Blogpost is a message we did not foresee.. We took a sister home to a mountain to help her sister get married.. The place had a story intimately connected to a mostly ignored lesser festival of our greater Christian Church..
After the stupid little truck took us to and up this mountain above the home of that sister who served her family at a time of wedding. After we got back. After I studied and started to write. After all that the connection geographically tied itself together with scripture and loss commemorated in the mostly ignored lesser festival.
Lutherans will find this festival in their worship books..
Hilda wants this to be our blogpost this time..
Peace and Keep praying our way, Please..
June 3rd Martyrs of Uganda, 1886 New International Version [NIV] Psalm 2:7 ; Psalm 118:24 ; Leviticus 16:8-26 ; Matthew 16:13-18 ; Acts 22:19-21; Romans 6:6 ; Romans 12:1 ; Ephesians 5:2
High on the mountain’s
ridgeline, up above Ugweno, Tanzania, and not too far from Mwanga, Tanzania,
there is a view to the Northeast into Kenya, towards the equator & the rising
sun. There is a lake not too far from
the foot of the mountain on the way to Kenya.
The view towards the Southwest and the setting sun includes the vast
lake where Tanzania’s, post-independence, tremendous hydroelectric power
development happened, and continues.
Fortunately, any development seems invisible in the distance. From
the mountain, only village roofs and farm roofs, are visible up through the predominant
canopy of forest, and those roofs belonging there so completely of the mountain,
and the people of the mountain. Below
the top of the mountain, there is development here of a more recently
ostentatious nature, but that is minimal, and its visual impact minimized by its
distance down the mountain too. A
mountain top, between two seemingly small patches of water. Only seemingly small due to distance. Water is crucial. To the Northeast, a large body of water
between this nation and Kenya. To the
Southwest, a body of water large enough, that the power generated from its
outflow supplied this young nation only just a few years ago.
People and rocks, people and
high places, people and megalithic structures, have been known around the world
as having relationships. Relationships
that in even recent antiquity can challenge, we blessed with a
post-resurrection perspective as part of our culture.
In this forest beneath this
mountain’s ridgeline are large rock outcrops, countable with less than the
fingers of one hand. The history of
those outcrops is where, the history of sacrifice, the history of martyrs, the
history of crucifixion were all taught and lived out long before Jesus was
introduced here.
Scapegoats: Leviticus
16.. Please read this chapter of
Leviticus and try to identify with our ancestors. People
who God lovingly made with whole lives; and from whom we were made. People
whose understanding of the world was not as limited as ours is, but included
spirits and mystical connections with places.
Places like springs of water and remote vast mountain rock
outcrops. Mystical and practical
connections with, cause and effect, built into nature all around. Much of that cause and effect, our ancestors
lived open to, is now lost from us today.
Lost from us today, as we live with such tremendous material blessing in
the world, that we have left the care of the ground, the earth, the understory,
the canopy, the water courses and waters large and small behind, to seek our
limited fortunes. Seek limited fortunes divorced from
the garden, the waters, the forest, the supply of nature, we were created to
labor in relationship with. This divorce
from creation purpose, however brought about, is just the toehold to divorce
from ancient realities and disquieting recent and even contemporary realities; ancient
relationships and uncomfortable recent and even contemporary relationships. Ancestor
people whose understanding of the world, is not as broad as ours is, as their
living time was not blessed with truth that is, verifiable beyond clinically,
beyond interpretation of only story, beyond cohabitating truth in a moment
verses the demonstrably causal. Even so,
these ancestors lovingly made by God with full challenging lives, were supreme
survivors, as evidenced by them being made and living long enough that we could
be made from them. How dare we judge
the precious people of Leviticus 16? How
dare we judge the people of this mountain, who less than 3 generations ago were
the people of Leviticus 16?
Self-examination and critique invited by our post-resurrection reality
just might bring us home to those whose lives were critical to ours being brought
into being. Coming home is the point of the
story. Life, here and now, revealed in
our post-resurrection world, as the means to understanding God’s loving intent
for, forever with each of us. Each of us
no longer divorced from each other, no longer divorced from creation, no longer
divorced from our loving creator but redeemed, restored, renewed, resurrected
with Christ.
There can be no resurrection
without death.
In the forest beneath this
mountain’s ridgeline are large rock outcrops, countable with less than the
fingers of one hand. The history of those
outcrops is where, the history of sacrifice, the history of martyrs, the
history of crucifixion were all taught and lived out long before Jesus was
introduced here.
Within living memory, the
first local Christians on this mountain saved lives on these rock outcrops;
and, in time, successfully ended ancient practices there. These
rock outcrops with impossibly shear drop offs, were where any infant(s) born
with any perceived defect, including albinism, including twins, or any multiple
births, was/were put to sleep at their mother’s loving breast, and then left
behind sleeping. Left exposed to the
elements, and where the motions of wakefulness, sent every little fragile body
plummeting to a death far below.
Where resources are limited,
rationalization may even demand, survival of only what the most fit appears to
be. But our eyes are limited. Our sight is imperfect. The council we gave each other in antiquity, is
likely no more nor less sanguine, than we give each other today. Our advantage today, is that we
live in a post-resurrection world whenever it is proclaimed and lived in the
lives in front of us. Or proclaimed and
lived by us.
Psalm 2:7
7 I will proclaim the Lord’s decree: He said to me,
“You are my son; today I have become your father. Lives,
so motivated by the post-resurrection change in human
circumstance, that they saved infants from certain death, and raised them
as their own.
This helping to end, a
slow-motion slaughter of innocents.
Ending an ancient practice of sacrificing the presumed imperfect. Martyring life that cannot defend itself. Seeking to stop sacrificing the hearts of
mothers by demanding, those mothers throw away the child born, from the
sacrifice of their time and bodies. This
is Christianity lived for people to see.
This is living images of God adopting the forsaken, just as Jesus beings
us home to forever with God.
Psalm 118:24 24 The Lord has
done it this very day; let us rejoice today and be glad.
This, defeating a practice of
death, is itself, a proclamation of resurrection. You cannot have resurrection without death.
Acts 22:19-21 19 “‘Lord,’ I replied,
‘these people know that I went from one synagogue to another to
imprison and beat those who believe in you. 20 And
when the blood of your martyr Stephen was shed, I stood there giving my
approval and guarding the clothes of those who were killing him.’ 21 “Then the Lord said to
me, ‘Go; I will send you far away to the Gentiles.’ ” These are
Paul’s words recording Paul’s own resurrection of righteous purpose. I was not there to hear them. Yet, I can read them, and be infinitely
blessed by them. God can turn our most
horrific death-seeking into salvation for uncountable numbers of people. If we are willing to repent, to turn from our
death-seeking limits, death-seeking delusions, death-seeking lies,
death-seeking dreams, death-seeking presumptions for tomorrow, death-seeking
justifications for the ending of a life, ending of a relationship, here and
now.
This, defeating a practice of
death, is itself, a proclamation of resurrection. You cannot have resurrection without
death.
Namugongo, Uganda, is where
they were burned to death. They were
burned to death for refusing to renounce Christianity. In 1886, on the 3rd of June 32
young soldiers and court pages were burned to death for their faith, but as is
always the case in broken human events, this was part of a larger
death-seeking.
The Martyrs of Uganda are a known
group of 23 Anglican and 22 Catholic Christians. All were people who chose to be so motivated
by the post-resurrection change in human circumstance; that any cult of
death-seeking that they were born into, each chose to leave behind,
forever. Their names are known.
The Herod they faced, just
under 140 years ago, is known too. Mwanga
II, the Kabaka of Buganda, sent soldiers to kill those who had chosen
relationship with Jesus, relationship with forever, before any mere and
jealous, human king. This particular
Herodian slaughter, like the slaughter of the innocents at the time of Jesus’
birth, happened between January 31st 1885 and January 27th
1887. These young Christian martyrs of
Buganda, had served the prior human king named Mwanga.
High on the mountain’s
ridgeline, up above Ugweno and not too far from Mwanga, Tanzania.
Jesus is the perfect
scapegoat. Jesus is the perfect
martyr. Jesus is the perfect crucified
innocent.
Where resources are limited,
rationalization may even demand, survival of only what the most fit appears to
be. But our eyes are limited. Our sight is imperfect. The council we gave each other in antiquity,
is likely no more nor less sanguine, than we give each other today. Our advantage today, is that we
live in a post-resurrection world whenever it is proclaimed and lived in the
lives in front of us. Or proclaimed and
lived by us.
You cannot have resurrection
without death.
Matthew
16:13-18 13 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi,
he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” 14 They
replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others,
Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” 15 “But what about you?” he
asked. “Who do you say I am?” 16 Simon Peter answered,
“You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” 17 Jesus
replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed
to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. 18 And I tell you that you
are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of
Hades will not overcome it. This record of events comes from a
place of ancient pagan sacrifice of the innocent too. A place called “the gates of hell”. God among us, Jesus, takes the disciples there
for this teaching interaction among them.
Among them then, and for us now.
God does not forget. God’s heart
cannot forget every precious life lovingly created by God and despised to death
by mere broken human choice. These places of sacrifice become
places of gathering, remembrance and worship.
Places where the post-resurrection change is physically manifest in
those things and any structures those things occupy. It is often felt that the veil between here
and now and forever has been worn thin, by the toll taken on God’s loving heart
with every life lovingly created by God and despised to death by mere broken
human choice, even in antiquity, even in 1886, even today.
Namugongo, Uganda, is where
they were burned to death. They were
burned to death for refusing to renounce Christianity. In 1886, on the 3rd of June 32
young soldiers and court pages were burned to death for their faith, but as is
always the case in broken human events, this was part of a larger
death-seeking. The Martyrs of Uganda are a known group of 23 Anglican and
22 Catholic Christians. All were people
who chose to be so motivated by the post-resurrection change in human
circumstance; that any cult of death-seeking that they were born into, each
chose to leave behind, forever. Their
names are known. Sadly, the deaths of
Muslim martyrs a generation prior, are not known but their deaths are still
part of this place. Namugongo,
Uganda, is where they were burned to death.
Namugongo, Uganda, is a thin place of death affecting the heart of God, where
the post-resurrection church has erected monuments of remembrance, a basilica
for worship. And, since 1993, the Uganda Martyrs
University, commemorates from within Uganda with over 30,000 and growing
alumni. Each life touched by
post-resurrection truth, even in a classroom, is a life reserved for eternity
with God. This too, is defeating a
practice of death.
This defeating of a practice
of death, is itself, a proclamation of resurrection. You cannot have resurrection without
death.
Martyrs can take us to the
heart of God living in Jesus. Our
eternal and resurrected Jesus. Martyrs
near and far in place, and through all time, take us to God’s plans. God’s loving plans that motivate our own
lives. This
helping to end, a slow-motion slaughter of innocents in antiquity. This helping to end, slaughter of God’s
lovingly created images of God, you, me, family, friend, neighbor, enemy, to
this day. Defeating death of innocents,
death of sinners, death of relationships, so separation does not win and we can
come home.
Coming home is the point of
the story. Life, here and now, revealed
in our post-resurrection world, as the means to understanding God’s loving
intent for, forever with each of us.
Each of us no longer divorced from each other by place of birth, no
longer divorced from creation, no longer divorced from our loving creator but
redeemed, restored, renewed, resurrected with Christ.
Prayer: Precious heart of God, source of all
creation, source of all life. Affect our
hearts too. Wear our assurance in
ourselves away. Wear our assurance in
the death-seeking of our world away.
Make us each a thin place worn thin by longing for each martyred
life. And gratitude. Gratitude that You, God, Jesus, Holy Spirit,
will not let death win. Gratitude
spilling from us in worship and proclamation, here and now in Your loved, post-resurrection
world, on our way to forever with You.
Amen..
Lord
Jesus be Praised… God
be Praised…
May life be as Music to your Heart –
May Music be as Heart to your Life – May Heart be as Life to your Music
Bwana
Yesu Asifiwe… Mungu
Asifiwe…
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