Opening the Door: Bringing Down Mountains and Leveling Valleys Preached at Wollaston Congregational Church On December 5th, 2021 Scriptures: Baruch 5: 1-9 and Luke 3:1-6 This week we begin our new Advent sermon series, “Housing the Holy.” [1] This series will unfold as we go along. We will pray, sing, take in the minor keys of Advent, as we ponder the theme. We will be reminded that while our culture is full of the hustle and bustle of Christmas preparations and celebrations, here in church we pause and wait. Instead of filling our lives with activities and stuff, we are invited to make room, clear a space, both physically and spiritually. Last week we would have begun to think about “Making Room” for the Holy. And this week we turn our thoughts toward “Opening the Door.” The scriptures we hear at this time of year focus on the prophets. And over the course of the next weeks we will be introduced to many prophets, some we already know and some may be new. My Old Testament professor in seminary used to say: Prophets have insight, not foresight. Prophets interpret the signs of the times. They mediate between God and the community. When God calls on them to speak, they generally resist, because they know that what they have to say will make them unpopular. They warn the community about the consequences of their action and inaction: their failure to take care of the poor, the migrants and immigrants, their failure to take care of the environment. And they also bring words of comfort and consolation to those who suffer. This morning we meet two prophets: Baruch and John the Baptist. You may not have heard of Baruch, as his book is not usually part of the Protestant Bible. It is in the Apocrypha of the Bible which is part of the Septuagint: a Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures. These books were stored in the libraries of the ancient world. Baruch is the person who was the scribe to the well-known prophet Jeremiah. We don’t know exactly when the person wrote in the name of Baruch lived, but we do know that his oracles are intended to comfort a people who have experienced devastation, and are far from home. Baruch offers the hope that the exiled and the displaced will be brought home to Jerusalem, that their paths will be made easier by the leveling of mountains, the raising of valleys. They will bask in God’s mercy and righteousness. The second prophet we meet this morning, is sometimes known at the last prophet of the Old Testament. John the Baptist straddles the time before Christ and the time of Jesus. He lives on the cusp of the two eras. He will gather a following of people who are dissatisfied with the religious and political status quo of his time. And then he will disappear, executed by Herod Antipas, and Jesus’ ministry will take over. We know John as Jesus’s older cousin, the one who prepares the way. In the passage we read from Luke’s gospel this morning, John appears in the wilderness. We have skipped the foreshadowing of John’s birth story in earlier chapters. Luke is careful to name the political and religious powers of the time: the Emperor, the Governor, the rulers, the High Priests. They reside in Jerusalem, and the Roman cities. John resides in the wilderness. It is said that prophets speak truth to power. But the powerful do not often listen. And so John goes around the region on the other side of the Jordan river from Jerusalem “proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.” Baruch re-assures his people that God will make the way level and straight for them to come home. John places responsibility on the people. He instructs and commands “Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.” Next week will hear some specific instructions on the way of life John proposes, but for now we hear John calling for repentance. To repent means to turn around, to re-orient oneself. “Times are changing,” says John, “we are about to see the in-breaking of God into human history. Turn yourself toward it, pay attention, prepare yourself, make it easier for God to do the things that God is doing.” Let’s imagine, for a moment that we live in the region around the Jordan. We are country dwellers, downtrodden by Rome’s encroachment on our land, and the demand for taxes. Or we steward the land because we are in collaboration with Rome. Either way, we know who we are and what we are doing. Our harvests are taken to provide food and wine for the empire. We have become a part of a vast machinery and have little option but to cooperate. Our religious leaders operate as collaborators, keeping the peace with Pilate, who governs Judea, and Herod who only wants to feather his own nest. The temple collects the taxes that are funneled back to Rome. The occupiers justify it all by claiming to provide us with infrastructure, goods and services from all over the world. But there is little benefit and a great deal of suffering for us. Most of us lie at the bottom of the food chain. Even though we live in the land, we may as well be exiled from Judah and from Jerusalem. It has become foreign territory. This is no longer home. When John arrives to challenge all this, we may think that we have found our savior. Like generations of prophets before him, he speaks truth to power. He reminds the religious authorities of their responsibility to widows, orphans and sojourners: women, children and immigrants. John’s message may motivate us to resist and organize guerilla warfare on Jerusalem. But the Baptist preaches something else. “Come to the Jordan for the baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. If we are going to join this movement to make the way of the Lord straight and level, we must turn around, and reorient ourselves.” Do we understand what it would mean for every valley to be filled and every mountain being made low? -For the mountains that get between the uninsured and healthcare to be made low? -For the vast valleys that are spread between those who incurred student debt and paying it off through meaningful work to be filled? -For the bandit-ridden desert and the rough winter oceans, the migrants must cross toward a better life, to be made smooth and safe? -For the twisted maze, with traps and detours, that keep bringing a person back to the substance to which they are addicted instead of the stability they need, to be made straight? Like John’s community in the first century, we today live on a cusp. For some years now, the mainline protestant church in America has been facing a “new normal.” We have acknowledged the loss of attendees in churches and the distractions of the culture on Sunday mornings. We have noticed the busyness of a new generation of families and their lack of interest in church and faith. Our neighborhoods looks very different from the way they looked in the past. The new normal has come with a new neighborhood and a new community. We cannot assume our neighbors are descended from European protestants. Over the past few years Church people have said to one another “We have to re-imagine. We have to adapt to this new normal. Things will never be the same as they were in the past.” We still have to re-imagine and we still have to adapt, but now we are not alone. Massive cultural institutions are having to adapt to changes beyond their control. Institutions like employment, housing, the service industry, entertainment, healthcare and medicine. Everyone has to re-imagine. In our reading this morning, John offers us the key to “Opening the Door” to the holy this Advent. Our re-imagining means the re-orientation of repentance. And, still the call to adapt and change seems daunting. Some have closed their heart to imagining. Instead, they are doubling down keeping things the way things used to be. Some think there is a “war on Christmas” and they intend to fight back, instead of opening the door to housing the holy. Are there ways in which our hearts are closed to imagining? I know I can sometimes feel that my door is closing instead of opening. I allow the door to swing open just a little and the cold air rushes in. It’s dark outside. There are strangers out there. They speak different languages, laugh at different jokes. They wear strange clothes and cook foods I’ve never seen or tasted before. At the park where I walk there is a large community of people I think are northern African immigrants. There are older ladies, who walk together or alone on weekdays around the perimeter. They wear head-coverings and long flowing skirts with practical shoes and sweaters when it is cold. I hold our dog on the far side as I approach them because they seem nervous of her. I try to smile, but they don’t make eye contact. In my mind these ladies don’t approve of my walking attire and my uncovered hair. Probably, though, they are reserved and cautious of white women like myself. In the summer large family groups gather on the grass and eat picnics. And just a few days ago I encountered a family walking with their 3 children: each child a head taller that than other, beginning with the toddler. The mom tagged along, wearing a lovely red flowing dress and head covering. When they arrived at the soccer field they produced a ball and all played together. I had not expected to see the mom run and kick the ball, but she was good. I don’t know how to open my door this community. We live in the same neighborhood and walk the same paths in the park, and yet there seem to be mountains and valleys between us and our experiences. This morning’s theme is giving me an opportunity to think harder about opening my door. I have a few ideas: maybe get to know where the people I see in the park come from. Perhaps there is a café or restaurant where I can try their food. Do they drink tea or coffee? Are they in need of anything, or do I need something from them? If I am able to offer hospitality, it must be on their terms, not on mine. Also, we grapple with opening our doors to housing the holy. It seems challenging, and yet it is probably as simple as imagining: mountains brought low, valleys lifted up. May all God’s people say, Amen [1] Worship Design Studio Worship Series “The Inn”, designed by Dr. Marcia McFee, www.worshipdesignstudio.com/theinn
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