Proper 6A

"In theory, there is no difference between theory and practice,

- in practice there is."

As uttered by that baseball master, Yogi Berra.

Jesus was and is a lot of things to us.

God, our Lord, our Savior.

He was also a really good critical thinker and teacher.

As a teacher, he taught his disciples where they were.

Kind of like a traveling home school. 

Everywhere they went, there was a lesson there.

Sometimes the disciples saw it and sometimes they didn't.

While we hear a lot about how he taught Simon Peter, or perhaps about how Simon Peter didn't learn,

it seems to me that Jesus taught each of his disciples in different ways.

His response to James and John wanting the best seats in the house is different than if Simon Peter had said it,

or if one of the women disciples had said it.

Jesus knows his disciples and that they learn in different ways 

and need different kinds of experiences in order to learn the truth.

I have sometimes wondered if Jesus took James and John and Peter up on the mountain for the transfiguration, not because they were the special ones, but maybe because they were the ones not getting it, maybe there were the ones who needed to see it to believe it.

Even when it came to gathering the twelve disciples, who we hear all named in today's passage from Matthew, we know Jesus called them in different ways. (This passage happens to be only one of three passages in the Bible which names all twelve disciples. Only the Synoptic Gospels list all twelve names.) Some of them were called while they worked, some were called out of crowds of listeners, some where called in conversation. Each story, and sadly we don't know all of them, is different.

Today, we see Jesus the teacher giving his disciples a lesson in the Gospel passage from Matthew, and this lesson didn't come in the form of a teaching or a story or a rule to follow, all of which Jesus does at other times, this lesson is a hands on one.

First he shows them what to do, and then he sends them out to do it. Jesus models proclaiming the Good News, healing the sick, meeting people where they are, and having compassion for them. Then, Jesus sends his disciples out to the villages around the Galilee to proclaim, cure, heal, raise, cleanse, cast out, and really, to meet people where they are and have compassion. 

I am not sure how you learned compassion in life, but this lesson of compassion has to be experienced and practiced in order to be learned and digested. We cannot learn compassion in theory. We have to see others being compassionate. We have to practice compassion in order to learn compassion.

I am well aware that being compassionate is thought to be not enough in our society today. I know our society is on an empathy kick, with compassion being too much like pity and thus seen as bad practice. However, when it comes to the Biblical text, there is no difference in the written text between when Jesus is being compassionate and empathetic. The ancient Greek word which gives us the word empathy - empatheia - means passion. It has the "pathos" root, which means feeling.  In later language, we differentiate compassion as "feeling for another" whereas empathy is "feeling as another". Both are important steps in understanding, caring, and acting in love for another. It's just that the word empathy never shows up in the Bible. The New Testament authors didn't use it in the text. The authors use the word compassion. Not just once either, over and over again we hear of Jesus being compassionate. Jesus feeling for the people around him. Jesus being passionate about being with the people.

In any case, compassion is a present action. No matter how the situation unfolds, having compassion is always something that happens in the present moment. It is an experience of presence. In order to feel for another, to understand another's feelings, it requires being able to feel in that moment.

We fail to have compassion when we cannot be present in the moment.

In every case when we hear Jesus being compassionate, he is present with the people around him. He listens to them, he interacts with them. He helps them become whole. In many ways, his proclamation, "the kingdom of God is near" is always true when Jesus proclaims it because Jesus is present in the moment and Jesus embodies God's kingdom. Every time he proclaims his Good News, he is having compassion, he is sharing feelings, he is present in the very moment and God is present too.

Jesus doesn't just tell his disciples about how to do this or really even in great theory lay out how to be compassionate in rules and guidelines. He is present, he is compassionate, he shares the good news, 

and he sends out his disciples to do the same thing, to have the experience and to work on doing it.

Compassion is a feeling. And we all deal with feelings in different ways. Every personality test or chart out there will tell you that some people deal with feelings better than others. 

There are many ways to experience and practice compassion and since we are all a little bit different, we experience and know compassion in slightly different ways. We can be compassionate to ourselves, with the details, with other's stories or feelings or experiences. We can show compassion in actions, in words, in working towards justice. 

Thankfully, all of our diversity in understanding comes out of the great gift of God's true Good News. The underlying message is always the same. 

God loves you. 

Because of our diversity, because of our different gifts, we all hear it best differently.

Jesus knew that though and he shared his Good News in many different ways.

Jesus was very good about tailoring his Good News to the people he spoke to.

So hear God's love in the way you need to hear it.

God loves you.

God made you and knows you are good.

God is thankful for you.

"Good work good and faithful servant."

God values you.

God sees you and your needs.

"You are the light of the world."

God created you with joy.

You are helping God make the world better.

You matter to God.

It is enough to know it is true. And it is part of our calling to go share it with others.

Please, share this morning's Good News! Share it, practice it, proclaim it from the mountain top or from your Facebook feed. God loves you this day!

Amen.