Sermon 2006 12 24

Epiphany Evensong

7 January 2007

Christ's Church Cathedral, Hamilton

Isaiah 40: 1-11

John 1: 1-7, 19-20, 29-34

Because I am a twin I grew up with a high degree of sibling rivalry. Not only are we twins, but we are identical twins. We look the same, sound the same, many people have thought we were the same. Being a twin meant that there was always somebody else to hang around with. It also meant that there was always someone to compete with. We would compete on just about anything. It seemed natural to try to be faster, smarter, stronger.

My grandfather didn't know what he was creating when he taught my brother and me how to skip stones the summer we were eight years old. Even though we now live with the Atlantic Ocean separating us, if one of us is on the shore of a body of water, you can be sure that we are skipping stones still, wondering how many skips the other has recently accomplished.

We even competed for who could be the baddest. This culminated, when we were 15, and at the height of our pyro-maniacal stage, with our setting the garage floor on fire.

We brought our friendly sibling rivalry to our other relationships as well. We competed with our sister, cousins and friends. Who's first? Who's best? Who's loudest? My poor dear mother!

You don't need to be a twin to be competitive though. In our society we are programmed to compete from our earliest school years. We are taught to exude confidence. Strive for the top. Get ahead of the pack. Go for the win - or for the throat!

A quick read of history shows that it was ever thus. Humans starting from the year dot seem to have usually chosen to compete with one another before cooperating. Nations have always and continue to put self-interest before anything else, including before the long-term survival of the planet. Adam and Eve ran into trouble when they thought it would be a good idea to compete with God. And their sons' competition lead to the first murder.

The prophets cry out all through the Old Testament for the people to live with justice. God's message through the prophets was about putting others before oneself.

The beginning of John's Gospel tells us the story of how God became human. It begins with mystical images - the idea of the Word of God being with God and creating all things. Then it goes on to say that the essence of that creation was life, "and that life is the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness and the darkness did not overcome it." (John 1: 4-5)

The Evangelist John was not talking about the light of a roaring fire shining in the darkness of a garage! He was talking about the light which can shine in all people: the silent, pure light of God's spirit which gives us life and can be a beacon of hope and truth in what can be a dark world. This creative light that is the source of all creation became human and lived among us.

Just then the evangelist's story continues not with the story of Jesus right away, but with the story of Jesus' cousin, John. But John's story is not one of familial rivalry. He whole purpose was not to compete with his cousin, Jesus, but to testify to the light which was coming into the world. He didn't put himself first but he pointed to Jesus. Most uncousinly!

John was baptizing with water which symbolized the washing away of sins. For some reason people were coming out to the Jordan river in droves to hear John preach his fiery sermons. The people were ready for a change. They were missing the presence of God in their lives. They wanted to start over again. Just as their ancestors crossed the Jordan river to enter into the promised land, the people of Judea at that time wanted to return to the beginning to enter under the water at Jordan and to enter the promised land again: to get back on track with God. And this was what the baptism of John was all about.

But John knew that there was going to be a messiah coming, whose baptism would be a whole other spiritual experience. When John's disciples later complain that everyone is following Jesus instead of him, John says "He must increase, but I must decrease" (John 3: 30)

John's own heart was transformed by God's love. He knew that it was his job to prepare the way for the one who is the true light, who would transform everything.

A story is told by Robert Fulghum, a Unitarian minister, about a seminar he once attended in Greece. On the last day of the conference, the discussion leader walked over to the bright light of an open window and looked out. Then he asked if there were any questions. Fulghum laughingly asked him what was the meaning of life. Everyone in attendance laughed and stirred to leave. However, the leader held up his hand to ask for silence and then responded "I will answer your question." He took his wallet out of his pocket and removed a small round mirror about the size of a quarter.

Then he explained "When I was a small child during World War II, we were very poor and we lived in a remote village. One day on the road, I found the broken pieces of a mirror. A German motorcycle had been wrecked in that place. I tried to find all the pieces and put them together, but it was not possible, so I kept the largest piece. This one. And by scratching it on a stone, I made it round. I began to play with it as a toy and became fascinated by the fact that I could reflect light into dark places where the sun could never shine. It became a game for me to get light into the most inaccessible places that I could find. I kept the little mirror, and as I grew up, I would take it out at idle moments and continue the challenge of the game.

As I became a man, I grew to understand that this was not just a child's game, but a metaphor of what I could do with my life. I came to understand that I am not the light or the source of the light. But light - be it truth or understanding or knowledge - is there, and it will only shine in many dark places if I reflect it. I am a fragment of a mirror whose whole design and shape I do not know. Nevertheless, with what I have, I can reflect light into the dark places of this world - into the dark places of human hearts - and change some things in some people. Perhaps others seeing it happen will do likewise. This is what I am about. This is the meaning of my life." (From It Was On Fire When I Lay Down On It, by Robert Fulghum. Ivy Books, 1988. )

Our task is to follow the lead of John the Baptist and to reflect the light of Christ through the gifts that have been given us, to shine into the darkness of this world that others might see the light of Christ and be transformed by coming to him. Amen.