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Donate| January 14, 2007 2nd Sunday after Ephiphany
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Isaiah 62:1-5
Psalm 36:5-10
I Corinthians 12:1-11
John 2:1-11
Process-relational thought affirms that hope is ubiquitous and built into the nature of the universe. The future is open and though tragedy is always a possibility, healing, wholeness, and justice are also on the horizon. The wreckage of the past can be the material from which future creativity emerges.
Isaiah describes hope springing forth into divine and human delight. Desolation becomes delight as a result of God’s steadfast love. Captives gain new freedom. The desert blooms and life is renewed. This is no denial of previous defeat and infidelity. Desolation and loss are real, but they are not the only realities. The world that once shrunk to the size of their guilt and fear is now spacious and filled with possibility. We can begin anew and reclaim God’s dream for our lives. This is the message of the return of the captives, the parable of the prodigal son, and the good news of the gospel.
Process-relational theology is profoundly realistic. Our thoughts and actions have consequences. According to the prophets, the Babylonian captivity resulted from economic greed, foolish foreign policy, and spiritual bankruptcy. A nation that goes to war for opportunity rather than self-defense may pay the price economically, politically, socially, and spiritually for decades to come. Conspicuous consumption, heedless of tomorrow, leads to global warming and threatens human and non-life. But, beyond this “inconvenient truth,” there is a glimmer of hope. Perhaps we will listen and change our ways, turn down our thermostats, use energy efficient light bulbs, and join the Kyoto Accord. If we wake up, see the possibility of destruction resulting from our current behaviors, and then change our course, hope will bloom again in the form of restored ice fields and cooler waters.
While there typically is no exact, and linear, correlation between personal and social behaviors and future outcomes, it is clear that what we do makes a difference in our own health, family life, and planetary future. In the spiritual journey, this is the source of confession, but also repentance and responsibility. Still, we do not need to follow the reckless theological path of Pat Robertson and others who see hurricanes, AIDS, and other natural disasters as punishment for corporate sin in order to recognize the roots of social disease and turn toward ways of health and wholeness.
God will not save us from ourselves. God’s aim for persons and corporate entities is the “best the impasse” and it may be perceived in terms of sacrifice and punishment. But, for those who follow God’s aims, even when God’s aims seem negative, hope lies in the future. Turning to God’s vision of wholeness leads to new and surprising possibilities for ourselves and the planet.
Psalm 29 rejoices in God’s steadfast love. God’s love endures forever, regardless of our behavior. God’s steadfast love gives us warmth and light, and protection and guidance. “In your light we see light.” Lost though we may be, we can count on God’s abiding love and light to guide our path. Today, we need God’s light to find our way as a church and a nation. As progressive and mainstream Christians, we have been imprisoned by the bad news of shrinking numbers, budgets, and social influence; we need to experience seeds of hope amid threats to survival of our churches, nation, and planet. Open to God’s light, our most authentic days as followers of Jesus may lie ahead of us. We can become voices for healing and justice whose impact transforms our congregations and the world.
How different is the hope of the Psalmist from today’s apocalyptic doomsayers. For them, God loves only the “righteous,” those who see God in terms of judgment and wrath. To such apocalyptic soothsayers, our affirmation of God’s steadfast love is the surest sigh of heresy. Power and vindictiveness characterize their image of God. Claiming orthodoxy, they have forgotten the Galilean origins of Christianity, the loving healer, who welcomed the vulnerable, lost, and marginalized into God’s reign, the God whose love aims at healing, and whose judgment is curative and not destructive.
We can preach the gracefulness of radical hospitality and unconditional love to dispel the gloom brought on by religious polarization.
I Corinthians 12:1-11 proclaims the generosity of divine creativity. There are many gifts but one spirit. God is working in your life to bring forth abundance, beauty, and delight. There is inspiration and talent aplenty in your life and in your congregation. In faithful community, we affirm each other’s gifts, bringing out the best in each other, rejoicing in the success of others. Living out our gifts brings joy to our lives, but just as important our gifts are intended to give life to the community and promote the common good. In the intricate ecology of life, joy and creativity are contagious. Today’s scripture reminds us that “we are all in this together” and that, as followers of Jesus, we need to commit ourselves to supporting the gifts of all humans (and even non-humans). Long before President Bush’s legislation, Jesus challenged us to leave no child behind. These are not empty words or political slogans for Christians, nor are they about education simply to evaluation test results. Rather, they are about providing the social and communal support that truly nurtures “family values” and childhood creativity. We must be willing to share our gifts to bring forth the gifts of others, whether this means volunteering as a tutor, giving generously to support child welfare and enrichment programs (such as the arts, sciences, and humanities), paying adequate taxes in order to support quality schools for other peoples’ children, or supporting a social safety net for all Americans, even those who have come across our borders for economic or political reasons. It also means that we look beyond the obvious to see the inner giftedness of everyone we meet. The church is called to be a community of giftedness, generosity, and celebration.
God’s abundant and extravagant giftedness calls us to generosity and praise. In the words of the hymn, “God of Change and Glory,” we joyfully affirm, “For the giver and the gifts, Praise! Praise! Praise!”
John’s gospel affirms that Jesus’ first miracle took place at a wedding feast in Cana of Galilee. Jesus’ ministry, and the reign of God, is about celebration, about a party, about bringing families together in moments of joy and reconciliation. Joy, as C.S. Lewis notes, is a sign of God’s presence. Joy expands our hearts and souls, and inspires us to reach out to others.
Joy is not accidental, but a spiritual virtue, grounded in our openness to God’s presence in our lives. Each morning I proclaim upon arising, “this is the day God has made, and I will rejoice and be glad in it.” With my first breaths, I meet the world with hope and expectation. My state of mind is not determined by the headlines I will see on the morning news or the local paper, but by my affirmation of God’s wonderful and surprising world, and positive options that emerge in each moment. As I take my morning walk, I prayerfully ask, “What great thing will I be called to do today?”
Water becomes wine, and lemons become lemonade, for those who awaken to divine possibility. Divine creativity and grace abound. God’s abundant life is for everyone. Share wine and bread. Let Jesus’ followers rejoice in God’s unending and life-giving abundance, even in challenging times like our own.
Bruce Epperly is Professor of Practical Theology and Director of Continuing Education and co-pastor of Disciples United Community Church in Lancaster, PA. Ordained in the United Church of Christ and Disciples of Christ, he is the author of sixteen books. He can be reached at bepperly@lancasterseminary.edu
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