Black Friday, Prayers, & The End Time

Daniel 7:9-10, 13-14 (KJV)

9 I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of Days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire. 10 A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him: thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened.

13 I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of Man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of Days, and they brought him near before him. 14 And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.

As we come to the end of Lectionary Year B and face the Advent of Year C, some of our Bible readings are vividly apocalyptic about the End Time. This, including the Second Coming or parousia, was something that some in the New Testament age, including St. Paul and arguably even Jesus himself, believed was imminent; but that over years of nothing happening was set quietly, perhaps even “embarrassingly so don’t talk about it anymore,” on a theological back shelf as the Church had to face into an unexpected future and teach people about living instead of frantically preparing for the Eschaton.

The End Time has become for us part of some vague cosmic event which modern astronomers talk about happening untold billions of lightyears hence as our universe, still rapidly expanding from the Big Bang, slows and cools and dies, chilling off into an absolute zero at which no matter can exist and there will be nothing, not even a trace, perhaps not even empty space. It’s exciting to study and contemplate, but nothing to get upset about this morning, so go ahead and shop Black Friday.

Each of us, however, every human, comes up against our own apocalypse, our own personal End Time. It may come sudden and unexpected, natural or catastrophic; or it may come through advanced old age, or it may come in extended terminal illness of disease. But it comes. And while most folks go about the business of life, some few go about the business of dying and death, among them we/us clergy as an ongoing role of ministry.

The liturgical Church does not place its clergy (and people) well fixed for this role. In that prayers are primarily for those who are praying and not to tell God what to do, we have prayers for almost every situation in life, including for healing in body, mind and spirit, for “last rites” at time of death, and for commendation thereafter as friends and loved ones gather at graveside. But we do not have suitable prayers for the terminally ill. We do not have thoughtful prayers for living into our personal End Time.

This comes to mind at this season of Bible readings about the End Time that is so unreal cosmically and yet so personal. Our church spends much time and resources on prayer. General Convention 2012 made available -- language they used instead of saying “authorized,” at least in part to avoid theological issues -- liturgy for the loss of a beloved pet or other animal. They did a nice enough job. But one might prefer they had invested their good work in giving us prayers for people, and their friends and loved ones, whose medical condition is terminal and who are facing death, when praying for physical healing can seem ignorant, naive and unrealistic, even border on ludicrous. Well and good saying “there’s always hope,” and praying for healing in body, mind and spirit as our prayers do provide. But there comes time to face reality honestly and to help folks live prayerfully and fearlessly into the personal end time as their own apocalypse looms -- and when it’s not yet time for “last rites” at time of death. That is, prayers for courage and calm, confidence and peace. For acceptance, even resignation to “it’s how it is.” General Convention and its Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music could have better invested time, talent and treasure.

Euphemistically calling it, “Liturgical Resources for Blessing Same-Gender Relationships,” General Convention 2012 also authorized, effective Advent 2012, liturgy for blessing same sex unions, acknowledging Advent as the beginning of the new. Last Sunday (Proper 28), and this coming Sunday with the above reading from Daniel chapter 7, and a week away, the first Sunday of Advent, our Bible lessons are foreboding and apocalyptic; and again, instead of what General Convention actually did -- giving us prayers about pets or same sex unions, which as a parish priest I never expect to need -- prayers for helping folks face grave illness and deal with near approaching death would have been much more pastoral and helpful, and timely, and welcome.

The Episcopal Church tries earnestly, sometimes certitudinously, to do the right thing, often to mixed response. Instead of just being on the fighting edge on social fronts, I do wish that some of the resources we put into such forging ahead would be devoted to subjects that seem just as, or more, needed pastorally by the pastors. I’m not against what General Convention did, I just didn’t need it as a priest and pastor, and I needed something else more, and they didn’t help me.

TW+

Postscript. This stirs in part because, while the preferred Episcopal and Roman Catholic and Revised Common Lectionary Old Testament reading for this coming Sunday is the above selection from Daniel 7, the alternate reading is from 2 Samuel, and some numbnuts (let the reader look it up) selling lectionary inserts dropped the Daniel 7 reading and has us reading 2 Samuel instead, for Chrissake.