Acts 5:27-32 CEB
The apostles were brought before the council where the high priest confronted them: 28 “In no uncertain terms, we demanded that you not teach in this name. And look at you! You have filled Jerusalem with your teaching. And you are determined to hold us responsible for this man’s death.”

29 Peter and the apostles replied, “We must obey God rather than humans! 30 The God of our ancestors raised Jesus from the dead—whom you killed by hanging him on a tree. 31 God has exalted Jesus to his right side as leader and savior so that he could enable Israel to change its heart and life and to find forgiveness for sins. 32 We are witnesses of such things, as is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.”

Last week was Holy Week and I was feeling guilty.

I was feeling guilty because usually, Holy Week is filled with extra worship services beginning with an extra special Palm Sunday service.

Then Maundy Thursday where we wash feet and remember the origins of Communion.

Then Good Friday, where we remember the crucifixion of Jesus.

Then Holy Saturday, when we might hold an Easter Vigil of some sort.  The very devoted might stay up all night holding Vigil with the Paschal candle.

Then a Sunrise service on Sunday to remember the women discovering that the tomb is empty.

Followed by Easter Worship with trumpets and organ and piano duets and so many Easter Lilies that nobody can breathe!

And I didn’t do that this year.  We did a Palm/Passion service on Palm Sunday, and an Easter service at our regular Sunday time.  So I felt guilty.  

I shouldn’t have.  Our EPIC group… EPIC stands for East Portland In Connexion – it’s our coalition of small United Methodist Churches and clergy, working together to share resources so we can do more, better ministry.  Our EPIC group had a plan for the Lent/Easter Season where we would share various events.  My event was to organize the Sunday of Service, so other clergy and churches were offering Holy Week Services for us to share.

I guess it felt strange to not be so absorbed in Holy Week services.

But God decided that I should have a Holy Week anyway.

Fig Tuesday, so named because it commemorates the day Jesus returned to Jerusalem and encountered the barren fig tree, was instead a day of remembering the very fruitful ministry of Rev Dr Jeanne Knepper, as we loaded up 81 boxes of Jeanne’s archives to be sent to Iliff Seminary.

Spy Wednesday, which commemorates Judas’ decision to betray Jesus was when Spirit began to play with me.  I was signed up to give testimony before the City Council on two ordinances on April 2, but there were too many of us signed up to give testimony for the time allowed, so they rescheduled testimony for the second ordinance for Wednesday of Holy Week.  The ordinance is to amend the City Housing Code to prohibit anti-competitive rental practices, such as the sale and use of algorithmic devices for the purpose of setting the price of rent.  So basically, there is a company who is using AI, to connect landlords across whole areas to recommend rent pricing, which allows large landlords who can afford this program to collude to raise rents.

And yes, I most certainly did testify that I want robots to clean my house not to raise my parishioners’ rent!  

I also mentioned that affordable housing is literally lifesaving for Queer, Trans and Genderfluid folks, like our Haven Dinner members.  Many other people gave wonderful, impactful testimony about their personal experiences of being priced out of housing.  The CFO of the Algorithmic rent pricing company used his testimony to accuse us of being opposed to the use of math.  Clearly trying to discredit us as poor, ignorant people.

But the Holiness happened outside the council chambers, when my testimony was done. I was chatting with various folks in the hall when a person dressed in a flowing, gossamer, pastel rainbow shirt drifted up to me. She thanked me for my testimony because she grew up in the church and when she came out as trans, her church, her family, her old friends, they all turned their backs on her. She thanked me for recognizing that affordable housing is lifesaving for people like her.  She thanked YOU, for being a church where she would be welcome.

Maundy Thursday, where we commemorate Jesus washing the disciple’s feet and sharing the last supper was Spirit filled.  

I began my day with my therapy appointment, because, clearly, I need therapy!  Then I rushed to the church to meet with Meredith, City Councilor Morilo’s outreach staffer.  Why is a Pastor meeting with an elected’s staffer?  For the same reason that I’m serving on the Community Advisory Committee for the Pod Village: because Jesus calls us to speak up for the poor and the marginalized.  So I introduced Meredith to Rahab’s Sisters staff, and to Bruce cooking in the kitchen.  Took her to lunch at a local restaurant so she could know about our little business district.  And I took her for a tour of Oak Street Village.  We asked for admission to the village, which is staffed 24/7 and waited to be welcomed by Pastor Minnieweather who let us know that the very quiet and clean village is now 100% full!  Oak Street Village has only been open a month and people are already enrolled in RentWell classes, going to job interviews, and Lauren from Rahab’s has told me that one of the guests from Rahab’s Sisters is about to move out of the pod village and into an apartment.  As Pastor Minnieweather said, when you treat people with dignity, they behave with dignity.

Then I jumped in my car to drive up to Join.  DiJionette, one of the directors at Join, invited me to attend their Community Advisory Committee, made up of Join staff and Join guests, where they talk through community issues and plan community events, like a bicycle repair event in the nearby park. 

I had to park on a side street, so I noticed that I could hear a woman shouting from a block away.  She was angry.  As I walked closer, I could see that she was a white haired woman and hear that behind the anger was hurt and fear.  She was hurt because she had been asked to step outside because she got in an argument.  She was angry because the other person had not been asked to step outside.  It seemed unfair to her.  She was afraid that she might not be allowed back in. This small straw of injustice brought the whole camel load of injustice that she had suffered in the past month tumbling out.

Last month, she had an apartment, but the landlord, perhaps on the recommendation of Algorithmic price setting software, had raised her rent $348 more per month.  She had tried to argue that the rental contract she had signed was for the lower amount, and refused to pay $348 more per month, so she was evicted and was now living in her car.

Then, last week she had met a 70 year old woman on the streets with not even a car to sleep in, so thinking that, surely a 70 year old woman would be harmless, she allowed her new friend to sleep in the back seat of her car.  But, as you well know, never underestimate a 70 year old woman!  Something went wrong, and now our angry friend felt that her kindness had been betrayed.

Then to top it all off, she had accidentally hit a car in the parking lot and the person who’s car she had hit refused to talk to her, despite her repeated offers to pay for any damages.

Then she saw me, across the street, wearing my clergy collar, and called out to me, “Will you pray for me?”

“Well, yes…um, uh, of course!” I stammered back.

So she marched across the street to personally tell me her tale of injustice, and express the conclusion that God was punishing her.  But she didn’t understand why, because when she saw the 70 year old woman, she thought that God would want her to help because we’re all supposed to be like the Good Samaritan.  Why was God punishing her for doing what God asked of her???

So I preached a short Maundy Thursday sermon on the Good Samaritan.  How the Good Samaritan did not bring the beaten man home with him, but instead brought the beaten man to the public inn where they were set up to receive guests.  And that we are called to help by connecting people with appropriate resources, we are not called to put ourselves in danger by taking in people ourselves.  God was not punishing her for trying to help.

She looked at me with tears in her eyes, mourning the loss of possessions that had been harmed by her guest, and said, “I just wish that I could wear a dress.  I would love to feel pretty and feminine again.  I wish God would give me permission to wear a dress again.”

How could I not say to her, “I’m not God, I just work for Them, but I give you permission to wear a dress.”

I took a short break for dinner and conversations about dealing with our broken old furnace making it too hot in the Fellowship Hall for the Red Cross Blood drive, if you’re wondering why it’s a little cool in here it’s because the other option is sauna temperatures!

Then I went to a public meeting about the new pod village set to be installed at the intersection of 82nd and Mill St.  When I finally found a parking spot, I noticed a man wearing a black baseball cap with the word, “FEAR” printed on it in white capital letters.  My knee-jerk assumption was that he was trying to look intimidating because he’s an angry, fearful man, but I’m in therapy, so I chose to be curious and wonder if maybe Fear is the name of a band he likes or something.

Unfortunately, my knee-jerk assumption was not wrong.  At the close of a very productive meeting where thoughtful questions and concerns were addressed, he started shouting threats of violence at the County staff, that if this shelter brings unhoused people into his neighborhood, he was going to… well…

Holy Thursday hopes were shifting into Good Friday threats of violence, just as the crowd turned on Jesus for daring to say that we should love our neighbors, this man raged at county staff for daring to try to address the humanitarian crisis of homelessness because he was afraid.  

• Afraid that his street would become too narrow to drive on in his big truck.
• Afraid that houseless folks might set up tents in his neighborhood.
• Afraid that there wasn’t enough parking in the Mill Street Shelter plan and that “those people” would park on his street.

But we did not let fear win.  I was not the only one who shouted him down, saying things like, “that’s not appropriate,” and, “calm down, sir.”

After the meeting the man behind me thanked me for being a “real Christian,” because in his view there aren’t very many of us.  I told him that there are more of us than he knows, it’s just that we don’t make it on the news very often!  

When we do make it on the news…
When we show up to testify…
When we speak up for poor and the marginalized…

There are always people trying to tell us to shut up.

Telling us that we have no business speaking out against predatory business practices, or speaking in favor of compassionate use of public funds.

Fear and injustice will always try to silence the teachings of Jesus.

Look at our scripture for today, from Acts chapter 5.  After recovering from the shock of the Resurrection, the Disciples started speaking up until all of Jerusalem was filled with stories of Jesus.

So the Chief Priests were afraid.
They had been warned by Rome that the rebellions in Judea must stop, or Rome would put a stop to them.
And their fears were justified!  In 69 AD Rome leveled the city of Jerusalem, and tore down the Temple until not a stone was left upon stone. But not because of the message of Jesus, because of an armed Jewish rebellion that intensified around the year 67 AD.

The Chief priests were afraid, so they hauled the Lead Disciples into their office and told them to stop speaking out about the injustice of Jesus’ crucifixion and stop speaking up about Jesus’ message of compassion for all people.

And having been in rooms like that, where they try to cram you all into one small office and tell you to behave, I know that before I have opened my big mouth, I usually exchanged a few meaningful looks with my fellow speakers, then Peter opened his big mouth and said, in verse 29:

“We must obey God rather than humans!”

Spirit is still witnessing through us.

Spirit is still calling us to speak up and speak out.

To show up and speak love into rooms that are filled with fear.

To refuse to stand by and watch injustice happen.

To loudly proclaim that it is time for our country to change its heart and life and find forgiveness for our collective and systemic sins.

What we do here on Sunday mornings – this is a rest stop, a gas station, a pit stop, where we plug into God to refuel and grab a few snacks for the long road of obeying God in every part of our lives:

• Our personal lives 
• Our economic lives
• Our work lives
• Our political lives.

And I am so grateful for you!
So grateful that we as a church, as a Community of the Beloved are in this together!
I’m so grateful that I don’t have to be in charge of every little thing because:

• You step up to run blood drives, 
• You show up to shut down the crazy overheating furnace,
• You organized the fundraiser for Family Promise
• You worked on fixing the leak in the outside water
• You volunteer to lead Bible Studies
• You show up to community meetings
• You are showing up in big ways and small ways to make space in our building for ministries of compassion, and to have important conversations in our community

Our community needs this church more than they realize.  They need you – your compassionate hearts and willing hands.

I see the Spirit of God working among us so clearly, and that’s why I felt guilty for not providing you with all the Holy Week worship opportunities to refuel for this intense time in our collective spiritual journey.

But God showed up and made it A Holy Week, anyway.
I trust that God will keep showing up, and that you will keep showing up, no matter what craziness happens next!

Luke 24:1-12

Common English Bible

24 Very early in the morning on the first day of the week, the women went to the tomb, bringing the fragrant spices they had prepared. 2 They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, 3 but when they went in, they didn’t find the body of the Lord Jesus. 4 They didn’t know what to make of this. Suddenly, two men were standing beside them in gleaming bright clothing. 5 The women were frightened and bowed their faces toward the ground, but the men said to them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead? 6 He isn’t here, but has been raised. Remember what he told you while he was still in Galilee, 7 that the Human One must be handed over to sinners, be crucified, and on the third day rise again.” 8 Then they remembered his words. 9 When they returned from the tomb, they reported all these things to the eleven and all the others. 10 It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the other women with them who told these things to the apostles. 11 Their words struck the apostles as nonsense, and they didn’t believe the women. 12 But Peter ran to the tomb. When he bent over to look inside, he saw only the linen cloth. Then he returned home, wondering what had happened.

That year, the first day of Passover happened to fall on a Thursday.  Passover isn’t always on the same day of the week because all Jewish holidays are based on a lunar calendar.  This year Passover started the Saturday before Palm Sunday.  But in the year of our story, Passover started on a Thursday.  This sounds nitpicky and overly academic, but it matters to the story, so hang with me a minute.

When they gathered on Thursday night to celebrate the Passover.  I’m pretty sure that  “Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the other women,”  were there on Thursday for the last supper, because the women were there on Friday for the crucifixion and they couldn’t have traveled on Saturday to get there by Sunday, because Saturday was the Sabbath.  Besides, we already know that Jesus had Fem disciples who traveled with him, just like the men.  But at some point the women got edited out of the story.

Pay attention to the people who get edited out of the story.

The Sabbath begins at sundown on Friday night.  Jesus died late in the day on Friday, so they had rushed to get him into a borrowed tomb before sundown.  Then they all returned to the upper room for the Sabbath.  

But they couldn’t edit the women out of Easter, because nobody else was there to witness the resurrection Sunday morning. 

When Sunday came the disciples were still hiding in the upper room because they were afraid. 

• They were afraid the Romans would come for them.  
• They were afraid they would be recognized as Jesus’ disciples and suffer a similar fate.  
• They were all afraid of leaving that upper room where Jesus had broken the bread and shared the cup.  
• The women were afraid too, because being women did not make them safer than the men.  Romans had zero problems with executing women.  

But Sunday morning, the women gathered jugs of water, and sweet smelling herbs, and whatever cloth they could come up with for a shroud to do one last kindness for their beloved Rabbi.  

The women walked to the tomb where they knew Roman guards would be standing watch to make sure that some disciple didn’t steal Jesus’ body and claim the resurrection that Jesus had talked about.

The women raised their chins and walked through the early morning streets of Jerusalem.  The sounds of businesses opening up and the hum of commerce were already beginning.  I imagine they walked quickly trying to look like they were just going about their business like everyone else.  Sunday was the Jewish equivalent of Monday, so hopefully no one would notice them. 

Maybe their knees were shaking under their skirts, but they kept walking.

Because Jesus mattered more to them than the risks.

Because love is stronger than fear.

Empire always thinks fear is stronger than love.

Empire always thinks that if they do things that are horrible enough, violent enough, cruel enough, that people will be intimidated into submission.

Empire thinks that if they turn people’s homes into rubble that people will give up their homeland.

Empire thinks that if they snatch enough people off the street, that people will get off the streets.

Empire thinks that if women’s voices are discredited and rejected that women will be silent.

Empire thinks that if they reduce people to poverty and hunger that people will give up and obey.

Empire always forgets that goodness is stronger than evil and love is stronger than hate.

That compassion is not weakness!  

Nor is compassion a “woke mind virus!”

Compassion is strength in numbers because who wouldn’t prefer to spend time with those who treat us with compassion than those who treat us poorly.  Compassion builds coalitions, and coalitions build numbers and numbers build power.

Pay attention to the people they try to edit or discredit out of the story.

Like Mary Magdalene.  

Mary Magdalene was not a sex worker, she was an apostle.

Pope Gregory “The Great” called Mary Magdalene a “sinful woman,” implying that she was a prostitute in his Easter Day sermon in the year of 591.  Why slut shame Mary? Mary Magdalene was the first witness of the resurrection! It makes no sense for the Church to discredit our first eyewitness to the resurrection!  Why?  Because the Council of Laodicea in the 4th century had prohibited ordaining women, and yet there’s archaeological evidence in the form of frescoes, mosaics, and tombs that depict women serving as deacons, priests and bishops in catacombs and early Churches that date between 100 to 820 AD. 

https://www.womensordination.org/resources-old/why-ordination/#:~:text=Women%20in%20the%20early%20Church,from%20100%20to%20820%20A.D. 

I wonder which “sinful woman,” Pope Gregory was trying to discredit?

Mary Magdalene, or the women of his own time that were still faithfully serving God?

Women who were most likely focused on compassion, and were popular in their communities.

Pay attention to the people they try to edit or discredit out of the story.

Last Sunday Haven Dinner, our Queer Young Adult group gathered to share a meal in the upper room that is my office.  The members of Haven Dinner are Gay, Trans, and Genderfluid.  They struggle with physical and mental disabilities.  Some of them wonder what’s going to happen to them because the gender on their documents don’t match their birth certificates.  

Will they be able to vote?  

Will they be able to access healthcare?  

Will they be able to leave the country if they need to?

The current administration is trying to discredit and edit them out of the story of our country.

Last Sunday we celebrated, because 2 of them finally have jobs after months of searching.  Rayne had applied to 138 jobs over the course of 2 ½ months to finally find a part time job that will allow her to afford car insurance so she can door dash because part time doesn’t pay the bills.  The fact that Rayne is a Trans Woman and walks with a cane seems to have factored into the negative result of some of her interviews.

Jesus has taught me to pay attention to the people whom Empire tries to discredit or edit out of the story.

Because despite making less than $2000 a month while working 2 jobs, Rayne and all the members of Haven know how to practice compassion.  

While we shared a simple lunch of vegetarian chilli, corn and fritos, we went around the room and shared our mutual needs for help.

I needed people to come Tuesday afternoon to help load up Jeane’s archives to send her history of 40 years of fighting for LGBTQ+ rights to Iliff Seminary.  Those who could come came and helped.

Another member needed to learn how to use the bus system, so they made plans with another member to spend the afternoon riding the bus.

We weeded out two of the raised beds in the old garden along the back of the church, and planted vegetables together because none of them can afford all the food they need.  Nobody even needs to ask if they have to help work in the garden to get a share of vegetables.  We planted 3 zucchini plants – there will be enough to share!

This is how we practice compassion.  We show up for one another.  People who have not even close to enough, share their time and resources because that’s what love looks like.  And because we practice compassion, Haven Dinner is growing.

So many not so loving “Christians,” have tried to edit these wonderful young people out of the church, and yet here they are, teaching me about compassion and abundance every 2nd and 4th Sunday.

Empire thought that they could kill Jesus.

They thought they could discredit and edit out the very people for whom Jesus brought a message of good news:  the poor, the outcast, the captives, the immigrants.

But God has other plans.

When Empire used violence and death…God resurrected into Life.

What Empire did to edit and discredit Jesus and his message of good news for edited and discredited people… God turned into an even bigger movement of compassion.

Empire may thrive for a moment, but Empire will not win.

Goodness is always stronger than Evil.

Love is stronger than hate.

Compassion is stronger than fear.

Life is stronger than death.

God does not give up, so neither shall we.

This is the good news of Easter.