St. Thomas’ Episcopal Church, Owings Mills MD
July 31, 2022
Year C, Proper 13: The Eighth Sunday after Pentecost
Hosea 11:1-11
Psalm 107:1-9, 43
Colossians 3:1-11
Luke 12:13-21
Our Homeroom
Most of you know that before I was a priest I was a high school history teacher.
It was a life that I enjoyed and still miss, even after being out of the classroom for nearly twenty years now – which is unbelievable to me.
There was a lot about teaching high school that I liked – the joy of watching young people learn and grow, the pleasure of working beside generous and supportive colleagues – many of whom were also my friends, and the satisfaction of working at schools with a clear sense of identity and mission.
Oh, and I especially liked having a homeroom.
Maybe that last one is a surprise to some of you.
The truth is that for some teachers, homeroom is a chore – it’s a loosely structured time, often right at the start of the day when attendance and other school business has to be taken care of – a time when teachers may be wishing they had that second or third cup of coffee - a time when antsy students may act out – a time when groggy students may take a last minute snooze.
But, I usually liked having a homeroom.
I always tried to build a homeroom community – often by competing with other homerooms in different school fundraisers (there’s my competitive streak again!) and by creating a relaxed and safe space, a little oasis from the very real pressures of a high school student’s life.
In maybe a weird way, homeroom is one of the reasons that I eventually left teaching to become a priest.
Because, here’s the thing: for an entire school year the students and I built our homeroom community together but then it would be June and it would be finished. Our little community would be disbanded, and I’d have to start all over in September.
So, I was drawn to church work because here we can build community together over the long haul – Sunday after Sunday - baptisms, weddings, funerals - creating deep relationships that span years and sometimes many decades.
You’ve probably never thought of it quite this way, but St. Thomas’ is our homeroom.
Well, today’s lesson from the Gospel of Luke begins with an unnamed person asking Jesus – or, actually it sounds more like ordering Jesus! – to get involved in a family dispute. He says,
“Teacher, tell my brother to divide the family inheritance with me.”
This sort of family squabble over money is an old and familiar story. One person in our Wednesday Bible Study noted that it reminded her of the divisions in the Angelos family right now, disagreements playing out on the front pages of The Sun.
Anyway, Jesus does not take the bait and wisely declines to get involved in this family dispute.
However, Jesus does pass some judgment. He suggests that perhaps one or both of the brothers are making a big mistake.
Jesus says, “Take care! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of possessions.”
And then, in his usual way, Jesus takes advantage of this moment to do some teaching.
Jesus tells what’s often called the Parable of the Rich Fool – a tale of a man who has had great success, his lands producing so much abundance.
But success can create its own challenges.
In this case, the man has to figure out what to do with all of his abundance.
Now, I’m sure that we can all think of some possibilities.
Maybe he could put away enough for himself, sure, and then share what’s left with his family, friends, and neighbors.
Maybe he could share his overflowing abundance with the hungry poor who, then as now, were all around.
Of course, right?
But, instead, the man chooses to tear down his old barns and raise new and bigger barns so he can save it all for himself – and then he says to himself – he says to his “soul,” “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink and be merry.”
Well, even if we were not familiar with this story, we would know where it’s going, right? We would know because probably all of us have been there, one way or another.
We’ve all thought that once I have that job, that house, that relationship – once I have “that much money” – once I win the Mega Millions Lottery – then – then - I’ll be all set and finally I can stop worrying, kick back and enjoy life.
But then, inevitably, along comes the unexpected – here comes fate – here is the unpredictability of life and death.
To the rich man with his plans for bigger barns, God says, “You fool! This very night your life is being demanded of you. And the things you have prepared, whose will they be?”
And then Jesus concludes by saying, “So it is with those who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich toward God.”
As I’ve reflected on this story, I’ve been struck by the aloneness of the rich man. He has no one to talk to but himself. One of our Bible Study members compared him to Charles Foster Kane at the end of the film Citizen Kane, surrounded by mountains of stuff in his mansion, but all alone.
We don’t know why the rich man is alone – maybe everyone he’s cared about has moved away or died. Or maybe, because of his focus on material wealth he’s managed to alienate just about everybody. Or maybe he lived his life convinced that he didn’t need anyone else – that he was perfectly content to eat, drink, and be merry all by himself.
Whatever the reason, it’s a hard way to go through life.
So, aren’t you glad that we have our “homeroom” here at St. Thomas’?
Our church really feels like a homeroom when we get together for fun like we did on Sunday night for pizza and some friendly – not competitive at all, really – games of Bingo.
Our church really feels like a homeroom when we share our overflowing abundance – when we’re rich toward God – like what we’re doing with our “Bottoms Up” effort – as boxes of diapers are piling up the Parish Hall - or as we’re about to do when our first Afghan guests arrive.
Our church really feels like a homeroom when we reach out to our “classmates” who are struggling – weighed down by illness, worry, or sadness – letting them know that we care about them, that we love them, that we’re here for them.
Finally, as I’ve been thinking about the rich man in today’s parable, I’ve wondered about the people just like him who are all around us.
I’m not a golfer, but early on in my time here, one of our parishioners told me, “There are a lot of lonely men on the golf course.”
And, you know, I can’t help noticing that there are still plenty of empty seats here in our church, here in our homeroom.
So, let’s share our abundance - let’s be rich toward God by reaching out to the people out there who may have lots of stuff but have no one to talk to.
Let’s invite them here – let’s welcome them here – here where, with God’s help, we build community over the long haul - here in our homeroom.
Amen.
Posts
