Understanding Suffering Makes You Better

The Navajo, the Dine, believe a newborn child lives in two worlds, the spirit and the physical world, the newborn child lives in both until it laughs. Laughter, the giggle, pure delight of an infant when the smile gives way to the laugh. So profound is this moment, the Navajo have a kind of baptismal ceremony to celebrate the first laugh. Beautiful. Before this moment, though, the Navajo believe the human being has yet decided to leave the spirit world and live amongst us. 

              I have come to believe something similar about suffering.  Until you understand what it means to suffer, what suffering does to us, the nature of suffering, until you understand this, you are not ready to remember life as spirit, you have yet to decide to live in freedom.  Put a different way, when once we understand suffering, then, and only then, does value and purpose and joy of this life becomes a choice.  Once you understand suffering, then you can choose to be free.  Without understanding, we are at best naive and at worst bitter. Until this moment of understanding yielding a choice, we have yet decided to be a beautiful life.

              The folk singer Jesse Welles has been asked quite often about his affinity with Woody Guthrie.  He reminds people of Woody Guthrie, a great compliment.  Welles describes his discovery of the famous folk singer when he was a teen.  He learned about Guthrie when he found the lyrics to the second half of the song, "This Land is Your Land."  He said, when you learn the song in school, as most people do, you only learn the first half. 

This land is your land, this land is my land
From California to the New York island,

From the redwood forest to the Gulf Stream waters; 
This land was made for you and me.

As I was walking that ribbon of highway 
I saw above me that endless skyway; 
I saw below me that golden valley; 
This land was made for you and me.

I've roamed and rambled and I followed my footsteps 
To the sparkling sands of her diamond deserts; 
And all around me a voice was sounding;
This land was made for you and me.

When the sun came shining, and I was strolling, 
And the wheat fields waving and the dust clouds rolling, 
As the fog was lifting a voice was chanting: 
This land was made for you and me.

              This is what we learn in school.  And Welles said, this is good; this is an ideal.  Children should learn and be taught this.  I too believe we should teach children this image of America, diamonds deserts, the wheat fields waving, even the New York island.  But he said, if you're an adult you should know the other half of the song.

As I went walking I saw a sign there,
And on the sign it said "No Trespassing." 
But on the other side it didn't say nothing.
That side was made for you and me.

In the shadow of the steeple I saw my people, 
By the relief office I seen my people; 
As they stood there hungry, I stood there asking 
Is this land made for you and me?

Nobody living can ever stop me, 
As I go walking that freedom highway; 
Nobody living can ever make me turn back 
This land was made for you and me.

              The second half of the song is not a rejection or a pessimism, an ingratitude for the life we've been given; it's about being honest, being true, even when such truthfulness is disturbing.  But don't half understand me.  We need both.  We need the ideal and we need to be honest.

              I had a great week teaching bible stories to the children at Vacation Bible Camp.  I told them the story of the Exodus and the Wilderness; told them story of the Promise Land and the Kingdom of Israel.  We walked and we rambled around the room from Egypt to the Negev Desert; from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean.  Along the way we talked about Moses and Joshua, the spies and the stones of Gilgal.  How the people will ask you in the ages to come, why are there stone set up in Gilgal?  And the children in the class replied, we were slaves and God set us free.

              The story of Moses to David for children, when you tell children about these people and the events along the path to freedom, when you tell children this story it is about courage, being brave.  The slaves were frightened at the Red Sea, the newly freed slaves were frightened by the giants in the Promise Land, the wanderers, the ones who walked the wildness for forty years were afraid of the high walled cities, the great armies of kings.  So Joshua said, be brave, have courage, believe God will save you.  This is a good story.

              But it is only half the story.  I don’t talk about the golden calf or the sadness of Moses dying in the desert. I skipped over Samson and Delilah.  Just too much death and betrayal for young ears to hear.  I speak of David and Goliath, not David and Bathsheba.  I tell the first half of the song.  When they grow up, then they should hear the second half of the song where there are no trespassing signs and hungry people.  It’s okay to tell the children the story of courage.  Moses and Joshua, Deborah and David, they were brave.  This is enough for now.

              The Presbyterian Church of the United States of America met this last week.  For many hours they debated and perfected motions and amendments and amendments to amendments.  In their Robert’s Rules of Parliamentary procedure they sought to follow their conscience being both decent and in order, being without undue haste or delay.  They made many decisions for the denomination, for all of us Presbyterian folk.  One decision was fascinating. 

              The intriguing decision was a no vote.  They voted down what is called an overture.  An overture is a fancy way of saying, “we want the whole denomination to do something.”  The overture voted down was a call for the denomination to celebrate the 250^th anniversary of America.  The vote wasn’t close.  100 votes yes almost 400 no.  Having been privy to such votes in the past, I know the challenge of deciding, setting a course for thousands of churches who are very independent, very self-defining.  We are protesters, Protestants; we tend to disagree more than agree.  Getting everyone moving in the same direction is tough.  The assembly was not in favor of calling all to celebrate.

              I am certain there will be hand wringing and disappointment over such a refusal.  Can’t we be thankful?  Is it so hard to celebrate, to sing, “this land is your land?”  Sing the whole song for sure but sing it. Are we so unhappy with America we cannot call the churches to rejoice?  Seems like we have forgotten the ideal, the stories of courage.  You need the story of David of Goliath before you hear the story of David and Bathsheba.  You need both. There is a time to weep and there is a time to dance.

              Heather Cox Richardson is a historian who writes a daily post about current events.  Fleshes out the decisions of our time with history, puts them in historical context.  She is read by millions of people each day.  Her views are a bit critical of what it means to be great again.

              Recently she was asked a fascinating question.  She is completing a project called the 250 for 250. 250 people and places and events of America are described, celebrated for achievement, importance, sacrifice, dignity and so on.  Each of the 250 are given 600 words and read by different voices.  A bit of a challenge.  Having brought such a light to the history of America, she was asked in an interview if there were to be a new holiday, if we were to choose another moment for the country to pause and reflect, celebrate and honor, what person or event or place rises to the top?

              She said, July 9^th.  July 9^th in 1868 was the day the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution was ratified.  The Fourteenth goes like this:

All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.

Heather Cox Richard said, “this should be a national holiday.”  Cox, like many American historians, believes with Gettysburg and the Fourteenth Amendment America was born anew, some even suggest, this is when we truly become a nation.  How the Declaration of Independence was not enough, did not go far enough in defining freedom and equality.  I tend to agree as the Fourteenth provided the missing key, or second half of our ethics.

              Ethics has two parts. Live unto freedom without injuring others. First half.  The second half is offering compassion relieving suffering, the suffering of those injured.  You need both.  You need to gather stones and cast stones away.  There is a time and season for both.  We should celebrate the Fourth of July and the Ninth of July.  Both parts of the story, of our song as a people of this place and time, should be celebrated even in our worship.  Perhaps even most importantly here.

              For in this place, in our prayer and reflection, our songs and sacraments, we fulfill not only what is ethical, we also fulfill what is moral.  Like ethics, morality has two parts.  Suffer without vengeance and experience joy without fleeing suffering.  The first is to live in mercy; the second is to offer your life as a sacrifice for others.

              Simone Weil believed the sacrifice of Jesus, his suffering, the passion prediction we read this morning, this is the great message of the gospel, the true presence of God become human.  In the moment of baptism, coming out of the water, Jesus becomes human, he, like the Dine believe, chose to dwell as a human in our midst.  In his call to suffering he chooses freedom, chooses to suffer without vengeance, experience joy without fleeing suffering. 

              I know there are a lot of opinions about America, and I have read enough of our history to know both parts of the song.  We have plenty to lament, legacies of racism bigotry sexism hatred.  No question.  But there is another side to the sign.  A side that "doesn't say nothing" a side "made for you and me."  We need to ask, Is this land made for you and me?  Then we need to say, yes, this land is made for you and for me.  How so, how much, in what way?  Well, as we seek happiness without causing suffering, as we offer compassion to relieve the injured, we will find out. 

              I know God and politics are a dicey mix.  Not a good blend.  But the church has a voice today, a message to the people of this land, something to sing and pray.  We are called to sacrifice without vengeance; we are called to joy amidst our brokenness. This is freedom, our good news.

              I like the Fourth of July.  Just like I like the first four verses of Woody Guthrie's song.  I like the Ninth of July.  We should celebrate this too, the other half of the song.  What harm would there be?  We don't really work in July anyway.  There is a time and season for both.  Amen.