Immediate Word

For July 5, 2020:

• Say You Love Me (But Stay Six Feet Away) by Chris Keating — The voice of the beloved calls to us this week. The lush poetry calls our attention to the pure gift of God, and will likely resonate with communities longing for interaction, mutuality, and the rich abundance of love’s delight.
• Second Thoughts: Now You See It — Now You See It! by Tom Willadsen — We can all relate to Paul’s struggles. We know better; we want to do and be better, yet we fall short. Paul’s explanation, or perhaps description, is a near personification of sin.
• Sermon illustrations by Mary Austin, Ron Love, and Bethany Peerbolte.
• Worship resources by George Reed that focus on love and relationships; actually doing what we want to do.
• Children’s sermon: Arise, My Beloved by Dean Feldmeyer.

Say You Love Me (But Stay Six Feet Away)
by Chris Keating
Song of Solomon 2:8-13

Admit it: it may be tempting to wonder what Song of Solomon is doing in the Bible, let alone the lectionary. The long wailing song coming from the pastor’s office this week might sound something like, “Song of Solomon! On Fourth of July weekend and in the middle of a pandemic!” It could make a Sunday school teacher blush.

But before rifling through files for a trusty word about Old Glory, take a moment to consider these lines that once moved Origen to write a ten-volume commentary. Song of Solomon prompted none other than Bernard of Clairvaux to cry out for God to “kiss me with the kiss of the mouth.” There is a rich legacy of Christian interpretation in this little book, which may have special relevance in our contemporary world.

Consider its importance in a time when social distancing has upended dating norms. The writer’s sheer delight in beauty offer a pleasing break from the toxic pathogens which have consumed our attention. Song of Solomon speaks words of loving connection to a world forced to stand six feet apart.

Today’s star struck lovers are more likely to chat on video screens than garden windows. Covid-19 has helped social dating apps and online sites to evolve beyond hookup culture, bringing new features some have heralded as influencing dating culture in positive ways. Social distancing has made the heart grow fonder through video chatting, virtual happy hours and even apps designed to foster global connections. “Coronacrush,” a Jewish dating group on Facebook, emerged from a company that assists Jewish persons in detecting genetic disorders such as Tay-Sachs disease. It’s all about adaptation, baby!

The voice of the beloved calls to us this week. These oft-neglected stanzas could assist the church to speak passionately about love instead of only moralistically. The lush poetry calls our attention to the pure gift of God, and will likely resonate with communities longing for interaction, mutuality, and the rich abundance of love’s delight.

In the News
Social distancing might flatten the curve, but it is also a strong buzzkill. But even a pandemic will not quash human desire. It just takes it online.

“People are craving connection more than ever because it’s constrained,” said Bela Gandhi a Chicago dating coach. “I think it's heightening the feeling for a lot of people that they would really like to have a romantic partner."

Dating apps back up Gandhi’s claim. Stay at home orders may have made dating a bit more complicated, while technology has made it more accessible. Being safer at home means fewer dinners out and not as many meetings for drinks. Relying on dating apps, video chats, even online speed dating has become a healthier — if less tangible — opportunity for finding romance.

Millennial entrepreneurs in New York City found inspiration in Netflix’s “Love is Blind” series and started a project called “NYC Virtual Dating: Catch Feelings, Not Covid.”  Founders Chelsea Mandel and Amanda Shane grieved the sense of isolation that can come from being cooped up in tiny New York City apartments. “The idea of no connections for months is terrifying,” said Shane.

Unlike apps like Tinder and Match.com, Mandel and Shane spend time reading information submitted by every participant using a Google Form Questionnaire. They scour the responses, eliminating deal breakers and looking for commonalities. It’s a time intensive, admittedly slightly archaic experiment that they hope will bring a bit of happiness for a few people.

Other online sites seem intent on exploiting the pandemic’s commercial potential. The dating app Tinder reported more than three million “swipes” on March 29, the most the company has ever reported. Hinge, another app, has reported a 30% increase in messages. Match.com added a hotline to field questions about pandemic dating and has since launched video happy hours that allow groups of singles to meet each other. In-app video chats are now standard among popular apps.

“What’s the alternative if you don’t have video dating? No dating,” says Catalina Toma, a University of Wisconsin professor who studies the psychology of communication. Toma told Fast Company that while video technologies are not the same as face-to-face connections, “We’re in a destitute situation now, we have to use them.”

We’ve got a fever for connection. The pandemic, which has re-routed every other pathway of modern life, is also changing romance. One dating expert feels that many of these changes are here to stay.

“I don’t think you’re ever going to be able to completely replicate that physical chemistry with someone over video chat,” Charly Lester, an entrepreneur and life coach, said. “But it is a good litmus test. You’ll be able to work out if you don’t like someone.”

Or you can continue swiping.

It’s hard to imagine the lovers in the Song of Songs rhapsodizing about Zoom calls. But they certainly would affirm the human longing for connection and relationship. And the mutuality of desire expressed in its stanzas is a far cry from the rapey, misogynistic lyrics of so many contemporary songs. This is steamy stuff — but it is a far cry from “Blurred Lines.”

Song of Solomon’s canticles offer an improvement to the soul-emptying hookup culture. In an article from June 2019 for “Evie,” Lauren Chen opined the hollowness recreational sex creates. A generation raised on gauzy “Disney princess images of courtship,” have come of age to an entirely different experience, says Chen.

“Instead, as fate would have it,” Chen says, “we ended up in the generation of Tinder, one-night stands, side chicks, and rising STD rates. Lucky us!” Chen is not preaching any sort of neo-Puritanical approaches. Instead, she describes the irony of a culture which promotes emotional well-being in all areas of life except romance and sex. This, she says, is what really matters:

The value of choosing people who care about us, who are invested in our well-being, and who are in it for the long-run is often touted when it comes to our professional lives and social circles, but protecting ourselves when it comes to romance is just as essential. No matter how much our generation may hear that hook-up culture is what’s modern and liberating, we’re fighting against our brains and bodies to believe that sex doesn’t really matter.

In the Scripture
Song of Solomon’s brief appearance in the lectionary, along with its sensual poetry, make it easy to ignore. The book offers plenty of fireworks, but hardly the sort anticipated by congregations looking for red, white, and blue Jesus. The poem’s erotic cadences may even cause a few to blush, and surely someone will remark that God’s name is never mentioned.

Yet the book is more than a scriptural oddity; its recitations of delight and pleasure have, as William Willimon notes a “doxological intent” that praises God’s gift of love. (The Lectionary Commentary: The First Readings, Van Horn, ed., p 289.) Perhaps especially relevant is that these lines are spoken not only by a woman, but by a woman of color who has endured difficulty and violence (1:5-6).

Crafted well after the time of Solomon, the book’s love poems are reflective of Ancient Near Eastern literature. The narration shifts between two voices, emphasizing the mutuality of love between two persons. It’s not hard to imagine that the unabashed desires of a woman have prompted countless male commentators across the centuries to reduce the work to allegorical interpretation. Modern interpreters call the church to listen carefully to the passionate longings as a delighting in love, and as a call from two lovers exulting in God’s gifts.

In chapter two, the woman spies her beloved. The lover’s cry invites her to imagine new possibilities and their love is expressed in bold images of creation, evoking reminders of the garden of creation. Indeed, the gift of love is an act of creative fidelity that calls the beloved to step out into creation (2:10). The beauty of creation is extravagant, filled with the whispered delights shared between two lovers. The verses stand in stark contrast to the imagery of Israel as the unfaithful bride (See Alphonetta Wines’ 2015 commentary at workingpreacher.org). Instead, the poem focuses on the faithful and enduring relationship of lovers who dare to delight in each other’s eyes.

In the Sermon
Dare we preach Song of Solomon — on this or any other Sunday? Can we imagine setting aside our moralistic ponderings on sexuality to instead proclaim the beauty of leaping gazelles and silent stags? The church has both the opportunity and obligation to speak positively about the gift of loving sexual relationships.

But there is more at stake. In an age when we have consistently — even forcefully — silenced the voices of young women of color, perhaps Song of Solomon might be an opportunity to listen for dreams so long ignored. Let the words of her mouth fill us with renewed imagination this Sunday.  

This becomes even more important in a time when quarantine and illness have sentenced so many to lonely exile. The ways of connecting have changed and have certainly left longings that would have sounded familiar to the lovers of these poems. These lovers understand the suffering of separation, and their songs express the yearning for connection.

Their desire could speak to others suffering from untenable separations: partners separated by illness, imprisonment, or military service. Imagine two octogenarian lovers trying to speak through nursing home windows in a way that echoes the woman’s cry, “Look, there he stands!” Wrinkled, translucent hands pressing hard against glass, their voices calling, “let me see your face, let me hear your voice, for your voice is sweet, and your face is lovely.” (2:14).

Find a way to let this woman’s voice be heard. Let the words of her mouth be heard this Sunday, or at least very soon. Let her voice narrate the wonders of mutual, loving commitment. Let her love triumph over the distorted views of love prompted by lecherous predators and Hollywood producers. Let her love speak of the power God infuses in creation, blessing all people with life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.


SECOND THOUGHTS
Now You See It — Now You See It!
by Tom Willadsen
Romans 7:15-25a

In the Scriptures
I’m focusing solely on the reading from Romans today. Paul is probably writing autobiographically about his struggles to live the faith, perhaps live up to the faith that he has found in Jesus Christ. He falls short. He wants to do good. He knows better, but he doesn’t always get it right. I am reading Paul through the lens of his current struggles as he describes them and laments them. Another reading is possible and worth developing homiletically, perhaps Paul is describing his life before he found Christ or Christ found him. His pre-Christian life was one of constantly falling short, of being puzzled by moral failings that are all the more obvious because of his knowledge of the Torah. Such a reading points the sermon to a celebration of grace and the humble dependence we all have on it. My approach is to regard Paul’s (and our) struggles as present tense, post-conversion reality. We know better; we want to do and be better, yet we fall short. Paul’s explanation, or perhaps description is a better term for this reality, is a near personification of sin.

Paul goes full bore into how horrible he is “Wretched man that I am! Who will rescue me from the body of death?” Well, of course the rescue is all the more dramatic because the wretchedness is so profound. If it weren’t for the grace of Christ, one might be tempted to urge therapy and certain anti-depressants.

In the News
A month ago we were lamenting COVID-19’s dominance of the news. Those of you who longed for another news story to come along as a kind of vacation from wall-to-wall pandemic updates got your wish. The killing of George Floyd in police custody sparked a new kind of conversation about race in the United States. Breonna Taylor’s killing during the serving of a No Knock Warrant in Louisville, Kentucky and Ahmaud Arbery’s killing after being hunted by men in pick-up trucks in Georgia have all led to a new kind of awakening among white people in the United States. In the past three weeks Black Lives Matter demonstrations have taken place in communities where very few black people live: Red Oak Iowa; Oconto Wisconsin; Havre, Montana and Clarkston, Michigan, for example. Perhaps this is a sea change, indicating that the United States is ready to face our painful, shameful history as a nation built on, and oblivious to, the pain of black people.

The week of June 28, 2020, 13 of the top 15 titles on the New York Times best-selling non-fiction list dealt with race, most of the titles focusing on how we can talk about race.

The top three titles: How to Be an Anti-Racist, White Fragility, and So You Want to Talk about Race, hold up a mirror to the nation. We want to act; we want to make a difference; we want to change the world! And at the same time we see our best efforts, our purest intentions often are unwelcome and unappreciated.

The story is told of a white man who attend a study circle to talk about racism who turned to the lone black person in the room and earnestly confessed, “I want you to help me stop being racist.” The woman did not return. He made an effort. He made a sincere effort, I believe, but the conversation — and therefore his conversion — went nowhere.

Many black people feel a weariness and express a guardedness about the efforts of white people to finally wake up. There are plenty of websites, TED talks, podcasts, books, movies and TV shows that can educate white people. “Do your own reading; I am not your tutor.” For many, many white people we’re hearing, apparently for the first time, the voices of people’s long silenced, to borrow language from the Presbyterian Church (USA)’s “Brief Statement of Faith, adopted in 1991. Those voices have been speaking for centuries; we’re just getting around to hearing them now.

All you who thought you understood racism because “I have a black friend,” who had never heard of Juneteenth, have a long way to go. We, as a nation, have a long way to go.

And here’s the thing: Even the most open-minded, tolerant, cosmopolitan people routinely say things that are insensitive and hurtful to marginalized people. This happens All. The. Time. And we are only aware of a very small proportion of these incidents. There are plenty of places we can learn about micro-aggressions and it can be very discouraging, because the more you see, the more you see.

The term “White Privilege” is finding its way into mainstream discussions. It is a term that causes immediate defensiveness and has supernatural power to quash honest dialogue. One aspect of White Privilege that Robin Diangelo, author or “White Fragility” points out, is that white people can always walk away from painful discussions. White fragility itself, Diangelo contends, is a way that White Privilege is protected. We feel so bad when we recognize the pain we’ve caused that we tend to go into Full Apology Mode (FAM), this is my term. A typical response from a majority person when his hurtful behavior is exposed is to go into a rant like this, “I am so sorry. You know I didn’t mean it. I’m trying, I’m really trying and I know I did it again. I hope you can be patient with me and forgive me. I’m a good person. You know I’m a good person…” I know FAM; I have acted it out more times than I care to say. And FAM is completely sincere. I really, really do feel bad, and I did not intend to be insulting. The problem with FAM, however, is it can have the effect of bullying the person who has just been hurt into forgiving the person who has just done the hurting. Isn’t that the ultimate privilege? With my stellar intentions, on steroids, I can with passion and sincerity receive absolution from the very person who has just been harmed — again.

And there I am, feeling like Paul, wallowing in my wretchedness. Wallowing. Do you see me wallowing down here? Little help?

Ouch. Oops.

Ouch. Oops. is a way to respond when you realize you’ve hurt someone. While it works in painful discussions about racism and the personal toll racism exacts on marginalized people every day, it is a good way to apologize in nearly every situation. Here’s how it works: When someone points out something you’ve done that is hurtful — that’s the “Ouch.” you reply, “I’m sorry,” that’s the “Oops.” That’s all. All you say is “I’m sorry.” Not “I’m sorry; I didn’t mean it.” Or “I’m sorry you’re so touchy about this.” Or “I’m sorry you can’t get over it.” Or “I’m sorry, but I’ve been using that term all my life and I don’t see why you people need to keep changing your minds and going all PC on good people like me.”

When you step on someone’s toe in the elevator, you say, “I’m sorry.” You can add, “I didn’t mean to,” but usually that’s not necessary, the person whose toe you’ve stepped on knows it was an accident.  Apologizing, only apologizing is the best response. The moment you try to explain why the comment that caused the harm was intended to be humorous, or innocuous, you put the person you’ve just harmed into a position of trying to understand your explanation, to see the situation through your eyes—and drag the whole thing out longer!

My youth pastor told me, “When you do something crappy, you should feel crappy.” (He may not have used “crappy,” but you get the idea.) That’s exactly the way it should be with hurting someone’s feelings by being insensitive, bigoted, racist, whatever. Live with the pain you’ve caused. Own it. Feel it. That’s all. You are the expert of your intentions; she is the expert of her reaction. There may come a time, in another context, perhaps when emotions are not as high and the pain as raw, that you can say, “I am very sorry I hurt you. I do not want to hurt you again. Would you be willing to help me understand what I did and how to avoid hurting you in the same way again?” You’re not defending. You are opening yourself up, making yourself vulnerable and you may hear even more pain—and then feel even more pain afterwards. Let the pain and embarrassment teach you. Feel it. Own it.

In the Sermon
In the midst of all of this eagerness to be better, kinder and more sensitive, you will make mistakes. Lots of them. And you’ll discover in life’s rearview mirror even more that you have made through the years. You made mistakes. You are a beloved child of God.

Paul needed grace, and grace alone could take away his self-diagnosed wretchedness. One experience of grace, a true, authentic experience of grace is life-changing.

Very early in my career I was co-presiding at a funeral. As the associate I was given the task of reading Psalm 121, “I lift my eyes to the hills….” I went to the microphone and read Psalm 120. Halfway through something didn’t seem right. I scanned ahead and found that Psalm 120 did not end horribly, though it was not the best fit for the occasion. After the service I went into FAM, “I am so sorry. I read the wrong psalm!” I was expecting to be chastised for not being better prepared for the lofty task of leading public worship—buckle down, try harder, pay attention, bad Associate! Bad, bad. Instead, grace sounded like this, “You made a mistake. You’re going to make another.” My colleague was correct. In fact, I proved that he was correct in less than five minutes. But I made fewer after that. Knowing that I could fail and survive made it easier for me to relax, to be honest, to trust, to forgive myself and even to forgive other people, because they also, on occasion make mistakes too.

Don’t let your wretchedness be the end of the story.


ILLUSTRATIONS

From team member Mary Austin:

Romans 7:15-25a
Who Will Rescue Me from this Body of Death?
Paul laments, as we all do, that he can’t mange to do the good things he wants to do, or keep away from the things he would rather avoid. Writer Gretchen Rubin, who studies habits, says that we have to know ourselves. Some of us are Moderators, who can have a little of something and then stop. Ohers of us are Abstainers. Rubin says, “this is a strategy where you have to know yourself. Because it works really well for some people, like me, and doesn’t work at all for other people. Abstainers are people who do better when they give up something altogether. I can eat no Thin Mints or I can eat ten Thin Mints, but I can’t eat two Thin Mints. I’m an abstainer … resisting temptation altogether. If French fries are your Kryptonite — whatever it is — just give it up altogether. That’s easier for you. It sounds harder, but it’s actually easier. The moderators do better when they have something sometimes or they have a little bit. Often, if they know they can have something, they don’t even want it. They do better when they do have a little bit that they allow themselves. This is true for food, but also for things like technology. If you can’t play a little Candy Crush, maybe you want to play no Candy Crush.” Paul may have tried to be a Moderator, when he should have been an Abstainer. Or vice versa.

She adds, for those of us still thinking about this, “But often, people just decide what they think their habit should be, or they look at what Benjamin Franklin did, or what their brother-in-law did, and try to copy it. But in fact, what you have to do is ask, “What’s true about me? What do I notice about myself? What’s my nature?” One of her strategies for doing the good that we would do is what she calls Pairing. “One that I took for granted — it seems so obvious to me but many people really loved it — is the strategy of pairing: when you pair something that you like to do with a habit that you perhaps don’t enjoy as much. Very often people will pair going on the treadmill or the stationary bike with watching television. If they can only watch Game of Thrones when they’re on the treadmill, then they’re suddenly much more excited about going on the treadmill. Or, maybe you’re cleaning in the morning, and you’re listening to podcasts.”

We may yet be able to move toward the good that we would do.

* * *

Romans 7:15-25a
Getting to Better
The apostle Paul bemoans his failure to conquer the thorn in his side, and says that that praying about it hasn’t helped it go away. Author James Clear says that we need more than changing our minds, or spirits, to change our habits. We can change our beliefs any time, and still we need the deeper changes in our behavior. Our minds are fickle, as Paul well knows. “What I mean by that is, doing one pushup, that doesn't transform your body overnight, but it does cast a vote for, "I'm the type of person who doesn't miss workouts." And no, writing one sentence does not finish the novel, but it does cast a vote for, "I'm a writer." So I think what we could say is, your habits are how you embody a particular identity. Every time you make your bed, you embody the identity of somebody who is clean and organized. Every time you study biology for 20 minutes on Tuesday night, you embody the identity of someone who is studious. Every time you shoot a free throw, you embody the identity of someone who is a basketball player.

If you do those things once, or twice, no, you don't make something radically different about yourself, but if you keep showing up, and every Tuesday you study, or every morning you make the bed, or every week you show up and practice basketball, at some point you cross this invisible threshold. Maybe it's three months, or six months, or a year later, but at some point you start to think, "Yes, being a clean, organized person is part of who I am," or "I am studious," or "I am a basketball player," like that's part of my identity.

So I think the summary, the way I think about this connection, is that every action you take is like a vote for the type of person you want to become, and this is probably the true reason that habits matter so much.”

He adds this example for us. “I have this reader, his name's Mitch, and he ended up losing over 100 pounds, and for the first six weeks that he went to the gym, he had this rule for himself where he wasn't allowed to stay for longer than five minutes. So he would get in the car, drive to the gym, get out, do half an exercise, get back in the car, and drive home. And it sounds ridiculous, it seems silly, like it's not going to get him the results he wants, but if you step back, what you realize is that he was mastering the art of showing up. He was becoming the type of person that went to the gym, even if it was just for five minutes.”

That, plus prayer, may help us with our own stubbornly thorny issues.

* * *

Romans 7:15-25a or Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30
The Burden of Mask Wearing / The Social Good We Want To do
As the science about the transmission of COVID-19 evolves, we understand more about the importance of wearing masks to protect the people around us. Most people aspire to be good public citizens, and some find mask-wearing inconvenient or easy to forget. Others claim the mask is an unfair burden, and excuse themselves from it. Public health officials are pondering how to make masks manly, so men will embrace the mask. With a spike in cases, former Vic President Dick Cheney took up the cause. “Cheney was on his daughter’s Twitter account. He wore a navy fleece vest, a tan cowboy hat and, covering everything from his chin to the bridge of his nose, a standard pale blue surgical mask.” His daughter, Liz Cheney, a Wyoming congresswoman wrote: “Dick Cheney says WEAR A MASK.”  Men are not embracing the mask, and “We’ve reached the point of this polarized pandemic where our current plan for salvation is convincing certain recalcitrant men that wearing masks is the testosteroney thing to do.”

Men see wearing a mask in public as un-manly, “believing them to be “shameful,” “a sign of weakness,” and “not cool” — even though men are at higher risk than women of dying from coronavirus infection. A similar pattern has emerged during prior pandemics and across other areas of health: Men — especially those who endorse traditional masculine gender norms — have been less likely than women to engage in protective health behaviors.”

There is a social cost for all of us in the mask era. An epidemiologist says, “Let’s be real: Americans are beat-down and run-down after months of loss and social isolation. Masks do keep people from seeing facial expressions and hearing voices clearly, both vital elements of social connection. Masks don’t deprive people of oxygen, but they do make it harder to breathe freely. They fog up people’s glasses. They make noses itch and faces sweat. Many masks feel decidedly uncool. They are yet another thing to remember when walking out the front door. And, most of all, masks are a constant reminder of what Americans so desperately want to forget: that despite all of our sacrifices, the pandemic hasn’t gone anywhere.”

As one writer says, we should do whatever works. “If more recalcitrant men will wear masks if we convince them that doing so makes them look like Jason Momoa or one of the brothers Hemsworth, let’s do that. Whatever. Sounds good. More than 123,000 Americans have died. #RealMenWearMasks. Let’s spray paint it on every sidewalk in the country, hire skywriters to scribble it up and down the Gulf coastline. Get Lee Greenwood to write a song.”

We can coax ourselves into sharing the burden of mask wearing, and into doing the good we want to do.

* * *

Genesis 24:34-38, 42-49, 58-67
Meeting on Facebook
The well is the traditional meeting place for young people in the Bible, and so much great flirting happens around the well. In our time, computer screens take the place of the well, as disability rights activist Corey Gilmore tells it.  Gilmore and his beloved remind us that romance isn’t just for the young and physically perfect. As he tells it, “Alaska and Maine couldn’t be farther apart. So I was skeptical when my friend suggested I chat online with Sabrina, a woman she knew in Juneau, Alaska. But I sent Sabrina a friend request on Facebook and she accepted. I checked out the pictures on her page. She had cerebral palsy like me, and a huge smile. “Where was this photo taken?” I asked her, using my voice recognition software. Cerebral palsy can make typing difficult. “An art competition,” she answered. “I love to draw and paint.” “Me too!” I said. Over the next few months, we got to know each other. Sabrina told me about mentoring students with disabilities. “I teach Sunday school,” I told her.”

On day, Sabrina said, “God is very important to me.” Gilmore says, “That did it. Sabrina just might be the girl for me, I thought. The 4,000 miles between us didn’t seem to matter anymore.” He moved to Alaska to be with her, and has re-established his life there, including serving on the Governor’s Council on Disabilities and Special Education. Gilmore says, “A friend and the Internet brought us together, but Sabrina and I know angels made the love connection.” Just like meeting at the well!


* * * * * *

From team member Ron Love:

Romans 7:15-25a
I do not understand my own actions
The Supreme Court ruled, in a vote of 6-3, that individuals cannot be discriminated against “because of sex.” This ruling included workers who are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender. Conservatives felt betrayed because one judge, appointed by Donald Trump, Neil Gorsuch, voted with the majority. Another judge, Chief Justice John Roberts, who also was appointed by a Republican, former President George W. Bush, also sided with the four liberal judges on the court. The justices ruled on Monday, June 15, 2020, that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 offered this protection.

The case was Bostock V. Clayton County, Georgia. Gorsuch, writing the majority opinion, stated, “an employer who fires an individual for being homosexual or transgender fires that person for traits or actions it would not have questioned in members of a different sex. Sex plays a necessary and undisguisable role in the decision, exactly what Title VII forbids.”

What makes this case even a greater betrayal for conservatives is that a racist congressman allowed it. When the Civil Rights Act was being debated it focused only on racial discrimination. Rep. Howard Smith of Virginia was an outspoken segregationist and the leader of anti-Civil Rights coalition. Smith had the word “sex” inserted into the language of Title VII, thinking all of his colleagues would consider the protection of women’s rights as too extreme and therefore would vote against the bill.

* * *

Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30
But to what will I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplace calling to one another…
The newspaper comic strip Ziggy is written by Tom Wilson. We must admire how insightful Wilson is regarding daily living. Ziggy is a nondescript character, and as such he represents everyone. He has a big nose, a puffy face, and clothes that resemble a smock. Ziggy is a very nice individual who relates to the everyday person and the everyday struggles of life. Ziggy is not an activist; he is just someone who lives in reality of day-to-day living.

During the coronavirus cities and sates have ordered individuals to “shelter-in-place.” During those months you were only to leave your home for a trip that was considered a “necessity.” Many cities and states have now loosened this restriction, but with the rise in the number of reported cases of coronavirus some cities and states are reinstating it. This, of course, has led to a great deal of confusion.

One individual who wonders about all of this is Ziggy. Ziggy wants out of his house. In an installment printed on June 1, 2020, we see Ziggy standing before a window in his home. In one hand he is holding a newspaper whose headline reads “Lockdown Extended.” Ziggy, with his back to the reader, but we can still sense his despair and confusion, says, “…I remember when ‘getting away from it all’ used to be a fun thing.”

* * *

Song of Solomon 2:8-13
Love
George Bowen was born in 1816 in Vermont. During his youth, as he would later confess, he was an “infidel.” He spent 11 years reading atheist literature. One day he went to the library to get a book, but mistakenly the librarian gave him the wrong book. The book he received was William Paley’s Evidence, a book on natural theology. From reading that book Bowen surrendered his life to Christ at the age of 28. He then attended Union Theological Seminary in New York City. Upon his graduation he became a missionary to India.

In 1873 Bowen published a book of devotions that was titled Daily Meditations. For one installment he wrote a mediation on Deuteronomy 33:12 that reads, “The beloved of the Lord.” Bowen centered his devotion on how God loved Daniel of the Old Testament and John of the New Testament. Scripture writes of Daniel, “O Daniel, greatly beloved.” Scripture writes of John, “Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us.” Bowen then challenged the reader to examine their own life, seeking out how many times they have experienced the love of God. Bowen wrote, “Surely facts speak louder than words; how many facts can you at this moment point to, each and all declaring that you are the beloved of the Lord?” Upon this self-examination and the realization that we can see many times — “facts”— that God loves us, Bowen asked, “Do you still hesitate to class yourself as a third with Daniel and John?”

* * *

Song of Solomon 2:8-13
Love
Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz was born out of wedlock in 1651 in New Spain, which today is Mexico. Because of her illegitimate birth she became a “daughter of the church.” At the age of three she could read and write Latin, and then learned Greek and Nahuatl, which is the language of the Aztecs. Sor Juana desire for learning continued into her youth. She pleaded to dress as a boy so she could attend classes at the university, but was forbidden to do so by the church. Undaunted, she continued to teach herself. She was a very attractive young lady who had many male suitors, all of whom she dismissed, as nothing would interfere with her ability to learn. In 1667, owing to her desire “to have no fixed occupation which might curtail my freedom to study,” Sor Juana began her life as a nun. She moved in 1669 to the Convent of San Geronimo in Mexico City, where she remained cloistered for the rest of her life. Over the years she acquired a large personal library. When an epidemic came to Mexico City, she sold her library to buy medicine for the poor. Nursing sick nuns, Sor Juana contracted the disease and died on April 17, 1695. She is known as “The Nun of Mexico.” In her honor her image is on the 200-peso bill.

Sor Juana, “Sor” meaning “sister” in Spanish, is best known for her poetry. Almost all her poems venerated the Virgin Mary, but a few poems were written to exalt Christ. A most cherished poem exalting Jesus begins with these lines:

Divine Love this day
became incarnate,
a gift so precious as to give
all other gifts their worth.

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From team member Bethany Peerbolte:

Genesis 24:34-38, 42-49, 58-67
Fortune Favors the Prepared
When life’s big choices come, we all wish we had a sure way of know what is the right choice. One can see it in teenagers when they choose which college to go to. One can see it in a person deciding if it is time for retirement. At any life stage having a sign show us which is the right path would make decision making much less stressful. Unfortunately, in my experience, signs are never so forthcoming.

We do not just look for signs from God though. Much of our economy relies on signs that the market is recovering. Real estate experts keep a close watch on signs in the market to help their clients. We have all clicked countless articles and graphs hoping to find signs that the pandemic is coming to an end. These types of signs compare past data to current data to predict the future.

In the Genesis passages this week It seems to be Isaac’s lucky day. He has asked God for a sure sign and Rebekah shows up to fulfill it. Stories like these in the Bible make me very jealous. I want my requests for a sign to be fulfilled too! Perhaps I am thinking of signs in the wrong way. I want the sign to show up like this passage. When a decision needs to be made, I ask God to give me a sign. Then I wait for that exact thing to happen to know that is what God wants for me. There are probably some details missing in this retelling of how Rebekah met Isaac. The story is probably overly simplified.

We miss that Isaac probably knew many people he met at the well. If there is a place where young women are gathering we can safely assume young men happen across the well often, too. There the youths are able to speak and flirt without the watchful gaze of adults. What we miss is that Isaac had probably compared data from the past, Rebekah is beautiful and highly sought after and goes to the well daily. He has looked at the current data, he is single, she is a virgin, they are both of marrying age. Then he predicts a future, goes to the well to wait for Rebekah and make a move.

Fortune favors the prepared. This week the Pope pointed to gratitude as a sign of the Kingdom of God. This is like Isaac’s sign. The Kingdom of God may look like God just shows up in moments as a “God wink,” but more likely the sign came from intention. When we are intentional with our gratitude we make the kingdom of God a reality. When we actively walk to the well and place ourselves in the way of fate, fate is bound to find us.

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Zechariah 9:9-12, Psalm 45:10-17, Song of Solomon 2:8-13
What does Gender have to do with it?
The sexism in these verses makes me cringe in a way that I would probably avoid preaching with them, but… a seminary professor told me if I ever feel this way I absolutely must preach on the verses. Here is my stab at making these verses palatable for 2020.

I don’t like that women are presented as beautiful and virginal rather than formidable and wise. It makes me heave that she is led into a room where this strange but “wonderful” man waits for her (Psalm 45). The reference to her virginity is probably foreshadowing that this is the last time she can claim that title. In Song of Solomon, the male lover gets to be a powerful gazelle with an enticing voice. Where is the woman’s voice in the Psalms? In Zechariah, the daughters are passive cities to be sieged, and the sons are active bows and arrows. The men flourish with grain and the women with wine (I can’t seem to not hear that as getting women drunk so they are “more fun”). Okay those are my major issues with the way gender plays out in these texts. They may seem small to some but hearing these male and female roles read in church does damage when we leave them unaddressed.

We for sure can give the authors grace knowing they lived in a particular time and with a particular culture. The way gender plays out in scripture in absolutely a reflection on the author’s context and audience. However, if our congregation does not hear that these are troubling representations when applied to today’s context we risk reinforcing ideas like purity culture and toxic masculinity. This happens when scripture is read without the disclaimer that our ideas about male and female roles has changed. Without this information listeners may assume that these are the roles we strictly support — when, in reality, we believe men can be just as soft and beautiful and women can have a voice worth listening to.

Our world is grappling with gender openly. Recently the supreme court decided to open work protections to all gender and sexual orientations — landing a huge win for gender equality. At the same time the Veterans Administration has refused to make their motto inclusive for even female veterans. Protestors want the motto to say “To care for those who shall have borne the battle and for their families, caregivers, and survivors” a change from the current “To care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow, and his orphan.” The church needs to openly wrestle with these issues, too, and admit how it has reinforced the normative.

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Matthew 11:25-30
Give Gen Z the VOTE
God has been working hard on Gen Z. The “elder” Gen Zs have finally made it to voting age but the whole teenage cartel is ready to make changes to the world. I think we should be listening to these “infants” because I think some things have been revealed to them that has not sunk in for “the wise.” Jesus reinforces this with his teaching in Matthew this week. There are just some things the kids are going to see more clearly than the adults. Adults are busy being busy. The kids are paying attention and connecting the dots.

It started with Tik Tok users spreading the word that reservations for Trump’s rally in Tulsa were free. They encouraged each other on the app to register large groups, and simply not show up. It is unclear if this is the sole reason for the low turnout, but the campaign was expecting many more attendees. Now Gen Z is educating each other on the harmful effects of online shopping cart abandonment. Apparently when something is put into a shopping cart a hold is placed on that item until the user purchases the item. If the cart sits full it can severely damage the income an online store can earn. These kids are smart and know how to throw a wrench into a plan. I think I’ll work to be on their side before they take over the world.


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WORSHIP
by George Reed

Call to Worship:
Leader: The voice of God, our beloved, calls to us.
People: God comes with the energy of a young stag.
Leader: God calls to us, “Arise, my love, and come to me.”
People: God calls to us in the newness of all creation.
Leader: The time of ripe fruit and love is upon us.
People: The time to come to God is here.

OR

Leader: God calls us in love and righteousness.
People: We hear God’s call and long to respond.  
Leader: God calls to us in the depths of our being.
People: We want to respond but we do not.
Leader: God calls and offers us the Spirit for our strength.
People: In the strength of God’s Spirit we will answer.

Hymns and Songs:
Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise
UMH: 103
H82: 423
PH: 263
NCH: 1
CH: 66
LBW: 526
ELW: 834
W&P: 48
AMEC: 71
STLT: 273
Renew: 46

Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah
UMH: 127
H82: 690
PH: 281
AAHH: 138/139/140
NNBH: 232
NCH: 18/19
CH: 622
LBW: 343
ELW: 618
W&P: 501
AMEC: 52/53/65

The King of Love My Shepherd Is
UMH: 138
H82: 645/646
PH: 171
NCH: 248
LBW: 456
ELW: 502
Renew: 106

Christ, Whose Glory Fills the Skies
UMH: 173
H82: 6/7
PH: 462/463
LBW: 265
ELW: 553
W&P: 91

The Gift of Love
UMH: 408
AAHH: 522
CH: 526
W&P: 397
Renew: 155

All Who Love and Serve Your City
UMH: 433
H82: 570/571
PH: 413
CH: 670
LBW: 436
ELW: 724
W&P: 625

This Is My Song
UMH: 437
NCH: 591
CH: 722
ELW: 887
STLT: 159

Be Thou My Vision
UMH: 451
H82: 488
PH: 339
NCH: 451
CH: 595
ELW: 793
W&P: 502
AMEC: 281
STLT: 20

Trust and Obey
UMH: 467
AAHH: 380
NNBH: 322
CH: 556
W&P: 443
AMEC: 377

Come Down, O Love Divine
UMH: 475
H82: 516
PH: 313
NCH: 289
CH: 582
LBW: 508
ELW: 804
W&P: 330

One Bread, One Body
UMH: 49
CH: 393
ELW: 496
W&P: 689
CCB: 49

We Are One in Christ Jesus (Somos uno en Cristo)
CCB: 43

O How He Loves You and Me!
CCB: 38
Renew: 27

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 is love:
Grant us the grace to be so filled with your love
that it overflows to all we meet this week;
through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.

OR

We praise you, O God, because you are the God of love. Your love fills all creation and calls to us in each person we meet. Help us to greet you in everyone we come in contact with this week. Amen.

Prayer of Confession
Leader: Let us confess to God and before one another our sins and especially our failure to see your love in everyone we meet.

People: We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We are selective in our love. We offer it to those who are willing to return it to us or who have something else to give us. We want to be more loving but we fail continually. We think about love and we talk about love but our love is conditional. Forgive us and renew us with your Spirit so that we may love others as you love us and them. Amen.

Leader: God is love and is always willing to love others through us. Receive God’s grace and share it with all you encounter this week.

Prayers of the People
All glory, honor, and praise are yours by right, O God, for you are the love that upholds all creation.

(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. We are selective in our love. We offer it to those who are willing to return it to us or who have something else to give us. We want to be more loving but we fail continually. We think about love and we talk about love but our love is conditional. Forgive us and renew us with your Spirit so that we may love others as you love us and them.

We give you thanks for all the ways in which your love is made manifest in creation. We thank you for the beauty that speaks of your love through the tiniest flower and through the wonders of galaxies. We thank you for your love which fills creation and which is shown in the smile of an infant. We thank you that you made us in love and have filled us with your love so that we may share it with others.

(Other thanksgivings may be offered.)

We pray for all your creation. We pray for our siblings in Christ and for the tiniest of creatures that you have made. You have made them all in love and we honor you as we care for them.

(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
I love my parents and I love my children. I love thunderstorms and quiet lakes with smooth waters. I love ice cream and the beauty of a bright starry night. I love God and I love my cat. All of these seem so different and it looks like this love should be different. But it is all the same because all of these things have been made by God and are loved by God. God is love and whenever we love something or someone we share God’s love with them.



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CHILDREN'S SERMON
Arise, My Beloved
by Dean Feldmeyer
Song of Solomon 2:8-13

Recruit: (a.) someone to read the passage with an over-the-top vocal interpretation and (b.) two kids from the group to act out the passage as you coach them along through the reading.

Props: (Optional but awesome if you can find them.)

A tree branch with leaves (real or artificial), a small (12”X12”) piece of lattice (optional), Viking hat with horns, artificial fig (or apple), flower (real or artificial), binoculars, small piece of poster board with bricks painted on it, an empty picture frame.

Begin by saying:

Did you know that there are love stories in the Bible? Well, there are. There’s the story of Jacob and Rachel. And there’s the story of David and Bathsheba. And there’s the story of Abraham and Sarah, and Ruth and Boaz.

But the most famous love story in the Bible is found in a book called the “Song of Solomon,” or sometimes called the “Song of Songs.” It’s a series of poems written by two young people, a boy and a girl who are in love with each other. Oh, boy, are they in love. They go on and on about how beautiful each other is and, today’s lesson is from one of those poems.

And do you know what goes really well with poems and songs? Hand motions. So, today, we’re going to learn some hand and body motions so we can act out the poem while _____________ reads it for us. Just do what I do, okay? Okay, here we go.

The voice of my beloved!

(Cup hand to ear and listen.)

Look!

(Use binoculars or put hand above eyes and look afar off.)

He comes, leaping upon the mountains,

(Run a few steps and leap like a ballet dancer.)

Bounding over the hills.

(Run back and leap again.)

My love is like a gazelle or a young stag.

(Hands to each side of the head with fingers forming antlers.)

Look!

(Binoculars or hand over eyes, looking.)

There he stands, behind our wall,

(Lean over and lean to the side, head tilted, peeking, around poster board wall or as though around a wall.)

Gazing in at the window

(Use picture frame or rame face with hands, make eyes big, and silly face, like looking in a window.)

Looking through the lattice.

(Hold leaves and or lattice before face with one hand, pull them aside with the other.)

My beloved speaks and says to me:

(Cup hand to ear to mime listening as a male voice says, in an exaggerated bass voice -- )

“Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away;

(Yawn and wake up, walk a few steps as if being hand-led by another person)

for now the winter is past,

(Shiver as though you are cold)

the rain is over and gone.

(Hold invisible umbrella over your head, reach beyond it to catch rain in hand)

The flowers appear on the earth;

(Pick flower and smell it)

the time of singing has come,

(Operatic stance, maybe sing a few notes. Viking hat with horns would be an awesome bonus.

and the voice of the turtledove is heard in the land.

(Cup hand to ear and make “coo’ing sound.”)

The fig tree puts forth its figs, and the vines are in blossom;

(Pick fig and take a bite.)

they give forth fragrance.

(Oops, take fig out of mouth and smell it. Pop it back into mouth.)

Arise my love, my fair one,

(Yawn and stretch.)

and come away.

(Join hands and off you go, skipping down the aisle and out with all kids following the same way.)


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The Immediate Word, July 5, 2020 issue.

Copyright 2020 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.