Sunday, July 27, 2025
READINGS & MESSAGE
PSALM 85
This Psalm passage is directed to people but also directed to ‘the land’…all the verses connect the land to God’s action…in a season when many folks are focusing on ecojustice or the pressures of climate change, Psalm 85 certainly can help us focus attention on God’s intention for the land…and in our way, having worship services outside brings us closer to what nature has to offer for us…it gives us a certain understanding that we not only need to love each other, but also to love all of creation…so…Psalm 85
LUKE 11:1-13
What I find interesting with this passage from Luke is that each instruction that Jesus gives to the disciples invites them to enter into a relationship…and that relationship involves a conversation, and the conversation begins with the Word…or prayer…God has first spoken the one Word to Christ and now we need only to muster the good sense to speak back…and if we do, we will find ourselves in conversation with a friend who knows all of our weaknesses…one who gave it all so that humanity might believe in love and hope and peace…and joy…and live out that life so that others will join in and humanity has another chance of reconciliation with creation…
THE DAY I MET PAUL!
This morning I’m going to share with you something which happened to me over 20 years ago and which still sticks in my mind as the biblical words had said: “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” …It had happened in Winnipeg and there were over 85 students which had come together to spend a week discussing and struggling with liberation theology or in easier terms, social change…we were there in terms of our own understanding or perception of God and how our churches or communities of faith were relevant or distant to the problems of society or in larger terms – the world…we were four streams of learning in The United Church of Canada and our sisters and brothers of the Anglican faith…
And these were the four groups: our group was 21 strong, the ICPO group or the In Community Program for Ordination…the second group was folks from the Centre for Christian Studies, 35 of them, and these folks were soon to be Diaconal Ministers…the third group numbered 20-25 and they were from the Dr. Jessie Salteaux Centre which is the centre for ordination for Indigenous folks and the remaining group, the fourth, they were students from the University of Winnipeg theological department…all very diverse and yet all together with one purpose…
Our theme speakers or facilitators were Norman Bent who was a Moravian minister in Managua, Nicaragua and Stan McKay who was a former moderator of the United Church and who was born and raised in Norway House in northern Manitoba…
Stan speaks Cree and gave to us the First Nations perspective on liberation theology whereas Norman gave us the perspective on this topic from the oppressed people in a third world country…a lot of parallels…
We were invited to place our names on places to tour that provided ministry in the inner city of Winnipeg and yes, the inner city can be a dangerous place at any time of the day or night…the one that I chosen was called the Oak Table which was run out of the Augustine United Church in central Winnipeg…I had attended this church the Sunday before and knew that were involved in outreach ministry and wanted to see what that extent may be…and way back then, Augustine was one of the leaders in becoming an Affirming congregation and I wanted to see on that next morning what it was all about…on the Sunday that I was there, worshiping, I was amazed at the diversity of the folks who were there that attended and going back there to this place intrigued me…and my heart and my eyes were opened to what went on there…
Five of us went to visit the Oak Table and were immediately welcomed by not only the volunteer workers but also the 30 – 35 people that dropped into this place on a regular basis…they came for a cup of coffee, possibly a muffin or some doughnuts and the cliental ranged from hookers to mothers with children, and from folks with addictions to homeless ones who were looking for a warm cup of coffee or possibly on the day we were there, a sandwich…there were many Indigenous folks present and also down and out whit folks who had seen a better day… everyone respected each other and kept the rules which were very simple – no drugs, no liquor, no swearing and no racism…those who bent the rules were asked to leave and possibly return the next day…
I had entered into a conversation with a gentleman whose name was Paul and he had on a suit jacket and a tie and I had asked him many questions about the Oak Table and he freely answered all of them…about 15 minutes into our conversation, I came to the realization that Paul wasn’t one of the volunteers but was one of the clients…he was one of the street people and spent 3 – 4 afternoons at the Oak Table and helped where he could…he asked me if I wouldn’t mind joining him on a pick-up patrol which might last about 20 minutes or so…I still had 1 ½ left so I said “Sure”… “What are we picking up?”…he said, “You’ll see”…
We went out the door and headed to the alleyways of Winnipeg where Paul put a pair of gloves on and all I could think to myself was, “Was I in some sort of trouble?”…Paul stopped near a dumpster, bent down and picked up two hypodermic needles and put them into his shoulder bag which he was carrying…you see, Paul used to be a constant cocaine user and now spent everyday picking up needles and discarding them so that children or other addicts couldn’t reuse them…you see, Paul had HIV and the word had become flesh through him in what he was doing…this is his own liberation…Paul was seeking redemption for himself in the only way that he thought that he could help….and he was sharing this moment with me…and I’ll never forget what he said to me when we said goodbye…
“Every day, we face many little deaths…but we don’t have to face them alone.”…I blessed Paul and he, in turn, blessed me…he blessed me in his openness to share in his journey…his perseverance in the face of the unknown is a cornerstone of all of our Christian lives…to set aside a part of our lives to each day aid humanity is in itself not only humbling – but necessary…
This is a part of liberation theology – to liberate or to free others from the shackles and chains of oppression, whether inner or outer…Paul, was in his own way, liberating – not only himself but also all of his friends at the Oak Table…I saw the face of Christ in Paul…if we wouldn’t have met, he would have been just another street person…
We must learn to listen to each others stories and travel those pathways together….Amen.