St. Paul’s Church in
Bergen, Jersey City NJ
April 17, 2016
Year C: The Fourth
Sunday of Easter
Acts 9:36-43
Psalm 23
Revelation 7:9-17
John 10:22-30
The Power of Unity
Alleluia!
Christ is risen!
The Lord is risen indeed! Alleluia!
After
the 10:00 service last week, at coffee hour a longtime parishioner told me, and
I quote, “We need more time for the peace. I’m not able to get to everyone.”
I’m
tempted to pass the buck on this one and say that the peace lasts as long as
Gail plays and sings - Gail who, each week, gives us such a beautiful
soundtrack for our exchange of peace and greetings!
In
all seriousness, I was both surprised and not surprised by this parishioner’s
comment.
I
was surprised because I think we give a reasonable amount of time for the
peace, though, since, thankfully, we’ve grown, it’s true that there’s not
enough time to greet everyone. I always say that we can continue our fellowship
in coffee hour, but, of course, that’s not possible for everyone.
And,
I do worry about the length of the service, trying to respect everybody’s time
while not flying through our worship, either.
But,
I wasn’t surprised by this person’s comment because, for most but not quite all
of us - I know the fear of germs is an issue for some - and some of us are
introverts who find the peace absolutely excruciating! - but, for most of us
the peace has become a central part, even maybe the heart, of our worship.
In
a way, the church doesn’t really come alive until the peace.
And,
it’s beautiful, right?
I’ve
told you before how when Sue and I first arrived here, about 17 years ago now,
the exchange of peace made the deepest impression on us.
We
were moved – shocked – even a little intimidated by how happy everybody seemed
to see each other – all kinds of people greeting one another with smiles,
laughter, handshakes, hugs, and, yes, some chitchat.
Through
all the changes at St. Paul’s over the years, the love and unity shared at the
peace has never changed.
And,
the way the service flows, after we are united at the peace we then together come
forward to the Lord’s Table and receive the Body and Blood of Christ, united
with the Risen Christ.
Here
at St. Paul’s, if we’re open to it, each time we gather we become one with each
other and one with Jesus who is one with the Father.
Despite
our very real differences and our beautiful diversity, at our best - at our
truest - we are one.
Alleluia!
Christ is risen!
The Lord is risen indeed! Alleluia!
And,
this kind of unity is in short supply out in the world, isn’t it?
The
gap between rich and poor, the division between the haves and the have-nots
grows ever wider.
Our
government is broken and paralyzed by disunity, with both political parties
moving further from the center, seemingly unable or unwilling to compromise for
the common good.
Disunity
prevents our leaders from facing and dealing with our most pressing problems.
And,
I’m sorry to say, that this largely discouraging presidential campaign won’t
really change that disunity. No matter who wins, he or she won’t be able to
bridge the ever-widening gap between Democrats and Republicans.
They
probably won’t even be able to bridge the gaps in their own party.
There’s
nothing really new about disunity, though, right? It’s an old, old story in the
world – and it’s an old, old story in the church – just look at all the many
Christian denominations right here in Jersey City.
These
past few Sundays we’ve been reading and hearing excerpts from the Gospel of
John, the last of the four gospels to be completed, finished around the year
100, seventy or so years after the earthly lifetime of Jesus.
There
were cracks in Christian unity even before then, but by 100, there were some
big divisions.
There
were disagreements about who Jesus was and what he meant for the world.
There
were disagreements about how Christians were to live in the world, what rules
they had to follow and which they could, or even should, ignore.
And,
by 100, it was becoming harder for people to be both Jews and followers of
Jesus. Often, people now had to make a choice – and that choice was hard and it
was painful.
I’m
sure many of us can easily imagine how difficult it was – is - to leave behind one’s religion – one’s history, culture and
identity. And, at least some of the Jewish followers of Jesus just couldn’t bring
themselves to do it and so they abandoned their faith in Jesus the Messiah.
There
was a lot of disunity among first century Christians.
So,
it’s no surprise that in the Gospel of John we hear a lot about disunity - we
hear so much anger about “the Jews” rejecting Jesus.
And,
as you’ve heard me say before, all these centuries later we always have to
remind ourselves that pretty much all the people in the Gospel were all Jews – Jesus
himself, those who first followed Jesus and those who didn’t believe he was the
Messiah – all Jews.
So,
yes, in the Gospel of John we hear about disunity but we also hear about unity
– about the unity between the Father and Jesus and the unity that Jesus wants
so very much with us and among us.
So,
for example, in today’s Gospel passage we hear “the Jews” asking Jesus, “How
long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly.”
This
question gives Jesus the opportunity to talk about unity – the unity of Jesus’
sheep, the disciples who hear his voice and follow him – the unity of Jesus’
sheep who are given eternal life.
And,
then Jesus concludes this passage with the bold and what must have been a shocking
statement: “The Father and I are one.”
Unity.
We
come here to St. Paul’s and we unite – we become one – as we pray together, as
we exchange the peace, as we line up at the altar rail and extend our hands and
open our hearts.
We
come here to St. Paul’s and as we take the Body and Blood of Christ into our
bodies and souls – we become one with Christ – or, more accurately, Christ
becomes one with us.
Unity.
So, rare and so beautiful, right? Such a great gift.
But,
there’s more.
There’s
the power of unity.
We
all know that the Apostle Peter was a flawed character but, as we heard last
week, he was forgiven and loved by the Risen Jesus. As we heard last week, the
Good Shepherd himself commanded Peter to love and tend the sheep.
Jesus
the Good Shepherd was united with Peter the Shepherd, giving Peter, as we heard
in the first lesson, the power to raise Tabitha from the dead.
Christ
was united with Peter and so Peter had the power of Christ within him!
And,
look at the power of that unity! Look at what Peter was able to do!
Alleluia!
Christ is risen!
The Lord is risen indeed! Alleluia!
And,
look at the power of our unity! Look what we are able to do!
If
you’ve been at St. Paul’s for a while – or even if you’ve only been here for a short
while - you know what the power of our unity with Christ and with one another
does around here all the time.
The
power of unity warms cold hearts, heals old wounds, makes sweet music, feeds
empty souls – and fills more and more empty stomachs.
I
see the power of our unity – our unity with one another and with Christ – I see
the power of our unity all the time.
And,
now, I’m so excited that we’re starting to take the power of our unity out into
the world.
We
certainly saw the power of unity on Monday night as about 900 of us, diverse in
many ways, but united by our love of God’s people came together, demanding
safer streets, better schools, affordable housing, and, yes, a more just tax
structure.
Frankly,
I think the power of our unity was so strong that our elected officials were
thrown off their game – I don’t think it’s something they’re used to!
Yes,
on Monday night we felt the power of unity – the power of our unity with one
another – and the power of our unity with the Risen Christ.
The
power of unity.
So…
since our unity is so unusual, so beautiful, and so powerful, I think we can
take a little more time for the peace!
Alleluia!
Christ is risen!
The Lord is risen indeed! Alleluia!
Amen.
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