Homily for 3rd Sunday of Lent

20th March 2022

Today’s homily is a difficult one and I repeat, it’s a difficult one, but it challenged me to really ask the question “do I believe in a G-d of unconditional love”? Not a pious articulated belief which ceases to have any effect beyond my two lips, nor a belief that is sculptured in the image and form of Mike Shaw. But a belief that stems entirely from the word of G-d.

I will, first of all, use Paul’s letter to the Corinthians to ask us if we accept that these are the qualities of G-d.

Secondly, I will make a quote from the Jerome Biblical Commentary concerning the attitude of Jesus toward Pilate and Pilate’s cruelty towards the compatriots of Jesus.

Thirdly, I will invite us to take an entirely different look at a person of cruelty and who is considered evil.

In the first letter of John chapter 4 versus 7a and 8b it says this of God, “Love is of G-d” and “G-d is love”. These quotes are the base for my presentation this morning, “Love is of G-d” and “G-d is love”. I don’t think any of us at this point would disagree with those 2 statements. But hold on to your hats because I haven’t finished yet.

Paul then gives us a beautiful definition of love which includes the following adjectives: love is patient, kind, not jealous, not arrogant, not snobbish, not rude, not self-seeking, not prone to anger, not brooding over injuries, not rejoicing in what is wrong, rejoicing in what is the truth and is limitless in its ability to continue loving, trusting, hoping and enduring, and it will never fail.

Quite an accolade of affirmations of what love is, would you agree?

So now we can say that G-d is: patient, kind, not jealous, not arrogant, not snobbish, not rude, not self-seeking, not prone to anger, not brooding over injuries, not rejoicing in what is wrong, rejoicing in what is the truth and is limitless in the ability to continue loving, trusting, hoping and enduring, and G-d will never fail.

In the first reading G-d reveals G-dself as I AM WHO I AM. So, our conclusion from this statement by G-d is that G-d is always present, constantly present and will not change. This means that all those beautiful qualities I have just mentioned ascribed to G-d will be consistent no matter the time, place, environment, or state of society, including people that make up that society.

We have a situation in Ukraine which has been instigated by a man who is described among other things as evil. And we are obviously referring to President Vladimir Putin. Do we accept that G-d has created all people and things, through the process of evolution, as science has so clearly shown? Therefore, can we say that G-d created Putin? And that G-d’s relationship to Putin is totally coloured by the sixteen wonderful attributes that we earlier accepted were totally applicable to G-d.

In Paul’s letter to the Romans, chapter 5 verse 20b, we read this: “despite the increase of sin, grace has far surpassed it” and in another translation it says, for the same chapter and verse, “Where sin abides, grace abides in greater abundance”. This means that wherever there is evil, below it waiting to be released is unconditional love, i.e. G-d.

At the root and core of Putin is unconditional love waiting to be released. As Putin was baptized when his mother and aunt secretly took him to the local church to be baptized, it means that Putin is our brother in Christ!

In the gospel we have just heard today, Jesus hears of Pilate using the blood of killed Galileans to mix with Roman sacrifices. To quote the Jerome Biblical Commentary “Jesus shows no sign whatsoever of hatred or vengeance when he is told of Pilate’s cruelty to his compatriots”.

What is our reaction to that? Is Jesus an idiot? Didn’t he hear clearly what was said? Was he under the influence of drugs or alcohol? Surely, he should have had some angry response at hearing this information, but no, just silence. And here we are reminded of Psalm 46 verse 10 which says, “Be still and know that I am G-d”. In his silent response, was Jesus aware of, and showing to others, the presence of G-d?

Please be absolutely assured that I am not in any way, shape or form justifying the actions of President Vladimir Putin, what I am seeking to do is suggest a change of our spiritual relationship towards him, so that it becomes truly G-dlike. After all isn’t that the journey we all want to make to become the child that G-d created?

So Putin is our brother in Christ. He is unconditionally loved by an unconditionally loving G-d, and because he has free will, which will never be taken from him, he must accept that gift of unconditional love. It will not and cannot be forced upon him.

We truly mourn the suffering of the people of Ukraine, and we raise our voices with questions seeking to understand this terrible tragedy occurring right now, and also we pray that Ukraine will be fully returned to peace, as we have been invited to do with our brothers and sisters of Lakeshore Trinity United Church next Saturday.

I simply wish to raise a question for us all, and it is this: “How do we pray for Vladimir Putin, and is it possible that in spite of his terrible evil we can draw upon the magnificent love of G-d and in turn find ways in our prayer to express G-d’s love”.

In a few moments we will receive the mystery of the miraculous love who flows from the Eucharist. This is when we receive the same Jesus who stayed silent when hearing of the destruction of his compatriots, who also called upon G-d to forgive those slaughtering him on the cross and whose first word to his disciples, who had deserted him was, “peace”, or in Hebrew, my favourite word “Shalom”!

Will we draw upon this miracle today and be able to express a love which is truly G-dlike or will we allow our emotions to stop us loving some of G-d’s people?

I am now going to invite us to 2 minutes of silence to ponder what I have said. If what I have preached today is not of the Spirit, then not only ignore it but tell me that it was not of the Spirit. If however, what I have preached is of the Spirit, then please respond as a holy Christian to the plight of Ukraine and the soul of Vladimir Putin according to how the Spirit guides you.

May we receive the courage and faith never to limit G-d’s love and seek to demonstrate that love in our daily lives.