Election Choices, The Economy, and Advent: A Sermon

Today is a direction-changing day in the Church Year. We're still keeping Sundays after Pentecost, but after today there are only two more of them. And the Scriptures for these last three Sundays shift to themes that are especially associated with Advent. [The Scriptures] today focus on choosing; on questions about life and death and the second Coming of Christ; and on responsibility and judgment; but especially on making choices, on choosing.

Back in the shadows of the story [about the Bridesmaids], sometimes passed over, is the picture of those girls, suddenly serious about their obligation, rushing door to door in the night, crying to someone who will get out of bed and sell them some oil. When they finally get back to the wedding, the door is closed. Then we hear one of the dreadful words in the New Testament: the doorkeeper says, "I do not know you." Knock, knock, knock. I do not know you.

Choices. Choices and faithfulness. Choices and consequences. Choices and life everlasting with God. Choices and new beginnings.

Nationally we are in a time of new beginnings as the consequences of the Election begin to be worked out. But people over the whole electoral spectrum, of every opinion, have hailed the Election as momentous, The choice of a candidate of African descent to be our President, just this fact has occasioned great rejoicing. We weren't sure it was a thing yet possible in the United States -- until Tuesday night.

This fact transcended for the moment our politics and touched everyone, whether they voted, however they voted, whomever they championed. It's proper that politics and the debate of policies return: our problems are many and difficult, and our process of negotiation and developed agreement and consensus continues. But for now we rejoice.

It takes nothing away from the pride we feel --- the astonishment we share -- to be reminded of another hard fact. It took us almost 400 years to work ourselves into the depths of our racial divisions. We will not soon be entirely rid of the feelings they have engendered and the actions they have caused. It is naive to think otherwise. As a nation we can be said to have been officially at work on improvement for about sixty years, since the military was desegregrated in 1948. We are farther along -- surely much farther than we had thought we were -- but we are yet far from home. So let us rejoice, by all means, but let us remember that we continue to need God's grace and help, that charity may flourish among us.

We're turning toward Advent, between the first coming of Christ to be our Savior and his second coming, when he shall set everything to rights, and then present the world redeemed to God the Father. We live ‘now' between the Advents.

And the "now" of our lives today is under an overhanging wave of economic troubles. And we will face the details of the ensuing year differently, depending on our own special circumstances. But one thing is clear for all of us. Whether by choice or necessity, we are being called in the emerging situation to live lives of simplicity.

Simplicity. The circumstances of our lives may already have given us a simple way of living. But for most of us the call to simplicity is a call to examine the way we live, the things on which we spend our resources of money and time and strength.

Simplicity is a spiritual discipline and a spiritual goal. We can in times of privation or limited resources have our sacrifices extorted from us, as we are forced backward step by step into a simpler life. Or we can embrace an opportunity to learn new ways of living sacrificially, new ways, and spiritually richer ways, of growing closer to God as we re-order and re-arrange the priorities of things and activities in our lives. We face a new encounter with the reality of God, our need of him, and the power of his grace.

We are being told that the present crisis is as serious as that in the 1930's. There are many who are already experiencing a "depression". That there are many more who are not -- or not yet -- doesn't lessen the suffering of those who are. These times trouble those of us who remember "The Depression" in particular ways. Studs Terkel has said that it was the society that had failed, but the men who lost their jobs, who couldn't support their families, felt that it was somehow their own personal failure.

My Father was like that. He lost a good job with serious responsibilities and had to take his family to live with my Mother's parents. Some times he worked for five dollars a week. During those years my Mother returned to the Church, and she began to make a pledge out of the little that my Father was able to send home.

One Sunday I was sent to Sunday School carrying the family's pledge. It was in envelopes in coins. In my innocence I put the envelopes in my Sunday School workbook and, of course, along the way as I walked, the money fell out of the workbook. I was stupified with dismay when I arrived at the Church and there was no offering.

Two important lessons came out the experience. The first was, Take your child to Sunday School, don't send him! Especially not with the family's pledge. The second was more serious and of incalculable importance for our family's spiritual future. My Mother told the Rector, in passing, what had happened, thinking perhaps to receive a reprieve.. The Rector, however, said merely, "How unfortunate." No reprieve, no relief!

Mother often said that it was critically important that he gave that answer. The pledge had not been made to the Rector or even the Parish. The pledge was to God. It was our responsibiity to get the pledge to God's Church safely. Those were hard years, but they grew tough people. When I was confirmed a few years later, Mother gave me a Prayer Book on the fly leaf of which she wrote words from Joshua, from our Lesson today "As for me and my house, we will serve the LORD."

So, let us give thanks for God's many blessings to ourselves and our country. Let us ask his care and guidance to our people and our nation in the days ahead. And as we move towards Advent let us ask for a renewal of our sense of the covenant God has made between us, resolving by his grace to be faithful.