Tuesday, May 19, 2020

"Finding the Right Words" by Colleen O'Sullivan


Finding the Right Words


Raphael, St. Paul Preaching in Athens (1515), Victoria and Albert Museum, Public Domain, Wikimedia Commons
Then Paul stood up at the Areopagus and said: “You Athenians, I see that in every respect you are very religious.  For as I walked around looking carefully at your shrines, I even discovered an altar inscribed, ‘To an Unknown God.’  What therefore you unknowingly worship, I proclaim to you.  The God who made the world and all that is in it, the Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in sanctuaries made by human hands, nor is he served by human hands because he needs anything.  Rather it is he who gives to everyone life and breath and everything.”  (Acts 17:22-25)

Duccio di Buoninsegna, Christ Taking Leave of the Apostles, (c. 1308-1311), Museo dell Opera Metropolitana dell Duomo, Public Domain, Wikimedia Commons
And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate to be with you always, the Spirit of truth. (John 14:16-17a)

Jesus said to his disciples: “I have much more to tell you, but you cannot bear it now.  But when he comes, the Spirit of truth, he will guide you to all truth. (John 16:12-13a)

Piety
Lord, may your Holy Spirit give us the words to use when talking to others about faith.

Study
When I was in seminary learning how to preach, one of the most important things I learned is to consider your congregation.  Who are they?  What are their interests?  What are their lives like?  The truth of the Scriptures is the same wherever you go. Still, if you’re preaching to farmers and their families, for example, you might pick different illustrations than if you were preaching to a congregation in Washington, DC. 

Paul does a great job assessing his audience in Athens.  Athens, in his day, is the cultural center of the Mediterranean.  People in that city pride themselves on their philosophical thinking and their erudite discussions.  When the Apostle arrives, he takes his time looking the city over.  Paul sees evidence of idolatry at every turn.  It won’t be easy to convince the Athenians to accept the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  However, he has noticed one statue he thinks he can use to spark their interest.  It is dedicated to an unknown god.  He uses that as his opening.  He says he will tell them about this unknown God and begins to talk about God, the Creator, who is everywhere, giving life to everything that is.

Paul even quotes a Greek poet, Epimenides (c. 600 BC), who wrote about God that “in him, we live and move and have our being.”1  Paul does his best to use whatever might appeal to the Athenian intellect.  Unfortunately, there is one insurmountable stumbling block - the idea of resurrection from the dead.  Once he mentions it, all listening stops, and people begin arguing with him.  A few do come back to talk to Paul privately, and a small number actually become followers of Christ, but as far as we know, Paul kicks the dust off his feet in Athens and goes straight to Corinth.

In the Gospel reading, Jesus is still talking with his disciples after their last meal together.  Their hearts are heavy.  They left everything behind to follow Jesus.  What will they do without him?  Besides anxiety about the future, they must have been feeling anticipatory grief.  They love their leader and can’t imagine life without him. 

Jesus knows his friends.  His heart aches for them.  He is going to leave because that’s his Father’s will for him.  He does his best to console these men he dearly loves.  Yes, he will be gone, but he isn’t leaving them to go on alone.  Jesus says the Spirit of truth will come to guide them.  From our vantage point, we know how the power of the Holy Spirit transforms and galvanizes the disciples into action, but, at this moment, it’s a promise of a future they can’t imagine. 

Action
Paul did everything right before he addressed the Athenians.  He took the time to observe them and their culture.  He tailored his message to them, using what he had learned from visiting their city.  But his trip to this great center of culture wasn’t the resounding success he had hoped for.  Most of us know that feeling.  We have family and friends who aren’t believers.  Try as we might pray as hard as we do, they show little interest in God.  Don’t despair.  God sees our efforts.  Continue to pray for them.  Like Paul, move on to spread the Good News in other, more fertile pastures.  In your prayers today, you could especially lift before the Lord, all the souls you have been praying for.

And take a few minutes to remember all the times Jesus reached out to you when you were feeling anxious or sad or grief-stricken and not sure about the future.   We have a Lord who wants to give us whatever comfort we need.

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