We had some technical difficulties this morning and there was dropouts that basically cut most of the sermon out…  Here is today’s sermon in text form…

St Stephens                         21-22 March 2020                        What have I done to deserve this?

 

In our Gospel lesson the disciples ask Jesus “Who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”

The disciples are asking this because it was the custom in the Jewish tradition to expect that any misfortune of health or habits or abilities was the result of sin.  I suspect that this idea that anything bad happening to a person was not just part of Jewish belief, but is a human tendency to try to understand why things happen to us…

We know for instance in the Hindu religion, the idea of good karma and bad karma… that good deeds on behalf of others produces good karma, good outcomes, for the person and the opposite is also true… bad actions towards others produce bad outcomes for the person who does those bad actions.

In the books of Exodus and Deuteronomy, Moses shares that God has said his love for the people would last thousands of generations but for those guilty of sins, God would punish the sins of the parents upon the children and the children’s children, to the third and the fourth generation.

In other words, God would hold a grudge against the parents and make them and their children, grandchildren, and great grand children pay for it… through some sign or indication that they lacked God’s favor…

One of the sayings that we have that represent that generational punishment says, “The parents have eaten sour grapes and the children’s teeth are set on edge” – that the children would feel the result of the parent’s action.

Later, in the book of Jeremiah, as the Kingdom of Judah is conquered and just as the Israelites are sent into exile in Babylon, this belief changed.  The notion that innocent children –generations far removed from the actions of the parents or grandparents — would be made to suffer evolved into the idea that only the person who sinned and who did not repent would be the one to suffer God’s displeasure and punishment.

Jeremiah writes in chapter 31: “In those days they shall no longer say:  “The parents have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge.”  But all shall die for their own sins; the teeth of everyone who eats sour grapes shall be set on edge.”

So, in today’s Gospel lesson, when the disciples ask Jesus who sinned?  They are wondering which of the “old ways” of God is true?  Was it the parents or the child who sinned and thus caused the blindness of the man.

Jesus tells them, “Neither.”

The man’s blindness is not a punishment from God nor the result of sin on anyone’s part.

Instead, Jesus says that God’s glory can be shown through a dramatic healing…

The Bible contains similar stories of hardship or desperate situations that happen to otherwise innocent people…

In Genesis, Joseph’s brothers sell Joseph – a young man whose only “sin” was that he was a bit annoying – into captivity and years later when they are reunited, Joseph tells his brothers, “You intended this action for evil, but God was able to bring good out of it.”

In the book of Job – we know that Job a heathly, rich, well-loved man loses everything through no fault of his own.  He is stripped of his wealth, becomes very sick, and sees all his family die.  Job’s friends are convinced that Job was being punished for some sin he had committed and that this was God’s retribution.

It is human nature to sometimes wonder… Why do bad things happen to good people…

To wonder, when it happens to us, to ask “What have I done to deserve this?”

Given how things have unfolded in the past few months as the pandemic began and spread around the world, there are many who are trying to interpret these times as an indication of God’s punishment for someone’s sins…

We have a desire to say that such tragedies must be because God is angry… at someone… at us… at them…

We want to affix blame and judgement, because we are angry or hurt, we need a target to dump our anger and hurt on…

I imagine there are a whole bunch of folks who are struggling right now with the situation we have with the covid-19 restrictions…

  • those dealing with the illness itself or their family members…. Just saw an article that said out of a family of 7, 4 have died, the other 3 are hospitalized…
  • the people who cannot work or who were laid off and still have bills to pay
  • the parents trying to work from home and homeschool the kids and keep the kids occupied
  • the people who were supposed to be on vacation and now who cannot travel or visit popular tourist destinations
  • the people stuck away from home and unable to get home because of travel bans
  • the grocery store workers who have to deal with scared, panicky, ill-tempered customers and constant restocking of shelves
  • the doctors, nurses, and other healthcare professionals who are overwhelmed with needs and shortages of supplies
  • the researchers feeling the weight of responsibility to find the cure or vaccination as soon as possible

All Around the world, people are having to deal in many ways with this virus and may be asking, what have I done/what have we done to deserve this…

The simple answer is nothing…. You have done nothing wrong.  We have done nothing wrong.

Viruses have always been part of life on earth.  And each virus that humans encounter often leads to advances in understanding about how viruses work and what humans can do to make ourselves more resilient or immune.

God did not intend this virus as a punishment on us.  However, God can bring good out of every situation that we face… including this one…

We are still in this round of illness and precautions.  We don’t yet know exactly what will come of this as we go through the next weeks.

But there are signs.  Signs of people looking out for one another.  Checking with their family, friends, and neighbors to see if they can help in any way.  People volunteering at different charities like food pantries, meal preparation and meal delivery places, taking the neighbor’s dog for walkies, sharing supplies that are hard to find, etc…

We here at St. Stephen’s are doing the same things… if you need something, please call our office or one of our vestry members and let us know how we can help.

We continue to hold you, the church, our community, the nation, and the world in prayer for healing and recovery.

We realize that you may find yourself home with a lot more time on your hands.

  • Use this time to add your prayers to all the other prayers being said.
  • Spend some time in quiet contemplation and listening to God.
  • Sit outside in the sunshine.
  • Take a walk and admire the spring blooming around us.
  • Write letters or make phone calls
  • Try a new recipe.
  • Do something creative like painting, photo taking, coloring, needlepoint, knitting, etc…
  • Rest
  • Read a book or two (many online libraries are making thousands of books available)
  • Spend time with your pets, kids, and/or spouse
  • Tackle that in-home project you have been planning
  • Do your census online

Above all, don’t panic, do not fear, you are not alone.  God is always with us and the church is here for you too.

On the other side of this pandemic we may be able to see the glory of God in the ways that we put aside our differences and came together to help each other in a time of stress and need.

We may find greater appreciation for one another and less fear and judgment…

The disciples asked “Who sinned, this man or his parents?”

Jesus replies, “Neither.”

Perhaps this pandemic happened so that the glory of God could be revealed… in new and surprising ways… like a blind man receiving his sight for the first time…

As the song says… I once was blind, but now I see.    Amen.