Misunderstanding the Ordinary, Nov.15, 2009

If you look to the top of the bulletin, you will note that not only is this the Middle of November, but the 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time. That is not a reflection of boredom, but rather that the Christian year is marked by the seasons of Advent and Lent, the Days of Christmas and Easter, Epiphany and Pentecost, and the balance of the year is described as ORDINARY, not in the sense of common place, but ORDINAL, measured, equal, anticipated, like the hours of a clock.

Yet, to carry this theme, the point is not that the ORDINARY is BORING, but that all life is a blessing, a gift from God and we need to be intentional about how we live. Where is our integrity? Who are we in the ordinary times? There are churches and communities known for having FINE MUSIC programs, for Awesome MISSIONS, for beautiful stone buildings and Stained Glass windows, and the leadership of this church have worked tirelessly for these, but also we are privileged to be part of a lot of weddings and baptisms, which have become normal to our identity, but are not routine for other churches. What we each must keep in mind, is that despite the $30,000 that goes into the Bride's gown, the thousands of dollars for Engagement rings, and photographers and receptions, this is one day, and MARRIAGE is more than the groom having once gotten down on one knee. Marriage is the blessing of holding hands after 20 years together.

This morning, I watched the sun come up over the lake, at first the sky was clear and bright filled with stars and planets, gradually everything seemed in silhouette, then the sky pinked as the dawn brightened, a blanket of fog 12 feet tall lay upon the water at the south end. The old sailors' adage came to mind: Red sky at night, a Sailor's delight, red Sky at morning Sailor's take warning! Suddenly we were enveloped, as the sky disappeared, all markers and familiar signs were lost in fog.

We look for signs, indications of the change of seasons, change in our lives, we are accustomed to calendars and budgets, contracts and reports, to let us know how to plan for every event, we listen to News reports and Traffic Monitoring, Weather Forecasts, and Sports Broadcasts to try to know what is going to happen, even the end of the world. I recall on September 11th eight years ago, as some were interpreting that there had been pilot error, and others that this was indeed an act of terrorism, someone read the events far differently than I had ever experienced, asking if this was The End of The World. I am certain that for those who lived through the attack on Pearl Harbor, for those who have first-hand witness of any trauma, be it a hurricane, fire, rape, or vehicle crash, it can feel like The End.

I am also guided by memory of the words of the missionary, when we as a church said we wanted to help with the building of the Clinic in Sudan. He laughed and said, you are Westerners, Americans, you plan with calendars and budgets and contracts for who is going to do what, when. THIS IS AFRICA, as old as time itself, someone has to go, to share life, to look this people in the eye, as you worship God, as you share a meal; THEN and only then will you have established trust, only then can you begin, but once you have trust then everything is possible. The challenge is not interpreting cataclysmic events, not predicting the future, prophetically planning, but instead developing trust, relationship in the ordinary times, such that when the familiar is lost, when suddenly the fog rolls in, you are not alone and can work together.

Jesus' words to the disciples WERE a word of warning, to be prepared, to resolve your differences, knowing that as established and comfortable as ever you may become, prejudice and fears and change, time itself, can topple everything. I am told that what the disciples were commenting upon in awe were the stone foundations of what we call the Wailing Wall at Jerusalem, and that these massive blocks make the base of the Pyramids seem small. Immediately our minds wonder how they could have been moved, how these ancient masons could have engineered something so immense. Then we come to realize, that what we know to be the Wailing Wall, 12 feet thick and a dozen feet tall, is only the rubble of what once stood as one wall of the Chancel. Nothing is permanent. The question is how we respond, in fear, in desperation, or confident that when the time comes, God can be trusted to remember us. The Presbyterian Church does not have a Book of SINS defining what things are and which are not. Or how to explain culturally, that at one time, the eating of shellfish and Divorce were considered sins and today they are to a greater and lesser degree accepted. Instead of a monumental work, we have a very basic understanding, that ANYTHING which causes you guilt, which causes you shame, which you would hide from God, is a sin. Again, the point is not whether the foundations have been toppled, whether institutions and establishments fall, they do! But what is our integrity, who are we in faith? Do we remember, does God?

That was Hannah's Prayer, that God remember her. We are part of a culture in which if you cannot become pregnant, there are hormonal drugs, there is invitro-fertilization, there are surrogates who can supply the egg, or carry the egg, and for those who cannot give birth there are ten thousand other ways to live a full and productive life. But Hannah lived in a polygamous culture, where the whole point of marriage was producing children, and not only could she not conceive, her rival would taunt her with it. Hannah felt as though she were forgotten by God. Others were blessed, others had children, why not Hannah?

Hannah does what most of us forget. She has planned, she has prepared, she decorated the baby's room, then she goes to Pray for GRACE and Praying she offers what in Hebrew is described as “SAAL”, that a Gift of GRACE is not a possession, but as this is lent to us, so it is then lent to others. Hannah vows that if she could be given the Ordinary gift of pregnancy, once the child is weaned and strong, she would then the gift to God. This day, this life is not a possession but a gift of grace lent to us. To be "ordinary" is to be a gift of Grace lent from God.