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 Sunday,
February 28, 2010
St. Mark’s Episcopal Church
The
Rev. George D. Smith
Last
Wednesday I received two letters from
Visa, my credit card company. In one
of the letters was my monthly bill,
which had a new format and some new
information. Credit card companies are
now required to show how long it will
take you to pay off your balance if
you pay only the minimum payment due.
In my case, that is 26 years – and maybe
that is how they calculate the minimum
payment – so that it works out to be
paid off in 26 years. Of course, that
assumes no new purchases – just paying
off what I currently owe. My bill also
shows that if I pay about double the
minimum, it will take just three years
to pay off the balance. New government
legislation is the reason that this
information now appears on my bill and
yours and every credit card statement.
The idea is that if people have this
information clearly in front of them,
they will make better choices and probably
choose to make bigger payments in order
to save more on interest and get out
of debt sooner. In my case, the choice
is startling – 3 years vs. 26 years.
There is also a warning in bold about
what happens if my payment is late.
I will have to pay a $39 late fee and
my APR will increase to 29.99%. This
penalty information used to be less
visible, hidden in the fine print –
so I’m glad to see it in bold and up
front. The second letter from Visa was
a five page Cardmember Agreement – one
of those documents that without reading
glasses looks gray slush, and with them
is no better – and looks like something
that no one reads, except for attorneys
and very, very responsible people. These
types of documents come in the mail
from time to time, and I do feel guilty
when I don’t read them and put them
in the trash. Who has the time or interest?
It’s just a credit card, even if I’ll
be in a relationship with it for 26
years. But this time I decided to attempt
to read it. After a number of definitions
of words such as “you”, “account” and
“agreement” there is the amendment section.
It says this, “We have the right to
change the terms of this Agreement for
any reason, and in any respect, by adding,
deleting or modifying any provision,
including APRs, fees, the Minimum Payment
and other terms. We can add a new provision
without regard to whether that provision
deals with a matter already addressed
by the Agreement.” There wasn’t a “please,”
“thank you” or “we like you” anywhere.
In
many ways, Lent can be seen as the Christian
equivalent of getting a cardholder agreement
in the mail. The new legislation for
credit cards is designed to help us
know more about our relationship with
our card and the company behind it.
It is easy to just pay the minimum due
and not bother with the fine print.
But paying the minimum has a huge cost,
in terms of time and money. The agreement,
if you look into it, shows that it is
a very one-sided relationship – they
can change the terms of the agreement
whenever and however they want to. This
is neither good nor bad – but it is
important to know what your relationship
looks like. One of the purposes of Lent
is to examine your relationships – with
God and the faith community. God and
neighbor must never be looked at separately
or in isolation – they are a pair. For
Christians, our relationship with God
and neighbor is read through Jesus.
We need to ask a fundamental question.
Who is Jesus? What type of agreement
have we entered into, through our baptism,
through the sacrament of the Eucharist,
Creeds and our prayers?
So
who is Jesus? Who is the one we are
following as Christians? Like the credit
card agreement, are there some things
about Jesus you haven’t thought about
or noticed before? If Jesus is the Word,
what does the fine print say? The Gospel
readings over the past several weeks
help us see who Jesus is. We have seen
that when Jesus is baptized in the Jordan
River, a voice from heaven is heard
saying, “You are my Son, the Beloved,
with you I am well pleased.” If we assume
this is the voice of God, then Jesus
is God’s Son. We know that. But is it
enough? From last week’s Gospel, we
know that the Devil is attracted to
Jesus and wants his attention. He intentionally
seeks him out, talks with him and tries
to get him to do certain things, like
turn stones into bread. If we follow
Jesus, we can expect the Devil to be
interested in us too – to vie for our
attention and devotion. In today’s Gospel
from Luke, we find some things out about
Jesus that are extremely interesting
and important. First, when the Pharisees
urge him to hide from Herod, he calls
Herod a “fox.” We can’t know the motive
of the Pharisees – are they genuinely
interested in Jesus’ welfare – or are
wanting him gone from their territory.
Regardless, Jesus is dangerously sarcastic
– and he tells the Pharisees to go back
to Herod and report this insult – that
he thinks Herod is a fox to his face.
Herod has the power to arrest, torture
and kill without juries and due process,
and Jesus openly flaunts his lack of
fear and disregard for this type of
power. If Herod is a fox, and that implies
someone who is sneaky, sly and is hiding
in the bushes, Jesus is, using his own
words, a hen. A hen does not hide and
stalk but creates a nest, tends her
young and is vulnerable and in the open.
I think immediately of the story, often
put to song, about a fox who goes out
on a chilly night to the town-o until
he comes to a great big pen – where
the ducks and the geese are kept. As
a Christian, how does it feel to be
following something as vulnerable as
a hen?
Jesus
tells us that he is casting out demons
and performing cures both today and
tomorrow. Who is Jesus? Is he a figure
of the distant past or someone who is
active today and in our future – someone
who is going to the sick and the needy
and healing them? There is work to be
done today – by word and deed letting
people know that the kingdom of God
has come near to all people, and he
is not going to stop for fear of Herod
or any one else. What does it feel like
to follow someone who is not afraid
of the consequences of doing God’s work,
justice and mercy? Who are you following?
I think about our Illinois politicians
– who are facing a record budget deficit
and unfunded pension obligations of
$130 billion. How did we get to this
point, and who is speaking about the
difficult choices we will need to make
to dig ourselves out of this mess? It
seems everyone is hiding in the bushes.
If we pay the monthly minimum, we will
be in relationship with debt and our
crisis not for 26 years, but 26 times
26 years.
Lent
is a time when I am asking myself the
question, “who is Jesus?” The question
is urgent and important. The way I answer
it helps me with everything I do – how
I listen and respond to the news, how
I handle a pastoral crisis, and how
I think about St. Mark’s and work with
all of you to be the church. It helps
me make decisions about my time and
money, and face my own mistakes and
limits. If I am following Jesus, am
I prepared to incur the scorn and rebuke
of powerful people, some of whom see
Jesus in a very different way? Is the
Jesus you know standing over you with
a stick, ready to punish you for your
sins? Or is Jesus near, full of compassion
and mercy, within your reach for healing
and strength? Has Jesus invited you
to follow him in his work of healing
people and sharing the truth about God,
especially to those who need and want
to hear his message – those who are
suffering in body, mind and spirit?
Is Jesus someone you can rest in, give
your concerns to, and share your work
and burdens with?
The
word “Lent” means Spring – the “lengthening
of days” – and now, even with the late
winter snow and cold, green shoots are
beginning to come up from the ground.
Things are moving in the ground and
within the human spirit. It is the perfect
time to think about your membership
agreements – credit cards and otherwise.
What are these relationships really
like? Are you making the minimum payment
unaware of the true cost? Are you ignoring
the fine print? Who is Jesus to you,
and do you know what kind of God you
are following and worshipping? This
is the time and the season to find out.
Amen.
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