Letting Go of Being Right - Matthew 5: 1-12 All Saints

Letting Go of Being Right

Tony E Dillon-Hansen

1 November 2017

Last updated: Nov 1, 2017 12:32

A reflection based upon Revelation 7:9-17 • Psalm 34:1-10,22 • 1 John 3:1-3 • Matthew 5: 1-12

If you were looking for a grand oration

or drama filled fireworks today,

let me lower your expectations.

Vespers is meant to be light “evensong”,

so that kind of fanfare was not really in the cards.

Still, I was trying to figure how to tie our sermon theme

“Letting Go of Being Right”

with this solemn service of saints.

Will you pray with me?  Let God guide our senses, our hearts and our ears to receive the lesson given to us.  May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable in your sight O Lord, our Rock, Our Redeemer.  Amen.

Let us begin today,

we solemnly remember and celebrate those

who were Saints and those who have died this past year.

We honor these people ...

Let us pause.

From Matthew 5, “Blessed are those who morn, for they will be comforted.”

Let us be comforted.

For me, this is a day of personal remembrance as well,

since my dad lost a battle with cancer one year ago this month.

Let me tell you a little bit of his story

because I believe he has another lesson to teach.

My dad grew up MO Synod Lutheran,

served in the Air Force during Vietnam,

he married my mother (43 years long),

became devout Catholic (Mass was not an option in our house),

and my dad served Kansas and Iowa as a corrections officer. 

His life was about service through his final weeks

-- eagerly volunteering for veteran honor guard

saluting fellow veterans at their funerals.

In turn, those comrades honored Dad at his funeral,

and those guns still echo --loud and clear.

During that last year,

my dad and I had some deep conversations

and we prayed a lot together.

One thing that he kept questioning was

whether he had lived a good life. 

Growing up,

my dad and I had many disagreements and strong opinions

that at times strained our relations.

When the prognosis turned years into weeks,

Dad was less concerned about being right

but more about being with his family and friends and sharing the stories. 

I was less concerned about being right too

and more about listening to his stories.

You wonder, what does this have to do with “All Saints Day”

and I am glad you asked.

For “All Saints”, the Church historically celebrates this day to honor canonized saints

and those that have fallen in the past year.

A point to consider is that if we would rather be “right”

(as in holding onto judgements, preconceptions, or supposed privilege even)

than hold onto love, to listen and to have faith (in either each other or in God),

we may miss opportunities to share a story and to see the saints

that are next to us and within each of us. 

When my dad and I learned to forgive and to listen to each other,

our relationship grew abundantly

and thankfully before it was too late.

We still had disagreements.

Yet, we were willing to listen to each other

and realize the real potential inside each of us.

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The thing is that even saints were not perfect -- stumbled a little here and there,

but they got up, listened and opened their hearts.

Sometimes,

being a saint requires an act of sincere contrition/apology on our part.

Sometimes,

being a saint is saying I have had enough injustice.

These can be hard.

With God’s help,

we can do this because from Matthew

“blessed are the [humble] & blessed are the merciful.”

A judgmental attitude can happen

in our many relationships like with

a spouse,

a sibling,

a co-worker

or even, dare I say, some politicians.

The “I told you so” response does little to help us learn from each other.

Simply, if being right is our focus instead of love,

our scripture (1 John) suggests that we may not be pure in heart

and may not recognize that YOU are one of God’s children

and so is the one on your left and on your right.

All are God’s children.

(Your neighbor deserves a hug as there is a child of God.)

The scripture might suggest the question is:

“What can you do to open the door to better conversation and learning?”

When we cloud our eyes and attitudes with judgement and self-righteousness,

we can lose the ability to connect,

to have compassion,

or to do God’s work even though we are all God’s children.

When we remove those clouds of judgment,

suddenly there is a whole world of saints

from which we can learn and grow.

Then, we can see and be the authentically “pure in heart.”

That is a gift to each of us.

My father wondered if he lived a good life,

and because we listened and prayed -- together,

I could witness a pure heart.

His life was faith, love and forgiveness.

You and I don’t have to wait for a cancer diagnosis (or honor salute) to realize

there are saints in your lives and doing miracles.

God is calling us, nudging us.

Lean in,

We can hear God speaking in different ways through the people around us.

Open your hearts.

Just like our friends remembered here today,

many people live lives of great faith and service to their community

without so much as a Twitter hashtag.

Saints may not have lived perfect lives,

but then again, who here is perfect? 

They were all children of God.

They lead lives with some faith, hope and service.

Maybe, they just listened,

served their community,

or shared a meal or home.

They may have lived lives of their own quiet desperations,

and yet, in doing so,

they gave others around them purpose

-- just by being.

That is a miracle

and that is cause for remembrance and celebration.

For us that mourn, Revelations says that

“God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”

We are reminded that we can be pure of heart too.

Again, Scripture tells us we are all children of God. 

When we welcome and truly listen,

we can witness the saint within us,

because ultimately,

we just want to be remembered well.

Time is fleeting.

Be a saint and enjoy the saints around you today

before you cannot.

With God’s grace,

you know there is a purpose provided for you.

Jesus tells us that we are blessed,

not by being right or self-righteous,

but by being merciful,

a peacemaker,

and pure of heart.

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Thanks Be to God.

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Letting Go of Privilege - Matthew 21

Letting Go of Privilege

Tony E Dillon-Hansen

6 October 2017 13:01

A sermon based upon Exodus 20:1-20 • Psalm 19 • Philippians 3:4b-14 • Matthew 21: 33-46

Will you pray with me?  Let God guide our senses, our hearts and our ears to receive the lesson given to us.  May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable in your sight O Lord, our Rock, Our Redeemer.  Amen.

When people talk about the word privilege, there may be some ideas in mind.  Privilege evokes an honor, a gift or a permission.

You hear phrases like:

It was a privilege to meet you!

It was a privilege to stand next to you at your wedding!

It was privilege to write that check!

Privilege becomes a badge of honor, pride or status.

These raise some questions.

How do you get that privilege?

Did you earn it?

Did you achieve or win a victory? Dinner in your honor with many praises!

How about, were you born into it?

I wonder how many people would say it is a privilege to be born poor

or to have broken bones. People generally don’t say these.

Then, I wonder if the fellow at Las Vegas thought it was privilege to own so many guns. I doubt many of the victims would consider that experience to be a privilege.

The thing about privilege is that it says little about the person. One can have wealth, rights and status and use them with compassion. If you use your privilege to mock someone, to deny fair chances or to murder, what does that say about privilege or the person.

Having a flare for the dramatic, our scripture starts with the apostle kind of chest-beating, almost bragging. I come from the great tribe of Benjamin; I was a Pharisee; I was a lawyer. There is a lawyer joke in there.  You can almost see a man flaunting robes like someone smearing us with all the great places they have been. You read this part and kind of think so does that make me chopped liver? Could he be any more of a jerk?

Then, the lesson sharply pivots. That next line could be summed up in the word, “Excrement!” as coined by Dead Poets’ Society, Professor Keating, (played by Robin Williams).

For all these marks of honor, prestige and “privilege”, none of that compares to knowing Christ and working Christ’s mission. One’s righteousness is based in “faith in Christ.”  Nothing else matters.

Faith in Christ provides a real sense of direction. You can hear the sweet anticipation of “I am so close and I can almost touch it.”

This is a reminder that the achievement, honor and privilege is not a finale. There is work yet to be done because the goal is not yet achieved. The epistle practically yells, “press on toward the goal the heavenly call of God.”

The first part of the lesson is really that guy standing in the front touting one’s privilege for a host of reasons and some not–so-good reasons. We like to show case the gifts we have been given ever since childhood when you were asked to “show and tell.” People like to brandish the life we lead, gifts given to us, the laws we follow (maybe part of the time), the flags we raise, the neighbors we call friends, the circumstance we are born, and even the persecutions we have delivered.

Yes, we can be proud of good achievements and put the plaque on the wall. Yet, we cannot forget the people around us or what God has asked of us – to let go of that privilege and let love.

Why? If you achieved, congratulations are in order! Enjoy the banquet and your award!

Yet, when the dinner and celebration are done, remember the people cleaning up the room.

If you hold onto privilege, that privilege may devolve us into taunting superiority. (I did something you didn’t!) Privilege can be easy because it does not need faith, and without faith, we separate ourselves from Christ. Without faith, we cannot live the life taught to us by Christ.

Privilege quickly takes us into realms of idolatry, uncaring and intolerance-- away from what Jesus would do.

If you recently “won” an argument with your spouse, the temptation is ripe to boast your new-found victory and “supposed privilege.” That could be a simple argument over which direction the car is going or a more serious argument. Do you proceed to add insult to injury? Do you smash everything your partner hoped could have been?

Is that what Jesus would do?

Or Do you lift them up and say thank you for making me a better person?

You warn your child about looking both ways before you cross the road. If the child decides to dart, and you hopefully grab them before a car almost hits them, what do you do? You have all the privilege in the world to be angry and tell them how horrible their action was, or you can use the moment to remind them how much you love them. Is that what Jesus would do?

When your child comes to you licking their wounds, do you gloat your position and remind them “I told you so.”

Is that what Jesus would do?

Or do you become the parent that welcomes the prodigal child with love?

If a person protests racial or gender privilege, do you label them a “cry baby” and tell them to go back into obscurity?

Again, is that what Jesus would do?

Or, would you listen and try to understand how you can learn from these experiences and share compassion?

The gospel lesson, Matthew 21, says something similar.  The parable of the wicked tenants take for granted that which has been given to them.  The tenants were given charge and privilege to care for a vineyard.  They decided they could do whatever they wanted and ignored the covenant with the landowner. You can see the landlord vs tenant tension, but the underlying issue is privilege.

Those who have been given the awesome responsibility to care, to guide and to tend the community have instead used their position to line their pockets, inflict discrimination, and ignore God’s call to love one another. We cannot hide behind privilege to do wrong or to ignore injustice. God notices this stuff. Matthew 21 tells us, as people, that we must tend our own vineyard, and that we are called to do the good work of God.

One might suggest that how we use privilege is important. Yet, if you value your privilege more than your love of God and neighbor, how important is your privilege? Our lesson tells us to simply let go.

So let go of privilege, let go of poor attitudes that separate us and let faith be your guide.  Let Christ be your mentor.  Appreciate your gifts you have and value your experiences.  Remember those less fortunate. Those that cry need your compassion and maybe you can help show them what Jesus would do.

Let go, and Let Jesus shine through you!

Thanks Be to God!

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