Readings
for Proper 24C:
Psalm 121, Luke 18:1-8
October 17, 2004
The Rev. Karen Siegfriedt
St. Jude the Apostle Episcopal Church, Cupertino,
CA
"I lift my eyes to the hills; from where is my help to come? My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth." Psalm 121 is a psalm which has been uttered over the centuries, from the mouths of believers, who have full confidence in God's presence, power, and protection. Whenever I hear or pray this psalm, I think of the story that was told to me by our brother, Ward McCabe. During World War II, he found himself fighting in the Pacific Theatre. His unit was "pinned in" and waiting for vital supplies. Communications had to be kept brief in order to prevent the enemy from intercepting messages. Finally, the supply unit gave the coordinates of the drop. The message was simply, "Psalm 121." [i.e. I lift my eyes to hills; from where is my help to come?] Whether it is in wartime or peacetime, people of faith have prayed these words of assurance amid the trials and joys of their life journey. It is this subject of prayer that I would like to address in my sermon today. I will use today's gospel as my text.
Over the past several weeks, the media has televised the Presidential Debates. I have been asked over and over again, my opinion about these debates. I have to be honest with you. I do not think very much of them. I think they are predominantly contrived, rehearsed, shallow, and only partially truthful. These debates seem to be political rhetoric aimed to convince an uninformed sector of the American people to vote for the particular candidate. While I do believe that the office of the president can have a tremendous influence in moving this country toward peace, justice, and the dignity of every human being, I also believe that one person's influence is limited in a world plagued by greed, fear, partisan politics, transnational companies, and misuse of power.
Whatever you might think about the war in Iraq and of the President's handling of this situation, you must remember that he did not go to war alone. The President received overwhelming support by the legislature and by the majority of Americans. Today, a majority of Americans are more concerned about the presidential candidates' stances on abortion and homosexuality than they are about the issues of economic justice and peace. How can this be so? How can this be so in a country in which we are making enemies faster than we are able to kill them? How can this be so, in a world ravaged by poverty, AIDS, war, terrorism, and untold human suffering? Unfortunately, in this so-called Christian nation of ours, it is the wounded ego which is directing and ruling our politics rather than the mind of Christ. What are we to do?
"I lift my eyes to the hills; from where is my help to come?" While political and economic decisions can have a profound influence on how well a society functions, it is only the Holy Spirit who can transform our personalities. Transformed people, transform the world. And it is a posture of continuous prayer that can make this transformation happen. Prayer is a lifelong, interactive conversation with God about what you and God are doing together. "Prayer is responding to God, by thoughts and by deeds, with or without words."[BCP 856] We pray, not to change God's mind, but to change ours.
Today's gospel speaks about the need to pray and not to lose heart. Jesus tries to make this point by telling a parable about a persistent widow who is seeking justice. We do not know the exactly nature of the complaint. Perhaps her husband had recently died and she did not have a male relative to represent her in court or to inherit the dead husband's property. Widows in 1st century Palestine often ran the risk of ending up homeless, without protection or food. Whatever the injustice was, this widow persisted in presenting her case and eventually a judgment was made in her favor. So what does this parable tell people of faith about the nature and power of prayer?
First of all, it tells us that we must be persistent in our prayer life and not to lose heart in times of great difficulty. It tells us that our prayer must be grounded in issues of justice. God cares about the plight of the poor and those who are regarded as unimportant to others. It tells us that our faith requires different responses, depending on where we find ourselves in the hierarchy. To those who have the power to relieve the distress of the widow, the poor, and the oppressed,- they are called to pray day and night so that their hearts are torn open with compassion, thus allowing God's priorities to reorder the priorities of their lives. To those who are worn out, hard pressed, lacking in hope,- they are called to pray day and night so that they do not become disheartened, thus allowing despair to overcome new possibilities.
Prayer is a movement of the heart. Prayer is submitting our will to God's will so that God can mold us into the people God wills for us to be. Prayer is a sign of one's commitment to transformation. Prayer is the response and the vital side of faith. It is a dynamic form of communion of the religious person with God. As Herr Martin Luther once said: "Faith is prayer and nothing but prayer, for prayer is the very heart of religion." When we pray in Jesus' name, it means we are asking for ourselves and others, those things that are fit to be coupled with his name {e.g. justice, forgiveness, mercy, generosity, compassion, inclusivity}. It means to bring one's needs and joys into relation to that vision of human becoming which is in line with the Kingdom of God.
So how does prayer work? Well, no one knows for sure. But we do know that prayer does work and that it has the power to transform people. In pre-critical times, prayer was popularly understood to be a kind of speaking to God whereby God intervened in the course of historical events by impinging his will on the created order. Oftentimes, people would view God as a heavenly Santa Claus, waiting for a list of petitions from those who were nice, and then pulling the strings in the direction of the request. This kind of prayer is still popular among some Christians.
But in more modern times, different interpretations have been introduced. Today, people are more aware about the interconnectedness of life. If God is that "in which we move and live and have our being," if we cannot even observe an atom without changing its nature, then a posture of prayer is sure to have a significant effect on the transformation of the world. Process theologians understand God, not as unchangeable, but as being present in every event. This means that God is influenced by human action even as God influences all events. What human beings do, whether they pray and how they pray, will make a difference not only to God, but also to the way in which God is able to influence the present and the future.
*The great theologian, Soren Kierkegaard once said: The efficacy of prayer lies in the inner transformation of the one who prays. It is only superstition to believe that God acts on human beings in an external way. God is spirit. God acts on human inwardness. Prayer is what we do so that God can do something to us and with us. The hate, anger, despair, fear, pride, self-trust, and the desires which are part of us are to be drawn open in prayer. They are to be probed and acknowledged so that we can come to see ourselves as we really are. Only in the face of such honesty about ourselves and about the projections we make into God, can the spirit begin to transform us. [P. LeFevere]
On November 2nd, all of us will be asked to cast our vote. I hope that all of the people of St. Jude's will participate in this act of democracy. I also hope that as you read the different ballot initiatives and consider the candidates for the various offices, you will seep yourself in prayer, asking God's wisdom and grace to inform your decision making process. As Christians, we can best open ourselves up to the wisdom and grace of God by practicing the 12 spiritual disciplines: Prayer, meditation, fasting, study, simplicity, solitude, submission, service, confession, worship, guidance, and celebration. Prayer is perhaps the most important of these disciplines. Prayer does not substitute for action but informs our action. So pray at all times, and if necessary, use words. "I lift my eyes to the hills; from where is my help to come? My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth."
| Updated 10/27/04 |
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