Ephesians 4:25-5:2
Mark
Twain famously remarked that it’s not the parts of the Bible he doesn’t
understand that bother him: it’s the parts he does understand. So no doubt the
letter to the Ephesians would have been upsetting to him. It is pretty
straightforward, and pretty shocking. Take that verse in our passage today
about stealing, for example: Thieves must
give up stealing. Well, duh, that seems obvious, but then listen again to
the rest of the verse: let them labor and
work honestly with their hands, so as to have something to share with the
needy. Whoa! It doesn’t say, “Thieves, stop stealing because you’re
breaking the Eighth Commandment.” It doesn’t say, “Thieves, stop stealing
because it’s wrong and you’ll be punished if you do it.” No, it says “Thieves,
stop stealing and get a job so that you can earn more money so that you can
give more money away to those in need.” This is not the way we normally think
about deterring crime. But it fits in perfectly with the central message of
Ephesians, which is all about building up community. The main thrust of the
letter is easy to understand and easily offended many people when it was
written: Jews and Gentiles now belong to the same community. Despite centuries
of hatred, bigotry, and violence, they are to embrace each other as sisters and
brothers in Christ. They are to be a new humanity. Anything that builds up that
new community, that new humanity, is good. Anything that tears it down or
destroys it is bad. And since the Holy Spirit is the very life of that new
community, anything that violates community grieves the Spirit.
A
year ago, our community was violated and our common humanity attacked. People
carried swastikas on the downtown mall; they chanted anti-Semitic slogans and
threats in front of the synagogue; they shouted racial slurs; they openly
called for a society that denigrates or excludes people of color, immigrants,
and others deemed undesirable; they espoused hatred and violence; one of them
deliberately drove a car into a crowd of people to hurt and to kill. It could
have happened anywhere perhaps, but it happened here, in Charlottesville. The
sentiment may be everywhere, but we saw it up close and personal. So we need to
own it and to name it for what it is: a pernicious evil that grieves the Spirit
of God. And that means more than just pointing our fingers at other people. In
our worship today we are using a special litany with confession authorized by
the Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music of the Episcopal Church that
admits the ways all of us have been
guilty of prejudice. Even if we disavow — and I hope we all do — the opinions
expressed at that rally last year, we are still complicit. We are all part of a
society where racism, bigotry, and injustice have been allowed to fester. Our
spiritual health and basic honesty demand that we recognize that and
acknowledge that.
But
that’s the easy part. Last year when I was with the clergy downtown during the
rally, I felt sad at what I saw, but I also felt angry. And I have had many
conversations since then with people who are angry: angry at what happened,
angry at racial injustice, angry at the hatred and the malice expressed in our
community. And what we do with that is crucial, so I am going to point us to
Ephesians again, which has this straightforward but uncomfortable admonition: Be angry but do not sin; do not let the sun
go down on your anger. Following Jesus Christ is not just about being
“nice” and never getting mad. Anger is a normal and often healthy human
emotion. What makes us Christians is not avoiding anger but processing it and
expressing it in ways that are wholesome and life-giving. And, among other
things, that means not deliberately holding on to anger. Unfortunately, we
often do hold on to it. We like to hold on to it. We not only let the sun go
down on it, we let whole months, seasons, and years pass by while we cling to
feelings of rage and even nurture them. There is something perversely
satisfying about stewing in anger: it appeals to some part of our ego and makes
us feel superior and self-righteous. But it is spiritually toxic. Jesus says so
in his Sermon on the Mount, Paul seconds it, and the rest of the New Testament
affirms it. Whatever we do with our anger, holding on to it and relishing it is
not the way of Christ and doesn’t lead to anything good. The Letter of James
puts it bluntly: Your anger does not
produce God’s righteousness (1:20).
So
what do we do? The Franciscan writer Richard Rohr likes to say, “If we do not
transform our pain, we will most assuredly transmit it.” There are too many
people transmitting their anger and pain, lashing out in ways that are hurtful
and destructive. And there are too few people walking the way of Jesus and
letting him change our water into wine, letting the Holy Spirit transform our
anger and pain into positive action that builds up community. Afer all, if we
give into rage and hate the haters, then we just become haters ourselves — and
we accomplish nothing. So again, Ephesians says it plainly: Put away from you all bitterness and wrath
and anger and wrangling and slander, together with all malice, and be kind to
one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another as God in Christ has forgiven
you. In that spirit, I rejoice in
those members of our parish who have participated in discussion groups about
racism or who have visited sites that are significant in the struggle for
racial justice. I give thanks for all those who have been helping the Frotan
family from Afghanistan as they begin a new life in this country. I am grateful
for those who have joined me for Friday prayers at the masjid. I am touched by
the way so many individuals have channeled their energy and often their anger
into constructive action. The Holy Spirit is moving. What matters is that all
of us, empowered by that Spirit, find concrete ways that we can help build up a
vibrant community which embraces people of all races, all ethnic backgrounds,
all nationalities, all religions, all genders, all sexual orientations, all
political parties — that embraces everyone. When we do so, we are joining with
Christ in his ongoing work of healing the world and establishing the Reign of
God. And in that Reign, there is no place for hatred: love wins — always and
forever.
So
I will close on that note and let Ephesians have the final word: Live in love, as Christ loved us and gave
himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
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