Romans 15:4-13
Advent 2- Year A
Posited perspective: The past was written that
we might find our commonality today.
Well and good. Has it worked out?
A more fruitful mantra is “Welcome as you would be welcomed”. This anticipates a future commonality breaking into the present.
There are some who have not been welcomed well. Their behavior reveals that lack. Welcome them anyway, for you have been well welcomed.
There are some who have been welcomed well but for whatever reason have not received that welcome. Their behavior reveals that lack. Welcome them anyway, for you have been well welcomed.
A stimulus or a response to poor or generous welcoming is not predictable. There are some folk who overcome an unwelcoming beginning and those who are thankful for the welcome they have received. There is not an automatic response to welcoming. When a positive response is available to a welcome it can come in an instant or in stages.
Nonetheless, there is a bedrock need of welcoming as broadly as possible and then to go beyond what seems impossible to welcome. This is a key to this pericope, “For G*D’s sake! Welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you.” Substitute “forgive” for “welcome” and you’ll see the connection. Try “be merciful to” as another alternative and the connection deepens.
Whether believing or not—joy, peace, and abounding hope are revealed in how we experience being welcomed and how we welcome. Act as though you were introducing these qualities as greater than your own entitlement. Could you be the equivalent of Baptizer John preparing a way for joy to flourish, peace to be grounded, and hope to bounce around?
Well, yes.
So?
As found in Wrestling Year A: Connecting Sunday Readings with Lived Experience
As we look back we can see that progress has been made. The actions of our ancestors give us hope that we too will come through our difficult moment. This is one of the benefits of having an appreciation for history.
A parallel is found in the next verse as it talks about hope (phrased as glorification of the holy) that will come from our being as steadfast in our time as those of old were in theirs.
This is one of the debate points among religious folks. Are we living off the hope of the past and seeing that fulfilled among us? Are we living in anticipation of a hope being fulfilled in those coming after us?
In the first instance we reaffirm the doctrines of old. In the second we break new ground with boundary-stretching doctrines. We don't get away from issues of partial surety for that gives us energy to move. We do, however, have a choice about what we are sure about and that, it turns out, makes a great deal of difference.
Here Paul focuses on welcoming one another which is to welcome that which is not us, not part of our past, not controllable. It is in this welcoming that issues of hope are clarified as hope fulfilled, over and done, accomplished or as hope on the edge of being accomplished, in process, anticipatory.
Joy and peace are two key wellsprings of hope. Be of good cheer and welcome another; together they spell hope for tomorrow.
- - -
Dave (Reader)
Reflecting on your comments about hope past or hope future, I recall a poem I had to memorize for English class.
I do not remember the author.
Our little systems have their day.
They have their day and cease to be.
They are but broken thoughts of Thee,
and Thou, O Lord, are more than they!
May our systems of hope be motivated by the giver of Life!
- - -
Wesley (Blogger)
The website TheoCenTriC: ravings of an amateur pastor, hack theologian, and wannabe mystic [MISSING URL] references the author —
Douglas John Hall puts it well: "In our theoretical attempts to account for and order existence – in other words, in our ideologies – we human beings regularly truncate, simplify, or falsify reality. Life is always more mysterious and less manageable than our theories about life – including our religious theories and systems of theology." [7] Lord Alfred Tennyson states this truth poetically:
Our little systems have their day
They have their day and cease to be
They are but broken strands of thee
And thou O Lord art more than they.
http://www.kairoscomotion.org/lectionary/2004/december2004.html
If we consider for a moment that Jesus was not a Christian (that being an institutional way of keeping some of the G*D-energy recognized in him going through generations) we might begin to ask questions about Jesus' involvement with the world around us through the lens of verses 8-9.
"For I tell you that Christ has become a servant of the church on behalf of the truth of God in order that the promises give to the disciples of Jesus might be confirmed, and in order that non-Christians would experience mercy and show appreciation to G*D."
In the original there is an understanding of Christ stretching the circumcised, the Jews, past their then current boundaries and internal debates. This is taken to be a good thing, particularly for the non-Jewish folk.
Given the way in which the Christian Church has gotten bound up in its current boundaries and internal debates it would be appropriate for some stretching to go on here for the sake of those inside and outside said Church.
How might Christians today become a servant of their church on behalf of the truth of G*D? Is one example that of Beth Stroud, United Methodist Pastor in Pennsylvania, yesterday convicted of breaking a church boundary in regard to being an active, committed, loving, truth-telling partner of Chris, also female, and thus outside a self-imposed church boundary?
As The Message expands the traditional reading of verse 9, "Just think of all the Scriptures that will come true in what we do!"
It is in this light that the Reconciling Ministries Network writes about Beth's conviction resulting from her telling the truth of GOD in her life, not remaining self-closeted:
Rev. Beth Stroud Stripped of Credentials as Result of UMC Trial
The UMC has shamefully stripped the Rev. Beth Stroud of her credentials as clergy. It is time for the UMC to stop the violence against gay and lesbian clergy. Neither side questioned the validity of her calling to ministry, neither side questioned the work of the Holy Spirit in her ministry at First United Methodist Church of Germantown, neither side questioned her baptism, her faith, or her love of Jesus that she so readily shares. Both sides affirmed her as a sister in Christ, a truth-teller, a role model of graciousness.
Yet, her faithfulness and honesty have been demeaned by the church. She has been judged not based on her character but on cultural prejudice heaped upon homosexual persons. The church has sinned.
And this is just the tip of the iceberg. Rev. Stroud is only one of hundreds, if not thousands, of faithful United Methodist seminarians, pastors, district superintendents and bishops who are gay and lesbian. It is God who has called them to ministry in the United Methodist Church and their integrity to this calling has blessed the Church.
Most United Methodists will nod knowingly when you talk about the gifts and graces they have experienced from gay and lesbian clergy. The church's refusal to honor the activities of the Holy Spirit through this marginalized group of faithful servants is sin. It is blasphemy.
- - -
Dave (Reader)
Once again our little systems have had their day, but THEY WILL CEASE TO BE, when we become as honest as Beth Stroud. It is the system that is on trial and not her.
I have often quoted myself in saying, "all systems are corrupt...." Once again the corruption wins, but only the battle and not the war!
http://www.kairoscomotion.org/lectionary/2004/december2004.html
While waiting between times, atween coming 1 and coming 2 (or coming sometime ago and coming some time to come) or any two moments in time, we are constantly faced with issues of righteous wolves and faithful lambs and what they mean to one another. Again and again the righteous question of prosperous justice arises from the lamb. Or is it just(ice) a question of prosperous righteousness, wolfwise? Each constantly calling the other to account and into question.
While the prayers of David may be ended, ours are not. We still appeal to a G*D of hope we hope is able to fill us with all joy and peace. Unfortunately the text adds "in believing" and all of a sudden we find joy and peace turned on their ears into teaching to the test of right answers defining what we shall see and hear; what we might divine, what we must filter.
While doing cost benefit ratios on every part of life we eventually must face water or fire, the biblical equivalent of a rock and a hard place. Water for the worthy fruit of repentance, fire for the fruit of worthy forgiveness.
We wait and waver between water and fire. We are always to blame they are always forgiven. We teach the extremes of life that both end up making everyone less than they are and might yet be.
Are we ready by dint of harmony set loose by steadfastness and encouragement to experience in any moment the steam power of water meeting fire needed for hope? If not, a shoot from the stump has not yet come. If so, a shoot is already a tree. Come play under a spreading chestnut tree where at a flaming forge our "toiling - rejoicing - sorrowing" is shaped into joy and peace.
- - -
we are so easily caught casting an eye about
for wolf that will devour
for lamb to swallow in a gulp
for water to engulf
for fire to consume
seeing only one horizon at a timewe listen repeatedly to echoing cares
hungry wolves and lost lambs - bleating
enfolded lambs and shunned wolves - howling
water fired - hiss
fire watered - whimper
hearing every sleepless nuancecome, root of jesse,
welcome us welcoming others
raise a standard of mercy -
on straying eye and roving ear
on cycles of poor and oppressor
- a once and future mercy
http://kcmlection.blogspot.com/2006_12_01_archive.html
Whatever was written in former days was written for our hope. I hope they knew that and kept some for themselves. It is possible to be hopeful for others without appropriating any for oneself.
Whatever we do in these days is done for the hope of those to come. I hope we are keeping some for ourselves. While many things benefit from being wholly given, hope is one exception as it is both larger and smaller than time.
Regardless of the hope end of things, what we are called to do is to live in harmony with one another.
Oh my, couldn't our work on behalf of the future have been something a bit less intimidating.
As we look back over the former days – harmony seems to be a real crapshoot. How might one be hopeful when we look at our track record so far? At best we can say that so far we have not annihilated ourselves yet.
Was this because of the thirty six righteous [lamed vov]? Though, since probably everyone has had a significant person that has kept their world going, the number is probably symbolic and for the sake of millions, the world goes on. This reverses the old story about Abraham bargaining G*D down to how few righteous were actually needed to save Sodom. Here we might wonder how many more righteous folks we need to bring hope to reality – 360? 3,600? 36,000? 36,000,000?
To avoid the necessary ambiguity of numerology that claims to be so solidly built, it may be best to follow Paul's dictum to simply welcome another as you have been welcomed to a journey larger than yourself. Simply welcome.
One resource you may want to look at is Paul Loeb's book The Impossible Will Take a Little While: A Citizen's Guide to Hope in a Time of Fear.
http://kcmlection.blogspot.com/2007_12_01_archive.html
Posited perspective: The past was written that we might find our commonality today. Well and good, has it worked out?
Rather, a more fruitful mantra is "welcome as you have been welcomed". This anticipates a future commonality breaking into the present.
There are some folk who have not been welcomed well. Their behavior reveals that lack. Welcome them anyway, for you have been well welcomed.
There are some folk who have been welcomed well but for whatever reason have not received that welcome. Their behavior reveals that lack. Welcome them anyway, for you have been well welcomed.
A stimulus or a response to poor or generous welcoming is not predictable. There are some folk who overcome an unwelcoming beginning and those who are thankful for the welcome they have received. There is not an automatic response to welcoming. When a positive response is available to a welcome it can come in an instant or in stages.
Nonetheless, there is a bed-rock need of welcoming as broadly as possible and then to go beyond what seems it is possible to welcome. This is the key to this pericope, "For G*D's sake! Welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you." Substitute "forgiveness" for "welcome" and you'll see the connection. Try "be merciful to" as another alternative and the connection deepens.
Whether believing or not - joy, peace, and abounding hope are revealed in how we experience being welcomed and how we welcome. Act as though you were introducing these qualities as greater than your own entitlement. Could you be the equivalent of Baptizer John preparing a way for joy to flourish, peace to be grounded, and hope to bounce around? -- Well, yes. -- So?
http://kcmlection.blogspot.com/2010/12/romans-154-13.html
Hope can be connected to living in harmony with one another. Therefore welcome one another.
The more we encounter one another the more we know we need hope to continue encountering one another. We are so easily disappointed in others and ourself. This keeps us on our toes to do no harm.
The more we hope the more we know we cannot give up on one another. We so often come through even when such has little basis from past encounters. This challenges us to go further, to do good.
May the G*D of hope be regularly encountered. May your Neighb*r connect you with hope. May you abound in hope itself for the benefit of G*D and Neighb*r.