St. Thomas’ Episcopal Church, Owings Mills MD
July 30, 2023
Year A, Proper 12: The Ninth Sunday after Pentecost
Genesis 29:15-28
Psalm 105:1-11, 45b
Romans 8:26-39
Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52
The Enormous Importance of Seemingly Small Things
Well, in case you’re wondering, I had a pretty good week of vacation.
After officiating at a joyful wedding in Pennsylvania last weekend – the bride was one of my first Confirmation students – the goal for the week was to get some rest, and also to explore Baltimore a little bit more.
I did some of my usual things – like taking early morning walks on the NCR Trail – where one day a man rode by me on his bike wearing a “Jersey City” t-shirt!
He whizzed past me before I could say, “Hey! I’m from Jersey City, too!”
But, you should know that there are more of us.
Sue and I made our first visit to the Baltimore Museum of Industry – a very cool and interesting place – where, among many other things, there’s a little exhibit about the Sweetheart Cup Company, which manufactured its products just down the street from us, on Reisterstown Road, right where Panera and Wegmans are today.
And we also went to Whitehall Mill where the Baltimore author Laura Lippman launched her new novel called, Prom Mom.
It was great to be with over 100 other book lovers – a nice reminder that Baltimore is a literary town – the “City that Reads,” as the old slogan says.
At the event, Lippman talked about the origin of this particular book and then answered questions from the audience about all sorts of things – but she didn’t touch on a hard topic that she talked about in a recent interview she gave to the Baltimore Banner.
Talking about the perceptions of Baltimore shaped by shows like The Wire, Lippman said, “What you need to know is that it’s hard to live in Baltimore if you’re poor and Black. Me, I’m OK.”
“What you need to know is that it’s hard to live in Baltimore if you’re poor and Black. Me, I’m OK.”
As I’m sure you know, last week a jury convicted a teenage Black boy of voluntary manslaughter in the killing of a white man, Timothy Reynolds – which took place last summer, downtown at East Conway and Light Streets, after the baseball bat-wielding Reynolds angrily approached a group of squeegee workers.
One of them pulled on a ski mask, grabbed a gun out of a bag and shot and killed Reynolds.
Being new to Baltimore, I’ve been reluctant to say much about its troubles – I don’t want to be that guy who’s been here ten minutes and thinks he’s got everything figured out.
I never quite figured out Jersey City so I definitely don’t have Baltimore figured out.
And I’m certainly not competent enough to judge the merits of this particular case, although, frankly, I do wonder about charging a 14 year-old boy as an adult.
And, not having served on the jury, I don’t want to second-guess their judgment.
But, like a lot of people, I’ve been thinking a lot about this horrible tragedy – a tragedy for Timothy Reynolds and those who loved him – a tragedy for the boy and those who love him – yet another tragedy for Baltimore and for our gun-crazy and blood-soaked land.
And what I keep thinking about is all the seemingly small things that must have led to that tragic day in downtown Baltimore.
I’ve been thinking about the seemingly small but irritating and finally infuriating things that must have built up in Timothy Reynolds, creating so much pressure and anger that finally that day he got out of his vehicle, carrying a bat across a busy city street to confront those guys, risking and losing his life – for what?
And I’ve been thinking about all the seemingly small things that might have kept that boy from working that corner.
Just a small opportunity to do something better and more productive, a more legitimate and less dangerous summer job to make a little money for himself without washing the windshields of usually unwilling and often frightened and angry drivers - just someone willing to serve as a mentor for him - just some safe and fun recreation like our St. Thomas’ kids get to enjoy – all seemingly small things that might have made all the difference for a boy in a city where, as Laura Lippman said, it is hard to be poor and Black.
The enormous importance of seemingly small things.
This is one of Jesus’ greatest and wisest and hardest teachings: seemingly small things are enormously important, both for ill and for good.
What could be smaller than a thought or a feeling and yet Jesus says that looking at someone with lust is as bad as committing adultery.
Jesus says that simply hating a brother or sister makes us liable to judgment.
Jesus teaches that these seemingly small things of the heart are enormously important – because it is a very short trip from our heart to our actions.
But, as we heard in today’s first two parables, the Kingdom of God also begins seemingly small – the size of a mustard seed or a little yeast – but, with the right nurturing, that small start can grow into overflowing abundance and goodness, providing shelter and food for many.
The enormous importance of seemingly small things.
These days, our problems and challenges sure seem overwhelming.
Blood continues to be shed in Baltimore and all across our land.
The extreme heat over much of the Northern Hemisphere is alarming, causing so much suffering and destruction, doing damage right here, where the violent storm on Friday night broke a big old tree in half, smashing some old and precious monuments in our churchyard.
I don’t have solutions to these big problems and challenges.
But I am encouraged, heartened, inspired by the seemingly small but enormously important seeds being planted here at St. Thomas’:
Our partnerships with people doing good and essential work on the ground at Paul’s Place, the Community Crisis Center and Owings Mills Elementary School.
The wonderful return of the Paul’s Place Camp.
The renewal of our pollinator garden and the thoughtful care of all of our property.
The growing diversity of our parish – giving us the opportunity to show the world – or Owings Mills, at least – that it is indeed possible for people of many different backgrounds and with lots of different points of view to pray and worship and serve together – to love one another.
So, let us not lose heart.
And, let’s always remember the enormous importance of seemingly small things.
Amen.
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