Isaiah 43:16-21 (first published 28 March 2004)
Spring is a time of renewal. Many ancient civilizations had stories
about a god who died and then came back to life, symbolizing the cycling
of the seasons. The story of the gods Baal and Mot from ancient Ugarit is
an example of such a tale. Mot (whose name means death) is the ruler of
the underworld and the god of sterility. Baal, the king of the gods,
challenges Mot, and Mot swallows him is his gaping jaws, crushing him with
his teeth. Baal's sister Anat avenges Baal's death by killing Mot, as
vividly described in this passage: "With the sword she cleaves him, with
fan she winnows him, with fire she burns him, with hand-mill she grinds
him, in the field she sows him." Baal returns to life, and El, the great
creator god, knows that Baal lives because the earth comes alive again:
"The heavens rained fat, and the wadis (creeks) flowed with honey." The
renewal that we see every spring reminds us that God never abandons his
people. The prophet, not content to reference the cyclical nature of the
seasons, gives the Jews in Babylonian exile another reason to hope: the
lesson of history. Remember that the God you serve made a highway through
the sea and crushed the mightiest power on earth to set you free from
bondage, he tells the people. Now God will do an even greater deed; God
will free you from an even more powerful enemy! We like to read a passage
such as this and imagine ourselves as those whom God frees from our
problems, and that is a perfectly valid reading. But do we ever see
ourselves as the powerful of the world, oppressing others? When we are
oppressors rather than the oppressed, this passage warns us that our
downfall is sure. There is a tendency in the United States today, and in
the West in general, to put a great deal of faith in military might. The
U.S. often refers to itself as the world's only superpower. The next time
you hear that phrase, ask yourself, what happened to the world's other
superpower, the Soviet Union? The U.S.S.R. was an immensely powerful
nation that ruled over 300 million people directly and guided the
destinies of many other nations with an iron fist. Yet in a matter of
about two years, the Soviet Union lost its empire, then it lost its very
existence, in an almost entirely nonviolent overthrow. God sees the
condition the world is in, and God cares about the oppressed. No nation
is so strong that it can afford to ignore the plight of other people in
its quest for perpetual hegemony. "I will make a way in the wilderness
and rivers in the desert," says the Lord. "I will give drink to my chosen
people, the people whom I formed for myself so that they might declare my
praise." As we rejoice in a new spring (apologies to readers in the
southern hemisphere!), and as we consider God's actions in history, let us
commit ourselves to becoming God's chosen people and identifying with
others who are as well, particularly those who suffer under the heel of
poverty and oppression.
Psalm 126 (first published 28 March 2004)
In 1931 a severe drought hit the American Midwest and the Southern
Plains. Farmland that had been over-plowed and over-grazed began to lose
topsoil as the wind carried it away, creating great dust storms. This
region of the country became known as the Dust Bowl. By 1934, giant dust
storms had spread throughout the country, and 75% of the land was affected
by drought. About 100 million hectares of farmland had lost either all or
most of its topsoil. On 14 April 1935, the worst sandstorm in the history
of the country occurred, earning that date the name Black Sunday. Under
President Franklin Roosevelt, farmers began using techniques that
conserved the soil, and the government took many steps to help them in
their efforts to stay afloat. By 1938, conservation efforts had led to a
65% reduction in the amount of soil blowing every year, and in 1939 the
rain returned and the drought ended. This period of time, which coincided
with the Great Depression, was one of the most difficult times that the
nation had ever faced. People's faith in God was tested. Why doesn't God
hear our prayers? many people wondered. Years after many of the Jews
returned from Babylonian exile to the land of Judah, the people of the
land were again suffering. Though the Persians were benign rulers for the
most part, allowing the Jews to govern themselves to a large extent, the
land, perhaps as a result of poor farming techniques or maybe because of
local climate change, became unproductive and barren. Droughts were
common, and rain was less frequent. They, too, wondered why God didn't
seem to care. Today's psalm reading is a beautiful reminder that God's
people have faced troubles in the past, and God has blessed them with good
fortune. The psalmist invites those with faith in God to remember God's
past blessings and to entreat God to turn toward the people of God and
bless them once again. The psalmist is confident in God's goodness. He
invites his readers to affirm: "Those who sow in tears will reap with
shouts of joy. Those who go out weeping, bearing the seed for sowing,
shall come home with shouts of joy, carrying their sheaves." When your
situation looks bleak, don't despair. If you've lost one job, God has
another for you. If you've suffered loss, God will sustain you and
restore your joy. When you experience setbacks, don't worry, for God will
stay with you and guide you on your way. It's not always easy to maintain
a positive attitude, but when we remember all that God has done for us in
the past, it's a little bit easier. If the psalmist were writing today,
perhaps he would quote the words of Commander Taggart (Tim Allen) of
Galaxy Quest: "Never give up! Never surrender!" God is on your
side!
Philippians 3:4b-14 (first published 28 March 2004)
When I was growing up, one of my friends used to regale me regularly with the boasts of one of the kids in his neighborhood. "I got the best bike in the store." "My parents are taking us all to Disney Land." "My dad bowled a perfect game." The joke among the other kids in the neighborhood was that this kid had bragged, "I may not be the greatest, but I'm the best you'll ever see!" Although employment counselors and business teachers will sometimes tell people to brag (but not lie) on their résumés, bragging rarely advances one's standing with other people. In fact, although a few people revel in the boasts of their heroes and heroines, most people are turned off by braggadocio. Those who brag about their spirituality or closeness to God are particularly hard to take. I've seen too many self-righteous people fall victim to one temptation or another to believe anyone claiming a special relationship with God. In fact, it's been my experience that those whose lives most closely emulate Christ's say very little about it. When Paul wrote the letter to the Philippians, he had to contend with a faction in the church that claimed a superior spirituality, apparently because they believed themselves to be more fastidious about following the requirements of the law. Paul tells his readers that if those people have reason to boast, he himself has even greater reason. His credentials as a Jew were flawless. His reputation as a zealous defender of the faith was unparalleled. Yet none of this was important, Paul said, because his own righteousness was inconsequential. All that mattered was the righteousness imparted by faith in Christ. Paul's goal in life had changed. Formerly, he wanted to be recognized as an expert in the law and a leader among the faithful. Now his goal in life was to know Christ, to understand his teachings and to emulate his life. Paul desired both the power of his resurrection and a share of his sufferings. The power I can understand, but why the suffering? Paul understood that suffering for the cause of Christ is redemptive. Profligate suffering is useless and a form of pride, but suffering for one's beliefs, or suffering to protect others, or suffering in solidarity with others who are suffering can be a powerful witness to the truth. Paul didn't want to suffer, but he understood that if God allowed Jesus to suffer, Paul would likely be asked to suffer as well for the sake of the gospel. The resurrection follows the cross, and power follows suffering. Paul ultimately suffered death at the hands of the Romans for his faith, but in suffering willingly he exhibited the power of the gospel at the same time. Don't brag about your spiritual endeavors or the number of hours you spend working for the kingdom. If others praise you, fine, and if not, God knows your heart.
"The poor you always have with you." How often do people today use this verse to justify their failure to care for the marginalized in our society? "There's no reason to give anything to the people suffering from the earthquake in Haiti, because it won't do anything to alleviate the poverty. It's just the way the world works." Such an attitude is not only crass, it also profoundly misunderstands the message of Jesus and the prophets. At least for the foreseeable future, there will be poor people in the world, but that's no excuse for us to try to minimize poverty. When the Cold War ended, President George H. W. Bush promised a war dividend, money that could be diverted from military spending--not, of course, to address other needed concerns in society, but primarily for tax cuts--but it hasn't panned out that way. Instead, our wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, plus the amorphous so-called "war on terror," will cost U.S. taxpayers a record $895 billion this year. That's about as much as the total military spending of the rest of the world's nations combined, for the "security" of less than 5% of the world's population. Meanwhile, the infant mortality rate in the U.S., according to the CIA World Factbook, puts us at 45th in the world, behind Cuba and just ahead of Croatia. Meanwhile, one in five children in the U.S. lives at or below the poverty level. Meanwhile, about half of the world's population lives on less than $2.50 per day, and more than 80% lives on less than $10 per day. These numbers suggest that poverty continues to run rampant through the world, but there is something we in the U.S., along with other developed countries, can do. If we in the U.S. reduced our military spending to 20% of what we currently spend, we would still spend far more than any other country, but we would free up more than $700 billion to fix our crumbling infrastructure (including schools), raise people out of poverty, and, yes, even reduce the budget deficit, eliminating it within just a few years. Jesus praised Mary for showing her love for him by anointing his feet with costly perfume. The best way we can show our love for Jesus today is by showing it to those who were the target of the bulk of Jesus' ministry, the poor.