October 21st, 2011
Reading: Deuteronomy 34:1-12
Moses went up from the plains of Moab to Mount Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, which is opposite Jericho, and the LORD showed him the whole land: Gilead as far as Dan, all Naphtali, the land of Ephraim and Manasseh, all the land of Judah as far as the Western Sea, the Negeb, and the Plain-- that is, the valley of Jericho, the city of palm trees-- as far as Zoar. The LORD said to him, "This is the land of which I swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, saying, `I will give it to your descendants'; I have let you see it with your eyes, but you shall not cross over there." Then Moses, the servant of the LORD, died there in the land of Moab, at the LORD's command. He was buried in a valley in the land of Moab, opposite Beth-peor, but no one knows his burial place to this day. Moses was one hundred twenty years old when he died; his sight was unimpaired and his vigor had not abated. The Israelites wept for Moses in the plains of Moab thirty days; then the period of mourning for Moses was ended. Joshua son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom, because Moses had laid his hands on him; and the Israelites obeyed him, doing as the LORD had commanded Moses. Never since has there arisen a prophet in Israel like Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face. He was unequaled for all the signs and wonders that the LORD sent him to perform in the land of Egypt, against Pharaoh and all his servants and his entire land, and for all the mighty deeds and all the terrifying displays of power that Moses performed in the sight of all Israel.
(My brothers and sisters, after following Moses around through his writings for the last thirty years and after being with you these last two days, here’s what I think Moses might have written to you - his descendants in faith, this many years later!)
(In Moses’ voice – whatever that may have been . . .) Hmmmm . . . thank you for the flattering eulogy you’ve preserved in your sacred scriptures all these years. I’m sure you realize that there were several different eulogies out there at the time of my death – not all of them were so flattering! By the way, who came up with that line, his vigor had not abated”? Man, I was tired by then! But this eulogy will do. Thank you!
I’d like to take a few minutes to reflect on what I’ve learned in the intervening years. I’ve returned to those plains of Moab on a few occasions – once at the request of Joshua’s successor – the Rabbi Jesus. Those occasions were cause for both delight as well as consternation. Let me explain.
I could never have imagined that the LORD would allow this creation venture to string along for so long. I always thought that soon after I left this earth, this Divine Experiment would have come to an end – an end of our own making. You see, I lived my 120 years with the sense that we would always be a People of the Wilderness. Obviously, you are not. And that’s good and it’s not so good, as well. I owe who I am to those years in the Wilderness – it shaped me and my friends in definite and powerful ways. I’d like to reflect on those ways with you this morning . . .
It came as such a surprise to me back then to learn that the God of the Promised Land is no different than the God Who came to us in the Wilderness of Zin. I too watched Yahweh lead Joshua out across the Plains and over the horizon before my sight dimmed for the last time. I remember hoping that my people would never forget all the ways that the LORD showed up and surprised us over 40 years. As one of my successors said so well, “He prepared a Feast Table for us” in the Wilderness, when we had no temple and no land to call our own and while we were surrounded by Hostiles.
Can I get real with you? While it was painful to watch our sons and daughters go on without me, I was actually more comfortable staying back. The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob always seemed restless in the kibbutzim we eventually lined out and the boxes my successors built. I mean, I understand why we eventually built them – I just felt trapped by the very idea of a settled and stable LORD and I sensed that the God of Gods did, too. We were in the habit of pushing canvas aside to access the Presence of Yahweh. The Temple Cult that influenced you never made sense to me. God came to me – to us - on mountain tops, in sandstorms and halfway across the Red Sea.
Oh, and that story about me smacking the rock twice . . . I’d like to say that the rod bounced but you’d know better if you’ve led God’s people for any length of time. I really did hit that rock twice – the story’s right – I took myself way too seriously. The years of whining and complaining and fearful anxiety finally got to me and I took it all on, as though it was my deal. Oh, a thousand times over I wish I hadn’t! I wish I’d lovingly and curiously tapped that rock and then lingered a while to watch the miracle of Water in a Desert so dry that even I had chapped lips!
You laugh, but I really came to believe that the whole venture depended on me. That was really my demise, in the end. I’d forgotten that these were God’s people, that this was God’s venture, that it was God’s great gamble. I forgot and I lost my way and I lost my temper and, as much as I love the way you remember me . . . I have to admit that I lost my joy. It was such a pain to lead after that – God did all of us a favor in Joshua the Son of Nun. He was a new generation of leader – he still had his joy and he had faith and, while he cherished the God of the Wilderness, he also cared about those who were too uncomfortable with worshipping a God always on the move. The other thing about Joshua is that he had friends – they really led together. Together, they made their job look so much easier than mine.
You know, that’s a lingering sore spot with me! I never did have friends – equals. I did it my way with the sometimes help of my family. Miriam and Aaron were great - I owe them my life but that’s not what I mean. They held up my arms and they did all the things I was too afraid to manage on my own. The problem was that we didn’t know how to laugh at the absurdity of our venture together. I never could get over the Canaanite images of an insecure God who needed constant sacrifice and subservience.
I also struggled to relax with what the gift of Manna should have taught me. There we were – in the middle of nowhere – with no neighbors and no allies. I have to confess that I was terrified of dying out there without even a marker in those shifty sands. ‘Looking back on it now, I so wish I’d relaxed with this crazy God who showed up in a burning bush, the One who carved the Law in stone with Her finger and still fed us with “What is it?”
A wily woman you know as Sara was the one who laughed – she dared to tease – to taunt – to laugh out loud at the absurdity of God’s dealings. I wish I’d learned from her. But I didn’t. I don’t think I laughed once in all my years! I was very serious and earnest – so earnest it almost killed me. Even Jacob learned to dance, once he gave up the whole wrestling thing. Sure he limped but we actually remembered him for the impish grin that never left his face after he caught on. That foolish one . . . we were all so jealous!
I know, I know . . . you remember me for the Pentateuch and for conveying the Law. I’d much rather be remembered as the one snatched from the Nile – one who followed God in the Desert – one who delivered stone tablets but all along wished that God talked to His people directly (that only came later!) – one who pleaded with the Lord on behalf of His people.
Ohhh . . . you’re looking for last words?! Well! I certainly hope these are not my last … but here’s what I’d say to you priests – you priests from the order of Melchizadech! Dance and laugh and be silly with the LORD GOD because it’s all over so quickly and when you meet up with the Blessed One, that’s what you’re going to do, anyway! Share that leadership - pass the staff around and even share the job of whining. Listen to each other – listen deeply to the One who dares to speak to you from heart to heart. Believe me! Believe me when I tell you that the LORD is not as insecure as we used to believe. She will even call out to you from the Burning Bushes of your hearts. Take off your shoes in each other’s Presence (and I mean Presence with a capital P).
Oh, and one more thing – there isn’t just one Promised Land already discovered. There isn’t just one; there is always one more. The One who Dreams is always out there – out beyond our fears – it’s that place where each of us is most alive – where we get it. Your temples are great – but they’re just basecamps on the way to the Summit where we are each invited to experience our Transfiguration.
One Last thing? May I assure you that this One whom we chased all our lives never left me for a moment in those last days of my body up on Nebo. As you heard from the Wilderness Rabbi Jesus, this “I am that I am” will be with you to the end of the world. Oh, what?! You say you’re tired?
Well! You saw how the LORD our God carried us, just as one carries a child, all the way that we traveled until we reached the place we called home. That same God will carry you there, as well.
OK, I have to go now… Nebo is calling me back!
