The Church of St.
Paul & Incarnation, Jersey City NJ
June 9, 2019
Year C: The Day of
Pentecost
Acts 2:1-21
Psalm 104:25-35, 37
Romans 8:14-17
John 14:8-17, 25-27
The Spirit of Courage
Alleluia!
Christ is risen!
The Lord is risen indeed! Alleluia!
One
of the pleasures and honors of my job is when I am asked to offer a prayer at a
public event for some civic occasion.
As
you know, these days most people never go to church – and many are turned off
by church, often for good reason, frankly – so my hope for these public events
– and for weddings, too - is that I can say something appropriate and
meaningful, and, who knows, maybe one person will say, “You know, what, maybe
I’ll give church another try…”
(I
don’t know if that ever happens, but I choose to believe that it might happen!)
Anyway,
last week I was asked to offer a prayer at a ceremony in Pershing Field,
commemorating the 75th anniversary of D-Day.
It
was a small event, with just a handful of veterans and politicians and
onlookers present, along with the Jersey City Police Department honor guard,
which was impressive, I have to say.
Our
little ceremony was poignant in its own way but it could hardly do justice to
the men who stormed the beaches of Normandy three quarters of a century ago,
beginning the final great and bloody push to liberate Western Europe and bring
down the monstrously evil Nazi regime.
I’m
sure most, if not all, of you saw news coverage looking back at those
incredible days and reporting on the commemorations in England and France,
especially the one in England where the D-Day veterans, now all in their 90s,
were saluted and thanked by one from their own generation, the unstoppable 93
year-old Queen Elizabeth II.
In
our fast-paced time when we seem to remember very little history, it’s amazing
that the D-Day anniversary received so much attention, but even today – maybe
especially today – we are in awe of courage – in this case the courage of men
who charged beaches to take on heavily armed and well-fortified German soldiers
-the courage of moving forward despite the terrifying likelihood of injury or
death.
We
honor those men, in part, because, most of the time, courage seems to be in
short supply.
But,
we’re in good company.
The
Gospels are very clear – embarrassingly clear – that the first disciples of
Jesus usually didn’t “get it.”
In
today’s gospel lesson, during the Last Supper as Jesus prepares his closest
friends for his death and his absence, Philip makes a not very good request:
“Lord,
show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.”
And,
we can hear the frustration and exasperation in Jesus’ reply: “Have I been with
you all this time, Philip, and you still do not know me?
It’s
not only that the disciples usually don’t “get it.” Even worse than that, the
disciples are often cowards, never more so than when they abandon Jesus in his time
of suffering and death - fleeing and even, in the case of Peter, denying him,
all to save their own skin.
The
disciples, at least so far, have not exactly been profiles in courage.
In
fact, I always wonder if mixed in with their joy in seeing the Risen Lord there
wasn’t also a good bit of shame and regret about their cowardly behavior.
I
don’t know, but you’d think that seeing the Risen Jesus would embolden the
disciples – would give them the courage they need. I mean, what more do you
need, right?
But, surprisingly
it seems like something more is still required.
So,
at the start of today’s first lesson from the Acts of the Apostles, we’re told
that fifty days after Easter the disciples are all gathered in one place,
implying that they’re still hiding out or at least keeping a low profile, and
certainly not out in the streets proclaiming the best news of all time, that
Jesus has been raised by the dead.
And
then, suddenly, the disciples finally get that last missing ingredient - they
receive the gift of the Holy Spirit – and we can hear the author of Acts
struggling to describe this incredible experience – a sound like rushing wind –
divided tongues like flame among them – the ability to speak so that people
from all around the world understood.
And
now, they were no longer afraid, no longer hiding out, no longer just sticking
with each other, but instead they go out into Jerusalem, out into the city still
led by the men who not very long ago had killed Jesus, they go out into the
streets, risking it all to proclaim the Good News.
Alleluia!
Christ is risen!
The Lord is risen indeed! Alleluia!
It
was all so strange, so unusual that some people thought that the disciples had
indulged in some early morning “liquid courage, “ but, no it wasn’t the power
of alcohol, it was the power of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Courage!
But,
now, here we are, two thousand years later and, let’s face it, that Pentecost
courage has long since faded – I doubt that anyone thinks we must be drunk
because we share the love of Jesus so openly and generously!
Here
we are, two thousand years later, and, in fact, fear is all around.
One
of the reasons the D-Day commemorations were so meaningful was that there is
real fear that the international order built after World War II – the order
that prevented a third world war – is being threatened as we speak.
Fear
is all around as leaders here and abroad appeal to our worst instincts.
Fear
is all around as we worry what kind of planet we will pass on to our children.
Fear
is all around as we struggle to pay our bills.
Fear is all around as we face serious illness.
Fear is all around as we face serious illness.
Fear
is all around even in the church, as so many have gotten turned off and left,
as so many really don’t see the point, as so many have never really heard the
Good News, as we face the real possibility that we won’t hand off our church –
our faith - to the next generation.
Last
week a few of us attended a symposium on the future of the Black Episcopal Church.
This is no knock on the organizers and presenters, who did a fine job, but it
was a depressing experience, a story of decline and collapse. Looking around, I
knew we were in trouble because I was one of the youngest people in the room!
(I
mean, I’m young. But, I’m not THAT young!)
So,
yes, fear is all around and we may be tempted to be like the first disciples, tempted
to hunker down, to hide, to stick only with the people we know and trust.
But,
just like on that first Pentecost, the Holy Spirit – the Spirit of Courage – is
being poured out upon us, if only we are open to receive it.
And
I don’t have to believe that because I’ve seen it!
And,
you have, too.
A
couple of months ago, at the acolyte festival, I had the chance to have a short
one-on-one conversation with our bishop.
She
asked how things were going here and I filled her in.
And,
she startled me a little when she said we need to get the story of St. Paul and
Incarnation out to the diocese – that they need to know how we have come
together and are flourishing.
You
know when you’re right in the middle of something you don’t really see it –
kind of like not seeing the forest because of the trees – but since that
conversation I’ve been thinking more about our story and the more I think about
it I realize it’s a story of the Holy Spirit – the Spirit of Courage.
I
think of the courage of the Church of the Incarnation, making the hard choice
to come over to Duncan Avenue, not knowing how they – you – would be received,
not knowing if they – you – could find a spiritual home in a church that, at
best, for most of our history, had been a frosty neighbor and, at worst, a
rival.
Not
quite storming the beaches of Normandy, obviously, …but not nothing, either.
And,
I think of the courage of St. Paul’s, risking the rocking of a pretty happy
boat by opening their – your – doors to a big group of people who have a
different history, and somewhat different ways of doing church.
Not
quite suddenly speaking different languages, ...but not nothing, either.
And
now, I think about the times when we’re all mixed together – I think about
coffee hour and choir, about vestry meetings and Good Friday, about the beautiful
art show and recital offered by Incarnation kids and St. Paul’s kids together
and the barbecue we’ll all enjoy in a little while – I think about all of that
and I’m overjoyed and, honestly, I can feel my own fears about the future fade
away.
Not
quite being mistaken for being drunk, …but not nothing, either.
That’s
the Holy Spirit – that’s the Spirit of Courage – the Spirit that in a time of
fear was poured out upon the disciples two thousand years ago – the Spirit that
is being poured out upon us right here and right now.
And,
we don’t have to believe it… because we’ve seen it!
Amen.
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