Though with a scornful wonder
Men see her sore oppressed,
By schisms rent asunder,
By heresies distressed:
Yet saints their watch are keeping,
Their cry goes up, “How long?”
And soon the night of weeping
Shall be the morn of song!
It had not occurred to me until we sang it, that "saints their watch are keeping..." It's like that phrase in the Eucharist, "where with Philip and all thy saints..." and "for in the multitude of your saints you have surrounded us with a great cloud of witnesses..." I just don't often think about that great cloud of witnesses who must be shaking their heads and praying that some of the heavenly wisdom they have gained since passing on will be imparted to us somehow. So many have fought and died for the church, and it continues its heavenward march, sometimes backsliding, sometimes becoming more enlightened. Oh God, keep us headed in a heavenward direction!
I've been trying to think of a good thank-you message for Father Jake and his wife who inspired him to start his blog. The thing I appreciate the most is that he has provided a place for those of us who have been wounded by recent GC action to come and commiserate and heal.
I was so alone, even alienated, when I saw the Southern Baptists start veering off the road they had always championed. The priesthood of the believer was a bedrock Baptist principle. Gradually, some pastors started denying that all believers had access to the Holy Spirit and the freedom to interpret the Bible as the Spirit led them. The women, in particular, came to be viewed with suspicion if their interpretation differed from their pastor's. At least, that's the way it played out in our little country church.
The early 80’s took a toll on that congregation. My marriage to Don was only one of the casualties. My faith was not. God used it to take me in a different direction. After trying a larger Baptist church when I moved to Jackson, it became very clear to me that the fundamentalist Baptist church was not where I needed to be. Women in the ministry were the butt of jokes at the SBC, so when my pastor came back and repeated those jokes, and I heard a large resounding Amen! with laughter and applause coming from the men, I knew it was time for me to move on. Through a series of unusual events that included dreams, visitors, and a locally famous artist, I found St. Andrews and her new rector Dean Ed Bacon. It was nothing less than Divine Providence.
Tom's sermon today was about Jairus' dying daughter, suffering from some fatal illness at the age of 12, seemingly to never realize her full human potential. Was it a metaphor for the ailing church and the power of Jesus to heal? Tom did not make that association for us, but it seemed implied. In the time it took Jesus to get to the home of the dying girl, she regressed from sickness to death. Those close to her, the ones who cared for her, were weeping and grieving when Jesus entered the house. He told the father, "Do not fear, only believe." With the words, "Talitha cum," the daughter was brought back to life.
The parallel story that was not included in our reading today from Mark 5 was of the woman Jesus healed of 12 years of haemorrhaging. She touched the hem of his garment to receive her healing. Jesus told her "Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease."
Two women, one suffering for 12 years, one growing for 12 years from infancy to womanhood. Should these two stories be separated? What is the significance of the number 12? The bleeding? Did it start with childbirth? Was the woman possibly the girl's mother? What do we know of the childhood of the "bride of Christ," the church? What life stages has she gone through already? Is she old or young? Is she sick, in need of healing? Will she die, then be resurrected?
The Ron Burch I knew in the 80's would definitely have a problem with my line of questioning. Maybe, since he's older, he's also wiser. I hope so.
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