We Are, None Of Us, Our Own
Stories
Object:
Contents
What's Up This Week
"We Are, None of Us, Our Own" by Scott Dalgarno
"The Word from God" by Timothy J. Smith
What's Up This Week
Like the coin with Caesar's image in the passage from Matthew, many passages in scripture have more than one side to them. This week's StoryShare looks at the gospel passage in Matthew from two different perspectives. In "We Are, None of Us, Our Own," Scott Dalgarno shows us that the main point of this narrative is not necessarily what we may think. Instead of looking at the main theme of the passage, "The Word from God" looks instead at the antagonist, the Pharisees, reminding us that even today, we must take care lest we find a little of the Pharisee nature in ourselves.
* * * * * * * * *
We Are, None of Us, Our Own
By Scott Dalgarno
Matthew 22:15-22
Jesus could smell a trap. When men linked to those he knew were hostile to him asked him to take an explicit and dangerous stand on whether Jews should or should not pay taxes to the Roman occupation of Judea he was clearly on his guard. The Pharisees anticipated that Jesus would oppose the tax, for Luke's gospel explains their purpose was "to hand him over to the power and authority of the governor." The governor was Pilate, and he was, of course, the man responsible for collecting Rome's taxes in Judea.
Jesus first called them hypocrites, and then asked one of them to produce a Roman coin, asking further that they identify the image on it. When they did he said, simply, "Render unto Caesar what is Caesar's, and unto God what it God's."
Anyone who thinks this is a straightforward answer in favor of the separation of church and state need think again. One need only note that Matthew tells us when the disciples of the Pharisees heard this "they were amazed." More is going on here than Jesus simply reassuring them that Caesar was an independent secular authority that God deemed autonomous. A lot more.
I mean, look, what belongs to Caesar that does not belong to God, anyway? Name me one thing... I'm waiting.... Maybe it was only the image on the coin Jesus asked them to supply for the lesson.
When it comes to dealing with the authorities of his day, Jesus was a sly one. Remember that it was he, himself, who told his disciples, "See, I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. So be as cunning as serpents and as innocent as doves."
Jesus clearly "amazed" them because he could give them an answer without having to step in their carefully laid trap; without having to pay for it with his life. Besides, it's one of those questions everyone should spend his or her life answering for themselves; discovering for themselves how true it is that everything -- our houses, our forests, our spouses, our children, our very lives, belong 100% to God.
For my money (ha) the story isn't about Caesar at all -- it's about us and it's about God.
Here's a true story with a connection to "Caesar" that illustrates some of what I mean. I have changed the names.
* * *
It was 1965 and Lisa had just gotten out of the state mental hospital. She wasn't crazy, exactly; her life had just been impossible. She was 19, with no home, no husband, no money, no place to go, and she just had a baby.
The state had already "stated" that she would be giving the baby up for adoption. She would need to sign the papers, of course, but the social worker in charge of her case acted as if she had no other choice. A foster home was waiting for the baby.
But Lisa had read a news story about foster homes recently and many of them were under investigation -- many foster parents were caring but too many had been identified as dumping grounds where children were being "placed" for money alone. Lisa knew what it was like to grow up unloved. She knew this too well.
When a nurse spotted her breast-feeding her baby in the maternity ward she asked Lisa why she was bothering, since welfare was coming for the baby in three days time. Lisa explained that she had read about colostrums -- how the first three days of breast feeding gives the baby the kind of immunity that can pay dividends the child's whole life long.
The nurse, who had hardly looked at Lisa now looked deeply into her young eyes. Moments later she was instructing Lisa on how to better hold the baby during the feeding to ensure the best digestion.
"We need to get you some clothes for her," she said. "Clothes?" said Lisa. "I thought the foster family would provide those."
"There isn't going to be a foster family," said the nurse. "You're going to keep her. God put her into your care, not the care of anyone else."
"But I don't even know how to diaper a baby," she said.
"You're going to learn right now," she said, and with that she led Lisa to a room full of dolls, cotton diapers, and pins. The lesson took ten minutes. Then she led Lisa back to the ward and announced to the other new mothers, "Miss W. is keeping her baby. Can each of you donate a piece of clothing from your layettes?"
One mother held up a nightshirt, another a receiving blanket, a third gave her a blue fleece bunting. The nurse showed up with a stack of diapers complete with pins.
Before welfare showed up, Lisa found herself in a home for mothers like herself where she was given even more.
That baby grew up into a fine woman and has given Lisa three grandchildren now; that and the knowledge it takes being a parent to learn that our children are charges put into our trust. Not possessions, but means to learn the most important lesson of living, that we, none of us, are Caesar's, or even our own.
Scott Dalgarno is pastor of First Presbyterian Church of Ashland, Oregon. He is also an adjunct professor at Southern Oregon University, where he teaches Film and Ethics. His poetry, essays, and stories have appeared in numerous publications, including The Christian Century, America: The National Catholic Weekly, The Antioch Review, and Alive Now. Dalgarno has a masters degree in English from the University of Oregon, as well as his M.Div. degree from San Francisco Theological Seminary. He plays some guitar and often wishes he were John Mayer.
The Word from God
By Timothy J. Smith
Matthew 22:15-22
Then the Pharisees went and plotted to entrap him in what he said.
-- Matthew 22:15
The initial impression people have when meeting Kurt for the first time is of his positive outlook on life. Kurt works for a national firm as a delivery person, covering the same territory five days a week. Kurt always takes a couple of minutes to speak with his customers as he drops off packages. It's obvious that he enjoys his job and speaking with people. If you were to stand near his truck on most days, you would hear Christian teachings coming from a tape. "Today's lesson was on..." he says to anyone who asks and then gives a brief summary of what he has heard.
Kurt is not timid when it comes to his faith. "I would probably get fired if my boss knew what I talk about," he admitted one day. One of his stops is a church where he would engage the pastor in some deep theological issues on a regular basis. There were times when the two of them could be seen out in the parking lot debating various issues. The church has always played an important role in Kurt's life. At one point he had aspirations of becoming a pastor and enrolled in a Bible college. Something happened that discouraged him. That seems to be the only subject he is not willing to talk about as he makes his deliveries. He doesn't have to; the hurt is obvious.
One day, quite unexpectedly, Kurt told his friend, "If I had a problem I could never go back to the church I grew up in." By the look on his face he surprised himself with that statement. He went on to explain that if he were experiencing some difficulty in his personal life the people he has known since he was a child would look down on him. "They might even be shocked," he said, speaking of his personal struggles. "They would be quick to point fingers at me." They would tell him he shouldn't think that way and dismiss him as less than a true Christian. He knew the people at his home church all too well.
Fortunately Kurt found a church where people can share openly their struggles and concerns. The openness and caring attitude is what attracted them to that congregation. Kurt says his parents do not understand and would not approve of this church. People in the church where he grew up, he says, could not even imagine a church like the one he now attends.
The difference is, he explained, "If I took a problem to them they would support me 100 percent! They would place their hands on me and pray for me. They would pray that whatever had its grips on me would be released," he says with assurance. They would surround him and show their love and support. "Without a doubt they would be there for me," he says, "no matter what!" With that Kurt was off for another delivery.
Have we in the church become like the Pharisees who stand ready to entrap and accuse?
-- taken from Timothy J. Smith, Lectionary Tales for the Pulpit, Series II, Cycle A (Lima, Ohio: CSS Publishing Company, Inc., 1998), pp. 117-118
**********************************************
How to Share Stories
You have good stories to share, probably more than you know: personal stories as well as stories from others that you have used over the years. If you have a story you like, whether fictional or "really happened," authored by you or a brief excerpt from a favorite book, send it to StoryShare for review. Simply email the story to us at storyshare@sermonsuite.com.
**************
StoryShare, October 19, 2008, issue.
Copyright 2008 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to the StoryShare service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons, in worship and classroom settings, in brief devotions, in radio spots, and as newsletter fillers. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to permissions@csspub.com or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., 517 South Main Street, Lima, Ohio 45804.
What's Up This Week
"We Are, None of Us, Our Own" by Scott Dalgarno
"The Word from God" by Timothy J. Smith
What's Up This Week
Like the coin with Caesar's image in the passage from Matthew, many passages in scripture have more than one side to them. This week's StoryShare looks at the gospel passage in Matthew from two different perspectives. In "We Are, None of Us, Our Own," Scott Dalgarno shows us that the main point of this narrative is not necessarily what we may think. Instead of looking at the main theme of the passage, "The Word from God" looks instead at the antagonist, the Pharisees, reminding us that even today, we must take care lest we find a little of the Pharisee nature in ourselves.
* * * * * * * * *
We Are, None of Us, Our Own
By Scott Dalgarno
Matthew 22:15-22
Jesus could smell a trap. When men linked to those he knew were hostile to him asked him to take an explicit and dangerous stand on whether Jews should or should not pay taxes to the Roman occupation of Judea he was clearly on his guard. The Pharisees anticipated that Jesus would oppose the tax, for Luke's gospel explains their purpose was "to hand him over to the power and authority of the governor." The governor was Pilate, and he was, of course, the man responsible for collecting Rome's taxes in Judea.
Jesus first called them hypocrites, and then asked one of them to produce a Roman coin, asking further that they identify the image on it. When they did he said, simply, "Render unto Caesar what is Caesar's, and unto God what it God's."
Anyone who thinks this is a straightforward answer in favor of the separation of church and state need think again. One need only note that Matthew tells us when the disciples of the Pharisees heard this "they were amazed." More is going on here than Jesus simply reassuring them that Caesar was an independent secular authority that God deemed autonomous. A lot more.
I mean, look, what belongs to Caesar that does not belong to God, anyway? Name me one thing... I'm waiting.... Maybe it was only the image on the coin Jesus asked them to supply for the lesson.
When it comes to dealing with the authorities of his day, Jesus was a sly one. Remember that it was he, himself, who told his disciples, "See, I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. So be as cunning as serpents and as innocent as doves."
Jesus clearly "amazed" them because he could give them an answer without having to step in their carefully laid trap; without having to pay for it with his life. Besides, it's one of those questions everyone should spend his or her life answering for themselves; discovering for themselves how true it is that everything -- our houses, our forests, our spouses, our children, our very lives, belong 100% to God.
For my money (ha) the story isn't about Caesar at all -- it's about us and it's about God.
Here's a true story with a connection to "Caesar" that illustrates some of what I mean. I have changed the names.
* * *
It was 1965 and Lisa had just gotten out of the state mental hospital. She wasn't crazy, exactly; her life had just been impossible. She was 19, with no home, no husband, no money, no place to go, and she just had a baby.
The state had already "stated" that she would be giving the baby up for adoption. She would need to sign the papers, of course, but the social worker in charge of her case acted as if she had no other choice. A foster home was waiting for the baby.
But Lisa had read a news story about foster homes recently and many of them were under investigation -- many foster parents were caring but too many had been identified as dumping grounds where children were being "placed" for money alone. Lisa knew what it was like to grow up unloved. She knew this too well.
When a nurse spotted her breast-feeding her baby in the maternity ward she asked Lisa why she was bothering, since welfare was coming for the baby in three days time. Lisa explained that she had read about colostrums -- how the first three days of breast feeding gives the baby the kind of immunity that can pay dividends the child's whole life long.
The nurse, who had hardly looked at Lisa now looked deeply into her young eyes. Moments later she was instructing Lisa on how to better hold the baby during the feeding to ensure the best digestion.
"We need to get you some clothes for her," she said. "Clothes?" said Lisa. "I thought the foster family would provide those."
"There isn't going to be a foster family," said the nurse. "You're going to keep her. God put her into your care, not the care of anyone else."
"But I don't even know how to diaper a baby," she said.
"You're going to learn right now," she said, and with that she led Lisa to a room full of dolls, cotton diapers, and pins. The lesson took ten minutes. Then she led Lisa back to the ward and announced to the other new mothers, "Miss W. is keeping her baby. Can each of you donate a piece of clothing from your layettes?"
One mother held up a nightshirt, another a receiving blanket, a third gave her a blue fleece bunting. The nurse showed up with a stack of diapers complete with pins.
Before welfare showed up, Lisa found herself in a home for mothers like herself where she was given even more.
That baby grew up into a fine woman and has given Lisa three grandchildren now; that and the knowledge it takes being a parent to learn that our children are charges put into our trust. Not possessions, but means to learn the most important lesson of living, that we, none of us, are Caesar's, or even our own.
Scott Dalgarno is pastor of First Presbyterian Church of Ashland, Oregon. He is also an adjunct professor at Southern Oregon University, where he teaches Film and Ethics. His poetry, essays, and stories have appeared in numerous publications, including The Christian Century, America: The National Catholic Weekly, The Antioch Review, and Alive Now. Dalgarno has a masters degree in English from the University of Oregon, as well as his M.Div. degree from San Francisco Theological Seminary. He plays some guitar and often wishes he were John Mayer.
The Word from God
By Timothy J. Smith
Matthew 22:15-22
Then the Pharisees went and plotted to entrap him in what he said.
-- Matthew 22:15
The initial impression people have when meeting Kurt for the first time is of his positive outlook on life. Kurt works for a national firm as a delivery person, covering the same territory five days a week. Kurt always takes a couple of minutes to speak with his customers as he drops off packages. It's obvious that he enjoys his job and speaking with people. If you were to stand near his truck on most days, you would hear Christian teachings coming from a tape. "Today's lesson was on..." he says to anyone who asks and then gives a brief summary of what he has heard.
Kurt is not timid when it comes to his faith. "I would probably get fired if my boss knew what I talk about," he admitted one day. One of his stops is a church where he would engage the pastor in some deep theological issues on a regular basis. There were times when the two of them could be seen out in the parking lot debating various issues. The church has always played an important role in Kurt's life. At one point he had aspirations of becoming a pastor and enrolled in a Bible college. Something happened that discouraged him. That seems to be the only subject he is not willing to talk about as he makes his deliveries. He doesn't have to; the hurt is obvious.
One day, quite unexpectedly, Kurt told his friend, "If I had a problem I could never go back to the church I grew up in." By the look on his face he surprised himself with that statement. He went on to explain that if he were experiencing some difficulty in his personal life the people he has known since he was a child would look down on him. "They might even be shocked," he said, speaking of his personal struggles. "They would be quick to point fingers at me." They would tell him he shouldn't think that way and dismiss him as less than a true Christian. He knew the people at his home church all too well.
Fortunately Kurt found a church where people can share openly their struggles and concerns. The openness and caring attitude is what attracted them to that congregation. Kurt says his parents do not understand and would not approve of this church. People in the church where he grew up, he says, could not even imagine a church like the one he now attends.
The difference is, he explained, "If I took a problem to them they would support me 100 percent! They would place their hands on me and pray for me. They would pray that whatever had its grips on me would be released," he says with assurance. They would surround him and show their love and support. "Without a doubt they would be there for me," he says, "no matter what!" With that Kurt was off for another delivery.
Have we in the church become like the Pharisees who stand ready to entrap and accuse?
-- taken from Timothy J. Smith, Lectionary Tales for the Pulpit, Series II, Cycle A (Lima, Ohio: CSS Publishing Company, Inc., 1998), pp. 117-118
**********************************************
How to Share Stories
You have good stories to share, probably more than you know: personal stories as well as stories from others that you have used over the years. If you have a story you like, whether fictional or "really happened," authored by you or a brief excerpt from a favorite book, send it to StoryShare for review. Simply email the story to us at storyshare@sermonsuite.com.
**************
StoryShare, October 19, 2008, issue.
Copyright 2008 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to the StoryShare service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons, in worship and classroom settings, in brief devotions, in radio spots, and as newsletter fillers. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to permissions@csspub.com or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., 517 South Main Street, Lima, Ohio 45804.
