Pruning

Our beautiful magnolia tree, which is much taller than the house, bloomed this week, a mass of gorgeous pink blossoms. Every year Andy and I enjoy just sitting and admiring its beauty. Sadly, due to the changing weather patterns this year, two days after blossoming, the weather dropped to several degrees below freezing. Our poor tree took the brunt of the cold. Instead of the glorious pink we should now be seeing, each blossom is now dead and brown. I feel very sad about it.

 

Regardless, the lectionary reading (John 15. 1-8) seemed apt for the season. Our minds have this week turned to how much work we need to do in our garden. Lots of clean up, raking leaves and picking up small branches. In addition to losing the lovely Magnolia, we have lost two of our magnificent spruces (both well over 120 feet) due to storms and high winds. The gospel reading reflects the concept of that spring preparing (at least, in the Western hemisphere). 

 

When Jesus told stories, many of the illustrations used would be relevant to those listening. They were about daily or seasonal events that would have been part of their everyday life. They would have seen and experienced what Jesus was talking about.

 

In this story, Jesus is using the analogy of a vine-grower and a vine. Where we live, in the Finger Lakes, there are many vineyards. The abundance of fruit produced goes to make wine — growers competing for best wines get awards. Our local wine shops proudly display a whole aisle of “local wines” and hosts tastings of them. Of course, now the Finger Lakes wines can now be seen in many more places than just our local area.

 

But to produce a good harvest of fruit there are several requirements. Sun, soil, grafting, good roots and pruning. It is the pruning that today’s reading focuses on. Pruning is an annual task done right at the end of winter when the vines are dormant. The grape vines are cut right back, leaving just a few canes with only four or five buds each. Pruning is done to allow each branch to get sunlight, to be rid of less healthy branches, to promote growth and to avoid diseases.

 

A perfect picture for those listening to this story told by Jesus. Sometimes, this parable is used with a negative connotation with the focus on being gathered up and throne in the fire, almost like a punishment! 

 

I think this is a much more positive story and would have been understood as such. The message is getting rid of the old to make room for the new. 

 

That is the cycle of life — getting rid of the old to make room for the new. Old things are discarded to make room for new things. I think if we were together and sitting round the table each of us would be able to chime in with old things that have been discarded to make room for new. Tangible things like clothes, cars, houses, jobs, but also ideas and beliefs as people develop, grow, mature and change. It is a good thing.

 

It is still sometimes celebrated with the “Burning of the Vines” marking the end of the pruning season. The new life is beginning, and burning ensures that no diseases from the old stock can harm the new. Nowadays, some grape wood is saved to burn later often on a barbecue, as the smoke enhances the flavour of the veggie burgers (for us!).

 

This parable highlights that our spirituality is part of the cycle of life, the old always making room for the new, growth being welcomed and nothing left that would be stale or unproductive.

 

 

Peace and Open Mindedness

“Peace be with you”, these are the first words spoken by Jesus’ in today’s lectionary passage. (Luke 24.36b-48)

 

What a great way to greet some-one! Perhaps it is a good habit to start — every time we meet some-one, speak to them on the phone, be served by them in a store or read something we don’t agree with, the first thing we allow to ourselves to think or speak would be a blessing of peace on the person. I think it could change the way I live. Yesterday, I had a very frustrating second conversation in the week with the warranty people about my non-functioning camera. Of course, I was polite and thanked them at each stage but inwardly I was frustrated, and quite annoyed that I was having to repeat all the information several times. I wonder if I would have felt differently if I had started each conversation with “Peace be with you”. Maybe I’ll try it if I need to phone them a third time!

Back to the text, firstly I want to set the story in context. In the Gospel of Luke, this was the first day of the week. Early, in the morning the women (1) went to the tomb and discovered the empty tomb. The women were later named as “Mary Magdalene, Joan“Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the others” (10). They went to the apostles and told them what had happened (as a side note we often talk about Mary as the apostle to the apostles but here there are more female apostles bringing the news that Christ is risen — more apostles to the apostles). The apostles did not believe them, “their words seemed like nonsense” (11). However, Peter did go to the tomb, saw that it was empty and “went away, wondering to himself what had happened.”

 

The Gospel of Luke continues immediately with the story of the two disciples (Cleopas and Mary) on the road to Emmaus and the conversation with a stranger who they ultimately realised was the risen Christ. (13-32) These two immediately returned to Jerusalem, found the disciples and told their story. Interestingly, the disciples told them it was true as the Christ had appeared to Simon (however, this appearance is not documented by Luke).

 

It was while they were discussing the resurrection appearances that Jesus appeared with the greeting “Peace be with you”. 

 

 I think the stories of the resurrection appearances would have been very important to contemporary people. It is always worth remembering that these early hearers of the stories as they passed down over the decades in what is now called the oral tradition and then first readers of the gospels would have been people under persecution. Their lives would have been in jeopardy. There would have been a sense of having to live in secrecy and fear.  The stories of resurrection appearances would probably have been a great comfort. As they themselves may have been facing horrific deaths, waiting for the return of Jesus (which hadn’t happened) these stories must have felt like a lifeline. Whatever they suffered, whatever their families and friends suffered there was this hope — death wasn’t the end.

 

Yet, in all the stories, physically Jesus was changed so much that they were unrecognisable. Important to ponder that, Jesus was not the same. In the stories it is always an action or a spoken word that caused those early disciples to realise  it was the resurrected Christ. 

 

As Luke continues the story  story even though they were talking about Christ being risen, even though Jesus entered with the words, “Peace be with you”, they were still “startled and frightened”.  They still thought it was a ghost. Even after seeing Jesus’ hands and feet they remained sceptical, although there was some amazement and dawning joy. Then, Jesus asked for something to eat — was being able to eat a proof of solid humanity rather than spirit?  The text certainly hints at that. 

 

Jesus talked to them about the scriptures and all the prophecies about the Messiah. Gospel of Luke tells us “… he opened their minds”. I want to dwell on that phrase for a moment.  I don’t think it was a supernatural opening of minds. I don’t think it was as if the resurrected Christ waved a spiritual wand and suddenly, they could see.

 

“Minds being opened” is a process, it happens all the time. It happened to the disciples. As human beings our minds are constantly being opened. I can think back over my life and see many times my mind was opened to new things; new realisations and it changed me. Even last night Andy and I were watching a new drama on the tele, “We Were the Lucky Ones”. I highly recommend it to all; it is important viewing but harrowing. It is about the plight of the Jewish people in Poland in WWII. I learnt new things and it reenforced again the horrors of what humanity can do to humanity. My mind was opened to it in a new way. And, hopefully, each time my mind is opened it will change me a bit.

 

So, in the story today, the disciples’ minds were opened through finding the empty tomb, through hearing the experiences of others, through seeing the resurrected Christ, through hearing the teaching of the prophecies. Their minds were opened, and they grew and changed ready for whatever came next.