Passion Accounts as Revisionary Providence

Good Friday   B  March 30,  2018        

Gen 22:1-18        Ps 22

Heb.10:1-25        John 18:1-19:37

 Lectionary Link

The Passion Gospel of John was the last Passion of the four Gospels to be written.  And being so late in comparison with the others, it reveals some interesting features.

What is the difference between history and providence?  History, in the modern sense, is supposed to be a non-passionate report of events that happened without any interpretation about the meaning of the events by the one who writes history.

In this definition of history, the Passion of John's Gospel is not history.  It does include some actual historic event, but it is a highly interpreted account of the crucifixion of Jesus, and it is full of the meaning that is called Providence.

The writer of the Gospel of John was saying, the cross of Jesus was terrible, and it was full of suffering, but God not only meant it to happen, God orchestrated it to happen.

Providence is when history is seen specifically as a direct action of God.  This means that Providence is significant revisionary history.  Providence is Revised history.  It is history injected with the interpretive rose glasses of faith.

How can this happen?  How can it be reported that Jesus interacted with Pilate as though Jesus was writing the script about how Pilate was supposed to judge?

The cross as the providence of God happened because of the aftermath of the death of Jesus.  Jesus reappeared.  And he kept reappearing over and over again in the lives of many people.  Jesus died out of the world but he was reborn into the lives of so many people.  So, what else could the Christians say about the cross of Jesus?  How could it be a mistake?  How could it be seen as the defeat of Jesus?  The reappearances of Christ could not have happened in the way that it did, if Jesus had not died on the Cross.  It had to be that way.  And if it had to be that way, then it was God's plan.  In fact, even though Jesus was not a priest or a sacrificial lamb, in his death on the cross, the early church came to see Jesus as a High Priest, offering himself as the final sacrificial Paschal Lamb offering for all of humanity.

The more successful the Christian Movement became, the more the providential details in the life of Jesus of God were expanded in the preaching and writing of leaders of the early church.

In the presentation of Providence of the Cross of Jesus there is an interesting switch in blame.  The New Testament writers, who were Jews, held their rival Jewish leaders more responsible for the death of Jesus than the Roman authorities who really had all the power.  This interesting switch in blame may be an indication of the sociological fact that more Romans and Gentiles had become followers of Jesus and fewer Jews were followers of Jesus. Most Jews remained in their synagogue communities and were not members of Christian churches.  Historically, this subtle switch in blame has resulted in deplorable anti-Semitic behaviors by some Christians in societies where Jews have remained a minority.  The Gospel traditions should never be used to justify any behaviors of injustice toward anyone.  Because the Jewish leaders were portrayed as being against Jesus in the Passion Gospels, this cannot be used against them,  because what did Jesus say from the cross?  "Father, forgive them for they do not know what they are doing."  If the cross is providential how can one blame those who seem to be responsible for it?  And how can a follower of Jesus, reject his words about forgiving those who placed him on the cross.  And further if Christians have expanded the death of Jesus to be for the sins of the world, how can anyone be certain about what side one would have been in in Jerusalem on crucifixion day.  The Providence of the Cross does not allow blame, only forgiveness.  Sadly, some Christians have forgotten this in their practice towards Jews and other opponents to their faith communities.

What is the providence of the Cross of Jesus for you and me today?  Perhaps, it is learning the meaning  of God's forgiveness in how we treat each other.  Even when there is a history of being enemies; the forgiveness of Jesus from Cross is the starting place for us to love our enemies.  Another providence of the Passion of Christ, means that God completely identifies with the freedom for really bad things to happen in this world.  We have witnessed in the history of our times, some really bad things.  Why is God so permissive?  God honors freedom so much that God allows bad things to happen, and in Jesus, God was the perfect one to whom something really bad happened.  God did not exempt the divine Son from a very bad thing.  The Providence of this for you and me is that God is identified with those who suffer; meaning that God too is suffering in their suffering.  And in our suffering, we honor the greater value of freedom as a main principle of God and of life.

And if freedom means continuous life and continuous creation and continuous time, it means that we can have future faith to make the very worst of the past, providence because of a surpassing greater future.

You and I are still holding onto to a future providence for things that are still just painful history.  And since the cross of Jesus attained the exalted status of  providence, we hold in faith that our lives will attain the future providence of "all being made well indeed, by future surpassing events of God's Grace."  Amen.

Happy Birthday, Holy Eucharist!

Maundy Thursday   March 29, 2018    
Ex. 12:1-14a       Ps. 78:14-20, 23-25
1 Cor 11:23-32      John 13:1-15
Lectionary Link
In writing a story about the past, it is very hard to pretend that we are not living in a much later time.  Perhaps some of you remember the popular movie and television show called MASH.  It was supposed to be an account of a military hospital during the Korean War, but it really reflected the attitudes of Americans about the Viet Nam War.  American reactions to the Viet Nam war were written into the MASH script.

This happened when the Gospels were written.  They were written 3-7 decades after Jesus was gone and so they represent the views and the practices of the early church more than they represent what was happening during the actual life of Jesus.

What was happening in the early church?  The early church was practicing Holy Eucharist.  When Christians met on the first day of the week, they broke bread and said the prayers, and they traced this practice and tradition back to what Jesus did with his disciple.  The account of the Eucharist in Paul's letter to the Corinthian was written before the accounts of the Last Supper in the Gospels.

On Maundy Thursday, we commemorate the origin of the Holy Eucharist as a spiritual practice that Jesus gave to the church.  It is the Christian family meal when we as brothers and sisters of Christ, hoping to be disciples of Christ, sit down and remember that our original brother Jesus Christ started this holy meal tradition.  And this holy meal tradition has undergone changes in different times and places,  but the essential elements of it have remained the same.  We can say tonight that Holy Eucharist has endured and we are proof of it tonight, even as we could sing, "Happy Birthday, Holy Eucharist."

Were the early churches made up of perfect angels who lived in perfect harmony?  Not really.  People in every age have ego problems.  We can't help it.  We want to be in control.  We want to be right.  We want to shout our correct views the loudest.  Some people even want to overthrow leadership.  And this is shown in the Last Supper event of Jesus with his disciple.  Judas was a disciple from the inner circle, so much so as to be the treasurer for Jesus and the Jesus Movement.  But Judas was one who betrayed Jesus.  In the early church, there were persons who at first followed Christ, but then left and even betrayed their fellow Christians.  Betrayal was in the beginning and it continued in the early churches.

But then there were those every day ego problems of people wanting to be the leader.  What happened at the Last Supper?  Jesus noticed that his disciples were competitive over who would hold the highest position in his earthly kingdom, which did not happen.  What did Jesus do when he noticed their competition?  He took the role of the servant; he went around and washed his disciples' feet.  And he said, "If you are going to survive as a community, you are going to have to do the same with each other."  If you want to lead, you do so by service.  Service is the meaning of love.  Jesus said, "I have loved you and I have served you and you all think that I'm the boss. Go do likewise."

Tonight we commemorate the origin of Holy Eucharist.  We also underlined the service principle of Jesus Christ, called the new commandment, the eleventh commandment.  A new commandment, I give to you.  Love one another as I have loved you with my service.  This is how the church will survive into future.  The future of the church is based upon the future of service.  That is Maundy of Maundy Thursday, the Mandatum Novum, the New commandment.  Love one another as I have loved you.  Amen.

Christos and Basileus

Palm Sunday/Passion Sunday B  March 25, 2018
Isaiah 50:4-9a   Psalm 31: 9-19                                                                                     Philippians 2:5-11  Mark 14:1-15:47
Lectionary Link

Today in the Palm Sunday event and in the reading of the Passion Gospel we can highlight two different crowds.  The original crowd when Jesus rode a donkey into Jerusalem might have been a very enthusiastic naïve crowd.  Perhaps they were the country bumpkins from Galilee who came to Jerusalem for the Festival and they wanted to make the case for their favorite son Jesus of Nazareth.  They perhaps were trying to send a message, not to the Roman surrogate authorities, but to the Jewish religious establishment who negotiated the terms of relationship of the Jews with the Roman authorities.

The Passion crowd in the trial of Jesus were a different crowd; they had a different agenda.  It could be that they had a legitimate agenda.  The Jews were not in control of Jerusalem, or their own homeland.  The religious leaders had to negotiate the terms of their religious freedom with the local authorities who represented the Caesar of Rome.  What did Rome do for Jerusalem?  They financed the large public works projects in Jerusalem, including the temple complex.  What did public works projects do?  They provided jobs for lots of the populace.  And Jesus was presented as an instigator who would upset this sensitive compromise that existed between the Jewish religious and political authorities and the Roman authorities.  This crowd, therefore, did not cry, "Hosanna, blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord."  This crowd said, "He makes himself a king and so he is a threat to Caesar; and we have no king but Caesar, Crucify him!"

Yesterday, we experienced crowds of people who poured onto the public streets everywhere in our country and world in a March for Life.  And as adults we perhaps are cynical about these naïve young kids sending a message to the adult world, "You need to do better in taking care of us and making us safe."  The kids are saying to us, "You have failed to make us safe."  There were kids who seemed to have resurrected from the killing floors of the Parkland Florida high school.  They rose from among the bodies of their dead classmates with grief, anger, and resolve to send us adults a message about our failure.

The Passion Crowd who cried about Jesus, "Crucify him," were a savvy political crowd.  Jesus represented the naïve idealism of the country folk who were forgotten and who wanted to be treated differently.  Jesus represented people who wanted to know that God loved them and respected them and they wanted to know that the religious leaders loved and respected them too.

The savvy political crowd in Jerusalem saw the Jesus Movement to be a threat.  And we find the collision between the naïve notion of being a king versus the real political notion of being a king.  The early church is built upon the naïve and idealistic notion of what king is.  The conflict between two notions of kingship is found in the two words used for king in the New Testament Greek language.  Christos and basileus.

Christos is the Greek translation of the Hebrew word Meshiach, the word Messiah.  Basileus is the Greek word for a great king like the Emperor Caesar or a lesser king like King Herod.  Basileus is also the translation of the Hebrew word for king, Melek.  King David was both a Melek and a Meshiach.  He was a political king and a divinely anointed messiah.

When the Jewish religious and political authorities interrogated Jesus, they asked him if he were the Christos?  Are you a Messiah type of king?

But when they presented Jesus to Herod and Pilate, they presented him, "not as Christos, Messiah King," but as a "basileus" king, one who would be a political threat to the Caesar.  They presented Jesus as a pretender king who would be a threat to overthrow the Roman authority in Palestine.  And this became the telling reason why the Roman's crucified him.

The Passion Story highlights the dichotomy between "Christos" and "Basileus."  Frankly, the early church promoted Jesus in the more naïve notion of the "Christos" or Messiah king.  The early church said the Messiah king was a "suffering servant king," the one who was written about in the prophet Isaiah.

What is it that made this naïve idealistic suffering servant king successful?  The Roman Armies and the religious and political authorities in Jerusalem could not prevent the post resurrection reappearances of Jesus Christ to his followers.  They killed Jesus out of this world but he was reborn in resurrected appearances to those who experienced and saw him a new way.  Jesus, as this naïve country bumpkin idealistic Messiah king created a new experience of a parallel existence for people to know.  All of this happen when the Caesar of Rome continued to be the basileus or king of the world.

Make no mistake, the Caesars of the world of money and power still have the visible control of our world, even though they sometimes can be shamed into doing the just and right thing.  We hope that the cynical power and politics and the lobbying money that controls most all the political outcomes does not overcome the naïve hope and idealism of our children who are asking to be safer in our world.  We hope that we can actually guilt the powers that be to do the right thing, even when they don't want to.

And on this Passion Sunday, let us remember to keep alive this idealistic hope of the suffering servant Christ, the king, on the Cross who reigns in a real parallel world of faith which can influence the real world of our politics and in our every day life in each of our local neighborhoods.

Let's believe in the suffering servant Christ, the king, who reigns from the cross, because not even Roman political power could prevent the Risen Christ from becoming known and experienced.  But that's next week's story.  And you all come back.  Okay?  Amen.

Revisiting the Worst When It Has Been Redeemed by the Best

Palm Sunday/Passion Sunday B  March 25, 2018

Isaiah 50:4-9a     Psalm 31: 9-19   
Philippians 2:5-11  Mark 14:1-15:47

Lectionary Link

The reason that we are here today to listen to the Passion Gospel is because we have insider information.  We know the end of the story.  Knowing the end of the story helps us retell the sequence of events.

There are many forgotten stories in the lives of the people of the world, lots of stories in our lives that never get told because they do not have good endings or they do not have subsequent events that can somehow make them palatable because they are stories still seeking future redemption.

The Story of the Cross of Jesus gets it own importance because it is perhaps the event that had the very best outcome of all.

How many people who have died have returned in multiple re-appearances to friends and relatives to give specific assurance that not only were they okay after their deaths but that their afterlife would redeem the awful event of their death?

How many people?  Just one.  The uniqueness of the story of the Cross and the Resurrection of Christ accounts for why it has retained its singularity in popularity.

A sequence of events which are so unique cannot help but ascend to be a template for human life.  The early Christians who were attracted to the uniqueness of the Cross and Resurrection Story, also believed that they had to share this story with as many people as possible, not just because it is the greatest of all stories, but it also had a persuasive and winsome power in the life of people.  In short, it was not just a engaging and entertaining story, it was a "get inside of you" powerful life transforming story.

The chief theologian of the New Testament church was St. Paul.  He started on the side of those who persecuted Jesus.  As Saul of Tarsus, he pursued the followers of the Risen Christ and he was present at the stoning of St. Stephen.  A rabbi who believed the 10 Commandments about not committing murder was promoting the death of the followers of Christ.  Saul was like those who turned Jesus into the Roman authority to be tried and killed on the cross.

Saul of Tarsus had in a mystical experience of the Risen Christ.  And he was converted from being a persecutor into becoming an Apostle and a preacher of the Gospel of Christ.

The Death of Jesus became for St. Paul a mystical power for St. Paul.   He wrote "I have been crucified with Christ...."  The Death of Jesus launched the Risen Christ to become a glorious personality within the human consciousness and available to be experienced by anyone.  St. Paul retold the story of the Cross of Jesus as the mystical power for him to be able to die to his sinful self and make room for the Holy Spirit of resurrection life.

In the Pauline tradition we have the poem about Jesus who so emptied association with divinity from himself he went to death on the cross and cried out, "My God, why have you forsaken me?"

We revisit the cross today, because we already know about the resurrection.  We render the cross in gold and silver and diamonds, ironically decorating ourselves with a cruel instrument of torture.  Why?  Because the story of this One Cross of Jesus has been rewritten by the reality of the resurrection.

Why do we come to the cross today?  Because in the freedom of everything that can happen in our lives, lots of it is loss, pain, suffering, injustice, and failure.  Can God have any identity with the freedom side of human experience which permits loss, pain, suffering, injustice and failure?  The cross of Christ is proof to us that God is identified with all that expresses the worst of human suffering and loss.  The greatest creation of God is freedom, so great that God has to accept the negative results that happen under the condition of true freedom.

Let us remember that the freedom of God also permitted the resurrection of Christ.  The freedom of God also allows for us to identify with the forces that promote love, joy, peace, gentleness, goodness and kindness.  The death of Jesus did not remove the freedom of love, hope, joy, peace, faith, kindness and justice.

The death of Jesus gave to all the  power to convert the internal forces of selfishness.  The death of Jesus is the proof of God's full identity with conditions of suffering in this world.

The death of Jesus is always retold with knowledge of the hopeful outcome.  For you and me, this means we can always look for hopeful outcomes in this life and the next.  Amen.

Sunday School, March 25, 2018 Palm Sunday/Passion Sunday B

Sunday School, March 25, 2018  Palm Sunday/Passion Sunday B

A day with two names

Palm Sunday and Passion Sunday

A day with two crowds

The Palm Parade crowd were a crowd of men women and children who wave branches as they followed Jesus into Jerusalem.  They proclaimed him as the special One who was coming in the name of the Lord, the Christ.  The crowd was very happy and joyful.

The Passion crowd

The Passion refers to the suffering of Jesus which ended in him dying on the Cross.  The parade crowd went home, and another crowd came out to say bad things about Jesus.  They did not understand what kind of King Jesus was; he was the Christ, God chosen Son.  The crowd shouted that Jesus was trying to be a king like the Caesar who was the great king of Rome.  When these lies were told about Jesus, the Roman governor decided to treat Jesus as someone who was trying to be a king to oppose the Caesar of Rome.  Jesus was mistreated, and he heard a crowd shout some very bad things about him.  Jesus did not fight back; he knew that he was a king in the hearts of people.  And he knew that God his Father would know how to respond to his death on the Cross.

In our lives we need to choose the crowds to be with.  We need to be in the crowd of people who say to Jesus, “Hosanna is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.”  We can know Jesus to be the king of our hearts who leads us to live kind lives and lives of love.

Palm Sunday Story Sermon

Once upon a time in a village near the city of Jerusalem, the village of Bethphage; a little donkey was born in the pasture.  And that donkey was called by his owner, Shorty, because he was so tiny when he was born.

  But the donkey’s mom, called him Christopher.  When Christopher became old enough to talk to his mom, he asked her, "Why does my owner call me Shorty, even now when I've grown to be a tall and strong donkey?"  Christopher's mom said, "Well once you get a name, it sometimes just sticks, and people won't let you be anything else."

  Christopher asked his mom, "Then why do you call me Christopher?"  His mom said, "Well, I'm not sure but I just had this feeling that it was the right name for you."

  Christopher looked in the other pasture and he saw a beautiful big stallion prancing around.  He saw important Roman Generals ride this beautiful horse.  And Christopher thought, "I wish that someone important would ride on my back some day.  And Christopher was a little jealous of the stallion.

  But one day something exciting happened to Christopher.  Two visitors came to the farm where Christopher was kept.  They called themselves disciples of Jesus, and they said there was going to be a parade into the great city of Jerusalem.  They also said that they needed a donkey to carry their king.  Christopher's owner Farmer Jacob, said, "I've got two donkeys, that jennet over there and her colt that I call "Shorty."  If Jesus needs the donkeys, take them.  Jesus is my friend, he healed my son, and I owe him everything I have."

  So, the two disciples took Christopher and his mom with them and they went to a place just in front of the sheep gate in Jerusalem.  There was a large crowd gathered who had come to Jerusalem for the Passover Holiday.  After waiting for about an hour, the crowd soon got excited.  Jesus arrived, and it was time for the parade to start.  The people put some robes on Christopher to make a saddle for Jesus.  Christopher had never been ridden before, and he was nervous.  But Christopher's mom said, "Calm down, Jesus is the nicest man in the world.  You don't need to buck him off."

  Jesus Climbed up on the back of Christopher and the parade started.  The people took some branches from some palm trees and they began to wave and shout and scream, because their superstar was there.  They followed Jesus as he was riding Christopher into the city of Jerusalem and Christopher trotted proudly through the streets.  This was the happiest day of his life.  At night, he and his mom were tied up at the house of one of the disciples in Jerusalem.  Christopher's mom was proud of him and she said, "Well now I know why I named you Christopher.  "Christopher" means, "the one who carries Christ."  And today you have carried Christ on your back, so today you have lived up to your name."  Christopher was so happy he wanted hee haw with joy.  But his happiness didn't last too long.

  He looked out on the street and he saw another parade.  In the darkness he saw a tired and naked Jesus walking with soldiers.  And the soldiers were forcing him to carry this large wooden cross on his back.  He was bleeding and he was too weak to carry the cross, so at one place they forced a man named Simon to carry the cross for Jesus.  The people who were following the soldiers were laughing and making fun of Jesus.  They were saying, "you're going to die Jesus.  You were just pretending to be a king, but you don't have any power, you're going to die Jesus."

  Christopher ran to his mom and said, "If I had known that this would happen to Jesus, I would not have brought him to Jerusalem."

  Christopher's mom said, "It is a terrible, terrible thing, but we must trust God.  Jesus is the best and nicest person who ever lived and God will take care of him.

  Well, Jesus went on to die on the cross.  And he was buried in a grave.  But does the story does not end here.  Come back next week and we will tell you the end of the story.  What happened to Jesus after he died and was put in the grave?

  What was the donkey's name?  Christopher.  What does Christopher mean?  It means "The one who carries Christ."  In a way, every Christian could be called Christopher.  Because you and I are asked to carry the presence of Christ into this world by being nice and kind.  Amen.

St. John the Divine Episcopal Church

17740 Peak Avenue, Morgan Hill, CA 95037

Holy Eucharist

March 25, 2018: Palm Sunday/Passion Sunday

Hosanna, Hosanna in the Highest! (Renew! # 71)

Hosanna, Hosanna, Hosanna in the highest!  Hosanna, Hosanna, Hosanna in the highest! 

Lord we lift up your name with hearts full of praise;

Be exalted, oh Lord my God! Hosanna in the highest!

Glory, Glory, glory to the King of kings! Glory, Glory, glory to the King of kings!

Lord we lift up you name with hearts full of praise;

Be exalted oh Lord my God! Glory to the King of kings!

Liturgist: Bless the Lord who forgives all our sins.

People: His mercy endures forever.  Amen.

Liturgist:  Oh God, Our hearts are open to you.

And you know us and we can hide nothing from you.

Prepare our hearts and our minds to love you and worship you.

Through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

Liturgist:         The Lord be with you.

People:            And also with you.

Liturgist:  Let us pray

Assist us with your mercy and help, O Lord God of our salvation, that we may enter with joy as we think about your mighty acts which have given us life and an everlasting future; through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen

First Litany of Praise: Hosanna

O God, you are Great!  Hosanna

O God, you have made us! Hosanna

O God, you have made yourself known to us!  Hosanna

O God, you have provided us with us a Savior!  Hosanna

O God, you have given us a Christian family!  Hosanna

O God, you have forgiven our sins!  Hosanna          

O God, you brought your Son Jesus back from the dead!  Hosanna

A Reading from the letter of Paul to the Philippians

Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death-- even death on a cross.

Liturgist: The Word of the Lord

People: Thanks be to God

Let us read together from Psalm 118

On this day the LORD has acted; *we will rejoice and be glad in it.

Hosanna, LORD, Hosanna! *LORD, send us now success.

Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord; *we bless you from the house of the LORD.

Litany Phrase: Thanks be to God!

Litanist:

For the good earth, for our food and clothing. Thanks be to God!

For our families and friends. Thanks be to God!

For the talents and gifts that you have given to us. Thanks be to God!

For this day of worship. Thanks be to God!

For health and for a good night’s sleep. Thanks be to God!

For work and for play. Thanks be to God!

For teaching and for learning. Thanks be to God!

For the happy events of our lives. Thanks be to God!

For the celebration of the birthdays and anniversaries of our friends and parish family.

   Thanks be to God!

Liturgist:         The Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John

People:            Glory to you, Lord Christ.

The next day the great crowd that had come to the festival heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, shouting, "Hosanna! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord-- the King of Israel!" Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it; as it is written: "Do not be afraid, daughter of Zion. Look, your king is coming, sitting on a donkey's colt!" His disciples did not understand these things at first; but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written of him and had been done to him.

Liturgist:         The Gospel of the Lord.

People:            Praise to you, Lord Christ.

Sermon – Father Phil

Children’s Creed

We did not make ourselves, so we believe that God the Father is the maker of the world.

Since God is so great and we are so small,

We believe God came into our world and was born as Jesus, son of the Virgin Mary.

We need God’s help and we believe that God saved us by the life, death and

     resurrection of Jesus Christ.

We believe that God is present with us now as the Holy Spirit.

We believe that we are baptized into God’s family the Church where everyone is

     welcome.

We believe that Christ is kind and fair.

We believe that we have a future in knowing Jesus Christ.

And since we all must die, we believe that God will preserve us forever.  Amen.

Litany Phrase: Christ, have mercy.

For fighting and war to cease in our world. Christ, have mercy.

For peace on earth and good will towards all. Christ, have mercy.

For the safety of all who travel. Christ, have mercy.

For jobs for all who need them. Christ, have mercy.

For care of those who are growing old. Christ, have mercy.

For the safety, health and nutrition of all the children in our world. Christ, have mercy.

For the well-being of our families and friends. Christ, have mercy.

For the good health of those we know to be ill. Christ, have mercy.

For the remembrance of those who have died. Christ, have mercy.

For the forgiveness of all of our sins. Christ, have mercy.

Youth Liturgist:          The Peace of the Lord be always with you.

People:                        And also with you.

Song during the preparation of the Altar and the receiving of an offering

Offertory Choir Anthem: Praise Him, All Ye Little Children  (Christian Children’s Songbook, # 184)

1          Praise him, praise him, all ye little children, God is love, God is love.  Praise him, praise him all ye little children, God is love, God is love.

2          Love him, love him all ye little children, God is love, God is love.  Love him, love him all ye little children, God is love, God is love.

3          Serve him, serve him all ye little children, God is love, God is love.  Love him love him all ye little children, God is love, God is love.

Doxology

Praise God from whom all blessings flow. Praise Him, all creatures here below.

Praise Him above, ye heavenly host. Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

Prologue to the Eucharist

Jesus said, “Let the children come to me, for to them belong the kingdom of heaven.”

All become members of a family by birth or adoption.

Baptism is the celebration of our birth into the family of God.

A family meal gathers and sustains each human family.

The Holy Eucharist is the special meal that Jesus gave to his friends to keep us together as the family of Christ.

The Lord be with you

And also with you.

Lift up your hearts

We lift them to the Lord.

Let us give thanks to God.

It is right to give God thanks and praise.

It is very good and right to give thanks, because God made us, Jesus redeemed us and the Holy Spirit dwells in our hearts.  Therefore with Angels and Archangels and all of the world that we see and don’t see, we forever sing this hymn of praise:

Holy, Holy, Holy (Intoned)

Holy, Holy, Holy Lord, God of Power and Might.  Heav’n and earth are full of your glory.

Hosanna in the highest.  Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. 

Hosanna in the highest. Hosanna in the Highest.

(All may gather around the altar)

 Our grateful praise we offer to you God, our Creator;

You have made us in your image

And you gave us many men and women of faith to help us to live by faith:

Adam and Eve, Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebekah, Jacob and Rachael.

And then you gave us your Son, Jesus, born of Mary, nurtured by Joseph

And he called us to be sons and daughters of God.

Your Son called us to live better lives and he gave us this Holy Meal so that when we eat

  the bread and drink the wine, we can  know that the Presence of Christ is as near to us as  

  this food and drink  that becomes a part of us.

And so, Father, we bring you these gifts of bread and wine. Bless and sanctify them by your Holy Spirit to be for your people the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ our Lord.  Sanctify us your Holy Spirit so that that we may love God and our neighbor.

On the night when Jesus was betrayed he took bread, said the blessing, broke the bread, and gave it to his friends, and said, "Take, eat: This is my Body, which is given for you. Do this for the remembrance of me."

After supper, Jesus took the cup of wine, gave thanks, and said, "Drink this, all of you. This is my Blood of the new Covenant, which is shed for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Whenever you drink it, do this for the remembrance of me."

Father, we now celebrate the memorial of your Son. When we eat this holy Meal of Bread and Wine, we are telling the entire world about the life, death and resurrection of Christ and that his presence will be with us in our future.

Let this holy meal keep us together as friends who share a special relationship because of your Son Jesus Christ.  May we forever live with praise to God to whom we belong as sons and daughters.

By Christ, and with Christ, and in Christ, in the unity of the Holy Spirit all honor and glory

 is yours, Almighty Father, now and for ever. AMEN.

And now as our Savior Christ has taught us, we now sing,

Our Father: (Renew # 180, West Indian Lord’s Prayer)

Our Father who art in heaven:  Hallowed be thy name.

Thy Kingdom come, Thy Will be done: Hallowed be thy name.

Done on earth as it is in heaven: Hallowed be thy name.

Give us this day our daily bread: Hallowed be thy name.

And forgive us all our debts: Hallowed be thy name.

As we forgive our debtors: Hallowed be thy name.

Lead us not into temptation: Hallowed be thy name.

But deliver us from evil: Hallowed be thy name.

Thine is the kingdom, power, and glory: Hallowed be thy name.

Forever and ever: Hallowed be thy name.

Amen, amen, amen: Hallowed be thy name.

Amen, amen, amen, amen: Hallowed be thy name.

Breaking of the Bread

Celebrant:       Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us.

People:            Therefore let us keep the feast. 

Words of Administration

Communion Anthem:  Be Thou My Vision  arr. Gary Smoke, In the Garden, arr. Gary Smoke

                                    Divine Jubilation Handbell Choir

Communion Song: Were You There? (blue hymnal)

1. Were you there when they crucified my Lord? Were you there when they crucified my Lord? Oh! Sometimes it causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble. Were you there when they crucified my Lord?

2. Were you there when they nailed him to the tree? …

3. Were you there when they pierced him in the side? …

4. Were you there when they laid him in the tomb? …

Post-Communion Prayer

Everlasting God, we have gathered for the meal that Jesus asked us to keep;

We have remembered his words of blessing on the bread and the wine.

And His Presence has been known to us.

We have remembered that we are sons and daughters of God and brothers

    and sisters in Christ.

Send us forth now into our everyday lives remembering that the blessing in the

     bread and wine spreads into each time, place and person in our lives,

As we are ever blessed by you, O Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Closing Song:  Hosanna, Hosanna, (The Christian Children’s Songbook, # 102)

Hosanna! Hosanna! The little children sing.  Hosanna, Hosanna, for Christ, our Lord is King.  Prepare the way, the children sing, Hosanna to our Lord and King. Hosanna, Hosanna, the little children sing.

Dismissal:   

Liturgist: Let us go forth in the Name of Christ.

People: Thanks be to God! 

Hippie talk: "Man, That's Like Really Heavy!"

5 Lent   B          March 18, 2018
Jer. 31:31-34      Ps. 51:11-16       
Heb. 5:1-10        John 12:20-33    
Lectionary Link

Imagine yourself in the community that generated the Gospel of John some 5 to 6 decades after Jesus had left the earth.  How would you write about Jesus knowing what you knew had transpired in the last 60 years?

What was not written was this: Jesus died and the Romans put down a insurrection movement and ended the life of Jesus and his Movement.  This could not have been written because if no one remembered Jesus, nothing would have been written about him.  Many crucifixions happened and yet none was remembered like the Cross of Jesus.

As a Christian, 6 decades after Jesus was gone, one had already inherited traditions of Jesus in the way his story was told.  Writing is done with a purpose and one of the purposes of the Gospel of John was to explain why things had happened in the way in which they did.

What had happened?  The members of the John's Gospel community were proof of the survival power of Jesus Christ.  Jesus was gone but the Risen Christ had become replicated in the lives of many, many people.  How could this happen?  Why are so many people still gathering in the name of Christ?  Why does the spiritual energy still get transmitted to new people?  How can we explain the Risen Christ effect that has continued for so long and shows no sign of diminishing?

To speak about the blossoming Risen Christ effect, the writers used a religious term for "fame:"  The word "Glory."  

All of us know, wittingly or unwittingly, the word for Glory in Greek.  "Doxology" Doxa as in the offertory song "praise God from whom all blessings flow."  The word "Doxa" was used to translate  Hebrew words for glory.  "kavod" is a Hebrew word for glory and for those of us who still speak "Hippie" we can understand "kavod."  When a hippie was profoundly moved he would say something like "far out," or "Man, that was like really heavy!"  "kavod" means "heavy or weighty."  Another Hebrew word for "glory" was "shekinah."  This was used to refer to the manifest presence of God in  such a dwelling as the holiest of holy in the tabernacle.

Theological words become so commonplace that they can lose their meanings.  We speak about events in the life of Jesus: his birth, life, death, resurrection, ascension and glorification.

In the succession of events in the life of Jesus, we are living in the phase of the glorification of Jesus Christ.  What does this mean?

The glorification of God in Jesus Christ is the word used to explain why the Risen Christ had become present and replicated over and over again into the lives of many people.  It was so phenomenal, the writers had to say this was happening because God was glorifying Christ above all.  If God were not doing this, it could not have happened.  The dwelling and heavy presence of God in Christ was being made known within the lives of many people. The answer for the earthly fame of Jesus was not like that of the Caesar; the Roman empire had their propaganda to speak about the divine fame of the Caesar.  In the cult of the Caesar, citizens bowed before him because they feared for their lives.  The glory of God in Christ was much different.  It was verified by the winsome presence happening over and over again in the lives of people.  The writers of the Gospel of John had to retell the story of Jesus to account for the replicating proof of the Risen Christ in the lives of many.

In our Gospel story, the heavenly voice declared the glory of  God in Christ happened when?  When Greeks came to the feast and asked to see Jesus.  What had happened in the churches of the Gospel of John?  Many Greeks and Gentiles had come to see Jesus as he was experienced as the interior Risen Christ through the abiding presence of the Holy Spirit.  The Gospel of John was a thundering voice declaring the glory of God in Christ.

The power of the Glory of God Christ is known in its power to re-make events of the past.  What is the death of Jesus?  It's like the planting of the seed that dies when buried in the earth.  The afterlife of the seed is a great plant which produces many, many, more seeds to become many more plants.  You can plant Jesus in a dark tomb to get him out of sight, out of mind but from there he exploded and morphed into the lives of innumerable people.  Why did that happened?  The booming voice of heaven thunders: I have glorified God in Christ and will continue to do so."

The Bible is a book about how people have chronicle the glory of God; how God has marked human history such that people have come to confess God and God's presence.  In the Hebrew Scripture perhaps the greatest event of God's glory was on Mount Sinai.  It was an event of the "shekinah" glory even to make the face of Moses shine.  The law was written on the stone tablets.  The law was visible in exterior writing.  It had to be enforced by judges, priests, kings and prophets.  The kings of Israel did not always do well in living the law or enforcing it. The prophet Jeremiah wished for a democratic understanding of God's law; he wished that the law would be written on the hearts of people as an interior fact and not just as an exterior suppressive force.

The Glory of Christ was viewed in this succession of the Glory of God found in Hebrew Scripture.  Christ was the eternal Word of God and where does word dwell?  It is inside us so close that our lives cannot be separated from how we are constituted by the words of our lives.

Today, you and I still live as proof of the glory of God in Christ.  We, like St. Paul, can say, "Christ in us,the eternal Word,  the hope of glory."  We are proof of the glory of Christ, even as we share in the glory of Christ.  And why is this important?

The human counter for divine glory is, "fame."  Fame is an attractive drug of human culture. A certain amount of recognition is needed for the sense of personal esteem.  But people want repeated and sometimes excessive proof that they are loved and adored.  Why do people want quantity of proof that they are loved and adored?  It's a drug and it actually may be a sign of deep insecurity and it may be the sign that they have not yet been able to say with deep meaning, "Christ in me, the hope of glory."  To know Christ in us as the hope of glory is the most profound event of self esteem.  To have this experience is to be delivered from the vain glory of the drug of needing excessive fame.

My prayer for us that we will know the glory of Christ and that our parish may be a place where the glory of Christ might be known.   Amen.