ougomonitsya--
inner stillness: when everything is all the same to you, and you live for the day, and you are not dreaming and waiting
John R. Harrison, Pastor

jrharr@lycos.com
Pomme de Terre United Methodist Church
Hermitage, Missouri
Church Links

Pomme de Terre United Methodist Church

Ozarks North District

Missouri Conference

United Methodist Church

The Upper Room



Recent Sermons

"An Understanding Mind"--1 Kings 2:10-12; 3:3-14

"A New Bread"--John 6:35, 41-51

"Looking for Justice" --2 Samuel 11:26-12:13a

"The Arrogance of Power" --2 Samuel 11:1-15

"Joining the Club" --Ephesians 2:11-22



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Some Books I'm
Trying to Read
Seeds of Sensitivity: Deepening Your Spiritual Life by Robert J. Wicks


May I Have This Dance?
by Joyce Rupp


Jesus, the Gift of Love,
by Jean Vanier


Communion, Community, Commonweal: Readings for Spiritual Leadership by John S. Mogabgab


The Cloud of Unknowing,
edited by William Johnston


The Ascent of a Leader,
by Bill Thrall, Bruce McNicol, and Ken McElrath


Handbook for the Soul,
by Richard Carlson and Benjamin Shield


Loyalty to God: The Apostles' Creed in Life and Liturgy,
by Theodore W. Jennings, Jr.


Saturday, March 18, 2006

Micah 7:14-15, 18-20

Luke 15:1-3, 11-32

Madeleine L'Engle has written:

“We are so familiar with the parable of the prodigal son that we forget part of the message, and that is the response of the elder brother. As I read and reread scripture it seems evident that God is far more loving than we are, and far more forgiving.

“We do not want God to forgive our enemies, but scripture teaches us that all God wants is for us to repent, to say, 'I'm sorry, father.

'Forgive me,' as the prodigal son does when he comes to himself and recognizes the extent of his folly and wrongdoing. And the father rejoices in his return.

“Then there's the elder brother. We don't like to recognize ourselves in the elder brother who goes off and sulks because the father, so delighted at the return of the younger brother, prepares a great feast. Punishment? A party!

"Because the younger brother has learned the less he has, in a sense, already punished himself. But, like the elder brother, we're apt to think the father much too lenient.”

Dorothy Day has written:

“God is on the side even of the unworthy poor, as we know from the story of Jesus told of his Father and the prodigal son. Charles Peguy, in God Speaks, has explained it perfectly. Readers may object that the prodigal son returned penitent to his father's house.

“But who knows, he might have gone out and squandered money on the next Saturday night; he might have refused to help with the farm work and asked to be sent to finish his education instead, thereby further incurring his brother's righteous wrath, and the war between the worker and the intellectual, or the conservative and the radical, would be on.

“Jesus has another answer to that one: to forgive one's brother seventy times seven. There are always answers, although they are not always calculated to soothe.”

Francis Martin writes:

“The father not only had compassion, running out to meet his son and embracing him; he not only restored the boy to his former dignity, giving him a robe, a ring, and sandals; but he was so full of joy that he declared a feast.

“The father had never renounced the truth of his relationship to the son, and he acted on it. This is mercy, a movement of love based on the truth and the profound justice contained in the relationship.

“Mercy looks to the person; pity looks to the need. God has mercy and never parts from it: he is loyal to the relationship he has established with us in Christ. His heart beats faster when he sees us returning to him.

“The older son, who never left home but who had not had such a banquet in his honor, often elicits from us sympathy and a sense of identification. Perhaps we, too, serve God and 'never once disobey,' but more to secure our own safety than out of love for God.

“We would rather be 'safe,' based on our performance, than free, based on God's love. Such a freedom frightens us. May this parable move us into that realm of freedom. Let us obey and trust in a movement of love based on the truth of who God is and of his relationship to us.”


Posted by John at 12:01 AM CST
Friday, March 17, 2006

Genesis 37:3-4, 12-13, 17-28

Matthew 21:33-46

Francis Martin writes,

“Today we are brought once again into contact with the mystery of Christ's passion and death. The theme is the rejection of the beloved son. In the first reading we hear of Joseph, the beloved of Jacob, first assaulted and then sold into slavery by his own brothers.

“In the gospel text Jesus tells his own countrymen a parable concerning the rejection and murder of the only son of the vineyard owner.

“There is a mystery hidden here. Why is it that our rejection of Christ has brought about our acceptance by God? The depths of mercy contained in this mystery can take our breath away.

“It is perhaps for this reason that we are given glimpses of this radiant white light only in a refracted form.

"We see it in foreshadowings such as the Joseph story, in parables such as the one today, in cryptic phrases such as Christ's predictions of his passion, and in oblique phrases in the rest of the New Testament.

“The story of Joseph is well-known. The firstborn son of Rachel, whom Jacob loved more than Leah; the object of his father's special attention, symbolized by the beautiful tunic he conferred on him—Joseph was hated by his brothers.

“The text today tells us of their treachery. They first threw Joseph into a dry cistern to die in the desert heat, and then they took him out and sold him as a slave to a caravan bound for Egypt.

“There Joseph rose to prominence but was falsely accused, imprisoned, then finally released and installed over the whole land of Egypt.

“During a severe famine Joseph's brothers came to this ruler of Egypt for aid. On their second visit he made as if to imprison his full brother Benjamin, and then he could bear it no longer. As his brothers pleaded for the life of Benjamin, Joseph began to weep.

“He cleared the audience hall, revealed himself to his brothers, and then enunciated the meaning of his rejection: 'God sent me before you to preserve life.'

“Still later, after Jacob's death, his brothers came to him, afraid that now Joseph would take his revenge.

“Once again we hear pronounced the law of our redemption: 'As for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.'

"The chief priests and Pharisees know that Jesus' parable is about themselves. Drawing on conditions in Galilee of the time, with rich absentee landowners and sullen tenant farmers, Jesus tells a story about the vineyard, already declared by Isaiah to be Israel.

“The tenant farmers abuse the agents sent to collect the owner's share of the produce, and finally, when the owner sends what must be his only son, they kill him, expecting to be able to take over the vineyard now that the heir is dead.

“How can we describe the mystery of God's willingness to bring life out of the death we cause?

"Only the Holy Spirit can lead us into the unfathomable depths of God's reckless love for us, the Creator of the universe willing to be rejected in order to transform our depravity into a grateful return of love.”


Posted by John at 12:01 AM CST
Thursday, March 16, 2006

Jeremiah 17:5-10

Luke 16:19-31

There was a rich man who dressed in purple garments. . . and lying at his door was a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores. . . barren bush in the desert. . . tree planted beside the waters . . . dogs even used to come and lick his sores--these are vivid pictures of human reality.

The rich man--traditionally identified as "Dives"--put his trust in man. Lazarus had nobody but God and the dogs. But who turns out to be the fertile tree by the water, and who is the barren bush in an obviously hot spot?

We are being warned against trust in material security. And who can disagree? But who can fully live up to this vocation?

The place to begin is where you are, no point in starting at any other place. This is one of the points of the Lenten disciplines of fasting, abstinence, and alms giving. We need to give a portion of our money away more than we need to keep all of it.

Food is a pressing daily need and the temptation to eat more of it than we need is always there. By avoiding certain foods, and by not eating for periods of time, we practice our "detachment" from material security.

By voluntarily experiencing hunger we show our solidarity with those for whom hunger is a daily reality. And often, if you practice something long enough, you get good at it (or at least, better).

Put your trust in material security, ignore the poor man Lazarus at your front door with the dogs licking at his sores, and you end up a brittle old bush in a dry rocky volcanic desert waste.

Trust in God, open your heart and your pocketbook to the poor, and your life becomes "a tree planted by waters" -- fruitful, generative, and redemptive.

Francis Martin writes,

“By placing these two texts side by side we are enabled to see them both in a very particular light.

“We are thus led to see how our lack of trust in God drives us to acquire wealth for ourselves—whether this be in money, esteem, education, pleasure, or social advantage.

“This ambition blinds us to the true meaning of life and keeps us in bondage to a fear that our wealth cannot calm.

“The law of reversal means simply that things are not what they appear to be. The rich and powerful, who ignore the suffering of their brothers and sisters, are really the ones whose lives are a failure: life is not measured by this world's power.

“The poor man, on the other hand, represents the person, man or woman, who delights in depending upon God and cultivates a way of life that keeps this experience alive in some solidarity with the Lazaruses of this world.

“Such a person is 'like a tree planted by water,' bearing the fruit of compassion. While people may exclaim, 'Why this waste?' when they see the manner of such a person's life, there is hidden within it the seed of glory.”


Posted by John at 12:01 AM CST
Wednesday, March 15, 2006

Jeremiah 18:18-20

Matthew 20:17-28

The world can sometimes be a dark place, especially in the face of organized evil. Today's readings bring us face to face with the starkness of this all-too-frequent reality. Jeremiah is not a popular man. He was an affliction to the Powers That Be.

He held the rulers accountable for their actions. Since he won't shut up and get with the program, a plot is hatched to destroy him, a reminder that it is usually much easier to kill the prophet than to understand his or her message.

It rocks fewer boats and upsets fewer apple carts. People may squawk for a bit, but this too shall pass.

Jesus plainly tells his disciples -- for the third time -- "we are going to Jerusalem and I will be condemned and put to death." It's enough to make anyone want to turn around and go home in the face of this dark portent.

But Matthew continues his narrative, and jumps the topic of discussion to who will sit beside Jesus in places of honor and power, and how authority is justly exercised. He talks about servant leadership in its deepest and most spiritual sense.

The plots of organized evil, and the unjust exercise of authority are problems that plague humanity. They are best countered with prayer, servant leadership, and a refusal to cooperate with them.

We share in the sins of others when we cooperate in them by participating directly and voluntarily in them; by ordering, advising, praising, or approving them; by not disclosing or not hindering them when we have an obligation to do so; by protecting evil-doers.

Structures of sin endure because people cooperate with them and keep them going. Lent is a good time to examine our conscience regarding our willing participation in, and profiting from, structures of sin that may be causing grave harm to the common good.

Francis Martin writes,

“Today the shadow of the cross is visible. In the first reading we see something of the soul of Jesus in the prayer of Jeremiah. In the gospel we are told of the mystery of the cross, and our lack of understanding is challenged.

“Even more than his words, Jeremiah's life was a prophecy. He embraced the will and Word of God even when it led him into suffering.

“So powerful was his life that when a later author composed what we call the second part of Isaiah and included there the description of the one to come who would reconcile God's people by his suffering, the model he alluded to was Jeremiah.

“The prayer of this prophet has become the Word of God.

“For the first time in Lent we enounter one of those Old Testament texts that may be called a “sacrament” of the soul of Jesus. Jeremiah was one of those suffering just men whose life and prayer constituted an anticipated share in the fullness of grace in Jesus Christ which we all receive.

"The human pain of rejection and treachery was one of the greatest sufferings Jesus had to endure. Yet by his fidelity to the covenant we have been saved.”


Posted by John at 12:01 AM CST
Tuesday, March 14, 2006

Isaiah 1:10, 16-20

Matthew 23:1-12

Isaiah really knows how to win friends and influence people: "Hear the word of the lord, Princes of Sodom!" Where can you go from there?

He heads right on over to "Listen to the instruction of our God, people of Gomorrah!" When we hear "Sodom and Gomorrah," we often think of sex, but there was more to their crimes than that: they also oppressed the poor.

In the forty-ninth and fiftieth verses of the sixteenth chapter of Ezekiel we read, "And look at the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters were proud, sated with food, complacent in their prosperity, and they gave no help to the poor and needy.

?Rather, they became haughty and committed abominable crimes in my presence; then, as you have seen, I removed them."

Isaiah says: "Put away your misdeeds! Cease doing evil! Learn to do good! Make justice your aim! Redress the wronged! Hear the orphan's plea! Defend the widow!"

(Note that "widow" in the Old Testament refers to any woman with children, but without a husband and "orphan" refers to any child without a father.)

The Lord, through Isaiah, is talking about single mothers with children.

Jesus tells us that the greatest among us must be the servant of all. He warns of the dangers of religious and political hypocrisy -- of the tendency of those who rule to do so unrighteously. "They preach but they do not practice.

?They tie up heavy burdens hard to carry and lay them on people's shoulders, but they will not lift a finger to move them."

Therese Mueller writes,

“Spring occupies a very important place in the life of the tiller of the soil; as far as humans are concerned, spring decides what the crop will be. Similarly in the life of grace, Lent holds an almost decisive position (Lent is but another word for spring).

“The more carefully we put away the deeds of winter, the 'dead' weeds, the deeper we plow in order that the new seed may find a well-prepared soil enriched with the good deeds of fasting and prayer, the more shall we enjoy the vigorous plants that will spring up and the abundance of the harvest.”

Bernard Lonergan has written,

“Conversion is existential, intensely personal, utterly intimate. But it is not so private as to be solitary.

"It can happen to many, and they can form a community to sustain one another in their self-transformation and to help one another in working out the implications and fulfilling the promise of their new life.

"Finally, what can become communal, can become historical. It can pass from generation to generation. It can spread from one cultural milieu to another.

“It can adapt to changing circumstances, confront new situations, survive into a different age, flourish in another period or epoch.”


Posted by John at 12:01 AM CST
Updated: Friday, March 10, 2006 3:21 PM CST

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