How are Your Investments Doing?

How are my investments doing? If you have any investments in the stock market or a 403b, if you’re receiving or counting on a pension from a public or private source, or if you have a business, for the last several years you’ve probably asked this question of your financial advisor or pension administrator: how are my investments doing? For the last five years or so, the answer has mostly been, “Not too well.” Many of our investments have lost value, many houses are still “underwater,” i.e., the debt on them exceeds their market value, and the vast majority of our savings accounts and CDs pay under 1% in interest. Are we “children of this world” handling our investments shrewdly enough? And what about our other investments?

It’s a tough parable Jesus puts before his disciples and hangers-on. Scripture scholars have debated for centuries why Luke included it in his gospel. And why, they wondered, did Luke put this odd story between the story of the Prodigal Son – don’t we all just love that story – and the one we’ll hear next week, the story of the rich man and Lazarus – which most of us wealthy First World folks don’t like at all. And all of us wonder what Jesus could possibly have meant in this odd parable of the shrewd manager.

The subject matter of the parable shouldn’t surprise us. In Luke’s retelling of the gospel story, Jesus has much to say about the proper use of wealth and possessions. Just think back to the story we heard three weeks ago. In that story, at a dinner party on the Sabbath, Jesus embarrassed his host by asking why he had invited only his own rich friends, rather than “the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind.” Two weeks ago, we heard Jesus warn us to plan ahead in our spiritual lives and to remember that, “none of you can become my disciple if you do not give up all your possessions."

However, you might have been surprised at the outcome of today’s parable. The rich man, perhaps an absentee landlord, learned that his trusted manager was wasteful and careless in the investments entrusted to him. Didn’t you think that when the rich man then discovered that the manager had cooked the books and reduced everyone’s debts he would have had the manager sent to prison? Didn’t the manager commit fraud? Yet the rich man was pleased with the manager. Is this outcome just Luke’s way of making us think, by reversing our expected outcomes? Possibly. But possibly not. Knowing the debt collection practices of the ancient world, some scholars think that what the manager really did was cut his commission. That is, he was willing to forgo most of his income with these contracts in order to have a group of people grateful to him when he was out of a job. The master would still receive about the same amount of return in what would then be a win-win situation for everyone.

What’s even more surprising in this reading is that, after telling the parable, Jesus then interprets it. Remember that parables are a little like Aesop’s fables. They’re stories with a point. Here, in fact, Jesus provides three different, albeit inter-related, ways of understanding the parable. I’d like to focus on the first one. Perhaps astonishing the disciples, Jesus tells them, “The children of this age are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than are the children of light. And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of dishonest wealth so that when it is gone, they may welcome you into the eternal homes.” Jesus’ meaning is clearer, I think, in the words of The Message. “Streetwise people,” he says, “are smarter in this regard than law-abiding citizens. They are on constant alert, looking for angles, surviving by their wits. I want you to be smart in the same way—but for what is right—using every adversity to stimulate you to creative survival, to concentrate your attention on the bare essentials, so you’ll live, really live, and not complacently just get by on good behavior.” Or to put Jesus’ lesson yet another way: we are to be as shrewd about what truly matters as those of this world are about their – or our – monetary investments. As both individuals and as a parish, we are to be as intentional about our spiritual lives, including our use of our God-given resources, as we are about our secular lives, our lives “in the world.” We are to remember that discipleship is not a part-time job. We are to take our discipleship as seriously as we take any of our other worldly obligations. Ultimately, Jesus warns us, it is the relationships that we make with God and with each other in the spiritual realm that will last, that will bring us eternal life, when wealth and possessions have passed into the hands of others.

How do we respond to Jesus’ charge? How do we as twenty-first century people living in a decidedly unspiritual culture actually follow through on our professed commitment to Jesus’ way? The first step may be to look at our priorities – our real priorities? What truly comes first in our lives? Is church and everything associated with it, say, eighth in our first ten priorities, the “icing on the cake,” of a life consumed with other obligations and forms of idolatry? If we truly accept our obligations as Jesus’ disciples, then the next step may be to actually take Jesus literally and be more intentional about our use of our resources, especially our money. Make no mistake: our use of our money is a true reflection of our character. Where are you investing your money? Is your money advancing God’s agenda? In addition to asking this question of ourselves, we might also ask it of the church. Are we using our funds to advance God’s agenda, or merely to keep up a place where a handful of us can feel good about ourselves? We might ask this question of the non-profit agencies that we support. What are they doing to advance God’s agenda, to further the cause of justice and create a more peaceful world? Remember Amos’s warning that God cares especially for those who are poor and on the margins of society. Jesus only reiterates what the prophets began telling us nearly three thousand years ago! What are we and the agencies we support doing to meet God’s expectations? And when was the last time you wrote, called, or emailed your elected representative expressing your desire for policies that reduced poverty and enhanced the lives of the poor?

We might also ask ourselves whether we are investing our own selves, our own bodies in concrete acts of mercy. Unquestionably, a check or credit card donation is always appreciated: it’s all green, as they say. Even so, for some of us, perhaps most of us, Jesus encourages us to engage in face-to-face acts of mercy, to build relationships outside of our comfort zone, to truly begin to know people in need, in our own communities or even overseas. Remember the story of the dinner: Jesus didn’t tell his host to write a check to his favorite NGO. He told his host to invite “the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind” into his home, to get to know them as real people worthy of attention and love.

Finally, we might honestly examine the content of our prayer. Do you have a set of prayers that you say by rote, remembering only a small circle of family or friends? The writer of the letter to Timothy reminds us that God “desires everyone to be saved,” and that therefore we are to pray for everyone. We are even to pray for kings! The goal: that all may live a quiet and peaceable life “in all godliness and dignity.” In the model prayers of the people in the Book of Common Prayer we do pray for “the leaders of the nations, and all in authority.” Yet, there are few countries in the world today where most people live a “peaceable life in all godliness and dignity,” where most people have homes, decent food, work, access to healthcare, and peace. The church must raise its voice in proclaiming peace and calling for justice. We too must pray and then make our voices heard so that our politicians know that we are dedicated to the cause of a peaceable life in all godliness and dignity for all people, and especially for those now excluded from the world’s resources. How can St. Peter’s be on the front line in advancing God’s agenda?

How are our investments doing? Are we as intentional about helping our spiritual investments grow as we are about our monetary investments? Are we using our resources to advance God’s agenda? Are we engaged in real acts of mercy? Are we praying for all, most especially our leaders? Holy God, you have called us to serve you. Guide us and make us worthy of our calling. Give us wisdom to use our resources and talents to your glory and to the benefit of all who are in need; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

What Do You Seek?

“What do you seek?” This is often the first question put to those thinking to enter the monastic life. The answer is often a generic one: life with Christ, God’s grace, or, perhaps, a life of service with and to others. Benedictine communities want a more considered answer to that question. In its chapter on “The Procedure for Receiving Members,” the Rule of Benedict advises, “Do not grant newcomers to the monastic life easy entry.” If newcomers persist in knocking at the door, says the rule, after four or five days they may be allowed to stay in the guest quarters for a few days. After that, they may stay in the novice house with other newcomers where they are patiently mentored by a senior member of the community. The novices are to be “clearly told all the hardships and difficulties that will lead to God.” Over the next several months, they are to thoroughly study the rule of Benedict. When they are ready to be received into the community they must promise in writing to abide by the rule, so that they are “well aware that … from this day they are no longer free to leave the monastery, nor to shake from their neck the yoke of the rule which, in the course of so prolonged a period of reflection, they were free either to reject or to accept.”

What do you seek? In today’s reading, we’re part of a large crowd travelling with Jesus as he makes his way to Jerusalem. What are we there for? Are we just traipsing after Jesus, cheering him on, or do we seek something deeper? Do we really want to hear what Jesus has to tell us?

Jesus has upped the ante! Last week at that Sabbath dinner party we heard Jesus remind us that we are to walk humbly with God, show kindness to those around us, and work for justice, especially for economic justice. Not unlike his sixth-century descendants, Jesus now flings a deeper challenge at us. “The patriarchal family is not the primary focus of your loyalty,” Jesus tells his would-be followers. “If you are one of my followers, you are part of a new family, made up of all those who have committed themselves to my way. And my way inevitably leads to the Cross, to that way of state execution that you know only too well. Consider well, count the cost, and make your plans carefully. If you want to follow me, be prepared to throw everything you’ve got into the pot.”

The message is clear: discipleship costs. In fact, it will cost us everything. Let’s unpack these words a little. This is the only time that the word “cost” appears in the entire New Testament. “Cost” is what we give up to get, preserve, make, or accomplish something. Cost may involve some sacrifice. Cost certainly involves effort and resources.

And discipleship? Discipleship is a process. Teihard de Chardin talks about the “slow work of God.” Discipleship is a transformative process in which we slowly, painfully, patiently, and painstakingly, become holier, become more and more like Jesus, become more and more the servants God expects us to be. Discipleship takes time. We will make false starts, and we will make mistakes, but we will, by the grace of God, grow, inch by inch. Discipleship involves letting go of all those attachments – attachments to luxury, toys, comforts, possessions, habits, activities, opinions, even overwork – whatever gets in the way of our focus on Jesus. At the heart of discipleship is transformation into people fully, intentionally, and whole-heartedly committed to Jesus’ way of life. In this transformation, God willing, we enter into a more intimate relationship with God, so that we cease being shallow and lackadaisical and become mature people of faith. Jesus fully warns us that growth in discipleship is a difficult process and that following him should change our entire lives. “If you cannot hear this call,” a pastor of a tall-steeple church told his affluent congregation, “then you ought to renounce your baptism.”

What do you seek? Do you really want to follow Jesus? Can you allow yourselves to be transformed by him? Many before us have sought that transformation and have ended up paying for it with their lives. When Luke wrote his gospel, the Romans were already persecuting followers of Jesus. Christians, including several prominent bishops, were martyred in the first three centuries of the church. Fifteenth-century Czech reformer Jan Hus and, in our own church, sixteenth-century Archbishop of Canterbury Thomas Cranmer were among many Reformers whose steadfast commitment to what they believed was Jesus’ call cost them their lives. Other names from our own times come to mind. Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote about “the cost of discipleship” from a Nazi prison shortly before being hanged. Archbishop Oscar Romero, who sought economic justice for the poor in El Salvador, was gunned down in 1980 while saying Mass. Sr. Dorothy Stang was shot to death while ministering to the poor in a Brazilian rainforest. Martin Luther King lost his life pursuing his Biblically-grounded dream of a just, color-blind society. Others have borne the cost of loss of blood family. Pandita Ramabai, a nineteenth-century Hindu Brahmin, lost all ties to her caste when she became a Christian, even as she found an entirely new family working among the poor and disenfranchised in western India. And others, like Mother Teresa, have struggled with loneliness and desolation, even as they strove to follow Jesus into the poorest corners of the world. All understood the cost of faithfully following Jesus, and all willingly accepted that cost in return for the transformation wrought in them by God.

What do you seek? God willing, none of us is called to witness to our faith with our lives. But do we really want to follow Jesus, or do we just want to traipse behind, enjoying the ceremonial and occasionally cheering him on? Be assured, the Christian life is not for the faint-hearted! If we truly want to be numbered among Jesus’ disciples, there is a cost. At the very least, Jesus calls us to look at our lifestyle, to do some honest soul searching, to ask ourselves whether our lifestyle truly reflects our commitment to Christ. As the old quip says, “If you were on trial for being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you?”

What is primary in our lives? Is it our commitment to Christ? Or do we let the demands of our secular lives overwhelm any time or energy we might give to God? How are we using our resources? We are not expected to become beggars, or to so impoverish ourselves that we are dependent on others’ charity. But are returning to God a portion of our treasure? I invite you to ponder your support of the church. Historically, 10% of one’s income was deemed an appropriate return to God. Where are you? If you are currently giving 1% of your income, can you give 2%? Can you give more? What about your time and talents? What return to God are you making of them? Are you growing in your relationship with God? If not, why not? What do you need to help you grow? What in your life should change so that you can spend more time with God? Is your sensitivity to the needs of others, especially to the needs of the poor, increasing? If not, what are some ways of immersing yourselves in the realities of their lives?

What do you seek? In her insightful commentary on the procedure for receiving members in the Rule of Benedict, Joan Chittister, herself a Benedictine, reminds us that, “The spiritual life is not a set of exercises appended to our ordinary routine. It is a complete reordering of our values and our priorities and our lives. Spirituality is not just a matter of joining the closest religious community or parish committee or faith-sharing group. Spirituality is that depth of soul that changes our lives and focuses our efforts and leads us to see the world differently than we ever did before.” The transformation that God offers us is “the process of a lifetime…. [I]t is not a spiritual quick fix…. It is the work of a lifetime that takes a lifetime to leaven us until, imperceptibly, we find ourselves changed into what we sought.”

What do you seek? Do you seek to be a faithful follower of Jesus? Know the cost of declaring yourself his disciple: ultimately it will be your whole life.

“In a little while, we will sing,

I can hear my Savior calling,
I can hear my Savior calling,
I can hear my Savior calling,
“Take thy cross and follow, follow Me.”
Where He leads me I will follow,
Where He leads me I will follow,
Where He leads me I will follow;
I’ll go with Him, with Him, all the way.”

I’ll go with him all the way. God grant that it may be so.

What Does God Expect

Eight centuries before Jesus walked into the house of the Pharisee on the Sabbath, God had already made God’s expectations of those who profess to be faithful people abundantly clear: As the prophet Micah declared, “He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”

“Walk humbly with your God.” Avram was confused. All the Pharisees in his region looked up to him. He was learned in the ways of the law, and he and his household observed all the law’s demands scrupulously. Even so, he was eager to meet this Galilean rabbi whose miraculous healings and startling teachings were arousing the countryside. When Avram went out to meet him at the gate, Jesus took Avram’s hands in his own. As if he knew that Avram wanted to follow him, Jesus looked into Avram’s eyes and greeted him warmly. Avram’s heart stirred. However, once inside the house, the mood shifted. Jesus’ face darkened as he watched the other men jockeying for position, showing off their fine clothes, and shouting at the servants. Going against all norms of etiquette, Jesus clanked a knife against a cup. Quoting some verses from Scripture – Proverbs as it turned out – he warned the status-seekers to remember who they were in God’s eyes: specks of dust, blades of grass blown away by a gust of wind. Was he trying for a little humor when he said, “Those who walk around with their noses in the air will fall flat on their faces?” Perhaps, but his message was clear. In God’s eyes none of us is any better than anyone else: we are all needy and dependent on God’s mercy. As Jesus was speaking, Avram began to wonder, “What do I do? Do I see myself as better than others? Richer, better educated, more influential? Do I myself head for the best seat in the synagogue or at dinner tables?”

Before Avram could answer these questions, Jesus spun around and addressed him. “Why did you invite only your friends, Avram? God has gifted you with a large and wealthy household, plenty of time, and a good heart. Where are the people who really need your help – and I’m not talking just about your checkbook? When are you going to embrace God’s other children, the ones who look, and smell, and talk differently from you? Do you think you’re better than they are? If you’re truly humble, you know that you’re no different from them, and that you and they are all God’s beloved children. You think you want to follow me? See who my friends are and make them your friends too!” Avram was stunned. Then he looked at Jesus’ face. He saw such love in Jesus’ eyes that, before he could lose his nerve, he whispered, “O.K., Jesus, I’m in.”

“Love kindness.” Fast forward twenty centuries. For thirty years, nine women in west Tennessee kept a deep, dark secret.1 Four of them women were sisters raised by generous grandparents and the other five were friends of the family. The nine women often played bridge together. Thirty-five years ago, they decided it was time to put their faith into action and begin helping those in need. Although they wished they’d had $1 million, they managed to scrape together $400 by washing their husbands’ shirts themselves. Then they hatched a plan: without anyone knowing who they were or what they were doing, in their own kitchens, they began baking cakes and other sweet treats for those in need. Then they began to eavesdrop – with good intentions -- at the beauty shop or the grocery store. If they heard about a widow or a single mom who needed a little help, they’d step in and anonymously pay a utility bill or buy some new clothes for the children.

They called themselves the Nine Nanas. The more people they helped, the bolder they became. “We gave new meaning to the term drive-by,” one said delightedly. “We’d drive through low-income neighborhoods and look for homes that had fans in the window. That told us that the people who lived there didn’t have air-conditioning. Or we’d see that there were no lights on at night, which meant there was a good chance their utilities had been turned off. Then we’d return before the sun came up, like cat burglars, and drop off a little care package.” And anonymously pay the utility bill.

The Nanas kept their secret for thirty years, until one of the husbands decided to take a closer look at bank statements and odometers. They fessed up. “They were amazed that we were doing this, “another said, “and even more amazed that they never knew. We can keep a good secret! All but three of the husbands are retired now, so sometimes they come with us on our drive-bys. In our area, all you need is an address to pay someone’s utility bill, so we keep the men busy jotting down numbers.” Then the grown children got involved, urging the Nanas to sell their sweet treats on line to support their charitable work. The orders began pouring in. When the orders reached 100 a day, a restaurant allowed them use its kitchen in the early morning hours, and they hired a full-time coordinator – whose identity is secret so that she can continue eavesdropping. Their online success now allows the Nanas to take on even bigger projects. Recently they donated more than $5,000 worth of pillows, linens and toiletries to a shelter for survivors of domestic violence. The million dollars they once wished for? They’re almost there. In the last 35 years, the Nanas have contributed nearly $900,000 to their local community.

“Do justice.” Tomorrow is Labor Day in the U.S. Many in this community struggle because they are unemployed. But Labor Day Sunday is also a day to recognize that some of the people who come to Loaves and Fishes, the Lutheran Social Services Mobile Food Pantry, or the Outreach Center, or who access government services, have a job but cannot earn enough to support a family. Perhaps their wages are too low. More than a quarter of all jobs pay such low wages that even someone working full time cannot support a family. More than likely, they don’t get enough hours anyway. More than a third of all Walmart employees, for example, work fewer than 28 hours a week and therefore do not qualify for benefits. Over 80% of low-wage workers have no sick leave and lose wages every time they or a family member is sick. Over a quarter of low-wage workers have no health insurance, either through their job or a family member – not to mention dental or vision care insurance. And many low-wage workers have unpredictable work schedules, making it difficult to take a second job, go to school, or find child care. To make matters worse, more than likely they have fallen into debt because of loans taken – at high interest rates – for car repairs or medical expenses. We do a great job of meeting people’s immediate needs for food, but what else can we do to help others escape poverty?

What is our role as a church to help those in need come to the point where our handouts are no longer necessary? This weekend workers at McDonald’s and other fast-food restaurants in many cities are onstrike, demanding livable wages. Addressing one such gathering in Atlanta, Congressman John Lewis alluded to the March on Washington fifty years ago this week. Then he offered his support to those gathered in Atlanta saying, "We're still marching for jobs. We need more than a minimum wage, we need a livable wage. I don't understand how people survive when they are being paid starvation wages. In a country like ours, we could do much better."2 Echoing Lewis in their Labor Day statement, Roman Catholic bishops reminded the faithful that, “The pain of the poor and those becoming poor in the rising economic inequality of our society is mounting. Therefore, on this Labor Day 2013, let us renew our commitment to promote the dignity of the human person through work that is honorable, pays just wages, and recognizes the God-given dignity of the working person.” What can we do? We can support policies that begin to decrease the gap between rich and poor in this country. We can pray for the wisdom to create a system where all who work are also able to support themselves and their families. We can press our elected representatives to think about extreme poverty and economic justice when they craft federal or state budgets. We can educate ourselves through books like Barbara Ehrenreich’s Nickel and Dimed or Jim Wallis’s On God’s Side. Jesus showed us that God’s Reign includes all of God’s children, and that God has a special preference for the poor. Have we invited the poor to the table?

“He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” God grant us the will and wisdom to follow Jesus in living up to God’s requirements.

1. The following is based on http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/06/20/it-aint-over-the-business-secret_n_1607385.html , accessed 8-29-13.

2. http://clatl.com/freshloaf/archives/2013/08/30/video-us-rep-john-lewis-calls-for-livable-wages-five-points-fast-food-workers-strike accessed 8-31-13.