Those who are generous are blessed, for they share their
bread with the poor...Do not rob the poor...or crush the afflicted at the gate.[Proverbs 22:9,22]
Show your goodness, O LORD, to those who are
good and to those who are true of heart. [Psalm 125:4]
My brothers and sisters, do you with your acts
of favoritism really believe in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ…What good is
it…if you say you have faith but do not have works? [James 2:1, 14]
"But she answered [Jesus], "Sir,
even the dogs under the table eat the children's crumbs." Then he said to
her, "For saying that, you may go-- the demon has left your
daughter"...Then looking up to heaven, [Jesus] sighed and said to him,
"Ephphatha," that is, "Be opened." And immediately his ears
were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly. [Mark 7:28-29,
34-35]
In the midst of all
that is happening in this world at this moment, comes the appointed readings
for this week that are filled with instruction, imaging, warnings, and
questions. I'd prefer to escape and think about them another day as some of the
Proverbs and Psalm verses contain the harsh tones of the Old Testament God we
think we know. Yet there are also vibrant glimpses of the compassion and mercy
of our abiding God of Presence, the One who is the maker of us all.
We are admonished by the warnings and encouraged by the instructions reminding
us that awareness, attentiveness, and good works are keys to how we live into
the faith we claim and we ignore them at our eternal peril. In taking easier,
even unconscious paths in giving favor to ourselves and only certain others, by
not working on behalf of all our brothers and sisters, in following
the laws we like and not the ones we don't, our faith slowly falters and dies.
I'm rarely aware of how unaware of God I am in the rush of the day, the list to
be completed, life whipping by at warp speed. Then James asks if I really
believe...um...well, sure, when I'm consciously aware, attentively faithful, and when
in church, more or less. I have to think about what I believe, sometimes. Yet
at other times I'm absolutely certain but think that I don't have the time ~
that is, I don't take nearly enough time ~ to do very much about it.
And then here is Jesus saying, Ephphatha [EFf-ah-thah]~ "Be opened." This miraculous phrase gives me a pause, a
moment to breathe, a release from the self-imposed binding of mindless
selfishness. The writer of James is trying to open us to act on what we say we
believe, as faith is to always be accompanied by action. Even the
Syrophoenician woman opened herself ~ in an unexpected way for a woman of her
time ~ to talk back to Jesus in quite the stunning retort. As Jesus was in the
middle of his ministry, he was becoming well known for his healing and
preaching and sought after by his Jewish followers. Being confronted by a
non-Jewish (Gentile) woman asking for her child to be healed he told her, in effect,
that Jewish people (the
"children") should be fed (healed) first as it wasn't fair to throw their food (healing) to the dogs (Gentiles). Was he merely testing her or was he in turn also opened by her
candor when she replied, Sir, even the dogs
under the table eat the children's crumbs. Jesus replied, For saying that, you may go, as he
then healed her child.
As
Jesus healed the man who was deaf and couldn't speak clearly, he also heals us,
right now, in this moment. By these words we, too, can be opened to new
insight, new consciousness. We were created to live and act in faith, to be as
God wants us to be, to reap the harvest of eternal life, to love and treat
all our neighbors as if they were our own selves. As we explore and
re-discover a faith that has become less focused over time, it becomes more
conscious with every thought and kindness and prayer, and every action intentionally
centered in Christ. It is true that the rewards for our actions for and through Christ may be rare, yet even the tiniest crumbs of faith paired with
good acts and obedience to God's law, will live and thrive and grow within us.
Let us gather the energy of the crumbs of our faith from the soul-freshened nourishment
of our Christ’s teachings to live and move and have our being in Him [Acts 17:28]. A sentence from the post-Communion Prayers in the Episcopal Book
of Common Prayer (BCP page 365) sums it up quite beautifully: Send us now into the world in peace, and grant us strength and
courage to love and serve you with gladness and singleness of heart. AMEN.
LET
US, GOD’S PEOPLE, PRAY
Leader: ~ Most
Merciful Lord, rouse us from the distractions of our own time, that
we may turn crumbs of neglect into seeds of generosity that blossom into love
for our neighbors and ourselves. Guide us to fulfill the royal law according to
Scripture, and use our work in this earthly life as a reflection of our abiding
belief in You.
O God of Goodness
RESPONSE: Open our faith as Your love in action
~
Most Merciful Lord, empower our voices to disquiet the satisfaction
of those who profit from injustice, and help us turn aside those with crooked
ways. Let all who wield power in the halls of government on our Planet, in our
Nation, and in our Community, be true of heart, turn their trust to You, and
work to ensure the dignity and humanity of all. We pray especially
for: add your own petitions
O God of Goodness
Open
our faith as Your love in action
~
Most Merciful Lord, embrace and heal all who are lost in serious
illness or despair, and revive spirit and peace in all who give them loving
support. We now join our hearts to pray for those in need…add
your own petitions
O God of Goodness
Open
our faith as Your love in action
~
Most Merciful Lord, grant peace and comfort to those who grieve in
knowing that their beloved has risen into the bliss of life everlasting
with You. We pray especially for: add your own petitions
O God of Goodness
Open
our faith as Your love in action
~
Most Merciful Lord, we pause in this moment to offer You
our other heartfelt thanksgivings, intercessions, petitions, and memorials,
aloud or silently… add your own petitions
O God of Goodness
Open
our faith as Your love in action
~
Most Merciful Lord, as we come to the end of one season and the
beginning of another, renew and excite our spirits, especially of those who shepherd us on our journey to You. We pray especially for: add
your own petitions
O God of Goodness
Open
our faith as Your love in action
The
Celebrant adds: O
God, Maker of us all, open our ears to hear Your Word and release our tongues
to speak our faith plainly. Let us seek and honor Your ways in every thought,
word, and deed of our daily lives. We ask in the name of Jesus, our Glorious
Lord; and the Holy Spirit, the Breath of our Souls; who together with You reign
as one God from before all time and for evermore. Amen.
