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Sunday, December 2, 2001
Rev. James A. Todhunter

Jesus’ words in the scripture from Matthew are uttered as he sits on the Mount of Olives with his disciples and foretells the destruction of the Temple of Jerusalem. He talks about times of trial and tribulation to come. There will be wars and rumors of wars. But eventually the Son of Man will appear, and the Reign of God will be ushered in. Matthew has Jesus say, "Keep awake therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming."

Then Jesus gives us some analogies. It will be like when people in the days of Noah were going about their everyday concerns and all of a sudden the flood came and washed all but a small remnant away. Or two men out in the field working: suddenly, one is taken, one is left. Or two women grinding at the mill: a moment later, one taken and one left. What’s this about exactly? Is Jesus saying that the people who will be taken will be whisked right up to heaven? Many people believe in what is called "The Rapture." This will be a point in time in which the righteous are lifted up and out of the world and the unrighteous are left behind to doom and destruction. (This popular notion is, in fact, quite unbiblical in my opinion). Or is Jesus suggesting that any of us can suddenly die at any moment, that is, taken by death? Maybe. That happens. Or sometimes this passage has been interpreted as Jesus pointing out that the problem is that people live their daily lives, wrapped up in their trivial pursuits – eating, drinking, and marrying – and missing what is more important. But, I don’t know. I don’t think eating and drinking and marrying are trivial. They are what we do in life. I like those things. However we choose to interpret Jesus’ words, his point seems to be to watch and stay awake, because what is coming could happen at any time, and you must be ready.

I heard a psychiatrist last week on NPR reflecting on the public advice we have received from the President and the Attorney General in the aftermath of 9/11. We have been told two things. First, it is important to have our lives get back to normal. And second, we should be watchful and vigilant for anything unusual or suspicious. This doctor was suggesting that while this advice is perfectly understandable, it is emotionally contradictory. Continuous watchfulness and vigilance can lead to paranoia, that is, living with suspicion all the time. Getting back to a normal life means, at some level, learning to relax more and worry less; taking it easy and enjoying eating, and drinking, and marrying. Is this what Jesus is saying? Live normally, but be vigilant? Or some have suggested that the scripture is simply about living with expectation, living in anticipation of God’s Reign. Living with yearning. Living with hope, indeed the theme of this first Sunday in Advent.

In a new book entitled Anger, the Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh talks about what he means by the term "mindfulness." He writes:

Whenever you are not standing, sitting, or lying down, you are going. But where are you going? You have already arrived. With every step, you can arrive in the present moment, you can step into the Pure Land or into the Kingdom of God.

For a Buddhist like Thich Nhat Hanh, the goal is mindfulness in everything we do, all of the time: mindful eating, mindful drinking, mindful walking, mindful sitting. In other words we become conscious of what we are doing, awake and aware. For example, how many meals do we not savor at all because we wolf them down so quickly, eager to get on to the next thing on our schedule? How many other activities do we not enjoy fully because we are, as they say, "multi-tasking?"

The visionary Quaker writer, Thomas Kelly, says much the same thing, I believe, but from a clearly Christian perspective. He says that we have the possibility of living our lives on two levels at once. There is the everyday level of the round of activities, responsibilities, planning and action. This is the level of day to day living. But at the same time, and at a deeper level, there is the reality of Christ, the light of the sacred presence of God. Our challenge is to live on these two levels simultaneously. Kelly writes:

Between the two levels is fruitful interplay, but ever the accent must be upon the deeper level, where the soul ever dwells in the presence of the Holy One. For the religious (person) is forever bringing all affairs of the first level down into the Light, holding them there in the Presence, reseeing them and the whole of the world of (humanity) and things in a new and overturning way, and responding to them in spontaneous, incisive and simple ways of love and faith. Facts remain facts, when brought down into the Presence in the deeper level, but their value, their significance, is wholly realigned. Much apparent wheat becomes utter chaff, and some chaff becomes wheat.

I believe that this may be really at the heart of what Jesus is talking about in this passage from Matthew. I suspect that when he refers to the future, he does so mainly to remind us that the future is in God’s hands, and God’s alone. It may be prudent to plan and prepare, particularly at the daily level, but the fact is that we live only in the present, moment by moment. The only way to truly be prepared for the future is to live fully in the moment. And to live fully in the moment is, as Thomas Kelly says, to always be moving from the everyday level, to the level of the mindful, spiritual, sacred presence of the Holy One.

I mentioned earlier our leaders’ exhortation to get back to normal, yet remain vigilant, as emotionally demanding, if not impossible. At worst that approach can lead one down the slippery slope of worry and fear. Instead, let us live with the understanding that each moment can be filled, illumined, and sustained by the sacred presence and light of God. Let us live with the understanding that even the simplest and most mundane of activities can be celebrations of life itself: eating, drinking, marrying, if we but bring mindfulness to them.

Two men out in the field: In the next moment, one taken, one left. Two women at the grindstone: And an instant later, one taken, one left. That is always the case. We all know that our lives can change, and even be snuffed out in the blinking of an eye. But that can be a source of terror only if our lives are infused with fear. If we live with the understanding that all we ever have is this moment and the sacred presence filling this moment, then what is there to fear? Whatever happens in this moment, we can attend to as best we can. But God’s presence is dependable. In this moment. Whether it is our last or not, matters not at all. 9/11 hasn’t changed that. Nothing can change that.

This is not to say that the future means nothing and that we should never think about it. At that first level we always need to be thinking, planning, and preparing. But for the person of faith, the future can be seen as always in the hands of God. And what is in the hands of God is always fine. Always well. To me, that is really what hope means.

What is required of each of us to make this happen? Two things, I believe. First, we must continually renew in ourselves an inward attitude of trust. In times of change and crisis, the first spiritual thing to be threatened is trust. When trust goes, worry and fear fill its place. Trust in the presence of God in our lives must be continually lifted up and nourished. And the second thing is practice. Practice trust. A deeper awareness of the presence of the sacred at the very heart of every moment and in every action requires practice. Thich Nhat Hanh says the best practice is to pay attention to your breathing. See yourself as breathing in mindful presence each time you inhale, and exhaling everything that is toxic and angry when you exhale. To me this is simply another word for Christian prayer. Breathe on me, breath of God. Spirit of the Living God, fall afresh on me. Melt me, mold me, fill me, use me. Each breath can be the vehicle for such a prayer. It is a moment by moment reminder that we are surrounded, filled and sustained by the sacred presence of God. That is reality. Seen this way, prayer is not simply something we do at a set time and place. Prayer is an attitude of awareness available no matter what we are doing. Each action itself can be a prayer. Try it. Practice it. And live in trust and hope.

AMEN

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