"Hemingway's Shortest Story" April 19, 2015

Luke 24: 36-48 Acts 3:1-12, 16-20 Ernest Hemingway was a Master story-teller, who once was challenged to tell a story with as few words as possible. Hemingway arrived at 6 words. “FOR SALE: Baby Shoes, Never Worn.” He said that encapsulates human disappointment, you identify with the characters, even without identification. There was a birth defect. Perhaps the pregnancy was lost. Possibly the mother died. Possibly the couple wanting a child, divorce. You do not know all the specifics, but identify with the emotion of Loss. There is the imperfect sense of a life-long hope, unfulfilled, unrealized, and that imperfect tense creates profound disappointment. Hemingway's story could have easily been “Engagement Ring Never Accepted” or “Retirement Dream Never Lived” “College 529 Savings Plan Never Enrolled." There is something in us as Human beings that desires the Future Perfect Tense: The Prince and Princess lived Happily Ever After... The family in the ICU who describe She survived and is still alive.. The 70 year old who gets up early the morning after Retirement because he has things to do... In Luke, walking along the road, two encounter a stranger and in Imperfect Present Tense state their disappointment: “But we had hoped, he was the Messiah, who would have been the one, who would have redeemed Israel!” With disappointment, instead of the statement being begun in the past open-ended continuing indefinitely, there is a definite period of change, as if “THE END.” The Crucifixion was intended for that purpose. The Empire intended Not simply to execute Jesus, but to intimidate the masses so deeply as to DESTROY HOPE, to grind in NEVER AGAIN. The two walking along the road, that Easter day, were wrestling with the meaning of things, as we all tend to do when accepting disappointment. Was he just a Teacher? Was he a Prophet? Jesus healed the Blind, cured the Lepers, Fed the hungry, was he a Miracle healer? Jesus was a larger than life figure, a friend who you want to attach yourself to because they are going places. Suddenly, he was killed, dead, making him smaller and smaller. He was a human being, a man. All the Parables, all the circumstances became what Jesus did in our lives, now robbed from us. Disappointment is destabilizing. Our peripheral vision closes in. We become numb. All we can see is the personal, that will not be. The Victory that will not happen. The Marriage that will not take place. The Children never born. As a congregation we are known for taking risks, for venturing into what other churches might not try. A few years ago, I recall a Saturday we had hoped to have a wedding, and the wedding was cancelled. The same weekend on Sunday morning where we had planned a baptism, and the parents chose to divorce. We are exceedingly blessed as a church, many have not celebrated a wedding or baptism in years, we do so as commonplace. But with that, we then need to own the disappointment when Marriages and Baptisms do not occur. However, along the road, after hearing the two describe what they thought Jesus was to them, Jesus explains what the Messiah is to the History of the World! Their minds are opened to possibility. It is Not that the Sacrament has a magic power when bread is broken, the person in long robes, saying the right incantation! NO, It is that having experienced and heard the word of God, they share in the sacred which is a routine of life, the sacred is as much an ongoing part of life as meals, and they believe. On Sunday morning in America, modern disciples come through the church door weighed down by loss, cynicism and stress. They are lawyers, engineers, scientists, journalists, teachers -- skilled practitioners in the seductions of the world, but nervous novices in the realm of the Spirit. They, like the first disciples, yearn for the living presence of God. But they are too preoccupied, scheduled, suspicious, too busy, having no time to actually recognize God. In the objective world of fact and truth, matter and money, the Church's world of mystery, meaning, risk, trust, love, relationship seems silly. So they are eager to debate the Idea of God, but unprepared to experience the presence of God. I know that after so many years together, there are those who believe Craig does not get it, all he ever preaches is trust and love. But I believe trust, love, forgiveness are the essentials of Christian faith. This week I was part of a discussion at Presbytery, where the leader was asking what are we supposed to do, are we willing and able to trust each-other, to trust the process and systems we have put into place. And I came to recognize part of what we need to trust in the current world is a certain level of chaos. Everything continues to be in transition, we do not know where the world is going, where the church is going, and we are at least thankful that life has not yet lost meaning. So we Re-Member not to live in the past, but to claim those who are unending parts of our body. But rather than the Enlightenment, which believed everything could be understood, that through reason we could Know everything, today we live with a certain level of chaos that the future has not yet been determined, so we have to trust, to trust one another and God. Chaos and Doubt are not the opposite of faith. Chaos is the opposite of control of certainty, but Control is different than trust and faith. Doubt, in fact, is a necessary ingredient to faith. Faith, by definition, is trust in spite of a lack of evidence, a lack of certainty. Faith is not knowledge. Faith is more tension-filled. Faith is acting as if something is true even when you have no proof that it will be true. Which means that when we talk about the “gathering of the faithful,” we’re not talking about the gathering of those who’s faith/knowledge is absolute or certain. We’re talking about those who have all kinds of questions and doubts but still find joy and wonder in this message of Good News about new life. Or maybe who want to find joy and wonder, haven’t yet, but keeping coming because of their unending hope. To better grasp this story from Acts, recognize that it actually comes ON The Day of Pentecost, as a parallel to “All the disciples went out and about 3000 were converted in power;” Peter and John, respond to one man, as a human being, in the name of Jesus Christ to be well. This Day did not start out as a Day of Confidence and Faith, but once again locked in the Upper Room for Fear. There the Disciples felt the Calling to go out into the world. We remember the Flames resting upon each, the speaking in various tongues. What we overlook was that in that chaos, the people each were able to hear them speaking to their own needs in new and different ways. This lame-beggar was not treated as a Man, was not treated as whole, was not treated as able even to enter the Temple to pray to God. But others daily carried his body to lay outside the gate, to ask for money. That same day, filled with the Spirit, Peter and John go to the Temple to pray, they have no money to give to him, but what they have is willingness in the midst of chaos, to see him as a human being, to look the man in the eye and speak to him. AND Second, they have have faith in Jesus Christ to not leave him there. The Imperfect Tense only remains in the imperfect, if this is an ending. Chaos is only really chaos, if that is all we allow to be. But if we see in the midst of the Chaos the opportunity for God, if we hear in the midst of the imperfect God calling Life to Be, then it is Good, even Very Good. If Hemingway's story is only about the disappointment, then Baby Shoes: Never Worn is the whole story, but the imperfect can also become Future Perfect by those shoes becoming the context, that for that couple there was redemption they found hope in each other, in redemption; and for another the Never Worn Baby Shoes were what they could afford for their child to learn to stand and to walk. On Friday, for the third year, I was invited to be one whom the 8th Graders interview about giving back to the Community. This year, as they ended, they asked a question, they had not before. “If you were going to share an insight with us, what would it be? What is important?” I told our 8th Graders, “There are going to be times you will fail, you will have your heart broken. You will. Never give up, you will fall in love again. You will succeed. But know we are watching over you, wherever you go this Village is part of you, and we continue to re-member you and claim you as part of our Perfect Future story.

"Not Seeing IS Believing" April 12, 2015

Acts 4:32-36 John 20:19-31 Before the days of Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh, Howard Stern, even before Casey Kasum the Radio talk show everyone listened to was the familiar twang of Oklahoma announcer Paul Harvey reading the daily news and his commentary: “The Rest of The Story.” Paul Harvey was a master story-teller, who provided context and back story to events we all think we know, as well as creating descriptive compound phrases like “Reaganomics.” Paul Harvey seamlessly flowed from one story to the next, into a commercial, accented only by his introduction of “Hello America” his turning the sheets of his Yellow-pad saying “Page 2” and concluding every broadcast by saying “Good Day!” This morning's passages are stories from the New Testament, so familiar we all think we recognize “Doubting Thomas” and the classic Stewardship Sermon that immediately after Barnabas sells his field sharing everything there is the story of Ananias and his wife who conspired not to and they died! We celebrate Easter, but this morning, consider “The Rest of the Story.” Because according to John's Gospel, Easter morning was the Resurrection, and Easter evening was Pentecost, when Christ shared his own breath, his spirit, his peace with the Disciples. And Acts describes the company were of One heart and soul, everyone shared everything they possessed. Diana Butler Bass is a friend who has been writing about NextChurch compared to Great Awakenings the first of which occurred in the mid 1700s in the Colonies, a crisis causing those already baptized Church members to question the depths of their faith/ their need for Salvation. The Second in the 1800s took place here in Central New York, reaching out to the unChurched. What Diana describes is that a Revival is aimed at attracting more number of people to the belief; an Awakening is brought about by a crisis, any crisis, causing us to See things differently possibly losing faith but possibly going far deeper than we ever have before. Seeing differently than we had seen previously, differently from those with whom we had been one. Things that seemed important even the day before, suddenly feel meaningless and we feel numb. When the Boston Marathon bombing happened, when September 11th happened, when our child was born. Diana believes, and I agree with her, that our culture is preparing for a next Great Awakening of Faith, not concerned with membership numbers but every person stopping to Breathe, to reflect and See our need for trust, for loving ourselves and one another. While we know there were an even dozen disciples, other than Peter, James and John, most of us remember the names of the 7 Dwarfs better than we do the names of Jesus' Disciples. Despite sharing meals and sharing experiences, the disciples were a diverse group, who co-existed without knowing each other intimately. Judas Ischariot and Simon Peter both denied and betrayed Jesus on Maundy Thursday; for the one, it led to an abandonment of God and abandonment of everything; to the other a crisis of faith that empowered him to have conviction, to commit to the faith he already espoused. PAGE TWO We have an earlier reference to Thomas, at the Last Supper. Jesus said “In my Father's house are many rooms, if it were not so I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you, I will come again to take you to myself. You know the way I am going.” And Thomas said, “We do not know where you are going; how can we know the way?” Jesus responded, “I am the way, the truth and the life. If you had known me, you would know the Father also, henceforth you know Him and have seen Him.” When Jesus was arrested and died on the Cross, all the disciples dispersed in crisis. Thomas dropped out becoming one of those like so many today who declare I require proof in order to believe. The problem being that belief can only be belief, when there is no proof, when you have to trust without evidence. On Easter, Thomas was not at the tomb before dawn, or in the evening in the Upper Room. Not that he was unafraid, but Thomas had lost his way. Last Sunday, after the celebration, after the doves were released and the organ had gone quiet, a little girl came into the Sanctuary looking around as if entering a room she thought she might not belong. Coming to Baptismal font she rubbed the colors as if making a wish. Just then she saw me, I winked at her and smiled. In this big space her voice sounded so small, so clear: “Is Jesus coming back?” It was as if wondering if Ronald might make an appearance at McDonalds, Wendy at Wendy's or Mickey at Disneyland. After a moment I said, you know how when Mom and Dad take you to School or Day Care they always come to get you? Sometimes it seems we have to wait and wait, but they come. God is coming. She said, but my Daddy does not come get me anymore, Daddy is in heaven. I sat down on the step beside her and said “So your Daddy is keeping God company, telling God all about you.” She asked, “But how do you know: if God is coming?” I responded, “You know how sometimes, your heart swells up in your chest because you are so excited, so filled with love and joy? Those are the times when God is with us, right with us in our hearts, and we know we are not alone, we are loved.” When asked what it will take for Thomas to believe, Thomas asks for a Scar Story. We each have Scar stories, the time I got bit by a dog. When my appendix burst. When we were arguing and I got burned by the dish coming out of the oven. The Car Accident. The Ski trip. Scars are proof of endurance, the remainder and reminder of an experience that changed you. There is an important irony here... When we die, our mortal bodies, with arthritis, disease, age and disability die. In the resurrection, we are spirit without body, as such we are without disability, without pain, without suffering. BUT Jesus body has an importance to us. According to the Gospel of John, Jesus spirit was with God in the beginning, then giving up divinity in order to become human. That life is important to us, because in the body we know Jesus was born, God incarnate with us. Jesus ate with sinners. Jesus touched people and healed them. Jesus suffered on the cross, and the suffering was atonement for all the sins of all the world. So the physical reality of that body, that is important. The scars, the holes in the hands, the spear laceration in his side, those scars are the vestige of the mortal wounds of the world. Where often we feel guarded and defensive of our wounds, we feel our scars are deformities, However when Thomas names this, Jesus willingly offers his wounds to be touched. Such is the devotion of our God. Touching a wound is an especially intimate vulnerability. As the toddlers describe, “This is an Ow-ie.” This is a wound, a reminder of hurt and pain. Allowing, inviting another to touch that wound, that hurt, is a conviction of trust. Rather than an image of power, glory and divinity, when Thomas does witness the wounded-ness of Jesus, when Jesus reaches out holding nothing back for Thomas to touch his wounds, Thomas provides the most powerful affirmation in the Gospels. Where the High Priests had declared that they had no King except Caesar, and that the charge against Jesus was Blasphemy for identifying himself as being God; Thomas replies to Jesus wounds: “My LORD and My God!” PAGE THREE Joseph, like Paul was included among the Apostles, although they had not been disciples of Jesus, had never seen him in the flesh. Joseph was a Levite from Cyprus, meaning he was Jewish but from the Great Diasopora, the Babylonian Exile, Joseph had learned to live in the world. Joseph received a new name as a Christian, he is called:“Son of Encouragement”: Barnabas. Whereas some kept possessions to themselves, because there was no restriction against it, there were some like Ananias and his bride Saphira who conspired together to lie to community, misrepresenting what they were sharing. Yet there were also those individuals like Barnabas, who encouraged the whole community by freely sharing everything they had. When, Saul was converted on the Damascus Road to become Paul of Tarsus, the community did not trust him. Barnabas is named as speaking on behalf of Paul to the Disciples. Barnabas, Son of Encouragement stood up for other people, offered the possibility of hope, offered his companionship. Barnabas became traveling companion and partner in mission with Paul to the Gentiles. When they set out on their first journey, they took along another young convert named John, who was called Mark. In the midst of this 1400 mile journey, Mark and Paul got into an argument and Mark left, went home. When Paul and Barnabas prepared for their second journey, Barnabas insisted on bringing Mark, and Paul said No. Their disagreement became so strong, Barnabas went with mark and Paul with Silas. Barnabas always seemed to work for the reconciliation and forgiveness of others. SO the two questions we are left to consider this morning are 1. DO you need a Scar Story, to see and touch the wounds and suffering, in order to believe, OR can you like Barnabas Trust, hoping and believing that faith will come? 2. DO you believe Christ will come? Do you believe you are all alone, or do you know what cannot be seen that God is with you? “Good Day”

"Answering Why" Easter April 5, 2015

John 20:1-18 Part of me there is, that loves Easter! Gathering with family and friends at sunrise in the Gazebo. A full Sanctuary not only makes the organ sound better, it makes the preacher preach better. Trumpets and singing “Jesus Christ is Risen Today!” Lilies, little girls in dresses, Chocolate and Jelly beans. Easter is a day of absolute unbridled joy, beyond reason, without understanding, Joy! Part of me there is, that does not, because Easter is really all about answering: After Death. And if we are honest, Easter is not about coming back, or beating Cancer; the Resurrection is not a consolation for having died. Easter is a new and different reality! And Easter happens again and again as we have to let go of what we have been hanging onto, in order to live life differently with God! Death may be sudden and horrific. A train that hits an SUV. A plane that crashes into a mountain. Death is working at a job for 40 years and suddenly being told there have to be cut backs. Death is discovering that working all your life to pay down a mortgage, discovering your property has been losing value. Death is finding a note with a pile of legal papers saying Marriage to you has become too hard. Death is a family intervention, where your blood relatives abandon you. Death is being told, we can try a lot of things to control pain, but there are no options. Death is a black hole, in which everything you thought you knew, is now different. Hopeless. We are a culture that avoids Death. I phoned a company the other day, asking to speak with the manager I had worked with for years, and the person I was speaking with said “They passed.” I thought they had gotten a promotion, or graduated with a degree, until it sunk in “passed” meant Death. We get out of bed at 5 in the morning to exercise, we avoid all the things that give us pleasure, take enough vitamins and medications to make us rattle when we walk, all in hope of postponing Death. There are circumstances and relationships that are beyond our control. When we are born and to whom. When we die. We cannot discriminate. We cannot make religion mean what we want it to mean. It is poignant that 70 years ago this week, Dietrich Bonhoeffer was put to death, because as a minister he stood up against the Nazi State saying you cannot claim religion as the reason for persecution, for hate. When someone we know is dead, we ask for an autopsy, which names what, when and how, not Why. In all the Bible, we are following the 5 questions of Journalism: Who, What, When, Where, How. There is no reason Why God created the Heavens and the Earth. No reason Why Abel's offering was accepted and not Cain's offering. There is no answer for Why God chose Abram, or why Abraham was to be Kosher and Circumcised. There is no answer for Why Moses. There is no answer why the people sinned, turning away from God. It is not logical, not a matter of reason, that after exiling the Nation, Why God brings them home. There is no reason Why Mary and Joseph were chosen. No explanation for Why lepers were cleansed. The first clue we have, concerning Why, comes in relation to Lazarus who died... Jesus loved him. There is no identification who The Beloved Disciple was, throughout John, I wonder if it was Lazarus? Easter in John is different from the other Gospels. In Matthew, the Marys get to the tomb, and there is Lightning and Thunder, the ground shakes and the Guards are paralyzed like dead men. Suddenly, Jesus appears and in one of the few places the Bible includes an Exclamation Point Jesus says “Hail!” Like jumping out and saying “Surprise!” or “Boo!” In Mark's Gospel, the women went away terrified and told No One what they had heard or seen, in Luke they thought it an idle tale. John is different. John is told with sensitivity, as if understanding that Death is hard to confront, hard to answer. John is dealing with Answering Why. We may question whether God created the Universe, or if it was an accident of fate. We may question and theorize much about life. But the facts as presented in the Gospel of John are that Jesus was Dead, they took his body down from the cross, Nicodemus who had visited Jesus at Night speaking of being Born Again, and God so loved the world God gave God's only begotten Son, Nicodemus paid for an elaborate burial which would have included washing the body and spices and perfumes and flowers, they laid his dead body in in the tomb, wrapped his body and covered his face with a handkerchief. Then the guards sealed the tomb forever. Mary Magdalene is alone in dealing with death. She goes to the Garden while it is dark inside her and out. In Genesis, there was a Garden where there had never been death, we call it Eden, Paradise. In John, Death is the context, for what comes after. There are no pyrotechnics, when she comes to the tomb all is silent and empty, violated and open. Fearing someone did something to Jesus' dead body, Mary runs to find the disciples. Hearing her, say “They have taken his body” the disciples run toward the tomb. The Beloved Disciple gets there first but does not go in. Again, I have to believe Lazarus would have reason to be reticent to enter a tomb. Simon Peter looks in. The Beloved Disciple physically goes into the tomb. And now they see he is gone and they believe in the empty tomb. They go away wondering. For some of us, that is as far as we get in faith, is wondering, and that is okay. Mary stayed. Mary looked in and saw two angels. There is no shock, no surprise. They ask “Why she weeps?” She sees someone, her mind will not allow her to recognize who he is. The grammar here is wonderfully non-descript as if to say, “Mister, if you have taken the man, tell me where.” She does not name the stranger, or Jesus whom she wants, Mary makes the assumption the stranger is the Gardener. Which given what we said about the Garden of Eden is quite cute. He calls her by name, and she responds with a pet-name, an intimate relational identity, “Teacher!” Everything about Death is a denial of Life. Denial of relationship. Denial of intimacy. Denial of Hope. Denial of God! The most natural thing when we experience the death of someone we love, is that we feel Numb. We feel Nothing. Because Death is that Void, that Waste, that Chaos, named in Genesis before God began God's Work. Yet, when Jesus speaks to Mary in relationship, calling her by name, it is like Calling Life into being. While she knows and is certain of his death, this Call transforms her to believing Easter, believing Jesus is alive again. There is irony here. Whenever people cry in Church they try to apologize for their tears, they try to hide them and explain them away. There is NOTHING more natural or expected in an intimate personal place dealing with the joys and sorrows of life and death, weddings, love, birth, loss, than tears. However, the natural response of Mary to finding Jesus alive, would have been to fling herself into his arms, her arms wrapped tightly round his neck; and instead Jesus says “Do not hold onto me.” Something tells me, this is not about physical contact, so much as we cannot “hold onto” Easter, the living cannot hold onto the resurrection, life is always moving, always growing, and as much as we face death and believe we have it all answered, facing a different death we struggle all over again. Easter is not about going back, denying death, or doing whatever we can to postpone death. Easter is Answering Death with a new Identity and relationships. Jesus Death on the Cross atoned for all the sins of the world.Christ's Resurrection was the Death of Death, the answer to Fears and Doubts and Shame. In Genesis, humanity was exiled, forced out of the Garden in shame... In John, Jesus sends Mary out on a mission, she is the first Apostle telling others “He was dead and now He is risen!” This morning, being Easter, I came to the church early, while it was still dark, to prepare for the Sunrise Worship service. As I went to unlock the doors, I found a man's body lying in front of the doors. On Easter morning, when you meet a stranger with long brown hair and a beard, like Jesus, you do not question, I invited him in where it was warm to rest. He came in, describing he was from Seattle and had been visiting his daughters for the first time in Maine, and was returning home. I made coffee found some cereal and bagels, and allowed him to rest while I went to the Sunrise Worship. When I returned, he had gone. Easter is not about doubting or questioning, but living life differently, trusting God and one another.

Maundy Thursday, April 2, 2015 "I AM"

Learning anything foreign to us, discerning what is “other,” we discover the most important word is the Verb: “To Be.” Tonight, as we read and share the Scriptures, we listen for the that word, “I AM” paying attention to the differing contexts and meanings and what “I AM” says about God, and about us. CALL TO ILLUMINATION EXODUS 3:1-14 Now Moses was keeping the flock of his Father-in-law, Jethro, Priest of Midian; and he led his flock to the westside of the wilderness, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. And the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush; and he looked, and lo, the bush was burning, yet was not consumed. And Moses said, “I AM turning aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt.” When the Lord saw that Moses turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And Moses said, “Here, I AM.” Then the voice said, “Do not come near; put your shoes off from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” The voice said, “I AM God of your father, God of Abraham, God of Isaac, and God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God. Then said the Lord, “I AM seeing the affliction of my people who are in Egypt, I AM hearing their cry because of their taskmasters: I AM knowing their sufferings, I AM coming down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, I AM coming to bring them up out of that land to a good broad land, flowing with milk and honey; to the place of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebuzites. And now behold, the cry of the people of Israel has come to me, and I AM seeing the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. Come, I AM sending you to Pharaoh, that you may bring forth my people, the sons and daughters of Israel out of Egypt.” But Moses said to God, “Who AM I that I should go to Pharaoh, to bring Israel out of Egypt?” The Voice said, “But I AM with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I AM sending you: When you have brought forth Israel out of Egypt, you shall serve God upon this mountain.” Then said Moses to God: “If I AM to come to the people of Israel and say to them, 'The God of your fathers has sent me to you.' and they ask me 'What is his name?' what AM I to say to them?” God said to Moses: “I AM WHO I AM” And God said, “Say this to the people of Israel, 'I AM has sent me to you.'” INVITATION TO PRAYER JOHN 13: 1-13 Now before the feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart out of this world to the Father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. During supper, when the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Ischariot, Simon's son, to betray him, Jesus knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, that he had come from God and was going to God, rose from supper, laid aside his garments, and girded himself with a towel. Then he poured water into a basin, and began to wash the disciples' feet, to wipe them with the towel with which he was girded. He came to Simon Peter; and Peter said to him, “Lord, do you wash my feet?” Jesus answered him, “What I AM doing you do not know now, but afterward you will understand.” Peter said to him, “You shall never wash my feet.” Jesus answered him, “If I AM not washing you, you have no part in me.” Peter said to him, “Not my feet only but also my hands and my head!” Jesus said, “He who has bathed does not need to wash, except for his feet, but he is clean all over; and you are clean, but not all of you.” For Jesus knew who was to betray him. When he had washed their feet, and taken his garments and resumed his place, Jesus said to them, “Do you know what I AM to you? You call me Teacher and Lord; and you are right, for so I AM. If I AM then your Lord and Teacher, who has washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet.” SCRIPTURE TEXT John 18:1 – 19:22 When Jesus had spoken these words, he went forth with his disciples across the Kidron Valley, to where there was a garden, which he and his disciples entered. Now Judas, who betrayed him, also knew the place; for Jesus often met there with his disciples. So Judas, procuring a band of soldiers and some officers from the chief priests and the Pharisees, went there with lanterns, torches and weapons. Then Jesus, knowing all that was to befall him, came forward and said to them, “whom do you seek?” They answered him, “Jesus of Nazareth.” Jesus said to them, “I AM.” Judas who betrayed him, was standing with them. When Jesus said “I AM” they drew back and fell to the ground. Again Jesus asked them, “Whom do you seek?” And they said “Jesus of Nazareth.” Jesus answered, “I told you, I AM, so if you seek me, let these men go.” This was to fulfill the word which he had spoken, “Of those whom Thou gavest me, I lost not one.” Then Simon Peter, having a sword, drew it and struck the high priest's slave, cutting off his right ear. The slave's name was Malchus. Jesus said to Peter, “Put your sword in its sheath; shall I not drink the cup which the Father has given?” So the band of soldiers and their captain and the officers of the Jews seized Jesus and bound him. First they led him to Annas; for he was the Father-in-law of Caiaphas, who was High Priest that year. It was Caiaphas that had given counsel, that it was expedient that one man should die for the people. Simon Peter followed Jesus, and so did another disciple. As this disciple was known to the High Priest, he entered the court of the High Priest along with Jesus, while Peter stood outside the door. SO the other disciple, who was known to the High Priest, went out and spoke to the maid who kept the door, and brought Peter in. The maid who kept the door said to Peter, “Are not you also one of this man's disciples?” Peter said, “I AM NOT.” Now the servants and officers had made a charcoal fire, because it was cold, and they were standing and warming themselves; Peter also was with them, standing warming himself. The High Priest then questioned Jesus about his disciples and his teaching. Jesus answered him, “I AM speaking openly to the world; I have always taught in synagogues and in the Temple, where all Jews come together; I AM saying nothing secretly. Why do you ask me? Ask those who have heard me, what I said to them; they know what I AM saying.” When he had said this, one of the officers standing by struck Jesus with his hand saying, “Is that how you answer the High Priest?” Jesus said, “If I have spoken wrongly, bear witness to the wrong; but if I have spoken rightly, why do you strike me?” Annas then sent him bound to Caiaphas the high Priest. As Simon Peter was standing warming himself, they said to him, “Are not you also one of his disciples?” Peter denied it and said, “I AM NOT.” One of the servants of the High Priest, a kinsman of the man whose ear Peter had cut off, asked, “Did I not see you in the garden with him?” Peter again denied it, “I AM NOT” and at once the cock crowed. Then they led Jesus from the house of Caiaphas to the Praetorium. It was still dark. They did not enter the Praetorium, so that they might not be defiled, but might eat of the Passover. So Pilate went out to them and said, “What accusation do you bring against this man?” They answered him, “If this man were not an evildoer, we would not have handed him over.” Pilate said to them, “Take him yourselves and judge him by your Law.” The Jews said to him, “It is not lawful for us to put any man to death.” This was to fulfill the word which Jesus had spoken to show by what death he was to die. Pilate entered the Praetorium again and called Jesus, and said to him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” Jesus answered, “Do you say this of your own accord, or did others say it about me?” Pilate answered, “AM I a Jew? Your own nation and Chief Priests have handed you over to me. What have you done?” Jesus answered, “My Kingship is not of this world; if my Kingship were of this world, my servants would fight, that I AM not to be handed over to the Jews; but my Kingship is not from the world.” Pilate said to him, “So you are a King?” Jesus answered, “You say that I AM a King. For this I was born, and for this I have come into the world, to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears my voice.” Pilate said to Jesus, “What is truth?” After he had said this he went out to the Jews again, and told them, “I find no crime in him. But you have a custom that I should release one man for you at Passover; will you have me release for you The King of the Jews?” They cried out, “Not this man, but Barabbas!” Now Barabbas was a thief, rapist, murderer and rioter. Then Pilate Jesus and had him scourged. And the soldiers plaited a crown of thorns and put it on his head, and arrayed him in a purple robe; they came up to him saying “Hail, King of the Jews!” and struck him with their hands. Pilate went out again and said to them, “See I am bringing him out to you, that you may know that I find no crime in him.” So Jesus was brought out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate said to them, “Behold the man!” When the Chief Priests and Officers saw him, they cried out, “Crucify him, crucify him!” Pilate said to them, “Take him yourselves and crucify him, for I find no crime in him.” They answered him, “We have a Law, and by that law he ought to die, because he has made himself the Son of God.” When Pilate heard these words, he was all the more afraid; he entered the Praetorium again and said to Jesus, “Where are you from?” But Jesus gave no answer. Pilate therefore said to him, “You will not speak to me? Do you not know that I have power to release you, and power to crucify you?” Jesus answered, “You would have no power over me unless it had been given you from above; therefore, he who delivered me to you has the greater sin.” Upon this Pilate sought to release him, but the Jews cried out, “If you release this man you are not Caesar's friend; every one who makes himself a king sets himself against Caesar.” When Pilate heard these words, he brought Jesus out and sat down on the judgment seat at a place called The Pavement, in Hebrew “Gabbatha.” Now it was the day of Preparation of the Passover; it was about the sixth hour. He said to the Jews, “Behold your King!” They cried out, “Away with him, away with him, crucify him!” Pilate said to them, “Shall I crucify your King?” The Chief Priests answered, “We have no King but Caesar!” Then Pilate handed Jesus over to them to be crucified. So they took Jesus and he went out, bearing his own cross, to the place called The Place of the Skull, which in Hebrew is “Golgotha.” There they crucified him, and with two others, one at either side, and Jesus between them. Pilate also wrote a title and put it on the cross; it read “Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.” Many of the Jews read this title, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and it was written in Hebrew, in Latin, and in Greek. The Chief Priests of the Jews then said to Pilate, “Do not write, 'The King of the Jews,' but 'This man Said I AM King of the Jews.'” Pilate answered, What I have written, I have written.” PROCLAMATION OF THE WORD At the turn of the 19th - 20th Century, with World Wars looming between ancient Monarchies, Dictatorships, and rising Powers, Industrialization expanding, and the cloud of International Economic Depression about to burst, The London Times sent invitation to the greatest writers and world leaders of the time, asking “What Is The Greatest Threat to The World?” G.K. Chesterton was a well known author, having published over 4,000 articles and 100 books, edited his own weekly paper, while writing a column for 30 years in the London News, and a different column for 13 years in the Daily News. Chesterton is the author of The Father Brown Mysteries. Chesterton was identified by C.S. Lewis as the inspiration for Lewis turning from being an Atheist to becoming Christian. Chesterton was identified by Mohandas Gandhi as the force behind the revolution against British rule of India. He was the debater of his age, having written the definitive biography of St. Thomas Acquinas, being the frienemy of George Bernard Shaw, challenging ideas of Consumerism, Capitalism, Progressivism, Conservativism and Monopolies. Chesterton responded, “What is the Greatest Threat to the World? I AM.”