Mar 04, 2024 |
Price Gouging
| The Rev. Philip DeVaulPrice Gouging
When Jesus gets angry, it's because someone is getting in the way of someone else experiencing God's love. In the case of the temple, the people that are there, are selling oxen and livestock and things like that which are meant for sacrifice according to the commandments, and that's part of how people atone, and keep their relationship with God.
And the people who are there selling those things and exchanging money, it's clear that they're doing something, most likely price gouging. They're praying on the people's need for confession and absolution and they're profiting from that. And instead of helping people connect with God, they're actually getting in the way of people's connection with God.
And friends, our goal as Christians always is to help people connect with the God who loves them. Our goal is to love and to help others to love and be loved.
And the people who are there selling those things and exchanging money, it's clear that they're doing something, most likely price gouging. They're praying on the people's need for confession and absolution and they're profiting from that. And instead of helping people connect with God, they're actually getting in the way of people's connection with God.
And friends, our goal as Christians always is to help people connect with the God who loves them. Our goal is to love and to help others to love and be loved.
Feb 26, 2024 |
When the Self is at the Center
| The Rev. Dr. Herschel WadeWhen the Self is at the Center
He had on multiple occasions, masterfully bested fierce
opposition for the most respected religious authorities. He astounded the crowds with his teachings
and actions. And he demonstrated both
the power and authority expected of a Messiah.
However, such an expectation comes up short. It distorts one's vision and makes one see
with the human eyes on one level, Peter's eyes did not cause him to
miscalculate Jesus's power. Peter was
able to see all of Jesus's wondrous feats.
However, he was not understanding what Jesus was aiming to
accomplish. He and the other disciples
seem to be more preoccupied where Jesus’ messianic power and title are rather
than his life-giving mission.
Of course, the title Messiah is important for establishing an authority bestowed by God. But what good is a title when detached from Jesus’ counter cultural mission to seek and save the lost, the broken and outcast? No. Peter's mind wasn't capable of envisioning all the possibilities accessible to God, especially not a God who came to serve and not be served.
Not when the stakes are so high, when doing what is accomplished by the human eye and mind would not accomplish what God accomplished through Jesus Christ for humanity. So, maybe Peter doesn't deserve any partial credit at all. Maybe placing limits on God because of human desires is something exactly from the devil.
Because there is just too much at stake. To announce Jesus as the Messiah before his true glorification would be inadequate and incomplete. For the Son of Man must undergo suffering, rejection, and death. It is precisely for this reason that his followers, including Peter, would eventually take up their crosses and lose their lives.
Of course, the title Messiah is important for establishing an authority bestowed by God. But what good is a title when detached from Jesus’ counter cultural mission to seek and save the lost, the broken and outcast? No. Peter's mind wasn't capable of envisioning all the possibilities accessible to God, especially not a God who came to serve and not be served.
Not when the stakes are so high, when doing what is accomplished by the human eye and mind would not accomplish what God accomplished through Jesus Christ for humanity. So, maybe Peter doesn't deserve any partial credit at all. Maybe placing limits on God because of human desires is something exactly from the devil.
Because there is just too much at stake. To announce Jesus as the Messiah before his true glorification would be inadequate and incomplete. For the Son of Man must undergo suffering, rejection, and death. It is precisely for this reason that his followers, including Peter, would eventually take up their crosses and lose their lives.
Feb 21, 2024 |
My Beloved
| The Rev. Philip DeVaulMy Beloved
You are a daughter of God, in you, God is well
pleased. You are a son of God, in you, God is well pleased. And I have heard
this and I have come to believe it and it has changed the way I understand my
whole relationship with God, to understand that I'm not trying to become a
beloved child of God. I am beloved.
I am God's son. And this is a part of my core identity and is meant to be a part of all of our core identities. This has been the end, the climax of a lot of the sermons that I've preached, not just here but throughout my, preaching career, to remind you all, to remind us all of our belovedness.
Because I've always thought I need to remember it, first of all. But secondly, I'm kind of a restless person. And I keep thinking, well, if I just believe in my belovedness, it'll give me some peace.
If I can just find a home in my belovedness and God's loving me unconditionally, then I will maybe be a little bit less restless. Maybe I'll be a little bit more peaceful and calm and things will get easier for me. That's my hope for me. And that's my hope for you.
But then I read the text today and you'll notice that Jesus is baptized. And he comes out of the water, and the sky cracks open, and the Holy Spirit lights upon him like a dove, and God says, this is my son, you are my son, my beloved, and in you, I am well pleased. And then it says, and immediately, the Spirit drove him out into the wilderness. Well, crap.
I am God's son. And this is a part of my core identity and is meant to be a part of all of our core identities. This has been the end, the climax of a lot of the sermons that I've preached, not just here but throughout my, preaching career, to remind you all, to remind us all of our belovedness.
Because I've always thought I need to remember it, first of all. But secondly, I'm kind of a restless person. And I keep thinking, well, if I just believe in my belovedness, it'll give me some peace.
If I can just find a home in my belovedness and God's loving me unconditionally, then I will maybe be a little bit less restless. Maybe I'll be a little bit more peaceful and calm and things will get easier for me. That's my hope for me. And that's my hope for you.
But then I read the text today and you'll notice that Jesus is baptized. And he comes out of the water, and the sky cracks open, and the Holy Spirit lights upon him like a dove, and God says, this is my son, you are my son, my beloved, and in you, I am well pleased. And then it says, and immediately, the Spirit drove him out into the wilderness. Well, crap.
Feb 13, 2024 |
The Hill of Your Transfiguration
| The Rev. Philip DeVaulThe Hill of Your Transfiguration
"Maybe your mother would be up on that hill or an aunt that helped you or a grandfather that mentored you. Would it be someone who has shaped the way you see the world like Moses and Elijah did? Would it be James Baldwin up on that hill or Ayn Rand or something like that? Moses and Elijah both had a sort of national reality.
Would it be Thomas Jefferson or George Washington on that hill or the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King? Would you find Ronald Reagan on that hill or FDR? Who would be on that hill for you as you go up? Who are the people that shape you? Who are the people that have made you see the world a specific way? Because that is what happens with Jesus.
It's not just this symbolic reality that he embodies the law and the prophets. It is that he faces those who have shaped him and influenced him. And this is a moment of great importance because we realize when we hear this story that we are never actually alone in our lives. Jesus is a singular figure, we know this, but Jesus is shaped and accompanied by those who have gone before.
And as the story says, he is watched over even by God who loves him, sees him as beloved."
Feb 04, 2024 |
Love is a verb
| The Rev. Melanie W. J. SlaneLove is a verb
Jesus came and took her by the hand and lifted her up, and the fever left her, and she began to serve them. I almost asked Deacon Gary to take a long pause after that verse in our gospel today, so all the women in the room could have a collective eye roll together. Please.
The only woman spoken of in the beginning of Mark is sick and laid up in bed, and given no name but servant. When I first read the story, I did pause. I was reading the lesson to my husband in our home, and thankfully he's still alive today. Because his eye roll matched mine. Right on cue. I think my first response was, Ugh, let this lady take a nap.
She's obviously tired. I was more than a little irritated at our gospel today. Here we go. Another biblical lesson of woman, know your place. I could feel my own temperature rising up in solitude with my stricken sister. And then I remembered
Jan 22, 2024 |
Will You Follow?
| The Rev. Dr. Herschel WadeWill You Follow?
Well, how are we different from Jesus first disciples? Well, we have a significant advantage. We know what was accomplished through God's work through Jesus Christ. We know the end of the story. We know that like Jesus’ disciples, we have been drawn into God's plan of reconciliation and restoration of creation.
And we know that dropping our nets and following Jesus can be nothing but life-giving to us and to others. And we know that despite the uncertain nature of following Jesus, we can trust in God's love and protection and the promise that sin and death do not have the last say. We also know that, like for Jesus’ disciples, God in Christ shows and will show up at the most unexpected moments in our lives.
The only question is, how will we respond to those gift-filled moments? Will we continue to grasp tightly onto human sources of security, human-defined identities, and human celebrated values and principles? Will we continue to remain close to the possibility of living under the true reign of God or instead, in a world that perpetuates inequity, greed, hate, and death? In a world where we are all imprisoned by injustice, war, violence, fear, power, oppression, policing, and control.
It would be a lie to say that discipleship has no cost. There's a, long list of people who would suggest otherwise, including the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, whose birthday we celebrated this week. And along with other martyrs and saints of the Christian faith, including their original disciples.
However, when we look beyond those costs, can see what the disciples saw?
And we know that dropping our nets and following Jesus can be nothing but life-giving to us and to others. And we know that despite the uncertain nature of following Jesus, we can trust in God's love and protection and the promise that sin and death do not have the last say. We also know that, like for Jesus’ disciples, God in Christ shows and will show up at the most unexpected moments in our lives.
The only question is, how will we respond to those gift-filled moments? Will we continue to grasp tightly onto human sources of security, human-defined identities, and human celebrated values and principles? Will we continue to remain close to the possibility of living under the true reign of God or instead, in a world that perpetuates inequity, greed, hate, and death? In a world where we are all imprisoned by injustice, war, violence, fear, power, oppression, policing, and control.
It would be a lie to say that discipleship has no cost. There's a, long list of people who would suggest otherwise, including the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, whose birthday we celebrated this week. And along with other martyrs and saints of the Christian faith, including their original disciples.
However, when we look beyond those costs, can see what the disciples saw?
Jan 08, 2024 |
So Many Questions
| The Rev. Melanie W. J. SlaneSo Many Questions
You know how they say you are what you eat? Well, I've always been so curious about why
the Gospel writers found it necessary to share with us what John ate. Locusts
and wild honey. What a strange
detail. I know we don't often take time
to dig into little things like this, but it’s my job. So, I went down a rabbit
hole for several hours, and let me just save you some time on research.
There's almost nothing written about why he ate locusts and wild honey. So, I'd like you to just go with me on this trip. Just imagine for a moment what these foods could be saying to us symbolically about John the Baptist? What if John's food is a symbolic intaking of both the blessings and the curses that are present in our Gospel?
What would it mean for us if John consumed the plague brought upon the empire to help make the people free? What if the locusts represent the hives that consumed the crops of Pharaoh before the exodus showing God's power over nature as a reminder to even the most powerful people on earth that there are some things that even they cannot control?
And what about this wild honey? What are we to make of this sweet delight? I like to think of it as the nourishment that offsets the curse. A symbolic drink representing the promises of God. The place of peace and security, where war and hatred cease. A land flowing with milk and wild honey.
If it is true that you are what you eat, John is showing us that a person who points the way to God is also someone who acknowledges that we must take into ourselves both the blessing and the curse. We must, acknowledge it all so that from us can come a proclamation of forgiveness.
There's almost nothing written about why he ate locusts and wild honey. So, I'd like you to just go with me on this trip. Just imagine for a moment what these foods could be saying to us symbolically about John the Baptist? What if John's food is a symbolic intaking of both the blessings and the curses that are present in our Gospel?
What would it mean for us if John consumed the plague brought upon the empire to help make the people free? What if the locusts represent the hives that consumed the crops of Pharaoh before the exodus showing God's power over nature as a reminder to even the most powerful people on earth that there are some things that even they cannot control?
And what about this wild honey? What are we to make of this sweet delight? I like to think of it as the nourishment that offsets the curse. A symbolic drink representing the promises of God. The place of peace and security, where war and hatred cease. A land flowing with milk and wild honey.
If it is true that you are what you eat, John is showing us that a person who points the way to God is also someone who acknowledges that we must take into ourselves both the blessing and the curse. We must, acknowledge it all so that from us can come a proclamation of forgiveness.
Dec 25, 2023 |
Put on some Lizzo
| The Rev. Melanie W. J. SlanePut on some Lizzo
We often forget the strangeness of this story that comes to
us Because we've cleaned it up and made it so nice and familiar This sweet little baby this silent night all cuddled up and swaddling clothes But it
wasn't like that was it? It was so much more real and raw and messy. A refugee family seeking shelter among
animals A message of social upheaval and
the destruction of the political system that kept things in order. The chosen messengers,
poor and dirty and odd.
A most highly favored lady, but no lady by the queen's standards. This story is all about how things are changing, how God is
flipping the script on the way things have always been, and we are told, do not
be afraid, and maybe, if you got it in
ya, you could sing.
The message of Christmas is completely counter cultural. Look at how our world has been wrapped in fear. Segregation, isolation, the hoarding of resources, contempt for our neighbor, contempt for our planet, the insidious presence of cynicism that claims everything is terrible. I have nothing to be grateful for, nothing to be happy about, and that constant reminder of failed expectations, which allows fear to become the status quo.
But Christmas, Christmas stands in opposite, in opposition to fear, to bring us a story of how when Mary and the shepherds heard the good news, heard that God was coming to dwell among us, heard that Jesus was coming to change the world, their response was to sing.
So singing, we are taught, is the first step in letting joy. Replace our fears in our lives, our real lives. When the house is a mess and your kid is whining about how crispy or not their chicken nugget is, put on some Lizzo.
The message of Christmas is completely counter cultural. Look at how our world has been wrapped in fear. Segregation, isolation, the hoarding of resources, contempt for our neighbor, contempt for our planet, the insidious presence of cynicism that claims everything is terrible. I have nothing to be grateful for, nothing to be happy about, and that constant reminder of failed expectations, which allows fear to become the status quo.
But Christmas, Christmas stands in opposite, in opposition to fear, to bring us a story of how when Mary and the shepherds heard the good news, heard that God was coming to dwell among us, heard that Jesus was coming to change the world, their response was to sing.
So singing, we are taught, is the first step in letting joy. Replace our fears in our lives, our real lives. When the house is a mess and your kid is whining about how crispy or not their chicken nugget is, put on some Lizzo.
Dec 21, 2023 |
The Christ Within Us
| The Rev. Joanna LeisersonThe Christ Within Us
In September, after I’d been here at Redeemer for only one month, I had to have cataract surgery. Never mind that I had decided when I was young that I would never need cataract surgery. Apparently it wasn’t my decision. But people told me that cataract surgery is no big deal. That’s true about the surgery. It’s a simple procedure. What WAS a big deal was the instructions the doctor gave me. He said that I could not wear eye makeup for a week after surgery. And I panicked. It sounds funny when I tell you how devastating this was for me, but here’s why.
When I was in seventh grade, my social studies teacher read aloud from our world history book a passage about the history of China. The book went into detail about the Chinese people—their weird singsong language, their strange habits, their yellow skin, and especially, their grotesque slanted eyes. As he read, my schoolmates turned around and made slanted-eye faces at me, laughing. It was humiliating to my core. I felt deep, deep shame at myself, and deep, deep fear of the world that suddenly made itself known to me. At that moment, I was exposed as an unacceptable human being—not truly human, but rather, Chinese. Lowly. Mostly, it was the eyes.
So from that time on, for the next sixty-plus years, I began wearing eye makeup—not to look better, but to hide who I really was—a person of Chinese descent with those strange habits and the grotesque slanted eyes. I put on eye makeup every single day, no matter what—even when I was sick, in the hospital, in the middle of the pandemic when I knew I would not be seen by anyone. I wore it to hide who I was from myself as well as from the world—lowly.
When I was in seventh grade, my social studies teacher read aloud from our world history book a passage about the history of China. The book went into detail about the Chinese people—their weird singsong language, their strange habits, their yellow skin, and especially, their grotesque slanted eyes. As he read, my schoolmates turned around and made slanted-eye faces at me, laughing. It was humiliating to my core. I felt deep, deep shame at myself, and deep, deep fear of the world that suddenly made itself known to me. At that moment, I was exposed as an unacceptable human being—not truly human, but rather, Chinese. Lowly. Mostly, it was the eyes.
So from that time on, for the next sixty-plus years, I began wearing eye makeup—not to look better, but to hide who I really was—a person of Chinese descent with those strange habits and the grotesque slanted eyes. I put on eye makeup every single day, no matter what—even when I was sick, in the hospital, in the middle of the pandemic when I knew I would not be seen by anyone. I wore it to hide who I was from myself as well as from the world—lowly.
Dec 13, 2023 |
Empire is not a friend
| The Rev. Dr. Herschel WadeEmpire is not a friend
Empire is not a friend of anyone. Empire does not strive towards the well-being and thriving of every created life. Empire puts wealth, resources, knowledge, comfort, and God's abundance in the hands of a few. While others live lives of insecurity, uncertainty, misery, and hopelessness.
An empire of human beings are nothing but a form of commodity and high value is placed on materiality, military force, and war. Empire distorts our understanding of peace of order and of happiness. And sadly, empire places more value on the lives of some and less on others. An empire makes our neighbors other.
Importantly, swimming in the waters of empire put our identities as Christians in jeopardy. It is at odds with our proclamation of Christ being our true king. It is also at odds with every one of us living into the promises of God. and people becoming who God created us to be. Instead of holding most firmly to our Christian identities, empire encourages us to hold on tightly to, even idolize, identities of race, of nationality, ethnicity, gender, physical ability, political affiliations, political ideologies, political leaders, economic and social status.
The fallout has been, is, and will continue to be enormous. We now live in a world that is more divided and volatile than ever. We have become a people driven by fear, greed, self-preservation, iInstead of ones motivated by love, hope, generosity and grace, but all is not lost.
An empire of human beings are nothing but a form of commodity and high value is placed on materiality, military force, and war. Empire distorts our understanding of peace of order and of happiness. And sadly, empire places more value on the lives of some and less on others. An empire makes our neighbors other.
Importantly, swimming in the waters of empire put our identities as Christians in jeopardy. It is at odds with our proclamation of Christ being our true king. It is also at odds with every one of us living into the promises of God. and people becoming who God created us to be. Instead of holding most firmly to our Christian identities, empire encourages us to hold on tightly to, even idolize, identities of race, of nationality, ethnicity, gender, physical ability, political affiliations, political ideologies, political leaders, economic and social status.
The fallout has been, is, and will continue to be enormous. We now live in a world that is more divided and volatile than ever. We have become a people driven by fear, greed, self-preservation, iInstead of ones motivated by love, hope, generosity and grace, but all is not lost.