Monday, March 9, 2015

Monday, March 9, 2015

Jeremiah 7:1-15

Amend your ways and your doings, and let me dwell with you in this place. Do not trust in these deceptive words: ‘This is the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord.’ (Jeremiah 7:3-4)

A couple of days ago Robert effectively presented God’s message through the prophet Jeremiah, explaining the historical context and the lasting impact that this dark yet decisive time would have on the history of the Jews. 

Today’s passage is another call to repentance, a reminder that the goal of living a life following the way of God has very little with what many people consider ‘religiousness,’ or at least religiosity for its own sake. Is Jeremiah commenting on hymnody or the wording of prayers? Is he overly focussed on whether to sit or stand at such-and-such a time? Far from it! Instead we hear a serious and very common-sense and ‘worldly’ message: stop oppressing, stop killing; and don’t expect lip service to the Temple to do you any good when that’s all that it is. 

This call to justice, this linking of religious observance and righteous action is especially present in the writings of the Hebrew prophets. It’s also present in the Torah, the first five books of the Bible. Take for instance the Ten Commandments that were read in churches this past Sunday:

I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery... (Exodus 20:2)

These commandments aren’t just random rules from an oppressive God who wants people to follow Him for no other reason than to have followers. Instead, they’re laws to govern the community life of a people who knew firsthand what it was like to be treated unfairly. Today our reading of the story of the exodus might challenge us to live in a way that is congruent with a God who frees people from slavery. How could we even consider keeping others in bondage? 

Our Gospel reading from this past Sunday, the famous ‘Cleansing of the Temple,’ seems to echo a similar theme as Jeremiah 7. Jesus went to the Temple and witnessed the ordinary day-to-day goings on: money-changers were making it possible for people from all around to use a currency that could be used at the Temple, and the animals were part of that same system. This was totally legitimate religious observance. But Jesus, in his rage, reminds the people, and hopefully us, that the religious life isn’t just a light sprinkling of ‘butter on top of the popcorn’ of our lives. The example of Jesus, and his grassroots people’s movement, shows us that we are called to care for others, not to hide behind and justify ourselves through some religious system that doesn’t address issues of justice. 

Recently in one of my classes on Anglicanism we were looking at some of the resolutions from the Lambeth Conference, which meets every ten years or so, gathering representatives from all over the Anglican Communion. In particular we were delving into some of the resolutions related to gender, the family, and women’s ordination. Much time was spent on research and discernment on these matters. Sadly, though, the Lambeth Conference seems to have missed the opportunity to adequately address topics such as slavery, genocide, the death penalty, and indigenous issues. 

Reading the prophets like Jeremiah can make for dark reading. But it can help us recognize our shortcomings and challenge us to do better in the future. I hope that we in the Church (or we who are the Church) pursue justice with the same energy that we apply to liturgical issues (and, I’d add, connect justice issues to our liturgy). A good start might be the Lenten focus on the Primates World Relief and Development Fund.

- Matthew Kieswetter