Pastor Debora Stein
John 14:15-21
May 25, 2014
Much of my sermon this morning comes from Mary Hinkle Shore, a Lutheran Pastor and former seminary professor. Once I read her commentary, I knew that I had to share it with you today, as we celebrate Memorial Day; but also as we remember Jesus’ promise of an Advocate, and his command to love. Mary writes:
If you have to reassure someone that you’re not abandoning them, it may be because they feel you slipping away. In John 14, Jesus is responding to the anxiety of those he loves. “I will not leave you orphaned,” he says, but it is not clear how he will keep that promise. In a few hours, his arrest, trial, crucifixion and death will all have been accomplished. It will feel as if he has, in fact, abandoned them, or been torn away from them.
Jesus loses his life, and he is not the only one to suffer loss. Those he leaves behind lose him, and without him, they lose whatever security they might have felt in the world. After his death, they take refuge by hiding. They are isolated from each other and afraid of everything on the other side of locked doors.
We rarely think of what happened to Jesus as an experience of combat, but the story of his arrest includes soldiers, weapons and at least momentary hand-to-hand combat as Peter draws a sword to slice off the ear of one of those sent to arrest Jesus. Twenty-four hours later, those who could not watch with Jesus in the garden, or save him from the enemy, will themselves be lost without him.
On May 25th, we observed Memorial Day. It began in 1868 as a remembrance of the dead on both sides of the Civil War. It remains a moment in our civic life to take seriously the human costs of wars exacted from those who fight them.
Just as the passion of Jesus resulted in more than the loss of its most obvious casualty, so the human costs of war have always been higher than we have known how to count. Suicide has become an increasing concern for those returning from battle. Each year the number of suicides are well over 400, including Reservists and National Guard troops. In 2013 the US lost a member of the military to suicide approximately every 18 hours. It has been an on-going battle to treat an illness that is not so easily recognized.
One theory of suicide associates three factors with the cause of death: feeling that you don’t belong, feeling that you are a burden to others, and having the capacity to overcome the fear of pain and harm. Eventually the experience of social isolation and alienation is so strong, many are led to thoughts like, “my death will be better for my family, or I just don’t belong here anyway.” These thoughts overpower even the natural tendency to avoid harm
[Depression is not limited to people who serve in the military. Anyone who has suffered a traumatic incident or loss could experience such overpowering thoughts and feelings. A teenager may experience loss when the he or she leaves home to go to college or join the military. As we grow older, we may struggle with the loss of independence, of being able to drive, or being able to live on our own. Some may experience loss through divorce, unemployment, or the death of a loved one. Many of us experience the loss of our identity without a job, our spouse, or loved one. There are countless ways that depression could affect any one of us at any time.]
Near the end of a book called, The Noonday Demon: An Atlas of Depression, Andrew Solomon writes, “So many people have asked me what to do for depressed friends and relatives, and my answer is actually simple: blunt their isolation. Do it with cups of tea or with long talks or by sitting in a room nearby and staying silent or in whatever way suits the circumstances, but do that” (437).
The promise of the Spirit to the disciples is a promise from Jesus to blunt their isolation. “I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you forever” (John 14:16). The word “advocate” means one who stands alongside another. Under threat, we talk about someone having our back. In peacetime, a better image may be that of someone right beside you. You are not alone. To the disciples, Jesus describes the gift of his Spirit with them, and says in effect, “It will be as if I am by your side.”
When the disciples experience Jesus as risen from the dead, they recognize his Spirit as gathering them into something new: they become a church, a community of people who are bound together by the Spirit in their love for one another. The love of God, given and received in a community like that, offers healing and belonging where there was isolation before.
In addition to counting combat deaths and calling them to mind on Memorial Day, we are beginning to speak of the human costs of war in terms of moral injury. When the experience of survivor guilt, the trauma of combat memories, and the sense of having betrayed one’s own moral center threaten to leave one desolate, the community that Jesus breathes his Spirit into offers forgiveness, love, belonging, and good work, to be a part of with others. It is a fitting memorial to the one who said, “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you” (John 15:12).
Reflecting on healing after moral injury, Dr. Rita Nakishima Brock says, “I think the way a person is restored to a sense of their own goodness is that they participate in the life of a community, where the things they do for other people, are deeply appreciated, and they have reflected back at them a sense that they are loved and appreciated for what they do.” That is the sort of community that Jesus brings to life by offering his disciples an Advocate, standing beside them, the Spirit of truth.
[We may not be psychologists or doctors, who specialize in depression or other such disorders, and while such treatment is vital, we do have something to offer those who feel isolated, broken, unwanted, and alone. As children of God and a community of faith, we share the safe refuge of our Heavenly Father… the love and grace of Jesus … and the constant presence of the Holy Spirit. We are constantly learning to live by Jesus commandments, and through him, we are able to share God’s amazing love with each other… with our neighbors, our community… and with all who have need.]
[Each Memorial Day, as we enjoy our barbeques and picnics, let us pause to give thanks for those who gave their lives for our freedom, and let us reach out to our brothers and sisters who feel isolated, depressed, and in need of our love.]
Let us pray,
Almighty God, we commend to your gracious care and keeping all who have returned from military service, all who have lost a loved one in war, and all of the men and women of our armed forces who continue to serve at home and abroad. Defend them day by day with your heavenly grace; strengthen them in their trials and temptations; give them courage to face the perils that surround them; and grant them a sense of your abiding presence wherever they may be; through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
John 14:15-21
May 25, 2014
Much of my sermon this morning comes from Mary Hinkle Shore, a Lutheran Pastor and former seminary professor. Once I read her commentary, I knew that I had to share it with you today, as we celebrate Memorial Day; but also as we remember Jesus’ promise of an Advocate, and his command to love. Mary writes:
If you have to reassure someone that you’re not abandoning them, it may be because they feel you slipping away. In John 14, Jesus is responding to the anxiety of those he loves. “I will not leave you orphaned,” he says, but it is not clear how he will keep that promise. In a few hours, his arrest, trial, crucifixion and death will all have been accomplished. It will feel as if he has, in fact, abandoned them, or been torn away from them.
Jesus loses his life, and he is not the only one to suffer loss. Those he leaves behind lose him, and without him, they lose whatever security they might have felt in the world. After his death, they take refuge by hiding. They are isolated from each other and afraid of everything on the other side of locked doors.
We rarely think of what happened to Jesus as an experience of combat, but the story of his arrest includes soldiers, weapons and at least momentary hand-to-hand combat as Peter draws a sword to slice off the ear of one of those sent to arrest Jesus. Twenty-four hours later, those who could not watch with Jesus in the garden, or save him from the enemy, will themselves be lost without him.
On May 25th, we observed Memorial Day. It began in 1868 as a remembrance of the dead on both sides of the Civil War. It remains a moment in our civic life to take seriously the human costs of wars exacted from those who fight them.
Just as the passion of Jesus resulted in more than the loss of its most obvious casualty, so the human costs of war have always been higher than we have known how to count. Suicide has become an increasing concern for those returning from battle. Each year the number of suicides are well over 400, including Reservists and National Guard troops. In 2013 the US lost a member of the military to suicide approximately every 18 hours. It has been an on-going battle to treat an illness that is not so easily recognized.
One theory of suicide associates three factors with the cause of death: feeling that you don’t belong, feeling that you are a burden to others, and having the capacity to overcome the fear of pain and harm. Eventually the experience of social isolation and alienation is so strong, many are led to thoughts like, “my death will be better for my family, or I just don’t belong here anyway.” These thoughts overpower even the natural tendency to avoid harm
[Depression is not limited to people who serve in the military. Anyone who has suffered a traumatic incident or loss could experience such overpowering thoughts and feelings. A teenager may experience loss when the he or she leaves home to go to college or join the military. As we grow older, we may struggle with the loss of independence, of being able to drive, or being able to live on our own. Some may experience loss through divorce, unemployment, or the death of a loved one. Many of us experience the loss of our identity without a job, our spouse, or loved one. There are countless ways that depression could affect any one of us at any time.]
Near the end of a book called, The Noonday Demon: An Atlas of Depression, Andrew Solomon writes, “So many people have asked me what to do for depressed friends and relatives, and my answer is actually simple: blunt their isolation. Do it with cups of tea or with long talks or by sitting in a room nearby and staying silent or in whatever way suits the circumstances, but do that” (437).
The promise of the Spirit to the disciples is a promise from Jesus to blunt their isolation. “I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you forever” (John 14:16). The word “advocate” means one who stands alongside another. Under threat, we talk about someone having our back. In peacetime, a better image may be that of someone right beside you. You are not alone. To the disciples, Jesus describes the gift of his Spirit with them, and says in effect, “It will be as if I am by your side.”
When the disciples experience Jesus as risen from the dead, they recognize his Spirit as gathering them into something new: they become a church, a community of people who are bound together by the Spirit in their love for one another. The love of God, given and received in a community like that, offers healing and belonging where there was isolation before.
In addition to counting combat deaths and calling them to mind on Memorial Day, we are beginning to speak of the human costs of war in terms of moral injury. When the experience of survivor guilt, the trauma of combat memories, and the sense of having betrayed one’s own moral center threaten to leave one desolate, the community that Jesus breathes his Spirit into offers forgiveness, love, belonging, and good work, to be a part of with others. It is a fitting memorial to the one who said, “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you” (John 15:12).
Reflecting on healing after moral injury, Dr. Rita Nakishima Brock says, “I think the way a person is restored to a sense of their own goodness is that they participate in the life of a community, where the things they do for other people, are deeply appreciated, and they have reflected back at them a sense that they are loved and appreciated for what they do.” That is the sort of community that Jesus brings to life by offering his disciples an Advocate, standing beside them, the Spirit of truth.
[We may not be psychologists or doctors, who specialize in depression or other such disorders, and while such treatment is vital, we do have something to offer those who feel isolated, broken, unwanted, and alone. As children of God and a community of faith, we share the safe refuge of our Heavenly Father… the love and grace of Jesus … and the constant presence of the Holy Spirit. We are constantly learning to live by Jesus commandments, and through him, we are able to share God’s amazing love with each other… with our neighbors, our community… and with all who have need.]
[Each Memorial Day, as we enjoy our barbeques and picnics, let us pause to give thanks for those who gave their lives for our freedom, and let us reach out to our brothers and sisters who feel isolated, depressed, and in need of our love.]
Let us pray,
Almighty God, we commend to your gracious care and keeping all who have returned from military service, all who have lost a loved one in war, and all of the men and women of our armed forces who continue to serve at home and abroad. Defend them day by day with your heavenly grace; strengthen them in their trials and temptations; give them courage to face the perils that surround them; and grant them a sense of your abiding presence wherever they may be; through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
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