In the name of the Risen Lord. Amen.
“The
Church should not be run like a business,” or so many people say. We hear the
message in Scripture that we should be “in the world, but not of the world,”
and so the Church often finds resistance when business strategies are employed
within our walls. The first chapter of the book of Acts though is a chapter
about the business of the Church. Acts, which is the second volume written by
the author of the gospel according to Luke, tells the story of the organization,
mission, and growth of the early Church.
Earlier
in the chapter, the Risen Jesus tells the disciples to wait in Jerusalem for
the Holy Spirit to come as he had promised, and then he ascended into heaven to
the right hand of the Father. This was a liminal period for them, and us,
liturgically. The Ascension was this past Thursday, so Jesus’ physical
appearance on earth has ended, but Pentecost is not until next Sunday, so the
Holy Spirit has not yet been received. I imagine that it was a difficult time
for those disciples, a time where they must have all thought “now what?” They
didn’t know when the Holy Spirit was coming, and they were absent a leader.
They had more questions than they did answers.
So
in the absence of a clear direction, anxiety set in. There had always been
twelve disciples, but now there were only eleven because Judas was gone. They
decide to replace Judas by casting lots, that is, rolling dice, to see who they
should choose. Before we turn to the positive aspects of this story, let’s
spend a few moments considering the negative. Often people commend the
disciples for their trust in God and casting lots instead of themselves
choosing Judas’ successor. But did you notice that they were only choosing
between two men? It’s not as if they were saying “whomever you appoint, O Lord,
we will accept,” they had primaries and when they couldn’t make heads or tails
of the two remaining candidates, then they had the idea to involve God in the process.
And, I can’t really fault them for their cultural context, but there were no
women up for election, even though just a few verses earlier, the text clearly
states “all the disciples were devoting themselves to prayer, together with
certain women.” Even though there were women present, they weren’t considered
to be one of the twelve.
There’s
a saying that people in the Church are tolerant of change, so long as
everything remains the same. Here in the Church, we honor and value tradition.
And tradition is a good thing, but every strength has a dark side when it is
overused. In this post-Ascension and pre-Pentecost time, the anxiety got to the
disciples and instead of waiting for the Holy Spirit, as instructed, they
sought familiarity. Sure, the number twelve had some particular religious
meaning for them, but what other possibilities might have existed? We don’t
know because they rushed to action. As an Anglican, I’m a big proponent of the
riches of our tradition, but as I said last Sunday, I firmly believe that God
is doing a new thing. Tradition is great, so long as it doesn’t become an
artificial boundary around our understanding of God. This story is a good
reminder to those of us who are quick to act and ask questions later.
Those
negatives being addressed, there are some truly positive aspects of the
narrative that need to be lifted up. We are given two great examples in the two
followers of Jesus who were being considered- Matthias and Justus. Matthias is
what we might call an “invisible saint.” His name never appears again anywhere
in the New Testament and the only other information that we have about him come
from pious legends. When I was at St. John’s-Lafayette Square in Washington,
DC, I got a lot of questions about “what famous people come to your church?”
And sure, if I wanted to drop names, I have some really big ones to drop. But I
once heard someone say in response to that question “There are a lot of famous
people who go to this church, some of them we know by name, others we don’t. What
matters is not our own fame, but whether or not we are making Jesus famous.”
If
you were asked “who is your favorite disciple,” we’d hear a lot of Peter, John,
or maybe even some Bartholomews because he has a cool name, but how many people
would say Matthias? But that is exactly who we are; we are modern day
Matthiases, called, like him, to be invisible saints. Like Matthias, I think it’s
safe to assume that 2,000 years from now, none of us will be remembered, but
that doesn’t make us any less a saint of God. A saint is a person who lets the
light of Christ shine through them, and that is something that we can all do.
Though we don’t know the details of his life, we are gathered here today as a
part of his legacy of faith.
The
other person, who lost out on the dice roll, was Justus. And like Matthias, he
never shows up again in Scripture. However, according to legend, he became a
bishop near the city of Hebron, which is just 17 miles south of Jerusalem.
Though he wasn’t chosen, God still used him. He must have exhibited grace in
what must have felt like rejection, otherwise he would not have risen to the
office of bishop. If you’ve ever been picked last for a sports team or passed
over for a job, you know the sting of rejection. Justus, though, is an example that
God is never done with us.
And
what was the purpose of this organization and business-like committee of twelve
that was put together? Do those who complain that the church should not run
itself like a business have a valid point? Do those who claim that they are “spiritual
but not religious” and are against organized religion find support for their
position in this passage from Acts? The question is “why are we organized?” Is
it for the sake of our comfort, for the sake of maintaining tradition? Or is
it, perhaps, for the mission of the Gospel?
Personally,
I have no issues with taking the best of the business world and using it for the
betterment of the Church. There is nothing wrong with organized religion, so
long as we remember why it is we have organized. Leadership in the Church is
not about management or sales, but rather being a witness. As Peter says before
the rolling of the dice “one of these must become a witness with us to Jesus’
Resurrection.” There is a wonderful prayer that comes from the ordination
service for priests, and as it prays, it give us something to witness to: “let
the whole world see and know that things which were being cast down are being raised
up, and things which had grown old are being made new, and that all things are
being brought to their perfection by him through whom all things were made, Jesus
Christ our Lord.”
The
renowned Biblical scholar, Walter Brueggemann has defined Jesus’ ministry as “the
formation of an alternative community that will overthrow the injustices of
this world.” He notes that Jesus wasn’t here to explain religion to us as much
as he was here to show us how to live it. This is where our reading from 1 John
is helpful. And keep in mind that in John’s school of thought, “belief” isn’t
about what you think, it is about whether or not you are in relationship with
God. The author writes “Those who believe in the Son of God have the testimony
in their hearts. Those who do not believe in God have made him a liar by not
believing.”
What
is so helpful about Brueggemann’s definition is that he labels it as an “alternative”
community. The predominant and operative narrative out there is that violence
leads to safety. But it is a lie. Many say that material wealth will make you
happy. But it is a lie. Gurus tell the Church that with proper techniques in
social media that the Church will grow. But it is a lie. Some will say that
given our understanding of science, religion and faith are antiquated and
unnecessary. But it is a lie. Our deepest fear is that death is final. But it
is a lie. It might seem inevitable that war, famine, and greed will always
plague society. But it is a lie. As witnesses, it is our task to tell the Truth
that the future is open to God. There are lies all around us, but the
Resurrection defies them all. Our task is to be witnesses to this Good News. In
The Screwtape Letters by CS Lewis, a demon notes that “Suspicion often creates
what it suspects.”
To
live as a witness of Jesus’ alternative community though is dangerous. If you,
by prayer, service, and policy witness to this alternative truth, you will likely
know suffering and inconvenience. We are surrounded by a predatory economy, by
a military-industrial society, by fearful and control-obsessed mindset. What
Jesus is proposing is a regime change; and though Jesus is a practitioner of
non-violence, as evidenced by his crucifixion, those in in power are not.
Sometimes a word says it all. In the Greek of the New Testament, the word
translated as “witness” is “martura,” which you’ll immediately notice is where
we derive the word “martyr.” If you are an “invisible saint” who witnesses to the
Good, but subversive, News of Jesus Christ then you will be a martyr.
The
martyrdom will not likely lead to your execution, but in following Jesus, part
of us will die. Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote from a Nazi prison that “when Christ
calls someone, he bids them come and die.” I know, this isn’t the best
marketing strategy for selling you on discipleship, nor is it a very happy
message. But it actually is Good News because on the other side of death awaits
Resurrection, both in a literal and metaphorical way. Giving up some of the
shortcuts that we take in finding worldly comforts and security will feel like
a death of sorts. Giving money to charity is just one way we practice this, and
by choosing to participate in the alternative community of Jesus, we are
putting the good of God’s kingdom above the building of our own empires.
And some of you go even
deeper by opting out of unjust structures of society, but there are so many of
them. Our financial system is greed-driven and predatory system. Our education
system is dysfunctional. Our health insurance system mistreats the least of
these. Our criminal justice and prison system is deplorably flawed. But these
stories of sin and brokenness aren’t the final word because we are witnesses to
the transformation of the Resurrection. Our world needs more “invisible saints”
who are witnesses to this Good News, and willing to suffer as martyrs for
speaking Truth to power.
But, by and large, the
Church isn’t witnessing much and it certainly isn’t suffering for the sake of
the Gospel. Many of you likely saw the news, which was reported in every major
news outlet this week, of the new Pew Research findings on the religious
beliefs of Americans. In the last 7 years, there has been a 8% decrease in the
number of Americans who self-identify as Christian. There has been a nearly
equal increase in the number of those describing themselves as “religiously
unaffiliated.” There are now more people who claim “no religion” than all
mainline Protestants (of which we, as Episcopalians, are a part) combined. What
is interesting, and lamentable, about these findings is that the research also
points to the cause for this decline as being a perception that “religion is
aligned with a conservative political agenda” and people do not want to be a
part of that.
These findings are even
more pronounced among Millenials, those born between 1981 and 1996. Today is
Youth Sunday, the day in which we celebrate the children and youth in our
parish and lift up our ministry with them. Youth Sunday is a bit like Mother’s
Day or Father’s Day. Just as we should honor our parents every day, so too
should we celebrate our youth every Sunday, but today we place a special
emphasis on them. And I can’t help but think that the findings of this research
is exactly what we should expect. If we are not witnessing to the power of the
Resurrection to change our lives and transform our world, then why would
younger generations be motivated to follow Jesus? One theologian has said that “the
biggest problem facing Christian theology is not understanding, but enactment.”
We need witnesses and martyrs. The thing is, it really does take a village to
raise a child in the faith, so we all have a role to play. Our youth need
mentors, they need examples, they need champions.
This summer, one of my
major goals is to revitalize our ministries with children and youth. I’ll be
meeting with our Vestry liaisons to these areas this week to start this
planning. But we can’t do it alone, we will need each of you to be involved
with these ministries, and we need to be a church of witnesses, who embody the
Good News of Jesus Christ so that younger generations might know of God’s love
and redemption.
In the reading from John,
Jesus prays for those entrusted to his care might continue to be protected and blessed.
Similarly, we have been entrusted with the raising of future generations in the
faith. The Resurrection’s power to transform our world is ours to witness to.
In this story about the choosing of Matthias, we see an example of finding
grace in not being chosen and an example of serving as an “invisible saint.” We
are an organized religion, may God embolden us to be organized not for our own
security or agendas, but as witnesses to the alternative community of Jesus.
May God grant us the strength to suffer gladly as martyrs for the Resurrection.
And may God inspire our witness, that future generations might know the Good
News. Amen.
