Rev. David Boyd

The English language is a wonderful and complex thing. Have you noticed that? I've long had a love of words, where they come from and how the meaning has changed over time. Bill Costain leant me a book by Bill Bryson about the English Language that is very interesting; it is full of interesting facts about English. Did you know that the Old English that used to be spoken in England prior to Shakespeare, the English of Chaucer, was almost identical to the German dialect that was spoken in a very small region of Germany; they could practically converse together. Did you know that Shakespeare invented 100's of words, many of which are now frequently used in modern English and many of which never caught on?

My kids give me a hard time when I pronounce words correctly with what they think is an over-correctness. For example, I usually pronounce the "h" in what, where, when, and why; my kids just roll their eyes. I try not to split infinitives and I try to use words correctly; when asked how I am, I try to answer that I am well instead of the usual, and perfectly fine if not grammatically correct, I'm good!

Well, we need a little grammar lesson to understand the prophet Isaiah's message today. Don't worry, it won't be long or tedious. In Hebrew, there are what are called "active participles." Do you remember those from English classes? (I didn't either.) A finite verb expresses completed action ("I drove to Creston last Thursday") whereas a participle form expresses ongoing action, as in "I am preaching this sermon right now." The prophet Isaiah proclaimed God's message by saying: God MAKES a way in the sea, a path in the mighty waters; God BRINGS out chariot and horse; God IS about to do a new thing. For Isaiah, the earlier deeds of God, as in bringing the Jewish people out of slavery into freedom, were being replicated anew while being freed from captivity in Babylon. But more than this, Isaiah is implying that in every generation, God IS DOING something new now!

That is welcome news. Like many of you, I grew up and was formed by the 20th century. Rationalism was very strong in my educational background. I needed to explain and rationally understand something before it was real. I was trained as a scientist, both in high school and in university; I went through the university preparation stream in high school and took zoology in university. The scientific method was instilled in me; experiment, observe, repeat... experiment, observe, repeat. Only after repeated identical results could something be accepted as valid. I understand the importance of this in testing things.

I was also taught from a rational mind-set in theology. I had to be able to rationally explain things in order to understand. I've mentioned this over the last couple of months in various sermons. In many ways, I was taught to be critical of the Bible's teachings about miracles; there is a rational explanation for most of the miracles of the Bible. I was taught to be rational and critical in learning and teaching about the mystics of the church. So, one of the things that I learned is that God works through people primarily. What I'm trying to suggest is that I learned that God isn't necessarily doing a new thing, at least not, I think, in the way that Isaiah meant these words. I learned that God's laws are constant and irrevocable. I don't think Isaiah could adequately explain what it was that God was doing, but there it was, all around them

One of the most helpful interpretive tools that I learned came from a philosopher named Paul Riceour. He formulated the idea that when we are young and learning, we come to stories of miracle and divine presence with a sense of innocent, pre-critical naiveté; we believe everything explicitly and implicitly. In our teens and early twenties, we begin to challenge our assumptions about the world and how things work and we go through what Riceour called a critical phase; critical in the sense of seeking to understand rationally the why and how of things. And then, when we've examined the world, we can come back to myths and legends, stories of miracle and divine intervention, and understand these stories freshly with a post-critical naiveté. What this means is that we come to look at the birth stories of Jesus, for example, the resurrection stories, the miracle stories, the proclamation of Isaiah about God doing a new thing, with a heart that sees into the mystery of these things something of God's actions in the world, but not with the same need for everything to be true. It's like the difference between someone saying, "The virgin birth of Jesus is absolutely true" versus "Something happened to Mary and Joseph and certainly Jesus' birth was a miracle." Marcus Borg and others who have used Riceour's interpretive tool feel that most fundamentalists are stuck in a pre-critical naiveté way of thinking. I would add that many of today's rabid atheists like Christopher Hitchens and David Dawkins are stuck in a critical phase of thinking. And even the likes of John Spong, a progressive Christian thinker and writer, are stuck in a critical religious way of being. Those who are able to see God's actions in the world with new eyes are in this post-critical naiveté way of thinking and it is a refreshing and life-giving place to be, I believe. It raises the question of what are God's irrevocable laws of nature.

This post-critical way of being is akin to Richard Rohr's non-dualistic, mystical way of being. This way is able to appreciate rather than tear down or tear apart. This way seeks harmony and unity rather than division and separation. This way is the way of post-modern, environmental being. This is the way of the poet and the artist. This is the way that opens us to hope and to live simple, thankful lives. This is the way that allows us to live more fully, more abundantly, more lovingly.

When I think about our family vacation of a couple of years ago, when we were in the deserts of Utah and Nevada, I think I have a new appreciation of this idea that God is doing something new. I loved the extreme climate of the desert, the starkness, the colour, the big blue skies, the heat, the cold at night, the way the wind creates dust eddies, the way water creates life. I understand why people find inspiration in the desert. And I'd like to go back sometime in Spring. I'd like to see what happens in the wet season and watch firsthand the blossoming cacti, the new flowers, the new life that springs forth. And I think to myself, if God's creation is able to do this, create this kind of life after the stark and seemingly lifeless winter, how much more can God do in willing and open heartsÉ how much more can God do in the world to create life. In that moment of the miracle of Spring, which we celebrate today, I'm led into a sense of awe and wonder and sheer appreciation of life and the newness of the things God is doing.

God is doing new things in the world today. God is not something for the past, having delivered the Jews from Egypt or delivered them from Babylon or worked a miracle or two in Jesus and that's it. In every generation, in every people, in every age, at every moment, God is at work doing something new. We've just lost our sense of the newness of it! We've just lost our sense of how to see!

God makes a new way in the sea, a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert... to give drink and life. God has given a new Spring to end the winter cold this day. But God has done and IS DOING so much more in our world, through us, with us and often in spite of us human beings... inspiring Palestinians and Israelis to work co-operatively in creating a new community of forgiveness and love, inspiring courageous Ugandan people to stand against the barbaric and horrific laws condemning Lesbian, Gay and Transgender people to death, inspiring many of us to change our lives and our consumption habits to ensure that global warming slows and there is a future for our grandchildren, working among Americans to change the way access to health care is granted (the big vote of which is happening today), creating new paths in the barren wilderness created by the International Monetary Fund, celebrating food co-operatives who eat healthy, non genetically modified foods, the growing movement to create lasting justice and change in Burma... God IS DOING... Let us open our eyes to see and our hearts to make bold changes, and let us be part of the newness of God's gift of life.

Amen.