Quiz of the Day, October 2019

Quiz of the Day, October 31, 2019

What is Halloween known as for the Lutherans?

a. Diet of Worms Day
b. Reformation Day
c. Wittenberg Castle Day
d. Martin Luther Day

 Quiz of the Day, October 30, 2019

The Bible translation of John Wyclif was based on what?

a. translation of the original biblical languages of Hebrew and Greek
b. Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures, the Septuagint and exist codices of the New Testament
c. the Latin translation of the Bible from Jerome called the Vulgate
d. the German edition of the Bible of Martin Luther

Quiz of the Day, October 29, 2019

According to the Bible which is not true?

a. there are seven spirits of God
b. God is Holy Spirit
c. churches have spirits
d. a sin against the Holy Spirit is not forgiven
e. all of the above

Quiz of the Day, October 28, 2019

The Baptismal versicles and response, "There is one Lord, one faith and one baptism.  There is one God and Father of all," come from which Epistle?

a. Romans
b. 1 Corinthian
c. Ephesians
d. Colossians
e. Philippians

Quiz of the Day, October 27, 2019

In Ephesus, Paul encountered Apollos.  What did Apollos and his fellow disciples indicate for the city of Ephesus?

a. Greeks were becoming Christian
b. A community of John the Baptist was present
c. Converts of the devotees of the goddess Diana were many
d. Baptism was practiced in Ephesus before Paul arrived

Quiz of the Day, October 26, 2019

Which Persian king order the stopping of the rebuilding of the temple due to a letter sent by political foes of the rebuilding project?

a. Xerxes
b. Artaxerxes
c. Darius
d. Cyrus the Great

Quiz of the Day, October 25, 2019

Who is Beelzebul?

a. ruler of the demons
b. Mesopotamian deity
c. Roman deity
d. a Hitite deity

Quiz of the Day, October 24, 2019

What modern apocalyptic sect leader took his name from Cyrus the Great?

a. Jim Jones
b. David Koresh
c. Hal Lindsey
d. Charles Russell


Quiz of the Day, October 23, 2019

Who was the brother of Jesus, bishop of Jerusalem, called the "Just," and was flung off the pinnacle of the Temple in his death?

a. John
b. Joses
d. James
e. Stephen

Quiz of the Day, October 22, 2019

As to the resurrection from the dead, who wrote or said that we would be raised as spiritual body, thus meaning a bodily resurrection is a spiritual body resurrection?

a. Jesus
b. Writer of the Epistle of James
c. St. Paul
d. Writer of the Epistle to the Hebrews

Quiz of the Day, October 21, 2019

What former Anglican is about to be canonized by the Roman Catholic Church?

a. Dorothy Day
b. Thomas Merton
c. Evelyn Underhill
d. John Henry Newman

Quiz of the Day, October 20, 2019

Lydia, the seller of purple, was from which city?

a. Macedonia
b. Philippi
c. Antioch
d. Corinth


Quiz of the Day, October 19, 2019

Which conqueror was responsible for burning down the Temple in Jerusalem?

a. Cyrus
b. Darius
c. Sennacherib
d. Nebuchadnezzar

Quiz of the Day, October 18, 2019

What was Luke's occupation besides Gospeler and Chronicler of the early church?

a. scribe
b. tent maker
c. physician
d. military officer

Quiz of the Day, October 17, 2019

Which prophet was thrown into a muddy bottom cistern because his words anger the king?

a. Isaiah
b. Hosea
c. Elijah
d. Jeremiah

Quiz of the Day, October 16, 2019

Where were Cranmer, Latimer and Ridley burned at the stake?

a. Cambridge
b. London
c. Durham
d. Oxford

Quiz of the Day, October 15, 2019

What did King Jehoiakim do with the written words of Jeremiah on a scroll?

a. he preserved for the eventual "Bible"
b. he had them cut up and he ate them to get them inside of him
c. he burned them
d. he had scribe make five copies

Quiz of the Day, October 14, 2019

Bishop Joseph Schereschewsky

a. translated the Bible into Chinese languages
b. was paralyzed
c. typed 2000 pages with one finger
d. all of the above

Quiz of the Day, October 13, 2019

Who of the following was called "Zeus?"

a. Paul
b. Barnabas
c. Silas
d. Ananias

Quiz of the Day, October 12, 2019

Who was the secretary of the prophet Jeremiah?

a. Baruch
b. Micah
c. Obadiah
d. Shaddrack

Quiz of the Day, October 11, 2019

Who was Jeremiah's father?

a. Baruch
b. Hilkiah
c. Neriah
d. Josiah

Quiz of the Day, October 10, 2019

The sevenfold gifts of the Spirit invoked at Holy Baptism come from a list found in which book of the Bible?

A. 1 Corinthian
B. 2 Corinthians
C. Isaiah
D. Romans
E. Colossians

Quiz of the Day, October 9, 2019

Huldah was

A. A queen
B. A prophetess
C. A maid servant
D. A warrior

Quiz of the Day, October 8, 2019

Which of the following is most significant about the reign of Josiah?

A. The recovery of the Book of the Law
B. The Babylonian Exile
C. The Persian Exile
D. The recovery of the Ark of the Covenant

Quiz of the Day, October 7, 2019

King Manasseh was 

A. King of Judah
B. King of Israel
C. Son of Ahab
D. One who was faithful

Quiz of the Day, October 6, 2019

How was King Hezekiah healed?

A. He wore garlic around his neck
B. He applied a fig poultice
C. He bathed in the Jordan River
D. He repented of his sins

Quiz of the Day, October 5, 2019

The Phos Hilaron is a hymn sung or said at what office?

A. Morning Prayer 
B. Evensong 
C. Noonday Prayer
D. Compline

Quiz of the Day, October 4, 2019

Sennacherib was king of what country?

A. Samaria
B. Assyria
C. Parthia
D. Elam

Quiz of the Day, October 3, 2019

Which of the following is not true regarding the first Pope?

A. He was married
B. He was not married
C. One of his name was Cephas
D. He denied being a follower of Jesus

Quiz of the Day, October 2, 2019

Hezekiah was

A. King of Israel
B. King of Judah
C. Defeated the Assyrians
D. Defeated the Egyptians

Quiz of the Day, October 1, 2019

Who said, “he who refrains from marriage does better?”

A. Pope Gregory I
B. Paul
C. Jesus
D. King Henry VIII

Self or Social Entitlement or Entitled by God's Mercy?

20 Pentecost Proper C, October 27, 2019
Jeremiah 14:7-10,19-22  Psalm 84:1-6
2 Timothy 4:6-8,16-18  Luke 18:9-14

Lectionary Link
The Gospel of Luke includes much about how those who were apparently unlikely people, become the favored selected and chosen ones for events of grace and salvation.

The Gospel of Luke was written for communities of the Risen Christ decades after Jesus lived.  They were communities which practiced the Christian mission to the wide spectrum of people in the Roman Empire.   So, how did the Christian mission become the community of so many who would have formerly been known as unlikely?

The writer of Luke's Gospel wanted to trace this mission to all unlikely people, back to Jesus.  So his writing told of the stories of how Jesus made the unlikely people, the outsider and the forgotten, the chosen and favored people of a graceful encounter with Jesus.

Who were the most likely favored people during the time of Jesus?  It would have been the Jews and their religious leaders.  The likely people of favor would have been those who observed and followed the rules of the various religious leaders of the chief religious sects of Judasim, the Pharisees and the Sadducees.  The religious leaders would have been honored people of authority like rabbis, scribes, lawyers and priests of the Temple.  Rich people were likely people of favor because their wealth was assumed to be evidence of God's blessing.

Who were the unlikely people of favor during the time of Jesus?  Women, children, tax-collectors or publicans who were non-observant Jews who collected taxes for the Roman Emperor, centurions and Roman soldiers, Samaritans, fishermen, and all manner of people who fit the purity code categories of being defiled or unclean because they had a sickness.  People who had unclean spirits; people with leprosy, blind people, deaf people, people with withering hands, and people who could not walk and people who followed the radical prophet John the Baptist.  And Luke presented that Jesus was really concerned about poor people.

What had happened between the time that  Jesus of Nazareth walked on this earth and the time five decades or so later when the writings of Luke Gospel came to their textual form?

The Jesus Movement had moved out of Jerusalem and Israel.  It had spread to the cities throughout the Roman Empire.  The Jesus Movement had attracted people from diverse backgrounds; it had moved way beyond the synagogue communities.

So how do you tell the story of what you have become in Christian community and practice?  The Gospel of Luke proclaimed that the churches of the cities of the Roman Empire became diverse communities because of Jesus of Nazareth.  "We've become a diverse community of "unlikely" people because Jesus brought unlikely people to the experience of God's grace.

How do you tell the story of Jesus of Nazareth knowing what the Jesus Movement had become in the five decades after his life?

If the Jesus Movement was so inclusive, then it was inclusive because Jesus must have been inclusive.  So when the story of Jesus was told, it must be told to show how he included all of the unlikely people of people of valid faith of his time.

Jesus was presented as hanging out with and inviting people who were unlikely to know the favor of God as it was preached and practices by the Pharisees and the Sadducees of his time.

Many people did not know the favor of the official religious people of the time of Jesus.   Yet, this entire group of unlikely people were shown to experience the favor of God through their meeting with Jesus Christ.

Luke, the writer, believed that the diversity which the Jesus Movement had become, had it origin in the ministry of Jesus of Nazareth.  As he gathered all of the oral traditions about the life and the sayings of Jesus, he found that Jesus was one who welcomed the unlikely people of his time to God's grace and favor.  Jesus went to people who did not darken the door of the synagogue and the Temple. Jesus associated with the unlikely religious people of his time.

The parable about the contrasting prayers of the Pharisee and the tax-collector indicate to us that Jesus believed that God welcomed the unlikely religious folks of this world to God's favor.

The tax-collector of the parable was one who had no religious resume.  But what did he have?

He had a heart of contrition.  He did not believe he was entitled to anything.  He knew he was guilty of a manifold acts of dishonesty to make a living.  The tax-collector of the parable of Jesus represented everyone who has come to the awareness that we are not entitled to anything based upon an inherent status that we receive from our birth into a particular social setting.

We cannot earn the entitlement from God if we believe that we naturally deserve it more than other people because of our group identity.

Everyone actualizes the favor and entitlement from God when he or she comes to the point of contrition, to say, "Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner."

The amazing thing about the gift of God's grace is that we can't actualize it unless we are in the condition to actually acknowledge and receive it.  And it is state of contrition, the sense of needing a higher grace, which helps us to actualize salvation in our lives.

What are the signs of contrition?  We no longer feel automatically entitled to anything.  We don't take credit for what we did not earn; we don't live as people born on third base and think that we've hit  triples.  We quit comparing ourselves to others as being more favored because of our pedigree and social, education or economic attainments.  We have no problem in committing humility, because we've actually experience the greatness of God.  Instead of living as life stealing parasites off the greatness of God, we live as loving dependent children on the largesse of God's good favor, who are ever thankful and ever generous to share with others.

The Gospel of Luke presents to us a program of how we can move from the sense of self-entitlement to the grace of knowing ourselves as entitled through God's grace as one of God's children.

Each of us is the Pharisee and the tax-collector in the parable of Jesus.  We are the Pharisee when we catch ourselves acting in the mode of self-entitlement or entitlement because of our social status.  We are the tax-collector when we arrive in the honest place of contrition when we with deep honesty sigh, "Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner."  Amen.

Sunday School, October 27, 2019 20 Pentecost, C proper 25

Sunday School, October 27, 2019   20 Pentecost, C proper 25

Themes

Comparisons

Sometimes we use differences to say that people are worse than we are.

We might say someone is a bad person because they play on a different team than we do.

We might criticize someone as being unimportant because we are more skillful than other people.

We might think, “I’m glad that I play soccer better than that boy.”  Or “I’m glad that I’m a better dancer than that person.”  Or, “I’m glad that I get better grades than that person.”

Sometimes we use our differences to say that we are better than other people.

Jesus told a story about two men.  One was a religious person who was very proud of his religious behaviors.  When he saw a tax collector, he said, “I thank God that I am not like this tax collector.”  When we think that we are better than other people we commit a greater sin, the sin of pride.

We can be proud of our accomplishment without having the kind of pride which is mean towards other people.

Jesus said the tax collector had the right attitude toward God.  When he prayed he said, “God be merciful to me a sinner.”  The tax collector realized that he needed to be better and so he asked God for mercy to give him time to improve his behavior.  The religious man did not think that he needed to get any better and he was proud about this.  He was so proud that he compared himself to the tax collector and despised this man.

The message of Jesus is for us to avoid comparisons with each other if we are trying to say that we are better than other people because of who we are and what we do. 

The lesson for us is to avoid the sin of pride.  Since God is perfect, no matter how good we think that we are, we still have a long way to grow to become even better.  And since we have a long way to go to be perfect, we should be accepting and forgiving of people who are different from us in their abilities and in their faults.

Sermon

  If I have am taller than you, does being taller make me a better person than you?

  If you are older than your brother or sister, does that make you better than your brother or sister?

  If you go to church more than another person does that make you a better person?

  If your soccer team wins a game does that make you better boys or girls than the boys or girls on the losing team?

  When we compare ourselves with other people sometimes we make a big mistake.  Sometimes we think that if we are taller, smarter, faster or have read more books than other people that it means we are better people than those who are different.

  Different does not mean better; it only means different.

  Our country has a famous saying, “All people are created equal.”  This means that even though people are different, they are still equal in the eyes of God.

  Who is the only one who can say that “I am the best?”  Only God can say, “I am the best.”  Only Jesus can say, “I am the best.”  But do God and Jesus brag about how much better they are?  No.

  They try to help us be better; they forgive us and they mercy even as they encourage us to be better every day of our lives.

  Jesus told a story about two men.  One man thought that he was better than the other man.  And the other man did not think that he was better, he just knew that he needed God’s mercy, love and forgiveness.

  And Jesus said it is better to know that we need God mercy and forgiveness because then we will always know that we need to work to be better in life.

  The man who thought that he was better should have been saying, “God is much better than me and even though I can never be as perfect as God, at least I should be working to be as good as I can be.  And when I make some mistakes, I hope God will forgive me, so I can continue to try to be the best I can.”

  Remember the message of Jesus today…We are all created equal, because we all need God’s mercy as we try to be better today than we were yesterday.

  Repeat after me: We are different;  but we are equal.  We are equal because God made us.  God loves us all.  And God has mercy on us all.  Amen.

A young child friendly, Holy Eucharist

October 27, 2019: The Twenty-Third Sunday after Pentecost

Gathering Songs: Standing in the Need of Prayer; We Are Marching; As the Deer, Jesu, Jesu

Liturgist: Blessed be God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

People: And blessed be God’s kingdom, now and 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.

Song: Standing in the Need of Prayer   (Christian Children’s Songbook # 210)

Refrain: It’s me, it’s me, it’s me O Lord, standing in the need of prayer.  It’s me, it’s me, it’s me O, Lord, standing in the need of prayer.

Not my brother, not my sister, but it’s me O Lord, standing in the need of prayer.  Not my brother, not my sister, but it’s me O Lord, standing in the need of prayer.  Refrain

Not my neighbor, not my classmate, but it’s me O Lord, standing in the need of prayer.  Not my neighbor, not my classmate, but it me, O Lord, standing in the need of prayer.  Refrain

Liturgist:         The Lord be with you.

People:            And also with you.

Liturgist:  Let us pray

Almighty and everlasting God, increase in us the gifts of faith, hope, and charity; and, that we may obtain what you promise, make us love what you command; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Litany of Praise: Alleluia

O God, you are Great!  Alleluia

O God, you have made us! Alleluia

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

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

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

O God, you have forgiven our sins!  Alleluia

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

A reading from the Second Letter to Timothy

I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. From now on there is reserved for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will give me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have longed for his appearing.

Liturgist: The Word of the Lord

People: Thanks be to God

Liturgist: Let us read together from Psalm 65

You visit the earth and water it abundantly; you make it very plenteous; * the river of God is full of water.

You prepare the grain, * for so you provide for the earth.

You drench the furrows and smooth out the ridges; * with heavy rain you soften the ground and bless its increase.

You crown the year with your goodness, * and your paths overflow with plenty.

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 Luke

People:            Glory to you, Lord Christ.

Jesus told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and regarded others with contempt: "Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, was praying thus, `God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my income.' But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even look up to heaven, but was beating his breast and saying, `God, be merciful to me, a sinner!' I tell you, this man went down to his home justified rather than the other; for all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted."

Liturgist:         The Gospel of the Lord.

People:            Praise to you, Lord Christ.

Sermon – 

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 Song: We Are Marching (Renew!,  # 306)

We are marching in the light the Lord, we marching in the light of the Lord.  We are marching in the light of the Lord, we are marching in the light of the Lord.

Refrain: We are marching, marching we are marching, Oh, marching we marching in the light of the Lord, of the Lord.  We are marching, marching, we are marching, Oh, marching we are marching in the light of the Lord.

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 God.”

All become members of a family by birth or adoption.

Baptism is a celebration of 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.

(Children may gather around the altar)

The Celebrant now praises God for the salvation of the world through Jesus Christ our Lord.

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.

The Prayer continues with these words

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.  Bless and sanctify us by your Holy Spirit so 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,

(Children rejoin their parents and take up their instruments) 

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:       Alleluia, Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us.

People:            Therefore let us keep the feast.  Alleluia.

Words of Administration

Communion Song:   As the Deer Pants for the Water, (Renew # 9)

1          As the deer pants for the water, so my soul longs after you; you alone are my heart’s desire and I long to worship you.  Refrain: You alone are my strength, my shield, to you alone may my spirit yield; you alone are my heart’s desire, and I long to worship you!

2          I want you more than gold or silver, only you can satisfy; you alone are the real joy-giver and the apple of my eye.  Refrain.

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: Jesu, Jesu, Fill Us with Your Love (Renew! # 289)

Refrain: Jesu, Jesu, fill us with your love, show us how to serve the neighbors we have from you.

Kneels at the feet of his friends, silently washes their feet, Master we acts as slave to them.  Refrain

Neighbors are rich and poor, neighbors are black and white, neighbors are near and far away.  Refrain

These are ones we should serve, these are the ones we should love all these are neighbors to us and you. Refrain

Dismissal:   

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

People: Thanks be to God! 

Prayer and the Field of Probability

19 Pentecost  C proper 24  October 20, 2019
Genesis 32:22-31   Psalm 121
2 Timothy 3:14-4:5  Luke 18:1-8

Lectionary Link

As I read the parable of Jesus, I thought about the song of Rolling Stones.

You can't always get what you want

You can't always get what you want

You can't always get what you want

But if you try sometimes, well, you might find

You get what you need

A young boy asked an old priest, "Does God always answer your prayers?"  The old priest said, "Yes, God always answers my prayer, but God mostly says, "No! Not yet."

You and I might think, "what's the use of praying, if apparently God mostly says, "No!"  And even about all of the good things that we ask for as well, like world peace and freedom from suffering for the innocent.

The parables of Jesus are like riddles which need some serious pondering to come to the insights which are "hidden" therein.

The parable which we have read today is an insightful parable because it poignantly illustrates what we often feel about not always getting what we want from God.  And when we feel like we are not getting enough of what we want from God, we are tempted to quit asking and quit praying.

This parable illustrates that to have a right relationship with God, we have to understand a chief attribute of God.  We have to understand that Freedom is a chief attribute of God, and if Freedom is a chief attribute of God and creation is made in the divine image, all of creation shares a portion, a limited portion of freedom in the big field of Freedom which is God.

God honors genuine freedom within created order.  This is why the conditions of probability govern our lives in what might happen to us.  We often encounter situations, not of our own choosing which affect us in harmful ways.  We cry out to the total conditions of freedom in our lives for justice.  And we don't get the response that we want.  What happens often if we don't get the gratification that we want and when we want it?  Sometimes we just give up.  We let our prayer muscles atrophy.  What's the use, if I cannot get what I want when I want it?

Can we see how the unjust judge in the parable, does not represent God; he represents the conditions of freedom which permits an entire variety of events which can happen to us?  And some of the events which can happen to us are not favorable to us, they can be horrible or even unjust.

Jesus was trying to give his disciple a realistic orientation to the life of what freedom means.  It does not mean we have God on retainer as one who intervenes on our behalf whenever we want.  Why doesn't God intervene and just force everyone to be good?  That would violate the genuine attribute of God who is pure creative freedom, but who shares a degree of freedom with every other being.  God will not violate the conditions of freedom; to do so would be to make God like a big pre-programmed machine guaranteeing outcomes.  What worth is a choice if it was already pre-determined?

What does Jesus recommend for living faithful lives?

First Jesus says to be realistic about honoring the conditions of freedom in our world.  The conditions of freedom can sometimes seem to be like the unjust judge of the parable.  What do we do if we don't get what we want when we want it?  Even if it is something unselfish that we are asking for?  The human temptation is to give up.  By giving up, it shows that we are in denial about the genuine conditions of freedom in our world.  By giving up, we compromise and sell short the genuine freedom that we have to make a difference.  We can let our faith and prayer muscles atrophy by giving up.

Jesus told his disciples to always pray and never to lose heart?  "Why should I continue to pray, Jesus if I don't get what I want?"

Jesus was trying to teach us that God respect the free conditions of the world and God enters the free conditions of the world through Jesus as the example of what to do with our freedom.  What did Jesus do?  He used his freedom to pray and to heal and to teach and help the poor.  Jesus showed us how to use our freedom.  He taught us not to let our freedom to pray and act with justice and mercy atrophy.

In the total field of freedom, we have to practice the democracy of stuffing the ballot box of freedom.  If we fill the field of freedom with prayer and goodness, then we will wear out the unjust judge, who represents the equal probability of bad things happening over good things.  Our prayers and our deeds can cumulatively lead to vetoing the unjust judge of the probability of bad things happening.

Jesus reminds us not to discount the power of our votes of prayers and goodness.  We can with persistence attain a majority to influence outcomes, so do not give up.  Do not lose heart.  The forces pride and greed have counter-motivation; let us rise to the occasion to be motivated by a persistent faith anchored on the witness of freedom given to us by Jesus Christ.

Generally, the habit of "nagging" is not an admirable quality.  But Jesus invites us to do "holy nagging" of faith in the field of freedom, so that we can influence the judge of probable outcomes.  The quantity of prayer and deeds of faith can have good outcomes because they become influential majorities in the field of freedom.

I went to High School in Minneapolis with a boy named Jim Janos.  Jim went on to become a Navy Seal and went to Viet Nam and he returned and became California-ized on the muscle beaches and with the help steroids morphed himself into the professional wrestler with a new name, Jesse, "the Body," Ventura.  He took that name as a wrestler.

The famous biblical wrestler was Jacob.  Jacob had fled his home after he stole the birthright from his twin brother.  He got married, but at some point he had to return home to enter the promise of God to his grandfather Abraham and his father Isaac.  But he was worried that his twin brother Esau would want revenge for stealing his birthright.  On one night of journey back,  Jacob did not see in his dream a ladder from heaven; rather he found himself in a wrestling match with a man who was an appearance of God to him.  It was not so much a wrestling match as Jacob holding on.  He stubbornly held on and said, "I will not let go until you bless me."  As a wrestler, the blessing he received included a new name; he received the new name "Israel," meaning the one who strives with God and prevails.

Jacob had the promise of a blessing but he still had to have the persistence of faith to hold on to possess the blessing.

Jesus invites us to hold on in stubborn, persistent, nagging faith until we get the blessing of the outcomes of love and justice.

Today, let us remember to be totally realistic about the conditions of freedom which constitute our life experience.  Let us not be naïve about what can probably happen in our world.  Let us not be so frightened by the probability of bad outcomes, that we quit in our persistent faith and prayers.  Let us not surrender the field of freedom to the forces of evil.  Let us persist, one act at a time till we build majorities which are able to influence outcomes for goodness, love and faith.

What is the Risen Christ saying to us today?  Do not lose heart.  Do not quit praying.  Amen.