I Wish We’d All Been Ready?

This sermon can be listened to here

Gate Pa – 1st  Sunday in Advent- Year A - 2019
Readings:
Psalm -                       Psalm: 122 
First Reading -           Isaiah 2:1-5     
Second Reading -      Romans 13:11-14 
Gospel -                     Matthew 4:36-44   

What I want to say:
I want to use Advent as preparing for Christ in history, mystery and majesty to read Matthew 24, rather than a “left behind” approach. What does it mean then to live in Christ of mystery while preparing for Christ in majesty, while celebrating Christ in history? Maybe Jewish understanding of Tikkun Olam ( (יקון עולם) as one way of approaching this using video - “Tikkun Olam” with Rabbi Arthur Green Source: <www.youtube.com/watch?v=UotvOtZOYuY> 

What I want to happen: 
How does “Tikkun Olam” help us engage with advent this year?

The Sermon

       1.     Introduction:

What is Advent - https://bustedhalo.com/video/watch-advent-two-minutes

       2.     Hope in Advent

One resources I use talked about Advent being preparation for Christ in history,(Xmas), mystery (now) and majesty (when God’s will is done on earth as in heaven)
As video said 4 weeks
Theme this week hope
Given those readings help us into that theme and into advent
Have admit struggling a bit with Matthew reading.
Part of my problem is Larry Norman

       3.     Larry Norman

Big when in my 20’s
One big hits was “I wish we’d all been ready”
Goes like this
Life was filled with guns and war
And all of us got trampled on the floor
I wish we’d all been ready
The children died, the days grew cold
A piece of bread could buy a bag of gold
I wish we’d all been ready
……
A man and wife asleep in bed
She hears a noise and turns her head he's gone
I wish we’d all been ready
Two men walking up a hill
One disappears and ones left standing still
I wish wed all been ready

The father spoke, the demons dined
How could you have been so blind?
There's no time to change your mind
The son has come and you've been left behind

After over 30 years still know most words
Rattling around in there
shaping how I read passages like gospel this morning
Common way understanding these kinds of readings
All pressure make sure done right things so not left behind
As one commentator put it
-          Not be caught with pants down
ð As one person on Tuesday commented is pretty hard work
Suspect number in same boat
Occurred to me recently that not only way to understand these passages
Not sure – Karen Armstrong
Or autobiographies of Holocaust survivors
-         Those cases definitely bad thing to be taken
-         Very good thing to be left behind
What do you think
-good thing taken or left behind
What happens to you either way?
Discuss
Plenary

       4.     Using advent to read Matthew

Instead using Larry Norman to read Matthew, I wonder what might happen if I use advent
Matthews community looked back to Christ of history
-         One reasons gospels were written was to help people remember
Looked forward to return Christ
-         Fulfilment reign of God in Christ
-         Longed for
-         Thought imminent
-         Now been at least 50 years since Christ’s execution
o   At least 10 since destruction temple
Instead being ready Christ’s return
-         Left behind is all about
Maybe more about how to live in the in-between time
How to live as one those not taken
Living with mystery of crucified and risen Christ at work in world
Ongoing work begun in life Christ of history
Ushering in reign of God
Living in hope
As if reign is happening all around us despite the evidence
Watching evidence change
That what other readings are about
What preaching about most last nearly 8 years

       5.     Tikkun Olan

Introduce what been doing at Religious Diversity courses
Last Tuesday looked at Jewish approaches to non violence
Show the video
“Tikkun Olam” with Rabbi Arthur Green Source: <www.youtube.com/watch?v=UotvOtZOYuY>

       6.     Priestly Blessing and Spock

Hand symbol used by Lenard Nimoy is Hebrew symbol for shin
-         First symbol of Shālōm
-         Shālōm means: peace, harmony, wholeness, completeness, prosperity, welfare and tranquility
-         when a true state of ‘wholeness’ and ‘completeness’ exists, ‘peace’ reigns
understood gesture used by Aaronic priests and they declared the blessing of Number 6:24-26
-oldest pieces scripture
Dates back to time first temple

May the LORD bless you and protect you.
May the LORD smile on you
and be gracious to you.
May the LORD show you his favor
and give you his peace.

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