Journey from Jerusalem to Tucson

Genesis 17:1-2, 7-10, 23-24
Acts 15:1-11, 22-31

I was once sent by the Presbyterian Church to discuss matters with officers and staff of the Church of Scotland. Flying from London to Edinburgh, I expected to be picked up at the airport. But I was not. The other passengers left. I saw two women, standing and waiting. I went to them and asked, "Are you waiting for someone?" "Yes, for an American woman." I said my name, and indeed, they were waiting for me. "But you don't look American," they said in self-defense. They had a point; I had lived in Budapest and in Edinburgh before I lived in New York. Groups of people – ethnic, cultural, national – have some recognizable identity markers. We say, "She looks Indian" or "French." "She looks more Mennonite than Lutheran."

I want to speak about identity markers, in doing so I will need to talk about sexuality. I hope my language will not offend you; I will try to avoid some terms.

The Old Testament lesson in Genesis 17 speaks of God's call to Abram, of God's covenant with him and his descendants, and the first identity markers of the Israelites. God says to Abram, "You shall keep my covenant, you and your offspring after you... Every male among you shall be circumcised." (Vs. 9-10.) Abram was ninety-nine years old; it could not have been much fun for him!

The command to circumcise all males extends to all who wish to join the community. We read in Exodus that "if an alien ... wants to celebrate the Passover, all his males shall [undergo the procedure]. Then he may draw near to celebrate the Passover; he shall be regarded as a native of the land." (Ch. 12:48.) This is the indelible sign of belonging to the covenant community. And it remains to this day the foremost identity marker for Jews.

There are other markers. When God rescues the Israelites from slavery in Egypt, God renews the covenant and gives the Ten Commandments, followed in Exodus by a whole law book. Later, in Leviticus, dietary laws and a sacrificial system are spelled out.

The identity markers add up! Besides circumcision there are now:
• strict dietary laws
• instructions for keeping the Sabbath
• moral laws requiring justice and purity
• and a sacrificial system, which remains in effect after the Temple is built by Solomon in the 10^th century B.C.E. until its destruction in the 6^th century, and again in the Second Temple.

These identity markers remain throughout the centuries. When in the 1^st century B.C.E. Jews began to preach to and convert Gentiles to Judaism, the markers were required of converts. Around the Mediterranean many Gentiles attended synagogues, although most of them did not convert but remained "inquirers."

Let us now turn to the New Testament. Are there many surprises? Perhaps. We find, not surprisingly, that Jesus was a Jew. When eight days old, he was circumcised (Luke 2:21). He observed the dietary and moral laws, but with elasticity and compassion. Food cannot defile a person, he said, since "it enters not the heart but the stomach." (Mark 7:19) On the Sabbath Jesus and his disciples were hungry and plucked heads of grain. But this is work, said the critical Pharisees. Jesus responded, "The Sabbath was made for humankind and not humankind for the Sabbath." (Mark 2:27) However, for Jesus the identity markers remained. Remember his response to the woman taken in adultery, "Go your way, and from now on do not sin again." (John 8:11)

Jesus preached to and healed mostly Jews. The disciples whom he called were all Jews. The early Christian community consisted of persons who were also members of the larger Jewish community. And then, surprisingly, we find a non-Jewish community. There appears a Christian community separate from Judaism. What happened? Did the identity markers change? How did it happen that Southside Presbyterian Church in Tucson does not require of its members what Jerusalem did?

First of all, a new marker was added. At his own request, Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist. The Apostle Peter’s first sermon called his hearers to baptism "so that your sins may be forgiven and you will receive the Holy Spirit." (Acts. 2:38) Three thousand responded and were baptized. This new identity marker initiated people into the new community – and not males only, but women and men alike!

The Acts of the Apostles continues the narrative begun in The Gospel According to Luke, tracing the story from the resurrection of Jesus to his ascension, then describing the growth of the church from Jerusalem to Samaria, to Damascus, to Antioch, to Asia Minor, to Greece, and finally to Rome.

Reading Acts is almost like reading the current religious press. The Presbyterian Church (USA), the Episcopal Church, and other denominations are debating the ordination of homosexuals. Heterosexual orientation is regarded by some as if it were a required identity marker. Just as some Jewish Christians in the first century insisted on circumcision, so some Christians today insist on heterosexual orientation. Let us follow the debate in Acts.

We read in the 10^th chapter about Cornelius, a Roman centurion, living in Caesarea. He had a vision that instructed him to send for the Apostle Peter. Peter was also having visions – not one, but three. He was a slow learner. All three told the same thing: "What God made clean, you must not call profane." (v. 15) When summoned to Cornelius’ house he went, reminding himself, "It is unlawful for a Jew to visit a Gentile, but God has shown me that I should not call anyone profane." (v. 28) While Peter was preaching at Cornelius’ house, "the Holy Spirit fell upon all who heard the word. The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astounded that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on the Gentiles." (v. 45)

Hear the good news, friends: Everyone is invited into God’s new community.

When Peter returned to Jerusalem, he was criticized. "Why did you go to the uncircumcised men and eat with them?" (Acts 11:3). Then Peter told his story and it was accepted by the Christian community.

Meanwhile, Paul and Barnabas were preaching in Asia Minor to both Jews and Greeks. Then they returned to Antioch. The brethren disagreed then as they disagree now! We read in Acts 15 that "... certain individuals came down from Judea and were teaching the brothers ‘Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.’" (v. 1) Just as some today would limit God’s invitation, so it was then. What was to be done? The quarrel must not be allowed to go on.

Paul, Barnabas and a few others were appointed to go to Jerusalem and talk with the apostles. What will the community do about its first significant disagreement? Call a General Assembly! At the first meeting of the Council of Jerusalem, Peter made two major points. These I want to stress. First, the good news is for all. As Peter said, "We believe that we [Jews] will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as [Gentiles] will. (Acts. 15:11) Secondly, "God ... testified to [the Gentiles] by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as he did to us." (V. 8) Friends, Jews and Gentiles, straights and gays are saved through grace and receive the Holy Spirit.

What does it mean that the Holy Spirit is given to believers? The reformer John Calvin, writing on the Lord’s Supper, said that "... in receiving the sacrament in faith ... we are truly made partakers of the real substance of the body and blood of Christ." (Short Treatise on the Holy Supper, Calvin: Theological Treatises, p. 166.) He also said that "... if anyone should ask how we know this takes place, I shall not be ashamed to confess that it is a secret too lofty for my mind to comprehend. ... I rather experience than understand it." (Inst. IV. viii. 32) I would say the same about receiving the Holy Spirit: it is more an experience than an understanding. The Spirit brings joy, peace and love into our hearts – something we experience rather than comprehend.

Baptism, the grace of the Lord Jesus, and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit are the new identity markers for God’s people. Circumcision is no longer a requirement. How could the apostles set aside earlier markers? How could they abandon circumcision – that indelible marker that Jews had honored for nearly two thousand years? By learning new lessons. "It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us," wrote the apostles to the church in Antioch about their decision. (Acts. 15:28)

We are waiting for such a letter from a church assembly. How long must we wait?

Some Christians know the Bible so well that they can quote whatever supports their arguments. But thank God, some Presbyterians really know what Scripture means. One of our former moderators, my friend and former colleague Jack Rogers, recently published an excellent book: Jesus, the Bible and Homosexuality. (Westminster/John Knox, 2006.) If you want to learn more, get a copy; it is clear, sound, and kind. So I will not turn to other Biblical passages, but rather reiterate: We are saved by grace; we receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. If these two are the identity markers in the Christian church, is this not test enough for the ordination of anyone – be they gay, lesbian, straight, or bisexual?

The Reformed tradition, in which Presbyterians are rooted, does not know different kinds of Christians. There is no priestly caste. Apart from professional training and aptitude, what is required of the minister is what is required of every member. If you are acceptable for membership, then you cannot be categorically denied office if you have the gifts and the call.

We need to see faith; we will be saved by grace. We need to see the work of the Holy Spirit in every candidate for ordination. Only those whose lives indicate the presence of the Spirit in their hearts and have the call are to be ordained. Sexual orientation is irrelevant. I challenge the Presbyterian Church (USA) and its members to read, learn and inwardly digest the lessons of the Council of Jerusalem in Acts 15. May we all be able to do so. Amen.

The author:  The Rev. Aurelia Fule, who served for many years on the staff of the Office for Theology and Worship in Louisville, is now retired and lives in Santa Fe, NM.