Rev. Danielle K. Bartz September 12, 2021
Mark 8:27-38 “Who Do You Say I Am?”
On September 11, 2001, the small town of Gander in Newfoundland was informed that 38 international planes heading for the east coast of the United States were going to be diverted to their small international airport. The people on the planes didn’t know why. The people of Gander were just beginning to learn of the attacks. On a day of trauma and chaos, two communities of people were thrust together. With the arrival of the 38 planes, Gander doubled in size as 7,000 passengers were eventually allowed to disembark and, because flights were grounded and airports closed, learned they needed to stay for several days.
The townspeople mobilized in extraordinary ways. They secured clean clothing, fresh food, and nearly every home in town found a spare bed to offer. They stood alongside the arrivals as they learned of the 9/11 attacks. They helped people contact families and loved ones. They grieved with the strangers and offered the comfort only another human presence can.
It was a week before the final passengers were able to return home. The people of Gander, and their guests – now their friends – carry with them a reminder of what power done in the name of service and hospitality can do. The relationships that were forged continue to be so powerful that reunions have occurred. A musical entitled ‘Come From Away’ was written about that week in Gander and it opened on Broadway in 2017. On a day that is, rightfully, remembered as one of trauma, grief, and loss of security; we also remember the ways in which humanity came together, if only for a short time. We remember the sacrifice, the bravery, the hospitality, and the love that was freely shared. 20 years later, as we mark this solemn anniversary, we hold all of that together, and reflect on how we have changed, what we have learned, what we have lost, and how we can continue to use those lessons to create good in the world, not destruction.
It seems appropriate to me that this weekend’s anniversary aligns with the text we find in Mark. In it we hear Jesus asking his disciples if they truly know who he is, but they respond with a limited understanding. Peter gets the question right, he says Jesus is the Messiah, which means “Anointed One”, but Peter, like all of the people, think that means Jesus is anointed by God to conquer. They believe Jesus is there to take power and give it to a select few. When Jesus asks, “Who do you say I am” the disciples get the words right but the actions wrong. Jesus, knowing that his time is limited and that God has created in humanity that ability to do so much more, he turns to the crowd that was following him and tries, once again, to explain his purpose. His lesson, given over and over again, can be paraphrased like this: “I am not about power over, I am not here to conquer, I am not here to bring favor to one people over another. I am about so much more than that, and to truly follow me means that you must change everything you know about God and God’s love. This is not easy, and it will anger nearly everyone you encounter. To follow me is to lose the familiarity of one’s life and to create a new one dedicated to love and service.” The way the people of Gander, Newfoundland responded to the human need around them is an example of how that lesson can be lived out. We give thanks to God for the miracle of the relationships that were formed, and we strive to go and do likewise. And we also know this lesson is hard to follow.
Today’s scripture and the lesson that we find there, comes at a crossroads in the book of Mark. It is almost exactly the half-way point of the story, and up to now Jesus has been doing miraculous things. He has been healing people, feeding people, teaching about God’s abundance and love. His disciples, and the crowds that began to follow him, were enthralled. While the people were uncertain about who Jesus truly was, they had created a set of expectations about what he would do for them. These expectations were based on the assumptions of power, and their own human desires for how that power would serve them. But, as I said, we have come to the crossroads of the story. Jesus’ lessons from this point forward are about confronting those human expectations. On the remainder of his journey to Jerusalem and the trials that await him there, Jesus tries to impart the Good News that true power, done in God’s name, is one of sacrificial love and service. So, when Jesus asks his disciples, “Who do you say that I am?”, Peter answers correctly – “You are the Messiah” – but Jesus knows none of them truly understand. 2,000 years later, we are still trying to grasp what Jesus is trying to teach us.
On September 11th we saw the best and worst of humanity. We saw those who used their power for destruction, to destroy what they hated. And we saw people who used their power to serve those around them. That is why, I think, the story of how the small town of Gander responded to those 38 planes full of people is so compelling. We saw in their story and example what we can do when power is used to protect the needy, to love neighbor, and to serve without thought of reward. They lived Jesus’ teaching into reality.
If Jesus were to stand before us today and ask “Who do you say I am?” are we prepared to not only answer with the right words but also with the actions that make the words real? Are we ready to give up our human understanding of power, and instead embrace God’s promise of abundance? Are we ready to let go of our desire to have influence and instead give of ourselves fully? Are we ready to continue the work that Jesus began, even if it leaves most people suspicious or even angry?
These are choices we have to make every single day, every single moment. We will never get it perfect, and there are going to be more than enough times when we have to rely on God’s grace. But, we know it is possible. We know what extraordinary good humanity is capable of. We know the tug of the stories like Gander, and the millions of other stories just like it, big and small. We know the tug that draws us together in community, to hear the stories, ancient and new, and we strive to add to that our own story. We have done so, and we will continue to do so. By holding Jesus’ question before us, “Who do you say I am?”, and seeking to answer it with actions of love and service, we will create the good in the world that we desire for. Amen.
PASTORAL PRAYER:
One: Let us pray:
On all who continue to grieve
and all who died in the events of September 11th and its aftermath,
All: Jesus, pour mercy.
One: On those whose homes, livelihood, and psychological
well-being were destroyed or compromised,
All: Jesus, pour mercy.
One: On those displaced.
All: Jesus, pour mercy.
One: On the devastation of city and countryside both in this country and throughout the world.
All: Jesus, pour mercy.
One: When we bind up our own wounds only, and forget the suffering of stranger,
All: Jesus, awaken justice.
One: When in our fear we retreat and isolate,
All: Jesus, awaken justice.
One: When we seek security only based on military might and not on right-relationships among peoples,
All: Jesus, awaken justice.
One: And so we pray:
That all who continue to suffer may heal and the nations of the world will find peace;
All: Jesus, we labor with you.
One: That growing understanding among faithful peoples will lead to a shared vision of peace;
All: Jesus, we labor with you.
One: That profound cooperation among nations, which share God’s earth, may lead to structures of peace;
All: Jesus, we labor with you.
One: That oppressive economic and military structures may be transformed and structures may grow that lead to peace;
All: Jesus, we labor with you.
O God, hear our hopes and make us faithful in your way of love and justice.
In your name, Jesus, the make of peace, Amen.