Well, we got trouble (trouble, trouble), Right here in River City (trouble, trouble). Monsanto has managed to poison thousands of children in Argentina. The Affordable Health Care system overloaded on its first day. And now the Capitol Building has developed cracks around its cornices: will it collapse?? And what about that tower in Siloam? Is this the Apocalypse? How shall we read the Lessons for this coming Sunday in Beautiful October?
Some will say that the prophet Joel is a gloomy guy, yet all in all this small book points out the stars in the gathering dark. This week we’ll be urged to “be glad and rejoice in the Lord your God….(for) the threshing floors shall be full of grain, the vats shall overflow with wine and oil.” (2:24) Despite the earlier agonies, God’s children will find fulfillment and restoration, visions and dreams, and an abundance of Spirit to all, even slaves. Will there be signs, blood and fire and columns of smoke? Even there, those who call on the Lord will find safety! The “happy apocalypse” of Joel uncovers the true nature of what’s going on.
What can St. Paul say? His life has been a long experience of confrontations, stonings, banishment & imprisonment. And at the last, he writes from house-arrest, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” (II Timothy 4:7) As I myself enter an age of life when whining about what might have been would seem the norm, Paul pulls out of it by saying, “So I was rescued from the lion’s mouth. The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and save me for his heavenly kingdom.” (17c-18a) Back of the clouds, the stars shine brightly.
None of this is to say, “Be Happy, don’ Worry!” Each day brings new evils, and viscious reminders of the imperfections in and around us. Luke remembers (18:9-14) Jesus’ story about the Tax Collector and the Pharisee: the Tax Collector (an outcast) can acknowledge his many faults and be made right with God, while the Pharisee (an insider) can’t see much beyond his own self-righteousness. Basically, the story is about the Cosmic Battle between Good & Evil–but like these other apocalyptical tales, the surprise ending is that “God is about to do something good and we miss it because we are too scared to look.” (Donna Schaper)
A fella named Henry Bester wrote an essay (1928) about living for a full year in the outermost house on Cape Cod. He marveled at the travels of the shorebirds and the regularity of the crashing tides. But what he enjoyed most was watching the cosmos above on dark nights: to “learn to reverence night and to put away the vulgar fear of it.” The holy message of all our tomorrows is about receiving the gift of stars that shine in the dark.
“Once someone has become the prisoner of darkness, even ice cream looks bad.” (Schaper)
God Bless Us, Every One
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