Our brother Anglican, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, can tell you a lot about breaking down the kinds of walls described in today's reading from Ephesians. In the years of apartheid and tyranny, when blacks were 3rd class citizens in their own country, Tutu was a leader in the movement of non-violent resistance. I once heard him tell the story of when he led a meeting of this resistance in a church. Suddenly, the rumbling of engines was heard from outside. Looking out the windows, they saw armored personnel vehicles full of police with rifles pointed at them. What to do? Tutu calmly led his brothers and sisters outside, and on his order they waved to the soldiers and shouted, "Hi!" For whatever reason -- conscience, befuddlement -- the police held their fire. Slowly, but surely, the walls which enslaved black and white in oppression and hatred fell down.
The dividing wall of hostility between Jew and Gentile was actually higher than the wall in South Africa. It had been added on to for centuries. As the Jews remembered the conquests, the forced exiles, the returns and yet more conquests, they added brick upon brick to that wall. The more they isolated themselves from contact with the rest of the world, the more offense the Gentiles took at this small, stubborn tribe.
And so "Paul" speaks to Jew and Gentile in Ephesus, begging them to see that Jesus Christ has broken down that wall of hostility in his own human flesh. How? He may not say it explicitly, but our author clearly means the cross, for which Jew and Gentile are equally responsible. For centuries, we Christians evaded our responsibility by calling Jews, "Christ killers." Certainly their leaders, acting on their behalf, engineered Jesus's execution. But you know who the "Christ killers" really are? You and me. It was Roman soldiers, Gentiles acting on behalf of all Gentiles, who hammered nails into Jesus' hands and feet, and hung him up to die.
We are all responsible for Jesus's death. And today, when we erect walls of misunderstanding, suspicion and accusation, we just keep trying to put another brick in that wall and another nail on that cross. But if we will just look up from our bricklaying, we will see Jesus, patiently breaking down the bricks we have laid. Because we are all equally responsible for Jesus's death, then we are all equally forgiven. And in that mutual forgiveness, we are, as "Paul" writes, reconciled to God and each other. No longer separated by a wall of bricks, we ourselves are joined to each other in one building, Jesus Christ himself being the cornerstone.
Or is Jesus the keystone? Our author could have meant either, or perhaps both. The keystone is what made it possible to construct spacious arches in the ancient world. The wider apart the two sides of the arch are, then the sooner those two sides will collapse under the downward force of gravity. But put a keystone in the middle, and that stone will absorb the downward force and disperse it back to each side toward their respective bases.
There are forces in the Church, perhaps as many as the opinions that are deeply held in this unruly family called The Episcopal Church. But when those competing forces come together at the top of the arch and threaten to collapse it, there is Jesus the keystone who pushes our opinions right back at us and asks, "Are you that sure you're right?" And so we remain a holy building, held together by Christ Jesus the keystone.
In keeping with the spirit of Archbishop Tutu, the theme of our just concluded General Convention was "Ubuntu," an African philosophical concept that means, "I am who I am because of you, and you are who you are because of me." Contrary to our sometimes exaggerated individualism, none of us has chosen to be ourselves on our own. Who I am and who you are is a combination of choices, some made by us, and some made for us. That's pretty scary. Does it mean that in any conflict or disagreement I have to give in, that I have to surrender myself?
That's not what happened in Anaheim last week. Resolutions were passed, which honored different forces, different opinions, on the issues facing our church. And General Convention agreed that the only opinion that counts is Jesus's. One of the most important resolutions passed was a statement of principles for interfaith dialogue. And at the heart of our principles is this one simple statement: "Jesus is Lord." That is what Paul said to the Corinthians. And that "opinion," my fellow bricks, is the keystone. If we can agree on that, then the rest of the pieces will in God’s good time fall into place, and the arch will remain secure.
Let us not place brick on top of brick in a high wall of hostility. We are called to build an arch, reaching towards each other to seek mutual understanding. So, keep reaching. Jesus the keystone is waiting in the middle for us.
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