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Heartburn

When we were strangers // I watched you from afar // When we were lovers // I loved you with all my heart // But now it’s gettin’ late // And the moon is climbin’ high // I want to celebrate // See it shinin’ in your eye // Because I’m still in love with you // I want to see you dance again // Because I’m still in love with you // On this harvest moon

Harvest Moon, Neil Young, 1992

Harvest moons. The moon that is so named for shining ever so brightly in the season of waning fertility, the crops have been harvested and the long, dark winter is about to set in. Neil Young has succinctly captured something about life, love, and marriage that resonates with me. It is a picture of mature love that can flourish in marriage. But more than half the time, those “I do’s” are lost in a sea of despair and recriminations that end in divorce. I was one.

1 Corinthians 7.10-16 gives me heartburn: and in varying degrees, so does Mark 10, Matthew 5 and 19, Luke 16, and Roman 7.1-3. To be condemned to a lifetime of misery that a wrong marriage brings strikes me as antithetical to our initial directive to be fruitful and multiply. The fact remains, that life in a marriage gone bad is anything but fruitful. It is a life that has died in more ways than one.   

Beth and I knew this first hand. We both were in hellish, dead end marriages when we met. We were blessed by God to have found each other after many years of near misses, and yet we seem to stand in condemnation of the gospel: “And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for unchastity, and marries another commits adultery”(Matt. 19.9, NRSV). We are adulterers even though we never cheated in the conventional understanding of that word. As I said – heartburn.

In The Moral Vision of the New Testament, Richard Hays has done some notable work with this subject that has helped me a bit and for those that might be having a similar case of indigestion, I want to share what I found.

Hays speaks of marriage within the framework of cross, community and new creation, a perspective that brings the “logic of the New Testament’s rigorous teaching against divorce comes clearly into focus” (p. 376). The covenant of marriage is, as Hays points, one that is rooted in the love that goes beyond the “rush of mutual joy, beyond the romance of “warm spring evenings and roses,” and should be rooted rather, in the love of the cross” (p.375). He goes on to critique the ease with which divorce occurs in our individualistic and therapeutic culture. It is very serious business, this covenanting stuff and I think Hays’ critique is worthy. Yes, marriage is hard. Perhaps our premarital counseling skills need some improving. Just sayin’….

So while I stewed, and as the acid of guilt, anger and frustration was rising into my throat, I was grateful that Hays, citing the canonical witness – “I Paul, not the Lord” – notes this: “I would take the New Testament’s hermeneutical process of discerning exceptions to the rule of Jesus’ teaching to be instructive about the process of moral deliberation in the church on this matter” (p.372). Ok then…there’s hope?

As someone who escaped (and I mean that in every sense of the word) a 13 year marriage of physical abuse and psychological devastation, it’s good to see the possibility of a scripturally grounded hermeneutic which acknowledges circumstances that, at least in my limited view, are antithetical to love and life and the very objective of marriage. I cannot accept that ‘better or worse’ means putting your life at risk and if that’s what Jesus meant, then I want my “Job” hearing.

So, having risen from the smoky ruins of hell to now be in a marriage that is long past warm spring evenings; a marriage that loves nothing better than doing the evening dishes together; a marriage that has endured the loss of a child, the loss of our house, the loss of every penny, the loss of my freedom and then some; a marriage that has produced a beautiful daughter who is following the Lord’s footsteps as she blossoms into adulthood; a marriage rooted in the practice of love that testifies to the presence and love of God. If that is a marriage that makes me an adulterer, then guilty as charged and I will sing God’s praise as I dance with the love of my life under the harvest moon.

Artwork: Harvest Moon, George Hemming Mason, 1872

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Loosen My Lips

I try to sing this song // I, I try to stand up // But I can’t find my feet // I try, I try to speak up // But only in you I’m complete // Gloria, in te domine, Gloria, exultate // Gloria, Gloria // Oh Lord, loosen my lips

Gloria, U2, 1981

With Lent approaching, I want to suggest that one way we can examine our daily habits is within the context of Paul’s exhortation to the church in Thessalonica.

Brothers and sisters, we ask you to respect those who are working with you, leading you, and instructing you.Think of them highly with love because of their work. Live in peace with each other. Brothers and sisters, we urge you to warn those who are disorderly. Comfort the discouraged. Help the weak. Be patient with everyone. Make sure no one repays a wrong with a wrong, but always pursue the good for each other and everyone else. Rejoice always. Pray continually. Give thanks in every situation because this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. Don’t suppress the Spirit. Don’t brush off Spirit-inspired messages, but examine everything carefully and hang on to what is good. Avoid every kind of evil.  (1 Thessalonians 5.12- 22, CEB)

As infants, we begin to learn our mother tongue without any formal grammatical instruction. As one person has observed, by the time we are three or four, we are putting nouns, verbs and prepositions together in intricate sentences much like baby birds that learn to fly without studying aerodynamics. The same is true of a “mother tongue of behavior.” We watch how those in our personal lives and community behave and model our behavior accordingly.

Learning to speak Christian and Christian behavior is no different. In this passage, Paul is giving us some of the guidelines that we must incorporate if we are ever to be fluent. They are not “rules” or “laws” per se, but the ways in which the Holy Spirit leads the greater community in behaviors that contribute to our Christian fluency. To be Christian fluent is to have a responsibility to look out for the needs of others; to encourage, to give comfort, to assist the weak and to actively go after that which is good for all. And like any new behavior, it is best formed by practicing new habits: the habits of rejoicing always, praying continually and giving thanks in all circumstances.

Gloria, in te domine, Gloria, exultate – Glory in You, Lord / Glory, exalt [Him]” Lord, loosen my lips

Rejoice always: perhaps easier said than done, but we try. Give thanks: we know that’s we should do and how we should live. Pray continually: I suspect that’s a bit harder challenge. Am I supposed to go through life on my knees with my hands clasped and eyes closed in a form of self-imposed blindness? No, that is not what the God of life wants us to do and nor is Paul suggesting a posture. Paul is talking about a guiding behavorial principle. We are supposed to be people who twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, three hundred and sixty five days a year, are open, receptive and responsive to what God is doing in our lives and we are to do everything we can to keep the lines of communication open.

Gloria, in te domine, Gloria, exultate – Glory in You, Lord / Glory, exalt [Him]” Lord, loosen my lips.

Our prayer is continual when we believe that God  is with us all the time, trusting in God’s love and care, knowing that God is working for good in our lives, regardless of what is happening. Continual prayer is not about delivering complex, lengthy, and eloquent dissertations to the Lord every minute of the day. Continual prayer happens in the short conversations, the moments however brief, when we thank God for the many blessings that surround us: the beauty of a new day, the food on our tables, the warmth of our homes, the hands held, the hugs given and the hugs received. Continual prayer happens when we give God credit for the nice surprises and the times of tears, asking God for guidance when we feel confused or lost. Continual prayer happens when we recognize and pursue the needs of the stranger, widow, and the orphan.

Gloria, in te domine, Gloria, exultate – Glory in You, Lord / Glory, exalt [Him]”

Notice that Paul has placed continual prayer between rejoicing and thanksgiving. Continual prayer is the bridge between the two, the essential bridge that unites the twin poles of Christian living. When we pray continually, realizing God’s presence, we can rejoice always and give thanks in all circumstances. Pray continually- an important step in becoming fluent in Christian and most importantly, it is God’s will for you in Jesus Christ.

Gloria, in te domine, Gloria, exultate – Glory in You, Lord / Glory, exalt [Him]” Lord, loosen my lips

Artwork: Brandt, Jozef. Prayer in the Steppe, from Art in the Christian Tradition, a project of the Vanderbilt Divinity Library, Nashville, TN. http://diglib.library.vanderbilt.edu/act-imagelink.pl?RC=56475 [retrieved February 5, 2021]. Original source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Brandt_Prayer_in_the_steppe.jpg

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Healing Helpers

I want to know did you get the feelin’ // Did you get it down in your soul // I want to know did you get the feelin’ // Oh did ye get healed //I begin to realize // Magic in my life // See it manifest in oh, so many ways // Every day is gettin’ better and better // I want to be daily walking close // It gets stronger when you get the feelin’ // When you get it down in your soul // And it makes you feel good // And it makes you feel whole // When the spirit moves you // And it fills you through and through // Every morning and at the break of day // Did ye get healed?

Van Morrison, Did Ye Get Healed, 1987

We are rapidly closing in on Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent. This is the season when Christians take the time for introspection – a time to slow down and take a good, long, hard look at ourselves to see where we are, and importantly, where we are not, in our walk with Christ. Sometimes, what we find can be downright scary, perhaps so much that we ignore at best or deny at worst, just how far astray we have become: that there are more instances of “not” than “are.”

I can’t speak for you, but I can speak for myself when I see that I need healing. I have my share of demons that rage and rant, keeping me on the wrong path. How do I rid myself of these evils? In the following passage from the Gospel of Mark, Jesus shows us how.

 Jesus and his followers went into Capernaum. Immediately on the Sabbath Jesus entered the synagogue and started teaching. The people were amazed by his teaching, for he was teaching them with authority, not like the legal experts. Suddenly, there in the synagogue, a person with an evil spirit screamed, “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are. You are the holy one from God.”
 “Silence!” Jesus said, speaking harshly to the demon. “Come out of him!” The unclean spirit shook him and screamed, then it came out.
 Everyone was shaken and questioned among themselves, “What’s this? A new teaching with authority! He even commands unclean spirits and they obey him!”Right away the news about him spread throughout the entire region of Galilee. (Mark 1.21-28, CEB)

Consider how the sick man went about.

He sought to be taught. The man had an “evil spirit” – demon possession, epilepsy, alcoholism, drug addiction, some form of nervous disorder – we don’t know for sure. Whatever the nature of his illness was, he knew things were not right and he wasn’t shy about it. He had made the effort to reach for somebody to teach him, guide him, to heal him; and he went to the right place, the right house and met Jesus.

He fought with a new thought. He was willing to struggle. Healing is never easy and changing is even less so, even when we know it’s the necessary thing to do. We tend to fight against new ideas and new ways of being. An old friend called this the IRS system – no not that IRS – but Intimidation, Rebellion, and Screams. Sometimes, when we get closer to a life changing breakthrough, the reactions can be all the more passionate. The demoniac found the courage to struggle and wrestle with Jesus’ words in spite of his hostility, anger and turmoil.

He caught what Christ had. After he sought, and after he fought, the demoniac caught what Jesus had to offer: healing. He did not know how and he did not ask. He accepted. Everyone else may have been shocked: “What is this?” Not the healed man: he was just grateful to be well.

If you are hurting today, Jesus came for you. “Healthy people don’t need a doctor, but sick people do. I didn’t come to call righteous people but sinners to change their hearts and lives” (Luke 5.31-32, CEB). God wants you to be healthy and whole in body, mind and spirit. As you journey through Lent, take up those demons and turn to Christ. The psalmist said it this way: “But look here: God is my helper; my Lord sustains my life” (Psalm 54.4, CEB). Trust Jesus to heal you, to help you and to change your life. It might be a bit messy, it might get a bit loud, but the peace is well worth the noise and the trip. Get the feelin’!

Artwork: Romanesque painter, 12th century. St. Martin’s Church, Zillis, Graubünden, Switzerland