The Twentieth Sunday after Pentecost (Proper 25)

The embodied faith of our elders gives us courage and hope.

While our October 5 reading from 2 Timothy discussed the past, in the context of the faith that Timothy had inherited from his mother and grandmother, today’s reading looks more to the future. Although few scholars still believe the historical Paul wrote 2 Timothy, it is framed as a last will and testament of the respected elder disciple. Waiting in a Roman prison for his likely upcoming execution, he offers Timothy, and by extension the church in Ephesus, his hard-won wisdom. His Jewish readers in particular would likely see a parallel with Deuteronomy, Moses’ extend farewell address and instruction for life in the promised land.
Paul speaks of his life being poured out as a libation, or drink offering. Libations in Judaism and early Christianity were offerings, usually of wine, that accompanied other prescribed sacrifices as a sign of joyful thanksgiving and of devotion to God. Process theology in particular affirms that our lives are constantly being poured out, constantly and inevitably in process from one moment to another. Although one vessel may be depleted, libations continue to be offered. Paul is encouraging Timothy to pick up where he left off. We are always being poured out; we are called to decide for what purpose we will be poured out.
In presenting their teachings as the words of Paul, the writer not only lends them authority but also invites the audience to reflect upon how Paul lived them. The Christian tradition includes teachings on various topics, but at its core is an emphasis on embodiment: David is the figure of divine kingship; Solomon the exemplar of wisdom; and, crucially, Jesus of Nazareth is the definitive instance of the creative Word and presence of God in a human being. We teach via stories because narratives embody concepts in plots and characters.
A recent parallel in my Canadian context is Jack Layton. A popular and personable politician, Layton energized the progressive vote. Under his leadership, in 2011 the New Democratic Party came close to forming the government for the first time ever. Unfortunately, his career was cut short by cancer. “My journey has not gone as well as I’d hoped,” he wrote in his farewell letter to Canadians. In the same manner as Paul, he gave advice to his party, commended specific leaders to them, and left Canada this commissioning and blessing: “My friends, love is better than anger. Hope is better than fear. Optimism is better than despair. So let us be loving, hopeful and optimistic. And we’ll change the world.”
As Guy D. Nave Jr. reminds us in the Feasting on the Word commentary, the faith tradition which Paul commends to Timothy includes (in the letter writer’s opinion) the subservience of women and the submission of slaves. Process thought tells us that we inherit the world in every instant from prior occasions, but that we also make choices about how to incorporate them. We make positive prehensions (choosing to incorporate an element of the past) and negative prehensions (choosing not to incorporate other elements). As Christians we are called not just to inherit the world, but to change it. The Reformed tradition affirms that the Church must always be reforming itself to be faithful to the Gospel in our time and place.
Neither Moses, Paul, nor Jack Layton considered their tasks complete. Moses died before seeing the promised land; the tasks Paul and Layton gave themselves to – the growth of the Church and a better Canada – were inherently open-ended. They all looked to the future and gave encouragement and guidance to their successors. In your family, your ministry and your national contexts I am sure you also can think of honoured elders whose example urges you on. The tasks we take on are likewise open-ended, but neither we nor our congregants should be discouraged by this. Few goals worth giving your life to are ever truly completed; nevertheless, Paul asserts that he has run the race before him, fought the good fight, and expects to receive the “crown of righteousness.” The analogy here may be to the crowns awarded to victors of athletic contexts; in this case, all who persevere, all who strive for the aim that God sets before us, shall be supported and rewarded by God. We should not be discouraged, but rather emboldened by those who have gone before us towards the future God envisions.

Tim Bowman is an Ordained Minister in the United Church of Canada, serving Gladwin Heights – St. Andrew’s Pastoral Charge in the Fraser Valley of British Columbia. He is currently a ThM student at the Vancouver School of Theology, focusing on Process Theology. Tim is a contributor to Preaching the Uncontrolling Love of God, Edited by Jeff Wells, Thomas Jay Oord, et. al., and lives in New Westminster with his wife, child, and two cats.