True Religion

We had a snafu on Sunday. At the passing of the peace, I noticed that our service, normally livestreamed to Facebook, had not been started for the online community (we do have people show up at 11am on Sunday, or sometimes, later in the week). 

Anyway, I went ahead and recorded my sermon for our YouTube Channel. If you are so moved, dear reader, you can skip the narrative below...and follow THIS LINK to actually see and hear me preach this word.

Or...if you prefer...here it is.

Texts: James 1: 17-27, Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23, Collect for Proper 17 (Episcopal Book of Common Prayer, 233). 

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“God of all power and might, the author and giver of all good things; Graft in our hearts the love of your Name, increase in us true religion….”

It’s always about this time every year that we hear the words of this particular collect…and that prayer…asking for God to increase in us “true religion.”

For me…that phrase “true religion” always makes me stop and take a moment to think.

What does it mean to increase in us “true religion”?

Well…let’s start with understanding the words.

The definition of “true”…according to Merriam-Webster…when used as an adjective means “being in accordance with actual state of affairs…the essential reality…properly called…rather than what is assumed or manifest.”

That sounds about right.

The word “Religion” comes from the Latin “religio” which means “obligation, bond or reverence.”

So…putting these two words together…we can think of this “true religion” as “a bond or an obligation that is real.”

Great!

But that still doesn’t get us very far on finding a meaning of “true religion.”

When we look at what the letter writer James is talking about…we get an idea of what we might understand as “true religion.”

James doesn’t talk about “true” religion per se.

Instead… he says that for a religion to be “pure” or “undefiled” it has to show compassion for orphans and widows.

Taking care of those in need is one of the very basic tenets of the Torah in Judaism.

It’s also an oft-repeated message of Jesus to his `followers…both those with him in the First Century…and us today in the 21^st century.

Think about the famous parable of the Good Samaritan.

When we say we “love our neighbor” that means we need to follow up that statement with action…with an actual practice of showing love of neighbor.

The Letter of James is where we get the phrase “faith without works is dead.”

Now…some have thought that meant that we must do a bunch of good deeds in order to earn our way into God’s graces.

But that’s not at all what it means.

What the letter writer of James focuses on is the human heart…the core of our being.

The heart is the place of our motivation and actions.

It’s from our heart that comes the potential to do good or do evil.

And we are all capable of both.

If we live into the path of goodness…which is the path of love…life…and liberty….and do those things to grow that part of our heart muscle…we are capable of extending happiness into the world.

It’s like the story of the Grinch at Christmas…whose heart grows three-sizes when he hears the Who’s of Whoville singing and the joy of the season touches him.

We can also get this from Jesus in our Gospel this morning.

While the Pharisees are complaining that Jesus’ followers have failed to follow the ritual handwashing one does before eating…Jesus is quick to point out that it’s not the things going in the mouth that do harm to the body but what comes out of the mouth that’s the real problem.

Because what comes out of the mouth is a reflection of the truth that’s happening in our hearts.

Think about that for a moment.

The things we say…or in the thinking of James…the acts that we do…speak volumes about who we are…and the faith we hold dear.

They reveal what is in our hearts…and which impulse of the heart is stronger:

A faith that is about love…and compassion…will show loving-kindness to friends and strangers.

A faith that is about fear…looks inward…withdraws from community…and shuts out those who we don’t see as “kin.”

These are some of the important things for us to consider living in our time.

I remember attending a public forum once with my congressman in Florida.

This was back when there was all the debate about whether Congress was going to approve the Affordable Care Act…and Representative Allen Boyd was touring the district to hear from his constituents.

This meeting that I went to was done in Wakulla County…just south of Tallahassee.

It was standing room only.

And boy was he getting an earful at that forum!

At one point…Congressman Boyd put a scenario to the crowd to gauge their reaction.

He talked about a hypothetical situation of a young man…twenty years old…taking a job with an employer who didn’t offer him health insurance.

The young guy didn’t think anything of it.

He was fit and healthy and young.

No need for any special medications or care.

Then one day…he’s on his way to work.

Somebody runs a red light and plows into him.

He’s rushed to the hospital and has broken bones and internal bleeding that requires surgery.

He’s going to be laid up for weeks unable to work.

Congressman Boyd reminded them this young man had no health insurance coverage because he couldn’t afford to buy his own and the employer didn’t have a health insurance plan to offer.

The Congressman looked around the room and asked this crowd, “What should happen to this young man? What should we do?”

A woman…her arms crossed over her chest… sitting very close to where I was standing, grumbled out loud:

“Send him a bill!”

As I left that meeting…I couldn’t help but contemplate the billboard that greets visitors to that part of Florida.

It reads: “Wakulla loves Jesus.”

In such situations…Jesus’s quoting of Isaiah has a very real meaning:

“This people honors me with their lips, but their hearts are from me.”

People talk about Christianity…but the reality is that many don’t actually live Christianity.

When we think about “true religion” and those things which create “real bonds” ….with God…with the planet…and with each other…I would hope that our goal is to make our words match our actions.

I would love to see those who profess a belief in Christ and his teachings…live more closely to following the seeds of love planted in our hearts as baptized members of the body of Christ.

I would hope that we would understand that this is a love that transcends the small boundaries that we put in place to separate and divide us into camps and tribes.

I would want us to see that “true religion” binds us to a God who empowers and encourages us to work together and love our neighbors…building up people instead of tearing them down.

What a different and joyous world it would be if we did increase true religion in our hearts.

In the name of our one holy and undivided Trinity.