A Grumbler's Paradise
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For August 11, 2024:
A Grumbler’s Paradise
by Chris Keating
John 6:35, 41-51
August is a grumbler’s paradise. It’s too hot, there are too many robocalls, there’s nothing on television except political ads, and school-age kids are restless as they count down the days until the new school year begins. The beach vacation was a month ago and even the tomatoes from our garden don’t taste as good as they did in July.
Frankly, even the lectionary seems stuck in a repetitive spin-cycle of grumbling. John says the crowds are disgruntled, and it is hardly surprising. The miracle bread is gone, but it’s still the main topic of conversation. The crowd keeps hinting at wanting more to eat, but just get confused when Jesus tells him the bread he is going to give them is his flesh. Things get a bit more confounding when he brings up Exodus, making one wonder if this narrative should be renamed “Days of Whine and Moses.” After wandering through this chapter for three weeks, some in our congregations may also be wondering why their pastor didn’t take an extended vacation. Perhaps even the preacher would agree, but that would have meant missing the annual churchwide debate about whether the sanctuary is too hot or too cold.
Such is life in a grumbler’s paradise.
“The grumbler,” observes New Yorker editor Joshua Rothman, “lives an ironic life.” He notes grumbling is a common, ubiquitous human activity that often turns competitive — “one grumble leads to another.” Yet grumblers remain unique. They are resistant to change, but different from protestors whose words lead to action against the status quo. “Grumbling is a particular kind of resistance,” Rothman muses, “ (both) passive aggressive and ex post facto. That’s why no matter how exultant you feel when you grumble, you also feel a little wistful, sad, and powerless…even as you assert the superiority of your opinion, you confront your own powerlessness.”
This week, Jesus confronts the grumblers, challenging them to a deeper understanding of what it means to find eternal life. His challenge might be the same to our grumbling-enhanced culture. Indeed, between politics, social media, and ever churning news cycles, this may be the golden age of murmuring, gossip, and old-fashioned grumbling.
We’d do well to learn from both the grumblers who surrounded Jesus as well as from his response. He notes that while their stomachs were growling for that amazing miracle bread, their eyes missed the bigger miracle enfleshed in their midst.
In the News
Much of our politics seems to be rife with murmurings. We witnessed how complaints from prominent Democrat party leaders led to President Joe Biden’s decision to suspend his reelection campaign and continue to watch Republicans grumble about the missteps of their nominees. Vice presidential nominee Senator J.D. Vance, who might be called the quintessential grumbler, continues to feed the news with strange rumblings about gender equality, the danger “childless cat ladies” pose to our republic, and other far-right ideology. Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump has engaged in his trademark style of murmuring-inciting speeches, causing Democrat commentators to wonder aloud about the GOP’s “weird” election strategies.
It’s not uncommon, of course, for presidential campaigns to draw on the murmurings of the times. Wise candidates pay attention to the undercurrent conversations and craft their messages accordingly. This year is no different, though the calculus changed in 2016 with the election of Donald Trump. Both parties have found ways to speak to America’s discontents. Trump’s ability to manipulate grumbling has taken the technique to an entirely different level.
In particular, Trump has managed to cast shade on his opponents’ identities and backgrounds in ways that play into the electorate’s bigoted and xenophobic fears. Last week, for example, Trump took to questioning Vice President Kamala Harris’ racial and ethnic identity in ways that evoked his spreading of rumors of Barack Obama’s citizenship. Speaking at a convention of Black journalists, Trump claimed that Harris had “turned Black” for political gain. “I did not know she was Black until a number of years ago, when she happened to turn Black, and now she wants to be known as Black,” he said, adding, “All of a sudden, she made a turn and ... she became Black,” said Trump. “Is she Indian or is she Black?”
It’s a familiar tactic for Trump, who once promulgated rumors about whether Obama had been born in the United States. While other Republicans suggested Trump turn down his rhetoric, the former president took it a step further by posting copies of Harris’ birth certificate on social media. Such a move is risky, especially in a country where about one in ten people identify as multiracial. Trump’s complaints about Harris will likely generate only limited traction, and even Republican senator and Trump supporter, Lindsay Graham, urged Trump to stay focused on Harris’ record rather than her heritage.
But this is the sort of playbook Trump has drawn from in his campaigning. His complaints about the ways he perceives Democrats have failed go beyond policies to the sort of complaints Jesus’ listeners made about his identity. As Harris has gained momentum recently, Trump has returned to these attacks, backing out of a planned debate and berating the Vice President in a series of social media posts, calling her “dumb,” “low IQ,” and lacking in the “mental capacity” to debate him.
It’s just another day in a grumbler’s paradise.
In the Scriptures
This week’s readings begin with a repeating of verse 35 from last week, providing another reminder that delving into this chapter will require exegeting the entire chapter. Grammarians will be tickled to hear that verse 35 is the first “I am” statement in John’s gospel that is followed by a predicate nominative. Gail O’Day (“John,” in The New Interpreter’s Bible Commentary, p. 601) notes that these sayings of Jesus in John “form the distinctive core of Jesus’ language of self-revelation.” Drawing on such common symbols as bread (6:35), life (11:14), light (8:12), and truth (14:16), Jesus points to his presence as the provider of God’s abundant life. Jesus provides for humanity’s unmet hungers and longings, providing both bread for their stomachs and nourishment for their souls. To believe in him is to embrace these gifts.
The lectionary omits verses 36-40, jumping instead to the crowds befuddled and disenchanted response to Jesus’ proclamation that he has “come down from heaven,” so that people may come to him. Perhaps all that bread has affected their imaginations. Jesus proclaims God’s intent for redeeming the world, while making it clear that humans have responsibility as well. Jesus makes it clear that humans must see and believe in him, but his statements about descending from heaven confuse the crowd.
The background on the confusion of “the Jews” is important to note, even though it is omitted from this week’s reading. To believe in Jesus, Karoline Lewis notes, “is to make the connection that he is both the bread God provides that gives life and also the source of the bread.” (John: Fortress Biblical Preaching Commentaries, Fortress Press, p. 90).
In verse 41, the crowd is now described as “the Jews.” It’s a curious comment; after all, Jesus and the disciples are also Jewish. Faithful interpreters will note that John’s reference is not intended to anti-Jewish sentiments but rather may point to the experiences of Jewish believers who had been ousted from their synagogues because of their following of Christ. In verse 37, Jesus made it clear that all who come to him will never be driven away. He comes as the bread of heaven — given like manna to those who hunger, but also given as the guarantee of eternal life.
But in a grumbler’s paradise, those who hear Jesus’ words seem incapable of seeing the truth he is proclaiming.
In the Sermon
The grumblers, not unlike many in our culture, cannot imagine Jesus’ mixed identity. He is, after all, the son of Joseph. How can he also be the bread that comes down from heaven? He is redefining the way identities are formed and understood, not only the millions of multi-racial individuals in our nation who may claim distinct ethnic pedigrees. As Moses led the Hebrew people into a new identity, Jesus comes to lead those whom he calls into an entirely different identity.
A sermon emerges from these themes. An especially fruitful direction might be to consider the way grumbling and murmuring function in our world today. At times, reflects Arthur Brooks, grumbling and complaining can be helpful in prompting redress of wrong. Brooks suggests that complaining can sometimes be used to create networks of solidarity, as in “Don’t you think our boss is a jerk?”
Jesus, however, seems to suggest that entrenched complaining can keep us from experiencing the gift of abundant life. Brooks tends to agree:
The problem with all of this kvetching is that it can feel therapeutic — but it typically isn’t. Although complaining might offer temporary relief, it’s bad for your happiness in the long run. Polish researchers who in 2009 measured people’s mood before and after they complained consistently found a significant deterioration. Other scholars have shown that people who share negative emotions on social media — a very prevalent type of complaining today — experience lower levels of well-being.
Jesus is specific in this matter, and we’d do well to contemplate his instructions. “Stop grumbling among yourselves,” (6:43, NIV). Quit it. See it for the way it inhibits you from being fed with the bread of life. Open your imagination to the possibilities of this new identity Jesus has disclosed in the signs of his glory. Brooks’ Atlantic Magazine article includes this insightful quote from the Bulgarian theologian Archimandrite Seraphim Aleksiev: “Grumbling is like the autumn hoarfrost which, when it falls, destroys all the labors of the gardener. It withers all the virtues of the soul and makes bitter and useless the fruits of suffering.”
* * * * *
SECOND THOUGHTS
Fighting Fire with (Smaller) Fire
by Tom Willadsen
2 Samuel 19:5-9, 15, 31-33; Ephesians 4:25--5:2, John 6:35, 41-51; Psalm 130, 1 Kings 19:4-8, Psalm 34:1-8
In the Scripture
Psalm 130
One can well imagine David composing Psalm 130 upon hearing the news of Absalom’s death. One could also imagine him composing this psalm in response to last week’s lesson from 2 Samuel, and Nathan’s revealing to him the depth of his sin.
2 Samuel 19:5-9, 15, 31-33
Absalom, Absalom!
William Faulkner’s brilliant novel, Absalom, Absalom takes its title from the conclusion of today’s reading from 2 Samuel. Even though Absalom had assembled an army and was fighting against David’s troops, David’s love for Absalom was such that David told his soldiers to spare Absalom’s life. In a portion of the story that is omitted from the lectionary, one of David’s men, Joab, stabs Absalom, then Joab’s men kill him, while he is suspended by his hair in the thick oak forest of Ephraim.
Psalm 34:1-8
This is a psalm of thanksgiving for being delivered from a difficult situation. Tradition has it that David composed it after he had successfully tricked Abimelech into believing he (David) was mad. It can apply to any number of circumstances when the one reciting it is relieved. It also contains the favorite verse of those who attend potlucks — an occupational hazard — verse 8: “O taste and see that the Lord is good…”
John 6:35, 41-51
Living bread?
There are some very troubling images in John 6. In today’s lesson, Jesus speaks of himself as “the bread of life,” “the bread that came down from heaven,” and “the living bread that came down from heaven.” The last words in today’s pericope are Jesus saying, “the bread I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.” It is not a stretch at all to hear cannibalism is Jesus’ words. In next week’s reading from John’s gospel Jesus speaks of the necessity to drink his blood. This would have been abhorrent to the Jewish community of Capernaum, Jesus’ home region. Judaism forbids ingesting the blood of animals in Genesis 9:4, when the Lord permitted Noah and the other survivors of the flood to eat meat, but not flesh with blood in it, for blood is life. In the 7th and 17th chapters of Leviticus those who eat the blood of an animal are to be cut off from the people of Israel.
Chances are John 6 was written for an audience that included non-Jews.
1 Kings 19:4-8
Elijah is renewed
These verses are a happy interlude in the story of Elijah. Jezebel has resolved to kill Elijah because he killed the prophets of Baal, after defeating them in a prophet contest.
In today’s passage, Elijah is on the lam and weary from the road trip. He’s ready to die, having completed a successful prophet mission, but the Lord provides him with a snack, following a nap, then another snack after another nap and Elijah has the strength to continue for 40 days.
Ephesians 4:25--5:2
We’re in this together
This passage contains a grab bag of advice to Christians. While telling the truth is important — important enough to make the top Ten Commandments list in both Exodus and Deuteronomy — the motivation in Ephesians is for the good of the Christian community. Tell the truth, the author writes, because you belong to each other. Solidarity is the motivation here. The next verse will be the focus of the sermon observations. “Be angry but do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger.” The author recognizes the reality of anger. It’s simply not possible for people to live together in community and not be angry with one another on occasion. The passage recognizes that reality, but also limits the duration permitted for anger, thus, perhaps, reducing its harm.
In the News
I write from Sparks, Nevada, outside Reno. We’re staying indoors this week because it’s dangerous to breathe the air outside due to nearby forest fires. Currently, the Park Fire, the fourth largest in California’s history, is tossing a lot of soot into the air. The sunsets are glorious, but the air is hazardous.
While climate change, with its hot, dry springs and early summers, which make forests drier earlier in the season, exacerbates the fires, a longer-standing policy contributes to their ferocity as well. For decades forest fires were suppressed aggressively in the United States. This policy led to an abundance of fuel. Now, when fires start in much warmer, drier times, they burn hotter and faster and spread very, very rapidly. In some cases, they even produce their own weather, making established firefighting practices irrelevant in these unprecedented contexts.
What if we could turn back the clock and let fires — regular, natural events in forests’ history, burn? Forests are renewed by periodic fires. Forest fires are essential for healthy forests.
Regular, periodic, small fires would be less destructive.
Anger is not presented in the Bible as always destructive. The author of Ephesians acknowledges its reality and offers guidance for healthy communities of the followers of Christ. When Jesus cleansed the Temple, he was clearly lashing out with righteous anger at the corruption of those profiting from the piety of the faithful.
Like almost everything, anger can be positive and negative. Anger can be a voice calling for justice and it can be a Molotov cocktail thrown at a pedestrian.
What are we to make of politicians who stoke and nurture grievances to motivate their voters? The fear and blatant inaccuracies in Donald Trump’s speeches at political rallies have a powerful effect on the audience. They are the opposite of permitting small fires for the sake of the long-term health of the forest.
In the Sermon
Elton John wrote “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me” with Bernie Taupin and had a hit with it twice. First, his solo version, released in 1974 reached #2 on the Billboard Hot 100, then a duet he recorded with George Michael, topped the singles chart in 1992. Later, co-writer Bernie Taupin said “My only recollections of this is that we wanted to write something big. Like 'You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'. Hopefully being powerful without being pompous.” The Story of... 'Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me' - Smooth (smoothradio.com)
It appears that today’s lesson from Ephesians did not inform the composition of this hit song. Still, the notion of not letting the sun go down on one’s anger has a long history. Plutarch said it in “On Brotherly Love.”
On its surface, one could believe that the author of Ephesians says there’s a race against time — get rid of your anger before the end of the day! But looking at this concept while only examining that verse would undermine the author’s intention. Clearly, anger is real and must be dealt with honestly. Speaking the truth in love to one another is essential for Christians live in community. Denying anger, or letting it build, can be very destructive for life together. It’s even worse to nurture, stoke, and feed it. Addressing your anger before the day ends is helpful advice. It keeps our grievances from growing.
Anger is real. You will be angry. You will be angry with the people who are closest to you, whom you love the most. Be honest about your anger. First, be honest with yourself about it, then share your anger with them. Today. Now. Don’t wait. Waiting will just make the fire of your anger burn hotter and faster and more destructively. Fires are most dangerous when they burn out of control and are not contained. You control your anger, until you don’t. And when you don’t, you leave room for the devil (who knows something about fire). So do I. Reno isn’t quite hell, but you can see sparks from there.
ILLUSTRATIONS
From team member Mary Austin:
Ephesians 4:25--5:2
Community on the Subway
The letter to the Ephesians offers wise counsel about building up the community of believers. The writer instructs, “Put away from you all bitterness and wrath and anger and wrangling and slander, together with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you.”
As Sharon Salzburg tells it, professor Robert Thurman (a practicing Buddhist) believes we can create this as a regular practice. He says, “Imagine you’re on the New York City subway,” he says, “and these extraterrestrials come and zap the subway car so that all of you in it are going to be together forever.” If someone is hungry on the subway car, we help get them food. If someone begins to panic, we do our best to calm them down. Not because we necessarily like them or approve of them but because we are going to be together forever.” He continues, “guess what? The truth is that everyone on the subway car is in it together — we share this planet, we share this life, and our actions and reactions, and theirs, ripple out extensively." (from Real Change: Mindfulness to Heal Ourselves and the World")
* * *
Ephesians 4:25--5:2
Put Away Evil
“Put away evil,” the letter to the Ephesians admonishes, which is always easier to say than do. In her book Caste, Isabel Wilkerson offers a word of hope.
Her research on the systems of oppression in America led her to Nazi Germany, which greatly admired the system of segregation in the American South. From that, she writes, “To imagine an end to caste in America, we need only look at the history of Germany. It is living proof that if a caste system — the twelve-year reign of the Nazis — can be created, it can be dismantled.”
She continues, “We make a serious error when we fail to see the overlap between our country and others, the common vulnerability in human programming, what the political theorist Hannah Arendt called “the banality of evil.” “It’s all too easy to imagine that the Third Reich was a bizarre aberration,” wrote the philosopher David Livingstone Smith, who has studied cultures of dehumanization. “It’s tempting to imagine that the Germans were (or are) a uniquely cruel and bloodthirsty people. But these diagnoses are dangerously wrong. What’s most disturbing about the Nazi phenomenon is not that the Nazis were madmen or monsters. It’s that they were ordinary human beings.”
We can put away evil, if we have the will to do it.
* * *
Ephesians 4:25--5:2
Need for Community
The letter to the Ephesians paints a picture of the kind of community we would all love to be a part of…and which is rare. The writer instructs, “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you…and walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us.”
Rebecca Gordon notes that all of us will need that kind of mutual sharing even more as we age, and need more support. In American life, she says, “we are all on our own…Suppose the disabilities of age mean you can no longer safely live in your own home…The truth is, we have much less control than we’d like to believe over how we’ll age. Tomorrow, one of us could lose the disability lottery, and, like so many of our friends, we could be staring at the reality of growing old in a society that treats preparation for — and survival during — old age as a matter of personal responsibility. It’s time to accept the fact that all of us lucky enough to live long will become ever more dependent as we age. It’s time to place caring for one another at the heart of the human endeavor.”
Having a community around us, as this epistle imagines it, is good for us at any age.
* * *
Ephesians 4:25--5:2
Putting Away Bitterness
“Put away from you all bitterness and wrath and anger and wrangling and slander, together with all malice,” the letter to the Ephesians advises.
In the bitter environment of Ireland, storyteller Gareth Higgins recalls an incident that could have inflamed tensions between Catholics and Protestants. One Saturday night, someone painted anti-Catholic words on a parking garage.
“Where the F*** is the Pope now? Ha Ha.”
Higgins says, “Whoever had decided to insult their Catholic neighbors had even written out their laughter, just to be sure they made their point. Here in Belfast, on the day after the Polish pope died in Rome, I sat down with my friends Stu and Jake, and tried to predict the next few days. The radio talk shows would have a generous helping of folk calling in to pronounce the writers of the insult to be “scum,” enshrining on the airwaves only moral superiority, making precisely no positive impact on the situation. Local government authorities and the grocery store management might argue about the responsibility to clean up the graffiti, delaying its removal. And thousands of people would drive past it every day, a dehumanizing message, a signal of exclusion, a reminder that some of us beautiful, broken, redeemable humans still act like our own belonging isn’t complete until we’ve made belonging difficult for someone else. So, we went to a local hardware store to buy some paint.”
“At four o’clock the next morning, he and his friends rode to the site. They “read a passage about turning swords into plowshares, and we spoke some words we had learned from a carpenter who built tables big enough for the whole world…We walked over to the wall with the paint. We paused in front of the wall — it was just words, we thought, but words can imprison or liberate, resurrect or kill.”
“And so we wrote what we hoped was a better word. A stronger word, perhaps the least used word in politics, in culture, in relationships between people living in mutual suspicion.”
“And just to be sure that we made our point, we wrote the word five times.”
“SORRY. SORRY. SORRY. SORRY. SORRY.”
“Big enough to be seen from the road, but with enough of a gap between the letters that folk could see the message underneath that needed to be amended.” Higgins says, “it taught us something that I believe is often true, especially in environments where people are being invited to disparage, hate, or even harm each other. Sometimes it’s really easy to know the right thing to do, and simple to do it. Maybe the best way to oppose a bad thing is just to do something better.”
* * *
Ephesians 4:25--5:2
Love School
As this epistle gives instructions for living as a community, the words evoke author Richard Rohr. As Molly Phinney Baskette says, he calls our lives, “Love School.”
She adds, “The main reason we are here, I’ve decided after five decades of fieldwork, is to learn how to love. It isn’t we who make God more real by loving Her. It is God who makes us more real by putting people in our path who we can choose to love and be loved by. The realer we grow, the more profoundly and blessedly can we comprehend the Really Real that is God. Frankly, being loved is almost as hard as loving because it requires a degree of trust and surrender that is absolutely terrifying to our carefully constructed egos. And it’s the work of Love School." (from How to Begin When Your World Is Ending: A Spiritual Field Guide to Joy Despite Everything)
Any kind of community is “Love School” for us.
* * *
John 6:35, 41-51
Food Makes Connections
Jesus is creating a living community of people around him as he proclaims that he is the Bread of Life. The people who follow him are joined together by food.
Shaylyn Romney Garrett remembers that when she was a Peace Corps volunteer in Jordan, she spent two years working hard to communicate with people who didn’t speak English, while she didn’t speak Arabic. She says, “for the first few months, as I wrestled with learning Arabic, the only source of connection I really had with my hosts was food. As a result, I passed countless hours eating and drinking tea — on humble floors, on breezy rooftops, at picturesque picnics, and huddled around kerosene heaters in the teachers’ room at the school where I taught. I quickly came to understand that preparing and sharing food is one of the most universal expressions of love and friendship there is.”
She shares, “There’s a unique sort of bonding that is initiated when we provide sustenance to others, especially because it happens relatively infrequently in our culture.” Jesus already knows this, and is trying to teach it to all of us who love him.
* * * * * *
From team member Katy Stenta:
John 6:35, 41-51
Neon Signs and Stick Figures!
Here the Hebrew people are whining in a very relatable way. I often say to people: “You know I tell God all the time, I am but human and I need neon signs, arrows, and illustrations with stick figures.” And yet, here is God once again, speaking in parables, answering questions with questions and being almighty and mysterious again. It is just too much to handle. Why is it when we ask God to give us a sign, it comes in the most puzzling way possible? Manna from Heaven? Son of many and Son of God? Be serious. We had to invent whole new vocabularies for what just God is talking about: things like Trinity, homoousios and even a heresy for thinking about God too straightforwardly (I’m referring Gnosticism, and that is way too simple of an explanation, but like I said, stick figures and neon signs). But perhaps what Jesus is saying is that he will feed us just enough to get by on, and we do not have to worry if we cannot consume the fullness of the message today. That is a comforting message.
* * *
Ephesians 4:25--5:2
My best friend and I have a saying “I did not have the energy to be angry about that today.” It helps us to keep some discipline about what to get angry about and what not get angry about. She has a roommate who keeps trying to pick a fight with her, but my best friend says after a day at work, she often realizes she is too tired to fight — and that keeps the peace. As far as I go, I will be on the internet and find out that someone has said or done something inflammatory and sometimes I will stop and think about whether or not I have the time and energy to be angry about one more thing. It is not just about not going to bed angry — it is more about the rest of what Ephesians says and trying to focus my energy on the more needful things. I know there is great injustice in the world, I understand that it exists, I do not need to let it control me all of the time. Sometimes, I choose to focus on the good that I am doing instead.
* * *
Psalm 130
My soul waits for the Lord — like those who watch for the morning. The idea that God will renew and refresh in the morning is so life giving. It makes me think of what cells do in our sleep. They slough off the old days, they store memories, and they renew themselves to be ready for the next day. They regenerate, grow, and in short, they resurrect. The idea that every morning is a practice of a tiny resurrection and humans are built to practice that through sleep. And that Sabbath is a commandment — and that God, the sun, and the resurrection, are all promised as is the dew. The fact that God’s grace is renewed every morning makes me wonder at the beauty of how the universe is made in a connected and beautiful way.
* * * * * *
From team member Tom Willadsen:
Let’s look at hair in the Bible
In 2 Samuel 18:9 Absalom, King David’s son and opponent, is suspended in midair by his hair. The mule Absalom was riding through the forest kept walking and Absalom’s hair held him in place.
Joab defied King David’s order to keep Absalom alive and stabbed him with three spears. Joab’s armor bearers completed the job, killing Absalom.
In the Song of Songs, the male lover praises his beloved’s hair in 6:5:
Your hair is like a flock of goats,
moving down the slopes of Gilead. (NRSV)
In the next chapter, the female beloved says this of her lover’s hair:
Your head crowns you like Carmel,
and your flowing locks are like purple;
a king is held captive in the tresses. (7:5, NRSV)
In Revelation 1:14, the Son of Man is described this way:
His head and his hair were white as white wool, white as snow; his eyes were like a flame of fire…. (NRSV)
Certainly, the passage in scripture in which hair is most significant is the story surrounding Samson in Judges 13-16. Samson was a strong fighter for Judah against the occupying Philistines. He fell for Deliliah who learned that his hair was the source of his strength. After Delilah arranged for Samson’s head to be shaved, he was seized, blinded and bound by the Philistines. The Philistines imprisoned Samson, and his hair grew back. The Philistines decided to celebrate that they had captured Judah’s champion. The Philistines held a sacrifice to their god, Dagon, and called for Samson to be brought out to entertain then. Samson was placed between the pillars that supported the house where the festivities were taking place. There were about 3,000 men and women there. Since he was blind, he asked the attendant to let him feel the pillars on which the house stood. Samson, after calling on the Lord for strength, pulled the pillars down, killing himself along with more Philistines than he’d killed during his sighted career.
The stories about Absalom and Samson & Delilah recall a certain era in American popular music: The Age of the Hair Bands
Van Stephenson, a Nashville-based singer song writer had the only Top 40 hist of his career in 1984 with “Modern Day Delilah,” part of which goes:
She's a modern-day Delilah
Keeps her scissors laser-sharp
Once she finds your weakness
She'll cut you to the quick
Stab you in the heart
She'll love you like a lion
Leave you like a lamb
She's a modern-day Delilah
She'll cut you if she can
The Age of the Hair Bands started about then, featuring American rock bands like Bon Jovi, Skid Row, Poison and Mötley Crüe. MTV even had a VJ, Adam Curry, who was famous/notorious for his “big hair.”
The tribute band Hairball, has made a good living for the last two decades playing the music and copying the clothing and stage antics of these arena rockers of yore.
All of which makes people of a certain age (mine) join Tom Jones in wailing, “Why, why, why Delilah?”
* * * * * *
WORSHIP
by George Reed
Call to Worship
One: Out of the depths we cry to you, O God.
All: Let your ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications!
One: If you, O God, should mark iniquities who could stand?
All: But there is forgiveness with you, so that you may be revered.
One: We wait for God; our souls wait, and in God’s word we hope;
All: Hope in God! For with God there is steadfast love.
OR
One: God comes to share in the joy of our worship.
All: We welcome God into our songs and praise.
One: God comes to share in the turmoil of our lives.
All: We are comforted by our God who cares for us.
One: God goes with us to listen and care for the pain of the world.
All: We will go forth in God’s name to listen and to care.
Hymns and Songs
O God, Our Help in Ages Past
UMH: 117
H82: 680
AAHH: 170
NNBH: 46
NCH: 25
CH: 67
LBW: 320
ELW: 632
W&P: 84
AMEC: 61
STLT: 281
Holy God, We Praise Thy Name
UMH: 79
H82: 366
PH: 460
GTG: 4
NNBH: 13
NCH: 276
LBW: 535
ELW: 414
W&P: 138
There’s a Wideness to God’s Mercy
UMH: 121
H82: 469/470
PH: 298
GTG: 436
NCH: 23
CH: 73
LBW: 290
ELW: 587/588
W&P: 61
AMEC: 78
STLT: 213
Christ, Whose Glory Fills the Skies
UMH: 173
H82: 6/7
PH: 462/463
GTG: 662
LBW: 265
ELW: 553
W&P: 91
When Morning Gilds the Skies
UMH: 185
H82: 427
PH: 487
GTG: 667
AAHH: 186
NCH: 86
CH: 100
LBW: 545/546
ELW: 853
W&P: 111
AMEC: 29
This Is a Day of New Beginnings
UMH: 383
NCH: 417
CH: 518
W&P: 355
Forgive Our sins as We Forgive
UMH: 390
H82: 674
PH: 347
GTG: 444
LBW: 307
ELW: 605
W&P: 382
Renew: 184
Be Thou My Vision
UMH: 451
H82: 488
PH: 339
GTG: 450
NCH: 451
CH: 595
ELW: 793
W&P: 502
AMEC: 281
STLT: 20
Renew: 151
O God of Every Nation
UMH: 435
H82: 607
PH: 289
GTG: 756
CH: 680
LBW: 416
ELW: 713
W&P: 626
Lift Every Voice and Sing
UMH: 519
H82: 599
PH: 563
GTG: 339
AAHH: 540
NNBH: 457
CH: 631
LBW: 562
ELW: 841
W&P: 729
AMEC: 571
STLT: 149
Ubi Caritas (Live in Charity)
CCB: 71
Renew: 226
From the Rising of the Sun
CCB: 4
Music Resources Key
UMH: United Methodist Hymnal
H82: The Hymnal 1982
PH: Presbyterian Hymnal
GTG: Glory to God, The Presbyterian Hymnal
AAHH: African American Heritage Hymnal
NNBH: The New National Baptist Hymnal
NCH: The New Century Hymnal
CH: Chalice Hymnal
LBW: Lutheran Book of Worship
ELW: Evangelical Lutheran Worship
W&P: Worship & Praise
AMEC: African Methodist Episcopal Church Hymnal
STLT: Singing the Living Tradition
CCB: Cokesbury Chorus Book
Renew: Renew! Songs & Hymns for Blended Worship
Prayer for the Day/Collect
O God who hears the cries of your people in distress:
Grant us the grace to hear the pain and anger of the hurting
so that we may bring the grace of Christ to them;
through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.
OR
We praise you, O God, because you hear the cries of your people and you share their pain. Help us to hear the cries of those around us so that we may share it and work to ease it. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
One: Let us confess to God and before one another our sins and especially when we turn deaf ears on those who cry out in pain.
All: We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. While you listen for the cries of your people and enter into their suffering, we shut those sounds out and harden our hearts. Instead of caring for others we worry about our own desires and wants. Open our ears and open our hearts that we may truly be the body of Christ for the world around us. Amen.
One: God hears the cries of those in need and always welcomes us to join in caring for them.
Prayers of the People
We praise and glorify your name, O God, because you come to us in our distress. When we suffer you suffer with us and hold us in the palm of your hand.
(The following paragraph may be used if a separate prayer of confession has not been used.)
We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. While you listen for the cries of your people and enter into their suffering, we shut those sounds out and harden our hearts. Instead of caring for others we worry about our own desires and wants. Open our ears and open our hearts that we may truly be the Body of Christ for the world around us.
We give you thanks for the ways in which you care for your children. We thank you for the solace of your Spirit and for the comfort of your people. We thank you for those who dedicate their lives to first listening to the pain of others and then helping to alleviate it. We thank you for Jesus who died our death and rose for our sake.
(Other thanksgivings may be offered.)
We pray for all your children who are in pain. We pray for those who feel that no one is there to listen to their cries. We pray for those who are so dis-hearted that they no longer moan aloud. We pray for all the caregivers who share other’s pain.
(Other intercessions may be offered.)
Hear us as we pray for others: (Time for silent or spoken prayer.)
All these things we ask in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ who taught us to pray saying:
Our Father....Amen.
(Or if the Our Father is not used at this point in the service.)
All this we ask in the name of the Blessed and Holy Trinity. Amen. Amen.
* * * * * *
CHILDREN’S SERMON
In God’s Word We Hope
by Katy Stenta
Psalm 130
Psalm 130 is beautiful because it talks about how our souls hope for God even in the darkest of nights.
Did you know that a lot of the Psalms are about humans crying out for God?
What are some emotions you feel when you wake up in the middle of the night?
(Let kids answer, if not, help them think through some of those emotions.)
Many of them are sad or mad, worried, scared, or lonely.
All these emotions are in the Psalms and in the Bible to show that it is okay to go to God with any emotions you might be having.
It’s okay to go to God when you are overwhelmed with your feelings — and often in the Psalm nothing really changes. The person writing the psalm just says, “I’m going to give these emotions to God so I don’t have to carry them anymore.”
Sometimes we call doing that “confession.”
Here the person writing the psalm is writing about hope.
They say, “I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, in God’s word I hope.”
Why don’t we say that together as our closing prayer?
“I wait for the Lord,
my soul waits,
In God’s Word I hope.”
Amen.
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
The Immediate Word, August 11, 2024 issue.
Copyright 2024 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to The Immediate Word service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons and in worship and classroom settings only. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., 5450 N. Dixie Highway, Lima, Ohio 45807.
- A Grumbler’s Paradise by Chris Keating. Jesus confronts those who grumble and murmur about him by inviting them to trust in the promises he offers.
- Second Thoughts: Fighting Fire with (Smaller) Fire by Tom Willadsen. Addressing your anger before it consumes you is helpful advice.
- Sermon illustrations by Mary Austin, Katy Stenta.
- Worship resources by George Reed.
- Children’s sermon: In God’s Word We Hope by Katy Stenta based on Psalm 130.
A Grumbler’s Paradiseby Chris Keating
John 6:35, 41-51
August is a grumbler’s paradise. It’s too hot, there are too many robocalls, there’s nothing on television except political ads, and school-age kids are restless as they count down the days until the new school year begins. The beach vacation was a month ago and even the tomatoes from our garden don’t taste as good as they did in July.
Frankly, even the lectionary seems stuck in a repetitive spin-cycle of grumbling. John says the crowds are disgruntled, and it is hardly surprising. The miracle bread is gone, but it’s still the main topic of conversation. The crowd keeps hinting at wanting more to eat, but just get confused when Jesus tells him the bread he is going to give them is his flesh. Things get a bit more confounding when he brings up Exodus, making one wonder if this narrative should be renamed “Days of Whine and Moses.” After wandering through this chapter for three weeks, some in our congregations may also be wondering why their pastor didn’t take an extended vacation. Perhaps even the preacher would agree, but that would have meant missing the annual churchwide debate about whether the sanctuary is too hot or too cold.
Such is life in a grumbler’s paradise.
“The grumbler,” observes New Yorker editor Joshua Rothman, “lives an ironic life.” He notes grumbling is a common, ubiquitous human activity that often turns competitive — “one grumble leads to another.” Yet grumblers remain unique. They are resistant to change, but different from protestors whose words lead to action against the status quo. “Grumbling is a particular kind of resistance,” Rothman muses, “ (both) passive aggressive and ex post facto. That’s why no matter how exultant you feel when you grumble, you also feel a little wistful, sad, and powerless…even as you assert the superiority of your opinion, you confront your own powerlessness.”
This week, Jesus confronts the grumblers, challenging them to a deeper understanding of what it means to find eternal life. His challenge might be the same to our grumbling-enhanced culture. Indeed, between politics, social media, and ever churning news cycles, this may be the golden age of murmuring, gossip, and old-fashioned grumbling.
We’d do well to learn from both the grumblers who surrounded Jesus as well as from his response. He notes that while their stomachs were growling for that amazing miracle bread, their eyes missed the bigger miracle enfleshed in their midst.
In the News
Much of our politics seems to be rife with murmurings. We witnessed how complaints from prominent Democrat party leaders led to President Joe Biden’s decision to suspend his reelection campaign and continue to watch Republicans grumble about the missteps of their nominees. Vice presidential nominee Senator J.D. Vance, who might be called the quintessential grumbler, continues to feed the news with strange rumblings about gender equality, the danger “childless cat ladies” pose to our republic, and other far-right ideology. Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump has engaged in his trademark style of murmuring-inciting speeches, causing Democrat commentators to wonder aloud about the GOP’s “weird” election strategies.
It’s not uncommon, of course, for presidential campaigns to draw on the murmurings of the times. Wise candidates pay attention to the undercurrent conversations and craft their messages accordingly. This year is no different, though the calculus changed in 2016 with the election of Donald Trump. Both parties have found ways to speak to America’s discontents. Trump’s ability to manipulate grumbling has taken the technique to an entirely different level.
In particular, Trump has managed to cast shade on his opponents’ identities and backgrounds in ways that play into the electorate’s bigoted and xenophobic fears. Last week, for example, Trump took to questioning Vice President Kamala Harris’ racial and ethnic identity in ways that evoked his spreading of rumors of Barack Obama’s citizenship. Speaking at a convention of Black journalists, Trump claimed that Harris had “turned Black” for political gain. “I did not know she was Black until a number of years ago, when she happened to turn Black, and now she wants to be known as Black,” he said, adding, “All of a sudden, she made a turn and ... she became Black,” said Trump. “Is she Indian or is she Black?”
It’s a familiar tactic for Trump, who once promulgated rumors about whether Obama had been born in the United States. While other Republicans suggested Trump turn down his rhetoric, the former president took it a step further by posting copies of Harris’ birth certificate on social media. Such a move is risky, especially in a country where about one in ten people identify as multiracial. Trump’s complaints about Harris will likely generate only limited traction, and even Republican senator and Trump supporter, Lindsay Graham, urged Trump to stay focused on Harris’ record rather than her heritage.
But this is the sort of playbook Trump has drawn from in his campaigning. His complaints about the ways he perceives Democrats have failed go beyond policies to the sort of complaints Jesus’ listeners made about his identity. As Harris has gained momentum recently, Trump has returned to these attacks, backing out of a planned debate and berating the Vice President in a series of social media posts, calling her “dumb,” “low IQ,” and lacking in the “mental capacity” to debate him.
It’s just another day in a grumbler’s paradise.
In the Scriptures
This week’s readings begin with a repeating of verse 35 from last week, providing another reminder that delving into this chapter will require exegeting the entire chapter. Grammarians will be tickled to hear that verse 35 is the first “I am” statement in John’s gospel that is followed by a predicate nominative. Gail O’Day (“John,” in The New Interpreter’s Bible Commentary, p. 601) notes that these sayings of Jesus in John “form the distinctive core of Jesus’ language of self-revelation.” Drawing on such common symbols as bread (6:35), life (11:14), light (8:12), and truth (14:16), Jesus points to his presence as the provider of God’s abundant life. Jesus provides for humanity’s unmet hungers and longings, providing both bread for their stomachs and nourishment for their souls. To believe in him is to embrace these gifts.
The lectionary omits verses 36-40, jumping instead to the crowds befuddled and disenchanted response to Jesus’ proclamation that he has “come down from heaven,” so that people may come to him. Perhaps all that bread has affected their imaginations. Jesus proclaims God’s intent for redeeming the world, while making it clear that humans have responsibility as well. Jesus makes it clear that humans must see and believe in him, but his statements about descending from heaven confuse the crowd.
The background on the confusion of “the Jews” is important to note, even though it is omitted from this week’s reading. To believe in Jesus, Karoline Lewis notes, “is to make the connection that he is both the bread God provides that gives life and also the source of the bread.” (John: Fortress Biblical Preaching Commentaries, Fortress Press, p. 90).
In verse 41, the crowd is now described as “the Jews.” It’s a curious comment; after all, Jesus and the disciples are also Jewish. Faithful interpreters will note that John’s reference is not intended to anti-Jewish sentiments but rather may point to the experiences of Jewish believers who had been ousted from their synagogues because of their following of Christ. In verse 37, Jesus made it clear that all who come to him will never be driven away. He comes as the bread of heaven — given like manna to those who hunger, but also given as the guarantee of eternal life.
But in a grumbler’s paradise, those who hear Jesus’ words seem incapable of seeing the truth he is proclaiming.
In the Sermon
The grumblers, not unlike many in our culture, cannot imagine Jesus’ mixed identity. He is, after all, the son of Joseph. How can he also be the bread that comes down from heaven? He is redefining the way identities are formed and understood, not only the millions of multi-racial individuals in our nation who may claim distinct ethnic pedigrees. As Moses led the Hebrew people into a new identity, Jesus comes to lead those whom he calls into an entirely different identity.
A sermon emerges from these themes. An especially fruitful direction might be to consider the way grumbling and murmuring function in our world today. At times, reflects Arthur Brooks, grumbling and complaining can be helpful in prompting redress of wrong. Brooks suggests that complaining can sometimes be used to create networks of solidarity, as in “Don’t you think our boss is a jerk?”
Jesus, however, seems to suggest that entrenched complaining can keep us from experiencing the gift of abundant life. Brooks tends to agree:
The problem with all of this kvetching is that it can feel therapeutic — but it typically isn’t. Although complaining might offer temporary relief, it’s bad for your happiness in the long run. Polish researchers who in 2009 measured people’s mood before and after they complained consistently found a significant deterioration. Other scholars have shown that people who share negative emotions on social media — a very prevalent type of complaining today — experience lower levels of well-being.
Jesus is specific in this matter, and we’d do well to contemplate his instructions. “Stop grumbling among yourselves,” (6:43, NIV). Quit it. See it for the way it inhibits you from being fed with the bread of life. Open your imagination to the possibilities of this new identity Jesus has disclosed in the signs of his glory. Brooks’ Atlantic Magazine article includes this insightful quote from the Bulgarian theologian Archimandrite Seraphim Aleksiev: “Grumbling is like the autumn hoarfrost which, when it falls, destroys all the labors of the gardener. It withers all the virtues of the soul and makes bitter and useless the fruits of suffering.”
* * * * *
SECOND THOUGHTSFighting Fire with (Smaller) Fire
by Tom Willadsen
2 Samuel 19:5-9, 15, 31-33; Ephesians 4:25--5:2, John 6:35, 41-51; Psalm 130, 1 Kings 19:4-8, Psalm 34:1-8
In the Scripture
Psalm 130
One can well imagine David composing Psalm 130 upon hearing the news of Absalom’s death. One could also imagine him composing this psalm in response to last week’s lesson from 2 Samuel, and Nathan’s revealing to him the depth of his sin.
2 Samuel 19:5-9, 15, 31-33
Absalom, Absalom!
William Faulkner’s brilliant novel, Absalom, Absalom takes its title from the conclusion of today’s reading from 2 Samuel. Even though Absalom had assembled an army and was fighting against David’s troops, David’s love for Absalom was such that David told his soldiers to spare Absalom’s life. In a portion of the story that is omitted from the lectionary, one of David’s men, Joab, stabs Absalom, then Joab’s men kill him, while he is suspended by his hair in the thick oak forest of Ephraim.
Psalm 34:1-8
This is a psalm of thanksgiving for being delivered from a difficult situation. Tradition has it that David composed it after he had successfully tricked Abimelech into believing he (David) was mad. It can apply to any number of circumstances when the one reciting it is relieved. It also contains the favorite verse of those who attend potlucks — an occupational hazard — verse 8: “O taste and see that the Lord is good…”
John 6:35, 41-51
Living bread?
There are some very troubling images in John 6. In today’s lesson, Jesus speaks of himself as “the bread of life,” “the bread that came down from heaven,” and “the living bread that came down from heaven.” The last words in today’s pericope are Jesus saying, “the bread I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.” It is not a stretch at all to hear cannibalism is Jesus’ words. In next week’s reading from John’s gospel Jesus speaks of the necessity to drink his blood. This would have been abhorrent to the Jewish community of Capernaum, Jesus’ home region. Judaism forbids ingesting the blood of animals in Genesis 9:4, when the Lord permitted Noah and the other survivors of the flood to eat meat, but not flesh with blood in it, for blood is life. In the 7th and 17th chapters of Leviticus those who eat the blood of an animal are to be cut off from the people of Israel.
Chances are John 6 was written for an audience that included non-Jews.
1 Kings 19:4-8
Elijah is renewed
These verses are a happy interlude in the story of Elijah. Jezebel has resolved to kill Elijah because he killed the prophets of Baal, after defeating them in a prophet contest.
In today’s passage, Elijah is on the lam and weary from the road trip. He’s ready to die, having completed a successful prophet mission, but the Lord provides him with a snack, following a nap, then another snack after another nap and Elijah has the strength to continue for 40 days.
Ephesians 4:25--5:2
We’re in this together
This passage contains a grab bag of advice to Christians. While telling the truth is important — important enough to make the top Ten Commandments list in both Exodus and Deuteronomy — the motivation in Ephesians is for the good of the Christian community. Tell the truth, the author writes, because you belong to each other. Solidarity is the motivation here. The next verse will be the focus of the sermon observations. “Be angry but do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger.” The author recognizes the reality of anger. It’s simply not possible for people to live together in community and not be angry with one another on occasion. The passage recognizes that reality, but also limits the duration permitted for anger, thus, perhaps, reducing its harm.
In the News
I write from Sparks, Nevada, outside Reno. We’re staying indoors this week because it’s dangerous to breathe the air outside due to nearby forest fires. Currently, the Park Fire, the fourth largest in California’s history, is tossing a lot of soot into the air. The sunsets are glorious, but the air is hazardous.
While climate change, with its hot, dry springs and early summers, which make forests drier earlier in the season, exacerbates the fires, a longer-standing policy contributes to their ferocity as well. For decades forest fires were suppressed aggressively in the United States. This policy led to an abundance of fuel. Now, when fires start in much warmer, drier times, they burn hotter and faster and spread very, very rapidly. In some cases, they even produce their own weather, making established firefighting practices irrelevant in these unprecedented contexts.
What if we could turn back the clock and let fires — regular, natural events in forests’ history, burn? Forests are renewed by periodic fires. Forest fires are essential for healthy forests.
Regular, periodic, small fires would be less destructive.
Anger is not presented in the Bible as always destructive. The author of Ephesians acknowledges its reality and offers guidance for healthy communities of the followers of Christ. When Jesus cleansed the Temple, he was clearly lashing out with righteous anger at the corruption of those profiting from the piety of the faithful.
Like almost everything, anger can be positive and negative. Anger can be a voice calling for justice and it can be a Molotov cocktail thrown at a pedestrian.
What are we to make of politicians who stoke and nurture grievances to motivate their voters? The fear and blatant inaccuracies in Donald Trump’s speeches at political rallies have a powerful effect on the audience. They are the opposite of permitting small fires for the sake of the long-term health of the forest.
In the Sermon
Elton John wrote “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me” with Bernie Taupin and had a hit with it twice. First, his solo version, released in 1974 reached #2 on the Billboard Hot 100, then a duet he recorded with George Michael, topped the singles chart in 1992. Later, co-writer Bernie Taupin said “My only recollections of this is that we wanted to write something big. Like 'You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'. Hopefully being powerful without being pompous.” The Story of... 'Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me' - Smooth (smoothradio.com)
It appears that today’s lesson from Ephesians did not inform the composition of this hit song. Still, the notion of not letting the sun go down on one’s anger has a long history. Plutarch said it in “On Brotherly Love.”
On its surface, one could believe that the author of Ephesians says there’s a race against time — get rid of your anger before the end of the day! But looking at this concept while only examining that verse would undermine the author’s intention. Clearly, anger is real and must be dealt with honestly. Speaking the truth in love to one another is essential for Christians live in community. Denying anger, or letting it build, can be very destructive for life together. It’s even worse to nurture, stoke, and feed it. Addressing your anger before the day ends is helpful advice. It keeps our grievances from growing.
Anger is real. You will be angry. You will be angry with the people who are closest to you, whom you love the most. Be honest about your anger. First, be honest with yourself about it, then share your anger with them. Today. Now. Don’t wait. Waiting will just make the fire of your anger burn hotter and faster and more destructively. Fires are most dangerous when they burn out of control and are not contained. You control your anger, until you don’t. And when you don’t, you leave room for the devil (who knows something about fire). So do I. Reno isn’t quite hell, but you can see sparks from there.
ILLUSTRATIONS
From team member Mary Austin:Ephesians 4:25--5:2
Community on the Subway
The letter to the Ephesians offers wise counsel about building up the community of believers. The writer instructs, “Put away from you all bitterness and wrath and anger and wrangling and slander, together with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you.”
As Sharon Salzburg tells it, professor Robert Thurman (a practicing Buddhist) believes we can create this as a regular practice. He says, “Imagine you’re on the New York City subway,” he says, “and these extraterrestrials come and zap the subway car so that all of you in it are going to be together forever.” If someone is hungry on the subway car, we help get them food. If someone begins to panic, we do our best to calm them down. Not because we necessarily like them or approve of them but because we are going to be together forever.” He continues, “guess what? The truth is that everyone on the subway car is in it together — we share this planet, we share this life, and our actions and reactions, and theirs, ripple out extensively." (from Real Change: Mindfulness to Heal Ourselves and the World")
* * *
Ephesians 4:25--5:2
Put Away Evil
“Put away evil,” the letter to the Ephesians admonishes, which is always easier to say than do. In her book Caste, Isabel Wilkerson offers a word of hope.
Her research on the systems of oppression in America led her to Nazi Germany, which greatly admired the system of segregation in the American South. From that, she writes, “To imagine an end to caste in America, we need only look at the history of Germany. It is living proof that if a caste system — the twelve-year reign of the Nazis — can be created, it can be dismantled.”
She continues, “We make a serious error when we fail to see the overlap between our country and others, the common vulnerability in human programming, what the political theorist Hannah Arendt called “the banality of evil.” “It’s all too easy to imagine that the Third Reich was a bizarre aberration,” wrote the philosopher David Livingstone Smith, who has studied cultures of dehumanization. “It’s tempting to imagine that the Germans were (or are) a uniquely cruel and bloodthirsty people. But these diagnoses are dangerously wrong. What’s most disturbing about the Nazi phenomenon is not that the Nazis were madmen or monsters. It’s that they were ordinary human beings.”
We can put away evil, if we have the will to do it.
* * *
Ephesians 4:25--5:2
Need for Community
The letter to the Ephesians paints a picture of the kind of community we would all love to be a part of…and which is rare. The writer instructs, “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you…and walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us.”
Rebecca Gordon notes that all of us will need that kind of mutual sharing even more as we age, and need more support. In American life, she says, “we are all on our own…Suppose the disabilities of age mean you can no longer safely live in your own home…The truth is, we have much less control than we’d like to believe over how we’ll age. Tomorrow, one of us could lose the disability lottery, and, like so many of our friends, we could be staring at the reality of growing old in a society that treats preparation for — and survival during — old age as a matter of personal responsibility. It’s time to accept the fact that all of us lucky enough to live long will become ever more dependent as we age. It’s time to place caring for one another at the heart of the human endeavor.”
Having a community around us, as this epistle imagines it, is good for us at any age.
* * *
Ephesians 4:25--5:2
Putting Away Bitterness
“Put away from you all bitterness and wrath and anger and wrangling and slander, together with all malice,” the letter to the Ephesians advises.
In the bitter environment of Ireland, storyteller Gareth Higgins recalls an incident that could have inflamed tensions between Catholics and Protestants. One Saturday night, someone painted anti-Catholic words on a parking garage.
“Where the F*** is the Pope now? Ha Ha.”
Higgins says, “Whoever had decided to insult their Catholic neighbors had even written out their laughter, just to be sure they made their point. Here in Belfast, on the day after the Polish pope died in Rome, I sat down with my friends Stu and Jake, and tried to predict the next few days. The radio talk shows would have a generous helping of folk calling in to pronounce the writers of the insult to be “scum,” enshrining on the airwaves only moral superiority, making precisely no positive impact on the situation. Local government authorities and the grocery store management might argue about the responsibility to clean up the graffiti, delaying its removal. And thousands of people would drive past it every day, a dehumanizing message, a signal of exclusion, a reminder that some of us beautiful, broken, redeemable humans still act like our own belonging isn’t complete until we’ve made belonging difficult for someone else. So, we went to a local hardware store to buy some paint.”
“At four o’clock the next morning, he and his friends rode to the site. They “read a passage about turning swords into plowshares, and we spoke some words we had learned from a carpenter who built tables big enough for the whole world…We walked over to the wall with the paint. We paused in front of the wall — it was just words, we thought, but words can imprison or liberate, resurrect or kill.”
“And so we wrote what we hoped was a better word. A stronger word, perhaps the least used word in politics, in culture, in relationships between people living in mutual suspicion.”
“And just to be sure that we made our point, we wrote the word five times.”
“SORRY. SORRY. SORRY. SORRY. SORRY.”
“Big enough to be seen from the road, but with enough of a gap between the letters that folk could see the message underneath that needed to be amended.” Higgins says, “it taught us something that I believe is often true, especially in environments where people are being invited to disparage, hate, or even harm each other. Sometimes it’s really easy to know the right thing to do, and simple to do it. Maybe the best way to oppose a bad thing is just to do something better.”
* * *
Ephesians 4:25--5:2
Love School
As this epistle gives instructions for living as a community, the words evoke author Richard Rohr. As Molly Phinney Baskette says, he calls our lives, “Love School.”
She adds, “The main reason we are here, I’ve decided after five decades of fieldwork, is to learn how to love. It isn’t we who make God more real by loving Her. It is God who makes us more real by putting people in our path who we can choose to love and be loved by. The realer we grow, the more profoundly and blessedly can we comprehend the Really Real that is God. Frankly, being loved is almost as hard as loving because it requires a degree of trust and surrender that is absolutely terrifying to our carefully constructed egos. And it’s the work of Love School." (from How to Begin When Your World Is Ending: A Spiritual Field Guide to Joy Despite Everything)
Any kind of community is “Love School” for us.
* * *
John 6:35, 41-51
Food Makes Connections
Jesus is creating a living community of people around him as he proclaims that he is the Bread of Life. The people who follow him are joined together by food.
Shaylyn Romney Garrett remembers that when she was a Peace Corps volunteer in Jordan, she spent two years working hard to communicate with people who didn’t speak English, while she didn’t speak Arabic. She says, “for the first few months, as I wrestled with learning Arabic, the only source of connection I really had with my hosts was food. As a result, I passed countless hours eating and drinking tea — on humble floors, on breezy rooftops, at picturesque picnics, and huddled around kerosene heaters in the teachers’ room at the school where I taught. I quickly came to understand that preparing and sharing food is one of the most universal expressions of love and friendship there is.”
She shares, “There’s a unique sort of bonding that is initiated when we provide sustenance to others, especially because it happens relatively infrequently in our culture.” Jesus already knows this, and is trying to teach it to all of us who love him.
* * * * * *
From team member Katy Stenta:John 6:35, 41-51
Neon Signs and Stick Figures!
Here the Hebrew people are whining in a very relatable way. I often say to people: “You know I tell God all the time, I am but human and I need neon signs, arrows, and illustrations with stick figures.” And yet, here is God once again, speaking in parables, answering questions with questions and being almighty and mysterious again. It is just too much to handle. Why is it when we ask God to give us a sign, it comes in the most puzzling way possible? Manna from Heaven? Son of many and Son of God? Be serious. We had to invent whole new vocabularies for what just God is talking about: things like Trinity, homoousios and even a heresy for thinking about God too straightforwardly (I’m referring Gnosticism, and that is way too simple of an explanation, but like I said, stick figures and neon signs). But perhaps what Jesus is saying is that he will feed us just enough to get by on, and we do not have to worry if we cannot consume the fullness of the message today. That is a comforting message.
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Ephesians 4:25--5:2
My best friend and I have a saying “I did not have the energy to be angry about that today.” It helps us to keep some discipline about what to get angry about and what not get angry about. She has a roommate who keeps trying to pick a fight with her, but my best friend says after a day at work, she often realizes she is too tired to fight — and that keeps the peace. As far as I go, I will be on the internet and find out that someone has said or done something inflammatory and sometimes I will stop and think about whether or not I have the time and energy to be angry about one more thing. It is not just about not going to bed angry — it is more about the rest of what Ephesians says and trying to focus my energy on the more needful things. I know there is great injustice in the world, I understand that it exists, I do not need to let it control me all of the time. Sometimes, I choose to focus on the good that I am doing instead.
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Psalm 130
My soul waits for the Lord — like those who watch for the morning. The idea that God will renew and refresh in the morning is so life giving. It makes me think of what cells do in our sleep. They slough off the old days, they store memories, and they renew themselves to be ready for the next day. They regenerate, grow, and in short, they resurrect. The idea that every morning is a practice of a tiny resurrection and humans are built to practice that through sleep. And that Sabbath is a commandment — and that God, the sun, and the resurrection, are all promised as is the dew. The fact that God’s grace is renewed every morning makes me wonder at the beauty of how the universe is made in a connected and beautiful way.
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From team member Tom Willadsen:Let’s look at hair in the Bible
In 2 Samuel 18:9 Absalom, King David’s son and opponent, is suspended in midair by his hair. The mule Absalom was riding through the forest kept walking and Absalom’s hair held him in place.
Joab defied King David’s order to keep Absalom alive and stabbed him with three spears. Joab’s armor bearers completed the job, killing Absalom.
In the Song of Songs, the male lover praises his beloved’s hair in 6:5:
Your hair is like a flock of goats,
moving down the slopes of Gilead. (NRSV)
In the next chapter, the female beloved says this of her lover’s hair:
Your head crowns you like Carmel,
and your flowing locks are like purple;
a king is held captive in the tresses. (7:5, NRSV)
In Revelation 1:14, the Son of Man is described this way:
His head and his hair were white as white wool, white as snow; his eyes were like a flame of fire…. (NRSV)
Certainly, the passage in scripture in which hair is most significant is the story surrounding Samson in Judges 13-16. Samson was a strong fighter for Judah against the occupying Philistines. He fell for Deliliah who learned that his hair was the source of his strength. After Delilah arranged for Samson’s head to be shaved, he was seized, blinded and bound by the Philistines. The Philistines imprisoned Samson, and his hair grew back. The Philistines decided to celebrate that they had captured Judah’s champion. The Philistines held a sacrifice to their god, Dagon, and called for Samson to be brought out to entertain then. Samson was placed between the pillars that supported the house where the festivities were taking place. There were about 3,000 men and women there. Since he was blind, he asked the attendant to let him feel the pillars on which the house stood. Samson, after calling on the Lord for strength, pulled the pillars down, killing himself along with more Philistines than he’d killed during his sighted career.
The stories about Absalom and Samson & Delilah recall a certain era in American popular music: The Age of the Hair Bands
Van Stephenson, a Nashville-based singer song writer had the only Top 40 hist of his career in 1984 with “Modern Day Delilah,” part of which goes:
She's a modern-day Delilah
Keeps her scissors laser-sharp
Once she finds your weakness
She'll cut you to the quick
Stab you in the heart
She'll love you like a lion
Leave you like a lamb
She's a modern-day Delilah
She'll cut you if she can
The Age of the Hair Bands started about then, featuring American rock bands like Bon Jovi, Skid Row, Poison and Mötley Crüe. MTV even had a VJ, Adam Curry, who was famous/notorious for his “big hair.”
The tribute band Hairball, has made a good living for the last two decades playing the music and copying the clothing and stage antics of these arena rockers of yore.
All of which makes people of a certain age (mine) join Tom Jones in wailing, “Why, why, why Delilah?”
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WORSHIPby George Reed
Call to Worship
One: Out of the depths we cry to you, O God.
All: Let your ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications!
One: If you, O God, should mark iniquities who could stand?
All: But there is forgiveness with you, so that you may be revered.
One: We wait for God; our souls wait, and in God’s word we hope;
All: Hope in God! For with God there is steadfast love.
OR
One: God comes to share in the joy of our worship.
All: We welcome God into our songs and praise.
One: God comes to share in the turmoil of our lives.
All: We are comforted by our God who cares for us.
One: God goes with us to listen and care for the pain of the world.
All: We will go forth in God’s name to listen and to care.
Hymns and Songs
O God, Our Help in Ages Past
UMH: 117
H82: 680
AAHH: 170
NNBH: 46
NCH: 25
CH: 67
LBW: 320
ELW: 632
W&P: 84
AMEC: 61
STLT: 281
Holy God, We Praise Thy Name
UMH: 79
H82: 366
PH: 460
GTG: 4
NNBH: 13
NCH: 276
LBW: 535
ELW: 414
W&P: 138
There’s a Wideness to God’s Mercy
UMH: 121
H82: 469/470
PH: 298
GTG: 436
NCH: 23
CH: 73
LBW: 290
ELW: 587/588
W&P: 61
AMEC: 78
STLT: 213
Christ, Whose Glory Fills the Skies
UMH: 173
H82: 6/7
PH: 462/463
GTG: 662
LBW: 265
ELW: 553
W&P: 91
When Morning Gilds the Skies
UMH: 185
H82: 427
PH: 487
GTG: 667
AAHH: 186
NCH: 86
CH: 100
LBW: 545/546
ELW: 853
W&P: 111
AMEC: 29
This Is a Day of New Beginnings
UMH: 383
NCH: 417
CH: 518
W&P: 355
Forgive Our sins as We Forgive
UMH: 390
H82: 674
PH: 347
GTG: 444
LBW: 307
ELW: 605
W&P: 382
Renew: 184
Be Thou My Vision
UMH: 451
H82: 488
PH: 339
GTG: 450
NCH: 451
CH: 595
ELW: 793
W&P: 502
AMEC: 281
STLT: 20
Renew: 151
O God of Every Nation
UMH: 435
H82: 607
PH: 289
GTG: 756
CH: 680
LBW: 416
ELW: 713
W&P: 626
Lift Every Voice and Sing
UMH: 519
H82: 599
PH: 563
GTG: 339
AAHH: 540
NNBH: 457
CH: 631
LBW: 562
ELW: 841
W&P: 729
AMEC: 571
STLT: 149
Ubi Caritas (Live in Charity)
CCB: 71
Renew: 226
From the Rising of the Sun
CCB: 4
Music Resources Key
UMH: United Methodist Hymnal
H82: The Hymnal 1982
PH: Presbyterian Hymnal
GTG: Glory to God, The Presbyterian Hymnal
AAHH: African American Heritage Hymnal
NNBH: The New National Baptist Hymnal
NCH: The New Century Hymnal
CH: Chalice Hymnal
LBW: Lutheran Book of Worship
ELW: Evangelical Lutheran Worship
W&P: Worship & Praise
AMEC: African Methodist Episcopal Church Hymnal
STLT: Singing the Living Tradition
CCB: Cokesbury Chorus Book
Renew: Renew! Songs & Hymns for Blended Worship
Prayer for the Day/Collect
O God who hears the cries of your people in distress:
Grant us the grace to hear the pain and anger of the hurting
so that we may bring the grace of Christ to them;
through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.
OR
We praise you, O God, because you hear the cries of your people and you share their pain. Help us to hear the cries of those around us so that we may share it and work to ease it. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
One: Let us confess to God and before one another our sins and especially when we turn deaf ears on those who cry out in pain.
All: We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. While you listen for the cries of your people and enter into their suffering, we shut those sounds out and harden our hearts. Instead of caring for others we worry about our own desires and wants. Open our ears and open our hearts that we may truly be the body of Christ for the world around us. Amen.
One: God hears the cries of those in need and always welcomes us to join in caring for them.
Prayers of the People
We praise and glorify your name, O God, because you come to us in our distress. When we suffer you suffer with us and hold us in the palm of your hand.
(The following paragraph may be used if a separate prayer of confession has not been used.)
We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. While you listen for the cries of your people and enter into their suffering, we shut those sounds out and harden our hearts. Instead of caring for others we worry about our own desires and wants. Open our ears and open our hearts that we may truly be the Body of Christ for the world around us.
We give you thanks for the ways in which you care for your children. We thank you for the solace of your Spirit and for the comfort of your people. We thank you for those who dedicate their lives to first listening to the pain of others and then helping to alleviate it. We thank you for Jesus who died our death and rose for our sake.
(Other thanksgivings may be offered.)
We pray for all your children who are in pain. We pray for those who feel that no one is there to listen to their cries. We pray for those who are so dis-hearted that they no longer moan aloud. We pray for all the caregivers who share other’s pain.
(Other intercessions may be offered.)
Hear us as we pray for others: (Time for silent or spoken prayer.)
All these things we ask in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ who taught us to pray saying:
Our Father....Amen.
(Or if the Our Father is not used at this point in the service.)
All this we ask in the name of the Blessed and Holy Trinity. Amen. Amen.
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CHILDREN’S SERMONIn God’s Word We Hope
by Katy Stenta
Psalm 130
Psalm 130 is beautiful because it talks about how our souls hope for God even in the darkest of nights.
Did you know that a lot of the Psalms are about humans crying out for God?
What are some emotions you feel when you wake up in the middle of the night?
(Let kids answer, if not, help them think through some of those emotions.)
Many of them are sad or mad, worried, scared, or lonely.
All these emotions are in the Psalms and in the Bible to show that it is okay to go to God with any emotions you might be having.
It’s okay to go to God when you are overwhelmed with your feelings — and often in the Psalm nothing really changes. The person writing the psalm just says, “I’m going to give these emotions to God so I don’t have to carry them anymore.”
Sometimes we call doing that “confession.”
Here the person writing the psalm is writing about hope.
They say, “I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, in God’s word I hope.”
Why don’t we say that together as our closing prayer?
“I wait for the Lord,
my soul waits,
In God’s Word I hope.”
Amen.
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The Immediate Word, August 11, 2024 issue.
Copyright 2024 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to The Immediate Word service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons and in worship and classroom settings only. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., 5450 N. Dixie Highway, Lima, Ohio 45807.
