Musings for Pentecost 15

Sunday, September 13, 2009
Lectionary 24
Proper 19
Fifteenth Sunday after Pentecost

INTRODUCTION
Three weeks ago we heard John's gospel's version of Peter's confession of faith. This week we hear Mark's version, when Peter says, "You are the Messiah." In John, the stumbling block is Jesus' invitation to eat his flesh, given for the life of the world. In Mark too the scandal has to do with Jesus' words about his own coming death, and here Peter himself stumbles over Jesus' words. But Jesus is anointed (the meaning of "messiah") in Mark only on the way to the cross (14:3); so we are anointed in baptism with the sign of the cross.

John Chrysostom, Bishop of Constantinople, died 407
John was a priest in Antioch and an outstanding preacher. His eloquence earned him the nickname "Chrysostom" ("golden mouth"). Appointed bishop of Constantinople, seat of the empire, he criticized corruption in the court. As a result, he was exiled by the empress.


Prayer of the Day (ELW)
O God, through suffering and rejection you bring forth our salvation, and by the glory of the cross you transform our lives. Grant that for the sake of the gospel we may turn from the lure of evil, take up our cross, and follow your Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.

First Reading Isaiah 50:4–9a
The image of the servant of the Lord is one of the notable motifs in the book of Isaiah. Today’s reading describes the mission of the servant, whom early Christians associated with Jesus. Like Jesus, the servant does not strike back at his detractors but trusts in God’s steadfast love.

4The Lord GOD has given me
the tongue of a teacher,
that I may know how to sustain
the weary with a word.
Morning by morning he wakens —
wakens my ear
to listen as those who are taught.
5The Lord GOD has opened my ear,
and I was not rebellious,
I did not turn backward.
6I gave my back to those who struck me,
and my cheeks to those who pulled out the beard;
I did not hide my face
from insult and spitting.
7The Lord GOD helps me;
therefore I have not been disgraced;
therefore I have set my face like flint,
and I know that I shall not be put to shame;
8he who vindicates me is near.
Who will contend with me?
Let us stand up together.
Who are my adversaries?
Let them confront me.
9It is the Lord GOD who helps me;
who will declare me guilty?

Psalm 116:1–9
I will walk in the presence of the LORD. (Ps. 116:9)
1I love the LORD, who has heard my voice,
and listened to my supplication,
2for the LORD has given ear to me
whenev- er I called.
3The cords of death entangled me;
the anguish of the grave came upon me;
I came to grief and sorrow.
4Then I called upon the name of the LORD:
"O LORD, I pray you, save my life."
5Gracious is the LORD and righteous;
our God is full of compassion.
6The LORD watches o- ver the innocent;
I was brought low, and God saved me.
7Turn again to your rest, O my soul.
for the LORD has dealt well with you.
8For you have rescued my life from death,
my eyes from tears, and my feet from stumbling;
9I will walk in the presence of the LORD
in the land of the living.

Second Reading James 3:1–12
This text uses various images to illustrate how damaging and hurtful the way we speak to and about others can be. Not only are we to control our speech, but what we say and how we say it is to reflect our faith.

Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers and sisters, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. 2For all of us make many mistakes. Anyone who makes no mistakes in speaking is perfect, able to keep the whole body in check with a bridle. 3If we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we guide their whole bodies. 4Or look at ships: though they are so large that it takes strong winds to drive them, yet they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. 5So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great exploits.
How great a forest is set ablaze by a small fire! 6And the tongue is a fire. The tongue is placed among our members as a world of iniquity; it stains the whole body, sets on fire the cycle of nature, and is itself set on fire by hell. 7For every species of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by the human species, 8but no one can tame the tongue — a restless evil, full of deadly poison. 9With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse those who are made in the likeness of God. 10From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this ought not to be so. 11Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and brackish water? 12Can a fig tree, my brothers and sisters, yield olives, or a grapevine figs? No more can salt water yield fresh.

Gospel Mark 8:27–38
This story provides the turning point in Mark’s gospel. Peter is the first human being in the narrative to acknowledge Jesus as the Messiah, but he cannot accept that as the Messiah Jesus will have to suffer. Moreover, Jesus issues a strong challenge to all by connecting discipleship and the cross.

27Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way he asked his disciples, "Who do people say that I am?" 28And they answered him, "John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets." 29He asked them, "But who do you say that I am?" Peter answered him, "You are the Messiah." 30And he sternly ordered them not to tell anyone about him.
31Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 32He said all this quite openly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. 33But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, "Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things."
34He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, "If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 35For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it. 36For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life? 37Indeed, what can they give in return for their life? 38Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels."

Reflection
So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great exploits.
Oh that we all had the “golden mouth” of St. John Chrysostom, a priest and bishop of the church in the 4th century A.D. He had such gifts for preaching that 300 of his sermons survived the centuries and continue to speak to 21st century Christians. Unfortunately, the same golden mouthed oration that proclaimed the word and inspired the faithful also caused St. John Chrysostom’s repeated banishment from his position as Archbishop of Constantinople. Whether fearless or tactless, his preaching against the excesses of those in power motivated Christians to destroy pagan temples and idols. The enemies he made in the process eventually joined together and forced his banishment.
St. John Chrysostom’s life demonstrated the power of language in our lives. Failure to recognize that power can lead to horrible consequences. S. I. Hayakawa, in the introduction to his book Language in Thought and Action cautioned:
The original version of this book, Language in Action, published in 1941, was in many respects a response to the dangers of propaganda, especially as exemplified in Adolf Hitler's success in persuading millions to share his maniacal and destructive views. It was the writer's conviction then, as it remains now, that everyone needs to have a habitually critical attitude towards language — his own as well as that of others — both for the sake of his personal well-being and for his adequate functioning as a citizen. Hitler is gone, but if the majority of our fellow-citizens are more susceptible to the slogans of fear and race hatred than to those of peaceful accommodation and mutual respect among human beings, our political liberties remain at the mercy of any eloquent and unscrupulous demagogue.
The power of language grows stronger with each passing day as the pace of information dissemination accelerated. Unscrupulous manipulation of words has become the norm rather than the exception in political discourse stifling thoughtful debate and discernment with the fear caused by rumors, half-truths and lies. As we drink from the fire hose of information bombarding us how can we filter out deadly and poisonous language?
Jesus’ has a simple answer. As Peter unleashes his tongue to convince Jesus, and perhaps the other disciples, that the path to victory does not go through suffering and death, Jesus, in front of all the disciples rebukes Peter saying “Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.” Jesus understands the power of language and insists on having his words heard as they he has spoken them and not reinterpreted or twisted to meet the needs and desires of humans.
We must listen to Christ’s words with fully open ears and without conforming them to our own values or desires. We must attempt to bridle our wild tongues and use Christ’s words filter the human from the divine as we speak and listen. We must reign in our cursing of those made in the image of God and bless the Lord our God filling our own mouths with golden praise.

Prayer Concerns

• For all those who hold public office; That they may speak and hear with truth and integrity.
• For all those serving our country in foreign lands; That God may keep them safe until they return home.
• For all those who are ill; Particularly for organist and composer Paul Manz as he faces colon cancer.
• For bountiful harvests; That the fruits of God’s creation and the labor of farmers and gardeners continues to feed and nourish God’s people.

Quote:
Thanks to words, we have been able to rise above the brutes; and thanks to words, we have often sunk to the level of the demons. - Aldous Huxley

We are to fear and love God so that we do not tell lies about our neighbors, betray or slander them, or destroy their reputations. Instead we are to come to their defense, speak well of them, and interpret everything they do in the best possible light. – Martin Luther, The Small Catechism