Prayer and Position
Pentecost 20, Proper 25
Fr. Tim Nunez
May my spoken word be true to God’s written word and bring us all closer to the living word, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
This morning’s gospel raises the issue of how we pray.
When I served at St. Mary’s in Belleview, by God’s grace he led us to build a new sanctuary. There was a section for the organ and choir off to the left, facing the nave at about a 45-degree angle. However, the pews were too close together for kneelers. There, as here, the congregation knelt for the Prayers of the People, Confession, and part of the Eucharist. So, I suggested they lean forward, sitting toward the front edge of their seats. It would look like they were kneeling and also reverential.
They agreed. Well, almost all of them agreed. One woman said, “No.” She explained that she felt very strongly that she should stand to pray. This woman was very active in ministry, a true parish leader, and she was very serious. She was the only one of about twenty who felt that way, not even her husband.
I told her I was the rector and she would kneel. No I did not! I decided that she should pray as she felt she should. Let’s contrast her with the two men in Jesus’s parable.
First, remember that Jesus is speaking specifically “to some who trusted in themselves and regarded others with contempt.” That means they were like the unjust judge in the parable who “respected neither God nor people” we heard last week. If they trust in themselves, they are ignoring God. Holding contempt for others is the opposite of respecting them.
The first man is a Pharisee. He knows the scriptures and thus should know better. He is standing by himself. Himself. He is putting himself at physical distance from the people he’s about to list: thieves, rogues, adulterers and even, far worse, “this tax collector.”
He is showing contempt for those people. Why shouldn’t he? Let’s recall Jesus’s summary of the Law, as we pray it in Rite I.
“Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it: Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”
Do you see the Pharisee’s problem? It isn’t just that he’s arrogant. How can any of us “Love they neighbor as thyself” and hold such contempt for “them,” those other people? How could any of us stand before God and think that we are somehow better than “them”? There are many references in the Old Testament about our sinful nature. One example is Psalm 14, page 598 in the Book of Common Prayer:
2
The LORD looks down from heaven upon us all, *
to see if there is any who is wise,
if there is one who seeks after God.
3
Every one has proved faithless;
all alike have turned bad; *
there is none who does good; no, not one.
He should know better.
The tax collector does know better. He is standing far off, but not to avoid people he despises. He is standing far off out of humility and respect for the Lord. They understood the Temple to be God’s house. That’s somewhat similar to our expectation of finding God present in our church, except the Temple was the house of God, unique in all the world.
He won’t even look up. He knows he is a sinner and he is begging for God’s mercy.
Let’s go back to the Belleview choir. Does it matter whether she sat or stood? Does it matter whether we are able to kneel, or have to sit for whatever reason? Does it matter if we stand or kneel to receive communion? No! And yes.
Yes, in this sense: What is truly important is our hearts’ orientation toward God; humble, contrite and loving him. Our physical movements should reflect, not mask, our inner hearts, souls and minds. We will never perfect that, but our intention, our effort and our desire means everything to God.
Even Paul, who as far as we know did more for the spread of the Gospel than anyone after Jesus, show this humility in his second letter to Timothy. He is worn out and near death. He feels like he has done all that he could. But his trust in his ultimate destiny with Jesus is not like an employee awaiting a check that he has earned. He is waiting with everyone else for the grace that he trusts will come from the Lord, the righteous judge. He credits God with enabling and empowering him to overcome so many obstacles so he could accomplish his work.
Remember to position your heart properly when you pray, and listen for his reply so you can finish your race well.
AMEN!