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Sermons & Writings |
Loree Penner
Saint James, Monkton
November 19, 2006
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Much of our literature, and certainly our films, hinge on the theme of good triumphing over evil. In fact, I don't know about you, but sometimes I feel cheated when the hero of the story doesn't win. We live in a world that is filled with such chaos that a story about the good guys winning is comforting to us. Sometimes things look pretty bleak as we watch the nightly news. The poor are still poor. There is great suffering around the world in places like Darfur; war rages abroad, And at home our political rhetoric becomes increasingly hate-filled, and fear governs even what we pack for luggage on a flight. Some wonder when, or if, the good will ever triumph. Today's gospel is one of those passages in which the good guys don't win. In fact, they're told to run for their lives. One must look to the letter to the Hebrews, or to today's Psalm, to see the triumph of the good, and even those are subtle. One might even wonder what the psalmist's statement "Lord, you are my portion and my cup" has to do with the events that Jesus describes. Where are the portion and the cup when one is bent on survival? Jesus describes in this passage the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem in AD 70. As terrible as it was when Emperor Vespasian's son Titus came marching into town, It was not worse than what had happened in the three years prior, while civil war raged in Jerusalem. As one sect of Judaism began to oppose the Roman governance of Judea, other leaders, or "messiahs" of other sects followed suit, until Jerusalem became a prison for the devout, as the rival factions fought one another for supremacy, and the innocent were caught in between. The raids on Roman outposts, and the infighting within the walls of Jerusalem were brought to Caesar's attention by King Agrippa, and like a great eye, Caesar turned his gaze toward Judea. He sent his son Titus, who laid siege to the city. Most of the food supplies had been destroyed by the warring going on within the walls, so the siege quickly led to a deadly famine. Warfare went even into the inner court of the temple. Long before Titus marched through the city, the temple had already been desecrated. So Jesus warns his followers: Flee. Run. Go to safety, because what will happen here will be more horrible than anything that has occurred since the beginning of time. Many people did - many fled into the hills; most of the Christians had left by this time, because of the persecution under Herod. It was a dark time for the God's people. And it appeared that God had left the building. Yet in the midst of the suffering, the devout found ways to make sense in what is insensible. A renewed understanding of God's work in the world began to arise as voices in the wilderness began to be heard again. There came an understanding that God dwelt, not in a building, but in us, incarnate through God's spirit, and that wherever God's people gathered, God would be there. The apostle Paul spoke with the men of Athens, preaching to them that the God who created the universe does not dwell in temples made by human hands. He wrote to the Corinthian church, reminding them that they were the temple of the Holy Spirit, that the Spirit of Christ dwelt within them. That corporately they, and we as the Body of Christ are the temple of the Holy Spirit. The writer to the Hebrews proclaimed the priesthood of Christ, in which Christ made the one and only sacrifice for sin. There was no need of an altar of sacrifice any more. God may have left the building, but he didn't leave the people. And that is where our hope comes from. That is where the good triumphs over evil. That in the midst of the deepest abyss, God will be found. In the midst of personal and national crises, the Risen Christ arises. And the promised Holy Spirit, the Paraclete, remains with us in every circumstance. There will come a day when good truly triumphs over evil - the day when we are caught up with Christ to be with Him forever - - the day when God's Kingdom will be revealed in its fullness. - For now, we have the promise - the hope of glory through Christ, o risen and ascended, yet ever present. Years ago my aunt gave me a video of Walt Disney's Fantasia. The last portion of the film is a compilation of two contrasting pieces of music. The first, Mussorsky's Night on Bald Mountain is a dark, mystical piece in which one can almost feel the approach of evil. And indeed, the animation depicts an evil shadow descending from the mountain, and overcoming the village below with great darkness. The second piece is Gounod's Ave Maria, and as it plays, out of the darkness one sees procession of pilgrims and as they make their way, the dawn breaks through, and the shadow flees back to the mountain. It is an artful portrayal of good triumphing over evil, but even more of the Risen Christ who has ascended over the darkness that often overcomes this world. Christ is Risen: And no matter what evil befalls us - through the many sadnesses and fears of this life, Christ is present through his Holy Spirit -accessible through prayer, through Holy Scriptures, through Eucharist, and through one another as we become the body of Christ for each other. The kingdom of this world is become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ. And he shall reign forever and ever. Hallelujah! |
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