MEMBERS OF THE SAME TEAM

This week, generally separate groups of people – illiterate and educated, wealthy and impoverished, Republicans and Democrats – will come together “in agreement . . . united in the same mind and the same purpose:” that the New England Patriots will, amid great fanfare and with unparalleled ease, defeat the New York Giants to complete a perfect season.

So great is their enthusiasm that some fans are willing to pay exorbitant sums of money to go to the game. While watching a sports segment on the evening news earlier this week, I could not believe what I was hearing. So I decided that “seeing is believing” and logged on to ebay. Sure enough, I found that the reporter had not been exaggerating – tickets to the Superbowl ranged in price from $1,000 to $25,000 apiece – the latter, of course, was a package that included a luxury sky box suite at the 40 yard line with a fully catered meal, and, of course, drinks galore throughout the game.

Although they present a united front against the Giants, there are significant differences among Patriot fans. For example, those who can afford a $25,000 ticket, those who can afford a $1,000 ticket, and those of us who can only afford to watch the game from our living room sofa.

But what if those differences cross the line and become divisions?

What if those who can afford the higher priced tickets are viewed as more successful?
What if their “right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” carries more weight than the rights of others?
What if they are treated – and expect to be treated – as superior human beings?

Members of the Corinthian church are facing a similar dilemma. Founded by Paul around 50 CE, the church is growing up in a culture which places a premium on “money, power, status and cultured speech.” And, like modern day research participants who automatically attribute positive qualities to physically attractive folks – that they must be more intelligent, better natured, and morally superior to less attractive folks – people in Corinth assume that, if you have either money, power, status or cultured speech, you have them all. Most of the folks in the Corinthian church, however, do not possess even one of these social advantages. As Paul reminds the members of the now four-year-old church, “consider your own call, brothers and sisters: not many of you were wise by human standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth.” (I Cor. 1:26).

Imagine growing up in a culture that assigns worth to you based on how well you speak, how powerful you are, and how much money you have.
Imagine how those values might seep into the church’s foundation.
Imagine how they get played out in the life of the community.

With the lack of introspection typical of toddlers, the Corinthian church does not question the culture’s assumptions. Instead, they allow those assumptions to shape their communal life. Because most of them don’t have social advantages, they fall back on what they have – their leaders. They begin quarreling about who belongs to whom – mainly Paul’s people and Apollos’ people, although some may be claiming to be Peter’s people, while others dare to imply that only they are Christ’s people. To bring it home, it would be as if each of you declared that you are member of the Bishop’s gang, the Dean’s posse, or the Canon’s clique.

But, in doing so, the Corinthians are forgetting:

That their worth is not to be found in something, or someone, other than God;
That they are all on the same team and that there is only one leader who unites them all: Jesus Christ,
That they are called – not to reflect the values of the surrounding culture – but to be a light to those around them.

Word of their budding dissension gets back to Paul. In addressing the issue, Paul points them back to the cross, because the cross:

Challenges the assumption that a person’s value is to be found in who she knows, what he does, or what she owns;
Exposes cracks in the foundation of every structure that is built on denying the inherent worth of all of God’s children,
Empowers every community that seeks to build unity in the midst of a world that capitalizes on division.

Unity – not uniformity – so differences are celebrated and our unique gifts and talents can be used to build up the body of Christ and spread the good news of His love through word and deed. The cross continually orients and reorients us in a new direction – a direction that moves us away from the foolish wisdom of the culture, and invites us to embrace the wisdom of God – the wisdom which:

Guides us to discover our worth in being God’s beloved;
Discourages us from lumping others into categories – insiders or outsiders; victims or oppressors; comfortable or afflicted, and
Rescues us from the anxiety that comes with choosing perishing ways –

What do I need to do be somebody?
What do I need to do to get into the in group?
How can I preserve my status in that group?
To those who are being saved, the message of the cross is indeed the power of God! Because when we know in our hearts that we are already loved by God, united with Christ, and members of His body by virtue of our baptism, we are free from the bondage of having to prove our worth – to God, to others, and to ourselves.

When I was 12 years old, I was called on to testify at my parents’ divorce. As I processed that experience over the years, I have become increasingly aware of the group of spectators in the courtroom. Why were they there? For entertainment? Out of curiosity? To see who would win and who would lose? I suspect that at least some of them were searching – searching for some insight into their own challenges by watching how other people were dealing with theirs.

Most people want to win, and many are taught to ask, “How are winners different from losers?” and “How do I become a winner?” and “What do I need to do to remain a winner?” Yet most people understand:

that life is about more than winning and losing,
that someone doesn’t have to lose in order for them to win,
that what sometimes looks like winning may in fact be losing and what looks like losing may in fact be winning.

So how do we model the paradox of the cross – that to win one must be willing to lose?

And if the world around us visits this Cathedral, what answers will they find when they ask themselves:

Is this a place that divides folks into winners and losers? Insiders and outsiders? Comfortable and afflicted?
Do the folk here have the same criteria for success as the world outside those doors?
Will they challenge and support me as I try to live into an “I am” identity in the midst of an “I do,” “I own” “I know” culture?

As we gather later this morning to consider how, during the course of this year, we will come together to continue living out the mission of the One who calls, unites and empowers us, we may want to take a few moments to reflect on the message of the cross, because it is the cross which has the power to free us –

To trust the God whose ways are not our ways;
To release what is not of God in order to embrace what is, and
To think outside the box as we learn how to be a light to each other, the diocese and our city.

Speaking of thinking outside the box, I am reminded of the story of three friends who all die around the same time. When they arrive in heaven, they are all taken to an orientation session.

Peter asks them, "When you were in your casket and friends and family were grieving, what would you have liked to hear them say about you?”

The first guy says, "I would’ve liked to hear them say that I was a great businessman –someone who worked his way up from poverty to become a multimillionaire."

The second guy says, "I would’ve liked to hear them say that I was a wonderful husband, a great father and a caring teacher – one who made a real difference in children’s lives."

Turning to the last guy, Peter says, and you, “what would you have liked to hear?”

The last guy thinks for a moment and then says, "Honestly, I would’ve liked to hear them say, ‘Look! Look! He's moving!’"

Shall we move creatively and confidently into God’s future, remembering always that we are all members of the same team?