3-8-20 - Light Up the Darkness

Light Up The Darkness

Indianapolis First Friends Quaker Meeting

Pastor Bob Henry

March 8, 2020

2 Corinthians 4:13-18 (MSG)

13-15 We’re not keeping this quiet, not on your life. Just like the psalmist who wrote, “I believed it, so I said it,” we say what we believe. And what we believe is that the One who raised up the Master Jesus will just as certainly raise us up with you, alive. Every detail works to your advantage and to God’s glory: more and more grace, more and more people, more and more praise!

16-18 So we’re not giving up. How could we! Even though on the outside it often looks like things are falling apart on us, on the inside, where God is making new life, not a day goes by without his unfolding grace. These hard times are small potatoes compared to the coming good times, the lavish celebration prepared for us. There’s far more here than meets the eye. The things we see now are here today, gone tomorrow. But the things we can’t see now will last forever.

Last week, we talked about our personal prisons and finding a way to celebrate and rejoice in the midst of the struggle.  This week, I have chosen another rather interesting text from Paul.  This time to the people of Corinth.  Paul is rather excited. I wanted to emphasize this a bit, by having it read from The Message Version.  Paul says,

“We’re not keeping this quiet, not on your life.”

When life is this exciting, we simply cannot contain ourselves.  But what was Paul specifically not able to “keep quiet” about?  To understand the background of Paul’s excitement, we need to go back a couple of verses where he wrote this,

“All we are is messengers, errand runners from Jesus for you.  It started when God said, “LIGHT UP THE DARKNESS” and our lives filled up with light as we saw and understood God in the face of Christ, all bright and beautiful.” 

Paul is describing something that as Quakers we may have some insight on. 

A light has been lit within Paul’s heart.

A healing has taken place. 

Paul is no longer the same.

Immediately when I read this experience of Paul, I could not help but think of George Fox. He too had a similar experience. He described it this way…

“Christ it was who had enlightened me, that gave me his light to believe in, and gave me hope, which is himself, revealed himself in me, and gave me the Spirit and his grace, which I found in the depths and in weakness.”

But like all moments of clarity and enlightenment, such as Paul’s or George Fox’s or even our own for that matter, they carry with them a back story.  Last week we heard a bit of Paul’s struggles and in his letters to the early churches he gives us glimpses every so often of the back story.   George Fox’s testimony has an interesting back story as well.  If you every have read Fox’s journal, it paints a picture of struggle – development – and slow painstaking growth. Take for instance this from his journal,

“But my troubles continued, and I was often under great temptations; and I fasted much, and walked abroad in solitary places many days, and often took my Bible and went and sat in hollow trees and lonesome places till night came in; and frequently in the night I walked mournfully about by myself, for I was a man of sorrows in the times of the first workings of the Lord in me.”

I don’t know about you, but I can relate to this Quaker hero of the faith.  His backstory is real – it’s genuine. He admits temptation, loneliness, mourning, even trouble and struggle. 

Paul describes for himself a similar path leading up to our scripture for today. 

In verses 7-12 he states,

7-12 If you only look at us, you might well miss the brightness. We carry this precious Message around in the unadorned clay pots of our ordinary lives. That’s to prevent anyone from confusing God’s incomparable power with us. As it is, there’s not much chance of that. You know for yourselves that we’re not much to look at. We’ve been surrounded and battered by troubles, but we’re not demoralized; we’re not sure what to do, but we know that God knows what to do; we’ve been spiritually terrorized, but God hasn’t left our side; we’ve been thrown down, but we haven’t broken. What they did to Jesus, they do to us—trial and torture, mockery and murder; what Jesus did among them, he does in us—he lives! Our lives are at constant risk for Jesus’ sake, which makes Jesus’ life all the more evident in us. While we’re going through the worst, you’re getting in on the best!

Paul uses much stronger descriptors than even George Fox.

·        Surrounded and Battered

·        Demoralized

·        Not sure what to do

·        Spiritually terrorized

·        Trial and torture

·        Mockery and murder

This reminds me of our female Quaker ancestors who were beaten, jailed, and even executed for their witness.  

Elisabeth Fry

Lucretia Mott

Susan B. Anthony

Mary Dyer

Margaret Fell

Sarah and Angelina Grimke

Jane Addams…

And the list could go on…

They fought for women’s rights, jail reform, peace, and equality and so much more through adversity and suffering. Especially, in their day and age. Many of you have heard or read their back stories.

And I think the back stories of each of these people clearly show – in this life there is going to be suffering.  Let’s be honest the same is true of our backstories.   

• ·        For some of us it is going to be physical suffering.

• ·        For some of us it is mental and spiritual anguish (the sorrowful life)

• ·        For some of us it is going to be persecution for what we believe to be true.

Yet, we must not miss the hope which is evident in each of these and our stories!  The hope is the NEW LIFE God is working to bring to fruition inside each of us.

• ·        Paul found freedom, healing, and renewed power and he said his life was “filled up from within!”  

• ·        George Fox also was enlightened – finding grace and the revelation of God’s own spirit speaking to his condition from within.

• ·        Quaker women were strengthened to stand amidst great adversary and let their inner Light guide them into all Truth.  

• ·        Even the people of Corinth realized God had not left them, they were not broken completely, struggling beyond hope, because the ways of Jesus were coming alive in them and in their gathering.

And folks, if we are able to see it, the good news is coming alive in each of us!  Our suffering in this world is being transformed into NEW LIFE! 

When God breaks through…

When the Light comes on in our hearts…

When brokenness, suffering, demoralizing, ridicule, failure, (you fill in the blank) begin to be healed…

Then we become like Paul, George Fox, or our Quaker women…WE CAN’T KEEP QUIET!

I know for me when my faith is bolstered, my life has meaning, when the Light begins to burn brightly…I cannot contain it.  I have to tell other people.  As the scripture read:

“Every detail works to your advantage and to God’s glory: more and more grace, more and more people, more and more praise!” (vs. 14-15)

When we recognize what is going on inside of us, when we make that heart connection with God, it simply cannot be contained!

Yet as we have seen through the brief glimpses of Paul’s, George Fox’s, and our female Quaker ancestor’s lives – what we are talking about is a PROCESS and it takes time.  It is not something one simply achieves – it takes personal discipline, awareness, and an acknowledgment that sometimes the struggles, the troubles, the brokenness, the sorrow, the pain, etc. is difficult. Living the Christ Life is not an easy path. Jesus even said we would have to “count the cost” of living this way.  

Yet like the people we have discusses and many others before us, they refused to give up. Oh, I am sure they at times wanted to give up.  I know I have wanted to give up.

But look at what Paul says to the Corinthians in verse 16…

16-18 So we’re not giving up. How could we!

And then he continues…

Even though on the outside it often looks like things are falling apart on us, on the inside, where God is making new life, not a day goes by without his unfolding grace. These hard times are small potatoes compared to the coming good times, the lavish celebration prepared for us. There’s far more here than meets the eye. The things we see now are here today, gone tomorrow. But the things we can’t see now will last forever.

You and I may be at this very moment…

• ·        physically falling apart

• ·        emotionally or spiritually struggling. 

• ·        Feeling older or inadequate

• ·        worn out or without life

• ·        maybe things aren’t working out,

• ·        or you can’t seem to keep it together,

• ·        or you are failing at work or needing to seek a new job.

No matter what, God is still at work inside you.

Here is he good news for us this morning.  

“…on the inside, where God is making new life, not a day goes by without his unfolding grace.” 

God is still at work in our hearts. 

God is preparing us right now (in the present moment) for all she has in store for us. 

God is birthing LIFE inside you and me at all times. 

The query for this morning is…

Will we recognize God making that new life in us?  Or will we ignore it?  Or not believe it? Or stifle it?

What I believe God is saying to each of us gathered here (or listening online)…

First Friends, these hard times are small potatoes compared to the coming good times, the lavish celebration prepared for you!

We may not be able to see all that God is up to – or has been doing.  But we have hope that what God is doing will be longstanding – or what we may call eternal.

Thus Paul gives us one last thought…

There’s far more here than meets the eye. The things we see now are here today, gone tomorrow. But the things we can’t see now will last forever.

Of has he wrote in his first letter to the Corinthians…

“We don’t yet see things clearly. We’re squinting in a fog, peering through a mist.  But it won’t be long before the weather clears and the sun shines bright!  We’ll see it all then, see it all clearly as God sees us.  Knowing him directly just as he knows us!”

That “sun shining bright” is you and me!  Embrace your inner light and let it shine this week.

3-1-20 - Companions of the Way

Companions of the Way

Indianapolis First Friends Quaker Meeting

Pastor Bob Henry

March 1, 2020

Philippians 1:19-27 (MSG)

And I’m going to keep that celebration going because I know how it’s going to turn out. Through your faithful prayers and the generous response of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, everything he wants to do in and through me will be done. I can hardly wait to continue on my course. I don’t expect to be embarrassed in the least. On the contrary, everything happening to me in this jail only serves to make Christ more accurately known, regardless of whether I live or die. They didn’t shut me up; they gave me a pulpit! Alive, I’m Christ’s messenger; dead, I’m his bounty. Life versus even more life! I can’t lose.

22-26 As long as I’m alive in this body, there is good work for me to do. If I had to choose right now, I hardly know which I’d choose. Hard choice! The desire to break camp here and be with Christ is powerful. Some days I can think of nothing better. But most days, because of what you are going through, I am sure that it’s better for me to stick it out here. So I plan to be around awhile, companion to you as your growth and joy in this life of trusting God continues. You can start looking forward to a great reunion when I come visit you again. We’ll be praising Christ, enjoying each other.

27-30 Meanwhile, live in such a way that you are a credit to the Message of Christ. Let nothing in your conduct hang on whether I come or not. Your conduct must be the same whether I show up to see things for myself or hear of it from a distance. Stand united, singular in vision, contending for people’s trust in the Message, the good news, not flinching or dodging in the slightest before the opposition.

This morning we turn to Paul’s letter to the Philippians. This letter was written by Paul and probably Timothy – since they were in prison together. It was supposedly carried by Epaphroditus to the people of Philippi. I had Cindy skip the intro so we could get into the meat of the letter. 

Paul has just heard good news from Philippi and we find him rejoicing or celebrating.  If Cindy hadn’t read to you that Paul and Timothy were in prison, you may have been surprised when coming to the line when Paul exclaims, “…everything happening to me in this jail…”  Paul in one sentence says they are rejoicing and celebrating and in the next says, “by the way, I am in jail, and I don’t really care if I live or die.” It seems a very interesting scenario. My first thought was Paul might have needed some help.  Maybe he and Timothy had lost it. 

But then I started to reflect on this a bit more…

Have you ever had something that keeps you rejoicing

or keeps the celebration going?

Maybe something that makes you feel like you are on cloud nine.

Maybe you have fallen in love.

Maybe you have received good news.

Maybe you witnessed a miracle or something that opened your eyes to a new discovery – something that you can’t stop thinking about?  So much that the bad parts of life seem a lot better, maybe even are moved to the back burner. 

I remember the summer I met Sue. That entire summer was like none other. I can’t remember a bad thing that happened.  I was between my freshmen and sophomore year of college – going through major life transitions, but that summer I was in love like I had never been before.

Or I remember when we had each of our three boys.  I was so excited about meeting my children, the sleep deprivation, the stress of work - life itself stood still.

Or I remember when I successfully defended my doctoral dissertation.  I walked out of that room with celebration and rejoicing.  Even though just a few months prior, we had moved across the country to Oregon, and were still trying to get adjusted to life, new schools for the boys, some challenges at our meeting that were arising. – somehow all those took the backburner as I celebrated my accomplishment.

When things are going well, or life is looking up, the difficulties seem to vanish or at least seem less burdensome.  But if I was in prison like Paul and Timothy, I may be thinking differently.  Prison was much more rudimentary in Paul and Timothy’s days than it is today. They were probably shackled to the wall, with no toilets, beds, etc… 

Actually, I have wondered if someone came and threw me in jail for what I preached from this pulpit I don’t think I would have the same hopeful outlook on the situation as Paul did.

I don’t know about you, but when things aren’t going so well in life…

·        I don’t find myself rejoicing or celebrating.

·        I don’t find myself filled with a lot of hope.

·        And I definitely am not saying that I don’t care if I live or die. 

            My mind would go first to my wife and children.

            My friends and family.

Actually, like many of you, I often go to worry, maybe even fretting, maybe even physically shutting down.  Sometimes, I even go to fear and I begin putting up walls of protection.

But where I can relate to Paul is that when I start to do this, I begin to recognize the fact that I may not be in a physical prison, but I have my own “prisons” in which I want deliverance.

Think about it for yourself.. What are the prisons you find yourself within?

Maybe it is a prison of career or success.

Maybe it is a prison of wealth or poverty.  

Maybe it is a prison of politics.

Maybe it is a prison of health.

Maybe it is a prison of family or personal relationships.

Maybe it is a prison of fear, depression, grief, or abuse.

What are the prisons you find yourself within?

As I pondered this, it had me questioning Paul’s response.  He was in a physical prison for his beliefs.  His life was being threatened, and he knew the consequences that sent him to prison. So how in the world could he be rejoicing and celebrating?  Had he lost his mind?  Was he being sadistic?

No, Paul had committed to being a pupil under his master teacher, Jesus.  He was trying to stay alive, both spiritually and physically and he was realizing it was all connected to his faith journey.  

Paul gives us a bit of an insight when he shares an intimate conversation going on in his mind in his epistle. (Remember our “prisons” can effect how we think about things and how we see things…good and bad.) Paul’s prison was causing him to see from different angles.  

In verse. 22 Paul shares the following:

As long as I’m alive in this body, there is good work for me to do. If I had to choose right now, I hardly know which I’d choose. Hard choice! The desire to break camp here and be with Christ is powerful. Some days I can think of nothing better. But most days, because of what you are going through, I am sure that it’s better for me to stick it out here. So I plan to be around awhile, companion to you as your growth and joy in this life of trusting God continues.

It is easy to see from the choices that Paul would just like to get out of this world. I can totally understand this. “Calgon, take me away!” Some theologians today would call this “escapism” and entire theologies have been created to support this mentality.  For instance, Rapture Theology is simply an “escapist” fantasy.

I am sure you have heard someone at some time say, “This is not our world, our real home is in heaven, so forget about taking care of this planet. I just want to go be with Jesus.”  Now, that is a bit selfish and does not sound very much like what Jesus taught.

Yet, I hear a bit of that in Paul’s words, especially when he says, “The desire to break camp here and be with Christ is powerful.”

But there is his other choice – some may say this sounds like he is having a “savior complex” but I think there is some real depth to what Paul is saying. He admits…

I need to stick it out here.

I plan to be around as a companion to you as you grow in your faith.

Hmmm…this sounds like what we all just did a few minutes ago with the children that were brought forth for dedication. We said we would stick around and be a Friend as they grew in the faith.  

I kind of have this scene of Paul writing down these options and sharing them with Timothy, and with a quizzical look on his face, Timothy says,

“Paul, you can’t go…”The people of Philippi need you, we need you – I need you!”

And at that point they began to imagine the possibility of a joyous reunion with their companions that would take place – the party, the celebration that awaited them when Paul and Timothy were released from their prison and back in Philippi with their friends. 

It was a moment of hope, of companionship, of realizing the journey they were on and are still on, and how so important the community of faith was to them.  Yes, it would be better to be directly with Jesus, but then just maybe Paul realizes he could be with Jesus – because there was that of God in his companions and especially Timothy.

So, as they returned from the brief euphoria and hopeful dream sharing, the reality of their jail time came back into focus.  And Paul writes a bit more focused and realistically saying,

Let nothing in your conduct hang on whether I come or not. Your conduct must be the same whether I show up to see things for myself or hear of it from a distance. Stand united, singular in vision, contending for people’s trust in the Message, the good news, not flinching or dodging in the slightest before the opposition.

What Paul is saying is – here is how to handle yourselves whether in prison, facing opposition, or when simply living out the ways of Jesus.   

·        Stand United.

·        Singular in Vision.

·        Contending for people’s trust in the ways of Jesus (the good news that he taught and lived)

·        And don’t flinch or dodge the opposition – face them and speak truth to power! 

This is the picture, I want our children, those in our community, those outside the church, or – for that matter – the world to see. Now, this means we are going to need to reflect a bit, like Paul (maybe even from our own prisons).

Ask yourself this morning some Queries as we enter waiting worship (you will find them on the back of our bulletin).

·        What is the opposition I must face? Might it be what wants to put me in “prison”?

·        What prison(s) do I find myself within currently?  

·        How can I rejoice, have hope, and become alive among the oppositions or prisons of life?

2-23-20 - Practicing Transfiguration

Practicing Transfiguration

Indianapolis First Friends Quaker Meeting

Pastor Bob Henry

February 23, 2020

Mark 9:2-12 (NRSV)

2 Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and John, and led them up a high mountain apart, by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, 3 and his clothes became dazzling white, such as no one on earth could bleach them. 4 And there appeared to them Elijah with Moses, who were talking with Jesus. 5 Then Peter said to Jesus, “Rabbi, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” 6 He did not know what to say, for they were terrified. 7 Then a cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud there came a voice, “This is my Son, the Beloved; listen to him!” 8 Suddenly when they looked around, they saw no one with them anymore, but only Jesus.

9 As they were coming down the mountain, he ordered them to tell no one about what they had seen, until after the Son of Man had risen from the dead. 10 So they kept the matter to themselves, questioning what this rising from the dead could mean. 11 Then they asked him, “Why do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?” 12 He said to them, “Elijah is indeed coming first to restore all things. How then is it written about the Son of Man, that he is to go through many sufferings and be treated with contempt?

This week, I found myself having a conversation that led to a discussion on the Season of Lent.  Not the typical topic for a Quaker minister to engage. The topic arose because this Wednesday, February 26th is Ash Wednesday and it happens to be the day before my birthday. A joke was made that I would already be fasting as I celebrated my birthday, so I would have to carefully choose what I was going to give up for Lent – maybe not Birthday Cake or Dessert this year.

As we continued to discuss Ash Wednesday our conversation soon moved to the season of Lent.  Now, as both a Lutheran (growing up) and an Anglican priest later in life, I celebrated the liturgical season of Lent for many, many years (as I know many of you who were transplanted from liturgical churches did as well).  I learned from early on that Lent started near or around my birthday and ended 40 days (well 47 days later, if you include the Feast Days or Sundays) with the celebration of Easter.

Then came the question I always get – “So what are you giving up this year for Lent?”  To which I simply replied, “Around 10 years ago I gave up Lent for Lent because I am a Quaker.” That always catches people off guard and causes awkward chuckles. That is when the quizzical look on the person’s face demands that I explain.  I usually try and explain how Quaker religious practice is pretty much on the opposite end of the Christian spectrum from Catholicism. Friends, from early on, believed that the birth, death, and resurrection of Christ was to be remembered each day of the year, not just on particular holy days. And I would always end with explaining how many Friends believed that it was hypocritical to fast during Lent and then eat excessively during the rest of the year, so they choose to live simply all year long.  By this point the questions are always visibly bubbling to the surface and I know that my conversation is going to take a lot more explaining.   

Well, after the conversation ended, I found myself a bit nostalgic thinking about my liturgical days. I chuckled a bit remembering the many years I tried to give up watching TV, drinking soda or eating desserts, or picking up a healthy habit to replace the time spent on my smart phone.  I remember how one year I gave up watching TV and listening to the radio, and without checking what was happening in the world I preached a sermon about natural disasters not realizing an earthquake and tsunami had literally devastated Indonesia that very morning. Talk about awkward. 

So, with all these memories on my mind I sat down to write my sermon for today. As I pondered Lent kicking off with Ash Wednesday this Thursday, I remembered that there was one last official Sunday celebration before Lent began, which would actually be today. In the Anglican Church, we called it the Feast of the Transfiguration.  As a young man beginning to understand the Church Year I never fully understood this day. Actually, since Ryan White was headlining the news in Indiana when I was a child, I remember getting confused and exchanging Transfiguration for Transfusion. I mean we talked about the blood of Jesus so much at church and everyone was talking about transfusions on TV – I sensed that was a logical mistake. 

Then one day in my 8th grade confirmation class, we read the story of the Transfiguration (which Carrie read this morning). I was kind of confused and disappointed that there was no blood involved. And as a junior higher, this was one weird story.  And then my pastor explained that this story was not the only like it in the Bible.  He had us turn to Daniel 10:5-6.  Now, all I knew about Daniel I learned in Sunday School and it was the story of Daniel and the Lion’s Den. That was until we read the following:

“5 I looked up and saw a man clothed in linen, with a belt of gold from Uphaz around his waist. 6 His body was like beryl (or crystal), his face like lightning, his eyes like flaming torches, his arms and legs like the gleam of burnished bronze, and the sound of his words like the roar of a multitude.”

First, this sounded a lot like the description of Jesus at the Transfiguration. And later in Daniel 10 this story speaks very similar words as in the transfiguration of Jesus - specifically the words “beloved” and “listen to him.”

My pastor continued to utilize these two stories to trace the mountain top experiences throughout the Bible. We talked about…

·        Moses receiving the 10 Commandments on Mt. Sinai from God.

·        Elijah being sent back to Mt. Sinai where he will experience God’s glory personally.

·        And then Moses and Elijah showing up on Mt. Tabor with Jesus where he was transfigured.

I could go on and amaze you with the similarities of these three mountain top events, it is almost as crazy as the coincidences between the deaths of Abraham Lincoln and John F. Kennedy, yet in all honesty I think these details simply distract us from finding an appropriate application of this story for our lives.  I believe the story of the transfiguration is much different than the more practical or even believable stories and parables in scripture. This story always seemed more a story of legend or mythology to me. 

But maybe that is because I was taught to see it through Peter’s eyes.  Almost every time I used to preach on the Transfiguration, I focused on Peter’s response to this mountain top experience.  His response was relatable – “if only we could keep this experience going.”  You know what I am talking about. “Why can’t this vacation, this gathering, this worship experience, this book, this concert, this kiss, this…you name it last forever?”  Then I would continue the sermon and preach about the reality check of having to descend the mountain to get back to the ordinary.  We can’t always live life on mountain top experiences - was a worthy lesson to understand – but was it the point?

I always encourage those that want to grow to “rotate the jewel” and look from a different perspective. I took my own advice and decided to look one more time at this story from a different perspective.  Carl Gregg was the first to give me a different view by talking about learning to “Practice Transfiguration.” This sounded familiar.  You may remember a couple of Easter’s ago, I preached on “Practicing Resurrection” a phrase that even Carl related to Wendell Berry’s famous poem “The Mad Farmer’s Liberation Front.” Which if you know the poem, ends with the phrase, “Practice Resurrection.”

I have processed and expanded that idea on many occasions, but how the heck do you “Practice Transfiguration.” This was when my eyes began to open.  Transfiguration is about LIGHT, LISTENING, BECOMING ENLIGHTENED – and it is all about coming into your full self and allowing the light of God’s love to shine from your inside out. Looking at it that way makes this a very Quaker story.

I have said so many times that we need to live like Jesus, but I never applied it to this story. I always found myself wanting to take a seat and watch the show with Peter.  Carl Gregg said we need to move beyond admiring Jesus’ Transfiguration and start practicing it. That was a challenge and had me thinking.   

So, what does that look like?  Carl had me reflect on the following thoughts from Marianne Williamson’s book “A Return to Love.” If you’ve ever read any of Marianne Williamson’s books you will find her often talking about Quakers. She also talks about Light, enlightenment, and making the glory of God shine within us. Just listen to what she wrote and how much it sounds like transfiguration.

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our LIGHT, not our darkness that most frightens us.  We ask ourselves, Who am I to be BRILLIANT, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God.  Your playing small does not serve the world.  There is nothing ENLIGHTENED about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you.  We are all meant to SHINE, as children do.  We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us.  It’s not just in some of us; its in everyone.  And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.  As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

This was true for Jesus at his transfiguration and it is true for us. What Marianne Williamson just described is personal transfiguration.  As Quakers, we know it comes from within us, that it’s for everyone, and that when we live like Jesus and let our inner light shine, we give those around us permission to do the same. The disciples didn’t get it at the moment, they still didn’t get it as they were heading down the mountain.  They were still in fear and feeling inadequate, but that would change in the coming months.  Peter, James and John would be transfigured in time and go on to change the world.

And I believe, so will we, but it is going to take some practice.

That may look different for each of us.  Some of us will be transfigured through times of prayer, meditation, journaling, others will be on a retreat or out in nature, even others will be in a conversation, a small group, listening to music, reading a book, or even in meeting for worship or the silence of unprogrammed worship. These are just some of the many ways we can practice transfiguration here at First Friends, where we allow the light of God’s love to shine out from within us to the world. 

Folks, I am privileged because I experience the transfiguration of people at First Friends almost every day. 

The query we need to ask is…Do we have eyes to see the transfiguration? 

Do we see it happening each week in Seeking Friends, Wired Word, Children’s Ministry, and Youth Group?

Do we see it happens at Monday Meditational Worship and Wednesday Night Unprogrammed Worship? 

At Friday Sing-a-longs.

At Oak Leaf Meeting for Reading.

At the Food Pantry

At Seasoned Friends

At Threshing Together and women’s gatherings.

Do we see Transfiguration take place as stamps are sorted, as the choir practices, as the ushers and greeters serve? 

And we could go on and on…

I do.  I see the light in each of you giving others permission to do the same, liberating them from their fears and allowing the light of God’s love to transfigure those around us.  And as we practice this transfiguration in our own lives, at First Friends, and in our communities, in our jobs and families, we allow the Light of God’s love to change our world. 

Folks, It is time to let our lights shine! Will you join me in practicing transfiguration this week?

·        Where am I feeling inadequate or fearful in life? 

·        How do I “practice transfiguration” in the daily? 

·        Where do I see transfiguration happening at First Friends, my community, my world?

2-16-20 - Speaking the Language of Love

Speaking the Language of Love

Indianapolis First Friends Quaker Meeting

Pastor Bob Henry

February 16, 2020

Mark 1:40-45

40 A leper came to him begging him, and kneeling he said to him, “If you choose, you can make me clean.” 41 Moved with pity, Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, and said to him, “I do choose. Be made clean!” 42 Immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean. 43 After sternly warning him he sent him away at once, 44 saying to him, “See that you say nothing to anyone; but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.” 45 But he went out and began to proclaim it freely, and to spread the word, so that Jesus could no longer go into a town openly, but stayed out in the country; and people came to him from every quarter.

We have spent several weeks talking about peace, and last week we continued those thoughts as we celebrated our Scouts and their peacekeeping efforts. This week, it seems appropriate to talk a bit about love, especially since Friday was Valentine’s Day. 

To begin, I want to lay a bit of a foundation. From all my studies, I have come to believe love to be the “native language” of the universal church. Jesus said everything, all the Law and prophets, could be summed up in two phrases: Love God and love your neighbor as yourself (that in a nutshell makes love the key action). I have also at different times learned that…

Love is the wind that fills us!

Love is the fire in our hearts!

Love is the language that transforms!

And the main query I want us to ponder today is, “Do I speak love?”  

I spent some time this week pondering that query – Do I speak love?  As a pastor, I not only do a great deal of speaking, I also spend a lot of time listening. I often find myself wondering if others are “speaking love” or if they are relying on something else. I found the best way to work through my pondering was to turn the tables on myself and ask, Do I speak love? What I realized was, speaking love, depends on several factors.

• Who am I engaging?

• How open are they to my brand of love?

• Are they worthy of my love?

• Have they rejected my love before?

• Is our relationship damaged making it harder to love?

• Could I be unwilling to love them?

I find myself often turning for advice to the American Trappist Monk, Thomas Merton (who’s mother ironically was a Quaker and greatly influenced how he saw the world). Merton once said,

The beginning of love is the will to not let those we love be perfectly themselves, the resolution not to twist them to fit our own image. If in loving them we do not love what they are, but only their potential likeness to ourselves, then we do not love them: we only love the reflection of ourselves we find in them.    

Merton’s words speak to the depths of my being.

Maybe you wrestle with some of the same questions and thoughts that I do. In our world today, it seems very easy to write people off and give an excuse as to why they are unworthy of our love for a multitude of reasons – ultimately making them into lepers.

For example: Just the other day, I heard someone say, I could never love my child if they were a Republican. Really, your own child? Wow!   

Yet, Sue and I have heard something similar to this before. We helped youth in Silverton, OR who were homeless because their parents said they could no longer love or accept them because of their sexual orientation. (Did you know that The National Coalition on Homelessness reports that 40% of homeless youth identify as LGBTQ and 62% of them attempt to commit suicide each year.)  

In Jesus’ day the people most difficult to love were the lepers (mostly because of their rare disease which was visibly off-putting and seriously contagious). Jeff read to us one of the briefer stories in scripture about Jesus healing a man with leprosy. Even though it is brief, there is a great deal to ponder in those 5 short passages about how we speak love to those most difficult to love in our lives.  

So, let me begin with lepers and then move to looking at Jesus. 

To look at lepers, I think expanding the category may be helpful in our day. To do that, I would like to turn to Roger Landry who gives us a wider perspective of lepers to consider, he says,

“…what Christ is calling us to do is to love the outcasts with the same love that He does…The following are some of the outcasts we may be called to love with Christ's love:

[Please note: Roger gives us some new categories of lepers to consider – I found these helpful for building an awareness of how easily we remove people from our lives.]

• The bodily leper: those whom the world considers ugly or unattractive, or those whose illnesses are so long-lasting that few want to care for them;

• The psychological lepers: those with mental illness or mental disabilities, about whom others make jokes, but for whom they make no time;

• The spiritual or moral lepers: those who have committed very public and embarrassing acts, and those who think that they cannot be forgiven.

• The economic lepers: the homeless or the very poor, who are shut off from society and the things most of the rest of society take for granted;

• The racial [or ethnic] lepers: those who are discriminated against because of their nation of origin or the color of their skin.

• The emotional lepers: those who, because of their own psyche or others’ actions, feel completely alone and abandoned.

These are among the ones Jesus wants us to reach out to and heal through our very human touch.

Sadly, it has too often been the institution of the church that has labeled and removed the “lepers” for us. Many denominations, religious groups, and politically focused Christian groups have labeled “lepers” as either “in or out.”  This has created an us verse them mentality, erasing the opportunity for you and I to see the “lepers” in our lives with our own eyes - allowing us to decide for ourselves.  I am so glad that First Friends continues to work and hone our love for outcasts, but also I want us to be aware of and remember the responsibility that loving the “lepers” of our world demands.  

I will have to say, some of the greatest people I have come to love and build friendships with are not like me at all and many would be considered “lepers” by many other people I know.  Actually, when I really think about it, I too have been considered a “leper” to people. Maybe you have, too.

Whether others or ourselves, let’s be honest, “lepers” are most of the time created by our fears. I am sure if we searched deep inside ourselves, we would find the fear that causes us to reject or remove certain people from our lives.

So now let’s turn to Jesus.

In our scripture for today it says that “Jesus was moved with pity.”  In the Greek it would be translated that Jesus was INDIGNANT to the depth of his bowels. Yes, the Greek actually speaks of it literally going that deep.

Add this depth to the definition of indignant:

“Feeling or showing anger or annoyance

at what is perceived as unfair treatment”

and you get a different perspective of the passage. Jesus was so troubled by the unfair treatment of this leper that he overflowed with compassion for him to the depth of his being.

Remember, the religious authorities of Jesus day had labeled who were “in or out.” 

• Prostitutes were out.

• Gentiles were out.

• Tax collectors were out.

• Demon possessed people were out.

• Samaritans were out.

• Lepers were out.

• And the list went on…and they continued to add to it.

What I find really interesting is the fact that the people the religious authorities said we were out, were the same people Jesus attempted to bring in.  [Repeat]  That is until Jesus became the “leper” and then they wanted him out – ultimately dead.

But Jesus was indignant – so much so that he made himself unclean for the sake of this leper.  Jewish history was clear that by just touching the leper, Jesus had committed a horrific sin. Jesus too would have to be removed from their presence because of this. 

Just think about that for a moment.  Jesus was willing to sin in the eyes of the religious authorities and their followers for someone to be loved, healed, and accepted into the fold.  

Folks, the love of God (the native language of the universal church) transcends our ideas, our parameters, our understanding of who is accepted and who is not.

Remember what Jesus said in Matthew 21:31?

“Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you.”

I sense the reason it is so difficult to “speak love” is because we, the church, have spent way to long living in a system of fear that closes the door and turns more and more people into “lepers.”

I believe the picture Jesus shows throughout scripture is an INCLUSIVE LOVE. 

I cannot emphasize this enough in this political year. As Quakers, as Christians, as religious and spiritual people, we should be about speaking the language of love that Jesus modeled. We need to be vocal in this time of great division, in this time when people are being categorized, labeled, and told their place by politicians, churches, religious groups, and even our own relatives and families.

It reminds me of something Ronald Rolheiser says in the book “The Holy Longing.” You have probably heard me quote this before, but it is so important to remember today.  He says,

“When Scripture tells us that, in Christ, there should be no male or female, no slave or free person, and no Jew or Gentile, it is telling us that there should also be no liberal or conservative, white or colored, new or traditional, feminist or antifeminist, pro-life or pro-choice, Democrat or Republican, Tory or Labor, or any other such ethic or ideological pocket that matters in terms of church. John Shea once suggested that the heavenly banquet table is open to everyone who is ready to sit down with everyone. That names the inclusivity required of any church member…The task of the church is to stand toe to toe, shoulder to shoulder, and heart to heart with people absolutely different from ourselves.”

It is clear from the record of scripture that Jesus lived this life.

            Jesus was willing to clean the leper and touch him.

            Jesus was willing to stand between the stoning crowd for the prostitute.

            Jesus was willing to invite the tax collector to be his disciple.

            Jesus was willing to talk to and acknowledge the Samaritan women.

            Jesus spoke the language of love.

People of First Friends, we have such a beautiful opportunity as a Quaker Meeting during these crazy times. Our testimonies or S.P.I.C.E.S. support this being a place where we can stand toe to toe, shoulder to shoulder, and heart to heart with all types of people…We have the opportunity to love like Jesus, to clean, to touch, to stand between, to invite, and to talk and seek to understand the outcasts and lepers around us. Yet, I will be the first to say, learning to speak our native tongue is not easy. That is why we need our community (each other) to challenge and support us.  We need them to help us understand and identify those we treat as “lepers” and call us out when we do.  And we need them to help keep us accountable to speaking our language of love so EVERYONE may have the opportunity to sit-down with EVERYONE else.

Now, let’s talk very practical. Since we are aware that speaking love is a vital topic, especially in this politically divisive year, we have decided to partner with the Indianapolis Peace and Justice Center for a night of challenging, supporting, and learning to speak our native tongue as it specifically relates to politics – a topic sadly known for producing “lepers.”

On Thursday, February 25th from 7-8:30 we are inviting you to join us in our fellowship hall to play a game that actually (if you can believe it) makes political conversations fun, instead of aggravating or intolerable – and I have a sense it will teach us how to, more appropriately, speak our native language. The game is based on conversations around a family dinner table. Each person plays a role while tackling some of the thorny issues we face in this difficult political year.

So, I officially invite you to join us for “Reclaiming our Democracy: One Dinner Table at a Time.” 

Now, let us enter into waiting worship. There are some queries to ponder on the back of the bulletin this morning. Please remember that waiting worship is not a time for announcements or personal commentary – if you need help with discerning if you need to speak, take time to review one of the cards in the pew in front of you to see if you are really being led to speak.   

• Who do I need to work on “speaking love” to this week?

• Who, because of my fear, have I made a “leper” in my life?

• How can First Friends become even better at speaking our native tongue – love?

2-9-20 - Peacemakers Come in All Sizes

Peacekeepers Come in All Sizes

Indianapolis First Friends Quaker Meeting

Pastor Bob Henry

February 9, 2020

Matthew 5:14-16

14 “You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. 15 No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.

I spent some time this week researching the ever-evolving Scouts organization in which we are celebrating this day.  It started when I came across an article a while back from The Atlantic about Boy Scouts holding together a war-torn country.  Since, for the last several weeks, we have been talking about “peace” I thought it was an appropriate story to share.  I will be doing that a bit later in the message. 

As a former Cub Scout, myself, I have always valued those many nights back in grade school meeting in my friend, Andy’s basement. Andy’s dad was our scout leader and he was one of the most gentle and kind dad’s, other than my own, that I knew.  I looked forward to being dropped off at Andy’s house, gathering with my scout friends and working on projects.  Because my Scout Troop was part of our church, we would always begin with a prayer, which may have been the first time I led a prayer out loud in a group.  We did service projects, learned about nature, talked about being good citizens, and we competed against each other for the annual Pine Wood Derby trophy (one of my favorite parts of scouts as it entailed using my artistic gifts).

Since I did not have older brothers and sisters who were scouts, I looked elsewhere for examples.  For many years I was captivated by astronauts and the space shuttle program.  All of the original astronauts, like Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin were boy scouts and many of the space shuttle astronauts were as well.  Ironically, when I was doing some research this week, I found some surprising men and women that were scouts that may surprise you.  Did you know…

Mariah Carey, Taylor Swift, Celine Dion, Queen Elizabeth II, Venus Williams,

Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia), Queen Latifah, Martha Stewart and Gloria Steinman were all scouts.

And Hank Aaron, Jack Black, Jimmy Buffet, Jon Bon Jovi, Jon Heder (Napoleon Dynamite), Chris Pratt, Steven Spielberg, Bill Gates were as well. 

And a couple summers ago when we were on vacation, we visited Martin Luther King Jr.’s boyhood home and the church he pastored just down the road.  We heard how he too was a scout and his father a troop leader at Ebenezer Baptist Church. In the museum at Ebenezer Baptist, we saw the register from Troop 151 in Atlanta that shows that Martin Luther King Jr. was a scout from the age of 11 to 13.  Ebenezer Baptist continues this tradition in the heart of Atlanta where they still host Troop and Pack 213 every other Sunday. 

I cannot even begin to image how proud the young scouts at Ebenezer Baptist must be, to think they are carrying on this tradition of their hero. 

Martin Luther King Jr. continued to promote the ideals he learned through the scouts program at his church.  And during his acceptance speech for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964, King said the following (just listen to how much speaks to the ideals of scouting)…

“I refuse to accept the view that mankind is so tragically bound to the starless midnight of racism and war that the bright daybreak of peace and brotherhood can never become a reality. I refuse to accept the cynical notion that nation after nation must spiral down a militaristic stairway into the hell of thermonuclear destruction. I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality. This is why right temporarily defeated is stronger than evil triumphant. I believe that even amid today’s mortar bursts and whining bullets, there is still hope for a brighter tomorrow.”

King spoke of that “Peace and brotherhood” (and I would include “sisterhood” as well, today) of that hope for a brighter tomorrow.  Ironically, the founder of scouting Robert Baden-Powell would have agreed with King.  From the very beginning, Robert Baden-Powell saw his scouting movement as a way to achieve peace and worldwide brotherhood. History says that,

“Two years after the end of WWI, with the world still reeling from the horror and losses of that conflict, the Scouts held their first world jamboree. At the closing ceremony, Baden-Powell asked participants to take the spirit of brotherhood and the Scout Law they had felt at the gathering home with them “so that we may help to develop peace and happiness in the world and goodwill among all Scouts. Ever since then, Scouts have been practicing citizenship, doing service, spreading messages of peace, and selflessly sacrificing for others in an effort to make Baden-Powell’s vision a reality.”

I have never thought of the Scouts as a peace movement, but clearly that was part of the founder’s vision. 

Over the years the Scouts have referenced several important historical documents in their continued evolution. Such as quoting the constitution of UNESCO in 1945 where the Scouts pointed out the following to support their cause,

“Since wars begin in the minds of men, it is in the minds of men that the defenses of peace must be constructed.”

Or Article 26 (2) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights from 1948, where the Scouts emphasized,

“Education should be directed to the full development of the human personality and to the strengthening of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. It shall promote understanding, tolerance and friendship among all nations, racial or religious groups, and shall further the activities of the United Nations for the maintenance of peace.”

Even Robert Baden-Powell, himself wrote in 1929,

“We should take care, in inculcating patriotism into our boys and girls, that it is a patriotism above the narrow sentiments which usually stops at one’s own country, and thus inspires jealousy and enmity in dealing with others.  Our patriotism should be of the wider, nobler kind which recognizes justice and reasonableness in the claims of others and which leads our country into comradeship with…the other nations of the world.

The first step to this end is to develop peace and goodwill within our own borders, by training our youth of both sexes to its practice as their habit of life; so that the jealousies of town against town, class against class and sect against sect no longer exist; and then to extend this good feeling beyond our frontiers towards our neighbors.”

This is the importance of the message of peace that the scouting movement offers our world today.  In 2011 after the devastation of 9/11, the World Scout Committee launched the Messengers of Peace initiative to recognize Scouts who work for peace and brotherhood, and support them in doing even more to create a better world.  I was surprised at how similar this initiative fit within the Quaker S.P.I.C.E.S.  The Messengers of Peace initiative encompasses three dimensions (just listen at how much they resemble our testimonies):

1.     Personal: harmony, justice, and equality

2.     Community: peace as opposed to hostility or violent conflict.

3.     Relationships between humankind and its environment: security, social and economic welfare, and relationship with the environment.

And this takes me back to where I started this sermon, the article I read in The Atlantic.

The article was titled, “Boy Scouts Are Holding Together A War-Torn Country” but it was the subtitle that caught my Quaker eye.  It read, “In the Central African Republic, peacekeepers come in all sizes.” This is what we believe as Quakers – everyone – young and old has a voice!  

I would like to share the article to give you a picture of how Scouts are playing a crucial role in peacekeeping around the world.  

If you venture outside Bangui, the capital of the Central African Republic, it’s dangerous to travel alone. Journeying from village to village means navigating jungle or savanna without paved roads or reliable communication networks. Central African Republic straddles one of the world’s largest magnetic anomalies, so compasses often err. And conflict among more than a dozen armed religious groups has balkanized the country.

Amid all of this, one unlikely institution has become crucial to the country’s survival: the Boy Scouts. Like scouts the world over, members wear trim shorts and multicolor neckerchiefs—but their youthful uniform belies a grander-than-average sociopolitical mission. When they aren’t earning badges for cooking and woodworking, they’re guiding ailing villagers to hospitals, or distributing mosquito nets and food at refugee camps. Last year, as Simon Allison reported in Mail & Guardian, the boys investigated rumors of Ebola in a remote part of the country. The year before that, they helped negotiate the release of a Muslim community held hostage by armed groups.

Since 2013, when rebels staged a coup and religious violence flared, Central African Republic has been in a state of civil war. Today, the enfeebled government in Bangui relies on foreign aid agencies to hold the country together—and the agencies in turn rely on the country’s 20,000 boy scouts, who surpass Central African Republic’s largest armed factions in both size and geographic reach. UNICEF, for example, deploys boys to public squares to perform plays about hand-washing, and sends them door-to-door to promote the polio vaccine.

The peacekeeping role that scouts play in Central African Republic is more fitting than it might at first seem. Founded in 1907 by the British army officer Robert Baden-Powell, the scouting movement combines military reconnaissance tactics with a pacifist philosophy—in his famous book Scouting for Boys, Baden-Powell urged readers to think of themselves as “peace scouts.” According to Elleke Boehmer, a professor at Oxford, scouting technique was also strongly influenced by Baden-Powell’s observations during his extensive African travels. “The Ingonyama chorus—a central scouting chant—is a Zulu chant,” she told me. And the wooden beads on the uniform were inspired by “a Zulu necklace he once found during a raid.”

For many boys and young men in Central African Republic, scouting offers community, and keeps them from grimmer alternatives, such as being enlisted by local militias or drug dealers. Rod Gallaut, a scout leader in Bangui, told me that scout training helps young men secure work, and that he encourages child soldiers to lay down their weapons and join his troop.

Unsurprisingly, given Central African Republic’s pervasive sectarianism, Catholic, Muslim, and evangelical scouts have long had separate troops. In the past few years, however, they’ve begun to team up—motivated in part by a desire to join scouting’s official world body, which requires each member country to have a united national movement. In 2017, Gallaut, who is Christian, became friends with a Muslim scout leader when they traveled together to Cameroon for a scouting conference. “This experience has changed my conception of Muslims,” he said. Scouts of different denominations now attend camps where they bond over music and sports. And they recently began laying the bricks of an interfaith training center—and earning badges in peacebuilding.

From “The Atlantic” written by Kevin Volkl, July 2019 Issue

The current scouts in this meetinghouse and their leaders, us former scouts, and those young ones coming up that will be scouts in the future, I pray that this story and history inspires you to be prepared to make a difference in our world. Obviously, the legacy of peacebuilding is not only a Scouts foundation, but ours as Quakers as well.  So I hope each of us here this morning, whether a Scout or not, would be dedicated to the vision of Robert Baden-Powell to…

…develop peace and goodwill within our own borders, by training our youth…to its practice as their habit of life; so that the jealousies of town against town, class against class and sect against sect no longer exist; and then to extend this good feeling beyond our frontiers towards our neighbors.”

I believe through Scouts, through our Affirmation Program, through our children’s meeting for worship, through children’s messages, mentoring, multigenerational ministries, lobbying for peaceful legislation, even through our excellent relationship with the co-op preschool housed in our building, we are raising and  training our children and youth to embrace peace, goodwill, and sister/brotherhood as a habit of life.  In these divided times, we need, even more, to dedicate ourselves to raising peacemakers of all sizes within our community.

Ask yourself this morning…

·        What am I doing to help train “peacemakers of all sizes” at First Friends and in my community?

·        How can I promote a more genuine and nobler patriotism which recognizes justice and reasonableness in the claims of others and which leads our country into comradeship with our own communities and our world?

·        How is First Friends leaving a legacy of peacemaking at First Friends?

Scout Sunday Prayer

O God, your will is that all your children should grow into fullness of life.
We lift to you the ministry of scouting.
We offer you thanks for camping,
to teach us that the world is our great home;
for study and work, to build character;
for service, to see our responsibility to those in need;
for encouragement in genuine patriotism and vital faith.
Bless the work of scouting, in this place and around the world,
that, through its efforts, the young may, like Jesus,
increase in wisdom and in stature, and in favor with you and all people.
Amen.

2-2-20 - Everything Coming Together for Peace

Everything Coming Together for Peace

Indianapolis First Friends Quaker Meeting

Pastor Bob Henry

February 2, 2020

Philippians 4:1-13 (NRSV)

1 Therefore, my brothers and sisters, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, my beloved.

2 I urge Euodia and I urge Syntyche to be of the same mind in the Lord. 3 Yes, and I ask you also, my loyal companion, help these women, for they have struggled beside me in the work of the gospel, together with Clement and the rest of my co-workers, whose names are in the book of life.

4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again, I will say, Rejoice. 5 Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. 6 Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

8 Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. 9 Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.

10 I rejoice in the Lord greatly that now at last you have revived your concern for me; indeed, you were concerned for me, but had no opportunity to show it. 11 Not that I am referring to being in need; for I have learned to be content with whatever I have. 12 I know what it is to have little, and I know what it is to have plenty. In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of being well-fed and of going hungry, of having plenty and of being in need. 13 I can do all things through him who strengthens me. 14 In any case, it was kind of you to share my distress.

In our text for today, Paul closes up his letter to the Philippians, and then he does some pleading for peace or urging them to get-along with each other. Specifically, those who have been traveling with Paul and Timothy. Paul actually points out three different categories of travelers:

1.     Loyal companions (some translations say close friends or even yoke fellows – people that were yoked together by a common purpose).

2.     Women – who have struggled alongside Paul (It would have been rather shocking to the establishment in his day to call out women as fellow partners in the work of the gospel.

3.     and Co-workers – or colleagues

I am sure as Paul and Timothy were working through this list of people, they would have some side conversations about specific situations:

            “If they would just agree.”

            “Those women have no voice – and have taken so much of the heat!”

            “What a great worker that Clement is.”

            “Man, these are some great people. Sure, they have problems – but they                    are great people – who’s names will go down in history.”  

Paul and Timothy were, as we say, “going down memory lane” – reminiscing their adventures and hoping to return to these folks and their work after they are released from prison.

But as Paul closes this epistle or letter, he takes a moment to write one last P.S.  He has a last word – I might call it a “reality check.”  Paul has been saying he was willing to die, remember these phrases of Paul…

            “For me to live is Christ and to die is gain. “

            “But whatever was for my profit, I now consider loss.”

            “Our citizenship is in heaven.”

And then Paul says, “Wait a minute! I need to encourage them – and I need to remind them.”

To REJOICE

To be GENTLE

To not be ANXIOUS

To PRAY (and not all requests but thanksgivings as well – balance it out)

And this will yield TRUE PEACE!

A peace that transcends our understanding. 

A peace we can’t fully wrap our minds around.

This is what Paul would call Christ’s Peace (the peace that Christ has been showing him through the way he lived.) It was a peace that brought reconciliation between us and our neighbors and with us and God.

This is what it says in 2 Corinthians 5:19 which I often use as a blessing or benediction at the end of our services.

“For God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not counting people’s sins against them.  And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.”

This was a different peace than the world often seeks.

Remember Paul and Timothy are writing from prison.  They understood the dire need for something more than worldly peace.  Worldly peace simply was considered a lack of conflict.  And Paul and Timothy knew that conflict was clearly part of this world.  You and I know this, too. 

Conflict is part of this world – it is part of the mundane aspects of life.  We are surrounded by all kinds of conflicts 24/7.

We can work a great deal on our personal conflicts.

We can have a good attitude.

We can have “inner peace” about life situations.

We can, as Paul, not worry about living or dying.

BUT – that doesn’t mean we have the peace that Christ was living and teaching, or Paul was trying to convey.  This peace that Christ teaches transcends – it goes above and beyond – it overpasses and exceeds our trivial conflicts.

For Paul the concept of Christ’s Peace was bigger than being released from his conflicts – even the jail cell he and Timothy occupied.

For us the concept of Christ’s Peace needs to be bigger than politics in our country, or divorce in our families, or helicopter crashes that erase our heroes.  Christ’s peace must be able to transcend our conflicts, doubts, and struggles.

Paul says that is going to take you and me, “being aware, focused, and open to a supernatural peace.”

But just how can we stay aware, focused, and open to this true peace?

In verse 8 we heard it.    

Paul says “Think about these things…fill your mind with these things…

Whatever is true,

Whatever is honorable,

Whatever is just,

Watever is pure,

Whatever is pleasing,

Whatever is commendable,

If there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.

Notice Paul didn’t say, “Obsess, worry, fret, and allow yourself to be overwhelmed by

Whatever is false

Whatever is dishonorable

Whatever is wrong

Whatever is impure

Whatever is ugly

Whatever is unworthy

Whatever is poor

Whatever is corrupt.

But that is exactly what we do isn’t it.  We focus on the wrong side of this list.  Many theologians have pointed out and written about Paul’s list titling them the “Attributes of Christ Life.”  And often the other list is labeled the “Attributes of Humanity” – or maybe even better or more relevant we could call them the attributes of the media.

John Ortberg in his book, “Soul Keeping” says,

“We are creatures with wills, and in every encounter with other people we WILL what is good for them, or we fail to do so, we will what is bad.”

How we think and what we think about – Paul says is important – it effects our peace and the peace of the world around us. It effects the…

Peace on a daily basis.

Peace in our relationships.

Peace at work.

Peace in family.

Peace inside ourselves.

What we spend our time thinking about is often the same thing we end up worrying and fretting over – or for some it becomes an obsession on those attributes of humanity that rob us from our peace.

Instead of worrying and fretting – Paul says we are to pray or meditate. As in verse 6 of our text, “…in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.” 

Quaker Catherine Whitmire in her book “Practicing Peace” says this to us this morning,

“Historically for Friends, the path to peace begins…with the practice of meditation and prayer.  Listening within changes our perspectives on the world because when we open ourselves to a prayerful relationship with God, we are invited to view the world from God’s perspective.”

Paul says in verse 12, “I learned the secret” or as The Message puts it, “I found the recipe.” to God’s Wholeness and Peace.

I can do everything through Him who gives me strength.

On our own…

We can get bogged down with life.

We can get caught up, even narrowly focused on the negative.

We can get tangled up in worry and fretting.

And we simply miss that God is wanting us whole (another word for this wholeness is shalom). I am fond of how Eugene Peterson captured this thought, he said,

“God’s wholeness is everything coming together for good.”

Is is everything coming together for wholeness, goodness and yes, PEACE.

Let’s end this sermon this morning as Paul may have with those he was teaching – with some queries to ponder.

1.     In what ways do you need to be “reconciled to God” – to bring true peace into your life?

2.     What worries in your life do you need to shape into prayers this week?

3.     How are you going to “think on these things” – whatever is true, honorable, just, pure, pleasing, commendable, this week?

1-26-20 - Peace Prep

Indianapolis First Friends Quaker Meeting

Pastor Bob Henry

January 26, 2020

Matthew 3:1-12

3 1-2 While Jesus was living in the Galilean hills, John, called “the Baptizer,” was preaching in the desert country of Judea. His message was simple and austere, like his desert surroundings: “Change your life. God’s kingdom is here.”

3 John and his message were authorized by Isaiah’s prophecy:

            Thunder in the desert!
            Prepare for God’s arrival!
            Make the road smooth and straight!

4-6 John dressed in a camel-hair habit tied at the waist by a leather strap. He lived on a diet of locusts and wild field honey. People poured out of Jerusalem, Judea, and the Jordanian countryside to hear and see him in action. There at the Jordan River those who came to confess their sins were baptized into a changed life.

7-10 When John realized that a lot of Pharisees and Sadducees were showing up for a baptismal experience because it was becoming the popular thing to do, he exploded: “Brood of snakes! What do you think you’re doing slithering down here to the river? Do you think a little water on your snakeskins is going to make any difference? It’s your life that must change, not your skin! And don’t think you can pull rank by claiming Abraham as father. Being a descendant of Abraham is neither here nor there. Descendants of Abraham are a dime a dozen. What counts is your life. Is it green and blossoming? Because if it’s deadwood, it goes on the fire.

11-12 “I’m baptizing you here in the river, turning your old life in for a kingdom life. The real action comes next: The main character in this drama—compared to him I’m a mere stagehand—will ignite the kingdom life within you, a fire within you, the Holy Spirit within you, changing you from the inside out. He’s going to clean house—make a clean sweep of your lives. He’ll place everything true in its proper place before God; everything false he’ll put out with the trash to be burned.”

Two weeks ago, we began looking at Peace. I started by exploring The Shalom Life, where I explained that rather than being a byproduct or evolving concept, shalom was a required condition that stabilizes order, relationships, stewardship, beauty and rhythm in our universe – or how theologian Cornelius Platinga described it, “Shalom is the way things are supposed to be.” I then explored briefly peace throughout the Bible and in Jesus’ life and finally getting to Phil Gulley’s point that peace must happen through us and because of us.

Then last week, Beth Henrick’s brought a second message on the greater role of universal religion, emphasizing how all religious traditions have a focus (or at least should have one) on the behaviors of people, how we treat each other, treat the poor, treat the oppressed and even creation itself – which again is part of living The Shalom Life. 

This morning, I want to look at what it takes to prepare ourselves for The Shalom Life – what I want to call “Peace Prep.”  Many times we talk about the lack of peace, or how we are in a moment of chaos or peace-less times, but very seldom do we stop and take time to really consider how we prepare for peace to be manifest in our lives and world “through us and because of us.”

Our main biblical character I want to look at this morning may come as a surprise (well, maybe not since Jeff just read the scripture about him). We rarely ever talk about John the Baptist outside of the Christmas story.  Eugene Peterson in our text for this morning labeled him, “The Thunder in the Dessert.”  With that label, he may not be the most likely character to be considered for “Peace Prep.” His life seemed less than peaceful just from the bible’s description -  crazy uncomfortable wardrobe, bug eating, nomad living – all of which can easily become diversions from his ministry of peace.

2020 has started off as a year that is guaranteed to lack the peace in which we seek.  Whether on the radio, TV, or social media, I have heard cries for advocacy, activism, a slower pace, a break from the crazy – as well, I have heard of power struggles, materialism, the poor and needy, the misrepresented, and speculating of who truly are the faithful. 

What all this has proven to me is that the chaos of life is constantly heralding an inner and outer cry for peace in our own lives and in the world.

The same was true for the days of John the Baptist and for that matter, Jesus.  The world under Roman rule was struggling with many of the same issues I just outlined.  Life in John and Jesus’ day was a bit chaotic as well as it was heralding a cry for peace to come to the world.  For many, especially the Jews, that peace was to come in the form of a messiah – a ruler who would set things right (shalom).  Yet, the chaos of life in that day distracted the people from watching, expecting, or even seeing what was right before them – very much like it still is in our day. 

So, the bible says that a prophet had to be sent – one that would herald a cry and remind the people what TRUE peace would look like in this world – that prophet was John the Baptist.

Since our days in Sunday School, we have heard that John’s task was to “prepare the way.” But what did that really mean in biblical times. 

            “To “prepare the way” in the bible meant to create a favorable environment or to make it easy for one to come to you and operate in your life.”  (repeat this tought)

Apparently, John the Bapist, was creating a favorable environment and making it easy for Jesus’ Peace to enter into and operate in the lives of people.

Having this in mind, I want to point out five different areas in the text Jeff read that points to John’s “Peace Prep,” and how it can be translated into our own prep in the present.

1.     Change your life (or repent for the Kingdom of God is at hand).

To allow God to convict us and bring true Peace means we are probably going to need to make some changes in our lives. This means we will have to admit where we have thwarted peace and done something that has caused a lack of peace.  We often think first of the outward acts, but it will be the inward acts that are the hardest to change. 

Don’t get me wrong – outwardly living in peace takes respecting and loving each other in spite of our many differences (which isn’t always easy), but inwardly, we must search our hearts and minds and understand the fear and wrongs that have caused our own lack of peace.  Just take a moment to ask yourself this morning…

What fear or wrongdoing do I struggle with that causes a lack of true peace in my life? [Pause]

I believe Peace Prep also has to do with surrendering to God those parts of our lives where seek to control.  I read recently in an article titled, “Living in Peace” the following…

“Ceasing to seek power over people and outcomes in your life is the first major step to living peacefully.  Trying to control people is about seeking to impose your will and reality on others without ever trying to see their side of things.  A controlling approach to relationships will keep you in conflict with others. Replacing a will to control with a broad approach of loving others instead, including their faults and differences, is the way to a peaceful life.”

And even a step further, we sometimes try and control who God is and what God says – which has us needing a change.  Yet, we must remember that loving God and our neighbor is the beginning of the change.  That leads us to the second point I want to highlight from John’s Peace Prep.

2.      Make the roads smooth and straight.

What I believe John is conveying is that we must fill in the potholes and level the walls or barriers for others to receive true peace in their lives.

What are some of the potholes or barriers in our present day for people to find that true peace?  

What about thinking in narrow ways and holding convictions without ever considering the viewpoints and perspectives of others?

Or what about accepting others different than ourselves and appreciating our diversity?

When we fail to see from other’s perspectives or opinions, the end result can be building walls and making potholes of discrimination, repression, dehumanization, and ultimately violence (all which are the opposite of peace).

And let’s be honest, this is probably because we have a hard time identifying with those different than us.  That leads to the third point I want us to consider.

3.     John dressed in a camel-hair habit tied at the waist by a leather strap.

John was identifying with the folks on the fringe.  He went as far as to become one of them – literally moving outside the city gates – in the wilderness where the poor, the sick, the lame, were forced to live.

For you and me that may mean finding things to do in our lives where we engage different groups of people than we normally associate with. It’s harder to be discriminative, repressive, even dehumanizing when you’re interacting with people from all walks of life. 

Studies show that most people who the world would consider racist, never have had experience with people different than themselves.

It might be time to build a relationship, have a conversation, even engage a group that might be outside your “comfort zone.”

John’s wilderness journey was just that – he was a RK (Rabbi Kid) – he had it made – he grew up with the elite of society and would have had a hard time identifying with those outside the city walls – he would have been taught that they were unclean by his own dad – Rabbi Zechariah.

Thus, the reason I think he comes down so hard on the religious leaders who come out to see him. He knew they wanted control because of their positions – listen to what he says (it is number four in my list)…

4.     Do you think a little water on your snakeskins is going to make any difference? It’s your life that must change, not your skin! And don’t think you can pull rank by claiming Abraham as Father.

John is being an advocate for those who had been taken advantage of – the actual people who lived in the wilderness where he made his home – ALSO…the actual people the religious leaders had used their position to oppress. 

Now, this action of John may seem out of place, since most peace and conflict teachings say when communicating with others, seek to avoid being ordering, moralizing, demanding, or threatening.  Because these forms of communication can give rise to conflict with others who feel that you’re trying to control them rather than speak with them as an equal. Simply because it can lead to further conflict and does not put the two sides on common ground.

But we must remember that John was one of them.  In this case, he wants to bring peace through accountability and calling out his brothers.  And that leads right into what I consider John’s most important point in all of this…If you want peace in the world, if you want to prepare your heart for the peace of Christ, if you want to change it starts with YOUR life. He says…

5.     What counts is your life.  Is it green and blossoming? …ignite the kingdom life within you, a fire within you, the Holy Spirit within you, changing you from the inside out.

That sounds very Quaker like, doesn’t it? Bringing peace in this world begins with your life.  Gandhi said it so well,

“BE THE CHANGE YOU WANT TO SEE IN THE WORLD.”

We need to ask ourselves, “Is our life green and blossoming?” That may mean we will need to stop and listen to our lives – what I would call personal reflection.

When was the last time you stopped to reflect on your life in regards to peace?

When we go inside ourselves – we engage our inner light.  This engages an opportunity for God to speak truth into our action – meaning when we find peace then we have the possibility of changing our world for the better.

God is calling us to be part of the solution, just as he was through John in his day.  He is calling us to a kingdom life – where we love God and love our neighbor for the sake of the Kingdom. He is actually calling us to be John the Baptists to those around us in our families, in our work or school situations, in our neighborhoods and communities, and wherever we find ourselves.

So what have we learned from John the Baptists about Peace Prep? Let’s review. John’s Peace Prep asks of us some important queries (see back of bulletin):

1.     What do I need to change in my life to find peace?

2.     Where am I creating “barriers” for others to find peace?

3.     Who are the folks on the fringe I need to identify with so they can experience peace?

4.     Where am I using my position to withhold peace?

5.     Is my life green and blossoming with opportunities for peace?

1-19-20 - The Religion of Love - Beth Henricks

Religion of Love

Beth Henricks

Ephesians 4:1-6

The Illustrated World’s Religions by Huston Smith

Rumi’s Big Red Book – edited by Coleman Barks

Interfaith Dialogue class at Earlham School of Religion – Professor Grace Ji-Sun  Kim

I am filling in for Bob this morning as his family are in Chicago at the School of the Art Institute.  Sam has been accepted to this prestigious art school and they are there for a briefing and tour.  We send our prayers to them today for safe travels.

I know that Bob has started a series on the idea of peace and talked about shalom and its true meaning for us last week.  I have been thinking about the idea of shalom when it comes to our faith and the faith of the other major world religions.  The matter of faith and belief is a significant one as we are all searching  for the answers to questions such as our meaning on this earth, how should we live, what happens to us when we die and what do our rituals and practices mean for our relationship to God?   Could there be anything more important to each of us?  Does our faith define our very existence?  And what do we really know about the major religions (Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, Hinduism) of the world?  Do we believe that our way to God is the one right and true way and that others are lost?  How do I interact with people that believe completely differently than I do? So many questions.  If we look at our world history, religion has  impacted every facet of our civilization.  Culture, community, wars, relationships – the list goes on and on.

 I spent the last two weeks in Richmond Indiana attending a two-week intensive class on Interfaith Dialogue working towards my Masters in Divinity.  We went through a glorious book by Huston Smith called The Illustrated World’s Religions: A Guide to our Wisdom Traditions that I would encourage folks to read.  It’s a wonderful summary of the major religions complete with pictures of art representing these traditions.  In this course it was important to start with our own Christian faith before we explored other religions and I spent time reflecting on what I believe.

As our professor Grace Ji-Sun Kim outlined for us, there are six different approaches to religions and these approaches also connect to James Fowler’s six stages of faith.  I am sharing these stages and approaches because I think it is helpful to examine our own beliefs and consider where we are on our spiritual journey as we think about other religious traditions. 

1.       Exclusivists – believe in their faith as the only way to God. A belief in Jesus as God’s son and savior and lord is the one way to the Father.  All others will be lost and will not go to heaven after they die.  There is a view of being on the inside with everyone else on the outside.

2.      Inclusivists -  believe that Jesus is the fulfillment of human history, its liberator and perfect unsurpassable expression of what it means to be human.  Jesus is the explicit way of God and present to all human reality.  Other revelations cannot offer equally what Christ offers and will ultimately be judged by Christ.  Christianity is the summit and completion of all other religions and redemption is available to everyone if they respond positively to the light they are given.  At this stage we believe, Christianity is the only way, but it is available to others as they respond to the light given them.

3.      Pluralists –  believe the God of Jesus is known in history, seeks the well-being of the oppressed and is faithful to those who work for God’s reign on earth.  Jesus is truth but not the sole truth as God’s universal saving agent.  Jesus is the son of God and a universal savior.  There is a recognition that God may have enriched other cultures and people with revelations whose beauty and power stand alongside that given in Jesus and need not threaten the vitality of Christianity  and can deepen one’s Christian commitment.

4.      Developmentalists – We are all on a journey in preparing for the acceptance of Christ.  All faiths find fulfillment in the gospel of Jesus and Christ is the highest member in an ascending series.

5.      Transcendentary approach – grace and judgement of God is present and active throughout creation.  Believers of other faiths have access to God’s transcendental grace although they know nothing of being Christian – this is an idea of anonymous Christians.

6.      Dialogical – Christians and people of other faiths take their commitments with utmost seriousness and enter into an open dialogue with each other.  The finality of Christ is not something Christians possess but a promise given. 

Fowlers six stages of faith start with the idea where we accept the God from our parents and community and then move to accepting the stories of our faith understood in a literal way.  We move to a phase where we adopt an all-encompassing belief system where authority is placed in an individual or a group that represent one’s beliefs.  It is hard to see outside the box.  The fourth stage is where we start understanding other boxes and start seeing outside of one’s own box.  This is a time of examining beliefs and one can become disillusioned with their faith.  The prior stages believe the person in this stage is back sliding, but they are actually moving forward.  The fifth stage is a realization of the limits of logic and acceptance of the paradoxes in life.  There is an embrace of mystery and a return to the sacred stories and symbols without being stuck in a theological box.  The final stage is a universalizing of faith and living a life to the fullest in service of others without any worries or doubts. People at this level have a special grace that makes them seem more lucid, more simple, and yet somehow more fully human. They cherish life but also do not hold on to life too tightly.  They put their faith in action, challenging the status quo and working to create justice in the world.

Where I am in my journey can influence how I view other faith traditions.  As I looked at Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Islam and Christianity the past two weeks, time and again many similarities emerged.  While Hinduism and Islam have many names for god, there is still one ultimate and supreme being.  Just like Christianity has different names for God – the trinity identifies God as Jesus and Holy spirit.  Just like Judaism has many names for Yahweh.  Even Buddhism is seeking nirvana which is a complete emptying of ourselves into the eternal nothingness (a transcendent God?).

All these religious traditions are focused on our behaviors and how we treat each other, treat the poor, the oppressed and creation. 

All of these religious traditions have sacred texts, rituals and practices that provide guidance to seeking a deeper relationship with Spirit, emptying ourselves of ego and seeking a spiritual path for this life.

If we look at history, all of these religions (except Buddhism) have been used to kill others, start wars, oppress and seek power.  It does not appear that any one of these religions is more violent than the other.    These religions have also impacted our world in very positive ways.

Don’t all of these great religious traditions want us to become more alive – to wake up?  To wake up to the mystery, to the Presence of Spirit to how to live in this world with kindness, grace and charity.  And to see the beauty in ourselves and in each other.

I am a big fan of the teacher, mystic and Muslim poet Rumi.  Coleman Barks who translated many of Rumi’s writings and published Rumi’s Big Red Book says this “Rumi’s message can be stated in many ways.  It is the core of the core of every religion. It is the longing in a human being to live in unlimited freedom and joy, to move inside beauty, that most profound need of the human soul to flow with the namelessness that animates, luxuriates, burns and transpires through form, enlivening what is as stream, mist, torrent, saliva, blood, ocean, cloud, coffee, wine, butterfly, tiger, hummingbird, energy and delight.”   (pg 8)

So why do we become fearful of other faith traditions?  Could it be that we don’t understand the tradition and their texts and rituals?  That we don’t have personal relationships with others that believe differently?  That we don’t listen because we are talking so much about our faith and how it’s the better path to God? That we don’t see the Divine, the Spirit in every person regardless of their faith tradition?  Have we taken the time to learn about these religions? 

We had a wonderful visit to the Hindu temple this past week.  Our guide shared great wisdom with us  - that the truth is but one but the wise may call it by many names.  Could it be there is only one religion and it’s the religion of love?

Several years ago, I went to an interfaith conference and the teacher shared a lovely story to help us think differently about our faith traditions.  Humans are living in the valley of the land – different valleys based on our location and culture.  All of us are trying to get to the sunrise – we can’t see it because the mountains are blocking our view, but we know it is there at the top of the mountain.  We travel different mountain sides to walk upward towards the sun.  If we reach the top of the mountain, we see that there are many other mountains reaching up to the sun and there are many people on these different mountains, but we see the sunrise, we see the Light together from our different mountain tops.

Friends, in these troubled times  in our country and in our world, we need interfaith dialogue, connection, understanding and shalom.  We need to collectively come together and care for the earth.  We need to build seeds of devotion to help our neighbors.  We need to embrace the best teachings of our Hindu tradition, of Buddha, Mohammed, Jesus and Yahweh.  We need to seek the one true religion of love. 

Before we enter our time of waiting worship, I would like to read a poem from Rumi – God is in the Stew

Is there a human mouth that does not give out soul sound? Is there love, a drawing together of any kind, that is not sacred?

Every natural dog sniffs God in the stew

The lion’s paw trembles like the rose petal.

He senses the ultimate spear coming.

In the shepherd’s majesty wolves and lambs tease each other.

Look inside your mind.  Do you hear the crowd gathering?

Help coming, every second.

Still you cover your eyes with mud.

Wash the horned owl. Wash your face.

Anyone who steps into an orchard walks inside the orchard keeper.

Millions of love- tents bloom on the plain.

A star in your chest says, None of this is outside you.

Close your lips and let the maker of mouths talk, the one who says things.

We enter this time of communion with God with an open heart and mind.  As you listen to God’s whispers, we ask that if God is speaking to you directly that you hold and cherish this in your heart.  But if God is giving you a message for us to hear please be faithful and stand and a microphone will be brought to you.

As a personal reflection I want to thank everyone for the love and support I have felt in this time of suddenly losing my beloved brother Keith last Sunday.  I have been thinking about him all week and my mind has been flooded with so many wonderful memories.  But I also remember a time several years ago when we had a major conflict.  He had hurt me deeply and I felt wounded from the incident.  It was weeks and weeks before I could talk with him.  I felt I was standing on the right side of this incident and wondered if I could get over this.  But God worked on my heart and I realized that my relationship with him was too important to allow this to destroy us.  We slowly came back into communion and I am so thankful for his presence and his connection to my upbringing, my parents and my childhood.  I am praying if there is someone here today that needs to reach out to someone they will listen to God’s call of reunion.

1-12-20 - The Shalom Life

Indianapolis First Friends Quaker Meeting

Pastor Bob Henry

January 12, 2020

Romans 14:17-19

17 For the kingdom of God is not food and drink but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. 18 The one who thus serves Christ is acceptable to God and has human approval. 19 Let us then pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding.

For the next several weeks, I want us to focus on one of the five “P”s I talked about last week in my sermon. It just happens to be not only an important topic, but also a relevant topic in our world, and one of our Quaker S.P.I.C.E.S. Some would say it is the foundation for all of Christ’s actions and what we are to be working on as humans on this planet. The topic I would like to explore is PEACE.    

When I first came into Quakerism, I was asked to serve on a committee…[pause]…go figure…that developed materials for what the Northwest Yearly Meeting labeled, “Peace Month.” I believe I was asked because I had just completed a draft of my doctoral dissertation where I focused my Biblical Materials chapter on Shalom Theology and traced peace throughout the Old and New Testaments. In one of the leaders guides for Peace Month I wrote the following.  

Our peace testimony is perhaps the most famous and most controversial of the Quaker testimonies. Instead of simply trying to ensure pax (the Latin word for peace), which simply refers to a lack of open conflict, Friends aim to ensure shalom, the Hebrew word for peace, which has the additional connotation of a life free of the various factors which can lead to conflict (such as: hunger, resentment, rampant poverty, sharp class or race divides, etc.).

When we become aware of conflicts or concerns in our communities, Friends often find themselves helping in various non-combatant ways to tend to those suffering and hurt on both sides of an issue. Some see these matters as only being solved at a national or international level, with very little the local meeting can do to help, yet that is not the case.

Our perspective for peacebuilding in our local communities should be one of well-informed and living HOPE!

Without becoming aware of the local struggles in our communities, the process of healing, reconciliation, and restoration cannot take place. In the work of promoting peace, Friends have long taken an active role, not simply disconnecting from the local community and being passive but working to actively find alternate methods to solve conflicts, often through negotiation, education, and service projects.

With Christ as our Guiding Light, our meetings are called to educate, raise awareness, inspire, connect, network, and identify the places we can bring peace to our local settings. Let’s use our pulpits, classrooms, and times of discernment and open worship to help promote local peace-building this Peace Month and all year long.

That captures the essence of the next several sermons and will lead us nicely into the concluding sermons from our Fall series, “It’s time to Get Moving – Quakerism for Today.”

For today’s sermon, I would like to focus our attention on some possible misconceptions of our shalom or peace foundations.  And that means I am going to need to start with a little theology and biblical lesson on shalom or peace.

So often “seeking peace” in our day and age has been labeled being “politically correct,” “part of the liberal agenda,” “majoring in the minors,” and “not essential to the central message of the Bible.”  This is the same for issues such as diversity, gender inclusive language, disabilities and the like.  All those aforementioned labels are articulated as sufficient reasons why Christians/Quakers should not be “seeking peace” in its fullest biblical vision. Ironically, this may just be the reason many well-meaning Christians/Quakers find themselves “up-to-their-neck” in conflict.

When we turn to the Bible, we find a different story. Far from being peripheral or a “buzz word” to the scriptural witness, we see the biblical theme of peace as foundational. The biblical term “peace” (Hb. shalom, Gk. eirene) and its cognates appear 550 times in the Bible – within almost every book in some form from Genesis to Revelation. It is clear that peace is more than a simple “buzz word” or peripheral concept in scripture.

Whether it is from the beginning of Genesis or the beginning of time shalom has been a pillar of God’s creative action in the world. Shalom is not a byproduct or an evolving concept with God, rather it is a required condition that stabilizes order, relationships, stewardship, beauty and rhythm in our universe.

I often find myself having a hard time trying to explain this shalom condition utilizing our typical Christian metaphors. So, let me borrow an illustration from Hinduism’s Rig Veda, what is called “Indra’s Net.” I first learned about Indra’s Net from Margaret Wheatley in her book, “Turing to One Another.” She explains the idea of Indra’s Net by saying…

“We are all individual jewels that shine uniquely. But we are all jewels gleaming on the same web, each sparkling outward from our place on the net, each reflected in the other. As paradoxical as it is, our unique expressions are the only source of light we have to see each other.  We need the light from each unique jewel in order to illuminate our oneness.”  

As Quakers, I think we can relate to this metaphor.  Each of us carries within us the Light of God and like Indra’s Net, God has created a complex, intricate and interwoven system that consists of the various aspects of shalom; order, relationships, responsibility, beauty and rhythm.

The theologian Cornelius Platinga helped me understand this concept even more in his book, “Engaging the World.” I find it interesting that he too utilizes the concept of webbing. He states…

“The webbing together of God, humans and all creation in justice, fulfillment, and delight is what the Old Testament prophets called shalom. We call it “peace”, but it means far more than mere peace of mind or cease-fire among enemies. (As a matter of fact, the areas over which two armies declare a cease-fire may be acres of smoldering ruin.) In the Bible shalom means universal flourishing, wholeness, and delight – a rich state of affairs in which natural needs are satisfied and natural gifts fruitfully employed, all under the arch of God’s love. Shalom, in other words, is the way things are supposed to be.”

But as we know too well in our world today, things are not as they are supposed to be. We lack the universal flourishing, wholeness, and delight in so many ways.

And sadly, way too often we easily dismiss seeking peace or shalom as simply idealistic.

But then there is Jesus. Jesus brings it literally “down to earth.” I like to consider Jesus – Peace Incarnate.  His life was filled with the work of shalom and helping us see the way life is supposed to be. Not an ideal concept but a genuine way of life.

If we take into consideration the cultures, personalities, writing styles and relationships to Jesus, of each Gospel writer, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, we realize that they all approach and emphasize distinct aspects of Jesus’ shalom work. A former Campus Ministry colleague, Terry McGonigal, who I spent a lot of time learning Shalom Theology from said this about the gospel writers,

• Matthew asserts shalom stewardship/responsibility through Jesus’ teachings.

• Mark focuses on shalom order through Jesus’ miracles.

• Luke reclaims the priority of shalom relationships in Jesus’ community.  

• John highlights shalom beauty/glory through Jesus’ incarnation and suffering.

For each of the gospel writers, shalom was no longer an ideal concept that was lost in the garden when the first couple began to make bad choices. Rather, shalom for them, “became flesh and blood and moved into the neighborhood (as John 1:14 reads in The Message). Shalom was now a living, breathing, human being with skin and bones. 

In his very first sermon, Jesus even announced his shalom life by proclaiming good news, freedom and recovery from the struggles of this life (Luke 4:18-19). Soon Jesus would be seen reaching out to the poor, the sinners, the tax collectors and even the despised Samaritans. It was the natural first move in his shalom life.

Sadly, most people in Jesus day could not see this as creating peace, but rather very disruptive and for many simply wrong. It would be through a series of teachings and parables that Jesus would challenge some of the people out of this thinking.

As I studied Jesus’ shalom life more, I was surprised to find a unique source to help put this into perspective. That source was Mahatma Gandhi. Gandhi saw the way Jesus lived more important than his dying. He felt that if any of us lived the life that Jesus lived, we too would end up in conflict with the powers that be. Gandhi saw Jesus befriend the poor and stand with those whom society considered outsiders. He also recognized that Jesus worked to get those responsible for oppression, both religious and civil leadership, to change. “Why did Jesus die?”, Gandhi asked, “because of the way he lived.” Jesus’s shalom life brought a peace that transformed us and lead us back to the true shalom God intended from the beginning.    

This Shalom Life that Jesus lived and incarnated is our example and I believe our mandate. My friend, Phil Gully said it well,

“It is tempting to think peace will happen for us or to us, but it must happen through us and because of us. The peace Jesus leaves us is the capacity to forgive, the potential for reconciliation, and the example of determined grace.”

Or as one of my favorite paragraphs from the Peace Testimony of Quakers in the United Kingdom reads:

All this sounds grand indeed; its consequences are for the most part very ordinary. The peace testimony is not something Quakers take down from a shelf and dust off only in wartime or in times of personal or political crisis. Living out a witness to peace has to do with everyday choices about the work we do, the relationships we build, what part we take in politics, what we buy, how we raise our children. It is a matter of fostering relationships and structures - from personal to international - which are strong and healthy enough to contain conflict when it arises and allow its creative resolution. It is a matter of withdrawing our co-operation from structures and relationships which are unjust and explorative. It is a matter of finding creative ways of dealing with conflict when it does arise, with the aim of freeing all concerned to find a just and loving solution.

I would say that is The Shalom Life the required condition that stabilizes order, relationships, stewardship, beauty and rhythm in our universe.

May we, as the scriptures said this morning, pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding for the glory of God. And all of God’s people said, “Amen!”

• In what ways has “peace” become simply a “buzz word” among Friends?

• How is First Friends addressing issues of peace in our community? and where should we be more involved?

• What areas of life do I struggle or avoid seeking a loving and peaceful solution?  

• Where am I living out a witness to peace/shalom in my daily life?

1-5-20 - Resolutions for the Spirit

Resolutions of the Spirit

Indianapolis First Friends Quaker Meeting

Pastor Bob Henry

January 5, 2020

A New Year’s Prayer

by Vinita Hampton Wright

God of all time, help us enter the New Year quietly, thoughtful of who we are to ourselves and to others, mindful that our steps make an impact and our words carry power. 

May we walk gently.

May we speak only after we have listened well.

Creator of all life, help us enter the New Year reverently, aware that you have endowed every creature and plant, every person and habitat with beauty and purpose.

May we regard the world with tenderness.

May we honor rather than destroy.

Lover of all souls, help us enter the New Year joyfully, willing to laugh and dance and dream, remembering our many gifts with thanks and looking forward to blessings yet to come.  

            May we welcome your lavish love.

In this new year, may your grace and peace bless us now and in the days ahead.

2 Thessalonians 1:11-12

11 To this end we always pray for you, asking that our God will make you worthy of his call and will fulfill by his power every good resolve and work of faith, 12 so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Happy New Year and Decade! 

Well, we are finally winding down from our Christmas breaks and our children are heading back to school after their holiday. Yet before things even officially began winding down and starting to go back to “normal,” this past week we endured one last borage of emails, adds, and year-end giving opportunities which found their way to our mailboxes (both snail and email).

Most of this extra mail included advertisements heralding the words “New Year’s Resolutions.”  Many were about weight-loss and getting healthier in the New Year, but I noticed many were also about following through with your resolutions. It seems advertisers have noticed that we don’t do such a good job on the follow through if we even make New Year’s Resolutions anymore.  Actually, I have had several of you tell me recently, “I have no desire for New Year’s Resolutions, it’s just a waste of time.” 

It seems many people have given up on the whole idea of New Year’s Resolutions because statistics show that on the average resolutions only last a couple of weeks (at the longest a month).  Maybe instead of making changes, we should be talking about stamina and will-power this time of the year. 

Actually, I read that a recent poll was conducted to find out the top resolutions people wanted to make for 2020. The survey gathered the opinion of 274,779 Americans.

I kind of feel like David Letterman…Here are the top 10 New Year’s Resolutions for 2020:

10. Staying motivated
9. Upgrading my technology
8. Being a better person
7. Being more healthy
6. Being happier/better mental health

5. Going to the gym
4. Losing weight/diet
3. Eating more of my favorite foods
2. Trying something new

…and…drumroll please…

1. Actually doing my New Year’s resolution

So, when the reality is that the #1 resolution for 2020 is to actually do my New Year’s resolution – I think we need a new look at resolutions. 

Now, for Christians, we usually run to the Bible for help on what we should do.  But it is kind of a stretch to find New Year’s resolutions in the Bible. Sure, if you were diligent in your exegesis you would find many people of faith resolving to be better people, to change their ways, and God giving second chances. 

In preparing for this sermon, I ran across one person who wondered what New Year’s Resolutions for Bible Characters would look like.  Here are some that I thought you may enjoy (and even better they wrote them in “tweet” form):  

Adam: Seems like everyone is all about high fiber – Me, I plan to eat LESS fruit this year. 

Lot’s Wife: Longing for the past helps no one. Don’t Look Back!

Rehab: Debauchery and deception are so last year – Heart is ready for 12 months reinvention and restoration.

Ruth: Turning over a new sheaf – Done with multi-faith online dating. Ready for good ole fashioned matchmaking.

David: Done fighting lions and Philistines – Taking a safer job playing harp for the King #Can’tLose

Balaam: For starters, booting all “Dr. Doolittle” movies from Netflix queue #BeenThereDoneThat

Naaman: Start bathing more – does wonders for your health.

Bathsheba: Start bathing less – Who puts a bathtub on the roof anyway?

Wisemen: This year we’re inventing MapQuest – no more asking burning ball of astro gas for directions.

Lydia: Got a big thing for purple, I know.  This year I am resolving to be more crafty with other hues in the color palette.

Thomas: So last year I resolved to be less gullible. That didn’t go so well. This year won’t care if you fool me. #TrustImmediately

Peter:  Want to get out fishing more this year – men are more important just not as tasty #fishersofmen

Now seriously, even from these funny tweets we can get a glimpse of the changes and challenges that took place in the lives of even characters in the Bible.

And if we took a deeper look at our roots in the Jewish faith, we would find that they had festivals to remember and make needed changes each year that were not only for individuals but were often for entire communities. These were developed to keep people everything from healthy to right with God.  So, in a sense, the Hebrew people knew that an ongoing examination of one’s condition was necessary and helpful for everyone – individual and communal.

And then there is our Quaker faith. Even though many Quakers in history did not celebrate holidays or mark the New Year, they did find a need to make resolutions in life. Still today many Quakers (including myself) see the S.P.I.C.E.S (Simplicity, Peace, Integrity, Community, Equality, and Stewardship) as Quaker Resolutions for living life.

Actually, I believe that if every year we simply took time to rededicate to these very testimonies, we would probably find a lot more resolve in our lives and communities.  These were the summarization of the resolutions of our founders, George Fox, Elizabeth Fry, John Woolman, Lucretia Mott, William Penn, and many more.  They resolved to live simple lives, to seek peace, to be people of integrity, to value community, to stand for equality, and protect our planet.

It reminds me what Brian McLaren sent out this past week to pastors in preparation for the coming year (you may have seen it on my Facebook page) – a year he considers could be the most important for pastors and churches to speak up, show up, and stand up tall on, what he called the “5 P’s”.

Planet

Poverty

Peace

Political Corruption

And ALL People.

Just like our foremothers and fathers who made resolutions about everything from War to Women’s Rights, to where we buy our goods to how prisons should be reformed, we too are being faced with real issues in our world today. It’s time as Quakers to make our voices heard.

·        It’s time we reconsider our resolutions regarding the care of our planet.

·        It’s time we faced the reality and roots of Poverty in our country and dealt with privilege and equality.

·        It’s time we returned to seeking peaceful solutions and extending hands of friendships.

·        It’s time we admitted that politics in our country is corrupt and powered by racism and greed.

·        And its far time that we began seeing ALL our neighbors as ourselves. 

These are all issues I am resolving as a pastor this year not to avoid, ignore, or sweep under the rug. Its time as Quakers to make our voices heard again in 2020. And please understand, I know it is not going to be the easiest or the most comfortable year, but it could be our most important and fruitful if we, like our founders before, resolve to make a change.

So, you may be asking…where do I begin in 2020? 

A post by Quaker Wendy Swallow, the Blog Editor for Reno Friends Meeting caught my attention this week. Her query to start the New Year is,

“How can I move forward in the New Year with a more solid foundation for my spirit so that I can bring my best self to the world?”

I believe as Quakers, our first resolution must be an inward journey that prepares us - especially when life and the world can spin out of control without warning.

Out of that query, Wendy penned a list of ten spiritual resolutions she was considering for 2020 – and as I read them, I want you to notice the importance she gives to time and silence.  As Quakers, I hope these queries speak to your condition (I know they have spoken to mine).

After I read them, I will give us some time and silence this morning to write down three resolutions (blank space has been provided on the back of your bulletin). Listen carefully to Wendy’s resolutions and maybe borrow some ideas for yourself as you journey into 2020. Here are her resolutions:

1.  I will take advantage of the Silence to reconsider my choices around work and commitments.  Which things are most important? Am I being realistic in the projects I take on? Can I still contribute while doing a bit less and giving myself more time to regroup and refresh?

2.  I will take advantage of the Silence to reassess my energy and my gifts. Am I honoring my strengths by taking on commitments that line up with what I can do competently and happily? Can I give in these ways without depleting myself?

3.  I will spend time with people who lift me up. I will intentionally seek them out and connect with them.

4.  If a new commitment arises, I will give myself permission to sit with it and ask for spiritual guidance before jumping in. I will respond to my spirit and heart, rather than to the chorus of “shoulds” in my head.

5.  I will give myself time for a hobby or activity that makes me happy and relaxed. The goal is to do something I’m interested in, and to do it without judgement.

6.  I will take time to sit in silence and listen to God, especially when things turn difficult.  If a bad day is unfolding, I will retreat for a half hour to calm my heart and listen to what arises. I will practice lifting problems into the Light so I can understand them better.

7.  I will make things simpler. When given a choice, I’ll try the doable way and learn to accept help gracefully. I will save my energy for the most important things.

8.  I will take an occasional retreat day: Every now and then (maybe once a week), I will give myself a day off without deadlines or engagements, to read, relax and do easy chores. This will give me time to reconnect with my happy self.

9.  I will take time to consider my faith journey and deepen my connection with Spirit through readings or retreats or gatherings that expand my faith experience.

10.  I will take advantage of the Silence to ask myself: what would I do if I were not afraid?  I will think of new ways to deal with recurrent problems and try to imagine a life lived fearlessly.

Now, that you have some ideas – take some time to write down your own resolutions and then we will enter waiting worship this morning.