Emmanuel Episcopal Church

Homily for the Eighteenth Sunday after Pentecost - The Problem of Possessions

Gospel - Luke 16:19-31

Jesus said, "There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. And at his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, who longed to satisfy his hunger with what fell from the rich man's table; even the dogs would come and lick his sores. The poor man died and was carried away by the angels to be with Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried. In Hades, where he was being tormented, he looked up and saw Abraham far away with Lazarus by his side. He called out, `Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am in agony in these flames.'

But Abraham said, `Child, remember that during your lifetime you received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner evil things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in agony. Besides all this, between you and us a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who might want to pass from here to you cannot do so, and no one can cross from there to us.'

He said, `Then, father, I beg you to send him to my father's house-- for I have five brothers-- that he may warn them, so that they will not also come into this place of torment.' Abraham replied, `They have Moses and the prophets; they should listen to them.' He said, `No, father Abraham; but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.' He said to him, `If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.'"

Homily by the Reverend John S. Ruef

The Problem of Possessions

This is another one of those stories which deal with the problem of possessions. Luke, who in the Book of Acts, tells us of the early Christian experiment in communism, now gives us his version of the saying, “you can't take it with you.” In this story The Rich Man goes to Hell, and the poor man Lazarus goes to Abraham's bosom, a kind of semi-Jewish version of Heaven.

This is a scare story meant to support the early Christian community's communal practice, which in Luke's Book of Acts, was described as communist.  Acts 5 tells the story of Ananias and Sapphira and their experience in trying to get around this communal requirement.

The story in today's Gospel simply states that, in this life, the rich man fares very well and the poor man badly. In the life to come, their situations are reversed. However, the sayings which are reportedly made by Jesus in the other Gospels follow more closely the Jewish tradition, in that the care of the poor is already stated in the Torah.

The Church's experiment in communism evidently did not work. We hear no more about it after the single mention in Acts. But the matter of one's material goods remains a problem for the Church. The commercial talk media experiencing a money problem turned from serious programming to entertainment. Imitating this movement, the Church has produced the Feel Good Gospel.  In a world where in actuality unpleasantness bids to outweigh pleasantness, hope is all one has to live by.

C.S. Lewis once stated that Christianity cannot be said to have failed since it has never really been tried. Perhaps an overstatement, but it is something to think about.

Diocesan Contributions to Katrina Clean-up Offering Exceed $40,000

Parishioners of the Diocese of Southern Virginia have contributed over $40,000 (as of September 17th) to the House of Bishops Katrina Clean-up Fund, well in excess of the Diocesan goal of $10,000.

During their recent meeting in New Orleans, members of the House of Bishops also participated in a Work Day project as part of the Katrina recovery effort.

Diocese Commences Search for New Bishop

On August 17 and 18, clergy and lay people from across Southern Virginia gathered at our diocesan camp and conference center, Chanco on the James, to organize the search for a new bishop.  The group consisted of one lay and one clergy person elected from each of the nine convocations, along with six people appointed by the Standing Committee. 

The search process leading to the consecration of a new bishop is expected to take approximately 18 months.

Click Here to learn more about the Search Process.

Homily for the Seventeenth Sunday after Pentecost - The Clever Manager

The Gospel - Luke 16:1-13

Jesus said to the disciples, "There was a rich man who had a manager, and charges were brought to him that this man was squandering his property. So he summoned him and said to him, `What is this that I hear about you? Give me an accounting of your management, because you cannot be my manager any longer.' Then the manager said to himself, `What will I do, now that my master is taking the position away from me? I am not strong enough to dig, and I am ashamed to beg. I have decided what to do so that, when I am dismissed as manager, people may welcome me into their homes.'

So, summoning his master's debtors one by one, he asked the first, `How much do you owe my master?' He answered, `A hundred jugs of olive oil.' He said to him, `Take your bill, sit down quickly, and make it fifty.' Then he asked another, `And how much do you owe?' He replied, `A hundred containers of wheat.' He said to him, `Take your bill and make it eighty.' And his master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly; for the children of this age are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than are the children of light. And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of dishonest wealth so that when it is gone, they may welcome you into the eternal homes.

"Whoever is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much; and whoever is dishonest in a very little is dishonest also in much. If then you have not been faithful with the dishonest wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches? And if you have not been faithful with what belongs to another, who will give you what is your own? No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth."

 

Homily by the Reverend John S. Ruef

The Clever Manager

This parable puzzles me, as it has many commentators before. The text would suggest that the one doing the commending is his master. Why is the master commending him for what he did? The text makes it very clear that what the steward did was wrong. But the master praises him for his perspicacity. It would seem that one crook praises another. What the man did was dishonest, but it was also clever. At least his boss thought so.

We do not understand the story until we see its application by Jesus. The children of darkness are indeed cleverer than the children of light. It would seem that the game is going their way. But our puzzlement disappears, when we see all this against the background of the end of this world and the coming judgment. Then the striking irony of Jesus stands out and illuminates the shortsightedness of the children of darkness.

All this is well and good, but in spite of the dire warnings to the contrary by certain elements of the Christian family, the notion of the end of the world is not a viable idea for most moderns today. Is there any way in which this idea can be translated into modern thought? I think of the person in a responsible position, faced with the unenviable choice of doing what is right as over against what is expedient, for the business or organization of which he or she is a part. I think of the parent who must give his or her child over to the state for breaking the law.

We even say in cases like this "it seemed like the end of the world." Who is waiting for this person on the other side of this decision to do the right thing? Only faith can answer this dreadful question.

Homily for the Sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost - Tax Collectors and Sinners

The Gospel - Luke 15:1-10

All the tax collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to Jesus. And the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, "This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them."

So he told them this parable: "Which one of you, having a hundred sheep and losing one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and go after the one that is lost until he finds it? When he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders and rejoices. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, `Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.' Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.

"Or what woman having ten silver coins, if she loses one of them, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, and search carefully until she finds it? When she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, `Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin that I had lost.' Just so, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents."

 

Homily by the Reverend John S. Ruef

Tax Collectors and Sinners

Tax collectors were disliked by the Jews because the Romans did not collect taxes directly, but farmed them out, so to speak, to people who paid the taxes due to the government and then proceeded, with the help of Roman soldiers, to collect them from the Jews. Needless to say some of the collectors were unscrupulous and collected much more than was due, thus making as large a profit as possible.

Sinner was a general term applied to those, who for one reason or another were prevented by their means of employment from adhering strictly to the Jewish tradition. The criticism leveled against Jesus by the highly respected Jewish scholars was that Jesus ate with these sinners, thus rendering him unclean. It has nothing in itself to do with repentance.

The parable is just that - a way to get one to think about eating with those who were, according to Jewish tradition, unclean. This is even more the case with the statement about how much joy there is in heaven over the one who repents, as over against those who need no repentance.

What occasions the reaction of the Pharisees and scribes is Jesus' contact with those who are unclean. One would think that Jesus' parables are aimed at the source of the leaders' displeasure, i.e. their interpretation of the tradition. Repentance, in the Jewish tradition, has to do with the worship of false gods. One can see, however, that, in a largely gentile religious community, this situation would demand some kind of renunciation of one's occupation in order to belong.

One can also still see this today with congregations which are made up solely of "our kind people," who feel distinctly uncomfortable when those from other cultures invade their sacred space. But in the passage as it stands, the purpose is to make everyone feel uncomfortable with the statement aimed at those who need no repentance.

Need no repentance, indeed!

Emmanuel Welcomed Bishop Buchanan on Sunday, September 9th

On Sunday, September 9th, Emmanuel welcomed The Right Reverend John C. Buchanan, Interim Bishop of the Diocese of Southern Virginia, as Celebrant and preacher at the 11:00 a.m. Service. Bishop Buchanan, a retired bishop of the Diocese of West Missouri, is serving in Southern Virginia at the invitation of the Standing Committee until a new diocesan bishop is chosen.

Approximately 50 parishioners and friends of Emmanuel visited with Bishop and Mrs. Buchanan at a covered-dish luncheon held in the Parish Hall following the 11:00 a.m. Service.

In his remarks following the luncheon, Bishop Buchanan noted that during the upcoming meeting of the House of Bishops to be held in New Orleans September 20 - 25, the Bishops will participate in a Work Day project as part of the Katrina recovery effort. Each Diocese has also been asked to contribute to a special offering in support of the Katrina recovery effort.

Read Read Bishop Buchanan's Address to the

115^th Annual Diocesan Council on February 10, 2007.

Homily for the Fifteenth Sunday after Pentecost - A Call to Martyrdom?

The Gospel - Luke 14:25-33

Now large crowds were traveling with Jesus; and he turned and said to them, "Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and even life itself, cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not carry the cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.

For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not first sit down and estimate the cost, to see whether he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it will begin to ridicule him, saying, `This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.'

Or what king, going out to wage war against another king, will not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to oppose the one who comes against him with twenty thousand? If he cannot, then, while the other is still far away, he sends a delegation and asks for the terms of peace.

So therefore, none of you can become my disciple if you do not give up all your possessions."

 

Homily by the Reverend John S. Ruef

A Call to Martyrdom?

In the light of other statements by Jesus in which we are told to love even our enemies, these statements do not make sense. On the other hand, if being a Christian meant living on the edge, then one might have to count even those of one's own family as potential enemies. This is still not in line with what Jesus says but more understandable.

And if the world were about to end, one might think that these earthly ties were of no account. Again, these statements are not in line with what Jesus is supposed to have said, but they are more understandable.

One can understand for instance that a preacher, speaking after the first Good Friday, might well be moved to exhort his congregation to put worldly concerns to one side, particularly if one's family were not sympathetic to one's loyalty to a leader who had been executed as a common criminal. The rhetorical force of taking up one's cross makes more sense after the fact than before.

This is a call to martyrdom. It is joined in the text with little parables about going into battle and building a tower. I do not quite understand the idea of hating one's family. But in the height of passion, I can see how the preacher might make his point with such extreme statements.

The modern day "whistle blower" must face some such decision as this when preparing to point publicly to the violation involved in his company's flagrant failure to fulfill a public trust. This person wants to do the right thing. This person also loves his or her family, but may lose his or her job.

Can one simply equate what Jesus did with what this person may feel called to do?

The Bible does not supply a ready answer. It offers more than one answer and those answers do not agree. The answer will come, not in terms of who said what two thousand years ago, but in terms of what wins out today, love or loyalty.

Homily for the Fourteenth Sunday after Pentecost - The Place of Honor

The Gospel - Luke 14:1,7-14

On one occasion when Jesus was going to the house of a leader of the Pharisees to eat a meal on the sabbath, they were watching him closely.

When he noticed how the guests chose the places of honor, he told them a parable. "When you are invited by someone to a wedding banquet, do not sit down at the place of honor, in case someone more distinguished than you has been invited by your host; and the host who invited both of you may come and say to you, `Give this person your place,' and then in disgrace you would start to take the lowest place. But when you are invited, go and sit down at the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he may say to you, `Friend, move up higher'; then you will be honored in the presence of all who sit at the table with you. For all who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted."

He said also to the one who had invited him, "When you give a luncheon or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, in case they may invite you in return, and you would be repaid. But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind. And you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you, for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous."

   

Homily by the Reverend John S. Ruef

The Place of Honor

It may be difficult for some to consider the notion that Jesus was not above teasing or even making fun of people. Clergy can't get away with that because this is the Church and not the Kingdom.

Nevertheless, here we have the leaders of the Jewish community, who were very impressed with their own importance. Jesus notices how they chose the chief seats. He says to them that they really don't know how to get recognition: they should hang back and wait to be recognized as important and invited to go higher where of course they belong.

Now this was the fun part. What follows is difficult. There is what we call a Pronouncement at the end of his teasing of the officials. It probably comes from the notions about the judgment at the end of the world: whoever humbles himself will be exalted. Whoever exalts himself will be humbled.

Characteristically, Jesus does not draw conclusions on the basis of such a statement. Presumably this statement is made to the host. It draws a conclusion from the Pronouncement: invite those who cannot repay you so that you will get yours at the resurrection of the just.

It also is influenced by the teasing story, which presupposes the leaders seek recognition. The conclusion in Luke's direction to the host presupposes that the host does what he does in expectation of repayment.

In Matthew 25, Jesus describes the Judgment in quite different terms: the people being judged do not remember their acts of kindness as being directed to Jesus and there is no mention of repayment. In normal times hospitality is expected and even prescribed in tribal culture. Is it possible that a gentile takes the statement of Jesus as a serious admonition regarding how one should look at hospitality?

The Scriptures are not immune to cultural influence, sometimes leading to humor, more often to misinterpretation. In our culture, which is not even sure that the poor deserve looking after, one has to be careful in using Scriptural texts, either to oppose or defend any solution to what is essentially a social problem.