By The Rev. Bernard W. Poppe, RectorIn the middle of May, almost two months ago, I was in Berlin for no other reason than I’d never been there before and so many people I know said so many wonderful things about it. It was an amazing city for different reasons. Historically, it will be forever branded by its centrality to the Nazi third Reich. Among the various monuments and reminders of that period is a church substantially destroyed by the bombing of that city toward the end of the war.
Rather than tear the remaining parts down, the city leaders of the time decided to finish the sections off so that it would not further decay, but left it visibly maimed as a reminder of the horrors of war. So there it stands the entry with over half the steeple missing, large sections of the nave gone and its wall jagged. It is a powerful and mute statement of the devastation of war, even more articulate since the structure is intended to be a statement of peace and love. The church is supposed to witness God’s love and is now preserved as a witness to human aggression and turning away from the very love that is offered. Ironically, as I looked at it closer and for a longer time, it became a different statement. That church stands in silent witness to God’s presence in the midst of a broken world, like Jesus, taking upon itself the wounds of humanity to offer peace as the only real option for people. The only alternative to living in harmony with God’s love is the destruction to which people are capable.
The remains of that church also stand in contrast to the new construction surrounding it. I, like many tourists assumed that the new construction was to replace the older buildings which had been destroyed during the war. We were told that is not the case. Only 10 percent of Berlin’s building’s were destroyed. Older buildings were just torn down so they could make new ones and enjoy the creative spirit and energy represented in modern architecture. Perhaps too much of the past is a painful reminder of their shocking history and in order to move on, a new city must be built on the site of the old. But even if that is the case, they have no intention of forgetting the past. Like that church, there are plenty of reminders.
We look at Berlin now as a city connected with World War II. Even with its new exciting look, I don’t think it can ever exist without that part of its identity. And yet, in some of the museums there are pictures of happier days before there was a war, before there was a Third Reich and before there was a man named Hitler. By the time I got to Berlin and was seeing these sites, I was also tired of not hearing English. My ability at German is pathetic and though my comprehension is better than my ability to speak, both are painfully inadequate. I needed a dose of English and decided to go to the movies.
In Potsdam Place there is a center of stores and theaters that is incredibly futuristic in appearance and since the latest Star Trek movie had come out, and the theater was showing the English version of it, I made straight for it. I liked the movie very much and I also like the movies that take characters we’ve become familiar with and show us who they were before we got to know them. Youthful versions of all the characters we’ve come to know as the crew of the Star ship Enterprise grew and matured before our eyes. Like the city in which I saw this film, there was a time before they were famous. A time when they were unknown, before their greatness and faults were lived out.
Our lessons are a little bit like that too. In this case, we see David as he was just coming to the throne. The people of Israel were actually taking a big chance on him and taking a "nobody" and making him king. He had some good demonstrations of leadership in battle but could he rule a kingdom? The people of Israel had a belief that God was not only with David, but more importantly with them and could work though David as their King. David was God’s tool in building a Kingdom.
In somewhat of a reverse situation, the Gospel shows how Jesus went back to the people who knew him before he got well known and they weren’t impressed. They had a "who does he think he is" attitude and Jesus displays what might be described as frustration, but rather than dwell on it, keeps moving to the next town to continue his work and toward his destiny. Further, he sends out his disciples to go into other towns and gave them authority to do the things he did like healing and casting out demons. These are the early stories of the disciples’ humble beginnings before they became the giants of the faith they were to become.
God takes the ordinary and accomplishes extraordinary things. A shepherd becomes a king. A carpenter becomes the Messiah. Fishermen, tax collectors, and women from poor homes became phenomenal missionaries who changed the world. And it wasn’t so much that they were so great, but that it was God working Gods’ greatness through them to accomplish great things.
This July 4th weekend recalls for us 56 ordinary men given authority by the people they represented to declare independence from England. History show that many of them paid dearly with their lives and that of their families as well as their fortunes and livelihoods to sign that document and set in motion a string of events that changed a nation and the world. It’s exciting history filled with tragedy, triumph, failings and courage. We celebrate with fireworks because we know how that particular chapter of the story ended. They worked out of their faith and sense of calling without the knowledge that we have. I wonder how they would respond to the statues, museums exhibits and depictions of their lives and deeds.
In a much smaller, current example, this week marks for Episcopalians the start of the convention held every three years to lead our denomination with legislation, resolutions and visions of ministry and common life in our faith and witness of God’s love working through us in our various ministries. Ordinary people elected from each diocese around the country meet in Anaheim, California - not to go to Disneyland, but to do the work or the church and suffer constant teasing for their choice of location.
The major issues facing this convention center around how to address the departure of different diocese and individual churches from the Episcopal Church over their sharp differences over scriptural interpretation and social teaching. Specifically, churches and Dioceses in conflict with the direction the Episcopal church is moving in continuing to support the ordination of women as priests and bishops, as well as similar ordinations for gay and lesbian members of the church as well as creating liturgies for same gender marriages or civil unions. They have countless other issues, but these will dominate their work. One of our own members, Martha Gardner, is an elected Deputy to General Convention and we prayed for her at 8 am as she prepares to leave today, and we’ll continue to pray for all the Bishops and Deputies as they do this work. Hopefully history will look back, knowing the outcomes, and tell the stories of how these ordinary people given authority to heal God’s church came together and accomplished great things in the name of God and for the good of God’s church.
We too are ordinary people. Yet we are called to extraordinary feats of faith every day. Worshiping God and loving our neighbor is a task that calls forth greatness in us no less than that called out from David or Paul, or the disciples or the men and women throughout the ages who shaped and changed the world. God sends us out today giving us the authority to heal and cast out demons. There are things and people we will meet today who are hurting or broken. We may find that we are the only ones who can make a difference and we are called by God to do so. Our own brokenness and hurt may need attention and God offers healing for us and is available through prayer.
Like our ancestors in the faith, we can open ourselves to allow God to work through us and change us. Like them we can change the situations around us and together effect great changes in the world. We don’t know how the story ends, today is only our beginning. But through God’s grace it’s a story worth writing with God who is the author of life. Amen.
©2009 St. George's Episcopal Church, Maplewood, NJ
Posts
