Why Episcopal? Part IV – Word and Sacrament

In an Episcopal worship service the Word and the Sacrament are of equal importance.  This is acted out liturgically in numerous ways depending upon the parish.  At St. Paul’s the service of the Word ends with the Gospel text being processed to the middle of the sanctuary and held high for everyone to see, while it processes we all chant “Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia.”  The text is then announced by the reader of the gospel (either an ordained deacon or priest): “The Holy Gospel according to…”  As this is announced we in the congregation cross our forehead, our lips, and our hearts, so that we receive the words of Christ in our minds and in our hearts and we respond with our wills (mouth).  The congregation then responds in unison “Glory to you Lord Christ.”  The gospel text is then read by the ordained clergy with hands lifted high in blessing.  Following the reading, the deacon or priest says the “The Gospel of our Lord.”  The congregation responds with “Praise to you Lord Christ.”  Following the reading of the Gospel a homily is offered; typically lasting about 12 minutes.  

COTA Reverb 2/14/09

I gave the reverb at Church of the Apostles this past Saturday. A reverb is what we call a sermon at COTA, its short for reverberation, which means that the reverb is one person’s reflection upon how a passage of scripture has impacted them.  We use the Lectionary at COTA so I did not choose this passage of scripture myself.  

For those of you hold to more conservative theological views, there will be content in my sermon that I’m quite positive you will disagree with.  I encourage you to try and listen to what I have to say, not so you can agree with me, but that you might develop the ability to listen to the “other”.  

 

 

Mark 1:40-45  

40 A leper came to him begging him, and kneeling he said to him, “If you choose, you can make me clean.”  41 Moved with pity, Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, and said to him, “I do choose. Be made clean!”  42 Immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean.  43 After sternly warning him he sent him away at once,  44 saying to him, “See that you say nothing to anyone; but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.”  45 But he went out and began to proclaim it freely, and to spread the word, so that Jesus could no longer go into a town openly, but stayed out in the country; and people came to him from every quarter. 

The Story of the Unlikely Evangelist 

Our country recently went through a very long and intense political process.  The men and women who were running for our nation’s highest political office where all put under the severest inspection.  And we as a society can’t get enough of it.  We want to know everything from their attendance records as third graders to what kind of underwear they put on.  Now many of the things that are revealed through this vetting process are not game changers, if they smoked a little pot in college, it probably isn’t going to disqualify them from the race.  However, there are somethings that can pose a big threat to a candidate’s victory: associations.  Who is this person friends with?  What circles did they run in?  And who is endorsing this candidate?  This of course was a big issue for our current president Barack Obama, wither it was Reverend Wright or Bill Ayers.  The strategy for some was to disqualify Obama because he has associating with these “extreme” people.  These anti-American people.  Now sadly, with our consumer driven media, our country failed to have an intelligent conversation about these associations.  It was far too easy to stereo-type people and evoke fear, then it was to listen and try and understand who people are.  

I think Jesus found himself in a similar predicament in today’s gospel story.  Jesus had just begun his ministry on earth, he was God enfleshed, sent to earth to be the Messiah to the Jews and salvation to the Gentiles.  Now considering how prophets have often fared in the past, Jesus must have known that this was not going to be an easy nor a safe task.  He was going to have to confront the religious and political establishments of his day.  Neither of whom had a good track record of paying attention to the will of God: which is to practice radical love and justice.  Nonetheless Jesus begins his mission, and in Mark’s account of it, it has only just begun when Jesus is confronted with a dilemma: a leprous man begging for cleansing.