St. Thomas’ Episcopal Church, Owings Mills MD
August 6, 2023
The Feast of the Transfiguration
Exodus 34:29-35
Psalm 99
2 Peter 1:13-21
Luke 9:28-36
Glimpses of Mutual Joy
Today is the first Sunday of August, which of course means that in a little while we’ll offer birthday and anniversary blessings – including an anniversary blessing for Barritt and Gay Peterson who celebrate their 40th anniversary today!
The start of August also marks the beginning of a seasonal shift – we felt it last week after strong storms ushered in thankfully somewhat cooler and less humid weather.
And we’re starting to see a slightly different slant to the sunlight and, sadly, the days are beginning to get noticeably shorter.
This seasonal change is bittersweet, of course.
The teachers and students in the room may have decidedly mixed emotions – sadness about summer winding down, anxiety about a new school year, but also excitement about reuniting with friends, classmates, and colleagues – another chance to teach, to learn, and to grow.
It’s been twenty years since I was a teacher but I still feel echoes of those feelings. I even have a recurring dream in which, panicking, I suddenly realize that I haven’t gathered any grades - that it’s been a really long time since I’ve given my kids a quiz or a test! How could I have forgotten something so important? What am I going to do?
And then I wake with a start and remember that was all long ago.
But I still have that bittersweet feeling – sadness about summer slowly drawing to a close but also excitement about the fall – and, this year, special excitement about everything that’s coming up here at St. Thomas’, starting with the completion of the beautiful new roof and our return to church.
In at least one respect, this upcoming fall is going to be different from any I’ve ever experienced as a priest.
We have a lot of weddings coming up in September, October, and November.
I’ve certainly never had so many weddings in such a short time – for the first time it’s forced me to take detailed notes when I’ve met with each couple so I can keep everybody clear in my mind.
And especially these days when fewer people get married in church, and the ceremony is often officiated by a friend or family member who was “ordained” online (no judgment from me but the “priest union” is firmly opposed to this practice!), it’s rather extraordinary that all these couples want to be married here – to have their unions blessed by God in this holy place, witnessed by family and friends.
Probably like most clergy, I guess, I have a couple of basic wedding sermons that I adapt to the situation, trying to make it as personal as possible (that’s why I need the notes).
And in one of my wedding sermons I reflect on the expression “mutual joy.”
If you’re familiar with the Episcopal marriage service, you may remember that near the start, the officiant reminds everyone of the purposes of marriage – “for the help and comfort given one another in prosperity and adversity; and when it is God’s will, for the procreation of children and their nurture in the knowledge and love of the Lord.”
But, before and above any of that, the Prayer Book declares that the very first purpose of marriage is “mutual joy.”
So, often in my wedding sermon, I’ll point that out – the most important purpose of marriage is mutual joy.
But mutual joy is not just for married people.
No, it’s been God’s great desire from the start that all of us – whether we’re single, married, widowed or divorced – all of us are meant live lives of mutual joy.
This is something we often forget, of course.
And so, every once in a while, God offers us a reminder of the way things we’re always meant to be – glimpses of mutual joy - mountaintop experiences like when a couple exchange some big promises, as Barritt and Gay did forty years ago, as couples will be doing throughout the fall here at St. Thomas’.
Glimpses of mutual joy.
In addition to the first Sunday of August, today is also the Feast of the Transfiguration, the day we remember an extraordinary mountaintop experience – a preview of Easter - a glimpse of mutual joy.
In today’s lesson from the Gospel of Luke, we’re told that Jesus and his disciples Peter, James, and John go up the mountain to pray.
Suddenly, Jesus’ appearance is transformed, his clothes now dazzling white.
Jesus is then joined by Moses and Elijah, those two towering figures of Israel’s past.
Luke tells us the topic of their conversation –they discuss Jesus’ upcoming “departure” – actually, Luke uses the more resonant word “exodus” – linking what Jesus is about to accomplish in Jerusalem to the Passover and the liberation of the Israelites from slavery.
That’s already quite a lot for one mountaintop experience – so powerful and moving that Peter, reasonably but wrongly, wants to hold on to it for as long as he can, offering to build shelters for Jesus, Moses, and Elijah.
But, Peter can barely get those words out before an overshadowing cloud appears and the disciples are understandably terrified.
But the voice from heaven simply says, “This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!”
And then, as suddenly as this mountaintop experience began, it was over – the voice from heaven was silent and Moses and Elijah were gone.
Now it was time for Jesus and his disciples to come down the mountain and begin the journey to Jerusalem and all the disappointment and suffering and sorrow – and, finally, the Easter joy – that awaited them there.
But, no matter what lay ahead, Jesus and his friends would not forget this mountaintop experience – this preview of Easter – this taste of heaven – this glimpse of mutual joy.
One of the great privileges of my job is to meet with couples to help them prepare for their wedding and, much more important, for married life ahead.
It’s always touching to hear how they met and what they love about each other and why they’ve decided to make this big commitment.
The wedding day is surely a mountaintop experience for the couple and for those who love them, but just like for Jesus and the disciples, eventually they – we – must come down the mountain and face the challenges and difficulties of everyday life.
It’s why one of the most important moments of the wedding service is when all of us in the congregation pledge our support to the couple, pledge our support especially during the inevitable hard times that they, like all of us, will have to face.
It seems to me that our great challenge is to remember – to remember that all of us – no matter our marital status – all of us are meant for mutual joy.
And we experience mutual joy when we obey the command that God spoke from the cloud and listen to Jesus.
We experience mutual joy when, with God’s help, we try our best to love everybody, even the people we’re not too crazy about, even our enemies.
We experience mutual joy when, with God’s help, we give generously, giving of ourselves, giving away as much as we can.
We experience mutual joy when, with God’s help, we ask forgiveness when we’ve messed up – and when we offer forgiveness when we’ve been wronged.
And, no matter the season, we experience mutual joy when, with God’s help, we remember – remember the days of big promises and great joy – when we remember those mountaintop experiences when we’ve gotten a glimpse of what life is all about: mutual joy.
Amen.
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