Late lectionary ramblings
Well, I guess this isn't truly late, since it isn't Sunday yet... but I do try to write these on Monday or Tuesday, so it's late for me. This Sunday's lections in the Episcopal Church are...
11The time is surely coming, says the Lord God,
when I will send a famine on the land;
not a famine of bread, or a thirst for water,
but of hearing the words of the Lord.
12They shall wander from sea to sea,
and from north to east;
they shall run to and fro, seeking the word of the Lord,
but they shall not find it.
On first reading, it sounded to me like God was saying, okay, you're going to screw the poor, that's it. I've had it with you. To quote Cartman from South Park, screw you guys, I'm going home. And we would be left starving for God, thirsting for God, quite literally dying for God... and not finding God.
Wow.
This is so contrary to the way I try to envision God. In fact, it is so frightening to me that I'm going to set it aside for a moment, and look at the other scripture lessons. The gospel lesson is a tough parable. On a quick reading, it sounds like Jesus is saying that it's okay to be fiscally irresponsible. But on reading through it again, I get the impression that this manager had been overcharging his master's customers for years. He panics when the master is going to look at his records, and the manager starts issuing credits to the customers, so that they don't owe as much. But for some reason, his master commends him for this. Now, I have a feeling that after publicly commending the manager for his honesty in admitting to these "mistakes" and correcting them, the master would then take him privately aside and give him an earful. It sounds to me like the manager had been doing all along what Amos warns us against - taking advantage of the poor and the needy in order to accumulate wealth for himself.
The letter to Timothy seems totally unrelated to these, but it is linked. Amos says, don't screw the poor. Jesus says, be faithful to God, and not to money. And Paul here says, pray for the people who have power, who have money. The closing line of this reading is a powerful one:
8 I desire, then, that in every place the [people] should pray, lifting up holy hands without anger or argument.
It is important for us to pray, for many reasons, and prayers for those in power are very important. People who have a lot of money or a lot of power have the ability to make decisions that can affect many, many others. Bill Gates can - and does - affect many lives by sharing his wealth. Thus a prayer for Bill Gates affects not only him, but all those whose lives are touched by him and by his decisions.
So what on earth is Amos saying here, in those last two verses?
11The time is surely coming, says the Lord God,
when I will send a famine on the land;
not a famine of bread, or a thirst for water,
but of hearing the words of the Lord.
12They shall wander from sea to sea,
and from north to east;
they shall run to and fro, seeking the word of the Lord,
but they shall not find it.
My reading is not that God is intentionally and deliberately pulling out of our lives. Rather, I think that by making the choices to take advantage of God's beloved children - our sisters and brothers - we are intentionally and deliberately pulling ourselves out of God's life. We remove ourselves from God's presence at each decision to hurt the poor, the needy, the sick, the imprisoned, the hungry, the orphaned, the widowed, the lonely... and even at each decision to hurt the rich, the powerful, the free, the joyful. And when we travel too far down this road, removing ourselves further and further from God, we lose our sense of direction. We can no longer find our way back. We cannot see God's light any more, or hear God's voice. At this point, we probably can't express ourselves in these terms any longer, either. We may say something like something is missing from my life, but I don't know what. We may try to cover this aching and longing with alcohol or drugs or sex or work or many other things - especially if we are not able to admit to the aching for God. And we will never ever ever admit that we did this to ourselves, by our own free choices that take us out of God's bright and loving presence.
Pretty grim, no? But there has to be good news, right? I mean, the lectionary never gives us only grimness and darkness; there has to be a spot of light somewhere in here. Personally, I found it in the psalm, in three different verses:
4 When I called, you answered me; you increased my strength within me....8 Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you keep me safe;
you stretch forth your hand against the fury of my enemies;
your right hand shall save me.9 The LORD will make good his purpose for me;
O LORD, your love endures for ever;
do not abandon the works of your hands.
And the good news is simple. Call on God, and God will answer. This may sound like the opposite of what Amos says, but I think it is actually the remedy to Amos's scary prediction. I believe - and the gospel supports me on this - that no matter how far we withdraw ourselves from God's love and light and presence, God still aches for us to return. And when we realize where we are - alone in the dark, far from God, hurting and achine and lonely - and when we are able to turn around and face God and ask for help, God says yes. And God doesn't just say yes, God runs to help us, just like the father of the prodigal son; just like in the gospel parables from last week, God rejoices that we are turning back, that we want to be with God. God strengthens us and saves us, and God never abandons us - even when we abandon God. God throws a party to celebrate our return. And that is very, very good news.
The problem is that simple is not always easy. Jesus teaches very simple truths, but they are very difficult to live out. It is hard to admit that we've been making bad choices, that we've been heading away from God. It's hard to admit these things to God - who most assuredly already knows, and who doesn't even require that we admit these things out loud! It's hard to admit them to ourselves, and it's certainly hard to admit them to others. But if we find ourselves in that famine, in that thirst, wandering aimlessly, running to and fro - then we know it is time to change something. Simple, yes. Easy, no.
And I think the ultimate lesson there is one that our mothers and fathers and teachers and bosses have tried to teach us from childhood - it's much easier to make those good decisions from the beginning, so that we don't have to reach that place of famine and thirst and feeling lost. It's easier to make a habit of good decisions than to make a u-turn and try to break the habit of bad decisions. So choose now. Don't screw the poor. Pray for those who have the power to screw the poor, that they will be able to make good decisions and stay in God's light. And when you find yourself wandering, alone, feeling far from God - stop and ask for help. Because while you may have taken yourself far from God, God will never ever ever take God far away from you.
