8-19-18 - Discovering What We Care About

Discovering What We Care About

First Friends Quaker Meeting

Pastor Bob Henry

August 19, 2018

Luke 15:1-10 (MSG)

15 1-3 By this time a lot of men and women of doubtful reputation were hanging around Jesus, listening intently. The Pharisees and religion scholars were not pleased, not at all pleased. They growled, “He takes in sinners and eats meals with them, treating them like old friends.” Their grumbling triggered this story.

4-7 “Suppose one of you had a hundred sheep and lost one. Wouldn’t you leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and go after the lost one until you found it? When found, you can be sure you would put it across your shoulders, rejoicing, and when you got home call in your friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Celebrate with me! I’ve found my lost sheep!’ Count on it—there’s more joy in heaven over one sinner’s rescued life than over ninety-nine good people in no need of rescue.

8-10 “Or imagine a woman who has ten coins and loses one. Won’t she light a lamp and scour the house, looking in every nook and cranny until she finds it? And when she finds it you can be sure she’ll call her friends and neighbors: ‘Celebrate with me! I found my lost coin!’ Count on it—that’s the kind of party God’s angels throw every time one lost soul turns to God.”

I have heard our text for this morning since I was a young child.  It seems every time I lose something (which seems to be more often these days) I have these parables running through my mind.  So simplistic…so relatable…turning over one’s entire house to find those lost keys, that thumb drive, the gift card from Christmas, the glasses (that often are on the top of your head)…you name it – the house becomes a whirlwind of clutter and mess as the item is sought.  I think we all can relate to this. 

But folks, let’s be honest, being “really lost” or really loosing something can be rather terrifying. 

Most of us can remember an experience from our childhood when getting lost left us terrified.  One of my earliest memories was getting lost at Walgreens when I was probably 3 years old.  My dad was the pharmacist and my mom had taken me to the toy isle.  She walked to the end of the isle and turned just out of the isle – I looked around and completely freaked out because I did not see her. And all the while my dad was filling prescriptions behind the window at the end of the isle. 

But that is only one type of “getting lost”.  We get lost in many ways and there is not always a quick find or a quick fix.  It’s not always simple.  And as I have become older, I have realized being lost might even mean one’s livelihood or having the life sucked out of you. Leaving you feeling helpless, alone, and even defeated.

Maybe this is because when I was doing my typical research for my sermon, I learned that the online dictionary says the word “lost” means:

·        Unable to find one’s way

·        Denoting something that has been taken away or cannot be recovered. 

Throughout history, many people have viewed our text as focusing on the people who many more fundamental Christians have been accustomed to labeling “unbelievers.” 

But there seems to be something even more important in this that we may still be missing – a “lost” piece of seeing this text for all Jesus was talking about.  

This is where the original text can shed some light. The word that is translated “lost” by many (the Greek word apollymi) is really the word for “destroy.”

So it means a person who has been…

·        Put out of the way entirely – abolished.

·        Rendered useless.

·        Given a death sentence

·        Ruined

·        Lost

Our own definition of lost implies that the person was unable to find their way and that at one time they may have had the necessary things but no longer have a capacity to recover them.

Did you notice the progression of the text for this morning?

1.     The religious leaders were out to “destroy” Jesus because he treated sinners like old friends. 

I like Eugene Peterson’s translation because he gets to the crux of why Jesus begins telling the following parables. 

Jesus is treating those “destroyed” by the religion and religious leaders like old friends. 

These were as our text read “men and women of doubtful reputation.” And obviously Jesus knew the religious leaders had wanted them “destroyed” as well.  These men and women were put out of the way entirely – abolished from religious life, rendered useless, some like the woman caught in adultery were given a death sentence by stoning, their lives were ruined, they were what we may label “lost.”  Lost from religion. Lost from God’s ways. Lost from a better life.

In the beginning of the introductory book, “Finding Our Way Again” from The Ancient Practices Series, Brian McLaren tells a story of an interview (done via satellite) with the famous lecturer and thinker, Dr. Peter Senge for a group of Christian ministers.  Brian says,

[Dr. Senge said,] “…I thought I’d begin by asking you all a question: why are books on Buddhism so popular, and not books on Christianity?

[Brians says, ] Great.  Not only did I have to pose questions to a face on a screen, but now I had to field one from him as well.  I managed to recover enough to punt the question back to him.  “Well, Dr. Senge,” I said, trying not to sound as clumsy as I felt, “how would you answer that questions?”

He replied, “I think it’s because Buddhism presents itself as a way of life, and Christianity presents itself as a system of belief.  So I would want to get Christian ministers thinking about how to discover their own faith as a way of life, because that’s what people are searching for today.  That’s what they need most.

[Brian continues…] I don’t remember a single thing about the rest of the interview, but I will always remember Dr. Senge’s statement.  In fact, a number of the attendees told me how that one statement was worth the price of the entire event for them.  In the days and weeks after the event, I couldn’t stop thinking about the relative proportions we in our religious communities had assigned to “system of belief” and to “way of life.”  And I couldn’t help but agree with Dr. Senge: we must rediscover our faith as way of life, not simply a system of belief. 

The issue, of course, is not either/or, but both/and; it’s hard to deny that too many of us have lost the “way” of our faith.  Without a coherent and compelling way of life, formed in community and expressed in mission, some of us begin losing interest in the system of belief, or we begin holding it grimly, even meanly, driving more and more people away from our faith rather than attracting them toward it.

Those who reject religion are often rejecting a certain arid system of belief, or if not that, a set of trivial taboos or rules or rituals that have a lost meaning for them – each the thin residue of a lost way of life. 

Just think about it…

How much of people being “lost” or even “destroyed” is the church’s own fault?

How many of us in this room have left the church of our youth? Have been willing to be considered lost by family and friends?  Who have ventured out on a new path because it became a lost way of life.

This is something we must continue to be concerned and aware of at First Friends.

2.     So the religious leader’s grumblings lead to Jesus going into story-mode.  He tries to get them to understand from a different perspective, by using something very simple that they could understand.      

“Suppose one of you had a hundred sheep and lost one. Wouldn’t you leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and go after the lost one until you found it?”

“Or imagine a woman who has ten coins and loses one.  Won’t she light a lamp and scour the house, looking in every nook and cranny until she finds it?”

Notice that the lost item in both scenarios is…

·        Important to the person

·        And is part of a greater grouping (100 sheep, 10 coins)

That says to me, Jesus is concerned for the lost and destroyed person – they are as important as a sheep or coin (which in his day were extremely important and valuable) …

…and that they were at one time part of a greater group – possibly like a community of faith or the church.

Folks, might Jesus have been warning us of the possible destructive nature of the church or specific communities we are part of?

Might He have been telling us that when we have destroyed people – put them out of the way entirely -  abolished them, rendered them useless, told them they are worthless or going to hell, that from our perspective they are ruined and lost…just maybe we need to drop everything and go give them a reason and way to live again?

So many communities that we are surrounded by such as academic, governmental, social groups and media, and yes our religious and cultural communities have destroyed and lost people.  We have done this to Native Americans, African Americans, Asian Americans, women, LGBTQ folks, people with Aids, the homeless, the addicted, those needing healthcare, the challenged and special, the disabled, the elderly, and even other Quakers groups, other denominations, other faiths…and the list could go on. 

The parables of Jesus (I believe) are about restoring more than just faith.  They are about restoring community (bringing the one sheep back with the 99 and the one coin back with the 10) As Quakers this is one of our SPICES – the C is for Community. 

Friend Phil Gulley points this out in his book Living the Quaker Way by saying,

“To be a Quaker is to always understand yourself and actions in terms of the world…[and]…to always see oneself in relation with the world, answerable not only to God but also to humanity and to history…I can think of no nobler and more vital work for the church to undertake than the building of healthy communities in which differences are appreciated and not feared, where past truths are honored and emerging wisdom encouraged.”

Personally, if there is one thing, I have learned about my faith, it is that at times I have wandered and become “lost” (which I have on many occasions) or sadly when I have been “destroyed” by the church or by the people who say they represent God that more than anything, that is when I need a community that sees my life as important, that appreciates me, that understands that I may see things a little different than they do, who wants to draw me back into the fold of relationships and friendships because together we are all working to restore life and find the way to live out our faith in the world.

It is in these moments that we connect with the Jesus’ Way in a profound way.  We see the impact the way of Jesus has on community and in the lives of those who come together in community.  In these moments we realize we need each other…I need you…because there is that of God in you that I need.

One of my all-time favorite poems is from a book from my doctoral program. The poem is called Turning to One Another by Margaret Wheatley from a book by the same title. It is on the back of our bulletin for this morning.  I am continually drawn to the opening line.  It reads…

There is no power greater than a community discovering what it cares about.

·        We must care for the destroyed and lost.

·        WE must become aware not to destroy any more and work to bring those who we have destroyed back into community.

Then the party can begin!  Then we can enjoy each other fully.  We can crank up the music and celebrate for what has been lost has been found. 

To close, I would like to read the rest of that poem from Margaret Wheatley.

Turn to One Another

There is no power greater than a community discovering what it cares about.
Ask: “What’s possible?” not “What’s wrong?” Keep asking.
Notice what you care about.
Assume that many others share your dreams.
Be brave enough to start a conversation that matters.
Talk to people you know.
Talk to people you don’t know.
Talk to people you never talk to.
Be intrigued by the differences you hear. Expect to be surprised.
Treasure curiosity more than certainty.
Invite in everybody who cares to work on what’s possible.
Acknowledge that everyone is an expert about something.
Know that creative solutions come from new connections.
Remember, you don’t fear people whose story you know.
Real listening always brings people closer together.
Trust that meaningful conversations can change your world.
Rely on human goodness.

Stay together.

Let these thoughts help you enter our time of open worship.

8-12-18 - Love and Intimacy Outside Eden

Scripture

Genesis 3:20-24 and 4:1-2

“The man named his wife Eve, because she was the mother of all living. And the Lord God made garments of skins for the man and for his wife, and clothed them. Then the Lord God said, ‘See, the man has become like one of us, knowing good and evil; and now, he might reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life, and eat, and live forever’ – therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from which he was taken. He drove out the man; and at the east of the garden of Eden he place the cherubim, and a sword flaming and turning to guard the way to the tree of life.”

That ends chapter three. Chapter 4 starts with Adam and Eve’s new life outside the Garden of Eden:

“Now the man knew his wife Eve, and she conceived and bore Cain, saying, ‘I have produced a man with the help of the Lord.” Next she bore his brother Abel. Now Abel was a keeper of sheep, and Cain a tiller of the ground.”

Love and Intimacy Outside Eden

By Daniel Lee

Last Tuesday, Jennifer and I celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary. We were married in a Methodist Church in Bloomington, Indiana. The local newspaper didn’t quite get our marriage notice right. They wrote that we were “marred”—M-A-R-R-E-D—on Aug. 7th.

We still laugh about that!

Jennifer was 23 and I was 24 when we were married. We were both starting new jobs after spending our entire year-long engagement living in different states. After getting married, we moved into a small apartment in Shelbyville, Indiana. I added up; in our 25 years of marriage, we’ve lived in eight different apartments or houses, in five cities, in two different states.

We’ve had three kids, two born 7 minutes apart. We’ve bought three homes. We’ve had two dogs. We’ve each had seven different jobs. Before we became Quakers, we were Baptized by immersion together. Here at First Friends, we became Quakers together.

And, oh, yeah, we’ve recently taken three dance lessons together.

On the evening of our anniversary last week, we walked to a little restaurant by our house and just enjoyed talking. So much has changed since our first conversation as two college kids on a January evening in 1991 outside of the Cooper Science building at Ball State University.

Who knew that evening would forever merge and define our lives?

In short, we’ve had one love, one life with each other….

I am grateful for the opportunity to speak this morning about the topic of marriage. It’s an important and complex topic.

Marriage is so central, in faith and in society, that this meeting, Indianapolis First Friends, decided that is should be made available to all people, regardless of sexual orientation. This was a matter of love and equality.

In our world, we have strong marriages and struggling marriages. Some people are widowed. Some are divorced. Some separated. For some, being single is central to their life of service to others. Some who aren’t married, want to be. For some, marriage is damaging or physically dangerous.

But I want to emphasize right from the start today, that my comments today – while they are about marriage – related to something even deeper than marriage.

I hope today to uphold marriage as a metaphor and a model for us also to seek greater intimacy with God and within our community. This, I believe, is a very Quaker message – the power of Quakerism is an insistence that each person can experience direct communion with the Divine, and that we then seek to build community with one another. Quakerism’s founder, George Fox, in his greatest revelation, declared that there is one, Christ Jesus, who can speak to your condition. This goes to the heart of the Scriptures comparing the marriage union to Christ and the Church. We are the church, and Christ desires us just as we desire Him. Nothing else is needed.

In human relations, a spouse is in a unique and intimate position to speak to their partner’s condition.

The most moving words I’ve personally ever heard about marriage were spoken not at a wedding but at a funeral. One of my personal heroes is our family friend Dr. Ora Pescovitz. She’s an accomplished pediatrician, academic, and executive. For many years, she was the CEO of Riley Hospital for Children here in Indianapolis. In 2010, she lost her husband, IU transplant surgeon Dr. Mark Pescovitz, in a tragic automobile accident.

Ora, remembering her husband before the hundreds gathered at Congregation Beth-El Zedeck, talked about the makings of a strong marriage, and about her beloved husband. 

“I once read that you could tell that a marriage would last a long time if a couple saw eye-to-eye on four things:
Religion, Money, Children and Sex. In our 31 year marriage, we never once argued about those things, although we certainly had pretty healthy 'debates' on just about everything else!”

And then, later, Ora said this:

“Mark died a happy man. And, our last day together was Mark's version of a perfect day. In fact, we managed to cover all four things that ensure a perfect marriage: Religion, Money, Children and Sex.”

With that comment, the crowd of mourners audibly gasped. This was the love and intimacy, laid bare.

She told of sharing a cup of coffee together, of spending time together, of paying bills, of deciding to increase donations to their favorite Jewish charities, of talking about how proud they were of their three children.

The single thing I remember most about the service was Ora looking directly at each of her three children and telling them each what their father loved about them, affirming them in front of their community. I still get emotional thinking about that!

She spoke her husband’s most cherished thoughts when he could not.

I want now to briefly look at three short passages in Scriptures, all involving Christ. I believe each can teach us much about developing a close marriage, a closer relationship with God, and with one another:

John 2:7-10

“Jesus said to them, ‘Fill the jars with water.’ And they filled them to the brim. He said to them, ‘Now draw some out, and take it to the chief steward.”  So they took it. When the steward tasted the water that had become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the steward called the bridegroom and said to him, ‘Everyone serves the good wine first, and then the inferior wine after the guests have become drunk. But you have kept the good wine until now.’”

The Wedding at Cana is Jesus’ first miracle. Consider this Jesus’ way of saying life should be lived joyously in community and with our spouse! Jesus didn’t just make wine, he made fine wine.

This is the date night. This is the fellowship we enjoy after meeting for worship. This is when we forget a troubles and anxieties when we’re enjoying life with our friends, or when we’re expanding our community by making new friends.

Matthew 27:32

“As they went out, they came upon a man from Cyrene named Simon; they compelled this man to carry his cross.”

This short verse is incredibly powerful. Jesus, in my mind, needed the rest at this point. Simon helped Christ when He desperately needed help. It does not matter that Simon was compelled to help. Christ himself, praying in the Garden of Gethsemane before his arrest, asked his Father, ‘if you are willing, remove this cup from me.’”

Within marriage and in life, we do not ask for hardship. Yet time and again in I’ve seen people carrying one another’s burdens. I’ve seen spouses and parents do this. I’ve seen people dedicate their lives and careers for the service of others.

I’ve seen that sacrificial love beautifully on display right here in this meeting. Care giving is hard. But please know that others around you are deeply impacted by your selfless examples of love.

Revelation 21:5

“And the one who was seated on the throne said, ‘See, I am making all things new.’”

These words come in the final book of the Bible, at the opposite of the book from Adam and Eve. Within marriage, in our lives, and in our communities, there is always a new beginning.

People find new meaning and fulfillment after divorce, after infertility, after the death of a loved one.

In our personal lives, in our relationships, and in our community and society, we can walk a new path after hurt, anger, and injustice.

Our closing hymn today, “Morning has Broken,” states this potential of renewal beautifully.

Mine is the sunlight
Mine is the morning
Born of the one light Eden saw play
Praise with elation, praise ev'ry morning
God's recreation of the new day

Think back to today’s opening Scripture, to the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve have the worst day possible…. It’s such a bad day it’s simply called “The Fall.” They are cast out of Eden, and what’s the first thing they do?

They look to each other to start anew. We see from the Scripture, with the birth of Cain and Abel, that their heartbreak is not over.

Yet they carried on in a new way.

In his writings, George Fox made stirring references to “the Fall.” From his writings you can see why marriage has been used as a metaphor for Christ and the Church.

In one passage, Fox wrote of marriage as “an Immortal powerful Bond, above and beyond that state which is in the Fall….”

Fox believed perfect love and intimacy with God was possible, even if for a brief period of time in this life. In stating this, he made specific reference to the Fall, to Adam, and to the flaming sword placed at the east end of Eden:

“Now I was come up in spirit through the flaming sword, into the paradise of God. All things were new; and all the creation gave unto me another smell than before, beyond what words can utter. I knew nothing but pureness, and innocency, and righteousness; being renewed into the image of God by Christ Jesus, to the state of Adam, which he was in before he fell.”

So… What does all of this mean?

And what of Adam and Eve after the Fall?

They were hurt and imperfect people, just as we are. Outside the Garden of Eden they had new clothes. They had new hardships. Perhaps they even had a new smell.

To put it bluntly, they were MARRED. M-A-R-R-E-D.

Life here on Earth, outside Eden, will mar us, all of us.

Yet Adam and Eve retained at least two things from their time in the Garden of Eden—they had the love of God, and they had each other.

They knew they were not alone.

We too have God’s Love, and we have each other.

We know we are not alone.

Queries

What does marriage mean to me, to our faith community, to our society? What can marriage teach us about God’s love? Have there been marriages in my life—my own or another’s, from people living or who have passed—that have modeled divine love?

8-5-18 - When Death Becomes the Seeds of Life

When Death Becomes the Seeds of Life

Indianapolis First Friends

Pastor Bob Henry

August 5, 2018

John 12:24-25 MSG

24-25 “Listen carefully: Unless a grain of wheat is buried in the ground, dead to the world, it is never any more than a grain of wheat. But if it is buried, it sprouts and reproduces itself many times over. In the same way, anyone who holds on to life just as it is destroys that life. But if you let it go, reckless in your love, you’ll have it forever, real and eternal.

There has been a lot of death in our community over the last couple of weeks giving us a lot to process and think about.  It seems ironic that our Vacation Bible School this year dealt with loneliness, worry, struggle, and feelings of powerlessness – all issues that are involved in the grieving process. Mourning and grief can take the wind out of us, but often it is in learning to live within the grief and pain , where we are allowed to see the hope!

This week, Nancy Scott spoke of this in the Friend to Friend section on the community garden regarding our friend, Ann Panah.  She said,

Many plants die after harvest. Some, like chives, return in the spring (Some of the chives in the Community Garden are part of what Ann started in her plot). Others begin anew from seeds left behind. Some come up on their own as volunteers. Others need a helping hand to collect and sow their seeds when the conditions are right. Most need pollinators. People, like plants, have relationships and life cycles.

Ann’s work on her garden showcased persistence, commitment and endurance. She gave her energy to the earth and that lowly dirt reared up with life as a blessing to Ann. In this process Ann herself embodied hope. She became a living presence of hope through her example. We hoped with her and learned from her. She was a gift living among us.

Rob Bell in his widely read book, “Love Wins” also addresses this idea in a chapter titled “Dying to Live.”  He says,

“In the fall in many parts of the world, the leaves drop from the trees and the plants die. They turn brown, wither, and lose their life.  They remain this way for the winter – dormant, dead, lifeless.  And then spring comes, and they burst into life again.  Growing sprouting, producing new leaves and buds.  For there to be Spring, there has to be a fall and then a winter.  For nature to spring to life, it first has to die.  Death, then resurrection. This is true for ecosystems, food chains, the seasons, -- it’s true all across the environment.  Death gives way to life.”

That is what we heard in our text for this morning.  Seeds have to be buried in the ground before they can rise up from out of the earth as new life.  Think about that for a moment…when we see death around us, when people are being buried in the ground, when we are ending an era, when jobs, ministries, administrations, even buildings or businesses are closing – each are making way for life.  The “seed” is the metaphor for potential life to break forth!

But in our grief, in our pain, in our wanting to hold on to the past, or our idea of what we thought something should be – we cling to death – we hinder the needed change – we miss the opportunities around us to embrace the life that is around us now!

I am not saying grief, mourning, remembering, are wrong (they are essential, needed, and part of each of our lives) – but if they begin to strangle out the life around us they diminish life.

·        The death of a loved one can be devastating.

·        The ending of an era can be full of anxiety of what is next.

·        The loss of a job can seem like the end – but often these are only the beginning of something new.

When death comes it forces us to see life in new ways. It changes things.  It also gives birth to new possibilities.

Rob challenges his reader to “Think of what you’ve had to eat today.” He says,

“Dead. All of it. If you ate plants, they were at some point harvested, uprooted, disconnected from a stalk or vine, yanked from the ground so that they could make their way to your plate, where you ate them so that you can…live. The death of one living thing for the life of another.”

What he is saying is that this “Dying to Live” is built into the core of our being as humans.  It is part of how God created us.  Take for example how…

·        Scientifically – the cells in our bodies are dying at a rate of millions a second, only to be replaced at a similar rate of millions a second.  Our skin is constantly shedding and replacing itself with new cells – we have an entirely new skin every week or so

·        Relationally – when someone sacrifices their life to save another – policeman, fireman, soldiers, a heroic neighbor, etc…we are inspired by the giving of life to save life.

These are only two examples, but I bet if we thought for a while we would begin to see death giving way to life all around us.

Just pause for a moment and ponder where in your life death has given way to life?  (and again…where may it be wanting to, but not able to?)

Or how about First Friends – where in the life of our meeting has death given way to life?  (and where may it be wanting to, but not able to?)

I have been pondering this for quite some time…I believe many of us in this room are facing this very thought process – some on a daily basis.

Because death is giving way to life all around us…we must be aware of what this may mean in our day-to-day lives, ministries, careers, families, etc…

In his book, “The Holy Longing,” Ronald Rolhieser, speaks of the various deaths in our lives, I don’t have enough time to go into great detail about each of them, but I do want to give you his list and briefly explain each.  Rolhieser says that these deaths are the “bread and butter of our lives.” – that unless we die in infancy we will be experiencing many deaths in our lifetime – and more importantly that means we will also be given new life through that death.  Here are the deaths Rolhieser emphasizes…

1.     Death of our Youth…

Each day we are getting older, but that doesn’t mean we are dead.  Our choices in life are happening now – not back when… Many people refuse to give up their youth – always trying to live in the past.  Our bodies are changing, our minds are changing, and the world around us is changing.  We cannot live or even be like we were in our teens, 20’s, 30’s, 40’s, 50’s, 60’s,…etc… We must admit that our youth has died and given birth to new seasons, eras, and most importantly who we are in the present moment.

Just think about it – many of us cause more death in our lives because we have what we label a mid-life crisis – where for some reason we feel we can go back.  The reality is that our past lives have died and given birth to who we are now.

2.     Death of our Wholeness…

This Rolhieser explains is the death that results when part of us is fractured and dies.  Maybe it was an abusive relationship, a lack of care or love, a divorce, a bad childhood, a degrading work situation, having been diagnosed with cancer or sickness, the loss of mobility, or even our minds…each of us endure things in life that cause us to be incomplete.

Acknowledging these deaths make us aware that we are not whole – that part of us has died along life’s path.  Each of us has something that makes us incomplete.  The death of our wholeness does not mean that we are not living – that God isn’t bringing newness to our pain.  Instead, we are admitting that we are not whole – that there are places that need newness of life!

3.     Death of our Dreams…

Karl Rahner put it well, in the torment of the insufficiency of everything attainable we begin to realize that here, in this life, all symphonies remain unfinished.

Rolhieser says, “When we fail to mourn properly our incomplete lives then this incompleteness becomes a gnawing restlessness, a bitter center, that robs our lives of all delight.”

Part of us, on this earthly journey, will never be fulfilled, we will experience times of loneliness, restlessness, and incompleteness.  As we become more aware of who we are, we may realize we are trying to live someone else’s dream or a dream that has died a long time ago, instead of the dreams that you and I are being made for in the present.

I believe that God wants us to dream dreams that are for now! That ideal dream, the American dream, the dream that someone else has for you – whatever it is may need to die – so that you can allow yourself to really dream with God for the future.

4.     Death of our Honeymoon…

I have heard people say…well, the honeymoon is over. The passion of a relationship has died. We have changed. This could be for married partners as well as friendships.  All relationships must go through times of death.

That big argument, that time of separation, that disagreement, may actually be the beginning of a death – but if we can see it as the beginning of something new – a new season in our relationship – it will give life!

The honeymoon is much like the “mountain top experience” – when we let it die – we begin to find new adventures that fit more into the daily aspects of life and allow us to sense renewal and hope on a more regular and ordinary basis.

And that leads us to the last death…

5.     The Death of a Certain Idea of God and Church...

Where ever we are on life’s journey with God, we too often cling to a specific era in our walk with God.  Many of us spend our lives trying to find the meeting or church of our youth – or the meeting or church that provides that one experience that we encountered back when.

The reality is that we are constantly changing…and we are always spiritually forming – whether we are attempting to or not. We are learning, experiencing, and feeling our way through life and our walk with God.

I don’t see church or God the way I did when I was in fourth grade – or high school – or in college – or for that matter last week!

Too often you and I are so stuck in the image of God or of church from a previous time or experience, that we cannot recognize God’s presence within our current reality.  God wants to meet and work with you and I in the present moment.

We are in a critical time as part of the church in America – I think it is becoming clear that we are going to have to put to death some of our ideas from the past so that God can do new things with and through us currently.

[Pause]

These five deaths that Rolhieser points out are what I would call “seeds,”  They need to be buried and die – so new life can arise!  What might that look for you and I?

I return to Rob’s words from “Love Wins” – he says,

“Jesus talks about death and rebirth constantly, his and ours. He calls us to let go, turn away, renounce, confess, repent, and leave behind the old ways.  He talks about life that will come from his own death, and he promises that life will flow to us in thousands of small ways as we die to our egos, our pride, our need to be right, our self-sufficiency, our rebellion, and our stubborn insistence that we deserve to get our way. When we cling with white knuckles to our sins and our hostility, we’re like a tree that won’t let its leaves go. There can’t be spring if we’re stuck in the fall.

Lose your life and find it, he says.

That’s how the world works.

That’s how the soul works.

That’s how life works – when you’re dying to live.”

So ask yourself this morning…

·        What do I need to die to, so that I can really live?

·        What do we need to die to as a meeting, so we can really live?

7-22-18 - Called To Come Alive and Help Rescue

Called To Come Alive and Help Rescue

Indianapolis First Friends

Pastor Bob Henry

July 22, 2018

Psalm 27:7-14 The Message (MSG)

7-9 Listen, God, I’m calling at the top of my lungs:
    “Be good to me! Answer me!”
When my heart whispered, “Seek God,”
    my whole being replied,
“I’m seeking him!”
    Don’t hide from me now!

9-10 You’ve always been right there for me;
    don’t turn your back on me now.
Don’t throw me out, don’t abandon me;
    you’ve always kept the door open.
My father and mother walked out and left me,
    but God took me in.

11-12 Point me down your highway, God;
    direct me along a well-lighted street;
    show my enemies whose side you’re on.
Don’t throw me to the dogs,
    those liars who are out to get me,
    filling the air with their threats.

13-14 I’m sure now I’ll see God’s goodness
    in the exuberant earth.
Stay with God!
    Take heart. Don’t quit.
I’ll say it again:
    Stay with God.

Following our service this morning, we will be gathering in the fellowship hall for a lite lunch and then the kick off to this year’s Vacation Bible School.  The theme for this year is “Shipwrecked: Rescued by Jesus.”  

As I have been preparing for my part in VBS, I have also been pondering the concept of being “rescued.”  There is much in our world today that is crying out for a rescue.  The Bible itself is full of imagery of God’s rescuing, liberating, or saving people - from literal storms at sea to one’s own struggles and hardships that get in the way of truly living. 

For most of us, we remember a time (or several times) when we needed to be rescued.  Times when we literally cried out that God would come miraculously and save us from some horrific situation. 

My earliest remembrance of needing to be rescued was my first time at camp when I was in 5th grade. One afternoon at free time, my childhood friend and I went swimming.  It was popular back then to play “Chicken” where one person gets up on the shoulders of another and then tries to stay up while two other friends try and knock them down. 

It is really “King of the Hill” in the water.  Well, I was a little bigger than my friend, so I quickly put him on my shoulders and we headed out in the water.  We were doing rather well, we had won a couple battles and lost only one. I noticed as we wrestled people down we were heading further and further in to deeper water.  Soon just the tops of my shoulders and head were sticking out of the water with my friend weighing me down. 

In a flash, another team of larger boys gave my friend a huge blow to the chest and down we started to go.  Now, we had been warned to stay away from the floating dock, but as we fell my friend locked his legs firmly around my neck.  He went below the water with me and ended up caught under the floating dock. Everything seemed to be in slow motion.  I quickly opened my eyes to see the sunlight above me and about 6 inches of water in between. I tried hard to push my friends legs up and over my head, but he continued to push me down.  I wanted to cry out for help, but I couldn’t.  I immediately became scared and started to flap my arms.  And then suddenly in one fell swoop, the lifeguard blew her whistle, jumped in the water and pulled us out. I had taken in a lot of lake water, but I had been rescued.  The lifeguard had saved my life.

This incident was burned into my memory.  I can almost remember it as if it happened yesterday.  It still gives me an uneasy feeling.  But even more, as I recall that experience, I realize it is much like many of the other times I have needed rescued in my life. Some of the same basic things I wrestled with when I was at camp needing saved continue to be similar, still today.

Like, those times when I thought things were under control – when I seemed to be “winning in life,” yet didn’t notice that in reality things were actually spinning out of control.

or

Those times when the weight of my friendships or relationships had such a deep impact on my life that I did not understand their complexity and found myself needing to be saved from them.

or

Those times I sensed the warnings – sometime recognizing them and at other times completely ignoring or missing them – only to find myself crying out for help.

or

Those times when I seemed to experience life in slow motion – life passing before me, having me wonder what am I to do and how do I get out of this.

or

Those times I have tried hard to cry out for help, but find myself reluctant or unable because of pride or fear – and then life seems to take me down.   

Needing “saved” can take on a lot of different faces. 

And I know when all of those elements come together they often form the perfect storm – and its then that I have been found in deep despair needing rescued. Crying out to God or anyone who would save me.

I think it is safe to say, we all at times need to be saved.  We need rescued.  We need liberated from those things that oppress and keep us from truly living. 

One of the themes that seem to reoccur throughout human and biblical history is the need to be rescued.  For some people of faith, that is all religion is about – being rescued from this planet and the suffering here.  But if we go back to the very beginning of the Bible to what scholars believe as where the story of “salvation” or being rescued began – we find the book of Exodus and the rescue from Egypt. 

It was Rob Bell in his book, “Jesus Wants To Save Christians” where I first began to wrestle with what it actually meant to be rescued, liberated, saved.  Rob says,

“Egypt, the superpower of its day, was ruled by Pharaoh, who responded to the threat of the growing number of Israelites in his country by forcing them into slavery.  They had to work every day without a break making bricks, building storehouses for Pharaoh. 

Egypt is an empire, built on the backs of Israelite slave labor, brick, by brick, by brick.

But right away in the book of Exodus, there is a disruption.  Things change. And the change begins with God saying…

‘I have indeed seen the misery of my people…’

‘I have heard them crying out…’

‘I have come down to rescue them…’”  

Now, this is a familiar story that continues to play out throughout our history.  The children of Israel under the oppression of the Egyptian regime, is the story of of the African Americans in our country during slavery and Jim Crow, it is the story of women suffragettes who fought for rights, or the Me Too women of today who have been abused and treated as less than equal, it is the story of the Native Americans from the founding of our country, , the Asian Americans during World War II.  It’s the story of refugees fleeing oppressive regimes. It is story of the LGBTQ community’s fight for equality and acknowledgement. And it is the story of the South Africans during apartheid, the Jewish people in Nazi Germany, the people of Rawanda and Darfur during genocide, the Syrians, and the people of Gaza…oh…and the list seems never to end…

Each have cried out to be rescued, from the drowning bondage, the slavery, the abuse, the oppression that kept them from truly living… Each wanted to be saved, liberated, rescued, and free.

And just like that original story from Exodus…God did not simply intervene and change the course of history with a wave of his hand (yes, at times, I believe there were miracles that took place). But most of the time, God sent a human (one of us) to intervene.  Just like I believe that lifeguard was sent to rescue me in 5th grade God sent a deliverer named Moses to the people in Egypt.  And if we look carefully at history, God has been sending humans to intervene throughout time.

People like:

Nelson Mandela (100th birthday)                     

Elizabeth Fry                                                Gandhi

Galileo                                                           John Woolman

Leonardo da Vinci                                      Harvey Milk

Mother Theresa                                          Billy Jean King

Abraham Lincoln                                        Archbishop Desmond Tutu

Rosa Parks                                                    Albert Einstein

Martin Luther King Jr.                               Cesar Chavez

Susan B. Anthony                                       Sitting Bull

And the list could go on and on...God has been raising up ordinary people to intervene, recue, liberate, and help save our neighbors all along. 

The reality is, as Rob Bell points out,

“God needs a body.  God needs flesh and blood.  God needs bones and skin so that Pharaoh will know just who this God is he’s dealing with and how this God acts in the world.  And not just so Pharaoh will know but so that all of humanity will know.”     

There have been and currently are many Pharoah’s in our world, that God is needing a body to resist and begin the liberation process for those oppressed.  He is calling women and men to be raised up, to bring the Good News, the hope of liberation, and rescue to the people of our world.

People are slaves to many things today. Maybe someone in this room is being called to free someone from the oppression of technology, work schedules, busyness. Maybe someone is being called to rescue a friend who is a slave to over eating, or pornography, or an addiction that is destroying their life. Maybe someone is being called to save a friend from that unhealthy relationship, family member, or boss.  Again the list could go on and on… 

As Rob Bell states,

“It’s as if God is saying, “The thing that has happened to you – go make it happen for others. The freedom from oppression that you are now experiencing – help others experience that same freedom. The grace that has been extended to you when you were at your lowest – extend it to others.  In the same way that I heard your cry, go and hear the cry of others and act on their behalf.”

I think too often we pray or cry out expecting a miracle, or for God to “magically” intervene, and while we are fervently praying or crying out and waiting for a miracle, we are missing our call, our opportunity, our moment where we become the hands and feet of Jesus to our neighbor.  Like the life preserver, God wants to use us in his saving process.  

I remember once teaching a college class and a student challenged a classmate on her fervent prayers.  She said, “You say you continue to pray the same prayer each morning hoping for a change and looking for God to intervene…but have you ever thought that your prayer is a crutch not allowing you to be God’s instrument in the situation?  Just maybe God wants to answer that prayer through you.” 

The American Church is obsessed with the phrase “Jesus Saves” – but I think we need to go one step further and ask ourselves – how does Jesus save? How does Jesus rescue us? How do we experience the rescue?

It might take a life guard jumping in the water to physically save you.

It might take a teacher educating you.

It might take a friend willing to say “no” to you.

It might take someone reminding you that you are loved. 

It may take a welcome smile.

It might take a person to stand up for your rights. 

It might take a person willing to sacrifice their life to get our attention.    

Did you know that in the original Aramaic language of Jesus’ day, there was no word for salvation – or “being saved.” Salvation was understood as a bestowal of life, and to be saved was “to be made alive.”

Civil Rights leader, theologian, and philosopher, Howard Thurman, was a man who understood oppression, who understood what it meant to be rescued or saved in the truest sense – to be made alive.  He said,

“Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go and do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.” 

This is what we mean by resurrection! They have come alive here and now! I am telling you – if we turned off the news and actually came alive and did what we love – the world would be a way better place – we would bring salvation to our neighbors (they too would come alive)! 

Also, I truly believe if there is ANY oppression in this world, there is work to do…and as Quakers who believe in equality, peace, integrity, community we must respond. We must join the rescue effort.  We must be liberators! We must find ways to lessen the oppression so all people can live in peace together. So all people can come alive to their full potential.

Quaker Rex Ambler put it this way in Rediscovering the Quaker way,

“When we open ourselves to the truth of our life, our self-deceptions and denials are revealed, including the false image we have of ourselves, and at the same time we discover the true self that lies behind these images.  We discover who we really are, not isolated and apart from others, but one with them, and with life itself.  This awareness awakens a great feeling for life, and for others, that we can only call love…We are able to act out of love, that is, out of warm respect for other people and other creatures, so that we want spontaneously to help them and not harm them.”

I am so glad that lifeguard jumped in the water and saved me and my friend.  I am so glad that God has called people throughout history to rise up and help our world come alive in the truest sense.  And I am happy for people in this room who are being raised up to help, save, rescue, liberate, and bring alive their neighbors, family and friends, because folks, God is wanting to use you in his great plan of salvation starting now!   

Ask  yourself this morning…

How am I coming alive in this world, today?

In what area do I need rescued, liberated, or saved? 

Who do I know who is living oppressed and needing rescued – that I am being called to join God in helping?

7-8-18 - Encountering the Divine in Nature

Encountering the Divine in Nature

Worship in the Meditational Woods

Indianapolis First Friends

Pastor Bob Henry (facilitator)

July 8, 2018

This morning we are going to do something slightly different from our normal routine for Meeting for Worship. Our setting itself is a welcomed change of pace from the Meetinghouse. I always find it a joy to be in these meditational woods – they are a very special place to commune with God within the city of Indianapolis.  I believe in our world today, we need to find time away from the news, the busyness, the clutter, and get back to our roots.  

A few years ago, a librarian friend of mine suggested I read the book “Spiritual Literacy: Reading the Sacred in the Everyday Life” by Frederic and Mary Ann Brussart. I picked up a copy of this just over 600-page book and found it a true joy.  One of the chapters in the book deals with nature.  It begins this way…

“Nature provides a theater for some of the most dramatic experiences of the sacred. Most people can tell you about a time when they were soothed, inspired, or awed while contemplating the natural world. 

            The settings may vary but the feelings are universal.  Communion with nature may take place while walking through the woods, watching a sunset, fishing in a mountain stream, looking at the waves of the ocean, observing the ripples on a lake, or sitting under a tree in a park.

            Often these occasions turn into mystical moments when we sense that the inhabitants of the world – the trees, flowers, fields, streams, hills, rocks, dolphins, bears, birds, and babies – are our relations, as Native Americans express it.  When this happens, we have started to read the book of nature.

            Both the historical and the primal religions emphasize the importance of the natural world as a reservoir of spiritual meaning.  For Jews, Christians, and Muslims, the Earth reflects the glories of God. Buddhists, Hindus, and Taoists look for the connections between nature and human nature.

             For the aboriginal peoples of the Americas, Africa, Asia, and Australia, the land and all the creatures upon it are spiritual teachers who must be listened to and taken seriously.  The shamans of these groups are those who understand the languages of stones, plants, trees, and animals.” 

From this point on our service this morning will be broken into three sections: Go Out, God’s Trademark, and Wrapped in the Ordinary.  

During each section you will have the opportunity to let God’s creation or nature sooth, inspire, and awe you. We will be taking longer moments of reflection to allow your senses and minds to fully engage.  Also, during each of the sections, I will be sharing a thought or story from someone who has been lead to a deeper appreciation for nature and its effects on our lives. Then I will give us a query to ponder and Eric will wrap each section up with a song. I am asking us to keep silent during these experiences instead of speaking out of the silence, let nature do that this morning, so we can fully experience the Divine in nature.

So, let me begin our time this morning with our first section.

Section One -- Go Out.

Our thought is from Bede Griffiths, a British-born Benedictine monk and priest who lived in ashrams in South India and became a noted yogi.  In his book, River of Compassion he writes…

In South India there is a pilgrimage to a place called Sabarimala.  It is a pilgrimage to the forest and hundreds of thousands of people go there every year. The deep meaning of this is that people need to go back from time to time to the forest, to the wilds, where they were before they belonged to a settled civilization with a home and a city.  We need to recall the freedom of the forest. Some time each year, at least, we should go out from our fixed abode, leaving our possessions and everything to which we are attached, and become free to wander or to settle in some very quiet place, to be free for some time like the sannyasi. 

Bede Griffiths in River of Compassion (from Spiritual Literacy)

Bede Griffiths challenges us today to “go out” from our fixed abode.  We have done that this morning.  He asks us to become free to wander or settle into a quiet place and to release everything from which we are attached.  For us Quakers this is centering down.

Let’s now take some time in this quiet place to center our hearts, to calm our minds, and re-connect to the wild, to creation, and to God.  Let us open our hearts and senses to this place.

Section Two – God’s Trademark

For our second section this morning, I would like to read from Nicaraguan poet and priest Ernesto Cardenal.  In his work, “Abide in Love”  he shares his observations of nature that give rise to the spiritual practice of wonder.

Everything in nature has a trademark, God’s trademark: the stripes on a shell and the stripes on a zebra; the grain of the wood and the veins of the dry leaf; the markings on the dragonfly’s wings and the pattern of stars on a photographic plate, the panther’s coat and the epidermal cells of the lily petal; the structure of atoms and galaxies. All bear God’s fingerprints.

            There is a style, a divine style in everything that exists, which shows that it was created by the same artist. Everything is multiplicity within unity. Everything is both like other things and unique. Every individual thing has its own manner of being; it is that thing and not anything else. At the same time there are millions and millions of others like it, both minute creatures and immense stars. Everything has its own stripes, speckles, spots, dapples, veins, or grain – the caterpillar, the clay pot, the chameleon, the Klee painting and the Persian carpet, sea spray, stalactites, white agate veins in pebbles, the carpet of autumn leaves, wood, marble, sea shells, and the skeleton of the reptile…

            In the image of God who created them, all beings are at once one and many, from the galaxy to the electron.

            No two caterpillars are alike, no two atoms, no two stars, even though they look the same in the sky at night. But all things also have something in common. The poet seeks to discover this pattern, this design running throughout creation, and tries to see how even the most different things have an underlying likeness. The mountains skip like rams and the hills like young lambs…Your hair is like a flock of goats winding through the mountains of Gilead.

Earnesto Cardenal in Abide in Love (from Spiritual Literacy)

Now, take a moment to look around you, look at both nature, the people, the space, where do you see "God’s trademark" in this place? What patterns, fractals, similarities do you see?  What is the underlying likeness running through everything?  Allow your eyes and mind to engage the wonder of creation.

Section Three – Wrapped in the Ordinary

In our third section, I will be sharing words from “A tree Full of Angels” by Marcina Wiederkehr, a member of Scholastica Monastery in Fort Smith, Arkansas, and a catholic nun who has a facility for finding the sacred in the ordinary.

I must share with you a story about a particularly barren time in my life when I used a tree for a spiritual director. I learned so much that year because I listened in silence…

            Because it was small I couldn’t lean on it but could only sit beside it. That taught me a lot about what the role of spiritual guide should be.

            Even though it was small, it had the ability to give me a certain amount of shade. You don’t have to have a lot of leaves to give shade. Because it was silent I listened deeply. You don’t need a lot of words to connect with God.

            When it got thirsty I watered it.  The miracle of water is a little like the miracle of God’ love. That little sycamore taught me a lot about foot washing.  Watering it was a great joy. A soul-friend relationship never works only one way.  There is a mutual giving and receiving.

            I learned from my tree that being transplanted is possible. I can always put down roots again, connect with the Great Root, and grow on…

            I wouldn’t recommend using a tree for a spiritual guide all the days of one’s life, but that sycamore got me through a long stretch of barrenness.  It was only a little tree, and I didn’t know it was holy until I spent time with it.  Truly, holiness comes wrapped in the ordinary. 

Macrina Wiederkehr in A Tree Full of Angels (from Spiritual Literacy)

I have always been fascinated by trees.  They seem to call me.  I find myself painting and drawing trees. There is a spirituality among trees, a sense of community, a wonder and awe that only trees can possesses.  They also have unique personalities, shapes, colors.  Trees are their own eco system. They are life sustainers, life producers, and life shelters. 

Take a moment to hone in on a specific tree in these woods, what might it be teaching you this morning? (If you would like to get up and move, to experience a tree more up close and personal, please do. Getting the perspective from underneath the tree, even up in the branches, and from a distance is important. Touching a tree also creates a special bond and connectedness.  Take this time to connect to a part of creation we take for granted that is part of the ordinary.  Allow God to speak to you through the trees in which we commune today.)

Prayer for our Path Dedication:

O Creator,

May this path be a path to peace and love.

May it be a path to prayer and communion with You.

May it be a path to moments of silence, stillness, and solitude.

May it be a path to transformation and growth.

May it be a path to thanksgiving and gratitude.

May it be a path to wisdom and discernment.

May it be a path to hope.

May it be a path to courage and perseverance.

May it be a path to strength and encouragement.

May it be a path to rest and refreshment.

And may it be a path that connects us to your wonderful creation!

Creator, be our companion on the way, our guide at the crossroads, our strength in weariness, our defense in dangers, our shelter on the path, our shade in heat, our light in darkness, our comfort in discouragement, no matter what path you have set before us. Bless now this path and all who take it.  And all God’s people said, AMEN! 

7-1-18 - Ignite the Light

Ignite the Light

Indianapolis First Friends Meeting

Pastor Bob Henry

July 1, 2018

It was James Nayler, a seventeenth-century English Quaker/Friend and traveling minister, who is probably best known for his fall into the darkness and eventual emergence into the Light at the end of a painful imprisonment who said,

“Art thou in the darkness? Mind it not, for if thou dost thee will feed it more. Stand still, act not, and wait in patience till light arises out of darkness and leads thee.”

Now, in a little more plain English…

“Are you in darknesss? Don’t mind it, for if you do, you will feed it more. Just stand still, don’t act on it, but wait in patience until the light arises out of the darkness and leads you.”

This morning we are going to talk about letting our light shine out of the darkness as you will hear in our text that Eric is going to read.  Take some time in our silence and meditation time to center down on those areas of darkness surrounding you and where also the Light may be leading you.

2 Corinthians 4:6-12

6 For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,”made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ.

7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. 8 We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; 9 persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. 10 We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. 11 For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may also be revealed in our mortal body. 12 So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you.

9 years ago, on our way back from our first family vacation to Florida, we stopped to experience Mammoth Cave, in Kentucky. How many have been there?

On our tour we went straight down deep into the bowels of one of the caves and then were to meander slowly up and out over the next couple of hours. 

It was in the largest opening - a huge cavern - that we stopped with our group.  In the cavern they had placed lights throughout to highlight the beauty of the rock formations and to give us a visual path to the exit. 

Our guide talked about the importance of light, but also talked about light pollution – especially for people who live in big cities or suburbs.  He said, we don’t know what living from “sun up to sun down” actually meant. 

Our guide then had us take our hand and put is right in front of our face.  He explained that even today because of light pollution we can still make out our hand in front of our face with the lights out.  But before the world had light pollution – this is what it was like. 

He then proceeded to turn off all the lights in the cave. Wow! It was a bit scary.  You could see nothing.  I could not even see the outline of my hand.  I could not see Sue or the boys.  I quickly realized I could not see or sense direction.  It was disturbing.  Light is so important to us.

But just as important is how dark the darkness really is.

During the summer months we have the sun much later at night.  So we stay up later around the camp fire or backyard fire pit.  We wait until the sun sets to watch fireworks – as we will this week.  It is at night that we see lightening bugs – something that we missed in Oregon because they did not have them. 

As we sat out in our back yard the other night the moon seemed more brilliant, and I could see the stars even with the light pollution of the city. 

Darkness at times can almost seem magical. 

But it is because of the darkness that the light is so important.

This week we celebrate the Fourth of July and fireworks will be a key part of that celebration. It seems fireworks have become main stream.  We experienced fireworks at Disney World, recently after a Major League baseball game, even our neighbors set off fireworks in their yard that lit up the sky.  They seem to bring so much joy to children and adults alike. I believe they represent a celebration.  They bring awe and wonder.  Some consider them patriotic, but this week I decided to do a little history on fireworks. 

Jeff Rice in a piece on the History of Fireworks says this...

The history of fireworks goes back thousands of years to China during the Han dynasty (~200 B.C.), even long before gunpowder was invented. It is believed that the first "firecrackers" were likely chunks of green bamboo, which someone may have thrown onto a fire when dry fuel ran short. The rods sizzled and blackened, and after a while, unexpectedly exploded. Bamboo grows so fast that pockets of air and sap get trapped inside of the plant's segments. When heated, the air inside of the hollow reeds expands, and eventually bursts through the side with a long bam!

The strange sound, which had never been heard before, frightened people and animals terribly (it still does). The Chinese figured that if it scared living creatures so much, it would probably scare away spirits - particularly an evil spirit called Nian, who they believed to eat crops and people. After that, it became customary for them to throw green bamboo onto a fire during the Lunar New Year in order to scare Nian and other spirits far way, thus ensuring happiness and prosperity to their people for the remainder of the year. Soon, the Chinese were using bursting bamboo for other special occasions, such as weddings, coronations, and births. The "bursting bamboo", or pao chuk as the Chinese called it, continued to be used for the next thousand or so years.

I found this fascinating.  To think that fireworks were used by the Chinese to scare away evil spirits seems a wonderful illustration for us today. This is as our text said, “light shining out of the darkness” Evil spirits have always been associated with darkness.

Just as children talk about being afraid of the dark, about monsters under their beds and things that go bump in the night.  Parents are quick to illuminate the darkness.  We give our children nightlights or leave lights on to make it less scary.  When we go camping we give them flashlights, and I know as a camp counselor those were not just to find the path to the bathhouse, no they helped with homesickness, when it was too dark and things were scary. 

I shared that story about Mammoth Cave earlier because I have to admit I was a little bit afraid in that darkness.  For a split second, I thought, “What if the power went out and the lights did not come on?” 

In Jesus’ day it was that dark at night.  We don’t understand the Biblical story of the 10 Virgins and how important keeping their wicks trimmed and the oil in the lamps was to simply getting home after sunset. It was dark and light was of utter importance.  

Now, darkness doensn’t have to be the absence of physical light.  Sometimes, we suffer from levels of darkness in our own hearts.  As our scriptures said this morning, sometimes we are hard pressed on every side, we feel crushed,  perplexed, maybe in despair, sometimes we are persecuted, feeling abandoned, even struck down, or destroyed.  Death – physical or mental is knocking at our doors. 

There are times we aren’t sure if the lights are ever going to come back on for us.

There are times when we think the bad person is going to win or get us.

There are times when we think the darkness is going to consume us.

But God has said to us,

“Let light shine out of darkness,”

God has made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ.

7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.

God wants us to remember our inner lights.

God wants us to look deep within our own souls. 

God has placed a special knowledge, an all-surpassing power within us. 

God wants us to be the light in this dark world.

Sometimes that is hard to believe.

Sometimes that light is hard to find.

Sometimes we wonder if the darkness of our world has consumed us and simply blown out our inner light.

Sometimes that means we need the shining light of our neighbors and friends surrounding us.

But scripture says that we are that treasure – in jars of clay.  Just think about this… we are really more like fireworks than we know.  Those big beautiful fireworks that we see on the 4th of July or at Disney World, or at the ball park – did you know those are clay shells.  They are fragile and need careful attention and care so they can really make an impact in the dark night sky.

The light, the color, the sparkle is found within those clay shells. And much like fireworks, God wants us to recognize the light within each of us and ignite it and come alive!  And when we do – it is actually out of the darkness that we are the most beautiful. That we radiate the Light of God into our world.   

A great modern theologian of our day, said it this way…

Do you ever feel like a plastic bag
Drifting though the wind
Wanting to start again

Do you ever feel, feel so paper thin
Like a house of cards
One blow from caving in

Do you ever feel already buried deep
Six feet under

Scream but no one seems to hear a thing

Do you know that there's still a chance for you
'Cause there's a spark in you

You just gotta ignite the light
And let it shine
Just own the night
Like the Fourth of July

'Cause baby you're a firework
Come on show 'em what your worth
Make 'em go "Oh, oh, oh!"
As you shoot across the sky-y-y

Baby you're a firework
Come on let your colors burst
Make 'em go "Oh, oh, oh!"
You're gonna leave 'em fallin' down down down

You don't have to feel like a waste of space
You're original, cannot be replaced
If you only knew what the future holds
After a hurricane comes a rainbow

Maybe a reason why all the doors are closed
So you can open one that leads you to the perfect road
Like a lightning bolt, your heart will glow
And when it's time, you'll know

You just gotta ignite the light
And let it shine
Just own the night
Like the Fourth of July

Firework by Katy Perry

Songwriters: Esther Dean / Mikkel Storleer Eriksen / Tor Erik Hermansen / Katy Perry / Sandy Julien Wilhelm

Firework lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Peermusic Publishing, Warner/Chappell Music, Inc

You and I are fireworks.  We are to let our lights shine in the darkness of this world.

·        For some that will mean taking action.

·        For some that will mean being arrested and protesting.

·        For some that will mean volunteering and giving of themselves.

·        For some that will mean monetarily supporting.

·        For some that will mean physically moving or sacrificing.

·        For some that will mean dedicating their life to a call or passion.

·        For some that will mean becoming a faithful presence in their neighborhoods or community.

·        For some that will mean making food, writing letters, gardening, teaching, networking, smiling…you name it…

What is it for you? I look around this room and I could name so many ways that First Friends are “fireworks” in the darkness of our world already.  Yet how can we be even more brilliant, more impactful, more light in our dark world?  

I know often when my light seems rather dim or my firework seems to be fizzling that is when I need others to ignite my inner light.  One firework is beautiful, but a full night sky filled with fireworks -- now that is even better!  

When we recognize the light in us, when we let our light shine out of the darkness, then scripture says We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair;  persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.

Our “firework” life addresses the evil spirits in this world, and lights up our world to truly be a celebration of hope, and love and peace.  So when it gets dark this week and you sit out on the grass or in a lawn chair to watch the fireworks.  Watch them and let them be a reminder of how we are to live our lives brilliantly in the darkness of this world. 

As we enter into waiting worship this morning, ask yourself this query, How will I  let my light shine out of the darkness this week?  

6-24-18 - Knowing the Truth to Inject a New Dimension of Love

Knowing the Truth To Inject A New Dimension of Love

Friends Educational Fund Sunday

Indianapolis First Friends Meeting

Pastor Bob Henry

June 24, 2018

This past week was an interesting week in our country to say the least.  Along with all the crazy news about children being separated from families at our borders and what we are going to do about it, two important days may have slipped by our calendars. 

June 19 was Juneteenth Independence Day or Freedom Day, an American holiday that commemorates the June 19, 1865, announcement of the abolition of slavery in the U.S. state of Texas, and more generally the emancipation of enslaved African-Americans throughout the former Confederacy of the southern United States. Its name is a mix of "June" and "nineteenth", the date of its celebration. Juneteenth is recognized as a state holiday or special day of observance in forty-five states.

June 20 was World Refugee Day which was created by the United Nations General Assembly and is dedicated to raising awareness of the situation of refugees throughout the world.

I would like our “Silence and Meditation” time this morning to be just that – a time of silence to hold in the Light all those in our country and world who have, or are, still suffering from injustices, racial and cultural violence, and being treated as less than and not equals.    

Hebrews 10:23-26 (NCV)

23 Let us hold firmly to the hope that we have confessed, because we can trust God to do what he promised.

24 Let us think about each other and help each other to show love and do good deeds. 25 You should not stay away from the church meetings, as some are doing, but you should meet together and encourage each other. Do this even more as you see the day coming.

26 If we decide to go on sinning after we have learned the truth, there is no longer any sacrifice for sins.

As Quakers, we rarely talk about sin.  We prefer to talk of love, grace, and definitely peace and allow sin to stay and be more of a private issue.  Today, I have decided to talk about sin – and this is personal as much as it is corporate or maybe even national sin.  Let me give you some background.

20 years ago, the year Alex, our oldest son was born, I visited the Martin Luther King Jr. National Site and King Center in Atlanta, Georgia for the first time.  I was 25 years old and rather a newbie to ministry.  I had been raised in a good family, in the church, and went to good “Christian” schools. At the age of 25, I was serving as a Director of Christian Education in Elmhurst, Illinois, a near west suburb of Chicago. In Elmhurst, I served a predominately white church of about 1000 people and lead a fairly large youth ministry.  That year I had been asked by my denomination to be a youth representative to our national youth gathering in Atlanta, GA. Along with about 150 representatives from across the country, I traveled to Atlanta several months prior to the event to see the sights, give input into the preferences of our youth from Illinois, and to get a physical sense of the city of Atlanta -- all before 40 thousand youth from around the country showed up for the gathering. 

Looking through the options on my itinerary for my free-time on one of the days, I found I could visit President Jimmy Carter’s library, The Coca Cola Museum, or the King Center and the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site. I wasn’t too sure what the King Center or the National Historic Site was, so I read the description, thought it sounded interesting, chose it, and jumped on the bus. As I sat down, I waited for others to join me, but no one else entered the bus.  I moved up closer to the bus driver and got a personal tour on my way to the Historic Site and Center. 

Now, I have to be honest.  At age 25, I really didn’t know much about the Civil Rights Movement.  In the small Indiana town and school I was raised in I was taught about the Civil War, but I honestly do not remember being taught much about slavery or the plight of Black Africans in our country. What I was taught in grade school about the civil rights was probably about a paragraph in length in my history book.  Also, I honestly didn’t know much about the legacy of Dr. King. I do remember in about 5th grade clearly seeing a bulletin board announcing the first time we would celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day at my school.  Now, you must know, I attended a Lutheran School, so when I saw the picture of Dr. King, I leaned over to my friend and said, “I did not know that Martin Luther was black and why do they call him a king.”  This is how ignorant I was.  

So after being dropped off at the entrance of the King Center, I made my way in, grabbed a guide, and ventured into the museum. For the next couple hours, I received an education.  I read about the roots of Dr. King’s lifelong fight for equality and his leadership in the American Civil Rights Movement. I read every single word on each of the plaques throughout that museum. And at the very end, before crossing the road to see his tomb, his church – Ebenezer Baptist Church, and the King Center which his wife, Coretta started, I stood with about 5 other people and listened to a live recording of Martin Luther King Jr.’s final speech, “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop.” 

As I listened I was realizing something in me was changing.  I could not control the tears that fell from my face.  In many ways, I had realized that my ignorance to King’s legacy, the plight of my African American sisters and brothers, and to the American Civil Rights movement was downright wrong. Actually, I would say it was a sin of my white ancestors who reluctantly or willingly refused to teach the rest of the American story.

Since that day, I have been dedicated to learning, educating, and working hard on not being an ignorant white man about what has gone on in our country – sadly from its inception.  By no means have I arrived, got it figured out, or feel that I can relate to the plight of my African American Sisters and Brothers, if anything, I simply can say that I am more aware today. 

Now, let’s go 20 years forward to just a couple of weeks ago – our family had the opportunity to visit and experience what the Washington Post claims “One of the most powerful and effective new memorials created in a generation.” Unlike, my experience in Atlanta 20 years earlier, I thought this time I was a little more prepared for what I was going to experience. But in many ways, I felt again I had been missing the rest of the story. The memorial was The National Memorial for Peace and Justice in Montgomery, Alabama. As it states on the their website and in their brochures:

The National Memorial for Peace and Justice is the nation’s first comprehensive memorial dedicated to the human loss suffered during the era of racial terror lynchings, which swept across the South and beyond in the decades following the abolition of slavery…A path leads into a structure made of more than 800 steel monuments, one for each location where a racial terror lynching took place, inscribed with the name of lynching victims (by the way, we have three steel monuments for Indiana). Visitors can read the stories of black men, women, and children who were lynched, many for mere social transgressions…The National Memorial is a reckoning that acknowledges Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s powerful insight: True peace is not merely the absence of tension. It is the presence of justice.

As my family and I slowly made our way through the memorial, we found ourselves in tears, overcome by the overwhelming reality of what our white ancestors had done.  Again, this was sin.  At one point, we were approached by a young women who worked at the memorial. She asked if we were ok and if we had any questions.  Words were hard to come by. 

Before entering the monument we read of how from 1877 to 1950, millions of black Americans were targeted by racial terror lynchings – over 4, 400 were actually documented (many more went undocumented).   

But it was in reading the following that I was overcome by the enormity of all of this:

Racial terror lynchings were directly tied to the history of enslavement and the re-establishment of white supremacy after the Civil War.  These lynchings were distinct from hangings and mob violence committed against white people and other groups because they were intended to terrorize black Americans and enforce racial hierarchy.

Please note, we were taught that the term “racial terror lynchings” included any form of hate crime or violence to Black Africans which ended in death.  

The young women who approached us at the memorial knew that we were searching for words, but also knew we wanted to do something about what we were experiencing.  She said, “The best thing you can do is tell people what you have learned here.  Bring people here. Use your voice to make a change and not let this continue.” 

As I moved on I began wrestling with the fact that I have had people confront me politely and say, “Let’s not use words like White Supremacy or White privilege,” “Let’s talk about poverty instead of racism” or let’s not say “Black Lives Matter” no, let’s just say “All Lives Matter.” What I have learned is that when people say these things, they are often simply unaware of how they are actually reinforcing racism in our country and right here in our pews. 

I had a hard time sleeping that night after attending the memorial.  Actually, I wrestled most of the night with what I was supposed to do with what I had seen and learned. - me, a middle aged, overly educated, white man, that happens to be a Quaker pastor from Indiana.  I woke up early that next morning, headed down to the lobby of the hotel to grab a cup of coffee and a copy of US Today.  I took a couple of sips of my coffee and then read the headline on that day’s paper, “Churches struggle with how to confront racism.”

Are you kidding me… I could not believe it.  But as I read the article, a quote by Chris Beard a white pastor from People’s Church just over in Cincinnati, Ohio struck me.  He said,

“It’s sinful that the white American Christian Church has perpetuated a climate of white supremacy instead of repenting for the sins of the founding of America. It’s humbling and scary to face our own sin, but without truth, there is no repentance.”

Now, I know that not everyone has had the same journey I have.  Some may not see ignorance or the sins of one’s ancestors something to seek forgiveness for, but I personally agree with Pastor Beard that it is time that we seek the truth.

Quaker Gary Cox in a Pendle Hill Pamplet titled, “Bearing Witness – Quaker Process and a Culture of Peace” says this about Quakers and Truth:

“As Quakers, we state that truth is something that happens, it occurs...not just a dead fact which is known. It is a living occurrence in which we participate. The guiding concern of people bearing witness to this Truth is to live rightly, in ways that are exemplary. Quakers are convinced that genuine leadings all proceed from a common ground, spring from a unity which we seek and find...”

Without Truth, there is no repentance because it springs from a unity -- a common ground.  To name our sin of racism or racial hierarchy or white supremacy (or even our ignorance) begins when we live the Truth into being, when we are educated and acknowledge our histories, and work hard at coming together in unity.  Yes, it means that we will have to acknowledge where we have been wrong and most certainly ask for forgiveness.

But this is only the first step – our voices need to be heard and action must be taken to tear down the bondage of racism in our country. African American football players should not have to be kneeling during our national anthem to get our attention of the racial terror that is still occurring in our country with police brutality and mass incarceration.  This is not politics folks – this is sin and we need to repent.    

Now, I could go on, but there is a reason we are all gathered here today. And it has to do with some people right here in Indiana who did not perpetuate the racial terror and violence our history records against Black Africans after the Civil War. Instead these people wanted to make a difference and the legacy of their difference is still being lived out today.

History notes that the Quakers were the earliest migrants to Indiana. And the Quakers specifically from Indianapolis made a rather surprising decision after the Civil War. They decided to aid dependent African American children at a time when such benevolence was generally extended only to those who were white.

Before an orphanage or what they called an asylum at that time was ever erected or thought of for white children in Indiana, The Indianapolis Quakers along with our Western Yearly Meeting opened the Indianapolis Asylum for Friendless Colored Children. This was an effort that lasted from 1870 to 1922. History books note that Quaker interest in African American children developed in a time and place in which few whites believed in equality of the races in any respects.  Many Quakers in Indiana were treated badly for their beliefs, other did not participate out of fear.  

Now, this is our history Friends, Indiana laws in the early nineteenth century barred African Americans from voting, testifying against whites, and serving the military. They were forbidden to marry whites, attend public schools, and access jobs. Thus, African Americans in Indiana struggled desperately to provide for their children.  And much like the news still today, it is the children who would suffer the lasting effects of the racial terror and violence that the early Black Africans in Indiana would endure. 

This Indiana orphanage was known by freed slaves from the south and Black entrepreneurs and was recognized for wanting to give quality care and education to the African American children whose parents could no longer provide for them.  It became so well known in Quaker circles that donations started coming from all over, from other Quaker Meetings in Indiana as well as other states, then businesses, and even from the state government.

But it was a large donation by an unexpected donor that is the reason we are talking about this today.  John Williams (no, not the famous composer) but the African American pioneer from North Carolina who settled in Washington County, Indiana, near a Quaker Community.  Unlike most African American Hoosiers who struggled to make a living, John made a substantial living as a farmer and as a rather famous tanner (shoe maker). But sadly a successful Black Hoosier was not looked at very highly as the Civil War came to a close, and on December, 1864, John Williams became an innocent victim of racial terror and violence and was murdered on his own land at his own door right here in Indiana. Here is the actual account from Quaker Lillian Trueblood:   

On the December night when the tragedy occurred, there was a light snow on the ground. The perpetrators of the deed came to the home of [John Williams who they called] Black John and aroused him from his slumbers. He ran out into the yard in his night clothes throwing his purse, which contained a small amount of money, behind the wood-box as he passed.  A shot rang out and the victim fell near his own cabin door, the fatal bullet having entered his back. Since the slain man had just sold a number of hogs, a common belief, for a time at least, was that the motive for the crime was robbery. If so, there was disappointment, as Black John had left the larger part of the proceeds of the sale with William Lindley. There were those who believed robbery to be only the ostensible object of the killing, the real cause being race prejudice.

John Williams’ name should be hanging on one of the steel monuments in the National Monument in Montgomery.

Because of John Williams and his friendship with Quaker William Lindley who he made executor of his estate, there is a Friends Educational Fund for our 42 recipients today and now you know the story behind why we are here today.  It has been the Indianapolis Quakers and currently First Friends who have protected this estate, grown it, and helped carry on John Williams’ legacy to make a difference in the lives of African American students wanting to pursue college and further their education. 

Now, handing out money or scholarships is easy, remembering from where they came and through what pain and toil they had to be handed down is another thing.  It is important to not only know our history, but to also know what side of history we are on. 

I want us together, to continue the legacy of John Williams, to not forget his death, to always thank him for his sacrifice and foresight in making a difference in the lives of young black men and women.  I also want us to remember the legacy of the Indianapolis Quakers, who by putting others before themselves stopped perpetuating the sins of their ancestors, and found a way to seek Truth by helping Black Africans after the Civil War in this racially divided and terror stricken country.

Our scripture this morning from Hebrews 10 read,

Let us hold firmly to the hope that we have confessed, because we can trust God to do what he promised. Let us think about each other and help each other to show love and do good deeds…but…If we decide to go on sinning after we have learned the truth, there is no longer any sacrifice for sins.

Folks, there is hope in God’s promises. 

There is hope that we can be a people who continue to learn and become aware of our past.

There is hope that we can make needed changes while continuing to seek the Truth.

I believe there is hope for our future…but that hope starts with each of us.

Martin Luther King Jr. said it so well,

We have before us the glorious opportunity to inject a new dimension of LOVE into the veins of our civilization. 

You scholar recipients have this opportunity.

You parents and grandparents and friends have this opportunity.

And yes, we at First Friends have this opportunity. 

Let us take it and make our world a better place.

And all God’s people said, Amen.

6-17-18 - No Longer Living to Impress God

No Longer Living to Impress God – Father’s Day

Indianapolis First Friends Meeting

Pastor Bob Henry

June 17, 2018

Centering Down:

This morning as we center down and calm our hearts to hear from God, I would like us to ponder a query from the late Trappist Monk and author, Thomas Merton.  It is a quote I ran across in the book, “Becoming Who You Are” by James Martin. Originally this quote was in the chapter titled, “Being and Doing” from Merton’s classic “No Man is an Island.” Just listen and ponder these words or queries of Thomas Merton:

Why do we have to spend our lives striving to be something we would never want to be, if we only knew what we wanted? Why do we waste our time doing things which, if we only stopped to think about them, are just the opposite of what we were made for?

Take a couple moments to ponder Merton’s queries for yourself as you center down this morning.  (pause)

Galatians 2:17-21 (MSG)

17-18 Have some of you noticed that we are not yet perfect? (No great surprise, right?) And are you ready to make the accusation that since people like me, who go through Christ in order to get things right with God, aren’t perfectly virtuous, Christ must therefore be an accessory to sin? The accusation is frivolous. If I was “trying to be good,” I would be rebuilding the same old barn that I tore down. I would be acting as a charlatan.

19-21 What actually took place is this: I tried keeping rules and working my head off to please God, and it didn’t work. So I quit being a “law man” so that I could be God’s man. Christ’s life showed me how, and enabled me to do it. I identified myself completely with him. Indeed, I have been crucified with Christ. My ego is no longer central. It is no longer important that I appear righteous before you or have your good opinion, and I am no longer driven to impress God. Christ lives in me. The life you see me living is not “mine,” but it is lived by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I am not going to go back on that.

Is it not clear to you that to go back to that old rule-keeping, peer-pleasing religion would be an abandonment of everything personal and free in my relationship with God? I refuse to do that, to repudiate God’s grace. If a living relationship with God could come by rule-keeping, then Christ died unnecessarily.

If you have never had a chance to read “No Man is an Island” by Thomas Merton, I would highly recommend it for some summer reading.  The book is a quest to help one know and understand, and accept oneself. The line that probably most speaks to the overall thesis of the book is,

“We cannot become ourselves unless we know ourselves.”

And I would say the same is true about God – we cannot really know God unless we know ourselves.  This reminds me of the scripture passage that reads, “Love God and love your neighbor….AS YOU LOVE YOURSELF.” You see, our relationship with God and our neighbors must be in light of us understanding how we love ourselves, how we know ourselves, even how we treat ourselves.

And I believe this is exactly what Paul was talking about in our text for today that was just read.

What I sense Paul was trying to describe in this text was what some may label, “Spiritual Maturity.”  Now, I know Beth and John, while I was on vacation, both talked about other aspects of spiritual maturity – so in many ways I am continuing these thoughts. But this morning, I am going to focus on an aspect of spiritual maturity that is often a difficult hurdle to get over. 

You see, many Christians, when they first become followers of the Jesus Way (especially if it is later in life) spend a lot of time with “rule keeping.”  Actually, as one who has studied evangelism curriculums and evangelistic programs, a great deal of the material is riddled with “rule keeping and following.” It is what for some, Christianity is all about. Thus many are introduced to a rigid and often harmful Christianity from the beginning.  

Some people (especially in our country) feel that Christians are called to live to some standard which must be enforced by rules and lots of them. Over the last couple of weeks, my family and I have been touring the southern states, I was keenly aware of how often this “rules-based religion” was seen, heard, and lived openly and the harm it produces.

Over the years, I have had many people, from college students to retirees, literally come apart in my office, breakdown, over not being able to follow or keep “all the rules.”  Most of the time it is a family member, a parents or spouse, or even a former pastor or church who has taught this type of bondage to rule keeping.

Now, before we get too focused on this – I must remind us that this is nothing new – this is exactly what Jesus was fighting against and Paul is talking about in our text – this is what we call Pharisaical thinking.

Did you know that the name “Pharisee” – actually means “separatist” in Hebrew? That gives us a new perspective.

Pharisees are those who take great pains in separating themselves from people not like them.  Those sinners. Those people. Those over there…. Pharisaical thinking is drawing a line making it “us vs. them.”

Folks, I think this is so ironic.  Like Paul himself who said, “I am the chief of all sinners.” I personally cannot see how we have any right to separate ourselves from others, those people, the sinners.”  Aren’t we all in the same boat? Aren’t we all created equal? 

As soon as we stop believing this, we become rule-followers and rule enforcers and then we begin to do major damage to our neighbors and to our world.

Kim Harrington wrote in a blog post about Modern Day Pharisees, she said:

There is no greater turn-off than a Christian who acts self-righteous and condescending, as though it’s obvious he is better than you.  Yet many of us act this way…all the time. It’s no wonder that they don’t have the time to listen to us when we try and explain some point of the Gospel to them!”

The reality is that you and I are no different than anyone else.  Personally, I stink at rule-keeping.  And the thoughts that run through my mind (especially in light of our current political climate, the lack of justice in our world, the poor social conditions our country seems to be creating and supporting) are probably just as horrible as any other person on this planet. 

I sense to often the reason we feel we can separate ourselves from others, heap rules on those not like us, even treat people as less than us, is because we haven’t taken a good inventory of our own souls.

As our family, travelled the past couple weeks through the King Center and Birthplace of Martin Luther King Jr. in Atlanta, the National Memorial for Peace and Justice in Montgomery, and the National Civil Rights Museum and Lorraine Motel in Memphis where King was assassinated, I could not stop asking myself what Martin Luther King Jr believed to be life’s most persistent and urgent questions, ‘What are you doing for others?’ and ‘Where do we go from here?”

The reality is, to help our neighbors and share the Good News of the gospel with them, takes first knowing oneself.  If anything our past, especially the Civil Rights movement, but also all that this going on in our world today, should have us taking a personal inventory of what we believe and how we are responding to our world today. 

Where is my heart?

What do I want?

What do I believe? 

What am I doing for others?

Where do we go from here?

Paul shared a little of his inventory in our text for this morning, he said,

If I was “trying to be good,” I would be rebuilding the same old barn that I tore down. I would be acting as a charlatan.

19-21 What actually took place is this: I tried keeping rules and working my head off to please God, and it didn’t work. So I quit being a “law man” so that I could be God’s man. Christ’s life showed me how, and enabled me to do it. I identified myself completely with him. Indeed, I have been crucified with Christ. My ego is no longer central. It is no longer important that I appear righteous before you or have your good opinion, and I am no longer driven to impress God.

How often have you and I made or thought Christianity or our religious path was about…
 

·        Claiming to have more knowledge or skill than someone else.

·        Being “holier than thou.”

·        Keeping the rules.

·        Working one’s head off to please God.

·        Gaining a personal identity or impressing others.

Paul addressed this 2000+ years ago – and still today these are the top criticisms of being a Christian in our world. Sadly, not much has changed and looking back on our history, it is often that this lack of awareness and rule-enforcing has created some attrocities in our history – from slavery to treating people less than to even today separating children from their parents at our borders because we are following the rules of the bible.  

Yet because Paul took a personal inventory…he stopped to reflect…he slowed down long enough to see the damage in the way he was living the faith.. and because he did this – he made a change – actually he became the change.

Paul rebooted his life.

·        He quit being a “law man.”

·        He studied Jesus’ life (how he lived).

·        He began to identify with Jesus’ way (not just finding or being the answer).

·        He put his own ego on the back burner.

·        He no longer was driven to impress God or other people.

·        He stopped repudiating (means: to reject as having no authority or binding force) God’s grace.

·        He began to really live.

I wonder how much different our world would be if we did the same?

My greatest saddness over the last couple weeks was seeing the sights of the Civil Rights Movement, reading and hearing the stories, senseing the pain that our country has gone through from lynchings to having black men have to hold signs that proclaim, “I am a man” and yet looking around and realizing not much has changed when I turn on the news. 

Have we not looked internally and taken an inventory of our own lives? Haven’t we asked ourselves the questions that need to be asked?  Our refusal to look inside ourselves continues to bring pain to our world.

As you leave the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis there is a wall with the Gandhi quote – “Be the change you want to see in the world.”

To do that we must take some time for personal reflection and inventory of our own souls.  Sadly, if we do not know ourselves, we will continue to repeat the atrocities in our world, whether passively or intentionally.  To know ourselves is the first step in becoming the change.

In the book, “Becoming Who You Are” which I quoted earlier, James Martin says the following,

In the quest for the true self, one therefore begins to appreciate and accept one’s personality and one’s life as an essential way that God calls us to be ourselves. Everyone is called to sanctity [or what I would call a sacred life] in different ways – on often very different ways…And as we move closer to becoming our true selves, the selves we are meant to be, the selves that God created, the more loving parts of us are naturally magnified, and the more sinful parts are naturally diminished. As are so many other blocks to true freedom.

I began these thoughts this morning with two queries from Thomas Merton in our centering down time.

Why do we have to spend our lives striving to be something we would never want to be, if we only knew what we wanted? Why do we waste our time doing things which, if we only stopped to think about them, are just the opposite of what we were made for?

I believe we are in the same mind of Paul as he processed his obsession with rule-keeping. He was caught in a Pharisaical mode – maybe because he actually was a Pharisee at one time. If anyone knew how to “reboot” and get on another path, Paul did – and the reality was he could not do it without the help of God.

And neither can we.  God not only shows us the way…God wants to nurture in us a “living relationship” (as The Message put it) where Christ’s life can be lived out through you and me.  Paul proclaims, “Christ lives in me.” And the good news is that he lives in each one of us. 

So to do a personal inventory – to do some true soul searching – is to allow Christ’s life to be made know in your life.  If you turn to the back your bulletin this morning, you will find some queries – these are more of a personal inventory to help you process this.  Let these queries be a beginning point to ask yourself some deeper questions and free you to be who God made you! 

·        What’s one joy and one struggle you experienced in your life, recently?

·        How would you describe your walk with God this past year?

·        Where do you feel you would most like to grow as a Quaker?

·        What is something new about God you’ve recently discovered?

·        How would you finish this sentence: I feel good about my journey with God when . . . ?

·        What have been some of the ups and downs of your spiritual life since you began your journey?

·        How has First Friends helped you on your spiritual journey?

·        What do you need from this community to continue your maturity?

6-10-18 - What Doth the Lord Require of Thee? John Moorman

Indianapolis First Friends Meeting

Meeting for Worship June 10th, 2018

“What Doth the Lord Require of Thee?”

By John Moorman

This is the second First Day message while our pastor Bob and his family enjoy a well-earned vacation. A while back, I volunteered to give this week’s message. I thought that I had something in mind that I had given in Texas many years ago. However, after much thought and prayer the following came to me instead. It is a view of scripture and history from a high vantage point, not a deep diving into specific verses and chapters.

The title of this week’s message is; “What doth the Lord require of thee?” In this short time today, I will summarize a large period of history and its related scripture to arrive at a what I feel is a reasonable answer to the question above. Throughout my message,  I will be using the Message Bible in quoting from scripture. I feel that it best captures the language used when scripture was being placed in written format.

In early Jewish history, as indicated in scripture, the sacrifice of animals played an important role in the religious life of the community. Animal sacrifice was a part of their daily lives and was a way to indicate to God that they were repentant of sins and sought God’s forgiveness.  Animal sacrifice was also prevalent as a part of the cultural life of communities that they were acquainted with.

For those following the Jewish faith, it was not a simple animal sacrifice but consisted of many levels of animal sacrifice and the use of oil as a part of some of these sacrifices. The following are brief statements of each type of sacrifice and its purpose.

1.   Burnt Offering – To propitiate for sin in general, to signify compete dedication and consecration to God.

2.   Communion or Peace Sacrifice – The peace offering expressed peace and fellowship between the offender and God. The restoration of communion.

3.   Sin Sacrifices – To atone for sins committed un-knowingly, especially where no restitution was possible.

4.    Trespass Reparation Sacrifice – To atone for sins committed unknowingly, especially where restitution was possible.

5.   The Daily Burnt Sacrifice: Th standing or perpetual sacrifice. Daily sin offering for the people. The first liturgical sacrifice of the Sinai Covent.

6.   Remembrance Sacrifices – To relive the Exodus and Sinai experiences in every generation.

7.   The New Moon Sacrifices – To begin a new month in the lunar calendar.

Each sacrifice had specific rules about what animals were to be sacrificed and who received parts of the sacrifice.

An example of scriptural verses concerning animal sacrifices is quoted below:

Leviticus Chapter 6 Verses 24-30 (Message Bible): “God spoke to Moses: “Tell Aaron and his sons. These are the instructions for the Absolution Offering. Slaughter the Absolution Offering in the place where the Whole Burnt Offering is slaughtered before God -The offering is most holy. The priest in charge eats it in a holy place, the Courtyard of the Tent of Meeting. Anyone who touches any of the meat must be holy. A garment that gets blood spattered on it must be washed in a holy place. Break the clay pot in which the meat was cooked. If it was cooked in a bronze pot, scour it, and rinse it with water. Any male among the priestly families may eat it; it is most holy. But any Absolution Offering whose blood is brought into the Tent of Meeting to make atonement in the Sanctuary must not be eaten. It has to be burned.”

These instructions are direct and concise.

Chapter 7 of Leviticus contains further instructions on other types of animal sacrifices.

This approach to appealing to God for the forgiveness of sin and other errors and misdeeds by individuals and the Jewish people as a faith community, continued for many centuries.

One of the joys that I find in reading scripture is to see God’s will being acknowledged differently as the world in which the Jewish people live changes around them.

As time and scripture records God’s continuing relationship with Judaism, it is almost as if God sees that the Jewish faith in its best affirmation, is ready for a new relationship with God. Thus, the following found in Micah, which was our scripture reading for today.

This is from the Message Bible:

Micah Chapter 6 Verses 1-9

“Listen now, Listen to God:

Take your stand in court. If you have a complaint, tell the mountains; make your case to the hills. And now, Mountains, hear God’s case; listen Jury earth-For I am bringing charges against my people, I am building a case against Israel.

Dear people, how have I done you wrong? Have I burdened you, worn you out?

        Answer!

I delivered you from a bad life in Egypt;

I paid a good price to get you out of slavery.

I sent Moses to lead you-

  And Aaron and Miriam to boot!

Remember what Balak King of Moab tried to pull, and how Balaam son of Beor turned the tables on him.

Remember all these stories about Shittim and Gigal.

Keep all God’s salvation stories fresh and present.”

How can I stand up before God and show proper respect to the high God?

Should I bring an armload of offerings topped off with yearling calves?

Would God be impressed with thousands of rams, with buckets and barrels of olive oil?

Would he be moved if I sacrificed my firstborn child, my precious baby, to cancel my sin?

But he has already made it plain how to live, what to do, what God is looking for in men and women.

It is quite simple: Do what is fair and just to your neighbor, be compassionate and loyal in your love, and do not take yourself too seriously-take God seriously.”

As Bruce T. Dahlberg notes in his introductory chapter to the Book of Micah in the Interpreters One-Volume Commentary on the Bible;” The name Micah is an abbreviated form of Micaiah meaning “Who is like Yahweh”. Except for his home and the general period in which he flourished details of Micah’s life are unknown.”  He was a contemporary of Isaiah.

The above scripture reading is in the form of a question and answer session between God and Micah. God is stating that he is tired of animal and oil sacrifices. There is more to the relationship of humans to God than just animal and oil sacrifices. God requires a total claim to the whole of man’s life. God requires a total claim to the whole of man’s life. As stated in the passage above; you already know what it that I require of you in your life, what to do and what I, as your God, are looking for in your daily activities. So- as the scripture states: ““Do what is fair and just to your neighbor, be compassionate and loyal in your love, and do not take yourself too seriously-take God seriously.”

What does this imply? Be fair and just in dealing with others, if you have wealth or power do not use it unfairly. In love be compassionate, do not take advantage of those you love and be loyal even if that loyalty may cause you personal hardship. Be humble of your talents and skills remember they all come from God. Take God’s commandments seriously. Take God’s commandments seriously.

As mentioned earlier, Isaiah was a contemporary of Micah. Commentary like what we have just discussed is found in Isaiah. In Isaiah Chapter 1, Verses 16-18 we find the following; “Sweep your lives clean of your evildoings, so I don’t have to look at them any longer. Say no to wrong. Learn to do good. Work for justice. Help the down-and-out. Stand up for the homeless. Go to bat for the defenseless.”

This way of seeing what God required of humankind brought new obligations to those of the Jewish faith, obligations that required a changed approach to life. No longer could sin be simply done away with an animal/oil sacrifice, although this did not bring an immediate end to such sacrifices.

Like all of us throughout history, those of Jewish faith were found full of shortcomings. The prophets were a constant reminder of this and the need to alter their lives to remain as God’s people.

With the coming of Jesus, the picture is altered. While Jesus was a Jew his messages in many forms (parables, talks, personal examples) did not fit the Jewish concept of their Messiah. With his death on the Cross and his resurrection, a new religious faith was born. As Quakers, we are a part of the Christian faith tradition. As George Fox stated; “There is one even Christ Jesus who can speak to thy condition”.

What does Jesus have to say about what God requires of us? Along with his many parables and messages indicating how an individual should live and interact with his/her fellow beings, the following two sections from scripture found in Matthew Chapter 22, Verses 36-39 and Mark Chapter 12, Verses 28-31 give us, Jesus’s answer.

I will quote from Matthew Chapter 22, Verses 36-39 again from the Message Bible: “When the Pharisees heard how he had bested the Sadducees, they gathered their forces for an assault. One of their religion scholars spoke for them, posing a question they hoped would show him up: “Teacher, which command in God’s Law is the most important?

        Jesus said, “Love the Lord your God with all your passion and prayer and intelligence.’ This is the most important, the first on any list. But there is a second to set alongside it: “Love others as well as you love yourself.” These two commands are pegs; everything in God’s Law and the Prophets hands from them.”

In this context, Jesus is indicating we must love God with our whole being. This love must be shown in all our thoughts and actions. This is a constant love, one that is never ending. How we express this in our prayers and daily living enriches our lives and the lives of those with whom we come into contact.  

The second peg; “Love others as well as you love yourself” is to me the hardest commandment of all. As a human being each of us is full of imperfections, doubts, questionable desires, motives, and other failings. The challenge given us is to accept ourselves for who we are, remembering that each of us is a loved child of God.

The process of accepting our self as we are is not easy. We must avoid narcissism as that is not a proper way of loving ourselves. It is dangerous as we have seen throughout history and in the present.

We must understand our faults and continually work on self-improvement. It means coming to terms with those aspects of yourself that you cannot change. We can be beautiful inside even if our outside presence is not what we desire. Too tall, too short, bald head, no musical ability, could not boil water etc. You are still a creation of God and were made in God’s image. Accept yourself unconditionally and respect who you are. This makes it much easier to love others who are not perfect either.

With self-respect, a positive self-image and unconditional self-acceptance you will then be able to love others in the manner indicated by Jesus.

Many translations of this part of scripture indicate that you should love your neighbor as yourself. This begs the question of who is my neighbor? This question is one reason I like the Message Bible interpretation of scripture. As I indicated above it states: “Love others as you love yourself”.  In Jesus’s time individuals did not travel much, if any, beyond their hometown. They attended worship at the local synagogue they understood Jesus’s command to love those with whom they were familiar. Through other teachings of Jesus, we understand that his commandment is unconditional and refers to all with whom we meet.

As we enter this precious time of unprogrammed worship, center your thoughts on the queries listed on the back page of today’s bulletin. What concerns, and answers do these queries bring to your mind and how do you propose to address them?

If you are convinced that you have been given a message to share, stand up and share it. If it is addressed solely for yourself to further think over and ponder rejoice and keep it close to your heart.

6-3-18 - Our Odyssey to Spiritual Maturity

Our Odyssey to Spiritual Maturity

Beth Henricks Message

June 3rd 2018

Scripture Reading – Matthew 16:24-26

Resources Utilized – Falling Upward by Richard Rohr

Friends, Bob and his family are on their way to a much-needed vacation in Florida today.  I was asked several months ago to give the message and appreciated the opportunity to share with you.

But dear Friends, I have struggled to hear God’s voice in what I should say today.  I ask for your grace in my words and appreciate your love and support in our experience together.

I read Richard Rohr’s book Falling Upward several years ago but re-read it this last week.  Its message hit me in a pretty profound way and has been challenging me all week.

Most of you know that Richard Rohr is a Franciscan priest of the New Mexico Province.  He has written may books and I follow his daily blog.  He is an important voice in Christianity today.

He wrote Falling Upward in 2011 encouraging us to think about our lives in two halves.   The first half is all about building our container.  The issues we are concerned about in the first half of our life are “identity, security, sexuality and gender”. We want to look good to others.   Marking boundaries and protecting boundaries are the primary task of this first half of life.  We are defensive about our personal, group and our tribal identities.  And in terms of religion it is much about purity codes, rules to follow and being clear and clean in our theology.  

 I remember graduating from college with a business degree in 1982.  I desperately wanted to be successful to the outside world.   My mother who was born in 1914 thought the only option for me to enter the business world was as a secretary.  I was determined to follow a different path and declared that I would never be dependent on another person.  This was part of my journey work in the first half of life. And my spiritual journey was focused on absolutes, externals, formulas, and Bible quotes to answer the tough questions. 

While we may look down on this period, the first half of life is absolutely a part of our odyssey to spiritual depth.  To be healthy and whole human beings requires us to establish our containers and identities.  As humans we all have certain needs that are prioritized. At a basic level we need food and shelter before we can move to a higher level of consciousness.  Then we need security, love and belonging, self-esteem and finally we can achieve a level of self-actualization.  These lower level needs are part of the first half of life work while the higher ones are the second part of life work.   We need to be successful in establishing the first half of life stuff, we need to learn to be responsible and independent.   As The Dalai Lama said, “Learn and obey the rules very well, so you will know how to break them properly.”

The marking of time in the first half of our lives in also not a matter of chronology.  Some folks move into the second half of life early and many others never leave the first half.  And sometimes when our foundations are shaken, we step back into first half responses.    The familiar and comfortable are reassuring places.  And unfortunately, most of our institutions including the church focus on first half matters.  It seems to be how our world defines progress and success.

I believe we start considering second half life matters when we start asking some of the deep questions, have doubts, and wonder about our purpose here on this earth.  This second half of life is focused on the contents that go into our individual containers and identities.  And we begin to understand that the way to go up must be by going down.   

I was fascinated with the Bill Moyers interviews in the late 1980’s called The Power of Myth with Joseph Campbell (Campbell was a professor of literature, writer, philosopher and a student of comparative mythology and religions).  He talked about how our myths, stories and religious expressions have had so many common elements throughout history.    The hero’s odyssey has been told in many ways from the heroes of our Bible stories, throughout mythology (Homer’s Odyssey is the classic example) to the saints in the Christian tradition and to many books, movies and shows.    All the hero journeys have 5 common elements as Rohr defines in his book.

·        “They live in a world that they take for granted and is sufficient.

·        They have a call and the courage to leave home for the journey.

·        On the journey they find out the real problem – they are always wounded, and the epiphany is that the wound becomes the secret key.

·        The first task is not the only task and is usually a warm up to the real task – a deeper river beneath the appearances.  They find their soul.

·        They return to where they started and know the place for the first time.  They have a life energy force and share it with others.”

Joseph Campbell said in his book The Hero with a Thousand Faces, “We have only to follow the thread of the hero path.  Where we had thought to find an abomination, we shall find a god; where we had thought to slay another, we shall slay ourselves; where we had thought to travel outwards, we shall come to the center of our own existence; where we had thought to be alone, we shall be with all the world.”

This is the soil of second half of life stuff.  We never really find something unless we lose it and then re-find it later at a different level.  We must experience falling, losing, failing, as they will lead us back home.    We grow spiritually more by what we do wrong than by doing it right.  As Jesus said in our scripture reading today, we have to lose our life to find it.  2 Corinthians 12:10 says that when we are weak, we are strong.   Jesus also tells us the last shall be first.  Do we really believe this? Because our culture and our churches don’t tell us that.  

And do we live this out in our lives?  It’s pretty radical stuff. 

The second half of life brings us to appreciate what we all have in common.  We can live in the tension of both/and instead of separating everything into either/or.  We seek the wisdom of our elders and “weighty friends”.  “We can participate in a sacred dance versus a survival dance”. 

We stop making God so small and imagine the depth of God’s love to every person and all creation.  We can swim in the river of doubt, unknowing and mystery and won’t drown.  And as we read our sacred Scriptures, we can claim Truth without having to believe in historical facts.

I was talking with my brother who is 9 years my senior on Mother’s Day this year.  We were reflecting on our mother whom we lost at 95 years old in 2010.  I hold my mother in such esteem – not only as an amazing mom but a spiritual giant and one of the biggest influences in my life.  My brother however feels differently about our mom.  He felt that as he was growing up our mom was rule oriented and rigid.  He saw a significant change in her as she aged so my experience was different.  This was her journey of moving from a first half life focus to a second half-life focus and we were all the beneficiaries of this shift. 

This second half of life is also a time where we expose our inner selves to the Light, we see our shadows and we are humbled and we experience death and resurrection.  We experience the Gospel. We feel the fire of the Holy Spirit.  We attempt to describe this experience through our metaphors like Flowing Water, Fire, the Seed, the Wind.  I love how St Augustine describes this in his confession, “you were within, but I was without.  You were with me, but I was not with you.  So you called, you shouted, you broke through my deafness, you flared, blazed, and banished my blindness, you lavished your fragrance, and I gasped.” 

I think I finally understand what Jesus was saying in Luke 14:27, Anyone who comes to me but refuses to let go of father, mother, spouse, children, brothers, sisters – yes even one’s own self! Can’t be my disciple.  Anyone who won’t shoulder his own cross and follow behind me can’t be my disciple.  It’s the act of letting go of the relationships that are most important to us.  It’s the second half of life experience that Jesus is trying to explain.

As we enter our unprogrammed worship time together, please reflect on the queries in the bulletin and open your heart to the voice of God.  If the message you hear today needs to be shared with others, please stand and share.  This message may be for you alone and please hold this in your soul.   I would like to read you a poem from Thomas Merton:

When in the soul of the serene disciple

With no more Fathers to imitate

Poverty is a success,

It is a small thing to say the roof is gone:

He has not even a house.

Stars, as well as friends,

Are angry with the noble ruin

Saints depart in several directions.

Be still:

There no longer any need of comment

It was a lucky wind

That blew away his halo with his cares,

A lucky sea that drowned his reputation

Here you will find

Neither a proverb nor a memorandum.

There are no ways,

No methods to admire

Where poverty is no achievement.

His God lives in his emptiness like an affliction.

What choice remains?

Well, to be ordinary is not a choice:

It is the usual freedom

Of men without visions.