For churches that follow the Revised Common Lectionary, this Sunday is also the day we read the great story of Israelites crossing the Red Sea. Having escaped from the oppression of slavery, the Israelite community entered into a new phase of their journey—how to live together as a free people. They spent the next 40 years learning to be a sustainable community in the wilderness. They faced many fears and uncertainties: where were food and water they needed? What are the new rules now that we don’t have slave masters? Each one of the struggles was met with sustainable solutions – manna from heaven, living water that gushed out of a rock, the ten commandments, etc. – calming their fears and moving the community toward greater sustainability.
The horrible event of September 11, 2001 had put the U.S. in the wilderness, but instead of meeting the challenge with constructive solutions that pull the people together creating a stronger, more sustainable community, we went the other way toward greater fear and unsustainability. Instead of challenging the people to continue the self-giving spirit that exemplified the initial responses to the attacks, we fostered the illusion of wellness socially and financially. Nine days after the attack, President Bush addressed the people of the United States this way, “Americans are asking: What is expected of us? . . . I ask your continued participation and confidence in the American economy. Terrorists attacked a symbol of American prosperity. They did not touch its source. America is successful because of the hard work, and creativity, and enterprise of our people. These were the true strengths of our economy before September 11th, and they are our strengths today.”
In the years that followed, we the people went forth and borrowed money that we could not afford to pay back to buy stocks and real estate. There would be no tax increases so we could spend more money to “participate in the economy” without asking the realistic questions: who was paying for the 2 wars we were fighting? Instead of asking the people to give back into the community that would help us reestablish our security, we were encouraged to spend on borrowed money. And finally, the illusionary wellness bubble burst in 2008 and we wondered why. 9-11 was the day that changed everything for the U.S. and why would we think “business as usual” would make us safe again?
Thirteen years after 9-11, we are still in the wilderness. The economy is recovering slightly and yet, fears and uncertainties abound. Our President Obama just announced that we are going to war in Iraq and Syria! While I support the need to address the threat of the so-called Islamic State, I can’t help but feel that this is “business as usual” again - fears, wars and spending money. Perhaps it will take many more years for us to learn to deal with our fear constructively – certainly not through spending money we don’t have. It is not too late to change course to refocus our energy on the heart of the issue – deal with our fear in life-giving constructive ways. Where is our manna from heaven? Where is the rock that we can strike to give us living water? How do we discover the new covenant of a sustainable future together? How do we learn to share our resources fairly, equitably and with a self-giving spirit in this wilderness so that we can restart our journey toward a more secured and sustainable future?
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Upcoming Opportunities to Study with The Sustainist and learn more about Holy Conferencing: November 16-20, 2014 March 19-24, 2015 April 21-25, 2015 July 20-25, 2015 Los Angeles, CA Gracious Leadership Training Holy Currencies: Creating Sustainable Missional Ministries KI Catalyst (Facilitator) Training Register at: www.kscopeinstitute.org |
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Reflection Questions for Proper 19 (Year A) Exodus 14:19-31 Psalm 114 Exodus 15:1b-11, 20-21 Genesis 50:15-21 Psalm 102:8-13 Romans 14:1-12 Matthew 18:21-35 |
Eric H. F. Law
Kaleidoscope Institute
For competent leadership in a diverse changing world
www.kscopeinstitute.org