Breath of God
The gospel for the second Sunday of Easter immediately follows Jesus’ first resurrection appearances, barely two days after Jesus’ torture-wracked body has been taken down from his place of execution. Ten of the disciples (Judas is gone, Thomas is elsewhere) reel with shock, horror, trauma, terror, and the guilt of having abandoned Jesus. They had just had a close encounter with the state sponsored terrorism of crucifixion, and they read its message clearly. Due process of law did not matter. Truth did not matter. Only raw power mattered. They could be next.
So they went into hiding. “The doors were locked for fear of the Jews.” Read, “the doors were locked because they knew the same authorities that had perverted the justice system to crucify Jesus could be coming for them next”. And this was exactly the point of Jesus’ crucifixion, to execute him in order to destroy opposition, to silence the movement he had begun. Of course the doors were locked.
Is there anything more powerful than such fear? Anything more powerful than the power to kill?
What comes next ups the ante of credulity. Jesus, who was executed, enters their locked room bearing the signs of his torture. The locks do not lock him out. Their legitimate fear does not lock him out.
His words of greeting seem to have no relationship with the reality of their situation. “Peace be with you!” Spoken twice. How can there be peace when there is no peace?
In addition, there is the added pressure of being under lock-and-key out of fear of religious retaliation. the words of greeting by Jesus seem so out of place, almost nonsense: “Peace be with you!” That is why I cannot overlook the exclamation mark [in our translation]. Once again, we find the exclamation mark in the second greeting. Strange how, when things seem desperate, we are not always clear about what to do and how we are to react. This may be true of other Biblical stories as well as day-to-day experiences and life in general.
As if these greetings have not disrupted our sense of balance or our illusion of control, Jesus sends his frightened disciples into the world -- as if it is a good thing. Jesus is “sending” us into the world to pronounce a message of forgiveness or (hold your breath) a word that holds forgiveness back. Intrigue barely covers the scandal of that message. Then, the second shoe falls as Thomas, with an open admission, confesses without some tactile proof of Jesus risen, he for one is not going to believe in a resurrected Christ. Intriguingly, Thomas is called Didymus, “the twin.” Forgive me if I seem to be interpreting that as a reference to my own faith here. At times, I seem to be his twin-doubting brother with a skepticism that can defy reason, and it seems even more pronounced when I cannot see and touch and use my senses to evaluate the truth of something. Trust me. I “get” Thomas.
At the heart of this text, though, is what Jesus does to bring about change. Jesus pronounces his intentions for us -- he is sending us into the world. Then proceeds to breathe on them, or let us say, breathe a spirit-filled breath on us. I cannot help but see a connection between the risen Jesus breathing on his disciples and the breath or wind of God in the creation story. We all know that story well and probably already connect that story with our EcoFaith concerns. In Genesis 1, the “wind” of God which swept over the face of the waters at the beginning could also be translated as the breath of God. God “breathed” and spoke Creation into being. God created a Earth with humankind created in God’s image. The intrigue of God’s breath lies in the language surrounding the creation of Adam (Genesis 2)—first because Adam’s name means “Earth,” and second, because God breathed into Adam the breath of life. God breathed not just the physical life of being a human being (a great gift in itself), but also the gift of living in the spirit life of God. Remembering that the word for breath and the word for spirit are the same word in Hebrew, living in the spirit life of our creator is to breathe life into this earth and to be God’s messengers. Gods’ message is a message of forgiveness, and also a message of protection for the world. When the risen Christ breathed on his disciples, like YHWH he was breathing into them the breath of life. He was sending them to breathe this new life into the world.
At a funeral, I often share a story with the family that I once heard about where God’s name originated. Again, it is a part of the creation narrative. God formed Adam from the dust of the earth and then breathed into the dust the breath of life. If one says “YHWH” as one breathes in, it reminds us that God’s name is on our lips with our first breath, and even as we take our last. It is surprising how deeply that connects with people to their creator as they say their final good-byes to their loved ones. I ask them to breathe in with me as we share that moment in mutual grief. God is at the center of all living things. God is the breath of life. Taking care of the earth is from the beginning and to the end our constant calling and concern. Caring for people and caring for the earth go hand in hand.
Now as we look to the other three texts for this Sunday, we notice many ways that this story gets deepened and repeated. From Psalm 150 verse 6: “Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.”
Consider the many ways praise is offered to God in this Psalm. God breathes life into all things, and we lift that up as evidence concerning a truth about YHWH, the one who breathes life into us and the one whose spirit is alive and life for us. We may doubt this at times, but with each breath we take, faith is renewed, and the calling to go and share the good news is filling our spirit with the spirit of the resurrected Christ. And, a new day begins. To that end, may we breathe deeply with the breath and message God has given us to proclaim.
He is risen, he is risen indeed!
Rev. Jeffrey Holter
Bridges of Faith Parish, Duluth MN
Rev. Jeffrey Holter has been living in Proctor MN since 1988 and was ordained in 1985. His background is unusual. He spent 10 years in Brazil where his father was a missionary. He returned to the United States in 1975 and then did his undergraduate studies at Concordia College in Moorhead and later attended Luther Seminary in St. Paul. Currently he is serving Bridges of Faith Parish in Duluth. He and his wife Joan have four adult children and six grandchildren, and are blessed to have their entire family living very close. Jeffrey’s passion for the earth began early in life and continues getting stronger with age. Being mechanically minded, he enjoys working on cars. In retirement he hopes to rebuild the 1970 Chevelle, currently stashed in his garage.