The Fourth Sunday after Epiphany, Year B

Speaking with Authority

Readings: Deuteronomy 18:15-20; Psalm 111; 1 Corinthians 8:1-13; Mark 1:21-28

During the season of Epiphany, we have been exploring the many ways and times that God calls us, not only on a personal level, but also as a Church, and as a nation. The readings this week continue the theme of call as they explore how God speaks to us through other people. They explore the whole concept of authority. How do we determine God’s truth? How do we determine who is speaking with integrity?

The question of authority was critical for the Hebrew people. Prophets and priests claimed to speak and act in accordance with God’s will, and yet conflicts and disputes arose. They grappled with how God speaks to us. Moses wanted the people to know that God did not speak through magic, but through discernment. They settled on three criteria. First of all, the prophet needed to be an Israelite. Secondly, he was called to speak as God commanded, and finally what was spoken had to be realized in the events that ensued. It needed to be confirmed. That is an important distinction when it comes to discerning authority. Prophecy is not about foretelling the future; it is about having insights, discernment into how God leads us.

I came to a new realization about what authority meant a number of years ago when I participated in a healing circle. I was the only non-aboriginal person in the group. We sat in the circle and when we wished to speak we picked up a stone from the centre of the circle and as long as we held the stone we could speak. Many people spoke of their past hurts and anger. I picked up the stone and found myself talking about my experience teaching in a residential school, about my sincerity and sense of mission in going to the north, and at my hurt and confusion and anger at the injustice of it all. I said that I expected that they would feel nothing but contempt and anger for me. I put the stone back. The Elder, an old woman, a survivor of the Residential School system, picked it up. She went back and sat in silence for some time. Then she let out a whoop and returned the stone to its place. Another woman picked up the stone and began to speak. She told me that the Elder spoke for all of them. They could hear the authenticity of what I spoke, that it came from the heart, and that I was their sister. It was an ‘aha’ moment for me as I realized that in that one rather primal yell they had recognized her authority.

I do not wish to oversimplify it, but we Anglicans rest our authority on a tripod of Scripture, tradition and reason. Our religious experience is described in Scripture. It is defined in our creeds and in theological study, but most importantly it is lived out in our lives. I have always held dear the idea that to hold Christian faith does not mean parking my brains at the door, but rather using all the tools of my faith to make a reasonable decision.

That becomes helpful when we look at ethical dilemmas such as the one faced by the Christians at Corinth. The people of Corinth, including the Christian community bought groceries in the little shops in the marketplace. Much of the meat was the produce of the local temples. The sacrificial animals and birds were sold. That presented an ethical dilemma for the Christians. Should they eat meat that had been dedicated to a pagan God? They tried to reason. Idols are not real. Nothing has happened to the meat. Just eat it! What difference could it possibly make? Paul gives them a reason to reconsider. If it is a stumbling block to someone, then your decision is a bad one. Ethical decisions should result in doing the loving thing. If your action causes someone to feel a sense of guilt, then you need to reconsider so that the person is not hurt by your decision. A good example might be in the use of alcohol. If I am with someone who is an alcoholic and I drink, then I may be contributing to that person’s problem. I would be better to refrain from drinking. Even though what I am doing is perfectly reasonable, I should limit my freedom for the better good. I should do the loving thing.

That reasoned faith becomes helpful as well with some of the ethical dilemmas that face us today, such things as gay marriage that have the potential of causing rifts in our communion. Our authority when it comes to ethical decisions must come from within. We cannot use Scripture as a proof text. That can be ambiguous because it means that our standards are determined in each situation by what we understand to be the most loving thing to do. It means we must be open to the promptings of the Spirit and the guidance of God. Our Church is learning to do that while being cognizant that other parts of the Communion may not be in the same place that we are.

Jesus was known as one who could speak with authority. Hearing him speak in the temple gave people an understanding of their potential, of the possibilities. He did not talk down to them. He treated them as friends and equals. He taught them to be realistic about themselves. He helped them to know that God had called them to greater things than they could imagine. His authority made them do what all authority should do. It helped them grow.

Sometimes the person who bears authority is misunderstood. It was so with Jesus. A demented heckler shrieked at Jesus at the top of his voice. Jesus confronted the situation. He healed the person.

This scene is not as foreign to us as it seems. It is played out in our modern world. Jesus was saying something new. New things are often exciting, but at the same time they can seem threatening. Those who bear the prophetic word, those who advocate change, are often rejected or even attacked for their beliefs. The person who embodies the new can be regarded as the enemy to be defeated at all costs. The attack on such people can become quite personal. It happened to Moses. It happened to Jesus. It happens in parishes when the congregation becomes convinced that the bringer of new things is out to destroy the life of the parish. Such attitudes need to be challenged, gently, kindly, but challenged just the same. A spirit of open communication is essential in living out our life as a church community.

Perhaps the most challenging and transforming call of Christ when it comes to authority is that we must learn to give up our own freedom and power for the sake of others. We church folk tend to hold on to power. We do not want things to change. After all, we are the ones who have supported the church with our wealth. Don’t we deserve to have the same liturgies that have sustained us through our own lives? We want the same hymns. We want to hear the same comfortable words. If they come to our church we want children to be seen but not heard. We want newcomers, but we want them to be just like us, upholding the traditions that we hold dear.

If we are truly following Christ and are committed to the Mission of the Church, if we wish to bear the prophetic word, if we wish to answer God’s call to bring healing, then we must be follow the authority of our Saviour who was the servant of all.