A Reflection for XXII Pentecost (Proper 27) All Saints’ Episcopal,
Southern Shores, N.C. November 9, 2014 Thomas
E. Wilson, Rector
The Hebrew Testament lesson for today is from the
book of Joshua. This book was probably written in the 6th Century
BC, about six hundred years after the events described. It was compiled by
people in exile in Babylon who were hoping to one day return to the Promised
Land. The editors took the old oral stories and tried to make a coherent
narrative. The purpose of the Book of Joshua was not to tell a literal history;
rather, it was to tell the old stories with the point of showing that, each step
of the way, the forebears of the people had learned to trust that God was with them
no matter how bad it looked. For the people in exile it looked really bad, but
the message of the book is, “We got out of worse situations and God was with
us; therefore we need to put away all the gods we have and worship the One God
who has been with us each and every day. This one God will always give us the
strength to redeem good out of evil.”
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| Chagall's Joshua at the Rock of Shechem |
The people in exile needed to hear that message because
they were in danger of losing their special identity by being merged into the
Babylonian culture and into other groups of exiles from other conquered nations.
Each day they would need to echo the words of Joshua - that it did not matter
what others chose to do but, as for them and their family, they would worship
the LORD. In good times or evil times, they would continue to serve God. The
Jewish people over the last several thousand years have had many reasons to
return to this book and ask how God could possibly ever redeem the evil that
they had just experienced.
Over twenty years ago I was studying at St. George’s
College in Jerusalem, and one day a group of us went to the West Bank where we
visited a refugee camp and talked with Arab refugee families and listened to
their tales of exploitation by Israel. Then we went to a Jewish West Bank settlement
in occupied Palestine. The Jewish settlements are enclaves of settlements by
Jewish immigrants from Russia or the United States in the Occupied Territories
of the West Bank and Gaza. The immigrants were settled in confiscated land in
strategic high points on hills to control the valleys dominated by those hills.
The compounds are like outpost fortresses of control and truly gated
communities with fences, walls, and armed guards protecting the perimeter. When we got past the guards, we were able to
talk with representatives of the settlement, and we listened to them as they
explained what they were doing there. One of the men kept going back to the
Book of Joshua, saying that God had promised this land to the Jewish people and
they were part of claiming the whole of the Promised Land. He saw himself as a
modern Joshua - “As for him and his family, they would serve the LORD.”
I don’t agree with the settlement system for I see it
as a barrier to peace, and for years I dismissed the man as a religious fanatic. When I would read the Bible, I would skip
Joshua because I did not like all that violence. However, I am so impressed by
that man’s dedication to put all other gods to one side and to serve what he
saw as the LORD’s command. His commitment was such that each day was a day that
he had to be ready. Each day was the whole point of his life.
In the same way, in the selection from Paul’s letter
to the church in Thessalonica, he instructs them to stay awake for the return
of Jesus. They were starting to lose heart, for years had passed since Paul had
told them that Jesus was coming back; they were in danger of losing their hope
that there was a greater point to their lives than just slogging through the
day. Paul reminds them that the fullness of the Risen Christ is indeed coming at
the end of time, but they were also to see that self-same Spirit in their daily
lives together. They had to stay alert in their hope. Their commitment was such
that each day is a day that they had to be ready. Each day is the whole point
of their lives. In the same way, the ten virgins in the parable remembered in Matthew’s
Gospel lesson for today frames a message that we all need to be awake to see
God in every moment of every day.
When I did my prayerful encounter, like I would with
my dream work, and had conversation with Joshua in preparation for today, I
asked Joshua about the other gods I needed to put away in order to worship God.
I don’t mean the little figures from other religions. A god is not a religion,
but a god is what I, or you, put our trust in; hence the word “Worship” which
comes from the Old English “weorthscipe”, that which we give worth. My
other gods look a lot like me when I believe lies that are almost true. For
example, there is a lie that I believe a lot of the time and it takes me down a
lot of dead ends. That lie is “My worth is dependent on my performance.” While
it is indeed good to do one’s best, the lie is that I put my trust in what I
can do and if I fail or disappoint myself, then I start seeing myself as
“worthless”. Another lie I live into is
“My worth is determined by the opinion of others, and if they don’t think well
of me, than I think that I am worthless.” While it is true that we need to get
along with others, we don’t need to sell ourselves out for the approval of
others. Another lie is “I must be in
control, and if I am not in control, I am worthless.” While it is important to
have some control over things, the serenity prayer is needed at this point. “God, grant me the serenity to accept
the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the
wisdom to know the difference, just for today.”
It is when my little gods, those I have given worth
to, have failed that I can put them away. Jesus ended his life an economic
failure, a professional failure, despised by the people, and chose to have no
power to control people, but we give him worth because God was in Christ,
reconciling the world to Godself. It is then that I can see that my worth is
not in what I do but in the love of the God who made me in her/his image. My
worth is based on God’s love for me. In the eyes of God, each of us - no matter
our performance or approval of others or control - is counted as of infinite worth.
How about your gods? Are you ready to face and put
away all your other gods and echo Joshua by saying: “As for me and my family we
will serve the LORD.”
“As
For Me and My Family”
Joshua said when we talked, that
He and family would serve the LORD.
Suggesting I put away those other gods,
Failing gods in whom I ship worth.
He and family would serve the LORD
Not grasping what they had or done.
Nor hoarding the opinions of others,
Nor failing
gods in whom I ship worth.
Without grasping what I have or done,
Today help me to place trust,
Not hoarding the opinions of others,
Nor leaving non-controlling serenity behind.
Today help me to place trust,
Putting away those other gods,
Not leaving non-controlling serenity behind.
As Joshua suggested when we talked.
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