Stone Soup

Sunday's Gospel reading, the feeding of the 5,000, got me thinking how we have been feeding our neighbours (and each other) through the programs we offer:  the Good Food Market, and Good Food boxes, and the Neighbourhood Table (pre-pandemic).  And, then, the train of thought branched and I arrived at Stone Soup.  Do you remember this story?  It's a European folk tale that apparently is told in many variations.  But the basic story is always the same:

Some travelers come to a village.  They carry only an empty cook pot.  Hungry, they approach the villagers and ask for them to share their food.  The villagers are protective of what little they have and refuse the requests.  So, the travelers find a nearby stream and fill their pot.  They find a large stone, place it in the pot of water and then return to the village.  They build a fire and put the pot over it to heat.  

Now the villagers are curious.  One by one they approach the travellers and ask, "What are you doing?"  The travellers explain they are making stone soup, and how wonderful it will taste.  When it's ready, they state, they would love to share it with the villager. "But," they say, "it still needs a little bit of garnish to improve the flavour".  Each villager in turn offers what they have to go in the pot.  One offers carrots, another onion, and one shares potatoes.  Soon there is salt and pepper added and cabbage and so on.  The travellers stir the pot and all anticipate a bowl of stone soup as the smell fills the village square.

Finally, the soup is ready, and a delicious and nourishing pot of soup is enjoyed by travelers and villagers alike. The travelers have inspired the villagers into sharing their food with them, they have successfully transformed it into a tasty meal which they all share.

I love this story.  It speaks to neighbours together accomplishing something.  It feeds people.  It shows how what little we have can be made into something better.  That we each have something to offer. How one person's idea (the stone), can be transformational. 

The story makes it seem all so simple.  Is it?  Can we each add something we have to the pot and it become nourishing and feed our neighbours?  As our efforts have grown at St. Philip's, I think we are witness to how the idea of a few members, their efforts and those who joined in, have made a difference.  How many did we feed weekly with the Good Food Boxes?  Maybe 200?  

I imagine the story of the feeding of the 5,000 is similar.  That once the bread and fish are shared, the people who had "nothing" found their reserves and shared them.  

In this potluck of life, we each bring to the table what has first been given us.  May we always be at the table together.  We can feed others and ourselves.  

Your kingdom come

The kingdom is like a mustard seed, yeast, treasure, the finest pearl, and a net full of good fish. That’s what this week’s Gospel tells us.  His teachings were many about the kingdom.  The second petition in the “perfect” prayer he taught was to ask for the kingdom to come.  And we are told to, “Seek first his kingdom” (Matthew 6:33).

So, the kingdom is something that we need to pay attention to. Remember the catechism?  Luther explains:

The Second Petition
Thy Kingdom come.
What does this mean?
The kingdom of God certainly comes of itself without our prayer, but we pray in this petition that it may come to us also.
How does God’s kingdom come?
The kingdom of God comes when our heavenly Father gives us His Holy Spirit, so that by His grace we believe His holy Word and live godly lives here in time and hereafter in eter­nity.

And in the Large Catechism, he speaks of the coming of God’s kingdom in two ways: “first, it comes here, in time, through the Word and faith, and secondly, in eternity, it comes through the final revelation,” in Christ’s return.

To seek first means to live in the kingdom now. This week’s parables although each noticeably short, reflect the great value of being in the kingdom.  Nothing is worth more than this. And though we might seem small and weak, with God we can grow to be great and strong. 

Through his teachings, Jesus tells us repeatedly that how we live today is what matters.  How we build the kingdom together.  How we make this world a better place.  How we connect with our neighbour.  How we show God’s love in all we do.

And so, during these times, we can still do much to bring the kingdom.  From the simple act of wearing a face mask or checking in on those who are isolated, we make a difference.  From the harder tasks of making changes in our lives and attitudes to care for the environment and for all people (e.g. by checking “white privilege”), we make a better world. 

So let us pray together, “your kingdom come” and work together to make it so.

Good or evil?

What do you see when you look at the image below?

This week's reading is another parable that Jesus told.  This time about the seeds sewn to harvest (good) and those sewn that were weeds to hurt the harvest (evil).  In the picture above, both Good and Evil are there.  Can you see them both?

 

One way to see this parable is to recognize that there is good and evil everywhere, so how do we confront the evil?  Do we dig up the field and start again with just the good seed (and hope that the evil seed will not be sewn this time)?  Do we wait until the evil seed has taken root and then destroy it? Or do we wait, as in the story, and only harvest the good seed's growth?  The long wait ensures that the good seed is not destroyed along with the bad seed.  God's kingdom is not a "quick fix".  God's patience with his children ensures every opportunity for our growth.

 

As His children, though, we are not purely "good seed".  We do have bad in us.  How do we ensure that the good triumphs over the bad?  I like the picture above having both "good" and "evil" in it, like us.  But which do you see first?  And when you are looking at others, which do you see first?  Do you see the good in others or are you waiting for them to prove to you they're good and trustworthy?

 

It's easy to have a chip on your shoulder, to distrust others, and to look at others with judgement.  That's where we need to do the work to have a balanced view.  And this is also where prejudice and bias come in.  Can we say that we offer each person we encounter the opportunity for good?  To see them as they are, like us good and bad, and not as we perceive based on our own issues?

 

Thankfully, Jesus' parable tells us that God has the long view on things.  He knows we need it.  He is patient with us and gives us the time to do the work.  There is evil in the world.  But we don't need to create it by the way we look at others.  See the good.

Seeds for all

I think of all the stories in the Bible, it’s the parables I love the most.  Jesus was a master storyteller.  Although the ways we do things today differ from Jesus’ time, we do understand about seeds, soil, and weeds: elements of this week’s parable of the sower (farmer).  We “get it” in the basic straight-forward story.  But the amazing part of Jesus’ parables is that if we listen, we can hear a different meaning every time.  When I taught parables to the kids, I always told them that Jesus’ stories were written in code and we need to break the code.  And there are always two codes to break first:  find God and yourself in the story.  This parable has so many levels and with an open heart and faith, it can be life transforming.

 

In this parable, it’s easy to see God as the sower.  Not just any sower: one that is “extravagant”.  He throws the seed everywhere.  He is not selective.  It lands on all the soils, not just the best soil.  It lands where it lands without judgement.  There is good soil, but his presence is everywhere.  There is possibility of harvest in every situation, hostile or fertile.  How can we be like that, seeing possibilities where others turn away seeing only barren ground?

 

The seed can be decoded as God’s word and it is for everyone.  (Or do you see the seed as something else?)  The idea of a “seed” is powerful because it grows into something beautiful or useful.  It can become a flower or sweet fruit.  It grows and changes.  And it’s also part of a cycle that renews itself:  seeds that mature create and spread more seed.  This is not a one-time thing.  We must re-seed.  As it is with God’s word.  

 

And then there’s the soil.  That’s us.  And here’s where it gets complicated:  which type of soil?  The hard ground where the seed doesn’t grow, but yet the birds are fed?  The rocky soil where the roots are shallow and the seedling dries up in the sun?  Or the ground where the weeds choke out the plant? What are the weeds in our lives?  Or are we the good soil where the seed grows and bears fruit abundantly?  And are we just one type of soil?  And with time and situation, does it change?  So many ways to look at it.  This is what is so incredible about this story and why each time you hear it with an open heart, you can see it and apply it to your life in different ways.  So much to learn!

 

It’s easy to conclude that we aspire to be the good soil.  And yet the story tells us that the seed is in all the soils.  God will keep sowing the seed, planting for all the love and hope of his word. There are people and times when the seed will not grow as strong.  We must continue to work the soil to be the good soil for his word!  To nurture the seeds he’s planted and to re-seed.  To be “extravagant” and see the possibilities in all situations.

Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing

Written 120 years ago as a poem, Lift Ev’ry Voice and Sing, known as the Black National Anthem, is  a song of affirmation for African-American people and a powerful cry for liberation.  It has been prominent in the USA as part of the civil rights movement and was adopted by the NAACP 100 years ago.  It is becoming again a song needed to be sung, to evoke the struggle and resilience of a people who are still on the path to freedom.  A song of faith and thankfulness, and yet hopeful and a vision for a better present. 

May we all join in the song and make the vision of harmony in liberty a reality and, true to our God, live in the light together.

Read the lyrics from "Lift Ev’ry Voice and Sing" below. A poem written in 1899 by James Weldon Johnson and set to music by his brother John Rosamond Johnson.