The Fifth Sunday of Easter

Let’s Meet Some Early Followers of the Way

            Part Two: Peter “Walls Broken Down”  (Acts 11:1-18)

            My parents used to drive us children from Oakville into downtown Toronto for a Chinese dinner. It was supposed to be a treat, but I took one look at the mushroom egg foo young, the chicken chow mien and the beef with snow pea pods, and refused to even try them. I knew with absolute certainty that any self respecting dinner had meat in one place on the plate, vegetables in a second, and rice or preferably, potatoes, in a third. Adults could argue all they wanted that when the food reached my stomach, it would be mixed together. I wouldn’t budge. There I sat, eating plain white rice. Years later, when I finally tasted Chinese food, I could have kicked myself for all the delicious meals I had missed. You might think that would have taught me a lesson. But I still catch myself turning up my nose at some dish because I am sure those ingredients just don’t go together – like frozen peas in a layered salad or tomato juice in a cake or chocolate in a chicken dish.

            So I can empathize with Peter. There he is hungry, more than ready to eat, and there is something like a big sheet being lowered from heaven – lots of room for some really great food. As it draws nearer, Peter recognizes bottom feeders and scavengers – yuck! In fact, all the animals, reptiles and birds are ones he cannot eat. This is not just a matter of preference: these animals are considered ritually unclean. For Jews, this is more than some random rules around food: it is part of what shores up their identity as God’s chosen people. The Romans may want to assimilate all the peoples they conquer – turning them into obedient servants of the empire, hailing Caesar as their one and only lord. By clinging to the Law including the food rules, the Jews remain separate and apart. There is a clear wall between Jews and Gentiles. A wall Peter knows with absolute certainty cannot and should not be broken down.

            Can we put ourselves in Peter’s shoes? Can we identify times in our own lives when we thought some wall between them and us should be maintained? When Trinity-St. Paul’s and Bloor Street started an Out of the Cold programme, the organizers were determined to make no distinction between church volunteers and the guests who came off the street for a hot dinner, a mattress overnight, and breakfast in the morning. All were to wear the same sort of name tag with just the first name. When dinner was ready, everyone was to sit together at the long tables. Now, most of our guests were men, some of whom looked more than a little rough around the edges. As I was being waved to a table, I found myself hesitating. It was one thing to attend a dinner as the minister who was expected to say grace or as a server pouring tea and coffee. It was another to simply be “Linda”, sitting beside Bill and across from Harry. What would I talk about? Surely, it would be better to continue working in the kitchen. All the more food for these hungry guys! While I absolutely believe we are all children of God, I realized: it is much more comfortable for me to keep a counter between me and the homeless.

            For Peter, there is a clear, strong wall between Jews and Gentiles. Such walls can appear natural, even God-approved. We can become so used to them that we have a hard time imagining life without them. But the Spirit is at work in the world. The Spirit that hovered over the waters of chaos in the beginning. The Spirit that drove Jesus into the wilderness to wrestle with choices around the nature and scope of his ministry. The Spirit that blows where it wills in this world where God created all living beings and life-giving things. This time, it is blowing on a Gentile, on a Roman named Cornelius who is inspired to send his servants for Peter. It is blowing on a Jew, on one of Jesus’ disciples who is moved to break with cherished tradition, and accompany them. It looks like the Spirit is no respecter of walls.

            From the time I was introduced to Scripture Union Notes at the age of eight, I have enjoyed Bible Study. As a minister, I have always tried to have a Bible Study group. At Bloor Street United, it met in the Board Room at 8:00am so participants could come before starting their work day. While this group was open, usually the same individuals showed up. One morning, there was a new face. A complete stranger. A young man who had never even entered our church. He had noticed on our corner sign that we had Bible Study. Something moved him to turn up. His parents were ardent atheists who would strongly disapprove of his decision. He knew nothing about scripture, but he was curious, and open to learning. I was amazed. Bible Study can be a hard sell even among committed United Church members and here was an eager young person off the street, who kept on returning, wanting more!

            He reminded me of the ten year old girl who appeared in my congregation in Waubaushene. Her parents were not involved in that or any other congregation. And yet, there she was quietly sitting in a pew, Sunday after Sunday, joining in the hymns and prayers, listening to scripture read and preached with a handful of people, all of whom were old enough to be her grandparents. She was determined to be baptized. I tried to dissuade her: once children are five or more, they are better off waiting until they are old enough for confirmation. Then they can take classes and affirm their faith for themselves. It made perfect sense to me, but not to her. She knew herself to be a beloved child of God, and she wanted baptism. As that sheet had to descend three times for Peter to get the message, it took me awhile to recognize and accept that this was indeed the Spirit moving. She was baptized.

            The Spirit moves and walls that divide are broken down. In the home of the Roman, Cornelius, the Spirit doesn’t even wait for Peter to finish his sermon before falling upon these Gentiles. This is a watershed moment in the life of the church. Up until this point, it has been an exclusivelyJewish movement. Now, Gentiles have been baptized into the one body of Christ. What an amazing and exciting development! But the leadership back in Jerusalem have a problem, not so much with Gentiles receiving the Spirit as with Peter’s eating and drinking with them. These leaders are accustomed to Gentiles being interested in their faith and becoming God-fearers on the fringes of synagogues. But the wall has always remained between Jews and Gentiles. Only if Gentiles first become Jews is table fellowship possible. Peter has broken these time honoured rules.

            I don’t know about you, but when I am hauled on the carpet as Peter is by the Jerusalem leadership, I tend to get defensive, and start to argue. But look at Peter. He tells them a story. He starts to recount from the very beginning how all of this came about. He lets them see his vision, and hear the servants’ request for a visit to Cornelius’ home. He shows them how these experiences and events have changed him. It was no whim that caused him to eat with Gentiles: it was the Spirit. He shares his story and the position of the Jerusalem leadership begins to shift.

            I wish I had followed Peter’s approach when tackling “the Issue” on Coldwater pastoral charge in 1987-88. I knew church members held a variety of opinions around the ordination of gays and lesbians. I didn’t want to foster polarization, much less create the kind of division I saw opening up on the floor of Simcoe Presbytery when the chair, confronted by a vote too close to count, had the “yeses” move to one wall and the “nos” to the other. I opted for a Saturday workshop with refreshments and lots of opportunity for conversation. We would look at a variety of scriptures, reflecting on their original context, and discussing how they might apply in our own time. I started by writing on the flip chart “we are created in the image of God.” One of my elders immediately stood up: “I know where you are going with this”, and stomped out. So much for my hope of creating a safe space where we could really hear one another, and listen for the Spirit’s breath.

            Years passed. I read in “The Observer” magazine that Coldwater United Church had decided to allow same sex marriages. I was stunned. What had happened to bring about such a radical shift? I learned: it was an elder who had been a strong opponent making a 180 degree turn when his daughter came out to him. It was a well respected older couple talking about their son, who had been raised in Coldwater’s Sunday School, but who had felt compelled to leave town because there was no place in Coldwater for him as a gay man. It was having a gay minister who shared his story. As people listened, walls came tumbling down. Back at Out of the Cold, as we sat round that dinner table, and I listened to Bill and Harry’s stories; as we laughed and ate together, there was no longer any them and us.

            The Spirit moves. Walls are broken down. Thanks be to God. Amen.