Reflections...

A sermon preached at Kowloon Union Church on 18 September 2022, by Carl Catedrals. The scripture readings that day were Psalm 79:1-13.

The People’s Cry

There’s a scene from the latest season of Stranger Things I have stuck in my mind. If you’re not familiar with Stranger Things, it’s a popular science fiction drama on Netflix about a group of kids who band together in an epic battle of good versus evil. The kids are confronted by a villain and his army of monsters from the underworld who want to destroy their home. The villain is named Vecna, and one of his superpowers is mind-control. He gets into the minds of his victims and makes them see dark, evil memories before he destroys them. Vecna is coming after one of the kids named Max, so the group comes up with a plan to save her and stop Vecna from hurting anyone else. In a moment of inspiration, Max comes up with a brilliant idea. 

 

She says, “[Vecna] uses my memories against me. But… only my darkest memories…. So I’ll just run in the opposite direction. Run to the light. And maybe he won’t be able to find me there. I just need to…push him away. Find a happy memory and hide there. Hide in the light.” 

 

But Max soon discovers her plan doesn’t work. Every time she focuses on a happy thought, Vecna finds her and says, “You can’t hide from me, Max.”

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I think this scene describes how many of us as Christians approach the Psalms. We often avoid the Psalms that are dark and depressing and focus on the happy psalms about singing praises. And while this strategy might make sense, the reality, like Max learns in Stranger Things, is that thinking happy thoughts or focusing on happy psalms doesn’t make evil in the world go away. 

 

This is what the people who compiled the Psalms understood when they put the book together. The Psalms are meant to represent all of life – the good and the bad. Many of the opening chapters of Psalms are happy because they represent times when things are going well so praising God is easy. But life is also filled with low points, so much of the middle part of the Psalms is about people being angry that God has let evil prevail and allowed innocent people to suffer. These prayers are called laments. They are powerful prayers in Israel’s history because people protest the evil they experience and hold God accountable to be who said he would be. 

 

God told Israel he is a God of justice and love and that he chose them to be his special people. So as covenant partners, God’s people are allowed to be angry and demand him to stay true to his word. Their prayers that protest injustice are a bold way to stand up to evil. They don’t use psalms of praise and thanksgiving to hide from or ignore evil. They confront God with lament prayers and demand for justice. Many lament psalms eventually end with praise, but it’s only after God hears people’s protests and responds in surprising, miraculous ways. If you fast forward, the last chapters of Psalms are filled with extravagant praise. But these final psalms must also be understood in the context of the whole book. The people praise at the end because God has heard and responded with grace and justice and provision to the messy middle of the Psalms when evil seemed to have its way. 

 

There are 150 chapters in the book of Psalms, and Psalms 79 is in the heart of the messy middle that can help us make sense of the messy parts of our world today. It’s a graphic prayer that lacks politeness in its interactions with God because it deals with a desperate situation. As part of Scripture, it gives us permission to express honest emotions and reveals God’s willingness to hear our cries in whatever form they are expressed. As a communal prayer and call to action, Psalm 79 serves as a model for the church to carefully listen to those who experience distress from situations like war, violence, and displacement while also crying out and working alongside them to seek God’s justice and peace.  

 

So, there are three things I want to do today: 1) look at how Psalms 79 gives us insight into Israel’s historical experience of devastation; 2) connect the devastation Israel experienced to the kind of crises we continue to face today; and 3) share a specific story from the Philippines during the Martial Law period to give an example of what Psalm 79 can look like in action.

 

I also want to say in advance I will mention situations related to the Psalm about miltary violence and torture – just in case there are those listening who have sensitivities associated with these topics. With that said, let’s start by looking at Psalm 79 verse by verse and see how Israel understood the psalm historically:

 

(Address - 79:1a) In verse 1, the Psalm opens with a direct address alerting God of a major disaster. The people of Israel cry out: “O God, the nations have come into your inheritance.” In the Old Testament, the Prophets used the term “the nations” to refer to the “superpower of the day.”[i] Many of the Psalms are ambiguous about their historical context, but Psalm 79 is unique in that it mentions details about the city of Jerusalem and the temple being destroyed. Many historians connect these events to the destruction of Jerusalem in 587 BCE by King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. So, in Psalm 79, the “nations” refers to Babylon.^[ii]

(Complaints – 79:1-4) After calling for God’s attention, the people make a list of complaints in verses 2-4 and point out that it’s God’s own inheritance that has been violated. They complain to God that Babylon has come into “your inheritance” (v.1a), defiled “your holy temple” (v.1b), allowed the bodies of “your servants” (v.2a) and “your faithful” people (v.2c) to be eaten by vultures and wild beasts. By repeating “yours” multiple times, the people remind God of his covenantal promise to protect them.[iii] Verse 4 also marks a shift from talking about “they” (the nations) to “we” (the people).[iv] The people say, “we have become a taunt to our neighbors.”[v] It becomes clear then, this is not just the cry of a desperate individual – it is a collective protest crying out to be heard. 

 

The psalm also uses graphic imagery to show Babylon’s brutality. The violence plays out like a horror film montage depicting scenes of death: there are “fields of ruins and corpses, vultures and beasts of prey” in verses 2-3.[vi] The destruction is like something caused by an atomic bomb that moves in waves spreading “from the Temple through the city of Jerusalem and out into the countryside.”[vii]The detailed retelling of this gruesome violence is to show God how bad things are and to ask him, “How could you let this malicious evil happen to us, your chosen people?”.

 

The horror of blood flowing like water through the city is magnified by the cultural shame the people experienced. Defiling God’s temple meant he could no longer live with them because it was unclean, so the people were abandoned and exposed to their neighbors’ mockery as we see in verse 4.[viii]Leaving dead people unburied was also “an unspeakable outrage,” or “the ultimate desecration” in the ancient world.[ix] So these details in Psalm 79 are meant to shock us about how big of a crisis the people were experiencing.

 

(Petitions - 79:5-12) Verse 5 marks a shift from people’s complaints to a series of requests. They call out directly to God again. This time the people appeal to God’s sacred name, which when read aloud in Hebrew is Adonai (v.5). This is another indicator of their desperation and frustration. In verse 1, they called out to God using his standard name “Elohim.” But it’s as if this was not enough to get his attention, so they cry out again and make it more personal: “Adonai!” – they cry out. This appeal to God’s sacred name creates a contrast between the people who know him intimately versus the nations who do not (v.6).[x]

 

Then the people ask a series of accusatory questions including “How long?” which is followed by, “Will you be angry forever?”; and finally, “Will your jealous wrath burn like fire?”.

These questions are a way for the people to voice their frustration “against God himself, not for his anger per se but for its prolonged duration (How long?... forever?) and intensity (it burns like fire).”[xi] The overall effect of these questions is a request for God’s compassion while also crying out “enough is enough,’” – the suffering we have experienced is too much and too long.[xii]

 

After their interrogation, the people ask God to pour out his anger on Babylon. You can sense the deep pain of loss is fresh on people’s minds. This carries into verse 7 when the people explain their motivation for why God should be angry at Babylon. It’s because they have “devoured” and “laid waste” Israel’s ancestral land (v.7).[xiii]

 

In verse 8, the people make another request. They ask God not to remember their ancestors’ sins. This is a reference to the sins of the kings, the national leaders who were supposed to end evil and injustice in Israel, but the kings ended up repeating the same mistakes of those before them. The reference to “our sins” in verse 9 is understood then in relationship to the king’s sins of the past (v.8) [xiv] – that is, to highlight that any guilt that might lead to God’s judgment was passed down from generations before them and not a result of the current generation’s sin.[xv]

 

This is an important point the people are making because much of traditional theology in the OT and what continues to get passed on to us today is a theology of retribution. That is, the idea that people who are going through hard times or suffering probably deserve it because they sinned against God. But the people in Psalm 79 adamantly refuse to be punished for the sins of the kings who came before them. This is significant because it highlights the role that national leaders play in the suffering of their people, and it reminds us that in times of disaster, we should not blame victims for the suffering they experience. 

 

The people are not saying they don’t have personal sin, but that the suffering they are experiencing is the consequence of the national sin – the kings forgot to follow the laws given to them by Moses – like taking care of the poor. The kings cared more about gaining power and wealth than caring for the widows, orphans, and foreigners. As a result, the nation of Israel and especially the most marginalized suffered.  So, the people ask God to deliver them, quickly and compassionately (v8.), from unjust shame caused by their ancestors, the kings, so the honor and glory of God’s name can be restored (v.9).[xvi]

 

Having acknowledged the sins of their former kings at the national level, the people draw attention to the sins committed against them at the international level. The scene is set as if in the global courtroom of heaven and earth: the people of God vs. superpower nation, Babylon - with God as presiding judge.[xvii] Verse 10 begins with another bold round of interrogation. The people cross-examine God asking, “Why should the nations say, “Where is their God?” (v.10). The accusation is posed as if to force God’s hand about his seriousness in defending his own honor - because if God continues to leave his people without justice, “the nations have good reason to be asking whether God is really God.”[xviii]

 

The people proceed to list the charges against Babylon they are seeking justice for: “genocide (v. 10), deportation of prisoners of war (v. 11), and public degradation of conquered peoples (v.12).”[xix] The people know these are major crimes against humanity that God cannot allow to go unpunished – for the sake of God’s own name and reputation.[xx] While the petitions in verses 10-12 have often been read as expressions of irrational vengeance, the people’s underlying argument reveals a sophisticated appeal to divine justice and God’s interest in defending his own honor on the world stage.[xxi]

 

(v.13 – Vows of Praise) That takes us to the final verse. Verse 13 is a complete tonal shift. The people begin with agitated protest but end here with vows of praise. They tell God: “Then (that is, after you have brought us justice) we your people, the flock of your pasture, will give thanks to you forever; from generation to generation we will recount your praise.”

 

Do you notice how the imagery distinctly changes from desolated, bloody warzone to peaceful fields of farmland? The serene picture of sheep and shepherd serves as a hopeful anticipation of a true shepherd king who will care for the people. Unlike the previous kings who “failed to lead the nation skillfully...., the Lord as their shepherd will provide, guide, and protect the nation.”[xxii]

 

But the longing to praise is not to be overly romanticized or seen as the final resolution. The vow to praise is dependent upon God’s response to their requests. As one commentator notes about the verse, “Without divine help, there can be no praise.”[xxiii] The people have voiced their protest, and with their closing statement, they appeal to God for a renewed world marked by peace and everlasting praise. By the end of the psalm, we don’t know for sure that God has heard their cries. The lack “certainty of being heard” is a distinct characteristic of communal laments like Psalm 79.[xxiv]Despite the uncertainty, the people faithfully protest injustices they face and hold God accountable to fulfill his covenantal promises.

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Israel’s experience of violent devastation and their response to injustice can help us think about places and communities facing similar situations today. For example, there is a lot we could lament about how things have out played in Hong Kong over the past few years. But in many ways, we are not allowed to do so. Publicly lamenting on June 4^th has been banned - which highlights the fact that communal laments are not always possible. 

 

But there are situations that we can still speak out against and lament as a church community. In February of 2021, our church put out a statement against the violent crackdown of the military on peaceful protestors in Myanmar. In our Prayers of the People this past Sunday, we prayed for Nigeria - where armed conflict, extrajudicial killings, and other human rights abuses have been reported. We also take time every September to remember the anniversary of Martial Law in the Philippines. This year marks the 50^th anniversary since dictator Ferdinand Marcos Sr. imposed Martial Law to stay in power after the end of his presidential term. His greed, ambition for power, and mismanagement led to massive famine, poverty, and forced migration, and his own government perpetrated violent acts including mass killings, torture, and arrests.

 

Part of what is significant about Psalm 79 is that it’s used every year as part of an annual festival of remembrance in Israel called the Ninth of Ab. It’s a day of fasting that commemorates the dark history when the temple in Jerusalem was destroyed.[xxv] So historically, Israel uses Psalm 79 to remember times of extreme violence and national disaster, and in this way, we too can use the Psalm to lament disasters that have impacted us and those we know.

 

While Psalm 79 invites us to remember and become aware of suffering in the world, it also invites us to stand in solidarity with those who suffer. So, I want to share one more story about lament and solidarity in action.

 

During Martial Law in the Philippines, a group of nine church people – who became known as the Negros 9 – were accused of murder and imprisoned because of their church work and collective laments against the Marcos dictatorship. These church people included three priests -- Father Niall O’Brien from Ireland, Father Brian Gore from Australia, and Filipino priest Father Vincente Dangan. Together with 6 lay workers, the priests served a community in Negros that was experiencing famine – with children dying or having permanent brain damage from malnutrition, farmers having the land stolen from under their feet, and the military and police using their power to abuse rather than protect the most vulnerable. In this context, the church leaders could have chosen to focus on providing people spiritual encouragement alone to get them through this difficult time - with Psalms of praise and thanksgiving, for instance.

 

But these priests and church members refused to provide only spiritual food when the people were dying of literal hunger. Instead, they responded to the situation with laments – in the form of protests and actions – that called God, the landowners, the military, and the government to account for the suffering of the people. Those in power – especially the landowners and military – felt the impact of these collective laments and felt very threatened by the church members’ actions. Because of this, they branded the Negros 9 as “communist rebels” and accused them of murdering a local mayor, for which the group was held in prison for 14 months. 

 

The case drew international attention, especially amongst English-speaking church communities, and the situation became an embarrassment to the Marcos regime as his injustice and brutality were exposed on the global stage. As a result of this international pressure – which included television interviews from the priests’ jail cells and protests at the US embassy in Ireland - the Negros 9 were set free demonstrating the power of lament to demand accountability for those in power. 

 

While the international attention helped to set the Negros 9 free from wrongful imprisonment, there were many others who did not receive justice. And the sad reality is that many of the same kinds of violent actions continue in the Philippines today with Ferdinand Marcos Jr., the son of the late dictator, recently coming to power in the Philippines. Our prayers of lament and acts of solidarity are needed again to join in people’s ongoing cry for justice.

 

The hope of Psalm 79 is that our shared struggles allow for our collective voices to cry out for God’s justice and peace knowing he is a willing listener. There is hope in seeking God’s peace and justice together even if the certainty of his response to our cries might sometimes feel far away. 

 

So, in closing, I pray you will hear the words of Psalm 79 as a prayer of remembrance as well as a call to action. I encourage you to remember the voices around the world that have been silenced, including those here close to home. I encourage you to ask God for justice for yourselves and for those you know. And, as we have a moment of silence, I pray you would also consider what it might mean to stand in solidarity with those who continue to suffer today. Will you hear, and join with, the people’s cry?

A sermon preached at Kowloon Union Church on 04 September 2022, by Rev. Phyllis Wong. The scripture readings that day were Psalm 1 and Luke 14:25-33. 

God’s Righteous Way

Today, the Old Testament reading take from Psalm 1 presents to us two ways in life – the righteous way and the wicked way. 

 

It sounds very dualistic. Good or bad; right or wrong.

 

In reality, is it that simple? Only black and white, no grey area?

 

In the last verse of Psalm 1, the Psalmist proclaims with this statement: 

 

⁶ for the Lord watches over the way of the righteous,
    but the way of the wicked will perish.

 

In reality, we may find life does not happen that way. We have indeed witnessed in many societies all over the world, a lot of righteous people have been suffering a lot. They have been threatened to be silent, jailed, attacked violently or even been killed because they advocated for social justice and for the common good. But those who abused their power and waged wars to kill lives are possessing a lot of wealth and upholding authorities to make decisions that have long lasting impacts to others. 

 

There are people earning good money and enjoy comfortable lives by cheating others while some people are working hard and faithful to their jobs do not receive good income or treatment.  

 

Things happened like these are quite a contradiction to what the Psalmist said “The Lord watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.” (v6) 

 

Perhaps, that is one of the reasons some Christians decided to leave the Church, denounce their identity as Christians and their faith in God. They were upset by God who did not punish the wicked and save the righteous. 

 

As a human being bearing human flesh, I feel the sentiment and fully understand the disappointment, anger and sadness behind such ridiculous and absurd human reality surrounding us on earth. I personally had experienced and processed all these negative emotions and struggled with God when things have gone so wrong and unacceptable in our society in recent years.

 

As people of faith in God, how does the message from Psalm 1 give meaning to our life and to our world today?

 

The promise, proclamation and teaching of Psalm 1 set the scene to show who this God is.

 

God is looking after the way of the righteous at the end of the day. God has never forsaken his people who walk in his righteous way.  

 

God blesses the righteous and gives them life that bear fruits of abundance. Goodness and blessing in God’s definition could be different from us as human flesh.

 

Human beings on earth in general urge for possessions - wealth, power, status, good relationship, comfortable lives….

 

But for God, the Psalmist reiterates: the people of God choose and live a life of righteousness that matters. 

 

What does it mean to live a life of righteousness?

 

What is the advice from the Psalmist? 

 

It is to desire and to love God’s Law, by meditating it day and night. It means that - for the people of God, they need to be serious about the essence of God’s word, to pray and to live out the true meaning of the Law. According to the Jewish Law, the Greatest Commandment is about love, to love God, to love our neighbours as ourselves with all our heart, mind, strength and soul. As true believers, we need to open our hearts to read, listen, to reflect and to pray. It is through this process, we know God and ourselves better. Through the process of prayer and meditation, we develop a better and good relationship with God. 

 

The righteous way is to turn to God and be connected to God.

 

The Psalmist describe the righteous is like the tree planted by the stream which yield their fruit in its season, and their leaves do not wither. In all that they do, they prosper.

 

The image of a tree planted close to the source of water that nurtures life is a great reminder to us – we have to stay close to the source of life – God. Through reading the Bible and spending time to pray, our life will be nourished. We will then grow spiritually and live an abundant life.

 

God is life, the Creator of heaven and earth. People of God who choose God will naturally bear fruits. We don’t need to do too much extra or hurry to achieve what we want. The sovereign God will do his part according to his time frame.

 

We live in a super busy, rapidly changing and competitive world. Our challenge today  is to make time for God, to be still and set aside time with God. 

 

God’s righteous way is different from our human way. 

 

We are living in a world full of challenges. The world is so overwhelmed by dark forces: wars, aggression, violation and discrimination against the minorities and vulnerable; unequal share of power and resources because of greed…

 

Psalm 1 is radical and profound for people of faith and for church community to insist our faith and our action to choose the righteous way, to follow the path of God no matter what. 

 

After the Security Law of Hong Kong was enacted and enforced, a number of democratic activists have been put in jail. While many of their supporters and friends are worried about them and upset by the hard life they encounter in jail or detention centre, some of these activists for justice and freedom have kept their great spirit within. They, in return, offer comfort and give words of encouragement to those who are not in jail but have been in despair and hopelessness. From these righteous people, I see how God has blessed them and how the Lord has watched over their way in a radical manner. God blesses them by granting them strong faith and deep peace within their hearts. It is amazing!

 

The dualistic way proclaimed by the Psalmist proposed that the people of faith have to make a decisive choice: to choose God and to walk in the righteous way. 

 

We are committed to walk in righteous way because God is righteous.

 

We don’t give up because God first does not give us up.

 

God came to the world in human flesh revealed in Jesus Christ. Through Christ God shows to us his everlasting love and forever presence in human lives and human history. God came to save, to call upon disciples to be his work and life partners, to change lives that are like Christ, to reconnect people with God .

 

The Gospel reading taken from Luke 14:25-33 invites us to reflect on and reaffirm our commitment as Jesus’ disciples to walk in his Way.

 

In v26 Jesus says:  “Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and even life itself, cannot be my disciple.” (v26)

 

Jesus’s demand for discipleship is so tough and sounds in contradiction to what he has preached about love and peace, and his action to care for others.

 

The Jewish Commandment on honouring your parents made Jesus’s statement about to hate father and mothers looked very tough and unreasonable. 

 

Why did Jesus say such words that sounded so contradictory to his words and deeds?

 

This is the extreme approach by Jesus to highlight the cost of discipleship. The extreme wordings is to convey an important message for those who are following him in the crowd to make a decisive choice. Like the two ways that are presented by the Psalmist. 

 

Jesus has to make sure that those who follow him are not because of his power to heal, to feed the hungry, to make them successful or to give them good lives as expected by earthly humans. 

 

Healing, people who are well fed and life satisfaction are all good. But for Jesus, it is not enough for being his disciples.

 

Jesus demands his disciples to make a choice to walk in His Way. 

 

For the last verse of Luke 14:33; it says - “So therefore, none of you can become my disciple if you do not give up all your possessions.” 

 

Jesus’ challenge to his true followers is don’t be possessive nor attached to anything that become a barrier for us to focus our lives in Christ.

 

The invitation of Jesus to become his disciples, is extended in an honest but tough manner. It is up to the people, up to us if we are willing to make a decisive choice to follow him by letting go of our attachments, to make self-sacrifices and carry the Cross. 

 

The Way of Jesus Christ is God’s Way.

 

The Way to life! The Way to love! This Life and Love is move beyond suffering and death.

 

The empty tomb and empty cross are the sign that ensure this promise.

 

Sisters and brothers, 

 

Are you willing to make this decisive choice today to follow God’s righteous way, to follow Jesus’ way of eternal life?