rishi
The Simple Life
Posted on: 05/07/2009 17:28
This is a sermon that I will be preaching this Sunday (May 10th) at a wonderful country church in Kintore, Ontario called Chalmers United. The parable of the vine and the branches is one of my favorites. Such a simple way of understanding and practicing the spiritual life. It's not a very popular theme, though. Maybe because it's so radical in its view of our dependency and fragility as human beings? At any rate, this is the life that I think the church is called to help us to live, understand, and pass on to others.
Readings: Jonah 3:10-4:11 John 15:1-13
The life of being a branch that abides in the vine. It sounds like such a beautifully simple life: Just receiving the flow of sap from the vine, absorbing the rays of sunlight down through the leaves, growing at nature's own pace, and, when it comes time, being productive, bearing fruit. All the branch really has to do is stay connected to the Vine, and the Vine infuses into the branch all of the resources that the branch needs to do the work that it's meant to do. And everyone is happy.
It almost sounds like one of those all-inclusive vacation resort packages I see advertised in the paper: where you can just sit back, sip drinks by the pool, eat as much as you want, and be entertained... all for an unbelievable price that usually ends in “9.99.”
But there's a different quality to Jesus' vision of the simple life than just passive consumption, because he goes on, without even a pause, to say: The same way that God loved me, I have loved you..... Now, in the same way that I have loved you, love one another........ That is my (and he uses the word) “commandment.” So, in other words, we are called to love others, not with just any love, but with Divine Love, with a love that is complete, perfect, and eternal, a love that knows no limits and imposes no conditions. If we do this, then we are being a branch that abides in the vine.
Well, suddenly... this life of being a branch, seems not so “simple” after all. The “taking in” part of this principle of communion sounds great.... absorbing all of these resources... receiving a continual infusion of love without conditions from God..... ahhhhhh...... but the “giving out” part... sounds impossible. I mean, how can you and I possibly love others with Divine Love unless we ourselves are Divine? (Think about it!)
How could such a spiritual covenant actually work in practice? I can see it working with the people in my world whom I want to love, whom I feel clearly deserve my love... and whom my heart is ready and willing to love... But, then, there are theseothers... whom I do not want to love at all; some whom I feel deserve my contempt, or at least my indifference, but definitely not my love. What am I supposed to do in relation to them? ...like... the guy who cuts me off in traffic with a smile on his face, or the parents of a bully at my child's school who tell me it's not their problem... I can see wanting to hit them with a branch, but how do I “be a branch” under those kinds of conditions?
It's just not that simple! Didn't Jesus understand that being a human being is much more complicated than being a branch on a vine? .... .... .... .... I think that, actually, he understood the complexity of human beings quite well. Which is why, in this teaching, he is calling us back to a much simpler way of life than we often create for ourselves.
Even when we have the best of intentions, we can often make life quite complicated with these egos of ours.... The ego is like a branch... a branch that for one reason or another finds itself experiencing stress.... maybe a noisy bird (like a crow or a starling) lands on it, and the branch just becomes furious... it reacts.... and says to the Vine: “You stay here; I'll handle this! I'll show this trespasser a thing or two.” And, then, caught up in that reactivity, the branch snaps itself off from the vine... thinking that it's very clever... because its found a way to punish the bird that has so offended it. And very often, of course, in the heat of its reactivity, the branch doesn't realize the implications of what it's done (by giving in to that unholy reflex)... the branch still somehow imagines itself to have all of the powers that it once enjoyed through communion with the vine.... But it doesn't... It lost its integrity the moment it stopped abiding in the Vine.
If we experiment, even briefly, with the so-called 'commandment' that Jesus gives in this passage, we discover that loving ourselves and loving others with Divine Love requires not so much autonomy, but communion with a power that is higher than the ego. This 'commandment' is ingenious... because, as we take it up, it disables that reactive ego; because it requires us to accept and settle down into our true spiritual nature..., which Jesus suggests, is simply being branches, abiding in their sacred vine. ....
Is he talking about “prayer” here? ...... Well it's something like prayer or meditation.... but it would be easy to just say a formal prayer and completely miss what he's talking about here. It's something like a prayerful way of being in the world.... where, in our hearts, we tap in and settle down into being simple channels, letting God's own love just flow into us and through us, like the sap from the Vine flows into and through its branches.
It kind of makes sense, then, that when we're being a branch, we are in a position to follow through on that incredible commandment because, then, we are actually being what we're destined to be –a living part of the Divine Life that is God. Whereas, when we're caught up in the reactivity of being the ego—being that branch-that-snaps-itself-off, we're not in a position to live and love well.
The “ego” is that reactive, disconnected sense of self that arises in us all, and tries to take charge, imagining that it has all “the right stuff” to make life happen the way that it wants it to happen. Imagining that it contains all that it needs within its own four walls. But it simply does not.It needs the love of God in Christ. It needs the Vine.
Now, this is not an all or nothing proposition. It is more a question of where in my life at this point in time am I abiding in the Vine and bearing the fruit of love? ... and where in my life have I become disconnected, detached from my spiritual Vine, so that I lack the inner resources to love? Where in my life am I flourishing, and where in my life have I dried up...and need to reconnect with the Divine Source of my life of my love? These are questions that we're always asking ourselves when we're living the simple life that Jesus teaches us, because, there, our #1 concern is abiding in the Vine.
[Homily ends here. Sermon continues for the real keeners.]
This abiding-in-the-vine approach reduces our reactivity; it gives the ego nothing to either brag or moan about, because when we're following our true nature – being a branch, abiding in the vine – we become more aware that it is not us, so much as God within us, that is enabling us to love ourselves and others so well. We start to feel like St. Paul, when he said, “you know, it's really no longer 'me'; it's like it's Christ inside of me that is living in this loving way (Gal 2:20).” It's amazing. We start to feel like a branch, tapped into D'vine.
It's this kind of acceptance and 'settling down' into our true spiritual nature that ushers in the great power of the Christian life, but also the great challenge, because it means that we have to stop pretending to be something that we're not... (which is what the ego is all about) which is so seductive and gratifying at times.... and often how our societies teach us to live...It means we have to start accepting that we ourselves are not the Source of our own Life and Love, but simply branches, ....conduits, ....channels ...that are in communion with that Divine Source that we call 'God' and that other people may call by different names.
It seems we always have the option to pretend that we are our own source of life and love. But, in the long run, pretending to have it all together in that way is really hard on everyone. Because until we really settle down into our true spiritual nature, into just being a branch, we find that we are really powerless to love either ourselves or others without a long list of conditions. And that hurts everyone. There's something very disconnecting about it.
In today's Old Testament reading, we see the character of Jonah, caught up in this self-righteous anger because God is loving certain people that Jonah believes don't deserve it. So Jonah builds a booth to sit and sulk in... Actually what Jonah has built is a bigdam within his heart to block the flow of God's love and compassion, so that he can be sure that no one undeserving gets any of it. It's such a telling portrait of what we call the ego.... trying to control life.... trying to force it to conform to some idea.... being at odds with the Divine, and even the voice of reason, because it is so convinced that its way is the only right way.
Unlike a simple branch, the ego doesn't operate on the principle of communion, but on the principle of merit. It dispenses judgments of either “worthy” or “not worthy”, based on whether some particular set of conditions have been met, or not met........ Now there's nothing wrong, of course, with the principle of merit; we need it in human society. It is the basis of everything from not-being-allowed-to-go-over-to-your-friend's house-until-you-finish-your-homework... to the rule of law in a nation. It is the principle beneath all of our contractual obligations―for example, if you do your job, you get paid; if you pay your rent, you have a right to occupy that space; if you stop at red lights, you get to keep your driver's license; and so on. So, in itself, there is nothing wrong with the principle of merit.
The problem that arises, however, is that what we're calling the ego alwaysand onlyfunctions on the principle of merit. It just keeps on dispensing its judgments of “worthy” / “not worthy”, “guilty”/“not guilty”, “acceptable”/ “not acceptable”... “conditions met”/ “conditions not met”. And it does this not just where it's appropriate (like when we're balancing our checkbook...), but in all domains, even the domains of the heart... the spiritual domains, where we are learning how to love, where we are coming to know ourselves and others and God. In domains like these, this ego is out of its league. The principle of merit does more harm than good here. We need a different set of tools in these domains. We're on holy ground here, and the only way to navigate is by the principle of communion – the principle of being a branch, drawing on that higher power of divine love, and passing it on, the same way we receive it... free and without conditions. ....
Of course, at the same time, we don't want to become so “heavenly minded” that we are of no “earthly good.” We still need the principle of merit to get on in this world. We still need to hold ourselves and others accountable to our contractual obligations – our homework, our bills, the actions and inactions of our elected officials, and so on. It's only when we let that principle of merit creep into how we receive and give love to ourselves, and others, and God.... that we get into big trouble... because once merit creeps into that domain... we stop being a branch that's abiding in the vine; we snap off our organic connection to the Divine and become that reactive, disconnected ego... (Traditionally that is called a “fall from grace,” but it is actually much less obvious, much easier to miss, than the mythic image from Eden may suggest to us.)
It's often been said that the vocation of being aparent is the perfect laboratory for spiritual development – and we can see why; because parents are repeatedly thrown into the kinds of situations where they have to make these kinds of discernments.... about where is my child “at” now..., what's happening in this particular moment in his or her inner life... and what kind of response is really called for on my part... Parents need to use the principle of merit to help their children grow into healthy, responsible persons, but, at the same time, not let those merit-based moves diminish the bonds of love. Talk about a difficult dance.... It's like a crash course in spiritual maturity. It's no wonder that we see parents looking to the Church and to other spiritual communities for strength and wisdom beyond themselves. But not just parents.... also single people and other types of couples, teenagers and young adults... retired people... people of all kinds... because who doesn'tneed wisdom for living, who doesn't need wisdom for loving?
Lastly, I will ask you to consider a very important question: What do we, the Church, really have to offer all of these seekers? Well, potentially many things I think, but what today's text highlights is just one thing: something that is very rare indeed, at least in our society – Because today's text suggests that what we can offer is a context, where people can learn the simple life, the life of being a branch that's abiding in the vine, the life of the New Covenant that we formally joined at baptism and more consciously joined at Confirmation.
The New Covenant, which Jesus pioneered and perfected, is all about communion, not just in principle, but in actual practice, actual experience. The New Covenant, as Jesus describes it, is not a contract, where, if we comply with a certain set of conditions, we receive Divine Love, or other rewards, in exchange. It has nothing to do with that principle of merit, and its performance requirements. On the contrary, this New Covenant invites us to consciously discover our true spiritual nature... as the sacred branches of a Divine Vine, and to follow that nature by abiding in the Vine, so that we are continually receiving an infusion of Divine Love, a love that has no limits, no conditions, and no end.
That Living Communion is the nature of the New Covenant, that we are formally initiated into through the sacrament of Baptism, and in which we formally confirm our membership in through the rite of Confirmation.
That covenant has no conditions. But it does have consequences. As we learn to tap into that Divine Life, as we develop that holy reflex of allowing ourselves to be infused with God's limitless love on a continual basis.... it makes a difference in how we feel about ourselves, and others, and our planet. It makes a difference in how we understand life, in the quality of our judgments, our decisions, and our actions. It makes a difference in how we parent, in how we neighbor, in how we are. It bears Divine Fruit. There's no way to bear that kind of fruit through a merit system – you can perform up to standard, and receive what your contract says you're due – but you can't bear Divine Fruit, like real peace of mind and love without conditions. Because that kind of fruit requires living in communion with the Divine,not just a contractual obligation, which most religion seems to eventually degenerate into.
This is where the so called “commandment” of Jesus comes in. As we exercise with it, it prevents that kind of religious degeneration. When Jesus says, “Love one another with Divine Love” – he says it not naively, but knowing full well that to love in this way is not possible.... unless we are living as simply as a branch lives... in communion with its Vine. So the so-called “commandment” is actually the core spiritual practice or exercise of Christian life; it is what allows us to keep growing spiritually, becoming more and more divine, not just in principle, but in the concrete details of our lives... in relation to the guy who cuts us off in traffic... in relation to the parents of the bully in our child's school ... in relation to whatever 'up' or 'down' or 'in-between' that life brings our way.
That must be some sap in that vine if it can enable me to love even my enemies in the same way that God loves me....(!) Well, that sap is, arguably, the most potent symbol of the Christian tradition: the Blood of Christ... Divine Blood... the symbol of a love so perfect, so divine, that nothing can stop it... not even all of the sin and the evil in the entire world. The symbol of a love that has no limits, no beginning and no end. (It's so unfortunate that, perhaps because certain fundamentalists understand the power of the blood of Jesus in a literal way, more progressive Christians have become afraid or ashamed to talk about it, or even inwardly reflect on it, in a symbolic way, as Jesus himself did. Because, who knows [?], it might open our hearts in ways and areas where they are still closed.)
This is, very simply, what faith is, the great mystics, the fathers and mothers of the church tell us: Faith is that mysterious knowledge that arises out of being a recipient of Divine Love, the love which has no conditions.. Faith is that liberating knowledge of ourselves, of others, of our world, and of God, which arises out of being loved in such an all-encompassing way. So, faith is not an ordinary knowledge, like how to do arithmetic. It's an in-your-bones knowledge. A deep-in-your-heart knowledge. We tap into that Sacred Branch, from which Divine Love never ceases to flow... and we start experiencing this gift of faith. We keep tapping in.... and this gift of faith is nourished and strengthened in our lives. It grows.
Faith is powerful, because faith understands what no “ego” ever can – that without the “sap” of Divine Love nourishing us, flowing through us to others, there is no real life. We dry up. What was once a living process becomes mechanical. The gears begin to grind. Because when we're abiding in that reactive, disconnected sense of self that we call 'ego,' we just don't have the goods... we just don't have the nourishing spiritual resources flowing into us and through us that we need in order to live and love well. It is faith that saves us from that plight. Faith that keeps the branches sticking to the vine. Faith that keeps us vital and resilient.
In faith, we work at living by Christ's commandment – not because we are under any illusion that we, in ourselves, can keep it! Butbecause it is a spiritual exercise that continually draws us into a prayerful attitude, a position of active surrender and dependence, an experience of faith, so that we are continually opening our lives, like branches, to the infusion of God's limitless love.
And this is nothing “new.” It's ancient. It's the very same spiritual exercise that Jesus himself followed, which enabled him to embody Divine Love in the world. He tells us, quite clearly, that he could do nothing on his own (John 5:30). He wasn't running on his own steam. He was under no illusions that the Divine Goodness he was manifesting was his own doing; he knew that it was simply a consequence of continually, inwardly tapping in to the Divine Source of all life and love (Mark 10:18). .... And the good news of it all is that we too can live in that same simple way: day by day, from one context to another, living out our baptismal vows, the vows of this New Covenant: renouncing that reactive, disconnected sense of self, and affirming our true nature, as sacred branches, tapping into and actively drawing on the Source of all Life and Love, as we move along on our journey, bearing Divine Fruit along the way. It's a simple and beautiful way of life. One that I am very convinced is worth living.
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Comments
Pilgrims Progress
Posted on: 05/07/2009 21:27
Interesting blog. I liked the use of the branch and vine metaphor.
It also explains to me why - to use your example - losing my temper with the guy that cuts me off in traffic never makes me feel good. When I give in to my pesky little ego's demands I break the divine connection.
Happiness is experiencing divine connection.
Arminius
Posted on: 05/07/2009 22:56
Hi rishi:
A not so simple sermon about something as simple as cosmic unity, synthesis, and unitive love, something that needs to be felt in order to be properly understood.
Once we feel our unity with God and everyone and everythig, and see God in everyone and everything, then we love everyone and everything as ourselves simply because everyone and everything is part of our greater and godly self. This godly love includes people whom we don't particualarly like, even those who regard themselves as our enemies.
If the universe, or God, is a self-generative whole in a state of synthesis—as I believe IT to be—then God multiplied, diversified and "uniquefied" ITself in the act of creation. This means that every one of us is a unique form of God, that God experiences ITself uniquely in and through every one of us, and every on of us experiences God uniquely. Moreover, God not only uniquefied ITself in every one of us in the act of creation, IT also "godlified" or divinized every one of us!
As inseparable parts of God, we love love God in everyone and everything with the same divine love that God loves us.
In Cosmic Unity,
Arminius