However, we could all be forgiven for feeling a bit of whiplash. After all, last week, Jesus was still an infant, and the Wise Men from the East had just arrived—the first non-locals to proclaim Jesus as someone set aside and worthy of worship. The writers of the lectionary unfortunately skip over the next events recounted in Matthew’s gospel of Jesus’ early years—the seeking of asylum by the Holy Family in Egypt until Herod’s death, and Herod’s slaughter of the innocents attempting to kill the infant Messiah. Instead, we go straight the account in John’s gospel of Jesus suddenly being an adult, and being proclaimed the Lamb of God by his cousin John the Baptist to his own followers.
Jesus is referred to twice by his cousin John as the “Lamb of God,” and the first time this saying is used it is followed by the qualifier “who takes away the sin of the world.” You might recognize those words as those called the “Agnus Dei,” which we sing or say at certain times in the year:
Lamb of God who takest away the sin of the world,
have mercy on us.
Lamb of God who takest away the sin of the world,
have mercy on us.
Sin is an injury or rupture in relationship, which creates an imbalance that requires atonement. “Atonement” is an interesting word—and very much misunderstood. Atonement is too often seen as a bargain that lets someone off for the consequences of their actions. Some people, over the centuries, have misinterpreted the idea of atonement as something done for us rather than something we are called to do.
Just the opposite.
Atonement is an action or attitude that seeks to provide reparation for an injury or wrong that has been committed. Atonement is making amends, and being willing to sacrifice in order to restore a sense of wholeness and. Atonement allows for reconciliation when one person owes another for the wrong or injury they have done. But look at the word when you place hyphens within it: “at- one-ment.” The suffix “-ment” is defined as “condition” or “the means of making or being.” So, literally, the meaning of “at-one-ment” is “the condition of unity,” or “the condition of being ‘as one.’”
Injury or wrong creates separation. When someone has hurt us, that hurt creates a divide or a gulf between us and that person. That gulf might remain indefinitely, unless the hurt or injury of the offended party is alleviated or tended to in some way. This can be something as simple as expressing remorse and apologizing, or it can include attempts to restore what was damaged: if kids vandalize playground equipment by spray-painting graffiti on it, their atonement for their wrong can include paint removal, repainting the equipment themselves, or paying for said repairs. But atonement is deeper. It means we are at one with each other—the offender and the offended—and thus we would never think of repeating the offense, for it would be the same as hurting ourselves.
The goal of atonement is to try as much as possible to return to the condition between the guilty party and the injured party as it was before the act that was wrong. The goal of atonement, in other words, is not about blood sacrifice and substituting an innocent victim for a guilty one. The goal of atonement is reconciliation and repair. It is about choosing to avoid harming another in the first place, in imitation of Jesus as Jesus exemplified during his earthly life and ministry.
In other words, atonement is NOT merely about saving ourselves from the consequences of our sins. It is about humbly recognizing and acknowledging our failures and our sins, known and unknown, things done and left undone, individually and communally, and working to not just make amends but place ourselves on a more ethical, empathetic path. Atonement literally means seeing a seamless bond between ourselves, creation, and God.
The heart of atonement is empathy for those around us, because we acknowledge that we are all one.
Talk about counter-cultural.
But there’s more. In Matthew’s gospel, Jesus is presented as the new “Moses,” the greatest prophet of God and shaper of the religion of Israel. Thus, like John, Jesus is a prophet. He is MORE than John because he is also, in addition, the Messiah, the anointed One, the Lamb of God who call us to atone. And this brings us to a happy coincidence between our national holidays and our religious ones. For this weekend in the season of Epiphany, we remember and celebrate a great modern prophet who called us to unity, empathy, and reconciliation with each other—the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. And as a prophet, one of his primary tasks was to call us to self-examination, reconciliation, and atonement.
We often forget that Dr. King was not just a protest leader and orator. He was, first and foremost, a Christian preacher. And he had much to say in his sermons about atonement as the restoration of relationship.
In the book Strength to Love, a collection of Dr. King’s sermons, Dr. King uses the story of the Good Samaritan from the gospel of Luke as the foundation for his sermon, “On Being a Good Neighbor.” First, let’s remember that the man who had been attacked by robbers in Jesus’s story was not named or described by Jesus. Dr. King echoes the question Jesus was answering about our obligations to others and states it this way:
“Who is my neighbor? ‘I do not know his name,’ says Jesus in essence. ‘He is anyone toward whom you are neighborly. He is anyone who lies in need at life’s roadside. He is neither Jew nor Gentile; he is neither Russian nor American; he is neither Negro nor white. He is ‘a certain man’—any needy man—on one of the numerous Jericho roads of life.’ So Jesus defines a neighbor, not in a theological definition, but in a life situation.” Dr. King then goes on to describe the Samaritan:
“What constituted the goodness of the good Samaritan? Why will he always be an inspiring paragon of neighborly virtue? It seems to me that this man’s goodness may be described in one word—altruism. The good Samaritan was altruistic to the core. What is altruism? The dictionary defines altruism as “regard for, and devotion to, the interest of others.” The Samaritan was good because he made concern for others the first law of his life.”
Dr. King then goes on to point out that the Samaritan acts out of altruism, which he describes three ways. First, he says the Samaritan possesses a “universal altruism,” that overcomes the prejudice against prejudice against those different from us. Second, Dr. King states that the Samaritan possesses a “dangerous altruism,” willing to risk what he has to behave morally and compassionately. Doing right can have risk—that’s why too many avoid it. Dr. King observes:
“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy. The true neighbor will risk his position, his prestige, and even his life for the welfare of others. In dangerous valleys and hazardous pathways, he will lift some bruised and beaten brother to a higher and more noble life.”
Dr. King then applies the lessons of this parable to the evils of discrimination and segregation that plague this nation by living into living by the inner law of God that calls us to atonement. And he concludes with a statement that reflects back upon our focus in this season of Epiphany and in our gospel reading. Dr. King concludes:
"In our quest to make neighborly love a reality, we have, in addition to the inspiring example of the good Samaritan, the magnanimous life of our Christ to guide us. His altruism was universal, for he thought of all men, even publicans and sinners, as brothers. His altruism was dangerous, for he willingly traveled hazardous roads in a cause he knew was right. His altruism was excessive, for he chose to die on Calvary, history’s most magnificent expression of obedience to the unenforceable."
As both Jesus and Dr. King remind us, we are called to atonement for our failures, yes. We are also called to a brave and joyful proclamation of our essential unity and fellowship as children of God. When we live into the relationships that Jesus calls us to embrace with both God and with all creation, we are transformed. We make room within our hearts for the inner light and wisdom of the folly of the gospel of Jesus, one that denies that there must be winners and losers as much of the world’s systems demand. It is embracing the paradox and the gift of God coming into time as a helpless infant, and of the greatest becoming the least, all for love beyond all of our own fearful limitations.
So as we continue to invite the Epiphany light of love and wisdom into our hearts, may we be led by the examples of prophets like Dr. King, who point us to the way of knowing ourselves more fully, and of knowing God through the power of being at one with each other.
Amen.
Preached at the 505 on February 14 and at the 10:30 Holy Eucharist at St. Martin's Episcopal Church, Ellisville, MO.
Readings:
Citations:
Martin Luther King, Jr., Strength to Love, pp. 20-30, Kindle edition.
No comments:
Post a Comment