Waiting for God when wailing in fear: Reflecting on Psalm 130

On the 2^nd Sunday since suspending worship services at Church buildings due to Coronavirus

When the schools were closed this week due to the Coronavirus outbreak, the UK government announced that schools will remain open to the children of some key workers who are serving the community during this time. The National Secular Society (NSS) appealed to the government asking why the ‘religious staff’ are considered as key workers, and countering that concern there has been lots of tweets explaining how religious staff are considered key workers at a time like this, for they have been offering community work, pastoral care, doing funerals and participating in community building works. At the end, NSS has to take back their appeal and offered an apology to religious communities. One of the main challenges for the religious communities during this outbreak, from my own experience as a minister is listening to the fears and anxieties of people who have been affected by this virus or to those who have been self-isolated and staying at home for they have expressed that their mental well-being is put at risk. On the other hand, the key-ness and the keenness for the religious communities to be key workers today lies in signposting people towards God and inviting them to wait for God and wait on God, which is a challenging task in the midst of secular ethos in the society.

In such a context when I read Psalm 130, the prescribed Psalter from the lectionary for this Sunday, I hear the psalmist lamenting, wailing in fear, out of the depths, weeping and wanting to wait for God. I see an echo of the cries of people caught up in Coronavirus crisis in this Psalm, inviting us to find hope in waiting for God, which is an imperative for our world today. This Psalm calls the readers to lament in the presence of the Lord out of our depths of fear, out of our depths of anxiety, and out of our depths of uncertainty, for it is in waiting for God we find solace and comfort at a moment like this. Lament has somehow lost its currency in our faith vocabulary, as lament is a combination of complain and petition, and perhaps our situation demands and teaches us to turn to God and to wait for God. Lament is a complain to God against the injustices around the world and is a petition for God’s intervention into such a world to bring in transformation. Psalm 130 registers a complaint to God against the iniquities around and within the Psalmist and a petition to God to redeem the world from such great depths from where he is crying out. If we are called to lament today in the context of fear, we need to complain to God against our own unjust ways of exploiting the creation of God and petition to God to journey with us so that our creation is renewed, transformed, healed to a new creation.

1.     Waiting for God is waiting in the forgiveness of God:

The Psalmist cries out of his depths, not naming what that depth or pit is and speaks more about waiting for God by focussing on the shades of God, which are forgiving God (4v), unfailing loving God and redeemer God (7v). He cries to God to listen to him in God’s own mercy. When the world today is wailing in fear due to this virus, and as we stay at home, waiting for God is a way forward to beat this virus out. There are some schools of thought within faith communities that express that this virus is a result of God’s wrath and punishment for us today. In this Psalm verse 3 and 4, we see Psalmist singing that “If you, O Lord kept a record of sins, Lord who could stand? With you there is forgiveness so that we can, with reverence serve you.” If God kept a record of our human sins, God certainly would have given punishments daily to this world, and daily there should have been a virus or a deluge or a drought or a famine, and eventually the world would have expired long ago. So, the Psalmist laments, who could stand O Lord if you were to keep giving punishments or demonstrate God’s wrath. He further speaks the message of hope where he recognises forgiveness with God and that we can serve God in all reverence and respect. Waiting for God when wailing in fear primarily calls us to implore and explore forgiveness in and with God, and buckle up our belts to keep serving God by serving our communities in all reverence for God and for the equal image of God among all people. At a crisis like this of ours, our forgiving God in Jesus is weeping with us in the context of Coronavirus and is working with us and in us to transform and heal our world.

2.     Waiting for God is waiting for a new dawn:

In verse 5 and 6, we see the Psalmist explains the longing for his waiting for God. He waits with his whole being, he waits in the hope of God’s word and he waits like a watchman waiting for the morning (recorded twice in the Psalm). Out of his depths he is crying for a new dawn in his life. Now when the instruction is to stay home for at least 12 weeks to contain this virus, there is so much of impatience among people as I listened to them. I heard some people calling and asking is this virus a sign of the dooms day to come? Some have asked is it a sign for the second coming of Christ? Some have asked is the world coming to an end? These people’s voices express a social anxiety, for fear has taken over their lives with no sign of hope available for them. I keep telling viruses, pestilences, plagues are not something new we see only today. People in history have experienced all of these at certain points of history. Whenever such things happened people have believed that is the end of the world. On the contrary, God did not leave or give up on God’s creation and surprised people and communities with new rays of hope. We at a moment like this in the context of Coronavirus are called as communities of faith to wait for God with our whole being, perhaps these days of self-isolation is an opportunity for that, for all these years we have been partially or selectively and occasionally or conveniently waited for God, now is the time to wait for God fully and holistically. We are called to wait for God in the hope of God’s word, which is the promise of God abiding with God’s creation at all points of time. We are called to wait for God like a watchman waiting for the morning. Watchman having guarded the city all night against enemy looks forward to morning, for he/she sighs relief on seeing light of the new dawn. I remember in my childhood at our local community there was a self-employed night watchman doing rounds in the night, whistling at street corners and trying to guard the community from thieves and robbers. When we heard his whistle there was a sigh of comfort that he is watching over our community. At that time, I have always thought how brave this night watchman should have been that he is not afraid of the robbers and guarding the community, lest I realised that he was in a way risking his life to protect the community. I remember asking my older cousins, “Does this night watchman not afraid of robbers? Gurkha kuda manishena? (in Telugu language) Is he really a human being?” My cousins laughed about my query and had to wake me up to see for myself that he was a human being like any of us. The Psalmist’s metaphorical usage of watchman, exhibits on the one hand the vulnerability of night watchman and on other hand how they put themselves in risk of partaking in the protection of the city. For them waiting for a new morning is overcoming their vulnerability of risk and to live in peace and security.   The Psalmist’s usage of this metaphor of watchman expresses how the least of the powerless people long for hope in the new dawn. I liked the way the Psalmist did not pick a metaphor like that of the kings or powerful people, but expressing hope through a most vulnerable person in the community. Our hope and waiting for God should be like that of the night watchman longing for relief, never giving up our hope even in our vulnerability due to fear. Waiting for God drives away fears of anxiety, despair and hopelessness. I am reminded of Martin Luther’s reply when asked what would he do when the world is coming to an end, he replied, “Even if I knew that tomorrow the world would go into pieces, I would still plant my apple tree.” Luther’s faith in a living God, his hope on waiting for God helped him not to give in to fear but keep continuing to carry on with his life, of course at his garden, which is timely for us to give attention to staying at home at this time.

Finally, the Psalmist moves from personal pronoun to a community, calling on Israel to put hope in the Lord, for with God is unfailing love and redemption, assuring that God will redeem people from all their sins and the entire creation too. A personal waiting for God needs to transform to a community waiting for God, for at the end it is God who will redeem us from all our despair and hopelessness. With most of us staying at home we see the levels of air pollution being reduced, we are witnessing the biosphere around renewing and reviving, and these are some rays of hope, signs of God's redemption experienced on our creation. As Christian community our hope is in Jesus Christ for all other grounds is sinking sand, and we are called to instil that hope in our community by serving one another.

Psalm 130, has been one of the favourite Psalms of Martin Luther for he called this Psalm “Pauline Psalm” where he saw the message of Paul about redemption in this Psalm, for it is with God’s grace we are saved from sin and virus. This Psalm encourages us to know that God has not given up on us as communities, for God wrestles with us in our struggles for life and is there to strengthen those that are in despair and fear.

Let us therefore wait for God when we are wailing in fear, overcome this fear by lamenting to God and look forward to a new dawn like a night watchman. One of the key work for the religious communities in our post-secular world today is to share our experiences of hope, which we draw from God. I remember my Sunday School teacher teaching, “we care called to wait for God every day for waiting on God is mentioned 365 times, which means each single day in the year we are called to wait on and for God.” Stay at home for God in Jesus is present among those people who have self-isolated and grant us peace and love. We await a new dawn soon, and God is at work with us here today. Keep alive our hope in God.

Rev. Dr. Raj Bharat Patta,

raj.patta@methodist.org.uk

26^th March 2020

Pic courtesy: Image of an Indian night watch man //www.amazon.com/Indian-Night-Watchman-Traditional-antique/dp/B01BJ48LU6

Stay at Home - Prayer during COVID 19

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Drawing Hope by Discerning the Voice of God amidst the Fears of Uncertainty

Reflecting on I Samuel 16:1-13 for 4^th Sunday in Lent, 22^nd March 2020

The world today is gripped in fear and uncertainty caused due to the Coronavirus pandemic outbreak, affecting around 200,000 people as of today and that number further increasing in leaps and bounds as the clock ticks forward each day. At such a moment like this, what is the message of hope for people and communities across the world today? 

The reading from the Hebrew Bible for this Sunday is a passage about the anointing of young David by prophet Samuel (Sam). God strengthens Sam when he expresses a threat for his life from Saul, and continues to lead him to Bethlehem to anoint a new king. When God initiates a conversation with Sam to not get stuck with king Saul but to move on to anoint a new king, Sam replied back to God, “How can I go? If Saul hears of it, he will kill me?” (2v) Sam was gripped in fear for his life, as he knew Saul will hunt and kill him, for rejecting him as a king and for moving on to find and anoint another one to be a king.

1.     Listening to the Voice of God amidst Fear:

As I read this text in the context of Coronavirus outbreak, I hear these words of fear reverberating from people all around. With the graph of those people dying because of this virus, and it is fast spreading, people in all countries are panicked. When Sam was in utter fear for his life, perhaps even guilty of the politics he has played against Saul, God drove the fear away by leading him with God’s voice, with God’s ideas and promising him to show God’s ways to move on from that situation of fear. Even today into our context of fear, panic and uncertainty, God is willing to drive away the fear through God’s voice, through God’s ideas and through God’s ways. It is time that we wait, listen and respond to God who wants to intervene into our situation and to drive away the fear of the virus and the virus itself. Are we willing to listen to God’s voice today? God is speaking to us in various ways, through science, through communities, through neighbourhoods, calling us all not to be selfish and greedy to be generous in sharing and caring for one another. There are many creative ideas that are being floated in the communities to support one another like #viralkindness #viralprayers, where we find divine in such acts when the virus is spreading virally among communities. The message of hope for a time like this is in the voice of God, which comes in various ways and through various communities. The significance of this text is that God is restoring life in God’s own ways, and in this text, God finds it through a new king. Be prepared to listen and respond to God’s voice and join with God to virally fight against this virus, for God intends to restore life and to bring back life to its normalcy. Sam experienced such a hope in God’s voice, where restoration and renewal finds its home, and Sam moved forward overcoming fears by responding to such a God’s voice.

2.     Responding to the Voice of God in Courage:

At Bethlehem, Samuel (mis)judges Eliab, the elder son of Jesse to be the one to anoint, until he asks Jesse to bring his youngest son to the fore. It is here that Samuel requests Jesse to bring his youngest and says, “for we will not sit down until he comes here.” Sam gathered courage as he kept listening and responding to the voice of God. Again, in the midst of Coronavirus pandemic, I see hope in the communities who are offering help with one another specially to those vulnerable and elderly people. The call for us today is, “we will not sit down until all those vulnerable are helped and protected,” “we will not sit down until we defeat this virus,” “we will not sit down until the least of our society is cared for.” When Sam responded to God’s voice, he made a strong resolve to wait and not sit down until he anoints the person God chooses. Sam demonstrated his courage to stand up to the voice of God, and never gave up to sit down or gave up on God’s appointment. So, it should be our resolve to support those people who are self-isolating and co-operating with one another to fight out this virus, for we will not sit down and not give up on God’s ways and God’s interventions at our context today.

3.     Opening up to the Voice of God in Humility:

On this mothering Sunday here in UK today, I hear the mothering voice of God when God speaks back to Sam after his misjudging the person God wants to anoint. God speaks in verse 7, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for the Lord does not see as the mortals see; they look on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.” These words cannot be but the words of a mother. To any mother her child is very special, no matter how the child looks or appears. We have a saying in my language Telugu Kaki ki kaki pilla muddhu, which means “for any crow her baby chick is extra special.” For a mother all that she cares is her child, for it is the mortals who care about the outward appearance and judge people accordingly. From this voice of God, we infer that for a mothering God all that matters to her is her child and her heart. This mothering God doesn’t care about the judgements of people, for the yardstick of a mothering God is totally different and yet times opposite to human standards. At a crisis moment like this when the fear of Coronavirus is taking over as a global pandemic, this mothering God is opening her arms to embrace and comfort all those self-isolating and waiting for the vulnerable to embrace and grant solace. This mothering God doesn’t see people as humans see, for a mothering God always cares for God’s children. Time to open up to the mothering voice of God in all humility, for God as a mother is speaking to us, wanting and waiting to embrace all her children, specially the vulnerable people and to those people who are out there in the field caring for the other flocks of sheep.

Final Drops:

Lastly, lest we forget 22^nd March is observed as World Water Day, and the theme for 2020 is ‘water and climate change,’ inviting us to explore the inextricable link between water and climate change. Let us all prayerfully reflect on the gift of water and strive to be sensitive in using water, for many in the world today are going thirsty due to the lack of accessible safe drinking water. During this Coronavirus climate, the mantra has been, “wash, wash and wash,” which is an important precaution that everyone needs to take care and do it. However, out there in the world there are millions who do not have water to drink and how can they afford to wash and wash and wash their hands to be safe? For many poor people with no water or clean water resource – what would they wash with. How would they pay for their use of this water to wash-wash-and wash? This day invites us to be sensitive to water and calls us to fight for water justice, where water is available for all people in the world. The living waters Jesus Christ is inviting us to strive for justice and peace to flow down like rivers into our contexts in becoming hope to this thirsty world. Let us find hope in the voice of God and let us be hope by responding to the voice of God, for God is speaking to us every day.

Rev. Dr. Raj Bharat Patta,

20^th March 2020

raj.patta@methodist.org.uk

Prayer: Our mothering God, we thank you for assuring us that you in Jesus is present where 2 or 3 are self-isolating during this crisis of Coronavirus pandemic. Embrace us under your wings as the mother hen covers her chicks, and help us to experience calmness, comfort and warmth of love during these times of fear and uncertainty. Like a mother help us to care for one another at a moment like this, and journey with us during this time, so that together as a community we can overcome this pandemic. Specially remembering the vulnerable and the elderly during this time and seek your guidance and peace to all of us. We thank you for being our mother O God. In Jesus name we pray. Amen.            

Picture Courtesy: http://union-church.org/july-7-2019-worship-bulletin-prayer-concerns-announcements/                      

He’s Not Here, But Where Is He?

A Sketch on Easter

Narrator/Elder: A bright morning in Jerusalem. The early Church is in hiding, gathered in an upper room reflecting on recent events.

(A man enters, pushing his way to the front shouting)

Lucius: Is he here?

Elder: Who are you looking for?

Lucius: Jesus. Is he here?

Elder: Why do you want to know?

Lucius: (insistent) I need to find out where his body is. Do any of you know? I’ve heard strange stories about him appearing to his disciples. Have any of you seen him? If so where, when? I have to know the truth!

Elder: You are a Roman, one of our oppressors. How do we know you don’t intend betraying us to the authorities?

(Pause. Murmurs of concern from the group)

Mary: (Gets up slowly from her seat and raises her hand for quiet) Please allow me to speak (she turns to Lucius). I was the first one to see him.

Lucius: Where did you expect to meet him? Are you sure you weren’t dreaming?

Mary: No. I hadn’t slept that night even though I was exhausted with weeping. So many things spinning around in my head, the places we’d been to, the people we’d met, the amazing things he’d done. How could it have all come to this?

Elder: Mary and some of the other women had busied themselves preparing the spices to anoint Jesus’ body. It was one last thing they could do for him.

Mary: When we set off for the tomb it was still dark. Nobody said a word as we made our way through the deserted streets.

Lucius: Were there no men with you? How did you think you were going to move the stone?

Mary: We hadn’t planned that far ahead, by then we were worn out, too tired and confused to think straight. But as we got closer to the tomb we could see that the stone had already been rolled away. Some trick of the light perhaps? Day was just breaking by then but the entrance to his tomb was clearly open. I looked in. There was no sign of a body.

Lucius: Did you see anyone else? A man dressed in white perhaps?

Mary: Yes. Well, not in white exactly. His robe had a strange glow in the morning sunlight. I can’t describe it really, but he said Jesus wasn’t there anymore, he had risen from the dead and we were to tell his disciples what had happened.

Lucius: So you didn’t see him straight away.

Mary: No. The others left immediately but I lingered by the tomb. I still felt close to him there somehow. That’s when I saw him. At first I thought he was the gardener. He wanted to know why I was crying and if I was trying to find someone, so I asked him if he knew where Jesus’ body had been taken.

Lucius: Why did you think he was the gardener?

Mary: I was distraught. I didn’t expect to see anyone I knew standing there. Then he said “Mary” and I recognised his voice. That same dear voice I thought I’d never hear again. Everything the angel had said was true. My Lord was alive! My heart was bursting with joy so I ran back to tell everyone what had happened.

Lucius: What did the disciples say when you told them?

Mary: They didn’t believe me, said they couldn’t trust the word of a “hysterical” woman.

Elder: It’s to our shame that we didn’t believe you.

Thomas: (coming forward) No, Mary, we didn’t believe you. I for one was in no mood for fanciful tales about someone rising from the dead. It was all over, the great dream about bringing in the Kingdom of God. Good while it lasted, I suppose, but what fools we’d been to think he could really change anything. Jesus was dead and buried. We were all terrified we could be next.

Lucius: Why are you still here then if you were so disillusioned?

Thomas: We split up, arranging to meet again a few days later. That’s when I got really angry. As soon as I arrived I could tell something had changed. “We have seen the Lord!” they said. I thought they’d all gone mad. So I told them unless I could see the nail wounds in his hands and put my fingers into them I wouldn’t believe any of it.

Lucius: A man after my own heart. “Seeing is believing”, that’s my motto too.

Thomas:  I admit I was hurt, blurting out my words. How could he have come back when I wasn’t there? Had I meant nothing to him?

Lucius: So what happened to make you change your mind?

Thomas: About a week later we were all gathered together once more. The door was locked. Then suddenly Jesus appeared amongst us saying “peace be with you”! He turned to me, offering me the chance to examine his hands and side if I needed further proof it was really him.

Lucius: What did you do?

Thomas: I needed no proof. It was him alright, the Jesus I’d known and followed for the last three years. My Lord and my God (he sits, overcome with emotion).

Elder: (Pause) You saw him too that first evening didn’t you Cleopas? Tell us again what happened.

Cleopas: It was on our way back to Emmaus. We had left it quite late to set off home but after talking it through I thought we’d both be safer there. In any case I needed to get outside. I couldn’t bear the idea of spending another day stuck in that room. So we left. There’s nothing like a good long walk to clear your mind.

Lucius: I agree. I hate sitting around, waiting. A soldier’s life can be quite boring sometimes.

Cleopas: Well, we were talking so intently about what had happened during the Festival we didn’t notice that a stranger had joined us as we walked along. He asked what we were discussing and why we looked so sad, so we stopped and told him everything that had occurred in Jerusalem over the last few days. Surely he must have heard about how Jesus had been arrested by the religious authorities and handed over to the Romans to be crucified?

Elder: Yes, everyone in the city was so shocked when they found out he had been executed

Cleopas: We told him how his body had gone missing that morning, but some women in our group had seen an angel who said he was alive!

Lucius: Did this man know what had happened to Jesus then?

Cleopas: Let me finish my story. The stranger began explaining the Scriptures, telling us how the prophets had clearly predicted that the Messiah would have to suffer all these things to achieve his mission to save us. How our hearts burned inside us as he spoke!

Elder: Yes, he taught with an authority we’d never heard before. But in the past whenever he explained how he would have to die to save us, well, we just didn’t want to know.

Cleopas: The time had gone by so quickly we hadn’t noticed we were nearly home. The stranger intended to continue his journey but as it was getting dark by then we persuaded him to accept our hospitality for the night. After we’d sat down to eat our guest took the bread and blessed it. He broke the bread, gave it to us and that’s when it happened. We suddenly recognised him, it was Jesus! And at that very moment he disappeared!

Lucius: What did you do?

Cleopas: What else could we do? In spite of our weariness sleep was out of the question. We retraced our steps to Jerusalem straight away, praising God. It felt like we had wings on our feet. We just had to tell the others that Jesus was alive and we had spoken with him.

Lucius: Why then hasn’t he shown himself to the authorities. He could silence those who had him put to death, the chief priests, the Sanhedrin, Herod or Pilate even.

Elder: Jesus has risen but his resurrection can only be experienced personally. It’s a celebration of his continuing presence amongst the weak and fearful and can appeal to anyone who is feeling powerless and vulnerable.

Lucius: (Pause) My name is Lucius. My life is in danger as I was one of the soldiers responsible for guarding his body. That’s why I’m desperate to find him. If I do they might be prepared to reduce my punishment.

Elder: So you failed in your duty. Are you in hiding too?

Lucius: Yes. When the officer told us to guard a dead man for three days we thought at first he was joking. I’ve had to carry out some strange orders in my time but nothing like that. But we soon settled to our task, things were quiet, so we talked as usual about our next leave home, seeing our families, going to the games. It was freezing cold that last night. We huddled together around the fire wrapped in our cloaks, none of us getting much sleep. Dawn was just about to break and we were looking forward to going back to the barracks to warm ourselves up when there was this terrific rumbling noise. The earth shook. Anyone standing was thrown to the ground. It took a few moments for us to gather our senses, then Gaius turned to me pale as a shroud and said “look, the stone’s been moved! “ When we entered the tomb we could clearly see it was empty. Then we noticed some women nearby speaking with a tall man in dazzling white clothes, but they soon left.

Elder: Was it you who started the rumour that the disciples had taken the body?

Lucius: I admit we took a bribe from the chief priests to say this was so. More than a month’s wages as it turned out. We lied about his body being stolen, but I knew any explanation we gave to our superiors wouldn’t stop us from being arrested. Sleeping on duty, that’s punishable by death. I just panicked and went on the run. Can you forgive me for what I’ve done?

Elder: Yes, if you are truly sorry. Open your heart to him and Jesus will come to you and ease your restless spirit. It could happen anywhere, in a garden, a room, on the road, it doesn’t matter. He told us where two or three people are gathered in his name he will be there with them.

Lucius: But I am an outsider here. Why would Jesus concern himself with me?

Elder: He is with all those on the margins of society, they are family to him. He promises the hungry, the naked, the sick and those in prison a comfort and a freedom from fear unlike anything we’ve ever known. You see it’s up to you, Lucius. There’s nothing to prevent you from asking God today for his gift of faith in our risen Jesus.

(Lucius embraces the elder)

Questions to Reflect:

1.   Who do you identify yourself in this story with? If you were an additional character in this story how would you react to the mystery of the Resurrection of Jesus?

2.   If the ‘risen Jesus is not here’ at the empty tomb where is he today? Can you identify the locations for risen Jesus today in your context?

3.   If you have located the presence of risen Jesus today, how would you respond to such a locality and what does discipleship mean in such a context?

Credits: Concept: Raj Patta & Written by Trevor Williams

March 2020