Kahu's Manao

Keawala‘i Congregational Church
United Church of Christ (USA)

Twenty-fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Sunday, September 13, 2009

The Rev. Kealahou C. Alika

“Who Are You, Jesus?”
James 3:1-12 & Mark 8:27-38

We live in a world that would have us believe the key to human freedom is simply based on political and economic ideologies. We toss about words like democracy and capitalism, socialism and communism, terrorists and freedom fighters, Nazis and Zionists, radical Islamists and the Christian right as though we understand what each word means.

We are so convinced we are right about our ideas and opinions, we are willing to arm ourselves with weapons and fight to the death to defend them, whatever they may be. It would seem that our willingness to die for such ideologies have more to do with fear and self-preservation than with a life of courage and service to others.

We are bombarded with words every day through the media – print, television, film, and radio. We believe what is said if it coincides with our own point of view and disregard and dismiss what someone else may say that is contrary to our own opinion.

But whatever we say matters because our words create realities, whether for good or ill, and so we understand why our Hawaiian kūpuna or elders would caution us with their words of wisdom: “We must be careful with the words we speak.”

The writer of The Letter of James “speaks with great passion about the secret life of the tongue.” Glenn Mitchell, a director of training and program for spiritual development in Camp Hill, Pennsylvania tells us that the reading is filled with metaphors: “The tongue is the rudder of a ship; a fire that destroys a great forest; a word of iniquity unto itself; an untamable restless evil full of deadly poison.” (“Living the Word,” Glenn Mitchell, Christian Century, September 8, 2009, page 20)

He goes on to say that the tongue – that is what we say – is often a source of great tension. The writer of The Letter of James notes the following about the human tongue or spoken word: “With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse those who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing” (vv. -10)

We see that tension in Peter’s response to Jesus in our reading from The Gospel According to Mark. Jesus directs his question to all of the disciples: “Who do people say I am?” Some answered him saying, “You are John the Baptist.” Others said, “You are Elijah.” Still others said that he was one of the prophets.

When Jesus asks the disciples what they would say, it is Peter who is quick to respond. On the one hand he confesses with his tongue that Jesus is the Messiah and on the other he rebukes Jesus for speaking of his pending suffering and death. (Op. cit.)

Jesus does not refer to himself as “Messiah.” Instead he refers to himself as the Son of Man, a term that appears in The Book of Daniel associated with God’s coming into the world. It is a reference that appears The Book of Ezekiel and The Book of Daniel where both Ezekiel and Daniel describe themselves in connection to God’s purpose and mission in the world. It is a mission that, at times, involves suffering.

Peter, along with so many others, lived in a time when the expectation was that a “Messiah” would come and deliver those throughout the land from Roman rule. It was believed that such a Messiah would be linked to the line of David who was king.

Peter, like so many others, longed for the coming of such a Messiah. For Jesus to say of himself that he has come not as a triumphant warrior king but as a suffering servant is something that Peter and the disciples were unable to understand and at first unwilling to accept.

They imagine that freedom will come once they are set free from the Romans. Carlos Bravo, a Jesuit theologian, makes the following observation: “Though able to confess that Jesus is the ‘messiah,’ the disciples’ understanding of the title is the opposite of what Jesus teaches and lives. Jesus must insist again and again that his destination is not traditional kingship, but suffering, rejection, and, ultimately, death. Only through this path can he show that God’s love for us is real and triumphant over death.” (“An Unconventional Messiah,” Sojourners, September-October 2009, page 54).

Jesus offers a deeper freedom, a freedom from death itself. This is what troubles Peter because it requires him to recognize not only Jesus’ suffering and death but he must come to terms with his own eventual death. (Op.cit.)

The key to human freedom, to our freedom is to be found in the ways we come to terms with our own suffering and death. We are aware of those who have died. We know of others who are dying and we know we will each die one day. That which is most precious to us – life itself – is something we cannot preserve.

However, we can receive the life we live as a gift and offer it up to God in service to others. Mitchell, in his reflections on our readings from James and Mark, points out: “The freedom to be fully present to life has everything to do with accepting our suffering and death and letting go of our efforts to control life.” (Op. cit.)

He reminds us of the words of the Apostle Paul to those in the church in Corinth: “(We are) always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be made visible in our bodies. For while we live, we are always being given up to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus may be made visible in our mortal flesh. So death is at work in us, but life in you.” (2 Corinthians 4:10-12)

Perhaps in our own day and time, given our own fears and anxieties, we would not be far off the mark to say there are some who long for a Messiah, a triumphant warrior king. But there are no “warrior kings” only the selfless work of those who live a life of service to others.

Commemorations this week marked the eight anniversary of the 9/11. In response to the horrific event of that day many across the United States participated in activities that were in service to others.

“Volunteers in Boston stuffed packages for military personnel overseas. In Tennessee and West Virginia, they distributed donated food for the need. Community volunteers in Maine worked on a garden and picnic area for families transitioning out of homelessness.”

“In Chicago, they tilled community gardens, cooked lunch for residents of a shelter and packed food for mothers and babies. And on the lawn of the Ohio Statehouse, volunteers arranged nearly 3,000 small American flags, in a pattern reminiscent of the trade center’s twin towers.”

“At a plaza adjacent to the World Trade Center site, volunteers – from soup kitchens, advocacy groups, the Red Cross, the United Way – joined relatives of the lost to read the names of those killed in the twin towers.” Gloria Russin lost her son that day. She said, “I ask that you honor my son and all those who perished eight years ago . . . by volunteering, by making some kind of act of kindness in their memory.” (“9/11, a day of service, mourning,” The Maui News, Saturday, September 12, 2009, pages A1-A2)

The suffering and death of the 2,976 persons who perished on 9/11 reminds that the tension Peter experienced with Jesus is one we know well for ourselves. Like Peter we long for a triumphant warrior king who will guard and preserve our freedom from those who we believe intend to do us harm but what we have found instead are those who are willing live a life of service to others.

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg said that such acts of compassion and kindness “stopped us from falling into cynicism and despair.” (Op. cit, page A2). For that we give thanks to God.

We also give thanks for the One who is the Son of Humankind; the One who suffered and died; the One who lived a life of service that we may know a freedom that endures forever. Mahalo ke Akua!

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