VIEW FROM A SYCAMORE
November 4, 2001


TEXT: Luke 19:1-10
Where you stand determines what you see. If you have been raised in a particular culture, trained in a particular method of observation, indoctrinated with a traditional set of religious beliefs, and been taught a particular morality or framework by which you can distinguish what is right from what is wrong, then everything you see and hear, everything you experience is going to be filtered through your own world view. Where you stand determines what you see.

We cannot see with the eyes of someone who lives in another culture or who has been raised in another religion because they are not our eyes. We do not stand where they are, and therefore we cannot see what they see or understand how they think.

In our gospel lesson, we meet a man who is short of stature, and, we might suppose, had been short of vision. A wealthy tax collector, Zacchaeus had probably put his trust in material things as a means of security in an uncertain world. We can understand that position. We, too, live in uncertain economic times and our investments, pension funds, and job security is more precarious than it had been a few months ago. Indeed, our very lives are precarious. We have felt the ground move under our feet and we are not so sure where we are standing.

Because of the crowd Zacchaeus could not see who Jesus was, so he changed his perspective. He climbed a sycamore tree to get a better view. Where you stand determines what you see.

John Keating is one of those teachers who use the most unorthodox methods of teaching, who goes beyond what has been written in the text, who brings down the wrath of the authorities, and who opens a new world of insight and perspective for his students. In other words, he is much like Jesus of Nazareth.

In the film, Dead Poets Society, John Keating has his students come up to his desk one by one and stand on it. He tells them that they have been sitting in that classroom everyday looking at the same four walls and ceiling, but now, with just a slight change, they can see the room from a different perspective. And they may end up seeing things that they had never noticed before. It is difficult to see the world from a new perspective when we are locked into the old ways of seeing things. We need to rise above the crowds and see life, not the way everyone else sees it, but the way God wants us to see it. We are unable to see the forest because of the trees. We need to think outside the box, the comfortable parameters that have given us a false sense of security.

For the past several weeks the major news story has been the terrorist plots and the Anthrax scare. Four people have died, post offices have been shut down, and the national guard is patrolling California bridges. We have become paralyzed by our own short-sightedness and limited vision that will not allow us to see the larger picture. It reminds me of the story of the peasant who was leaving Baghdad and met Plague riding on her way to the city. He asked Plague, “Where are you going?” and Plague answered, “I am going to Baghdad where a thousand shall die of cholera.” Two weeks had past and the reports from the city were that ten thousand had perished. Once again on the road the peasant encountered Plague returning from the city. “You have lied to me,” he said. “You told me that only a thousand would die.” And Plague answered, “I slew only the promised thousand. Fear killed the rest.”

What we perceive becomes the reality that will destroy us. We need to rise above the fog that clouds our thinking and get things into perspective. President Bush is on the mark when he says that we are not involved in a war of instant gratification. As difficult as it may seem, the overt war against terrorism and its perpetrators is only superficial. What lies beneath are the entangled roots of deprivation, frustration, power, wealth, national interests, religious ideologies, and centuries of mistrust and deceit. We cannot take a simplistic view and look at only that which stands in front of us. Zacchaeus tried that and all he had was a view of the crowd’s backside. If we would see Jesus, we must rise above the fear and terror. We must see beyond war and destruction. While that may be the expedient means for dealing with the current evil that exists, if that is our only solution, then the human race does indeed face a bleak future. We need to envision a world where people of diverse faiths and cultures can work together for the common good. If we cannot believe that it is possible, then it will not be possible. If we cannot see it, we cannot create it.

Today is All Saints Sunday. This is the day we remember those who have died in the faith. We recall the saints and martyrs of the church, those who have been persecuted for righteousness sake, those who gave their lives because they were able to see a vision of a world far greater than the one they had left. We celebrate this day with joy, not with lamentation. The Dixieland Jazz and moving spirituals are not just “whistling past the graveyard” tunes to cover up our fears and to conceal our despair. We celebrate with joy because we too have climbed the sycamore and have seen Jesus, and we know what the future will be.

When Woody Guthrie wrote his lyrics to “This Train Is Bound for Glory,” he was referring to the trains that were carrying the Okies from the dust-bowls of the Depression era Midwest to new life in the East or in California. But the roots of this song go farther back to Harriet Tubman and the underground railroad whose freedom road led from the deep South into Pennsylvania’s Lancaster and Berks Counties. It was one of the signal songs, like “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot, Comin’ for to Carry Me Home,” or “Steal Away, I A’int Got Long to Stay Here.” These songs had double and triple meanings. They referred to biblical themes and eternal life, but they also referred to present realities and the call to action if one was to change one’s life in this world. Where you stand determines what you see, and what you hear, and what it means to you.

When I hear complaints that sometimes our worship comes across as entertainment, my response is “why are you being entertained by it and not probing for its deeper meaning that can touch your soul and change your life?” “Why are you not climbing the sycamore and seeing Jesus from another point of view?” Don’t let worship happen to you, but engage it and let it speak to you even as you find expressions for your spirit.

It is our nature to react to the events of life from our own particular perspective. We cannot read the same poem and derive the same meaning. When we see a movie, different scenes will have greater impact upon each of us. When tragedy comes into our lives, we handle it in different ways. When world events shatter our illusions and send us running for shelter, we go to that which has sustained and strengthened us in the past, to the ways of thinking that help us make sense out of life and give us encouragement for the future. We belong to different communities of faith because we look for that spiritual path that will help us interpret our lives in the most meaningful way. We look for persons who will support and encourage us on our journey.

Zacchaeus learned that he had to look in order to see. He had to rise above his limited vision and see life from a new and different perspective. But once he had done that, Jesus had another word: “Zacchaeus, come down. I must stay at your house.” Zacchaeus returns to life, but life from a changed point of view. Now Jesus was with him, and that makes all the difference. Jesus alters our perspective.

When we are able to view life through the eyes of faith, we find that we can cope with the harsh realities of this present darkness. We have seen the future; the present holds no fear for us. We are celebrating All Saints Sunday, not from our earthly perspective, but from the perspective of the saints who know the glory of eternal life.

You’ve got to climb the mountain to see the Promised Land, but if you want to get there, you must pass through the deep waters. Let us hold on to the vision as we work for the building of God’s realm on earth.