“Hurricane’s Approachin’!”

May 25, 2025: Alleluia! Christ is risen!

Yes, we are still in Eastertide. And, it is also Memorial Day Weekend in our country. A time when we remember those who gave the last full measure for the freedoms we hold dear. And in today’s scriptures, we hear two passages that have a lot to say to us in this time and place, especially as we remember those who died for the ideals of this nation.

The first is the gospel, where Jesus encounters a man who is lame and has been trying to get into the pool to be healed for 38 years. And Jesus asks him a question: “Do you want to be made well?” It’s a strange thing to ask, right? I mean, doesn’t everyone? Well, perhaps we say we do, but then we don’t do what we need to do to get well. Hold on to that for a moment as we look now at the passage from Acts.

In the verses prior to what we heard today, we encounter Paul & Silas, who, having had a bit of a tiff with Barnabus about another guy, John Mark, set off toward Asia, picking up another convert, Timothy, along the way. However, they are now a bit flumoxed. Basically, every time they set off in a particular direction, their GPS said “Rerouting. Rerouting.” They went to preach the word in Asia, but the Holy Spirit stopped them. How, the text doesn’t say. Then they tried to go into Mysia, but again they were blocked. Finally, in the part we heard today, Paul has a vision in the middle of the night about a man in Macedonia needing their help, so off they went.

They had been in the city of Phillipi for a few days, and when the Sabbath came, Paul did something a little bit unusual (perhaps learning recently that the Spirit was not interested in his doing things the way he had been doing them). Usually, Paul would go into the synagogue to preach. Instead, he and his companions went outside the city gates to what he had heard was a place of prayer. There they encountered women by the river, and they sat down and began speaking with them.

There, a woman named Lydia, who was a dealer of purple cloth, had her heart opened by the Holy Spirit to “listen eagerly to what was said by Paul.” She and those in her household were baptized, and she not only invites, but implores Paul and his companions to stay in her home.”

So, just to recap: on the one hand, we hear about a lame guy who has suffered for years because he kept trying the same thing over and over again to be healed, and Jesus asks him if he wants to be made well. On the other hand, we have followers of Jesus trying to go in certain directions, but being rerouted, and when they thought they were to see a guy in Macedonia, they instead meet Lydia, who would become the first gentile convert in a new area. Catching a theme here? And it isn’t like this is stuff that just happens to people in the bible, right?

I mean, haven’t you ever encountered someone who does the same thing over and over again and expects a different result? No, I am not talking about rooting for the Mets to win the World Series, though I suppose that it sure feels that way to us Mets fans sometimes. Or perhaps you have experienced heading in one direction, only to be stymied. Changing course, you are blocked again.

You know, sometimes when we keep trying to do the same things over and over, and it isn’t working, or keep trying to find a way to our intended goal but being stopped at every turn, it might be because we aren’t paying attention and can’t see that another path is open for us. Which is understandable given how insanely crazy life is for most of us these days. Not to mention that, while we are bombarded 7×24 with social media, work, and a boatload of entertainment options, we are also faced with an incessant barrage of horrible news. I mean, the way things are in our country today, we can feel as immobile as the lame man by the pool, hoping someone will save us – someone will make our pain go away.

Still, even when we are not successful at doing it ourselves, most of us know that when the universe is trying to tell you something, you ought to listen. It’s like the old story about the guy who, having purchased a vacation home on the shore, bought from a local shop a beautiful antique barometer for his wall. When he got home and put it up, he was disappointed that it seemed stuck – it’s needle pointing to Hurricane. While at work in the city the next day, he called the shop to ask about returning it, but it was closed for some reason. When he got back to his vacation home – the clock and his entire house – was gone. Wiped out by – you guessed it – a hurricane.

Now this is likely a bit of a fishing tale, but the point is there. When all the needles of life are pointing in a particular direction, perhaps we better try to go that way. More often though – we are like those folks in the horror movies, who decide to go downstairs, alone, into a dark basement when they hear a strange sound, rather than outside to call 911. That is never a good outcome, right?

Or, sometimes it is that we become used to going in one direction – it’s comfortable, it is what we know – and change isn’t comfortable for some folks. In fact, the church can be downright terrible at it. Which is why when the church does change direction, it can sometimes be big news.

Most of you know that I was once the diocesan liaison to Episcopal Migration Ministries or EMM. EMM “is a ministry of The Episcopal Church and is one of 10 national agencies responsible for resettling refugees in the United States in partnership with the government. Episcopal Migration Ministries currently has 15 affiliate partners in 13 states… In 2024 [alone, for example], EMM resettled 5,396 refugees and 1,137 individuals with Special Immigrant Visas (SIV) from 48 countries rebuild their lives in peace and security in 13 communities across the United States.” And to be clear, the US takes in way less than its share of refugees.

Despite all that history of doing good work in Christ’s name, in January The Episcopal Church laid off 22 EMM employees after the current administration suspended refugee resettlement shortly after the inauguration. And just two weeks ago, things took an even more tragic turn. Presiding Bishop Rowe said in a letter dated May 12, 2025, the following:

“Dear People of God in The Episcopal Church:

I am writing today with some significant news about Episcopal Migration Ministries… Since January, the previously bipartisan U.S. Refugee Admissions Program in which we participate has essentially shut down. Virtually no new refugees have arrived, hundreds of staff in resettlement agencies around the country have been laid off, and funding for resettling refugees who have already arrived has been uncertain. Then, just over two weeks ago, the federal government informed Episcopal Migration Ministries that under the terms of our federal grant, we are expected to resettle white Afrikaners from South Africa whom the U.S. government has classified as refugees.”

Now, before I continue on with Presiding Bishop Rowe’s letter, I want to set the record straight about the claims the President is making about these Afrikaners, descendants of Dutch, German, and French settlers, who are members of the white ethnic minority that once led South Africa’s brutal and decades long apartheid regime, which ended in 1994 with the election of Nelson Mandela as president. While they makeup only 7% of the population, they still own more than half the land. The President says that they are the victims of genocide and uncompensated land grabs. This is not only a racist far right conspiracy theory – it is false and ignores the long and painful history of the country. And this administration, who says that migrants from our Southern Border must wait their turn and come here legally, now wants these folks to jump past refugees who have already been vetted, and who have waited for years. Why? The answer couldn’t be more black and white.

So, continuing on with the letter from our Presiding Bishop.

“In light of our church’s steadfast commitment to racial justice and reconciliation and our historic ties with the Anglican Church of Southern Africa, we are not able to take this step. Accordingly, we have determined that, by the end of the federal fiscal year, we will conclude our refugee resettlement grant agreements with the U.S. federal government. I want to be very clear about why we made this decision—and what we believe lies ahead for Episcopal Migration Ministries’ vital work.

It has been painful to watch one group of refugees, selected in a highly unusual manner, receive preferential treatment over many others who have been waiting in refugee camps or dangerous conditions for years. I am saddened and ashamed that many of the refugees who are being denied entrance to the United States are brave people who worked alongside our military in Iraq and Afghanistan and now face danger at home because of their service to our country. I also grieve that victims of religious persecution, including Christians, have not been granted refugee status in recent months.

As Christians, we must be guided not by political vagaries, but by the sure and certain knowledge that the kingdom of God is revealed to us in the struggles of those on the margins. Jesus tells us to care for the poor and vulnerable as we would care for him, and we must follow that command. Right now, what that means is ending our participation in the federal government’s refugee resettlement program and investing our resources in serving migrants in other ways.”

I commend the Presiding Bishop for this stance, while grieving for those who will remain in danger, or live in difficut conditions in refugee camps because of this President’s preference for those who are white over those with brown or black skin. One option the President dangled before us was that, if we just help settle these white people, they would let us help the others later down the road. While we might feel we should go ahead then, so we could help the others, we all know that collaborating with racism is not the path for any follower of Jesus – the ends do not justify the means.

As the Presiding Bishop later added in a follow-up letter, “The problem with any kind of Faustian bargain like that is that the devil always wins…We knew that if we did this, we were going to be asked to do something else we couldn’t do. This was the line that we had to draw. And we’ll continue to do that. We’ll continue to tell the truth and be on the side of moral decision-making, and that’s what this is about. Just because the Trump administration and others have lost their way doesn’t mean the church has.”

Indeed. We have not lost our way. We could have mulled this over awhile, tried to work with the governement, and get along to get along for the so-called greater good. But that would be like the guy laying by the pool, hoping things would be different. We know from the news that law firms and universities who caved to this administration’s unjust demands found that out the hard way. We will not be bullied, but rather will remain steadfast in our mission, going wherever Christ calls us.

So, we are instead following Jesus. Rather than laying around bemoaning our situation, we will get up, pick up our mat, and follow him down a new path. When our road is blocked, we will follow the Holy Spirit to a new path and move forward. When we feel a bit lost, or overwhelmed, not knowing what to do next, we will come to our parishes on the sabbath day – to our proverbial river banks – to ours places of prayer.

For there we will be nourished by the real presence of Christ standing beside us.

There we will see what we could not see before, and be strengthened in our work by our faith community.

And from there we will set about on the next part of our journey.

Because as followers of Jesus, we are called to care for the stranger – refugee and immigrant today – not participate in racist policies or bend the knee to secular oppressors.

As followers of Jesus, we are called to be a voice for the voiceless, not a megaphone for the rich and powerful.

We know that we will, and already are, paying a price for serving Jesus rather than this administration, but we will take courage by the model of those we honor this weekend.

We will go where we are needed, fight the good fight, and if necessary, lay down our lives for what is right, for what is true, and for the freedom and dignity of all of God’s people.

For that is our call.

That is our mission.

That is our life.

So look out world, that barometer isn’t broken, there IS a hurricane approaching – it’s called The Episcopal Church!

And we are a superstorm that will, by the power of Christ working in us and through us, tear down the walls of division, rip apart the institutions of oppression, and break the chains that bind any child of God.

Amen.

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