A sermon preached at
Kowloon Union Church on Sunday 22 May 2016, by
Dr. Hope S. Antone, in commemoration of Asia
Sunday and Trinity Sunday. The
scripture readings that day were Psalm 8, Romans 5:1-5, John
16:12-15.
The three Lectionary readings for today are so packed
with meaning but I will focus on only 3 lessons, in view of Asia Sunday and
Trinity Sunday. I call them lessons on being mindful. By “being mindful” I mean
that capacity to pay close attention
to or being especially conscious of something, or someone. In our highly
stressful and competitive world today, being mindful is needed so we can listen
more closely to what truly matters.
·
The first lesson from Psalm 8 is being mindful of God’s creation. This means appreciating and understanding the diversity of creation, and
also our unique role and responsibility as human beings.
Being
in Asia immerses us in the diversity of God’s creation. Just consider the vast
expanse of land and water; the medley of people’s ethnic backgrounds, cultures,
languages, and religions. (We have many natural attractions in Asia. Asia is
the birthplace of the major religions of the world.) With these we can say that
diversity is God’s gift and will for us. But without being mindful of that
diversity, it can become the cause of conflict or even war. We have many
examples of such conflicts – e.g. when the majority ethnic, religious, or
political group dominates or neglects the minority groups.
What
does it mean to be mindful of God’s creation? Reading Psalm 8, I
can imagine the young David, perhaps lying on a hillside outside of Bethlehem, gazing up at
the sky, the moon and the stars. Filled with the wonder of God’s creation, he
takes out his harp, and sings: “O LORD, our
Sovereign, how majestic is your name in all the earth!” Do you remember a time
when you said something like this? Was it when you reached the top of the
Dragon’s Back hiking trail? Or when you played again like little children on
the sandy beach of Mui Wo, Boracay, Penang, or elsewhere? Or was it on your
first flight, when you could see the mountains and clouds up close? Taking time
to be with nature is indeed a wonderful way of being mindful of God’s creation.
As with David, the reflection on the
wonder and beauty of creation does not only focus on the magnificence of God’s
power as creator. It must also be related to our role and responsibility as
human beings who are part of that creation. “You have made them a little lower
than God, and crowned them with glory and honor. You have given them dominion
over the works of your hands...” Being mindful of God’s creation means giving
credit to God as Creator, and respecting each creature which holds God’s
fingerprint.
The “wai” of Thailand (greeting with a
slight bow, with palms pressed together in a prayer-like fashion) is similar to
the Indian/Nepali Namaskar or the
Cambodian sampeah. Its deep meaning
is, “My soul recognizes the divine in your soul.” In Malaysia and Indonesia, a
typical handshake is the light touching of palms, sometimes with both hands extended to
sandwich the recipient’s right hand. This is followed by placing either the
right hand or both hands over one’s heart to mean, ‘I greet you from my heart’. It is
appropriate for the recipient to follow suit, signifying a receipt of thanks
and acceptance. If we are truly mindful and that we mean what we say or do with
our greeting, we should be in a much better place than our conflict-torn
societies today – there would be no abuse, no corruption, no taking advantage
of the other.
To be mindful of God as Creator and of
God’s creation is to honor and respect God’s handiwork. To truly praise God
means to do our part as responsible stewards of what God created.
·
The second lesson, gleaned from Paul’s Letter to the Romans (5:1-5), is
that of being mindful of Christ’s gift of salvation. We affirm that
Christ, though sinless, took all our sins and died on the cross for us in order
to redeem or save us. This assures us, according to the Apostle Paul, that we
have peace with God.
But Paul also hints that the peace with God through Christ Jesus is not
being free from suffering. Confident that suffering produces endurance,
endurance produces character, and character produces hope, Paul says we can
boast in our suffering and hope.
Paul, in his earlier life as Saul, had zealously persecuted the early
Christians. After his life-changing personal encounter with the Christ, he
became a zealous missionary, for which he also had his share of persecution.
Suffering in the cause of Christ did produce in Paul a sense of endurance, character
and hope.
Today, a most pervasive suffering in Asia is massive poverty. According
to the Sri Lankan priest, Fr Aloysius Pieris, the Beatitudes in the Gospels
speak of two types of poverty: voluntary poverty and involuntary poverty.
Voluntary poverty results from one’s option to live simply so others can simply
live. Involuntary poverty is something inflicted by outside forces such as the
systems of injustice that make and keep the poor poorer. I think the same
principle could apply to suffering. Voluntary suffering results when one
knowingly participates in a cause that faces great opposition or resistance –
such as the cause of freedom and democracy. Involuntary suffering is something
inflicted from outside, such as by an abusive partner or an unjust boss. Which
of these types of suffering is worthy to boast of?
Being mindful of Christ’s gift of salvation means being assured that in
view of his will for our salvation, our suffering, in whatever form it takes,
should not get the better of us, or overcome us. As Paul says in 2 Corinthians
4:8, “We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but
not driven to despair.” Instead, our suffering will produce endurance, endurance will
produce character, and character will produce hope. I find this very true of
the internally displaced Kachin people in Myanmar whom I visited last
September; or when I think about the Lumads (Indigenous people) in Southern
Philippines; or of the climate change and other refugees who risk their lives
to look for a better life and a brighter future.
Last March was the graduation time at many universities in the
Philippines. I got teary-eyed reading a story of how a pedicab/tricyle driver
had put his son through university. Indeed, success is sweetest for those who sweat
the most; for those who work so hard for it. But today, the trend is more for
the quick fix and the short-cut.
Just look at advertisements that promise getting rich quickly, slimming
down, losing abs or gaining a 6-pack in a week. These ads play on many people’s
desire to get rich and look more beautiful right away. But I am from the old
school that says one must work hard and honestly in order to achieve something
that one deserves to have. There is no short-cut, no quick-fix to getting
there.
Christ’s resurrection means a lot to us only in view of his crucifixion.
We have to be mindful that his passion was not an easy path. He agonized and he
suffered as he went through it. Through his life of selfless service, he showed
us the best about being human! That we can be the best of what God intends for
us. It is not easy or smooth – it will include suffering, which produces
endurance, character and hope. He showed us that it is possible.
·
The third lesson, gleaned from the John 16:12-15, is being mindful of
the Spirit’s continuing guidance. Christ Jesus says: "I
still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the
Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth.”
Christ’s act of salvation/redemption has been done! But the discipleship
still continues. Christ had only 3 years with his disciples on earth. Even
though they were with him physically, as students learning closely with their
teacher, there was no way that they already had it all. They still had so much
to learn, to understand, to comprehend. And because he was no longer with them
in person, he assured them that it would be the Spirit of truth that would
guide them.
Learning is truly a life-long process. No matter how many degrees we have
earned, or how many books we have read or written, there is always something
new to learn. Hence, we also have to be mindful of the Spirit’s continuing
guidance. This calls for our openness to continue to learn and grow.
In my present work with the United Board for Christian Higher Education
in Asia, I learned from different speakers and resource persons that our
universities in Asia must prepare our students now for jobs that are not yet
known today. Other speakers say that to do this, our universities should not teach
by giving knowledge or information, but by making students know how to learn on
their own. The American writer and futurist, Alvin Toffler, has been quoted as
saying: "The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot
read and write but those who cannot learn, unlearn and relearn."
Does the ability to learn, unlearn and relearn apply to our Christian
faith? Definitely! If life is nothing but dynamic, so is a living faith!
Last year, I joined Beng Seng in Mongolia at the end of his workshop for
the young YMCA there. Two local youth accompanied us on a visit to a nomad
family where we experienced a bit of their life, moving around the vast land of
Mongolia, looking for grass and water for their animals. In our interactions
with the people, we learned that in Mongolia, the sheep and goats live
harmoniously together. For the Mongolian herders, goats are very smart and
helpful animals, much more than the sheep. The goats know where to look for
green pasture; they also know how to get back home to their master/owner. And
they would be leading the sheep who often did not have any clue about food and
home. That story confirmed for me and Beng Seng that the biblical imagery of
goats and sheep did not readily fit in Mongolia!
Jesus may have his reason for using the
goat and sheep imagery in the judgment story. But I don’t think it was meant to
be the way we should look at or relate with people – i.e. that we should think
we are the good sheep and others who are not like us are the bad goats.
This is only one illustration to show that indeed there is so much to
learn. But we can only learn more if we are willing to unlearn something of the
old, in order to be open to the new.
I have shared three lessons
from the Trinity: being mindful of God’s creation and our responsibility; being
mindful of Christ’s gift of salvation and the possibility to tap the best of
our humanity; and being mindful of the Spirit’s continuing guidance to guide us
into all truth. May our Trinitarian God inspire us to draw more lessons from
scriptures and from our life experiences. And may our efforts glorify God the
Creator, Redeemer and Sustainer.
# posted by Kowloon Union Church : Sunday, May 22, 2016
