Shake up

It can be important to shake ourselves from our routines every now and again.

Many people will say they do not like it when a grocery store rearranges its shelves and the canned vegetables are now in aisle 3 when they were once in aisle five.

It becomes confusing; we just want to get in, pick up our bread and milk and get out.

And sometimes, church can be the same.

We just want to pray and listen to the stories we’ve heard from year to year.

Why do we need a new translation of the bible when the King James Version did just fine for so many years?

Why do I change up which Eucharist we say from season to season?

In the summer, it was prayer B.

During Christmas, it was prayer A.

And now, during Epiphany, we are saying prayer D.

Well, when it comes to translations, there are various reasons for relying on a more modernized text.

One reason is that scholars now have access to more and more manuscripts from which to draw on.

Our understanding of words and phrases changes over time.

One other reason is this: My hope is that by hearing different things and seeing different things you will notice different things.

By moving items around, grocery stores are hoping you will browse the aisles more, maybe pick up something you didn’t intend to buy, but you bought it because you were forced to go aisle to aisle 6 trying to find where the soup now is.

By celebrating different Eucharistic prayers and listening to different translations, I am hoping something will pique your interest, something new will catch your eye.

Now, one of the things they tell you in sermon writing school is never to repeat the text you are preaching on.

The thought is that you’ve heard the reading once before, why say it again?

With that in mind, I’m going to read the gospel once more:

From the Gospel according to John beginning with the forty-third verse of the first chapter.

The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, “Follow me.” Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found him about whom Moses in the law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus son of Joseph from Nazareth.” Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.” When Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him, he said of him, “Here is truly an Israelite in whom there is no deceit!” Nathanael asked him, “Where did you get to know me?” Jesus answered, “I saw you under the fig tree before Philip called you.” Nathanael replied, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” Jesus answered, “Do you believe because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than these.” And he said to him, “Very truly, I tell you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.”

Look at me, breaking all the rules!

Now that you’ve heard it twice, I’d like you to listen to a second translation authored by Sarah Ruden.

From the Gospel according to Ionnes beginning with the forty-third verse of the first chapter.

The next day, he wanted to set out for Galilaia, so he found Filippos. And Iesous said to him, “Follow me.” Now, Filippos was from Bethsaida, the same town Andreas and Petros were from. Filippos found Nathanael and said to him, “The one Mouses wrote about in the book of the law, and the one the prophets wrote about – we’ve found him. He’s Iesous the son of Iosef from Nazaret.” But Nathanael said to him, “Can anything worthwhile come out of Nazaret?” Filippos told him, “Come and see!” Iesous saw Nathanael coming toward him, and spoke about him: “Look, this is truly an Israelites – nothing underhand in him!” And Natanael said to him, “How is it you know me?” Iesous answered by telling him, “Before Filippos called you, I saw you under the fig tree.” Nathanael replied to him, “Rabbi, you’re god’s son, you’re the king of Israel.” Iesous answered by telling him, “Just because I told you I saw you underneath the fig tree, you believe? You’re going to see greater things than this!” Then he said to him, “Amen amen I say to you all: you’ll see the sky opened and the messengers of god going up and coming down in the presence of mankind’s son.”

So, the message is the same, but there are some pretty big differences, are there not?

What immediately jumped out to me were the names; Ionnes instead of John, Iesous instead of Jesus, and so on.

But there are smaller details as well.

Where Jesus says there is no deceit found in Nathaniel in the NRSV translation (the one we just read) Iesous says there is no underhandedness found.

Now, one of the most important things they teach you in sermon writing school is to never quote the dictionary.

It’s a sloppy way of communicating your message and becomes distracting from that message if not pedantic.

With that in mind, I am going to quote the dictionary.

The dictionary defines deceit as, “the action or practice of deceiving someone by concealing or misrepresenting the truth.”

And to deceive is defined as, “cause (someone) to believe something that is not true, typically in order to gain some personal advantage.”

Underhanded is defined as, “acting or done in a secret or dishonest way.”

Even these two words have subtle differences in definition and usage.

Deceit causes someone to believe an untruth, underhandedness is acting dishonestly.

How then does the use of these two words change the reading?

In the first translation, Jesus does not see him causing people to believe and untruth.

In Sarah Ruden’s version, Iesous says Nathanael does not act dishonestly.

This might seem like a minor thing, even insignificant, but I do think it’s important.

If Nathanael is to be an evangelist in his role as an apostle, he will need to be believed and he cannot be seen as deceitful, as influencing people to believe in lies.

And Nathanael, too, cannot be seen as dishonest if he is to be trusted by Jesus.

One is external to the group and how the group gets Christ’s message out to the people; the other is internal to the relationship between Nathaniel and Jesus.

Inward and outward.

And I think this difference matters in how we approach our own evangelism.

Are we to be believed when we share our love for God and Jesus and the Holy Spirit?

Or do we come off as deceitful?

Can we be trusted by those to whom we speak?

Or do we seem to be liars?

But then comes the most difficult part.

When do we know we are being lied to?

And can you look into a person’s heart and find in them no underhandedness?

There is no right translation here.

The conclusion of the translators to use the word deceit or underhandedness shows what messages they thought the original authors were trying to convey.

Notice that though there are differences, the main point is communicated clearly.

Jesus looked into Nathaniel’s heart, his very soul, as he sat beneath a fig tree and he found goodness, not deceit, honesty, not underhandedness.

Jesus was seeking out Nathaniel and from a distance, he found him.

Jesus too, is seeking you.

And whether you are under a fig tree or under this roof, how will you be found?

We’ve been together a couple of years now; I’ve seen no deceit towards me or God.

You’ve not lied to me in such a way as for me to believe untruths.

(That is my hope at least!)

I imagine Jesus has found clear hearts in this room.

And I ask you, into whose heart have you looked?

From a distance, have you looked upon the stranger and really looked at them hard?

And have you shared your heart with theirs?

Have you fed the hungry and found them wanting in only food and not spirit?

Look to the fig trees and the maple ones too.

Beneath them sits your neighbor wanting an experience similar to yours, the experience of community shared in this place, the experience of God, the joy of salvation found in Jesus.

And you can share that experience without deceit for your soul has been found without underhandedness by God with whom you have a relationship.

It is in the various nuances of language where we can ponder the richness of the bible.

And from our ponderings and wonderings we can realize that this text, some of it thousands and thousands of years old, is alive and very much relevant to our lives.

For it is the story of God’s love and how God seeks out each and everyone of us.

Share God’s love and accept God’s love.

Inward and outward.

Amen.