The Church of the Undomesticated Jesus Christ

Who will lead the sacrifice?

Which organized body of people have something to teach the world about sacrifice?

What community of people is spiritually equipped and resourced to lead lives of sacrificial, redeeming love?

What does the world desperately need in an age of global climate catastrophe but to learn how to sacrifice for the health and future of the whole?

The Church of the undomesticated Jesus Christ is what the world needs now.

Why do I say, ‘undomesticated’? Because much of American Christianity is the domesticated sort; warped by our individualist, competitive consumer culture to sanctify the desires and behaviors cultivated by mass culture. Domesticated Christianity teaches us to conform to the dominant narrative and to feel justified in our wealth, greed, overweening pride, and grasping, defensive self-interest.

The undomesticated Jesus Christ shared the Beatitudes with his followers (Luke 6:20-31): “Blessed are the poor...blessed are you when people hate you, exclude you, and defame you on account of the Son of Man...woe to the rich…woe to the full, etc.” Jesus is turning the culturally compromised religion of his time on its head. He is challenging the assumption that a faithful life results in prosperity. He is directly challenging the notion that conventional goodness is rewarded by God with material blessing.

Blessed are those who make sacrifices for the sake of discipleship. Blessed are we who respond to the security and favor bestowed on us freely by God with lives that demonstrate who and what we really trust.

Slowing, and possibly reversing, the global climate crisis will require sacrifice. My wife and I are having a serious and unhappy conversation about major changes to our future travel plans. Airplanes are huge contributors to global warming and I feel called to radically restrict my airline travel as a sacrifice for planetary health. I love to travel and I especially love to travel with my wife. In retirement we had planned to see the world together. When we sacrifice we give up something we love for a greater good. In faith, we know God will provide consolation.

“Even if you do suffer for doing what is right, you are blessed. Do not fear what they fear, and do not be intimidated, but in your hearts sanctify Christ as Lord.” - 1 Peter 3:14-15

So I will be poor in air travel. God will bless me and others in that poverty. This is the type of life the undomesticated Jesus Christ invites and supports. I know that I struggle against persistent feelings of entitlement, as in, “I deserve just as much tourism as anyone else,” or, “I have worked hard my whole life, so I get the reward of travel now.” The deeper sacrifice is letting go of entitlement - living life in the spirit of what is owed to us, what we demand from life - and the air travel, that is merely a symptom.

Blessings,
The Rev. Jarrett Kerbel
Rector

Luke 6:20-31
Jesus looked up at his disciples and said:


“Blessed are you who are poor,
for yours is the kingdom of God.
“Blessed are you who are hungry now,
for you will be filled.
“Blessed are you who weep now,
for you will laugh.
“Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you, revile you, and defame you on account of the Son of Man. Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, for surely your reward is great in heaven; for that is what their ancestors did to the prophets."
"But woe to you who are rich,
for you have received your consolation.
"Woe to you who are full now,
for you will be hungry.
"Woe to you who are laughing now,
for you will mourn and weep.
"Woe to you when all speak well of you, for that is what their ancestors did to the false prophets.

"But I say to you that listen, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. If anyone strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also; and from anyone who takes away your coat do not withhold even your shirt. Give to everyone who begs from you; and if anyone takes away your goods, do not ask for them again. Do to others as you would have them do to you.

Scripture text from the Revised Common Lectionary readings for All Saints' Day, November 1 available at https://www.lectionarypage.net. The Bible translation used is The New Revised Standard Version.

Sincere Faith

Image description: On a bright teal blue background, which appears to be painted and
weathered concrete, there are a series of wooden blocks with letters and numbers
carved out of each one. The sizes, shapes, and colors of the wood and the fonts of
the characters vary. In the center, five blocks are positioned together to spell the word, 'faith.'

For the last few weeks, our Epistle reading came from the Second Letter to Timothy. The goal of the author is to encourage and strengthen the faltering faith of a local house church leader named Timothy. His faith is wilting under the assault of shame, public embarrassment that his mentor - the Apostle Paul - is a jailbird, and his Lord - Jesus Christ - suffered the shameful death of a criminal and rebel. Timothy finds himself in an unpopular and scorned minority accused of harboring absurd and even seditious ideas.

We need to read this letter as if it is addressed to us. Many of us are ashamed of our faith. We are loathe to mention our allegiance to Jesus Christ in polite company. We are afraid that friends and strangers will judge us dimwitted, or worse, as fellow travelers of the negative expressions of popular Christianity which flood the media with bile and hatefulness. To stand out and stand up for an alternative expression of faith that is thoughtful, gentle, inclusive, and inviting would be a terrific gift to country riven by extremes.

As Episcopalians we have prided ourselves on a thoughtful, gentle, and questioning faith. I hope we see this identity as a gift and learn to emphasize the word “faith” as much as we emphasize the word “questioning.” Our Presiding Bishop, Michael Curry, is certainly challenging us in that direction and I find his challenge both refreshing and disorienting. The challenge to own my faith in Jesus Christ is disorienting for me because I was raised in liberal Christianity, ashamed of my faith and trained to see myself as the sole authority who judges tradition and scripture against my own conclusions and ideas about reality. I find it refreshing because, in reality, I am much healthier and happier when I scede authority over my life to my faithful guide and steadfast savior, Jesus Christ.

C.S. Lewis said, “Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance. The only thing it cannot be is moderately important.” While we will always be a church of curiosity, searching, and welcome for folks wherever they are on their journey of faith, we also, by necessity must be a place where the Gospel is shared with confidence in all of its illuminating and life-saving power. The most powerful way to do that is to share our story and to be sincere in our expressions of faith.

One danger of living in a distracted, fractured, and accelerated culture is that lonely people of faith will become rigid and defensive in our minority position. Scared and anxious that we are losing ground, and at risk of losing a faith and an institution we adore, we retrench and resist by staking out rigid positions, lines in the sand. Our faith inspires a more nuanced reaction. We are challenged to become more clear and focused on our mission and the good news we have to share. At the same time, that good news is gentle, welcoming, and full of loving kindness. If not, we have a real loss to mourn.

Blessings,
The Rev. Jarrett Kerbel
Rector

A Peek into the March Vestry Retreat

On Saturday, March 16 your vestry gathered for our annual vestry retreat. The focus of the retreat was advancing our Becoming Beloved Community strategic framework through reflection, conversation, clarification, and delegation. By following this link you can view the full notes generated at the retreat in a format that follows the major headings of the Becoming Beloved Community strategic framework:
1. Institution: Leadership and Practice

• Training/orienting parish leaders with lens of racial healing
• Process for recruiting, hiring, and retaining persons of color to senior staff positions

2. Education: Many Points of Entry

• BBC conversation starter
• BBC basic workshop in fall 2019

3. Public Witness: Rapid, appropriate response informed by and in partnership with people of color.

• Community Engagement creates racial justice/witness process
• Add rapid response/witness to ongoing work with POWER

In the morning, we worked with a wonderful consultant named Anthony Moore who helped our leadership reflect on the meaning of diversity of inclusion for St. Martin’s. We emerged from that session with a strong sense that difference enriches our community and requires a commitment to education and growth to allow differences to feel welcomed and to flourish in the church.

A repeated theme was that we need to welcome, respect, and attend to the experience of each person simply because that experience or perspective is their own. We also need to encourage an atmosphere of mutual support and learning so we can try, fail, and succeed together and endure in community through the inevitable mistakes that come with growth. As Barb Ballenger often reminds me, having set off on the path of racial healing we will be all the more accountable and more acutely aware when we fall short. Prayer, mutual support, forgiveness, and endurance will be crucial to the path forward.
In the afternoon, our agenda focused on points 1 and 3 of the strategic framework. First we established clear definitions of racism, bigotry, and implicit bias. Then we created a list of qualities and skills to guide a future training program for parish leaders. We brainstormed factors we should consider in designing a process to recruit, hire, and retain people of color in senior staff positions at the church. We reflected deeply on authority and trust and how racism disrupts and distorts relationships by spreading distrust and diminishing authority. I reflected on how much unearned authority and trust I receive simply because I am white, straight, and male and how different it would be for a person of color in my position.

We finished a very productive day by delegating work on point three, public witness, to the community engagement committee. The vestry laid down broad-brush recommendations and the committee will design a public witness policy and procedure to present to the vestry at a later date. This work will dovetail nicely with the work we did in parish forum last Sunday. We will bring the results of this committee work to the parish for conversation and endorsement, hopefully by annual meeting on Sunday, June 9.

I could not be more proud of our vestry for such sincere, brave, and open engagement with a challenging and promising agenda that will shape the future of this parish. The vestry and all of our members have the power to shape the environment of this place toward the flourishing of each member in his or her blessed uniqueness! St. Martin’s has made an intentional choice to face our legacy of racism and to turn toward God’s path of racial justice, cultural humility, and racial healing. May God bless us on this journey.

The Rev. Jarrett Kerbel

Blessings,
The Rev. Jarrett Kerbel
Rector

Here's that link again for our retreat full minutes.