People of a Certain Age
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For October 27, 2019:
People of a Certain Age
by Mary Austin
Joel 2:23-32
“We need to attract young families,” says every church, all the time. Some churches hire younger pastors specifically to attract younger members. But the prophet Joel may be on to something, in seeing the abilities in people of all ages. The U.S. Census Bureau is projecting that within a few years, older people will outnumber children in our country. “By 2030, all baby boomers will be older than age 65. This will expand the size of the older population so that 1 in every 5 residents will be retirement age. “The aging of baby boomers means that within just a couple decades, older people are projected to outnumber children for the first time in U.S. history,” said Jonathan Vespa, a demographer with the U.S. Census Bureau.”
The Census Bureau points us toward a shift in the median age of the country. “As the population ages, the ratio of older adults to working-age adults, also known as the old-age dependency ratio, is projected to rise. By 2020, there will be about three-and-a-half working-age adults for every retirement-age person. By 2060, that ratio will fall to just two-and-a-half working-age adults for every retirement-age person. The median age of the U.S. population is expected to grow from age 38 today to age 43 by 2060.”
It may be that there are no young families at church because we’re cranky about noise in worship, or the building smells weird, or they’re playing soccer on Sunday mornings, but there are also fewer young families overall.
We have a quirky relationship with age, whether it’s at church or in politics. We want presidential candidates with experience, and then wonder if Senator Bernie Sanders, Senator Elizabeth Warren and former Vice President Joe Biden are too old to run. “For months, Democrats have watched as a trio of septuagenarians commanded a majority of support in their crowded primary field: Former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr., 76, Senator Elizabeth Warren, 70, and Mr. Sanders, have consistently led in the contest to face President Trump, 73, next year.” Matching the age of the candidates, “the highest share of the electorate will be older than 65 [for the first time] since at least 1970.”
Just like church people, voters have an ideal age in mind. The candidates’ health is likely to remain a factor in the election. “Already, Mr. Trump has started questioning Mr. Biden’s energy levels, nicknaming him “Sleepy Joe.” Nearly all Democrats prefer candidates in their 40s through 60s, according to surveys. When asked about the ideal age for a president, just 3 percent said the 70s, according to polling released by Pew Research Center in May. Other polls have shown that Americans express more discomfort with a candidate in their 70s than one who is gay, Muslim or an independent.”
Still, the prophet Joel reminds us that God’s spirit is poured out “on all flesh.” The gift comes to people of all ages, and “your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions.” God doesn’t have an upper age limit on divine work – should we?
In the News
At age 95, Jimmy Carter is still famously building houses, even working this month with bruises after a recent fall. “For 36 years, he and wife Rosalynn Carter have led an annual build for Habitat, erecting and fixing up more than 4,000 homes. The partnership has inextricably bound them together — Habitat and the organization’s most famous supporters, there almost since the beginning. Recalling the start of what would become a decades- and globe-spanning volunteer project, President Carter says he and Mrs. Carter weren’t exactly thinking about longevity when they and a few dozen others bussed up to New York City to work on a six-story apartment building in 1984. The couple had already volunteered with Habitat back in Georgia when, in passing while he was in N.Y.C. to speak at a church, President Carter swung by a Habitat build site there and said, “We need to bring some volunteers in to help…We knew that we had undertaken a very enjoyable hobby on the side,” he says. The Carters began this work, decades ago, at an age when many people are thinking about moving to Arizona and renewing an interest in golf, quilting or genealogy.
Coming back to campaigning after heart surgery, Bernie Sanders has secured the endorsements of Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ilhan Omar, two prominent liberal and young members of Congress. “The pair of endorsements, jolted the primary race, signaling that Mr. Sanders was still a formidable contender just as it had increasingly seemed like a contest between Senator Elizabeth Warren and former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. They also shifted the conversation away from his health issues and his age, infusing his campaign with a renewed sense of vitality.” He’s hoping the endorsements will “motivate young people, a group that was critical to his success in 2016 and that his allies know he must win over again, both in term of perception and for actual votes.”
President Trump is also in the same age group. In an opinion piece, The LA Times also explored the question of age, noting, “If Elizabeth Warren were to be elected president next year, she would be 71 on Inauguration Day. Joe Biden would be 77. Bernie Sanders would be 79. In other words, if elected, any of the three leading candidates for the Democratic nomination would become the oldest person ever to begin the job, breaking the record set in 2017 — by Donald Trump.” They wonder, “The candidates’ age raises two questions. First, if any of them are elected, will their bodies and their minds be up to the task for the next four or eight years? The question has for the most part escaped serious examination, partly because it is borderline offensive to question an older person’s fitness based on the number of birthdays rather than on any particular evidence of infirmity or decline. But it is probably avoided as well out of anxiety over what the answer may be.” They note that we having a pattern in our voting. “Americans in the modern era have generally chosen old Republicans and young Democrats as their presidents.”
In the Scriptures
Writing in response to an ecological disaster – a plague of locusts, Joel sees something different, looking with God’s vision. The locusts have threatened the people of Israel on every level, as food for people and livestock gets wiped away by the infestation. Into this catastrophe, Joel reminds the people that God has not forgotten them, and that days of abundance are coming. The promise of rain is the promise of new growth for all that has been stunted. In this time of restoration, God will bring not just enough food, but a season of spiritual renewal. The people who are anxious about the future will be fed, first, and then will have God’s spirit poured out on them. “The threshing-floors shall be full of grain, the vats shall overflow with wine and oil,” the prophet says, but there will be even more than that.
We associate these words with Pentecost, and the reworking of Joel’s words as a prophecy for the followers of Jesus. Still, they stand as a word of hope in times of ecological stress, hunger and despair about the future. The prophet insists that God hears God’s people, and comes with abundance to answer our needs.
Dr. Wil Gafney points out that people have a part to play in this restoration, too. There’s a human response to God’s gifts of water, grain and grapes. The harvest “was accomplished by more than an act of God. The people cleared, planted, and harvested the fields, vineyards, and orchards. This is an important reminder lest we think that all we are called to do is to close ourselves up in our temples and pray. We must also work with God in and on the earth.”
In the Sermon
The sermon might look at God’s promise of not just sustenance, but abundance, and ask whether we are missing some level of fullness in our lives when we discount the gifts of older people. If we only see the skills of the young, are we missing the gifts of other generations? Is there more abundance when we use the gifts of every age group?
“I hate age-ism when it’s directed at me,” a colleague said recently, “but I wonder if I’m guilty of it, too.” The sermon might look at what kinds of stereotypes we carry about each generation. Greatest Generation: thrifty, don’t understand technology. Millennials: not very hard working, bad with money. And so on. How do we miss out on the particular talents of each person, and the unique world view of each generation, when we operate from our assumptions? Joel imagines a world where people of all ages have something to say on God’s behalf. Are we missing a chance to do the same?
Or the sermon might look at where God’s spirit is being poured out in your faith community? Where do you see God moving, working and stirring things up?
The sermon might also look at the question of visions and dreams. It’s easy to lose them in the work of budgets and newsletter and meetings, but here God is saying, through Joel, that they’re just as essential as grain and water. We need the dreams and visions as much as we need food and drink. Are we cultivating space for God’s spirit to speak?
Speaking into a time of worry, Joel promises that God is not done yet, or even diminished by the people’s panic. God has gifts yet to give, through God’s people of all ages.
SECOND THOUGHTS
Pride ’N Fall
by Dean Feldmeyer
Luke 18:9-14
Hubris. Pride. Arrogance.
Call it what you will, it is deadly dangerous, if not to those who bear it, then to those who fall under their power.
Take the Pharisees, for instance.
What’s the Deal with the Pharisees?
Historians and biblical scholars tend to refer to the Pharisees as a “sect” within Judaism around the time of Jesus, but the word “sect” has modern connotations that don’t necessarily apply, here.
Think of them more as a “denomination” within the broader Jewish faith along with three other denominations at that time, the Sadducees, the Zealots, and the Essenes. We won’t go into all four but let’s take a quick look at who the Pharisees were and what they believed and stood for.
We first hear of them in about 150 BCE and they were probably the theological descendants of the Hasidim, a strict, Jewish “denomination” that emerged from the Maccabean age.
Most of what we know about them comes from the Roman Jewish historian Josephus (c. 90CE). In a nutshell, here’s what he says:
They were popular among the common people who held them in high esteem as the authoritative interpreters of scripture. Many of the Pharisees came from humble beginnings and did not bar anyone from their ranks based on station in life. In fact, to prevent making the Torah a spade with which to bury others, early Pharisees had a day job.
They had a strong missionary movement and many sought to bring gentiles into their fold. They had no priestly duties. They were a lay order of teachers. Their power base was the synagogue. They attempted (and mostly succeeded) to cultivate harmonious relationships with the common people. (Sadducees were aristocrats.)
Pharisees believed in bodily resurrection of the dead to eternal life of rewards or judgement and punishment. They also believed in angels, a coming messiah, and an “end times” where God would reign supreme.
They sometimes controlled the Sanhedrin but only rarely. After 70 CE, they were the sole members of the Sanhedrin. Nevertheless, even when out of power, the Pharisees were able to exercise considerable influence because they had the support of the masses.
The Pharisees were known for their leniency in judgment, whereas the Sadducees were known or their severity in doling out punishment.
The Pharisees became the standard for “normal” Judaism as they were the only denomination left standing after the Temple was destroyed in 70 CE. The Sadducees lost their power base and their power, the Essenes disappeared, and the Zealots were destroyed or otherwise defeated. The Pharisees became the rabbis. Their successors, the rabbis, created rabbinic literature including the Mishnah, Tosefta, Talmud, and Midrash.
Not bad, huh? They seem like pretty good fellows, right?
So, what happened? Why do they come across as such bad guys in the New Testament?
Some scholars believe that our dislike of the Pharisees is grounded in overstatement and bad translations of the gospels, e.g. Jesus speaking of “some Pharisees,” became, simply, “the Pharisees.” There are, after all, some good Pharisees who appear in the New Testament:
Nicodemus (John 3), is a Pharisee and a member of the Sanhedrin. He sees something genuine in the ministry and message of Jesus but he realizes that his knowledge is incomplete so, instead of using bluff and bluster to fake it, he goes to Jesus and asks for clarification, after which he becomes a supporter. We see him championing the Jewish legal principle of not condemning someone without first hearing from that person (7:50, 51) and ultimately joining Joseph of Arimathea in preparing Jesus’ body for burial (19:38, 39).
Gamaliel (Acts 5:33-39) is another “good” Pharisee in the New Testament. When Jewish leaders become angry over the apostles’ preaching about Jesus they jail Peter and others and demand they be crucified. Gamaliel reasons with the Sanhedrin, appealing for careful consideration of their course of action. He reminds the leaders of recent historical events, and advises them to leave the apostles alone. “If their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail,” Gamaliel argues. “But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God.”
And, of course, Paul was, himself, a Pharisee who, though he wrongly persecuted Christians, was also amenable to conversion and repentance after his Damascus road experience.
The problem with many of the Pharisees was that, after 150+ years of being influential and admired by nearly everyone but the Sadducees, they began to believe their own press, as it were. As the Pharisee in this morning’s parable demonstrates, some of them began to actually believe that their orthodox theology and their legalistically rigid lifestyle made them superior to others.
The name Pharisee probably derives from the Hebrew word for “separate,” a name which they adopted because they were rightly proud of their devotion to God and scripture. But by the time of Jesus their “separateness” amounted to little more than a status symbol which they lorded over and used to judge others.
And the Tax Collectors?
Any student of the New Testament cannot go far without running into the tax collectors and their low place in New Testament Jewish culture. Here’s what the web site, www.bible-history.com says about them.
“During the time of Jesus, Israel was divided into various territories that were governed by the descendants of Herod the Great, but Judea was an Imperial territory governed by a Roman procurator and the taxes were very high there. Wealthy Jews would bid for the position of tax collector and get even richer by adding a substantial fee above whatever was owed. There were also publicans like Matthew who collected taxes for customs or tolls on imports, exports, and merchants who came to buy or sell in Israel. The religious leaders especially despised the tax collectors and they were considered unclean because of their contact with Romans. Their testimonies were rejected in court and they were not redeemable under the law of Moses.”
Pharisee vs. Tax Collector: And the Winner is….
So, when Jesus pits the lowly Tax Collector against the upright and righteous Pharisee, his audience automatically expects that the much-admired Pharisee is going to win this one in a walk.
But, surprise!
It is the tax collector who “went down to his home justified rather than” the Pharisee.
And the reason?
Hubris. Pride. Arrogance.
How to Identify a Pharisee
We tend to think of a Pharisee in strictly religious terms and, often, that is the case. Pharisees, in the modern sense, are any people who tend to think of themselves as morally superior to others not just because of their theology or their legalistically rigid lifestyle but also because of their education, their vast experience, their intelligence, or their position in the social order.
Examples of this kind of thinking are not hard to find in secular history and current events.
The HMS Titanic was considered unsinkable and, when warned, six times, that he was heading into a dangerous area of the North Atlantic, where icebergs were known to be lurking in the dark, the captain, under pressure from Bruce Ismay, the Managing Director of the White Star Line, refused to slow down and, in fact, increased speed so as to set a new (six day) speed record in transatlantic crossing. The result of all this arrogance: 1,450 dead, including the captain and Bruce Ismay.
When Lord Kitchener, Britain’s Secretary of State for War in 1915, faced the need to attack and capture Turkey, he devised a plan which involved an amphibious attack by Australian, French, and New Zealand troops on the peninsula of Gallipoli. He was told that the ancient Greeks had drawn up a contingency plan for exactly such an invasion should one ever be needed. Their estimate was that it would require 150,000 troops. Kitchener scoffed at the estimate shouting that British troops “fought like lions,” and went forward with his plan. The result was one of the worst and most humiliating military defeats in the history of Great Britain (115,000 British and dominion troops - Great Britain, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, India, and Newfoundland -- killed or wounded. 73,485 of which were British and Irish.) and that by an army that was undermanned, outgunned, undertrained and vastly unprepared but, nevertheless, held the high ground and was defending their homeland.
A more modern example might be found in the demise of my beloved Sears department stores.
When I was a young man, Sears had a television advertising campaign that began, “This Saturday, when you go to Sears…” It just assumed that everyone went to Sears on Saturday, and the assumption was not far off the mark. Sears was a popular store known for excellent service, quality products and reasonable prices. Their famous catalogue put the store, itself, in everyone’s living room. Sears was certainly a, if not the, prime example of an American success story.
But times changed and so did the competition. But sears did not.
Writing for the New York Times in 2011, Floyd Norris had this to say about Eddie Lampert, who took over Sears and Kmart: “Becoming very rich can show that you are a genius. But thinking you are a genius can turn out to be a very expensive folly.”
Seven years later, in October of 2018, again, in the New York Times, William D. Cohan, a former investment banker and the author of four books about Wall Street, said:
“When Sears, once America’s largest retailer, made its bankruptcy filing Monday in a White Plains courthouse, the proximate cause was the decision by Eddie Lampert, by far its biggest individual creditor and shareholder, not to make a $134 million loan payment that was due.
“But in the end, this wasn’t simply about a struggling retailer unable to pay its bills. Sears succumbed to Mr. Lampert’s hubris. The problems at Sears… are more than a decade in the making, all because one of the smartest guys who has ever been in any room — Mr. Lampert — stayed convinced of his own deeply flawed thinking. As a result, billions of dollars of shareholder and creditor money has been immolated, probably forever; at least 175,000 jobs have been lost; and one of the greatest American business success stories may well be extinguished.” (Emphasis, mine.)
Briefly, according to Mr. Norris, here’s the story:
Hedge fund billionaire Eddie Lambert bought Sears Roebuck on the cheap and, by arrogantly believing he knew more about the retail business than the company's experienced executives, drove the historic company into bankruptcy. He thought that, if the company failed, he could liquidate it and make money by selling off the valuable real estate that it owned. However, he believed that the company could be profitable, mainly by refusing to emulate competitors, such as Target, who he believed were foolishly spending too much capital on store renovations.
When company executives tried to tell Lambert that the stores badly needed refurbishing, he fired them and replaced them with executives inexperienced in retailing and, thus, less likely to challenge his views. The stores became increasingly shabby and company started losing sales. Now, nearly all the stores are in danger of closing and 175,000 employees have lost their jobs because of the hubris of a man who turned out to be far less brilliant than he told himself and others that he was.
Lastly, we come to our spiritual lives and our churches where arrogance is never far from front and center. It can be identified on both sides of big arguments like LGBTQ rights, abortion, and the ordination of women as well as on both sides of theological arguments from the divinity of Jesus Christ to how many angels can dance on the head of a pin (unless, of course, someone’s church doesn’t allow dancing) and even in small, seemingly silly arguments where one group uses musical instruments in worship and another doesn’t, or one side raises their hands above their heads during singing and another group does not. Even in local churches we find battles between professional designers and homemakers about the proper layout of a kitchen, between parents and empty nesters about the proper place of children during worship services, and between old and new members about who is properly allowed to sit in which pew.
Hubris. Pride. Arrogance.
If history has taught us anything it has taught that these three can kill not just human beings but institutions like churches as well.
The Antidote for Pride
Wise people strive for confidence and eschew arrogance.
An anonymous person once said that “arrogance is baseless, unwarranted confidence which lacks humility and respect, while confidence has its basis in expertise and experience, with a sense of humility and respect.”
Put simply, said another source, “The difference between arrogance and confidence is humility.”
Arrogance breeds superiority, while confidence makes others comfortable.
Arrogance may be a way to suppress feelings of insecurity for other areas of weakness while confidence takes into his stride both strengths and weaknesses.
Arrogance feels good by making others feel lesser. Confidence is an attribute liked by others.
Both arrogant and confident people have a strong belief in their own abilities. Those with confidence can easily overcome fears and uncertainty. Moreover, they have a positive and optimistic vision that makes them strong and admirable. Arrogance is a weakness. Arrogant people usually view themselves as superior and never admit their mistakes.
Jennifer Houston, writing for the web site www.womanitely.com points out these differences between arrogance and confidence:
later, as the king was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Babylon, he said, “Is not this Babylon the great, which I have built as the royal residence, by my mighty power and for the glory of my majesty?” (Daniel 4: 29-30 NIV)
Jeremiah was confident. Nebuchadnezzar was arrogant.
Moses was confident. Pharaoh was arrogant.
Jesus was confident. Pilate and Herod were arrogant.
Goliath was arrogant. David was confident.
Samson started out arrogant and learned to become confident.
Jesus calls us to be confident in our relationship with God, self-assured but with humility and respect. Arrogance has no place in the house of the Lord.
ILLUSTRATIONS
From team member Dean Feldmeyer:
The classic Hollywood film Spartacus was written by the multi-award winning screenwriter Dalton Trumbo and directed by a young Stanley Kubrick. It tells the story of the slave revolt that happened in Rome in 73 BCE and ended with the crucifixion of 6,000 slaves along the Apian Way.
In one scene of the film, a character named Crassus, a wealthy, arrogant Roman senator played by Sir Lawrence Olivier calls a teenage slave boy named Antoninus, played by Tony Curtis, into his bedchamber. Throughout the film, Crassus, as a character, symbolizes the wealth and power of Rome. In this scene, it can be said that young Antoninus represents the common people and especially the slaves who were oppressed by the Empire.
Crassus’s brief monologue applies as much to his own relationship to Rome as it applies to the relationship he expects Antoninus to have with him.
Antoninus! Antoninus, come here! Onto the balcony. There’s something you must see.
(Antoninus comes into the room and crosses, warily to the balcony. Beyond is a nightscape of the city of Rome, her armies arrayed and marching out to battle the slave revolt.)
Down there. There you see Rome. The might, the majesty, the terror of Rome.
There is the power that bestrides the known world like a Colossus. No nation can withstand her. No man can withstand her. (He looks Antoninus over, up and down.) And how much less, a boy.
There is only one way to deal with Rome, Antoninus. You must serve her. You must abase yourself before her. You must grovel at her feet. (He turns to look, once again at the city.)
You must love her.
Isn’t that true, Antoninus.
(Turning.) Antoninus? Antoninus?
Crassus looks around, runs about the bedchamber calling Antoninus’s name and finally realizes that the boy has jumped off the balcony and run off to join the slave revolt.
* * * * * *
From team member Mary Austin:
Joel 2:23-32
The odd things older people do
The prophet Joel promises an equality of spirit between older people and younger people. That works well on God’s realm, but in our world we need some translation between the generations. A tongue in cheek article attempts to explain the curious things older people do. For example, “if a young person calls somebody and it goes to voicemail, they'll just hang up. And if it's urgent, they'll send a text. But old people don't see the point of this. If they have something to tell you, they'll leave a long — and yes, maybe rambling — message on your voicemail. And they expect you to listen to all of it!” Old people also take pictures of places and things other than themselves! Further, “t's rare to find anyone over 50 who has completely given up on a landline — whether it's because they don't have wifi and "need it for AOL" (another thing old people love) or because, they wonder, "What if there's an emergency?" Don't bother explaining why having a cell phone would be more useful in an emergency, or that most calls that come through on a landline are bill collectors and pushy salesman. Old people would rather live in a house without a roof than one without a landline.”
Further, “If your pockets are filled with enough nickels, dimes, and pennies to pay for just about anything with exact change, it's an easy bet that you're probably closer to 70 than you are to 20.” In fact, if you have cash at all, you’re likely to be older than younger. Also, there’s the lure of the mall — before it opens. “For old people, a not-yet-open mall is like a private walking trail where the scenery is a veritable forest of empty Gaps, Macaroni Grills, and Jamba Juices. A mall at dawn can be a remarkably peaceful place, as we all eventually learn when we reach old age and we're looking for someplace safe to exercise at 6 a.m.”
Last but not least is the secret weapon of people of a certain age — being able to write in, and read, cursive!
From team member Ron Love:
Jeremiah 14:20
We acknowledge our wickedness
Rembrandt completed an inspiring painting in 1634 that he titled, “The Descent from the Cross.” Standing to the right of the cross, a somberly dressed figure in deep brown-red, is Nicodemus, who received permission to bury Jesus. Seated left, whose colors barely make her visible, is Mary, shown fainting and supported by several women. Gathered in the rear are the apostles, scarcely seen in the dark shadows. The livid color of Christ’s body, set off against white linen, surrounded by the dark images, creates an unforgettable impression. Another figure is illuminated as brilliantly as Jesus, a man standing at the top of a ladder, helping to lower the body. The strong blue figure bears a resemblance to the artist. Rembrandt placed himself at the scene of deliverance, for he too had received the words of redemption.
* * *
2 Timothy 4:7
I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.
After his death, family and friends took great care shuffling through the lab papers of Thomas Alva Edison. Discovered among the documents was the recording of an experiment repeatedly tried and failed. Scribbled along the margin, from Edison’s own hand, was a message of encouragement. “When down in the mouth remember Jonah — he came out all right!” Discouraged, disheartened, dejected, depressed — remember those who had faith for they endured, and so shall we.
* * *
Joel 2:27
You shall know that I am in the midst of Israel
Prior to accepting the cabinet position as Secretary of Agriculture in President Dwight David Eisenhower’s administration, Ezra Taft Benson made one request: that all cabinet meetings begin with a few moments of silent prayer. Benson, a man of deep religious convictions, believed that this was the only way to conduct government business. Eisenhower quickly and gladly agreed to Benson’s request.
When the first cabinet meeting was held in the White House, the President forgot the previous arrangement and the prayer was mistakenly omitted. Benson wrote the President a memo, reminding him of the talk they had in New York regarding prayer and Cabinet meetings. In the memo Benson wrote that he would not mention the issue again.
At the next cabinet meeting, held on February 6, 1953, Eisenhower inquired of the other officials if opening the meeting with silent prayer was acceptable to them. Everyone agreed to the practice. They then decided that the prayer would be silent, unless one representative on a particular occasion desired to pray verbally.
Henceforth, cabinet meetings followed this format: The secretaries would seat themselves around the mahogany table. When the President entered the room, they would stand out of respect. Once seated, each man bowed his head until the President ended the brief silence with the words, “Thank you.”
* * *
Joel 2:27
You shall know that I am in the midst of Israel
Jon Meacham, former senior editor of Newsweek magazine, wrote an editorial in the June 21, 2010, publication titled, “Primary Examples For Our Daughters.” He discussed the importance of the 2010 primary elections for young women. The number of women running for public office, along with an African-American in the Oval Office, demonstrates the promise of opportunity for all women and minorities. He was quick to note that the “fabled glass ceiling” has not yet been broken as we still struggle with prejudices. Yet, he declared, from the recent elections, “But one thing is clear: we are living in a different, and I think better, country than we have just a few years ago, for the iconography of politics has changed in ways that are impossible to undo. African-Americans and women are now embedded in elective life.”
Watching the elections with him was his 3 ½ year old daughter Mary. When asked, John told Mary that these women wanted to be president. Hearing that, she paused, and then answered, “But girls can’t be president.” Upon further inquiry as to why girls cannot be president, Mary showed him a place mat souvenir that the family purchased in an excursion to the nation’s capital. As it showed all the color portraits of the presidents, she confessed why a woman could not be president, “There aren’t any pictures of them.” Meacham wrote, “She had drawn this conclusion from, of all things, a place mat.” Meacham concluded, “The color bar has now been broken on those knickknacks, and soon, one hopes, the gender barrier will be, too.”
* * *
Joel 2:27
You shall know that I am in the midst of Israel
Nine years. Col. Floyd “Jimmy” Johnson is the longest prisoner of war in United States history. He was a member of a special forces team whose assignment was to gather intelligence. He was operating out of Khe Sanh, Vietnam, when, in March 1964, he went on an observation flight over enemy positions. Johnson kept asking the pilot to fly lower so he could have a better view, when suddenly the plane was fired upon and crashed. The pilot was killed and Johnson was taken prisoner. The colonel was subjected to long periods of physical and mental torture. He was kept in solitary confinement for four years. To survive this ordeal, he kept telling himself he was one of the good guys, fighting for the right cause. He was also placed in a cage for long hours, where he could neither stand nor stretch. While in the cage, in order to remain sane, he built two complete homes in his mind. One nail and one tile at a time, he built his imaginary houses. The Vietnamese kept playing him broadcasts of war protesters back in the United States, but Johnson dismissed the tapes as another form of mental torture. It was not until he was transferred to the infamous Hanoi Hilton that he learned America was divided over the war. In 1973, Johnson was released, along with the others held in captivity.
* * * * * *
WORSHIP
by George Reed
Call to Worship:
Leader: Praise is due to you, O God!
People: You are the hope of all the ends of the earth.
Leader: Those who live at earth's farthest bounds are awed by your signs.
People: You make the morning and the evening shout for joy.
Leader: You crown the year with your bounty.
People: The pastures of the wilderness overflow.
OR
Leader: God comes to us to inspire us with God’s Spirit.
People: We welcome God’s Spirit and God’s vision.
Leader: God is no respecter of person but comes to us all.
People: We will be open to receive God’s dreams for us.
Leader: God often chooses those we would not choose.
People: We will honor all God’s children and listen to one another.
Hymns and Songs:
All People That on Earth Do Dwell
UMH: 75
H82: 377/378
PH: 220/221
NNBH: 36
NCH: 7
CH: 18
LBW: 245
ELW: 883
W&P: 661
AMEC: 73
STLT: 370
Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee
UMH: 89
H82: 376
PH: 464
AAHH: 120
NNBH: 40
NCH: 4
CH: 2
LBW: 551
ELW: 836
W&P: 59
AMEC: 75
STLT: 29
Spirit of God, Descend upon My Heart
UMH: 500
PH: 326
AAHH: 312
NCH: 290
CH: 265
LBW: 486
ELW: 800
W&P: 132
AMEC: 189
Lord, Speak to Me
UMH: 463
PH: 426
NCH: 531
ELW: 676
W&P: 593
Open My Eyes, That I May See
UMH: 454
PH: 324
NNBH: 218
CH: 586
W&P: 480
AMEC: 285
Be Thou My Vision
UMH: 451
H82: 488
PH: 339
NCH: 451
CH: 595
ELW: 793
W&P: 502
AMEC: 281
STLT: 20
Reneew: 151
O God of Every Nation
UMH: 435
H82: 607
PH: 289
CH: 680
LBW: 416
ELW: 713
W&P: 626
Breathe on Me, Breath of God
UMH: 420
H82: 508
PH: 316
AAHH: 317
NNBH: 126
NCH: 292
CH: 254
LBW: 488
W&P: 461
AMEC: 192
Open Our Eyes, Lord
CCB: 77
Renew: 91
You Are Mine
CCB: 58
Music Resources Key:
UMH: United Methodist Hymnal
H82: The Hymnal 1982
PH: Presbyterian Hymnal
AAHH: African American Heritage Hymnal
NNBH: The New National Baptist Hymnal
NCH: The New Century Hymnal
CH: Chalice Hymnal
LBW: Lutheran Book of Worship
ELW: Evangelical Lutheran Worship
W&P: Worship & Praise
AMEC: African Methodist Episcopal Church Hymnal
STLT: Singing the Living Tradition
CCB: Cokesbury Chorus Book
Renew: Renew! Songs & Hymns for Blended Worship
Prayer for the Day/Collect
O God who gives dreams and visions to your people:
Grant us the openness to receive your inspiration
whether we are old or young, whether it is through us or others;
through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.
OR
We praise you, O God, because you give visions and dreams to us. Sometimes you give them directly to us and sometimes through others. Help us to be open to your vision whoever you give them through. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
Leader: Let us confess to God and before one another our sins and especially our being closed to receiving your inspirations through visions and dreams.
People: We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. You have desired to inspire us to new visions and dreams of your reign but we have shied away from them. We demand things to be practical and we want our inspiration from the sources we expect it from. We make assumptions about who will or will not be the ones you will inspire. Forgive our arrogance and prejudice and open us to receive you through whatever channel you choose to present yourself. Amen.
Leader: God is moving among us and sharing dreams and visions of what creation can become. Receive these gifts and the gifts of grace and forgiveness that you may share these with others.
Prayers of the People
Praise and glory to you, O God, who comes to speak to us. You share with us your hopes and visions of what creation will become.
(The following paragraph may be used if a separate prayer of confession has not been used.)
We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. You have desired to inspire us to new visions and dreams of your reign but we have shied away from them. We demand things to be practical and we want our inspiration from the sources we expect it from. We make assumptions about who will or will not be the ones you will inspire. Forgive our arrogance and prejudice and open us to receive you through whatever channel you choose to present yourself.
We thank you for all the ways in which you share your life with us and for the inspiration you send us. We thank you for the Bible, for teachers and pastors, for friends and family who share with us what they have learned about you.
(Other thanksgivings may be offered.)
We pray for all your people and especially for those who feel they have no dreams and see no visions of better days. We pray for the broken hearted and those who are in despair.
(Other intercessions may be offered.)
All these things we ask in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ who taught us to pray together saying:
Our Father....Amen.
(Or if the Our Father is not used at this point in the service.)
All this we ask in the Name of the Blessed and Holy Trinity. Amen.
Children’s Sermon Starter
Talk to the children about dreams. We sometimes have dreams at night. Sometimes they may be scary but usually they are pleasant dreams. In the Bible we talk about dreams and they may be dreams like we have at night but we learn things about God through them or they may be ideas that come to us when we are awake. God talks to us in many ways.
CHILDREN'S SERMON
Sweet Dreams
by Chris Keating
Joel 2:23-32
Prepare ahead:
A “vision” board (see link below for examples) which includes inspirational quotes, sayings, words and pictures describing your own vision of the future, or perhaps your church’s vision for the future.
A vision board can be a powerful way of articulating your dreams for the future. Jack Canfield describes a vision board as a “visualization tool” or collage that represents your goals and reams. Take some time this week to prepare your own vision board as a sample to share with the children on Sunday. Since this is also stewardship season in many congregations, this could also be an opportunity for a creative expression of your church’s vision and dreams.
A good vision board for children might start by asking questions such as, “What are some of your favorite things? What hobbies do you enjoy? What would be your idea of the best day ever?” (Here’s a list of 21 questions to ask children in creating a vision board.)
The scripture from Joel is a wonderful word of encouragement. The prophet declares God’s redemption and shares the good news that even though God’s people had experienced many bad things, God had not forgotten them. Dreams play an important role in scripture. People believed that dreams were one of the ways God spoke to them, which is also true today.
Also important for Joel is the reminder that everyone’s dreams mattered. The vivid hopes of the elderly and the creative visions of the young both matter to God, and are important ways that God’s people discover assurance of their redemption.
Help the children understand the two meanings of the word “dream.” Our dreams at night can range from terrifying to silly to very realistic. The prophet reminds us that another meaning of dreaming is imagining what the future might look like. The prophet invites us to develop a vision for how God will help us in the future. To have a vision is to understand that God will help us accomplish great things. It’s a bit like asking “What do you think you might like to be when you are grown?”
As you share the vision board you have created, talk about how God has helped you (or your church) through times that may have been rough. Who or what has been important in the moments of your past? (A teacher, a job, a friend for example.) What did they do to help inspire you to try something in the future? What sort of things is God calling the children of your church to do? What are there dreams?
These are big questions, and time will not permit for a long conversation. By sharing your vision board, however, you are helping the children learn that God will be a part of our future, and that God’s dream for all of us is to live faithfully by honoring God and loving our neighbors.
Close with a prayer inviting God’s spirit to awaken the dreams of the children of your church, and by asking for God’s help in listening to those dreams.
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
The Immediate Word, October 27, 2019 issue.
Copyright 2019 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to The Immediate Word service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons and in worship and classroom settings only. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., 5450 N. Dixie Highway, Lima, Ohio 45807.
- People of a Certain Age by Mary Austin — Are we ever too old (or too young) to do God’s work? Is it ever too late to make a contribution in the world?
- Second Thoughts: Pride ’N Fall by Dean Feldmeyer — Hubris. Pride. Arrogance. Call it what you will, it is deadly dangerous, if not to those who bear it, then to those who fall under their power.
- Sermon illustrations by Ron Love, Bethany Peerbolte Dean Feldmeyer, Mary Austin...To Come
- Worship resources by George Reed focusing on older folks who dream dreams, ageism; competence verses arrogance.
- Children’s sermon: Sweet Dreams by Chris Keating — Joel promises that all of God’s children – old and young alike – shall dream visions of God’s great love.
People of a Certain Ageby Mary Austin
Joel 2:23-32
“We need to attract young families,” says every church, all the time. Some churches hire younger pastors specifically to attract younger members. But the prophet Joel may be on to something, in seeing the abilities in people of all ages. The U.S. Census Bureau is projecting that within a few years, older people will outnumber children in our country. “By 2030, all baby boomers will be older than age 65. This will expand the size of the older population so that 1 in every 5 residents will be retirement age. “The aging of baby boomers means that within just a couple decades, older people are projected to outnumber children for the first time in U.S. history,” said Jonathan Vespa, a demographer with the U.S. Census Bureau.”
The Census Bureau points us toward a shift in the median age of the country. “As the population ages, the ratio of older adults to working-age adults, also known as the old-age dependency ratio, is projected to rise. By 2020, there will be about three-and-a-half working-age adults for every retirement-age person. By 2060, that ratio will fall to just two-and-a-half working-age adults for every retirement-age person. The median age of the U.S. population is expected to grow from age 38 today to age 43 by 2060.”
It may be that there are no young families at church because we’re cranky about noise in worship, or the building smells weird, or they’re playing soccer on Sunday mornings, but there are also fewer young families overall.
We have a quirky relationship with age, whether it’s at church or in politics. We want presidential candidates with experience, and then wonder if Senator Bernie Sanders, Senator Elizabeth Warren and former Vice President Joe Biden are too old to run. “For months, Democrats have watched as a trio of septuagenarians commanded a majority of support in their crowded primary field: Former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr., 76, Senator Elizabeth Warren, 70, and Mr. Sanders, have consistently led in the contest to face President Trump, 73, next year.” Matching the age of the candidates, “the highest share of the electorate will be older than 65 [for the first time] since at least 1970.”
Just like church people, voters have an ideal age in mind. The candidates’ health is likely to remain a factor in the election. “Already, Mr. Trump has started questioning Mr. Biden’s energy levels, nicknaming him “Sleepy Joe.” Nearly all Democrats prefer candidates in their 40s through 60s, according to surveys. When asked about the ideal age for a president, just 3 percent said the 70s, according to polling released by Pew Research Center in May. Other polls have shown that Americans express more discomfort with a candidate in their 70s than one who is gay, Muslim or an independent.”
Still, the prophet Joel reminds us that God’s spirit is poured out “on all flesh.” The gift comes to people of all ages, and “your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions.” God doesn’t have an upper age limit on divine work – should we?
In the News
At age 95, Jimmy Carter is still famously building houses, even working this month with bruises after a recent fall. “For 36 years, he and wife Rosalynn Carter have led an annual build for Habitat, erecting and fixing up more than 4,000 homes. The partnership has inextricably bound them together — Habitat and the organization’s most famous supporters, there almost since the beginning. Recalling the start of what would become a decades- and globe-spanning volunteer project, President Carter says he and Mrs. Carter weren’t exactly thinking about longevity when they and a few dozen others bussed up to New York City to work on a six-story apartment building in 1984. The couple had already volunteered with Habitat back in Georgia when, in passing while he was in N.Y.C. to speak at a church, President Carter swung by a Habitat build site there and said, “We need to bring some volunteers in to help…We knew that we had undertaken a very enjoyable hobby on the side,” he says. The Carters began this work, decades ago, at an age when many people are thinking about moving to Arizona and renewing an interest in golf, quilting or genealogy.
Coming back to campaigning after heart surgery, Bernie Sanders has secured the endorsements of Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ilhan Omar, two prominent liberal and young members of Congress. “The pair of endorsements, jolted the primary race, signaling that Mr. Sanders was still a formidable contender just as it had increasingly seemed like a contest between Senator Elizabeth Warren and former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. They also shifted the conversation away from his health issues and his age, infusing his campaign with a renewed sense of vitality.” He’s hoping the endorsements will “motivate young people, a group that was critical to his success in 2016 and that his allies know he must win over again, both in term of perception and for actual votes.”
President Trump is also in the same age group. In an opinion piece, The LA Times also explored the question of age, noting, “If Elizabeth Warren were to be elected president next year, she would be 71 on Inauguration Day. Joe Biden would be 77. Bernie Sanders would be 79. In other words, if elected, any of the three leading candidates for the Democratic nomination would become the oldest person ever to begin the job, breaking the record set in 2017 — by Donald Trump.” They wonder, “The candidates’ age raises two questions. First, if any of them are elected, will their bodies and their minds be up to the task for the next four or eight years? The question has for the most part escaped serious examination, partly because it is borderline offensive to question an older person’s fitness based on the number of birthdays rather than on any particular evidence of infirmity or decline. But it is probably avoided as well out of anxiety over what the answer may be.” They note that we having a pattern in our voting. “Americans in the modern era have generally chosen old Republicans and young Democrats as their presidents.”
In the Scriptures
Writing in response to an ecological disaster – a plague of locusts, Joel sees something different, looking with God’s vision. The locusts have threatened the people of Israel on every level, as food for people and livestock gets wiped away by the infestation. Into this catastrophe, Joel reminds the people that God has not forgotten them, and that days of abundance are coming. The promise of rain is the promise of new growth for all that has been stunted. In this time of restoration, God will bring not just enough food, but a season of spiritual renewal. The people who are anxious about the future will be fed, first, and then will have God’s spirit poured out on them. “The threshing-floors shall be full of grain, the vats shall overflow with wine and oil,” the prophet says, but there will be even more than that.
We associate these words with Pentecost, and the reworking of Joel’s words as a prophecy for the followers of Jesus. Still, they stand as a word of hope in times of ecological stress, hunger and despair about the future. The prophet insists that God hears God’s people, and comes with abundance to answer our needs.
Dr. Wil Gafney points out that people have a part to play in this restoration, too. There’s a human response to God’s gifts of water, grain and grapes. The harvest “was accomplished by more than an act of God. The people cleared, planted, and harvested the fields, vineyards, and orchards. This is an important reminder lest we think that all we are called to do is to close ourselves up in our temples and pray. We must also work with God in and on the earth.”
In the Sermon
The sermon might look at God’s promise of not just sustenance, but abundance, and ask whether we are missing some level of fullness in our lives when we discount the gifts of older people. If we only see the skills of the young, are we missing the gifts of other generations? Is there more abundance when we use the gifts of every age group?
“I hate age-ism when it’s directed at me,” a colleague said recently, “but I wonder if I’m guilty of it, too.” The sermon might look at what kinds of stereotypes we carry about each generation. Greatest Generation: thrifty, don’t understand technology. Millennials: not very hard working, bad with money. And so on. How do we miss out on the particular talents of each person, and the unique world view of each generation, when we operate from our assumptions? Joel imagines a world where people of all ages have something to say on God’s behalf. Are we missing a chance to do the same?
Or the sermon might look at where God’s spirit is being poured out in your faith community? Where do you see God moving, working and stirring things up?
The sermon might also look at the question of visions and dreams. It’s easy to lose them in the work of budgets and newsletter and meetings, but here God is saying, through Joel, that they’re just as essential as grain and water. We need the dreams and visions as much as we need food and drink. Are we cultivating space for God’s spirit to speak?
Speaking into a time of worry, Joel promises that God is not done yet, or even diminished by the people’s panic. God has gifts yet to give, through God’s people of all ages.
SECOND THOUGHTSPride ’N Fall
by Dean Feldmeyer
Luke 18:9-14
Hubris. Pride. Arrogance.
Call it what you will, it is deadly dangerous, if not to those who bear it, then to those who fall under their power.
Take the Pharisees, for instance.
What’s the Deal with the Pharisees?
Historians and biblical scholars tend to refer to the Pharisees as a “sect” within Judaism around the time of Jesus, but the word “sect” has modern connotations that don’t necessarily apply, here.
Think of them more as a “denomination” within the broader Jewish faith along with three other denominations at that time, the Sadducees, the Zealots, and the Essenes. We won’t go into all four but let’s take a quick look at who the Pharisees were and what they believed and stood for.
We first hear of them in about 150 BCE and they were probably the theological descendants of the Hasidim, a strict, Jewish “denomination” that emerged from the Maccabean age.
Most of what we know about them comes from the Roman Jewish historian Josephus (c. 90CE). In a nutshell, here’s what he says:
They were popular among the common people who held them in high esteem as the authoritative interpreters of scripture. Many of the Pharisees came from humble beginnings and did not bar anyone from their ranks based on station in life. In fact, to prevent making the Torah a spade with which to bury others, early Pharisees had a day job.
They had a strong missionary movement and many sought to bring gentiles into their fold. They had no priestly duties. They were a lay order of teachers. Their power base was the synagogue. They attempted (and mostly succeeded) to cultivate harmonious relationships with the common people. (Sadducees were aristocrats.)
Pharisees believed in bodily resurrection of the dead to eternal life of rewards or judgement and punishment. They also believed in angels, a coming messiah, and an “end times” where God would reign supreme.
They sometimes controlled the Sanhedrin but only rarely. After 70 CE, they were the sole members of the Sanhedrin. Nevertheless, even when out of power, the Pharisees were able to exercise considerable influence because they had the support of the masses.
The Pharisees were known for their leniency in judgment, whereas the Sadducees were known or their severity in doling out punishment.
The Pharisees became the standard for “normal” Judaism as they were the only denomination left standing after the Temple was destroyed in 70 CE. The Sadducees lost their power base and their power, the Essenes disappeared, and the Zealots were destroyed or otherwise defeated. The Pharisees became the rabbis. Their successors, the rabbis, created rabbinic literature including the Mishnah, Tosefta, Talmud, and Midrash.
Not bad, huh? They seem like pretty good fellows, right?
So, what happened? Why do they come across as such bad guys in the New Testament?
Some scholars believe that our dislike of the Pharisees is grounded in overstatement and bad translations of the gospels, e.g. Jesus speaking of “some Pharisees,” became, simply, “the Pharisees.” There are, after all, some good Pharisees who appear in the New Testament:
Nicodemus (John 3), is a Pharisee and a member of the Sanhedrin. He sees something genuine in the ministry and message of Jesus but he realizes that his knowledge is incomplete so, instead of using bluff and bluster to fake it, he goes to Jesus and asks for clarification, after which he becomes a supporter. We see him championing the Jewish legal principle of not condemning someone without first hearing from that person (7:50, 51) and ultimately joining Joseph of Arimathea in preparing Jesus’ body for burial (19:38, 39).
Gamaliel (Acts 5:33-39) is another “good” Pharisee in the New Testament. When Jewish leaders become angry over the apostles’ preaching about Jesus they jail Peter and others and demand they be crucified. Gamaliel reasons with the Sanhedrin, appealing for careful consideration of their course of action. He reminds the leaders of recent historical events, and advises them to leave the apostles alone. “If their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail,” Gamaliel argues. “But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God.”
And, of course, Paul was, himself, a Pharisee who, though he wrongly persecuted Christians, was also amenable to conversion and repentance after his Damascus road experience.
The problem with many of the Pharisees was that, after 150+ years of being influential and admired by nearly everyone but the Sadducees, they began to believe their own press, as it were. As the Pharisee in this morning’s parable demonstrates, some of them began to actually believe that their orthodox theology and their legalistically rigid lifestyle made them superior to others.
The name Pharisee probably derives from the Hebrew word for “separate,” a name which they adopted because they were rightly proud of their devotion to God and scripture. But by the time of Jesus their “separateness” amounted to little more than a status symbol which they lorded over and used to judge others.
And the Tax Collectors?
Any student of the New Testament cannot go far without running into the tax collectors and their low place in New Testament Jewish culture. Here’s what the web site, www.bible-history.com says about them.
“During the time of Jesus, Israel was divided into various territories that were governed by the descendants of Herod the Great, but Judea was an Imperial territory governed by a Roman procurator and the taxes were very high there. Wealthy Jews would bid for the position of tax collector and get even richer by adding a substantial fee above whatever was owed. There were also publicans like Matthew who collected taxes for customs or tolls on imports, exports, and merchants who came to buy or sell in Israel. The religious leaders especially despised the tax collectors and they were considered unclean because of their contact with Romans. Their testimonies were rejected in court and they were not redeemable under the law of Moses.”
Pharisee vs. Tax Collector: And the Winner is….
So, when Jesus pits the lowly Tax Collector against the upright and righteous Pharisee, his audience automatically expects that the much-admired Pharisee is going to win this one in a walk.
But, surprise!
It is the tax collector who “went down to his home justified rather than” the Pharisee.
And the reason?
Hubris. Pride. Arrogance.
How to Identify a Pharisee
We tend to think of a Pharisee in strictly religious terms and, often, that is the case. Pharisees, in the modern sense, are any people who tend to think of themselves as morally superior to others not just because of their theology or their legalistically rigid lifestyle but also because of their education, their vast experience, their intelligence, or their position in the social order.
Examples of this kind of thinking are not hard to find in secular history and current events.
The HMS Titanic was considered unsinkable and, when warned, six times, that he was heading into a dangerous area of the North Atlantic, where icebergs were known to be lurking in the dark, the captain, under pressure from Bruce Ismay, the Managing Director of the White Star Line, refused to slow down and, in fact, increased speed so as to set a new (six day) speed record in transatlantic crossing. The result of all this arrogance: 1,450 dead, including the captain and Bruce Ismay.
When Lord Kitchener, Britain’s Secretary of State for War in 1915, faced the need to attack and capture Turkey, he devised a plan which involved an amphibious attack by Australian, French, and New Zealand troops on the peninsula of Gallipoli. He was told that the ancient Greeks had drawn up a contingency plan for exactly such an invasion should one ever be needed. Their estimate was that it would require 150,000 troops. Kitchener scoffed at the estimate shouting that British troops “fought like lions,” and went forward with his plan. The result was one of the worst and most humiliating military defeats in the history of Great Britain (115,000 British and dominion troops - Great Britain, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, India, and Newfoundland -- killed or wounded. 73,485 of which were British and Irish.) and that by an army that was undermanned, outgunned, undertrained and vastly unprepared but, nevertheless, held the high ground and was defending their homeland.
A more modern example might be found in the demise of my beloved Sears department stores.
When I was a young man, Sears had a television advertising campaign that began, “This Saturday, when you go to Sears…” It just assumed that everyone went to Sears on Saturday, and the assumption was not far off the mark. Sears was a popular store known for excellent service, quality products and reasonable prices. Their famous catalogue put the store, itself, in everyone’s living room. Sears was certainly a, if not the, prime example of an American success story.
But times changed and so did the competition. But sears did not.
Writing for the New York Times in 2011, Floyd Norris had this to say about Eddie Lampert, who took over Sears and Kmart: “Becoming very rich can show that you are a genius. But thinking you are a genius can turn out to be a very expensive folly.”
Seven years later, in October of 2018, again, in the New York Times, William D. Cohan, a former investment banker and the author of four books about Wall Street, said:
“When Sears, once America’s largest retailer, made its bankruptcy filing Monday in a White Plains courthouse, the proximate cause was the decision by Eddie Lampert, by far its biggest individual creditor and shareholder, not to make a $134 million loan payment that was due.
“But in the end, this wasn’t simply about a struggling retailer unable to pay its bills. Sears succumbed to Mr. Lampert’s hubris. The problems at Sears… are more than a decade in the making, all because one of the smartest guys who has ever been in any room — Mr. Lampert — stayed convinced of his own deeply flawed thinking. As a result, billions of dollars of shareholder and creditor money has been immolated, probably forever; at least 175,000 jobs have been lost; and one of the greatest American business success stories may well be extinguished.” (Emphasis, mine.)
Briefly, according to Mr. Norris, here’s the story:
Hedge fund billionaire Eddie Lambert bought Sears Roebuck on the cheap and, by arrogantly believing he knew more about the retail business than the company's experienced executives, drove the historic company into bankruptcy. He thought that, if the company failed, he could liquidate it and make money by selling off the valuable real estate that it owned. However, he believed that the company could be profitable, mainly by refusing to emulate competitors, such as Target, who he believed were foolishly spending too much capital on store renovations.
When company executives tried to tell Lambert that the stores badly needed refurbishing, he fired them and replaced them with executives inexperienced in retailing and, thus, less likely to challenge his views. The stores became increasingly shabby and company started losing sales. Now, nearly all the stores are in danger of closing and 175,000 employees have lost their jobs because of the hubris of a man who turned out to be far less brilliant than he told himself and others that he was.
Lastly, we come to our spiritual lives and our churches where arrogance is never far from front and center. It can be identified on both sides of big arguments like LGBTQ rights, abortion, and the ordination of women as well as on both sides of theological arguments from the divinity of Jesus Christ to how many angels can dance on the head of a pin (unless, of course, someone’s church doesn’t allow dancing) and even in small, seemingly silly arguments where one group uses musical instruments in worship and another doesn’t, or one side raises their hands above their heads during singing and another group does not. Even in local churches we find battles between professional designers and homemakers about the proper layout of a kitchen, between parents and empty nesters about the proper place of children during worship services, and between old and new members about who is properly allowed to sit in which pew.
Hubris. Pride. Arrogance.
If history has taught us anything it has taught that these three can kill not just human beings but institutions like churches as well.
The Antidote for Pride
Wise people strive for confidence and eschew arrogance.
An anonymous person once said that “arrogance is baseless, unwarranted confidence which lacks humility and respect, while confidence has its basis in expertise and experience, with a sense of humility and respect.”
Put simply, said another source, “The difference between arrogance and confidence is humility.”
Arrogance breeds superiority, while confidence makes others comfortable.
Arrogance may be a way to suppress feelings of insecurity for other areas of weakness while confidence takes into his stride both strengths and weaknesses.
Arrogance feels good by making others feel lesser. Confidence is an attribute liked by others.
Both arrogant and confident people have a strong belief in their own abilities. Those with confidence can easily overcome fears and uncertainty. Moreover, they have a positive and optimistic vision that makes them strong and admirable. Arrogance is a weakness. Arrogant people usually view themselves as superior and never admit their mistakes.
Jennifer Houston, writing for the web site www.womanitely.com points out these differences between arrogance and confidence:
- Arrogant people must feel superior to others. Confident people can feel good about themselves without the need to put others down.
- Arrogant people don’t have time to listen to others and usually blame others when things go wrong. Confident people tend to be attentive listeners and are willing to acknowledge their own mistakes.
- Confident people are aware of their own weaknesses and know how to deal with them. Arrogant people can’t admit that they have any weaknesses.
- People in relationships with arrogant people report that the relationship causes them pain. People in relationships with confident people feel good about the relationship and their place in it.
- Confident people make eye contact and can make you feel that you are the most important person in the room. Arrogant people are constantly looking around the room trying to find the most important person they can talk to in order to enhance their own standing in the eyes of others.
later, as the king was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Babylon, he said, “Is not this Babylon the great, which I have built as the royal residence, by my mighty power and for the glory of my majesty?” (Daniel 4: 29-30 NIV)
Jeremiah was confident. Nebuchadnezzar was arrogant.
Moses was confident. Pharaoh was arrogant.
Jesus was confident. Pilate and Herod were arrogant.
Goliath was arrogant. David was confident.
Samson started out arrogant and learned to become confident.
Jesus calls us to be confident in our relationship with God, self-assured but with humility and respect. Arrogance has no place in the house of the Lord.
ILLUSTRATIONS
From team member Dean Feldmeyer:
The classic Hollywood film Spartacus was written by the multi-award winning screenwriter Dalton Trumbo and directed by a young Stanley Kubrick. It tells the story of the slave revolt that happened in Rome in 73 BCE and ended with the crucifixion of 6,000 slaves along the Apian Way.
In one scene of the film, a character named Crassus, a wealthy, arrogant Roman senator played by Sir Lawrence Olivier calls a teenage slave boy named Antoninus, played by Tony Curtis, into his bedchamber. Throughout the film, Crassus, as a character, symbolizes the wealth and power of Rome. In this scene, it can be said that young Antoninus represents the common people and especially the slaves who were oppressed by the Empire.
Crassus’s brief monologue applies as much to his own relationship to Rome as it applies to the relationship he expects Antoninus to have with him.
Antoninus! Antoninus, come here! Onto the balcony. There’s something you must see.
(Antoninus comes into the room and crosses, warily to the balcony. Beyond is a nightscape of the city of Rome, her armies arrayed and marching out to battle the slave revolt.)
Down there. There you see Rome. The might, the majesty, the terror of Rome.
There is the power that bestrides the known world like a Colossus. No nation can withstand her. No man can withstand her. (He looks Antoninus over, up and down.) And how much less, a boy.
There is only one way to deal with Rome, Antoninus. You must serve her. You must abase yourself before her. You must grovel at her feet. (He turns to look, once again at the city.)
You must love her.
Isn’t that true, Antoninus.
(Turning.) Antoninus? Antoninus?
Crassus looks around, runs about the bedchamber calling Antoninus’s name and finally realizes that the boy has jumped off the balcony and run off to join the slave revolt.
* * * * * *
From team member Mary Austin:
Joel 2:23-32
The odd things older people do
The prophet Joel promises an equality of spirit between older people and younger people. That works well on God’s realm, but in our world we need some translation between the generations. A tongue in cheek article attempts to explain the curious things older people do. For example, “if a young person calls somebody and it goes to voicemail, they'll just hang up. And if it's urgent, they'll send a text. But old people don't see the point of this. If they have something to tell you, they'll leave a long — and yes, maybe rambling — message on your voicemail. And they expect you to listen to all of it!” Old people also take pictures of places and things other than themselves! Further, “t's rare to find anyone over 50 who has completely given up on a landline — whether it's because they don't have wifi and "need it for AOL" (another thing old people love) or because, they wonder, "What if there's an emergency?" Don't bother explaining why having a cell phone would be more useful in an emergency, or that most calls that come through on a landline are bill collectors and pushy salesman. Old people would rather live in a house without a roof than one without a landline.”
Further, “If your pockets are filled with enough nickels, dimes, and pennies to pay for just about anything with exact change, it's an easy bet that you're probably closer to 70 than you are to 20.” In fact, if you have cash at all, you’re likely to be older than younger. Also, there’s the lure of the mall — before it opens. “For old people, a not-yet-open mall is like a private walking trail where the scenery is a veritable forest of empty Gaps, Macaroni Grills, and Jamba Juices. A mall at dawn can be a remarkably peaceful place, as we all eventually learn when we reach old age and we're looking for someplace safe to exercise at 6 a.m.”
Last but not least is the secret weapon of people of a certain age — being able to write in, and read, cursive!
From team member Ron Love:
Jeremiah 14:20
We acknowledge our wickedness
Rembrandt completed an inspiring painting in 1634 that he titled, “The Descent from the Cross.” Standing to the right of the cross, a somberly dressed figure in deep brown-red, is Nicodemus, who received permission to bury Jesus. Seated left, whose colors barely make her visible, is Mary, shown fainting and supported by several women. Gathered in the rear are the apostles, scarcely seen in the dark shadows. The livid color of Christ’s body, set off against white linen, surrounded by the dark images, creates an unforgettable impression. Another figure is illuminated as brilliantly as Jesus, a man standing at the top of a ladder, helping to lower the body. The strong blue figure bears a resemblance to the artist. Rembrandt placed himself at the scene of deliverance, for he too had received the words of redemption.
* * *
2 Timothy 4:7
I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.
After his death, family and friends took great care shuffling through the lab papers of Thomas Alva Edison. Discovered among the documents was the recording of an experiment repeatedly tried and failed. Scribbled along the margin, from Edison’s own hand, was a message of encouragement. “When down in the mouth remember Jonah — he came out all right!” Discouraged, disheartened, dejected, depressed — remember those who had faith for they endured, and so shall we.
* * *
Joel 2:27
You shall know that I am in the midst of Israel
Prior to accepting the cabinet position as Secretary of Agriculture in President Dwight David Eisenhower’s administration, Ezra Taft Benson made one request: that all cabinet meetings begin with a few moments of silent prayer. Benson, a man of deep religious convictions, believed that this was the only way to conduct government business. Eisenhower quickly and gladly agreed to Benson’s request.
When the first cabinet meeting was held in the White House, the President forgot the previous arrangement and the prayer was mistakenly omitted. Benson wrote the President a memo, reminding him of the talk they had in New York regarding prayer and Cabinet meetings. In the memo Benson wrote that he would not mention the issue again.
At the next cabinet meeting, held on February 6, 1953, Eisenhower inquired of the other officials if opening the meeting with silent prayer was acceptable to them. Everyone agreed to the practice. They then decided that the prayer would be silent, unless one representative on a particular occasion desired to pray verbally.
Henceforth, cabinet meetings followed this format: The secretaries would seat themselves around the mahogany table. When the President entered the room, they would stand out of respect. Once seated, each man bowed his head until the President ended the brief silence with the words, “Thank you.”
* * *
Joel 2:27
You shall know that I am in the midst of Israel
Jon Meacham, former senior editor of Newsweek magazine, wrote an editorial in the June 21, 2010, publication titled, “Primary Examples For Our Daughters.” He discussed the importance of the 2010 primary elections for young women. The number of women running for public office, along with an African-American in the Oval Office, demonstrates the promise of opportunity for all women and minorities. He was quick to note that the “fabled glass ceiling” has not yet been broken as we still struggle with prejudices. Yet, he declared, from the recent elections, “But one thing is clear: we are living in a different, and I think better, country than we have just a few years ago, for the iconography of politics has changed in ways that are impossible to undo. African-Americans and women are now embedded in elective life.”
Watching the elections with him was his 3 ½ year old daughter Mary. When asked, John told Mary that these women wanted to be president. Hearing that, she paused, and then answered, “But girls can’t be president.” Upon further inquiry as to why girls cannot be president, Mary showed him a place mat souvenir that the family purchased in an excursion to the nation’s capital. As it showed all the color portraits of the presidents, she confessed why a woman could not be president, “There aren’t any pictures of them.” Meacham wrote, “She had drawn this conclusion from, of all things, a place mat.” Meacham concluded, “The color bar has now been broken on those knickknacks, and soon, one hopes, the gender barrier will be, too.”
* * *
Joel 2:27
You shall know that I am in the midst of Israel
Nine years. Col. Floyd “Jimmy” Johnson is the longest prisoner of war in United States history. He was a member of a special forces team whose assignment was to gather intelligence. He was operating out of Khe Sanh, Vietnam, when, in March 1964, he went on an observation flight over enemy positions. Johnson kept asking the pilot to fly lower so he could have a better view, when suddenly the plane was fired upon and crashed. The pilot was killed and Johnson was taken prisoner. The colonel was subjected to long periods of physical and mental torture. He was kept in solitary confinement for four years. To survive this ordeal, he kept telling himself he was one of the good guys, fighting for the right cause. He was also placed in a cage for long hours, where he could neither stand nor stretch. While in the cage, in order to remain sane, he built two complete homes in his mind. One nail and one tile at a time, he built his imaginary houses. The Vietnamese kept playing him broadcasts of war protesters back in the United States, but Johnson dismissed the tapes as another form of mental torture. It was not until he was transferred to the infamous Hanoi Hilton that he learned America was divided over the war. In 1973, Johnson was released, along with the others held in captivity.
* * * * * *
WORSHIPby George Reed
Call to Worship:
Leader: Praise is due to you, O God!
People: You are the hope of all the ends of the earth.
Leader: Those who live at earth's farthest bounds are awed by your signs.
People: You make the morning and the evening shout for joy.
Leader: You crown the year with your bounty.
People: The pastures of the wilderness overflow.
OR
Leader: God comes to us to inspire us with God’s Spirit.
People: We welcome God’s Spirit and God’s vision.
Leader: God is no respecter of person but comes to us all.
People: We will be open to receive God’s dreams for us.
Leader: God often chooses those we would not choose.
People: We will honor all God’s children and listen to one another.
Hymns and Songs:
All People That on Earth Do Dwell
UMH: 75
H82: 377/378
PH: 220/221
NNBH: 36
NCH: 7
CH: 18
LBW: 245
ELW: 883
W&P: 661
AMEC: 73
STLT: 370
Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee
UMH: 89
H82: 376
PH: 464
AAHH: 120
NNBH: 40
NCH: 4
CH: 2
LBW: 551
ELW: 836
W&P: 59
AMEC: 75
STLT: 29
Spirit of God, Descend upon My Heart
UMH: 500
PH: 326
AAHH: 312
NCH: 290
CH: 265
LBW: 486
ELW: 800
W&P: 132
AMEC: 189
Lord, Speak to Me
UMH: 463
PH: 426
NCH: 531
ELW: 676
W&P: 593
Open My Eyes, That I May See
UMH: 454
PH: 324
NNBH: 218
CH: 586
W&P: 480
AMEC: 285
Be Thou My Vision
UMH: 451
H82: 488
PH: 339
NCH: 451
CH: 595
ELW: 793
W&P: 502
AMEC: 281
STLT: 20
Reneew: 151
O God of Every Nation
UMH: 435
H82: 607
PH: 289
CH: 680
LBW: 416
ELW: 713
W&P: 626
Breathe on Me, Breath of God
UMH: 420
H82: 508
PH: 316
AAHH: 317
NNBH: 126
NCH: 292
CH: 254
LBW: 488
W&P: 461
AMEC: 192
Open Our Eyes, Lord
CCB: 77
Renew: 91
You Are Mine
CCB: 58
Music Resources Key:
UMH: United Methodist Hymnal
H82: The Hymnal 1982
PH: Presbyterian Hymnal
AAHH: African American Heritage Hymnal
NNBH: The New National Baptist Hymnal
NCH: The New Century Hymnal
CH: Chalice Hymnal
LBW: Lutheran Book of Worship
ELW: Evangelical Lutheran Worship
W&P: Worship & Praise
AMEC: African Methodist Episcopal Church Hymnal
STLT: Singing the Living Tradition
CCB: Cokesbury Chorus Book
Renew: Renew! Songs & Hymns for Blended Worship
Prayer for the Day/Collect
O God who gives dreams and visions to your people:
Grant us the openness to receive your inspiration
whether we are old or young, whether it is through us or others;
through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.
OR
We praise you, O God, because you give visions and dreams to us. Sometimes you give them directly to us and sometimes through others. Help us to be open to your vision whoever you give them through. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
Leader: Let us confess to God and before one another our sins and especially our being closed to receiving your inspirations through visions and dreams.
People: We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. You have desired to inspire us to new visions and dreams of your reign but we have shied away from them. We demand things to be practical and we want our inspiration from the sources we expect it from. We make assumptions about who will or will not be the ones you will inspire. Forgive our arrogance and prejudice and open us to receive you through whatever channel you choose to present yourself. Amen.
Leader: God is moving among us and sharing dreams and visions of what creation can become. Receive these gifts and the gifts of grace and forgiveness that you may share these with others.
Prayers of the People
Praise and glory to you, O God, who comes to speak to us. You share with us your hopes and visions of what creation will become.
(The following paragraph may be used if a separate prayer of confession has not been used.)
We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. You have desired to inspire us to new visions and dreams of your reign but we have shied away from them. We demand things to be practical and we want our inspiration from the sources we expect it from. We make assumptions about who will or will not be the ones you will inspire. Forgive our arrogance and prejudice and open us to receive you through whatever channel you choose to present yourself.
We thank you for all the ways in which you share your life with us and for the inspiration you send us. We thank you for the Bible, for teachers and pastors, for friends and family who share with us what they have learned about you.
(Other thanksgivings may be offered.)
We pray for all your people and especially for those who feel they have no dreams and see no visions of better days. We pray for the broken hearted and those who are in despair.
(Other intercessions may be offered.)
All these things we ask in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ who taught us to pray together saying:
Our Father....Amen.
(Or if the Our Father is not used at this point in the service.)
All this we ask in the Name of the Blessed and Holy Trinity. Amen.
Children’s Sermon Starter
Talk to the children about dreams. We sometimes have dreams at night. Sometimes they may be scary but usually they are pleasant dreams. In the Bible we talk about dreams and they may be dreams like we have at night but we learn things about God through them or they may be ideas that come to us when we are awake. God talks to us in many ways.
CHILDREN'S SERMONSweet Dreams
by Chris Keating
Joel 2:23-32
Prepare ahead:
A “vision” board (see link below for examples) which includes inspirational quotes, sayings, words and pictures describing your own vision of the future, or perhaps your church’s vision for the future.
A vision board can be a powerful way of articulating your dreams for the future. Jack Canfield describes a vision board as a “visualization tool” or collage that represents your goals and reams. Take some time this week to prepare your own vision board as a sample to share with the children on Sunday. Since this is also stewardship season in many congregations, this could also be an opportunity for a creative expression of your church’s vision and dreams.
A good vision board for children might start by asking questions such as, “What are some of your favorite things? What hobbies do you enjoy? What would be your idea of the best day ever?” (Here’s a list of 21 questions to ask children in creating a vision board.)
The scripture from Joel is a wonderful word of encouragement. The prophet declares God’s redemption and shares the good news that even though God’s people had experienced many bad things, God had not forgotten them. Dreams play an important role in scripture. People believed that dreams were one of the ways God spoke to them, which is also true today.
Also important for Joel is the reminder that everyone’s dreams mattered. The vivid hopes of the elderly and the creative visions of the young both matter to God, and are important ways that God’s people discover assurance of their redemption.
Help the children understand the two meanings of the word “dream.” Our dreams at night can range from terrifying to silly to very realistic. The prophet reminds us that another meaning of dreaming is imagining what the future might look like. The prophet invites us to develop a vision for how God will help us in the future. To have a vision is to understand that God will help us accomplish great things. It’s a bit like asking “What do you think you might like to be when you are grown?”
As you share the vision board you have created, talk about how God has helped you (or your church) through times that may have been rough. Who or what has been important in the moments of your past? (A teacher, a job, a friend for example.) What did they do to help inspire you to try something in the future? What sort of things is God calling the children of your church to do? What are there dreams?
These are big questions, and time will not permit for a long conversation. By sharing your vision board, however, you are helping the children learn that God will be a part of our future, and that God’s dream for all of us is to live faithfully by honoring God and loving our neighbors.
Close with a prayer inviting God’s spirit to awaken the dreams of the children of your church, and by asking for God’s help in listening to those dreams.
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The Immediate Word, October 27, 2019 issue.
Copyright 2019 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to The Immediate Word service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons and in worship and classroom settings only. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., 5450 N. Dixie Highway, Lima, Ohio 45807.
