July 24, 2022

 As preached by Sister Cecelia

Holy Wisdom Church

2 Kings, 4:25-37, Romans 8:1-11, Matthew 9:18-26

The readings this morning remind us of the miracles performed by the early prophet Elisha and the many miracles performed by Jesus as well. The leader of the synagogue, Jairus, had faith Jesus could bring his daughter back to life. The woman with a 12-year hemorrhage believed Jesus could cure her. Even the epistle reminds us that through our baptism we receive the miracle of the indwelling Spirit who raised Christ from the dead into our own mortal bodies. What effect have these miracles had in our lives?

Even though the disciples witnessed many of the miracles performed by Jesus, those miracles had little effect on their behavior when He was taken by the Romans and put to death. It seems the miracles were ineffective in strengthening their faith because there was no correspondence between what was happening on the outside and what was happening on the inside. The most spectacular happenings do not work unless they trigger an interior response. There needs to be a consistency between what is deepest in us and the practical choices that constitute our everyday life. We do need to burden ourselves with principles that define our identity and set our objectives and not just float along with the current. This work of having a personal philosophy that is drawn from our past experience and feeds into our present and future living is of great importance as we arrive at a sense of who we are and what we stand for. Life can teach us to build within ourselves a structure of beliefs and values that serve to guide us in the decisions we make and serve as a standard against which we can measure our conduct.

In the course of our lifetime, we may not witness miracles, but we do encounter a vast variety of situations from which we may draw wisdom and understanding. We need always to step back and reflect. In Scripture, there are many admonitions repeated in many forms. Be chaste, be honest, and many other virtues—in short, keep the Ten Commandments. These moral precepts are about how to live an upright life. What one must actually do, leave us none the wiser in our actual day-to-day choices in light of what is known today that was not known in the past. In so many areas of life we know more, physically, psychologically, astrometry. These moral precepts must be kept, of course, but isn’t Christianity even more than these precepts?  We want to know God and mysteries that are inaccessible to the light of natural reason. We want to know where our heart and mind are to find fulfillment in this life on earth.

This past week we celebrated the feast of Mary Magdalen, and I am reminded of her going to the tomb to properly anoint Christ’s body. She did not recognize the gardener and asked “Where is He?” When Christ spoke her name, Mary recognized Jesus and became overjoyed. Are we alert enough to recognize Jesus calling our name? Sometimes Christ speaks to us in silence, sometimes in joy, in laughter, and even in the voice of a loved one who calls us by name.  We need to be more attentive to Christ in the sounds of creation—the birds, the wind, a gentle rainfall or crack of thunder. The more attentive we are to listening for Jesus to call our name, the likelier it will be that we hear and see Him in the young person who feels desperate, or the child who is hungry, in the refugee escaping danger, in the teenager who is bullied, in the person without a home.

What we give to others gives witness to our faith that Jesus lives.

Christ is in our midst!

 

 

 

Sermon 180 July 17, 2022 Mt 8:28-9:1, Rom 6:8-18, Is 65:1-10 1st 6 Ecumenical Councils - Marina.

 As preached by Brother Luke

Holy Wisdom Church

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.


The Greek philosopher Heraclitus lived in the 6th century BCE. He is attributed with saying: "the only constant in life is change." Fast forward more than 2,200 years and in 1849 a French writer, Alphonse Karr, wrote: "plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose" – the more things change, the more they stay the same…" Two different perspectives on the same idea.

Human beings really don't like change, we like routine, it makes us feel in control of our lives. But we really can't control our lives nor can we escape change as Heraclitus noted long ago. But we often fight against it. To put it more bluntly, we fear it. And yet, if we ponder the present condition of our world, a world we might rightly claim is much different than even 50 years ago, not to mention hundreds of years ago, we will notice that the underlying features of human nature have remained unchanged, both the good and the no so good.

Jesus Christ's message is all about change. It's about knocking heads right into the most stubborn aspects of the human condition. When we are in our routine, we tend not to notice the things around us that need to be changed. Sometimes right under our very noses, as with Lazarus and the rich man. We may also flinch from facing that change because it may very well have negative ramifications for our own, shall we say, quite comfortable lives.

Who wants to lose their job and then have to start all over again? Who wants to have their house blown down in a hurricane, or burned up in a fire, and then face all the trials of rebuilding one's home and one's life? And who wants to evacuate their home to make way for a new airport to be built in their neighborhood? Who wants to study hard for a college degree only to discover that there are no jobs in your field? And what couple whats to enter into marriage with the dream of building a family only to discover that their child has a severe health impairment?

In today's gospel message Christ is letting us know that we need to be prepared to face this kind of reversal in our lives. And that reversal can come as a result of something good. After all, in this story Jesus heals a man possessed by demons but the demons are then transferred into a heard of pigs who destroy themselves. When the villagers learn of this event they confront Jesus and ask him to leave their neighborhood. Are we so different? Do we want a prison or a nuclear waste dump to be built in our neighborhood? What happens to our property values?

Jesus' message is a disturbing one. Yes, it includes the promise that we are to have life and have it more abundantly. But what is the cost to arrive at that more abundant life? For us in the monastic life, it is a constant requirement that we re-examine our lives, our pre-conceived notions, our ego-driven desires, our pains, our failures, our annoyances, and even our cherished pleasures!

Jesus left the region of the Gadarenes and crossed over into his own town. They asked him to leave and he left. But what he left behind changed their lives. We have free will to decide to avoid the messages God is sending us, but they will come anyway, and they will impact our lives whether we like it or not. Jesus is letting us know that the best approach is to be prepared for the reversals that will come. He isn't just telling this to the bridesmaids, he is telling us.

Glory be to Jesus Christ!