Preached at Kingston Road United Church by the Rev. Richard C. Choe
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Six days before the Passover Jesus came to Bethany, the home of Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. There they gave a dinner for him. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those at the table with him. Mary took a pound of costly perfume made of pure nard, anointed Jesus' feet, and wiped them with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.
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“I see it feelingly.”
Gloucester replied to King Lear when Lear asked him, “How do you see the world?”
“I see it feelingly,” said Gloucester.
When King Lear’s two older daughters and their husbands rose against him, Gloucester protected Lear and lost both his eyes. “I see by the sense of touch.” or “I see by feeling through pain,” would be a modern way of understanding the phrase.[i]
“I see it feelingly,” is the phrase I think of when I hear the scripture lesson today.
In John’s Gospel, Jesus came to stay at Lazarus’ house in Bethany. Martha, Lazarus’ sister “serves.” But Mary, the other sister, took a pound of expensive perfume made of pure nard, anointed Jesus’ feet, and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the strong fragrance of the perfume. Mary’s extravagant act caused Judas Iscariot to criticize her for being so lavish.
“I see it feelingly” is what I hear as I imagine Mary washing Jesus’ feet with perfume and wiping them with her hair, expressing her passion for Jesus. Mary sees the impending death of Jesus and feels pain as she gently washes his feet. Mary sees Jesus, by the sense of her touch, as the one who is willing to risk his own life as a faithful witness to the ways of God. Mary’s legacy of anointing Jesus before the crucifixion continues to be told by the followers of Jesus today.
I was in Walpole Island on Friday to attend the Memorial Service of the father of my friend Laverne Jacobs. His father, the late Chief Burton Norman Jacobs died on March 20, at the age of 95, in the presence of his children. Numerous stories were shared by the family members and friends at the Memorial Service.
Burton Jacobs served the Walpole Island First Nation as a Chief and a Member of Band Council for over 30 years. In the mid-1960's, he was successful in his campaign to remove the Indian Agent, thus paving the way for self-government for all First Nations. Reading newspaper articles and seeing photos of numerous politicians standing beside Chief Jacobs helped me to realize his political stature in Canadian history. But the most moving thing for me was to discover that Burton Jacobs accomplished all those things in life as a legally blind man.
His family members told me that Burton lost his eyesight at the age of 9 when ash got into his eyes while playing with his friends. He attended Indian Residential School and faced many difficulties in life but always stayed positive throughout his life. Elaine Jacobs, one of his daughters, told us that “Dad never complained about anything in his life.” I felt that I was able to understand my friend Laverne’s source of wisdom and perseverance when I heard about his father’s life stories.
Chief Burton Norman Jacobs was a man who was able to see life feelingly. He saw the world through a sense of touch as well as in pain but never gave in to disillusionment by abandoning hope for his community and himself. The legacy that Burton Jacobs leaves is the legacy of enduring hope for the First Nations’ communities.
What do we see as we look around our world? How do you see the world around you? What legacy do you want to create and leave behind in your life? Just as Mary expressed her faith even in the midst of critics and Jesus’ impending death, how do you express your faith and hope?
There are many things we do well as a community. We shall continue to do things we do well. There are some areas of our ministry we need to continue to improve as we move into the future. A small group has been designated by our Council to facilitate a process for KRU community to discern gifts and skills of the community for the ministry of Jesus Christ in our neighbourhood.
In a few minutes each one of you will be given a sheet of paper where you will be invited to consider the kind of gifts you might be willing to offer and able to share with the ministry of the KRU community in this corner of God’s world as well as in other parts of the global village.
“There is a place for you at KRU: Expanding Our Caring Community” is the theme this small group came up with as we reflected and tabulated on the results of the congregational survey. We believe that there is a place for each one of us and all those who are in our neighbourhood. We believe that each one has much to offer and share in the compassionate ministry of Jesus Christ. We believe that each one of us can see the world feelingly if we see the world through God’s compassion and humility.
Pouring of water.
I imagine us as part of the ever expanding flask that contains Mary’s perfume so we could anoint those who are sick, suffering, lonely, or longing to be healed. I imagine us as part of the ever expanding flask that contains God’s living hope that provides life and compassion for those who are in need. I imagine us as Mary seeing the world feelingly so we could embrace the world with our whole being.
Amen.
Lesley Foster sang “I Don’t Know How to Love Him” from Jesus Christ Superstar as part of the reflection.
God of life and death, meet us as we are, with whatever hope, despair, or longing fills our hearts. Bless our living and our loving; Bless our families both given and chosen. Bless our embodied rituals of adoration, our sacraments of sensuality. Hasten the transformation of our weeping into joy. Amen.[ii]
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[i] William Shakespeare, The Tragedy of King Lear, edited by Barbara A. Mowat and Paul Werstine, New York: Washington Square Press, 1993, 204-205.
[ii] “Love in the Face of Death,” Out in Scripture (website) http://www.hrc.org/scripture/week.asp
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