Sophia

I count many Biblical characters among my friends, and here’s why …

Sophia

Proverbs 8:1-4, 22-31; Psalm 8 (Anglican Chant) 

As I was reading my email the other day, I found a Facebook message asking me to be a friend to Sophia.

I was glad to say yes; I’ve known Sophia for a long time. Sophia is the everyday name of the person called Wisdom in today’s reading from the book of Proverbs. And I really do think of her as a friend.

There are lots of kinds of friends, of course – even more since the growth of social networking on the internet. Sophia and other characters in the Bible are friends of a particular sort.

It all goes back to the way we think about the Bible in our church. You already know that we are not Biblical literalists, but we also don’t dismiss the Bible. We don’t think that everyone in the Bible was holy and special, but we do think they are interesting and have a lot to teach us. So we read their stories, and we think about them and talk about them; pretty soon we feel as though we know some of them pretty well – they become our friends.

That’s the sense in which I think of Sophia as my friend. As I read the book of Proverbs, I love the idea that Wisdom has always been part of God’s creation, and I am intrigued by the idea that Wisdom has a kind of “Personality.”

But there’s another sense in which I think of her as my friend: I sometimes bring her along in my imagination when I am praying. Let me explain: sometimes it is hard for me to pray because I am worried about something or someone. When that happens, I imagine Sophia to be in the room with me, and I ask her to tend the situation or person I am worrying about, so that I can go on about my praying and my other duties as a minister. I have a vivid mental picture of her, and when I ask her to take care of someone or something, I feel a sense of peace and comfort that lets me go on to other things.

Now that may sound a little surprising to you –it is certainly a different way to pray than what we usually do at the dinner table or in church. But it is a way that has become very important and meaningful to me, and today I want to invite you to consider making some friends in the Bible, friends who might be spiritual companions for you.

Let me tell you about a few other Biblical characters that I consider to be friends. There is Nathan, who was a prophet at the time of King David, whose story is told in the Old Testament Books of 1 and 2 Samuel. At one point, King David steals the wife of one of his generals, and then has the general killed. You might expect that no one would challenge the king about this immoral behavior – but Nathan does. He cleverly tells the King a story about a rich man who steals something from a poor man; when the king is outraged, Nathan turns to him and says, “you are that man.”

I’ve always admired Nathan for being courageous enough to stand up to the King and speak the truth. But in recent years, I have also come to admire Nathan because he chose to serve a king who was honest enough and humble enough to hear an accusation like that, recognize that it was true, and do his best to make amends.

And that brings me to another point about friends in the Bible: as we read their stories at different times in our own lives, we pay attention to different attributes and virtues that they have. That’s one of the reasons why I talk about these characters as friends: we keep our relationship with them over a long period of time.

Here’s another example: Lazarus. He was the brother of Mary and Martha, and the three of them were apparently good friends of Jesus – we know that he ate with them on several occasions. Lazarus’ story is sad and disturbing. Jesus knew that his friend was very ill, but he did not go to Bethany to heal him. By the time he got to the family’s home, Lazarus had been dead in a tomb for four days. In one of the most dramatic scenes in the New Testament (in John 12), Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead.

I think of Lazarus when things seem to be overwhelming, and when the help I am expecting does not come. I think of how distressed his sisters must have been, and how joyful they must have been afterwards. But most of all, I think about what it is like to get a second chance for life. Every time that someone is forgiven, for example, they get a chance for a new life. Every time someone stops a harmful behavior and reforms, s/he gets a chance for a new life. Lazarus’ experience was especially dramatic and miraculous, but the basic story happens all the time. And when it does, I think of him, and appreciate his friendship.

My favorite character in the New Testament is the Syrophonecian woman (Mark 7:24-30 and Matthew 15:21-28) who came to Jesus to beg him to heal her daughter. She must have been pretty loud and irritating, because the disciples tried to get her to go away. Even Jesus tried to dismiss her request (rather rudely, at that). But she would not be put off, and for her persistence (and her cleverness), Jesus did indeed heal the child.

This is one of the oddest stories in the New Testament, and the only place I can think of in which Jesus refused to help someone and was persuaded to change his mind. I love that this woman was so feisty and tenacious and I often turn to her for advice when I am in a situation where someone has put me down and refused to do something I have asked. Like a human friend, she helps me to do things that I might otherwise be reluctant to do.

The Bible is full of characters who are as rich and interesting as these, and who could be wonderful companions for you along the way. But let me warn you of two things: First, there are people out there (and some of them are ministers) who will tell you that these characters and their stories have one meaning, and one meaning only. Please don’t accept that. Read the stories yourself, and listen deeply for how the story speaks to you – in your life, and at a particular time. Second, there are people out there (and some of them are ministers) who will try to convince you that they know much more about the Biblical characters than is written in the Bible. They are just guessing. They may be making good guesses, if they have studied ancient languages or cultures, and if they are careful in their interpretations. But they also may be making poor guesses, based more on their own prejudices, hopes, and fears than on what the Bible actually says. Again – read the stories yourself, and don’t let someone else’s embellishments ruin your friendships with these Biblical folks.

You are not really going to get a Facebook friend request from Sophia or Nathan or Lazarus or the Syrophoenician woman. But one of them – or any of the hundreds of other people whose stories are in the Bible, might still turn out to be a wonderful companion on your spiritual journey. I hope you will make their acquaintance and nurture your friendships with them.

Prayer for May 30, 2010

Almighty and everlasting God, creator of all things seen and unseen, hear now our silent prayers, as we open our hearts to you in the sacred quietness.

God of faith and hope, we bring before you our prayers for those we have named this morning – we especially remember … Bring to each of them the gifts of mercy and grace that are most needed, according to your wisdom and love.

God of hope, we pray this morning for worthy dreams and aspirations.

Help us, Lord of Life, to look around and see those places that are most in need of your prophetic word, of your pastoral touch, of your healing gesture. Do not let our vision be fogged by habits or prejudices, but give us clear eyes and hearts. Let our dreams be big dreams, dreams that reflect your hopes for humankind: dreams of peace, dreams of healing and reconciliation, dreams of justice, and dreams of love.

And then, God of possibilities, fire our imaginations. Let us join in your work of creation by imagining new solutions for old problems, by imagining new relationships where old ones have been breached, by imagining new music where old songs have grown dull. Do not, we pray, let us be discouraged by past follies or failures, or disappointed by occasional complications. Unfetter our ways of thinking so that we can see connections where others have seen discontinuity, and where we can see distinctiveness where others have seen uniformity.

We dare to pray, further, that you will be our companion when we take risks and our sojourner when we stray from familiar paths. Strengthen our resolve but do not let us become deaf to real feedback and concerns from others. Let us be courageous without being brash, foolish, or proud. Help us to work together with brothers and sisters who share our dreams, and do not let our spats interfere with our common goals.

Finally, Lord, we ask you to bless our dreams and make them part of your holy way. Let our words and actions testify to our faith and humility, and to your power and benevolence.

All these things we ask in the name of the one who inspires our noblest aspirations, even Jesus the Christ, and we pray together now in the words that he taught us …

June 4, 2006