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The Fourth Sunday Of Easter (Good Shepherd Sunday)
O God, whose Son Jesus is the good shepherd of thy people; Grant that when we hear his voice we may know him who calleth us each by name, and follow where he doth lead; who, with thee and the Holy Spirit, liveth and reigneth, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
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The Fourth Sunday Of Easter (Good Shepherd Sunday)
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Scripture citation(s): Exodus 28:1-4, 30-38; Matthew 7:15-29
A Sermon by
The Rev. Canon Carl Turner
on
Exodus 28:1-4, 30-38; Matthew 7:15-29
✛
"Tradition is the living faith of dead people; traditionalism is the dead faith of living people."
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When I was an undergraduate at Durham University where Professor McGuckin (the orthodox priest who preached for us back in January) was also studying, I had the wonderful opportunity of experiencing the liturgy according to different traditions. I regularly sang in a choir for the late Archbishop Lefebvre of the Tridentate Mass Society, and for (as he was then) Archpriest George Dragas of the Greek Orthodox Church who taught patristic theology.
Experiencing the mystery and complexity of both the Tridentate Mass and the Liturgy of St John Chrysostom helped me understand the importance of beauty and tradition in my own church. In the 1970’s, of course, there was a move away from complicated liturgy in the west, with both the Roman Catholic and Anglican churches revising and simplifying their respective service books. In recent years, of course, there has been a recovery of the beauty of worship and mystery – encouraged in the Roman Catholic Church by Pope Benedict XVI but never really lost in the Anglican Communion with its love of the language of Cranmer and Coverdale and King James Version of the bible.
Last Sunday, Archbishop David Moxon reminded us that Pope Benedict had begun the tradition of the Sistine Chapel Choir singing with Anglican Choirs in order to recover excellence in singing for the Vatican. Recently, I was pleased to meet with Maestro Palombella and hear of the project to restore the Sistine Chapel Choir School so that it was more closely modelled on that found at Westminster Abbey and, of course, our school here at Saint Thomas Church.
Going back to my time when Father McGuckin and I were at Durham, we both remember well the particular sound of the orthodox liturgy when certain Bishops were present, for they had little bells attached to their vestments. Originally only worn by the Emperors of Byzantium, this vestment (long with sleeves known as a Sakkos) was given to patriarchs and, eventually, by the middle ages worn by bishops. The bells are a direct reference to the Old Testament lesson that we heard today in which Aaron’s robes are describes in minute detail. There is, of course, something rather charming about the bells attached to Aaron’s robe for they were not placed there to add dignity to his office, but rather to alert the Lord that he was entering the sanctuary so that he would not be harmed by the glory of God. Beneath the beautiful robes with the woven pomegranates and vivid blue yarns with the tinkling bells lies the fact that Aaron was a sinner – unworthy to approach God and yet invited to do so by the Lord himself.
It is easy to think that robes of state or sacred vestments are used because of the dignity of the person wearing them; but all of us fall short in the sight of God including bishops and priest who minister in the sanctuary. The traditional prayers used by clergy as they vest remind them that they enter the sanctuary because God has called them and not because they are somehow worthier than the people they serve. Vestments are beautiful because God is beautiful and fills his people with grace and forgiveness.
Tradition is important but not as an end in itself; tradition is a living thing and, although this may sound like a contradiction, is open to change and development. Bishop Michael Marshall, old friend of this parish and of Nashotah House used to delight in reminding Anglo-Catholics that there was an important difference between tradition and traditionalism. He used to say, “Tradition is the living faith of dead people; tradionalism is the dead faith of living people.” Think about that for a moment: “Tradition is the living faith of dead people; tradionalism is the dead faith of living people.”
In the Gospels, Jesus challenged traditionalism, especially in the Scribes and the Pharisees, whose slavish attachment to the letter of the law did little to deepen the faith of others. In our second lesson today, Jesus gives challenging words about false prophets and even those who claim to know God and call him Lord. It is not enough to know the words, Jesus wants people to know the Lord – to have a real and living relationship with him; to allow tradition to live rather than to stifle. He challenges us today in the same way; on what do we build our spiritual lives? On rules and ordinances or on the person of Jesus Christ? On the sand or on the rock? As we read in the first Letter of Peter, “The stone that the builders rejected has become the very head of the corner.” (1 Peter 2:7)
Did you notice how the crowd reacted when they heard Jesus teaching? They were astonished because he taught as one having authority and not as one of the scribes. In Jesus, we see someone who embraces true tradition in his very self; the scribes knew the law; they studied it and they knew the words. But in Jesus we meet the Word of God; he becomes the Law, embodies salvation history and is the promise of redemption. “The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us and we beheld his glory the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.”
Being open to Jesus, the Word of the Father, we can be transformed. Aaron, the first high priest needed vestments to hide his brokenness and his sinfulness. How poignant it is that as Jesus, our great high priest, was taken to the cross he was stripped even of the few clothes he had. In Jesus, God redeemed all of humanity and fulfilled all that the law was unable to accomplish. As Christians, we are called to live holy lives because we are to be like Christ.
Some words of Michael Marshall:
“Holiness is not something we can acquire. … holiness, like that other chemically elusive, divine attribute, ‘’grace,’’ is the raw material from which saints are made, but it is supremely, from start to finish a gift: ‘’Amazing grace how sweet the sound that saved;’’ it’s God working in you and through you, like clay in the hands of the potter. Our part is simply to put our life in his hands.”[1]
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.” (Matthew 7:21)
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[1] Sermon preached at the Church of the Redeemer, Sarasota, on November 2, 2014.
