Lies defile our hearts

Proper 15 Year A 2017

August 20, 2017

    My mom used to say that only drunks tell the truth; I’m pretty sure she meant that if someone were drunk, then they were more likely to tell the truth.  Not really sure why she believed that because I didn’t really know her as much of a truth teller whether she was drunk or sober; the level of alcohol in her body didn’t really seem to correlate to her ability to tell the truth, and if anything, it may have made bad things worse.  Many years later when I had to deal with my own relationship to alcohol and it’s affect on my relationship to truth, I decided a couple of things.  First,  I was going to change my relationship to alcohol, and, I was going to, as much as I could, live my life in truth and integrity.  There were so many lies that were part of my family’s being, that I’m pretty sure that the lies were believed, at least by those that told them.  What I am certain of, is that the lies hurt people who certainly deserved better.

The truth is, don’t we all deserve better?  It took me a while to figure out that I deserved better; when you live with people who don’t tell the truth, especially when it comes to what they say about you, it can become difficult to believe the truth about who you are.  

Teresa of Avila is one of my favorite saints;  she died in 1582 and was a major figure in the counter reformation in the Catholic church.  One of the things I admire about her, is that she was always in trouble.  She taught that people could have a personal even mystical relationship with God, and could pray to God without an intermediary, such as a priest.  The common teaching at the time was that people needed their priest to pray and to communicate with God on their behalf; even when people went to church, the mass was celebrated in a language that wasn’t the language of the people.  So, you would sit in church, and if you were lucky you would respond with the customary responses, and you might not understand what was being said.  Certainly, if you weren’t educated, you might be even further removed from understanding.  So, imagine that the church tells you that basically you can’t communicate directly with God because you weren’t educated enough, or important enough; and it’s probably more complicated that that, but that’s the basic premise… then suddenly, someone comes along and tells you that what you have been made to  believe about yourself is wrong; that you matter to God just the way you are, and that God desires a personal, intimate relationship with you, and that you don’t need someone else to talk to God for you?  It changes everthing, right?  Suddenly, you see begin to see yourself as a much beloved child of God who has been freed to pray and worship God in ways that you were kept from for really, no good reason.  When we see ourselves as children of God, when we see the truth about who we really are, we can begin to question and change the systems around us that have been used in false, oppressive ways.   In the gospel of John, we are told that the truth shall set us free; and it is indeed so.  Knowing that we are all created in God’s holy image, indeed sets all of us free from the oppression that others try to force upon us.

“Jesus called the crowd to him and said to them, “Listen and understand: it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but it is what comes out of the mouth that defiles.”  He later on explains that what comes out of the mouth originates in the heart, which is why it defiles.  When things come from the heart, they are more permanent, and are also capable of inflicting great pain upon others.

    When truth comes from our hearts and out our mouths, it may not always be pretty, but it is good, and honest; it teaches us things we need to know, and can help move us toward spiritual and emotional health.  Truth is a gift that is given when there is mutual respect between people.  When we say that we are Christian people, we are making the statement that we believe that Jesus is the embodiment of truth and love; Jesus reveals God the Father to us; in Jesus we are set free to be God’s children, equals in God’s kingdom.  As Christians, we believe in respecting the dignity of others because we believe that all of humanity is created in God’s image, and to speak about another with lies and hatred is a sin against the image of God…

    At least I hope we believe that; I hope I believe it.   There have been so many photographs and stories on the news over the last week that are disturbing, not to mention the deaths and injuries that have also occurred.  It can be easy for us to sit at our kitchen tables, coffee in hand, and think, “well, I would never do anything like that; I’m not a member of ISIS”, or, “I’m not a member of the KKK; I would never kill anyone…” Ok, fair enough.  I am certain that we are all good people who try to do the right things; except when we don’t.  If you and I continue to say that we “aren’t like those people”, without truly examining what is in our hearts and minds, we are part of the problem.  Maybe, we aren’t marching with torches or burning crosses, but maybe we tell racist jokes to our friends; maybe, we have been heard to use language that degrades another person’s being; maybe, we have perpetuated the stereotypes that cause people pain and suffering… maybe we believe some of those stereotypes… anytime we use language that degrades another, we are telling lies; things like using derogatory language for parts of a woman’s body to insult someone is never ok, and in my opinion, further demeans women; the color of someone’s skin doesn’t dictate their intelligence, their abilities or their worth; all people, and I do mean ALL people, are of infinite and equal worth in the eyes of God… that, is the truth; that is the truth that the kingdom of God is built upon, and it is what should be filling our hearts and falling out of our mouths… not to mention, it should be the truth that guides our actions… if we have drunk the poison of the empire, and all of us have to some degree, then we are at least a little drunk with the empire’s lies and distortions of the truth.  The more attached we are to the values of society and empire, the more we think we need to defend ourselves against others, the more distorted our relationship to the truth becomes.  Sometimes, we get so distracted by stuff and what we think our rightful place is, we start to lose sight of who Jesus is, and what we are called to do as members of the kingdom.

Beloved, what we say and what we do, matters.  We cannot continue to believe that what’s going on isn’t our problem; if one of God’s children is being hurt, or oppressed, it affects all of us.  All of us must look inside ourselves and honestly assess what is defiling us by making our hearts act in ways that are contrary to love.  Jesus is the very embodiment of God’s love; as heirs to his kingdom, we are called to breathe, speak, and do God’s love, to continue Jesus’ work in the world.  Anything less, anything that degrades another defiles us, defiles creation, and can encourage all sorts of hate.

As a Franciscan friend of mine said earlier this week, “Let’s love the hate out of each other,”  I pray that we can.  God so loved the world; now it’s our turn.