As we begin exploring these passages together, I hope you’ll
take a minute to look at the image on your bulletin. It is a pen and ink drawing of the healing of Simon Peter’s
Mother-in-law by the Dutch painter, Rembrandt. Several of his paintings were
illustrations of Biblical events. At least one book
has been written about the value of reflecting on his work, and while his
children were baptized in the Dutch Reformed tradition, he never claimed status
in the church.
I say
all of this because he was a man that has influenced
countless others, yet – like many famous artists – he lived a difficult life
and died penniless. This was the man behind the paintbrush that gave us this
image, and the image reminds me that there is yet healing in the midst of
suffering.
This is
the second healing narrative that we’ve had in a row,
if you count exorcism as healing. I have to say that I find the idea of faith healing just
about as troubling as I do exorcisms. They are hard because they represent a
world view that can be fanatical, and they come from
a time of pre-scientific inquiry.
That
said, there is clear scientific evidence that faith matters in healing. It
matters when we pray for others, and prayer has an even greater impact when the
person knows that she or he is being prayed for. It
matters when we attend to our own spirituality in order to mend the disconnect
between our bodies and souls. It doesn’t work like magic, no matter how much we
wish it did, but it works all the same.
And
just as we cannot neglect the reality of the power
that comes from reconciling the disconnect between our bodies and our souls, we
have to recognize the disconnect we find between one another. It seems that for
all the technology that we create to share and connect more of the events of our days, we are becoming ever more disconnected.
Children
and youth seem to be particularly at risk, and I’m not just being an old guy
that complains about social media because I use it, too. In fact, I recently posted an
article on the topic that tells a story of a young
teen with an eating disorder and quotes the following from a
study by Jean Twenge, author of iGen:
“Using
data collected between 2010 and 2015 from more than 500,000 adolescents
nationwide, study found kids who spent three hours or more a day on smartphones
or other electronic devices were 34% more likely to suffer at least one
suicide-related outcome—including feeling hopeless or seriously considering
suicide—than kids who used devices two hours a day or less. Among kids who used
electronic devices five or more hours a day, 48% had at least one
suicide-related outcome.”
So,
what do we do with these devices often made by slaves that have come to enslave
us? They’ve become indispensable in our society. We could start a movement to
get rid of them, but that would be about like the boy with his finger in the
hole in the dam.
According
to the blog post, we must instead “tether ourselves” to one another in new
ways. We must find ways to be together physically as much as we are virtually. We
must demonstrate the value of each other by the offering of our time together.
Now,
I think there’s a lot of truth in that, but I think that there is one thing
more. We have to realize the idolatry of things – and even more so of the self
(dare I say selfie) – that is every bit as much a part of this as anything
else. God even asks us this question in Isaiah – “What are you going to compare
me with? An idol? Really? Who do you think made all of this stuff?”
OK,
God didn’t make tech, but God made the stuff that made the stuff. And God made
the people and gave inspiration. And what have we done with it? Well, according
to Brenne Brown, a nationally recognized researcher and speaker, the research
shows that not only are we less connected individually, we are less connected
as social groups.
Brene
was the guest preacher at the National Capitol Cathedral a few weeks ago, and I
highly recommend that you check out her sermon on line (See what I did there?).
She essentially describes us as having become more and more isolated into
“social bunkers” full of people that we agree with, and the net result is that
we are becoming lonelier.
Now,
you may say, “Loneliness isn’t that bad. Buck up. Get over it.” Yet, according
to her research, loneliness is a higher predictor of early death than smoking,
obesity, and even excessive drinking. And it’s not just her research. Apparently,
loneliness is considered so problematic in the UK – you know, the ones leaving
the EU – that they have hired a Minister for Loneliness to address it as a
public health crisis.
As
a social scientist she sees this like a canary in a coal mine, and she’s
looking for answers. What she believes as a Christian is that there is
something greater that holds us and connects us – whether we like it or not –
and that something is God. She also believes that we cannot sever that
connection, even though we can live as though it does not exist. And when we do
that, we neglect the humanity of the other. And when we do that, we neglect and
deny a bit of our own.
So,
what do we do? Well, according to her research, we have to find ways to be in
relationships with people that we don’t agree with and may not even like. And
isn’t that what we hope to do here? We hold hands with strangers. We pass the
peace that goes beyond understanding – peace that is not dependent on our
ability to understand.
We
break bread. We share moments of collective joy and pain. We might even, as she
said, “pass the peace with someone you would really rather frog in the arm than
even smile at.” We do these things because in this place we reclaim what it
means to be a child of God so that in that place – wherever that is – we can
demonstrate a belief that someone else is, too.
In
this place, we are here not only the comforting words of Isaiah that we will be
lifted as on eagle’s wings, but also the dismissive, loving, parental God
saying, “Why is this even a thing? Why have you set yourself up like this? Do
you not know who I am? Do you not see the beauty of creation? Do you not hear
my love song for you in the trees and the wind, and even in the face of the one
who would do you harm?”
This
is the place where we hear Paul say that he is free, and that because of this
freedom he is also bound to choose to limit himself. Our freedom in Christ is
not the same as self-determinism. Our freedom in Christ is the freedom to
connect with others through becoming vulnerable to one another!
For
at the core of the Gospel message that we have received today is the power for
healing found in our relationships with one another. In these relationships we
must be like the disciples – willing to talk about pain and suffering, and willing
to look to God for healing and wholeness.
In
these relationships we must even be like Jesus – willing to see the wounds of
others, to support them, and to lift them up. I’m not saying that this is how
we cure cancer. I’m saying that this is how we cure discord and hatred and make
it a world worth fighting for. And yeah, maybe that will lead to the curing of
all kinds of disease as we realign our priorities from profitability to
relationships and healing.
And
finally, we must be like Peter’s Mother-in-law – whose first response to
healing was service. You see the good news is not that Jesus did this cool
thing so long ago. The good news is that Jesus initiated patterns of living
that can bring about wholeness and healing. That’s why he didn’t stay. That’s
how he silenced demons and spiritual forces, and that’s what we participate in
every time we break the bread and share the cup.
In
fact, I want to remind you of an old tradition today. When I was a boy, as we
passed the bread we said to one another, “This is the body of Christ broken for
you.” Sometimes you’ll also hear me say, “This is the bread of heaven, come
down for you.” And when we passed the cup we would say, “This is the blood of
Christ shed for you.” And sometimes you will hear me say, “This is the cup of
eternal life, given for you.”
Now,
I don’t care if you get the words right. It’s not an incantation. What I want
you to do is to think about what it is that you are doing. Think about what it
means to you to share in this sacred making event with the person next to you.
When you pass the elements today, tell your neighbor what you are giving them.
And when you receive, remember that this is be given by God through the person
next to you. So, don’t say thank you to the person. If you need to say
anything, just say, “Thanks be to God.”
In
that attitude, with the idea that healing is already taking place, let us
continue to give thanks and praise – even here and even now – so that we can be
a part of the healing that is yet to come. And for that I say, to God be the
Glory, now and always. Amen!
Comments