A "What Not to Wear" Children's Sermon

I realized that I don't have any of my children's sermons on this blog.  Mostly this is because they are so improvisational that I don't have a written text, but rather an outline that evolves as the children interact with me.  The one I did this week was so much fun I thought I'd post it here, even though most of the idea came not from me, but from this fantastic blogger, Rev. Sarah.  I'll reconstruct it as best I can.

As the Children's Time began, I was nowhere to be seen.  My college, Rev. Grenley, acted like I was mysteriously absent, perhaps having gotten stuck in traffic.  Just then, I raced into the sanctuary in my bathrobe, slippers, and towel-turbaned head.  The response was just what I'd hoped for: gasps, laughter, and children pointing while asking, "WHAT are you doing?"

I talked about clothes, and what is appropriate to wear for certain occasions.  For some reason, the kids did NOT seem to think that what I was wearing was appropriate for church!  Then, I told the story of Jesus' parable in Matthew 22:1-14:

Jesus told his followers a parable.  A parable is a story that makes us think really hard about something in a new way.  In this story, Jesus told us that the kingdom of God is like a king who threw a wedding for his son.  Can you imagine what a big party that must have been?  How many of you have been to a wedding?  What kind of clothes do people wear for a wedding?  [Answers included: "Nice" and "Fancy clothes."]  Yes!  Fancy clothes!  And this wedding was for the son of a KING!  So they would have been really fancy clothes! 

But this king sent out his invitations, and then something sad happened.  All the people who were invited said they couldn't come.  They had reasons, like having to milk their cows or visit their mothers.  But the king got very angry and sent people out to destroy their city.  But he still had all this food left, so then he told his servants to go out and invite anyone they saw: people who lived in the streets, poor people, anyone!  Can you imagine what it would have been like to be a poor person invited to a king's house for a wedding?  Pretty amazing, right?
Well, these people came and were really enjoying the feast.  At that time, when you came to something like a wedding, the fancy clothes that you put on were given to you by the host, so everybody was given fancy clothes.  The king was walking around and enjoying his new party when he saw that one of his new guests was not wearing the fancy clothes.  He was there and eating the food, but not dressed up like he should be.  The king got angry again and threw him out of the wedding. 

The king felt insulted and shocked because it was a little like me coming here today in this bathrobe.  Do you think this outfit shows that I care about church and think that it's special?  [Answers were shouted out, "NO!" and "You look silly!"]  That's right.  One of the reasons we dress nicely for church is that it helps show that we think this is a special place, that this is God's house and we respect it, like the king wanted people to respect his party.   

But what God REALLY cares about is not what clothes we wear, but what kinds of feelings we put on.  When we want to be with God, it is good to put on clothing like joy, kindness, and love.  Those are the garments that God gives us to wear. [Question: "What a garment?"  Answer: "It's a kind of clothes."]  Those things help God to know that we are really grateful for the things we have been given.  We put on our joy, and kindness, and love, and we can really celebrate the party that God throws for us. 

So now, we'll say the Lord's Prayer and then go off to Church School.  I'll meet you there in slightly different clothes.  [From one child: "Yeah!  YOU need to put on something more appropriate!!"]

We prayed and they left, and I swiftly took off the robe and put on my suit jacket, miraculously ready for church!

Here's a pic to prove it really happened:

The Brian Lehrer Show, Jesus, and Occupy Wall Street

I had 15 seconds of radio fame today in the NY-area call-in show, The Brian Lehrer Show.  The topic was religion and the Occupy Wall Street movement, which I have begun to support.  You can hear the segment, during which I am the first caller, here:  http://www.wnyc.org/shows/bl/2011/oct/10/open-phones-religion-and-occupy-wall-street/

And here's a photo of the sign.

Part my ramping up to this level of support was a devotional I wrote for a previous church's daily devotional blog.  I'll post that here, too.  I think that, if I were to add anything else to this, I would add that part of our job as ministers is also to help people realize that it is actually in their self-interest to change, that a life lived with God as our guide is a life worth living -- it's a hard sell, but worthwhile!

Psalm 103

Of David.¹ 
Bless the Lord, O my soul,   
and all that is within me,   
bless his holy name. 
² Bless the Lord, O my soul,   
and do not forget all his benefits— 
³ who forgives all your iniquity,   
who heals all your diseases, 
⁴ who redeems your life from the Pit,   
who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, 
⁵ who satisfies you with good as long as you live^*  
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. 

⁶ The Lord works vindication   
and justice for all who are oppressed. ⁷ 
He made known his ways to Moses,   
his acts to the people of Israel. 
⁸ The Lord is merciful and gracious,   
slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. 
⁹ He will not always accuse,   
nor will he keep his anger for ever. 
¹⁰ He does not deal with us according to our sins,   
nor repay us according to our iniquities. 
¹¹ For as the heavens are high above the earth,   
so great is his steadfast love towards those who fear him; 
¹² as far as the east is from the west,   
so far he removes our transgressions from us. 
¹³ As a father has compassion for his children,   
so the Lord has compassion for those who fear him. 
¹⁴ For he knows how we were made; 
he remembers that we are dust. 

Last Sunday, driving home from church, I passed by the usually-quiet local Catholic church.  That day, though, the quiet road had become a gauntlet of signs, nearly all held by women of every age, child to elder, all proclaiming the evils of abortion.  Signs read things like “Abortion Kills” and “Mothers Who Abort Have Regrets.”  Thankfully, they refrained from the signs with the gory pictures that I have seen elsewhere.  Perhaps it was the quiet silence of this vigil that unsettled me.  It was not so easy to ignore them as it would be to ignore a group of noisy, screaming protestors.  It was not easy to ignore people from a church of which I knew many former members. 

This got me thinking about the ways in which we proclaim what we believe is God’s message. While I was offended by some of the signs, and I would venture to argue with many of them about the practicality of simply banning abortion without also providing major support to families with unplanned pregnancies, I appreciated their willingness to be silent witnesses.  It made me take them more seriously. What it did not do, though, was change my mind.  It gave me no way to enter into relationship or dialogue.

As you know, in my new hometown of New York City, a major protest has been underway for three weeks.  This is a protest whose message resonates more with me; the Occupy Wall Street movement is growing in its nonviolent rebellion, and I will be joining in on some of the demonstrations.  I do love a good protest!  I love the enthusiasm of a crowd; I love the ability to unleash pent-up frustration; I especially love the clever signs. 

What I am aware of, though, and what was made more clear by the abortion protestors I saw on Sunday, is that these rallies are not really good tools for changing hearts or minds.  They are excellent tools for boosting the spirits of like-minded people.  When nonviolent action is taken that challenges the status quo, they can also be really good tools for getting a message into coverage by the media.  Perhaps the best that can be hoped for with signs and protests is to rouse the apathetic into caring.

But as long as there is a stark us-vs.-them attitude of dueling placards, hearts and minds will not be changed.  The change happens when people of different minds build trusting relationships with each other and begin to hear each others’ stories.  Change happens when empathy, not righteous anger, is aroused in the other.  It happens when we humble ourselves enough to see God in the other, and to allow them to see God through us.  It is much harder than making a sign.  It is lifelong work, to which we have all been called.

I will wave at you all with love from Wall Street.  Who knows – for the right cause, I might even let myself get arrested.  But I pray that I will do only whatever actions are necessary to build up the kingdom of God and to spread the message that ALL of God’s children – Wall Street executives and homeless people alike; mothers who have had abortions and the Pope alike – ALL of us are part of God’s beloved community.  All of us are capable of arousing God's great wrath, and all of us are recipients of God's steadfast love.  Ours is a message of great humility, which leads to great praise for the God who inspires us all to be better than we are today.  (And if creating a good sign for a protest helps you do that, too, then by all means, do it!  Just know what you're doing it for.)

Prayer:

Bless the Lord, my soul.  Keep me humble, keep me working toward righteousness, keep me working toward reconciliation.  Most of all, keep me always mindful that my strength and power reside in you.  Bless the Lord!  Amen.