Nine Things We Can Pray Together (Sermon)

From a sermon delivered at Anaheim United Methodist Church, 2003.

Based on Matthew 17: 1-9,  The Transfiguration of Jesus

I have been thinking a lot about what Jesus would have me say and do as your preacher in these days when our nation prepares for war with Iraq.  There is a great part of me that has wanted to simply steer clear of the topic.  In so many respects it would be easier to pretend that the gospel of Jesus Christ had nothing to say about this controversial matter of war and peace.  But to pretend that the gospel has nothing to say about this matter would be to succumb to the wishful thinking of Peter.  It would be to pretend that ours is a Christ who stays on the mountaintop, separated from the complications of human history.  It would be to deny that Jesus came down off the mountain. 

And so today I want to share with you the pondering of my heavy heart in these days when the war drums beat so loudly across our nation and the world.  Before I do, I have to share with you that I do not enter this preaching minefield lightly.  I know that there are many of you, perhaps most, who will disagree with some, perhaps many, of my opinions on this matter.  My intent is not to force my opinion on you, nor to suggest that you should conform your views to mine.  It is my intent, though, to invite you, to challenge you, to think hard and pray hard about this matter of our nation going to war in the coming days and weeks.   I want to encourage you to think and pray about this matter not just as Americans, but also, indeed first and foremost, as Christians.  

I have presided at five funerals in the last two months – three were for veterans and two were for the spouses of veterans.  It was for me a privilege to participate in those services, and to honor the lives of Marion Disbennett, Al Kent, Emma Crowder.  I was pleased, as a part of their services, to honor their service in the military.  I was moved by the presentation of the colors and the playing of taps.  And to those of you who have served our country in this way I say I am glad to honor your service, too.  I understand that the freedoms we enjoy in this country have been bought at a price.  I understand that a part of that price has been paid in blood, your own and the blood of some who did not survive the battles.  I am glad to honor the service of Tim Smith and Tim Zenner, members of this congregation who are presently serving in the armed forces.   I understand that military service represents for many an expression of  “service above self” that is consistent with the highest ideals of Christian faith.   So to you who have served in our nation’s armed services as an expression of your Christian commitment I say “Thank you … thank you for heeding God’s call to service.”

I have also walked in peace marches these last few months – and there I have joined a number of you from this congregation, ranging in age from eight to eighty.  It was for me a privilege to be a part of those crowds, too.  I understand that for many of you opposition to the war represents a true expression of your own calling in Jesus Christ.  I understand that the peaceful and democratic expressions of opposition to government policies are in their own way uniquely patriotic.  So to those of you who are convinced our government is in the wrong in its aggressive posturing vis-à-vis Iraq, and to those of you who in so many varied ways are exercising your voice and working to oppose this war, I also say “thank you … thank you for heeding God’s call on your life.”  It is not too late to hope and pray and work for peace.

These experiences of recent weeks have made evident to me what you all know to be true.  Within our congregation you can find the full range of opinions about the merits of the case that President Bush has put forth for going to war with Iraq.  This is a stark and simple truth -- we are not of one mind on this matter, and probably never will be. 

What are we to make of this, that followers of the same Christ can come to such different conclusions about the prospect of America going to war?  It seems that we have come down off the mountaintop, determined to follow this transfigured Jesus, this beloved Son of God, and some of us are marching off to war and others marching against the war.  Can we find no common ground, no places to walk together, in this difficult and divisive time?

I believe we can, and I want to try to define this common ground by articulating a series of prayers.  These are my prayers for this difficult time – I invite you to join me in them. 

First, we can pray that greater freedom and justice would be brought to the people of Iraq.  I have heard no one dispute the argument of our government that Saddam Hussein is a tyrant and a butcher.  Surely we can all pray that a new day would dawn for the people of Iraq.

Second, we can pray that freedom and justice would grow in our own nation.  It is right and good that we should celebrate the accomplishments of our nation.  But to pretend that we have reached the fullest expression of God’s desire for humankind … to pretend that there is no room for our own improvement … to pretend that the kingdom of God and the United States of America are merely synonyms for one another … to think this way is to commit the sin of idolatry.  We must pray that our own nation would continue to grow, that we ourselves would allow for the possibility that God is not finished with us yet.

Third, we can still pray that these greater goods of freedom and justice be brought about without bloodshed.  There is still reason to hope that Saddam Hussein will submit to the pressures of the United Nations, either by allowing weapons inspections to run their full course, or by acquiescing to the pressure of the family of nations and surrendering power.  I invite you to pray with me that President Bush and the leaders of our nation would pursue to the fullest extent the possibility of a peaceful resolution.

Fourth, if the war comes, we can all pray for those who will face the horrors of war.  I have no idea whether either of the young men from our church will come into harm’s way, but I invite you to join me in praying for their safety, and the safety of all soldiers, of whatever nation, who will find themselves engaged in hostilities.  War is a brutal business, and certainly we can pray together that as many young men and women as possible, from all nations, from whatever sides of the conflict, will return safely to their homes and families.

Fifth, if the war comes, we can also pray for the innocents who will suffer the greatest cost of war, as innocents always suffer the greatest cost of war.   It is simple dishonesty to minimize the consequences of war.  If the war comes people will suffer. And ours is a God who is not dispassionate in the face of human suffering.  Surely we can pray for the innocents of this and every war.

Sixth, if the war comes, we can pray that God will bring about a greater degree of global justice, even through the imperfect instrument of war.  The witness of our scriptures is that God is not dependent on the work of human agents to bring about good.  I think of Joseph’s famous declaration to his brothers at the close of the book of Genesis: “You intended it for evil, but God intended it for good.”  Surely we can pray that God will take the impure intentions of all the parties to this conflict and somehow weave from these strands a tapestry of the greater good.

Seventh, if the war comes, we can pray that our nation’s leaders will consider long and hard the implications of an ever-expanding military posture for America in the world. I have heard advisers to President Bush suggest that war with Iraq is but the first of many such “preemptive” battles that our nation may be forced to fight in its effort to rid the world of terrorism.  This prospect of “permanent war” causes me great anguish and concern.  I heard former President Jimmy Carter interviewed this week; he offered that he has never seen a time when anti-Americanism has run so high around the world.  I fear that an ever-expanding military posture, should the Administration pursue it, would not only invite untold suffering on other nations, but would also be akin to painting a bigger and bigger target on our own back.

Eighth, if the war comes, we can pray that this present conflict will not escalate into a “clash of civilizations.”  This is my greatest fear.  Muslim fundamentalists are working hard to turn this into a “holy war,” and I worry that some of the rhetoric issued forth by our nation’s leaders is only fueling these fires.  I find it presumptuous to set our nation the goal of “ridding the world of evildoers,” as President Bush has done.  I recognize his authority to make the judgment of whether war in Iraq is necessary; but I hope and pray that he will recognize the limits of his authority.  I pray he will leave the project of cosmic morality in God’s hands.

Ninth, and finally, we can pray that we will grow in our love for one another, even in our differences.  Just as true peace is more than the mere absence of hostilities, so true Christian love is more than the mere absence of disagreement.  In many respects the true test of our love for one another as brothers and sisters in Christ comes precisely in those times when we disagree with one another.  We could all simply avoid the controversial topics where faith and politics intersect, but this would be, in effect, to fail to share our truest selves with one another.  The true challenge for me, as your pastor, is to love you and accept you even as you may support this war.  The true challenge for you, as members of this congregation, is to love me and accept my service as the pastor of this church even as I am opposed to this war.

These are my prayers – I invite you to join me in them.  I am making them available to you in printed form, so that you can take them home with you and consider them prayerfully and privately, or so that you can share them with friends.    I also invite you to engage with me in conversation about these prayers.  Are you able to pray these prayers with me?  If not, why not?   I would like to hear from you the prayers that you will be praying in the days and weeks to come.

Mark’s gospel tells us that when Jesus comes down off the mount of his transfiguration, he instructs his disciples to “tell no one” about what they have witnessed, nor about the voice they have heard.  This is the beginning of a great puzzle in the gospel of Mark, what has come to be known across the ages as the puzzle of the “messianic secret.”  Why does Jesus persistently tell his disciples to refrain from revealing his identity as the chosen one of God?

The most plausible answer, to my mind, is that Jesus does not want others dictating to him the nature of his mission.  This is the great risk we run at times of controversy within the church, that one party or another will elevate their understandings to the status of “gospel truth.”  I think when we do this, when we would pretend to an absolute belief that our views are God’s views, the word from upon high is the same to us as it was to Peter.  “This is my beloved Son; listen to him!”  And then, like Peter, we come down off the mountain, and we do our best to follow Jesus, wherever he may lead us.