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“The Human Quest for Meaning”
Sermon by Rev. Peter Dennebaum,
First Congregational Church UCC Chappaqua -
08/16/09
God’s peace with you!
If you think about “wisdom” – which person comes into your mind? …
Let us read today again our sermon text together. And afterwards everybody again
will have the opportunity to speak out loud, what has become important to you.
We read from 1 Kings (2: 10-12; 3: 3-14).
10 Then
David slept with his ancestors, and was buried in the city of David.
11The
time that David reigned over Israel was forty years; he reigned for seven years
in Hebron, and thirty-three years in Jerusalem.
12So
Solomon sat on the throne of his father David; and his kingdom was firmly
established.
3 Solomon
loved the Lord, walking in the statutes of his father
David; only, he sacrificed and offered incense at the high places.
4The
king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there, for that was the principal high place;
Solomon used to offer a thousand burnt-offerings on that altar.
5At
Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night;
and God said, ‘Ask what I should give you.’
6And
Solomon said, ‘You have shown great and steadfast love to your servant my father
David, because he walked before you in faithfulness, in righteousness, and in
uprightness of heart towards you; and you have kept for him this great and
steadfast love, and have given him a son to sit on his throne today.
7And
now, O Lord my God, you have made your servant king in
place of my father David, although I am only a little child; I do not know how
to go out or come in.
8And
your servant is in the midst of the people whom you have chosen, a great people,
so numerous they cannot be numbered or counted.
9Give
your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, able to
discern between good and evil; for who can govern this your great people?’
10 It
pleased the Lord that Solomon had asked this.
11God
said to him, ‘Because you have asked this, and have not asked for yourself long
life or riches, or for the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself
understanding to discern what is right,
12I
now do according to your word. Indeed I give you a wise and discerning mind; no
one like you has been before you and no one like you shall arise after you.
13I
give you also what you have not asked, both riches and honour all your life; no
other king shall compare with you.
14If
you will walk in my ways, keeping my statutes and my commandments, as your
father David walked, then I will lengthen your life.’
What is wisdom? Who is wise? Are wise people here in this Parish Hall today? Am
I wise? Or if I am not wise yet, can I become wise? Does everybody becomes wise?
I am pretty sure: Whenever we think about a wise person we have an elderly
person in mind. Many of us might think about our own parents as wise…or friends
… or role models. I think, the reason, why an older age is for us connected with
wisdom is, that wisdom has something to do with life experience. Who ever is
wise, must have seen a lot, probably must have also suffered a lot. Who ever is
wise knows about the deeper contexts of life. From a wise person we hope to get
guidance – as wisdom carries timeless and cross-cultural knowledge and
insights. Wouldn’t it be nice to be governed by wise people? The Lakota did. I
have to say ‘did” as we told the Lakota’s and with them all other Native
American tribes that they would have to take over our system of representative
democracy. And we argued that this would be the only system, which would be
adequate for a modern and enlightened society. There are books available at
Barnes & Nobles or amazon.com, which describe the destructive impact of this
change within the indigenous tribal societies. Young people got into the tribal
councils. They did know everything better. Age got not anymore respected. Not
wisdom was anymore qualification for the membership in the tribal council, but
successful networking. The young people started to laugh about the traditional
older women and men. “You don’t know what you say”, they said. “You have no idea
about the real world. You just think traditional. But we are modern, We want to
live our own lives.” And because it was now a representative democracy interest
groups started to install their own candidates. But like the young people each
of these interest groups had their own interest. And nobody looked anymore for
the common weal.
I know we are used to our system of representative democracy and I don’t want to
say at all that this is bad: To be old doesn’t mean automatically to be wise.
Especially when I see the stubbornness with which elderly people can drive on
the left lane of an Interstate Highway with 50 Miles the Hour, where 85 are
allowed. But to give justice: It seems that that this example is not so much age
specific, but has more to do with the fact, if people are sensitive to their
environment or not.
But where I want to focus on is that our Western societies have a huge problem
with respecting elderly people, which are the carrier of wisdom. I can imagine
that young Lakota often cursed in the traditional system, when the elders
decided for peace and not for war. But it was probably often a wise decision to
choose the more difficult, patience needed, but therefore life saving way. On
the other side our representative democracy gives voice to people, which hadn’t
been represented in the circle of elders.
Salomon society was a tribal one, like the Lakota’s - but in contrast to the
Native Americans in the Plains ruled Solomon in Israel a kingdom. And the way
how he got into his king position had nothing to do with wisdom, but a lot with
ice cold power play, with intrigues, coup and murder. According to this the
peaceful and so spiritual looking Salomon on our bulletin cover is a joke.
When Salomon’s father David was old, his brother Adonija [Eidoni-dscha] got
impatient and talked with Joab [dschoab], the military leader of his father
David and Abjatar [ǣb-dchatar], the priest. Not clunky – to insure himself with
the powers, which secure still in our days the political power: military and
religion. With these two allies at his side he felt strong enough: He sacrificed
sheep and cattle and celebrated a big feast with his brothers and all his
fathers’ dignitaries. But he didn’t invite his brother Salomon, the priest
Zadok, the prophet Nathan and not Benaja [Bén-edscha], the chief of the
bodyguards or as WE would say: of the secret service.
And this was a mistake --- because now the counter revolution started – with
exactly these four men in its center. The prophet Nathan goaded Salomon’s mother
Betseba to go and tell the king about the uncertified self-coronation Adonijas
[Eidoni-dschas], the son of David with Haggit. King David proclaimed thereupon
Salomon as his successor. And what were Salomon’s first legal acts as king? He
sent Adonija [Eidoni-dscha] home. But when his older brother asked for the
allowance to merry, Salomon exploded and ordered Benaja [Bén-edscha], the secret
service leader, to kill his brother and rival.
The religious supporter of his brother, the priest Abjatar [ǣb-dchatar] had more
luck – he only got banned out of the country.
When the third insurgent, David’s old military leader Joab [dschoab], heard
about this, he fled into Gods sanctuary and clung to the horns of the altar –
asking so for asylum. But it didn’t help. Again Benaja [Bén-edscha] got the
adamant order Salomon’s: “Kill him!” And when Benaja [Bén-edscha] had killed
Joab [dschoab] in the sanctuary he became his successor as military leader. The
book 1. King reports at last that Salomon ordered also to kill a man with name
“Schimi” – Schimi had cursed at king David earlier in his life, David had
promised him not to touch his life for this, but on his deathbed David asked
Salomon to leave Schimi not unpunished.
I am sorry, if I have destroyed now your picture of Salomon as harp playing
aesthete. Our philosopher Salomon was also an ice cold power politician. This
doesn’t narrow his bequeathed wisdom, but our cover picture speaks only half of
the truth.
And something else is difficult to understand: God was with Salomon. The bible
is here very outspoken, no misunderstanding possible. Sorry. It is God, who does
the first step, who appears Salomon in a dream.
This is how I
look at it: The fact that God was with Salomon doesn’t mean that God supports
assassinators, but it means that the authors and traditions of this story wanted
to see Gods will in it happen. From a pure power perspective Salomon might have
acted wisely with his killings, but our modern times don’t allow us to justify
murder or even torture in the name of God or somebody else or something
else. Guantanomo is a crime and will ever be a crime. What people in the 10th
century BEFORE Christ might have justified and accepted is in our days
unacceptable. So for me it sounds hypocritical, when I read and hear verse 7 “And
now, O Lord my God, you have made your servant king in place of my father David,
although I am only a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in.”
Or does he mean it honest?
Could it be that he had pangs of conscious?
The UCC proposed for this
Sunday the headline “Quest for Wisdom”. I made it to more, I made it to: “The
Human Quest for Meaning”. I don’t see on the front cover a man asking for
wisdom. I see, I want to see, I hope to see a desperate man, who
is willing to turn back to God. I want to see a man, who can ask for
forgiveness. I want to see a man, who can ask with verse 9 really humble: “Give
your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, able to
discern between good and evil; for who can govern this your great people?”
THIS man I want to trust. THIS man I want to see in future in front of my
internal eye, when I hear the next time about the famous judgment Salomon did
later, when the 2 women came with the baby, fighting about it.
THEN, just then I can believe in your promise, God, which
you have given afterwards to Salomon. Yes, then your promise can become even
more than this. Then God, your answer becomes a promise to everybody, not only
rulers, but us all. That real humbleness, real change, real interest in the
neighbor, real serving will receive forgiveness and promise. Then God will give
you, as it is said in the end of our text “also what you have not asked, both
riches and honour all your life” … If you will walk in my ways, keeping my
statutes and my commandments.”
Life is more than power. A king, who needs to kill, is
small. But a king, who can turn back to God as human being is great.
No, humbleness and forgiveness are Gods real call for us
all, if king or servant. Humbleness and forgiveness shall be our real quest. If
u want to call this insight “quest for wisdom”, so call it “quest for wisdom”. I
call humbleness and forgiveness our “human quest for meaning”.
AMEN.
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