First Sunday of Christmas
Year B
December 28, 2008
Resurrection Lutheran Church
Isaiah 61:10—62:3 Psalm 148
Galatians 4:4-7 St. Luke 2:22-40
In the name of the triune God who created us, who loves us, who redeemed us, and who cares for us.
Today our focus is on children. To me they represent a sign of innocence, beauty, and the presence of God among us. Today is the first Sunday after Christmas and so we remember particularly the Incarnation. And we celebrate again new life with the Baptism of another beautiful child of God. Today we welcome another child into the family of our faith in a formal way. It is always an exciting time for me.
But before we talk about new life with all of its potential before it, I want to talk about death. The other end of the spectrum of our lives. In the Episcopal Book of Common Prayer we have what is for me a very profound prayer in the service for the Burial of the Dead.
It goes like this: “Into your hands, O merciful Savior, we commend your servant. Acknowledge, we humbly beseech you, a sheep of your own fold, a lamb of your own flock, a sinner of your own redeeming. Receive him/her into the arms of your mercy, into the blessed rest of everlasting peace, and into the glorious company of the saints of light. Amen.”
It is a prayer so powerful in its truth that is brings my emotions right to the surface. I can barely say the prayer at a funeral without tearing up. A sheep of your own fold, a lamb of your own flock. It is an acknowledgement of our belonging to God.
A number of hears ago Joan Armstrong wrote a song entitled “What If God Was One Of Us”. Part of the lyrics went like this:
What if God was one of us?
Just a slob like one of us
Just a stranger on the bus
Trying to make his way home
If God had a face what would it look like?
And would you want to see
If seeing meant that
you would have to believe
in things like heaven and in Jesus and the saints
and all the prophets (*)
Just trying to make his way home
Like a holy rolling stone
Back up to heaven all alone
Just trying to make his way home
Nobody calling on the phone
'cept for the Pope maybe in Rome
The song really appealed to me. If God had a face what would it look like? It is a great reminder as we celebrate the birth of a savior in a barn and the baptism of a child. God calls us to see God in each and every one of us. But that can sometimes be very hard. To see God, particularly in people in whom we can’t see ourselves.
A few years ago there was a show on TV called “Joan of Arcada”. Every week God would appear to Joan in the form of a person and give her some task which needed to be done. The person who was God changed regularly and it was a very cute show. One episode though God appeared as a young teen in Goth. You know a teen that wears all black clothing, often with pale makeup on the skin and dark features. Most definitely not what I see when I look in a mirror. I found myself very shocked at this. I was rather upset that God would be portrayed in this manner.
It took me quite some time to deal with all my thoughts after my initial reaction. I knew my reaction was wrong, but it was there. I had to do a lot of soul searching. In the end, that young Goth became my favorite character to portray God. I had learned the importance of seeing God in everyone I meet. I still fail at times to do so, but I think that in my life I’m now a lot more sensitive to it.
It seems to me that for most of us Christians it is very easy to see God in infants and children and it is usually easy to see God in people at their death. We seem to have the beginning and ending of life figured out pretty good. Where we so often fail is in that large stretch in the middle when people live life, make choices, make mistakes and generally try to make it though.
It is as this point that we are most unsuccessful at seeing God in others. We seem to love people when they are born and when they die but often it is easy to hate them or perhaps ignore them in the middle.
If God had a face what would it look like?
And would you want to see
That is the questions we all must ask ourselves. You see God does have a face. God has many faces.
New sermon posted
-
My sermon is posted for today at:
http://episcopalpadresermons.blogspot.com/2013/08/sermon-for-sunday-august-4th-2013.html
You can find the podcast of thi...
10 years ago
5 comments:
If God had a face what would it look like?
And would you want to see
That is the questions we all must ask ourselves. You see God does have a face. God has many faces
..with all due respects..I GOTTA comment .
now dude!!!!!!!!!! your poem or sermon at the end there is hardly what I would call an attempt to understand the indivisible and omnipotent consciousness of GOD.
there is NO [ nor can there be] A Face in omnipotence indivisible and the non dual formless eternal state which is “ THAT” a.k.a. ”GOD”
Its essence is without any ego producing activity to create a “face” or any form for that matter.
That is all done in the thinking principle [ the mind] through precepts concepts and notions of ego producing activity which is the result of the mind, which resides in the world of duality because of the nature of the ego.
.to create a “face” or any form for that matter to identify with the creator is mere intellectualization to confirm to the EGO that there is something to strive for. its exactly the opposite of what god is.
How confusing then is that ??
the ONLY way one can “experience” god is to EXPERIENCE the non divisible state.
[ kind of what Christ was trying to say before all his jargon got watered down through centuries of sweeping romantic generalizations and translations]
Mere intellectualization only complicates matters..
its sorta like creating a reality through smoke and mirrors. what you SEE for example in a mirror is only a reflection. the reflection of course is NOT you .
it’s a reflection. . SO therefore intellectualized
, can you EXPERIENCE yourself in a mirror??
of course not.
so to create an IMAGE is really selling oneself short.
THAT which you think “IS” is NOT
THAT which you think “is NOT” actually is. [ a bit of an aphorism there].
anyway.
to BECOME that which “IS” , is a lot less complicated that “creating” what should be” through the falseness of the thinking principle,..
so what ya think??
to much info???
no big deal
it aint gonna change the order of the universe is it!!!!!!.[ which by the way doesn’t exist anyway. [ simply because of the transitory nature of its existence. ].
I think you totally missed the point of the sermon. Which is rather unfortunate.
oh. ok.
well....hmmmmmmm..... then what was the point??
that dosent make it "unfortunate" it simply makes it a point misunderstood. ..
please advise:)
im NOT challengeing you in any way. im just curious how i missed your point. honest
[ im really quite harmless]
thanks..
DA WARRIOR ]
The point was about how we see each other. It was a sermon on how we should be treating each other as Christians. It was not a sermon on the literal face of God. It is based on the concept that we are created in the image of God. Which does indeed mean that we are all the face of God.
The point was about how we see each other. It was a sermon on how we should be treating each other as Christians. It was not a sermon on the literal face of God.
oh. hmmmmm… well. ok . I dont understand. its as if there are two different sets of thoughts there you are saying and its powerfully ambiguous. if one indeed cares to take the time to enquire. into the essence of your statement
I see that everyone should be treated as equals, as we are all one.. there is no reason a Christian should be treated any different than anyone else,
or treat any one else different because they are Christians . we are all the same anyway.
It is based on the concept that we are created in the image of God.
.. from a metaphysical point that is correct. whether it be a concept precept or notion , yet because of the transitory nature of the thinking principle they are in truth somewhat all incorrect. as they dont reflect the permanent state of THAT which is [ god] , and therefore a weak metaphor, rather than just telling it like it is… tis confusing ...
Which does indeed mean that we are all the face of God...
.. dude, that's what I was saying. . but to EXPERIENCE it. is NOT the same as intellectualizing it with sweeping generalizations. the generalizations only add to the confusion , and especially to those who are in a state of their own ignorance.
maybe I expect to much. . maybe cause somewhere along the way I touched something different. . experienced what is talked about . . and i figure that since I'm just a dolt anyway, someone like you who has a title knows better. . SO your word should hold more weight huh??
I would think so .
I have found out that one cannot talk about god. one can only experience god. and when that “vibration” [ thats VERY 60’s huh?] is touched. it STILL cannot be shared. as its experience.
totally weird .
hmmmm.. this was a good lesson for me. I should keep my mouth shut I suppose. I learned a lesson . so you se there was nothing “unfortunate” as you would say about me not getting da point!!!!!.
not being able to maintain that “grace” I fell right on my spiritual ass. serves me right. oh well.
such is the rhapsody of life's progress.
thanks
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