CrossWalk Community Church Napa

Unexpected 2: Jonah’s Subversive Message Then and Now

You are familiar with the story, and perhaps have even ridden a ride taking you through it. Geppetto is an Italian clock maker who is alone in the world (save his cat and goldfish). To offset his loneliness for companionship, he crafts a young boy marionette, which he names Pinocchio. Seeing the wishing star appear before he went to bed, he wished that his puppet could be a real boy. Overnight, his wish was granted by a fairy, who also appointed Mr. Jiminy Cricket as Pinocchio’s present conscience since the boy would be starting from scratch with no bearing about right or wrong. Pinocchio was promised that he could obtain real boyhood if he proved himself to be a good boy, gauged by his ethical behavior. On his way to school he got sweet-talked by a clever fox who convinced him to join the theater instead of going to school. It worked out for a minute, but one thing led to another, and Pinocchio found himself with other young lads on Pleasure Island, where all manner of reckless manliness could be enjoyed: smoking cigars, drinking copious amounts of beer, getting into fights, vandalism, and various carnival games. Unfortunately, Pleasure Island was a trap put in place by owners of a salt mine in need of donkeys. When the boys drank enough of the beer the villains tainted, they soon turned into jackasses (or were they already?) and shipped to the mine where they would spend the rest of their days. Pinocchio managed to escape before he was totally jackassed and rushed home only to discover that his “father” had gone to search for him on the sea and was swallowed up by Maestro, the Monstrous Whale. Pinocchio plunged himself into the sea to rescue his father, managed to get everyone out of the whale’s belly through heroic efforts at the expense of his own life. His selflessness, however, wiped out all the jackassery he had engaged in before, including the lying that caused his nose to grow. The scales of goodness now tipped in his favor, the wishing star fairy not only brought him back to life but made him a real boy. It’s a fun animated film, with adult humor thrown in as per usual with Disney films. The latest version won an Oscar recently, adding some interesting twists from the original. Without a doubt, this story was inspired by the Bible’s Jonah, where errant behavior landed him in the belly of a whale for three days and nights, eventually being spat up on shore to try again. While the literal details of Pinocchio may not be factual, it is a very true story. Geppetto fully entrusted Pinocchio to be a good boy even though the wooden lad didn’t know Schlitz from Shinola. Bad decision that set up the kid for failure. The puppet’s deceit not only got him into deeper and deeper trouble, but it affected those he loved as well, landing his wood carving creator in the belly of a whale. We are prone to making decisions based primarily on our unexamined egos. When we do, there is always a price to pay, and it is often high. We don’t know what happens in Pinocchio’s next chapter in the Disney film – does the now flesh and blood boy attend school and live as a good boy? We know Jonah didn’t. He may have gone to Nineveh, but he remained unchanged in his heart. In the great American novel, Moby , Captain Ahab commanded the crew of the Pequod to join him on his pursuit of Moby , the very large white whale that took his leg. His insanity ended up costing the crew their lives and the ship’s oily cargo, save Ishmael, the slave of a sailor who was, like his biblical namesake, forsaken by the father of his ship. But there is much more to the story. Melville may have been writing a story about the pursuit of a monstrous whale, but between the lines he was actually critiquing the culture in which he lived in the 1800’s: Capitalism was doing a lot of good in the world, but it was also capable of unthinkable evil which included American slavery for the first two and a half centuries of our history on this land, and child labor to this day in other part of the world. He witnessed the power of greed and prejudice that was tearing our country apart. He was fully aware of what was happening in the deep south after reconstruction ended – slavery may have become illegal, but there were many other ways that white people could subjugate black people. We are still paying the price for that today. Melville couldn’t call it out too directly, however, because of family ties. He wrote an incredibly long book where he could write deeply so that there was much to be read between the lines for those sensitive enough to recognize it, while those who couldn’t or wouldn’t simply enjoyed the story at face value. The Book of Jonah is like that. For those who simply want a crazy folktale with lots of humor along the way, it stands alone. Yet for those who wonder why the book was written in the first place and study the context, the textual peculiarities, and undertones, there is so much more. The prejudice held by Jonah is obvious – he goes toward Tarshish because he doesn’t want the people of Nineveh to get any kind of warning because he would rather see them suffer God’s judgment. He knows that God’s desire to warn them is an act of grace that speaks volumes about the nature of God. Jonah believes God is graceful so much that he refuses to give Ninevites a chance to hear out of his hatred. Paradoxically, the non-Jewish sailors showed more grace and godliness than the supposed holy man from Israel! They all worshipped as hard as they could to no avail and were distraught at killing Jonah. The Ninevites even put their animals in sackcloth and ashes to appease God’s wrath! Note: Please laugh out loud at the ridiculousness of this detail clearly indicating it’s folklore-like genre. These foreigners who would not consider the God of Israel a threat suddenly become holy – much more so than Jonah who still cannot get over himself (even after a near-death experience). Centuries later, Jesus was teaching in the northern part of the country where he grew up. He was renowned for his teaching, healing, and miracles. But his magic show could be explained away by his critics (religious leaders), so they demanded a clear sign that he was anointed by God. Jesus said the only sign he would give was the sign of Jonah, who was in the belly of a what for three nights before rising again at the will of God. Similarly, Jesus was alluding to his own experience of death, burial, and resurrection three days later. Remember that the Gospels were written decades after Jesus’ life and ministry. For many believers at that time, the resurrection became their “proof positive” that Jesus was anointed (endorsed and empowered) by God. The Jewish leaders, however, dismissed this “Sign of Jonah” altogether, claiming it to be a fabrication, or covering up what they couldn’t understand. They didn’t experience the resurrected Christ, and certainly didn’t want to change their lives based on the ramifications thereof. History has a way of repeating itself, especially when those who are living fail to give due attention to their own history which always informs the present. Prophets of old are not to be looked upon like wizards with crystal balls who can foretell the future. Prophets were and are those who are so familiar with the vision of God, the heartbeat of God, the harmonies of God, the authenticity of God that when they see something that is out of line with the vision, sense that there is a miss-beat, hear something off key, and smell something foul they simply call it to attention. Jonah was a joke of a prophet given his prejudice and hatred, mirroring the prevailing attitudes of the people he represented and served (can it ever be dangerous for leaders and their followers to simply echo each other?). The writers of the story perhaps took this approach because the temperature in the room was too hot to speak directly, like Melville writing about serious issues thinly veiled in his whale of a tale. What would the writers of Jonah see today? What would they hope would be considered by a country that claims Christian roots? Given their vision of God, what might they wonder about how we are treating each other in the public square? Women’s rights to their own bodies? The LGBTQ’s freedom to live authentically and love who they love? The treatment of human beings hoping to work for a better future here and abroad? Nuclear threat? Our role in global warming and our reluctance to take it seriously because of money? Our care of the environment to ensure that we don’t ruin it for the generations to come? How about income disparity? Obsession with arms while wanting greater peace? And of course, our ongoing reluctance to own and address America’s greatest sin – the enslavement of others with the blessing of the Church. Statistically, American Christianity is Jonah. Publicly, Christians – painted with one wide brush – continues to be viewed not for their desire to live into shalom, but for the disturbance of it. It is no surprise that we are witnessing more people leaving not just church but the faith than ever before. Why would someone consider Jonah when the sailors enroute to Tarshish, and the ruler, people, and animals of Nineveh appear to be more aligned with shalom than the one who is supposed to proclaim it? As Jesus followers – and as people of faith in general – we are called to live by the vision of shalom. For everyone and everything. Are we taking any time to wonder what that looks like and compare it to our personal lives, our family systems, our work and friendly relationships, our community governance, our country, and our world? The presence of God woos us ever forward toward shalom. Are we paying attention? Do we care?

Unexpected: Jonah’s Whale of a Tale

As we begin this series, take time this week to simply become familiar with the story.
Chapter 1: RUNNING FROM GOD One day long ago, GOD's Word came to Jonah, Amittai's son: "Up on your feet and on your way to the big city of Nineveh! Preach to them. They're in a bad way and I can't ignore it any longer." But Jonah got up and went the other direction to Tarshish, running away from GOD. He went down to the port of Joppa and found a ship headed for Tarshish. He paid the fare and went on board, joining those going to Tarshish—as far away from GOD as he could get. But GOD sent a huge storm at sea, the waves towering. The ship was about to break into pieces. The sailors were terrified. They called out in desperation to their gods. They threw everything they were carrying overboard to lighten the ship. Meanwhile, Jonah had gone down into the hold of the ship to take a nap. He was sound asleep. The captain came to him and said, "What's this? Sleeping! Get up! Pray to your god! Maybe your god will see we're in trouble and rescue us." Then the sailors said to one another, "Let's get to the bottom of this. Let's draw straws to identify the culprit on this ship who's responsible for this disaster." So they drew straws. Jonah got the short straw. Then they grilled him: "Confess. Why this disaster? What is your work? Where do you come from? What country? What family?" He told them, "I'm a Hebrew. I worship GOD, the God of heaven who made sea and land." At that, the men were frightened, really frightened, and said, "What on earth have you done!" As Jonah talked, the sailors realized that he was running away from GOD. They said to him, "What are we going to do with you—to get rid of this storm?" By this time the sea was wild, totally out of control. Jonah said, "Throw me overboard, into the sea. Then the storm will stop. It's all my fault. I'm the cause of the storm. Get rid of me and you'll get rid of the storm." But no. The men tried rowing back to shore. They made no headway. The storm only got worse and worse, wild and raging. Then they prayed to GOD, "O GOD! Don't let us drown because of this man's life, and don't blame us for his death. You are GOD. Do what you think is best." They took Jonah and threw him overboard. Immediately the sea was quieted down. The sailors were impressed, no longer terrified by the sea, but in awe of GOD. They worshiped GOD, offered a sacrifice, and made vows. Then GOD assigned a huge fish to swallow Jonah. Jonah was in the fish's belly three days and nights. Chapter 2: AT THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA Then Jonah prayed to his God from the belly of the fish. He prayed:"In trouble, deep trouble, I prayed to GOD. He answered me.From the belly of the grave I cried, 'Help!' You heard my cry.You threw me into ocean's depths, into a watery grave,With ocean waves, ocean breakers crashing over me.I said, 'I've been thrown away, thrown out, out of your sight.I'll never again lay eyes on your Holy Temple.'Ocean gripped me by the throat. The ancient Abyss grabbed me and held tight.My head was all tangled in seaweed at the bottom of the sea where the mountains take root.I was as far down as a body can go, and the gates were slamming shut behind me forever—Yet you pulled me up from that grave alive, O GOD, my God!When my life was slipping away, I remembered GOD,And my prayer got through to you, made it all the way to your Holy Temple.Those who worship hollow gods, god-frauds, walk away from their only true love.But I'm worshiping you, GOD, calling out in thanksgiving!And I'll do what I promised I'd do! Salvation belongs to GOD!"Then GOD spoke to the fish, and it vomited up Jonah on the seashore. Chapter 3: MAYBE GOD WILL CHANGE HIS MIND Next, GOD spoke to Jonah a second time: "Up on your feet and on your way to the big city of Nineveh! Preach to them. They're in a bad way and I can't ignore it any longer." This time Jonah started off straight for Nineveh, obeying GOD's orders to the letter.Nineveh was a big city, very big—it took three days to walk across it. Jonah entered the city, went one day's walk and preached, "In forty days Nineveh will be smashed." The people of Nineveh listened, and trusted God. They proclaimed a citywide fast and dressed in burlap to show their repentance. Everyone did it—rich and poor, famous and obscure, leaders and followers. When the message reached the king of Nineveh, he got up off his throne, threw down his royal robes, dressed in burlap, and sat down in the dirt. Then he issued a public proclamation throughout Nineveh, authorized by him and his leaders: "Not one drop of water, not one bite of food for man, woman, or animal, including your herds and flocks! Dress them all, both people and animals, in burlap, and send up a cry for help to God. Everyone must turn around, turn back from an evil life and the violent ways that stain their hands. Who knows? Maybe God will turn around and change his mind about us, quit being angry with us and let us live!" God saw what they had done, that they had turned away from their evil lives. He did change his mind about them. What he said he would do to them he didn't do. Chapter 4: "I KNEW THIS WAS GOING TO HAPPEN!" Jonah was furious. He lost his temper. He yelled at GOD, "GOD! I knew it—when I was back home, I knew this was going to happen! That's why I ran off to Tarshish! I knew you were sheer grace and mercy, not easily angered, rich in love, and ready at the drop of a hat to turn your plans of punishment into a program of forgiveness! "So, GOD, if you won't kill them, kill me! I'm better off dead!" GOD said, "What do you have to be angry about?" But Jonah just left. He went out of the city to the east and sat down in a sulk. He put together a makeshift shelter of leafy branches and sat there in the shade to see what would happen to the city. GOD arranged for a broad-leafed tree to spring up. It grew over Jonah to cool him off and get him out of his angry sulk. Jonah was pleased and enjoyed the shade. Life was looking up.But then God sent a worm. By dawn of the next day, the worm had bored into the shade tree and it withered away. The sun came up and God senta hot, blistering wind from the east. The sun beat down on Jonah's head and he started to faint. He prayed to die: "I'm better off dead!" Then God said to Jonah, "What right do you have to get angry about this shade tree?" Jonah said, "Plenty of right. It's made me angry enough to die!" GOD said, "What's this? How is it that you can change your feelings from pleasure to anger overnight about a mere shade tree that you did nothing to get? You neither planted nor watered it. It grew up one night and died the next night. So, why can't I likewise change what I feel about Nineveh from anger to pleasure, this big city of more than a hundred and twenty thousand childlike people who don't yet know right from wrong, to say nothing of all the innocent animals?" (The Message Translation)The story of Jonah is not to be read as a literal story of an historical event. Even though it the central character is noted elsewhere in the Bible, it is unlikely that they are the same person. It is uncertain when the story came about – somewhere between 800 BCE – 400 BCE, when Israel was quite bitter toward the more powerful nations that subdued them. Scholars are mixed on what genre best characterizes this writing. Not exactly a folktale, not a parable, not midrash, but rather a little bit of each. One thing that scholars do agree about: it’s a masterpiece that continues to be relevant today.What stands out to you in this story – what are you noticing, what would you like more information about, what is striking?How do you think the original Jewish audience might have received this tale? What do you imagine was the hoped-for outcome in its sharing?How is this story relevant in our day and age?How does this story hit home with you? What characters do you resonate with? Have you ever had a moment or a season when you resembled Jonah?

And I, I Did Not Know...

“And I, I did not know.” The best part of this story, in my humble opinion. Jacob was undoubtedly aware that he was running for his life after his brother, Esau, out of his rightful fortune. But he was probably not aware of the deeper currents running in his psyche that influence him to deceive his father, his brother, his mother, and himself so deeply. He did not know about his inner workings – at least not enough to correct course if he cared at all. Jacob likely believed that God (or gods) existed as a way of understanding the universe and his place in it. Yet he was perhaps not aware of how his cosmology affected his spirituality (I thought angels had wings – why take the stairs?). He knew he was experiencing a “thin place”, yet seemingly failed to recognize that everywhere is a “thin place” where the divine can be encountered. More, he didn’t realize that “thin places” are less about geography and more about mentality - our own capacity to slow down and see what is right before us all the time. Jacob’s making a cairn as a marker and reminder of the experience was a good idea, yet he was apparently unaware of his own hubris evident in his statement of “faith” – a transactional agreement that was very human but not very humble. “I’ll make you my God if you help me win the lottery” and its myriad iterations and variations miss the point of walking humbly with God entirely. This type of faith is control-oriented and isn’t faith at all. We remain God. Jacob was unaware of just who this God was that was being revealed in his vulnerability. This God was one who came with blessing and encouragement despite Jacob’s character flaws – a constant presence of love and grace wooing Jacob toward the deep wellbeing for him and all of creation represented by that rich Jewish word, shalom. How aware are you? What don’t you know? About yourself – a mix of wheat and weeds that won’t be separated in this life except by your own work through? About your cosmology and its effect on your worldview and spirituality? About your own hubris when it comes to faith? About the character and nature of God as an original blesser and the implications thereof?

Hidden History of Napa

Enjoy this interview of author Alex Brown (The Hidden History of Napa), hosted by CrossWalker Stephen Corley and Sheri Smith, Director of the Napa History Museum.

Hagar & Ishmael

Enjoy this robust discussion among four amazing CrossWalk women regarding the story of Hagar and Ishmael.

Hope

The influences of fear, greed, and power will always be present. These forces have influenced the most egregious suffering on humanity and the planet itself. These forces are always at play in politics, even in a perfect democracy like ours... Sigh... But there is a greater influence that has been and always we will present. Call it the Spirit, God, our Ground of Being, Higher Power, or simply Love. This influence has led to more beauty, more freedom, more inclusivity wherever it goes. This influence is at work no matter who is in charge, even amid horror. This influence is winning, even though there are times of setbacks usually due to the influence of fear, greed, and power. The Jewish people tapped into the greater influence and wrote about their experiences that we can read for ourselves in the Bible. The Jewish creation myths in the first few chapters of Genesis make this clear: the God moving and working in creation viewed everything as good, and human beings as very good! This contrasted with other theological perspectives that portrayed “the gods” as beings to be feared, entities that seemed motivated by greed and power just like humans. This Jewish way of seeing allowed them to move into the world differently. Yet, just like us, they struggled to welcome and include, limiting the rights of women, orphans, and immigrants, and despising certain other people groups. Yet something was at work that influenced these ancestors of our faith into a different way of seeing everything. I recently saw a Facebook post from the Executive Minister of Evergreen, the region CrossWalk calls home within ABC-USA. It simply states something obvious in the Bible - viewpoints and policies changed, softened over time to become more inclusive, not less. Ten to fifteen years after Jesus died, there was a rising Jewish star named Saul who was adamantly opposed to the Jewish sect of Jesus followers. He was so filled with hatred that he gained authority to hunt them down to arrest them and bring them to “justice” in Jerusalem where he likely hoped some of them would be stoned. In his view, they were apostate – worthy of the wrath of man mirroring the certain wrath of God to come. Like many committed Jewish leaders, he had strong opinions about who God loved and who God didn’t. Non-Jewish people, Samaritans, the uncircumcised, women, people who didn’t conform to dominant sexual identities – these and others were not loved by God as far as Saul was concerned, and therefore he needn’t love them, either. Apparently, religions themselves – and their adherents – can be overly influenced by fear, greed, and power. Jesus challenged all three of those things, which is why he was killed. All of that changed for Saul while he was enroute to rustle up some of Jesus’ followers. He was stopped in his tracks on that road to Damascus by a spiritual experience of a blinding light shining down on him, with a voice self-identifying as Jesus. Saul was blind in many ways, and it took some time for him to see clearly – maybe for the first time in his life. Ironically, the once hyper critical legalist became one of the greatest advocates for grace. Once barely tolerating Gentiles, Saul changed his name to Paul to foster greater trust in them, becoming known as The Apostle to the Gentiles. On one occasion where legalism crept into a new Christian community (fear, greed, and power still loomed), Paul directly spoke into the errant vision that was dividing people and calling into question God’s love for them: For you are all children of God through faith in Christ Jesus. And all who have been united with Christ in baptism have put on Christ, like putting on new clothes. There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male and female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus. And now that you belong to Christ, you are the true children of Abraham. You are his heirs, and God’s promise to Abraham belongs to you. And because we are his children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, prompting us to call out, “Abba, Father.” Now you are no longer a slave but God’s own child. And since you are his child, God has made you his heir. – Galatians 3:26-29; 4:6-7 NLT This movement of the Spirit toward greater inclusion and love influenced people over and over again. We now live in a time when we are enjoying the great advances that once seemed impossible. While it is tragic that we still have a long way to go, let us celebrate how far we’ve come. There will be setbacks to freedom and inclusion, influenced by fear, greed, and power. Yet we, as people of faith, join the greater influence of Love that will continue to improve and enhance the world and the people in it – all toward shalom/peace/deep wellbeing for all. I want to celebrate the fact that our denomination, American Baptist Churches USA, re-affirmed our commitment to gender equality at their recent Biennial in Puerto Rico. Rev. Nikita G. McCallister is now the President of ABC-USA until the next Biennial. That’s awesome. Oh! And she’s also black – double reason for celebration! Fear, greed, and power are at play, but the greater influence of Love is winning. When I first arrived at CrossWalk, if you were , you kept it to yourself, and most likely you did not come to church here. Now we are known as a safe space for our LGBTQ neighbors! There will be setbacks in our culture regarding equality, equity, and inclusion due to fear, greed, and power – those forces are real. But the greater influence is on the side of Love and is winning. For many in our country, there is concern about immigration, and a fear that when so many foreigners enter our country, we’re doomed. I simply don’t see it that way. I have many friends in the community who have come to the United States from south of the border. Many of these are Executive Directors working to make Napa a stronger, healthy, more vibrant community. They love their heritage, but they love being in the United States because of the dream it represents. A more recent person that has become very important to me immigrated to the US at six years old. Her mother, aunt and uncle, her siblings and cousins all crammed into a two-bedroom apartment to try and make a go of living in the United States. Her mom and aunt and uncle worked multiple jobs – not just for themselves but so that their kids would have a better life than they would have had in the Philippines. Diana and her sister graduated from one of the highest ranked public schools in the country in SoCal, and both went on to graduate from college. She and my son, Noah, met at Pepperdine and remained friends after graduation. After she returned from teaching in South Korea as a Fulbright scholar for a year, she and Noah reconnected. One of Diana’s dreams is to use her skills and education to help Filipino immigrants become fully engaged citizens of the United States. She also hopes to do something to help her community in the Philippines thrive. Diana is no marauder. She is a contributor. While there will always be some who are not well and do not mean well for others, I believe the vast majority of those who come into the US simply see the dream and want a part of it. The sooner folks who look like me can embrace that – and them – the sooner we can get be rid of the racial divide that persists. The fear of the unknown other, greed and power are real, powerful forces at work to be sure. But the greater influence of Love is beckoning us forward to help us become a more perfect Union. The Spirit invites all the to the table in Love and for the sake of Love. We are a people of faith loved into being, loved forward, loved home. Sometimes the forces of fear, greed, and power will overwhelm us for a moment or season. But these are not the forces that create life – they destroy it. We are being called to be co-creators in this life, in this world, in this nation, in this community, in this church, in our relationships, in ourselves, all supported by the Love that will never let us go.

2023 Heart of Christianity: Commencement Address?

What types of things do you write in cards celebrating a High School or college graduate? Or in a card celebrating a wedding? Or a pregnancy or birth announcement? I am quite certain that we all keep things on the positive side, wishing the recipients well as they move forward to a new chapter. Deeper into that new chapter, our conversations with these folks change. We may still be positive and optimistic, but, if the person is even just a bit more than an acquaintance, we will also share more honestly about the reality of life. There are high points to celebrate – and we should – and yet there are challenges that we will absolutely face as well. Being honest about those things doesn’t make us a Debbie Downer, it actually gives others permission to be real. If you’ve spent time with people in their last season of life, there is another shift that takes place. The sting of the pain experienced between the big dreams at the beginning and the later years is softened for many people. A perspective born of wisdom that only time can foster often yields a peace despite the ongoing reality of struggle. If only we could begin with the grounded perspective of age-earned wisdom! We see a reflection of this in Jesus’ instructions to the disciples as they are commissioned to go into the towns and villages to carry out the work Jesus had begun. What we have in Matthew’s text (Matthew 10:1-39) is very likely much more than Jesus told the disciples on that day. My hunch is that Jesus’ actual words at that moment were more like a High School graduation commencement address: “You’re awesome! You’re capable! You’re cool! The world is your oyster! You’ve got this!” There was not much need for more than that. The disciples simply needed to hear from their leader that he thought they could do what he was charging them to do. Why then is there so much more instruction, and a lot of it discouraging? The Gospel of Matthew is not a collection of newspaper articles chronicling things in real time. Many scholars believe that Matthew’s Gospel wasn’t complete until around 85 CE – 50’ish years after Jesus’ death. Matthew borrowed heavily from Mark’s Gospel (as did Luke), and tapped a body of work scholars simply call “Q” (shorthand for the German word quelle, which means “source”). They also added remembrances from their unique body of Jewish Christians. By the time the final product was finished, these Jesus followers had experienced A LOT of reality. They also assumed that people who would read this account of Jesus’ life and ministry would already be familiar with the story, which gave them further confidence to add some things to the account to make some key points. This means that, even though the words Jesus spoke might be in red ink in your Bible, he may not have said it. This does not mean that the Matthew writers were reckless – they didn’t have Jesus instructing the disciples to enjoy pulled pork sandwiches for lunch. All the words they put into Jesus’ mouth are accurate reflections of what would eventually happen to many of the disciples over the next decades. But Jesus likely did not say them at that point in time. The words attributed to him require a knowledge of the history to come. This was written retrospectively, also reflecting the theological perspectives of the Matthean community. The speech isn’t a total bust. On balance, there is a lot of hope in the address. Perhaps this is because the Matthean community of Jesus followers had been through and discovered that God was with them through it all, providing strength and hope all the way, gifting them with the presence of the Spirit to give them confidence in what lies beyond the grave. None of us nail the discipleship thing 100% of the time. We’re human. Yet we are called to follow. Know that when we do, there will be wonderful times of joy and transformation. Know also that there will be extremely challenging times as well. As my Grandpa Shaw used to say, “that’s just the way it is.” Remember, though, that the goodness of God will be with you as you Go Be Jesus. Remember, too, that “You’re awesome! You’re capable! You’re cool! The world is your oyster! You’ve got this!” Because despite the horrors that may come when we bring shalom to places that prefer the status quo, the accolades are true. You’re a child of God, and that means you are inherently very good. Commentary from the SALT Project...Big Picture:1) From now until November, the gospel readings will move chronologically through Matthew. This week’s reading is from the second of five major discourses or teaching sessions Jesus delivers in Matthew (likely an echo of the five books of the Torah). This one is sometimes called the “Missionary Discourse,” since it consists of instructions to the disciples as Jesus commissions them to preach and teach and heal in villages throughout the region.2) Jesus sends the disciples out in a way that underscores their vulnerability: he tells them to bring no money, no bag, no extra clothes, no sandals, no staff (Matthew 10:9-10). This puts them at the mercy of the hospitality — or hostility — of the people they encounter along the way, and in this week’s reading, Jesus both encourages the disciples and warns them that adversity awaits.Scripture:1) As we saw last week, Jesus authorizes and commissions the disciples to do the very work he has been doing; in this sense, he is passing the mantle to the church. Accordingly, he sends them with words of encouragement and comfort: Don’t be afraid; God knows you and loves you better than you know and love yourself, and will be with you all the way along. But in the same breath, Jesus candidly spells out what this “encouragement” implies: their coming adventures will require courage. They will encounter opponents, hostility, threats — even persecution. The powers that be, the death-dealing forces in the world, will not quietly step aside. This is work that will require resolve and perseverance: part-timers need not apply. You’ve got to go all in, or not go at all.2) Following Jesus, in other words, isn’t for the faint of heart. It means giving things up, even precious things, even things we hold dear. The very fact that Jesus is passing the mantle here is a tacit reference to his coming departure, to the fact that he already is on a pilgrimage down into the valley of the shadow of death. Any who follow him, then, must be willing to do likewise, to “take up the cross and follow me” (Matthew 10:38).3) But what does “taking up the cross” mean in this context? This is the first reference to “the cross” in Matthew, and Jesus uses it as a metaphor for the difficult work of embracing an unconventional life of intense, generous commitment to God’s mission — a willingness, as Jesus sums it up, to “lose their life” in order to “find it” (Matthew 10:39). According to this ideal picture, following Jesus means making God’s mission of love and justice the first priority in our lives, even above family and livelihood (Matthew 10:35-37; 10:9-10). It means being willing to confront and conflict with death-dealing powers, so much so that — even as genuine peacemaking remains the ultimate goal — it may well initially appear as though we “have not come to bring peace, but a sword” (Matthew 5:9; 10:34). 4) In brief, discipleship means leaving behind conventional approaches to kinship, career, and social harmony — and that’s not a prospect to be taken lightly. Count the cost before you go. The good news of the Gospel may be for everyone — but discipleship isn’t.5) That last point — that discipleship isn’t for everyone — may at first be counterintuitive for many Christians today. Isn’t the whole point of Christianity that anyone can become a disciple, and that the goal is to make as many as possible? Well, if Jesus thought so, he had a strange way of showing it. According to Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, Jesus encountered thousands of people during his ministry — but only called something like fourteen to be disciples. Nor did he send out the twelve disciples to recruit and expand their ranks; rather, he expressly sent them out to heal and liberate and proclaim that “the kingdom of God has come near” (Matthew 10:1,7-8). Likewise, Jesus and his entourage moved through the countryside feeding, healing, and teaching the crowds, but not signing them up as disciples. For the overwhelming majority of the people he met, his signature sign-off wasn’t “Follow me,” but rather: “Your faith has made you well,” or “Return home and declare how much God has done for you,” or “Go on your way, and sin no more,” or “Go in peace.” In short, Jesus comes to save many (indeed the whole world!), but as for disciples, he calls only a few.Takeaways:1) As Jesus commissions his disciples, he warns them of adversity to come — and such struggles continue today. Death-dealing forces come in many forms, of course, but in American life (and beyond!) a prime example is racism, a hateful injustice that will not go quietly when confronted by forces of love and equity. Peacemaking is the ultimate goal, of course, but every unjust status quo has formidable supporters with vested interests (that’s why it’s the status quo!), and so moving toward genuine peace almost always initially involves conflict. Jesus both acknowledges and normalizes this turmoil, counseling us to expect it — and calling us to trust a caring God of love and justice along the way. Likewise, if we take Hagar’s story to heart, we dare not lose hope — even when despair seems most tempting. In our lowest moments, God comes alongside us with loving-kindness, asking, “What troubles you?”3) Building another world — a world where all are seen and honored — requires thoroughgoing commitment, and a willingness to stay engaged when things get dicey. Jesus doesn’t mince words on this point: You are embarking on a struggle; you will meet with trouble, and setbacks, and a long journey ahead. But many have gone before us, many “all in” Christians who have helped show the way: Francis of Assisi and Teresa of Avila; Fannie Lou Hamer and Clarence Jordan; Rosa Parks and Oscar Romero; Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Dorothy Day...4) In a remarkable sermon on the demands of discipleship, the preacher and author Barbara Brown Taylor once argued that, if we’re honest with ourselves, most of us are less like “disciples” and more like “friends of the disciples.” God does raise up genuine disciples in every generation: the well-known saints and the countless others whose names we may or may not ever know, people who actually did and do, in various ways, put God’s mission of love and justice above conventional priorities of kinship and livelihood. The rest of us are something a good deal more humble than “disciples” in this sense. At our best, Taylor contends, we’re “friends of the disciples” — and like friends, we may extol and support disciples where we can; and like friends, we may be inspired (or haunted, or driven) to follow their examples here and there, in fragments or moments or chapters of our lives.5) But who knows? The Living One Who Sees Us may yet have another adventure in mind for our itinerary. Jesus’ call to “all in” discipleship remains open and vibrant for everyone. On any given day, even words as challenging as these in Matthew may become a summons personally addressed to you, or to me, or to a particular congregation. In ways large and small, there’s no telling what kind of follower of Jesus we may yet become! Matthew 10:1-39 (MSG)Jesus called twelve of his followers and sent them into the ripe fields. He gave them power to kick out the evil spirits and to tenderly care for the bruised and hurt lives. This is the list of the twelve he sent:Simon (they called him Peter, or “Rock”),Andrew, his brother,James, Zebedee’s son,John, his brother,Philip,Bartholomew,Thomas,Matthew, the tax man,James, son of Alphaeus,Thaddaeus,Simon, the Canaanite,Judas Iscariot (who later turned on him).Jesus sent his twelve harvest hands out with this charge: “Don’t begin by traveling to some far-off place to convert unbelievers. And don’t try to be dramatic by tackling some public enemy. Go to the lost, confused people right here in the neighborhood. Tell them that the kingdom is here. Bring health to the sick. Raise the dead. Touch the untouchables. Kick out the demons. You have been treated generously, so live generously. “Don’t think you have to put on a fund-raising campaign before you start. You don’t need a lot of equipment. You are the equipment, and all you need to keep that going is three meals a day. Travel light. “When you enter a town or village, don’t insist on staying in a luxury inn. Get a modest place with some modest people, and be content there until you leave. “When you knock on a door, be courteous in your greeting. If they welcome you, be gentle in your conversation. If they don’t welcome you, quietly withdraw. Don’t make a scene. Shrug your shoulders and be on your way. You can be sure that on Judgment Day they’ll be mighty sorry—but it’s no concern of yours now. “Stay alert. This is hazardous work I’m assigning you. You’re going to be like sheep running through a wolf pack, so don’t call attention to yourselves. Be as shrewd as a snake, inoffensive as a dove. “Don’t be naive. Some people will question your motives, others will smear your reputation—just because you believe in me. Don’t be upset when they haul you before the civil authorities. Without knowing it, they’ve done you—and me—a favor, given you a platform for preaching the kingdom news! And don’t worry about what you’ll say or how you’ll say it. The right words will be there; the Spirit of your Father will supply the words. “When people realize it is the living God you are presenting and not some idol that makes them feel good, they are going to turn on you, even people in your own family. There is a great irony here: proclaiming so much love, experiencing so much hate! But don’t quit. Don’t cave in. It is all well worth it in the end. It is not success you are after in such times but survival. Be survivors! Before you’ve run out of options, the Son of Man will have arrived. “A student doesn’t get a better desk than her teacher. A laborer doesn’t make more money than his boss. Be content—pleased, even—when you, my students, my harvest hands, get the same treatment I get. If they call me, the Master, ‘Dungface,’ what can the workers expect? “Don’t be intimidated. Eventually everything is going to be out in the open, and everyone will know how things really are. So don’t hesitate to go public now. “Don’t be bluffed into silence by the threats of bullies. There’s nothing they can do to your soul, your core being. Save your fear for God, who holds your entire life—body and soul—in his hands. “What’s the price of a pet canary? Some loose change, right? And God cares what happens to it even more than you do. He pays even greater attention to you, down to the last detail—even numbering the hairs on your head! So don’t be intimidated by all this bully talk. You’re worth more than a million canaries. “Stand up for me against world opinion and I’ll stand up for you before my Father in heaven. If you turn tail and run, do you think I’ll cover for you? “Don’t think I’ve come to make life cozy. I’ve come to cut—make a sharp knife-cut between son and father, daughter and mother, bride and mother-in-law—cut through these cozy domestic arrangements and free you for God. Well-meaning family members can be your worst enemies. If you prefer father or mother over me, you don’t deserve me. If you prefer son or daughter over me, you don’t deserve me. “If you don’t go all the way with me, through thick and thin, you don’t deserve me. If your first concern is to look after yourself, you’ll never find yourself. But if you forget about yourself and look to me, you’ll find both yourself and me.

2023 Heart and Home: Being Christian in an Age of Religious Pluralism

What do Stephen Curry, Thairo Estrada, and Christian McCaffrey have in common? For starters, they are all great athletes on their respective Bay Area teams. Next question: who among them is the best? It’s a ludicrous question, of course, that cannot be adequately answered without clarifying what activity we’re talking about. Basketball? Baseball? Football? Sports in general? We can quickly recognize that it may not be fair to compare these players to each other since their respective games are played and scored differently. They all play to win, but they play according to the rules of the game they play.What do Abraham, Buddha, Jesus, and Mohammed have in common? They are all founders of four of the largest, enduring religions in the world. Note: Hinduism dwarfs Judaism but has no single founder. Rather, it is a synthesis of various Indian cultures and traditions. Who among the four are the best?The way we are accustomed to think about religion is to declare one the winner, or one as “true”, and the others as false, as “losers”. Borg refers to this as the absolutist understanding of religion. Christian Fundamentalism and its child Evangelicalism are built on the absolutist understanding of religion, and therefore take very seriously the work of converting people to Christianity as a means of saving people from what they deem as a false religion and the from which it stems and to which it leads.Casual bystanders witnessing this passionate proselytizing pursuit are rejecting this absolutionist perspective in increasing numbers and accelerating speed. Like Ricky Gervais, they see the surface argument in similar terms as my sports star analogy and throw up their hands – they walk away from both God and religion because the latter doesn’t seem to connect them to the former. They toss the whole thing as rubbish. Borg refers to this as the Reductionist understanding of religion. Perhaps, then, using the same logic, they should also throw aside all sports since they all play by different rules.But that’s not fair to Curry, Estrada, and McCaffrey; and certainly not to Abraham, Buddha, Jesus, and Mohammed, either. It’s way too simplistic in its understanding of religions, and far too hasty in its reaction to dismiss them all.There is another way to understand religions of the world. Borg refers to it as the Sacramental approach. This perspective recognizes that each of the world’s enduring religions were developed by human beings in response to their experience of the “More” – aka God, the Divine, the Ground of Being. The purpose of the religions was to connect humanity with the sacred in their time, place, and with their language, stories, worldview and traditions. Because they were created in their respective contexts, they sound different from each other, and only in the most general respects are they similar. That’s why the Reductionist approach goes too far – or actually not far enough – saying that religions all say the same thing. They don’t – they are as unique as their origins. Different religions are trying to “win” at mediating the divine within their respective contexts as different sports offer contextualized games with the goal of winning in their particular way. Rather than seeing religions as in competition with each other, Borg sees them helping each other: “Understanding other religions can enrich our understanding of Christianity and what it means to be Christian. Religious pluralism can help us to see our own tradition better.”In this “Religion as Sacrament” vein, the enduring religions of the world are viewed as such:1. Religions are human creations…2. … in response to experiences of the sacred3. Religions are “cultural-linguistic traditions”4. Enduring religions are “wisdom traditions” 5. Religions are aesthetic traditions6. Religions are communities of practice7. Religions are communities of transformationWhile the enduring religions of the world are different one to the other, they also share these following attributes in common:1. They all affirm the more, the real, the sacred2. They all affirm a path of transformation3. They all provide practices for the journey4. They all extol compassion: life’s primary virtue5. They all contain collections of belief/teachingSome use the example of various paths leading up the same mountain. Christians who have adopted the absolutist view balk at the analogy, saying that the other religions don’t adequately deal with sin, or don’t even refer much to heaven, therefore they are inferior to Christianity. Borg offers a different version of the analogy, however. Each path originates from its particular place on the base of the mountain, with all of its contextual influences. Each path makes its way toward the top of the mountain where the clouds cover the peak. The path doesn’t take you to heaven, it takes you to the Divine, God, the Greater Other, the Higher Power. Winning isn’t defined by which formula gets you into heaven. As sacramental vehicles, success is ushering adherents into the Presence of God.A normal, natural question in response might be, why bother with religion at all? Why not just be spiritual and call it good? Borg suggests that religions still play a crucial role in our spiritual pursuit. “Religion,” he says, “is to spirituality as institutions of learning are to education.” Can you learn apart from the institutions? Sure. But you’ll likely learn more, faster, with the external forms of religion helping you. The wisdom, rituals, practices and collections of beliefs serve as vessels of spirituality, mediators of the sacred and the way. Without them, I believe you will get stuck and miss out on much of what is offered: both in terms of understanding the Divine and the fuller experiences of life.Another question might be, what about the statements attributed to Jesus that appear to support an exclusive understanding of Christianity as the only legitimate religion? Borg suggests that we see and hear such words as those communicating truth and devotion. For Jesus and his early followers, following Jesus was the only way that resonated with them, was the object of their devotion, and was the center of their message of hope. Borg noted that we may use similar language when referring to our “home” – our dwelling or perhaps the geographical place we live or our country. We speak with absolute devotion about our “home”, articulating the truths of its splendor to whoever will listen. But, as Borg notes, loving our home deeply doesn’t make it superior to someone else’s home. They can love and have their home wherever they are.There is a beautiful song sung to the tune Finlandia that communicates this reality. Imagine replacing references to nations, lands, and countries with religion, faith, etc. Below are the lyrics, and here is the song beautifully sung.This Is My Song (Finlandia)This is my song, O God of all the nationsA song of peace, for lands afar & mineThis is my home, the country where my heart isHere are my hopes, my dreams, my holy shrineBut other hearts in other lands are beatingWith hopes and dreams as true and high as mineMy country's skies are bluer than the oceanAnd sunlight beams on clover leaf and pineBut other lands have sunlight too, and cloverAnd skies are everywhere as blue as mineThis is my song, O God of all the nationsA song of peace for their land and for mineThe Dalai Lama was asked by a Christian if she should convert to Buddhism. He told her, “No. Instead, become a very good Christian.” Borg recalled a wisdom saying: “If you desire water, you are better off digging one well 60 feet deep than six wells ten feet deep.” It is good and wise to respect different traditions and religions. It is also good and wise to go deep with the one that is most “home” – for the overwhelming majority of people in the United States who are already familiar with the Christian tradition, this is a well worth digging into. You are likely to find a spring that offers living water that will never run dry.Borg ends his book with this, as part of his answer to why he is a Christian: At the heart of Christianity is the way of the heart – a path that transforms us at the deepest level of our being. At the heart of Christianity is the heart of God – a passion for our transformation and the transformation of the world. At the heart of Christianity is participating in the passion of God.I am, and certainly plan to remain, a devoted Christian. Christianity mediates the sacred well for me and so many others. With its guide I am ushered into the Loving Presence of the Divine, guided to love and be loved, and compelled to be used by God to be an agent of restoration, renewal, and even resurrection in this very good world we call home.What about you? Where is your “home”? How deep is your well?

2023 The Heart of Christianity: Practice

This week’s focus in Borg’s book is on implementing practices that Jesus taught and modeled as a way of living into the faith. At CrossWalk, we emphasize this a lot, represented in Jesus’ stretching, kneeling in service, gracing those who were experiencing injustice, connecting with God through spiritual disciplines, and being an incarnate presence with others in deep community. The fruit of all these movements working together is the abundant life Jesus promised. Following Jesus pays off for everyone (and the planet, too). I am following the Lectionary this week, focusing on the calling of Abram and Sarai in Genesis, and Matthew the tax collector in the Gospel of Matthew, followed by a related miracle story. Excellent and brief commentary on those passages is copied below for your perusal. What sticks with me in these stories is the dynamic of the invitation offered and the participation involved to accept such an invitation. Particularly sticky is Jesus’ comment about coming to heal the sick and not the well. To me, this raises questions about our self-awareness and arrogance in relation to our capacity to receive and accept the ongoing invitations of the Spirit of God throughout our lives. How many times have I slipped into the role of the pride-filled onlooker scoffing at others, only to hear that when I am in such a mental space, Jesus really doesn’t have anything for me, because I am self-duped into thinking I am “well”. May we all walk in humility to know that we are all works in process, always in need of help to help us live and be well through each stage of life. May we be humble enough to perceive the ongoing invitation extended by God to us for our wellbeing. May we be humble enough to see such an invitation as pure gift to receive and employ. May we be humble enough to express our gratitude for it at every turn. Second Week after Pentecost (Year A): Genesis 12:1-9 and Matthew 9:9-13,18-26Big Picture:1) The season of “Ordinary Time” begins this week in earnest — not “ordinary” in the sense of commonplace, but rather in the sense of “ordinal,” or “related to a series.” Think of Ordinary Time as a six-month series, a step-by-step pilgrimage through the story of Jesus’ ministry, with Matthew as our guide (next year it’ll be Mark, and the next, Luke; John gets sprinkled in throughout the three-year cycle).2) The Christian Year is divided almost in half: about six months of high holidays (Advent, Epiphany, Lent, Eastertide), and about six months of Ordinary Time. Like the tides coming in and going out, or a pair of lungs inhaling and exhaling, these two sides of the Christian Year go back and forth, back and forth, the festival seasons of Christmas and Easter giving way to an extended season of everyday life, and then vice versa. And so we begin this week, appropriately enough, with two classic stories, centuries apart, of being called to a life of following God: Abram’s (later “Abraham”) and Matthew’s.3) The passage from Genesis 12 begins the saga of Abraham, the story that in many ways sets in motion the history of the Jewish people. Genesis 1 - 11 covers the so-called “primeval history,” a collection of ancient accounts and fables gathered from different eras and authors, each with a distinctive mythological style: the first story of creation (“Let there be light!”); the second, quite different story of creation (Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel); the story of Noah’s family, the flood, and the ark (“I have set my bow in the clouds…”); and the story of the Tower of Babel (“because there God confused the language of all the earth”). With this “primeval history” as background, here in Genesis 12, the book’s focus and style markedly shifts: for the next ten chapters, we’ll hear the saga of Abraham and Sarah.4) Matthew 1 - 8 lays out the stories of Jesus’ birth; his baptism many years later; his temptation in the wilderness; his first major sermon (the so-called “Sermon on the Mount”); and several stories of Jesus healing. Before that major sermon, the initial disciples Jesus calls are fishermen on the shores of the Sea of Galilee — but here in chapter 9, he shifts gears and calls Matthew, a tax collector. Looking ahead, Jesus is on the verge of sending out the twelve disciples to heal and preach (Matthew 10). Matthew is apparently the twelfth disciple recruited into the fold.5) Finally, Matthew’s early audiences would have been at least loosely familiar with the purity practices recorded in Hebrew scripture: menstruating women were allegedly “unclean” (Leviticus 12:1-8; 15:19-30), as were corpses (Numbers 19:11-13), such that anyone and anything they touched also became “unclean.” And for their part, tax collectors were widely despised as instruments of the Roman imperial occupiers and their collaborators. Indeed, in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus uses “tax collectors” as a shorthand for people lacking in virtue: “For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?” (Matthew 5:46). As we’ll see, Jesus overturns all of these ideas in this week’s story, and bearing them in mind helps highlight the tensions driving the narrative: Is he really eating with tax collectors — and recruiting one to be a disciple? Did that “unclean” woman really just touch him, the Holy Teacher? And did he really just touch a stranger’s corpse?Scripture:1) Jesus has been on the move throughout the countryside, and here he comes across Matthew sitting in his “tax booth” (or “toll booth”) (Matthew 9:9). Matthew was likely a kind of customs official, charging a “toll” or “tax” on goods being transported to market; for example, such booths were sometimes set up along roadsides near fishing villages. Tax collectors were widely unpopular, not only because the taxes themselves were onerous, and not only because such funds supported the Roman Empire and its collaborators — but also because tax collectors were often suspected of charging more than required, and pocketing the difference.2) It’s striking, then, that Jesus would call such an “undesirable” to be his twelfth disciple; it certainly raised eyebrows among some Pharisees, as did Jesus’ custom of eating with “tax collectors and sinners” (Pharisees were a local religious group, in many ways similar to the movement gathering around Jesus, and therefore a key rival in that local context). But it’s also worth thinking about that Jesus’ other disciples — many of whom, after all, were fisherman! — likely didn’t care much for tax collectors! Indeed, the gist of the overall story suggests that by calling Matthew, Jesus is driving home a point intended not only for outside observers, but also for his own followers.3) And what is that point? In a nutshell, that no-one is disqualified from becoming part of the movement — and indeed that Jesus is most interested in people who need help, just as a physician is most interested in people who are sick. As Matthew has been making clear all along in these opening chapters, Jesus is a healer: he comes not to reward those who are already well, but rather to help us become well in the first place.4) But not, please note, to “make us well” without our active participation. A woman Jesus meets on the road serves as a definitive, iconic role model: she has been bleeding for twelve years (and so likely has been ostracized for twelve years), and yet she approaches Jesus with a fierce form of hope, saying to herself, “If I only touch his cloak, I will be made well” (Matthew 9:21). The underlying word here — translated as “be made well” in the NRSV — is the Greek word, sózó (pronounced “SODE-zo,” rhymes with “ROAD-so”), which can also be translated, “save,” “heal,” “preserve,” or “rescue.” And in pursuit of this salvation, this healing, this rescue, the woman is nothing less than audacious. Not only does she make her way through the entourage of disciples in order to touch Jesus’ garment, she pushes through the words of Leviticus, too, the ancient ideas that not only is she “unclean,” but anything she touches will become “unclean” — including the one whose clothing she reaches out to touch!5) It’s worth pausing here to let this sink in: a supposedly “unclean” outcast, a woman, boldly touches a Holy Teacher without his permission, apparently desecrating him in the process. The disciples must have been wide-eyed, stunned. Will Jesus be angry? Has he been defiled? Jesus stops, turns around, and confronts the woman…6) …and without skipping a beat, praises her for her boldness, her daring, her persistence, her faith: “Take heart, daughter; your faith has made you well” (again, the word is sózó). And this formulation, too, is yet another surprise, since one might well draw the conclusion that Jesus’ power is the reason the woman is healed (Matthew 9:22). But on the contrary, Jesus draws attention not to his power, but to hers. Your faith has made you well…7) And so Jesus continues on his way to the house of a leader of a local synagogue, a man whose daughter has just died. With a boldness that mirrors the woman’s faith, the man, too, believes that Jesus’ touch can make his daughter “live” (here the underlying word is zaó (pronounced “ZAH-oh”), the same word in “One does not live by bread alone” (Matthew 4:4)). When he arrives at the house, Jesus disperses the mourners, takes the girl’s corpse by the hand — and she gets up. She lives. Here again, with his actions Jesus dissolves supposed barriers: between “clean” and “unclean” (Numbers 19:11-13), between life and death. Thus the story foreshadows Jesus’ death and resurrection, as well as the broader promised resurrection to come.8) The idea that “faith” is a kind of audacity is at least as old as the story of Abraham and Sarah, a saga which begins with God’s call to “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you” (Genesis 12:1). At least two things stand out in this ancient story: first, that it begins with God delivering a single, powerful word — “Go” — summoning Abram and Sarai (later Abraham and Sarah) to leave what’s familiar and set out on an adventure. And second, that the purpose of this calling isn’t only for their benefit; it’s ultimately for everyone: “in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed” (Genesis 12:3).Takeaways:1) As Matthew arranges them, these episodes share a common theme: Jesus’ barrier-dissolving, healing, life-giving ministry, an approach to “salvation” that defies conventional categories. Is Jesus more interested in “eternal life” or “life here and now”? Sózó carries both connotations at once, effectively debunking the distinction. God saves the righteous and damns sinners — right? Nope. Jesus comes to save sinners, he says, the outsiders, those who need help and healing. Even tax collectors! For Christians today, this means: Even and especially people you look down on, or distrust, or otherwise disrespect. While we’re counting them out, Jesus is inviting them in.2) Likewise, just as Jesus dissolves ethnic and sociopolitical barriers between Jews and Gentiles (a major theme in Matthew’s Gospel), he also dissolves barriers of contempt and marginalization within religious communities. For Christians today, then, the task is most definitely not to criticize Jewish practices (thereby ironically falling into the contempt trap all over again!), but rather to identify and root out Christian practices that implicitly or explicitly divide and marginalize, creating “outsiders” and “insiders.”3) These stories also provide a glimpse of how Jesus thinks about scripture. He engages holy writ not with uncritical obeisance, as if every word in Leviticus or Numbers (or any other book) is to be taken at face value, but rather with wise rabbinical judgment, carefully weighing which passages are most important, which passages help throw light on other passages — and then applying those insights at the right time, in the right place, and in the right way (remember: “love your neighbor as yourself” is from Leviticus, too! (Leviticus 19:18)).4) “Faith” is framed here as a form of audacity, a mode of barrier-dissolving boldness — and the woman with a hemorrhage is cast as a prime exemplar, a role model no less impressive than the local religious leader. The two make quite a pair: on one hand, a long-suffering outcast; on the other, a consummate insider. And in both cases, an audacious trust Jesus calls “faith,” a pivotal power possessed by each and every human being: “your faith has made you well [sózó]…”5) Finally, a key hazard to avoid in coming to grips with these stories is the mistaken idea that any apparent absence of a “cure” means afflicted people are to blame for their “lack of faith.” Indeed, the fact that sózó and zaó encompass such a wide range of meanings — from salvation to health to resurrection to thriving to restoration-to-community — should stand as a guardrail against this misinterpretation. Healing comes in many different forms, physical, emotional, social, and otherwise, and we can trust that our most daring, faithful efforts will be met with God’s merciful healing touch, regardless of the form that healing takes in any given case. For that healing, after all, is the good news of the Gospel in these stories: Follow me. Yes, you. I know, I know: I know all about your past; but I’m calling you to a new future. Take heart, my children, reach out, push through, and dare to touch the edge of my cloak — for I am already reaching out to you, and will yet take your hand, both today and in the end. And when I do, I will call on you to stand up, to go (“Go!”), to set out, to embark on an adventure. In a word: to rise.

2023 The Heart of Christianity: Jesus, Model of Justice?

Enjoy Gordon Waggoner's creative, thought-provoking journey through one of the most puzzling - and uncomfortable - stories of Jesus, the cleansing of the Temple.