Juanjo's Birthday

I've added another restaurant to my list of favourites in Vancouver, as tonight we went to La Bodega and the food was just absolutely amazing!

It was Juanjo's birthday so Jen and I helped Laura plan a surprise birthday for him, and it turned out to be a very nice evening as about 15 of Juanjo's friends turned out.

It was also the first time I took out my new 40D, so here are a few pictures I took. I still have a long way to go in terms of learning how to use the camera......

Crumbs For The Dogs

Our gospel reading of today (Mark 7:24-37) expands on the central theme of the gospel of Mark: “...the time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent, and believe in the gospel” (1:15).

And particularly, what we see in our text today, is that this message, the good news of Jesus Christ, is not just good news to the Jew, but it’s also good news to the Gentile. God’s circle of grace is revealed as wider and bigger than Israel.

Our text encompasses two stories, but we’re going to focus exclusively on the story of Jesus and the Syrophoenician woman (7:24-30). It draws out the extension of God’s kingdom very well; it shows how God’s kingdom encompasses all people.

It’s a fascinating story. Jesus is in Gentile territory for the first time since beginning his ministry (7:24, 31). He meets a Syrophoenician woman, whose daughter is possessed by an evil spirit. In a desperate cry for help - like the leper last week (1:35-45) - the Syrophoenician woman throws herself at the feet of Jesus (7:25).

Jesus says to her: “Let the children first be fed, for it is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs” (7:27).

Now, if you’re like me, you ask yourself what’s going on at this point. Did Jesus forget to invite along his chief of PR or his ministry manager? Why such a cold response? Why the harsh language?

It’s true that Jesus lived in a patriarchal culture, and as such, his response to the woman would have been justified. But if we consider that Jesus, a Jew in a foreign land, speaking with a Gentile, a Gentile woman no less, a Gentile woman who had a sick daughter - not a son, but a daughter - we see that Jesus’ response was not that normal.

This combination - Gentile, woman, and daughter - would have been deemed “beneath the dignity of any true rabbi.”1 By paying attention to her and speaking with her, Jesus crosses massive boundaries. He restores her dignity: inherent, God-given dignity, given her ‘in the beginning’ (Genesis 1:26-27).

Far from being intimidated, however, the woman does not give up. She persists. She responds to Jesus. Verse 28: “Yes, Lord; yet even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.”

What a response. It’s actually the only time in the gospels where someone gets the better of Jesus in a debate. And Jesus rewards her persistence and her courage: “For this saying you may go your way; the demon has left your daughter”, he says (7:29). The woman goes on her way, and upon arrival at home, her daughter’s healed.

When we take this story and weigh it against the repeated resistance Jesus encountered at the hands of stubborn religious leaders2, we see that Jesus rewards not the one with the right background, qualifications, or even the one who makes rigorous efforts to live the religious life.

Instead, Jesus rewards the man who sees his need and realizes that Jesus is the only one who can help, the woman who sees Jesus as the one who brings salvation to her family.3

His opponents wanted strict religion, external observance of food laws, for example, to differentiate the Jew from the Gentile, the good from the bad. Jesus, however, exposes their hypocrisy: such laws were self-righteousness disguised as holiness.

His opponents wanted “boundary markers”, but those markers are precisely what Jesus came to abolish. This must have been extremely difficult for a Jew to understand. In chapter 8 we read that not even the disciples understood it (8:21). But the Syrophoenician woman did.

She understood that “the liberation from evil” that was promised to the children of Israel was now made available to all. “The benefits of God’s reign that went out first to the Jew (Rom 1:16) were now to be made available to the Gentile.”4

Two very quick points of application.

For the church: this story of Jesus and the Syrophoenician woman is a “grounding” story; Jesus’ ministry to the woman grounds our outreach to the world. If that’s the case, what “boundary markers” are we raising in the church?

For the Christian: the Syrophoenician woman provides us with a model of the “outsider”, the “sinner” who wants in, but whom we wont let in. What sort of limits are we setting on those who would be called sons and daughters of God?

May God give us wisdom, strength, and above all, simplicity of heart to see our sin, to repent, and to believe in the gospel.

Amen ✠

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1 Sinclair B. Ferguson, Let’s Study Mark! Reprinted Ed. (Edinburgh, Scotland: Banner of Truth Trust, 2002), 111.

2 Sinclair B. Ferguson, Let’s Study Mark! Reprinted Ed. (Edinburgh, Scotland: Banner of Truth Trust, 2002), 112.

3 Sinclair B. Ferguson, Let’s Study Mark! Reprinted Ed. (Edinburgh, Scotland: Banner of Truth Trust, 2002), 112.

4 John R. Donahue (S. J), The Gospel of Mark. Sacra Pagina Series. Volume 2. (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical, 2002), 237-238.

Waffles, Futbol, and Hot Tub

A busy day it was today.

Morning Waffles => after a very fine birthday dinner last night, I decided to stay the night at my parents' place. I wasn't going to, but I told mom that if she made waffles for breakfast I'd stay. I know, that's called manipulation. Well, this work of manipulation was well worth it, because mom's waffles are the best on earth. I think waffles with vanilla sauce is what we'll eat in heaven every morning (will there be night in heaven?). Of course, it will be served with coffee, good coffee, heavenly coffee.

Afternoon Futbol => after breakfast I drove back to Vancouver to meet up with the soccerinos and play some futbol. It was great. Oh how I love this great game, and what a blessing to be able to play it with such great souls.....!

Evening Hot Tub => I could get used to saturday evenings at Jen's. In fact, I am getting used to them. Few things are as satisfying after a day of futbol outside in the cold (and lately, snowy) weather as a good dose of hot tubbing, and with a lovely woman to boot! There' something incredibly soothing in that combination.....

Mom's Birthday Dinner

I went to Abbotsford today after work, arriving there around 5:45pm.

We had a lovely dinner with family, celebrating mom's birthday. Trouble is, mom cooked her own birthday dinner. Something seems wrong with that....

A few days ago I talked with her on the phone, and I asked her what she wanted for her birthday. She said she'd be thrilled with a card. So that's what I got her.

I got her a card with a great saying by Saint Augustine. I got it at the monastery I stayed at a few months ago:

"Breathe in me, Spirit of God, that I may think what is holy;
Drive me, Spirit of God, that I may do what is holy;
Draw me, Spirit of God, that I may love what is holy;
Strengthen me, Spirit of God, that I may preserve what is holy;
Guard me, Spirit of God, that I may never lose what is holy."

Happy Birthday Mom!

40D

After humming and hawing for a few weeks, I decided to get myself a new camera (actually I bought it on December 30, I'm just now coming around to writing about it). Well, it's a used camera, but it's virtually new, as the original owner just had it for 3 months. My old camera is good, but I think it's time to move on to a semi-professional camera. I've had "point and shoot" cameras for the past 6 years, and feel that I'm ready to take it to the next level.

I purchased 3 components that make up the camera: the camera body (40D), a 50mm "prime" lens, and a 18-55mm zoom lens. The last component which I still need to get is a flash. I'm looking for the 430 EX, that's apparently a good flash to start with on this type of camera.

I've taken this camera out a few times to take some shots, and the quality is vastly superior to anything I've worked with to date.

So this is my other rather expensive Christmas present to myself, the first one being a Prie Dieux. So without further ado, introducing my new Canon 40D:

Posture, Words, And Faith

In our gospel reading for the 2nd Sunday after Epiphany (Mark 1:35-45), we find a narrative that reveals both the divinity of Jesus, and his humanity.

The story is set immediately after two other miracles, but what’s unique about this story is that it’s very vivid: we can feel something of the desperation of the sick man, the leper. And this need, this desperation that we see in him, is important for us, because it reveals our own desperation, our own need for redemption.

But let’s focus on Christ; first his divinity. Jesus withdraws to a deserted place in order to pray - a common theme throughout the gospels. But equally common is that people pursue Jesus. Simon follows him, as do some others. Eventually, the sick man in our story also catches up to Jesus.

This man has leprosy, a devastating skin disease, probably the most feared disease in ancient times, because anyone who had it was considered unclean and had to live outside the city gates.
It amounted to living a sort of “living death”1, separated from family, from friends, from the entire community. In fact, healing a leper was compared to raising the dead: it was something only God could do.2

So here’s this man in great need, and he’s heard of Jesus, he’s heard the stories of miracles and healing, and so he goes to him and makes a desperate plea for help.

Verse 4o says it all, it’s a wonderful verse: “And a leper came to him beseeching him, and kneeling said to him, “If you will, you can make me clean” (1:40).

Three things about the way he approaches Jesus are striking: 1 - his posture: he kneels, he’s on his knees; 2 - his language, his words: he “beseeches”, he begs, he implores; and 3 - his faith: “If you will...make me clean”.

It’s a wonderful posture. It’s the perfect posture before God, really, full of simplicity, honesty, and humility. The physical posture, the choice of words, and the faith he places in Jesus’ ability to heal, all attribute a status of divinity to Christ the healer: “If you will...make me clean” (1:40).

I wonder how we approach Jesus. We all have our own brokenness to deal with, both, physical and spiritual. In one way or another, we all feel excluded from friendship with God and neighbour. In one way or another, we’re all living on the outer margins of community.

To use more traditional language, the language of the Bible: “...all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”, says the apostle Paul (Romans 3:23). We too are like the sick man. He was in desperate need, and he literally took his concerns to the feet of Jesus.

The second aspect of Jesus that we see in tonight’s reading is his humanity. This is portrayed in verse 41, where we see Jesus’ response to the man’s plea: “Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand and touched him, and said to him, ‘I will; be clean’” (1:41).

Jesus heals the man out of pity, deep compassion. And this is evident in his touch, a simple human touch.

We need to see here how radical this is. Anyone with this disease was unclean, and anyone who touched him also became unclean. And yet, this is precisely what Jesus does: he touches him. And in doing so, Jesus shares in, he takes part in, the leper’s status of uncleanness. In touching the sick man, Jesus affirms his shared humanity.3

Imagine the freedom this man must have felt, no longer excommunicated, no longer in exile; a new identity, a new man. No wonder he goes out and talks “freely” about it, “spreading the news” (1:45).

The gospel of Mark has one central message, found in chapter 1:15: “...the time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent, and believe in the gospel.”

The sick man in our story fits right into this theme. He knew his status as an outsider. In Jesus, he saw the One who could heal him, and he responded with the right posture before Christ: “If you will...make me clean” (1:40).

And my prayer is - and hopefully this is our prayer as a community of faith - that we see our need for redemption; that in Christ we see the Son of God who is able to forgive sins; that in Jesus we see what it means to be human; and finally, that we would approach him with a humble heart and simple faith.

Amen ✠

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1 John R. Donahue (S. J), The Gospel of Mark. Sacra Pagina Series. Volume 2. (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical, 2002), 91.

2 John R. Donahue (S. J), The Gospel of Mark. Sacra Pagina Series. Volume 2. (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical, 2002), 91.

3 John R. Donahue (S. J), The Gospel of Mark. Sacra Pagina Series. Volume 2. (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical, 2002), 91.

Going to Mexico!

After hours and hours of research to get a good deal on a flight to Mexico City, I finally booked my flight today. I got a great price: $689 return on Mexicana Airlines.

So here are my dates:

Departure: Friday, February 27, 23:59pm, arriving in Mexico City the next morning at 7:25am.
Return: Saturday March 14, 7:25am, arriving in Vancouver at 12:25pm.

I'm going there with Jennifer and if all works out, Sanjit will join us too. While there, we plan to visit Marty and Ruth, and Ruben and Tatiana.

The places we hope to visit are Mexico City - Cuernavaca - Taxco - Acapulco - and Guanajuato.

Gifts Fit For A King

Our gospel reading of today (Matthew 2:1-23) is one that has historically been associated with this season of Epiphany, and for good reason: it marks the revelation of God in Christ to the Gentiles. It marks the inclusion of the Gentiles in God’s plan of salvation for the world.

It’s a story familiar to most of us: Magi come to Jerusalem from the east, to worship the newborn “king of the Jews” (2:2). ‘Where is he’, they essentially ask.

Herod, whose official title was also king of the Jews, feels threatened by this inquiry, but he doesn’t want to give himself away, so he pretends to be on their side. After doing some research on the whereabouts of this new king, he sends them to Bethlehem: “Go and search diligently for the child,” he says, “and when you have found him, bring me word, that I too may come and worship him” (2:8).

So the Magi go on their way, heading for Bethlehem. They follow a bright star who leads them right to the birthplace of Jesus, and upon arrival, there is great jubilation. We read that they “rejoiced exceedingly with great joy” (2:10).

Their jubilation is marked with gifts, and not just any gifts. They open their treasure boxes and give gold, frankincense and myrrh (2:11). Gifts fit for a king. Gifts that symbolize joy and festivity.1

Before their return to Persia, they are warned in a dream not to let Herod know the whereabouts of this infant, so they return home using a different route (2:12).

Herod’s response when he finds out he’s been deceived is rage and anger. And the rest of the story has some remarkable similarities to the story of Moses in Exodus 1 and 2. Herod, like king Pharaoh, orders all newborn boys to be killed. Moses has to flee to escape the decree, as does Jesus, and only after the death of the king is it safe for them to return (2:20).

What strikes me in this story, is the difference in response between Herod and the Magi to the news of a newborn king. Both are Gentiles, but both have very different responses to the arrival of Jesus.

On the one hand are the Magi, a “caste of Persian priests”, with “special claims to interpret dreams.”2 Here in this gospel they appear simply as astrologers or astronomers who follow a star in search of a major event.

They go on a long journey from Persia or Babylon or the Arabian desert - we don’t really know - and upon arrival in Bethlehem they do what they set out to do: they worship, they pay homage to the Christ-child. They followed a star in search of a major event, and a major event they found. In fact, they found the event that changed everything.

And on the other hand there’s Herod. He’s also a king, but a paranoid king. He feels threatened when the Magi tell him they’re looking for the baby child born “king of the Jews” (2:2).

He wallows in his hunger for self-preservation, greed, and power. Everyone’s a threat to him, even young infants. And so, driven by his insecurity and paranoia, he decrees to kill the innocent. In fact, history shows that Herod was rash and perverse, one who would “kill old and young, showing mercy to none.”3

The question we need to answer as a community of faith is do we seek to pay homage to the king of kings that was born in Bethlehem, the one whom the Magi brought the finest gifts to, or are we bound up in ourselves, our insecurities, and power games.

In the final chapter of the gospel of Matthew, just before our risen Lord gives the great commission that sets out the mission of the church to go and “make disciples of all the Gentile nations” (28:19), we read that the disciples “worshiped” the risen Lord.

The word “worshiped” in Matthew 28, is the same word as the one used to describe the Magi’s intention in their search for Jesus: they sought to worship him, to pay him homage. The Magi saw the glory of God in Christ.

They prefigure the acceptance of Gentiles into the community of faith, they point to the universal nature of the gospel: the gospel “is meant to be shared with all peoples.”4

And on a personal level, the Magi act as role models for us: role models that show us the right posture before God, the right posture before Jesus.

Thanks be to God.

Amen ✠

_____

1 R. T. France, The Gospel according to Matthew. An Introduction and Commentary. Tyndale New Testament Commentaries. (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1985), 84.

2 Daniel J. Harrington (S. J), The Gospel of Matthew. Sacra Pagina Series. Volume 1. (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical, 1991), 42.

3 Daniel J. Harrington (S. J), The Gospel of Matthew. Sacra Pagina Series. Volume 1. (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical, 1991), 44.

4 Daniel J. Harrington (S. J), The Gospel of Matthew. Sacra Pagina Series. Volume 1. (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical, 1991), 50.

Installation

Installation: maybe it's just me, but when I hear this word, I don't think of someone being affirmed to work as a minister of God in the church. Rather, I think of metal storage racks being set up in a garage....

Anyways, today was a special day, as my good friend James was installed as Senior Pastor of Sherbrooke Mennonite Church. I went to the installation service.

I was blessed by the service. I was struck by the humility and simplicity of the Mennonite approach to worshiping the Triune God. There was a time of sharing in the service, where people were invited to share prayer requests: items of praise, concern, supplication, and thanksgiving. And to my surprise, many people got up and shared. It's a very "down-to-earth" approach.

I was also struck by what seemed like genuine community in the congregation. Community is difficult to find in the Church, let alone a church in Vancouver, a city that embodies the antithesis of community. After the service, everyone was invited to stay for lunch. I'm learning to appreciate in a significant way how important it is to share meals with others, and not just with those that I like, but especially those whom I have trouble accepting, never mind liking. These are the people Christ has joined to himself, and as such, are my brothers and sisters.

Finally, I was struck by the inclusivity of the service. Some aspects of the liturgy - the Scripture reading, the hymns - were expressed in 4 languages: English, German, Korean, and Vietnamese. There was a presence, in varying proportions, from each of those 4 cultures in the service.

James didn't preach, unfortunately. I've heard him preach and he's very good , he will be an excellent Pastor, by God's grace. He was interviewed and prayed for, however. In fact, so much attention - and praise! - was given to him that at times I was troubled, wondering whether I was in a church or in a tribute event to James.

It's important that his congregation, his family, and his friends, pray for him, and often. Only through prayer - and acknowledgment that it is He who works in us, that accomplishes things - do we have any hope of achieving anything lasting at all.

What The ...

I can't believe it. I went out for dinner with my friend In Young tonight. We met up at the Whitespot in Kitsilano.

Pretty much immediately after sitting down at the table he dropped a bombshell on me. He got engaged about a week ago. I told him he's out of his mind, because he only met the girl he's engaged to 4 months ago. He laughed. I asked him if he'd asked for any advice or input from other people in his life, and he shrugged it off as pretty much unimportant. He's convinced that this girl's the right one. I was, and still am, speechless.

Four months ago he was single, unattached, looking for a woman.

Now he's engaged.

In 3 months' time he's getting married in Seoul, South Korea.

Wine That Quenches The Thirst

The miracle at Cana (John 2:1-11), where Jesus turns water into wine, is the first of a series of signs that he performs on his way to the cross. And it’s a sign that has at its core one meaning, it points to one thing: the glory of Jesus.

And it reveals the glory of Jesus in two ways: one, Jesus exposes our need for salvation; and two, he offers himself as the one who will save us. Let’s look at each of these briefly, beginning with the first one: Jesus reveals our need for salvation.

Jesus and his mother Mary, along with his disciples, are at a wedding when the unthinkable happens: they run out of wine. Out of compassion for the host, Mary says to Jesus: “They have no wine” (2:3). Jesus recognizes this cry for help, but says “My hour has not yet come” (2:40).

This response may seem whimsical, but nothing could be further from the truth. Jesus shares Mary’s concern, but on a larger scale, on a cosmic level that other human beings can neither share nor bear.

He equates Mary’s cry with the human cry for help, and he equates wine with life. And therefore, Mary’s cry is the human cry for help, because we’ve run out of wine, we’ve run out of life.

And the reason none of us “have wine”, the reason none of us have life, is because of sin. All of us have sinned, all of us need salvation, all of us need the wine of life. This is our predicament.

But then Jesus goes on and points to the way of salvation. And this is the second point: Jesus is the one who will save us.

“Now six stone jars were standing there, for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons” (2:6), we read. These jars were used for cleansing and purifying. “The water contained in these vessels was used for the ceremonial washing of hands as well as for the cleansing of drinking utensils.”1

The water that was in the jar was not sufficient to purify us from our sin, however. It needed something more, it needed energizing life, pure life. So Jesus turns it into wine, providing inherent strength that the water doesn’t have.

The Psalmist says that wine “makes glad the heart of man” (104:15), but the wine that Jesus makes here does even more than that: it gives life, abundant life.

Wine here is a most fitting symbol for the new spiritual power made available to us through the blood that Jesus would shed on the cross. He would pour out his own precious wine, his most precious blood, to save sinners. In the words of the prophet Isaiah, Jesus would tread “the wine press alone”, because no one was with him (66:3).

It’s interesting that there are critics of Jesus’ miracle at Cana. His miracle was unnecessary, a miracle of luxury. The argument goes something like this:

Jesus’ miracles are usually acts of mercy, where a "real" need is met: he heals the sick, he restores sight, he casts out demons, he even raises the dead. At Cana, it is said, Jesus saves the steward of the feast from embarrassment, he helped out a host who should’ve hired a wedding planner! It’s an unnecessary miracle, a luxurious miracle.

Such a reading of Scripture is not only flat and shallow, but it can only come from a culture of scarcity, where fear is the primary motivator. The result is to save, grasp, and hold on tightly to our money, our time, and our resources; to worry and be anxious about our health, the environment, and overpopulation.

But Jesus speaks the language of abundance, not scarcity. His signs did not alleviate human suffering alone. Christ did not come primarily to satisfy our physical needs or to add to our happiness. He came to offer us full redemption, full restoration, abundant life. And the miracle of turning water into wine, “lavishly provided and freely offered”, was a fitting symbol for the full salvation that He would win for us on the cross.2

Jesus was turning his attention to the goal he’d come to accomplish, namely, to answer the human cry for help, to quench the human thirst for life. This cry only He could respond to, this thirst only He could satisfy.

This is the glory of God in Christ that is revealed to us, and a most appropriate theme it is, on this day of Epiphany.

Thanks be to God.

Amen ✠

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1 R. V. G. Tasker, The Gospel according to Saint John. An Introduction and Commentary. Tyndale New Testament Commentaries. (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1999), 55.

2 R. V. G. Tasker, The Gospel according to Saint John. An Introduction and Commentary. Tyndale New Testament Commentaries. (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1999), 56-7.

Winter Wonderland!

We've had the most snow I've ever seen in Vancouver. In the past 3 weeks, I'm sure it's snowed around 3/4 of a metre. That's unheard of in this part of the country. Here are some pics I took. They're not that good, in my opinion, largely because I haven't had the time to go out and play in the snow. Note: the snow's only about 40cms high in these pics. That's because it snows, then it warms up and the snow melts, then it snows some more, etc..

NYE 2008/9

It is said that a picture is worth a thousand words. That being the case, I'll let the pictures speak for themselves.

Taboo words for the night:

The people:

At 12:30 in the new year it began snowing. That, combined with the "tipsiness" of some of the guests meant that NYE turned into a sleepover. This morning, we went out for breakfast at the Whitespot on Cambie/13th: