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Happy New Year!   Here we go again:  the waiting, the anticipating.  The longing for One who will banish war and calm our fears about welcoming the sojourner.  Gary W. Charles reminds us, “The stories of Advent are dug from the harsh soil of human struggle and the littered landscape of dashed dreams.  They are told from the vista where sin still reigns supreme and hope has gone on vacation.”  (FEASTING ON THE WORD, C 1:3)

Jeremiah writes to the remnant of Israel in exile in Babylon, those who still mourn for the glory days and who have forgotten how to hope.  “The days are surely coming, says the Lord….I will cause a righteous Branch to spring up for David; and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land.” (33:14-15)  More than HolyHistory, the passage reminds waiters of every age that they still have a Story to finish.  Jeremiah pushes us to see God’s future, even drowning as we are in Today.

The Thessalonian Christians thought it was almost too good to be true!  St. Paul warmly thanks God for their discipleship, and prays for their perfection.  (I,3:9-13)  He looked for the sudden coming of Christ–the second Advent–in the midst of Greek and Roman politics and posturing.  Paul’s agenda is to encourage a community in process, and to “restore whatever is lacking” as the Church waits.  What will Jesus bring?

Luke’s Gospel remembers how Jesus confirmed that Time marches toward a Future. (21:25-36)  As Monty Python said, “And now, for something completely different!”.  We’ll be confused by the chaos of the roaring sea and the shaking of the “heavenly powers”.  But look!  “…stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”  (A colleague who knows more Greek than I do says that “to stand up” means “to unfold yourself”.)  “When you see these things taking place, you know that the kingdom of God is near.” (v.31)

Most of society will scoff at Proclaimers who dare speak of a coming alternative to exploitation, selfishness and fear.  Many Christmas fans would prefer to skip over Advent and its acknowledgement that Perfection has not yet arrived!  Yet this is an important Season, as we lift up a living hope that God’s dream will be soon realized…  What signs of the Kingdom do you recognize?  Are you one??

God Bless Us, Every One.             Horace Brown King

My thoughts on Scripture lessons for the upcoming weekend can be found here on Facebook every Tuesday.

While I still lived at home, my Dad would admonish me to not sully the family’s good name with my bad behavior:  “Remember –you’re a KING!”  What constitutes being a “good” King?  Many who would observe Christ the King Sunday–the fulfillment of the Christian Year!–may feel uncomfortable with the term.  Most of our ancestors came across The Pond to escape being under royal decree…

Nevertheless, our readings begin with The Last Words of King David, II Samuel 23:1-7.  Detractors would point out David’s adulteries, his rash and explosive personality, and his moments of moody introspection as being un-Kingly.  Yet David was chosen to form God’s earthly kingdom because of his human side, as well as his enlightened vision.  Let yourself be immersed in his description of Godly rule:  “like the light of the morning, like the sun rising on a cloudless morning, gleaming from the rain on the grassy land.”  Smell the air.  Feel the mist on your eyebrows.  What a grand morning!    (“I’ve got a wonderful feeling Everything’s going my way!”)

The lesson of Revelation (1:4b-8) falls in the greeting:  “…from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth.” (v.5)  This passage can yield lots of ideas, but I like this 5th verse for its description of the Lord as being sovereign even over local kings.  We live in a time of mega-competing royalties–money & jobs, international manipulation, family & education–which are not evil in themselves, as long as they’re seen as subservient to Christ.

Poor Pilate couldn’t grasp the idea of an allegiance beyond Rome.   Sent to uphold the things that were Caesar’s, he had little choice but to eliminate Jesus, whom he and others considered a pretender to the Empire. (John 18:33-37)  “So you are a king?”  Jesus answered, “YOU say that I am a king…”  Again, it’s a question of allegiance, where we put our ultimate trust.

Radical that I am, I won’t pledge allegiance to the flag–or to the republic for which it stands!  Some can be dual citizens, and each has to decide where their loyalty lies. (I’m quite compulsive about voting and paying my taxes.)  More and more often, in my advancing years, I find a large gap between what civil society proclaims and what the Christian ethic stands for.  I like my creature comforts too much to go to a hermitage…how then shall I live?  The question for all of us is, “What will you do with Christ the King?”

God Bless Us, Every One          Horace Brown King

This blog can be read each Tuesday in this space on Facebook.

What’s God gonna do next? is an ageless question.  Soothsayers of recent time or long ago have made and lost fortunes by reading tea leaves, bird entrails, clouds and seasonal signs.  Down deep, this is an acknowledgement that The Other is in ultimate control, much as we’d like to be the captain of our ship, the master of our soul.  In the words of Cassius, “The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars but in our selves…”   But don’t let the weekend’s readings degenerate into mere parlor tricks of predictions:  the Evangel is in presenting God’s Steadfast Love, still at work despite overwhelming odds.

The story of Hannah, Samuel’s mother, is found in the First Book of Samuel, 1:1-2:10.  Hannah was impossibly barren of children; but her intense prayers were rewarded by the birth of The Prophet.  She announces this Great Reversal:  “the bows of the mighty are broken, but the feeble gird on strength.” (2:4)  Nearing the end of the Christian Year, we’re refreshed by this vision of a Realm quickly progressing, one not dependent upon human strategies or momentary strength.  “The vision of reality sung by Hannah invites us to see the world as God intends, to behold what God is bringing about.  It is a vision that may sound surprising to some and may even be threatening to others.”  (Michael Pasquarello III, in FEASTING ON THE WORD. vol.B 4: 299)

The Letter to the Hebrew Christians is still comparing Jesus to the Temple’s High Priest (10:19-25).  The strength of this text is in what’s implied:  that Jesus has freed us from our anxiety about sin so that we may live as pioneers of an eternal country.  Believers are prodded beyond passive reception into active participation in that which is on our doorstep.  “And let us consider how to provoke one another to love and good deeds, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” (v.25)

“Look, Teacher, what large stones and what large buildings!” said the disciple (Mark 13:1)  But they won’t last, said Jesus: “all will be thrown down.”  Everything changes; but when??  There will be many “signs” and tumults, he said; always wars, earthquakes and famines.  So don’t follow every Chicken Little who announces that the sky is falling!  But do be alert, and open to what God is building.   Resist the easy answers and hold out for the coming of God to a heart near you…

How then do we move from darkness to light, from pity to parenthood, from musty tradition to the assurance of forgiveness?  Give thanks to a God who is present always–even in empty despair–and look for God’s surprising provision as each day unfolds…

God Bless Us, Every One!          Horace Brown King

Weekly insights into coming lectionary readings can be found in this spot on Facebook every Tuesday.

Despite the marketing of Yuletide hardware in the chain stores, the Body of Christ is now working toward and appreciating Bountiful Harvests and other indications of the approach of God’s Kingdom.  Prescribed readings for these several weeks will celebrate the richness of Creation and the blessings of life unfolding in Christ.  Although they appear unrelated, I’d like to suggest that lessons heard on the upcoming weekend carry a disguised common thread of God at work in everyday moments.

The Story of Ruth introduces the ancestry of David (therefore Jesus) through the conjugation of Ruth & Boaz (4:13-17).  A son was born, and Naomi immediately did the Grandma thing.  Her cronies announced that a son had been born “to Naomi”, and even named him Obed, “Servant of God”.  G. Malcolm Sinclair observes, “Part of the community’s strength is its realization that the Holy One is at work in the simplest, the earthiest, and the most authentic human experiences….Before all doctrine, theology, and liturgical tradition, there were simply people finding profound richness in the most ordinary and unlikely places.” (FEASTING ON THE WORD, year B #4:269-271)

The reading of Hebrews 9:24-28 can be pretty metaphysical–and oblique, if we’re not careful.  The main thrust is a comparison between earthly worship and that of eternity.  Some will get great mileage from the verses about Christ “appearing a second time…to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.”  Yet I’d take this in the direction of finding a Holy Presence where and when we’d least expect it, even and especially in human contrivances.  Because of Christ’s one-time intercession, we need have no angst about not being good enough!  If our relationship with God has already been cemented, why should our imperfections keep us up at night?

Mark’s Gospel remembrance (12:38-44) is also one of contrasts:  Jesus cautions against putting on religious airs, as the scribes do.  He points out the devout widow with her two-cents’ worth as the ultimate example of knowing God’s blessings, and responding with a more holy attitude.  This is often a “you can give more” sermon, which is OK–again, I’d like to lift up the aura of surprise where it’s least expected.  Does the Kingdom of God find its harvest of blessings in the faithful expectations of one on the bottom of the ladder?

These readings are aimed at the 99%, we inconsequential strivers after wind who bring our hopes and fears daily before God, often embarrassed by the meagerness of our spirituality.  We need to hear that the gates of God’s Kingdom are indeed open, that there are surprises down the road from the Keeper of ultimate promises.

God Bless Us, Every One                 Horace Brown King

My comments on the weekly readings can be found on Facebook every Tuesday