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| Michael Leunig cartoon on the theme of rest/ recharging |
Our theme for worship this week centred around Sabbath and rest.
We explored the tradition and history of Sabbath and then reflected on
some stories found within Luke's Gospel:
Luke 6:1-11 and Luke 13:10-17
While there are a number of ways to enter into these texts, such as the power and authority of Jesus; healing; Jesus' run-in's with the religious authorities, the overriding theme that links both is found within the concept of Sabbath and Sabbath rest. Often the Pharisees are cast in a very bad light as 'killjoys', overburdening people with rigorous rules and regulations. This would be to dismiss them too easily. It could be argued [and has been] that the Pharisees were the progressives of the day, trying to find better ways to connect heart and soul to God. Their instrument to do this was through the Law: a useful code of conduct and practice that, if adhered to, would help to ensure a person was in a good relationship with God.
Within the contexts of our readings today, however, Jesus is not challenging the concept of Sabbath, and trying to destroy it, rather, he's trying to better restore it to its original purpose as that which is life-giving, joy-giving, a re-creation, and way to wholeness. Sabbath is not the master of humanity, it is the servant, enabling people to find their joy, their meaning, to have space to recharge. If even God rested, having made all of creation, then, that is a model for us to do likewise. And Sabbath is also about liberation. When Moses receives the Ten Commandments, the 4th Commandment requires God's people to remember the Sabbath and provides further reasoning: Sabbath is done to remember their freedom, having been delivered from slavery out of Egypt. Under the rule of Pharoah, conditions become increasingly harsh, and more and more bricks were required to be made - taking time off was not possible. Under the rule of God, time off is part of what it is to be one of God's people. Slaves don't get time off; free people do.
By the time of Jesus, and the Roman Empire, Sabbath was embedded into the culture; it was a practice that marked Jewish people out from other nations. While some Romans may have seen the benefits of a day off to recharge, mostly, the idea of Sabbath was ridiculed, and thought of as laziness.
Within our modern society, busyness and being constantly on the go, has become widespread. Sometimes the pace of life can feel truly relentless and to take a break is seen as a sign of weakness. This was epitomised in the film 'Wall Street' through the character of Gordon Gecko, who summed up the attitude in his oft-quoted 'Lunch is for wimps'.
To rest, then, is to be subversive, counter-cultural, an act of resistance in a world where too often, human beings are viewed as merely cogs in the machine. Whether a Saturday or Sunday, or whatever day of the week, as God's people, let's challenge the prevailing culture and choose rest; rest that reminds us that we are God's people, that we live within God's creation [take time to smell the roses, and in so doing, appreciate the one who created them], a practice which restores and recharges us and helps us to be whole.
May you find breathing spaces and places of rest this week,
Blessings
Nikki
