GNP to assess the true wealth of a nation. We need to stop trying to be richer, better and faster than everyone else and to consume more and more. It’s killing the planet and causing suffering.

Some have said that the strength of a nation should be measured on how it cares for the vulnerable and those who are disadvantaged not by its wealth. It has already been proven that we have enough food for everyone on the planet, hunger is a distribution problem. It has also been said that if everyone on the planet consumed natural resources at the rate of North Americans, we’d need about 6 planets to keep us going. Our contributions of greenhouse gasses are affecting the weather in the global south to such an extent that it is a matter of life and death for them - with each hurricane becoming worse than the one before it. In the last few years forest fires have ravaged many parts of Canada (and even Nova Scotia) During my time in Saskatchewan there were many days, in the summer, when I walked through my garage on the way to work and found that the smoke that had drifted through the cracks was almost choking. I did not even attempt to dry clothes outside and some weeks we barely saw the sun! We would say to a friend, “What’s that yellow thing up in the sky?” it had been so long since we’d seen it.

Many years ago I saw a scratchy old film in which the then moderator, Dr Robert McClure, was talking with a group of youth. He was relating his conversation with a church leader in a developing country. It went like this, “ask your people - was it your ancestors who put the gold in the rocks of Canada?” The question for us is then, “Are our abundance of resources solely for our own use or are they a trust for all people?”

In the 60's the protest movements focussed on peace and war, particularly the war in Vietnam and justice for black citizens. As A Canadian child I was always a little confused because our reality was different - the draft was non existent and bussing was the only way to get to school for rural kids. As I understand it, bussing was a policy of some governments to break down the barriers between social classes which also tended to be racial divisions as well.

Everyone in America knew about “the draft” but I wasn’t sure what it really meant. I do remember though when 10 year old Danny was sent a draft notice in an episode of the Partridge family. As I remember it, the US Draft Board did not admit they made a mistake, despite his mother’s protests. but marked him as unfit for duty because he was too short.

In the last few years, global protest movements have focussed on the widening gap between rich and poor. They tell us that 2% of the people earn 99% of the wealth with the rest of the world suffering, to a larger or smaller extent.

As a people of faith we must, as they used to say, “think globally and act locally.” We must begin where we live with our vision informed by the scriptures, such as Isaiah, such as Jesus’ teachings. We begin in the place where God’s vision provides us with something to draw us forward in faith. .

Each church year begins with Advent one and ends with the Reign of Christ. Next week is the Reign of Christ and the next Sunday, we start the cycle all over again in expectation. In Advent we anticipate the birth of Jesus which happens every year on Christmas. In another sense, however, it ends 52 Sundays later with The Reign of Christ Sunday, which we celebrate today.

The readings for this Sunday give us glimpses of the world as it should be; as God created it to be. Each of the three lectionary years gives us a slightly different part of this vision - and it asks us not only to think how nice it would be if the world were like this, BUT IT ALSO calls us, as much as is possible, to live it into being.

Let us open our hearts to God’s vision and pray for the courage to make a difference, to make the world a little more like the goodness of creation that God intends.

Amen.

Jeremiah 23: 1-6
Luke
Luke 23: 33-43

Strange Place For a King

Many years ago I saw a movie called, “The Mission” in which eighteenth-century Spanish Jesuits tried to protect the Guaraní, a remote South American tribe, in danger of falling under the rule of pro-slavery Portugal. European desires for precious minerals and other resources also fuel the greed and violence. Eventually violence erupts and the Jesuits are forced to fight to defend the people. At some point in the conflict, Fr. Gabriel, one of the Jesuit priests says something like, “If might is right, then love has no place in the world. It may be so, it may be so. But I don't have the strength to live in a world like that.”

The Reign of Christ which IS this Sunday, not last week like I may have said last Sunday . (Sorry, I was working on too many sermons at once) The Reign of Christ is actually our ultimate destination when we set out on our Advent journey, one year ago. Advent is not really about waiting for “Baby Jesus,” and Christmas, but is about the hope of the Prince of Peace fulfilling his real mandate for a world made new.

Today’s gospel passage speaks of the Rule of Jesus. While it initially seems to be displaced from Holy Week, the people who designed the lectionary want us to reflect on what it is to acknowledge Christ’s Reign which, by definition, includes the cross. In this passage Christ’s power opens the gates of paradise to someone who has seen this Jesus for who he really is and repented.

When we think of the rule of hereditary royalty, such as the House of Windsor, we tend to think of power, might, and wealth. In Jesus day there was no such thing as a constitutional monarchy, a King held absolute power and could do as they pleased. These days some members of our royal family have been brought up short and have had titles removed because of their un-acceptable behaviour.

As you probably know, I love movies and when it comes one I really like, I buy the DVD and watch it over and over - on long winter nights and “good snow storms.” Two of my favourite prison movies are, “The Green Mile” and “The Shawshank Redemption.”

In the Green Mile, so named for the colour of the floor on the death row unit in that particular Louisiana prison, we meet the commanding officer of that cell block, Paul Edgecomb, played by Tom Hanks, and an enormous black inmate named John Coffey. If they tell you that the camera does not lie, think again. Even though he was 6'5" and over 300 pounds, his difference in size was due mainly to creative camera work. When asked about his name, he tells people that it sounds like the drink, but its not spelled the same. Mr Coffey, towers over most people and instills fear through his sheer size. Yet he has a very soft heart, tremendous empathy, the gifts of healing and of raising the dead, and is completely innocent of the crime for which he has been convicted and placed on death row. Given the circumstances it did not take too much for the racist justice system of Louisiana in the Great Depression to convict this black man with little education and a low IQ, and sentence him to the Electric Chair.

Throughout the movie we follow a series of healings and miracles that win over the guards and, of course, the audience. By the time of his execution he had performed several miracles but he refuses an appeal of his sentence, because the world is such a pain-filled place and he cannot live in it any longer.

The Shawshank Redemption, another adaptation of a Stephen King novel, is the story of a banker, Andy Dufresne, wrongly convicted of shooting his wife and her lover. While in prison he is targeted by a sadistic group of fellow inmates but soon comes to the attention of the warden for his financial acumen.

By the time a couple of tax seasons have passed, in addition to doing most of the tax returns of prison staff, he is forced to help the warden launder the illegal money that flows through the prison. He helps the corrupt warden create a totally false person to hold the account, and it continues to build.

He tutors a fellow prisoner so he can pass his high school equivalency, and manages to procure funding for a prison library. Every night, while the prison sleeps, he digs. Eventually, he escapes, through his private tunnel, with a chess set that he carved himself from scavenged rocks, the warden’s suit and good shoes, the passbook to all of the warden’s ill gotten gains and the secret books which he turns over to a reporter.

Because it’s just a movie, he escapes to a seaside village in Mexico, buys an old boat, and is eventually joined by his friend, a recent parolee, “Red” as he is known, who befriended him, early in his sentence.

In today’s passage Jesus is hanging on the cross and being derided by soldiers and by leaders. It’s the last place you would expect to find a king. Crucifixion was Rome’s way of executing criminals and its public nature was probably somewhat of a deterrent to active sedition. It’s a passage we normally associate with holy week but placing it here, on Reign of Christ, it forces us to wrestle with the concepts of power and privilege. The One who was weak ended up being the most powerful.

When we think of power we think of the ability to free or imprison, to let someone live or send them to their execution. The French Revolution was a message to the King ands Queen, enough of this - we can govern ourselves.

Nazi doctor Josef Mengele working in Auschwitz exercized the power of life or death and is a prime example of using such powers. Today, in North Korea one can be executed for a number of crimes ranging from murder to reading un-approved literature! The recent refusal of the US President to believe accusations that the Saudis murdered a journalist is a worrisome reality that I hope voting Americans will remember come the next election.

In the Gospel passage, the One hanging on the cross is derided for mis-using both of the titles given him, “Messiah” and “King of the Jews,” because he has not saved himself and has not taken up arms against Rome and led a revolution. I would argue that he is trying to redefine them.

In North America we have a lot of disputes and discussions about free speech. Just where is the line between free speech and hate speech?

I went through COVID in the west and you would think that those opposed to lock-down measures thought that big-sky country gave them some kind of immunity from a deadly virus. The business lobby was protesting the loss of money and the Medical Officer of Heath was seeking to prevent more loss of lives. Since no one is a true fortune-teller, in a given situation whom should we follow.

The pandemic aside, as normal, everyday Canadians we have a fair amount of power. For most of us, we were born here and raised here, we have one citizenship, we are Canadian. We can advocate for changes in government policies but as people of faith we also need to ask, “for whom do we advocate?”

I have loss of wishes for financial freedom in retirement or even for next year, but what about my wishes for other people. There are many who are far worse off, those for whom decent housing and food for their children is out of reach. I would like the government programs to truly help those who are in need, those who fall through the cracks. What can we do about those who are affected by family violence or substance abuse.

I would like someone to figure out how to get young people from turning to crime and then becoming habitual criminals. I would like our whole society to be as non-racist as we claim to be.

There is a saying that has driven our economy for years, “the one who dies with the most toys, wins.” Well, I would agree that the one who has many toys when they die is still dead.

Patterned after one of Jesus parables, Russian writer Leo Tolstoy, wrote, “How Much Land Does a Man Need?” Tolstoy’s conclusion after his main character amassed much property was that all he really needed was enough land for a burial plot.

Yet, when we think of these examples we can be easily overwhelmed. We probably need to think much closer to home. I have a colleague who has taught his children that he will not be buying them everything he and their mother can afford because the homeless people of their city will be receiving some of their disposable income. I know of a high school student who had a fight with his girlfriend over his volunteering to work on Christmas morning, so his boss could open presents with his young family. It was a small gesture that would have meant so much.

Sometimes our lives are marked by the giving and receiving of small gestures - ones that don’t take a lot of time or money, or even effort, but which say, “in this time I choose to help you in this way.”

When I was ordained, the Maritime Conference UCW used the earnings from an investment to give a gift to the Mission and Service Fund in our names. When I was in one of my early pastoral charges, a family gave a gift to our benevolent fund saying that the adults had contributed the money they would have spent on the other adults in the family - giving gifts that no one really needed. The United Church has a catalogue called, “Gifts with Vision” whereby donors can choose a ministry and make a gift. I don’t open the mail, i don’t know if you have aq few already, but I can connect you with one, if you like.

Personally, I cannot solve poverty and hunger in the world, in Nova Scotia, or even in this part of Cumberland county, but I can do something - and when the recipient is eating their turkey dinner and smiling because their child has at least one toy that has put a smile on their face - I can be satisfied in what I could do.

Being Christian can change us from the inside out and give us the Spirit of a generous heat.

Years ago, when I was at Atlantic School of Theology, there was a professor, an almost retired Anglican priest who quoted the following prayer, in jest, of course,

“God bless me and my son John, 
his wife, my wife,
us four, no more.” 

The cross may be a strange place to find a King, but I hope, not for us; it’s just the right place with the right message.

Let us seek to be the blessing to others we can be and show that we follow the one who came to bring abundant life to all of creation.

Amen!