Sisters Are Doing It for Themselves

FOCUS STATEMENT

Last week, we saw the importance of listening to the voices on the margins.

However, it is not enough to just listen. We must also act.

POINT OF RELATION

[Show video]

Mulan is one of my favorite Disney characters.

But she is more than just a fairy tale princess…she is more than just a work of fiction...

Hua Mulan is a Chinese legend.

She was a legendary folk heroine from the Northern and Southern Dynasties era of China...

Which means she lived somewhere between the 300s and the 500s AD

According to legend, Hua Mulan lived in the Northern Wei Dynasty during the time when the Huns were conquering every one around them

Anyone who has taken world history knows of the Golden Horde…

Which was the Kingdom established by the Mongolian Khans in the 13th century A.D

The Huns were the ancestors of the Golden Horde...

And according to the Hua Mulan Legend, they were on the move to attack and conquer the Northern Wei Dynasty.

So, the emperor put out a decree…demanding that all families send a man to represent their family and fight in the army.

For most families, this meant sending their oldest, most capable son,

But for Mulan’s father, that was not the case...

Like me…he had daughters.

That, of course, meant that he would have to go himself to represent his family in the imperial Army.

Hua Mulan’s father was an older man and the likeliness he would survive was slim.

What would any child do to save their father? What would any family member do to keep their loved ones alive.

However, in that culture of honor, the only honorable thing for the Father to do…is sacrifice himself for the good of his family and his country.

Tell that to Hua Mulan. Once she learned that her father was to go to war...

There was only one thing she could do...

And that was to cut her hair, dress like a man, and go to war for her father…AS HIS SON.

Scholars equally debate whether Hua Mulan was a person of history, or a just a legend.

For me, all legends bear some truth and I have no doubt she was a real person that inspired a ballad about her.

Of course, there have been 1600 years of embellishments and we cannot take Disney’s adaptation to be historical fact...

But the heart of the Mulan legend is found in each telling of the story:

When we listen to and see the needs of others…WE ARE COMPELLED TO ACT.

Mere acknowledgment and words are not enough.

THINGS TO CONSIDER

Last week I shared a story of how one of our youth got excluded from receiving a scholarship...

Because of a lack of attendance that was due to a chronic health condition.

This happened, not out of malice...

But because no one stopped to listen and recognize the need of this specific student.

Once I found out about that and notified the leadership,

They recognized that was wrong...

And the ACTED upon that recognition.

KNOWLEDGE OBLIGATES US TO DO WHAT IS RIGHT.

That student received the scholarship, albeit a few years late…and was very appreciative of that!

Another example of our church acting in the face of need is our support of the Weekend Bag Program.

I met Isobel and her mom at a Rotary Meeting and learned of her great work in combating food insufficiency among her peers in High School.

Some people, she found out, were literally starving over the weekend because their families couldn’t afford food.

The only good meals they got were at School.

Once Isobel discovered that…SHE WAS COMPELLED TO ACT.

Her organization’s motto is, “Being a kid doesn’t hold you back from making a difference in your community or world!”

Once, I knew of her organization and the need she was filling...

I knew that we as a church could partner with her...

And I invited her to speak to our congregation on a Sunday Morning.

You all heard her testimony about the good she was doing…you too saw the need...

And you…as a congregation…decided to partner with her right then and there.

If you recall, you donated $1263.00 on that Sunday...

$400 in Gift Cards

$863 in cash and check donations

Since then, we have been collecting and donating food and toiletries in our barrel in the Narthex.

They were just picked up recently as a matter of fact.

WHAT SCRIPTURE SAYS

Ancient Israelite tradition gave the right of inheritance to sons only.

Women were thus not able to inherit property.

However, despite this cultural practice, Zelophehad’s daughters challenged the tradition of their time by speaking to the leaders.

When their father died, Zelophehad’s daughters, all named in the text,

asked Moses and the other leaders for their father’s property.

When the women spoke to the leaders,

the leaders did not dismiss their appeal but instead listened and took it to God.

Furthermore, God listened to the daughters and affirmed them saying, “The claim of the daughters of Zelophehad is legitimate.”

Because of this, the legal code was re-written to give the inheritance to one’s daughters if they had no sons.

Biblically, this is not an isolated incident.

Jesus openly challenged laws and traditions that were exclusive by nature.

He saw the image of God reflected in those whom society deemed unworthy

and enthusiastically invited them into the Kingdom of God.

God will step in to break tradition in order to bring justice

to those who, up until now, have been excluded or deemed unworthy.

But God includes us in bringing about justice.

The women stood up for what they believed to be right.

They acted on their convictions.

Likewise, Moses first listened and then ACTED.

WHAT THIS MEANS FOR YOU

Was there a time when some long-held tradition or practice

stopped you from receiving what you needed or felt was a basic human right?

For instance, have you been challenged at the voting booth, or faced difficulties purchasing a house in a neighborhood where the residents did not look like you?

Or perhaps there was a club you wanted to join that you were excluded from because of your gender.

Or perhaps you were wanted to marry someone you loved, but the law said your love for each other was not valid.

Was there a time when a long-held tradition

discouraged or intimidated you from acting on behalf of someone else,

particularly, someone excluded by that tradition?

WHAT THIS MEANS FOR US

In today’s Scripture lesson, God extended the table wider to include those at the margins: women.

We have a lot of traditions in our churches, communities, and world.

Sometimes we are not sure why the traditions exist in the first place.

Some even inadvertently exclude people.

How is God calling us to widen our table to include people and voices that have been excluded?

Who do we need to listen to and how are we being called to act for justice?

Are we the INCLUSIVE church of God, or an exclusive…MEMBERS ONLY…country club?

Do we seek to invite and get to know people who are different than us?

Or do we expect them to seek us out?

How can we individually, and as a church, grow to be even more inclusive?

In what ways can we actively seek out the lost, the least, and the marginalized?

Again, these questions aren’t rhetorical. I believe it is important to engage people during a sermon.

Think on this and email any ideas that come to your mind. The email is on your screen now. We’d love to hear from you. Amen? Amen.