Liberation and addiction
This sermon can be heard here
Gate Pa
Presentation of our Lord at the Temple
4th
Sunday in Epiphany
Readings:
Psalm
24
First
Reading: Malachi
3:1-5
Second
Reading: Hebrews 2:14-18
Gospel:
Mark
1:21-28
What I want to say:
I
want to briefly explore Candlemas, finishing with the importance of Christ the
light - how does light Christ enable us
to see ourselves and the world we live in. I then want to use the article The
Likely Cause of Addiction Has Been Discovered, and It Is Not What You Think by Johann Hari to talk about what it is that
Jesus might be liberating those in the story and those hearing the story from
What I want to happen:
People to reflect on what cages Christ is both liberating us
from, and what we are being invited into?
The Sermon
1. Introduction:
today and tomorrow Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Anglican and
other churches
celebrate
the Presentation Lord in the Temple
found in
Luke
fulfilment
of Mosaic law
Purification
Mary – given birth – involves a lot of blood – nephesh or life
presentation
Jesus, first born male – dedicated to God
leads –
Song Simeon – part night prayer
seen with his own eyes salvation of
Lord
Candlemas also when new candles blessed
thought
have healing powers
Ireland – lit
stubs given those dying – light way paradise
not hear gospel this week
chose read Mark
partly
because online resources I use RCL rather
partly
reading heard important Mark
introduces
two themes that hold Marks gospel together
2. Mark
passage heard acts kind introduction in Mark
sets out themes which rest gospel explore and open up
themes – authority
-
liberation
authority already introduced and explored – gospel up to
this point
here stated – unlike authority of Pharisees and scribes –
collision course is set
crowd amazed – quick observation about the two greek words
used
first time –
multi layered – include sense outrage
second time
just – wooah!
3. Liberation
theme liberation is then introduced through story of the man
possessed by unclean spirit being healed
unlike people – not quite sure about Jesus
some up for
it
others not
so much
Unclean Spirits immediately recognise Jesus authority
not happy
Forced obey and leave man
sets up Jesus as one who has authority to liberate and heal
unlike other healers and exorcists of
his time – Jesus doesn’t charge
hard one many of us
not part life experience
often feel need to
make sense of it in terms of 21st century world view
in doing so miss point Mark making – Jesus has authority to
liberate.
Jesus is
presented as one who has authority even to cast out demons
4. Our cage
read article last week about addictions – posted Facebook page if interested.
Hari suggests that we have been misled about causes of
addiction and that we need new approach
much understanding about addiction comes experiments with
rats
alone in
cage
2 bottles
one with heroin
one
with water
drank
heroin one almost exclusively
led understanding heroin hooks in them
changes biochemistry
brain
–
need it or addicted to it
–
until kills us
a lot of our treatment programmes and a lot drug prevention
strategies are based on this premise.
1970’s another researcher Professor Alexander felt role cage
left too open
set up alternative
other rats
big rat
park – lots to do
nearly all rats tried heroin – then stuck water
not need heroin
life good
then did second experiment
rat alone in cage 51 days – addicted
returned to rat park – nearly all stopped heavy use and
returned to normal life in park
Professor Alexander argues this discovery is a profound challenge
understanding of addiction. Not a disease taking place in a chemically hijacked
brain. In fact, he argues, an adaptation.
->It's
not you. It's your cage.
not about humans – about rats
human experiments
applied that what happened after Vietnam war
extremely high percentage American servicemen used drugs
including heroin
many
addicted
cope stress
situation
appalling
cage
fear was when return home America inundated drug addicts
95% addicted soldiers stopped when returned home
few went rehab
most just stopped
changed cage and need disappeared
Professor Peter Cohen argues that human beings have a deep
need to bond and form connections.
It's how we
get our satisfaction.
If we can't
connect with each other, we will connect with anything we can find -- the whirr
of a roulette wheel or the prick of a syringe.
addiction isn’t
about hooks and brain chemistry, but unfulfilled human longing to bond
meaningfully with others
Cohen suggests that should stop talking about 'addiction'
altogether, and instead call it 'bonding.'
A heroin
addict has bonded with heroin because she couldn't bond as fully with anything
else.
So the opposite of addiction is not
sobriety. It is human connection.
Hari
“It is relevant to all of us, because it forces us to think
differently about ourselves. Human beings are bonding animals. We need to
connect and love. The wisest sentence of the twentieth century was E.M.
Forster's -- "only connect." But we have created an environment and a
culture that cut us off from connection, The rise of addiction is a symptom of
a deeper sickness in the way we live -- constantly directing our gaze towards
the next shiny object we should buy, rather than the human beings all around
us.
We need now to talk about social recovery -- how we all
recover, together, from the sickness of isolation that is sinking on us like a
thick fog.
5. Social Isolation and Mark
one online commentaries offered this article way understanding
Marks gospel in general and this story in particular
liberation offered is
liberation
from cages that isolate us from each other
Jesus not only offering liberation from
also liberation to new way building
community
built on God’s mercy and justice
allowed new connections made
over rest year, invite us keep eye out way Jesus challenge
all forces that separated and isolated people
starting
with demonic possession
economic
systems trapped people poverty
extraordinary
wealth – no less isolated
religious
systems – divided people into who in and who out
worked
ensure barriers between people were maintained
social
systems – family honour systems made real connection between and within
families hard – sought live way maintain families honour
over next few months invite you listen for each of these
invite you reflect
How Christ
light helps us recognise unhealthy cages we live in
and
are being liberated from
return to
candle stubs given to dying in Ireland
Where
Christ the light inviting us in to
what
is our paradise now?
what
new forms of community that will allow us and others to bond well
to be communities
that give life rather than force isolation
what we being invited to see this year?
Finish with Song Simeon
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