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What it means to be a City on a Hill

We like to consider and proclaim "American Exceptionalism." It is often expressed in our modern day to justify all manner of things within our own country and to the community of nations we are a part of.

Consider:

"For four hundred years, the words of Matthew's gospel, directed toward Jesus' listeners as a part of the Sermon on the Mount, have been adopted by many people in the United States to support the belief that God has looked with particular favor on the people who originally colonized and now live in the central part of North America. An early example was its use in a sermon by John Winthrop as he headed to American in 1630 to serve as first governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Subsequent generations of political leaders, including John F. Kennedy, Ronald Reagan, and Barak Obama, have called upon such imagery... with the image of a torch of freedom being lit by the founders of the United States. After all, torches as signals are lit on hills, on locations where they can be seen by all."

Consider, too, the torch atop the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor.

We need to remember...

"The sermon that John Winthrop wrote on his voyage to American was not centered on Anglo-Saxon exceptionalism or a desire to hold up the new dwellers in America as better than other people. Rather, his reminder to his fellow travelers was that the eyes of the world would be upon them to see if they lived up to the model of Christian charity that his sermon laid before them. More than one, he reminded his listens of the golden rule of Matthew 7:12, that they do unto others as they would wish done to them. He reminded them that if they were to seek greatness for themselves, God would force them to pay a price. Instead, they were to follow the council of the prophet Micah to do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with their God.

"Being a city on a hill was therefore a responsibility, not a right. As Winthrop stated at the end of his sermon, if their hearts turn away and they do not obey, if they are seduced by their own pleasures and profits, they perish out of the good land toward which they journeyed. Christian nationalism, which indeed seduces people away from justice and mercy and humility, will eventually lead to destruction. The call of the church in the twenty-first century is to proclaim in fresh ways what it truly means to be a light to the world and a city on a hill so that all people will be valued, honored, and respected." (The Crisis of Christian Nationalism: Report from the House of Bishops Theology Committee [The Episcopal Church in the United States of America]; New York, Church Publishing, pp. 16, 31-32)

This is part of the "Third Way" presented to us by Jesus in his Sermon on the Mount. It isn't sociopolitically liberal or conservative, Libertarian, anarchic, or Marxist. It is other. That "other" has been usurped within the greater Christian witness in the United States by political ideology (we let it be so), and the Church must reclaim its distinctive way of understanding the social good, the politically excellent, and what enables the flourishing of the citizenry.

If we, as the Church, want to offer for the consideration of the rest of our society an alternative to the corrosive and destructive morass we are now headlong falling into, we must offer an actual alternative, with intention, and consistently demonstrated against unreasonable opposition or irrational accusation.

We must proclaim even against those other forms of distorted religious expression that will, as the House of Bishops report suggests, lead to our ultimate destruction.

If we truly want to live up to being a beacon and torch of freedom for the rest of the world, to be such a city, we must remember within the Church: "He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." {Micah 6:8)

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Budde, gave the sermon at the ecumenical National Prayer Service in her (and our) National Cathedral. The new administration and wives, present. Listen for yourself.

I think this is a profound example of the ecclesial speaking a different kind of truth to the political. Isn't that the best role of the Church in the political realm – holding the political to account and to their better selves, even in the face of the very human want for power, money, fame, and all those temporal tendencies of our human nature? (Likewise, the government holding accountable the church when it fails, at times horribly.) The geographical locations of the National Cathedral and the U.S. Capital buildings are purposeful.

The last few minutes (starts at 12:25) is what has gained the attention of the national media and what prompted the new president to say of the service, "...they could have done much better." Mercy. It is a powerful thing. Love, in its merciful expression, covers over a multitude of sins.

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Remember this

Just remember, the Gospel (defined by the life of Jesus of Nazareth – his teachings, example, and call – and including his Passion, crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension) has nothing to do with conservative or liberal political ideology. Some aspects of the Gospel seem politically conservative. Some of it seems politically liberal. It is neither. The Gospel is something altogether different. The way of Jesus is always a third way. We dare not confuse the Gospel with political ideology, lest we pervert both.

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(POST) ELECTION DAY HOPE

A good read in these days…

A quote from the article in Mockingbird, "The rules of social convention ensure that we behave in a reasonable, courteous manner most of the time. But certain situations bring our baser instincts to the fore, and we discover we were not actually seeking the common good, but our own — that is, if we are even capable of that degree of self-reflection. This present moment in American history, like so many before it, is an hour of revelation, a moment of truth in which our real nature is displayed."

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"The dark night is God's attack on religion. If you genuinely desire union with the unspeakable love of God, then you must be prepared to have your 'religious' world shattered. If you think devotional practices, theological insights, even charitable actions give you some sore of purchase on God, you are still playing games." [Rowan Williams, "The Dark Night," p 82]

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Prayer for our country

In these trying days, for our seemingly fragile democracy, a prayer for our country:

"O Lord our Governor, bless the leaders of our land, that we may be a people at peace among ourselves and a blessing to other nations on the earth. Lord, keep this nation under your care.

"To the President and members of the Cabinet, to Governors of States, Mayers of Cities, and to all in administrative authority, grant wisdom and grace in the exercise of their duties. Give grace to your servants, O Lord.

"To Senator and Representatives, and those who make our laws in States, Cities, and Towns, give courage, wisdom, and foresight to provide for the needs of all our people, and to fulfill our obligations in the community of nations. Give grace to your servants, O Lord.

"To the Judges and officers of our Courts give understanding and integrity, that human rights may be safeguarded and justice served. Give grace to your servants, O Lord.

"And finally, teach our people to rely on your strength and to accept their responsibilities to their fellow citizens, that they may elect trustworthy leaders and make wise decisions for the well-being of our society; that we may serve you faithfully in our generation and honor your holy Name. For yours is the kingdom, O Lord, and you are the exalted as head above all. Amen."

[Prayer #22, pp. 821-822, the Book of Common Prayer]

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In our seemingly fragile democracy, this is perhaps the more significant prayer for our nation (from the group of prayers found in prayer #22, page 822 of the Book of Common Prayer):

"And finally, teach our people to rely on your strength and to accept their responsibilities to their follow citizens, that they may elect trustworthy leaders and make wise decisions for the well-being of our society; that we may serve you faithfully in our generation and honor your holy Name."

I'm going to pray all of prayer #22 as often as I am able, for the sake of us all.

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For those who have ears to hear... "The subject that I am about to discuss is most philosophical, that is, whether pious reason is sovereign over the passions. So it is right for me to advise you to pay earnest attention to philosophy. For the subject is essential to everyone who is seeking knowledge, and in addition it includes the praise of the highest virtue—I mean, of course, rational judgment. If, then, it is evident that reason rules over those passions that hinder self-control, namely, gluttony and lust, it is also clear that it masters the passions that hinder one from justice, such as malice, and those that stand in the way of courage, namely, anger, fear, and pain. Some might perhaps ask, 'If reason rules the passions, why is it not sovereign over forgetfulness and ignorance?' Their attempt at argument is ridiculous! For reason does not rule its own passions but those that are opposed to justice, courage, and self-control, and it is not for the purpose of destroying them but so that one may not give way to them." [4 Maccabees 1:1-6]

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Eyes wide open

You know the old adage, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” Because human beings are human being are human beings past, present, and future, it may be inevitable that we repeat past mistakes, even horrific mistakes, but if our eyes are open at least we may be able to mitigate the worst of us. There have been plenty of times throughout history when men and women, desiring a full and peaceful life, thought a theocratic form of government would do the trick. After all, how much more full and peaceful could one be - could a society be - if our devotion to God was complete and our desires were pure. (Oh, how we fantasize!) Theocracy on a societal scale has never worked. From Calvin's Geneva to communes today, the desire for a Godly kingdom is one thing, the ability to pull it off completely another. We are human beings, after all. Dominion Theology and the New Apostolic Reformation and other in-kind movements imagine a full and peaceful life situated squarely in the will and law of God. The problem is that fallible, liable, manipulatable, and yes - sinful - human beings pretend to be direct conduits and mediators of the Almighty. Human beings are human beings are human beings. Hubris, lust of power and other things, jealousy, fear, and so much more all-to-human traits always interrupt our best, pious, and holy plans. It has all been tried before, and has always failed. We presume too much of ourselves. We presume we know the mind of God and God's perfect will. We like to be warriors in triumph, but what was Jesus' example? If Jesus acted like this, he would have roused a revolution against Rome! That's what was expected of him as a "messiah" at the time. Why did he not? Why do we deceive ourselves believing that we should do what Jesus did not and by so doing, we will manifest in the Kingdom of God on earth this side of the parousia?

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From Matthew Henry’s commentary of John 1:1-5:

“The light of reason, as well as the life of sense, is derived from him, and depends upon him. This eternal Word, this true Light shines, but the darkness comprehends it not. Let us pray without ceasing, that our eyes may be opened to behold this Light, that we may walk in it; and thus be made wise unto salvation, by faith in Jesus Christ.”

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What is truly involved?

Writing on the English Reformation period: "The enormous convulsion in English society, political and cultural life that came to be know as 'the Reformation' was a long collective argument about what was truly involved in the imitation of Christ; about what people needed to do, or avoid doing, in order to achieve salvation.”*

Reading this, I can’t help but think that most all of our inter-religious Christian conflict stems from honest people trying to figure out “what was truly involved in the imitation of Christ” gone too far. Our all-to-human hubris ends up living in denial of the very image that Christ set for his followers to exemplify.

*From, “Heretics and Believers,” Peter Marshall, pg. 5.

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“I asked him [Bono, of U2], wasn’t becoming a Christian in the 1970’s kind of uncool? ‘We were on a whole other level of uncool. We genuinely thought cool was uncool.’ Bono’s point is that you can’t experience God while being cool - it takes pure abandon, the raw act of exposing yourself. That, he explains, is what makes faith like rock and roll.” (From David Brook’s article, ‘Bono’s Great Adventure,’ in this month’s Atlantic)

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“Eternal light, shine into our hearts, eternal goodness, deliver us from evil, eternal power, be our support, eternal wisdom, scatter the darkness of our ignorance, eternal pity, have mercy upon us; that with all our heart and mind and soul and strength we may seek your face and be brought by your infinite mercy to your holy presence, through Jesus Christ our Lord.” [Alcuin of York]

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“Who is wise and understanding among you? Show by your good life that your works are done with gentleness born of wisdom. But if you have bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not be boastful and false to the truth. Such wisdom does not come down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, devilish. For where there is envy and selfish ambition, there will also be disorder and wickedness of every kind.

“But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without a trace of partiality or hypocrisy. And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace for those who make peace.” [James 3:13-18, NRSV]

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Let us work for the good of all...

“Do not be deceived; God is not mocked, for you reap whatever you sow.If you sow to your own flesh, you will reap corruption from the flesh; but if you sow to the Spirit, you will reap eternal life from the Spirit. So let us not grow weary in doing what is right, for we will reap at harvest time, if we do not give up. So then, whenever we have an opportunity, let us work for the good of all, and especially for those of the family of faith.” [Galatians 6:7-10]

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One of the principal causes of the breakdown of so many marriages is a lack of the spirit of obedience. No word in the religious vocabulary is so much misunderstood by our contemporaries. Obedience is in essence the capacity to listen to the other. We stray from God when we lose this attentiveness and no amount of talking or thinking about God can truly substitute for this openness to him. The Latin root of obedience is 'ob-audire,' to hear, to listen. We are to be listeners. Obedience then is deep sensitivity to the other; the readiness to think, in the first place, of the other and not of oneself. It is impossible for us to love one another unless we serve one another.

John Main (1926-1982), via book 3, lesson 5 of the Pilgrim series, CPI