Rector's Sermon - Sunday, October 27, 2002

First Reading	Psalm	Epistle	Gospel
Leviticus 19:1-2, 15-18	1:1-6	1 Thessalonians 2:1-8	Matthew 22:34-46

     In the ancient book of Deuteronomy, Israel was commanded "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.", (Dt. 6:4-5). We read this morning from the book of Leviticus in which Israel was reminded, "you must love your neighbor as yourself." (Lev. 19:18). The prophet Micah summarized God's expectation with the words "this is what God asks of you: only this, to act justly, to love tenderly and to walk humbly with your God." Outside the Biblical record, there developed a long tradition of combining the command to love God with the love of neighbor. In a very popular commentary of the time titled the "Testament of the Twelve Patriarchs", there were numerous references to loving God and your neighbor with a specific exhortation "but love God and your neighbor and show compassion for the poor and weak." The rabbi Gamaliel, a contemporary of Jesus and a former teacher of Paul used to claim that he could recite the whole meaning of the law standing on one foot. When one challenged him to perform such a seemingly impossible task, he would thunder, "love the Lord your God and love your neighbor as yourself."

      All of this reminds us that much of Jesus' teaching fell well within the traditional Biblical understanding of His time. To suggest that it was Jesus who initiated all the humane and compassionate insights of the Bible is a presumption that has had evil consequences.

     One parable that Jesus would not have told is the story of a pig and chicken who went into the State Street diner for breakfast. The chicken looked over the menu and promptly ordered bacon and eggs. The pig gasped, "I could never do that!" "Oh, what's the matter." said the chicken, "Eggs come from chickens, bacon comes from ham, so what?" "No, no, you don't understand." said the pig. "For you eggs are a donation, but bacon, that's different. For me, bacon would be a real commitment."

     For Jesus. love is not an inclination, not simply an emotional attachment, or a sentimental feeling. One of the reasons it is so important to connect the love of God with the love of neighbor is that it brings love down to earth. It's too easy to have an ethereal and pious spirit and call it love of the holy, but to love a neighbor is to be committed to integrity, fairness and justice. Love is not about surface but about soul.

     This past Monday a large part of our vestry meeting dealt with the budget for next year. However, what came breaking into our conversations was the commitment St. John's parishioners have for one another. Finding rides to church for people who can't drive, the commitment of parents who bring their children to choir rehearsal every Thursday, the time the teachers of our special class and Sunday school contribute, thanksgiving for the potters who made the beautiful bowls for those who attending the Lovers and Fishes fundraising supper last week, all these and more entered into our discussion. It impressed me that we are committed to a quality ministry and that is what is involved in loving God and our neighbor.

     Another sign of our commitment is that we are willing, if necessary, to run a deficit budget next year. If we received a 10% increase in pledge income, we likely would not have a deficit, but we know that's a goal, not something to club one another with. The point is because we love God and our neighbor, we are committed to the mission God has entrusted to us - to love our neighbors, be they a month old in the nursery or ninety nine in a nursing home.

     The Apostle Paul probably was a rather prickly and difficult person. Perhaps he had to be, for many of the communities he ministered to could be stubborn and difficult people themselves. The church in Thessalonika was no exception, but in today's epistle Paul wrote, "Deeply do we care for you that we are determined to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves."

     Sharing the Gospel and ourselves is what Jesus was talking about. That's commitment to loving God and others. As a message rooted in a long Biblical tradition, perhaps it is precisely the message we need to hear in these troubled and anxious times.

     And I offer this to you in the name of the Living God, Amen.