(An earlier post provides an overview of Holy Week. This post will focus on the meaning of Maundy Thursday.)
What is Maundy Thursday? The word “Maundy” comes from the Latin word for command, as does the English word “mandate.” John’s Gospel has a long “Upper Room” discourse where Jesus shares a last meal with his disciples and prepares them for his death, his return to the Father and his physical absence. During this discourse Jesus said, “I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another” (John 13:34). On Maundy Thursday we remember Jesus giving this mandate as he ate with his disciples one last time.
The tone of Maundy Thursday worship is set by the way John’s Gospel tells the story of Jesus’ last meal with the disciples (chapters 13-17). While Maundy Thursday marks the Last Supper and is the rationale for why we celebrate the Lord’s Supper, John does not emphasize the meal as much as he does Jesus’ actions around the meal. Some churches have foot washing ceremonies on Maundy Thursday because, in John’s telling, Jesus, aware that God had given all things into his hands, used his power for humble service and washed his disciples’ feet. For John the significance of this evening is not primarily the meal, but the love Jesus expresses to his followers in word and in deed, fully aware of the suffering he would soon face.
The Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke tell the story of the hours before Jesus’ arrest differently. While John emphasizes Jesus’ actions and words around the meal, the other three gospels emphasize the meal itself. For John, Jesus is the Passover lamb (see Exodus 12) and in John’s telling of the story Jesus’ crucifixion occurs as the Passover lambs are being slaughtered in the Temple. Therefore the meal Jesus had with his disciples was not the Passover meal. But for Matthew, Mark and Luke the meal Jesus shared with his disciples on the night of his arrest was indeed the Passover meal. It is from these Gospel writers that we come to call the Lord’s Supper the “Christian Passover,” affirming that just as God freed Israel from slavery under Pharaoh, so God has freed all of creation from the enslaving forces of sin and death in Jesus Christ. We cannot understand Jesus’ death if we do not know the story of the Exodus, of God freeing God’s people from slavery in Egypt.
While John and the other gospel writers don’t tell the story of Maundy Thursday in the same way, in all four gospels after dinner Jesus went with his disciples to the Garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus was betrayed by Judas into the hands of those who would kill him. While John gives us a more commanding picture of Jesus (in John, those who come to arrest Jesus fall before his feet in awe) in the other gospels Gethsemane is a time of prayer and struggle as Jesus prays for the strength to endure what is to come. In these gospels Jesus asks his disciples to keep watch and pray with him, but they fall asleep. The Maundy Thursday service ends with the story of Gethsemane, of Jesus striving to do God’s will, of inattentive disciples and of a militia squad ready to arrest Jesus.
The Maundy Thursday service ends with the stripping of the church, where all elements of decoration are removed from the sanctuary. The bare sanctuary is a symbol of the forsakenness Jesus will experience during his trial and crucifixion, and the sanctuary will remain unadorned for Good Friday worship the next day.
As we prepare for Maundy Thursday it is important for us to make the distinction between the Last Supper and the Lord’s Supper. While the later has its roots in the former they are not the same. On Maundy Thursday we have in mind the Last Supper, with its sense of sorrow and foreboding. While there are times it is appropriate for these overtones to be present when we celebrate the Lord’s Supper, at its core the Lord’s Supper is a joyful feast. In it we remember Jesus’ death, but we also remember Jesus’ resurrection, both of which have brought an end to the tyranny of sin and death. A biblical image of God’s kingdom is that of a great feast, of a wedding banquet, and in the Lord’s Supper we affirm that Jesus’ death and resurrection is God’s victory over all that would rob us of our dignity and freedom as those created in God’s image. In this meal we rejoice in God’s power to redeem, even in the face of suffering and evil.
Friday, March 27, 2009
What is Holy Week Worship?
While the influence (both past and present) of Christianity on Western, and specifically American, culture is the subject of much debate, it is clear that Christmas and Easter have become something of official holidays (holy days) in our society. Both these days have secular traditions – Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny – as well as religious ones – Jesus’ birth, his resurrection. While we celebrate Christmas on one day, why do we have multiple worship services the week before Easter?
In large part this is because Holy Week was far more important to the early church than was Christmas. While the Bible offers no indication of when Jesus was born we are given a specific time for Holy Week since it happened at the same time as the Jewish Passover. And while it is only Matthew and Luke who give us details about Jesus’ birth, all the New Testament authors spend much time on the meaning and significance of Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection. In the four gospels we are given more details about Jesus’ last week than we are about the rest of his ministry, which tells us that Jesus’ death was not a mere tragedy, but that it was somehow the climax of Jesus’ mission.
The reason Easter is not held on a fixed Sunday every year is because Easter Sunday is held according to the ancient lunar calendar and occurs the Sunday after the first full moon following the spring equinox. Easter is held according to the lunar calendar because this is the calendar Jews used to mark the Passover festival, which was the time of Jesus entry to Jerusalem and his death and resurrection. But with various calendars out there, Western Churches (Roman Catholic and Protestant) rarely celebrate Easter on the same Sunday as Eastern Churches (those with roots in the Greek Orthodox Church) or at the same time Jews celebrate Passover.
Holy Week begins with Palm Sunday, when Jesus entered Jerusalem. It is called Palm Sunday because the crowds who welcomed Jesus waved palm branches in celebration – perhaps the ancient equivalent of a ticker tape parade. According to Matthew, Mark and Luke this was Jesus’ only visit to Jerusalem as an adult, which makes his travel to Jerusalem especially significant. Jesus entered Jerusalem as Jewish pilgrims from all over the Roman Empire came to celebrate Passover, a feast that remembered and celebrated the time when God stood against mighty Pharaoh and freed God’s people from slavery in Egypt.
Holy Week ends with Good Friday (or God’s Friday) when Jesus was crucified. What the Gospels make clear is that this week was clearly thought out by Jesus, and that while his disciples were surprised that the week ended with Jesus’ arrest and death, Jesus was not. Jesus was very intentional about how he entered Jerusalem (See Matthew 21:1-5), and about what he did in Jerusalem during the rest of the week. Post to follow will describe in detail the special worship services we hold during Holy Week
In large part this is because Holy Week was far more important to the early church than was Christmas. While the Bible offers no indication of when Jesus was born we are given a specific time for Holy Week since it happened at the same time as the Jewish Passover. And while it is only Matthew and Luke who give us details about Jesus’ birth, all the New Testament authors spend much time on the meaning and significance of Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection. In the four gospels we are given more details about Jesus’ last week than we are about the rest of his ministry, which tells us that Jesus’ death was not a mere tragedy, but that it was somehow the climax of Jesus’ mission.
The reason Easter is not held on a fixed Sunday every year is because Easter Sunday is held according to the ancient lunar calendar and occurs the Sunday after the first full moon following the spring equinox. Easter is held according to the lunar calendar because this is the calendar Jews used to mark the Passover festival, which was the time of Jesus entry to Jerusalem and his death and resurrection. But with various calendars out there, Western Churches (Roman Catholic and Protestant) rarely celebrate Easter on the same Sunday as Eastern Churches (those with roots in the Greek Orthodox Church) or at the same time Jews celebrate Passover.
Holy Week begins with Palm Sunday, when Jesus entered Jerusalem. It is called Palm Sunday because the crowds who welcomed Jesus waved palm branches in celebration – perhaps the ancient equivalent of a ticker tape parade. According to Matthew, Mark and Luke this was Jesus’ only visit to Jerusalem as an adult, which makes his travel to Jerusalem especially significant. Jesus entered Jerusalem as Jewish pilgrims from all over the Roman Empire came to celebrate Passover, a feast that remembered and celebrated the time when God stood against mighty Pharaoh and freed God’s people from slavery in Egypt.
Holy Week ends with Good Friday (or God’s Friday) when Jesus was crucified. What the Gospels make clear is that this week was clearly thought out by Jesus, and that while his disciples were surprised that the week ended with Jesus’ arrest and death, Jesus was not. Jesus was very intentional about how he entered Jerusalem (See Matthew 21:1-5), and about what he did in Jerusalem during the rest of the week. Post to follow will describe in detail the special worship services we hold during Holy Week
Thursday, March 5, 2009
I Am the Light of the World
Friends,
This week we continue with the "I am" sayings in the Gospel of John.
In the passage for Sunday Jesus heals a man blind from birth as a sign that Jesus is "the light of the world."
The miraculous feeding of thousands with bread and fish in chapter six gives occasion for Jesus to proclaim "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty."
Now, Jesus proclaims: "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life." John 8:12
The metaphor is first introduced in John 8:12 following Jesus' compassionate and forgiving approach to the woman caught in adultery. Then the metaphor is expanded in the healing of the blind man in chapter 9.
Light is introduced in the first chapter of the Bible, in Genesis 1 where "in the beginning God when created the heavens and the earth the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep... then God said, Let there be light; and there was light." In the final chapter of the Bible, Revelation 22:5, in the vision of the new heaven and new earth:"there will be no more light; they need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light."
In between the first chapter of Genesis and the final chapter of Revelation, light appears throughout the journey of God's people.
Abraham is promised in Genesis 22:17 that his offpsring will be as numerous "as the stars."
God appears to Moses in the light of a burning bush in Exodus 3.
The people are led out of slavery and travel to the promised land as led by a pillar of fire by night described in Exodus 40:38.
The people of God misunderstand who they are to be in God's world - and the prophet Isaiah calls them to understand themselves as a light to the world in Isaiah 42:6:
I am the Lord, I have called you in righteousness, I have taken you by the hand and kept you; I have given you as a covenant to the people, a light to the nations."
This image from Isaiah is surely in the mind of Christ as he declare himself the light of the world in the Gospel of John and as he speaks to his disciples in Mathtew 5:14-16:
You are the light of the world...let your light shine before others so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven."
To walk in the light is to walk in forgiveness - as illustrated in I John 1:5-9.
In the Gospel of John, there is always a figurative and a literal level of meaning. Jesus heals a blind man - and at the same time shows through the events around the healing that blindness is not physical, but spiritual.
True blindness is a darkness of the heart, a refusal to be open to the light of understanding in Christ. When we "see" Jesus, we see everything around us in a new light as well.
Friends, let us open our eyes to the light of the world and let us follow the example of Jesus, who reach out with his hands to touch a world in need. We are now the hands of Christ in the world.
The Gospel Lesson - John 9:1-41
9As he walked along, he saw a man blind from birth. 2His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” 3Jesus answered, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned; he was born blind so that God’s works might be revealed in him. 4We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming when no one can work. 5As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” 6When he had said this, he spat on the ground and made mud with the saliva and spread the mud on the man’s eyes, 7saying to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which means Sent). Then he went and washed and came back able to see. 8The neighbors and those who had seen him before as a beggar began to ask, “Is this not the man who used to sit and beg?” 9Some were saying, “It is he.” Others were saying, “No, but it is someone like him.” He kept saying, “I am the man.” 10But they kept asking him, “Then how were your eyes opened?” 11He answered, “The man called Jesus made mud, spread it on my eyes, and said to me, ‘Go to Siloam and wash.’ Then I went and washed and received my sight.” 12They said to him, “Where is he?” He said, “I do not know.” 13They brought to the Pharisees the man who had formerly been blind. 14Now it was a sabbath day when Jesus made the mud and opened his eyes. 15Then the Pharisees also began to ask him how he had received his sight. He said to them, “He put mud on my eyes. Then I washed, and now I see.” 16Some of the Pharisees said, “This man is not from God, for he does not observe the sabbath.” But others said, “How can a man who is a sinner perform such signs?” And they were divided. 17So they said again to the blind man, “What do you say about him? It was your eyes he opened.” He said, “He is a prophet.” 18The Jews did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight until they called the parents of the man who had received his sight 19and asked them, “Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see?” 20His parents answered, “We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind; 21but we do not know howit is that now he sees, nor do we know who opened his eyes. Ask him; he is of age. He will speak for himself.” 22His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jews; for the Jews had already agreed that anyone who confessed Jesus to be the Messiah would be put out of the synagogue. 23Therefore his parents said, “He is of age; ask him.” 24So for the second time they called the man who had been blind, and they said to him, “Give glory to God! We know that this man is a sinner.” 25He answered, “I do not know whether he is a sinner. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.” 26They said to him, “What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?” 27He answered them, “I have told you already, and you would not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become his disciples?” 28Then they reviled him, saying, “You are his disciple, but we are disciples of Moses. 29We know that God has spoken toMoses, but as for this man, we do not know where he comes from.” 30The man answered, “Here is an astonishing thing! You do not know where he comes from, and yet he opened my eyes. 31We know that God does not listen to sinners, but he does listen to one who worships him and obeys his will. 32Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a person born blind. 33If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.” 34They answered him, “You were born entirely in sins, and are you trying to teach us?” And they drove him out. 35Jesus heard that they had driven him out, and when he found him, he said, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” 36He answered, “And who is he, sir? Tell me, so that I may believe in him.” 37Jesus said to him, “You have seen him, and the one speaking with you is he.” 38He said, “Lord, I believe.” And he worshiped him. 39Jesus said, “I came into this world for judgment so that those who do not see may see, and those who do see may become blind.” 40Some of the Pharisees near him heard this and said to him, “Surely we are not blind, are we?” 41Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would not have sin. But now that you say, ‘We see,’ your sin remains.
This week we continue with the "I am" sayings in the Gospel of John.
In the passage for Sunday Jesus heals a man blind from birth as a sign that Jesus is "the light of the world."
The miraculous feeding of thousands with bread and fish in chapter six gives occasion for Jesus to proclaim "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty."
Now, Jesus proclaims: "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life." John 8:12
The metaphor is first introduced in John 8:12 following Jesus' compassionate and forgiving approach to the woman caught in adultery. Then the metaphor is expanded in the healing of the blind man in chapter 9.
Light is introduced in the first chapter of the Bible, in Genesis 1 where "in the beginning God when created the heavens and the earth the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep... then God said, Let there be light; and there was light." In the final chapter of the Bible, Revelation 22:5, in the vision of the new heaven and new earth:"there will be no more light; they need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light."
In between the first chapter of Genesis and the final chapter of Revelation, light appears throughout the journey of God's people.
Abraham is promised in Genesis 22:17 that his offpsring will be as numerous "as the stars."
God appears to Moses in the light of a burning bush in Exodus 3.
The people are led out of slavery and travel to the promised land as led by a pillar of fire by night described in Exodus 40:38.
The people of God misunderstand who they are to be in God's world - and the prophet Isaiah calls them to understand themselves as a light to the world in Isaiah 42:6:
I am the Lord, I have called you in righteousness, I have taken you by the hand and kept you; I have given you as a covenant to the people, a light to the nations."
This image from Isaiah is surely in the mind of Christ as he declare himself the light of the world in the Gospel of John and as he speaks to his disciples in Mathtew 5:14-16:
You are the light of the world...let your light shine before others so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven."
To walk in the light is to walk in forgiveness - as illustrated in I John 1:5-9.
In the Gospel of John, there is always a figurative and a literal level of meaning. Jesus heals a blind man - and at the same time shows through the events around the healing that blindness is not physical, but spiritual.
True blindness is a darkness of the heart, a refusal to be open to the light of understanding in Christ. When we "see" Jesus, we see everything around us in a new light as well.
Friends, let us open our eyes to the light of the world and let us follow the example of Jesus, who reach out with his hands to touch a world in need. We are now the hands of Christ in the world.
The Gospel Lesson - John 9:1-41
9As he walked along, he saw a man blind from birth. 2His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” 3Jesus answered, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned; he was born blind so that God’s works might be revealed in him. 4We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming when no one can work. 5As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” 6When he had said this, he spat on the ground and made mud with the saliva and spread the mud on the man’s eyes, 7saying to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which means Sent). Then he went and washed and came back able to see. 8The neighbors and those who had seen him before as a beggar began to ask, “Is this not the man who used to sit and beg?” 9Some were saying, “It is he.” Others were saying, “No, but it is someone like him.” He kept saying, “I am the man.” 10But they kept asking him, “Then how were your eyes opened?” 11He answered, “The man called Jesus made mud, spread it on my eyes, and said to me, ‘Go to Siloam and wash.’ Then I went and washed and received my sight.” 12They said to him, “Where is he?” He said, “I do not know.” 13They brought to the Pharisees the man who had formerly been blind. 14Now it was a sabbath day when Jesus made the mud and opened his eyes. 15Then the Pharisees also began to ask him how he had received his sight. He said to them, “He put mud on my eyes. Then I washed, and now I see.” 16Some of the Pharisees said, “This man is not from God, for he does not observe the sabbath.” But others said, “How can a man who is a sinner perform such signs?” And they were divided. 17So they said again to the blind man, “What do you say about him? It was your eyes he opened.” He said, “He is a prophet.” 18The Jews did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight until they called the parents of the man who had received his sight 19and asked them, “Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see?” 20His parents answered, “We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind; 21but we do not know howit is that now he sees, nor do we know who opened his eyes. Ask him; he is of age. He will speak for himself.” 22His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jews; for the Jews had already agreed that anyone who confessed Jesus to be the Messiah would be put out of the synagogue. 23Therefore his parents said, “He is of age; ask him.” 24So for the second time they called the man who had been blind, and they said to him, “Give glory to God! We know that this man is a sinner.” 25He answered, “I do not know whether he is a sinner. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.” 26They said to him, “What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?” 27He answered them, “I have told you already, and you would not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become his disciples?” 28Then they reviled him, saying, “You are his disciple, but we are disciples of Moses. 29We know that God has spoken toMoses, but as for this man, we do not know where he comes from.” 30The man answered, “Here is an astonishing thing! You do not know where he comes from, and yet he opened my eyes. 31We know that God does not listen to sinners, but he does listen to one who worships him and obeys his will. 32Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a person born blind. 33If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.” 34They answered him, “You were born entirely in sins, and are you trying to teach us?” And they drove him out. 35Jesus heard that they had driven him out, and when he found him, he said, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” 36He answered, “And who is he, sir? Tell me, so that I may believe in him.” 37Jesus said to him, “You have seen him, and the one speaking with you is he.” 38He said, “Lord, I believe.” And he worshiped him. 39Jesus said, “I came into this world for judgment so that those who do not see may see, and those who do see may become blind.” 40Some of the Pharisees near him heard this and said to him, “Surely we are not blind, are we?” 41Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would not have sin. But now that you say, ‘We see,’ your sin remains.
Monday, March 2, 2009
Pastoral Care in Economic Uncertainty
There’s nothing like a snow day to find the time to attend to things that are important but that have no particular deadline. In staff meetings and in conversations throughout the church many of us have been wondering aloud about how the economic downturn and uncertainty are bringing unwanted change and causing broken dreams for millions through job loss, reduced retirement and college savings accounts and the drop in the housing market. How do we offer a Christian and pastoral response to what is happening?
As Presbyterians who stand in the Reformed tradition we affirm that God is not absent from these events. John Calvin, our theological godfather, insisted that God continues to govern the world. This conviction can be both comforting and unsettling. In the words of Psalm 139, whether we are in the highest heavens or the darkest depths, God is with us and we are not forsaken, for God’s hand shall lead us and God’s right hand shall hold us fast. But the unsettling question about God’s presence and rule is this: Has God caused our woes? I am not brave, foolish or, for that matter, wise enough to answer this question one way or another, but I can say with confidence that these times are not beyond God’s ability to redeem and heal.
Another important aspect of our Reformed tradition is that we take the Old Testament seriously. While the Old Testament gives us context for understanding Jesus, who was, after all, a Jew rooted in the traditions of Israel, those in the Reformed tradition have insisted that the Old Testament is every bit as important as the New Testament for understanding who God is and how God works in the world. A key Old Testament theme that is relevant for us is that of exile. In 587BC Jerusalem fell to and the Temple was destroyed by the Babylonian Empire’s armies. The confidence that God’s people had in the Holy City and in God’s presence in the Temple was shattered. All the institutions that had given God’s people a sense of meaning, purpose and identity were gone. I wonder if people who have lost jobs or taken a major blow to their investments can relate to this experience of exile. Just as Israel’s trust in its major institutions – the Temple, the kings who traced their lineage to the mighty David, their identity as residents of the Promised Land – was shaken to the core, so our trust in major institutions - financial institutions, corporate America, the economy, government, our careers - has also been shaken to the core.
As those who believe in God’s sovereignty and as those who believe the Old Testament is a reliable guide for understanding how God continues to act, perhaps we can understand our situation as one of exile. A key element in pastoral care at this time may not be to reassure people that everything will return to the way it was, but to help people face the truth that careers or companies or other institutions that provided a sense of identity and purpose can no longer provide these things. The most difficult work of the Old Testament prophets, especially Jeremiah, was convincing Jerusalem’s leaders and people that an irreversible and unwanted change was about to happen and that everyone had to enter into a time of exile when the old ways no longer worked. Old Testament scholar Walter Brueggemann speaks of this prophetic task as one of relinquishment, which requires us to go through the pain and grief of letting go of dreams that can no longer be fulfilled and ways of living that no longer match present realities.
But once we have relinquished old dreams and old ways of living we are able to receive from God new dreams, new ways, a new identity. This movement of relinquishing and receiving is mirrored in our baptism into the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. In baptism we die with Christ, we let go of old ambitions and habits. In baptism we are also resurrected with Christ, receiving new dreams and new ways of living.
I do not mean to sound all doom and gloom; I do not pretend to have more insight into our economic situation than anyone else. But, in the words of Jeremiah, God condemns those who “dress the wound of my people as though it were not serious. 'Peace, peace,' they say, when there is no peace” (Jeremiah 6:14). In this Lenten season where self examination encouraged as we pick up our cross and follow Jesus it may be a good time for us to consider what it is we may need to relinquish given the changed economic realities we are facing. What dreams of ours may go unfulfilled? How do our careers define who we are, whether for good or for ill? How is the economic uncertainty we are facing helping us to know what it is to die with Christ?
More posts will come with ideas for caring for those most effected by economic troubles. I invite you to click the “comment” link at the end of this post and join in the conversation.
As Presbyterians who stand in the Reformed tradition we affirm that God is not absent from these events. John Calvin, our theological godfather, insisted that God continues to govern the world. This conviction can be both comforting and unsettling. In the words of Psalm 139, whether we are in the highest heavens or the darkest depths, God is with us and we are not forsaken, for God’s hand shall lead us and God’s right hand shall hold us fast. But the unsettling question about God’s presence and rule is this: Has God caused our woes? I am not brave, foolish or, for that matter, wise enough to answer this question one way or another, but I can say with confidence that these times are not beyond God’s ability to redeem and heal.
Another important aspect of our Reformed tradition is that we take the Old Testament seriously. While the Old Testament gives us context for understanding Jesus, who was, after all, a Jew rooted in the traditions of Israel, those in the Reformed tradition have insisted that the Old Testament is every bit as important as the New Testament for understanding who God is and how God works in the world. A key Old Testament theme that is relevant for us is that of exile. In 587BC Jerusalem fell to and the Temple was destroyed by the Babylonian Empire’s armies. The confidence that God’s people had in the Holy City and in God’s presence in the Temple was shattered. All the institutions that had given God’s people a sense of meaning, purpose and identity were gone. I wonder if people who have lost jobs or taken a major blow to their investments can relate to this experience of exile. Just as Israel’s trust in its major institutions – the Temple, the kings who traced their lineage to the mighty David, their identity as residents of the Promised Land – was shaken to the core, so our trust in major institutions - financial institutions, corporate America, the economy, government, our careers - has also been shaken to the core.
As those who believe in God’s sovereignty and as those who believe the Old Testament is a reliable guide for understanding how God continues to act, perhaps we can understand our situation as one of exile. A key element in pastoral care at this time may not be to reassure people that everything will return to the way it was, but to help people face the truth that careers or companies or other institutions that provided a sense of identity and purpose can no longer provide these things. The most difficult work of the Old Testament prophets, especially Jeremiah, was convincing Jerusalem’s leaders and people that an irreversible and unwanted change was about to happen and that everyone had to enter into a time of exile when the old ways no longer worked. Old Testament scholar Walter Brueggemann speaks of this prophetic task as one of relinquishment, which requires us to go through the pain and grief of letting go of dreams that can no longer be fulfilled and ways of living that no longer match present realities.
But once we have relinquished old dreams and old ways of living we are able to receive from God new dreams, new ways, a new identity. This movement of relinquishing and receiving is mirrored in our baptism into the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. In baptism we die with Christ, we let go of old ambitions and habits. In baptism we are also resurrected with Christ, receiving new dreams and new ways of living.
I do not mean to sound all doom and gloom; I do not pretend to have more insight into our economic situation than anyone else. But, in the words of Jeremiah, God condemns those who “dress the wound of my people as though it were not serious. 'Peace, peace,' they say, when there is no peace” (Jeremiah 6:14). In this Lenten season where self examination encouraged as we pick up our cross and follow Jesus it may be a good time for us to consider what it is we may need to relinquish given the changed economic realities we are facing. What dreams of ours may go unfulfilled? How do our careers define who we are, whether for good or for ill? How is the economic uncertainty we are facing helping us to know what it is to die with Christ?
More posts will come with ideas for caring for those most effected by economic troubles. I invite you to click the “comment” link at the end of this post and join in the conversation.
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