Gandhi Jayanthi: An opportunity to see God expressed in the midst of hunger

Bible passage: St. Mark 2:23-28

The disciples of Jesus are seen plucking heads of grain and the Pharisees complain to Jesus asking whether it is possible to do this on a Sabbath? In Jesus’ reply he reminds them of the story of David and his followers who eat the food meant for priests during the time of priest Abiathar, even though the food was meant only for priests. In a significant statement Jesus says “The Sabbath was made for human kind and not human kind for the Sabbath.”

What must have been the problem of the Pharisees who pointed out a rule to Jesus? The problem was simple. The disciples of Jesus were breaking the rule of their religion. The difference between religion and spirituality is something for us to ponder upon at this juncture. We can use this to identify the difference between religion and spirituality. Religion can be said to be the belief in someone else's experience while spirituality is having one’s own experience, religion shows you the truth while spirituality lets you discover it and religion makes you dependent while spirituality makes you independent. Even today we go by rules and not by spiritual conduct. What is it that God wants for God’s creation? Isn’t it the fact that we must love each other just as God taught us, and doesn’t love involve sharing food and feeding one another?

October 2 is commemorated as Gandhi Jayanthi because it is Mahatma Gandhi’s birthday. The father of the nation has remarked “There are people in the world so hungry that God cannot appear to them except in the form of bread.” There is a truth in this that can be linked to the above passage. The Sabbath or a Sunday service can be seen as a day to fast and not do anything else for the rich because they can afford to do it. But for the poor fasting is extension of their poverty. The disciples were poor materially but rich spiritually. The Pharisees were rich materially and poor spiritually. Jesus is leading us to the spirituality of the poor where being poor will make us rich. Fasting can be effective only when it hurts us. Otherwise it is only a life style choice done out of abundance. Sunday’s in church should not just be a set of rules of what we cannot do but should lead us into thinking what we can do.

Today we again get an opportunity to clean up our act. It is not only to clean our surroundings but to clean our mind of prejudices and wrong notions. The communion in the church is not thinking how to prevent people from coming to receive the Holy body and blood of Christ, by talking of rules and barriers but to ask people to come because the poor can become rich in the act of sharing food. Through communion we are getting the idea of going out to the world and reaching out to the poor and sharing our resources with one another.

Food is God’s love made edible. We must worship God by loving one another and sharing what we have with one another for the sake of God’s kingdom. Jesus tells us in John 13:34-35 “Love one another as I have loved you.” The Sabbath or a Sunday is not a rule but an opportunity. Eating food is a right and not a luxury. Staying away from communion will also make us stay away from sharing and feeding. Our children will also not understand why it is important to be hungry so that others may also eat.

A father who was aged was once shifted to a smaller table in the house by his son because the father had lost the capacity to eat properly according to the rules in the house, often dropping food on the table and the floor. The old father was given food on a separate table in a separate wooden bowl. The son then one day sees his child making a bowl and when asked the child answers that he is making a wooden bowl. The father asks him why and he replies that he is getting one ready for the father to use when he gets old, just like the grandfather. The person realizes his mistake and shifts his father back to the main dining table during meals. In the process of being clean and “swach” we must not lose track of the basic lesson in our spirituality of sharing what we have with one another.

This story and the story of Jesus and his disciples along with the quotation of Mahatma Gandhi speaks volumes to us. Being clean is important and making our surroundings clean is also important but making people see God through the sharing of food is even more important. Jesus’ disciples see and experience God in their act of plucking heads of grain. The Pharisees on the other hand quote rules (cleanness) and in the process lose sight of God. Even as we try to grow spiritually may we never lose track of God expressed in the midst of poverty and hunger. Amen.

Thrikkunnathu seminary: Why the government can and should change its approach

Public anger spilling on to the streets is usual when the situation is heated and two groups are involved. Quelling this with police force using batons, water canons, rubber bullets and real bullets will only lead to a temporary calm which will be broken at any time. The churches involved in the Thrikkunnathu seminary conflict are definitely expected to be striving for peace and are also responsible for keeping church members and supporters at bay. This responsibility is one that belongs to all leaders of both churches and there is no doubt about that.

Church feuds spill over into the public domain and this is when political parties and the government especially have an important role to play. This is not something which can be wished away or will be fixed by itself. The government of the day has the responsibility of taking care of the needs of every citizen of the region or country. Questions posed in the form of letters, speeches, marches and entries cannot be quelled by police brutality. Waving of batons and sticks and using authority is the sign of government sponsored anarchy having set in instead of making use of democracy. Anarchy is what the people are usually accused of when they stand for their rights. But using the protective police force as a destructive and obstructive force is also anarchy as it leads to the denial of rights of people which is not based on a public debate or a democratic process. Such brutal force only shows the helplessness of a government in dealing with the situation.

Anarchy is usually played out by ordinary people. It is a reaction to forceful tactics employed by the government against its own people. Giving this a political twist with hired goons and plain clothes policemen waiting to pounce on a sensitive situation is government sponsored anarchy. This is against the true spirit of democracy and this should be contested.

Moxie Marlinspike and Windy Hart in their “An anarchist critique of democracy” talk of how false democracy can bring about alienation, decontextualization, opinions, majorities and imminent critques. According to them alienation happens when “Society thus ends up divided into the alienated, whose capacity to create their lives as they see fit has been taken from them, and those in control of these processes, who benefit from this separation by accumulating and controlling alienated energy in order to reproduce the current society, and their own role as its rulers. Most of us fall into the former category, while people like landlords, bosses, and politicians compose the latter.” The Jacobite church being alienated by the government brings about a foul democracy in this sense. Decontextualization leads to rules and laws being framed and used without taking into consideration the context. Opinions of the people rather than agendas of political rulers are better any day and this is forgotten conveniently. Marlinspike and Hart further explain majorities by saying that “The concept of the “majority” is particularly troubling. By always accepting the will of the majority, democracy allows for majorities to have an absolute tyranny over everyone else. This means that in the winner-take-all context of democracy, minorities have no influence over decisions that are made.” A minority church then has no say in its own matters and justice becomes a difficult proposition. Finally demagoguery, lobbying, and corruption are also fall outs of a misplaced democracy. “Demagoguery refers to a political strategy of obtaining a desired outcome or power by using rhetoric and propaganda to appeal to the prejudiced and reactionary impulses of the population.” This happens a lot with misplaced news and analysis against the church. Lobbying means that “Special interest groups send extremely well-paid people after elected representatives to persuade, threaten, barter or bribe them into delivering legislation, government funding, or other favours for their group.” The church has always found several hidden factors influencing the government for certain decisions. All of this is associated to corruption as well.

The church feuds in Kerala are not new. Both the Jacobite church and the Indian Orthodox Church have to realise that whenever the police use force against prelates, the clergy and the people, they are crushing the democratic spirit which this country and the church believes in. We have to condemn violence and aggression against any church or community as the biblical notion is that “Today it’s me and tomorrow it could be you!” The government by not taking an initiative to bring about justice and peace has turned into a mob, which it accuses the church groups of being, whenever it is pleasing and comfortable to them. The ruling dispensation in the form of the United Democratic Front (UDF) in Kerala has its grounding and foundation in ahimsa (non-violence) and the non-violent struggle of Mahatma Gandhi. Yet the same dispensation tries to quell non-violent protest and thereby quells and destroys the very democratic foundation of not just the church and society but also of the very own political parties that are a part of the alliance.

How many times have political leaders been lathi (baton) charged, hit with water canons and forcefully evicted from contested places and spaces? How many times have politicians been evicted from the revered assembly, Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha when they shouted in the house and threw chairs? How many police men waved batons at members of the assembly and parliament when they made different kinds of noises in the place meant for meaningful and civilized debate? The security and justice expected by the people from a democratic dispensation is then only made available to a select political and business class. This is complete breakdown of democracy, challenging the very notion of freedom that this country has been built on and encouraging anarchists to take control of the situation.

All churches try to stay away from politics because they trust politicians to do their job. But what happens when this is not done? What is the alternative for churches and all religious groups when the government supports its version of anarchy in favour of democratic consultation and decision making? What if the people were to say that the security of the politicians is not the concern of the public and therefore the millions of rupees being spent on VVIP security should be stopped? What if the public were to duplicate the anarchy let lose by the government and the police?

The churches and its leaders are definitely called to serve and not to be served. But the same stands for the political class. This is something that has to be done together and not in isolation. The language, humiliation and force unleashed by the police is not a good sign for democracy in the state and country. So there is definitely no need for special treatment for leaders. But a head of a church and its bishops are not criminals in the same manner in which our representatives in the assembly and parliament are not looked at as criminals. If you can ask for, demand and forcefully take respect and use government machinery meant for the people, can’t religious leaders expect a bit of decency from you as well? This is not misplaced. It can be seen as the yearning of an ordinary citizen and should not be misconstrued as the demand of a powerful church and its leaders.

(Picture at the top is of priests in Ukraine standing between police and protestors during the huge protests there last month.)

Sacrificing one’s independence

As Kerala has surely shifted from a period of joint families (kootu kudumbam) to compact families, people are shifting more to an all for one concept. The one for all and all for one thought has undergone a real age change not only in the backwater rich state but also in the country as well. Even the car companies have understood the shift pretty much and it is reflected in the new hatch back models that have entered the market with their fuel efficient engines. The drive in the front seat is futuristic but the back is cramped into an almost “if you must, get in and don’t complain” design. It is like saying “If you want something you better be prepared to sacrifice.”

The law maker politicians have also found it difficult to understand what sacrifice is all about. The Congress in their whites and the Communists in their reds are finding the very word uncomfortable. Isn’t life supposed to be about making deals (money) and enjoying everything? What about the people? The people? “Oh, they will help us to fulfill our ideals”, say the politicos. So the people will sacrifice for the law makers. More electricity cuts, water shortage, accidents, hooligans, murderers! The people have to sacrifice and make do with these sufferings!!

So as an after thought to the independence day, one sees confusion as to what sacrifice really is. Churches talk about sacrifice every Sunday with priests going on and on about the virtues of sacrifice. Something they, like the politicians never practice. In this scenario the word sacrifice undergoes a transformation into what others have to do for the sake of our good. A far cry from what it is supposed to be “what we can do for the betterment of others.”

As an individual then the thought of independence and whose independence comes back strongly. Even though we have the independence to vote we don’t have the same independence to question what is done for five years in our state and country. Why? Because we are supposed to sacrifice! Poor Gandhiji’s picture will be thrust upon us with the much heard dialogue, “The India that Mahatma dreamt of. Let us work towards it.” And how? By sacrificing! If you ask me I feel pretty close to the wives who have jumped into their husband’s funeral pyre because they had to sacrifice. It is the most noble thing to do! Humbug. In the name of sacrifice the common person in this country is made to go through the most un-imaginable things and put through humiliation and hardship. Maybe it’s time for an equal responsibility pact in India. We do 50% of the sacrificing and the leadership has to do the other 50%. Like we listen to our leaders on independence day, let them listen to what we have to say too. Happy sacrificing.

Sermon on ‘Something about Mary: Hope, change and Obama’

Luke 1: 39-45: Mary visiting Elizabeth
Preaching and talking to the youth is always a challenge. It is so because the language we speak keeps changing and what I say may not be taken in the spirit of what I have said it. Nevertheless we all try to be as communicative as possible leaving all the faults and short comings aside.

There is a joke about a woman and a school master which in all truism puts into perspective what I have just said.
An English lady, while visiting Switzerland, was looking for a room for a more extended stay, and she asked the schoolmaster if he could recommend any to her. He took her to see several rooms, and when everything was settled, the lady returned to her home to make the final preparations to move.
When she arrived home, the thought suddenly occurred to her that she had not seen a "W.C." (Water closet) around the place. So she immediately wrote a note to the schoolmaster asking him if there were a "W.C." near the room.
The schoolmaster was a very poor student of English, so he asked the parish priest if he could help in the matter. Together they tried to discover the meaning of the letters "W.C.," and the only solution they could come up with for the letters was for a Wayside Chapel. The schoolmaster then wrote the following note to the English lady:


Dear Madam:
I take great pleasure in informing you that the W.C. is situated nine miles from the room that you will occupy, in the center of a beautiful grove of pine trees surrounded by lovely grounds. It is capable of holding about 229 people and it is only open on Sunday and Thursday. As there are a great number of people who are expected during the summer months, I would suggest that you come early; although, as a rule, there is plenty of standing room. You will no doubt be glad to hear that a good number of people bring their lunch and make a day of it. While others who can afford to go by car arrive just in time. I would especially recommend that your ladyship go on Thursday when there is a musical accompaniment. It may interest you to know that my daughter was married in the W.C. and it was there that she met her husband. I can remember the rush there was for seats. There were ten people to a seat ordinarily occupied by one. It was wonderful to see the expression on their faces. The newest attraction is a bell donated by a wealthy resident of the district. It rings every time a person enters. A bazaar is to be held to provide plush seats for all the people, since they feel it is a long felt need. My wife is rather delicate, so she can't attend regularly. I shall be delighted to reserve the best seat for you, if you wish, where you will be seen by everyone. For the children, there is a special time and place so they will not disturb the elders. Hoping to have been of service to you, I remain,
Sincerely,
The Schoolmaster.

Saying this I enter into the bible passage on which I will preach today. Mary, the mother of Jesus goes to meet Elizabeth, her relative. Prior to this both Elizabeth (Zechariah) and Mary have been visited by the angel Gabriel with the news that both of them are going to bear a child respectively. Elizabeth was old and even called barren while Mary was in her prime, very young by all standards.

Elizabeth is delighted to see Mary and she tells her so, even mentioning the great feeling she undergoes when she sees her.

How then should we see this passage in our time? Two women meeting each other? Elizabeth’s seal on Mary’s good fortune? The time of God which is imminent?

I would like to see this passage in the following ways.
1. Mary created community by reaching out to Elizabeth- What we strive for today is to be perfect individuals and when we can’t do that we are in a dilemma and this drives us to church to check whether we are all right or not. We gobble any message or thought that assures us that attaining individual glory is okay and therefore we are justified in what we are doing. Nothing wrong with that on the one hand. (The number of Christian groups that flourish and the number of God’s that are produced in Kerala. In Kerala we have a whole lot of groups who are known by the names of their founders. It is a personalised faith proclamation which glorifies humans rather than God).

On the other hand Mary reaches out and touches Elizabeth and by that creates community. Mary was just filled with a sense which was even beyond her own perception in a way. But she is filled by the Holy Spirit and she goes beyond her perception of life. It is not only her individual success that matters but she takes on board an old woman who was humiliated by all the talk of her being barren and then being pregnant at an old age.

We should take this as a model of Christian life. Our success becomes complete only when we can take on board the success of others. Others who are pushed away from the main stream and humiliated beyond recognition.

2. Mary reached out from a position of privilege- There are those who talk of community when they aspire for leadership but will forget about it once they are in a position of leadership. All of us including me like to talk about the advantages of being in community and communion when it suits us/me and then discard it conveniently when we come to positions of power. Mahatma Gandhi said that forgiveness only comes from those in power. Similarly community formation only makes sense when we are in a position of power or advantage. As we walk to church each Sunday we meet people who are looking to be included in our exclusive communities but we neglect them only to talk of the injustice being meted out to us.

The Mumbai attacks are still fresh in our memory. The attack on the Taj and Oberoi-Trident hotels have brought up a sense of urgency in us and now we are blaming the politicians saying ‘enough is enough.’ But who are the politicians? They are also people like us who have forgotten the value of being in community once they have come to power. Any talk of change in this country has to include being able to reach out when we are in a position of privilege.

3. We expect people to come to us rather than the reverse- A hero/heroine is one only because of the support they receive from ordinary people. Without the fans, the hero’s/heroine’s are nothing. But we expect them to come to us with their problems rather than going out to them to know what their problems are.

Going out to people is not disturbing them for our own gain but reaching out to them to be a part of their pain. It’s not like being tele-marketing executives. The ICICI case where a Mumbai high court judge was called and harassed during a case hearing was well covered by the media.

The question is whether I can lower myself from the pinnacle of my success or whether I want to have a rest, now that I have reached the pinnacle or the summit? We are what we are because of the community we live in. Our family, friends, church, workplace. These are the places where we have to make a difference.

4. Christian life is about bringing the excitement of hope- The child leaps in Elizabeth’s womb because Elizabeth feels the excitement that something is going to happen. Not just on a personal level but on a community, group and national level. It is not just something about Mary but it is beyond that. Something great is going to happen. It is so profound and strong that every part of us can feel it.

Obama stunned many through his victory. His victory speech was interesting. He talks of an old woman Ann Nixon Cooper. He says,

And tonight, I think about all that she’s seen throughout her century in America- the heartache and the hope; the struggle and the progress; the times we were told that we can’t, and the people who pressed on with that American creed: Yes we can.

At a time when women’s voices were silenced and their hopes dismissed, she lived to see them stand up and speak out and reach for the ballot. Yes we can.

When there was despair in the dust bowl and depression across the land, she saw a nation conquer fear itself with a New Deal, new jobs, a new sense of common purpose. Yes we can.

When the bombs fell on our harbour and tyranny threatened the world, she was there to witness a generation rise to greatness and a democracy was saved. Yes we can.

She was there for the buses in Montgomery, the hoses in Birmingham, a bridge in Selma, and a preacher from Atlanta who told a people that “We Shall Overcome.” Yes we can.

America, we have come so far. We have seen so much. But there is so much more to do. So tonight, let us ask ourselves- if our children should live to see the next century; if my daughters should be so lucky to live as long as Ann Nixon Cooper, what change will they see? What progress will we have made? This is our chance to answer that call. This is our moment.

This is our time, to put our people back to work and open doors of opportunity for our kids; to restore prosperity and promote the cause of peace; to reclaim the American dream and reaffirm that fundamental truth, that, out of many, we are one; that while we breathe, we hope. And where we are met with cynicism and doubts and those who tell us that we can’t, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people: Yes, we can.

I can’t help but bring in a comparison between Ann Nixon Cooper and Elizabeth, between Obama and Mary. Both Ann and Elizabeth lived long, they saw it all, and now they are on the verge of seeing something great happening. Even in their old age they are feeling the excitement of the baby inside them leap with joy feeling the change they are going to witness.

I am not a soothsayer and I can’t say what will happen come January 20, when Obama will take over as the president of the United States of America. What I can say is the excitement I saw and still see of a hope of change. Yes we can.


And so, dear friends, this is what we have to take with us and toil with. This excitement should be within each one of us. The excitement that tells us that Jesus was not born in the higher echelons of power in Rome, but in a manger/stable. The excitement that tells us that Jesus was born as the son of a carpenter and an ordinary mother who dared to dream. The excitement that Jesus is going to bring down the powerful from their thrones and lift up the lowly. The excitement that Jesus is going to fulfil the promise that was made to us by our God in the desert. Yes we can and we should.

Let this day be a day where we take sides with the poor, the underprivileged, the disadvantaged, the discriminated and let us fight with the excitement that has been shown to us by these two ordinary women, distanced by age but glued together by hope. Amen.

(Image from http://www.hoperc.org/)