Emerging (Somewhat): Eastertide and Equality

I have been spotty, at best, with posting here on the blog.  I totally ignored all of last week's drama in Boston with bullets flying, and bombs blasting, in otherwise quiet neighborhoods.  No mention of the fertilizer plant explosion in West, Texas, or ricin in the mail to members of Congress and the President.  Is it any wonder that my mentor did the unthinkable (for her) and preached on the reading from the Book of Revelation!  People, including me, were reeling last week.

But as I settle in to finally write a reflection this evening, I am looking at the text from this morning's reading from the Wisdom of Solomon.   We had these lines from the beginning of Chapter 5:

Then the righteous will stand with great confidence
in the presence of those who have oppressed them
and those who make light of their labours.
 When the unrighteous^* see them, they will be shaken with dreadful fear,
and they will be amazed at the unexpected salvation of the righteous.
 They will speak to one another in repentance,
and in anguish of spirit they will groan, and say,
 ‘These are persons whom we once held in derision
and made a byword of reproach—fools that we were!
We thought that their lives were madness
and that their end was without honour.
 Why have they been numbered among the children of God?
And why is their lot among the saints?
 So it was we who strayed from the way of truth,
and the light of righteousness did not shine on us,
and the sun did not rise upon us.
 We took our fill of the paths of lawlessness and destruction,
and we journeyed through trackless deserts,
but the way of the Lord we have not known.
What has our arrogance profited us?
And what good has our boasted wealth brought us?

Now, I know better than to look at the Bible in a literal sense, but these lines really stood out for me this morning as I listened and thought about our world as we know it.  Especially in light of what is happening nationally and internationally with marriage equality.  The French said, "Oui!"; Nevada and Delaware are moving closer to adopting legislation to give gay and lesbian couples equal marriage rights.  And Rhode Island... little itty bitty super Roman Catholic Rhode Island... has sent a marriage equality bill to the desk of Gov. Lincoln Chaffee who is expected to sign it.  

As you might imagine, the National Organization for Marriage, the latest incarnation of those who would rail against LGBT people wanting to get hitched, put out a news release denouncing the passage of the legislation in Rhode Island.  They are worried about children growing up without a mother and father, or churches and businesses getting punished for refusing to recognize a "genderless marriage." I don't know why they think having two people of the same gender in a covented relationship is "genderless," but--oh well.  Instead, I go back to the words from Wisdom:

 ‘These are persons whom we once held in derision
and made a byword of reproach—fools that we were!
We thought that their lives were madness
and that their end was without honour.
Why have they been numbered among the children of God?
And why is their lot among the saints?
So it was we who strayed from the way of truth,
and the light of righteousness did not shine on us,
and the sun did not rise upon us.

Perhaps this is what NOM and any other group or individual should consider before they speak harshly of another.  Again, when I think about what is happening in the lectionary on Sunday as we hear the stories of John's gospel, I am struck that there is an overarching message of, "Don't chase away anyone; all comers are welcome to the banquet!"  The very ones you would reject, they will be "the chief cornerstone."  That seems to be the message that is getting revealed in our time.  I can't help but feel that in my bones as I witness more and more willingness to open the doors to the banquet hall just a little bit wider to let more people in.

And it is that witness that then makes those who refuse to see, those who have stopped up their ears and will not listen, look even more foolish.  How much longer can ecclesiastical and secular bodies stand opposed to the tidal waves of justice that are sweeping the planet?  How steadfast can one bishop be in refusing to recognize and honor the gifts not only of LGBT couples, but of LGBT people period?  How can people insist that Christ is NOT risen, when it is clear to so many of us that He is alive and the Spirit is blowing away prejudice against the LGBT population?

"Welcome happy morning!" age to age will say... whether you want to hear the message of the hymn or not!