Who Do You Belong To?

A story is told down at our local Estes Park Police Department about a call that came in to the front desk. The caller was irritated by the “Elk Jam” on one of our main roads in town.

For those of you who don’t know what an “Elk Jam” is here is my definition for you: An Elk Jam is caused when our four-legged neighbors, who travel mostly in herds, make their way from one grazing spot to another. They often have to cross roads to do so. When a herd of these massive creatures cross the road, most people stop. After all, the damage one Elk can do if you hit it with a car is pretty massive… and more importantly, the damage you do to the Elk can be fatal. At other times, Elk Jams are caused by people who stop in the road or along the side of the road to take pictures of the Elk grazing in the meadows or on grassy places in town.

So, the caller was not happy to be stuck in traffic. The frustrated driver asked the person at the desk, “So who is in charge of the roads and the elk in this town? They need to be moved along since they are causing traffic to be tied up and I can’t get to where I am going!” The person on Desk duty replied with words similar to the following: “I am sorry that you are encountering difficulty in making your way through town. Who is in charge of the roads? I guess the Elk are.”

I don’t know whether or not the caller was satisfied with the answer, but I sure get a chuckle out of the story and the response every time I find myself paused in traffic thanks to our neighbors reminding us who was in Estes Park first. In case you are wondering, the Rocky Mountain Elk and the Rocky Mountain Mule Deer and the Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep (along with a myriad of other creatures) were here before the first human set foot in our beautiful mountain home!

Yes, I am one of those residents who still is wowed every time I see our majestic neighbors (even when they startle me when I open our front door to go outside and am immediately eye to eye with the Bull Elk hanging out in our neighborhood)! Some of my parishioners have even asked me to talk to my herd (the one that hangs out next to the church on the golf course or on our church property) about traffic matters!

Okay, Padre, what does your rambling Elk musings have to do with the Scripture readings for tomorrow? If you have been a reader of my blog for any length of time, you know that most of the time I do get around to the point!

About ten days ago, our Interfaith Ministerial Alliance met to discuss, among other things, hosting Syrian Refugee families for a respite weekend at the YMCA of the Rockies. In a time of tension and fear for these families getting used to a new country, weather (Syria doesn’t exactly have the same sort of weather that Colorado does in the winter), and a politically charged environment, we hope to be a candle shining in the darkness here in the Rockies.

The other thing we discussed was the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity (January 18-25 this year) and how we were going to observe it. Instead of a special worship service (that has been done here… before my time), we decided to share prayers for/about/concerning our churches and various ministries (Chaplaincies at the Estes Park Medical Center, Hospice, YMCA of the Rockies, and Good Samaritan Village of Estes Park) our members are involved in. Additionally, we were asked to pray for these ministries as the Spirit led throughout the week.

Unity… that has been a subject which has been discussed a great deal in the past few weeks/months. What is unity? What does it look like? In some cases it has been unity described as “get over it, get on board, see it my way” which is not unity as much as it is a sad corruption of the concept of uniformity. I can’t tell you how many times I have heard through my years of ministry the phrase “my way or the highway” or “America, love it or leave it” used as calls for unity. Really? Unity is not conformity to the idea or ideal of the single way. It is rather the coming together in common community of a variety of systems and beliefs for a common goal or common good. It is a blanket woven from many strands and colors of yarn. Each one distinct and unique, yet woven together into something far greater than the individual parts.

Paul is dealing with this issue in the reading from 1 Corinthians 1:10-18. The church in Corinth is fragmented and there is fighting amongst the various factions. Mine is better than yours! I am a follower of Paul, therefore I am right and you are wrong! I follow Peter, therefore I am right and you are wrong! I follow Apollos therefore I am right and you are wrong! I follow only Christ, therefore I am right and you are ALL wrong! If I slip myself into the passage as Ignatius teaches (Lectio Divina) and look at it as though I was actually in the story, I see many things. First of all, I can see Paul scratching his head, rolling his eyes, and groaning in frustration over the members of this church he mentored. I can also see the impassioned groups speaking loudly and boldly AT each other, not TO each other.

In exasperation, Paul speaks up loudly to be heard over the cacophony of words and arguments. Look here, you knuckleheads, listen up a minute! You’ve got it all wrong! Was I crucified for you? Were any of you baptized in MY name? NO! Thank God I didn’t baptize any of you… well, except for Crispus and Gaius and the household of Stephanas… geez, why did I go there? Why did my trip up get put into writing? Oh wait, it isn’t about me, it’s all about Christ. I’m just his fool! (see 1 Corinthians 4:10) Anyway, YOU were ALL baptized in the name of Christ for heaven’s sake!

If you remember, Corinth was a very cosmopolitan seaport. People from all over the known world came there to trade. The church in Corinth was made up of Gentiles who had been brought into the faith and Jews who were among the first followers of Jesus. The temptation in Corinth was to fit in… yet Paul was reminding them in both of his letters that their job was not to fit in, but rather to set the example… to be the light of Christ on the hill.

It reminds me, in a way, of Joshua’s challenge to the people of the Exile at the end of his leadership. They were entering the land and would be tempted to be something other than what they were called to be (I am your God and you are my people, says the Lord — Exodus 6:7). He was reminding the people who they were and who they were called to serve.

“‘Now therefore revere the Lord, and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness; put away the gods that your ancestors served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. Now if you are unwilling to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served in the region beyond the River or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.’” (Joshua 24:14-15) That seems to tie in with the point Paul was making to the church in Corinth. You aren’t Peter’s people… you aren’t my people… you aren’t Apollos’ people…

The comment “I only follow Christ” is problematic for me. After all, aren’t we Christ-followers? Commentators have wrestled with this and come up with the rationale that Paul was chastising those who say they only follow Christ because they may well have been Jews who had actually seen and heard Jesus and somehow felt superior to those who had not been there. It makes sense to me that Paul would be reigning in the arrogance of these followers just as much as he was reigning in the arrogance of the others.

So, the point that I believe Paul was driving home was the fact that this fighting and arrogance would do nothing but destroy both their church in Corinth and, more importantly, their witness to the people. Sadly, I have seen far too frequently examples of more Christ-like behavior from my Pagan, Jewish, and Muslim sisters and brothers than I have from Christians. Yes, I too have been in that sad number as well. A gentle reminder for you as well as for this Padre… when you point a finger at another, turn your hand over and you see that three fingers are pointing back at you!

Anyway, back to 1 Corinthians. Paul was calling not for uniformity, but rather for unity. The church in Corinth was made up of many different strands of people and the weaving that was the church could be so beautiful. I think he was calling them back to that unity. The second reading is from the Gospel of Matthew and is another version of the call narrative of the disciples. Jesus called a variety of individuals to follow him. Tax Collectors, Fishermen, common laborers, zealots and revolutionaries… the weaving would indeed be very colorful. They were woven together for a common purpose — Love God… Love neighbor… Serve God by serving the outcasts….

The Elk are also a reminder to me of this calling. I just watched a video someone posted from today on Facebook. It seems that a Bull Elk with a rather large rack had wandered into one of our stores on Elkhorn Avenue (yes, quite ironic, isn’t it… ELKhorn?!). Why did he go in? I don’t know. I do know that he didn’t find anything that fit him in the store though! A resourceful police officer used a sliced apple to lure the big fellow out of the store and the mission was successful.

We live together, four-legged and two-legged creatures, in this place we both call home. With mutual respect (and admiration on my part at least) we peacefully coexist. It does weave quite a tapestry of God’s wonder here in our little mountain town. My prayer is that as people of faith, Christ-followers can weave the sort of tapestry that others would be attracted to. Frankly, the church needs to do a better job of this. Instead of name-calling and finger-pointing, how about being Christ-followers… you know my mantra… Do Justice… Love Kindness/Mercy… Walk Humbly with God… Love God… Love Neighbor… ALL neighbors!

God knows we need more of this today in our divisive and hate-spewing world. Those who have been downtrodden must be heard, acknowledged, respected, loved! Those who are in power need to remember that they are called to serve ALL people! With great power comes great responsibility comes to mind. Yes, this is a quote from Spiderman (Uncle Ben to Peter Parker), but it is actually found in another source… the Bible!

“From everyone to whom much has been given, much will be required; and from the one to whom much has been entrusted, even more will be demanded.” (Luke 12:48) This passage comes from Jesus’ teaching about the faithful or unfaithful slave. While problematic (slavery), the quote has great merit.  We who are called to be Christ-followers… upon us great responsibility has been placed.

We may be the only example of Christ someone may see. What sort of an example will they see? Self-serving? Profit-oriented? Materialistic? Hateful? Or will they see a humble servant of Christ who loves, prays, walks along side of others… Do justice… Love mercy/kindness… Walk humbly…

Will you join me in offering a counter to the image that is all to often shown by christians (yes, lower case is intentional)? It really goes back to who we belong to. As for me and my house? We will serve the Lord.