Lent Day 24: Justice on the Sabbath

Society and religion go by rules to make the life of people better. These rules are then used to guide life and bring solutions. But, these very rules can also create confusion and conflict. St. Matthew 12:2 says, “But when the Pharisees saw it, they said to him, “Look, your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath.” The Pharisees were always on the look out for people flouting rules on the Sabbath and otherwise in general. Jesus and his disciples became one of their favourite targets in this regard. They made it very clear and they were not at all amused to see this breaking of rules. 

Jesus on the other hand always talked about rules being for people and not vice versa. His concern for the people preceded his concern for the rules. This was a big bone of contention with the Pharisees and the others. In today’s society and church we also get to see the same. Rules and constitution are mentioned as the last word. But interestingly, strict rules are only for the poor. When it comes to the rich and powerful, we see the bending of rules. 

So, on closer examination we understand that it is not that rules are never compromised or changed but that they are never changed for the poor and the ones who are not connected to the powerful. The courts also sometimes forget this and try to talk of justice. Again, we should try to answer the question, “Justice for whom and for what?” Every rule book and constitution is actually penned for those who do not have the wherewithal to protect themselves and so they need the help of the law or the rules. But the law system is also ruled by powerful lawyers and those with high fees and this leads to justice for those who can afford good lawyers. This is when someone has to step in. The leaders of the land must step in and say that rules and laws which do not protect the weak and the powerless are of no use. 

We also need a Jesus moment when we can step in and say enough is enough. Madhu, an adivasi from Attapadi in Kerala was caught on suspicion of theft and tied to a tree and beaten to death on February 22, 2018. The theft itself is suspect in many cases. But imagine someone does steal food. Any law which calls for punishment because of theft due to hunger is no law at all. The poor have to sometimes take as they are hungry to the core. 

Churches have to have this Jesus moment during lent. Are we hoarding food in our churches and homes? Are we reluctant to give to the hungry? Are we citing flimsy rules which were written for something totally different but are being used wrongly? The disciples were hungry and so they ate. Jesus says in verse 3, “Have you not read, what David did, when he was hungry and those who were with him?” The Sabbath is for humans and not the reverse. Age old rules and conventions have to be revisited and justice however late should be given to those who deserve it. The state and the courts cannot go by the understanding of justice for those who can afford it. Rather, justice and rights should be for the last and the least first, and everyone else later. Amen.

Lent Day 6: A reconciliatory demand towards repentance, justice and peace

Apart from lent and fasting, the most significant Christian form of proclamation of faith is the Holy Communion. The body and blood of our Lord binds us together, gives us hope and eternal life. St. Matthew 5: 23-24 says “So if you are offering your gift at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.” It talks about reconciliation, so much that, one has to stop what is being done and make an effort at reconciliation.

Bishop Oscar Romero and now St. Oscar Romero, was the archbishop of El Salvador, when he was shot at and killed on March 24, 1980, while standing behind the altar in church, preparing the gifts of the offertory. After becoming the archbishop, he became a vociferous opponent of the unjust regime which was repressing and killing the poor and the peasants. Any voice against the regime was silenced with brutal force.

St. Oscar Romero’s final two sermons are noteworthy. On the evening before his death, he preached reconciliation to the soldiers who were being used by the regime. But this was not a reconciliation whereby the church was folding before the powers of the day, but was the reconciliation asking the soldiers to repent and change. He said “I want to make a special appeal to soldiers, national guardsmen, and policemen; each of you is one of us. The peasants you kill are your own brothers and sisters. When you hear a man telling you to kill, remember God’s words, ‘thou shalt not kill.’ No soldier is obliged to obey a law contrary to the law of God. In the name of God, in the name of our tormented people, I beseech you, I implore you; in the name of God, I command you to stop the repression.”

On the day of his death he preached, “May this body immolated and this blood sacrificed for humans nourish us also, so that we may give our body and our blood to suffering and to pain- like Christ, not for self, but to impart notions of justice and peace to our people.” St. Oscar Romero talks of a reconciliation where he calls the soldiers and others to stop killing their brothers and sisters, their country men and women. It is a call to reconciliation by listening to God’s voice and God’s call to stop the repression against God’s people. He also makes a call to be nourished by the body and blood of Christ and to then give up our life for the justice and peace of our people.

Lent is not just a time to be quiet, meditative and obedient to the powers of the day. Lent is a time to make a call for repentance. That then leads to reconciliation. The body and blood of Christ that we partake of also gives us the strength to further and fight for this call for repentance-based reconciliation. To be shot at near the altar of the Lord was perhaps the biggest acceptance of the success of the fight that St. Oscar Romero was leading.

May lent remind us of the blood shed by martyrs like St. Oscar Romero. Let us pray that this shedding of blood changes our notion of reconciliation from one of bending before authority to asking those listening to authority to reform and change. Amen.

 

 

Fish in peace, Professor Lloyd

I first met Lloyd Nehemiah in 1997. I was a BD student in UTC, Bangalore and Lloyd’s wife Drecie was doing her Masters in Theology. I along with many of my class mates and friends became friends with Lloyd and Drecie. They invited us home and always made us feel like family. Lloyd was one of a kind. So much that whenever I had a long enough conversation with someone, Lloyd would pop up as an interesting character that we should meet at least once in a life time. He was a wild life enthusiast with a big collection of wild life pictures collected over a number of years during countless visits to the forest, an environmentalist who planted saplings and vociferously defended trees and prevented their felling, a knife collector with over 350 knives and swords collected from several countries and states of India, a person who knew several languages including Garo his wife’s mother tongue, an enterprising person with a wide range of contacts which could make him communicate with any person in a room, a risk taker, a person who supported and encouraged women including his wife and daughters and someone who loved fishing. Many people from UTC and especially the guests from other countries including professors and exchange students would benefit from Lloyd and have the experience of their life after a trip to the forest.

Lloyd always encouraged people to do what they wanted. Drecie is a pastor of a congregation, Kitty his elder daughter is a people’s person with deep compassion and Chea his younger daughter is a national climbing champion. The grapevine about Chea was that Lloyd realised she was climbing too many walls in UTC and so channelized her energy by taking her to an artificial climbing terrain at the Kanteerava stadium and the rest is history. As Lloyd’s family, one could chase their dream and that included his extended family too.

One could call Lloyd for anything and everything. To go to a government office, to shift houses, to go for a trip and to eat out. With Lloyd we explored the small eateries of Bangalore in Shivaji Nagar, Cox Town, Mosque Road, Johnson Market and then grilled meat and fish at our houses. The street style Phal (A cross section of meat with masala fried on a tawa), the chicken momos, biriyani from the smallest of shops, and anything on a plate would be relished by Lloyd. I perhaps learnt to eat a variety of food from him. Lloyd was also on the list of the Bangalore corporation numbers which one could call for help with snakes. He would patiently catch them and release them elsewhere. It was a self-acquired skill more than anything else and I always marveled at how he learnt all this. I have also seen personally as to how he helped at funeral homes, going to help for post mortems, making sure that it was done on time and making up for anything short during the post mortems.

We all talk about education and about our alma mater with pride and thankfulness and I am no different. But I have experienced that there are many people who inspire us with their deeds and life. Lloyd has had that kind of an influence on me and on several of my friends. I perhaps learnt more about the need for trees and about caring for nature and all of God’s creation, from Lloyd than from any class room. For me he is a professor just like any of my other professors, to whom I am also thankful.

I will stop with four memories from the numerous memories I have with Lloyd and his family. They once came to Kerala for vacation. I took them to a nice restaurant in Thiruvalla. Drecie, Kitty and Chea liked the food but Lloyd was not impressed. I finally took him to a toddy shop on the Changanachery- Allepy route. I was hesitant at first but then I thought I couldn’t be less hospitable to Lloyd. He loved the food and kept talking about it the entire time. The second story is when I got my knee injured and he kept checking on me to make sure I was okay. The reason for my injury was actually the precursor of a trip to the forest and in a way Lloyd took the blame. But the twist was that the next week many people had food poisoning by eating the food from the hostel and I escaped because I didn’t have food because of my knee injury. The third memory is regarding the few tattoos that Lloyd had. We were having dinner in a house and Lloyd was talking about his tattoos with a lot of pride in the presence of a Catholic priest. He quietly listened. When he got up to leave, the priest removed his cassock and showed his body which was full of tattoos and we all burst out into laughter when he left, looking at Lloyd who had a sheepish grin on his face. The fourth memory is his own favourite story about how he and Drecie fell in love and how he went to Drecie’s village in the Garo hills in the North East part of India, learnt her language, made friends with the people there and finally got married. This at a very young age too. As a youngster I have listened to this countless times wondering how one had the courage to do all this at a time without mobile phones, email and even a proper land line and that too, him being a Mangalorean and Drecie from the Garo hills. 

Lloyd, you taught me to share from my plate. You taught me that I could take food from the plate of a dear friend and allow a friend to eat from my plate. You taught me that getting our hands dirty for someone was the biggest ministry we could do. You taught me that love has no holds and barriers. You taught me well. Thanks professor. Heaven is going to be a fun place with you reaching there. All traditions and rules will be flouted but for the right reasons. Jesus is going to be pretty happy. Fish in peace dear elder brother.

Condolences and prayers dear Drecie, Kitty, Chea, David and family, amma, Shirley and family and all near and extended family and friends. Praying that Lloyd and all of you get justice and peace.

For such a time as this: Learn from women how to observe lent

One of the most significant things in the church which many a time is kept under wraps is that women in the church fast and pray more than men. Even though priests give the call to fast and lent, it is women in the church who give heed to the call more sincerely. This they do despite the usual responsibilities of house work, child rearing and jobs. It is therefore surprising that during lent we do not consider women as a model for lent.

Yesterday being International Women’s day, it was celebrated all over the world with messages praising women. What I noticed in whats app and facebook though was that these congratulatory messages were followed by messages which indirectly and directly demeaned women. It was as if to suggest that a majority of the men were just being politically correct for women’s day and they did not say it from the heart.

Religion has a lot to do with the plight of women in our society. If the religion that you and I are a part of does not respect women, then there are high chances that you and I will follow suit. That is why it is important for us to see if there is any connection between women and lent. It is because we can accept women during the entire Lenten period and continue to do that, being strengthened by the lent we observed.

Nursing mothers and women who take care of all the house hold work need more nutrition and yet they take up the burden of saving the household primarily because the good fortune of the house is linked with the woman and because by themselves they are more responsible than men when it comes to matters of the house. It is because of this that we have to take a look at women in the bible who fasted. Every lent we always hear that fasting or lent is because Jesus fasted, Moses fasted and Elijah fasted. Women never come into the picture. Why so? Lent is a God given opportunity to realise that we have knowingly and unknowingly ignored women who were, are and should be an integral part of any lent we observe.

One of the strong examples that we have is of Esther. Mordecai informs her of the impending danger and the seeming end of their community. He sends her a message that she cannot keep quiet in such a time as this. He says in Esther 4:14 “Perhaps you have come to royal dignity for just such a time as this.” The future of her community is on the shoulder of Esther. Mordecai knows that Esther is the last straw of hope. Now what happens to Esther is the interesting part. She does not say no or that she would think about it. In an almost transformative trance she replies to Mordecai in verse 16 “Go, gather all the Jews to be found in Susa, and hold a fast on my behalf, and neither eat nor drink for three days, night or day. I and my maids will also fast as you do. After that I will go to the king, though it is against the law; and if I perish, I perish.” Ah, what a bold statement from a young woman? She chooses to be proactive in such a time as this and declares a fast for the entire community knowing the responsibility of their lives rests on her. It is also typical of men as to how Mordecai puts the responsibility on Esther even though he is the more seasoned and experienced campaigner. Esther like all women does not shrink from the responsibility but takes it on.

Esther’s fast which lasts three days is a sign for us on how to fast and lent. We must see the signs of our time and we must know the dangers lurking. When communities are in danger and when people can be killed, communities should come together in fasting and prayer. Our fasts and lent today have no consequences. But Esther’s call to fasting shows us that our fasts and lent can indeed have consequences, and good ones at that.

This lent, let us look at the fast of Esther and create our own fasts for justice and peace. When the refugee crisis and wars in the Middle East and other parts of the world rage on with no solution in sight, let us get together like Esther’s community and fast for a solution. Esther shows us the power of fasting. It has the strength to overcome evil and bring about justice. It is interesting for us after Women’s day and knowing how diligently women fast in the church, that Esther and other women like her in the bible offer us a credible model of fasting and lent. It is also important for men during lent and after women’s day to see how thinking like women can bring about a more meaningful fast and lent in which the responsibility and the future of the community become important life and death issues. Amen.

Maaro, magar pyar se maaro (John 7:53- 8:11)

John 7:53- 8:11- ...while Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. 2 Early in the morning he came again to the temple. All the people came to him and he sat down and began to teach them. 3 The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery; and making her stand before all of them, 4 they said to him, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the very act of committing adultery. 5 Now in the law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?” 6 They said this to test him, so that they might have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground. 7 When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let anyone among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” 8 And once again he bent down and wrote on the ground.[a] 9 When they heard it, they went away, one by one, beginning with the elders; and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him. 10 Jesus straightened up and said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” 11 She said, “No one, sir.”[b] And Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you. Go your way, and from now on do not sin again.”]][c]

The passage John 7:53- 8:11 talks of a woman who is wrongfully confined and held by a group of people, who want Jesus to answer what punishment she should get for the indictment they have given her.

We see Jesus being questioned by the scribes and Pharisees. The bait they use here is a woman who they say has been caught in adultery. The people present along with the scribes and Pharisees therefore want Jesus to say that the woman has committed a mistake and should be stoned in accordance with the law of Moses. But does this happen or does Jesus do something not expected? The said passage fascinated me because it was included in the gospel of John very late. So much that biblical researchers would even say that it is not Johanine in style. This itself makes it interesting to look at because it could have been a resistance or protest passage within the entire scheme of events. Almost like being pushed through in the heaviness of the gospel. This therefore gives an indication that it may also contain something equally explosive which could have been of concern to the church. When we look at the passage we notice several things.

There are several gaps in the story which actually may be intentional. Where is the man caught in adultery along with the woman, why did the crowd wait for Jesus to come, was their concern adultery or trapping Jesus? Three major characterisations exist in the story. From the perspective of the men, the woman and Jesus are the enemies. More Jesus and less the woman. They are therefore to be done away with. The woman is slapped with an allegation of adultery. This is made as an excuse to engage Jesus. This is for defeating him and getting him out of the equation. So there is a reason for them to do what they did. A reason from their perspective. They used a law and twisted it in their favour to do away with the threat of Jesus. The situation could even have turned out into an early end of Jesus’ public ministry. The atmosphere is volatile and could have had a very ugly end. But what happens is completely different from what they had planned.

The second perspective is that of the woman who is accused of adultery. This is a woman who is wrongfully held against her will. She is a woman who is maybe caught in the crossfire. But it also shows as to how the men treat her as an object to lure Jesus. She is helpless in the entire incident and awaits her judgement at the hand of the moralists. Her wait may have been agonisingly slow and makes one wonder whether that was worse than the accusation made against her. She is embarrassed and humiliated in the company of many males who are preaching morality to her. So much that she has lost all energy to complain and say anything at all. Her silence is not an admission of her guilt but an admission of how she has been subjected to violence, pain and humiliation. This silence speaks more than the words used by the others. Her silence is also the judgement of a society who continued to ravage her life instead of showing empathy to her and supporting her.

The third perspective is that of Jesus. He is faced with several predicaments. Should he affirm the lawless law and even the misinterpreted law, should he judge the woman or fight for her, should he support or condemn the men, should he wish away the uncomfortable situation along with the people present, or should he say what is right and save the situation without bringing about bloodshed? The tension in the passage is so strong that one cannot predict which way it will go. Blood shed seems imminent.
As mentioned before, the bible passage attains new meaning as a subversive text because it was never a part of the text and still confuses those who read it. This is because the text is packaged brilliantly that the meaning lies hidden somewhere inside.

Maaro, magar pyar se maaro, is the conceptual framework in which I would like to see this passage. People are quick to unassumingly use the thought in the passage “first one to throw a stone” and “anyone without sin” so much that it is seen as practically impossible to follow. The killer instinct of the passage has been made toothless by the fact that it has been allowed to stand still without reflection.

My conceptual framework was picked up in Mumbai from a story that a pastor shared. It is a different setting involving different characters but which nevertheless speaks to us and inspires us. The setting is a suburban railway station in Mumbai where a long queue is broken by a heavily built and tall man. The short person behind him complains and asks him to stand at his right place in the queue. Both of them get into a fight and the winner is clear because of the might at the hand of the first man. He raises his hand and says “Maroonga thuje”, meaning I will beat you/hit you. The short man is unsure as to what to say but nevertheless maintains his ground. The crowd anticipates a good fight and instead of saying anything, watches intensely for the first move from the giant. Just as the huge man raises his hand to swipe away the small man like a fly, comes a voice far off but crystal clear. It says “Maaro, bhaiya maaro….magar pyaar se maaro” meaning “beat him/hit him man, beat/hit him with love.” The crowd is unsure as to which direction to look to and pay attention. They don’t want to miss a thing. A few seconds of silence follows and then the big man, small person and the crowd burst out laughing. A fatal situation turns to a situation where everyone says, take it easy. The big man shakes the other person’s hand, says sorry and joins the queue at his rightful place. The crowd in true Mumbai Bollywood style claps.

How can we see the passage of the woman, the adulterous woman as she is called and what Jesus does? It is a common scene or setting in our lives when the power of intervention could work wonders. I would pick a few points from the passage for our reflection today.

1. Kill the bill or kill the attitude?
The women’s reservation bill was one of the promises made by the United Progressive Alliance II in its election manifesto. Despite the passing of other bills this has stayed in the back burner. The upcoming national elections in 2014 would have been a time to bring this into effect but the parliament cannot get it passed because of some men who group themselves into a mob whenever this is discussed. Killing the bill or Kill Bill, following the famous Hollywood movie seems to be the attitude of male politicians. Interestingly the movie portrays a woman killing a man. Several reasons are given for the negation of the bill and they involve reasons which are never really out in the open. It resembles the attitude of the crowd to the woman. They alleged that she had done something and therefore should be stoned or killed. A similar reasoning is used to say that the reservation bill should be killed. But Jesus in the passage turns around the argument. He writes on the ground and it looks like he is writing a new bill to be passed. The bill involves telling the mob that if anything/anyone should be stoned or killed it is their attitude and not the woman. If anything is sin, it is what they are doing. It is time that we also took stock of our lives and saw ourselves and located ourselves in the said passage. Who are we in the passage? The crowd, the woman or Jesus? Who should we be? Are we sinning?

2. The silence of the lambs.
Silence has been much written about and always is used to suggest that those who are silent are the reason for the state of affairs in our country. They include women, ordinary people and the poor. Their silence is seen as the problem instead of the solution. The woman in the text is also silent. Does that mean that she had nothing to say, was guilty as charged, accepted the sentencing of the crowd or does it mean that her silence was speaking against what she was charged for. This is the silence that Jesus notices. It is a silence of communities who are oppressed into silence. It is a silence which is even more powerful than speech. The woman is fighting her battle with silence. Even as the others shout, she remains silent. Maybe it was a silent defiance against the men who teamed up against her. It is noteworthy that the silence and not the accusation moves Jesus. It is the silence of the lambs. He moves over to the role of the shepherd who takes the side of one sheep while leaving the 99 on the other side. Even as the other sheep complain, the one is silently exploring new ground and territory. The shepherd goes in search of this one.

3. Writing and shedding one’s blood to prevent bloodshed.
Jesus is under a clear predicament. The crowd was ready to stone him using the woman as bait. They were waiting for him and finally got him. The answer to their question on the law and what should be done to the woman is interestingly given by writing on the ground. He basically puts his life on the line and is prepared to shed his blood to prevent bloodshed and to prevent injustice to the woman. At no point does this seem as something benefitting him. As theologians this gives a clear indication that we have to write and rewrite for the benefit of oppressed individuals and communities. Seeing oneself as the oppressed and writing for oneself may not come under such protest writing. Unfortunately we sometimes write for ourselves. We should be able to transcend this and write for the benefit of others and for the rightful justice of others. It is also interesting to note that Jesus prevents violence through his act of writing instead of doing vice versa. We can notice in the society that we live in that a lot of hate literature is passed on. The communal violence in Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh was fuelled by such hate literature and images being circulated over the internet and through mobile phones. Such messages divided communities and brought about conflict which became very difficult to handle. Fanning the fire and adding fuel to the fire is easier than stopping the fire. Jesus is asked to fan the fire and sign the death sentence of the woman. He puts his life at risk to do the opposite.

4. Maaro, magar pyar se maaro.
This motto sums it up. But one should not mistake what this means. It is not being a smiling assassin, or smiling while stabbing someone in the back. What it means rather, is that we should love one another first and if we still have hatred, then go on and do what you want. The first step and the first part has to be the love for the other. This is new territory, new culture, new understanding, new laws and new ways. Yet we enter into the newness with love in our minds. Jesus does not tell the group of men to not throw stones and not punish. He only says, let the one without sin throw the first stone. He does not discourage them, but tells them to do it if they have no wrong inside. In another way, he is saying, do it with love. But they are not able to because love does not involve violence and condemnation.

In our own communities this becomes a good example to follow. This is at the same time an outlet and an understanding of one’s limitations and the road that lies ahead. Jesus does not stop the scribes and Pharisees from making the accusation. Rather he allows them to make it so that the negative thoughts inside them come out. After this has happened he knows that they have it out of their minds. This is when he talks to them about sin, and then suggests that the filth is out. Now you can concentrate on something positive. This becomes an important element in our churches as well. People need an outlet to express themselves. This is important because without this expression the hatred will remain. The expression of this hatred will give an opportunity to people to be at peace with themselves and go their way. Jesus sends both parties their way. One goes with the understanding that hatred is not there anymore and they cannot sustain the relentless campaign against the woman and Jesus. The other party in the form of the woman also is send her way, with hope that Jesus does not condemn her. This is because Jesus does not have hatred for her.

Friends, in our haste in moving forward we have all become a mob, waiting to pounce on the next person who appears. Let us meditate on and allow the bible passage to speak to us, so that we realise it is time to express, time for getting an outlet but also time to let go. Amen.

(Preached this sermon in UTC Tagore Hall for Sunday evening worship on October 13, 2013.)

Onam: The festival of hope (A sermon using John 20:11-20)

The tradition of Onam revolves around a story of the king Mahabali who was seen as a just king who ruled over Kerala. He was seen as a king who ensured a period when all people were seen as the same. For us this indeed will come as a surprise as to how it is possible to live in a period when people are seen as the same. India still cannot figure out a way where all women and men will be seen as equal. With our own problems of caste and gender, the story of Mahabali will definitely seem unlikely and therefore has the problem of being limited to a celebration where people of a state get together, arrange flowers, sing songs and eat a meal with close to twenty side dishes. But is it just a festival or is it much more than that?

The story of Mahabali when continued sees that the Gods became jealous of his popularity and the simple fact that he brought about the imminence of everyone being the same into the lives of people. This was supposed to be an after life reality. The Gods were indeed fuming because Mahabali was doing their job and doing a better job of it. It had to stop because this was upsetting the way they had intended society to be.

Of course one should also be aware that the said Gods were also the constructs of high caste religious priests. The story continues and the Gods send their representative Vamana to Mahabali. Vamana asks for three feet or foot of land. Mahabali perhaps undone by the small demeanour of Vamana or offering his usual hospitality readily agrees although there may have been an element of doubt in his mind about the intentions of Vamana. Vamana then assumes his real size with which he covers up all the space available with two of his foot steps. He then asks Mahabali where he will put his third step. Mahabali then offers his own head and he is pushed down into the earth by Vamana. Before being pushed down Mahabali asks for the opportunity to visit his people every year and he is granted this wish.

Onam is then the time that people in Kerala believe that Mahabali visits them and they want it to be a special time when there is a lot of sharing and coming together of families and communities. People belonging to all religions celebrate this as Mahabali is seen as a leader of all people. Food which is predominantly vegetarian has undergone certain changes and has got its own additions depending on the different communities celebrating Onam.

Mahabali can be seen on similar lines with Jesus because of the way Jesus positioned himself and how he was done away with by high priests because he started doing things which they thought were meant for God and were anyway disturbing their well established system. Mahabali and Jesus are similar because
1. Both Mahabali and Jesus were leaders who were passionate about equal rights and justice.
2. Both of them sacrificed their lives for the sake of their subjects.
3. Their commitment goes beyond the earthly life. Those who believed in their ideology, especially the poor and the oppressed were not left to fend for themselves. Their commitment to ensure justice leads them to extend their involvement beyond life as we see it here.
4. Both of them are done in by a conspiracy and although they agree to being sacrificed are actually murdered in cold blood.
5. Both Mahabali and Jesus offer hope as can be seen in the past, present and future.

Onam is a festival and also has characteristics of a festival. A festival brings forth happiness, celebration and above all, hope. Without hope, there is no life. In the read passage in John 20 Mary is filled with this hope and she waits with expectation to see the fulfilment of this hope. Hope is a right of the poor and the downtrodden. In this sense celebrations which do not include the poor are mainline, dominant and market based celebrations. But true festivals are people’s festivals which are a celebration of protest, dissent and non-conformity. The Onam festival goes beyond region and community. In Kerala it has become the festival of all people. But it is not just a festival of conformity to certain high caste traditions. The spirit of the King Bali also moves beyond the borders of Kerala. M.E. Sharp in his book “Reinventing revolution: New Social Movements and the Socialist Tradition in India says that Bali has been taken as the major symbol of the oppressed shudra-dalit peasantry in Phule’s interpretation of the Aryan-Brahman conquest. The hope filled slogan in Marathi is “Ida pida javo, Bali-ca rajya yeva” (let troubles and sorrows go and the kingdom of Bali come). This has great similarity to the expectation of the arrival of the kingdom of God. A slogan is very much important to provide hope for the people and the slogan of the getting back of power is indeed very powerful. Mahabali the Asura King or the king from a lower caste, who ruled justly and provided equal opportunities for his people, is unceremoniously done away with. His re-installation means the bringing back of a glorious era where the practise of untouchability, inequality and other social evils did not exist. It also gives power to the people. Just as protest is a right of the poor, hope is also the right of the poor.

Mary exercises this very hope which is her right as a woman. Her visit to the tomb before anyone else reflects the hope that she and not any other disciple had. There is a sense of dissonance in the passage. It is not the apostles who go first but Mary who goes first. Mary is then seen as going to tell Peter about what she sees. Here there is a legitimization of established orders within the church. But Mary offers the essential piece of information first. The story becomes more exciting because Mary then goes and expresses her hope in full by standing and crying outside the tomb. This is a cry of protest which she hopes will bring back the one who will let all sorrows to go.

India is now going through a period of uncertainty where FDI (Foreign Direct Investment) has been allowed in the aviation and retail sectors. More sectors will be added in the near future. There is huge protest against this. Some of it is political but mostly it is the public expression of the aspirations of people who want to decide their own futures. The protest against the Koodankulam nuclear project also reflects the same aspirations of the local populace. When state and central governments have closed their eyes to nuclear waste and the risks involved so that they can have electricity, the only choice for people of the land is to protest. Protest needs a figure to inspire. Mahabali is one such figure and the inspiration of Onam is to live in harmony with one’s brothers and sisters. Mary seeks this inspiration from Jesus.

Perhaps festivals like Onam should inspire us to seek freedom for the masses and to effectually improve the lives of people. Festivals should also become a more common and repetitive part of our lives. Without this we make the festival and its commemoration and meaning making a once a year event which has no more significance than eating variety of food, meeting people and buying consumer goods. The festival of Onam has to transcend this in theological colleges and society at large. It can be a time when we vow and strive for equal opportunities for all and reservation for those who have been thrust behind. It can also be a time when we try to do away with all the corruptions that have crept into society. This could be a time for cleansing. Festivals in churches are no different. Two major festivals in the church I belong to are the festival of St. George and the festival of St. Mary. Both are very special for the people of the church. But consumerism and the evils of structure and power have crept in and limited it to an event. In the midst of this, ordinary people still find meaning out of these festivals. Mary Magdalene tries to question while initiating the quest to finding Jesus. Here is a festival procession which tries to go beyond certain fixed constructs. Her short pilgrimage to find Jesus inspires Peter to conduct the same journey.

Onam as the festival of hope has huge potential and offers valuable lessons for all. In situations of conflict and lack of harmony, festivals like Onam remind us of a time when humans lived together as one and that this is the opportunity we should use to try and reconcile. Nothing is beyond reconciliation and one should put out one’s hand in a reconciliatory mood of accepting and respecting the other. Even in the hardest and most difficult of times hope stands as the reason to live on. Mahabali offers this hope through his presence with us in this worship today. Jesus lives inside us as an ever present hope that there is nothing which cannot be redeemed.

The festival of Onam then is a once a year festival of forgetting all differences and coming together. It is an opportunity to re-learn our commitment to stand for justice, peace and reconciliation. This is not just one community’s celebration attended by others. It is the celebration and commitment of all that we hope for a better today and tomorrow. Justice has no boundaries and regions. Festivals cannot be limited to one caste or region. Let us all come together to remember a time when all people were treated with respect. Let us all be inspired by a man who did not belong to a high caste but shook the entire establishment by following the simple and yet hard formulae of not favouring anyone. Let us learn from the woman who hoped and stood strong in her hope even when others were not sure. Let us be steadfast in our faith and love for Jesus, the son of the carpenter, who took a stand and stood for the poor, the outcasts and the different people in society. I wish you peace, justice and reconciliation. Onam greetings. Amen.

(Preached this in UTC for the Onam worship on October 3, 2012)

Eco justice in the Jacobite Syrian Orthodox Church

The Jacobite Syrian Orthodox church has taken a step in the right direction by inaugurating the Ecological Commission on August 6, 2010. The decision to plant one lakh saplings all over Kerala has been picked up by many churches already and the church is trying to be more ecologically sensitive. The name ‘Shlomo’ does suggest the setting of peace on earth and this can be accomplished only by the peaceful co-habitation of all of God’s creation.

But can peace come about without justice? This is what we usually forget in our quest for peace. In this sense the church has brought forth a bold initiative because justice also involves justice for all and that includes ecology. Therefore it is not only justice for humans but for all creation. At the same time we should look at more ways of being ecologically sensitive. Churches are already doing their bit. But to be front runners in suggesting a model for all to be a part of in Kerala, India and the whole world, we should put our thinking caps on and see what we can do within the existing scheme of things.

The church always rewards its members for contributing towards the life of the church and more importantly society. Two very common titles that all are familiar with are commander and chevalier. I am sure that the church does confer the titles on people who have done good work. But why don’t we expand the scope of such titles? What about a title for a person who stands for eco justice? Why not honour a person (woman or man) who has managed to log several carbon points by using clean and un-polluting technology? And why not honour people who by their very existence proclaim eco justice? What about churches which use green technology and traditional methods of construction and maintainence rather than spending crores to build towering structures?

As the church bans plastic and plants saplings what about the waste that we produce? Our sermons are usually about cleansing our souls and beings but never refer to the collective sins in the form of mounting waste in our villages, towns and cities. Why don’t we go for bio-gas plants and other eco-friendly waste disposal methods and try to reduce our consumption of plastic and production of waste? Wouldn’t it be a noble and path breaking effort to have these mini waste converting units in the church compounds itself?

As part of our upward social mobility we like to flaunt our cars, motor bikes and other polluting machines. The church also is forced to bless the prosperity of its people. But shouldn’t we also pray for those who by being powerless are actually bringing about eco justice in this world. Shouldn’t we then reward those who consume less, waste less, pollute less, and therefore sacrifice themselves for the good of many? Aren’t they our true commander’s and chevalier’s?

The ecological initiative by the Jacobite Syrian Orthodox church should be whole heartedly supported by the people. But it would also help if the leadership of the church takes this further through discussions and deliberations which will lead to a change in the process of rewarding, where more dimensions are added and thereby even people who have stood and will stand for eco justice will also be rewarded for their contribution to the church and the world. In the mean time, let us plant the saplings and nurture them.