Connecting the Dots
Easter 5B
Acts 8:26-40; 1 John 4:7-21; John 15:1-8
5/10/09
Lorraine Ljunggren

        When I was a kid, I liked coloring books. I especially liked the ones that included pages on which there were dots. Before I could color the picture, I had to connect the dots because the dots outlined the picture. Makes sense, right? Well, the dots were numbered in sequence which meant it should be easy to connect the dots. But I can recall times when I had to backtrack because I drew the line to a numbered dot out of sequence. There were also times when I thought I had accounted for all the dots only to discover I'd totally missed one. That meant the picture I outlined was off kilter and I needed to re-draw the picture.

        In reading today's lessons I realized how quickly the early Christian community connected the dots between their inherited Jewish tradition and their experience of Jesus. In the Acts of the Apostles we witness Philip drawing a line from the prophetic tradition of Israel to the life and ministry of Jesus of Nazareth.

        Mysteriously, a heavenly messenger instructs Philip to take the road towards Gaza from Jerusalem. In doing so Philip ends up having a significant conversation with an unnamed but distinguished man, a court official of the Candace, queen of the Ethiopians. The two talk about one of the Servant Songs from the Prophet Isaiah which the court official is reading. For the Ethiopian, Philip connects the dots between the suffering of the servant in Isaiah and the suffering Jesus underwent in Jerusalem. Philip went on to proclaim the good news about Jesus which, I believe, had to include Jesus' triumph over death in the Resurrection. Whatever else the two discussed, it led to the baptism of the Ethiopian. There was obviously something very compelling about the way in which Philip shared the story of Jesus with the stranger-become-friend on the road to Gaza. The Spirit then enters to move Philip to yet another place to continue his ministry.

        So, this past week I found it interesting to read someone's theory that “…neither the Ethiopian nor Philip is the main character in this story. The star player is the Holy Spirit who, quite dramatically sometimes, moves people around so they will be in exactly the right place at exactly the right time to say and do exactly the right things.” (James S. Lowry, “Preaching the 2009 Easter Texts,” Journal for Preachers, p. 7, Easter 2009)

        Which raises a question about us. Are we willing to allow the Holy Spirit to move us around so that we'll be in exactly the right place at exactly the right time to say and do exactly the right things?

        If our answer is, “Yes, we're willing to open ourselves to the movement of the Spirit in our lives,” then where do we imagine we might end up?

        If we take Jesus' life as our framework, I'm thinking we're likely to end up in some places and among people who are likely to – what do you think? – who are likely to agree with everything we think and say and do? Or, among people who may challenge what we believe or whose manner of life will make us uncomfortable or whose place in the world's pecking order is way down on the list? If we think the latter answer is more likely, then we're closer to following Jesus than to following many leaders of our day, some of whom we must acknowledge are leaders of faith communities.

        As I was mulling over today's readings, I was also reading reports coming from the meeting of the Anglican Consultative Council. This is the one international body of our church that includes lay persons among voting members. When I read what was being said at the meeting and thinking what resolutions would likely get the most press, I realized that we Christians aren't always very good at connecting the dots between the world's needs and how we spend our energy.

        Here I am thinking our mission is to be prophetic – to speak words of hope and peace to a broken world – a world that lives in fear most of the time. And, what will likely be covered most in the media and the blogs will be a resolution passed that affirms we not consecrate bishops living in same-sex partnerships and not to authorize public rites of blessing same-sex union. (Episcopal News Service Online, 5/8/09)

        I think affirming moratoria on these two aspects of our common life misses the point of our calling. I believe the point is our living deeply into and being passionately committed to the promises Episcopalians and many other Anglicans make in our Baptism: to strive for justice and peace among all people, respecting the dignity of every human being!

        I do know that to be an LGBT person in some countries is a crime. I dearly hope collectively we can encourage governments to change those laws so that all citizens may be free. I find such laws to be heart-breaking at best.

        But I also want the front pages of newspapers and blogs and the lead stories on TV and radio stations to include the times we are prophetic – when we do connect the dots between God's love for all of God's people and the dreadful conditions found in every nation around this world including ours.

        I want people to know the Anglican Consultative Council also passed resolutions “to establish an Anglican Health Network, to have members of our church encourage government leaders to endorse the U.N. Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples [which the U.S. hasn't signed], to support ministries with young people, to support the elimination of all forms of violence against women and girls, to encourage provinces to protect women's rights and welfare. The ACC also urges all Anglicans to be 'bold in preaching reconciliation and facilitating peace-making dialogues in every situation of war and conflict,' to support the concept of healing through truth-telling, repentance and restorative justice; to urge the implementation of conflict-transformation training…” (adapted, Episcopal News Service Online, 5/5/09)

        For these resolutions to have any hope of bearing fruit, you and I and people like us have to be willing to let the Spirit lead us to be in the right place at the right time to say and do the right things! Inviting the Spirit to lead us – being willing to believe the Spirit can lead us, my friends, will empower us do amazing things – things others may say cannot be done.

        If we are to connect the dots, to re-draw the picture of our world, then we must be open to the Spirit – especially as the Spirit reveals God's love to us. If we are to re-draw the picture of our world, I deeply believe that people of faith – of all faiths – that people of faith are called to work together to transform brokenness into wholeness, war into peace, disease into health, and fear into hope.

        To find the courage and the will to do these things, I would point us to what the scripture says: “Beloved, let us love one another, because love is from God; everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love. ...No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God lives in us, and God's love is perfected in us. By this we know that we abide in God and God in us, because God has given us of God's Spirit.... There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear... Those who say 'I love God,' and hate their brothers or sisters, are liars; for those who do not love a brother or sister whom they have seen, cannot love God whom they have not seen. The commandment we have from God is this: those who love God must love their brothers and sisters also.” (1 Jn. 4:7-8, 12-13,18a, 20-21)

        Personally, I haven't found another way to connect the dots other than by believing that God loves me, that to follow Jesus is to picture the world as it might be, and to count on the Holy Spirit to show me the way.

        And, what's more, we don't have to create the dots, we have only to put our strength and energy into connecting the dots. There are resources in place in the Episcopal Church to educate us about addressing the systemic issues that are at the root of so many problems for God's people around the world: There are the Millennium Development Goals about which we pray each week and work towards. There Episcopal Relief and Development which helps people around the globe experiencing disasters of various kinds. In Washington, D.C. we also have the Episcopal Public Policy Network which keeps us aware of legislation before Congress that impacts the lives of God's people, and which can help train us in working for systemic change. The Advocacy Center of the Episcopal Church USA is accessible online from our national church. Plus, all the ways St. Mark's is already involved locally to reach out to those around us who need us.

        My sisters and brothers, as we continue to celebrate the Season of Easter, may we know ourselves to be loved by God, to have Jesus the Christ to show us a picture of the world as it can be, and to have the Holy Spirit to show us the way to re-draw the picture! Amen.

©2009 Lorraine Ljunggren