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Pentecost 13, Proper 17 Lesson: Song of Solomon 2:8-13
August 30, 2009 Psalm 45:1-2, 7-10
The Rev. Kirk Lee Epistle: James 1:17-27
St. James’ Church, Marietta Holy Gospel: Mark 7:1-8. 14-15, 21-23
In the Name of God: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
First century Pharisees and Scribes asked Jesus this question: “Why do your disciples not live according to the tradition of the elders, but eat with defiled hands?”
Now a twenty first century person might ask Jesus: “Why do your disciples not wash their hands before eating? Don’t you know that dirty hands have germs on them, and that leads to disease.?”
Two different questions, and there is more that distinguishes them than just the time – 20 centuries. The difference between the two questions is this: one justifies the washing of hands as a tradition, as a ritual; and the other justifies the washing of hands as a practical matter of science. The people of the first century are not the people of the twenty first century.
This experience I had summarizes that point that Jesus is teaching us today. I once worked with a priest who was very detailed about how she wanted everything done. One Saturday, she and I, and everyone involved in the next day’s service, was there to practice. (Lots of luck getting that today!) As I was setting the altar, she chirped at me that I was setting the altar wrong. I barked back at her that this was not a moral issue of right or wrong. I was not setting the altar wrong; I was setting the altar differently. Needless to say, it was time for me to move on. I did, and that is how I ended up here!
Do you see the point? You can get so tied up in the details that you lose the sense of allowing people to be themselves.
Today’s reading gives us some wonderful insight into first century life. The Pharisees and the Jews do not eat unless they thoroughly wash their hands, observing the tradition of the elders. They do not eat anything from the market unless it is washed. Then there are many other traditions that they observe – washing of cups, pots and bronze kettles.
You and I take this all for granted. But in the first century this was very unusual behavior. Not everybody did this. This was the ritual of the Jewish Hebrew people.
So how did they develop this tradition of washing? Remember, Judaism has been around for thousands and thousands of years. During their long history, through experience, they discovered that cleanliness is next to godliness. Someone asked if that was something you really believe, because a coal miner can be just as close to God as someone who works in a hospital. That was not really the point I was going for, but the pattern of cleaning.
What they learned over those thousands of years they developed into a tradition and ritualized it. They found that by living according to the tradition of the elders, that they had better health than when they did not – and certainly better health in the people who lived around them. Over time, that learning becomes ritualized and traditionalized.
So the tradition had both a form and a function. Why does Jesus react as he does to their question about the disciples’ dining habits? “This people honors God with their lips, but their hearts are from God; in vain do they worship God, teaching human precepts as doctrines.” Teaching human precepts as doctrines? Are we humans capable of doing that?
Stated another way: Teaching human rules for moral conduct as doctrine.
Jesus, remember, challenged the traditions and the religious authorities in his day. That is what led to the cross. One consistent message in the Gospels was that Jesus calls us to use our hearts to lead us in life rather than to depend solely on rules and authority. He clearly stresses that the reliance on rules, traditions and authoritative leaders leads people to hardness of heart.
I think today’s reading encourages us to test tradition as to whether or not it has both form and function in our time. Eating with unwashed hands in the first century for the Jewish people was an immoral act because it defied tradition. Eating with unwashed hands in the twenty first century is not a moral issue; it is a practical issue of good hygiene.
The Church would like us to think, “as it was then, is now, and ever will be.” Well, that is not true. The Church, believe it or not, has a long history of testing tradition to both form and function. I am going to give you a few examples.
Perhaps the earliest shift in Christian tradition happened before the end of the first century. Now remember, this is in Scripture. By the way, all of these things that Christians did, that I am going over, they did this with justification of Scripture. The Church has traditionally shifted on tradition where it needed to. This is not something new that is just happening today.
So after the first 50 years, the first teaching was that Jesus’ return was imminent. You had better live today as if it was your last day because Jesus is coming back, and that is when the time ends. Well, after 50 years, 60,70,100 years, Jesus did not return as he preached. The Church had to question just how practical this ancient tradition was. Now, in our Creed, and anything we say that Jesus will return again.
By the way while I am on the topic, how does a tradition start in a church? Some say that if you do something the same way three times in a church, it is a tradition.
Look at some of these examples about how things have changed from the very early teachings of the Church. For centuries, believe it or not, babies, children and adults who died without baptism could not be buried in a Christian cemetery.
Hundreds and hundreds of years after Christ’s life, the church developed the tradition of priests being male and celibate. The early priests and bishops of the Church were quite often married. Hundreds of years later, they developed that tradition.
Hundreds and hundreds of years after that, some of the Church decided that this tradition was not the model of what Jesus would want at that time and in that place. Now much of the Church has priests of all sorts and conditions – male and female. We have been bold enough to consecrate bishops the same way. The Church tradition that the earth, God’s creation, is the center of the universe, and the tradition that God created humans in the beginning just as they are today, was ruffled by the theories of Galileo and Darwin. And the Church modified its position.
For thousands of years, the tradition of the Eucharist was only celebrated in Latin. Then that tradition was found to be lacking for people in their generations, and the Eucharist now is celebrated in the native language of the people.
Sadly, one tradition kept people bound together when there was no bond between them. Divorced people were not allowed in the Church or to receive the Sacraments of the Church at one time. Today, most Christian traditions recognize that marriages do break down, and that compassion and the practical thing to do is to accept it and provide love, support and community to those who divorce.
When I was at seminary, I served at a very high church. It was commonly called “the smells and bells” church. Everything was new to me. One of the first Sundays I was there I helped the Altar Guild to set up the table at the early morning service and the later one. The table to the right of the altar was set with two chalices, a box of bread, a large cruet of wine. Beside them was a small, ornate sterling silver spoon. We did not have a small, ornate sterling silver spoon at the chapel at the seminary. I asked one of the ladies what the spoon was for. She said that she did not know. They always put it on the table in that same place. That was the tradition. Some time later I learned that it is very helpful to have a small, ornate sterling silver spoon handy when someone drops the bread into the wine. It has a practical reason. When you watch them set the altar today, so much of what is up there, the pieces that we move, come out of the traditions that are so ancient and not necessary today.
Another ancient tradition of the Church is the Nicene Creed, one of the oldest creeds that we have. When we recite it we acclaim that we believe in “one holy and apostolic church.” The reference to catholic is not referring to the Roman Catholic Church. Remember that catholic in that context means “universal” – universal in extent, involving all of interest to all, and pertaining to the whole Christian Body of Christ. That is what it means to be catholic. It is a pretty inclusive term, is it not?
So thanks to the disobedience of Martin Luther, we have different traditions in the universal catholic church. And those traditions have traditions. This past week or so, one such tradition, one such community of brothers and sisters of other traditions, decided that it was time to welcome gay clergy and their partners into the fold of the Church. Now I know this is a contentious issue. Not every Lutheran, I am sure, agrees with that decision. And I know that not everyone here agrees with that decision, whether it is their tradition or ours. However, in our generation, this is one of the many traditions of the Church which is being questioned in the context of our time and our community. Let’s recall what Jesus said. “This people honors God with their lips, but their hearts are far from God; in vain do they worship God, teaching human precepts as doctrines.” Would Jesus make that same claim of us today? Are we guilty of teaching human precepts as doctrine? Some ask if we are straying away from the Gospel of Christ. I would ask, are we really living the Gospel of Christ?
The Church of God continues today to assess the traditions of the Church in this time. God willing, it will continue to do so until Christ returns again. Amen.
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