Choosing Entry to Hope, to New Life, To Resurrection

Collect for Friday in the Fifth Week of Lent

O Lord, you relieve our necessity out of the abundance of your great riches: Grant that we may accept with joy the salvation you bestow, and manifest it to all the world by the quality of our lives; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Choosing Entry to Hope, to New Life, to Resurrection (Matthew 27:1-66)

“Then the whole people said, ‘May his blood be upon us and upon our children’"   

Matthew 27: 25

As I reflected on Matthew 27: 1-66, which is the entirety of the chapter, I found myself going back to this very uncomfortable passage.  It’s disturbing for a variety of reasons.  Some scholars suggest that the verse was included in Matthew’s gospel to drive home the idea that the Jews were responsible for the crucifixion of Jesus – by including those present and their children, Matthew could be implicating an entire people.  History has shown that these verses are, indeed, inflammatory and have given rise time and again to acts of outrage in the name of Christ. 

There’s another way to view those verses, however, and that is through the lens of the uncomfortable truth they tell us about ourselves –

The morality of the herd is at work here – we see a large group bent on violence and bloodshed shouting for a violent execution.  We know from reading the rest of the chapter that they will get what the want, and many will witness the execution and mock our Lord.   If you are now feeling a bit smug and thinking to yourself, “Thank God we no longer live in such horrific times – what barbarity!” you better stop and think again.  Go on-line and search images of lynching in the US,   or check out the smiling “thumbs up” photos of soldiers with beaten or deceased bodies of  detainees in Abu Garib, or look back to the public humiliation and terror carried out by the Nazis during  days leading up to World War II.  In each case, you will see images of happy, smiling people while others are being tortured, humiliated and destroyed. 

We can bring this a bit closer to home.  When we ourselves join in or stand by when another is insulted or murdered via character assassination, when we fail to speak a word of justice or truth, when we give in to entertainment and humor and activities that diminish human dignity, then we are participating, in a sense, in a crowd calling not for life, but for death, for the lowest common denominator. 

Are these acts “visited upon our children”? Inasmuch as they help to create a culture where intolerance, hatred and humiliation are accepted, then this culture does, indeed, seep into the very fabric of our being. 

The good news for us is that in Christ, there is an end to this, if we choose to follow Him.  The message of the Passion, Cross and Resurrection shows us that redemptive suffering, laying down one’s life for love and the truth, and standing with the poor and oppressed will be for us the entry to hope, to new life, to resurrection. 

We may do well to reflect on those times when we have been or are “part of the crowd”.  We may do well to ask ourselves if we are passing on to others a culture of death or life.

The Rev. Scott Leannah

Rector

St. Mary’s Church, Dousman

Simple Acts

Collect for Thursday in the Fifth Week of Lent

O God, you have called us to be your children, and have promised that those who suffer with Christ will be heirs with him of your glory: Arm us with such trust in him that we may ask no rest from his demands and have no fear in his service; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Simple Acts (Matthew 26:1-68)

As the events of the last week of Jesus’ life begin to pick up in speed and intensity, our attention tends to focus more closely on what is happening to Jesus. We want to interpret everything that happens, from the preparation for the Last Supper to his arrest in Gethsemane, in light of the cross. Undoubtedly, our focus should be on Jesus but we should not lose sight of the other characters in the drama, especially those who followed Jesus from Galilee. Their fate is bound up with his. Matthew, like the Gospel of Mark which he follows closely, wants to teach his readers what it means to follow Jesus.

Several of the disciples jump out at us. Peter, who vowed to follow Jesus to the very end, to the cross itself, is told by Jesus that he will deny him three times. Judas betrays his master. In Gethsemane, Jesus takes the sons of Zebedee and Peter aside. He asks them to stay awake with him while he prays. Instead, they fall asleep and are rebuked by Jesus. None of them could complete the journey to the cross with Jesus.

There is one disciple in this story whose behavior Jesus praises. We don’t know her name, where she came from, or even the motivations for her actions. While Jesus was dining with Simon the Leper in Bethany, she crashed the party and anointed Jesus’ head with costly ointment. After her actions were criticized, Jesus announced that what she had done would be told “in remembrance of her.”

That’s all we know about her. We don’t know where she came from or what happened to her after this encounter with Jesus. We don’t even know her name. Yet of all the disciples in this story, only she seems worthy of our notice and imitation. She seems to know what is going to happen to Jesus when his closest (male) followers are clueless. It may be that she was among the women who Matthew says looked on from afar as Jesus was crucified and buried. It may be that she was among the women who went to the tomb. Whatever happened, we are left with her actions and Jesus’ praise of her. It’s a reminder that the simplest acts by anonymous people can have lasting significance and power.

The Rev. Dr. Jonathan Greiser

Rector

Grace Church, Madison

Be Prepared

Collect for Wednesday in the Fifth Week of Lent

Almighty God, our heavenly Father, renew in us the gifts of your mercy; increase our faith, strengthen our hope, enlighten our understanding, widen our charity, and make us ready to serve you; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Be Prepared (Matthew 24:36-25:46)

Be prepared.  I was not a boy scout, though I know their motto when I hear it.  Perhaps I should have been, since I often fail to heed it, and that has brought stress to my life and those around me on too many occasions to number.   So often my priorities are off to the point where my preparations and last minute, and not my best efforts.  The end of the twenty-fourth and beginning of the twenty-fifth chapters in Matthew’s Gospel are filled with many parables on watchfulness, preparation and planning and though many of the Jews to whom Matthew was writing would recognize in these stories analogies about for the coming day of judgment, in this era of constant information, quick fixes and instant gratification, we don’t seem to be looking that expectantly for the end of days, though perhaps we should.  

So what do we take away from all this talk of preparation and readiness?  What in our lives do we need to prepare for?  To watch for?  To expect?  Is it a cherished opportunity to spend the extra time it takes to help your child grow into the full stature of Christ?  Could it be finding and seizing a chance to share your faith with someone you work with every day?  Is it preparing yourself to face the stresses and struggles of your life by immersing yourself in a Lenten discipline of study and prayer, or better still one that carries on beyond Good Friday and Easter and takes root as a part of your daily life, like your daily coffee or checking in on Facebook (or whatever your routine includes…).  There are opportunities to grow in your faith, or to help others find and grow in theirs.  Be watching for them, and when they come, be prepared. 

Bill Robison

Trinity Church, Wauwatosa

Jesus Teaches about the Fall of Jerusalem

Collect for Tuesday in the Fifth Week of Lent

Almighty God, through the incarnate Word you have caused us to be born anew of an imperishable and eternal seed: Look with compassion upon those who are being prepared for Holy Baptism, and grant that they may be built as living stones into a spiritual temple acceptable to you; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Jesus Teaches about the Fall of Jerusalem (Matthew 24: 1-35)

Writer Kathleen Norris reminds us that “the Christian faith asks us to put our trust not in ideas, and certainly not in ideologies, but in a God who was vulnerable enough to become human and die and who desires to be present to us still in the ordinary circumstances of our lives.”

In recent times, things that we have thought to be indestructible never quite seem to live up to their billing.  No matter if the best plans for nuclear power plants are devised and operational schemes are followed, all it takes is an act of nature to shock us back into the reality of who we really are as fragile human beings. The same is true as any of us might be confronted with an illness we never expected.

In Matthew 24 Jesus speaks of the Temple’s destruction as he returns to the Mount of Olives. The disciples come to him privately, asking when the temple will be destroyed and what will be the sign of the coming age. It is appropriate that they ask the questions about time on the Mount of Olives because the Mount of Olives is identified in Zechariah 14: 1-5 as the mount on which “the Lord will stand to save his people” from the nations. Zechariah describes an apocalyptic time of Israel’s existence. Jesus himself is this new age and time in which we are involved. While the text in this chapter alludes to both the proximate destruction of Jerusalem and a future apocalyptic event, none should be wrapped up in the particulars of how and when, but must stay in the present, being alert and ready. We are called to engage our lives knowing our own vulnerability, being attentive to God in the present and truth of our lives.

I think that is part of what Lenten journey invites – our being present to where God is leading, an engagement that doesn’t put our security in things that will not last, but in the one who has saves us still even from ourselves.

The Rev. John Crosswaite
Priest
Diocese of Milwaukee

Jesus: Frustrated Love

Collect for Monday in the Fifth Week of Lent

Be gracious to your people, we entreat you, O Lord, that they, repenting day by day of the things that displease you, may be more and more filled with love of you and of your commandments; and, being supported by your grace in this life, may come to the full enjoyment of eternal life in you everlasting kingdom; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Jesus: Frustrated Love (Matthew 23:1-39)

Me: “I notice that you’re acting in some ways that are, well, kind of obnoxious. Is there something going on with you that is making you feel like acting that way? Are you feeling hungry, or sad, or angry?”

My 5-year-old son: “No. I just like it.”

Me: “OK, well, it’s making us have a lot of fights instead of having fun together. If you notice a reason why you’re acting this way, let’s talk about it, all right?....”

Yesterday I had a conversation with my son that ran a lot like that. My son is a fantastic kid – funny and kind and bright and creative. And, like any other kid, he has his moods – and like any other kid, he knows how to push his parents’ buttons like nobody else on earth. On a good day, when I have my own emotional resources gathered, I remember to respond to his button-pushing with compassion, in addition to the inevitable frustration. I reflect on what might be causing the obnoxious behavior: is he hungry? is he feeling jealous of his baby sister? is he processing something that happened at school, or trying out behavior he’s seen from other kids? Sometimes that kind of thinking helps me work with him to resolve the friction between us. More often, it just helps me be the parent I want to be, grounded in the truth that I love my kid even in the moments when he’s not acting very likeable.

In chapter 23 of Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus harangues the scribes and the Pharisees for their hypocrisy and false leadership. His rhetoric is pointed and powerful. But the verse that makes me catch my breath is verse 37, when Jesus’ tone suddenly shifts: “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing!” In these words we catch a glimpse of the immense love that lies behind Jesus’ frustration, Jesus’ rage. Jesus’ words here move me, because as a parent I can just begin to imagine the agonizing mixture of anger, frustration, grief, and love at seeing a child – seeing a whole city full of children – wandering far from the pathways that will lead them to wholeness.

Jesus’ angry rebukes spring from love. What a blessing to know that even on the days when I feel like I’m more of a Pharisee than I want to be – that I’ve left the inside of the cup dirty, swallowed a camel, and neglected justice, mercy, and faith – that Jesus, that God loves me and longs to gather me back to him. May I – may all of us – always return with gratitude to the shelter of those wings.

The Rev. Dr. Miranda K. Hassett

Rector

St. Dunstan’s Episcopal Church, Madison, WI

Journey in Jerusalem

Journey in Jerusalem (Matthew 22:1-27:66)

April 10-16

Discussion Questions


As you reflect on the events of Holy Week, what makes you pause?  What surprises you?  What stands out for you?


How has God entered your life in difficult times?
When have you found God through others?
Where is your journey with God taking you at this moment?

The Invitation is Tested and Questioned

Collect for the Fifth Sunday in Lent

Almighty God, you alone can bring into order the unruly wills and affections of sinners: Grant your people grace to love what you command and desire what you promise; that, among the swift and varied changes of the world, our hearts may surely there be fixed where true joys are to be found; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

The Invitation is Tested and Questioned (Matthew 22:1-46)

Jesus will offer an invitation to the religious leaders and they will respond with testing and questioning.

First will be the Herodians, a political party that supported Herod Antipas and the policies of Rome. Their question will attempt to put Jesus against Roman authority. Jesus demonstrated that we all have dual citizenship; citizenship in our country and citizenship of the kingdom of God.

The second group of leaders, the Sadducees, did not believe in resurrection. They wanted to trap Jesus as they had trapped the Pharisees, that there was no proof of the teaching of the resurrection in the Pentateuch. Jesus teaches that it is more important to understand the power of God than to understand heaven.

One might think that the Pharisees would be celebrating that Jesus shut down the Sadducees; but, in their pride they would not be thwarted from their final attempt to shut up Jesus. The Pharisees, experts of the Jewish Law, wanted to trap Jesus with the Law. Jesus instead summed up the Law, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul and mind; and love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matthew 22:37)  Jesus then invited the Pharisees into understanding who he was, that he was and is the Christ.

In each interaction the groups were trying to trap Jesus and he responded by inviting them to hear and receive the Truth. His parable of the wedding banquet opened this chapter for us. In that parable he is teaching about God’s invitation to all God’s people to come into the wedding banquet, the heavenly feast. In this parable there are those who refuse the king’s invitation, even when the feast is ready and prepared for them. When the elite refused, the invitation went out to everyone, without discrimination. All may come to the banquet. However, if we accept the invitation we’re still expected to show up dressed for the occasion. Appropriate dress given to us by the King, it is the robe of righteousness. We can accept the robe or not.

The Herodians, Sadducees, and Pharisees decided to test and question the truth of the invitation. How do we respond to Jesus’ invitation in our lives?

The Rev. Carla McCook

Rector

St. Thomas of Canterbury, Greendale