Emmanuel Episcopal Church
September 27, 2020
Proper 21, A
Philippians 2:1-13
Matthew 21:23-32
The Deeper Music
I had a great online dialogue with a friend and fellow singer-songwriter last week about our similar and different beliefs on God and being. She grew up Christian, has since left the church, and still believes “in prayer, God, and living a good life.” She said she has friends who are atheists and friends who are Christian, and she respects and loves them all. She said, “Love is the key. And we need more [love] in the world!”
I then shared a bit about how and why I believe in Jesus. She was appreciative to read that, and then I wrote, “Thank you…for your words, your music, and getting to share in the deep[er] music, even via [text chatting].” That deeper music is the inkling of God that runs through the world. That deeper music is the desire for justice, peace, and love at the core of all of us.
Looking at our gospel story today, we saw some conflict arise between the chief priest and elders, and Jesus. Anytime Jesus has conflict with political or religious leaders, I tend not to read those stories as being about love, but rather as either/or, in or out, one side over another kinds of stories. I believe, however, that that is an incorrect and harmful reading of these texts. Looking at our Gospel story for today, the chief priests and the elders were questioning Jesus about his authority to reform the Temple worship and sacrifice. He’d recently overturned the tables of the money changers and driven the animals out of the temple, and in doing so, he’d disrupted the system of animal sacrifice which had been in place in the religious practice of Israel since before the Temple was built. This system of animal sacrifice was intended to help people give thanks to God and to repent and ask for God’s forgiveness when they went against God’s ways. Jesus was seeking to reform that system of sacrifice.
So, there is conflict in this story, no question, but if we look at this story as either/or, in or out, one side over another, then we end up with Jesus as the good guy and the chief priest and elders as the bad guys…or the other way around. What if we don’t look at the story as good guys vs. bad guys? What if we look to the deeper music being played in the story?
“Who gave you [the] authority,” to reform the sacrificial system of Israel? They asked, and Jesus responded with a question about who was doing the will of God, those who say they would and then don’t, or those who say they won’t and then do. He was referring to people’s responses to John the Baptist.
The sacrificial system of Israel at the time seems not to have been working for a lot of people. The tax collectors and prostitutes whom Jesus mentioned seem not to have been transformed or healed by the system of temple sacrifice. The sacrifices weren’t leading to repentance for them. The temple sacrifices weren’t leading them to the deeper music, to walking with God in justice, peace, and love. John’s baptism, on the other hand, seems to have done so.
Now, the point is not that baptism is better than animal sacrifice. The point is not, “are you doing your religion correctly?” The particular religion or religious practice isn’t really relevant. The point is, “are you doing the will of God?” Are you listening to and following the deeper music of justice, peace, and love?
So we see this story is not about an either/or, in-group/out-group, one side over another conflict in which we get to declare “Jesus good" and “chief priest and elders bad.” Both sides in this conflict brought some to follow more closely the will of God. The deeper music was not whose religious practices were best. The deeper music was the seeking of God, the seeking of justice, peace, and love that pervaded both religious practices.
Back to my conversation with my friend, the deeper music is about us, humanity, coming together in following God’s will and God’s way of justice, peace, and love. I would say, if that happens through Christianity, great. If coming together and following God’s way of justice, peace, and love, happens through Judaism, great. If coming together and following God’s way of justice, peace, and love happens through Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, or any other religion, great. If coming together and following God’s way of justice, peace, and love happens through no religion or belief in God of any kind, great.
See, I believe that when we are walking the way of justice, peace, and love, when we’re living the deeper music, then we’re walking in the way of God whether we believe in God or not.
Who’s in and who’s out is not the point. The point is following God’s will and God’s way of justice, peace, and love. In our society, when we have lived with a “who’s in and who’s out” mindset, then we have tended to end up with women and minorities being treated as less than: less wages, less opportunities, less protections under the law.
Many have been mourning over the last week, the loss of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. She championed the rights of women and minorities not to be treated as less than. She was unwilling to accept that women weren’t supposed to do, well much of anything outside of the home. That was the view of things when she was growing up. Women were supposed to find a husband, and men were supposed to do everything else in the world.
Justice Ginsburg didn’t buy that worldview, and she worked throughout her life to uphold laws for equality and to overturn unjust laws that upheld inequality. In all that she stood for and worked for throughout her life, she was a champion of justice, peace, and love. Ruth Bader Ginsburg listened to and followed the deeper music. Even in her dissents, she didn’t view the other justices as being part of the out group. She was good friends with Justice Antonin Scalia with whom she often disagreed strongly, strongly but not unkindly. Rather than shout and belittle and shame, Justice Ginsburg would disagree in a way so as to bring others along with her. Rather than simply declare a right in group and a wrong out group, she sang the deeper music and worked to bring the other side along with her, seeking not to take justice and equality from those who had it, but to bring justice and equality to all. See, RBG lived not for an either/or, in or out, one side over another kind of society. RBG lived for the deeper music of justice, peace, and love.
Now that she has died, many of us feel a hole in the world, as though the deeper music has been quieted and lessened. Remember, however, that although Ruth Bader Ginsburg has died, she is also alive with God, and the deeper music plays on as strongly as ever. Her work is ours to continue; her music is ours to make. Justice, peace, and love didn’t end with Jesus’ death, and justice, peace, and love does not end with RBG’s death. Justice, peace, and love is the will of God, the deeper music throughout our lives, and this deeper music is not a solo act. The deeper music of justice, peace, and love is made by all of us together, every voice important: yours, mine, those we love, those we struggle to love. The deeper music is God’s presence, God’s way, and God’s will of justice, peace, and love which runs through all of us, every person a part of each others’ song.
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