Transformation, Not Validation

As I write this hundreds of my Episcopal brothers and sisters are in Austin, TX for the 79th General Convention of the Episcopal Church.  They've been there since last Thursday and will be there through this coming week.  The work of the bishops and elected deputies at the convention, which meets every three years, is to make policy on a church-wide scale, celebrate all that God is doing in the Episcopal Church, approve the budget for the next three years, and of course to dialogue--and often times debate--very serious issues relating to both the church and society.  It was at General Convention in 1976 that the ordination of women in the Church was approved, and it was at General Convention in 2015 that the Church approved a service for celebrating marriages among two people of the same gender.  Each time issues like these come up there are folks who speak for and against them.  Each one of those who speak is faithful, and each believes to their core that the voice with which they speak is a prayerful voice, one that is speaking God's truth.  The subject at this year's convention that has caused such a stir has been the vote on whether or not to adopt a new Book of Common Prayer.  While the final decision has not been made as of the posting of this blog, folks on both sides of the issue have been speaking with that same voice of faith, which has been calling them to stand in truth and speak that truth to the powers-that-be of our church.  Some of those speaking do so as if they are picking up the very mantle of truth-speaking laid down by the prophets.

The seal of the General Convention of the Episcopal Church

Speaking truth to power has long been the role of the prophets throughout the Abrahamic faiths.  Isaiah, Jeremiah, Amos, Jonah, Ezekiel, Jesus, and Muhammad all preached God's word to people in positions of great authority.  Some, like Jeremiah, were afraid; some, like Jonah, outright refused the position; some, like Jesus, were killed for what they said; and some, like Muhammad, had their words twisted and used for purposes which they never intended.  Even when people did not believe the prophet, they still could deny neither the fact that a prophet was among them, nor the authority with which he spoke--as God says to Ezekiel:  "Whether they hear or refuse to hear, they shall know that that there has been a prophet among them." (Ezekiel 2: 5) Theirs is the call to speak truth to the people, to call the people to a transformed life, even if their argument is never validated by said people.

It would be sorely unfair and the acme of foolishness to say that anyone today, including preachers, is a prophet like any of the prophets of old, but we who are people of faith are still called to be truth-tellers.  The problem, however, is that in many ways we live in post-truth time.  Y'all know exactly what I'm talking about! You try making a point to someone, maybe in person or in a post to Facebook, to which that person responds, "Actually, the truth is something different."  You come back with, "You're wrong, that's not the truth."  Suddenly, an argument breaks out over the very idea of truth, the very notion that there is a right and wrong.  The natural conclusion, then, is to say, well, we both have our truths and they're both correct, and then you walk away.  Sometimes, yes, more than one thing can be true, but the idea that truth is entirely subjective leads to a complete breakdown of communal life.  What's more, it breeds mistrust and animosity and is what caused many of those in power to refuse to even listen to the words of the prophets of old because they had already decided that their truth was more true than the prophet's truth.  This is what happens to Jesus when he goes home to Nazareth.

'Jesus came to his hometown, and his disciples followed him. On the sabbath he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were astounded. They said, “Where did this man get all this? What is this wisdom that has been given to him? What deeds of power are being done by his hands! Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon, and are not his sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him. Then Jesus said to them, “Prophets are not without honor, except in their hometown, and among their own kin, and in their own house.” And he could do no deed of power there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and cured them. And he was amazed at their unbelief.

Then he went about among the villages teaching. He called the twelve and began to send them out two by two, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits. He ordered them to take nothing for their journey except a staff; no bread, no bag, no money in their belts; but to wear sandals and not to put on two tunics. He said to them, “Wherever you enter a house, stay there until you leave the place. If any place will not welcome you and they refuse to hear you, as you leave, shake off the dust that is on your feet as a testimony against them.” So they went out and proclaimed that all should repent. They cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick and cured them.'

--Mark 6: 1-13

Jesus' going home was not for a quick visit to see his family, or some walk through the nostalgia of his childhood.  He takes his disciples with him and goes to the synagogue to teach, which means he is there standing in the authority that God has given to him, but when he opens his mouth and speaks the religious leaders and other people gathered are unable to hear his truth.  They have already decided that this man, this boy as they know him, cannot possibly be qualified enough to speak God's truth to them.  Who is he to tell them how to live their lives; after all, he's been living most of the past year or so in Capernaum, not Nazareth?  The resistance on the part of Nazarenes bears striking resemblance to that of the people who are quick to denounce the truth-speakers, to tell them that their version of what's true is just as valid.  What, then, is Jesus to do when caught in this kind of situation?  What is any of us to do when we are trapped with someone who refuses to listen to us, or who disrespects us when we have the courage the speak?

The solution that Jesus offers comes in the instructions that he gives to his disciples after the encounter with the folks in his hometown.  He sends the twelve out two-by-two.  I often wonder how those pairs were done--did the disciples choose their partner or did Jesus choose for them, and if so who ended up with Judas?  He sends them together to not only remind them that they are not alone in their ministry, but also in order that they may have support.  Imagine if Peter and Matthew were paired together.  If they go into Peter's hometown and the folks reject him, Matthew will be there for support, and vice versa when they go to Matthew's town.  Moreover, that partner would be there not to simply agree with everything, but perhaps even to challenge the other somewhat.  You wanna tell me the person paired with Judas didn't push against the stuff he was likely saying?  Not only are they to go together--that is, in community--but notice what they are to take--or rather, what they are not to take.  Their travel is to be light--they will only carry a staff and no change of clothes--and they are not to take any worldly possessions that could hinder or hold them back--no money, no bread.  They are, in a very real way, stripped of everything except their partner and the words that God will speak and the works that God will perform through them.  In these instructions from Jesus we may very well find a model for how to navigate this post-truth world of ours.

We have all found ourselves in situations where the other person simply does not want to hear what we have to say, and at worst disrespects us for even trying to say it.  I suspect that all of of us who have found ourselves in those situations have been tempted to trade blows with such a person. But if we keep trading blows, trying to one-up each other and going mad attempting to prove our truth to the other, then the cycle will never end.  What if, instead of trading blows and arguing loudly (or passive-aggressively on Facebook) over whose truth is and THE truth, we look to Jesus and the disciples as our guides.  Jesus doesn't argue with the people in the Nazareth synagogue, even though he could have and would have been right.  Instead, he continues to stand in his own authority,  What if we stood in our baptismal authority to seek, serve, respect and love?  When Jesus sends out the twelve he sends them in pairs, so what if we remembered that we are not alone and sought the insight of a brother or sister who might be able to support or challenge us?  And just as the twelve went on their journey carrying little baggage, what if we could drop the baggage that weighs us down--our fears, our prejudices, our refusal to change or to accept our own faults and failings?  Perhaps by doing so we can make a crack in the hardened heart of the person or persons with whom we are in disagreement.  Or perhaps not.  The result, whether or not our truth is validated, is quite irrelevant.  The point is that by taking up Jesus' example and applying his instructions to the disciples to our own lives our very spirits undergo a transformation, and we become more and more Christ-like ourselves. That is the point!  It's not about proving you are right and the other is wrong, especially in a world in which no one seems to ever be willing to admit they are wrong.  Instead, it is about the inner journey toward a life that is grounded in Jesus, a life that seeks to become more like Jesus.  This is, after all, why we take Communion each week, as St. Augustine put it:  "We eat the Body of Christ in order that we may be the Body of Christ."  That transformation, not the validation of our personal truth, is the point.  For our brothers and sisters at General Convention, who are engaged in some hard conversations, and for all of us who find ourselves in such precarious spots on a daily basis, our goal is transformation, not validation.

So the next time you find yourself in a situation where you are called to speak the truth, or when you are caught in a conversation with someone who keeps putting you down for speaking the truth, or you're faced with someone who is so completely wrong but incapable of budging from their own truth, use Jesus and the disciples as your model for how to handle it.  Don't trade blows.  Don't disrespect or belittle.  Continue to stand.  Lean on those in your community who can stand with you.  Let go of the baggage that keeps you from standing.  And remember that the transformation of your very self, not the affirmation of your argument, is what God is calling you toward in those moments.  For that is what it means to take up the mantle of the prophets.