Second Sunday of Easter: 2020
"The
great Easter truth
is
not that we will be born again someday --
but that we are to be alive here and now
by the power of the resurrection.”
but that we are to be alive here and now
by the power of the resurrection.”
This verse came to me on an Easter card --
so long ago that I don't remember either the who or the when --
but every year it reminds me
that Easter is not just an ancient story
but a present reality.
so long ago that I don't remember either the who or the when --
but every year it reminds me
that Easter is not just an ancient story
but a present reality.
And every year it reminds me that “here and
now”
is sometimes easier said than done ...
teaches me once again
that celebrating the resurrection
is sometimes a whole lot easier
is sometimes easier said than done ...
teaches me once again
that celebrating the resurrection
is sometimes a whole lot easier
than figuring out how to recognize it.
And that has perhaps never been more true
And that has perhaps never been more true
than in this year of unprecedented challenges
in the wake of the COVID19 pandemic.
So if you're struggling with that this morning --
as I know I am --
I hope you'll take heart -- as I do --
that we’re in good company.
in the wake of the COVID19 pandemic.
So if you're struggling with that this morning --
as I know I am --
I hope you'll take heart -- as I do --
that we’re in good company.
Notice that throughout these Fifty Days of
Easter
we will hear the stories of those who actually
had the direct experience of the Risen Lord –
and still struggled to figure out this resurrection thing.
we will hear the stories of those who actually
had the direct experience of the Risen Lord –
and still struggled to figure out this resurrection thing.
There were the women at the tomb –
who seemed to had an attack of collective
amnesia
about Jesus telling them he would rise after three days.
It took the angels to remind them of that rather important detail.
about Jesus telling them he would rise after three days.
It took the angels to remind them of that rather important detail.
And then when they ran back to tell the
disciples;
who Luke tells us “dismissed it as an idle
tale.”
(There's a whole 'nother sermon in that ...
but not for today.)
There was Mary in the garden
mistaking the risen Jesus for the gardener.
And then there is this morning’s Gospel
where Jesus appears to the disciples:
who John tells us “were huddling in fear behind locked doors.”
who John tells us “were huddling in fear behind locked doors.”
Nevertheless, Jesus appeared and “breathed on
them.”
Except for Thomas,
who is stuck with going down in history as
“Doubting Thomas”
for his refusal to accept the testimony of
others,
for his demand of his own experience of the risen Lord.
for his demand of his own experience of the risen Lord.
What took him away from the community that
day?
Why was he out of the room?
Had they drawn lots for someone to run out for food?
Had they drawn lots for someone to run out for food?
We’ll never know -- but there are plenty of possibilities.
Imagine, missing one Sunday, and coming back
to hear
“Guess who showed up while you were gone?”
Would you believe it?
It’s always seemed a bit unfair to me
how quick we are to make Thomas
the poster child for faithless doubt when –
truth be told -- the rest of the bunch
weren’t exactly stepping up.
the poster child for faithless doubt when –
truth be told -- the rest of the bunch
weren’t exactly stepping up.
What strikes me
about this story every single year
is
that Thomas came back at all.
Whatever
had taken him away from the community,
he came back.
he came back.
And
it was in the community that Jesus came to him,
and -- without so much as a confession or absolution --
went straight to Thomas – with hands outstretched –
knowing what Thomas needed to believe and giving it to him, saying:
“Here ... check it out. Is this what you need? Touch, me Thomas.”
and -- without so much as a confession or absolution --
went straight to Thomas – with hands outstretched –
knowing what Thomas needed to believe and giving it to him, saying:
“Here ... check it out. Is this what you need? Touch, me Thomas.”
One of Thomas’ great
virtues
was
that he absolutely refused
to say that he understood what he did not understand,
or that he believed what he did not believe.
There was an uncompromising honesty about him:
he would never still his doubts by pretending they did not exist.
to say that he understood what he did not understand,
or that he believed what he did not believe.
There was an uncompromising honesty about him:
he would never still his doubts by pretending they did not exist.
Thomas had doubts,
but he refused to surrender to the fear
which kept the disciples shut up in that locked room.
which kept the disciples shut up in that locked room.
He both ventured
out
and
then had the courage to return:
to face a community which had had an experience he did not share
and to be willing to insist on his own experience of God.
to face a community which had had an experience he did not share
and to be willing to insist on his own experience of God.
And so for me,
Thomas becomes a symbol not of faithless doubt,
but
of courage.
Courage to trust
that there are no
doubts so profound that God cannot answer --
to believe that Jesus cares enough to show up a second time ...
a third time ... an umpteenth time ...
to breathe that breath of life on Thomas – and on us ...
to give us what we need not only to believe
to believe that Jesus cares enough to show up a second time ...
a third time ... an umpteenth time ...
to breathe that breath of life on Thomas – and on us ...
to give us what we need not only to believe
but the courage to
act on what we believe.
I truly believe that it was Thomas'
willingness to doubt
that led him to an even deeper faith:
a faith that was his own and not somebody else's.
In words I have often quoted before,
that led him to an even deeper faith:
a faith that was his own and not somebody else's.
In words I have often quoted before,
Verna Dozier famously wrote:
Doubt is not the opposite of faith: fear is. Fear will not risk that even if I am wrong, I will trust that if I move today by the light that is given me, knowing it is only finite and partial, I will know more and different things tomorrow than I know today, and I can be open to the new possibility I cannot even imagine today.
Thomas' example calls us to risk the doubts
that call us to greater faith --
that open us to the things we cannot even
image today --
that equip us to recognize resurrection
as we move forward into God's future.
And I cannot imagine a time when the gift of being open to new possibilities is more crucial than it is right now.
And I cannot imagine a time when the gift of being open to new possibilities is more crucial than it is right now.
·
New possibilities of cooperation between
public and private sectors in creating safety nets for the most vulnerable
among us;
·
New possibilities for worship and community
building on virtual platforms as we re-imagine what it means to "be
church" in the world;
·
New possibilities for dismantling the
polarization and division that have infected our civic discourse;
·
New possibilities for changes to our economic
system that continues to build more wealth for the few and perpetuates debt and
poverty for the many;
·
New possibilities for reversing the damage we
have done to this fragile Earth, our island home;
·
New possibilities for healthcare equally
available to all and for ending the affordable housing crisis;
·
New possibilities to finally become a nation where
“liberty and justice for ALL” is not just a pledge we make but a reality we
live.
The story of Thomas
speaks with particular power to generations
of Christians
like us
who inherit the stories of the risen Lord,
but who must -- at some point --
insist on their own experience of Christ
as we continue to make the great Easter truth
not just an ancient story
but a present reality.
Continue to strive to be alive -- here and now -- by the power of the resurrection.
Continue to strive to be alive -- here and now -- by the power of the resurrection.
Continue to have the courage to ask for what
Thomas asked for --
and to trust that just as Jesus met Thomas where he was
and to trust that just as Jesus met Thomas where he was
and gave him what he needed to believe
He will do the same for us when we need Him
to.
What we celebrate
as we journey into the fifty days of this
Easter season
is the awesome privilege and responsibility
of being the church in the world:
being Jesus on earth:
being the place
where those who come seeking the risen
Christ,
doubts and all,
not only seek but find
that breath of new life that God offers all
creation.
Listen to Jesus say today:
See me.
Touch me.
Ask for what you need in order to believe
and I will give it to you.
And then,
give thanks that Easter is not just a Sunday
but a season
and that we have 50 days ahead of us
to celebrate the great Easter truth
and that we have 50 days ahead of us
to celebrate the great Easter truth
... not that we are going to live newly after
death,
but that we are to be new here and now
by the power of the resurrection.
Alleluia, Alleluia. Amen.
[Preached via Zoom on Sunday, April 19 for the 11:15 service; All Saints Church, Pasadena]
[Preached via Zoom on Sunday, April 19 for the 11:15 service; All Saints Church, Pasadena]