Unison Words
Song #1048 Ubi Caritas
Passover Stories
Happy Passover. Happy Easter. "For untold centuries people have drawn apart from the workaday world to worship, to celebrate, and to wonder at things beyond and within themselves. So we are gathered here to raise our sights and look at new horizons. Life is more than toil for bread; life has meaning and purpose." (Maryell Cleary) On this day, Easter Sunday, in this time of Passover, the meaning I'm finding has to do with second chances.
The Passover story is, on one level, about a people enslaved who find their freedom. You can read the whole story in the Hebrew Bible, in the book of Exodus, or, I suppose, you can see it in the Cecil B. DeMille movie, The Ten Commandments. But just in case you haven't read Exodus lately, or seen the film, here's a synopsis. The Hebrew people became populous in Egypt, where they migrated in large numbers due to famine in their own land. The rulers of Egypt, fearing a revolution, enslaved them. As slaves, they cried out to their God, who sent Moses to free them, which he did, but not without much suffering on the part of both Egyptians and Hebrews. After wandering for forty years in the desert, the Jews arrived in Canaan and settled there, again, not without a lot of suffering.
Last year at our seder, the ritual dinner held to commemorate Passover and tell the story, we came to the part in which the youngest child asks the four questions traditional to the observance and not one of us could remember the questions, or their answers. It must be noted here that Diane Pineiro-Zucker did remember something, but only in Hebrew. So here are the four questions and their answers, in English, a year late. This version comes from our own Church of the Larger Fellowship (Lynn Ungar, Minister of Lifespan Learning). In themselves they catch the heart of the Passover story.
"Why is it that on all other nights during the year we eat either bread or matzoh, but on this night we eat only matzoh? We eat only matzoh because our ancestors could not wait for their bread to rise when they were fleeing slavery in Egypt, and so they took the bread out of their ovens while it was still flat, creating matzoh, a flat, crunchy kind of cracker. Why is it that on all other nights we eat all kinds of herbs, but on this night we eat only bitter herbs? We eat only bitter herbs (usually horseradish), to remind us of the bitterness of slavery that our ancestors endured while in Egypt. Why is it that on all other nights we do not dip our herbs even once, but on this night we dip them twice? We dip them twice: 1. Green vegetable (like parsley) in salt water and 2. bitter herbs in charoses, a sweet mixture of nuts and wine. The first dip, green vegetables in salt water symbolizes the replacing of tears with gratefulness, and the second dip, bitter herbs in charoses, symbolizes sweetening the bitterness and suffering to lessen its pain. Why is it that on all other nights we eat either sitting or reclining, but on this night we eat in a reclining position (leaning on a pillow)? We recline at the Seder table because in ancient times a person who reclined at a meal was a person who was free from slavery, and so we recline in our chairs at the Passover Seder table to remind ourselves of the glory of freedom."
What do the questions tell us? They tell us about second chances and what can happen with them. Second chances come suddenly and you might not be ready, but you have to move all the same. So take the bread out of the oven whether it's risen or not. It's important to remember that slavery sometimes masquerades as something else and only after we are caught do we know its bitterness. So eat the horseradish, and remember. Third, freedom is sweet, but not without a price. Joy and woe are woven fine so dip the parsley in salt water. Finally, lean back and enjoy it.
The Passover story is the story of a people given a second chance. A second chance to be free of what enslaves them. It doesn't come in an instant and it does not come without effort. Two steps forward and one step back, even one step forward and two steps back. As Desmond Tutu says, liberation is costly. It is hard work. But every so often we do get to lean back and enjoy it.
In its universal meaning, Passover speaks to all peoples even though it lives within the tradition of Judaism. For many of us are enslaved. Probably we were not enslaved all at once; probably we lost our independence gradually, in increments. That to which we are enslaved seemed good at first, pleasurable, safe. Some of us have become slaves to money, ever in a state of "not enough;" some to fame, ever in need of validation and applause; some to power, ever wanting to be in charge; some to security, ever trying to erase all uncertainty. Love enslaves some of us, as does hatred, as does self-absorption. We can become obsessed. Fear enslaves us in a vise of paralysis. We can become slaves to alcohol, drugs, food, you name it. By slaves I mean that we are controlled by an overwhelming need and desire or aversion for any of these things. We make our choices based upon those strong needs. They take priority in our lives. We feel sure that we cannot live without -- whatever. And sometimes we sacrifice everything else for it.
The second chance in the story is the chance to free ourselves from that enslaved dependence. It's not that the need and desire go away, rather they are overridden by a greater movement toward harmony, toward balance, toward health. As Howard Thurman says, "To love life is to be whole in all ones parts, and to be whole in all one's parts is to be free and unafraid."
I used to be a slave to Coca Cola. Really. Throughout my high school years I had it for breakfast each morning. In graduate school I would be late to class because I had to panhandle the change to put in the vending machine so that I could bring a coke with me. I struggled to limit myself to one 20 ounce bottle a day. I quit any number of times, only to succumb to it over and over. I can still say with reasonable certainty that I love Coca Cola, but I haven't had one in three years. I still want it though. What helps me to resist my desire for it is a stronger desire to be free, because Coca Cola is not healthy. It's not good for me. Slavery is not good for one's health. I got my (eightieth) second chance to quit with a bad blood test which stirred me to make changes. So far so good. My second chance began with a warning and then I put that warning to good use.
The wider message is that second chances come to all of us. Maybe Moses does not appear and the chances are not miracles, but they come to us nevertheless. We have some agency in making them come. Remember that in the first place the Hebrews cried out to their God, who responded with Moses. We ourselves can lay the groundwork for second chances, for our own freedom. I went for a physical. We lay the groundwork every time we face our enslavers, name them for what they are, realize that they do not work in our best interests and then go and do something other than what they would have us do. We can help each other with that by bearing witness, by our presence. The person who puts down the drink, even if not forever; the one who makes a gesture of friendliness, however small, toward an enemy; the one who ventures to take a chance; the one who says no; the one who says yes. We can help each other with that with our encouragement. Second chances come at unexpected moments and take us by surprise. Our job is to pay attention so that we recognize them and try to make good use of them. We can help each other with that. The bread has no time to rise. Just take it and get moving. Freedom calls.
Song #220 Bring Out the Festal Bread
Meditation
Joys and Sorrows
Offering
Easter Stories
The Easter story is also about second chances. It's about what you do with the second chance once you have recognized it.
When you come to the door of your new self, you will know it is time to let go of the shadow who walks behind you with the box of old books (Lorraine Gane Radiance)That's resurrection.
In her book Stories of Faith:Exploring our UU Principles and Sources Through Wisdom Tales, Gail Forsyth-Vail tells the story of Easter. "In the days when Pontius Pilate, the Roman Procurator, ruled all of Palestine with great cruelty, there lived a Jewish prophet and teacher named Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus moved from place to place, offering hope to people who desperately needed reason to hope. He taught that every single person is loved by God, and that there is a place for everyone in the Kingdom of Heaven. He reached out to all kinds of people, including those who were hated or ignored by others: poor people, sick people, women without husbands, and tax collectors. Large crowds gathered around to hear Jesus' message of hope, love and welcome. This made Pontius Pilate and the Romans worry that he was a dangerous troublemaker.
There came a time when Jesus decided to go to Jerusalem, the big city, to challenge those in power by saying that all people were loved and worthwhile. It was a dangerous thing to do, but his message needed to be heard. On Thursday night of the week he entered Jerusalem, he shared a meal with his friends and he went with them to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray for strength and courage. There he was arrested by Roman soldiers.
The next day, Jesus was sentenced to die a cruel death by being nailed to a wooden cross, which was the Roman punishment for people considered troublemakers. On the Friday that he was put to death, his friends all scattered, frightened that the Roman soldiers would hurt them too. After Jesus' death, a follower named Joseph of Arimathea took his body and washed and prepared it for burial. He placed Jesus' body in a tomb and he rolled a heavy stone across the entrance.
Jesus' supporters were sad beyond all words and terribly afraid. They felt hopeless. The messenger of hope was gone from them, crushed and killed by the cruel Roman Empire. What were they to do?
On the third day after Jesus' death, three women went to the place where Jesus was buried, bringing spices to anoint his body. On the way, they talked about how difficult it would be to roll away the heavy stone in front of the tomb. When they got there, they found the stone rolled away and Jesus' body gone! The women ran from the place, frightened.
Not long after that, Jesus' friends and supporters began to talk with one another about his teachings. They thought about his message of hope and his belief that each and every one of us is loved by God. They heard the reports from the women about the empty tomb. They wondered. Sometimes when they talked about the things Jesus had said, it seemed like he was right there with them. So strong was his presence that many followers said that Jesus had returned as a Holy Spirit. They said, as Christians do today, that Jesus was born again, or resurrected.
They remembered the love that Jesus taught and gradually they began to feel hope again. Their sadness didn't go away completely, but it faded. As they remembered Jesus, they knew deep in their hearts that love is stronger than cruelty and stronger than death. His spirit lived on as it does today." Jesus was born again and lives on in all the people who believe in him and in those who try to practice his teachings. Through the second chance of resurrection, Jesus' message gained great influence.
There is something important about second chances here. Passover lets us know that second chances come to us and that we can lay the groundwork for them. Easter tells us that the second chance of "born again" does not happen to us alone. It affects the people around us, and through them, it touches many others unknown to us. In that sense, everyone has a hand in making the second chance work.
Think about it. When a person is released from prison back into society, he/she has a second chance. But in order for that rebirth to take hold, he/she needs a lot of help from the community. If I am going to free myself from drinking Coca Cola, it makes a big difference that the people around me help me, especially with their support. In twelve step programs, people seeking to break free of addictions have a sponsor, a person to talk with, whose presence increases the odds that the second chance will take. When we seek to repair a relationship and free ourselves from pain or anger, it helps if the other person joins us. We can pave the way for our second chances and we can make the most of them. And if the rebirth offered by the second chance is to take root, we also need the participation of others. Therefore the "salvation" offered by the Easter re-birth is not an individual matter. Second chances, even when they occur primarily for the individual, have the strongest possibility of positive outcomes when they have the participation of others. We play a greater role in each other's lives than perhaps we know, or take notice of. Know it. You matter. Your help, your friendship, your presence, matter.
Also, although miracles exist in both the Passover and Easter stories, the second chances are not miraculous in that they come solely from an outside transcendant being. The Jews laid the foundation for their second chance and they took it when it appeared. They prayed for freedom. They identified their enslaver and they asked for a change. If they didn't want their freedom, why risk their lives to follow Moses into the unknown? Once away from Egypt, they spent forever in the desert, where they had to learn , together and for themselves, what it meant to be a people in relationship with their God. Jesus' resurrection, in the Gospels, is a miracle from God, but if his followers had not believed him and continued to promote his teachings and tell the stories of his life, the resurrection itself would have little meaning for humans.
The lessons I draw today from Easter and Passover are: second chances exist; we can help to pave the way for them; we can make the most of them if we pay attention and don't wait for the bread to rise; once taken, we need the participation of one another in order for the second chance to lead to a true re-birth. I believe it that second chances come to us. Not always, but often. I believe it that we can pave the way for them when we know how we would like to be free. When we can identify to what we are enslaved. I believe it that we can make the most of them. I believe it that we help each other to find the resurrections we need. I believe that this does not come from outside of us, rather it comes from inside of us. I comes from our human longing to be free, to be whole.
What Egypt would you wish to make an exodus from? What holds you as a slave? What would a second chance look like? What do you need in order to make changes? Whose help can make your resurrection happen? Believe it. It can happen. Maybe it comes at unexpected times and in unexpected ways, this gift of another chance. But it does come. Happy Easter. Happy Passover.
Song #269 Lo, the Day of Days Is Here Closing words by David Blanchard We have been created to be free. We have been created to know joy. We have been created to love. We were not meant to be exiles.