A Three-Fold Pattern to Right Action

A Three-Fold Pattern to Right Action

Sermon preached by the Rev. Lowell E. Grisham, Rector

St. Paul's Episcopal Church, Fayetteville, Arkansas

February 2, 2014; The Presentation of Our Lord Jesus Christ in the Temple, Year A

Episcopal Revised Common Lectionary

(Luke 24:7-10)   When the time came for their purification according to the law of Moses, the parents of Jesus brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord (as it is written in the law of the Lord, "Every firstborn male shall be designated as holy to the Lord"), and they offered a sacrifice according to what is stated in the law of the Lord, "a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons."

Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; this man was righteous and devout, looking forward to the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit rested on him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Messiah. Guided by the Spirit, Simeon came into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him what was customary under the law, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying,

"Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace,

               according to your word;

for my eyes have seen your salvation,

               which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples,

a light for revelation to the Gentiles

               and for glory to your people Israel."

And the child's father and mother were amazed at what was being said about him. Then Simeon blessed them and said to his mother Mary, "This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed -- and a sword will pierce your own soul too."

There was also a prophet, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher.  She was of a great age, having lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, then as a widow to the age of eighty-four.  She never left the temple but worshiped there with fasting and prayer night and day.  At that moment she came, and began to praise God and to speak about the child to all who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem.

________________________

There is a pattern in this story of the presentation of Jesus in the Temple.  There is the Temple; there is Simeon; and there is Anna.  Here at the beginning of Jesus’ life, Luke offers us a framing of what will come forth from this child, from this new life with all the possibility and potential inherent in him.  The story has mythic overtones.  Temple; Simeon; Anna. 

In accordance with tradition, Mary and Joseph bring their first born child to present him in the Temple – to present him to God as holy to the Lord.  Jewish parents have done this for centuries.  There, in that holy place, Mary and Joseph acknowledge the miracle of the gift of their firstborn.  The child is God’s.  They offer an inexpensive sacrifice to God as a symbol of their gratitude and as an acceptance of their responsibility to raise this child as an act of stewardship of God’s miraculous creation.  Thus they begin their work of parenting – grounded in the divine, entrusting this new life to its ultimate source, and receiving it back as a gift from God – a gift of embodied divine energy. 

This is what we do when we enter the Temple – whether it is the Temple of a building or the Temple of God’s presence in our hearts.  We find our grounding in the divine; we offer ourselves in thanksgiving to God; we receive our life back to us in blessing, a gift of embodied divine energy.  We do this every Sunday.  We can do this every time we turn with attention toward God’s presence within us and around us.

Suddenly, unexpectedly, an old man comes forward and takes the child into his arms.  Simeon holds the child up and praises God.  He boldly declares God’s word of action and power:  This is the salvation God has prepared in the presence of all people.  This is light – for revelation to the whole world, and for glory to our people.  Simeon blesses the family.  Then he speaks more of power and of conflict – those masculine interests.  This child is destined for the falling and rising of many in Israel.  And he adds a dark intuition toward a loving mother.  Inevitably, a sword will pierce your own soul too. 

Nearby is an old woman, Anna.  She has been dwelling in this Temple for decades, intimately close to God’s holy presence.  In radiant, maternal grace she is full of praise and encouragement.  She draws everyone in, into a circle of care and relationship.  She speaks to all so they can hear and feel of her wonder and gladness.  The scene is enveloped in a cocoon of nurturing hope. 

Temple; Simeon; Anna.  Grounding in the Divine; the masculine claim of vision and power to act; the feminine embrace of nurturing wonder in relationship.  This is the opening foundation to Jesus’ life and work in Luke’s gospel.

The fourth century BCE Chinese philosopher Chuang Tzu has a compelling story in poem form.  It is called The Woodcarver. 

Khing, the master carver, made a bell stand

Of precious wood.  When it was finished,

All who saw it were astounded.  They said it must be

The work of spirits.

The Prince of Lu said to the master carver:

“What is your secret?”

Khing replied:  “I am only a workman:

I have no secret.  There is only this:

When I began to think about the work you commanded

I guarded my spirit, did not expend it

On trifles, that were not to the point.

I fasted in order to set

My heart at rest.

After three days fasting,

I had forgotten gain and success.

After five days

I had forgotten praise or criticism.

After seven days

I had forgotten my body

With all its limbs.

“By this time all thought of your Highness

And of the court had faded away.

All that might distract me from the work

Had vanished.

I was collected in the single thought

Of the bell stand.

“Then I went to the forest

To see the trees in their own natural state

When the right tree appeared before my eyes,

The bell stand also appeared in it, clearly, beyond doubt.

All I had to do was to put forth my hand

And begin.

“If I had not met this particular tree

There would have been

No bell stand at all.

“What happened?

My own collected thought

Encountered the hidden potential in the wood;

From this live encounter came the work

Which you ascribe to the spirits.”[i]

When the Prince commanded Khing the woodcarver to make a bell stand worthy of the royal court, his first act was a form of entering into the Temple.  He “guarded his spirit” and “fasted in order to set [his] heart at rest.”  He spent time, waiting in a holy space, presenting everything to the greater mystery.

He did the active, masculine work of claiming his vision.  He collected his thoughts, unthreatened by the Prince and court.  He became powerfully focused, ignoring distractions.  He claimed his strength.

Then he went into the womb of the forest where he could be passive, receptive, open:  “to see the trees in their own natural state.”  He let the trees speak to him, not imposing any anxiety or plans upon them.  In the feminine energy of listening, seeing, feeling – open to relationship – he saw deeply into the heart of “this particular tree.”  His work of nurture allowed the “hidden potential in the wood” to come forth, and he made a commitment. 

Khing was able to do this because he was centered, self-defining, and humble enough to see the other without projection.  This live encounter within the active work of relationship yielded a partnership with life – woodcarver and tree.  The masculine work of acting/carving guided by the feminine wisdom of authentic direction, yields a work of Spirit.

What happened?

My own collected thought

Encountered the hidden potential in the wood;

From this live encounter came the work

Which you ascribe to the spirits.

Each day can offer us a context for this three-fold model of right action – heart at rest; collected focus; open receptivity – the live encounter filled with Spirit.  Temple; Simeon; Anna.  Grounding in the Divine; the masculine claim of vision and power to act; the feminine embrace of nurturing wonder in relationship.

Every day is like a newborn child ready to be presented to God and to the world.  Try this three-fold exercise as the opening foundation and grounding to your day.

And then, whenever you are given a challenge, when the authority figures in your life present you a daunting task:  Stop.  Guard your spirit and do not “expend it on trifles.”  Enter the emptiness of the divine presence until you can forget “gain and success, …praise or criticism.”  Forget the boss; forget the corporate culture.  Even forget your body – as the experienced golfer says, “Trust your swing.”  Collect your thoughts with powerful focus. 

Then confidently enter the mysterious forest of your challenge.  Let it speak to you.  Be open, receptive – listening, seeing feeling.  Let the relationships of the whole context inform you and advise you.  When the right action appears before you, put forth your hand and begin.

Temple; Simeon; Anna.  Grounding in the Divine; claiming vision and power; embracing wonder in relationship.  A three-fold pattern of right action.

Listen now to the next two verses in Luke’s gospel after this story of Jesus’ presentation.  “When Mary and Joseph had completed everything required by the Law of the Lord, they returned to their hometown, Nazareth in Galilee.  The child grew up and became strong.  He was filled with wisdom, and God’s favor was on him.”  Masculine strength.  Feminine Sophia/Wisdom.  The blessing of Spirit. 

May it be so for each of us as well.

---

[i] I first encountered this poem in 1993 through the Clergy Leadership Project.  It has been an important part of Parker Palmer’s teaching.  We use it in our Journey to Authenticity classes in our introduction to Circles of Trust.  I’ve copied from Parker’s book A Hidden Wholeness (San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 2004), p. 95-96.  Parker credits Thomas Merton, ed., The Way of Chuang Tzu (New York: New Directions, 1965), p 110-111.