Cynicism and Life

Thursday, June 8, 2006 -- Week of Proper 4

For Today's Prayer in the Octave of Prayer for General Convention
go to our Home Page www.stpaulsfay.org and click the link at the top of the page.

NOTE: Beginning Monday my "Morning Reflections" will be replaced by reports from the General Convention of the Episcopal Church.

"Morning Reflections" is a brief thought about the scripture readings from the Daily Office of Morning and Evening Prayer according to the practice found in the Book of Common Prayer of the Episcopal Church.

Morning Prayer begins on p. 80 of the Book of Common Prayer.
Evening Prayer begins on p. 117

An online resource for praying the Daily Office is found at www.missionstclare.com
Another form of the office from Phyllis Tickle's "Divine Hours" is available on our partner web site www.ExploreFaith.org at this link -- http://explorefaith.org/prayer/fixed/index.html


Today's Readings for the Daily Office (p. 969)
Psalms 50 (morning) // [59, 60] or 8, 84 (afternoon)
Ecclesiastes 3:16 - 4:3
Galatians 3:1-14
Matthew 14:13-21

The world-weary cynicism of the Teacher comes through strongly today. Human beings are no better than the animals. We all die. We all go down to the dust. Who knows if there is anything after death? he asks. No one knows, he answers. And when you look at the oppressions that happen everywhere and the tears of the oppressed, a wise and sensitive person would conclude that it were better not to have lived. (I've seen this passage as an oblique biblical endorsement of abortion when children will be born unwanted.)

He returns to his theme. As you can, enjoy your work while you are alive.

Paul speaks with a passionately cynical voice today. He is furious that opponents have returned to the moralisms and legalisms of a life of following rules and ethical precepts. It's impossible, he says. Try to live up to all of the rules and you will fail, becoming anxiously preoccupied with your self and your performance and judgmental about others in the process. It's all a curse. Even Christ was cursed because he was hung on a tree. You can't get free by good behavior.

He returns to his theme. Freedom is the free gift of loving acceptance from God. Just accept the gift. Then live in spontaneous loving friendship.

Jesus faces the cynicism of his disciples. Jesus trusts God for abundance. It is like a mini-Exodus scene. Jesus crosses the water by boat to a deserted, wilderness place. Crowds follow him. He returns to his theme: he has compassion on them and he cures the sick. "Send them away," say the disciples, there is not enough food. "They need not go away; you give them something to eat." They sit down, and something happens. All are filled.

I recently finished reading Jeffrey Sach's book "The End of Poverty." He says the same thing Jesus says. Though 20,000 people die daily because of the effects of extreme poverty, "They need not go away; you give them something to eat." We have the resources and technology to end extreme poverty in our lifetime. It is within our reach if we have the will. It's less expensive than, say, the war in Iraq. For those oppressed by poverty, freedom would be our loving acceptance of them as our brothers and sisters, not as animals who just die and go down to the dust.

After all, our life has been given to us. Why can't we give life too? Why can't we freely embrace Jesus' theme, to have compassion and cure the sick? We don't have to say "send them away, there's not enough food." Actually, there is enough. All it takes is for us to embrace our true identity as the beloved recipients of the gift of abundant life, and to live in the freedom of that Spirit.

Lowell

(for some info about what you can do, go to www.e4gr.org -- Episcopalians for Global Reconciliation and learn more about the Millennium Development Goals)

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The Rev. Lowell Grisham
St. Paul's Episcopal Church