accessing the community of the beloved

8/12/2019 Accessing the Community of the Beloved

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Matthew 3:13-17

13 Then Jesus *arrived from Galilee at the Jordan comingto John, to be baptized b him! 14 "utJohn tried to prevent #im, sain$, %& have need to be baptized b 'ou, and do 'ou (ome to

me) 15 "ut Jesus answerin$ said to him, %+ermit itat this time for in this wa it is fittin$ for

us to fulfill all ri$hteousness!Then he *permitted #im!16

fter bein$ baptized, Jesus (ame upimmediatel from the water and behold, the heavens were opened, and [a]he saw the .pirit of

God des(endin$ as a doveand[b]li$htin$ on #im, 17 and behold, a voi(e out of the heavens said,

%This is [c]M beloved .on, in whom & am well-pleased!

#ave ou ever been loved despitewho ou are) &/m not tal0in$ about those who mas0

their hatred for ou under the (laim that the love the sinner but hate the sin! &/m tal0in$ aboutthat subtler sort of dis(rimination where someone tries to love ou b denyingwho ou are that

ba(0handed (ompliment that often $ets voi(ed as %& don/t thin0 ofyouthat wa2! &n other

words, %m stereotpes are uite well inta(t, than0 ou ver mu(h, &/m 4ust not $oin$ to appl

them to ou!This sort of ba(0handed (ompliment also frames the e5perien(e of those of us who are

disabled and who dare to su((eed at anthin$ in our lives! The disabilit movement tal0s aboutthis phenomenon as the %super(rip stereotpe! The media pi(0s up on stories of people with

phsi(al or mental limitations who %su((eed despite the odds and %over(ome their disabilit!

.ometimes this is shown throu$h the evenin$ news hi$hli$htin$ the $rand a((omplishments ofdisabled people li0e aron 6otherin$ham a oun$ lifelon$ parapale$i( who does ba(0flips on his

wheel(hair at the s0ate par0! .ometimes this is seen in %smaller inspirational stories about

people with disabilities who never let their disabilit %$et them down! 'ou would not believe

how man people thin0 the are (omplimentin$ me when the tell me that the for$et that & ampartiall si$hted, be(ause & $et around so well and %:don/t a(t blind! 8hatever thatmeans).

9nmentioned in these %inspirin$ stories is the underlin$, often un(ons(ious, disablin$assumption that phsi(al, mental, or emotional differen(e is a tra$ed that should normallrender us miserable, patheti(, and worst of all in our (apitalist so(iet %unprodu(tive!

.entimental heroes are made out of the disabled, be(ause we are unable to believe that people

whose bodies and minds wor0 differentl (ould otherwise be real honest to $oodness borin$people! &n the pro(ess, we (onstru(t another disablin$ barrier to parti(ipation in (ommunit b

(ommuni(atin$ that those of us with different bodies (annot be a normal part of our (ommunit

be(ause we are so tra$i(all different!

The disabilit movement emphasizes that it is so(iet, not our bodies, that disable us!8hile the e5perien(es of bein$ se5ual minorities, $ender minorities and the e5perien(e of bein$

disabled differ in important was, we share in (ommon the e5perien(e of e5(lusion from

(ommunit! &n different was, we have all e5perien(ed a so(iet that see0s to poli(e our bodiesthrou$h shamin$ us, dis(riminatin$ a$ainst us, and e5(ludin$ us from full parti(ipation in

so(iet! The underlin$ messa$e to all of this is %ou need to either be(ome li0e us, or ou

(annot be one of us!Toda/s passa$e finds Jesus and John the "aptist disa$reein$ about what it means to be

in(luded in the (ommunit of God/s people to be(ome %one of God/s! Jesus (omes to John the

"aptist see0in$ baptism as a representative of God/s people to demonstrate God/s a((eptan(e and
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love for God/s people! This ueer (hoi(e b Jesus to parti(ipate in a sinner/s baptism bewilders

John, in the pro(ess e5posin$ John/s assumptions!

'ou see, prior to this en(ounter, John believed that dirt sinners, and those whose bodiesmade them rituall impure throu$h se5, menstruation, and other sorts of embodied differen(e

i!e! bein$ human reuired that one be washed (lean b the waters of baptism in order to 4oin

God/s people! ;nowin$ this, we (an understand wh John re(eivin$ this reuest from a personhe (learl re$ards as hol would (onfuse him! "elievin$ that baptism e5isted to fi5 bro0en

people so that the (ould becomeworth of enterin$ God/s presen(e, he (ould not fathom wh

someone li0e Jesus the one person whom he did not see as tra$i(all bro0en and unworth--would need to be baptized!

Jesus/s response to this, as seems to be so often his (ustom, is rather (rpti(! #is baptism

is appropriate and ne(essar in order %to fulfill all ri$hteousness! The idea here is that Jesus,

throu$h his baptism, is ena(tin$ God/s will for ri$ht relationship! 8hat is happenin$ in Jesus/sbaptism is the wa that thin$ should be and will be! This is the wa of ri$ht relationship with

God and nei$hbor that we find in the rei$n of God -- in the 0in$dom ow, & do not mean to den

that Jesus has a uniue relationship with God -- his heavenl parent whom he (alled bba!There are other pla(es in the bible that emphasize the uniue identit and role of Jesus as God/s

onl be$otten (hild, but that/s not what/s happenin$ in this parti(ular passa$e!

.(ripture (onsistentl uses the lan$ua$e of God/s (hild or the son of God, as man se5isttranslations unfortunatel put it to refer to God/s people and their roal representatives! God/s

people, in whom God deli$hts, whom God has delivered from slaver to sin, addi(tion, and

death, are the audien(e to whom God spea0s when the heavens open up at the baptism of Jesus!&n toda/s passa$e, when we see the heavens open up and hear God de(lare %This is m (hild,

whom & love with whom & am well pleased we should hear God sain$ the same to us! lon$

with Jesus, we are God/s beloved (hildren in whom God deli$hts! s God spea0s these words to

us alon$side Jesus, we are reminded that this is not the first time that God has de(lared God/slove for God/s beloved (hildren! ?et/s turn for a moment to Jeremiah 31:@A, our other s(ripture

te5t for toda, a s(ripture that would have been immediatel brou$ht to mind for the ori$inal

readers of the $ospel b the words God spo0e at Jesus/s baptism! %ou are m dearest (hild, theone & love best! 8henever & mention our name, & thin0 of ou with love! M heart $oes out to

ou & will have ra(hamim! Bn$lish reall (an/t do 4usti(e to %ra(hamim the #ebrew word

that our Bn$lish bibles usuall translate as mer(! %Ca(hamim shares a (ommon root with the#ebrew word for womb2it means the (ompassionate, embodied, love and safet of the

womb2!the mer( a mother should naturall have for her (hild! n embodied love! stubborn

and faithful and endurin$ mer(! This is not a love that we have to prove ourselves 8DCT#'

of! This is a love that is rooted in the deepest parts of God/s person! This is a love that does not


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dis(riminate! love that does not $row or diminish based on performan(e! love that does not

need to be impressed b obedien(e or performan(e, and that (annot be fri$htened awa b

differen(e or anthin$ else in all of (reation! This is a love that does not 4ud$e! This is a lovethat loves us as God/s (hildren purel be(ause we are God/s beloved (hildren!

%ou are m dearest (hild, the one & love best! 8henever & mention our name, & thin0 of ou

with love! M heart $oes out to ou & will have ra(hamim! Thus sas donai! Thus sas ourGod

Ceall, we should 4ust end the sermon there! That love sas everthin$, if we (an onl

attend to it! "ut if ou/re anthin$ li0e me, we (an $et reall $ood at i$norin$ God/s voi(e! &t/shard to hear God/s voi(e to us, as God/s beloved, and to live in that truth, be(ause 0nowin$ we

are beloved (han$es everthin$!

&f we all are God/s beloved! &f & am God/s beloved (hild and so are ou and so are ou!

That should transform how we relate to ea(h other! Dur identit, value, and pla(e in the(ommunit of God/s beloved is not determinedb our phsi(al appearan(e, our abilities, our

se5ualit, our $ender identit, or an other variable that is a part of who we are! & am not a fi$ure

to be pitied as a fat, blind, $a man! & am a (hild of the livin$ God! & do not have to do

(artwheels for ou or a(t li0e the perfe(t student, (hild, parent, or =hirstian to demonstrate that &am worth of love despite who & am! & am a (hild of the livin$ God! & do not have to over(ome

that identit, & do not have to be pitied in that identit, & do not need ou to overloo0 that identit!&, Earren M(Eonald, partiall si$hted, fat, leather pervert, am a beloved (hild of the God who

made me, who 0nows me, who loves me, and who EB?&G#T. in me!

This is not a love &>.+&TB of m se5ualit or &>.+&TB of m visual impairment or&>.+&TB of m fetishes! This is the love that birthed MB into bein$! This is the love that

dreamed me into e5isten(e as the beautiful and beloved (reation that & am! This is the love that

$ives me the stren$th to live out m life in this world as the person that & was made to be! &t was

this love that $ave Jesus the stren$th to live life as an out(ast whose uestionable parenta$e 0epthim mar$inalized! &t was this love that Jesus e5tended to other outsiders, 0nowin$ that the were

also God/s beloved (hildren! &t was this love that enabled Jesus to fa(e those violentl

oppressive disablin$ institutions that sou$ht to silen(e, and that in the end (ru(ified, him!s followers of Jesus, we are (alled to first find ourselves within the love of the God who

made us, who 0nows us, and who loves us as God/s beloved (hildren! 8hen we find ourselves

rooted in the power of thatlove, we are freed from the demands of so(iet to perform to theire5pe(tations! 9ltimatel, the onl evaluation that MTTBC. is the evaluation of the God who

made us and who loves us as we are! That God does not need us to be super(rips, or the perfe(t

ueer parents! That God does not pit us! That God deli$hts in us, as we are, as God/s beloved

(hild!s we re(o$nize that we are ?? God/s beloved (hildren, we (an wor0 to resist those

barriers to parti(ipation in (ommunit that dehumanize God/s (hildren! 8e (an resist those

attitudes that we en(ounter, within our selves and within our world, that (all some people moreworth of admiration and love than others, that mar0 some as superheroi( and others as pitiful,

that see others throu$h stereotpes and so(ial norms rather than throu$h the love of God for

God/s (hildren 8e (an also wor0 to transform those institutional barriers that 0eep people fromfull parti(ipatin$ in so(iet! Dutside of (hur(h, we (an all with ea(h other in wor0in$ for so(ial

4usti(e for all people, refusin$ to $et ensnared in sin$le-issue politi(s that disre$ard in4usti(e

done outside of our rainbow bubble! &nside the (hur(h, we (an also wor0 for 4usti(e, 0nowin$

that this is an old relativel ina((essible buildin$ that (an disable some in our (on$re$ation!


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"eond this, we (an wor0 to insure the full parti(ipation of all people in our (on$re$ation,

remainin$ vi$ilant to insure that all people and all voi(es are trul wel(ome at this table!

"eloved, hear the words of God to ou2!%ou are m dearest (hild, the one & love best!8henever & mention our name, & thin0 of ou with love! M heart $oes out to ou & will have

ra(hamim! Thus sas donai! Thus sas our God! Ma ou 0now, now and alwas, that ou

are D>B of God/s beloved (hildren! nd so is the person ne5t to ou! men!

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