The readings for this Sunday, June 12:

Exodus 19:2-8a
Romans 5:6-11
Matthew 9:35-10:8(9-15)
Psalm 100

The Gospel
Matthew 9:35-10:8(9-15)

Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, and curing every disease and every sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”

Then Jesus summoned his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to cure every disease and every sickness. These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon, also known as Peter, and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his brother John; Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; Simon the Cananaean, and Judas Iscariot, the one who betrayed him.

These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Go nowhere among the Gentiles, and enter no town of the Samaritans, but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. As you go, proclaim the good news, `The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons. You received without payment; give without payment. [Take no gold, or silver, or copper in your belts, no bag for your journey, or two tunics, or sandals, or a staff; for laborers deserve their food. Whatever town or village you enter, find out who in it is worthy, and stay there until you leave. As you enter the house, greet it. If the house is worthy, let your peace come upon it; but if it is not worthy, let your peace return to you. If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, shake off the dust from your feet as you leave that house or town. Truly I tell you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town.”]

Emphasis added – this topic is one that is much on our collective minds (and souls) lately as we contemplate ways to serve our community and open our hearts and the doors ever wider. Perhaps we’ll talk about it over coffee after church this Sunday.

Save the date: August 16 will be Episcopal Day at Six Flags Great America.

Event Date:Aug 16, 2005 – Aug 16, 2005 12:00 AM
Location:Gurnee, IL
Contact:Sue Cromer at 312-751-6722
Web site:Visit http://www.epischicago.org/DownloadResource.cfm?RecID=285 for more information

Come join us for a day of fun for: families, youth groups, campus ministries, young adult groups, and parish organizations! Bring your friends! Tickets Only $25.00 (same price as 2004) (a $20.00 savings off the main gate price!) A special “Meal Deal” may be purchased for 9.50, redeemable for any one of four meal packages.

Additionally, the Schaumburg Flyers have a number of “promotional events” at their games this season, and also they are sponsoring something called “Pray Ball” where a small donation (3% of our total ticket sales) might be made to the church, based on the number of Flyers that get on base safely during a specific inning at a game we attend as a group. This would need to be set up in advance through Carolina at the Flyers sales office, and they would let us know what inning is “ours.” It sounds like a fun outing, and many dates are available now.

Somehow, we managed to do the Pentecost readings in our many different languages, even though a person or persons unknown had moved Father Ted’s reading marker, and he began reading something completely other than we were expecting.

After a few seconds’ tense silence on our part, wordless communication was exchanged somehow and he began with the words “Philip said to Jesus, “Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.” That was our cue.

All was well; very quickly a torrent of languages grew around the sanctuary. Some spoke more quickly and finished earlier, and some had more of a mouthful to pronounce and trailed off at the end.

Fr. Ted’s sermon enlarged on the theme of differences between people, and communication in general. Even the slight hiccup at the beginning, he said, caused an interesting tension and gave our several readings the feeling of pent-up energy released (and not a little relief that we hadn’t messed up).

Fr. Ted took as his “text” not only the Gospel reading for Pentecost, John 14 8-17, but events and characters from the movie
Chocolat. In that movie, outsiders visiting an otherwise charming French village were treated very badly, because it was run like a medieval fiefdom by a member of the old aristocratic class, a real French count. And even villagers were treated badly, because they had to toe the old man’s very rigid line, and the local priest had to suffer the indignity of having his sermons written for him.

And then a dangerous newcomer moved to town and opened a very threatening business, right in the middle of Lent: a gourmet chocolate shop.

This beautiful chocolatier didn’t attend church, treated everybody the same, and didn’t knuckle under to social pressure to conform. And it’s a good thing, because she single-handedly reconnected the villagers with passion, whether it be for food, life, or love. Even the village priest was inspired to give a moving Easter sermon while his patron lay unconscious in the shop window, about how Jesus wants us to live our lives for ourselves and others, and not mindlessly following rules.

There was something magical in the chocolate – but it was not an easy or a quick fix. Some characters struggled with the way others saw them and as they saw themselves, but most emerged better for it (with the exception of the count, who ended up passed out in the display window of the chocolate shop after a disastrous attempt to destroy the shop). A new spirit of tolerance and acceptance filled the little village, and people were much happier and more content.

As it happens, the French passion for fine, rich chocolate and good food in general is explained a little further in the current best seller French Women Don’t Get Fat. It’s an interesting book, but places a little too much emphasis on drinking Champagne with nearly every meal (the author is an executive with a well-known French Champagne house).

The ultimate lesson learned from the movie, aside from always insisting on fine chocolate and savoring it in small but rich bites, is that life should be lived with passion and joy, and that change should be embraced. And that people who are different from us often have the most to teach. We certainly experienced the differences Sunday, as we all struggled to pronounce French, Estonian, Polish, Spanish, Norwegian, Italian, Latin and Greek…many languages, but all saying the same thing.