Growth and Refinement

Church for LGBT - Open Table MCC - Philippines

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinegrower. He removes every branch in me that bears no fruit. Every branch that bears fruit he prunes to make it bear more fruit. You have already been cleansed by the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me as I abide in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing. Whoever does not abide in me is thrown away like a branch and withers; such branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. If you abide in me and my words abide in you, ask for whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit and become my disciples. As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.

“This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.

Scripture Reading
John 15:1-12 (NRSVUE)

Coming of Age requires us to do several things. Definitely to reflect on our past and also reflectively plan and envision the future. Last week was all about the many different peoples and experiences that gave birth to us, shaped us, and influenced us for good, bad, or things in between. Another thing we are called to do us ground and anchor ourselves, and in our scripture reading today, root us – pag-uugat, Coming of age asks as where or with whom are we firmly rooted. Saan o kanino tayo matibay na nakaugat. Where or with whom do we get our support to stand and withstand the forces that pushes us here and there? Yung ugat, yun yung firmly nagpapatayo sa isang halaman o puno. Pag matibay, malalim, malawak at healthy, ang ugat, matibay ang pagkakatayo nung halaman o puno. Hindi ito basta-basta mabubuwal o maitutumba ng hangin o ng baha. The roots are also the part of the plan that takes in the nouristment from the earth and brings it to the other parts of the plant or tree to grow. Ugat din ang nagdadala ng sustansya sa sa buong halaman. Where are your roots? Where or from whom do you get your nourishment.

John 15 tells us that our roots, the vine with whom we are rooted and connected is Jesus Christ. The Christian community of the gospel of John was being violently persecuted and they are also dispersed, exiled, and killed and so the Gospel of John reminds the early Christians and us today, Christians in this queer church in the Philippines 2000 years after, that though we are scattered, troubled, and challenged, we can always find our roots with Jesus and through him we are nourished and stand firm. I was reminded by Troy Perry last night, “The main thing is to keep the main thing, the main thing, and the main thing is Jesus”, and the main thing about Jesus is love through justice. Pero how can we be rooted in Jesus? Ito ba ay simply thinking about Jesus and verbally saying Jesus is my personal Lord and savior? Ang pag-uugat kay Hesus ay sa pamamagitan ng panalangin both personal and communal. Personal, nagdadasal pa ba kayo? Do you intentionally make time for silence and prayer. Kahit nga hindi traditional prayer na chika ka ng chika kay Lord. Kung medyo nawawala ang pag-uugat mo kay Hesus sa panalangin, you can explore different and other kinds of prayer many of which are very simple. Diana Butler Bass tells us that many of the rituals and spiritual practices of the church comes from the most ordinary and simplest of human activities which starts with breathing. If you begin to explore spiritual traditions, both Christian and other religions, they will tell you the most fundamental practice is to BREATHE. Focus your attention on your breathing. In the Christian tradition, pray with your breathing by being aware that the air is partly Spirit because in the book of Genesis, it tells us that God breathed into the human the Ruach of life and the human became a living soul. I personally love walking on a retreat and this is also something you will find in many spiritual traiditons and even among philosophers and scientists. Walking is a deepl spiritual practice when intentionally done.

Our most sacred ritual, the Eucharist, is a meal shared. So find the spiritual practice by which you can connect with Jesus. Connect with Jesus also with community and be part of a praying community. Emmanuel, God with us and the doctrine of the incarnation is about experiencing God with people and through people. Be rooted in a community that can also help you learn, grow, mature, and produce fruits. How to be rooted with Jesus, be part of advocacy and service to others with your unique gifts and talents. Ang pananampalataya – faith – ay dapat buhay, kumikilos, gumagampan, yumayakap, nakikisangkot, at tumutugon, and sa lahat ng ating mga ginagawa duon nakikita natin at nauunawaan na sa ganung paraan tayo nag-uugat kay Hesus, sa kanyang buhay, at mga salita.

Now the other part of my preaching and the other part of the scripture aside from being rooted is being cut and pruned. Some plants and flowering plants, grape vines, and some trees which are being cultivated, require regular cutting and pruning for good health and to encourage growth.

Now, there have been studies that found that plants have some sentience to them. They can feel pain and they have a way to cry out or even scream. They have a way to inform other plants and trees through their root network of any threat. If a plant or a tree in the forest is being cut down or being attacked by pests, it can send a signal through its roots to warn the other plants and trees. Plants do feel some form of pain and sends out signals about it. Perhaps not exactly the same as humans and other animals feel pain, but they feel pain nonetheless.

So when a gardener cuts off branches or prunes a shrub, a grape vine, a bonsai, or a fruit bearing tree or flowering plant, it does experience pain. But it is the kind of pain that is necessary. The pain of cutting infected leaves or branches is necessary so that the infection won’t spread. The pain of pruning several smaller branches, stems, or leaves is necessary to encourage growth and vibrance. The same can be said of our individual lives, relationships, and the church community.

Adulting, growing, and maturing comes from overcoming the many ways that God and life in generally cuts or prunes some pieces of ourselves or our relationships. Some necessary cutting and pruning for our health and growth. Some not so necessary because these were caused by persons and situations who have hurt us, abandoned us, and treated us badly.

As you come of age, it is good to reflect on these things and experiences of people, places and situations that had to be removed from you and your life to encourage your growth and refinement with the acknowledgement that some of these are painful ones like a branch being cut off or a small stem or leaf being pruned.

Then today at this point of your life, asan ka man ngayon sa buhay mo at ano man ang situation mo, ask yourself, are there things, situations, perspectives, and people you need to remove from your life so that you can further grow and flourish? Meron bang mga toxic na tao sayong paligid na kailangan mong ilet-go kahit na mahirap o masakit? Meron ka bang mga habits or practices na kailangan mong tigilan o bawasan to improve your life situation? Similarly, meron ka bang mga memories, traumas, and experiences of the past na matagal ng tapos pero hindi mo mabitaw-bitawan at nanatili kang alipin nito? Do you have any insecurities that you need to address and therefore remove from yourself so you can operate better and also enter better relationships and friendships based on genuine connection and not to feed the insecurity? Meron bang mga doktrina, paniniwala, or even religious practices from your former churches na kailangan mong iwaksi at iexpel sayong sarili? Meron ka bang mga pananaw at perspektibo na baka kailangang bitawan para magkaroon ng espasyo sa isip at puso mo for new, deeper, and much wider perspectives? Kahit pa progressive ka na. At baka tama rin pag-isipan if merong bang partes a pagiging progressive mo ang nangangailangan pa rin iprune para marefined at magencourage na bagong growth, perspective, and inspiration?

Is there anything and anyone in your life right now that does not encourage goodness in your life and runs contrary to your faith as a follower of Jesus or simply as a human being? Are there people, memories, and insights that live rent-free inside your head?

Because if you are infected and withered by holding on to everything and everyone that causes you sickness and toxicity, spiritually, emotionally, and socially, then how can you remain also as a branch connected to a much larger tree or plant, called community? If you are infected by certain toxicity, how can you remain connected with Jesus?

Let’s go back to 1 Corinthians 13 – Yun ang Magandang pamantayan sa kung sino at ano ang mga dapat nating iwaksi sa ating mga puso, isip at pagkatao at bitawan sa ating buhay so that we can bear flowers and fruits.

Jesus says, I am the vine and you are the branches. Whoever follows my commandment abides in my love. And then later Jesus further says, “This is my commandment, that you love one another.”

To diagnose what is healthy and what is not healthy in our lives and in our faith will be tested by Jesus commandment to love by which Paul, one of his followers, gave as one of the best definition and articulation of love. Christian Love is never neutral as per Jesus and Paul. And the Love that Jesus exemplified and the love that Paul defined, tells us exactly who and what are those that needs cutting and pruning from our lives, relationships, and communities.

Someone who is rude and irritable. Someone who rejoices in evil. Someone who is constantly impatient. Someone or something that is not kind. Someone na puro sarili lang ang iniisip. Someone na puro kasinungalingan at ginagamit ang kasinungalingan para manlamang sa kapwa. Someone who is brilliant, talented, intelligent pero masama ugali, domineering, at manipulative.

Ask yourself, ang ganito bang mga tao or practices, or perspectives, do you want these in your life? Do they reflect faith in Jesus Christ? Do impatience and irritability express genuine spirituality and love? Or are these things, situations, and people that require cutting and pruning from our lives so that in turn, we do not be the ones cut off and thrown away.

Pero, gusto ko rin sabihin at itanong kahit hindi na ako mag-elaborate, may sitwasyon at pagkakataon rin ba na ikaw yung toxic or masamang implwensya na pinutol ng Diyos mula sa buhay ng iba o mula sa isang komunidad o group? Baka ikaw yung magulo duon at nagpapagulo sa kanila. That is also worth reflecting on. Maturity is also asking the self-accountability question – was it me? Did I do wrong? What was my part in the problem or conflict?

Or pwede rin naman na hindi naman ikaw yung toxic or infected, ikaw yung healthy na branch na kinailangan putulin para igraph sa mas healthy na halaman tulad ng Open Table?

As you have noticed in the past two preachings and in relation to our 18^th anniversary month, I do not only preach from an individual and personal context but also from the context of our church community.

Open Table MCC is a small church, a body of Christ, that God planted in Quezon City 18 years ago on the 13th of September, 2006. Ilang beses na muntik muntikang mamatay ang halaman na ito. Ilang beses na rin ito nasaktan ng bonggang-bongga by no less than its own founding pastor. Pero hindi ito sinukuan ng Diyos. God did not give up on Open Table MCC even its very own pastor almost destroyed it.

God did not give up on Open Table even when many others did. And each of those crucial moments of decline and bad church health, we lost people but perhaps it is God’s way of cutting and pruning those that were not healthy for the church and admittedly, during the not so good ages of this church, perhaps the church itself was not good or healthy for some other people who came to church seeking genuine faith and community but the church had unhealthy individuals and lack of proper systems. Kaya marami magtataka sa inyo pag nakikita nyo yung mga lumang pictures ng MCCQC or even MCC Manila and ask, “asan na sila?” Well either one of two things lang naman – God had to cut or prune some of them because they were not healthy or good for the church and perhaps their healing is found somewhere else or the church at the time was not healthy and therefore God had to save other individuals from a church na kulang sa systems and structures to create a genuine safe space.

18 years of Open Table MCC, God never gave up on us as much as we never gave up on God and our queer siblings. Ours is a story of growth, rooted in Jesus, with God’s cutting and pruning para marefine tayo, maging mas healthy, and encouraged to grow better.

And I know as we move forward towards adulting, growing, and maturing as individuals and as church community, the process of cutting and pruning will continue. We are pruned to grow, to flower, and to be fruitful in and with love. With new fruits, the seeds that need scattering for new safe space, new open tables, rooted in jesus and producing fruits in many other places until every queer child and straight ally have a table where God’s love is genuine and true.

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