Many years ago, I was playing a pick-up
game of basketball with my brother-in-law, Bruce, and I actually made a fairly
decent half-court shot. I’d given the ball a pretty enthusiastic heave, causing
it to thunder against the backboard before dropping through the net. Bruce
smiled at me and gave me the compliment, “With authority!”
Authority? What is that exactly? In the
gospel lesson appointed for Epiphany 4, Year B in the RCL (Mark 1:21-28) Jesus
is said to teach with authority. Webster’s Dictionary gives a boatload of
definitions for this word. It can mean the power to command (which Jesus
certainly has in this passage), or the reliability of information, or
self-assurance and expertness among other uses.
These days, I’m more than a little
concerned about “authority” being used as “reliability.” If you haven’t
noticed, there’s been a pretty intense attack made against the whole notion of
reliable, authoritative information
here in America. We keep hearing the term “Fake News,” and a lot of folks are
wondering just who to believe these days.
Once upon a time, the church and clerics
like my own dear self were considered “authority,” but in the current culture
any boob with a computer can become an “ordained” minster with a few mouse
clicks on some website. When the Westboro Baptist Church spews its hateful, homophobic
poison, when TV evangelists preach more about wealth than compassion, and when we
are still feeling the stinging pain of the sexual abuse of children by men who
were supposed to be their spiritual guardians, who wants to locate authority in
the church or its pastors?
For us as Christians, of course, there’s
only one source of authority and that’s Jesus Christ. Jesus is our reliable
norm and compass because of who he is and what he has done. The folks in the
gospel story call him authoritative because he doesn’t just parrot old doctrine
but speaks from his heart. And he proves his authority by what he does.
The Bible—which is our authority because it
has revealed Jesus to us—tells of Jesus as a healer and one who casts out evil
spirits. We also see him as one who breaks barriers of ethnicity, gender bias,
and social class. We see him as a generous feeder of the multitude. We seem him
as one who is willing to die in order to speak truth to the powers of this
world. We see him act with humility. We see him encourage faith. We see him
forgive enemies and heal with his words of forgiveness those who are tormented
by their own sins. Because we have seen him living a life of love which speaks
truth to our hearts, we want to listen to what he says. His deeds give weight
to his words.
If I have any authority within my own congregation,
it’s only because I have spent time here, taken time to get to know people,
been present at significant moments in their lives, been patient during times
of worry, and have convinced them that I genuinely love them. If my actions
haven’t proven my integrity, my seminary degree and clerical vestments won’t
either.
We in the church always have an opportunity
to reclaim authority, but we can only do it by recognizing that all authority
comes from Christ. When I stand at the font during the Brief Order of
Confession and Forgiveness, I can only repeat the words, “As a called and
ordained minister of the church of Christ and by his authority, I declare to you the entire forgiveness of all
your sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.”
Christian is as Christian does. We are
called to be healers. We are called to be champions of forgiveness. We are
called to speak for the poor and the ones left outside of society. We are
called to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, shelter, the homeless, welcome the
stranger, protect the earth, and be givers of hope. If we can do all those
things, the world will know that what we say is real.
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