March 17, 2024, Lent 5 "ST PATRICK'S DAY REFLECTIONS"

“SAINT PATRICK OF IRELAND”
Readings: Psalm 51:1-12  Jeremiah 31:31-34, Hebrews 5:5-10, Matthew 28:16-20
Preached at Bridgehampton Presbyterian Church, NY, March 17th, 2024

Patrick was born about 390AD, in southwest Britain, somewhere between the Severn and the Clyde rivers, son of a deacon and grandson of a priest. When about sixteen years old, he was kidnapped by Irish pirates and sold into slavery in Ireland.

Much of what we know about him comes from his own writings. He has left us an autobiography (called the Confessions), a 'Letter to Coroticus' in which he denounces the slave trade and rebukes the British chieftain Coroticus for taking part in it, and there is a poem known as the 'Lorica' or 'Breastplate', that is traditionally attributed to his influence.

Patrick's confession of faith begins:-“I am Patrick. I am a sinner; the most unsophisticated of people, the least among all Christians, and to many, the most contemptible. I am the son of the deacon Calpornius, as he was the son of the priest Potitus who belonged to the village on Bannavem Taburiae. When aged about sixteen I was taken captive. I was then ignorant of the true God and along with thousands of others was taken into captivity in Ireland.

There the Lord opened my understanding to my unbelief, so that however late, I might become conscious of my failings and turn with all my heart to the Lord. For it was He who looked on my lowliness and had mercy on the ignorance of my youth, and looked after me before I knew Him and before I had gained any wisdom.”

Patrick's spiritual journey begins in a similar way too many people of faith. Something happens that strips away all the things he took for granted and caused him to question what life is about. During changing circumstances, he is convicted of the enormity of the grace of God that is reaching out to him and transforming him, an experience that he feels totally unsuited for.

After six years, he either escapes or is freed, and makes his way to a port 200 miles away, where he persuades some sailors to take him onto their ship. He returns to his family much changed, and begins to prepare for the priesthood, and to study the Bible.

In his own words, “After a few years I was again with my parents in Britain who welcomed me as a son. They, in good faith, begged me, after all those great tribulations I had been through, that I should go nowhere, nor ever leave them. And it was there, I speak the truth, that I saw a vision in the night: a man named Victorious, like one from Ireland, coming with innumerable letters. He gave me one of them and I began to read what was in it: 'The voice of the Irish'. 

 

And it was at that very moment as I was reading out the letter's opening, I thought I heard the voice of those around the wood of Folcut, which is close to the Western Sea. It was if they were shouting with one voice, “O holy boy, we beg you to come back and walk among us” I was broken-hearted and could not read another word.”

Initially Patrick is reluctant to go back to Ireland. But after a series of further visions and with the counsel of those around him, around 435AD, Patrick is commissioned, perhaps by bishops in the area of Southern France then known as Gaul, to go to Ireland as a bishop and missionary.

He made his headquarters at Armagh in the North, where he built a school, and had the protection of the local King. From this base he made extensive missionary journeys. Many times, he faces opposition from local chieftains and landowners. Threats on his life appear to have been frequent. Later stories of his life tell of daring deeds, miracles and of the masses of people who embrace the Christian message under his leadership. The number of churches, both in Ireland and beyond, that claim him as their inspiration, is beyond counting. Under his influence Ireland embraces Christianity.

He writes to the Irish people in his confession, “I spend myself for you that you might lay hold of me. Indeed, I have traveled everywhere for your sake; I have gone amid many dangers; I have gone to places beyond where anyone lived; and I have gone where no one else had gone to baptize people, or ordain clergy, or complete people. With God's help I have carried out all these things lovingly, carefully and most joyfully for your salvation.

I was not the sort of person you would expect the Lord to give this grace to, nor did I deserve it, for I know with the greatest certainty that poverty and woe are more my line than pleasures and riches, after all, Christ the Lord was poor for our sakes. Not a day passed but I expected to be killed or taken back into slavery or assaulted in some other way. But for the sake of the promise of heaven I fear none of these things. Indeed, I have cast myself into the hands of God, the Almighty One who rules everywhere as the prophet has said, “Cast Your Burden on the Lord and He will sustain you.”

Patrick's spiritual life is built upon an unwavering trust in God. His spiritual journey is informed not only by Scripture, but by personal dreams and visions and the counsel of those around him. He has a deep sense of the presence of Jesus Christ within Him and all around him. He sees the presence of Christ everywhere, even in those who stand against him.

For Patrick God is One who reveals love to the world through the Trinity of Father, Son and Holy Spirit. In Patrick's view of the Trinity the three persons of the Trinity are in a state of constant dynamism, a dance! God is all in all and through faith in God's grace, revealed in Jesus Christ, we become caught up in the action of God's Holy Spirit and our lives are transformed by God's love.

This is so wonderfully expressed in the words we used to open our worship this morning. “Christ be with me, Christ within me, Christ behind me, Christ before me, Christ beside me, Christ to win me, Christ to comfort and restore me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ in quiet, Christ in danger, Christ in hearts of all that love me, Christ in mouth of friend and stranger.”

Also in St Patrick’s prayer, known as st Patrick’s Breastplate:  “I bind unto myself the name, the strong name of the Trinity, by invocation of the same, the Three in One, the One in Three, of whom all nature has creation, eternal Father, Spirit, Word. Praise to the Lord of my salvation, salvation is of Christ the Lord.”

This is the theology expressed in Celtic art, wonderful spiraling patterns that when you trace them you realize are just one line! A world peopled not only with humans, but angels and demons and saints and creatures beyond our comprehension, yet in the midst of  all the mystery stands Christ as Savior, Redeemer, and Center of all.

In the celebrations of St Patrick's Day, it is easy to lose sight of the fact that the one being celebrated was a humble Christian missionary who knew nothing of parades, leprechauns and dark beer. The real Saint Patrick was a man of overcoming faith that led a nation to embrace the Christian message.

He offers a theology that embraces all of life and speaks of the presence of God in Christ, acting through God's Holy Spirit, within us around us and through our communal life as faith communities. For Patrick God is so intractably entwined in all of life, that we only find life by participating in the dance of the Trinity.  

What would he make of St Patrick’s day? Patrick is a reluctant servant who would probably be scornful of the honor laid upon him. And it is doubtful he would recognize his influence in the way he is celebrated today! He concludes  his confession writing:

“I now pray for anyone who believes in, and fears God, who may perchance come upon this writing which Patrick, the sinner and the unlearned one, wrote in Ireland. I wrote it so that no one might say that whatever little I did, or anything I made visible according to God's pleasure, was done through ignorance. Rather you should judge the situation and let it truly believed that it was 'the gift of God'. And this is my declaration before I die.”

Two final things about St. Patrick I would place before you. Firstly, his life serves as a reminder that much of what we take granted in our society was built upon a bedrock of Christian teaching. We are talking about somebody who lived around 400AD. In the last few decades, we have witnessed a turning away from our Christian roots. Such does not bode well for our future. We have a lot to lose. We need to remember from where we came!

Secondly, remember that Patrick never set out to be a saint. He simply responded, one step at a time, to the challenges and opportunities that were placed before him, with the confidence that God was his guide and protector. Such is a simple faith that all of us can embrace.

I pray that there will be some who look beyond the secular celebrations and discover the true Patrick, so that his example of humble leadership and faithful adherence to the tasks God called him to, may continue to inspire people across the generations.

 

And to God be all glory. Amen.

 

The Reverend Adrian J. Pratt B.D.

Lent 5 "Life Stinks”

Readings: Psalm 95, Romans 5:1-11, Ezekiel 37:1-10, John 11:1-45
Preached at Bridgehampton Presbyterian Church, NY, March 26 2023

Sometimes life stinks. Sometimes, no matter how hard you try it just doesn’t work out. It’s not fair. It’s not right.  And if life stinks then death stinks even more.  Your born, you get by, then you die. For some that’s about it.  That is what they base their days upon.  

As we go through life, we become disenchanted, disentangled, displaced. Things come along that we hadn’t anticipated, hadn’t thought would happen to us. They leave us hurt and confused.

Maybe you are familiar with the movie ‘The Wizard of Oz’. My favorite line comes just after the scarecrow is attacked by the evil flying monkeys. The brainless scarecrow is ripped to shreds and bits of him scattered around a clearing in the forest. “Well,” he says, “That’s me all over”.  We can feel like that. Things come along that knock the stuffing out of us and we are at the mercy of others to try and help us get it all back together again.

We had two bible stories this morning about displacement and scattering.  Ezekiel compares the Israelite people in exile as being a valley full of scattered lifeless bones.  Mary and Martha try and deal with the death of Lazarus and are confused as to why Jesus wasn’t there when they really needed him. “He could have done something; where was He when we needed Him?”

In both stories something amazing happens.  It happens in response to one thing. The Word of the Lord. The Word of the Lord is spoken and everything changes.  Where there once was hopelessness and despair there comes joy and vision. To where there was scattering and displacement there comes focus and energy.

It’s a story as old as Creation. Recall the very first words of Genesis. There is chaos. Then the Word of the Lord. Creation starts to happen.  Darkness is turned to light.  Nothingness is turned into life. God looks and God says it is good.

Follow the story of the Israelite nation throughout the Old Testament.  Called into being by the Word of the Lord.  New Creation, but then losing their way, no longing hearing, recognizing, or acting upon the Word of the Lord. Only when they have ears to hear and eyes to see do they become once more a pilgrim people of hope.

Into this crazy scattered world comes Jesus Christ.  Born into the midst of all its confusion.  He is the New Word that God speaks.  The New Covenant, the New Testament Word. Those who hear recognize His authority.  Those who are touched and healed and delivered by His life know their life will never be the same again.  

Then there is that dark moment when people such as you and I crucify the Lord of love. We twist His words, turn to the darkness instead of the light.  We don’t hear the word of the Lord.  We shout it down.  We like the sound of our own voice better than His.

We can be fools. God has the last Word. The Word of Resurrection.  The Word that calls death a loser. The word that reverses evil’s power.  The Word that makes a laughingstock of those who think they are powerful or important over and above others.  The Word that changes barren places into flower gardens of hope and deserts into rich gardens. The Word that changes the Cross from an emblem of shame to a symbol of victory.

God calls us as individuals to be remade by Holy Spirit love.  We all have problems. We all have gifts.  We are all alike sinners. We are all alike made in God’s image and capable of great things. We need to hear the word of the Lord that tells us to personally get our act together with God, to know ourselves God's people, saved by Grace through faith, aware of who we are and whose we are. It’s the first great commandment, that you and I , for ourselves, love the Lord our God heart-fully, mindfully, and soulfully.

The second great commandment is that we love our neighbor as much as we love ourselves.  It’s not just about us finding ourselves and being spiritually fulfilled, it’s about being built into a community that looks beyond the four walls of its own church to the people outside.

It's about being built, by the power of God’s Spirit, into an army of ordinary people for the cause of Jesus Christ. It's about fighting, not with weapons of material warfare, but empowered through prayer and spiritual gifting and knowledge of God’s will and God’s Word.

We are put together as individuals and brought together as a people of God.  We are not called to be a pile of old stinking bones, but a fresh and living witness to the love and grace of God in our midst.  Hear the promise of God to those who hear this word. “I will put my Spirit within you, and you will come to life... you will know that I, the Lord, have spoken.”

When we hear the word of the Lord of life, life no longer stinks.  Life takes on a different fragrance.  Paul, in Ephesians, tells us, “Walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma.”

Staying on an aromatic theme, consider these words from our second reading, at the raising of Lazarus. We heard how Jesus arrived sometime after Lazarus had died and how Mary and Martha weren’t exactly sympathetic to the fact that He hadn’t been there when Lazarus died, because now it was too late.

When Jesus asks to unseal the tomb, is Martha expecting a miracle? Is she thinking, “O.K. Jesus is here now, things are going to be fine?” No way. (Verse 39). “Jesus said, “Remove the stone”. Martha said, “Lord by this time there will be a stench, for he has been dead four days”

They were about to witness a miracle.  Don’t ask me to explain miracles. They are so out of the ordinary they defy our understanding. They are not meant to be commonplace easily understood events. They are called miracles because they are miracles.

The Word of the Lord is spoken.  Jesus offers a prayer of thanks then shouts into the tomb, “Lazarus’ Come out”. Out he comes. “Get him out of those grave clothes” suggests Jesus, “He’s still got some living to do.”

I wish every time we had a bereavement I could walk along and tell the deceased to wake up and get on with living this life. But that’s not the way things are. The resurrection of Lazarus was a special event that took place prefiguring Christ’s own death and resurrection.  Eventually Lazarus had to go back to tomb - just wasn’t his time right then. God had a higher purpose in mind.

Whilst there are a whole lot of layers of meaning to this passage, for me today this passage is reminding me that every day we get to wake up in the morning is a gift from God.  There’s an Andrea Crouch gospel song (called “This is another Day”) that has a line it in it where he says, “He didn’t have to wake me up this morning, but the Lord so did”.

Every day that we are given we have a choice as to what we are going to make of that day.  We can get up and say, “Life Stinks”. We can walk around, as it were in our grave clothes, feeling that there is really no point and no reason and why bother.

Or we can “Hear the Word of the Lord.” We can thank God that there is still life in our bones, whether they be older bones or newer bones.  We can walk with Christ. We can welcome His Word into the different situations we encounter during the day.

We can see our lives in the larger picture. Not in the picture that is framed by being born, getting by, and living only to die, but the framework that Jesus gives us of life lived from before the womb to beyond the tomb.  We can hold before us that Jesus tells us that our lives matter to God, that they have meaning and purpose and are not just an aimless mistake, that there is a God who wants to love us and loves to be loved by us.

We can hold before us the resurrection picture, that we are living to live! We don’t have to be displaced people in exile from God’s love. Jesus has made the way for us to know God’s love in an intimate and personal way.  We don’t have to walk around with the shadow of death stalking us like some grim Reaper. Jesus died that we may have life, abundant life, resurrection life. He says to us, as He said to Lazarus, “Come out of that tomb.”

Hear the Word of the Lord. Come out of the tombs of hopelessness, the tombs of pointlessness, the tombs of anxiety and worry, the tombs of addictions and life crushing habits. Get out of there. It stinks. Walk free and forgiven.

Whilst Lent is meant to be a time for reflection, the Sundays in Lent are set aside for proclaiming Resurrection.  Passages like we have heard today, dry bones coming to life, Lazarus coming out of the tomb, lead us towards Easter when we celebrate that Christ is Risen. He is Risen indeed!

First comes Palm Sunday. And then the events of Holy Week, the crucifixion and the cross. For sure death casts it shadows heavily upon this season. There are moments of deep darkness.  But at the end of the Easter road is a brilliant resurrection light whose brightness transforms everything that lies before it and that comes after it.  

Ezekiel's vision of dry bones and Lazarus’s tomb are just the appetizer.
The main course lies just ahead.

Thanks be to God!  Amen!
                                                                      
The Reverend Adrian J. Pratt B.D.