lenten vigil intern project

(yes, i know, it's confusing...lenten series, on easter vigil old testament readings, as my intern project)

the time has come!  as i write this, i am in the midst of coordinating my intern project for the year.  the project is called god provides, we respond and will take place primarily as the lenten wednesday series.

the idea for this project came from a workshop i attended last year at lstc.  in the workshop, we looked at the easter vigil readings through the lens of stewardship.  we discovered, as the presenter already had, that each of the texts involved god providing something, which naturally raises the question: how do we respond?

so, during lent we will be exploring the old testament readings from the easter vigil both in worship and preaching as well as in the adult education time following the service.  each week a different text from the vigil will be used as the scripture for the worship service and then during adult education afterwards we will explore the text together and its implications for our lives as 21^st century disciples. 

the person who will be reading the text at the vigil will be helping lead the education component, which will help us all to dive more deeply into the readings and their meaning for our lives today.  the hope is also that this deeper exploration during lent will lead to more meaningful engagement, connection, and interest in the vigil itself.

i am really excited about the creative engagement people are already having with the texts and can't wait for lent to begin!  if you're in kansas city this lent or easter, come check out immanuel!

abundant life for all: 2nd sunday after epiphany

additional reading of note: 1 corinthians 12:1-11

the holy gospel according to john, the 2nd chapter, glory to you, o lord.

On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. ²Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding.

³When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.”

⁴And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what concern is that to you and to me? My hour has not yet come.”

⁵His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”

⁶Now standing there were six stone water jars for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons.

⁷Jesus said to them, “Fill the jars with water.”

And they filled them up to the brim.

⁸He said to them, “Now draw some out, and take it to the chief steward.”

So they took it.

⁹When the steward tasted the water that had become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the steward called the bridegroom ¹⁰and said to him, “Everyone serves the good wine first, and then the inferior wine after the guests have become drunk. But you have kept the good wine until now.”

¹¹Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.

the gospel of the lord, praise to you, o christ.




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on the third day.  what is always bound to happen “on the third day” in the gospels?  the Resurrection, of course!  you know and i know and the first hearers of the gospel of john definitely knew.  god’s glory is revealed on the third day.  this is especially true as this is the season of epiphany.

and so on this third day, we find jesus, his disciples, and his mother together at … a wedding?  now, weddings in biblical times lasted for about a week.  this was a celebration!  so on the third day there was a feast, joy, a celebration of life and commitment, a party, abundance! … and … the wine ran out.  now i don’t know much about wedding planning, having never planned one of my own, but even i know that you don’t want the wine to run out!

so, just when those who are “in the know” think there will be no wine, no spirit, no liveliness left for the second half of the wedding week; and when those who are not “in the know” are expecting the cheap, bad wine that works, but is definitely less than ideal—it’s the cheap stuff, after all;  when there are no high expectations regarding wine, the mother of jesus faithfully calls on her son.  mary trusts in what she knows from raising the word of god incarnate, and calls on him to rescue the whole wedding party from this terrible social faux paux, from this scarcity.

jesus isn’t even ready yet.  his hour has not yet come—that is, it’s not time for crucifixion yet, he’s not quite ready to be sent out into the real world—just a few more days, weeks, months at home, please!  then maybe he’ll try it.  sounds like the dream for many parents, my own included, who watched their children leave the nest as quickly as they could.  and yet, mary is faithful and knows that jesus’ time is now.

just as mary carried jesus in her womb for those long nine months, so now she carries him into his first public ministry.  the two places that mary shows up in the gospel of john are what appears to be the beginning, here at the wedding in cana of galilee, and what appears to be the end, at the foot of the cross. 

in reality, this is not the beginning and the foot of the cross is not the end.  the gospel of john makes clear that the beginning was the beginning of all things, after all, “in the beginning was the word and the word was with god and the word was god” (john 1:1).  and john knows that while jesus’ hour is his crucifixion, it is not the last word, it is not his end, nor is it the end.  there is life and hope, for on the third day is Resurrection.

that mary appears only here and at the cross, that this wedding takes place “on the third day,” and that jesus is already talking about “his hour,” make this a story of god’s glory revealed in jesus christ through the lens of death and resurrection.  we cannot understand this story except through jesus’ crucifixion and on the third day, his Resurrection.

so we come to the middle of the wedding feast with expectations of, at most bad, cheap wine, and at worst, no wine at all and what we get is the best wine imaginable!—the good stuff.              

joy and abundance for all gathered at the celebration feast!  here and throughout the gospel of john, jesus’ desire for humanity and, indeed, what he brings humanity, is:  Abundant Life.  not for some, but for all.

jesus’ desire for us all is Abundant Life, which martin luther king, jr. articulates as the Beloved Community. the king center states that, “dr. king’s Beloved Community is a global vision, in which all people can share in the wealth of the earth.

“in the Beloved Community, poverty, hunger and homelessness will not be tolerated… racism and all forms of discrimination, bigotry and prejudice will be replaced by an all-inclusive spirit of sisterhood and brotherhood… love and trust will triumph over fear and hatred.” 

in king’s own words, that love “is an overflowing love which seeks nothing in return. it is the love of god working in [people’s lives]. this is the love that may well be the salvation of our civilization.” “it is this love which will bring about miracles in the hearts of [people].”

through this love, our part in the Beloved Community, in the Abundant Life only Christ can provide, is to recognize the gifts the holy spirit has given each of us.  paul is clear: these gifts are not to build ourselves up to a place of prominence, but instead to build up the body of christ, the Beloved Community.  to join with the servants in cana—contributing our part—our gifts—to build each other up, to participate in king’s Beloved Community and in jesus’ Abundant Life.

it is about diverse people coming together for the good of all people.  that we would care not only for the friends and family we’ve grown up with or look like, but also for all of god’s beloved children. 

Abundant Life in Christ is for the people who come hungry, angry, lonely, tired, excited, and joyful. 

Abundant Life in Christ is for those on welfare, the working poor, the teachers and middle managers, the entrepreneurs, and the ceos. 

Abundant Life in Christ is for people of all sexual orientations, gender identities, and expressions, whether they are locked in the closet, peeking out, or have burst from it with a fabulous outfit/wardrobe.  it is for friends and family who supported or shunned them; hugged them or sent them away when they came out.  it is even for those who never knew.

Abundant Life in Christ is for those whose ancestors lived here before it was “discovered,” those whose ancestors “conquered” this land, those who founded this congregation, those who immigrated to this country—proficient in english or not speaking a single word of it, and those who have just arrived—by boat, by plane, and through the desert. 

Abundant Life in Christ is for those whose skin is as dark as midnight, those whose skin glows bright in the dark of midnight, and those in every shade and hue of the color we call “flesh.”

Abundant Life in Christ  is for everyone and the only way we get the Beloved Community—Abundant Life in Christ is when there truly is a place at the table for everyone—when all people really know deep in their souls that they are not only welcome, but wanted.  that is what god does at communion.  god invites, god wants, god welcomes, and god feeds everyone who comes to the Table.

we may set the Table and serve the food, but it is now and always will be god’s Table, god’s food, god’s invitation, and god’s guests, come to receive christ’s body given for us, the Beloved Community—Abundant Life for all people.  communion is the collection of all people for a feast of abundance—love and nourishment and spirit.  communion is the kin-dom on earth.  god’s gift of grace and reconciliation for you and for me and for all people.

theologian vítor westhelle talks about communion as anamnesis—remembrance.  he points out that communion is so vital because of the remembrance it brings of the community the disciples had together with jesus.  communion is a remembrance of the past in a way that brings life to the present and in this coming together of past and present, we receive community and hope for the future to come. 

every sunday we celebrate the community christ forms and we celebrate Abundant Life in Christ—love and care by all and for all.  that is what christ does in cana of galilee on the third day and that is what christ does in his Resurrection on the 3rd day and that is what christ does for us today.  at the Table.

let there be...epiphany!

i still have the echoes of the immanuel children’s christmas program in my ears and the confirmation kids’ rap, “you were once in darkness, but now you are the light in the world.  live as children of light, and find out what pleases the lord.”  (from ephesians) luckily, this is perfect for the first sunday this month!

epiphany is one of my joys each year in large part because i love the image of god as light.  in high school our synod youth gathering theme one year was “glow” and was based on john 1:5 “a light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not/will not/cannot overcome it.”  wherever there is light, the darkness crawls away and so if i can hold god’s spark inside of me, there will always be light to scatter the darkness.

i also really like the concept of god as light because of the science of it.  when it comes to light, the bright “lightness” of light happens because all of the colors visible to us on the light spectrum combine.  it’s similar to when we talk about humans being made in the image of god, imago dei.  it’s not that i, personally, am what god looks like, but instead, together, in our collective diversity as all of humanity, we are made in the image of god.  god as light is the gathering together of all of the diversity of the color spectrum.  when we can come together in our diversity—the whole rainbow of creation, of the human race—then we have the chance to live into god’s light and to manifest that light in this world.