July 11, 2010

IN SEARCH OF AUTHENTICITY

Scripture – John 8:2-11

For many years, my mother worked as the office secretary in the church to which my family belonged and in which I grew up. Now, I hope you realize that church secretaries often know more about what is going on in the congregation than does the pastor. She (and I use the word “she” because usually the church secretary is a she) is right at the center of everything. Pretty much everyone and everything goes past her desk on the way to whatever is the desired destination. And folks talk to the secretary…often in ways they might be reluctant to talk to the pastor. They usually throw the larger problems and concerns with which they are dealing to the minister-in-charge, but with the secretary they share what is really on their minds – the nitty-gritty of their existences…like what bugs them, what keeps them awake at night, their problems with family and friends, their needs and desires, what they have or haven’t done which makes them feel just a bit guilty, what makes them laugh and what makes them cry. And my mother, who never shared information which she had received in confidence, did observe that what happened in the church was just like what happened in the world…only it wasn’t supposed to! She was brought to the realization that people are people, wherever they are…even when and where they ought to be acting differently.

To some degree, what we’re talking about here is authenticity. Authenticity is a reality for which we all hunger and thirst. In a world run by “spin” and flooded with pretence, there is a deep desire for authenticity. And the question of authenticity is something with which we struggle even in the church. Am I right? Concerning this issue, don’t we at least sometimes feel abandoned and cheated by the very institution that claims to stand for nothing less than the truth? And beyond this, how often are church people (ourselves included) guilty of demonstrating a contradiction between what we say and what we do?

The church, and we as individuals within the church, seem to have an inability to formulate a simple but sincere and steadfast stance on life, on values, on morality, on what is vital and important in regards to that which we claim to hold dear. We seem to respect and revere the reality of God (or perhaps what we primarily feel is fear, depending upon what our image of God is), but our lives frequently reflect a different set of values than what we claim to believe God stands for. So what we proclaim and what we practice often appear to have little in common.

How can this be? Is it due to the fickleness of the human nature which we share or have we created a religion with rules and norms which we seem to agree to honor in name but then largely ignore in practice? Are we serious about Jesus? Are we serious about following Jesus and emulating Jesus and representing Jesus? These are valid questions, especially when we look honestly at some of our choices and actions and prejudices.

You know what I’m talking about here. We accept his claim upon our lives – a claim to which we have freely agreed and upon which we have pledged to model our existences. Then, clinically and carefully, we extract those parts of his message which appear to support our actions, our politics, our culture, our nation, our desires and demands and choices, while we simply, without fuss or feathers, discard the rest of his teachings which we think contradict what we want as if such teachings did not exist. In other words…we pick and choose – we pick what we like and we discard what we dislike (taking much out of context and usually forgetting that it’s all a matter of interpretation in any case). For example – some would practically be willing to die at the stake in defense of their belief that Christ was born of a biological virgin and later literally and bodily rose from the dead after, through crucifixion, paying the “dues” for our sins to a God demanding this kind of blood sacrifice…but then sweetly ignore the fact that he vehemently proposed a non-violent lifestyle. Another example – some would maintain that what God wants and what we want are one and the same…but are apparently oblivious to those divine demands which we don’t favor. We tend to cherry pick our way through our religious “supermarket” like a shopper in Publix – we’ll take one of this and one of that but skip something else, at least for the time being (can’t afford it, you know).

What’s with this religion which we claim as our own with such enthusiasm and gusto but which lacks authenticity in the midst of such apparent chaos? And what’s with us that we proclaim loyalty and commitment to the nth degree yet are anything but consistent in our discipleship? Why is the church like it is? Why are we like we are? Why can’t we be and become what we seem to want to be and become? We revere the Jesus who told us to love and forgive our enemies (as he did)…but we don’t or can’t. We love the Jesus who told us to always act with honesty and compassion (as he did)…but we don’t or can’t. We admire the Jesus who told us to act fairly and uprightly in our dealings with others (as he did)…but we don’t or can’t. And then we tend to base our expectation of salvation on whether or not we say the right words or follow the right rituals or join the right church while the Bible tells us that what is expected of us is that we treat others the way we want to be treated while taking care of those in need!

We need help in our efforts to really be Christian in our thoughts and actions, and we look to the church for the necessary support, only to discover that the church (which, after all, is us) is, more often than not, just as wishy-washy in its steadfastness as we are! It, too, has its own “axes to grind”. It, too, is intent upon looking after its own interests. It, too, is buffeted about by a world which is usually anything but kind and caring and concerned. It, too, cherry picks while it selects what to do or not do, what to believe or not believe, what to support or not support, when to stand or not stand. The truth of the matter is that, by and large, we are far more influenced by our nationalistic leanings than we are by our religious leanings…and this applies throughout the world in what often becomes a conflict between every nation and every religion.

So…we are far weaker than we would like to be and our churches are far weaker than we would like them to be. The result is that, in our confusion and anger and disappointment, we tend to set our standards lower and lower to protect our own positions. So, yes, we follow Jesus…but not when it threatens our own well-being. And in our disillusionment because of all that the church is not, we forget that we and the church are one and the same.

Are you angry with the corruption and the dishonesty which seem to surround you? Are you disturbed by the faithlessness of others? Are you dismayed that the church doesn’t do more to “make things right”, forgetting that “making things right” might go against your own best interests and you would therefore often oppose it? Why do we act the way we act? Because we are human…and because we are human, and thus fallible and imperfect, we should do all we can to improve while, at the same time, cut one another a bit of slack.

It is important here, I think, to particularly remember this morning’s scripture lesson and resolve to not throw the first stone. There was Jesus in the courtyard of the temple, teaching all who came to listen and learn. A bunch of scribes and Pharisees, those Jewish leaders and scholars who were always trying to trip him up, “paraded” before him a woman whom they had caught in adultery. They reminded him (as if he needed to be taught the law) that she should be stoned to death (I wonder where the guy was with whom she had committed adultery – oh, well). They were, you see, hoping that he would reject their religion’s legal requirements and they could then make accusations against him. But Jesus was, as usual, too smart for them. Can you picture the scene? While they ranted and raved, exhorted and extolled, Jesus kind of doodled in the dirt with his finger. And when they had momentarily run out of breath, he looked up and said, in effect: Okay, fine. Now, whoever here has never made a mistake or done something wrong, throw the first stone! Then he went back to his doodling. By the time he again looked up, everybody was gone except the woman. He facetiously asked her where they were…and if there was no one left to condemn her. Then he suggested that she go on her way…and behave herself in the future.

I don’t think that story needs any expansion or explanation. Its lesson is pretty plain. And it applies to us as well as it applied to the scribes and Pharisees. Perhaps, then, it’s time for us to realize, in brutal honesty, that the world is us and we are the world. So if we are disillusioned with conditions and people…and the church…we must also be disillusioned with ourselves and our failings. As Christians, we speak about forgiveness and caring and so often are unforgiving and uncaring. As Christians, we demand truthfulness and so often have to admit our own truthlessness. So what are we left with? Where can we turn? Perhaps to humility. Perhaps just knowing that we intend well and fail often can be enough to sustain us in our despondency over the lack of authenticity. Perhaps the realization that none of us is perfect can get us over the humps and around the obstacles we face. Perhaps an acceptance of our own limitations can make us more accepting of the limitations of others. And perhaps in our humility we can open our eyes and see through the brokenness of the world to the beauty which is there.

Paul talks about truth being as elusive as the image seen in a bad mirror which distorts the picture. And he suggests that one day we will see more clearly. How about now? Perhaps with the right attitude and much hard work it can happen. If, in the midst of this mixed up world of ours, we rekindle joy and compassion and friendship while practicing humility and patience and forgiveness, authenticity might be found. It’s not an all or nothing situation. If and when we slip up, that doesn’t mean that all is lost. If we don’t always practice all the values and virtues, that doesn’t mean that we practice none of the values and virtues. But the point is that we’ve got to keep trying. Even in our imperfection, and the acknowledgment of our imperfection which makes our shortcomings bearable, we must strive to improve. When Jesus drove away the expectant and eager stone-throwers, he told the accused woman to mend her ways. We cannot forget that we are always a “work in progress”.

We are all struggling to make sense of what we perceive and what we endure. And here’s where friendship helps. We all need friends to love us and accept us in the midst of our struggles despite our imperfections. And we need to be friends to them as well because they, too, are struggling with the same problems, the same imperfections, the same concerns. That means, as well, being more gentle with those we perceive to be our critics and enemies, being less vengeful because of the pain in and of our pasts, and being more open to the ideas of others.

Then, maybe, in better understanding ourselves, we will better understand the world and the church and the spouse and the child and the friend and the enemy we have sometimes found so hard to understand and accept. Authenticity is being honest, not perfect. When seen with this perspective, then, life is good. In fact, life is very good!

By: Herb Freitag