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Friday, April 28, 2017

"RISE INDEED!" - Lectionary Reflection for Sunday, April 30, 2017

LUKE 24:13–35  (NRSV)

Now on that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, and talking with each other about all these things that had happened.  While they were talking and discussing, Jesus himself came near and went with them, but their eyes were kept from recognizing him.  And he said to them, "What are you discussing with each other while you walk along?" They stood still, looking sad.  Then one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answered him, "Are you the only stranger in Jerusalem who does not know the things that have taken place there in these days?"  He asked them, "What things?" They replied, "The things about Jesus of Nazareth, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, and how our chief priests and leaders handed him over to be condemned to death and crucified him.  But we had hoped that he was “the one” to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things took place.  Moreover, some women of our group astounded us. They were at the tomb early this morning, and when they did not find his body there, they came back and told us that they had indeed seen a vision of angels who said that he was alive.  Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said; but they did not see him."  Then he said to them, "Oh, how foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have declared!  Was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things and then enter into his glory?"  Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them the things about himself in all the scriptures.  As they came near the village to which they were going, he walked ahead as if he were going on.  But they urged him strongly, saying, "Stay with us, because it is almost evening and the day is now nearly over." So he went in to stay with them.  When he was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them.  Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him; and he vanished from their sight.  They said to each other, "Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?"  That same hour they got up and returned to Jerusalem; and they found the eleven and their companions gathered together.  They were saying, "The Lord has risen indeed, and he has appeared to Simon!"  Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he had been made known to them in the breaking of the bread. 

“RISE INDEED!”

It has been said that the above scripture story of Jesus’ followers traveling to Emmaus depicts two individuals who are lost in their sorrow and pain.  They are journeying with no hope or expectation for the future.  They are traumatized and disillusioned from witnessing Jesus’ execution at the hands of the political and religious authorities.  To “The One” traveling beside them, these individuals speak of their trauma as well as their incredulity at the stories that Jesus had risen from the dead.  It has also been said that recovery from trauma often involves sharing memories of one’s abuse, torture, feelings of abandonment, rejection, and how the pain of these things and events impair and cripple life in the present.

The healers with whom the traumatized work during their recovery journey do not promise a magic wand that will somehow miraculously wave away life’s problems.  While that would be wonderful, it is not reality.  Instead, an authentic healer joins first with their patient to be a witness and then becomes a trusted traveling companion or sojourner towards healing of the spirit.  There are times, in the course of such a journey, that the patient wants to turn back or away from the road upon which they travel.  They desire to return to their old lifestyle and old habits and ways of coping even though those were no longer working.  In the case of the two followers of Jesus traveling the road to Emmaus, away from Jerusalem and the horrifying events leading up to and including Jesus’ execution, they wanted to get their pain and disappointment behind them over the failed mission and vision of the past three monumental years.  To do so, however, they would have to turn their backs on the movement Jesus began, a movement that brought them alive with passion to transform the brutal world and times in which they lived.  Thankfully, that did not happen. For in some way somehow, Jesus came alongside their despair during their travel toward Emmaus and resurrected the disciples’ hopes and passion.  As a result these individuals turned their lives around, rejoined the ranks of their movement, and kept alive a mission and vision for humanity that has survived through the ages and will one day overcome our world’s Old Order to usher into our lives the Just and Peaceable Reign of God.

The story of Jesus’ followers on the road to Emmaus represents the best course of action to take when we are overwrought with difficult issues in our lives.  And today there are many such issues from unfit and unstable individuals leading powerful nations to the obscenely wealthy who demonically wield their influence in one way or another to undercut humanity’s efforts to establish worldwide peace, justice, and social safety net.  Like the Roman elite in that time so long ago when it was thought there were one too many Christians hanging around, there are those among today’s elite and powerful who think there are one too many humans around on the planet.  And so these elite and wealthy and powerful now commit themselves and their resources to democide, a process whereby governments knowingly and intentionally and recklessly engage in abuse and neglect of their citizens and thus cause citizen deaths.  The only problem now is that they have installed POTUS 45 as lead of the pack whose “in-ya-face” tactics of abuse and humiliation and subjugation make clear and public the democide agenda.  While the democide advocates have effectively co-opted many of the religious right, they have not been able to co-opt those who live and breathe the sacred scriptures below from Isaiah and Revelation – persons who daily dedicate their lives and resources on the road to the betterment of the Common Good:
Then I saw new heavens and a new earth.  The former heavens and the former earth had passed away, and the sea existed no longer.  I also saw a new Jerusalem, the holy city, coming down out of heaven from God, beautiful as a bride and groom on their wedding day.  And I heard a loud voice calling from the throne, “Look!  God’s Tabernacle is among humanity!  God will live with them; they will be God’s people, and God will be fully present among them.  The Most High will wipe away every tear from their eyes.  And death, mourning, crying, and pain will be no more, for the old order has fallen.”  The One who sat on the throne said, “Look!  I’m making everything new!” and added, “Write this, for what I am saying is trustworthy and true.”  And the One continued, “It is finished.  I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End.  To those who are thirsty I will give drink freely from the spring of the water of life.  This is the rightful inheritance of the overcomers.  I will be their God and they will be my daughters and sons.” ---  Revelations 21:1-7, The Inclusive New Testament
and
The wolf shall live with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the kid, the calf and the lion and the fatling together, and a little child shall lead them.  The cow and the bear shall graze, their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.  The nursing child shall play over the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put its hand on the adder’s den.  They will not hurt or destroy on all my holy mountain; for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. --- Isaiah 11:6-9  New Revised Standard Version
Simply put, we must revisit crucial memories of learning and calling.  We must keep alive memories of past human trauma so with clear resolve and courage we can say, “Never again!”  We must draw upon these memories to keep hope, passion, and expectation alive for a better future.  It is in such moments of our own herculean efforts that “The One” comes to us and calls us toward the work of just and lasting peace, reconciliation, and healing of the spirit which will undoubtedly be unique for each one of us.

An individual recently shared memories of childhood abuse so horrid and tortuous that a good many people would not likely believe it ever happened.  The toxic shaming led to lifelong stress and distress that negatively impacted relationships, self-esteem, and even physical health bringing about disability and severe chronic pain that must be coped with and lived through every day.  The person commented at one point during their sharing that while they’re unsure about the notion of spirituality, there is a hope and a vision for finding some measure of peace in this life.  The hope and vision is the physical restoration of an object at the center of many pleasurable affirming nurturing experiences with a grandparent -- a grandparent who reached out to a struggling young grandchild to help that child believe in oneself and have hope for the future.  The individual then said to me that work on this restoration project will bring healing “for I will look up and the one who I loved will be there and we will talk and laugh and I will feel peace.”  

Such moments are the moments of God’s Tabernacle among us -- signs that the hateful Old Order of those like POTUS 45 and Russian Federation Putin, Syrian President Assad, North Korea's Kim Jong-un, and others will soon fall and God’s New Earth will be.  For the Common Good will rise indeed and we will look up and the one whom we love will be there to wipe away every tear from our eyes.  And death, mourning, crying, and pain will be no more.

Brad Shumate
Free of Encumbrance
Eugene, Oregon


This post dedicated to: Evangelist/Psychotherapist/Healer/Apostle/Prophet John Berger who began his "Being of Light" journey on Tuesday, April 25th, 2017. Journey well dear friend and drop by once in a while when I too will look up, and see you who I loved, and we will talk and laugh as we did so many times before......


One of John's favorite scriptures reflecting his deeply personal sense of divine calling:  “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” —Luke 4:18–19 NRSV.  See his Daily Bread post  "Spirit Huddle". 

Thursday, April 20, 2017

PEACE BE WITH YOU

JOHN 20:19–31 (NRSV)

When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you."  After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.  Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you."  When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit.  If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained."  But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came.  So the other disciples told him, "We have seen the Lord." But he said to them, "Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe."

A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you."  Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe."  Thomas answered him, "My Lord and my God!"  Jesus said to him, "Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe."  Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book.  But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.


PEACE BE WITH YOU

In a world on the verge of nuclear war with individuals at the helm of countries like the United States, Russia, North Korea, Syria and others, who behave like angry despotic leaders -- many of us are far from having any sense of peace these days.  POTUS 45’s behavior is like that of a lumbering freakish middle school playground bully who generates terror at nearly every turn.  He is responsible for fanning the embers of more potential flashpoints for the start of a World War than any other POTUS since the Cuban Missile Crisis.  Interestingly enough -- even then -- it wasn’t a US president who generated the missile crisis but rather the Soviet Russian Premier Nikita Khrushchev.  It was however President Kennedy who courageously navigated and resolved that conflict with the finesse of an intellect far more superior and advanced than that of POTUS 45.  Kennedy and his aides possessed a skill that POTUS 45 does not have, i.e. how to avoid painting oneself into a corner and they do so through the tactful use of diplomacy, compassion, and courage.

So what are we to do about 45’s behavior of lumbering about freakishly and bullying others on the world stage?  What do we do about a person’s behavior that appears acquainted only with habitually lying, sabre rattling, loving to be at war at every turn, even wanting to war with nukes?  What do we do about a person’s behavior that demeans women and minorities, refuses transparency his tax returns to the public would provide, who hates Muslims, who hates immigrants, who hates Meals-On-Wheels, who hates Planned Parenthood, who tries not once but now four times to take away his fellow citizens’ healthcare coverage, who violates the Constitution’s emoluments law, who so predictably on a Wednesday or Thursday of every week does something to ensure that he alone dominates the weekend news cycle?  Perhaps what we most need to acknowledge is that the behavior of POTUS 45 very much resembles the behavioral pattern of an abuser determined to maintain highly intense emotional flooding of his victims, in our case the citizenry of the US & the World.  With a new round of terror for every weekend so we are kept frightened and exhausted, which is what abusers want their victims to be in each and every moment of their lives – we end up hiding away like Jesus followers did immediately after the Romans and religious authorities pursued Jesus’ humiliation even to his very death.

One thing we must not do in the midst of the times in which we find ourselves is to despair.  As US Senator Bernie Sanders has put it, “Despair is not an option.”  As the recent Women’s March put it, we must shout, “Hear Our Voice!”  As I have put it, “Remember the Alamo!” for we are indeed a besieged people fighting with POTUS 45 and his “GOP Do-Nothing Congress” for the right to a future that it is just, compassionate, peaceable, and egalitarian toward all.  Every day I shake my head seeing what hypocrites our GOP Congress is.  If the current POTUS was a Democrat behaving the way 45 is now, the GOP Congress would have initiated and completed Articles of Impeachment and the Senate would have convicted and removed him from office.  But no that certainly has not happened -- not happened because party and party agenda is more important than being a patriot.

Do not despair.  Be vigilant.  Demand daily that a “Do-Nothing GOP Congress” do something.  And keep peace with you at all times -- for the behavior noted above shall not stand!

Brad Shumate
Free of Encumbrance
Eugene, Oregon

CALL YOUR REPRESENTATIVES & SENATORS NOW!! SAY "HELL NO" TO GOP ASSAULT ON OUR HEALTHCARE!! CALL 202-225-3121. NO REPEAL OF ACA!!  STOP VERSION 4.0 OF TRUMPCARE/RYANCARE IN ITS TRACKS!!

Thursday, April 13, 2017

CALL YOUR SENATORS, REPRESENTATIVES NOW!!
SAY HELL NO!!  CALL 202-225-3121 

Sunday, April 9, 2017

"REMEMBER THE ALAMO" - WHEN IT COMES TO POTUS 45 & GOP CONGRESS

“REMEMBER THE ALAMO!!” – Seems like the movement “THE RESISTANCE” against Republican POTUS 45 and his GOP Congress need a rallying cry or two – perhaps even more.  Some rallying cries already exist such as that of Senator Bernie Sanders, “Despair is not an option.”  Another rallying cry is the recent Women’s March, “Hear Our Voice!”  For me, I think I’m going to use “REMEMBER THE ALAMO!!”  Why?  Well, for me, the rallying cry is not only a powerful moment in our history but it also symbolizes what was lost, the grievous traumatizing costs of those losses, the courage and passion and focus it took to regain lost ground in order to overcome malicious trespassing.

Current Republican POTUS 45, Republican House Speaker, Republican Senate Majority Leader, and Republican Congress – all taken together have engaged in malicious trespassing by laying siege like an army to what Americans value most.  The most egregious part of their siege has been to try and cut out and cut away “Essential Health Benefits” – not only once but twice since 45 took office on January 20th of this year.  They have also tried to cut out and cut away our diversity as a people through their Muslim Travel Ban efforts.  They have sought to make the rich and powerful even more rich and more powerful and more protected through reverse Robin Hood tax reform tactics that put the middle class and poor at frightening risk.  Lastly POTUS 45 and 45's administration engage in nepotism, collusion with foreign powers, illegally attacking another country, and astonishing violations of the Constitution’s Emoluments Clause that 45's GOP Congress egregiously and unlawfully let slide.  If the current POTUS was a democrat, the GOP “Party of No” the past seven years would be all over that individual and their administration like no tomorrow.  There would be too many investigations to count, Articles of Impeachment would be well underway.

"REMEMBER THE ALAMO!!" focuses my mind very clearly on what I must do through civil non-violent dissent between now and when the public’s will is sufficiently strengthened to overcome our time’s General Santa Anna (POTUS 45) and his GOP army’s assaults on -- and sieges of -- our inalienable Constitutional rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.       

Friday, April 7, 2017

HELL NO POTUS 45 - STAY OUT OF SYRIA - CALL CONGRESS @ 202-225-3121

So here's my hunch on Syria: 

Republican POTUS 45 desperately needing a distraction for us from the 1) Congressional investigation of his ties with Russia and their interference with our last presidential election as well as 2) failed Version 1.0 of Trumpcare and Ryancare, 3) failed Version 2.0 of Trumpcare & Ryancare, 4) failed Muslim Travel Ban, and 5) his unlawful violations of the Emoluments Clause of the US Constitution --- DECIDES unilaterally and without approval of Congress to war on Syria -- a country that is not a threat to the security of the United States. Yes the atrocities there are horrifying and need to stop, but it's not our country and the UN Security Council has not sanctioned military intervention against Syria. Russia (aka Putin) meanwhile eggs 45 on and says, "You have a better idea for dealing with Syria?  Go for it!"  So 45 plays right into it all and bombs the daylights out of Syria. 

Meanwhile, Americans with their heads spinning like a top from one 48 hour news cycle to the next (because that's what Republican POTUS 45 wants rather than our attention focused on his unlawful behavior) don't know what sense to make of everything. USA citizenry subsequently devolves into distress, fury, civil unrest, chaos, and being royally outraged trying to keep up with all the infuriating things POTUS 45 throws at us.

Republican POTUS 45 and followers keep watching and looking for their opening --- what opening is that?  The opening that allows 45 to declare a national state of emergency due to civil unrest, establish martial law, abridge US Constitution and Bill of Rights. Shortly thereafter Republican POTUS 45 and followers have coffee in Russia with Putin while patting each other on the back and plotting next steps to make the world over in their own image.

Time to say "HELL NO REPUBLICAN POTUS 45!!" and "STAY THE HELL OUT OF SYRIA" until UN Security Council sanctions military intervention.

CALL CONGRESS @ 202-225-3121

SAY "HELL NO, STAY OUT OF SYRIA!!"