When we're done praying, what then?

Ex 17:1-7; Ps 78:1-4, 12-16; Phil 2:1-13; Mt 21:23-32

Today we heard Matthew's story about priests questioning the authority of Jesus, as well as the parable of the two sons. In these stories, we're looking at the failure of those in authority, first in a material way, in that, as Religion Professor Lim at Middlesbrough College says: "The leaders’ refusal to work in the vineyard signifies their refusal to bear fruit and thus their failure to feed the hungry," and the second way is seen in the priest's elitism, where they feel that both Jesus and John are a 'threat to their own status and prestige.'[1]'I think she has something there. But today I don't want to talk about the failure of authority, instead I want to look at our ability to zig-zag around the bad stuff when we face it, make positive change ourselves, and follow directly in the footsteps of Jesus. This can be called self-determination, agency, and, of course, faith, words we hear a lot these days.

Today we're remembering the people who have been affected by some of the nastier components of colonisation, the Residential School System and it has me thinking about how, under whose authority, many things have happened and still happen under the guise of leadership. Sadly, as our remembrances today and one look at the news shows, we don't have to look far. People are still at war; people are still making empty promises to gain office, making symbolic gestures with no plan to move toward peaceful resolutions, and it can leave us wondering: what hope is there?

Of course, we sitting in these pews know where the hope lies and with whom, but maybe we still feel helpless to make change that can help address the bad situations out there. When we're done praying, then what?

Well, I believe we can also move forward into action after we've prayed, if we use hope as a verb.

I think we can make real change by listening to and raising up voices that have been silenced throughout history and in today's world. Phyllis Webstad and her Orange Shirt story are a prime example. Here, tucked away in the bigger story of colonisation that is hundreds of years old, we find, listen to and raise up her voice, and in doing that, look what has been accomplished in just 13 years! Look at how many people of all ages, in all places, and at all levels, her one quiet voice has reached, now that we have all joined her choir!

Be his hands and feet, Be access!

This is a great example of leading from behind, raising up an individual’s voice, and providing a stable platform so everyone can be the best version of themselves. I've been taught this by many Elders, as a way forward not just in dark times, but in all times, and I like this style of leadership which is also called servant leadership, because it reminds me that this is exactly how Jesus worked, raising up, sometimes literally, the quietest of voices, those who for whatever reasons have ended up, usually by no fault of their own, at the bottom of society's trash heap.

So, I want to give you another example of this way. I have a friend named Sister Mary; you may know her by her other name, Dr Chris Cross. She is a retired deacon, one of our very first here, and one who helped move the diaconate forward. We have been meeting twice a month for a year now; she is 93 and is an amazing person.

We always have a laugh, and a few weeks ago we were talking about how we de-stress, and I confessed my guilty pleasure: at the end of a long day of meetings or research, I like to watch a surgery, or my favourite show right now is Ambulance UK. I have to admit I'm always afraid of telling people this because some think it's terrible to witness other people's pain in the worst moments of their lives, but I don't see it like that, and she understood, then professed to me that she loves a good murder mystery where there is a lot of chemistry involved, because she is also a scientist and holds a doctorate in soil sciences.

For me, seeing people in those situations isn't like a passerby gawking at a road accident; instead, I watch the humanity of the caregivers and call handlers, who are doing their very best to help someone in dire need, to lift them up under dire circumstances. I watch physicians in emergency rooms go far beyond their medical training, battle bureaucracy, and find beds and social support for everyone. They zigzag around the bits that don't work, use what they have and sometimes what they don't have to make things better for those in need.

Every time I watch these programmes, I learn a little more about compassion, how systems work and don't work, from the boots-on-the-ground folks who serve our populations, lifting people up every day.

Last week, one of the senior paramedics, who was also a priest - (named Matthew, coincidentally), said, especially when things are hopeless, or when we feel at a standstill, he said, "...the church and the community have a lot to teach each other. The community can teach the church how to look after each other, and the community -  needs hope, and the church has loads of that."[2]  

I like that, and when I think of all the communities surrounding Orange Shirt Day, I especially look to the Indigenous communities surrounding us locally, who can show us how to move forward in these hard times of Reconciliation, where I believe when we look - what we will see are the relationships forming, moving us from the noise of Reconciliation to instead, the serenity of relationship, as we cheer each other on, lifting each other up through life. After you pray for change and healing, remember Hope is a verb, be access.

Amen

[1] E. Lim. (2026) Working Preacher From Luther Seminary. “Commentary on Matthew 21:23-32 - Working Preacher From Luther Seminary,” https://www.workingpreacher.org/commentaries/revised-common-lectionary/ordinary-26/commentary-on-matthew-2123-32-7.

[2] S2.E1 Ambulance UK (Thu, Aug 24, 2017).