Sermon for 12th Sunday after Pentecost
Everyone Welcome
By The Rev. Eric Christopher Shafer -
One of my all-time favorite films is called "Places in the Heart." You may not remember this 1984 film, but you may remember a well-known incident associated with it.
In 1985, "Places in the Heart" star Sally Field won her second Academy Award for her role in this film. In her now-famous acceptance speech for her Oscar, Field said, "I can't deny the fact that you like me, right now, you like me!" This line, of course, has been slightly misquoted as it has become well known as "You like me, you really like me!"
"Places in the Heart" is a wonderful film. Set in Texas during the 1930s, it is a film about survival in the face of very difficult circumstances. Sally Field plays a poor widow with small children. She takes in boarders to help her make ends meet on her dirt-poor farm. Her two borders are a blind man, played by John Malkovich, and an African American man, played by Danny Glover. Glover is also her farm hand and farm manager and faces overt racism from Field's white racist neighbors.
"Places in the Heart" is a story of triumph in the face of overwhelming odds. Sally Field well deserved the Oscar she won for her role in this film.
"Places in the Heart" is also one of the most theological Hollywood films ever made. It has the most amazing final scene, set in church, during Holy Communion. As Communion is being distributed, the camera pulls out from Sally Field and her family who are sitting near the front of the congregation. As the camera pans the congregation, we see all the people who are and have been important in her character’s life, those both living and dead. It is a portrait of the heavenly banquet, the communion of saints, if ever there was one.
I thought again of "Places in the Heart" when I read today's gospel lesson from St. Luke, in which Jesus is describing God's heavenly banquet, one which will include everyone, not just the wealthy and friends and relatives, but also the poor, the crippled, the lame and the blind.
This story is typical of St. Luke's Gospel. Luke often pictures Jesus eating and drinking: from calling Matthew, the hated tax collector, to be his disciple over supper, through Jesus’ Last Supper Passover meal with his disciples. The Jesus of Luke likes to eat and drink.
Luke's Jesus also always has a very open table for his dining. Welcome at Jesus' table is for everyone, rich and poor, men and women, all ages, races, ethnicities, religions, and sexual orientations. This is Luke’s picture of heaven, open to all with everyone welcome.
One of my calls before coming to Mt. Olive was as senior pastor of Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church in Lansdale, Pennsylvania, which, with more than 6,000 members, is the largest Lutheran congregation east of the Mississippi River and the ninth largest congregation in our Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.
While I was at Trinity, we began a new Wednesday evening program for all ages. We called it FEAST, which was an acronym for Fellowship, Education, Adoration, Song, Together, since the first letters of those five words spell FEAST, F E A S T. Anyway, what was and is so wonderful about this program is it involves music and education for all ages and begins with a meal, a meal to which not only members of the congregation, but hungry people from the community, are invited. More recently I am told that the attendance grown to nearly 300 people each week, many of whom would not have been eating that evening without this meal. And because they were eating with many Trinity members and families, some of whom were also in need of a good meal, they were not singled out, but were part of the congregation family, at least for Wednesday evenings. Everyone was and is welcome at that table.
Welcoming is not an easy task. The folks at Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church in Lansdale, Pennsylvania, are similar to many other Lutherans: They are shy and often all too often reticent to talk about faith. And since Trinity is so large, members are always concerned that they will welcome someone new and find out that they are a life-long member! Ouch! So, folks there often keep quiet just like many other "good" Lutherans do!
Welcoming someone who is clearly different from us presents additional challenges. There is a reason that Sunday mornings are still the most segregated time in North America--likes attract likes. Trinity Church in Lansdale attracts a number of non-white members, but because of the large overall numbers at worship, they are mostly lost in a sea of white faces. Most other Lutheran churches are even worse. And Trinity is no different from many Christian churches--most are mono-racial.
I well remember the first African American family who joined the first congregation I served, Holy Trinity Memorial Lutheran Church in Catasauqua, which is near Allentown, Pennsylvania. Ruth--not her real name--Ruth was a Xerox executive and her husband Bill--also not his real name--was a telephone company worker. They had two handsome, bright children. Except for their race, they were like many folks in that congregation. Actually, they were more educated and upper middle class than most folks in that congregation. They became active members of Holy Trinity, serving in many leadership capacities.
After they joined Holy Trinity, Ruth shared with me a dream she had had the night before the first time she attended worship at that congregation. Ruth had dreamed that as she and her family entered our previously all white congregation, everyone turned, looked at her family, and then everyone left! Years of experiencing and expecting racism only made her dream a feared reality. Fortunately, our small congregation embraced Ruth and her family.
While I worked at Odyssey Networks in New York City, Kris and I lived in Manhattan where we were blessed with the opportunity to see many wonderful theatrical productions. One of my favorite shows from those years, which only recently closed after a long run both on and off Broadway, one of my favorite shows from those years is called "Avenue Q," a bawdy adult musical comedy with nearly life-sized puppets.
In "Avenue Q" there is a song called "Everyone's A Little Bit Racist." The song's words include these:
"Everyone's a little bit racist
Sometimes.
Doesn't mean we go
Around committing hate crimes.
Look around and you will find
No one's really color blind.
Maybe it's a fact
We all should face
Everyone makes judgments
Based on race."
There is no excuse for racism of any kind. Our gospel lesson today is very clear on this issue: God's heavenly banquet is open to all and if we attend that heavenly banquet and except that everyone at this banquet will look like us, we will be very disappointed.
Everyone's a little bit racist. There's much truth in that not so silly song. We all have work to do to end racism in both church and society at large.
And it all drives me back to the communion table which we Christians share.
Today, as we do at all worship services here at Mt. Olive, today in just a few minutes we will celebrate Holy Communion and I will get to say the words I just love to say before we share in this sacrament of God’s love and forgiveness, “Here at Mt. Olive, everyone is welcome at our communion table.” And, here at Mt. Olive, we are serious about that invitation – everyone means everyone.
The Kingdom of God brings together all who love Christ, all who wish to share this love with others. Throughout worship we remember how Christ modeled the Kingdom of God for us in his life, death and resurrection. Christ taught true table fellowship in eating with sinners, inviting himself to Zacchaeus’ home, and even sharing his last meal with his betrayer. As we celebrate communion and come to the table, we not only encounter grace for ourselves, we also learn how to share in the Kingdom of God with others.
Receiving God’s grace and sharing it with others. That is how Christians come to the communion table this day or anytime we receive the sacrament of Holy Communion. Still broken people to be sure. A little bit or even more than a little bit racist. Wanting to welcome others, but often not knowing how. Sometimes fearful, sometimes hopeful. Sometimes hurting, sometimes confident.
Sometimes bored, sometimes excited. Bringing all our hopes and fears with us. And all still welcome at God's table of grace today and every worship service. All still loved and forgiven by our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. And to that all we can say is thanks be to God!
Amen.
(Adapted from a sermon I first preached on the “Day1” radio preaching ministry).
The Rev. Eric Christopher Shafer
Senior Pastor - Mt. Olive Lutheran Church
Santa Monica, California
Sunday, August 31 & September 1, 2019
