Proper 15.C.25(13)
Hebrews 12:18-29; Luke 13:10-17
Melanie L. McCarley

In the epistle lesson for today, the author of Hebrews includes a litany of heroes. Some of them are folks we know: Gideon, Samuel and David. Some have accomplished great feats, others we might be more inclined to cast in the role of victim, rather than victor. These include those who were tortured, others who were mocked and flogged, put in chains and suffered imprisonment. Those who were stoned to death are mentioned, as well as (and here we pass from the unpleasant into the gruesome) sawn in two. The feats and fates of those included in this compendium share one thing in common. Each of them are examples of faith. The “cloud of witnesses” of whom the author speaks, aren’t some Marvel Movie cast of super-heroes. They are simply people. Ordinary folks. Individuals who testified to hope in God regardless of the cost.

This past Thursday our 7:00 a.m. Eucharist Fellowship remembered the life and ministry of Jonathan Myrick Daniels, a native of Keene, New Hampshire, and Episcopal seminarian preparing for the priesthood who died in 1965, during the height of the Civil Rights Movement, shot dead in a Grocery Store when he stepped in front of a young black woman, Ruby Sales. They were there to purchase sodas.

Here is a bit more information about Jonathan. He attended Harvard—and wrestled with vocation. Attracted to medicine, ordained ministry, law and writing, he found himself close to a loss of faith until his discernment was clarified by a profound conversion on Easter Day, 1962, at the Church of the Advent in Boston. Jonathan then entered the Episcopal Theological School in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

In March, 1965, the televised appeal of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., to come to Selma to secure for all citizens the right to vote touched Jonathan’s passion for the well-being of others, the Christian witness of the church, and political justice. His conviction was deepened at Evening Prayer during the singing of the Magnificat: “(God) hath put down the mighty from their thrones and hath exalted the humble and meek. He hath filled the hungry with good things.” Jonathan wrote; “I knew that I must go to Selma. The Virgin’s song was to grow more and more dear to me in the weeks ahead.”

Jonathan was moved by what he saw and experienced in Selma. He returned to seminary, asked leave to work in Selma while continuing his studies, and returned there under the sponsorship of the Episcopal Society for Cultural and Racial Unity. After a brief return to Cambridge in May to complete his exams, he returned to Alabama to resume his efforts assisting those engaged in the integration struggle. Jailed on August 14th for joining a picket line. Six days later, Jonathan and his companions were released. Four of them walked to Varner’s Grocery store, one of the few local stores that would serve non-whites. There they were confronted by Tom Coleman, an unpaid special deputy, wielding a shotgun. The man threatened the group, and finally leveled his gun at Ruby Sales, a sixteen year old black youth. Daniels pushed Ruby down to the ground and caught the full blast of the gun. He was killed instantly. Later, Coleman would be exonerated by an all-male white jury who deliberated for an hour and shook hands with the defendant after the verdict was read.

At first glance, the death of Jonathan Daniels, seems to be an individual act of heroism—an isolated incident. But here’s what happened. The murder of an educated, white priest—in-training who was defending an unarmed teenage girl helped to shock The Episcopal Church into facing the reality of racial inequality. Daniel’s death helped to put civil rights on the map as a goal for our denomination as a whole, and reminded many middle and upper class white Episcopalians that the struggle for Civil Rights was not nearly so distant as they imagined it to be.

It's tempting to think that Jonathan Daniels was extraordinary—perhaps a bit more holy than the rest of us—after all, he was a seminarian, a person training for Holy Orders. Yet, I think this is just an “easy out”. Trust me here, I know plenty of clergy and I can assure you they are no holier than the rest of humanity. What Jonathan Daniels possessed and what his example encourages us to engage is a passion for the justice of God and a deep, abiding faith.

Jonathan Daniels is numbered among the great cloud of witnesses of whom the author of Hebrews writes. He, and others like him, whose faith in God led them to become courageous witnesses of love and sacrifice, are an example to us all.

The author of Hebrews continues: “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, … let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God.”

The truth is, there are many examples of people like Jonathan Daniels whom we can emulate. We remember them with gratitude because they remind us that God isn’t in the business of simply offering us salvation for our own pleasure—but is about the business of calling us to something larger, more encompassing than our ourselves and our personal salvation. God is calling us to bridge the gap between faith and unbelief. God is calling us to bring peace and hope to a world divided by hatred and sin.

This, by the way, is what Jesus is speaking of in the Gospel for today. Jesus, the Prince of Peace, is confessing that this world cannot see his ways as peace because the way of Jesus is diametrically opposed to how this world operates. In the case of those opposed to the type of peace Jesus is offering, it can feel like war—a war on a way of life, a way of business, a way of success…you fill in the blank.

The way of Jesus emphasizes love—specifically, the love of God and neighbor. Jesus taught an impartial love for all, including our enemies. And he modeled this love through acts of kindness, forgiveness and ultimately, by laying down his life for humanity on the cross. Jesus displayed deep empathy and compassion for the suffering, the sick and those marginalized by society. He healed the afflicted, and he taught that compassion transcends social barriers. He taught and demonstrated forgiveness—and what’s more, he taught us to obey God’s will even if it comes down to personal suffering and sacrifice.

The great cloud of witnesses is an inspiration; Jesus, however, is our guide. Our challenge is to look at our world with eyes of faith, and then follow in the way our Savior leads. In Jesus’ name. Amen.