(Wednesday morning - I have been down with a stomach bug this week, but finally have a first full draft. Blessings to all of you on World Communion Sunday. May your faith be increased!)
I am an enormous fan of any Robin Hood movie. I have watched everyone from Errol Flynn to
Russell Crow portray the dashing, noble outlaw who robs from the rich and gives
to the poor. (Though I don’t think I
finished “Robin Hood: Men in Tights.) My
latest fascination has been stirred by a BBC weekly TV show entitled “Robin
Hood” which I watch on Netflix or BBC America.
What interests me is how each remake of the legend is trying to work out
contemporary issues. In the latest BBC
version, Robin Hood’s band of merry men includes a Turkish woman who was taken
as a slave by a crusader and freed by Robin Hood. She has great scientific knowledge in
medicine and chemistry and serves as a reminder that the Muslim world is not
just full of barbarians, but was probably more scientifically advanced than Europe at the time.
Robin and his faithful servant, named “Much,” often reflect on the
terrible atrocities they saw and enacted as crusaders and struggle with
post-traumatic stress disorder. The
Sheriff of Nottingham is suitably venal for the role, and a master at
propaganda. He constantly unleashes
stories of Robin Hood’s men raping women, being filled with devil and desecrating
holy relics and about every other episode the sheriff catches one of Robin’s
followers and is going to hang them for aiding and abetting “terrorists.”
Beyond the high adventure in each episode, there is a major
focus on the nature of faith. What
happens to a society when the people and institutions that are meant to uphold
faith in God are off Crusading and fighting a brutal and pointless war? The result in England was terrible poverty
because while thousands of able men were off fighting, everyone else was taxed
to starvation to support the war effort.
With King Richard tied down in the Crusades, less scrupulous leaders
profiteered on the war and by keeping the tax money for themselves and their
cronies. People loss faith in their
leaders, because they sensed that the social contract was dead, they were sheep
to be sheared of their income, and even the provider of order, the Sheriff of
Nottingham, was corrupt. When people
lose faith in what is dear to them, they stop acting in noble ways, and focus
on doing what they have to do to survive.
Robin Hood becomes the keeper of the faith in the old, nobler
values. When society is so unjust he has
to be an outlaw to be good. He keeps the
faith in Richard, whom he still believes to be a good king, who will make peace
and come home to restore justice. He
keeps his faith in Marian, whom he loves, yet he must trust her as she acts as
his spy in Nottingham
Castle, and must
carefully fend off the affections of Sir Guy of Gisbone. He keeps his faith in the people, believing
that at some point he can stir enough people to believe in what is right, that
they will rise up with him and throw of injustice. In almost every episode, Robin confronts a
difficult situation where he needs the help of someone who has to make a hard
choice. Whose side are they on? Will they do what is right even though it’s
risky to them, or will they keep their head down and let injustice reign? There is a realism in the show because
sometimes Robin Hood inspires others to great courage while others will betray
him for a few pieces of silver. This is
what I like about the show, for each episode confronts the audience with the
choice, will you act in faith in what you know is right, or will you succumb to
the low standards of the age?
Robin Hood is a messianic figure, who, like Jesus, reminds
us that what we need to live is not merely wealth, or possessions, or knowledge
or the right connections. What we truly
need is faith. “Increase our faith!” is what the disciples cry out in Luke this
morning. It is hard to tell from the
context exactly why they felt this great need at this point in the Gospel. In the preceding verses Jesus warns the
disciples against leading other people astray through their own sins and
challenges them to forgive, but this teaching doesn’t directly connect to their
plea. Perhaps Luke is just quickly
moving to the next subject. Having a
strong faith is a perpetual issue in all times.
Seeking greater faith becomes a priority when we go through times of discouragement.
I was recently reading an article on the economy which noted
that economic deflation, when the value of our currency, our savings and our
homes decreases while our salary stays the same, creates a self-perpetuating
discouragement in people that leads to more economic deflation. The blogger, who goes by the name Pragmatic
Capitalist, then shared this parable:
Once upon a time it was announced that the devil
was going out of business and would sell all his equipment to those who were
willing to pay the price. On the big day of the sale, all his tools were
attractively displayed. There were Envy, Jealousy, Hatred, Malice, Deceit,
Sensuality, Pride, Idolatry, and other implements of evil display. Each of the
tools was marked with its own price tag.
Over in the corner by itself was a harmless
looking, wedge-shaped tool very much worn, but still it bore a higher price
than any of the others. Someone asked the devil what it was, and he answered,
“That is Discouragement.” The next question came quickly, “And why is it priced
so high even though it is plain to see that it is worn more than these others?”
Because replied the devil, “It is more useful to me
than all these others. I can pry open and get into a person’s heart with that
when I cannot get near with any other tool. Once I get inside, I can use him in
whatever way suits me best. It is worn well because I use it on everybody I
can, and few people even know it belongs to me.” This tool was priced so high
that no one could buy it, and to this day it has never been sold. It still
belongs to the devil as his most powerful tool.
Faith is the opposite
of discouragement. So how do we increase
our faith, as the disciples pleaded?
Jesus first notes the great power of having even a little faith. He compares the tiny mustard seed over
against a solid tree. I wondered if
there was an importance to Jesus talking about mulberry trees. Why would he want to throw it into the
sea? After a little digging, I
discovered the tree was probably a form of wild fig tree which was quite common
in Israel
and known for being hardy and having very deep roots. So it would be quite hard to eradicate it,
as Jesus proposes in his parable. A
small seed of faith, and mustard seeds are among the smallest of seeds, has
tremendous potency. The question is how
do we unlock this potency. What do we
need to do in our daily lives that will plant and nourish this small seed so
that we may have a deeply rooted faith?
I think this parable about the role of a servant gives us
direction. Faith grows by action. It grows by doing the daily duties that God
sets before us. The parable contains a
bit of a rebuke. I interperate Jesus to
be saying, “Beware of focusing on getting a reward from God for having faith or
doing the right thing. Don’t think of
God as your sugar daddy. Rather do your
duties and you will have your reward, which is a strong faith.” Faith is much like a muscle. If you exercise it, it will go stronger; and
if you ignore your faith, it will atrophy.
God gives us the potential, plants the mustard seed within us, but it
only grows as we act. There are no
shortcuts, no implants, facelifts, special easy diets, pills or genetic splices
that will increase your faith. The only
prescription is a daily dose of being God’s willing servant and following
through. If you want more faith, be
faithful.
This may not be exactly what we or the disciples want to
hear, but I see it as hopeful. Jesus is
clearly saying that our faith can grow, and if we keep at it we can do
remarkable things. I often tell my
clients at Hillcrest House to pick one hard thing every day, one thing they
don’t’ want to do, and do it. Each time
you keep your commitment to yourself and act, it gets easier to do the next
hard thing. One day you wake up and you
find that most things are not hard, because you have built a faith, a faith not
of words but of deeds and achievements.
Grow your mustard seed as you do whatever God puts before you, and you
will find that you will one day uproot any obstacle which is now the source of
your discouragement.