A Broken Thumb

At the end of September, I broke a bone at the end of my right thumb, right under my thumbnail.

To answer the most common immediate questions:

1.  I broke it playing basketball.

2.  Yes, it is my writing hand.

3.  It was surgically reset, but the pin will come out in early November.

OK, so that’s out of the way.

I am amazed at how often we use our thumbs.  I’m wearing a splint while the bone heals, which leaves my four fingers free, but for most things, what you really need is the thumb: buttoning my shirtsleeve, opening a jar, brushing my teeth, writing and typing, holding a glass of water, playing guitar....  You get the picture.  All of this can be frustrating, as I'm sure you can imagine.  But that’s not the only thing that I feel.

I feel very blessed, and this injury has caused me to recognize and be thankful for things that I could easily take for granted.

I am blessed by the loving care and support of my wife, Betsy.

I am blessed by the great medical care that I have access to, and for my medical insurance.

I am blessed to be able to continue my work fairly easily, and to have an employer (my church) who is understanding and flexible.

I am blessed that my injury is not serious or permanent.  I  have to temporarily relearn how to do things, but others have to adapt for the rest of their lives.

There is a tradition within Christian practice of discovering blessings in the midst of suffering.  Sometimes, it is in the midst of difficulty that we become more aware of God's blessings.  We learn to accept the help of others and give up the illusion of self-reliance.  And we increase our compassion for the burdens carried by others.  I don't believe - I DO NOT believe - that God causes suffering in order to impart these lessons.  God had nothing to do with my broken bone, or with any of the more seriously injured who received medical attention that day.  I don't believe that God inflicts harm in order to open our eyes, but I do believe that God is involved in the opening of our eyes.

Sermon - In The Vineyard

Sermon preached on September 18 2011 at First Congregational Church of Tallmadge, Ohio, UCC.

R.E.M.

(Reprinted from the church newsletter of First Congregational Church of Tallmadge, Ohio, UCC)

The band R.E.M. officially retired this month, after 15 albums and thousands of concerts over more than thirty years.  They started as a group of friends from Athens, Georgia, became a favorite of the college scene, and then became nationally prominent in the 1990’s with songs like “The One I Love,” “It’s the End of the World as We Know It,” and “Losing My Religion” before fading from their peak of success during the past decade.

I’ve been a fan since I first heard them in the early 90’s and have seen them live three times.  Betsy and I last saw them in concert at Blossom about seven years ago.  I used to play their songs in a band with my friends, and I still listen to them when I’m working out.  I imagine that there are many other R.E.M. fans in this church, while many of you have no idea what I’m talking about.

I want to pay tribute, because here is a rock band who managed a long career of touring and writing music without scandal, without succumbing to the excesses of rock and roll temptation, and without wanting to kill each other.  They’re still friends.  They showed that you can be mature and kind, and also have a great time and be just crazy enough. 

They showed that you can write a thoughtful, hit song about how people struggle with religion and spirituality.  Hit songs don’t have to be shallow, and losing your religion doesn’t have to mean becoming a shallow person.  I’ve always thought that the alternative to bad religion is good religion.

Many people lose the religion of their earlier lives, because it was scary, judgmental, exclusive, or incomprehensible.  Sometimes religion is harmful, and sometimes it seems so harmless and facile that you wonder what’s the point?  All of these are distortions of the holy religion that binds us together with God and with one another.  I don’t know what the members of R.E.M. call their religion, but I’m thankful that they shared their struggles with honesty and integrity.

R.E.M., Thanks for the music, and may your retirement be blessed.

Honor Your Parents

Honor your father and your mother.  This is one of the commandments given by God to the Hebrew nation when they escaped slavery and were faced with the challenge of governing themselves.  The commandments they received were the basis of their society, because any society needs laws, rules, and norms to live by.  In the middle of our American culture of individualism, I think that we often mistakenly think of the ten commandments as commands directed at individuals.

“Honor your father and your mother” means more than the duty of each person to his or her parents.  It means that we are all responsible to honor the generation that has gone before us.  It is a collective responsibility, and it promotes the well-being of us all.  On the personal level, it means that I show love and support for my parents, and treat them with dignity.  On the collective level, it means that I gladly pay my social security and medicare taxes, for the support of many people I don’t know, people who may or may not have children who are able to support them.  Social Security and Medicare are, of course, governmental programs that are not exclusively religiously based.  They are programs that stabilize the national economy in addition to meeting individual needs.  But, from my perspective, they are also ways in which I fulfill God’s commandment to honor our fathers and mothers.

God’s work in Jesus Christ is to reconcile the world to God (see Paul’s words in 2 Corinthians 5:19).  Christ did not come for individuals, but for everyone.  And so we gather for worship on Sunday mornings in community, seeking to follow Christ together.