Mark 6: 7-13
Sunday, July 8, 2018
First Congregational United Church of Christ of Manhattan, KS
First Congregational United Church of Christ of Manhattan, KS
Sermon by the Rev. Caela Simmons Wood
You can almost hear the groans
across the centuries as the disciples receive Jesus’s instructions to go out,
two-by-two, and cast out demons.
“Seriously, man? We can’t take
anything with us? What about some protein bars? An extra phone charger?
Nothing? How do we know that the Airbnb is going to have coffee for in the
morning? You really expect to heal the sick and cast out demons without being
properly caffeinated?”
But Jesus isn’t budging. He is
adamant. They are to go out and make themselves totally reliant on the
hospitality of strangers. Equipped and empowered to do this amazing work -
following in the footsteps of their Teacher as they perform miracles - they are
not given any special equipment. In fact, they’re not even allowed to take
along any food, money, an extra shirt….not even a bag to carry their
non-existent stuff in. Maybe this is just bit of what Paul was trying to get at
when he told the Church at Corinth that “power is made perfect in weakness.”
There’s a bit of yin and yang at
play here. As the disciples are strengthened and empowered to perform miracles,
they are also reminded of their vulnerability and utter dependence on those
they are going to serve.
And we are reminded of how
discipleship is always rooted in mutuality - it’s never a one-way street. We
are able to heal because we have experienced healing. We are comfortable
sharing what we have because we remember those who have shared with us in our
times of need. We offer a kind word to someone who is hurting because we know exactly
how a small kindness can feel like a lifelife when you’re at the end of your
rope. We offer hospitality to the strangers because we head the chorus from the
Hebrew Bible, “remember, you were once strangers in the land of Egypt.”
In short, we extend ourselves in
love because we, ourselves, have been loved.
This most basic understanding - that
we are freed to love others because we have first been loved - is at the heart
of everything Jesus taught. It’s why he ate with those that society had cast
aside. It’s why he healed, even on the sabbath when it was frowned upon. It’s
why he spoke in parables, again and again, and pointed the way to the Realm of
God. Jesus, who was fully and intimately connected to the astounding and
unconditional love of God, was transformed by that love and, from it, modeled
what it looks like to reach out in love again and again and again.
The Rev. Fred Rogers, better known
to all of us as Mister Rogers, also understood this in a profound way. Mr.
Rogers frequently explained that the underlying idea of the neighborhood is
“that if somebody cares about you, it’s possible that you will care about
others.” [1]
Mr. Rogers’ neighborhood was the
place many of us first learned about the power of hospitality, though our
four-year-old selves would not have been able to name that fact explicitly. For
children who grew up in the 70s, 80s, and 90s, Mr. Rogers was a consistently
present, caring adult who modeled a life firmly rooted in the mutuality of
giving and receiving love.
Every day at the same appointed
time, Mr. Rogers would arrive in my living room, inviting me into his home. The
routine was the same each and every day for over 30 years. Mr. Rogers would
come in the door, singing the same joy-filled song and welcoming us into his
home. He would change into a casual sweater and sneakers, making it clear that
this was a place where we could all be comfortable and relaxed.
And then - settled in together - we
would begin to talk. Was Mr. Rogers the first adult on television to ask
children questions and then pause, leaving room for his neighbors at home to
actually answer the questions? I’m not sure. But what I can tell you is that
even when you watch episodes that are 40 years old, I find that I have to stop
myself from answering his questions out loud. Rationally I know that he’s not
actually listening to me through the TV but the openness and genuine curiosity
that he exudes is so real I am almost fooled.
Fred Rogers was a pioneer in
children’s television precisely because he understood the power of
unconditional hospitality. He built a neighborhood where all were welcome. He
spoke to children at a pace that was comfortable for him. Every aspect of the
show was meticulously crafted to be accessible for Mr. Rogers’ neighbors. Those
who worked closely with him have even written about what they call “Fred-ese” a
meticulous nine-step process Mr. Rogers went through with each and every script
to make sure the messages were accessible to children. [2]
I’m sure many of you have heard the
story about the little girl named Katie who once sent Mr. Rogers a letter.
Katie watched the show every day, relying on Mr. Rogers’ careful narration to
carry the story because Katie was blind. With the help of her father, this
five-year-old neighbor sent Mr. Rogers a letter saying that she sometimes got
worried about his fish because he didn’t always mention it aloud that he was
feeding them at the end of the show. From that day on, Mr. Rogers always
briefly stated that he was feeding the fish at the end of each episode. An act
of radical hospitality - extending ourselves for the other, going out of our
way to make sure each and every neighbor feels welcome, secure, loved.
[3]
Our congregation, Iike so many faith
communities, takes God’s call to offer hospitality very seriously. Each week we
open our doors to numerous community groups who use our building - Narcotics
Anonymous, Alcoholics Anonymous, and now Overeaters Anonymous meet here nearly
every day of the week. We’ve been serving a meal to anyone who wants it every
single Sunday night for almost twenty years. Rarely does a week go by that our
showers go unused as Sandy, who works in our office, graciously greets those
who come in need quick refreshment and shows them the way to the basement so
they can get cleaned up.
Giving hospitality is a strength of
this congregation. Thanks be to God.
Jesus, when talking to his disciples
about hospitality, makes it clear it’s a two-way street. It’s not JUST about
the acts of healing that we are called to give. It’s also about the
vulnerability that Jesus calls us into as we, Christ’s followers, are called to
RECEIVE hospitality from others - even complete strangers.
I think that call to learn how to
graciously receive hospitality from others is rooted in the understanding that
it is only by receiving love, warmth, encouragement that we can, in turn, give
the same to others. This is why it’s so important to tend to the back-and-forth
dance of giving and receiving care as we try to follow Jesus. We literally
cannot extend ourselves, emptying ourselves for others again and again, UNLESS
we are ALSO in the practice of being filled, again and again, by the Holy.
Fred Rogers must have had some
profound spiritual practices that enabled him to extend himself again and again
over the course of his lifetime. Although the internet is full of memes and
stories that would canonize him, Mr. Rogers was not actual celestial being - at
least not any more than any of us here in this room. He was a regular everyday
person who got frustrated with his sons and annoyed by the constant pressures
of his job. Like any of us, he struggled from time-to-time with doubts about
whether his life was on the right track or what kind of legacy he might leave.
But even with all of these very
normal human worries and cares, Mr. Rogers was in touch with some depth of love
that enabled him to consistently give and receive hospitality and love.
I read a story on Twitter from a man
named Anthony Breznican, who also grew up in Pittsburgh, like Fred Rogers. [4]
Anthony grew up, like me and like many of you, graciously welcomed into Mr.
Rogers’ home as a guest. He writes about a time, when he was in college and was
going through some particularly difficult challenges in life. At a time when he
was particularly filled with despair, he heard the familiar voice of his
childhood friend, Mr. Rogers, singing softly from a TV screen that had been
left on in the lobby of the building where he lived. Anthony was drawn to the
TV and stood there, mesmerized as Mr. Rogers sang a song about what to do with
the mad that you feel. Breznican said that watching the show felt like a “cool
hand on a hot forehead.” That’s one of the simplest and best descriptions of
what receiving unconditional love feels like, don’t you think?
Well, a few weeks later, Anthony got
into an elevator and guess who was there? Mr. Rogers, of course. Anthony wasn’t
quite sure what to do. He didn’t want to totally geek out but he also felt like
the universe had perhaps placed them in this elevator together for a reason. As
the doors opened, Anthony turned to Mr. Rogers and said, “Mr. Rogers, I don’t
want to bother you but I just want to say thank you.” And Mr. Rogers looked at
this young man, a stranger, and said, “Did you grow up as one of my neighbors?”
The two men share an embrace and
make some small talk. Finally, Anthony shares that he recently stumbled upon
the show again when he was going through a really hard time. And Mr. Rogers
takes off his scarf and sits down on a window ledge. Anthony explains, “This is
what sets Mr. Rogers apart. No one else would have done this. He says, ‘Do you
want to tell me about it?’” And the two men sit there sharing stories about
people in their lives that they’ve loved and lost and how brutal this
being human business can feel sometimes. Finally, as they prepared to part
ways, Anthony apologized for taking up so much of his time, hoping he hadn’t
made him late for some important appointment. Mr. Rogers responded, “Sometimes
you’re right where you need to be.”
Sometimes you’re right where you
need to be.
More likely than not, we’re always
right where we need to be. But so often we forget. We are distracted and
bothered by so much of the business of being human. We get so busy offering
hospitality to others that we forget the importance of receiving it ourselves.
Or we get so wrapped up in rushing off to the next thing that we forget to see
the opportunity, right in front of us, to sit down on a window ledge and share
a moment of human connection with a neighbor.
The disciples are called to go out
into the world not just to offer God’s gifts but to RECEIVE God’s gifts. Jesus
commands them to make themselves exquisitely vulnerable knowing that this is
sometimes the ONLY way we will be talked into relying on the hospitality of our
neighbors - when we REALLY need it.
It’s a dance of mutuality that we
remember every time we sit down at the Table together - take, bless, break,
give.
We love because God first loved us.
Thanks be to God.
[2] https://www.theatlantic.com/family/archive/2018/06/mr-rogers-neighborhood-talking-to-kids/562352/
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