Reflections
RECONCILIATION (Part 1)
Fr. Eric Dudley
Is reconciliation something you think about a lot? Is it in any way a primary focus of your daily life? If not, perhaps it should be, at least for all of us who call ourselves followers of Christ. So what is reconciliation? In simple terms it is restoring a relationship that has been broken. Etymologically the Latin translates: To recover, to repair, to put right. We could say, then, that the whole Gospel of Jesus Christ is summed up in that one word: Reconciliation. God has come into the world in the Person of Jesus to reconcile the world to Himself. To recover the love; to repair the broken relationship, to put right what is wrong with His fallen creation.
As we move to the end of Lent, toward Good Friday and Easter, it seems that some consideration of reconciliation is appropriate.
2 Corinthians 5: 17f. “So if anyone is in Christ there is a new creation; everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new! All this is from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation.” NRSV
Colossians 1: 19f. “For in (Christ) all the fulness of God was pleased to dwell, and through Him God was pleased to reconcile to Himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, by making peace through the blood of His Cross.” NRSV
I was in a parish more than 30 years ago where I came to know two very bright, very organized, strong-willed women; and, they were always at each other! One of them was the Chair of the Altar Guild (we will call her Jean), and in that parish Chair of the Altar Guild was high office! Unless your great-great grandma had been a member of that Altar Guild, you didn’t stand a chance. But the other woman was Chair of Women’s Ministry (we will call her Tammy), which meant to her that ALL of the women of the church served under her, including the women of the Altar Guild!
These two women were always undermining each other, in constant competition, and creating absolutely unnecessary battles in committee meetings. They had a long history of hurtful words and intentional sleights that had led to deep wounds. Outside of committee meetings they never spoke to each other. But as God would have it, their sons were best friends!
The boys were the same age, and grew up playing basketball on the same team, attending team practices, team trips, and working out in the gym together. They were close, and went in and out of one another’s homes like family; they even became roommates in college. In their sophomore year, they were in a fraternity house for a big house party where there was far too much drinking. A couple of fraternity members of a rival fraternity tried to crash their party and a big fight broke out. In the midst of this fight one of the fraternity brothers pulled out a gun and fired a couple of shots; one of those bullets hit Jean’s son, Jean who was Chair of the Altar Guild. An ambulance was called, but the boy died before they got him to the hospital. His best friend, Tammy’s son, went home and locked himself in his bedroom, devastated by the loss.
The church was packed for the funeral, one the largest we’d ever had, students filling at least half of the nave. Tammy attended the funeral, sitting in her normal seat on the opposite side of the church from Jean. Tammy participated in the liturgy, heard the prayers, mumbled her way through the songs, but could only think that this could just as easily have been her son. When the family processed out of the church Tammy couldn’t help but look up to see Jean’s face: she was gaunt, ashen, empty. Tammy slid out by the side aisle, and pushed her way through to get out to the churchyard where I was standing with the family as the casket was being loaded into the hearse. Tammy pushed past me and went immediately to Jean, threw her arms around her neck, and the two of them stood there with their head’s on one another’s shoulders, crying. I could only think: what a sad thing that it took the death of a child for these two Christian women to let go of all that petty rivalry.
I have seen a lot of division in God’s Church over the course of forty years in ministry: a lot of pettiness; a lot of ego-driven competition; a lot of behind-the-scenes manipulation. Most of the division I’ve witnessed was superficial in nature, like so many arguments between husbands and wives. But sometimes the brokenness that happens is not the result of something inconsequential, not when it’s caused by disrespect or hate; by abuse; by infidelity; by a selfishness that smothers love. When these sorts of things are at the heart of the break, reconciliation becomes much more complicated; then it takes something bigger than what caused the break, something more weighty, something more powerful to open that heavy door to reconciliation, something perhaps like the death of that boy.
Reconciliation is the heart of the Gospel.
This essay will continue with part 2 after Easter
What is The Purpose of the Season of Lent?
Fr. Eric Dudley
In the Christian Church there are two basic liturgical cycles that shape the annual calendar. The first is a cycle with the Feast of the Nativity (Christmas) at the heart of it, and the second is a cycle with the Feast of the Resurrection (Easter) at the heart of it. Each cycle has a season that anticipates the Principal Feast, and each cycle has a season that succeeds the Principal Feast. For Christmas, the season that anticipates it is Advent (a time of preparation for the coming of Christ), and the season that succeeds it is Epiphany (a time that represents the carrying forth of the Light of Christ to those beyond Israel). For Easter, the season that anticipates it is Lent (a season of repentance and preparation), and the season that succeeds it is Pentecost (a season that celebrates the Power of the Holy Spirit raising up the Church to spread the Love and Joy of Christ throughout the world). The purpose in having a liturgical calendar is so that Christians are marking their lives, keeping time, by following the life of Jesus, rather than just secular celebrations. The idea is that rather than having our lives shaped primarily by President’s Day, the Fourth of July, etc., our lives are primarily shaped by the Life of the Lord. We begin the year with Advent, anticipating His birth, and then follow the development of His life all the way around to the next Advent, such that all the Scripture lessons read through the year correspond to the liturgical calendar and keep pace with the developments of His life.
As I write this we are about to enter the season of Lent. Lent, as I’ve indicated, is a season of repentance (not that repentance is neglected the rest of the year, but that it’s emphasized as we anticipate the crucifixion of Jesus); it’s a time when we step back to take stock of our lives, in relation to the Life of Christ, and to look more deeply at those things that keep us from being fully God’s. Lent lasts for 40 days (reflecting the 40 days that the Lord was in the desert after His baptism, being tempted by Satan). These 40 days begin with Ash Wednesday (a service at which we are both reminded of our mortality and dependence on God- “ashes to ashes”-and of God’s Grace, as the ashes are placed in the form of the cross of Christ), and end with the first Eucharist of Easter. If you count these days on a calendar you’ll find that to get 40 days, you actually skip all the Sundays, as Sundays in the Church are always seen as Celebrations of the Resurrection. The liturgical color that dominates Lent is the color purple, reminding us that in the midst of His Passion they placed a purple robe on Jesus (making fun of Him by calling Him “King of the Jews”). During this season no bells are rung in church, the word “alleluia” is not said, no flowers are placed on the altar (though greenery is allowed), and no festive celebrations are held. It is a time to focus deeply on what God has done in the cross of Christ; a time to consider what it meant for God to become incarnate, to suffer, and to die, out of love for us. This is a time to ask earnestly if our lives have been truly shaped by that love; whether they reflect the gratitude that should be a proper response to such sacrificial love. It is, in other words, a time to prepare for New Life, to be resurrected in the way we live, as we celebrate the joyous Resurrection of our Lord on Easter Day.
One very important part of this season on which I have not focused in this brief essay, is what we call “Holy Week,” that last week that begins with Palm Sunday, follows with Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Holy Saturday, and finally, Easter. Each of these days has its’ own significance, underscoring the final hours of the Lord’s life (Palm Sunday, His final entrance into Jerusalem; Maundy Thursday, the Last Supper and the washing of feet; Good Friday, the somber focus on the crucifixion; and, Holy Saturday, oftentimes marked by a Vigil- a long service that begins at night in the dark, but moves into bright light, celebrating the First Eucharist of Easter).
The longstanding practice of liturgical seasons in God’s Church is simply a disciplined effort to have our lives more shaped by the Lord than by the world.
The Meaning of Epiphany
Fr. Eric Dudley
“Epiphany” is an odd word that doesn’t get used very much in our daily vocabularies, but it’s an important word in God’s Church. Together with Christmas and Easter, Epiphany is among the most important celebrations in worldwide Christianity. After the 12 Days of Christmas (December 25-January 5) the Season of Epiphany begins with the Feast of Epiphany, on January 6th . The word Epiphany comes from the Greek, and means “to reveal” or “to show forth.” In the context of Christianity, it has to do with the revelation that Jesus is the Son of God who has come into the world as a gift of love and grace for all people. The primary Scripture lessons during this season are the visitation of the Wise Men (Jesus for the Greeks and not just the Jews); the Baptism (Jesus revealed as the very Son of God, God incarnate in the world); and the first miracle of Jesus at the wedding at Cana in Galilee (the water is turned to wine, a symbol of the new wine of God’s Grace that is being revealed, in anticipation of the ultimate purpose of Jesus, “The marriage feast of the Lamb” when God restores the whole creation to Himself).
The Season of Epiphany stretches from the end of Christmas to Ash Wednesday, which is the beginning of Lent. The primary symbol and theme of Epiphany is light, because“Jesus is the Light of the World.” This is an important truth for Christians as it reminds us that Jesus didn’t come into the world just for Jews, or just for those Gentiles who converted and became Christians, but for the whole world. From the beginning, as God reached out to form a relationship with Abraham and his progeny, He promised that He would use the family of Abraham (Israel) as a vessel to draw the whole world to Himself; to restore His creation to the beauty, love, and harmony for which it was created, and to an intimate relationship with Himself. God’s love for all people is a Truth that can be found in both the Old Testament (the Hebrew Bible), and the New Testament. We see, for example, in the Book of Jonah, how God called Jonah to go to the people of Nineveh (the hated enemy of Israel) to call them to a relationship with God. Jonah was not excited about this, and in fact hoped for their destruction. Near the end of the book, God says to Jonah, in essence, that He gave life to the Ninevites and cares for them as well as the people of Israel. Similarly, in the New Testament, we see Jesus engaging pagans (the Roman soldier whose servant He healed; the
Syro-Phonesian woman whose daughter He healed; the Samaritan Woman at the Well- Samaritans were seen by Jews as being little more than pagan) with warmth and kindness, knowing that God loves them too.
The revelation that the God of Christianity loves and cares for the whole world is a loving and joyous proclamation that needs to be heard today as much as it did in the first century. There is such hatred and division in the world, and all too often Christianity contributes to that hatred and division, rather than acting as a bridge of loving kindness. Those who claim to follow Jesus are charged with acting as “the Body of Christ” still upon the earth (Jesus is no longer with us physically, but has sent His Spirit to dwell within us and use us as His vessel), continuing the work of Jesus, a work of reconciling love. To spread the Light of Epiphany is not to use that light to hate and condemn others, it is to allow that Light to so penetrate our hearts that we become instruments of God’s Love.
ADVENT: A Time to Prepare
Fr. Eric Dudley
Christian churches that follow the Liturgical Year find ourselves in Advent, which is the first season of the year. There are two major feasts (celebrations) in the liturgical calendar: The Feast of the Resurrection (Easter), and The Feast of the Incarnation (Christmas), and there are additional seasons that prepare us for these celebrations (Advent and Lent), and that flow from these celebrations (Epiphany and Pentecost) The word “Advent” comes from the Latin “to come” and during this season we focus on Jesus’ first coming into the world through Mary, as well as His anticipated second coming. Many churches use blue vestments during this season of Advent because in artwork, through the ages, Mary is identifiable not just because a halo is painted above her head (that is done with other saints as well), but because she is in blue. In the ancient world blue cloth was very expensive, indicative of royalty, and in the Old Testament the Ark of the Covenant was covered with blue cloth as though enshrouded in the power of Heaven. Mary is a kind of Ark carrying within her the Word of God.
During this season Mary and John- the- Baptist are primary actors, representing the themes of waiting, and preparing. In the midst of all the chaos and hullabaloo of the secular Christmas season, the Church attempts, through Advent, to slow us down, focus us on the heart of Christmas, and help us, in Godly ways, to learn how to wait and prepare. Mary represents that image of faithful waiting: the pregnant mother who realizes that the life that is in her is beyond her control, as is the time of delivery; so, she patiently waits on the Lord, trusting Him to shape and deliver this child into the world.
Most of us, I think, struggle with the reality of waiting. Our world is so fast-paced and demanding that the least amount of waiting creates anxiety, frustration, and anger. I had a friend recently who was furious that his Amazon package did not come the day after he ordered it! We want what we want NOW! In this frenzied world, it is important for Christians to learn anew how to wait, because in waiting for God we are reminded that we are not in charge; we learn to trust Him for the future that we cannot control or manipulate; we learn to stop, listen, and look for His guidance and purpose. Learning to wait for God, rather than simply rushing forward with our own desires and purposes, is at its’ heart, a matter of faith.
But Advent isn’t just about waiting, it’s about preparing as we wait. One of the key passages of Advent is from John’s Gospel where John -the- Baptist, crying in the wilderness says, “Prepare the Way of the Lord.” We are called not only to live daily in a state of preparedness for the consummation of history (when God brings history to its’ fulfillment as He restores the Heavens and the Earth to His purposes), but to prepare this Advent to receive Christ anew at the coming of Christmas.
The beginning of the Church Year is about resetting our lives, refocusing our priorities before moving forward into a new calendar year. This is a time when we examine our hearts to see where we have moved off course; where we have lost our love and joy for serving the Lord. This is a time for confessing our sins, seeking to recommit to our baptismal vows, to realign our lives with the Life of Jesus, as we seek to love those different from ourselves, to forgive those who have hurt us, and to care for those less fortunate than we. But we don’t go through this process of learning to wait for God, and recommitting ourselves to modeling our lives after Jesus, just to give it all up once Christmas has passed and the decorations are back in the attic. We go through this process with the hope and intention that as we are faced with all the challenges and hardships that may come with a new year, we are so solidly rooted in Christ that our ability to wait, trust, and prepare, will carry us through.
Faith and Politics Fr. Eric Dudley
When I was growing up, my mother, like many others across the country, had a rule that at the dinner table you could not discuss religion or politics. Because both religion and politics carry so much importance in our lives, we can become very passionate about them to the point of argument, anger, and division, even among family. I know of a man who has not spoken to his brother in eight years because of a political argument that got ugly and created hurt and resentment. I know of a woman who got fired from her job because she kept bringing up touchy political topics and creating chaos at work. I had a parishioner ten years ago who left the parish because I would not agree to endorse a political candidate from the pulpit.
I’ve been reading two really interesting books lately that do much, in my opinion, to give clarity and guidance to Christian people in the midst of the current political upheaval in our country. The first book is titled, “The Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory” by Tim Alberta, a staff writer for the Atlantic, and perhaps more importantly, a man raised by a father who was the lead pastor at a very large evangelical Christian church that began to tear at the seams over issues of presidential politics. Alberta takes us through the beginnings of the “Moral Majority”, to Ralph Reed’s “Faith and Freedom Coalition”, and into the many large evangelical congregations where senior clergy are using their pulpits to shape and control people for the sake of hardnosed politics.
The second book is a bit more philosophical in nature, but enormously helpful for taking the knowledge gained in Alberta’s book and applying it in a way that reflects the nature and character of Christ. This book is titled, “Love Your Enemies” by Arthur C. Brooks, who headed the American Enterprise Institute, and now teaches at Harvard. Brooks is a Christian, and a conservative, but is deeply concerned about what he calls a “culture of contempt.” What he means by this is that we are living in a highly politicized culture where we cannot simply agree to disagree over political issues, but must hold those with whom we disagree in utter contempt. It seems that all political disagreement these days is advanced with high-pitched rhetoric that not only diminishes the
argument of those with whom we disagree, but diminishes the people with whom we disagree. If someone takes the opposite position on the issue of immigration, abortion, Israel, or any number of other hot topics, we seem unable to engage reasonably or respectfully. We must, rather, regard them as “stupid” or “evil,” and utterly unworthy of our respect and care. This book has real depth for Christians, and calls us to seek to love those with whom we disagree by listening to what they have to say, seeking earnestly to understand their prospective, and then disagreeing, if we do, in a way that maintains respect for them as fellow human beings. I would sum up the book as encouraging us, when we find ourselves in a political disagreement, to see the other person as more important than the issue at hand. No one was ever convinced to change their perspective because of an argument.
In John’s Gospel, Jesus, on the night before His crucifixion, prayed a very long prayer for His followers (John 17), and the heart of that prayer was that we might “all be one.” That above everything else, there would be a unity among those who follow Him, a unity that finds its’ roots in love. As the United States continues to tear itself apart over political arguments of one kind or another, how might the Christian Church set a different tone? How could we act as the Presence of a Living Lord, reflecting His Grace and Love, in the midst of such hatred and division? Perhaps by refusing to be drawn into it; by not allowing those on my side of the argument to get away with hateful language toward those on the other side; by disagreeing in such a way that it honors Christ by loving the person with whom I disagree. What would American politics look like if all American Christians, of every denomination, refused to play the game of hate ?