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The Fifth Sunday After Epiphany Hippie Peace and JusticeGrace and peace to you. Growing up in rural North Dakota in the late sixty’s and early seventy’s was an interesting season of my life’s journey; a period when my age range was 8 to 13 years old. Those were the years of Bugs Bunny and Johnny Quest (still the best cartoon of all-time) on Saturday mornings. The years of one 8 oz. Bottle of Coke-a-cola per week on the day of my choosing (always Friday evening, with a bowl of popcorn). The years of my first portable electronic devise-an eight track tape stereo; portable in that the two halves could be locked together. The tape deck, now the size of a carry-on piece of luggage, could be carried from one place to another, disassembled,plugged in and played. ( ergo “Portable electronic devise.”) Those were also the years of wishing I’d been born in 1949; then my age range would have been 18 to 23. Why? I wanted to be a “Hippie!” I wanted to say things like:
I wanted to be part of:
I wanted to be in the generation who’s rally cries were:
That’s what I wanted. That’s what I wanted to be. Come to think of it, I had the long hair with the thrift store beret and the bell-bottom pants, customized with multiple fabrics sewn in, the tie-dyed shirt and sandals ( they weren’t huracuhey’s --Boy’s Shoe Department at Sears). My efforts to be hippie were merely a function of my choice of apparel. As for the rest, well, there was, for my part, a bit of romanticism and fascination with the Hippie culture. Such romanticism and fascination still grips me today. Some of my favorite conversations are with those who are 10 years older than me and lived life in one of the most influential eras of change in our country’s history. Historians and social scientists will debate all the causes and catalysts of such change. I don’t know this to be true, but I’m guessing the challenge of John F. Kennedy, our countries youngest President, from his inaugural address had some impact:“ask not what your country can do for you, rather what you can do for your country.” Many of the 60’s generation, including Hippies, heeded the President’s call to action. In our own area, just a short drive North of us, Hippies launched the first food co-op in Milwaukee. For me, President Kennedy’s statement was an invitation to all people to be part of something bigger than themselves. A statement that mimics the words of the prophet Micah:“O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” Three things God requires us to do
In today’s readings, we are reminded that the One who is the Creator of us all is a God of justice and peace. In today’s Psalm we hear,“… [The Lord] gathers the outcasts of Israel. He heals the brokenhearted, and binds up their wounds… The Lord lifts up the downtrodden; he casts the wicked to the ground.” Likewise, today’s Gospel is yet another example of Jesus dispelling the forces that diminish human life. With his notoriety growing, the “whole city was gathered around the door” to witness Jesus healing and setting people free from oppression. As those who walk in the way of Jesus, we also are called to work for human dignity and the greater good. As Lutheran Christians, we are routinely involved in caring ministries like PADS or World Hunger; however, anything with a political overtone tends to send us running. Politics can be controversial and, by and large, we aren’t people who enjoy conflict and controversy. Doesn’t this seem like a disconnect? After all, as Christians, we worship and believe and put our future hope in Jesus, one who was arrested, tried, and executed for getting involved in politics. Jesus ministry was based on doing what was just and humane, and on challenging the status quo of the political establishment. A mere 3 centuries before Jesus burst on the scene, the philosopher Plato, postulated that,“the penalty that good men pay for not being interested in politics is to be governed by men worse than themselves.” Individually and corporately as a congregation, we are called to be involved at a public level with matters of justice. Our larger church body, the ELCA, has an entire division called “Church in Society” whose mission it is to “step forward as a public church that witnesses boldly to God’s love for all that God has created.” The first program listed in this division is that of advocacy, or “speaking truth to those in power,” meaning our elected officials. The timing of the ministry partnerships initiative could not have come at a better time. You know the challenges we face as a people and nation. You know the challenges we face as growing disciples of Jesus and as a faith community called St. Paul’s. Maybe we need to revisit the Hippie culture of the 60’s... not in terms of fashion, language, and the rest, but with organizing and challenging all that is not just and humane. Let us pray. |
St. Paul's Lutheran Church § 824 N. Lewis § Waukegan IL |
