Sermon: Becoming Bilingual
|
EHCC Home |
Sermon preached by Rev. Emily Tanis-Likkel He said, "... congregations would do better off to consider new folks as immigrants — people unfamiliar with the landscape — than as people already familiar with the tribal ways ... So if someone stands up and says, “Let’s open the Bible to this familiar story” or “Let’s sing this familiar song,” that can come across as saying, “You don’t belong. The gospel’s not for you. This is just for the tribe,” Nishioka explained. The good news is just for “people who think like us, who are at our income levels, our educational attainment levels, all of that.” But that leaves out so many." In the Acts story, Peter reached out beyond the tribe. In that day, it was legalism that had been keeping people out of the church. The expansion of Christianity to non-Jews was tough for those who did not understand how Jesus had transformed the law. Now we are in a post-Christian culture, and still the body of Christ, the church, has idiosyncricies and assumptions and unwritten rules that keep out so many. Here in the Pacific Northwest and particularly on this beautiful Island, many call themselves "spiritual but not religious." The non-churchgoers in our community, for a variety of reasons, do not relate to us "insiders." Congregations say we are radically welcome, or come as you are, or join us next week, but we are human and sinful, and so often have an invisible asterisk next to such a saying. We're so glad you are here (you are going to have to wander around awkwardly for awhile when you need the restroom, because we don't have adequate signage). Thank you so much for worshiping with us (we really don't need to hear your suggestions). Yes, we want those of all sexual orientations to find a place here, (everyone may be assuming that someone else will engage you in conversation). Who might feel as if they don't quite fit the so-called norm? Who might feel lonely or anxious? Who might need a kind word, a ride home, or a prayer? An example of some who may feel out of place in a church community are parents of young children. Parents of small children worry that their kids will be seen as disruptive in church. They are shushed, when what our wiggly ones really need is to get up and be involved in worship. I love how Suzanne spoke of how good it was to hear the sound of baby Cordelia's cries last week Sunday in church. Jesus said, let the children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the Kingdom of God belongs to such as these. But . . . are we speaking their language? Are we sharing the Gospel in ways that they understand? Are we communicating the life-changing nature of faith, or presenting it as one among a cafeteria-style array of options? Here is an example of how one pastor addressed this. Heidi Neumark is a Lutheran pastor in New York City, she spoke at the festival of preaching Dee and I attended recently. She told us about the "wee" service at her church for very young children and their parents. She said that when she had the vision for this, they had no toddlers in their congregation. She went out an met people in the community and spread the word. It is a 35 minute worship on Sunday morning, where the small children co-officiate with her. They take the offering, serve communion, assist with the liturgy. One girl is beginning to read, so she reads out of a story Bible. Then Rev. Neumark reads out of her own Bible. For the sermon, she spreads out a quilt, gathers them in, and uses puppets to tell the story. Will we eat with those on the fringe? Those who are different from us? Those who intimidate us or have a lifestyle or politics we can't relate to? Jesus did his most powerful ministry on the fringes, on the edges of society. Will we who are churched see, truly see the immigrants in our midst, meet them where they are, learn from them, listen to them, and invite them to join us on this radical religion: a faith of mystery and wonder that cannot be explained away, a God who tells us to love our enemies, to give our money away. Do we take the time to sit down with another and ask what their need is? On Bainbridge Island, what are our needs? When we listen to our neighbors, friends, and strangers, what do we hear? I have heard from those whose feelings of loneliness and longing for meaning leads to numbing the pain with alcohol. I have heard from families that are incredibly busy, with sports schedules that make the head spin. I have heard from commuters who are severely sleep-deprived. I have heard from those who love the outdoors, but rarely stop and smell the flowers. I have heard from those who seek community, yet do not know their next-door neighbors. What you hear may be much different from what I hear. Wherever the other is coming from, we can speak a word of grace to their soul, affirm their inherent worth as a precious human being, and open ourselves enough to truly listen. Dee and I had the privilege of attending Sophie Morse's final presentation at Seattle University, her synthesis of her educational experience. She described herself as a translator and a bridge-builder. A translator because she is preparing for ministry, but all of her family and social connections are with non-Christians. She has one foot in the church and the other outside of the church, and has a gift for helping each to understand the other. She builds bridges, with her love of the outdoors and the abiding love for humanity informing how she goes about it. What bridges could we build for those who do not know God's love? For those who are self-destructing, self-loathing, those who desperately want to belong somewhere and to believe beyond themselves? A bridge: service. The church can provide opportunities for and empowering people for service. We all have a gift to give the world, once we really believe that, an attitude of service can permeate everything we do. This has the power to transform our lives, not only individually, but corporately as well. A bridge: The Biblical teachings about money. Many people are anxious about money, about money lost, about how to pay the bills, about retirement funds being wiped out. Jesus said that the poor are blessed, and will have an easier time entering the Kingdom of God. In this topsy-turvy faith, our money and all our resources are a hindrance to our relationship with God. As we give back proportionally, as an act of joyful obedience to God, we may find an incredible grace. Another bridge: sabbath. Yesterday it was wonderful to have a day of rest and play at Islandwood with many of you. For those unfamiliar with the life of faith, sharing our experience of sabbath can be good news. I have a friend who is baffled by my love of retreats, saying she can't imagine slowing down enough to meditate or give up a whole Saturday or weekend. Is that it, I wonder, or does she think she doesn't deserve it? The truth is that not only is it right for us to take time to reflect and pray and rest, but we are commanded to do it! Another bridge: relationships. Many people hunger for authentic engagement with others. Some are unaccustomed to venturing out from behind their email and texting to look into another person's eyes, but I believe that at the same time they also yearn for it. May you and I be the truly authentic person who returns their gaze. Another bridge: Stories. Movies, books, stories from life, stories like the ones Jesus told -- about ordinary people and everyday things. Post-modernism has brought with it the idea of narrative engagement. This means that if someone visiting church does not see a way that their own story engages with the story of a particular faith community, they will move on. Those new to a community need to feel that they belong. We all do. May we find those powerful connecting threads that ties our story to stories of those we meet. Let's go back to the Pentecost story. Put yourself in that room, with the Holy Spirit blowing right through, with the top of your head getting strangely warm, with a language you don't know coming out of your mouth. The passers-by exclaimed, In our own languages they are speaking! Hear the relief in their voices. Can you imagine the understanding in their eyes as they hear about God's love? The Holy Spirit ties us together and gives us the words when we don't know what to say. May our expectations be frustrated, our plans thwarted, our desires be withered into nothingness, that we may experience the powerlessness of a child, and sing and dance in the compassion of God. Trust the Spirit. Share the good news. Thanks be to God. |
|