Rector's Sermon - Sunday, May 19, 2002

First Reading	Psalm	Epistle	Gospel
Acts 2:1-21	104:25-35, 37	1 Corinthians 12:3b-13	John 7:37-39

      At the time of Jesus, the feast of Pentecost had become a celebration of God's ancient agreement with the people of Israel as they camped at the foot of Mount Sinai, having been liberated from slavery in Egypt. It was a thanksgiving festival commemorating God's gift and the occasion to honor the memory of Moses who served as the mediator between God and Israel. Incorporated in this formative agreement was God's promise to be faithful to Israel and for Israel to model a society through which God's blessings would be made known to all people. Israel was promised a homeland, but they were also to live as a Holy people. Note God didn't expect Israel to convert the peoples of the earth, but for their particular society to serve as an example of the way people were to treat each other and live together on this earth.

      The giving of the Holy Spirit is always a somewhat scary and uncomfortable experience. The traditional symbols of the Spirit, be it smoke, thunder, wind, or tongues of fire, indicate a power from someplace else, a force beyond and above our control. That is why we are usually cautious, if not suspicious, in our initial reaction to signs of God's Spirit working among us. We should not be surprised with the bystanders' reaction on the first Pentecost after Easter, thinking that the followers of Jesus were not in their right mind or had lost control of their senses. Our first reaction is pretty much along the same lines.

      If we can lay aside our anxiety and accept the gifts of the spirit, often we are filled with fresh energy and new insight. Pentecost, for Jesus' disciples, was the occasion when God offered them a mission to larger humanity, much like the mission given to Israel on that Pentecost centuries before. The Gospel was to become good news for all nations. Jesus' followers were to be a positive factor in the reconciliation and betterment of society. That is why the emphasis on Pentecost is not on "only" those who call upon the Lord will be blessed, but on the "all-ness" of God's mission. God will hear the cries of all. The Holy Sprit will not simply be given to a select body, but will alight on men and women, on old and young, and even on people oppressed, people without power or social standing, and living on the fringes of society.

      One of the more interesting books I am currently reading is "Qur'an Liberation and Pluralism" by Farid Esack. Esack is a South African Muslim scholar and social activist who discovered that as a Muslim, he had much in common with his neighbors of different religious traditions who, like himself, were involved in the struggle to overthrow apartheid. In the struggle to form a more just and democratic state, Esack was led to reinterpret key passages of the Qur'an. He now believes that Islam needs to be liberated from the baggage of old prejudices and cultural assumptions, and indeed when it is liberated from such baggage, it can support with faithfulness to its core tradition a pluralistic, non-oppressive, democratic, and gender-equal society. To some of us that seems a contradiction of much of what we know about Islam. However, we might remember that the church is over six-hundred years older than Islam. Back in the twelfth century when Christianity was the same age as Islam, there were plenty of Christians who were as extreme, uncompromising, and judgmental as any fundamentalist and extremist Moslem of today. Think of how long the so-called divine right of kings was believed to be firmly based on scripture! I cannot say how the views of Esack will be treated in the later history of Islam, but the point for us, who are worshipping in this place today, is to realize that we all look at things based on our assumptions and that from time to time the Holy Spirit may well call any of them into question. The Spirit of the risen Jesus cuts through our fear and the locked doors of our hearts, and opens our community up, as much as it did for the first disciples. The movement of the Holy Spirit is not an option for a healthy church, but a vital and dynamic necessity.

      Pentecost is such an important day for the church. It should stir us up and not permit us to remain contented and satisfied with the status quo. True, the spirit is beyond our control, and sometimes the voice of the spirit is given to people with whom we would prefer not to hear from or we have been taught not to associate with, yet such voices motivate us to take the Good News seriously. That, in itself, is Good News.

      And I offer this to you in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Amen