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I'm hoping to put together a sort of travelogue of my journey through Wisconsin, but until that's done I present the text of the sermon I preached at my cousin's wedding. The gospel is Matthew 5:13-16, "You are the salt of the earth." Because it's a wedding sermon (and because I'd promised to keep it short!) it's a little light on theology. I'd not preach this on a Sunday, but I think it works well not only on a wedding day but with the other texts they chose and with their marriage vows. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. I had steak last night. I did. At the Groom's dinner, also known as a rehearsal dinner, I had a delicious steak. It tasted a lot better than the steak I make at home, on the little hibachi. I don't think it was the cut of meat, because I do occasionally splurge on a really good cut. There was just something about it. Before I had that steak, I joined the wedding party here for the rehearsal, to plan what we'd do when. Standing here in these lovely gardens I was struck by the beauty of the place � the flowers, the landscaping, the view of the water. It's a wonderful mixture of God's creation and human care. When we came out of dinner, though, the sun had gone down and all this garden was, was dark. The difference between the steak I had last night and the steak I have at home, and the difference between the view during the day and the view at night are both reminders of the lesson Our Lord seeks to impart in the gospel I just read, and it's part of the promise K and N are making to one another today. You see, what made that steak so good was the seasoning, and seasoning is what Our Lord calls us all to be. "You are the salt of the earth." Salt is a funny sort of seasoning. If you make spaghetti sauce, you want to taste the garlic. If you make curried chicken, you'd better be able to taste the curry. But salt? You put it on your steak not so that you can taste the salt itself, but to draw out the flavour of the meat. Nobody gets up from a steak dinner and says, "Man, that was some tasty salt!" If you can taste the salt it means that the cook did a bad job. And too much salt is bad for your health anyhow. It seems like a thankless role, to be salt. Salt never works for itself � it is always used to make something else better. But without salt in our diet, we would die. As North Americans we probably all eat too much salt, but still � it's vital to our lives. So we are called to be salt to the world, and K and N, you are promising today to be salt for one another. After today you will head out on your honeymoon, as husband and wife. But eventually you will return to your lives, to work and paying bills and seeing friends and family. As husband and wife you will season these experiences for one another, but you won't replace them. Imagine if you both quit work so that you could spend more time together, or refused to see your friends or family because you had to be alone with each other. That's not a healthy way to live, and it's not a very salty way of being. Salt works by making other things taste better. As we heard in the poem LOVE, "I love you for the part of me that you bring out." The question you both should be asking yourselves, and with which you'll probably wrestle for much of your life, is "How can I help N become his best? How can I give of myself to help K achieve her goals?" If you're not doing this for one another, both within marriage and in the world at large, then you have lost your saltiness � you are not doing the job of salt. Remember that you are promising one another to live a generous existence, to give more than you take. This is your calling to the world as children of God, and it is your calling to one another as husband and wife. Our Lord also calls us to be light. Light is a bit like salt, isn't it? You don't switch on a lamp so that you can admire the light bulb. As you came into this garden today, you probably didn't say "What lovely sun!" Light, like salt, is absolutely vital to our lives. Without it, without the warmth of the sun, we would die. Sunlight, in fact, fuels every bit of energy and life on this planet. And yet it isn't light itself that we see, but the things that light illuminates. So, too, you are promising to shine light on the beauty in one another. You are promising to use the light that is within you to show the world and, more importantly, to show one another all the best in life and in each other. When K comes home angry at herself because she messed up an article or forgot a deadline, it's your job, N, to remind her of how proud you are of her and of all the success she has had. K, when N is frustrated because he lost a client or missed a perfect investment, it's up to you to tell him how proud you are of him and of all the good he has done. You are promising today that you will be light to one another. Today's gospel has another message � "A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid." Like it or not, your public declaration of commitment in marriage lifts you up like a city on a hill. Although the salt and light of your relationship may go unnoticed, the quality of your life and love have been raised up for all to see. Just as Christians, or any people of faith, are judged against the standards of their own beliefs, you will be judged by the quality of your love, and will serve as an example to anyone who sees you. Should you be blessed with children, they will be your most important witnesses. That salt and light can't be contained just between the two of you - "Neither does one light a candle and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house." You are called to accept support and love from one another, and then to offer it to the world. As Emerson wrote, "to know even one life has breathed easier because you lived, this is to have succeeded." Lucky for you, it goes both ways. All of us here today, family and friends, all of us have been called to be salt and light as well. We are called to support and nurture you in your marriage in any way we can, in any circumstance. Do you hear that, everyone? I mean it! Just as N and K are called to be salt and light to one another, we are called to be salt and light to them. We are the salt of the earth. It is our job to season their marriage with our love and support, our advice and wisdom. We are the light of the world. It is our job to reflect back to them the light of their love, and to provide our own light to guide them on the sometimes-dark paths of life. Let our light so shine that K and N may be supported and encouraged, and may our good works and theirs glorify our Father in heaven. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. |
