A sermon preached by the Rev’d Dr Daniel Dries Epiphany 6 Christ Church St Laurence – 12 February 2017 May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable in your sight: O Lord, our strength and our Redeemer. Amen. Glynn Wolfe was born on the 25 July 1908. His claim to fame is that he held, and still holds, the record for the largest number of monogamous marriages in history. Glynn Wolfe entered into Holy Matrimony 29 times (which included 25 divorces). His shortest marriage was 19 days in length; his most enduring lasted eleven years. Glynn Wolfe died in California on 10 June, 1997, presumably completely exhausted. Even more remarkable than Glynn Wolfe’s extraordinary matrimonial tally is that fact that Mr Wolfe was also a Baptist Minister. I assume that, at least in some parts of California, ‘Baptist’ does not mean what it means here. If you ask the average person on the street what they know about the Church of England, they will probably tell you that it all began so that Henry VIII could divorce his wife, Catherine of Aragon. It is certainly true that Henry did obtain an annulment of his marriage to Catherine in rather scandalous circumstances. It is also true that he was excommunicated by the Pope. It is true that Henry subsequently appointed himself the Supreme Head of the Church of England. However, if anyone tries to tell you that Henry established the Church of England to accommodate his divorce, please tell them that it is rather more complicated than that. For a start, we might dare to suggest that the English Church began in the year 598 when Augustine, a Benedictine monk, brought Christianity to Britain; eventually becoming the first Archbishop of Canterbury (almost a thousand years before the reign of Henry VIII). No matter how we choose to view the origins of our denomination, Henry VIII’s divorce will always be part of our history. Henry’s annulment or divorce was divisive and controversial, but it did establish something of a precedent. Divorced persons are permitted to share fully in the sacramental life of our church. It is even possible and quite common for divorced persons to remarry in the Anglican Church, at least it is in this Anglican church. The Reverend Glynn Wolfe obviously reconciled his 25 divorces with his Christian faith; Henry VIII also maintained his religious convictions, despite his rather unconventional approach to marriage. These are ridiculous and extreme examples; they present a rather bizarre approach to divorce; they certainly do not represent the norm. However, some Christians struggle to come to terms with divorce, particularly in light of today’s Gospel reading. In Matthew, Chapter 5, we hear words of Christ that many of us would very much prefer not to hear: ‘But I say to you that anyone who divorces his wife, except on the grounds of unchastity, causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.’ Knowing that there are divorced people here today, and being aware that we all know and love divorced people, we could just pretend that Christ didn’t say this rather brutal phrase. I could just preach on the Old Testament lesson, and Christ’s words would remain as the elephant in the room. Alternatively, we could adopt another path entirely. We could interpret and apply these words literally. We could exclude divorced Christians from the sacramental life of the church, as some denominations do. Surely, it would be far more beneficial for us to examine the context in which Christ said these uncomfortable words, as we attempt to apply this teaching in our time and context.
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Today’s Gospel is the continuation of the Sermon on the Mount. In Matthew Chapter 5, Christ teaches the disciples about the Kingdom of God. Initially he ministered to the great crowds, but then there is this lengthy sermon directed to the disciples or the inner-circle. This sermon is the complex teaching, reserved for those who may have possessed the insights to grasp its meaning. Like many sermons, we might say that the Sermon on the Mount is longer than it needs to be. Many words are used to teach the disciples that the kingdom of God is about love, mercy, compassion and peace. In the Sermon on the Mount, the new Moses gives the disciples a new Law – the Law of love – pure and simple; nothing else matters. Although it seems like a simple law, this Law of Love turns out to be rather difficult to enforce or implement. The problem is that this ‘Law of Love’ requires much more than the previous law. It requires disciples to go far beyond anything that the previous law had required of them. In Matthew Chapter 5, Christ demonstrates his knowledge of the Law. “You have heard it said…, but I say to you.” What he is saying is that, within the Law, you are required to do this, but I say to you, go much further. Do not allow the Law to limit love, mercy and compassion. The recent unanimous verdict in the American 9th Circuit Court of Appeals would suggest that the even the Law of that Land exists to protect the weak and the vulnerable, rather than to discriminate against them. How then can we make sense of these harsh words of Christ? How can we make sense of what seems to be a brutal and judgmental attack on divorced people? The fact is that the existing Law did not encourage compassion, love and mercy in relation to divorce. We see from Christ’s own language that divorce very much favoured the male partner. According to the Law of Moses, divorce was absolutely the prerogative of the husband. The male partner did not even have to go to court to obtain a divorce. A man could simply state his intention to divorce his wife in front of two witnesses. She could then be discarded and abandoned. Is it surprising then, that Christ spoke so harshly against divorce? The Sermon on the Mount compels disciples to treat other human beings with love, compassion and mercy. What seems like a brutal judgment on divorced people is in fact Christ saying that human beings are not to be discarded like property—even if this is permissible within the Law of Land. In the Kingdom of God, and according to this Law of Love, all people are to be treated with dignity, compassion and respect. Disciples should not concern themselves with anything else. During 2016, Pope Francis made his way into the headlines yet again. By expressing what seems like radical theology, the Pope received the accolades of the media and progressive Christians alike; while conservative Roman Catholics continued to denounce him. Although it is hardly black and white, the Pope dared to suggest that divorced Roman Catholics should not be denied the sacraments of the church. In his characteristically simple, yet profound language, Pope Francis said that the Eucharist ‘is not a prize for the perfect, but a powerful medicine and nourishment for the weak.’ The mere suggestion that the church might relax its rules and regulations in this matter led to aggressive calls of heresy; as we often see when Christians call for the inclusion and acceptance of minority groups; as we see when Christians call for tolerance and respect of other faith traditions. After all, every institution needs its regulations; every institution needs its laws. Like all sermons, the Sermon on the Mount is rather heavy in detail. We could focus on particular phrases and make rules and regulations out of them, or we could read it as a complete sermon. The dominant message throughout the Sermon on the Mount is ‘don’t allow the Law of the Land to limit love, mercy and compassion. Don’t even allow the laws of the church to limit the boundless love of God’. Tragically, so many of the church’s laws and regulations do precisely that. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Page | 2