The Church of the Redeemer

November 10, 2002

The Twenty-Fifth Sunday after Pentecost

Thursday afternoon, I had the pleasure of looking out my office window and watching two parishioners plant bulbs in the St. Francis courtyard.  As I watched them plant on this cold and windy afternoon, I realized what faith these two have.  After spending time preparing the soil, digging the holes and then planting the bulbs, they left filled with hopeful anticipation that come early April green shoots will begin to poke their tips out through the freshly thawed earth and by May these once lifeless bulbs will produce the first flowers of the season.  But what if these bulbs fail to flower this spring?  What if these bulbs are designed to appear in two years and not six months, would their patience and interest along with ours remain steadfast in these gardens, or wouldour interest wane as we move on to other more pressing matters?

            These questions are similar to the questions first century Christians were grappling with at the time Matthew’s Gospel was written.  During the beginning days of the Church, immediately after the Pentecost event, members of the early Church expected Jesus’ return to earth would be immediate.  All expected they would live to see his return, and remained fervent in their hope and preparation.  However, seventy-five to one hundred years later, facing persecution, and the loss of the first generations of believers, the membership, like today, was growing complacent, that fevered sense of preparation and waiting was giving way to disinterest and laziness.   It is within this context the Matthean Gospel is written and it is to these concerns that today’s text is addressed.

            The parable of the ten bridesmaids, like all the parables addressed to Christian congregation concerning the final days is disturbing and often times difficult for us to grapple with. Difficult, because the point of the story is directly aimed at us, not at those who are outside the Church, and we cannot ignore its message. This parable is difficult for us because, as one member of Friday’s Bible Study pointed out, the message unlike most of the Gospel stories is binary, it tells us either we are in or out, wise or foolish.  And, not only does it tell us in black and white terms that we are either in our out, parts of the story fly in the face of much of what we have been taught about God’s love for us.  In the end, this parable tells us, there is no mercy, no grace, just the harsh judgment of God.  Then within the framework of Christ’s central message of community and sharing, the wise bridesmaids refuse to share their oil with the foolish bridesmaids.  All of these factors are the reverse of what we would expect to hear in a parable from Christ.

            So the question we must answer in light of today’s parable is, who are we?  Are we the foolish bridesmaids?  Do we hold in our hearts an expectation and hope in the second coming but are only willing to give it so much time.  That’s what they did.  They heard the message, responded to the invitation, but came prepared to give God only so much time.  They are like many of us who get invited to a wedding that we feel obligated to attend but don’t really want to.  So, knowing it’s impolite not to bring a gift, we scavenge through our attics for an old gift we have never used and then only stay as long as we have to, usually that means just until the end of the meal.  This is the attitude of the foolish bridesmaids, they came to wait for the bridegroom because it was something they knew they were suppose to do, but their hearts were not there so they only brought with them the minimum amount of oil.   After all, they had busy lives, and could only wait so long before other more important obligations would interfere with their ability to wait for the bridegroom. Besides, I am sure they thought even if their oil did run out; there would be plenty of time to get more. But to their surprise, their time, along with their oil, had run out together.

            Is it possible we are the wise bridesmaids?  They are the ones who came prepared to wait patiently for the bridegroom to arrive, no matter how long it would take.  Unlike those of us who begrudgingly attend weddings, they were excited to participate in the wedding banquet and arrived willing to celebrate with the newly married couple until the end of the reception.

             It was the wise bridesmaids who understood the words of the psalmist who stated, “For God alone, my soul in silence waits.” They accepted the fact, that in order to serve God, one must be willing to wait upon God patiently, alert and prepared to respond at God’s request.  Through out the Bible we are given examples of our forebears who understood and willingly placed God as first priority in their lives.  Those who waited patiently upon God’s every word.  It is their examples that we are called to follow.  Examples that include Mary, the sister of Martha, who despite her older sisters demands to busy herself in preparing the evening’s meal for their guest Jesus, Mary chose to sit at her master’s feet and listen for his every word.  There is also Abraham the patriarch of Israel, who was so unquestioningly obedient to God’s command that when asked, was willing to sacrifice his son. 

            Being patient and waiting are not part of twenty-first century life.  We live our lives rushing around as we have gained instant access to most everything in the world today.   Patience once considered the foundation of Christian virtue has been relinquished to the dust heap of human weakness.  On television we are constantly being told that most every issue can be summed up and resolved in forty-five minutes or less.  Last month, each day, as a nation, we became more and more frustrated with the Maryland and Virginia State Police forces as they failed to identify and take into custody the sniper who had been randomly killing innocent people throughout the area.  In our personal lives we are great and willing to help each other during times of crisis, but by and large most have a hard time maintaining interest when illnesses and crisis do not resolve themselves quickly.

            Is it any wonder then, that we have a hard time maintaining God as the first priority in our lives?  We all start out with good intentions, especially at the time of our confirmation when we speak or write about our plans to attend church regularly, to be faithful in prayer and Bible Study.  But we do have short attention spans, and there is so much out there that commands our attention, so much out there, that seems more exciting than God.  Besides, God will always be there tomorrow, but my chance to close a big deal not be. God will always be there tomorrow, but not my chance to see the Celtics play, go skiing or bring my child to yet another sporting event. Then again, why worry, we can always make time for God tomorrow. 

            The only problem is, the crux of today’s parable tells us otherwise.  A colleague of mine in Meriden, Connecticut use to tell all of the then young parents we worked with, myself included, “ if we want our children to talk to us when they are teenagers, then we have to start talking to them when they are children.”  The same holds true with God.  If we expect God to know us tomorrow, then we have to make time for God today by patiently waiting and listening for God’s Word in our lives.  We must be willing to stop, listen and follow, as Mary and Abraham did. 

            We must be prepared to wait upon the Lord in the same way our recently retired Suffrigan Bishop Barbara Harris has done throughout her life.  In his tribute to Bishop Harris on the Friday evening of convention, Bishop Shaw stated that Barbara Harris is the only person he has ever known to be totally without ambition.  Born in Philadelphia, and confirmed by a Bishop who wore white gloves so as not to touch the head of black person, Barbara Harris grew up when women priests were unheard of, and the thought of a woman as bishop impossible.  Barbara never set out to become a priest, let alone a bishop, but over the years, with a pack of cigarettes in a pocket, spiked heels on her feet, a change purse full of quarters for the slot machines, and a colorful personality, Bishop Harris has been and continues to be prepared and willing to say yes whenever God has called upon her to serve, no matter how difficult or dangerous the road ahead may be.  She is a wise bridesmaid, who arrives with the extra flask of oil prepared to enter the banquet when the bridegroom comes.  She is the gardener who plants bulbs in the fall and will look and wait patiently year to year to see the first shoots of green pop through the newly thawed earth.  The question for us however, still remains, are we wise and waiting beside her?

Amen 

The Rev. Craig R. Swan

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