On March 14, 1970, Elvis Presley was at the mid-point of his biggest tour, almost more successful than anyone could imagine. On that day, Elvis played a quickly sold-out concert in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. It was a Saturday and, at the time, he took Sundays off but he could not attend church. The same rabid popularity that made this tour so successful made it difficult for him to travel or do many of the things you and I take for granted. For instance, if he wanted to see a movie, he had to rent the entire theater and go late at night. To go out to dinner and have some peace and quiet, he had to buy the whole night there and, again, go out late at night so that his fans would not see and mob him.
One day he asked another popular singer of the day, Pat Boone, about church which Boone regularly attended and, incidentally, still does at age 79. When asked what he did about the crowds, Boone said that people would eventually figure out why you’re there and leave you alone as they settle into the service. But Presley did not trust Boone on that accord and instead, handled worship the same way as movies or restaurants – he would make arrangements to show up late at night and sing gospel hymns until daylight. What a lonely existence that must have been for him. Interestingly all three of the Grammy awards that Elvis won were for Gospel recordings. Perhaps ironically, the undisputed King of Rock and Roll cited gospel music as his greatest musical influence. So the best-selling solo artist in U.S. history, nominated 18 times for Grammy awards, won only for Gospel music which, ironically again, his record label opposed his doing in the first place. Smarter, and perhaps more faithful, than those who managed his career, Elvis Presley wanted to incorporate Gospel hymns into his repertory. His idea was to sing his popular rock and roll tunes for the first part of a live concert, take a break, and then return with Gospel music. He wanted to share his faith and then do a sort of altar call for those who wanted to know Christ. Elvis’ team disagreed with the plan and they won out in a peculiar twist of fate because, 36 years ago, he died and the Christ-centered concerts never came to be. I cannot imagine what impact Elvis might have had in spreading the Christian message of hope with his concerts and popularity. What would it be like, in all the turmoil of the early-70’s, to have Elvis’ voice and faith countering the anxieties in American society. Would religious-groupies mob him in restaurants and movies or would his life taken a turn to normality? Would such concerts have lengthened his life and given him joy near the end of it? This past week, we remembered the feast day of Bernard of Clairvaux. St. Bernard, as he is more commonly known, had nothing to do with the large dogs that are rumored to carry a pint of brandy and rescue people trapped in the snow. A natural and persuasive public speaker, and eloquent writer, he was born into wealth and property but left that life to enter a Cistercian monastery. Bernard became a defender and restorer of the faith. With his money, influence, and talents, he probably could have been successful in government or business, maybe as successful and wealthy in his day as Elvis Presley was in his. Instead, he gave up his high station in life to build the Kingdom of God. He died in the same week as Elvis Presley, only 821 years earlier. I am not sure that Elvis Presley and St. Bernard of Clairvaux had all that much in common. Certainly Bernard did not have to buy the entire sitting at a restaurant or fight off mobs of groupies as he ascended into the pulpit. But if there is no other point of comparison, it might be this: they used their gifts differently. Elvis Presley, while he was a believing Christian, never quite got around to dedicating his entire career and life to the service of God while Bernard, perhaps sensing that life is a fragile gift, managed exactly what his 20th century counterpart did not. Or to put it another way, Bernard was not victimized by early fame and fortune while most of us, I think, believe that Elvis Presley was. May we, following in the example of St. Bernard, all answer the call to be builders of God’s church on earth and heed that call before it is too late. -Fr. Marshall A popular set of emails is circling around under the subject line, “Remember
When” These cute messages show images of how things used to be – rotary phones, a family gathered around a radio, record players, drug stores that had soda jerks, movies for 35 cents, and so on. I have heard stories of folks who in their childhoods wouldn’t lock their doors at night. Memories like these are pleasant. I don’t need to remind you how quickly things change and the type of world the 21st Century is bringing. The signs are everywhere, including, I am sorry to say, at Saint John’s. Sixty years ago, our school needed fences to keep soccer balls from rolling into the street or down into the creek. We had an intercom system to say the Pledge of Allegiance and pray together. Today we are in the final stage of encircling our school behind another fence – this one designed not only to keep soccer balls inside, but to keep bad people out. And today our intercom system is still used for daily prayer and leading the Pledge, but it’s also designed to play an integral role in a lock-down procedure we hope we never will need but will practice monthly. This week I visited with some folks who had a family member, a teacher, who died at Sandy Hook Elementary. It was a sobering reminder of what schools in this century get to deal with. Saint John’s is safe. It is a safe place to worship and to learn and it’s a safe place for our community to gather. However, there is one hole in our school security – the Lych Gate. Someone intent on doing harm to our students and teachers can enter the gate and gain almost unrestricted access. After Sandy Hook, we began locking the doors into Nale Hall and the church between the hours of 8:30 and 3 pm. But that is not enough. Starting soon, construction will start on a security gate to close our main entrance. This gate will eventually have a camera and a touchpad. Visitors during school hours will need to ring the bell and be “buzzed” in. Folks who volunteer their time, like Altar Guild, church leadership, and office volunteers will be issued a code to obtain entrance. On Sundays, and at all public church events, the gate will be wide open. The only real disruption will be if you need to visit me during school hours (8:30 to 3). It’s a sign of the times. Jesus said, “When a man enters the sheep pen, he should use the gate. If he climbs in some other way, he is a robber. He is trying to steal the sheep. But the man who takes care of the sheep enters through the gate. He is the shepherd. The man who guards the gate opens the gate for the shepherd. And the sheep listen to the voice of the shepherd.” The people were confused by this saying, so Jesus said, “I am the gate. Whoever enters through me will be saved. They will be able to come in and go out. They will find everything they need. A thief comes to steal, kill, and destroy. But I came to give life—life that is full and good.” (John 10:1-3, 9-10) Although I don’t think Jesus was talking specifically about schools, he was talking about life, people intent on doing harm, and safety in God. It’s odd to think that by building a gate we are actually letting Jesus in, but that could be exactly what we are doing. In our Gospel lesson for this Sunday, Jesus said he has come to divide. The security gate does exactly that – it divides those who are here for life and goodness from those who are not. One problem with security gates is giving someone a false sense of security. If someone wants to do harm at Saint John’s they can. This gate will simply slow them down. Please bear in mind that our safety and security come from God. We pray every day at Saint John’s. I ask that as we begin this new and exciting school year, that you also will pray for Saint John's every day. And, while you are at it, pray for all schools that they may be safe and secure. Through prayer, we will open the gate for Jesus to enter so that we may hear his voice and follow the One who calls us all by name. - Fr. Marshall Media attention is focused on author Dr. Reza Aslan because of the controversy in his latest book, Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth. An Iranian-born American writer and scholar of religions, Aslan is a professor of creative writing at UC Riverside. He converted to evangelical Christianity in his teens in San Francisco but then, before heading to study at Harvard Divinity School, he converted back to Islam. The controversy begs the question: Is Jesus
a Zealot? Starting in the year 6 B.C.E, the Zealots began as a Jewish revolutionary political party in revolt against the Roman occupying army in Israel. In the year 70, they took part in a fanatical stand against Rome’s army which led to the destruction of the Temple, and much of Jerusalem. Some believe that Barabbas, the “robber” Pilate released from prison instead of Jesus, may be a Zealot who led an insurrection against Rome. Aslan argues that Jesus is also a Zealot and not a pacifist but the leader of a nationalist revolt against Rome. His punishment was, in Aslan’s view of history, for sedition, not blasphemy. And, Jesus’ saying of “Render to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s” (Mt 22:21) is thus an almost treasonous statement encouraging Israel’s resistance to Rome rather than acceptance of Rome’s authority as traditional theologians have said. Whether one accepts Aslan’s theories or not, they are interesting. The Gospel of Luke calls one of the twelve, Simon, a “Zealot,” (6:15) an accurate translation of an Aramaic word, derived from a root meaning, ‘to be zealous.' (Incidentally, Jesus spoke in Aramaic and the Gospels were written in Greek) In the Gospel of Mark (3:18) Zealot is transliterated Cananaean. What we can gather from this is one of two things, either that Simon, a disciple, was zealous in his faith or was a part of the Zealot movement. Although Jesus may have had a Zealot in his inner circle, I don’t think he was one. Jesus had the opportunity to lead an armed revolt against the occupying army in Jerusalem when he processed on a donkey with large groups of people shouting, “Hosanna in the Highest!” During his last week, however, Jesus did things that caused people to fall away until what remained was a small band of sleepy disciples that met the Roman Guard in a garden early Friday morning. When Peter drew his sword, Jesus told him to put it away. Is this something a Zealot would do? Probably not. As Jesus was hanging from the cross, people were pleading with him to call down angels and put an end to all of the insanity; but he didn’t. Likewise, his followers didn’t treat him like a martyr and fight against Rome after his death. Instead they spread a Gospel of love and reconciliation to Jews and Gentiles alike. Aslan’s book raises some key spiritual questions. Who is Jesus and who is Jesus to you? Is he a crazed madman, a good teacher, a pacifist, a leader of a violent revolution, a shepherd of souls, a Marxist who wanted all wealth to be shared, a lover of all human kind, a Zealot, a Pharisee, or perhaps God in human flesh. In our spiritual journey together, Jesus meets us and slowly reveals who he is. The journey has hills and valleys, blind corners, and even some long boring stretches. Is Jesus the same today as he was to you a year ago, or in your childhood? Is he going to be the same to you a decade from now? I cannot speak for you, of course, but my relationship with Jesus, like other relationships I have, is dynamic, constantly updating, and changing. And I am quite comfortable with that. May your journey with Jesus be one where you find him revealed as he is. - Fr. Marshall "FUD” describes what happens inside an organization that does not receive timely information. It stands for Fear, Uncertainly, Doubt. FUD is a natural process
that starts in an atmosphere of little or no information. It causes divisiveness and eventually stops productivity. I worked for a company that announced it was purchasing another company. FUD arose – fear (of losing our jobs), uncertainty (about the future of our organization), and doubt (that our leaders could manage the purchase and merger). FUD slowed our enthusiasm to solicit new business, clouded our customer service, slowed productivity, and caused many sleepless nights. Christians and the Church are not immune to FUD. In the years that followed Christ’s resurrection, the early church was in a state of FUD. Saint Paul, who wrote more than 20% of the New Testament, was a FUD buster. If you listen closely to his letters, you can hear Paul easing fears, eliminating uncertainly, and minimizing doubt. To bust FUD, Paul advanced the notion of God’s Grace – a free gift from God that forgives our sins and makes us worthy to stand with Christ and share with him in Holy Communion. Paul also taught that grace eliminates fear of being good enough for God. God’s Grace is sufficient. Grace is a free gift to everyone, slave or free, rich or poor, male or female, we all have it. This guarantee removes uncertainty. As for doubt, Paul wrote to the Church in Corinth that he wanted to pass on to them what had been passed on to him, that “Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said, he was buried, and was raised on the third day, he was seen by Peter, then the twelve, then more than 500 followers, some of whom are still alive, then by James and later by all the apostles.” (1 Cor 15:3-9) Paul didn’t make this up. He received it as it was handed to him by eye witnesses, many of whom were still alive at the time of his letter. Is there FUD in your life? And if so, what are your FUD busters? Kathy Mullen was a FUD buster. Born on October 29, 1960, in Fresno, she had Down syndrome. She learned gymnastics on an old mattress held together by duct tape in a dusty backyard. Her outdoor hobby eventually became a gymnastics program for both able-bodied and special needs athletes of all ages that now serves more than 3,000 people per year. Kathy was Fresno’s first Special Olympian. She would support and hug athletes who were feeling down. Kathy would offer her love freely to all those she met. In the 60’s, 70’s, and 80’s, there was a lot of FUD around Down’s syndrome. Kathy, through her spirit, love, and passion for gymnastics, broke down the fear, uncertainty, and doubt around special needs children and adults. She showed that all are loved and all have different and special abilities. Kathy passed away on July 18 but her FUD busting will continue through the Break the Barriers Gym. May God’s Grace, shown in many ways, like through Paul’s writing or Kathy’s love and passion, break down any barriers of fear, uncertainty and doubt that may be in your life, - Fr. Marshall |