“Here I Stand.”

As many of you know I grew up, and worked in the Roman Catholic Church up until about 20 yrs ago. For various reasons I quit, (although you never really quit.) I then languished in my self-imposed desert, devoid of any formal religion. I was quite content to experience ‘church free’ Sunday Mornings. Through a series of events though, I ended up here, with you all.  guess God wasn’t done with me. (God is never done with us.) As with all devoted Roman Catholics, I grew up with a reverence for the office of the Pope.  I Never thought to question it. I suppose mainly because I learned that those who did were the ‘bad guys’ and their fate would be ‘excommunication’.  When I joined Zoar going on 3 yrs ago now, I just never felt the need to question the difference of opinion Lutherans have about the papacy. It was like, ‘heh, let’s just not talk about it.’  So, imagine, if you will, my consternation when I learned I would be preaching to you, my new Lutheran friends, on the very scripture that defines the papacy in the Roman Catholic Church.  So, my friends… “Here I Stand.”

Wrestling with my former understanding of the Papacy, and the understanding which prevails in the Lutheran tradition, specifically regarding this gospel: “Thou art Peter and upon this rock I will build my Church…”.  There are some things worth noting: First, is that we need leadership.  Someone in authority speaking truth to power.  Especially in today’s world.  It took 350 years after Luther for the Roman Catholic church to clearly define the status of the Pope regarding infallibility. The Pope is human and not infallible, in fact the only time he can claim infallibility is if he is speaking on issues of faith and morals, informed by gospel teachings. We know, especially in our political world today, leadership is subject to human frailty, imperfection and malfeasance.  We need to have leaders who speak out about that which runs counter to the Holy Gospel. I think the current pope Leo is doing a good job of that.  Very different from the Pope Leo Martin Luther encountered 500 years ago.  

Second, worth noting, is that Christianity in all its variations has existed and grown worldwide for well over 2 thousand years now. In spite of our human limitations and imperfections, questionable leadership, “holy wars,” and oppression, It has endured, and changes, yet remains true to the gospel and sacraments at its core.

The third thing I realize while wrestling is how much I appreciate the simplicity of the Lutheran way. I appreciate how Martin Luther addressed ways to make the church more accessible for all.  And I have come to realize that all these years I have been Lutheran in my heart, without even knowing it.  Ok, I’m done wrestling with the Pope part.

I liken today’s Gospel reading to a game show, and I mean no disrespect here, Jesus is the game show host who asks: “who do people or you say that the Son of Man is?”  And the responses: John the Baptist, Elijah, Jeremiah or prophets were all wrong answers.  Then Peter answers: “you are The Messiah, the Son of the Living God.” Correct answer! And for his prize…what did Peter get?…a Church, Jesus’s church! With keys to the Kingdom of Heaven, no less. Peter and the disciples had no idea how enormous this enterprise would become!  But they did have Jesus’ assurance that his church will prevail. So, what exactly is this Prize, the Church that God has entrusted to us mere mortals. Why is it necessary?  is it even relevant today? And if so, what part do I play in the acceptance of this prize?

Church is a noun, and church is a verb.        

Church as a noun is a place; a building, house or outdoor space in which we, the People of God, believers in His son Jesus Christ, gather to worship. As Mt 18 says “Where two or three are gathered, there am I in their midst…” A building is not really necessary for worship. But look what we have done over the centuries. Compare this humble/practical worship space here at Zoar, to the grandiose, magnificent worship spaces that have been built over the past 2000 years all over the world. I often wonder what Christ had in mind, and what he must think about all the fuss made over buildings? We can get so caught up in the externals that we lose sight of the Prize, which is: the Church as a verb. A verb is an action word. This place isn’t just a social club. Where we show up because it makes us feel good. (although that does happen.) It’s a place of action.  What goes on here is holy and should always challenge us to move beyond these doors to further Christ’s mission, out there.

This prize, The Verb-Church, is the Body of Christ, a dynamic, living organism made of various parts always moving, always evolving, always reforming. Yet at its core, it remains the same. I find it exciting to think it has lasted so long, and I get to be a part of it! Ok, I did my catechism homework: Martin Luther nailed it when he wrote in Article VII of the Augsberg Confession 1530: “There is one holy Christian church, and it is found wherever the gospel is preached in its truth and purity and the sacraments are administered according to the gospel.”   The essentials: Gospel Preached and Sacraments administered…Church-verb, Full stop!  All the rest is “audiaphora”. (new word I learned, Greek, meaning things not essential.) Like Church-Noun we can get carried away with externals. I always like to say, all Jesus needed to teach, was to sit on a rock.

Ideally the church on earth is to mirror heaven. (so how are we doing?) The Church is the prize, but Heaven is the grand prize, the goal. To obtain further understanding of what it means to BE Church on earth, we look to The Family as the model.  No matter the make-up of the family, we all come into this world via a family. Even Jesus did. The Family is a ‘Little Church’. Now I realize that each of us has unique experiences of being in a family. Some good, some not so good. But I am speaking of Family in its most ideal form, that which we strive to become. Our family is our first image of God & Gods love and grace. In the ideal sense the family, like Church, is divinely designed to image God’s covenantal love and care for us. That’s why it is so sad to see dysfunction, fracture and division in our families and in the Church as well. Ideally, it is in the family where we first learn to love, to share, to care and show respect for those we live with. We learn to forgive when we’ve been wronged and to seek forgiveness when we have done wrong. In our families we mirror Eucharist, by gathering around a table to share a meal, sometimes with lighted candles and special dishes.  And listening to stories oftentimes over and over. In our families we mirror baptism, purified by washing, and nourished and refreshed by drinking, water. Reminiscent of our baptism in Christ, our ‘living’ water. And in our families we show thanks and gratitude for all we have, and for those who care for us, those who model God’s love. The Family is Church and Church is a family.

When I hear parents bemoan the fact that our grown children are not going to ‘church’ I think on this Family/Church analogy.  Our kids may not realize it, or call it as such, but they are doing ‘church-verb’ on a smaller more intimate level. I call it the ‘Unconscious Church.’ I suspect, given what they have learned from us, and the church of their youth, they do Little Church quite well, in their homes, and living the gospels out in the world.

The Church in all its permutations, factions and chaos is still here after 2000 years. It has gotten this far and, as promised, will go further. It continues to evolve and change. And it must, in spite of our limitations. The church of the future may look very different. That’s the work of the Holy Spirit. So, given we only have today, what are we called to, here, now?   First off: it is vital that we maintain vigilance over The Keys: living the Gospels and administering the Sacraments. To show up and stay connected to this Living Body. Our weekly attendance here, and on zoom, is testament to this. Wherever we meet we are called to keep our eye on the prize, the Church, but most important, the Grand Prize, eternal Life in heaven with our creator, God. Our next call: (here comes your psych lesson) We do church well by acknowledging, and letting go of petty differences which divides and distracts us from Christ’s mission. We must always err on the side of kindness, seeking to understand one another, not to judge or press our personal agenda.  We must continue to Ask at any given time: is what I’m saying or doing, helping or hurting the Body of Christ?  Am I aiding or impeding the progression towards the fulfillment of God’s promise of eternal life?  Our Prophetic Call:  We are all called to be Prophets today, here, now more than ever.  Prophets aren’t just found in the Old Testament, you know. Each of us is called to develop a ‘prophetic mind’. A mind rooted in Christ’s Gospel messages, a mind that calls out injustice, discrimination, oppression and violence when we see it. To speak for those who cannot speak for themselves. Protecting at all ages and stages the dignity of all human persons made in God’s image. This is not easy. Being Church-verb is not for the faint of heart.  And further: We cannot afford to overlook the very young who are looking to us as models of how to exist in Christ-like ways in this chaotic world. We have to model, and share the Good News of Christ’s saving love. Tell them what works for us.  They are watching.

We gather here, today, to be nourished by Gods Word and Sacrament, which are the keys to the eternal life promised to us. Our vigilance here, living in this community of faith is vital to the continuation of the prize, the church, given to Peter and his disciples over two thousand years ago. Today we heard St Paul tell us: God has freely given gifts, unique each to us, for the good of the community. It is up to each of us to determine what those gifts are and use them to continue to build the Church, the body of Christ, right Where we Stand. in this time, in this place. +…Good and gracious Lord God, Grant us the graces to carry on your mission in your name. We Thank you for this prize, the Church, and we look forward to the Grand Prize, eternal life with you in heaven. We praise you, Lord, for your steadfast love endures forever.  … Amen