A Pentecost Reflection

A friend commented to me yesterday that they notcied the inconguity of the worship service. It was Pentecost, they commented, but there was nothing like the scriptures or the liturgy or the meaning of the day would suggest should be there.

So I reflected:

We sang of wind and fire
And kept the door and windows closed;
Fire extinguishers of dullness at
The Ready.
We prayed for wind and fire to
Renew
The People and
The Church
And sat in semi-rigid semi-attention
Wondering if we
Closed our car windows.
We heard of Peter and friends
Running
Souls on Fire
Faith burning
Drunk on Him
At only 9 in the morning.
Running and shouting
Tongues speaking
Speaking tongues
Fears burning away.
Running and shouting and preaching
Jesus is the Christ
Jesus is the Way
Jesus is the Lord.
And we -
We waited for coffee
To keep us awake
To give us energy.
And we -
Go into our days walking and speaking
- not His toungues -
But ours
Keeping the wind from
Entering or leaving
Until we forget that there even is
A WIND
Except only
In scripture
Except only
In Jerusalem
Except only
For Peter
Sadly,
Only
Then.

Quiz Time

Well, after taking the quiz- which book of the Bible are you

the result is


You are Romans.


Which book of the Bible are you?
brought to you by Quizilla

Nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord! Amen!

Pentecost, 2003

Come, Holy Spirit,
fill the hearts of your faithful;
and kindle in us the fire of your love.
..: Traditional prayer :..

Outwardly, tongues of fire appeared: inwardly,
their hearts were set ablaze; for when the
disciples received God under the appearance of
fire, they began to burn with a sweet love.
..: Saint Gregory, sixth century :..

Pre- Wind and Fire

Darren at Living Room has posted some of what he has written for tomorrow, Pentecost, 2003. Here's part of it:

And then, there was me. Simon Peter – the Rock! Yeah Right! More like Simon Peter ‘Mr foot in mouth’. I’d disowned him too. I couldn’t even admit I knew him to a servant girl. What kind of witness was I!?

We had gathered together because he had told us to wait in Jerusalem – but we were scared and confused. Our leader had gone and we felt alone. We were unsure of who we were and what our place in the world was.

I looked out the window at the world we had been called to go to and I was afraid. The streets were filled with people of all nations yet we were not equipped to communicate with them. Our own nation was living under oppression – these were troubling times – how could we make a difference?

We can ask that same question today and every day if we do not rely on the power of God in the Holy Spirit. As we look around us at the world's uncertainties and fears, we must be able to make those first three steps of A.A.
:1: Admit we are powerless over the world around us.
:2: There is a power greater than ourselves that can give us direction and power.
therefore
:3: let GO and let GOD.

That is what Pentecost can be all about.

A Delayed Remembrance

In being on the road yesterday and only getting a short post done, I missed the date yesterday. Thanks to Joshua Claybourn for reminding us. June 6 was of course the 59th anniversary of D-Day, the Allied Invasion of Europe. It was a remarkable achievement, but all the fine military planning could not have succeeded without the even more remarkable bravery of so many soldiers. Joshua recommends the HBO series, Band of Brothers. I would recommend the book that the series is based on, as well as Citizen Soldiers, both by Stephen Ambrose. And of course there is that unforgettable opening 30 minutes of Saving Private Ryan. If we weren't there, we cannot understand the bravery that had to overcome every ounce of fear and terror the day must have engendered.

There are fewer and fewer survivors of that War and that D-Day each year. We are losing the generation. I pray they knew- and know- how much their effort is appreciated. In spite of our human failings, we have a wonderful country. Thank you to those who have served.

Living Sacrifice

Found this posted over at The OOze. Aaron White is responding to a question on Romans 12- How can a sacrifice be living? Don't you have to be killed to be a sacrifice? Here's part of what he says:

A lot of Christians feel that when it comes right down to it, they could take a bullet for God. They could be a martyr. They could die for Christ. But how many, I wonder, are really prepared to live for Christ? To die to themselves every second of every day of every week of every month of every year? To lay down their entire life for the sake of God, while they’re still alive?

This is what I believe we need to be producing in the emerging Church. Living, breathing, walking martyrs. Christians who have died to themselves, so they no longer fear any sacrifice that needs to be made. Young “warrior-martyrs” who would live anywhere, give up anything, love anybody, be ready for service at anytime, because they’ve already let go of everything they had once held dear. It is not the mission that defines who they are; rather, it is who they are willing to become that defines their mission. They have chosen to BE a sacrifice, not to offer sacrifices, and out of that being comes some pretty radical doings. from Living Martyrs: The Walking Dead Written by Aaron White| The Ooze | Thursday June 5, 2003|

A Love Poem from God
If You Love

You might quiet the whole world for a second
if you pray.

And if you love, if you
really love,

our guns will
wilt.
-- St. John of the Cross (1542-1591)
--from Love Poems from God:Twelve Sacred Voices from the East and West by Daniel Ladinsky

Pentecost Weekend

It doesn't get the press that Easter gets, not the commercialism that Christmas has earned. It is simply a birthday- the birthday of the Body of Christ that has been around for 2000 years, give or take. Let us pray that we will receive a renewed sense of the Spirit's power and presence this weekend. Maybe then we can love so much that guns will wilt. What a wondrous thought!!!

That's Better

Amazing what a night's sleep will do.

Blogger seems to be faster this morning.

The comments are back.

I feel better.

Will try to get some posts tonight, including this week's Love Poem from God.

Being a non-Geek

Oh well. I spent hours trying to figure out Moveable Type and getting it on my server.

No luck. So I will let them install.

Blogger was very slow and wierd.

I didn't see the comments tonight.

I'm giving up for tonight. Maybe the Geek Fairies will come in through the night and figure it all out.

Will the Church Lose Its Life?

From Darryl Dash today:

The real question at this point is if, in North America today, a pastor can be more focused on moving beyond the structures and buildings and techniques and lay oneself completely on the table to do what God wants. In essence, I think the call to the church is the same as to each of us individually: to die to itself, to take up the cross daily, to leave all the stuff Jesus calls us to leave. Individually, that's father and mother, husband/wife and children, brother and sister, even one's own life. As churches, it might be buildings and budgets, committees and growth, ambitions and security. Whatever church wants to save its life will lose it, but the church that loses its life for Christ will find it.

We Lose

.: Tall Skinny Kiwi :. has decided to stop his blog now that it is two years old. We are all better for what he has led the way into. And we are the losers as well. We will not have that blog around any more. I hope he keeps us posted of what new blogs he is starting. I will be watching and waiting. Thanks, Andrew!

Finally, You Can Comment

I realized after being so mean to Andrew Careaga yesterday that no one could make a comment on my site- good or bad. Well, email is always a possibility, of course, but the comment line makes it look far more sophisticated. So, as can now be seen below, I have added comments thanks to SquawkBox. So, Andrew, and any one else, go ahead and make all kinds of kind and generous comments.

Baseball Sadness

Sammy Sosa. I am saddened. For whatever reason it happened, mistake or otherwise, a superstar professional like Sammy should be more cautious and aware of what he is doing. If it's more than that, I am even more saddened. But regardless, as a ball player, Sammy remains one of the greats.

Shameless and Self-Serving

In a truly shameful, and shameless, attempt to do what Al Franken and Bill O'Reilly did at the book expo, Andrew Careaga has resorted to getting people to call him names. Just for publicity's sake. I am appalled. (Actually, I think he's truly brave. I would probably begin to believe the comments and go into this deep, dark depression that would keep me in bed till the cows come home.) There has to be an easier way to get publicity. Although I can't think of any off the top of my head.

At least one thing came out of Andrew's self-servingness. I found ReALmagazine.com, a webzine by Kevin Hendricks just up the road a piece in St. Paul. Take a look. I hope it can grow and make a difference.

Bits and Pieces

Sorry to hear that Fred Peatross is out for a few days for surgery today. Prayers that all is well.

Dan at Signposts.com had a hard time buying an NRSV Bible. What's so surprising is that he was in a Christian bookstore at the time.

Thanks to Leighton Tebay for directing us to Kim Fehr and an interesting blog.

Also, surf on over to Leighton's post, I Believe. Call me unrealistic, call me a dreamer but I believe. I believe that God is doing something in our midst, he writes. Good thoughts!

One of Those Days

Seems to be a disease of the week. Sunday must have been difficult. Jordon Cooper had it and Lee Ann Millinger faced it.

Mark Byron spoke about it in his Edifier du Jour on Sunday June 1 (permalink doesn't seem to be working). Part of Mark's comment:

Given the more deistic nature of the mainliner's God, worship seems to be restrained, for God isn't expected to do much. The transformative power of God is thus downplayed, turning their vision to psychology or government programs for help with worldly problems. However, God is more hands-on and more immenent than that. He can change lives. He does change lives, if given a chance.

With the low expections of God brings about a low expectations of man. There is a pessimism there that a touch from the Holy Spirit could help if they knew to seek it. Instead of dwelling on our collective sins, we can begin to overcome them with God's help. A hands-on God can do more healing that group therapy ever can, but that requires thinking in a supernatural manner, one that isn't easy to do.

Maybe it's the time of year. Maybe it's the need for Pentecost to come again. Maybe this next Sunday? Maybe? Let's pray so.

Catastrophe and Its Aftermath

Watched a very interesting program on PBS Sunday evening. It was the first episode of the series, Secrets of the Dead and was titled Catastrophe!. It was developed from the theory from David Keys who wrote a book on the subject.

Beginning in the year 535 A.D. major climatic changes began to occur worldwide. It appears to have been caused by a cataclysmic volcanic eruption around Java and Sumatra. The intriguing question explored by the episode and the book: Did this event of 535 cause the Dark Ages and move the world from the “ancient” world to the beginnings of the modern one.

This was the beginning of major drought- or flood- or famine from significantly colder temperatures.
>> The temperatures allowed the Bubonic Plague to make its first incursion into Europe, decimating Constantinople and the Roman Empire,
>> changing the climate caused political and religious uprisings in Mexico,
>> and Yemen was devastated leading to immigration and movement of large numbers of Arabs into the Medina and Mecca areas, possibly even setting the stage for the development of Islam.

Amazing stuff.

One of the intriguing aspects was the religious one. When the skies darken, the climate changes, the moon turns red, it looks like the end of the world. In Mexico, one of the largest cities was demolished by its inhabitants, including the temples and religious sites. The priests were not able to maintain their position. They couldn’t produce the rain, or convince the gods to give them food. And when gods fail - people move to new ones. Sometimes- often- violently.

Needless to say my mind began to think of the possible minor, but still possible, similarities with the situation in the western church today. As Modernism and it’s sidelines in intellectualism, materialism, and technology struggle in the movement into the more mystical and uncertain postmodern, western religion has found itself in the same boat. It’s not able to produce the “outcomes” people wanted to expect. The institutions have become institutionalized. The Reformation needs to be reformed. The intellectually based thinking needs to find its feelings again. It is a time of transition. The sky may not have turned red, the volcano may not have erupted, but it is a time of upheaval. People will look for the expression of God that meets their spiritual needs.

Again, back to 9/11. The church did not meet the needs.

Or after the Holocaust. The nation that produced some of the greatest culture in western history and sparked the Reformation and many great Christian thinkers also produced the Holocaust. That disconnect may be at the very heart of the spiritual crises of the past 50 years. Where was God? Why would God allow such a thing to happen? When the world seems to fall apart, we look to our gods. And when the gods, as we understand them, fail, we move to new ones.

May we continue to be faithful to God and not wrap God in the cultural baggage. Instead, may we, in our faithfulness, show that the gods that are failing are our human conceptions of God. May we be able to invite each other and others into a new pilgrimage to discover the ways God is calling out to us today. It is a new day emerging. It is a new spirituality emerging. Let is stay near to God and seek the wisdom from on high and then the power to live it.

Back to Roots

John Mellencamp has a new roots music album. Just heard him on Letterman. The band was simply guitar, stand-up bass, and drums. Sounds good.

Speaking of Roots Music

Well, sort of. Just thought I would comment on a wedding I went to the other week. Young couple with an eclectic blend of music tastes. Their "recessional"- When I'm Sixty-Four - the original- by the Beatles. They saw it as a real statement- promise- that they were in this for the long haul.

Now all the wedding purists (and I am not one of those) will say- "Yes, but what about the Wedding March or other such traditional songs. After all it was a church service." Again, the amazing problem of culture. The "traditional" music for weddings is only "traditional" in a cultural setting. There is nothing universal about any of it. Why should we use an operatic song that precedes a bedroom scene or a suicide or murder because someone, somewhere decided that it "sounds" like it should be used? I was impressed by the way the couple wanted to make a statement about their marriage- in their own musical language. It is part of their culture. They were promising to be with each other for the next 40 years. Whether it works or not, well, that is hard to say. But they thought about it and made their statement. And it was fun, too!

On Music

Found two wonderful quotes on music at Dan Johnson's QuotesBlog...

"The greatest moments of the human spirit may be deduced from the greatest moments in music." -- Aaron Copland, composer of "Fanfare for the Common Man"

"Music is edifying, for from time to time it sets the soul in operation." -- John Cage

I have always been a sucker for a good quote. I used to give a colleague a hard time because he seemed to prefer the short, to-the-point bumper sticker theology. I guess I own him an apology. I seem to have the same affliction when it comes to good quotes.

Money, Property, and Prestige

The underlying ideals of the AA-type 12-step groups are based on 12 Traditions that evolved as the ways the groups are to relate to each other and the world around them. They are to answer the question: “How can A.A. best stay whole and so survive?” Through much trial and error (often the errors of the founders) that is told in many different places, they developed these Traditions which, in their long form were printed in 1946. These include:

1. Our common welfare should come first; personal recovery depends upon A.A. unity.
2. For our group purpose there is but one ultimate authority- a loving God as He may express Himself in our group conscience. Our leaders are but trusted servants; they do not govern.
5. Each group has but one primary purpose- to carry its message to the alcoholic who still suffers.
6. An A.A. group ought never endorse, finance, or lend the A.A. name to any related facility or outside enterprise, lest problems of money, property and prestige divert us from our primary purpose. (Emphasis mine). Alcoholics Anonymous, A.A. World Services, 2001, p. 562.

It is that last one that I emphasized that has struck me recently in relation to the church. We all know that money and property can become the center of our lives. Problems of those (like arguments, control, the color of the carpet, etc.) can often become the primary purposes of our existence. A.A. has found, so far, that the groups work best when they don’t own anything. The money arguments are seriously lessened. (Note: There are Alano clubs in which A.A. groups meet, and even run them. Some of these work well and follow the Traditions; others show why the Traditions were written in the first place.)

What IS our primary purpose as the church? Do we truly believe it? If so, do we live that way? Are our buildings expendable? Maybe a great exercise for many of us would be to figure our how we could keep our primary purpose focused if we didn’t have a building of our own to worry about. Might we even think differently about our primary purpose? Just some thoughts for a June Monday.

Translating English to English
Sort of a Rant

I was substituting for a chaplain friend this morning at the nursing home. Since the last time I was there, they have put a new Bible in the pulpit. It used to be the Revised Standard. Someone gave a memorial, I guess. It is now the King James. Not the New King James- THE King James.

Well, I figured there should be no problem. I grew up on that, after all.

Wrong!

I started to read today’s passage from Acts 1 which was already cut up in the lectionary to keep from reading about Judas’s suicide. (You may not remember it- I didn’t. It has him falling into the whole and having his bowels spilt. NIV calls them “intestines.”)

Anyway, I started reading. And tried to make sense of it. And tried to read it in a sensible way. No way! I started tripping over the words and had absolutely no idea what I was reading. It made no sense. So I did the next right thing. I stopped, looked at the people and said, I’m sorry. I can’t make any sense out of this. I walked over and got a NIV translation and started all over.

What an experience. I had forgotten how difficult KJV really is. And how it makes no sense at time in English. I might as well have been trying to read the original Greek.

Now I know all the “arguments” about using the KJV in a Nursing Home setting- things like it’s familiar, it gives them comfort, etc. But when I couldn’t even read it without making more of a fool of myself, why?

I remember 30 years ago or more, the actor Orson Wells was on the Tonight Show and did a “dramatic reading” from the Bible. King James. He then went over and sat and talked with Johnny Carson and said how wonderful and beautiful the English language is in the King James and how people were ruining the Bible by translating it into modern language.

Even then, long before postmodern thinking and the emergent church I knew that was crazy and wrong. The Bible is not Shakepeare (whose plays I love to see performed). It is a living document that is to open us up to the presence of God and God’s awesome works. Read it as poetry and literature. It is that. But if it is to be read as God’s Word for us today, read it in a language we can understand.

Wisdom and Healing

Another journaling insight from Proverbs..

Scriptures:
Proverbs 13:17- The Trustworthy envoy (messenger) brings healing
Proverbs 13:20- He who walks with the wise, grows wise
Proverbs 14:9- Fools mock at making amends for sin
Proverbs 14:33-Wisdom reposes in the heart of the discerning
Proverbs 15:1- A gentle answer turns away wrath

Observations:
Healing comes from having received the message from a trustworthy messenger! That is an interpolation of v. 17 but it is implied. In other words, to be an instrument of healing and peace we need to be people of integrity and wisdom. The other verses give some of the guidelines for knowing and being a messenger of integrity that can bring that healing:
.::. Walk with the wise
.::. Be willing to make amends
.::. Be gentle to turn away wrath
.::. Look to your heart for wisdom

Application:
If I am to be a person of integrity bringing healing (turnaround to people and churches?) I must walk the way of wisdom as found in these chapters. I must be gentle and discerning, not responding in anger but in the gentle spirit that seeks healing for others. I must stay in and seek the counsel of the wise not the ones I am bringing healing to. (Don't play to their addictions, but to the healing they need.) Be ready to admit my own mistakes and own sinfulness. Take time for my heart.

Prayer:
Lord, heal me that I may be an instrument of healing for others. Guide me heart into the ways of honesty, openness and willingness to be your servant and messenger. Amen.