Psalm 122

1 I was glad when they said to me, "Let us go to the house of the Lord."

2 Now our feet are standing within your gates, O Jerusalem.

3 Jerusalem is built as a city that is at unity with itself;

4 To which the tribes go up, the tribes of the Lord, the assembly of Israel, to praise the Name of the Lord.

5 For there are the thrones of judgment, the thrones of the house of David.

6 Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: "May they prosper who love you.

7 Peace be within your walls and quietness within your towers.

8 For my brethren and companions' sake, I pray for your prosperity.

9 Because of the house of the Lord our God, I will seek to do you good."

(This year, Monday Matters will focus on wisdom conveyed in the treasures of the book of Psalms. We'll look at the psalms read in church before Monday Matters comes to your screen. Please note that these days in the church, there are two tracks of readings in the lectionary, offering a choice of psalms. Your church may or may not have read the psalm included in this email.)

The psalm heard yesterday in church begins with this refrain: I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go to the house of Lord.’ The whole psalm is a celebration of God’s presence, sensed specifically in the city of Jerusalem. The gladness is made all the more poignant given the troubled history of that thin place, repeatedly invaded, temple and walls repeatedly torn down, residents facing starvation or exile. All the more reason for celebration of peaceful times. (All the more reason to pray for the peace of Jerusalem these days.)

As the Jewish and Christian traditions expanded globally, Jerusalem came to represent not only that specific geographical location. It represented those places where God’s presence seems to shine through with clarity, strength and grace. Jerusalem came to symbolize sacred spaces, with the psalm’s reference to the house of the Lord. And the house of the Lord came to represent church, though these days thoughts of church are not always associated with gladness. Why do you think that is?

H.L. Mencken, snarky journalist from the early 20^thcentury, said that a puritan is someone who is unhappy because someone somewhere is having a good time. That absence of joy is not true of expressions of Christianity everywhere. But it has become a feature of American Christendom for many. That absence contributes in many respects to the decline in recent decades in mainline congregations. Many people (sometimes referred to as the “nones” or the “dones”) have given up on the church, maybe because it is boring at best, because it is wounding at its worst.

I’m putting in a plug and looking forward to reading Stephanie Spellers’ new book Church Tomorrow?, which is just being launched this week. Stephanie, who served with Michael Curry, well understands the challenges facing the church and our world. Like Michael Curry, she embraces those challenges with joy and gladness. Her work in this new book explores the reasons why people, especially young people, are moving away from engagement with the church. Pollsters have identified all kinds of reasons for that shift: sexual and financial scandals, the kowtowing of the church to extreme political agenda, the fact that many people find church to be irrelevant, focused on questions no one is asking. For too many people, church is hardly ever associated with gladness.

If we are talking about gladness in the house of the Lord, we do need to focus on the fact that while we set aside sacred spaces, God’s presence is all around us. One of my current spiritual practices is to read and reread The Practice of the Presence of God, with wisdom from Brother Lawrence. Across the centuries, this short book radiates gladness through the story of this one man who said "it isn't necessary that we stay in church in order to remain in God's presence. We can make our hearts personal chapels where we can enter anytime to talk to God privately."

And at the end, the gladness that comes with entry into the house of the Lord comes to represent heaven. Cue the text of Hymn 620: Jerusalem, my happy home. (Last stanza: Jerusalem, Jerusalem, God grant that I may see thine endless joy and of the same partaker ever be.) But we don’t have to wait for that gladness. It can be our experience right now. 

I’m struck with the way that we end the eucharist. In fact, the post-communion prayer and the dismissal may well be the most important parts of the liturgy (sorry, preachers, who labor hard to get every sermon word right). In the closing words of the post-communion prayer, we ask for strength and courage to love and serve God with gladness and singleness of heart. Gladness will come as we go in peace to love and serve the Lord.

This morning, we’re at the start of the season of Advent, which will culminate in songs like “Joy to the World.” May these four preparatory weeks provide occasion to think about where we find gladness. May we find it in the house of the Lord, however we experience the place where God dwells. May we find it in Jerusalem, our happy home, whatever the image of Jerusalem may mean to us.

-Jay Sidebotham