Eleventh Sunday after Pentecost (Proper 15) – Year B (RCL) 2009
1 Kings 2: 10 – 12, 3: 3 – 14; Psalm 111; Ephesians 5: 15 – 20; John 6: 51 – 58
St. Stephen’s Episcopal Parish, Portland, OR
Sunday, August 16, 2009
1 Kings 2: 10 – 12, 3: 3 – 14; Psalm 111; Ephesians 5: 15 – 20; John 6: 51 – 58
St. Stephen’s Episcopal Parish, Portland, OR
Sunday, August 16, 2009
HOLY GIFTS FOR HOLY PEOPLE
Let us pray: Saviour Jesus, we know you in incarnate and eucharistic revelation. In the obscure and distant “facts” of your earthly presence among us, and in the intimate and immediate gifts of your body and blood which we share week after week. When we think we have you all figured out – you enter our hearts and our souls to upset our routine and remind us of your mystery. Fill our minds with your Word, and our bodies with your body. Feed us with your holy gifts that we might be worthy to be your holy people. Comfort us with your truth – and shock us with your mystery that we might become all that you deign for us to be. Amen.
(SUNG) GIVE US A SIGN, THAT WE MIGHT BELIEVE IN YOU – MOSES
GAVE US MANNA FROM THE SKY.
LOOK BEYOND THE BREAD YOU EAT – SEE YOUR SAVIOUR
AND YOUR GOD. LOOK BEYOND THE CUP YOU DRINK – SEE
GOD’S LOVE POURED OUT AS BLOOD.
I have to begin my remarks this morning by expressing my frustration at the compiler’s of the Revised Common Lectionary. We follow that prescribed lectionary which determines the sequence of readings from the Hebrew testament, the songs or Psalms of the people of Israel, the letters or teachings directed to the earliest Christian communities forming in the first and second centuries of the common era (more commonly called the epistles) and the narration of the events and teachings of Jesus the Christ as handed down in the four canonical Gospels. My difficulty with the readings chosen for this Sunday, the eleventh after Pentecost (Proper 15) of Year B is that we differ very little from the stories as we heard them presented last Sunday – and yes, even though we were on Vacation, Michael & I attended the 8:15 Sung Eucharist (Rite 1 I might add, complete with the “prayer of humble access”) at Grace and St. Stephen’s Episcopal Parish in Colorado Springs, CO. If you can remember ALL that way back – we read from the telling of the Good News by the author of John’s account about the events just after the feeding of the five thousand with five barley loaves and two fish when Jesus makes the first of the “I Am” statements refering to himself as “the bread of life”. Well, thank you very much – but we heard all that last week! Now, we are given by those responsible for the lectionary this eight verse pericope which tacks onto the ending of that discourse about eating of the body and drinking of the blood. Couldn’t we be a bit more efficent and just have included these verses last week? Why do we have to have two Sunday’s in a row where we foucs on this difficult image of eating flesh and drinking blood? Why does the author of this Gospel have to pound it out so mercilessly? Eat my body, drink my blood, yes we get it already.
Now you, the small yet faithful attendees of this urban downtown Episcopal Parish did not hear from me last Sunday, yet I trust that Palmer wrote about the bread of life and I’m sure you do not need to be reminded just a short seven days later what he felt that “I Am” statement of Jesus has to say to us who gather in Jesus’ name and share the bread and wine each Sunday. Even though I was not your preacher last week, I can assure you that I would have writen a brilliant sermon for the Tenth Sunday after Pentecost and it’s basic thrust would have been that Jesus as “the bread of life” is not sliced white wonder bread that helps build strong bodies twelve ways. Sitting so smugly in the pew last Sunday morning, I was just thrilled that I wouldn’t have to preach, yet again on the Author of John’s text that can be difficult for anyone to hear. I suppose that I could have just “borrowed” the sermon I heard last Sunday and delivered it to you this morning – [and I always find that to be troublesome since God’s spirit is trying to say something through a preacher’s remarks which are specific for the particular audience to which they are written.] No, it would appear that we will have to probe deeper into these readings this morning and find out what God is trying to convey in this most disturbing of metaphors about eating flesh and drinking blood, and that is no easy task. Thank you, Holy Spirit!
(SUNG) I AM THE BREAD WHICH FROM THE HEAVENS CAME, THOSE
WHO EAT THIS BREAD WILL NEVER DIE.
LOOK BEYOND THE BREAD YOU EAT – SEE YOUR SAVIOUR
AND YOUR GOD. LOOK BEYOND THE CUP YOU DRINK – SEE
GOD’S LOVE POURED OUT AS BLOOD.
Most of us who have been part of this liturgical tradition of a eucharistic centered community have been able to “desensitize” our ears and understandings about this eating of flesh and drinking of blood – and the Church helps us to do this by using in our weekly commemoration of Christ’s memorial redemptive act the slight twist of the language which the synoptic writers left us “Take this all of you and eat it, this is my body given for you.” I don’t know about you, but for me it is a bit more tolerable to contemplate on the eucharist as Christ’s “body” than it is to focus on it being “the flesh of the Son of Man.” The Greek, however, in this 6th Chapter of the author of John’s account is “sarx” which is definitely translated as “flesh” and not the Greek “soma” which is translated as body. One of my sermon preparation resources also notices another surprise in the Greek text in this chapter and that is the word translated as “eat”. The Greek for the word in this discourse changes from the generic polite word for eating, “phage” to the much more coarse and earthy Greek word “trogan” which is perhaps better translated as “munch” or “gnaw” or “gulp”. So here we can translate as “those who munch on my flesh and gulp of my blood abide in me and I in them.” No wonder the hearer’s of this discourse are shocked and confused. Especially in a society where what was eaten and it’s level of purity and cleanliness was of paramount importance. No observant Jew would ever think of allowing human flesh and blood to pass their lips. We are told that many turned away and no longer followed after these events.
Part of the reason for the use of the more gutteral and earthy words of Jesus around munching of flesh and drinking of blood in this author’s account might have to do with several early Christian heresy’s with which the Gospel’s audience would have been familiar. Most notably “docetism” and “gnosticism” which among other things discounted the human sufferings and death of the divine Son of God. The author of John’s account might have intentionally used this more human and earthy wording in the bread of life discourse to point up the truth that Jesus of Nazareth – the son of God, was also human and experienced all of the fleshly aspects of that humanity. Also, we should remember that way back in the prolouge to this Gospel account the author introduces Jesus as “the Word became flesh”. In this narrative event, Jesus points up that flesh and offer’s the followers this startling and shocking discourse about the eucharistic gifts which will be left as a memorial of his presence among us. Part of this, I think, also has contributed to the more protestant and evangelical branches of the Church retreating from Eucharistic centered worship and focusing more on the Word of God and not the Flesh of God.
(SUNG) THE BREAD I GIVE YOU WILL BE MY VERY FLESH, MY
BLOOD WILL TRULY BE YOUR DRINK.
THIS MAN SPEAKS HARSHLY, WHO CAN LISTEN TO HIS
WORDS, WE WILL NO LONGER FOLLOW HIM. LOOK BEYOND
THE BREAD YOU EAT, SEE YOUR SAVIOUR AND YOUR GOD.
LOOK BEYOND THE CUP YOU DRINK, SEE GOD’S LOVE
POURED OUT AS BLOOD.
So, where does that leave us, those of us who gather around this table each Sunday and share gifts of bread and wine, gifts of flesh and blood – holy gifts for holy people? We in the Catholic tradition of the Church who – although we do not hold to the understanding of transubstantiation in our eucharistic sacrifice, do hold to the understanding of consubstantiation; that in some unkown and mysterious way, through the actions of my hands and the function of our community Jesus become present to us in our bread and wine as body and blood given for the world God has made? We enter in this liturgical realm, deep theological mystery. We recall the events of the life, death and resurrection – the incarnation – of our God made flesh among us, both in the last supper narratives of the synoptic Gospels and in this earthy and gutsy retelling of the bread of life narrative in the fourth Gospel.
Folks we all come to this table loaded down with our understandings of what happens in this sacred mystery which we share each week; of what we have been taught to believe about this sacrament of God’s body and blood. I am not here to tell you what you “must” believe about this sacred moment in your week. That is one of the true graces of the “via media” in Anglican thought and theology. I would point out that if you question what the Church thinks about this gift of God for the people of God, there are no less than nine Eucharistic Prayer in our Prayer Book and Supplemental Liturgical materials which contain the details and understandings of Eucharistic Theology in nine different and wonderful ways – and even they cannot contain the totality of the grace and mystery present in events they narrate. The moment I think I understand what happens in the Eucharist, when I think I “know” what this Eucharist is all about – then I am in big trouble. Then the word of God fills my heart and my head with the nonsensical nature of eating flesh and drinking blood, of gifts given for the life of the world, of holy gifts for holy people of which I am totally unworthy of taking by any act of my own doing.
(SUNG) YOU MY DISCIPLES, WILL YOU ALSO LEAVE – LORD TO
WHOM CAN WE GO? LOOK BEYOND THE BREAD YOU EAT
(SUNG) GIVE US A SIGN, THAT WE MIGHT BELIEVE IN YOU – MOSES
GAVE US MANNA FROM THE SKY.
LOOK BEYOND THE BREAD YOU EAT – SEE YOUR SAVIOUR
AND YOUR GOD. LOOK BEYOND THE CUP YOU DRINK – SEE
GOD’S LOVE POURED OUT AS BLOOD.
I have to begin my remarks this morning by expressing my frustration at the compiler’s of the Revised Common Lectionary. We follow that prescribed lectionary which determines the sequence of readings from the Hebrew testament, the songs or Psalms of the people of Israel, the letters or teachings directed to the earliest Christian communities forming in the first and second centuries of the common era (more commonly called the epistles) and the narration of the events and teachings of Jesus the Christ as handed down in the four canonical Gospels. My difficulty with the readings chosen for this Sunday, the eleventh after Pentecost (Proper 15) of Year B is that we differ very little from the stories as we heard them presented last Sunday – and yes, even though we were on Vacation, Michael & I attended the 8:15 Sung Eucharist (Rite 1 I might add, complete with the “prayer of humble access”) at Grace and St. Stephen’s Episcopal Parish in Colorado Springs, CO. If you can remember ALL that way back – we read from the telling of the Good News by the author of John’s account about the events just after the feeding of the five thousand with five barley loaves and two fish when Jesus makes the first of the “I Am” statements refering to himself as “the bread of life”. Well, thank you very much – but we heard all that last week! Now, we are given by those responsible for the lectionary this eight verse pericope which tacks onto the ending of that discourse about eating of the body and drinking of the blood. Couldn’t we be a bit more efficent and just have included these verses last week? Why do we have to have two Sunday’s in a row where we foucs on this difficult image of eating flesh and drinking blood? Why does the author of this Gospel have to pound it out so mercilessly? Eat my body, drink my blood, yes we get it already.
Now you, the small yet faithful attendees of this urban downtown Episcopal Parish did not hear from me last Sunday, yet I trust that Palmer wrote about the bread of life and I’m sure you do not need to be reminded just a short seven days later what he felt that “I Am” statement of Jesus has to say to us who gather in Jesus’ name and share the bread and wine each Sunday. Even though I was not your preacher last week, I can assure you that I would have writen a brilliant sermon for the Tenth Sunday after Pentecost and it’s basic thrust would have been that Jesus as “the bread of life” is not sliced white wonder bread that helps build strong bodies twelve ways. Sitting so smugly in the pew last Sunday morning, I was just thrilled that I wouldn’t have to preach, yet again on the Author of John’s text that can be difficult for anyone to hear. I suppose that I could have just “borrowed” the sermon I heard last Sunday and delivered it to you this morning – [and I always find that to be troublesome since God’s spirit is trying to say something through a preacher’s remarks which are specific for the particular audience to which they are written.] No, it would appear that we will have to probe deeper into these readings this morning and find out what God is trying to convey in this most disturbing of metaphors about eating flesh and drinking blood, and that is no easy task. Thank you, Holy Spirit!
(SUNG) I AM THE BREAD WHICH FROM THE HEAVENS CAME, THOSE
WHO EAT THIS BREAD WILL NEVER DIE.
LOOK BEYOND THE BREAD YOU EAT – SEE YOUR SAVIOUR
AND YOUR GOD. LOOK BEYOND THE CUP YOU DRINK – SEE
GOD’S LOVE POURED OUT AS BLOOD.
Most of us who have been part of this liturgical tradition of a eucharistic centered community have been able to “desensitize” our ears and understandings about this eating of flesh and drinking of blood – and the Church helps us to do this by using in our weekly commemoration of Christ’s memorial redemptive act the slight twist of the language which the synoptic writers left us “Take this all of you and eat it, this is my body given for you.” I don’t know about you, but for me it is a bit more tolerable to contemplate on the eucharist as Christ’s “body” than it is to focus on it being “the flesh of the Son of Man.” The Greek, however, in this 6th Chapter of the author of John’s account is “sarx” which is definitely translated as “flesh” and not the Greek “soma” which is translated as body. One of my sermon preparation resources also notices another surprise in the Greek text in this chapter and that is the word translated as “eat”. The Greek for the word in this discourse changes from the generic polite word for eating, “phage” to the much more coarse and earthy Greek word “trogan” which is perhaps better translated as “munch” or “gnaw” or “gulp”. So here we can translate as “those who munch on my flesh and gulp of my blood abide in me and I in them.” No wonder the hearer’s of this discourse are shocked and confused. Especially in a society where what was eaten and it’s level of purity and cleanliness was of paramount importance. No observant Jew would ever think of allowing human flesh and blood to pass their lips. We are told that many turned away and no longer followed after these events.
Part of the reason for the use of the more gutteral and earthy words of Jesus around munching of flesh and drinking of blood in this author’s account might have to do with several early Christian heresy’s with which the Gospel’s audience would have been familiar. Most notably “docetism” and “gnosticism” which among other things discounted the human sufferings and death of the divine Son of God. The author of John’s account might have intentionally used this more human and earthy wording in the bread of life discourse to point up the truth that Jesus of Nazareth – the son of God, was also human and experienced all of the fleshly aspects of that humanity. Also, we should remember that way back in the prolouge to this Gospel account the author introduces Jesus as “the Word became flesh”. In this narrative event, Jesus points up that flesh and offer’s the followers this startling and shocking discourse about the eucharistic gifts which will be left as a memorial of his presence among us. Part of this, I think, also has contributed to the more protestant and evangelical branches of the Church retreating from Eucharistic centered worship and focusing more on the Word of God and not the Flesh of God.
(SUNG) THE BREAD I GIVE YOU WILL BE MY VERY FLESH, MY
BLOOD WILL TRULY BE YOUR DRINK.
THIS MAN SPEAKS HARSHLY, WHO CAN LISTEN TO HIS
WORDS, WE WILL NO LONGER FOLLOW HIM. LOOK BEYOND
THE BREAD YOU EAT, SEE YOUR SAVIOUR AND YOUR GOD.
LOOK BEYOND THE CUP YOU DRINK, SEE GOD’S LOVE
POURED OUT AS BLOOD.
So, where does that leave us, those of us who gather around this table each Sunday and share gifts of bread and wine, gifts of flesh and blood – holy gifts for holy people? We in the Catholic tradition of the Church who – although we do not hold to the understanding of transubstantiation in our eucharistic sacrifice, do hold to the understanding of consubstantiation; that in some unkown and mysterious way, through the actions of my hands and the function of our community Jesus become present to us in our bread and wine as body and blood given for the world God has made? We enter in this liturgical realm, deep theological mystery. We recall the events of the life, death and resurrection – the incarnation – of our God made flesh among us, both in the last supper narratives of the synoptic Gospels and in this earthy and gutsy retelling of the bread of life narrative in the fourth Gospel.
Folks we all come to this table loaded down with our understandings of what happens in this sacred mystery which we share each week; of what we have been taught to believe about this sacrament of God’s body and blood. I am not here to tell you what you “must” believe about this sacred moment in your week. That is one of the true graces of the “via media” in Anglican thought and theology. I would point out that if you question what the Church thinks about this gift of God for the people of God, there are no less than nine Eucharistic Prayer in our Prayer Book and Supplemental Liturgical materials which contain the details and understandings of Eucharistic Theology in nine different and wonderful ways – and even they cannot contain the totality of the grace and mystery present in events they narrate. The moment I think I understand what happens in the Eucharist, when I think I “know” what this Eucharist is all about – then I am in big trouble. Then the word of God fills my heart and my head with the nonsensical nature of eating flesh and drinking blood, of gifts given for the life of the world, of holy gifts for holy people of which I am totally unworthy of taking by any act of my own doing.
(SUNG) YOU MY DISCIPLES, WILL YOU ALSO LEAVE – LORD TO
WHOM CAN WE GO? LOOK BEYOND THE BREAD YOU EAT
SEE YOUR SAVIOUR AND YOUR GOD. LOOK BEYOND THE CUP
YOU DRINK, SEE GOD’S LOVE POURED OUT AS BLOOD.
When we affirm our “yes”, our “so be it”, or “so I believe” – our AMEN to the reception of the Body and Blood of Christ we continue the Church’s memorial commemoration of that act of Eucharist or thanksgiving which Jesus handed down to us; and we take that bread which is Body or Flesh and that common cup which is lifeblood for the Body of Christ, the Church and we are what we eat.
Amen
YOU DRINK, SEE GOD’S LOVE POURED OUT AS BLOOD.
When we affirm our “yes”, our “so be it”, or “so I believe” – our AMEN to the reception of the Body and Blood of Christ we continue the Church’s memorial commemoration of that act of Eucharist or thanksgiving which Jesus handed down to us; and we take that bread which is Body or Flesh and that common cup which is lifeblood for the Body of Christ, the Church and we are what we eat.
Amen
No comments:
Post a Comment