Pentecost 16

Wisdom of Solomon 1.16-2.1, 12-22
James 3.13-4.3, 7-8a
Mark 9.30-37
A recent news item reported that two teen-age Australian girls were spending some free time together and decided it would be fun to explore a storm drain in an area fairly close to where they lived. They jumped down into it, looked around for a while and then tried to climb out. They couldn’t do it. Fortunately, both had mobile phones and they were well within signal range. But instead of calling for help from family members or police, each girl updated her status on her Facebook page, indicating that she was trapped in a storm drain and noting its location. Then they settled in to wait for their rescuers. A friend of both girls noticed their identical status and thought it was a joke. Hours later, when the friend had visited Facebook several times, he noted that neither girl’s status had changed and began to wonder if there might be more to it. It had apparently not occurred to their parents that anything was wrong. The friend called for help and the two girls were rescued no worse for wear.
Another recent news item reported a public meeting organized by the office of a congressional representative to allow him to communicate with his constituents about health care reform. One of them arrived carrying a sign that read “keep the government out of my Medicare.”
The prison system in California is running at 190% of capacity. The overcrowding has led to escalating levels of violence. A recent news report described a proposed rehabilitation program. Inmates who were willing to go through it could have their sentences shortened by a few weeks or months, thus reducing the prison population. These are people who had committed serious crimes and served long sentences. The reduction of time was reportedly a small fraction of what they had already served. The program requires approval by the state legislature and attorney general, which it is reportedly unlikely to receive. The reason has little to do with the quality of the program, its anticipated effectiveness or the likelihood of a favorable outcome. It is because several persons whose approval is critical to the program’s implementation are fearful that if an inmate who obtains early release commits a violent crime, the resulting publicity will threaten their ability to get re-elected.
Our lessons today speak of wisdom, the good life, and good works. They focus on justice and the courage to seek and obtain it even when that requires sacrifice. The wisdom books in the Old Testament fall into a category of Jewish scripture known as the writings. Included among them are books that actually have the word “Wisdom” in their titles in English language Christian Bibles, along with the books of Proverbs and Job. Among the distinguishing characteristics of the writings are their tendency to come from sources that are more urban than nomadic, more associated with the political than the agrarian, and less influenced by Israel’s sense of being “set apart” from foreign cultures than we see in the books of the law and the prophets. The wisdom literature is more cosmopolitan. Its origins are not in the tribe or village, but in the king’s court, where trade and diplomacy necessitate the exchange of ideas with outsiders.
Those real-life examples of apparently willful cluelessness and deliberate inaction in the face of crisis that I mentioned earlier are 180o opposite from the kind of wisdom and courage that are spoken of in today’s lessons. And yet they are much more like the kind of behavior we typically witness in everyday life than the noble sacrifice and wise understanding that are spoken of in the texts from James and the Wisdom of Solomon.
The absence from our culture of the kind of wisdom, civility, inclination to sacrifice and sense of community that these lessons address is frequently noted, but remains largely unaddressed. We tend to note the injustices we and others like us suffer from the bad behavior of others, but we are less inclined to explore areas in which we might lack wisdom or the will to take action because the cost is too high. You might imagine that churches would lend a hand to the effort. But in practice, they have frequently been part of the problem rather than contributing to the solution. Or the effectiveness of their efforts has been limited by internal squabbling over the best course of action.
We make frequent reference to Jesus’ sacrifice on our behalf. But that sacrifice was not intended merely as a gift – it was a lesson about how we are to live our lives. Jesus’ example for us was of a wisdom that seeks truth even when it is complex or obscured by circumstance or deliberate misinformation. As his followers, we are called to do things like identifying injustice or the misuse of creation, call them what they are, and take action to change them. We’re called to put in the effort of being knowledgeable – of understanding what’s going on in the world aroud us. We are called to communicate our ideas respectfully and to acknowledge the heartfelt, thoughtful opinions of others, but also to challenge inaccuracies, particularly those that result from laziness in gathering information. We are called to seek resolutions to serious problems with determination and humility, working with those who share our opinions as well as those with whom we disagree. Following Jesus’ example, we do all these things with courage and the knowledge that it may cost us something.
We seek to live patiently, thoughtfully and prayerfully in a world that has grown accustomed to instant analysis and gratification, no matter how useless or unsatisfying they might be. We are called to work hard at forming relationships and solving problems in a world that seems willing to make do with sound bites and superficial connections. We are called to serve justice and peace, sometimes at the expense of our own comfort or well being.
The problems we face – economic, environmental and social will not be solved by waiting until someone – human or divine comes to rescue us. They will not be solved by ignoring desperate human need and hoping it will somehow go away. They will certainly not be solved by circulating distorted facts, provoking useless conflict or attempting to intimidate and destabilize those who offer their gifts for leadership.
In a recent Vestry meeting it was noted that in difficult times, Christians step in and take on the challenges that seem insurmountable. We do the things that others are afraid to do. It is the task of the righteous one who follows the path of wisdom, patience and peace. The cost of doing so is described in today’s lesson from the Wisdom of Solomon. It is to be threatened, ridiculed, and opposed by those who are envious or who seek to distort the truth for their own gain. The cost can be high and the reward is often fleeting and frequently realized in the long term, but it is how we draw near to God and God draws near to us.