Homily 3.24.19

Readings: 
Exodus 3:1-8, 13-15
1 Cor 10:1-6, 10-12
Luke 13:1-9 

Encountering the God Who Is 

I Am who Am

I will be who I will be 

I am the one who sees, who hears, and knows

I am the waters of life in desert spaces

I am fire and wind 

I am silence 

I am the speck of sand

And the sky filled with billions of stars 

I am the one who swims in the seas, walks on the land, and flies in the air

I am parent and child

I am comforter and liberator 

I am every color, size, and shape under the sun 

I am community and relatedness 

I am holy, embodied, mystery

I am dynamic, creative, energy

I am the ground of being

And the breath of life

I am who am 

I will be who I will be  

I want to focus our attention tonight on our first reading, this powerful account from Exodus where God reveals their chosen name to Moses: Yahweh, rooted in the verb “to be” which can be translated I am who am, or I will be who I will be, or even I cause to be, I make exist, or I make happen.  This God of the ancestors of the Hebrew people is a relational God, a dynamic God, a God who’s very identity is woven into the existence of all life, all creation, all that is.  

So what happened in the history and development of Christianity to take the God who is life itself, and transform her into a male ruler/king who sits in the sky on his throne in judgment?  It is helpful to remember that all theology and language about God is contextual. The imagination of a people and how they speak of God is often limited to their own lived experience and culture. And so it was within the context of Christianity from the 4th century on: the model of power surrounding them was empire rooted in patriarchal and hierarchical society.  And so this dynamic relational name for God “The one who is” in Hebrew, was translated into the greek “kyrios,” which means Lord. Elizabeth Johnson in her recent book Creation and the Cross puts it like this: “By translating the mysterious name YHWH into kyrios, which comes into English as Lord, it took this relational, compassionate deity whose name is a verb, who is utterly free and beyond any simple gendered categorization, and cast divine identity into the image of a ruling male person in a patriarchal society.”  The name YHWH appears over 6700 times in the Hebrew Scriptures, but the Greek translation changed most of those into Lord, which is what we see in most of our bibles today.  

Remembering this can change not only the way we read Scripture, replacing Lord with I AM, but also transform our relationship with God as the one who is all that is.  In another desert setting, beginning in the 4th century, women and men who became distressed by Christianity’s growing allegiance with empire sought an authentic encounter with God and faithful life by retreating to the desert where they lived either in small communities or as hermits.  We know this group of people today as the desert mothers and fathers, and contemporary historians believe that there were twice as many women as men living in the desert although more writings from the desert fathers were preserved. Mary Earle in her book about the desert mothers talks about how going into the desert opened up this renewed understanding of and relationship with the God who is: “They began to see themselves as part of the cosmos, as participants in a vast and beautiful universe created, sustained, and redeemed by the ever-living God.  The whole universe became a burning bush, holy ground through which the living God speaks to those who will listen.” 

We don’t have to retreat to the literal desert, this wisdom reminds us we have burning bushes all around us, revealing different aspects of this God who is, who causes to be and brings into existence.  Our imaginations and experiences like those of so many generations before us, can often be limited by our own contexts as well. I know that personally my own language and images for who God is have changed and grown as I have traveled to new places and encountered new people who are burning bushes for me, opening up a whole new experience and understanding of God. I grew up with an image of God as loving father and friend.  Through a highschool service trip to Minneapolis I encountered the God who accompanies the impoverished and the homeless, who’s love is known through something as simple as a smile and sharing a meal. Living abroad in El Salvador I encountered a liberating God who denounces exploitation, the divine feminine mother protecting and comforting her children, and the God of bloodshed and resurrection. Sitting at the feet of indigenous elders I have encountered the God whose spirit flows through all of creation and calls it sacred, a God whose wisdom is carried by the ancestors and whose hope and promise is held for future generations.  Just a few weeks ago in Alabama I had a powerful lived experience of the God who is paschal mystery, who is present in the crucified and resurrected people who continue to struggle for justice holding fast to the hope of freedom.  

God is who is, and there is so much life, so much wisdom to soak up from the incredibly diverse experiences and cultures all over this planet.  We grow in faith by sharing our stories of who God is for us with one another and by stepping out of our comfort zones to encounter who God is in other spaces for other people.  We each have a unique and important spark of the divine to share with the world. We are each a flame on this burning bush of creation, revealing who the holy one is. In order to tap into this individual and collective wisdom, I would like to end by walking you through a guided meditation.  I invite you to sit comfortably and close your eyes.  

Imagine yourself in a desert, it is dry, maybe a little windy, it is warm.  

Notice what is around you. 

You begin walking toward a mountain in the distance, feeling drawn toward it.  

You approach the base of the mountain and see a path leading up, so you follow the path.  

As you are walking, you stop as you see a great bush on fire near you.  

You contemplate this strange sight as the flames do not consume the bush that is burning.  

You decide to go closer to look at this remarkable sight and see why the bush is not being burned. 

As you approach the bush you hear a voice calling out your name.  

You answer, “Here I am.” 

The voice, who you know to be the Holy One, says to you, “Come no nearer! 

Remove the shoes and socks from your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground.” 

This voice tells you, 

“I am the God of your ancestors, 

The God of Abraham, Sarah, and Hagar, 

The God of Isaac and Rebekah, 

The God of Jacob, Rachel, Leah, Bilhah, and Zilpah, 

I AM who I AM”

I have seen the affliction of my beloved creation, 

I have heard their cries for justice, peace, and survival, 

I know intimately what you and they are suffering.  

Go forth from here knowing that I am with you in our work for healing and liberation. 

Then God reveals one of their many names to you, a personal name for you to share as a revelation of God’s mystery.  

Who will you say has called you, and sends you forth from this holy ground?

Holding that name close to your heart, you put your socks and shoes back on

And head down the mountain and back into the desert to continue your journey.

When you are ready, I invite you to open your eyes, and write down 

On the flame pieces of paper the name God revealed to you.  

When you come up to altar after the gifts of bread and wine are brought up, 

Please put your flame onto the bush, as we are reminded of God’s holy presence 

And many names, revealed in this place, through this community.