When I was in Rome last year, we had a
change of plans, at least as far as pastoral care is concerned. As many of you know, one of the issues facing
us in this fight against slavery is the “silo” nature of the ministries. Everybody does their ministries—some very
well, and yet we do a poor job of connecting or being connected to one
another. Such a claim might sound
strange in our ears, given our episcopal nature and ecclesiology. But we do a poor job of supporting those
engaged in this ministry.
It
was because of the need for some “down time” or spiritual care or whatever that
you want to call it that the Pope and ABC were able to move quickly. During our first four days we engaged in what
I term heavy ministry. We talked about
and watched things human beings should never talk. Ever.
Yet here we were, mostly lay and a few clergy engaging in a viscerally
evil spiritual warfare, even as we were trying to rally the Church to the
fight. So, as part of our care, Justin
and Francis sent us to this former prison in Rome.
This prison was located well below
ground. You and I would call it a
dungeon by our imaginations. The only
problem is that the prison was really a house or villa. Back in the 1st century AD the
windows looked to the streets and sky outside.
Now, however, the house is well below ground. What struck archaeologists who found it, and
I must confess the details were a blur, was the fact that it was the basement
or catacombs of a church, which served as the same for another church, which
served as the same for another church. I
can’t remember for sure now, but I think it was nine churches built over this
house. The number was high enough that
archaeologists knew it was very important to early Christians. That’s how they preserved sites back
then—they built churches over them. In
this location, the floods of the Tiber over the following centuries had forced
the Christians to build new churches above the older churches. Naturally, everyone was excited to see what
was at the bottom.
In the prison/house/villa at the bottom
was little remarkable. There were
windows, a well, and other accoutrements one would expect to find. Then on the walls the archaeologists began to
notice quotations from the Epistles.
Finally, on one wall, there was a beautiful mural. It was a scene that painted various Apostles
and disciples doing their work, even as Mary held her son, Jesus. Ironically, the Eastern churches have a
tradition that the picture of Mary holding the Baby Jesus with his halo was
done originally by Luke. Being a
physician, Luke had painstakingly tried to draw a likeness of Jesus based on
his conversations and interviews with Mary and those who knew our Lord during
His earthly ministry. We might say it is
the closest we have to a photograph of our Lord. The Church in the West, as you might imagine,
poopooed this idea. It made for great
storytelling, but there was no way to know whether it was true. Until they unearthed this house/prison/villa.
There, on the wall in the villa, was a scene
that included the very picture of our Lord and His mother the Eastern Church
knew so well. The Church being the
Church, that is all being worked out.
Officials from the Vatican have taken control of the mural and had it
removed for study. What is no longer
debated now, though, is the resident of one who stayed in the
house/villa/prison. Yes, Paul. The house is thought to be the site where
Paul was imprisoned before he was killed by the Emperor. We believe now that his faithful companion,
Luke, drew the mural to help remind his master and friend of the work of our
Lord. Though Paul was imprisoned in a
house in Rome, the Gospel had spread throughout the kingdom! And though the Emperor within a few years or
months, depending upon when the drawing and painting occurred, would put Paul
to death for his faith in Jesus of Nazareth, an emperor some 26 or 27 decades
later would bend the knee to Christ.
It was a great place of silence and
reflection and pictures for those of us present. Archbishop David gave us many of those
details for which some of you no doubt hunger, but for us dealing with
atrocities that disgusted us and shook us to our cores, it was the perfect
place to meditate on that question of why God allows such evil to exist. The reminder, of course, was that in the end
God wins. Yes, the battles during the
intervening years will be brutal. Yes,
we may face mockery, derision, and indifference, but He wins in the end! We don’t know the purpose behind the mural,
of course, but it seems reasonable that Paul must have wondered from time to
time what God’s plan was. How could he
evangelize anybody while imprisoned?
Yet, the artwork would have reminded him that it was not up to him to
reach the world, only those with whom he had contact. God was taking care of the rest, even while
Paul was confined.
Why do I share the story? Partly, I think it gives us insight as to one
of the driving focuses of Luke. The
other reason is that it speaks to an eternal truth of which Luke wants us to
know we are a part. Luke is very good
about going from the abstract to the close, from generalities to specifics,
from out there, to in here, our hearts.
Luke at your readings from Luke
today. Every three years we read this
passage from Luke. To those who must
preach on this passage without a bit of knowledge of Luke, it must be
incredible hard. Why does Luke mention
these rulers? Why the big quote of
Isaiah? Why not add more to the reading
to give us real preaching material? Yet
Luke has a particular focus and mindset he wants to share, if we will just pay
attention.
Luke sets the passage in history. Specifically, the passage is set in the
fifteenth year of the reign of Emperor Tiberius. To us, the date may seem obscure, but we live
under a calendar set up by a successor of Tiberius. This is the way they counted dates in the ANE
prior to the calendar you and I know now.
This is the way we count things in the Church even to this day. Bishop John will have confirmed Robbie last
week in the ninth year of his episcopacy—that’s how the certificate will
read. But the emperor was this far off
power whose impact on daily life and work was non-existent. Put differently, if Luke wrote about
something happening in the seventh year of Obama’s presidency, how many of us
would feel any tie to him? We live in a
democratic republic where we vote for our president, but I think it fair to say
that most in the country feel no personal relationship, for good or for evil,
with our President or with any President.
So, in the political realm, Luke moves
closer. When Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea. Ah, now we are getting a bit more local. In our modern language, Luke might well be
saying In the seventh year of Obama’s
presidency, when Haslam was governor of TN.
The Emperor might be a far off figure, but Pilate was much closer,
and people knew his influence, for good or for ill. Chances are, people blamed him for high
taxes, poor municipal projects, bad roads, brigands on the loose, and any
number of other problems that beset them.
Pilate would, of course, journey to Jerusalem on important occasions. Heck, on one such journey, Pilate met our
Lord and sentenced Him to death!
And
Herod was ruler of Galilee, and his brother Philip ruler of the region of
Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias ruler of Abilene. Now we are getting specific. Herod and Philip ruled as vassals of
Rome. In fact, when Jesus is first
presented to Pilate, Pilate sends Him to Herod to let Herod decide the fate of
the Jesus of Nazareth, since most of Jesus’ ministries and activities had
occurred in the territories ruled by Herod.
When Herod the Great had died, he had left a will dividing his kingdom
among his surviving sons. Without going
in to great detail, this was the Game of Thrones in real life. The problem was, of course, that the Augustus
had to ratify Herod’s will or make his own decisions. Eventually, after the three brothers had
journeyed to Rome to make their respective cases before Caesar, the emperor largely
upheld Herod’s will. Herod Antipas
managed to rule Galilee for some 42 years, a rather remarkable feat given the
winds of change that drove the empire.
For those who lived in Galilee, Herod was
Rome. He set the specific policies. He placed whom he favored in whatever
position of power. The governor held
greater authority, to be sure, but it was Herod and Philip who controlled the
daily application of Roman power and law to the lives in their lands. It was Herod who determined to rebuild
buildings or to build new towns in honor of his patrons in Rome. It was Herod who decided whether to build
defensive walls or not around the cities who claimed they needed them. Heck, it was Herod who decided to build a
city over a graveyard and force people, most poor Jews, to relocate there, that
despite the ritual uncleanliness of a site.
It was Herod, of course, who killed the prophet of God, John the
Baptist, over an oath, knowing full well that his subjects knew John to be a
prophet. More on that in a moment.
Phillip was Herod’s brother. In essence, Herod Archelaus had been given
half of his father’s kingdom, the west side, and Herod Antipas and Philip the
other (eastern) half. Phillip ruled the
northern half; Herod the southern half.
Between the rulers, of course, all political power was covered. And, both men had their share in ungodly
behavior. Philip, as it turns out, ended
up marrying Salome, his niece, she of dancing before her mother’s lover or
uncle and, as a result, securing the death of John the Baptizer.
Little is known today of Lysanias. His coins bear the inscription “high priest
and tetrarch.” Josephus claims that
Lysanias offered a Parthian satrap 1000 talents and 500 women, if he would
place his son Antigonus on the throne of Judea.
Of course, Josephus also claims in a later work it was someone else who
made the offer. What seems clear is that
Lysanias ran afoul of Cleopatra, who wanted his territory. So, near the time of Jesus’ death, Marc
Antony put Lysanias to death.
Putting these three positions in modern
political language might be to consider them glorified mayors, with Herod and
Philip splitting Nashville while Lysanias ruled Clarkesville. The end would be that most of us in central
TN would be familiar with the political powers that be.
Luke, of course, is not done. He goes on to mention the religious
rulers. During the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas. Annas had been removed from being high priest
by the Roman authorities, but his influence behind the scenes was rather
strong. Five of his sons and at least
one son-in-law, Caiaphas, served as high priest. All faithful Jews knew this family. Who do you think it was that was responsible
for turning the Lord’s house into a market?
A den of evil? Who do you think
it was that adopted policies which elevated their words to the words of the
Lord? Who do you think it was that
placed in positions of power those who like to mouth pious words or be seen as
religion, rather than lead the people in the worship of God? It would be like us naming a time of a bishop
or pope as reference.
In
the midst of this grand narrative, however, Luke does something
remarkable. As the political powers and
winds are shifting around the people, elevating some while killing others. While politics have invade the Lord’s
sanctuary, the Word of the Lord came to John bar Zechariah in the
wilderness. Yes, politics is
important. Yes, religious institution is
grand. But out in the wilderness, as far
as one could be from the seats and thrones of power, God was doing something
new! He was raising up a prophet! For the first time in three centuries, God
was speaking again! And this honor and
obligation fell not on Herod or Philip or Lysanias or Caiaphas or Annas, but
upon someone on the margins of society.
John’s ministry, we are told, was very
specific. He went about the Jordan
proclaiming a baptism for the forgiveness of sins. Baptisms were not unique in the worship of
the Jews. Gentiles would be adopted into
the family of God, as full descendants of Abraham & Sarah, through a ritual
bathing. It is likely that Ruth, about
whom we read a couple weeks ago, underwent such a ritual, such a
sacrament. How else do we explain her
determination to follow and serve her mother-in-law Naomi, as part of her
service to Yahweh. Yahweh had become her
God. And her service of Him and loyalty
to her mother-in-law, as much as her good looks, captures the eyes and ears and
imagination of Boaz.
Jews would also cleanse themselves after
the appropriate sacrifices.
Righteousness was something they felt was conferred and earned by one’s
attention to the torah and one’s observance of the sacrifices. When Paul claims he was righteous under the
law, he is not being arrogant. He is
stating a fact that, when he sinned, he made appropriate sacrifices and
underwent the ritual cleansings whenever he was made unclean.
John’s baptism, though, was new. He was proclaiming a baptism of
forgiveness. If I had cross words with
Shane, and we determined to make amends before the next service at Temple, each
of us would be required to make some sort of sacrifice. If we were just a little mean to each other,
we each might owe a turtle dove. If we
had been ruthless in a business transaction, we might each owe an oxen. You get the idea. In this way, appropriate sacrifices,
righteousness, became the purview and opportunity for the wealthy. They could rob foreign visitors or blind or
steal widows’ houses, but as long as they made the sacrifice required,
everything was supposedly ok with God.
Think in terms of the mafia and its relationship with the Roman
church. Think in terms of those who claim
to be Christian in our midst, at least for ninety minutes a week, but then
spout evil or engage in activities that are supportive of evil. If you were poor, of course, you were
screwed. Absent the appropriate
sacrifices, you could never be righteous.
Heck, this week I received a letter from a
US Senator in my former state. In it, he
was proclaiming how proud he was to support efforts to curtail child slavery in
the US labor markets and how supportive he was of our efforts to end
slavery. I have not yet heard back his
response to my letter (I forgot to mention I had moved, but I will repent of
that in a moment), but I wonder why the language was changed. The original bill introduced in the Senate
called for the end of all slavery in our labor markets. All slavery.
Male. Female. Adult.
Child. All. Yet this self-described Christian senator
seemed to think that the fight against child slavery was somehow morally
superior to the enslavement of adults, this coming as a follow-up to his vote
against the federal effort to fight slavery in our midst, that despite his
promise to a bishop that he was on the side of God in this fight, as if God
cared a whit for the political ties that caused him to vote against the federal
legislation, as if God was somehow more supportive of adult slavery than He is
child slavery. Can you imagine? To those whom much is given, much is
expected. Naturally, he wanted me to
share with members of my congregation about his wonderful support.
It is against that backdrop of the human
condition that John strolled out of the wilderness preaching the words of
Isaiah. The hills will be made low, the
valleys will be filled in, the twists and turns will be straightened, and all
flesh will see the salvation of God. What
John preached was novel. God was going
to make forgiveness possible. God was
going to make forgiveness possible to everyone.
The offer was going to be made to the rich and the poor, the weak and
the powerful, the Jews and the Gentiles.
The offer was going to be open to all who would accept it, to all who
would grasp at it. There would be only
one stumbling block, that of the Lord providing the way of forgiveness Himself,
in the flesh of His Son our Lord! That
was the message of John. That’s why the
people flocked to see him and to hear him.
God had been silent for generations.
Now, while Pilate was governor, while Tiberius was emperor, while Herod
and Philip were tetrarchs, God was fulfilling His promises to Abraham &
Sarah. It was an amazing time to be
alive. And God was beginning this effort
not in the forum of Rome, not in the palaces of human kings, not even in His
own temple. No, God was beginning this
fulfilment with a word planted in a man in the wilderness and through the birth
of a child born in a village!
Brothers and sisters, you and I share in
that same ministry of John! You and I
are called to remind ourselves that we are heralds of peace, harbingers of hope,
and full of joy. We are disciples of
that salvation. Each time we gather,
each time we come to worship God, we give thanks for the death, resurrection,
and coming of our Lord Christ. It is the
very heart of our message. When we could
not atone for our sins, when we could not hope ever to earn forgiveness, our
Lord offered it to us through His own ministry, through His own action. You and I are called to proclaim that light
in a dark and dreary world. And you and
I are called to proclaim that light, in word and in action, with everyone with
whom we interact. It does not matter
their ethnicity, it does not matter their education, it does not matter their
profession, God’s salvation is open to all who would proclaim Him Lord and join
us, through that amazing sacrament of baptism, into new life! He has entrusted you and me with the most
amazing invitation, an invitation for which He has paid the cost in its
entirety.
As Luke goes to great pains to remind us,
all of this takes place in the “real world.”
Luke places his Gospel narrative and the action of God in its place in history. Luke reminds us that God acts in this world,
through people living in this world, to effect His purposes. To those hearing the Gospel for the first
time, it no doubt sounded crazy to think that the work of John could have
amounted to anything significant.
Certainly, his work would have seemed to pale in comparison to emperors,
or governors, or tetrarchs, or high priests.
John lacked the funds to reach the rich and powerful; John lacked the
education to convince people He was intelligent; John even lacked the religious
pedigree to make people think He was anything significant in religion. But John did received the Word of the Lord
and responded faithfully. As it turns
out, that was all he needed. Those who
were seemingly far above his influence feared him and the Word he
proclaimed. Those who discounted his
wilderness education could not contend with the wisdom granted by the Lord’s
Word. Even those who were keepers and
stewards of God’s holy mysteries found themselves drawn to his preaching and
teaching.
That same word which was active in John’s
life is alive in yours and mine. That
same Word which frightened the powerful, baffled the intelligencia, and caused
the religious elite to pause and listen is present in us. He has promised! And that we might know He is able to keep all
promises, He raised His Son our Lord that third morning, raising us along with
Him in that life that is to come. Adventers,
this is our patronal season. This is our
time. Those who founded us named us
after this time when baptism of forgiveness goes out. It is in our spiritual DNA and in our
heritage that we celebrate His first coming even as we await His Second coming
in power. Whatever the obstacle, He will
overcome. That is His promise and that
is His practice. It matters not whether
an emperor fights us and imprisons us; it matters not whether bosses and
co-worker mock us or try to take advantage of us; it does not even matter
whether a neighbor responds with indifference.
In the end, every knee will see His salvation and our glorification in
His Son! How will you respond to that
call on your life?
In the seventh year of Obama’s presidency,
when Haslam was governor of TN, when Megan was mayor of Nashville and Ron was
mayor of Oak Hill, and when Justin was Archbishop of Canterbury and Michael had
just taken over for Katherine in the church, God called you and called me to proclaim
His salvation, offered through His Son Jesus Christ our Lord.
Peace,
Brian†
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