Advent 1: Waking Up

12/2

Congratulations Dwight!

It's the first Sunday of Advent. It's a cold rainy day as I walk up Beverley Road under my umbrella. I notice a sign welcoming refugees.

a welcome on Beverly Road

When I get to the church, there's a sense of excitement. A baptism will tae place!  The first in a long time....

Here is my reflection for the day...

There's a word the kids use to describe a certain sense, a certain awareness of reality. It's "woke"....which kind of means that something was going on and you weren't quite aware of it, but now you are and from here on out you are responsible.  ( The first words of Spike Lee's "Do the Right Thing" were WAKE UP!) That's what we're up to on this first Sunday of Advent.

Of course in any given Advent we are experiencing 3 advent simultaneously...the word means to come....so what  are we waiting for? what is to come?

First, there is the celebration fo the first Advent, when God came to be present with us in human form in the person of Jesus.  Then there is this Christmas, the one that's coming right at us like an onrushing train whether we're ready for it not or not. (And  in our minds of course, the memories  of all the  Christmases that have come before...) And finally the ultimate Advent, the expectation of Jesus' return. That's where "woke" comes in. There's this heavy apocalyptic feel to this moment.

Luke is filled with signs....earth distress among nations confused by the roaring of the sea and the waves......certainly climate phenomena seem all the more violent...storms lash vulnerable communities...Puerto  Rico has yet to recover....

California wildfires rage out of control....Berlin "suffers" with beautiful weather because there has been no rain for months ...and the Spree gets lower all the time..

And there are more people on the move than ever before.  Thousands of Africans trapped in Sicily because other EU countries won't let them in. New right wing government in Italy criminalizing aid to refugees. More than half a million Venezuelans fled to Ecuador. 50000 Nicaraguans have fled to Costa Rica. And the "caravan" from lawless  Honduras edges closer to our border. And we fire tear gas canisters at mothers and babies across the border. While thousands of children separated from their parents are in a detention camp in the desert. Taking all these things in...that's what "woke"means. 

It would be easy to read these signs as filled with apocalyptic meaning. And of course at some level, every age can be demonstrably apocalyptic, at least for some people. Carefully detailed scenarios come and go in every generation. Remember, Jesus said, Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all things have taken place.....and since then, 66 generations have passed away....but more importantly.. 33Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.....

Jesus wants us to  be AWAKE to what's going on around us and NOT worried about end times...but to begin living as if redemption is near, or better, as if we are already redeemed....

Think about this..."Be on guard so that your hearts are not weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of this life, and that day catch you unexpectedly, 35like a trap. 

...okay, the drunkenness and dissipation is pretty clear....but also notice ....."the worries of this life...." worrying is right up there with drunkenness...it robs life of tis richness, fills our heads, makes us pre-occupied. Like a parking lot with no empty spaces or the subway just about any day these days. I used to find Bobby McFerrin's "Don't worry be happy"  annoying but I've begun to feel it's profound. Worry can be a substitute for actually doing something about it. 

When I was in Berlin, I got to experience one of the greatest joys anyone can have, the arrival of my second grandchild, my granddaughter Karla. Today we are blessed with the opportunity to celebrate perhaps the most joyous moment in church life, a baptism. Today the baptism of Dwight Stephens. 

Every child is a vote in favor of life. 
Every child is a new statement of hope. 
And every child is a new opportunity.

So while we begin our  journey to the celebration of the Christ Child, let us rejoice in the opportunity to celebrate the life of THIS  child.  In our tradition, Baptism is a community sacrament. We all share in responsibility for this child's understanding of Christian community. May we embrace this call as the gift it is....

We share in communion. Then it's time for Dwight's baptism. An extended family is gathered. Dwight is more toddler than baby and is suspicious when I bring the water it his head, but baptized in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit he is.

The people are ready to continue the celebration. I am off to celebrate my birthday with my family back in Manhattan. Advent has begun. 




Gospel Luke 21:25-36

25"There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars, and on the earth distress among nations confused by the roaring of the sea and the waves. 26People will faint from fear and foreboding of what is coming upon the world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 27Then they will see 'the Son of Man coming in a cloud' with power and great glory. 28Now when these things begin to take place, stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near."

29Then he told them a parable: "Look at the fig tree and all the trees; 30as soon as they sprout leaves you can see for yourselves and know that summer is already near. 31So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that the kingdom of God is near. 32Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all things have taken place. 33Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.

34"Be on guard so that your hearts are not weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of this life, and that day catch you unexpectedly, 35like a trap. For it will come upon all who live on the face of the whole earth. 36Be alert at all times, praying that you may have the strength to escape all these things that will take place, and to stand before the Son of Man."

"BlackKklansman": valuable resource for the conversation

11/21

Spike Lee's "BlackKklansman"

As BlackKklansman makes it's way from the theaters  to various platforms, it's valuable to take a look at what is a most valuable resource  in our struggle with white privilege and its ongoing power in our national life. As always, Spike Lee knows how to entertain  us even as he seeks to educate, irritate and hopefully instigate.

Based on the true story of Ron Stallworth, the first African American police officer in  Colorado Springs who actually joined the  Klan and developed a relationship with David Duke, there's a number of points worth looking at:

* Set in 1972, it's shocking how the events depicted could just as well be from today.
* Kwame Toure (Stokely Carmichael)'s description of the wantonness of police violence against black people continues to be tragically accurate.
* The racism Stallworth confronts within the police department continues. Perhaps the most disturbing moment is when Stallworth, as an undercover  officer, is making an arrest of a white female terrorist planting  a bomb, he's taken down and beaten by police who assume he's black criminal until his partner arrives. 
* The Ku Klux Klan included active duty members of the US military
* Stallworth has to wrestle with the feelings of his own community about police.
* Stallworth's Jewish partner, who becomes the physical embodiment of the character Stallworth has created, slowly comes to an awareness that as a Jew, he has "skin in this game" too. 
* Watching the flames of a KKK cross burning fade into the tiki torches of Charlottesville was chilling.
* Equally chilling is after seeing the semi-comical David Duke of the movie, we see today's real David Duke praising President Donald Trump for "speaking the truth" and moving the country in the right direction."

Although some dramatic license has been employed, Lee let's us know that the film is based on some "shonuff fo real shit." There predictably have been numerous ideologically based critiques of this film,  mainly related to presenting a hero who is a police officer and variations of that theme. I'm not really interested in engaging those arguments. Any particular story is its own story and not the whole story. And this story, on it's own, is valuable in giving us rich...and entertaining...material fro reflection and conversation. It's a long road.