Mark 6:1-13

He left that place and came to his hometown, and his disciples followed him. On the sabbath he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were astounded. They said, “Where did this man get all this? What is this wisdom that has been given to him? What deeds of power are being done by his hands! Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon, and are not his sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him. Then Jesus said to them, “Prophets are not without honor, except in their hometown, and among their own kin, and in their own house.” And he could do no deed of power there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and cured them. And he was amazed at their unbelief.

Then he went about among the villages teaching. He called the twelve and began to send them out two by two, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits. He ordered them to take nothing for their journey except a staff; no bread, no bag, no money in their belts; but to wear sandals and not to put on two tunics. He said to them, “Wherever you enter a house, stay there until you leave the place. If any place will not welcome you and they refuse to hear you, as you leave, shake off the dust that is on your feet as a testimony against them.” So they went out and proclaimed that all should repent. They cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick and cured them.

Let us Pray

Praise to you, God, for all your work among us.

Yours is the vigour in creation,

Yours is the impulse in our new discoveries.

Make us adventurous, yet reverent and hopeful in all that we do.  Amen. 

(

New Zealand

When I woke up yesterday I was thinking about today’s sermon.  I had already planned that this would be my almost annual AIDS Ride sermon.  What struck me was that one of my favorite hymns was going through my head in the period between being asleep and awake and stayed with me as I sat down to write this sermon.  That Hymn is My Song is Love Unknown.  I wondered if this was going to be a distraction to thinking about what the AIDS ride means for me and what relevance it might have to our shared Christian experiences and today’s gospel reading.  When I read the hymn I realized it did fit with my experiences as a member of the crew or “Roadie” as we are called.

Before I get into the connection with today’s gospel, the hymn, and the ride let me tell you a bit about the ride.  This year was AIDS Lifecycle 5.  It was the 13th ride to raise funds for the San Francisco AIDS Foundation and for AIDS services and prevention at the LA Gay and Lesbian service.  It was also the 25th anniversary of the Centers for Disease control article documenting the start of a pandemic that would become known as AIDS. 

I’ll start with the statistics.  First of all we raised over $8 million (A $1.2 million increase over last year)! We had over 1800 riders, an increase of about 300 riders over last year, and over 400 Roadies.  Our oldest rider was 78 and our youngest rider was 18.  We had people from 40 states and 7 countries riding and or crewing.  The riders rode 585 miles through 55 towns and 8 counties.  We sat up and took down a mobile city with bike parking, medical and message facilities, food service and hot showers, and more, in six different locations to care for the riders.  We had gay people and straight people, we had men and women, we had bothers and sisters, moms and dads, nephews and nieces, all riding and crewing to help people living with HIV/AIDS and to spread awareness through the communities we pass through. 

But the ride is more than numbers.  It is more than awareness.  It is about healing and support.  It is about giving people space to freely express grief and to give thanks for lives lost.  It is about people giving thanks for lives still being lived when society has already written them off. 

This year I, along with my partner Jon, were members of the bike parking crew.  Our basic day on the ride went something like this:  Wake up a

4:30

, get dressed and go to breakfast, brush teeth, pack, take down tent and lug everything to the gear truck. Go to bike parking by

5:45 AM

.  Make sure the Gatorade is made, and get out the Route sheets for the day.  The riders start arriving by 6.  Between 6 and 8:30 we hand out route sheets, keep the Gatorade and butt balm tables stocked and reassure the riders that there bike really is still where they parked it (and help them locate it when they can’t).  At

8:30

bike parking is closed and we load any remaining bikes on a truck to be taken to the next camp.  These are usually riders that for medical reasons are unable to ride for the day.  We then drop the racks, load the trucks and go to the next camp.  Once there we set up the racks and the rest of the area and start checking in riders.  By this time it is usually about 1 or

2:00

in the afternoon.  About

3:00

we would take a break to set up our tent and retrieve our gear.  We would then go and check in riders and welcome them into camp. Once we welcomed the last rider into camp for the day we had our crew debriefing, ate dinner, showered, and went to bed. Repeat.  One thing that is unique about this ride is that it is the LAST riders who get the biggest welcome into camp.  Not the first.

This year Jon and I ended up being “Crew” co-captains for a day when our captain was put on hold after becoming dehydrated on day one.  Luckily she was only out one day. As a result of being “co-captain for a day” I ended up spending the week, among other things, managing the “Hold Area”.  One of our jobs in bike parking is to pull bikes from the general bike parking area and put them in holding (Or in prison as some called it)  These were mostly at the request of the medical crew.  If a bike was put on hold by medical we would have to get a written release from the doctors before we could let the rider ride.  This can be a very emotional for the riders. It was managing this area and working with riders who either couldn’t ride for a day or more due to medical reasons, or dealing with riders that needed to “talk to dad” about behavioral issues before being allowed to ride that gave me new insights as to why I keep coming back to do participate in the ride again and again.

The hymn “My song is Love unknown starts “My song is love unknown,  /my Savior's love to me,  /love to the loveless shown / that they might lovely be.”  For some of our riders and crew these line express some of what they get from the ride.  We have riders who have HIV and AIDS who have not been able to tell their friends, parents and loved ones about their disease for fear of rejection.  They feel loveless and unlovable in the real world.  But on the ride it is safe.  No one judges them.  Everyone is given love, respect, and support.  If someone needs medical care, it is provided.  If they need a little extra time getting on their bike and out on the road the crew helps them.  If they are having an emotional day, for whatever reason, someone is ready for a hug or to provide a shoulder to cry on. 

One of our riders, Tom, was unable to ride a couple of days.  Tom is HIV positive and has been riding the ride at least as long as I have been involved.  He listens to his body and knows when to seek medical help and is ok with being told that he should not ride on any given day.  When he can’t ride he comes and helps us with the bike parking area.  It is with joy that he comes to the hold area to get his bike released when he is able to ride again.  Then with the clip of the scissors and a hug he is on his way.  On the last day, Tom woke up not feeling well.  He put himself on medical hold.  He got dressed in his cycling clothes for closing ceremonies and came to help us.  He told us that he wanted to be able to ride into closing ceremonies so he did not want to push his body over the limit.  Besides, he added, “I couldn’t think of a better way of spending my birthday than helping you guys!”  Later in the day Tom was able to ride gloriously into closing ceremonies.  He will be back next year.  He will probably not ride every day but he will get the love and support he needs to help him through another year in the “real” world.

The ride also gives people a safe place to mourn those they have lost.  We have many people riding with pictures of their lost loved ones.  They ride in their honor and to remember.  They ride so they can tell the stories about what made these people special with out the fear that the mere fact that they died of AIDS will shut down peoples ability to hear. 

On our last night in camp we hold a candle light vigil on the beach.  It is a very moving and cathartic experience to have over 2000 people with candles gather silently on the beach in a large circle.  There are no speeches at the vigil.  It is silent with only the sound of the waves crashing into the shore and the occasions sniffle to be heard.  It is a place where people silently offer the memories of their loved ones, both those they have lost and those still living with HIV and AIDS to their God.  It is a place of prayer.

On the last day, when the “hold rack” was right by the racks for the HIV positive riders I helped many of the positive peddlers get on the road.  Being the last day the riders are both excited and sad.  Sad that they have to re-enter a world that thinks AIDS is not a problem.  A world where they are shunned due to fear and ignorance.  On the last day it takes extra hugs, extra help and, for some, a shoulder to cry on, to be able to get out and complete the ride.  These riders would love to fine a world that supports them 365 days a year   For them the last verse of my favorite hymn would probably resonate.  It reflects their wish to stay:

Here might I stay and sing,

 no story so divine:

 never was love, dear King,

 never was grief like thine.

 This is my friend,

 in whose sweet praise

 I all my days

 could gladly spend.

In today’s gospel we heard of Jesus trying to minister in his home town:  “he could do no deed of power there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and cured them. And he was amazed at their unbelief.  To paraphrase Barbara Crafton in her meditation on today’s Gospel   “Jesus' work in his home town was modest: a few low-key healings. We imagine him there, laying hands on someone in prayer the same way we do, praying as we do. Nothing dramatic or mysterious, not this time. A Jesus very close to us, limited by his surroundings as we are often limited by ours.” 

At the closing ceremonies for the ride one of the speakers said that “when we get to heaven God will ask us what we did to help”  I do not believe that God will be expecting big and flashy things from us.  He knows that most of us do not have the resources of the Gates foundation or the assets of a Warren Buffet to use to help the world.  I believe that if we answer God’s question of what we did by telling him that we loved our neighbors, gave food to the hungry and visited the prisoner, both those physically in prison and mentally or emotionally imprisoned by our society, that we will be welcomed with open arms.  I believe that the small things that we all do is what God expects from us.  The big stuff is important but so is the small stuff.  Giving a hug to a person in need or an ear to hear can be just as important as giving millions of dollars for a good cause.

So, am I participating in the ride again?  You bet.  Jon and I signed up on day 5 to crew again next year.  It is one week where we can help people in a very real and outward way.  The ride provides funds for prevention, treatment and outreach but it also allows us, and many others a place to celebrate life.  To celebrate the living and those we have lost. 

I invite you to look for the little ways you can help.  They are many.  Participate in the laying on of hands for healing.  Listen to a neighbor’s grief.  Smile with someone when they share their Joy.  Cry with someone when they share their sorrows.  What we do matters.  God calls us to love him with our whole being and to love one another.  I invite you to discover new ways to sow God’s love in this hurting and hurtful world.

Amen.