In 1942, a group of football fans who were U.S. military personnel
stationed in Newfoundland took a day of liberty and went fishing off the coast.
As they fished, they listened to a radio broadcast of the annual Army/Navy game.
Suddenly, they heard a cannon shot and turned to see a German submarine only a few
hundred yards away. A German officer and several armed sailors boarded the
fishing boat. The officer accused them of searching for subs and angrily declared
that the Germans were going to sink the boat. Things had reached a pretty tight
impasse when unexpectedly, from the radio, came the excited voice of a sports
announcer: "The moment has come! The Navy is taking to the air. The Navy
receivers are coming out." That was all the Germans heard. Mistaking a
sports broadcast for a Navy transmission, they scurried off the fishing boat, quickly
returned to their sub, and submerged.
That delightful story is almost certainly apocryphal. A submarine’s best
protection is remaining undetected. If the Germans had really thought that the
fishing boat was an anti-submarine picket boat, they probably would have sunk it
without boarding. My brief internet search uncovered no source, credible or
otherwise, for this unattributed story that I first saw in a print publication
some years ago.
Today is the first day of Advent, one of the four Sundays in Advent, and
the first day of the new church year. For centuries, Advent was a penitential
season of preparation. People confessed their sins to prepare for the annual
celebration of Jesus’ birth and to make themselves ready for his glorious and imminent
return. Confession, accompanied by genuine remorse for one’s offenses and the
repentance of turning away from sin is one path to spiritual transformation. In
this parish and in many places, penitential preparation makes little sense
because few if any of us commit terrible, life-defining sins.
Instead of perpetuating the charade of a penitential Advent or
proclaiming “fake news” about when or how the end of the world might occur – hopes
now most often linked to wildfires, earthquakes, and flooding, Advent’s
emphasis is shifting to preparation in a more general sense. Hence, we use the
color blue, the color associated with the House of David, instead of purple.
Today’s gospel identifies three problems – worries about this life,
drunkenness, and dissipation – that may inhibit our ability to discern God’s
activity in the world and God’s presence in our lives. Addressing each problem constitutes
a practical step for both clearing your spiritual vision and transforming your
life. The gospel, like the rest of the Bible, is not merely a collection of
charming, apocryphal stories but a compilation of insightful life changing
wisdom, variously offered in story, direct teachings, or other literary forms.
“Worries about life” connotes stress. For too many of us, the holidays
bring excess stress. The best way to manage stress is to avoid it. Develop the
power to say “no” and to maintain good boundaries. Illustratively, set firm
dollar limits on gift giving. Limit your commitment of time and money to work,
church, and non-profits. Jesus instructed his disciples to love their neighbors
AS they love themselves. Jesus knew that love for others begins with self-love
and self-care. A physically exhausted, emotionally depleted, spiritually empty
person cannot give the most precious gift of all – the gift of love incarnated
in self – to spouse or partner, children, parents, or anyone else.
If drunkenness – a word connoting self-medication, addiction, or any
other form of escapism – is a problem, reach out to a member of the clergy, attend
a twelve-step group that meets here or somewhere else, or contact your
physician or another health care provider. Nobody has to be alone. You can
defeat your demon or demons. Trustworthy, competent help is available. Part of God’s
message to us in our annual celebration of Jesus’ nativity is that God loves
each and every person, regardless of identity, thoughts, feelings or past
actions. Nothing, absolutely nothing, can distance you from God’s loving
presence.
If dissipation – an overwhelming preoccupation with material pleasures
and possessions – is a problem, seize the opportunity to take a step or two
away from it this Advent. For example, prioritize caring for creation over more
traditional forms of celebrating Christmas. You probably saw news reports about
a dead whale in Indonesia where an autopsy discovered over one thousand pieces
of plastic in the whale’s stomach. Images of the pile of plastic in the whale’s
stomach are indelibly etched in my mind. Use less plastic by reusing plastic
containers, refusing plastic straws and plastic bags in restaurants and stores,
and recycling whenever possible. Send ecards instead of paper cards. Replace
wrapping papers with reusable gift bags. Turn off lights in empty rooms.
A grass roots Christian organization, Advent Conspiracy, promotes Advent
as a time to worship fully, spend less, give more, and love all.[1] Those
goals, incidentally, closely align with the marks of growing congregations:
attention to call, spirituality, community, and openness to change. This Advent,
having put aside worries about this life, drunkenness and dissipation, may our waiting
and watching be blessed with seeing and hearing the signs of God at work in our
midst. Amen.
Sermon
preached First Sunday of Advent, December 2, 2018,
at the Parish
of St. Clement, Honolulu, HI
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