union avenue christian church |
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Savor or Relieve the Heart Burn? Luke 24:13 – 35; Acts 2:14a, 36 – 41 There is a lovely, old Irish “story about Fionn Mac Cumhail and the salmon of knowledge. Fionn wanted to become a poet. To become a poet in Ireland during those days was a sacred vocation. Poets had supernatural powers that had to do with creativity. They had special access to mysteries that were not necessarily available to all. There was a salmon in the River Slane in County Meath. Whoever caught this salmon and ate it would become the greatest and most gifted poet in Ireland and would also receive the gift of second sight. There was a man called Fionn the Seer who had spent seven years pursuing this salmon. Young Fionn Mac Cumhail came to him to learn the craft of poetry. One day Fionn the Seer…caught the salmon of knowledge. He started a fire and put the salmon on a spit. The salmon had to be turned very carefully and could not be burned or the gift would be ruined. After a while the fire went low and the salmon could no longer be cooked properly. Fionn the Seer had no one to gather more wood for the fire. Just then his protege, Fionn, came out of the wood, and he left him to turn the salmon slowly on the spit. Young Fionn Mac Cumhail began to turn the salmon, but he was a dreamer and allowed his mind to wander. When he looked, a blister had appeared on the side of the salmon. He grew very anxious, knowing that Fionn the Seer would be furious with him for having ruined the salmon. With his thumb he tried to press the blister back in. As soon as he did, he burned his thumb, then put it in his mouth to relieve the pain. There was some of the oil of the salmon on his thumb, and as soon as he tasted the salmon oil, he received the wisdom, the gift of second sight, and the vocation of poet. “Old Fionn came back with the wood. As soon as he looked at young Fionn’s eyes, he knew what had happened. He sat there disappointed that the destiny he had pursued so deliberately had at the last moment turned away from him to be received by an innocent young man who had never dreamed of such a gift.” (John O’Donohue. Anam Cara. New York: Harper Books, 1997. P 153-154) How is it that gifts do come to us? That legend would have us believe it was happenstance, bad fortune for the one whom missed the gift and good luck for young Fionn. Do we believe there are universal powers at work — karma…stars aligned? Another story – this one true – also from the British Isles. John Wesley was born in Epworth, England in 1703. His parents (Samuel and Susannah) had 19 children. John was the 15th child born. Although he had a religious upbringing and was ordained an Anglican priest, his spirit was rather dull. He and some of his colleagues at Christ Church College at Oxford worked and supported each other in living a holy life. Their methodical approach to holiness led others to refer to them as “Methodists.” On May 24, 1738, Wesley attended a prayer service, quite unwillingly, on Aldersgate Street, London. That night he heard for the first time the message of God’s love truly touching him. Yes, he had heard, read, preached and taught for years before that. For whatever reason, that night in a prayer meeting he did not want to attend the message came through and his heart was ‘strangely warmed.’ For 53 years after that evening he preached, prayed, organized, and led the movement that would become the Methodist Church — the largest mainline Protestant denomination in the world today. He was a prolific letter writer — 2600 of his letters of encouragement to individuals and churches have been found — as was he a writer of hymns, although his brother, Charles, superceded him as the author of 9000 hymns (13 of which are in our hymnbook). (Devotional Classics, ed. Richard Foster and James Bryan Smith. SanFrancisco: Harper Collins, 1990. P. 281) Wesley had been theologically trained. He had skills and knowledge, but he had no fire, no passion, until the night on Aldersgate Street. Was it fate that John Wesley succumbed to going to the prayer meeting that evening? Was it God intervening? Was it the stars properly aligned or karma? The last wonderful story is the Gospel for today. It was Easter evening and two of ‘them’ were walking near Emmaus. One of them was named Cleopus — we have no idea the other's name, although there has been plenty of speculation. These two spoke with knowledge and clarity to the stranger who appeared and walked with them. They knew the facts. They had the information that even included the rumors — from the women who claimed that Jesus had been resurrected — all of this about the life and ministry and their relationship with Jesus. But there was no real feeling. There was obviously no true connection of them to the story. This was the same as John Wesley ‘doing’ theology and Fionn the Seeker wanting to learn how to be a poet. They had read the instructions and could follow the words, but there was nothing that caught them into the reality and power of faithfulness. We all know folks who have ‘jobs.’ Folks who show up to do their work; who are competent and somewhat successful at what they do. Then we know folks who live and breathe and are passionate about what they do. They don’t have to be obsessed by work or considered workaholics, but they have found a way to express the fullness of their being through what they do. We know people who are in marriages or partnerships that somehow work, but we wonder how. They co-exist with each other in the same house. They might raise children together and even continue to live together for decades, but there seems little to talk about between them. Then we know couples who have been together for 20, 40, 50 and 60 years and sparks still fly…energy still pulses…passion and adoration can still be seen in the eyes, body language and speech. And so it is with faith. Don’t we all long to be the people who have passion — the energy pulsing through us so that others may identify that faithfulness that pervades our very being…the ones who seem to be filled with electricity when they pray…who have an absolute and wondrous connection…who savor the heart burning experience rather than trying to find relief from it. Oh, Lord Jesus, come to us on Union Boulevard — you came to the two on the road to Emmaus; you came to John Wesley on the Aldersgate Street; in a different way you even came to that young Irish man in the legend of the salmon; cannot you come to us today? What is it we must do for that to happen? What must we do for us to receive the gift of revelation? What must we do to have the presence of the risen Christ change our lives? I don’t believe it is just happenstance. I do not believe it is having the stars properly aligned. I do not believe it is mere karma. Even though the two on the road to Emmaus tell the story of their sightlessness…even though John Wesley claims he didn’t want to go to the prayer meeting…even though the young Fionn didn’t appear to know what he was doing…I firmly believe we are always readying ourselves to be recipients of the grace of God. I believe we are always choosing to be open to the revelation that might meet us on the street. I believe we are either getting ready to have an encounter, or are moving away from the possibility by stubbornness, anger, arrogance, or need for control. The church of Jesus Christ needs those who are ripe for possibility. The church of Jesus Christ needs those who are readying themselves for change and opportunity and the revelation of God this very moment. The church of Jesus Christ has to be led and filled by those who can feel their hearts being burned…being warmed…being made alive by the living Christ. The church of Jesus Christ needs those who are passionate and have been made so because they have recognized the gift of grace when it came to them. Christian friends, in this holy season of Easter…in these 50 great days of celebrating the resurrection…in these times of reflecting how we can truly BE the living Christ in this world…may we be ready to have our hearts burned. May we be ready to have a meeting with the risen Christ. May we be open to the possibility of life-changing experiences so that we may be used by the God who loves us, claims us, and needs us to serve in this wondrously created universe. • SW |
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