I look forward to going for a haircut at a local barbershop where most of the barbers are immigrants. There is always a lot of banter, a European soccer game on TV, good enough pop music on the radio, and a friendly chat with the barber. There are over a half dozen chairs in the shop and you never know who is going to cut your hair. It’s first come first served and unless you have a favourite barber, typically you go with whoever has the next open chair. They keep meticulous track of the order. No butting in line! Something was a bit different this visit the other day. Within five minutes of sitting down I hear a customer ask a barber, “So I bet you’re glad Trump won, huh?” “Yes!” came an enthusiastic reply. “He’s going to clean things up.” There was no mention of what exactly he would be cleaning up. I thought not exactly what I want to talk about right now, but at least I’ll likely get a different barber since his chair is busy. I did get a different barber, someone who remembered me from a previous haircut. Super nice guy. And then it came within five minutes into the haircut, “Hey, good news about Trump, right?” “I’m not sure,” I replied. “He wants to deport immigrants.” “True,” he said. “But everyone has a good side and a bad side, right?” “I’m still waiting to see the good side,” I replied. We left it there and moved onto other topics. I don’t want to give these folks too hard a time. They’re not unique in their views and more a sign of the times. It’s a reminder how readily everyday people support strong men like Trump. People whose lives would be made miserable under leaders like this, potentially deported. And still millions of people will vote for populists who will harm them and their families. I suspect none of this is surprising at this point. Most of us have moved beyond the initial surprise of Trump winning his first term and now even winning a second term despite the fact he refused to admit he lost the election in 2020, helped encourage an armed insurrection, and boasts he will be depriving journalists, political enemies, and immigrants of rights.
Today’s gospel reading is timely. Jesus reminds the disciples, “Beware no one leads you astray.” Wars and rumours of wars should not lead us down the garden path trusting in false prophets. The problems we face today in 2024 on the one hand are unique with new technological challenges. On the other hand today’s context bears a striking resemblance to the same kinds of ways people were led astray in Ancient times. What we are facing is part of the human condition. There has always been the temptation to be swayed by false prophets who promise and predict all kinds of things by pointing to wars and rumours of wars, earthquakes, and famines. You would think we’re better than the disciples because we have the advantage of history. And yet someone nominated for a US cabinet post once said five years ago, “Germs are not a real thing. I can’t see them.” It is a bit dizzying how far we’ve drifted into the land of make believe. And yet despite the signs and portents in this gospel reading, Jesus grounds the disciples in truth, rooted in himself.
Sung Soo Hong, a scholar in Kentucky, points to the centre of this gospel: continuing as followers of Jesus. Something the first disciples didn’t fully learn until Jesus died and was resurrected. Only by witnessing Jesus die on the cross and meeting a resurrected Jesus did they really get it. The discovered that following Jesus continues after Jesus dies. That following him is about answering a call in which they orient their whole lives. Not just hanging out with a friend or teacher. There is ironic foreshadowing in the gospel when the disciples ask Jesus, “Tell us when this will be” that God will do these things and make the kingdom come. When the hoped for Messiah, love, and justice become manifest. As readers we know how the disciples first react to Jesus’ death. In Mark the story ends abruptly after Jesus dies and the disciples flee. But we have the benefit of knowing the other gospel accounts including Jesus’ resurrection and the disciples seeing and believing. Post resurrection the disciples gain a new perspective on the cross and new life. Continuing as followers of Jesus is continuing in God’s love.
We’re not that different from the first disciples because we also have our struggles in daily life. We too ask questions like, “what will be the sign when things get better?” We also want to know. But Jesus tells us there is no knowing in advance. No matter how many YouTubers explain the signs of the times they always get it wrong. False prophets can always record a new video, speak at another rally, set another date that comes and goes when all will be revealed. Even though that date continually gets postponed, people fall for it every time. It is humbling to recognize we’re not better than the first disciples. Despite all our technological advances, advances in science, political theory, ethics, we’re still facing the same dilemmas.
Thankfully what grounds us as Christians today in 2024 isn’t who we are voting for or not voting for. It isn’t who we wish is or isn’t a world leader. Because those things will ebb and flow and are often out of our control. If there is anything we’ve learned is no one can predict the future. What grounds us as followers of Jesus is God’s promise to be with us through the cross and hope of new life. Death and resurrection offer a resilience that armchair politics never will. We can read every op-ed about why the state of the world is the way it is and we’ll still feel depressed. We may even feel that we cannot do anything, that our actions don’t matter. And that is a human response. It’s also a lie. Who we follow and our actions have great potential. This is why the cosmic event of the cross, disrupts human history and political action. The cross gives us strength to continue. Because of faith, it’s not up to us. Jesus’ love is bigger than us. It’s not about us fixing things on our own. It’s trusting that by being faithful and following Jesus, it will be enough.
Some of us are finding affinity with some of the prophetic Christian voices whether Rev. Dr. Munster Isaac, pastor at the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Bethlehem or Rev. Dr. William Barber from North Carolina, founding Director of the Center for Public Theology and Public Policy at Yale Divinity School. People who put their lives on the line following Jesus. Rev. Dr. Barber offers some context for understanding the current US context. And also our need for Christian faith to be more expansive no matter where we live:
“Though slavery officially ended after the Civil War, the Christianity that blessed white supremacy did not go away. It doubled down on the Lost Cause, endorsed racial terrorism during the Redemption era, blessed the leaders of Jim Crow, and continues to endorse racist policies as traditional values under the guise of a "religious right." As a Christian minister myself, I understand why, for my entire ministry, the number of people who choose not to affiliate with any religious tradition has doubled each decade. An increasingly diverse America is tired of the old slaveholder religion.
But this is why the freedom church that David George joined in the late 1760s is so important. We who speak out in public life to insist that God cares about love, justice, and mercy and to call people of faith to stand with the poor, the uninsured, the undocumented, and the incarcerated are often accused of preaching something new. But those who claim "traditional values" to defend unjust policies do not represent the tradition of David George, George Liele, and Brother Palmer. They do not represent the Black, white, and Tuscaroran people of Free Union, North Carolina, who taught my people for generations that there is no way to worship Jesus without being concerned about justice in the world.”
― William J. Barber II, Four Hundred Souls: A Community History of African America, 1619-2019
What Rev. Dr. Barber came to recognize has takeaways for us in our context in Victoria as well. Many people have become disenchanted with the Christian tradition which its ties to the colonial project, to the still recent history of Residential Schools, to churches that say one thing and does another. And yet the Christian tradition is greater than that. We need to tell the stories in our neighbourhood, on our street corners, as followers of Jesus who wish the best for our neighbours.
Just as we are already welcome immigrants and refugees, serving meals at the Native Friendship Centre, and providing space for the Shelbourne Community Kitchen. We want to build relationships with these neighbours. We want to get to know their names, just as we want to get to know one another’s names. We are a congregation made up of newer folks and folks who have been here many years. As we get to know each other and trust one another, we are better equipped serving the wider community.
A story about building relationships and communities before wrapping up. The other day I was asked to open the Multifaith Centre at UVic for Muslim prayer. The Muslim spiritual care provider was away. I got there on time cycling from downtown. It’s a bit of a climb up to the campus. Some people were a bit tentative not knowing me, whether it was okay to enter the building. I invited them in and then Sami, the Imam at the downtown mosque arrived. I’ve had tea with him at the mosque and we made plans to meet up again in a few weeks. Moments before he arrived I received a cryptic text message that read, “Ellen, I am on my way to Multifaith.” I didn’t know who the message was from and thought there was a mixup, but it was Sami who was using hands free texting while he was driving. About a 125 people arrived for afternoon prayer, both women and men. The only event at Multifaith that attracts similar numbers is Pet Café, where students spend time with therapy dogs. I don’t know what conclusions to draw from that. There has been a rise of Islamophobic hate speech on campus. Even microagressions where people make offhand remarks about Muslim prayer making too much noise or being disruptive in some way. It’s often these little things that can lead to people feeling unwelcome or unsafe, so it’s important to recognize such things when they happen and call them out.
Sometimes following Jesus is ensuring there are safe spaces for multifaith friends like Muslim neighbours who want to gather in prayer.
I invite you to imagine how Jesus is calling you to follow him today. Maybe you are tired and weary and need rest. Maybe you need to sit down for awhile. Others might be looking at ways we can build relationships with neighbours. Ways we can live out the love of God in small and large ways in neighbourhoods, schools, workplaces, churches, and beyond.
Wherever you find yourself today, know that whatever time we find yourselves, that God love you, supports you, and is present with you today. Amen.
