March 12, 2023 - Lent 3 - PIE Day
Matthew 22:1-14
Deborah Laforet
Who’s Invited?
Let us pray. May the words from my lips and the meditations of my heart be guided by your Spirit and be words of wisdom for this day. Amen.
CTV News headline: Dramatic increase in children and youth seeking gender treatments has some experts alarmed.
From the Toronto Star: Why can’t we say ‘woman’ anymore?
Also from the Toronto Star: In an opinion column, a columnist was critical of the use of inclusive language in health care, such as using the term "pregnant people" instead of "pregnant women" to acknowledge that trans men and nonbinary people can also get pregnant.
Recently, in the news, we heard a law was passed in Missouri called the SAFE act, "Save Adolescents from Experimentation.” Under this act, no physician or health care provider shall provide gender transition procedures to any minor or refer such minor to another health care provider for such procedures; and just last week Tennessee passed a similar law, but they also passed a law that restricts public drag show performances.
As part of a CBC article, Anna Murphy, a trans woman in Calgary and an LGBTQ activist, said seeing transphobic ideas get traction is worrying. She says, ”I'm heartbroken because I recognize what seeing that in the media, or seeing that message or seeing that narrative, does to ... those kids who are, literally, honestly just trying to go out and be welcomed and safe and affirmed in the world.” Murphy says trans and non-binary people already face barriers and that transphobic ideas could erode support and make their lives more difficult.
These headlines are highlighting rare events in the trans community. The worry is that not enough stories are being shared about the gender violence that commonly occurs against this community.
Here are statistics based on a study in Ontario.
Half of trans people were living on less than $15,000 a year.
LGBTQ people experience stigma and discrimination across their life spans, and are targets of sexual and physical assault, harassment and hate crimes.
20 per cent of trans people had experienced physical or sexual assault due to their identity, and that 34 per cent were subjected to verbal threats or harassment.
Trans people in both Canada and the US report high levels of violence, harassment, and discrimination when seeking stable housing, employment, health or social services.
77% of trans respondents in this Ontario-based survey had seriously considered suicide and 45% had attempted suicide.
These are alarming statistics, but as trans folks are only .24% of the population in Canada, it can be easy to ignore, and much easier to pay attention to sensationalistic headlines. From the headlines, one would think trans people are common and are damaging to our society.
But what does all of this have to do with church, with being an Affirming community, with that weird scripture reading that Rachel read for us. Let’s start by digging into this scripture reading.
Now, I’ll tell you right off the top, that I am not following the commentaries that I read this week, which means I’m not following the traditional and current academic understanding of this text, partly because it didn’t fit the theme of the day, but also because all the commentaries saw the king or the ruler as representing God, who murders, burns towns, and binds guests and throws them into the darkness. I decided to look at it a bit differently.
As I’ve said in the past, kings in the time of Jesus were not seen as caring and wise. The Roman Empire and Caesar occupied Israeli lands. Jesus and his followers could honour their traditional practices as long as they remained peaceful and didn’t do anything that went against the rules of the empire. It also meant the rulers of Israel supported the Romans if they wanted to remain rulers, and the temple priests and elders toed the line because they wanted order and peace.
The ruler in this story is frustrated because the invited guests are not coming, which actually would have been quite the slight. If a ruler invites you to an event, not showing up could cost you. Even after some persuasion by the ruler, with the rich meal being offered, they refused, and this time some of the ruler’s messengers are attacked and murdered. This is an act of war, and the ruler treats it this way by sending troops to kill the murderers AND burn town their town, which probably means many innocent people were harmed or killed or at least lost their homes and livelihoods.
The ruler then decides that if the chosen guests won’t attend then the subjects of the kingdom are sure to accept an invitation to come to this wedding feast. The workers are again sent out, this time, to bring in people off the streets, as many as they can find, good and bad alike, probably meaning that they are not to ask questions or discriminate in any way - just fill the hall for the banquet.
Here is the line that struck me in this story. The ruler comes into the hall, sees that one of the guests is not dressed properly for the wedding and asks the guest why. “But the guest was silent.” Every year, we hear about the arrest and trial of Jesus. Every year, we hear of his interrogation. Every year, we hear that Jesus was silent.
This guest is then bound, hands and feet, and thrown into the darkness, “where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” Might this story from Jesus be a foretelling of his own death? Might he be telling these chief priests that he would be judged unworthy, that he would be cast out because he went against customs, because he wasn’t following rules properly and causing chaos and confusion? Jesus knew what was in store for him and for the many others who went against the grain, who fought for justice, who went against tradition and culture.
Times haven’t changed much. People who go against the grain are still rejected. People who are different, who push boundaries, who are louder than we like, become targets for hate crimes, violent attacks, verbal abuse, and neglect and abandonment.
Today on PIE day, I am focusing on those who identify as trans or lesbian or gay or non-binary, or queer or Two-Spirit or intersex, or bisexual, or asexual - all these folks who don’t fit into the heterosexual, cis-gender box. We might also focus, though, on those who live on the streets, which many of us have been discussing the past couple of months. They’re not there because they want to be there - mostly it’s through loss of a job or low income, severe mental illnesses and no support, people enslaved in sex trafficking, those fleeing domestic violence, and, of course, LGBTQ youth, who have either run away from home or been kicked out of their homes.
As a church, we’re sometimes similar to the ruler, in that many of our honoured guests don’t want to be here anymore. We feel we have set a feast and no one is coming to enjoy it. We beg people to come, tempting them with dinners, and programming, and special events. Some of us get desperate and begin to invite anybody and everybody, which is what a church is for, but as we do that, we don’t really understand what that means for us. As a church, open to anybody and everybody, we still have a certain lens through which we see, an old lens that has been used for centuries. We expect people to dress appropriately, to learn our liturgy, know when to stand, when to speak, when to be silent, to learn our customs and to become like us.
If someone walked in off the street today, would they find a place of belonging? Would they find a place where they could be themselves and be valued for what they have to offer, maybe not becoming like us but letting them change us? Now, I happen to think we have worked hard to make this a place where people can shine their light, and join with ours; we have done a lot of work, but there is always room for more learning, more awareness, more conversation.
No one should get thrown out into the darkness because they don’t fit, because they don’t conform, because they don’t meet our expectations. In fact, these are the ones that should be held more closely, because these are the ones who can teach us. We can learn a lot from their experience and their wisdom, and hopefully, they can receive healing, a place of safety, a place where they feel loved, a place where they can belong - a place where we can all belong, as people of God, as one in Christ, as one in Spirit. The kingdom of God is like….Jesus told many parables that told about this kingdom of God. A place where all can belong, a place of healing and safety, a place to be brave and confident in your place, a place filled with unconditional love and compassion. This is what we are working towards. May it be so. Amen.