All Saints' Sunday 2015: Lutheran Church of the Redeemer, Jerusalem
Sermon for All Saints Day 2015
The Rev. Carrie Ballenger Smith
Grace and
peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Every
Sunday, and in fact every day, is a good day for Christians to celebrate God’s Good
News in Christ that life is stronger than death. However, today is All Saints’
Day, a special day set aside for the church to come together and light candles,
speak names aloud, and remember with thanksgiving our beloved saints who have
died. On this day we honor the ones whose witness lives on in the church through
the communion of saints.
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| Candles lit for the saints on All Saints' Day 2015 Lutheran Church of the Redeemer, Jerusalem Photo by Carrie Smith |
We remember them
today in joy, and with hopeful anticipation of the resurrection, in spite of
the overwhelming evidence that death has claimed victory over them and over us.
It’s true, all
the evidence before us says that our loved ones are gone. They reside now in
tombs and in graveyards, and live only in our memories and the pages of our
family photo albums.
Our eyes clearly
see it.
Our minds
clearly know it.
Or, as in
the case of Martha and Mary at the tomb of Lazarus, our noses clearly smell it.
We know very
well the reality and the rationality of death and its power over us.
But in spite
of this so-called “empirical evidence”, our faith teaches us that the empire of
death never has the last word. Our faith teaches us to hope beyond hope, and to
trust that the One who spoke life into dust is also able to speak life everlasting
into our beloved mothers and fathers, neighbors and friends on the last day. On
that day, there will be a new heaven and a new earth. Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be
no more, for the first things will have passed away. Therefore on this on
All Saints’ Day, we look to the raising of Lazarus – and to the empty tomb of
Jesus – and we rejoice, for our God is a God of resurrection and new life. Amen!
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| Israeli Separation Wall in Bethlehem Photo by Carrie Smith |
In this
place, and at this time, the resurrection Good News of All Saints’ Day holds particular
power. As I was contemplating the
message for this morning, it struck me how much easier it is for me to trust in
the hope of resurrection for my beloved grandmothers and grandfathers, than it
is for me to trust in the hope of resurrection for the city I live in.
At this
moment in the land called holy we are faced with the almost overwhelming stench
of the wall, of the checkpoints, of knife attacks and field executions. The
stink of hatred, and of tear gas, chokes us almost daily. The evidence that the
empire of death rules this land – and its peoples -- seems impossible to
ignore.
For this
reason, to take seriously the story of Lazarus, who was already dead for four
days and stinking in the tomb, and to proclaim God’s power over death, is
almost crazy. To gather as people of faith to sing, to pray, and to contemplate
the possibility that the empire of despair does not have the last word –even in this holy land torn apart by an
unholy conflict -- is downright foolish.
If Mary were
here in Jerusalem today, she would say “It’s too late! You could have done
something in 1948. You could have done something in 1967. You could have done
something in 1993. But you, the politicians, you the international community,
you the church, took your own sweet time. Jesus, if you had been here, the
dream of peace and equality for all the people of this land would not have
died.”
If Martha
were here, she would simply say, “Lord, it stinks around here.”
Indeed, Mary
and Martha in the story of Lazarus sound a lot like my friends, neighbors, and
colleagues in the last few weeks. The recent wave of violence, piled on top of
decades of oppression, seems to have taken its toll.
“I’m afraid
to go into the New City, they are killing Palestinians on the street” says a
lifelong resident of the Old City.
“I’m just
glad I live in a neighborhood far from the Arabs”, says the security guard at
my kids’ school.
“I try not
to walk with my hands in my pockets, in case someone thinks I have a knife,” says
the church receptionist.
“I’m more
afraid now than I ever was during the second intifada,” …says nearly everyone I know, on both sides of
the city, and both sides of the wall.
In other
words, like Mary and Martha, we can smell the death in the air. We can see the
writing on the wall…literally. With each knife attack, with each new
checkpoint, with each video of a teenager shot dead in the street, the
possibility of liberation, of transformation, and of resurrection for the
people of Israel and Palestine seems less and less likely.
There is a
reason we hear the story of Lazarus on All Saints’ Day. We hear this story on
this day because we recognize Mary and Martha. We know what it’s like to lose
people – and to lose hope.
Some days,
we find ourselves standing at the final resting place of someone we love dearly,
and we wonder why Jesus didn’t show up when we prayed.
Some days,
the dream of peace, the hope for justice, and the struggle for liberation and
equality seems all but lost, and we wonder why the prayers of so many seem
unanswered.
But do we
really think a tombstone can stand in the way of the God of life?
Do we really
think a wall can obstruct the movement of Jesus, the Prince of Peace?
Do we really
think the stench of injustice and violence and death can overtake the breath of
God, the Holy Spirit blowing through land of Jesus’ birth, ministry,
crucifixion, and resurrection?
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| Sunrise over Jerusalem on 29 October 2015 Photo by Carrie Smith |
My dear
sisters and brothers, the Holy Scriptures teach us not to despair, for we know
that “neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor
things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all
creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our
Lord.” (Romans 8:38-39)
“And not
only that, but we also boast in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces
endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and
hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts
through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.” (Romans 5:3-5)
And if we do
start to lose hope, if we feel tempted to allow despair into our hearts, we must
remember the words of Jesus, who said to Martha, “Did I not tell you that if
you believed, you would see the glory of God?”
Did I not
tell you I love you? This is the hope that allows us to on living – and even to
find joy – after a beloved spouse, or friend, or parent has died.
Did I not
tell you I would bring peace? This is the hope that allows us to go on living
-- and even to find joy – in a city where death and despair are always trying
to claim power over our lives, our families, our communities, and our dreams.
Did Jesus not tell us that we would see the glory of God?
Jesus did not leave Lazarus in the tomb, and he did not leave Mary and Martha in their grief. In the same way,
we trust that Jesus will not leave the people of Palestine in the tomb of the
occupation, nor will he leave the people of Israel captive to the empire. The One
who healed lepers, who forgave sinners, and who gave sight to the blind, will
never leave God’s children abandoned. The one who raised Lazarus to life after
four days in the tomb, can certainly raise this country to peace and abundant
life, even after four decades.
In great
love, Our Lord Jesus is with us, at the city gates, at the checkpoints, at the
churches and mosques and synagogues, calling to all the people of this country,
saying,
“Come out! Come out and live!”
Racism,
unbind them and let them go.
Hatred,
unbind them and let them go.
Oppression, unbind them and let them go.
Violence,
unbind them and let them go.
Fear, unbind
them and let them go.
Dear sisters and brothers, dear neighbors, be unbound, and live – with the peace, justice, and equality that is God’s hope
for all of God’s children.
Let us pray,
Great God of
love, fill our hearts with the confidence that you will never leave us, or this
city, in despair. Send your Holy Spirit into the hearts of all who are gathered
here today, that they would know that your love for us extends even beyond
death. And give us the strength and good courage to follow in the path of the
saints who went before us. In the name of Jesus, the Prince of Peace, we pray.
Amen.
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