Pentecost B, May 27, 2012
Romans 8:22-27 Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words.
John 15:26-16:15 I have said these things to you to keep you from stumbling.
O Holy Source of inspiration, grant us the strength, the wisdom and the courage to seek always and everywhere after truth, come when it may, and cost what it will.
There’s something about the communal Pentecost reading from Acts that surprises me every year, even when I’m part of the planning. There’s something shocking and dramatic and wild about a bunch of people reading in different languages at once. It’s exciting and a little crazy – just the opposite of our customary buttoned down and somber liturgical presentations of scripture readings. I feel hopeful for the worship of the Church whenever when we can experience something of the Spirit and not just talk about the Spirit. We do it well in music here at Emmanuel Church, and I suspect there is so much more that is possible in readings, in prayer, in silence, while still remaining Episcopalians of course! The best news in this regard is found in our second lesson for today, from Paul’s letter to the Church in Rome. Paul writes: “The Spirit helps us in our weakness, for we do not know how to pray as we ought but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words.” I think that Spirit is regularly praying that we might have more fun in church (although I might be projecting).
While our calendars don’t always line up exactly, today happens to be Pentecost for Christians and for Jews. The Feast of Pentecost (in Hebrew, Shavuot) in Judaism, comes fifty days after Passover. (I think I should teach you this since our Rabbi-in-Residence spent his last two sermon times, last week and last month, teaching you about Christian baptism!) Passover celebrates freedom from enslavement and oppression. Shavuot celebrates the giving of Torah and becoming a people committed to serving God. It is the birthday of Judaism. Easter celebrates freedom from enslavement and oppression. Pentecost celebrates the giving of the Spirit of Truth and becoming a people committed to serving God. It is the birthday of Christianity. Jews and Christians celebrate the same birthday. The spirit of Truth is the very same spirit of Torah. As I said a few weeks ago, the new commandment – the new Holy Spirit is new the way a new moon is new. It’s always been there. The commitment to an ethical and moral order in service to the Holy One is always in need of renewal.
Our Gospel lesson for today is another passage from the extensive farewell discourse in the Gospel of John, delivered by Jesus as he gathered with his followers for the last time before he was arrested. We’ve been hearing various parts of it throughout Eastertide because it speaks to the experience of Jesus’ followers in need of consolation and encouragement in the face of scandalous ideological crisis and physical danger. It speaks words of consolation and encouragement to folks who are embarrassed or downright frightened about being Jesus followers. Lives are at stake. Today’s words are words of assurance that the Spirit of truth, which comes from God, will be with Jesus followers, even as Jesus’ physical presence is no longer.
A few years ago, at our annual diocesan May clergy conference, one of my friends was telling a group of other priests about her Easter Sunday children’s homily where she had constructed a three dimensional “tomb” that had openings on two sides. (She’s an over-achiever!) With one side showing, the little children could look in and see a representation of the dead Jesus. They talked about how Jesus had died and had been laid in the tomb. Then she put “the stone” in front of the opening of the tomb and sent the children to a box full of musical instruments (mostly percussive) to get some noisemakers. While they were busy selecting their instruments, she turned the tomb around. When they returned and made their thunderous noise, she rolled away the stone and voila – Jesus’ body was gone and there was only a cloth where the body had been. One surprised 3-year old loudly exclaimed, “You turned Jesus into a blanket?!” Without skipping a beat, another of my clergy friends said, “well, Jesus did say he would leave his disciples a Comforter!” [1]
Comforter is how the word advocate was translated in the King James translation of the Bible. Most Biblical scholars agree that comforter is not a good translation, but they can’t agree on what a better translation would be. Advocate is used in the translation we read in church – or it could be legal counselor, helper, character witness, defender,
[2] or even better still, champion.[3] I like champion the best. The spirit of the holy one – the Holy Spirit – the spirit of truth, Jesus says, is in us and all around us and it is our champion and God’s champion. Not champion in the sense of winner, but champion in the sense of one who stands up for us and who stands up for the divine – and even better, one who defends and supports us and the divine in and around us.
Jesus is assuring the ones who love him that they’re going to have help. Jesus knows that they’re going to need help. In fact, we know that by the time this Gospel was written, Jesus’ followers were getting thrown out of communities (synagogue literally means gathering). We know that being thrown out of a community could be a matter of life and death. Nevertheless, Jesus is saying in this Gospel of John, “If you love me, keep my commandments.” It can also be translated, when you love me or, whenever you love me, you will hold my instructions dear – you will consider them important.[4] And what are Jesus’ instructions in the Gospel of John? Love one another. Love one another. Love one another.
Love one another. That’s it? Yes. That’s it. That’s all there is to it – and it can be extremely hard work. It’s especially hard work because Jesus is not talking about love as a feeling. Jesus is talking about love as action: love as compassionate action when it’s not that convenient; love as compassionate action when you are the one who has been hurt or you are the one who is vulnerable; love as compassionate action when you disagree; love as compassionate action when you do not believe that it’s your job; love as compassionate action when it’s expensive – when the price is high.
Some of you may subscribe to the daily email reflection called “Brother, Give us a Word” that comes from the Society of St. John the Evangelist monastery across the river in Cambridge. (If you don’t, I recommend it.) Here is what came in the e-mail yesterday from former superior, Brother Curtis Almquist. He wrote: “ A person who, in your judgment, is irritating, disdaining, unacceptable, frightening, is probably a person who needs help, perhaps is crying for help. If you know enough to be irritated by them, you likely also know enough to help them, certainly not to hurt them more. Draw from the grace of your own memory about rescuing, saving them, through the gift of compassion.” I think Brother Curtis would agree that this goes not just for individual persons but whole communities.
Love as compassionate action is about extending actions of concern for the world – the world beyond yourself, the world beyond your own community, which requires being a person of compassion and participating in a community of compassion because it is way too hard to sustain if you’re going it alone. That’s what this Gospel is about. Whenever you engage in love as compassionate action, Jesus is saying, the spirit of the Holy One will be your champion, cheering you on all the way, helping to support and encourage you. That champion spirit of the Holy One will be inside of you and all around you – like air, like wind. You can’t see it but you can feel the effects when you breathe in and breathe out!
It’s not a coincidence that the words for spirit and breath and wind and inspiration and breeze and influence and soul and life itself are all related in both Greek and Hebrew. It is also not a coincidence that when we find it most challenging to engage in love as compassionate action, remembering to breathe deeply is the best place to begin. It occurs to me that the message of Pentecost is the shift from “look out” (that is, duck and cover, or run and hide) to “look out” (that is, outside yourself, look out to your wider community). Receive the Torah with joy – receive the Spirit with joy – and go spread it around! Happy Pentecost everyone!
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