When we started to build the Prayer Garden, the gardeners brought young plants, bulbs and seeds. And then presented us with
a bill for $15,000. I surveyed the back yard and looked at the bill and felt that a terrible mistake had occurred.
And many of the plants have had strange sounding names, so its impossible to know what its going to look like ahead of time. None of the plants and trees in the garden were chosen by the church 
committee. All the suggestions came from the gardener.
So much of what God does is in seed form. At the time that God is working, we either do not see that work or it does not attract us. A seed is an ugly thing. You would never guess that an oak tree is built from a seed or a tulip from a bulb.
Last Sunday, we marveled at Jesus that he chose Mary Magdalene, a prostitute, as one person in whom he saw great value. Today, the lectionary text is about Jesus again going to three groups of people where religious people did not go. The scriptures today challenge us because today is the annual gay parade in Jackson Heights. Our community includes the third largest gay community in New York, yet our welcome as a congregation is uncertain.
Today, we see Jesus from Matthew’s gospel, welcoming people in incredible ways. It reminds me of the verse from Paul, [1 Cor 1:27] But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong;. If you are at a point in life where you wonder if there is any welcome for you, God has one.
The setting is the village of Capernaum for this scripture, which was near the border between territory controlled by Herod Antipas and Philip. Matthew was a toll collector. Like Zacheus and taxes, toll collectors were hated individuals. All of these individuals were seen as traitors. You know that in times of war, some people sell out to the other side and help the foreigner come in. They personally get rich off the misery of their own people. That was the business of tax and toll collecting.
Jesus does more than greet Matthew. He goes to the dinner that Matthew hosts. The dinner was not a small private gathering, but a semi public event that only rich people could afford to host. Jesus did not visit solely the poor. This is a dinner of Matthew’s friends – other toll collectors. I am not trying to draw parallels between the gay parade today and this dinner long ago, other than they are both excluded communities. I believe Jesus would be at the parade today with cards that say – the Community Church welcomes and expects gay people.
Jesus then is called by a father who is so caught up in his own troubles that he is not worried about what Jesus was doing with tax collectors. His daughter is at the point of death and he wonders if Jesus has any power that might change things. Jesus is willing to go there, but there is another needy person along his way. The woman who has some wound or cancer that could not be treated and her life is slowly being taken from her.
Last night was the annual AIDS memorial service for the Borough of Queens and it is held at Community Church. It is an interfaith service. I don’t often participate in interfaith events, but the grim threat of AIDS is so traumatic that I am willing to meet in almost any event that offers support to victims and loved ones.
A young woman was at this podium during the evening. She has AIDS. She has three children and was infected by her husband. He had an affair during their marriage and then passed the AIDS virus to her. Her husband died 7 months ago and as she said last night, she is falling apart. I hope that you offer a special prayer in your heart for her. She needs a healing touch. But she also needs people who support her as she deals with her own life and she needs people who support her as she figures out what to do with her kids.
The gospel of Jesus Christ calls us to support each other in ways that are not always comfortable. Our comfort zone is so often a small one. We look for people who speak our language, share our culture. We like to be with our own age. Jesus says to us in these encounters that we have to be the welcoming presence of Christ.
The incredible ending of these stories is eternal life. The woman is healed, Matthew may be the one who wrote a gospel, and the child was raised from the dead. If we get involved in welcoming, miracles happen.
You have seen the wonder of the garden this Spring. What seemed so humble a year ago has blossomed so wonderfully. In God’s good hands, seeds become oaks of strength and irises of beauty. The miracle in nature is just a picture of what God can do with you and me.
And if you are here, and you need a welcome, you may have come to the right place. We are not a perfect church, but we hope for perfection. There are people here this morning who may not speak your language, but they want to be your friend. There are people here this morning who have gay and straight friends. And there are people here this morning who believe in the power of prayer if you have a serious need with which you want help. In the Millennium Campaign, which raised so much money to renovate our building, our motto was ‘We’re Community Church – and we’re building a new community in Jackson Heights’ May that be true.
