I Samuel 3:1-10; Matthew 5:43-48
A Sermon Preached by Donald Mackenzie
University
Congregational United
“You
shall not murder.” Exodus
“And who is my neighbor?” Luke 10:29b (The story of the Good Samaritan answers this question.)
Don: As we hear the word of God in the Book of the Prophet Samuel and in the Gospel according to Matthew, we celebrate on this particular weekend the work and witness and the prophetic imagination of The Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. A person of color, he transcended race and class to bring us a new vision of what human life might be like. LISTEN:
Audrey: “In
the story of the Good Samaritan, the first question which the priest and the
Levite asked on that road to
Don: All of King’s work can be seen framed by his sense of the story of the Good Samaritan. King was a prophet in the tradition of Moses, Samuel, Amos, Micah, Jeremiah and Isaiah, and Jesus. The work of a prophet is to proclaim the end of an era and to assist us in our grieving the loss of the old even though the old may be unjust and painful. The work of a prophet is anguish and not anger, and in that anguish, the prophet helps us to notice the pain in the world that, we in our numbness had not been able to notice. The era of a prophet is therefore, the beginning of noticed pain. The pain in the world that was addressed by the ministry of Martin Luther King, Jr. was and is two fold: profound economic injustice compounded by racism, and violence including the threat of nuclear annihilation.
A prophet needs three faculties to be effective. A prophet needs ears to hear and to listen, to be present when others are speaking and to hear God’s word as Samuel did in our first reading. A prophet needs eyes to see, eyes to see the road ahead so that the consequences of what has been heard can be seen. A prophet needs a voice to proclaim the vision of that road ahead and, at the same time, needs a voice to help us say good-bye to the road behind us. This prophetic work introduces us, once again, to the idea that the little self, the ego, need not have the final word as we seek to do God’s work in this place. How is it that we might learn to move beyond that desperate need to protect the self and in reaching out to the other, actually find the self? This is the substance of compassion and it is absolutely central to the life and teachings of Jesus and is also absolutely central to the life and teachings of Martin Luther King, Jr. LISTEN:
Fred: “I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality. That is why right, temporarily defeated, is stronger that evil triumphant.”
Don: But that is not our world is it? We are after all, human. Instinctively, we make the choices that protect and nurture us and those closest to us. Our systems often reflect such choices especially our tax systems and our educational systems. This helps to perpetuate a way of understanding experience that includes a large gap between the rich and the poor, the use of violence to solve problems and an ultimate concern for the self. The prophetic imagination of Dr. King opened a door for us, a door that had been opened for him by Gandhi and by Jesus. That door opens on an alternative way of understanding experience, a new sensibility and an alternative way of thinking about experience, a new mentality. LISTEN:
Don: In other words, the reversal of the question about self which is presented in the story of the Good Samaritan, demands this nonviolent sensibility and introduces a mentality where we don’t first wonder—how will this affect me?
The transformation that is demanded by this new kind of thinking is frightening. We don’t know how to do it and we enjoy the comforts of seeing first to our own needs. But, at the same time, each of us longs for a world that would be defined by this new and alternative way of thinking. We long for it because it suggests a kind of healing that we need, a healing that could truly change the world and a healing that would shake off the numbness and the cynicism that can so easily dominate our thinking and our behavior. It would reveal the compassion that is so central to the gospel. LISTEN:
Vern: “I refuse to accept the view that humankind
is so tragically bound to the starless
Don: While Dr. King refused to accept that view, by our silence when we are silent, it might seem that we do accept it. LISTEN:
Terry: “A time comes when silence is betrayal. Even when pressed by the demands of inner truth, people do not easily assume the task of opposing their government’s policy, especially in time of war. Nor does the human spirit move without great difficulty against all the apathy of conformist thought within one’s own bosom and in the surrounding world….”
Don: On a shelf in my office, is this photograph of Martin Luther King, Jr. But it is not just a photograph. It contains these words: “Jesus still cries out in words that echo across the centuries: ‘Love your enemies; bless them that curse you; prayer for them that despitefully use you.’ This is what we must live by. We must meet hate with love.” My daily contact with this picture and with these words keeps me from sinking to a place where my own numbness obscures these great moral issues. LISTEN:
All: “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny.”
Don: That sense of justice is tied to nonviolence. LISTEN:
All: “Nonviolence means avoiding not only external physical violence but also internal violence of the spirit. You not only refuse to shoot someone, but you refuse to hate that someone.”
Don: Love is the only truly constructive power in the universe. LISTEN:
All: “ As you press on for justice, be sure to move with dignity and discipline, using only the weapon of love. Let no one pull you so low as to hate.”
Don: We need so much that alternative vision of what life can be like. LISTEN:
All: “We will not build a peaceful world by following a negative path. It is not enough to say we must not wage war. It is necessary to love peace and sacrifice for it. We must concentrate not merely on the negative expulsion of war, but the positive affirmation of peace. We must see that peace presents a sweeter music, a cosmic melody that is far superior to the discords of war. Somehow we must transform the dynamics of the world power struggle from the negative nuclear arms race, which no one can win, to a positive contest to harness humanity’s creative genius for the purpose of making peace and prosperity a reality for all the nations of the world.”
Don: May it be then that as seek to respond to our calling to our vocation as a Christian community of faith, we may hear these words of prophecy and open the doors they invite us to open.
All: Amen!
Voices of Martin Luther King, Jr.: Audrey Musewe, Fred Buhl, Elizabeth Dickinson, Vern Arendse, Terry Moore.