Ninth Sunday after Pentecost
Reading – Isaiah 1: 1, 10-20; Psalm 50: 1-8, 23-24; Hebrews 11: 1-3, 8-16; Luke 12: 32-40
Most likely all of us have been to sporting events or witnessed them on T.V. when the crowd chanted, “U.S.A., U.S.A”. I have been there, and it is exciting. Yet, in our reading from the Letter to the Hebrews, we are invited to go beyond that chant. The author invites us to
seek a homeland, desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one.
The author declares that God has prepared a city for those who seek beyond our current environment. Robert F. Kennedy once said
our reach much exceed our grasp, and
Some… see things as they are and ask, “why”,
I dream of things that never were and ask, “why not”.
So, we, following the Gospel according to St. Luke, we are to
Be dressed for action and have [our] lamps lit…
We are to be ready to move into the darkness, ready to challenge the darkness. Again, from the Gospel according to St. Luke
You…must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour.
Jesus, the Holy Spirit, is in our midst, is about, and we are invited to join him at work, to partner with him wherever we see goodness, wherever we see kindness.
The prophet Isaiah in the 8th c. B.C.E. was seeking God in the southern kingdom of Judah, centered in Jerusalem. Remember, the northern kingdom of Israel, centered in Shechem, had just been swallowed up by the Assyrian Empire in 722 B.C.E. Isaiah spoke truth to power. Addressing the people of Jerusalem —
Hear the word of the Lord God, you rulers of Sodom!
Listen to the teaching of our God, you people of Gomorrah!
We know from Genesis 18-19 that Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed, never again to be rebuilt, due to their unwillingness to grant hospitality to strangers. The people of Jerusalem were warned, their future would become like Sodom and Gomorrah should they not reform, should they not repent. Isaiah declared
wash yourselves; make yourself clean; remove the evil of your doings…
These are the simple tasks that he set before them —
cease to do evil, learn to do good; seek justice, rescue the oppressed,
defend the orphan, plead for the widow.
To combine the passage from the Gospel according to St. Luke and Isaiah’s proclamation, these actions are where God is to be found. These actions are where we are to carry the light into the darkness. These actions are where we discover Jesus among us; these actions are where we have the opportunity to partner with Jesus. I would add that these actions are where our reach can exceed our grasp, where we can ask, ‘Why not?’
Can we “learn to do good”, yes, we can. Can we “seek justice”, yes, we can.
Can we “rescue the oppressed”, yes, we can. Can we “defend the orphan”, yes, we can. Can we “plead for the widow”, yes, we can. Can we “cease to do evil”, yes, we can.
Will We? We can, yet, Will We? Do we have the will power?
I will conclude with the praise of baseball, the truly American sport. I think I first heard this from the Ken Burns baseball documentary. I know of no other sport where each team gets the same three outs per inning, and each player gets three strikes per bat. No one can run out the clock, freeze the ball, or get more plays. Twenty-seven outs are all anyone gets. The confines of the ballpark may vary from place to place, but they are the same for each team. I think fairness is a primary American value.
Learn to do good. Seek justice.
Rescue the oppressed. Defend the orphan.
Plead for the widow.
We can do this, bearing the light with Jesus as our companion, as our guide, as our strength. Amen
